On the sixth day of November, Yang He inspected Tianyue Village in Maling Mountain, and in the past six months, he built a total of four villages and two wharves.

Yuwang Cottage, Canal Town, Zhongwu Village, Malingshan Tianyue Village, Mohe Wharf, Zhangshan Wharf. After the rivers are completely frozen next month, a small road from Canal Town to Zhongwu Village will be built, which can be described as a tight time and heavy task, and the cost of money and grain is countless.

However, don't say that Canal Town is the new city he wants to establish, and the center of power in Pizhou in the future, except for some buildings, is still being planned for the time being.

And like Zhongwu Village, Tianyue Village is basically completed, the same is built on the mountain, the north and southeast up and down two walled walls meander, a semicircle, the entire Tianyue Mountain is enveloped, and it winds to both ends of Huangchao Lake. Between the hills, by the lake, there are dense barracks and warehouses, enough to garrison three or four thousand people inside.

This is also a deliberate decision made by Yang He, if there is a Qing army going south from the official road, it will take Zhongwuzhai as the vanguard, frustrate its spirit, and wait for an opportunity to cut off its back road. He led a large army to garrison Tianyue Village, where he fought with the enemy, at least the enemy who invaded Shuyang, and he had to teach them a lesson and let them know the prestige of the Xin'an Army.

As for the Qing army that invaded Ganyu and Haizhou, Yang He did not understand whether they were in the same group or different from the enemy in Shuyang, and they took other roads, after all, there were also trails to follow in Ganyu and Haizhou, and Tancheng.

I saw the opportunity to act well, but fortunately, I had a mental calculation and no intention, and I set up a base here, so I was much more relaxed in all aspects.

The goal he gave himself was that in the war from December, the three cities of Shuyang, Ganyu, and Haizhou could not be lost.

……

At the end of November, the training of the bandits under Yang He's command came to an end, and all the recruits showed their sharpness when they saw the blood.

After the training was over, Yang He also gave the soldiers a ten-day vacation, so that they could meet their families and reunite with their relatives and elders. He knew in his heart that in the battle with the Qing soldiers in the near future, some of these people would probably never be seen again.

Yang He was in full swing to prepare, and the Qing troops continued to move south, which was menacing, attacking the city and conquering the city, and was invincible.

At the beginning of the 11th month of the leap month, news came that the Qing soldiers besieged Hejian Mansion, and the soldiers of the eight towns all embraced the county next to the wall, and they did not dare to approach. Abatai sent his generals to attack the battalion of the general soldier Xue Enemy, and all the reinforcement divisions were defeated. Abatai attacked the river more urgently, broke its city, and Senator Zhao Ting, prefect Yan Yin and others died.

The Qing soldiers were invincible, and the Ming army fled when they heard the wind, and they were unable to support it.

In the midst of internal and external troubles, the internal situation of the Ming Dynasty was not optimistic, and on October 24, Sun Chuanting was defeated in Jiaxian. On the first day of November, Liu Chao, the commander-in-chief of the reinforcement army, rebelled against Yongcheng. On the 14th day of the 11th month of the leap month, Li Zicheng fell into Runing, and the commander-in-chief Hu Dawei and the former governor-general Yang Wenyue died.

The bad news came one after another, the officials and the people were relatively lamenting and helpless, and Yang He could only step up his defense and continue to transport grain, grass and equipment to Zhongwu Village.

In the middle of leap November, there was shocking news that the Qing army invaded Shandong and captured Linqing, an important town of Caoyun!

……

At the beginning of leap November, due to the freezing of the river, the hydraulic hammering system of the munitions station was stopped, but fortunately, the goal required by Yang He was basically achieved, and from June to the beginning of intercalary November, the munitions station made a total of 3,000 breech Xin'an guns, and connected the original fire guns, totaling 4,000 rods.

Because Xin'anzhuang now produces crucible steel, high-quality spring steel has been satisfied, and all of these breech Xin'an guns are equipped with a flint style, that is, the two-style Xin'an guns without a sword for the time being, at least more than enough to meet the existing guns.

