A small soldier of the frontier army in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 844 The Flower of Evil

Wang Dou came to Ji Junjiao's courtyard.

She is a fastidious person. Although she has not been in Guihua City for a long time, the layout of the house is already similar to that of Xuanfu Town, with elegance and beauty.

It is extremely cold in the north, so there is no need for a foot stove brazier here. The fire is sandwiched between the walls, the floor is heated, and thick felt blankets are laid to make the inside as warm as spring.

In fact, many of the enjoyment of this ancient rich family will not be lost to later generations. It is said that the fire sandwiching the wall and floor heating are much better than the air conditioning and heating of later generations.

The severe cold spread across the ground, and the snowflakes were like flakes, which soon made people white all over. Wang Dou entered the house on the chaotic jade and broken jade, and immediately a warmth came to his face, making people feel comfortable all over.

Ji Junjiao and his young wife Chu Wanyun greeted each other at the entrance of the hall, and one of them said: "I have seen my husband."

One said: "I have seen Lord Hou."

Wang Dou glanced at them, both of them were wearing mink fur embroidered jackets, but Ji Junjiao was dark red, and the young lady was wearing plain white mink fur clothes.The same thing is that both of them are more charming than flowers, Ji Jun is charming and beautiful, and Gu Pan is full of charm.The young lady is elegant and noble, full of the charm of young women.

Ji Junjiao came over with a smile and took off the black fox fur cloak for Wang Dou, and pulled him to the wine table in the room, where fine wine and delicate dishes had been prepared, and there was a small brass stove next to it.

The young lady followed, her cheeks were flushed, and she was afraid to meet Wang Dou's eyes.

Ji Junjiao said: "My husband's political affairs are hard, and I just want to play a song with Sister Wanyun Qin Xiao, so as to relieve my husband's worries and boredom."

Wang Dou smiled and said, "Okay."

He was sitting at the front of the table, and the aroma in the room was overwhelming. While drinking slowly, he listened to Ji Junjiao and his young wife's Qin Xiao ensemble, feeling quite comfortable.

After the song was over, Wang Dou applauded lightly, Ji Junjiao smiled sweetly, and the young lady was a little distracted, she glanced at Wang Dou, and said to Ji Junjiao: "Sister, I'm going back first."

He accused Wang Dou again, walked away gracefully and trembling slightly.

Looking at her back, Ji Jun smiled coquettishly: "What do you think of Sister Wanyun's beauty?"

Wang Dou looked at Ji Junjiao thoughtfully: "It's not bad, but it's far behind Madam."

Ji Junjiao giggled: "My husband's mouth is still so sweet."

……

The two sat and drank each other, and then Ji Junjiao massaged Wang Dou on the couch, and talked about it by the way.

After finishing the work, Wang Dou leaned comfortably on her lap. After many years, Ji Junjiao still gave him a hearty feeling.

Ji Junjiao gently stroked Wang Dou's hair, and then lightly pressed the sides of his forehead. She seemed to be thinking about something, suddenly made up her mind, leaned down, and whispered a few words in Wang Dou's ear.

Wang Dou said: "Nonsense."

Sit up all at once.

Seeing Ji Junjiao's panicked expression, he sighed, "Jiao'er, you still don't know after all these years? What are you worried about?"

Ji Junjiao calmed down, she smiled and said: "Husband, I am really worried. People say that the officialdom needs balance, and this backyard is also the same."

She said: "Husband, think about it, are these sisters and sisters in the courtyard out of balance?"

Wang Dou was startled, he thought about it carefully, it was indeed so.

Among his wives and concubines, Liu Qing, Liu Ji, Butterfly, and Dragonfly need not be mentioned, but among Xie Xiuniang's family, Zhong Susu and Li Yunluo are more supporters now.

But on Ji Junjiao's side, she was alone.

Moreover, she has not given birth to a son in these years, only gave birth to a daughter, Wang Sha. Although she doesn't care about it, she will inevitably have thoughts.With the addition of Zhong Susu and others, no wonder there is a sense of crisis and the need to attract foreign aid.

