The journey back to the capital from Ganzhou is not a short distance, covering more than four thousand miles. It would take more than a month to get there at the fastest speed.
Feng Ziying estimated that if she rode horses all the way, leaving early and staying overnight, she could probably walk two hundred miles a day. If she walked faster and there were no unexpected mistakes, it would probably take about twenty days to get there, but that would be too hard.
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If you take a carriage, it will be slow. It is estimated that it is almost a hundred miles in one day. It will take nine months to get to the capital.
Of course, for Feng You and others, it is normal for them to walk at least two hundred miles a day.
However, this time it was not just Feng Ziying who went back, but also a censor from the Metropolitan Procuratorate, several officials from the Ministry of War, and several family members of Chai Yang. They all wanted to return to Beijing to pay for their respective yamen and families.
With a letter.
If we add a group of escorting soldiers, we will have a team of seventy or eighty people, and we are not afraid of various banditry accidents that may be encountered along the way.
Such a large team can only take the official road, also known as the post road, which has the best road conditions, and there are also resting places along the route, which is convenient for rest and replenishment, and is more secure in terms of public security.
Besides, we are not afraid of these rogue bandits, but one more thing is worse than one less thing. The section from Ganzhou to Yulin has just ended after the chaos, so it is inevitable that some deserters who have slipped through the net and some bandits who have taken advantage of the situation will cause trouble. Still cleaning up.
This is why a cavalry team of fifty people was specially sent to escort the group. In fact, even Chai Ke, Yang He and Feng Tang were not worried about the security situation in their jurisdiction.
The group basically rode horses, but they also brought a few carriages with them. The censor and several staff members would definitely not be able to endure such a long ride on horseback, and they could also take a proper rest.
In addition, there are also things that Feng Tang, Chai Ke and Yang He each sent home, which can also be loaded into one or two cars.
Whether it's valuable or not, such as skins, medicinal materials, etc., you always have to take some back when you go out. This is also the custom.
For example, my father gave me twenty or thirty pieces of sand fox skins, deer skins, suede skins, and dozens of tan sheepskins and yellow sheepskins. He said that these tanned sheepskins can be used for beds, chairs and stools.
The mat can also be used by the servants to wrap themselves in cotton robes to keep out the cold in winter, and the effect is quite good.
There are also some medicinal materials such as wolfberry, musk, deer antlers and inkstones and other specialties, bits and pieces, but not many.
Just the medicinal materials on this cart, in modern times, would probably make dozens of heads fall off. The musk from forest musk deer and the antlers from red deer, Feng Ziying estimated that at least hundreds of forest musk deer and red deer were contributed by them.
In this era, that is the natural source of livelihood for local hunters.
It is said that the imperial court is difficult, but for the officials, it is not like that.
Feng Ziying didn't know what the cart of belongings that Chai Ke and Yang He brought back to Beijing contained and how much it was worth, but her father couldn't buy the cart of belongings without tens of thousands of taels of silver.
It's no wonder that military generals want to fight. From this war, all aspects can be benefited.
Along the way from Ningxia to Gansu, how many wealthy gentry and businessmen who had connections with the rebels were exterminated?
There are some local gentry and merchants who have nothing to do with each other but don't have many followers. If they meet a ruthless person like He Renlong, they can accuse you of anything and you will be shouted at every day.
If the earth and earth are not working well, it is only Amitabha who can send them away with money.
Therefore, for the local gentry, local peace is the most important thing. If civil unrest breaks out, even if it can be quelled, then being beaten by soldiers is almost as good as being beaten by bandits.
Even if my father is in Datong or Yulin, he will turn a blind eye when encountering such a thing. If you don't let the soldiers below take the opportunity to make some extra money, why should they work for you?
As long as it doesn't go too far and doesn't cause trouble, then you can only turn a blind eye.
The group left Ganzhou in the west and headed straight to Liangzhou Wei along the post road.
This section of the road is the most important post road in the entire Gansu town. The road condition is good, and because this important road has a lot of troops, horses, and supplies, it is relatively quiet. Once you have to cross it, the Liangzhou Guards can separate.
One road can go from Sishui Fort to Xiaosong Mountain, cross the Huangyang River and enter the jurisdiction of Yulin Town via Jingtai, and the other road can continue to the southeast through Zhuanglangwei, pass Lanzhouwei and then exit eastward.
The former road is much closer, but the road conditions are much worse, and the Big and Little Songshan Mountains were occupied by Achitu and Bintu Niangzi tribe for several months, and were later defeated by Cao Wenzhao and He Renlong tribe, with many troops defeated.
In addition, there are originally many Tatars in this area, so the public security situation is not good, so most people will take the second road, which is to cross Zhuanglang and go to Lanzhou.
The same is true for Feng Ziying and his party. They went south from Gulangsuo, along the Inner Great Wall, passed Zhenqiangbao, Wushengyi, and Kushuiwanyi to reach Lanzhou Acropolis.
