Imperial Master of the Ming Dynasty

In the night, thousands of elite cavalry were approaching a certain point in a network.

The armor is curled and there is no sound.

"Commander Ji!"

Ji Gang, who looked a little haggard, could hear the "wow" sound of the girl doll vaguely lingering in his ears, and he turned around in a daze.

"Huo'erhui, Timur, how are your preparations going?"

The people who came to look for him were two Tartar officials. Well, that was what Zhu Di said. When Jingnan was in chaos, they charged at him desperately with their armored cavalry, but were shot down one by one by Tong Xin. goods.

After surrendering after the war, Zhu Di not only did not deal with them, but promoted Qianhu to be his personal guard.

As for the other powerful Confederate generals who refused to surrender, they were all beheaded.

His hero, my enemy, that's all.

"Everything is ready. Commander Tong's Hai Dongqing is still hovering over the village. The bastard has been tamed by Commander Tong and has the same mind. If there is something really going on inside, he will fly over to warn him immediately. What's more, There is also Commander Tong’s whistle as a signal.”

"good."

Ji Gang nodded and said, "Then it's all your fault. These are all your people, and I can't interfere."

"As it should be."

Huoerhui responded, holding a horse-stem.

In fact, the two Tartar officials just gave Ji Gang a face and routinely reported to the officials present who were not in charge.

There are many factions in the army. Even though Ji Gang was born in the Zhongyi Guards, after all, he is now the commander of the Jinyi Guards and it is not convenient for him to command the Zhongyi Guards on his behalf.

What's more, how could a smart man like Ji Gang reach out to seize military power that does not belong to him? If Zhu Di knows about it, is it too long to live?

Therefore, Ji Gang found a tree, leaned against it, and took a nap.

The cry of the baby girl still echoed in my ears.

But he fell asleep peacefully.

At the same time, Zhang Erlang also left his courtyard in a hurry.

The result of the discussion with his father just now was very serious. Many people had met Zhou Shibo, including those scholars. Therefore, it was extremely difficult for Zhou Shibo to leave Jiangnan quietly.

Now there are soldiers and horses everywhere outside. Once they are stopped and checked for identity, and it is found that they are absconding imperial prisoners, the consequences will be disastrous. Their entire clan will face the risk of being implicated.

For the current plan, it is safest to hide Zhou Shibo in the mountains. As long as he avoids the limelight of the army dispatching to enforce the "shared labor into the land", he can naturally think about it calmly in the future.

But

A hint of gloom flashed in Zhang Erlang's eyes.

The official who came to the village temporarily, and several of his guards, especially the middle-aged man whose wife was dressing up, looked like an old soldier who had been on the battlefield, and the weird-looking one with a Badong The Mongolians, who are like gibbons, are difficult to deal with.

"We can only go to the mountains and discuss with Zhou Shibo whether to move the rebels in the mountains." Zhang Erlang thought secretly in his heart.

"Woof woof!"

Several dogs barked one after another.

What Zhang Erlang didn't know was that a woman huddled in the livestock pen saw him coming, stopped grinding the cracks in the shackle chain, and hid under the belly of the buffalo.

"Tonight is probably the last chance."

The woman was originally a business woman who was kidnapped by the refugees. She usually acted as the proprietress in the store. How could she be willing to be a nameless and statusless wife to a strange and vulgar man?

On weekdays, they wore gold and silver, ate well and drank well, and slept under red gauze tents. Now, not only were they beaten, scolded and not fed well, but they could only sleep in livestock stalls. Women even dreamed of escaping from here.

Fortunately, when the landlady is entertaining guests, the woman's mind is shrewd and observant, and she quickly makes inferences based on the information she already knows.

"That green-robed official with a foreign accent is not with Zhang Erlang and the others. Otherwise, when they saw me during the day, they would not have a brief chat with Zhang Erlang from a distance."

"Then why is Zhang Erlang rushing to the side door facing the mountain at such a late hour?"

The woman came up with the answer almost instantly.

Zhang Erlang is going to the mountains. There are secrets in the mountains!

Because the refugees who robbed and occupied him often carried rice bags into the mountains with their companions, it meant that there must be people hiding there, and there were many people, otherwise it would be impossible to need so much rice every month.

Even in order to support these mysterious mountain people, the people in Wubao didn't have enough to eat every day and had to open up new farmland to grow food.

"Perhaps the green-robed officer is here to pursue this secret?"

A reasonable thought suddenly appeared in the woman's mind.

"not good!"

"Zhang Erlang is going to call people in the mountains, and assassinate them at night to keep the secrets in the mountains!"

