Haisheng Mingdi

Chapter 79 Local Tyrant
Xu Garden by the north and south lakes is a well-built Jiangnan garden.

The Xu family in Ganpu is a branch of the Xu family in Haiyan. It has been established here for hundreds of years. It has been managed by successive dynasties, making this garden very magnificent. There are more than a dozen archways in front of the Xu garden, which are the result of the Xu family's painstaking efforts throughout the generations.

There are chaste archways, as well as Jinshi Jidi archways, one of which is the largest with the third character of Shangshu engraved on it.

This means that the Xu family of Ganpu had a senior official in Shangshu.

Although the contemporary patriarch Xu Min only served as a minister of the military department of the seventh rank in the Chongzhen Dynasty, the special science and Taoism system of the Ming Dynasty made the minister of the seventh rank a low official but extremely powerful. For those with great power, the affairs of the imperial court are handled by the six ministers, and submitted to the cabinet for drafting, and then approved by the supervisor of ceremonies, and finally sent back to the six departments for disposal according to the approval.

But in fact, the six subjects have the right to reject the matter.

The six subjects are in charge of attendants, admonitions, repairs, collections, and inspections.Whenever the edict is promulgated, major events will be repeated, and the minor affairs department will issue it; if there is a mistake, the seal will also be played.All the internal and external chapters are sparse, copied out by classification, and submitted to the Fubu Department to refute and correct their violations.

This is a power that is almost huge and boundless, and it also fully embodies a major feature of Ming Dynasty politics, which is to control the big with the small.

Since Zhu Yuanzhang killed the prime minister and abolished the prime minister, six ministers assisted the emperor in governing affairs. Later, the emperor set up cabinet bachelors. Guo Shangshu lives on top of it.

The six subjects are similar to the matter. Even the matter can not only check the mistakes of the six ministries and hundreds of officials, but also participate in activities such as participating in the examinations at all levels, court discussions, and court pushes. To have these officials with only seven ranks to participate, it can be seen that their powers are heavy.

At the local level, Daming also set up inspectors later, and they were also filled by the supervisory censors of the seventh rank, but they were able to become provincial officials on par with the governor.

In essence, apart from the low grades of the six subjects of the Ming Dynasty, it is more similar to the Menxia Province in the Sui and Tang Dynasties. It is a central institution with the power of the prime minister and holds extremely high power. It is only the characteristics of the Ming Dynasty. very low.

Although Xu Min was only assigned by the Bing Ke, there were several people in this position, and he had Bing Ke left and right, and Bing Ke was given to Shi Zhong, but when he was in the court, he was still an important person who held real power.

Later, he was defeated in the party struggle and took his post and returned to his hometown, and he had no security in the village.

"Master, there is news from Ningbo."

A master of the Xu family came in, "Chen Wu was beheaded in Songpu, and all his subordinates were annexed by Lu Jianguo, and the dynasty was first attacked by Huang Binqing in Zhoushan, and all his subordinates were annexed. , and now they have switched to Lu Jianguo."

Xu Min is in his early sixties at this time, and is still in good condition, with a flushed face and a little fat.

A pair of beards were well maintained and looked very elegant, paired with this expensive silk robe on his body, it added to his demeanor.

He stroked his beard, "It's a bit unexpected, this country of Lu Jian is coming very aggressively."

The master laughed and said, "Compared with King Yiyang's supervision of the country, after all, the difference is too great. It is difficult to achieve great things by relying on the military and horse gentry of Ning Shaotai."

Xu Min shook his head, "Don't you see that, the King of Yiyang is not a hero. I thought that there are many civil servants and generals supporting him, and maybe there is a chance to establish a court again, but you have seen that so far, there has been a little splash ?"

"The Dynasty Xian, Chen Wu, and Huang Binqing were all supported by Yuan Cong, but now they are fighting among themselves. At the beginning, they lost two of the Eight Commanders. Can't you see that?"

With a wave of his hand, the folding fan unfolded and swayed gently, "This Daming, after all, he is exhausted and powerless."

"Master, then don't we have to make preparations early?"

Xu Min picked up several letters on the table. These letters included letters of appeal from the magistrate appointed by the Jiaxing Tatars, letters of affection from the Ganpu garrison who surrendered to the Qing Dynasty, and letters from some of Xu Min's relatives and friends. All have been voted in, and many people have been reused.

Of course, there was also a letter from Zheng Jiwu Zhu Dagang of Hainingwei, asking him to fight against the Qing Dynasty and the Ming Dynasty together.

There is even a letter from Chen Wu who has been killed. Chen Wu wrote to him as the governor of Zhejiang and Fujian, asking him to lead Xujiaying to obey orders.

Seeing these letters, Xu Min chuckled.

"Master Qian, please write back to Jiaxing Zhao Zhifu for me, and have a good talk with him."

"What conditions does the master want?"

"I also worked in the military department during the Chongzhen Dynasty. Not to mention entering the military department as an official, at least I have to arrange a magistrate or patrol in the local area, not to mention that I still have a battalion of troops. Woolen cloth?"

