Forty-eight years of Qianlong

Chapter 192 Scouting Battle
At the end of May, Qianlong severely reprimanded Agui and Fukang'an in his decree for their failure to do things well after receiving a request from Agui and Fukang'an to continue to increase troops.However, he finally agreed to mobilize the Wuqian Banner Battalion from the northwest to support Ningguta; at the same time, he urged the two to complete the crusade before winter this year.

Because it was not yet the harvest season in the Guan, the grain reserves in the Changping warehouses of the southern provinces and counties began to be transported northward in large quantities. Except for the disaster relief in Henan and Shandong, most of them were transferred outside the Guan as military rations.At the same time, Qianlong decreed that the governments of the four provinces of Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian and Guangdong should mobilize merchants to buy rice overseas, and at the same time encourage wealthy households in each province to donate.

(Since Kangxi in the Qing Dynasty, although the export of grain was prohibited, it did not reject the import of grain. In the 61st year of Kangxi, because he heard that the price of Siamese rice was extremely cheap, Kangxi proposed that Siamese merchants transport 30 shi of rice to Fujian respectively. , Guangdong, Ningbo and other places, and there is no need to pay taxes. In the early days of Yongzheng, rice was imported from Siam twice, and both were given tax-free treatment. In the sixth year of Yongzheng, it was finally determined that "rice grains do not need to pay taxes, as an example", the case became the norm.

The initial grain import was just a special policy given to Fujian.During Li Wei's tenure as governor of Zhejiang, this policy benefited Zhejiang.During the reign of Qianlong, Fujian, Guangdong, and Zhejiang were the main importing provinces for imported rice.Rice from Southeast Asia can not only be sold freely, if the market is not busy, foreign businessmen can also enjoy the treatment of government unified purchase. )
Agui, who was in Jilin, had already made preparations. As early as April, he sent a team of troops north to Ningguta to garrison fields. At the same time, he sent troops to reclaim unowned wasteland outside Ula City, Jilin. This eased the transportation of grain and grass in the rear. pressure.

A large amount of silver used as military pay suddenly poured into the markets of Wula and Ningguta in Jilin, causing local prices to soar, and the situation of cheap silver and copper expensive became worse and worse.At this time, the official price of 1 tael of silver is equivalent to 1200 copper coins, but in the markets of Jilin Ula and Ningguta, 1 tael of silver can only be exchanged for 800 copper coins.

Ordinary people use money to make money for daily tax payment, and only 1200 Wen is worth 1 tael of tax, but officials can exchange it for 1 tael of silver when they turn around.As a result, the local bannermen complained endlessly; and those exiles who were sent here as slaves were even more miserable, working so hard that they couldn't even afford an old sheepskin jacket.

The Suifen River in summer is beautiful and moving. The clear water flows alone, reflecting the overlapping peaks and tall forests like green walls.The white clouds in the sky are reflected on the river, and the waterfowl are playing and flying on the river.

At the end of the raised horizon in the middle reaches of the Suifen River, two official ships appeared.The black and red hull sailed in the clear river water, and the yellow dragon flag was particularly eye-catching on the bow of the leading ship.

These two boats are "hu boats". When the wind blows, the sails are raised, and when there is no wind, the oars are used.The hull is nearly 17 meters long, with a single mast and side spars (walls installed along the edge of the open deck to ensure the safety of personnel and prevent cargo from rolling off.)
The upper half of the ship is painted with vermilion paint, and the lower half is painted with black paint.On the front deck is a pair of guns covered with dark red cannon coats.The stern is very high, and a canopy with portholes is set up with reed mats on the deck. The inside is covered with red felt, and there is a square table and two chairs.

Probably because of the eagerness to travel, at this time, besides sailing the two boats, there were eight soldiers on both sides of each boat struggling to row their oars.

This kind of Lu boat is an official ship used to check borders on weekdays, but now it carries envoys from the Qing court to persuade them to surrender.

The tall and thin priest Anthony walked up from the cabin with his head bowed, stretched his arms lazily, and took a deep breath of fresh air.He looked around at the picturesque scenery on both sides of the river, but there was a hint of envy and greed in his eyes inadvertently.

Anthony knew that [-] miles to the north from here were the boundary markers of the Qing Dynasty and Russia; and in the south and west of Beijing, there were still thousands of miles of territory.

