Chapter 2204
Chapter 2204
Chapter 2204
On the third day of the seventh month, it is cloudy, and everything is not suitable.
After nightfall, a large number of men in black gathered at a canal wharf outside Yangzhou City that had been closed for several days.At the same time, several sailboats came from the north and docked at this pier silently.
A carriage drove into the pier, and a fat man got out of the carriage. He was Lu Kangtai, a representative of Shanxi salt merchants.Now that the scheduled time for action has come, although there are still some key information that cannot be verified, Lu Kangtai is worried that there will be more nights and dreams, and he is unwilling to procrastinate any longer.
Although he failed to get General Gao to express his support publicly, Lu Kangtai finally managed to get General Gao to suspend the city defense army's patrol along the canal tonight, so as to facilitate the operation of crossing the river to attack Daijiazhuang.Of course, this kind of special care can't be obtained by friendship alone, and Lu Kangtai gave Gao Yongshou a lot of benefits for this.
Seeing that Lu Kangtai had arrived, Xie Liang and Xun Fen hurried forward to salute.Lu Kangtai inquired about the assembly situation, and knowing that all the personnel involved in the operation had arrived, he immediately ordered someone to take out the several boxes of silver he had brought.
Lu Kangtai knew very well that in times like this when his subordinates needed to work hard, any good words mobilized before the battle were not as useful as rewards of real money.After all, these people are willing to sacrifice their lives for themselves, in the final analysis, they are all for money.
Lu Kangtai stood on a high place and announced loudly: "Everyone who participated in the action tonight will receive 50 taels of silver each! After this matter, each will receive another hundred taels of silver as a reward! If you are injured or die during the action , there is also a generous pension to ensure that the families of the brothers will have a worry-free life in the future!"
"Tonight's goal, everyone should have read the list. There are 17 people listed above, 500 taels of dead, as long as they can catch the living, there will be a thousand taels of silver reward! If you can win the Haihan people in the village, The reward is doubled! In addition, I, Lu Kangtai, will not take a cent of all the property that was confiscated in Daijiazhuang, and the entire price will be distributed equally to all the brothers present!"
The price Lu Kangtai offered was astonishingly high, and the men in black present became emotional after hearing this. The original anxiety was immediately turned into excitement and courage by the high reward, as if they were waiting for them in the darkness across the river. What they want is not a heavily guarded manor full of unknown dangers, but an undefended gold mine waiting for them to divide.
Lu Kangtai didn't know that the main figures of the seven major surnames had all hid in Daijiazhuang, otherwise the target list he made would definitely be several times more than the current list.However, if he really grasped the movements of the seven major surnames, he might reconsider the risk of attacking Daijiazhuang, and would not be so resolute in betting all the chips in his hand.
In Lu Kangtai's view, as long as the Dai family is resolved, the seven major surnames will be dealt a heavy blow, making them lose the leader, and at the same time, they can no longer pin their hopes on the assistance provided by the Haihan people.At that time, there will be a lot of noise in Yangzhou, and without Dai Yingda as the backbone of the seven major surnames, there will be chaos, and he will seize the time to solve them one by one, and then go back and negotiate with the Haihan people. The overall situation in Yangzhou can be determined.
There is actually no big problem with Lu Kangtai's thinking, but the intelligence information he has is seriously lacking, and there is still a relatively large cognitive bias towards the strength comparison between the two sides and Haihan's attitude, so it is naturally difficult to make a judgment based on this Totally reasonable.He thought that the situation in Yangzhou would develop according to the direction he promoted, but he didn't realize that he was not the main force driving the situation. All the salt merchants in Yangzhou, including him, were just following the wind in this era It's nothing more than a move.
Lu Kangtai called Xie Liang and Xun Fen to his side again, and told them: "What happened tonight, don't kill indiscriminately, but don't let anyone in the village go. After you succeed, you will empty Daijiazhuang according to the plan. Life and death, all should be shipped and shipped away before dawn. Remember to clear the traces after you are done, and don’t leave any evidence! After the operation is over, all the rewards I promised you will be fulfilled immediately, there is no lie!"
