The autumn of the sixteenth year of Yongli is a good year for the north and south of the river, not only this spring, the rain is sufficient in the north and south of the river, and the raincoat is sufficient means hope, that is, it is in the autumn, when it comes to the autumn harvest, the north and south are also smooth in the wind and rain, there is no drought and flood, and the people of the world have lived a few days of peace after decades of hard life. This year's wind and rain have also made people all over the world look forward to the coming year.

After autumn, in the reckless mountains and forests at the junction of Henan, Hubei, Shaanxi and Sichuan provinces, there is no autumn color, everywhere is green, and there are some flowers blooming in the grassland. At the highest point of the ridge, there is a relatively flat slope, slightly sloping. The open land on this hillside is about three or four miles long and more than a mile wide.

Originally, there was a cottage built because of the situation, I don't know which dynasty came to escape the government to build the homeless people, and then the cottage was abandoned, the wall collapsed, and the houses became ruins. It was only in recent years that Li Laiheng's men came to the Xingshan area, and only then did they send troops to rebuild the wall, build some houses, and set up camp here.

The reason why they chose this place is because the geographical situation in this area is very dangerous, with endless mountains and ravines, and peaks into the clouds. To the west, it connects Bashu, and to the north, it connects Yunxiang. The roads in this area are steep and densely wooded, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack. It is also thanks to this terrain that it has been seventeen years since Li Zicheng's death, the Dashun army of that year is still holding on here, insisting on fighting with the Qing army.

After several years of renovation, there are now many houses on the flat thatched mountaintop, and most of the thatched sheds have now become wooden houses. Among them, there are two houses dozens of feet apart. The one on the north side is relatively tall, surrounded by a stone wall outside the courtyard, and there is a three-story drum tower inside. The one on the south side is a little smaller. For these two mansions, the one in the north, because Mrs. Gao lives in it, people are customarily called Ciqing Palace, or it is called the Queen Mother's Palace. The one in the south lived Li Laiheng's family, because Li Laiheng was named the Duke of Linguo by the Yongli Emperor, so this mansion was called the Guogong Mansion.

However, because there was only one rugged mountain road from the mountain to the bottom of the mountain, and because of the steep terrain, it was very inconvenient to transport things up and down, so these Mrs. Gao and Li Laiheng lived in the valley at the bottom of the mountain, which was wider and the land was fertile, and the soldiers cultivated there and were self-sufficient. And this is also the last gateway to defend the thatched cottage.

As the head of the Thirteen Families of Kuidong, Li Laiheng was more convenient to contact various places from here, and it was also more convenient to send men and horses to attack the enemy. So compared to the cottage, this is their main business. It is about ten miles from the top of the mountain, and there are towering trees along the way, and it is not easy to see the situation from the top of the mountain, but sometimes the weather is clear, and some gray tiled houses and brown thatched houses can be faintly seen through the cracks in the pine trees. In the middle of the open area, there are some green glazed tile roofs, that is Mrs. Gao's palace.

Compared with the outside of the mountains, the temperature in the mountains is low, and there is even a little winter cold, so you have to wear a padded jacket in the morning and evening. However, in the fields that had been cultivated in the valleys, the soldiers in shabby cotton jackets had already begun to cultivate, and it was this self-sufficiency that has enabled them to persist to this day. If it weren't for the swords and guns behind their backs, no one would have thought that they would be soldiers.

That afternoon, a woman in her early forties came back from outside. Her sideburns are white, and there is a vigorous heroic spirit flashing between her eyebrows, but she can't hide her inner worries in her heroic spirit, she is wearing a half-worn red satin jacket, a yellow silk silk around her waist, a sword hanging around her waist, and a bow bag and quiver hanging next to the saddle. She was followed by less than ten female soldiers. In addition to practicing martial arts every day, she also goes out to hunt, and by the way, she can hunt some game, which can also improve her life. When she came to the gate of Madame Gao's palace, the brothers on guard bowed to her, and the leader bowed to her.

"The mother is back."

The middle-aged woman nodded slightly, did not speak, and then walked into the palace gate proudly, and the female soldier behind her carried a red muntjac, and as for the wild boars and hares, they had already been handed over to others when they returned to the village, and were used to improve the food for the brothers. The second palace gate was guarded by several female soldiers, and everyone also saluted her respectfully.

She asked, having untied her cloak and handed it to the female soldier.

"Is the Queen Mother awake?"

The head of one of the female soldiers immediately replied.

"The Queen Mother has already woken up, and now she is talking to the Duke of the Kingdom, so that no one else is allowed to be alarmed."

The middle-aged female general nodded slightly, reluctant to enter the second gate, so as not to interrupt the conversation between Mrs. Gao and Guogong. She turned east, and entered the courtyard on the east side of the house through the corner gate, which was the courtyard where she lived. She sighed in her heart as she walked. Is the current situation good or bad?

For the Ming Dynasty, it was indeed a good thing. After all, now not only Jiangnan, Huguang and other places have been recovered by the Ming Dynasty, but even Henan and Beizhili have also been recovered by the Ming Dynasty, and now in addition to Shaanxi, Sichuan and other places, this was once the world occupied by the Qing Dynasty, and the surname Zhu is again.

