Xuanfu Town, in the hall of the Second Hall of the General Military Office.
General Zhenshuo and Yongning Bo Zhang Cheng continued: "Both Governor Jiang and Zhu Fuchen have recently arrived at their posts, so they must have many things on their hands and have no way to distract themselves.
What's more, this matter of hoeing out traitors for the country is our duty as the Guard. We should devote ourselves to sharing the worries of the ministers and governors, the imperial court, and the emperor. "
"snort……"
He then snorted coldly and said: "What we are doing is not only to eliminate traitors for the country, but also to add a lot of money and food to the three towns of Xuanda. Not only will they not take any risks for this, they can just sit back and enjoy the gains, and they can also report to the court." If you show your merits, what opinions do you have?"
After everyone heard this, they all looked stunned. Although there were still some people who felt that something was wrong in their hearts, but they had no way to refute, they couldn't help but shook their heads, but before they had time to think about it, they saw Uncle Yong Ning continuing to speak. They were busy listening attentively.
Seeing the expressions on everyone's faces, Zhang Cheng closed his eyes and meditated for a while, and then continued with a stern expression: "You are willing to risk your lives to follow me, and I, Zhang Cheng, naturally have to consider your future."
Uncle Yongning scanned the people in the hall with his eyes like torches, and said in a firm and cold tone: "It has been hundreds of years since the founding of the Ming Dynasty. The hereditary military attachés in the third town of Xuanda, as well as those unscrupulous Businessmen, they have long been linked together and become a gang of raccoons. They are intertwined and enslave local soldiers and civilians.
My uncle's intention is that we can take this opportunity to wipe out the name of slaves and traitors, completely liquidate these worms in the country, and also bring peace and prosperity to the soldiers and people of Xuan Da San Town, so that the soldiers and people of Xuan Da San can live and work in peace and contentment. "
He continued with a slightly gentle look on his face: "Of course, the traitors' property confiscated this time can not only supplement our military resources to support our troops and herdsmen, but also share the confiscated traitor's houses and farmland with our meritorious officers and men. So that the blood will not be shed in vain.”
When Zhang Cheng said this, he paused again. Although the light in his eyes was dimmer than before, it was even colder. He continued in a cold tone: "You have to know that in today's world, the truth is... In a time of chaos, it has actually reached a critical moment of life and death.
Nowadays, there are Tartars outside who are extremely greedy for the wealth of the Central Plains, and they always want to take over the Central Plains; and there are rogue thieves inside, who have not only caused trouble in several provinces in the mainland, destroyed cities without planning, and kidnapped countless people, but now they have even destroyed our Ming Dynasty. , the intention of changing the dynasty.
However, the princes in the court were still fighting endlessly for their own selfish interests, completely disregarding the safety and survival of the country, and were bent on forming parties for personal gain. They never asked about the consequences of doing things, but only to preserve themselves and attack political opponents.
In such a situation, it is even more necessary for all of you here to be of one heart and one mind with me. We will work together to defend the Tartars externally, suppress the bandits internally, eliminate the moths of inaction above, bring peace to the common people below, and restore prosperity to the country and the dynasty! "
After hearing Uncle Yong Ning's words, everyone in the hall had different expressions. Some of them looked very excited and quite gearing up, while others such as He Biao, Wei Zhice, Liu Minshen and others had solemn expressions on their faces.
"Soon, the main force of our Yongyi Army will march into Henan to assist and suppress the bandits. By then, the strength of our Yongyi Army in Xuanzhen will inevitably be weakened."
Uncle Yongning continued with a very solemn expression: "Therefore, in order for our brave soldiers to be able to suppress thieves in Henan Province with peace of mind, we must eradicate all the traitors hiding in the dark before leaving. No future trouble.
Lest he return triumphantly one day, his own backyard will be unsafe! "
Wu Zhizhong, the commander of the Weiyuan Camp, then said: "Cut the knot with a sharp knife. I will kill him by surprise. When these traitors react, they will have no other choice but to appeal to the court."
