I

  Chapter 134 132【Strategic Development】

  The family hired another maid and a male worker. The maid helped with washing and cleaning, and the male worker specialized in carrying firewood and chopping it.

   Today's young and strong laborers either gather troops for training or build roads to open up wasteland. The male workers hired by Zhao Han's family are almost fifty years old and already gray-haired.

  Yesterday, the young lady went to church to get married, and today Xiyue is in high spirits.

  She is a dowry maid, and there is no housekeeper in the courtyard, so Xiyue is automatically promoted to be a housekeeper.

  Because Zhao Han has rules and Xiyue herself is well-bred, so she doesn't flaunt her prestige indiscriminately.

She called the four helpers together, and said in a lecture: "If you follow the old rules, you can't even enter the inner courtyard, you can only be servants of the outer courtyard. Since you have entered the inner courtyard, you should have the regulations of the inner courtyard. When Madam came, she bought some toothbrushes and tooth powder, and you each took them to brush your teeth. Look at your teeth, your mouth smells bad when you talk..."

  Zhao Han walked to work, vaguely heard Xiyue's lecture, and found it interesting, and it was funny, this girl is enjoying herself as a manager.

   Arriving at the Yamen of the General Military Mansion, Gu Jianshan has been waiting for a long time.

  Seeing Zhao Han, Gu Jianshan immediately got up and cupped his fists: "I met Mr. Zhao."

   "Sit down." Zhao Han replied.

  Gu Jianshan did not take his seat, but untied his weapon, held it over and said, "Mr. Zhao, I am an assassin."

  Zhao Han didn't take the sword, waved him to take it back, and asked, "Who sent it?"

  Gu Jianshan said: "Zhang Yin, the **** in charge of Ji'an, was ordered to return to Beijing, and asked me to follow the instructions of the county magistrate Wang Tiaoding."

   "Zhang Yin has returned to Beijing?" Zhao Han was a little surprised.

  Gu Jianshan said: "I don't know too well, it seems that the eunuchs are going back to Beijing."

  Eunuchs are going back to Beijing?

   Zhao Han scratched his head and couldn't figure out what the Emperor Chongzhen was doing.

  Zhao Han said: "I haven't asked your honorable name yet."

  Gu Jianshan said: "My surname is Gu Mingshan. I used to be a military household in southern Sichuan. I was lucky enough to be a scholar. Later, something happened to my family and I wandered to Poyang Lake as a bandit. I was arrested by officers and soldiers a few days ago."

   "Governor Li Maofang?" Zhao Han asked.

  Gu Jianshan said: "Governor Li Maofang is nothing to be afraid of, sir, you must be more vigilant about Jiangzhou's military preparations, Wang Siren."

  Zhao Han quickly asked: "What's the difference between these two?"

Gu Jianshan explained: "Governor Li Maofang is very talented, but he is very greedy. After he took office, he immediately recruited 2,000 pacesetters. Due to lack of money and food, he joined forces with the prefect of Nankang to extort violently. He also used the excuse of suppressing bandits , intercepting the food and salaries of the various guards, the Jiujiang Guard was provoked by him to mutiny, and it was Wang Siren who helped to put down the chaos."

   "Where's Wang Siren?" Zhao Han asked again.

  Gu Jianshan said: "Wang Siren is deeply loved by the people. The soldiers under his command have never committed any crimes. If I hadn't gotten involved with Li Maofang, I almost took the initiative to join him."

  Wang Siren can not only do things, but also be an official.

  Although it is just a small matter of military preparation, three of the six ministers today have a good relationship with him. Moreover, these three ministers belong to different factions.

  Wang Siren is proficient in both literature, Taoism and military strategy, and is relatively clean, which can be called perfect.

  If you want to find any shortcomings, I am afraid that there will only be lust. There are only a few formal concubines, and there are many unnamed housemaids.

  Zhao Han continued to inquire: "How is the strength of these two men?"

Gu Jianshan said: "Wang Siren recruited more than 3,000 soldiers, of which 1,000 were sailors. Li Maofang had 2,000 pacesetters, and also recruited many civilian husbands. These two people are used to making money, and the leader of the water bandits in Poyang Lake was bribed by them. Otherwise, I wouldn't have lost so quickly."

