Ming Zhengzhi, I am Zheng Kezang

The north wind was blowing outside the tent, and snowflakes like goose feathers were flying all over the sky under the force of the wind.What is unbelievable is that it is only the beginning of September. If it were changed to the customs, those poor people might still be wearing single clothes now, but at the foot of the Xiaoxing’an Mountains, the cold wind from Siberia can already blow people away. Freeze into popsicles.

Of course, the outside of the tent is icy and snowy, but the inside of the tent is as warm as spring.The five-layer thick sheepskin cushions insulate the cold air from the earth, and the red-burning fire pit in the center of the tent makes people feel like they are under the summer sun.

At this time, several graceful women in thin clothes were grilling something on the firepit. The aroma of barbecue and milk tea mixed together and spread out, making the men sitting cross-legged and chatting around uncontrollably secrete more saliva.

"I said, Lao Zha, your tent is pretty good, much better than my dilapidated wooden house." Yanhuang's voice rang out in the tent. "Why don't you fix one for me when the sun clears?"

The leader of the Horqin Left Middle Banner, known as Lao Cha, Zhadan Dorji, king of Zasak County, smiled wryly: "In the past, if you asked Xian Wang, it would not be a problem for me to give it to you directly, but now, the situation in the banner Not good, most of the subjects are still two or three households squeezed together in a tent, how can there be any extra furs for you, King Xian, to pitch a tent." [

"Old Cha, you are crying poor." Yanhuang blinked. "It shouldn't be that bad."

Chadan Dorji swore: "If I tell a lie, the Buddha will definitely punish me, and the sky will be struck by thunder."

Yanhuang's face still had an expression of disbelief, and Boguoduo said after drinking the steaming milk tea in his hand: "Prince Xian, stop making trouble, the life of the big guys is hard now, let's put Just a little bit, when the snow stops, ask the people below to hunt two more bears and tigers for you, and when the tiger skins and bear skins are spread in the house, it may not be worse than King Zha's tent."

"Forget it." Yan Huang shook his head. "It's winter, and the bears and tigers in the mountains don't know where to live."

Just as they were talking, Chadan Dorji's concubines offered roasted leg of lamb to several people. Bogoduo cut a piece with the silver knife on the side and chewed it in his mouth, then passed the silver knife I gave it to Yanhuang, and at the same time commented: "The lamb leg is roasted well, with a layer of wild honey on the outside, King Zha, you will really enjoy it."

Chadan Dorji sighed and said: "That is to say, the invitation is to entertain the two princes. Otherwise, how can it be so comfortable? This year, there will be no more wars or relocation to the pasture. The banner has not raised livestock at all. Up to now, it has been a long time. There are not many rams and ewes to grow, and I don’t know how to live next year.”

Chadan Dorji's words made Bogoduo frowned, but before he could speak, Yanhuang yelled: "I said Lao Zha, you are not mean enough, why, knowing that we are here to borrow food from you, let us borrow food from you." I said it a bit miserable, okay, aren’t we? You have to think about it, if we hadn’t helped you drive away the Raksha people, would you be able to settle in this place with lush water and grass?”

Seeing the flash of anger on Chadan Dorji's face, Bogoduo knew that things were going to get worse, and hurriedly greeted him, "King Zha, there is no way to borrow food from you. The villages of Hu, Oroqen, Dargan, and Ewenki have suffered terribly. It’s unheard of that the imperial army has come, and they all swarmed to join them, making the food that was enough even insufficient.”

In addition to being emotional, Boguoduo also said bitterly: "Of course, Prince Xian and I can also pat our buttocks and leave these Butha people alone, but what kind of heart is the Oros people? It's really like a Raksha ghost Similarly, if you are wronged, you will be rewarded, and there will definitely be a comeback after the spring of next year, and then you will have to rely on the strength of the local Butha people."

Chadan Dorji was a little moved. He knew that if the Horqin Left-Wing Middle Banner wanted to gain a firm foothold around Hulun Lake, the threat of the Russians had to be considered. It is very important to form an offensive and defensive alliance, and it is even more important to have a good relationship with Boguoduo and Yanhuang, whose strength has expanded after incorporating these Butha Eight Banners.

It’s just that good fortune is hard to give up, and Horqin Zuoying Zhongqi has suffered a lot this year, and there is no spare energy to help others. Therefore, Chadan Dorji, who is in a dilemma, still can’t grit his teeth and agree to Boguoduo’s request.

Boguoduo, who was watching the words and expressions, knew what the other party was worried about, so he lowered his voice and said: "King Zha, I know that you are afraid that you will have to pay back, and the life of this flag will not be able to survive in the coming year. Don't worry, there is an old saying in the Han people that there is only a thousand days There is no reason to be a thief for a thousand days to guard against thieves. We can't wait for the Oros to attack. After the spring, we have to counterattack and grab everything we can from the Buryats of Maozi and Afu Maozi. That's the only way. Only by weakening the strength of the Oros people and strengthening our strength, after one goes up and down, we don’t have to worry about the Oros people’s comeback.”

Chadan Dorji narrowed his eyes and thought for a while, then asked: "How sure is Zhuang Prince?"

