Chapter 44: Kuaiji
September 23, the 11th year of Daye.
After traveling day and night, Zhang Xuanning finally arrived at his destination.
The canal goes directly to Yuhang, but Kuaiji County is on the coast, and one can also see the surging river flowing from west to east.
At this time, the earth gradually darkened. Zhang Xuanning stood tall on a small hill, and the lights of Kuaiji County could be seen in the distance.
The one who came was Li Bo, dressed in flowing green, and said happily: "My nephew has made rapid progress in the past year or so, and can almost reach the first-class realm. In terms of reputation, both of his identities are well-known throughout the world, which will play a very important role in my nephew's great cause."
Zhang Xuanning shrugged and said, "So I just took the Broken Army Sword. I'm sure if someone investigates carefully, they will know that Shi Wuji and I are the same person. Then, I can use the official position granted to me by the emperor to influence others. It's completely different whether I have an official position or not. If I don't have one, I'm a bandit. If I have one, I have an identity to live on. As for martial arts, I still need some time to reach the first-class level!"
A first-rate master has actually already begun to reach the innate realm, but if the evil spirit is not completely digested, it is naturally impossible for him to truly reach the first-rate realm. This is also something that cannot be helped.
Li Bo showed a nostalgic look, looking deeply at Kuaiji County at night, and said leisurely and fascinatedly: "Seeing my nephew so heroic, I think of your father and grandfather in the past. Now, it is you who have come to rule the world."
Zhang Xuan Ning remained silent (Note: I wrote it wrong. Zhang Xuan Ning was fifteen years old in the ninth year of Daye. Now it is the eleventh year of Daye. Even if his age is in nominal terms, he is only seventeen years old. He is now the same age as Li Shimin).
Li Bo glanced at him and asked, "Nephew, is the uprising going to happen so soon?"
"That's it. Time is running out for me!"
"Oh, I just wanted to hear what my nephew said." Li Bo said with interest.
"Then please give me some advice, uncle."
After thinking about it and organizing it roughly, Zhang Xuanning said: "I divide the world into three stages. The first stage is before the fifth year of Daye. Although there were some bandits, the country was generally under the rule of the country. It can be said that the country is an iron bucket and the four barbarians are submissive."
"Although the construction of the Grand Canal began in the first year of Daye, with 2 million conscripts per month, the people could be driven out, so the consequence was that after the fifth year of Daye, 40% to 50% of the conscripts died. The continuous accumulation led to the hardship of the people and the rise of resentment, so the world began to fall into chaos!"
"From the outside, the Turks (here refers to the Eastern Turks) were divided. Qimin Khan relied on the national policy of getting close to the Great Sui Dynasty to win the internal struggle of the Eastern Turks. Because of the unstable foundation, the loose Khan position and the lack of strength, Qimin Khan married Princess Yicheng and paid tribute continuously throughout his life. However, Qimin Khan died in the fifth year of the Sui Dynasty, and his son Duoji became Shibi Khan. At that time, the Turkic royal court was already strong, so even if the Great Sui Dynasty had not declined, there would have been a war, not to mention that the Great Sui Dynasty wasted the people's power and caused internal strife."
"Therefore, in the fifth year of Daye, the internal and external situation changed, and the Sui Dynasty began to decline. However, at this time, the Sui Dynasty was still very strong, so it could quell the internal strife and deter the Turks. Therefore, Shibi Khan reluctantly submitted to the Sui Dynasty."
"But the situation continued to deteriorate. The emperor's three expeditions to Goryeo had cost him too much energy, and the uprising had already spread like wildfire. Most importantly, the officials and families in various places began to become restless. Until this year, the eleventh year of Daye, the Turks openly attacked the emperor, and the major aristocratic families officially began to conspire against the court. Therefore, the so-called chaos in the world began this year."
"If we don't get up this year, there won't be much time left next year, and there will be no chance to take advantage of the chaos." Zhang Xuanning summed up. This was a combination of what he had seen and his judgment of future history, so it was extremely insightful.
