The Yellow River is the mother river of China, and like the Yangtze River, it irrigates and nourishes this fertile land with its own abundant water. The water of the Yellow River, mixed with large amounts of sediment, gradually turns a turbid yellow in the downstream areas. The Yellow River is surging, rushing forward, flowing day and night unchanged for thousands of years, just like an old man who has experienced vicissitudes of life and is accustomed to seeing the vicissitudes of the world. Walking calmly like that, walking. If something goes wrong, the mother river of the Chinese nation will find a new path to go on its own.

The turbid waves are monstrous, and the turbulent waters of the Yellow River seem to be hanging over their heads. In the Kaifeng River section, the Yellow River has become a "hanging river". Below the high river embankments is the endless East Henan Plain, dotted with towns and villages. The water of the Yellow River hangs high over the heads of millions of living beings in the Henan-Anhui-Suzhou Plain, making people worry about when this monstrous turbid wave will break through the embankment and destroy everything around.

However, at this time, the Yellow River in the Kaifeng section was still calm and tame. Although it is the dry season in winter, the river is still full of boats and white sails. Large and small ships, and even sheepskin rafts, transported the soldiers and horses on the north bank to Kaifeng Mansion on the south bank, and then transported the money, grain, and materials in Kaifeng Mansion across the Yellow River, and continued to the north, transshipment to Beijing, where they were supplied to the Qing Dynasty and the Eight Banners for consumption.

Kaifeng is the capital of Henan Province, where Kaifeng Prefecture is located, and Xiangfu County is attached to Guo. The circumference of the city is estimated to be twenty or thirty miles, and the whole city is covered with bricks, and the city walls are very thick. In particular, the moat around the city is very eye-catching, there are four moats, each of which is about 50 zhang wide, and the depth is estimated to be 4 or 5 zhang. At the span of the five gates, all the city gate bridges were built, and the suspension bridge was made of elm locust wood, which looked like a bridge.

When pulling the suspension bridge, it is easy to pull it up with iron cables, iron rings, and iron wheels. If there is a police outside the city, the upstairs can be pulled up quickly, and after the suspension bridge is pulled up, the material of elm locust wood is very strong, and it can also be used as a doorguard. Around the city, densely covered with Qing military camp tents, all kinds of flags fluttering, even in the city of Kaifeng Mansion, there are flying eight banners of soldiers and horses and the banner of the new Shun Ming army.

In addition to the original feudal state here in the Zhou Wangfu clan outside the clan, there are more provincial, prefectural, and county government offices and yamen gathered here. These government offices are all in the southwest of the Zhou Palace. With the Bell Tower as the center, the Chief Secretary for Administration is located on the West Street of the Bell Tower, and the Command and Embassy Office is located on the East Street of the Bell Tower, and there are Divisions such as the Judicial Division, the Prison Division, the Governor's Office, and the Experience Division. Around these government offices, there are continuous official residences around them, with high walls and red doors, and magnificent buildings. Together with the mansions and houses of the nobles of the clan such as the county kings and the generals of the Zhenguo family, the palace of the Zhou Dynasty formed the essence of Kaifeng City.

At this time, these high-end communities in Kaifeng Prefecture became the garrison barracks of Duoduo and Azig.

Taking advantage of the strategic contraction of the Shandong soldiers and horses of the Nanyue Army after Li Huayu's accidental death, and Li Zicheng's Dashun army also retreated westward, Duoduo and Azig took the opportunity to swoop and conquer Xingtai, Handan, Zhangde, Hebi, Xinxiang, Puyang, Hebi, Jiaozuo and other cities. This time, without a fight, Kaifeng and Guide were bagged in the two important cities on the Central Plains, which greatly boosted the morale of the Qing army.

Originally, in front of the Yin'an Palace of the Zhou Palace, under the white marble steps, the Qing soldiers were extremely rude to set up two huge woven gold dragon silks, and the two handsome flags on the flagpole outside the door complemented each other, the handsome flags and the woven gold dragon silk rose and fell with the north wind, silently telling people that this is the core of power in Kaifeng City.

After the escape of Jin Aizong from Kaifeng in 1233, this ancient capital of several dynasties was once again in the hands of the Jurchens.

The original Zhou Wangfu also changed its owner again. In the wide and tall Yin'an Palace, sitting on the ground, full of Qing army generals with bright armor and robes. Everyone took off their helmets and placed them in their hands, and under the light, there was an iron-blue forehead and scalp, and a slender money rattail was thrown at the back of their heads. The difference is that most of them are freshly shaved heads, and the owners are not used to this feeling of swishing on the scalp.

There are no less than 100 of these newly shaved generals in the main hall. There are dozens of general soldiers and deputy generals, and the backgrounds of these people are even more varied, the generals of the Ming army account for more than half, the peasant army generals who oppose the water in various places, and the local armed forces supported by the local gentry, have been put into the command of the two generals, General Pingnan and General Dingxi, bringing hundreds of thousands of horses to the two princes.

