In the eleventh year of Chongzhen, summer! Jianmen Pass, Qiang camp.

Rimai Muxi was patrolling the camp, Tashi and Marsi followed him, it was dinner time, and the Qiang soldiers gathered around the cauldron, and the way they ate was more interesting, not like the Han people, who set up a pot, add water to the pot, and then put in rice to cook and eat.

Their pot was flat, and there was not much water in it, and they smeared a layer of oil on the bottom of the pot, and then they put a dry pot on the fire, and when the oil was hot, they took a piece of bread from their bags, and burned it twice on the pot, and after they had heated it, they put it in their mouths.

This kind of flour cake is the famous barley flour cake, also known as highland barley cake, is the favorite food of the ethnic minorities living in the high mountains of western Sichuan, not only the Qiang people love to eat, even the Tibetan people also take this thing as the staple food.

It stands to reason that the time to eat should be the happiest time for the people, but the faces of Rimai Musi, Tashi, and Marsi are not very good-looking, because all three of them know that the Qiang soldiers do not have much food in stock.

The Qiang people were already very poor, several times poorer than the Han people in Sichuan, they came down from the mountains to fight, and the imperial court did not pay military salaries, completely out of their own pockets, every time they ate a meal here, their tribes would face a greater pressure on food, but they did not dare to withdraw their troops, in case the thief army entered the Jianmen Pass, western Sichuan would be under the view of the thief soldiers, I don't know how many Qiang tribes will be unlucky.

Tashi scolded indignantly: "Damn Yang Sichang, why didn't he enter the army for so long? Marching into Guangyuan as soon as possible and driving Zhu Jun back to Shaanxi, we can go back to the mountains and enjoy ourselves. Why do you need to suffer here? ”

Marcy also nodded and said, "Yes, if it drags on like this, all the little barley that I managed to save last year will have to be filled here, alas! There are many women and children in the tribe who are hungry to raise this food......"

Unlike these two people, Rimai Muxi has a wider range of knowledge, after all, he is a big toast, and he said in a low voice: "Do you think Yang Sichang doesn't want to drive Zhu Jun away?" He's just not capturing it...... Zuo Liangyu, He Renlong, and Zuo Guangxian are not satisfied with his dispatch and refuse to use their lives, what can he do? Could it be that he put a knife on Zuo Liangyu's neck and let him enter the army? He is a mere civil official, and he has no fart skills. I can't clean up those few ruffians at all. ”

Tashi and Marcy were puzzled and said, "Why don't Zuo Liangyu and the others refuse to use troops against the thieves?" ”

Rimai Muxi had no choice but to explain: "It's not because Zhu Jun is too strong...... That Zhenxi general doesn't know where the demon came out. It's really amazing, since the uprising in the first year of Chongzhen, he hasn't tasted defeat, who is right with him. Who should be unlucky...... Zuo Liangyu: None of them wanted to be unlucky. Naturally, you have to go around Zhu Jun. They like to do it the most right now. is to pursue Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong, these two goods seem to be easier to deal with. ”

When Tashi heard this, he said with some concern: "What about ...... We're going to fight with Zhu Jun soon. Will we be unlucky? ”

Rimai Muxi said: "Are you one of those waste Han people? Hey, the courage of the Qiang soldiers, several times better than the Han soldiers, I'm afraid of their fart. ”

Marcy nodded beside her: "Absolutely! ”

At this moment, a scout of the Qiang soldiers ran over and reported: "Three patriarchs, an officer and soldier came outside, saying that it was a subordinate of the chief soldier Zuo Guangxian, with a total of more than 1,000 Sichuan soldiers, led by the three brothers Meng Changshui, Meng Changsheng, and Meng Changxing, asking to borrow the forest next to our camp to set up camp to rest. ”

If the three brothers of the Meng family asked to camp with the Qiang soldiers, it would be absolutely impossible, the Qiang people did not trust the Han people very much, and it was impossible to camp with the Han people, but it was no problem to borrow the open space next to the Han soldiers to camp, so Rimai Muxi waved his hand and said: "If they are really officers and soldiers, let them camp there...... But it's not a bunch of spies. ”

The scout said: "It doesn't look like a spy, but the subordinates have checked their soldiers' seals, and there is no doubt that they are indeed officers and soldiers." ”

Rimai Muxi said: "Even if you are an officer and soldier, you must not be gullible, the Han people are all as cunning as foxes, and their hearts are full of ghost ideas, we must beware of them." Send men to keep a close watch on them, and don't let them attack our camp while we are not looking. ”

After the order was issued, after a while, the news came back that the Sichuan soldiers led by the three brothers of the Meng family had set up camp nearby, and they did not show the slightest hostility to the Qiang soldiers. After a while, the scout came to report that the three brothers of the Meng family asked to see the three patriarchs.

