After the serious illness, although Xu Ping's body was weak, his brain was still flexible. He chatted with his master all over the world, but he felt a little strange in his heart. Generally speaking, this kind of scholar, who was a small landlord, had a high prestige among the illiterate peasants, and the government also gave them preferential treatment. Therefore, most of these low-level scholars are staunch supporters of the imperial court, the foundation of dynastic rule, and the force that stabilizes people's hearts...... In short, these people should have a deep hatred for the rebels. But Xu Ping couldn't hear the hatred of the rogues from the words of the people in front of him, and he didn't have respect for the government.

Zhong Guinian looked a little uneasy after hearing his master's words, perhaps because he was afraid that Xu Ping couldn't help but have a seizure, so he immediately began to defend the officers and soldiers: "If it weren't for the fact that there are many thieves right now, there wouldn't be so many officers and soldiers disturbing the people, alas." ”

"Zhong Ye's words are not right," the master shook his head when he heard this, and said loudly: "Most of the so-called thieves are forced out by the government. ”

Zhong Guinian laughed dryly, and peeked at Xu Ping when his master was not paying attention, and there was nothing unusual on the latter's face. The master lowered his head and took a sip of tea, and said again without any scruples: "Speaking of which, my father was also killed by the government. ”

"Oh?"

Zhong Guinian and Xu Ping made surprised voices almost at the same time, the master's father was a famous Xiucai, and it was said that the government would not force such a person anyway. The master recounted while recalling: "That was eight years ago, in the autumn the county collected taxes and grain, and more than 100 people who could not pay the grain fled to the mountains, which can be regarded as a crowd, but there is really no rebellion......

The master told Zhong Guinian and Xu Ping that two of those who evaded taxes were his father's students and became the leaders of the people. The county magistrate knew that his father was well-known in the local area, so he invited his father to the county to negotiate and asked him to come forward to recruit peace. The county magistrate swore that if these people gave up the cottage and returned, not only would they not be held accountable for the crime of gathering the crowd, but they would also be hired to maintain law and order around the county seat, and the two leading people would be given the status of petty officials. On the other hand, if they don't come back honestly, then the county will have to send troops and horses to exterminate it.

"When my father came home, I discussed it with my mother, and my father said that those people are honest farmers on weekdays, so what if they were treated as thieves like this?" Speaking of this, the host sighed softly. He was only a teenager at the time, and his father's worries are still vivid: "My father hurried to the place where the people had gathered the next day to persuade them. The hundreds of men respected their father, especially his two students, and after listening to the teacher's painstaking persuasion, they were ashamed and regretful, and immediately started to burn down the village, and took everyone down the mountain to ask the county lord for their guilt. ”

Xu Ping could already guess what happened next, and the master also confirmed his guess. The county first reassured them with kind words, arranged for these people to stay, did not let them go home, and really gave the two leaders a position. However, a few days later, late one night, a large number of government soldiers were suddenly dispatched from the county, and more than 100 people were arrested and buried alive, leaving not a single one behind.

"Father ......" the master shook his head vigorously when he said this, and his expression was gloomy: "After my father heard about it the next day, he ...... that night I remember vividly that my hair turned white overnight, and then I fell ill. Crying while holding my mother's hand while lying in bed; 'More than 100 lives, all of them were harmed by me. My father died a few days later. ”

Xu Ping was silent after hearing this, just lowered his head and stroked the tea bowl in his hand. The master drank the full cup of tea, and then called out to his wife, "Lady, add some more tea." ”

The young woman came over and added tea to the master and Zhong Guinian, and politely asked Xu Ping: "Master Zhang, do you want to add some tea?" ”

"No need, thank you, Auntie."

