In 1635, Emperor Chongzhen, who had been on the throne for eight years, made great efforts to revitalize the dynasty. Pen & Fun & Pavilion www.biquge.info

Within a few years, the East and West factories were abolished, the eunuch party was swept away, and the terminally ill Ming Dynasty seemed to have a tendency to flourish.

It's a pity that Emperor Chongzhen was suspicious by nature and eager to make progress, and soon after, he once again used eunuchs to hold important positions, ranking above the local governor's office.

After the Guanwai Houjin approached, the war continued, the local disasters continued, riots occurred from time to time, and the Ming Dynasty, which lasted for hundreds of years, was already terminally ill.

In the first month of the year, the weather is still a little cold, and the annual Lantern Festival, an important festival, is just around the corner.

The bustling middle capital Fengyang City is a lively landscape, the wide streets are full of pedestrians, teahouses, inns, cloth village branches on both sides, hawkers are selling along the street, rouge gouache, jewelry, calligraphy and painting are everything, there are many wide clothes and big sleeves of the son in the escort of the attendants to walk the streets and alleys, from time to time stop to chant a poem, attracting onlookers to applaud.

On the corner of the street in the distance, an unkempt teenager sat in front of a moss-covered mottled stone pier, staring blankly at the city.

The surrounding traders and pedestrians passing by seem to have long been accustomed to it, this fool named Han Yu is a well-known figure in Fengyang City.

Han Yu, who suddenly appeared a year ago, was dressed in strange clothes, holding a white 'thin brick' several inches in size, babbling nonsense, and even stupidly went to break into the mansion.

If it weren't for the great benevolent man Zhang Laozhang who opened the teahouse, he took out the silver taels and said all the good things, I am afraid that he would be killed on the spot by those officials.

Since then, Mr. Zhang has had an extra stupid son, and there is an extra fool in Fengyang City who looks at the city wall every day.

"It's cold, Han Yu, come back with me."

Mr. Zhang, a great benevolent man who walked tremblingly and had inconvenient legs and feet, walked over and draped a short gown he brought over on Han Yi's body.

Uncle Zhang's eyes were full of soft colors, even if the whole world disliked this fool, he would treat it as his own.

Han Yu got up obediently and silently followed Mr. Zhang back to the teahouse.

"Uncle Zhang is really difficult for you."

Seeing that his legs and feet were inconvenient, Mr. Zhang took Han Yu back again, and the regular customers who often came here to drink tea said with sympathy on their faces, and gave a few extra dollars at the time of checkout, which can be regarded as accumulating virtue and doing good.

In fact, almost every diner will deliberately give more, which shows that Mr. Zhang is a well-known good person.

"Brother Han, can you teach me to read later?" The little girl who spoke was the little girl in the silk shop next door, who was fourteen years old this year, and was handsome and lovely, not only often came to help Mr. Zhang with the affairs of the teahouse, but also often came to Han Yu to ask questions in the past year.

Han Yu nodded expressionlessly, turned his head and walked into the dimly lit side room, turned around and closed the door.

"Girl Lin, you won't fall in love with this fool, right?" A regular customer sitting next to him teased loudly.

"You're stupid, Brother Han is very smart."

"Ah, you're so anxious to protect Brother Han, and you still say you haven't taken a fancy to it?"

"You... I won't tell you. The red-faced girl of the Lin family turned her head and ran into the back hall.

Looking at the shy appearance of the Lin family's girl, everyone burst into laughter.

"Father, the store is still so lively."

When everyone's laughter was not gone, a handsome young man wearing a round-edged helmet, a waist knife, and a light armor walked in, and this person was Zhang Tanghuai, the only son of Mr. Zhang.

"Master Jun." Familiar guests greeted each other with fists.

"This can be a lot of trouble, the younger generation is just a small hundred."

Zhang Tanghuai's self-proclaimed official position is not modest but the truth, the Ming Dynasty implemented the guard system, and the soldiers were divided into soldiers and garrison soldiers, that is, battalion soldiers and guard soldiers.

As a lower-level officer of the battalion, Zhang Tanghuai's status is indeed not high, and in addition to the serious disadvantages of emphasizing literature over military force in the late Ming Dynasty, the status of a soldier is really low.

What's more, internal and external troubles, and even continuous wars, it is common for seven or eight out of ten to die, and no one wants to let their children join the army as a last resort.

"Father, has Brother Han been getting better recently?" Zhang Tang Huai had no time to ask his father about Han Yu's situation.

Thinking of Han Yu's situation, Old Man Zhang shook his head gloomily.

