At the dark east city gate, hundreds of soldiers were guarding here, the lights were bright, and the guarding soldiers were patrolling back and forth. Suddenly, many men in civilian clothes rushed from the street, each of them holding a protective rifle in their hands, and on their backs Shangdu was carrying a broadsword on his back. Most of the hundreds of Ming troops guarding the city gate and holding long spears were shot down in a single volley, and the rest fled in panic.
Zhang Huahan commanded the people to open the city gate and let everyone go immediately. He led 300 people to break up the rear. He had already made contact during the day. Li Erdan's first division, one brigade and two regiments were supporting around five miles away. Li Erdan personally led them. Two brigades marched hundreds of miles to meet us, so as long as everyone walked five miles away, they would be safe.
In the Nanjing Imperial Palace, after listening to the report from his subordinates, Hongguang Emperor Zhu Yousong said to Wu Tianwu, whose pseudonym was Zhu Wu: "They have taken action. I have mobilized three thousand musketeers and are ready. With Zhang Huahan's character, he will definitely be cut off." , three thousand musketeers and you and the support of 30,000 troops, if you can't kill Zhang Huahan, you don't have to come back to see me." Wu Tianwu, whose pseudonym is Zhu Wu, said: "I will kill him, but don't use this Speaking in such a tone, I am not under your control. You and I are just partners. You are the emperor, but people like me are immortals who can kill you at any time and are not under your jurisdiction. "Zhu Yousong He nodded quickly. Wu Tianwu, whose pseudonym was Zhu Wu, saw Zhu Yousong lying down and strode out of the palace. After he walked out of the palace, he saw that the musketeers were still carrying some barrels, which seemed to be gunpowder for muskets, so he didn't care. , and got on the horse.
Eunuch Gao next to Zhu Yousong walked to him at Zhu Yousong's signal. Zhu Yousong whispered: "Go and command the musketeers. Remember to shoot and blow them both to death at all costs. You will have yours when you come back." Prosperity and wealth." Eunuch Gao nodded quickly and left quickly.
Zhu Yousong said to Wu Tieli beside him: "I know that Zhang Huahan saved you and me. You are grateful to him, and so am I. But for the sake of the Ming Dynasty, we must get rid of him. Can you understand?" Wu Tieli said: "I do. I am dissatisfied with you for killing him, but you are our master and the emperor, and I only know how to be loyal to you. If you want to kill my benefactor, I cannot object, let alone stop you." Zhu Yousong sighed and said: "You He is not as capable as him, but he cannot be used by me. He is full of democracy, China, and other things that are useless to my rule. He even poses a great threat to me, so I must get rid of him. You Foolish but loyal, I only trust you and Xiao Gao!"
At the gate of the East Gate of Nanjing, Zhang Huahan led 300 gunners to block the tens of thousands of troops commanded by Huang Degong himself. Huang Degong had 3,000 musketeers under his command. With the charge of spears and broadswords, Zhang Huahan and 300 gunners were killed. And they quickly threw away thousands of corpses. But the deaths of thousands of Ming army soldiers also made them rush to the people led by Zhang Huahan. The people led by Zhang Huahan were quickly overwhelmed. Zhang Huahan whistled and let them go. Those who could evacuate went out of the city gate first. He guarded the gate alone, holding two broadswords in his hands and swinging them rapidly, forming a wind of swords. More than thirty Ming army soldiers were hacked to death and injured by the wind of swords. The more than 100 surviving quick shooters retreated behind Zhang Huahan to cover and fire.
At this time, three thousand cavalrymen rushed out from the city, all of them were musketeers. A man flew off a horse and flew over the head of the densely packed Ming army. He quickly rushed in front of Zhang Huahan.
The person who came was none other than Wu Tianwu, whose pseudonym was Zhu Wu.
Wu Tianwu came over and made a mistake with his palm, and launched a fierce attack on Zhang Huahan. Zhang Huahan flew with his swords and started fighting with him. The two of them fought, their bodies flew around, and the soldiers on both sides could not get past. They were afraid of accidentally hurting one of their own, so they did not fire.