Although Rimai Muxi is a Qiang Tusi, he also leads the general rank of the imperial court, and it is impossible to completely ignore the court officials' requests to see him, so he asked the three brothers of the Meng family to be invited into the account.

After a while, the three brothers of the Meng family walked in, followed by a small group of pro-soldiers, who carried a huge basket containing some golden sticks, which looked a bit like the fruit of some kind of plant.

The boss Meng Changshui performed an official etiquette to Rimai Muxi, and Rimai Muxi asked, "You are from the north?" Isn't the north the territory of the Zhu army? What's going on with you? ”

Meng Changshui explained: "We are under the command of Lord Zuo Guangxian, Lord Zuo Guangxian was defeated by the Zhu army, and we were separated from Lord Zuo, so we had to flee here over the mountains and mountains. ”

Rimai Muxi didn't have much doubt, this kind of thing often happened in wars, not to mention the Han soldiers who lacked organization and discipline, even if the extremely cohesive Qiang soldiers were defeated, there would be small groups of scattered troops who fled over the mountains and mountains from another way, which was normal.

Meng Changshui said: "When we fled over the mountains and mountains, we got some strange grain on the road, thanks to the general soldier, I borrowed a piece of land for us to camp, this basket of corn, I will give you a taste." ”

"Corn?" Tashi was the first to cry out: "Isn't this what the thief named Li Yan said?" He said that this thing is very delicious, and the yield per mu is also high, and when he hears it, it is a deception, so we don't believe it, where did you grab it? ”

Meng Changshui smiled, and said with a little weirdness on his face: "In Zhu Jun's territory, we robbed a few villages and robbed them. ”

As soon as he said this, the three leaders of the Qiang tribe couldn't help but glance at him, although it was said to be the territory of the Zhu army. But in fact, the people in those villages are Sichuan people after all, and they can be regarded as good people, and the officers and soldiers rob their grain? What's the difference between this and a thief?

The three leaders all looked at Meng Changshui with unkind eyes, but Meng Changshui said without blushing and without a heartbeat: "What if you rob it?" That village has now become Zhu Jun's village, and this strange food was also planted by Zhu Jun to teach those villagers, and those villagers have long become the help of thieves. If I don't take it, Zhu Jun will take it, and in a blink of an eye, it will become the military food of the thief army, so it is better for us to use it. ”

The three Qiang leaders heard this and thought about it. That's just as well. Then he softened his gaze.

Meng Changshui waved his hand and said, "You're welcome, let's try this kind of thing called corn." ”

Rimai Muxi took his eyes to look at the corn, this thing is yellow and clear, and the boss has one. Looks weird. If it was sent by a thief. He must not dare to eat this thing because it is poisonous, but the officers and soldiers sent it differently, although he does not trust all Han people very much. However, the officers and soldiers who were also dealing with Zhu Jun would not give him poison to eat. He said, "Hmm...... I heard that Li Yan's wife praised this corn to the sky, so let's try it. ”

At that moment, someone brought a cauldron, brought mountain spring water, put the corn in the pot and boiled it, and when it was cooked, the three brothers of the Meng family and their relatives in the tent were first arrested and eaten to show that it was not poisonous. The three patriarchs of the Qiang tribe also grabbed it and tried it, but if they didn't eat it, they couldn't stop eating.

The corn is fragrant and sweet, although it is not necessarily better than the barley they are used to, but it has a unique flavor, and it feels really good.

Tashi is a straight man who says whatever comes to mind: "Huh? This thing is quite delicious, at least in terms of taste, the Han man named Li Yan didn't lie to us. ”

Rimai Mousi and Marcy also thought it was delicious, but they didn't speak, but with a calm face, they ordered the soldiers in the tent to divide the basket of corn and eat it.

