During the Battle of Laiyang, the new army captured many more prisoners than during the Dongchang Prefecture.
However, the Political Department and the Intelligence Department are already familiar with their work, and their efficiency is faster than before.
After screening, a total of more than 180 die-hard members of the White Lotus Sect were found and executed on the spot.
This also allowed the people of Laiyang to somewhat eliminate some of their grudges and no longer hate the other prisoners so much.
The new army's food and grass arrived that night, and all the prisoners actually had their first real meal.
This moment made the prisoners feel at ease.
Even if we push them away, they probably won't leave.
The biggest gain from the trip to Denglai is that Huang Zongxi has a few more younger brothers around him.
Zuo Menggeng couldn't help but want to laugh when he saw Zuo Maodi, Shen Xun, Jiang Cai, and Jiang Gai following Huang Zongxi, clumsily learning the propaganda work.
Wen Tianxiang's fate changed in the late Ming Dynasty, which was also a relief.
While the rebellion of the White Lotus Sect in Denglai was being quelled, the situation in other places was deteriorating.
Zuo Mengeng received the military information.
The White Lotus Sect's Murong Finance Department, which was rampant in Jinan Prefecture and Qingzhou Prefecture, captured Changle and threatened Yidu.
Yidu is the seat of the Qingzhou Prefecture and the seat of the Hengwang clan. The local officials were frightened and sent letters asking for help to the capital, Jinan and Dengzhou respectively.
"Uncle, my nephew is going to pacify the White Lotus Sect in Qingzhou. I'll say goodbye today. Take care, uncle."
Sun Yuanhua looked at Zuo Mengeng with complicated eyes, knowing that once this son passed away, he would definitely become the mourner of the Ming Dynasty in the future.
But he couldn't dissuade him. He knew that Zuo Menggeng was growing steadily, but he could only watch helplessly.
Otherwise, the White Lotus Sect will completely corrupt Shandong and cause even greater harm.
what is this?
Which is the lesser of two evils?
The feeling of powerlessness made Sun Yuanhua depressed, and he just said: "I hope you can care about the people and don't kill too much."
Zuo Mengeng understood what he meant, and still said: "Dongjiang Town is full of tigers and wolves. After Mao Wenlong's death, the rest of the people are not trustworthy. Uncle should be more careful. If things are not harmonious, my nephew will definitely help."
The first thing Sun Yuanhua did after taking office was to accept the remnants of Dongjiang Town.
Zuo Mengeng knew the consequences of this incident and wanted to remind him, but found that he could not do it.
Because the settlement of Dongjiang Town was not Sun Yuanhua's idea, but Sun Chengzong's order.
Sun Chengzong's idea was very simple, that is, he planned to repeat his strategy in Liaodong.
Although it is no longer possible to form a strong force surrounded by ten sides, if Dongjiang Town can be used to continue to contain Houjin, it can always give the Western Liaoning Corridor some time to reorganize.
Sun Chengzong forgot that Dongjiang Town today is no longer what it once was.
The death of Mao Wenlong caused the generals in Dongjiang Town to lose trust in the imperial court.
Now they just want to live for themselves.
If Dongjiang Town is recruited to Dengzhou at this time, trouble will definitely arise in the future.
If it was just Sun Yuanhua, Zuo Mengeng could still persuade him. But when it came to Sun Chengzong, Zuo Menggen wisely didn't speak.
That Mr. Sun Ge was very domineering and his words were unquestionable. He did not want to cause trouble for himself.
It's better to honestly develop ourselves by taking advantage of the White Lotus Rebellion.
When your strength reaches the future, you won’t have to look at other people’s faces anymore.
All prisoners were sent back to Linqing, where they were screened again.
Qualified young people will be incorporated into the New Army Reserves to be replenished to the front line in the future. Those who are unqualified will be assigned to various factories, farms and other places, so that they can be put to their best use.
However, this batch of manpower is too much, and Linqing may not be able to fully absorb it.
Zuo Mengeng couldn't help but look towards the Yimeng Mountain area, knowing that a second base area needed to be opened.
Among the several White Lotus sects, Murong Cai is the weakest.
This man was originally the little leader of the White Lotus Sect, but he stood out because the other leaders died one by one in the court's arrests.
It just so happened that Xu Yaqing started an uprising, and the entire White Lotus Sect was dispatched, causing a commotion throughout Shandong. Murongcai joined in the fun and took advantage of the empty opportunities in Jinan and Qingzhou Prefectures to capture many places one after another. Not only did he loot a large amount of wealth, but also
Tens of thousands of refugees were taken hostage.
Murong Cai was no longer satisfied with the countryside, but set his sights on the city.
Changle County was successfully captured by him using internal forces, and he also captured a lot of weapons and armor.
Murong Cai's greed only grew...
"Murong Cai is a native of Changshan, Zhucheng. His ancestors migrated here from Suzhou during the Northern Song Dynasty. He was originally the master of the Black Stone Altar of the White Lotus Sect. He has mediocre martial arts, is greedy for money and lust, and loves great achievements. At present, he has not stopped after capturing Changle. He plans to fight...
…Yidu.”
Wu Zhenxi, deputy minister of the Ministry of Intelligence, had a strange expression on his face while telling everyone about Murong Cai's intelligence.
Don't talk about him, everyone can't help laughing.
