Tang Yin successfully came out of Yin Bishang's camp and led a hundred people to the camp thirty miles north of the city to meet the Chinese army.
But before they had gone far, they saw the light of torches in the distance. It was obvious that Xu Jing had begun to follow his orders and advance towards Hanyang City as agreed.
As for Cheng Jun's situation, Tang Yin was not worried. After all, Cheng Jun only had a team of two to three hundred envoys, and none of them were elite soldiers. It was expected that it would not be difficult for Xu Jing to deal with it.
"Your Majesty the Envoy, someone from General Park is here."
Tang Yin stopped his horse at a high place and saw three fast horses heading north along the road.
Tang Yin immediately asked someone to intercept him, but he saw someone sent by Pu Yuanzong coming over to salute Tang Yin: "Come on, Marshal Pu has already greeted the gatekeepers and recruited generals such as Bian Xiu and Cui Han from the training academy. , and more than 300 of their retinues, together with the previous 100 people, have gone in the direction of Changdeokgung Palace. It is said that the king is resting in Changdeokgung Palace tonight."
"Why is he so anxious?"
Tang Yin was very angry.
I brought more than a thousand people here, but you still thought it was too little. Then you went to the city gate and gathered a group of old troops and recruited people. Four hundred people dared to attack the palace in North Korea?
Tang Yin knew that Changdeokgung Palace was one of the three major palaces in North Korea. Gyeongbokgung Palace was mostly used for government affairs, and Changdeokgung Palace was more like the emperor's annex.
"Go back with me, join your troops and attack the city!"
Tang Yin suddenly realized that Pu Yuanzong might temporarily rebel, or that it was inconsistent with his intentions. After releasing Pu Yuanzong now, it would be like letting the tiger return to the mountain, so now he must go to meet up with the thousand men and horses. Only then can we have a chance to win Hanyang City.
…
…
Tang Yin tried his best to reunite with Xu Jing's troops.
"It's Mr. Tang." Liu Gui rode forward. When he realized that it was not North Korean soldiers and horses, but a hundred people led by Tang Yin, he hurried forward to greet them.
After Tang Yin came over, he saw Cheng Jun being tied up on the horse next to Xu Jing's horse.
Cheng Jun asked sternly: "Do you want to use these people to shake the power of the North Korean monarchy? Don't overestimate your own capabilities! Even the Ming Dynasty is not qualified to interfere in the internal political affairs of North Korea."
"Shut up!"
Xu Jing seemed very impatient. Apparently he had had enough of Cheng Jun's shouting along the way.
Tang Yin asked: "Why don't you shut his mouth?"
"Really?" Xu Jingren was still a little confused.
It was also because he had never had any experience in "rebellion", let alone leading troops, but it was also because Cheng Jun's previous shouts and shouts were all in Korean, so Xu Jing couldn't understand and thought he was just comparing nonsense.
But now he realized that Cheng Jun was trying to get the North Korean soldiers following Xu Jing to "rectify the chaos."
"Thank you Bohu for reminding me, otherwise I would have missed something important." Xu Jing looked ashamed.
Tang Yin frowned and reminded you to shut Cheng Jun's mouth. How can this be serious?
His eyes also fell on Hanyang City, which was more than ten miles away. At this time, Hanyang City was still quiet, and it did not look like there was a chance to attack the city.
He was also thinking, wouldn't Pu Yuanzong have died in the city because he acted too hastily?
Once the city gate is closed, it will be difficult to enter the city.
Tang Yin said: "Let the Ming soldiers go in front, the North Korean soldiers and horses behind, and the cavalry follow... enter the city in two batches. If we are late and are discovered by the North Korean leader, we will have to blow up the city gate if we want to enter the city again."
"Yes, yes, go quickly, go quickly!" Xu Jing didn't look like a coach at all.
In other words, even Tang Yin doesn't look like a coach.
Fortunately, the soldiers and horses of the Ming Dynasty and North Korea they brought with them admired Tang Yin's deeds of defending Duobi City for more than three months. They also followed Tang Yin to have a full meal and had the opportunity to "make contributions". At this time, they were also willing to Follow Tang Yin to risk your life.
…
…
Tang Yin led 200 Ming Dynasty cavalry, plus more than 200 cavalry from the North Korean side. The team of 400 people hurried towards the west gate of Hanyang City.
That was the agreed direction into the city.
Before he reached the city gate, he saw soldiers and horses from the opposite side coming to cover him up. Tang Yin was worried that something bad was going to happen.
However, the soldiers and horses were still prepared on the spot and used firecrackers and artillery to resist the invading North Korean soldiers and horses.
But after getting closer, the other party sent an envoy to sue for peace.
