son-in-law

Chapter 890 Grabbing the Land (2)

Chapter 890 Sweeping the Ground ([-])

The intersection of the Yangtze River and the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, Zhenjiang.

The flying waterfowl bypassed the little white sails on the river, and the busy port was reflected in the scorching sun, and people came and went. As it approached noon, the city was still running rapidly.

"Zhenjiang has been a prosperous town for hundreds of years. When I was a child, the teacher in the mansion said that it is a hub from east to west, and it connects from north to south. I'm still not convinced. Is it more powerful than Jiangning? The teacher said that it not only has the Yangtze River, but also There is the Grand Canal, and the Wu Dynasty has prosperous commerce and trade. This place is the most important thing. I came here when I was eight years old, and there is no big circle outside."

The scorching sun shines down, and the green beech forest on the west hill of the city reflects the cool shade of the trees. When the wind blows over the hill, the leaves rustle.Outside the beech forest, there are hillsides of various weeds. Looking down from this hillside, there is a busy scene in Zhenjiang, surrounded by towering city walls, and there are residential areas that stretch for several kilometers outside the city walls. In the fishing village on the edge, the road passes between the houses and radiates into the distance along the river bank.

On the top of the mountain higher in the forest, and on the bank of the river farther away, there are military camps and a high platform for viewing.At this time, by the beech forest, the leading man was sitting casually on the stone under the tree. There were young people following him, as well as guards who followed, and in the distance there was a carriage that a group of people were riding on when they came up.

"In the past 200 years of the Wu Dynasty, Zhenjiang is only the most prosperous at present. Although a few years ago, it was broken by the Jurchen... In the second year of Jianshuo, searching the mountains and seas, Ruhua, remember. Yangzhou, I escaped from the other side of the river, and I met your sister here."

The man sitting on the stone still had a handsome face, but he had a beard under his jaw, and he was dressed in ordinary clothes. Although his eyes were gentle, he still had his majesty.This is Zhou Junwu, the prince of the Wu Dynasty. The young man sitting on the grass on one side was pale. Hearing him say this, he trembled slightly and nodded.

The pale young man's name is Shen Ruhua, he is the brother-in-law of the present prince, and the younger brother of Shen Ruxin, the No.3 concubine married by Jun Wu.Compared with her sister Zhou Pei's entanglement in marriage, the high-minded Jun and Wu Jiang's marriage is very insipid since childhood. Now there is one wife and five concubines in the mansion, but except for Shen Ruxin, the other five wives and concubines are all from wealthy families.The fourth wife of the Prince's Mansion, Shen Ruxin, was Jun Wu's acquaintance in times of need when he fled the mountains and seas. Not to mention the most beloved in daily life, but to say that she is the most special lady in the Prince's Mansion, it is not an exaggeration.

But today's Shen Ruhua is obviously not easy, and it even seems that the whole person is trembling slightly and is on the verge of collapse.

Jun Wu looked at Zhenjiang in front of him and was silent for a moment.

"In the second year of Jianshuo, eight years ago, I fled to Zhenjiang. Not long after, the Jurchens crossed the river and began to attack the city. I fled first. Ten thousand people. Ruhua and your family, the prefect of Zhenjiang sent people outside first, and survived, you remember? 5 people..."

Jun Wu recalled the catastrophe in the past, raised his finger slightly, his face was complicated for a long time, and finally he smiled strangely: "So... it's really strange. 5 people died, half the city was burned , In eight years, look at Zhenjiang, it’s so prosperous. The city walls can’t be closed, and everyone lives outside. This year, the prefect of Zhenjiang roughly ruled, and the population of this place is about 75... It’s strange, 75 People. Before the Jurchens called, there were only a million people in Bianliang. Some people reported it happily, how hard it is to rejuvenate the country. Ruhua, do you know why?"

Shen Ruhua's face was sullen, and she almost cried when she saw it.Jun Wu looked at him for a moment and stood up.

"Let me tell you, because people who come down from the north, the first to arrive is the area in the south of the Yangtze River. Zhenjiang is the north-south hub, and everyone gathers here...Of course, it is impossible for everyone to go to Zhenjiang. In the beginning, it was further south. It was still possible to go, but there were too many people going south, and the big families in the south refused to allow it, saying that the southerners should return to the northerners and the northerners should return to the north. There were several problems and banditry, and many people died. Of the 75 people in Zhenjiang, 60 are refugees who fled from the north with their families broken up or with their families."

He pointed to the front: "In the past eight years, I don't know how many people have died. The remaining 60 people live here like beggars. The densely packed houses outside have been built over the years. They have no land or land. Land, no property, six or seven years ago, not to mention hiring them for money, even if they just gave out some gruel to fill their stomachs, and then used them as livestock, they were all kind people. I have been through until now, and I can’t survive They died, and those who survived had a house in and outside the city, no land, a coolie job to do, or a soldier to work for their lives... Many people are like this.”

"...It's better than animals." Jun Wu smiled at Shen Ruhua, "I've seen a lot of people secretly, and they're better than animals, so they can live on, and said, I hope it will last a few more years. In peaceful days, from Jiangning to Zhenjiang, from Zhenjiang to Lin'an, millions of people live like this, give them some way to live, and the rich, let them do work, and those with acres of land at home, hire them to farm..."

