On the third day of February, the servants of the King of Sweepers stepped onto the official road one after another. The tail of the team gradually disappeared on the official road. About two hundred cavalrymen carried torches and lit the houses in the southern suburbs one by one.
Some soldiers from the southern suburbs who entered the city burst into tears when they saw their houses on fire.
After all the houses were on fire, the cavalry retreated and slowly left, leaving the camp in a mess.
Yang Erming beside him let out a long breath. All the county government officials were here today, as well as a group of gentry and local elders. The outside of the city was in ruins, and the wilderness was covered with corpses left over from the past few days.
The bandits retreated at this time, and everyone was no longer in danger of their lives, but they all had sad faces.
Rogue bandits passed through the border like locusts, leaving behind only devastation. The people of Tongcheng grew up here. Although they saved their lives, they still had to consider how to survive in the future.
The damage was most severe along the official roads and around the county government. Thousands of lights outside the city were in ruins, and the damage to the surrounding countryside must have been considerable. After the people who took refuge in the city returned home, the first thing they needed was nowhere to stay.
method to resume production.
What Pang Yu could foresee was that with a huge loss of population and wealth, Tongcheng would be in a period of depression for a long time. Business, including his gambling stall, would be slow. The rogue bandits did not loot much, but they destroyed
However, it is the basis for the operation of society.
Fortunately, the county seat was saved. If they captured the county seat, it would probably take decades for it to prosper again.
Yang Erming couldn't be happy either. He asked Pang Yu, "Pang Bantou, what's the next step? Is this the way to defend the city?"
Mr. Sun immediately said, "Your Excellency, you should write a document as soon as possible to inform Anqing Mansion of the victory in defending the city. After that, let the villagers return home, so as not to miss the spring plowing and spring taxes."
Yang Erming nodded, still looking at Pang Yu, as did the surrounding gentry. Although the strong squad led by Pang Yu was immature this time to defend the city, they were still the anchors of Tongcheng. The quick squad was also quite effective in maintaining order in the city. Everyone
They all developed a dependence on Pang Bantou.
"Sir, don't be impatient. Although the bandits have left the county, they have not left Tongcheng. The first thing to do is to send horses to chase and capture them to confirm that they have really left. Only then can the city gate be opened.
The most urgent thing is that corpses have been left outside the city for several days, and corpses in rivers are more susceptible to decay. They should be buried and cleaned up as soon as possible, otherwise the plague will appear and Tongcheng will suffer a second disaster."
Everyone around them nodded together. They had all heard of the plague, but not as much as Pang Yu. When Pang Yu was studying economic history, he knew that several major plagues had dealt a major blow to the world. After the war, it was the time for the plague to peak. If this devil
Without prevention, it may be more vicious than the bandits.
"After that, my subordinates suggested posting notices to let the fleeing people return home. The county government applied to the court for a reduction in this year's grain tax, raised funds to pay for the soldiers and government officials who died and were injured in the defense of the city, and helped the people rebuild their homes. Only when they have homes can they farm and restart their livelihoods.
, this matter needs the efforts of the government and the gentry, otherwise it may be delayed for a long time."
The gentry had various expressions at this time. The rogue bandits had retreated, and the threat they faced had disappeared. Moreover, each family originally had shops and other businesses outside the city. They had spent money and food to defend the city this time, and the losses were not small. They were asked to pay again at this time.
, it’s not that pleasant anymore.
Pang Yu didn't look at them, and said solemnly to Yang Erming: "The last thing is also the most important."
Yang Erming immediately said, "Pang Bantou, please speak."
"Your Excellency, please petition Yingtian Governor Zhang Dutang to set up a camp in Tongcheng to train troops."
There was a discussion on the top of the city, and Wang Wenyao said hesitantly, "What I said above is all reasonable, but when it comes to recruiting troops, I'm afraid we will end up suffering disasters from bandits and soldiers..." "Mr. Wang, don't worry, I mean to recruit the children of Tongcheng."
Training troops and stationed in Tongcheng."
Mr. Sun stared at the ground and said, "Then where do you get your money and food?"
"This matter will be discussed later," Yang Erming waved his hand, turned to look at the thick smoke outside the city, closed his eyes and sighed, "The bandits were brutal, the bandits went south, and there are no city walls in the counties. I don't know if the people have been dismissed."
...Taihu County, Anqing Prefecture, the streets in front of Taihu County are peaceful with people coming and going, and there is no sign of being threatened by rogue bandits at all.
Jiang Fan was sitting in a tea shop opposite the county government office, with two found horses beside him.
At that time, Pang Yu regarded Qianjiang as the main threat, and sent nine horsemen, including those to Qianjiang, Taihu Lake, and Susong, because he had to guard against rogue bandits coming from Huguang.