The two of them clasped their fists in response, their eyes sparkling with desire.The reward Lu Kangtai promised to the two of them was so rich that they would sell their lives to Lu Kangtai without hesitation.After completing this vote, even if they retire immediately, the reward is enough to allow them to live comfortably for the rest of their lives.
Under the command of Xie Liang and Xun Fen, these men in black boarded the boat that had just docked at the pier in batches, and then quickly moved to the opposite bank.
The surface of this section of the canal is actually not wide, only more than ten feet. If it is not considered that most of these people are equipped with muskets, swimming across the river is the most secret way to cross the river.However, the time required to cross the river by boat is also extremely short. Lu Kangtai only hoped that the other bank did not monitor this section of the river all night, so that his people could sneak into the territory of Daijiazhuang on the south bank.
The ships transporting his men and horses will also temporarily dock on the other side, and wait for the work to be completed before sending away all the living and dead people they transported from Daijiazhuang.Lu Kangtai stayed on the north bank of the canal. Of course, he couldn't see the movement of Daijiazhuang, but he could see the lights on the ships parked on the opposite bank. As long as the ships were safe, it meant that the operation ahead was still going smoothly.
After Xie Liang and Xun Fen led the crowd ashore, they divided into two teams, the front and the back, and moved towards Daijiazhuang.In addition to more than a hundred members of the musketeer team, Lu Kangtai also gathered elites from several other Shanxi salt merchants who participated in this operation. Although these people can only use cold weapons, in this kind of night attack, Cold weapons are precisely the best configuration for the vanguard.
However, last year's fight against the Haihan people had caused the Shanshan-Shanxi salt merchants to lose many good players. This time, the other few people handed over to Lu Kangtai's command were almost all the remaining assets. It will be difficult to recover.
Xie Liang led the improvised team to lead the way, while Xun Fen commanded the Musketeers to advance.Daijiazhuang is surrounded by farmland. They dare not light up torches and lanterns with open flames. They can only use the moonlight from time to time in the sky to march on the ridge of the field.
According to the pre-drilling, everyone had to keep silent during the march, but it was inevitable for someone to slip and fall in the field during the march and curse a few words in a low voice.
The further Xie Liang walked, the more his back felt chills. Usually in this kind of countryside, there are farmers raising dogs. These watchdogs will definitely bark when they hear the noise outside, and they are prepared accordingly.However, these two or three hundred people walked almost a mile in the field without even hearing a dog barking. This situation is really unreasonable.
But now that the arrow is on the string, he has no choice but to act. Even if he realizes that the current situation is a bit unusual, there is no turning back at this time.
After walking another mile, the white walls of the outer buildings of Daijiazhuang could already be seen in front of him, but from the outside, there was no light or sound in the village, and he looked lifeless.
Xie Liang didn't rush to act, but waited for Xun Fen to catch up and meet up.The next step is to attack Daijiazhuang, and they must act together. Although an action plan has been made in advance, they still have to confirm the details before doing so, and then they have to fight on their own.
"Brother Xun, there seems to be something wrong with this place. I suspect that the other party has noticed it and has set up an ambush! What do you think?" After Xie Liang and Xun Fen met, they decisively shared their views with the other party.
Xun Fen was silent for a moment before responding: "Even so, you and I can't stop here, otherwise how will we explain to the boss when we go back?"
Xie Liang and Xun Fen have worked together for a long time, and when they heard what the other said, they knew that Xun Fen had already sensed something was wrong, but the problem Xun Fen raised was the one that couldn't be avoided.
They have already taken the benefits of Lu Kangtai, and they have also promised that they will try their best to win Daijiazhuang, so it is definitely impossible to go back home without doing anything.If Lu Kangtai asked the reason, could they say it was because they felt something was wrong?
Xun Fen said: "The matter has come to this point, we can only act according to the original plan. Even if the opponent is prepared, they have to try to see if they can break into the village. If they can break through, there is still a chance of victory."
In fact, they didn't pay much attention to Daijiazhuang's defense methods. What really made them afraid was the group of Haihan people currently stationed in Daijiazhuang.
