In the back yard of General Chicheng's office, the maid Xiuyue asked while holding Zhang Cheng's manuscript.
"Don't you see, the Han Dynasty's army has weak crowns, and the prisoners are asking for long tassels.
Don’t you see, Ban Ding is far away, Jueyu Qingqi is urging Zhan Yun!”
Xiuyue couldn't help but read out loud. She praised excitedly: "I can't believe that my uncle can not only kill Tatars, but he can also write such good words. It makes me excited and excited when I read it."
Ji Xuanzhu stepped forward, stretched out his hand and touched Xiuyue's forehead, saying, "You girl, you know how to be passionate!"
Yurui, who had been staying with the young lady, came up to her, looked at the manuscript, and continued reading:
"The situation is that the country is in danger, and the feathers are competing with each other without stopping!
Abandon my pen of old and keep my pen of war,
At one call, more than 100,000 of his comrades sang war songs and joined the army.
Cleanse yourself from the dust and swear to sweep away the Tartars regardless of your own safety!"
She finished reading it in one breath and then said: "Miss, this poem is really good. Not only is it exciting and exciting, it is also catchy. Would you like to send it back to the house so that I and my wife can take a look at it?"
Ji Xuanzhu's beautiful eyes were completely fixed on the manuscript. Hearing this, he said: "This is the general's handwriting. How can we give it away lightly? Xiuyue, tomorrow you ask Mrs. Jia to find someone to frame this general's manuscript."
Although the handwriting is a little imperfect, it still penetrates the back of the paper. It is vigorous and powerful. Prepare the pen and ink for me to make a copy and send it back to the house for my father and mother to appreciate."
"Miss, if you don't want to go to bed with the general, it's not too late for us to copy it tomorrow when we have free time." Yu Rui reminded him with a smile.
Ji Xuanzhu looked back at the inner room and said softly: "The general drank a few too many drinks tonight and just fell asleep. You also saw it. Now he is snoring like thunder. I guess he will drink tea when he wakes up. Yu Rui, prepare a pen and paper, then grind ink for me, embroider the moon and make some sobering tea!"
…………
After the winter solstice, the northern part of the Ming Dynasty basically began to rest for the winter. With nine cold days and freezing temperatures, it was really impossible to do any farm work outdoors.
However, it was a different scene on Xuanzhen North Road. There were still motorcades coming and going on the avenue. Although it was not an endless stream, it was more numerous than elsewhere.
What's more, there are people who have joined the army in the fortresses on the North Road. They take five days off during the Winter Solstice Festival, and all of them return home wearing new clothes and carrying large and small packages.
Contrary to what the relatives at home thought, not only did they not starve or freeze, but they were able to eat several meals of meat every month, and now all of them have become stronger and stronger.
And they all came back with their salaries, which is what surprised the villagers. Although everyone saw some changes after this commander came to the North Road.
For example, the farmland occupied by military leaders was distributed to military households, and it was rare for military households to be enslaved to plant private fields for them. Moreover, the military leaders who originally only cared about themselves began to organize everyone to dig trenches and repair them. Canals were used to open up wasteland and accumulate fertilizer for cultivation.
Especially on Shangbei Road, in addition to joining the army to receive pay, almost every family participated in the Yunzhou Craftsmanship Workshop. In order to improve efficiency, Zhang Cheng called various small and large fortresses to come to Yunzhou to get some simple crafts for themselves. process, go back and process it, and then send it to the craftsman camp.
Zhang Cheng also gave this method a name, called "contract responsibility system."
Many jobs that did not require complicated craftsmanship were contracted by various small and large castles. They signed each agreement and contract, then collected the raw materials and returned to the castle to rush to work.
For example, during the winter break in the north of the Ming Dynasty, the strong men on the North Road went up to the mountains to cut down trees, while the women worked at home sewing military uniforms, shoes, coats, cloaks, etc. for the soldiers on the North Road.
Li Erdan is already a celebrity in Dushikou Castle. He is not only the first soldier Zhang Cheng recruited in Dushikou, but also because he dared to challenge Liu Changliang, the commander-in-chief, in the army. He had participated in the bloody battle of Julu.
A veteran.
Although Li Erdan was knocked down by Liu Changliang in the end, the story of "Dushi recruit Li Erdan challenged Qianhu Liu Silang to death" quickly spread in Dushi and even the entire North Road.
He also took five days off during the Winter Solstice. He wore a brand-new military uniform and walked on the streets of Dushikou with his head held high. His already tall body looked more heroic and majestic, attracting the attention of passers-by.
"Look, even Li Erdan is getting excited..."
"Oh, it's a pity that we wanted to sign up at the beginning, but this fool Li Er got the first chance!"
"Hey, brother, stop pretending. You are afraid of the ball before you fight. You should go and rush now. Let's see, even if you join the army, you may not be better than Brother Erdan!"
He joined the army at the beginning of May, and has received military coupons for three months since August. When he went out with the army to suppress bandits on the East Road, he even received an extra two taels of silver as a reward.
He exchanged the military coupons for the past two months for grains and sent them home. There is no shortage of grains at home for the time being. He just returned to Dushikou from Chicheng today and went to the official store to exchange the military coupons just issued in October for one tael.
silver,
Now, Li Erdan was feeling very happy, and with three taels of silver in his arms, he was planning to buy something to go home for the winter solstice, and was completely unaware of the discussions on the street.
He wandered around Dushikou Castle for a while, then came to Nanguan Market, pulled off a few feet of flower cloth, weighed two kilograms of mutton, picked up a chicken, and strode home quickly.
…………
Cheng Sanhu tightened the belt around his waist, clasped his fists and said to his parents: "Father, aunt, there is no need to worry about Hu Zi. My general is very concerned about us. Look, aren't we all fat?"
Cheng Sanhu's family was located in Dacheng Village under the jurisdiction of Yanqing Prefecture on Xuanzhen East Road. When Wu Zhizhong came to East Road to recruit soldiers, he enlisted in the army in order to reduce the burden on his family.
But who could have imagined that today, Cheng Sanhu not only reduced the burden on his family, but also grew taller and stronger. He even brought back a few paper notes when he went home to visit relatives.
With these few paper notes, he actually exchanged grains, grains and coarse cloth at Shunlongchang Cattle and Horse Store in Yanqing Prefecture City, and went out with the army to suppress the bandits as three tigers. Moreover, because he could shoot with muskets quickly and accurately, he could shoot more people than others.
I got one tael of reward and left it all to my family.
He is the third son in the family, and there are two brothers above him. The eldest brother usually talks little and is timid and cowardly, so he is nothing to do. The second brother is a premature baby. His family is poor and he did not keep up with his nutrition when he was young, but his life is saved.
, but his body and bones have always been weak and he cannot do physical work.
His father and mother have worked hard all their lives to take care of the family, so they can barely make ends meet. Moreover, he also has a little sister, who is just fourteen years old this year. At first, the family couldn't get rid of the trouble and wanted to treat his little sister as a slave to the local people.
In the Goulan Courtyard, I exchanged some grains to survive.
It was also his family's destiny that there should not be such difficulty in separation of flesh and blood. Wu Zhizhong happened to come to the east road to recruit brave men. Cheng Sanhu was the first to sign up without saying a word, and led An Jiayin in exchange for grain.
It’s only lasted until today.
Nowadays, having a married family is the envy of every family in the village. Many women who are about to get married look at Cheng Sanhu with indescribable eyes.