Cenxi County is surrounded by mountains, with seven mountains in the northwest and sixty-three mountains in the southeast. Continue to the southeast, cross the Yunkai Mountain, and enter the Luoding Prefecture and Gaozhou Prefecture in Guangdong Province.

Between the mountains, the rocky ridges are dangerous, the forests are ringed, and countless seedlings are scattered in between. Among the Han people, the dissidents also occupied the mountains as kings, sixty-three mountains, seven lower mountains, and there were once more than 100 mountain nests. Han and Miao united, and it was once very powerful. In order to exterminate the bandits in Luoding, Cen Xi, Rong County and other places, the Ming Dynasty set up a sub-guard general in Cen Xi since the beginning of Jiajing, and built several military towns in Dayuan, Beike, Lianshan, Qishan and Liuyun, with high cities and deep pools.

The Yongli court evacuated Zhaoqing.

The basic plate of the first assistant Ding Kuichu was Guangdong, and in the first month of the first year of Yongli, he parted ways with the emperor in Wuzhou and went south to Cen Xi.

Ding Kuichu appointed Zhong Ming, the father-in-law of Su Ping, a chief soldier of his cronies, as the magistrate of Cen Xi, and he was stationed in Beike Town, dozens of miles northwest of the county seat, to transfer Guangdong soldiers.

The soldiers of Lei Lianqiong's three mansions did not listen to Ding Kuichu's dispatch, and only Gaozhou Prefecture sent 300 reinforcements, led by Tongzhi Lu Zhan, the commander of Shendianwei, from Wuchuan to guard the thousand households into the Jianjiang River, traced back to Xinyi County, abandoned the ship, and crossed the mountains and mountains to reach Rong County, Guangxi. For Shoufu Ding Kuichu, Cen Xi County and Rong County are his only foothold now, and he can't afford to lose it.

The spring rain continues, and the road near Beike Town was built by the army that encircled and suppressed Miao Man, and the conditions were acceptable. Lu Zhan returned to the camp fort assigned to him by one foot deep and one foot shallow.

The fortress is not large, with a circumference of only 80 zhang, which has long been abandoned and unguarded. After Lu Zhan's 300 electric white boys arrived in Cen Xi, this camp fort was reopened. Beike Town is located at the confluence of the Beiliu River and the tributary Yichang River. Over a mountain, a few kilometers upstream is the confluence of the Beiliu River and another tributary, the Huanghua River.

The Beiliu River shuttles between the mountains and mountains, meandering, and the terrain on both sides of the river is dangerous. The camp fort guarded by Lu Zhan is located at the foot of the mountain protruding from the center of the river, controlling a wharf of the Huanghua River, and shielding the county seat of Cen Xi behind it together with Beike Town.

There are more than 20 civilian ships moored at the wharf, and Lu Zhan sighs every time he sees these dilapidated sampans. The ships he used in the Shendian Guard were all wide ships fighting the sea, and when he arrived in this ravine, he had no choice but to make do with these small boats.

Dinner was being cooked in the camp, and in a few large iron pots, the porridge made of brown rice and sweet potatoes and some wild vegetable leaves was fragrant. It is used to accompany the meal is the river fish caught on the river today, two big eels, a largemouth catfish, all fierce carnivorous fish, each weighs more than 20 catties, and has great strength.

The fresh meat of the river is delicate and has its own characteristics with the seafood. Stationed on the banks of the Beiliu River, the river has been full of food recently. However, Lu Zhan still misses Dianbai even more, and the table full of fresh seafood made by his family.

The headquarters is located in a barely intact building in the middle of the town. Taking the bamboo bowl containing the porridge, Lu Zhan found a clean place to sit on the ground. He eats exactly the same thing as a soldier, nothing special.

Deputy Qianhu Lu Qian came over, "Command, Du Yonghe's soldiers are about to fight." You came back from Beike Town, what are the rules of Shousuke? ”

Lu Zhan frowned, "Lao Ding said that there is a way to hold on firmly. ”

"This TMD is not nonsense, it is the same as not saying it."

"Haha, yes."

Lu sat down stupidly, "Commander, our old appliance white has been taken by the Tartars, and the brothers' minds are very chaotic now." ”

Lu Zhan put down the dishes and chopsticks and asked lightly, "How many escaped today?" ”

"17, we only have 247 people now, we can't go on like this."

Lu Zhan was silent and hurriedly finished the porridge in a few sips.