The country is vast in size, comparable to his homeland.But the most enviable thing is that the Qing Dynasty not only has a vast land area, but also a long coastline, from the hot and humid south to the icy Tartar Strait.Facing such a vast and rich land, it is hard not to be moved.

Before he came to the Qing Dynasty, he had heard that Her Majesty the Empress had made plans to invade the Qing Dynasty many times, but in the end she always temporarily suspended it because she was reluctant to part with the Kyakta trade; Dong Gu.

However, when Priest Anthony thought about the members of the priesthood under house arrest in Beijing, the hundreds of cannons waiting to be loaded outside the city of Wula in Jilin, and even the thousands of capable musketeers outside the city of Ningguta, all his desires disappeared. The smoke cleared.At this moment, he can only be a member of the mission honestly and go thousands of miles away to persuade his "compatriots" to evacuate.

At this time, an official with a wide mouth and two mustaches on his upper lip came out of the cabin, followed by three burly bodyguards.This man was in his 40s, with a ruby ​​on the coral top, a single-eyed peacock feather on the back of the straw hat, and a black moose leather sleeveless jacket with golden 狻猊 (狻猊) embroidered on the chest of the inner official robe. a lion).

The official smiled and asked Anthony, "Master An, is the scenery of the inland river in my dynasty still eye-catching?"

Anthony first bowed to pay tribute, and then replied with a smile: "Your Excellency, Vice President, this is really a beautiful and rich place."

The official smiled slightly after hearing this, and a gleam of light flashed in his eyes.

This person's name is Na Qitai, surnamed Wanyan, from Zhenglan Banner in Manchuria.His father served successively as General of Heilongjiang, General of Jilin, and General of Xi'an.In the 29th year of Qianlong, Na Qitai was awarded Lan Ling's bodyguard by Tang A (a deacon) at the sticking pole office, and served as the second-class bodyguard and the first-class bodyguard.In the 43rd year of Qianlong, he was awarded the vice general of Hangzhou Naval Association.In the 49th year of Qianlong's reign, Ding's mother was worried, but she still walked around the sticky pole as a first-class bodyguard.In the first month of the 50th year of Qianlong, he was awarded the deputy capital of Ning Guta.

The sticky place spanning the Yongzheng and Qianlong dynasties of the Qing Dynasty is officially named "Shangyu Spare Office", with a rated number of 40 people, and it belongs to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, but the office is located in the Lama Temple.In the imperial garden of Ouchi, there is another stronghold at the sticky pole, and that is the Yujing Pavilion of Duixiu Mountain on the east side of the imperial garden.In front of the door opening under the rockery, there are four large black-painted stools; no matter day or night, there are four sticky pole guards and four sticky pole Baitanga sitting on them, waiting for the emperor's order at any time, so as to carry out the order.

If it is explained that the establishment of the "factory guard" in the dynasty was a spy organization set up by the emperor to monitor the officials in order to strengthen the imperial power, then the sticky pole that has many similarities with the factory guard in the Ming Dynasty is the spy organization of the emperor of the Qing Dynasty.

After Qianlong succeeded to the throne, he took over the sticky pole left by Yongzheng, and continued to use it to monitor hundreds of officials in the court, including officials from other provinces and generals who went on expeditions.

A person like Na Qitai was sent to Ninggu Pagoda by Qianlong at this time, the meaning is self-evident.His purpose of leading the team eastward this time was also to obtain first-hand information about the Hubei people.

After the two chatted for a few words, Na Qitai invited Anthony to sit in the canopy of the boat.After the subordinates brought the tea, he and Anthony sat and drank tea and chatted while admiring the scenery of the surrounding mountains and forests.The three soldiers under his command stood guard all around.

Suddenly, there was a sharp roar from the dense forest on the left side ahead, and a loud arrow flew out of the forest and landed on the river ahead.Immediately afterwards, there was a burst of people shouting and shouting.

"He's there!" Another roar came from the dense forest, followed by the sound of swishing feather arrows and the sound of "Boom!"

Na Qitai's complexion changed, and before he could ask a question, Geshha, a personal soldier standing under the mast, took out a hard bow from his back and put an arrow on it, then dodged to the back of the gunnel in two steps, and shouted loudly towards the shore: " who!"

