In the next two days, the rumbling sound of cannons outside Songshan City in the direction of Luhong Mountain, the mouth of Xiaoling River, and the Zhimao Bay Boat Camp continued to be heard.

This situation made Yang Zhen, who was in Songshan City, sometimes filled with endless worries, and sometimes felt extremely relieved.

What worried him was that the sound of cannons outside the city kept ringing, indicating that the Tatar army's attack on the above three places was still in progress and might break them at any time.

At the same time, he was gratified that the sound of artillery fire outside the city had not stopped, but it just showed that the Rufenggang camp and the naval camp along the coast were not currently occupied by Manchu Tatars.

Under the alternating dominance of these two emotions, Yang Zhen, who had completely lost contact with the people outside the city and was completely unable to grasp the situation outside the city, lived in Songshan City like a year.

In the past two days, the defenders at the west gate, south gate, and east gate of Songshan City worked day and night to repair the fortifications and rebuilt the destroyed parts of the city wall.

During this period, Yang Zhen did not summon Zu Zerun again, but treated Shen Yongzhong very differently.

At every meal time, Yang Zhen would send someone to invite Shen Yongzhong out of the dungeon and invite him to the reception room on the west side of the second hall of the General Military Mansion to have dinner together.

At other times, Qiu Bihan, Qiu Biyong and their mother Shen continuously sent people to the dungeon to give Shen Yongzhong some food and clothing.

Yang Zhen's different treatment of Zu Zerun and Shen Yongzhong made Zu Zerun feel dissatisfied and also suspicious of Shen Yongzhong.

Every time Shen Yongzhong was invited by someone sent by Yang Zhen to have a meal and returned to the dungeon, Zu Zerun would ask him what he had talked about with Yang Zhen and what Yang Zhen had said to him.

But Shen Yongzhong's answer was the same every time. He only said that Yang Zhen had nothing to discuss with him and said nothing to him.

For Shen Yongzhong, this is a fact.

Because every time Yang Zhen invited him over for dinner, it was actually just a simple meal, and no serious business was discussed at all during the dinner.

However, Zu Zerun did not believe the truth told by Shen Yongzhong at all.

Seeing that time passed day after day, Yang Zhen showed no sign of anything. He neither saw him again nor sent a message to him through Shen Yongzhong, who had an increasingly close relationship with him. Zu Zerun, who was originally optimistic, began to give up hope.

He slowly discovered that Huang Taiji's attempt to recruit and surrender Yang Zhen was a complete failure and would have no results other than a waste of time.

Moreover, that night, the eunuch from Songshan Supervisory Army came to confirm his identity, which made him feel in danger.

He believed that Yang Zhen would not kill him, but he could not guarantee that the military eunuch would not kill him.

On the third night after Zu Zerun entered the city, after dinner, he saw a well-fed Shen Yongzhong back in the dungeon. Zu Zerun couldn't help but ask him again what Yang Zhen had said to him and what Yang Zhen's plan was.

.

Shen Yongzhong's answer was the same as before, Yang Zhen still said nothing to him.

Zu Zerun, who had long been suspicious of this, became furious after hearing Shen Yongzhong's answer. He repeatedly asked Shen Yongzhong whether he had concealed what terms he had reached with Yang Zhen and what conditions he had agreed to, and accused Shen Yongzhong of secretly asking Yang Zhen for help.

Yang Zhen revealed the situation in the Qing Dynasty.

Shen Yongzhong denied it flatly at first, but after being scolded, he thought about it. In the past two days, he had indeed accidentally said many things that were well known in the Han military circles in the Qing Dynasty.

For example, King Zhishun Shang Kexi was demoted and became Duke Zhishun because of Yang Zhen's raid on southern Liaoning.

Another example is Duduo, Prince of Heshuoyu, who was demoted to Prince Duoluoyu because of Yang Zhen's raid on southern Liaoning.

There is also his uncle and heir-father Xushun Gong Shen Zhixiang, who is currently in a high position and has been assigned to Jinzhou City to build a navy and specialize in destroying pirates.

Especially when his aunt came to ask about his old home on the island that day, he complained in public that Pidao, Shicheng and other Dongjiang islands were abandoned, etc.

He originally thought it was nothing serious and it was just a casual talk at the time, but now that he thought about it, he started to feel a little scared.

These things are almost universally known in the Han military circles in the Qing Dynasty, but to Yang Zhen, they are likely to be rare confidential information.

If this Zu Zerun causes trouble after going back, catches him, bites him, and sues him, then he will really be in big trouble.

Zu Zerun fell out with him, which made him terrified.

Zu Zerun saw that Shen Yongzhong was completely unreliable and felt that he could no longer wait like this. That night, he asked Guo Xiaowu to meet Yang Zhen.

The next morning, that is, the morning of October 14, the twelfth year of Chongzhen, Yang Zhen, accompanied by Fang Guangchen, Zhang Chen, and Li Shouzhong, met Zu Zerun again in the official room of the second hall of the General Military Mansion.

"Lieutenant General Zu, oh, no, I can no longer call you Lieutenant Zu. You should be called Zu Shengjiang. Tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk tsk, the Manchu Tatar pseudo-emperor Huang Taiji's Ministry of War is right to join politics, right?"

When Yang Zhen saw Zu Zerun, he immediately greeted him with a mocking tone, then smiled, and then said to him:

"I heard that you want to see me, but you don't know why?"

"Why did General Yang ask questions knowingly? Why did Mr. Zu come to Songshan City and what was going on? How could General Yang not know?"

At this moment, Zu Zerun could see from Yang Zhen's attitude that Yang Zhen would not surrender easily.

