At three o'clock in the afternoon, the south gate of Xuanfu Town opened wide, and eight thousand cavalry and infantry slowly left the city, followed by nearly a hundred vehicles of grain, grass and baggage.
Chang Yu's pay team has also gathered and is waiting at the city gate to set off. Wang Chengyin and a group of military and political leaders in the city came to see him off. Of course, among them was the governor Zhu Zhifeng. He and Chang Yu didn't speak anymore, only looked at each other.
Communicate and understand each other's thoughts.
"Commander Wang, see you later." Chang Yu didn't like to talk to this person, and he was not good at dealing with people in the officialdom. He just clasped his fists, turned around and got in the car, unlike Wu Mengming, an old man who was still chatting with everyone.
Pull.
Since Wang Chengyin heard that Chang Yu was from Dongchang, his attitude was much more cautious and respectful than before, and he also wanted to send him away like the god of plague.
As for the remaining 600,000 to 70,000 yuan that Chang Yu owed, he had already paid it. Although he knew that there was not much left in the hands of the soldiers after layers of exploitation, but at this moment, he had no better way. He had no choice but to do it, and he couldn't really do it.
Let's wait until those subordinate soldiers are transferred back to Xuan Mansion and paid in person.
Moreover, he also knew that the reason why Wang Chengyin always pushed back was intentional, and he did not want him to pay in person. As for his previous request to wait for tomorrow, the local soldiers should not move, but because he knew that he was in a hurry to leave and could not wait.
It was done on purpose. To put it simply, it was all a fucking routine. What's annoying is that you clearly saw through it and still had to be tricked by him.
That's why Chang Yu didn't bother to talk to him.
Half an hour later, the team had all left the city. The leading general was a general named He Chengxin. He was about thirty years old, of medium build. He had a cold face and was not fond of words, but he was still respectful to Chang Yu.
"This place is more than four hundred miles away from Datong. It can be reached in a day and a half at the fastest. If you lead the troops and arrive at our house within two days, we will reward you a hundred taels of silver. Each soldier will be rewarded two taels of silver. It is more than 600 miles from Datong to Taiyuan. You
If you reach 500 taels of silver within three days, I will reward you with 500 taels of silver for each soldier." Chang Yu said to He Chengxin when they set off.
Without saying a word, He Chengxin immediately issued the order: "March in a hurry." He no longer cared about whether the food and grass baggage would hold us back.
To go from Xuanfu to Datong, you must first go west through Zhangjiakou, then turn southwest to Huai'an. From Yanghe Prefecture (today's Yanggao County) to Datong, almost all the roads you pass are mountain roads, and the entire journey passes through the Taihang Mountains. This also makes Chang
Yu felt worried in his heart.
No matter how fast the army was, it could not be faster than Chang Yu's cavalry convoy. By the time they reached Zhangjiakou, He Chengxin's car taillights could not be seen from a few miles away, and it was already dark.
Zhangjiakou, a prefecture-level city in Hebei in later generations, was under the rule of Shuntian Prefecture at this time. Its geographical location is extremely special. Simply put, it is the gate of the country in this era. Because it is connected with Mongolia, Manchu and Qing Dynasties, it is also a big trading city, and of course it is also an important gateway.
, the so-called west exit refers to Zhangjiakou.
Chang Yu's team paused to rest in the southwest of Zhangjiakou. The servants made a fire to cook, and the soldiers rested to feed their horses. In fact, it was nearly 80 miles from Xuanhua to Zhangjiakou. It was a very fast trip in one go. Maybe it was because they had unloaded a lot of money.
Maybe it’s because the road is relatively flat, but this speed is always the fastest since starting from the capital.
Looking at the dark Zhangjiakou in the distance, Chang Yu leaned on the carriage and bit into a piece of meat, and suddenly said to Wu Mengming beside him: "Master Wu, have you ever heard of Fan Yongdou?"
Wu Mengming squinted his eyes and pondered for a while, as if he had heard it before, but couldn't remember it for a moment. As he spoke, he followed Chang Yu's eyes and looked at Zhangjiakou City, and he suddenly realized: "Eunuch Chang was talking about the person who 'Jia Yu lives in the border town, with faith'
Zhangjiakou rich man Fan Yongdou!"
Chang Yu sneered and looked into the distance: "He is not only the richest man in Zhangjiakou, but also the richest man in Shanxi."
