Chapter 4: Important Border Town

The Lunar New Year in the forty-sixth year of Wanli was not a joy for Ma Cheng, a man of two generations. In the blink of an eye, on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, brothers Xiaosan and Xiaowu came to the door again and dragged them to see Shang Yuancai.

Deng, Ma Cheng was dragged to the street by a group of Mafu villagers of similar age. They were quickly attracted by the prosperity of Kaiyuan Mansion. From the inner street where the General Military Mansion is located to the north and south city gates, there are many shops along the street.

Most of them are hung with colored lanterns.

The streets are also crowded with people, which makes Ma Cheng greatly sigh at the prosperity of Kaiyuan. In addition to the wide variety of shops on the long street, there are also brothels and brothels. If you think about it carefully, you will be relieved. Most of the garrisoned cities have official prostitutes.

Fang, Kaiyuan is also a place of exile for the female relatives of criminal officials. The most indispensable thing in this city is the smiling girls. There are many high-ranking officials and dignitaries wearing red shoes on the street, and there are also many ordinary soldiers wearing Ming army uniforms.

Compared with the prosperous cities of later generations, the prosperity of Kaiyuan City is somewhat solemn.

There was a bit of roughness in the solemn killing, and there were many Mongolians leading horses and Koreans with low eyebrows in the crowd. It can be seen that Kaiyuan border town, an important town in the Five Dynasties, already has an enlightened atmosphere of multi-ethnic integration. Thinking of this

The Jingbian strategy of uniting Mongolia and North Korea was decided by Ma Fang, the family's ancestor, and Ma Lin was undoubtedly the loyal executor of this strategy, which made Ma's father and son famous throughout their lives.

Walking with a group of half-year-old teenagers, it is inevitable to point while talking, and the objects of pointing are naturally young and beautiful girls. Although most of the girls who are pointed out are shy, they do not hide behind others.

A few bold and aggressive girls came over with some demonstrative looks, which made Ma Cheng burst out laughing. The atmosphere on the street surprised Ma Cheng. At least the atmosphere in this important town is still very open.

After walking around in the lively streets, we waited for the dragon lantern team organized by the government. Dozens of dragon lanterns walked through the streets and alleys amidst the sound of gongs, drums and firecrackers, pushing the atmosphere of the Shangyuan Lantern Festival to its peak. Macheng was also

Infected by the warm atmosphere, I followed the dragon lantern team to join in the fun. When the dragon lantern team passed through the south of the city, they happened to run into a group of cavalry.

This group of cavalry mostly consisted of one person and two horses. They looked tired but still patient. They waited for the dragon lantern team to pass by before entering the city. Zhang Cheng narrowed his eyes and looked at this group of cavalry who had come from afar. According to him,

Based on the understanding of history, this team of cavalry with bright armor should be a cavalry team affiliated with the Beijing camp, because the white-faced rider at the front should be a eunuch from the Royal Horse Prison.

The eunuch didn't know. The Beijing cavalry appeared in Kaiyuan at this time, which gave Ma Cheng a hint of danger that the war was approaching.

But the Kaiyuan people on the street still knew nothing and were immersed in the joyful atmosphere of the grand festival.

In the evening, General Military Mansion.

After a busy day, all the bankers were tired and went back to their residences to rest early. Only Ma Cheng, in the festive atmosphere, smelled the chilling atmosphere hidden in the general's palace. Naturally, the eunuch and eunuch came to Kaiyuan to pass on the imperial edict.

Yes, the content of the imperial edict can be guessed. It is simply for the Ming Dynasty's biggest enemy in Liaodong in recent years, the increasingly powerful Hou Jin forces, and its treacherous and ghostly commander Nurhaci.

Standing in the dilapidated small garden of the inner house, looking at the brightly lit second entrance courtyard in front of him, Ma Cheng suppressed the blood in his chest. He knew that with his current status, he had nothing to do with these military and national events. At this level

In the strict system of the Ming Dynasty, it was better to be a good person. Naturally, Ma Lin would not discuss military affairs with his illegitimate son. Among Ma Lin's many children, the most valued one was Ma Lin, the eldest son born to his eldest wife.

