There is a saying:
The mountains and rivers are floating in the morning light after the rain, and I can see the first state in the south of the Yangtze River for the first time. The road goes around Kuanglu and goes further south, knowing that this is a place where you can forget your worries.
The name of this poem is "First Arrival at Jinling", which was written by the scholar Xiao Su. The words "This is a place where you can forget your worries" describe the splendor of the city.
When it comes to the city of Jinling, it is surrounded by mountains and rivers, has a natural shape, abundant products, and rich human connections. It is a place where you forget your worries.
Therefore, artists like Zhao Ji have been thinking about moving to Jinling ever since they came to Zhenjiang Prefecture.
In Jinling City, on the south side of Xinjiekou in later generations, was where the palace city of the Southern Tang Dynasty was located.
The Southern Tang Dynasty was passed down to three generations, one emperor and two masters.
The emperor was Li Min, the founding emperor of the country. He was courteous to the virtuous and corporal, frivolous in corvee and paid little in taxes. As a result, the Southern Tang Dynasty was in great power and ranked first among the ten kingdoms.
Li Ming passed the throne to his descendants Li Jing and Li Yu, but the father and son were not lucky. The father bumped into Chai Rong, and the younger one bumped into Zhao Kuangyin. Two generations of poet masters bumped into two generations of heroic emperors. They fought and fought. The Southern Tang Dynasty had doubts about life, so it professed its vassalage to Zhou and Song dynasties successively, and then resigned from the throne and changed its title to "Lord of Jiangnan".
However, the two Li Guozhu, both talented in poetry and aesthetic taste, are naturally extraordinary.
Therefore, the palaces of the Southern Tang Dynasty all had corresponding buildings: Yanying Hall, Shengyuan Hall, Yonghe Hall, Zhaode Hall, Muqing Hall, Yuzhu Hall, Baichi Tower, etc., each of which can be said to be unique in its own way. After more than a hundred years of ups and downs, The carved railings and jade inlays are still there.
As for Zhao Ji, his talent and temperament are just like the reincarnation of Empress Li, and his artistic aesthetic is also extremely high.
Now that he had lost Gen Yue, whom he had worked so hard to build, he decided to build a palace in the Southern Tang Dynasty——
Not long after arriving in Zhenjiang, he searched for money and food everywhere, sent people to repair it, and after it was basically completed, he couldn't wait to move here.
Outside the south gate of the palace, there is a bridge called the inner bridge, also called the Hongqiao, which means "rainbow lying on waves".
Not far from the inner bridge, there is Sanshan Street, crowded with people and merchants. This is also where the Jinling Prefecture's law ground is located, and all executions of murder and mutilation are carried out here.
On the third day of September, before noon, Sanshan Street was already packed with people.
However, a notice was posted last night:
Commander Tong Guan captured two treasonous rebels, both of whom were under the command of Wu Zhi, a giant thief in Qingzhou. At noon the next day, they were to be punished by being broken apart by running a carriage as a warning to others!
Chariot splitting means five horses driving a chariot, pulling people and quartering them. This type of punishment is extremely cruel and has been practiced since the late Tang Dynasty. Now Zhao Ji has moved it out and reenacted it. Isn't it an extremely rare event?
After many people heard about it, they were so excited that they couldn't sleep all night and came before dawn, hoping to get a good seat and observe it carefully.
Early that morning, someone from the government came to the intersection of Sanshan Street, poured clean water on the street, and paved the road with loess. They were ready, and two to three hundred sharp and capable police officers went to the door of the death row, ready to pick up the person.
At the same time, General Zhang Suo of Jinling, following the imperial edict of the Supreme Emperor, ordered three thousand troops and went to the death row to wait.
In the death row, there was a small prisoner who took Zhang Jue and Li Ying. They each changed into linen clothes with him, put a paper flower in their temples, and brought them to the blue-faced saint's divine case. They had a bowl of long rest with him. He was given rice, a bottle of farewell wine, and then he was on his way.
If he were an ordinary death row prisoner, how could he swallow his life when he was about to die?
This was not the case for Zhang Jue and Li Ying. They were captured from Yuguan and drifted on the boat for more than a month. They already knew that they had no way out.
The two of them discussed it on the way: "We are going to die or not, but we must not lose our dignity before death. Even if he chopped up the two of us and boiled them alive, he would bite his teeth and not scream! Even though he is dead, And leave a reputation as a hero in the world."
So the two of them had a good time, eating and drinking, it was so sweet!
