turmoil

When the valley where the refugees gathered was surrounded by officers and soldiers, a merchant ship sailed out from the port near Hangzhou Prefecture, and under the cover of night, it slipped silently into the depths of the ocean.

The crew on the deck were all dressed as merchants. At first glance, they were no different from illegal merchants who smuggled out to sea, but if you looked closely, you could find that their speech and demeanor were particularly neat, with a tough feeling of cutting with knives and axes.

That's the style that can only be infiltrated by being in the army all year round.

An oil lamp was lit in the cabin, and Yang Fan sat alone under the lamp, spreading out a roll of nautical charts.He also changed into a businessman's attire, his eyes half-opened lazily, and he marked the location on the blueprint casually.

The cabin door was suddenly pushed open, Zhuo Jiusi walked in, and he slapped Yang Fan's shoulder with a big palm: "Master!"

Yang Fan was taken aback, and his face was almost pressed on the chart: "What's your name? I have already handed in the commander seal, and now I am the most comfortable rich and idle person!"

Zhuo Jiusi looked at his unhealthy appearance and became angry: "A wealthy idler? Since you are an idler, why are you meddling in Jiangnan's affairs? Are you afraid that gods will fight and implicate you in unreasonable disasters?"

Turning the charcoal pencil in his hand, Yang Fan circled the island marked as the settlement of the Japanese people, and then drew a straight line upwards, roughly calculating the distance, and found that the boat would only take two days to arrive at Jinan Prefecture.

His thoughts were spinning quickly, but his mouth was unrestrained: "Anyway, idleness is idleness. Instead of nestling in the capital, it's better to wander south... How about this road? The scenery is not bad, right?"

Zhuo Jiusi snorted, and replied pointedly: "I didn't see any flowers, flowers, willows and greens. I just saw someone's eyeballs stuck to that Tongzhi's body, and I couldn't tear it off."

Yang Fan's eyes flickered, his thick eyelashes covered the edge of his cheeks, he was actually handsome, but he had been in the northwest for a long time, and his face was roughened by the scorching sun and wind, which did not conform to the "white and shiny" aesthetic of the capital, and he was lazy all the year round Yang Yang couldn't open her eyes, at first glance she couldn't see how handsome she was, it only made people feel that she was a fool and out of shape.

Only when you open your eyes like this at this time, revealing a rare solemnity, can people see the awe-inspiring and noble spirit under the slickness.

"How can I put it this way, he has been lurking in Beile for a year anyway, no matter what the reason for his establishment, this family and country righteousness is not fake," Yang Fan sighed softly, "It's no good for me to get closer to him What a fuss, huh?"

Zhuo Jiusi was a little anxious: "But after all, he and Donggong...Yuanzhou, you and Donggong grew up together, and the friendship is deep and unusual, so it really falls into the role of robbing men?"

The Marquis of Dingbian was frightened by his earth-shattering remarks, choked on his trachea, and coughed until he was in the dark.

"You said you people...why are you so dirty?" Yang Fan was furious, "I just made friends, how could it become adultery or love in your eyes? Besides, who is Donggong? Just look at it." Does he look like a manly man?"

Zhuo Jiu said thoughtfully, "That's not sure", but seeing Yang Fan's slightly unkind expression, he didn't dare to say this, and after lingering in his mind for a few times, he changed the subject: "What do you say?" Is Li Wenbin fed up? It’s not appropriate to leave a good frontier official, and insist on risking rebellion and beheading to gather so many Japanese people... Tsk tsk, what is he trying to do?"

Yang Fan pointed at the sea chart, his eyes half-opened: "You said it all, he is the governor of Jiangnan - when the King of Huainan was withdrawn from the domain, his little magistrate was supposed to be implicated, who will He survived without any damage, and not only was he unscathed, but he also took the lucrative position of chief minister of Jiangsu? And who sponsored him to let Li take the position smoothly after the former governor of Jiangnan left office? Youdao It's reciprocating, he has accepted such a big favor from others, is it just talking about it? He has to show something!"

Zhuo Jiusi was shocked: "You mean...Prince Ping recruited private soldiers in the south of the Yangtze River in order to plot evil?"

As soon as the words came out, Deputy General Zhuo sensed that something was wrong, and quickly covered his mouth, wishing he could pick up the words and eat them.Yang Fan smiled mockingly: "What's there to cover up? Isn't this something that people with discerning eyes know? King Ping and Donggong have been fighting for so many years. Seeing the end of the war on the front foot, he fell into a disadvantage on the back foot. He was born at this juncture, the prince. He also married the daughter of the Minister of the Ministry of Officials, and has the qualifications to enter the court to listen to the government. With the big heart of Prince Ping, it is no wonder that he is not in a hurry!"

Zhuo Jiusi felt a little emotional when he heard it, and sighed softly: "You said that these days, the family lives in rich clothes and good food, and the wind can't blow and the rain can't penetrate. Like a black-eyed chicken, forgetting all the people in the country... is too greedy!"

