Jingming

Chapter 486: This battle is a spiritual attack

The advantage of a civilization that has existed long enough and has detailed and rich historical materials is that if there are really talented people who read more history books and understand them thoroughly, then there will be nothing new under the sun.

The Ming Dynasty said that it would advance by sea and land, but how many troops did it have to siege Seoul? How many defenders are there?

Yin Yuanheng had the advantage of geographical location and military strength, but he never dared to go out of the city to resist the enemy. He had already exposed everything: he could not withstand any defeat at all.

Defending the city, as long as the city is not broken, even if you win, you can still hold on.

In his judgment, if the Ming army did not take the initiative to launch a general attack, they would be defeated if they retreated from the city.

Facing such an opponent, Zhang Jing felt no pressure.

Although the Ming Dynasty was strong, North Korea could not be said to be very weak.

Yin Yuanheng didn't even dare to break this situation, which only meant that the city now relied on strong pressure.

All it takes is a fuse to completely change the situation.

The previous massacre of the Shilin faction did not achieve this.

In the final analysis, can those scholars who hold official positions, generals, and ordinary people in the city urinate into the same pot?

We are all of different classes.

"It's worse than before the Ming army was reorganized. Most of them were conscripted into the army." Zhang Jing said to Song Liangchen again, "Where's the king's division? All recruits. The weather is getting cold, so shout louder during the drill. Tell everyone, the expedition was originally There will be extra money, and there will be rewards for winning. Now, the longer you fight, the more extra money you will get, and you can still win a complete victory just by relying on momentum and strategy. Therefore, you need to shout louder to let the defenders in the city know. Master Wang’s morale remains unabated!”

Some soldiers were sent to help build and guard Incheon City and the maritime food route, but there are still more than 20,000 troops outside Seoul.

Among the more than 20,000 "armies", the only ones who truly belong to the elite recruits of the Ming Dynasty are the 6,000 from the Jiliao Border Region and the 2,000 marines from the Beiyang Marine Division. The remaining more than 10,000 actually belong to the Sea-Land Great Wall Company and the Shipping Bureau. They are only here to build momentum and undertake logistics and other tasks.

Coupled with other Ming forces on Ping'an Road and Huanghaidao, the total is less than one-third of North Korea's remaining military strength. The total number of standing elite troops dispatched by the Ming Dynasty to North Korea was only fifteen thousand.

But so many people came through the new military disciplines of the Ming Dynasty.

Nowadays, one is to maintain morale, and the other is to keep out the cold. The drill consists of rehearsing the advance and retreat of military formations, and walking and walking.

The problem is that the momentum is completely different.

“One—two—three—four—stand still!”

"Whistle left and right, the formation of mandarin ducks and plum blossoms spreads out!"

"Three drums before the war!"

"Dong dong dong dong dong——", "Fight for the Ming Dynasty!"

"Dong dong dong dong dong——", "Loyal to the Ming Dynasty, loyal to Your Majesty!"

"Dong dong dong dong dong——", "Defend the people and win the battle bravely!"

Thinking about the smiley words of the general officers before, the ordinary recruits of the Ming Dynasty felt happy.

It turns out that the reason for besieging but not attacking was so that they could get more extra money for the expedition. Indeed, one more month means five more silver coins.

Although you can't earn other military merits like you did on Ping An Road and Huang Haidao before, at least it's not dangerous.

If we could capture Seoul in this way, wouldn't it be a great achievement in conquering the enemy's capital? Such great achievements have not appeared in the Ming Dynasty for many years.

Therefore, the generals of the Seoul garrison looked at the Ming army outside the city with a pale expression and changed their tactics.

They were practicing under the city, and the shouts were loud.

This is not the same as before when there were only two to three hundred "surrender spies" in each of the three directions shouting words in Korean that made the people in the city unstable. This is an army of over 10,000 people. Sometimes hundreds of people shout slogans, and sometimes the whole army from three directions rises up and shouts in unison as if comparing their voices and responding to each other.

With this sound, the war drums on the city wall could no longer suppress it.

Most of them couldn't understand what they were shouting, but they could only hear the powerful momentum.

Is that today? Is the big one coming?

It's a pity that it's just practice.