These two-type new guns that do not have swords for the time being are equipped with single-headed bullets and new medicines, which make the combat power of the soldiers like a tiger.

In addition, the quartermaster station also made 2,000 pairs of non-commissioned officers and other iron armor, connected to the original iron armor, and the governor's palace allocated armor, and the heavy armor under his command reached as many as 2,500 pairs, and the penetration rate of heavy armor exceeded half.

The munitions also make pure cotton armor, a long body cover armor, three layers thick, weighing more than 20 catties, nails embedded with copper nails, 50 steps away can prevent projectiles, 50 steps of direct shooting will not be seriously injured, a set of costs only more than two taels of silver. The quartermaster made 5,000 pairs, which were not only equipped with soldiers without iron armor, but also equipped with Zhuang Ding to patrol and capture.

Therefore, after the holiday, Yang He gave his subordinates a full change.

On the 15th day of the 11th month of the leap month, the Xin'anzhuang training base, at the foot of the North Mountain.

The military formations were arranged one by one, forming a phalanx according to the general line, standing still in the wind and snow.

They were all in armor, slaughtering, flying, like fire and blood, and the eyes exposed under the iron mask only showed perseverance!

Yang He has changed all of them, the first-class army is equipped with iron armor, the captain-level officers are equipped with the general's armor, and the ordinary soldiers are equipped with non-commissioned soldiers.

The school armor weighs forty pounds, and there are heart goggles at the front and back, throat guards, crotch armor, shin armor, etc., which are similar to the armor Yang He originally wore.

The soldier armor weighs more than 30 catties, the armor is concentrated in the upper body, there are heart guards in the front and back, and the difference between the shield soldiers, the fire guns, and the spearmen is slightly different, but the iron armor is thick, especially the throat armor that protects the throat and the iron mask that protects the face.

They all have cloaks, crimson in color, coarse felt fabric, and wool scarf collars. The length of the inner officer's cloak was to the calf, and the length of the soldier's cloak was to the knee. At this time, the cold wind hunts, and their red tassels and cloaks only fly in the wind and snow.

Next to the first-class army are six phalanxes of the second-class army, with officers and veterans with iron helmets and iron armor, and new recruits with pure cotton armor and winter felt. Both recruits and veterans also have crimson cloaks, showing that they are fierce and fierce.

Slightly different from the First Class Army, the shield bearers of the Second Class Army still use large shields that are taller than the human head, as well as the original battle formations.

Next to it is the team commander of the Central Military Department, the artillery team, the grenadier team, the cavalry team, the sentinel team, the sharp soldier team, the baggage team, and the medical team, all of which are also brightly armoured and motionless in the cold weather.

Banner hunting, cloaks flying, spears and firearms, showing majestic strength.

Yang He has a regret, the soldiers can't wear 100% iron armor, only the iron armor is on their bodies, and they can show the strongest military demeanor!

He was satisfied, the dazzling red light in front of him, the continuous iron armor, the cold light of pieces of armor and weapons, this is his own strength, the power to move forward!

He stood in front of the army and asked his soldiers, "Gentlemen, if I lead you to kill the Tartars, will you kill the enemy with me?" ”

The chorus below shouted: "I wish to kill slaves with the prime minister!" ”

The snow is slamming, and the sound is sonic in all directions.

Yang He's heart welled up with pride, this is his own army, relying on it in troubled times!

……

Yang He paid attention to the news of the Qing soldiers going south, but in fact, he was also concerned about the officials and people in the state city.

At the beginning of the leap month, Yang He proposed to set up a shelter in the north of the state to accommodate those Shandong refugees who fled from the south.

Yang He did not shirk, he was familiar with this matter, and he could hand it over to the civil affairs office of the council hall. In July of this year, he set up four townships and recruited refugees to enrich the population.

The refugees fled south, and also brought many rumors and rumors, such as after the Qing soldiers captured Linqing, there were many rumors, saying that the Tartar soldiers were slaughtering the city in Linqing.

