Zhang Wen is a person who is good at learning, and he lost a round when he was competing with Sergeant Beard just now, and he quickly summed up where he lost and proceeded to the next round. At this time, Ye Qingcheng pressed Zhang to ask seven moves to lose, and Zhang Zhao said six moves.

At the beginning of the second round, unexpectedly, in the third round, Zhang Wen was defeated in three moves because he was a beat slower when coping. Ye Qingcheng and Zhang Zhao were stunned, the army laughed, Zhang Wen didn't have any arrogance at this time, and he was not angry. He took a breath, closed his eyes and reviewed the three rounds just now, in fact, the tricks of the bearded sergeant Huang Sanwa on the opposite side were very simple, just a few movements, Zhang Wen knew how to deal with it, but because of his lack of concentration on the spot, he was slow to deal with it.

At this time, Ye Qingcheng shouted: "My lord, you not only need to defend, but also need to attack!" ”

Zhang Wen quickly summed up the reason why he was getting worse and worse, and he thought too much, which affected improvisation. At that moment, the army in the middle shouted, "The third round begins!" ”

Zhang Wen took a breath, held the wooden stick tightly, and tried to eliminate distractions, the hustle and bustle around seemed to have disappeared, and the officialdom that was always worried about me seemed to be far away, leaving only two people with wooden sticks. He had only one thought: to win the beard on the other side!

"Yikes!" The beard jumped two steps over, raised his stick and hit Zhang Wen head-on. After two rounds of competition, he also tried to find out how many Zhang Wen has two hits, not a person who is weak and can't help but fall down when the wind blows, and he is more open when he fights.

Zhang Wen raised the stick and flicked it upward, and the two sticks hit together with a "snap", he did not pause, and then split the wooden stick obliquely off the head of the beard, and the two sticks collided together. Zhang Wen felt numb, and the wooden stick almost got out of his hand, but fortunately, he practiced how to prevent the weapon from getting rid of his hand when he practiced the sword, so he held the wooden stick. After he made a move, he didn't think much about it, and swept his beard with his hand; The beard stood up with a wooden stick downward, and it struck, and the two sticks collided again in a cross shape. Zhang Wen turned around, and put his beard shoulder against his shoulder, and turned in a circle, Zhang Wen turned very fast, because he was acting completely intuitively.

The beard slowed down, and was turned behind him by Zhang Wen, but this guy has quite a lot of actual combat experience, so he hurriedly bent down and buried his head, and with a "whew", the wooden stick swept over the top of the beard's head. After dodging the beard, he immediately swept over with a wooden stick, but by this time Zhang Wen had moved out of front of him again, turning behind him from the left. The beard hurriedly used the stick to meet the enemy from the right, but after a slow beat, Zhang Wen's wooden stick had already swept to his shoulder, and he hit it with a "bang", and the beard screamed in pain.

At the end of the third round, everyone looked at Zhang Wen in amazement, Lian Zhangzhao and Ye Qingcheng looked at the middle incredulously, Zhang Wen actually won!

The bearded sergeant's kung fu was not necessarily very good, but at least he was a practitioner, he was strong, and he dealt with knives, guns and clubs every day. Zhang Wen is just a civil official, and he actually won, so he had to surprise everyone.

Zhang Wen was still unsatisfied, and tried two rounds of competition with the beard, and won the beard, so he was addicted enough to leave the circle of the competition. Ye Qingcheng followed, and couldn't help asking, "My lord, how did you do it?" ”

Zhang Wen said with a smile: "I can learn the Four Books and Five Classics to be admitted to the Jinshi, can I learn the art of war and apply it to the battlefield, how difficult is the swordsmanship?" ”

Ye Qingcheng was convinced.

There are only two possibilities for a young jinshi, either he has a deep background, or he has a better understanding and learning ability than ordinary people. Zhang Wen undoubtedly belongs to the latter.

The next day, Zhang Wen received the news of Sun Long's arrival in Wenzhou, and Sun Long brought several boatloads of grain and some military expenses. Zhang Wen hurriedly walked out of the gate.

I saw Sun Long and a few people coming from a distance, Sun Long was thin and tall, half a head taller than the few people who followed behind, with a white face and beard, and good skin. With a smile on his face, he walked up to Zhang Wen, grabbed Zhang Wen's hand, and looked affectionate.

Sun Long's hand was cold, and it was very slippery, giving people a feeling of heavy yin qi, Zhang Wen's hand was grabbed by him, and it was still uncomfortable for a while, he smiled and greeted him, and took the opportunity to withdraw his hand.

