Gao Mingheng was extremely concerned about Kaifeng city defense affairs. He came to the Ximen Tower early in the morning to take charge. He saw the bandits and hungry people outside the city busy building ladders for siege, and he also removed the door panels inside and outside Xiguan and concentrated them. When I got up, I knew that the bandits would definitely attack the city today.
He ordered Huang Shu, the official of Kaifeng Prefecture, to bring boxes of silver, most of which were twelve taels per ingot, and a few boxes of fifty taels per ingot. Gao Mingheng announced loudly: "Immediately inform the soldiers and civilians guarding the walls on all sides. Everyone, but if you injure a thief, you will be rewarded with ten taels of silver, if you kill a thief, you will be rewarded with thirty taels of silver, and if you take the head of a thief, you will be rewarded with fifty taels of silver."
The power of money is truly endless!
As the news spread, waves of cheers came from the city walls. The soldiers and civilians were eager to kill the bandits, and even cut off their heads in exchange for silver.
Wang Xie stood next to Gao Mingheng and said, "Sir, it looks like the thieves really want to attack the Ximen side."
Gao Mingheng nodded, which was consistent with everyone's previous guesses. Li Zicheng also felt that there was no urn on the west gate side and it was easy to capture. He just heard him say: "Wang Zhixian, you lead a team of social soldiers to defend at the corner of the west and north walls. The city wall is slightly shorter than the other three sides. If the thieves attack the north gate with force, you can station there and support from both sides."
Wang Xie hesitated a little and said: "Then the defensive force on Ximen's side will be weak."
"It doesn't matter. The eight hundred guards from Cao Chengfeng and Li Changshi are stationed near the tower and are available at any time. You don't need to worry about me."
When Wang Xie heard this, he led a group of social soldiers and rushed to the north gate.
At this moment, more than ten knights from the bandit formation outside Xiguan rushed out on horseback. Each of them held a large flag in their hands, with the word "Chuang" written on it in bright red and eye-catching.
They rushed to the place within a hundred steps outside the city wall, rode their horses and shouted loudly: "King Chuang ordered the soldiers and civilians in the city to quickly tie up the King of Zhou and the various officials and detain them, and surrender the city as soon as possible.
King Chuang's army specializes in rescuing the people, only killing corrupt officials and evil gentry, and does not use knives on the people in the city. However, if you don't know what is good and what is wrong, you want to use your own strength to resist the heavenly soldiers. When the city is destroyed, you and others will be punished.
To resist stubbornly is equivalent to committing suicide. Quickly kidnap the officials and surrender the city. King Chuang will have his own reward! "
These people were the loudest people in the army. They rode along the city wall, shouting loudly all the way.
Gao Mingheng looked at them with disdain on their faces. He turned to Li Yingchun, the left chief of the Zhou Palace next to him, and said: "There are some people who are good at shooting among your highness's guards."
Of course, Li Yingchun understood what he meant. He turned around and ordered the guards not far away in a deep voice. Within a moment, a dozen armored guards rushed out and followed the dozen horse thieves along the city wall.
The thieves outside the city were not aware of it. They still rode their horses slowly under the city wall, shouting loudly the oral instructions of King Chuang Li Zicheng.
Gao Mingheng vaguely heard the sound of several bowstrings vibrating, then saw a flash of cold light, and several arrows flying down from the city wall. In response, two horse thieves rolled off their horses.
There were cheers on the city wall, and the morale of the soldiers was greatly boosted. They happened to see several horse thieves who had also been shot but were not off their horses. They ran over to snatch the fallen horse thieves back.
For a moment, the soldiers and civilians on the city wall drew their bows and arrows and shot at the traitors outside the city, but they still snatched back the bodies of the two traitors who were shot into hedgehogs.
"Reward, reward quickly. For killing two thieves, each will be rewarded with thirty taels of silver; for wounding four thieves, each will be rewarded with ten taels of silver."
