Ping An Biography

On the east bank of Baishui Lake, at the entrance of a large camp stands a tall archery tower made of wood and bamboo, and a sergeant sits on the top floor.At this time, he was condescending, and saw the dust billowing on the road, and a horse team approaching from far.The sergeant looked at it for a while, then hurriedly stood up and straightened his back.

The people who came were British officials and several generals, as well as some followers.After a while, people came out of the tents outside the big camp one after another, and stood on the road waiting to be greeted.The British Duke Zhang Fu came to the front of the camp and shouted without dismounting: "Follow me in and have a look."

This is a huge camp, and the new one has not yet been completed, and many people are still digging soil, repairing walls and building huts.The barracks is very strange, because there are deep trenches behind the earthen walls and fences, and the structure is a bit like the fortifications built by the rebels outside the city. The strange thing is that the defense faces inward... because this is a prison camp.There were several groups of troops stationed outside, heavily armed; inside, a large group of unarmed captives were repairing the fortifications.

"Almost all of them were surrendered by the King of Han, and the total number of people in several battalions should exceed 5000." The person who had just greeted Zhang Fu reported, "I attacked Hukou County more than a month ago, and after being besieged to death, all of a sudden Only [-] people surrendered; the water battle at the mouth of the lake, the rebel navy was defeated, and thousands of people surrendered or were captured after going ashore, excluding those who fled; sneaked out in the middle of the night and surrendered."

Zhang Fu just observed, these people were very obedient, showing no signs of resistance.The general in charge of the battalion continued: "After the fall of the King of Han, these people are not guilty of the most serious crimes...Staying here consumes a lot of food every day. Fortunately, there are ships from the Yangtze River, otherwise it would be a big burden for the army. The general thought that the British public Why don't you give a memorial to the imperial court and let the court princes find a place to set aside a piece of land, change these people into guards, and let them go to farm and farm."

"So many people, how many troops do we need to send them away? Although we have a large number of troops, the art of war says we must encircle them. How many people do we need to encircle Jiujiang? There are casualties every day. There are not so many troops." Zhang Fu said. .He turned his horse's head and kicked the stirrup, "Choose 2000 people and send them to the Eastern Front at five o'clock tomorrow...to change into Xuan Dabing's clothes."

The general asked: "Where did the last general find so many clothes?"

Zhang Fu said: "Your people, change with them! It's not the same what you wear, can you change people if you wear the clothes of the Jiujiang Army?"

"Yes." The general replied.

Zhang Fu thought for a while and lowered his voice and said, "Tell the captive soldiers to put on military uniforms and 'train' them to become our people in another place. Don't tell them that they are going to the front line. This is a military plane. If there are rumors, you will be questioned." !"

"Yes Yes……"

……

At the east gate of the city, gunfire rumbled and smoke filled the air early in the morning.When the gunpowder smoke receded a bit, a crowd of people gathered outside the fence and slowly approached the city wall.In front of them was a large group of soldiers who were not in the same camp. They had no weapons in their hands, and most of them had no armor. They were like a group of rout soldiers who had just been defeated, carrying sacks of sandbags.They were driven towards the city wall by several groups of armed troops behind them.

The mounted cannons on the city wall roared together, and then the muskets fired again, and the arrows flew out.The rebellious soldiers under the city ran away with their heads in their arms, and soon the army who drove them back fired a volley of firearms. For a moment, the rebellious soldiers were like rats turned into a bellows, which was miserable.Some people finally reached the moat with sandbags on their shoulders, threw them by the river, turned around and ran away.

Zhang Fu watched the situation outside silently from behind the fence, when he heard someone sigh behind him.He turned around and said to the generals: "We don't need prisoners to fill the river and dig the wall. We have to use our own soldiers to go up. How different is it from being sent to death? Do we dare to drive out the strong men? The soldiers are not Tartars. If you dare to do this kind of thing If someone participates in a memorial, the old man won't have to be in command."

Zhang Fu said again: "The King of Han's surrender first started a rebellion with the King of Han, and then surrendered to the Huguang rebels to continue their rebellion. The crime of rebels is unforgivable. Today, helping our army to attack the city can be regarded as making up for it."

... A military general on the tower said: "It must not be the officers and soldiers' own people, how could they use guns to kill their own people and force them up?"

Yu Qian said: "It's not a civil servant who was recruited. Zhang Fu didn't dare to do that. He couldn't get away with impeachment." , just changed clothes... As expected, kindness does not command soldiers."

A civil official said: "If you want to blame, blame the soldiers of the King of Han for not protecting your own king. Now they will be used as cannon fodder wherever they go."

Zhang Ning immediately called a general and explained a few words.

After a while, the general led some Suzaku soldiers and shouted on the city wall: "Brothers from the Jiujiang Army, the puppet imperial army does not treat your brothers as human beings, and drives you up to die." "Don't help the officers and soldiers fill the river, Jump into the river to hide, and the king of Xiang will put a ladder to take you to the city later." "Let the dog|day| to fill it up!"

