Because of General Liu's open mouth, the news of Chen Yingliang's return to the Eastern Capital inevitably spread throughout the Eastern Capital. As a result, old acquaintances such as Xie Zichong and He Lanyi ran to Pei Hongce's house in the evening. Chen Yingliang was drunk to death with Pei Hongce's family wine, and then the next morning, Chen Yingliang was passed to the imperial city by Fan Zigai and Huangfu Wuyi, and they jointly scolded Chen Yingliang bloody and severely condemned him. It was a shameful crime that Chen Yingliang did not come to visit his elders even when he returned to Dongdu.
Chen Yingliang didn't dare to talk back to Fan Zigai this time, because Chen Yingliang had personally experienced Fan Zigai's cruelty—Pei Hongce, Liu Changgong and others told Chen Yingliang behind his back, saying that Fan Zigai had been dealt with in the aftermath of Yang Xuangan's rebellion this time. In accordance with Emperor Sui Yang's will, the families of the rebels were massacred. Not only were the families of the rebel soldiers killed, but even those ordinary people who had received relief from the rebels in Luokou, Fan Zigai caught one alive and buried the other. , were all buried alive in the outskirts of the south of Luoyang City, and the number of dead has exceeded 10,000! Therefore, although Fan Zigai's attitude towards Chen Yingliang was still as good as before, there was still some gap between the kind-hearted Chen Yingliang and him.
Fan Zigai didn't notice Chen Yingliang's estrangement from him, and he still worried about Chen Yingliang as always. After asking about Chen Yingliang's whereabouts, Fan Zigai frowned and asked Chen Yingliang: "What are you going to do?" Do you take the post in Qiao County by land or by water? How many servants do you have?"
"The younger generation traveled by water, hired a boat, and brought ten servants with me, as well as my wife's elder brother who has never been married." Chen Yingliang replied truthfully.
"Why did you bring so few people?" Fan Zigai frowned even more tightly.
"How many people are there?" Chen Yingliang was a little confused.
Fan Zigai frowned and didn't answer, and didn't know what he was planning. Huangfu Wuyi next to him coughed and said, "Ying Liang, Fan Liushou is thinking about your safety. Before you changed, you brought so many people to Qiao County. It is enough to take office, but now it is a little hanging, even if it is by water."
"Why?" Chen Yingliang was startled, then quickly reacted, and hurriedly asked: "General Huangfu, is there another accident in the east of Hulao Pass?"
"You guessed it right." Huangfu Wuyi nodded, and explained: "I just received the news today that the thieves including Lu Mingxing, Shuai Rentai and Huo Xiaohan, who were defeated by General Zhang Xutuo in Jibei, went west again. Fleeing to the territory of Dongjun to cause disaster, once besieged Baima City in Dongjun County, You Yiwei Hu Benlang ordered Fei Qingnu to attack. Although he successfully defeated the bandits and rescued Baima, he only killed the bandit Kou Shuai Rentai and created a small group of bandits. , Lu Mingxing and Huo Xiaohan took most of the remnant bandits to the south and fled southward. It is not yet confirmed whether they went to Wagang Zhairang and other thieves to join them, or they fled to Liang County or Xingyang—if Lu Mingxing and other thieves really fled into Liang County, You will be in big trouble, if you go east by boat, you will run into them in all likelihood."
"I won't be so unlucky, right?" Chen Yingliang smiled wryly.
"Be careful, don't forget the lesson of Li Jing and Li Zhuguo, the great generals of Youwuwei." Huangfu Wuyi shook his head, and said: "Besides, even if the two thieves Lu Huo hadn't fled into Liang County, it's still quite dangerous for you to go this way. , not to mention that the east of Hulaoguan is becoming more and more chaotic, and there are big thieves such as Zhai Rang, Shan Xiongxin and Xu Shiji of Wagang. They originally made a living by looting the Yongji Canal. Your reputation And it's so big, if they meet you unfortunately, they will definitely not let you go, so Fan Liushou and I are worried about your itinerary."
Hearing Huangfu Wuyi's warning, and thinking of the unlucky incident where Huangfu Wuyi's immediate superior, Youwuwei General Li Jing, was hacked to death by a group of robbers, Chen Yingliang, who was actually quite greedy for life and fear of death in his bones, was also a little worried, and hesitated for a while. Chen Yingliang said: "Thank you Fan Liushou and General Huangfu for reminding me, this junior understands, when I go back, I will borrow some servants from Uncle Pei and bring more people to Qiao County."
