Daming kill

Chapter 145 The Story of Yicheng
Yicheng is located on the south bank of the Han River about a hundred miles southeast of Xiangyang, a county under the jurisdiction of Xiangyang Prefecture, and the hometown of Ma Di who Zhuge Liang beheaded with tears.

This is also the place where the famous anti-Japanese general Zhang Zizhong died, but it is not in the county seat, but on the top of a 25-meter-high long mountain about 200 kilometers away from the county seat.

Therefore, Yicheng County was briefly renamed Zizhong County between 1945 and 1949.

One day in December of the 15th year of Emperor Chongzhen of the Ming Dynasty, in a forest far outside Yicheng Zhuancheng, Wu Yougen, who was picking up firewood behind Mi Cang's buttocks, suddenly dropped the firewood and yelled loudly when he saw no one around. Kneeled to the ground.

Mi Cang, who heard the strange movement, just turned his head, and saw Wu Yougen begging him in tears: "Captain Mi, you have to tell me that I am a good farmer. I want to farm, and I don't want to be a soldier."

Mi Cang was stunned for a moment, and then said inexplicably: "I can't control this matter, you have to go to the little master!"

Mi Cang and Wu Yougen waited until the arrival of the Peasant Army as they wished, but unfortunately, both of them became members of the Peasant Army's military force.

Among them, Mi Cang became a captain, and Wu Yougen became an ordinary soldier in Mi Cang's team.

There were [-] people in the Micang team, which was the smallest military formation of the peasant army Li Zicheng's infantry.

The immediate boss of Mi Cang is Geng Hu, the young leader, who manages five teams of about 20 people like Mi Cang.It is an appointment, because teams like Mi Cang are not fixed in terms of number or number.

Mi Cang kept his promise and did not compete with Geng Hu. He did not even mention his original military position to the peasant army when he first surrendered, and Geng Hu naturally did not mention it either.

The head of a hundred people is a small master, the head of a thousand is a great master, and the head of a thousand is an old master.This is the basic organizational model of Li Zicheng's Department of the Peasant Army.

The Peasant Army not only fully accepted Geng Hu and the others, but also let Geng Hu take charge of all the soldiers and horses it brought, and even added a small part of its troops, which shows its respect and trust for the soldiers sent by the officers and soldiers.

However, they were immediately sent on the journey.

"But Geng Hu ignored me, scolded me, and beat me. I really can't do anything. You must help me." Wu Yougen's tears had already flowed out.

Mi Cang rolled his eyes helplessly, pointed to his nose and said, "It's not that I don't want to help you. As a small captain, I can't even manage myself, so how can I help you?"

"Help, help." Wu Yougen said eagerly, wiping away tears.

"Huh? Why don't I know." Yicang was a little dazed.

Wu Yougen suddenly turned his head and looked around, then knelt down and rubbed against Mi Cang's feet and said, "I heard from my Xiya that he saw the old boss talking to you very kindly a few days ago, you He must be able to speak to him. As long as the old master is willing to speak, it will be fine."

"Old master? A few days ago?" Mi Cang scratched his head in astonishment.

Seeing this reaction from Micang, Wu Yougen's face changed, and then he gritted his teeth and kowtowed.

Mi Cang was startled, he quickly squatted down to support Wu Yougen and said, "Brother, what are you doing?"

Wu Yougen cried: "Old man He told me that you are a good person, let me listen to you, and I always listen to you the most. Seeing that we are all in the same battalion as General Zhao, you must help me."

Mi Cang patted himself on the head, and said helplessly, "It's not because I don't want to help old brother, children can only see the surface sometimes. That day, the old master just happened to meet me, and asked me how many times I was on the spur of the moment. A sentence about the situation of General Zhao Shen and Li Gueran. How do I know? I can’t say anything. Other than that, I have never seen the old master again.”

Wu Yougen asked with a puzzled face, "Aren't you lying to me? There are so many generals in the army, why does he, an old leader, ask about General Zhao Shen and Li Guerrilla? And he still asks you! Why didn't he ask us."

Mi Cang frowned slightly, and said with a wry smile: "It is said that General Zhao Shen in Baimadu and Li Guerrilla in Yangpitan caused a lot of casualties to the rebels, especially when they heard that General Zhao was the creator of leggings. It's normal for the old master to ask questions as the leader of the army. And didn't the master know about the fact that I served as the sentry commander later? Maybe the master thinks that I know more than Geng Hu, so he The old boss mentioned something casually in front of him, which made the old boss interested. Ask you! You are not even a cook, so what do you know?"

"Really?" Wu Yougen still didn't quite believe it.

Mi Cang was helpless, so he had no choice but to say in a sullen voice with even more frown: "What are you doing to lie to you! Besides, if I can really talk to the old master, how can I let my sister continue to be punished by the army in the old camp?" Bitter. Why don't you let her stay in Xiangyang City with your Aunt Feng to enjoy the happiness."

