〖Bingxu in the tenth year of Longsheng, Wu Yue had other people to help the rebel army, and built tunnels in coastal towns and towns to guard against Yong army.
— "Zizhi Tongjian·Yongji IV"〗
The blue sea is full of tides, and the clouds are densely covered, and it is about to rain, but the young man sitting on the rock on the beach has a heavy expression and has no intention of going back to avoid the rain. The army went ashore to loot. His father and brother were excellent blacksmiths. Wu Yue was famous for the sword they cast. Therefore, he was taken away by the looting, leaving only his mother, brother, sister-in-law and two nephews. He was not at home at the time, so he survived. Disaster. Later, he joined the Rebel Army, and only hoped that Yong Jun would never go ashore to loot again. His deeper hope was to be able to meet his father and brother, but he didn't know if his father and brother were still alive.
Just as his eyes were getting hazy, his eyes flashed inadvertently, but he saw several light boats coming from the sea riding the wind and waves, all of them were Yong Jun wearing soft armor, he was shocked, got up and shouted: "Yong Jun is here. , Yong Jun is here." But it was about to rain today, and the rebels patrolling this part of the coast were all slack in the future, although the young man shouted loudly, but no one heard. Not long after he ran out, he heard the sound of wind in his ears, the young man rushed to the side, and there was a scream behind him, a knife slashed the air, the man slashed horizontally, the young man dodged to avoid, but was kicked by another sergeant Yong Jun Kicked down, the sergeant who attacked with the knife took the opportunity to point the knife at the young man's throat, and asked coldly, "How many rebels are in the village? Where is Yunzishan?"
The young man remained silent, with a stubborn look in his eyes. The sergeant Yong Jun smiled slightly, and didn't ask any further questions. He was about to slash his sword with a wave, and the young man suddenly asked, "Who made your sword?" A bloodstain was cut. At this time, except for the sergeant who was still on the boat, the rest of the Yong army had already gone ashore one after another. One of them had slightly different clothes and armor, and he was obviously the leader. Why, our army kidnapped many craftsmen from Wuyue, and these people were incorporated into the Dinghai craftsman camp, and his sword was made by Gongsun Mo, your most famous swordsmith in Zhenhai."
An uncontrollable look of joy flashed in the young man's eyes, and he asked in a trembling voice, "He is still alive, so what about his son?"
The sergeant holding the knife flashed a meaningful look in his eyes, and said, "You mean Gongsun-like, his knives are also good, but he is better at making crossbows."
The young man couldn't help shedding tears, his father and brother were still alive, and the joy of finally getting the news of his relatives made him unable to restrain himself. The sergeant's cold voice said in his ears: "What is your relationship with Gongsun Mo? How many rebels are in the village, if you confess honestly, I will spare you to die."
Li Mang flashed in the young man's eyes, and said, "You kidnap my flesh and blood, invade my homeland, and even if you die, you will not tell you the information of the rebel army." After speaking, he stood up and slammed his throat against the blade. The sergeant was quick-witted , quickly withdrew the knife, but still cut a big wound on the young man's neck, blood gushed, the young man's vision began to blur, and there was a strong regret in his heart. If he could tell his mother, father and brother the good news, he would be dead. It doesn't matter, but now the mother has to bear more grief.
Looking at the unconscious young man, the leading sergeant flashed a cold light in his eyes and said, "He's a good man, give him a treat."
But the sergeant holding the knife flashed his eyes, and whispered a few words in the ear of the sergeant in the lead, the sergeant in the lead pondered for a moment after hearing the words, and said: "Let's do it like this, he is not seriously injured, wrap him up and let him He's going to die on his own."
The sergeant in the lead thought for a while, and said, "It's a good idea, let's do it like this." After saying that, he walked on the beach, and in front of it was the sea wall, and there was a rebel camp not far beyond the sea wall. The Donghai Navy is a well-versed combat method. Although the Rebels are brave and good at fighting, they are also invincible. Behind the sergeant, Sergeant Yong Jun naturally formed a battle formation, walked forward, and his murderous aura rose into the sky.