Thinking more deeply, Li Yunluo, who bought one and got one free, represented the ideas and interests of the local gentry. Wang Dou got the news, and after hearing that Li Yunluo took over the house, the Li family in Xinzhuang celebrated with each other, and the hearts of a large number of gentry in Baoanzhou and other places settle down.

The gentry and landlords have representatives in their houses, and the merchants can't sit still anymore, looking at the activities of the head of the Li family and the actions of the young wife Chu Wanyun.And her combination with Ji Junjiao properly represents the expectations and interests of the government and business class under the rule.

Even Liu Qing, Liu Ji, Butterfly, and Dragonfly should not be underestimated when they go outside. Although they are maids and maids, they can still speak for their original class.

Unknowingly, representatives of the interests of all parties in the house have gathered together.

Sure enough, there are no trivial matters in the family affairs of the superiors, Wang Dou thought to himself, it seems that he should pay attention to this aspect in the future.

At the same time, Wang Dou thought of the woman Chu Wanyun, and he knew that the gossip had been with her all these years.As far as she was concerned, there might have been rumors anyway, so why not take this opportunity to make the fake ones real, settle the matter, and make it real for the benefit of her family.

Especially when the world is chaotic and the family has lost support, she needs to find a thigh to hug her, so as soon as Ji Junjiao finds her, the two hit it off.

Based on Wang Dou's understanding of her, she has been considered chaste and self-reliant these years, but it's not that she doesn't have ambiguous thoughts about herself, and she still seduces her from time to time.Wang Dou felt that this woman was very scheming, so it was better to keep her by her side and keep a close eye on her.

This also eased Ji Junjiao's heart, although Wang Dou did not take her worry of falling out of favor very seriously.

Wang Dou's thoughts turned quickly, and he quickly understood the pros and cons of the inside, he said: "Forget it, let's not make an example."

He said to Ji Junjiao: "Jiaoer, in fact, you never have to worry."

Ji Junjiao hummed, and obediently fell into Wang Dou's arms.

……

The next day, Ji Junjiao brought Wang Dou to the Young Madam's other courtyard. After she pushed Wang Dou in, she closed the door with a smile on her face.

After Wang Dou entered, he saw a brocade tent surrounded by a screen, and a table of wine and food was also set up. The young lady was sitting not far away, holding a pipa, her head bowed, her cheeks were as red as rouge.

Wang Dou poured himself a drink at the banquet, and after listening to her playing the pipa for a while, he patted his thigh: "Come and sit here."

The young lady responded softly, she put down her pipa, and came over gracefully, she sat on Wang Dou's lap, her face was full of charming red.She didn't dare to look at Wang Dou either, she just buried her head deeply in his arms and hugged him tightly with both hands.

Wang Dou put his arms around her soft waist. It looked like a weak willow, but the tentacles were plump and soft. At the same time, a faint fragrance rushed into his nose.

With the beauty in his arms, Wang Dou felt a little emotional. He poured a glass of wine and drank it slowly.

The first time I saw the young lady was eight years in Chongzhen, when she and Ji Junjiao were together, I was astonished as a heavenly being, and many years passed in a blink of an eye.

It's really past.

……

On the [-]th day of the first lunar month, Zhou Yanru, the chief minister of the cabinet, asked himself to be a supervisor and lead the troops to the south.

At this time Yanzhou has fallen.

However, after the bandits surrounded Yanzhou, the surrounding Ming army remained silent. Whether it was Liu Zeqing, the commander-in-chief of Linqing, or Qiu Lei, the commander-in-chief of Jinan, they all watched helplessly without any reaction.Liu Fangliang thought that there would be no reinforcements coming, so he ordered to attack the city on the tenth day of the first day.

The defenders of Yanzhou stood firm. At this time, Lu Wang Zhu Yipai took over the vassal. Deng Fanxi, the magistrate of Yanzhou, saw that the bandits were powerful, and advised Zhu Yipai to disperse all his savings to boost morale. Otherwise, it would be too late to regret the event.