The drills were scary: the heavily armed elite soldiers of the Bird Cannon Formation and the Yuanyang Formation also conducted cross-country training around the camp, and the troops passed neatly outside the city wall.

Mistakenly thinking that this was an offensive, the defenders fired arrows on the three walls.

They responded with a few shots as usual every day. The shells passed over the training team from the air and hit the city wall more than a mile away. Too far away, not enough damage, but full of torture.

On the first day when Zhang Jing and Song Liangchen changed their routines again, the Seoul defenders were frightened and were always on guard against the imminent decisive battle.

The next day, Queen Wen Ding felt more and more in need of stimulation and numbness, and Pu Yu was hollowed out.

On the third day, the Ming army seemed to enjoy it and became more and more proficient in shouting. Even the soldiers in the north and west of the city started military songs.

The weather is naturally getting colder, but the enemy troops are becoming more and more active, and the defenders have been mentally stressed for a long time, so the taste is naturally different.

On the fourth day, Yin Yuanheng's face turned pale: the relays took turns in three directions. This time, the Ming army often had thousands of people shouting at the same time, and they could no longer be disturbed by any sound.

He seemed to be using Korean that he had just learned, and the content of the shout was: The Ming army defends the people and comes to Korea to rescue the brothers. After months of siege in Seoul, it’s not that we can’t win!

He didn't know who helped Ming Jun translate, but the words he shouted were catchy and rhymed.

The entire sky over Seoul echoed with the chants of the Ming demons.

On the fifth day, there were more words.

[After winning the battle, don’t enter the city; don’t rob goods and don’t rob people! 】

[If you are an official and don’t care about the life and death of the people, you might as well throw them into a big frying pan! 】

[We are paid as soldiers, so you bring your own clothes and food. In the face of the war, you block it and protect the general from fleeing to the east. 】

【…】

No one in Gyeongbokgung Palace looked good.

"We can't do this anymore!" a general said angrily, "I'm willing to go to war so that they can't fool around like this without any scruples!"

The voice is still coming from far away: [We have been surrounding Seoul for several months, it’s not that we can’t win...]

The Korean civil and military forces have never fought such a battle this time.

We are all men, fighting hand to hand!

In the past, these tactics were only used against the other party's decision-makers.

A estrangement.

There are also some people with high cultural standards who can still stay here. They felt heavy, remembering the story of "besieged on all sides" in Chinese classics.

Now the Ming army is driving a wedge between North Korean generals and soldiers, as well as North Korean civil and military officials and ordinary people.

is that useful?

I'm afraid it's useful...

Yin Yuanheng said flatly: "No! Isn't it just their trick to provoke you to go out of the city to ask for a fight? If Baoming can really win easily, why bother to go to such trouble? So many soldiers are here on an expedition, and it costs nothing to fire cannons every day? Tens of thousands of people are fed and clothed. No money? For a strong city like Seoul, they want to cause chaos in the city just because they can’t storm it! Even if they surround the city from all sides and cut off the food and grass in the city, they can’t do it. Otherwise, wouldn’t it be easier to cause chaos?”

[...At present, we are blocking the battle, and we must protect the general to the death and escape to the east...]

After he finished speaking, another sentence like this came out, and the scene seemed very awkward.

It's like explaining: I know that you all have your own thoughts, and many of you have already planned to abandon the city and escape if the war goes bad, leaving you with a way to survive.

Anyway, if you escape and the Ming army comes to defend the city, will you still be able to capture it? The matter is settled.

"Lord Ling Yi Zheng, this is really not the way to go." Another general said, "At least some of the food that has just been shipped must be eaten by the soldiers. The Ming army has changed their tactics again. No one knows whether they will divide their troops. Go and cut off the grain road to the east."

"...The truth will be arranged!"

Although Yin Yuanheng nodded, he felt a little depressed.

What needs more assurance now are the civil and military officials who are suppressed by him in the city. Naturally, the morale of the military cannot be disrupted, but the homes of these officials and their relatives also need to ensure food supplies.

If even they can't guarantee it, there will be chaos immediately.

As for other civilians... they are under siege and fighting. If they don't starve to death, they have to burn incense.

