In Shandong, there were more than 720,000 hectares of farmland in the early days of the People's Republic of China. By the fifteenth year of Hongzhi, more than 200,000 hectares were lost. More than twenty years later, not even 500,000 hectares were left.
So where does the money and food come from in Shandong?
When Zhang Fujing comes, money and food will be available.
After his baptism in Guangdong, he already knew how officials and gentry concealed their land to avoid taxes, and he had rich experience in dealing with it.
At this moment, the Confucius sacrificial code was changed, Duke Yansheng and the magistrate of Qufu were taken away, and Zhang Fujing sat in Qufu to investigate the case. This was killing the chicken to scare the monkey.
After the rebellion of the two kings and three guards in Huguang, Shandong did not suffer disaster again. What should I do at this moment?
How to deal with Duke Yansheng was left to the Sanfa Division.
How to deal with Kong Wenfang was handed over to the Shandong Prosecution and Prosecution Department.
But how much resentment and hatred has the Kong family caused in Qufu?
This was Master Qingtian who had arrested Duke Yan Sheng. When Zhang Fuking sat down in the lobby of the county government office every day and only did this one thing, with the first few examples, Qufu and even the entire Yanzhou Prefecture came to More and more people are complaining.
"Sweep the floor politely! Kill them all!"
The voice of criticism was lowered, revealing fear.
It was also the people of Qufu who said this. The influence of Duke Yan Sheng's Mansion has existed for so many years, and there is also a huge group of people in Qufu who rely on Duke Yan Sheng to obtain the small benefits that belong to them.
But now the whole of Shandong may have to be reshuffled.
Then what do these people do?
Incompetent rages, and quietly rages.
Among the officials and gentry, his reputation was Zhang Shatou, but among the people, he was known as Zhang Qingtian.
Zhang Fujing just smiled after hearing the report from Gao Zhong's people: "Now that the situation is clear, these people either have the courage or they know the general situation. There is no need to pay attention to some grievances."
After saying that, he cupped his hands to the northwest and said: "Whoever achieves great things has mixed reputations and reputations? His Majesty's words are absolutely right: if you are bound by reputation, you must follow the rules of your predecessors in everything; if you want to reform shortcomings and make new ones, then I just want merit to fulfill my original intention. Your Majesty and the Governor don't care what they think, they only care about where they stand."
He has a bold and heroic temperament, and now he feels more and more that the emperor has the same temperament as him.
When I sent him to Shandong, I thought he would have a long and troublesome dispute over the ceremony of worshiping Confucius in Shandong.
However, Zhu Houcong and his advisers had been planning for three years. Just the fact that Zhang Fujing received special favors and came to Shandong, plus a decree to let the world's vassal kings and relatives come to Beijing to celebrate the Longevity Festival, Huguang had a real thing. The situation of rebellion was revealed.
Although Huguang is in trouble, the other provinces are relaxed.
Now, the emperor is about to start his southern tour.
Zhang Fujing is leaving Qufu temporarily and is preparing to meet him at the bank of the canal flowing through Shandong.
Qufu needs someone to take care of it, and Zhang Fujing is waiting for new news from the court.
When the emperor arrived in Shandong, the matter between Yan Shenggong and Kong had to come to an end.
On September 23, seven days after the Longevity Festival, news came from Beijing.
The Ministry of Punishment, the Metropolitan Procuratorate, the Yanshengong case investigation team from Dali Temple, and a commanding officer sent by Fusi of Jinyiweibei Town all gathered at the Qufu County Yamen.
"One of the rebels, Fu Rongzhong, the former magistrate of Changsha, confessed that Kong Wenshao, the Duke of Yansheng, had many correspondences. He and Yin Mengchun of the former Yingtian Prefecture said in the letter that 'power and treachery harm the country, and the Duke of Yansheng is loyal to the emperor and respects etiquette, so we should go together. Fu Rongzhong also saw the words in Kong Wenshao's letter. In order to gather more party members, Fu Rongzhong often used this letter to show people, so he stayed. The Marquis of Zhenyuan inspected many official documents obtained by Changsha Mansion and sent to Beijing. , we have found the irrefutable proof of Yansheng Gongtong.”
The three judicial officers and the Jinyiwei special envoys only followed the "legal procedures" and came to Qufu to investigate whether the crimes impeached by Zhang Fuking were true.
