Haisheng Mingdi

Chapter 589
At the foot of Changbai Mountain.

North of Zhangqiu City.

A green battalion soldier blew his horn in panic, "Thieves!"

Hearing the alarm, several soldiers from the green battalion frantically searched for weapons and equipment. Archer Zhao Laoliu stringed the bow, but failed to buckle the bowstring with all his strength.

He tried again, and finally cursed out of breath, "Damn it, I don't have the energy to string the bow."

Several other green battalion soldiers were also desperate.

They have been starving for too long, and they have been starving for more than a year. Each of the city guards in this flood pond has lost at least [-] catties from starvation.

All were hungry skinny, with sunken eyes.

They couldn't even buckle their bowstrings, and their armor weighing tens of kilograms seemed extremely heavy.

The eight Xun soldiers got together and looked at the men and horses galloping in the distance.

The dust is flying, and the horse team is ahead.

Looking at the chaotic flags, this is obviously not the Ming army.

"It belongs to the White Robe Society."

There are a lot of people in this group, with more than a hundred white-robed knights at the head, and the rear is obviously more chaotic.

The White Robe Society has a great reputation. It is said that these people used to be a branch of the White Lotus Sect and formed a secret society. Then at the beginning of the year, under the leadership of Xie Qian from Gaoyuan, they raised their flags to rebel, broke through Gaoyuan County, and killed the Qing in the city. The army also killed many officials and gentry, and looted the entire county.

Afterwards, they recruited soldiers and bought horses, playing the banner of the White Robe Society, wearing white robes as a symbol, and these people also played the banner of supporting the Ming Dynasty and destroying the Qing Dynasty.

Gaoyuan is in the north, at the junction of Qingzhou and Jinan, not far from the Daqing River. Last year, the Yellow River changed its course and took the Daqing River into the sea, which also turned hundreds of miles along the river into a yellow flood zone. When it rains, it floods A disaster hit Gaoyuan, but the governor of Shandong still urged grain to collect taxes, which finally caused Xie Qian to kill him vigorously.

Later, when the Qing army came to attack, Xie Qian led his troops and began to flee.

I don't know why, but now I'm here.

"There are only eight people in our flood pond. He won't come for us, will he?"

The archer, who was so hungry that he couldn't even bowstring, couldn't help but licked his lips when he saw the overwhelming crowd, "Why do these people still have so many horses and mules to ride? They must have enough to eat, team leader , let's join them too, at least let's have a full meal first, I'm starving."

The same goes for the other green battalion soldiers who can't even put on armor.

"Stay here any longer, and we'll all starve to death."

"Let's surrender, get a piece of white cloth, let's surrender." The small team leader didn't even have a rank, they were completely forgotten by the higher-ups, and the team leader also went to Zhangqiu Camp to ask for food and salary, but every time he was empty-handed And return.

If it weren't for the fact that everyone usually digs some wild vegetables, or even catches some mice and toads, they would have starved to death.

These few of them are still bachelors, and they don't have a family to encumber them, otherwise they would have run away early.

When eight skinny Green Battalion soldiers who were about to be blown away by the wind appeared holding a white flag, everyone in the White Robe Society was shocked. They didn't expect that there were still a few Qing soldiers here.

When they learned that they were going to surrender, after some inquiries, they accepted it.

"Can you give me something to eat first? Anything is fine. We are really hungry. Let's exchange bows and armors."

Eight people had eight sets of armor, three sets of cotton armor and five pairs of cloth face armor. shotgun.

Xie Qian was not surprised to see them starving to death. Although the Tatars still controlled many places in Shandong, the Eight Banners were garrisoned in big cities like Jinan and Xuzhou. , In the county town, and in the countryside are the city guards and flood pond soldiers, who have low combat effectiveness and poor treatment.

After being blocked by the Ming army for so long, they are still alive and they are relatively able to carry it.

"Give them something to eat."

Xie Qian's servant threw them some steamed buns, cold and hard corn nests, but the few people rushed to grab them as if they saw treasures, and gnawed desperately into their mouths if they caught them.

I haven't eaten food for a long time, and wept while eating.

"Slower."

Xie Qian smiled unceremoniously at the armor and weapons of several people. He would accept those who came to vote, but he would definitely give these equipment to his confidants first, and he would equip them after they proved themselves.