Yang Fan sneered: "Isn't it just that the rich life has passed for a long time, and there is no place for entertainment, so there must be some trouble out? If you want me to say, King Ping always cared about the military power in the northern border, so I simply asked him to go to the northwest to stay for two years and have a taste of it." Taste the bitterness of the wind and frost, and see if he still misses it!"

Yang Fan is not interested in the fighting skills of King Heping of the East Palace, but he is a student of the East Palace and grew up together.What's more, the Dingbian lineage is the pillar of the country. Even if Yang Fan, the Marquis of Dingbian, is no longer in shape, what flows in his bones is the loyalty and iron blood of the Dingbian lineage, and there is absolutely no reason to let the rebellion go.

The merchant ship sailed at sea for two consecutive days, and stopped suddenly on the evening of the third day.Hearing the report from his own soldiers, Yang Fan stepped onto the deck three steps at a time, snatched the clairvoyance from Zhuo Jiusi's hand, looked into the depths of the blue waves, and was stunned at once - he saw the area in front of him that had never been marked on the map of the Great Yin Sea. There are many islands and reefs on the shore, and the harbor is full of warships.

It is not a common lucky boat in the Jiangnan Navy, but a long and narrow hull with tall guards, which looks like a moving pavilion at first glance.

"This is... Dongpu's closed ship?" Zhuo Jiusi changed his face and blurted out, "Why are there so many Dongpu's warships? Could it be..."

He bit the tip of his tongue violently, and forcibly swallowed the words "Ping Wang's private soldier" that came to his lips.

Yang Fan's face was livid, and a few words came out between his teeth after a long while: "That kid Lu Xun... has been guarding Zhejiang for so many years, is it all for nothing?"

The scale of private soldiers gathered on the islands in the East China Sea was far beyond what Marquis Dingbian expected. Just when Yang Fan ordered people to release carrier pigeons to send a letter to Lu Xun, the chief soldier of Zhejiang, asking for help, all the refugees living in the valley were kidnapped by the vicious officers and soldiers. Let's go and escort him on the road in the direction of Yingtianfu.This journey can be called trekking. Some refugees are old and can't help running long distances. They suddenly fell down while walking. Down.

"Don't pretend to be dead, get up for me!" the officers and soldiers shouted, "You want to be lazy? Tell you, there is no door!"

The white-haired refugee who fell fell on the ground and begged: "My lord, I can't walk anymore... Please do me a favor and give me some saliva!"

Before the words were finished, the whip was pulled down without a face, and the refugee covered his head and face with his hands, rolling and dodging, while screaming incessantly.

"Tell you, I have seen a lot of troublemakers like this!" Finally, the officers and soldiers had enough prestige, wrapped their whips around their arms, and reprimanded them with full authority, "The imperial court feeds you with delicious food and drink. I don't know how to be grateful, and I still see the sky making troubles... Fuck, you want to be lazy and play tricks when you are under Lao Tzu's hands? I will let you go around without eating!"

Several young people who were traveling together couldn't stand it anymore, and helped the old man up from the ground, and one of them carried the old man on his back, finally allowing the stagnant refugee team to move forward again.

After the officers and soldiers rode their horses away, the old man leaned on his companion's shoulders and said out of breath, "Young man, let me down, the journey is still long, don't drag you down..."

The man didn't say anything, but a thin young man next to him raised his head and smiled at the old man: "Old man, I don't like things. Our brothers are young and strong, and we are not afraid to carry a few more."

The young man was Zhang Jingche. They drove for five or six days in a row. Although officers and soldiers drove them away, there were many old and weak women and children in the team. Walk twenty or thirty miles.

Zhang Jingche roughly speculated that at this time, he was already close to the boundary of Yingtianfu - Jinling was the ancient capital of the Six Dynasties, needless to say it was rich, who knew that instead of seeing prosperity on both sides of the road, it became more and more barren, and the overgrown weeds were half the height of a person, so it was easy to do it. to submerge a half-grown child.The mountain road under my feet is getting more and more rugged. Looking at the direction, it is actually going deep into the mountains.

At this point, everyone knows that the so-called "re-registration of household registration and distribution of farmland" is just nonsense, and thank God that this group of people can save their lives.Fearing that something might happen to Zhang Jingche, the commander of You Yunwei urged him to withdraw several times, but Zhang Jingche vetoed it.

"If you don't enter the tiger's lair, you won't catch tiger cubs," Zhang Jingche said calmly while resting at night, holding half a bowl of hot water, "Didn't we always wonder where did the man surnamed Li hide so many refugees? Let them go, and the answer will be revealed soon."

The commander hesitated a little. The past few days had been hard work, not to mention that the fellow refugees couldn't bear it. Zhang Jingche had also lost weight visibly, a string of blisters appeared on the soles of his feet, and his toes were exposed from the front of his rotten cloth shoes.

"If your lord is worried, you can withdraw first, and the lowly position will follow," the commander tactfully persuaded, "These officers and soldiers are not kind... Your status is precious, if something happens, wouldn't the gain outweigh the loss?"