It’s not that Chadan Dorzi is timid. He has seen the fighting power of the Russians with his own eyes. He was deeply impressed by the fierce attack of the Cossack cavalry. Just to eliminate more than 800 people who crossed the Ergun River, the Qing and Mongolian coalition forces He paid more than double the casualties, which made him doubt Bogoduo's plan.

"King Zha, you only saw our casualties, but you didn't see that the imperial court had more than 3000 strong men after the Oros people were beaten away." Boguduo smiled and said seductively. "Then what will be waiting for us after we cross the Ergun River? Presumably, more Maoming'an and Buryats will take the initiative to join us."

The tradition of the Mongols is to follow the strong. If the Horqin Left Wing Middle Banner is strong, it will naturally attract many Buryat Mongols and Maomingan people of the same origin. Cattle, horses, and slaves can be obtained through robbery, which is indeed profitable.

However, Chadan Dorji still hesitated: "But the Oros people are sharp guns."

"The blunderbuss, I also have it." Bogoduo was referring to the hundreds of flag-made matchlock guns and two Shenwei general guns he brought, as well as the firearms seized from the Cossacks before. "It may not be inferior to that of the Oros people. And this king will not attack the city of the Oros people, just grab one outside the city."

After wiping his mouth with the brocade robe on his body, Yanhuang also opened his mouth and added: "It is said that the cities of the Raksha ghosts are also very scattered. As long as they surround a few of them and attack with a bluff, the Raksha ghosts will definitely be overwhelmed. At this time, the army Taking the opportunity to grab one everywhere will surely let the Oros people know the consequences of offending my Qing Dynasty.”[

"That's a way." Chadan Dorji asked. "Then I wonder how many soldiers the two princes plan to send? How many troops will be sent from this banner? How many troops will be sent from the Horqin Right Wing Front Banner? How will the spoils be distributed after winning?"

Yanhuang replied carelessly: "Either don't fight next year, once the war starts, the king and the king of Zhuang will naturally all bet on it, even if some of them are old and weak who cannot fight, waving the flag and shouting at the side can make the Oros people I don’t know the reality, and it will take labor to carry the spoils when the time comes.”

"As for the two banners of Horqin, I naturally hope that King Zha and King Leng will also be dispatched in full force." Bo Guoduo said. "After all, after repaying the food borrowed by the two banners, the spoils are distributed according to the number of troops sent by each party."

Chadan Dorji asked: "(Korqin) the right-wing former Banner King has agreed?"

"I haven't gone yet," Bogoduo said without concealing it. "Don't you think about King Zha first?"

"Prince Zhuang, you are not thinking about me, but about my cattle and sheep." After finishing speaking, Chadan Dorji pondered, and when Bogoduo and Yanhuang were full, the banner owner, Lord Zasak, Only then slowly opened the mouth. "It's okay to borrow food, and it's okay to send troops to help the war, but there is one case, the two of you must agree first." Boguoduo made a gesture of please, and Chadan Dorji said. "If the looted things are small, you can first repay the loaned cattle and sheep of the banner before distributing them; but if the looted things are enough, you have to distribute them first, and then the part you got will be distributed." repay."

"Old Cha, you are dark enough." Yanhuang quit. "After all, you are the one who took the lead. Didn't we make the wedding dress for you for no reason? No, no, we have to distribute it after it arrives, or just let it go. King Zhuang and I will return to Qiqihar Go, you deal with Rakshasa ghosts alone."

"King Xian, it's fine if you say so." Chadan Dorji frowned. "The Horqin people have no unresolved grievances with Huaxia. Why do they have to abandon the pastures left by their ancestors and come to this more bitter and cold place? The big deal is that next spring, the banner will turn back and ask the Huaxia people to surrender. I think there is always a way out. .”

"How dare you!" Yan Huang jumped up and cursed. "You bastard, how dare you turn your face and deny anyone?"

Chadan Dorji shouted in Mongolian: "Come on!"

The curtain was thrown open at once, and more than a dozen Mongolian soldiers rushed in with the cold air of ice and snow. Seeing that the two sides were about to tear their faces apart, Boguoduo coughed lightly: "King Zha, what does this mean? If you have something to say, you can't talk about it." say?"

"Master Zhuang Mingjian, this is not what the king wants." Chadan Dorji pointed to Yanhuang. "The Horqin people have paid too much for the Qing Dynasty, and they really can't take risks with the only family they have."

Bo Guoduo nodded: "Forget it, just follow King Zha's wishes. If the harvest is small, we will first repay the grain borrowed by the two banners. If there is a lot, we will take part of the spoils under our name to repay the loan. "

"How do you prove that the prince will not break his promise?"

"I love my daughter, this year is sixteen, if King Zha is willing, how about being my son-in-law?"

When the wind and snow subsided, he left Horqin's left-wing Zhongqi Wang tent with the borrowed [-] sheep and [-] cows and returned to his own camp. Yanhuang asked in puzzlement, "Master Zhuang, why are you so wronged?"

"Confused," Bogoduo said bluntly. "If we fall out, first of all, you and I will lose our heads. Besides, if we can't borrow food, how can we pass this winter? As for repenting afterwards, this king has never thought about it."

"Then don't marry Princess to this repeated villain."

Bo Guoduo sneered and said, "I don't know if there will be a fourth year in Tongzhi. At this time, if I marry my daughter and can hold the Horqin Left Center Banner firmly in my hands, let alone one, I will be willing to give it to ten."