"Do you want to leave too?"

"Commanding ......" Lu Qian gritted his teeth, "The brothers are out of line here, Guangxi has nothing to do with us, and if you die, you will die in vain." ”

Lu Zhan was silent for a while, "You call all the brothers over, I have something to say." ”

The soldiers brought out from Dianbai were all neighbors and villagers, and Lu Zhan was reluctant to use heavy penalties in the army. But the matter of deserters must be resolved, otherwise the morale of the army will be scattered.

When everyone gathered, Lu Zhan climbed the wall in a few steps. The Southern Ming army was equipped with very little iron armor, and most of the soldiers only had military uniforms and Fan Yangli. These pieces of equipment are all from the inventory of the Divine Guard, and they look a little worn out on their bodies. However, it is better to achieve uniform uniforms and be stronger than those rebels.

A drizzle of rain trickled down the brim of Fan Yangli's hat, and everyone looked up.

Lu Zhan clenched his fists around, "Brothers, some of you have been with me for more than ten years, and some of you have just joined. Whether you are familiar with it or not, you all know that my reputation in the air, air, and sea is in Dianbai. I've never been sorry for my brother who followed me. Now that Dianbai's hometown is occupied by the Tartars, I can understand your feelings about wanting to go home to see your family, and I won't stop you, but you can't sneak around anymore. Lu Qian! ”

"Command!"

"There is still some silver in the army, I will pay for the foot tomorrow, you can take the brothers who want to go home first."

Lu Qian was shocked, "Commander, what should you do?" ”

"I'll stay, Cen Xi's business hasn't been done yet." Lu Zhan smiled a little weirdly.

Lu Qian: "If you don't go, I won't go." ”

"Don't talk nonsense, the way home is not easy, and I don't worry about the brothers having no one to take me."

After Lu Zhan finished speaking, he clapped his hands, jumped off the wall, and went back to his house.

In such a moment of crisis, the military spirit must not be forced. No one can suppress the thoughts of missing their parents, wives and children, and it is a mutiny in the end. Lu Zhan gave his subordinates one night and let them choose to stay freely. There are some things that are better to be frank than suppressed. Lu Zhan believed that with his reputation in Dianbai City, there would definitely be many people who would stay and work with him.

Lu Zhan wasn't too worried about his family, and Li Mingzhong, the Gaozhou guard, surrendered when Yan Keyi fought over. Li Chengdong's army did not embarrass the gods, and as far as Lu Zhan knew, the acropolis was fine for the time being.

There were women in the house. In order to encompass grassroots generals like Lu Zhan, Ding Kuichu selected 17 maids from his home to distribute them to the generals. Lu Zhan also got one.

After enjoying it on the woman, I changed into clean clothes, poured some wine, and prepared to drink and go to bed. There was a knock on the door outside.

"Who?"

"It's me, Conductor."

It was Lu Qian's voice, Lu Zhan smiled and beckoned him in.

"Old Lu, come on, sit down and have a few sips together."

"That's right, Commander, I've got appetizers here."

Lu Qian said and took out two roasted snakes from his arms, "4 catties of rice shovel heads and 5 catties of water laws are all fresh goods that have just arrived today." ”

Lu Zhan was overjoyed when he saw it, he had better take this bite. Rice shovel head is the common name for the Zhoushan cobra, also known as the Chinese cobra. Shuilu is the common name of the mouse snake, and the most common ones for catching toad cage snakes are Wang Jin, Shuilu and rice shovel head.

Snake meat is best stewed or stir-fried, and it is a bit wasteful to eat it when grilled, but the conditions in the army are limited, and it is not picky. Lu Zhan also had some fried broad beans, which were also put out at the moment.

Nibbling on snake meat, taking a sip of wine, the whole body is comfortable. The two of you went back and forth, and half a pound of wine quickly got down, and the speech was a little floating.

Lu Qian asked, "Commander, why do you want to stay?" Wouldn't it be nice to walk with us? ”

"I'm afraid I'm going to shave my hair when I go back, I can't bear that ugly braid, so I won't leave."

Lu Qian was silent for a while, "Commander, I don't want to keep braids, but my wife, children, and parents are all here." I'm afraid I'll get them involved. ”

Under the changes of the times, everyone will have their own choice. Lu Qian's reasons are very sufficient, human nature, Lu Zhan doesn't feel that there is anything wrong. Unlike Lu Qian, he has been at sea for many years, and there are some other methods. As long as Jianzhou didn't embarrass his family when the city was broken, he would be able to transfer people out later.

