Outside the north gate of Guangzhou City, the tall Shang Zhixin was sitting in a temporary reception pavilion, waving his fan impatiently and looking to the north.
Hundreds of soldiers, neatly dressed, carrying shotguns and holding spears, lined up outside the official reception pavilion, just waiting.
To the south of the Jieguan Pavilion, there is a long trench being excavated. More than 10,000 vassal slaves mobilized from Guangzhou City, both men and women, are using shovels to move the soil basket by basket. Let's go, it's so hard.
The excavated soil was carried to the inside of the moat, where many servants of the feudal lord were working under the bright sun to build a sheep and horse wall along the root of the city wall.
Anyone who has actually fought a city siege and defense knows that a castle with only one wall and a moat can only be called a "naked city". Its defensive capabilities are limited. A real strong city has a layered defense system. , usually there are several outer moats and several inner walls - there is the main city wall, the sheep and horse wall that protects the main city wall on the outside, and the inner city wall that protects the main city wall on the inside. The earthen wall covering the city gate.
If it were to be more authentic, branch cities and forts would have to be built outside the city to protect the main city walls layer upon layer.
The defensive capabilities of a completely fortified Chinese-style city are actually not much worse than those of a Western-style bastion. Moreover, the defense range of a Chinese-style city is very large, and it often needs to protect an entire city. Although it is not as strong as a bastion, it is not easily covered by the firepower of old artillery with limited range.
Therefore, when the fortification of Guangzhou City was completed, it was actually difficult to conquer it with the "big head siege method".
In addition, the terrain of Guangzhou City is actually very dangerous. Guangzhou is surrounded by water on two sides and backed by mountains on the other.
Guangzhou's west and south sides rely on the Pearl River and its tributaries, making it impossible to attack. The north is protected by Yuexiu Mountain, and there is a square fort on the mountain, which is difficult to attack. Only the east side has open terrain and no big rivers to block it, making it easier to attack. But in the past few months, the Shang family has worked hard to strengthen the defense in the east of Guangzhou City, and now it has reached an impregnable level.
After completing the defense in the east of Guangzhou City, Shang Zhixin began the city defense reinforcement project near the Great North Gate and Little North Gate in the north of Guangzhou City (located on the east and west sides of Yuexiu Mountain respectively).
This is a big project!
It will take at least another month or two to complete the work, and Shang Zhixin will be even more worried by then!
This is because Wang Zhongxiao, who covets Guangzhou City, is not idle either!
If the current situation in Guangdong can be briefly summarized, it is that the countryside surrounds the city!
On one side is "Shang Xiuqiang" and on the other side is "Wang Fentian". The land being divided is not just in the townships near Guangzhou, but also in the territory belonging to Guangdong Province ruled by the Wang family and his son. The land allocated was mainly "fertile wasteland" along the coasts of Xin'an, Yangjiang, Dianbai, Wuchuan and Leizhou Prefecture. The objects of land distribution are landless and landless poor peasant tenants in the densely populated prefectures and counties in the interior of Guangdong.
Most of these landless and poor peasant tenants were victims of the Shang family's coastal relocation or land enclosure and massacre in Guangfu. They originally hated the Shang family deeply. So after the equalization of land, they all became die-hard loyalists of the Wang family and were organized into rural military households!
After the metallurgical capitalists in Foshan Town learned about the Qing army's defeat on the Huguang battlefield, they no longer had any worries, and they all worked hard to help the Wang family make guns, cannons, and weapons.
Therefore, the Wang family’s Guangdong soldiers are expanding at an extremely fast rate!
At the same time, the rural soldiers of Lao Wang's family also began to build fortresses in the east, northeast, and northwest of Guangzhou City, set up checkpoints, and block waterways and intersections. There are also a large number of big bird boats flying the "king" flag on the Pearl River - they are all gunboats equipped with more than a dozen red-coated cannons!
After they appeared, the warships of the Guangdong Navy of the Qing Dynasty on the Pearl River also changed their flags and joined the Wang family army. Wang Fuchen was the real governor of Guangdong and Guangxi! Is there anything wrong with the Guangdong Navy listening to the governors of Guangdong and Guangxi?