According to the current information, the Haihan people stationed in Daijiazhuang are the armed guards of Jindun, and when they were ordered to rob the salt transport team from the south last year, they actually fought against Jindun.Although it was Lu Kangtai's Musketeers who took advantage at that time, it was also because they set up an ambush in the wild and caught the opponent by surprise, and they had an absolute advantage in strength.If you really want to open up a battle, the chances of winning will be much smaller.
The most important thing was that they knew that Jindun's men were also equipped with muskets, which meant that the team hiding in Dai's village was likely to be all musketeers whose combat effectiveness was no less than theirs.If the other party is prepared for their arrival, they will have to take this ambush hard. They still have a rough idea of what it would be like to be ambushed by a musketeer team.
In the plan formulated in advance, they would sneak into Dai's Village quietly while the other party was unprepared, and control the situation before the other party took resistance.But now it seems that the actual situation is somewhat different from their plan, and the other party seems to have been on guard in advance.Now they can only hope to break through the defense of Daijiazhuang and start a scuffle in the village. Then their own side may be able to rely on the superiority of their troops to suppress the opponents who use muskets in close combat, and only then will they have the possibility of winning.
After making a simple change to the action plan, Xie Liang commanded his team and quietly approached Daijiazhuang from the east.He did not choose the main road to enter Daijiazhuang from the north, because he knew that two watchtowers had been built at the intersection in that direction, and there would definitely be guards at night.The east side is full of fields, and the several field paths leading to Dai's Village are not fortified, so maybe they can find a way to sneak into the village.
Xie Liang did find a road leading to the villa very quickly, but after exploring it, he found that this road was obviously weird, so he didn't dare to rush in for a while.
This road is only five feet wide, but the gates on both sides of the road are all sealed with stones, logs, bricks, etc., and the forks in the road are also placed with a person's tall horse, completely blocked Death, people who enter this road can only go straight forward in a daze, and in the dark night, they can't see what is going on at the end of this road.
Xie Liang was standing at this intersection, and there was no trace of people in the visible range ahead, but he could vaguely feel that there was a deadly danger lurking ahead that he couldn't see.This kind of weird defense method is definitely not a project that can be completed in a short time. It is obvious that Daijiazhuang has already taken precautions against intruders from the outside world.
Xie Liang knew something was wrong, but he couldn't order a retreat, so he could only bite the bullet and order his men to climb over the wall and enter the house, to see if he could find another way to open a road from the house next to this road.
Among the people under him, there were various roles, and a few people obeyed the order and threw them on the top of the wall, hooked the eaves of the wall, and then climbed the rope to the room, quickly climbed over the top of the wall, and disappeared into the night.
However, after these people climbed over the wall, they didn't give the agreed signal for a long time, and they couldn't hear any sound from the other side of the wall, as if they were silently swallowed by the night.
Xie Liang knew something was wrong, so he asked people to quickly inform Xun Fen who was waiting for the news, and told him to prepare to cover his retreat.This Daijiazhuang was obviously prepared. If he wanted to rush in like this situation, he would be making a joke of his own life.Although the rewards Lu Kangtai offered were extremely tempting, if you have the money, you have to spend your life. Of course, saving your life is the priority.
At this time, on the other side of the road, Yuan Tao, Dai Yingda, and Dai Yingfan were standing in the night, looking at the crowd outside the village who were about to move.In front of them are fifty musketeers who have already formed a battle formation. If people outside want to rush in along this road, they will be greeted by a dense hail of bullets.
"It seems that they have discovered something, and they dare not go in again." Dai Yingda was a little disappointed when he saw this scene. If he ordered to fire at this time, the other party would definitely be frightened and would turn around and run away immediately. It should not hurt much personal.But to watch the other party retreat unscathed, he felt unwilling. After all, Dai Jiazhuang had made so many preparations for this and invested a lot of manpower, material and financial resources. Substantial blow, it always feels like doing a loss-making business.
Dai Yingfan said: "It seems that our fortifications are still too obvious. As long as you are not a fool in this situation, who would dare to break into it again!"
Yuan Tao said: "The first task of my trip is to ensure the safety of Daijiazhuang, and the second is to wait for the opportunity to kill the enemy. If I can make the other party retreat, then there will be no casualties in Daijiazhuang. Isn't this the case now? Best outcome?"
