At the beginning of Emperor Gaozong's journey to the south of the Song Dynasty, all the peaceful and prosperous people in the country turned into thieves, and they set out to destroy tens of thousands of people. They could not win with swords and banners, and they would hang down for twenty years.
In order to deal with this situation of chaos all over the world, Emperor Gaozong issued a new law for archers to strengthen the grassroots force, and set up 196 inspection villages in the east and west of Zhejiang, east and west of Jiangnan, Jinghunan, Fujian, and Guangnan.
Use local soldiers to calm the place.
Archers and soldiers were both useful at that time. However, as time went by, financial constraints were raised in various places. Archers and soldiers not only failed to make up for the shortage, but often borrowed money from others, and together they were unable to pay for their food and clothing for many years.
, so that some archers and soldiers died of cold and starvation.
With the financial resources of the Song Dynasty, even a small border county could not support a hundred archers; in a wealthy military state like Fuzhou, the local officials really had to think of something to do, not to mention a hundred people, but an army of thousands or thousands of people.
They can also be recruited. However, money from different places has its own destination, and no one is willing to invest money in archers and patrol villages.
Of course, the government wantonly embezzled national wealth and ignored the process of force. It was also a process of wanton expropriation and oppression by powerful gentry and subordinate officials, which made the people miserable. Over the past few decades, the Song State's local public security management became more and more ineffective, and various
There are more and more thieves coming.
For example, around Gushan, which is only more than 20 miles away from the city of Fuzhou, there are no less than five or six villages, and each village is not convinced by Wang Hua. The officials in Fuzhou city can only stare. After a long time, they can collect some symbolic taxes.
That’s it.
In the evening, these villages in the mountains become lively.
The fleeing people or soldiers gathered at the edge of the cliff and chatted. Some people discussed that the few thin fields on the mountainside might not be able to grow food, so they might as well go get some jute seeds and plant some jute in spring and sell them to maritime merchants. Some people complained about the sea.
Large grain ships were heading north one after another. No wonder the officials were pressing hard. Life was very difficult for several of my relatives down the mountain.
Speaking of which, some people hate the tunnels and would rather go to the sea to survive.
As soon as this idea came out, he was immediately stopped by the old man in the village. The old man said that Mr. Wang in the south of Guling was a man who made a living on the sea. There were people in that village and heroes who interacted with Mr. Wang on a daily basis, such as Mr. Zhao and Cai Ba.
Master, who is not a ruthless person, who doesn’t have dozens or hundreds of lives on his hands?
They even attacked the county town and came to our village. They killed people, robbed women, and robbed food!
How can an ant like you compare with a hero? If you go to the sea, you can only go fishing. If you want to do anything else, you will die in the blink of an eye!
Having said that, several young people still exchanged glances with each other, showing eagerness to try.
There is always danger, and death is not necessarily terrible. As long as you have the opportunity to make money, buy land in your hometown and start a family. The danger is worth it!
Thinking this way, people subconsciously turned their heads and looked at the village south of Guling, where the old man mentioned it.
A long way away, I suddenly noticed that the lights in the village were brightly lit.
What happened?
The young man with good eyesight climbed the vines and trees and slowly descended the ridge. He got closer and took a closer look. He came back and said: "At the entrance of the village, there are all people with bows, arrows and swords and guns! We are afraid that something is going to happen, so we still have to
Let’s go!”
The people dispersed in a hurry. It was getting dark anyway, so they hid in their shacks and waited until the sky fell to watch tomorrow.
The people gathered in Mr. Wang Ziqing's village are naturally pirates. The guards at the gate usually serve as guards in the village, but when they get on the boat, they are murderous villains. At this time, the people patrolling back and forth are not only the ones in the village. , as well as Zhao Xique, Cai Ba and others brought more than a hundred fierce warriors from various places.
There were more pine torches lit everywhere in the village. On the high platform in the middle, Cai Ba looked around and did not feel dangerous. On the contrary, he was confident in the strength he had mastered.
