Saving the Ming Dynasty: I can exchange bodies with Chongzhen

Chapter 169: The Most Fearful People

However, before the Jinyiwei and Dongchang people could take action, Zuo Liangyu's people arrived first in the evening.

The two sides started a war.

Han Qianhu of the Imperial Guard protected Prince Xiang and Chongzhen, and they prepared to escape with the support of the rest of the Imperial Guard and the Eastern Depot.

At this moment, a person came into view.

"Sir, hurry up, get out of here."

“……” Chongzhen stared at Sun Kewangyu in a daze.

Han Qianhu, who had already pulled out his knife, was also stunned at this moment.

"Didn't your godfather want you to kill me?"

Sun Kewang said righteously: "Although the teacher only taught me for a few days and did not acknowledge me as his student, the love he gave me as a teacher is still there and I will never forget it for the rest of my life."

"The current situation is chaotic, it is time for you to leave, sir."

King Xiang also put the fire stick back in his hand and looked at Sun Kewang intently. "I didn't expect you to be a person who respects teachers?"

Sun Kewang smiled bitterly and said, "I didn't have a teacher before, but now I finally have one. I can't just watch him disappear like this."

Compared with Zhang Xianzhong, Sun Kewang actually has a different mentality. As the first of Zhang Xianzhong's adopted sons, he is loyal to Zhang Xianzhong.

Together with Li Dingguo, Liu Wenxiu and Ai Nengqi, they formed the four-general system under Zhang Xianzhong, maintaining the basic combat effectiveness of Zhang Xianzhong's rebel army.

But as he and Chongzhen said, he admired scholars.

Studying is not an end but a means, a means to expand his ambitions. The longer he stays in the peasant uprising army, the more he can feel the limitations of the uprising army.

The power struggles among various parties within Zhang Xianzhong's camp are clear evidence of this.

So when Zuo Liangyu attacked, Sun Kewang ran over first.

"I hope you can get out of danger as soon as possible. Now you can't escape, and there is no way for me to see you off!" Sun Kewang bowed to Chongzhen, then turned and left.

Chongzhen also bowed to him and said goodbye.

……

Zhang Xianzhong was a rough man, but the fact that he was as famous as Li Zicheng was not just luck, but also had certain factors, such as his ruthlessness.

So when Zuo Liangyu just caught up, he led his men into a fierce battle with the government troops, showing his heroic nature of fighting all the way, trying to fight his way out again.

He never pinned his hopes on sitting around and waiting for death. The most practical thing was to win the battle.

These days, he has been constantly recruiting soldiers and expanding his power.

Continue with a larger army, attack bigger cities, and compete with other rebel forces for territory. This is what the chaos taught Zhang Xianzhong.

Maybe it means that you must hold the knife and gun in your own hands.

Zhang Xianzhong was born a peasant, but now he had eight concubines, not counting the ones he killed himself. It was all due to the swords and guns.

So his consciousness is swords and guns, and military power.

Previously, Xiong Wencan sent Lu Ding to find Liu Guoneng and Zhang Xianzhong, but Liu Guoneng surrendered, but Zhang Xianzhong did not agree.

"Damn Zuo Liangyu, why is he always following me?" Zhang Xianzhong gnashed his teeth and said, "Kill him."

……

This is an area of ​​undulating hills.

A lieutenant general started to make a noise: "General, didn't you tell us before that we shouldn't kill them all, but should keep them alive and fight them?"

"You don't understand!" Zuo Liangyu rode on his horse and looked at the bandits. "The four major camps won a great victory in Mongolia south of the desert. The Qing Dynasty sent out 80,000 soldiers and horses but couldn't stop the four major camps. If Your Majesty sends them over next time, what will we have to fight for?"

"Take advantage of this opportunity to quickly earn some military merits, otherwise you will end up making wedding clothes for others."

"News has also come from Sun Chuanting, who has killed more than 10,000 people from the Scorpion Tribe."

The two lieutenant generals under Zuo Liangyu suddenly looked gloomy, "Understood!"

He then spurred his horse and led his soldiers, more than 20,000 people, to attack the bandits.

History has it that Zuo Liangyu had 800,000 men under his command, but that is pure nonsense.

The report of the 14th year of Chongzhen showed that Zuo Liangyu had a total of 17,150 people, which means less than 20,000 people. Together with Zuo Liangyu's servants (private army), there were no more than 25,000 people.

Zuo Liangyu raised his arm and shouted, "Pass the order, kill all those who retreat!"

"Whoever deliberately let the bandits escape will be killed!"

"Kill~"

With Zuo Liangyu's characterization, the battlefield slid into the most tragic stage from the very beginning, with flags fluttering, trumpet flags waving, and shouts of killing shaking the sky.

Han Qianhu of the Jinyiwei, Prince Xiang, and Chongzhen were in trouble. They tried to break out from several directions, but were blocked by the government troops.

The soldiers of Zuo Liangyu's army were blood-thirsty and had only one word in mind: kill.

The bandits were not given any chance to explain. In order to protect themselves, the Jinyiwei had no choice but to fight back, losing dozens of people before retreating again.