This Sun Long was implicated in the West Lake Chess Hall case, but he didn't do anything, Liu Chao not only didn't arrest him, but also asked him to come out with military funds to do things. Zhang Wen had all kinds of speculations in his heart, and of course he wouldn't talk about it.

However, Sun Long took the initiative to mention it, and he said with an unhappy face: "Alas, Lord Zhang, you can make our family miserable this time!" It's a shame that our family treats Mr. Zhang as his own, but Mr. Zhang is behind our back, what is the matter? ”

"Grandpa Sun is not impatient, come into the house and talk." Zhang Wen said embarrassedly.

The two walked into the living room, Sun Long handed over the list of materials shipped to Zhang Wen, and said with a face: "It's not that our family said you, Master Zhang, what is the benefit of you doing this?" Dealing with the Donglin Party, that's not your business alone, it's good now, you have offended a lot of people, the prince in the palace, Lord Cui in the court, who is not angry with you now? Don't talk about others, our family is not comfortable now, I don't understand you, what's wrong with good wealth? ”

Sun Long complained like this, Zhang Wen suddenly felt that this guy was still a little cute, when a person hated you, he said that he was not happy with you, such a person is actually not so terrible.

Zhang Wen nodded and said, "What Grandpa Sun said is true, I also thought about pretending not to know, and everyone will get some benefits." But Xia Guan later sent someone to find out, and this matter was not as simple as it seemed. ”

"Oh?" Sun Long looked at Zhang Wen and waited for the following.

In fact, Zhang Wen didn't hear anything, but Sun Long said that he was behind his back, and Zhang Wen always had to find some excuse to perfunctory the past, so he wanted to talk nonsense.

"There is more than one place like the West Lake Chess Hall in Jiangnan, how many big households, businessmen, and officials interact with it? The profits generated in this process were not only shared by Lord Cui, Wang Gonggong and others, but also a large amount of silver was taken away by the people who operated the chess hall behind the scenes. Do you know who's behind the scenes? ”

Sun Long glared and said, "Isn't it Ye Xianggao's grandson Ye Feng?" ”

"Well, it's Ye Feng, but what does Grandpa Sun know about Ye Feng and the White Lotus Sect? The White Lotus Sect bandits who are causing trouble in the entire Fujian have someone behind them to support and manipulate, and this person is Ye Feng! ”

"Won't it?" Sun Long was taken aback.

Zhang asked: "Think about it, the Ye family is in Fujian, and Ye Feng used the White Lotus Sect in Fujian to cause trouble, with bad intentions, what is impossible?" Now that Grandpa Sun knows, can I not poke out the matter of the chess hall, which is equivalent to the enemy, how can this rebellion be quelled? ”

Sun Long shook his head and said, "Our family can't believe that Master Zhang has evidence that Ye Feng is behind the scenes controlling the White Lotus Sect?" ”

Zhang asked seriously: "I will find evidence to prove this." Of course, this was just Zhang Wen's casual nonsense, but at this time, he suddenly felt that it was not impossible to do this, the Ye family was already prosperous enough, what was Ye Feng doing with so many things at risk? It's just possible, and it's really hard to believe.

At this time, Sun Long said again: "Lord Zhang said to Liu Gong that the White Lotus Church attacked Wenzhou, what is the situation now?" ”

What White Lotus Sect attacked Wenzhou, there was no matter at all, but it was just a reason for Zhang Wen to fool Liu Chao and excuse himself not to go to Hangzhou. Zhang Wen thought for a while and said, "There is no movement now, I don't know why the rebels have not come." ”

Sun Long didn't say anything, because the battlefield was originally changeable, the enemy might attack a certain place, or he might not come, and no one could expect the enemy to be like a god. Sun Long looked at Zhang and asked, "If the rebels don't come, why don't Lord Zhang take the opportunity to capture Jianning Mansion?" Our family sent money and grain to Mr. Zhang, which was the military grain and grass that the tax factory had collected from everywhere when he heard that there was going to be a war. If we don't fight, how can we tell our brothers in the tax factory? ”

Zhang Wen frowned and said: "After the Wenzhou camp was built, the actual training time was less than two months, and I didn't get much specific information about the Fujian rebels, so we can't be too anxious." ”

Sun Long pondered for a moment and said, "When our family came, we went to the school to take a look, and the heat was almost there, right?" Lord Zhang, we have to remind you, at this time, you have to be careful, if you are not careful, you will be caught by the people above, and say a word in front of the emperor or Gonggong Wei......"

