47 Chapter 47
◎Origin of banditry◎
“Bang!”
In the wooden house by the dock, the guard slapped himself in the face and muttered, "It's already autumn, why are the mosquitoes still so vicious?"
The mosquito buzzed away, and he was slapped for no reason. He was furious and chased after it, slapping it non-stop.
The companion turned over and said impatiently, "It's just a mosquito, don't disturb my sleep."
"Sleep, sleep, sleep, all you do is sleep, you pig!" He cursed and continued to chase the mosquito out the door. "You dare to suck my blood, you damn mosquito? I'll tear you into pieces!"
companion:"……"
The days of guarding the ferry are really boring. Except for the busy times when the grain ships come, the rest of the time you can only play with insects.
For example, if you catch a mosquito, first pull off a few of its legs, then pull out its blood-sucking mouthparts, then tear off its wings, and then press down on its blood-filled belly with two thumb nails. With a "pop", the mosquito will be killed to pieces.
Occasionally, a passing cargo ship would come to ask for water, but they would have to send it away.
Private docks are not uncommon in Daqi. Although it is a bit strange to be located next to the mountains and forests, there has never been any problem over the years.
The security at the dock is not very strict, and there is no need for it to be too strict.
There is a sentry tower on the high hillside, which has a clear view of the movements on the river surface. Whenever there is any unusual movement on the river surface, the sentry can give an early warning.
It is also impossible for officers and soldiers to appear on the river.
Over time, the guards near the dock became lazy and slack except when food was delivered.
However, just over half a month ago, instructions came from above to increase vigilance, and the guards took them at face value. However, nothing went wrong for half a month, but in the past two days things have returned to their original state.
The guard who had hit the mosquito finally got his revenge, and after venting his anger, he asked, "When was the last time the grain ship delivered food?"
"Tsk, you've been thinking about wine," his companion squinted at him, "just these past two days, right?"
"Life is hard without wine. It would be nice if I could bring more."
"Bringing you some wine is already risky, how could I bring you more?" his companion scoffed. "You'll die from the wine sooner or later."
The guard rolled his eyes at him and said, "It's not like I don't want to pay."
He rolled his eyes from left to right, then paused. His gaze swept across the river, but after a few breaths, he retracted his gaze with a hint of regret in his eyes.
"What did you see?" His companions were no strangers to his appearance.
The guard chuckled and said, "There was a young lady on the boat that just passed by. I had to take a closer look. Tell me, how long has it been since you last saw a woman?"
“…”
The companion was obviously also feeling very uncomfortable and rarely made any rebuttal.
On the boat, Xie Mingzhuo and his men had already stripped off the "skin" of the Jinyiwei. Taking advantage of the rain stopping, they stood at the bow and stern of the boat to observe the surrounding terrain.
The boat was not far from the shore and could clearly see the situation at the dock, but could not observe the surrounding guards.
But Yang Yunkai, Lin Fan and Luo Qi were experienced. After observing the trends of the mountains and forests, they pointed out several places where watchtowers might be hidden on the map.
These places serve as sentry points, and everything happening on the river can be seen at a glance.
Their ship is now exposed to the sentinels and they cannot act rashly.
The boat didn't stop until it turned around the winding river and reached a steep cliff.
The mountains here are too steep to set up a sentry post, and are also in a blind spot of the dock sentries. Sneaking into the forest from here will not alert the guards.
"After the grain arrives at the dock, it needs to be sent to the barracks' granary. There must be a dedicated road from the dock to the granary. If we follow the trail along this road, we might be able to find the barracks." Xie Mingzhuo looked up at the mountain wall. "But we don't know how well the granary road is guarded."
Yang Yun understood and immediately asked, "I'll go capture the guard and ask him about it."
"Wait until nightfall."
At the hour of Xu, the mountains and forests were silent, and there were no ships traveling on the river.
Together, Yang Yunkai and Lin Fan quietly climbed the mountain wall, slipped into the deep forest, and headed for the wooden house near the dock. They carefully avoided the sight of the watchtower and reached the dock in a matter of moments.