Now hearing what Zhang Fujing said, they asked attentively: "Does your Majesty have any will?"
Zhang Fujing said calmly: "It is against the etiquette of the Dacheng Wenxuan master to claim the title of king. What contribution did the predecessors and descendants have to the country to be able to claim the title of king? After enjoying the glory of the Ming Dynasty for more than a hundred years, it is disloyal to commit rebellion! Corrupting the ancestors It is unfilial to have a reputation as a teacher but not to learn or have any skills! It is unkind to seek profits and harm the village in the name of others! It is unkind to learn new laws and regulations that benefit the people and the country but wantonly join forces to obstruct them!"
With a slap on the label of being unfaithful, unfilial, benevolent, and unjust, Zhang Fujing said lightly: "Your Majesty has made a decree. In addition to granting the title of Holy Duke Yan, the Kong family in Qufu will be guilty of treason and rebellion. From now on, the Dacheng Wenxuan Master Temple will be The Shandong Qianxue Hall is the presiding officer, Yanshenggong's mansion is changed to a college, and the magistrate of Qufu is selected by the Ministry of Civil Affairs!"
"...Who should I take?"
Since they are already treasonous and treasonous people, should the Kong family only take down some important people, or...kill the clan?
Zhang Fujing said with a smile: "In the past, Emperor Taizong did not kill all the ten Fang Xiaoru clans. How did it spread later? This governor has been in court to inquire about the case for nearly a month. How to handle this matter is left to me."
After all, handling the Kong family case before the emperor left the capital should also serve to shock the world and send a signal.
The dignified Duke Yansheng's palace was wiped out in ashes. Who would challenge the emperor's determination to implement new learning and new laws?
What about the other people who were frightened by Fu Rongzhong's capture?
If you can't stand it, just jump out. The other provinces are now jealous of the people from Huguang, Guangdong, Guangxi, and Jiangxi provinces taking credit for their achievements!
But at the same time, they also knew very well that the reason why Duke Yansheng must be punished was not because of the new learning or the ceremony of worshiping Confucius, but because of the more than 200,000 hectares of fertile land in Shandong that had disappeared in more than a hundred years.
The emperor's southern patrol army was provided with food and salary. Now, under the "fierce power" of Zhang Fujing, the Shandong chief envoy who had made meritorious deeds was urging Shandong to release nearly half of the food tax - the autumn grain collection in the golden autumn of October.
Zhang Fujing's attitude in Shandong will represent the emperor's attitude.
Money or life?
…
"Do you want to die?"
In Ganzhou Mansion, Wang Shouren was still seizing the time to complete the task. Under his personal supervision, the subordinate officials in the five counties of Nan'an Prefecture and Ganzhou Prefecture had to rush to remote villages in person under the pressure of the county officials who were afraid of being questioned for their inability to do things well.
"Nanling is a mountain with a hundred thousand mountains. It is difficult for the Guangdong army to capture Chenzhou Prefecture! Although the rebel army will definitely be defeated, they are most likely to escape this way!" The official Xu shook the official document in his hand, "Read it again, carefully. Listen!"
This is an official document drafted by Wang Shouren himself, written in plain language.
The meaning is also very simple and clear: the war is nearby. The Jiangxi armies still need to guard the counties and streets and towns. In order to prevent the rebels from looting, villagers in some remote villages should temporarily avoid military disasters after harvesting autumn grain.
There is no need to worry about leaving the village and living in vain. Nan'an Prefecture and Ganzhou Prefecture have built city walls and camps in a total of nine counties, so they can earn food by working. As long as the rebels are wiped out, they can return home, so as not to miss the next spring's farming work.
"You still can't believe Wang Dutai? A few years ago, Prince Ning made trouble, and he put it down within a month! But this time, three princes made trouble together, and the place was mainly in Huguang, not under Wang Dutai's control. This is just in case the Huguang side cannot be pacified and the rebels come to our Jiangxi! It's written in black and white. If you can't trust me, you can trust your clan leader, right?"
"It's all according to the master's arrangement. This is also for the sake of our wives, children and children. If we keep the green hills, we won't have to worry about running out of firewood. If we lose our lives, we will have nothing. Besides, construction is really starting in the county. The county leader said, first Following our people who came to the county town to seek refuge from the disaster, each household has at least one strong man, and everyone has food provided for them, and they receive food every ten days!"
