The day before, there were rumors that King Ning's troops had conquered Anqing and were about to move down the river to attack Nanjing. There were even rumors that the soldiers and civilians of Nanjing had been waiting for King Ning to go and open the city gates to welcome the "King's Master". This was
Take Zhu Di's case of Jingnan as a comparison.
But the next day, there was a rumor that Wang Shouren, a master of military skills in southern Gansu, had mobilized his troops to take over Nanchang City, the home of Prince Ning.
No matter how much the people in other places hated King Ning for his rebellion, at least the people on the ground in Jiangxi scolded King Ning for his rebellion and brought military disaster to them, but at the same time they hoped that he could really ascend the throne and become the emperor...
This is the "local sentiment" of the Chinese people. They feel that if an emperor is born in their territory, he will definitely bring prosperity and tranquility to the place.
From Jiujiang Prefecture to Wuchang Prefecture, there were no checkpoints in this section of the river for fear that any show of hostility would lead to attacks by King Ning's troops. The focus of Huguang's defense was on Wuchang Prefecture and the upper reaches of the Yangtze and Han Rivers.
In this way, it was convenient for Zhu Hao and his party. When Zhu Hao led his troops to Jiujiang Prefecture in Jiangxi Province and landed, fleeing people could be seen everywhere.
The people did not want to be implicated in King Ning's rebellion, so they had no choice but to flee Jiangxi with their families. Most people moved to the west, that is, towards Huguang.
You must know that there are only about two months left before the autumn harvest. Such a large-scale refugee wave will cause great damage to the livelihood of local people. This is why in history, after Wang Shouren put down the rebellion of King Ning, there were many
He submitted a petition to the imperial court requesting that the local people in Jiangxi be subsidized by easing taxes and taxes, and allocating funds for disaster relief.
…
…
Zhu Hao and Lu Song entered Jiujiang on the third day and went their separate ways.
Zhu Hao found a place by Chihu Lake to wait for news, while Lu Song and Yu San took more than a dozen hired water ghosts to Poyang Lake to conduct a "treasure hunt" activity, nominally to deal with those water ghosts.
That said, if you tell the water ghosts now that you will fish people out of the water at a certain time in the future, they will not believe it. They will only think that Zhu Hao is a liar and unwilling to work hard.
Now I heard that it was treasure hunting, and I had paid a lot of commissions in advance. Even though everyone felt that Jiangxi was a dangerous place, they still couldn't resist their inner greed and set out on the journey.
Money can make the world go round, and there will be brave men under heavy rewards.
It's already mid-July in the blink of an eye.
At this time, there were only a few days left before the rebellion of King Ning was put down in history.
Zhu Hao was waiting for news in Ruichang County.
This place is less than a hundred miles away from Huguang. After King Ning captured Jiujiang Prefecture, he did not go west to attack Ruichang County. Instead, he went directly across the river to attack Anqing City. As a result, refugees could be seen everywhere around Ruichang, and here too
It has become a transfer station for people entering Huguang.
But in this era, there were no roads, so it was not easy to escape into other provinces.
The ground in Huguang has already arranged manpower to carry out interrogations at various checkpoints. Either there are official documents, road guides, or the wealthy family's convoys have to be taken care of when they move. Otherwise, the fleeing people will have to find a way to cross the state and province through some places with no roads in deep mountains and old forests.
Another way is to temporarily hide in the mountains and wait for the war to end.
After Zhu Hao settled down, Lu Song on the other side occasionally asked people to bring back news, but because they were not through official channels, the news lagged behind.
Based on Zhu Hao's understanding of history, Zhu Chenhao found that on July 15th, he could not attack Anqing for a long time, and Nanchang City in his backyard was besieged by Wang Shouren, so he sent troops back to support, and a fierce battle broke out between the two sides at Poyang Lake, and history
The decisive battle takes place on July 25th and 26th.
However, due to Zhu Hao's early warning, the action against the rebel troops was faster. Wang Shouren led his troops to Nanchang City in early July, nearly half a month earlier than in history.
King Ning's army's attack on Anqing still did not go smoothly, because Wang Shouren's troops were so strong that King Ning's return of troops for reinforcements was advanced to about the tenth day of July, which brought about a result...the decisive battle was advanced at least five or six days.
Zhu Hao was not in the battle and could only wait for the result in the rear.
In the middle and later stages of King Ning's rebellion, Jiujiang Prefecture and other places were actually separated, but Zhu Hao did not go deep into the hinterland of Jiangxi to command on the battlefield.
The Huguang Provincial Examination was not affected by this rebellion and will officially start on the ninth day of August. This means that Zhu Hao has to rush back to Wuchang Prefecture to take the Provincial Examination and must leave for Wuchang Prefecture at the end of July.
…
…
July 18th.
King Ning's return fleet has penetrated deep into Poyang Lake.
At this time, Wang Shouren's troops were already waiting at the mouth of the Ganjiang River. The situation that King Ning expected to cooperate with the Nanchang defenders to defeat the rebel troops and horses did not happen, because even though Nanchang City had not been captured by Wang Shouren at this time, King Ning stayed behind with his troops and horses.
He was so cowardly that he did not dare to go out of the city and confront Wang Shouren's troops head-on.
Wang Shouren only sent a small number of soldiers and horses to contain the enemy outside Nanchang City. Then the main force moved down the Gan River and was transferred to the front line of Poyang Lake to attack. The war was about to break out.
That night, King Ning's army was on a troop transport ship in the rear.
Princess Ning ended her day wandering and after the ship docked, she wanted to go ashore to have a good rest, but the maid informed her that someone had sent a letter.