Seeing that the atmosphere was a little dull, Zhong Guinian interrupted: "Auntie listens to the accent, it seems to be from Henan?" ”

The young woman smiled: "Master Zhong has good ears." ”

"It's a hard life to go south and north." Zhong Guinian laughed, turned around and joked to his master: "A thousand miles of marriage is a thread, it's really a good fate." ”

Unexpectedly, this compliment did not cause any laughter from the host and his wife. The master was silent, and the young woman's eyes were red, as if she was about to shed tears, Zhong Guinian was stunned when she saw this. The master turned his head and whispered softly to his wife, "There is a lady Lao, go and rest for a while." ”

After the woman retreated, Zhong Guinian hurriedly got up and apologized, and the master waved his hand: "It's none of Zhongye's business." ”

"My father-in-law is from Henan and a scholar, and I can be called a good match, but it is really fate." The master saw that Zhong Guinian was still worried after sitting down, so he simply poured out the pain in his heart: "Five years ago, there was a great hunger in Henan, and my father-in-law and mother-in-law fled to Lu with clumsy thorns, and I had just returned to the township with my mother. That morning, when I went to look at the crops in the field, I met the Humble Jing family. ”

The old couple had not eaten for several days, and were too hungry to speak when they met the young man. The young man had exactly two wheat cakes in his pocket, which his mother had given him for breakfast, and when he saw this, he took them out and gave them to the old man to eat. The old couple devoured it, but after swallowing the cake, the first thing the old man said was not to thank him, but to ask solemnly, "Do you marry a wife?" After receiving a negative answer, the old man pointed to his daughter beside him and said the second sentence he could say: "Take your wife."

"I just returned to my hometown a few days ago, and I haven't settled down at home and outside, not to mention how marriage can be child's play, so I casually said to my father-in-law: 'My family is poor, and I have to support my old mother, so it is difficult to marry a wife.'" But I couldn't stand the repeated begging of my father-in-law and his old man, so I was helpless for a while, so I said that I would go home first and tell my mother, if my mother agreed. "Young people have even more worries in their hearts, and it is not an easy thing to suddenly add three mouths to eat during the period of war and chaos.

But the two old men did not give up, and insisted that the young man take their daughter back to his mother to see him. The old couple couldn't resist it, and the young man had to agree. But the old couple said that they couldn't walk and needed to rest for a while. Without much thought, the young man first settled the old couple to rest under a tree, scooped up some water for them to drink, and then took the girl home to explain the situation to her mother. The young man's mother also said that marriage should not be hasty, but she was very sympathetic to the plight of the old couple's family, so she went to them with some food and her son, and prepared to take the poor family for a few days. Unexpectedly, when the mother and son arrived, they saw that the old couple had already hanged themselves on the tree. With nowhere else to go, the young man's mother ordered her son to marry her and bury the two old men.

“…… Since Clumsy Jing has entered my family, I naturally have to go and register her. I'm a showman, so I'm going to go to the county. When the county magistrate heard about it, he turned this incident into a strange talk and spread it in Shilin, praising me: "The young man is virtuous, and he has a wife for two cakes." He also praised my father-in-law and said, "Wise old father, marry his daughter, and be able to bury him!" ”

An old couple held the hope that their daughter might survive because of this, and both hanged themselves, Xu Ping didn't know what the old man wanted to see at the last glance before he died, maybe it was their daughter wearing a wedding dress. But in any case, it is impossible to exchange his daughter for burial. In their hearts, they must be filled with worries about their daughter's future fate. If a person is not in a desperate situation, how can he make such a decision, how can he bear to leave his daughter alone?

As a result, they have become the talk of others after dinner, and they have been evaluated as "wise". Xu Ping looked at his master's face with mixed feelings, and felt an irrepressible anger rolling in his chest, "I am studying hard in the teaching team, and strictly training soldiers in the army, how many good brothers have sacrificed their lives on the battlefield, in order to protect these corrupt officials and corrupt officials, and let a large number of people die in the ditch?" The sound of questioning echoed in Xu Ping's mind. Just like when he saw the long line of slaves on the outskirts of Yucheng that day, it was the first time Xu Ping had such doubts in his heart.

The master bowed his head and drank his tea again. The housewife cooked a meal in the kitchen and brought it to the table, with rice and a few vegetarian dishes.

Zhong Guinian, who was beside him, saw that Xu Ping looked unwilling, and hurriedly pulled his sleeves secretly, but he couldn't make Xu Ping return to normal after a few pulls.

