Xuzhou was born to be a decisive battlefield, and I don't know how many big scenes have been witnessed since ancient times, and each time is enough to change history.

This time, the Qing court did not have enough troops to resist Hou Xuanyan's footsteps in Xuzhou, and they hoped to leave the final decisive battle in Jifu, so that if they were defeated, they would have slipped back to the nearest pass. Rao is like this, and the various military towns in Xuzhou still brought enough trouble to the Northern Expeditionary Army. Hou Xuanyan was determined to intersperse the encirclement, break through one by one, and first take Xiao County, which was far away from Xuzhou City.

Qingmang Village in Xiao County is an ancient and primitive small village, where the people make a living by farming and weaving. Because the terrain is flat and there is no danger to defend, and there are no towns nearby, this small village has escaped the fighting.

Tonight, Hou Xuanyan ordered to camp around this place, the soldiers stopped to cut down trees and make fires, and the villagers in the distance, led by the only literate old man in the village, came to the camp with some wine and meat gathered by the whole village to beg for peace.

Although rumors are everywhere in Jiangnan and people's hearts are fluctuating, the supply of baggage has never been interrupted. The Northern Expeditionary Army naturally wouldn't covet this little thing, but Xia Wanchun still left them behind, and asked people to go back to the village to bring all the villagers and have a full meal in the camp. He was born in Jiangnan Shizi, and he has been accompanied by moral articles since he was a child, and he always carries that kind of compassion in his heart.

Hou Xuanyan was noncommittal about this kind of trivial matter, he was in his tent at the moment, leaning on the chair, and asked the little military doctor Yang Fujin to give him a massage. The tent was pitch black, and the lights were not lit, so that the outside could not see the inside, Hou Xuanyan asked people to open the tent door again and watch the soldiers outside have fun with the people. Xia Wanchun sat with the villagers, excitedly talking about some big truths that the villagers couldn't understand at all.

The soldiers of the Northern Expeditionary Army ate and drank to their heart's content around the bonfire, but they listened with relish. These villagers all wore typical rat-tail pigtails on their heads, and when the Qing court issued an order to shave their hair, they did not resist much, and they shaved their hair very cooperatively. Now that the Northern Expeditionary Army is here, they have happily cut off their pigtails when they talk about how to shave their heads. Xia Wanchun was greatly encouraged, and improvised a poem in public, which attracted applause from the military and civilians.

All this is in Hou Xuanyan's eyes, but he has no other ideas, this is what a farmer should be. The peasants were the most insecure in troubled times, and whoever came their army was unprotected by high walls, so they were left defenseless under the iron hooves. This circumstance allowed them to retain the peculiar cunning of the peasants while being simple, and to make them take up a hoe and kill people without farming, and there was only one way, which was to cut off their way of life. As for those who shave their heads and don't shave their heads, it doesn't mean much to them, and people have to survive before they are qualified to think about other things. This is the real ecological law of the land of China under the framework of the ritual system.

When hit by a huge wave, the ritual that seems to be bigger than the sky loses its authority and becomes a joke. That's why there were literati and officials competing to shave their hair and flatter the Manchus. But the survival rule of this kind of small village will never become, and the Qing court gave these villagers a way to live, and they were the most obedient people. The Qing court cut off their activism, and they were the righteous men who resisted the Qing Dynasty.

Just like the villagers in Jiang Wen's movie The Devil is Coming, they can drink and have fun with the Japanese and celebrate the New Year happily. Before the butcher's knife was raised, there was no anti-Japanese hero in the whole village, and in the end, no matter who ruled it, they had to find a gap in it to survive, because this was the law they relied on to survive.

Thinking of this, and then looking at Xia Wanchun's handsome face that was so excited that it turned red, and the whole figure was radiating under the light of the bonfire, Hou Xuanyan smiled dumbly.

"What are you laughing at?" Yang Fujin originally looked at Xia Wanchun outside with admiration, but after hearing the laughter, he couldn't help but tilt his head and ask.

"I laugh at our Xia Da political commissar, and he can also be happy to play the piano with the cow. Alas, the peaceful and prosperous world he saw in his heart would not be able to reach it in another ten thousand years, but I am different, and the prosperous era in my heart will soon be created by my own hands. ”

Yang Fujin pouted, disappreciated, and defended his idol: "Isn't the prosperous world a prosperous world, why is everyone different?" ”

Hou Xuanyan suddenly became interested, stood up, and a pair of eyes seemed to shine in the dark night: "The prosperous era I am talking about has never been seen in the world, birds can fly in the water; People can swim in the clouds; The heavens can be covered by the earth; You know, there's no shackles! ”

Yang Fujin was shocked in his heart, patted his chest and said secretly in his heart: "It's over, it's over, Grandpa Guo's minor illness has been cured of hysteria by me." ”

Hou Xuanyan shook his head and said, "Rotten wood can't be carved..."

