The drums and music are noisy, and the guests and hosts enjoy themselves.
Liu Chengzong originally wanted to show off a little bit, but when he returned to his hometown where he had been away for several years, he couldn't stop feeling happy.
Finally, I lost my self-control. Not only did I rarely drink alcohol, but I also refused to refuse toasts from the elders in my hometown.
No matter how much alcohol I drank, I couldn't stand this, so I simply left the table at halftime.
He rode in the dark all the way to the ancestral temple, where he was punished for looting Wangzhuang and reading Zizhi Tongjian.
When he led his troops to leave his hometown, this place was destroyed. However, Zhang Zhen went to Yan'an Mansion and made great efforts to repair it. It looks better than before.
The stunned Liu Shishi drove all the guards outside the temple, closed the door and spent half the night crying and laughing.
When he woke up the next day wrapped in a fur robe, his back ached and his whole body ached. He didn't even know why he bothered.
But it is true that my mood has improved a lot and my stress has been reduced a lot, as if some long-standing garbage has been expelled from my body.
He rested in his old house in Heilong Mountain for three days. Thinking that his parents and brothers would definitely come back by then, he asked people to clean up the house. By the way, he met Zhang Yungong, the magistrate of Yan'an, and Zhang Pan, the magistrate of Fushi County.
The world is so strange that Zhang Pan, the secretary general, was elected as the county magistrate, and he was quite popular.
Zhang Pan did not dare to take credit for this, and quickly waved his hand and said: "When I meet people, I tell them that I am an old acquaintance of Marshal Liu. This kind of people's heart is hard to imagine."
What Zhang Pan said is not an exaggeration at all.
When Liu Shizi attacked the county government and shot the county magistrate of Fushi, he spared the life of the county magistrate surnamed Meng and made him the acting magistrate. Zhang Pan, the clerk, stood beside him and even gave Liu Chengzong a few words of advice.
Later, the magistrate of Meng County became the acting magistrate of the county, and Zhang Pan was directly asked to temporarily act as the county magistrate.
No one in the county disagrees.
Who dares to disagree? No one knows how close Zhang Pan is to Liu Shizi. What if you don't agree and recruit Liu Shizi to clean up the county government?
After a few years, the county magistrate Meng died of illness, and Zhang Pan became the county magistrate.
In fact, for Zhang Pan, life is completely confusing.
He was originally a hereditary subordinate official and the actual power holder with a humble status in the county government.
At a small level, it is said that they are working at the grassroots level, but at a large level, they can overstep their authority, steal power, exercise power, evade the chief officials, and call the wind and rain in a county.
Subordinate officials basically have no possibility of becoming officials.
Just because of his acquaintance with Liu Chengzong, he changed his destiny and became the chief official of a county.
But Liu Chengzong was not only kind to him, but also resentful.
The Yi Cheng of Ma Yi in Jinming Dynasty was his relative. Zhang Pan once relied on this relationship to intercept the court's wanted order for Cai Zhongpan.
However, Liu Chengzong broke the county prison and rebelled under his real name. The first person to be destroyed was the Jinming Horse Post. His relative was also beaten to death by Wei Qian'er's gang of post soldiers.
Now the first serious count in the Marshal's Mansion, Wei Qian'er, is named Count Jinming.
However, Zhang Pan had no idea of revenge in his heart. He was even a little afraid that Liu Shishi would do anything to him.
So when he became the county magistrate, Zhang Pan removed that dead relative from his family tree.
If you keep it, you will be a scourge waiting to confiscate your home and destroy your family!
In addition to meeting with local officials, Liu Chengzong also sent people to Heshui County to the west of Ziwu Mountains to find a village called Luping to look for auspiciousness.
That auspicious sign is not something, but a person named Mr. Xu.
When he defeated He Huchen at Ziwu Ridge and led the army westward, he passed by Luping in Heshui County and met the 78-year-old old man Xu.
At that time, everyone in Luping Village was dead, and only five families were left waiting for death. Old Man Xu was like an auspicious person. Regardless of whether soldiers came or thieves passed by, given his age, he would always save some food.
Liu Chengzong was no exception. He also said at the time that he would let Mr. Xu last a few more years, saying that he could keep people fed.
It was July of the third year of Chongzhen, and now five years have passed. It seems like a different world, and it is Liu Shizi's turn to have the final say in the vast northwest.
If Mr. Xu was still alive, he would be eighty-three.
