The enemy who besieged the city and had breached the city wall strangely stood still, and the war in the south temporarily came to a standstill. This allowed the leading army to disembark from Haiyan Port in Jiaxing Prefecture, and then hurriedly and slowly traveled all the way, detouring through Guangzhou and Taiping Prefecture, and finally entered Nanjing through Sanshanmen.
Lu Wan was very puzzled.
This group of people is obviously capable of eating you in one bite, but they are not in a hurry at all. They insist on hanging you and torturing you slowly. It is completely unclear what the purpose of this group of people is.
At this time, the north also started preparations for a bloody battle.
The Ming army around the capital was commanded by Yang Yiqing. His task was to organize the army and civilians to repair fortresses and dig trenches to block the invading enemies at all levels, with the intention of consuming the enemies to death.
It's a pity that Zhu Hao's weapon configuration is almost unsolvable...
This is different from the previous tactics of invincible cavalry. Zhu Hao's side does not seem to be very mobile, but the victory lies in the fact that the combat strength of a single soldier is even more than the opponent's 100. He set up a Gatling and an improved Maxim machine gun.
As long as there are enough bullets, even one person can destroy a small Ming army.
When Admiral Yang Yiqing was in charge of the troops in the capital and left the capital, Zhang Cong went to see him off.
In fact, Zhang Cong envied Yang Yiqing. Although he usually had the emperor's trust, when it came to using troops, the emperor would rather trust his veteran Yang Yiqing than him. This made Zhang Cong realize that he still could not replace Zhu Hao in the emperor's mind.
position in.
"Bingyong, if I go out on an expedition and meet with a defeat, and you have to serve your country loyally, the burden of guarding the capital may fall on you." Yang Yiqing said this to Zhang Cong, but in his heart he didn't look down on the Xing Jin in front of him at all.
Minister.
Although they are both cabinet ministers, they have many prejudices and deep estrangements between them.
Zhang Cong asked: "The imperial court mobilized 200,000 soldiers and horses, but it was still unable to keep the enemy out of the capital?"
Yang Yiqing shook his head: "At first, I thought that this group of people was composed of Western Folangji people, but the previous battle reports showed that these people are more difficult to deal with than the Folangji people. They are well-trained, and their advance and retreat are well-founded.
The number of soldiers and horses is huge, and their combat power is extremely terrifying. Although I don’t know what their specific goals are, if they really capture the capital, I am afraid that China will be at risk of overthrowing."
"Mr. Yang is too worried."
Zhang Cong disagreed.
Even if the capital city is captured by foreign enemies, as long as the emperor is still there and the Chinese army and people are united, they can maintain a stalemate for at least a few years or even more than ten years. Why do you think that China will overthrow?
You, Yang Yiqing, are making alarmist remarks just to show your majesty as the marshal of the world's military and horses temporarily appointed by His Majesty?
Will everyone obey your orders from now on?
Yang Yiqing said: "I think of one person, that is Zhu Jingdao. Perhaps he is the only one who can deal with such a critical situation. Unfortunately, he disappeared without a trace after he went to sea, and he does not know whether he is alive or dead.
"By the way, even if the capital cannot be defended in the end, you must cooperate with His Majesty to persevere to the end. Only in this way can we have a chance of survival, and even contribute to the death of the king if necessary! This is the important responsibility you shoulder as a cabinet minister."
"you!"
Zhang Cong was very angry.
I came to give you a farewell in order to boost the morale of you and the lieutenants, but as a result, you kept badmouthing me in front of me, as if the Ming Dynasty was about to fall.
Why is the king dying in Sheji? You, Yang Yiqing, are not afraid that I will turn around and tell the emperor this, so that you can't bear to eat and walk around?
But thinking about it again, now that Yang Yiqing is leading the army under the emperor's order, it seems that he is really qualified to say this. If Zhang Cong goes to the emperor to sow discord, then the Ming Dynasty will have to cause discord between the emperor and his ministers before they can start a war with the invading enemy.
, that is when the real disaster comes.
