Zheng Haoran stood on the bow of the boat with his sword, the scarf on his head floating high in the wind, and the wind on the water always carried a wet breath, blowing his clothes like a swollen sail. Standing beside him was his sister Zheng Lin'er, who was dressed in red, both of them were silent, staring ahead, with an anxious look in their eyes.

As soon as the boat reached the shore, and before it could be stopped, the two of them hurriedly jumped off.

An old man in his early fifties with gray hair staggered up to meet him. The Zheng brothers and sisters were busy bowing and saluting, Zheng Haoran raised his head and said, "Uncle, at the order of my father, my brother and sister are here to greet you." It's just that...... Uncle, why are you dressed like that? ”。

Zheng Lin'er also raised her head curiously, looking at the Uncle Qin in front of her, whom she hadn't met for a long time. She knew that her father's friend was a wealthy businessman in Pingzhou City, and there were several mansions in Pingzhou, Zhuozhou and other places, as well as hundreds of acres of fertile land and a number of shops. In her impression, Uncle Qin was a humble gentleman who paid great attention to appearance, no matter who he was, he was polite and smiling, and he had dealings with several prefectures, counties, and even high-ranking officials in the court.

But Uncle Qin, who was standing in front of them now, was gray-faced, in tattered clothes, and haggard, on par with a beggar.

Hearing the inquiry, the old man surnamed Qin couldn't help but burst into tears: "Hao'er, Lin'er, it's good that I can escape alive, uncle!" The red turban bandits burned, killed, looted, and did all kinds of evil, it's a long story, it's really hard to explain! ”。

Zheng Haoran hurriedly stopped his words and said: "Uncle, don't be sad, it's windy on the shore, and I will call a few aunts to take their bags and go home first." ”

The old man surnamed Qin hurriedly wiped a handful of tears with his tattered and dirty sleeves, turned around and greeted: "Let's all get on the boat, we are safe!" No more sin. ”

Behind him, three women of different ages and sizes embraced him with joy.

Zheng Lin'er was surprised: "No, I remember that I have five aunts, how can I ......."

The old man surnamed Qin stepped forward and said sentimentally: "Don't mention it, your eldest mother died of hunger and illness on the way to escape, and your fifth aunt was younger and separated from us in a panic, and now she can't see anyone alive or dead, and she can't see her corpse ......." As he spoke, he couldn't help but have red circles in his eyes and shed tears.

The Zheng brothers and sisters helped them board the boat, and the old man surnamed Qin said impatiently: "Hao'er, is there food on this boat?" As he spoke, he stared at Zheng Haoran with hungry eyes.

Zheng Haoran sighed lightly in his heart, and took the initiative to go out of the cabin to find the ship's owner. There were some fish on the deck that had just been caught that day, and Zheng Haoran told the boatman to borrow an iron pot and firewood, and returned to the cabin to set up a pot to make a fire and cook fish for these hungry guests.

Before the fish was fully cooked, Uncle Qin and several ladies put out the fire, and they didn't want bamboo chopsticks, they reached out and grabbed it in a hurry, and after a wolfing meal, there were not even fish bones left, and Zheng Lin'er was sad when she saw it.

With something at the bottom, Qin Bo opened the conversation box again and told the tragic experience of the family.

Before the Red Turban Army attacked Pingzhou, this Qin Bo took five wives and carried a few carts of gold and silver to escape the war, hid in the nearby Zhuozhou Mansion, and arranged a few reliable old housekeepers to take care of the home before leaving.

After the war subsided, he sent people to Pingzhou Mansion to inquire about the news, and replied that several of his mansions, shops, and fertile fields outside the city had been confiscated by the Red Turban Army, and several old housekeepers who had stayed to watch the home were thrown into prison. To his special luck, several of his old friends were put in prison because they were reluctant to give up real estate, fertile land, etc., and a few were simply pulled out and beheaded.

It didn't take long for the Red Turban Army to send troops to prepare to attack Zhuozhou Mansion, and Qin Bo, who had already learned to be well-behaved, led the convoy again, pulling the gold and silver and several ladies to flee one step ahead of schedule. This time he planned to flee farther, perhaps because his fugitive convoy was extravagant and extravagant, too conspicuous, and was soon sacked by bandits and robbers along the way. In the chaos, the gold and silver were looted, the fifth lady was also lost, the poor eldest lady was sick again, and Qin Bo, who couldn't even eat a hot meal, could only watch the eldest lady die of hunger.

Thanks to the letter sent to Zheng Haoran's father earlier, Qin Bo, who had completely become a refugee, only took his three wives to the shore of Hongze Lake with all kinds of hardships, which can be regarded as ending his life of fleeing nine deaths ahead of schedule.

After listening to Uncle Qin's story, Zheng Haoran gritted his teeth and said: "This red turban thief is so rampant, is my Great Qi Imperial Court standing by and indifferent?" ”。

Qin Bo sighed: "Bandits are rampant everywhere, and the imperial court is also powerless!" On the way, I heard that the imperial court has urgently transferred the hussar battalion of Feihongguan to enter the customs to suppress bandits, I hope the horse will succeed! ”。

Zheng Lin'er comforted: "Uncle can rest assured that he is here, Hongze Lake is a vast ocean within a radius of 100 miles, and the island in the middle of the lake is like a paradise, and even the soldiers and horses and officials of Daqi are beyond their reach." You can recuperate here with peace of mind. ”

Zheng Haoran looked ahead and said hatefully: "I want to be a dignified seven-foot man, at this time of turmoil and national disaster, I should help the court and exterminate the red scarf bandits!" ”。

Qin Bo smiled bitterly when he heard this: "Bandits are rampant, and the soldiers and horses of the imperial court are pouring out, and they may not be sure of victory, what can you do as a flat-headed commoner?" ”。

Zheng Haoran didn't answer, stared at the bow of the boat, looked at the rippling blue waves, thoughtful.