But what about the Great Shun Dynasty?

Although the Dashun Dynasty followed the death of the emperor, because there was no one to succeed to the throne, and the Queen Mother, Li Laiheng and others all received the canonization of the Yongli Emperor, they were long gone, but in her heart, the Dashun Dynasty was still alive and alive in her heart.

She walked into her courtyard with a heavy heart. Because her husband was once named the Loyal King, she was called "Zhong Niangniang" or "Zhong Princess", and the side courtyard where she lived became the Loyal Concubine Palace.

As soon as she entered the gate, the female soldiers in the courtyard came to greet her.

"The mother is back!"

"Well, you all stand down!"

After entering the room, she was depressed in her heart, and waved everyone out. She sat on her chair by herself and continued to think about what the Duke and the Queen Mother had discussed. She knew that in recent years, the big guys have become more and more confused about the future, in the past, the reason why they accepted the canonization of Yongli was because they had a common enemy - the Manchu Qing, at that time, the Qing Dynasty was the most important enemy, so they accepted the canonization of Yongli.

But now, with the recovery of Wuchang by the Ming army the year before last, soon Xingcheng Zhixian also surrendered the city to the Ming Dynasty. The situation of the big guys became embarrassing, on the one hand, they were the "Ming Army" canonized by Yongli, but on the other hand, they called themselves the "Great Shun Army", in the past their enemies, the Manchu Qing occupied the city, forced them into the mountains, and now, the Ming army has recovered the cities, what should they do?

Should I go out of the mountains, or should I stay in the mountains?

Although she doesn't know how the Queen Mother and the National Guild choose, but the big guy has been arguing, and every time the argument is in the end, it will be over, otherwise, I'm afraid everyone would have gone out of the mountain a long time ago, how to stay in the mountains and wilderness silently like now, but how is this a long-term solution?

She thought for a while, then sighed in her heart and said:

"Alas! If the Ming Dynasty also sent troops to fight, when the time comes, how will the brothers be willing to die in battle as in the past, and do not want to steal their lives, these two years, every day there are brothers secretly going down the mountain, alas, it is not a way to go on like this! ”

In the past, the reason why the brothers were willing to die on the battlefield and did not want to steal their lives was because they were unwilling to shave their hair and be slaves of the Tartars, but now it is different, the world has returned to the hands of the Han people, they are also the "Ming army", if the Ming Dynasty army is pressing, there must be many people willing to surrender.

And the worst part?

Every day, the brothers secretly descend the mountain!

In the main room, which the brothers called the "Queen Mother's Palace", in the middle is the place where Mrs. Gao usually meets her subordinates and talks with people. Now she was sitting in a chair with a backrest, facing south. In front of him is a long table with a simple style, and in front of the table hangs an old yellow satin table circumference embroidered with dragons and phoenixes, which was brought out from Jingshi back then, and all these years, that is, such an object has not been lost. There are also yellow satin cushions on the chairs. Although Mrs. Gao was given the title of "Lady Zhenyi" by Emperor Longwu, she still retains some pomp and circumstance as an empress. treats Li Laiheng, who is a great-grandchild, and Gaofu's attitude is very kind. But Li Laiheng is extremely respectful to her, and always maintains the courtesy of a monarch and a minister. It's not just a matter of etiquette, it's a natural habit. He was now sitting on a chair in front of Mrs. Gao's left, and this way of sitting also reflected some royal etiquette.

They've been talking for a long time. Because when talking about the news that the Qing Dynasty court had fled to Xi'an, while rejoicing that the Qing Dynasty had come to an end, he couldn't help but think about the situation of the thirteen families today, and felt heavy in his heart. The current situation may be that the Qing captives are at the end of the road, but they are also at the last moment.

Mrs. Gao and Li Laiheng were both silently thinking about the past, and did not speak again for a moment. Mrs. Gao looked at Li Laiheng several times, and she had a special closeness in her heart. What is close is that he is the righteous son of Li Guo, and Li Guo is the nephew of King Chuang, although he is the righteous son of Li Guo, he is also the Li family.

Over the years, since Li Guo died in battle, this loyal battalion has also been supported to this day thanks to him. And now the two of them thought about the current situation, and they fell silent.

After another moment, Li Laiheng raised his head and hesitated for a moment to say to Mrs. Gao.

"The Queen Mother, when my father was alive, the reason why I accepted the canonization of the Ming Dynasty was to work together to destroy the captives, so that the people of the world would not be slaves of foreign races, and now, now the world is calm, and news came from Xingcheng that the emperor will return to the capital in the near future, and the sons and daughters thought that they were ......"

After hesitating for a moment, Li Laiheng said.

"I thought we could also go out of the mountain......

This sentence "can also go out of the mountain", listening to Mrs. Gao's ears, made her heart tremble slightly. Mrs. Gao was about to speak, when a palace maid hurriedly came in and said to Mrs. Gao:

"Queen Mother, someone outside this village asks to see the Queen Mother with the seal letter of the Marquis of Xingguo......"