But Zhu Yipai was a miser, who was greedy and vulgar on weekdays, so he pretended to be deaf and dumb, crying for poverty.As soon as Deng Fanxi left, he quietly asked people to dig a cellar to bury all the gold and silver.In history, these gold and silver were not discovered until the end of Qing Dynasty by the British who built the church on the former site of Lufu.

The bandits have been attacking for five days. Deng Fanxi led his officials, soldiers and common people to stand firm. He took the lead in spending all his savings to motivate the soldiers.Wealthy households and gentry in the city also donated money one after another, giving money if they had money, and food if they had food, and they were determined to defend the city against the enemy.

They don't just defend, they organize strong men to attack at night from time to time, sneaking out of the city in the dark, killing and injuring many people in the past few days.

Liu Fangliang couldn't attack with all his strength, so he thought of internal response. On the [-]th day of the first lunar month, he got a deputy named Liu as internal response, and the city fell.After Yanzhou City was broken, Lu King Zhu Yipai hanged himself to death, Lu Mansion was looted, Leling King, Yangxin King and other county kings also died, and Deng Fanxi and others all died in battle.

After Liu Fangliang conquered Yanzhou, he divided his troops to attack Ningyang, Dongping, Dong'e, Tai'an, Yanggu and other places. Wherever he went, the Ming army had no fighting spirit and fled watching the wind.

And as early as the first month of the first lunar month, Emperor Chongzhen sighed at the state affairs before the court: "The thieves are so powerful, no one outside will take over the responsibility, and the treasury is exhausted. What will happen? Can you do nothing to share my worries?"

Zhou Yanru thought that the emperor's favor for him was not as good as before, so he might as well ask his own supervisor to please the emperor.Sure enough, he asked himself to raise his troops to go south, and after he said that he would use his family wealth to assist the army, the emperor was overjoyed, and said again and again: "If you are willing, I will visit the ancients to push the ceremony, and go to the suburbs in person. I dare not take it lightly."

On the fourteenth day of the first lunar month, Zhou Yanru invited him to leave his teacher.

On the [-]th, Guo Zhongchan actually appointed the deputy commander-in-chief to supervise and assist the Chinese army.

On the [-]th, Emperor Chongzhen gathered hundreds of officials to the Temple of Heaven to offer sacrifices to heaven and earth, expressing his intention to be a teacher. He worshiped: "Prime Minister Heshan, minister Zhu Youjian would like to tell the God of Haotian: I have Liangde, and I will follow Hongxu Ten. For seven years, I thought deeply of the power of God and the weight of my ancestors' entrustment, and I was vigilant at night and never dared to neglect..."

With tears in his heart, he would like to tell you the news, and hope that his graduation will go well.

On the [-]th, Emperor Chongzhen ordered Zhou Yanru to go out as a teacher and perform the ceremony of dispatching generals.

He personally drove the Zhengyang Gate, a farewell party for Zhou Yanru.Hundreds of civil and military officials attended nineteen non-voting appointments, five provinces held the seal of Hou Bo, the cabinet had six ministries, the head of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, and the General Assistant of the Beijing Camp sat in attendance.There are also banners and golden drums lined up from the Meridian Gate to the outside of Zhengyang Gate.

During the banquet, Emperor Chongzhen personally handed wine to Zhou Yanru and said, "Sir, go here, just like me."

He gave three cups of wine in a row, and also brought out Shangfang's sword during the drum music.

After Zhou Yanru left impassionedly, Emperor Chongzhen watched him go away and returned after a long time.

……

"Open the gate of the city to welcome King Chuang. When King Chuang comes, he won't pay the food..."

In the distance, Yishui City suddenly burst into cheers. Amidst the sky-shattering songs, the city gate opened, and then a large number of hungry people rushed out.

Old Hu laughed loudly and said, "It's down again, it's really effortless."

