Chapter 554: The Hu Ben Army wants to be a thorny rose

After noon, Zhang Zhun set out from Qixia County and rode a horse to the front place of Wang Xuzhai. The backbone of the Smelling Sect obviously had not arrived here yet. Therefore, the front place of Wang Xuzhai was still deserted for the time being, and only dozens of local military households were doing some rough work. The fleet commanded by Zhang Haibin was already waiting for Zhang Zhun here. Zhang Zhun boarded the boat here, crossed Laizhou Bay, and went directly to Cangzhou in northern Zhili.

The distance from Wang Xuzhai to Cangzhou was very close. After sailing for a long time, the boat landed on the coast of Cangzhou. At that time, there was no Huanghua Port in Beizhili, and there were only some simple fishing villages. Most of the fishermen fished while drying salt, and their lives were very hard. When they got ashore, Zhang Zhun saw that the local fishermen were all ragged, pale and thin, and had various acne on their bodies. I don’t know how they got it. Logically speaking, Beizhili should have no schistosomiasis!

Zhang Zhun rode a horse from the fishing village to the inland. Most of the fields were deserted, and only a few farmers were farming. Most of the fields were deserted due to insufficient water conservancy equipment and facilities and could not be irrigated. Northern Zhili was originally short of water, and the water conservancy equipment and facilities were disrepaired and the drought was naturally even more serious. The two invasions of the Tatars also brought great chaos to Northern Zhili. There were not many people who could cultivate the fields with peace of mind.

Especially after the Tianqi Dynasty, the situation in northern Zhili has not been very good. Not only is it drought and rainy, but the climate in winter is very cold. Not only does crops have no harvest, but it seems that even fishing has problems. In the past, the freezing time of the Bohai Bay was only about one month, but now it has increased to two months. I don’t know when the freezing of the Bohai Bay this year will start. Zhang Haibin is actually very worried. If the large-scale freezing of Laizhou Bay is frozen, the sea transportation of the Hu Ben Army will be affected.

However, the hydrological conditions here are still good. Because there are fishing villages, there are naturally docks. There is definitely no deep-water port, and there is no problem with mooring ordinary merchant ships. It seems that the No. 2 Fu Ship has a draft of about ten feet. It is easy to find several such ports on a long coastline. The No. 2 Fu Ship has a displacement of only 300 tons, and the warships in later generations are often thousands of tons, and they are made of steel, which is completely incomparable.

Zhang Haibin sent someone to survey here, and found five ports near the place called "Huanghua" circled by Zhang Zhun, which can be used to unload materials. There is no need to build a very high-end wharf. There are primitive wharfs everywhere here, just enclose a large piece of land and allow many merchant ships to dock smoothly. As for the unloaded materials, they can be placed on the beach and handed over to the army to carry them themselves.

However, there is not much problem with the port, and the choice of the battlefield is a knowledge. If the Hu Ben Army is too dangerous, the Tartars will not pounce on stupidly, nor will they continue to come up and die. Therefore, the Tartars must feel that it is possible to eat Zhang Zhun, so that they will pounce on them wildly. However, if the Hu Ben Army has no favorable terrain at all, it will be easily defeated by the Tartars. If the Tartars pounce on them like a tide of tens of thousands of Tartars, the Tiger Army has no solid permanent defense measures at all, it may be very dangerous.

When Zhang Zhun arrived in Cangzhou, he wanted to find such a place on the spot. Cangzhou City was still too far from the coastline, and it was easy for the Tartar cavalry to cut off their backs and cut off the supply between themselves and the port. Therefore, Cangzhou City was not a good choice. Only in the east of Cangzhou, near the coastline, look for some relatively strong towns as support points for the camp. Then spread troops along these towns, establish solid camps, and fight repeatedly with the Tartar cavalry until the living power of the Tartar cavalry was almost exhausted.

What the Hu Ben Army wants to do is the most gorgeous rose, which looks beautiful but is very stubborn. When the Tartars take a fancy to this rose, they will pounce on it regardless of everything, then be pricked up all over the body, and finally retreat in shame. The most ideal area for planting roses is around Huanghua Port in later generations.