"They are from General Park." Pu Yuanzong's deputy informed.
Tang Yin did not step forward, but asked the North Koreans to go over and receive this group of people. After getting closer, he discovered that there were only fifty or sixty people in total.
"Why didn't you follow Park Yuanzong to attack Changdeok Palace?" Tang Yin felt that the army was in chaos, and now he also wanted to know the situation in the city.
Someone on the other side said something, and the translator brought the words to Tang Yin: "General Park led people to Changdeokgung Palace, but was killed by Im Shihong's people on the way. Now Im Shihong's people are counterattacking, and they fifty people He was supposed to be guarding the city gate, but when he realized that something serious had happened, he abandoned the city and fled."
Tang Yin cursed secretly in his heart.
This Pu Yuanzong really succeeds more than fails.
You are asked to guard the city gate first and cooperate with a thousand soldiers and horses to enter the city. You have to show off your strength. We all know that there are as many as 20,000 to 30,000 defenders in the city. How can you do it with only 400 or 500 of you?
"Enter the city!" Tang Yin had no intention of backing down.
Xu Jing said: "Bohu, let's forget it. You see, the city gate may not be able to be defended!"
Tang Yin said angrily: "Fire at me when you get to the city gate! If you can't get through the city gate, blow it up, or else will you come here to make a living?"
At the critical moment, Tang Yin finally stabilized the morale of the army.
A group of more than 400 people continued to fight towards the west gate. When they arrived at the city gate, they found that the city gate was open and it was quiet inside.
But it was Park Wonjong who summoned all the people at the city gate to the training academy and then attacked Changdeokgung Palace. The people stationed at the city gate ran out of the city, and the west gate of Hanyang City in North Korea seemed to be undefended.
This also left Tang Yin speechless.
Is this how your North Korean capital is defended? Even if the city gate is lost, other garrison troops will not know to come and occupy the city gate?
"Guard the city gate!"
Tang Yin didn't care whether it was an ambush or not. Anyway, the city gate was right there. The frontline troops were more than forty cavalrymen from the Ming Dynasty. They entered with twelve cannons. The first thing they did after entering the city was to move to both sides, and then Set up twelve light cannons, and fire two rounds first.
"Boom boom boom..."
It is better to say that firing cannons to clear the way is to boost the morale of the troops. After twenty-four cannons were fired, there were flames everywhere on the city, but no living thing was hit.
But this is a great encouragement to the troops who will enter the city later.
After Tang Yin entered the city and made sure to occupy the west gate of Hanyang City, he received a notice: "Sir, there are defenders, led by Lord Shen Shouqin, coming towards the city gate, but they heard the sound of cannons. After that, it has receded.”
Tang Yin also didn't expect that he would let people enter the city and fire a few cannons, accidentally hitting Li Deli and scaring away the people who were guarding the ground.
"How many troops?" Xu Jing asked from the side.
The messenger said: "Master Shen Suqin has led at least two to three thousand soldiers and horses, and they are all heading to Changdeokgung Palace now. It seems that they are going to stop General Park!"
It was Ren Shihong again and Shen Shouqin again. There were at least three or four thousand troops on both sides.
But Pu Yuanzong only brought three to four hundred troops...
Tang Yin needed to quickly judge the situation now, but he felt like his head was in a mess.
Should we fight or withdraw? This is a question.
If you withdraw, how will you deal with Zhang Zhou when you return?
If you continue to fight...
Even if all the six or seven hundred men and horses later enter the city, he will only have a thousand men and horses out of a dozen. If he fights against Shen Shouqin and Ren Shihong's men, it will be almost one against three or even five against them. With advanced weapons... that's only Limited to the two hundred Ming guards he personally led.
"If I had known earlier, it would have been great to bring the four thousand people left behind, as well as so many artillery pieces?" Xu Jing on the side was obviously reminding Tang Yin that now that we are unable to do so, we should run away.
Even Tang Yin was hesitant and even tended to withdraw from the city and wait for Xu Tu to make a big move.
Another messenger arrived: "There are seven to eight hundred soldiers and civilians in the city, carrying farm tools, etc., and they have joined forces with General Park to establish a foothold near the three streets of Changdeokgung Palace!"
"What?"
Tang Yin frowned.
Park Yuanzong's three or four hundred men went to complete the offensive and defensive battle with Ren Shihong and Shen Shouqin's three or four thousand men. Even if they were at a disadvantage, ordinary people in the city also joined the battle? A bunch of people carrying hoes and other things, less than a thousand people in total, can actually stand firm?
The North Korean defenders were nothing more than that.
Not to mention Tang Yin, even Xu Jing and others became more confident when they heard about this.
"Run for help!" Tang Yin ordered.