Li Bo was immediately moved, with a look of disbelief flashing across his eyes. After thinking for a while, he asked again, "Then why did my dear nephew choose Kuaiji County?"
"To start a big thing, one must occupy an empty place. If my nephew has a noble family, he should naturally take a rich and powerful place as the capital for the emperor. But now my nephew is starting from scratch, with only a few hundred soldiers, so he must naturally take the empty and dead corners."
"Since the Wei and Jin Dynasties, Kuaiji has flourished and is the richest region in the south. It also has the end point of the Grand Canal. In addition, Kuaiji County has little strength and is empty. Du Fuwei, Li Zitong and others have gathered near Jiangdu and occupied Liyang, which actually isolated the Sui army. It can be said that I have Kuaiji County, which is extremely rich and no one will attack me. I can gather elite troops, improve politics, and then go up along the Grand Canal and nibble away at counties further south. This is the talent of an emperor!"
"Besides, you know that Du Fuwei defeated the Sui general Song Hao and merged the rebel forces of Miao Haichao, Zhao Pozhen and others. His power was very strong and he did not need external aid. However, this year he joined forces with Li Zitong's army. Unexpectedly, Li Zitong attempted to annex Du Fuwei's army and launched a surprise attack on Du's army. Du Fuwei was seriously injured. The Sui army took the opportunity to attack and Du's army was defeated. At this time, both Li Zitong's army and Du Fuwei's army were seriously injured. Unfortunately, the elite troops of the Great Sui were still in the north and were isolated, so they could not attack me. Therefore, it was the right time for me to take Kuaiji County."
"It's a pity that if Du Fuwei hadn't suffered this disaster, he would have been able to sweep across the south, or at least form a situation of confrontation between the north and the south. However, because he mistakenly trusted Li Zitong and was eager for success, all his previous efforts were wasted and his strength was reduced by 80%. Although this person is resourceful, brave and good at fighting, he can still rise again, but he has already missed the opportunity to fight. In addition, he is in the key encirclement and suppression of the Great Sui Dynasty, and his geographical location is not good. Therefore, this person has no chance to seize the world again ."
“No matter north or south, officials or villains, no one has time to care about me now. Even if I have counselors and generals like rain, and elite soldiers like tens of thousands, they are all out of reach. But the so-called time, place and people are all in my hands at this moment. Can't I accomplish it? Any further delay will only lead to my own death.” Zhang Xuanning laughed. This was an open conspiracy. Even if everyone knew what he wanted to do, it would be useless and no one could stop him.
Li Bo remained silent. We were all smart people and it would be useless to say anything more.
Zhang Xuanning's determination to start a rebellion could no longer be shaken by any nonsense.
"How does my dear nephew get it?"
"The Great Sui Dynasty ruled the south from the north and was suspicious of the south. It launched three expeditions to Goryeo and actually drew elite troops from the south. Therefore, there are only a thousand soldiers in Kuaiji County. They can be taken. What's the difficulty?" Zhang Xuanning said with a sneer. He looked back at his subordinates. At this time, Zhang Yimou and Zhang San each led more than 20 people, and some people from the original Bamboo Flower Gang in Yangzhou also came.
Including that group of teenagers, there were no more than sixty-eight people in total.
After leaving Yangzhou, Gui Xiliang became the deputy incense master and became good friends with Su Ye. With Xing Rong as his military advisor, he had actually begun to become independent, while Zhou Feng and Jiang Feng were relatively isolated. Because of this, when Zhang Xuanning learned of the situation, he summoned Zhou Feng and Jiang Feng, and after a brief test, recruited them for his own service.
Zhou Feng and Jiang Feng were already unhappy, so they immediately returned to their old master. However, they did not expect that their incense master would actually plot a rebellion and seize an entire county. They all looked pale and had fiery eyes.
"Master, I have contacted the gangs in the city and found out the details. There are three gangs in the city. They are the Xu Family Gang, which consists of the descendants of the Xu family. There are 800 people, but most of them are in Xujiazhai. There are only dozens of people in the city who can fight, but they are from the same family and are very united. The Qin boss has 80 people, most of them are strong and healthy, and they are in the city. The strongest in the city is the Wuyi Society, which has more than a thousand members and 300 people who can fight." Zhou Feng replied.
