"Master, the medicine you asked for is ready." Pang Ding held a coconut ladle with an inexplicably tragic expression.
Pang Yu took the coconut scoop and shook it a few times, and there was liquid sloshing inside.
"Most of them are grasshoppers and a little bit of Tripterygium wilfordii. (Note 1)" Pang Ding's mouth suddenly cracked and he sobbed, "Young master, please don't go. Let's go to Kongcheng Town to find the master, ugh..."
Pang Yu tied the coconut scoop to his belt, "Unless the thief is killed, my parents will not dare to come back, and we will not be able to live this life."
"What if something happens to you, and the master asks me what to say." Pang Ding wiped his tears, "The thieves have officers and soldiers to kill them. Master, you are a slave, how can you lose your life for that little money? Why...
A little silver will kill many people.”
Pang Yu slapped Pang Ding on the head several times, "What a crow's mouth, would I gamble my life for a little money? I only gamble my life for a lot of money. I have been poor for a long time and often can't even get out a penny."
, the young master doesn’t want to live like this.”
"But the young master is not ready to kill everyone. Killing is the business of officers and soldiers. I only want money." Pang Yu patted the coconut scoop and asked, "My mother talked so much about this grasshopper last time, no?"
It will poison everyone to death, I just want them to be unconscious."
"Then maybe... I guess it's almost the same. Master, don't put it in the hot soup. The grass won't work if it's cooked."
"Then put it in the wine. You said you have been with us for ten years and your professionalism is at this level. No wonder Pang's herbal medicine shop is not big." Pang Yu didn't have time to care anymore and patted Pang Ding on the shoulder, "Don't imitate me.
Master, find a wife and live a peaceful life."
Pang Ding shed tears and said nothing. Pang Yu untied the horse's rope at the door, looked up at the sky, and estimated that he would be able to reach Yunji Temple before dark.
Pang Yu led the horse eastward along Xianqian Street. This horse was originally a fast train. As the main means of transportation, there were still a lot of horses in county offices in the Ming Dynasty. They were mainly used by officials and clerks, and then
There are fast horses, fast mounts, and finally there are inns and stores, usually hundreds of horses.
After the civil uprising, some horsemen in the county government took advantage of the chaos and stole many horses and sold them to other places. The horse Pang Yu rode was already the best one Jiao Guozha selected in the fast horse gallery.
Turn right and head south in Qingfeng City, preparing to leave the city from the south gate. After walking more than ten steps, he stopped, turned around and walked towards the east gate. When he came to the Zhoujia paper shop, he saw Zhou Yueru busy inside, and even Zhou Yongtian also
In the store.
Since the turmoil, Zhou Yueru has had no normal help, and the Zhou family's paper shop has been open and closed, and can only be opened for a few days when the situation is stable. The people affected by the disaster this time are all gentry families, and the big paper users have no intention of buying stationery, so the Zhou family
The business of the paper shop was also slow, making it difficult for the family to make a living. In addition, roads were cut off for a long time after the civil unrest, and the price of food in the city rose a lot. Zhou Yueru borrowed one or two or five yuan of silver from Pang Yu at the beginning of Leap August.
With a bang, Pang Yu slapped a dozen taels of silver on a pile of paper at the door. It was Huang Wending who rewarded him.
Zhou Yueru raised her head. She looked a lot more haggard this month. When she saw it was Pang Yu, she smiled slightly. When Zhou Yongtian saw it was Pang Yu, he paused for a moment and suddenly shouted, turned around and fled into the back room.
Zhou Yueru looked back at Hou Jin, with a complicated look on her face.
"I have to go out." Pang Yu listened to the horrified screams of the late shopkeeper Zhong Zhou, and calmly said to Zhou Yueru, "It's inconvenient to carry around this money, so you can keep it safe for me first."
Zhou Yueru pushed her hair away from her eyes and asked in surprise, "You should take money with you when you go out, why don't you take it with you?"
"Master, I am not an ordinary person." Pang Yu turned around and walked towards Dongzuo Gate, "If the master had not come to pick it up, I would have given this money to you."