The prisoners were surprised when they saw it, and they winked at each other, which meant: I have never seen such a tough guy, he is really respectable!
After just eating and drinking, they were escorted out of the prison door. The policemen prepared the prison van, stuffed their bundles into the prison van, and took them to the execution ground.
Zhang Suo then sent troops and horses to guard him in all directions, shouting in front and behind him. Soon he arrived at the crossroads and saw five carriages already prepared. He was only waiting for the execution officer to come at three quarters to noon.
Zhang Jue stretched out his head and looked out from the prison car, laughing and saying: "Unexpectedly, I died in the same way as Li Cunxiao."
As the saying goes, "The king is not as good as Xiang, and the general is not as good as Li." This Li was Li Cunxiao, the most powerful general in the late Tang Dynasty and the Five Dynasties. He died when his chariot broke apart.
It is said that during the execution, five horse-drawn carriages were running wildly. Li Cunxiao felt pain for a moment, roared angrily, drew back his arms, legs and neck, and all five carriages were overturned by him.
Several batches of carriages and horses were changed in this way, but nothing could be done to him. Finally, he got tired of it and came up with an idea: "I am born with strength, what can I do? If you want to kill me, break my bones and muscles first, and then ask for death." .”
After hearing this, the executioner cut off his hand tendons and hamstrings and smashed his kneecaps. Then he changed his horse and cut the body into pieces.
Li Ying also knew this allusion and immediately said with a smile: "How about we compete and see who can last longer?"
Generalissimo Zhang Suo of Jinling is a veteran who is over sixty years old. He got up early today and sat on his horse all the way, feeling a little dazed and sleepy. .
Hearing the words of the two of them, he suddenly opened his eyes and looked them up and down: "Listening to the words of the two of you, you are so heroic and courageous. Why don't you serve the Song Dynasty and follow that Wu Zhi?"
Li Ying glanced sideways at the veteran and said calmly: "Even an old man like you has a hard time understanding the matters of a man."
When Zhang Suo'er was a young man, he just laughed it off after hearing this. But a young general of seventeen or eighteen years old stood next to him and said angrily: "Bah! How dare you, a rat, insult my father!"
Li Ying looked at it and his eyes lit up: The young general was extremely well-born, with hair in front reaching eyebrow level and back hair reaching shoulder length. His face was like a full moon, his eyes were beautiful and his eyebrows were clear. He wore a gold crown with a tiger's head and three prongs, and two dragons grabbed beads to wipe his forehead. Wearing a bright red war coat with a colorful collar, and a soft gold belt cinching her waist, she sat on a dark red horse with an angry look on her face.
Li Ying was about to scold him, but seeing him at such an old age, he remembered his youth and lost his temper for a moment. He shook his head and sighed: "What do you know about a child's family? Do you know how Tong Guan negotiated a peace and alliance with the Jin Kingdom? He We must cede all the land north of the Yangtze River to the Kingdom of Jin! You are also a general, and you should know the truth that "to defend the river, you must defend the Huaihe River". Is it this truth that Zhao Ji Tongguan doesn't know? If he doesn't know, he's afraid he won't be able to use his money as much as possible. It’s human will, and the Jin people are unwilling to try their best to deal with my brother Wu Dalang!”
Zhang Jue also said from the side: "I am a Han from the Liao Kingdom, and I have nothing to do with him, the Emperor of the Song Kingdom. However, as an outsider, I can see clearly that all the great rivers and mountains in the world are originally owned by the Han family of China, and they are not Why should he sell his own world named Zhao to outsiders? This old man asked us why we follow Wu Zhi? Hey, hey..."
"Let me ask you, as a man, are you willing to work for Emperor Qin, Wu of Han, and Emperor Taizong of Tang, or are you willing to follow Emperor Hui of Jin and Shi Jingtang?"
The young man said angrily: "How can Shi Jingtang and his ilk be comparable today?"
Li Ying chuckled and said: "Are you talking about today's emperor, Zhao Ji or Zhao Huan? Shi Jingtang only cut off the sixteen states of Youyun, but they want to cut off half of the world! From my point of view, they are not as good as Shi Jingtang. .”
The young man's face was red, and he wanted to argue, but he couldn't think of a reason. He just struggled and said: "Anyway, anyway, anyway, anyway..." He couldn't explain the reason.
Zhang Suo shouted in a low voice: "Zhang Xian, shut up!" He sighed and lowered his head in silence.