Zhang Jingche lowered his eyes and sneered slightly: "Why, do you think I'm not thoughtful and overestimated?"

The commander was startled, and realized that he had violated the taboo of the superiors, and hurriedly bowed his head to admit his mistake: "The humble official made a mistake, the humble official is just worried that the adult's body will not be able to bear it, there is absolutely no other meaning!"

Zhang Jingche is well versed in the way of combining kindness and strength, so he didn't press too hard, but accepted it as soon as it was good: "Li Wenbin took the risk of killing everyone, and the picture must be not small... I'm afraid there is a big secret hidden here. , I’m really worried if I don’t confirm it with my own eyes.”

The commander only promised, and shut up.

After walking for another two days, the group of people finally arrived at the place, and saw that there was indeed a valley in front of them. The mountainside was hollowed out, and fragmentary stones were scattered all over the ground. Ragged refugees carried poles and carts without stopping. Walking through it, like a row of ants who don't know how to work hard.

Zhang Jingche only took a look at it for a while, and he knew that this place was probably a black mine. Li Wenbin brought the displaced refugees here to ask them to work in the mine.

Judging from the situation in front of them, these refugees were not so obedient and tried to escape - the few rotten corpses hanging at the entrance were shining examples.It's just that this place is really hidden when I come here, and I don't know where to go when I escape.Secondly, tents were erected around the mine, obviously guarded by a large number of officers and soldiers, and it was not easy to escape with the old and weak women and children in front of them.

But in the blink of an eye, Zhang Jingche had figured out the situation. He took out Yang Zhen's jade pendant from his arms, stuffed it into the hands of the commander of You Yunwei, and said in a low voice: "You should leave immediately and report to the Marquis of Dingbian at Hangzhou Mansion, please." He or Hangzhou General Soldier came to help!"

The commander sensed the critical situation from his understatement, and was shocked: "My lord!"

Zhang Jingche could see clearly that there were no less than 2000 officers and soldiers stationed here, and the three melons and dates he brought couldn't handle it.If you don't send people out to report the news now, once you enter the valley and are surrounded by officers and soldiers, it will be difficult to fly even with wings.

The commander is still hesitating: "The situation is dangerous right now, why don't you send someone to escort you away, and then..."

"This place is heavily guarded. It's probably an underground black mine. Li Wenbin, the majestic governor of Jiangnan, has committed such a heinous deed behind his back. It's self-evident!" Zhang Jingche interrupted him in a deep voice, "Only the regular army can deal with this situation. , just leave if you are told, don’t dawdle with me! If the officers and soldiers are alarmed, none of us will be able to leave!”

Knowing that what he said was the truth, the commander gritted his teeth and disappeared into the depths of the bushes.

You Yunwei is one of the best fighters in a hundred, and one or two people disappeared for no reason, and ordinary officers and soldiers didn't notice the clues at all.It wasn't until the group of people were brought into the valley that the escort officers and soldiers realized something was wrong, and asked, "Where are the people with you?"

Zhang Jingche lowered his eyes low-key, and You Yunwei, who was pretending to be a refugee, said tremblingly: "The mountain road just now was too dangerous, he accidentally fell down..."

The expressions of the officers and soldiers changed suddenly, and the horsewhip made a sharp whistling sound: "Why didn't you say it just now!"

You Yunwei had a bitter face: "All the officials are in a hurry on the way, the little ones dare not speak, for fear of delaying the journey..."

The faces of the officers and soldiers were purple, and there was no place to vent their depression, so they had to vent all their anger on their heads.

That night, they were escorted to their residence. It was not a thatched hut, but a big hole in the mountain wall. The hole was sealed with an iron fence, and there were crowds of people inside, all refugees in rags.The gate was guarded by officers and soldiers in strong coats, and one of them was holding a roster and was counting the number of people entering and leaving.

Zhang Jingche lowered his eyes obediently, followed the flow of people into the cave, only to hear a loud noise, and the iron fence was slammed shut behind him.The cave was crowded and filled with a mixed smell of sweat and urine. Zhang Jingche slightly frowned and found a cleaner corner to sit down.The Youyun Guard was broken into pieces, and each found a location that was not too far or near. It seemed that they were doing their own thing, but they were actually guarding Zhang Jingche strictly in the center.

Zhang Jingche took out the saved dry food from his pocket, tore half of it and handed it to the man beside him: "Brothers, when did you guys come?"

The man arrived about a few days earlier, his face was as pale as a fake, and he had obviously been hungry for a long time.He was not polite, took the dry food, stuffed it into his mouth, washed it down with cold water, and then wiped his mouth and said: "I came early, six or seven days ago."

Zhang Jingche asked unintentionally: "What are these officials bringing us here for?"

"Then who knows?" the man said angrily, "As soon as we came, he urged us to mine and transport stones... I don't know what treasure is hidden in this stone, it looks more precious than gold!"

Zhang Jingche narrowed his eyes thoughtfully.