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April 17 of the first year of Hongguang,.

Hundreds of grain ships lined the river, full of retreating Ming troops and Jiangbei refugees.

Jinshan Temple.

"Open fire."

Yang Wencong weakly let go of his fingers, and a piece of paper floated into the river with the wind. It reads, "Whoever escapes from the south and shoots back with artillery is not allowed to cross the river for a single step." ”

From the will of the Emperor.

Filhoff shrugged and listened to the employer. The cannon of Jinshan Temple and the Ming army's Franc machine began to spit deadly projectiles outward.

Jiaoshanzhai.

Zheng Hongkui sighed, "Let Zhiguan attack." ”

The ship of the Zheng Fan Navy Division appeared on the river. At the beginning, when the Jiangbei Ming army saw the friendly troops, they stood up and cheered. Until the hundred-ton hull did not avoid it, and directly hit the small grain ship.

……

Nearly 10,000 Ming soldiers and refugees died in the belly of the fish.

Zheng Hongkui captured more than 200 grain ships and 1,000 war horses.

Jiangbei, Guazhou, one of the most powerful army forces in the Ming Dynasty watched their soldiers being slaughtered by Zheng Fan.

Gao Jie's widow Xing, sister-in-law Gao Yuanjue.

Gao Jie's nephew, the current governor Li Benshen.

Xuzhou General Soldier Li Chengdong.

Hu Guozhen, the chief soldier of Yulin.

Yang Chengzu, the commander in chief.

Guo Hu, the commander of the left wing battalion.

Gao Jie's adopted son, Gao Jinku, the deputy chief soldier, and Zhang Tianlu, the chief soldier of Guazhou.

The faces of the generals were as dead as ashes.

Zhang Tianlu: "I told you, I tried once on the 14th, and Zheng Hongkui didn't let me cross the river." ”

Hu Guozhen's knees weakened and he fell to the ground, "I'm sorry brothers. ”

Guo Hu burst into tears: "They are all old brothers who came all the way from Shaanxi, and this is gone." ”

Li Chengdong: "I want to kill all these pirates."

"Uncle," Li Benshen saluted Xing's "No way, this Yangtze River can't be crossed." ”

Xing Shi glanced at Li Benshen coldly, "What are you going to do?" ”

"There is a big river in front, and there are tens of thousands of slaves riding behind. Xu Dingguo led the way for Jianyu, saying that he would kill our army. We have to think about the tens of thousands of families who are in the army. Li Benshen turned over his horse and arched his hand towards the generals, "Brothers, ask for more blessings." ”

"Li Shuai, I'll go with you." Yang Chengzu, the general soldier of the reinforcement and suppression, hurriedly kept up with Li Benshen's pace.

Li Chengdong pulled Hu Guozhen up from the ground, his eyes narrowed slightly, "Old Hu, we have to think of a way." ”

That night, the Ming army burned Guazhou, scattered with the looted property and women, and went their separate ways. Mrs. Xing led 3,000 soldiers to the east and fled to Taizhou.

……

The Jianzhou artillery team set out from Sizhou and arrived in Yangzhou on 24 April. Artillery positions were set up in the northwest hills of Yangzhou. There are 24 Shenwei General cannons, and nearly 100 Hongyi cannons of various calibers.

Jianzhou's technical equipment had an overwhelming advantage over the Ming army, and soon after the artillery battle began, the yamen of Ren Minyu, the prefect of Yangzhou, was hit by a cannonball weighing about 12 pounds and four taels, and the city was terrified.

……

Dongliu County, the county seat is built along the river.

After continuous heavy rain, the river water swelled, the wind and waves on the river surface were quite large, the river water poured into the inland river, and the flood season of the Yangtze River came.

In the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, the left bank is mostly a river beach along the river, and the right bank is mostly hilly and mountainous, many of which go deep into the river, forming rocky rocks and river ports that can shelter from the wind.

The Yangtze River bends inward into a river bay near the county seat of Dongliu. On the opposite bank, there is a shield of Jiangxinzhou, and the wind and waves in Dongliu Port are smaller, and large ships and small ships are moored here.

In the conference room of the Melville, he poured a glass of wine for Zheng Cai and Huang Binqing.

Zheng Cai took the wine glass with a solemn expression, "General Hongkui sent a fast horse to deliver a letter to me, and the slave rode south, and the news of Huaiyang has been cut off." ”

Huang Binqing shook his wine glass and took a sip. He had a lot of dealings with Yangyi in Zhoushan, and he was no stranger to foreign wine.

