Verse 81 Lai Da Horse

Gou Chengxuan was cautious and did not dare to speak, and only after their discussion of Huayi was over did he continue: "Wen Desi is said to be the 'chairman', but Ma Qianzhu is the 'secretary of state', and the titles of the two are called 'executive members'. ”

He was not wrong about the names and titles of these two men, because they were written on the bulletin board and in the paperwork.

"Or Yun, after this gang of thieves were high-ranking officials and eunuchs in Australia and the Song Dynasty, due to domestic changes, they could not gain a foothold in Australia, so they led their troops to escape by boat. They have long admired the wealth of China, so they have come thousands of miles to the country. ”

"They are the descendants of the Song people, why don't they attach it to the table at the beginning." A staff member said, "The imperial court would have been favored. ”

"The thief learned his skills overseas, and thought that he could dominate a corner with the help of iron ships and firearms. Isn't this deceiving me? Only by painstakingly purging and destroying the ugly can we prevent such overseas barbarians from peeking at the heart of China" The person who spoke was very young, but only 27 or 8 years old, and he was not He Rubin's aide, but Qian Taichong, a staff member of Zhao Ruyi, who was in charge of the liaison between the two sides.

Qian Taichong was admitted to Xiucai at the age of seventeen, and he was an upright student, who was quite famous in his hometown, and was very appreciated by a group of gentry in the township, but since then, he has failed to pass the township examination four times in a row. I felt that I had no face to see people in my hometown, so I simply came out to visit the curtain.

This person is quite knowledgeable and talented, and he thinks very highly of himself on weekdays, although he was introduced to Shi Bangyao by his fellow villagers and mentors, but he did not have a good relationship with other friends. Zhao Ruyi simply sent him to Guangzhou to He Rubin's army to be in charge of the liaison between the two sides.

His impassioned remarks made everyone have to say that it should indeed be so.

Then the staff and generals asked some more questions, and He Rubin took care of his own soldiers and took him down and sent him to his old camp to guard.

"Take him down and give him food and wine. Be a good student. ”

Only then did Gou Chengxuan put down his heart hanging in mid-air, and the taste of seeing the official hall was really not pleasant. He quickly kowtowed several more times, and then cautiously retreated with his own soldiers.

He was placed in a special tent, where Lai Da was also waiting. After a while, the soldiers came over and brought him a few sets of replacement clothes, especially the clothes of a scholar such as a square scarf and a shirt, which made Gou Chengxuan, who sometimes disguised himself as a beggar and sometimes dressed as a peasant, feel that there was a good omen: the chief soldier seemed to be very satisfied with his answer, otherwise he would never treat himself so kindly.

Lai Da also got a few sets of new clothes. The master and servant took a bath and changed their clothes, and they were happy for a while, and then the soldiers brought food, and the two of them were full. Gou Chengxuan lay on the grass bunk, thinking about how he would retaliate and blackmail after returning to Lingao with the officers and soldiers, thinking and thinking, and calculating, but he fell asleep.

The next day, Chang Qingyun came to see him and talked with him. Because he is a talented man and half a well-dressed person, Chang Qingyun is very polite, he didn't ask him to kneel and reply, and he spoke more casually.

After the two sides exchanged polite words, Chang Qingyun asked and clarified him about the details that he had not been able to ask in detail yesterday, and Gou Chengxuan knew everything and explained everything one by one, and copied a list of the main gentry and big families in the county. How is the business of each family, whether there is a store of village bravery, etc., are indicated one by one.

Chang Qingyun was overjoyed when he got this list: with this list, he would be able to follow the map when he arrived at Lingao, and he would be able to roughly know how much filial piety each family should give. He saw that Gou Chengxuan answered fluently in the big tent yesterday, and he dealt with it decently, and knew that this person was not simple. The heart of the envelope. smiled and said to Gou Chengxuan: "Please ask Brother Gou to express words." ”

"Don't dare," Gou Chengxuan saw that his face was happy, and asked his cousin again, knowing that he had already entered the port. With the recommendation and protection of the confidants of the chief soldier, he will not only be able to get rid of his crimes, but as long as he is good, his future fame and fortune will also be guaranteed. "The villain is the middle tail."