Seeing that Kong San's expression was not very good, he couldn't help laughing a few times.

After entering the camp and conquering Yanzhou, the main force also entered Shandong continuously. They divided their battalions to attack various states and counties.Even if some state officials stick to it, they are often responded by the hungry people and open the city gate.

In recent years, there have been severe droughts in Shandong, and there have been many bandits. Since the 14th year of Chongzhen, there have been several large-scale rebellions.Moreover, Shandong is an important place for the horse government, and most of the dilapidated horse farmers have turned into thieves, and horse thieves and bandits are everywhere.

The common people had long lost confidence in the imperial court. They heard all kinds of safety notices for entering the camp, and they also said that captivity and killing were prohibited.There are also various songs and songs such as "not working on errands, not paying food", etc., all want to change their way of life.They eagerly looked forward to the arrival of the Chuangjun, and they responded in groups, opening their doors and offering the city enthusiastically.

Therefore, each battalion attacked various places, and all the cities that were trapped were effortless, and sometimes several cities could be captured in a day.

At this time, thousands of horses lined up behind the two, and the flags of the patrol battalion were flying high.

Lao Hu's mountain patrol camp already has five thousand men and horses. He used to have one thousand horse soldiers. Because of his bravery in the battle of Tongguan, he was rewarded by Li Zicheng with one thousand mules. He himself was promoted from a mighty general of the fifth rank to a fourth rank. General Guo Yi.In the past few months, he has gone through the Guide War, the Xuzhou War, and the siege of various cities in Shandong. A total of [-] horses and mules were rewarded, and his battalion even had [-] cavalry.

Judging from the information disclosed to him by General Li Guo, because there are many horses in Shandong and a lot of them have been seized, their mountain patrol battalion will soon become an old battalion.

Hearing the news, Lao Hu felt tears streaming down his face. It was not easy, but he finally made it through.

The three thousand horse team formed a dense mass of black. They wore yellow livery and rode steadily on their horses. Many of them had a sturdy look on their faces.Fighting every day, life and death are eliminated, swords and blood are used, even a coward has become a hero.

Satisfied, he looked back at his subordinates for a while, and Lao Hu waved his hand boldly: "Go to the city!"

There was a thunderous sound of horseshoes, billowing smoke and dust, splashing loess, and flying flags.

……

At noon, near Zhucheng.

As soon as he came galloping, he rolled his saddle and fell off his horse from a distance, ran to Lao Hu's banner, and reported: "Master Hu, all the city officials will flee. Now the local gentry organizes the people to meet them in front of the city. They carry cattle and sheep. Wine and meat, and ask the little Anmin from a distance how?"

Old Hu said impatiently: "Old rules and regulations, I am not interested in going, send a team to take over the city, we go to the next place..."

……

Anqiu County, dozens of miles away.

Looking at the city in the distance, Old Hu said happily: "We can fight a good battle, and we are not cowards at all."

Kong San shook his head and said lightly: "Listen, there is an internal response."

Sure enough, the singing of "Don't be on duty, don't pay food, everyone have a good time" loomed in the city, the voice became louder and louder, and finally seemed to resound through the sky.

Then the gate of Anqiu County opened, and Lao Hu opened his eyes wide: "Did it come down again?"

……

In the afternoon, Gaomi County.

Old Hu was riding on a horse. He saw that the city gate was wide open, and surrendered people came out of the city gate in an endless stream. They included officials, generals, soldiers, and old gentry in the city.They were neatly dressed, and after walking out of the city, they knelt down on the opposite side, then got up, knelt down again, and kept kneeling like this.

Then there was overwhelming cheers in the city, it was the people cheering.

Old Hu stared at the other side dumbfounded, and he murmured: "Is King Chuang really so popular?"

He opened his eyes wide and said: "If we really win the world, we can be regarded as heroes from the dragon."

Seeing that Kong San's face was livid, he hurriedly laughed and said, "Just kidding, kidding."

