When Liu Fan and others entered the Linzhou border, Zhang An and Wang Lin led 10,000 troops to greet them.
After the capital was recaptured, Linzhou soon received the news. On that day, the whole court was filled with cries. The emperor climbed barefoot to the highest mountain outside Linzhou, with his clothes loose, and faced the direction of the capital to worship his ancestors.
Tens of thousands of people from inside and outside Linzhou followed. First they cried loudly, and then they said it was a happy event to celebrate. They sang songs and danced. In the lead were people who had fled from the capital. They said they sang and danced.
The late emperor made it, so everyone followed and learned from it.
Then the merchants began to put up lights and colors and hold various celebrations. Fireworks bloomed day and night, and wealthy families donated mountains of rice. There were porridge shacks everywhere in and outside Linzhou, and everyone could eat and drink at will.
.......
The celebration did not last long, as news came that Taiyuan Prefecture had surrendered to the enemy and Ankang Mountain had captured Hedong Road.
An Shouzhong transferred his troops and horses to support Ankang Mountain, and An Shouzhong's army stepped up its attack on Linzhou. The soldiers and horses of the father and son gathered together to cut off Linzhou and the capital, and aimed at Linzhou like arrows.
The rebels lost their capital and were bound to capture another capital, Linzhou.
The laughter, singing and dancing suddenly disappeared, the colorful floats crashed and scattered, the porridge shed was left unattended, every household closed its doors, and countless people fled outside Linzhou City...
Li Mingyu, the governor of Jiannan Road, and Xiang Yun, who was recovering from his injuries, also came out. He mobilized his troops to repel the Ande Zhong rebels surrounding Linzhou, and set up three lines of defense in Linzhou. Military reports were delivered three times a day.
The movements of the rebels in Ha Dong Road calmed the people.
News of the arrival of soldiers and horses from aristocratic families in the capital and the ladies of Chu State also came to Linzhou, bringing hope to the panicked Linzhou.
After waiting for a month, this group of people finally arrived.
"You are finally here." Zhang An, Wang Lin and others stepped forward to greet them. They were excited at first, but then were startled by the team's embarrassment, "Why are you so..."
There were more than 3,000 soldiers and horses, but almost everyone was injured.
As for the people accompanying them, in addition to the injured and sick, there are also coffins...
Facing the incoming troops, everyone had a lot to say, but lacked the energy to say it. Thousands of words turned into one sentence: "This journey is too difficult."
There are many rebels and bandits making trouble, so you only know how difficult the road is when you travel.
Zhang An and Wang Lin blamed themselves: "It's all because of the lack of news. If we had known about it earlier, we would have brought more troops to greet you."
Visitors to the capital looked at the military camp stationed in the distance behind them. This military camp seemed to have been stationed for a long time...
"Let's not talk about this for now." Zhang An and Wang Lin issued an invitation, "Come to the camp and rest quickly. Meat, hot water, and warm bedding are all ready."
Zhang An and Wang Lin did not lie about this. A group of people entered the camp and moved into the fully prepared tents. The horses were taken away, fed with beans and washed.
The gentlemen of the family drank hot soup to relieve their fatigue and prepared to wash up. Zhang An and Wang Lin also prepared new clothes, hats, shoes and socks, but Jiang An came in and stopped them.
"Everyone, I think it would be better for us to keep meeting His Majesty like this."
Like this? The gentlemen looked in the mirror... Zhang An and Wang Lin also prepared a mirror. Except for not going out to meet them, these two people were very considerate in everything else... They were also the first ones in so many days.
Once I saw myself clearly, I looked more like a refugee than the refugees I saw on the road.
How can you go to see Tianyan like this? Isn’t it disrespectful?
"This is what we really look like." Jiang An said, "We came to Linzhou to see His Majesty so that His Majesty can see our sincerity and see how much we have suffered without Your Majesty in the capital. The way we dress up is so bright and beautiful.
What is your Majesty looking at? Besides, Your Majesty is very miserable in Linzhou..."
The gentlemen who can come here are not fools, and they immediately understood what he meant.
Only if His Majesty sees how difficult it is for them, will their contribution be remembered even more in his heart.