A few people ate and cried, choked and choked, almost choked to death, slapped their chests and drank water, and finally came back to their senses.

"Where are you going?"

Xie Qian looked at these people and said with a smile, "We are waiting for our friends here."

Accept these people and arrange them to the back. Each of them is issued a wooden gun, and they are regarded as joining the group.

At this time, a few people had time to look carefully at the men and horses of the White Robe Society. There were about a few thousand people. The most elite should be the hundreds of white robe knights led by Xie Qian, and about [-] riders on mules behind them. Then there are hundreds of young and strong people carrying spears, and many people behind them are as thin and hungry as them, and they bring many old and weak families.

The whole team is said to be divided into five battalions, front, back, middle, left, and right, but they can't see any difference, anyway, they are just a group of refugees.

After eating a few cornbreads, he regained a lot of energy. Although it was bought with a set of equipment, it would normally be worth seven or eight taels of silver. They didn't sell it before, and they didn't know who they could sell it to, otherwise I sold it a long time ago, and now I only changed a few cornbreads, but I don't regret it.

By donating eight sets of equipment, they also gained some trust in this battalion. Their post commander was a thick man with a flail in his hand. He used to be a tenant farmer. It is said that he killed a green battalion with a flail when he was beating Gaoyuan. As a soldier, he became the head of the post.

According to him, they used to go guerrilla all over the Daqing River and Changbai Mountains, and they recently contacted Zichuan Ding Keze, planning to destroy Zichuan County with internal and external cooperation.

"I heard that the Daming Royal Battalion has dispatched troops to attack Jinan. This time, we are going to capture Zichuan and become the king's forerunner."

The long, burly and sturdy Xie Qian was from Xiejiacang, Gaoyuan County. When the Daqing River was flooded when he was young, he fled to Zichuan with his family. Later, he worked as a tenant in the famous Han family in Zhangdian.The official of the Han family, Han Yuan was a Jinshi in the first year of Chongzhen, and he was an official in the military department. He was dismissed in the 11th year of Chongzhen. As soon as the Tartars entered the customs, he went to Beijing to worship with Sun Zhixie, a fellow from Zichuan, and was revived by the Qing court.

Han Yuan started from Li Ke to Shizhong, and later promoted to Li Ke to Shizhong. His official career in the Qing court was quite good.

However, Xie Qian hated the Han family. When the Han family took advantage of their disaster and escaped famine, they bought his sister as a slave with a little food, and said they took them in. In fact, they used their family as cattle and horses. They often punished and beat them. Feed.

Later, Xie Qian returned to his hometown in Gaoyuan. Because he participated in the secret society of the White Lotus Sect in his early years, he took advantage of the chaos and took advantage of the chaos. He targeted the landlord Haoqiang who surrendered captives like the Han family.

He sneaked into his hometown with a few brothers to claim Shenghu's family, killed him, distributed his property and food to the local poor people, raised the flag to revolt, and soon recruited many poor people who could not survive.

In less than a month, he gathered thousands of people, and then he conquered Gaoyuan County with a combination of inside and outside, killed Wu Zhenhua, the county magistrate, called the people of the county by name, and distributed money and food.

After that, Liujia Town and Changshan County were captured, and their reputation became more and more famous.

When the whistle chief talked about Xie Qian, he was full of admiration, thinking that he was a real hero.

"Why didn't you join the Ming army?" the captain asked.

The whistle chief smiled, "The head of the family shows that there are many military rules, and not everyone wants them. Those of us who drag our families along, don't want others after we pass."

After chatting for a while, the post chief had something to do and left. The eight green battalion soldiers had food in their stomachs at this time, and one of them held the simple wooden gun he had just brought, and he was quite calm.

"I think Xie Qian's ambition is not small. He must want to pull these people to make a bigger noise, pull more people, and then he will have the capital to win the title with the emperor." The captain analyzed.

"Well, in troubled times, if you have soldiers and guns, you are the grass head king, that's right." Everyone agreed.

there.

Xie Qian didn't wait long before more than a dozen riders ushered in.

But it was Ding Keze from Zichuan.

"Brother, wait for a long time."

