Li Hong said to Zhang Baiqi, who had been sitting silently next to him: "I know Zhang Shuai's thoughts. After all, you are the old man of the Yellow Turban Army, surrender is surrender, submission is submission, and there is a difference between the two. If you participate in the official army and join me in the westward expedition, it is equivalent to your betrayal of the Taiping Road and the Yellow Turban Army, so you are unwilling, I understand very well. If it were me, I would have made that choice. You go back to Taihang Mountain. ”

Zhang Baiqi looked at him excitedly and whispered, "Are you willing to let me go back to Taihang Mountain?" ”

"The Son of Heaven has granted amnesty to the world, you don't have any guilt now, you are a free man, you can go wherever you want, but you'd better go back to Taihang Mountain. In your capacity, if you leave the camp of the Western Expeditionary Army, you will be cut off at any time. Li Hong smiled and said, "In addition, there are more than 18,000 people in the list you gave me who are leaving, right?" ”

Zhang Baiqi nodded and said: "Get rid of the old, weak, sick and disabled, that is, those who have a family and a family and must leave, and the rest are some people who are very stubborn and unwilling to join the official army." Does the adult mean too much? ”

"I'm just making sure, nothing else. Now they are innocent commoners and can leave freely. Well, tomorrow, the leaders of your Yellow Turban Army will arrange for them to leave Handan. As you know, I'm having a hard time right now, so I'm doing my best to provide them with a little bit of food for the road and a little bit of food for the road. ”

The two of them were moved to say nothing, lay on the ground, kowtowed to him a few times in a row, and left the tent.

Li Hong looked at their departing backs, stunned. He walked to the edge of the map, his eyes looking at the map, but his mind was thinking about Zhang Baiqi and Huang Ting.

"Zilong ......"

Zhao Yun hurriedly walked over.

"You go and tell Zhang Baiqi and Huang Ting and ask them to bring some people back to Taihang Mountain together." Li Hong groaned and said, "Those who are stubborn and have no home should be taken away, lest they organize themselves to burn, kill and loot in the township, and bring disaster to the people." ”

"My lord, if this is known......"

"I have a clear conscience, what am I afraid of? There you go. ”

The dismissal of the Yellow Turban Army was soon over, and the camp of the Western Expeditionary Army gradually quieted down amid the noise.

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On the field outside Handan City, groups of cavalry and infantry were undergoing arduous training under the leadership of their respective commanders. The sound of war drums, horns, and shouts never stops from morning to night.

Weapons and equipment requisitioned from various places are still arriving in the camp one after another.

On the same day, Heng Sacrifice, Shooting Yingtong, Lou Lu rushed back with 1,100 Hu soldiers.

When Li Hong heard Zhao Yun's report, he couldn't believe it for a while, he cheered excitedly, roared, rushed out of the big tent, rode on the black panther, swept out of the camp like a whirlwind, and greeted him.

For so many years, in the northern territory of the Great Han Kingdom, only he has won the support of some Hu tribes through his own efforts, and he is the only one who has integrated the warriors of the Han and Hu tribes together, and led them to fight in the south and the north, invincible, and only he has always been consistent and sincerely treats the Hu soldiers as brothers. His respect and maintenance for the Hu soldiers finally paid off. This time, when he needed warriors on an expedition of thousands of miles, several Hu tribes who supported him did not hesitate to extend the hand of friendship and gave him strong support like brothers.

The things that Li Hong had been anxious about finally had a result, a touching result. At this moment, he even thought that as long as he had these brothers who were kind-hearted in this life, he would be able to dominate the world and be invincible. I have so many brave brothers in the world, what am I afraid of.

That night, Li Hong warmly received the newly arrived Hu soldiers.

Heng Xi smiled and told Li Hong that Lou Lu had sneaked out again this time. As soon as King Heiling heard that his son was going to accompany the Han army on an expedition to Xiliang, he would not let him go down to Baishan no matter what. The troops can borrow, but the sons can't. Lou Lu saw that it was useless to beg for everything, so he simply killed Baishan all the way. King Heiling was helpless, worried that his son would die in Xiliang, so he ordered the most elite iron horsemen in the tribe, his own six hundred personal guards, to follow Loulu and protect Loulu's safety. He still doted on his son.

The Dancing Leaf Tribe's Ink Shooting and the White Deer Tribe's Lu Pofeng are still the same old saying, whatever you say as a leopard, we will follow what you do, only you are the horse's head.

Li Hong smiled and said to Shooting Yingtong and Heng Xi: "You have brought a few hundred more people, is the strength of the tribe enough?" ”

She Yingtong smiled: "Enough, don't worry, adults." Since defeating Xianbei last year, the border should have been quiet in recent years. Both Murong Feng and Tuoba Feng needed time to recover. ”

Heng Sai also said, "Gokarasuma Captain Mi-sama is recruiting. When his troops have a certain strength, the border will be safer. ”

"Is everyone willing to come? You didn't force it, did you? Li Hong asked, "This trip to Xiliang, the future is uncertain, maybe we will all spill blood in Xijiang, so you must not coerce the soldiers." ”

"Your Excellency is too careful. Before we left, you told us to ask everyone, but there were people who wanted to go home, but no one went back. You're on the spot, you know. After you left, we asked a few times, but no one really wanted to go back. Whoever goes back now is a bad seed, and even if he is alive, he can't raise his head in the tribe. Although we Hu people are not as knowledgeable and knowledgeable as you Han people, we know who is good to us and who is not good to us. How we should repay those who are good to us, and how we should take revenge on those who are not good to us. She Yingtong smiled and said unhurriedly.