However, if these commanders, who have thousands to tens of thousands of troops under their command, and the lieutenant generals, if they become loyal to the Qing Dynasty because they shaved their hair, it is also to promote them. At the moment, although they are wearing the green military flag given to them by the regent Dorgon, in private, the original Ming army flag and the Shun army flag have been quietly stored and hidden in a secret place, waiting for the opportunity to be useful again.

(This is the same as the generals of the national army who participated in the peace movement on the battlefield behind enemy lines, shouting slogans to save the country.) Before participating in the peace movement, these generals of the Nationalist Army often followed the example of Guan Yu, Guan Yun, Changtun, and Tushan, and negotiated with the Japanese army on the following terms: We will only cooperate with the imperial army to suppress the Communists, and if you want us to attack the Nationalist army with you, we will not be polite. Naturally, these generals of the Nationalist Army who participated in the peace movement were also trusted by the Chongqing Nationalist Government, and not only did they not pursue the charges of treason, but their troop establishment was still on the establishment table of the Ministry of Military Affairs, and they still received their salaries from the Ministry of Military Affairs of the Nationalist Government. On the one hand, he received the military salary of the Chongqing Nationalist Government, and on the other hand, he received the military salary of the Nanjing Nationalist Government. Many troops even have double-sided armbands, and the ones in Chongqing and Nanjing are reused and replaced at will. Awesome, isn't it? In contrast, a certain garbage army that basically does not receive pay and wreaks havoc on the peace between China and Japan is weak, and it does not even have a military uniform, and it lives in the clothes of ordinary people! However, they are still obsessed with stubbornly destroying the construction of a new order in Greater East Asia! ）

However, at the moment, these generals are wholeheartedly following the big Qing chaos. It's not because of anything else, at this time, the Qing army is in full swing and the momentum is booming, and these wall grasses will naturally have to follow for a while.

Today, it is precisely because of the easy capture of Kaifeng Mansion that this celebration is possible.

General Pingnan, Prince Yu, Duoduo, General Dingxi, Prince Ying, and Azig, the owner of the Red Flag Banner, gathered their generals to celebrate eating meat.

According to Manchurian customs, the gold brick floor of the Yin'an Hall is covered with reed mats. The reed mat is covered with red felt, and the cushion is placed on the felt. Every ten people sat in one place, and the generals of the Eight Banners and the generals of the new annexed army were mixed together. Sit cross-legged on the floor and sit on the mat.

On the square outside the Yin'an Palace, twenty or thirty cauldrons were lined up at a time, and the chopping wood was constantly stuffed into the bottom of the pot by those guys, and the tongues of fire danced happily at the bottom of the pot, licking the huge iron pot. In the iron pot, a mouthful of fat pigs is chopped into large pieces and tumbled up and down in white water. From time to time, the men hooked up a piece of meat with an iron hook to see if it was cooked.

In the main hall, the ceremony was over, and the two brothers Duoduo and Brother Azig proudly accepted the half-kneeling salute of their generals and congratulated them, and watched the generals under them in new clothes and hats return to their original seats.

"Come on, meat! Today, the king has prepared hundreds of fat pigs, and everyone can eat them with their bellies open! ”

The two princes gave an order, and the white meat, which had been ready to stop, began to go to the palace.

Large pieces of fatty pork boiled in plain water. Each piece weighed about ten catties, and it was placed in a two-foot copper plate and served to the seats where people were sitting. Each seat was also served with a large copper bowl of gravy along with the white meat, and a large copper spoon was included in the bowl. In front of each guest, a copper plate, about eight or nine inches in diameter, was placed in front of each guest for the purpose of slicing meat.

The Manchurians ate pork and pork in a way that pays attention to white slices, that is, white slices of meat. The so-called white sliced meat does not refer to slicing fatty meat, but to cook pork cubes and cut them into thin slices while they are hot, without any processing or seasoning. Pork belly is the best among the white slices. The way to eat pork knuckle is also white slices, which is the so-called slice elbow flower.

To this day, there are still remnants of white meat from all over the Northeast. However, many people are already grateful for the way to eat without dipping. No matter what, it is also to dip some sesame oil, soy tofu, leek flowers, and salty salt to eat. This is the most authentic cooking method of meat, and people who have eaten it have praised it: fat but not greasy, thin but not firewood; Tender but not rotten, thin but not broken. Topped with green coriander and crystal sauce, it looks fragrant, and it has become an indispensable delicacy with strong local characteristics on the table in the Northeast.