The North Korean gatekeeper general whose surname was Yin, and Tang Yin did not know his specific name, asked: "Sir, how many men and horses are left to guard the city gate?"
Tang Yin said: "Save it!"
When the heat came to a head, Tang Yin was already swearing.
Xu Jing reminded: "This is our retreat. If we don't keep anyone, how will the subsequent troops enter the city?"
Just as he was talking, a report came from behind: "The people outside the city are less than two miles away from the city gate..."
"No wait!" Tang Yin said, "If we don't rush to help, Pu Yuanzong is afraid that he will be outnumbered! The whole army rushes to help! Kill!"
"kill!"
The allied forces of Ming and North Korea who entered the city with Tang Yin were also confused by this time.
They haven't seen any decent resistance until now, and they don't know why North Korea's capital defense is so lax. However, apart from Ming soldiers, the coalition forces are North Korean border troops. They have never experienced what the North Korean royal city looks like, and they don't know what it is. It's like this today or it's always been like this. Anyway, let them attack the palace now and they can just run with it.
…
…
Before Tang Yin's reinforcements arrived, the troops led by Pu Yuanzong were indeed at the point where they could not support themselves.
When he learned that Lee was at Changdeok Palace that day, and the defense intensity of Changdeok Palace was not as strong as Gyeongbokgung Palace, he thought of capturing Changdeok Palace with lightning speed and deposing Lee, so he took the initiative The power lies entirely with North Korea.
While he was following Tang Yin to do great things, he still wanted to achieve things on his own.
He thought he could get a response from hundreds of people on the way to attack Changdeokgung Palace. As a result, the ordinary people in the city supported him very much... This was because Li had expanded the palace in the past two years and seized civilian girls, which made the people in the city complain.
But the defenders in the city, especially the generals of the old sect such as Ren Shihong and Shen Shouqin, were not vegetarians.
However, the defenders such as Ren Shihong and Shen Shouqin were obviously "blinded" by Pu Yuanzong.
In vain, they had no idea how many rebels there were, or even who was leading the troops. They only knew that the west gate of the city was captured for no reason, and it was said that an envoy from the Ming Dynasty outside the city was also leading troops to enter the city... …Hear the sound of the cannon again…
At this time, Park Wonjong's troops had not been completely wiped out. It was also because the defenders did not know the situation on the other side. At the critical moment, they only wanted to garrison Gyeongbokgung Palace and Changdeokgung Palace to ensure that the palace was not lost. After investigating the situation, others Several groups of people took back the lost west gate of the city.
Also confused were the defenders at the other gates in the city, as well as the troops stationed inside the city. Even the troops stationed outside the city didn't understand the situation.
As the saying goes...
Tang Yin and Pu Yuanzong led few troops, but because the entry into the city went so smoothly and the situation of attacking Changdeokgung Palace was formed, all parties did not dare to move without knowing the situation of the battle.
He was also afraid of being held accountable by Li afterwards.
…
But as time goes by.
Im Shihong's troops, who were stationed at Changdeokgung Palace and set up checkpoints to stop Park Wonjong, first discovered that the rebels were just a group of "paper tigers". In the team of less than a thousand people, there were actually many ordinary people who came out with hoes. Not all weapons are available.
Immediately Ren Shihong ordered a counterattack.
At this time, Shen Shouqin's vanguard troops had just come over and completed the encirclement of Pu Yuanzong's troops.
But at this moment, the "boom, boom, boom" sound of cannons came again.
It was also because the Ming Dynasty's artillery, especially the Hua Pao, had become so famous in the past year. Ren Shihong's troops had almost forced Pu Yuanzong's troops to a point of no return, but after hearing the sound of the cannon, they didn't even know where the artillery was going. No matter where they fought, they all had to retreat.
Because their mission was not to destroy Park Wonjong's rebels, but to hold on to Changdeok Palace and Gyeongbokgung Palace.
"Bang bang bang..."
Immediately, Ming soldiers opened the way with firecrackers, and Tang Yin personally led the cavalry through the streets and alleys to the position where Pu Yuanzong was commanding.
By the time Tang Yin arrived, Ren Shihong's troops had already retreated one street, and Shen Shouqin's reinforcements had also changed their route.
When Tang Yin arrived at the position, he found corpses lying everywhere... When he met Pu Yuanzong in the past, he found that Pu Yuanzong was covered in blood.
"There are still less than two hundred people left..."
The two hundred people mentioned were not the nearly four hundred regular troops he led, but the city residents who followed him in rebellion. However, many of the city residents saw that the wind was going in the wrong direction and fled temporarily or found a place to hide.
But in this battle, at least five to six hundred people died on Pu Yuanzong's side.
Tang Yin said: "Attack Changdeok Palace."