"Brother Yu, so you say, the slave rider has already drunk the Yangtze River?"

"That's what my uncle said."

Huang Binqing stood up and walked to the first deputy map hanging on the wall, "Jiujiang must not go again." ”

Zheng Cai agreed: "We have to go back to Zhenjiang immediately." ”

A bolt of lightning thundered through the sky, and the dimly lit cabin lit up.

Shou ordered and waited for the thunder to pass before asking Zheng Cai: "When are you leaving?" ”

Zheng Cai frowned, and drank the wine in the glass in one gulp, "The situation in Zhenjiang is urgent, I will leave if the weather is clear." ”

Starting from Dongliu to Zhenjiang, the Yangtze River waterway is more than 500 kilometers away. At the current average speed of the river, even if it is only a daytime voyage, it can be reached in four or five days.

Shou Xuan asked Huang Binqing again, "What about Brother Ming Fu?" ”

Huang Binqing said: "Most of the warships in Zuozhen have been burned by us, and there are no warships to transport the families of the baggage, and they will not come again." Naturally, I'm going to go. ”

"Where is Brother Mingfu going back?"

"Quarry Rock, join the army first."

"Before you two go, I want to talk to you about business. The other day, the two warships patrolled the river and captured a lot of boats, can you sell those boats to me? ”

Zheng Cai didn't speak, and Huang Binqing said: "How much money does the lord pay?" ”

"Two hundred taels for a big ship."

The price of the orderly opening is very high. In this era, the price of a new 100-ton seven-zhang Yufu ship is only more than 1,000 taels. These flat-bottomed river boats of several tens of tons are worth nothing at all, not to mention seized second-hand goods.

Huang Binqing smiled: "No problem, I'm worried that no one will drive those boats." ”

Zheng Cai and Huang Binqing fought along the way, and they also lost a lot of people, so they could only reluctantly drive their warships away.

It's just that Shou Xiang is a little embarrassed, "Brother Ming Fu, I don't have enough money now, can Brother Ming Fu keep accounts?" I'll give you back the money when I get back to Taiwan, and you can accrue interest during that period. ”

Huang Binqing waved his hand, "The interest or something is too outward, only 3,4000 taels of silver left and right, and the lord of the country will pay me later." ”

Shou Xuan had a full cup with Huang Binqing, "Then thank you Brother Mingfu." ”

After negotiating the business, Zheng Cai asked, "When will the lord leave?" ”

Shou Xiang smiled, "You two can go first, I still have some things to do." ”

Sending Zheng Cai and Huang Binqing away, Shou ordered to summon a messenger from Xiao Yuanying. The messenger replied, and Yuan Shizhong agreed to the two conditions of order.

Two years ago, Shou Xuan wrote a sentence on his letter to Yuan Shizhong, "If you become yourself, you will be killed." This sentence haunted Yuan Shizhong's mind all night like a nightmare. In June of that year, Yuan Shizhong was active in Bozhou, Guide, and camped in the town, with more than 1,000 cavalry and 120,000 foot soldiers. Yuan Shizhong didn't provoke anyone, but Li Zicheng sent Li Guo to lead thousands of elite horsemen and tens of thousands of foot soldiers to fight over. Yuan Shizhong did not collide with Li Jian as in history, but ran away. Li Guo pursued all the way, and Yuan Shizhong lost most of his footmen, leaving only cavalry and more than 1,000 infantry to run out.

Henan was completely controlled by Li Zicheng, and Yuan Shizhong couldn't go. The defeated Ming troops from all directions in the Central Plains and the north poured into Huainan, and Yuan Shizhong could not stay in the old territory. Yuan Shizhong didn't want to be recruited, and he saw that it was about to end, but fortunately, Lu Jiude saved his life. In order to seize the throne of Nanjing, Lu Jiude led Huang Degong and Liu Liangzuo to evacuate the Huaixi front line and gave Yuan Shizhong a mouth. He immediately led his troops into the Dabie Mountain. Yuan Shizhong is no stranger to Dabie Mountain, the Fifth Battalion of Gezuo has been based on Dabie Mountain for a long time, and Yuan Shizhong was also invited to attack Lu'an together.

After more than a year of cats in Dabie Mountain, I finally recovered some vitality. The Ming army gathered in Huainan, and Yuan Shizhong did not dare to come out to attack the prefecture and county. It was not until recently that the Ming army was defeated and fled, vacating a large area of territory, that Yuan Shizhong dared to go out of the mountains to follow the retreating Ming army to pick up foreign falls, and recruit some stragglers.

