The night is as cool as water.

Sun Qiangming carried a lantern to inspect the city wall for a week, and when he got off the city wall, he felt cold hands and feet, and secretly thought: "I'm only less than forty, why do I have to serve the old!" ”

Once upon a time, he was motivated, at the age of nineteen, at the age of twenty-five, he was a scholar and the first, and then he was on the rise, but now he has a feeling of powerlessness, when he thinks of walking on the street, from time to time someone calls him uncle and uncle, and then thinks of the wildfire of the red thieves outside the city: "The year of no confusion, it is really the year of not being confused!" ”

The whole city was curfew, there was no light or life on the streets, and two domestic servants walked in front with a single knife, and many past events could not help but appear in his mind.

"Master, the third master has been waiting for half an hour!" Unconsciously, Sun Qiangming was awakened by the voice of his family: "Third master, he is still waiting now!" ”

Zhou Jiayan leaned on a Taishi chair and waited for Sun Qiangming for a long time, Sun Qiangming looked at his third brother, whose still young face was also a lot haggard, obviously caused by running these days: "Brother, what's the matter, you come to me tomorrow, why are you so tired!" ”

Sun Jiayan smiled: "Second brother, the city defense fee of 20,000 taels has been done, 5,000 taels will be given to Zhang Zhixian to share the profits, 10,000 taels will be transported back to Anyi Fort, and the remaining 5,000 will be used to run the city defense." ”

"Nonsense!" As soon as I heard that Sun Jiayan had transported the money back to his hometown: "What are you doing transporting the silver back to Anyibao?" I can't afford to lose this man! ”

"No matter how much nonsense you make, it's to protect our Sun family!" Sun Jiayan said facelessly: "It's your second brother's side, you have to keep an eye on it all the time!" ”

Sun Qiangming immediately complained to his third brother: "It's all your idea, saying that you want to guard the city pass, but it's better now." In the past two days, seven or eight hundred people have been lost in vain, and the spirit of our soldiers has been dampened, and I have already made up my mind that if it does not work tomorrow, I will withdraw the soldiers to the city, and the houses and shops outside the city can only be paid to the sea of fire! ”

Sun Jiayan listened to Sun Qiangming's complaints. Instead, he said vigorously: "If you don't defend the city pass, how can you raise this city defense fee, second brother, I came here tonight because I heard that Tai Yong's salary in the city has not arrived." They complain a lot, and you can't be sloppy about that. ”

Sun Qiangming is essentially a scholar, although he understands some human accidents, but many times he is too bookish and angry, and pays too much attention to human feelings, but he still has a bit of officialdom habits, otherwise he will not end up with countless public grievances when he handles the donation of his own nationality, not to mention that it will provoke changes in the money club in the future.

He was very surprised and asked, "Is this really the case?" I have sent them two thousand seven hundred silver yuan. It's only 300 people! Why are you still not satisfied. ”

Sun Jiayan said angrily: "It's just that the person who handles it shares the profits, second brother, there are some things you have to do with your own hands, and you can't fake it to others!" Let's just say donate and lose, others get 1,000 taels of silver, but if you can hand it over, I'm afraid it won't even be 500 taels. ”

Sun Qiangming responded: "The people who handle it always have to eat something, and these people are either relatives or friends." The board can't hit them, forget it, I'll make up a reward for Tai Yong tomorrow. ”

Sun Jiayan understands human accidents better than this second brother: "Second brother, you should hurry up this matter, if you want to retreat back to the city tomorrow, don't have any accidents!" ”

"You know, until now. Liu Jiehu, a first-class thief, has not yet started to attack, if this thief starts to attack the city, it will definitely be a thunderous blow! ”

"Nothing, nothing!" Sun Qiangming was relieved: "The red thief is brave, and he is by no means inferior to Liu Juehu." If Liu Jiehu was really so brave, why did he not use his sword for three days! ”

As soon as he finished speaking, he heard a few gunshots, and the whole county suddenly became in an uproar as if it were on fire.

Sun Qiangming's heart was beating violently, and he didn't know what had happened, but the gunshots and noise stopped.

The night sky was silent, but Sun Jiayan had some bad premonitions.

Sure enough, after about half an hour, the gunfire in the city suddenly became dense, like hail, and the shouting of killing was earth-shattering, Sun Qiangming had only one thought: "It's the red thief who has entered the city, it's the red thief who has entered the city!" ”

After a while, the exact news came: "Tai Yong is against the water, Tai Yong is against the water, they put Liu Jiehu into the city, and Shi Jiwei led the team to kill it!" ”

"Zheng Chan's leader and Lin Yuanmu were all killed in battle......"

"The green battalion soldiers have stepped down, and as soon as they fight, the green battalion soldiers will all cross!"

The bad news came one after another, whether it was Tuan Yong or the Green Battalion soldiers, they were only based on this six or seven meter high city wall, and now they were attacked by the Dragon Lance Battalion in an unsuspecting situation, and almost all of them collapsed at the touch of a button.

However, after a quarter of an hour's effort, the situation in the whole city has been greatly deteriorated, and the Tuan Yong outside the city has not yet withdrawn to the city, but it has been blocked by the sober Red Turban Army, and the Dragon Lance Battalion has occupied most of Ruian City.