"Lord Zhentai values you very much. Say that you are worthy of being a loyal person of the Ming Dynasty. Chang Qingyun had to work hard for Cheng Xuan in the next step, so he fabricated a few words first, "My lord wants to protect your reputation--"

Speaking of this, he deliberately paused to see Gou Chengxuan's reaction, and saw that his eyes lit up, and he knew that he had already been set, so he continued, "It's just that you are still a wanted criminal, and you have been stripped of your reputation for showing off your talents......"

"The younger brother was framed by the thief," Gou Chengxuan sighed, he knew that if he had money around him, he would quickly offer fifty or one hundred taels, and ask this staff to dredge up, and he would definitely be able to take off the hat of this "important criminal", but he is now empty, and he has taken out the money at all, "Don't hide it from the brother, the younger brother has a lot of land and family business in Lingao, as long as the thief is driven away, the younger brother will take back the family business, and he will be heavily rewarded......"

"Hey, Brother Nakao said this, and he saw the outside." Chang Qingyun said with a smile, "As long as Lord Zhentai succeeds in the battle, your charges can be washed away, and you can get a good story." ”

Gou Chengxuan lacks experience in officialdom in the end, and he has been confused by a few words, "Yes, it is the little brother who must work for dogs and horses"

Only then did Chang Qingyun say what he meant: He Rubin asked him to go back to Lingao, find out the military situation, and mobilize the township to respond to the officers and soldiers.

"Brother Zhongwei is a native of Lingao, and this time he coerced the governor to return to Lingao to launch the gentry and countryside, which is the so-called gathering of the wind and clouds, and a great opportunity to make contributions."

Gou Chengxuan was shocked. Before I got out of Longtan, I had to go back to the tiger's den. This is to send him to death, in Lingao, he is a person who is disgusted by people, and he is a character who is disgusted by dogs, and he doesn't even want his wife and father-in-law to see him. If it hadn't been destroyed at the beginning, it would have been caught and hanged by the thief.

Now He Zongbing actually wants him to sneak back to Lingao, he knows that the Australians are powerful, internal control and external defense, better than the imperial court a hundred times, the local gentry, even if they are dissatisfied with the thieves, they dare not openly confront them. And everyone has always been afraid that the thief has a magic that transmits sound for thousands of miles, and even a private conversation may be detected.

As long as he returns to Lingao, he only needs to make a slight move, and there is only a dead end.

He trembled and replied: "The villain thanks Lord Zhentai for his kindness, but this thief is different from other thieves......"

Chang Qingyun's face changed: "Brother Zhongwei, this is in the army, do you know that military law is ruthless"

"Yes, yes," Gou Chengxuan was so frightened that his legs and feet weakened, don't say that he is a wanted criminal, even if he is an innocent citizen, he is accused of "being a thief", and it is an instant to be beheaded with an order. "I also asked Brother Tai to ease his cheeks for his younger brother," he immediately knelt on the ground and begged bitterly, "The thief hates the little brother to the bone, and once he gets it, he will be executed immediately...... "He knew that his empty pleas like this were not a big deal, and he quickly said that he knew the details of the several big merchants supported by the thief in Lingao, and he only told Chang Qingyun the details of these big merchants, "I thought it was Brother Tai's work."

Seeing that he couldn't force any oil and water like this, Chang Qingyun secretly scolded: "The barbarian in the countryside is a poor ghost"

The opportunity to blackmail is gone. But he couldn't really push Gou Chengxuan too hard, after all, He Rubin didn't explicitly ask to send Gou Chengxuan to Lingao. In case this person really has to be arrested and killed after returning to Lingao, the official army will lose an important eyes and ears when they enter Lingao, although Sun Tianbiao of Lingao Guard Station is rushing from Zhaoqing on a starry night, but this person is a military household after all, and he has a limited understanding of the people, so he is far less useful than a volcanine like Gou Chengxuan.

Moreover, Gou Chengxuan is not a good person at first glance, and there is no family and family business to restrain here, so he is forced to leave in a hurry, or go directly to the thief to betray the news of the official army.

The so-called proposal to send Gou Chengxuan to Lingao to mobilize the township to respond to the officers and soldiers is indispensable, and there is no agreement. Chang Qingyun is just using this false words to intimidate, hoping to squeeze a little oil and water out.

Seeing that he really had no oil and water to speak of, Chang Qingyun had no choice but to take a step back, ready to intercede for him in front of He Rubin as a personal favor.

At that moment, he pondered for a moment and said: "This matter seems to have room for change, but it is just the fate of Lord Zhentai......" He deliberately made a look of embarrassment, so that Gou Chengxuan could accept his feelings.