…………
Li Zi set up a horse formation and took in everything under the city wall. He said angrily: "Zhang Nai, attack the city."
Zhang Nai rode his horse back to the main formation without saying a word. Within a moment, the formation of bandit soldiers began to surge forward. They roared at the top of their lungs and drove thousands of hungry people slowly towards the west wall of Kaifeng.
Li Zicheng looked at the people who seemed to be high-ranking officials and some armored sergeants on the west gate tower, and asked Song Xiance and others around him: "Military advisor, Mr. Li, have you known this Gao Mingheng before? What is he like?" People?"
Both of them said they did not know this person, but Song Xiance did not know what he was like. He looked at Li Yan and motioned for him to speak.
Li Yan didn't make any excuses, and just listened to him say: "I have never met Gao Mingheng, but I know something about him. He was a Jinshi in the early years of Chongzhen. He started as a county magistrate and was quite capable. He helped the people and controlled floods. He supervises all officials and strictly enforces political discipline, which can be regarded as being loyal to his duties. He is actually one of the few officials in the Ming Dynasty who dared to serve."
Li Zicheng did not speak. He looked at the bandits rushing up like a tide and said: "Yesterday, the city wall in the north seemed to be slightly lower than the other three sides, and the moat was also drier than the other three sides."
He turned his head and said: "Shuangxi, go to the north and tell your Uncle Erhu that his attack on the city should be more serious. Not only should the defenders at the north gate be restrained, but we should also seize the opportunity and try to break into the city."
…………
Liu Chengzu originally came from a middle-class family in Liujiaji, south of Zhongmou County. When the bandits crossed the border, he was unable to escape and was taken to Kaifeng City along with other common people.
Fortunately, the intruders were no longer as cruel as before. All the useless old, weak, women and children were abandoned, and only the slightly stronger men were taken with them to serve as laborers in the army, and they were not fully fed.
Now that Li Zicheng had the ambition to conquer the world, he began to gradually win over the people and cultivate his popularity. Although everything he passed through was still robbed, some food rations would be left for the old and weak.
And the kidnapped people can still eat half full. After all, he, Lao Li, is no longer short of money and food. Now he is almost the richest landowner in Henan.
Therefore, Liu Chengzu did not have to be separated from his family. Now his wife brought a twelve-year-old son and a seven-year-old daughter with her, and an old servant of the family was also being held hostage.
Liu Chengzu, who was originally an heir of poetry and calligraphy, originally had dozens of hectares of farmland in his family. His ancestor was the largest landowner in Liujiaji, but his father's generation was involved in a lawsuit.
The reason is also very simple. One of his father's concubines died suddenly at home, but an uncle in his natal family was a gangster in Zhongmu County. He colluded with the county magistrate, Zhao Zhonghuan, and sued the Liu family for abusing his concubines. A death sentence.
The county government didn't care who came in and took people. Liu Chengzu was young and inexperienced at that time. When he tried to stop him, he injured two more government servants and the situation got out of hand.
In the end, the family property was sold and a lot of money was spent to resolve the matter and save the old father from prison, but there was only less than a hundred acres of farmland left in the family.
His old father was also tortured terribly in prison, and because he was wronged because of this incident, he always had anger in his heart and had nowhere to vent. He fell ill and died in depression. A few years later, his mother also became ill because of missing his father. Pass away and live forever.
Liu Chengzu hated corrupt officials and originally hoped that the bandits would kill him to avenge him, but now he hates the bandits and the rebel king Li Zicheng.
He roared in his heart: "What's the matter of 'not paying for food when King Chuang comes'? They've all been robbed by thieves, so what else can we use to pay for food? It's not just food, the bandits also rob people. How can this mean 'killing officials but not injuring them'?" civil'?"
The old servant Uncle Wu bumped him lightly and said: "Sir, you will be behind me later, but you must not run around blindly. The young lady and the children are still counting on you!"