The channel of Suifenhe is not very wide, the narrowest part is only five or six meters, and the widest part is only eleven or twelve meters.Nagoshha nervously watched the situation on the river bank, and suddenly a black shadow flew out of the forest like lightning, and a long black arrow hit his face.Nagoshha didn't even utter a scream, and fell to the deck on his back.

"My lord!" Two guards rushed over, protecting Na Qitai.

At this time, a loud shout came from the shore: "Protect your lord!"

Priest Anthony was also taken aback. He slid down from the stool and lay on the deck in a daze.He felt that he had better go back to the cabin now, so he was about to go out with all his hands and feet, only to hear a Geshha whispered: "Biaoxia, please return to the cabin for shelter."

Na Qitai got up and pushed away a guard, and said angrily, "What are you panicking about!" After finishing speaking, he moved to the back of the gunnel with the two guards on his back, and shouted to the frightened oarsmen around: "Paddle! Get out of here!"

As soon as the words fell, there was a musket sound of "Boom" in the woods, followed by the sound of a bowstring "Boom Boom".

Everyone on the boat felt that the time had passed extremely long, and they didn't know how long it had passed. "Ah!" A heart-piercing scream came from a distance, and after a while, another shot was fired.

The other Geshha couldn't figure out what was going on, he looked at Na Qitai and said, "My lord, it seems that there are our own people on the shore, and the arrows are the same as those in the army. Shall we stop the boat and help them?"

As a person with many years of military career, Na Qitai knew from the moment the arrow whistled that it was a standard weapon in the army.

"Don't worry too much, we don't need to take care of things on the shore. Hurry up and get out of here!"

As the sailors on the two boats paddled desperately, the boat went down the current quickly, and the sound of killing on the shore gradually faded away.After a quarter of an hour, when the boat traveled more than two miles, everyone on board felt relieved.

Na Qitai who returned to the cabin frowned, anxious.What happened just now?
The time has to return to half an hour ago.

Because of his outstanding archery skills and his familiarity with the local forests, Funiyanga, who was the leader of Ningguta, was hit by Agui. He led ten men along the Suifen River to explore the road for the future army to advance eastward.

Agui has been fighting for many years, and the army is strictly controlled.Under his command, no one dared to slack off military orders.Funyan'a and his men carefully checked the situation along the way and recorded it in detail. He wanted to rush to Fuldan City as soon as possible, and then return to Ninggu Tower to report.

The reason for being so anxious is that Agui Zhongtang only gave a deadline of 20 days; the other is that there are too many mosquitoes in the forest.In summer, the weather in the outer Northeast is hot during the day, and there are clusters of hungry mosquitoes at night.Even though everyone brought enough mosquito repellents such as peppermint, wrinkled wrinkle, star anise, etc., they still got bitten all over their faces and complained endlessly. They all wanted to complete this suffering task as soon as possible.

After leaving the campsite early this morning, the group of them hurried on, hoping to arrive as soon as possible.Unexpectedly, an accident happened just an hour after they left, they were attacked by unknown persons.

At that time, a scout who was running at the front suddenly felt something was wrong, and with a "wow", he reined in his horse, slowed down, and stopped.At this moment, a armored soldier behind him asked strangely, "Irahan, what's wrong?"

I saw the armored soldier named Irahan raised his arm to signal everyone to be quiet.After Funyan'a and the others reined in their horses and stopped, they looked around.

In the mountains and forests where there would be a few birdsong from time to time, there is no sound at this moment.The mountain wind blew slightly on everyone's faces.Dozens of steps away on the right side, the water of Suifen River washes against the river bank quietly, making a "squeaky" sound.

Something is wrong with being so quiet here!
At this time, the horses under the crowd also became a little uneasy, with their ears pricked up, snorting, and pawing their hooves.

"Get off your horse and be on guard." Funyan'a said softly, got off his horse, and immediately took out a hard bow and a hazelnut whistle arrow from the bag.This kind of sentry arrow got its name because it has an iron head shaped like a hazelnut; it is generally used to shoot deer, but it can also be used to guide the direction of others' attacks.

