Saving the Ming Dynasty: I can exchange bodies with Chongzhen

Chapter 214 When autumn comes on September th, my flower will bloom and all other flowers will die!

Hong Niangzi also received the letter from Prince Xin. She frowned as she read the contents.

"Is this man a fool?" Gui Ning said disdainfully while eating a candied haws. "Hangzhou? This is a big city. We were so close and didn't do anything, but he actually sent his troops to rush hundreds of miles away, just to... return the gift?"

"Go practice calligraphy!"

Gui Ning's little face drooped all of a sudden, she pouted and rolled her eyes at her aunt.

After Hong Niang pondered for a moment, she told the Third Master, "You go back. Since Prince Xin wants to make trouble, we are not far away, so we must help him no matter what."

"Yes!" The Third Master clasped his fists, but did not move. Instead, he asked, "First Master, aren't you going back?"

"I haven't seen the person yet, what am I going to do back?"

"Can……"

"Third brother, find a way to find out more about Prince Xin and see what he looks like?"

The third boss moved his mouth, wanting to say, "Didn't you say you would stay in Wuchang Prefecture for five days?" But he held back in the end, because he knew that even if he said it, the other party would not listen.

As for what Prince Xin looks like?

What does he look like and what influence does he have?
……

In September, the golden chrysanthemums sparkled in the sun. When Sun Kewang led his troops to set out, his subordinates informed him that Li Dingguo was outside asking for a meeting.

"He didn't go to see Prince Xin, so why did he come to see me instead?"

He hesitated for a few seconds and decided to let him in.

Soon, a broad-shouldered and fat-bellied "black charcoal" man came in from outside. This man was Li Dingguo.

At this time, he was not yet General Anxi, but he had become the Little Yuchi in everyone's mouth. He had been hungry since he could remember, and he didn't know why, but there was famine every year.

In the third year of Chongzhen, when he was still a child picking book covers, he met Zhang Xianzhong and was taken under his command.

The reason is simple: "extraordinary appearance".

It's not that he looks good, but that he looks too strong. Although he was left with only a skeleton, he had broad shoulders and long arms, and looked like an ape.

After eating a few full meals, it turned out that Li Dingguo had amazing arm strength just as Zhang Xianzhong had expected. The army's long spear, which was 18 feet long, was used to stab the enemy, but Li Dingguo had the unique skill of snatching the enemy's long spear and stabbing it back.

However, when he was only in his teens, he became the most powerful general under Zhang Xianzhong, second only to Sun Kewang.

"Brother!" After entering the tent, Li Dingguo clasped his fists and bowed to Sun Kewang.

"Dingguo, why don't you go see Prince Xin first?"

"I went to see him, but he seemed unwelcome and was driven out by the old blind man's apprentice. I didn't see Prince Xin." Li Dingguo recounted his situation outside the Governor's Mansion.

"That shouldn't be the case, sir. He is not that kind of person. Did you do something that he doesn't like?" Sun Kewang frowned.

"No, to be honest... after Prince Fu died, I received a letter from Prince Xin, asking me to take Prince Fu alive to Wuchang Prefecture, but the fat man was already dead by then."

Walking all the way from Luoyang Prefecture, Li Dingguo was filled with emotion. Thousands of miles away in Shaanxi, there had been a ten-year drought and not a blade of grass grew. Corrupt officials were rampant. The people just wanted to have enough food to eat, but even such a basic right was deprived. This was difficult for him to understand.

He also couldn't understand why the government and the rebels were slaughtering civilians everywhere. When his adoptive father was killing people indiscriminately, he tried his best to dissuade him but to no avail. According to his adoptive father, only by using violence, making them tremble, making them feel timid, and making them empathize, can the people of the world gain peace.

But what he saw in Wuchang Prefecture was completely the opposite. The people lived and worked in peace and contentment, the soldiers were wearing armor, their swords and guns were shining, and they even had some spare money in their hands.

This further strengthened his determination to join the "Faith" flag.

But who could have expected that he would be stopped outside by people from the Governor's Office.

