Those who surrender will not be killed! "
As a veteran general, Zhang Guangcai also knew the intentions of the second general Zhang Dingguo. Although these recruits were half-hearted, they were still useful. They could not kill them all. They would be retained to continue to attack cities and territories in the future.
In addition to killing those stubborn people, most of the recruits who are willing to surrender can survive and continue to serve the rebel army. As long as they obey the second general's words, they can enjoy the good things and drink with the rebel army.
Fortunately, the new soldiers were poorly equipped, had little combat power, and had extremely weak willpower, so Zhang Guangcai's men did not suffer much losses. Otherwise, even a thousand horsemen may not be able to crush five or six times more infantry.
After about two-quarters of an hour of fighting, the cavalry finally gave up after killing the last few stubborn enemies and escorted nearly 5,000 new soldiers to the rear.
After all this trouble, the rebels could no longer carry out siege operations and could only carry out repairs in the distance. Zhang Dingguo had to make new plans.
"The last general is incompetent! Please ask the second general to punish him!"
After suppressing the mutiny, Zhang Guangcai hurriedly came to plead guilty. Not only was the siege unsuccessful, but a mutiny broke out directly, which was something he was determined not to do.
"This is not the general's fault, but the result of people with ulterior motives secretly making noises. I guess there is something wrong with this, that is, they overestimated the combat power of these people."
Zhang Dingguo originally wanted to use his courage to defeat Xinye and capture Nanyang City in one fell swoop. In this way, he could gain momentum through consecutive battles, attract the attention of the officers and soldiers in Huguang, and share the pressure for his father.
Unexpectedly, the defense strength of Nanyang City was much stronger than that of Xinye. Not only did the rebel army fail to attack the city, it also triggered a mutiny, which almost led to the loss of troops and generals.
The reason is that he was too optimistic and underestimated the enemy. Regarding the experience and lessons learned from this battle, the smart Zhang Dingguo immediately woke up and planned to adjust his strategy in time.
"Second General, I would like to continue leading the troops to attack the city at the end of tomorrow!"
Zhang Guangcai felt that after ruthlessly dealing with these new soldiers and shaving off their spirit, they could then be used for his own purposes. In more than ten days, Nanyang City would definitely be captured.
"There is no need for this! This city is very strong. If our army attacks by force, it will inevitably lead to the loss of a large number of troops. Rather than that, it is better to abandon this big city and attack the surrounding smaller cities. To the north, we can attack Nanzhao and Yuzhou, and to the north we can attack Nanzhao and Yuzhou. We can attack Zhenping and Neixiang in the west, and attack Tangxian and Biyang in the east! The defense of the small town is far inferior to that of Nanyang. As long as our army successively captures several small towns around it, we can still enrich our money and food, strengthen our troops, and then gather tens of thousands of troops to attack It’s not too late to besiege Nanyang!”
Zhang Dingguo planned to let Nanyang's defenders survive for a few more days and use his troops to attack other cities. Since Xinye can be captured, a nearby small town similar in size to Xinye should also be captured.
If we really take over these six small cities, we can get at least ten thousand taels of silver, a thousand stones of grain, and an additional ten or twenty thousand horses.
After the Nanyang defenders heard the news, if they dared to fight, they could just annihilate them in the wild, otherwise they would just sit back and watch as their lands were captured one by one by the rebels.
"The second general uses his troops like a god, and the last general will respect him!"
Now that the general has decided to fight elsewhere, Zhang Guangcai no longer insists on his own opinion.
Among the four adopted sons of the Marshal, the Second General is the leader among them and is deeply trusted by the Marshal.
After listening to Zhang Dingguo's explanation, other generals also felt that this move was appropriate.
If Nanyang City cannot be attacked for a long time, it will definitely cause a huge loss of vitality for one's own side, which is extremely worthless.
"If the generals have no objections, pass the order to the generals, and the whole army will march towards Zhenping!"
After being frustrated at Nanyang City, a big victory must be used to boost morale immediately. The nearest town to the west was Zhenping, so Zhang Dingguo decided to use Zhenping first.
The entire army was quickly assembled, and immediately marched westward, marched through Wollongong, crossed the Liao River, and appeared outside Zhenping City on the afternoon of the next day.
"The thieves are running away!"
After seeing the rebels fighting among themselves, they had to run away in despair, but the defenders in Nanyang City were very happy.
When the rebels were having internal strife, the defenders at the top of the city were still cheering and cheering for them!
The more people who die, the better. It would be perfect if they all died together!
The battle scene was extremely spectacular, and there were many casualties. However, the final result was far from what the defenders had hoped for.
The rebel cavalry were indeed elite. They almost defeated the defecting infantry group and killed them until they lost all their temper.
"That's good!"
Chief Military Officer Zhang Guoqin breathed a sigh of relief. As a general, he was under the greatest pressure. As long as he did not surrender, he could only grit his teeth and hold on.
Unexpectedly, the rebel army was really bullying the weak and afraid of the strong. They fought for only a few days. Seeing that Nanyang City was impregnable and internal strife broke out on their own side, they decided to withdraw their troops and retreat.
