When Deng Ming set out on the expedition, he took with him 10,000 soldiers and sailors, plus 12,000 auxiliaries, on more than 70 sailing ships. All the auxiliaries and some sailors did not follow Deng Ming eastward, but had already returned to Chengdu.

"What a boat!" When the Ming guards on the White Emperor City watched Deng Ming's fleet sail out of Kuimen, it was already a powerful fleet that the Ming army in Sichuan had not had for many years; The Ming fleet that sailed into Kuimen this time was even larger than when it left -- there were more than 500 large and small ships, carrying 10,000 officers and men who had set out from Sichuan, more than 30,000 Ding Zhuang recruited along the way, more than 4,000 brides who had married to Sichuan, and many teachers, craftsmen, and apprentices.

Deng Ming took a few guards in a fast boat at the front of the fleet, and rushed to Fengjie to meet Wen Anzhi as fast as possible. When Deng Ming had already arrived at Fengjie Wharf and disembarked from the ship, the huge Ming fleet had just sailed in a small part of Kuimen. In addition to the ships full of officers and soldiers, there were also many large ships carrying grain, cloth, metal, and horses, and they slowly sailed in front of the White Emperor City one after another, heading towards the moorage of Caotang Lake.

In the past year, the shipping in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River has become increasingly busy, and the docks of Baidi City and Fengjie have been expanded, but the guards of Baidi City still shook their heads vigorously after seeing such a huge fleet: "The docks of Baidi City and Fengjie are not enough, and the ships in the back can only be tied to the ships in front." ”

"I guess there's more than one floor," said another guard, pointing in the direction of the gate, "Look, the boats over there are still coming in." ”

"In the past, when the Tartars forcibly broke into the Three Gorges and transported grain to the Wu thieves, there were not so many ships in total," the soldiers on the White Emperor City saw the weather of the Ming fleet, and their waists straightened up: "Are there still ships in the south of the Yangtze River?" The Admiral must not have brought back all the ships from Jiangnan. ”

When the sentinels of the White Emperor City were talking, Deng Ming had already walked into the yamen of Fengjie and walked into the lobby of Wen Anzhi. The Wen Inspector, who had already received the sentinel's report, was dressed neatly and was sitting on his Taishi chair.

Deng Ming saw that Wen Anzhi had a stern face again, and knew that he would probably be scolded again this time. The four or five guards he brought were also aware of this, and since Wen Anzhi didn't let Deng Ming sit down, they stood behind Deng Ming and waited for the inevitable questioning.

"Deng Ming, are you guilty?" Wen Anzhi snorted and shouted.

This sentence sounds like it has appeared in many movies of Deng Ming's previous life, and most of the people who are asked in the movie will look innocent and answer back with a "I don't know". However, Deng Ming didn't have the guts, he honestly bowed his head and admitted his mistake: "The last general will be guilty." ”

"Just be convicted." Wen Anzhi nodded, and said sharply: "How can the official position of the imperial court be self-appointed, last time you appointed yourself as a governor of Jiangnan, and this official agreed; This time, you appointed yourself as the governor of the Yangtze River, and you didn't say hello to your own official, this kind of thing spreads, what will the world think of you? I will definitely think that you are arrogant and domineering, and you do not take the laws of the Holy Lord and the court in your eyes. ”

"The overseer reproaches." Deng Ming bowed down and confessed.

"And this document, it's so unusual!" Wen Anzhi talked about the Yiling declaration that Deng Ming, Li Laiheng and Liu Tichun made up not long ago: "They are all princes of the imperial court, and you are also ministers of the imperial court. This is sin two! There are three more sins......"

Wen An had a distressed expression: "You are all ministers of the imperial court!" If you want to set an example for your subordinates, how can you be calculating and refuse to suffer any losses? What kind of committee should be set up to mediate disputes...... Now that the state affairs are difficult, of course you should be humble to each other, take a step back in everything, you respect me a foot, I respect you a foot, if all the officers and soldiers are like the three of you who refuse to suffer, then when will the great cause of Zhongxing be completed? ”

"The Governor reproaches." Seeing that Wen Anzhi stopped and started drinking tea, Deng Ming judged from experience that the other party was probably finished scolding, and he didn't argue, and replied with such a sentence over and over again.

"You're doing it yourself!" As soon as Wen Anzhi's words came out, his reproach was officially announced.

"Sit down." Wen Anzhi beckoned Deng Ming to sit down. After Deng Ming sat down, Wen Anzhi ordered with a smile: "Gaoyou's first battle, quickly tell the old man." ”

……

On the wall of Fengjie, the guards were also looking at the Ming army fleet that was covering the river. The docks in White Emperor City were already full of ships, and the follow-up ships could only move closer to Fengjie.

The boats transporting the women's battalion docked on the wharf, and a large number of Jiangxi and Huguang girls set foot on the land of Fengjie. Deng Ming arranged for soldiers to be stationed outside the city, so that these military dependents could live in the city. Curious girls, carrying cages containing their dowries, chattered through the city gates, pointing and talking loudly inside and outside the city of Kuizhou.