There were only two guards in the cabin, one was snoring loudly, and the other seemed to be on guard but was actually deserting his post.
Yang Yunkai gently pried open the window, and the night watchman did not notice.
He sat on the bed with his back to the window, his legs relaxed and spread apart, his waist slightly bent, his hands in front of him, and his breathing gradually became heavier.
They are all men, and it is clear what the other party is doing.
The two looked at each other and although it wasn't kind, they had to admit that this was a good time.
When men reach the highest point, their minds are often the most relaxed, and they can take advantage of this point to sneak into the house quietly.
The guard let out a long groan and was immersed in the wonderful aftermath when he suddenly felt a cool breeze behind his head. Before he could react, he felt a pain in the back of his neck and his vision went black. His last thought before he passed out was: Even the snoring dead pig has stopped snoring.
To avoid accidental inspections, Lin Fan stayed behind in the cabin, pretending to be a guard. The guard who had been sleeping before was drugged and fell into a deep sleep.
Yang Yunkai quietly returned to the cabin with the guard who had committed suicide and poured a basin of cold water on him to wake him up.
The guard woke up with a start, his eyes covered with a black cloth and a dagger against his neck. The dagger was sharp and cold, and could cut his throat in the blink of an eye.
"Do you want to live?" A murderous voice came to my ears.
He was shaking all over, his hands and feet were cold, his mind was unable to work, and he said subconsciously: "Think, think."
"What's your name?"
"Liu Hu."
"How old?"
"Three, thirty-one."
"Where do you live?"
"I, I have no home," Liu Hu finally came to his senses and begged for mercy, "Please spare my life, brave man. I will give you as much money as you want. Please don't kill me."
Yang Yunkai sneered: "I don't want money."
"What do you want?"
Liu Hu had no idea where he came from, and how he was able to sneak past numerous checkpoints and get himself out.
By the sound of the water outside and the feeling of swaying with the current, he knew he was being transferred to the boat.
Could it be pirates?
"We need food."
"I have no food."
The dagger was pressed down, just piercing a layer of skin. Before blood was seen, Liu Hu was so scared that he almost wet his pants.
"No! No! Please be merciful, brave man. It's not that I don't want to give it to you, but I really don't have any food. I do have some money, but it's all hidden at the dock."
"Don't play tricks on me," Yang Yunkai said hoarsely, "You receive so much food at the dock every time, do you really think I can't see it?"
Liu Hu was shocked.
The grain transport ships always came late at night. There were guards on the rivers in front and behind, and there were watchtowers on the mountain, so no matter who came, they would be discovered.
How did this pirate know this?
"If you don't tell the truth, you won't have this thing anymore."
Liu Hu felt the other person's other hand, holding a dagger, approaching his penis.
He rolled his eyes and pleaded, "Sir, please have mercy. Since you know about the grain ship, you must also know that the grain is not under my control. I can't deliver it even if I want to."
"Then tell me in detail about the grain transportation."
Liu Hu thought to himself that this pirate was so arrogant that he even dared to target the Bishan granary. Even if he told him, he would not be able to take the granary away from him.
The most important thing is to save your life first!
He originally wanted to mix truth and lies to teach the pirate a lesson, but the pirate was very alert. He found out the loophole in his words and punched him several times. He didn't know what kind of evil magic he used, but the place where he was beaten was in unbearable pain.
He really couldn't hold it back any longer, and he emptied it all out like beans from a bamboo tube.
Outside the cabin, Xie Mingzhuo stood tall and graceful. After listening to Liu Hu's "confession," he turned back to the cabin, handed Yang Yunkai a bottle of medicine, and said indifferently, "Give him a pill."
"Yes, Boss." Yang Yunkai stepped into the role of a pirate, pinched Liu Hu's mouth open, stuffed a brown pill into it, and said grimly, "It would be a pity to feed him such a rare poison."
Poison?!
Liu Hu felt his vision getting darker and darker, as if the sky was falling.