After eating, Meng Changshui got up and said goodbye: "Lord Commander, our three brothers are going back to the camp to rest, hehe...... I'm going to fetch grain tomorrow, and then grab some corn in Zhu Jun's territory, hahaha, I can't go to bed early. ”

Rimai Muxi asked curiously, "Grain?" Grab corn? "If an hour ago, someone said that they were going to grab corn, Rimai Muxi would never have the slightest interest, but now that he tasted the corn, his interest soared.

Meng Changshui spread his hands and said: "Alas, we are separated from Lord Zuo Guangxian, so we can't get food from the imperial court, and we have to rely on ourselves to get all the food." It just so happens that Zhu Jun's territory is harvesting corn, so we naturally want to grab it, hehe. He was justified in saying this, you must know that the food and salary issued by the imperial court must be first distributed to the officers at the higher level, and then distributed at each level.

Since the army of the three brothers of the Meng family has been separated from their direct superiors, they will naturally lose supplies, and it is impossible for the imperial court to directly pay the three of them, and it is reasonable for them to raise their own food.

Rimai Muxi couldn't help but ask, "Where are you going to get food?" He had to ask like this, the Qiang soldiers could not get the food and salary of the imperial court, and all the food had to be prepared by themselves, and now that the barley brought by the army was about to be eaten up, he also had to find a way to solve it.

The three brothers of the Meng family glanced at each other and glanced at each other a few times, obviously not wanting to tell Rimai Muxi about the place where the grain was collected.

Although Rimai Muxi is a minority, his heart and eyes are no worse than those of the Han people, and he keenly captured the expressions of the three brothers of the Meng family, so he said: "Three generals, I heard that Zhu Ba is good at using soldiers, and his soldiers are strong and strong. You only have more than 1,000 troops, so it's inconvenient to grab food, right? If he is caught by Zhu Jun, is it not a place to die? You see, I have exactly 3,000 Qiang soldiers here, so you might as well take us with you to grab food, and when the time comes, you will get the food, and you will add two to five! ”

At this moment, the expressions of the three brothers of the Meng family changed, and it was obviously Rimai Muxi's words that spoke to their hearts. The boss Meng Changshui sighed and said, "This ...... But it makes sense...... The last time we went to fetch food, we were targeted by Zhu Jun's black pole soldiers, and we almost couldn't come back, if you helped, the chances of success would have soared. ”――

Early in the morning of the second day, the three brothers of the Meng family led the way in front, and the three patriarchs followed behind, and more than 4,000 people crossed the mountains and mountains and infiltrated the territory of the Zhu army. They didn't take the right path, because there were Zhu Jun's black pole soldiers on the right path, and they were not interested in fighting Zhu Jun's black pole soldiers here, they just wanted to get more food as soon as possible.

Crossing mountains and mountains is very difficult for ordinary troops, but it is not a problem for the Sichuan soldiers of the three brothers of the Meng family. And the Qiang soldiers are even more afraid, the Qiang people have lived in the dense snow-capped mountains of the western Sichuan Plateau since childhood, climbing mountains and rivers are better than ordinary Sichuan people, especially good at fighting in the oxygen-deficient land of the plateau, the ability to survive in the wild is extremely strong, they go over the mountains and mountains as if they were playing.

Unbeknownst to them, they crossed the defense line of the Zhu army and came to the outside of a small mountain village near Guangyuan.

Due to the high terrain of this village, the temperature is a little lower than the temperature below the mountain. Spring came late. As a result, the corn here ripens later than elsewhere, and in the last few days it has been harvest time, and the fields are full of corn cobs with their heads bowed.

On the top of a hill outside the village, Meng Changshui pointed to the village and said to the three Qiang patriarchs, "Have you seen it?" The corn in this village has not yet been harvested. Hey. Just cheaper for us. ”

The three patriarchs were all in a bit of a trance, looking at the golden cornfields on the outskirts of the village, and couldn't help but feel a burst of joy in their hearts. How many corn cobs do you have to snatch? It seems that our food has been lost. Tashi couldn't help but wonder: "The location of this village is very high, I can feel that the air here is very light, it should belong to the plateau, why can the grain here be grown so well?" ”

In Tashi's impression, there is no decent grain grown on the plateau, so only highland crops such as highland barley can grow normally, and other crops can not be expected to have any good harvest.

