Zhang Ning, who was very eloquent in the Han Dynasty's palace, seemed to be suddenly speechless tonight. He didn't know how to talk about it, so he had to tell Zhang Xiaomei directly about the tragedy at home in Nanjing. The joyful atmosphere of the reunion immediately disappeared.
Zhang Ning thought that her little sister would become more dependent on him when she was sad, and might cry in his arms, but she turned her back and sat on the edge of the bed without saying a word.
Looking at her back and trembling shoulders, Zhang Ning suddenly felt that his little sister seemed to be far away from him, even though she was only a few steps away. He glanced at Fang Ling who was standing next to him. Fang Ling hurriedly walked to the bed, his arms
He put his arms around the little sister's shoulders and whispered comfort. But the little sister remained silent and her cries could not be heard. She might have shed tears, but she turned her back to Zhang Ning and did not let Zhang Ning see her.
He had no way to explain or absolve himself of responsibility. He originally wanted to describe the efforts he had made for the Zhang family. First, he sent the Peach Blossom Fairy to rescue him, and later he wanted to wait for the King of Han to capture Nanjing and rescue him... But it didn't work, even if he told it.
He was also pale and weak. He opened his mouth and said nothing.
The younger sister usually doesn't care much about outside affairs, but she is not stupid. She must know that all this is Zhang Ning's crime outside, which is why his uncle's family has been implicated. Yao Ji and others hurriedly hid in the mountains.
This shows the seriousness of the matter.
Who is Zhang Xiaomei’s closest relative? Although her uncle Zhang Jiujin’s family is separated by one layer, they are her closest by blood, and she has been living with her uncle’s family since her parents passed away one after another. Zhang Ning thought about herself,
He was just the adopted son of the Zhang family. He had actually become a different person since that coma. Those brother-sister relationships were just a memory in his mind.
Zhang Ning felt that he was sorry for the Zhang family, including Zhang Xiaomei. Thinking about how Zhang Jiujin scolded him as an elder for causing trouble, it seemed that he was not wrong... and now he has caused the family members to lose their lives.
"I'm sorry..." Zhang Ning finally said something. Fang Ling turned around and looked at his face, but his apology at the moment was not adulterated.
The younger sister finally spoke up. She choked with sobs and said, "Where's Xiaoya? Was she also killed?"
Zhang Ning thought she was probably talking about her little niece. Girls in this era generally didn't have names, so they just called her by a nickname at home. He then said blankly: "It is said that they are all dead, but I haven't seen it with my own eyes."
"Why...died?" The younger sister's tone became even sadder.
Zhang Ning's face twitched slightly and said: "Lingchi will be executed." He didn't know what his mentality was. Maybe he should lie to her to make her feel better, but he thought for a moment that he couldn't hide this matter for too long, so he simply let her know.
She was sad once and that was enough.
After a long time, the little sister cried: "Now that everything has been said, what are you still doing here?"
Zhang Ning turned to look at Fang Ling, made a gesture to let her accompany him, then turned around and walked out. When he walked out of the room, the cool air outside made his head freeze, and he felt as if he was dreaming.
…
Several rooms on one side of the temple dedicated to the gods, the "Weapons Bureau" wooden boards hanging at the door were nailed up a few months ago and are still hanging. Zhang Ning sat on a chair behind a big case, waiting for Yao Erlang
People looking for him came in one after another.
The first ones to arrive were Fan Laosi and Wei Bin. They sat on the chairs in front of the big case and waited. Zhang Ning said hello and ignored them. He still looked at the files in front of him. His eyes were darkened and he was in high spirits.
Also a bit sluggish.
After a while, two generals, Ma Dapeng, who was in charge of the weapons workshop, plus Yao Erlang, Lao Xu and Wenjun also came in. There were nine people in the living room, and everyone didn't know why Zhang Ning looked so bad. They probably thought he had just
We didn't have a good rest when we came here, so they greeted each other and it was a lively moment.
"Everyone, please take a seat." Zhang Ning waved his hand, indicating that everyone no longer needed to be polite, "I want to say two things first."
After hearing this, everyone took their seats and turned around to listen. Zhang Ning tapped the file in front of him with his finger and said: "The first thing is, starting from today, the officers and soldiers who have been registered on the roster will start to receive military pay again. The director of the Ordnance Bureau
and the remuneration of the craftsmen. As before, Fan Laosi took good care of the accounts and asked the accounting office to use the money and material classification accounting and the four-pillar liquidation method to manage finances and materials. Every ten days I would send someone to allocate money and audit the accounts. Chapter 1
Second thing, the superiors have agreed to find a way to rescue the captured Hou Tan Master in Shimen County. Let's do this. I plan to use the Fengxia Mountain Hundred Household Team to attack Shimen County. After occupying this county, I will rescue Hou Tan Master. Die in battle.
The family members of the injured will receive a pension of thirty taels of silver, and those who are injured and disabled will receive ten taels of silver, and they will continue to receive military pay and be relocated. What do you think?"
Wei Bin, a man with a Chinese character, immediately said sternly: "Several cannons weighing more than four hundred kilograms each can't be transported out on hundreds of miles of rugged mountain roads from Fengxia Mountain to Shimen County. Even if there are cannons, if the government closes the city gate
If it is blocked, it will be difficult for this kind of artillery to blast open the city gate, let alone the city wall. It seems that our few people are not enough to attack the city by force."