Even if they fired a few shots, they were dodged by their superb reflexes and agility.
At this time, Eunuch Gao, who was on the horse, quickly came down. Huang Degong, who was commanding the army, ran over and saw Eunuch Gao. Eunuch Gao asked him to command the soldiers to bring several musketeers and carry the barrels to the city gate near the battle.
Since they were moved along the hidden soldier cave in the city wall, Zhang Huahan and Wu Tianwu, whose pseudonym was Zhu Wu, did not see the two of them fighting, and more than a hundred quick shooters led by Zhang Huahan were outside the city gate.
Impossible to see.
Zhang Huahan had a weapon in his hand and had an advantage. Wu Tianwu, who had already received two bloody cuts, regretted that he did not bring a weapon. He did not know how to use firearms and did not bring a sword or gun. When two top masters competed in martial arts, he
At the same time, whoever holds the weapon will have a slight advantage, and this advantage is the key to victory.
Zhang Huahan injected powerful internal force into the two steel knives, turning them into extremely sharp and indestructible weapons. Wu Tianwu, who was afraid that ordinary muskets could only cause flesh wounds to him, dodged and turned around.
He dodged Zhang Huahan's double swords and could only find opportunities to counterattack a few times.
Eunuch Gao, who had been secretly trained in musketry command, commanded the three thousand musketeers he brought and Huang Degong's three thousand musketeers to form a large-scale three-shot musketry array, causing the Ming soldiers to avoid the city gate.
When there were still hundreds of Ming soldiers who had not escaped, Eunuch Gao ordered the first row of two thousand musketeers to fire at the city gate. Hundreds of Ming soldiers were immediately shot and fell to the ground. Huang Degong's eyes turned red as he watched.
Seeing hundreds of elite soldiers whom he had carefully trained fall to his own guns, his heart was bleeding. But he also knew that Zhang Huahan was highly skilled in martial arts. If he saw his troops spread out and reveal the gun array, he would be shocked.
He ran away. And since it was Eunuch Gao, the emperor's favorite, who personally took action, everything must have been ordered by the emperor, and it was hard for him to say anything.
Zhang Huahan and Wu Tianwu, whose pseudonym is Zhu Wu, were also shot. However, both of them reacted quickly, almost beyond human limits. They were shot several times in non-vital places, but their reaction speed was obviously slow. Suddenly, they were shot again.
After a volley of gunfire, the two men immediately became a sieve of blood. After another volley of gunfire, there was an earth-shattering vibration and loud noise. It turned out that several barrels of gunpowder placed at the gate of the city had been detonated. Sand and rocks were flying, and dust was flying. Many Ming soldiers and Zhang Huahan led
All the gunmen were killed, crushed to death or injured.
Huang Degong, who had experienced battles for a long time, felt his calves tremble. He did not expect that the wooden barrel was full of gunpowder. Such a large battle formation was just to deal with Zhang Huahan. It can be seen that Hongguang Emperor Zhu Yousong was extremely afraid of Zhang Huahan and would kill him at all costs.
The loyal quick shooters desperately turned over the rocks in search of the leader's body. It was only when the Ming army reacted and attacked them that they found Zhang Huahan's bloody head and half of his armless arms. They retreated with Zhang Huahan's remains.
.
More than a hundred loyal fast shooters performed at their best during training, loading and shooting while running. However, the Ming Army musketeers on horseback could hardly reload on their horses and could only reload after stopping, but that was it.
Nor can it change the speed of a horse or a person.
The difference in speed cannot change the difference in numbers between three thousand and more than one hundred. As they ran along, the injured fast gunner sang "Flag Against the Wind" or "Serving the Country with Loyalty" loudly, fighting to the death to cut off the rear and let the people in front
Deliver the leader's body to his comrades in the First Division.
When the quick shooters ran about three or four miles away, only a dozen of them were left. Thousands of Ming army cavalry who had already loaded their bullets rushed over from behind. Seeing that they were about to be overtaken while holding Zhang Huahan's body.
