As soon as Guo Bijin with 20,000 troops passed through Chenliucheng, he was attacked by anti-thieves.

A rebel suddenly appeared and attacked the camp at dawn, killing people and setting fires, and the Ming soldiers who woke up from their sleep were panicked and fled, and the army of 20,000 collapsed at once.

Guo Bijin didn't know what was going on, let alone the number of thieves who attacked him, so he fled all the way back to Kaifeng with the rout.

In fact, there were only more than 1,000 Red Turban Army attacking the Ming Army, led by Li Quan, the second leader of the Red Turban Army.

Li Quan's background in the rivers and lakes does not know how to fight at all. But the sons and daughters of the rivers and lakes naturally have the wisdom to survive. He knew that there were a large number of officers and soldiers, and he would definitely not be able to fight head-on, so he could only sneak attack and beat the stick. So he took more than 1,000 Red Turban troops to hide in the deserted village near the official road, and then took advantage of the official army camp to launch an attack, but he didn't expect to collapse the official army at once.

Of course, the reason why they were able to win was not only because of the sneak attack, but also because the Ming army in Kaifeng was too bad.

How can such an army fight a war without being paid for a year, and only a few months' salaries before the army is dispatched?

The soldiers of the Ming army in Kaifeng did not practice almost once a month, and they were hired farmers or resisted to support their families on weekdays, which was actually no different from farmers. Most of the soldiers had no armor, some were only in tattered uniforms, and as for the weapons, most of them were equipped with cold weapons such as broken knives and spears. There are firecrackers, but the quality is so poor that no one wants to use them.

In fact, such an army is not much stronger than the peasant army, and the will to fight is not even as good as the peasant army, and it is obvious that it will collapse in the event of a sneak attack.

Is there a better army in Henan? There are still some of them, and the combat strength of the pacesetter battalion of Henan Governor Fan Shangjing is not bad, but the pacesetter battalion went to Huaiqing Mansion with Henan Governor Fan Shangjing to contain the Shanxi thieves who came out of Taihang Mountain, and they were not in Kaifeng at all.

If Fan Shangjing was there, it would not be Guo Bijin's turn to lead the troops.

On the wall of Kaifeng Nancheng, looking at the defeated Kaifeng Ming army, Zhang Shize couldn't help but shake his head again and again.

"Master Hou, the thief army is powerful, only your Praetorian Guard can deal with it, and please send troops to suppress the thief immediately." Guo Bijin helped the crooked hat and said to Zhang Shize.

"How many thieves are there? Who is leading the troops? Zhang Shize asked.

"The leader of the troops is the second leader of the red turban thief, and the number of thieves is fifty or sixty thousand." Guo Bijin said. On the way to escape, he inquired about the situation of the Red Turban Army and knew who attacked him, but the number of the Red Turban Army was casually exaggerated, otherwise it was impossible to explain his defeat.

"Fifty or sixty thousand ......" Zhang Shize shook his head, it has only been half a month since he heard that the Red Turban Thieves rebelled, how could it develop so fast? Even if it can develop so fast, it is just a group of farmers gathered together, and even such farmers can't beat it, this Guo Bijin is really a waste!

"The thief army is strong, if I lead the Praetorian Guard to attack, once defeated, Kaifeng will have no army to defend, once the thief army attacks Kaifeng, it will be very troublesome." Zhang Shize said casually.

It's messy, it's messy, it's best for the red turban thieves to kill the provinces in Henan again, and then they can take advantage of the situation to send a large army to Henan, just like Shandong, take the opportunity to re-establish the government to complete the restructuring.

Zhang Shize refused to send troops, and Guo Bijin and other Kaifeng officials had no choice but to serve as the chief soldier of Henan with the Marquis of Chaopin, and Zhang Shize's status was still above that of the governor of Henan.

The Red Turban Army was in turmoil, less than a hundred miles away from Kaifeng, Zhang Shize also had a headache, and he didn't know whether to send troops to suppress the thieves or stay in the city to carry out his own work, so he convened his subordinates to discuss.

"Master Hou, the task given to us by His Majesty is not to suppress bandits, besides, we have five or six thousand people, if we go to suppress bandits, we can only come out of the nest, and I don't know when we can completely exterminate the anti-thieves, it is too time-consuming. So don't pay attention to the request of the Kaifeng officials, let's just do our own thing. Inspector Tang Chaoju suggested.

Tang Chaoju is a graduate of the Academy of Sciences, trained in Liaodong for more than a year, with excellent results, Zhou Yuji led the army to Shandong to suppress bandits when accompanied the army to Shandong, this time was appointed by Zhu Youzhen as the inspector of Kaifeng Prefecture, responsible for assisting Zhang Shize to complete the reform of the clan, and the establishment of the inspection department in Kaifeng, and the installation of officials into the Yamen of Kaifeng Mansion.

"But the red scarf thief is outside Kaifeng City, how can Benhou carry out the reform of the clan system." Zhang Shize sighed.

Kaifeng City is too big, the population is too large, although there are more than 5,000 people, but Zhang Shize still feels stretched, in addition to the anti-thief is not far from Kaifeng, if the political situation is chaotic because of the restructuring, it will be troublesome for the anti-thief to sit big.

