I saw that in this huge valley, simple military tents were pitched there, and it was impossible to see the end. Groups of soldiers wearing red mandarin duck uniforms were either patrolling or standing guard. A murderous aura rushed towards his face.
When did an army actually hide here? This was the first thought of the dozen or so people who had followed them when they came back to their senses.
They saw a group of cavalry coming out of the camp gate and coming towards them. No matter how courageous they were before, their courage was gone at this time anyway, and they quickly turned their horses' heads and tried to escape. The leader, who habitually followed the rules of the world, clasped his fists and apologized: "I'm sorry, we recognized the wrong person!"
However, when they turned their heads, they discovered that at some point, behind them, there was already a group of fifty or sixty cavalry soldiers blocking their way.
They are no strangers to the army. They have seen too many armies of the Ming Dynasty, or the armies of the Mongols, and the armies of the Qing Dynasty in Liaodong. Therefore, they could tell at a glance that the person blocking their way was Ye Buzui, an elite member of the Ming army.
Just blocking it there made them feel that if they tried to rush over there, they would definitely be seeking death!
However, they themselves also knew that it was not a case of mistaken identity at all. This reason could only be explained by a three-year-old child.
Besides, people hiding here must have some intentions and don’t want others to know. If I bump into them, even if I don't kill them and silence them, I will definitely leave them behind.
Sure enough, they tried to escape, but the Ming troops blocking them stayed up all night and raised their bows, arrows, and firecrackers. It's absolutely impossible for people like them to escape.
After a while, everyone was tied up tightly, and then escorted by a group of soldiers, they walked to the military camp in the valley.
The three people who were chased by them earlier saw them being escorted over. One of them sneered and said, "Do you know who has the territory now? If you don't want to die, please answer me later!"
At the moment when they were escorted over, these people had basically come to their senses. After contacting each other, they knew what this army was probably going to do. However, it is too unloyal to be coerced into doing anything, and I feel sorry for my master. So, they all fell silent.
There is still a trace of luck in their hearts, and they feel that all their masters have great powers. After so many years, they are still getting bigger and bigger, and they have never seen any storms. Maybe, this army will be defeated by money when they turn around.
However, when they arrived at the military camp, they heard one of the people they were chasing reported to a general at the entrance of a large tent: "Commander, these are Shanxi merchants. They have been chasing us all the way. Maybe they know better." Details inside Zhangjiakou Fort!"
Upon hearing this, they were immediately surprised. Is this the commander-in-chief? General soldier? Or just a gatekeeper? What's happening here?
Just as they were thinking about it, they heard the commander-in-chief nod and say: "Okay, brothers from Dongchang, thank you for your hard work. I will report this to the Governor later."
Hearing this conversation, these Shanxi merchants were suddenly shocked again. Is there a governor here?
The army, the East Factory, the governor, with such a huge lineup, is the money of the gentlemen still useful at this time?
After a while, in the military tent, Hong Chengchou was wearing a scarlet robe and sitting at the main seat. There were generals on both sides. When he saw the people being escorted in, they all trembled slightly. Then I knew that these guards and thugs who were wandering around the world had never entered Xiao Sha's military camp, but their momentum had already frightened them.
So, he gave them the last straw and shouted majestically: "The merchants of Shanxi are plotting rebellion. Are you going to follow them and confiscate your family and exterminate your clan?"
Next, there was nothing left to say. As for all the things that these people knew about Zhangjiakou Fort, they all rushed to confess.
Hong Chengchou was not surprised at all.
In fact, when the emperor ordered Lu Xiangsheng to return to Xuanda, he already knew that this time there would not be much of a problem.
Chen Xinjia, the former governor of Xuanda, was imprisoned in the capital, and Shanxi was already leaderless. And Lu Xiangsheng had been the governor of Xuanda, and he had established his authority here. He would definitely be able to catch all the generals in various places, and make the armies in various places leaderless.
Moreover, Lu Xiangsheng's appearance was another way of frightening the enemy, scaring those with evil intentions into discussing countermeasures together.
After verifying the situation that Hong Chengchou had and the confessions of these people, and further confirming that there were no problems, he gave the order to break camp and set off.
Not all of the troops he brought were brought to Zhangjiakou Fort. The general troops of the Yongwei Battalion and the Hussars Battalion had to be divided into many units and attacked at the same time. All the garrison troops in the town have problems, and they are all on the imperial list, and they are all to be arrested.