When the boat docked, Zheng Haoran's father had been waiting for a long time, and the two old friends saw each other, hugged their heads and cried, naturally they could not avoid a sigh of vicissitudes and impermanence.

That night, after everything was arranged, Zheng Haoran came to the study to meet his father and said what he thought buried in his heart. The old man of the Zheng family immediately expressed his support, and early the next morning, Zheng Haoran re-embarked on the boat and went to Chaozhou Mansion, which governs Hongze Lake.

Lord Wei of Chaozhou Prefecture met with Zheng Haoran cordially, and when he heard Zheng Haoran's statement, he immediately made a decision, and ordered the master to immediately write a letter, write a letter of appointment, and solemnly stamped his official seal.

Zheng Haoran happily returned to Hongze Lake and Huxin Island with a letter of appointment, not a single soldier of the imperial court, a tael of silver, and even took out part of his private property to start recruiting troops, forming a team, and training village warriors. Because these horses wore uniform aqua blue coats, later generations called them "Blue Shirts".

After sending Zheng Haoran away, the master of Chaozhou Mansion bowed down to Lord Wei and asked, "Master, why did you easily agree to the request of the boy surnamed Zheng and send him a letter of appointment?" ”。

Lord Wei twisted his beard and smiled: "A dead horse is a live horse doctor, and the red turban bandits are arrogant and domineering, and sooner or later they will come to us." Anyway, the government doesn't have a tael of silver, so let that kid toss! On the day when the real thieves attacked, I just had to run away! ”。

What Lord Wei didn't expect was that the Blue Shirt Army, which gradually grew up later, took advantage of its geographical advantages and flexible tactics to cause a lot of trouble to the Great Chu Empire, which had just been established, and became a thorn in the side of the Red Turban Army.

Hearing the news of the visit of the envoy of the tribal alliance, Shanihada, who was bandaged on his shoulder, stood up angrily and threw a bronze wine bud to the ground, which suddenly broke into three pieces. The thick beard on his face stood on end, and he shouted, "Bring them in." ”

The two messengers were brought in, and they bowed without humility or arrogance. Before he could raise his head, he heard Shanihada interrupt and shout: "Kneel!" ”。

The two peacemakers were stunned and looked up at Shanihada in astonishment. One of them spoke: "Leader Shani, we have come to negotiate peace talks on the orders of the commander-in-chief of the tribal alliance. Last time, Sulunga said that he came back to negotiate with you to compensate the amount of property of the victim tribe, but I don't know what the final result will be? ”。

Shani Hada snorted coldly, slowly sat down, raised his head and said lightly to the two Shani warriors behind the envoy, "Teach them what the rules are." ”

The two messengers were kicked in the calves and stomachs a few times, and they involuntarily fell to their knees, gritting their teeth and looking up at Shani Hada.

Shani Hada sneered: "With the scepter in hand, Lao Tzu is the Khan King of the Grassland!" When you see the king of the Khan, don't you kneel, aren't you looking for death? Also, is Sulunga also called by you? You shall call her Princess. ”

One of the envoys' faces turned red with anger, and he said in a loud voice: "Shanihada, you have gone back on your word, and now you are unwilling to hand over the scepter of the Khan King?" ”。

Shanihada slapped the table in front of him with his big hand and scolded, "Phew! During the peace talks, you wanted to murder the king's concubine, but instead you beat a rake, embarrassed to say that the king went back on his word? Well, this king is turning his face now! ”。 He glared at the two Shani warriors behind the envoy and shouted, "Still not doing it? ”。

As soon as it was too late, the bright scimitar in the hand of a Shani warrior slammed down, and the head of an envoy fell to the ground, a stream of blood erupted from his cavity, and the headless corpse fell heavily.

The other messenger trembled with fright and collapsed to the ground, his eyes desperately staring at the murderous Shanihada.

Shanihada suddenly grinned and said, "Don't be afraid, this king will never kill you now!" You carry his head back to restore your life, and tell those rabbit cubs that we Shani people are not easy to mess with, all the peace talks in the early stage are nullified, and you are not afraid to send them to death! ”。

Outside the tent came two more Shani warriors, one carrying a small woven bamboo basket, but he obviously did not want to pick mushrooms, but reached out and put the bloody human head in it, and turned around and forced it to the living messenger.

The messenger, who was limp and unable to stand up, was dragged from the ground by two Shani warriors, and he gritted his teeth in hatred and said, "Shanihada, you will regret what you have done today!" ”。

Shanihada looked up to the sky and laughed wildly, bowed his head and said: "Lao Tzu swore in front of the Immortal Heaven: No matter what you do in this life, you will do it, dare to do it, and never regret it!" ”。

Sulunga, who had just woken up from a nap, heard from the maid that the tribal alliance had sent two messengers, and after a brief freshening, he hurried to the big tent of Shanihada. Except for a pool of black blood that had not been cleaned up, the tent was empty, and only Shanihada was quietly drinking.

Shanihada hurriedly got up and smiled, "Aifei, are you awake?" You have our child in your womb, and you need to rest much. ”

Su Lunga turned his head and looked around, and asked suspiciously, "What about the envoy of the tribal alliance?" ”

Shanihada smiled and said, "Don't worry about it, take care of your body, this king has already sent them away." ”