"Don't think this is alarmist. In fact, this is the worst situation that I have guessed based on my many years of military experience. I just hope that I am worrying in vain. Bingyong, everything is up to you!"
After Yang Yiqing finished speaking, he immediately ordered all the soldiers and generals to set out on the road.
…
…
The eunuch who supervises the army is Huang Jin, the eunuch who supervises the East Factory.
The emperor gave Yang Yiqing the power to command troops and horses, but he could not completely trust him. He also restricted Yang Yiqing's use of troops when allocating troops and horses. Especially when it came to dispatching troops and horses in the northwest, the emperor tried his best to let the nobles and nobles in the army lead the troops in a coordinated manner.
Divide military power into different hands.
When Yang Yiqing summoned the generals to discuss matters for the first time after leaving the capital, he discovered that the emperor was simply acting randomly.
Fortunately, Yang Yiqing did not expect to defeat the enemy on the frontal battlefield. His main task was to block the enemy's advance route, use delaying tactics to consume the opponent's supplies, or let the opponent feel the determination and courage of the Ming Dynasty monarchs and ministers to fight to the death.
Force him to retreat when he sees difficulties.
Yang Yiqing felt that it was October when the weather turned cold. If the enemy's material support was insufficient and the delay continued, then the Ming Dynasty would not have no chance of winning.
But he still underestimated the strength of his opponent.
After the Ming army had been reorganized, Zhu Hao no longer needed to hold his troops back. The next step was to march from Tianjin Wei to the capital.
In fact, it was not a good idea for the Ming Dynasty to build a fortress, because Zhu Hao knew that bombs made with yellow gunpowder could easily destroy the fortress. On the contrary, it was more troublesome for the Ming army to dig trenches and trenches along the way. After all, positional warfare was difficult to fight in the world.
generally accepted fact.
Since the Ming Dynasty sent troops and horses to resist, he had a way to fight hard to frighten the Ming monarchs and ministers. Zhu Hao could let go of everything and command the troops and horses to advance towards the capital.
Three days.
Zhu Hao's headquarters is less than fifty miles away from the capital.
Under Zhu Hao's command, the vanguard troops totaled less than 10,000 people. They faced Yang Yiqing's temporarily raised army of 100,000 troops. This was almost the limit of all the troops that could be mobilized from the capital camp and the surrounding areas of the capital. And the towns in the northwest
The troops have not arrived yet. If they are all mobilized, there may be 170,000 to 80,000 troops.
But among the so-called 100,000-strong army, only about 20,000 are truly capable of fighting.
Zhu Hao's troops advanced very fast, and no matter what obstacles they encountered on the road, they all greeted them with extremely long-range firearms. The final result was... The front army sent by Yang Yiqing, which consisted of more than 10,000 horses, was defeated soon after the battle.
, then all the people were not interested in fighting, turned around and ran away.
The loss of 100,000 troops and horses may only be around 10,000, but no general dared to face the enemy head-on. In the end, Yang Yiqing had no choice but to shrink the battle line outside the capital.
…
…
"What? When Yang Ge was asked to go to meet the enemy, he actually retreated the battle line all the way to the foot of the capital? Does he want to rebel?"
Zhu Si learned from Zhang Zuo that less than three days after Yang Yiqing left the capital, he had withdrawn in embarrassment and stationed his troops around the capital. He immediately felt betrayed.
In Zhu Si's view, this was simply a typical behavior among ministers.
Zhang Zuodao said: "Mr. Yang Ge told me that we are fighting the enemy in the wilderness and there is no chance of victory. Please use the capital as a barrier and let the soldiers fight to the death for the court and the wives, children and children at home."
Zhu Si was frightened at this time, with cold sweat breaking out on his forehead, and asked: "Where did the enemy come from?"
"No... I don't know. I just know that they came from the sea. They are said to be very similar to people from the Southeast Asian Kingdom of Java, and their accents are also from there... And Your Majesty, now that Nanjing's city defense has lost its barrier, many noble families have moved there.
The upper reaches of the river, and now Jiangnan... can no longer be defended."
Zhang Zuo is not too scared now, but feels sad in his heart.