While Your Majesty is living a miserable life, they dress up brightly. What are they here for? Show off?
They must live a more miserable and miserable life than His Majesty!
"Thank you, Mr. Jiang, for the reminder." They held Jiang An's hand and were very grateful, not only for the reminder this time, but also for taking care of him along the way.
This Jiang An is the housekeeper of Mrs. Chu. He also has the same surname as Jiang. He is completely different from Jiang Liang. He is much younger and good-looking. He looks like Mrs. Chu.
The most important thing is that he is not like Lao Jiang, who claims to be a scholar, and does despicable things like cheating and abduction. They were able to leave Beijing on this trip, and they didn’t know how much money they gave Jiang Liang. When they heard that there was a person on this trip
The housekeeper's surname was also Jiang Shi, and the belongings placed close to his body were trembling...
But this Jiang An didn't ask for a penny from them. He took good care of them along the way with food and grass. However, there was not enough food to eat. He was hungry. He took his soldiers and horses everywhere to look for food. He spent his own money to buy food. Some people were sick.
He sought medical advice, and when someone died, he cried more sadly than that person's nephew, nephew, and servants.
Of course, they were also very clear about Jiang An's actions. Mrs. Chu was greedy for money, but she still had to win over and make friends with the wealthy families.
That Jiang Liang is a retainer, and he represents himself. If he provokes public anger in the future, he will be punished according to the law. Mrs. Chu can just come out and cry for a while without knowing it. But this Jiang An is a servant, and his actions can represent his master.
At that time, the aristocratic families can come forward to testify that Mrs. Chu is kind and honest...
No matter what, this Jiang An is bent on being good to them, and his purpose is very believable. He just wants to be good to Mrs. Chu, so that’s fine.
Jiang An did not say this to everyone, but said modestly: "This is just his own idea. As for how to do it, it is up to the men to make their own decisions."
After saying this, he withdrew, leaving the gentlemen to discuss among themselves.
The result of the discussion came out not long after. Everyone only drank a bowl of hot soup. Not only did they not wash or change clothes, they didn't even rest. They were going to Linzhou City immediately.
Zhang An and Wang Lin were very surprised and tried to persuade him repeatedly, but to no avail.
"Your Majesty is so close, we can't wait even a moment."
"I'm going to die, and I'm going to die in Linzhou City."
They were crying and shouting as they climbed onto their horses and got into the carriage. It looked like they would really die here if they were not allowed to leave.
Liu Fan had eaten in the camp and was changing out of his dirty clothes to wash up. He heard the commotion outside and asked Jiang An what was going on.
Jiang An sat in the corner and ate the leftover food from Liu Fan. He shook his head and said he didn't know: "I haven't bothered to go out to see it yet." But he judged unceremoniously, "These gentlemen are not easy to take care of."
Liu Fan clearly saw why Jiang An was assigned to make things difficult by the nobles of the family along the way. These gentlemen were indeed difficult to serve. After all, the capital had never experienced war. After the thieves entered the capital, these people sacrificed their lives.
Even though they surrendered with gold and silver treasures, they were not treated harshly, and they never suffered any hardship.
People who have never endured hardship will not understand others.
Of course Liu Fan was considerate of Jiang An. He went out to see it himself. After listening to the gentlemen's words, he knew what they were thinking. That's all. Some trivial matters are not worth embarrassment about.
"Since I don't want to rest, I won't rest." He said, "I have already trekked all the way, and I don't care about trekking for two more days."
Seeing that they were ungrateful and not polite, Zhang An and Wang Lin immediately ordered the camp to be escorted. They had long wanted to go back.
The group of people ran toward Linzhou City in the twilight.
After two days of trekking day and night, in the early morning of the third day, we finally saw the city gate of Linzhou.
After they entered Linzhou, many people gathered to watch and follow them along the way. Standing at the city gate, they could see the crowds of people rolling in like clouds, and there was also a sea of people outside the city gate.
Zhang An and Wang Lin wanted to lead the army to accept the cheers of the people, but as soon as they approached Linzhou City, they were snatched away by Hu Aqi. He broke in with a group of soldiers and horses. He first knelt down and shouted for the Lady of Chu, and then hugged him.
