Since the first lunar month, the heavy snowfall in Shandong has stopped, and finally it gradually cleared up in late February.
The entire Shandong Province's six prefectures, fifteen states and eighty-nine counties were affected by disasters almost everywhere. Documents for help from various state governments to Jinan were piled up like snowflakes on the desk of the Chief Envoy.
Coupled with the White Lotus Rebellion in Jinan Prefecture, Qingzhou Prefecture and Yanzhou Prefecture, and natural and man-made disasters, Shandong's food fell into an extremely scarce situation.
The canal was not opened, and the grain from the Ministry of Revenue could not be delivered to Shandong. The emperor had to order Henan and Nanzhili, which were adjacent to Shandong, to transfer grain to Shandong. At the same time, he ordered the Ministry of Revenue to rush to support Shandong through land transportation.
The news in Shandong changed three times a day, especially when the news that Yanzhou was besieged by the White Lotus Sect bandits reached the capital, the atmosphere in Rongguo Mansion could be said to have reached a freezing point in an instant.
Although the Rongguo Mansion had kept its doors tightly closed since Jia She and his son left the capital and rarely went out, there were always close relatives of nobles and nobles coming to visit.
Of course, there are also people who are jealous of Rongguo Mansion. After hearing the news, they came to watch the excitement...
"I have long said that I shouldn't go, I shouldn't go, why didn't I listen to my advice?"
The old lady finally managed to push away the female family members who came to the house as guests, and finally felt dizzy and collapsed.
Yuanyang was anxious to find someone to call a doctor, and the maids and women in the room were also in a mess.
But the old lady stopped the panic in the room and shouted sternly: "Why are you panicking? The sky hasn't fallen yet. Go to Dongfu to invite Jing'er over. Also, tell the people below to shut up. Who dares to say this?" If word of this reaches a few girls, they will all be dragged out and beaten to death!"
The two sons have left the capital, and the two grandsons who can take care of things are not here. Even if the old lady is dizzy now, she can only stand up and arrange things in the house herself.
When Jia Jing hurried over from the clan school, the old lady's face was extremely pale. She lay on the bed and closed her eyes tightly, which shocked him.
He hurriedly told Yuanyang: "Why don't you hurry up and ask for the doctor... Forget it, let someone take the post from the government to the Imperial Hospital to ask for the imperial doctor..."
"Jing'er..."
The old lady heard Jia Jing's voice in a daze, opened her eyes with difficulty, and grabbed Jia Jing's hand: "Something happened to Brother Cong. He was besieged by the demons of the White Lotus Sect in Yanzhou. You should think of a solution quickly... …”
Jia Jing frowned. Of course he knew about this, and he also guessed that someone behind it was pushing the entire White Lotus Sect in Shandong to move towards Yanzhou City step by step.
In all likelihood, Jia Cong's teacher Xu Jin and Xu Qingteng are planning this, so Jia Cong will be fine at all.
But there was no definite news about this matter in the palace, so he naturally didn't dare to tell anyone about it, but he didn't want it to be reported to the old lady. It was considered an oversight on his part.
"Jing'er... Jing'er..."
The old lady's repeated calls brought Jia Jing out of his thoughts, and he hurriedly comforted him: "Don't worry, aunt. My nephew has received news about this before. Brother Cong will be fine. Don't worry. The reason involves the military. It's a secret, and my nephew can't go into details, but one thing is certain, Brother Cong might be able to make great achievements through this."
"real?"
Jia Jing nodded confidently and helped the old lady lean on the pillow.
"My nephew didn't think well and should have told you in advance. The main reason is that there is no news about this matter in the palace. If my nephew said that he missed the military plane, it would bring trouble to our family."
The old lady had been with Jia Daishan all her life, so she naturally understood the importance of military secrets. Seeing that Jia Jing didn't seem to be telling lies to deceive her, she finally let go of her worries.
Seeing that the old lady was very depressed, Jia Jing ordered someone to call the imperial doctor and asked who told her these things.
Jia Jing became very vigilant when he learned that the wives of several noble families from Beijing were visiting his residence. When he accidentally mentioned them.
Was it really an accidental mention? What a coincidence!
Who doesn't know the current situation in Rongguo Mansion? All the capable men in charge of the house have left the capital. There are a lot of women and children at home. Do you really care about the Jia family when you mention this in front of the old lady?
Fortunately, after checking her pulse, the imperial doctor said that the old lady was suffering from a sudden attack of anger and prescribed a few decoctions to soothe the liver and relieve depression. Jia Jing felt relieved.
.
After waiting for the old lady to drink the medicine and go to sleep, Jia Jing returned to the study of Ningguo Mansion and found his close relatives.