Jiang Fan had gathered five of them during this trip, and one group each from Taihu and Susong had not been found yet, so Jiang Fan stayed in Taihu.
Fortunately, Pang Yu made inquiries before sending them out and assigned them an inn where they could stay. Jiang Fan stayed at the inn, but the two men never came back. I wonder if they went to Yingshan.
Jiang Fan spent the past two days drinking tea at the tea shop near the inn, waiting for the two men to return.
"Captain, we can't find the other two. Maybe they have gone to Anqing Mansion."
"I came out here to look for Brother Ma Kuai. If he is not found, go back to the squad leader and ask how to explain."
Jiang Fan picked up the tea on the table and took a sip, "Xu Da'er and the others are guarding the border of Qianjiang County. They will tell us when the bandits come."
Ma Kuai, who spoke, said worriedly, "What if it comes suddenly like Luzhou?"
"I was outside the city in Luzhou, so I couldn't escape from the siege of the city by rogues. When I was escaping all the way back from Luzhou, I encountered rogues besieging the Lujiang River again, but I also discovered something from this."
Na Ma Kuai asked curiously: "What did the captain find out?"
"Their light cavalry usually does not leave the camp for more than thirty or forty miles."
Jiang Fan put down the tea bowl, "So I asked Xu Da'er and the others to guard the border of Qianjiang County. If the bandits surrounded Qianjiang, they would cut off the land for forty miles at most. There will always be people escaping from forty miles away. Xu Da'er and the others will get it.
information."
The two horses quickly looked at each other, their faces still full of worry.
Jiang Fan turned around and looked at the street. The passers-by looked relaxed and the shops were doing brisk business. There were a few people standing in front of the county government office opposite. They probably owed the autumn grain to the true nature, which should have been paid before the Spring Festival.
It's easy to compare with others, so it's only natural to use it to compare money and food after the festival.
"The bandits were still in Lujiang when I left. I don't know if they returned to Henan from Shucheng or to Tongcheng."
Jiang Fan frowned and said, "Luzhou is two hundred miles away from Tongcheng. It only took Bantou Pang a few days to receive the news. If the bandits really attacked Tongcheng, Taihu Lake should also have received the news. Seeing how they didn't panic,
The rogue bandits may have returned to Henan."
The two horsemen breathed a sigh of relief and each picked up their tea bowls and took a sip. One of them said, "There were rumors in the market in Taihu yesterday that rogue bandits were coming to Taihu, but people in the county didn't believe them because they were reported twice last year.
We received the warning, but it turned out to be a false alarm, and those who left the city that day to avoid trouble were ridiculed when they came back."
"No wonder."
Jiang Fan patted the table and said, "We'd better be better prepared. You can go to the boatman to check it out later. You can't pay too much or too little for the deposit. We must keep him waiting for us in case there is a pirate attack.
If we come quickly, we can still take the waterway."
"I understand, little one."
The horse responded quickly and felt a little confident, because Taihu County is located between two rivers.
Not far outside the county seat is Xihu Lake, and the Malu River is one mile west of the city. During the Wanli period, due to rising water, the river course turned to the east of the city. The county seat was sandwiched between the two rivers. There was water on all sides, and communication with the outside world relied on bridges.
Once the bandits came too fast and cut off the bridge, it would be difficult for Jiang Fan and others to escape, so they booked another boatman.
The water volume in the Malu River has been greatly reduced, but boats are still possible at this time.
Even if the rogue bandits cut off the main road to Fengxiang Station, as long as there is a boat to cross the river, they can choose a landing place, and the possibility of saving their lives will be greatly increased.
The horse quickly drank some water and was about to set off. Just when he stood up and saw the other side, he looked surprised.
Jiang Fan turned around and saw that it was Xu Daer looking around anxiously on the street, obviously looking for a few people.
Several people hurriedly greeted each other, and Xu Daer hurriedly came in, sat down sweating profusely, and whispered before taking a rest, "The rogues have arrived in Qianshan!"
Jiang Fan asked anxiously, "Where did you come from?
Is there any news about Tongcheng?"
Xu Da'er shook his head, "I'm guarding the county boundary as you said, captain. Someone escaped two days ago and said there were rogue bandits who were killing people along the official road, and they were dressed in red and riding horses."
Jiang Fan took a breath and asked, "How many people escaped?"
"There are at least a dozen people. I asked them one by one, and three of them actually saw them."
"Then it should be."
Jiang Fan thought for a moment and said, "The rogue cavalry is very fast, we can't delay. The three of you immediately take the horses and go to Wangjiang. Hire a boat there and live on the boat. If the rogues arrive at Wangjiang, you won't need the horses. You
Take a boat across the river and wait for the bandits to retreat before returning to the north of the river."