After finally following the emperor and rising to great heights, the power he acquired is about to fall by the wayside?
You don't even know who the enemy is yet, which is where you are most powerless.
Zhu Si said angrily: "Aren't there 300,000 troops stationed in Nanjing City? How could this be so?"
Zhang Zuodao: "Your Majesty, the so-called three hundred thousand is just what the people in Hunong say. In fact... the number of soldiers and horses that can be gathered is less than one hundred thousand, and most of them are temporary recruits from various guards, and the weapons are incomplete.
.In the past few years, military preparations in the south of the Yangtze River have been lax. Even Lu Wanlu Zhongcheng, who was in charge of Jinghai, suffered a tragic defeat... and it is said that a hundred warships were sunk by one enemy ship. "
"This this……"
Zhu Si was really scared now.
Fear and even a little despair.
The Ming Dynasty's fleet is considered to be very impressive. It was created by Zhu Hao at that time. Now it can actually fight one out of a hundred. How can it be defeated by its opponent until its entire army is annihilated?
How terrifying is this strength?
"Your Majesty, why don't you leave the capital first...move the capital."
Zhang Zuo didn't care about anything else at this time and directly made suggestions.
In his opinion, there was nothing he dared not say. If he could give the emperor advice and avoid the risk of being ganged up on by thieves in time, it would be worth it even if he would be infamy for thousands of years.
He Zhang Zuo is willing to bear the reputation of being a national traitor.
Zhu Sidao: "If I want to leave the capital, will those ministers agree? Will they immediately elect a new emperor? In their eyes, I am not orthodox... Unless they go with me... You say relocation
Where can I go?"
No need to tell Zhang Zuo.
In fact, Zhu Si had already considered running away for refuge. Where to go was a difficult question for him.
There are two paths to choose from.
One is to retreat westward to the land of Guanzhong, rely on Guanzhong, and fight the invading enemy. As long as the time is delayed, the enemy's supply line will be lengthened, and the Ming Dynasty's troops and horses from all walks of life will gather to continuously harass the enemy's rear. As long as the enemy
If the supply of combat materials is insufficient, the Ming Dynasty will have a chance of victory.
But Zhu Si was more inclined to run away to Anlu, because that was the place where he grew up, and he felt that it was also an inland area, and invading enemies should not be able to kill him.
Zhang Zuodao said: "The enemy invaders are already outside the city. Your Majesty has made a decision at this time. If you don't leave now... I'm afraid you won't be able to leave even if you want to in a day or two. Your Majesty may urgently summon the civil and military ministers of the DPRK and China for discussion."
Zhu Si sighed: "If I leave, it means that the capital will not be saved. Is that what you mean? All the soldiers and horses of Qinwang from all over the Ming Dynasty have already arrived, and soon the capital will gather more than 200,000 troops, even four or five
It is possible to have 100,000 soldiers and horses, but is it true that even the enemy invaders of about 10,000 cannot be retreated?"
Zhu Si no longer wants to win.
Just ask the other side to retreat.
Zhang Zuo couldn't answer this question.
At this time, the eunuch Huang Jin came back in a hurry. As the supervisor of the army, Huang Jin followed Yang Yiqing and returned in defeat after leaving the city for three days. At the same time, he brought a "letter" to Zhu Si.
"Your Majesty...this is the letter of credence."
Huang Jin said with a gray face.
"What credentials?"
Zhu Si seemed to have found hope.
There was no need for a military confrontation, or it could be delayed for a while to allow Ming troops to come, and his throne seemed to be saved again.
Huang Jindao: "It's a letter of credence sent by someone from Di Yi. It says that... His Majesty is required to abdicate the throne and admit that he will always be a vassal of the so-called 'Chinese Empire'. He will disband his troops, otherwise he will be captured within five days."
Capital of the Ming Dynasty."
"fart!"
Zhu Si was furious from the bottom of his heart, veins burst out on his forehead, and his eyes were about to burst. He stood up suddenly, waved his hands, and yelled filial piety loudly, "Let them have their spring and autumn dreams! Even if I die, I will not do what they want!"