At the same time, he was also filled with anger at Shen Yongzhong for leaking his official position with the Manchu Tatars, but at this time, business was important and he couldn't care less:

"Since Mr. Yang is asking questions knowingly, then Mr. Zu will open the skylight and speak frankly. When Mr. Zu came, Emperor Chongde of the Qing Dynasty only promised to give you three days to consider where to go. Once the three-day time limit is over, a hundred thousand troops will attack

If we re-attack the city, it will be a life-and-death outcome, and we will no longer accept surrender. Now is the third day, General Yang, it’s time to have a definite word on where Songshan City should go.”

"Haha, what's the right word? Okay, then I'll give you a right word. The right word means life and death."

Yang Zhen looked at Zu Zerun, who had a money rat tail on his head and was wearing a robe and mandarin jacket, with ridicule and disdain on his face.

"By saying this, Mr. Yang is trying to reject Emperor Chongde's goodwill towards you and towards Songshan City?"

"Goodwill?! Such goodwill! Hahahaha——"

Yang Zhen laughed for a while, then suddenly stopped laughing, his face turned cold, and he said to Zu Zerun: "Zu Shenzheng, since you mentioned goodwill, then I, Mr. Yang, will also pass on some goodwill to Huang Taiji through you.

Go. Go back and tell your master, Huang Taiji, that if you know the truth, you can withdraw your troops quickly and obediently. If not, I will make you regret it later.

"I have already captured Duduo and seriously injured Hauge. I don't mind capturing a few more princes and princes, tying them together and offering them as prisoners to the capital. If they come to attack Songshan, then tell them to wait for me.

"Oh, by the way, I heard Shen Yongzhong say that the eldest son of the puppet emperor Huang Taiji, the leader of the Qing Dynasty, and Prince Hauge of Shuosu are seriously injured and are about to die. I don't know what is going on now. When I think of Huang Taiji's white-haired man giving away his black-haired man,

, I feel extremely happy in my heart! Hahahaha——"

When Yang Zhen said this, he laughed again. Fang Guangchen, Zhang Chen, Li Shouzhong and others who accompanied Zu Zerun also started laughing.

Yang Zhen's last sentence was a temporary hole he dug. The people who prepared the hole were Shen Yongzhong and Shen Yongzhong's uncle and heir, Shen Zhixiang.

Although Shen Yongzhong was a little confused, not that smart, and not that far-sighted, he also knew that the injury of Prince Su Hauge was definitely a secret of the army and could not be disclosed easily.

Yang Zhen asked several different questions at the dinner table, but Shen Yongzhong avoided speaking and did not dare to answer directly.

But the more Shen Yongzhong did this, the more firmly he believed that Hauge must have been seriously injured, and it must be related to the explosion of the Hongyi cannon outside the city.

At this time, as soon as he expressed his conjecture, he saw Zu Zerun's expression change, and he suddenly realized that Prince Su of Manta Tartars, Hauge, was seriously injured.

After listening to Yang Zhen's words, Zu Zerun knew that the surrender this time had failed. While secretly hating Shen Yongzhong in his heart for failing to succeed and failing, he bowed to Yang Zhen and said:

"Since Commander-in-Chief Yang is ignorant of the general trend of the world, is acting on his own whim, and likes to use his words, it will be useless for Mr. Zu to say anything else. The two armies are at crossroads and will not behead the envoys. Please Commander-in-Chief Yang, please release Mr. and Mrs. Zu today.

Leave the city and return."

After Zu Zerun finished speaking, he still bowed his body and faced Yang Zhen, feeling very uneasy in his heart.

If the persuasion to surrender is successful, then of course there is no need to say anything. Not only has he made a great contribution to Huang Taiji, but he will also immediately become a master in front of Yang Zhen.

But if persuasion to surrender fails and Yang Zhen turns against him, the consequences will be unpredictable.

Therefore, at this time, he couldn't help but become respectful.

Yang Zhen certainly didn't have any good impressions of Zu Zerun, but considering his relationship with Zu Dashou and the need to instigate rebellion against Shen Zhixiang, he finally decided to let him go for the time being.

So, Yang Zhen pondered for a while and said to him: "For the sake of your father and the commander-in-chief, I won't kill you this time. But Shen Yongzhong has decided to change his mind and start a new life. I want to keep him here with me."

Of course, this is another hole dug by Yang Zhen for Xushun Gong Shen Zhixiang. Shen Yongzhong is not present anyway, so he can decide whether it is right or wrong.

At that moment, when Zu Zerun heard what Yang Zhen said, he was confused. But when he saw that Yang Zhen agreed to let him out of the city, he immediately bowed and thanked him, and did not dare to ask any more questions.

Moreover, he had no time to figure out whether it was true or false.

After Yang Zhen saw Zu Zerun, he did not let him return to the dungeon of the General Military Mansion, but handed him over to Li Shouzhong to take him away on the spot.

Naturally, Li Shouzhong blindfolded and gagged him as he had done when he entered the city, mixed him with his own team leaving the city to guard the trench, and took him out quietly.

In the evening of that day, a sudden fire broke out on the coast southeast of Songshan City, and a large amount of smoke and soot floated over Songshan City in the wind, choking the mouth and nose.

Yang Zhen had been worried about the safety of Qiu Zhenhai and other naval camps, but the fire and smoke in the sky made him feel relieved for a moment.

Igniting the huge reed swamp stretching for more than ten miles south of the mouth of the Xiaoling River certainly eliminated the natural barrier in front of the Manchu Tatar army and eliminated the ambush of Qiu Zhenhai, Yu Liangtai and Yan Sheng in the reed swamp.

There is a possibility of an ambush, but the ignited reeds will not be extinguished in a short time.
Chapter completed!