The Linqing Dynasty was originally the throat of Caoyun, more than 30 miles around the city, nearly a million gentlemen and merchants, all of them were killed and captured by the Tartars, the corpses were like mountains, and the official offices and people's houses were all burned down, and the shape was miserable, indescribable.

It is also said that after the Tartar soldiers captured Linqing, they divided their troops into five routes and plundered various cities in all directions.

There are even refugees who say that some Tartars go south to Yanzhou, see their troops, and may even attack until Nanzhili.

All kinds of news and rumors shocked the people of Pizhou City three times a day, and Zhizhou Su Cheng was restless, and called the officials and generals of Zhou City for several days to discuss matters, especially practicing the general Yang River.

For Su Chengxing and others, the soldiers of the Minzhuang Guards cannot be relied on, and the only thing Pizhou can rely on is Yang He, a township soldier. This strong army has defeated the rogues several times, beheading thousands of ranks, and if the Tartars come, I hope this army can also be relied on.

Yang He proposed that the defense of Pizhou City could not only rely on the township soldiers, but also the soldiers and civilians in the city should also be organized.

He said that there are dozens of communes in the city and in the four sides of the pass, and each community can build 50 social soldiers, with the joint defense team as the backbone and the patrol and arrest bureau as the leader, and the entire city can get 3,000 social soldiers inside and outside the city.

This is a powerful force, and their money and rice cake supply are borne by the gentry and merchants, and if there is something to do to defend the palace, there is nothing to practice in the group, and 3,000 unpaid soldiers can definitely defend the city.

At the same time, he suggested that from now on, martial law should be imposed in Pizhou City, and the road should be cleared behind closed doors, and spies should be strictly investigated.

He also ordered the rich to not flee out of the city, otherwise they would confiscate their property and supply the social soldiers.

Su Chengxing's permission, in fact, the establishment of a social army, is not the desire of every county and state, but the general squire and businessmen in the territory are powerful, and it is difficult for those who do not have extraordinary prestige to implement.

But the heaven-killing star Yang He is different, this person is easy to kill, indiscriminate, ordinary gentry and businessmen see him, like a mouse sees a cat, and it is better to have him come forward.

Sure enough, the news that Lord Yang came forward to form a social army came out, and the gentry and businessmen praised Jing Cong's voice, they enthusiastically contributed money, the people enthusiastically contributed, and then there was a joint defense patrol as the backbone, and the establishment of social soldiers in Pizhou City was extremely smooth.

Yang He also did not let go of Pizhou Wei's Caoyun Banner Army, although their combat effectiveness was not good, but there were nearly a thousand people, and they were also incorporated into the force of the city guard.

In this regard, Kong Chuanyou, the commander of Pizhou Wei, cordially expressed to Yang He that he swore to live and die with Pizhou City together with the Shebing brothers.

His youngest daughter Kong Deyi and Minister Yang, a scholar who is regarded as a brother by Lord Yang, are married, and the two have a faint meaning of being close to each other, and in the past few months, Kong Chuanyou has been focusing on getting close to Yang He.

In this way, the number of guards in Pizhou City increased by 4,000 people, and with the promulgation of martial law, there were no more rumors, and the people's hearts were more stable.

Of course, Lord Yang He has his own different views on the possible defense of Pizhou.

……

On the 27th day of the 11th month of the leap month, the second hall of the state government, in the Huiwen Hall.

"The lower officials think that they can't defend the city, and they should be outside the country!"

In the Huiwen Hall, Yang He sat with Zhizhou Su Chengxing, Tongzhi Zhang Kuixiang, Judge Song Zhiyuan, and Officials Chen Tai'an.

