Xihua Gate is the west gate of Nanjing Palace City, opposite Donghua Gate where Duanben Palace (East Palace) is located, and on the east-west central axis with Xi'an Gate of the Imperial City, next to the moat.
The noon of November 9 seems to be no different from the noon of other days, but it is extremely unusual.
He Shizhang, the general of the front camp of Tengxiang Town, looked anxiously outside the moat and muttered to himself: "Why aren't you here yet?"
He was originally Chen Bangyan's old subordinate, but now he is under the command of Chen Qice, the commander-in-chief of Tengxiang Town. Chen Qice and Hu Maozhen, the commander-in-chief of Yulin Town, were both confidants of the old emperor. Against the crown prince, they sent Fujian Duke Yan Xiaoyong and Ninghai Bohe Jiuyi to take over the Jin State.
Gong Yang Huai and Danyang Marquis Zhang Chengwu were worried about the military power. Rumors spread everywhere inside and outside the court that the seriously ill old emperor was under house arrest by the prince. In addition, they had followed the King of Ji to fight against the Rakshasa people, so there was a lot of confusion between the prince and Ji.
The king takes a neutral stance in the battle.
Under normal circumstances, the crown prince Zhu Ruoji could not mobilize the imperial army in Tengxiang Town. However, when He Shizhang saw that the emperor was seriously ill and the prince was about to succeed, he wanted to climb high and curry favor with his chief assistant Guan Shouzhen. This gave the princelings another opportunity.
There is an extra battalion of 3,000 soldiers and horses in the front camp of Tengxiang Town. Don’t underestimate these 3,000 men. According to the convention, among the five battalions on the left, center, and right of each town, the middle military camp is the most elite, followed by the front camp, and He Shizhang’s tribe is considered the most elite.
The elite of Tengxiang Town. This is the power of having a righteous name. With the title of prince in hand, Zhu Ruoji can use more power than he possesses!
Inside the Xihua Gate is a wide marble stone square. On the edge of the square are Xumizuo one after another. At that time, Emperor Taizu Gao adhered to the principle of simplicity in building palaces. The Xumizuo in the palace were all plain, without scroll leaf carvings.
The style is simple. However, it is thick and majestic.
There are soldiers hidden behind every Xumizuo and in almost all places where people can hide. In order to trap King Ji, the Crown Prince sent Liu Yipeng and Hu Yiqing, the elite generals of the East Palace, to lead the most elite 3,000 East Palace guards to lie on the edge of the square outside Xihua Gate and wait.
.In addition, near Xuanwu Gate, 15,000 Jinwu Town soldiers and horses and 5,000 East Palace guards led by Min Duke Yan Xiaoyong, Ninghai Bohe Jiuyi, and General Zhang Hu gathered together, preparing to capture Queen Ji and go out of the city to attack Prince Ji's Mansion. Wait, wait, wait!
He Shizhang is waiting; Liu Yipeng and Hu Yiqing are waiting; and the Crown Prince Zhu Ruoji, who is commanding the overall situation in Duanben Palace, is also waiting. Everyone is waiting for the arrival of King Zhu Ruodeng of Ji.
Suddenly, He Shizhang's pupils dilated. He saw a cavalry group with tall horses and fiery red robes that confirmed the fire virtues of the Ming Dynasty. The leader was majestic and powerful without anger. Who else could it be if it wasn't Zhu Ruodeng, the King of Ji?
The innate aura of a king cannot be imitated by just anyone.
He looked at Liang Bin in front of King Ji, and when he saw Liang Bin nodding slightly, he became more confident and asked loudly: "Who dares to break into the palace?"
"Who is He Shenrong in the city? His Royal Highness King Ji entered the palace according to the order and opened the palace door quickly," Liang Bin shouted.
"Drive~drive~drive~hush~"
A horse galloped over. The knight on the horse had sword-shaped eyebrows and starry eyes. He was wearing a wind-sweeping robe embroidered with dragon patterns. The horse he was riding was extremely handsome. He stretched out his limbs and snorted. He seemed to be able to jump across the moat in one leap.
, none other than Zhu Ruodeng, the Ming Dynasty King of Ji.
"The last general will see His Royal Highness the King of Ji." He Shizhang did not dare to neglect and saluted hurriedly. That was the King of Ji of the Ming Dynasty! Although the camps were different, he wanted to take his head and offer it to the prince, but the deep awe of the imperial power in his heart still made him not at all.
Don’t dare be rude.
"Yeah," Zhu Ruodeng hummed, and said calmly: "Hurry up and put down the suspension bridge, open the city gate, and let the king's personal guards enter the palace."
"Your Highness, according to the rules, only you can enter the palace alone," He Shizhang said with a smile.
