Chapter 548 The Princess Goes South
Chapter 548 The Princess Goes South
When Xiao Xia learned that two bandit groups were going to attack his aunt's fleet, he immediately ordered the North Crossing Plan to be launched ahead of schedule. The General Administration Office secretly built 120 large ferries, each of which could carry 50 cavalrymen. It was named the North Crossing Plan and was ready to be launched during the Northern Expedition.
But now Xiao Xia could not care about the risk of leaks. After his order was issued, 120 large ferries urgently transported 3,000 cavalry across the river, led by General Sun Lei, and rushed to Pengcheng County.
Xiao Xia personally led 300 warships and 10,000 naval forces to Pengcheng County to welcome his aunt Yang Lihua to the south.
Xiao Xia would never be bound by any treaty. On the one hand, he concentrated on governing the Jiangnan Road and did not want to be affected by external disputes. On the other hand, he also gave face to his father and tried not to touch his father's bottom line. Everyone lived in peace and forgot about each other.
But if something happened to his family, these treaties would be worthless to him, so when he heard that his aunt's fleet was about to be attacked by bandits, he decisively sent troops without notifying the court or the Jiangdu County government.
Niu Fangda, the governor of Jiangdu County, had just taken office this year. The former Jiangdu governor Cui Fengxian was transferred to be the transport envoy of Longyou Road. Niu Fangda suddenly heard that Prince of Jin was sending troops north, and he was so scared that he quickly ordered the city gates to be closed.
Niu Fangda stood on the top of the city wall, looking nervously at the three thousand cavalrymen rushing northward at lightning speed. Not long after, a large number of warships appeared in the canal heading northward, and the warships were full of soldiers.
Niu Fangda and the officials were all terrified. County Magistrate Zhou Xiao whispered, "Sir, could it be that something happened in Luoyang? Is the King of Jin leading his army into the capital?"
"I do not know!"
Niu Fangda sighed. His personality was very similar to his father Niu Hong, and he was quite cautious. After a while, he said, "Don't jump to conclusions yet. Let's observe for a while!"
Everyone watched for a while. At this time, a small boat came along the Cao River towards the county town. A soldier stood on the bow. Soon, the boat arrived under the water gate. The soldier shouted loudly, "Is Governor Niu here?"
Niu Fangda quickly led a large group of officials to the top of the water gate. Niu Fangda leaned forward and said, "I am the governor Niu Fangda!"
The soldier clasped his fists and said, "I am the personal guard of His Royal Highness the Prince of Jin. The Prince of Jin asks the Governor not to be nervous. The army is heading north to Pengcheng County to welcome the Princess."
"I see!"
Niu Fangda looked back at the officials, and they all breathed a sigh of relief.
Niu Fangda asked again: "Is the princess in trouble for safety?"
Niu Fangda knew that the Central Plains was too unsafe and that it was most likely thieves who were looking to cause trouble.
"That's right! The bandits Du Fuwei and Li Zitong are preparing to lead their troops to attack the Princess' fleet, and the Princess has asked His Royal Highness the Prince of Jin for help!"
"Thank you for letting us know. We also hope that the Princess is safe."
The sergeant saluted, and the boat turned around and left. Niu Fangda nodded and said to everyone, "Fortunately, we were not reckless. I will report this matter to the court in detail later. Everyone go back!"
Everyone then went down the city and back to the government office. Niu Fangda kept watching the fleet disappear. He also ordered the city gates to be opened and everything to return to normal. If the fleet went to Pengcheng County, it would take several days for the fleet to come back.
Four days later, Xiao Xia's fleet arrived at Pengcheng County. Xiao Xia came to pay respect to his aunt. He knelt down and saluted, "I pay my respects to my mother!"
Yang Lihua was so happy that she couldn't close her eyes. She smiled and said, "Good boy, get up quickly!"
After not seeing each other for a few years, Yang Lihua looked much older, but her complexion and spirits were still good. The last time Yang Lihua saw Xiao Xia was in the third year of Daye. Four years passed quickly, and her son had become more mature and even had a short beard on his chin.
"A man named Qiu Hailiang came to report that bandits were attacking the fleet. He said he was an old acquaintance of yours. Do you remember him?"
Xiao Xia smiled and nodded, "So it was him. When I was in the Xiao Mansion in Jiangxia, I had a good relationship with him. After so many years, I didn't expect that he would still remember the kindness and repay the favor. It's not easy!"
"Xia'er, not only did he save my life, but more importantly, he is a man of loyalty and righteousness, and he is worthy of your use."