At that time, all we had to do was lay out the evidence of the traitor's treason one by one. The ironclad facts were in front of us. Even if the traitor was backed by important officials in the court, what could he do to us? "
"UI!"
Zhang Cheng then said: "At this time in my life, I have too many things to do, and life is too short. Therefore, we must act quickly and violently, and use the fastest speed to block the front of my brave army. Just wipe out all our enemies!"
When he said this, he raised his eyes and looked at the ray of sunlight coming in from the main entrance of the hall, and said resolutely: "Ten thousand years is too long, I only seize the day!"
Finally, Zhang Cheng gave a soft drink and said: "Wu Zhizhong, Wei Zhice, and the veteran generals, after you return to the camp, immediately clean up the army, free the soldiers from barracks construction and other chores, and make preparations for setting off to aid Henan.
Wang Yuanjing, Liu Minshen, as well as Lin Fangping, Zhang Chengfang, and Zhang Jintai, you and others will prepare several sets of action drafts in advance to prepare for selection. The details of the action must be detailed, including several key castles, how to break them, and how each team will control the key points in the castle after entering the city. Location must be taken into consideration.
Congratulations to the governor, you immediately organize the governors and sergeants of each battalion to conduct secret visits and conduct strict investigations. Firstly, the officers and soldiers are not allowed to leave the camp without any reason, and secondly, the officers and soldiers are not allowed to take advantage of the chaos to plunder. We will search for the traitors and traitors, and we must not disturb the local soldiers and civilians. Common people and so on. "
All the officials and generals in the hall stood up enthusiastically, holding their fists in excitement to receive the order. The long-awaited big scene was finally coming!
Although Counselor Liu Minshen still felt in his heart that it was a bit reckless to act like this, Yong Ningbo had already made a decision, and since he was only dealing with those traitorous traitors and did not want to escalate the situation infinitely, he did not give any more words to persuade him.
…………
"Zhangjiakou Fort is the place where General Wanquan Youwei of Xuanfu Shangxi Road is stationed. It has jurisdiction over Yangfang Fort, Zhangjiakou Fort, Wanquan Youwei City, Xinkaikou Fort, Shanfang Fort, Shangzhuang Fort, etc. There are four places in it. Guard, and four thousand households including Yelang Ridge and Lutailing."
Xuanfu Counselor Liu Guangwu pointed to the map on the table and explained to Zhang Cheng: "The Wanquan Youwei Counselor of Shangxi Road will be established in the 10th year of Chenghua. The number of troops and horses under Helu's jurisdiction is more than 8,700. Among them, there are about 2,000 internal reinforcements.
The name of the guarding general here is Lai Tianlu, who comes from a local military family in Xuanzhen. He is currently a military attaché with the title of Commander-in-Chief of the Wandu Department, and is actually awarded the rank of general. "
"He also has a younger brother named Lai Tianshou, who is the garrison general of Xuanfu Middle Road. He is stationed in Geyu Fort and has jurisdiction over Qingbiankou Fort, Baiyukou Fort, Geyu Fort, Dabaiyang Fort, Xiaobaiyang Fort, There are three garrisons in Longmenguanbao and other places, as well as five thousand households including Yaoerling and Dasongshan.
There are a total of more than 7,600 officers and soldiers on the road, and more than 1,900 internal reinforcements. Lai Tianshou also holds the title of Commander and Commander of the Wandu Division, and is actually assigned to participate in military duties. "
Liu Guangwu continued to introduce Zhang Cheng: "The Lai family has lived in Xuanfu Town since the reign of Chengzu. Since they took office, they have become quite influential in the local area, and their business has been deeply rooted for a long time.