Liu Chengzong thought that it would be quite interesting to think about it if he could take over the old Xiangrui who had defeated several emperors.
Unfortunately I couldn't find it.
The Yu Linqi sent to find Xiangrui reported back that Luping should have been deserted a long time ago. When they found the ruins of the village according to the map, there were no human traces in the ravines within a radius of thirty miles, and only four tigers were wandering around.
Liu Chengzong and Mr. Xu didn't have much friendship, but they still felt disappointed when they heard the news.
At this time, Ning Chen jumped out on his own.
Zhang Xianzhong, president of the Liu Chengzong Research Association and Shangshu of the Grand Marshal’s Office, made a decisive statement after observing his words and deliberation:
"Commander, those who are over eighty are not considered old. Let's simply issue an order and ask all provinces, prefectures and counties to bring their oldest old men as tribute!"
Liu Shizi glanced at him, wondering if you think the average life span of human beings is too long, right?
"Why don't you take a rest before you torture the old birthday girl to death? Didn't you hear what anyone said? There are fucking tigers wandering around in groups on the road."
In fact, for Liu Chengzong, other old men who lived to be a hundred years old were not considered auspicious, only the old man Xu he met back then was auspicious.
What's more, even if he really wanted to use the two old men as auspicious signs, there was no way to confirm whether they were true or false.
In this day and age, it’s not surprising that a fifty-year-old looks like a hundred.
"You don't need to worry about the old man, but this tiger problem is really a problem."
Tigers are the top predators on land. As the saying goes, there is no room for two tigers in one mountain.
It's not that tigers will fight each other when they meet. In fact, when two powerful creatures meet, they usually retreat to avoid fighting.
Tigers do not live in groups, mainly because the food on a mountain can only support one tiger.
No one can survive if there are too many.
In this era, the number of tigers is not that rare. At least in Shaanxi, their activity range largely overlaps with that of humans.
In the long process of getting along, tigers are afraid of people, and people are also afraid of tigers. Therefore, on those roads that extend in all directions, humans control the day and tigers rule the night.
But at this time, the time, place, number, and behavior were all abnormal, indicating that this was not an ordinary wild beast, but a tiger problem.
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! Just like the bandits, natural disasters and wars have affected the living conditions of normal people. People meet on the move, go together, eat away, and use force to become
into a powerful violent gang.
Tigers are no exception. In the era of war, floods and drought, their living environment was even worse than that of humans.
When tigers leave the mountains and forests where they depend for survival and roam freely in groups, it is self-evident that in Shaanxi at this time, their main source of food is.
To put it simply, it is no longer afraid of humans, and has even honed a set of highly efficient techniques for hunting humans over a long period of hunting.
Because in this world, tigers only need companionship when they prey on humans.
Tigers that also go together are beyond the range that ordinary people and wealthy families can deal with. Three or five tigers traveling together can easily kill or injure hundreds of people in a few months.
Zhang Xianzhong, who was standing by, did not take the tiger problem seriously. He saw more tigers when he was running around.
In fact, there are very few tigers in northern Shaanxi. Tigers in Shaanxi are mainly concentrated in southern Shaanxi and the Qinling Mountains.
But the tigers he met were very smart and knew how to avoid him.
But Liu Chengzong obviously didn't think so. Tigers, let alone the army, would walk around even if they encountered ordinary people beating gongs and drums.
But the people who were alone were unable to fight back against the big insects.
He, Liu Chengzong, ruled the people, but he did it one by one. How could he let a tiger eat him like this?
If you have people, you will have an army. If you have an army, you will have territory. If you have territory, you will have food. If you have food, you will have more troops and you will build a bigger territory!
Liu Shizi then summoned Yu Linqi, who was accompanying him, and said: "Write down the matter and go back to Xi'an to spread the word to various places. Report the prefectures and counties where tiger infestations are found. If there are more tigers, we will recruit some tiger hunters from the people to kill the tigers."
Come on."
Zhang Xianzhong asked in confusion: "The commander-in-chief is planning to build a tiger-killing camp and attack when the police hear it?"
"ah?"
Liu Shishi shook his head quickly: "Why build that? If the tiger problem becomes serious, I will recruit some tiger killers, compile a tiger hunting book, publish it in the world, and let the states and counties form tiger hunting teams according to their own conditions."
Marshal Liu still has some experience in hunting.
