In early July of the seventh year of Hongxing's reign in the Ming Dynasty, Xuzhou and Pengcheng.
The market in Pengcheng has not been as prosperous and lively as it is now for many years. The prosperity has overflowed into the majestic Pengcheng Fort. A huge market has been formed in the northwest of the bastion, called Pengcheng North City.
Pengcheng North City was built from the dam on the south bank of the Yellow River. At the top of the dam is the busy Pengcheng Wharf. Seventy-eight percent of the logistics supplies of the hundreds of thousands of Ming troops placed on the battlefield in Henan are now transported through the Yellow River waterway through this wharf. However, sailing westward via the Yellow River is against the current, and there is no wind to rely on. The boat must be dragged by human and animal power. The old camp of the civilian crews who towed the ships is just below the Pengcheng Pier. Since these civilian crews have a high income and a certain amount of spending power, and the Xuzhou Transportation Department (specially responsible for the logistics of the Henan armies) will also be in Pengcheng local area. Some miscellaneous items were purchased to supply the army, so Pengcheng North City under Pengcheng Pier came into being and prospered in a short period of time.
At the turn of summer and autumn in the seventh year of Hongxing, more than a dozen intersecting straight streets had appeared under the Yellow River Dam, and the large areas were neatly arranged. The civilian camp that looks like a military camp, the shops and restaurants along the street, the large and small warehouses, and the four-wheeled carriages that come and go on the street are enough to create a vivid picture of the rise of a city.
When the "mission outside the customs" led by Obai, accompanied by father and son Zu Dashou and Zu Kefa, crossed the Yellow River and descended from Pengcheng Pier, which was crowded with wooden boats, to Pengcheng North City, they were also surprised by the prosperity here. .
Obai sighed: "I don't want this place to be so prosperous!"
The elderly Zu Dashou said with a smile: "This place only prospered because of the supply from the armies in Henan. It will not last long. The real prosperity of the Ming Dynasty is still south of the Huaihe River. When Admiral Guan Guan goes to Nanjing to become an official, he will be able to You can truly appreciate the magnificence of the Southeast.”
"Admiral Guan?" Obai was stunned, "Who is Admiral Guan?"
"You are Admiral Guan!" Zu Dashou stroked his white beard and said with a smile, "Your surname is Guan!"
"My surname is Guan?" Obai was stunned again and again, thinking to himself: This ancestor is so confused! Why did my last name change?
Thinking of this, he glanced at Zukfa. Zu Kefa explained with a smile: "Prince Gong has just reported to the court, requesting that the eight major surnames in Manchuria be given a Han surname. The Tong Jia family will be given the surname Tong; the Ma Jia family will be given the surname Ma; the Suo Chuo Luo family will be given the surname Suo; and the Hesheli family will be given the surname Suo. He; the Fucha family gave the surname Fu; the Nala family gave the surname La... no, that's it; the Niu Hulu family gave the surname Lang; you are the Guarjia family, so you will be given the surname Guan, so from now on you It started with Guan Aobai.”
"Oh, give me the surname Guan. It's the same surname as Second Master Guan. That's great!" Ao Bai nodded repeatedly, "What about Aixinjueluo?"
"Given the surname Jin," Zu Dashou said, "Prince Gong will be called Jin Fulin, and the Emperor's uncle will be called Jin Duoduo from now on... How festive!"
"Jin Duoduo...what a good name!" Obai nodded, "It sounds very rich!"
Duduo is so poor now. You will definitely like it when you hear the name "Jin Duoduo"!
While the three of them were talking, they had already come down from the Yellow River Dam - the Yellow River Dam has built stairs from top to bottom, so you can walk down. Along the stairs going down, Ming troops armed with spears, wearing breastplates and helmets were already under martial law, blocking a "VIP passage". Below the passage is a straight road, paved with bluestone slabs, leading all the way to Pengcheng Fortress.
Several carriages and a group of "foreign horse soldiers" were already guarding there. Zukefa said to Obai: "Admiral Guan, let's get in the carriage... Your Majesty is on Yunlong Mountain. Let's take a carriage there and stop in Pengcheng by the way." If you have a meal in the city, you can go to Yunlong Mountain in the afternoon."
Obai looked at the "foreign horse soldiers" and took a deep breath. Their foreign horses were obviously "imported goods", and their impact speed was unmatched by the Mongolian horses... If the Manchu cavalry were in When encountering such cavalry in the majestic formation, there really isn't much that can be done!