At this time, the scene was already crowded with people. Zhang Suo spread his troops and horses and blocked the people watching the excitement on all sides. They all had their feet on their feet, their heads raised, and their eyes were shining to watch the excitement.
This scene is evidenced by poetry, as the saying goes——
As soon as the execution ground was opened, there was a bustle, and everyone was bragging about the arrogance of the five horses. There were crowds of people everywhere in a hurry, but no one could see the height in the yamen.
Not long after, four supervising and beheading officials arrived with three to five hundred followers. They were very proud and came together.
The first one is Cai Jing's fourth son, Cai Sui, and the other three are generals He Guan, Miao Fu, and Liu Zhengyan. All three of them were recently promoted by Tong Guan, and they also had military exploits in Yuguan. Therefore, let them come together to supervise the execution.
Seeing that the time was approaching, Cai Sui coughed, took out the document, and recited aloud the crimes committed by Zhang Jue and Li Ying: how they were in the same party with Wu Zhi, how they occupied land and became kings, and how they fought against their allies. How could the heavenly soldiers have evil intentions...
There were some sensible people around who frowned more and more as they listened, feeling that something was not quite right.
Cai Sui was halfway through his ramble when he suddenly heard the crowd getting restless. Cai Sui couldn't help but be startled: The dismemberment hasn't even started yet, how come it's climaxing so quickly?
Just as he was about to call for silence, he suddenly saw countless people pointing their hands at one place. His heart moved, and he followed the people's pointing and turned his head to look. He saw a raging fire burning in the southwest.
Cai Sui hadn't reacted yet and said in surprise: "Hey, did the water escape somewhere?"
He Guan shouted: "Oh no! Look at the place where the fire is, but it's not Qingliang Mountain!"
Qingliang Mountain is in the northwest of the palace city. As expected, Cai Sui suddenly came back to his senses and said, "Oh, that's too bad. Isn't that so-and-so, that so-and-so in Qingliang Mountain?"
Before he finished speaking, he heard loud shouting from the southwest.
Not long after, shocking news came: "King Qin's army on Huainan West Road rushed to Qingliang Mountain, saying that they wanted to rescue the emperor, Qingjun was on his side!"
Cai Suan was shocked. Before he could react, another news came urgently: "The ones who want to clear the emperor's side are King Qin's troops on Jiangnan East Road!"
Immediately, bizarre news came one after another. Some said that the soldiers and horses on Jiangnan West Road had rebelled, some said that the soldiers and horses on Fujian Road had rebelled, and for a while, it was said that King Qin's army on Jinghu South Road was attacking Gongcheng. All the officers and generals were stunned.
He Guan rolled his eyes slightly and suddenly shouted: "Ah, in this time of chaos, I should go to Marshal Tong and let him protect me! Master Cai, General Liu, General Miao, I will leave this place to a few of them!" "
After that, he took his own soldiers, turned his horse and left.
Cai Suiyi thought it right. If I don't go to show my loyalty to the Supreme Emperor at this time, how can I join in the fun here? He immediately clasped his fists and said with an upright face: "General Liu, General Miao, I am going to see my father and let him protect Wang Jia. I entrust everything here to you two!"
After saying that, he also flew away.
At this time, a small yellow doorman came galloping from the direction of the palace city on horseback, shouting from a distance: "Where is Commander Zhang Suo? Your Majesty summons you to go to the palace to guard the palace gate quickly..."
Zhang Suo was stunned for a moment, and then he realized -
At this moment, apart from the imperial troops in the palace, his troops were the only ones closest to the palace! Once something happens, it is the fastest way to transfer him.
He glanced at Li Ying and Zhang Jue with confusion. Seeing that they were also confused, he shook his head secretly, and then said to his youngest son Zhang Xian: "It seems that there is going to be a big chaos in the city. My father has been ordered to guard the palace gate. You Go home quickly and don't run around."
Zhang Xian responded repeatedly, but Zhang Suo did not dare to delay, so he led the troops and left. Only a dozen servants gathered around Zhang Xian.
Once Zhang Suo's three thousand soldiers and horses left, only a few hundred men and policemen were left at the scene, and they quickly blocked the execution site from all sides. Fortunately, the people who were watching the excitement saw the great commotion. When they heard people all over the city shouting "Qingjun side", they were frightened and the less timid ones went home one after another. .
Only some scoundrels from the market took advantage of the situation and started to boo: "Didn't they say they were quartered? Hurry up, it will cause a big fuss later, but it won't be as exciting as this."