"As long as he can lead us to rob food, it won't be a pity. Let him take an antidote on time at noon every day to avoid dying from intestinal perforation." Xie Mingzhuo said coldly and left the cabin.
This method of threat was learned from a novel in his previous life. Although it was old-fashioned, it was quite advanced for Liu Hu, who had never read a novel.
He was indeed threatened.
All the little plans in my mind disappeared in an instant, without any hope left. I even started thinking about how to cover up for them when they stole food.
As a transit station for grain transportation, the guards at the dock can not only communicate with the grain transport team, but also treat the grain guarding team in the mountains as brothers.
The brothers in the mountains have a very hard time, so they always have to find some entertainment.
They traded with the grain transport team through the guards at the dock. Every time the grain transport team transported grain, they would smuggle some contraband and earn high running fees.
The grain-guarding team needed their help, so in order to maintain good relations, they would occasionally hunt some wild game from the mountains to share with them, or even embezzle some grain, collude with the guards at the dock and the grain-transporting team, and sell it for money to share the spoils.
A teahouse can be a small society, let alone the vast green mountain peaks.
There are always people who enrich themselves.
Since they are all in the same boat, some secrets are no longer secrets. Liu Hu knows the guarding situation of the mountain grain routes and granaries very well.
Compared to the food, their own lives were of course more important. It wasn't the first time they had sold food privately.
Liu Hu thought they were just pirates trying to steal food, so in order to save his own life, he decided to take them to steal food without any psychological burden.
He even had a sudden idea and said, "Brave men, there is no need to go through so much trouble. As long as you are willing to share the profits with me, I can lead you to steal food every month."
Yang Yunkai: “…”
"Strong man?"
"Others may not agree." Yang Yunkai deliberately provoked.
Liu Hu heard the pirates' intentions and hurriedly added, "The grain transport team can only smuggle so little food. They sell so little every month, and they have to pay them a high commission, which only means they get a few hundred yuan. You have such strength, you can definitely transport more. Then everyone will make money. Who would report us?"
That makes sense, but there are still risks. It's impossible for all the people guarding the grain team to be rats.
"If you're still worried, feed them poison and they'll be obedient." Liu Hu sold out his teammates without hesitation.
Since we are all grasshoppers, no one can escape.
He can't be the only one who suffers from this misfortune.
Yang Yunkai was silent for a moment, then chuckled and said, "Okay."
With his many years of experience in handling cases, Liu Hu told the truth and there was no trace of lying or deception.
Without further ado, let’s go up the mountain.
Li Jiuyue and Feng Caiyu were not strong enough to go deep into the mountains, so they stayed on the boat with Luo Qi, hiding in the reeds under the cliff and waiting for orders.
Yang Yunkai privately disapproved of His Highness going into the mountains in person, but when he saw His Highness walking through the mountains and forests as if it were flat ground, even more easily and freely than him, and even able to accurately avoid the sentries, he couldn't help but respect him.
At midnight, the four arrived at the wooden house at the pier.
The guard on the bed was still asleep. Lin Fan had been alert to his surroundings, but when he saw them, the wariness in his eyes disappeared instantly.
Yang Yunkai pulled off the black cloth covering Liu Hu's eyes, took out a "poison pill" and placed it in his hand, urging him, "Go, feed it to him."
Liu Hu hesitated for a few moments, then stepped forward to feed him the medicine.
As brothers, we share the same difficulties!
Seeing that he didn't even struggle, Xie Mingzhuo and the other three knew that the guards of Bishan might not be united, and could even be said to be a group of disunited people.
The plan to find the main camp through the grain route may really be possible.
After Liu Hu fed the pill to his companion, he reached out and slapped his companion's face left and right a few times. His companion suddenly opened his eyes and saw four more people beside the bed. He was about to shout loudly, but Liu Hu covered his mouth tightly.
"Don't scream, don't scream. I just fed you poison. If you scream, you'll be the first to die."
His companions glared at him, with the word "traitor" written all over their eyes.