Suddenly, countless muskets were fired from in front of them. They recognized the sound of the escort's rifles. The First Division was coming. After running hard for a long time beyond their limits, most of them fainted as soon as they relaxed.
.
The first division led by Li Erdan came. Li Erdan shouted: "Brothers, shoot, reload quickly, hurry up, shoot these bastards." He shouted while finding the dozen or so survivors.
The quick shooter wanted to see Zhang Huahan urgently. When he saw the bloody face of Zhang Huahan, he screamed and fainted.
The well-trained deputy division commander immediately commanded the troops to repel the enemy and retreat. They only came with more than 3,000 people. After all, there were tens of thousands of troops in Nanjing, and they came here quickly with no supplies and not much ammunition. If
If you don't retreat, you risk the entire army being annihilated.
When a beautiful little girl who followed them saw Zhang Huahan's head, she first looked surprised and sad, and then looked in the direction of Nanjing with confusion. Then she quietly left the team of the First Guard Division and headed for Nanjing.
Go.
The news of the death of Zhang Huahan, the leader of the Protectorate, shocked all forces in the country. Zhu Yousong, the Hongguang Emperor of Nanjing, went to Mu Palace in Yunnan, Zheng Zhilong of Fujian, Li Huaifang, the general of Liangjiang, and the Ming generals Yang Zhan, Zeng Ying, and Hou Yongxi who were in the Protectorate.
The others secretly sent an imperial edict, declaring the Husbands to be rebels and requiring them to immediately exterminate the Husbands on the spot and protect the emperor's safety. Those who had made great contributions could be granted the title of land or king.
As soon as the Manchu and Qing Dynasties in the north received Zhu Yousong's secret message, they mobilized 100,000 musketeers, 100,000 Manchu, Mongolian and Han Eight Banners troops and 200,000 Green Camp troops from Shandong and Henan to attack the territory protected by the Japanese.
After Zheng Zhilong of Fujian received the imperial edict, he immediately consulted his son Zheng Sen to discuss countermeasures. Unlike Zheng Zhilong, who was born as a pirate and a businessman and had little ambition, Zheng Sen's ambitions were very great. He actively trained a large number of soldiers for this purpose.
He had achieved great success, so as soon as he saw the imperial edict, he immediately mobilized his troops and set off to attack the Guangdong and Guangxi areas where the protective forces were relatively small.
As soon as Prince Mu of Yunnan received the imperial edict, Mu Tianbo and Prince Gui gathered their troops together. They mobilized an army of 150,000 to attack Guangdong, Guangxi, Huguang and other places close to their territory.
After receiving the imperial edict, Li Huaifang, the commander-in-chief of Liangjiang, mobilized 80,000 soldiers in the area and hurriedly dragged 100,000 strong men to Nanjing, hoping to defend the emperor and make a great contribution.
After receiving the imperial edict, Zeng Ying and Yang Zhan, who were protecting the country, announced in Guangdong and Huguang that they were leaving the country and decided to launch troops to attack the territory of the country.
However, Zeng Ying's deputy division commander Li Youguang and the two brigade commanders Song Maocai and Wang Chengming were both loyal to the Japanese army. They gathered to besiege Zeng Ying's cronies and quickly wiped them out.
, Zeng Ying was also shot in the head by Li Youguang and died.
After Yang Zhan in Huguang received the imperial edict, he secretly announced the edict and immediately summoned all officers above the company commander level to his division headquarters for a meeting. Once everyone arrived, he immediately summoned all generals who were loyal to protect the country.
He killed them all and quickly put his cronies in control of the army,
Many squad platoon leaders who were loyal to the guards led their soldiers to resist Yang Zhan's control of the army, but were killed by most of the soldiers controlled by Yang Zhan. Only a few saw that there was nothing they could do and immediately fled to nearby
In the troops of Li Guo, Bai Wang, Li Yan and others.
Hou Yongxi, who was stationed in Sichuan, also received the imperial edict. After receiving the imperial edict, he asked the eunuch who delivered the edict to go down to rest first, and he summoned all his cronies.
