A century-old family that runs through the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 82 Uncle and nephew, minister and thief

When he heard the shouts of killing outside, Yan Jizheng was sitting at the table, holding a volume of "Spring and Autumn" in his hand, reading carefully.

Escorting grain is a very boring job, and only reading can help him pass the time and forget all kinds of troubles.

However, the sudden killing sounds and collisions on the calm river completely pulled him back from the ancient etiquette era in the book.

Just as he was about to open the window, a guard hurriedly opened the door and broke in, shouting:

"Captain, something bad is going on, the enemy is attacking!"

"Enemy?" Yan Ji was shocked when he heard this. Where did the enemy come from in this place? Is it still on the water?He poked his head out and saw that the surrounding ships were lit up with lights. The sound of swords clashing was endless. Soldiers fell into the water and screamed for help. The hellish scenery made this scholar who had never been on the battlefield feel cold all over. .

"Commander, let's retreat first! If you are trapped in the formation, there will really be no way to save yourself." The guard suggested.

Yan Ji naturally agreed, and this was the right thing to do. When the army collapsed, only if the commander was in good health could it be possible to gather the defeated troops for funeral arrangements.

But his building ship was in the center. At this time, the cannons in front and behind were fighting and losing control, and he couldn't get out at all.

So the soldiers on the ship could only watch in despair as the flag of a ship was lowered. They slowly turned around and came closer. The Northern soldiers on top were holding knives in their hands and looking at them eagerly.

At this time, the Southern Army had no intention of resisting. As the Northern Army swarmed forward, the main ship lost control and the flag fell.

The guard guarding the door was unyielding and was hacked to death. Several tall and thick men broke into Yan Ji's room carrying bloody butcher knives.

They controlled the old man like a chicken, tied him up, and kept him under strict guard.

After a while, the surroundings gradually calmed down, and the shouts of killing stopped. Except for a few peripheral cannons, the fleet fell into the hands of the enemy. A layer of corpses floated on the river.

"My lord, the commander of the enemy's water transport is here." A voice came from the door, and a soldier saluted and pointed at Yan Ji in the room.

He tried to calm his pounding heart.

Are you going to die today?Yan Ji's mind recalled the people who had sacrificed their lives for the country in ancient and modern times, and suddenly the fear in his heart was swept away.

Although the body is dead, the name can be hung on bamboo and silk, so what is there to be afraid of?

He ignored the soldiers' orders to "do not move rashly", patted the dust on his clothes and straightened his hat without changing his expression.

The deck in front of him made a creaking sound, and the moonlight illuminated the body at the door, leaving a tall shadow. He knew that it was the leader of the rebel army.

Countless words passed through his mind, and he decided that he would angrily scold the rebel general, and then die violently in his anger.

However, the next moment, his eyes widened!
The general in front of him has a heroic appearance. Although his eyebrows are a little softer, which makes him more handsome, overall, you can still see the shadow of someone.

That person was solemnly written in the family tree and destined to be remembered by future generations. His appearance was the beginning of the family's rise.

As far as Yan Ji knew, there was only one person in the Northern Army who looked like this.

Although they had only met a few times when they were children, he still recognized each other.He raised his hand and pointed at this person with slightly trembling fingers. There was a lot of anger in his chest that seemed to be pouring out!

The general looked at Yan Ji and recognized his identity.

He sighed, turned to his subordinates and said:
"Forget it about this ship. There is no grain anyway, and this person is not an important minister of the Southern Court... Take away the official documents on the table."

He knew that his uncle's temper was too strong, and he might go on a hunger strike or commit suicide by jumping into a river.

After all, he is an uncle and is related by blood.

Anyway, this time there was such a big problem with the ship, and if he returned alive, the emperor would not kill him for his brother's sake, but don't think about reusing him.

The soldiers did not dare to disobey and obediently looted the ship.

Seeing Beijun doing his own thing and completely ignoring him, Yan Ji was so angry that his chest exploded. He, his good nephew, didn't take him seriously at all!
"Yan Keng! You are so brave! Have you forgotten what your father taught you since childhood? The imperial court raises the world. Your Majesty is the father of the people and the son of God. How can you betray! If you still have the slightest trace of propriety, justice and shame in your heart, Just put down your weapons quickly and lead your troops to surrender. I will write a letter to plead for you, and you can win a lighter sentence!"

Yan Keng was about to leave here when he stopped when he heard this and let out a cold snort:
"Your Majesty is the father of the king and the son of the emperor? If you are talking about Taizu, of course there is no problem, but if you are talking about Jianwen, hum... how he ascended the throne, you know better than anyone else."

"Jianwen has no kindness or kindness. It has never been heard of treating blood relatives like this since ancient times. When King Yan raised his army, he obeyed the will of heaven! I obeyed the destiny of heaven and attacked the unjust. What's wrong with that?"

Yan Ji didn't think so. He rolled up his sleeves and looked like he was going to argue with his opponent for [-] rounds.

Yan Keng, however, had no interest in continuing the conversation with him.

He has many things to do. He is still in the area ruled by Nanting. Jinan has an army of [-] to [-] from Nanting. He needs to set off quickly.Talking nonsense to Yan Ji here won't change anything, and convincing him won't bring you any benefits.

"Uncle, of all the officials in the world, I'm afraid you, Huang and Fang are the only ones who think so." He shook his head, as if he was laughing at his second uncle's insensitivity to the general trend and people's hearts.

How many loyal ministers are there in the world?How long did it take for the Ming Dynasty to raise scholars?There are not many people who are willing to fight to the death for the emperor!

"Those who live in the capital are the masters of artifacts. This is the consensus of all officials. No one cares who is sitting on the dragon throne, as long as his surname is Zhu, it is enough. Since you have been demoted, why bother to take this trip? water?"

After saying that, Yan Keng took one last deep look at him and turned to leave.

Yan Ji was left standing blankly on the empty bow.

The canal boat set off overnight and continued northward. By the time the surrounding prefectures and counties received the news, the canal boat had already arrived in Dezhou.

At this time, the garrison troops of Hejian Prefecture, Baoding Prefecture, and Zhending Prefecture jointly sent troops to besiege Dezhou for several days.

After receiving the grain, they immediately returned and burned all the ships.

In February of the second year of Jianwen, all the grain sent from Nanjing to the north was robbed, the entire Cao army was wiped out, and the governor only escaped with his life.Emperor Jianwen was furious, and Yan Ji, the governor of water transport, was dismissed from his post and imprisoned. He was originally going to be executed for such a serious crime, but later the Duke of Yue pleaded for mercy. Zhu Yunzhen, in recognition of his many years of hard work and merit as an official in the prince's palace, pardoned his crime and demoted him to Bachelor of Hanlin.

(End of this chapter)