Seeing Chang Yu's cold eyes, Wu Mengming was a little puzzled: "Eunuch Chang knows this person very well?"
Of course I understand. How could Chang Yu, the leader of the eight imperial merchants who collaborated with the enemy and betray the country, not know that these traitorous businessmen smuggled all kinds of contraband and spied on intelligence for the Manchu Qing Dynasty? It can be said that the Manchu Qing Dynasty settled in the Central Plains, and these profiteers made great contributions.
Fan Yongdou, Fan Yongdou, Wang Dengku, Jin Liangyu, Wang Dayu, Liang Jiabin, Tian Shenglan, Zhai Tang, Huang Yunfa, these eight were later personally received by Emperor Shunzhi and named emperor merchants. At this time, they were known to the Zhang family, but most people in the world knew them as wealthy merchants. Few people know his identity as a smuggler who collaborated with the enemy.
Then again, there were too many merchants smuggling and collaborating with the enemy at this time. These eight businesses were just big ones and became representatives. These merchants were not the only ones smuggling at that time. The border guards smuggled and sold military products, which was not surprising to Manchuria and Mongolia. Strange, as I said before, the Ming Dynasty was rotten to the core at this time.
If you ask how rich Fan Yongdou is, he is worth tens of millions! At this time, during the Kangxi and Qianlong years of the Qing Dynasty, the eight major Shanxi merchants, Qiao, Chang, Cao, Hou, Qu, Kang, and Kong, except for the Kang family, were on par with him. Outside (the Fan family was also one of the eight Shanxi merchants in Shanxi during the Qing Dynasty) the Qu family was only a well-off family, and the rest of the family had not yet made a fortune or even been born. For example, the most famous Qiao family compound, Qiao Guifa, the founder of the Qiao family, was not even a tadpole at this time. No, because he made his fortune from a beggar bachelor to the west entrance during the Qianlong period.
"Our family only knows that he is very rich, and we really want to get some money from him," Chang Yu replied to Wu Mengming with a slight smile.
As expected, the guy's eyes immediately lit up: "Eunuch Chang, is there any way to get money from the Fan family?"
"Yes, but the time has not come yet," Chang Yu replied with a half-smile, which made Wu Mengming, a money-grubber, a little anxious: "What can I do? Cough cough cough, Eunuch Chang, I mean, cough cough cough!"
"Don't worry, Mr. Wu, how can we not bring you along for such a good thing as making money? There is a saying that everyone makes money. Only by joining forces can we get more money." He said with a slight sigh: " It’s just that the time hasn’t come yet.”
"Then, when is the good time?" Wu Mengming rubbed his hands in excitement when Chang Yu said that he would bring him along to make money together.
If the rebel army really breaks through Taiyuan, after Datong, the time will come. At that time, I will rob the Fan family even if it is an open robbery. Chang Yu secretly swore in his heart that of course he could not say this to Wu Mengming, but just patted him lightly. He touched his shoulder: "You will know when you get to Taiyuan!"
Ah, Wu Mengming was startled when he heard this: "Aren't we going to Datong with pay and then returning? Why do we have to go to Taiyuan?"
Chang Yu chuckled: "Our family has a secret, so we need to go to Taiyuan for a trip. Sir Wu, would you like to accompany our family for a trip!"
Well, Wu Mengming was a little confused. The rebel army was in Pingyang Mansion at this time. The imperial court dispatched troops to Taiyuan, which meant that Taiyuan would be in trouble soon. It was a dangerous place.
"As the old saying goes, the timid will starve to death and the bold will die. Mr. Wu, you..." Chang Yu just wanted to provoke him.
Unexpectedly, Wu Mengming immediately interrupted him: "How dare you refuse to accept the invitation from Eunuch Chang? I will accompany you through the mountains and seas of fire, but you have to say hello to the emperor when you come back!"
Damn it! Chang Yu secretly cursed in his heart. He was obviously a greedy man, but he still pretended to be so righteous. However, his face showed gratitude: "Master Wu is loyal, and I, Chang Yu, have accepted this kindness. Our family knows how to speak to the Emperor."
Hehe, Wu Mengming smiled, and then asked in a low voice: "Eunuch Chang, is there a fisherman in Taiyuan?"
"Incalculable"
Wu Mengming was immediately stunned.
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