"Sir, there is a Dongjiabao nearby, which may meet your requirements."

Zhang Haibin suddenly introduced.

"Dongjiabao?"

Zhang Zhun knew that Zhang Haibin must have something to say, so he said casually.

"Sir, I've seen it. The terrain around Dongjiabao is good. If we fight the Tartars there, there should be many favorable conditions."

Sure enough, Zhang Haibin said quickly.

"Oh? Is it?"

Zhang Zhun suddenly became interested.

"However, locals are more xenophobic. It is difficult for outsiders to have the opportunity to enter their castles. We appear here and actively attract the Tartars, and they may not want to."

Zhang Haibin's mouth turned and said with some concern, which immediately made Zhang Zhun's interest fade.

"Tell me the situation."

After pondering for a moment, Zhang Zhun said thoughtfully.

"The people in Dongjiabao rarely interact with outsiders. They are all busy practicing martial arts. They built their own fortresses to fight against external pressure. They have their own laws, which are the so-called family laws, that is, the clan rules. The clan leader is the biggest here, and the clan leader's words are the law. The government in Northern Zhili dare not do anything to them."

Zhang Haibin said tactfully.

"Practice martial arts...fortress...self-protection...class leader...class rules..."

Zhang Zhun frowned and muttered to himself softly.

How come this Dongjiabao looks like a foreigner?

In Zhang Zhun's impression, Cangzhou's martial spirit should be very strong. From ancient times to the Ming and Qing dynasties, many dynasties established their capital in Youyan, and Cangzhou was a major territory in the capital of the capital, and it was a place that military strategists must fight for in all dynasties. According to historical records, since Duke Huan's aid to Yanshanrong in the 22nd year of Duke Huan (664 AD), many wars have occurred in Cangzhou. There are many heroes in Yanzhao and many heroes in Hebei. These two sentences are definitely not casual, but have a lot of historical basis.

Frequent wars will certainly lead to the devastation and difficulties of people's livelihood. Therefore, you must master the skills of offensive, defensive and fighting to save yourself. Simply put, it is to practice martial arts. As long as you have high skills, you will not be afraid of others' invasion and can protect yourself. Therefore, Cangzhou was known as "a distant county and state" in ancient times, and was nicknamed "Xiaoliangshan" in the Ming Dynasty. The Ma Zheng Rebellion that broke out during the Jiajing period had the shadow of Cangzhou people.

Zhang Zhun, who came from later generations, knew this best. Many of his teammates in the Marine Corps were from Cangzhou. In ancient times, Cangzhou was more than a hundred miles along the Bohai Sea, and they were all deserted. They were sparsely populated. They were not only a place for criminals to be exiled, but also a place for rebel generals to hide themselves. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, some rebel generals arrested by the court took advantage of the powerful customs of the people of Cangzhou to hide their bodies. Many people also hid their names, disguised as monks and Taoists, and passed on their skills to survive.

The strong trend of practicing martial arts in Cangzhou is inseparable from the local people's livelihood. Cangzhou is located at the "lower tip of the Jiuhe River". The land is barren, drought, flood, and insect disasters are sometimes reduced to prison. In normal years, many families have brans, vegetables and grains for half a year. In the severely affected years, there are not many people who are wandering and begging and selling their children. The folk song says: "Abandon the yellow mouth, and the kindness of one breast is gone; but if you hate the fact that you are not born, don't blame your parents for endurance." Many strong men make a living by selling salt, but the government is very strict. People cannot survive, so they will inevitably resist. If they resist, they must practice martial arts.

"Cangzhou Chronicles" records: "Cangyi is a common man and martial arts, and he is willing to sacrifice life and death. Since ancient times, he has been honest and honest. In a peaceful era, his family has given people a strong and arrogant attitude, and is as grand as the heroic spirit of the sea. Once something happens, he will put his heart and courage and work hard to defend the countryside. Even if he has given up, he will not be sympathetic." This fully demonstrates that the people of Cangzhou have always been righteous since ancient times.

