The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 415 Chen Yuanyuan

Zuo Liangyu’s central army tent.

Under the dim candlelight, General Zuo held a copy of the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" reprinted during the Jiajing period in his hand, shaking his head and reading:

"In the art of warfare, attacking the heart is better than attacking the city..."

Next to General Zuo stood a pretty and graceful woman, about fifteen or sixteen years old. It was hard to tell whether she was a camp prostitute or his concubine.

Historical records show that Zuo Liangyu never received any education since childhood and was not interested in beauty (at least not women). Some unofficial histories even falsely accused Zuo of having an affair with Hou Xun before he became famous.

Because Zuo Liangyu was more handsome than Pan An and had a slender figure (at least that was the case before he joined the army), he became Hou Xun's servant. A servant is usually called a pretty boy, similar to the male prostitutes in later generations.

These claims are of course nonsense. Although the people in the late Ming Dynasty were open-minded and dignitaries often had affairs (such as Zhang Juzheng and Zhang Dai), it was common practice for officials in Southern Zhili to keep concubines.

However, in this dimension, the general Zuo Liangyu is literate, and he is greedy for women and cannot be satisfied without them.

It can be seen that unofficial history is not credible.

"Fangfang, after we capture Linqing City, the master will give you a cart full of jewelry, silks, and satins. You can change your clothes every other day. With such military merit, the emperor will probably reward you with the title of Consort!"

Zuo Liangyu said this, reaching out and pinching the woman's leg. Fangfang fell into the master's arms, threw the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" aside, and said in a delicate voice:
"Let's not talk about jewelry, just don't take any more concubines, Master. I heard that women in Linqing don't bind their feet..."

Zuo Liangyu frowned, somewhat displeased. The maid bought at the canal wharf was a bit rough and could not be compared with the ladies from wealthy families, not to mention the skinny horse from Yangzhou in Wu Sangui's tent.

Seeing that the master looked unhappy, Fu Fangfang didn't know what she had said wrong again, so she hurriedly helped the general to undress and pretended to ride on Zuo Liangyu.

Zuo Liangyu remembered that he had to meet the skinny Yangzhou horse tonight. He looked down and saw that the armor on his body had been removed by the woman.
"The master has something important to do. Go and rest first. I'll find you later."

"Humph!"

Fu Fangfang snorted, walked away angrily, and threw the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" on the table to the ground.

Zuo Liangyu suppressed his anger. If this woman had not been quite pretty, he would have kicked her out of the tent and asked her to beg for food.

Fu Fangfang was a maid bought in Yangzhou. The madam said that this girl was proficient in music, chess, calligraphy and painting, and her bed skills were also first-class. She refused to bargain and only asked for three taels.

When the royal army was on the Northern Expedition, Zuo Liangyu's concubine was pregnant and could not accompany the army. He could not leave women, so he had to buy her first.

Zuo Liangyu thought he had gotten a bargain and didn't want to buy it back. Except for her skills in bed, everything else was not up to his expectations.

This made him lose face in front of Liu Zeqing, Huang Degong, Wu Sangui and others.

In the late Ming Dynasty, the army would bring camp prostitutes with them when they marched and fought to provide entertainment for the soldiers.

Of course, when generals went to war, they would usually bring their concubines or the top prostitutes in local brothels with them.

For generals and lieutenant commanders who have some aspirations, in addition to competing with each other on the number of servants under their command, the beauty of their concubines is also an important criterion for the military to compare.

Jiang Hongli was like this, Liu Jing (when he was young) was like this, Wu Sangui was like this, and Zuo Liangyu, as the general commander of a town, was naturally no exception.

After witnessing the beauty of Wu Sangui's concubine in his tent, Zuo Liangyu immediately changed the maid's name to Fu Fangfang.

Chen (sinking) deals with Chen (floating), round and square.

He insisted on competing with the young and energetic Wu Sangui to show his spirit of tit-for-tat and unyielding spirit.

