The atmosphere in the capital was gloomy. In order to prevent the refugees from rioting, the government officials in the yamen were on guard around the clock. They even transferred some manpower from the defensive soldiers at the city gate to strengthen the supervision of the refugees to prevent accidents.
Outside the city gate is a different kind of scenery. At one time, there were more than 200,000 refugees gathering at the most. Later, many refugees desperately looked for a chance of life in Tongzhou and further south. However, the number of refugees outside the capital has remained at around 100,000.
At first, the refugees brought some dry food with them, which could last for a while. In addition, there is still hope for the imperial court.
As time went by, food became increasingly scarce, and coupled with the cold climate, more and more people fell permanently. He fell down outside the tall city wall of the capital, the holy place in their hearts.
People's bad nature completely broke out at this time. Many refugees became emotionally out of control because of the loss of their loved ones. Coupled with the shortage of food, many refugees broke out their thirst for life. They became a mob, killing people just for a mouthful of food. Human life is a common occurrence.
In order to survive, many refugees have thrown aside the moral constraints of the past, and everything has returned to the most primitive state of survival, where the weak eat the strong and the fittest survive.
Many refugees, young and old, had to drag their hungry, tired and weak bodies to continue migrating south in this cold and windy winter. There are many refugees lying on the roadside forever. Lei Dagang and his grandfather are the lucky ones among this group of refugees.
The two of them couldn't stand it any longer. But a strong will supported them to get here. Lei Dagang is fourteen years old. He is very thin because of difficult family conditions. His father and brother finally left their hope of survival to him and his grandfather.
In order to protect him and his grandfather, Lei Dagang's father and brother escaped safely with two pieces of hard wheat cakes in their arms, but they fell forever in a pool of blood on the tall city wall. Every time Lei Dagang thought of his father and brother's eyes when they fell, he felt that they He had a reason to live, and probably his grandfather did too.
There are many refugees outside the capital who have returned to their original form in order to survive. People like Lei Dagang's father and brother can be seen everywhere, leaving the hope of life to their relatives. This may also be the original form of their group - the calf protectors!
Lei Dagang's grandfather and grandson may have been favored by God and were rescued by Ding Bandao, a farm owner named Dachangzhuang. Datianzhuang not only saved their grandfather and grandson, but also changed Lei Dagang's life. Created a generation of famous generals.
Several years later, Lei Dagang, who held great power and was known for his staunchness, couldn't help but shed tears every time he thought of that cold winter.
Wang Ziteng finally found an opportunity at this time, and started to maintain order outside the city with more than 3,000 officers and soldiers. Those extremely vicious people were suppressed, and the environment outside the capital soon improved. Wang Ziteng encouraged the refugees to move south.
There are so many refugees gathered outside the capital, and without food and other material supplies, not many people can survive. Wang Ziteng also used his troops to borrow grain from surrounding farms. Due to his gentle methods, the surrounding farms were basically able to accept it, but he only borrowed less than half of the grain and left an IOU.
The refugees gathered in the capital were grateful to Wang Ziteng for his benevolence, and all refugees migrating south were given two days of dry food. Most of the refugees staying outside the capital were frail and sick and unable to leave, plus their relatives.
Wang Ziteng's ability was most vividly demonstrated at this time. First, he gathered the refugees around the South City Gate, which was relatively sheltered from the wind. Thirty to forty thousand people gathered together to report to the group for warmth, and then uniformly provided porridge. Although the refugees were not yet full, they were somewhat I can still survive my asthma.
During this period, foreign cavalry also came to the periphery of the capital. When they saw the refugees, they had little luck. In addition, there were thousands of officers and soldiers guarding them, but they were unwilling to break this bone. The foreigners had no intention of fighting now. They were all seeking wealth. He no longer stayed and quickly retreated.
The refugees staying around the capital didn't think so. Wang Ziteng was sent by the imperial court to protect them. Their impression of the imperial court suddenly improved a lot. They were even more grateful to Wang Ziteng and the other three thousand officers and soldiers. Many refugees even came to help them. Chanting.
Wang Ziteng also breathed a sigh of relief. He had stood in the name of righteousness and could finally overcome the difficulties in front of him. Indeed, without Wang Ziteng, I don't know what kind of chaos would be outside the capital. Wang Ziteng’s actions also saved tens of thousands of refugees.
Wang Ziteng's actions became the only shining point of the Zheng Dynasty this winter. Although he suffered a defeat in Changping before, it did not damage his tall image among the refugees. Wang Ziteng had the support of 30,000 to 40,000 refugees outside the capital. His own safety is no longer in danger.
As time slowly came to January, the invading aliens began to slowly retreat with their harvested property and population.
The northern region of the Great Zheng Dynasty was already in a mess. The foreign invaders committed all kinds of evil, burning, killing, robbing, raping women, and then retreating with large amounts of property and people. Leaving behind a mess riddled with holes.
The court is now in a state of chaos. The top priority is to resettle the refugees. Hundreds of thousands of refugees are stranded in Beizhili and require a lot of money and food for resettlement. The Ministry of Household Affairs cannot come up with money at all. The court is in a state of quarrel. Each faction wants to Make some profit out of this chaos.
This group of officials proposed to punish some people so that their own forces could occupy more good positions. When everyone has dirty butts, the court has turned into a vegetable market, and the emperor is not tired of it. You have all gone off topic.
It soon became a cliche that the court could not come up with any money, so it had to launch a fundraiser. Speaking of wealth, the officials in front of them were absolutely rich, and the family behind them controlled a huge amount of wealth.
But when asked to take money out, all of them bowed their heads and remained silent. This group of officials are all good at seizing power and greedy for money. When things happen, they all turn into Tai Chi masters. Anyone who shirks responsibility is a master.
This time, the honorable families in the capital suffered heavy losses. How many of their descendants wanted to go to the capital to find a good future. This time, it was good, and they directly fought with the Jurchen cavalry with real swords and guns. Many descendants of the noble family are still uncertain whether they will live or die.
This time many noble families were in tears. They had been suppressed by the emperor in recent years. They began to unite together and finally won some good positions in the Beijing camp for their descendants. They were expected to be promoted. As a result, they were sent by the emperor to Changping to stop the Jurchen cavalry. , became cannon fodder.
My nobles are in trouble, but the emperor has not yet begun to hold people accountable. The emperor was also in a state of distress now. There was a mess in front of him. Resettling the refugees was the biggest priority at the moment, so he ordered the local governments to open warehouses for disaster relief.
As for the lack of food in the granary, that's your business. Isn't it on the books anyway? As an emperor, you must be righteous, and political correctness is the most important thing.
As a result, local governments could only deal with it perfunctorily. In the end, it was the victims who were unlucky. Most of the victims had to sell their children to survive the crisis. There will also be kind people who will give out some porridge. The Great Zheng Dynasty also entered the turbulent years.
Wang Ziteng passed the test because of his outstanding performance outside the capital. In the end, the emperor did not take advantage of him, so he compensated for his failure with merit. However, Wang Ziteng's popularity is at its peak.