Zhang Wen was blocked in his heart after hearing this, but what Sun Long said was not unreasonable. Some of the people in the eunuch party who were implicated in the chess hall case are now okay even Sun Long, and the senior officials above are even more fine, they are fine, but they can't help but hate Zhang Wen. So Sun Long asked Zhang Wen to be careful, not a lie.

Sun Long said again: "In a few days, our family will go back to Beijing with Liu Gong, just because Master Zhang made that case, and it will be difficult for our family to talk when we go back." Our family is a eunuch in Zhejiang, if we win a battle with Lord Zhang and take down the Jianning Mansion, it will be easier for our family to talk when we go back. ”

Zhang Wen was a little hesitant, the last time the Fujian rebels fought Wenzhou, Zhang Wen fought with them, but that's it. Although the new army of the Wenzhou battalion has only been trained for less than two months, it is much stronger than the 5,000 patchwork men and horses last time; Last time, anyone who relied on patchwork was able to win, but this time he led a large army to attack, and the odds of winning were very high.

"Grandpa Sun lives in Xingyuan for a day, and I will discuss with the generals in the afternoon before making a decision. Soldiers, the country's major affairs, should not be rash. It's okay if you don't fight, but if you lose the battle, it's even harder for Sun Gong to explain when he goes back, isn't it? ”

In the afternoon, Zhang Wen summoned important generals and strategists in the lobby to discuss the use of troops. In addition to the generals and commanders of the army, the people present also included Shen Jing and Huang Renzhi. Zhang Wen analyzed the reasons for the need to attack Jianning Mansion, and then asked everyone to express their approval or disapproval.

To Zhang Wen's surprise, none of the generals who actually participated in the training of the recruits objected, but some of them expressed neutrality and most of them were in favor of sending troops. Zhang Zhao is a person who is in favor of sending troops, and he said the reason: "I always practice in the school field, but I can't practice anything, and the soldiers are still trained on the battlefield." Now Jianning Mansion is a few hundred miles southwest of Wenzhou, and there is no difficulty in supplying if you attack Jianning Mansion. Moreover, Jianning Mansion had just been captured for a few months, and the rebels' foundations there were unstable and the defense was not solid, so it was relatively easy. Therefore, the last general will support the dispatch of troops to attack, one is to train troops, and the other is to expand the control area, so as to support the war with war. ”

Zhang Zhao was originally a civil official, but he was muscular and had a tiger's waist, and he probably didn't think that there was much future for him to take the road of a civil official, but now he is completely engaged in martial arts, and he doesn't even wear a robe, and often wears a suit of armor.

After Zhang Zhao stated his reasons, many generals seconded the proposal and expressed their support. Originally, the predecessor of the rebels was a group of hungry peasants, who did not necessarily have any combat effectiveness, and everyone wanted to fight with real swords and guns, instead of living in the school camp all day long.

The only one who objected was Shen Jing, Shen Jing was short, but his character was not weak, everyone was in favor of sending troops, but he insisted on his own opinion: "No matter what's going on above, it's not easy for us to get this army out, two more months of training will give us more certainty, and now we don't know the location of the Fujian rebels, so be cautious and don't fight in vain." ”

There are many discussions below, and everyone expresses their opinions. Zhang Wen sat on the public seat in the middle, thought carefully about the pros and cons, and said that the public was reasonable, and the mother said that the mother was reasonable. At this time, Zhang Wen knew that as the supreme commander, he had to make a judgment, and it was taboo to hesitate.

After a while, Zhang Wen coughed, and everyone fell silent. Zhang Wen adjusted the sentence in his mind, and said in an unquestionable tone: "Everyone has finished speaking, and the official's decision is: from today onwards, immediately start preparing for the attack. The officer has two orders: first, it is strictly forbidden to leak military aircraft, and those who spread it out will be subject to military law. disposition; Second, Shen Jing cooperated with the generals to come up with a battle plan within three days. ”

Zhang Wen said it in this tone, and everyone immediately stopped discussing the question of whether to attack or not, and it was useless to say anything more. Everyone bowed their hands and said, "The last general will obey." ”

Everyone performed their duties, and two days later, Shen Jing and Huang Renzhi came up with a battle plan. Zhang Wen arranged personnel and let Huang Renzhi sit in Wenzhou to control the Wenzhou garrison to ensure the safety of the rear; Shen Jing led 2,000 infantry troops to ensure grain routes and logistics. Zhang Wenzi led the main force of soldiers and horses and 10,000 battalion generals, and planned to form four battalions, using the Ming army's conventional field march method to attack, with a total strength of 12,000.