The gradual defection of the Guangdong Navy also means that Guangzhou's external waterway transportation has been completely cut off!
Now, the official road leading to Liuxi River and Huaxian County in the north of Guangzhou Fucheng is the only way for Guangzhou City to communicate with the outside world. Moreover, this only road is not very reliable. Many townships along the road, especially those controlled by powerful clans, do not need to participate in land equalization (if the clan has too many people and not enough land, some of its children can also participate. Almost all the rural capitals in the country (e.g., equalizing land, moving to other places) fell in favor of the Wang family and his son.
Therefore, this only way of survival is already in danger.
Seeing that the whole family was making dumplings for Wang Zhongxiao, Shang Zhixin could only hope that Wu Guogui, who was advancing rapidly in Hunan, would support him.
But how far can Wu Guogui survive?
He is Wang Fuchen's sworn brother, and his son Wu Shijue is Wang Zhongxiao's sworn brother. Moreover, Shang Zhixin has recently heard some rumors that Wu Guogui's daughter, the most beautiful woman in Yunnan known as the Eight-faced Guanyin, is Wang Zhongxiao's first wife Yang Xiaotuo. !
If this is true, can Wu Guogui still count on it?
With all kinds of thoughts running through his mind, Shang Zhixin, who was sitting in the reception booth waiting, just let out a long breath and patted his thigh irritably.
Sitting with him in the receiving booth, Shang Shuying, who was flirting with Liu Jinzhong, the commander-in-chief of Chao Town, was startled by the sound of her brother slapping her thigh. She thought her brother was dissatisfied with her hooking up with Liu Jinzhong, an old man in his fifties. , quickly looked back at his brother, and found that he was sighing with his head down, as if it was not directed at him, then he exhaled and said with a smile: "Brother, don't be anxious, General Li under Brother Liu has already led his troops. We welcome Mingxiang, Mingxiang can’t run away.”
After hearing what Shang Shuying said, Liu Jinzhong also smiled and said: "Brother Shang, don't worry. Li Chenggong will definitely catch Ming Xiang for you! Even if Ming Xiang cannot be caught, Shuying and I can keep you." Break out and go to Chaozhou."
Shang Zhixin really couldn't laugh or cry after hearing this. The old man Liu Jinzhong called him "Big Brother" and his widowed sister in her twenties as "Shuying". That's okay, but this couple of bitches are actually very generous. He said something like "Ming Xiang can't escape" and "Ming Xiang must be captured"!
Isn't this a rebellion? Although he wanted to give the pearl to Wu Guogui, and also gave Wu Sangui a petition to persuade him to join, this did not mean that he wanted to rebel. He was just "double loyal", loyal to Kangxi and Sangui!
This is called "loyalty and righteousness paired", which is twice as loyal as "loyalty and righteousness without pairs"!
Just when he was about to explain his position to his sister and his alternate old brother-in-law Liu Jinzhong, a sound of gongs suddenly came. After the "bang, bang, bang," the sound of the gong was followed by "Be respectful and trustworthy, be frugal and love your loved ones." Let the people take advantage of the time" shouted.
Shang Zhixin quickly stretched his neck and looked around, and found a group of cavalry coming in a mighty manner, escorting a guard of honor that should be protecting the imperial envoy!
It should be the imperial envoy to mediate Minister Mingzhu who has arrived!
"Quickly, go and ask the envoy Wang to come over." Shang Zhixin ordered the people around him, stood up, and greeted Liu Jinzhong, Shang Shuying, Zhu Guozhi, and Li Lan who were sitting in a pavilion. Together they left the pavilion to meet the imperial envoy.
On the official road outside the pavilion, a scene had been set up to welcome the imperial envoy. Hundreds of soldiers from the Shangjia vassal were lined up on the left and right beside the official road. Dozens of officials from the Guangdong local monk vassal also stood in line with the system. Shift. When Mingzhu's eight-carriage sedan approached, they all knelt down to receive her. As soon as the official sedan stopped and the curtain was lifted, hundreds of voices shouted at the same time: "Welcome to the Imperial Envoy, Prime Minister Ming!"
Mingzhu laughed loudly, got out of the sedan, then looked up and looked forward, and she was dumbfounded!
