Number of People

Chapter 1053: Geng Zijuan: Drunk and reading the sword

Chapter 1053 Geng Zijuan was drunk and looked at the sword Xiao Qiang (3)

Looking at the majestic city gate half-closed, Feng Ziying deeply felt what kind of turmoil the capital city had experienced in the past few months since he had been away.

There are many temporary wooden sheds and straw huts on both sides of the city gate. They are densely packed along the moat and extend to both sides. They are noisy and bustling, but there is more of a chaotic atmosphere.

In fact, there were originally architectural clusters along the post roads outside the city gate. All kinds of business travelers who ran out of time could only rest outside the city. From Tongzhou to the city, there were not only canals and waterways, but also official roads. The climate has also been formed a long time ago. Waterways have markets by waterways, and land routes have doorways. They are unrelated but complementary to each other.

For example, if you leave from Ximen, you need to go north to Yongping and Liaodong, or if you follow the Chaobai River, you need to go north to Huairou Miyun and use Gubeikou to exit the fortress. There are also Xianghe, Baodi, Sanhe, Jizhou, Pinggu, and Liangcheng places near Gyeonggi. No one here knows how to travel by water, it’s too troublesome.

The post roads near Gyeonggi Province, at least in Shuntian Prefecture, are much better than those in other prefectures in Beizhili. Even the carriages can run very briskly, so the water route is cost-effective, but the loading and unloading are very difficult. Not to mention the time delay, the effort and money are also a lot, but it is not cost-effective within a short distance.

Of course, bulk cargo must travel by water. Hejian, Baoding, and even Shandong and below can only travel by water. The convenience of the canal is far beyond that of the land route, and through the canal, Sanjiaidian, Lugou The rivers, Yishui, Baiyangdian, Wuguandian, Yudai River and Zhulong River can connect Shuntian Prefecture to the entire Baoding and Hejian side with the canal system.

For example, Wuqing, Gu'an, Bazhou and Baoding (county) in Shuntian Prefecture, Renqiu and Hejian in Hejian Prefecture, Xiongxian and Anzhou in Baoding Prefecture, although the transportation capacity of these rivers and rivers cannot be compared with the canal. , but the circulation of goods between states and counties does not require large-draft ships, and it is more than enough.

"In the past two months alone, the number of refugees outside the entire city wall has increased by 70,000 to 80,000, not counting the 10,000 or 20,000 who have entered the capital city. This has also caused great annoyance to Shuntian Prefecture and Wanping and Daxing counties. ,…”

Zheng Chongjian explained when he saw that Feng Ziying’s eyes were wandering among the homeless huts around the city wall.

"Are they driven here intentionally by the Chahar and Waikark people?" Feng Ziying said coldly: "I heard that the Chahar people robbed all the craftsmen and merchants from Miyun Huairou County. The farmers did not let go. Only the old, weak, women and children were driven south. This was obviously to reduce their own supply pressure and push it to us. This winter's sowing will be empty. How will the people in the northern counties of Shuntian Prefecture make a living next year? "

Yang Sichang remained silent, and Zheng Chongjian also hesitated to speak.

"Procrastination like this will be detrimental to the Mongols, but it won't be a disaster for us. We only care about the present, how will we survive next year?"

Feng Ziying sighed softly, "The Mongols actually don't have much fighting spirit now. Since the Xuanfu soldiers and Datong soldiers have arrived one after another, why don't they dare to launch a counterattack? Do they have to wait until the weather is freezing and the refugees return home and have no life?" Come when it’s time?”

Yang Sichang frowned, "Ziying, there are some situations that you don't quite understand yet. The Jizhen Army is under the greatest pressure. The main force of the Chahar people has been looking for opportunities to break through and move south. It's not like you said they have no fighting spirit." , a few days before we came, the Chahar people also guerrillaed southeast along the border wall, bypassed Pinggu, and rushed to the foot of Panshan Mountain. This caused an uproar in Sanhe and Jizhou, and they almost mobilized troops from Zunhua to support them. .”

"The more this is the case, the more it shows that the Mongols have lost their will to fight and are weak. You also know the military. If the Mongols really intend to go south, do you think they will have such tricks to carry out surprise attacks? They have this Is it strength?"

Feng Ziying's words "You are also knowledgeable about soldiers" made Yang Sichang feel very comfortable. He thought about it carefully before saying: "What you said Ziying makes sense, but now the Jizhen soldiers are divided into several parts, and the Xuanfu army and the Datong army , Niu Jizong’s side…”

Yang Sichang hesitated, Feng Ziying raised his eyebrows, "Why, Niu Jizong has set such a big trap, how dare he avoid the battle?"

Yang Sichang shook his head, seeming a little troubled and confused, "I'm not sure what Mr. Zhang and Mr. Chai thought about it, or maybe the emperor and the cabinet ministers haven't made up their minds yet? Basically all the soldiers from the Xuanfu came over, and the soldiers from Datong followed closely. It came faster than expected, but because it came so fast, I almost didn’t bring any food, grass and baggage, and it was a bit chaotic. I don’t know if Niu Jizong seemed to be unable to control it? But who can take over at this time? "

Feng Ziying is stunned, will Niu Jizong be unable to control it?

If both the Xuanfu and Datong armies come in, how much mobile force can the Jizhen army have left after suffering early losses and being restrained by surrounding places such as Caojiazhai and Zunhua?