"Little one understands, so let's write."

"Remember to tell Steward Liu to take some silver from the treasury and give rewards to the brothers in Xujiaying. The ordinary brothers each have one tael of silver, and the officers are promoted according to the rank. Now is a special time, and we have to win over these people. And Let’s kill two pigs, feed the brothers, and get some wine to reward the brothers.”

Xu Min knew very well that in troubled times, he could not protect himself without soldiers, horses, swords and guns.

When the Tartars robbed Xu's family and even raped his daughter-in-law before, he knew it completely, so he cruelly spent a lot of money and recruited "chivalrous men" everywhere, but he also knew that these people were just rascals.

But he still believes that as long as he has money, he can control these people for his own use.

Since he set up the Xu family camp, although he spent a lot of money to support these people, he quickly sent these people around to raise money and encourage donations. Not only did he keep his family's safety and property, but he also took the opportunity to collect a lot of money. After doing the math, not only did he not lose money, but he also made a lot of money.

This is the mind.

These days, there are no swords and guns and no horses, so how can you mess around.

Now, with more than 1000 people in his hand, it can be a good bargaining chip, and he must ask for a good price to use it to discuss the matter of recruiting with Beichao.

"When the talks are almost over, you ask Xu Jiaying to go to the countryside to recruit some strong men. No matter what, you have to gather 5000 people. When the people from the Northern Dynasty come to check, this will show our strength even more."

"My master is brilliant."

"Hahaha." Xu Min looked smug.

"My lord, there is something about Chongming, who has promised Haining Wei Zheng Jiwu to lead troops to fight against the captives?"

Xu Min said disdainfully, "King Yiyang of Chongming, that's just a dandy, and those collaborating Yuan Congxun ministers are actually all cowardly deserters who are afraid of death and have a clan in Chongming. , Raise a banner, and then take the opportunity to collect food and donations, justifiably earning money is beneficial. After so long, look at these guys who claim to have an army of 20, have they done anything worth mentioning? Did they regain Changzhou or Suzhou? Or Songjiang?"

"Don't mention those embarrassing things in the future. As for Zheng Jiwu and Zhu Dagang, they are just two ignorant barbarians, so I don't bother to care about them."

Master Qian nodded and bowed, praising the master for his wisdom, but he secretly despised this guy in his heart. This old man is just a speculator.

Just like when he was an official in Beijing, he fell on two sides in Donglin and the eunuch party, clinging to one for a while, flattering the other for a while, but in the end the two sides couldn't please him, and he was dismissed from office and went home.

There is no minimum limit at home. When he is old, he has many concubines, many of whom are younger than his granddaughter, marrying sixteen at sixty, and even taking thirteen or fourteen.

However, although the contempt is contemptuous, it doesn't show the slightest bit on the surface. Although the old guy is despicable and shameless, he is still very generous to him as an old buddy. The money he gives for his hard work every year is quite a lot. Just for this, Master Qian is willing to think about it The new word praises Master Xu.

Master Qian's ability to handle affairs was pretty good. On the same day, he replied a letter to the prefect of Jiaxing for Xu Min in a brilliant manner, and then took the money from the housekeeper non-stop to Xu's camp to distribute the reward.

"The master said that you have worked hard for everyone. Right now, the master is planning to find a fortune for everyone, and find a long-term background. If things work out, everyone will be promoted and rich."

In the room, a group of brawny men with bare breasts looked at Yinzi and laughed.

"Master Xu is generous, we are naturally sensible, please tell Steward Qian to tell Master Xu, brothers don't take money for nothing."

"Boss Zhao, the master said that we have to work hard these days, and go to the countryside to bring more food back. The summer harvest is over, and by the way, we will bring back some strong men. It is best to gather 5000 people from Xujiaying. .”

"Five thousand? Do you want so many people?"

"There are so many people. If you have 1000 people, your Boss Zhao is a garrison. If you have 3000 people, your Boss Zhao will be a guerrilla. If you get 5000 people, our master may be able to find you a general. Do you think it's worth it?"

The strong man surnamed Zhao laughed, "Naturally, if I bring in 1 people, Mr. Xu can't get me a general."

"Ganpu is such a small place, how can you get 1 people? If you really get it, you can't afford it."

"Haha, I'm just kidding, but there are 5000 people, it's no problem, those country mud legs, just bring more, don't worry about not being able to afford it, two meals a day can be enough, it's really not good, then we will take them People dragged to the surrounding area to grab a few villages and towns, and they were able to support them."

"Boss Zhao has to hurry up on this matter. The matter is going well. Maybe someone will come to inspect the troops soon."

"rest assured."

Boss Zhao is also a Lei Lifengxing. He was a private salt dealer in his early years. With his boldness and black heart, he also made a name for himself on the road. Your Majesty, but when the world was in chaos, he took the opportunity to go out of the mountain again. After relying on Mr. Xu, he is now General Xu who has more than a thousand brothers under him.

Of course, he is not satisfied with this general, heroes come out of troubled times, why can't he be a defensive or guerrilla fighter.

