Chapter 998
Yang Ping Should Go or Stay
Chapter 998 Yang Ping Should Go or Stay
"Master, Yangping is ahead. The city wall is not high, but there are many hidden secrets inside. Also, the spies reported that there are many defenders in the city, including 30,000 reinforcements from the Jiangnan camp, more than 10,000 remnants of Wei Xiangping, and more than 20,000 newly recruited young soldiers. Together, there are about 70,000 troops. I did not expect this."
Outside Yangping South City,
On the earth slope of the ten-li area, the right protector Ying Xiancai said with a bitter face the information he had learned from the city. He always felt that the imperial army could not be killed completely. Fortunately, Shizhou City had replenished a large number of slave troops and food and grass, otherwise, the army would not be able to hold out until now.
"Humph, that old man Wei is not good at fighting, but he is the best in the world at fooling people. Many officials of Shizhou government office died in the battle, but this old man led the elite troops to escape. It seems that all the officials of Yangping were fooled."
The leader of the White Lotus Sect, Bai Shuiyue, pulled up her hat and veil, and snorted coldly. She had intended to capture Yangping quickly, but she had never expected that the old man Wei would block her way again.
"No way, Master. The letter from Jiangnan said that Prince Mu Shi from the East was lending troops to Prince Beijing. How could the commander of the Jiangnan camp listen to Wei Xiangping? Isn't he afraid of Prince Beijing's blame? Tsk tsk."
Ying Xiancai was a little bit unconvinced. Although Shui Rong of the Northern Palace was known as a wise king, he was ruthless in commanding the army. Jiangnan commander Jiao Xiong would definitely not lead the troops in person. Who would have the courage to go if anyone else went?
"Beijing Wang is an outsider after all. Even if the people from Dong Wangfu go, they still have to follow Dong Wang's orders. Even if Jiao Xiong doesn't go, he still has a nephew Jiao Ke, who is ambitious and extremely greedy for money and lustful. You think Jiao might leave if Wei Xiangping, the old fox, instigates him, plus those officials from Yangping,
Bai Shuiyue smiled contemptuously. It would be fine if she didn't know about other officials, but it would only take some time for all the officials in Jiangnan and Jingnan to know. The White Lotus Sect had controlled Jiangnan for more than ten years, and it was not just talk.
"So what the leader meant was that Jiao Ke would leave a large army to defend the city without permission?"
Ying Xiancai asked in astonishment, this is good and bad, the good thing is that it will be less difficult to attack the county city, and Yangping in front of him can't be stopped,
"That's inevitable. As long as Wei Xiangping doesn't leave, he will stay to defend the city. This is for the court to see, and for the people of the world to see. If this is the case, then we can't just sit there and do nothing. The slave army has collected so many people, and it's a waste of food. Yangping faces the river on one side, so we can only surround the city on three sides and attack it all at once to consume a wave first."
"Yes, Master,"
Bai Shuiyue said it lightly, but there was a hint of pressure on her face. The Taiping Sect in the west, I don't know how many days it can hold out. The little monkey of my junior sister is really good at fighting. Chu Yiyue, who is so good at calculating, was defeated. Who else can stop them? Fortunately, the walls of Linshan County are high and strong, so they can still stop them.
She could only speed up her actions. As for Qinzhou, Linzhou and other places, if the imperial army attacked, she had ordered them to withdraw to Qiongzhou County in Lingnan to preserve their strength. However, she did not know what the Taiping Sect would do.
"Ohh Ohh ohh!"
The rapid horn sounds rang out, and the White Lotus army had begun preparing to attack the city.
"The Right Guardian has issued an order that whoever enters the city first will be rewarded with the Hall Master, a thousand gold coins, and a hundred women. Anyone who enters the city may not put down their swords for three days. Anyone who retreats or hesitates to move forward will be killed."
"Hoohoo!"
A burst of shouts was heard from within the White Lotus army, and then the army marched out with a deafening momentum.
The beauty of Suzhou and Hangzhou is the most famous in the world. There is heaven above and Suzhou and Hangzhou below. Now that summer has arrived, Suzhou has added a touch of tenderness.
In the main tent of Suzhou Jiangnan Camp, Mu Shi, the Eastern King, was wearing a light blue shirt and a blue brocade headband. He had nothing else on him. He sat in the main seat in a very casual manner, brewing tea. In the eastern seat of the tent, Zhou Long, the King of Chu, was sitting there yawning.
The seat slightly further back in the west was naturally occupied by Jiao Xiong, the commander of the Jiangnan camp. The three of them gathered here to drink tea. Looking at Jiao Xiong who seemed a little restless, Mu Shi smiled.
