Chapter 120: Pirate Attack

Facing the enthusiastic gentry of Nanzhili, Li Mu also released enough goodwill.

Using his wife's seasickness as an excuse, he declined everyone's welcome banquet and issued an invitation to everyone on the spot.

Returning to the mansion, it was already noon.

"Husband, this mansion is too luxurious!"

After walking around the house, Jing Yaqing frowned and said.

As the young lady of a Duke's mansion, she had also seen the world.

This mansion in front of her was more luxurious than many Duke and Marquis mansions, and it was not something an Assistant Regional Commander should have.

"That's right, it is quite luxurious.

In fact, this is the result after renovation; the original regulations could compare with a Prince's mansion.

Don't look at the Assistant Regional Commander's mansion sign hanging outside; in fact, this mansion is not my industry.

Yangzhou Assistant Regional Commander is a newly established post, and all facilities are missing.

The court's allocation is limited, so I can only borrow a place from the Prefect's office.

This mansion was a salt merchant's mansion that was raided before, and during the previous Yangzhou defense war, I was arranged to stay here temporarily.

It felt quite good, so I just continued to live here.

After the term ends, I will return it to the court."

Li Mu admitted generously.

Luxurious is luxurious; anyway, this is borrowed, not his private property.

If the censors want to impeach, let them impeach.

As long as the court is willing to allocate funds to repair the government office, he doesn't mind moving out immediately.

If he, this Assistant Regional Commander, doesn't dare to live here, the civil officials who cherish their feathers will be even more afraid to touch it.

Putting things on the table, even if the court wants to sell it, they can't find a buyer.

Unless a Prince is enfeoffed here, anyone else would feel it's a hot potato.

"Husband has his own calculations, but this house is indeed beautiful."

Jing Yaqing said with a smile.

No one can refuse a luxury house; with better choices, no one wants to wrong themselves.

Looking at his wife who kept wandering around, Li Mu really doubted whether she was really seasick; this recovery ability was too strong.

"By the way, husband, you want to banquet a group of gentry; now it's time to prepare invitations.

But just now there were so many people, can you really remember them?"

Hearing Jing Yaqing's reminder, Li Mu was slightly embarrassed.

Besides releasing goodwill, the invitation was more to make a profit and fill his small treasury.

According to the rules of the Great Dayu, formal banquets are issued invitations three days in advance, and people are sent to notify on the day of the banquet.

The problem is that there were so many gentry and merchants during the day, most of whom he didn't know.

Even if he wanted to send invitations, he didn't know who to send them to.

"Wife, don't worry; in this one-third of an acre in Yangzhou, there aren't many things that can be hidden from me.

I have already issued invitations; I think the people who came to welcome me just now will not leave Yangzhou City today.

All gentry and wealthy merchants temporarily staying in Yangzhou City will be issued invitations, and there will definitely be no omissions.

Later, the people below will send the roster over.

After a while, Mr. Lan will arrange for people to draft invitations, and they will be delivered to everyone before dark."

Li Mu said calmly.

The difficulty of verifying identity is high, so just catch them all in one net.

In the short term, everyone has no conflict of interest, so they can be friends first.

Among a group of gentry and merchants, the reputation of his Li Assistant Regional Commander is still quite good.

Although the price is a bit high, he really gets things done after taking the money.

The gentry of Yangzhou can testify to this; he really got the Emperor's pardon decree for them.

Although it was only the Emperor's oral instruction, it was said publicly in the court, so it has legal effect.

"Husband, it is right to banquet officials and gentry; why invite those merchants?"

Jing Yaqing asked with a puzzled look.

The concept of family status is deeply rooted in the Great Dayu. The ranking of scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants makes merchants always lower than gentry.

Especially in the capital, the center of imperial administration, no matter how awesome a merchant is, their political status is not as good as a scholar.

In her impression, merchants are all unrefined goods.

If a playboy fights and injures a scholar, it is more serious than beating a merchant to death.

"Wife, the commercial atmosphere in the southeast region is rich, which is different from the situation in the capital.

These wealthy merchants are merchants in name, but they are also gentry in reality.

Almost all wealthy merchants have a local big clan supporting them behind the scenes.

Pure grassroots merchants, no matter how high their business talent is, cannot grow big.

What I seem to be inviting are merchants, but in reality, I am inviting the aristocratic families hidden behind the scenes."

Li Mu immediately made up a reason.

The truth is impossible to say; it is too damaging to his magnificent image.