Before he finished speaking, someone heard someone yell: "Hey! This guy from Zhao Guan's family is traitorous to the country and wants to kill heroes. You are all Chinese people. Instead of complaining for a hero, you want to watch him lively. How can a certain family be willing to do so?" Allow you?"
While he was speaking, he saw that the head of that rogue man exploded into pieces. Miao Fu and Liu Zhengyan were startled and looked around hurriedly, only to see a young man in his twenties, dressed as a scholar, holding two golden hammers as big as buckets, smashing people's heads indiscriminately.
Miao Fu quickly took off his spear from the saddle and shouted: "That thief, are you trying to rob the execution ground?"
The young man killed more than twenty scoundrels and idlers. He turned around and laughed loudly: "Ha! I and my friends occasionally passed by, but I didn't expect you to kill some good guys here. You almost made me angry while you were waiting for me. What do you think?" I want to rob the law field, so why not just rob it!"
After saying that, he swung the golden hammer, but when he saw the golden light blooming, he killed countless policemen.
This time, the execution ground was completely in chaos. The young master, despite his youth, was extremely strong in his hammering skills. He fought hard towards the prison car alone.
Miao Fu and Liu Zhengyan looked at each other, then took out their weapons and charged out, followed by two to three hundred sergeants who also swarmed up behind them.
Master Miao wanted to claim credit, so he stepped forward on a flying horse and stabbed out with a spear. The young master swung his hammer, and with a bang, the spear flew into the sky. Shaking his bleeding hands, he shouted: "You Who is this guy?"
Liu Zhengyan, who was next to him, was about to attack, but when he saw that Miao Fu was defeated with one move, he quickly reined in his horse. Suddenly he heard someone next to him praising: "What a strength! What a hammering technique!"
He turned around and saw that it was Zhang Xian who was speaking!
Liu Zhengyan rolled his eyes, took his plan to heart, and shouted: "Master Zhang, your father was ordered to look after the execution ground. If he makes any mistakes, I'm afraid he will get involved. In the future, if the news spreads, others will laugh at your father and son's incompetence."
After all, Zhang Xian was young. After hearing this, he frowned and nodded secretly: "That's right. Although my father went to guard the palace gate, I am still here. How can I let others rob the prisoner?"
He turned around and said, "Bring me my gun!"
At that moment, two servants brought out a tiger head dipped in gold. The barrel of the gun was as thick as a tea cup. Liu Zhengyan saw it and secretly rejoiced in his heart: "I came to Jinling and heard for a long time that the youngest son of Marshal Zhang Suo's family has amazing martial arts. See I'm afraid he really has some skills with this gun! This guy has no official position, so if he really killed the thief, isn't it my credit?"
The wielder defeated Miao Fu with one move of the hammer, and was about to rush in to rescue people when he suddenly heard the sound of horse hooves and someone shouted in his ears: "Thief, shoot!"
Seeing that Zhang Xian was young, he didn't take it seriously. He just swung the hammer once, but when he heard a loud noise, the golden hammer hit the golden gun, a huge force came, which made him step back several steps, and he was shocked.
Zhang Xian didn't get better over there. He only felt a sharp pain in the tiger's mouth. Even the man and the horse took a few steps back, but his eyes became brighter and he exclaimed: "Sure enough, you have great strength! What's your name, but Dare to tell me."
The man who wielded the golden hammer looked at him and sneered: "I'm telling you, I'm not afraid of you going to the sea to catch me. Young master Yan Chengfang, who everyone calls me 'Master Golden Hammer', will be a rebel sooner or later!"
After saying that, he turned around and shouted: "Wu Shangzhi, you are so heartless, so many people are beating me up, why don't you help me?"
But I heard a long laugh, and in the crowd, a young man untied a long package from behind, shook it open as he walked, and found a shining silver halberd. He shouted: "'Silver Halberd Tai Sui'" 'Wu Shangzhi, I was visiting Jinling by chance, and on a whim, I decided to rob a court and have fun!"
Among the crowd, Shi Jin and Wen Ren Shichong looked at each other with confusion in each other's eyes. They asked in unison: "Are these two heroes the helpers you arranged?"
This is exactly:
The road is not cut off before the fate is due, and the sound of killing fills the sky! When we meet each other with a golden hammer and a silver halberd, we will finally believe that there are many heroes in the south of the Yangtze River!
(End of chapter)
