Liu Bei was frowning when he heard the conversation between the two and interrupted and asked: "If tens of thousands of troops feed on meat, how many cattle and sheep do they need? I am afraid that all the cattle and sheep in Yongliang will not be enough for the army to eat for a few months, right? Although Xiaozhi's idea is good, the specific implementation is not realistic."

Fa Zheng smiled and explained: "Your Majesty, don't worry, food can be planted and harvested, and cattle and sheep can naturally be raised and increased. The Qiang and Hu people in Yongliang and Liang are good at grazing but not farming. We can use their strengths.

Although the northern bank of the Yellow River is lush with water and grass, years of wars have made herders disappear. Now we can move some Qiang and Hu to the grasslands, and a large ranch can be formed in less than two years. During this period, some grain will be stored to make compressed grains, and it will not be too late to make full preparations to expedition to Wuwei again."

"Xiaozhi had this idea, and I don't know if it was easy to move to Qianghu. If it inspires civil unrest, it will be more than worth the loss." Liu Bei's expression was still solemn.

Pang Tong bowed and said, "General Ma is very prestige among the Qiang and Hu. The three counties of Tianshui, Longyou and Jincheng are not as good as those of grasslands. But beware of Cao Zhen's troops sent to harass him and those scattered Huns."

"Shi Yuan said it very well. Gaoping (Guyuan) is more than 300 miles away from the Yellow River, and there is not even a decent city around it. Isn't it dangerous if it encounters an enemy attack? If it moves to Lingzhou as a whole, it will be even further away from Wuwei. Secondly, it is too close to the Huns in Shuofang, which will inevitably lead to grazing and causing conflicts." Liu Bei looked at the sand table to analyze.

"It is indeed inappropriate to have a location in Lingzhou too far. There is a shortage of city supplies and rest between Gaoping (Guyuan) and Wuwei. Your Majesty can choose a site to build a city here (now west of Zhongwei). One can serve as a stronghold for the expedition to Wuwei, so that the raised food and grass can be stored here, and the other can protect the migrated herders and solve the hidden dangers of Cao Zhen and the Huns." Fa Zheng threw out his own idea.

"This plan is very wonderful. When the counties in the northwest are recovered, the city will set up post stations and docks to connect passing caravans and messengers, which will be a matter of shooting." Pang Tong was so proud.

Although the two military advisors reached an agreement, Liu Bei did not seem so optimistic and had not made a decision for a long time.

Fa Zheng saw this and asked: "Your Majesty still has any concerns?"

"Xiaozhi's plan is incomplete, but the manpower, financial resources and material resources required to build a city are immeasurable. The population of Yongliang will not be able to recover. If we frequently try our best to deal with Cao Zhen, when will we go east to Tongguan?" Liu Bei was worried that he would be spent too long by Cao Zhen and that he would attack the Central Plains by himself.

"Your Majesty is complicated. In the past, General Lan built Guangzhou City and slowly replenished it while building it. It was not achieved overnight. Moreover, he also mobilized soldiers to build a city. Why don't we imitate Ziyu's method?" Pang Tong smiled leisurely.

"Shi Yuan can explain it more clearly." Liu Bei became interested.

Pang Tong nodded slightly to Fa Zheng, then stroked his beard and explained: "The scale of this city does not have to be too large, and the city walls do not have to be as tall as Chang'an. It is enough to withstand the wind and sand on the grasslands, so the construction is not difficult and the construction time will not be too long. Zilong recruited the people. It is probably enough for His Majesty to only ensure food."

"Shi Yuan suddenly realized this. It seems that this plan is really OK?" Liu Bei looked at Fa Zheng in surprise.

Fa Zheng smiled and agreed: "That's what I mean. It's definitely not possible to mobilize the troops. In addition, it takes time to build cities, farm farms, and grazing, so there is no need for the soldiers to stay on the front line. Your Majesty can withdraw some of Chang'an. If there is war in the Central Plains, you can still send troops to support it. It's not too late to send troops to Hexi (Hexi Corridor) when the time is right."