Ding Keze was also very tall and strong. He was good at riding. He galloped on the horse, and galloped up to him. He turned over and fell off the horse beautifully.

"We just came here not long ago." Xie Qian gave Ding Keze a big hug.

Xie Qian and Ding Keze are old friends. Back then, they both worked as tenants in the Han family and lived a life of hunger and exhaustion. They often went to catch fish and catch shrimps in the moonlit night when they were too hungry to sleep in the middle of the night. Complain about the injustice of the world under the moonlight.

After Xie Qian set up an army in Gaoyuan, he wrote to invite old friends to do great things together.

Ding Keze didn't go, he started a smuggling business here in Zichuan, and even bought a few mines, so his life is still good.

After Xie Qian found out, he didn't force it, but he still kept in touch in private. Even when Xie Qian robbed the gold, silver and jewelry of the rich and powerful, he would sometimes sell them through Ding Keze.

"You are one step too late. The Shence Army of the Ming Imperial Battalion has already occupied Zichuan. The battalion officer still wanted to resist, but the Ming army fired a few rows of guns, and the big households in the city forced them to surrender."

Xie Qian originally planned to cooperate with Ding Kezeli to take down Zichuan. Before the arrival of the Ming army, he would loot and seize some money and materials, but he did not expect to arrive too late.

"That's a pity."

"I have good news here, you know that thief Sun Zhixie?"

"I know, even if I turn into ashes, I will recognize it. A relative of the Han family, a Jinshi in the second year of Tianqi, is in the same department as the loyal minister Lu Xiangsheng. It seems that they have a bachelor in that department?"

"Well, Wen Zhenmeng, the number one scholar in Nake, later became a cabinet scholar. Sun Zhixie, a thief, was Wei Zhongxian's running dog in the court before. He was promoted all the way by hugging Wei Zhongxian's thigh. After Wei Zhongxian fell, Sun Zhixi Xie is the eunuch who was dismissed from office and returned to his hometown.

But as soon as the Tartars came, he immediately dragged Han Yuan to vote.

At that time, the Tatars had just entered the customs, and they didn't even ask the Han officials to shave their hair. During the last dynasty, the officials were divided into two groups, the Manchu and the Han.

As a result, Sun Zhixie flattered him, took the initiative to shave his hair and change clothes, and even made all the women in the family change into Manchu costumes.

When he went to court again, Sun shaved his head among the Han officials. As a result, those Han officials were unwilling to let him stand in the class of the Han people, and Sun went to the class of the Manchus, but the Manchus did not recognize him as a slave.

Angry Sun Zhixie immediately sent a memorial to Dorgon, saying that Manchuria has pacified China and reformed thousands of miles away, while the system of clothing and hair tie has only preserved the old Han. This is Manchuria from China, not China from Manchuria.

This memorial made Dorgon feel very reasonable, and immediately began to force shaving of hair across the country, causing countless people to suffer.

Because of Sun's flattery, he was awarded the title of Zuo Shilang of the Ministry of Rites and a Bachelor of Shijiao of the Imperial Academy.

Later, Sun was awarded the title of recruiting the governor of Jiangxi. He went out of Beijing and went south with Hong Chengchou, and transformed himself into a big official in the frontier. However, because he was at odds with the admiral Jin Shenghuan in Jiangxi, he was impeached for accepting money and selling officials, and giving it to the deputy general Gao into the treasury , Liu Yipeng and others add up their military ranks.

But later Jin Shenghuan rebelled to the Ming Dynasty, and Dorgon became angry with him and dismissed him.

"Tie Sun is in Zichuan now, but he heard the news that the Ming army was coming, so he ran to Santai Mountain to hide in advance. He has a villa there, and he has secretly transported and stored his wealth and grain there. His relative Han Yuan's family, money and food are also hidden in Mount Santai." Ding Keze told Xie Qian an important piece of information.

"We can raid Mount Santai. I have internal support in Sun Thief's village. As soon as we arrive, we can take down the village in one fell swoop. At that time, all the gold, silver, treasures and food mules inside will be ours."

Xie Qian thought he was late, but he didn't expect this to happen.

He smiled at the moment, "Brother, this news is too precious, okay, let's send troops to Mount Santai right now. After the matter is completed, you and my brother will share the money and food equally."

(End of this chapter)