Today is the 20th day of the twelfth lunar month. Work and entertainment have increased. From today onwards, the article will be updated continuously. Please understand...
Chapter 300: Hunting in Nanjing
"Nanjing was the ancient capital of the Six Dynasties. After Emperor Taizu established the capital, the original building was greatly expanded. It was completed in the 23rd year of Hongwu, which took more than 20 years. The outer city is a full 120 miles long. , to besiege the city of Nanjing, even if there are 10,000 people per gate, it will cost more than 300,000. If we count them all, there will be no more than 500,000 people, and attacking Nanjing is simply a dream."
Chen Cao's army was stationed ten miles outside Nanjing's Qilin Gate, and he himself led a group of retinues three miles forward to look at the city of Nanjing with a telescope on the Kangjiaji Gaoban outside Qilin Gate.
"This is also the reason why I don't want to attack Nanjing alone. Even if I use explosives to blow up the city of Nanjing, there are still inner city walls. The highest point of the outer city is sixteen meters high. There are also Zhengyang Gate in the inner city. Thirteen meters high, and the other gates in the inner city are all about ten meters high. You said that it is absolutely impossible to attack the city just by relying on soldiers to climb;
What's more, the Nanjing city wall is so strong that even using a large amount of explosives would require a large amount of explosives, and the effect may not be that good after being exploded. "
The reason why the Qing Dynasty was able to invade Nanjing was also due to the capitulation faction. Emperor Hongguang fled without a fight and Qian Qianyi took the lead in opening the door.
"Where are King Fu's troops?"
Faced with Chen Cao's inquiry, Zhao Xince immediately stepped forward and replied: "After Zhang Gaoping's army came to Shangyuanmen, Qin Liangyu withdrew his troops stationed at Dasheng Pass, abandoned Dasheng Pass, and instead stood firm in Nanjing;
King Fu's army went all the way north, and deputy general Li Wanchang had led an army of 200,000 to arrive outside Ande Gate. "
A horse riding Juechen came and stopped not far from Chen Cao: "My lord, King Fu's envoy has come to deliver a message from King Fu. King Fu invites you to meet me at the Chinese army's tent outside Ande Gate."
.
"Your Majesty, Chen Cao, pays homage to His Royal Highness Prince Fu."
"Hahaha..."
Zhu Changxun shook his body fat and walked to Chen Cao's side, patting Chen Cao's shoulder gently: "With your help, I am like a fish in water. This time I led the army to reach the gate of Nanjing safely, and my contribution is indispensable."
Chen Cao bowed slightly, looking very respectful: "I don't dare, I just did my duty."
"Hahaha... My dear, you are too modest. Come on, I have ordered people to prepare wine and food at Gaobanpo. Let's drink together..."
The Shili Jieguan Pavilion outside Ande Gate is located outside Wannian Town. The scenery here is pretty good. During the turn of spring and summer, Nanjing's noble ladies will go here for spring outings accompanied by their servants. However, it is November. , there is only dead grass everywhere.
Under the pergola was the place where Chen Cao, Zhu Changxun and others had a banquet. After three rounds of drinking, Zhu Changxun was the first to speak: "My dear, how many soldiers and horses did you bring to help in the battle with Gu Hui in Nanjing this time?"
"Not many, 120,000 people."
Zhu Changxun nodded thoughtfully, and then said: "This attack on Nanjing, what do you think our chances of winning are?"
"Your Highness Fengtian Jingnan is an army of justice. Even if the Northern Army is sitting in Nanjing, it is just a grasshopper in the autumn. It will not be around for long. I thought that Your Highness came to Nanjing in person this time. After capturing Nanjing, it will be terrible." Worship your ancestors in Nanjing, and then ascend the great treasure to benefit the people all over the world."
When Zhu Changxun heard that even Chen Cao supported him in proclaiming the emperor in Nanjing, his face turned rosy. He praised Chen Cao for being sensible from time to time: "Hey... I am the uncle of the current emperor. If he doesn't have a righteous name..."
Chen Cao heard this and said again: "The death of the late emperor was unexpected, and His Highness's ascension to the throne was in compliance with God's will."
"Hehe... What a person who obeys God's will. I actually think so too."
Ever since Zhu Changxun got Fengyang, he had the idea of proclaiming himself emperor in Zhongdu, but it seemed a bit unfair, and Nanjing was the right way. After worshiping Emperor Taizu's mausoleum in Nanjing, he could legitimately ascend the throne and proclaim himself emperor. Why not?
"Do you have any good ideas for attacking Nanjing this time?"
Chen Cao was not willing to attack Nanjing first. It was best to let Zhu Changxun's people do this kind of thing, so he said: "Most of the firearms troops under my command have been mobilized. I can give your highness a weapon to break the city. As long as your highness can We will cover the engineers under my command to arrive at Ande Gate, and I believe we can attack the Waikou City within one day."
Zhu Changxun's eyes lit up and he was immediately overjoyed. When he arrived in Nanjing, his generals and counselors carefully analyzed the current defense situation in Nanjing. The city of Nanjing, guarded by an army of 500,000 people, was impregnable. If he tried to attack by force, he would probably lose a lot of troops. Before meeting Chen Cao, Li Wanchang said that to break through Nanjing, one hundred thousand casualties would be necessary. It was because of this problem that Zhu Changxun couldn't wait to call Chen Cao, who had just arrived in Nanjing.
"really?"
"How dare I speak nonsense in front of His Highness?"
"If this is very good, very good, hahaha... this good thing should be revealed..."
"In addition, in order to allow His Highness to attack the city smoothly, I have temporarily mobilized all one hundred artillery pieces under my command and handed them over to Your Highness to attack the city."