Thinking that her only hope of escaping would be shattered tonight, the woman endured the pain and continued to grind the gaps in the shackles. Even though her slender wrists were bruised and bruised, she did not stop.

The chain was just made of thick iron mixed with impurities. She probably thought she was a weak woman, or maybe she just wanted to save some iron. Each oval-shaped iron ring was not very strong. As long as a gap was found, it could be removed. The shackled upper half moves.

There are countless noble and dirty secrets hidden in the dark night.

Zhang Erlang hurriedly entered the mountain. The mountain was not high, just the remnant of a nearby small mountain range. But it was very deep. There were many underground rivers, caves, and caves, making it easy to hide people.

If we go back to the Three Kingdoms era, the Sun Wu regime continued to capture Shanyue people from these mountains to replenish manpower. It is similar to the way that later generations of the Qing Dynasty captured Jurchens born in the Daxingan Mountains to serve as soldiers.

After twisting and turning into the depths of the mountain, I greeted the sentry on guard, and then passed a canyon that looked like a line of sky, and the inside suddenly became brighter.

There is actually a small mountain village hidden in this canyon!

The village occupies a large area with numerous buildings. Several simple but sturdy earthen platforms were set up at the entrance of the village, with archers even mounted on them. Several guards standing guard at the entrance of the cottage were also holding knives and guns, looking at the surrounding environment warily, as if this was not a cottage but a military fortress.

Seeing him coming back, several guards guarding the village gate first checked the password, and then all came to greet him.

"Erlang!"

Zhang Erlang nodded to them and said, "Well, I'm back. I'm going to see Mr. Zhou. You guys go ahead and do your work first!"

After saying hello, Zhang Erlang quickly walked to the center of the village and stopped in front of the most spacious stone house.

"Tuk-tuk-tuk!"

"Enter."

At this moment, a middle-aged man was sitting on a chair drinking tea. A solitary lamp was lit on the table, and there was no one around the table.

Seeing Zhang Erlang coming back, Zhou Jin put down the tea cup and asked with a smile: "Why are you coming back so late today?"

"There was an accident outside."

After listening to Zhang Erlang's words, Zhou Jin didn't think much about it. After all, at this age, he would always encounter all kinds of things, so he waved his hand and said, "You might as well tell me."

"Some officials are here, and they are escorting them. I don't know if they are really passing by, or they are here to track down Zhou Shibo."

Zhang Erlang said seriously: "How long will Zhou Shibo keep this secret from them?"

After listening to Zhang Erlang's words, Zhou Jin's face darkened and he asked in a solemn voice: "What do you mean by this?"

"Zhou Shibo, don't pretend to be confused."

Zhang Erlang was almost furious: "What did Zhou Shibo tell us back then?"

"It is said that you carried the imperial edict to recruit the rebel army Qin Wang to rescue him. The Yan army had to retreat to the north of the Yangtze River. The Yangtze River is so vast that it is absolutely impossible to cross it by force. As long as we recruit some brave soldiers, we can get promoted and make a fortune when we get to Nanjing, and we will not have to stay in the country in the future. I've been digging for food, saying it was promised by Emperor Jianwen himself!"

"and after?"

Zhang Erlang walked back and forth in the room, his anger palpable.

"We, father and son, believed your words and gave up our family wealth saved for several generations to help you recruit brave soldiers. As a result, the city of Nanjing was destroyed just after the army was formed. You also said that Emperor Jianwen must have escaped, and all he needed was Jiangbei's Prince Consort. Once the Yan army's retreat is blocked, it won't take long for King Qin's troops from all over the country to swarm in. At that time, just like the story of Hou Jing's Rebellion, the army composed of northern Han'er and Tartar officials who were strong for a while will sooner or later be exhausted. Died in Nanjing city."

"But what's actually going on?" Zhang Erlang grabbed the tea cup and smashed it. "The King of Yan ascended the throne, and it will be determined by the announcement of the prefectures and counties in the world. The Prince Consort of Jiangbei in your mouth still refuses to fight and surrender. We, father and son, are still unwilling to fight." I'm going to do something big with you with my head up, and what's waiting is for the Yan army's hundred thousand strong force to come to Jiangnan like a sieve to clean up!"

"What should we do now? Are these a hundred or so brave soldiers going to be used to shake the tree with a hundred thousand Yan army?"

"How long are you going to use those words from before to deceive these brave soldiers who don't know what's going on outside the mountains?"

Faced with Zhang Erlang's angry questioning, Zhou Jin asked calmly.

