As soon as the city head was lost, the defenders' defense line collapsed. Even the two lieutenants decided to surrender, and ordinary soldiers had no confidence to resist.
Either he chooses to follow the generals and beg for surrender from the rebels, or he flees to Min's house in the city, planning to hide for a while so that he can come back with his life.
But the defenders who had this idea were completely wrong. This move would not only fail to save their lives, but would also lead to fatal disasters for the people in the city.
As more and more rebels entered the city, under the leadership of Zhang Kewang, thousands of rebel soldiers began to search for deserters one by one. If they were found, they would be killed immediately without leaving any survivors alive.
The people in the city were their prey. When they were done, they would catch them and wait for the commander-in-chief to punish them. Except for the wealthy families, the wealth of ordinary people could be divided up by them on the spot.
After accepting the recruitment, everyone's treatment was almost insignificant compared to the previous rebels. Naturally, there was no such pleasure as direct robbery, so they attacked the city like wolves and tigers before.
"The divine soldiers come to the world to do justice for heaven! If you return to your sincerity, the grass and trees will not move; if you resist, no one, old or young, will be left behind!"
Zhang Kewang grabbed a graceful woman by the collar, dragged her like a dead dog regardless of her cries and struggles, and then shouted army slogans to the people around her.
The small Gucheng actually dared to resist stubbornly and killed so many soldiers. It must bear the wrath of the father, otherwise it would be a waste of so many fighting soldiers.
The rebel soldiers also carried out Zhang Kewang's orders very thoroughly. They attacked the city so that they could burn, kill and loot as much as they wanted. Now they had both money and women.
Zhang Xianzhong always taught them that they must not be benevolent as women when dealing with the enemy. Anyone who colluded with the officers and soldiers, regardless of gender, old or young, could be killed.
"General, spare your life~! We are all good people..."
A gentleman crawled over crying and begging Zhang Kewang to spare his family. If he didn't speak again, he was afraid that the whole family would be killed by the rebels.
"Liang Min? Hum! While you are having fun and drinking, we are eating chaffy vegetables! You are seeking your own death. Don't blame me for being ruthless!"
After Zhang Kewang finished speaking, he swung his sword and cut the man's neck. The blood spurted out directly touched the hem of the armor, and the gentleman fell to the ground and died.
In his eyes, this gentleman was a typical person who must be killed. When the army was stationed outside the city, he didn't go to reward the army. When the army entered the city, he came to beg for his life. Isn't it ridiculous?
"Master! Master~!"
When the gentry's concubine saw this, she was immediately heartbroken and burst into tears. She ignored the surrounding rebel soldiers and lay down on the corpse and cried bitterly.
"Haha, it's quite beautiful. Come on, grab it and present it to your handsome father for enjoyment!"
While Zhang Kewang was killing people for fun, he did not forget to please his handsome father. Seeing that this woman had a good figure and good looks, he became "filial".
"You...don't...let go..."
While the woman was feeling sad, she did not want to be arrested and cried and struggled.
"Pah~! Pah~! You are so shameless! If you dare to do something wrong again, I will give you a warning from this general!"
Zhang Kewang immediately slapped the woman twice and told her to be more honest. If she offended him, he would punish her in the street.
"Woo..."
Hearing the stern threats from this murderous villain, the woman shuddered with fright, her cheeks were red and swollen, and she vomited blood after being slapped. She could not control her misery and could only whimper on the spot.
Accompanied by cries, pleas for mercy, and wild silver laughter from all around, the Min House in the city gradually began to burst into flames. Anyone who dared to run away would be shot dead by the rebels.
These stubborn people are their best prey. They have been suppressed by the government for several months. At this moment, all the depression and haze are finally released, and there is no need to hold back any longer.
"Hey! Aren't these Ruan Daling, Lin Shiyu, and Zhang Jianjun~! Nice to meet you! Nice to meet you!"
The three civil servants guarding the city were captured to listen to Zhang Xianzhong's orders. As the new owner of Gucheng, Zhang Xianzhong naturally sat on the chair with a victor's attitude and greeted the three tied prisoners politely with a half-smile.
Ruan Zhidian, the magistrate of Gucheng County, was injured when he was thrown into the city by rebel soldiers, and he still walks with a limp. Lin Mingqiu, the patrol censor, was stabbed by Zhang Kewang while resisting, and one arm was still bleeding.
Among the three, only Zhang Dajing, the military supervisor, was not injured, because he voluntarily begged for surrender, but his treatment was exactly the same as the two around him, and he would not receive special care.
"All the responsibilities will be borne by Ruan. I hope General Zhang will let the people in the city go!"
As a local official, Ruan Zhidian had no real power before, but during the catastrophe, he still hoped to be able to protect the safety of some people with his own efforts.
"One person is responsible for it? Haha, that's easy to say! Previously, my army asked for one hundred thousand taels of pay. How did the court respond? I asked several times and only gave thirty thousand taels! So, I took the people and asked for it myself. Rates'!"
