Yangzhou
The news about Zhen Zhu, the military governor of Tongzhou who was guarding the port, was destroyed and his navy was destroyed, and that he himself was captured. It spread like wildfire throughout Yangzhou and the south of the Yangtze River. It was like a typhoon blowing in the south of the Yangtze River. People's faces hurt.
Some said that the Donglu army had landed in the south of the Yangtze River in large numbers via sea ships, and the imperial army was retreating steadily.
Some say that this is the Donglu's plan to imitate the Han Dynasty and first seize the wealth of the southern province, and then use it to sweep the world.
For a time, people in Yangzhou were panicked and rumors spread.
In the elegant and beautiful courtyard of the Zhen family manor, Chu Princess Zhen Qing stood up from the pear tree chair and stood there blankly, her face pale, and she was speechless for a long time. She could clearly hear the people coming from Jiangbei Camp to inquire about news. As the man narrated, his expression changed drastically, and he murmured: "How could this happen?"
The fourth uncle led more than 10,000 navy troops to suppress the navy, but he couldn't even hold on for half a day. He was defeated and lost, and he was also lost in the army. How is this possible?
Zhen Qing felt cold all over her body, and her heart was covered with a thick layer of gloom. Now the Zhen family had a leak in the house and it rained all night, and the boat was broken and turned into a storm.
For the first time, Hua Xin's young wife thought of Jia Heng.
Yes, that bastard, he must have a way!
Zhen Qing thought of this and was about to instruct the female officer to go to Jiangbei Camp. Suddenly she felt that it was inappropriate to look for someone at this moment. Then, at this moment, a nun came from the courtyard and said in a hurry: " The princess, the third lady and the fourth lady are back."
While they were talking, several maids surrounded the third lady Zhen Lan and the fourth lady Zhen Xi into the flower hall. The two sisters' faces were not very good-looking, and the look of panic was clearly visible on their fair and pretty balls.
Zhen Qing rushed forward, took the two sisters' arms, and asked: "Third sister, fourth sister, where is Uncle Yongning?"
Zhen Lan sighed and said softly: "Sister, Brother Heng has sent troops to rescue my uncle. Please let me come and report to you that something happened to your fourth uncle and Zhen Haijun. They were attacked by Donglu and others. The pirates were defeated, and now we don’t know whether we are alive or dead.”
When Zhen Xi heard this, her eyes were dim with tears. Her face was clearly stained with tears. She had cried just now. Her delicate voice was a little aggrieved because of her crying: "Sister, daddy was defeated and captured." ”
Zhen Qing asked: "What do you think, Brother Heng? Is it possible to save your father?"
"I don't know." Zhen Xi shook her head, her eyes were moving, and she was clearly in a sad mood.
Zhen Lan took over the conversation and said softly: "Brother Heng didn't say anything, he just sent the navy to assist Tongzhou to defend the port."
According to her estimation, the fourth uncle will never come back.
In fact, to say it cold-bloodedly from the bottom of my heart, it would be better for my fourth uncle to die in battle if he was captured, and still get a reputation as loyal and brave. Now that he is in the hands of the enemy, if he betrays and surrenders to the enemy again, I am afraid that the entire Zhen family will be implicated by him.
Thinking of this, Zhen Lan sighed quietly in her heart.
When Zhen Qing heard this, a look of worry appeared on her charming and gorgeous face, and she whispered, "I'm afraid what will happen to my wife when she finds out about this?"
And that bastard, if you lead the troops over like this, nothing will happen to you.
Zhen Lan said: "Sister, the news from Yangzhou will reach Jinling in a short time, and the old lady will know it anyway."
Given Mrs. Zhen's age and physical condition, she was already holding on, but this was probably the straw that broke the camel's back.
Zhen Qing sighed, but didn't know what to do.
Not to mention that people in Yangzhou were panic-stricken, but it was said that Jia Heng and the 6,000 navy troops and 2,000 infantrymen from the Jiangbei camp left the water stronghold and rushed towards Tongzhou Weiport for reinforcements.
In the evening, the twilight was low, and a bright moon as big as a disk hung high in the sky, and the sound of water on the side of the ship made a constant sound.