(End of this chapter)
On the third day of the seventh month, it is cloudy, and everything is not suitable.
After nightfall, a large number of men in black gathered at a canal wharf outside Yangzhou City that had been closed for several days.At the same time, several sailboats came from the north and docked at this pier silently.
A carriage drove into the pier, and a fat man got out of the carriage. He was Lu Kangtai, a representative of Shanxi salt merchants.Now that the scheduled time for action has come, although there are still some key information that cannot be verified, Lu Kangtai is worried that there will be more nights and dreams, and he is unwilling to procrastinate any longer.
Although he failed to get General Gao to express his support publicly, Lu Kangtai finally managed to get General Gao to suspend the city defense army's patrol along the canal tonight, so as to facilitate the operation of crossing the river to attack Daijiazhuang.Of course, this kind of special care can't be obtained by friendship alone, and Lu Kangtai gave Gao Yongshou a lot of benefits for this.
Seeing that Lu Kangtai had arrived, Xie Liang and Xun Fen hurried forward to salute.Lu Kangtai inquired about the assembly situation, and knowing that all the personnel involved in the operation had arrived, he immediately ordered someone to take out the several boxes of silver he had brought.
Lu Kangtai knew very well that in times like this when his subordinates needed to work hard, any good words mobilized before the battle were not as useful as rewards of real money.After all, these people are willing to sacrifice their lives for themselves, in the final analysis, they are all for money.
Lu Kangtai stood on a high place and announced loudly: "Everyone who participated in the action tonight will receive 50 taels of silver each! After this matter, each will receive another hundred taels of silver as a reward! If you are injured or die during the action , there is also a generous pension to ensure that the families of the brothers will have a worry-free life in the future!"
"Tonight's goal, everyone should have read the list. There are 17 people listed above, 500 taels of dead, as long as they can catch the living, there will be a thousand taels of silver reward! If you can win the Haihan people in the village, The reward is doubled! In addition, I, Lu Kangtai, will not take a cent of all the property that was confiscated in Daijiazhuang, and the entire price will be distributed equally to all the brothers present!"
The price Lu Kangtai offered was astonishingly high, and the men in black present became emotional after hearing this. The original anxiety was immediately turned into excitement and courage by the high reward, as if they were waiting for them in the darkness across the river. What they want is not a heavily guarded manor full of unknown dangers, but an undefended gold mine waiting for them to divide.
Lu Kangtai didn't know that the main figures of the seven major surnames had all hid in Daijiazhuang, otherwise the target list he made would definitely be several times more than the current list.However, if he really grasped the movements of the seven major surnames, he might reconsider the risk of attacking Daijiazhuang, and would not be so resolute in betting all the chips in his hand.
In Lu Kangtai's view, as long as the Dai family is resolved, the seven major surnames will be dealt a heavy blow, making them lose the leader, and at the same time, they can no longer pin their hopes on the assistance provided by the Haihan people.At that time, there will be a lot of noise in Yangzhou, and without Dai Yingda as the backbone of the seven major surnames, there will be chaos, and he will seize the time to solve them one by one, and then go back and negotiate with the Haihan people. The overall situation in Yangzhou can be determined.
There is actually no big problem with Lu Kangtai's thinking, but the intelligence information he has is seriously lacking, and there is still a relatively large cognitive bias towards the strength comparison between the two sides and Haihan's attitude, so it is naturally difficult to make a judgment based on this Totally reasonable.He thought that the situation in Yangzhou would develop according to the direction he promoted, but he didn't realize that he was not the main force driving the situation. All the salt merchants in Yangzhou, including him, were just following the wind in this era It's nothing more than a move.
Lu Kangtai called Xie Liang and Xun Fen to his side again, and told them: "What happened tonight, don't kill indiscriminately, but don't let anyone in the village go. After you succeed, you will empty Daijiazhuang according to the plan. Life and death, all should be shipped and shipped away before dawn. Remember to clear the traces after you are done, and don’t leave any evidence! After the operation is over, all the rewards I promised you will be fulfilled immediately, there is no lie!"