When the young man was woken up by the rain, he felt the pain in his neck was unbearable. He struggled to get up and looked around, but there was no one there. He was lying on the seawall, and his neck had been bandaged. He staggered to his feet and ran towards the camp. He didn't know how many times he fell, and his body was covered in mud. When he reached the camp, he was dumbfounded, and he saw corpses scattered inside and outside the camp. , the heavy rain merged into a river, the rain mixed with blood, flowing from inside and outside the tent. The young man leaned down and felt grief and anger in his heart. After a long time, he stood up and inspected the inside and outside. Although there were blood and tears on his face, his eyes were brighter and he said in a low voice, "That's great, Not all dead, not all dead." He counted it again, there were only more than 30 corpses here, and there were originally 100 people stationed here, it seems that most of them should have escaped, or the worst result, it is just being captured Yong Jun took prisoners to Dinghai. Based on what he knew today, those brothers were not obliged to die. Thinking of this, he felt a lot of relief. But he suddenly remembered the words of those Yong Jun questioning him. They came for Mr. Yun. If those companions fell into the hands of Yong Jun, they confessed under the severe punishment, and said Mr. Yun's whereabouts, wouldn't it be extremely bad? . Mr. Yun presided over the construction of the tunnels in the coastal villages. He worked hard, how could he be hurt. Thinking of this, he cheered up and decided to report what happened here to Mr. Yun, so that he could temporarily hide. At this time, thunder roared in the sky, lightning flashed again and again, heavy rain poured down, the sky and the earth were all foggy, and almost no one could be seen from a few feet away, and the staggering back of the youth soon disappeared in the rain and fog. In the middle, but I don't know that there are two dark shadows behind him.
The waves are rolling and turbulent under the cliffs with thousands of miles of walls. The cliffs are craggy and rocky. It was clear after the rain, Jing Xin stood on the cliff and sighed in his heart. It has been three years since he left Jiaxing. Thinking of crossing the vast blue sea, the homeland that he misses every day, his heart became more and more sad.
There were light and steady footsteps in his ears, Jing Xin did not turn his head, but said lightly, "Brother Huo, why are you free today?"
Huo Cong smiled slightly. For the past three years, Jing Xin was still worried about himself, and he didn't care. He stood beside Jing Xin and said, "Mr. has an order, order me to go to Jiangnan to meet him."
Although it was just a faint sentence, Jing Xin's body trembled, and it took a long time for him to sarcastically say: "Congratulations, Brother Huo, for the past few years, Brother Huo has been trapped at sea, and I am afraid that he is not much freer than Jing. Now that Jiaolong goes out to sea, there is no need to be trapped anymore. In the shoal, you must be very happy, right?"
When Huo Cong heard the words, a smile flashed in his eyes, and said, "Brother Jing is serious, and I will stay in Dinghai, but it is because the sea route is blocked, the land route is difficult, and the Duke of Jinghai still has a place to rely on, so he did it. Stay in Dinghai. Moreover, Duke Jinghai has placed more than 500,000 civilians captured from Wu and Yue on hundreds of islands around Putuo. The area is vast, there are many islands, and the household registration is dense. Commander, the government is busy, and he is like the head of a county. Managing 500,000 prisoners who are suspicious of hostility, and also providing food and grass for the army, such an important task is handed over to the next young man who has not been crowned. It is already very important. How can you talk about the Long Distress Dangerous Shoal?"
When Jing Xin heard the words, he sneered: "With brother Huo's talent, let alone being the head of a county, it is more than enough to be a state governor and county governor. Being trapped in Putuo to manage our captives is overkill."
Huo Cong said with a smile: "Brother Jing, this is too underestimating the position of the county magistrate. In recent years, Brother Jing has helped me to do a lot of things, reclaiming wasteland and cultivating fields, making money, and punishing names. These common tasks seem simple, but they are very simple to do. There are so many things, Brother Jing, don't you remember my embarrassed appearance?"
Jing Xin couldn't help laughing, and the embarrassing atmosphere disappeared in an instant. He thought that for three years, this young man brought the captured Wu and Yue people here, built houses, settled fields for fishing and hunting, and turned the desolate Putuo Islands into a happy land where people can live and work in peace. There are still soldiers of the Yong army outside, and the islanders are requisitioned to serve in Dinghai from time to time, but finally nothing more terrible happened. However, what Huo Cong said was indeed true. Jing Xin didn't pay attention to those trivial affairs, but he was dragged by this young man to handle government affairs together. Do, especially empty-handed, self-made magistrates.