 Chen Jixian from the Fifth Military Camp in the Capital City and Qiu Shishi from the Shenshu Camp were more likely to have a check on each other. Qiu Shi was easy to say, but it seems hard to say which side Chen Jixian belongs to now.

But no matter what, the Fifth Army Camp and the Shenshu Camp in the Beijing Camp are younger brothers in front of the two elite frontier armies, the Datong Army and the Xuanfu Army. If the Xuanfu Army and the Datong Army are really allowed to enter the capital city, the Jizhen Army will be under investigation. What kind of situation will the Har people contain? I'm just afraid that everything will be unpredictable.

 No wonder the Xuanfu Army and the Datong Army entered in large numbers, but always stayed on the Changping line. Did the Ministry of War demarcate an area for them, or did Niu Jizong deliberately stay on this line to avoid suspicion?

At this time, Feng Ziying realized that being called into the capital this time was not as simple as it seemed on the surface. He was also thinking, is such a thing worth calling him into the capital?

The Chahar and Outer Khalkha people are so strangely encircling and refusing to fight. Are they really out of their depth, or do they have other agendas?

 For a while, Feng Ziying found that she seemed to be falling into a conspiracy theory.

The Emperor, Prince Yi Zhong, the Supreme Emperor, Wu Xun, Niu Jizong and Wang Ziteng, himself and his father, Jingying, Xuanfu and Datong Army, Jizhen Army and Liaodong Army, the Mongols, and the Jianzhou Jurchens all seemed to be involved. Come in, who is the chess player and who is the chess piece? Or will the chess players and the chess pieces themselves exchange identities under certain conditions?

Noticing that Feng Ziying's face was gloomy and uncertain, Yang Sichang thought that Feng Ziying was worried about Niu Jizong, so he comforted him and said: "Ziying, you don't have to worry too much. Niu Jizong is also a veteran. Now the Xuanfu Army and the Datong Army have more than 80,000 troops. , the front line of Changping is blocked, and the Xuanfu cavalry and the Outer Khalkha cavalry in the Bohai area have been fighting. With this posture, I think it is true like you said, at least the Outer Khalkha people may not have much fighting spirit."

Feng Ziying shook her head, "Wen Ruo, I'm not worried about this."

Yang Sichang was stunned, "Then what are you worried about?"

"It's hard to explain in one sentence. I always feel that the battle is going like this, which seems a bit unpredictable." Feng Ziying shook her head, "Look, let's wait until we meet Mr. Zhang and Mr. Chai."

  ************

  Prince Yizhong’s Mansion.

 “Niu Jizong hasn’t replied to Gu yet?” Prince Yi Zhong looked a little more anxious and helpless.

"Your Highness, how can someone like Niu Jizong be made to make a sudden decision so easily?" Chu Qi shook his head, "I judge that he will not reply to Your Highness within three to five days. He will definitely have to observe. In addition, if there is no one on Chen Jixian's side, A clear statement, I’m afraid he won’t agree.”

"Chen Jixian?" Prince Yi Zhong sneered, "He is even more cunning than Niu Jizong. The person who sent him the message could not even be found. He either claimed to be sick or went to check the defense on the city wall. As a result, he did not return home in the middle of the night and stayed there for several days. If you can't meet anyone, you don't dare to leave a book and a half of this kind of thing..."

“Your Highness, you are actually not too anxious. We have to stick to our original strategy. The current situation is just a coincidence. To be honest, I am not very optimistic about it..."

"But Mr. Chu, if I can't take advantage of such an opportunity, I'm worried that I will regret it for the rest of my life." Prince Yi Zhong was sulking, with deep reluctance in his brows, "Wealth is sought in danger, but God cannot give it to you. You must suffer the consequences; when the time comes, you will suffer the consequences. Lao Si thought that he had wiped out Jingying, but he never thought that without Jingying, who would defend the city? He thought that everyone was fools and did not know that he After playing this trick with the Ministry of War, Chen Jixian should understand this time that without the support of the disciples of Wu Xun, he, the general of the Fifth Army Camp, is nothing!"

"But Your Highness, Niu Jizong has been reluctant to express his position, so what can I do? Moreover, how many soldiers can he control in Datong Town and Xuanfu Town?" Chu Qi's face was heavy, "Niu Jizong has only been the governor of Xuanda for two years,..."

"Wang Ziteng still served for two years." Prince Yi Zhong said with regret: "It would have been better if Wang Ziteng's Denglai army had not gone to Huguang, then everything would have fallen into place, hey,..."

"Your Majesty, it's not that simple. If the Denglai Army had not left, it would not have been so easy for the Xuanfu Army and the Datong Army to come..." Chu Qi felt that the Prince was still too idealistic. How could the Emperor easily put the capital at such a disadvantage? Under the circumstances?

Prince Yoshitaka shook his head, "Mr. Chu, what do you think we should do now?"

"We can only wait. I think Chen Jixian is also evaluating. There is indeed a lot of anger in the Beijing camp, and it is probably related to the Xuanfu and Datong army. But do Chen Jixian and Niu Jizong dare to make this decision? Knowing people, knowing faces, but not knowing hearts. , no one knows until the last moment whether the emperor has put any sand in it? And I am sure, there must be."

Chu Qi said calmly: "Your Majesty, you don't have to show your face too much. Prince Mu and Prince Shui should take action. We can't just let us do everything. I'm afraid there is no way in this world to sit back and enjoy the results."

 (End of this chapter)