However, this way of eating, the generals of the Eight Banners can gladly accept it, and after taking a big copper bowl and drinking a strong burnt knife, they are satisfied with pulling out the hand knife at their waists, and begin to cut a palm-sized slice of meat on the huge piece of meat, dip it in the ingredients they brought with them and the seasoning package processed with Korean paper, and swallow it in a big gulp, letting the fat make the corners of the mouth and cheeks extremely greasy.

However, when had the generals of the new annexed army ever seen such a rough and barbaric way of eating? They all looked at each other, and their two eyes stared blankly at the copper bowl in front of them.

"Rank General, why don't you eat it?" One of the leaders of the Bayara beside Dodor grinned as he approached a seat. "The general is going to come down and toast the generals everywhere, but everyone looks like this, aren't you afraid that the general will be angry?"

His words were very soft and warm in tone, but when these generals heard them, they were like ice holes in the cold winter moon. They have also heard that this Manchurian custom, the host invites guests to eat meat, whether they know the host or not, as long as they understand the relevant etiquette, they can go to the banquet, called "eating meat" and "eating white meat". During the banquet, the host does not accompany the guests to eat, but only inspects the amount of meat eaten by the guests in each seat. After drinking enough wine and eating meat, the guests can leave on their own. Before leaving, you must not thank your host or wipe your mouth. Because the white meat eaten is to enjoy the gift of the gods, there is no need to thank them, and wiping the mouth is disrespectful to the gods. The more white meat the guests ate, the happier the host became. If there is not enough meat to eat, guests can shout out to the host to add meat. And the host was even more jubilant, he would thank him again and again, and immediately asked the chef to serve a piece of white meat weighing more than ten pounds again. If a table full of guests can't finish a plate of meat, the host will ignore the guests at the table.

Zhang Zuyi, a Qing dynasty man, recorded a scene in "Wild Records of the Qing Dynasty" when he participated in a meat-eating conference. In the winter of the second year of Guangxu, the former governor of Guangzhou, Yinghan's mansion, held a meat-eating conference, Zhang Zuyi was also invited to go, and the people who sat at the same table with him were Han people with poor meat quantity, and everyone couldn't even eat a plate of meat, so they were laughed at by others. The Manchu guests who attended the meeting were all eager and fierce to eat, and they were familiar with the routines, and they used a knife to cut the white meat to the size of a palm, as thin as paper, fat and thin, and dipped in meat juice and eaten, and the large amount could reach one catty. Therefore, those who eat three or four plates of meat at a table can be regarded as having a small appetite, and those who have a large appetite can eat five or six plates of meat. On that day, about 1560 people went to Yinghan's mansion to eat meat, Yinghan first prepared ten pigs, but soon found that the portion was not enough, and hurriedly sent people to the casserole house in the capital to make white meat, and bought ten whole pigs that had been prepared, which was enough to deal with it.

There is a custom that if you don't eat meat, you don't give face to your master. Moreover, the host who invited guests to eat meat was the famous and brutal Prince Yu Duoduo. If he launches a thunderous rage, maybe it is possible for him to correct the law before his army. However, at the moment, these white, greasy and greasy pieces of meat are really hard to swallow.

"I think it's because of the different eating habits. That's not in the way. The minions have meat ingredients for the prince to prepare at any time. The chili peppers from Nanzhong, as well as the steamed and refined bags made of sesame oil, soy sauce, tempeh and other things, are paired with this hot gravy to ensure that you eat it deliciously! I'm afraid this bit of meat won't be enough for the generals! If the prince toasts to the ranking generals, seeing that everyone eats so heartily, and can't stop asking people to add meat, the prince can't say how happy he is! ”

As he spoke, Nagoshha took out the chili pepper bag from the purse around his waist and the Korean paper that had been soaked and dried with sesame oil, soy sauce, tempeh and other things, and fiddled and trembled in front of several lieutenants of the general army, and from time to time signaled with his eyes that Duoduo, who was on the throne, had already walked down, and began to laugh everywhere and drink with the generals of the Eight Banners, and from time to time stuffed meat into the mouths of those minions.

"There is labor! There is labor! "These generals can blend into today's position, which one is not a person with clear eyebrows? Seeing this Goshha come to be so pretentious, everyone was like a mirror in their hearts. They stretched out their hands to hold hands with him to show their intimacy. Of course, each has its own content. Otherwise, just by gesturing a finger in the sleeve, it is a country man haggling when buying livestock.

In the blink of an eye, the Korean paper, chili peppers and other things in Goshha's purse flew into the copper bowl of broth of the generals, and the generals' little intimacy also held up Goshha's purse. In a hurry, Nagoshha didn't care to look at it, but just flashed to the side, so as not to be discovered by Duoduo.

Sure enough, when the Korean paper was put into a hot soup bowl, it immediately melted and became a bowl of condiment sauce along with the broth. Paired with chili peppers, several generals peeked over, and sure enough, the color of the soup was the same as that in the bowl of the Eight Banners officers opposite.

