Chapter 629 Spring is cold and the water is pale (Part 2)
On February 21, the fourteenth year of Jinghan's reign, there was a spring rain in Qi County, south of Taiyuan.
The sky was so dark that it looked like it was about to fall.
The rain beat down on my body, chilling me to the bone.
The horse was galloping, panicking, and Chen Yanshu's vision shook. Then with a bang, he fell off the horse. He rolled a few times and stood up, staggering and covered in mud.
Several soldiers came over in a hurry. Someone got off his horse to help him and spoke. However, what caught his eye was Chen Yanshu's dull eyes and slightly opened and closed lips.
"...Mr. Chen, Mr. Chen, what's wrong with you, are you okay..."
The shouting sound seemed to come from a very far away place, and then wandered to a very far away place.
Two hours ago, Wu Shengjun launched an attack on Shu Liesu's army.
After the defeat outside Bianliang City, hundreds of thousands of troops were dispersed and then gathered again. The Wu Sheng Army under Chen Yanshu managed to gather more than 50,000 people, which was the largest among many armies.
Along the way north, Chen Yanshu not only asked for help from the rear, but also summoned the surrounding Xiang troops and rebels in the name of the imperial court. When Zong Han stationed troops in Taiyuan, he carried out certain raids and plunders on the southern line of Taiyuan. Later, Zong Wang's
The crossing of the army also disrupted the defense arrangements in these places. However, the arrival of Wu Shengjun and the issuance of the order still brought about a lot of responses and calls. The result of this call was in the south of Taiyuan City, when Chen Yanshu finally decided to attack
When Shu Liesu launched the attack, the size of the entire army had reached 70,000.
And the problems therein are quite serious.
Among the 50,000 troops brought from Bianliang, escapes occurred every day. He had to use high-pressure methods to improve military discipline. Although the rebels gathered from all directions were passionate, they were in a mess, with mixed organization and uneven equipment.
On the surface, people came here every day to respond to the call to break the siege of Taiyuan, but the internal chaos of Wu Sheng's army was already extremely chaotic.
But he didn't have many options. As the orders from the rear became more and more determined, on the morning of the 21st, he still forced the army to launch an attack.
The army, which was as immovable as a mountain, disintegrated like sand in the rain in the spring rain that followed.
When the Jurchens swept in, he had no choice but to flee. By the time he got here, he was really exhausted both mentally and physically.
The guards shook his arms and shouted. They saw that half of the face of the imperial court official who was at the head of the army was stained with mud, his eyes were floating in the air emptyly, and his lips were opening and closing.
, as if saying something.
"...it's over...it's over...not the first time..."
"Sir, what did you say!? Sir, wake up... the Jurchens are still behind -"
"...I regret that...it's over..." He waved his hand suddenly and shouted "Ah——", which startled everyone. Then they saw Chen Yanshu drawing his sword and rushing forward, and a guard came to take it.
His sword was almost cut. Chen Yanshu just staggered forward. He turned the sword upside down and put the blade on his neck, as if to pull. He staggered a few steps and held it with both hands.
The hilt of the sword must be used to stab one's heart with the sword's edge. The surrounding area was gloomy, and the rain was falling. In the end, Chen Yanshu did not dare to stab him. He shouted hysterically, knelt on the ground, and shouted to the sky.
"Ah - regret it - it's over -"
The scream was accompanied by a heart-stopping cry.
"It's over... Wu Dynasty is going to be over -"
He finally pierced the long sword through his heart, blood foam gushed out, Chen Yanshu stared, and finally made two cooing sounds. The cry echoed in the air like an ominous prophecy.
No one knew what Chen Yanshu said last here. Soon after, several personal guards chopped off his head and surrendered to the chasing Jurchens.
The war outside Taiyuan City was fierce but calm in the spring rain. In Bianliang City, hundreds of miles away, no one knew the outcome of Wu Sheng's army who went north to rescue. In the past few days, the people in the capital had
The situation is going through twists and turns, like a fire, changing violently.
The court has not yet made a decision to send more troops to Taiyuan. Although Wu Sheng's army has been sent north, the results of the battle outside Bianliang City are obvious to all. Ordinary people may not have the idea, but among many scholars and even officials, they are aware of it every day.
There was a lot of discussion. Taiyuan had not yet fallen, so the discussion became more intense.
