Chapter 23 The war is about to begin
"There has been no war on the northeastern border for more than 20 years. Why did the war suddenly break out this year?" Luo Jin said in a deep voice.

Duan Changhe thought for a moment and said, "I have received some news. It is said that it has not rained outside Chongshan Pass for eight consecutive months this year, and it was not until a month ago that a heavy snow fell!"

Chongshan Pass is the most important border pass on the northeastern border of Dayong. Beyond Chongshan Pass is the territory of the Hu tribe.

The Hu people outside Chongshan Pass are mainly from the Donghai Hu people. They make a living by nomadism and hunting. For them, the most terrible natural disasters are drought and snowstorms.

Last year they first experienced drought and then a snowstorm. The results are needless to say.

Luo Jin was not clear about the situation of the Donghai Hu people. He was only the magistrate of Anning County, not a general of the Northeast Frontier Army. Naturally, he would not pay attention to the situation of the Donghai Hu people.

"Does this mean that this war is inevitable?"

"The court should have anticipated this!" Duan Changhe said.

After hearing this, Luo Jin felt much more at ease.

If the court had anticipated this, the Hu tribe in the East China Sea should not have been a threat. Of course, this does not mean that Anning County is worry-free. War situations change rapidly and no one can be absolutely safe.

Even if the court had been prepared, it might not be able to keep all the Hu people out of Chongshan Pass.

"Then get ready!"

"Let the Inspection Office keep a close eye on passers-by to prevent spies from entering the county town. Gather the yamen runners and civilians to stand guard day and night. Lord Li will be in charge of this matter, okay?" Luo Jin looked at Li Qing.

Li Qing stood up and bowed, saying, "I obey your orders!"

Luo Jin nodded slightly, and then said to Duan Changhe: "The granary of the county government is of utmost importance. Sir Duan, I need you to guard the granary and no mistakes can be made."

There are not many soldiers available in the county government, only a few hundred at most. If a large number of Hu people really enter Anning County, the county will have no choice but to defend itself.

To defend the city, food support is naturally needed. Luo Jin has already made plans for the worst and has given priority to ensuring that there are no problems with the county government's granary.

"I obey your command!" Duan Changhe also stood up and responded, but he asked again: "Sir, do you want to recruit civilian warriors?"

Folk warriors are a force that cannot be underestimated, and the imperial court will certainly not ignore the power of folk warriors. Therefore, the prefecture and county governments of the Darong Dynasty have the power to temporarily recruit warriors, which is referred to as the call for warriors.

However, a call to arms cannot be issued casually. Only in the most critical moments can the prefecture and county governments issue a call to arms.

Luo Jin shook his head and said, "Not yet. The Hu tribe has not yet entered the country, so we have no right to issue a call for troops."

"But we can prepare in advance. We can arrange for the yamen runners to guard outside the city with the list of warriors. Once we receive an order or find that a large army of the Hu tribe is besieging the city, we can immediately issue a call for troops."

"Your Excellency has really considered everything!" Duan Changhe flattered him subtly.

Li Qing glanced at Duan Changhe and curled his lips in disdain.

This guy always likes to flatter people, which is really despicable.

However, Duan Changhe didn't care about Li Qing's contemptuous look at all, and his face remained calm.

……

The news of the impending border war spread quickly outside the county. Before the New Year's excitement had even died down, Yang Zhengshan received the news. The news was sent by Lu Wenchun at the request of Lu Zhaoqi.

"Uncle, my father also asked me to convey a message." Lu Wenchun said in a low voice in the main hall of the Yang family.

"What?" Yang Zhengshan's brows were twisted into a knot.

The invasion of the Hu people is not a good thing.

The slightest misfortune could very likely bring disaster to the Yang family.

The Hu tribe was not a mountain bandit. Mountain bandits were no more than a few dozen or a hundred people at most, and there would not be any powerful warriors among them. However, the Hu tribe had thousands of troops and many powerful warriors.

With Yang Zhengshan's current strength, he was not strong enough to fight against the Hu tribe's army. Not to mention the army, even if it was a small force, Yang Zhengshan was not sure he could fight against it.

"This may be an opportunity!" said Lu Wenchun.

Yang Zhengshan's eyes flashed, he understood what Lu Zhaoqi meant.

He had wanted to seek an official position before, but unfortunately the timing was not right and there was no suitable vacant position for him in the county government, so he had to give up temporarily.

Now that a border war is about to break out, it is likely to affect Anning County. This is indeed a rare opportunity.

This really illustrates the coexistence of opportunities and dangers.

"I understand, you go back first!"

Yang Zhengshan nodded, then stood up and sent Lu Wenchun out of the house.

Now is a time of trouble, and Lu Wenchun has no time to stay as a guest at the Yang family. As the eldest grandson of the Lu family, he still has a lot of things to do.

After seeing Lu Wenchun off, Yang Zhengshan sat in the main room and thought for a long time before coming to Yang Zhengxiang's house.

"Is this serious?"

When Yang Zhengxiang heard that a war was about to break out on the border, he fell into panic.

"It's almost certain. The county government is already making preparations now." Yang Zhengshan said.

Yang Zhengxiang's old face was wrinkled, and he paced around the house anxiously with his hands behind his back.

He had lived for sixty years and naturally understood the horror of war. In fact, the northeastern border had been very peaceful in the past twenty years. The reason was the Battle of Black Cloud Mountain twenty years ago. In that battle, Dayong won a great victory and wiped out most of the main forces of the East China Sea Hu tribe in one fell swoop, causing the East China Sea Hu tribe to have not recovered until now.

Before the Battle of Black Cloud Mountain, there were wars on the northeastern border year after year, with a small fight every two years and a large fight every three years. From time to time, Hu cavalry would cross the border and enter Dayong, slaughtering and looting everywhere.

Yangjia Village also suffered from the plunder of the Hu people from the East China Sea. In the worst incident, nearly half of the villagers in Yangjia Village were killed or injured, and they had to hide in Changqing Mountain and become savages.

Yang Zhengshan, the original body's mother, unfortunately died due to the plundering of the Hu tribe in the East China Sea.

Thinking about the hardships of those years, Yang Zhengxiang's heart ached as if someone was squeezing it tightly.

Now that the border war has broken out again, he is really afraid that the same situation will happen again.

"What do you think?" Yang Zhengxiang suddenly looked at Yang Zhengshan.

Yang Zhengshan habitually rubbed the calluses on his knuckles and said calmly, "It's too early to say anything now. Nothing can be determined until the war breaks out."

"All we can do is prepare in advance. If the border troops can stop the invasion of the Hu people, then everything has nothing to do with us. If they can't stop them, then we must at least have some strength to resist and have a way to retreat!"

The Yang family is unable to influence the direction of this war with their own strength. All they can do is to protect Yangjia Village as much as possible while preserving themselves.

Yang Zhengxiang seemed to be thinking about something. "Resistance! Then we need to train our troops. The retreat route! Changqing Mountain!"

"That's right!" Yang Zhengshan nodded. "If it's just a small group of Hu cavalry, we can find an opportunity to fight. If it's a huge army, then we can only hide in Changqing Mountain."

Opportunities and dangers coexist. If the Yang family wants to gain achievements, they can only fight on the battlefield. The border war is about to break out, which is indeed an opportunity for the Yang family. However, if things cannot be done, Yang Zhengshan does not want to ruin the entire Yang family and himself for some achievements.

Therefore, he has to prepare for both scenarios.

(End of this chapter)