"What now?"

"You ask me?" Zhang Erlang looked surprised.

"Yeah." Zhou Jin nodded, "Then what are you going to do now?"

"Kill me, or let me get out of here?"

"Kill me, even if no one tells me about it. You have secretly amassed hundreds of private soldiers, and the local powerful armed forces have reached this point. With Yan Ni's ruthless determination, I will not let you go."

"Let me get out of here. I am a scholar and an imperial prisoner. Without a way to lead, I will be caught sooner or later. When the time comes, I will not be able to withstand the punishment, so I will hand you out without any choice."

Zhang Erlang was stunned.

"Shameless! My father and son have tried their best to help you. Is this how you repay me?"

Zhou Jin also sneered and mocked: "You forget your life when you see small profits, you cherish your life when you do big things, and you think about protecting yourself when things happen. How can I repay you?"

"At this point, if you still want to save your life, then go out with me and a dozen of your confidants and kill the official and the bodyguards around you. Naturally, you will be safe."

Zhang Erlang still didn't know that Zhou Jin's oath was just a lie to deceive them. Now that he was on the pirate ship and couldn't get off, he had no choice but to follow Zhou Jin's wishes and walk all the way to the dark side.

But before going out, Zhang Erlang couldn't help but ask.

"What are you planning on?"

Zhou Jin replied enthusiastically: "If you die for the righteousness of your monarch and ministers, you will die. You will definitely leave your name in history!"

Zhang Erlang really wants to ask, are you going to risk the lives of hundreds of us just to leave your name in history?

But now, when he thinks back to the scene when his father and son were deceived by Zhou Jin with just a few words, they wanted to use the merits of the King of Qin to get rid of their status as rural tycoons and jump into the sky, Zhang Erlang sighed with regret.

Everyone in the world comes for profit. Zhou Jin's profit is his fame, and his own is his official position. What's the difference?

But suddenly I felt that Zhou Shibo, whom I had admired in the past, looked a bit disgusting in his appearance as a proud loyal minister and filial son.

"The junior officials below are all slick and can't be trusted. This year, we will need to transfer people from other places to clear the land and update the fish scale register."

"The main purpose of the army's pressure is to clear out banditry, suppress the local area, and prevent these local forces from gathering together and causing obstacles to the advancement of the work."

It was night, but few of them were sleepy. Zhu Di was sitting on the couch discussing with Jin Youzi the specific implementation issues of the slave labor in Jiangnan.

Although there will be real problems in the local area, either the petty officials are unreliable or the clan forces are playing tricks.

However, it was precisely because of his personal in-depth investigation in Jiangnan that Zhu Di determined that Jiang Xinghuo's proposal of sharing the labor into the land was an extremely effective policy, and its effectiveness far exceeded his expectations.

In the south of the Yangtze River, there are many refugees, hermits, and tenant farmers. The reason why they want to farm land for others is that they cannot afford the huge risks that corvée brings to their production and life.

Of course, if Jiang Xinghuo were here, he would definitely have to say something about the inherent fragility of the small farmer economy.

But no matter how difficult it is, as long as the effect is excellent, it will not be difficult in front of Zhu Di who governs the country with iron-blooded methods. He can only ask the mantis arm to block the car.

Zhu Di seemed a little excited about this. It was one thing to listen to Jiang Xinghuo's lectures in prison, but it was another thing to see the policy from design to implementation with his own eyes.

Seeing the popularity of the people in Jiangnan, they will follow the slaves into their fields and join them.

The gentry class in the south of the Yangtze River, the basis of Emperor Jianwen's rule, would be severely affected.

Now that he has solved the problem of reducing vassal status and initially suppressed the Jiangnan gentry, Zhu Di finally feels that his throne is secure. Can he not be excited?

And when the two of them took a break from talking, a shadow suddenly appeared outside the window.

His hair is disheveled, like a ghost.

"Qiang!"

The guards' swords were unsheathed.

A woman's voice came in a low voice: "Don't make any noise, I'm the one you saw in the livestock pen during the day."

At Zhu Di's signal, a guard opened the window, and the woman was pulled in with great effort.

"Why don't you enter through the door?" Zhu Di asked knowingly.

"There is a dog watching at the door, and if you enter its range, it will start barking."

Zhu Di nodded. The dog at the door that he said belonged to the courtyard was actually used by Zhang Erlang to guard them. Looking at the shackles on the woman's hands and the bruised wrists, it didn't look like some cruel trick. Kind of tricks.

"Tell me about it."

"Shangguan, please save the women. They were abducted by them."

