The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 364 Bull Demon and Snake God
An official road south of Yongding Gate in the capital was clogged with refugees and garrison soldiers, all trying to reach the capital to beg for food. It was the middle of winter, and a northwest wind blew across the North China Plain, sending snowflakes flying and a shrill whistling sound. The weather was freezing cold, as if the end of the world had arrived.

A large flag with the word "Zhang" written on it hung low in the snowy night. The sudden cold wave made the flag even darker, like a soul-calling banner held by a monk or Taoist priest, silent and quiet.

Under the soul-calling banner, a creaking sedan chair came out of the night, moving like a ghost, with two dim lanterns leading the way.

Eight short and strong sedan chair bearers carried the official sedan chair behind the lantern, as if carrying a gloomy coffin, step by step towards the cemetery in the ankle-deep snow.

Fifty elite servants under Zhang Chun were on horseback guarding the sedan chair. These servants came from western Liaoning and were servants under Zu Dashou.

If nothing unexpected happened, the Zu family servants would have been killed in front of Jinzhou City long ago, and only their ghosts appeared here at this moment.

This is not a late Ming version of the supernatural stories in "Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio" - but a serious late Ming military documentary program.

It is said that when the Zu family was destroyed and Zu Dashou was killed, there were always some servants in the Zu family who escaped. A small number of servants took advantage of the chaos to escape and hid in northern Zhili. Shortly after the end of the Liaoxi War, they defected to Zhang Chun.

It is said that Zhang Chun was the sworn brother of General Wu (Wu Xiang). Before General Wu fled to his hometown of Gaoyou, he gave Brother Zhang tens of thousands of taels of silver.

"My brothers have started an uprising in Gaoyou. They are clearing out the imperial court and killing the traitor Liu. They are cooperating with me from north to south. Liu Zhaosun is nothing in the south. My brothers are going to sweep north and fight all the way to the Yellow River..."

Zhang Chun, the general commander of Zhending Prefecture, was drunk and spoke incoherently.

"Master, you can drink a lot, can you have another drink?"

The interior of the sedan was as warm as spring. There were four copper stoves in the four corners, with charcoal fires burning brightly.

Two of the most beautiful top prostitutes in Shuntian Prefecture, one named Dai Yu and the other Bao Cai, were holding Zhang Chun's body on both sides. Their slender hands tightly wrapped around Mr. Zhang like octopus tentacles, and they violated the sensitive parts of this court official from time to time.

"If I kill the Protector of the Country, I will become the Protector of the Country. Master, please don't forget me."

"What's the point of being the Protector of the Country? I'll be the new emperor then! Master, I want to be the queen."

"I want one too, sir. I heard the Queen's ear picks are made of gold! Is that true?"

"It's true, the Queen's toilet is also made of gold!"

The two famous prostitutes in Yihongyuan were also Zhang Chun's lovers. The three of them often played indescribable private games together.

The two girls were flirting and talking endlessly. One of them was responsible for feeding the master meat, while the other was responsible for filling him with wine, which made the master drunk.

"Become the emperor? Yes, I have endured for so long, to be the emperor. Liu Zhaosun can do it, why can't I! If I become the emperor, I will make you the queen, and the empress dowager..."

Zhang Chun staggered, reached out and touched the woman's body randomly, and finally fell into a deep sleep with his head resting on Dai Yu's chest.

Outside the sedan chair, there was an endless stream of refugees, the garrison soldiers were cowering in fear, heavy snow was falling from the sky, many people were still wearing thin linen clothes, shivering barefoot in the wind and snow, these people walked slower and slower, and were finally frozen to death, turning into cold and stiff corpses.

But no one fell behind easily. They kept moving forward. Only by entering Beijing could they survive.

Various extreme weather conditions continued to occur in North China during the Little Ice Age. The fields became dry and the wheat seedlings died from lack of water. At the end of October, the weather was freezing cold and the crops that were not killed by drought were frozen to death by a cold wave.

The north began to fall into a state of famine. Of course, the disaster situation in northern Zhili was slightly better than that in Shaanxi. So far, no one has eaten Guanyin soil - there is no such thing here.

So, for these living people, the choice becomes simple.

Rather than slowly starving to death, it is better to follow General Zhang to the capital to do something big, rob money and food. If I can bring back the food and silver alive, the adults and children in my family will not starve to death.

Therefore, after Zhang Chun proposed the Jingnan Campaign, the people around him responded one after another, and he quickly raised a considerable number of "Jingnan Army".

The sedan stopped at Baoding Post Station at dawn.

Zhang Chun rubbed his sleepy eyes and woke up. The sedan was in a mess, and the two beauties, Dai Yu and Bao Cai, had disappeared.

He opened the curtain of the sedan chair, and the sun rose as usual. Out of the corner of his eye he caught a glimpse of a dead body lying on the side of the road at the post station.

Just as Zhang Chun was about to lower the curtain of the sedan chair, a huge head suddenly stretched out its head, scaring Mr. Zhang so much that he jumped up.

"You're such a fool! You scared me to death!"

The head servant, Niu San, looked into the sedan chair and then turned his gaze back to the master.

"Master, the two top performers are boarding donkey carts at the post station, saying they're heading back to Shuntian Prefecture. Before leaving, they told me to tell you not to wait for them, saying that prostitutes, regardless of whether they're from a wealthy or unofficial background, are always there to entertain customers. They also said that you're a man of great ambition, and that you should hurry to the capital to attack the thief Liu, and not indulge in romantic affairs..."

Zhang Chun said "oh" and touched it, and found that the gold ingot given to him by his brother Wu Xiang had disappeared.