"Don't pay attention to the thieves outside the city, our 5,000 troops are enough to control the city defenses. Now we will first carry out restructuring in Kaifeng City, first clean up Kaifeng City, make Kaifeng City our basic plate, and then we can use Kaifeng as the base to clear the anti-thieves and pacify the provinces. Tang Chaoju suggested.

"Okay, just do it." Zhang Shize nodded and said, "I'll go to see King Zhou, and start with King Zhou first." ”

In Kaifeng City, Zhu Gongfang, the king of Zhou, has the most respectful status, although he has no power, but his influence is great. If King Zhou is willing to cooperate, it will get twice the result with half the effort!

Among the vassal kings of the late Ming Dynasty, Zhu Gongfang, the king of Zhou, was a rare virtuous king. At the end of the Ming Dynasty, in the face of the attack of the exile army, the Ming Dynasty vassal kings performed very poorly, as soon as they heard that the "Liukou" attacked, they ignored the Ming law, took their wives and children, treasures abandoned the city and fled, they moved around, wandered, tired of running for their lives, such as: Xiangyang Xiangwang, Jingzhou Hui Wang, Wuchang Chu Wang, Changsha Ji Wang, Hengzhou Gui Wang, Baoqing Min Wang, etc., as soon as they received the battle report that the peasant army was about to attack, they were suddenly frightened and trembled, where can they still take care of the dignity and face of the royal nobles, and immediately cleaned up the softness, Hurriedly smeared oil on the soles of his feet.

And even those vassal kings who did not flee performed very poorly, in the face of the peasant army that attacked outside the city, in the face of the hungry and cold defenders, many vassal kings were unusually stingy, and they would rather be captured with their hands than take out the gold and silver wealth of the palace to reward the army, and finally the city was broken by the peasant army, and their lives and property were taken away by the peasant army. For example, King Fu of Luoyang, King Qin of Xi'an, and King Shu of Chengdu.

Among the many vassal kings, the performance of Zhu Gongfang, the king of Zhou, is particularly rare. When Li Zicheng captured Luoyang and attacked Kaifeng with tens of thousands of troops, Zhu Gongfang, the king of Zhou, generously stated: "The city wall is trapped, and the body is not there, but what about Jinhu?" If the city is safeguarded, why should there be no money? ”

Zhu Gongfang took out the money and food of the palace, recruited warriors to defend the city, and rewarded the soldiers who defended the city. With his encouragement, the soldiers and civilians in Kaifeng City broke out with great enthusiasm for defending the city, and repelled two attacks by Li Zicheng's army in succession.

In the first attack on Kaifeng, Li Zicheng led an army of 30,000, and the second time he joined forces with Luo Rucai, and the number of troops reached 500,000! In the two sieges, Li Zicheng tried all methods, but he still could not break through the Kaifeng city wall, and the losses were so great that even one eye of Li Zicheng was blinded by the defenders.

It was not until the third time that Li Zicheng's army and the Kaifeng defenders coincidentally dug the Yellow River embankment and tried to use the Yellow River water to break each other, but Kaifeng City was washed away by the flood and Kaifeng fell.

The isolated city of Kaifeng blocked Li Zicheng's invasion of the army for two years, Kaifeng fell, and there was no important town in the Central Plains in the hands of the imperial court, which meant that the entire Central Plains completely fell, and Beijing also lost its barrier. After Li Zicheng occupied the entire Central Plains, he had no worries before he had the opportunity to attack Beijing. And in the defense of Kaifeng City, Zhu Gongfang, the king of Zhou, played a very big role!

Considering these, Zhu Youzhen asked Zhang Shize to leave some dignity for King Zhou, not like he did to King Lu and King De.

Zhang Shize's request to see, the German king Zhu Gongfang naturally did not dare to slack off, and ordered the middle door to be opened, and the prince Zhu Shaoxuan welcomed Zhang Shize on his behalf.

"Meet His Royal Highness King Zhou."

"Pingbei waits for a quick and free courtesy."

After greetings, Zhang Shize directly explained his intentions: "Lord, the minister served as the chief soldier of Henan, in fact, he came to Henan to implement the reform of the clan at the behest of His Majesty, and the first stop was Kaifeng, and I also asked the prince to support Weichen and set an example." ”

King Zhou smiled bitterly: "Four years ago, when His Majesty carried out the restructuring, the widow had already handed over a lot of land, and now all the fields in the palace are only 100,000 mu, and most of them are given by the previous emperors. There are more than 1,000 people in the Zhou Palace, all of whom have to rely on these Wang Tian to feed, if there are no Wang Tian, how will the Zhou Wang Mansion survive? ”

Zhang Shize shook his head: "The prince has Lu Mi Wanshi every year, and Wang Tian will also leave some for the prince, which is enough to maintain the dignity of the vassal king." With all due respect, the prince's heirs all have titles, so why bother the prince to support them? Why should there be as many as a thousand people in the palace? ”

The king of Zhou was silent, although he was more virtuous than other vassal kings, how could he want his family property to be plundered? Even if the other party is the emperor.

