Ma Xiaoping ran leisurely. It was only sixty miles away, so there was no need to be in a hurry.
I haven’t reached Zuo’anmen yet. There are many stragglers ahead. There were also people standing on the side of the road, out of breath, holding one arm on their waist, panting heavily on the side of the road.
Ma Xiaoping knew that it was useless to run as hard as he could from the beginning, and he would lose his energy after a while.
A big man in his twenties ran up to him from behind and said, "Brother, I see you have been taking your time, not blushing, not out of breath. You have really good physical strength."
"I used to carry paper for a paper mill. That thing was very heavy. A wooden frame weighed two hundred kilograms. I know that if I want to have endurance, I can't walk too fast. Otherwise, I will lose my energy after a while. .What do you call me, big brother? What do you do?"
The big man had thick hands and feet and a red face. The skin is tanned.
He grinned, showing his big yellow teeth.
He said: "My name is Zhao Yongtang, and I carry big bags on the dock. Hehe, I have good physical strength. I can carry more than 200 grain bags a day."
Ma Xiaoping was stunned and asked: "Hey, Brother Zhao, you are not a soldier of the Beijing camp. What are you doing to get involved? Even if you run first, you are not a member of the military and you are not rewarded with silver."
Zhao Yongtang looked around and whispered: "Brother, I think you are a good person. Let me tell you, I was hired by a corps leader named Zhu Tong. It was agreed that I would pretend to be him and the family would be rewarded half of the silver."
Ma Xiaoping had just joined the army, so he knew about the shady affairs of the Beijing camp. He asked in surprise: "Brother Zhao, why doesn't that Zhu Tong come and run by himself? He hires you with money, and he has to share half of the silver reward with you."
"Humph, you look like a young man who just entered the camp. Can the old soldiers in the Beijing camp fight? If he can run away, why do he need to find me? Since Emperor Renzong and Xuanzong, they have basically never fought. . Ah, no, Yingzong took them to Tumubao and fought a battle. Hey, the whole army was wiped out. Except for the old man, they were just babies, and then they were relatives of officials. They put their names on the line and received half of their food and salary. The rest was Divide half of it with Shangguan. People never come. Do whatever you have to do."
Ma Xiaoping opened his eyes wide and asked in surprise: "There is such a thing."
"Hey, that's so fresh. Isn't that what Beijing Camp is all about? Those who work all day can get benefits. Otherwise, who would work? If you can't get oil and water, you don't have to work. With the salary, you can Find another job outside and do something to make money."
Ma Xiaoping was shocked. He foolishly came to the camp to report every day, but it turned out that he could still operate in this way.
"Of course, you have to have a good relationship with Shangguan. Otherwise, he will punish you for escaping. Even a beating with a military stick is a minor offense."
"Then what if we come to check from above?"
"This is what I'll do, spend some temporary copper money and hire someone to take care of it."
"Brother Zhao, how much does this cost?"
"I don't want much, just thirty big bucks a day. I'll pay for it for you. If you need anything, come to me at Chaoyangmen Pier. We, Lao Zhao, are fair in our dealings and don't bully others."
The two chatted and ran side by side.
Not to mention, neither of them ran fast, they were just jogging. But jogging is also faster than walking. Along the way, many people who let go first could no longer run. Some are even tired and lying on the roadside to rest.
All the city gates were closed, and people from the Ministry of War and Yang Fan were supervising, and some people were taking shortcuts. There are cavalry on the outside to follow and monitor, so don't even think about riding a donkey or a cart.
As soon as the two chatted, their attention was diverted. Not to mention, they didn't feel very tired anymore.
They both do physical work and have endurance. If you don’t run fast, the pressure on your lungs will be less. I quickly adapted to this kind of jogging, kept breathing through my nose, not only maintained the jogging speed, but also chatted.
These people who can't run anymore. They all want to be the first and take away the three hundred taels. I could only breathe through my mouth when I ran fast. After a while, my lungs were on fire and I couldn't bear it anymore.
"Hey, big man Zhao, you're here too."
"Hey, Han Wu, your kid is here too."
Zhao Yongtang also greeted acquaintances along the way. Ma Xiaoping was surprised to find that many people were hired today. These hired people are all physically strong and look like they have been doing manual labor for a long time.
People kept stopping to rest in front, and people kept catching up from behind.
After passing Zuo'anmen, there is Guangqumen. Then there is the Dongbianmen corner tower.
An hour passed slowly, and Ma Xiaoping, Zhao Yongtang and their group had gradually gathered more than 300 people. By the time we arrived at Andingmen in Beicheng, we were already at the front.
Ma Xiaoping and Zhao Yongtang have another person beside them. A shirtless man with an axle. He was already sweating from running.
"Brother, you are from the battalion head." Zhao Yongtang is an old Jianghu man. When he saw this guy, he didn't look like a soldier.
"Me, I'm just an escort guy. It just so happens that the escort agency has no business these two days, so I came out to make some extra money."
"Me too, my name is Zhao Yongtang, what do you call me brother?"
"My name is Zhu DaDa, what do you guys call me?"
"My name is Ma Xiaoping. I just joined the Three Thousand Battalion."
At this time, I ran to Fuchengmen. A large number of people caught up behind him. Five to six thousand people formed a group, and their heads were filled with darkness.
On the tower of Yongding Gate, Li Banghua asked: "Where have all the people in the van gone?"
"My lord, the person at the front has just passed Fucheng Gate. The fast horse in the city has just come to report." Fang Hongmin, the head of the Staff Division, replied.
"Well, today's long-distance run is well organized. You send people down to register one by one in the order they come back and verify their identities. They are really camp soldiers. They must register their age and physical condition clearly. This is the key to rectifying the Beijing camp. Once."
Fang Hongmin said: "Don't worry, sir. We have organized five hundred scribes, all of whom were temporarily transferred from various prefectures and counties in Yingtian Prefecture. They are not people from the Ministry of War. They must be able to register clearly. Uncle Dingyuan also sent three Thousands of cavalry will maintain order. This matter will be foolproof."
"That's good." Li Banghua looked at Yang Fan who was leading soldiers under the city, preparing to take away the first 10,000 people. Asked: "Has all the food promised by Uncle Dingyuan been implemented?"
"Sir, everything has been finalized and it is being kept in the city."
Li Banghua was relieved immediately. You can't break your promise with a soldier, as that could easily lead to trouble. Yang Fan's credit has always been strong. This was also the reason why he could agree to Zhang Shize.
"He's back, someone's back." Someone shouted from the city.
In the distance, shadowy figures have been seen. Those people began to speed up when they saw Yongding Gate. In fact, at this point, most people were already at the end of their strength. They are all gritting their teeth and persisting.
"After the registration is completed, summarize the situation to me immediately. I will go to the Forbidden City overnight to meet the Holy Spirit. This matter cannot be delayed. After Uncle Dingyuan takes the people away, you can bring the 40,000 people behind to me directly to Nanyuan. Then. Close the gates on all sides of Nanyuan. Just let the others go back to their camps."
Fang Hongmin knew in his heart that the adults were going to be serious. Can your nobles agree? Something big will happen tomorrow morning.