"The adults treated us like brothers, treated us as soldiers of the great man, paid us when we were alive, and gave us pensions when we died. Look at the warriors of our tribe, which one of them will not follow you. Everyone is willing to fight with you on the battlefield, and they are willing to give their lives for you. Heng Shi said with a sigh.

Lou Lu came over at this time and said, "My lord, our Karasuma Iron Cavalry has helped you fight many battles in the Han Kingdom for decades, but you are the first adult to pay us military salaries, and the first to pay us a pension. When my father saw the money, he was very moved, and tears rolled in the old man's eyes. My father turned the money into sheep and distributed it to the families of the fallen soldiers in the tribe, and everyone shouted my father's name and thanked my father for his kindness, but they didn't know that it was all a kindness from adults. ”

Li Hong thought of the fallen soldiers, his heart ached, and tears couldn't help but moisten his eyes. He wanted to say something, but his throat was choked and he couldn't speak.

The compassionate compensation, just such a little compassionate compensation, actually won the hearts of the Hu warriors.

Dignity, this is the last glory and dignity of a soldier, and no one has the right to take it away.

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Li Hong once again went to the book of the Son of Heaven.

The troops have been assembled, and it is urgent for the Son of Heaven to decide on the formation of the troops. This is because the structure determines the rank of the officers of each department, and the rank of the officers of each department determines the official position of each person, and the official position determines the rank of each person.

Li Hong played the Son of Heaven and strongly praised the Karasuma tribe of Shanggu County and the Xianbei tribe of Shanggu County, saying that many tribes of the two tribes actively responded to the edict of the Son of Heaven, cooperated with His Majesty's westward march to Liangzhou to quell the rebellion, and each did its best to send a large number of cavalry to join the army of the Western Expedition, and begged His Majesty the Emperor to give him a reward.

At the same time, he once again urged the imperial court to decide as soon as possible the route of the westward march of the troops and to provide military supplies for 50,000 troops, and it is difficult to predict whether the troops in charge will advance westward as scheduled.

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The Son of Heaven is more anxious than him now.

Zhang Wen has been appointed as a lieutenant by the Son of Heaven, but this does not bring Zhang Wen anything substantial that can turn the situation in Xiliang around. He wants reinforcements, enough reinforcements.

After the Xiliang rebels defeated the official army at the end of last year, they were originally going to capture the county of Huaili in Fufeng County before the heavy snow came, but because of the sudden arrival of heavy snow, the rebels had to retreat in a hurry. They took advantage of the long winter to gather an army of 150,000 in Hanyang County. The leader of the rebels, Beigong Boyu, prepared to lead his troops to attack after the beginning of spring, capture Chang'an, and invade Sanfu.

Zhang Wen got the news in February. Now all the Han troops in Sanfu add up to 100,000 people, including the county soldiers who are not strong in combat. With 100,000 men against 150,000 rebels, no matter how they fight, they can't be defeated. More importantly, once Beigong Boyu attacked, he must meet with tens of thousands of Qiang tribal cavalry such as Lingqiang, Huangzhong Qiang, Yiconghu (Qiang people in Zhangye, Liangzhou), Baima Qiang, and Shenwolf Qiang. At that time, the 100,000 Han army could not hold Chang'an at all and hold Sanfu.

Zhang Wen sent an emergency every day, an urgent one every three days, and an extra urgent one every six days, and the fast horse traveled back and forth to Chang'an every day to urge reinforcements. In March, Zhang Wen was in a hurry every day, and the fast horses only saw Luoyang, but not out of Luoyang.

The Son of Heaven and the ministers of the court and the central government urged them one by one like ants on a hot pot, and they were so anxious that they were in a hurry.

Li Hong's twists and turns finally gave the Son of Heaven a chance to breathe. With 50,000 soldiers, it is now necessary to solve the military needs of the 50,000 army and the supply of grain and grass for the westward advance. Who knew that this issue would be discussed for half a month, and no result had been reached.

Zhang Wen had just been happy for a few days, and then found that Li Hong's 50,000 horses in Jizhou had stayed in Handan and had not moved their nests at all. He was in a hurry, and two special express horses a day urged the imperial court, asking them to immediately order Li Hong's army to set off for the west. But the westward route of the 50,000-strong army has not yet been decided, how can Li Hong's troops set off? If Li Hong was forcibly required to march west according to the original route, without food and grass supplies along the way, the army would not have reached the east of the river, and the soldiers and horses would probably starve to death. Even the emperor, who doesn't know how to fight, knows this.

At this time, Li Hong's urging documents also began to fly to Luoyang day after day.

The emperor picks up the easy ones first.

"Ladies and gentlemen, most of the 50,000 troops that went west to Liangzhou were adapted from ant thieves and had no system, so Li Zhonglang wrote to inquire about this matter and asked for a system. What do you think about it? ”

This matter is generally handled by the general He Jin.

He Jin immediately went out of class and said: "According to the military law of the Han Dynasty, the general can unify the army, one military camp has five departments, and one has a maximum of 2,000 people. Each department is led by a lieutenant or military officer. Now Li Zhonglang commands an army of 50,000 troops, and he needs at least twenty-five captains or military commanders, but he now only has four military commanders under him, and there is not a single captain, so how to arrange this system must be considered in the long run, and for a while, the minister really has no way to give an answer. ”

The Son of Heaven was stunned. Do you have to think about it in the long run? When will Li Hong's troops enter the Xiliang battlefield?

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