"Third brother!" Sun Qiangming only felt that half of his life's fame was ruined: "You can still see it accurately, but it's too late to regret it!" ”

Sun Jiayan looked at the firelight in the distance, listened to the shouts and gunshots, and smelled the faint smoke of gunpowder, but shouted: "Go to the Feiyun River, I have prepared a boat there, take the second master away for me!" ”

The offensive of the dragon spear battalion was like a bamboo, even if Sun Qiangming wanted to master a regiment to block their attack, in fact, when the dragon spear battalion attacked Ruian City, the battle was already over.

The group escaped from the city gate in embarrassment, all the way back to the Feiyun River, at this time the sky was already dark, Sun Qiangming looked into Ruian City, there were still some gunshots and shouts in the city, that was the regimental training, the soldiers were doing the last resistance, but the city wall was already full of yellow flags.

And behind him is the clear water of the Feiyun River, Sun Jiayan said loudly: "Put the second master on the boat, take him upstream, go to Pingyangkeng, transfer to Dayu, go to Qingtian, go to Hangzhou to find He Futai, or go to the capital to find the eldest master!" ”

Sun Qiangming was put on the boat by a few house slaves, and then Sun Jiayan kicked the butts of several house slaves: "Go back to Anyi Fort, just do it according to the method I wanted to do in advance!" Sail! ”

Sun Qiangming took the opportunity to grab Sun Jiayan's hand, and several servants originally wanted to paddle on a boat, but now they all stopped, and they heard Sun Qiangming shouting loudly: "Third child, come with me!" ”

"If you want to protect our Sun family, you have to have one person die in the city!" Sun Jiayan pushed away Sun Qiangming's hand: "Second brother, the eldest brother let you go once, and I will let you go once this time, drive the boat!" ”

This incident is an old incident in the twenty-seventh year of Daoguang, that year Sun Yiyan and Sun Qiangming had good luck, Sun Yiyan had the opportunity to participate in the examination, and Sun Qiangming had the opportunity to serve as the same examiner in the same examination.

In the officialdom of the Qing Dynasty, candidates and examiners have a personal dependence relationship, and the reason why the famous Mu Zhang'a and Weng Tongyi can be all over the government and the opposition is that they have presided over countless exams, and all the students in the examination have become their protégés, and the center is quite suspicious of Li Hongzhang, so Li Hefei has never had a chance to preside over the exam once in his life.

The examiner is a teacher, and although the examiner is slightly inferior, he is also known as the room teacher, which is a once-in-a-century opportunity for Sun Qiangming, as long as he finishes this fellow examiner, there are many protégés with unlimited potential, and they will be used endlessly for a lifetime, but the problem is that the eldest brother Sun Yiyan also has to participate in this examination, according to the avoidance system, one of the two brothers must avoid this examination.

In the end, it was the eldest brother Sun Yiyan who gave the opportunity to Sun Qiangming, and he waited until Daoguang was thirty years old before he was admitted to the Jinshi, and Sun Qiangming was one more group of protégés, two of whom are still not famous, but they will soar into the sky in the future, one is Li Hongzhang and the other is Shen Baozhen.

It's just that this time is completely different from the situation in the twenty-seventh year of Daoguang, Sun Yiyan can take the exam again in three years, but Shen Jiayan has given up his vitality, so Sun Qiangming shouted loudly: "Stop the boat!" ”

Sun Jiayan's figure became smaller, and Sun Qiangming only heard him shout: "Hurry up, second brother, Yan Yan will be handed over to you to take care of!" ”

The fast boat headed towards the upper reaches of the Feiyun River, and a few servants still held the excited Sun Qiangming, and only Sun Jiayan's back strode back to the city on the shore: "Second master, second master, third master said, this time our Sun family has died so many people, plus he lives and dies with the city, he can always give an explanation to the Qing Dynasty, you can go to Hangzhou safely!" Don't let him down."

Sun Jiayan can no longer see Sun Jiayan's figure, he can only see Ruian City in the distance, the gunfire and shouting in the city suddenly became fierce, it should be Sun Jiayan organizing the last resistance, but soon the gunshots were not heard again.

Ruian City couldn't see it, Sun Qiangming sat weakly in the cabin, and said with a wry smile: "It's me who underestimated the thief Liu Jiehu, the third child is right, but it's too late to say this now." ”

He asked his servant: "Our Sun family resisted the Red Turban thieves, no, it was the Red Turban Army that killed so many people, it can be said that the hatred is as deep as the sea, but how can the hometown of Anyibao be preserved?" Does the third child have any explanation? ”

An old family member who Sun Jiayan had told replied to him: "The third master told us that if the county seat can't be defended, according to what he said, plant half of the yellow flag and half of the white flag in Anyi Fort, and say that our Sun family will strictly abide by neutrality from now on, and the two will not help each other, and also, prepare 10,000 taels of silver for the Red Turban Army!" ”

"Our Sun family doesn't pay for food, so we will take out this 10,000 taels of silver!" The old family continued: "The red scarf thief has always paid attention to buying people's hearts, and our Anyi Fort is a family family of Ruian for 900 years, and he is willing to plant half of the yellow flag, and he took out 10,000 taels of silver to admit punishment, most of which is preserved!" ”

"If the Qing Dynasty comes back, so many people have died in our Sun family, and the third master can live and die with the city, but he is only forced to set up a few yellow flags due to the situation, but he still does not pay for the red turban thieves, and he can definitely cope with the past."

After listening to Sun Jiayan's arrangement, Sun Qiangming leaned on the cabin weakly, tears falling like rain.

Bit by bit, it is all into the clear water, slowly to the east, and flows back to the hometown.