After Ming Dynasty

Chapter 7 Siege of the Zhang Family
Father Zhu is a talented person, and he speaks nicely. He followed Xie Qian and headed towards Dazhuang Village together.

Zhu Yiyuan was late on purpose, and set off with Tan Laoqi and the others.

Considering it was his first expedition, it was very commemorative, and if he had achieved something, it would be something to write about.

But soon Zhu Yiyuan dismissed this idea, is this called an expedition?How can it be more casual than armed training?

Xie Qian's group of people were yelling and shouting, smiling and waving the swords in their hands, just like visiting temple fairs or spring outings.

Hey, seriously, this is going to war!

Zhu Yiyuan was speechless. At this time, Tan Laoqi came to his side and cupped his hands, "Young master, the folks in the village know the grace of saving lives."

Zhu Yiyuan was stunned for a moment, "Qiye, how do you know?"

Tan Laoqi chuckled, "Young Master, it's not easy to buy Xie Qian's soldiers! We knew it when we left. If it weren't for your lord and your master, the villagers would have rushed to the front to die."

Zhu Yiyuan was quite pleasantly surprised, and thought that this Tan Qiye could do it. In just a few days, he not only organized the villagers, but even started to infiltrate Xie Qian in reverse. He is indeed a powerful person.

But soon Zhu Yiyuan felt a little worried again, he lowered his voice, "Qi Ye, if you can get news, the Zhang family may be able to."

Tan Laoqi was stunned for a while, then quickly nodded and said: "My lord, I think it's almost the same. This Zhang family is not simple."

Zhu Yiyuan nodded vigorously. It is true that the Zhang family in Zichuan became famous because of an elder named Zhang Zhifa and the name Shenghu.He was a Jinshi in the Wanli period, and his qualifications were very old. During the Chongzhen period, he entered the cabinet to worship the prime minister, but was later defeated by Wen Tiren.

Zhang Zhifa's resignation is a bit funny. According to the usual practice, when he was impeached, he had to write a letter saying he was sick, and he asked for disposal and decided to stay or stay.As a result, Zhang Zhifa did not write a letter saying that he was ill, but Chongzhen issued an order to let him return to his hometown for recuperation.

Regardless of whether you are sick or not, anyway, the emperor thinks you are sick, that is, you are sick, so Zhang Zhifa got the name of being sick by order, and became a laughing stock for a while.

Of course, even so, as a bachelor, Zhang Zhifa was still very prosperous after returning to his hometown. He passed away three years ago and was posthumously awarded the title of Shaobao.

He was also considered lucky, and even left before the Ming Dynasty, which can be regarded as keeping the evening festival.

Look at those descendants of him who are eager to shave their hair and act as thugs. If Zhang Zhifa is alive, he will probably be a second minister.

Zhu Yiyuan naturally despises the Zhang family, but it is undeniable that a powerful family like theirs, with deep roots in the local area, rich fields, rich people and many people, cannot be underestimated.

Xie Qian thought that he could take down the Zhang family with just a raise of his hand, so it should be easy for him.

Zhu Yiyuan served in the army for several years in his previous life, so he still has basic qualities, but Xie Qian is so high-minded that he won't listen to him at all.

And if Zhu Yiyuan said it, he couldn't immediately think of a solution.

So Zhu Yiyuan turned his head to look at Tan Laoqi, then at the other villagers, and asked the big guy if he knew the details of the Zhang family, to see if he could find a way to get in...

Facts proved that Zhu Yiyuan still underestimated the situation. They had just set off from Qingshiji, and Liu Hu led the vanguard to the outskirts of Dazhuang Village.

It is different from Qingshiji, a village that develops along the river in a long strip without any protection.Dazhuang Village has long been managed by the Zhang family quite firmly.

There is a wooden fence around their village, and there is a ditch outside the fence. Although it is not wide or deep, it is an obstacle anyway.

What's even more amazing is that the Zhang family's house is located in the core of the village, with a solid wall. After years of expansion, it is one foot and eight feet high, which is more majestic than ordinary small county towns.

The Zhang family raised hundreds of thugs, some of whom were desperadoes.

The last time Zhang Xu brought people out, he was ambushed by Xie Qian and killed.

But this time it was a frontal attack, which was completely different.

Liu Hu, as Xie Qian's forward, rushed up without waiting for everyone to arrive, but when they just approached the outskirts of Dazhuang Village, some people felt pain in their feet and wailed.

It turned out that at some point, the Zhang family had set up barbed wire outside.

The rebels in the front were injured in their feet and fell down one after another.

And at this moment, many servants and guards with bows and arrows turned out from behind the wooden fence and shot at the rebels indiscriminately. In a blink of an eye, more than a dozen people fell down.

Even Liu Hu was almost shot.

what happened?