Xiao Xia nodded, "Don't worry, mother. I will use him." Xiao Xia then summoned Qiu Hailiang to thank him for reporting the news and rescuing his relatives. Xiao Xia immediately appointed him as a naval general. Qiu Hailiang was overjoyed and knelt on one knee, "I am willing to serve your highness at my utmost."
Seeing that he saluted very standardly, Xiao Xia asked with a smile, "Has General Qiu ever served in the army before?"
Qiu Hailiang nodded and said, "I used to be the captain of the Xia Pi County Army. Later, the court abolished the military office. It just so happened that my father passed away, so I resigned and went home to mourn for my father."
"How much do you know about Du Fuwei's situation?" Xiao Xia asked again.
Qiu Hailiang smiled and said, "In fact, the Qiu family is a very large family, divided into more than a dozen branches, distributed in Xia Pi County and Donghai County. I am only the head of the Huaiyang branch, but the Qiu family has a characteristic that they all rely on the Huai River for their livelihood, so the relationship between the branches is very good.
There was a young man named Qiu Xiaoshan in the Qiu family of Lianshuifang in Donghai County. He was originally a fellow in my fleet and had a very good relationship with me. Later, he joined Du Fuwei's army. Because he was a local and was very familiar with the Huai River and the Grand Canal, he was promoted to a small spy leader.
When he went to investigate the situation in Liang County, he found the princess's two large ships and got the news that they were the princess's fleet, so he rushed back to report. Du Fuwei thought there must be a lot of wealth and immediately decided to attack the fleet. Qiu Xiaoshan was afraid of something happening, so he ran to tell me secretly. "
"So that's how it is. What is Qiu Xiaoshan afraid of?" Xiao Xia asked with a smile.
Qiu Hailiang sighed and said, "Qiu Xiaoshan told me that Du Fuwei is a fearless person, and he has no family to burden him. If he really hurts the princess, the imperial army will come and Du Fuwei will run away. The locals will all face calamity."
"This Qiu Xiaoshan also wants to join my army?"
Qiu Hailiang nodded, "If I try to recruit him, he will definitely come and pledge his loyalty to Your Highness!"
Xiao Xia smiled and said, "If I let him stay in Du Fuwei's army, I can keep track of the bandits' movements at any time. He will be more useful. Do you understand what I mean?"
"I understand the humble position!"
The next morning, the army escorted Yang Lihua's two large ships with a capacity of 10,000 shi and continued to sail south.
Li Zitong led 6,000 bandits to ambush on the west bank of the canal south of Xucheng County. It was here that Luo Shixin and Pei Xingyan ambushed Yuwen Shu's logistics supply fleet.
This is indeed a good place for a sneak attack. Li Zitong is determined to win. Moreover, he has two extremely powerful generals under his command. These two generals are the brothers Wu Yunzhao and Wu Tianxi who escaped from Nanyang County.
With nowhere else to go, they sought refuge with Li Zitong, a bandit in Tongbai Mountain. Li Zitong was overjoyed to see them and not only became sworn brothers with them, but also married his sister to Wu Yunzhao. His sincerity moved the Wu brothers.
The two of them settled down in Tongbai Mountain with peace of mind. In the past two years, Li Zitong's company has grown rapidly, from the original size of 2,000 people to more than 20,000 people. They also moved from Tongbai Mountain to Zhongli County, and they secretly reached some kind of agreement with the governor of Zhongli County.
They did not attack the county town or plunder the people in the county, so the government tacitly permitted their presence in Zhongli County and did not report to the court.
Li Zitong personally led 6,000 men and was ready. He wanted to seize the two large ships of 10,000 shi capacity before Du Fuwei. Unexpectedly, Li Zitong received news that 3,000 cavalry and 300 warships were guarding the princess's two ships. What's more, the 3,000 cavalry were guarding the west bank of the canal, which was obviously to defend against their attacks.
Li Zitong was frightened. As soon as the enemy fleet arrived in Xucheng County, he led his men to retreat and gave up the attack.
There are more than a dozen marshes on the north and south banks of the Huai River. The largest of them is called Hongze Pu, which is the predecessor of today's Hongze Lake. It covers an area of about 1,000 hectares and is full of reeds. It has always been a hiding place for pirates from the Yangtze and Huaihe Rivers.
At this time, Du Fuwei led hundreds of small boats to ambush in Hongze Lake. They had just arrived here two days ago, and they didn't know that Xiao Xia had already led reinforcements to the north.
Du Fuwei knew nothing about the situation, but he was still sharpening his sword, ready to launch a surprise attack on the princess's fleet.
(End of this chapter)