"Brother, you have to say something good for me."

Sun Kewang pondered for a moment, "I think this is the reason. You have only paid half of the letter of surrender, and Prince Xin was assassinated by the assassins of the wealthy families in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, so it is not convenient for me to see you for the time being."

"What?" Li Dingguo stood up suddenly. "No wonder... I see. I thought Prince Xin wanted to reject me."

"This is a great opportunity. Prince Xin wants to open up Wuchang Prefecture and Yangzhou Prefecture. There are two large prefectures and dozens of counties here. If you can accumulate some military merits, I think Prince Xin will look at you more favorably when you meet him again." Sun Kewang stared at him with a sharp gaze. "How many people do you have now?"

"Eight thousand!"

"Okay, eight thousand is eight thousand. Follow me eastward to Anqing Prefecture."

……

Anqing Prefecture, Huaining.

Although it is just a county, there are quite a few people living here, especially many gentry in the county. Among them are several big salt administrators and salt smugglers, who are particularly special.

If there is any profession in the world that can make more profit than drug trafficking, private salt trafficking in ancient China is one of them.

This is a very old industry with extremely high profits, but it also requires very high comprehensive qualities from its practitioners. He needs to be versatile and have a wide range of skills to properly handle the relationships between the government, the underworld, bandits, and village tyrants. He also needs to have strong means to organize and manage his core team, and he also needs to be able to fight and kill and have special operations capabilities.

Analogous to the huge difference between the drug lords and gangsters in later generations.

Throughout the dynasties, the most promising career was rebellion, but apart from rebellion, the other option was to sell illegal salt.

Salt and iron are things that the government must fight for and defend. In the early Ming Dynasty, all private salt trafficking was strictly prohibited, and once caught, severe punishment would be imposed.

Under the control of the imperial court, the price of salt remained so high that a small number of poor people could only make a living by selling private salt.

This kind of private salt was called "near-field private salt", and the Ming Dynasty realized the importance of near-field private salt to near-field society.

Salt, which was originally strictly controlled, was gradually legalized, and social assistance was provided by legalizing private salt.

It was originally a measure that benefited the people, but after its implementation, the legalization of private salt became a governance problem. The massive influx of private salt first impacted the national treasury revenue, and the legalization of private salt was gradually relaxed, which provided an advantage for the military and civilians to exchange what they had and what they needed, and increased the amount of private salt smuggling.

As a result, a large number of salt smugglers emerged. They colluded with those in charge of the salt administration in the Ming Dynasty and monopolized the private salt in one province or even several provinces.

There are people in official circles, plus private salt dealers. These private salt dealers have a group of extremely cohesive and brave people. They have been honed in long-term battles with government officials, their peers, and bandits, and their combat effectiveness is not low.

In the late Ming Dynasty, private salt trade became legal, which reduced their combat effectiveness a lot, but they still could not be underestimated in the local area.

Faced with the bandits, they knew that once they retreated, the wealth accumulated over a hundred years would disappear in an instant, so they could only bite the bullet and defend the city.

All the officials of Huaining County, the county gentry, servants of wealthy families, and guards, consisting of thousands of people, were on high alert and constantly moved the things needed to defend the city to the top of the city.

In addition, they strictly prohibited the people from going around the city walls.

In their opinion, the fall of Wuchang Prefecture was largely due to the collusion between the poor generals.

Before it got dark, someone came to report:
"The bandit army is less than ten miles away."

Everyone clenched their swords and guns tightly, their faces horrified. A private salt dealer put his ear against the city wall, his face tense, "Here they come!"

Others also put their ears close to the sound, and the sound came from far away.

At first the sound was like raindrops falling on the ground, then slowly turned into a violent storm, boring into the ears.

In the distance, dust and smoke were rolling, covering the sun and the dark crowd seemed like the earth was moving.

Even private salt dealers would feel panicked when seeing this feeling of oppression.

"Enemy attack!"

"Enemy attack... prepare!"

Someone shouted wildly, waking everyone up, and the city wall was instantly in chaos.

