I, the Ming Dynasty, can still save me

Chapter 208 Shihu Pass

Neijiang County is located in the southeast of Chengdu, adjacent to the Tuohe River, connected to Chongqing Prefecture to the east and Chengdu Prefecture to the west. It has been the center of transportation and water transport in southwest Sichuan since ancient times.

Merchants from Yunnan and Guizhou must pass through this place if they want to go north to Chengdu, and they must pass through this place if they want to go south to Yongning and Bozhou Xuanweisi.Due to its important geographical location, the imperial court set up a thousand-household office here to guard the strategic location.

Since the Battle of Bozhou, there has been no fighting in Sichuan for a long time. The guard stations have gradually deteriorated. Nearly half of the soldiers have fled. The remaining soldiers are not very accustomed to military service. Instead, they often have to do corvee service in the homes of Shangguan officials such as Baihu and Qianhu. Their lives are miserable. In other words, there is no fighting ability at all.

But in the past few days, Chi Liang, the Qianhu Officer of the Guard Station, was very irritable. It turned out that he suddenly received an urgent document from Si Yamen, the commander of the capital, saying that the General Soldier had led the troops to garrison, and asked Qianhu Station to lead the officers and soldiers of the Guard Station to vacate the area. , responsible for vigilance and strengthening state border patrols to prevent spies from visiting and causing chaos.

This made Chi Liang puzzled. Why did the general bring people here? Although the Chief Secretary's Yamen often issued official documents recently saying that they wanted to arrest the White Lotus cultists, there were not many White Lotus cultists in Neijiang, Luzhou and other places. Could it be that they had another purpose?

At this time, the Neijiang County Magistrate also sent someone to report, saying that the Chief Secretary had issued a document asking them to raise food and grass for military needs. This surprised the Neijiang County Magistrate because he had not seen any fighting.So he sent someone to ask Chi Liang to see if he knew about the matter, but Chi Liang didn't know the situation, so he could only go and act in accordance with the documents.

Since the document was issued from above, he did not dare to neglect it. He immediately asked the officers and soldiers of the guard station below to move around the campus, inventory the warehouse, and replenish all the supplies. He did not want to be singled out for any faults. He also emptied his own mansion. He came out so that the commander-in-chief could have a place to live.

Just one day after the official document was issued, Chi Lianglai had no time to prepare. Soldiers and horses came from the direction of Chengdu. The soldiers and horses from Yansui Town arrived in Neijiang first. On the same day, Qin Liangyu led the chieftain soldiers and came. Yang Yumao, the commander-in-chief of the Sichuan Army, also arrived here early that morning.

"Why is it so cold here now? Why doesn't wearing thick clothes help?"

In the Qianhu Office, Yansui Town Deputy Chief Soldier Wen Yingkui couldn't stand the horrible weather and couldn't help but complain.

Although it is February now, due to the Little Ice Age, the south is still extremely wet and cold, which makes Wen Yingkui, a northerner, unbearable.

"Hahaha, General Wen still has to endure it. The climate in Sichuan is quite warm, and we are all used to it. I heard that Yansui Town, close to Mongolia, is extremely dry. In winter, heavy snow can reach several inches."

As a Sichuan native, Yang Yumao had long been accustomed to it, so when he saw that Wen Yingkui was not used to the Sichuan climate, he laughed and made fun of it.

"That's natural. Yansui is a bitter cold land. It's dry and cold. In winter, the snow can even reach a foot. It's really cold and freezing. It's not comparable to here."

Yansui Town is located in northern Shaanxi, on the Loess Plateau, with a dry and cold climate, and it is adjacent to Mongolia. There were many wars, so the life of the soldiers was not satisfactory. As early as the Wanli period, the soldiers began to be seriously owed wages. After the Liaodong War broke out, elite soldiers were repeatedly sent there. In Liaodong, everyone is as fearful as a tiger.

Thanks to the new emperor's accession to the throne, internal funds were opened to support salaries, and the Ministry of Household Affairs also received money. Only then were last year's salaries paid out, and the enthusiasm of the soldiers became much higher.

After hearing that they were going to Sichuan this time, a lot of people went to make a living. Of course, the reason was not just to make contributions, but to fight in other provinces. The court often had military expenses for visitors, one or two silver dollars a month, which was not enough for ordinary people. It is very rich for soldiers.Besides, these border troops have been fighting with Mongolia all year round, so they naturally don't take the Sichuan rebels seriously. They feel that they can make money and gain credit by going there.

I just didn't expect that after arriving in Sichuan, I found that the climate was extremely humid and cold, which was really unbearable for these northern men. Moreover, Chengdu was surrounded by plains. It was good that their cavalry could walk very fast, but as they walked in the direction of Yongning, the terrain became more and more uneven. stand up.

"How is the terrain like from Neijiang to Yongning?"

Chi Liang, Qianhu of the Neijiang Guard Station on the side, now also knew the movements of the officers and soldiers. It turned out that She Chongming was deliberately plotting rebellion, and the imperial court had long been secretly preparing to eradicate it in a preemptive strike.

She Chongming has become more and more unscrupulous in his actions in recent years. Even Chi Liang has heard about it. However, the chieftain officer is the local emperor and they can't control it, so they don't care much. Now it seems that the court finally couldn't bear it anymore. .

"I would like to report to the Commander-in-Chief that the terrain from Neijiang to Yongning is relatively gentle and the official road is smooth. However, the terrain from the southeast of Yongning to Guizhou is rugged, which may not be conducive to the expedition."

As soon as he said this, everyone nodded. The Yongning Guard is located in the northwest of Yongning. As long as the terrain is not entirely mountainous, it will be fine.