"God damn it, not only did they rob her of her body, they also robbed her of her money!"

The head servant had a fierce look on his face:

"Master, should we send someone to chase and kill these two bitches?"

Zhang Chun waved his hand and said:
"Let them go. After we kill Liu the thief, I will take possession of all those Ling and Chai in Yihongyuan."

The head servant laughed lewdly and said:
"The Thirteen Women of Tongling!" "That's right, thirteen women, not one less."

Niu San smiled and said, "Master, when you become the emperor, can you assign a few more young palace maids? I heard that the women in the Forbidden City are very tender and beautiful..."

Zhang Chun slapped the head servant on the forehead, frightening Niu San so much that he trembled and said quickly:
"The lives of us Liaoxi servants are all given by the master. The master gives us whatever he wants. I dare not ask for anything more..."

Zhang Chun said coldly: "You are quite sensible."

Before General Zhang finished speaking, a noisy voice was heard outside.

Niu San swung his whip at a group of refugees who were moving slowly forward.

"What are you arguing about! Hurry up and go! Go! Go! Go!"

Several captains immediately caught up and drove the refugees forward like driving ducks.

The physical strength of the people being driven was nearing the limit, and some people fell behind one after another. Those who were left alone were abandoned by the team and were soon submerged in the white snow and wind.

Zhang Chun didn't care about the lives of the refugees. In his eyes, those peasants were no different from the wild dogs gnawing on the corpses.

This time, Mr. Zhang mobilized 50,000 to 60,000 refugees. After drinking three bowls of porridge, these people became his new recruits and were taken to the capital to beg for food.

Looking at the huge crowd of refugees and garrison soldiers in front of him, Mr. Zhang felt quite proud. He had been waiting for this day for a long time.

With these people as cannon fodder, the support of military leaders from all over northern Zhili, and the financial support of the southern gentry, Zhang Chun felt that he could compete with the Duke of Protector of the Country.

This is an opportunity, an opportunity to replace Liu Zhaosun.

In the 47th year of the Wanli reign, Zhang Chun and Liu Zhaosun met for the first time. At that time, they were both generals in the foreign troops sent to aid Liao. Liu Zhaosun was the captain and Zhang Chun was the captain.

Unexpectedly, after a few years, Liu Zhaosun was actually granted the title of Duke of Protectorate, while Zhang Chun was still just a small general.

"Liu Zhaosun, I'm no worse than you! How dare you be so arrogant!"

According to intelligence, there were only three to four thousand troops left in Kaiyuan to guard the capital, and these people were divided into the nine inner gates and the seven outer gates. On average, there were only a few hundred people on each city wall.

The capital is difficult to defend.

Liu Zhaosun was about to gather all his subordinates when Yang Hao arrived.

"My dear son-in-law, why has it come to this? Why are we still unaware that the enemy has reached the city? What is the point of our remaining in the capital with so few men? Let's return to Liaodong!"

Liu Zhaosun imitated the tone of the King of Understanding and comforted the old man:

"I know war best. Everything is under control. Don't worry."

~~~~
The 50,000-strong "Jingnan Army" stood in the open space in front of Yongdingmen. The crowd was huge, the flags were fluttering, and it was a spectacular sight.

The shops and rice stores at the foot of the imperial city had already been looted by refugees.

Almost all the troops that could be mobilized in Northern Zhili were in the hands of the rebels. In Zhang Chun's view, Liu Zhaosun had no way out.

Zhang Chun, along with the generals who had followed him to quell the rebellion, shouted:
"If I don't kill Liu Zhaosun, heaven and earth will not tolerate it! If I don't kill Liu Zhaosun, it will not be enough to appease the people's anger. If I don't kill Liu Zhaosun, I swear I will not be a human being! Today, the Jingnan Army has arrived, and the Ming Dynasty is saved!"

There were thunderous cheers from all around, and the generals who participated in the rebellion nodded to him one after another. It was most appropriate to describe Liu Zhaosun as a beast.

Everyone present wanted to tear Liu Zhaosun into pieces. Although they usually had many conflicts, their goals were surprisingly consistent when it came to dealing with Liu Zhaosun. This bastard was an enemy of everyone, and it was his own fault that he had ended up like this today.

Zhang Chun handed the wooden trumpet to the censor Zhang Weiwei.

The elegant and refined Zhang Yushi walked to the city wall. He was very weak due to his long-term pursuit of prostitutes and was panting with every step.

"Life, everyone is mortal since ancient times. Leave behind a loyal heart to shine, and record it in history! Even if it means sacrificing your life for a righteous cause, national traitors must be eradicated at all times! It's necessary to eradicate them. Just imagine, when you are drinking wine in Yihong Courtyard, hugging Daiyu Baocai and about to do something, the Jinyiwei suddenly rush upstairs, kick open the door, and pull you naked out of bed, accusing you of secretly communicating with the Qing army! They will ransack your house and steal your wife. Would you do it?"

“No!!!”

"Liu Zhaosun won't pay us and wants to remove us. Brothers, do you agree?!"

"I won't agree!!!"

Zhang Erwei returned the loudspeaker to Zhang Chun.

Zhang Chun waved his hand.

"Liu Zhaosun is finished. Attack the capital and take back your things! Kill Liu Zhaosun! Take away the silver and the women!"

The "Jingnan Army" composed of all kinds of evil spirits such as the imperial guards, the canal gangs, the refugees' garrison soldiers, the Donglin family servants, and the Shanxi merchants' horse caravans, marched towards Yongding Gate in a mighty force.

(End of this chapter)