In his division headquarters, Hou Yongxi looked at the dozens of people who had followed him for many years and said: "I called you here today because I want you to see this thing." After that, he took out the imperial edict and gave it to everyone.
Pass it on.
After reading the imperial edict, dozens of Hou Yongxi's cronies all had heavy faces, but they didn't know what their master meant and didn't speak. Hou Yongxi looked at them and said, "Let's talk about it, what should we do?"
He stood up and said: "Brother Hou, there is no need to ask us. We are all brothers who climbed out of the dead with you. Just say, we will all listen to you and follow you." Everyone nodded and said yes.
Hou Yongxi looked at them and said: "What I mean is that you think about who to follow. You can think about it yourself. I just want to hear you talk about your thoughts. Say what you think. Everyone speaks from their heart. Everyone
We are all right and we are not afraid if we are wrong or right."
Everyone was silent for a while, and a tall and thin man stood up and said: "Since the eldest brother has said it, let me tell my own truth. I came from a poor family, and I joined the army just to make a living. There are three people in my family.
Two brothers also joined the army and died in the war. My sister and brother-in-law support my father and mother at home.
, I send money home, but everyone knows that when we fight, no one knows when he will die, and military pay is often not available. My brother-in-law’s family is also poor, and he has to take care of his father and mother. After I die in the war,
Where did he get so much money to support four old people and his children? But the nurse came to confirm
The government's policy was different. It directly gave land to my father, mother, and my sister and brother-in-law. I also exempted them from most of the land tax because I became an army officer. Originally, the land tax for the nurse was not heavy, but now they can all save food, and I
After my death, my father and mother were not only exempted from the land tax, but also received monthly subsidies from the government.
, To be honest, I have never seen an army or a government that cares for people so much. If it weren’t for my eldest brother’s kindness, I would have gone to protect the motherland.” As he spoke, his eye circles were a little red, obviously.
Thinking of the previous bitterness and the situation after the nurse arrived, I felt a little excited.
Everyone was silent after hearing what he said. Everyone acknowledged what he said. Most of the people here were born poor, and their families have more or less benefited from the nursing home policy.
At this time, a dark man with a strong but short stature stood up and said: "I agree with what Lao Wang said, but the boss is more kind to us than the nurse. Over the years, we have encountered all kinds of difficult situations.
Yes, but when did the boss stop the money we sent home? He even sold his wife’s jewelry to his brothers for military pay. And who is the biggest in the world? The emperor is the biggest. When the emperor’s decree comes, if we disobey it, we are disobeying it.
, even the protector cannot be greater than the emperor! From now on, protecting the emperor means rebelling and banditry, but we will do whatever the boss says. Boss, what should we do if you speak?"
Hou Yongxi stood up and said: "Actually, I have thought about it for a long time. I am afraid that everyone will object, so I want to hear what everyone has to say. Lao Gao said that who is the biggest now is the emperor. I said no, it is the common people. My family is poor and I have not studied.
I have never read anything, but I have heard a storyteller say that the king is the boat and the people are the water. The water can carry the boat and also capsize it. I never dared to think about the policy of protecting the motherland before, but am I willing to do this?
What about the implementation of this policy? I tell you today that I am willing to die for this policy. Chief Zhang Huahan is dead. It is a pity that I have not met the leader of this policy. But Chief Huang is still there, and we are still there.
Now that this policy has been implemented, we cannot let the poor brothers and sisters in the world see this hope and then see it dashed. On the contrary, those who oppose our policy are against the common people in the world and are against the greatest person in the world, the emperor.
No, isn't it said in our military song? The flag we hold, dyed with our own blood, is itself a flag that can withstand the wind. We must carry this flag despite the wind." Everyone stood up and shouted.
"Follow the command of the division commander." Hou Yongxi said: "Behead the eunuch, send his head and the imperial edict to Chief Huang, and tell him that if our fifteenth division is here, Sichuan will never be lost, and then inform Chen Zilong of the fifth division.
We told Ai Nengqi from the 17th Division about the imperial edict we received, telling them to be careful of the enemy's alienation tactics, and also told them that their brothers from the 15th Division will defend southern Sichuan to the death."dd