Jiujiang Prefecture was called Jiangzhou before the Ming Dynasty. Yes, it was the Jiangzhou where the heroes of Liangshanpo made a big fuss in "Water Margin".
The north gate is next to the surging Yangtze River, and the most prosperous dock is located here. On weekdays, there are densely packed cargo ships and an endless stream of traders.
Because the Qi army has recently arrived at the Yangtze River, merchant ships traveling from south to north have been affected, and the dock seems a bit deserted.
Qian Qianyi stepped on the swaying sampan and walked onto the river bank, looking up at Yue Shimen in front of him.
"The general doesn't know whether there are humans or ghosts in Donglin Temple, so be careful."
"You two great scholars, please also be careful, Li Zicheng and Wei Zhao. If something unexpected happens after entering the city, you should send out trumpet arrows in time and the army will attack the city."
The team was divided into two groups here. Wu Xiao took Jiangxi Ye Bushou from the first regiment and went to Donglin Temple to find Monk Jing'an. Qian Qianyi took the remaining people and entered the city through Yue Shimen.
The north gate of Jiujiang is called Yueshimen, and the population of Jiujiang is smooth, so it is called "Key Gate".
Wei Zhao watched Wu Xiao and the two gradually walk away and sighed slightly:
"Back then, the Seven Heroes were in trouble in Dengzhou. Now they are all on one side. I hope they can all be alive."
Qian Qianyi said with a smile: "There is no need to worry about the Wei army. This time everyone will not only be safe and sound, but also make great achievements."
"Make a great contribution? I'm afraid I want Yuan Linhou to make a great contribution!"
Zhang Pu sneered and walked straight forward.
Xu Jingwanshao quickly chased after him to protect him.
Li Zicheng was not interested in the fight between the two bachelors. He was in charge of the rear and walked behind without saying a word.
Although Jiujiang is a strategic hub between the north and the south and an important military town, like other cities in the Southern Ming Dynasty, the city has been at peace for a long time and its war preparations have been lax. It has been more than a hundred years since the last time Ning Wang Zhu Chenhao rebelled and Wang Yangming suppressed the rebellion.
The city wall along the river is somewhat dilapidated, and moss has grown on the outer brick cladding. Fortunately, the city wall is generally intact and will not collapse.
Wei Zhao whispered: "Grand Master, I didn't expect Jiujiang City to be so dilapidated, and Zhu Changhui didn't send anyone to repair it. Zuo Liangyu can't even conquer it, and he still wants to attack Henan?"
Viewed from the air, the entire city wall seemed to be coiled by a gray dragon on the river bank. There were densely packed figures scattered around the dragon's old body.
Qian Qianyi was like an old monk in meditation, just walking on his own and ignoring Wei Yidao.
After walking up a steep flight of steps, everyone arrived in front of Master Yue's gate.
On both sides of the steps are ant-like pickers. They carry loads weighing dozens of kilograms and walk up the steps step by step.
Wei Zhao saw a few children half a man tall among the labor pickers and said in surprise: "Where have all the strong men in Jiujiang City gone? They still let children carry water. It's more difficult than the trackers in Tianjin Wei!"
"It's not time to defend the city."
The coolies only focused on their work, and no one noticed that a group of Qi officials were walking past them.
The knowledgeable Zhang Pu explained:
"The well water in Jiujiang Fucheng is turbid and bitter, so the water used in the city comes from the Yangtze River. It has been picked up from the river by people. It has a history of thousands of years."
Wei Zhao took over the conversation: "Similar to our Tianjin Guards, these laborers, like the trackers, are extremely hard-working. Once Jiujiang is captured, the source of new soldiers will be available."
Qian Qianyi stroked his beard and said with a smile: "Everyone, this time I came to Jiujiang Fucheng to discuss peace. Don't mention anything about the war, so as not to hurt the peace. If Jiangzhou can be recovered without bloodshed, I will personally report to the Supreme Emperor and ask for your help." achievement!"
"What the bachelor said is that if the person named Yuan surrenders, he will not have to fight again. Peace is the most important thing. Peace is the most important thing."
Zhang Pu turned around and pointed at the Qi army's warships on the river that were blocking out the sky and the sun, and said without any yin or yang:
"Peace is the most important thing? This place is full of murderous intent, how can peace be the most important thing? With a single thought, millions of corpses are buried, and blood is shed for thousands of miles. The situation is like this, which cannot be changed by you and me with our eloquent words. Don't forget, the Supreme Emperor said, If we can make peace, we will make peace. If we cannot make peace, we will fight. My army of one hundred thousand is invincible. How many times can this city wall withstand the bombardment of artillery?"
