Chapter 155: Zeng Guoquan massacres the city in Jinling (3)
Zeng Guofan received Li Hongzhang's message and sighed: The two palaces issued six edicts in succession, ordering Li Shaoquan to assist in the attack on Jinling. Brother Xiaocen thought, Li Shaoquan came to the rescue?
Ouyang Zhaoxiong said: Li Shaoquan was in a dilemma about whether to help or not. The two palaces were pressing for help, so Li used advice to complain. This so-called throwing stones is not to ask for directions, but throwing grass is also to scare snakes.
Zeng Guofan said, "I have thought about it over and over again and can no longer stop him. Li Shaoquan immediately asked in a message, and I responded with a message. I also sent a letter detailing my intentions." It's just that if Yuanfu's hard work for two years is shared with others, I really can't bear it, so I will send this letter to Yuanfu to make his own decision.
Ouyang Zhaoxiong said, "Do you want the nine commanders to rush to Jinling?"
Zeng Guofan said: "Whether to attack urgently or not, Yuanfu will decide for himself. The gunpowder of 30,000 yuan and the salary of 30,000 yuan in May will be shipped within a day. Send my order quickly and send it to Jinling without delay."
That night, Zeng Guofan wrote another letter to Zeng Guoquan: I sent a letter and a message yesterday, and I plan to invite Li Shaoquan to come to Jinling to suppress the enemy. I hope he can arrive first. Today, I will send a letter to Shaoquan and a piece of advice. I will send a special boat to my brother's place. I will consider it carefully. If I think it is right, I will send someone to the Suzhou Fu Office. If I don't think so, I will send both the letter and the letter to me. Ask someone to bring it back, and I will reply to Li Shaoquan separately.
I am worried that my brother's liver disease will get worse. If I don't invite Shao Tsuen to come to Jinling to suppress the army, I'm afraid that the stalemate in the city will last too long and the wages will be too high, and my brother will be depressed and seriously ill. The disease is severe due to agitation. Therefore, he hesitated and hesitated. This time I will send a letter of consultation to my brother for self-determination.
My brother's reputation is my reputation, and my brother's life is my life. Comparing the two, taking care of yourself is the most important. If my body can withstand long-term training, then I will be relieved.
In addition, don’t worry, brother. I see that Shaoquan has sent letters to me many times, but it seems that he never wants to attack Jinling. If he knows the hardships of his army and does not want to share the success, he can really have such intentions, Then it is far ahead.
Hello.
Zeng Guoquan received the letter and immediately told the generals: After two years of hard work, once you achieve success, it is a pity to share it with others.
Zhu Hongzhang said: "I have reported to the Nine Commanders that our army has been attacking the city for two years and has exhausted all means, but none of them succeeded. Now, after digging more than thirty places, we can't break it." I thought that gathering the barbarians and firing cannons together might deter the thieves.
Zeng Guoquan said: Last month, Zuo Jigao sent an artillery team to help, but I have refused. The barbarian artillery fire can frighten a small town.
Li Chendian said: "I'd like to report to the Nine Commanders that they are short of cannons and are not in a hurry to attack. If we wait a little longer, we will be old!" Don't rush to overcome it, it will change over time. Please dig a new tunnel in the dragon's neck and fill it with medicine.
Zeng Guoquan thought deeply for a while and said anxiously: Thanks to Brother Xiangyun for reminding me! Jinling City is high, deep and extremely solid. It is bordered by a river to the west, a lake to the north and an ocean to the north. It is surrounded by small rivers to the southeast. Only one corner of the Long Neck of Zhongshan Mountain is accessible by dry road. This neck is a must for military strategists. Zhuge once said that this city has a bell, a dragon and a pan, a stone city with tigers, and it is the residence of the emperor. If Yue Ni were like a blue dragon, he would be strangled by his neck and bound. I order Zhu Hongzhang, Xiao Fusi, Li Chendian and others to quickly dig a huge hole under the Longneck city wall that can be filled with 30,000 kilograms of gunpowder. If this explodes, the city will be destroyed!
After receiving the order, Zhu Hongzhang, together with Xiao Fusi, Li Chendian and others, captured the stone city near Longneck. Zhu Hongzhang and Xiao Fusi worked together to build a fort on Longneck Mountain, which was as high as the city and only more than ten feet away from the city, in a false attack. Li Chendian personally led an army. Lurk beneath it, dig into the ground and burrow.
Li Xiucheng also knew the weight of the dragon's neck, deployed heavy troops, installed heavy artillery, and attacked day and night for half a month. Although he killed a thousand people including Guo Pengcheng, Wang Shaoyi, and deputy general Chen Wansheng of the Hunan Army, he was unable to stop it.