"Old Lu, I understand what you said, I really don't blame you."

Lu Qian's voice was filled with a crying tone, "Commander, I don't want to surrender either, if we are in the Shendian Guard, we won't say anything if we fight to the death with the Tartars." But to die in the barren mountains and mountains of Guangxi, I am really unwilling. ”

Lu Zhan patted his deputy's shoulder, "Old Lu, don't say it, dry this glass of wine." Tomorrow you and I will part ways, business is not benevolent, I hope that everyone will still be friends when we meet in the future, and we will not get to the point of seeing each other. ”

Lu Qian picked up the wine glass and drank it full, tears lingering.

Lu Zhan is very casual, he has never thought of embarrassing these people, and it is not easy to eat in troubled times.

Lu Qian wiped his tears, "Commander, what are you going to do?" ”

Lu Zhan picked up two broad beans and said while chewing, "It's simple, if you beat Du Yonghe, you can beat it, and if you can't beat it, you can run." ”

"Where can I go?"

Lu Qian didn't think that it was possible to win at this time.

Lu Zhan laughed and said, "As long as you have money to spend and girls to sleep in, where in the world can't you go?" ”

……

The two of them didn't drink much, and they went down with a pound of liquor and slept beautifully.

The next day, the sky cleared and spring was bright. The mountains are clean and fresh after the rain.

There are still 100 soldiers left in Cen Xi, less than half of the original, most of them are old brothers who have been with him for a long time. Lu Zhan is very satisfied, 100 people are better than 300 people who are half-hearted.

Three days later, the enemy warships approached the town of Beike, and Ding Kuichu ordered his troops.

Lu Zhan was dispatched with the general soldier Su Ping. The water battle in the Beiliu River is pediatrics in Lu Zhan's view. Dealing with crooked rivers and turbulent currents is easier than fighting. Three gang jumps to capture two enemy warships effortlessly.

Ding Kuichu beat a big drum on the shore and the whole army pursued. The speed of the water was very fast, and the morale of the Ming army was high, and they were indomitable.

Lu Zhan was very unfamiliar with the Beiliu River, and in order to reduce the risk of running aground, he led the team to the end.

The warships of the Ming army bypassed the Dateng Gorge, and the river flowed from north to south to east and west, and the river was only 100 meters wide. The intuition cultivated by years of naval warfare made Lu Zhan feel very puzzled, everything seemed too simple.

"Lower the oars, don't row."

The soldiers followed the order, and the speed of Lu Zhan's 13 sampans immediately slowed down, pulling out the distance from the front team.

When the enemy troops lying in ambush on both sides of the bank lifted the grass that covered the artillery, the distance between Lu Zhan and Su Ping had been stretched to 500 meters.

Dozens of Francos and Hongyi cannons were fired almost simultaneously, and gunsmoke spread all over the riverbank.

Du Yonghe's warship turned back and crossed the river. Du Yonghe's army had many troops from the Huang Fei Division. These former veterans of the Dengliao Naval Division are the top in water warfare. Du Yonghe almost copied the Battle of Songjiang Province in the Battle of Shenggang.

The artillery bombardment disrupted the Ming fleet. Dozens of sampans of green battalions poured out on both sides of the river, connecting with the heavily damaged Ming army. The scimitar is swung and limbs are flying. The banner of Su Pingza's ship soon fell.

"Lost, it's over."

"Commander, what are we going to do?"

"U-turn, paddle!"

Lu Zhan left this mortal battlefield without hesitation.

It's hard to go up, but it's hard for the enemy to do it too. The Lu Zhan fleet was small, and the soldiers were used to rowing eight-oared boats at sea, and their speed was faster than the enemy's pursuit.

Lu Zhan retreated to the camp overnight and did not report to Ding Kuichu, and the other defeated soldiers who fled back would naturally report the defeat to Lord Shoufu.

After dawn, the Jianzhou cavalry appeared in the distance. The number was small, but none of the Ming troops dared to go out to fight.

Lu Zhan is very strange, Ding Kuichu still has a lot of boats there. While the enemy army is not coming, it is still too late to leave. Trace up the Beiliu River and row forward as far as possible. When you can't row, you abandon the boat and go ashore, hiding in the vast mountains, and the enemy is looking for a ghost.

