Chapter 134: Entering Sichuan
Jianzhou's location is too important. Along the Jialing River, you can go straight to Langzhong, the city of Baoning Prefecture. To the west, there is Jiangyou, the important town of Long'an Prefecture. To the east are Bazhou (today's Bazhong) and Nanjiang. To the north of Nanjiang, across the Big and Small Bashan Mountains, you return to the prosperous Hanzhong of Shaanxi Province. ——And if we send our troops southwest and pass Mianzhou (today's Mianyang), our troops can reach the provincial capital of Sichuan: Chengdu!
Jianmen Pass was a natural barrier, but Zhang Hu took it down without much effort.
Since the defenders did not receive any advance warning, and Zhang Hu's troops were dressed in Ming army uniforms, they sailed down the Jiameng River and drove directly into Zhaohua County without encountering any resistance. After slaughtering the county government, with the official seal of the county magistrate and several government servants as guides, Zhang Hu, who was born in the cavalry team, rushed into Guangyuan, which was only a short distance away. Here, Zhang Hu met Fang Ge, a tiger general who he later relied on as his arm. With the help of the latter, under the guise of "intercepting the bandits", the brigade went south along the Jialing River again and easily broke through Jianmen Pass.
After waiting for a moment to gain a foothold in Jianzhou, Zhang Hu breathed out a sigh of relief and began to seriously consider the next step. Before this, objectively speaking, Zhang Hu and others were just on the run, not knowing where to go or where their future lay.
At this time, Zhang Hu's troops had expanded to more than 30,000 men. However, before arriving in Guangyuan, the only ones who could fight with real swords and guns were the thousands of brothers brought out from Cao's camp. The rest were mostly plundered along the way. The people who came. Zhang Hu's purpose of coercing these common people is that if he encounters a large-scale army encirclement and suppression, he can drive the common people to hinder the officers and soldiers and escape. Zhang Hu, who was born in the army, knows very well that these first-level skills can be harvested effortlessly. How tempting he is to his former colleagues. Unexpectedly, he encountered no decent resistance along the way. More than 20,000 mouths put great pressure on Zhang Hu. If it weren't for the massive amount of grain that was seized in Jiange, this group of people still wouldn't be able to hold on for long.
More important than food and grass, Zhang Hu also picked up a reorganized army in Guangyuan. What is more valuable than the army is Fang Ge, a good helper that Beichuan officials prepared for him in advance!
The Sichuan Dusi Prefecture had a garrison in Guangyuan. "In the 31st year of Hongwu's reign, Lizhou Guards was established in Guangyuan County." The garrison camp was located a few miles east of the county seat. When Zhang Hu made a desperate move to capture Guangyuan, he certainly didn't know that there was a regular guard station next to him, but the military households in Lizhou Guard all knew that thieves had entered the county. However, everyone did nothing and just watched the fun - because they had been hungry for a long time!
There are commanders and commanders in Lizhou Guard, but these official positions have long become shadow positions for the children of important officials in the imperial court. Take the commander Lu Zhiyun as an example. He is the son of Master Lu Shen, the governor of Henan Province. Lu Fantai once served as the inspector-general of Shandong. During his tenure, he channeled the Grand Canal well and effectively guaranteed the water transportation of the imperial court. The governor recommended Lu Fantai to move to the left in Henan Province for his merits in water transportation. Mr. Lu was also awarded the title of Commander of the Lizhou Guard. Know. Well, that was three years ago - Tongzhi Lu Zhiyun is seven years old this year, which is false.
In the eyes of these aristocratic families, the military position in the imperial court was just an honorary title, and the imperial examination was the right way to become an official. No one could really come all the way to be a beggar, and could not get a little money and still be harassed by civil servants, big and small. tidy. Now the largest official in Lizhou Guard is called Fang Sanhuai. His official position is to command the general affairs and he is also a big landowner in the military camp. Fang Qianshi was still a bachelor in his thirties - he had taken a concubine, but he had not yet married a wife. After all, he is a military officer of the fourth rank of the imperial court. Of course, he must be a well-matched wife when marrying him. However, no one with a certain social status would be willing to push their own daughter into a pit of fire unless they have no other choice: the children they give birth to will be harmed for generations. I can’t get rid of my military status! However, Landlord Fang was imprisoned a few years ago and is dying in Guangyuan's prison. Now he is just breathing more than a dead man.
