Since Li Zicheng was defeated by the army led by Zhang Cheng at the gate of Kaifeng City, although most of his troops were still there, in order to solve the food problem of the army, he decided to divide his troops to collect food in Weishi County.
He originally thought that Zhang Cheng had found a bargain in Kaifeng and would not pursue him fiercely anymore. Therefore, the three thieves gathered food along the way and did not rush back to the Victory Village in Funiu Mountain.
But he never thought that after Zhang Cheng had collected all the military merits and rewards at the gates of Kaifeng City, he would pursue them all the way with Chen Yongfu and other Kaifeng generals' cavalry, and attack the rebel army's right and middle food teams.
After working hard to collect food, Zhang Cheng got another ready advantage!
Li Zicheng once wanted to gather most of the thieves in Xuzhou and set up an ambush, but the cavalry led by Zhang Cheng and Chen Yongfu turned out to be like blades, slashing away everything they went.
Then when they heard that Chen Jiugao had arrived with an infantry brigade, Chuang King Li Zicheng led the rebels to retreat, and fled back to Funiu Mountain from Xuzhou via Xiangcheng, Jiaxian, Baofeng, Lushan and other places.
Li Zicheng has been dormant in Funiu Mountain since then, never going out, but focusing on training the recruits he recruited in western Henan in preparation for the big move.
He was not seriously injured by an arrow shot by Chen De at the gates of Kaifeng City, and he recovered quickly. However, his left eye could no longer see. The old god Shang Jiong specially made an eyepatch out of old animal skins, with White sand is used as a lining to cover the left eye.
As for the rest of the rebel soldiers who participated in the siege of Kaifeng, except for those who were killed and disabled, most of them have recovered gradually. As veterans who have participated in actual combat, they have all been incorporated into each battalion of new recruits to serve as team commanders. leader.
Because there was so much grain, gold and silver looted in Luoyang in western Henan, it was almost enough for everyone to use for a year. Because Li Zicheng was already determined to conquer the world, he took out a large amount of grain and grain to help the victims around Funiu Mountain, thinking that Winning people's hearts.
At the same time, he also recruited a large number of hungry recruits from surrounding villages and towns, constantly expanding his power.
By the end of April, in the Red Lady's Women's Battalion alone, more than 500 women in the camp were now equipped with war horses, and there were also dozens of mules and donkeys carrying baggage.
Within the nearly 100 miles near Laoying's Victory Village, no matter here or there, in the depths of the mountains and valleys, you can see the newly recruited soldiers training intensively everywhere, and the sound of killing is deafening.
Chuang King Li Zicheng still followed his custom when he was not at war. In addition to handling various military affairs, he also asked Niu Jinxing to explain the classics and "Zizhi Tongjian" to him as always.
April and May of each year are the time when the harvest is lean as the saying goes. Although there is a lot of grain stored in Funiu Mountain, due to the increasing number of people and horses, coupled with the relief of the people and the gathering of people's hearts, the grain is consumed quickly.
People in several counties around Funiu Mountain live on wild vegetables in the mountains. They eat wild alfalfa, elm money, reed roots and purple flowers of wild vines, and then eat all kinds of edible leaves and tender grasses, even elm bark. They were all peeled off and eaten.
Even so, there are still old people and children lying dead on the roadside. This is despite Li Zicheng's relief, which shows the seriousness and tragedy of the famine in various parts of Henan Province.
The king of Chuang, Li Zicheng, was worried that if things went on like this, he would be left with nothing. Although he also collected grain along the way when he fled from Kaifeng, Zhang Cheng robbed most of it along the way, so his gains were not much.
In order to cope with the current situation and to train troops, he also began to continuously send small groups of troops to nearby counties and counties to collect grain. Although he conquered several counties, he did not gain much. King Chuang often discussed with Niu Jinxing, Song Xiance and others. , we must capture the wealthy and prosperous Kaifeng to solve the difficulty.
Because the last attack on Kaifeng failed, the soldiers of the invading army were worried for a while. The flame that was originally rising after the attack on Luoyang was extinguished because of the temporary defeat at Kaifeng City.
In order to prepare for the second attack on Kaifeng, Li Zicheng even adopted Song Xiance's suggestion. He ordered Zhang Nai to start setting up a special firearms battalion and intensify training.
Li Zicheng, the King of Chuang, would go out to watch the exercises every now and then. He would stay in the firearms camp for a long time every time, and sometimes he would light the cannons himself if he felt like it.
In the firearms camp under Zhang Nai's command, the sound of cannons rumbled every day, resounding throughout the mountains. Every time the smoke rose and dispersed in the forest, it would cover the green mountain scenery.
…………
On this day, the Chuang Army Firearms Battalion cast two new cannons. Because this was the first cannon made by the Chuang Army, Li Zicheng was particularly concerned about this. He specifically chose today as an auspicious day to come and watch the cannon test in person. .
Not only Chuang Wang came to the firearms camp, but also Liu Zongmin, Niu Jinxing, Song Xiance, Li Yan, Tian Jianxiu, Gao Yigong and many other generals came to the firearms camp to watch the test firing of the new cannon.
An offering table was set up in front of the cannon. There was a red paper tablet with the words "The Cannon General's God's Table" written on it. Even the cannon was covered with red paper that said "Good luck with the cannon." There were also paper offerings of three animals in front of the tablet. A pot of sake, an incense burner, and a pair of earthenware candlesticks.
Military strategist Song Xiance and the leader of the firearm camp Zhang Nai washed their hands and burned incense. After bowing three times to the God of Artillery, Song Xiance silently recited a few prayers, then grabbed the wine flask, filled the cup, and poured it on the ground.
Immediately, the four cannonmen with red crosses knelt down to salute King Chuang and the generals. Then they stood up and walked to the cannons. Two people stood in front of each cannon. They knelt down reverently and kowtowed three times, reciting to themselves. After giving a toast, he stood up and poured wine on the ground.
Then the soldiers stepped forward and removed the offering table, and the gunners began to load gunpowder. One person first loaded a few kilograms of gunpowder from the muzzle, and the other gunner used a long pestle to poke the gunpowder into the bottom of the gun breech, and inserted it into the hole near the bottom of the gun breech. The fuse made of paper and gunpowder is continued to be charged, tightened, and loaded with iron bullets.
Zhang Nai asked Chuang Wang and others to step back ten feet, but he only stepped back three or four feet, raised the small flag in his hand, waved it, and shouted loudly: "Point!"
The fuses of the two cannons were ignited at the same time, and the four gunners immediately retreated, nervously standing in front of Zhang Nai, watching the rapidly burning fuses.
The fire line originally made a chirping sound while burning. When the part outside the blast hole was burned, the small sound suddenly stopped, and everyone's heart shrank.
For an extremely brief moment, everything was eerily silent.
Suddenly, there was a flash of red light at the cannon hole, followed by a large burst of fire, and two huge roars. The ground underfoot jumped, the mountains shook, and suddenly the front of the cannon was filled with smoke.
When the cannon made a loud noise, all the people nearby watching the test firing of the new cannon instinctively ducked their waists and hid behind large rocks or trees.
Even the four gunners responsible for the test firing squatted down and exclaimed: "Little Master Zhang..."
Zhang Nai looked nervously at the two cannons. When the red light flashed, he quickly opened his mouth but did not avoid it. After the cannons fired, he quickly ran towards the cannons and touched them with his hands. Then he felt relieved. He turned around happily and shouted:
"It's successful! It's successful! It didn't explode, and it didn't get too hot. Okay, brothers, let's do it again!"