   "Where are the uprising brothers in Duchang County?" Zhao Han asked again.

   "In two or three months at most, the officers and soldiers will be able to pacify Duchang County." Gu Jianshan guessed.

  Zhao Han began to think quietly. If the normal process was followed, after Li Maofang and Wang Siren put down the civil unrest in Duchang, they should go to conquer Nanfeng, Pingxiang and Ruijin first. After all, those rebels defeated the county towns.

   But who can be sure that these two dudes won't have convulsions?

  If Zhao Han felt that Zhao Han was more threatening and brought the navy to kill him, could it be that we went to surprise Fucheng again?

  Gu Jianshan suggested: "Mr. Zhao, Jiangxi is full of rivers and lakes. If you want to establish a foundation here, you must have a strong navy."

   "Do you know how to train sailors?" Zhao Han asked.

   "Yes!" Gu Jianshan said quickly.

  Zhao Han asked: "Do water trainers need firearms and crossbows?"

Gu Jianshan said: "Firearms and bows and crossbows are the best. If you don't have them, you can fight. If you encounter water battles, you can charge directly to the board. First throw lime, then javelins, and use long spears to cover boarding. If There is a trebuchet, which can throw earthen pots at close range, and the earthen pots are filled with lime and stones, which can better help connect the ship."

  Zhao Han asked: "Does Wang Siren's navy have many firearms and crossbows?"

  Gu Jianshan said: "There are no firearms, only a few bows and crossbows."

  The weapons manufacturing department in the Ming Dynasty was mainly the Military Weapons Bureau of the Ministry of Industry, as well as the Military Warfare Bureau under the jurisdiction of the Neifu.

  These two departments were finished as early as the Jiajing Dynasty, and the right to manufacture weapons was delegated to the local guards.

  Zhao Han asked Li Banghua carefully that the only place in Jiangxi that can produce weapons is the Weapons Institute under the jurisdiction of Nanchangwei-probably producing two or three sets of armor, more than ten bows and crossbows, and hundreds of spears every year.

  As long as they can afford a high price, they are even willing to sell to the rebels!

  Zhao Han asked again: "How many soldiers should a warship have?"

Gu Jianshan replied: "For the Inland River Navy, 400 warships are the limit. If it exceeds 400 warships, it will be difficult to operate. 400 warships, in addition to the boatman, can be equipped with 50 to 70 soldiers. Smaller Depending on the size of the warship, there may be twenty or thirty soldiers, or thirty or fifty soldiers."

  Zhao Han said: "After I defeated Xie Xuelong, I captured a batch of ships, and I will hand them over to you to control from now on."

   "I will do my best!"

  Gu Jianshan was extremely excited, he was only here to offer advice and suggestions, and he really never thought that he could be the commander of the navy. After all, he and Zhao Han were only meeting for the second time, and it was a normal reaction not to be trusted.

   Now, Zhao Han asked him to be the commander of the navy. This letter made Gu Jianshan very grateful.

   Actually, it’s not that mysterious, Zhao Han’s own prestige is very high, even if Gu Jianshan wants to mess around, the ship’s officers and soldiers will not be completely obedient.

Zhao Han urged: "I'll give you some carpenters and blacksmiths, and you command them to continue to renovate warships. After all, they used to be merchant ships. You can also try to make trebuchets. If it doesn't work, go to Nanchang to hire craftsmen. The training of sailors Besides, I also need to help deliver the goods, I only have the boat in my hand."

   "Obey!"

  Gu Jianshan was appointed as the commander of the navy. In fact, it is more like a water transport team. At this stage, the main task is to transport materials, and it is still a long time before the actual combat effectiveness is formed.

   Zuo Zong, who was originally a fisherman, was in charge of transportation before, but now he will be the deputy commander of the navy.

  Chen Maosheng's right-hand man, Li Huai, serves as the head of the naval missionary. Every warship must be equipped with a missionary officer.

  After Gu Jianshan left, Xiao Huan came in again immediately.