The two of them clasped their fists in response, their eyes sparkling with desire.The reward Lu Kangtai promised to the two of them was so rich that they would sell their lives to Lu Kangtai without hesitation.After completing this vote, even if they retire immediately, the reward is enough to allow them to live comfortably for the rest of their lives.
Under the command of Xie Liang and Xun Fen, these men in black boarded the boat that had just docked at the pier in batches, and then quickly moved to the opposite bank.
The surface of this section of the canal is actually not wide, only more than ten feet. If it is not considered that most of these people are equipped with muskets, swimming across the river is the most secret way to cross the river.However, the time required to cross the river by boat is also extremely short. Lu Kangtai only hoped that the other bank did not monitor this section of the river all night, so that his people could sneak into the territory of Daijiazhuang on the south bank.
The ships transporting his men and horses will also temporarily dock on the other side, and wait for the work to be completed before sending away all the living and dead people they transported from Daijiazhuang.Lu Kangtai stayed on the north bank of the canal. Of course, he couldn't see the movement of Daijiazhuang, but he could see the lights on the ships parked on the opposite bank. As long as the ships were safe, it meant that the operation ahead was still going smoothly.
After Xie Liang and Xun Fen led the crowd ashore, they divided into two teams, the front and the back, and moved towards Daijiazhuang.In addition to more than a hundred members of the musketeer team, Lu Kangtai also gathered elites from several other Shanxi salt merchants who participated in this operation. Although these people can only use cold weapons, in this kind of night attack, Cold weapons are precisely the best configuration for the vanguard.
However, last year's fight against the Haihan people had caused the Shanshan-Shanxi salt merchants to lose many good players. This time, the other few people handed over to Lu Kangtai's command were almost all the remaining assets. It will be difficult to recover.
Xie Liang led the improvised team to lead the way, while Xun Fen commanded the Musketeers to advance.Daijiazhuang is surrounded by farmland. They dare not light up torches and lanterns with open flames. They can only use the moonlight from time to time in the sky to march on the ridge of the field.
According to the pre-drilling, everyone had to keep silent during the march, but it was inevitable for someone to slip and fall in the field during the march and curse a few words in a low voice.
The further Xie Liang walked, the more his back felt chills. Usually in this kind of countryside, there are farmers raising dogs. These watchdogs will definitely bark when they hear the noise outside, and they are prepared accordingly.However, these two or three hundred people walked almost a mile in the field without even hearing a dog barking. This situation is really unreasonable.
But now that the arrow is on the string, he has no choice but to act. Even if he realizes that the current situation is a bit unusual, there is no turning back at this time.
After walking another mile, the white walls of the outer buildings of Daijiazhuang could already be seen in front of him, but from the outside, there was no light or sound in the village, and he looked lifeless.
Xie Liang didn't rush to act, but waited for Xun Fen to catch up and meet up.The next step is to attack Daijiazhuang, and they must act together. Although an action plan has been made in advance, they still have to confirm the details before doing so, and then they have to fight on their own.
"Brother Xun, there seems to be something wrong with this place. I suspect that the other party has noticed it and has set up an ambush! What do you think?" After Xie Liang and Xun Fen met, they decisively shared their views with the other party.
Xun Fen was silent for a moment before responding: "Even so, you and I can't stop here, otherwise how will we explain to the boss when we go back?"
Xie Liang and Xun Fen have worked together for a long time, and when they heard what the other said, they knew that Xun Fen had already sensed something was wrong, but the problem Xun Fen raised was the one that couldn't be avoided.
They have already taken the benefits of Lu Kangtai, and they have also promised that they will try their best to win Daijiazhuang, so it is definitely impossible to go back home without doing anything.If Lu Kangtai asked the reason, could they say it was because they felt something was wrong?
Xun Fen said: "The matter has come to this point, we can only act according to the original plan. Even if the opponent is prepared, they have to try to see if they can break into the village. If they can break through, there is still a chance of victory."
In fact, they didn't pay much attention to Daijiazhuang's defense methods. What really made them afraid was the group of Haihan people currently stationed in Daijiazhuang.