Hong Chengchou himself took only 10,000 people from Yang Guozhu's Yongwei Battalion and He Renlong's troops from Hussar Battalion to Zhangjiakou Fort. This is already killing a chicken with a knife, but more importantly, it is to ensure the safety of materials in Zhangjiakou Fort. As for Hu Dawei's headquarters in the Hussars camp, they are not here.
Other general soldiers took their men, together with the supervisory army, and were accompanied by factory guards, and headed to various destinations.
When it was about an hour before dark, the army appeared in the sight of the defenders of Zhangjiakou Fort.
"Look, why are there troops coming over there?"
"Is it the imperial army? Is this the army from that place?"
"Is it from Xuanfu? It doesn't look like it!"
"..."
At the beginning, these guards just commented curiously and did not react. After all, there is no war now. Even if there are enemies who want to pretend to be the Ming army, they cannot do so on such a large scale.
However, when the guard was alerted, he was immediately frightened.
He knew what was going on in the city now, so he quickly ordered: "Quickly, close the city gate, close the city gate..."
"Sir, those are the imperial army, they don't look like fake ones!"
"You know what the heck, hurry up and close the city gate, otherwise don't blame the military for being ruthless!" After the general shouted loudly, he quickly told his personal guards, "Quickly, go inform Mr. Fan and the others that there are imperial troops. It’s coming, and it’s very possible that the person who came here is evil. I may not be able to stop you here for long, let Mr. Fan deal with it quickly!”
After saying this, he remembered something again and immediately shouted to his guards: "All those suspicious people in the city will be arrested by me. If they dare to resist, they will be killed!"
After a series of orders, it was obvious that there was a bit of chaos on the top of the city.
Not only was there chaos on top of the city, but it was also affected inside the city. This kind of movement made people immediately think that an enemy was coming.
Naturally, the noise was also heard from the Fan Mansion. In the lobby, Fan Yongdou Zheng and Wang Dengku were talking. As for the others, they had already gone back to deal with their own affairs.
This is a sensitive period now. When they heard the noise outside, both Fan Yongdou and Wang Denku were like frightened birds. They immediately stopped talking and turned to look outside.
Fan Yongdou was the owner, and he immediately asked: "Why is it so chaotic outside? What happened?"
When the servant waiting outside the door heard this, he quickly agreed and then ran away in a hurry.
"Brother Fan, why do I always feel a little uneasy in my heart!" Wang Dengku said a little worriedly, "I have a feeling, just like the feeling I had when I was in the capital that day. It's really, very strange, that's the feeling..."
Fan Yongdou frowned and couldn't sit still anymore. He stood up and said, "Instead of waiting here, why not go out and take a look!"
"Okay, otherwise I feel really unsure!" Wang Dengku nodded and immediately stood up.
However, as soon as they walked out of the lobby, they saw a servant hurried back. With a hint of panic, he reported to Fan Yongdou: "Sir, General Fan sent someone over to report that a royal army has arrived outside the fort. I don't know where it is. Yes, they are coming for Zhangjiakou Fort..."
General Fan, in fact, Fan Yongdou's son was named Fan Yaosi. Because Zhangjiakou Fort was too important, they spent money to move him to a defensive position. The first person besides the general Liu Dongming is the one on the top of the city now. Guard.
After hearing the servant's report, Fan Yongdou and Wang Denku couldn't help but glance at each other, and both could see the worry in each other's eyes.
"...General Fan has ordered the city gates to be closed and those suspicious people in the city to be arrested. Master, please respond as soon as possible." After the servant finished speaking, he looked at Fan Yongdou and waited for his instructions.
Fan Yongdou understood the situation, and after thinking for a moment, he hurriedly said: "Well done, tell him that the troops outside the fort cannot be let in unless they are trustworthy. Just treat it as a warning and don't open the door. If you dare to attack by force, , don’t hold back, just fight back.”
"Yes, sir!" After hearing this, the servant quickly agreed, then turned around and left.
However, before he had taken a few steps, he suddenly heard Fan Yongdou's voice coming from behind him: "Tell him that each of the defenders on the city will be rewarded one tael of silver. If there is a war, another two taels will be added." , those who have merit will be rewarded heavily. If there are not enough manpower, there are plenty of manpower in this city that can be mobilized."
Zhangjiakou Fort was the place where eight major Shanxi merchants hoarded supplies and finally left customs. Therefore, each family has many nursing homes, servants, etc. If the city is really short of manpower, these people can be sent up. This number is only much larger than the defenders.
Moreover, this kind of thing that prevented imperial officers and soldiers from entering the city had happened many times at this time in the late Ming Dynasty. Not to mention far away, the closest one is Chen Hongxu, the magistrate of Jinzhou. He was even more courageous, and even the Chief Minister of the Ming Dynasty had no use speaking. Looking back, I was commended by the emperor.
