weaving

Chapter 455 Luoyang City is Broken

The city of Yanshi was in good order, and the people had long been accustomed to it even after the war. They were driven to defend the city by Xu Ritai, the magistrate of the city, and other officials, but they did not work hard.

After the Thief Department attacked Gu Dacheng and broke through Yanshi City, they not only beheaded the magistrate Xu Ritai, the county magistrate Bai Shilu, the instructor Liu Heng and other officials in front of the county yamen, but also opened a warehouse to release food to the hungry people in the city.

Because of this, when Zhang Cheng's army attacked the city, many common people spontaneously helped the bandits ascend the city and defend the city. However, the bandits were inexperienced in defending the city and could not take full advantage of the large number of people.

On the contrary, this advantage was turned into a disadvantage, which caused the various ministries and teams defending the city wall to be chaotic and disorderly, fighting on their own, and were beaten down by Zhang Cheng's army.

After entering the city, Zhang Guangda once suggested to Zhang Cheng: "This group of sloppy turtle grandsons who have milk and are mothers, they should chop some of them as an example to others."

But Zhang Cheng stopped him and said, "Yu Province has experienced severe drought and locust plagues for many years. The people have been suffering for a long time, but the government has not been able to provide relief. Now that they have grain from the bandits, I hope that the bandits will guard Yanshi City.

This is the purpose of the bandits. They kill officials and tyrants, and distribute food to the hungry people. Their purpose is to win the hearts of the people, but what are the people?
They are the most simple and honest, whoever can feed them enough to keep them from starving, whoever can make them live a stable life, they will love and support whoever they are! "

Zhang Guangda was still a little angry, he said: "No matter what, it is wrong to be a thief."

…………

On the evening of December [-], a group of ragged and dirty old and young people were crying in the lobby of the Yanshi County Yamen.

"The commander-in-chief wants to make the decision for me!"

"That's right... The thieves have snatched all my food and rice from my house... Let them go to those mud legs..."

"Zhang Shuai, help me get back those money and food, I will definitely entrust the gentlemen in the provincial capital to ask for credit for Zhang Dashuai!"

A chubby middle-aged man with a vicious grin on his face said, "Hehe, now that Marshal Zhang has recovered Yanshi, we must make those mud-legged people spit out all the grain and rice they get. Otherwise, we will take him The mother-in-law, daughter, and son of the family came to pay off the debt!"

"Snapped!"

A crisp sound shocked everyone in the lobby, and they fell silent in an instant without the slightest sound.

Amid the astonishment of the crowd, Zhang Cheng said loudly: "There have been years of famine in Henan. As local gentry, you should think about the country's disaster and know how to repay the country's kindness. You should generously donate money to help the people to survive the disaster years safely.

Now, your money and food have been given to the people in the city by the thieves. If I forcefully demand it, the people will not have enough to eat. There will be a civil uprising. Our army will march westward to Luoyang tomorrow. How can you protect yourself? "

He glanced at everyone in the hall with serious eyes, and said again: "Now that the commander has recovered Yanshi and rescued you from the county prison, you will not be left to fend for yourself. You can still go back to live in your house and yard." , this commander will also leave ten stones of grain for each household, thinking that it is enough to feed the day, I hope you can do it yourself."

After Zhang Cheng finished speaking, he didn't wait for them to say anything else, he got up and went back to the backyard. The gentry had no choice but to leave together.

…………

In the early morning of the second day, Zhang Cheng sent out the Rangers under Chen Zhong's command, Su Huhu, Mo Zhigen's Mengqi, and Lin Fangping's guards.

Taking Yanshi as the starting point, they followed Zhang Cheng's deployment to investigate in turn on various main roads leading to Luoyang, until the arrangement of the bandit army under Luoyang City was within the scope of investigation.

At the time of Chen, Wei Zhice's car camp rushed to the city of Yanshi, and everyone had lunch together in the county government office. Zhang Cheng made an agreement with the people during the meal that tomorrow he would send troops westward to the city of Luoyang to guard the important feudal land.

After lunch, Zhang Cheng led Zhang Chengfang, Zhang Jintai and other boy camps around Yanshi City.

At the beginning, the common people were very worried that after the officers and soldiers regained Yanshi City, they would take back the grain and grain given to them by the bandits in the past. Every household closed their houses tightly, and some even dug deep pits to secretly bury their grain .

How could I have thought that following the Anmin Notice, it was posted that the grain released by the thieves earlier belonged to each household, and the officers and soldiers only strangled the thieves and recovered the city, and would not take back the grain from each household.

At the beginning, the common people couldn't believe it, but they saw that many officers and soldiers just knocked on the doors of those merchants' shops, and they all bought at a fair price and sold at a fair price, so several small shops on the street boldly opened their markets one after another.

It also attracted many shoulder-to-shoulder peddlers to rush to do business, and the street in front of the county government office is the most prosperous, bustling with people.

Zhang Cheng was very satisfied walking on the street. The thieves used rumors to confuse and buy people's hearts. It can be seen that they are different from the gangsters in the past. He can only use actions to let the people know that officers and soldiers are not all demons.

They were walking around Yaqian Street, and they came across a group of children playing on an empty ox cart. Among them, a ten-year-old child took the lead and sang:
"Eat his mother, wear his mother,

Open the gate to welcome the king.

King Chuang didn't pay for food when he came! "

Zhang Chengfang also heard it clearly, he stepped forward angrily, and asked, "Who taught you how to sing?"

A group of children were frightened by him on the spot, and they seemed to have forgotten to escape.

Zhang Cheng also took a few steps forward, and said to Zhang Chengfang: "Chengfang, children's words are unscrupulous! Don't scare the children."

Zhang Chengfang was still full of aura, but he said stubbornly with a little grievance: "They are promoting bandits, and they should be guilty of the same crime as the bandits!"

Zhang Cheng shook his head and said to him: "If all the children in the city are singing like this, can you still chop them all up?"

He also said earnestly: "Remember, all kinds of things have their own solutions, and you must learn to find the root of the problem. Violence is good and fast, simple and crude, but effective, but not everything can be used. Kill it to solve it."

Wang Yuanjing on the side looked at Zhang Cheng thoughtfully, and seemed to have some insight.

Zhang Cheng waved his hand to call those children, and asked gently with a smile, "Can you sing other songs?"

The children were frightened by Zhang Chengfang's angry shout just now, but now seeing many officers and soldiers walking in front of them, they were even more shy and refused to sing any more.

Seeing that they were about to cry from fright, Zhang Cheng had to smile and glance at Zhang Chengfang, shook his head, and continued walking forward while talking with Wang Yuanjing.

Just passed another street corner, but heard the children singing another song:
"Seeking promotion in the morning, seeking harmony in the evening,

It is difficult for the poor to survive these days.

Open the door early to pay homage to King Chuang,

Discipline is joyful to all. "

Now even Wang Yuanjing couldn't hold back anymore, he looked at Zhang Cheng with a serious expression on his face, and said: "Commander, if such nursery rhymes are spread and sung throughout Yu Province, the consequences will be disastrous!"

Zhang Cheng was also thinking about it. He naturally knew the power of these nursery rhymes. This is the most powerful way for thieves to win the hearts of the people, even better than thousands of troops.

Suddenly there was a rush of hoofbeats, and several fast horses galloped from the city gate amidst the smoke and dust. When they got close to Zhang Cheng, they turned over and fell off their horses, and said anxiously, "Marshal, Luoyang City is broken!"

(End of this chapter)