----

In Jinling City, in a secluded courtyard, there is an incense burner on the table, and the faint aroma calms the mind. The three of them sat on the futon in front of the table, and in the mist, it became more and more like the Sanqing in the Taoist temple.

One of them is Liu Zhongzao, who has been forced to quit the cabinet and returned to his hometown, and there are two other people whose identities are also amazing, including Zhang Huangyan, a scholar of Wenyuan Pavilion, and Lu Zhenfei, who is also a scholar. Two of the three people are important ministers of the dynasty, and one is the first assistant of Zhishi, all of whom are big shots. And the three of them, without exception, are all bachelors appointed by Emperor Longwu.

Liu Zhongzao took a sip of tea and said: "Hou Xuanyan's support for the empress has already been spread, but I didn't expect it to just cause some turmoil among the people, so it was used as a conversation after tea and dinner. ”

After Lu Zhenfei was forced to retreat from the cabinet by Hou Xuanyan, his sideburns were white in just half a year, the corners of his eyebrows were raised, and he said in a deep voice: "Now it is no longer the Ming Dynasty of the year, all the officials are from the subordinates surnamed Hou, how can there be any style." What's even more ridiculous is that even the lowly people of craftsmen and Langzhong can be officials in a grand manner, which is simply ridiculous. What is left of the rituals handed down by the saints? If this continues, in the next ten years and eight years, how many people will there be in the world? ”

"Although Hou Xuanyan is powerful, it has not yet reached the point of supporting the empress without anyone objecting, I think our methods are too soft. Although the people are boiling over, no one in the government and the opposition believes it, and they all think it is a rumor. If you want to expose this shocking crime, I think you will have to use some strong measures. ”

Zhang Huangyan was entangled in his heart, and said worriedly: "By all means, the justice of the Yue Kingdom has reached Xuzhou in the Northern Expedition, even if it is a big matter, we can solve it after the Northern Expedition." At this time, when we exposed him in Jiangnan, wouldn't it be cheaper to build slaves in Manchuria. ”

Lu Zhenfei stood up, shook his fingers and said fiercely: "Xuanzhu, you are confused!" Although the disaster of the Manchu Qing Dynasty was great, it was no longer to be feared, and the power in Jiangnan was much stronger than that of the Manchu Qing Dynasty. And what Hou Xuanyan has done has already harmed the foundation of the country, do you need to say more about which is more important? Do you want to watch him and change the surname of a good Ming Dynasty to Hou? ”

Liu Zhongzao also helped: "That's right, if the etiquette of poetry and books does not exist, then we are no different from Tartars." Although Hou Xuanyan is a Han Chinese, once he continues to destroy the etiquette like this, he is no different from a barbarian. If the scholar does not exist, morality will collapse, and the world will not die!

Now Hou Xuanyan seems to have a solid foundation, and his subordinates are all young officials he promoted. But he didn't expect that although these officials were loyal to him, the clan forces behind them were on our side. Before the skin is torn, everything is easy to say, if it is really torn, it is difficult to say who will win and who will lose. ”

Zhang Huangyan stood up, bent over with his hands into fists and said: "What the two elders said is reasonable, but even if the Duke of Yue Guo is different in every way, his sentence 'The Northern Expedition is bigger than the sky' is sincerely agreed by the younger generation." The Manchu Qing Dynasty caused chaos in the Central Plains, and the people were devastated, if we are intriguing behind our backs, then when will the Han Dynasty be restored? ”

Lu Zhenfei snorted coldly, turned his head away and stopped looking at him, Zhang Huangyan turned around and pushed the door to leave.

When he left the hospital, Zhang Huangyan looked back and saw that no one came out to keep him. Zhang Huangyan couldn't help but be a little annoyed, but he was also a little glad that he didn't want to conspire with the two people in the room at all. You look down on me Zhang Huangyan, you really think you can do anything without me. Although it was a big mistake for the Duke of Yue to support the empress, the Northern Expedition could not do without him. Not to mention anything else, it is that those tiger generals have more than 100,000 elite soldiers under their command, and who can stop them when they return to the south.

Thinking of this, Zhang Huangyan quickened the pace of leaving, but his brows furrowed even deeper. Do you really want to serve a girl as the emperor, then where will the future emperor come out? In his opinion, the only way is to compromise with Hou Xuanyan, and if the Northern Expedition is successful in the future, he will be the emperor with good moral character from the domain.

In front of the first emperor's spirit, Hou Xuanyan's words sounded in Zhang Huangyan's mind again, and he understood in his heart that Yue Guogong's behavior of supporting the empress.

"I said a long time ago, this person is difficult to achieve big things, he has been deceived by Hou Xuanyan." Lu Zhenfei said angrily.