Many of the officers and generals in the forts under his jurisdiction were mostly in charge of their confidants. For example, Shi Jinzhong, the garrison of Zhangjiakou Fort, married Lai Tianlu's seventh sister and became the brother-in-law of the Lai family brother. "
"In addition, the Lai family also married other military families in the town. For example, Lai Tianlu's eldest sister married Li E, the general of Xiaxi Road in Xuanfu Town, while Lai Tianshou married Shunsheng of South Road in Xuanfu Town. Wei Guang, the third sister of General Yang Tianfu..."
He sighed softly and said: "Looking at the roads in Xuanfu Town, from east to west, and then from north to south, there are seven roads divided into guarding generals. Except for the North Road and East Road controlled by Yongning Bo, the rest are up and down. The five roads including West Road, Middle Road, South Road, and Nanshan Road have broken bones and tendons.
At present, it seems that Zhangjiakou's profiteers secretly colluded with slave thieves and smuggled banned goods. Without the permission and support of these border guards, it would be absolutely impossible.
After all, it is an important border area. Even Zhangjiakou Fort, which border fort is not heavily guarded?
They all have more or less connections with Shanxi merchants in Zhangjiakou. Even if they are not involved in the slave smuggling trade, they must have received many benefits from profiteers.
Nowadays, their officers and soldiers are colluding with profiteers, and they are colluding with each other. They have eaten enough oil and water, and everyone is full of fat. I am afraid they will not submit obediently!
Not only these border guards, many border soldiers also make a living from this. Zhongchen, if you really want to ban the Zhangjiakou border trade, you will cut off the wealth of these people. How can they give up? There is bound to be a fight.
Not only will Lai Tianlu and others try their best to stop it, but even the soldiers at the border will not restrain their hands. Even the local military households and civilians may be incited to move.
Loyalty should not be underestimated! "
He then added: "These local snakes are so intertwined that they can affect the whole body. Even my brother had to stay away from them when he left the North Road of Zhen."
Liu Guangwu's tone was full of helplessness. Although he was a general, when he was guarding the North Road, his responsibilities were to train the troops and horses, repair the city defenses, supervise the piers and platforms, defend against bandits, pension the soldiers, and ensure local security.
But this duty of guard general sounds very majestic, but he usually manages his own military camp. As for the duties of the Guards Department, as well as local military and government affairs, they are also taken care of by Beilu. Factions are tightly controlled and restrictive at every turn.
According to the rules of the Ming Dynasty, he only had control over the garrison of the castles and thousands of households in the North Road area. He only had control over the wartime affairs. On weekdays, he was also in charge of camp operations, armaments and other matters.
Even these matters are specifically handled by the Kaiping Wei Department. Everything from food and salary to ordnance, camp training, and personnel appointments and dismissals are not in his hands.
The military attachés of these local guards, including the garrison and Qian Zong, have lived here for generations. After more than a hundred years, they have become entangled and intertwined, making it difficult for outsiders to get involved in local affairs.
These hereditary military households are called "Tu Emperors" in the local area, which is not an exaggeration at all!
Unlike Zhang Cheng, Liu Guangwu didn't have so many worries and scruples in this world. He could completely ignore the etiquette and patriarchal laws of this era and give it a go.
Success will help the world, show your ambitions, and open a new era of your own.
Once you fail, just treat yourself as if you have never set foot in this strange world, and just treat it as a nightmare!
The reason why Liu Guangwu visited Zhang Cheng at night and introduced him in detail about the situation in Zhangjiakou and their complicated relationship with officials and guards in the Xuanfu was because he was betting on the future of his family.
After all, his eldest son Liu Shizun had completely joined the Yongyi Army and became a general under Yong Ning Bo's command. This was already known to everyone in the Xuan Mansion.
As far as Liu Guangwu was concerned, he had no choice but to bet the fate of his family on Uncle Yongning.
…………
Here, Yongning Bo Zhang Cheng also nodded silently after listening to Liu Guangwu's introduction.
He had seen the information about Shanxi merchants in Zhangjiakou earlier. At that time, he knew that it was impossible to completely ban the smuggling of border trade in Zhangjiakou without bloodshed!
How could the local military generals and wealthy gentry watch their wealth cut off?