Hearing what Mi Cang said, Wu Yougen was stunned for a moment.

But after reacting, he beat his chest and cried, "That's right, hey! What can I do!"

The old camp of Li Zicheng's department is different from that of Luo Rucai's department. The old camp of Luo Rucai's department refers to the elite and close-knit camps, while the old camp of Li Zicheng's department refers to the family camp of the army.

The peasant army accompanied the army with its family camps, which was directly related to its mobile combat characteristics. They had to prevent their relatives from being retaliated by the government.

This is just like many of the leaders of the Peasant Army have nicknames. The influence of Water Margin is only one of them. It is also an important factor to prevent the government from knowing their personal situation and retaliating against the whole family.

Therefore, it is a very important tradition of the Peasant Army to use nicknames instead of real names and not to inquire about other people's real names.

Of course, it is also common to use your real name after staying in the Peasant Army for a long time, having no family members outside, and being unable to hide the truth after taking up an important position.

On the other hand, organizing family members in the old camp can not only stabilize the morale of the army, but also use the connections between family members to strengthen the control of soldiers.

Generally speaking, the old camp is not full of family members of living officers and soldiers, but also family members of those who have died in battle. It also includes a large number of various craftsmen, some orphans who lost their parents during the war, and ordinary old and weak doing various duties.

However, the old battalion usually does not participate in the battle. Of course, when they are in a hurry, they are also pulled up to fill the hole.

In addition, they are often asked to dress up as civilians for reconnaissance and spies.For example, when Li Zicheng besieged Kaifeng, he once asked a woman named Huo Maipo to scout the situation of the palace, and asked her to try to send a maid of the palace to the camp.

Moreover, the old battalion does not refer to a battalion, but usually every peasant army that acts alone.But sometimes it will be integrated and concentrated in a place far away from the fighting according to needs and for operational needs.

Mi Cang's sister and Wu Yougen's mother-in-law are in the old camp of the peasant army along their way, and usually do some sewing, mending, washing and cooking.Old man He was among them, mainly doing chores.

Old man He was not included in Geng Hu's army, mainly because he was overage.

Li Zicheng's troops only need able-bodied men between the ages of 15 and 40. This is an important military regulation that Li Zicheng's troops have formed since last year. The purpose is to improve combat effectiveness.

On the way back after picking up the firewood, Wu Yougen still followed behind Mi Cang, but he was crying all the time and muttering "What can I do?" and so on.

Yone Cang was extremely irritable.

Finally, he couldn't help but shouted: "You choose the road yourself, why is it so endless. The rebel army has strict discipline, neither looting the people, nor killing people indiscriminately, and not insulting such kindness as you, even the big leader will fight against you." We are the same poor clothes. What else do you want?"

Of course, the little master Geng Hu is obviously an exception, and Wu Yougen also understands that he didn't catch the loophole of the rice warehouse.

He just muttered and retorted: "There is going to be a war! If I die, what will my mother-in-law and baby do?"

Mi Cang said unceremoniously: "There are old people to support them. Everyone spends the same amount of food and clothing. No one will short them."

"In the past two days, they used child soldiers to attack the city. Fortunately, my family was too young to join the battle. If the siege still goes wrong, let my child also go. It's the last one." Wu Yougen cried again.

Boy Scouts, also known as Child Soldiers or Child Soldiers, are not definitively called, but they are mainly young soldiers under the age of fifteen or twelve.Some of them were children of soldiers with the army, but many were orphans.

However, these orphans are basically adopted by officers and soldiers in the army as adopted children.This is also an effective means of strengthening the emotional connection, which can greatly increase loyalty.

For example, Zhang Nai is the adopted son of Li Zicheng, and Li Laiheng is the adopted son of Li Guo.

Different from the old battalion, most of the boy soldiers were directly scattered in the ranks of small and medium-sized farmers. Generally, there were three to 40 people in a team controlled by a small master.These boy scouts are not regular soldiers, but mainly do some work such as taking care of horses and serving, which is equivalent to orderly soldiers.

But in many cases, boy scouts will also directly participate in combat operations, and even be temporarily formed into a separate army to carry out storms in key areas.

Seeing Wu Yougen crying, Mi Cang became even more furious.

He shouted again: "A big man, crying all the time. Your scorpion is so small, and he was weaved in the old camp with your mother-in-law. Who would let your baby go into battle! Besides, with so many troops, there is no way he can get his turn." Old camp."

But Wu Yougen obviously didn't believe it, and he was still sobbing.

Yicang had no choice but to let him go.

The rebel army who surrendered together, Wu Yougen, who was determined to farm the land, was ordered to join the army. Micang actually didn't understand.

Although the rebels only allowed those who had homes in Xiangyang and those who had land in the countryside to go home, the rest had to be incorporated into the rebels.The one named Cai Yinjiang, Aunt Feng and the like stayed in Xiangyang happily because of this.