"Don't pretend with me. If you really have guts, would you join us in selling grain privately?" Liu Hu exposed him with one word.
companion:"……"
He gradually stopped struggling, his eyes still hesitant as he looked at the four uninvited guests, and lingered on Xie Mingzhuo's face for a few moments.
Yang Yunkai and Lin Fan stepped forward at the same time, blocking his view, warnings in their eyes.
"I'm letting go. Don't scream. I don't want to die." Liu Hu advised him, "They are all the bosses on the river. They want to borrow some food. It's not like we haven't done this before. Why do we have to risk our lives for a little food?"
His companions secretly rolled their eyes at him.
Idiot! These people look extraordinary, how can they be pirates who rob food?
But he really didn't want to die, so he nodded.
Liu Hu let go of his hand.
"What's your name?" Yang Yunkai twirled the dagger in his hand, but his tone was as if he was chatting casually.
"Qian Bao, his name is Qian Bao."
"I didn't ask you."
"Oh." Liu Hu nudged the leopard, "Answer me properly."
Qian Bao: “…”
Jiang Qing brought a wooden stool, blew away the dust on it, put a towel on it, and placed it behind Xie Mingzhuo.
"Master, please take a break."
Xie Mingzhuo sat down, taking in the information from Yang Yunkai's interrogation with his ears and observing the layout of the wooden house with his eyes.
There were only two wooden beds, a low table, and two stools in the room. There was a wooden frame at the door, with two yellowed and stiff cloth towels draped on it, swaying in the wind.
There was a simple stove in the next room, with a few plates on it with some leftover food on them.
Being close to the river and shaded by dense trees, the house was extremely damp and mold had grown in many places.
The living conditions are poor and the sanitary conditions are also worrying.
Yang Yunkai looked at Liu Hu with eagle eyes: "You said you could help us borrow some food. The boss will trust you for once and spare your life."
"Thank you, boss." Liu Hu smiled and bowed to Xie Mingzhuo.
"You're welcome," Xie Mingzhuo said slowly. "You've been so forthright in telling us about the grain routes and granaries. This is what you deserve."
Liu Hu nodded.
"However, I cannot believe your one-sided statement. I need to ask Qian Bao again. If you two agree, I will give you the antidote on time tomorrow. If there is any discrepancy..."
"Every word I said is true!" Liu Hu said hurriedly, "If there are any discrepancies, it's not my fault."
Qian Bao: “…”
"Speak." Yang Yunkai stared at him fiercely.
Qian Bao spoke helplessly.
From the dock to the granary, one has to go around seven mountains, and the total length of the granary is about ten miles. The location of the granary is called "Wugu Peak" and is located in the northeast of the central peak group.
There is a checkpoint every two miles on the grain road. After passing a checkpoint, you can get an access token. The token must be verified at each checkpoint. The token on the previous checkpoint must be completely consistent with the token on the next checkpoint before the grain cart can enter.
The defense of Wugu Peak was even stricter, with more than one hundred soldiers drawn from each of the nine camps to garrison there, totaling one thousand people.
"A thousand people are involved in the illegal sale of grain?"
"Of course not," Qian Bao shook his head. "Not many people know about this. Only a few centurions from Wugu Peak and a few small flags guarding the grain road."
Hundred households? Small flags?
Without the imperial appointment documents, where would the centurions and small flags come from?
Yang Yunkai sneered inwardly, but didn't show it on his face. He continued to ask, "What are the names of the captains who stole the grain, and which peak are they from?"
Qian Bao realized that something was wrong, but he had no choice. No matter what he did, there would be no good outcome, so he chose to live a few more days.
What he said was consistent with what Liu Hu said. It was impossible for the two of them to collude with each other in advance, so the information should be accurate.
Although he only questioned the grain transport and granary guards, Xie Mingzhuo was able to analyze more information from their confessions.
There are nine major camps in Bishan, stationed at nine peaks. Seven of the peaks have two thousand soldiers in each camp, and the remaining two camps are the Fire Gun Camp and the Cavalry Camp, with eight hundred and five hundred soldiers respectively.
The total number of staff is 15,300, which is similar to their previous estimate.