"In order to take revenge, Duduo contacted a lot of pirates. There are ten to twenty thousand pirates in Jiangsu and Zhejiang. This battle is not easy to fight on the water." Chen Xiao looked at the man standing at the bow of the ship, standing with his sword. The young man reminded in a low voice.
The young man in front of him was not a pure naval general, and he didn't know if he knew how to fight on the water.
Jia Heng said solemnly: "These pirates don't dare to confront the imperial court head-on, and they are united for profit. It's okay to say that the battle goes smoothly, but once the battle situation becomes stalemate, their minds will inevitably be shaken and they will be scattered. , the key lies in the elite soldiers under Duduo."
He is not timid about water battles, but in today's age of firearms, in Yu Dayou's words, more ships are better than fewer ships, and big blunderbuss is better than small blunderbuss. There is no need to board the ship with a card to command.
Chen Xiao thought for a while, with clear eyes, and said softly: "Then it's good that you know what's going on."
Jia Heng looked at Chen Xiao and whispered: "There are a large number of boatmen, sailors, and warships in Tongzhou Weigang, so we can't make any mistakes."
There are usually water fortresses where warships are parked, which are used to repair the ships and provide water for the soldiers' daily life, and they cannot be too far away from the county seat. If Tongzhou Weigang falls, with Duduo's ruthlessness, in order to weaken Chen Han, most of them will The warships were set on fire, and the crewmen were massacred and robbed.
Chen Xiao said: "If the Jiangbei camp is not in order, I'm afraid that the pirates will be so powerful that they may break into Jinling."
Jia Heng frowned and said, "If we really want to break into Jinling, I'm afraid the world will be shaken."
When the enemy invaded Jinling, Shen Fang and the Zhen family were wiped out by the emperor's wrath. However, as the Minister of Military and Aircraft, he was not exempt from the blame. At least the capital was filled with rebellion.
Because now he is commanding the Jiangbei camp in Yangzhou, how can he sit back and watch the bandits pass through Yangzhou and reach Jinling?
Therefore, the worst result is that Tongzhou Weihang falls.
But after the fall, if you want to fight back against the enemy again, you need to accumulate strength again.
Thinking like this, when the sky was getting close to midnight, the sailors on the lookout came over to report that the fleet had sailed into Tongzhou Wei Port.
In fact, Jia Heng looked up and saw that in front of the water village, there was already a sea of fire, which almost turned the river sky red. The shouts of killing came from far away along with the sea breeze.
It was clearly Duduo's side. After waiting for the ships and the navy to rest for a while, they immediately ordered the ships to move towards Tongzhou Weigang and start fighting with the soldiers left behind in the water village of Tongzhou Weigang.
There are still 4,000 sailors left behind in Tongzhou Weigang. Together with the fleet of sailors who returned in defeat, there are about 6,000 to 7,000 sailors.
Duduo clearly approached the water village with a chain boat, and then ignited the kerosene in the front boat to burn the water village in Tongzhou Wei Port.
Feng Ji, the marching chief of the Tongzhou port defense, and Wei Che, the naval general and guerrilla general, guarded the camp and set fire to the boat from the inside. Then they divided their troops on the shore wall and bombarded it with fire blunderbuss, crossbows, and Folang machine cannons. , clearly with the purpose of delaying the entry of ships into the port and waiting for reinforcements.
Jia Heng looked solemn and ordered: "Liu Jixian, let the drummer beat the drum, wave the flag, and let the water general lead the water division to drive away the pirates."
The ships of the Han Dynasty also have cannons. Although the Folang cannon has a shorter range and is not as powerful as the Hongyi cannon, its equipment does more damage and its firepower is much stronger than that of the pirates. It can flank the pirates' boats and attack them. Force it back.
Now the navy of Jiangbei Camp is divided into three teams. Because Shui Yu has experience in water warfare, this time he also led the former navy general of Jiangbei Camp to accompany the army.
In addition to the generals who were not involved in embezzlement of military pay, these naval generals also had three middle and low-ranking naval generals.
For these three people, according to Jia Heng's promise, if they are successful this time, their salary will be reduced by half.