Zhang Pu was unable to complete his duties in the Hanlin Academy, so he came to the Jiujiang front line from the Supreme Emperor's side inexplicably. How could he not be annoyed.
Along the way, he targeted Qian Qianyi everywhere and had no hope of conquering Yuan Linhou. Instead, he made sarcastic remarks.
"Whether we can go back alive depends on whether Grand Scholar Qian has the eloquence of Zhang Yi and Su Qin."
Qian Qianyi clapped his hands and laughed:
"Brother Tianru, why should I be so pessimistic? Since I have boasted in front of the Supreme Emperor, I will definitely be able to conquer Jiujiang without any blood. Now the court has changed its tune and is more tolerant of demoted officials. The Supreme Emperor intends to persuade the officials of the Southern Ming Dynasty to surrender, conquer Jiangnan, and the world will return to its heart. Yuan Jixian It’s just a horse bone, and the main event is yet to come. The Emperor has entrusted us with such an important task, which shows his trust. We have a lot of courage on our shoulders now, so we can’t slack off and we must work together!”
After hearing this, Li Zicheng and Wei Zhao all nodded and praised the great scholar for what he said. Zhang Pu was speechless, his face turned red, and he said nothing.
Qian Qianyi said to Wei Zhao: "Wei Junmen, put up Da Qi's letter flags and enter the city!"
"Grandmaester, let's just go in without saying a word, and no one will stop us. We will raise the banner and the Ming army will see it. If someone with no foresight comes and shoots an arrow, then..."
"The banner of faith is a messenger. We are open-minded, so why should we be afraid?"
The Qi army warships cruising on the river outside Jiujiang did not pay much attention to the coolies who came out of the city to carry water.
Similarly, the Ming army at Yue Shimen did not question the people who fled from the upper reaches.
In this way, the offensive and defensive sides reached a tacit understanding.
However, if someone like Qian Qianyi dressed in Da Qi court uniform, held up a banner, and swaggered through the market, the defenders would not be able to ignore it.
"The thieves are here! Catch them!"
A group of Ming troops surrounded Qian Qianyi and blocked him under the city gate.
A general-looking officer came over, stopped three or four steps away from Li Zicheng and others, and ordered them to hand over their weapons.
Wei Zhao and Li Zicheng were not willing to surrender. They drew their sabers and the defenders at the top of the city opened their crossbows.
Zhang Pu hid in a distance and gloated at the scene in front of him.
Qian Qianyi walked towards the boss. He staggered and walked unsteadily. Wei Zhao stepped forward to help him but was pushed away.
Arriving in front of the boss, Qian Muzhai stretched out his old hand like a dead branch and slapped the boss on the forehead. The boss staggered and almost fell down.
The surrounding Ming soldiers were suffocated by this aura and stayed there for a while before they remembered to use their swords to kill people.
"Who dares!"
The great bachelor who had been showing off his gentleness and elegance along the way suddenly burst out into a small universe.
He took a step forward, pressed his face against the boss's face, and said angrily:
"How many people are there in Jiujiang City! Ten thousand? Or thirty thousand? Ten thousand kills ten thousand! Thirty thousand kills thirty thousand! These are the exact words of the Supreme Emperor of Qi! I can't bear to see the people of Jiujiang die, so I came to save you regardless of the trouble of traveling and traveling. !”
Qian Qianyi grabbed the Ming army commander, pointed at the endless warships on the river, and shouted:
"I'm not coming, but the soldiers are coming! The artillery is coming! You are a ignorant warrior, and I won't argue with you, but you have ruined a big thing, and there are a few heads you can chop off! Even if Yuan Linhou is here, he doesn't dare to stop me! "
I always had spit on my face, so I dared not reach out to wipe it away.
Judging from Qian Qianyi's aura in speaking and hearing him casually mention Governor Yuan's name, anyone who is not a fool would know that this person must be acquainted with Lord Yuan, and the two have a close relationship.
The most important thing is that the Qi army is waiting on the river. Their strength far exceeds that of the Jiujiang defenders, and they surround Jiujiang Fucheng like a bucket.
The people don't know what's going on here, and who among the soldiers doesn't?
Jiujiang is already an isolated city. The prefectures and counties in Jiangxi have no time to take care of themselves. It is not yet known whether the Nanjing court is dead or alive. No one will come to save them.
If Governor Yuan hadn't insisted on holding on, Qiu Ba and his men would have fled long ago.