Burn.

I think of Mr. Ma, who is quite like his father, and is now the commander of one hundred households in Kaiyuan Ma Camp.

Ma Cheng and his eldest brother, who is the direct son of his eldest son, have nothing in common. They are more than ten years apart in age, and it is difficult for them to see each other except during the New Year and holidays. In my impression, Ma Ran and his biological father, Ma Lin, behave in the same way.

He was cautious and steady. He learned the art of war from his grandfather Ma Fang when he was young. Ma Fang, a famous general of the Ming Dynasty, personally trained the generals who can leave a mark in history.

There are 600 fine cavalrymen in Kaiyuan Ma Camp, controlled by Ma Lin's eldest son Ma Ran. There are 600 gunmen in Shenji Battalion, controlled by Ma Lin's second son Ma Yi. There are also 1,000 swords, shields and spearmen in Qibing Battalion, controlled by the general soldier.

Ma Lin personally commanded these two thousand elite troops, which were the capital of the Ma family and his sons in Kaiyuan. From Ma Cheng's point of view, the scale of this elite troop was too small, and it was too small to have any influence on the later Ming Dynasty and Hou Jin Dynasty in Liaodong.

The battle situation was easily defeated by Hou Jin's army.

We also understand that in the last years of the Ming Dynasty, the guard stations were abandoned and the army of the guards had actually become rotten. There were not even one soldier out of ten who could fight. The treasury was empty and the court was unable to pay for the army. Therefore, most of the elite soldiers in the border towns who could fight were recruited soldiers and the generals of the towns.

It is already the limit for domestic private soldiers to support these two thousand and two hundred elite soldiers with the financial resources of the Ma family. The soldiers in the Kaiyuan camp eat the food of the Ma family and receive the pay of the Ma family. Naturally, they only listen to the Ma family's father and son.

command.

Looking at the brightly lit courtyard in front of him, Ma Cheng thought deeply about the purpose of the eunuch and the eunuch coming to Kaiyuan.

I guessed that the ministries of Hou Jin Dynasty were restless, and the chaos in Liaodong had just begun. Suddenly smelling the smell of war, Ma Cheng couldn't help but shudder, and suddenly became a little excited. As a pure iron-blooded soldier,

, and being able to personally participate in the very important battle of Ming, Jin and Liaodong in history made his blood boil. He lightly punched the courtyard door and made a muffled sound, which also woke up a group of people passing by.

A maid dressed in Tsing Yi shouted sweetly: "Who is making such a noise!"

Ma Cheng reluctantly stepped out of the shadows and bowed: "Sister Xiaoyu, it's me."

I'm really afraid of what will happen. This maid dressed in blue is the most popular maid in the eldest wife's room, and she is domineering.

Sure enough, the maid in Tsing Yi's face turned cold, and she became more serious: "Why are you so sneaky? You disturbed the distinguished guest and your wife can't spare you, and you haven't apologized to the distinguished guest!"

The distinguished guests she mentioned were just a few women, and they should be the female relatives of other families who had friendship with the eldest lady. Ma Cheng's face also darkened, he was angered by this domineering maid, and he resisted the urge to hit the woman and stood there in awe.

Fortunately, these guests were very sensible and quickly came forward to persuade them to make peace, which resolved a moderate storm. The person who came forward to persuade them was a flowery girl with a tall and graceful figure, some light makeup, and a long face.

Very beautiful.

The girl's voice was also very gentle: "Maybe it was dark and I went the wrong way. I can't keep my wife waiting for too long."

When an outsider stepped in to smooth things over, the unruly maid came down the steps and mumbled a few words in a dirty manner. Seeing a group of female relatives moving towards the inner house, Ma Cheng naturally walked towards the girl who came to his rescue.

A grateful look, but unfortunately the girl just nodded politely and walked away without looking at him. This made Ma Cheng very embarrassed, knowing that the girl regarded him as a servant in the palace.
Chapter completed!