"Good." Liu Bei nodded, "General Huang is old and still can't stay in the frontier for a long time. I have to withdraw him."

"Who is your Majesty going to keep, which general is to preside over the Western Expedition?" Seeing that Liu Bei was about to withdraw Huang Zhong, Pang Tong immediately asked who the commander of the Western Expedition was.

Liu Bei replied seriously: "Zilong is the general of Zhenxi and the governor of Liangzhou. Who else can I owe him some money to him in Shu, so I will leave the battlefield of Xiliang to gallop."

"Since that's the case, I suggest that Yide and Meng Qi can also be recalled gradually to Chang'an and leave Deng Shihua to farm in Jincheng." Pang Tong made a suggestion.

Liu Bei nodded slightly, "Yi Deke and the Old General Huang recalled each other. Meng Qi also wanted to mobilize Qiang and Hu herders to move north to the grassland. It would not be too late to return to Beijing after the matter was done. However, Shi Zai left Beijing shortly after his marriage. Now he left him in Jincheng. Xiaoqi (Chen Zhen) is afraid he would blame me."

At that time, Liu Bei mentioned Deng Ai's marriage, and Pang Tong and Fa Zheng recommended Chen Zhen and Huang Quan's daughter respectively. Because Deng Ai was a disciple of Lantian, his marriage was like making friends with relatives. In addition, Huang Quan was not familiar with Lantian, so hesitated when asked by Liu Bei, so he finally gave Chen Zhen's daughter to Deng Ai.

Chen Zhen and Deng Ai are both from Nanyang. They are very impressed by the pragmatic Deng Ai and do not consider Lantian's relationship very much. They are happy in their conversation with Liu Bei, which happily led to the marriage. However, Deng Ai's newlyweds less than a month, so he was ordered to carry food and grass to Tianshui to report, and his daughter was taken back to Weiwei Mansion to live.

"Men's national affairs are the most important. Xiaoqi (Chen Zhen) ministers will explain that their father and daughter should understand His Majesty. It is unknown how long it will take for Shizai to farm in Jincheng. Xiaoqi can wait until spring is in full bloom and send someone to send his daughter to Jincheng for reunion." In Pang Tong's opinion, this is not a problem.

"Shi Yuan was considerate. Since the return date of Shizai's military farm was not yet determined, Jincheng would not bother the two masters. The military and political affairs of the county were handed over to him to cook. I will issue an edict tomorrow to appoint Deng Ai as the prefect of Jincheng." Liu Bei thought to himself that Deng Ai was a high-level scholar in Lantian after all, and it would be no problem to manage a small county in the border area.

Zhao Yun and Zhang Fei have recovered a large area of ​​Yongliang in the past few months. The county magistrates, county magistrates, chief ministers, county magistrates and other important positions have been vacant. Liu Bei temporarily selected some officials from Chang'an to fill it, causing the personnel of all yamen in the capital to become nervous. He thought that the group of officials from the Eastern Wu entered the capital and the shortage of people should be alleviated.

The grain harvest in Guanzhong and the war between Yongliang and Liang was smooth. The Han Dynasty, which resuscited Liu Bei's life, ushered in a auspicious New Year. The residents of Chang'an walked around the streets and alleys in the first month of the year. Many people spontaneously came outside the Weiyang Palace and kowtowed to the emperor to the palace walls, thanking the country and the people for their peace and prosperity.

Compared with the joyful atmosphere of the Han capital Chang'an, Luoyang, the capital of Wei State in the east, was shrouded in depression.

Liu Bei brazenly proclaimed himself emperor abroad. Sun Quan of the Eastern Wu was destroyed by Lantian. In addition to not only being unable to help Cao Zhen, the territory of Wei State also lost Nanxiang County.

Several important officials in China passed away one after another last year, namely Grand Marshal Cao Ren, Grand Marshal Jia Xu, Secretariat Wen Hui, Taichang Xing Yong, Yueqin Clan Xun Wei, and Liangzhou Governor Zhang Ji, whose deaths were not reported back to the Central Plains.
Chapter completed!