The Ming army could not defend a city as big as Wuchang and Ezhou, and the Duke of Kunshan had so many soldiers and horses that he was no match for the Qi army.
How could they be Qi Jun's opponents?
"Lead the way! Take me to see Yuan Linhou! I'm here to save the people of the city! I'm not here to fight with you! If anyone stands in my way, everyone in the city will be killed! Do you know this?"
"It's clear, it's clear, little one."
He curled up his body and his voice was as low as a mosquito.
Although Qian Qianyi is old, he speaks with a loud voice and an extraordinary momentum. He deliberately stood at a high place. The workers around him stopped their work and looked at this majestic old man with curiosity and fear.
"Lead the way!"
"Yes Yes."
The boss shook his whole body and ran to the front without control of his legs, not caring about any weapons or not.
Wei Zhao supported Qian Qianyi and said with admiration on his face: "The great scholar is mighty, and the general has learned a lot today. It turns out that what the storyteller said about Zhang Yide's Changban slope scaring away millions of soldiers is all true. What did you do just now? Once we say this, the whole city will know that we are here to negotiate peace, and even if Yuan Jixian wants to kill us, it will not be that easy."
Qian Qianyi smiled slightly and whispered:
"It's too much praise, it's too much praise. This little skill is not as good as our emperor's case."
~~~~
The main hall of Jiujiang Governor's Mansion.
"Supervisor, there is only enough food and grass in the city for two more days. The firewood was burned out yesterday, and there is still enough gunpowder for three days..."
The chief bookkeeper of Jiujiang Fucheng, holding a folded account book, carefully reported to Yuan Jixian who was sitting in front of him.
Yuan Jixian's thin body was sunk in a Taishi chair, looking like an imp in the City God's Temple.
He stretched out his hand to rub his temples. The tea cup on the table next to him had already bottomed out and was dripping with water.
"go on."
Yuan Jixian's slightly closed eyes suddenly opened, and he subconsciously went to get the tea cup, but he retracted his hand as soon as he stretched it out.
"Yesterday, twelve foot soldiers from the main barracks escaped, dressed in civilian clothes, and stole a boat. The day before yesterday, eight horse soldiers stole three horses..."
"Any more?"
Yuan Jixian finally grabbed the bottomed tea cup and drank it all in one gulp.
The chief clerk took out a letter from his pocket, opened it in front of the Shangguan, and said in a deeper voice:
"Supervisor, the imperial censor Ma Deyuan impeached you for refusing to advance and sitting back and watching the fall of Nanjing, which is no different from a leftist traitor; the official Xu Dingguo impeached the Jiujiang defenders for not fighting. He suspected that the supervisor had surrendered to the Qi captives; Song Yingxing remonstrated with the emperor and let him From now on, other prefectures in Jiangxi will no longer transport food and troops to the capital and counties. He said that continuing to reinforce Jiujiang is to support the enemy..."
"An evil villain destroyed the Great Wall!"
Yuan Jixian was furious, and the chief clerk's lengthy and low-pitched report finally came to an abrupt end.
"To eat the emperor's salary, to die for the emperor! I, Yuan Linhou, protected the country and the people, was loyal to the court, and was loyal to the Ming Dynasty, but in the end I ended up like this! He Zuo Liangyu burned, killed and looted all the way, and no one dared to impeach him. It is really unreasonable!!"
The chief clerk looked at Yuan Jixian with a complicated expression, but hesitated several times.
The soldier came up to fill the cup with tea, raised his head and exchanged glances with the chief clerk.
"How did these Tang newspapers reach Fucheng?! Aren't the surrounding areas already surrounded by Qi troops?"
The soldier's hand shook and he almost fell on Yuan Jixian's lap. He quickly wiped it with a rag. The chief clerk explained:
"Unknown to the commander, the bandit general Deng Changxiong ordered that, except for military ships, all other merchant ships and passenger ships can sail freely on the river, and the Qi army cannot stop them. These Tang Bao Di Bao are all carried by merchant ships coming from Nanjing."
Yuan Jixian nodded thoughtfully.
"Master Yuan, I still said the same thing. I feel..."
Yuan Jixian glanced at the chief register meaningfully and said with a cold expression:
"Do you still want to persuade me to surrender? There's no need to say anything..."
"When I die in battle, you will surrender."
The chief clerk shook his head slightly, took two steps back, looked at Yuan Jixian's back, and winked at the soldier. The hilt of a knife was faintly exposed in the sleeve of the soldier...
Lewen
