After the prisoner presentation ceremony was completed, Qianlong awarded rewards to He Lin and a group of officers and soldiers who participated in the escort. He Lin appreciated a piece of python satin court clothing, a weft hat, a pair of satin boots, a pair of court beads, and a hundred taels of silver. Along the way, he escorted the officer Bian to reward Jiang silk and silver taels. As for ordinary Manchu and Han soldiers, they were rewarded with twenty taels of silver, one sheep for every four men, and a bottle of famous wine for every two men.
The next day, Qianlong issued an edict, declaring that Bashadurye and others were provocateurs on the border and led troops to plunder Tashilhunpo Monastery, breaking the stability of Tibet for more than a hundred years. There is no room for forgiveness, and he behaves in an awkward manner and shows his head to the public. Wang Jie, a distinguished scholar, Su Ling'a, the Minister of Punishment, and several ministers went to monitor the execution.
As soon as the imperial edict came out, on the day of execution, there was a sea of people from Hufang Bridge to Caishikou. When noon arrived and the cannon sounded, the executioners of the Ministry of Punishment all showed their skills as a housekeeper. The crowd of onlookers shouted "Long live the Emperor" as each sword fell. Not long after, more than a dozen human heads were put into wooden cages and then hung high for public display.
As the crowd began to disperse, a few people who had already agreed on the price came outside the executioner's tent, took the "spiritual medicine" wrapped in oil paper to cure tuberculosis from the other party's hand, and then rushed home filled with joy. go.
However, the superficial whitewash of peace could not cover up the declining decadence of the Qing Dynasty, and even the conflicts between the Manchus and Han became increasingly acute.
On July 16th, a big event happened in Beijing. The direct consequence of this incident was that many Eight Banners relatives even vacated their homes and moved their families to new homes. They also had servants at home to protect their bodies at all times, and bodyguards never left their bodies when they went out. They did not dare to go out alone. Even inside and outside each banner camp, there are soldiers everywhere. After the incident, although the Shuntian Prefecture and the Inspectorate tried their best to block the news, it still reached the ears of the people in the outer city and became a topic of private discussion after dinner.
In the afternoon two days later, the "Donghongtai" teahouse on Qianmen Street had lost the hustle and bustle of the morning. Even though it’s already the Hungry Ghost Festival, because it’s the late Beginning of Autumn this year, it’s actually hotter than the Dog Days at noon. There was a blazing day in the sky, which made the skin of the earth curl up and make people wilt.
At this time, the teahouse no longer had the banner man walking around with birds and fighting crickets, the tea guests had almost left, and the waiter was lying on the table listlessly. In the corner, there were only a few businessman-looking guys still chatting away.
"Guess what? Don't the North Sea pirates like to come from the sea? The imperial court should build big walls on the seaside. In this case, the North Sea pirates can only stare and cannot get to the shore!"
"Is the cannon of the Northern Pirates a decoration? Have you not heard that their cannons can even collapse a five-foot-thick brick wall? I don't think your idea is good."
"Have you heard? There was hail and thunder a few days ago. A big snake was killed in the courtyard of Lao Sun's house outside Xuanwu Gate. People who saw it said it was seven or eight feet long and had horns on its head! "
"Which of you knows the details of what happened at the Dongsi Archway two days ago? I heard that an old man from the Banner Man died?"
Seeing everyone else shaking their heads, a fat man in his thirties and wearing a gray shirt at the table smiled slightly and said, "Shopkeeper Dong, you have asked the right person about this."
"How to say?"
"My third uncle's nephew is working as an errand in Shuntian Mansion. Yesterday, my aunt was not feeling well, so I said I would go over and have a look later. Guess what, I happened to listen."
When several people at the table heard this, they quickly said: "Tell me, tell me what's going on!"
"Guys, we have been friends for more than ten years. These words come out of my mouth and into your ears. When we leave this door later, we will pretend that we don't know."
"That's that, shopkeeper Sun, don't worry, it will definitely be rotten in your stomach!"