More than 20,000 cavalry rode towards Yangzhou, and Yuan Shizhong had no choice but to go south along the eastern foothills of Dabie Mountain and arrive at the Yangtze River a few days ago. At this time, the strength increased, and by the time they reached the river, there were 700 cavalry and nearly 4,000 infantry.

Zuo Liangyu's tens of thousands of troops were stationed in Jiujiang, Yuan Shizhong didn't dare to think about it at all, he chose to cross the river in the Wangjiang area. The pathfinder forwards sent in advance took a small boat and just arrived at the center of the river when they encountered a patrolling Ming warship.

Huang Binqing and Zheng Cai didn't care about this rogue, but they were obsessed with order. He asked the captives to come over and established contact with Yuan Shizhong. Shou Xiang said that he could send him across the river, but there were two conditions, one was to borrow 200 infantry, and Shou Xiang now had dozens of river boats, which needed to be escorted. Second, Jingdezhen, Jiangxi. Shou Xiang already had little hope for Jingdezhen, but the appearance of Xiao Yuan Ying gave Shou Ling a chance.

On April 24, Zheng Cai and Huang Binqing left Dongliu and returned downstream. Pull anchor in an orderly manner and leave Dongliu Port and sail upstream for a while. The family members of the old battalion of the general company of the Xiaoyuan battalion, 7,000 people, and more than 1,000 livestock. It took 40 transport ships to make 3 trips back and forth.

On the deck of the Melville, Yuan Shizhong bowed deeply to Shou Order, "Thank you for your help." ”

Shou Xuan smiled: "General Yuan doesn't have to be polite, you helped me in Haizhou that year." ”

Yuan Shizhong said: "Yuan is a believer. After promising the lord of the country to send him off with Jingdezhen craftsmen, he stayed on the lord ship before they came. ”

Shou Xuan was slightly surprised, "This is not necessary, General Yuan, I believe in you." ”

Yuan Shizhong shook his head and said, "Yuan asked for so." ”

"This ...... Okay, then ask General Yuan to stay on the ship for a few days. "Thinking about it, it is just the right time to discuss the future situation with Yuan Shizhong.

Yuan Shizhong handed over all the cavalry to his henchmen and rushed along the mountain path to Jingdezhen. In flat valleys, the cavalry mounted and rode on rough roads, dismounted and walked. 300 miles, 3 days to arrive.

Because of the developed ceramic handicraft industry, Jingdezhen has developed into a large town of tens of thousands of people in the late Ming Dynasty. The core of the town is the Imperial Ware Factory, in the early Ming Dynasty, there were 400 craftsmen in the Imperial Ware Factory, hereditary from generation to generation, and there were more than 360 people at the end of the Ming Dynasty, and the system was very stubborn. Of course, Jingdezhen porcelain cannot rely only on hereditary official craftsmen, but also a large number of hired craftsmen.

There are 23 works of wind and fire kiln, color kiln, large bowl, saucer, iron, lacquer, painting, etc., more than 40 heads and more than 300 official craftsmen. Among them, the largest number is the wind and fire kiln, with a total of 4 heads and 39 craftsmen.

This kind of thing is within the scope of Xiao Yuanying's expertise. Time was pressing, and in accordance with the requirements of order, more than 200 people were captured by officials and hired servants, and more than 500 people were taken prisoner with their families. The people of Jingdezhen originally thought that they would be wiped out, but Xiao Yuanying only extorted a large amount of ransom, and withdrew north with hundreds of artisan captives the next day.

The infantry of the small Yuan battalion camped on the hills by the river, and Yuan Shizhong led more than 200 people to return to Dongliu Port with Shou Order. The two of them drink and talk happily every day and talk about world affairs.

Shou Xiang gave Yuan Shizhong a few suggestions, the rest of Li Chuang's troops are pouring into Huguang, Xiao Yuan Ying has a grudge against Li Chuang, and it is not suitable to go there. Nanzhili and Zhejiang were the core areas controlled by the official army, and the landlord gentry were strong and unsuitable. Don't even think about Fujian, Xiao Yuanying's soldiers are not Zheng Zhilong's opponents. And the forces of all parties in Jiangxi are not strong, there are tens of thousands of troops of Zuo Liangyu in northern Jiangxi, and there is no space, but there is no force worth mentioning in southern Jiangxi.

