Juyongguan, located about a hundred miles northwest of Beiping City, is the gateway to Peiping. There are two gates at the south and north entrances. They were built under the supervision of Xu Da and Chang Yuchun, the famous generals in the early Ming Dynasty. The city has high walls and thick mountains, and is surrounded by thousands of troops.
, is said to be impregnable. However, even the strongest fortress can sometimes be breached, especially from within.
At first, Tie Xuan didn't dare to believe this fact, but when the spies he sent reported back overnight, he had to believe this fact: the Northern Expedition and reinforcements totaled 300,000 troops either died in battle or surrendered, and the Juyongguan troops
General Li Shen stationed there has surrendered to the enemy.
This is not the most terrible thing. The most terrible thing is that the invading enemy army not only included Tatars, but also the remnant party of Yan thieves. The reason why Juyongguan was lost was the result of the remnant party of Yan thieves instigating rebellion. As for how the remnant party of Yan thieves followed
It is not yet known whether the Tatars hooked up together, but one thing is certain: the thing that Wan Yicheng was worried about finally happened!
At this time, Tie Xuan felt regretful in his heart, regretting that he had not listened to others' advice. If he had written to the court to ask for 100,000 reinforcements to be left behind, Peiping would not be so empty. Now that 300,000 troops are fighting in the autumn wind, there are only 100,000 troops near Shuntian Prefecture.
There are more than 100,000 troops, and they have to defend various fortresses. Only a little over 20,000 are left in Peiping, and most of them are the old, weak, sick and disabled as substitutes. In addition, the newly defeated army is completely demoralized. With this small force, they want to defend Peiping.
That is simply wishful thinking.
Abandoning the city and fleeing south? This idea only appeared in Tie Xuan's mind once, and was immediately rejected. Others could run, but Tie Xuan could not. Even if he could save an official life by fleeing south, the court would still kill him without discussion. No
For other reasons, just because he is the governor of Shuntian, and his whole family will be killed if he loses Peiping.
If you live and die with the city vigorously, you may be able to recognize a loyal martyr after your death; if you abandon the city and flee south, not only will you die a good death, but you will also be infamous for thousands of years. Tie Xuan quickly figured out this bad debt, gritted his teeth and stamped his feet: Anyway, everything
I will die and defend the city to the death!
The city is there but the people are there, but the city is broken and people are dead! It is better to be broken into pieces than to be completely destroyed!
However, if you want to defend Peiping, determination alone is not enough, you must have people, to be precise, you must have soldiers to defend the city. Master Tie's official residence of the third grade is not built for nothing. He summoned the garrison stationed in various places to enter the city overnight.
, and ordered the nine gates of Peiping to be closed overnight. No officers or soldiers were allowed to leave the city. Anyone who disobeyed the order would be executed!
This is really a life-threatening situation. Master Tie is not only playing with his own life, but also with the lives of nearly 200,000 officials and people in the city! Not to mention, he sent several trusted troops out of the city overnight to kill everyone within a radius of dozens of miles.
The common people rushed to Beiping City, set fire to their houses, pushed down walls and filled in wells, and initiated a scorched-earth policy.
This time it was too much. When a team of 100 people came to Zhaozhuang to ask the villagers to implement the scorched earth policy, hundreds of people in Zhaozhuang stopped working. Men, women, old and young all got into trouble and stood guard outside the village entrance.
, even if the army is not allowed to enter the village, the army is not a living wage. When it sees the ordinary people violently resisting the law, they will draw their sabers and violently clear the place.
This scene naturally fell into Wan Lei's eyes. He was originally a staunch escapee and had already packed his bags and was ready to leave. However, he heard that the officers and soldiers had already controlled all the main routes heading south and west. When he saw a
He was caught one by one, so he couldn't leave for the time being. Now that the officers and soldiers were blocking him, he couldn't leave anymore.
Because he has been unfairly treated by the court many times, Wan Lei has no good impressions of the court. However, he will not throw himself into being a traitor out of anger. This is a matter of integrity and there is no room for hesitation. But now that the country is facing a national crisis, he can not love the court, but he cannot
Don't want the motherland.