Fortunately, the Ming army now doesn't know whether it is because they don't have enough troops, or they are afraid that if they divide their troops to surround the east side, there will be danger in other directions. If the north and west are cut off by the defenders, there will also be big problems in the transportation of their grain and grass.

Yin Yuanheng could only think about it like this, so he encouraged him again: "Food is not a problem! Baoming can't securely surround all sides, so he can only try to scare us. They must defend the north and west, and the rest The troops can only barely surround the south side. On these three sides, the city wall is built against the mountain, which is easy to defend and difficult to attack. The best to attack is the east side. But since the grain road from Gangwon Province to Gyeonggi Province is unobstructed, as long as we work together, Seoul will never be destroyed!”

No matter how the Ming army changed their tactics, Yin Yuanheng and his brother still managed to maintain stability in both civil and military directions during the city defense war.

This confrontation has been going on for so long, and everyone seems to be used to it.

Even if the Ming army changed their tactics again, they still only shouted words.

It is said that if you are surrounded by ten, you will be surrounded. Although the Ming army was stronger, with such a small force, it always allowed the grain road east of Seoul to remain open. The Korean civil and military could not think of any other reason except that it could not be done.

Accustomed to being arrogant and domineering, it is indeed easy for them to ignore the suffering of so many lowly civilians in Seoul.

Food is always coming in from the east city gate. Where does the food go?

"I can't buy it! The price of food has increased six times, but I still can't buy it..."

You are only allowed to go out to buy some daily necessities at a few points, but food is becoming increasingly difficult to buy.

It can't be said that Yin Yuanheng didn't arrange these things. He managed the management of his subordinates and divided some grains and ordered the grain stores to sell them to each household led by his subordinates to buy them together. But how could he control the details of the actual operation? ?

How many wealthy families need to be prepared just in case?

In addition to the military rations directly arranged by the people and the families of important officials, the food flowing into the private sector can really be bought by ordinary families. It is very little and the price is ridiculously high.

Obviously, the east side is still open, but because they are afraid that the people in the city will escape, there will be no civilian power available during the fierce battle later, and ordinary people in the city are not allowed to leave the city at all.

In the past, there were fields around Seoul, and many people in the city had relatives outside the city, so they could send food and vegetables to reduce the cost of living.

When there was chaos last year, many people from outside the city fled to the city. In the past, it was just small families struggling to survive and earn more money in the city, but the number of people in the family who want to eat has increased. We can't go out now, the fields outside are barren and there is no harvest, and there aren't many places to plant in the city. Where will the food come from?

Seeing that the rice jar at home had bottomed out, the wife panicked and said: "Dad, the father of the child, you can buy it...the boss..."

"I want to give the yamen master a benefit so that he can buy everything when he is taken there. I know!" The male host was very angry. "I gave him those things to pawn, and I only got so little money back. I have already given him all the benefits." ! What else can we give him?"

"Then let me go to Mr. Park's house!" The wife's eyes were filled with tears. "They said that Mr. Park's house is short of servants and has porridge to drink."

"No! How can I..."

He knew that his wife was a famous beauty in Chengbeidong.

She married him without any regrets and just gave birth to a child for him until he was two years old. Even though she had been farming in Chengbeidong, her face did not age much.

They fled to the city together and relied on his past work experience in the city to find a small house in his employer's house to take refuge.

The boss bought grain, but when he asked a subordinate in the yamen to help him pawn the few valuables left in the house in exchange for money, the subordinate saw his wife. With that look in his eyes, he knew that it was actually the subordinate who was making things difficult for him.

The boss cannot offend the subordinate, otherwise the boss will not be able to buy food.

"My child! What will happen to the child if there is no food?" Kneeling on the ground, his wife held his hand in tears, "Just let me go. No matter what, you must survive first. I believe in you If you can save me in the future, you will save me..."

Both of them knew what kind of fate they would encounter once they sold themselves out, but what could they do?

Another day, the sounds echoing over Seoul took on more variety.

When the Li family dynasty was first established, there was a kind of folk song in the Korean people who were in chaos.

This kind of ballad was slowly sung and adapted frequently, and eventually it became known as "Arirang" in later generations.