The first problem that Xiao Yuanying needs to consider in the south is that there are many rivers, lakes and mountains, and it takes time to adapt to the geography and climate. The second is that the south was generally more stable before and the people were better organized, so Xiao Yuan's battalion must restrain military discipline and reduce armed battles with local landlords, otherwise this little army may be quickly consumed.

Yuan Shizhong listened thoughtfully, his military discipline was the first in the peasant army. When he and Li Chuang encircled and opened the seal together, many ordinary people accompanied the old and the young, and they all escaped from the defense area of the small Yuan camp. Xiao Yuanying opened up to those refugees, and did not rob women or other people's escape money.

Yuan Shizhong asked Shou Order: "Then how should I raise soldiers?" ”

Shou Xuan said: "General Yuan, this Ming Dynasty is about to end. The world is in turmoil, and the people are very bitter. What do you think they need most? ”

Yuan Shizhong said without hesitation: "Grain." ”

After more than ten years of fighting in the north, Yuan Shizhong saw too much famine.

Shou Xuan nodded slightly, "Then how does General Yuan think that the common people can eat food?" ”

Yuan Shizhong has been thinking about this issue for a long time, "so that farmers can farm safely and steadily." ”

"Yes." Shou Xiang smiled, "I call this the order of an agrarian society. Originally, it was supposed to be the imperial court that guaranteed this order, but the imperial court first lost order in the north, and then in the south. Why did Li Chuang grow rapidly in the first two years? Because he saw the problem, he put forward the slogan of 'suppressing the army and reassuring the people', and changed from an order destroyer to an order maintainer. No matter how bad his order is, as long as it is an order, no matter how bad it is, it is better than the chaos in the world, so he has won the hearts of the people. ”

"Did the lord suggest that I also go to suppress the soldiers and pacify the people?"

Shou Xuan shook his head, "General Yuan doesn't have the strength to break into the king, and it's probably not a good thing to offend all the officials and troops in the south." ”

"What is the advice of the lord of the kingdom?"

"The South is going to be in chaos too. The general can occupy several counties to protect the territory and the people. As long as the people are allowed to farm in peace, I think they will accept your army. ”

Yuan Shizhong is no stranger to keeping order, he used to do the same, but it was difficult to adhere to it in the north. The south is different, as long as it does not occupy a famous city and a large county, there are many suitable counties.

Shou Xuan put down his wine glass and walked to the map, "The specific location General Yuan can choose, and my suggestion is that it is best to have your back to the mountains and the borders of several provinces." In case of defeat, come and go freely. ”

"I understand the officers and soldiers, as long as I don't mess with them, they occupy the territory of a few counties in the corner, and they don't have time to gather troops to fight me now." Yuan Shizhong thought for a while and asked, "What if the Tartars called?" ”

Shou Order: "What does General Yuan think?" ”

Yuan Shizhong: "I will do my best, in case nothing ...... happen"

"If it doesn't work out, the general should not hesitate to retreat to Guangdong to occupy a sea port."

……

Zhou Luqing of Dongliu Zhi County asked to see him. Zhou Luqing, the word Defu, Chongzhen Nian Jinshi.

Shou Xian was quite sympathetic to this magistrate, and the soldiers on Zuo Liangyu's side of Qingjun came, and they were powerless to resist; The Nanjing officials and troops came, but they were powerless to resist. The county was ransacked by bandits from both sides. The next time, Zhou Luqing stopped in front of Mu Wenshou's horse and was almost killed.

After the Mu soldiers retreated, Zhou Luqing led the county elders to start the reconstruction with great difficulty. Shou Xuan helped a little in it, and persuaded Zheng Cai, who wanted to go ashore and loot again.

Zhou Luqing greeted Shou Xiang after seeing Shou Xian, thanked Shou Xian for the tools he provided them, and then asked the main question, "Mr. Chen, Zuo Yi is still in Jiujiang." The officials and soldiers of the two towns said goodbye without saying goodbye, is there anything going on downstream? ”

Looking at the thin face of this magistrate, Shou Xian couldn't bear it, and told the truth directly, "The slave rode south, the news from Jiangbei was cut off, and Yangzhou may have been lost." ”

These words were like a thunderbolt from the blue to Zhou Luqing, and his face turned pale, "Is the sky of the Ming Dynasty really going to collapse......

"What is the next plan for the county, shave your hair and surrender?"

