Autumn in the north has always come quickly, suddenly, and unexpectedly. In the afternoon, the weather may still be as stuffy as a steamer, and in the night a light rain falls, and the next morning the cool north wind blows. In the blink of an eye, the ears of grain began to sink, the leaves began to turn yellow, and the persimmons and black dates on the branches were also golden and red one after another. Red and black, black and purple.

In previous years, at this time, there was always a busy scene inside and outside the city. The farmers and tenants were busy going to the fields to grab the harvest, and the bookkeepers, housekeepers, and nurses were also in good spirits, putting out the calculations, account books, and secretly replacing the small bucket at the door of the warehouse with a big bucket, preparing to ask for rent and accounts, and return the grains to the warehouse. But this autumn is a little special, all over Juluze, north to Zhao County, Xindu, south to Ji County, Wuyang, the people are lazy and can't lift their spirits, even the most self-harvesting ordinary farmers are not in a hurry to go to the field to harvest, as if the heavy ears of grain do not belong to themselves at all.

It's no wonder that everyone is listless. Although there is a lot of grain in the field, it really can't fall into the hands of the owner after harvesting! The court has to pay a share, the bandits have to pay a share, and the local officials have to scrape a layer after handling it. The protagonists have worked hard for a whole year, and the seeds that can fall after the spring of the next year have asked the gods to worship the Buddha. Don't you give it to you? What do you say? Don't give? The court, bandits and magistrates, which master can you afford to provoke? Whoever moves a finger, the people have to pay for their heads. Even if you pay taxes and "security food" normally, you still have to watch people's eyes every day. If the uncles are not happy to come and walk around one day, it will be corpses all over the ground and rivers of blood.

There is a way to pass a soldier like a bandit, and a bandit is like a soldier. If you are unfortunate enough to encounter fierce officers and soldiers, you will inevitably be in a mess as if they have been gnawed by locusts along the way. I was lucky enough to run into a reasonable bandit, at most I could guarantee that no one would die, and every household was still scraped to the bottom of the tank. The most unfortunate situation is that the official has passed it once, and the bandit has passed it again. In that way, the well-off families along the way suddenly became destitute, and the destitute families had no choice but to turn their hearts and follow the bandits to find food to eat.

However, the area around this giant deer has not stopped since this spring. Officials come and go, bandits come and go, there is hardly a day that goes without fighting, and there is not a day when people do not die. When the people began to hear the sound of the trumpet, they knew to hide in the cellars and in the woods. Later, I was impatient to hide, and some of the bold ones simply didn't hide. Lie on the back of the wall to see if the bandits have killed the official army, or if the official army has killed the bandits. I look forward to being able to divide the winners and losers as soon as possible, whether the officers and soldiers win or the bandits win, at least it can be temporarily stopped for a year and a half, and it will also let everyone take a breath more or less!

But the blind God just refused to fulfill everyone's wishes, and the bandits and officers and soldiers fought from spring to summer, and from summer to winter, and the battlefield still revolved around Juluze. The official army finally came up with a Yang Shanhui who won a hundred battles, but he was accidentally beaten by Cheng Mingzhen of Juluze and lost his armor. The bandits finally rose up a Dou Jiande, but accidentally met Wei Zheng and Wei Yuanchang, and one fell from the clouds into the mud puddle, losing more than 100,000 soldiers and horses, and running in such a hurry that even the trouser belt that was tied to the dead button was broken into three.

These battles are not the most regrettable. The most regrettable battle was born in the south of Xiangguo County, at the junction of Longgang, Nanhe and Shahe County. At the end of July, Feng Xiaoci, the right martial general of the imperial court, led 10,000 heavenly soldiers and generals to block Wang Deren, Gao Kaidao, Liu Badao, Shi Derui and other thieves here. Seeing that it is about to enter the giant deer in the bandits' nest, it will bring peace back to all parts of Hebei. However, Zhang Jin's bandit Cheng Mingzhen suddenly had a whimsy, and actually floated out of the big lake on the north side of Juluze with a reed raft, and ran for more than 100 miles in the starry night, and went around behind Feng Xiaoci, and burned his military rations with a fire.