"Don't go." Pu Yuanzong said, "There are at least thousands of people on the other side. They have blocked the road and you can't get through."
Tang Yin said angrily: "Are you going to back down before the battle?"
Pu Yuanzong said: "If we wait for those four thousand reinforcements, there will still be a chance."
"It's impossible!" Tang Yin didn't know where the courage came from at this time, and said sternly, "If you exit the city, you will have no chance to fight in. Today, your errands have been completed! All that's left is to follow my orders and dispatch People and horses attack the city!"
Xu Jing got off his horse and saw the dead bodies on the ground. He didn't dare to move forward. He asked from a distance: "Can we still get reinforcements?"
"Yes, yes." Tang Yin seemed to be inspired, "Reinforcements! Now that we are deep in the city, if we can recruit more people to help, we can capture Changdeokgung Palace faster."
"Report...the follow-up troops have entered the city..."
"Very good, open the way with artillery, wait for the reinforcements to arrive, don't guard all the city gates, only attack Changdeokgung Palace!"
…
…
Tang Yin is now desperate.
There were not many men and horses on hand, but the defenders were obviously a little timid now. It was a critical moment in the struggle between the two sides, and Tang Yin knew that he would lose if he gave in.
As an envoy of the Ming Dynasty, he has 200 soldiers of the Ming Dynasty. Of course, there are still 100 people left in the coalition formations of Hwanghae Province and Gyeonggi Province. It is impossible to expect that group of troops to attack Hanyang City, but if it is captured, , four thousand troops entering the city can maintain order.
The key now is to see whether Changdeokgung Palace can be captured in one go.
"Disarm without killing!"
When Tang Yin led his troops out, he saw another group of people coming for reinforcements. This group of people was obviously not from Shen Shouqin or Ren Shihong.
What they were holding were just ordinary swords, and they didn't even have archers. When they heard the shouting here was in the language of the Ming Dynasty, they immediately knew that these were "rebels".
Immediately, everyone along the way was included almost "inexplicably".
"Boyin, it's me."
The people who came were not considered defenders, but temporary reinforcements. They were probably adapting to the situation. If they found that the defenders had the upper hand, they would also join the defenders.
But when they came over and saw that the coalition forces had established a foothold, they did not hesitate to join this side.
"Tang Shangchun, this person is the Cheng Xiyan I told you about. He is the Councilor of the Criminal Cao, and he has many old ministers as colleagues in the city!"
Pu Yuanzong originally had no intention of fighting and thought of running away.
Now that Cheng Xiyan has also arrived with "reinforcements", he feels a little more confident.
But when he learned that Cheng Xiyan only brought three to four hundred people, he hesitated again.
"How far is this place from Changdeokgung Palace?" Tang Yin was in North Korea, and his eyesight was really dark at night.
Cheng Xiyan said: "There are still three streets! But the guards and troops have already guarded several streets and they can't get in!"
"The Shenji Camp opens the way!"
Tang Yin didn't talk nonsense, mounted his horse and continued to direct the battle.
…
…
After Ren Shihong and Shen Shouqin's troops joined together, the number of troops under their command exceeded 5,000.
And they are all considered to be the elite of the North Korean Guards Army.
The so-called elites are just more archers and crossbowmen, and there are even fire-gun soldiers. Their strategy is not to kill them out, but to defend Changdeokgung Palace and Gyeongbokgung Palace.
But it was the soldiers of Ming Dynasty who came over to cover them up.
The two sides were still three to four hundred steps apart, that is, more than 200 meters away, and they were not yet within the attack range of the North Korean side.
However, there was a "boom, boom, boom" sound from the playback.
The shells came again.
And every time it hits the ground, it explodes into pieces.
The originally complete defensive formation was directly blown apart by artillery.
But in fact, the artillery was fired from four to five hundred meters away. In other words, as long as the defenders did not fight out, there was nothing they could do about the artillery.
What's even worse is... after being bombarded for a round, the defenders had already reorganized into a battle formation, preparing to use wooden shields to resist the Ming's crossbowmen and fire gunmen, but the Ming's fire guns also Launched.
"Bang bang bang..."
Two hundred meters away, they opened fire directly. The defenders in the front row were holding shields, but they immediately discovered that...the shields were completely useless when faced with fire bullets.
The soldiers in front were immediately beaten into sieves.
"kill!"
Immediately, the Ming Dynasty's cavalry used fire cannons and cooperated with the Korean archers in the coalition forces to quickly rush over.
A seemingly complete line of defense was directly opened with a large hole.
"ah!"
The battlefield is chaotic.
But one thing the royalist defenders did not expect was that they completely underestimated the huge lethality of firearms in such street fighting.
(End of chapter)