Fatty Sun shook his fan and his eyes rolled for a few days. He looked around twice and saw that no one was paying attention. Then he leaned forward and said softly: "The old man who died was from the Shumulu family of Zhengbai Banner, but he was not a direct descendant. It's a side branch, living in Dongsiliutiao. Think about it, Zhengbai Banner is the first of the three upper banners, Shumulu is one of the eight surnames, and his ancestor is the famous martial arts king Yang Guli. In the first few years There was also a bachelor. When something happened to his family, even the emperor was alarmed."
Then, in his excited description, he told an incident that stunned several people present.
It turns out that the toys that Manchu children play with are very different from those of Han children from the time they can crawl. Start with buckwheat skin pillows tied with wide leather strips, and then switch to large pillows made of mung beans or soybeans. When they are older and can run on the ground, they start holding small "leather bags" filled with river sand; after they are ten years old, they can change to larger "leather bags", and the contents inside change from sand to pebbles. This is the process of practicing "Buku".
Of course, you will also need to practice rope pockets, palm fist pockets, stone monkey locks, stir sticks, etc. in the future. Those who are good at it will join the Shanfu Camp Firearms Camp to fill the vacancies and find a future. In recent years, the Manchu Qing Dynasty and the Northern Navy have repeatedly fought against each other. Due to the heavy losses of soldiers, there has also been a great shortage of flag soldiers. Anyone with good skills can surely make up for it.
Although the Banner Man's Buku was considered to be a good martial artist, it was ineffective against those Han martial arts masters. This is what is meant by the saying "Wushu martial arts is a series of wrestling, and the strings are high."
Nowadays, all the well-off bannermen in Beijing usually use real money to hire martial arts masters from other places to serve as martial arts masters at home. They can not only protect the family and the courtyard, but also teach the younger generation to practice martial arts. However, the problem lies here. Some masters invited from the Central Plains have had a feud with the Manchus for generations. They have either kept their names anonymous or changed their names over the years. Anyway, it is not easy to find out. These people bury their hatred deep in their hearts and wait for the opportunity to kill the old Manchu generals under the guise of protecting the academy.
Basically, starting from the late Kangxi period, many of the murders that occurred under the banner were closely related to the group of martial artists who guarded the homes and homes. It's just that these people were secretive and couldn't find fault after the killing, so many Manchu families had no choice but to suffer the consequences and had nowhere to appeal.
The same is true for the old man from the Shumulu family who was beaten to death a few days ago. He is said to be an old man, but he is actually less than sixty. He used to be a staff officer. He lost an arm while fighting with Fukangan in Fuldan City and Beihai Town seven years ago. However, he finally saved his life. After returning to Beijing, he wandered around every day. He only drinks when he has nothing to do, and when he drinks too much, he scolds Zhao Xin, Beihai Town, and the Han people.
That day, the old man drank a lot, and when he got drunk, he began to curse again. Later, he started to choke with his own martial arts master, and even tried to steal half of the sheep he had been given. The martial artist was not a good person either. He said that this was a reward from the master of the house and there was no reason for you to take it away. As a result, the two of them became more and more anxious as they talked, and finally the old man got really angry and started a duel.
There are rules for this bannerman's martial arts competition. Firstly, the leader of the banner must nod in agreement, and secondly, he must sign a life and death document, indicating that no matter whether one of the two sides is killed or injured, they will not be reported to the official and will die of natural causes.
Two generations of the Shumulu family, father and son, participated in the leadership. Of course, the subordinate subordinates did not dare to say no, and then the documents were signed. In the morning of the next day, the competition went on as scheduled. Unexpectedly, the old man had just entered the arena and was not ready. The martial artist came up and hit the chest with a black tiger that ripped out the heart. The old man was killed on the spot. He didn't even say a word when he died. Down. Although there are many bastards among the Manchus, they still keep their word when it comes to martial arts competitions and will not blackmail others. The family members can only accept their fate.