The generals who live and escort the gentlemen in the capital.
"Finally see you."
"Oh my god, my brother, I thought we would never see each other again."
They cried, laughed, and beat their chests, just like long-lost brothers, although these brothers seemed to know each other.
"We are brothers." Hu Aqi shouted, holding the Zhenwu Army flag in his hand, "We are all Zhenwu Army."
Mrs. Chu and Governor Wu were husband and wife, and their troops were naturally members of the same family. Moreover, Hu Aqi's duty in the army was to guard the city gate. Without their permission, the army could not enter the city.
They confidently took over these people, and when they approached the gate of Linzhou City, they blocked the road and only allowed Liu Fan and others to move forward.
Liu Fan straightened his clothes. Although he didn't wash and rest, he still changed into clean clothes, wiped his hair and tied it up neatly. After all, he was a face-to-face saint.
But others were not so particular. Some even tore their already dirty clothes into an even messier state. Some pretended to be unable to walk and fell down, covering themselves with mud. Some even lost their shoes...
.
The people guarding the gate of Linzhou City saw a group of beggars approaching. They were barefoot and had unkempt hair. Some had injured their arms. Some were coughing as they walked. They were bent like shrimps when they coughed. Some were holding beggars.
Lingpai...
The people who were about to cheer gradually became quiet, lest they shout too loudly and shout these living people to death.
But there were still shouts on the street.
"But Mr. Guo from Ma Shi Street?"
"Ah, that's Mrs. Wu from Beiqiaotou!"
"Uncle Kuang! Uncle Kuang! I'm from your farm, sir. I didn't expect that I could see you again."
There were many people who fled from the capital, and it was not surprising for the gentlemen to know these noble families in the capital.
Some people shouted in surprise, some shouted in joy, and some cried in sorrow. Although the people couldn't tell who these gentlemen were...the beggars all looked the same, and their faces couldn't be seen clearly, but these famous families
The story was still fun to listen to.
The crying and coughing men did not respond or check whether the people who called out their names were old acquaintances. It didn't matter whether they were old acquaintances or not. This was what they arranged for people to do.
Along the way, their reputation had spread far and wide before they even met the emperor.
They wished they could crawl slower on the ground so that their family's reputation could be spread more widely, but seeing His Majesty's important mission still made them regain their senses, and followed Liu Fan into the city step by step, which seemed slow but still very fast.
The gentlemen entered the city, followed by the generals. They were better than the previous gentlemen, at least they were not near death, but they still looked like beggars.
Their uniforms were in tatters, with bloodstains on their bodies, and bloodstains on their weapons. They were not mighty at all, a little embarrassed, and a little rustic. Still, the onlookers shouted "Heroes!" "These are the heroes who regained the capital."
This is a hero who came from the capital and fought against all odds."
Some people also cried out in grief and indignation, "There were originally ten thousand people, but now they are the only ones left alive."
.....
.....
Hu Aqi looked at the man standing next to him who looked like a loyal and honest man: "Were there really 10,000 people when you set out?"
Hu Aqi didn't know Jiang An, but she knew him immediately when he saw his smiling face... He had exactly the same name as Jiang An, and he looked like a bad guy at first glance.
Jiang An smiled honestly: "Of course not." He sighed again, "Madam, there is a shortage of manpower, and we can only find 3,000 people."
It’s weird to believe you, Hu Aqi sneered, do you want to cry for money and cheat his troops?
Jiang An smiled, and approached him and lowered his voice: "Doesn't this let everyone know that Madam attaches great importance to Linzhou? Ten thousand soldiers and horses will open the way."
It sounds similar, but... Hu Aqi looked at the person named Jiang and the people around him. He always felt that Mrs. Chu's importance to Linzhou was not felt by everyone, but was frightened.
.
Ten thousand soldiers and horses, brave soldiers who can recapture the capital, escorted these people from the capital to Linzhou, and there were only more than three thousand left. Some of the gentlemen turned into spiritual tablets, and the living ones looked like they were about to die.
...
Is this journey more difficult than recapturing the capital?!