The officers and soldiers had no supplies, so they naturally couldn't fight hungry, so they had to retreat while fighting, and this retreat was from Zhang Jincheng's door to Liyangcang step by step. The bandits who took advantage of it pursued closely and drove from Longgang to Ye County, not only snatching back all the losses of the previous defeat, but also easily scourging the boundaries of Wu'an and Wei County except for the county seats.

Seeing that the southern part of Hebei was about to change, Zhang Jin said that the dog thief suddenly ran out of courage again. actually took the big bags and small wraps, cattle and sheep and livestock that he snatched, and obediently returned to Xiangguo County, and relied on Juluze to manage his one-third of an acre of land. As soon as he took the lead, the other bandits no longer had the heart to catch up and fight Feng Xiaoci to the death. Pack up the belongings you have gotten in your hands, pull them out in the east and gang in the west, and go to other places.

Only the common people of the surrounding counties of Juluze were suffering, and the officials and soldiers suffered losses, and they had to pay additional taxes to make up for them. The bandits have grown their ranks, and they also have to levy additional "security food" to feed them. The crops in the fields have not yet been confiscated, and much of it belongs to the owner himself. A family with a thin background has to borrow money and rice everywhere in order to make enough "imperial grain" for the uncles from all sides.

People who really can't even borrow money have to sell their children to big families as slaves, carry the last few pieces of dry food for the women in the family, and send her back to her parents' house in a package. The men themselves sharpened their kitchen knives and walked out laughing with their necks crossed. or take refuge in bandits, or take refuge in officials and soldiers, anyway, no matter which side they turn to, they can give food before they die in battle, so that they will not starve while guarding their homes with nothing.

"His father should go to join the army! It's a good thing, maybe you can go back to your hometown to find me in the future! "The women were always soft-hearted, crying enough, numb from the pain, wiping the tears and catching up, pulling at their husbands' sleeves and admonishing.

The man who was forced to a dead end had another plan in his heart, gently broke the woman's fingers, stared at the red eyes and scolded, "What do you know!" The qi of the Great Sui Dynasty has long been exhausted. The emperor is not like the emperor, and the official is not like the official. If you go to do it for them, you may not end up with good results! ”

"Oh my God! Why don't you open your eyes! When the woman heard this, she often let out another wail, "Then who are you going to, it will be a long time before you come back!" ”

"Let's go to Juluze first to see if there is anyone on Zhang Da's side? It's better to be closer to the door of the house, if you can call back one day, you will catch those bastards in the city and catch some sky lanterns! "No matter how uncomfortable a man is, he can't cry, he can only keep his voice dumb. He does not hate incompetent officials and soldiers, nor does he hate murderous and domineering bandits, and most hates the local officials closest to him. Unless it has already been hit on the ground, the collection of money by officials and soldiers and the urging of bandits must go through the hands of local officials. And those local officials were not offended on both sides, and they were obedient, and they kept their hands wet, and they all ate with round bellies.

"Dad, I, I'll wait for you! Life is a member of your old Wang family, and death is a ghost of your old Wang family! The women wept for a while, and had to put away their tears again, biting their pale lips and vowing.

"You, hi!" The man wanted to tell his woman that if he could marry, he should find someone who could support her. When the words came to his lips, he really couldn't bear it, thought about it, and promised in a low voice: "If my life is good, I will ask someone to bring you something back." You hide it by yourself, don't cheapen your brother and brother. When we have enough money to redeem our children, we will redeem them. The whole family went to the east of the river. I heard that over there, life is barely able to get by! ”

To what extent the life in the Hedong area can be lived, men and women are also hearsay. But at least the two of them saw a little light in the night, even though it was as weak as a firefly's tail. It is better to be a peaceful dog than to be a troubled person. In troubled times, how many choices do you have in order to survive? Those who honestly guard the door of their homes will not survive the next winter, even if they barely survive the coming winter. If they want to survive, they have to pick up the knife. Kill or be killed. When there are so many lonely ghosts and wild ghosts on Lord Yama's side that he can't even fit in hell, maybe he will wake up God. Descend a true dragon species and rebuild a peaceful and prosperous world.