"This guy is so brave, he actually dares to attack Fucheng?"
Yidu is not only the capital of Qingzhou, but also the residence of King Heng. Although it does not have many troops, the strength of the city is no small matter.
No one thought that a group of chaotic bandits could capture such an important town.
Zuo Mengeng patted the table and asked everyone to calm down, saying: "This is just right. We can directly send troops to benefit the capital, and we will not have to chase the thieves everywhere."
Everyone agreed and went back to reorganize the army, and marched to Qingzhou that same day.
Zuo Mengeng left Wu Zhenxi behind and asked, "Your minister hasn't come back yet?"
Wu Zhenxi lowered his voice.
"The minister went to Dengzhou and Laizhou."
Zuo Mengeng nodded slightly, still trusting Zuo Fu's ability.
The new army moved very fast. This time they even abandoned the artillery unit and instead moved forward quickly with infantry.
Changle was recaptured the next night, and then divided into two groups to attack Yidu.
Yidu City is as stable as Mount Tai at this time.
Wang Qiaonian, the prefect of Qingzhou, was lying on the city wall. Although he was helpless watching the thieves outside the city, he didn't have to worry about the city being breached.
As early as when Changle was lost, he woke up and quickly found out the spies in Yidu City and stabilized the city defense.
Facts have proved that a strong city like Yidu, unless there is a traitor, is not so easy to capture, let alone bandits, even if it is regular troops.
What he was worried about was that the autumn harvest was coming soon. If the bandits didn't leave, all the crops would be wasted.
The one who had the same idea as him was Prince Heng's Crown Prince Zhu Youyi.
"Prefect Wang, you have the responsibility to defend the land. You don't think about retreating from the enemy, you defend the city withered, and let the thieves wreak havoc on the countryside. Are you worthy of my great emperor?"
The previous generation of King Heng, Zhu Chang, died as early as the seventh year of Tianqi. The eldest son, Zhu Youkun, also died in the second year. Only Zhu Youtong, the third son of a concubine, is left in charge of the palace.
If nothing unexpected happens, Zhu Youyi will succeed King Heng in a short time.
Therefore, when facing Wang Qiaonian, he was bossy and unceremonious.
Is he accusing Wang Qionian of being afraid of the enemy and timid?
He cares about his land.
Prince Heng owns tens of thousands of hectares of farmland in Qingzhou Mansion, which is a huge income for the Prince Mansion every year.
Now that Wang Qiaonian cannot fight off the thieves, the fields will not be able to be harvested, and all he will lose is money.
Wang Qiaonian was so depressed that he couldn't breathe. He was very depressed.
"Your Highness, the rebels are powerful and there are no defenders in the city. We rely entirely on the gentry and local bravery. We must not leave the city to fight. Once there is a mistake and the city is lost, your highness's rich body will suffer losses. How should I explain to your majesty?
"
King Heng was furious and refused to listen at all.
"If you don't drive away the thieves, the crops in the palace will be wasted. Then so many people in the palace will starve to death, and I will have no food to eat. It's all thanks to you."
Wang Qiaonian was extremely angry and stopped being polite.
"In any case, I have the final say on the matter of defending the city. Your Highness, please go back to your residence and have a rest. Don't let yourself be harmed by the swords and arrows of the thieves."
Wang Qionian had no good impression of Prince Heng's family since he took office.
At a time when the country was in turmoil, this family was extravagant, greedy, and plundered so that local officials could not even collect taxes.
The entire Qingzhou City covers an area of just over 1,400 acres, but how big is Prince Heng's Mansion?
More than 1,200 acres.
There are thousands of people in Prince Heng's Mansion, while the total population of Yidu County is only over 50,000.
Last year, the tax collected by the whole government was more than 21,000 taels of silver. However, when it was collected again this spring, it turned out to be only more than 18,000 taels.
Wang Qiaonian was puzzled and hurriedly went to investigate, and found that more than two thousand acres of land was under the name of Prince Heng's Mansion.
If the state-owned moth is like this, what else can it say?
Wang Qiaonian was disheartened and was ready to resign and go home to serve his mother. He was not polite to Prince Heng either.
Seeing Wang Qiaonian being so tough, Zhu Youyi was furious, but there was nothing he could do.
He really didn't dare to mess around, otherwise he would arouse Chongzhen's suspicion, and the consequences would be serious.
When I was at my wits' end, I suddenly heard the sound of gunfire from below the city.
The people in the city were shocked and looked around quickly.
I saw two Ming troops suddenly burst out of the mountain forest, charging and firing guns, causing the thieves to flee one after another, like tigers chasing sheep.
Seeing that the thieves could not hold on anymore and fled all the way to the southwest, Wang Qiaonian finally showed a relaxed smile.
"Great, this must be the arrival of Dongchang Xiezuo Menggeng."
Now that there is only such a capable Ming army in Shandong, officials from all over the country are eagerly waiting for Dongchang Xie to come over quickly and quell the rebels.
It was clear that the crisis in Yidu City had been resolved, but Zhu Youyi did not show any joy.
Seeing the new army opening up the front line and pushing forward, he stamped his feet and shouted to his personal eunuch Zhou Quan: "You dog slave, go quickly, or these Qiu Bamo gang will trample our fields."
The eunuch was scolded and hurriedly ran away, leaving Wang Qiaonian with an extremely wonderful look on his face.