After the three horses looked at each other, Xu Daer asked Jiang Fan, "Captain, where are you going?"
"I have to go to Susong immediately. Liu Mazi is still waiting for those two people in Susong. I have to take him away."
Jiang Fan rubbed his chin for a while and said, "By the way, I would like to inform the Susong County Government and ask them to evacuate the people as soon as possible."
One of the horses quickly explored Susong for a while and said to Jiang Fan, "Captain, you can also cross the river by boat in Susong. Since the bandits are coming from Tongcheng, there should be news in Susong. Since Yang Fang here
After Flea left, no new county magistrate has taken office. Now the acting magistrate is Chen Shifu, the general magistrate of Anqing, who is the second official of Anqing. If there is any news, his confidants in Anqing must have known about it early in the morning. "
"So much better."
Jiang Fan stood up and said, "It saves me words."
…On February 5th, Jiang Fan, dressed in a uniform, stood blankly on the front street of Susong County.
He just arrived in Susong today and did not find Zhang Mazi in the inn. The hotel owner said that he had checked out and left without leaving a message where he went.
What surprised him was that Susong was more relaxed than Taihu. There was not even a single person talking about rogue bandits. The entire county was the same as usual. All shops were operating normally, merchant ships were coming from the docks outside the city, and the people were busy with their own affairs. In front of the county government
It was also peaceful.
Susong didn't even have a city wall, so it had no power to resist the rogues. He really couldn't understand why the people in the city could deal with the rogues calmly. The only explanation was that Susong didn't receive any warning.
After hesitating for a moment, Jiang Fan walked towards the county government office.
The other three horses soon knew that he had come to Susong. If they did not tell the county government here about the news, they might not be able to explain it when they return.
The waiter at the door looked at him in surprise. The servant looked strange, wondering if he was new here.
The layout of county government offices in various places is not much different. Jiang Fan went directly into the lobby, found the reception room, and directly asked to see Chen Shifu, the acting county magistrate.
When he set out, the Tongcheng County government gave him a transfer document, which could prove his identity. When the transfer document was submitted, he was afraid of being delayed in the transfer room, so he specifically said "report of banditry" and ended up waiting in the transfer room.
After waiting for half an hour, Jiang Fan felt angry and was about to leave, when the clerk of the reception room asked him to go to the chamberlain on the left side of the hall.
The secret agent lay on the back of the chair with his eyes closed, without even looking at Jiang Fan, and said slightly, "Tongcheng County Yamen Yiwen didn't say anything, why did you come to see me?"
When Jiang Fan explained the matter, the friend yawned lazily and said, "The person who came from Qianjiang last year said the same thing. The last bandit was not seen. You from Tongcheng came today and said that there were thieves in Qianjiang. The person who came from Qianjiang said the same thing."
Jiang didn’t say anything, why did you let me believe it?”
Jiang Fan was stunned, but still said politely, "The villain saw with his own eyes the siege of the city by rogue bandits in Luzhou, and the villain's men saw people fleeing at the border of Qianjiang County..." The friend opened his eyes and sat up straight, and said
He asked with a serious face: "You said you saw rogue bandits coming with your own eyes?"
"I saw it with my own eyes in Luzhou, and then the bandits besieged Lujiang again. Now they have reached Qianshan, only a hundred miles away from Susong. If I don't prepare, I'm afraid it will be too late."
The curtain friend stood up and walked around twice with a frown on his face. After stopping, he said to Jiang Fan, "This is a serious matter. You and I will go to see the master together. However, it is not appropriate to reveal it to others at this time to avoid panic among the people.
Do you have any other companions who should come with you? You can go see me together and explain it more clearly."
Jiang Fan breathed a sigh of relief and said, "The villain parted with them in Taihu Lake. Only the villain comes here, so one person can explain clearly."
The curtain friend nodded, "Then you come with me."
He took Jiang Fan into the second hall, but did not go to the magistrate's house at the back. Instead, he turned right and entered a corridor.
Jiang Fan asked strangely, "Isn't Lord Tongpan living in the back house?"
"Mr. Chen is the acting magistrate of the county. He has no relatives here. He said that when he comes alone, he doesn't want to live in other people's mansions. He just stays in a guest house."
Jiang Fan said "Oh" and turned two corners with his friend. The friend then entered a room with a single door and motioned for him to enter.
Jiang Fan followed him and walked in, but there was nothing inside. He was surprised when his friend was about to ask a question, when suddenly a rope swung in front of his eyes and instantly strangled Jiang Fan's neck.