"Neijiang is still a subordinate county of Chengdu Prefecture. It is estimated that fewer spies from She Chongming came here. If you go down the official road and pass through Longchang County of Xuzhou, you will enter Luzhou Prefecture. South of Luzhou is Yongning Guard, so As soon as we enter Luzhou, She Chongming will know about it soon."

Yang Yumao, as the commander-in-chief of Sichuan, knew the county distribution of the Chief Secretary of Sichuan very well. He knew that this was also a risky move, and he was most afraid that She Chongming would know about it in advance, otherwise all his previous efforts would be wasted.

"It's just that if you want to pass through Luzhou Prefecture, you have to cross the Yangtze River (Yangtze River) at Luzhou City. There will be a lot of movement when the army crosses the river. Someone will definitely notice it and report it to She Chongming."

Qin Liangyu was also worried about this. The soldiers were very fast and the time to cross the river was troublesome. He was most afraid of being delayed.

"Do you need to take a boat to cross the river? It's really impossible to change the route. I heard that Xuzhou is also bordered by Yongningwei. It's not impossible to enter from Xuzhou." "My lord, you don't need to take a boat. There are two cable bridges and a pontoon bridge next to Luzhou Mansion. One, you can walk directly from the bridge without taking a boat.”

When Wen Yingkui heard about Youqiao, he immediately stopped worrying and slapped the table.

"It's good to have a bridge. I think we don't have to worry about it. When the time comes, let the Luzhou Prefecture Yamen control the ferry and detain all the people going to Yongning. The chieftain soldiers and I will cross first. We will cross the river without stopping and go directly to Yongning. And go, no matter how fast those spies are, they can't be faster than a four-legged horse."

The soldiers in the Trilateral Army Town often fought against the Mongols, and running for hundreds of miles was a common occurrence. Wen Yingkui was not worried that his subordinates would not be able to bear it.

Seeing Wen Yingkui say these words, Qin Liangyu and Yang Yumao also nodded. It seems that this is indeed the case. The fighter opportunity is in an instant and there must be no delay. This is the only way now.

"Okay, that's the decision. Now you and your troops are ready to rest and prepare dry food for three days. As soon as the edict arrives, take your guide and set off immediately."

Yang Yumao made a decisive decision and immediately expressed his support, but he still did not forget to give some advice.

"As soon as you leave Luzhou and enter the territory of Yongning Guard, you will reach Shihu Pass. As long as you take this pass, the road to Yongning Guard will be smooth. If the attack does not go smoothly, don't increase casualties. You can retreat to Shihu Pass and wait for me to follow you. The Qin commander arrived.

At that time, we will unite our forces and continue to attack Yongning. Although She Chongming had already expressed his intention to rebel, he was suddenly attacked. As long as we do not give him enough time to mobilize his troops, we will not be able to bear it if we unite our forces and attack him again. "

"Understood, I will definitely fulfill my mission!"

The important matter has been decided, and everyone immediately went to rest, waiting for Chengdu's order to set off.

The military situation was raging, and there was no time to wait. The imperial courier rushed six hundred miles and arrived in Chengdu quickly.

As soon as Zhu Xieyuan read the edict, he not only named himself governor of the military affairs of the five provinces, but also gave him a royal order to allow him to act conveniently. He also asked him to withhold the southwest tax money for his own use. The emperor and the Ministry of Revenue also allocated 150 million for military expenses.

These contents greatly increased Zhu Xieyuan's confidence. He couldn't do anything with this money, so he ordered Yang Yumao and others to set off. At the same time, he continued to prepare food and grass, train troops and horses as backup, and at the same time, he ordered people to distribute cloth to Guizhou, Yunnan, Huguang, etc. The Chief Secretary issued a document asking them to mobilize soldiers and horses to suppress the funi chieftain at any time.

Zhu Xieyuan's official document was sent out in a hurry, and it reached the hands of Yang Yumao and others the next day. Everyone did not hesitate and immediately acted according to the plan.

Wen Yingkui, Qin Minping and more than 1 people set out that afternoon, passing through Longchang County in Xuzhou for a short rest in the evening, and headed straight to Luzhou Prefecture early the next morning.

The Yamen of Luzhou Prefecture had also just received an official document saying that a large army would be crossing the border, and asked for help in preparing supplies, controlling the ferry, and detaining all people going to Yongning.

This made the Luzhou magistrate guess that the court was going to take action against She Chongming. He had long known that She Chongming had signs of rebellion, but every time he reported it, everything went wrong. Now it seemed that the court was alert.

He also made a decisive decision and immediately stepped up vigilance in the name of searching for the demons of the White Lotus Sect. He secretly went to various intersections in Yongning to track people coming and going.

I just didn't expect that the government troops would arrive the next day. Although it was a chain bridge and a pontoon bridge, the soldiers in the Sanbiang Army Town were not used to crossing the river. However, when Qingqi was dispatched, they brought very little baggage, and the local government requisitioned civilian ships. With help from the side, the progress was much faster than expected.

This floating bridge is not far from Luzhou Prefecture and is the only way to and from the Yangtze River. There are many people passing by on weekdays.

Now that the army is crossing the river, the merchants who originally crossed the river can only wait and watch, wanting to see what is going on.

Among these people were business spies sent from She Chongming. When they saw the army crossing the border, it seemed that they were going to Yongning. They secretly thought that something bad was going to happen, so they wanted to go to Yongning immediately to report the news.

But these people are surrounded by people from the government. They immediately detain suspicious persons and even try to return home.So some people tried to make the onlookers want to make a fuss, but the army was on the side and they couldn't even start a fuss even if they had the courage to do so.

Towards the afternoon, the men and horses from Sanbiangjun Town had already crossed the Yangtze River. Knowing that time was tight, they mounted their horses without rest and headed down the Naxi River.

The first goal is to capture Shihuguan, the gateway to Yongning!

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(End of this chapter)