It is said that the bandits waited all night but did not rob the camp. They realized that the news was wrong after dawn. Because everyone was tired, the bandit leader had no choice but to rest for half a day. The bandits had just fallen asleep for less than an hour when they heard roars and gunshots.
In the rain, there was a sentry of men and horses coming from behind. The city gate was opened wide, and a group of men and horses came out of the city. Not only were they armed with muskets, but they also pulled artillery. The bandit soldiers were immediately attacked from both sides, and many people lost their lives while still sleeping. They were originally
They were pieced together. Seeing that the situation was not good, several small bandit leaders fled with their own followers. Many of the bandits in Xu Qi's camp also scattered in all directions. The big leader wanted to gather his followers to fight with the officers and soldiers, but the officers and soldiers of both front and rear groups were unable to do so.
There were firearms, and the battle was not a fight at all, but a massacre. When things got to this point, the gold and silver beauties in the city didn't care anymore, and fled in defeat.
Outside the west gate of the city, there were only piles of corpses and bones, the smell of blood was thick, and the smoke was thick. The battle came and went quickly, and it only took one day from beginning to end. Jia Cong stood on the city gate tower and looked down, feeling that he was half dead from exhaustion.
Putting his head on his wife's shoulder: "I finally understand what it means to live like a year. It's really uncomfortable to be pressed down and beaten." Chen Ruijin heard it funny, turned his hand and rubbed the back of his head. On the other hand, Yang Guotai and the man who came to reinforce
The soldiers and generals of the government met and exchanged greetings with each other. The soldiers had already lost their voices from shouting, but they still sang "Wuyi" with great energy, and the sky was brightened by their singing.
Jia Cong turned around and looked at Du Min'an, clasped his fists and said, "Thank you very much, Mr. Du. Without you, we wouldn't have been able to win so happily. It's just hard to say how loyal your son is to the enemy. We have to put it to trial."
Du Min'an also clasped his fists: "I hope Mr. Su will see clearly." Then he said with regret, "I just watched for a while, and I didn't go down to kill the enemy, so what does it have to do with me."
Jia Cong smiled and said: "If you hadn't brought Li Erlang here, the bandits wouldn't be so tired in today's battle. If they hadn't been so tired, we wouldn't have won so happily. You know, they originally planned to attack the city overnight."
Du Minan was stunned: "What did Mr. Jia say?"
Chen Ruijin said from the sidelines: "Li Erlang is the work of a thief." Du Min'an was stunned.
It turned out that Liu Xiaoqi had noticed when Li Erlang stared at Su Tao yesterday. While Yang Guotai was talking to Du Min'an, he returned to the city gate tower and told Jia Cong Zhenming and others about the matter. As for Su Tao, he heard Du Min'an say, "
There was no response to the name "General Yang Guotai". Since Yang Guotai was a criminal who assassinated the late emperor, Jia Cong and others were afraid that Su Tao was too loyal to the emperor and did not tell him the truth. So they deceived him and said that Yang Guotai was a bandit earlier.
The leader, Hou Jinpen, washed his hands and changed his ways. Su Tao then thought that Du Min'an was also a green forest man, so he didn't take it seriously and didn't even give him a look.
Yang Guotai was half-believing and doubtful when he first met Du Min'an. When he went upstairs and exchanged glances with Jia Cong, he knew that these two people were suspicious. Then Li Erlang blatantly inquired about Su Tao and the troops in the city, and he had already become aware of it. Then Li Erlang heard how many of them
They discussed hijacking the camp to earn military merits for Du Min'an to pay for his crime. They believed it was true and ran away under the pretense of delivering a message to Du Min'an. Little did he know that Zhenming had followed him quietly.
As expected, Li Erlang did not go to Du's house. Instead, he went to the back door of a house first, took out the key and unlocked it. Zhenming followed him over the wall and saw that there was a garden inside. Li Erlang went straight to the high-rise building at the corner of the garden. Inside the building
There was no one around, so he wrote the letter with ink, put it in a mailbox, went to the attic, tied it to the pigeon's feet, and let it go. Then he went out through the back door like no one else, locked the door, and rushed to Du's house to deliver the letter.