"Lao Liu, go check the houses that went to Rongxi Hall today and see who they have come into contact with and what happened in the past few days. Especially the second wife of the Duke of Xiu's Mansion, Qu Shi, and the elder of the family of the Duke of Zhiguo's Mansion. Mrs."
Jia Liu bowed and was about to leave, but he heard Jia Jing say again: "Wait... let people check Dongping, Beijing and Xining Prince's Palace again. I always feel that this is too coincidental. What happened in Shandong It has only been two days since the news came back to the capital, and they are not seen walking around Rongguo Mansion on weekdays. Whenever something happens, they always run to Rongxi Hall."
If it weren't for the cold weather, the chances of an epidemic in Yanzhou City would have increased dozens of times.
The war is not over yet, and the corpses of the robbers in the city can only be thrown aside. Jia Cong ordered all medical clinics to boil various decoctions to prevent and treat plague for consumption by the soldiers and civilians in the city.
On the first day of March, when the sky was slightly cool, Jia Cong put on his armor and stood on the top of the city.
On the second day after Han Tong, Zhang Chongfang, and Li Duoyang merged, they changed their previous caution and pressed forward with three armies, heading straight for the north gate of Yanzhou.
They are not afraid that Jia Cong will escape from the other three gates. "Daxia Law" states: During a battle, the chief official or the guard who abandons the city and flees will be executed and the three tribes will be exiled.
Of course Jia Cong would not think about escaping. If his teacher Xu Jin and Liu Ke's army hadn't arrived yet, he would have wanted to rush out of the city with Huben and the Shenwu cavalry to do his damn thing.
Dong dong dong dong...
The war drums were beaten again. The soldiers, who were full of food and drink, clenched the weapons in their hands, and the drums beat the armor on their chests.
"Wei!"
"Wei!"
"Wei!"
"Four hundred steps!"
"Artillery ready!"
"Three hundred steps!"
"emission!"
Boom boom boom...
The artillery at the top of the city roared and poured out shells, taking away dozens of bandits every time.
Jia Cong has no idea of micro-management. Jia Shiyi was the assistant that his grandfather personally trained for his father. His experience in this kind of offensive and defensive battles is far greater than that of his dabbler.
"Two hundred and fifty steps!"
"Hu Ben is ready!"
"Two hundred steps!"
"Fire!"
Bang bang bang bang...
The officers and soldiers of the Huben Army did not need to aim at all. They were divided into three columns and lined up one after another. Under the rain of bullets, more than a hundred bandits from the White Lotus Sect fell every time, and hundreds of them were killed or injured in just a few dozen breaths.
Zhang Chongfang and Li Duoyang, who were standing behind, almost gritted their teeth and looked at Han Tong, who had a calm face.
"Brother Han, the people in the imperial court have such a sharp weapon, why don't you tell me about it?"
"Indeed, if I know this, I can take precautions in advance. We have lost so many brothers before we even get close to the city wall. Brother Han must give me an explanation."
If it hadn't come to this, Li Duoyang would have turned around and led the people away.
Han Tong said leisurely: "I don't know either. Our troops attacked the city a few days ago. We have never seen such a sharp weapon in Yanzhou City. However, there was a thousand-man black armored cavalry, which caused heavy losses to our troops."
Li Duoyang didn't believe this at all. He was about to start an argument again, but saw Zhang Chongfang raised his hand to stop it.
"Two brothers, this is not the time to argue about this. In order to prevent the imperial army from coming, we should first capture Yanzhou City."
Zhang Chongfang glanced at Han Tong, who had a calm face, with deep meaning, and said with cupped hands: "Brother Han, I heard that my brother bought several Folan cannons from Hongyi. Can you take them out to open the eyes of brothers? If you can't If the firepower from the top of Yanzhou City is suppressed, the casualties of the Holy Cult will be too great."
Cough cough cough…
Han Tong coughed lightly to cover up his embarrassment, and he shook his head pretending to be regretful: "Well, you two don't know something. The Folan cannon is not easy to operate, and the gunner has not yet mastered it, so he did not bring it with him this time. So. , I let the crossbows under my hands move forward and try my best to suppress the imperial court's firearms. I will teach the two brothers how to attack the city."
After that, Han Tong went down to arrange the crossbows. After he walked away, Li Duoyang spat: "Bah, this guy is obviously lying to us. Brother Zhang, I think after we captured Yanzhou, we will borrow This guy is the best..."
Li Duoyang made a motion of cutting his throat, and Zhang Chongfang nodded slightly.
Han Tong's financial resources were the strongest among the three armies. Since the death of the Holy Cult, the Holy Cult has been divided into separate states. He, Li Duoyang, and even the heads from all over the country do not want to compete for the position of the leader of the Holy Cult.