"What role can a group of family servants play?" Fan Zigai, who had been frowning all this time, finally spoke, and said to Huangfu Wuyi: "General Huangfu, you arrange ships and two teams of soldiers from the two schools to escort a batch of Jun kiln porcelain. Go to the Jiangdu Palace for His Majesty to use when he visits Jiangdu, and we will deal with the issue of official documents immediately, Ying Liang, you go with this team."
Huangfu Wuyi understood and quickly agreed, but Chen Yingliang was deeply moved, and hurriedly saluted Fan Zigai Jishou and thanked him sincerely. Fan Zigai said calmly, "Why are you polite? Last time in Daxing, didn't you say that you always Do you respect a grandfather? If a grandfather doesn’t love his own grandson, why should he love others?”
"This stubborn old man is really a contradictory person." Chen Yingliang said with a wry smile in his heart, "Being so kind to me, but so cruel to those people who are actually completely forgiving. Burying alive, it's scary to think about it!"
It doesn't count that Chen Yingliang arranged reliable guards for personal gain. When Huangfu Wuyi drafted the official document, he even asked Chen Yingliang to choose the guard team himself. Yi smiled, leaving Chen Yingliang to let the good man do the end. Then Chen Yingliang naturally couldn't help thanking Fan Zigai and Huangfu Wuyi for their kindness, and he accepted Huangfu Wuyi's invitation. One half died.
In the morning of the next day, Chen Yingliang bid farewell to Fan Zigai, Huangfu Wuyi, Pei Hongce and others, and followed the Taifu officials who escorted Junci to Mengjin Wharf to board a ship eastward. To Chen Yingliang's surprise, the official who escorted Junci also It was none other than that Qian Xiangmin who accompanied the Nationalist Army to raid the rebel camp at the beginning—this kid’s luck was really not his fault. After making great achievements with Chen Yingliang, Fan Zigai fulfilled his promise and gave him a consecutive promotion. Two levels, after completely pacifying Yang Xuangan, he will be rewarded for his meritorious deeds. This kid has been promoted two more levels, and he has been promoted to a total of four levels in a few months. He joined the treasury office of the Taifu, which is rich in wealth and wealth, and was so lucky that it drove countless colleagues crazy. This time, he will meet Chen Yingliang again. Of course, Qian Xiangmin is very grateful to Chen Yingliang, and he is very affectionate.
The more intimate scene was at the Mengjin Wharf. When Chen Yingliang appeared with Qian Xiangmin, the two Nationalist Army teams lined up on the wharf were of course bursting with joy. Guo Feng and Chen Ci continued to hold Chen Yingliang's hand He complained that Chen Yingliang was not mean enough, he came back the day before yesterday and he didn't even go to the camp of the Nationalist Army to visit his old brother. In the end, Chen Yingliang was also a little confused, and hurriedly asked: "How do you know that I came back the day before yesterday?"
"Of course it was Lushuai Pei who told us."
Guo Feng pointed to a member of his team to explain, Chen Yingliang turned around in surprise, but saw his distant cousin Pei Xingyan smiling, standing in Guo Feng's team and looking at him, Chen Yingliang slapped his forehead, only then did he realize that When Huangfu Wuyi wanted someone, he accidentally brought Pei Xingyan over. Overjoyed, Chen Yingliang hurriedly stepped forward to greet each other with Pei Xingyan, and then asked in a low voice, "How is it? How is your sister doing now?"
"It's okay, don't pay attention to her." Pei Xingyan replied very easily: "She has been spoiled since she was a child, she can do anything with energy, and she can forget it right away. After a few days, the little girl will forget about it." Things should be quiet."
"This is the best." Chen Yingliang breathed a sigh of relief - being entangled by a little pepper like Pei Cuiyun is not something that makes people happy physically and mentally.
So, after two full days of delay in Dongdu, Chen Yingliang finally continued his journey eastward, but these two days of delay were certainly not in vain. When he set off again, Chen Yingliang not only had many old friends with him, but also a The absolutely reliable guard team protects him when he goes east to take up his post. The safety on the road can be guaranteed. Even the private boat Chen Yingliang hired from Daxing is also covered. —If it wasn't for the bad influence, Chen Yingliang didn't even need to hire a boat, because after leaving Mengjin Wharf, Chen Yingliang lived directly on the official boat.
Talking about the old days with a group of old friends, of course time passed quickly. The boat sailed smoothly to the lower reaches of the Yellow River. . It was also at this time that the fleet, which had been safely sailing for half a day, began to be vigilant. Chen Yingliang unceremoniously took over the command of the fleet, arranged for night guards, and stipulated the passwords and codes for communication between the ships. Although the moon was shining brightly, Chen Yingliang still carefully decided not to sail at night, and ordered the fleet to rest at Xingze Wharf for the night, and it would not be too late to sail eastward at dawn the next day.