"You are such a dignified prince, how can you have no one to protect you?" Zhu Ruodeng said displeasedly.
He Shizhang summoned the soldiers around him and said, "Go to Duanben Palace to report to the prison country that King Ji has about a thousand cavalry with him. He wants to bring the cavalry into the palace. Can you let him go?"
"Yes", the soldiers followed the order.
He Shizhang played Tai Chi with Zhu Ruodeng, "Your Highness, you know the principle of bringing troops into the palace without a prince. If you let your personal guards into the palace at the end, I am afraid you will be held accountable in the future." p>
"I heard that you are Chen Bangyan's old subordinate. Are you not willing to give me this little face?" Zhu Ruodeng's attitude turned cold.
He Shizhang hurriedly bowed and saluted, "This is a serious matter, and I really don't dare to make the decision. Please allow me to ask Mr. Chen for instructions. Mr. Chen has followed His Highness to defeat the Rakshasa people. I believe he will be accommodating. Please wait a moment.
”.
Seeing him mention the name of Chen Qice, the commander-in-chief of Tengxiang Town, Zhu Ruodeng's expression softened slightly and he waved his hand, "That guy is waiting here. You can go and ask Chen Qice for instructions."
"Yes!"
??
In Duanben Palace, Crown Prince Zhu Ruoji was guarding the gate with his first assistant, Gu Yi, the great scholar, Guo Fengqian, the left minister of the Ministry of Personnel, Tang Zhen, the right minister of the Ministry of Husbandry, Xia Rubi, the left minister of the Criminal Ministry, Zhang Guoyong, the chief soldier, Yang Bangda and others.
Waiting anxiously, a guard suddenly reported that He Shizhang, the commander of the front camp of Tengxiang Town, sent a message that King Ji had a thousand fine cavalry with him and requested that they be brought into the palace.
"My lords, King Ji has requested to bring a thousand cavalry into the palace. Can you agree to this request?" Zhu Ruoji asked Zhu Wenwu for his opinion.
"Jianguo, on the wall of Xihua Gate, there are Shizhang. There are three thousand soldiers and horses in the front camp of Tengxiang Town. Inside the city gate, there are also Liu Yipeng and Hu Yiqing's three thousand most elite East Palace guards. It is easy to annihilate a thousand people. Minister.
I thought I could let them into the palace," Guan Shouzhen said.
"I believe that King Ji's personal guards are all veterans of hundreds of battles. The cavalry entering the city is too much of a threat. They can be allowed to enter the city on foot, but the horses must be left outside the city," Gu Yi also suggested.
Zhu Ruoji nodded and looked at Tang Zhen.
"To supervise the country, as a precaution, we must order Ning Haibo to lead 5,000 East Palace guards from Xuanwu Gate to Xihua Gate; at the same time, order the Duke of Fujian and Mr. Zhang to immediately lead Jinwu Town from Xuanwu Gate to attack Prince Ji's Mansion; order the arrests
The battalion admiral He Wei arrested the henchmen of King Ji; he ordered Guangchang Bo, Zhao Zongzhen, and Xuan Pingbo to lead the military town to attack Longhu Town and control the outer city; he ordered Wu Chuanhou, Zhao Zongzhen, and Lin Zongzhen to lead Xiaoqi Town to attack
Huben Town, control the capital." Tang Zhen thought for a while and then said: "You can ask the Han Guard Chief to transfer the Empress and Concubine Chen to Duanben Palace for a complete plan."
"Well, what the gentlemen said is very reasonable, and I agree with it."
"Supervise the country, I think you can use your orders and military symbols to mobilize Yulin Town and Tengxiang Town to quell the rebellion." Guo Fengqian put forward a new suggestion. If you want to mobilize the imperial army, in addition to the deployment orders, you also need military symbols. Since then,
After Zhao Chengde, the royal horse supervisor who kept the military talisman, surrendered, the military talisman fell into the hands of the crown prince.
Zhu Ruoji thought he could give it a try. Although Hu Maozhen, the commander-in-chief of Yulin Town, and Chen Qice, the commander-in-chief of Tengxiang Town, were veterans of his father's emperor, their political stance had always been neutral. But what if they succeeded? After thinking about it, he asked
Li Laiheng, the Marquis of Xingguo, the commander-in-chief of Wuxiang Town, who also had a neutral political stance, assisted Wuchuan Marquis Bai Wenxuan in attacking Huben Town and seizing the capital.
After ordering his men to prepare the military talismans, he looked around at his confidants and bowed solemnly, "Whether success or failure all depends on today, please encourage me!"
"I will follow the supervision of the country to the death and work hard to eradicate the traitors!"
Deafening voices of allegiance rang out in Duanben Hall.