"But if you do this, Taiwan Controller will lose the support of the people!"
"If the people's support is not popular, what use is it now?!" Chang Qingyun stood up fiercely and said loudly, "In Wuzhou City, there is an undercurrent surging. Every household, big or small, is probably prepared with blue cloth, red paper, and wax sticks for incense burners.
We are ready to welcome the heavenly soldiers into the city, and we are waiting to become obedient citizens of the Song Dynasty!"
Yi Haoran said: "You are right. However, the sage has said: If the king treats his ministers like dirt, then the ministers will regard the king as a bandit. Since the officers and soldiers entered the city, military discipline has deteriorated, and it is getting worse day by day. Up to the level of the wealthy gentry,
Down to the common people, no day goes by without them being harmed! It is better to say that we are here to defend the city and protect the people than to harm the people! Isn’t it true that we are to blame for today’s situation?!”
Chang Qingyun had a stern face but did not interrupt him. It was not until he finished speaking that he said: "In that case, what clever plan does Master Yi have?"
Yi Haoran was speechless at this question. He had tried all possible methods, and Wuzhou City was really at the end of its rope.
If there was any way to save the city and the people, the only way was to surrender to Kaesong.
Yi Haoran was at a loss. He could not say the word "surrender".
Chang Qingyun did not answer, got up and walked around the room: "Changzhou and Bangshan were lost, transportation inside and outside Wuzhou was cut off, grain and fodder from Guilin and Nanning could not be transported in, and the soldiers in the whole city were without food in an instant!
If we don't confiscate the grain reserves, are we waiting for them to mutiny? Even if we seize the people's grain reserves and don't organize the strong men in the city into brave teams to monitor them at all times, won't we be afraid of spies among them and open the door to welcome the enemy into the city like Guangzhou?
?Leave those women, children, old and weak in the city, and wait for them to starve to death in this dangerous city, or wait for them to be burned to death when the city is breached?"
"But there is not necessarily food outside the city. How much food can the thieves get to help the people if they go on an expedition?"
"Isn't it said that Australians are always benevolent and righteous?" Chang Qingyun sneered, "Even if the people drink porridge, the Kun thieves will consume a lot of food. Even if they can capture Wuzhou, they still won't have enough to eat. No matter how powerful the Kun thieves are, they will be able to stand up to the sky.
If you can stay in Wuzhou, Guangxi will be safe!"
Yi Haoran took a breath of air and his mind went blank. After a moment, he came back to his senses and said loudly: "We are still going to burn the city?!"
"The only plan for now is to burn the jade and the stone together!" Chang Qingyun said, "If we can't hold on, the thieves can't even think about it!"
"I want to see Xiong Zitai!"
Chang Qingyun said: "Xiong Zhitai is no longer in the city."
"What?!"
"Mr. Yi, please be patient." Chang Qingyun's attitude was very calm, "Director Xiong is the manager of the two provinces, so what's the use of being trapped in Wuzhou? Naturally, he has to go out and take charge of the overall situation."
Yi Haoran was a little bit disappointed. He had been in charge of the training of the new army in recent months, and he seemed to be a popular figure among Xiong Wencan. Unexpectedly, his boss left him and ran away without saying a word! This was too much.
Ruthless. What shocked him even more was that since he didn't take him with him when he left the city, it was obvious that he was not important in Xiong Wencan's eyes.
Fortunately, Chang Qingyun was also in the city, which made him feel somewhat calmer.
"Master Yi, don't you want to stick to Wuzhou? Now Chang will share hardships with you, live and die together. Hahaha, hahaha." Chang Qingyun let out a series of weird laughter and said, "Come, let's go with Chang first
With tea…”
On the other side, Luo Yangming was already in a state of confusion, and the other big households who were notified of the banquet were even more anxious. Not to mention saving food, his family would also suffer, and he would be trapped and die here. At this time, screams could be heard from far away.
Luo Yangming knew that the Ming army was robbing each household of food. It was obvious that the food stored in the houses of those small people was better than nothing. The officers and soldiers were targeting big households like them. The situation was not completely out of control at the moment, but it was
The reins of the rebel soldiers are getting looser and looser, and a disaster for the people is just around the corner!
He and Mr. Qiao had a secret discussion with the heads of various guilds in the Qiao family's house. After discussion, everyone reached a consensus: first, they must not go to the banquet. Not only could they not go, but they should also inform the surrounding big houses as much as possible not to go.
Go - if you go there, you will most likely be burned to death inside; secondly, the several strong men of the general armor must be under control, and they must not be overwhelmed by the officers and soldiers; thirdly, the water will be everywhere in the city.
All equipment must be prepared, and if a fire breaks out, it will be immediately dispatched to extinguish the fire, and a team of strong men will accompany the fire to protect it; fourth, be prepared to use force with officers and soldiers.
Despite the fact that the wealthy families were fighting openly and secretly for business on weekdays, they were all willing to contribute at this juncture: after all, Wuzhou City was a matter of their own wealth and life. Therefore, they easily raised 20,000 taels of silver and presented them to the soldiers, strong squads and soldiers of the city guard station.
The strong men team, ensure that they can work hard when the time comes - at least they will not participate in the robbery. At the same time, they make a wish to the officers and lieutenants who lead the team, as long as Wuzhou is safe and handed over to the Australians, the big bosses will also give thanks afterwards.