"The front is Bitter Water Bay Post. I'm afraid I can only stay here for one night tonight." Feng Zuo rode his horse around the front before returning, and said casually: "It seems that there is still a bit of chaos here, and Bitter Water Bay Fort is under martial law.
No non-government personnel are allowed to enter, and a group of businessmen are still crying and begging for mercy."
"What's wrong?" Feng Ziying was startled and subconsciously touched the narrow-edged knife at her waist.
"It is said that a group of thieves looted Minhe County and came here." Feng Zuo said nonchalantly: "There are too few troops stationed here in Bitter Water Bay. We are worried about being infiltrated by thieves and spies, so we are not willing to let ordinary merchants and travelers into the post.
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Minhe County is under the jurisdiction of Nianbo Station of Gansu Town. It is also a guard station on the southeast side of Gansu Town, and is adjacent to Guyuan Town in the south.
"Thieves?" Feng Ziying asked in confusion: "Where do these thieves come from?"
"Brother Keng, do you think it will be over once the rebels are wiped out? This situation will continue for at least more than a year. There will be no shortage of deserters, rebels and local scoundrels, large and small. Take advantage of this opportunity.
Now the government is basically paralyzed, and the army only cares about big cities and important post roads, but cannot take care of other places, so naturally it can take advantage of the cracks."
Feng You is obviously accustomed to such situations. Whether in Yulin Town or Datong Town, such situations are not uncommon. Even a small-scale mutiny can cause social chaos in the surrounding areas for a long time, let alone
Talk about such a big rebellion.
"Don't worry, Brother Keng. These thieves are not fools. They all have internal agents who are familiar with the local situation. They will never touch a military cavalry team like ours."
"I remember that You Shigong and the others should be stationed on this front line. I'm afraid such a chaotic situation is not appropriate, right?" Feng Ziying saw the chaos outside the gate of Bushuiwan Fort from a distance, and glanced at the people stretching out from the carriage over there.
The first person to come forward was the censor surnamed Zhang.
Feng You naturally understood Feng Ziying's worries, and shook his head with a smile: "Brother Keng, these censors are also sensible. Now the soldiers from the Second Town of Gansu and Ningxia are all our Yulin soldiers. He followed Mr. Yang out to gain qualifications.
It's too late to like this huge wealth, how can you find trouble with our Yulin soldiers? Such trivial matters will not be taken seriously at all."
As expected, the censor surnamed Zhang is nothing more than
This is the first stop for crossing the Yellow River from Lanzhou Wei, and it is also the most important throat of the post road. The geographical location is very important. Business travelers traveling south, north, east, and west all gather here, and the Bushuiwan Fort is not large in size.
It's small, and seems to be the size of a market town.
Feng Ziying and others came from the north. They saw a large group of people, horses and vehicles approaching from a distance. The ordinary merchants and travelers around them quickly got out of the way. However, the soldiers on the wall of the fort were all on guard with their bows and arrows ready.
Soldiers soon came out to conduct an investigation. The group had official documents, and they were accompanied by Yulin Town Army, and the Yulin Town Army was also stationed here. Naturally, they could enter the city without any hindrance.
There are urns installed at the north and south gates of Bitter Water Bay Fort, which also shows the vigilance against Tatar invasion on this line.
I saw two carriages on one side of the fort gate being interrogated by several sergeants. Some boxes and cages had been rummaged out, containing colorful women's clothing.
"You young man is so ignorant. Under the orders of my general, these thieves have looted Minhe County and are coming this way. How do I know that you are not a spy?" A guy who probably looked like a small flag was gushing.
He kept shouting.
"Master Jun, our family is going to the capital to visit relatives, and we don't have much property. You have been checking over and over for a long time, and you don't know what else to check?" The voice was familiar. Feng Ziying subconsciously turned her head and saw the husband of the You family pressing down hard.
Argue with the other person in anger.
"Humph, we have only checked one car, where is that car?" Xiaoqi saw that it was veteran Youzi. He had one foot on the shaft of the car and one hand on the knife at his waist, "I'm afraid it's a prohibited item.
Are they all hidden in this car?"
"Master Jun, this is my mother and sister. They are both women. Where can we hide any prohibited items?" People have to bow their heads under the eaves. If you don't comply in this situation, you can really be trapped.
A bandit hat.
When he opened the car curtain, he saw only two women sitting in the car with nothing else. The middle-aged woman was quite bachelor. After getting off, she called the military master, while the other young woman was wearing a curtain hat.
Hiding his appearance, he felt blessed after getting off the car, but said nothing.
"Take off the hat!" Seeing that there was nothing else in the car, Xiaoqi was a little disappointed and couldn't find any suitable reason, so he said casually.
"Back to Master Jun, my sister hasn't left the cabinet yet, so I'm afraid it will be inconvenient..."
"It's inconvenient! Bandits are rampant and the military situation is serious. Even if the official lady comes, you have to get it for me!" Xiaoqi was immediately annoyed, and his face suddenly twisted, and he said harshly.
At this time of year, ordinary women rarely travel far, and even if they do, it is always due to some hesitation or special reasons. This is a special period for ordinary people, how can they tolerate disobeying their orders?