At this moment, this ballad is not the future version, but it does not prevent Zhang Jing from arranging for the soldiers to learn to sing it. It can also be considered as giving the soldiers something to do during the boring days when they are not attacking, and to maintain their morale in a fulfilling state - also It was considered a mental attack. Song Liangchen arranged to explain the truth to the soldiers in the future.

Therefore, this kind of ballad, which was born out of the suffering of the people, expressed the feelings of the people, and was often sung among the people, echoed over Seoul.

Most of the soldiers who were drafted also came from the common people. Fathers and sons were separated, and husbands and wives were separated.

North Korea is still a combination of soldiers and peasants. When conscripted into the army, in addition to giving up the fields they farm and the families who accompany them, they also have to prepare their own weapons, clothes, and food when they are not seriously fighting. The Ming army shouted "We are paid as soldiers", which was a real spiritual attack. Although they should have a supply of food to stabilize the morale of the army during the current war, what is all this for?

After being besieged for several months, the grain road to the east was always open. But under the pressure of defending the city, the Yin siblings who had taken the throne unjustly, how could they have the ability to not only defend the city but also take care of the livelihood of so many civilians in the city?

At a time when life and death are at stake, how much anger and dissatisfaction is brewing in Seoul among those who have pawned their property, those who have been exploited by petty officials, and those who have been taken advantage of by big families to buy slaves at low prices?

Maybe they were very timid, maybe they were all unarmed, and maybe they all felt that the situation in front of them was caused by Ming's attack. However, the Ming army has been besieging and refusing to attack for so many days, and has been shouting not to enter the city, not to plunder, and not to rob people for so many days. The food shipped in from the east gate has never stopped. Why can't we buy food even after spending many times the price?

How can we survive without food?

The defenders of Seoul are indeed still stable, and the civil and military forces of the Yin regime are indeed united for the time being. However, as the cold winter is coming to an end, many families who have even pawned their quilts and winter coats are feeling increasingly desperate.

Finally, one day came, and the Ming army's shouts changed again.

[New grain shipments from Ping'an Road and Huanghai Road have arrived! For the sake of people's livelihood, Ming Dynasty stopped the bombardment and allowed the people in the city to go out of the city to buy grain at low prices! 】

This time, Yin Yuanheng and many important civil and military officials could not help but come to the city wall and looked at the battle outside the city with ugly expressions.

More than a mile away, there were cars and bags of food piled up.

There, it seemed to be quite a small market.

There are also small figures coming and going all the time.

They couldn't distinguish the appearance and attire of those people, but the purer Korean voice became louder.

Could it be that the people who came here to transport food were rebels from Ping'an Road and Huanghai Road?

But their number was larger, no longer just one or two hundred or two or three hundred on each side before, but also tens of thousands.

"We planted new grain seeds brought by the foreign countries, and the yield increased several times..."

"Only half of the grain harvested this year was actually weighed..."

"Look for someone! Find someone! Brother Jin Shanmin, are you still alive?"

"..."

Yin Yuanheng's face turned green.

How could the people in the city be allowed to go up the city wall? But under the city wall, there were civilians who helped transport supplies for the city defense, helped prepare and rescue the wounded, and helped cook for the defenders.

They can hear it.

The defenders on the city wall could both hear and see.

The enemy troops besieging the city have so much food that they can sell it?

How psychologically damaging will this be? Can this city really be defended?

Will they discuss it when they go down to the city wall to rest? Will this discussion be spread out and let the people in the city know that what is shouted outside the city is not a lie?

Even though they were under strict orders not to spread "rumors", the Ming Dynasty really stopped the bombardment from this day on.

The devil's chant became the only signal that the war was still in progress, spreading a message that left the Yin regime at a loss.

Unless we release all the food we already have and sell it at the same price.

But in that case, how many days can the defenders have enough to eat every day?

If not, what would happen to the city?

"Lord Ling Yizheng, it's not good! It's not good!"

Someone from the Robbery Department responsible for maintaining public security in the city rushed here: "There are too many unruly people in the southwest, and they all rushed to the streets."

"Bold! Hurry back!"

"...Too much, too much..."

I don’t know which people who have reached the dead end took the lead, but the city finally became noisy. Starting from the southwest, the noisy sounds gradually gathered, became clear, and echoed outside the city.

"We want to buy food, we want to live!"