"Sir? You didn't escape? Please follow me..."

Chongzhen turned around and found that it was Sun Kewang's army. After going around in circles, he finally met him.

It can be said that the person Chongzhen least wants to see now is him. If he were alone, he might still have a chance to escape, but if he were with him, it would not be easy.

As the eldest of Zhang Xianzhong's adopted sons, it was impossible for the government troops not to target Sun Kewang.

Chongzhen frowned and looked at Sun Kewang's red face and the sincerity in his eyes, and finally took a breath, "Okay!"

Sun Kewang suddenly raised his hand and said, "Make a way out!"

……

"put!"

"Put it back!"

"Boom boom boom~~" The government army's artillery fire roared. Although Zuo Liangyu did not have the artillery like the four major battalions, he had dozens of red cannons in his hands.

One shell after another whizzed and fell into the bandits. One of the bandits' heads was smashed into pieces, leaving a bloody mess.

The fighting power of the bandits was far inferior to that of the Mongolian cavalry. They rushed forward in a crowded crowd and were hit by a wave of artillery shells. A large number of casualties occurred in the dense crowd.

Flesh, limbs, and blood suddenly came into view, frightening everyone to death.

"Cannons, the government troops are using cannons..."

"Run away!"

"Run for your life~"

When the roar sounded, miserable screams and cries of pain followed, causing the bandits who were being chased by Zhang Xianzhong and others to feel their scalps tingling. They were so scared that they fell to the ground one by one, and some even defecated and urinated.

After Zhu Changgan and Chongzhen exchanged bodies, the battle was almost over. Zuo Liangyu defeated Zhang Xianzhong's troops and killed
"Don't retreat, come on, I'm here."

"If you dare to retreat, I will kill you..." Zhang Xianzhong rode on his horse and swung his sword at the bandits who were running back. He chopped down dozens of them before stopping the retreat.

Although the red cannon of the government army was powerful, its firing speed was limited, and loading ammunition was also a huge problem.

So after firing one round, they stopped, which boosted the morale of the bandits.

"Kill~" The government troops gave a death order, and Zhang Xianzhong also gave it his all on the bandits' side, bringing his old camp soldiers to supervise the battle from behind, so that the battle situation was much more brutal than any battle Zhang Xianzhong had faced before.

……

The two sides fought for two hours before Zhang Xianzhong's troops were exhausted and retreated in defeat.

When the government troops were cleaning up the battlefield, Zuo Liangyu's troops directly killed nearly 10,000 people, and the rest fled. Apart from Zhang Xianzhong's old camp soldiers, the total number of people who fled with him was less than 10,000.

Zhang Xianzhong summoned several of his adopted sons to discuss the matter.

"Is Zuo Liangyu crazy? He actually used artillery to bombard us?"

"In the past, when he fought against the peasant army, he never used artillery."

"Did the Ming court put pressure on him?"

Everyone was talking at once, but Sun Kewang stood up and said, "Father, the situation is not the same as before. I heard that the Ming court no longer increased taxes in Shanxi, Shaanxi, Henan and other places, and the number of peasants fleeing has decreased."

"In stark contrast to the past when people were 'driven to become bandits', in recent days, quite a few of our soldiers have fled back to their hometowns."

Zhang Xianzhong narrowed his eyes and looked at Sun Kewang, "What do you mean?"

"Father, I think we can follow Lu Ding's advice and pretend to surrender first, and then take our time."

Zhang Xianzhong stood up suddenly, anger all over his face, the scar on his forehead throbbing, "Don't even think about it."

"Foster father, you have to consider our current situation... Sun Chuanting has been the governor for three times, and he is coming from Shaanxi, Shanxi, Henan, and Shu to the Central Plains. In the central part, Zuo Liangyu is chasing him. There are also local militias in various places, and now even the princes have joined in the suppression of bandits. It is difficult to raise food and money for the rebel army."

Sun Kewang continued, "The scorpion block is gone. Li Zicheng was ambushed by government troops in Zitong, northern Sichuan, and suffered heavy losses. We also suffered a lot in the battle with Zuo Liangyu. Besides, Luo Rucai, Ma Shouying, Hui Dengxiang and other peasant armies are not having a good time now..."

"..."

……

When it was dark, Sun Kewang suddenly came to find Chongzhen.

"Sir, my godfather asked me to go out on an errand. You are free here."

"What are you doing?" Zhu Changgan had already returned to himself.

Seeing that Zhu Changgan was puzzled, Sun Kewang whispered the whole story. It turned out that Zhang Xianzhong wanted to surrender, and before that, it would be natural not to kill a scholar like Chongzhen.

"Among them are two pieces of jasper more than one foot long and two pearls one inch in diameter." Sun Kewang patted the things behind him. "Father said Xiong Wencan likes gold and silver treasures the most. I think with these things, we will be more confident."

When Zhu Changgan heard this, a cold light flashed in his eyes.

I've heard that Xiong Wencan is greedy, but I never thought he would be so greedy in such a matter. However, he still clasped his fists calmly and said, "Go early and come back early."

When it was almost dawn, Sun Kewang returned, and the entire peasant army was in an uproar. Zhu Changgan naturally also heard the news.