"If you don't have skin, how can you have hair? Instead of wandering around like a lost dog, it's better to fight to the death. If you win, you will live. If you fight to death, you will start over in the next life!" When thinking of this, Wan Lei closed his eyes.
He gritted his teeth and stamped his feet: I can't walk anyway, I simply won't leave!
"Third son, Quan Ren Quan Yi, you guys immediately hitch up the carriages and go to the refinery to load all the oil. Remember, as long as the kerosene, other clothes and sundries, and this station are all set on fire, I'll fucking set them on fire.
Drop it!" Wan Lei said through gritted teeth.
"Boss, we can't burn it." Zhao Quanzhong was anxious, holding Wan Lei's hand and shaking it constantly, while the two daughters Zhao Xueer and Wei'er looked even more miserable, because they had already regarded this inn in front of them as their home. Their home was destroyed
How can anyone not feel sad that the house was destroyed? Although the valuable belongings have been dug and hidden, the clothes, quilts and tents haven't had time to be tidied up.
"Burn it, stop talking nonsense!" Wan Lei was not willing to burn it. This inn had put countless efforts into it. He took the lead in renovating every wall and tile inside, and he earned most of the money and belongings with his own hands. However, he would rather
A fire will turn the ground white, and not a single plant, a tree, a meter of water, or a meter of water will fall into the hands of thieves.
The station was busy moving oil and burning houses. Naturally, the villagers who were still confronting the officers and soldiers saw this and couldn't help but lack confidence. No, Zhao Hongru, who was friends with Wan Lei, also gritted his teeth and ordered the villagers:
: "Don't stand here, go home and clean up your mess immediately, let's set the village on fire!"
Most ordinary people are afraid of officials and are willing to follow them. The two local bosses, Yi Cheng and Li Chang, have taken the lead in expressing their stance. Although the ordinary people are still unhappy in their hearts, they cannot organize a decent resistance, so they have to
They all put down what they were doing and went home to pack their things. The officers and soldiers avoided a bloody battle and no longer caused trouble for the people.
"Brother Zhao, find someone to hitch up the carriage and pull the oil." Wan Lei ran to Zhao Hongru's side and reminded.
"My dear nephew, it's important to escape for your life in the city now. It's better to let go of those extraneous things." Although Zhao Hongru loves money, he is not old-fashioned yet. He knows that if there is no money to earn, everything will be in vain if he loses his life.
"You don't need gold and silver if they are fine, but kerosene can help defend the city, so you should prepare as much as possible." Wan Lei explained.
"Oh, my nephew is very considerate. I will go find someone to find a car right now." Zhao Hongru is also an experienced man, and he quickly understood the meaning: defending the city is the most important thing now. As long as we can defend Beiping City, that's it.
Meritorious officials, the court will reward them according to their merits, and the benefits will naturally be great.
"The two patriots are loyal to the king and set an example for the people. Li is deeply grateful." The general leading the army was also unambiguous. He came to Wan Lei's side on horseback, thanked him, and said: "The military situation is urgent. I hope you won't do it."
Nostalgic for the things outside the body, leading the people to enter the city quickly and lightly."
"Please rest assured, military platform, we have our own sense of self-discipline and will not hold back our officers and soldiers." Wan Lei also handed over his hand. Of course he knew that the Tatar army would go south soon, so he had to rush into the city as soon as possible to be safe. However,
Kerosene cannot be thrown away, it must be used to defend the city.
In fact, the people are very self-conscious and do not need anyone to urge them. They also know that it is important to escape. In less than a quarter of an hour, the villagers carrying large and small bags lined up and started to go on the road. The officers and soldiers did have some military discipline. Not only did they not take advantage of the situation, but they also
Escort along the way.
Wan Lei and others escorted more than 40 carriages, filled with tens of thousands of kilograms of kerosene, and merged into the flow of people heading north. Zhao Hongru, on the other hand, led several nephews and set fires everywhere in the village. He had just recovered from the war.
Zhaozhuang was once again reduced to a sea of flames. The villagers looked back from time to time, and many shed tears.
As the saying goes: before the country is destroyed, the family will perish first. I ask the sky, where is the way?