Liu Jixian received the general's order and ordered the drummers to beat the drums and wave the flag on the flagship. As the navy from the Jiangbei camp approached the pirate fleet, for a while, the sound of drums on the Liaokuo River was as dense as raindrops, and the excitement was high. People's hearts.
Then, Shui Yu and the navy generals led the boats to attack the pirates. Compared with the navy in Daying Town in the south of the Yangtze River, which had just been established and lacked training, the navy in Daying Town in the south of the Yangtze River had undergone comprehensive reorganization and was obviously much more powerful.
"Boom boom boom!"
"Whizzing!!!"
All of a sudden, the boats, cannons, muskets, and bows and arrows fired in unison, shooting towards Donglu Dan with the light of fire in the dark night.
Qin Dong, the leader of the Sihai Clan who was guarding them from the side, saw this and was in great confusion, and hurriedly gathered towards the middle camp.
On the other side, Duduo also noticed the reinforcements coming from Jiangbei Camp and saw this scene.
Su Hetai said: "Master, the reinforcements from Jiangbei Camp are coming, and the people below can't stop them."
After all, after a day of fighting, both the will and the physical strength of the pirates had been exhausted. The three pirates in the middle each divided 500 people to land and loot property. They landed in Haimen, Suzhou and other places to loot property. goods.
At this moment, Duduo just pretended not to hear anything and looked at the Jiangbei camp ships hundreds of meters away.
Because it was night, even though there was a bright moon in the sky, the sight of both hands was unclear, so they did not join the ship. After a while of fighting, the pirates held the boat open, and countless soldiers fell into the water.
Shangguan Rui, the leader of the Nujiao Gang, looked at the dark masts in the distance, which were all military ships. He felt a sense of fear in his heart. He walked up to Duduo and said, "Your Majesty, it's getting late and the soldiers are tired. It's better to go ahead and call for gold." Retreat your troops and fight again tomorrow."
Duduo looked at the official fleet in the distance, his icy gaze seemed to travel through time and space, and fell on the face of the young man in python suit at the bow of the ship. Knowing that he could not capture Tongzhou Weiport, he could only whisper: "Ming Jin!"
"Clang clang clang!!!"
As the sound of gongs sounded on the flagship, Duduo's fleet sailed far away from Tongzhou Wei Port. The firelight of Tongzhou Wei Port's water village in the distance gradually became smaller in sight, until it remained in the night sky. One line.
Chen Xiao looked at the fleet escaping in the moonlight and whispered: "Do you want to send someone to chase it?"
Jia Heng said in a deep voice: "We don't have the advantage in terms of military strength. Let's send a team of people to put out the fire first. We'll wait here and be prepared."
At this moment, the Tongzhou Weigang in front of us was almost in chaos. Jiangbei Daying Navy entered and it was easy for them to get into trouble. Unexpectedly, Duduo let his men go and come back again, killing them by surprise.
Yu Jin gathered the rebels, but did not directly lead them into the stronghold.
But on Duduo's side, the boat had sailed five or six miles, and he still didn't look back from the direction of Tongzhou Weigang behind him.
"Master, the Han army is not chasing us." Su Hetai whispered: "Master, it's time for dinner."
Duduo said unwillingly: "Go back to Haimen first."
After repeated battles, the soldiers on the ship were indeed exhausted, and it was not suitable to fight again. After recuperating their energy and collecting taxes, they landed in Taicang and Jiading along both sides of the river to plunder.
Half an hour later, looking at the flames that were slowly extinguishing in the distance, Jia Heng frowned slightly and said to Chen Xiao, "Let's go to Wei Harbor and take a look."
The navy and boats of Tongzhou Guarding Port need to be replenished and sent to Jiangbei Camp.
Jinling, Zhenzhai
In Fuxuan Hall, the lights are brightly lit and the figures are looking forward to.
Mrs. Zhen was leaning on a bed covered with soft mattresses. She had just eaten and asked Zhen Yingjia's wife, Mrs. Gan, "The two girls haven't come back yet?"
Mr. Gan smiled and said: "Old lady, I was talking just now. Girl Qing took the two of them to Yangzhou. His third uncle asked why there were no people at the poetry festival."