Amidst such discussions, petitions by scholars continued every day, either asking for troops to be sent, or asking the country to cheer up, reform the military system, and get rid of traitorous officials. Behind these remarks, I don’t know how many forces are manipulating, and some fierce demands are also
It was brewing and fermenting. For example, Chen Dong, one of the leaders of private opinion who has always been bold in speaking out, petitioned outside the imperial city to punish the "Seven Tigers" in the court.
These "Seven Tigers" include: Cai Jing, Liang Shicheng, Li Yan, Zhu Meng, Wang Fu, Tong Guan, and Qin Siyuan.
"What happened today is that Cai Jing caused chaos in the front, and Liang Shicheng conspired in the back. Li Yan made enemies in the northwest, Zhu Meng made enemies in the southeast, Wang Fu, Tong Guan, and Qin Siyuan also made enemies in the Liao and Jin Dynasties, creating a gap. It is appropriate to punish them.
These seven tigers will spread to all directions to thank the world!"
This is probably what the theory of the Seven Tigers means.
Qin Siyuan was a new addition among these treacherous ministers. Since assisting Li Gang, Qin Siyuan has implemented mostly harsh policies, which offended many people. In the battle to defend Bianliang, the imperial court called for the defense of the city, and every household sent people to guard the city.
, stalls, all were operated by the Right Prime Minister's Office. During this period, there were many things that used power to bully others. Similar to some petty officials who had the power to arrest people and go to the battlefield, they raped people's wives and daughters. Many of them were later exposed.
After the people who defended the city died, Qin Siyuan ordered all the corpses to be burned. This was also a big problem. Later, during the negotiations with the Jurchens, the delivery of grain and medicinal herbs was all under the leadership of the Right Prime Minister's Office.
In the past, Qin Siyuan's reputation among the people was at best that of a cruel official. Due to deliberate efforts in recent times, even if there are Zhu Ji to excuse him, negative comments about Qin Siyuan are still rampant. The main reason for this is: compared to saying that
Ordinary people prefer to scold someone for good words, not to mention that Qin Siyuan did do a lot of things that went against his country's wishes.
Among the three heroes who defended the city of Bianliang, Li Gang, Zhong Shidao, and Qin Siyuan, if people have to find a villain, there is no doubt that Qin Siyuan is the most qualified.
Following the clues, we can see that there are various forces behind these remarks, and they are related to the daily changes in the court situation: a few days ago, Qin Siyuan had already claimed illness and asked to go, but along with it, more and more people gradually
The criticism and impeachment of Qin Siyuan were initially based on rumors. For example, it was said that Qin Siyuan delivered food and grass to the Jurchens, which caused public resentment. This was purely a provocation. Qin Siyuan was responsible, and he had to issue orders from above. The first few people
After he was imprisoned, the subsequent reports became more and more real.
For example, some of Qin Siyuan's expedient measures in the appointment of Right Prime Minister, and the fact that he once opened the back door for the military pay of Wurui Camp, and the black hands against so and so. Zhou Zhe tried his best to protect Qin Siyuan and threw these people into prison one by one.
It was not until the number of people increased that he stopped and reprimanded him. However, at the same time, he regarded Qin Siyuan's claim of illness as an expedient to avoid suspicion and said: "I absolutely trust the Prime Minister, and you don't have to worry. I will return the favor on my own."
You are innocent!" He refuted Qin Siyuan's request.
Later, Qin Hui took the lead in writing a letter, arguing that although the right prime minister was innocent and selfless, according to the usual practice, with so many people participating in the impeachment, the three courts should still try it together to clear the right prime minister. Zhou Zhe refuted again: "The Jurchens have just left, and the right prime minister is still here.
As a meritorious official of the city, I have done this even though I have not yet been rewarded for my merits. Wouldn’t it make people think that I am a bird that hides behind its bow, and a rabbit that dies and a dog is cooked? Naturally, I can trust the right prime minister, and I will never mention this matter again!"
These public appearances could not hide the thunder brewing secretly. On Ning Yi's side, some merchants related to Zhuji also began to come to inquire or test. Secretly, various rumors were spreading. Since the goods on hand were
After handing the things over to Qin Siyuan, Ning Yi's attention has returned to Zhuji, making a lot of internal adjustments. As he and Hongti said, if the right prime minister loses power, Zhuji and the secret detective department will
You must separate immediately and cut off the tail to survive, otherwise once the official forces take over, the little thing you have will inevitably become someone else's wedding dress.
He has been working on the core of Bamboo Records for a long time, so naturally he still wants it.
