Chapter 136: Boryeong

Of course, Fang Ge had long known about Cheng Xi's gang in the south of Boryeong. If Fang Sanhuai was still leading the army, these brothers of Lizhou Wei would have been transferred to fight the chaos a long time ago. It's a pity that the father-in-law went to prison on the front foot, and Cheng Xi robbed a handful in the southern county on the back foot, and Fang Sanhuai's crime was "rebellion and rebellion" - in exchange for any other crime, the civil officials can still let him "wear the crime and make meritorious service", and there is this big hat buttoned, everyone knows in their hearts: Lizhou Weiren is panicked, Fang Ge, who can convince the public, is full of hatred and can't be counted, what kind of guy is promoted by the firing line to forcibly command the army, the soldiers and men will not buy it, and if they meet with the homeless, there is a high probability that they may really kill the officials and rebel! So no one dared to touch this thought. In order to avoid making any trouble, we can't let them eat enough...... Duan Yuanji also knew that it was definitely not a way to drag it out like this, and sooner or later it would still be chaotic, but it would be a while, and he couldn't make a fuss because he wanted to avenge an unknown martial artist. Therefore, the two field battalions with the strongest combat strength in Baoning Mansion were thrown in the north of the province to continue to starve, and the Duan Governor's Mansion deployed most of the remaining troops in the southern counties, and less than half of them were stationed in Nanjin Pass and Hexi Pass: as long as the Shunqing thieves did not come to harass Baoning Mansion, even if the neighboring mansion was turned into white land, what could be done.

In order to take Baoning Mansion in one fell swoop, Fang Ge sent the main road pass and several capable subordinates to avoid the main channel of the Jialing River, and went straight to Pengzhou along the Xiaotong River, where he got in touch with Cheng Xi. Fang Ge guessed with his toes what Cheng Xi's group lacked the most at the moment, so he specially asked Lu Tong to bring a few dozen catties of salt with white flowers from the official warehouse in Jianzhou. The checkpoint of Yuanji in the upper part of this waterway was set up at Liubianyi, and there was a garrison of infantry. But Lu Tong has acquaintances over there. After the general made a promise that "the army will not attack", several military envoys not only did not encounter obstacles, but also got a new waist card from Boryeong General and exchanged for a few official horses and a clipper boat at the post station.

Cheng Xi in Fenghuang Mountain is having a very hard time these days. The fire in Nanchong burned Fucheng into a rubble field, and Pengzhou was not so completely burned, but it also withered to a pulp, and after robbing a few times, it has long been worthless: there are fewer people who go to rob, and it is not worth it to go more - the harvest of the last robbery is so pitiful that on the last day of the return trip, most of the brothers returned to the mountains hungry. Fortunately, the old and weak women and children opened up some wasteland in the mountains, digging wild vegetables, picking wild fruits, digging rat holes, catching birds and snakes, and finally there were no starving and dead people—but because they couldn't get salt, everyone was weak. The salt pavilion in Tongchuan Prefecture in the west is the salt-producing area, which is only about 300 miles, but this distance is as far away as the horizon for Cheng Xi's group of homeless people called Huazi.

Like Duan Yuanji, Cheng Xi also knew that it was by no means a long-term solution to go on like this: those two hastily built wooden fences were the only barriers to the lair, if there were really officials and soldiers to attack, they would definitely not be able to stop for an hour or two, and the thousands of people on his side, there were only about 300 knives and guns combined, and it was never possible to conduct any battle training, and the order of the Golden Drum Banner was not to even think about it, and the only reason why he could survive now was that no one came to fight. So he was overjoyed to see Fang Ge's military envoy and dozens of catties of salt, and agreed to attack Baoning Mansion in one gulp. Cheng Xi's conditions made Zhang Hu very happy: to move in.

Duan Yuanji didn't do nothing: he ordered Wang Chao, the magistrate of Cangxi, to abandon the county seat and lead the elite to assist in the defense of Baoning Mansion. Cangxi will definitely not be able to hold it - the waterway, the Jialing River passes through the city, the land route, the Yuntai view incense is very prosperous, there are roads in all directions, even if there are four or five more battalions, it is impossible to block it, let alone not.

Previously, in order to strengthen the defense of the south, more than half of the defenders were successively transferred from Tieshan Pass and Liangshan Pass to the south. Hearing the news of abandoning Cangxi, the defenders left behind in the two places shouted that no one would continue to stay to die, and they were all transferred back to Fucheng.

Just stick to the wall and clear the wilderness.

The strong wall is written language, and to put it bluntly, it is to destroy everything: all the stored grain of each family is searched and taken away, the belt that can be brought with farm tools and furniture, the destruction that cannot be taken away, the fill of all the wells that can be filled, and the pollution that cannot be filled or simply throw the dead bodies of people and animals into it - although it is impossible for the thieves to be short of water by relying on the Jialing River, it can make the thieves work harder, well, especially the feeling of urinating and pooping into the well where others drink water and throwing dead corpses is really refreshing, so the soldiers of the government service are working very hard...... Finally, put a fire on it so that the thieves don't want to sleep in a covered house! Nothing was left for the thief, hoping that these guys could hit their heads on the high walls of Boryeong Mansion and break their blood, and then retreat to find trouble with others.