There was a map hanging on the wind, and Yang He pointed to the map and said: "In the middle of the year, Xiaguan built Yuwang Mountain Zhuzhai to guard the road of bandits to the south. If the Tartars really went south, they could block the Tartars here, just like the way the thieves went south at that time, so as not to enter the state and ruin their lives! ”

Everyone was silent, and Zhizhou Su Cheng said: "Lord Yang thinks that the ugly captives will really go south?" ”

Yang Hedao: "It's hard to say, there are refugees who say that after the Tatars occupied Linqing, the soldiers were divided into five routes, all the way south to Yanzhou. If this is the case, they follow the official road, and may also capture Zou County, Teng County, Yi County and other places. Pizhou is on the edge of Yi County, and it is difficult to say that after the Tatars occupy Yi County, they will enter the border of Pizhou! ”

Everyone looked solemn, and Yang He continued: "Therefore, the lower officials believe that fortification in Yuwang Cottage and Canal Village should block the Tartar soldiers, so as not to suffer poison in the place. Pizhou is the land of Cao Yun, the river network is dense, in the past the passage was all boats, although now it is frozen ice, but the water flow is different, the ice is thick and thin, after guarding the main road, the Tartars can still step on the ice all the way over? ”

Su Chengxing and the others are still silent, and they also understand the truth of what Yang He said, although Pizhou is an important place for transportation, but it is not an important place for transportation, Tongjing Avenue is Suqian, Tancheng line, and the post station in the past is also by boat, but now the river is frozen, and there is no way out.

The Tartars may go south, the only way is to take the river embankment, and it is difficult to walk, the Yang River guards the Yuwang Cottage and the Canal Village, which can indeed keep the Tartars out of the city, but it is ......

Tongzhi Zhang Kuixiang and the official Chen Tai'an were both sitting, they didn't know much about military affairs, and they didn't have much right to speak, and the judge Song Zhiyuan hesitated for a while, but said: "The soldiers are in danger, and the lower officials think that it is better to defend according to the city wall, right?" ”

"What about the people outside the city?" Yang He glanced at him, "If you only guard the city of Pizhou, not to mention the destruction of the lives of all villages and villages, it will be the Tatars who drive straight into the city and enter the city, and the gates outside the city will be destroyed in one fell swoop!" Even if the city is guarded, the suburbs are in ruins, does the state government have the financial resources to settle the people? ”

Song Zhiyuan was silent, Su Chengxing frowned, Yang He glanced at them, he understood their thoughts, as long as Pizhou City was defended, they would control the people outside the city to die, but it was just that it was not easy to say.

And Yang He also has his own plans, according to history, it is unlikely that the Qing soldiers will attack Pizhou City, even if there is a small group of Qing soldiers and sentinels, Yuwang Cottage is enough to block it. In particular, there is a network of rivers and lakes everywhere, there is no official road for north-south transportation, and the rivers are frozen in winter.

This ice layer is related to the salinity of the water and the content of condensation nuclei, and the thickness of the ice varies from place to place. Therefore, Yang He is very relieved about the safety of Pizhou City.

Even if there is a case, he deploys troops in Yuwang Cottage and Canal Village, and it is easy to block the rescue in time. What he wanted was an excuse, an excuse to run around in the wild, he had his own plans for this battle, and most of his troops could not be placed in Pizhou City.

There was an embarrassing silence in the Huiwen Pavilion, and Su Cheng said for a long time: "Is Lord Yang sure to block the Tartars in the wild?" ”

He rubbed his forehead, only to feel a splitting headache, the shadow that the Qing army might go south to Pizhou hung over his heart, making his heart heavy.

This is no better than Liukou, this is the famous Tartar, after the break from the border town, it has been going south to attack thousands of miles, and once again hit Shandong, how many majestic giant cities, the elite soldiers will be unstoppable. It's not the first time, in the twelfth year of Chongzhen, the Qing army entered Jinan, and the cities of a province were breached, and Zhu Youshu, the king of Germany, and Zhu Ensheng, the general of Fengguo, were captured.

Therefore, Yang He said that he wanted to block the Qing soldiers in the field, and the courage of the young man was commendable, but in Su Zhizhou's heart, he was not sure at all.