The woman briefly talked about her identity and experiences, and finally said eagerly: "Zhang Erlang has gone to the back mountain. He must want to bring people to kill you and silence you. Please Shangguan take the civilian women with him to give the civilian women a chance." , the peasant woman can ride a horse, even if she falls behind halfway and gets shot, she will never complain, as long as she takes the peasant woman with her!"

To the woman's surprise, the middle-aged man dressed as his wife shook his head and said.

"Who said we were leaving?"

"It'll be too late if you don't leave!" The woman was a little anxious and even cried.

"It's too late now."

Zhu Di said slowly and calmly. The woman was a little stunned for a moment, but then she saw several guards pulling out their knives, using the bed boards and round tables that had been removed as shields, and kicked open the door.

Zhu Di smiled at Jin Youzi and said, "Let Guantong command the troops to defeat the enemy."

"call out!"

Tong Xin took the lead with an arrow and shot straight through the person walking in front. The huge force made him stumble back twice before falling to the ground. The enemy who came up under the cover of night saw that he had been discovered and simply stopped covering up.

In the dark night, Tong Xin's vision seemed not to be affected by anything. Every arrow could take away a living life, just like the god of death on the battlefield.

"Fight back!"

Zhang Erlang was furious. Seeing that his archers were about to be shot dead without even being able to take aim, he picked up a pair of bows and arrows from the ground and wanted to shoot them back himself.

"Erlang, you can't see anything at night!"

The remaining archers hid in the blind corners of the wall as if they were hiding from the god of plague, not even daring to emerge.

There is no way, that man's arrows are too accurate, and they are generally suffering from night blindness due to lack of nutrition. Even Zhang Erlang, who eats well and does not suffer from night blindness, can aim and shoot at night with the same accuracy as during the day, and does not pose a threat at all. .

Zhang Erlang bent his bow and nocked an arrow, just about to shoot, but suddenly he felt as if a disaster was coming, and subconsciously turned sideways. Then, a heavy arrow shot past his body, nailing the person behind him directly. on the ground.

"Why not approach the marksman?"

Zhou Jin hid further behind and yelled at Zhang Erlang.

"If you can't rush through, you can't fight at all!"

Zhang Erlang pointed to the front line with all his strength. A dozen strong men charged at the opponent's three or four guards. Instead, they were killed by the veterans who cooperated well and the front line collapsed.

This was a rather lackluster battle from a tactical perspective.

The combat capabilities of the two sides were not at the same level. In front of these veterans who had spent their entire lives fighting, the newly trained militiamen were no different from a group of geese flapping their wings at the entrance of the village.

Zhou Jin led a team of nearly 20 people out of the mountain and fled to death. Zhang Erlang was shot through the thigh and could not move, and he himself could not move even half a step.

When Zhou Jin was brought to Zhu Di, he was shocked and inexplicable.

"Do you recognize me?" Zhu Di asked lightly.

Zhou Jin was astonished, as if Mr. Ye had really seen a dragon.

He had served as a minor official in the north, so he recognized Zhu Di's appearance. When he abandoned his official position and went south, it was because the Yan army's front was difficult to resist. He didn't want to surrender but didn't want to waste his life. He was greedy for life.

As for recruiting rebels in the south of the Yangtze River to prepare for the Qinwang, what he said to Zhang Erlang and his son at that time was also true and sincere. He himself was a scholar who didn't know how to fight. It was unusual for him to have such optimistic and whimsical thoughts.

Zhou Jin had imagined more than once how he would sacrifice his life and how he would scold Yan Ni in person.

But when Zhu Di really appeared in front of him, the words "Yan Ni" in his mouth could not be uttered no matter what.

Death is the only way through the ages.

The desire for survival that he had when he abandoned the city and fled emerged uncontrollably in Zhou Jin's mind again.

"Meet, meet His Majesty."

Zhang Erlang, who was lying on the ground, opened his mouth in disbelief. He wanted to say something, to save something, but then he slumped and grabbed the ground with his head and said in a hateful voice.

"This is the Yan Ni you wanted to kill day and night. Why is he now so boneless?"

"Your Majesty, your Majesty, don't listen to his nonsense."

Zhu Di put his hands on his hands and laughed.

"A capricious person wants to survive, so all he needs to do is lend me something."

"Your Majesty, please tell me! I will definitely borrow whatever I have!"

"Your head on your neck."

In the dusk, the sound of hooves sounded like thunder, and thousands of horses rolled up the mountain.

Zhu Di's branch line is over. Chapter 2 of the train will be driven a little later today, around 8:30.