plumnovel Chapter 94 Plan Before You Act
Chapter 94 Plan Before You Act
"The general is wise!"
Zhou Chang's voice trembled slightly.
"Exchanging livestock for grain not only fulfills our promise of not collecting taxes, but also solves part of our food supply problem. Moreover, once the people get used to our cattle and horses, they will naturally become closer to the Taiping Army in the future. This is a great thing to win over the hearts of the people!"
After Zhou Chang's explanation, everyone in the tent understood.
"The general is wise!"
"Yes, why didn't we think of that?"
While genuinely admiring Li Sheng's ideas, they also showered him with flattery.
Flattery will get you everywhere.
Li Sheng waved his hand.
"This is just a delaying tactic. We have a limited number of livestock, and the amount of food we can exchange for them is also limited; it won't last long. The real solution lies outside. Bring us the map."
Liu Wu handed over the map from the side.
Li Sheng walked to the map and traced his finger across several surrounding counties.
"We must fight our way out, conquer new territory, and then we'll have new food. That's the only way to survive."
He turned around and his gaze fell on Chen Yuan.
"Zhongyi, you've served as a military commander in Xiapi for several years, so you know the situation in the surrounding counties better than I do. I want to hear your thoughts at tomorrow's meeting. Go back today and organize your ideas."
Chen Yuan was taken aback, then stood up and clasped his hands in greeting.
"promise."
Li Sheng then looked at Liu Wu.
"Awu, the expansion of the scout team can't be delayed any longer. Starting tomorrow, pick the smartest guys from the old brothers, equip them with good horses, and have them find out what's going on within a hundred miles. Especially the counties of Xiaxiang and Liangcheng in the east, and Qulu and Suiling in the south, I need the most detailed information on their troop strength, food supplies, and city defenses."
Liu Wu clasped his hands in a fist salute.
"promise!"
"That's all for today. Go back and rest. Tomorrow at 9:00 AM, the central army will hold a meeting. Dismissed."
The crowd rose, bowed, and filed out.
Li Sheng was the only one left in the tent.
He sat back down at his desk, picked up the grain register, and glanced at it again. Twenty-one thousand shi (a unit of dry measure), even with the added rations, wouldn't last long. But as he said, saving grain was a dead end; only by fighting out could they survive.
Soldiers must be well-fed and trained to be strong.
Then, they used war to sustain war.
……
The next day at 9:00 AM, in the central army camp.
The battalion commander of the Fifth Battalion, along with various military commanders, Li Feng, Liu Wu, Zhou Chang, Chen Yuan, Gu Yong, and more than twenty others, gathered together.
Li Sheng sat in the main seat, with the same map of Xiapi spread out in front of him.
"We won't repeat what happened yesterday."
Li Sheng got straight to the point.
"We'll discuss only one thing today: where to attack."
The hall was quiet for a moment, then a buzzing sound arose.
A battalion commander was the first to speak.
"General, if you ask me, we should attack Qulu and Suiling to the south. They're close, we can get there in less than two days, we can attack and run, plunder the grain and come back."
The other battalion commander shook his head.
"Those desolate places like Qulu and Suiling have barren soil that doesn't produce grain. Even if we manage to capture them, how much grain will we get? It probably won't even be enough for our journey."
"Then where do you want to hit?"
"Attack to the east! Xiaxiang and Liangcheng, along the Sishui River, boast vast tracts of fertile land, overflowing with wealth!"
"The eastern side is close to the governor's office in Xuzhou. Aren't we afraid of the government troops coming to suppress us if we attack?"
"What's there to be afraid of? We'll fight and run. If the government troops come, we'll go back to Xiapi. What can they do to us then?"
The discussion grew louder, but no conclusion was reached.
After all, most of them had never left Xiapi County in their entire lives, and the news about other counties was all hearsay, so how could they make feasible decisions?
However, Li Sheng did not interrupt, letting everyone argue.
His gaze swept across the crowd and landed on Chen Yuan, who was sitting in the corner.
Today, Chen Yuan changed into a clean blue cloth robe, and his hair was neatly combed, making him look completely different from the taciturn surrendered general he was yesterday.