If it were him at that time, Duan's prefect's approach would undoubtedly be the best policy, but unfortunately he missed a point: including himself, most of the civil officials' deductions for Lizhouwei and the surrounding thousands of households for many years were in Jianzhou - because of the flood, Tu Jichun spent a year and a half in Sichuan Province, and not long after he returned to Beijing to restore his life, no one had time to sell it secretly, plus the strategic reserves of grain and grass in the imperial court itself, Zhang Hu's department and Fang Ge and others did not worry about eating at all - the soldiers' two meals and dry food, even the people who were coerced, I can also drink a thick multigrain porridge every day.

Wang Chao took all the Ding Zhuang that Cangxi could catch to Baoning Mansion to assist in defense. Ning Along is a strong blacksmith, of course he can't let it go. However, Ning Along's twelve-year-old brother Ning Ahu disappeared in the chaos of crying and grabbing the ground. Ah Long was anxious to go and look for it, "Want to escape?" Are you going to be a thief? The iron ruler of the official was slammed on his back, and then a long rope was tied to his right arm, and he and the neighbors and villagers he knew or did not know were led to Boryeong Mansion step by step and three times.

Two days later, at night, Ning Ah Long and a few of his companions were assigned to the north wall to keep vigil, and the night blind Ah Long still saw a vague golden light in the distance in his eyes—Ah Long knew that it was his hometown that was burning in the flames fifty miles away. Kill thieves? The thief should be killed to protect the family! The thief hasn't come yet, so he burned my house first? For whom am I killing thieves? Even if I kill the thief, who will pay for my family? Ning Along couldn't figure out these truths. Thinking of his younger brother who was uncertain about his life and death, two lines of tears silently slid across his dirty face, and Ning Along cried. The partners next to him also began to sob. "My home, my mother...... someone slumped on the wall and cried.

"Smack"!

"Ahh

The muffled sound of the scabbard on the body was accompanied by a scream, and then the curse of the little flag officer of the battlement chief suddenly sounded: "Wu Na Zhi Niang thief*, cause trouble to the hearts of the army, and then howl Lao Tzu slashed you with a wild donkey!" "Listening to the accent, the little flag officer is from another province, maybe he came from the army.

"Master Jun, my mother is still outside! Please be merciful, let me go out and find my mother, the villain will kowtow to the military master. The beaten companion did not give up, and pleaded.

"Smack", another slap of the scabbard, not lightly or heavily on his cheek: "Fart!" Looking for your mother? I can find your daughter-in-law and let you out! Shut up! In the dappled light and shadow of the torches, the flickering face squeezed out an evil grin.

"I beg the military master to be merciful." A few more fell to their knees.

"Woo woo, my dad is also outside."

"My mother-in-law and the two babies are outside, Master Jun......"

There was chaos on the wall, and the people who knelt on the ground obviously made the little flag officer feel a little frightened, and he shouted calmly: "Close the beak of Lao Tzu!" Do the killers want to rebel against the thieves? ”

The crowd did not dare to shout anymore, and cried in a low voice. Hearing the movement here, Ding Zhuang, who was separated by a few battlements, became commotion, and some people began to plead with their battlements, and then almost the entire north wall was a little chaotic......

"Beep ......" a sharp whistle sounded. In a moment, Mr. Qian, who was on duty at night, took a dozen or so guards with a torch in one hand and a bright steel knife in the other, striding over, shouting: "Camp Xiao!" Kill! ”

"Ahh Ning Along, who was kneeling on the ground and sobbing silently, had a miserable cry in his ears, and then half of his face was hot, and hot blood splashed on his face-the little flag officer slashed at his companion beside him, and the convulsive body fell on Ning Along's body.

Not far away, there were several screams, and everyone kneeling on the wall lay on the ground, no longer daring to make a sound.

"If you dare to make a noise and confuse the army, these are the fate of you and other pigs and dogs! Let's keep my eyes open and look carefully! ”

"Cut off these heads, and push the corpses down to feed the dogs!"

Ning Along, who was lying on the ground, felt that his body was light, and secretly opened his closed eyes and looked sideways, and the little flag officer dragged away the corpse pressed on his body, rubbed the bloody knife on the sole of his shoe, and then inserted it back into the sheath, pulled out the detoxification knife at his waist and squatted on the ground, cutting the head of his companion hard, and several other soldiers a few steps away were also doing the same thing. For some reason, at that moment, Ning Along no longer felt fear, and his eyes widened to see him pull his hair in a bun and get up with his head in his head. In the firelight, the head opened his mouth, and the blood foamed his tongue, teeth, and chin a shocking red, and tears flowed down his half-opened eyes, and two crystalline lights rushed out of his face. Perhaps it was the reflection of the torches, and there were also two clusters of flames burning in Ning Along's tearful eyes.

"Look at what! Push him down! If you make trouble, Lao Tzu will cut off your dog's head! The little flag officer shouted.

"The first level is pickled for Lao Tzu! Wait for the thief to be requited together! "It's the voice of the leader.

Ning Ah Long and his companions silently got up and worked together to push the headless corpse off the city wall. The moment the four eyes met and looked at each other, Ning Along also saw two fires in the eyes of his companions.

After another two days, an endless stream of people poured in from the north. Zhang Hu's attack began.

* Straight sissy thief, there are two ways to interpret this word. According to the explanation in "Dream of Red Mansions", "straight" does "enter" talk. Another argument seems to be more reasonable: "straight" is a fake word for "value", and it should be said when "selling".