"The Zhou Wangfu has been in Kaifeng for more than 200 years, and there are more than 50 county kings, more than 600 generals, and more than 3,000 lieutenants in Kaifeng City. Lord Wang, you said that there are only more than 100,000 acres left in Wangtian of Zhou Wangfu, maybe. But what about the fields in the names of the other county kings? As far as I know, half of the fields in the Central Plains belong to the feudal government, and most of the remaining land belongs to the gentry, and tens of millions of Henan people own less than 10% of the land. These people also have to pay the imperial grain and state taxes, and they also have to provide for the rice of the clan.

Lord Wang, in Qi County, there was a rebellion by the Red Turban Army, and the number grew to tens of thousands in just half a month, why is this happening? If the people had a way to live, would they risk their heads? ”

"Your Majesty can't sleep all day and night, for the sake of the Daming Dynasty, Lord Wang, you are the king of the Ming Dynasty, you should share your Majesty's worries and solve problems, but for the sake of the Daming River and the mountains but some interests shouldn't it?"

King Zhou sighed: "Don't say it to the Marquis of Pingbei, you can take everything you like in the palace this week, even if you take the life of this king." From the moment you arrived in Henan, this king knew what fate he would end, nothing more than the same as King De and King Lu......"

Zhang Shize shook his head and said: "The prince is different from King Lu, before the minister came to Henan, His Majesty had an instruct, saying that you have always been wise and understand righteousness. ”

King Zhou's eyes lit up: "Your Majesty really said that?" ”

Zhang Shize nodded: "It's true, how dare the minister lie about it?" Lord, Your Majesty, he has worked hard for the Ming Dynasty, but there have been droughts in various parts of the Ming Dynasty for many years, and there is no harvest in many places, and the displaced people are everywhere. However, the tax revenue of the imperial court has been reduced year after year, and there is no silver to support the army and the people. Therefore, His Majesty tried to change, hoping to save the people, hoping to rejuvenate the Ming Dynasty.

The disadvantages of the clan are well known, and it cost the Ming too much money and food. From only twenty-three clans when Taizu was the time, to now the clans of Daming have reached more than 200,000, and the number will be more and more, sooner or later, it will completely drag Daming down! The Ming Dynasty is no longer able to support such a huge number of clans, and it has come time not to change! You have always been wise, you should be clear about what I said, and you should understand Your Majesty's suffering. ”

King Zhou took a deep breath: "Your Majesty's distress, this king understands. Well, the reform of the clan began with the Zhou domain, and this king fully supports you the Marquis of Pingbei! ”

"Thank you, Lord Wang!" Zhang Shize said happily.

At that moment, the two discussed, and the king of Zhou agreed to hand over most of the royal land in the palace, and only kept 5,000 acres to support the palace. Most of the eunuch palace maids in the Zhou Palace's palace were also disbanded, and only more than 100 people were retained together with the guards.

Not only the Zhou Wangfu, but also the fields of other county kings in Kaifeng City were all handed over, and each county king only kept a thousand acres of land, and the rest were included in the Qingtian Division as an official property. Zhu Gongfang, the king of Zhou, was the king of Zhou, and had the right to dispose of the clan of the king of Zhou, and the other county kings of Kaifeng Mansion had to obey the orders of the king of Zhou.

In addition to the land, the Zhou Wangfu also gave up the right to distribute rice in the clan. From now on, the Qing Tian Division will be responsible for the distribution of the rice of the Zhou Dynasty, and the Zhou Wangfu will no longer interfere.

After giving up so much and getting some, at least from now on, King Zhou doesn't have to worry about ending up like King Fu and King De. Most of the fields in the Zhou Wangfu are missing, but the floating wealth is still there, and there are still 10,000 stone Lu rice every year, and you can still be a rich and virtuous king.

As for the other clans, with the exception of the county king, the general lieutenant will no longer be hereditary. The eldest son of the king of the county can be crowned as the son of the family and inherit the throne, while the other sons are all commoners, not to mention the descendants of generals and lieutenants.

Cancel the restrictions on the clan, from now on, the clan can be an official in scientific examinations, can work and farm, and can do business, but after finding a job, it is equivalent to giving up the identity of the clan, and there will be no more Lumi collar in the future. In fact, for many ordinary clans, they can't eat enough to rely on Lu rice. Although the king of Zhou is virtuous, he also deducts the rice of the clan, and the ordinary clans of the Zhou king's family are also miserable, and there are many beggars along the street.

Zhang Shize also announced that he would hold an exam for the clan in five days, and those who passed the exam would be trained, and then they could be conferred officials, of course, starting with the officials, of course, after passing the exam, the rice of these clans would no longer be distributed.

The clans of the Zhou Dynasty were all gathered around Kaifeng City, and five days was enough time for them to prepare.

The notice of the clan restructuring was posted outside the Zhou Wang's Mansion and at various important intersections, and the clan in Kaifeng City was boiling.

The general of the county king, who owned the field, was mourned, and the many lieutenants cheered.

ps: I don't know what I'm doing every day, it's really decadent, I want to think about cheering up!