Cutting 1719

Chapter 186 Rumors
November has already entered winter. Although the weather in the south is not as severe as in the north, it has snowed for several days in Huguang and Anhui, and the vast white land is silent.

A long procession was winding along the official road, stretching back and forth for dozens of miles, and the number of people was almost uncountable. This was Kangxi's own conquest army, and the destination was Lu'an, two hundred miles away.

The clothes worn by the soldiers of the Qing army were very thin, especially the soldiers of the Green Battalion. The usual treatment was relatively poor, and the winter clothes were not complete. Most of them were wearing uniforms and shivering in the cold wind.As for the Beijing Eight Banners, it was much better. They wore cotton armor and thick cotton clothes inside, and they seemed to be in good spirits.

In addition to the shortage of cotton clothes, the biggest problem with this army is the extremely low morale. Originally, they all came from the north to the south, and they suffered a lot along the way. However, after arriving in Huguang, they had to attack the three passes of Yiyang for a long time. No way, more than [-] soldiers were lost instead, which destroyed the morale of the Qing army.

Because of this, Kangxi had no choice but to give up, and then moved to Anhui, even ignoring the heavy snow, but this made many soldiers complain in their hearts.

"Ahem, Er Niu, I'm afraid I won't be able to walk the road ahead."

Old Chen is almost fifty this year, and originally he only wanted to make a living in the green camp, and it would be enough to support his family, but he never expected that there would be a Chu rebellion in the south, under the governor and admiral of Shandong, Li Shude. Under the leadership, he walked all the way from Shandong to Henan, and then to Hubei. Now that he is going to Anhui, he has some complaints in his heart.

The Erniu on the side was a tall man with a red face. He didn't know whether it was cold or hot from the march. He gasped as he walked, and muttered: "Uncle Chen, you should talk less. The Shangguan heard this, and we all have to lose our heads, this is no fun."

Old Chen shrugged the snow on his shoulders, looking at the endless road in front of him, he seemed to be much more courageous than usual, he looked around and found that the big guy was busy on the road, no one was paying attention to the movement here, so he went He went to Er Niu and said mysteriously: "Er Niu, I heard people say that the east was defeated, and many people in official clothes couldn't come back. Isn't it a death if we go to the east?"

Er Niu looked a little nervous, "Uncle, what nonsense are you talking about, you can't talk nonsense, uncle, you are shaking the morale of the army, and you will be beheaded, so don't dare to talk nonsense again."

"Hey, you stupid cow doesn't know anything. This news has spread all over the army. Everyone knows it in their hearts. Even the adults above have said such things. I still It's not because of the army that brought you out, you don't even have a daughter-in-law now, if you are gone here, how can I explain to your parents when I go back?"

Old Chen had a earnest expression on his face, he pulled Er Niu over, and said carefully: "Er Niu, you just listen to me, once we find a suitable opportunity, we will run away immediately, originally we came out to serve as soldiers to make a living. If you can't run away, you can act according to my color. Once we go to the battlefield, we have to learn to play dead!"

There was some hesitation on Er Niu's face. After all, he was a young man who was just a fledgling, so he felt a little more scared. He quickly looked around at the Qing army and found that everyone was busy on their way, so he was relieved.

"Uncle, I listen to you, but I'm really going to be on the battlefield, and I'm also worried about what will happen if I don't know for sure, I'm afraid it's not easy to pretend to be dead."

Old Chen smiled, and said softly: "I have served as a soldier for many years. I don't know how to fight, but I can still pretend to be dead. Just wait and see how I look."

Before he finished speaking, Old Chen found some green battalion soldiers approaching, so he immediately shut up, but the snow in the sky was getting heavier and heavier, so he couldn't help shivering, and then wrapped himself tightly The jacket on his body moved forward one step at a time.
The army didn't keep going all the way. As the wind and snow got bigger and bigger, the Qing army finally stopped and chose to station in a place called Kaishun Town along the way to temporarily resist the wind and cold.

The scale of Kaishun Town is very small, so it can't accommodate many people, especially when the emperor's imperial driver comes here, he can only wrong the local townspeople. All of them were driven out of the town by the Qing army, but in this cold winter, the townspeople They didn't have a place to live, and didn't have many clothes, but they all turned purple from the cold, but they didn't dare to show the slightest resentment on their faces.

The emperor is here!This is a great honor!After suppressing the rebellion, everyone in Kaishun Town will also be rewarded, so temporary grievances are completely acceptable!

A small official of the Qing army looked at the townspeople who were shivering from the cold and talked freely. After all, he said so, but he didn't think so. What benefits these townspeople can get has nothing to do with him , but to be able to handle this matter cleanly and beautifully, so as not to obstruct the emperor's eyes, that is a great achievement.Of course, some people would feel resentment in their hearts, but they didn't dare to show the slightest when they looked at the Qing soldiers with swords and guns around them.

The royal driver of Emperor Kangxi went directly to the tallest and most luxurious house in the town. In fact, it was just a small courtyard with three entrances, but it seemed very precious at the moment. In other small courtyards, hundreds of dignitaries from the Qing court occupied all the houses in the town.

As for the [-] troops outside, they still set up camp along the official road. Everyone huddled together, surrounded by the fire to keep warm, and from time to time someone cursed a few words in a low voice.

"Hengchen, have you come out with any new poems along the way?"

In a courtyard in Kaishun Town, an old man was looking at Zhang Tingyu with a smile and asked softly.

Zhang Tingyu took off the heavy cloak on his body, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and said with a wry smile: "Brother Yiguang, why do you need to make fun of me? All you saw along the way were dead bodies, where did you get the thought?"

This brother Yiguang is also considered a great big shot, his name is Tian Wenjing, he is a member of the Zhenglan Banner of the Han Army, and now he is a bachelor in the cabinet. He is not as young and premature as Zhang Tingyu, but he is also extraordinary.

The two are very different in origin and experience. Zhang Tingyu was born in a family of officials and eunuchs. He is the second son of Zhang Xueshi Zhang Ying. He has been a noble official all the way, from the review of the Imperial Academy to the appointment of the South Study Room, it can be said that he has grown lotus step by step.

As for Tian Wenjing, it is different. His experience is relatively rough. When he was young, he did not take the right path to enter the Jinshi exam. Later, he was promoted to magistrate, but this county magistrate has been doing it for 22 years, and he was promoted to magistrate of Yizhou in Zhili until he was in his 40s.

Therefore, most of Tian Wenjing's experience comes from common affairs. Before this expedition, the two had only met each other occasionally, and they were not considered friends.

Hearing Zhang Tingyu's words, Tian Wenjing just smiled slightly, knowing this situation very well based on his experience, and said in a low voice: "Heng Chen, don't dare to speak freely."

(End of this chapter)