From the top of the city, you can see the general situation of the rebel camp in the distance. The location of the enemy's camp is just outside the range of the official gunfire. Since they don't even want the camp, it probably means they just left.
Of course, Zhang Guoqin did not dare to underestimate the enemy. It might be a trick of the bandit army to lure the snake out of the cave. For the sake of safety, it was better to send a detective horse out of the city to conduct reconnaissance first, and he could only make a conclusion after getting his revenge.
As expected, according to the report of the scouts, the rebels did leave. Except for the wounded soldiers, no healthy people were left behind. These wounded soldiers were burdens and the rebels would not take them away with them.
The general direction of the bandit army's advance is west, perhaps to attack Zhenping. The city's defense strength is far inferior to that of Nanyang, and it can be said to be extremely dangerous.
However, Zhang Guoqin did not intend to lend a helping hand. It was impossible to send reinforcements there. Once they were annihilated by the rebels in the field, not only Zhenping could not be saved, but Nanyang City, which had lost more than half of its defenders, could not be saved.
Just throw it away if Zhenping is lost, there is nothing they can do to help. Before Sun Chuanting and Hong Chengchou's troops went north, it was a blessing to be able to save Nanyang City.
Prior to this, Zhang Guoqin missed a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, which was to send troops out of the city to help the rebel infantry attack the rebel cavalry when internal strife broke out in the rebel army.
The situation on the battlefield changed very strangely at that time, and Zhang Guoqin was unable to distinguish the authenticity in a short period of time. For fear of falling into the bandit's trick, he strictly ordered his troops to stick to the city and prohibited them from leaving the city to fight.
If they really send troops, they might be able to defeat the bandits who came to attack Nanyang City in one fell swoop, and then win a big victory.
But Zhang Guoqin did not do that, and could only watch the rebel army suppress the defecting infantry.
Afterwards, Zhang Guoqin also felt a little regretful, but it was not a pity.
His duty is to protect Nanyang City, and all affairs outside the city have nothing to do with him.
If Nanyang City cannot be saved, unless the thieves can be captured and killed, it will definitely be a mistake that outweighs the merit.
Now that Nanyang City is out of danger under the fierce attack of the bandit army, the prefect Wang Jiazhen can calmly report to the court.
Wang Jiazhen soon received an urgent document from Zhenping City. The letter stated that the city had been surrounded by bandits and was in danger.
Now we just hope that Nanyang can send troops to help quickly, otherwise Zhenping will fall into the hands of the bandit army, and the people in the city will be brutally murdered.
Wang Jiazhen quickly discussed with the county magistrate Yao Yunxi and the chief military officer Zhang Guoqin, but the result was that he was unable to rush to rescue, let alone relieve Zhenping.
At present, the Nanyang defenders only have the strength to hold on and are unable to engage in field battles with the bandits, let alone be sure of victory. Once the field battle is defeated, not only Zhenping will not be saved, but even Nanyang will fall into the hands of the thieves.
Regarding what happened to Zhenping, Wang Jiazhen could only lament and pray to God for blessings, hoping that Sun Chuanting and Hong Chengchou could lead their troops northward as soon as possible.
If they are late for half a month to a month, not to mention Zhenping, the huge Nanyang Mansion will be occupied by the bandits. By then, they will face tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of bandits, and they will have a Nanyang City and another. What's the use?
At this point, Wang Jiazhen doesn't know how many disasters there are left in his jurisdiction.
Once the traitor army takes control of these disasters, they will inevitably be organized into traitor soldiers and used to attack the city.
The Nanyang city wall is tall and can be defended for a long time, but other small cities do not have this ability to withstand the enemy's attack.
Sure enough, four days later, Wang Jiazhen received news of the fall of Zhenping.
After the bandit army broke through the city, they slaughtered all the defenders and the people in the city, looted all the money and food, and then headed north calmly.
According to reports from the scouts, the bandits were crossing the Baichong Mountains north of Nanyang.
According to the map, Zhang Guoqin believed that the next target of the rebel army might be Nanzhao north of Baichong Mountain.
However, even Zhenping, which is close at hand, cannot be saved, and it is even more impossible to send troops to rescue Nanzhao, which is further away.
Wang Jiazhen was on pins and needles, knowing that Henan Governor Lu Daqi had no troops to control. He would do the same to what happened in Nanyang Mansion as he did to Zhenping.
The only possible way is to send someone to quickly tell the officers and soldiers in Xiangyang what happened here.
If Sun Chuanting or Hong Chengchou's troops were stationed there, they would probably react.
This move was regarded as a leapfrog report, but the situation was so urgent that Wang Jiazhen could not care so much.
If the reinforcements don't come, I'm afraid most of Nanyang Mansion will really fall into the hands of thieves.
Seven days later, Wang Jiazhen did not receive a reply from the Xiangyang garrison, but he learned about the fall of Nanzhao first.
After another five days, Yuzhou was also captured by the bandits.