From a military perspective, the people of Cangzhou are all good sources of military force. No matter when, young people with martial arts were always favored by the army. In the late Ming Dynasty, although hot weapons were gradually replacing cold weapons and the power of gunpowder became stronger and stronger, most of the time, the army still needed soldiers with good physical fitness. The same was true for the Tiger and Ben Army. The same was true for the Pla Marine Corps in the future.

"Haibin, do you guess how many young people can be pulled out if a war occurs?"

Zhang Zhun asked excitedly.

"There are quite a lot of people in Dongjiabao, and it is definitely no problem to pull out seven or eight hundred people. In addition, the nearby Liujiabao and Caojiabao can pull out at least 1,500 people. These are all based on martial arts. If you add ordinary young and middle-aged people, there may be more than two thousand people."

Zhang Haibin said affirmatively.

"Since that's the case, let's go and visit this Dongjiabao!"

Zhang Zhun made a judgment soon.

To expand the power of the Hu Ben Army to the northern Zhili area, Hejian Prefecture is a very important bridgehead. The people of Cangzhou have always been good at martial arts, and once they join the army, they can quickly form combat power. Of course, the Hu Ben Army must control such a source of troops as soon as possible. Even if they cannot control them in their own hands, they cannot join the imperial army.

This is what is commonly said, and cannot be used for me, nor can it be used for the enemy. Of course, Zhang Zhun believes that things should not develop to such an extreme level, especially in the context of the Tartars about to launch a third invasion, the people of Cangzhou will definitely not refuse the arrival of the Hu Ben Army in order to protect themselves.

"Sir... I'm afraid Dongjiabao won't welcome us."

Zhang Haibin said with some concern.

It turns out that Dong Sanhuai, the owner of Dongjiabao, was a martial Jinshi during the Chongzhen period. He was still well-known in Cangzhou area. Dong Sanhuai's Dongjia Gun is said to be from the famous Yuejia Gun. Everyone knows that during the Northern and Southern Song dynasties, guns were the most popular, especially in the army, guns were the strongest weapons, known as the king of weapons charters.

One of the great achievements of Empress Wu Zetian was to open the martial arts imperial examination and select people with high martial arts skills. In the Ming Dynasty, there were also martial arts examinations, and the winners would be awarded the title of eye-catching, namely the legendary martial arts top scholar, martial arts Jinshi, and martial arts juren. Cangzhou's martial arts were very developed and often occupied a considerable share on the gold list. The martial arts top scholar, martial arts juren, and martial arts juren appeared one after another in the past, and gradually formed a relatively powerful group.

During the Tang and Song dynasties, many people in Cangzhou actively joined the army to join the army and make a living. With the continuous accumulation of military achievements, there were many people who have become successful. During the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, the Song, Liao, Jin and Yuan dynasties, the regimes in Hebei continued to change, the situation was always very turbulent, and the war gradually changed. Many people in Cangzhou gradually lost themselves and killed people indiscriminately for military achievements. Gradually, some people became pure warriors, pure executioners, and some became traitors.

It was not until the founding of the Ming Dynasty that this situation was fundamentally changed. The Ming Dynasty restored the orthodox status of the Han people again. The people of Cangzhou gradually woke up again and realized the righteousness of the country and nation. They actively participated in the Ming army and made great contributions to expel the Tartars. The Ming army absorbed a large number of Cangzhou people. In the foreign wars of the Ming army, there were a large number of Cangzhou soldiers.

However, as the large-scale war gradually subsided, some hidden problems gradually became prominent. That is, the so-called violation of the ban with martial arts. The Ming Dynasty's court actually had a relatively complex attitude towards the martial arts figures in Cangzhou. They not only hoped that these people would serve the country, but also worried that these people would embark on the road of resisting the court. Therefore, the Jinyiwei and the Dongchang were still very close to Cangzhou. At the same time, for the sake of safety, the court also consciously suppressed the status of the military people in Cangzhou.