"It's better to be a soldier from the capital," the Fengjie soldiers on the upper floor of the city gate heard that these were the brides of Chengdu. Every time Deng Ming returned to the division, the garrison of Fengjie could get a lot of food and clothes, but it was naturally much inferior to the Chengdu soldiers: "When the admiral takes us out of Kuimen, it's good." ”

Behind the ships transporting the women's battalion were the ships transporting the horses. After the pedals were set, the Mongol Fuer led the horses off the boat one by one. After sitting in the Yangtze River for so long, Fore is no longer as dizzy as he was at the beginning. Next to Fore is Lei Huo, a recruit from the Three Walls Cavalry, and the two of them are in the same boat along the way, and they gradually become acquainted, and the experience of taking care of the horses together makes them friendship with each other.

Every horse that came off the ship had to be inspected by Fuer, he was originally a veterinarian of the Eight Banners of Meng, he was not sent to the front as a veterinarian during the battle of Gaoyou Lake, after the collapse of the outer camp, he fled with his companions in the direction of the imperial camp, and in the battle in which the Mongols participated after dawn, he was still brushed down from the death squad by Deng Ming because of his identity as a veterinarian.

Under the careful care of Fuer and other Mongols, most of the more than 4,000 horses captured at Gaoyou Lake arrived safely in Kuizhou. On the way, Deng Ming gave Hao Shaoqi and He Zhen fifty horses each, and later gave Li Laiheng and Liu Tichun fifty horses each, these war horses are carefully selected by the Qing court, and the four Ming generals were overjoyed after seeing Deng Ming's gift.

"After sitting on the boat for a long time, I was a little unenergetic, but there was nothing wrong with it, and I was alive and kicking after two days of rest." After inspecting each of the warhorses he was in charge of, Fore said to Thunderfire, "Don't worry, not a single one will die." ”

"Okay, let's go, let's eat." Thunderfire patted Fore on the shoulder.

After encamping, Fall ate and said again: "When will the Admiral give us the ranks?" ”

After getting along along with each other along the way, the Mongols learned about the rank system of the Sichuan army, and they thought that they should be incorporated into the cavalry unit by Deng Ming. And as far as they know, the ranks of the cavalry are relatively high, which means that the welfare package will be better. Although Deng Ming did not marry them or issue them military uniforms this time, the Mongols all believed that it was only a matter of time before they were treated as soldiers.

"You're just prisoners of war, not soldiers, don't think about it all the time." At first, when the Mongols asked similar questions, Lei Huo would sneer a few words, but after seeing these Mongols taking care of the horses dutifully along the way, Lei Huo now has a little sympathy for them. He knew that the Faul in front of him was working diligently because he wanted to gain a place in the Ming army, and he had even begun to see himself as a member of the Ming army's horse team.

"But we surrendered." Faure's eyes widened at his small eyes. According to his understanding, since Deng Ming did not kill him and accepted his surrender, it meant that he had been accepted into the Ming army—these Mongols had gone to attack the imperial camp of Shunzhi in armor, and they had no other way to go except to defect to the Ming army.

"You are captured, well, in our Sichuan army, being captured and surrendering are two different things." Thunder Fire said hesitantly. Seeing that Fuer's eyes showed more confusion, he shouted: "Eat, eat!" I don't even know what I've said about this, and I can't know what the Admiral will do for you. ”

The meal wasn't too good, because he was thinking about his future.

Sichuan is a completely strange world for Fuer, as one of the traitors who wanted to kill the Qing court quickly, Fuer knew that this strange world was the only place for him: "I can only be a soldier, a cavalryman, except for riding horses, being a soldier, and treating horses, I have no other skills, and I am not even good at barbecue." As he chewed the food in his mouth, Faure silently thought about his thoughts: "Why are captives and surrenders not the same thing?" But Admiral Deng will definitely let me be a soldier, if I don't let me be a soldier, I will starve to death, Admiral Deng transported me all the way to this place, it can't be to let me starve to death, right? ”

Fore was not alone, almost all the Mongols had similar concerns, they were all horsemen selected from the steppe, and after joining the Manchu army, they also enjoyed treatment second only to the Janissaries. For many years, they had no other means of earning a living than to serve as soldiers.

Moreover, these Mongols had heard of Deng's credibility, and although Deng Ming did not deliberately publicize it, his reputation for doing what he said had spread to Beijing, where the people of Beijing had more channels of information than in the more information-closed countryside.

The Pekingese said that Deng Ming was also trustworthy to the enemy's captives, and whenever he talked about it, the Pekingese would take on a mocking tone. Successful people should be untrustworthy, which has basically become a consensus among people, but in addition to the ridicule, everyone also has a vague admiration for Deng Ming, who lacks flexibility.

The Mongols asked Deng Ming several times about their treatment, hoping to get assurances that they would be accepted into the Sichuan army, but they never got it. Thinking of the other party's good credit, the concern in the hearts of the Mongols became heavier. (To be continued)