Autumn of the 17th year of Chongzhen

Chapter 162
Regarding the matter of Beijing and Jiangnan, Wang Yan did not know that he is leading [-] soldiers and horses and heading for Kaiping after passing Xinhui.

The situation in the Ming Dynasty deteriorated. From north to south, the economy in the southern part of the world also became increasingly depressed due to various reasons, which caused the shortage of resources in the Guangdong region. Some Hakkas moved to western and southern Guangdong. The resulting tension in land and water sources in western and southern Guangdong also aggravated conflicts between natives and residents, creating conditions for large-scale conflicts.

For a time, people in Guangnan called the Hakka "bandits" and thought they were incompatible with them.On the contrary, Hakka people think that Guangnan people are cruel by nature and cannot be trusted.

Wang Yan learned from his staff that the dispute between natives and guests had been going on for a long time in Guangdong, but this time the momentum was relatively large.

This made him realize that it is not that simple to solve this protracted problem. If the most fundamental problem, land and resources, cannot be properly allocated, then even if this battle is subdued by him, there will still be various problems in the future. question.

Unavoidable that the situation was too wide-ranging, Wang Yan marched very fast, crossed Xinhui where the situation was relatively light, and went straight to Kaiping County, the center of the incident.

When Wang Yan led his troops to Kaiping, it was already dark, but it could be seen from several miles away. A small hill not far from the county seat was ablaze, and there were shouts of killing, and there were also shadowy rumors. come over.

Seeing this, Wang Yan couldn't help being shocked. This kind of momentum can still be heard several miles away. It doesn't look like a civil war, but it is clearly a confrontation between two armies.

At that moment Wang Yan didn't dare to wait, so he quickly ordered his soldiers and horses to light up torches and speed up towards Kaiping, and the closer the army got to the place where the incident happened, the louder the shouts of killing became more intense.

Not long after, Wang Yan and his party finally arrived not far from the hill, but their arrival also attracted the attention of both sides of the conflict.

In Kaiping, there are few Hakka people, but there are many Hakka people in Guangnan, so the Hakka people who were surrounded on the mountain could not go down the mountain, but a group of thousands of Guangnan villagers blocked the way of the army.

These villagers either carried earthen knives or long spears, and some even carried bows and arrows. Except for no firearms, they were clearly a large army, even better equipped than ordinary rogues.

Except for Qin and Meng Yuan, other dynasties in China, including Ming, did not prohibit the people from hiding weapons except for excellent armor and machine crossbows. However, Wang Yan did not expect that the people of Guangnan had hidden so many weapons. Seeing the weapon, he was terrified.

Seeing this, Wang Yan couldn't help frowning, and shouted loudly: "I am the governor of Guangdong, the Duke of Chu, personally appointed by the emperor, please get out of the way quickly, the governor is going to reconcile the conflict, what's the matter? This country will definitely give you a satisfactory solution."

When the villagers heard the words, there was a commotion immediately, but they didn't move half a step away. Seeing this, Wang Yan couldn't help being a little angry.

These villagers actually don't pay attention to the government, how to manage it in the future, and said angrily: "You are all citizens of Ming Dynasty, do you really want to fight endlessly and offend the government?"

Wang Yan brought 5000 people, all in neat clothes and armor, and their weapons gleamed coldly in the night sky. Although there are a lot of villagers, they are still people, and they still have some fear of the officers and soldiers, and they are still some kind of prince. .

At this time, when everyone saw Wang Yan getting angry, they couldn't help being at a loss. After a while, they pushed out the one-year-old man and said, "I have seen the Duke of Guo. Just now, the elders of the Cai clan thought that the Duke of Guo was a rescuer brought by the Hakka people, so they came out." Let the villagers come out to stop them, and please forgive me." ""

Wang Yan saw the Hakka people defending the mountain in the distance. The villagers in Guangnan lit torches and ants attacked the mountain. Rockets from both sides fired randomly. From time to time, some villagers fell down from the arrows. He was shocked and anxious, "Stop it I don’t care about this matter, now you have someone notify the patriarchs of all clans immediately, tell them that the governor will come to mediate, and ask the villagers to stop Gongshan immediately, and if there are still soldiers on the mountain after a quarter of an hour, the governor will definitely punish them severely loan."

Fighting between natives and hostages is a long-standing thing, which affects a wide range of people and involves many people. Often the whole village and the entire clan participate in it. The government dare not manage it, and it cannot suppress it.

If things go on like this, no matter whether they are locals or guests, they will basically not go to the government after a conflict occurs.

Hearing Wang Yanzhi's words, the old man was startled, he didn't expect the government to intervene suddenly, and his attitude was so tough, he hurriedly sent someone to report, and asked the villagers to make way for Wang Yan's army and horses to pass.

When Wang Yan led the troops to the foot of the mountain, the villagers who attacked the mountain had already retreated, and the open space at the foot of the mountain was filled with hundreds of corpses.

For a moment, Wang Yan's heart was extremely cold. It seems that this mediation will not be as simple as he imagined.

"Duke!" Chen Bangyan, who was following Wang Yan, saw Wang Yan's expression and knew that he was worried, so he immediately stepped forward, "I think that until I don't think of a proper way to appease, I don't want to talk to everyone tonight. Clan old contacts."

Wang Yan regained his comprehension when he heard the words, "Mr. Yanye is right. The situation is much more responsible than the governor imagined. I am afraid that both parties will not accept the resettlement method discussed before. Tonight, let the army set up camp first. The governor Discuss with Mr. He and Mr. He overnight to see how to deal with it."

At that moment, Wang Yan asked the army to find a place to set up a camp, and at this time, an old man from Guangnan came to ask for an audience, Wang Yan asked his subordinates to block the crowd, saying that he would meet the villagers again tomorrow.

Wang Yan saw that the villagers retreated, and at this time the military tents had not yet been set up, so he led Chen Bangyan and He Gang outside the selected camp and looked at the village camp at the foot of the mountain.

He saw that under the light of the torches at the foot of the mountain, each camp was set up in a very orderly manner, and the distance between the camps was reasonable. It's not real, but it can stand upright under the attack of nearly ten thousand Guangnan villagers, and its strength is naturally not ordinary.

At this time, Wang Yan couldn't help discovering that whether it was the Guangnan villagers at the foot of the mountain or the Hakka villages up the mountain, they were all well-organized, and it wasn't the chaos he had imagined before. In the scene of attacking the mountain, he also found that both attackers and defenders seemed to be full of experience, fighting at night without panic, he was suddenly surprised.

"Mr. Yanye." Wang Yan's heart suddenly moved, and he turned to Chen Bangyan beside him and said: "These villagers have been fighting for a long time, understand the battle formation, and are not afraid of death. With a little training, they can form an army of their own. If the governor If the dispute between the natives and the guests can be resolved, perhaps the matter of expanding the army can be easily resolved.”

"Do you want to follow Qi Wuyi's example in recruiting soldiers from Yiwu?" Chen Bangyan raised his eyebrows when he heard the words.

(End of this chapter)