As the saying goes, "Depriving someone of their money is like killing their parents"!
They will definitely jump over the wall and try their best to fight Zhang Cheng to the death.
"Rely on mountains to eat mountains, rely on water to drink water." Many ordinary military households and frontier soldiers in the forts around Zhangjiakou mostly rely on this as a means of making a living. They will also jump out and fight against the Yongyi army who cuts off their way of survival.
For example, in Zhangjiakou, because the mutual trade between the fort and Mongolia was opened early, in addition to the household deployment, governing office, tax office and other civil affairs departments, the fort is also equipped with civil affairs departments.
There was also an auxiliary escort agency, which used soldiers guarding the border to escort caravans. When mutual trade was often banned by the court, the soldiers of these auxiliary escort agencies openly participated in smuggling and escorting.
Many of them have even become private soldiers of the eight right families in Zhangjiakou Mountain, following the camel caravans of Shanxi merchants to carry out smuggling trade in the Qing Dynasty.
The various forces of officials, soldiers, merchants, gentry, and petty officials in these places are intertwined and connected. In order to protect their own interests, they are still doing everything possible to expand their power.
This kind of situation can be said to be true everywhere in today's Ming Dynasty. For example, in coastal areas, there are pirates and sea trade, and the scale of profits is terrifying.
Zheng Zhilong, the "Five Tiger Guerrilla General" who was then the Chief Military Officer of Fujian and the Governor of the Department, was a pirate. Their Zheng family controlled the maritime trade of the entire Eastern world and was truly the richest man in Fujian. They might even be the richest man in Fujian. The richest man in Ming Dynasty.
In fact, even though the Ming Dynasty was in ruins at this time, there was still wealth everywhere.
It's just that this kind of wealth has nothing to do with the Ming Dynasty. It has been swallowed up by the worms. Living in such a world, it is okay to join in the evil. If you want to make a difference, how difficult is it to take every step forward?
"Zhongchen, you want to ban Zhangjiakou and punish slaves and merchants from Shanxi. I shouldn't stop you. However, it is extremely dangerous. If you make one wrong step, you will be doomed.
"There is no turning back when you shoot a bow." Once this begins, even if the killing is bloody, there can be no pause. The only key is the word "quick". "
Zhang Cheng's heart moved when he heard this and said: "I would like to hear the details!"
"Plan in advance, be sure to be thorough, and make quick decisions. Don't leave any room for profiteers. Catch them when they need to be caught, and kill them when they need to be killed. If the court comes to hold them accountable, all they need to do is to present evidence of their crimes of treason and slavery." yes."
Liu Guangwu continued with a slightly sinister tone: "Now, when the imperial court is employing people, Kaifeng was besieged twice, who can guarantee that we will not be besieged again by bandits?
Zhongzhou is connected in all directions, and the only place that can be called a big city is Kaifeng Fucheng. You must not miss anything, otherwise you will not be able to control the thieves' momentum.
And the Yongyi Army is at the critical moment of marching to help Henan. Even if you act a little recklessly, the court and the emperor may not blame you for it. "
Zhang Cheng said with a gloomy smile: "Brother, your words have touched my heart."
He continued: "I am just worried that this gang of profiteers will take advantage of my army to go out to fight and destroy our rear foundation, so I have no choice but to take advantage of this opportunity to send troops to aid Henan to eradicate them in one fell swoop."
Looking at Yongning Bo Zhang Cheng in front of him, Liu Guangwu couldn't help but sigh: "Brother, I...am not as good as you!"
He went on to say: "I am old and not suitable for long-distance wars. However, I am still somewhat confident in guarding the foundation of Xuanzhen for my uncle. My uncle can only lead the army to fight. As long as I, Liu Guangwu, stay in Xuanzhen for one day, I will No one dares to pay attention to the Yongyi Army Foundation."
"In this case, General Liu will be at your service!"
"Uncle, I have one more small thing to ask of you. Please accept it."