The young woman gently placed the dishes and chopsticks in front of each person, and then looked at Xu Ping and then at her husband in confusion. The master raised his chopsticks and said without raising his head: "The way of this world...... Zhang Ye will take care of himself in the future. ”

The housewife specially cooked white rice porridge for Xu Ping and served him a big bowl, Xu Ping shook his head and said, "I'm not hungry, I don't want to eat." ”

At dusk, some people from the same village called the door outside, and the master let them in. The village chief at the head politely greeted the master, and thanked Zhong Guinian again and again, and the eyes of the other people who looked at Zhong Guinian were also full of gratitude. Xu Ping listened to the meaning of their words, and it seemed that Zhong Guinian sold them some much-needed things at a very fair price, including salt and farm tools. The war interrupted the normal trade routes, the bazaars were destroyed, and now the passing caravans were the village's greatest reliance. At the same time, Zhong Guinian also bought a lot of things from the villagers, including the homespun cloth woven by the farmers themselves, which the villagers could not sell for money during the war, and there were few buyers around, and the money given by Zhong Guinian was very good.

After greeting Zhong Guinian, the village chief turned his head to look at the master, revealing an inquiring look.

"I've been there, but no one is there."

As soon as the master's words came out, the village chief's smile suddenly disappeared, and his body stiffened and could not move. A woman behind him let out a loud cry, and the master's wife hurriedly ran over to comfort the peasant woman, and the others were all saddened and indignant.

The master is also a famous talent, and the government always has to be polite to him, so he went out a few days ago to inquire about the situation in the surrounding villages. There are several daughters-in-law in this village who have married from other villages, and when they heard that soldiers passed through their hometowns, those women were very worried about their mothers' families.

Xu Ping looked down at the ground and listened to his master report to the villagers about what he had seen and heard. After a series of familiar names of friendly generals, Xu Ping actually heard his master mention himself: "...... Several uncles of the Li family were also in that stockade, and it was the well-known fierce general Xu Ping who led the troops to attack the stockade...... That's right, it's the person King Ji named to arrest...... Most of them died, and those who did not escape, all the men were killed, and the children were taken away with the women...... The fire burned for two days. ”

One more time.

“…… There is no one in Zhangjia Village either. They believed Xu Ping's words and went home, and then the men were buried alive and the women were taken away......"

Several women in the room were already crying: "Xu thief who killed a thousand knives!" ”

Zhong Guinian secretly glanced at Xu Ping worriedly, the latter's face was blank, and he no longer looked excited just now. Xu Ping listened to the master's narration and commented softly—as if he was evaluating a person who had nothing to do with him: "If you don't believe in your words, you don't know what to do." ”

……

That night, Xu Ping insisted on living outside the house with Zhong Guinian's caravan mates, believing that he had no face to rely on in his master's house, but Xu Ping did not have the courage to admit his identity to the villagers.

"Me! How can I pay for my sins? ”

Xu Ping looked up at the vast starry sky and couldn't find an answer that could make him feel at ease: "Zijun, if you knew all this I did, would you still respect me?" ”

Perhaps because his weak body could no longer withstand the wind and cold, after leaving the village the next day with Zhong Guinian, Xu Ping fell ill again without going far. This time the illness was also very ferocious, and Zhong Guinian had to stay here until September 10 before he could go on the road again.

……

Wolf's Lair

"Your Excellency has rushed to Shandong, this time it's so perfect, it's so perfect." Li Yunrui, who was in charge of the intelligence of the New Army, was amazed.

"A masterpiece indeed." Zhao Wanxiong nodded: "Now Hou Xun is already our person, in order to prevent him from dying and breaking the net, the adults also agreed not to pursue his faults." ”

"The officers and soldiers are extremely dissatisfied with the constraints of the imperial court, and the attitude of the imperial court has also been greatly relaxed, so it is really unexpected that such a person can have this achievement after such a few deaths." Li Yunrui said with a smile: "But the people below are also a little too disagreeable, since the formation of the army, the people below are above the top, thinking that they can be invincible by relying on the fame of adults, and everyone in my intelligence department is impetuous, and they explain all kinds of regulations to be changed, and they haven't seen any movement for a year." With this lesson, I think they will do things solidly. Well, if I want to say that I also have to review, when my subordinates said that they didn't need to improve, I also felt that it was enough and didn't supervise it. ”

