Lin Gao Qiming

Chapter 2135 The Butterfly Effect
Wuzhou paper-wrapped chicken was half eaten before Xu Xu rushed over.Xie Erren set out the chairs, bowls and chopsticks, and ordered some more dishes.

"There is no need to add more food," Xu Xu waved his hand, "These many dishes are enough to eat, just give me a bowl of rice."

Xie Er Ren saw Xu Xu's complexion was not very good, he seemed to be worried, and asked: "Old Xu, why did you come so late? Is there something wrong?"

"Yes." Xu Xu picked up the bowls and chopsticks, took a big mouthful of rice, and said in a low voice while eating, "I just received a telegram from Zhu Mingxia that the scale of the commotion in Ba Pai Yao has begun to expand. The garrison collapsed. Some Yao people's armed forces are gathering, and they are likely to besiege the county towns in various places."

"This is a big deal!" Xie Youren was taken aback. Not long after the county was taken down, it was basically empty. Some counties didn't even have the national army, except for the local militia and other local armed forces. It can be said to be an empty city.

The withdrawal of the Ming army’s anti-Yao generals from the east and west mountains and the garrison in the middle made the Ba Pai Yao riots less restraint than in history, so the scale of the outbreak was larger and the scope was wider.In the previous stage, many Ming army guards who surrendered in Zhaoqing were besieged, and many villages had already fallen.

"...In a word, the Yao riots this time are more violent than in history, and the scope is larger. Zhu Mingxia wants me to tell you to pay attention to the city defense and surrounding security work-in history, the Yao people's armed forces have attacked Wuzhou many times, and once broke through... ..."

Xie Yourenting's hands were cold, and his original ambitions were more than half lost. He thought this was probably the so-called butterfly effect.Quickly asked: "Wuzhou is a front-line city, is there any reinforcements?"

"Zhu Mingxia can't wait to take back Zhu Quanxing's third battalion, considering the importance of Wuzhou." Xu said, "The third battalion will stay in Wuzhou, you can rest assured..."

"How can I rest assured!" Xie Erren was a little annoyed, "How many people are there in the third battalion? Who can take care of the 9 counties and 1 prefecture of Wuzhou Prefecture! You must know that there are only a hundred soldiers in my imposing Wuzhou Prefecture. !"

"Does it depend on your ability? When it comes to people, there is no shortage of them?" Xu Xu smiled, tore off a chicken thigh from a paper-wrapped chicken and ate it, "The national army in every county will expand... Listen It is said that there has been an approval to allow county and city administrative leaders to expand the militia on the spot, and plans to increase the quota of [-] Nanyang rifles."

"That's about the same, but I haven't seen the shadow of the national army yet."

"They have already arrived in Zhaoqing, and they will definitely arrive in Wuzhou the day after tomorrow—now the waterway on the Xijiang River is still very smooth." Xu said.

Hearing that the national army is coming, Xie Erren feels relieved.The company with more money belonged to the third battalion after all. Although he could use it, he couldn't control it. Zhu Quanxing could be transferred away with a single order. Compared with the National Army, he could feel more at ease.

"Is the attack on Guangxi going to stop now?"

"The official order hasn't been issued yet, but it must be stopped." Xu Xu said, "We only have this number of soldiers, and I will go back to Zhaoqing soon."

"Now the old bear can be comfortable for a few more days."

"Old Xiong is still comfortable. I think Chongzhen will want to look good to him soon—maybe he might commit suicide in fear of crime."

Hearing that Xu Xu was leaving, Xie Erren felt a faint sense of loneliness in his heart.

After sending away the license, Xie Youren looked at the map of Wuzhou again and again in the lobby. His situation was really not good. If the Yao chaos spread to both sides of the Xijiang River, the traffic line behind him would be in jeopardy.At that time, I will be alone in front of the enemy...

"This is really a bit bad."

Xie Erren began to feel guilty, looking at the situation, he really couldn't be encouraged.

The city wall must be repaired as soon as possible!He thought, no matter what, as long as there is a city wall, there is great security. After all, with the level of the medieval army, it is still very difficult to capture a prefecture like Wuzhou.

That night, Xie Erren slept in the back of the magistrate's yamen, thinking that not long after the former owner of this yamen committed suicide, he lived in his house, which made Xie Erren somewhat uncomfortable.But he had worked hard all day, and fell asleep without thinking much about it.

I had no dreams all night, and when I woke up in the morning, I only felt energetic and full of vitality.It's very interesting to show off.

After washing up, he hurriedly ate breakfast and came to the second hall of Fuya where Quanchong's office was.Zhao Fengtian was already waiting in the lobby, and beside him was an old man who was a local scholar.

This scholar is over 50 years old, and he collects rent in some fields outside the city, and has some properties in the city.He has never been too concerned about his official career.After entering school, he had no intention of taking the imperial examination. After spending time at home, he went out to travel in the mountains and rivers. Not only did he travel all over Guangdong and Guangxi, but he also visited many barren places that the locals regarded as daunting—not to mention the two provinces. He has also been to Yaodong in Langzhai.I am very interested in the geography, customs, customs, and products of the places I pass by, and I am quite famous locally.