Wang Shouren listened to a steady stream of news coming from the two prefectures and nine counties. He was surrounded by the prince-in-law, who obeyed the order and did not have to go to Beijing to celebrate his longevity, and Yu Chengye, the censor of Jiangxi's water patrol and disaster patrol.
In front of them was a map of Jiangxi.
"According to His Majesty's wish, Ganzhou, Jianchang and Guangxin will all be in good condition from now on. The amount of work required for the transshipment of grain and grass, counties and passes along the Wuyi Mountains is not small." Wang Shouren looked at him, "Jiangxi is densely covered with rivers. The only thing that facilitates transportation is the waterway. Yu Yushi is going to clean up the water conservancy, and he also needs to explore the various waterway docks."
Yu Chengye nodded: "I understand."
Wang Shouren also summoned Jiangxi Provincial Envoy Si Zuo to follow his orders: "Although the new law has not yet been implemented outside Guangdong, in order to prevent the rebels this time, everything must not harm the people. I have asked your Majesty, Allowed to trial procurement methods in Jiangxi to meet military needs."
"... Please rest assured, the governor, the lower official will definitely report it to the vassal and get the matter done."
Looking at the nine counties of Nan'an and Ganzhou on the map, the defenders only retreated to the county seat and some large towns, clearly giving way to a direct passage to the Wuyi Mountains.
Jiangxi's left counselor didn't know what the imperial court wanted to do.
But it is obvious that the imperial court does not regard the complete annihilation of the rebels as its primary goal.
Now Wang Shouren and Yu Chengye are planning the land and water transportation network for the entire Jiangxi Province, and the scale of the newly built camps in the counties of Ganzhou Prefecture obviously exceeds the current number of local troops.
The four provinces of Huguang, Jiangxi, Guangdong, and Guangxi mobilized troops to surround Hengzhou Prefecture. Could it be that the rebels were so powerful that the court was worried that if they could hold on, there would be new troubles in Fujian?
This looks like they are going to be driven together and then annihilated in one fell swoop.
But at this time, these things were not his concern.
King Yi dismissed his heirs without a trace, and he himself had gone to Beijing to plead guilty. Within ten years of Jiangxi, King Ning first rebelled, and King Yi was unclear. Although Wang Shouren was far away from Nanchang Prefecture, the main force of the Yangtze River Navy had moved to Jiujiang.
Jiangxi officials and gentry must take sides!
…
Over at Hengzhou Mansion, the Hengzhou Guards are indeed not as easy to deal with as the Changsha Guards.
But after all, the imperial military strength was far greater than that of Hengshan County, and Hengshan County was not large.
On September 16, the day of the Longevity Festival, after resisting for five days, the Hengshan garrison abandoned Hengshan City and fled south along the west bank of the Xiang River to the vicinity of Hengyang City.
The reason is: Tang Peiyu took action to stab the Hengshan defenders from the south.
After he led his troops to charge down from the Peak, he was so brave that he was not afraid of death, as if he had a deep hatred for the rebels.
The defection of the rebel "former military governor" dealt a huge blow to the morale of the Hengzhou rebels.
Regardless of the grievances between Pu Zitong and Tang Peiyu, ordinary soldiers did not know about these "high-level struggles". They only knew that Tang Peiyu, who was stationed at Guanjing Peak, was apparently the commander-in-chief of the northern front defenders.
In the following days, Changning County was breached, and only three circles of defense outside Hengyang City were left in Hengshan, Youxian, Anren.
The five camps located outside Hengyang City along the Haoshui River, Xiangshui River, and Leishui River and the newly-emerged Guanjifeng Walled City are the outermost line of defense. The mountain village is the second line of defense, and the Hengyang city wall is the third line of defense.
Currently, only the coast of Leishui River between Hengzhou Prefecture and Chenzhou Prefecture is relatively safe.
On September 24, Gu Shilong ordered the four outermost camps to be pulled out first: two in the north of Hengyang City, one in the west of the city, and one in the east of the city. Only the one on the shore of Yan Lake where water flows into Hunan was left.
Pu Zitong stood at Zhanyue Gate in the north of Hengyang City, his expression not very good.
Tang Peiyu was acting as cannon fodder again, attacking the Haoyang camp guarded by Yan Daniu like the most courageous enemy.
