It's late at night, and wherever there's carnival there's loneliness.
The temperature in Beijing has dropped sharply recently. It gets even colder at night. It’s not surprising that dripping water turns to ice and breathing turns to frost. Simply put, it’s extremely cold. Many refugees in the city have frozen to death during these days.
In Huangzhai in the east of the city, a young girl tossed and turned and couldn't fall asleep, not because of the cold weather, but because she had someone in her heart.
In the imperial city, many eunuchs and maids poured out of the grass farm opposite the Royal Horse Prison. Although the weather was cold, their enthusiasm did not diminish. They were still discussing the intense discussion just now. Those who made money were elated, and those who lost money secretly slapped their faces. Why did they make mistakes? .
The lights in the imperial palace Qianqing Palace were still bright, and it was impossible for the diligent Emperor Chongzhen to sleep at this time.
At the same time, several fast horses outside Yanmen Pass were galloping in the valley against the wind and snow...
At the south gate of Taiyuan, Chang Yu opened the door with a loud shout, without even showing his badge. It was not that the security was too lax, but that it was too strict, because Zhou Yuji spent the night on the tower.
Although it was late at night, Zhou Yuji had not yet fallen asleep. There was a simple sand table set up in the hall on the first floor of the attic. This was the terrain around Taiyuan. He turned on the light and sat next to the sand table, frowning, and looking up at the dark night sky outside from time to time. Why hasn't he come back yet? Nothing will happen to him.
Such thoughts really brought Chang Yu over, and the attendant told him that someone was calling at the door, claiming to be the factory supervisor. He immediately walked out of the tower, looked down, confirmed his identity, and let Chang Yu into the city.
Chang Yu brushed off the wind and snow on his body, entered the tower, and immediately walked to the brazier to keep warm while breathing.
"The factory...is Eunuch Chang's trip going well?" Zhou Yuji quickly made a cup of hot tea and brought it over.
Chang Yu reached out and took it: "We encountered a problem, but we solved it, and overall it went smoothly." He said with a smile. Zhou Yuji thought to himself, listening to what he said, it seems that this trip has gained a lot, but after all, doing It was a shady and dirty job, and it was hard for him to ask in detail.
"Why are you still awake now?" Chang Yu turned his head and glanced at the sand table in the middle. It was the first time he saw it, but it was not the first time he heard that the sand table existed as early as the Eastern Han Dynasty. It was a satellite image of the army marching and fighting. .
"The last general is still thinking about how to turn Taiyuan into a copper and iron wall." Zhou Yuji said with a serious face, "Once the bandit army breaks through the Jiaocheng defense line and falls, the army will approach the city, Taiyuan will be in a tight situation. How to stop the thieves will be a headache." He turned and glanced at Chang Yu: "Eunuch Chang, do you have any good suggestions?"
Chang Yu shook his head gently: "Not today, because our family just wants to sleep and have a good sleep!" He was really too sleepy.
The three-story tower of the South Gate has been cleaned up long ago. The first floor is the command center, and the second and third floors are rest rooms. There are braziers and dozens of soft caves for the soldiers on duty to rest.
Chang Yu had earlier ordered that, except for the generals who were assigned to be on duty in the barracks, all guerrillas (equivalent to brigade commanders) and above must stay overnight in the tower without orders.
However, because Taiyuan is a big city with eight gates, and each gate has its own gate, these generals spent the night at the gates on duty, which made Chang Yu's command center seem extremely empty. Only he, Zhou Yuji and a few followers Attendant.
Chang Yu was so sleepy that he fell asleep.
When I woke up, I opened my eyes in a daze. I didn't know the time, but I could only feel that the sky outside was misty. I turned around and took a look. He was sleeping on the third floor, and there was no one around him.
Rubbing his eyes, Chang Yu walked to the window and looked outside. He saw that the snow had stopped, but the wind was still blowing, making people feel cold.
There were many people walking outside the city, but more people came in and fewer people came out. Looking at the steady flow of people in the distance, he knew that the people of Jiaocheng had arrived.
As soon as they got off the second floor, Chunxiang and Jiang Quan, who were warming themselves in a brazier, hurriedly said, "Brother, get up and I'll get you some water."
Chang Yu hummed and then asked: "What time is it now?"
"It's just after noon, I'll get you something to eat," Jiang Quan said and walked down.
After greeting several other attendants, Chunxiang brought some water and Chang Yu asked while washing, "Where is Mr. Zhou?"
"They are all downstairs, including the governor and prefect. A large group of people are discussing matters downstairs," Chunxiang said.
Chang Yu finished washing and walked straight down. He saw Zhou Yuji, Cai Maode, Sun Kangzhou, Ying Shisheng and other generals gathered together to discuss matters. When Chang Yu came down, everyone hurriedly got up to greet him.