Within a few days, Boss Zhao set up a recruiting banner, distributed hero posters, and invited heroes from all walks of life to join the gang, and sent his brothers to the countryside to recruit young men. Anyway, he had to gather 5000 people.

South Lake Village.

At this time, this small village is already a family of soldiers and civilians, and the love between fish and water is deep, because the three major disciplines and eight points of attention are strictly implemented, especially after purchasing materials from the villagers at a price, the villagers welcome them very much.

In a few days, many young villagers actively requested to join the army, and also wanted to earn a generous military salary and eat delicious military meals.

Zhang Mingyang has been standing still, sending Yebushou in disguise every day to collect military information, and he has a clearer and clearer grasp of the nearby Xu Garden and Xujiaying.

And during the time they were lurking, Zhu Yihai on Haizhongmen Island finally couldn't hold back, and yesterday he landed ashore with [-] long husbands and auxiliary soldiers, and came to Nanhu Village.

"Xujiaying has a total of one thousand and dozens of people, most of them are rogues, and there are also some deserters from the defeated army and military households in the guard. There are about a dozen pieces of armor, hundreds of knives and bows, and the rest are some rough homemade wooden spears and spears. And shields, and a few shotguns, poorly equipped, basically a mob."

Yang Boxing introduced the military situation to Zhu Yihai, "After our reconnaissance these days, we found that Xu Papi is discussing surrender with the pseudo-prefect of Jiaxing, and I heard that the negotiation is almost finished. Xu Papi is now busy expanding his Xu family camp , I heard that the number of people will be expanded to 5000, so it is very powerful to ask the northern captives for a price. The leader of Xujiaying, Zhao Dayuan, was a private salt dealer. I think this is an opportunity to send people to the countryside to recruit strong men, and we can definitely bring some brothers to Xujiaying to recruit them."

"At that time, we will cooperate with the inside and the outside to wipe out these scourges in one go."

Zhu Yihai listened carefully. After he came to Nanhu Village, he visited the village in depth, and found that the villagers got along well with the Bannerman Camp team. Many young guys also joined the Bannerman Camp on their own initiative, rather than being dragged out , They have been here these days, and they have not harmed or disturbed the people. From this point of view, it is very good, and it is even not easy.

It may also be because this team is his most trusted standard-bearer Ying Jiading and the battalion staff, but in any case, these changes are carried out according to his plan.

Zhang Mingyang also added at this time, "Now Nanhu and many nearby villages have received a notice from Xujiayuan, saying that they want all villages to enlist in the army, and they also said that there will be generous food and salaries. I think this is a good opportunity."

During this period of time, Zhang Mingyang not only got along well with the villagers of Nanhu Village, but also quietly contacted many other villages in the township. Through purchasing and supplementing the beginning, he has gradually established preliminary contacts.

People in many villages are very satisfied with this 'Ninghai Volunteer Camp', and everyone even plans to pay money and food to the Ninghai Volunteer Teacher for protection, in order to obtain the protection of Ninghai Volunteer Camp in troubled times.

Zhang Mingyang rejected everyone's initiative to pay tribute, and still purchased the people's supplies at market prices, but he had already accepted some active young villagers into the army.

"Are you planning to take advantage of their opportunity to recruit young men, and mix the soldiers from our banner battalion with some newly recruited villagers to join the Xu Family Camp?"

"Your Highness is wise, and this is exactly what I mean." Zhang Mingyang flattered him.

"Boss Yang and Vice-General Zhang have good ideas. This Xu Papi has caused such harm to the village. It is indeed unreasonable that it must be eliminated. It is very good that you have been collecting information without arrogance or arrogance these days. Now you have figured out him. The bottom line is that it’s time to close the net.”

Zhu Yihai made a final decision, "Li Yuchun has looted several towns in the past few days, and he is about to reach Tongxiang. Fortunately, Zhang Zongbing and the others have made a lot of noise in Haining, and they are almost making trouble in Xiashi Town. They have successfully attracted Li Yuchun. Turn around and go south, so we don't have much time left, we must deal with Xu Baopi immediately, and then gather troops to take down Li Yuchun, a traitor to the country."

"It's not too late, let's start today."

Zhang Mingyang said, "I used to be a knight-errant in the capital with my elder brother, and Ruan Qi and I brought some brothers to spread out and pretend to be scoundrels to join the gang."

Yang Boxing suggested that he take some soldiers from the Banner Bearer Battalion and disperse them in various villages to apply for recruitment from some villagers.

"Then I'll take the rest of the brothers and help them at any time."

Zhu Yihai looked up at the sky, "The sky in Ganpu has been covered by dark clouds for too long, now it's time to pull the dark clouds to see the sun."

Zhang Mingzhen and other officers led various battalion posts to make good progress in other places. They have already defeated many local tyrants, evil gentry and local gangsters, opened up many base areas, initially won the trust and support of many villagers, and confiscated a lot of money and food. Exile.

Zhang Mingyang and the others have been silent here, but as long as Xu Papi is taken down, it can be said to be a thunderbolt.

(End of this chapter)