The cause of the matter was that Fang Sanhuai offended the Shu Palace. The floods in the Jialing River two years ago not only destroyed most of the military camps owned by the landlords, but also caused some damage to the Wangzhuang farmland under the name of the King of Shu. If it were in the past, the landowner would not dare not refuse the order from the Prince of Shu to transfer people if you borrowed a few courages from him. Because it is located at a key point at the junction of the two provinces, Lizhou Wei Zheng'er Bajing's soldiers actually numbered seven to eight hundred people, and they were organized into two battalions. Most of the remaining military households are serfs, so even if they die from exhaustion, it won't matter. They can just go to the Chaotianguan area to hunt down some refugees to make up for their loss. Things went wrong for Fan Yanghuan, the county magistrate of Guangyuan: the palace only had 800 people. In order to show his loyalty and ability, magistrate Fan found Fang Sanhuai and asked for 2,000, and they all had to be strong! Fang Sanhuai was dumbfounded when he heard this: his men, women, children and military households totaled less than 4,000 serfs, most of whom lived in shacks. Unlike the walled city, most of the shacks built in the low-lying areas were washed away by the floods, and the people were naturally in danger. There were only three thousand serfs who could breathe now. If two thousand were taken away at once, it would still be necessary. Are dry food prepared for them in the camp? The remaining old, weak, sick and disabled cannot feed two battalions of soldiers no matter what! In particular, the intermittent rations have been in arrears for a long time, and the small amount of emergency rations in the camp have been washed away by the flood and become cheaper fish and shrimps... This group of guys is driven into panic, and it might lead to a mutiny! He reluctantly handed over five hundred people and came out, which made Fan Zhixian angry: Don't cry to the master about these useless things! Who are you trying to scare with mutiny? Do you dare to cause trouble for this county and make me lose face in front of the prince? Okay, you wait!
To the south of Guangyuan County, there is Yuntai Mountain in Cangxi County near Baoning Prefecture. There is Yuntai Taoist Temple on the mountain. The main hall is dedicated to Taishang Laojun and Zhang Tianshi, and there is a statue of the Three-Eyed Dragon King in the side hall*. After the Jialing River flood, a group of believers came from all directions to worship the Dragon King. The Taoist priests in the temple couldn't accept the incense money for free. They counted with their fingers for a while and gave everyone advice: This flood is caused by ghosts. Ghosts If you are afraid of the yang energy of the sun coming out during the day, hanging a red lantern at home at night can ward off evil spirits. So at night, many houses in the surrounding prefectures and counties lit up their red lights. This kind of situation is very common among ignorant people. Local officials such as the governor of Baonyeong and the county magistrate of Cangxi were not used to seeing it, and no one took it seriously.
Fang Sanhuai deserved his misfortune. Since he was short of manpower, he sent several teams out to catch the refugees as usual. These guys were swaggering all the way through the market. It doesn't matter whether you are a good citizen or a refugee. If you put it in a bowl, it will be food. Anyway, even if you capture the good citizens who are registered, you can still squeeze out some oil and water... So many people came to Fan Yanghuan. The lord is here to complain.
Fan Qingtian, who also read poetry and books, and was thinking about how to deal with the ignorant Fang Bifu, did not think of any strange power, but immediately thought of another story.
The story of Huang Chao’s lighting.
Legend has it that Huang Chao attacked Hun City by force for three days, so he sneaked into the city to conduct reconnaissance. In danger, he was rescued by an old man. The old man also pointed out the secret way into the city. In order to repay his kindness, Huang Chao asked the old man to wait until the soldiers entered the city and hang a red light at home as a mark, so as to avoid military disasters. After returning to the camp, Huang Chao followed the old man's instructions to destroy the city. However, when he saw that the people in the city were hanging red lights, he knew that the old man wanted to save the people of Hecheng, so he did not burn or kill the people, nor did he capture the people to become his famous "two-legged sheep."
Troops of soldiers openly plundered the surrounding suburbs, and the people in the city hung red lights at night in fear... Aren't you going to take advantage of the chaos to rebel? ! Master Fan not only immediately sent an alarm to Baoning Mansion and sent a copy to the nearby Long'an Mansion and Kuizhou Mansion, but also reported a copy to Chengdu Mansion and Shu Prince Mansion: "I am worried about its effect, Huang Chao." "Lighting up the lanterns, the story is as good as cooking!" - Mr. Fan's heart is vividly written on the page!
Duan Yuanji (also known as Shiyue), the prefect of Baoning, actually knew everything about the incident. If Magistrate Fan just reports to his own government, he only needs to call Fang Sanhuai over and give him a scolding, teach him to kowtow to Magistrate Fan and confess his guilt. At worst, he will have to pay some money and the matter will be over. But Fan Yanghuan's clamor became known to everyone in the neighboring houses and even the Prince of Shu's house. The small Baoning Mansion couldn't cover it up - even if it was a false alarm in the end, who can say that it was wrong for Fan Zhixian to always worry about the safety of the King of Shu? In the past, the prince may not have known who a small county magistrate in Beichuan was. Fan County played such a trick. Although it did not follow the routine and somewhat offended his immediate boss, it could leave a deep and good impression on the prince, Chitose. It was worth it. ! Having said that, if something really happened happened and shocked the prince's rich body, not to mention the prefect's black gauze hat, his head would definitely not be saved!