But it is said that the rebel army is benevolent and righteous, and a situation like Wu Yougen should really be considered. After all, even Li Ping, an officer, did not force Wu Yougen to take a knife and a gun.

Just thinking of this, Yicang smiled wryly to himself.

If you still sympathize with others, who will sympathize with him?If he died, his pretty girl would fall into the mouth of a bastard like Geng Hu.

Since the discipline of the Peasant Army is really stricter than imagined, Geng Hu was very aggrieved when he became an official as he wished, but he couldn't be domineering, and he always took advantage of his subordinates to find balance.

And because the Peasant Army does not allow soldiers to have affairs with women of other surnames except for their wives, as a result, Micang's sister became the target of Geng Hu's attempt to get involved.

This made Mi Cang even more depressed.

Looking up at Yicheng, where gongs, drums and killing sounds are constantly ringing in the distance, Mi Cang felt an indescribable feeling in his heart again.

Yicheng is not big, with seven miles and three miles (3650 meters) around the city. A typical square city is only 600 meters long from east to west, north to south, and has less than [-] households and less than [-] people.But under the auspices of Chen Mei, the county magistrate, the rebels bled like nails for six days and were unable to enter.

In his heart, Mi Cang secretly admired the magistrate Chen.

He knew that the magistrate of Chen County had a good official voice, and his people obeyed him.Even when Zhang Xianzhong was trapped in Xiangyang last year, he wanted to destroy Yicheng.Chen Zhixian defended Liu Xiangguo with Liu Xiangguo to attack boldly, but Zhang Xianzhong was defeated in ambush.

But this kind of Chen Zhi County, this kind of Yicheng, they don't know what kind of bloody battle they will go through tomorrow.

What a mix of flavors.

For a moment, Yicang really hoped that Chen Zhixian would take the initiative to withdraw.Zuo Liangyu's 20 troops have all fled, so why bother Chen Zhixian?

But even so, it seems that it is not the Chen Zhi County that everyone praises.

As soon as Mi Cang, who was full of worries, returned to the camp, he received an order and was asked to discuss with the young master.

Looking at the weather, it seems that it is still early.

Although the leaders of each team go to their respective leaders to discuss matters every afternoon, which is called discussion, which is a very important tradition of the peasant army.

However, because Geng Hu has to watch the siege these days, their discussions often end in darkness.

It's early today, maybe something happened?

Yicang's heart skipped a beat, maybe they finally let them go to attack the city too!

As a newly recruited army, the Peasant Army did not let them fight their original robes from the beginning, which is really very particular.

But Yicheng has been carrying it hard for six days, and even the boy scouts have joined, and it seems that they should also join.

Feeling uneasy in his arms, Yicang soon saw Geng Hu.

And as expected, this guy's face was so dark that it couldn't get any darker.

Notes:

Note 1:

Regarding the establishment of the Peasant Army, there is currently no clear historical record.

In the "Ping Kou Zhi" written by Peng Sunyi in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties, it is said: "hand the plate", and everyone in the camp calls it "the old master".One old head is in charge of the 20th or [-]th old management team.An old management team is in charge of sixty, seventy or forty or fifty small management teams.A small management team is in charge of one, two hundred or three or four hundred management teams.The management team is based on [-] people.Or take a lot of people, and choose another brave man to be a team.If there are few, they will be captured enough, and if there are many, they will be divided.

According to this record, the total number of people in charge of an old housekeeper will be 1680 million according to the maximum number; according to the minimum number, there will be 160 million people, so it should be very inaccurate or rather biased.

Moreover, as far as we know, the peasant armies of Li Zicheng, Zhang Xianzhong, Xiaoyuanying, Gezuo Fifth Battalion, etc. have basically different establishments, and most of the leaders at all levels have their own set of titles, some of which are consistent with the other battalions, and some inconsistent.

Zhao Shijin's "Jiashen Jishi" in the Ming Dynasty said: "Yao Qiying, a bandit soldier, made a promise, and I am Dashun... but in the name of the master. The leader of a hundred people is a small leader, the leader of a thousand is a big leader, and the leader of ten thousand is a master. The old master. That is, the masters Liu and Li Zhu, but the old master."

Here it is very clear that Li Zicheng, the leader of the peasant army, used the name of the master.This kind of name should be used before the establishment of the Dashun regime, and then there are titles such as the head of the sentry, the head of the department, and the head of the brigade.Of course, it is customary to follow the old name.

This article does not pay too much attention to the establishment of the peasant army, but only makes a rough setting based on the superficial knowledge and story needs, which should not be taken seriously.

Note 2:

Regarding boy scouts or child soldiers, this is indeed a great feature of the peasant army.Whether it is written by Dai Li in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties, "Huailing Rogues Always Recorded" edited by Wu Shu, "Mingji Beilue" written by Liuqi in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties, "Jiashen Chuanxin Lu" written by Qian Shixin in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties, or There are clear records in Zhang Dai's "Shi Kui Shu Hou Ji" in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties.

(End of this chapter)