When the fat meat is eaten in the mouth, it feels delicious and incomparable. Suddenly, these people were relaxed, and there was a feeling that they had climbed back into the sky from the gate of the Yama Palace. So, shouting and screaming, the people began to eat the meat in large gulps, and took turns drinking and burning knives in large copper bowls. Unconsciously, the officers of the Eight Banners and the generals of the new annexed army began to hook up their shoulders and confide in each other after drinking.

In the blink of an eye, the huge piece of white meat that was still in the middle just now was only a little bit of meat scrap. The burning knife in the big copper bowl was also renewed twice. When Duoduo walked in front of the crowd with a slight sense of wine, just in time for several servants to walk into the crowd with the steaming fat that had just been fished out of the soup pot.

Looking at the two two-foot copper plates in the air above the red felt, and then at the faces and beards of the people covered with oily and flesh crumbs, Duoduo couldn't help but frown. He raised his fist and hammered twice on the chest of one of the Eight Banner Manchurian officers closest to him: "Good minion! Meat is still enjoyable?! ”

The Eight Banners Manchurian officer, a Jiala Zhangjing, replied with a wine burp at the moment: "If you go back to the master, the wine and meat are good, and the slave can still eat a few catties!" ”

"Good! Good minion! You can eat meat, drink wine, and contribute to the king! Of course, this king has meat for you! Duoduo waved his hand and motioned for the crowd to continue eating meat. I remember that when you came to the command of this king and the regent at the beginning of the year, you were just a big name, and now you are also Jialazhangjing! Good! ”

"They are all promoted by the master of the regent and the master of Prince Yu! Slaves just fight their own battles! ”

"Well said! You people, whether you are the servants of this king, or those who have returned to my Qing Dynasty to avenge the revenge of your father, just remember one thing, fight the battle well for the king, fight well for the master of the regent, wine, meat, wealth, fame and wealth, and some of them are enjoyed by you! ”

"Thank you, Prince Yu! Thank you, General! "These generals who surrendered to the Qing army are only pursuing these, children's wealth, fame and fortune, glory and wealth. Now that Duoduo is openly and unabashedly in front of everyone, he has put these things naked in front of everyone, and it has just scratched everyone's itch. What's more, there is such a living example by his side, who has been promoted from strength to Jialazhangjing. How not to make everyone's hearts flutter?

"Let's Qing Dynasty soldiers and horses, take this Kaifeng Mansion in the east, and Luoyang Mansion in the west, what do you say?" Duoduo's eyes scanned the crowd.

"The minions are stupid, they only know how to send troops and release horses, but this major matter of the soldiers is not clear." It was the same Jia Lazhangjing who took the lead in answering.

"This is Kaifeng Mansion." Duoduo didn't care about the greasy, but took advantage of the wine, reached out and grabbed a piece of white meat, and with a wave of the knife in his hand, he split the huge piece of white meat in two. He put a piece of white meat in his hand on the red felt, and reached out to put the other piece on one side: "This is Luoyang." This is the Yellow River. He smiled as he pointed to the oil star soup that was dripping between the two pieces of white meat.

"What do you see here?"

Everyone either couldn't see the situation at all, or they shook their heads one after another with the presence of the general and Prince Yu pretending to be confused.

"Luoyang Mansion in the west and Kaifeng Mansion in the east are now in the hands of our Qing Dynasty soldiers and horses, and the Yellow River in the middle has now become a thoroughfare for our army to transport heavy grain and grass."

"I see! We still wonder how only a few of the grain, grass, gunpowder and other materials seized in Kaifeng Mansion were loaded onto Cao boats and turned down the river to Shandong to be transported to Beijing through the canal, but most of them were loaded on ships and went upriver to supply Cao Beile in the direction of Luoyang. But forget that although the Yellow River is known as dangerous, it is also convenient for water transportation. ”

"Exactly! In previous years, Li Chuang occupied Kaifeng Mansion, when he was in trouble with Henan, a large number of gold and silver treasures and strong people went to Shandong, and traded grain, grass, weapons, armor, cloth, gunpowder and other things with the eldest son of the Li family, and a large number of materials were also disembarked from the coastal port, connected and transferred through several rivers, and then entered the Yellow River to Kaifeng Mansion. To be honest, most of Li Chuang's career came from this. "A general who came from the Dashun army was suddenly enlightened.

"Exactly! When he laid down a city, he took all the gold, silver, and jewelry of the wealthy, silk, and children in the city. If it is someone else, it is necessary to squander it and reward the soldiers and horses. Li Chuang and Cao Cao took gold, silver, jewelry, antiques, calligraphy and paintings, and traded with the Li family in Nanzhong, and used these proceeds to raise soldiers, and then used a strong army to capture the next city. ”