"Yes, everyone defends the city well, and the money will be earned!" Wang Dengku immediately agreed after hearing this.
After hearing this, the servant's face obviously relaxed, and he quickly agreed: "Yes, sir!"
After waiting for a while, seeing that Fan Yongdou had no explanation, he left in a hurry.
Although countermeasures are in place, I believe that if the Ming army outside the city is really malicious, they will definitely not be able to get in for a while. However, continuing like this is not the answer. We have to find another way to deal with it.
Fan Yongdou thought this, and suddenly raised his head and said to Wang Dengku: "It's best if our army comes over in case of trouble, and we make a false alarm. But before, we found that there were people suspected of being factory guards in the city. It is very likely that the situation will be worse. In the fort There are so many grains and supplies that we can’t hide them even if we want to. We must send people to the grasslands immediately, and in the name of the Qing Emperor, let the nearby Mongolian tribes come over to relieve the siege.”
"Okay, let's do it!" Wang Dengku nodded with a flustered expression. He stopped staying and left quickly.
At this time, at the top of the east gate city, Fan Yaosi's face was a little pale, thinking that by this time, he had clearly seen that the army outside was under the banner of Governor Xuanda. The Zhangjiakou Fort was under the control of Governor Xuanda.
Governor Xuanda is here in person, so there is no reason not to open the door, right? Otherwise, it would be no joke to offend King Lu Yan.
At this time, he thought it was Lu Xiangsheng coming.
However, after calming down, when he looked again, he did not see the sign with the word "Lu", but the word "Hong", which made him a little confused again.
At this moment, several riders came galloping towards the city. They arrived at the city gate first and shouted at the top of the city: "Open the city gate and welcome Governor Xuanda as quickly as possible!"
The defenders on the top of the city immediately turned to look at Fan Yaosi, waiting for his order.
It was a very cold day, and the wind was blowing on top of the city, but Fan Yaosi was sweating profusely. Anyway, it is impossible for him to open this city gate. But if you don't open it, how can you reply?
Suddenly, he had an idea and hurriedly ordered his guards.
Then, he heard his bodyguard shouting to the city: "Our general is going to the Governor's Mansion. If you are really from the Governor's Mansion, let us, General Liu, come and talk!"
"How dare you, the Governor is here, how dare you disobey orders and don't want to live anymore?"
Fan Yaosi turned around anxiously to look inside the city, then turned back and whispered.
Then, his personal guard shouted: "It is really difficult to disobey the military order. The general is not here, so I don't dare to open the door privately."
"Why can't the city gate be opened? Where is the defense of Zhangjiakou Fort?"
Fan Yaosi heard this and gave another low command.
"It is rumored that the Liaodong Jianlu were attacking and the city gate had to be closed. My garrison master is not at the top of the city. Please let me report to the garrison master immediately."
While they were talking, the troops outside the city were getting closer and closer, and the forwards had already reached the city.
Fan Yaosi was so anxious that he was sweating. Just when he didn't know what to do, a servant of the Fan family arrived and brought Fan Yongdou's message.
Hearing the news, Fan Yaosi became more courageous and immediately ordered down: "The imperial army is here. If they know about us, no one can escape. Now we can only treat them as bandits and guard the city." , waiting for the masters to find a way to resolve this matter in the capital. The master said that each person will be rewarded one tael of silver, and if a fight breaks out, another two taels will be added, and those who have merit will be rewarded heavily! "
As soon as he said these words, the momentum of the defenders on the city suddenly changed.
As Fan Yaosi said, the garrison of Zhangjiakou Fort actually had smuggling bonuses available for everyone from top to bottom. As for those who were disobedient, they would have been killed long ago. Even the people in Zhangjiakou Fort are all doing things related to smuggling.
The so-called eight major Shanxi merchants in the late Ming Dynasty were just the eight major merchants. As for the smaller ones, they were also busy with the affairs of the captives, and they just relied on these eight families. Therefore, if Governor Xuanda's army enters the city, it will not be easy for anyone.
Just like that, the city immediately became tense, and the city gate would not be opened anyway.
Fan Yaosi took a deep breath, it felt really exciting. He also saw clearly that the army outside the city did not bring any food and supplies with it, which meant that this army could not last at all. No matter what, let's consume them first.
Just as he was thinking this, he suddenly heard the sound of fighting coming from the streets in the city. He quickly turned around and saw that the soldiers he had sent were arresting strangers who were suspected of being factory guards.