King Ning was different from others when he went on an expedition. He took his wife, children, and children with him. In name, he led the troops to capture Nanjing and proclaimed himself emperor directly in Nanjing. He did not need to go home to pick up his family. He could directly declare the title to the world.
In fact, the main reason is that he is afraid of a fire in the backyard, so he feels more at ease with his family by his side. He does not have to worry about his family being captured and taken hostage by the court at any time, which will hamper his strategy.
The biggest problem with doing this is to allocate some troops to protect these relatives who have no fighting ability.
These ships carrying family members basically followed the main army. When they went to Anqing, they fell far behind. Now that they are returning to help, they are still at the back of the fleet.
This gave Zhu Hao the opportunity to report the news.
"Whose letter is it from?"
Princess Ning was a little curious.
Can communication still be normal at this time?
Could it be that Prince Ning missed her too much on the front line and wrote her a letter?
The maid handed it over and said: "It was received by Master Long of the theater troupe when he docked. He asked someone to give it to the guard, who then handed it over and said it was written by an old friend of yours, Princess."
Although there were not many guards around Princess Ning at this time, there was still basic protection. The army was dispatched, and the few remaining imperial soldiers and horses in the area did not dare to attack the rear of Prince Ning's army. The defense was relatively loose, so there was an opportunity for communication.
Zhu Hao asked Lu Song to find the person to correspond with, who was none other than Long, the troupe leader who had sung for Zhu Hao in Anlu before and later replaced Zhu Hao's troupe and sold it to Prince Ning's Mansion.
Leader Long... Although he doesn't have much loyalty, fortunately, he has an eye for money. If Zhu Hao spends enough money, he can get things done.
In addition, the letter sent has no additional meaning at all. It is clearly an old friend who sent something like a "love poem" out of longing for her. Princess Ning herself and Nanchang local scholars
Their friendship was profound, and Prince Ning even used his wife's reputation of cherishing and loving talents to recruit a large group of scholars like bees and butterflies to work for him.
Prince Ning has always used Lou Suzhen as a chess piece. To outsiders, this letter might be a love letter written by some arrogant scholar.
"this……"
After Lou Suzhen opened the letter, she immediately recognized that it was Tang Yin's handwriting. She immediately turned her head and asked, "Xinghua, where is the person coming?"
The maid named Xinghua replied: "The person who came here didn't get on the boat. Even Master Long is not qualified to get on the boat. He just sent a letter like this."
This made Lou Suzhen depressed.
She had the letter in her hand, and she knew it was written by Tang Yin, but the content... was a bit hazy and looked very sad. Although she was uneasy now, it was not as heartbroken as in the poem. It was just the poem that made her feel sad.
The more I read, the more confused I feel... It's like a melody hidden in my heart, and even the rhymes are ready to come out.
A poem from the future, written by herself, naturally felt familiar.
"What's going on at the front?"
Lou Suzhen read the letter carefully several times and felt Tang Yin's affection for her. Although there was deep concern between the lines, it was not to the point of life and death.
Things haven't happened yet, so I can't understand the despair.
Xinghua said: "The news just came that Wang Zhongcheng's troops have formed an array at Huangjiadu at the mouth of the Ganjiang River."
Lou Suzhen said anxiously: "Wang Zhongcheng is a master of military affairs. He reacted quickly this time when the prince started an uprising. He should have expected it. If he was fully prepared, then the prince leading the troops would be tantamount to surrendering."
Luo Yu... What will happen if the army is defeated?"
Even if Lou Suzhen no longer supports her husband's rebellion, now that it has happened and there is no turning back, she naturally still hopes that her husband will win.
"If we can defeat Wang Zhongcheng, it will be easy to capture Anqing..."
At this time, Lou Suzhen already understood the entire battle situation.
The biggest trouble the husband faces is not actually Anqing, but Wang Shouren.
After defeating Wang Shouren and waiting for the troops from the imperial court to suppress the rebellion, it may not be until the year of the monkey and the month of the horse that the emperor's troops and horses have strength... It doesn't matter. What is important is that by then, King Ning may have captured Nanjing and formed a north-south division of the river.
And in a situation where there are two sides fighting each other, it is not certain who will win in the end.
Xinghua said: "My Lady, don't worry, we have hundreds of thousands of troops, and Wang Zhongcheng doesn't have many soldiers under his command."
"You do not understand."
Lou Suzhen originally wanted to get off the boat and rest at the shore camp.
But now I feel uneasy and can only stay on the ship temporarily.
A sleepless night.
She came to the deck from time to time to look at the soldiers patrolling the shore and the situation in the lake until dawn, when suddenly there was a fire in the distance.
"Mother, there seems to be a fire on the big lake!"
The maid was so frightened that she screamed.
Lou Suzhen hurriedly asked someone to set up a relatively high platform on the shore, and stood up to look out. She saw a line of horoscopes in front of her, and the fire was soaring into the sky, threatening to set the company on fire. Then a series of military reports came, and Lou Suzhen's heart dropped.
half.
As expected, King Ning was defeated.
In terms of military capabilities, King Ning and Wang Shouren were not at the same level. Even though they had an absolute advantage in terms of the number of soldiers and horses, they could not besiege Anqing, so they rushed back in a hurry, and the morale of the army was disorganized. They also encountered the local bandits who had been annihilating them two years ago.
Wang Shouren, who has no disadvantages and is waiting for work, is under his command...
In an encounter, he encountered a setback at first, and then was attacked with fire by Wang Shouren...
At the end of the day and night, King Ning's troops were basically defeated. In this battle alone, 30,000 to 40,000 soldiers and horses were drowned, and countless deserters were killed.
Wang Shouren's soldiers and horses had already moved north to cover up the enemy, advancing both by land and water.
Princess Ning was surrounded by guards, and it seemed she had no choice but to escape.