He took a breath, clenched his right fist and swung unconsciously by his side, and paused: "The Jurchen went south three times and kidnapped millions of Han Chinese from the Central Plains. Those people became slaves in the Jin Kingdom, and the Jin Kingdom people really took them. They are used as livestock to feed the carnivores of the Jin Kingdom. In the Wu Dynasty, in the ten years since the loss of the Central Plains, millions and tens of millions of people lost their lives and lost everything. Food, work, arable land, commercial affairs in various places prospered all of a sudden, and Lin'an was prosperous for a while. Some people said that my Wu Dynasty lost the Central Plains, and it was so hard to build a country. The reason is like birch. We have more animals in the whole Central Plains."

Jun Wu's eyes stared at Shen Ruhua: "For so many years, these people were originally good, they had their own homes, their own wives, children and parents, after the Central Plains was beaten by the Jurchen, luckily the whole family moved south. After the family property was acquired, it was a little more bumpy, the old parents were gone, and what was even worse, the parents, wife and children died... and the parents died, and the wife and children were arrested and taken to Jin Guo, leaving only one person. Ru Hua , do you know what it feels like for these people to survive? Just one person survived well, others died, or you know that they are suffering in the north, living a life inferior to pigs and dogs... There are also people in Zhenjiang who are ruined and destroyed. , Ruhua, do you know how they feel?"

"Life is better than death..." Jun Wujiang leaned his fist on his chest, with tears in his eyes, "The prosperity of the Wu Dynasty depends on the ruin of these people's homes..."

"Brother-in-law..." Shen Ruhua also burst into tears.

"But they are still not satisfied. They are afraid that these beggars who are not hungry and do not have enough clothing and clothing will disturb the good life in the south, so the southerners return to the north and the southerners return to the north. In fact, this is nothing, such as birch, it sounds very irritating, but It's actually very common. These people are beggars and animals. Don't disturb the good life of others. They also hope that they can live a few years or ten years in peace with their wives, and they can live in places like Zhenjiang... But it's not going to be peaceful."

He said this, stopped, and a moment passed.

"In the Yangzhou and Zhenjiang areas, hundreds of thousands of troops are preparing for the war. Zongfu and Zongbi are coming here, and they are about to come here. Ruhua, fighting is never a child's play. You can't win it just by luck." The Jurchen's southward move is bound to win the Wu Dynasty. If they can't beat it, what happened before will happen again. It's just Zhenjiang, how many of these 60 people can live to see the next world peace..."

"In order for the army to fight this battle, I have offended a lot of people in the past few years... Don't think that the prince will not offend others, no one dares to offend anyone. If the army wants to come up, those who point fingers in the court will go down, and there will be fewer civilians. Things, the big family behind it is not happy, the big family is not happy, and the officials are not happy. When they do things, they will take a step, everyone will take a step, everything will slow down... The army is not worried, The children of the big clan join the army and want to give the family some benefits and take care of the power of the family. If I don’t allow it, they will violate the yang and yin. If there is no benefit, the world will not do it…”

Jun Wu smiled at Shen Ruhua, sat down in the shade of the tree, and rambled about the difficulties at hand. After a while, some birds flew over the top of the tree.

"In these years... the military law has dealt with many people, and the people who should be rude and the ones who should be killed, my subordinates are all a bunch of orphans and rebels. It is said that the royal family likes orphans and rebels. In fact, I don't like it. I like a bit of humanity. It's a pity that Jurchen has no human touch..." He paused, "Not to us."

Jun Wu clasped his hands, sat there and lowered his head.Shen Ruhua's body was trembling, and tears had been shed for a long time: "Sister, brother-in-law... I would like to go to the army..."

"Pretend to be sent to the army, and then replace it after a while, you can still live."

"I-I won't..."

Jun Wu looked at him and interrupted him: "They think so, they will say so."

"I, I only took 700 taels, there is no more, they...they all..."

"700 taels is also a capital crime!" Jun Wu pointed in the direction of Zhenjiang, "700 taels can give a person a good life for a lifetime, 700 taels can hang tens of thousands of people, and 700 taels can pay seventy soldiers for a year... …Yes, 700 taels is not much. If it was more than ten years ago, let alone 700 taels, your sister married the prince, and you can take 7 taels from others, but today, the 700 taels in your hand, or It's worth your life, or it's worth 700 million taels... The evidence is solid, someone wants to trick you, and the reason for tricking you is because they want to deal with me. Over the years, the Prince's Mansion has killed too many people, and some people are about to be locked up in prison. Kill, if you don’t kill you, others won’t be able to kill you either.”

"Shen Ruhua, it's not that easy to fight, it's almost impossible..." Jun Wu turned his eyes to the other side, "If I let you go today, my subordinates will doubt me. I can let go of my brother-in-law, Yue Fei. He can also let go of his brother-in-law. Han Shizhong wants to let his children go to some extent. The people around me also have people who are close to me. Those who oppose me in the army will tell these things, people who believe in them. There will be more people. On the battlefield, there will be more people who want to run away, and more people will shake. Let go of you."

