novelaction Chapter 450: Crisis at Shizhou
Chapter 450: Crisis at Shizhou
Wang Shixiong received full support from his family, and when he thought about the smuggled products of his own being circulated in Yi Yu and Dingzhou, he gradually felt more confident.
Wang Shizun knew that Wang Shixiong was a military officer. If he personally handled these transactions, it would inevitably attract criticism. So he turned his gaze to Wang Danwang and said in a deep voice:
"Danwang, you should also go to Mayi and make sure this matter is settled."
Since being laid off, Wang Danwang has been sitting at home doing nothing all day and is feeling bored.
Seeing the clan leader's order, he said nothing more, bowed and accepted the order, saying firmly: "Don't worry, clan leader, I will definitely live up to your trust!"
The next morning, as the dawn broke, Wang Shixiong and Wang Danwang set out on their journey to Mayi.
On the other hand, the Xiongnu sent Yuwen Zhou to Mayi to negotiate. He was a man with a deep understanding of Han culture and was particularly good at understanding people's hearts, making him a skilled negotiator.
Yuwen Zhou waited in Mayi for two days and finally saw Wang Shixiong again, only to see a middle-aged man standing side by side with him.
As soon as Wang Shixiong saw Yuwen Zhou, he introduced him directly: "Let me introduce you. This person is from my Wang family. He used to be the prefect of Jinyang. Now he is unemployed at home. This time, he came to deal with your matters."
Yuwen Zhou had not known Wang Danwang before, but when he saw the official majesty in his every move and gesture, and heard that he was unemployed at home, he immediately remembered what Yuwen Hua had mentioned before leaving: the Jinyang prefect Wang Danwang was laid off. He secretly guessed in his heart that the man in front of him must be Wang Danwang.
At that moment, Yuwen Zhou hurriedly saluted humbly, first respectfully bowing to Wang Shixiong, then bowing deeply to Wang Danwang, and said:
"Since this is Governor Wang's arrangement, I shall obey your orders."
Wang Dan saw that Yuwen Zhou was very polite and did not have the arrogance and disrespect he had before, and he felt a little satisfied. Then he spoke:
"I already have a rough idea of what you need. Could you please tell me more about the approximate quantity and how much money you have prepared?"
When Yuwen Zhou saw that Wang Danwang's attitude had softened, he knew that the formal negotiations were about to begin, so he immediately told the Xiongnu all the supplies they needed.
Finally, he added: "These supplies are just the first batch, and subsequent needs will surely continue to flow in."
When Wang Shixiong heard the number reported by the other party, he was secretly shocked. The number was so large that it could equip an army of 200,000 with weapons at once. The Huns had a really big appetite.
Wang Danwang, however, looked calm. He unhurriedly picked up the teacup on the table, gently blew away the foam floating on it, took a sip, and then slowly said:
"We can't supply all the materials you need for now. After all, production time is limited. Even after another six months, we can only produce 50,000. Moreover..."
He paused, looking at Yuwen Zhou calmly, "Besides, you will continue to consume ammunition during use, and you will definitely have to purchase more later."
When Yuwen Zhou heard this, he couldn't help but think of the Battle of Yanzhou. In the end, both sides fought for the supply of ammunition. If there was no supply, it would be a big trouble.
He immediately responded quickly, "Lord Wang is very considerate. I am grateful for your advice." Yuwen Zhou was less than 30 years old, so in front of Wang Danwang, he could only respectfully call himself "boy".
"Haha, no problem!" Wang Danwang chuckled, put down the teacup, and continued,
"As for the weapons and equipment you need, I suggest purchasing more mortars and tiger barrel cannons, and fewer heavy weapons.
After all, you Xiongnu are not good at defending cities, and heavy weapons are inconvenient when attacking cities."
Upon hearing this, Yuwen Zhou frowned slightly.
It turned out that when the Xianbei cooperated with the Xiongnu, they had an idea in their minds that if they wanted to establish a country in the Central Plains in the future, defending the city would naturally be indispensable.
Now that Wang Danwang said this, he couldn't help feeling unhappy.