After dinner, he returned to the city gate tower. Yang Guotai and others performed another play, pretending to be sending out troops at midnight. Li Erlang then sent a second letter.
The bandits initially prepared to attack the city overnight. When they heard that the officers and soldiers were going to rob the camp, they lined up their troops to wait for work. Generally, robber camps were held from the third watch to the fifth watch, so the bandits naturally did not dare to sleep. When the second watch came, they heard again
It was said that he arrived just after midnight, but there was not enough time to take a nap now. Besides, what if the Taiwanese general sent troops early? So Baba waited all night.
On the other end, the government soldiers who were suppressing bandits in Wugong Mountain received a message from the soldiers of the special battalion and rushed to the aid of Nanchang Prefecture at starry night. After Yang Guotai and others made a plan, they sent another scout to block the official road to Wugong Mountain from a distance. Leaving Nanchang
When the government was still twenty miles away, the soldiers who were suppressing the bandits were stopped, and they camped on the spot and slept for two or three hours to recharge their batteries. After daybreak, the bandits found that no one was hijacking the camp, so they reorganized and rested.
The officers and soldiers inside Toucheng and outside the city had already contacted each other, and they agreed on a time to attack from inside and outside to achieve this great victory. Yang Guotai looked at the soldiers around him, then at General Zhenming Qi and others, and suddenly looked up to the sky and laughed. The laughter was hearty.
The dripping water went up to the sky, and others couldn't help but laugh along with it.
When the soldiers and generals entered the city in triumph, the common people who heard the news lined the streets and cheered, setting off firecrackers and beating gongs and drums. Those who didn't have gongs and drums banged on the pots and pans to create a lively atmosphere. When they returned to the prefect's Yamen, Su Tao greeted him in person with red eyes.
Outside the gate, he choked and said: "On behalf of the people in the city, I would like to express my gratitude to all the soldiers." He held a large bowl in both hands and sent it to Yang Guotai. Yang Guotai took it and drank it all in one gulp, and everyone cheered in unison. Then he sang praises and thanked the gods and Buddhas.
No need to go into details. The prefect was busy issuing notices to calm the people and recruiting civilians to clean up the corpses outside the city gate. It was spring now, and the corpses had to be burned as soon as possible, otherwise the plague would easily spread. After all, the prefect was rich and would not hesitate to use clear oil.
To support combustion, it was a combination of circumstances that caused the price of oil to rise in the city. This is a story for another time.
In this defense of the city, Yang Guotai was the most important contributor, and he was showered with compliments. After socializing for a while, he took the opportunity to sneak from the government office lobby to the back and asked a government official to invite Du Min'an over. Du Min'an followed the crowd and walked from the city gate.
He came, feeling distracted, so he followed the yamen servant to a small wing at the back of the yamen. This place was originally a place for storing sundries, and some large objects such as tables, chairs, screens, etc. were thrown away. Yang Guotai had already dug out two chairs, wiped them clean with his sleeves, and put them away.
In the room, he took a seat first. Du Minan entered the room, took a look, and sat opposite Yang Guotai.
Yang Guotai looked at him and said solemnly: "I have known you for so many years, and I see that you are not a person who would play with his wife's innocence. Mr. Jia also felt that Li Erlang was a trickster, and you asked him to coax him into using it as a cover.
Yesterday, someone went to your house to inquire. It was true that my sister-in-law was almost raped by a thief. Now she doesn't even dare to leave the house and has lost three times. Therefore, everyone believed you at first."
Du Min'an was silent for a long time, then leaned on the back of his chair and said slowly: "Why did brother become suspicious?"
"It's the suspicion raised by Taoist Master Zhenming. Your son is still in prison. Yesterday we discussed getting you a meritorious service, but you didn't mention your son at all. The old Taoist priest has lived for such a long time and has seen a lot of people and the world. He
Tao, if you are an ordinary person, no matter what, you should say something like, 'If you get lucky, it will only make the mistake of a dog'. Even if it is useless to say it, because you are thinking about your parents and children, you can't avoid saying it."