Although he has never hunted a tiger, he knows very well that hunting is a very professional skill and only force is useless.
In most cases, force is useless.
If a person has a big brain and cannot hunt without using force with the prey, his life will basically be in vain.
As for how to kill a tiger, Liu Shishi believes that professional hunters will know more than him.
At that time, the prefectures and counties where there is a tiger problem will recruit tiger hunters. If a tiger is killed, the government will reward them with a hundred taels of silver.
In addition, a book will be compiled to form a set of effective methods for catching and killing tigers. When there are brave men with generous rewards, the local government will be able to solve this problem by itself.
"In short, under the rule of the Marshal's Mansion, if a child dies in the village, a bunch of tigers will die in the mountains."
When Liu Chengzong said this, there was still regret on his face that he had not found Mr. Xu.
Fortunately, there are always new things in this world, and the feeling of loss will not bother Liu Shizi for too long.
Because soon, Tian Shoujing sent someone back from Ningzhou with letters and oral messages.
Tian Shoujing's own official position was the Camp Chief Qian of Huben Camp, and his bodyguards were all soldiers of Huben Camp, and he was very familiar with Liu Chengzong.
"Commander, He Renlong has stopped advancing and is stationed outside Ningzhou City. This is General Tian's letter."
"Send it up."
When General Yu Lin brought the letter, Liu Chengzong took it and opened it while asking: "How do you think of General He's battalion?"
"Commander, after He's tribe fled the battlefield, he led his general Ding Mingtai and others to station troops in Zhenning. He also recruited two groups of rogue bandits with more than a thousand troops. He sent people to various places in Yan'an Prefecture to pick up soldiers and their families. The officers, soldiers, and civilians took the women and children hostage.
They number more than ten thousand."
Liu Chengzong, who was reading the letter, raised his eyebrows disapprovingly, turned to Zhang Xianzhong and said, "No wonder he doesn't have enough to eat."
On this point, he and Zhang Xianzhong have a lot in common.
From the moment they raised their troops, both of them followed the route of elite soldiers. They would eat as much as they could and would never coerce useless people.
Liu Chengzong read half of the letter. Seeing that He Renlong still had no intention of surrendering directly, he asked the returning guards: "General He didn't make things difficult for you?"
Hearing this, the guard quickly shook his head and said, "Isn't that true? If we don't attack Qingyang, they will be at the end of their rope. They are just waiting for the Commander's Mansion to be their lifeline. Don't worry Commander, they will never be in trouble."
"good."
Liu Chengzong sat up straight, pondered for a moment, turned to Yu Linqi beside him and said: "Ding Guodong is besieging the city at Nanguan?"
This siege refers to the Yan'an Guard's acropolis at the south gate of Fucheng.
After receiving a positive reply from the guard, Liu Shizi said: "Let Ding Guodong gather troops and horses to prepare for the expedition. Under the banner of reinforcements, he will go straight to Qingyang City via Huachi and take control of the city defense to help defend the city."
Tian Shoujing's guards looked confused.
Now, hasn't He Renlong's department already obeyed and stopped?
Zhang Xianzhong narrowed his eyes and frowned: "Commander, the commander's office is putting pressure on him. If He Renlong doesn't surrender, will he be beaten?"
He already had a very comprehensive defense map in his mind, with Yan'an in the east, Pingliang in the west, Guanzhong in the south, and Qingyang in the north.
There are now new garrison brigades on three sides. As long as Ding Guodong's troops are stationed in Qingyang, it will be equivalent to surrounding He's troops in Ningzhou.
"Ah? We won't start a fight. I know General He. Even if he doesn't want to surrender, he won't go against me, old soldier Youzi."
Liu Chengzong waved his hand and explained: "The march into Qingyang has nothing to do with Hebu."
He's not crazy at all.
Although it may seem a little crazy to show extraordinary talent to court officials, it is just a way to soften the enemy's will and mobilize troops to attack.
If the commander performs outstanding work, the reward is real; when he encounters a problem and asks for help, the reinforcements are also real.
But where is the free lunch in the world?
Liu Chengzong chuckled: "When the reinforcements enter the city, Qingyang Mansion will not change its banner and surrender, so the problem of He Renlong will never be solved."
"Look at how slippery he is. I'll let Tian Shoujing take the lead. He can set the terms as he pleases. It's up to me whether he wants to or not. He just won't meet Tian Shoujing at all."
