Haisheng Mingdi

Chapter 256

The red-clothed cannon in the city of Hangzhou costs [-] catties and costs a few thousand taels of silver, but sells a thousand catties of rice?

But Xu An quickly came to his senses, now the Mihei market in Hangzhou City is worth ten taels of silver for a stone, and there is even a price without a market. This is not just silver, it is also a ration of life.

"Nowadays, everyone knows a lot of things, but it's just tacit understanding. Who can be sure that the rice obtained by selling the damaged cannon will not be shared by other admirals?"

Now Hangzhou is under siege, and the two sides are facing each other across the city.

During the day, they can scold each other across the air, but at night they secretly smuggle and trade.

Not only damaged cannons can be exchanged for rice, but other damaged cotton armor, iron armor and cloth face armor can also be exchanged for rice. As for the intact artillery, swords, guns and armor, it is even more valuable.

"I heard that the pacesetters in the town have basically sold some of their equipment."

Xu An was extremely shocked. He thought that they mixed sorghum into the food they distributed to the people, beat the chaff, and even sand and soil, which was already powerful enough. Who would have thought that the soldiers guarding the city would actually sell their own stuff? .

I can understand why you sell damaged cannons, but you also sell the good ones, what do you think?

Zhu Guofan looked left and right, and then called Xu An closer.

"Master Xu, Hangzhou seems hopeless, we have to think of a way out in advance."

Xu Anru lost his concubine, he was just a student in Hangzhou, he failed the Ming Dynasty exam, when the Qing army came, he greeted him actively, donating food and money, finally he was appreciated, and he was awarded a small official.After the former push officer was killed by Boluo for corruption, he used money to seek this position.

Although the rank of this official is not high, Xu An is used to the feeling of being an official, and the power in his hands can make people addicted, not to mention how much money he has made by taking advantage of his position.

"I went to see Admiral Tian today, and he was drunk again. He whipped some officials and scolded them for not doing enough to collect food. How can there be food in Hangzhou?"

Zhu Guofan pulled Xu An there and talked slowly, talking about Tian Xiong's history, how he carried Emperor Hongguang and ran to the Qing camp to surrender after Huang Degong died in Wuhu.

"Because of this matter, Admiral Tian would never dare to descend to Ming again, and Daming would never accept him, so now he is determined to defend Hangzhou and block bad news, just wanting to drag us to be buried with him."

During this time, Xu An was often scolded by Tian Xiong, and he was very dissatisfied with this arrogant army leader. Now when he heard that this guy wanted to drag everyone to die together because he couldn't surrender, he couldn't help gnashing his teeth Cursed, "This guy with a rotten neck is really a rotten heart."

"Master Xu, we have to save ourselves!"

"Master Zhu, how can I save myself?" Xu An asked quickly.

Zhu Guofan smiled slightly, "I used to be a Tongzhi in Huzhou, so Master Xu must know too?"

Xu An nodded quickly.

"I also had some official achievements in Huzhou. When the Qing army went south, the magistrate abandoned the city and left. The officers and soldiers could not defend. For the sake of the people in the city, I had to take the lead in dedicating the city to surrender. Afterwards, the people in the city were saved... ···”

Seeing Zhu Guofan's righteous face, Xu An felt a little disdainful in his heart. No one in the Jiangnan officialdom knew that you, Zhu Guofan, were cowardly and cowardly. Whoever came to surrender had repeated four or five times in Huzhou.

But at this time, Xu An could not care about those.

"My lord, could it be that we surrender?"

Zhu Guofan nodded, "Up to now, there is no one to help, only self-help. As for Tian Xiong's thousands of soldiers, they are almost sold out now, and the trenches of the Ming army outside the city have almost been dug to the bottom of the city. The moat has also filled in a few roads, does Tian Xiong have any countermeasures?"

"Apart from drinking and whipping people, what else did he do?"

"I reckon that the Ming army is almost ready to attack the city. Next, they may push cannons up to bombard the city. When the city wall is blasted, the Ming army will charge in with their shields. We just have to The defense line of the city wall is left, and it cannot be defended at all."

"Should we wait for them to attack before surrendering?" Xu An was afraid of death, and also worried that if he surrendered now, the Qing army would return to settle the case.

"When they come in, it will be too late for us to surrender. When the time comes, they will be chopped down with a knife, but we will not regret taking the medicine."

Xu An wanted to cry, he spent half his life working hard, finally became a promotion official in Hangzhou, and made so much money, he hadn't had time to enjoy it yet.

After a long time, he said dejectedly, "But now the city defense is guarded by Tian Xiong's pacesetters, even if we really want to surrender, we have no chance."

Zhu Guofan nodded, "The key lies in Tian Xiong. If Tian Xiong is gone, do you think there are still people obstructing us?"

"Tian Xiong is still so young and strong, why don't you just say it?"

"There are naturally many ways." Zhu Guofan leaned closer and whispered.

After a long time, Xu An's eyes widened.

"Grand Xu, you are dying, why are you still hesitating?"

Xu An shivered, "But this is too risky, what if it doesn't work?"

"In the current situation, there is still a way to survive if you succeed, and you will die if you don't succeed. If you shrink your head and stretch your head, why hesitate?"

······
Night falls.

Zhu Guofan, the prefect of Hangzhou, hosted a banquet for the admiral Tian Xiong, as well as a group of left-behind officials in Hangzhou.

Five tastes of food, three rounds of wine.

"Master Junmen, I heard that both Huzhou and Jiaxing have been captured by the Ming army?"

