Chapter 106 People talk about good and evil, officials are clear, let alone green forest?
Dong Cheng, Shen Ji, and Geng Gong led the rebel army back. They originally wanted to lead their troops to fight with them, but Xiao Tang persuaded them to stop. After all, they were worried that both sides would suffer losses. Since the Jinan Army dispatched tens of thousands of traitor soldiers this time, if they were alarmed Several groups of thieves gathered at Kongsongzhuang, but it was still difficult to match Xiao Tang's brave soldiers and the three hundred forbidden army cavalry alone.
After another two or three hours, when Xiao Tang's eighteen cavalrymen reported that thieves from all walks of life were plundering Qinghe County in Enzhou, Liting County took control of the villages and towns, and then they all turned back to Mingzhou. After leaving the village, Xiao Tang said goodbye to Grand Duke Pan and led his army back to Daming Mansion with Suo.
"In my opinion, those thieves have developed a strong momentum and cannot be allowed to grow stronger. Otherwise, when will our Hebei and Hebei roads be at peace? How can the people be happy?" Suo said angrily to Xiao Tang on the road.
Xiao Tang nodded silently. Now that he had killed more than two hundred thieves who had joined Zhang Di, he had completely broken up with the leader of the Southern Hebei Army. If Zhang Di was indifferent to Xiao Tang's actions, I am afraid that the prestige he had just established would be lost. Nothing remains.
But in the face of the 30,000 bandits in southern Hebei, Xiao Tang could mobilize very few village warriors, bodyguards, and young men and tenants. Because although Xiao Tang wanted to train rural warriors and elite soldiers, he did not want to expand his armed forces. And it affects the civil production under the rule.
According to the military system of the Song Dynasty, local tyrants and landlords from all walks of life formed rural communities, selected according to the proportion of young people with household registration, and formed local armed forces in the order of Dubao, Dabao, and Bao. This phenomenon was extremely common. According to the imperial order, rural soldiers Xiangyong was also responsible for tasks such as building cities, transporting grain, catching thieves, and cooperating with the imperial army to guard the border. At the peak, the total number of roads in Shaanxi, Hebei, and Hedong could reach 420,000.
For example, Zhujiazhuang, Hujiazhuang, and Lijiazhuang in Dulonggang in Water Margin jointly counted 10,000 to 20,000 troops and horses, and Zengtou City had 7,000 to 5,000 troops, and they all dared to challenge the already powerful Liangshan Bo. Xiao Tang is currently in Daming Mansion , Zongcheng County, Xiaojiaji's financial resources are only stronger than those of Zengtou City, Zhujiazhuang, etc. It seems that they are in urgent need of expanding the scale of the armed forces under their rule.
When Xiao Tang and Suo led their troops out of the boundary of Enzhou and were not far from Zongcheng County, they suddenly saw flying dust ahead and faint shouts of killing. Xiao Tang, Suo, Hua Rong and others hurriedly led a group of cavalry to go Detective, they saw that it was Lu Junyi who had just killed a group of thieves.
Xiao Tang immediately rode up to meet him and asked, "Brother Lu, why are you entangled with the thief here?"
Lu Junyi had an angry face and was covered in blood. He was relieved when he saw that it was Xiao Tang who was coming. He snorted loudly and cursed: "The thieves are so rampant! I originally bought twenty peace cars and was about to take my companions as porters to the north. I was shopping for goods at the market place, but I bumped into this group of thieves when I was passing by. Without any explanation, they killed me and took my car! Where did my dear brother come from?"
Xiao Tang replied: "Mingzhou Zhang Di led the thieves to defeat the Enzhou official army and looted everywhere. I heard that a group of thieves came to Kongsongzhuang, Qingyihe County to wreak havoc, so I asked the deputy commander of the Sima army who stayed behind to wait for the lead. All my troops went to the rescue and killed the thieves, and then came back."
After verification between the two parties, Xiao Tang found out that the bandits who attacked Lu Junyi's caravan were also a small group of people who had recently surrendered to Zhang Di. The southern Hebei army was a ragtag group, and when they sent out troops to plunder, all the troops were like mad dogs biting people and grabbing food. The Enzhou Forbidden Army made them even more arrogant. On the way back to Mingzhou, this group of thieves happened to meet Lu Junyi who was escorting the convoy. How could they let go of the fat in his mouth? But they did not expect that they would offend this man known as Hebei No. 13 The stunning jade unicorn appears on its head.