Mrs. Zhen said with a smile: "Lan'er has made a decision, and this year I wanted Xi'er to do the same, but don't worry, Xi'er is still young."
Zhen Baoyu, who was sitting below, said softly: "Old ancestors, the third sister and the fourth sister are going to get married."
"Your fourth sister will be married in two years. It's decided now." Mrs. Gan said with a smile.
When Zhen Baoyu heard this, she felt unhappy, but she couldn't say anything.
At this moment, a commotion suddenly came from outside.
Mrs. Zhen frowned and asked, "Why is it so noisy outside? Come over and take a look."
At this time, a nanny came out of the hall with a frightened expression. She faced the gazes of Mrs. Zhen and Mrs. Gan. She wanted to speak for a moment, but she didn't dare.
When Mrs. Zhen saw this, a look of solemnity appeared in her old eyes, and she suddenly had a bad premonition in her heart, and asked, "What's wrong?"
In front of the powerful Mrs. Zhen, the nanny had no choice but to bite the bullet and said: "Old lady, something happened. People are saying outside that the fourth master led the navy to fight against the pirates in Tongzhou and suffered a huge defeat. , people were also captured by bandits."
When Mrs. Zhen heard this, she was like a thunderbolt from the blue. She opened her mouth, only to feel that her eyes went dark, the sky and the earth were spinning, and she didn't know what was going on.
Seeing this, Mrs. Gan called out urgently: "Old lady..."
Suddenly, there was a chaos in Fuxuan hall. The doctor was calling the doctor, and the people who were approaching were pinching the people. The chickens were flying, the dogs were jumping, and the soldiers were in chaos.
In the Yichun Garden of the manor, Zhen Yingjia, Zhen Shao and Zhen Xuan, who were having a banquet with the clan's children, all heard the news and came to Fuxuan Hall one after another. They were all shocked when they heard that Mrs. Zhen had fainted. Eclipsed.
Until midnight, the courtyard outside Fuxuan Hall was already crowded with the Zhen family. In addition to Princess Zhen Xue of Beijing, Zhen Shao's wife and Zhen Xuan's wife were all waiting.
Zhen Jue, Zhen Lin and other daughters-in-law, as well as brothers and sisters from other side rooms, gathered in the hall with sad faces.
With a "humming" sound, Mrs. Zhen faintly woke up and turned around. Her face was ugly and she was weak and said: "Jia'er."
"Mother." Zhen Yingjia was approaching, crying, and called out.
Mrs. Zhen's vision was blurred and she said tremblingly: "Your fourth brother..."
Zhen Yingjia said with a bitter look on her face: "Mother, don't worry about your fourth brother. Mother must take care of yourself."
Mrs. Zhen narrowed her eyes and glanced at the anxious faces. She stretched out her hand feebly and called out: "Jia'er, go and invite Brother Heng."
Everyone in the Zhen family: "..."
"Mother, Brother Heng has led the navy from Jiangbei Camp to Tongzhou Weiport. Who can rescue the fourth brother?" Zhen Yingjia said quickly.
Zhen Shao comforted and said: "Mother, the fourth brother is now in the hands of Donglu. When the Jiangbei camp wins, there may be a glimmer of hope."
Mrs. Zhen said dejectedly: "The Zhen family is finished."
As soon as these words came out, it was as if a cold wind blew in the hall. What's the end?
Zhen Yingjia said softly: "Why did mother say this?"
Zhen Xue also raised her beautiful eyebrows and looked at Mrs. Zhen, but there were already many speculations in her heart.
Mrs. Zhen said: "If this news reaches the capital, I'm afraid the Holy One will be angry."
As soon as these words came out, Zhen Yingjia and Zhen Shao looked at each other, and both saw solemnity and fear in each other's eyes.
There was also a hint of worry in Zhen Xue Wanli's eyebrows.
He led his soldiers and horses to meet the pirates, but he didn't know what happened.
Liangjiang Governor's Office
It was almost midnight, and the full moon hung in the sky. On this festive occasion, the lights in the wing were brightly lit, and a lonely shadow reflected in the window.
Because Shen Fang's wife Da Zheng returned to her parents' home to visit relatives, Shen Fang, the governor of Liangjiang, was the only one left in the study at this moment, sitting behind the mahogany desk and reading a memorial.