On the morning of July 19, 1864, Supervisor Li Chendian led Xinzi Camp, which lasted six days and six nights, and finally dug the hole.
Zeng Guoquan learned of this and summoned the generals to discuss the matter of blasting the wall and breaking the city.
Zeng Guoquan said: "With the sound of 30,000 kilograms of gunpowder, the city wall of Dragon's Neck will collapse, and the courage of the Guangdong rebels will be shattered. The governors and their ministries will swarm in from the breach, and Jinling will collapse." However, thousands of armies are galloping forward, and the gap is too small to advance all at once. Who among you wants to be the first?
Zhu Hongzhang, Xiao Fusi, Li Chendian, Liu Lianjie, Wu Mingliang and others looked at each other, but no one stood out and recommended themselves.
An admirer named Li Hongzhang was disdainful. He pointed at Zhu Hongzhang and said sternly: "You are known for your bravery. Why do you shrink your head today?"
Zhu Hongzhang was furious, threw himself to his feet, and shouted: I am willing to lead the Changsheng Battalion, with 1,500 people as the vanguard, to take the lead in entering the city. I have issued a military order now. If you retreat, you will be defeated by military law!
Wu Mingliang then attached.
When Liu Lianjie saw this, he also signed three petitions.
Li Chendian chirped repeatedly, wishing to be ranked fourth. The remaining generals signed in turn, obtaining a total of nine people.
Zeng Guoquan said: My brothers and I besieged the city, and we shared the blessings and the hardships. When the city was defeated, the entire army was forced to attack, and the limit was seven days. After my order, the gunpowder exploded and the city wall was broken, Zhu Hongzhang, Wu Mingliang, Liu Lianjie, Li Chendian, Zhang Shiri, etc. immediately led their troops to enter from the shortage, quickly divided into groups, broke through the city and wiped out the enemy. Peng Yuju, Xiao Fusi, Li Xianghe, Xiao Qingyan, etc. have been supervising the battle since then. Anyone who retreats before the battle, regardless of the general, will be killed without mercy!
In the afternoon of July 19, Zeng Guoquan gave an order, and 30,000 kilograms of gunpowder exploded immediately under Jinling City. For a moment, there was a faint sound like thunder in the ground. About one o'clock, suddenly there was a thunderbolt, like the sound of the sky collapsing and the earth cracking. The wall was more than twenty feet tall with smoke rising up.
Zhu Hongzhang ordered four hundred death squads to rush in first.
The Taiping troops on the city were not discouraged and fired their guns, artillery and arrows, annihilating all 400 Hunan troops.
Zhu Hongzhang did not dare to retreat, so he rushed the rest of his troops into the breach. After several fights, he finally found a place to stay. Li Chendian, Xiao Fusi, Liu Lianjie and others did not dare to be lazy and quickly entered the city. The troops were divided into four groups, and they attacked together and rushed to the palace of the King of Heaven.
The Hunan army entered the city indiscriminately and cut down everyone they encountered. Children under the age of two or three were also stabbed and poked for fun. Women were taken captive, and no one under the age of forty was found. All the elderly were injured, or were stabbed more than ten times. Or dozens of swords, and the sound of wailing reached far away.
When Zhao Liewen, Li Hongzhang and other officials heard that the main force of the Hunan army had entered the city, they immediately rushed to the old camp of Zeng Guoquan to express their congratulations.
Zeng Guoquan was sweating profusely and stood barefoot in a state of embarrassment. He only said: "I haven't won the first prize. Please don't congratulate me first. This is the summary of the memorial. Please help Brother Huifu to polish it up quickly."
Zhao Liewen received the order, and within half an hour, the memorial was about to be drafted. On the way to the intersection, I saw the chief man and the cook all happily entering the city with weapons in hand.
In the evening, Zhao Liewen saw many soldiers, covered in blood, walking around excitedly carrying burdens and dragging boxes. Not long after, I saw several groups of clerks, carrying boxes and dragging sticks, and left laughing.
Zhao Liewen was frightened and drove his horse into the city. He saw corpses along the street, including old men, women, and children, all crawling on the ground. Only a few of them were wearing yellow clothes.
When I asked Xiang Yong, they all said: Those who carry burdens and drag boxes are all surrendered to the army; the old, weak, sick and disabled are useless and killed with one blow; whoever robs the handsome woman will get it; you go and look for it quickly, maybe you can There is gain.
Liewen sighed and said: Why are you doing this to the Nine Commanders? Why to the emperor? Why to heaven and earth? Why to yourself?
The soldiers listened in vain and ran away laughing.