"Hey!" Zhou Yueru chased him to the door, "What on earth are you doing?"
Pang Yu didn't look back, waved her hand and strode away.
Pang Yu walked briskly along the way. After crossing the Zilai Bridge, there were fewer pedestrians. Pang Yu jumped on his horse and headed south along the official road.
After running for more than a mile, Pang Yu stopped his horse and waited for a shadow to chase him from a distance.
Panting, Pang Ding caught up to him. He paused for a long time before crying, "I was picked up by the master from the roadside. If it weren't for the Pang family, I would have starved to death. Let me go with the young master. Otherwise, if the young master has any
What's the matter? I can't explain it to the master if he asks."
Pang Yu stared at Pang Ding for a long time, then suddenly smiled and said, "Young master, taking you along is just a way of sharing money with you."
…
The sun has half disappeared at the top of the Dabie Mountains in the distance, and the golden sky outlines the majestic undulating ridge lines.
In the afterglow of the setting sun, Pang Yu appeared alone at the foot of Yunji Temple on horseback. The horse underneath him was covered in sweat and snorted.
Two rioters on duty at the foot of the mountain came up to pull the horse, and Pang Yu thanked him and hurried up the mountain.
There was no sign of Gu Xiaowu, so he probably went to the south gate to gather people in the afternoon. Pang Yu originally wanted to persuade Gu Xiaowu to leave temporarily, but Gu Xiaowu was very nostalgic for this kind of life, and now he only hoped that Gu Xiaowu could escape the squire's killing tomorrow.
Pang Yu walked around the main hall and the side hall, and the silver boxes were still there. After roughly counting the number of people, he found that there were only about twenty people, and they were all green-skinned fools. They were usually slick and cunning people, although they
Nowadays, they all have weapons, and walking through the city is quite impressive, but Pang Yu never thinks that they can really fight. The most important thing is that they lack a courageous spirit.
The only ones who are really capable among these rebels are the small groups gathered by Huang Wending and Wang Guohua. There are indeed strong and fierce people among them, and they can use weapons. They are the backbone of the rebels. The courage of the rebels depends on these people to support them, but in fact, each of them has
There were only seven or eight people.
Pang Yu felt somewhat confident, and at this time the thieves began to arrange tables and chairs, set up torches, and prepare to drink in the palace.
Just as he was about to help move the wine, he suddenly saw Wang Guohua's face appearing at the back door of the hall, followed by several fierce men who were close to him.
Pang Yu's heart instantly fell to the bottom of the valley.
…
In the Fang family's mansion in Fengyi, Fang Kongzhen walked back and forth in the study. This study has become the command center for quelling the chaos, and is far more important than the Tongcheng County government office.
Although Fang Kongzhen has experienced the ups and downs of officialdom, this is the first time he has experienced such a quelling and killing. Ever since he received the news that Huang Wending had come down from the mountain, Fang Kongzhen has been in a state of excitement, and it is impossible to take a good rest. He can only
He was on duty in the study, waiting for news from everywhere.
Fang Zhongjia entered the study and whispered, "Brother, I didn't find out where Huang Wending spent the night. I'm afraid I can only wait until he gathers at Wuyin Temple tomorrow morning to raid him. There is another matter..."
Although the news was not satisfactory, Fang Kongzheng had enough determination and calmly replied in a low voice, "What's the matter?"
"Wang Guohua never came down the mountain."
Fang Kongzheng frowned immediately. During their planning process, they never considered that such a situation would happen. Because Wang Guohua had always been with Huang Wending.
For Fang Kongzhen, Wang Guohua is more important than Huang Wending, the leader of the alliance.
Fang Kongzheng stood up slowly and asked, "Has Wang Guohua contacted you today?"
"No, I thought that Wang Guohua was cunning, and he must have guessed that there was something fishy about Zhang Bingcheng's arrest of Zhang Ru. But he didn't stop Huang Wending from going down the mountain, and he didn't follow him. I felt that he might be trying to tamper with the money.