Zhang Xianzhong is a very vengeful person and will never forget how others treated him. What's more, there are 30,000 soldiers under his command who need to be fed, which consumes a lot of money and food every month. If the court doesn't give them money, then don't blame him for being rude.
"The court's actions have nothing to do with the people in the city. I hope the general will be compassionate and show mercy!"
Ruan Zhidian also knew that after the imperial court recruited these people, they ignored them and the things they discussed were not completed, which aroused the resentment of the other party. But what does this have to do with the people? This person is just taking the opportunity to vent.
"I am entrusted with the destiny of heaven to save all sentient beings! The most benevolent and kind, the great love has no boundaries! Killing is love, and love is killing!"
In Zhang Xianzhong's eyes, people in the world are not divided into good and evil, only useful and useless.
Young and strong people can charge into battle for themselves, so they can naturally survive.
Old friends, women and children are all useless people, and killing them is their liberation.
The army is stationed at Baishazhou, but no one from Gucheng comes to reward the army!
What is the use of Tulur and others now? It’s just a waste of food!
He suffered from poverty when he was young, and was exploited by officials as an adult. He was left without food and clothing, and in the end he had no choice but to become a bandit.
This made Zhang Xianzhong extremely angry, and his long-term tragic experience turned into a deep-seated hatred for the injustice of the world under heavy pressure.
Only by controlling the power of life and death over all things in the world can the distorted state of mind be calmed.
For Zhang Xianzhong, all useless people should not exist in the world.
It was God's will to take his life. He had a destiny and he should obey it.
And when killing, there will be a steady flow of blockiness.
Controlling life and death in the world and being respected by all things, why not do it?
"you……"
After hearing such a bastard explanation, Ruan Zhidian was shocked and didn't know how to respond.
"Hahahaha~!"
Seeing Ruan Zhidian choked by himself and speechless, Zhang Xianzhong felt that today was the happiest day in the past six months.
If this happens every day, they will be as happy as gods. When they defeat Hong Chengchou and capture Xiangyang, they will definitely celebrate grandly.
Lin Mingqiu, the imperial censor, did not want to see Zhang Xianzhong being arrogant and domineering in front of everyone, so he asked: "Since you have accepted the imperial favor, why did you go back on your promise? Is this the behavior of a man?"
He had noticed signs of rebellion in Zhang Xianzhong before, so he secretly purchased war horses and reported the truth to the court. However, the result was nothing, which made Lin Mingqiu very disappointed. The result also confirmed his point of view.
Zhang Xianzhong stopped laughing when he heard this and responded calmly: "What if the imperial court treats me like this, so what if I treat the imperial court like this? If the imperial court cares about millions of people, how can I order them all? Now the imperial court only cares about squeezing the people, and the people The officials are all greedy men, how can we sacrifice our lives for them?"
The root of everything lies with the imperial court. If the poor people in Shaanxi really couldn't survive, how could they rebel and seek death?
In Zhang Xianzhong's view, it is only natural to deal with such a greedy court, and it is only natural to go back on one's word, otherwise he will be tricked and killed.
When Lin Mingqiu saw the cry coming from the direction of the city, he understood that the people were in danger, and asked: "You are good at killing people and looting at will. How is it different from the behavior of the Donglu?"
If this continues, once Zhang Xianzhong's troops succeed in Gucheng, the other bandits who have been recruited will probably revolt, and the court will inevitably mobilize troops to suppress them again. I am afraid that the entire Huguang will become a battlefield filled with smoke.
Zhang Xianzhong thought this was a matter of course, so he said confidently: "I once reported to the court and led my troops to the north to guard the border to fight against the Eastern invaders, but the court refused. Now that Lin Shiyu took the opportunity to attack, I can only use the court's The reply is here to deal with it. The imperial court owes me, not me the imperial court!"
If it is to be said that the fault lies with the imperial court, Zhang Xianzhong felt that the imperial court was overly cautious and cautious, so it was understandable that he acted this way.
Zhang Kewang listened for a long time, but he really had no patience anymore, so he interjected: "Commander father, why should I waste my time with this dog officer? Why don't I chop him with a knife and boost the military prestige?"
These three people were sent by the imperial court to monitor their troops. They must be killed quickly, otherwise it seems that leaving them alive would not be of much use.
Seeing this, Zhang Dingguo said from the side: "Commander my father, I think I will stay here first. The Hong bandits are coming with great force. These people may be useful!"
If one's own generals are captured by the other side, both sides can exchange generals and use these weak officials of the Ming court to exchange for their own partners.
Zhang Xianzhong stroked his long beard and thought about it, then smiled and agreed: "My son Dingguo has thought carefully, okay! Let's take him into custody first, so that he can be supervised!"
Seeing that his second brother had taken advantage of him, Zhang Kewang was unwilling to accept it. He could only look at Zhang Dingguo with resentment and said nothing. At worst, he would attack again later.
"Report! Commander, the vanguard of Luo Dai's army is less than twenty miles away from Gucheng!"