"Is there any insider support?"
"There is a Jiao Lie man under Boss Qin who seems to be a bit interesting, but he thinks we are the vanguard of the Bamboo Flower Gang."
"Well, then, we will take Boss Qin as the first target and strike with thunder." The Bamboo Flower Gang was quite famous in the south, and Zhang Xuanning thought it would be okay to use this as a pretext.
However, once he absorbs Qin Baotou, he will definitely not use the name of Bamboo Flower Gang. It is not legitimate and once his subordinates think that they are part of the Bamboo Flower Gang, it will be troublesome.
However, fortunately, the forty people he brought with him were all loyal to him, and most of them had been trained in the military, so they had long been prepared to establish a regular military and political structure. They were the real seeds.
Thinking of this, Zhang Xuanning immediately said: "Gather everyone."
"Yes, Commander-in-Chief!"
Zhang Yizhang responded immediately and issued a military order. Forty people immediately stood in silence according to the Sui Dynasty military system. Although several personal soldiers around him were not in military uniforms, they stood on his left and right with swords in hand. Even the young men followed the military law and no one dared to say a word.
In comparison, the dozen or so thugs led by Zhou Feng and Jiang Feng were in a completely different situation. They stood there at a loss, looking at each other.
"Your Majesty, I will be the commander of the Zhechong Commandery. I will build the Zhechong Mansion today. I will name it the Kuaiji Zhechong Mansion. However, we do not have enough men at this time. You should first form a team according to the number of men and each of you should be the chief of fire."
After saying that, he began to give orders, dividing the forty soldiers into four groups, with Zhang and Zhang Er leading one group each, and the other two groups promoted Luo Jin and Ren Jie. Zhou Feng was appointed as the leader of the fifth group, while Jiang Feng first led the group of young men, and he himself, as the commander of the army, was also the leader of the team.
After this move, the others were not surprised at all and they all obeyed the order, because the personal soldiers and Zhang Yi and Zhang San had already confirmed that he was Shi Wuji, who was personally ordered by the emperor. Although these forty people had doubts, as they were fugitives, they had no choice but to obey at this time. After observing for a few days, they found that except for the appearance and age, he was exactly the same as Captain Shi.
As soon as the military system was established, Zhang Xuanning ordered Zhang Yi to temporarily lead the team and set up camp in the secret forest for a few days to get used to the new situation. He then took three of his personal soldiers and Diwuhuo, who was originally a Yangzhou gangster, to Kuaiji City.
"Master Xiang, are you really an official now? How high is the rank of Zhechou Duwei?" Following behind, Zhou Feng finally couldn't help but stepped forward to ask.
"How dare you!" The three personal soldiers shouted immediately, holding their swords and glaring fiercely. As long as Zhang Xuanning gave the order, they would kill this fire chief who did not know how to respect his superiors and subordinates to the ground.
Huo Changli was the commander of the Zhechou Commandery, and their ranks were very different. For him to speak like that was already a capital offense.
They were veterans in the army, having killed many people and experienced many battles. Their murderous intent immediately gave the other thugs a chill, and even the brave Zhou Feng couldn't help but take a half step back.
Zhang Xuanning took a look and felt that he had to train them strictly in the future to let them know the hierarchy. Otherwise, his authority and orders could not be truly implemented.
In fact, Zhang Xuanning was very puzzled as to why the people who went back to the past were shouting about brothers being equal. Are they really equal? Are they still an organization or a combat-capable group?
Fortunately, I brought quite a few backbone soldiers with me, so the training and assimilation were quick.
However, this was not the time to be fussy. He said, "I am a lieutenant commander, a fifth-rank official, and an officer in the emperor's personal army. I am three ranks higher than the emperor. Do you think I am high enough? The county governor is lower than me!"
This is actually nonsense. Although he is a Zhechou Duwei of the emperor's personal army, he is still a fifth rank lower than the fifth rank, and is far inferior to the prefect of the fourth rank.