And where the true dragon emperor is, no one can say. The Great Sui court is like a hundred-legged insect, kicking its legs before dying, and it can also step on a large area. The rest of the beacon smoke, from Zhai Rang to Xue Rail, from Du Fuwei to Wang Xupo and Wei Dao'er, each sang their own tunes, and no one obeyed anyone. Even in this big place in the south of Hebei, there are still two groups who are willing to be emperors, one is Gao Shida, a group of rogues with Douzigang. The other is Zhang Jin, who is about to defect to the man, and there are several bandits such as Hao Laodao and Cheng Mingzhen under his command.

The reason why the people who have no way out are outside the official army is that most of them choose Zhang Jincheng. It's not that I believe that Zhang Jin said that it was the legend that the hidden dragon was born, but that Zhang Jin said that the station was close to everyone's hometown, and his momentum was far greater than that of Wang Deren, Shi Derui and other thieves. With the biggest strands, the chance of being caught by the officials and soldiers to kill the head is always smaller. Lay down fortresses and cities, and there are relatively more opportunities to grab things and wealth. Although in the mouths of the people, Zhang Jiajun's reputation is really not good!

However, Zhang Jin is also known for saying that his subordinates have good food. On the first day of being a minion, the man ate two meals to his heart's content. It is said that if there is a war, you can also divide the two chaff nests in the middle of the night to add food. This is not the best, according to the "old rivers and lakes" who participated in the last raid, if you can be selected as a sharp soldier, not only can you eat three meals a day, but also eat meat every three days. Broke the city, and they also shared the spoils first. The rest of the minions can only be picked by the sharps, so that they can get some things that no one wants.

When talking about these topics, the eyes of the "old rivers and lakes" are always shining, and the corners of their mouths are unconsciously oozing some bright saliva. The newly recruited minions were immediately burned by the provocative fire, accompanied by a smiling face, and cautiously asked the seniors of the same army: "Brother, then how can we be selected as sharp soldiers?" ”

"Hmph, don't look at your little body!" The smile in the eyes of the senior masters immediately turned into contempt, pursed their lips, and counted in a low voice, "We have a total of nine villages in Juluze, except for the two big masters and the nine masters, each of the other villages only has two thousand sharp soldiers. If you die in battle, you can make up for one. Otherwise, unless you have extraordinary real skills, even if you beg your grandfather to tell your grandmother, you don't want to get the identity of Ruishi! ”

"Oh! It's so strict! The eyes of the new minions quickly dimmed, and they lowered their heads and counted the grains of rice in the porridge. are all men who farm the land, how can they have the ability to do anything other than their strength. The good dream of a small fortune to hurry home is shattered, and it is already a blessing in misfortune to be able to continue to live and eat every day.

"It's not just strict, it's unreasonable!" The old rivers and lakes probably had the same dream. Now that they have been forced to fall into the grass, who doesn't want to make more money and enjoy more happiness? "Even if you are selected to be a sharp soldier, it depends on whether you are diligent in training, whether you are clever enough, and whether you dare to play with your life when you fight. No matter which of these three items is missing, they will be swept down, and it will not work for anyone to intercede. In the spring, the word "Yi" went to 2,000 brothers, and in less than a month, more than 500 were swept down. Yizi Zhai Du Lao is the father-in-law of our Jiu Masters, and his face is so angry that he can't let the Jiu Masters accept them again. ”

The new minions have just joined the group, and they can't tell the messy banners in the giant deer. What is the battalion of the word "mountain", the battalion of the word "fire", the battalion of the word "brocade", the battalion of the word "righteousness", and what is the first army of the left, the second army of the left, the first army of the middle and so on. However, I got two useful pieces of information from the introductions of my predecessors. The first is that not everyone can be a Ruishi, and it is easy to be eliminated if they do. The second is that the person in charge of training the sharps may be the nine masters, and only he can decide whether the sharps will stay or not.

As for whether he can be lucky enough to be favored by the nine masters, he is still delusional. Since driving Feng Xiaoci away from the gate of Juluze, the big boss Zhang Jin said that he seemed to have been busy stabilizing his territory, and he had run the four northern counties of Xiangguo County like an iron bucket, and he didn't have the time to take the initiative to attack. In addition, every time there is a war, it is also the warriors who take the lead, and ordinary minions can only give people a chance to fight, support the ladder, and it is difficult to get a chance to perform.