  Xiao Huan is vicious and vicious, and he is actually more suitable to be the head of intelligence, but this position is too important, and handing it over to Xu Ying can make Zhao Han feel more at ease.

  Currently, Xiao Huan has two systems in his hands, one is the spies on the Fucheng side, and the other is the supervision inside the site.

   It sounds awesome, but in fact he only has a dozen people under his command.

  After entering the house, Xiao Huan said in a low voice: "There is news from Fucheng that the rebel army in Pingxiang is gone."

   "When did it happen?" Zhao Han asked in surprise.

  Xiao Huan said: "It has been almost two months. Tian Younian, the prefect of Yuanzhou, has recruited troops to quell the civil unrest in Pingxiang."

  Zhao Han sighed: "Oh, there are still many capable officials of the Ming Dynasty."

  The rebel colleagues in Jiangxi are really weak.

  The rebels in Pingxiang are gone, and the rebels in Duchang are almost finished. The next target is likely to be Zhao Han.

   Moreover, under the deployment of the governor, Zhao Han is likely to be flanked by left and right, and the prefect of Yuanzhou probably wants to cross the border to stab Zhao Han's chrysanthemum.

   Before the officials sent to the east bank came back, Zhao Han immediately held a high-level meeting.

  After explaining the situation, Li Banghua stroked his beard and said: "The situation is changing too fast, there is no need to wait any longer, you can take Ji'an Fucheng immediately!"

"I'm also in favor of seizing Fucheng," Pang Chunlai said. "Before, I wanted to be strong and strong, and not interfere with the government's well water, but now a few officials who can fight have come. Regardless of whether we occupy Fucheng or not, they will come this winter as early as this year. Later next spring, we will definitely send troops to encircle and suppress Luling. If so, we should take the initiative to take down the key areas of the prefectural city first!"

  Li Banghua suddenly said: "Take Gucun."

  Gu Village is Li Banghua's hometown, which already belongs to Jishui County. However, this suggestion is both public and private, not just out of selfishness.

   At this time, Zhao Han already had a simple map, which he brought back from the government office. Li Banghua pointed to the map and said: "The land under the jurisdiction of Jishui County to the west of the Ganjiang River must be taken completely, and then we will move westward to take Anfu County."

  Pang Chunlai frowned and said, "Isn't this expanding too fast? Are we enough officials?"

"It's enough, and it's more than enough," Li Banghua said. "Nowadays, there are too many officials at the village and township levels. It's just right when the land is divided, but after the land is divided, it becomes redundant. If we continue to do this, when our territory grows, the officials' salaries will be spent." It's pretty scary."

  Zhao Han asked: "Mr. Li thinks what should be done?"

Li Banghua said: "The two towns are combined into one town, similar to the previous township. This will free up half of the officials, and they can be arranged to go to Jishui and Anfu counties." As he spoke, Li Banghua stood up and pointed to the map to draw a Circle, "Take Anfu County, and then take Yongxin County. Send hundreds of soldiers to block the main road out of the mountain. The prefect of Yuanzhou can't go around, so he can only go to the Ganjiang River honestly."

   This is a strategic development plan, take Jishui, Anfu, and Yongxin counties, then Zhao Han's site will be surrounded by mountains, and the east will be a Ganjiang River—the south will not be considered for the time being, because there are no officers and soldiers. The west side can also be ignored, that is the border of Huguang, and the use of troops across provinces is very complicated, and it will take a year or two to go through the process.

  The more Li Banghua talked, the more excited he became: "If we win this battle, and take Taihe, Wan'an, and Longquan to the south, then the mountains and rivers will be victorious and as solid as gold."

  According to Li Banghua's idea of ​​expansion, it is equivalent to occupying the entire Jiangxi Basin. At that time, there will be mountains in all directions, and only need to focus on defending the enemies from the Ganjiang River.

  Zhao Han smiled and said, "And then."

Li Banghua pointed at the bottom of the map: "After consolidating the territory, immediately take Ganzhou to the south, and take down the entire southern Jiangxi. After capturing the southern Ganzhou, you can go north to attack Nanchang, and at the same time send partial divisions to take Fuzhou. Can occupy the entire province of Jiangxi!"

  (end of this chapter)