The Ming Dynasty implemented the basic principle of using civilized martial arts. The same Jinshi and Juren exams were completely different. In the Ming Dynasty, civil and military treatments were generally treated better, and they could start at least as the editor of the Hanlin Academy of the seventh rank. Most martial arts Jinshi only had one way to be promoted by military achievements, and this path was generally not smooth. Some martial arts figures had a very miserable situation after passing the Jinshi exam.

The most prominent example is that during the Zhengde period of Emperor Wuzong, 60 people including An Guo and Cangzhou were ranked in the martial arts examination. Liu Jin sought bribes from them in the name of arranging official positions. An Guo and others had no money to give, so Liu Jin then organized them into the army and sent them to guard the border, and ordered police to obey the orders and prohibited them from returning without permission. All 60 people including An Guo and others were trapped by them, and they were like ordinary garrison soldiers. The border generals were afraid of Liu Jin's tyranny and did not dare to accept favors. In the end, all 60 people including An Guo and all died of old age at the border.

In addition, the hereditary system implemented by the army of the Ming Dynasty, all the officer positions were hereditary, and the vacancy was not enough for royal relatives or wealthy families to arrange their relatives. Naturally, there were no vacancy to accommodate these so-called martial arts top scholars, martial arts and martial arts. Therefore, over time, most of the martial arts top scholars, martial arts and martial arts and the relationship between the court, Wu Jinshi, Wu Juren, and the court gradually became distant. Even if they passed the imperial examination, they would not be valued by the court. What is the significance of such an imperial examination?

The civil servant system of the Ming Dynasty was actually quite repulsive to the military officer system. Even though they knew the grievances suffered by the people of Cangzhou, they would never stand up for them in this matter. Therefore, the actions of the military men in Cangzhou gradually became low-key and almost became unknown in the end. However, this does not mean that they may be together with the thieves. Martial practitioners pay great attention to the so-called "hero" word, and they will not do what they do on large-scale opposition to the court.

In fact, these people are definitely first-class local snakes in their territory because they can fight, have hard fists and strong style. What's more important is that they adopt the form of clan organization and have many disciples, so they have a strong cohesion. They are also keen on building solid fortresses. These fortresses are not as large as towns, but they are even more solid.

Zhang Haibin is interested in this kind of castle. The terrain of Northern Zhili is very flat and has no defensive effect in front of the Tartar cavalry. Zhang Zhun tried to fight against the Tartar cavalry, but he could not have no support at all. If a fortress like Dongjia Fort was the core, the Hu Ben Army's camp would be much safer.

As for whether Dongjiabao welcomes Zhang Zhun's arrival, Zhang Haibin is a little worried. Although Zhang Zhun is wearing the title of Grand Governor of the Later Army, his true identity is a great rebel. If Dong Sanhuai doesn't even know this, he will be the lord of Dongjiabao.

"Sir, there is Dongjiabao in front of you."

Zhang Haibin pointed to the front and said.

He rode his horse and galloped north for about ten miles, and then he arrived outside Dongjiabao. To be precise, Dongjiabao should be called Dongjia Village. Dongjiabao is only built in the core area of ​​Dongjia Village. Around it, there are also a large number of village houses, and thousands of people in Dongjia Village live.

Zhang Zhun raised the Qianli Mile Mile Mile and looked at Dongjiabao carefully.

The area of ​​Dongjia Fort should not be large, it may be about three or four miles in a radiant shape, and it seems that there is no professional design, so you can build wherever you think. As a result, some of the city walls are very high, while some of the city walls are very low. The highest city wall may be four meters, while the lowest city walls are less than two meters. However, it should be very strong. Because Zhang Zhun can see from the Qianli Mirror that the city walls are basically made of granite stone. In places like Beizhili where there are no mountainous areas and no stone production, it is no less than digging up a piece of open space in the stone mountains.

From this, Zhang Zhun could easily infer that Dongjia Village is still very powerful and the people are very united. Without the help of external forces, relying on Dongjia Village's own strength alone, it is no less difficult than building the Great Wall of the Ming Dynasty. From this, it is speculated that Dong Sanhuai is definitely not an ordinary person.
Chapter completed!