"
"His idea of taking money is not necessarily to surrender. He may very well swallow up the dirty money and flee to other places." Fang Kongzhen said thoughtfully, "Jiang Chen heard from Wang Gongbi that Cao Jiang Admiral Ma Shiming had already brought the people of Tongcheng under his control.
The changes were reported to the emperor, and the names of Huang Wending, Wang Guohua, and Zhang Ru were clearly written in it."
Fang Zhongjia looked solemn, "That means Wang Guohua can be recruited and killed, but he can never remain silent and his whereabouts are unknown."
Fang Kongzheng sighed, "This man is brave and resourceful. At this time when the world is in chaos, I cherish talents for the sake of the country. I thought that one day the Japanese government would rise again and I could use him to serve our emperor. I never imagined that such a situation would happen."
"But others don't think so. Now the name Wang Guohua has been heard all over the world. If he robbed the money and disappeared, after my brother comes back, once someone catches this, he will impeach you for helping this person, which will lead to great chaos.
Then he disappears, which will arouse all kinds of suspicions."
Fang Kongzheng narrowed his eyes slightly and said firmly, "The most fearful thing about being an official is leaving suspicion in the emperor's heart."
Fang Zhongjia thought for a moment and then approached and said, "There are only about twenty rebels left in Yunji Temple. Except for a few confidants of Wang Guohua, the rest are just a mob. I can take my seven servants and several healthy servants in the mansion to make a sneak attack at night."
Yunji Temple took Wang Guohua’s head first.”
Fang Kongzheng did not answer, and paced gently in the room, seemingly having a hard time making a decision. The biggest advantage of quelling the chaos this time was that Huang Wending and his gang did not know that the squire had recruited dozens of thugs, so they were unsuspecting.
Huang Wending even dismissed most of his men and asked them to gather their own men in the four villages and gather together tomorrow morning. At this time, the rioters were completely unorganized, like a piece of loose sand, which was the best time to quell the chaos.
It is a pity that such a good opportunity failed to find a place for Huang Wending to spend the night, and Wang Guohua stayed at Yunji Temple, leaving Fang Kongzheng in a dilemma. He could not let Wang Guohua go, but he was worried that killing Wang Guohua first would alert Huang Wending and his gang, which would affect the peace and stability of the country.
A chaotic situation.
"Huang Wending has just come down the mountain today. The Chizhou soldiers are slow to move. They have to wait until tomorrow to arrive. They are afraid that Wang Guohua will take the opportunity to rob the silver and escape." Fang Zhongjia continued to persuade, "Even if Huang Wending is defeated tomorrow, Wang Guohua will get the news."
If you run away first, once you leave Tongcheng, it will be extremely difficult to find his whereabouts."
Fang Kongzheng knew that what Fang Zhongjia said was reasonable and Wang Guohua could never let him go. Of course, he also understood Fang Zhongjia's intention of tens of thousands of taels of silver.
Fang Kongzheng hesitated for a moment and finally said, "We must ensure that no one in Yunji Temple escapes, in case they scare Huang Wending and his gang away."
"There is only one mountain road down the mountain from Yunji Temple. During the raid, I had strong servants to guard the mountain pass. My servants fought with private salt dealers many times. They are all brave people. They are calculated and unprepared and will never let a rioter escape.
"
"My brother, take Wang Guohua's head for me."
"Don't worry, brother, not a single soul will be left alive in Yunji Temple. I will take people out immediately."
…
As night falls, there is no light in the wild night, and the sky and the earth are in darkness. The mountain wind blows on Yunji Temple, and the insects buzz around, but it cannot cover up the noise in the main hall.
More than a dozen torches were lit in the palace, and the thieves' daily banquet had begun. Not far from the mountain, the trailer river mouth was a market town. Huang Wending and his group had enough money to buy a lot of food in the town to prepare for the Chizhou soldiers to close the mountain. Now they have enough.
Necessary for daily banquets.
The thieves were sitting on the ground. They had killed a sheep today. They were eating the mutton and drinking wine.
Wang Guohua was in the upper position, asked for a small table by himself, and sat on a short square stool. It was very quiet all night. When someone asked him to drink from him after drinking too much, he smiled and drank only briefly.