Yang Daodao: "Xia Guan can only say, do your best!" ”

He looked at everyone's expressions and comforted: "Actually, my parents don't have to worry, I have 4,000 soldiers and banners in Pizhou City, and the defensive force is sufficient, and the lower officials also have thousands of soldiers and horses!" On the other hand, the Tartars, I heard that they only went all the way south to Yanzhou, and they had to divide their troops to plunder, even if they entered Pizhou, at most more than 1,000 people, and I was outnumbered. Even if the ugly prisoner is fierce and sees that the situation is not good, it is still okay for the lower officials to run back to the city. But whether he can resist the enemy in the wilderness, for the sake of the people of Pizhou City, the lower officials must always try. ”

Su Chengxing sighed, what Yang He said was righteousness, and he was not easy to stop, and what he said made sense, even if the Qing soldiers went south to Pizhou, the number of people would not be large, if you don't try, how do you know if you can stop it? Especially in the case of Yang He's several big defeats and young and vigorous.

Su Zhizhou also had luck in his heart, hoping that Yang He could be blocked in the wild, otherwise the Qing soldiers would hit the city, even if he held the city and the suburbs of Guanxiang were a wasteland, he would be anxious afterwards.

He sighed and said: "According to Lord Yang's strategy, if you can't do anything, you should return to the division as soon as possible, and put the safety of the people in the state city first!" ”

Yang He responded solemnly, Zhang Kuixiang and Chen Tai'an were still silent, only Song Zhiyuan said: "Xiaguan is still the same sentence, the soldiers are fierce and dangerous, especially the wild is dangerous, and Lord Yang had better defend according to the city wall." ”

Yang Hechang smiled and got up: "Life and death are fateful, what's the use of being afraid?" The soldiers are fierce and dangerous, and the field is dangerous, if you are afraid, it is better to be killed. ”

He made a gesture to Su Chengxing: "Xiaguan will go and arrange it." ”

He walked away, looking at Yang He's back, and everyone was a little distracted.

Looking at Yang He's free and easy appearance, Zhizhou Su Chengxing was a little envious for a while, perhaps, he was really old.

……

After convincing Su Chengxing, Yang He knew that he was not far from the time to set off.

At this time, he had already made preparations, especially after entering the leap month, he took advantage of the ice in various places, and asked the baggage team to survey and repair the trail from Canal Town to Zhongwu Village, laying thatch and planks on the glacier that could walk people, and several military villages also transported sufficient grain and grass equipment, and the last rest was only the arrangement of the generals.

In addition to this, there is another incident, which has been mentioned in history, but it is actually a very important historical event.

That is, in December of the fifteenth year of Chongzhen in history, Yuan Shizhong of the small Yuan camp threatened to save King Lu and led his troops east into Fengwan to Suining.

Of course, this is an excuse, Xiao Yuanying is active in the southeast of Henan and northern Anhui, they want to go to Shandong to save the king of Lu, and directly cross the Yellow River, and even walk very close from Xuzhou, what are you doing in a big circle to run Suining and Suqian? Therefore, it is false to fight the Qing army to save the king of Lu, and it is true to lead the troops to the east to loot.

Therefore, when he arrived in Suining, the general Gu Daoxing and Dai Guozhu, the general of the Cao Fanghe staff stationed in Suqian County, and the general Dai Guozhu died in Lingcheng Temple.

Yang He was very concerned about this matter, he was about to face the Qing soldiers, and of course he didn't want the backyard to catch fire.

Fortunately, the sentinel learned that there was no movement in the area of Fengyang Mansion, and there was no sign of Yuan Shizhong's soldiers and horses coming east.

Maybe it was a few big battles in Suining, Li Guo, Zhang Xianzhong and others The news of the defeat reached Yuan Shizhong's ears, and there were obstacles to the east, so he canceled the action of going around a big circle and running to Suining and Suqian to "save King Lu".

This reassures Yang He, of course, he will not take it lightly, in addition to Suining has social soldiers, he will have soldiers and horses in Xin'anzhuang, at this time the Yellow River is frozen, and it is easy to cross the river to support.