Just knowing the military strength was not enough. Her purpose in coming here was to divide the Bishan troops and learn more about the inside story of the Ninth Battalion.
"With so many soldiers and horses hidden in the mountains, it's obvious they aren't from the imperial court," Yang Yunkai pretended to think. "Could they be kept by Prince Liang's Mansion? What does he want to do? Rebellion?"
Liu and Qian were shocked.
They knew this in their hearts, but they really didn't have the courage to speak out. They were low-level soldiers who only cared about whether they could have enough food every day. As for whether there would be rebellion, they didn't care at all, thinking it had little to do with them.
The two remained silent, but then they heard the pirate say, "But isn't King Liang dead?"
Liu Hu muttered quietly: "Even if I die, there is still a prince."
"The prince has no son, so why would he rebel?"
Xie Yu's son was hidden so well that even the people in Prince Liang's mansion probably didn't know about him, let alone these soldiers who had lived in the mountains for a long time?
Presumably, the news that Xie Yu used his son as a hostage had not yet reached Bishan.
With the death of King Liang, the people of Bishan are leaderless, and it is inevitable that some people will have disloyal ideas.
Qian Bao said, "The Crown Prince doesn't have it, but the Second Young Master does."
"But the heir to the title is the prince," Yang Yunkai sneered, "I'd say stop fooling around and go home to farm."
Liu and Qian were choked. Can they disband just like that?
"How much food do you want?" Qian Bao looked at Xie Mingzhuo and asked a key question.
It can be seen that this girl is the leader among the four.
Although she was wearing men's clothes, was taller than the average man, and had heroic features, he was not blind and could tell at a glance that she was a girl, and a very smart one at that.
I don’t know what his identity is.
Xie Mingzhuo chuckled: "As many as you can get."
"Impossible," Qian Bao shook his head, "You can't do it even if you kill me."
Liu Hu also agreed: "It's not up to us to decide."
“Who gets to decide?”
"Of course it's the captain in charge of the warehouse," Liu Hu curled his lips, "but we don't always see him. Usually it's the general flag under his command who comes forward."
Xie Mingzhuo patiently inquired, "You just said that there were only a few centurions in the conspiracy, but you didn't say nine. Why?"
"Of course, the fewer people who know about this kind of thing, the better," Qian Bao shrugged. "Besides, if the Nine Great Battalions are at odds with each other, the centurions below will naturally be at odds too. Who would tell their enemies about their bad deeds?"
"Why not?"
Qian Bao asked in return: "How many leaders does your gang have?"
"Um... five."
"And?"
Xie Mingzhuo's silence indicated discord in Qian Bao's eyes.
He spread his hands and said, "Look, if the five of you are not getting along, how can the nine of you get along?"
"You're just dock guards, but you know a lot."
Liu Hu said, "Hey!" "We've been staying in this damn place all day, so we have to have some fun. The fun in the Ninth Battalion is definitely no less than that in your gang."
"If you don't want to stay here, why don't you leave?" Jiang Qing couldn't help but ask, "There are so many merchant ships on the river. If you leave at night, no one will know."
Liu and Qian were stunned for a while, then smiled bitterly.
"Where can we go if we leave?" Liu Hu sighed. "We are all homeless. It's good enough to have a peaceful life."
Lin Fan had been observing them for a long time and spoke at the right time: "You are not locals, and you didn't come here voluntarily."
Both of them were a little surprised.
"We speak Anlu dialect quite authentically. How did you tell?" Liu Hu was puzzled.
"Accents change easily, but tastes are hard to change." Lin Fan nodded at the stove. "That's horse hoof sashimi in the bowl, right? It's a specialty snack from Runing Prefecture, Henan. They're also sold in Anlu County, but they're not as authentic as this."
If you are a local, there is no need to insist on eating authentic Henan dim sum under such conditions.
Even if the snacks were just a coincidence, he still had other evidence.
Liu Hu couldn't help but give a thumbs up and said, "I am indeed from Runing Prefecture. Then guess where the old money came from."
"Sichuan."
