Ping An Biography

On the third day, Zhu Heng, Shangshu of the Ministry of War, personally escorted the grain and grass to the army. He was received by Zhou Mengxiong and taken outside the Sanshanhu battlefield.

The two of them boarded an archery tower that had just been built. It was as high as two floors, and the top was like a pavilion with ventilation on all sides.In a short time, half of the old ladies went up the stairs with their guqin in their arms, warmed wine for them in the clay oven, and then sat beside them with the qin to add to the fun.

Looking down at the tens of thousands of soldiers and horses waiting for death, Zhou Mengxiong leisurely picked up a glass of wine and said calmly: "I respect Zhu Butang, and I will wash away the dust for you."

"Hero, old hero Zhou, I don't dare to be an official." Zhu Heng raised his wine glass with both hands in a moody manner.Zhu Heng was originally a slovenly person who didn't like ostentation, and the situation at this time made him feel too contrived and uncomfortable; and because he suddenly heard that Zhou Mengxiong was besieging the main force of the army, he couldn't help being emotional, and his speech was a bit awkward. It's not easy.

"Boom..." Suddenly there was a thunderous sound of cannons, shaking the watchtower almost to collapse, and the wine in the wine glass that had just been filled was splashed out. There was a sound of "bang", the strings broke, and the sound of the piano stopped abruptly, and the expression of the woman sitting next to the piano changed.

"Hahaha! It's okay, it's okay, are you still afraid that the cannon will hit here?" Zhou Mengxiong laughed.

Zhu Heng turned his head to look at the scene on the battlefield, clasped his fists together, and couldn't help saying: "The conversation and laughter are gone, the old hero Zhou really has the style of Zhuge Kongming."

Zhou Mengxiong laughed again when he heard this, and he lost all his humility in the officialdom. He stood up exaggeratedly, patted Zhu Heng on the shoulder, and pointed to the army cavalry gathered in front of him: "Brother Zhu, do you know why the Beijing camp Do you want to rush from here?"

Zhu Heng had no choice but to ask in a low-key and respectful manner: "Why?"

Zhou Mengxiong waved his sleeves: "The old man is blocked on all sides, the Beijing camp is surrounded by roads, and there is no food. Even if this is a mountain of swords, they have to go!" The wine slapped Zhu Heng's shoulder heavily again, causing Zhu Heng's literati's small body to crooked. "Brother Zhu, do you know why the officers and soldiers outside didn't come to rescue him?"

"I would like to hear the details." Zhu Heng said kindly and cooperatively.

Zhou Mengxiong pointed to the east, "It's only [-] or [-] miles from Ewang City to here. I have deployed more than [-] troops, with layers of camps, and it is completely blocked!"

While chatting and laughing, I suddenly heard horseshoes resounding from the west like thunder and thunder, and horsemen came rushing like a tide.Even if this place is not the forefront, it is quite shocking to face such a battle under the nose.The luthier is just a woman, she really doesn't have the guts of Zhou Mengxiong, she can't continue talking at this time, her fingers are shaking.

After a while, only guns and guns were heard, and white smoke rose in patches in front of them.The cavalry surged forward and encountered the barracks in front of them, just like the torrent in a great river rushing on the mainstay, splitting from the middle and rushing in from both sides.Then the horse soldiers stepped on the deep pit trap buried between the camps, and for a while the people turned their backs on their horses and howled reverberating to the world.The traps were filled with corpses of soldiers and horses, and the iron cavalry behind stepped on the corpses and ran around the camp. Guns exploded on both sides, and the knights seemed to be walking in a sea of ​​swords and flames.

The blood and gunpowder filled the sky and the earth, even on the high arrow tower, the smell was still strong, and the woman was already pretending to retch.But Zhou Mengxiong said: "Brother Zhu, let's have a toast. How does the play I invite you to watch today compare with the long-sleeved and thin-waisted plays in the court?"

"It's really spectacular and majestic, swallowing mountains and rivers." Zhu Heng looked up.

Zhou Mengxiong turned his head and glanced at the woman: "Didn't Liu Mazi say that you have seen the world? Ah, what a disappointment!"

"Master, slave...the strings of the slave's zither are broken." The woman knelt on the ground in fright.

At this moment, a large group of cavalry rushed through the gap in the camp, but saw a large group of infantry with long spears pressing up behind them, the number of them was as large as a sea of ​​people.The cavalry of the officers and soldiers who had lost their vigor did not dare to step forward to force the formation, so they had to break out of the siege in other directions in disorder. visible.As far as the eye can see, the corpses of people and horses can be seen everywhere, and there are patches of blood on the ground. The mountain of corpses and the sea of ​​blood are like a Shura field.

The bloodshed was not over yet, and a black mass of army infantry was slowly approaching in front of them. The long weapons above the crowd were like a forest, and the flags fluttered in the air like clouds in the wind.