At this time, someone came to report that the officers and soldiers were driving the strong men at the east and west city gates to dig open the city gates. It seemed that they were preparing to drive the people out of the city at night.
"In fact, as soon as the city gate is dug, the heavenly soldiers can take advantage of the situation to enter the city. However, it is getting late, and the heavenly soldiers may not take the opportunity to attack the city for fear of falling into the trap."
"It would be great if someone risked his life to go out of the city to contact the heavenly soldiers!" Someone suggested.
This suggestion was very appropriate, but all the big players looked at each other, and no one dared to respond. It is not difficult to go out of the city to contact people. As long as they are willing to pay, there will definitely be someone willing to risk their lives to go out and contact them. However, if you want to win the trust of the Australians, you must have a certain number of people.
If you have the evidence in hand, you must have a letter. If it falls into the hands of officers and soldiers, it will be a disaster in an instant!
"I will handle this matter!" Until now, Luo Yangming was the only one to step forward, "I have dealt with the Australian rice merchant Dachang, and I heard that it is Dachang who handles the Australian military supplies this time - I am with them.
It’s old business.”
Someone stepped forward, and all the wealthy people breathed a sigh of relief, and patted their chests one after another and said, "Don't worry about your wife and I supporting myself." At this time, Luo Yangming didn't care whether these people were sincere or not, and hurriedly left the wealthy family.
He resigned from the house and took his servants along the small roads and alleys, specializing in remote places, all the way back.
There was panic and uneasiness everywhere in the city. Many houses and shops had been smashed open on the streets. Dead bodies could be seen lying on the streets from time to time. There were howls and cries everywhere.
Luo Yangming couldn't care less. He hurried back to his shop. His old shopkeepers Li Wensheng and Wen Tietou had been waiting for a long time. When they saw him coming back, they couldn't help but be overjoyed. Li Wensheng was already sixty and he was his old family member.
Tears immediately filled his eyes, and he immediately said: "My boss, the officers and soldiers have robbed all the rice in our shop! I didn't even save a grain of rice!"
Wen Tietou was also a little embarrassed and muttered: "There are many officers and soldiers, and there are swords and guns. I am weak alone..."
The rice store run by Luo Yangming was technically the property of the Senate. Even so, as a rice merchant on the street, Luo Yangming was still heartbroken to lose so much rice all at once. But this was not the time to argue, so he comforted:
"If they want rice, just let them take it. These soldiers and bandits can't eat rice for a few days! As long as everyone is safe, everything is easy." After that, he asked Wen Tietou to go to the back house to take care of his family, and called Li Wensheng to come.
Go to the study room.
Li Wensheng was originally a clerk at Luo Yangming's rice shop when he was in Sanshui. Later, the rice shop was taken away and Li Wensheng was also displaced. When Luo Yangming went to Wuzhou to work as an intelligence agent, he met Li Wensheng in Sanshui, who was unemployed and living in poverty, and recruited him again.
He was his assistant at Kaimi Zhan in Wuzhou. Although he never disclosed any information about his intelligence work to Li Wensheng, and even refused to talk about his experience in Lingao, Luo Yangming still trusted this man who had watched him grow up since childhood.
The old man, now the old shopkeeper.
He is very old and looks like an old man. He has no problem blending in when expelling the old, weak, sick and disabled. Moreover, his body is actually quite strong and he can still climb mountains and ridges.
Luo Yangming wrote a letter in secret language and told Li Wensheng that when he left the city, he must give this letter to the Australian officials.
"If they refuse to let you see the Australian Prime Minister, just say that you have information to give to the Australian Prime Minister. If that doesn't work, just say that you were sent by a lone wolf. I will only say one thing, and you must remember it."
Luo Yangming warned.
"My boss, I will definitely fulfill my mission, but we will say goodbye tomorrow, and I don't know when we can see each other again." The loyal old shopkeeper said with tears.
"See you soon."
That evening, the governor's office hosted a banquet for merchants in the city. Not many big businessmen and chief executives came, only one big businessman, Qiao, came. Although there was only one distinguished guest, he brought a large group of common people behind him, numbering hundreds of people.
Standing in front of the government office to petition, they only said that they didn’t know which rumor had spread, saying that Lord Xiong was going to burn the city and bring all the men, women, and children in the city to death. The old, the weak, the sick, and the disabled all knelt down in the street and howled, asking Lord Xiong to "
The common people in the world are cherished, and the opening of the city without blood is the highest priority."
The news spread very quickly, and within half an hour the whole city was in uproar. The whole city of Wuzhou was in a state of uproar, and the streets were full of people milling around like headless flies.
The noise and commotion in the city attracted the attention of the Fubo Army reconnaissance team outside the city. However, they were unable to determine what exactly happened in the city. From the confessions of the officers and soldiers who surrendered from the city in the past few days, they probably knew that the city
The situation inside is unstable and disorderly, but how chaotic it is and what the officials from Xiong Wencan on down are planning to do, Jiang Zhi knows very little about.
However, from the confession of the soldiers, Zhu Mingxia already roughly knew that the officers and soldiers were likely to set fire to the city when the city was broken. This made him very worried. Once the officers and soldiers burned the city, not only Wuzhou was likely to be destroyed, but also the original plan.
The food in Wuzhou that was used locally would also be reduced to ashes. Therefore, after capturing Bangshan, he immediately mobilized his troops and subordinates to prepare for the attack and prepare to capture Wuzhou as quickly as possible.