His surname is He, and his real name is Shouren, but because he gave himself the nickname "Dongli", over time, everyone in and outside the city called him He Dongli.

He Xiucai was not disgusted with Australians—he not only went to Guangzhou, but even went to Hainan, and even went to Lingao, where he witnessed the stability and prosperity under the rule of the Senate, so he had a great impression of Australians.Therefore, when the army came to Wuzhou this time, he had always held a negative attitude towards resistance: firstly, the strength of the two was very different, and the battle would be defeated; secondly, he could not see the need for resistance.It's not that he has no feelings for Daming, but the feelings are not deep enough to destroy his family and sacrifice himself.

After Xie Erren entered the city, he needed to find a suitable guide to familiarize himself with the local customs. Zhao Fengtian checked the issued "Wuzhou Basic Situation Handbook" and recommended this He Xiucai.

He Xiucai didn't shirk, and came as soon as he was invited.That is to say, he is not as coy as some literati who are "forced to bow down and become a thief", and he is not as eager as some people to "follow the dragon". His attitude is very calm and peaceful. However, Xie Youren has a great affection for him.Now ask him to be a guide to visit the whole city of Wuzhou.

He Dongli naturally has no need to refuse.Xie Erren immediately told Zhao Fengfeng to stay in the Yamen, so he ordered a team of guards to accompany him.

The order on the streets has improved compared to yesterday, and the refugees have formed teams, led by militiamen to clear away corpses and ruins.Under the leadership of the soldiers of the Fubo Army, the militia that had just been formed had an average military appearance, but they still looked a little bit energetic.Xie Erren was a little less worried last night.

When the cadres leading the team saw him coming, they were about to come up and report immediately. Xie Youren waved his hands: "Don't worry, you guys do your work first."

There are also traces of the propaganda team, and the walls have been plastered with crooked slogans, such as "military-civilian cooperation, expel the Ming invaders"; Kill the people of Wuzhou, willing to be the filial sons and grandsons of the puppet emperor of the Ming Dynasty"... There are posters and notices posted in some places. If you look closely, the ink on the notices and the paste on the back are still not dry-it was done in the morning.

This work efficiency is also considered leveraged.Xie Youren nodded secretly—as expected of Zhao Fengtian brought out by me, the publicity work is in place.

The government office of Wuzhou is located in the south of the city, not far from Xiaonanmen.Only then did Xie Erren's yamen notice that the Wuzhou government office was adjacent to the Cangwu county office in the north, and the south and west sides of the government office were close to the city wall, which was in the corner of Wuzhou.Outside the city wall in the west is the surging Guijiang River.

Because he asked to go to the city gate to have a look first, He Dongli first led him to the Xiaonan Gate, which is the closest to the government office. Because the name of the city tower is "Dezheng", it is also called Dezhengmen.

During the siege, both the large and small south gates were attacked by artillery fire, so parts of the two yamen were damaged by the shells that fell into the city, but the damage was not great.In contrast, the Dezhengmen Tower was severely damaged. The artillery fire almost completely destroyed the tower, leaving only a pile of ruins.At the moment, soldiers are supervising captive labor teams dismantling the remaining wreckage and recovering some building materials.

He Dongli said that this small south gate was only opened when Ming Taizu Hongwu rebuilt Wuzhou City in 12 years. The previous Song and Yuan city walls had only four gates, and there were only five gates in Daming.They are East Gate, West Gate, Great South Gate, Small South Gate and North Gate.According to the names of the towers built on the city gate, it is also called Yangming Gate, Nanxun Gate, Xijiang Gate, Dezheng Gate and Dayun Gate.

During the Hongwu period, under the abbot of Zhu Yuanzhang, there was a climax of basic construction. Almost all the government offices and city walls in various prefectures, states, and counties across the country were built during this period.In particular, the pattern of the city walls of each city has basically been maintained.Many Ming and Qing city walls preserved into the 21st century can almost all be traced back to the Hongwu Dynasty.

However, the newly built Wuzhou City in the Ming Dynasty was not too large in terms of area. Although the area was expanded compared with the Song and Yuan Dynasties, the circumference of the Wuzhou City Wall was only 2.8 kilometers, which was not too large among the cities of the Ming Dynasty. Not as good as some important cities.This is obviously not commensurate with its important commercial status, so Wuzhou's urban area has long been extended to the banks of Guijiang and Xijiang outside the city.The pontoon bridges on the Guijiang River and the Xijiang River are just a reflection of the traffic demand after the expansion of the urban area.

Standing on the wall of Xiaonanmen, you can see a moat around the city below the city. He Dongli said that this is also known as the guard dragon embankment. It is more than two feet wide and more than two feet deep. There are wooden fences inside and outside the moat. ——But probably because of the age, many places have been lost, and willows are still planted beside Hao.

"These were all built by Master Han Yonghan in the early years of Chenghua when he was governor of Liangguang. The city wall of Wuzhou was also repaired by him alone."

"Is that the Han Yong who broke the Datang Gorge?" Xie Erren only knew about this person when he was training history knowledge before taking office.

"Exactly."

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Next update: Volume 340 - Guangzhou Governance Chapter [-]

(End of this chapter)