Zhu Heng asked: "The officers and soldiers besieged here are the officers and soldiers of the Beijing camp?"

Zhou Mengxiong said relaxedly: "The rest of the Shenji Battalion are all here, and there are all the cavalry and half of the infantry of the Fifth Army Battalion. After this battle, only the remnants of the Fifth Army Battalion hiding in Ewang City are left in the Beijing Camp. The Three Thousand Battalion on the Jiujiang side."

Zhu Hengdao: "The Ministry of War has received news that the commander of the North Route Army is Wu Jinbo Zhu Mian, the son of Zhu Rong. This man can be regarded as a famous general of the Ming Dynasty, and he has elite troops under his command. Unexpectedly, he suffered such a crushing defeat."

Hearing this, Zhou Mengxiong's bearded horse face couldn't hide his smug expression, "Exactly, Uncle Wu Jin was also one of the people who looked like King Yan during the Battle of Nanjing... Li Zi is nothing more than that! Bing, why are you here!" [

Speaking of this, Zhou Mengxiong's face flashed a trace of nostalgic and desolate melancholy, and was covered by a kind of excited red, showing a strange flush of madness on his face.

Zhu Heng hurriedly said: "Back then in Wuchang, everyone urged Old Hero Zhou to dispatch troops as soon as possible. You were not in a hurry to think about the overall situation, and you won today's big victory; but the old man and others were also worried about the King of Xiang in Jiujiang..." At this time, Zhu Heng had already lowered his posture. There was no other way. Others didn't understand the great contribution to the victory of this battle. How could Zhu Butang not understand?

"Where there is, it's not the same." Zhou Mengxiong immediately restrained his arrogance, "I also made a mistake. I overestimated the capabilities of the officers and soldiers, so that the King of Xiang was in danger for a while."

Zhu Heng let out a long sigh, "This is a battle for the world!"

Zhou Mengxiong's mood gradually sank, and he said seriously: "Breaking through the northern line is only the prerequisite, and the key is the battle of Jiujiang."

The two looked down together, the flames of war continued, and the light of fire and blood disturbed the peace of the world.

……

Zhang Ning in Jiujiang has not yet known the battle situation of the North Route Army.A while ago, a spy from the Ministry of Internal Affairs sneaked out from Gantang Lake at night, and got some outside news. Zhou Mengxiong had already led his troops out.At this time, Zhang Ning thought that Zhou Mengxiong's army would have to deal with the Guanjun North Road for a while, and he didn't know if they could break through the northern line, but Zhang Ning never expected such a quick result.

As the days approached the winter months, the weather became colder and colder. There were many injuries and illnesses in the city, and there was a shortage of doctors. The situation became worse day by day.The positions outside the city were gradually abandoned some time ago, because the soldiers and horses were exhausted and could do nothing. Now the only line of defense is a dilapidated city wall, which may be broken at any time.

Every night, Jiujiang is a dead city.The artillery of the officers and soldiers stopped roaring, and their firearms also stopped. The soldiers who had been replaced from the city were exhausted and lifeless.In addition, the people in the city almost disappeared, perhaps a few who did not run away and hid somewhere, and no one was seen on the street.

Zhang Ning's footprints are all over every corner of Jiujiang City, and almost every ordinary soldier can often see him.His face was visibly thinner, and he looked very silent, but he would always say a few words to boost morale, telling the soldiers that Zhou Mengxiong's army had been marching southward, and as long as they stood firm, they could survive.Even Yu Qian once said that if the prince hadn't been in charge of Jiujiang himself, no one would be able to defend this ruined city.After working together for several months, Zhang Ning has gradually dispelled his doubts about Qian.

It’s useless to say what you can say at this moment. Everyone’s body and mind are exhausted, but people need to be reminded of two things at all times, the desire to survive and hope.Hope is the uncertain Zhou Mengxiong's army... In fact, Zhang Ning's heart is even worse, far more depressed than the signs on the surface, he is just patient and unwilling to shake the morale of the army.

Sometimes he will fall into his own psychological trap, enter a state of depression, and feel that everything is hopeless.

The objective law of history is the general trend of heaven, maybe it can’t be changed like this... From ancient times to the present, raising troops during the prosperous dynasty is a dead end... Those who want to change the dynasty must not take advantage of the chaos at the end of the period to compete in the Central Plains, or have their own power From a high-level coup... In fact, the King of Yan also had power before he had a chance. If so, that road cannot be copied...

The thought of counting lingered in Zhang Ning's mind, eating away at his hopes.The human heart is far more fragile than imagined.

Sometimes, he feels that the last step is short of now, like a sharp sword falling on his head at some point, or the city wall of Jiujiang being breached by the government army at some point; he just waits for that moment.He even felt that he was looking forward to that moment, so that he would not have to worry about it.

"It's just that I can't let go of my concubine and little sister. I don't know what kind of disaster they will face in the future..." Zhang Ning finally said what was in his heart one night.