Tian Xiong was depressed and half drunk, he just snorted coldly, "Where did you hear the gossip?"

Another official asked, "My lord, I heard that Governor Zhang and Governor Xiao and the others went to Jiangning to move reinforcements, but they were defeated by the whole army in Huzhou?"

"Impossible!"

"Tian Junmen, I heard that the Ming army from outside the city sent an ultimatum to open the city and surrender within three days, otherwise the city walls of Hangzhou will be bombarded with cannons, and when the time comes to enter the city, all civil servants and generals of high rank will be beheaded. thing?"

"Nothing."

All the officials asked me one sentence at a time.

Tian Xiong threw the cup on the ground, and slammed the table with his palm, "You guys are having a good feast today. Are you inviting me to drink, or are you here to interrogate me?"

Zhu Guofan got up, "Junmen, in fact, everyone already knew that the soldiers who raised the bid were smuggled with the Ming army outside the city every night, and they also knew the current situation outside. Hujia fell, Hangzhou was also in danger, Governor Zhang abandoned the city and fled, but the result was still halfway After being laid down to death, Su Song is too busy to take care of himself now. Even Grand Master Hong was reprimanded by the court and sent to Huguang urgently. He heard that Le Ke Dehun, the king of Shuncheng County in Jiangning, had rushed upstream to rescue Jingzhou with the Eight Banners stationed in the south of the Yangtze River. Wuchang is gone, the imperial court doesn’t care about our Hangzhou now,”

"Junmen, in the current situation, Hangzhou is isolated and helpless. There is no food in the city and no support outside the city. How can we hold on?"

"It's better to surrender!"

Tian Xiong was furious, "Well, you bastards, you want to surrender."

"Junmen, the Ming army is about to attack the city, we are facing a dead end."

Tian Xiong pushed Zhu Guofan away, "Go away!"

"Junmen, think twice."

Tian Xiong's eyes were red, "Who dares to block me, die!"

Zhu Guofan winked at Xu An and other officials, and everyone gritted their teeth and surrounded them.

Tian Xiong was extremely angry, and was about to punch, when he suddenly felt a pain in his waist.

Zhu Guofan, Xu An and several other officials gathered around took out a short knife from their sleeves, and stabbed Tian Xiong fiercely in the waist.

Tian Xiong was gasping for breath, and blood gushed out of his mouth, making him unable to speak a word, his eyes gradually became slack, and finally he fell into Zhu Guofan's arms.

The room was silent.

Half an hour later, the officers of the various battalions in Hangzhou rushed to the government office, and seeing Tian Xiong lying in a pool of blood without a sound, all of them changed their expressions drastically.

"The admiral committed suicide and died for the country?"

All the generals had expressions of disbelief.

Zhu Guofan stepped forward and explained carefully, saying that it was a banquet tonight. Talking about the current situation, the governor and governor broke through to move rescuers and was ambushed and destroyed in Huzhou. Jiaxing in Huzhou fell immediately, and Hangzhou was completely isolated and became an isolated city.

But Su Song is now being harassed and attacked by the Ming army, and he can't take care of himself. Even the Eight Banners stationed in Jiangning have rushed to Wuchang upstream to rescue under the leadership of Pingnan General Shuncheng County King Le Ke Dehun, and no one paid any attention to Hangzhou.Even Hong Chengchou has been transferred to Huguang.

Hangzhou has become an isolated city, but the Ming army outside the city has already made preparations to attack the city, and it will start to attack the city immediately. The current situation in Hangzhou cannot be defended at all.

"Junmen said that Hangzhou could no longer be defended. He said that everyone can open the city and descend to the Ming Dynasty, but he once lost Hongguang to the Qing Dynasty, so he can't turn back. If you draw your sword and kill yourself, I won't be in a hurry to stop you."

Everyone looked at Zhu Guofan's words in blank dismay.

Tian Xiong just lay on the ground with his eyes wide open.

The generals Xu Xin, Fu Changchun, and guerrilla Liu Deng were so shocked that their scalps tingled.

Zhu Guofan said again, "I also know that the generals have been with Tian Junmen for many years, and they are brothers and sisters. It is an accident that this happened. The dead are dead, but the living still have to move forward with grief. The current crisis in Hangzhou has no solution. Tian Once the military gate is gone, what will happen to us?"

Xu Xin glanced at Zhu Guofan and others, full of doubts, but he was not in a hurry to express his opinion.

"Before Junmen committed suicide, he left a last word to let us open the city and surrender. It also gave hundreds of thousands of people in the city a way of life, and also a way of life for you brothers who have fought side by side with him for many years. He once carried Emperor Hongguang into the Qing camp. Well, the Ming army can't spare him, but now that he's dead, this account will be written off, and you will no longer be implicated."

Fu Changchun looked at Tian Xiong on the ground, thoughtful.

"Now that Kaesong has surrendered, can Lu Jianguo accept me?"

"If the general has this intention, I am willing to go out of the city to meet Lu Jianguo to discuss peace and surrender." Zhu Guofan said.

The night in Hangzhou was extremely long.

dawn.

A white flag was erected on the south gate of Hangzhou, and then the city gate opened, and a group of people came out of the city holding the white flag.

The city gate then closed.

"I am Zhu Guofan, the prefect of Hangzhou. On behalf of 500,000 soldiers and civilians in Hangzhou, I am here to meet Lu Jianguo. Please surrender!"

A group of Jinwu cavalry rushed to surround them. Zhu Shengli laughed when he heard Zhu Guofan's words, "Follow me!"

(End of this chapter)