Of course, Guo Feng and Chen Ci obeyed Chen Yingliang's orders unconditionally, and Qian Xiangmin was honest and obedient, but Chen Yingliang's distant cousin Pei Xingyan had something to say and questioned: "Chen Zanzhi, don't you need to be so cautious? We have two groups." People are protecting the fleet, and they are the most elite army serving the country in the Eastern Capital. The moonlight is so bright, so what are we afraid of if we go directly east?"
"Be careful." Chen Yingliang shook his head and explained: "After passing Xingze, we have to go all the way to Daliang (Kaifeng) to stop at the pier. During this time, the section of the river that we pass through is less populated. It is a place where rioters are rampant. Serve the country. Although the army is elite, but they have never fought water battles, and they are not familiar enough with the terrain in this area, if they take the risk of sailing at night, if they encounter a surprise attack from the water, they will suffer a big loss."
Pei Xingyan showed a disapproving expression, and Chen Yingliang ignored him. At this time, Chen Ci suddenly came to Chen Yingliang's side, pointed to a small civilian boat behind and said, "Ji Shi, that boat has been following us, and saw us docking. , he also docked, as if he was following us, do we need to send someone to check the situation?"
"When did you catch up with us?" Chen Yingliang asked casually.
"We followed soon after we left Mengjin." Chen Ci replied.
"It's okay, the spies of the thieves can't go so far." Chen Yingliang shook his head, and said relaxedly: "It should be just an ordinary passenger ship. Follow us to gain some glory, so as not to be targeted by water thieves. These boat owners are pitiful, let him go." Chen Yingliang The ancestral hall thought it was the same, so it didn't pay any attention to it.
Not far to the south of Xingze are Xingyang and Guancheng, which are relatively densely populated and not a place for water thieves and bandits. Chen Yingliang made various arrangements carefully. Naturally, the pier was silent all night. In the early morning of the next day, Chen Yingliang and his party set sail again and headed downstream. Chen Ci mentioned the small boat and continued to follow Zhanguang, but still followed Chen Yingliang's fleet to the east without mentioning it.
After crossing the mouth of the Jishui River, the population on both sides of the river gradually decreased and the vegetation became denser. Chen Yingliang, who did not want to repeat the mistakes of Li Jing, also raised his spirits, and carefully boarded the flagship where Qian Xiangmin was, and let Guo Feng's team stay at the same place. In the front, Chen Ci's team stayed behind, and surrounded the two official ships carrying ordinary official errands. Chen Yingliang and Qian Xiang commanded the people's residence, and sailed eastward carefully.
After traveling eastward for more than 20 miles, the roadside was deserted, and the vegetation and reeds were so deep that it was hard to tell whether there were outsiders hiding there. Chen Yingliang also became more careful, but the more careful he was, the more accidents would happen. First, the fleet entered a stream In the relatively fast section of the river, an old and dilapidated single-masted civilian boat came ahead. Facing the fast current, it was difficult to sail up against the current, occupying the route of Chen Yingliang's fleet near the south bank. Chen Yingliang didn't know much about water warfare and didn't know the danger, so he kindly ordered the leading boat carrying Pei Xingyan's brigade to drive carefully so as not to hit the civilian boat.
No matter how careful you are, it is useless. When Pei Xingyan's boat was about to pass by the civilian boat, the civilian boat suddenly turned sideways in the Trent current, and Pei Xingyan's bow directly hit the civilian boat. The ship was a tall official ship, and it hit the ordinary civilian ship with a strong bow. There was no harm in such a collision, but after a loud noise, the hull of Pei Xingyan's team was still shaking violently. There had never been a water fight on board. The soldiers of the Nationalist Army also stumbled, including Pei Xingyan, who fell directly on the deck.
"The ship has collided, be careful!" Amidst the exclamation one after another, the remaining ships of Chen Yingliang's fleet turned their rudders and staggered one after another, fearing that there would be a series of collisions, and the well-ordered fleet would suddenly be in chaos.
"Bang bang bang bang!"
