In the second year of Xuanhe in the Song Dynasty, on the fourth day of the twelfth lunar month, Qingxi County fell, and the county magistrate Chen Guang fled to Muzhou.
On the 11th day of the twelfth lunar month, Muzhou Prefecture's Xin'an fell, and the officers and generals Cai Zun and Yan Tan sent to support by the Zhexi Road Appeasement Department were killed in battle.
Ye Juzhong and Tong Shu, the commander-in-chief of the army and horses, were sentenced to die for the country. The prefect Zhang Huiyan was sentenced to death. Zhang Yuan was sentenced to death. The county magistrate Chen Guang fled to Hangzhou.
On the twenty-second day of the twelfth lunar month, six counties under the jurisdiction of Muzhou, Qingxi, Jiande, Sui'an, Shouchang, Fenshui, and Tonglu, were all lost.
On the twenty-sixth day of the twelfth lunar month, Zhu Meng had the power to mobilize Guo Shizhong, the Shezhou garrison on Jiangnan East Road, to attack Fangla. Guo Shizhong was killed in the battle at Chuanxinling.
In the third year of Xuanhe's reign, on the eighteenth day of the first lunar month, Shexian County, governed by Shezhou Prefecture, fell.
On the twenty-ninth day of the first lunar month, the six counties under the jurisdiction of Shezhou, Xiuning, Guixi, Jingde, Yixian, Qimen, and Jixi, were all lost.
Fang La's army has quickly gathered to 150,000 to 160,000. The Mingjiao leaders in Liangzhe Road, Liangjiang Road, and Lianghuai Road all over the country have risen up one after another to respond, causing chaos in the southeast.
On the second day of February, the dragon raises its head.
Fang La purged the army below and divided the troops into two groups. He personally led one group to Hangzhou, the capital of western Zhejiang, while the other group was led by Fang Qifu and headed south to attack Quzhou on the east Zhejiang Road...
At this moment, within the Zhejiang West Road pacification envoy Si Nei, Zhexi pacification envoy Chen Jian looked at the three people in front of him with a sad look on his face.
Jiangnan East Road appeasement envoy, Huainan East Road appeasement envoy and Zhejiang East Road appeasement envoy.
The officials from the three frontiers bordering western Zhejiang all gathered in Hangzhou.
Naturally, Chen Jian didn't have the dignity to invite three people over. These three people were transferred by Zhu Meng.
Just now, Zhu Meng gave them a council and asked them to discuss how to destroy Fang La, and then returned to Suzhou in a carriage.
Chen Jian smiled bitterly at this moment and said: "Master Zhu just said that he didn't want to disturb the Holy Master and asked me to wait for the four groups to find a way to solve this matter. Do you have any good ideas?"
The three people in front frowned and said nothing. Chen Jian sighed: "We only have more than ten thousand soldiers and horses in western Zhejiang. I heard that the bandit army has reached hundreds of thousands, so how can we defeat it?"
Jiangnan East Road comfort envoy Wang Hanzhi frowned and said, "Although Mr. Zhu said he was afraid of alarming the officials, he really didn't report it. If the matter is serious, wouldn't he ask for punishment?"
Chen Jian shook his head and said, "How could I not have thought of this? It's just that Zhang Huiyan of Muzhou had reported to the capital once before, but was scolded by the Prime Minister when he came back and asked me to handle it myself in western Zhejiang."
Wang Hanzhi had a good relationship with Chen Jian. After thinking for a while, he said: "I see that Fang La is so powerful that it makes no sense to keep it a secret. If the entire western Zhejiang is really lost, it's okay if you can't escape. But even if you can escape, It’s also about serious crimes!”
How could Chen Jian not think of this? It's just that Zhu Meng kept hiding it, so he had to obey. At this moment, he gritted his teeth and said, "What can Yan Zhao teach me?"
Wang Hanzhi looked at the other two people. The two comforters closed their eyes slightly and fell asleep. He said: "Although I don't have a good plan, I can show Shu Rong a way."