However, the little gangster leader Zhou Feng certainly had no idea. He opened his mouth wide, and slowly, he felt that he, as the incense master, was full of majesty, and every move made him feel insignificant - this was actually his own psychological effect.
It’s actually the same with modern people. You may not care much when you see an old man exercising in the garden, but once you know that this old man is the leader of a certain department in the city (rank eight at most), you will immediately be in awe. This is the case in modern times, let alone in ancient times?
Immediately, I didn't even dare to say anything more.
Zhang Xuanning was very satisfied with this atmosphere. He said, "You must call me Lord from now on. Do you understand? Chief Zhou Huo?"
"Yes, my lord!" Zhou Feng responded involuntarily, and the gangsters around him didn't even dare to open their mouths or make any sound.
As the saying goes, thieves have their own ways. Although it was already night and the city gates had been closed for a long time, they still managed to enter the city through a hole under the wall. On the opposite side, several thugs had already appeared.
"Are you a brother from the Bamboo Flower Gang? Come here quickly." Someone called out. Everyone remained silent and followed the person. After walking a short distance, they saw a house. After entering, they lit the lamp oil.
Jiao Lie brought two thugs with him. He was quite tall and looked to be in his thirties, but he had a bald head and a pair of goat-like eyes.
Jiao Lie turned around and looked at the people who came, and his heart skipped a beat. He was also an old hand and was no stranger to murderous intent. The other ten thugs were fine, but the young man in the center and the three knife-wielding men around him were really as steady as a mountain and their imposing manner was overwhelming.
Jiao Lie's face changed slightly, and a look of suspicion flashed across his eyes. He didn't want to show weakness, so he said in a deep voice: "Brother Zhou, who are they? They don't look like brothers from the underworld."
Thieves and soldiers are certainly not alike. Their temperaments are different. Of course, those old thieves can tell the difference at the first smell.
When Zhou Feng didn't know what to say, the guards shouted again: "How dare you be so rude to the Lord!"
As he shouted, there was a sound of "clang!" and three personal soldiers drew their swords. Although their martial arts skills were still shallow, they were very skilled in killing people and immediately exuded a domineering and sinister murderous aura.
Jiao Lie's face changed, and he sneered, "I didn't expect Brother Zhou to collude with the government."
Just by hearing this official language, the old man knew that he had encountered someone from the government and smelled a dangerous aura. While he was speaking, he secretly wanted to retreat.
At this moment, with a "puff" sound, a gangster who escaped first was immediately stabbed by the long knife. Immediately, blood splattered, and the bodyguard drew out the knife with a grim smile.
Zhang Xuanning smiled and said calmly, "Jiao Lie, you don't need to know who I am, but I can tell you that if you don't obey my orders, you will die immediately!"
As he spoke, he had already grabbed a table, and immediately his five fingers were deeply imprinted in it. Then, he said impatiently: "I don't have time to mess with you. Do you want to surrender or fight to the end?"
As he spoke, murderous intent suddenly became apparent.
Jiao Lie's face changed drastically. He knew that he could not fight back based on this move. His life and death depended on a single thought. He looked at Zhang Xuanning who was full of murderous intent, smiled bitterly, and said, "Wait a minute, sir. I am willing to surrender."
Zhang Xuanning casually took out a jade pendant, played with it, and said slowly: "Well, you are still a man of tact. I will naturally give you wealth in the future."
This jade pendant is extremely warm and smooth, and of course it has an extraordinary origin. This jade alone is worth hundreds of gold.
At the entrance of Xiji Garden in Chang'an, Zhang Xuanning once placed fifteen small boxes of things from the fake storehouse there. They were all ancient jade and other treasures, which seemed to be valuable and were treasures. Zhang Xuanning took them out when he passed by. If all of these fifteen boxes were sold, they would probably be worth more than 100,000 taels of gold. Unfortunately, he could only slowly sell one-tenth of the relatively inconspicuous things along the way, but it was enough.
Ten thousand taels of gold are enough to cover the county's expenses for a year and support 6,000 troops.