This is a memorial written by Chen at that time. It mainly describes the tax revenue and expenditure in the south of the Yangtze River. For this reason, it was appreciated by the emperor and he was able to serve as the governor of Liangjiang, one of the few feudal officials in the world.
At this moment, following the sound of light footsteps, Shen Fang looked around and saw a young woman with a pretty face and graceful figure. She was holding a red lacquered wood food box in her hand, with a steaming soup bowl inside.
Shen Fang asked in surprise: "Why is my sister here?"
The visitor was no one else, she was clearly Xiao Zheng, the wife of the former governor of the river, Gao Bin.
Mrs. Zheng said softly: "Seeing that the lights in my brother's study were on, and thinking that my brother was still dealing with official duties, I made a bowl of Tremella and Lotus Seed Soup for my brother."
Shen Fang put down the memorial, looked at Mrs. Zheng, and said softly: "I'm sorry, I can just leave this matter to my servants."
Little Zheng said, walked towards the desk, put down the food box, took the white fungus and lotus seed soup from it, and said: "My servant is clumsy and may not know my brother's preferences."
As he spoke, he took a spoon and put it in a porcelain bowl, smiling brightly and holding the spoon in his bare hands.
Although little Zheng was dressed in simple mourning clothes, with only one hairpin with white pearl flowers on her elegant bun, her beautiful face was smeared with light rouge, and the charm of a widow naturally overflowed between her eyebrows. Soft and moving.
Little Zheng raised her eyes to look at Shen Fang and asked, "What has brother been busy with recently?"
Shen Fang said: "I have been busy organizing the Jiangnan camp these days. Jiang's defense needs to be sorted out and consolidated."
As he said this, he realized that the woman in front of him might not understand what he was saying, so he paused. However, he saw a deep ravine appearing between Little Zheng's lowered head and her beautiful neck, and a large area of skin that was dazzlingly white.
Shen Fang frowned and turned his old eyes aside, but the fragrant fragrance wafted from Zheng's body, making people feel distraught.
But they were quickly pushed aside. After all, they were people in their forties or fifties.
Little Zheng handed over the white fungus and lotus seed soup that she had served, and said in a beady voice like clear water flowing through the palm of her hand: "Brother, here it is."
Shen Fang nodded, stretched out his hand and continued: "I'll just come...?"
"Oops." Little Zheng said in surprise. It was clearly an accident and the soup fell into Shen Fang's arms.
"Brother..." Little Zheng quickly reached out and took out a handkerchief, trying to help Shen Fang wipe the porridge stains on his legs.
Shen Fang frowned, quickly stood up, waved his hands and said, "It's nothing, I just want to change my clothes."
As a provincial official, I have never seen any scene before, so I don't know that this is my sister-in-law seducing me.
However, he has read the books of sages and sages, and in the future he will serve as an assistant to the king, regulate yin and yang, and perform meritorious service, speech, and morality. How can he have such a slight flaw in white jade?
Little Zheng raised her eyes to look at Shen Fang. Under Chunshan's dark eyebrows, her eyes were moving like ripples in autumn water, and she said softly: "Brother, are you really so cruel?"
Shen Fang was silent for a moment and said in a deep voice: "My dear brother, his body is not cold yet, my younger brother and sister are like this..."
At the end of the sentence, I felt that the words were a bit heavy and I paused, but the meaning was self-evident.
Little Zheng's delicate body trembled, tears rolled down her cheeks, and she murmured: "Brother, my husband is wronged."
Shen Fang was about to speak when he suddenly heard rapid footsteps coming from outside, and immediately called out: "Master, there is urgent military information from Jiangbei."
When Shen Fang heard this, he was shocked. He ignored the pear blossoms and the rainy little Zheng, and quickly walked towards the door. He quickly took the military intelligence report from the servant and read it with the help of a lantern hanging on the eaves of the corridor. His expression suddenly changed. , even the hand holding the official document was trembling slightly.
"This... Zhen Zhu, you fooled me!" Shen Fang said anxiously, feeling frightened and angry, almost sighing.
(End of chapter)