……

"I'll give you a quarter of an hour to open the city and surrender. If you don't, all the gentry involved in the defense will be slaughtered along with their entire families." Sun Kewang shouted towards the building above.

The people behind him also shouted:

"Kill the entire clan!"

"Kill the entire clan!"

"..."

The shouts shook the sky, and the officers, soldiers and gentry on the top of the city were in a panic. The guard of one of the wealthy families stared blankly at the bandits below, took a few steps back, and was chopped on the neck by a private salt dealer. He shouted angrily: "Everyone listen to my order, anyone who dares to retreat will be chopped directly."

"What are you all standing there for? Are you waiting for those bandits to climb over the wall? Are you all..."

Before he could finish his words, his whole body suddenly stiffened and the gentleman's eyes bulged out. Everyone was shocked to find that the tail feather of an arrow was embedded in his chest.

Shot right through.

Under the city, Li Dingguo put down the bow in his hand. He could shoot the arrow so accurately and powerfully at a distance of one hundred steps. This could only be achieved by his arm strength.

next moment,
buzzing...

The air was vibrating violently, ears were ringing and trembling, and everyone was shocked to find that the entire sky was covered by a layer of dark clouds.

"Get down...quickly, get down!"

On the city wall, someone roared and shouted at everyone to get down.

Because that was not a dark cloud, but a rain of black arrows.

Tens of thousands of troops fired at the same time, the scene was truly terrifying.

With just one round of volleys, nearly 30% of the people on the city wall fell down, and at least more than a thousand people died on the spot.

"The bandits... How could the bandits have so many arrows? They..."

……

Sun Kewang, who was below, squinted his eyes at the city wall and pulled Li Dingguo, "Wait a little longer!"

Li Dingguo had a complicated expression.

Back then, when they attacked the city, they relied entirely on charging people forward. Only by rushing forward like mad, roaring and shouting, could they pile up human lives, exhaust the arrows of the government army on the city wall, and use up all the rolling logs, stones, and gold juice on it.

Only then can you capture a city.

But now, they have money in their hands. They can buy swords, guns, armor, bows and crossbows. Can they actually defeat the government troops?

This was something they had never dared to imagine, but now it was actually happening before their eyes.

At the same time, the flag bearer raised the flag and fired a second volley.

buzz~
In the blink of an eye, the city walls were covered with arrows and shouts were heard.

"Can we charge now?" Li Dingguo was ready to move, but Sun Kewang shook his head. "There are rolling logs, rocks, and gold juice on top, which are useful tools to prevent sieges. We also have good stuff."

"Pull the artillery over here."

artillery!

It was a powerful weapon for defending a city and its number was scarce, but Sun Kewang captured several of them when he attacked Wuchang Prefecture.

"Haha... there is such a good thing!" Li Dingguo couldn't help but run over and touch the cannon, his eyes more excited than when he touched the old woman.

Boom~boom~
With a loud noise, the city wall of Huaining County shook, bricks and stones fell, smoke, debris, and wood chips on the city gate flew everywhere... The huge city gate collapsed with a loud bang.

Countless dust was stirred up.

"kill!"

"Kill~"

Li Dingguo rode his horse and was the first to rush into the city gate that had been blasted open.

His eyes were filled with rage as he pierced through the long street. Just in time, he saw an official in silk clothing trying to run away. He suddenly kicked his horse's belly and cut the man into two pieces with one stroke of his sword.

At this moment, Li Dingguo felt a surge of violence in his heart. He ran into a group of servants and guards escorting the "masters" to flee into the city. He immediately spurred his horse to catch up with them.

He swung the broadsword in his hand.

puff~
He chopped down with his knife, and blood splattered. His strength was so great that he chopped down two people with one blow, as if cutting tofu.

These dozen servants were nothing but serving pieces to Li Dingguo. In just a few breaths, Li Dingguo had killed most of them. The broadsword in his hand was dripping with blood as he approached the official.

At this time, the door of a house was not closed tightly. Seeing this, the official rushed in, hugged a little girl who was playing in the yard, and put a dagger on her neck.