Not everyone can look at every profession equally like him.

"My lord, just received news.

Pirates landed in Nantongzhou, attacked the local salt fields, and are now marching towards the state city.

The Nantongzhou Prefect and the Garrison Commander sent a request for help together.

The Prefect asks you to go over to discuss matters."

Hearing Wu Dage's report, Li Mu frowned.

It's really not giving face.

He just arrived in Yangzhou, and such a thing happened in his jurisdiction, which is purely slapping him in the face.

The Prefect's office is also pedantic; after receiving the request for help, they don't hurry to mobilize troops, but want to discuss matters, which is purely a waste of time.

Collective decision-making can indeed reduce personal responsibility, but it does not conform to the art of war.

It is likely that before the result of the discussion comes out, the pirates have already left.

Once they are on the sea, it becomes the work of the Navy office.

Yangzhou Prefecture has no direct Navy, and needs to be dispatched by the Nanjing Ministry of War. After a series of procedures, where can they find people in the vast sea.

Theoretically, Li Mu can also decide to send troops, but the military funds are troublesome.

In order to control the military with civil officials, the Great Dayu Dynasty is very strict on logistics.

Developing to the present, without first allocating the departure fee, the troops won't move at all.

Without the consent of civil officials, the military funds for wars started by military officers without authorization don't need to be counted on; if you ask, there are none.

The military funds obtained by the Yangzhou Regiment are only training funds for peacetime, not including the expenses for sending troops to fight.

During wartime, the military expenditure of the troops can increase by several times or even ten times, which is normal.

"Wife, it seems I can't accompany you today!"

Li Mu said with a trace of apology.

He promised to take her to enjoy the scenery of Yangzhou, but now he hasn't even finished turning around the Assistant Regional Commander's mansion; the gap between ideal and reality is truly a bit big.

"Eating the Emperor's salary, sharing the Emperor's worries.

Husband is an official of the court, so naturally, you should prioritize state affairs. Since the Prefect's office invited you, then hurry over.

The battlefield is dangerous, so be cautious!"

Jing Yaqing said with a smile.

Born in a Duke's mansion, she has seen too many such scenes.

"Rest assured, a few pirates can't make a climate!"

Li Mu said confidently.

Pirates can be carefree because they are on the sea. Running ashore to make trouble is purely tired of living.

Regardless of how rich their combat experience is, naval warfare and land warfare are ultimately different. Bringing the thinking of naval warfare to land is purely sending heads.

Having trained for so long, it's time to let the troops go out and move around.

Especially the cavalry, which needs actual combat testing even more.

Pirates are undoubtedly a good whetstone.

In the Prefect's office.

"Gu, tell me the specific situation first!

Even if we want to send troops to crusade, we must first figure out who the enemy is, how many troops there are, and what weapons and equipment they have."

Li Mu broke the silence first.

War is about intelligence; know yourself and know your enemy, and you will win every battle.

Before figuring out the situation, he would not muddle-headedly take troops to the battlefield.

"Li, these messages are being investigated.

You take the troops there first, and you will know when you arrive."

Gu Youwen said with a trace of embarrassment.

He also wanted to figure out the specific intelligence, but the information reported by the people below was just this much.

Except for an emergency request for help, there was no specific information about the enemy.

"It's okay to take the troops there first, but in the case of unclear enemy conditions, we can only prepare for the worst.

Prefect, how many troops should the Yangzhou Regiment send this time?

When will we set off?

How should logistics materials such as grain and pay be solved?

And the Ministry of War's troop dispatch document, when will it arrive?"

Li Mu immediately raised a series of realistic problems.

The military is a heavy weapon of the country, and it must not be used carelessly.

If it were another province, reporting to the Governor's office and the local Military Commissioner's office for approval would be enough to mobilize the army.

In an emergency, sending troops first and reporting later also happens.

Yangzhou's situation is different; it is too close to Nanjing.

The Nanjing Ministry of War doesn't have much power, so the troop dispatch power of nearby prefectures must be firmly grasped in their own hands.

They hate it when people below act without authorization.

Li Mu knows these problems, which doesn't mean that all the officials present understand them.

"Li, in war, speed is precious; there is no time to waste.

You should send troops first; the subsequent problems will be solved by us."

Ma Vice Prefect urged anxiously.

Since the fall of the seven major families, the salt fields in the Huai region have fallen into the hands of power-holders in the court.

Now that the salt fields are attacked, if they cannot be solved quickly, these local officials will all be unlucky.