It would be great if he could use Li Duoyang's help to eliminate Han Tong, who was the biggest threat to him.
By the way, a new Dharma Protector named Xu has appeared in Qufu. After the attack on Yanzhou, let’s destroy him together!
If Jia Cong knew that the three leaders of the siege had not yet accomplished anything, and was already thinking about getting rid of them, he would probably roll on the ground with his belly in his arms while laughing.
He couldn't think about that at this moment. Although there was suppression from artillery and flintlock guns, the situation of defending the city was still very serious.
According to teacher Xu Jin's plan, three major reinforcements will arrive near Yanzhou City early this morning. At the end of the morning, they will form an encirclement against the White Lotus Sect bandits, attack from both inside and outside, and annihilate them all.
But this was only the beginning of the hour, and it was still nearly an hour before the plan was officially launched.
Thirty thousand bandits attacked the city, but the defenders in the city didn't even have two thousand and five men who could fight. Although Jia Cong didn't show it on his face, he was actually quite flustered in his heart.
"One hundred and fifty steps!"
"Fire the arrow!"
Lu Xiaozu no longer had the intention to stay in the government office and direct logistics support. He personally led the civilians to carry arrows and other supplies to the top of the city.
Just as he was about to walk towards Jia Cong, an arrow shot from the top of the city pierced his left arm. Severe pain followed, making this noble man who had been pampered for more than thirty years almost scream.
Lu Xiaozu groaned and endured the pain. After being reminded by his own soldiers, Jia Cong helped him escape into the tower.
The medical officer checked and found that it was just a flesh wound, so he treated it urgently and applied medicine and bandage.
I don't know whether Lu Xiaozu was trying to save face or was a really tough guy. He gritted his teeth and endured the severe pain when treating the wound. Even though he was sweating profusely from the pain, he just didn't say a word.
After Jia Cong sent people to the city to announce that the doctor was seriously injured and could not get out of the firing line, and vowed that the brothers would work together to defend the enemy, Lu Xiaozu said to Jia Cong resentfully: "Sir, in fact, I really want to go back to the government office to recuperate. !」
puff……
Hahahahaha...
Jia Cong took a long sword from the hands of his soldiers and handed it to Lu Xiaozu: "Master Lu, if you don't kill a few white lotus demons, wouldn't your trip to Shandong be in vain? When you return to Beijing someday, Master Lu will take it when he drinks with his friends. Wouldn’t it be nice to write a poem about today’s feat?”
Lu Xiaozu looked at the long knife handed over by Jia Cong and was stunned for a moment.
War drums beat and majestic singing sounded from the top of the city.
"How can I say that I have no clothes? I share the same robe with you. When the king raised an army, he repaired my sword and spear. I share the same enemy with you!"
How can I say that I have no clothes? Tongze with Zi. The king raised his army and repaired my spear and halberd. Work together with me!
How can I say that I have no clothes? Wear the same clothes as your son. The king raised his troops and repaired my armor. Go with me! "
The war songs circulated since the pre-Qin Dynasty have been immortal for thousands of years, and Lu Xiaozu could not help but sing along.
He took the long knife from Jia Cong's hand, asked his subordinates to tie it directly to his right hand, turned around and walked out of the tower.
Jia Cong smiled, pulled out the Yanling sword from his waist and returned to the city under the dragon's banner.
Dong dong dong dong...
The sound of drums became more intense, and the moat had been filled with the corpses of the White Lotus Sect bandits. Rolling stones, wood, golden juice and hot oil blocked the attacking enemies time and time again.
"Come forward with the sword and axe, come forward with the shield!"
The bandit's ladder has been set up on the city wall, and sporadic enemies appear on the top of the city.
Jia Shiyi issued instructions one after another, trying to delay the enemy's offensive.
Thirty thousand against two thousand and five, the bandits can drag the officers and soldiers to death even if they drag them hard. Without reinforcements, Yanzhou city would be destroyed sooner or later.
But Jia Shiyi didn't panic at all. He just wanted to delay it until the end of the morning.
The flintlock rifle in the hands of the Huben Army soldiers
The barrels of their guns were all red. They had already drawn their bayonets and joined the ranks of hand-to-hand combat.
The archer was no longer able to draw his bow and arrow. After a short rest, he put on a long sword and joined his comrades to defend against the enemy.
More and more enemies are attacking the city, and the city is filled with corpses of both the enemy and ourselves. With the help of his subordinates, Lu Xiaozu killed several thieves. The wound on his left arm continued to ooze blood, but he did not feel any pain at all.
Just as he was about to rush towards an enemy who climbed onto the city from the battlements, a hammer hit the man on the head...
Bang!
The solid hammer smashed his head into pieces, and red and white splattered everywhere...