Chen Jian nodded hurriedly: "Yan Zhao, please tell me quickly. If the crisis in western Zhejiang can be solved, I will burst into tears."
Wang Hanzhi stroked his gray beard and said, "Chen Yuan, the transfer envoy between the Huaihe River and the Huaihe River, is on call in Beijing. I heard that he has been promoted to the direct bachelor's degree in Longtuge. However, he has not yet come down from his post. He is resting at home. You two are old acquaintances. It's okay. Ask him for help."
When Chen Jian heard this, he suddenly realized that he and Chen Yu had known each other for many years and had discussed the same sect. He couldn't help but clapped his legs and shouted: "Yan Zhao reminded me, I will write to Heng Bo now and beg him to move."
Wang Hanzhi continued earnestly: "Walking around is walking, Shu Rong must remember not to shorten his hands."
Chen Jiansheng comforted him all the way, but he didn't know what was going on. He gritted his teeth and said, "I know it. Thank you Yan Zhao for the tip."
Having said that, he did not shy away from the other two comfort envoys and wrote directly. After sealing it for a while, he called for his personal entourage. He also selected two confidant officers in the department, took fifty heroes, and escorted a large cart of soft property. Quietly heading to Tokyo...
But in the Prime Minister's Mansion in Tokyo, Wang Fu was reading Zhu Meng's secret letter. He looked shocked and said to himself: "Muzhou has been destroyed? This emblem is useless!"
At this moment, he felt a headache, and he hesitated whether to report this matter to Emperor Daojun. Emperor Daojun was now intoxicated with Fengheng Yu's rhetoric. If the chaos in the southeast started, he would definitely get angry and scold him for his inability to handle political affairs, which caused this. Bad consequences! He might even be deprived of his position as prime minister, demoted and sent out. Therefore, when Zhang Huiyan, the magistrate of Muzhou, reported that Fang La was causing trouble, he instead scolded him for being reckless and panicked, and ordered him to suppress the Qing Dynasty.
But if the truth is not reported to the officials, the Fang La thieves will become more and more powerful in the future, and they will even attack Jiangbei. If Daojun and Emperor punish him for the crime of deception, the end will not be much better.
Wang Fu didn't know what to do, and he was depressed for a while, so he took a few trusted servants and carried several loads of specially made candles to the palace city.
When I arrived at the palace, I saw the Taoist Emperor wearing a gold-embroidered red back pocket and a sapphire crown. In front of him was a waiter carrying an engraved silver incense burner filled with cigarette smoke. Behind him, a palace maid held a glass-inlaid jade palm fan and went to Linqing Baolu Palace to chant sutras and learn Taoism. .
Wang Fu hurriedly greeted him and said, "I would like to inform the officials that the Ambergris Xingnao incense candle made by my supervisor has been shipped. I would like to ask the officials to try it out."
Emperor Daojun asked him to light it for a test. Wang Fu lit a pair of incense candles. After a while, he saw the flames of the candles flickering, wisps of green smoke rising, and bursts of quiet and elegant fragrance. He took a deep breath and the fragrance entered his nose. Spleen, opens menstruation and penetrates bones, clears the mind and regulates qi, and has a long-lasting fragrance.
When Emperor Daojun smelled the fragrance, he couldn't help but praise: "Ai Qing is really capable. He actually made such a wonderfully fragrant candle, which is rare in heaven and on earth! I just happened to take this candle to Qingbaolu Palace today to honor the gods. I have a lot of love for you. Supervise and make some, and the incense candles will be used in the palace in the future."
"Follow the official's order!" After Wang Fu responded, he did not dare to mention anything about the southeast. After sending Daojun and the emperor away with gifts, he hurried back to his home.
When he returned to the house, he became more and more hesitant. After repeated consideration, he still decided not to report Fang La's incident...
Most officials in the southeast were afraid of offending Cai Jing, Wang Fu, and Zhu Meng, but one of the people who was not afraid was Chen Tao, the transfer envoy of the Huaihe Road.