"Forgive me... I have silver, how much do you want..." Shi Xiaoyuan, the then Lianghuai Salt Transport Commissioner, had a dull look in his eyes and shouted at Li Dingguo in inexplicable fear.

"Please spare me, I'll give you money. Don't come over here, don't come over here, or I'll kill her... I know that as subordinates of Prince Xin, you are trustworthy."

At this moment, a woman in the house ran out, tears in her eyes, and asked Shi Xiaoyuan to return her daughter to her.

Li Dingguo got off his horse and slowly walked into the yard, approaching him with a fierce look in his eyes. "You have silver? No matter how much silver you have...it can't save your life!"

Shi Xiaoyuan, the director of the Salt Transport Department, watched Li Dingguo approach. He trembled all over, staggered back and forth, and shouted, "Don't come over here, don't come over here, I will really kill her..."

"Oh, then go ahead and do it..." Li Dingguo's voice was as cold and eerie as a ghost.

As he said this, he took two steps forward.

Call ~
"Pfft!"

A figure flew out, was hit by a huge force, and was nailed to a big tree behind him.

Blood continued to flow down the sword on his chest and dripped onto the orange and red chrysanthemums, but the chrysanthemums did not fade, but became more eye-catching.

"Pah~" Li Dingguo walked over, gritting his teeth, stepped on the body of Shi Xiaoyuan, the Salt Transport Commissioner, and pulled out the horse-slaying sword.

He said to the woman and the child, "Don't be afraid. I've seen a lot of people like this. The more they shout, the more they value their lives. The more people they hold in their hands, the more they dare not hurt them."

After saying that, he turned around and left, picking up the dripping sword.

He just killed too many corrupt officials like this and summed up the reason, but he himself didn't know the exact reason. If Zhu Changgan were still alive, he might know that this special psychology is called the fantasy symptom of swimming to catch duckweed in psychology.

The same is true in later generations where some thugs could not escape, so they would grab hostages, yell, threaten, and negotiate conditions, and often ended up being shot in the head by snipers.

The girl's mother finally recovered and raised her head to ask, "Where are you going, warrior?"

He smiled grimly, revealing his white teeth, "Murder!"

At this time, the shouting and killing sounds in the city were deafening.

"Close the door. After today, go to the county government office to get rice." Li Dingguo mounted his horse and quickly knocked down another fleeing gentry.

He roared wantonly, "Wait until September 8th in autumn, when my flower blooms, all other flowers will die. The fragrance will penetrate Chang'an, and the whole city will be covered with golden armor."

He had never had enough food to eat since childhood, and had never read many books. All he could remember was the "Art of War" that he always had in his hands, and Huang Chao's poem "Ode to Chrysanthemums after Failing the Imperial Examination".

Historical books all say that Huang Chao was an image of a person who failed the imperial examination and became psychologically distorted and took revenge on society, but Li Dingguo felt that this was not true and that it was just a smear campaign against Huang Chao by literati.

If Huang Chao was really like that, he probably wouldn't have been able to do the earth-shaking things he did later.

Just like what he saw in Shaanxi when he was a child, there were thousands of starving people, but corrupt officials and wealthy gentry were living a life of luxury, and all the resources were swallowed up by these wealthy gentry and powerful families.

Ordinary people born in poor families and common people will never have a chance to rise. They will always be sealed at the bottom and starve to death.

This is why Li Dingguo liked this murderous poem "Poem on Chrysanthemum after Failure" the most.

Hiss!

The war horses were neighing, and Li Dingguo, holding a horse-killing sword, rushed into a group of wealthy people who were fleeing in panic. Countless heads fell to the ground as metal and stone clashed.

"It's so enjoyable!"

The shouts and cries of killing rose and fell in the city, mixed with the excited roars of the bandits and the cheers of the people.

"Don't let the guy in silk in front run away, Damn, he is definitely a big shot."

"The one who is taking off his clothes, you are so fat, how can you wear these coarse clothes? Come and die!"

puff~
(End of this chapter)