A confidant sat near him, drinking more.
Pang Yu held a wine jar and diligently poured a round of wine for everyone. This wine is brewed locally in Tongcheng and is a type of distilled wine. Pang Yu has tasted it once. Although the alcohol content is not high, it has a strong taste.
It is relatively spicy and suitable for covering up the taste of Caowu.
What he was most worried about at this time was that when he was pouring the wine, he realized that Wang Guohua seemed to have something on his mind. He drank very little tonight. In this case, it would be difficult to poison him. However, Wang Guohua was quite brave. Under normal circumstances, Pang Yu was completely
There is no certainty of defeating him.
The jar of wine in his hand was empty. After three rounds of wine, everyone had entered the state. Brothers and sisters in the hall were drinking each other. Everyone's sense of taste and smell were not as sensitive as before. This was the time for Pang Yu to choose the medicine.
When he came to the side of the Tathagata statue, Pang Yu used the shadow of a palace pillar to take off the coconut scoop behind him. He felt his mouth was dry. After observing the surroundings, Pang Yu patted open the seals of three connected jars of wine.
, holding back the pounding in his heart, poured the venom into each part to disperse the smell of the medicine.
Pang Yu turned his body sideways, blocking his view of the main hall with his clothes, and covering the mouth of the coconut scoop with his hands. He kept turning his head and observing. Once discovered by any thief, Pang Yu would immediately die without a burial.
A short period of time seemed as long as ten thousand years. The mouth of the coconut scoop was a little small, and the venom was flowing slowly. Pang Yu was so anxious that he kept looking left and right in the shadow of the palace pillars. Anyone who looked in his direction would make his scalp tremble.
Heartbroken.
Finally, after pouring out the venom, he hung the coconut scoop on his waist again, making sure that no one noticed the whole process. Pang Yu's vest was almost completely soaked with sweat, and he breathed a long sigh of relief. His mind became slightly calmer, and he just raised his head to observe.
Suddenly, a hand patted my shoulder.
Pang Yu was so startled that her whole body trembled, almost out of her mind. She turned around to see Zhu Zong.
Zhu Zong held a bowl of wine, put his arm around Pang Yu's shoulders and said loudly, "Brother Yu is a loyal man. I want to have three bowls of wine with Brother Yu."
After saying that, Zhu Zong brought up a wine jar that had just been filled with medicine, and a mob next to him brought up an empty bowl.
Pang Yuhun returned to his position at this time. Hearing this, he quickly waved his hand, "Brother Zhu, I'm not good at drinking."
Zhu Zong couldn't help but fill his own bowl with the poisonous wine, then filled a new bowl and handed it to Pang Yu, "You must drink it. Today is the day you officially join the team. Even if you are not good at drinking, you have to drink it."
Several green men next to him cheered in unison. Before Pang Yu could refuse, he noticed from the corner of his eye that the second jar of poisoned wine had been picked up by another gangster and was being filled by others. Wang Guohua happened to finish the drink and was filled by the gangster.
A bowl of poisonous wine.
Wang Guohua heard the roar and turned to look at Pang Yu, as if he had noticed the movement here.
Pang Yu knew that Wang Guohua was usually cunning and suspicious. If he didn't drink, he might arouse Wang Guohua's suspicion, so all his previous efforts were in vain. If Wang Guohua pursued further and found the remaining venom in the coconut scoop, Pang Yu might be killed on the spot; drinking the three bowls in front of him would avoid suspicion. , Wang Guohua was unprepared and was about to drink the poisoned wine. Everyone in the palace would drink the poisoned wine. Pang Yu's plan was mostly successful, but he himself might die from these three bowls of poisoned wine. Success and failure were almost at the same moment. has arrived.
Pang Yu cursed in his heart that he had "brought his own evil", took the wine bowl, touched it with Zhu Zong, raised his head and drank it all.
…
Note 1: The poison commonly used in the army in the Ming Dynasty was Caowu. "New Book of Jixiao": Use floating light arrows to dye Caowu poison, and use a thread to tie the string at thirty steps.