Zhang Ning said: "I came from Shimen County and took a general look at the city defenses. There are no firearms, and there are no light or heavy cannons on the walls. We cannot suppress us from a distance. As long as we use muskets to suppress the towers, we can get close to the city. There are many ways to break it.
The troops assembled in Changde Mansion in the city have no combat effectiveness at all. The commander of the guard station can't even mount his horse. I saw it with my own eyes."
Apparently this matter was approved by Monk Yao. Wei Bin said a few words and then stopped talking.
Zhang Ning added: "The artillery in the arsenal cannot be transported out, so as to prevent it from falling into the hands of others in the future, the iron has melted in the past few days. There is no need for artillery in this battle. The army is not terrible. The military household in Changde Prefecture lasts a year."
We can't even train once. Our armed forces in Fengxia Mountain have to practice every morning. Not to mention the suppression of firearms, even hand-to-hand combat is stronger than the army. They are all raised by their parents, and military households cannot be linked to the army.
Your name has become brave inexplicably, right?"
The two commander-in-chiefs laughed after hearing this, and one of them rubbed his hands as if he was ready to try.
The big-headed man who was rubbing his hands couldn't help but said: "In addition to rescuing people, let's seize the county town and rob his grandma. The money in the county government treasury, as well as those big families, will not be robbed unless they are free, and the common people will not be robbed."
Yes. If the brothers are allowed to do this, the fight will be unstoppable."
"We are not bandits." Zhang Ning said.
The man said angrily: "Your Highness, don't blame me, I'm just talking."
Zhang Ning said: "The things in the county public treasury must belong to us. The whole county must also collect taxes, especially those with money and food. When the time comes, guns will be placed on the heads of the officials and they will help collect taxes."
. But everything must be confiscated, and the brothers’ reward money will be divided according to merit. Otherwise, our Ordnance Bureau has to spend money to make weapons, pay salaries, and give rewards. Where will the money come from?”
"Isn't this still robbery?" The man said with a smile, "You are a scholar, so the method you use is different."
This man's surname is Luo, and he is the leader of the Zuo General Banner (sixty people). Zhang Ning can't remember his name. The other You General Banner is a lean middle-aged man. Because his surname is Zhang, he is more impressive, and his name is Zhang Chengzong.
.
Zhang Ning's eyes swept across the faces of the two people, feeling that Zhang Chengzong should be more cautious, so he said: "We have to make some preparations before departure. General Zhang Qi, you send a team of people to dress up and go to Shimen County to defend the city first.
Let’s find out more about the terrain along the way.”
"My subordinates have orders." Zhang Chengzong stood up and clasped his fists in response. Zhang Ning was very satisfied when he saw this. He is usually very easy-going. He can still hold the general flag respectfully. He is indeed a steady and measured person.
Zhang Ning looked at Fan Laosi and Ma Dapeng again: "You melted the cannons; check the muskets in the arsenal and repair those that cannot be used; prepare as many particles of gunpowder as possible."
The two also accepted the order. The homemade gunpowder used in Fengxia Mountain has also been improved. Mix nitrate, sulfur and charcoal in proportion, then add water and stir. After drying, use two bamboo sieves with different densities to sift out the particles. This kind of granular gunpowder
It is easier to use than the powder form, at least when there is wind, the loaded ammunition will not blow everywhere.
After arranging things, Zhang Ning ordered everyone to disperse their busy work. He and Lao Xu wandered around, first going to the weapons workshop in the east of the village. Work had stopped inside, and only a few people were guarding it. Fan Laosi was working there
Send someone to summon the craftsmen.
When Ma Dapeng, a man from Shandong Province, saw Zhang Ning coming, he acted like he was in a hurry. The people who came first arranged for them to do some simple tasks: loading ammunition in bamboo tubes. Of course Zhang Ning knew about custom-loading ammunition, and he had arranged weapons before.
The bureau has done it. Put a certain amount of gunpowder and lead bullets in a thin bamboo tube, then plug it with oil paper, and then tie the bamboo tubes together with a rope; priming does not have to be so troublesome. Before soldiers go to the battlefield, they usually
A long string of bamboo tubes were hung on the body. If the battle took a long time and ran out of ammunition, the soldiers could refill the diabolo tubes themselves.
After leaving the workshop, Zhang Ning went to the grassland outside the village to watch Wei Bin and Yao Erlang training soldiers. There were one hundred and twenty-four soldiers in the team, and there were more than ten miscellaneous soldiers. Because there were few people, each soldier had a matchlock gun.
.In fact, the several villages in Fengxia Mountain combined have 700 to 800 households. There was no family planning at this time and most families had more than one male. It was not difficult to mobilize an army of a thousand people. But in the past, this
Naturally, the local area does not need so many weapons. The focus is on farming. Organizing more than a hundred people to practice martial arts is enough to defend the village. However, these more than 100 people have been practicing martial arts for a long time and can be regarded as elite soldiers.
When all the soldiers saw Zhang Ning approaching, they all clasped their fists and bent down to greet him. When Zhang Ning saw this, he bowed down and clasped his fists in a very unimpressive manner. His forehead felt hot and he said: "Let's not salute like this in the future. Let's set up another rule."
Everyone stood there and didn't know what to do. Zhang Ning thought of the modern salute gesture and felt that it was strange for a group of ancient people to use that gesture. But the words had been spoken and he had to find a way at the last moment. He suddenly remembered the Nazi army's gesture in the movie.
The salute was very distinctive, and I intuitively felt that the Nazis were very organized, so I raised my left hand without thinking too much...