Not long after Fu Fangfang left, the voice of the head servant Ma Chun was heard outside:
"Master, the young master has gone to bed."

After hearing this, Zuo Liangyu quickly turned over, adjusted his armor, and looked at himself in the bronze mirror again and again.

He asked Ma Chun to lead the way and walked towards Wu Sangui's camp.

The "young master" the servant was referring to was Zuo Liangyu's eldest son Zuo Menggeng.

Zuo Menggeng was ten years old this year. At the beginning of the first year of Wuding, when the Qi army marched south to Shandong, the Zuo family was besieged in Jining. Riots broke out in the city, and the rioters killed Zuo Liangyu's entire family, leaving only Zuo Menggeng. From then on, the child followed his father.

Zuo Liangyu held this blood feud against Liu Zhaosun, and the first stop of his Northern Expedition was to attack Linqing.

"Have the Liaoxi soldiers been properly settled?"

Ma Chun followed behind and quickly replied:

"It's settled. I gave them the silver and killed the disobedient ones. Now only the young lady is in the tent."

"That's good. Today we accept Chen Yuanyuan, and tomorrow we capture Linqing City. Double happiness!"

Zuo Liangyu said with a lewd smile.

Five days ago, Wu Sangui, the commander-in-chief of Liaoxi, quietly took his elite servants to the capital to rob tombs, leaving the beautiful Chen Yuanyuan alone in the empty room.

Now that Sangui has disappeared without a trace, as his comrade-in-arms, Zuo Liangyu feels that he has an obligation to take care of his brother's concubine.

~~~~~~
Zuo Liangyu walked through his own camp surrounded by his servants. He found that there were obviously fewer soldiers on night patrol tonight than usual. Ma Chun pointed to the noisy tents in the distance. From inside came the sounds of soldiers gambling and cheering, and it seemed that there were women among them. Zuo Liangyu was no longer surprised by this and did not ask about it.

At this time, a team of night patrol soldiers came from afar. The leader was still yawning and cursing: "Damn it, I'm really unlucky tonight. I lost again..."

Zuo Liangyu shouted: Fire attack!

The man on the other side who had lost all his money in gambling was startled and quickly responded:

Linqing!

Zuo Liangyu rolled his eyes, fished out a handful of silver from his pocket, stuffed it into the captain's pocket, patted him on the shoulder and said,
"Old Guo, if you lose, you lose. You can win it back tomorrow! Don't miss out on the important things!"

Guo Bazong accepted the money reluctantly, showing gratitude, and patted his chest and promised:
"No mistake! No mistake! Master Zuo's affairs are of the utmost importance. With me here, no one can get in!"

Zuo Liangyu stared at the loose belt around Lao Guo's waist, then glanced at the powder on Lao Guo's face, cursing him tens of thousands of times in his heart:
"Be smart! The Linqing soldiers might become desperate. If we can get through tonight, our good days will begin. We'll have money and women!"

Lao Guo tightened his belt and put his hand on the scabbard of the goose-feather knife. The soldiers following behind him also straightened their backs and looked around like night owls...

Historical records show that Zuo Liangyu was knowledgeable about military affairs and enjoyed the favor of his soldiers. Judging from the fact that he just gave his men money for prostitution and gambling, this record is accurate.

After seeing off Lao Guo, everyone headed towards Wu Sangui's camp. Along the way, they met Lao Ma, Lao He, and Lao Wang, all of whom had just returned from gambling and visiting prostitutes and lost everything. Zuo Liangyu had already distributed all the silver he brought with him, so he asked Ma Chun for some silver and distributed the coins all the way until they reached Wu Sangui's camp.

The Liaoxi soldiers at the camp gate had disappeared, not to mention the night patrolmen. Zuo Liangyu felt a little relieved. Ma Chun smiled at the master and said,

"Master, the cavalry under Huang Degong have gone to rob Niujia Village again. I don't think they will come back tonight."

Zuo Liangyu heard this and said with disdain:
"A bunch of rogue soldiers, good-for-nothings! Didn't they go robbing last night?"

The head servant looked towards Huang Degong's camp. The camp was so dark that not even a campfire could be seen.

"Last night we went to rob silver and food, and tonight we went to rob women."

"Yes, silver and women must be robbed separately."

Zuo Liangyu felt even more relieved. Among all the troops in the Northern Expedition, some were tomb robbers, some were gamblers, and some were robbers. However, the most useful ones were the Nanzhi soldiers under his command.

As they advanced through Wu Sangui's camp, the Liaoxi soldiers they encountered either hid aside or approached with a fawning smile. The servants escorted Master Zuo to a large tent, and Ma Chun flashed the fawning smile of a pimp:

"Master, the people are inside. The dishes, wine and meat are ready. I will wait outside the tent for now."

Zuo Liangyu was overjoyed and said with a smile, "Old Ma, I trust you to do the job, but you can't stay outside and eavesdrop..."