"General Jiao, there is no need to be so reserved. The prince and His Highness are not demanding people. Just treat them with a normal attitude."
"Yes, Your Majesty, I apologize for the poor hospitality and for causing injustice to Your Majesty and His Highness,"
Jiao Xiong really didn't lie about this. Although Suzhou City was safe, the safest place was in the Jiangnan camp. The two princes had just arrived in Jiangnan, and the thieves were rampant. The White Lotus thieves had appeared frequently in Jiangnan. Jiao Xiong was not at ease with the two princes living in the restaurant in the city. If something went wrong, he, the commander, would certainly not be able to escape the blame. So he simply lived with the two princes and looked after them personally.
"You are still as dedicated as you were back then. I remember General Jiao. When he was in the East Palace, he reprimanded the guerrilla general who neglected his duties. I remember that majesty in my heart."
The King of Chu was moved and looked at Jiao Xiong opposite him. It seemed that he was an old acquaintance of the King of East.
Only Jiao Xiong had a slightly bitter smile on his face. The prince was still the same prince and should not be underestimated.
"Yes, Your Majesty, at that time I was arrogant and didn't know the rules. Fortunately, Your Majesty didn't bear grudges, so I learned my lesson."
Looking back on the past, it is unbearable to watch. Although I taught that guerrilla general a lesson, I also suffered a loss.
"Hey, General, don't be sad. I like generals to speak frankly. The court is in need of people right now. Although the White Lotus Sect has started a war to wreak havoc in Xihe County, Jiangnan is not stable. The people of the White Lotus Sect dared to deceive the people in broad daylight. I can't tolerate it anymore. Can the soldiers of Yangzhou Prefecture be transferred back?"
Since Jiangnan is unstable, we need to mobilize troops to capture them. However, 30,000 soldiers from the Jiangnan camp have gone to Yangping, and the remaining 20,000 have to guard the Suzhou wharf and the Tangjun port. There are no more soldiers available, so we can only mobilize the troops from various prefectures in Jiangnan. It has been three days since I received the letter, and there has been no reply at all.
"Well, Your Highness, the Jiangnan Prefecture Army is different from the capital. Jiangnan has been peaceful for a long time, and the military is in disrepair. It's good to have half of the Prefecture Army. A few days ago, the Yangzhou Prefecture Army followed the order of Eunuch Yang and called for troops from Jinling. This time, nominally 10,000 Prefecture Army troops were called, but in fact there were only 5,000 troops. The commander of the Suzhou Prefecture Army was concurrently served by General Leng of Jinling because of the reasons of this general. There were only 2,000 Prefecture Army troops to maintain order in the city. Therefore, the troops of the Jiangnan Prefecture Army are dispensable."
Jiao Xiong's forehead was covered with sweat. He thought the prince knew about these things, but seeing that the prince's face was getting worse and worse, it seemed that he didn't know.
really,
Not to mention the King of Chu's face full of disbelief, Mu Shi's face had already turned livid. The silver sent out by the East Palace every year did not even see the shadow of the palace army. Could it be that it was all embezzled?
"Eunuch Yang, the supervisor of the Capital Office is now in charge of the Suzhou Manufacturing Bureau. You don't need to ask about his affairs. Nanjing still has the Wuxiang Imperial Guards and others who can be used. What do you want the government troops to do? Send a military order immediately. In three days, I will see the Yangzhou government troops arrive at the camp."
Mu Shi's face turned pale. Since he had come to Jiangnan, some things belonged to the East Palace, so he had to take them back. If anyone was blind, he couldn't blame him for being ruthless.
"Yes, Your Majesty, I will send someone to tell General Leng right away."
The person he was asking about was Leng Dandong, the commander of the Jinling Prefecture Army. He was a very difficult person to deal with.
"Let him come to see me, and bring 5,000 soldiers with him."
"Yes, Your Majesty,"
Jiao Xiong nodded, clasped his fists and responded, and went out of the tent to make arrangements. When they left, Mu Shi and the King of Chu were left alone in the tent. Glancing at the slightly distressed King of Chu, Mu Shi sighed and apologized;
"Your Highness, you have worked hard these past few days. Jiangnan seems to be stable, but in fact it is in chaos. I have heard that the flood in Jinling City was a man-made disaster. It submerged nine counties in the south and north of the Yangtze River, and there were refugees everywhere. Several adults fought for power and profit, disregarding the emperor's grace. They are really ashamed of the people of the world. If the White Lotus Sect mixed in and spread rumors, the consequences would be disastrous."