Zhou Luqing smiled miserably and took a deep look at the order, "Thank you to the lord for informing him of the war." If there really is such a day, Zhou will not surrender, but will ask to hang the seal and leave. ”

Hanging the seal and leaving the post was the choice of many Ming Dynasty officials at this time. Shou Xuan asked casually, "Does the magistrate want to go home?" It may take a while to get more peaceful before leaving. ”

"Zhou, a native of Yanzhou, Shandong...... The whole family was slaughtered by Jianju, and there was no home to return to. There was some crying in Zhou Luqing's words.

Orderly and silent.

Zhou Luqing said goodbye to Shou Order, leaving a lonely back.

"Wait", said in the order: "Mr. Zhou." There is nothing to do with the officials of the Ming Dynasty, and the officers and soldiers are almost bandits. I have a piece of land overseas, and if my husband feels unfettered, follow me. ”

Zhou Luqing raised his sleeves and feet, wiped his face before turning around.

"Thank you, Lord. This matter is too sudden for Zhou, can you allow me to think about it for a few days. ”

"Absolutely. Before I set sail, Mr. Zhou was ready to board the ship at any time. ”

……

On the evening of the fifth day of the fifth month of the fifth month of the fifth month, the cavalry of the Xiaoyuan battalion returned to Dongliu County with the Jingdezhen artisan captives. Some of the artisans fled along the way, and in the end there were more than 400 people left.

Yuan Shizhong fulfilled his promise and said goodbye to Shou Order, leaving behind the 200 infantry commanded by his nephew.

Orderly arrange for craftsmen to board the ship immediately. The Yangtze River Detachment now has 5 warships and 66 large and small river ships. From Huang Fei and Fang Guoan, Shou Xuan bought more than 200 Wuhu blacksmiths and Tongling coppersmiths who were proficient in the steel filling method. Together with the ceramic craftsmen in Jingdezhen, there are more than 2,000 people in total.

The river boats were not fully loaded.

That night, Zhou Luqing got on the boat and bowed down to Shou Order, "In the entire Chizhou Mansion, Luqing organized more than 1,400 immigrants, and everyone wanted to board the fleet of the lord. ”

Shou Xiang hurriedly helped Zhou Luqing up, it turned out that he had spent seven or eight days doing this. In Shou Order's heart, Zhou Luqing's status immediately rose to a new level.

After arranging for the immigrants to board the ship, they fell asleep in an orderly manner. Had a dream.

Between the ruins and broken walls, the banner of Jianzhou inlaid with yellow flags is waving in the wind.

A young woman who made Shouxu's back feel familiar wrote four poems on the wall. In a blur, one of them can be recognized by the order.

The wind moves the river and the air drums urge,

Lowering the flag and flying the phoenix city opens.

The general died in battle,

Bo Ming Hongyan will come soon.

The woman continued to write on the wall, "Coming from the tribulation, sleeping in the wilderness." That is, if you want to follow the story of Zhangjia, leave a little Hanmo, and tell the gentleman, you can't get it. Even living in the mansion, asking for a comic question, in the hope of an emergency, the fate is so thin, and it is impossible to think about it. Qin Huai's martyrdom Song Huixiang and blood inscription in the east of Qianluwang City in Guji County. ”

Awakened from his dream, he walked up to the deck. The river breeze is blowing, and the moon is bright and the stars are scarce.

Lighting the pipe, I weighed it for a long time and made up my mind. He said to the officer on duty, "Please come over the chief of staff and the captain of the ship." ”

When the sleepy-eyed Harris and Rossili stepped onto the deck, Shou Xuan said, "I'm sorry to disturb the two of you sleeping. I just made a decision. ”

Harris rubbed his eyes, "Your Excellency, what decision?" ”

"You will be the acting commander of the detachment, Jacques will be your chief of staff, and the officers of the headquarters will be transferred to the Whampoa."

Rossilie: "Your Excellency, do you need to requisition my warship?" ”

Shou Xuan nodded and said, "There is something I must do, I have to go first, and the fleet will be handed over to you." ”

Harris and Rosickly looked at each other, and accepted the order without asking why.

"I'll leave the rest of the guards to you, take the galliers and transports to walk slowly behind, don't rush to the road, safety first."

"Your Excellency, where do we meet?"

Shou Xuan thought for a moment, "Quarry Rock." ”

Note: Jie's wife went to Taizhou with 3,000 soldiers. History of the Southern Ming Dynasty. The Biography of Zheng Hongkui r

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