"I am not afraid of people ridiculing me, but I am really afraid of being provoked by hurricanes (pronounced 'pin', like sparks flying). The wind of anger will stir up the end of Qingping. As we all know, there is a common saying: take precautions before they happen, and who can talk big? The flames must be protected?" Looking at the transcript of Fan Zhixian's memorial to the palace, Duan Zhifu had no choice but to agree to arrest people: Both ends were blocked by this guy - who said I am unreasonable and carefree, but what if something goes wrong? , the responsibility is entirely yours!
Fan Zhixian first captured several battalion soldiers. The guys whose legs were broken by the sticks all admitted that Fang Sanhuai had indeed rebelled against him, and arrested a few people who hung red lights at night. After a few moments, the master said: "Think carefully, have you ever heard of hanging a red light?" There are rumors that red lights can avoid disasters? Unjust? Huh, why don't they arrest others and arrest you alone? Don't worry, you are ignorant and are being taken advantage of. The government will not pursue it, but you have to show your attitude..." Everyone then said They all circled the confession they didn't recognize a word of.
So there is a witness.
There is plenty of physical evidence - there are swords, guns, bows and crossbows in the camp, and there are even more than 20 iron armors!
This is called irrefutable proof.
If the Dusi Mansion hadn't intervened, Fang Sanhuai's head would have been hanging at the gate of Chengdu. It’s not that landlord Fang has a good relationship with the Dusi Mansion. A commanding officer from a remote mountain in northern Sichuan cannot curry favor with the Dusi Mansion in Sichuan—just because treason is a serious crime. Once it is confirmed, the Dusi Mansion must be blamed, and those who are implicated will definitely be blamed. It's inevitable, so Dusi Mansion will come forward. So Fang Sanhuai was kicked out of the Chengdu prison again like a ball and returned to Guangyuan for review by Fan Qingtian. The final conclusion was: the evidence of rebellion may be insufficient, and it is impossible to escape the serious crime of setting up an army to cause disaster!
Just hold it first.
As time passed, the adults also forgot about Fang Sanhuai.
Fan Zhixian didn't forget it - because there were tens of thousands of acres of land under the Lizhou Guards' garrison. If we can seize this opportunity to encircle thousands of acres, the county magistrate’s work will not be in vain!
Unfortunately, there is a guy blocking the way: Fang Sanhuai once recognized an adopted son. It’s Fango!
Fang Ge is a Qianhu. Of course, Fang Sanhuai, who was guilty, could not let Fang Ge invade his official land, but the soldiers in the camp obeyed him. After Fang Sanhuai was imprisoned, everyone seemed to support this guy as the leader, and the military households of Lizhou Guard barely managed to stay together. Fan Zhixian, who was looking forward to their escape, would certainly not give these guys a good life. In the past few years, the rice and beans had been deducted very harshly, and a large amount of military rations were piled up in the warehouse at Jianmen Pass to become moldy. Just as they were planning to find a crime to arrest Fang Ge, Zhang Hu and his gang rushed into the city and slaughtered Master Fan and everyone in the yamen.
As the saying goes, it is the duty of the officers and soldiers to punish thieves.
There is another sentence: The emperor is not short of hungry soldiers!
The military households who were so hungry and dizzy were all locals after all. Zhang Hu didn't notice them at all, but they all saw Zhang Hu and his gang rushing into Guangyuan City. To fight or not to fight? Fang Ge immediately stood up on the mound, looking at the thick smoke rising into the sky from Guangyuan City, hesitating for a short while as the two little people were fighting fiercely in his mind.
One said: "Look, the dog official wants to starve us to death, why should we work for him?"
Another said: "What are you looking at? Let's go and kill the dog officer together to avenge our father!"
So when Fan Yanghuan's head was just raised high on the city gate tower, Fang Ge took two dissatisfied combat troops and surrendered directly to Zhang Hu!
Fang Ge carried Fang Sanhuai out of prison, and the latter died in the arms of his adopted son. From then on, Zhang Hu had one more general under his command. Fang Ge, who was familiar with the geography and military situation of northern Sichuan and was extremely brave, gave Zhang Hu, this violent mad tiger, a pair of wings.
*This is indeed the case. Legend has it that when Zhang Tianshi came to Yuntai Mountain with a macaque in hand, a huge dragon god immediately appeared on the mountain - obviously, the dragon god is the protector of Yuntai Mountain. According to this, when a Taoist priest built a dragon statue in Jianyuntai, he caught a live monkey, drunk it with mud, and sealed it in the belly of the dragon statue. (If you do such an immoral and cruel thing, even if there is a god, can it protect you? ), in order to seek the manifestation of the Heavenly Master and the blessing of the Dragon God.
In those ten years, the dragon statue was smashed, and it was found that there was a shriveled monkey skeleton inside its belly, with a long-broken red silk tied around its neck, and the writing "Yuntai Hua County xxxx" and other writings were still faintly legible. Later, the monkey skeleton was sold by a local farmer named Zhang as a medicinal material!
——Well, I hope the warrior who took this medicine is safe——although the possibility of becoming an immortal class is much more likely.