The most important thing is that there are no more soldiers available in Jiangnan. Even if there are imperial guards in Nanjing, it is unclear whether they are enough.
King Zhou Long of Chu seemed listless, but he was just exhausted from the long journey these days and didn't sleep well. However, he saw everything that happened along the way. He thought that the King of the East would avoid him, but who would have thought that he did everything openly and honestly, without any falsehood. He didn't know why.
"Your Highness, just do it. Since there are no soldiers, then recruit soldiers to fill the gap. It is said that if Jiangnan is well-prepared, the whole world will be well-off. We will have this little money. First, ensure the stability of the east bank of the canal, and then carry out the arrest. However, Your Highness also needs to consider the gentry in Jiangnan and the noble families. It is okay to make a small fuss, but if it gets out of hand, it will be shameful."
This is a reminder. Since the King of Chu has come to Jiangnan, how could those civil officials and noble families not take action? They had secretly met with the King of Chu before leaving Beijing. It is unknown what they said.
"Haha, OK, Your Highness, I will keep your words in mind, but Your Highness also needs to be careful. The words of civil officials have always been the least trustworthy. If they hadn't been corrupt in Jiangnan, how could there be such unrest? That's all I have to say. Your Highness needs to think carefully."
How could Mu Shi not see the meaning of what the King of Chu said? Before coming to Jiangnan, many people from civil official families also contacted him. Unfortunately, these sour Confucian villains only knew how to make profits in front of them, but they didn't know the intentions behind the palace. What Jiangnan needed was stability. Unfortunately, no one realized this truth.
"Your Highness, you can do it appropriately. I did not stop you. Although those noble families sent people to negotiate peace, I did not agree to them. Everything is based on the court."
King Zhou Long of Chu blinked, explained briefly, and then smiled. Some words can only be understood by the heart.
"Ahahaha, okay, I'll follow your Highness's instructions."
Prince Mu laughed, picked up the tea bowl, and drank the tea instead of wine.
Jinling City,
Jiangnanchun Restaurant was crowded again. Ever since Jiangnan solved the problem of disaster relief food, many officials finally stopped worrying. Now that spring grain planting was imminent, most people were asked to go back and replant. Unfortunately, the four county magistrates still had to repair the farm first, and the farming issue was put off again and again.
At the wine table, the inspector general Jing, with a look of surprise on his face, asked;
"Prefect Jia, the relief grain has been delivered to the county offices. Why can't the spring crops and mulberry trees be planted? Why can't they be implemented?"
There was a question in his words. It has been almost a month. There have been so many incidents in various places in Jiangnan. Now the mulberry trees have not been planted. Is it because someone doesn't want to, or is someone trying to stop them? The matter here needs to be discussed.
"Master Jing, we can't say that yet. Disaster relief has just begun. The water in the fields has just receded. Even the living places have not been repaired, let alone farming. In addition, there are many refugees who need to eat. There are also many mines in Jiangbei. Hu Wenxuan, the co-governor of the government office, has gone to supervise the mining. Fortunately, there is a matchmaker in Jiangbei who has sent people to transport them here. We will solve the food problem first. After the manor is built, we will replant immediately. This year's harvest can only be like this."
Jia Yucun smiled slightly, and there was nothing wrong with his words. He did what he could do, and he also did what he couldn't do. Lord Zhuang was also informed, and Lord Su did not stop him privately, which showed that he and Lord Jing were not on the same page.
"You, Magistrate Jia, how many days will it take to build the farm? If the spring plowing is delayed, the harvest will be gone,"
Jing Cunliang smiled coldly. It was useless to hide these things. It was better to speak out openly. After all, Eunuch Yang and other officials were here. If things went wrong, it couldn't be blamed on him.
"In reply to Lord Jing, currently the civilians have suffered heavy casualties. Years ago, the refugees were sent to the border by boat by the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Even if the survivors are asked to plant spring crops now, there is no one to use. Perhaps even more people have died. If you don't believe me, you can go and investigate. I have sent so many official documents, and the petitions of several county magistrates are all on the case file in the government office. I can't put a knife on these people's heads and force them. If it really doesn't work, Lord Jing can submit a petition to replace them."
Jia Yucun did not back down today. He might as well take this opportunity to clear himself out. Tongpan Ma Guangcheng has been staying at home these days. Now that the two superiors are arguing, he is terrified that the conversation will involve him.
Eunuch Yang had been sitting in the main seat with an indifferent look. He glanced at Shen Wanhe, who nodded immediately and stood up to smooth things over.