Liu Zhongzao filled him with tea and said with a smile: "Don't be impatient, don't you know this person?" He will not help us, nor will he betray us. We want to achieve great things, and one more of them is the icing on the cake, and one less of them is harmless, so why should you be angry? ”

Liu Zhongzao and Lu Zhenfei are both great Confucians in the south of the Yangtze River, and they are high-ranking officials who have been in the court for a long time, and their protégés and former officials are all over the south of the Yangtze River. Their background in Jiangnan is even stronger than Hou Xuanyan. Coupled with Hou Xuanyan's commercial tax policy and salt mine policy, although a large group of open-minded businessmen made a lot of money, they offended those gentry who clinged to the traditional model. These people have suffered a lot of losses, and they are losing their wealth all the time. The rise of new forces will inevitably threaten the old vested interests, and collisions and fights will ensue. From this level, Liu Zhongzao and Lu Zhenfei seem to be the leaders of the fallen marquis, but they are just pawns in the hands of some people.

It is precisely with these reliances that Liu Zhongzao can speak so confidently, and he believes that a Jiangnan without Hou Xuan's performance cannot hinder them.

No matter how loyal Hou Xuanyan's subordinates are, with the bonds of the clan, and Hou Xuanyan himself is not there, why is it difficult to set off a huge change in the court? The most important thing is that they know exactly that Hou Xuanyan has a big trick, and Emperor Jingyu Zhu Linhao is a girl, in the eyes of Liu Zhongzao and Lu Zhenfei, this matter is enough to put Hou Xuanyan to death.

After Liu Zhongzao's persuasion, Lu Zhenfei's face softened slightly, and asked: "Speaking of which, why hasn't there been a word about that line in the palace recently, could it be exposed?" ”

Liu Zhongzao laughed: "There is only one Wang Xiangnian in the palace, what is the difference between this eunuch and a piece of wood, you can rest assured." ”

When Lu Zhenfei heard this, he felt that it made sense, Wang Xiangnian's performance in several major events was indeed not as good as a piece of wood, so he put his mind at ease.

Liu Zhongzao sighed and said, "Speaking of which, if Hou Xuanyan is in Jinling, I really can't say if we can beat him this time." Even if it is a big crime like conspiring to make the princess the empress, I don't have the confidence to beat him to death with a stick, and this son of Hou Yuzeng in Jiading is a little terrible. At the beginning, I thought he was a malleable talent, and I really expected him to be a hero who saved time, but unfortunately he still embarked on the current path. ”

"That's true, Hou Tong and I used to be old friends, when he arrived in Fuzhou, I invited him to his home and persuaded him to put aside his personal grievances and use Chen Zilong. Who knew that this guy would not enter the oil and salt, and insisted on sending Chen Zilong to Wujiang County as the county order. Chen Zilong later embarked on the road of killing the king, and Hou Xuanyan could not escape responsibility. ”

When the big event came, the two of them talked about it in a good way, as the saying goes, Xiucai can't rebel for three years, and he doesn't deceive me.

The two of them chatted for a while, and then they gathered their heads and discussed specific matters. In terms of practical ability, Qian Qianyi and Chen Zilong are much stronger than these two people, and the two of them have not yet made up their minds at night. At this time, Xu Yuanbao, who arrived overnight, had already arrived at Jinling City.

The one who came to greet him was none other than Hong Yixun, the commander of the Hidden Elephant Battalion. The daily affairs of the Hidden Elephant Battalion are piled up like a mountain, and Hong Yiyun rarely comes out to socialize. But today is different, the little fat man who greeted him crawled out of the pile of dead people together, and it was a lifelong friendship.

Hong Yixun heard the sound of horses' hooves in the distance, and greeted the arrival of the old man with a smile. The spies around him were very curious when they saw that their own commander rarely showed the look that a normal person should have.

"Immeasurable Tianzun, Yuanbao, I haven't seen you for a long time, and you are becoming more and more mellow." Hong Yixun quipped.

The childishness on Xu Yuanbao's face is gone, replaced by an alternative calmness, the little fat man who was holding a mace and loved to smash people's heads has come out of hatred. After such a long career as a salt mine envoy in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, he has become a little slippery, after all, he is fighting wits and courage with profiteers every day.

"Haha, this time the eldest brother finally showed kindness and transferred me to the Qinhuai River to enjoy the blessings. Little Taoist, do you have any wine, my brother and I are hungry. Most of the people Xu Yuanbao brought were elite soldiers of the Songjiang Water Division, and they were sent by his brother-in-law to escort him to Jinling. At this time, they all looked at the leader of the legendary submarine camp curiously, and unexpectedly did not look scary at all.

"Blessed? You think too much, whether you can survive this time, it's not certain. ”

"Then I'll drink more."