"Ma, rules are rules; the Great Dayu Code has clear provisions, and your subordinate is powerless."

Yangzhou is not far from Nanjing; send a boat to rush over immediately, and you can get the troop dispatch document tomorrow at the earliest.

The time is completely enough; after all, raising grain and pay and assembling troops also takes time.

Everyone is here, let's determine the number of troops to send first, and then discuss subsequent problems."

Li Mu said without changing his expression.

Military officers can be arrogant and domineering, can be extravagant and licentious, but they cannot send troops without authorization.

Even if there is an emergency, it is best to pull civil officials together to make decisions.

"The enemy situation is unclear, so let's send three thousand troops first!

Logistics materials will be provided by the Prefect's office. As for the Nanjing Ministry of War, we will also be responsible for handling it.

Li, hurry up and mobilize the troops to set off!"

Gu Youwen said conservatively.

If he couldn't figure out the situation, he would mobilize more troops. He would rather spend a little more to ensure nothing goes wrong.

Otherwise, if they lose the battle, Li Mu, this connection-holder, will pat his butt and leave, and the mess will be the Prefect's office's.

"Sending three thousand troops is no problem; trouble the Prefect to order the recruitment of two thousand young men and mobilize three hundred carts to act as the army's logistics transport team.

At the same time, allocate five thousand shi of rice, thirty thousand taels of silver, three thousand carts of forage, and two thousand shi of soybeans as the army's departure fee."

Li Mu said calmly.

The Yangzhou Regiment is not a showpiece; sending three thousand troops means three thousand combat soldiers.

Combat soldiers charge into battle, and some auxiliary work naturally falls to auxiliary soldiers.

According to past practice, young men are recruited to participate.

Fortunately, it is fighting within Yangzhou, otherwise, the number of auxiliary soldiers would not be just this much.

"Li, you are asking for too much!"

Zhou Assistant Prefect immediately retorted.

Once war starts, gold is worth ten thousand taels.

Before the war even started, the Prefect's office had to pay a huge expense. After the fight, what would happen?

"Zhou, you can calculate how much the army needs to spend yourself.

To make the soldiers below sell their lives, you can't let everyone go hungry, right?

If you don't believe it, you can find a group of young men to test it yourself. See how much they can eat per meal when they open their stomachs.

Soldiers have to travel long distances and fight for their lives on the battlefield, so they will only consume more food.

Besides soldiers, warhorses and livestock consume even more. You all raise them at home; during the busy farming season, mules have to eat well too.

Five thousand shi of rice, five thousand strong men can eat it up in a month.

After I set off, I will trouble you to continue raising grain and pay.

For specific expenses, you can check the material consumption of the army in the previous rebellion suppression war.

You can also check the money and grain consumption of the court on the Liaodong front line every year.

They still have 30-40% empty pay, but I haven't done that!"

Li Mu said confidently, fooling them.

Previously, the logistics material expenses for suppressing the rebellion by the Five Cities Military Commission were directly allocated by the Imperial Envoy.

It was purely fighting his own war and managing his own logistics. There was no need to treat his own people badly, and all materials were allocated in excess.

Not to mention the Liaodong front line, where a large amount of materials had to be transported from the rear. The grain prices in many regions were already three or four times that of Yangzhou.

Calculated according to such standards, what he asked for was considered small.

"Good!

The Prefect's office is responsible for solving the money and grain problem. Young men will also be recruited as soon as possible; please worry about the military affairs, Li."

Gu Youwen said ruthlessly.

For a while, he couldn't figure out whether what Li Mu said was true or false.

But daring to say so in front of everyone, he thought that even if there was some exaggeration, it wouldn't be too exaggerated.

After all, they didn't know how much soldiers could eat, but they had seen how much their own long-term workers could eat during the busy farming season.

According to that way of eating, it is not impossible to consume more than three catties of grain a day.

Besides, there is a certain loss in the process of processing grain into military rations.

There is no problem with the grain, so the allocated silver is even less of a problem.

Soldiers take money for selling their lives, averaging only ten taels per person. They also have to spend a huge amount of money to purchase wine and meat, and the money finally in their hands will be even less.

For everyone who has lived in luxury since childhood, it is only the expense of a meal, and everyone didn't feel there was any problem with this expense.

Even if there is moisture in it, as long as the pirate chaos can be quelled as soon as possible, everyone can accept it.

Anyway, it is spending the court's money; when there is deposit silver in the Prefect's office, no one wants to be a villain.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 121 =====