Another accident happened. The gongs rang loudly in the depths of the vegetation on both sides of the canal. Hundreds of ragged and strong men rushed out from the depths of the vegetation, roaring and holding bows and arrows. Chen Yingliang's fleet was also very methodical and focused on shooting four ships full of soldiers of the Nationalist Army, but ignored Chen Yingliang's flagship and another official ship carrying official porcelain. In addition, these rockets were very smart not to shoot at the hull deck, but aimed at the towering sails, and were shot by the rockets. The tung oil soaked the sails and quickly raised the flames. In the blink of an eye, there was a burning potential.
At the same time, amidst the sound of splashes, several human heads suddenly emerged from the water beside Chen Yingliang's boat, using the tools in their hands to climb up quickly, the movements were so skillful that the officers on the boat had no time to react, and those water ghosts had already rushed up On the deck, all the officials screamed in alarm and hurriedly pulled out to protect Chen Yingliang and Qian Xiangmin, but those water ghosts went straight to the rudder of the stern, and two of them quickly overturned the panicked helmsman, brandishing their knives and axes The wooden rudder was smashed to pieces with two or three blows, and the others cut off the ropes of Dingshi several times, and then jumped into the river one after another, disappearing without a trace under the water.
"Oops! They want us to lose control of the ship!"
When Chen Yingliang finally understood the true intentions of these water ghosts, it was already too late. His boat and another ordinary official boat, whose rudder was also smashed, had already been propelled by the rapid current and wind, rushing downstream. Going to report to the national army's ship, because the sail was on fire and was attacked, and they had never fought water battles and had no experience, so they couldn't keep up in a panic. They could only scream and watch Chen Yingliang's ship being destroyed. The rapids rush away, spinning and quickly disappearing far downstream.
"It's been tricked!" At this point in the matter, Chen Yingliang couldn't understand that he was ambushed by the enemy, and how could he not guess that the dilapidated civilian boat must be the bait for the enemy? While being nervous and flustered, Chen Yingliang couldn't help secretly admiring the enemy who set up traps for him. The traps were not only well-arranged, well-coordinated, aimed directly at the weak points of his fleet, but also cleverly used favorable conditions such as water currents and wind directions. It only took a small amount of strength to successfully achieve the goal. Chen Yingliang, who knew almost nothing about water warfare, was really not sure that he could replicate such an exquisite arrangement.
"Brother Chen, our ship is out of control, what should we do? What should we do?" Chen Yingliang secretly admired the enemy here, but Qian Xiangmin screamed like killing a pig, and even pulled Chen Yingliang's sleeve and cried Shouted, "Brother Chen, I can't water, I can't water, what should I do? What should I do?"
"Don't be afraid." Chen Yingliang patted Qian Xiangmin's hand and comforted him: "Tongji Canal is a canal, and the water flow in the canal is not as fast as the natural river. When the water slows down, our boat will stop by itself."
Qian Xiangmin temporarily shut his mouth in doubt, but Chen Yingliang ordered the sailors to untie the sail ropes immediately and let the sails fall, so as not to be blown farther by the bitter northwest wind. It slowed down, and then the other boat did the same, quickly furled the sails, and the speed of the boat slowed down very quickly.
After hearing Chen Yingliang's crow's words, being carried by the current and marching downward for five or six miles, the water flow in Tongji Canal really began to slow down, and the two official ships that could not control their own direction also slowed down. Spinning around and showing signs of stopping by itself, the officials and sailors on the ship cheered loudly, but Chen Yingliang frowned, because Chen Yingliang knew very well that his enemy this time was probably waiting for this moment.
Chen Yingliang's crow's mouth came true again, and the sound of the gong rang loudly again. As expected, more than twenty small boats rushed out of the reeds beside the bank, rushing towards the uncontrollable official boat like arrows off the string, and smashed one by one with The rope from the iron hook was thrown onto the deck, hooked the side of the ship, and pulled towards the north bank. The officers on the ship were all shocked and at a loss, but Chen Yingliang hurriedly shouted, "Cut the rope, we can't let them drag us to the shore! "
"Brother Chen, look quickly!"
Qian Xiangmin suddenly pointed at the north bank and started yelling again. Chen Yingliang quickly raised his head to look at the north bank, but saw countless young and strong men rushing out of the woods on the north bank at some point, holding various weapons, They are also wearing military flags of different sizes and red as the main tone. They are dressed in ragged clothes of different colors but are quite in formation. They seem to have received certain military training and are rushing towards the direction of their own ship. Chen Yingliang suddenly turned pale with shock, and said to himself: "Too bad, it must be the anti-Sui uprising army, where did the uprising army come from?"
"Wagang thief!" The scream of a sailor on the boat told Chen Yingliang the answer, "Red flag! It's the Wagang thief! We have met the Wagang thief!"