"Since he fled to Hengzhou, how could he be recruited and surrendered by Gu Shilong again?"
Zhan Huabi couldn't answer him, but stared at the dark military formation in the northeast: "Since Tang Peiyu has rebelled, Yan Daniu has to guard against it. If they had agreed to fake surrender before coming to Hengzhou, I'm afraid it's just a show now. If If they haven't made a decision yet, if they suddenly join forces to capture Qingye Bridge, they will be in trouble!"
Pu Zitong frowned.
If Aoba Bridge is destroyed now, it will be tantamount to cutting off Yanu's retreat. But now, because Tang Peiyu has not taken up the role of guarding the west bank channel of the Xiang River from Hengshan City to Hengyang City with the help of Guanji Peak, Gu Shilong's army is steadily moving south along both sides of the Xiang River.
Tang Peiyu was the only one who had already attacked the stronghold.
"It doesn't matter, I didn't expect them at all!"
Kamazitong gave the order, and a quarter of an hour later, two huge explosions roared under the Qingye Bridge, and then the stone bridge that had stood here for countless years collapsed into the water.
The people outside Hengyang City have long been moved into the city to avoid disaster. Now there are defense weapons on the city wall, and there are also defenders on the riverside under the city wall. The vast river surface to the north and east is not only the natural moat of Hengyang City, but also the best line of defense.
The movement here obviously had an impact on Haoyang Water Village. Pu Zitong squinted his eyes slightly and could only hear the constant sound of gunshots and shouts of killing.
It was done with real swords and guns.
After a while, I saw a group of small figures rushing out of the camp and heading straight towards the enemy's formation. The bravery caused Tang Peiyu's troops to panic for a moment.
Then more people from the camp rushed out, and the scene there was extremely chaotic.
However, the troops arranged by Gu Shilong on the west bank of the Xiang River had no intention of sending reinforcements there.
"It seems that after Gu Shilong surrendered, he gave Tang Peiyu a death order, asking him to perform meritorious service and evacuate the Haoyang camp." Pu Zitong gave his own judgment, "Either die in battle or perform meritorious service, so as to avoid the disaster of annihilation of the clan."
Zhan Huabi sneered: "Does the Governor believe this? It's been two months since the letter was sent out, and the Governor doesn't even know where his child has been sent? As for the relatives, since the flag has been raised, how can they care about them?"
Pu Zitong just couldn't figure out why Tang Peiyu rebelled and surrendered again. He was a famous figure in the propaganda. Gu Shilong didn't dare to accept his surrender without permission, so he had to capture him!
Moreover... Yan Daniu was really risking his life.
These days, with the Guangxi army and the Ningyuan Guards united forces pushing eastward and the Guangdong army advancing, coupled with the previous "surrender and granting of seals" to the three caves and nine villages on Hengshan Mountain, Yangmingshan at the junction of Hengzhou Prefecture and Yongzhou Prefecture, and There were indeed more than a thousand bandits in Nanling Mountain who came to surrender, and they were all organized under Yan Daniu's command.
Now in just ten days, Yan Daniu has dispersed more than a thousand of Tang Peiyu's men with these unruly bandits under the nose of Pu Zitong - Pu Zitong did what he said, and he really did not miss Tang Peiyu's food, salary and military supplies. . After all, it felt like he was at the end of his rope. If he wanted to gain a foothold on his side, he would definitely need to help defend Hengzhou Mansion, make great achievements, and establish prestige.
Pu Zitong really loves talents. Since he is already the de facto leader of the rebel army, both he and his civil servants believe that the situation should be opened up and talents should be credited in an eclectic way.
Therefore, even after hearing the instigation of the Jin Yiwei walking in Huguang that day, and even though he knew that there were still Jin Yiwei working carefully in the city, Pu Zitong did not go to make extensive inquiries to avoid making people in the city uneasy.
At this moment, the garrison on the river bank in the north of the city rode up from the west. When they arrived at the city gate, they shouted loudly: "Grand Governor, General Luo of Haoyang camp has reported victory. Yan Shen will be in command to kill the rebel general Tang Peiyu! General Luo please order me." , a great victory is imminent, but Hengshan has been lost and Qingye Bridge has been destroyed, can the Haoyang camp abandon the camp and cross the river to reinforce the west camp of the city south of Haoshui River?"