After the old man fell to the ground, the martial artist made an excuse to go back to the backyard to get medicine for treatment, and asked everyone present to help take care of him. Later, when the wing doctor, mediator, and guarantor came forward to examine the injuries, everyone realized that something was wrong.
Whenever someone is injured in a martial arts competition, the first thing to do is to save the injured person's life. Why did that guy run back to his room? Besides, the old man was born in the army. He had gone through hundreds of battles in his life and narrowly escaped death. He was a famous military attache under Zhengbai's banner. He didn't even lose his life on the battlefield, so why did he die so strangely?
So everyone hurried to the backyard to look for someone. Unexpectedly, there was no one in the house, but they saw a pine ladder falling under the high wall. It seemed that the martial artist had already climbed over the wall and ran away. Everyone speculated that he was panicking after killing someone, so they hurriedly chose a way out.
At this moment, everyone recalled that before this, the martial artist had asked everywhere about the old man's resume, including which years he had participated in and which battles he had participated in. The old people in the banner unanimously concluded that this person was working as a martial artist in the mansion where he was waiting for an opportunity to seek revenge; so they reported it to the banner commander and the Ministry of Punishment to apprehend the criminal. People from the Jiumen Infantry Patrol Battalion then went to the old man's house to search the martial arts master's residence, and found a letter under the bed.
When the investigators read the contents of the letter, they were sure that the man was indeed seeking revenge. It said that he was originally from Chengguan, the old city of Linqing, Shandong Province. He shot the old man because he followed Shu Hede to lead the army to encircle and suppress Wang Lun, and he deserved the crime of killing the common people.
Everyone was shocked. They had to know that Shu Hede, nicknamed Wenxiang, was a direct descendant of the Shumulu family. In the 39th year of Qianlong's reign, he was ordered to lead troops to Shandong to suppress Wang Lun of the Qingshui Sect. The old man who was killed had followed him to attack Linqing that year. old city.
It is said that Wang Lun, the leader of the Qingshui Sect in the middle of the Qianlong period, was definitely not a good guy. This "Master Zhen Gua Wang", like all the leaders of the White Lotus Sect in history, claimed that he was "the ancestor of Hongyang, the mother of Wusheng, and the birth of Maitreya". Slogans started riots. It was precisely because of this religious rebellion that Linqing, a famous shopping city that had prospered for more than 200 years since the middle of the Ming Dynasty, turned into a hell on earth amid blood and fire.
The tragic offensive and defensive battle that took place twenty years ago lasted for nearly twenty days. Both the offensive and defensive sides set fires wantonly inside and outside the city, leaving the old city of Linqing almost in ruins. After the city was broken, the Qing army and the Qingshui Sect members fought for every street and house in the city. The brutal street fighting lasted for five days. A large number of innocent women and children were killed by the Qing army after the city was broken.
That martial artist was the descendant of the innocent people massacred by the old man from the Shu Mulu family. This man had been seeking revenge for many years and had remained anonymous, developing a superb arm-wrapping fist. He worked as a martial arts instructor for the Han Army of the Zhengbai Banner for a few years, but he failed to succeed and was invited by the Shu Mulu family, who was also a Zhengbai Banner, to become a martial arts guardian. After years of patience, he finally succeeded.
When Fatty Sun finished explaining the cause and effect, everyone present was stunned for a long time. They all shook their heads and sighed. It can be said that things in this world are like drinking and pecking. This old man was able to survive against the sharp-shooting pirates of the North Sea. Who would have expected that he would be killed by one of his family members? Kill the martial artist with one palm.
"I heard that the imperial court is busy moving the capital. You said that they are all going to Xi'an. Is Beijing City still Beijing City?"
"Why do you think so much? The North Sea pirates have now reached Shandong, and I heard that Jilin City outside the Pass has been lost. Let's take it one day at a time!"
"Shopkeeper Dong, you have traveled extensively and experienced a lot. I heard that the Northern Pirates were doing something in Shandong to 'attack local tyrants and divide their fields'. Do you know about this?"
"Oh, don't ask me that. Let's not talk about state affairs!"