"We want to buy food! We want to live!"

No matter how ruthless the subordinate officials are, they can't handle the large number of people.

No matter how fierce the officers and soldiers are, they are still afraid of desperadoes.

The defenders on the city wall looked at each other and were at a loss. The Ming army was still staying there quietly, with no sign of attacking the city.

Seoul, which used to be silent, is now beginning to boil.

"Brothers in the city, we are all citizens of Ping'an Road and Huanghai Road. The Kingdom is really here to make decisions for us."

"There will be a great harvest of food, and you will never starve to death."

"If there is no siege to the east, who will lock you up and prevent you from escaping?"

Through a wall, the shouts from outside reached the city, and the hungry poor people found strength out of nowhere.

When there are more people, the courage becomes stronger.

But what they copied were words that had been brainwashed for many days.

"If you are an official and don't care about the life and death of the people, it is better to throw them into a big frying pan!"

"If you are an official and don't care about the life and death of the people, it is better to throw them into a big frying pan!"

"If you are an official and don't care about the life and death of the people, it is better to throw them into a big frying pan!"

Hearing the increasingly clear but dull and loud sounds in the city, Zhang Jing showed a smile on his face and patted Song Liangchen gently on the shoulder: "Don't move in the open or on three sides. The men and horses heading east to catch the escaped thieves secretly have already sneaked in. Are you in the mountains?"

Song Liangchen listened to the huge momentum in the city: "...Only to catch the escaped thieves? There is a lot of food in the city, if they set fire..."

Are you really going to destroy this capital after shouting for several months?

"You still want to set fire to the city to stop us? Even if it is true, we are not the ones who set the fire. The people in the city can see it clearly." Zhang Jing sighed, "The situation is over, Lord Marquis, hurry to the northeast. This is the first time to capture the thief. You still have to take it. On my side, I will wait for the city gate to open, and I will first take charge of selling grain and providing relief outside the city. If there is no elder to lead the people, why would all the people go out to welcome them, so why enter the city?"

There was indeed chaos in the city.

Zhang Jing and others don't know what cruel suppression looks like, and they don't need to know.

Zhang Jing didn't have to worry about how the Yin regime managed to trick the defenders into continuing to hold on while urgently initiating their long-planned escape plan.

As he said, he was only looking after the Ming army and how to maintain order and deal with the civilians in the city who came to buy food.

Those who can afford it will sell it at a fair price.

For those who can't come up with money, the big pot is already cooking porridge, so let's give them a meal first.

The image of the teacher of benevolence and righteousness cannot be maintained this time, and the consequences will be endless.

In the distant city of Beijing, Zhu Houcong was delivering the closing speech of the First Central Conference and Founding Conference of the World Datong Party.

"From today on, this place is officially called the Ming Dynasty Hall!"

"The Party of Great Harmony under Heaven is constantly planning for the inheritance of our Chinese civilization, and is planning for the people's imperial constitution and the great Ming Dynasty and the country's future. It takes the people's well-being and world harmony as its ideals, reads wisely, and governs the country and brings peace to the people!"

"The people of the Ming Dynasty and the people of other countries who are close to the Ming Dynasty. No matter what their ethnicity, as long as they agree with the constitution of the Ming Dynasty and admire the Chinese culture, they are the people of all ethnic groups in China. They should be treated equally and we should all be comrades in the world who work together to create great harmony in the world. Perform their duties, everyone is safe and sound, and share stability and prosperity!"

"Those who are scholars all over the world, who are knowledgeable about books and polite, and who agree with the purpose of the Party's program, should apply to join the Party, show their talents, and benefit the people."

"People in all industries in the world should abide by the constitution, laws and regulations. Knowing that when a country is strong, the people will be stable, and everyone can settle down in their own industry."

"Officials and people of all countries in the world must understand that the world is one and that blessings and misfortunes are related. The Ming Dynasty disdains hegemony and only wants to implement the kingly way of peace and prosperity for the people!"

"Everyone, now you and I are comrades!"

There was no clear throne on the stage, and Zhu Houcong just stood there, pausing and looking at everyone.

"Practice yourself, work together towards your ideals, and develop your ambitions together. You will have no regrets in this life, and you will leave your mark in history!"

(End of this chapter)