Du Min'an said with a smile: "How do you say this? Brother, you are the general who defends the city. My son is in jail because of a misunderstanding. Is it possible that Mr. Su still unjustly accuses him?"
Yang Guotai shook his head and said: "You haven't taken refuge with Mr. Su yet. You should not know the situation of the people in the government office, so you will inevitably be afraid and suspicious. Now you are not afraid because you know that although Jia Cong has no official position, he has great authority. And his nature
He is unruly, loves talents and is passionate, so he will definitely try to exonerate my disciples."
Du Minan was stunned for a long time: "I still don't understand what you mean."
Yang Guotai let out a long breath: "Just don't understand. Anyway, I only want to ask you one thing. I have known you for so many years, from following the general to wandering in the green forest... It's been decades. My surname is Yang.
I am worthy of you and worthy of your whole family. What is the reason that makes you two ignore the friendship of many years and want to kill me." Then he raised his eyes and looked at him. Du Min'an was speechless for a long time. Yang Guotai said again.
Du Min'an said, "Have I done anything wrong?" Du Min'an shook his head. Yang Guotai waited for a long time and said, "The general named the two of us Guotai Min'an. We had no choice but to join the banditry in our early years." He shut up.
Du Min'an's mouth slowly turned into a sneer: "General? How did the general die?"
Yang Guotai slapped the armrest and said loudly: "I stabbed Hun Jun and forced him to retreat to the position of Supreme Emperor. I also avenged the general. What did you do?"
Du Min'an also asked loudly: "You stabbed Hunjun? Who arranged for you to go in? Who planned the route for you? Who tempered the poison for your arrows? You escaped with your life with a hole in your body, who helped you heal the injury? Who
To give you work so that you can eat? After a few words of coaxing from a dog officer, you betrayed your employer! You shameless villain! It was my employer who avenged the general, and you were just an errand boy."
Yang Guotai was stunned and didn't know how to answer him for a moment. Jia Cong sighed outside the window: "General Yang, normal people have no words for such brainwashing nonsense." He walked in with his hands behind his hands. Yang Guotai smiled bitterly. Du Min'an
He glanced at Jia Cong indifferently. Jia Cong said with a smile, "Your boss is about the same. He was the late emperor's most trusted envoy of the Imperial Guard, but he secretly took refuge in the third prince and helped the third prince arrange assassins to assassinate the late emperor. Then he worked with the late emperor.
The great eunuch Liu Dengxi, who was extremely favored by his side, worked together to advise the late emperor to depose the crown prince as Prince Yi Zhong and install the third prince on the throne as the new king."
Yang Guotai and Du Minan were both shocked: "What?!"
Jia Cong continued: "As the chief of the secret service stationed by the imperial court in the green forest, after the disappearance of the Supreme Emperor, he simply started business in the green forest and turned into a thief. There is no one else who is so familiar with the road. You have done so many errands in the past, many of them are
It's not convenient for the court to do it openly. You can understand it if you think about it for yourselves." He shrugged, "Actually, he can't be blamed entirely. He originally had a secret official position, but the court was torn apart overnight, and he couldn't even find a master.
"Not to the King of Yan, nor to the little saint. It's better to just join the green forest, it's so much cheaper." Yang Guotai and Du Min'an looked at each other, and Du Min'an immediately looked away. Jia Cong smiled again, "Aren't you curious about why your boss
So powerful, but he was defeated like a mountain in just a few dozen days? Think about when he started to lose?"
Yang Guotai thought: "It starts when you come here."
Jia Cong nodded: "That's right. So he didn't lose to Su Tao, but to me." He took out an object from his arms and handed it to Yang Guotai. Yang Guotai took a look and saw three big characters on it: Jinyiwei
Jia Cong sighed, "Actually, your boss didn't do things in a hurry earlier. He started to be anxious after we came here. Why is he anxious? Because he helped Mr. Su check Zhuzi on the day we arrived.