Seeing that the expressions on the faces of the new accomplices became more and more depressed, the old Jianghu were also a little unbearable. He patted him on the shoulder with a smile and whispered, "What are you worried about?" When the sharp man has meat to eat, he divides the gold in a large piece, but he also dies quickly. It's like following the crowd to live a peaceful life! ”

Seeing that the other party just glanced up at himself, he continued to count the rice grains in the porridge. Lao Jianghu smiled and reminded very considerately, "The history team of our team is positive, it seems that he can talk to the nine masters." If you really have the ability, just show your hand to Team Shi. Maybe he likes you and will recommend you to Nine Masters! ”

"Really?" The new minion's eyes quickly lit up, and then quickly dimmed, "If you know the Nine Masters, why don't Team Shi Zheng become Ruishi himself, and still use it in this nest!" ”

"You idiot! What a solid eye! Lao Jianghu was so angry that he slapped the new minion and woke up with a smile, "Old Shi is here with us, and the size is a team." If you become a sharp soldier, you are a big soldier. In addition to having more money, which point is more comfortable than now! ”

"That's just as well!" The new minion had a little more hope in his chest, and he responded in a low voice. Later, he was used as a servant by the old rivers and lakes, washing dishes, wiping weapons, and washing clothes for each other. But these jobs are not done in vain, the old rivers and lakes are served comfortably, and they will always reveal some unknown secrets to the new minions. For example, Team Shi Zheng once carried a big bag on the dock with the Nine Masters, and Captain Zhou once served as a servant under Deputy Captain Wang. There are also such as the wedding night of the Nine Masters, the bride was suddenly poisoned by a wicked woman. Then the wicked woman handed over the formula with a conscience, but she committed suicide by taking poison and so on. There are all kinds of them, so that they are amazed or amazed, or their eyes are wide, and their faces are full of disbelief.

These secrets are not secrets, they always revolve around Cheng Mingzhen, the ninth master, and sometimes even the limelight of the big boss Zhang Jincheng has to be overshadowed. But ordinary minions don't notice this, they only notice who can lead them to victory, and who will make Juluze more promising when they arrive.

The future always breaks out, just guarding the nest, sooner or later it will sit and eat nothing. After the ninth day of September, the new and old minions ate a meal of giant crabs produced by Juluze, and then each person was given ten catties of rice and a piece of dried meat. Carrying supplies and weapons on his back, he quietly walked southwest in the light of the stars.

"Where are you going?" The new minions asked the seniors in low voices. This time, the omniscient old-timers also shook their heads, looked around, and lowered their voices in response, "Don't inquire if you shouldn't ask, no one will treat you as a dumb person." The big boss is the most taboo about this, and he will not leak any news to the bottom before every expedition! ”

"So, does the Shi team know about it?" The new minions touched a nail, but they couldn't suppress the curiosity in their hearts, and they looked around like the old-timers, but now no one paid attention to them, and lowered their voices to continue to get to the bottom of it.

"Enough! He's a bit low! The old-timer looked in the direction where his team was and shook his head slightly. However, it must be a big battle. You count the flags around you, all the brothers who can be dispatched have been dispatched, the last time the big boss and Feng Xiaoci worked hard, they didn't mobilize so many people! ”

The new minions were given pointers and looked around. Sure enough, the battle flags that had been seen in the giant deer such as "Wind", "Mountain", "6", "Righteousness", and "Fire" all appeared. The big boss Zhang Jin said that he was wearing a blue-black lotus leaf armor and a scarlet cloak on his back. On the head, there must also be a black gold ear helmet, with red tassels on it, and jade jade on the side. It looks majestic and murderous.

Behind the big boss, followed by the sharp soldiers who were selected from various villages and gathered into ten armies. Everyone stood tall and stared straight ahead, dismissive of the envious glances cast around them.

Although most of those envious eyes did not fall on them, but bypassed the chaotic battle flags, bypassed Zhang Jincheng, Hao Laodao and Lu Fangyuan, and in the end, they all converged on one point.

There was a red battle flag there, and a big word was written in the middle of the dragon flying and phoenix dancing, "Cheng"!

Note 1: Burning high incense, in the northern native language, refers to the blessing of the gods.