Of course, such a split has not yet come, and the people in the court have already shown an aggressive posture, but Qin Siyuan's retreat and silence may not be a strategy. Perhaps after the emperor fought for a while, he found that he really did not fight back, and it can be considered that he did
There was no selfish intention. On the other hand, the old man also locked up Qin Shaoqian in the mansion, preventing him from controlling Wurui Camp anymore, and just waited for the emperor to find someone to take over - there was nothing he could do about it.
However, Taiyuan is boiling in a real fire. The second young master Qin, who is blind in one eye, is anxious in the courtyard every day. He practices boxing all day long and his hands are covered with blood. He is no longer a young man. What happened?
, he understood it, and because he understood it, the torment in his heart was even worse. One day, Ning Yi went over and talked to Qin Shaoqian. Qin Shaoqian's hands were bloody and he didn't bandage them. He spoke calmly and chatted with Ning Yi for a while, and then
Ning Yi saw him become silent, his hands clenched into fists and his teeth chattering.
"Li Heng, the fighting is still going on in Taiyuan!" He saw Qin Shaoqian raise his head, his eyes were bloodshot and the veins on his forehead were running, "Brother is still in the city, the fighting is still going on in Taiyuan. I don't want to give in..."
Ning Yi was silent for a moment and choked out: "I have sent someone to rescue him."
Qin Shaoqian gritted his teeth and trembled all over his body. He stopped after a long time.
After coming out of the Prime Minister's Mansion, he had nothing to do on the surface, except communicating with some big business owners. In the past few days, another relative came over, and that was Song Yongping.
This brother-in-law, who came from an official family, had previously been selected as a candidate. Later, with the help of Ning Yi, he was assigned to a good county as the county magistrate. When the Jurchens came south, a Jurchen cavalry team once raided his county.
, Song Yongping had carefully explored the nearby terrain before. Later, the newborn calves were not afraid of tigers, and actually used the terrain near the county to repel the Jurchens, killing dozens of people and taking some war horses. When the war first stopped to determine the merits, the right minister
The First Department held real power and conveniently rewarded him with great achievements. Naturally, Ning Yi did not know about this. At this time, Song Yongping went to Beijing to be promoted. Who knew that as soon as he entered the city, he discovered that the situation in Beijing was changing and the rain was about to begin.
Come.
Song Yongping was somewhat mature at this time. Although he heard some bad rumors, he still came to Zhuji, visited Ning Yi, and then lived in Zhuji.
After all, he didn't know much about the whole situation. He had chatted with Ning Yi in the past few days, and mostly talked with Su Wenfang. Previously, Song Yongping was the phoenix child of the Song family. Compared with the incompetent children like Su Wenfang of the Su family,
He didn't know how many times he had become smarter, but when they met this time, he realized that this cousin of the Su family had become mature and steady, to the extent that even he, who was the county magistrate, couldn't understand. He occasionally asked questions
However, Su Wenfang just smiled modestly when talking about ways to rescue the officialdom.
"The matter can be big or small...my brother-in-law should be able to find a solution."
"It's useless for me to worry about it."
Every time Su Wenfang said this, Song Yongping felt a little anxious. He was also a high-spirited scholar, and his ultimate goal was to become a prime minister-like figure in the temple. He felt that even though he was young, he might be able to find a way to help people out of trouble.
After working hard for the past few days, at noon at the end of February, when I met Ning Yi and Su Wenfang for dinner, I began to inquire carefully about the key points.
"As the saying goes, one person is short-term and two people are long-term. I was born in an official family since I was a child. I have been exposed to it every day. I also know a thing or two about the affairs of the court. I came here this time and heard what happened before me. I am really worried about this specific situation.
, I don’t know how serious it is, but I hope my brother-in-law will not hesitate to tell me that although I am not talented, my father still has some connections in the court. Although I cannot get involved in the affairs of the prime minister, if my brother-in-law wants to get out of these business affairs, there may be a way..."
He was so enthusiastic that Ning Yi couldn't refuse. He nodded and thought about it, then picked up some things he could say and roughly said them. During this period, Song Yongping asked a few questions, and Ning Yi also answered. He wanted to reassure Song Yongping.
It was impossible to tell the other party everything about the situation, such as the game between the emperor and the prime minister, the participation of Cai Jing and Tong Guan, etc. After only talking for a moment, there was a sudden sound of commotion in front of Zhuji, and the three of them got up and walked out.
, and then someone came over to report that someone was causing trouble ahead.