Sometimes he would stand up and walk back and forth on the high platform. Under the night, he could vaguely see the rise and fall of the sea, and his heart was full of pride.
In recent years, due to the close maritime exchanges with the Northern Zhou Dynasty, both those who do business at sea and those who rob at sea have had an easier time than before. Many pirate leaders have more money on hand, and it is easier to recruit subordinates. It has become easier, and even with the strength at hand, I can blend with big people who I dare not contact before, and even make some exchanges of interests...
If this situation could continue for a few more years, would the pirates become more than mere pirates?
Cai Ba has been following Zhao Xique on the sea for more than ten years, and the relationship between the two is really good.
So when he thought of this, he became more confident: If Zhao Xi can have a good future, I, Cai, shouldn't be too bad, right? He must give me something to make me feel comfortable for a few years!
Just as he was thinking about it, a pirate leader walked up to the high platform and said: "Chief, two to three hundred people have been circling around for more than an hour and have only scared away a few rabbits. Should we let everyone rest? This is useless. ah!"
"After all, Lao Wang didn't come back, but that idiot Wang Erbai came back..."
The pirate leader said disdainfully: "I have a close acquaintance who just reported that there are at most forty people who followed Wang Erbai ashore. We have more than four hundred brothers in this village. Even if there is something wrong, ten Beating them one by one and crushing them, what are you afraid of?"
"That……"
After all, pirates are not an army.
Cai Ba nodded and said: "Take half of the people and come back to rest. The others will continue to patrol as usual. Don't make Boss Zhao angry. Just go and send a message and say, after half a night of hard work, I will give up two beautiful girls tomorrow morning and let them enjoy themselves." Le Yile, it doesn’t matter if you die!”
His order was indeed a combination of leniency and severity, which was very impressive. However, the pirates had little discipline, and the number of pine torches held high inside and outside the village suddenly decreased by 80-90%. Most of the pirates looking for sentries took the opportunity to return to rest.
At the bottom of Guling, Shi Tianni stood up from the lush grass and asked in a deep voice: "Everyone! You are familiar with the map and have you memorized the roads? You will be walking on a mountain road in a while and you will fall. No one will save you!"
The forty soldiers behind stood up one after another. As they moved, the armor blades, which had been specially coated with black paint to prevent moisture, gently collided, making a small crackling sound. They drew their swords one after another to check, then put them back into their sheaths, the blades hanging on the moon. There was a cold arc of light shining under the color.
"Don't worry about defense! There is no problem with this road."
Shi Tianni paused and asked again: "No more vomiting? No more stomach upset? Have you regained your strength? Can you stand firm on both feet?"
Some in the ranks of soldiers muttered something dissatisfied, while others laughed in a low voice.
"Then proceed as planned. Break into the village from the front and rear gates at the same time, kill all those who resist, take away the valuable things in the village, and then set a fire!"
The soldiers had done this kind of thing hundreds of times in the north, and they were all very familiar with it. They didn't say much at the moment, and just looked at Shi Tianni, waiting for him to give the order.
"Set off!"
The forty soldiers were divided into two teams and walked up the two mountain roads on the left and right. The moonlight was very bright tonight, and they had obtained a detailed map of the place in advance. Where there were turns, where it was steep, and where it was rugged and difficult to navigate, they were all listed clearly.
Chu, so he did not hold up the torch. On the contrary, after walking for less than half an hour, the pirate village with dazzling lights everywhere was right in front of him.
A soldier stood in the shadow and couldn't help but laugh: "This damn thing is too bright. Are you asking others to hit it?"
Suddenly a clear whistle sounded from behind the village!
Everyone, including Shi Tianni, rushed forward.
The village was very loose. It didn't even have a decent village gate. There was only a loose wooden fence at the intersection. The soldiers, wearing dozens of kilograms of heavy armor, were like beasts colliding and overthrowing it.
The pirates who were dozing near the fence were killed immediately, and those who tried to resist could only live a breath or two longer.
They resolved the battle instantly and continued deeper.