Qian Bao was also surprised: "How did you see that?"
"When you fell asleep just now, the handkerchief in your arms slipped out. If I'm not mistaken, it should be Shu embroidery. You cherish it so much, it must be a gift from a relative or friend."
Qian Bao once again looked at the four people, his face filled with an indescribable solemnity. After thinking for a long time, he finally made up his mind and said, "You are not pirates."
“It doesn’t matter who we are,” Xie Mingzhuo said. “Why did you leave your homeland and come here?”
Liu Hu sighed, "What do you mean by leaving home? I was tricked into coming here. My parents died of illness, and all our money was spent on their medical treatment. To make a living, my brother listened to the advice of his fellow villagers and went to work in the mines in the north. He's been gone for several years, and there's been no news from him."
"What happened next?" Jiang Qing asked.
"Later," Liu Hu's eyes showed a hint of sadness, "someone came to the village to recruit workers, but no one wanted to go. So the court sent people to conscript men, even those as young as thirteen or fourteen. No one could survive, so they all hid in the mountains. What happened..."
"Become a bandit."
"Yes, I became a bandit."
Jiang Qing: "No wonder Runing Prefecture is plagued by bandits."
Things are definitely not as simple as Liu Hu said. Is there any connection between the mine's recruitment of workers and the court's conscription of men?
Xie Mingzhuo suddenly understood the intention of what Lin Fan had just said.
She asked, "Are there many homeless people like you in Bishan?"
"It's hard to say," Liu Hu scratched his head. "I only know that most of the brothers in Wugu Peak and the grain guards are from other places and don't have many relatives."
The mines were recruiting workers and the government was conscripting young men, which led to the separation of countless families. As a result, public resentment was boiling and banditry was rampant.
These "bandit problems" not only consume Henan's military strength, but also replenish the Bishan army's personnel, and are not easy to let people know.
Once an uprising breaks out, these bandits can be instigated by humans to become the "vanguard" of the attack on the capital, and finally King Liang will seize the throne of emperor.
If these speculations are correct, then the Henan mines, Datong Coach Station, Henan Governor's Office, Henan Provincial Administration Commissioner's Office, and Anlu's upper and lower government offices are all on the same chain of interests.
The bandit problem in Henan has not been eradicated for a long time. Could it be that someone is doing it on purpose in order to bring down the Henan Regional Command and frame good generals?
In the previous memorial impeaching Zong Zhen, in addition to his disobeying the orders of the Ministry of War, there was also one point that he "raised the enemy for his own benefit."
Xie Mingzhuo had a plan in mind and asked, "Why are the government conscripting men?"
The Qi Dynasty implemented the military household system, and most of the troops came from military households. It was quite rare to conscript young men into the army.
"They say they're going to build a Taoist temple for the old emperor." Liu Hu pointed to the sky exaggeratedly, "It's going to be as high as the sky."
Yang Yunkai's expression changed slightly: "Let go..."
"Why did Brother Qian come to Anlu?" Xie Mingzhuo interrupted Yang Yunkai.
Yang Yunkai was not stupid, and it was impossible for him not to know that the word "impudent" was inappropriate, but as the emperor's personal guard, he could not remain silent when he heard someone slandering the emperor, not to mention that Her Royal Highness the Princess was by his side.
It is so difficult to be a royal employee.
Xie Mingzhuo gave him the opportunity to express his attitude and interrupted him at the right time.
This is an unspoken understanding between the monarch and his subjects.
Qian Bao said casually, "My family was in trouble and I was the only one left. I became a beggar and begged all the way to Anlu to get a meal here."
"It's getting late," Xie Mingzhuo stood up and looked down at the two of them. "Let's talk things over before daybreak regarding the discord between the Nine Battalions."
"Are you not just here to steal food?" Qian Bao looked alert.
Xie Mingzhuo smiled slightly and said, "I'm tired of being a pirate. I want to find a place to be a king. Do you want to join me? I will reward you handsomely after I succeed."
They both said, “…”
Four people want to take over the mountain? What a fantasy!
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