Obviously, the last attack was not so troublesome, it only took a few days, how did the Zhang family have so many tricks?
Liu Hu was puzzled, but annoyed, he still urged his rebels to keep rushing upwards.

The big guy yelled strangely, braved the bows and arrows shot from time to time, and had to dodge the barbed wire under his feet. It took a lot of effort and paid 50 casualties before he got close to the river protection.

Liuhu was overjoyed, and asked someone to lift the wooden boards of the ladder, set up a pontoon bridge, and rushed to the outside of the wooden fence in one breath.

Among the rebels, there were strong warriors who swung their axes vigorously and smashed through the fence.

They were overjoyed, thinking they had finally torn the tortoise's shell.

Liu Hu held up the knife in his hand and directly charged in.

But he never expected that just as he was rushing in, a team of more than 100 people came out from the village, and the leading 30 to [-] people were actually wearing armor and carrying bright weapons.

Liu Hu collided with them and quickly lost the wind, and his men were hacked to death twenty or thirty times, his chest and stomach were injured, he rolled and crawled, and finally escaped from Dazhuang Village.

Fortunately, Xie Qian led the people over and saved Liu Hu.

The people who were killed from inside, seeing that there were many righteous soldiers, obviously did not want to risk their lives, so they also retreated.

Liu Hu, who kicked on the iron plate, had an ugly expression on his face. His subordinates suffered heavy losses. After a simple bandage, he complained to Xie Qian.

"Big dragon head, listen to me earlier, let the villagers of Qingshiji rush, and my subordinates will not die. They are all good young men, and they hurt me to death!"

Xie Qian's face was livid, and he had a bad start. He was in a bad mood, and said with a dark face: "Don't complain, you go to rest, I will attack myself, I don't believe in the turtle shell of the Zhang family, I can't tear it open!"

Xie Qian, who personally commanded, had a lot more methods than Liu Hu. He asked the rebels to carry the sand on their backs, rush to the front of the Huzhuang River and throw it out, filling up the Huzhuang River, and then hooked the wooden fence with flying claws, forming pieces into pieces. piece, overturning the fence.

After there was no obstruction, they successfully entered Dazhuang Village, and relying on their numbers, they approached the Zhang family's mansion.

But just as Xie Qian was making great strides, trouble arose.That group of capable soldiers came out again, smashing the rebel army to pieces.

Xie Qian became furious, hurriedly regrouped, and went up to kill again.

Three times in a row, all were beaten back.

Xie Qian counted his subordinates, and there were about fifty or sixty losses. Including Liu Hu's subordinates, almost 100 people were killed or injured.Although there are a lot of cannon fodder in it, the morale of the army is also on the verge of collapse.

Many people no longer listened to Xie Qian's words. Some even fled secretly, and some rushed into the homes of other farmers in Dazhuang Village during the attack, looting and killing... This is already a sign of the collapse of the whole army.

Bandit-style warfare is roughly the same, even if it is Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong, they have tens of thousands of people in their arms, and once they are defeated, they will quickly flee in all directions.

Fortunately, in the troubled times, the imperial court was unable to settle down the refugees. They lost quickly and grew stronger. It won't be long before they can bring more people to make a comeback.

"Master Zhu, the Zhang family must be prepared. Come with me. When we recruit more brothers and make a comeback, we must destroy the Zhang family!"

Confident in the morning, and now you're running?

"Thank you boss, my son is still here, and my wife, my home..." Father Zhu was so anxious that his eyes were red, he didn't want to run away just like that.

Xie Qian was startled, and said: "Go to a few people, call Mr. Zhu over, let's go together!"

Soon Zhu Yiyuan came, and when he saw Xie Qian's livid face, he knew something was wrong.The old man came up to meet him, and said bitterly, "Boss Xie wants us to follow him."

Just this sentence Zhu Yiyuan understood, this is to be Xiao Li Zicheng!Zhu Yiyuan didn't think that he would be luckier than Li Zicheng, and he might die before he could succeed in his career.

Fortunately, he discussed it with the villagers in advance. At critical moments, he still has to rely on the wisdom of the big guys.

"Xie the leader, the matter has not yet reached that point, and the Zhang family is not indestructible."

Xie Qian frowned and said angrily, "Young Master Zhu, do you still know how to fight?"

Zhu Yiyuan looked around, and then approached Xie Qian, and said in a low voice, "Chief Xie, although I don't know how to fight, some folks in Qingshiji helped Zhang's house to be repaired, and I know that to the east of Zhang's house, there is a road For the gutter, we can send someone to go in from the inside, secretly open the door of the Zhang family, and come to cooperate with the outside."

Xie Qian was startled, "Really?"

"It's absolutely true, Chief Xie, you're not willing to just give up like this, are you? If you retreat, most of the people will be scattered."

Xie Qian only felt the pain in his flesh, and finally nodded, "Okay, just listen to Mr. Zhu once. Send an order to surround the Zhang family first."

(End of this chapter)