He sat upright, his gaze fixed on the map, seemingly pondering something repeatedly.
"Zhongyi".
Li Sheng's voice wasn't loud, but the hall fell silent instantly.
Chen Yuan stood up and clasped his hands in greeting.
"General."
"I asked you to prepare yesterday, are you ready?"
"Reporting to the General, I am ready."
"Then tell me, what's the situation in each of the surrounding counties? Where to attack, how to attack, tell me all your ideas."
Chen Yuan walked to the map, took a deep breath, and pointed his finger to the south.
"General, gentlemen, let me first talk about the two counties of Qulu and Suiling to the south."
He spoke clearly and logically, clearly a member of the gentry who had served as a captain and received a formal education, a stark contrast to Li Sheng and his fellow peasants.
"Qulu County has 6,300 households and a population of over 31,000. The county army numbers about 300. The city defenses are rudimentary; the city walls are no more than two zhang high and have not been repaired for many years. Last year, after the rains, several sections collapsed. The county magistrate's surname is Sun, and his given name is Ji. He is from Pei State in Yuzhou. He obtained the position by buying his way in. He is greedy by nature, and his reputation is infamous after three years in Qulu. As far as I know, the grain stored in the county granary was reported as 4,000 shi after last autumn's harvest. The actual amount was probably less than 3,000 shi because Qulu suffered a severe drought last year, resulting in a significant reduction in production. In order to make up the reported figure, Sun Ji included the old grain in the count."
He paused, then pointed to Suiling.
"Suiling County has 8,100 households and a population of over 42,000. The county army numbers about 400. The city walls are slightly better than those of Qulu, but not particularly strong. The county magistrate's surname is Zhang, and his given name is Hong. He is a local and comes from the Zhang family of Suiling, which has deep roots in the county. He is more difficult to deal with than Sun Ji because he has family backing. The Zhang family owns over 10,000 mu of land in Suiling and has over 200 retainers, making them local tyrants. The county granary holds about 5,000 shi of grain, but this is the book figure; the actual amount is likely more, as the Zhang family is adept at storing grain."
After he finished speaking about the two counties, he looked up and glanced at Li Sheng.
"The combined grain reserves of Qulu and Suiling counties are less than 8,000 shi. Moreover, both areas are hilly and have poor soil, so the summer harvest is limited. Even if we capture them, the grain we capture won't be enough to feed our 7,000 troops for a month."
Someone in the hall sighed.
Chen Yuan didn't pause, and moved his finger eastward.
"Then look at the two counties of Xiaxiang and Liangcheng to the east."
His tone noticeably rose a few notches.
"Xiaxiang County has over 11,000 households and a population of over 56,000. The county has about 600 soldiers. The city is well-defended, with walls three zhang high and a moat, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack. The county magistrate's surname is Wu, given name Hong. He is from Langya and obtained his position through the recommendation of filial piety and integrity. He served as the county magistrate of Xiapi for three years. Although his political achievements were mediocre, his reputation was good. After all, he was recommended for the position of filial piety and integrity, and his family was quite influential."
At this point, Chen Yuan's lips curled up slightly, as if he found it somewhat amusing.
"The county granary reported a grain storage of 12,000 shi last year. However, Xiaxiang County is close to the Sishui River and has fertile land, so the actual grain storage should be more than 12,000 shi."
He then pointed to Liang Cheng.
"Liangcheng County has 9,300 households and a population of over 48,000. It has about 500 soldiers, and its city defenses are similar to those of Xiaxiang. Liangcheng County is close to the Si River, making water transport convenient, and its commerce is even more prosperous than Xiaxiang's. The county magistrate's surname is Wang, and his given name is Qian. He is directly appointed by the Xuzhou governor's office. He is more difficult to deal with than Wu Hong because he has powerful backers. The county granary holds about 8,000 shi of grain. Combined, the two counties have over 18,000 shi of grain in storage."
He spoke of these things as if they were his own treasures, clearly demonstrating his extensive knowledge of the situation in other counties of Xiapi.
After all, he came from the Chen family, although it was a branch, it was still very prominent.
After he finished speaking, he stepped aside and stood with his hands at his sides.