"Oh? It came very quickly! How many troops and horses are there?"
"About a thousand, all pawns!"
"Have any other military units been detected around you?"
"Commander Qizhen, there has never been one!"
"Okay~! Let's explore again!"
"yes!"
Unexpectedly, as soon as Gucheng was captured, the government troops came over, and Zhang Xianzhong couldn't help but become cautious.
A mere Luo Dai is nothing to be afraid of. What he is afraid of is Hong Chengchou behind Luo Dai.
Zhang Xianzhong speculated that with Hong Chengchou's status, he would be in charge of four to six generals when he went south this time.
Its strength will definitely not be less than 20,000, which is similar to our own in size. In addition, Hong Chengchou is very cunning, so we must not underestimate the enemy.
"Commander my father, please send me your orders to fight!"
When Zhang Kewang saw the opportunity coming, he immediately went out to fight. If he could defeat Luo Dai, it would be a great achievement.
"Commander father, I think I can take advantage of the newly surrendered generals Ma Tingbao and Xu Qizuo!"
Although the enemy troops came very quickly, Zhang Dingguo thought that there was no need to fight them.
"Oh? How to act?"
Zhang Xianzhong has always liked to use tricks and is also well-known among the rebels. Otherwise, there would not be tens of thousands of soldiers and horses left at the time of recruitment.
"I thought that our army could pretend to be the defeated army in Gucheng, paralyze Luo Dai, get close, and wait for an opportunity to kill him, and then the official army could be defeated!"
Zhang Dingguo believed that the officers and soldiers marched north in such a hurry, perhaps not knowing that Gucheng had been captured by their own side. If they could disguise themselves, they might have a chance to kill the officers and soldiers by surprise.
"Hahahaha... My son is really smart. I am very pleased for my father, so I will act according to this plan. Dingguo, you come and fight the thief Luo Dai. My son is expected to have captured Gucheng. Let the soldiers rest for a while before fighting again. The army of Hong thieves won’t be too late!”
Zhang Xianzhong also understood that he could not let his eldest son get all the military exploits. He had to at least share them equally among his adopted sons. In the attack on Gucheng, he used 5,000 auxiliary soldiers and 500 elite soldiers. There were already 15,000 auxiliary soldiers. Use.
The five hundred men and horses handed over to the command of the second son Zhang Dingguo were naturally elite soldiers. With the second son Zhang Dingguo as the main general and Ma Yuanli as the deputy general, they pretended to be under the command of the deputy general Ma Tingbao who had retreated from Gucheng and infiltrated into Luo Dai's army. When the time was right, they But he can strike back.
Liu Wenxiu and Zhang Hualong led 500 elite troops and 5,000 auxiliary troops to respond and support. When they saw the chaos in Luo Dai's army, they immediately attacked from both wings. With such a pincer attack from inside and outside, they were not afraid of being unable to defeat Luo Dai's lone advancing army.
Zhang Xianzhong also thought this was a good plan. Didn't Hong Chengchou just arrive in Xiangyang?
It's just the right time to give him a showdown and let him know how powerful he is!
After Liu Wenxiu's command, there was Zhang Xianzhong's Chinese army, which had 3,000 elite soldiers and 10,000 auxiliary soldiers.
If the adopted son's troops were unable to win, Zhang Xianzhong planned to have all the troops swarm forward, determined to quickly capture Luo Dai's men.
Only in this way can morale be boosted, otherwise they will turn around and run away when they see Hong Chengchou, and the remaining power of the victory in Gucheng will be wasted.
Zhang Xianzhong believed that with his second son's ability, it would not be difficult to dispatch Luo Dai's forwards. Since Gucheng had been lost, there was no need for them to come to support.
If you insist on going north, you may be eaten up by your own side, so after hearing the news, the forward of the government army will definitely join Luo Dai's main force.
However, if Luo Dai personally leads a thousand horsemen to help Gucheng, then Dingguo won't be polite. Once he gets close, he will take action directly.
If Luo Dai could be killed in one battle, the army behind the forward would be eaten up by Wenxiu's troops. Even if Hong Chengchou knew the news, it would be too late to rush for reinforcements.
After two consecutive defeats at the beginning, Luo Dai was killed again. Let's see how Hong Chengchou can make a comeback!
Presumably, even if he started an uprising in Gucheng a few days in advance, Luo Rucai would take action and would definitely not stand still and wait and see what happens.
At that time, the Huguang generation will be full of wars. Even if Hong Chengchou has extraordinary abilities, he will be overwhelmed. There is also Xiong Wencan, who is like a wine bag and rice bag, to restrain him. Defeat will be commonplace.
Thinking of this, Zhang Xianzhong couldn't help but feel proud. He had been surrounded and suppressed by Hong Chengchou for many years, and now he was quite well prepared. It was time for the fortune to turn.
If the Dog Emperor is unconscious as the "Jingshi Daily" said, and the prince at Huangkou is supervising the country, then now is his best chance to make a comeback.
Now or never!
It is destiny, we must grasp it!