During the Zhenghe period, Chen Yu was demoted to his hometown for outspokenly offending Cai Jing. Later, he was directly promoted. Emperor Daojun actually promoted him. After that, he prospered all the way and was able to transfer between the Huaihe River and Huaihe River. This time he went to Beijing and could not leave. Unexpectedly, he must be comforted all the way.
He was a straightforward person and good-looking. In the eyes of Emperor Daojun, he was a loyal and loyal minister. Emperor Daojun liked him, so he promoted him all the way.
Chen Yuan was originally a Beijing official and once bought a family property in Tokyo. At this time, he was waiting for the imperial order at home when he received a letter from Chen Jian.
When he saw what was written in the letter, he was immediately surprised, and hurriedly asked the person who came. He heard that Fang La's army was approaching Hangzhou, but because of Wang Fu and Zhu Meng's deception, the imperial reinforcements were delayed in sending troops to the southeast. Great evil in heart.
Chen Fu was naturally loyal to Emperor Daojun, so he thought about this matter and refused to report it. However, Wang Fu blocked his way, so he had to find a way to bypass Wang Fu and report directly to Emperor Daojun. However, he was on call at home and could not do anything without errands. When going to court, you can't enter the palace, so you have to find another way.
Finally, he thought about it over and over again, looking at the gold and silver property that Chen Jian had given him, and came up with a plan. He couldn't help but think of Zhang Di, the superintendent of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Zhang Di loves money, so as long as Zhang Di is given money and asked to help hand over the memorial, then the matter will basically be completed.
Chen Tuo did it as he said, and that night he tried to find a way to make an appointment with Zhang Di. When he told the story, Zhang Di was also shocked. He saw another cart of gold and silver, so he took over the matter.
The next day at court, Emperor Daojun went to Taiqing's small building to copy scriptures. Zhang Di looked around and saw no one around. Thinking of the cart of gold and silver jewelry, he immediately knelt down and held up Chen Tao's memorial and Chen Jian's memorial. The letter trembled and said: "Guan family, there is a huge chaos in the southeast. I dare not not report it to the official family!"
Emperor Daojun is not afraid of hearing the words "peace in the world". He can hear it thousands of times, and the more he listens to it, the more he likes it. But after hearing this "big chaos" only once, he felt it was harsh and frowned and looked at Zhang Di .
Zhang Di didn't know much about Emperor Daojun's temperament, but he came from a rogue background. Now that he had spoken, he would simply keep doing it, and the worst he could do would be a slap in the face, and it's not like he hadn't been punished before.
He said: "Guanjia, Muzhou has been lost, Shezhou has been lost, and the bandit army from Jiangnan has approached Hangzhou!"
Emperor Daojun was stunned when he heard this. He stepped forward angrily, grabbed the folding book in Zhang Di's hand, and opened it to look at it.
At this look, his face turned ugly, and then he threw the memorial on the table. After staying for a moment, he suddenly shouted: "Zhang Di!"
"Here is the humble slave!" Zhang Di was immediately startled, thinking that Emperor Daojun was going to blame him, and he couldn't help but regret taking the cart of gold and silver.
"Summon Tong Guan to see you immediately!"
"Yes, official!" Zhang Di breathed a sigh of relief after hearing this, got up and ran outside.
Half an hour later, Tong Guan and Zhang Di entered the study with sweat profusely.
Emperor Daojun handed Chen Yu's memorial and Chen Jian's letter to Tong Guan. After Tong Guan read it, the two whispered a few words. Emperor Daojun said with a gloomy face: "Zhang Di, call Wang Fu. come over!"
After more than half an hour, Wang Fu came in. When he saw the face of Emperor Daojun and the angry-eyed Tong Guan next to him, he knew in his heart that something might have happened in Jiangnan.
"Wang Fu, Fang La is in trouble and there is a big earthquake in the southeast. How dare you deceive me and hide it without telling me?" Emperor Daojun asked.
