It takes time for the news to spread. Even if Liu Yuanxiang and Shen Hao start moving all the time, they can't get immediate results.
Tan bin, they will first go to huzhuyuan to explore the situation, and then smash it back to Wuhu. It will take half a month. And Liu Yuanxiang also needs to make some preparations in advance. So there will be an empty window in the middle.
This empty window period can really change into a pattern in the hands of people with a heart.
For example, after Zhu Shou returned, he began to buy barbarian slaves from all slave chambers of Commerce except the bonus chamber of Commerce. Regardless of race, as long as they are barbarians and can be used, Zhu Shou wanted them, and the price rose by 15%.
There is also competition between dental firms. Sometimes they will take the initiative to raise the market price, and sometimes they will unite to press the price of slave chambers of Commerce. Zhu Shou's move attracted the attention of some peers, but no one paid attention to it.
Because the quantity and quality of slaves captured in the South have decreased compared with previous years in the past six months, it is normal for Zhu Shou to appropriately raise some purchase prices. Some people follow and some don't. But generally speaking, I don't think there will be a big change in the supply of slaves in the south.
Only Zhu Shou knows that if he hoards barbarian slaves now, there will be market fluctuations in which the price will double or even several times. He can make a lot of money by taking advantage of his foresight.
The bonus chamber of commerce also took the action of hoarding barbarian slaves. Like Zhu Shou, it even bought barbarian slaves from other slave chambers of Commerce, and the price was also raised by 15%.
The merchants were suspicious, but there was no sign that the market was declining, so other slave chambers of Commerce kept some high-class barbarian slaves, and the rest of ordinary barbarian slaves took advantage of this inexplicable "price rise wind" to deal with them. After making a lot of money, they sat and waited to see the jokes of the bonus chamber of Commerce.
It is reasonable to say that after receiving this ticket above the market price, the bonus chamber of Commerce has to ship, but what everyone waits for is that the bonus chamber of commerce continues to hoard without any movement.
Later, someone inquired. As a result, Liu Yuanxiang, the shopkeeper of the bonus chamber of Commerce, gave the answer that it was increasingly difficult to capture the barbarians in the south. Recently, he met many wolf hunting teams, and the goal was to rob the population. He was worried about what would happen, so he was ready to hoard some barbarian slaves just in case.
It seems that this statement is not false. There is more news that the bonus chamber of Commerce has also sent sentinels to investigate the barbarian areas farther southeast.
This not only shows that Liu Yuanxiang is "cautious", but also has nothing to say. Even many people are secretly holding a smile and waiting for Liu Yuanxiang to hit himself in the face.
What can happen to the barbarians? Funny! After being plundered for decades, I'm afraid the whole ethnic group has been abolished. What else can we do?
But it's so weird. Only half a month's effort went straight down.
March 21.
The bonus chamber of Commerce broke the news that the outpost they sent to baitouxia had successfully found out the recent situation of the barbarians after the death of three people. The news brought back is extremely amazing.
The barbarians are not wild at all in the area south of Baitou gorge. On the contrary, they live a very moist life. The large ethnic groups gather small ethnic groups and have a clear division of labor. Those who can cultivate are just like soldiers. They are about to rebuild the royal court.
Even the barbarians sent a large number of cruising and looting teams to gather the population scattered in the northwest. Now the harvest of the slave chamber of Commerce has become increasingly scarce in the past six months, which is affected by this reason. And it should soon have a direct conflict with the hunting team of the slave chamber of Commerce.
Moreover, more than 200000 barbarian troops have been stationed in baitouxia, Jianchuan and huzhuyuan!
In the face of a formed army, there is little suspense about the fate of the slave chamber of Commerce.
"It's going to change over there!"
The news was first spread through the grapevine. Later, Liu Yuanxiang, the shopkeeper of the bonus chamber of Commerce, officially reported the news to the southern border army, which raised this uneasy mood again.
Of course, by the end of March, the news about the barbarians was still under control. I've heard what I should have heard, but the common people and the Yamen officials far away won't know at all.
The commander of the southern border army was Zuo Yuliang. He was the chief military officer of the southern border army. He was fully responsible for military and political affairs in all regions from Haixia to baohuoguan, with more than 250000 troops and horses. It belongs to the feudal officials in the real sense.
However, Zuo Yuliang has only been in the post of "chief military officer in the South" for four years at most, and then he needs to go back to the military department to hang the job of military Chamberlain. He belongs to the "reserve general". This is true for all military officers who have crossed the threshold of three grades. It is impossible to lead soldiers all year round. Every once in a while, let you be familiar with military affairs, not as a manual student. This has been the practice of the old Jing Dynasty.
After receiving the news from the bonus chamber of Commerce, Zuo Yuliang did not believe it or neglect it. Instead, he sent three Qianfeng battalions and six baggage battalions to the South on March 25 to explore the three places called "Jianchuan, baitouxia and huzhuyuan" by the bonus chamber of Commerce. At the same time, baggage transfer points shall be established.
Zuo Yuliang will not report the matter until he gets the exact information. This is the responsibility of a military chief.
On the fifth day of April, Qianfeng camp, which was going to Jianchuan, encountered a group of 3000 mixed barbarian cavalry shortly after passing Wuhu lake. Both sides immediately had a field battle.
Half an hour later, the two sides pulled apart. The barbarians left 400 bodies and retreated. The Qianfeng camp, which went to Jianchuan, lost more than 200 people and horses and had to be repaired on site.
As soon as this war report came into Zuo Yuliang's hands, he realized that things might be worse than he thought. Because over the years, the barbarians have never been closed to war, and even such a huge formed army has never appeared in the vision of the border army.
This time, the barbarians not only did not retreat, but stubbornly opposed them. This arrogance alone is very different from the past.
Sure enough, on the sixth day of April, another war report came to Zuo Yuliang's hand: this morning, three hundred miles south of Wuhu lake, he met a barbarian mixed team of two thousand people, so he fought. More than 600 enemies have been killed and more than 300 have been lost. At present, we are unable to continue to go south. Please reinforce.
Although more enemies are killed, 30% of the war can be lost, which undoubtedly shows how tragic the war is. This is still the field cavalry cutting each other. It should have been advancing and retreating like the wind. Even if the enemy is defeated, it should not have been hit. It is mostly the result of intentional competition between the two sides.
In terms of combat results, the combat effectiveness of the southern border army is obviously stronger, but the strength is also limited. It is not the rolling situation of one side down.
Zuo Yuliang looked at the two war reports and knew that the barbarians were really gaining momentum.
After that, Zuo Yuliang sent three more troops, five thousand each, to cooperate with the same number of baggage auxiliaries, and went south again. He vowed to come close to Jianchuan, Baitou gorge and huzhuyuan.