When the news was learned outside, the Wenzhou camp was already ready. On July 22, Zhang Wen led his army out of Wenzhou, advanced to the southwest, and attacked Jianning Mansion in a straight line. At this time, even Sun Long had just received the news of the army's dispatch, and Zhang Wen thought that the secrecy measures were well done.

Zhang Wen's plan was to attack Jianning Mansion with lightning speed, take the target in one fell swoop before the rebels made effective preparations, and then establish the Wenzhou camp in Jianning Mansion, threatening the rebels' forces at all times, and feeding the war with war.

Four days later, Zhang Wen's army entered the Fujian range, and Jianning Province was in the northern part of Fujian, and Zhang Wen led his army to continue without encountering any resistance. Zhang Wen sent scouts to inquire about the situation in all directions, and then marched forward quickly, some rivers along the way were dangerous, and there was no one to defend them, and the Ming army was progressing very smoothly.

The next day, less than forty miles away from Jianning Mansion, Zhang Wen chose a location near the river, ordered the village to be repaired and set up camp, and prepared to lead the main force out of the camp early tomorrow morning and start the attack.

In July and August, the weather in the south is hot, and there are a lot of mosquitoes, especially in the wilderness and forests. However, fortunately, many of the officers and men in the army are from Zhejiang and Fujian, and they have rich experience. When you go to bed at night, close your tent and light a mosquito coil.

This mosquito coil is made with rosin powder, mugwort powder, tobacco leaf powder, arsenic. It is made of a mixture of frost and sulfur, which can repel mosquitoes when lit. If you don't have it, you don't want to sleep at night in this wilderness.

Zhang Wenwen is not used to this smell, it is somewhat similar to the incense candle used for worship, but it is more irritating to the nose, Zhang Wen sneezes from time to time, but he also has to boil, otherwise the taste of being bitten by mosquitoes is even more uncomfortable.

In fact, the people who stayed in the tents in the camp were fine, but the sentinels on guard outside the camp were really guilty, staying in the woods, the mosquito coils did not have much effect, and the sentries had to smear some grease with a special smell on their bodies, and wrap their bodies tightly with clothes. It was the height of summer at this time, and after being tightly wrapped in clothes, everyone was sweating profusely and miserable.

But finally stayed up all night, and the next morning, everyone had dinner, and then they formed a camp and continued to move forward. If nothing else, the war will start today, and most people will inevitably be nervous when they go to the battlefield for the first time.

Some generals asked their subordinates to sing local operas, and shouted a few voices, and the singing was really ugly, causing everyone to laugh for a while, which relaxed the atmosphere a little.

As soon as he came out, Zhang Wen received a report from the scout in front, and the sergeant galloped on horseback, dismounted and knelt down on one knee and said, "Your Excellency, twenty miles ahead, there is an enemy phalanx. ”

Zhang asked, "How many people are there?" ”

The sergeant said: "There are more than us, about 10,000 people." The camp purge, and the guns, I'm afraid they are coming at us. ”

After hearing this, Zhang Wen told him to continue the investigation, and then called the generals of each battalion to report the military situation. The rebels of Jianning Mansion were bold enough, and they actually transferred out of the city and set up a confrontation in the field.

The Ming army walked for several days, and when it encountered resistance, of course, it was impossible to turn around and retreat, so it continued to advance slowly. After more than an hour, the enemy army could be seen in the distance, about a mile away, forming a phalanx under a hill, obviously waiting for the Ming army.

The weather was clear and windless, the sun was shining, and it was a good weather for war, except that it was very hot; This place seems to be a battlefield deliberately selected by the other party, relatively flat, surrounded by several small hills, but there are many shrubs on the upper slopes, which is not suitable for arranging troops. Zhang Wen ordered an all-arms battle.

The arrangement of the Wenzhou army is very conventional, it is a common way of arranging the Ming army, four battalions, forming a phalanx, with the bird gun in front, the light artillery in the front of the phalanx, and the cavalry in the battalion.

At this time, most of the scouts sent to spy in all directions had returned, and Zhang Wen summed up the situation, there were two enemy armies within a radius of twenty miles, one of which was the phalanx opposite; the other was five miles behind the enemy's army, with only two or three thousand men; Twenty miles to the south is the city of Jianning Mansion, and the internal troops are ominous.

At least there was no threat on the left and right flanks, and Zhang Wen was ready to fight with the enemy army on the opposite side. The disparity in the strength of the two sides is not large, and the other side is slightly more.

Zhang Wen put on his armor and walked around the camp twice with a long sword, shouting to boost morale. The shouts of the army resounded through the heavens and the earth, and the field was suddenly as lively as a market.