Gou Chengxuan hurriedly said: "Brother Qingyun, the younger brother has a big follower, this person is quick-minded, and he is a native of Lingao, so he can take this position." ”

Chang Qingyun saw that he was willing to send someone to replace him, and he was happy to push the boat down, but he said something embarrassing, so that Gou Chengxuan begged for a long time before he agreed.

Finally sent Chang Qingyun away, Gou Chengxuan quickly wiped the sweat from his forehead, he can be regarded as a teacher of this official's power - compared to the county order who pretends to be deaf and dumb, he is simply a tiger who does not spit out bones. Gou Chengxuan felt more and more that the official family was terrifying.

Call Lai Da at the moment and tell you what happened just now. Gou Chengxuan sighed: "I can't either, I can only temporarily wronged you to go out and hide for a while." ”

Whether it is himself or Lai Da, even if he goes to Lingao with the holy decree, he may not be able to mobilize the villagers to meet the officers and soldiers. The big families will not make a move if they see the thief retreating and fleeing. So his calculation was to let Lai Da cross the sea to Qiongshan first, and then hide, wait until the army marched to Lingao, and then follow.

As long as the situation is clear, there will be a village warrior to dispatch, and when the time comes, Lai Da will be able to explain it.

Unexpectedly, Lai Da did not approve of his jihua:

"Xianggong, this is something that can't be hidden from the old man." Lai Dadao, "the villain is willing to go to Lingao"

"You're going to Lingao?" Gou Chengxuan was surprised, "Didn't you go to death in vain?" That group of big families originally had a gap with the Gou family, but now they are afraid of the power of thieves, and they resolutely dare not accept the official army. "The only thing he can drive now is the two Lai brothers, if he gives it to a big family who wants to please the thief, Lai Da will either lose his life or have to dig stones.

"Not necessarily." Lai Dadao, "Except for a few families who are desperate to follow the thieves, most of them are just grass on the wall." If the officers and soldiers want to come and suppress them, how can they not be afraid? ”

As long as you are afraid, it is easy to do, and as soon as you return to Lingao and take out the proclamation of the governor and the general soldiers, the big families do not dare to respond immediately, but they definitely do not dare to disadvantage themselves.

“…… The thieves have been in high school for three years, and the big families always collude with the thieves. After the official army returned to Lingao, the imperial court commissioned officials to deal with the aftermath, and the first step was to investigate the traitors. If they have the official certificate in their hands, not only will they not help the rebellion, but they will also have the merit of maintaining the local government......"

Gou Chengxuan understood what he meant: this matter is indeed risky, but the benefits are great. I can't help but look at myself as a lewd domestic servant.

"I can't imagine that you are not very old, and there are such hills and valleys in your chest"

"The little one is also forced" Lai Da's eyes were on fire, "Since the trapping of the village, the two younger brothers escaped with their lives, and they are thinking about revenge day and night......"

Gou Chengxuan knew that Lai Da hated the thief so much, in addition to losing his status as a wealthy slave in the past, he couldn't be a powerful man and had to be trampled on, but there was also an important reason that the woman he wanted Chu Qing was taken away by the thief - Chu Qing was the maid of Gou Er's family, and he had already promised Lai Da. After the collapse of the Gou family, I heard that it fell into the hands of a thief surnamed Wu who was in charge of the farm. This person has three wives and four concubines around him, and he occupies Chu Qing. Lai Da saw Chu Qing on the road several times, and his eyes were almost bursting with fire, but he didn't dare to step forward to say a word, and even deliberately avoided it. This kind of wife-snatching hatred is extremely vicious.

Lai Da continued: "...... As long as the villain doesn't give it to the thief, there is no risk to the big ones. By the way, I can also find out some military information."

"Okay, I'll entrust you with this matter" Gou Chengxuan pretended to be generous, "I don't want any gifts from the big families, I will reward you all"

"Thank you Xianggong for your generous gift" Lai Da immediately knelt down and kowtowed, "After the official army overcame Lingao, with the ability of Xianggong and the local natives, how could the aftermath of the government be without Xianggong?" The villain will go to the front of the prince first, and when the time comes, the big guys will not want him to be round, but to be square."

"Who did you go to first?"

"Huangjiazhai."

Gou Chengxuan was unwilling, he was originally going to bite the Huang family on the charge of "attaching a thief" and let him completely destroy his family.