Seeing Jing Xin happy, Huo Cong felt a touch of melancholy in his heart. Although he has made great achievements in Putuo in the past three years, this does not mean that what Jing Xin said is not true. In fact, with Huo Cong's intelligence, he has already realized Among the Hu Benwei guards, there were people who were spying on him, and even Jiang Haitao saw a little bit of suspicion in his eyes. He has long understood that the husband really put himself under house arrest in Putuo, but it was the vast blue sea that detained him, not the sword and the force. Otherwise, although the Dinghai camp blocks the way back, but the private aviation trade is becoming more and more popular today, where can you not find an opportunity to return to Dayong? Huo Cong once thought about whether the husband knew something, and even gave up on himself. If he did something deliberately, or if the husband gave an order, he could take his own life and avoid embarrassment in his heart. But the endless letters that followed made him feel guilty.
Probably because of the road blockage, sometimes I didn't receive a single letter for ten days and a half months, and sometimes I received several letters at once. In the middle of the story, he explained the military and political strategy to himself, and each letter contained a strong friendship, which made Huo Cong feel uneasy and guilty.
Although his letter did not explain why he was staying in Dinghai, he asked Jiang Haitao to appoint him as the magistrate of Putuo and asked him to be a local official. Although the people under the jurisdiction are not ordinary people, but the prisoners of Wu Yue, but the government affairs are more onerous. He has been a county magistrate for three years and knows the difficulty of running a government. Huo Cong understands Jiang Zhe's painstaking efforts, but he still can't forget Jiang Zhe no matter what. The act of Zhe abandoning himself in Dinghai and sending someone to spy on it. Glancing at Jing Xin, he smiled bitterly in his heart. Although the Jing family is still a prisoner, he has held many internal affairs positions in Putuo. The old family owner of the Jing family has gone to Chang'an to recuperate with the merchant ship of the Nanmin Yue family. Chu Pingding, these Putuo prisoners will be appointed first when they return to Wuyue. It can be said that they have a promising future, but it is themselves. Although they are now in control of their life and death, they do not know what will happen.
After a while, Huo Cong finally calmed down and said to Jing Dao: "I was ordered to see Mr. Jing, so I want to hand over the post of county magistrate to Brother Jing. I wonder what Brother Jing thinks?"
Jing Xin was startled at first, but then calmed down. The government affairs of Putuo had always been managed by the captured people, but the county magistrate was held by Huo Cong, who controlled the only force on the island to suppress possible resistance. After Huo Cong left, this position naturally needs someone to take over. Although he is from Chu, he has been very effective in assisting Huo Cong in the past few years. In addition to his uncle's sake, even if he still wants to be loyal to Nan Chu, I am afraid that No one will believe it. After thinking for a long time, he finally said: "Forget it, why should I deceive myself, I will take over the post of county magistrate."
Huo Cong smiled slightly, knowing that after three years, the Wuyue scholars on the island finally began to give in and soften. Jing Xin was their leader. With him as the county magistrate, he could even appease the captives on the island. When I think that my husband's life has finally been fulfilled, I feel infinite joy in my heart, even though my future is uncertain.
Leaving Putuo and taking the sea boat, Huo Cong put his mind at ease. The commander of the sea boat had always been on good terms with him. Seeing Huo Cong standing at the stern looking at Putuo, he seemed very nostalgic, so he stepped forward and said with a smile: "Why should Counselor Huo be so hurt? Huai, this time when the Marquis of Chu called you, I think it will be of great use, we are just playing a small game here, and when we get there, it is a golden horse and an iron horse.
Huo Cong smiled reluctantly and said, "After staying at sea for three years, it's just a little reluctant to give up. No wonder Mr. Donghai is always obsessed with it."
The commander didn't know what Huo Cong was thinking, he just found some interesting things to tell him. Although Huo Cong responded casually, his mind had already flown thousands of miles away.
After half an hour, Huo Cong returned to Dinghai. Today's Dinghai is not as dilapidated as it was three years ago. The military camp on the island is solemn and solemn, and you can see the scene of crisscrossing fields everywhere. The voices of Dang continued all day long. There were also Wu Yue craftsmen in the dock who cooperated with East China Sea craftsmen to repair the ships. If they surrendered, they would be treated well. If they resisted, they would be executed. Of course, although Wu Yue captives and surrendered many people, those who could go to Dinghai were carefully selected, lest they take the opportunity to cause chaos. All these prosperous scenes have their own sweat permeating them. Huo Cong felt proud in his heart and walked towards the central army tent, followed by four tiger ben guards behind him.