It seems that Xiong Wencan has already agreed to Zhang Xianzhong's request for pacification.

Zhu Changgan turned over and continued to sleep.

Although there were some twists and turns, they eventually returned to Zhang Xianzhong's original track, allowing Zhu Changgan to implement everything he had previously envisioned.

Before today, he was still thinking that the situation had changed and Zhang Xianzhong was unlikely to surrender. Should he let the four major camps rest for a while, then pull some people over to get rid of him first?

Now it seems that I worried too much.

……

The next morning, when Chongzhen heard about this, he was so angry that his face turned blue. "Surrender? How could he be persuaded to surrender? Zhang Xianzhong is definitely not surrendering sincerely!"

"Keep your voice down!" King Xiang quickly covered his mouth, "Are you trying to kill yourself?"

If Zhu Changgan were present, I wonder what he would think of Chongzhen's reaction at this time.

Because in his previous life, Xiong Wencan suggested to the court to recruit Zhang Xianzhong, and the Minister of War Yang Sichang was worried that Zhang Xianzhong was not sincere in his surrender and that it would lead to future troubles.

He advocated that Zhang Xianzhong should first kill the rebel general Li Zicheng and the old Hui people Ma Shouying before he would allow them to surrender, otherwise he should take this opportunity to "wipe out the enemy with all his might."

Zhu Youjian listened to the opinions of eunuch Liu Yuanbin and Prime Minister Xiong Wencan, and was afraid that he would fail to suppress the rebellion and miss the opportunity to appease it. He criticized Yang Sichang to his face, saying: "How can we just kill him when he surrenders?" In this way, Zhu Youjian personally presided over the decision to appease Zhang Xianzhong's troops.

Chongzhen insisted, "No, we must tell Xiong Wencan. We can't let Zhang Xianzhong's evil plan succeed."

At this moment, he really wanted to pick up a pen and write a letter to Xiong Wencan, but suddenly he was stunned.

He suddenly realized that he didn't know what identity he should use to write to him... He was stunned for a long time before he sighed, "I'd better wait until I get back and tell Wang Chengen."

……

In the Qianqing Palace, Zhu Changgan returned early from the morning court. If he had something to say, he would talk about it. If he had nothing to say, he was not willing to argue with those civil servants in the court.

Another reason why he left court early was that the four major camps had returned.

It has been nearly ten days since the news of the great victory of Mongolia in southern Mongolia reached the capital, and now it has finally arrived.

The army returned to Beijing after a victory. For the Ming Dynasty, this was a huge event. Of course, for the emperor, there was an episode, that is, the emperor's father-in-law, the governor-general Chen Erfa, also returned.

Outside Yongding Gate, the place was already crowded with common people, and officials on both sides stood straight.

At the exact time of Si, the four major camps of the Ming Dynasty appeared in everyone's sight, with flags fluttering, covering the sky and the sun. The soldiers of the four camps, their armor flashing with cold light, their eyes as sharp as knives, and they appeared outside the Yongding Gate with powerful steps.

The shoes made a sound of iron as they walked on the bluestone floor.

Such military might made the people of the capital extremely excited, but then they all lost their voices, because when they looked clearly, they found that the person driving the carriage in front was actually Cao Huachun.

There was a white cloth wrapped around his forehead. He was whipping the horse and driving the carriage himself, with a corpse behind it.

Someone said, "Salute to the heroes!"

"Salute to the hero!"

"The Ming Dynasty will be victorious!"

"Wansheng..."

The soldiers from the four camps shouted in unison at the top of their lungs. Their voices were like thunder and spread out for several miles, making countless people's eyes red and their blood boiling.

……

Chen Erfa's entire family was also waiting outside Yongding Gate at this time. When they saw this scene, they couldn't help but shed tears.

Chen Erfa's first wife clutched the corner of her clothes tightly and asked Cao Huachun, "General, is my husband afraid of fighting? Will he run away?"

"Never!"

"So, my husband's injury is on the front? Not the back?"

Cao Huachun's eyes turned red, and he replied in a resounding voice: "That's right, the governor-general fought the enemy head-on, was shot in the abdomen, and would rather die than retreat."

Upon hearing this, Chen Erfa's first wife wiped away the tears from her eyes, then turned to look behind the carriage, "Butcher Chen, I have called you a loser all my life, but I never thought that at the last minute... I was wrong!"

She was the daughter of a wealthy family in her early years. She was well-versed in music, chess, poetry and painting. She married Chen the butcher because of a family change. She married him at the behest of her parents and the matchmaker, but she never treated Chen Erfa well. Later, because Chen Erfa took a concubine, she moved directly to the Buddhist temple.

The two haven't spoken in several years.

"Mother!"

Chen Erfa's son tried to help but was pushed away by the woman.

"I can still walk, so stop watching me. Go and replace Commander Cao. It's not like we don't have any men in the family anymore. You have to do the breaking of pots and wearing mourning clothes."

"Hey~" The fat-headed and big-eared son's eyes were red and swollen, and he trotted to the front of the carriage, "General Cao, please let me see my father off for the last time!"

(End of this chapter)