Several armored soldiers looked dignified, and pulled out the wild goose feather sword or hard bow on the horse's back one after another, and two people reached out to take down the shotgun stuck in the saddle bag, took off the powder pot at their waist, poured two coins of powder, and then Put an iron bullet weighing three cents and one penny into the muzzle of the gun, and then pull out the wooden stick under the barrel to compact it; finally, he took out the torch and ignited the match, and then clamped the match to the metal hook on the top of the gun superior.

There was a soft "snap" sound from the bowstring, and a sharp black arrow shot out from a big tree in the front right like a ghost, and pierced fiercely into the neck of a bow-armored soldier.The armored soldier's eyes widened, the bow in his hand fell to the ground, and he stretched out his hand to grab the shaft of the arrow, trying to pull it out.After shaking for a few times, he finally fell to the ground, spitting blood from his mouth.

A dozen or so horses were frightened, neighing immediately, and scattered in all directions.

Funyan had no time to observe, and habitually raised his hand at the big tree on the upper right and shot an arrow. The sharp whistle pierced the silent forest.The leaves swayed, and a figure quickly slid down from the tree, turned around and disappeared into the bushes.

With a "crash", a figure jumped out of the bushes twenty cloth away from the left.This man's head was covered with grass and branches, and his body was gaudy, holding a strange thing in his hand, and he raised his hand according to the positions of the armored soldiers.

"Crack!" There was a soft sound, and a few sawdust burst out from the trunk beside a soldier.

"There he is!" Several armored soldiers dodged and hid behind a tree, drawing their bows and shooting arrows.

"Boom!" A armored soldier with a shotgun shot at the place where the figure disappeared.

At this time, Funyan'a also dodged behind a big tree, and took out a plum needle arrow from the bag to hit it on.He stared at the place where the person jumped out, and he already understood in his heart that there were at least two people on the other side.

The armored soldier who had been shot in the neck had already fallen to the ground, and Funyan'a finally saw the opponent's black arrow clearly.The straight arrow shaft is pure black, even the arrow feathers are black.

"Be careful! There are at least two of them!" Funyan'a whispered to his opponents.

At this time, everyone heard an angry shout from the river not far away: "Who is it!" Just as the voice fell, there was another soft sound in the bushes, and there was no sound on the river.

Funyan'a found the right position, and hid behind a stone half a person's height with a cat waist. At this time, the scene on the river was already clearly visible.The boat with the yellow dragon flag at the head seems to be the boat of the vice capital.

"Protect adults!"

Funiana shouted loudly, and one of the armored soldiers immediately pulled the shotgun in his hand, and he and several armored soldiers beside him raised their bows and shot at the place where the sound was made just now.

After a while, the other side became quiet.At this time, two armored soldiers with knives flashed out from behind the tree, intending to bend down to outflank them.Unexpectedly, as soon as it showed its head, the ghost appeared again, the bowstring rang softly, and the long black arrow shot into the abdomen of a soldier with a sword.

The injured armored soldier let out a scream, and knelt on the ground clutching his stomach.

Beans of sweat dripped down Funyan'a's cheeks, he knew that he had met the enemy of life and death today!The opponent is a master at using the bow, and the arrows are shot quickly and accurately, so I am afraid that he is not the opponent.

The few surviving armored soldiers were also extremely nervous, and the two people on the opposite side were like ghosts, and they were suddenly ruthless.Now it's troublesome!If the other party doesn't show his head, he can't advance or retreat on his own side. The horse has gone far away, and it seems that it can only be exhausted like this.

At this time, a shotgun soldier hiding behind a tree finally loaded the bullet and lit the matchlock.At this moment, he regretted so much that he would have taken out the sack if he knew it earlier. This shotgun seemed to have fierce firepower, but it was too slow to reload!Just as he was thinking, he caught a glimpse of the bushes in front of him on the left shaking slightly out of the corner of his eye. Without even thinking about it, he raised his gun and pulled the trigger.

A muffled groan came from the bushes on the opposite side, and all the armored soldiers burst into ecstasy, and they hit it!
But before the ecstasy passed, they immediately fell into the abyss.Behind the surrounding rocks and in the bushes, there was a "popping" sound like popping beans, and five or six armored soldiers were shot and killed immediately.Seeing this scene, Funyan'a's eyes widened, and his eyes were tearing apart!

(End of this chapter)