Everyone chatted for a while and then left. Shopkeeper Dong left the tea shop and returned to the shop diagonally opposite "Huang Shengtai". After that, he spent more than an hour reading last month's accounts. When he saw that the sun outside was no longer so harsh, he asked the boy to go to the backyard and let the coachman hitch the car.
After burning a stick of incense, shopkeeper Dong gave a few instructions to the waiter, then went out and got in the car. The mule cart traveled south along Qianmen Street, headed east at Zhushikou, and finally stopped at the entrance of Shiban Alley at Suanshikou. He got out of the car and stood under the tree at the entrance of the alley for a while, then walked in with his hands on his back, pausing every twenty steps and listening carefully to see if anyone was following him. When he arrived at the gate of a single-family courtyard on the southeast side of the intersection of Shiban Hutong and Benchmark Hutong, he looked around, then stepped forward and patted it twice, paused for a moment and patted it four more times.
Not long after, the courtyard door opened, revealing a gap that allowed only one person to pass through. Shopkeeper Dong stepped in sideways and whispered to the old man who opened the door: "Where is the person?"
The old man didn't say anything and glanced at the west room of the main room. Shopkeeper Guo didn't say anything and walked straight into the house. He stretched out his hand to lift the blue cloth door curtain, and saw a lean man in his thirties jumping down from the kang. His arms were stretched out, and he cupped his fists and bowed to himself.
"Brother Dong."
"Brother Yang, in the past few days, notices have been posted everywhere in and around the city to arrest you. I'm here to tell you that you must be careful in this courtyard on weekdays so as not to let the news out."
"I'm really grateful for Brother Dong's care. Now that my brother's revenge has been avenged, I have nothing to worry about anymore. Don't worry, I will leave tonight and I will never implicate you."
"Hey, what nonsense are you talking about! Just wait for two days. When there is news from Shandong, neither Shuntian Mansion nor the patrol camp will care about your business. Then I will send someone to take you out of the city. "
"According to what Brother Dong said, my junior brother Chen is also in Jiaodong now? I want to find him."
"Don't be impatient. Stay calm and don't be impatient. You brothers will definitely be reunited."
No one would have thought that the martial artist surnamed Yang, who killed the old counselor of the Shu Mulu family, was actually hiding in a house under the name of shopkeeper "Huang Shengtai" Dong.
Shopkeeper Dong did not lie. Five days later, a six-hundred-mile express sent by Liu Yong from Jinan arrived in the capital. The Northern Navy, which had been silent in Jiaodong for almost a year, suddenly launched a massive force of 8,000 people from the north. In the south, they launched a fierce attack on the Qing army along the Huangshui River, Sun River and Wulong River. In just two days, the three cities of Dengzhou, Qixia, and Laiyang fell one after another. Entehemo, the commander-in-chief of Dengzhou Town, died in battle, and Lan Jiazan, the prefect of Dengzhou, hanged himself after the city was destroyed.
However, what is surprising is that Qianlong actually seemed very calm after learning about the military situation in Shandong. He did not mobilize troops from the capital and surrounding provinces, but only ordered Liu Yong to strictly guard Zhaoyuan and Jimo and other places, and pay close attention to the movements of the Northern Navy.
After that, he had a solo duel with He Shen and Yong Yan for more than an hour, and then asked the Manchurian governor with a white flag, the minister of the Ministry of Industry and Lin to present the sign to him immediately. Early the next morning, an edict left everyone in the government and the public at a loss. He Lin was appointed governor of Yunnan and Guizhou, with the title of Minister of the Ministry of War, and would take office after August 15th.
However, according to news from the palace, Qianlong became furious when he returned to the palace that day, scolded Zhao Xin angrily, and even smashed a Ru kiln brush washer.
It is true that the Han warriors who guarded the hospital killed the Manchus. They usually planned carefully for many years and killed them with one final blow. The fate of a martial artist who gets his revenge is nothing more than suicide and escape. If he is caught, there will be no good end.
(End of chapter)