Zhang Tanghuai sighed, suddenly seemed to remember something, and said apologetically: "Today is the fourteenth day of the first lunar month, and I have to be on duty all night at night to guard the city, I'm afraid I won't be able to return, and I also ask my father Haihan." Zhang Tanghuai felt guilty in his heart, his father was old, but he couldn't take care of him because of the affairs in the army, which was really unfilial.

"Brother Zhang, don't worry, I will take care of Grandpa Zhang."

The girl of the Lin family who came out of the back hall with a teapot was full of serious assurances.

In the dimly lit side room, Han Yu, who was sitting on the edge of the bed, listened indifferently to the friendly conversation outside, and from time to time there were interesting cultural stories told by those regular customers.

Han Yu, who just knew the development of history, was in the mood to listen to it at all, because at midnight today, a major event would happen that shocked the government and the opposition.

Today is the fourteenth day of the first lunar month, and tomorrow is the Lantern Festival.

That is to say, at midnight tonight, Zhang Xianzhong will lead more than 10,000 troops to march from Henan to the east of the city, and at dawn on the 15th, Zhang Xianzhong led his troops to besiege Fengyang, the capital of central Ming, and Zhu Guoxiang, the Ming general who guarded Fengyang, led the troops to meet the battle, and the peasant army officers and men who disguised themselves into the city took advantage of the situation to burn fire everywhere and closely cooperated with the main force of the peasant army outside the city.

After the city was broken, more than 4,000 soldiers defending the city were killed, Zhang Xianzhong burned down the imperial mausoleum, robbed the people's daughters, and slaughtered the people in the city.

At this time, there was still a scene of singing and dancing in Fengyang City, and a group of high-ranking officials who were guarding the town drank and talked happily every night, I am afraid that Han Yu could only watch the development of history and could not do anything.

Han Yu's breathing became heavier and heavier, and he suddenly clenched his fists and stood up suddenly as if he had made up his mind.

If it weren't for Zhang's help, I'm afraid that he would have died in front of the government that day, and even if he survived, he would die of hunger and cold, Han Yu didn't care about those court officials who were about to be slaughtered, but he asked himself to protect the little sister of the Lin family next door, Brother Zhang's family.

It's been a year, and it's time to face up to reality.

"What, you're going to find Tang Huai?" Uncle Zhang looked at Han Yu who came out of the side room and was surprised and delighted, and said frankly that this was the first time Han Yu took the initiative to talk to him in a year, and it was also the first time he made a request, "Of course, of course, I'll take you there." ”

"Grandpa Zhang, is it okay for me to take Brother Han to find Brother Zhang?" The girl of the Lin family, who was cleaning up the tables and chairs on the side, came over and took the initiative to ask for help.

Soon Han Yu and Lin Caier left the teahouse and headed towards the border city barracks.

"Brother Han, the arithmetic problems you teach others are so interesting, I can help my mother settle the accounts, and what happened to Snow White you talked about?" The delicate and lovely Lin Caier kept finding topics to talk to Han Yu all the way, although Han Yu remained silent.

The military camp in the distance to defend the city gate was already faintly recognizable, and frankly said that this was the farthest distance Han Yu had walked away from the teahouse in a year.

If Lin Cai'er hadn't led the way, I'm afraid he would have really gotten lost on the streets of Fengyang City, which is densely populated.

Han Yu stopped suddenly, turned around and unceremoniously interrupted Lin Cai'er's self-talking, and stretched out his hands to hold her tender shoulders.

Lin Cai'er was nervous and happy, and said a little shy and reserved: "Brother Han, you... Don't do that..."

Han Yu didn't realize the thoughts of his daughter's family, and lowered his voice and said very solemnly: "From now on, you don't have to ask anything, go back immediately and let your parents and Uncle Zhang hide in the cellar under the house, no matter what happens outside, you must not come out!" ”

Lin Cai'er looked at Han Yu in disbelief, is this still the gentle and elegant Brother Han in her impression?

However, it was the first time she had heard such anxious and solemn words, and although she didn't know why, she believed Han Yu from the bottom of her heart.

Watching Lin Cai'er leave, Han Yu sighed slightly.

Han Yu knew very well that there were already a lot of soldiers in the city, and when the army arrived, they would kill people everywhere and set fire to create chaos, and many heavy people would inevitably suffer unwarranted disasters.

The reason why Han Yu explained this matter to Lin Cai'er was that she didn't look at her age, but her personality was very stubborn, and she would definitely find a way to complete what she promised.

Besides, time is pressing, and Han Yu can only trust Lin Cai'er now.

Han Yu took a deep breath, quickened his pace for the first time, and headed towards the city gate barracks.