Chapter 348 No One Available
In the northeast of the Helan Mountains, black bears patrol here.

Standing on the ridge and looking out to the north at the fields at the end of your sight, the areas close to the Yellow River, rivers, and swamps appear dark green and blue-black, while the grasslands on the slopes and high places appear a broad yellow.

The north wind blew, and the black bear's heavy cloak fluttered slightly.

After standing there for a long time, he said to Yang Fu beside him: "Yishan, the weather is getting colder. The decisive battle between Cao and Liu in the Central Plains is imminent. I should leave now."

The cloak behind Yang Fu was blown by the wind. His face was covered with a layer of white gauze to protect him from the wind and sand. He squinted his eyes to look far and near. The hundred-household offices were either built in the garrison areas of the Han Dynasty or on the former sites of the Hu tribes.

As the attacking party, the last thing Hexi needs to consider now is the defensive fortifications in the living area.

As long as there is no heavy defense pressure, the precious human resources are sufficient to complete the reconstruction of the camp before winter.

However, Hexi has only completed the planning so far, and how to operate it in the future is a thorny issue.

Yang Fu had been with Black Bear for such a long time that he naturally knew that Black Bear had no intention of managing Hexi at the beginning, let alone the idea of ​​inflicting a heavy blow to the Xianbei.

At the beginning of the war, the only intention was to take the human and animal resources of Hetao in order to strengthen Guanzhong.

But the war has come to this point, and all aspects have exceeded the original goals.

This led to a lack of qualified administrative officials in each of the hundred households in Hexi; the most critical question was, who would be in charge of Hexi in the future?
Hexi is too fertile, and the initial idea was to use it as a reusable fishing trap; the Hu people lived near water and grass, and their yearning for Hexi was a life instinct that could not be suppressed or restrained.

From the very beginning, the Battle of Hexi was another kind of grass-fighting, and a sustainable one at that.

As a result, he softened his heart and started to run Hexi.

Managing Hexi would bring huge benefits to Liangzhou, so Yang Fu knew very well that it was now the turn of the people of Liangzhou to express their stance.

Yang Fu hesitated for a moment, but still asked, "When will you be able to return, Your Majesty?"

"After the snow falls, I will order the three counties of Tianshui, Longxi, and Yuzhong to store more fodder. After the snow falls, when the sleds can move, I will return to Hexi, gather the officers and soldiers, and attack Hehuang directly."

Black Bear turned his head and looked at Yang Fu: "I am only returning to Guanzhong temporarily. I will come back after sorting out the autumn harvest. I hope Huang Ge will stay in Hexi, which will help stabilize the morale of the army."

What are the troops stationed and settled in Hexi most afraid of?
They were afraid that the black bear would not come back when it returned to Guanzhong, so leaving Huangge here was a clear attitude.

After all, the main manpower in the Hexi region now comes from slaves and surrendered soldiers rescued and recruited during the war. These people lack a sense of security and mutual trust with each other.

"Here."

Yang Fu leaned over and saluted. Black Bear continued, "All strategies are just a mixture of truth and falsehood. I have threatened the Qiang people through Zhang Xiu. If anyone comes to Yishan to spy on him, Yishan must deny it. Also, we need to urge the collection of fodder from the three counties. I will transfer 100 million coins from Guanzhong. After the counties collect the fodder, I will use the money from merchants to collect fodder for the settlements."

"Your Majesty, are you going to make concrete preparations for the Western Expedition?"

"Yes, I never underestimate the wise men of all parties. To compete with them is to use one's weaknesses to fight their strengths. Instead of doing this, it is better to make preparations for the Western Expedition. If the Qiang people want to leave, they can leave. If they don't, I will drive them away."

As the black bear spoke, he looked toward the distant north again, thinking about the Mobei grassland.

Searching my memory, the grassland south of the desert is Henan, which is the Hetao and Yunzhong areas.

The memory of various maps is not so detailed, but there are always some general impressions.