Liu Shizi pointed at the letter and said to Zhang Xianzhong: "I just asked He Yong to make some insinuations and mention something specious so that he could spread the news and come back to see what I mean."
As he said that, Liu Chengzong raised his eyebrows again, with a dumbfounded expression on his face, and simply handed the letter to Zhang Xianzhong: "Take a look, it's interesting."
Zhang Xianzhong took the letter and skimmed the first line at a glance. He only looked at the conditions stated by He Yong seriously. Then he also looked strange: "This... Marshal, this He Renlong, let him choose a person who is bitterly cold and remote, with few people and many enemies."
place."
The Eighth King looked confused: "Did he have some misunderstanding about the handsome man's house, or was he being polite to the handsome man?"
"I looked around and saw that what he meant was that he could be assigned as he pleased."
Liu Chengzong couldn't help but nodded, spread out his hands and said: "He said it as if besides the bitter cold and remoteness, the few people and the many enemies, and sending people to this unlucky place that can't be seen for half a year, I still have some Feng Shui treasures on my hands."
We are not being modest. If he wants to go to a good place, then our Marshal's Mansion really doesn't have one.
But ghost places suitable for live animals but not people can be found everywhere?
"Commander, if I don't think it's possible, I'll surround him from all sides, make an emergency landing on him, and let others destroy him!"
The Eighth King said in his heart that my western camp has been demolished. How can you congratulate Renlong? You still want to keep the soldiers, horses, women and children, and you still want to be the chief military officer?
"I think it should be dismantled, but it would be a pity to dismantle it directly. These people are really capable of accomplishing something."
As Liu Chengzong spoke, he glanced at Zhang Xianzhong unconsciously.
He Renlong knew very well. He was born as Wu Jinshi and should have become a general who planned strategies. However, he wasted ten years in Yuhe Fort and became a super soldier who maintained the army with brotherly loyalty and followed the bottom line.
Let him take people out to a cold and barren land. There will be no problem with their combat effectiveness and cohesion.
You can definitely accomplish something.
You eight kings are different. You are very powerful when you are by my side. It is best to leave it like this. I don’t even dare to think how much you can accomplish if you are released.
"My mother-in-law and my son are looking for a place to put them first. There are five or six thousand people left. They can do something wherever they are. General He also showed me the kindness of two pots of arrows back then."
When Liu Chengzong said this, a look of interest suddenly appeared on his face.
Based on Zhang Xianzhong's understanding of him, the marshal must have thought of some weird things in his mind.
Liu Shizi was wondering where to throw it to Madman He.
In the southwest, the organizational form of the feudal lords of Uzang is too weak. Just any general will be enough. Letting He Renlong go is an understatement.
In the northwest, let Tai Mengwei be Zhou Qiang's right-hand man, who is good at cutting down territory. It just so happened that Chu Hu'er didn't recognize his relatives, and He Renlong, with three thousand frontier troops and two thousand rogue bandits, was able to suppress him in the past.
It's just that they were a little too satisfied with He Renlong's requirements.
His brother was quite comfortable in Tianshan, but He Renlong definitely didn't like working around his brother.
Further north, the Taimeng Guards really suffered too much, and the brothers in the border army did not break any rules. In comparison, Liu Chengzong was more willing to torment the Ming Dynasty clan to defend the country.
Directly to the west, Yarkand is still undecided.
You can give He Renlong a capital commander, release him from Chijin Guard's territory outside Jiayuguan, give him an oasis map, and let him go when he enters the desert.
I'll also pack your armor and fill your arrow pot!
In the past, they could cut off a few guards and ennoble a few commanders to become military nobles. It was okay if it was a little difficult.
As for being killed by the little lord of Oasis, Liu Chengzong is not worried... It's not that he overestimates He Renlong or underestimates Ye Erqiang.
If the Yarkand gang of Burkes had this ability, they would have conquered Gansu long ago.
Thinking of this, Liu Shishi showed a satisfied smile and said to Tian Shoujing's guard: "I will write a letter and you will take it to Qianzhou and ask Milayin to deliver four thousand soldiers and half a month's worth of food and grass to Zhenning County. You will take it and ask Tian Shoujing to deliver it."
Please first stabilize He Renlong."
"When the dust settles in Qingyang Mansion, we will take care of He Bu's affairs."
After saying that, Liu Chengzong turned to look at Zhang Xianzhong: "Let's also set off back and enter Xi'an!"