In the past month, the bandits first conquered Xinye. Although they suffered a brief setback under Nanyang City, they turned forward in time and successively captured Zhenping, Nanzhao, and Yuzhou.
Afterwards, they went upstream along the blocked water and conquered Tang County in less than three days, which was equivalent to penetrating half of Nanyang Prefecture.
In this regard, Wang Jiazhen and others were unable to do anything, so they could only gnash their teeth angrily and have no choice but to do anything about the situation.
When the rebel army came to Nanyang City again, the defenders suddenly discovered that the scale of the rebel army was larger than the previous one.
According to visual inspection, it is estimated that there are no less than 50,000 people!
Although Wang Jiazhen took advantage of this precious breathing time to urgently order the people to repair the city wall, he would still be beaten passively in the end.
Different from the previous one, this time the bandit army also carried no less than twenty fire blunderbuss.
They are all small firecrackers, but they are better than none, and their firepower is much more powerful than the previous one.
There were no less than a hundred muskets and dozens of carriages, probably all captured military equipment.
Wang Jiazhen knew that he could not move Nanyang City away and the people had nowhere to escape, so he could only order to hold on.
More than 2,000 defenders and more than 2,000 young men all boarded the city. Once they could not hold on, the fate would be the same as Zhenping.
"Second General! The last general dares to ask for a battle!"
"Okay! Go!"
"I will obey the order!"
Zhang Guangcai is also an old acquaintance of the city's defenders. When he comes back this time, he will definitely take down this damn Nanyang City with blood and shame.
In this regard, the high-spirited Zhang Dingguo was also full of confidence. After the previous setback in Nanyang, he immediately changed his strategy and led his troops to conquer the four surrounding cities of Nanyang.
It can be said that the part lost under Nanyang City has been replenished, including the profitable land. Moreover, due to the large amount of seizures, the rebels also used a lot of firearms, which can come in handy when attacking the city.
Counting the surrendered officers and soldiers and the recruited Liu Min, the strength of his troops has reached more than 50,000, which is enough to deal with any defenders in the area of Baoming Nanyang Mansion.
Optimistically speaking, as long as Sun Chuanting and Hong Chengchou don't lead their troops to rush to this place, even if the defenders of Nanyang Prefecture come to fight together, our troops will be able to deal with them all.
After repeated battles and victories, the morale of Zhang Dingguo's troops was high, and the newly recruited soldiers were tempered. They were no longer afraid of dog officers and soldiers, and dared to fight, and their will gradually became stronger.
After successive victories, the recruits also began to think that the dog officers and soldiers were vulnerable, that they were bullies who were afraid of the strong, and that they could not withstand a full blow from the rebels.
After breaking the city, not only were they given money, but after eating and drinking, they also had a taste of the wonderful women in the city. With these benefits, the recruits became more loyal to Zhang Dingguo.
Killing, stealing money, and playing with women are all addictive. Once addicted, it is difficult to quit in a short period of time, especially for those who have just gotten the benefit.
Zhang Dingguo took advantage of this, learned from previous lessons, adopted a strategy of both soft and hard tactics, and firmly controlled tens of thousands of new recruits.
Originally, after conquering Tang County, the rebels could continue to attack Biyang eastward, but Zhang Dingguo believed that it was no longer necessary.
It is best to take advantage of the current moment when your troops have sufficient strength and morale is high to attack Nanyang with all your strength. As long as you capture this city, your troops' strength can be raised to a higher level.
The capture of Nanyang City meant that the entire Nanyang Mansion's military defense was ineffective, and it was also a big bad news for the Ming Dynasty.
"General! The end of the dog army has come. The first soldier of our army to plant the flag on the city will be rewarded with three thousand taels of silver and promoted to the third level! Those who are afraid of defeat and flee will be shot first! The whole army attacks! Give them all a boost!"
Zhang Guangcai sat on his horse and announced the rules of rewards and punishments in front of everyone. Then he pulled out his sharp sword, pointed to the sky, and shouted to everyone to start attacking the city.
"Kill!"
"Cut down the dog officers and soldiers!"
At this time, the recruits had already lost their respect for the officers and soldiers, and were no longer afraid of these military masters who usually showed off their power in front of the people.
As long as it is chopped down, it will be a dead body with no popularity at all. In the end, they will all be fed to wild dogs, and the shame they have suffered in the past will be washed away.
The Dog Emperor is dead!
The Ming Dynasty will also be overthrown!
Even the sons are empty!
Only money is the most real!
There are hundreds of thousands of taels of silver in Nanyang City!
Then it should belong to the rebels!
After capturing Nanyang City, they will go to Luoyang to open the seal!
Finally, go all the way north and conquer the capital in one go!
The new emperor is of course his own Marshal Zhang!
Then make the second general the prince!
Build a brand new court!
From now on, they can consider themselves heroes!
Live in a big house, and let the wives and daughters of those exposed officials serve you.
This is what life is like!
These poor people had never lived a human life before.
After Nanyang City is conquered, those dog officials will be taught what it means to be "worse than pigs and dogs"!