It seems that if you go westwards through the grasslands south of the desert, you will be blocked by the Tianshan Mountains; if you want to travel westwards through the grasslands like the Mongols did, you should take the grasslands north of the desert?

In today's chaotic world, the map resources left over from the Han Dynasty have been lost, and merchants from the Western Regions always take the Hexi Corridor and are not clear about the passage to the north.

When the Qiang people migrated west in the dead of winter, he would drive the sled to scout the road.

As long as the route is passable and there is no large area of ​​desert or rugged mountains blocking the way, an army of more than 10,000 can pass through.

As for sending scouts to conduct reconnaissance thousands of miles away, this is indeed a solution.

But he was a man who had the ability to investigate, travel, and record, and was so willing to work so hard... I really couldn't bear to take him out to explore the way. This kind of exploration plan would cause great losses.

This kind of plan can only be implemented when domestic manpower is sufficient.

Gathering his thoughts, Black Bear got back on his horse and led more than a hundred riders to join the Qingtongxia camp.

The camps that were originally formed in three circles here have gradually dispersed, forming a series of hundred-household settlements in the Hexi area.

Many of the old soldiers who followed the army did not like the life or fate of guarding Hexi. The old soldiers who were able to follow the army were generally elite young men who had made meritorious contributions during the expedition against the Huns.

These men were all assigned wives, and their children were about to be born.

Even if they were left in Hexi as centurions, they would not be very willing to do so.

Therefore, these soldiers from Guanzhong will be temporarily incorporated into three duwei divisions. After the westward migration plan of the Qiang people is completed, people will be sent to take over after the spring plowing next year.

The fourteen thousand-household units were equivalent to one hundred and forty hundred-household units, as well as three captain units. After being reorganized, these people left with the supplies and herds of animals allocated to them.

As a result, there were only more than 10,000 people left in the Qingtongxia camp, but there were still more than 500,000 cattle, horses, sheep and other animals.

Among these more than 10,000 people, the largest one was Liu Bao, the Chanyu of the Southern Xiongnu.

The attitudes of Liu Bao and his men changed greatly. With the demise of the Hexi tribes and the demise of the two Xianbei kings, the Huns became particularly humble and enthusiastic.

When Black Bear's hundred-plus riders returned, Liu Bao put down his work and waited to be summoned near Black Bear's tent.

Although we have not received any relevant notice, we should still be more or less aware of it.

So many troops have been dispersed from the camp, and the Huns' departure or stay may be decided at any time.

The Huns followed the expedition, but apart from rescuing Hun slaves, the actual number of women, children, and herds of animals captured was not many.

But more than 50,000 Huns were rescued, which was enough for Liu Bao to secure his position as Chanyu.

Liu Bao took the initiative to come and wait for an audience, and envoys from various parties in Liangzhou also arrived one after another.

The composition of these envoys was complex. Some were from counties, some were powerful Han officials, some were sent by leaders of various Hu tribes, and of course there was also Han Sui's envoy Cheng Gongying.

Cheng Gongying had been here for more than ten days. Due to the terrain in Hexi, it was impossible for him to intercept the black bear in the wild. He could only wait for the black bear to summon him in the Qingtongxia camp.

He was just about to reminisce with some of his acquaintances when he heard an official holding a badge approach him a few steps away: "Are you Jincheng Cheng Gongying?"

"Exactly."

"The Grand Marshal summoned me."

The messenger handed him his business card and a number plate, and pointed to the wooden shed outside the big tent: "Go there and wait."

"Here."

Cheng Gongying took a deep breath and prepared to accept the test.

Whether Han Sui's life and wealth can be saved depends on his performance.

After all, the person he wanted to meet was not only the Grand Marshal, but also Ma Teng's son-in-law.

This son-in-law married the daughter whose mother and sister died at the hands of Han Sui.

Therefore, Cheng Gongying was under a lot of pressure and was even mentally prepared to be killed if he had a disagreement.

(End of this chapter)