Kong San remained silent, for a long time he sneered: "Foolish men and women only know small profits in front of them, and they will suffer in time."

Old Hu echoed and said: "It is indeed ignorant, ignorant..."

……

News from Shandong kept coming to the Protectorate, and now the intelligence department was running at full capacity, with the latest news coming in almost every day.

All the important officers and generals of the Protectorate's Mansion also gathered in the General's Mansion. They looked at the sand table map every day, and drew on it the latest progress of the camp, the distribution of the situation in various aspects, etc. It was clear at a glance which step the situation was in. Just know.

It was beyond their expectations that the bandits were invincible in the Shandong clubhouse, but it was beyond many people's expectations to get to this point.

Too many officials and generals surrendered, especially too many common people responded, so many people around Wang Dou couldn't understand.

Recently, they also got a piece of information that some of Liu Zeqing's subordinates were from Shaanxi. In order to obtain food and salaries from various states and counties, they even pretended to be thieves.

In the end, because these people had poor military discipline, they were suspected by the locals, and then they closed the city gates, resolutely preventing these counterfeit goods from entering, and preventing them from obtaining a single grain of rice.

It's so repeated, it's really jaw-dropping, and I don't know what to say.

Gao Shiyin was the one who didn't understand, he murmured: "They are thieves, why do the people look forward to them so much?"

He has also fought rogues, and knows the attitudes of people in various places towards rogues. If some hungry people are willing to follow thieves, those good people are resolutely resisting, but now even the attitude of good people has changed.

Qin Yi, who praised the painting, sighed: "The government has no rules, refugees are everywhere, natural disasters and man-made disasters, miserable. People everywhere have long lost confidence in the imperial court, and the thieves are falsely promoting it. Maybe they think that they will live better after changing the dynasty."

He sighed: "It's true that water can carry a boat, and it can also overturn it. If the people's hearts are like this, it's unstoppable."

Everyone in the hall also sighed, the situation has become so corrupt.

Wen Fangliang sneered: "The thieves turned into rebels? The people are really ignorant, and they responded with a ballad of 'not being on the job, not paying the food'? Don't they know what the thieves are in their bones? I'm afraid that when the time comes , how much they looked forward to at the beginning, how much they will hate in the future!"

Han Chao shook his head and said: "Little people always look at the present, how can they think so much about the future. Besides, I don't know if the thief will change in the future. Maybe he is as talented and visionary as Emperor Taizu Gao."

Wen Fangliang sneered and said, "Just watch, there will always be times when you show up."

With his hands behind his back, Wang Dou quietly listened to the arguments under his command. He thought a lot, recalled all kinds of history, and finally he said lightly: "People are determined, and there are too many people who don't know the nature of thieves. Perhaps, there is only one heart-wrenching The lessons learned can make them wake up."

His eyes seemed to look through thousands of miles of rivers and mountains, thousands of years of time, and he murmured: "People's thoughts are chaotic, and they are unstoppable. Let the flowers of evil bloom to their fullest, and let all the scum rise to the surface!"

……

On the 22nd of the first lunar month, Liu Zeqing, the general soldier of Shandong who was stationed in Linqing to protect the canals, surrendered and broke into the camp without any effort, and obtained this important place for water transportation.

On the 26th of the first lunar month, Qiu Lei, the general of Shandong who was stationed in Jinan, surrendered, the governor Qiu Zude committed suicide, and Li Zicheng conquered Jinan.

On the first day of February, Li Zicheng proclaimed himself king in Jinan.

He took Song Xiance as his military adviser, Niu Jinxing as his prime minister, and set up six governments, each with one minister and two ministers.On that day, he sent generals Liu Fangliang, Liu Xiyao and others to attack Daming Mansion, Shunde Mansion and other places.

……

The news that Li Zicheng conquered Jinan and became king in particular shocked the world. On February [-], when the news reached Shengjing, Dorgon urgently recruited a group of ministers to discuss matters in the Chongzheng Palace.

(End of this chapter)