Wang Fu hurriedly knelt down, took out the emergency memorial that he had prepared a few days ago, and said with tears: "I have long wanted to submit the memorial, but I was afraid that Your Majesty would be distracted from his practice, so I delayed it for a while. I can't." Sharing worries for the country is a crime worthy of death!"
Emperor Daojun took the memorial and read it again, and his face gradually softened: "The bandits are so rampant and they have attacked the city and captured the state. What good plan do you have?"
Wang Fu glanced at Tong Guan next to him and said: "The minister Wang Guanjia ordered Zhao Ting, the prefect of Hangzhou, to stick to Hangzhou, and Chen Jian, the pacification envoy of West Zhejiang Road, quickly mobilized troops to suppress the bandits."
Tong Guan sneered and said: "Cai Zun and Yan Tan, the governors of West Zhejiang Road, have already sacrificed their lives for the country, and the comfort envoy Chen Jian is no longer able to protect himself!"
Emperor Daojun threw Chen Jian's letter to Wang Fu: "See for yourself, Liangzhe Road and Liangjiang Road are rich places and the granary and treasure house of our dynasty. If the southeast half is lost, wouldn't the country be in danger?"
Wang Fu didn't dare to speak when he heard this, so Tong Guan said: "I have a plan for the officials!"
Emperor Daojun said hurriedly: "Tong Aiqing, please tell me."
"The officials should quickly draft an edict and issue an edict to appease Fang La. If it is best to recruit him, if he is not to be recruited, he should be stabilized first with the edict. Then, take this opportunity to inspect the Imperial Guards in the capital and announce the deployment of the elite of the Western Army. When the time comes, Go south to beg for thieves!"
Emperor Daojun heard this and said: "This plan is very good. I will draft an edict to appease Fang La, and then organize the army to prepare for the thief!"
Outside the city of Hangzhou, the Fangla camp stretched endlessly, almost completely surrounding the city of Hangzhou.
At this time, a Chinese officer entered the commander's tent and reported: "Holy Duke, there is an envoy from the Song Dynasty outside the tent. He claims to be from Kaifeng Mansion in Tokyo. A group of more than ten people want to see the Holy Duke."
Before Fang La could say anything, Fang Baihua, who was standing next to him, immediately said, "Where is the sword and axe-wielding man? Bring the Song Dynasty envoy in and chop him down in front of everyone!"
The swordsmen and axemen drank the power of the hall, and each took their swords and guns to capture the envoy. Suddenly, someone from the class next to them flashed out and said: "Wait a minute!"
When the generals saw it was Chen Fan, Fang Baihua frowned and asked, "What does General Chen have to say?"
Chen Fan said: "You can call the envoy in first, see what he says, and find out the true and false movements of the Song army. It is not too late to kill after making countermeasures."
Fang La could not help but nod after seeing the case: "General Chen's words make sense. Call the envoy to come in!"
The envoy sent from Tokyo was named Zhang Mingzhong. He was a fifth-rank official and was Tong Guan’s godson. He didn’t have any special abilities, but he had some courage. When he was called outside the tent, he took a square step. Go in with your head held high.
After entering the commander's tent, there were several rows of soldiers, all holding halberds, spears, and swords. The cold light was shining. Zhang Zhong couldn't help but shuddered in his heart, took a breath, and couldn't help but think to himself, this time the envoys were sent to thieves. Acupuncture points, I am afraid of bad luck and bad luck.
He bravely stepped forward, introduced himself to his home, and then stated his purpose of coming. He saw everyone on both sides staring angrily.
Fang Lachong pressed his hands on both sides: "Does Zhao Ji have a letter?"
Upon hearing this, Zhang Zhong immediately took out the imperial edict from his body. He did not dare to ask the other party to kneel down, but just chanted loudly:
The emperor of the Song Dynasty sent a letter of peace, and I heard that the mountains and wild ridges in Muzhou and other places in the south of the Yangtze River have long lost the status of kings. Therefore, they are promoting chaos because they have abandoned Confucianism. If there is no peace in the country, how can I feel at ease?