After shouting for a while, countless people jumped directly into the moat. Most of the soldiers from the south can swim, and those who can't swim can escape their lives by lying on the riverside.It's just that the river water in October is so cold that it goes without saying.Some people took the lead, and more and more people followed suit, because the government and the army ordered that failing to fill the river was a capital crime, and they would definitely die if they went back. It would be better to jump into the river to see their luck.

After the officers and soldiers retreated, Zhang Ning really didn't break his promise. He set up a ladder to let a group of rebels go up to the city one after another, and then sent them into the city to light a fire to keep warm.Some frail people on the river had already frozen to death, and it was very miserable to be floating in the water.

Two days later, it rained lightly, and military operations inside and outside the city ceased.Because this kind of weather attack is not worth the loss, the temperature is getting lower and lower, and it is easy to get sick if you get wet; and there will be no results. If you can capture the city at once, you will have won it long ago. Do you have to wait until this time?

Zhang Ning ordered the rescued captives to be rearmed and sent to various fortifications outside the city in three groups.Let them tell the rest of the Jiujiang army what happened after they surrendered, that is, they were driven up to fill the river as cannon fodder to die, with firearms and swords behind them, retreating is death; front is the attack on the city wall, entering is death.Fortunately, the king of Xiang saw through the tactics of the officers and soldiers and did not slaughter the captured soldiers.

In the afternoon of the next day, Zhang Ning braved the rain and came to the earth castle in the east of the city, and started his speech.

Because it was raining lightly, he ordered his soldiers to stay in tents and makeshift shacks near the bunker.And he himself was standing on the wall of the earthen fortress, with the sky above his head, and the attendants who wanted to help him with the umbrella were turned away.

Zhang Ning said loudly in a straightforward and sincere tone: "Rebellion has been the first-class crime since ancient times. In the past, the nine clans were to be exterminated! You used to follow the King of Han, and you were rebelling against the Xuande puppet dynasty. Now that the King of Han is defeated, you think you can be punished." Is it easy to forgive? Rebellion, no matter whether it is successful or not, will not thousands of people die every time? If you brothers in the Jiujiang Army think that you can be forgiven by following the rebellion of the King of Han, and turn your back on Emperor Jianwen this year, it will be very difficult for the Xuande Puppet Dynasty It is unforgivable!

You surrendered to the puppet government army, what will happen?The brothers who came back can tell you that you are here to die!If you didn't die on the battlefield, I can tell you that the convict will at least exile you to a barren land, which is also close to death.Those who seek the living die, those who seek the dead live.Are you willing to let people be slaughtered, or follow the king to fight the country?The king's officers and men are rewarded and punished clearly, food, clothing, and military pay will never be treated badly; from the relatives of the emperor to the civil and military officials, even if we tighten our belts, we will not treat the soldiers who fought bloody hard!

The king received a report from Wuchang that Wuchang has recruited and mobilized an army of 20, and he will go south to rescue the siege in a short time, and fight to the death with the puppet government army!We just need to defend Jiujiang City and wait for reinforcements, the outcome is yet to be decided.

What happened to Wang Zhiyuan last month, the thief was an undercover agent from the puppet court, this incident did cause some misunderstandings between me and the Jiujiang Army brothers.Most of the Jiujiang Army was transferred to garrison outside the city. I was also forced to do so, worried that there would be a second Wang Zhiyuan.Therefore, it is indeed unfair for the king to treat his subordinates differently; but is it better than the puppet government?

After this battle is over, if you want to go home to farm, the king will never force you to stay, and will offer you money to let you go back to your hometown; if you want to stay voluntarily, you can try to take your family to Jiangnan, and we will send this part of the soldiers with you. The Suzaku Army has been reorganized, and you will be the generals and soldiers of the Suzaku Army, and you will be the same from now on.But right now, none of you can leave, the city is surrounded to death, and if you go out, you will be captured, and you will die.We can only work together to tide over the difficulties, this is the only way to survive..."

Zhang Ning walked through three forts in a row in the rain all day, and preached the same speech three times. He didn't memorize all the speeches, but just repeated the meaning, roughly the same meaning.

After returning to the city in the evening to take a bath and change clothes, he was exhausted, and his left leg was still hurting from the old injury, and he fell into a weak state physically and mentally.

He sat on a chair and said to Xin Wei: "The Shi Yige killing order doesn't work, but this time the method should work... Although most of the soldiers are illiterate, they are still living people with brains. Now they are not working hard to think about it." Surrender, then Jiujiang Army and the gang are really useless people, useless."

Xin Wei didn't respond, he was busy adding charcoal to the stove, and said, "I'll go to the kitchen and cook a bowl of ginger syrup for you, after a day of rain, my lord, don't catch the cold."

Zhang Ning nodded, leaned on the chair and closed his eyes to rest his mind, half asleep and half awake.

Gradually, he remembered the beautiful scenery of Baishui Lake that he saw on the city wall one day, the sunny weather, clear water, and the beautiful pavilion.Maybe there is a place by the water in Wuchang, where there are water pavilions, beautiful mountains and rivers, and tranquility; You can compose poems and listen to music.

At this moment, he suddenly became a little decadent.I feel that all achievements, power and wealth are meaningless, and the greatest joy in life should be to have nothing to worry about, just sit around and wait for death.