"Tang Peiyu died in the battle?"
"General Yan Shen was hit by three bullets. In front of everyone, he shot and killed five of Tang Peiyu's personal guards, and then rushed into the enemy formation and cut off Tang Peiyu's head with his sword!"
Pu Zitong looked at Zhan Huabi and saw that Zhan Huabi didn't say anything.
And now, Luo Maogui, the guerrilla general sent by Pu Zitong to supervise the army at Haoyang Camp, came to ask for orders. The victory was reported first to boost morale, but the Qingye Bridge was destroyed. If the Haoyang Camp could not cross the river to the south, they would all be killed sooner or later.
To cross the river, Puzitong must agree to send a boat to pick it up.
Luo Maogui was born in the Luo family, a wealthy local family in Hengzhou Prefecture, and was someone Pu Zitong could not give up easily. What's more, now Haoyang Camp has proven its loyalty with military exploits.
In full view of his subordinates on the north wall of the city, Pu Zitong said in a deep voice: "Accurate!"
If Yan Daniu helped the Chengxi camp defend the attack from the Guangxi army and Ning Yuanwei, then there would be nothing unbelievable.
By dusk, Gu Shilong's army finally approached the banks of the Haoshui River and the Xiangshui River, and the battle between the two camps east of the Xiangshui River had begun.
Luo Maogui entered the city with Tang Peiyu's head, which was still stained with blood: "Grand Governor, General Yan Shen was not seriously injured three times by bullets, but an arrow shot through the gap in his skirt and armor and hit his right leg. . The large camp in the west of the city was surrounded but not attacked, with a total of six thousand people!"
Pu Zitong looked at the familiar face in front of him who was still staring but already dead. Hearing this, he just asked softly: "Why is this?"
Could it be because he separated out the "Rebel Army" that he had gathered together? Is it not enough to give him the former military commander?
But what can you gain if you die on the spot?
"Where are the remnants of the Changsha Guard?" he asked later.
Luo Maogui reported back: "Everyone has been defeated! The Guiyi army also suffered heavy casualties. Now it has retreated to the camp in the west of the city. General Gu Shen has arranged for the Haoyang camp to defend the first formation. General Yan has passed out due to fever. None of them are convinced. I'm afraid there are some chaos!"
His expression was urgent.
For him, he has already achieved great success. The Guiyi Army has proven itself, and the remaining Changsha Guard Army has been defeated. After seeing the more than 6,000 people outside the camp in the west of the city, Luo Maogui wanted to go into the city to rest and rest, but he also felt that this was the best choice.
"Great Governor, if you defend the city, it will further deplete the enemy's troops and morale. There is no natural danger in the west of the city!"
Zhan Huabi also spoke: "In your opinion, General Yan Shen can be trusted?"
In the camp in the west of the city are the direct descendants of Zhan Huabi's Changde Guards.
The newly surrendered bandits were in the same battalion with them. The guard there took advantage of the fact that the leader of the rebel army was unconscious and ordered them to fight continuously. This was very inappropriate.
Luo Maogui was stunned for a moment, and then said angrily: "Go to the enemy in person and take the lead! Grand Governor, since you want the rebels to surrender, don't be suspicious!"
Zhan Huabi recalled Yan Daniu's heroic character, looked at Luo Maogui's angry look on his behalf, and thought about how the newly surrendered bandits also admired Yan Daniu, and nodded: "Whether it's to guard against him If you really want to play with Tang Peiyu, you should let him enter the city first to avoid the worries of the west camp. Since the Haoyang camp no longer exists, it can be reorganized into garrison troops from various gates and stationed outside the city. General Yan Shen will recover from his injuries. After that, we’ll just make arrangements.”
He did not mention the camp in the west of the city and directly abandoned it, but he dispersed the surrendered bandits first and let them rest for a while, which was no problem.
The important thing is that Yan Daniu. As long as he enters the city, he can observe more while he recovers, and he will not be allowed to join forces with the dispersed bandits to cause any chaos in the city.
Pu Zitong glanced at Tang Peiyu's head again, and then said to Zhan Huabi, "That's it."
He also wanted to ask Yan Daniu if Tang Peiyu said anything before the attack there, and why he surrendered to the imperial court and risked death in front of the battle as a vanguard.
Picture what?
(End of chapter)