"Sir, the grassroots are here to help!"
Lu Xiaozu wiped off the blood on his face and took a closer look at the man wearing coarse shorts and grinning at him, showing his yellowed teeth.
He knew this man. He was originally one of the refugees who came to Fucheng to take refuge. Because he was good at blacksmithing, he stayed in Fucheng to help forge weapons.
"Hammer, why are you here?"
Bang!
The hammer knocked over another bandit who rushed to the city, and said angrily: "Not only am I here, but also half of the young and powerful people in the city are here."
But no, at this moment, thousands of young men have already swarmed up to the top of the city, holding various instruments, including crude swords, common farm tools, and even some holding dung scoops...
After a brief moment of daze, the orderly soldier kicked the dazed drummer beside him and cursed: "What are you doing standing still? Hurry up and continue beating the drum!"
Dong dong dong dong...
The exciting war drums aroused the passion of the soldiers and civilians at the top of the city. Swords and farm tools were used to kill and throw down the bandits who had finally reached the top of the city.
The White Lotus Sect, which was about to attack the city with all its people, was frightened by the sudden burst of fighting will at the top of the city. It had no choice but to leave nearly three thousand corpses and withdraw its troops hastily.
At this time, the dragon flag at the top of the city was roaring. Jia Cong slapped the breastplate on his chest with his knife and shouted loudly: "Great Xia is mighty, Great Xia is mighty..."
"mighty!"
"mighty!"
"mighty!"
Whether it was the soldiers or the young men in the city who came to help in the battle, they all started shouting.
Even though the casualties just now made the soldiers feel heavy, everyone was proud. They defended the city wall and the comfort of the tens of thousands of people behind them during the strong attack of 30,000 people.
Jia Cong looked around. At this time, there were at least 10,000 young men holding various instruments at the top of the city. They were standing tall like the soldiers, standing tall and shouting in power.
"Sir, the people's support can be used!"
Lu Xiaozu's face was filled with excitement. The white cloth used to bandage the wound on his left arm had long been soaked red by donated blood, but he didn't care at all. Instead, he grinned.
"I have never been so excited before. Parading on a horse back then was not as exciting as it is today!"
Mr. Lu is so awesome today, killing seven bandits with his own hands. Among those friends of the same age and colleagues in the court, who is more awesome than Mr. Lu!
When you return to Beijing, you must treat everyone to a banquet and brag about today’s experience!
Jia Cong looked the doctor up and down with strange eyes, ordered the medical officer to re-bandage him, and then sent someone to send an order to the city: "After the battle, I will report to the court, and all the soldiers and civilians who defended the enemy today will have equal merit. "
The atmosphere at the top of the city is getting more and more heated, and the officials in the city are still launching their young men to go up to the city to defend against the enemy. When the White Lotus Sect reorganizes the second attack on the city, they will just stay within the city wall and be ready to go to the top of the city at any time. There are already more than 30,000 young adults.
This time, without the suppression of the Tiger Army's guns, the White Lotus Sect bandits rushed to the city more than twice as fast.
Dong dong dong dong...
"The archers retreat, the shield-bearers come forward, and the ax-bearers are ready!"
Jia Shiyi constantly estimated the distance between the enemy and ourselves, and issued orders one after another. This was when the captain beside him suddenly pointed with joy at the back of the White Lotus Sect army. There was a low hill, and at this time, a black line gradually became clear.
"General, look!"
Jia Cong has also discovered Yuan
Black lines suddenly appeared on the white snow everywhere, and the corners of his mouth raised.
"Command to the city, clear the obstacles at the city gate and prepare for counterattack!"
After the last strong attack, Han Tong and the others had roughly figured out the defensive strength of the city.
This time they did not hold anything back and threw the strongest elite at hand into the siege. Even the Chinese army was pressing forward. The three men and the Chinese army had arrived 300 steps in front of the formation, preparing to capture Yanzhou in one fell swoop and enter the city to loot and plunder.
Just as they were watching the vanguard begin to ascend the city, they suddenly felt the ground shaking.
Li Duoyang calmed the anxious war horse and said doubtfully: "The earthquake! Did the earth dragon turn over?"
Da da da da…
Han Tong was the most alert and faintly heard the sound of cavalry charging.
He glanced back and his expression suddenly changed: "Oh no, it's the imperial court's cavalry!"
Da da da da…
The black torrent comes from the north and is getting faster and faster.
The three thousand cavalry suddenly changed their formation and came from afar in the shape of an awl. The leader pointed his long sword forward, and the blade was like a sharp blade, and he plunged into the White Lotus Sect's army.
A huge team appeared on the low hill in the distance. A five-clawed golden dragon was painted on the Chinese army's banner, fluttering in the wind and making a hunting sound.
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