This was not the first time he had served as an imperial envoy, and it was certainly not the first time he had been picked up by an official below on his knees. But in the past, everyone was kneeling during the kneeling reception, but this time there was a group of people standing there arrogantly!
It was enough to just stand and greet the imperial envoy, but the problem was that this group of people were all wearing black gauze hats, regimental collar shirts, and belts tied around their waists. They were clearly dressed like officials of the Ming Dynasty! One of them was also holding a sword.
What does it mean?
How could a high-ranking official of the Ming Dynasty appear at the scene of the Qing Dynasty welcoming the imperial envoy, and holding a sword? Couldn't it be Shang Fang's sword?
Is this going to use the Shang Fang sword of the Ming Dynasty to kill the officials of the Qing Dynasty?
Thinking of this, Mingzhu roared: "Who are you and why are you wearing the official uniform of the Ming Dynasty?"
He was now "shocked". He had just encountered a group of gun-wielding scholars from Guangdong outside Guangzhou City who were "robberying", and now he saw a group of Ming Dynasty officials outside the Great North Gate of Guangzhou. If he could remain calm, he would have no intention of doing so. No lungs.
"Hahaha, I, Wang Shirong, am the mediator envoy sent by His Highness the Western King of the Ming Dynasty! Prime Minister Ming, please come with me!"
The person who answered Mingzhu's question was Wang Shirong. Wang Shirong now knew that it was impossible to mediate the "Wang Shang conflict", but catching Mingzhu was still a great achievement!
Can the pearl be exchanged for Wu Yingxiong's wife and children? Can this be a small achievement?
Mingzhu became anxious and pointed at Shang Zhixin who was still kneeling on the ground and asked: "Shang Zhixin, it turns out you have really rebelled! Wang Fuchen reported to you that both you and your Ama had defected to Wu Sangui, and they also went to the table to persuade them to join. I still don't believe it. , I still spoke for you, but I didn’t expect that your family is all rebels!”
When asked by Mingzhu, Shang Zhixin stopped pretending and stood up directly. He said to Mingzhu with a wry smile: "Mingxiang, if you want to say that, it is really unfair. In Guangdong today, there is nothing else. Rebellion or not? Anyone who supports troops and occupies an area is considered powerful. But as long as no one unifies Guangdong, Guangdong will not be able to threaten the Qing Dynasty and the King of the West.
Now, the four people who have the greatest hope of unifying Guangdong, or even the two Guangxi, are Wang Fuchen, Wang Jizhen, Wang Zhongxiao, and Sun Jiqing. Mr. Ming, you don’t think that after the two Guangdongs are unified, the Wang family and his son will settle down as protectors. The thief guarding Anmin's home? "
Mingzhu also knows that Guangdong is now in chaos, but he also has a bottom line. You can have chaos and civil war in Guangdong and Guangxi, but you can't kidnap him and hand him over to Wu Sangui!
He shouted and asked: "Shang Zhixin, do you want to hand over this imperial envoy to Wu Sangui, a traitor?"
"This is absolutely not the case!" Shang Zhixin said categorically, "Wang Qinchen said that it was the King of the West who invited you. The King of the West wanted to invite you, probably to discuss the release of the wife and children of the Crown Prince of the West. If you don’t want to go, I will never force you to go.”
After hearing this, Mingzhu was still very worried!
If Shang Zhixin is not forced, will others force him, a loyal minister of the Qing Dynasty, to be a hostage or a second minister with Wu Sangui?
When Shang Zhixin saw that Mingzhu was silent, he knew that the other party had accepted Wu Sangui's invitation, so he did not continue to provoke him. Instead, he made a sign of respect and said with a smile: "Mingxiang, please, let's enter the city first. ! It’s not very safe here. Who knows when the Wang family’s Guangdong soldiers will come?”
"This" Mingzhu didn't even know what to say.
Outside the city is Longtan, with gun-toting Cantonese scholars and people! And the city is a tiger's den, and there is an imperial envoy sent by Wu Sangui to capture him!
This time, things are going to be much worse!
"Brother, do you think this pearl plus Wang Shirong can resolve the conflict between our family and Lao Wang's family?"