~~~~~~
The sumptuous dishes were served on the table. After three rounds of wine, Zuo Liangyu looked up at Chen Yuanyuan who was sitting opposite him.

Chen Yuanyuan was only fourteen or fifteen years old this year. She had a willow waist, thin eyebrows, a long jade neck, and a chest as white as jade. Her elegant and simple moon-lit skirt half-covered her body, revealing her long, smooth and well-proportioned legs...

Zuo Liangyu was amazed at the beauty of the woman and was attracted by her.

"General Zuo, when will my husband return? You said you had something important to discuss. What is it?"

Chen Yuanyuan's cold questioning brought him back to reality. Zuo Liangyu picked up a piece of bright red venison from the table and looked at Chen Yuanyuan.

"Wu Sangui will never come back. My servants ran into Liu Zhaosun in Fucheng. Sangui and the commander-in-chief have been killed by that tyrant."

Chen Yuanyuan turned pale, covered her heart with her hands, and almost fainted.

Zuo Liangyu swallowed the venison in one gulp.

"When the Ming lost its power, the whole world chased it. My beautiful lady, why don't you obey me? I will avenge your husband, kill Liu Zhaosun, and then pacify Liaodong. I will become the emperor like him, and you will be the empress. In this day and age, with the army and power, who can stop me..."

Zuo Liangyu kept talking while stretching his big hand, which was stained with alcohol, towards Chen Yuanyuan.

Chen Yuanyuan quickly dodged away.

"General Zuo, please respect yourself. Sangui and I were betrothed to each other since birth. I am his in life and in death..."

Zuo Liangyu came up empty-handed and became furious:
"What do you mean by arranged marriage? You are just a concubine under his tent."

Grabbing the beauty's arm, he tugged at her moonlit skirt, revealing her waist. Chen Yuanyuan swung the bottle and smashed it against his head. As he let go, she retreated to the back of the tent and grabbed a gleaming dagger from the table.

"You, you lecher, if you take another step forward, I won't be polite."

Zuo Liangyu kicked the table and chairs aside and said with a smile:
"Okay, okay, you dare to assassinate an official of the imperial court. I will punish you tonight..."

Chen Yuanyuan clutched the dagger and thrust it forward. Zuo Liangyu swung his iron arm and knocked the dagger away. Then he pounced on her like an eagle catching a chick and undressed her...

Suddenly, someone outside shouted:

"Master Zuo, Master Zuo!"

"I'm not done yet!"

"Master, it's not good!"

When I looked back, it was Ma Chun screaming at the door.

"What's the call? Are the Linqing soldiers coming out?"

Ma Chun didn't care that the master hadn't finished yet, and rushed in, ignoring Chen Yuanyuan who was disheveled on the bed, and shouted:

"There's a fire in the east! It's glowing red, lighting up half the sky. The city is in chaos, with people everywhere shouting for help. Huang Degong, Liu Zeqing, and their troops are attacking the city. Damn it, they're going to intercept us!"