Tears seemed to fall from his eyes, but when he turned around, there were no traces of it: "I have a wife and five concubines, and your sister is the easiest to get along with. Your sister is not in good health. I don't know how to see you again after this incident. She. Your sister once told me that you have a simple mind since you were a child, and you are a good child. Let me take care of you more. I am sorry for her. Your family has a single lineage. Fortunately, the girl you are close to is already pregnant. When the child is born, I will take him over... take care of it as if it were your own, you can... rest assured."

Jun Wu started talking about the other party's sister, but he was hesitant in his words, and gradually became firm and decisive. After he finished speaking, he stopped looking at Shen Ruhua, and stood up with his hands on his knees.

Over the years, although the things he has done seem to be brutal, in fact, Jun Wu is only 27 years old this year.He is not a dogmatic and stern character, but is more forced by the current situation and has to take charge of the situation. Shen Ruxin asked him to help take care of his younger brother. In fact, Jun Wu is also a younger brother, and he has no experience on how to teach his brother-in-law.Now that I think about it, I really feel sad.

As for Shen Ruhua, he is only this year, his family education was good, and after he became a relative of the emperor, he did not act ostentatiously. After several contacts, Jun Wu had a good impression of him.But young Muai, Shen Ruhua fell in love with a woman in the Qin Tower, and the money in the family was not much, so the people around opened a gap here, and after several exchanges, Shen Ruhua was encouraged to accept money and things worth 700 taels of silver, Ready to redeem the woman.The matter was exposed before it was completed. Although the matter did not spread among the lower-level people for a while, it has already spread among the military and political upper-level.

No one commented on this, and no one even wanted to spread unfavorable remarks to the prince among the people, but Jun Wu's scalp was numb.This matter is at a critical time of preparation for the war. In order to ensure the operation of the entire system, the Military Law Division has made every effort to clean up the black sheep, the corrupt people in the rear transfer system, the shoddy profiteers, and the military camps in the front who deduct military pay and sell the army. The generals of the capital have all cleared a large number at this time, and naturally there are children of various families and clans among them.

If Shen Ruhua were spared, and even others helped cover it up, then everyone would be tied together more or less in the future.Similar things have happened more than once over the years, but this one thing made him the most embarrassed.

Raise your hand, and many things in this world still seem to work the same as before.However, the eyes of the dead were watching him, and he knew that when all the soldiers faced the enemy on the battlefield, something would be different.

He got up and prepared to leave, even if Shen Ruhua begged for mercy again, he would ignore it.However, after taking a few steps, the young man in the back did not ask for mercy. There was crying from behind, and then the sound of Shen Ruhua kneeling on the ground and kowtowing. Jun Wu closed his eyes.

"The world has fallen..." he said with difficulty, "Speaking of it...it was originally my Zhou family's fault...The Zhou family was incompetent in governing the country and made the world suffer...I am incompetent in governing the army, so I blame you...Of course, this In the world, there are people who corrupt a few 10 taels without dying, and those who take away 700 taels will be killed without pardon, and there will always be people who have never seen 700 taels in their entire life. It is difficult to explain the reason. Today I...I can only promise you today... "

He paused for a long time: "I can only assure you that when the Jurchen kills me, I will go to the battlefield... I will shed the last drop of blood with the Jurchen. No matter what my identity is, I will never try to survive."

Jun Wu did not emphasize his tone, and simply finished his words.Shen Ruhua burst into tears, Jun Wu got into the carriage, and without looking outside again, ordered the carriage to go to the barracks.

This day is the seventh day of June in the tenth year of Jianshuo. The Jurchen East Route Army has completed its renovation in Xuzhou. In addition to the original main force of nearly 30, it has mobilized nearly 35 puppet Qi and Han troops from all over the Central Plains. On the one hand, the westward team began to gather in the direction of Yangzhou.

At this time, in Zhenjiang, Yangzhou and even the surrounding areas, Han Shizhong's main force had already made several years of defense preparations with the help of the water network in the south of the Yangtze River. Although Zongfu Zongbi had the confidence to search the mountains and inspect the sea, but after breaking Xuzhou, he still did not They moved forward rashly, but tried to assist the original navy of the puppet Qi army to assist the attack.Although the troops of the Han army in the Central Plains are of mixed quality and slow in action, the official war between Jin and Wu is already imminent. The short time is three to five days, and the more than one month, the two sides will inevitably start a large-scale confrontation.

In the nights before the war, Zhenjiang still had bright lights. Jun Wu would sometimes stand by the dark river and look at the lonely city, and sometimes he would not be able to sleep all night.

There are many things in the daytime, most of them are public affairs, and naturally there are also private affairs such as Shen Ruhua.The date for beheading Shen Ruhua is set for the tenth day of June.On the night of the eighth day, Zhou Pei, who was supposed to be in Lin'an, rushed over from the capital.

　Challenge twenty chapters this month.

Well, say big things first to put a little pressure on yourself.

(End of this chapter)