Meng Changshui heaved and said: "I don't understand this, I robbed a village last time, and I heard the villagers say that corn can grow on the plateau, and now it seems that this is true." ”

As soon as he said this, the eyes of the three patriarchs were a little eager, the crops that can grow on the plateau? That's a good thing! The three of them couldn't help but blush a little.

At this time, Meng Changshui said again: "After a while, the army will enter the village, and you will be responsible for controlling the villagers in the village, and my soldiers will quickly harvest the corn cobs...... After receiving it, let's retreat immediately, don't be chased and caught by Zhu Jun. ”

Tashi and Marsi both nodded yes, and Rimai Muxi was more scheming, he still didn't dare to trust the Han people very much, so he also frowned at the proposal of the three brothers of the Meng family, and snorted: "No, there is a problem with this division of labor, I don't trust you Han people...... Maybe you'll steal the victory, but I think it's up to you to control the villagers, and my soldiers to harvest the corn. ”

Meng Changxing said: "Then what if your soldiers hide corn?" ”

Rimai Muxi snorted angrily: "We Qiang people are not as cunning as you Han people, and there is absolutely no way that there is such a thing as private booty...... We will get as much as we ought, and we will not covet your corn on the cob. ”

The three brothers of the Meng family looked at each other a few more times, and finally agreed to Rimai Muxi's conditions.

The two armies were ready to stop, the soldiers quietly dispersed from the periphery, surrounded the small village, and then a shout, the three brothers of the Meng family led the rush into the village, there was a burst of exclamations and shouts of the villagers in the village, and then these voices quickly disappeared, and the officers and soldiers quickly controlled every house in the village, and all the men, women and children in the village were imprisoned in an ancestral hall in the center of the village.

Rimai Muxi hurriedly ordered the Qiang soldiers to harvest corn. Since the Qiang soldiers were not in charge of the battle, all the matters related to the battle were handled by the three brothers of the Meng family, so they had to concentrate on harvesting, and three thousand people worked together, how fast it was, in an instant, it was like a storm and clouds, and all the cornfields on the periphery of this small village were all harvested.

The golden corn cobs were all packed into the large bags prepared in advance by the Qiang soldiers and carried on their backs. Each of the 3,000 Qiang soldiers carried a cloth bag and looked like thieves stealing things.

When these Qiang soldiers were harvesting corn, they naturally couldn't help but add up how much they had collected, and several Qiang names squatted together and said in a low voice: "Brother, how many catties have you collected?" ”

"Look at my bag, let's say seventy pounds!"

Another person next to him said: "Tsk, look at my bag, there are at least fifty pounds." ”

When several people put it together, their faces suddenly changed color, and a soldier couldn't help but run to Rimai Muxi's side and report: "Patriarch, we ...... 700 pounds of corn were harvested in one acre of land...... Seven hundred catties, harvested in an acre of land, oh my God! ”

When Rimai Muxi heard this, a shocked expression suddenly appeared on his face: "This ...... Could it be a mistake? If we plant barley, we can only harvest 60 to 100 catties per acre of land...... This corn actually harvests 700 per acre? Is this a dream? ”

"Make no mistake, it's really seven hundred pounds!" The soldier hurriedly explained how many catties the third child had received, how many catties the sixth had received, and how many catties had been combined...... Before he finished speaking, another soldier came next to him, and he also said with a shocked face: "Patriarch, our acre has collected six hundred and forty catties ......."

"What?" Rimai Muxi no longer doubted this time: "This is too exaggerated." ”

I saw that the Qiang soldiers gathered back from various fields, you have a big bag, I have a big bag, and after a while, the ground is full of sacks, not to mention tens of thousands of catties of grain, which is less than a hundred acres of land...... If you grab a few more villages of this size, wouldn't it be easy to get hundreds of thousands of catties of grain?

Rimai Muxi only felt a violent beating of his heart: "Rich, oops, rich!" ”

He hurriedly waved his hand and said, "Move away, move away, hahaha, it's great!" Hurry up and carry these grains back, and then we will grab them again, and we will grab a village every day, and we will distribute them...... Rich, hahahaha. (To be continued.) )