"Xianggong" Lai Da knew his thoughts, "The Huang family, we can't control the fact that one of his third sons was killed by the thief at the beginning, he was invincible, the Huang family's soldiers are strong and strong, and there is a blood feud with the thief, so it is not difficult for them to mobilize the township to respond." ”

Gou Chengxuan thought about it, and couldn't help but be deflated. I had to scold a few words hatefully. sighed again: "I only hate that my father has no whereabouts, otherwise he and Uncle Hu's detachment can also help." ”

"Since the thief didn't get Master Hu, the master will naturally be safe." Lai Da comforted him, "After the little one goes back, he will secretly search for it."

The discussion stopped at the moment, Chang Qingyun went to the general army again, He Rubin Yuan was not interested in this matter, seeing that someone was willing to take risks, anyway, he didn't spend a single soldier. And when he was about to give him the necessary papers, he was rewarded with ten taels of silver. The Guan Shu proclamation sent by General Lai was folded into a long strip, wrapped in oiled paper, and sewn tightly with cloth before sewing it into his belt. Someone arranged to take a military ship to Qiongshan to cross the sea.

In the war room of the headquarters of Ma Yuan, the staff officers are conducting battlefield operations around a huge sand table table. He Ming and the officers above the battalion level were overlooking the entire sand table from a slightly higher stand nearby. This sand table is based on the electronic map brought from the old time and space, plus the field exploration and correction of the special investigation team and the exploration team, not only the scale is accurate, but also the expression of details to the point of outrageous - this is made by a group of scale model enthusiasts, even a bridge on the sand table, a village, although pitifully small, there are also old treatments.

This sand table shows the topography from Lingao to Qiongshan County. This area is condensed on this huge sand table.

To meet the advancing Ming army there was the first issue to be decided by the General Staff.

He Ming and most of his officers believed that it was not feasible to defend against the enemy at home, and that the Fubo army had to crush the Ming army outside Lingao while ensuring that most of the prisoners could be captured.

The first choice is to meet near the county seat of Qiongshan, the Fubo army took advantage of the Ming army has just been assembled, when the foothold is not stable, with ships and land on foot, suddenly appeared under the city of Qiongshan County, the whole army of He Ming army was defeated, the enemy after the defeat will inevitably retreat into Qiongshan County, and the Fubo army immediately broke the city and captured the prisoners.

The biggest advantage of this scheme is that there are fewer prisoners to escape, which can ensure that most of the rout is captured. The disadvantage was that the troops had to carry heavy weapons and supplies and walk 100 kilometers to Qiongshan. Although some of them could be transported by boat, the troops still had to carry the necessary equipment, and the soldiers would be very tired after this long march.

If Zuihou breaks Qiongshan, Daming will have a state and county fall, and Qiongshan is the first county of Qiongzhou Prefecture, and the shock of the lost city is much greater than that of a county seat. And there is also a deputy envoy in Qiongshan City to patrol Hainan Road, on the day of breaking the city, it is not a simple Qipin county order to commit suicide and martyrdom, but also to have Qiongzhou prefect, Hainan Province and other important officials to be martyred together. It's going to be a big deal.

So this plan was quickly rejected.

The second plan is at the foot of the county seat of Chengmai County, relying on the Youhu camp to defeat the Ming army, and the marching distance can be shortened. The disadvantage is that some of the Ming army will flee to Qiongshan, some will flee to Chengmai, and some will scatter and flee.

The third option is in the mountain pass in the area south of Masha. Set up ambushes on the mountains on both sides, with the small regimental city of Ma Xiao as the frontal support point, it is expected to capture most of the Ming army on the battlefield, the advantage is that the side is almost at ease, and the battlefield facilities are very comprehensive. The disadvantage is that some of the fleeing Ming troops may have escaped into the territory of Lingao.

After evaluation, everyone believes that it is an ideal choice to meet the enemy in Chengmai. The geographical location here is moderate, the Fubo army can maneuver for a short distance, it does not need to consume too much transportation liliang, and it is more convenient to evacuate the wounded and prisoners.

When the officers and troops came to attack Lingao, in terms of their mobility and logistical conditions, they must have advanced through post roads.

From Qiongshan County, the post road passes through Binlian, Yeli, Beipu, Daotang and then to Chengmai County. The Fubo army could meet the officers at any point on this post road.