The death of thousands of people is not a loss at all in the eyes of Li Yunrui and Zhao Slowxiong, as long as the imperial court continues to allocate funds, it is not a problem to buy as many lives as you want, Li Yunrui proudly told Zhao Slowbear: "This time He Feibao has lost all his face, I told He Baodao, whether to abandon the army and abscond or escape alone, it is just a matter of writing for Hou Sui; Whether the new army is willing to give his son a chance is also a sentence from Brother Jin. ”

Zhao Wanxiong nodded again: "You didn't tell him too much, did you?" ”

"You can't help but look down on me too much, don't you?" Li Yunrui said with a smile: "I told him that if you want to open peace for the Son of Heaven, you have to not let the civil officials hinder you, and we have already understood with Hou Sui, He Baodao is an old man, hehe." ”

Zhao Wanxiong's face was a little worried: "The adult said that he would promote the newcomer to a high position." ”

"It's just an angry word," Li Yunrui looked unimpressed.

"Not necessarily," Zhao Slowxiong shook his head: "I paid attention after hearing this, Yang Zhiyuan has been doing something strange recently, and the more I think about it, the more it seems that I am a newcomer for a big person." He also followed the adults to Shandong, and the adults trusted him very much. ”

"It's Yang Zhiyuan again......" Li Yunrui's smiling face was put away at once: "Fighting tigers is still brothers, and it all depends on father and son soldiers to go into battle, as long as everyone trains seriously, the new army will be enough." There may be people who have the ability among the newcomers, but they may not have the same heart as the adults, and when they are willing to die for the great cause of the adults, I don't know how long it will take, and we don't have fifteen years to wait. ”

Zhao Wanxiong was silent, and Li Yunrui continued: "Yang Zhiyuan has no good influence on adults, since ancient times, to do great things, you need soldiers, and it is enough to have soldiers." Running a school, writing a book, etc., it's all ......"

Li Yunrui's tone was slightly sluggish, and Zhao Slowxiong picked it up for him: "Don't do business." ”

"I didn't say that, I mean it's all the opposite, it's all Yang Zhiyuan who said it." Li Yunrui knew that Zhao Wanxiong was going to Shandong soon, so he said, "Brother Zhao, you have to persuade your lord." ”

"Don't worry."

……

When he arrived near Texas on the 15th, Xu Ping was finally able to get out of the carriage and ride on the horse again. Zhong Guinian looked at Xu Ping, who had been silent for several days, with a worried face, and he tried to comfort the other party several times but could not get the point.

Today, Zhong Guinian's comfort was also defeated, but some of the information he collected made Xu Ping very interested. In these days, what puzzled Xu Ping the most was the incredible military defeat of the New Army, and the entire left flank of the New Army seemed to have been defeated without any fighting. According to Zhong Guinian's intelligence, the new army generals He Baodao and Jin Qiude are both in Dezhou, and they arrived a few days ago, and it is said that Yang Zhiyuan and even Zhendonghou himself will come, which is enough to show the seriousness of the situation. But what surprised Xu Ping even more was that although the new army generals such as Lian He and Jin had arrived at the front line, the deployment of the Ming army he saw was still shrinking the defense rather than launching an attack.

After getting this latest information, Xu Ping immediately rushed to the new army camp to see He Baodao. Zhong Guinian handed over the caravan to his men, and he accompanied Xu Ping. The latter naturally understood that this was the Year of the Turtle and wanted to ask the new army for credit. Although many caravans interacted with the rebels, their roots were still under the rule of the Ming Dynasty, and their lives and property were still in the hands of the imperial court.

The two men and a few retinues soon encountered the sentinels of the New Army, and when they faced the cold gaze and interrogation of the New Army officers, Zhong Guinian instinctively put a smile on his face, and jumped off the horse to owe. When Zhong Guinian nodded and tried to explain, Xu Ping had already jumped forward with a clamp on his horse's belly. After seeing the officer's uniform clearly, Xu Ping shouted: "General, I am Xu Ping, the commander of the Changqing Battalion, and I want to meet Marshal He immediately." ”

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