Lu Junyi said angrily: "My dear brother, the thieves are powerful and lawless! What they are targeting today is Jizhou and Enzhou, a prosperous and prosperous place in Daming Prefecture. They are afraid that the thieves will come to make money from our homeland. "
Xiao Tang replied: "What Brother Lu said is true. Since the thieves have become powerful, the prefects of various prefectures will no longer stand by and watch. I was about to return to Daming Mansion to discuss the matter with Liang Zhongshu, but during this period All the states in the east and west of Hebei are not at peace, so Brother Lu must be more cautious if he continues to do business."
Unexpectedly, after listening to Xiao Tang's words, Lu Junyi's majestic and handsome face became even more angry. He shouted: "Why bother? I regard those thieves and men as nothing! When he doesn't mess with me, I will go and catch him." A bunch of grass bandits and thieves got on my head first!
After I have captured the thieves, brought them to the capital, asked for merit and received rewards, and shown the martial arts I have learned throughout my life to the world, I am no longer a man in vain! Since my dear brother has also formed a grudge with that group of thieves, as long as I have any relationship with that group of thieves, When gangs of thieves are arguing with each other, call me to go with you, so that you can teach me how to understand my methods!"
When Xiao Tang saw Lu Junyi's expression, he knew that he was really angry. This jade unicorn deliberately kept a distance from the government and was only close to him, Xiao Tang. However, Lu Junyi relied on his abilities and had a sense of pride, and he was very proud of Luo Cao's strong men. The hostility is deep.
For example, when Wu Yong planned to make Lu Junyi into Liangshan, he pretended to be a fortune teller and deceived Lu Junyi into telling him that he could resolve the bloody disaster by going to Tai'an Prefecture, thousands of miles southeast of Daming Mansion. Lu Junyi took Li Gu and others not far from Liangshan. At the inn, the waiter in the inn had kindly reminded Lu Junyi that he only had to pass by Liangshan quietly, so that the heroes from Liangshan would not go down the mountain to cause trouble for him.
But how did Lu Junyi do it? He set up four bamboo poles on the Taiping Car and wrote on the white silk flag: Lu Junyi was generous in Beijing and carried goods far away from his hometown. He only wanted to catch strong men. At that time, he showed his ambition as a man. .
At that time, Liangshanbo had gathered ninety heroes and tens of thousands of troops. Lu Junyi, relying on his unparalleled skills with guns and sticks, dared to be so provocative and provocative in Liangshan territory, threatening to capture every strongman leader he encountered. Okay, now that he is being bullied by groups of thieves, how can he not make this jade unicorn gnash his teeth and vow to argue with Zhang Di's thieves to the end?
Xiao Tang appeased Lu Junyi and said: "Brother Lu is so extravagant, how could I not know about it? It's just that the matter is serious and I have to discuss it with Liang Zhongshu and my close friends, but I need Brother Lu's help. , I will pay a visit to your house and ask Brother Lu for help..."
Back at the mansion, Xiao Tang convened another group of confidants to discuss how to deal with Zhang Di's southern Hebei army in Mingzhou. At this time, he heard Yang Xu say worriedly: "It's not just Mingzhou, but now Ci, Xiang, Xing, Ji, and En... Shizuozhuang Town was plundered by thieves, and many tenant farmers could not bear the humiliation and took refuge in Daming Mansion. In Zongcheng County, Xiaojiaji is located in the northern part of Daming Mansion. It was the brunt of the attack. I am afraid that the refugees who have taken refuge in the market town have already There are thousands of people."
Xiao Tang nodded and said: "The people suffered from banditry and were displaced. As long as they can settle down in the market town, we must provide all-out assistance. Moreover, in order to contend with Zhang Di, we must strengthen our manpower and expand the number of village warriors."
After hearing this, Shi Xiu said: "But brother, Zhang Dina has tens of thousands of troops. Since he has become an enemy of the donkey bird this time, it is said that a tiger is difficult to defeat a pack of wolves. If the thieves really attack, they can only attack with ten men." It will be difficult for the eight sharp cavalry, escort martial arts masters and market warriors to defend against the enemy."
Xiao Tang replied: "I have my own thoughts on this matter. Now that Zhang Di is so powerful, not only the Hebei and Hebei provinces are suffering from it, but also the Song and Liao dynasty, trade routes and river transport are also invaded by thieves. This
If the gang of thieves is not eliminated for a day, neither state officials, merchants, nor ordinary people will live in peace!
So I plan to persuade the left-behind Prime Minister Liang Zhongshu to write to the imperial court and dispatch troops to suppress the arrests. We must clear out the Mingzhou bandits and wipe them out!"