Zuo Liangyu flew into a rage after hearing this. He pushed the trembling Chen Yuanyuan away and began to curse:
"These bastards, they want to take advantage of the scheme that I and Mr. Dongfang set up! No way!"

"Didn't they say the fire could be set tomorrow? Why is it set early?"

Ma Chun didn't bother to answer the master's question and hurriedly urged:

"Master Zuo, let's hurry up and get going. This is a rare opportunity. The brothers below can't wait any longer."

Zuo Liangyu pondered for a moment, staring at the disheveled Chen Yuanyuan on the bed, and muttered to himself:
"I have a bad feeling that Liu Zhaosun is nearby,"

Ma Chun laughed and said, "Liu Zhaosun only has a hundred or so men. What does he want to do? What can he do?"

Zuo Liangyu thought this made sense.

"Choose some soldiers who can fight at night and enter through the east gate."

According to the plan agreed with Dongfang Zhu, the general guarding the east gate would give up the city defense and let Zuo Liangyu's army enter the city.

Zuo Liangyu had no doubts about Dongfang Zhu. He knew the moral character of these businessmen, who would do anything to make money, and Dongfang Zhu was a typical example.

"My dear, wait till I come back."

Zuo Liangyu smiled back at the beauty, immediately began to put on his armor, and then walked out of the tent surrounded by his servants and bodyguards.

There was chaos outside, auxiliary soldiers and civilians were running around, and cavalry were crossing the pontoon bridge and charging towards the city wall.

"What's going on? The shield cars and ladders haven't even been deployed yet, why are they running?"

Zuo Liangyu picked up the horsewhip, pointed at the noisy crowd in front of him, and shouted loudly.

Ma Chun stared blankly at the Ming army noisily leaving the camp. He grabbed a soldier who was running around. The soldier didn't even turn his head and cursed at the top of his voice:

"Damn it, let go, don't delay me from getting rich, I..."

The soldiers were extremely enthusiastic, spitting and waving their swords wildly.

Zuo Liangyu swung his horsewhip and whipped the soldier several times until he regained his senses.

Zuo Liangyu angrily said, "Are you in such a hurry to reincarnate?"

The soldier covered his face and said timidly: "Linqing is about to be broken. It's too late to go. We can't grab the silver and women..."

Zuo Liangyu was about to curse again, but the surging soldiers had already rushed across the pontoon bridge and crossed the trench with skillful movements.

Zuo Liangyu was surprised to find that Huang Degong's cavalrymen, who had just returned from the robbery, were on their way without stopping and immediately joined the new robbery mission.

The cavalry rushed to the bottom of the city wall, abandoned their horses without hesitation, stood at the foot of the wall, waved their hooks, grabbed the battlements, and climbed up with their sabers in their mouths.

"Damn it. A while ago, I let the yellow dwarf attack the city. He was like a plague god. Either my hands or feet hurt. Now he feels like he's been possessed by Guan Erye. He's even more powerful than the Overlord!"

Ma Chun whispered, "The ladders and shield carts haven't caught up yet..."

"Forget it, morale can be used. Let's attack the city first. Linqing is a big city. We only have more than 10,000 people. We still have to rely on these generals and lieutenant generals."

Commander Liu went to the capital and has not returned yet. It is estimated that he has died for his country. The Northern Expedition Army has lost its nominal leader, and the generals and lieutenant generals under him are no longer on good terms with each other, making it seem even more disorganized.

Zuo Liangyu stopped talking nonsense and personally came to the moat surrounded by his personal guards, shouting loudly to his brothers who were rushing across the trench.

"Go into the city! Don't let Huang Degong and Liu Zeqing's men get ahead! Stop pushing the shield carts! Hurry!"

(End of this chapter)