"My Lords, please do not argue. Disaster relief is the most important thing now. As long as people are alive, there is a lot that can be done. It just takes more time. If it is really impossible, use the government troops to help build the manor first. Isn't there coal in Jiangbei? If it is transported to the four counties, it will be enough for cooking and making fire. In this way, no time will be wasted."
Considering that accommodation and food are all ready-made, it would be good to use more manpower, but Jing Cunliang did not respond and asked;
"I wonder which government troops Lord Shen is going to mobilize?"
To mobilize the government troops, not only would we have to leave behind files, but we would also need to purchase additional salaries and silver. Besides, Leng Dandong, the commander of the Jinling City government troops, was not an easy person to deal with, so how could he take on this matter?
"Lord Jing, Magistrate Jia, didn't the Yangzhou army just fill in the embankment at Xinbei Dam? Since we can do one part, we can do two parts. We just happened to send money over these days, so it doesn't matter if we send it again. There are so many acres of land, and since we want to build a farm, we should repair more, so that the people can go back earlier."
Although Shen Wanhe was also anxious, after all, the 10,000 looms in the Weaving Bureau were almost fully assembled. In addition, bandits were rampant in Jingnan and Xihe, not to mention the cut-off of trade routes. In Hangzhou and other places, not even a single thread of silk was seen, let alone raw silk. As a result, not to mention the production set for this year, even last year's production was not certain. Even if there was raw silk in Wuhu County and Jingbei County, it could not be transported.
As the head of the weaving bureau, Yang Gonggong knew all these things. He could only start from the existing Jiangnan area and plant mulberry trees as quickly as possible. With hundreds of thousands of acres, even if it was only half of the area, he could still make a contribution.
"Okay, since Lord Shen has mentioned it, Lord Jing will issue the order to dispatch troops today to build the house first so that they have a place to live, and we can take care of the rest later. How about this? This land needs to be cultivated. Mulberry trees must be planted no matter what. In addition, as long as mulberry trees are planted, every household will receive a reward from the government. Although it is not much, it is good. Do you agree?"
Eunuch Yang, who had been silent all this time, finally spoke up. Since the people were dragging their feet, they would be rewarded. Someone would always be the first to go.
"This is a good idea, but with so many acres of land, how much should we give?"
Jia Yucun was startled. The government office had been spending money like water these days. The tax silver saved at the beginning of the year had also been used. If more money was distributed, the government treasury would be empty. Unexpectedly, Eunuch Yang was unmoved and said,
"One mu of land is worth ten taels of silver. The more you plant, the more you gain. It's such a good thing. Who wouldn't agree with it? Therefore, the government should do more publicity these days. Time waits for no one."
Seeing that the matter was once again placed on the shoulders of the government, Jia Yucun suddenly felt that something was wrong. He wanted to argue again and turned his attention to Lord Su. Before Lord Su could speak, Shen Wan and the old housekeeper Si Yujin hurried in from outside the hall.
When he saw the gentlemen, he immediately bowed and said:
"I bow to all the masters,"
As soon as he kowtowed, Shen Wanhe saw him and asked;
"What happened?"
"Here, sir,"
The old housekeeper looked embarrassed. Shen Wanhe knew something was wrong and wanted to leave, but Eunuch Yang interrupted.
"Go ahead, I want to hear it too."
The old housekeeper immediately lowered his head and glanced carefully at his master. Shen Wanhe nodded gently, and Si Yujin then apologized carefully.
"Reporting to Eunuch Yang, a letter just came from the south of the city, saying that a military order has been received from Suzhou, dispatching the Yangzhou army to assemble at the Jiangnan camp immediately. In addition, Lord Leng's army will also send half of its elite troops to the Jiangnan camp to wait for orders. It is said that it is the order of Lord Dong and His Royal Highness the Prince of Chu. Now General Xiang and General Leng have already assembled their troops in the camp."
Just a few words made everyone's faces in the hall gloomy. The transfer order came so quickly and left so quickly. Did something happen in the west?
"Since it is the military order from the prince and His Highness, we can't wait. As I just said, the government army cannot be mobilized, so we can only ask the county magistrates to do their best. In this way, we can allocate more money to the magistrates of the nine counties affected by the disaster to speed up the progress. As for the west, is there any news?"
Eunuch Yang's words were a way of smoothing things over for himself. The government troops were no longer useful, so the task still fell on the government office.
"My Lord, a caravan said that the Jiangnan camp is empty!"
"what!"
(End of this chapter)