There are forty-two shops on the street. Of course, this is not the point. The point is that the leader showed Jin Yiwei's waistband to the shopkeeper of Chulongzhai. Your boss was frightened and that's why he panicked." Jia Cong pulled a fake smile from the corner of his mouth, "
How could a person like him not have nails planted by the imperial court around him? We all know what he wants to do in advance and prepare for it early. For example, this time, he did not hesitate to waste tens of thousands of bandits in order to assassinate Mr. Su. As a result, Mr. Su only came to the city
The gatehouse took a stroll and then we were coaxed away."
Du Minan murmured: "I see... no wonder."
Yang Guotai also said in a daze: "He is actually a royal guard... No wonder he knows everything and can avoid being pursued by the court every time."
Jia Cong looked at Yang Guotai and said: "Actually, I hinted at it. I said that Lulin was by no means the opponent of the imperial court and must be under the control of the imperial court. You didn't understand what I meant at all."
Yang Guotai said: "What you said is so vague, how can I understand it?" After a while, he smiled bitterly and said, "So, am I a Jin Yiwei?"
Jia Cong said: "No, you are just hired by Jinyiwei. After all, you are helping the court, so you are not considered a thief." Yang Guotai shook his head blankly. Du Minan sat paralyzed as if the sky had collapsed.
Jia Cong withdrew and quietly called Chen Ruijin, Su Cheng, Liu Xiaoqi and others, and told them about the confrontation between Yang and Du. He said: "We already know the reason why they did not continue to assassinate Yang Guotai. In order for Du Min'an to follow
He got close."
Chen Ruijin thought: "Every time he miscalculated, Mr. Gu's strategy must have changed many times. The noise became louder and louder, and his temper became more and more impatient. It must be that the Guizhou donkey has run out of skills."
Liu Xiaoqi smiled and said: "The biggest miscalculation he made was the courtesan."
Chen Ruijin glanced at Jia Cong: "Where do you think Li Erlang puts his doves?"
Jia Cong blinked: "Isn't it some of Li Tao's private homes?"
Chen Ruijin said: "How can a fan have a private hospital if even the deed of sale is in the hands of the old bustard?"
Jia Cong said: "Earlier, all the slaves in our family had private houses and villages outside..." He suddenly understood that he was trying to tear down his wife's throne, and quickly shut up, "Where are they?"
"The back garden of Hongxiangfang."
"Oh. It's quite concentrated." Jia Cong thought for a moment, "Looks like Li Tao is still a key figure."
Su Cheng suddenly said: "Isn't that Gu Erdai's surname Mei?"
Jia Cong said: "I guess he is Mei Hanlin. But maybe not. Maybe he has the word plum in his name, or he likes plum blossoms. It is probably related to plum blossoms."
Su Cheng said: "The flowers of plum, apricot, plum and peach have similar flowering periods."
Jia Cong snapped his fingers: "They are all trees of the Rosaceae family, and their flower shapes are similar. This name is also in line with the nature of literati who love to "make". It is Gu Erdai who picked it up."
While they were guessing, they heard Lingdang asking to see the third grandma outside. Chen Ruijin ordered her to come in. Little Lingdang walked up to Chen Ruijin with a dark face and a pouted mouth, without even glancing at Jia Cong from the corner of her eyes: "Grandma, Hong Xiang was just there.
Someone from the shop brought this to grandma." Nai raised her hand. Everyone looked at her carefully and saw that she was holding the rich peony-shaped purse that Jia Cong had forgotten at Li Tao's place. "Is she still at the door of Su Mansion?
Let's go." Jia Cong smiled flatteringly.
Chen Ruijin smiled and said: "We men have lost everything. Thank you for her help in bringing it back." He thought for a moment and said, "I'll treat her to tea as a thank you."
Ling Dang opened her eyes wide: "Grandma! Are you inviting Fen Tou to tea?"
"Yeah." Chen Ruijin said, "You can give this purse to whoever you want to play with." Ling Dang simply agreed.