The pirates who had just returned to rest in the village were the first to respond. With the sound of gongs and drums, many people rushed over with weapons waving.
Shi Tianni remained completely calm, the rhythm of his forward steps did not change, and he did not even issue any orders.
One hundred people, no more. Shi Tianni was familiar with battles of this scale before he was sixteen years old. When he led the local tribesmen to subdue the local powerful, the number of enemies was mostly this number. Later he joined the army,
Being involved in a wave of fighting between big countries and heavy troops, there are few opportunities for such small fights.
Now that they bumped into each other again, he felt a little warm and nostalgic for his carefree teenage life.
Twenty-one people ran into the enemy formation.
No, that can't be called an enemy formation. Shi Tianni's subordinates have been on the battlefield for a long time and received continuous and rigorous training. They have steady steps, a tight formation, and flawless slashing and assassination movements with their martial arts. This is called a military formation.
The noisy group of shirtless people opposite can only be regarded as a herd of animals. They are not tigers and leopards, at most they are a group of wild dogs.
Shi Tianni thought lightly, and swung the long sword freely based on instinct. On his left and right, twenty swords were shining brightly, cutting off the enemy's weapons and cutting off the enemy's body, and the soldiers kept moving forward.
The pirates tried their best to resist with swords and guns, but as the bravest dozen or so were easily killed, those who followed began to flee wailing. It’s no wonder that these people are used to being in the messy environment of the deck of a sea-going ship.
, that kind of fighting between people; they have no concept of covering each other and advancing and retreating together.
Before it was half tea time, half of the first batch of pirates who rushed up fled, and half of them became corpses scattered on the ground.
Suddenly there was a crackling sound. It was someone shooting arrows at the soldiers from the stockade, and then someone rushed up under the cover of the arrows.
However, things like crossbows are very easy to be damaged in the humid and salty environment of the sea, and it is impossible for pirates to have the discipline and conditions to maintain them. The arrows they shoot are weak and weak, and they hit the heavy armor.
Knock off a piece of patent leather, but the fine iron armor underneath will not be damaged at all.
The arrows did not act as a cover at all. The second group of pirates who rushed up turned into corpses in an instant, and were stepped over by the soldiers. Blood flowed all the way behind the soldiers.
The soldiers stepped over the corpses, knocked over several shacks, and rushed to the high platform surrounded by lights.
Not long after the battle broke out, Cai Ba understood that Wang Ziqing must be dead, and this old boy was exposed! A murderer from the north came to kill him, and he would never be in trouble again!
Closer, closer! Each of these vicious men are iron men, and they have all become blood men! The blood is the blood of the brothers in the village!
The Northerners are really scary. They are ten times more powerful than the rumors say. The situation in front of us is like a tiger taking over a flock of sheep! This is not a fight, but a destruction!
Cai Ba turned around and jumped off the high platform.
He endured the severe pain in his ankle and wanted to go back, but found that the back of the village was also in chaos, so he had to turn back. Suddenly he saw an acquaintance in front of him, the pirate leader who was on duty tonight.
Cai Ba grabbed him fiercely and cursed angrily: "Didn't you just say that we could crush them if we hit one out of ten? Why don't you crush them!"
How could the pirate leader answer when his heart was broken? He struggled desperately, shook off Cai Ba's hand, then rushed a few steps, changed direction and fled. Cai Ba's subordinates were panicked, and a dozen of them followed.
Ran.
Cai Ba jumped on his feet and shouted several times, but no one paid attention.
When he turned around again, he saw Zhao Xi walking vigorously and running towards him.
"Boss Zhao, let's go together!" Cai Bal shouted loudly, and then he saw Zhao Xi falling down in front of him.
He rolled forward and rushed forward, only to see blood and brain matter spurting out from a huge wound on the right side of Zhao Xique's skull, and the inside of his skull had become a hollow.
Cai Ba screamed in fright, and when he raised his head again, a cold light flashed before his eyes.
His head was flying in the air. The next moment, everything was over. He felt comfortable.