Unexpectedly, Wang Danwang seemed to see through his thoughts and continued:
"Young Master of the Yuwen Family, I will not hide it from you. Although you have united this time and each has his own agenda, you will eventually go your separate ways. In my opinion, it would be best for you to recuperate and then plan for further development in the future."
Yuwen Zhouyi couldn't help but be curious when he heard this, and asked hurriedly, "Please give me some advice, sir."
Wang Danwang smiled slightly, his expression warm, like a kind father, and said slowly:
"The Central Plains is not something you can easily take advantage of. Bingzhou is now divided among various factions, while Shangjun is rich in resources and is a place where various forces converge. If you can seize control of Shangjun, you will have great room for development."
Upon hearing this, Yuwen Zhou immediately understood Wang Danwang's intentions. He was hinting that the Yuwen clan was plotting to seize Shangjun. He bowed deeply and said sincerely, "I understand. Thank you for your guidance!"
It has to be said that there are many smart people in this world, but most of them gradually die out in the mutual game.
There are also many stupid and reckless people, but they can often find opportunities to survive when smart people need them.
Most of the gold and silver looted by the Huns were made into various utensils.
This time, they took out all the gold and silver in order to buy weapons.
Although the quantity is not small, purchasing artillery to equip 100,000 troops at one time is still not enough to cover the expenses, and funds are quite tight.
Fortunately, Mayi can only provide weapons to equip 50,000 troops at present.
In fact, weapons can also be bought in the Yi Yu market, and even weapons produced in Dingzhou can be purchased there, but the price is really expensive.
After all, Dingzhou would never be able to sell weapons directly to other countries, and the weapons produced in Dingzhou were all non-standard specifications, completely different from those produced by the Wang family.
This was exactly what Zhao Sheng had secretly done, deliberately disrupting the market and making the shells and weapons captured during the war unusable.
Take mortar shells for example. If the shells are too small, there will not be enough chamber pressure when they leave the barrel, and the shells cannot be pushed out at all.
Even if it is launched, it will not fly far and may even injure its own people.
In fact, what everyone doesn’t know is that Dingzhou’s artillery shells can actually be used in other gun barrels, but a ring needs to be added to the shell body.
But Zhao Sheng would naturally never reveal this to anyone, as it was his secret weapon.
Today, the Yuwen family still has nearly a thousand mortars smuggled from Yi Yu, and the required shells are still purchased from Yi Yu.
They also tried to make their own artillery shells, but both the power and accuracy were far inferior to those purchased by Yi Yu, but they were still usable.
Another point is that the weapons manufactured in Dingzhou are not only light but also extremely accurate, making them very popular on the battlefield.
So everyone could see at a glance that the cannons produced by the Wang family of Mayi were high-quality imitations.
However, this time when Yuwen Zhou came, in addition to purchasing the Wang family's artillery, he also customized artillery shells that matched the caliber of the mortars purchased from Yi Yu.
After all, the artillery shells produced in Mayi are much cheaper.
A month after occupying Linhu, the Xiongnu army, relying on the advanced weapons in their hands, attacked Shizhou again with great momentum.
At that time, the prisoner Fang Zhixing was exempted from punishment for his meritorious service in the war and was given a piece of land outside Shizhou.
He lived with a group of prisoners who had also participated in the war. They still adopted the prison-style management model, except that the managers became themselves. Fang Zhixing still held the title of chief.
On this day, news came that the Hun army was attacking.
Fang Zhixing received Qiao Mang's order and hurriedly brought his men to Shizhou.
"Counselor Lang, the garrison commander summoned us here. Are the Huns attacking?"
Fang Zhixing didn't see Qiao Mang, and it happened that Counselor Lang Zhaoxiang was at the gate of the government office, so he hurried forward to ask.
"I'm afraid this will be a fierce battle. Wang Tieniu has found out that the Xiongnu are coming with firearms this time, and their numbers are several times greater than ours on the city wall."
Lang Zhaoxiang said with a serious expression.
Fang Zhixing was bewildered. He had no idea what a firearm was. The last time they went to war, everyone used swords, spears, and arrows. What on earth were these firearms?
He knew nothing, and a sense of unease welled up in his heart...