Zhu Changxun stood up excitedly: "My dear, if we capture Nanjing, and you are the first hero, I will definitely grant you the title of county and king."
Chen Cao quickly clasped his fists: "Your Highness fell in love with someone wrong, I was just doing my duty..."
"Hahaha..."
.
Nanjing City, the Commander-in-Chief of the Fifth Army
Governor-General of Nanjing Military Affairs and Nanjing Ministry of War Shangshu Qi Boyu; Nanjing garrison eunuch Cao Huachun; Nanjing garrison and rear army governor's governor, Wei Guogong Xu Hongji; Shizhu chieftain, third-grade imperial concubine, chief minister of the Chinese Army governor's office, and commander-in-chief Qin Liangyu; newly appointed Nanjing Association The governor, the crown prince Taifu Sun Chengzong, the dignitaries left behind in Nanjing, and the governors of the Fifth Army Commandery all gathered together.
Qi Boyu is on the main seat, Xu Hongji and Qin Liangyu are sitting on the left and right sides, followed by Sun Chengzong, Cao Huachun and other officials and generals.
"Standing on the Great Victory... is definitely not a good idea."
Sun Chengzong broke everyone's silence. Abandoning the Dasheng Pass was equivalent to completely exposing the south and west of Nanjing. However, what they did not expect was that the 100,000 troops led by Zhang Gaoping actually crossed the Yangtze River and defeated the Longtan Navy. camp, and arrived directly at Shangyuanmen from the Yangtze River.
The defense line in the north has been torn apart, and it is useless to hold on to the Dasheng Pass in the south. What's more, Nanjing is too big. Although they have mobilized 500,000 people to guard Nanjing, it is still difficult for this city that can accommodate tens of millions of people. In a big city, these people are really a drop in the bucket.
"Chen Cao's army has arrived ten miles outside Qilin Gate. According to spies, their troops number more than 100,000."
"Is Xu Chengqing awake?"
Facing Qi Boyu's inquiry, Xu Hongji replied unhappily: "I woke up yesterday."
Because of Xu Chengqing's identity and the fact that he was the only general who fought against Chen Cao, although he lost Changzhou and Zhenjiang one after another, he took the initiative to go there, so it was not considered a loss of ground. Furthermore, although he was defeated in the battle of Zhenjiang, But including the troops and horses he brought back, Danyang only lost less than 10,000 people after the city was broken.
Thinking of Xu Chengqing kneeling in front of Xu Hongji last night, and the two of them talking alone in the study for an hour, Xu Chengqing naturally would not hide that it was Chen Cao who took the initiative to release him, and all the more than 30,000 people under his command kept silent about being captured. For this reason, Xu Hongji ordered Xu Chengqing's troops to be mobilized overnight to guard Lime Mountain.
"Did Duke Wei get any valuable information?"
Xu Hongji looked at Qi Boyu: "A total of 120,000 troops..."
Xu Hongji said expressionlessly: "They were all firearms troops, and they blew up the city wall of Danyang within half a day, and Danyang has been lost since then."
"I received the news last night that Xu Shiji's troops were defeated in Lijiaji. Only Xu Shiji with less than 5,000 troops evacuated Lijiaji, and the rest were all dead."
Everyone present actually knew this news. Facing the rebels who came all the way holding the banner of "Fengtian Jingnan", they had no choice but to think of today's situation after losing the central capital Fengyang.
But after the real rebels arrived in Nanjing, none of the princes present knew what to do.
I think back when Emperor Chengzu launched the Jingnan Campaign, there were many people in Nanjing who responded. At this moment, the mature Qi Boyu looked at the young generals of the Fifth Army Governor's Mansion with unkind eyes.
"Is there anyone here who has secretly communicated with King Fu?"
These words were heart-breaking, but no one responded.
"Since there is none, then I can make arrangements as best I can." Qi Boyu looked around: "The rebels are coming from three directions. One is the 100,000 rebels from Shangyuan Gate in the north city, and the other is the 200,000 rebels from Ande Gate in the southwest. Thousands of rebels, and the third is the 120,000 rebels at Qilin Gate in the east. The total number of rebels is 420,000, plus the military servants, there can be millions;
I have already sent people eight hundred miles away to report urgently to the capital, saying that millions of rebels are surrounding the city of Nanjing and requesting the imperial court to send troops to rescue. Therefore, as the governor of Nanjing, I am now ordering that all armies strictly guard their respective defense lines and defend Nanjing. They must not be allowed to surrender. The rebels took any advantage;
Please ask Wei Guogong to mobilize 100,000 people to join the generals and Xu Chengqing's troops to defend the Qilin Gate in the east city and guard against Chen Ni's troops;
Superintendent Sun mobilized 100,000 men to join the generals to defend Shangyuan Gate in the north city and guard against the rebel Zhang Gaoping's troops;
Mrs. Qin mobilized 100,000 people to join the generals, as well as the Shizhu chieftain soldiers from the headquarters, to defend Ande Gate in the southwest and the front;
I myself have raised one hundred thousand soldiers and horses to serve as supporting troops for each sect. In addition, Eunuch Cao will raise the last one hundred thousand soldiers to guard the inner city. "
The people whose names were called all bowed their hands towards Qi Boyu. As a response, Qi Boyu said: "We must prepare for the worst in everything. In case the outer city is lost, all troops must return to the inner city as soon as possible." The city must not lose Nanjing according to the strong defense of the inner city to deal with the rebels;
Finally, I have to say something that you are not willing to face. Most of you here are nobles and generals who stayed in Nanjing. As the Minister of the Ministry of War in Nanjing, I naturally have the responsibility to defend the land;
so,
Nanjing cannot be lost. If Nanjing is lost...
From me on down, everyone...
Commit suicide and apologize to His Majesty..."