He sighed and looked away. From the corner of his eye, he suddenly saw several wooden poles erected high. He didn't know what they were used for.
Ao Bai was curious, so he turned around to look. At first glance, he found an acquaintance on the wooden pole! It seems to be Fan Wencheng... No, it's a part of Fan Wencheng, just a head, with ferocious features and eyes that won't close its eyes, looking at me!
"This, is this Fan Wencheng? Why is he hanging on it?"
Zu Dashou listened to Obai's question and sighed: "He deserves it... he was chopped into pieces with three thousand knives, then his head was cut off, and he hung it here in public!"
"He, what's his crime?" Obai felt a little guilty.
"He has committed treason, aiding captors, going toward the enemy, breaking alliances, plundering, and massacre. There are six major crimes in total. Each major crime is punishable by a thousand knives."
"That's six thousand knives!" Obai was a little surprised. One thousand multiplied by six is six thousand. How come Fan Wencheng received three thousand knives less? Is it because there is no place for the execution, or is it because the executioner does not know how to count?
Zukefa said in an envious tone: "It's not like we found a good wife. That Kong Sizhen shared the same trouble with him and shared three thousand knives."
"What? Kong Sizhen..." Obai was frightened when he heard this! How sinful can the film about Kong Sizhen, a little girl, be? She was already beheaded, so why...my sin was greater than that of Kong Sizhen, right?
"By the way," Zu Dashou sighed again, "Someone is going to be stabbed today... You are quite familiar with Admiral Guan. Li Shutai, who served as the Han Army's Maile Er Zhen with a yellow flag, because of For the crime of massacring Datong, he was sentenced to one lingchi, which is a thousand knives. He will be chopped in pieces this afternoon. Let's hurry up and send him off."
The work of wiping out the traitors is still going on. Fan Wencheng, Geng Jimao, and Xu Dingguo, all the big traitors who once held heavy armies, have all been killed. Now it is the turn of the traitors captured by Shi Kefa on the battlefield to take the sword - there were also many traitors in Duduo and Fulin's army. Some of them died in the battle and some were captured when they were defeated. Some of them were as big as a Lingchi. Yes, I have been queuing up to get stabbed during this period.
Those who have been beheaded include Shi Tingzhu who surrendered with Sun Degong (he was a Manchu, but he served as a guard in the Ming Dynasty, so he was considered treason, and there were several other serious crimes), Ma Guangyuan, who surrendered to the Qing Dynasty in the third year of Chongzhen, and Xu Shungong Shen Yongzhong and his brother Shen Yongxing and others, but there are still many waiting patiently... Today's turn is Li Shutai.
In fact, he was not the main culprit in the massacre of Datong. The main culprit was Dorgon. He was just a henchman, but his father Li Yongfang was the first among the traitors! Now that he is dead, of course he has to inherit some of this crime, so Li Shutai, who was originally not as good as Lingchi, is now qualified to receive a thousand knives.
Obai's breathing became rapid, "This, this, this..."
When he was stammering, he saw the head of an acquaintance, also hanging high. It was Sun Sike, the son of Sun Degong.
"Sun, Sun Sike also..."
"Two thousand knives!" Zukofa said, "The beheaded seven days ago... Admiral Guan, you have a good relationship with him, right? Do you want to burn some paper money?"
"Is that okay?" Oboi felt guilty!
"Yes, you can burn... it's not illegal to burn paper money." Zukofa smiled, "I heard that you are coming, so I have prepared several large boxes of paper money for you!"
"Prepared paper money for me..." Obai took a breath, why did this sound so scary?
"I don't need paper money!" said Obai.
"It's needed, it's needed..." Zu Dashou sighed, "We are not ready for others to come. It's you... Your brother Zhuo Butai's head is also in Xuzhou. You can borrow it to pay homage and burn some paper money so that he can live a better life down there."
Zhuo Butai was killed in the Battle of Guanyintang. His head was cut off, pickled with salt, and then dried in the sun for long-term preservation.
But since Obai is here, he can still lend his head for use...
After hearing the exact news of his brother's death and knowing that his good friend had been stabbed today, Obai suddenly felt bad. He sighed, got on the carriage and headed for Pengcheng Bastion.
