"Third uncle, your idea is good. But if we can think this way, others can think the same way. Now that the south has spoken out, if we continue to be silent, how will the court view our Kong family?"
"You know, the Manchus are really hard to fool. The tricks used by our ancestors are of little use in their eyes. In the final analysis, they just want slaves. We are still under the rule of the Manchus. If we don't speak out to express our position, then The days ahead will be difficult for us," Kong Zhaohuan said.
"Since ancient times, it is better to provide icing on the cake than to provide help in the snow. The matter of Shangshu cannot be delayed. If the rebels can really take over the country in the future, we will have to say more good things to them. Judging from the tricks promoted by the rebels, they are much easier to fool than the Manchus. .”
"'Drive out the Tartars and restore China.' What is the most indispensable thing for China? It is Confucianism. As the head of Confucianism, I, the Kong family, can't do anything to us no matter what. Otherwise, how can they obtain the position of orthodoxy?"
"Well, that's right. Then hurry up and go to the imperial court! As the saying goes, county officials are not as good as current officials. Maybe Emperor Qianlong can spare us the food and grass we have to pay if he is happy." Kong Jimu nodded and replied.
"Okay, I'll go to the study to prepare..."
…
The twenty-second year of Qianlong's reign, at the end of April
Shandong, Xuzhou.
Xuzhou, known as "Pengcheng" in ancient times, is a famous imperial capital for thousands of years. It is located in the bordering area of Jiangsu, Shandong, Henan and Anhui provinces, on the northern wing of the Yangtze River Delta, with the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal passing through it. As the saying goes, "it borders the Yellow Sea to the east, the Central Plains to the west, the Jianghuai River to the south, and the Qilu River to the north", so it is known as the "thorough of the five provinces".
Xuzhou is historically one of the nine states in China. Due to its superior geographical location and environment, it has always been known as "the key to the North and the gateway to the South". It has been a gathering center for merchants and a battleground for military strategists since ancient times.
As May approaches, the weather in Xuzhou begins to get hotter and hotter. At this time, the sun was scorching in the sky, and heat waves were rising from the ground. In the grass and trees, the chirping of insects and birds kept coming.
"drive…"
Suddenly, there was a rapid sound of horse hooves on the road.
At this moment, a group of Eight Banners cavalry wearing Manchu and Qing Dynasty red flag clothes were seen riding past.
"Sir, the weather is too hot. The horses will not be able to bear it if it continues like this. Why don't we go to the shade of the trees in front to rest and let the horses rest?" One of the cavalrymen said to the leader in Manchu.
"Okay... let's do it! The weather in the south is really hot." The leader nodded in agreement.
This is a group of Zhenghong Banner and Eight Banners frontier troops from Jilin. They patrolled the surrounding areas in order to adapt to the southern battlefield.
There are about ten people in this group of cavalry. At this time, except for the four people on guard, they were all lying in twos and threes under the shade of the trees enjoying the cool air.
The hot weather made them feel exhausted. At this moment, they even ignored military regulations, took off their armor and sat down on the ground.
For the Eight Banners soldiers who are accustomed to staying in the cold places of northern Xinjiang, the hot weather makes them feel extremely uncomfortable. If possible, they would rather be chopped twice than endure the torturous hot weather here.
"Damn it, why do you think the weather here is so hot, and there is no rain to cool down." Under the shade of a big tree in the east, a young cavalryman was shirtless and fanning himself with his palms.
"No, it's so hot. Only the Southern Barbarians can bear it. If it were me, even if you give me money to live here, I wouldn't even bother to live here. It's not as cool and comfortable as the ones in the north." Another cavalryman said replied.
"Gamuge, don't say anything. The weather in this damn place is so bad that I don't even want to live there, but the women here are indeed pretty good. They are much more beautiful and tender than our wives over there." Another one said the trooper.
"Haha, Yala. You are right. The woman from the village we robbed last time is really nice. It's a pity that we can't take her away, otherwise I will have to take her back to warm my bed a few more times." The bare-shouldered cavalryman Said with a smile.
"Dahazhe, didn't I say this not to be said in public? If the Nanmanzi hear it, we must not make a fuss." Cavalryman Gamu Ge lowered his voice and said.
"Gamuge, you are good at everything, but you are too timid. What are you afraid of? Let's not mention that there are no Nanmanzi here. Even if there are, can they understand what we say (Manchu)?" Da Hazhe replied disdainfully.
"Well, Dahazhe is right. Gamuge, we are here to talk about what we are afraid of. Besides, what if Nanmanzi knows about it? They still have to help us. You didn't see Nanmanzi That dog officer, so what if he knew it was us, why didn't he just obediently get rid of that useless 'dog'① for us?" Yala said with a mocking look on his face.
"So what if he doesn't solve it? We are here to quell the chaos. Can he afford to provoke him? Who of us will quell the rebels if he provokes him? If he dares to ignore current affairs, the court will kill him without us taking action. Besides, we just robbed a small village and killed dozens of people. If the rebels came, we wouldn't just kill a small village. Thousands of people would die. Compared with the rebels, we have already counted. So kind." Dahazhe said calmly, as if he was a great benevolent person.
"Haha, Dahazhe, you are really thick-skinned, but I like to hear it. But if it comes to mercy, I still think Master Zakuta (the team leader) should be more merciful. The dog officer will sentence the 'dog' to beheading At that time, Lord Zakuta begged the dog official to let him go after he sentenced him to dozens of dollars."
"Dahazhe, why do you think Master Zakuta asked the dog official to let go of the dog that dared to bite us?" Yala asked with some confusion.
"Yara, you don't understand this. Lord Zakuta can't be so kind. He is telling those Ahabs that this Qing Dynasty is the Qing Dynasty of our Manchu people, not the Qing Dynasty of you Ahabs. The country of the Qing Dynasty has always relied on my Eight Banners disciples. I just rape, loot, burn and kill, so what can you do? You aha can only accept your fate and cannot resist." Dahazhe replied.
Note ①:
It was the end of March in the 22nd year of Qianlong's reign in the Qing Dynasty.
The Jilin Manchuria Zhenghong Banner frontier troops, who were ordered to quell the rebellion, were passing by an unknown small village in Feixian County, Shandong Province. They raped, looted, burned and killed all the men, women and children in the village.
The next day, some villagers who escaped reported the incident to the government.
The county magistrate was afraid of the strength of the border army and was afraid that delaying the military flight would offend the court, so he sentenced the villagers who reported the case to blasphemy and sentenced him to death by beheading. Later, the leader of the border army in the hall pleaded for mercy, and the sentence was changed to a slap in the face, and he was sentenced to death for slandering the border army and killing villagers.
Note ②: This book is short of tickets, so I have to accept my fate.
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