By noon, the enemy's cavalry had traveled back and forth to Beike Town many times, and Lu Zhan knew what was going on.

"Commander, Ding Kuichu is going to surrender, aren't we leaving?"

Lu Zhan slapped his thigh violently, "Brothers, do you want to make a big deal?" ”

……

There are more than 100 members of Ding Kuichu's family in Beike Town, and the first Shoufu of Yongli is desperate.

When the famous cavalry of the 18th Green Battalion appeared on the outskirts of Beike Town and brought Du Yonghe's letter of persuasion, Ding Kuichu decided that keeping his family was the highest priority.

After loading all the baggage from Beike Town onto the boat, Ding Kuichu took more than 500 officers and soldiers and their families down the river.

During the night, there was a great disarray in the flotilla. The soldiers ran into the cabin in a panic, "My lord, the electric white soldiers rebelled, and they robbed two silver boats. ”

"Send someone to chase after you!" Ding Kuichu was heartbroken.

When it was dawn, Ding Kuichu found that more than 600,000 taels of silver, and half of the 10,000 gold was gone, which was half of Guangdong's taxes in the second year of Longwu and Ding Kuichu's lifetime savings. Not only was the silver boat robbed, but a boat for the ladies was also missing, and the 4 concubines, 3 daughters-in-law and more than 20 maids were all taken captive.

Du Yonghe's warship approached, and Ding Kuichu had no choice but to surrender and give up the pursuit.

Ding Kuichu took his son across the gangplank and boarded Du Yonghe's boat.

Seeing Du Yonghe sitting upright, the soldiers on both sides were standing with their eyebrows crossed, and their swords were unsheathed.

Ding Kuichu knew that things had changed, knelt down on his knees, and kowtowed: "I hope that the handsome man will only kill me and spare my son." ”

Du Yonghe smiled: "Ding Guangsan, you can't protect yourself, do you still want to save people?" ”

With a wave of his hand, the guards around him stepped forward and cut off the head of Ding Kuichu's only son and placed it in front of him.

After wailing for a long time, the soldier picked up Ding Kuichu and slashed his stomach with a knife.

Before Ding Kuichu lost his breath, he finally heard Du Yonghe say: "There is no pseudo-first assistant Ding Shun's whole family, and the man will be beheaded regardless of his youth." ”

The soldiers who executed were moved by compassion, and only two young grandchildren of the Ding family survived.

……

Rongxian River.

Lu Zhan laughed, 30 young women, 320,000 taels of silver, 6,000 taels of gold.

After ten years of working as an official, soldier and pirate, the sum of them is not as big as this vote.

In the previous battle and yesterday's scuffle over silver, there were only 63 people left with Lu Zhan, and the others were gone. Maybe he died, maybe he ran away with the money. Lu Zhan didn't care, the rest of the money was enough to spend.

The small flotilla ran fast, and the enemy could not catch up for a while. The boat passed through Beiliu County, and the Beiliu River was no longer navigable.

Lu Zhan had to abandon the ship and go ashore, and the rest of the people were Lu Zhan's most trusted brothers.

This would not worry that there would be pursuers, and the soldiers would let off their pressure, knock down the captive women, and enjoy the spoils. The poor wives and concubines of the high-ranking Shoufu have all been reduced to the playthings of the guards at the bottom of society.

When it was over, everyone remembered a question. Where to go now?

Staying in Beiliu County, the place is unfamiliar and very dangerous. Beiliu County along the land over the watershed Tianmen Pass is Yulin Prefecture, find a few boats in the Nanliu River to go downstream, can go to sea in Lianzhou Hepu.

320,000 taels of silver was too heavy to be transported by ship, and now the ship has come to an end. It is impossible for the rest of these people to go over the mountains and mountains with silver, and Jianzhou has already conquered Lianzhou Mansion, so for the sake of safety, they can only find a small road to walk in Lianzhou. Lu Zhan is more familiar with Hepu County by the sea, as long as he passes through Bobai County, he knows how to get out of danger.

Lu Zhan gritted his teeth, "Brothers, you can't take this silver away, you can only bury it." We took the gold with us, and we will come back to pick it up later when we have the chance. ”

The soldiers looked at each other, and there really was nothing they could do.

Lu Zhan dug ten pits and buried the silver separately. Each group only knew where the more than 30,000 silver they bought, and only Lu Zhan knew where all the silver was hidden.