After hearing this, Yan Qing, Xu Guanzhong, Hua Rong and others secretly thought that this method was feasible. Although the thieves from the Southern Hebei Army did not lead the thieves to attack Daming Mansion under Liang Shijie's jurisdiction, Mingzhou was located near Daming Mansion, and tens of thousands of thieves were within their own borders.
The invasion of surrounding state capitals right under his nose has taught him, the left-behind gentleman, like a thorn in his back or a thorn in his throat.
What's more, the north-south trade route was affected by bandits from southern Hebei, and Liang Shijie was also deeply affected. When his uncle Liang Zimei was working in Damingfu on He 1 North Road, he was also famous for arresting bandits and suppressing bandits. Now he only needs to
A memorial tells the imperial court to mobilize the imperial army to clear away the trouble in front of them, so why not?
After hearing this, Yang Lin, Zheng Tianshou, Shi Yong and others showed hesitation on their faces. They all looked at Xiao Tang and hesitated to speak.
Xiao Tang saw the expressions of Yang Lin and others and asked, "What's wrong with these brothers listening to this method?"
Yang Lin laughed sarcastically and said: "I also know that the situation between Young Master and Zhang Dina needs to be put to an end. But in the past, when we dealt with the people in Green Forest, peace was the most important thing. Young Master is the commander of the left-behind department.
, the strong man who took down several cottages has taught some heroes in the world and has been criticized. Now if Liang Taishu is encouraged to mobilize a large army to conquer, I am afraid that the young master’s reputation in the green forest will be ruined..."
Zheng Tianshou said: "Although the bird-hunting people in Mingzhou are arrogant, they are still friends in the Jianghu community. There are not many of them who have been forced to die by the treacherous and treacherous dog officials of all walks of life. Although the young master has taken over Liangzi with the Jinnan bandits, he can't do it."
It's a matter of Jianghu, Jianghu. If the young master asks the army to suppress the heroes again, I'm afraid that the heroes of Jianghu will scold us for bullying others."
Before Yang Lin joined Xiao Tang, he teamed up with Deng Fei to do business without capital. People such as Zheng Tianshou, Shi Yong, Sun Erniang, Zhang Qing and others came from rough backgrounds or were very accustomed to the world, and they all had a natural repulsion towards the government.
It seems that although there was a precedent for Xiao Tang to use three battalions of imperial troops from the Remaining Division to encircle and suppress Niu Wenzhong in Gaizhou, after all, it was because Niu Wenzhong first robbed Xiao Tang's bodyguards and killed Xiao Tang's men.
At the moment, Zhang Di had no intention of conflict with Xiao Tang, so those who heard that Xiao Tang planned to persuade Liang Zhongshu to write to the imperial court to send troops to conquer the people in the green forest and teach his subordinates to take the rules of the world seriously felt a little disgusted.
Xiao Tang snorted coldly and shouted: "You are so confused! People talk about good and evil, officials are pure and dirty, let alone rivers and lakes and green forests? Among the heroes who are forced to have no choice but to fall into the grass, those who can still maintain their loyalty even in turbulent situations, I
Xiao Tang respected him and helped him, but he was just happy in his heart without any complaints! But in Kongsongzhuang, you have seen with your own eyes how brutal the Ji Nan bandits are, and how moral and ethical are they to deal with this murderer who has done all the evil things!?
For example, at the end of the Jin Dynasty, Zhang Chang and his like supported a small official, Qiu Shen, to become the emperor, recruited gangsters, and showed off the greed and violence of jackals. If the gentry and the common people were not recruited and did not believe in him, they would all be exterminated by the barbarians! You say it was resistance.
Did the tyrannical heroes of the Jin Dynasty add insult to injury and plunge the people into dire straits? At the end of the Sui Dynasty, corvee labor was heavy and the people were in dire straits. The insurgents included Zhu Can, who ate the same kind of meat, and was addicted to the meat of children. There were also Liang Shidu who colluded with the Turks and betrayed the country.
, are these people heroes? Or are they worse than beasts? In the late Tang Dynasty, Huang Chao made peace with the government and claimed to have killed eight million people. Moreover, Li Hanzhi, Qin Zongquan and other minions were brutal and cruel, conquering the prefectures and counties, burning, killing, and looting!
Which of those people are not extravagant characters in the green forest? Greedy dog officials plunder the people's wealth and anointing, but they still have to create clever names. When you saw the murderous and bloody murderers in the green forest sharpening their knives and attacking the good people, did you ever say anything about moral principles? If so, All heroes in the world regard indiscriminate killing as chivalry, so I would rather not have the reputation in the green forest!"