As he was reading, while dozens of generals were annoyed, Zheng Biao was so angry that his beard stood on end and his eyes widened with anger. He pressed the hilt of his sword with his right hand and pointed at Zhang Zhong with his left hand: "I think you are just a sycophant raised by the faint king of the Song Dynasty." You little puppy, how dare you violate the name of our Holy Duke and Emperor? Even if Zhao Ji, the cowardly emperor, comes by himself, he will kneel down and kowtow when he sees my Holy Duke!"
"Kneel down! Kneel down!" The generals on both sides shouted.
Fang Nineteen pulled out the sword from the shark sheath and shouted, "Thief, why don't you kneel down quickly! How many heads do you have, how dare you despise the Holy Duke?"
"Kneel down! Kneel down! If you don't kneel down and break your legs!" the generals and colonels in the tent roared again.
Zhang Zhong had never seen this before. Even though he was originally brave, he was panicked and soaked in cold sweat. His legs went weak, and he fell to his knees with a plop. He said tremblingly: "I will kowtow to the Holy Duke..."
Fang Nineteen stepped forward and snatched the imperial edict and gave it to Fang La. Fang La opened it on the desk and looked down:
...Since the world enshrined itself, Zhu Mengsu violated my will and indiscriminately practiced corvee service in Huagang, resulting in the desolation of the fields, the death of hungry people, and the displacement of the people of Yuanyuan. There may be delusions about gathering bandits and stirring up chaos, causing chaos in the world, or killing officials and robbing rich people, attacking cities and plundering land, causing swarms of thieves to swarm around, with cries of mourning all over the place, and it is too horrible to see. I have always been philanthropic and merciful. As long as Fang La and others can lead the people back, the members of his party are fierce and stubborn, and they will not ask for favors or exemptions. Those who have merit among them will be given official posts, that is, they will be given preferential rewards.
Admire this!
Fang La said nothing after reading it. For a long time, he suddenly stretched out his hand to wipe away the edict. After passing his palm, the edict was shattered into pieces. He raised his arms, and the scraps of cloth flew straight towards Zhang Zhong's face, and he hit Zhang Zhong on the head. His face was bleeding.
Zhang Zhong was so frightened that he hurriedly knelt on the ground and kowtowed, "Holy Duke, the two countries are at war, don't kill the envoy!"
Fang La snorted coldly, and swordsmen and axemen came from both sides. They knocked off his official hat first, then tied his shoulders and wrists tightly, and dragged him out of the big tent.
Zhang Zhong was beheaded in a moment, and the people accompanying him outside were so frightened that they were escorted into the tent.
Fang La looked at the group of people and said coldly: "You take that man's head back to Tokyo and give it to the foolish king Zhao Ji, saying that sooner or later I will capture Tokyo and kill him. Is it possible to do it?"
The group of people hurriedly kowtowed and agreed, just asking to leave here as soon as possible.
After beating the envoys away with sticks, Fang La said: "Zhao Ji learned that the envoys were killed and that they could not recruit him, so he would never give up. Soon the soldiers will come to suppress him. What clever strategies do you generals have?"
General Lu said: "The Holy Duke should quickly seize Hangzhou, and then send out troops to attack Jiangning, Runzhou, Changzhou, Suzhou and other places, guard the natural chasm of the Yangtze River, and prevent the Song army from crossing south. The officers and soldiers of the armies of the states south of the Yangtze River are weak and alone without support, so there is nothing to worry about. , Shenggong will contact the heroes from all over the country to hunt in Jiangzuo, and capture half of the country in the south of the Yangtze River, just like what he said in Sanfenci, even if Cao Mengde is reborn, he will not be able to do anything to Sun Quan!"
"Mr. Lu is talking about gold and stone." Wang Gong and Lao Fo also said: "There is a saying in the art of war. The superior soldiers can take advantage of their superiority with speed. A slow army will lose the three armies due to laziness. The Holy Duke should attack Hangzhou urgently and continue to move north to seize the land along the river."
Fang La nodded: "According to this strategy, we will attack the city tomorrow and capture Hangzhou within seven days!"
(End of chapter)