In the Prince's Mansion in Fucheng, Guangzhou, Shang Zhixin's good sister Shang Shuying was drinking tea in the flower hall in the back garden while discussing mediation with Shang Zhixin.
"It can't be resolved." Before Shang Zhixin could speak, Liu Jinzhong, a reckless man, spoke first.
Shang Shuying looked back at Liu Jinzhong, frowning and looking unhappy, "Brother Liu, didn't you say before that as long as you and Wu Guogui stand out together, there will be a solution?"
"Hey, that's not just to make you happy." Liu Jinzhong is also a shameless person, and he stopped coaxing her after he got her fair, tender, plump and voluptuous body.
"You damn ghost!" Shang Shuying blushed and looked unhappy, "Brother Liu, what are you talking about?"
"The truth!" Liu Jinzhong said, "Sister Shuying, isn't the current situation still unclear? The old Wang family just wants to take over Guangfu, all in Guangdong. Be loyal to the Qing Dynasty and loyal to the Ming Dynasty. That Wang Fuchen doesn't care at all and can't be killed. It doesn't matter if I kill you, Ama. What they want is Guangfu and even the whole of Guangdong! Shuying, if we are not willing to hand over the whole of Guangdong to them, it is useless for anyone to say anything!"
"Isn't handing over to Guangfu enough?" Shang Zhixin asked with a frown.
"Not enough." Liu Jinzhong shook his head, "How can it be possible? What is the topography of Guangdong? Guangdong is also called Lingnan, which is south of Nanling. If Guangdong is not completely occupied, it cannot be connected to Lingnan to the north. If it is not connected to Lingnan to the north, the Wang family will not be truly Lord of Guangdong.
So if we want to negotiate peace, we can only withdraw from Guangdong and find another place to settle down! "
"Exit Guangdong. Where can we go?" Shang Shuying was a little anxious.
Liu Jinzhong smiled and said: "Baby, there is always somewhere for us to go. Your vassal has only five subordinates, and the 13th Battalion of Green Battalions under my command only has four to five thousand soldiers. At worst, we can retreat to southern Gansu, and we can fight for the big army together." Is it okay for the Qing to guard Gannan and prevent Wang Fuchen and Wu Sangui from entering Jiangxi? However, I answer the question, what should you do? Chenzhou and Guiyang Prefecture in Hunan only have such a small amount of land, and they cannot support more than ten people of Shangfan. Ten thousand people, right?”
You definitely can’t make a living!
Originally, Shang Zhixin's bottom line was to occupy Shaozhou and Huizhou, and then take some territory in Hunan.
But Liu Jinzhong's analysis is reasonable. It is impossible for Wang Fuchen and Wang Zhongxiao not to accept Nanling. According to Guangdong but not Nanling, that means buying a mansion without a gate and people can come in and move things at any time!
Although the Wang family and his son can both fight, the tiger also takes a nap! If there was no guard at the Nanling pass and someone called at any time, the Wang family wouldn't even have time to react.
Moreover, the Wang family's military force is based on the Guangdong rural soldiers. It is good to have more people and lower costs. However, the rural soldiers are based on the people and require time to mobilize.
Therefore, the Wang family must occupy the dangerous position of Nanling.
And without Shaozhou and Huizhou, Shang Zhixin would have nowhere to go.
Gannan has been targeted by Liu Jinzhong, and it’s not enough! How much money does a Gannan mansion have? How could it be possible to support so many masters of the Shang family? As for grabbing land in Hunan, it is possible to get some scraps, but don’t even think about good land!
Didn't Wu Guogui tear the Shang family to pieces?
As for going further north to grab Li Zicheng's territory? Are you tired of living?
"What, what's going on?" Shang Zhixin was also anxious.
Shang Shuying was also anxious and looked at Liu Jinzhong with resentment: "Brother Liu, you have to help my brother. If my family is ruined, even if we escape to southern Gansu, we will not have a good life, right? Otherwise, you As long as I can help my family, I will marry you to fill the house. I am Princess Princess, and I am also the wife of Shun Fan. If you marry me, I will be your consort, and Shun Fan will be yours too!"
Liu Jinzhong laughed, then gritted his teeth and snorted: "What else can I do? Do you want to wait until death or give them a Hongmen Banquet?"
(End of chapter)