"Who is it?"
"Some gangsters, it seems that the Taiwei Mansion is behind the scenes."
The members of Zhuji who stayed in Beijing at this time have also been tested for a long time. When they came to report, they had already figured out the situation. Ning Yi and Su Wenfang looked at each other and went out from the side door. When they got to the road, they saw that the restaurant in front of Zhuji had already begun.
It was smashed.
Song Yongping frowned: "The Taiwei Mansion dares to cause trouble on the stage. Are you afraid of breaking up? The matter has become so serious."
Ning Yi looked around and saw Gao Muen's figure in the upstairs room across the street.
"Master, what should I do?" asked the member of Bamboo Records.
"Don't hit him head-on." Song Yongping said from the side, and then lowered his voice, "Lieutenant Gao has the post of commander in front of the palace, and hitting him head-on in Bianliang will only play into his hands. Since the other party called the gangster, we might as well retaliate.
The official is."
The Zhuji guy was waiting for Ning Yi's statement. Ning Yi nodded: "Let them smash it, but there is no need to report it to the official. Let them go."
Song Yongping was stunned for a moment, then nodded and said: "Indeed, if it is reported to the official, it may not be unreasonable for the other party to say that it is groundless, and it is also troublesome..."
He was a smart man and understood everything he said. Ning Yi also nodded slightly in approval. He looked at the Zhuji Restaurant and whispered to the waiter: "Go and let everyone come out and stay away to avoid getting hurt."
.”
Having been bullied to this extent in Beijing, Song Yongping and Su Wenfang couldn't help but feel depressed. Looking at the restaurant not far away, it seemed to Song Yongping that Ning Yi must be feeling the same. At this time, there was a team on the other side of the road.
The yamen servant came over and quickly rushed towards the Zhuji Building.
Song Yongping only thought that this was the opponent's back-up plan, and frowned even more. He heard someone shouting over there: "Arrest the troublemaker!" The troublemaker seemed to want to defend himself, and then he was beaten hard.
, when someone was dragged out, Song Yongping realized that these government officials were actually attacking the troublemakers. He then saw other people rushing across the street and going upstairs to get the person. A voice came from the building:
"What are you doing! My father is Gao Qiu - who are you -" It was Gao Mu'en who was captured.
Song Yongping and others looked confused. On the other side of the road, a middle-aged man in black robe walked towards this side. He first bowed his hand to Ning Yi, and then also bowed his hand to Song Yongping and Su Wenfang. Ning Yi bowed his hand.
With courtesy, the other party took a step closer and whispered something.
"I am Cai Qi, the steward of the Grand Master's Mansion. Grand Master Cai invites you to come over and have a chat with me."
His words were not high-pitched, and Song Yongping could not hear clearly. Ning Yi said: "Now?"
The other party nodded and stretched out his hand to indicate that a carriage was coming from the other end of the road. Ning Yi nodded, looked at Song Yongping and Su Wenfang, and said, "You guys eat first. I'll go out." After that, he walked over there.
.
Su Wenfang frowned, but Song Yongping was a little excited. He tugged on Su Wenfang's clothes: "Master Cai, it seems that Master Cai also values his brother-in-law's talent and learning. Now things have turned around. Even if something happens, he can still have his way..."
Su Wenfang did not speak. At this moment, a galloping horse rushed past. The rider on the horse seemed to be wearing Zhuji's clothes.
The galloping horse was restrained hard by the knight beside Ning Yi, which shocked everyone. Then they saw the knight on the horse turned over and gave Ning Yi a small paper tube. Ning Yi took out the letter inside, opened it and read it
Take a look.
The long street is in chaos. The gangsters who were escorted out are still struggling. As they move forward, Gao Muen is making a lot of noise over there. The onlookers are pointing and buzzing, buzzing, buzzing, buzzing...
Ning Yi stood by the carriage and looked at the message in his hand. After a long time, he raised his head.
"...Mr. Ning, Mr. Ning?"
The middle-aged man in black robe was talking next to him. Ning Yi slowly turned his face and looked at him. His eyes were as deep as the abyss, ready to swallow people up. The next moment, he seemed to say unconsciously:
"Um?"
Then he said: "...Hmm."
He rolled up the letter and got into the carriage.
When I opened the curtain, there was a strong wind.
An era has passed...
On February 25th, Taiyuan fell. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian () to vote for recommendations and monthly votes. Your support is my biggest motivation. Mobile phone users please go to m. to read