"You're busy, don't worry about me." Chang Yu waved his hand, signaling everyone to continue, and then walked to the east side room, which was already used as the kitchen.
"Eunuch Chang" Zhou Yuji stopped him: "The imperial edict arrived early in the morning, it's yours!"
Huh? Chang Yu raised his eyebrows: "Where is it?"
"The father-in-law who delivered the order heard that you were working late and went to bed late, so he went to the inn and said that it would not be too late to wait until you wake up to receive the order." When Zhou Yuji said this, the people next to him had the same mentality as him, and the factory supervisor was awesome
ah.
The emperor's edict must be received when it arrives, regardless of whether you are eating shit or shit, but when you get to him, you have to wait. Sure enough, he is a power eunuch, which shows that he is usually domineering, but if you think about it carefully, this little eunuch seems to appear out of thin air.
Likewise, the name is unfamiliar to him, let alone his domineering deeds, which is also strange.
"Oh, let him come over," Chang Yu said, then turned around and entered the east side room, closing the door behind him. Inside, Jiang Quanzheng and a eunuch were getting him food.
Following the local customs, Jiang Quan prepared steamed buns and mutton soup for Chang Yu. He also loved drinking this stuff, which is a great tonic and warm-up in winter.
Chang Yu kept eating in his mouth while listening to the conversation between Zhou Yuji, Cai Maode and others.
Zhou Yuji has sent two thousand vanguard troops to each of Jiaocheng and Qixian to form a defense line, snipe the other side's spies and small groups of troops, and assist the two places in clearing the country.
As the governor, Cai Maode is in charge of military and civil affairs. Military affairs have been authorized by Chang Yu to Zhou Yuji. He is in charge of civil affairs. Then the problem arises. Qixian and Jiaocheng have to be cleared, and the fleeing people will naturally enter Taiyuan City. In addition, as the thieves follow
The army moved north, and the defense line retreated. The people of Taigu County in the east and Qingxu County in the west had to flee here. It was definitely not a small matter to have tens of thousands of people rushing in at once.
How to relocate them, how to prevent chaos, and how to fill these tens of thousands of mouths are all urgent matters that lie before us.
"Taiyuan City is vast and there are many open spaces in the city. The refugees can be accommodated in a designated area, but what to do with the tens of thousands of mouths? There is not much food and grass left in the city, and the supply army is already stretched to last seven days. What will be given to them to eat?" said the prefect.
Sun Kangzhou frowned: "But if we don't give them food, those refugees will rebel, and they will become tens of thousands of thieves in the blink of an eye."
This is a very serious issue. Everyone agreed deeply and all eyes were fixed on Zhou Yuji.
Zhou Yuji muttered in his heart, it’s all up to you to see what I do. I’m not in charge of food and civil affairs, so he looked at Cai Maode and said, “Master Governor, please take a look at this...”
Cai Maode was startled. Damn, you kicked me. He sighed: "Tens of thousands of refugees entering the city is by no means a trivial matter. Apart from food rations, other things are not easy to worry about. It's cold and freezing. How to resettle them is not just a matter of dividing blocks."
An open space is fine, but we can't let them lie there in the wind and snow. They can freeze to death overnight, and keeping warm is a headache. There are tens of thousands of people entering the city, and the good and the bad are mixed. Public security is also a top priority.
It is inevitable that there will be thieves and spies among them..."
"Sir, it's about food and grass matters." Zhou Yuji saw the old guy talking endlessly. Although he was talking about embarrassing things, why didn't he answer the question directly, so he started to remind him.
Um... Cai Maode was helpless, a little embarrassed, and coughed lightly: "Didn't the Factory Supervisor say yesterday that Datong has enough grain and grass and is transporting it to Taiyuan. This should not be a big problem. This... I should ask the Factory Supervisor.
, it seems that he once said that he was responsible..."
So everyone's eyes turned to the east side room in unison.
With a creak, Chang Yu opened the door and walked out. He stretched out his hand to wipe his mouth, found a chair and sat down. He glanced at everyone and said, "We've provided the food and grass."
Cai Maode and Sun Kangzhou took a long breath and looked at Zhou Yuji. Their faces could not hide the joy.
"Factory Supervisor, it's a matter of salary..." the deputy general soldier said at the time, but he didn't have much confidence.
"Our family is done," Chang Yu said and stretched out his hand. Zhou Yuji immediately understood, then rummaged through the table and took out a piece of paper and handed it to Chang Yu.
Sixty-seven thousand and forty-six soldiers, thirty-six thousand and twenty horses, swords... This is a detailed statistical table of Taiyuan's military strength and military resources.
Chang Yu sighed slightly. Taiyuan was said to have a hundred thousand people at this time, but the water content was as high as 40%! Shocking!