After Jiang Zhe got away from Wu Yue, almost all of these Hu Ben guards were left in Dinghai. Later, the war was cemented. Except for half of these people who had the opportunity to guard Jiang Zhe on the Yongchu front line, the rest were forced by Jiang Zhe to stay by Huo Cong's side. Huo Cong confessed that he did not have the identity and necessity of using the Hu Ben guards as guards. Finally, under the mediation of Duke Jinghai, the two sides reached an agreement. Except for Huo Cong, who had to keep four Hu Ben guards at all times, the rest of the Hu Ben guards followed. The East Sea navy went ashore to rob Wu Yue, lest their swords be dull. Everyone is happy with such a result. With these high-strength Hu Ben guards joining in, there is a lot of assurance against the martial arts masters in the Wu Yue army, and Huo Cong will not feel like sitting on pins and needles, not to mention that some of these Hu Ben guards have been monitored by Jiang Zhe. His own character is not there. He is a young man who has not officially entered the official office, how dare he use the royal iron guard as his guard
In the tent of the Central Army, Jiang Haitao was also quite happy to learn that Huo Cong was coming. In the past three years, this young man has helped him a lot, but Jiang Zhe ordered Hu Ben's guard to secretly pass on him, so that he could pay attention to Huo Cong's behavior and even let himself live. Doubt, at the beginning, he thought it was just a test of his disciples, but later he passed down a book and told him to trap Huo Cong in Putuo. Although it was an important task, it was a fetter on the island, and he could not return north. Although Jiang Haitao was straightforward, he knew that there must be an article in it. , but couldn't bear to ask more, after all, Huo Cong was very appreciated by him. Thinking that Huo Cong will be able to return to Jiang Zhe today, Jiang Zhe must have changed his mind, and he is as happy as when Longsheng was promoted to Duke by Emperor's order in the ninth year.
Huo Cong walked into the tent and bowed to Jiang Haitao, Jiang Haitao handed a document to Huo Cong and said, "If our naval ship goes north, it will be difficult to avoid the interception of Ninghai, but it happens that there is a ship from the Yue clan in Nanmin heading north to Goryeo. , this is your identity document, there shouldn't be any problem going north safely."
Huo Cong naturally knew that although the two armies had fought frequently in recent years, many great families of Wu and Yue colluded with the generals of Ning Haijunshan to conduct private trade, because the two shipping companies involved in the private trade, Hai's and Yue's, both had relationships with the Jiang family. Because of their close relationship, Dinghai also turned a blind eye, and even made a lot of money from it. Of course, for Jiang Haitao, the most important thing is that through this kind of trade, he can get the shortage of supplies and crops, which is very important for the Ning Navy It is very important for the Donghai Navy, which is cut off by the mountain. As for using the two ships to pass on some information and escort them to the messenger, this is an indescribable benefit. For the families involved in the private aviation trade, the huge profits from it are enough to make them ignore the consequences of doing so. If it wasn't for the purpose of maintaining an equal status of cooperation, these aristocratic families secretly supported Wu Yueyijun and spared no effort, and someone would have attacked them long ago.
After explaining some official duties, Jiang Haitao said sternly: "There is one more thing that is quite embarrassing for me, and I would like you to tell Mr. Over the past six months, many villages and towns along the Wuyue coast have invited experts to dig tunnels in the villages to avoid our army. I have bought some of them and learned that the tunnels are like spider webs. If no one leads them, they will go astray and be injured by the poisonous smoke of countless hidden organs. Before our army entered the village, the villagers in the village had already taken refuge. In the tunnel, even food and money are hidden, making our army futile."
Huo Cong has not been involved in military affairs for a while. He was very curious and said, "I don't know who came up with this idea, do you have any clues?"
Jiang Haitao said with a wry smile: "There is a little clue. I got news a few days ago that the man was presiding over the construction of tunnel fortresses near Zhenhai, so he dispatched a good team to make a surprise attack. He went to the rescue and made him unknowingly lead the way. As expected, he saw the Yunzi Mountain, but he was surrounded by many master guards, and he even let this man escape under the siege of hundreds of warriors of our army. It really made me The army has no face. According to the confession of the prisoner, I only know that the man is a friend of Wu Yue's first sword Ding Ming, whose identity is unknown, but he is the best at secret weapons. After you meet Mr., tell him about my troubles. There is no good way to deal with it. I am afraid that if this continues, the money and food that our army has robbed in Wuyue will become less and less. Now our army is not self-sufficient in food. If we cannot obtain a considerable amount of money and food from Wuyue, the trouble will be big. "
Huo Cong listened and fell into deep thought. On the surface, it seemed that Wu Yue was a troublesome person. Why did he feel that there was something strange in this