According to the current information, the Haihan people stationed in Daijiazhuang are the armed guards of Jindun, and when they were ordered to rob the salt transport team from the south last year, they actually fought against Jindun.Although it was Lu Kangtai's Musketeers who took advantage at that time, it was also because they set up an ambush in the wild and caught the opponent by surprise, and they had an absolute advantage in strength.If you really want to open up a battle, the chances of winning will be much smaller.
The most important thing was that they knew that Jindun's men were also equipped with muskets, which meant that the team hiding in Dai's village was likely to be all musketeers whose combat effectiveness was no less than theirs.If the other party is prepared for their arrival, they will have to take this ambush hard. They still have a rough idea of what it would be like to be ambushed by a musketeer team.
In the plan formulated in advance, they would sneak into Dai's Village quietly while the other party was unprepared, and control the situation before the other party took resistance.But now it seems that the actual situation is somewhat different from their plan, and the other party seems to have been on guard in advance.Now they can only hope to break through the defense of Daijiazhuang and start a scuffle in the village. Then their own side may be able to rely on the superiority of their troops to suppress the opponents who use muskets in close combat, and only then will they have the possibility of winning.
After making a simple change to the action plan, Xie Liang commanded his team and quietly approached Daijiazhuang from the east.He did not choose the main road to enter Daijiazhuang from the north, because he knew that two watchtowers had been built at the intersection in that direction, and there would definitely be guards at night.The east side is full of fields, and the several field paths leading to Dai's Village are not fortified, so maybe they can find a way to sneak into the village.
Xie Liang did find a road leading to the villa very quickly, but after exploring it, he found that this road was obviously weird, so he didn't dare to rush in for a while.
This road is only five feet wide, but the gates on both sides of the road are all sealed with stones, logs, bricks, etc., and the forks in the road are also placed with a person's tall horse, completely blocked Death, people who enter this road can only go straight forward in a daze, and in the dark night, they can't see what is going on at the end of this road.
Xie Liang was standing at this intersection, and there was no trace of people in the visible range ahead, but he could vaguely feel that there was a deadly danger lurking ahead that he couldn't see.This kind of weird defense method is definitely not a project that can be completed in a short time. It is obvious that Daijiazhuang has already taken precautions against intruders from the outside world.
Xie Liang knew something was wrong, but he couldn't order a retreat, so he could only bite the bullet and order his men to climb over the wall and enter the house, to see if he could find another way to open a road from the house next to this road.
Among the people under him, there were various roles, and a few people obeyed the order and threw them on the top of the wall, hooked the eaves of the wall, and then climbed the rope to the room, quickly climbed over the top of the wall, and disappeared into the night.
However, after these people climbed over the wall, they didn't give the agreed signal for a long time, and they couldn't hear any sound from the other side of the wall, as if they were silently swallowed by the night.
Xie Liang knew something was wrong, so he asked people to quickly inform Xun Fen who was waiting for the news, and told him to prepare to cover his retreat.This Daijiazhuang was obviously prepared. If he wanted to rush in like this situation, he would be making a joke of his own life.Although the rewards Lu Kangtai offered were extremely tempting, if you have the money, you have to spend your life. Of course, saving your life is the priority.
At this time, on the other side of the road, Yuan Tao, Dai Yingda, and Dai Yingfan were standing in the night, looking at the crowd outside the village who were about to move.In front of them are fifty musketeers who have already formed a battle formation. If people outside want to rush in along this road, they will be greeted by a dense hail of bullets.
"It seems that they have discovered something, and they dare not go in again." Dai Yingda was a little disappointed when he saw this scene. If he ordered to fire at this time, the other party would definitely be frightened and would turn around and run away immediately. It should not hurt much personal.But to watch the other party retreat unscathed, he felt unwilling. After all, Dai Jiazhuang had made so many preparations for this and invested a lot of manpower, material and financial resources. Substantial blow, it always feels like doing a loss-making business.
Dai Yingfan said: "It seems that our fortifications are still too obvious. As long as you are not a fool in this situation, who would dare to break into it again!"
Yuan Tao said: "The first task of my trip is to ensure the safety of Daijiazhuang, and the second is to wait for the opportunity to kill the enemy. If I can make the other party retreat, then there will be no casualties in Daijiazhuang. Isn't this the case now? Best outcome?"
(End of this chapter)