Chapter 293 The imperial commander’s personal expedition
Author: Mu Yunfeng
Chapter 293 The imperial commander’s personal expedition
Of course, Yang Feng had nothing to say about His Majesty the Emperor's personal expedition.
Just let him do whatever he wants!
However, with the current level of His Majesty's bodyguards, it is indeed very difficult to assassinate him.
Now the guard system has been reorganized.
The first is the guards.
It is called bodyguards, a hereditary bodyguard specially formed. There are a thousand people on duty to protect the emperor every day. They are all half-body plate armor and flintlock short spears. As for the ability to fight with cold weapons, it goes without saying that in this era, such
Those selected from the army are absolutely capable of fighting.
The Second Imperial Guard.
In fact, it is various ceremonial guards, information along the way and other chores.
But you can also fight.
In fact, the combat effectiveness is not weak.
The third pro-army.
That is to say, the combat troops selected by each guard of the pro-military army and specially accompanied them, including infantry, cavalry and artillery. The core is four infantry squares, which is roughly equivalent to a brigade-level combat unit of the Shenji Battalion.
Just like when Yang Feng led the western expedition to Samarkand.
There are more than 10,000 people in the entire accompanying team. Under this level of protection, it is really difficult to have a chance to assassinate the emperor. What's more, except for those brought by Liu Rong, there are no real elites in Suzhou. As for the reason why Wu Shouan
It has been unable to be broken through for a long time. On the one hand, his logistics has been intermittent, and on the other hand, he may have been bribed.
Not to bribe him to defect.
Then the Shenji Battalion would kill him without hesitation.
Instead, he bribed him to delay under Suzhou City, which was easy for him.
As for buying him money...
This is also very easy for Suzhou gentry.
This kind of thing is normal. At the end of the Ming Dynasty, the Yangzhou gentry wanted to bribe our Qing Imperial Master with 300,000 taels so as not to enter the city! However, our Qing Imperial Master felt that we deserved this kind of money, so we simply went in and got it ourselves.
Bar!
As for Liu Rong...
Zhu Di would not allow them to kill the emperor.
After all, if the emperor really wants to be killed by them, those who know the truth will think that he is the one who ordered it. It is normal for him to send his men to help Zhu Yunwen raise troops in Suzhou. After all, the current situation is to see who can last longer until the opponent's backyard catches fire.
But the nature of killing the emperor changed.
Helping Zhu Yunwen was that the latter was persecuted by his younger brother and had already killed King Xiang. As the oldest of the elders still alive, he can be said to be the patriarch. In this case, he upheld justice for the clan and only resisted the emperor to protect the victim.
But if he kills the emperor, it will only prove that he is the one who is really ambitious and trying to seize the throne of his nephew. In that case, it will be difficult for him to get support. Especially from the vassals who are with him, the latter's purpose of following him is to overwhelm the emperor.
, if it can be exchanged, it will have to be exchanged for Zhu Yunzhen, who has promised to guarantee their interests, but Zhu Di will not be discussed as emperor. A strong emperor like Zhu Di is also not a good thing for the vassals, only a weak emperor is suitable for them
In their mind, their purpose of following Zhu Di now is to change Zhu Yunxi from a strong emperor to a weak emperor.
But Zhu Di wants to be the one?
Then his brothers would abandon him without hesitation.
In short, Yang Feng is no longer interested in taking care of things in the south.
After arriving at Kaiping, he headed south.
Before he arrived at Xuanfu, Princess Gu had already sent someone to welcome him, or to welcome Ambassador Yang. After all, we were all relatives, and this was also his brother-in-law. Although they were not married yet, since Ambassador Yang had said everything, there was already a fact...
Well, according to the laws of the Ming Dynasty, the mother-in-law's family could actually beat him to death in a situation like this.
For people like the Ming Dynasty Law who are trying to gain recognition by making cooked rice, the natal family has the right to kill Ambassador Yang directly. However, since the natal family does not have the ability to kill Ambassador Yang, they have to accept the fact. In short, Princess Gu sent a bodyguard
The general greeted her brother-in-law at Zhangjiakou Fort, and then the troops of Ambassador Yang and Rinan Hou entered the Xuanfu. They had previously raised troops to fight against the imperial guards of Gu Fan. The three guards of the Xuanfu all accepted the banners of Zouyu and stopped their troops to wait for the news. And Yang Feng also
He promised them that he would contract their military supplies in the future, and persuaded the emperor to abolish some of the guard posts, and then he would be responsible for the development of this area. In short, he appeased the six guards and allowed them to continue to garrison.
I’ll talk about the rest later.
On the same day that Yang Feng arrived at the Xuan Mansion, His Majesty the Emperor officially began his personal expedition.
And it carries two giant siege cannons that were just made...
The cannonball weighs twenty-four pounds.
One cannon can bring down the city wall.
Of course, this does not include the city walls of the capital city, but ordinary rammed earth brick city walls can indeed be destroyed with one shot. After all, this is a thirty-two-pound cannon. Not only these two cannons, there are eighteen more.
As for the heavy siege artillery, the Ministry of Industry in the capital is actually still casting giant mortars.
It can hit hundreds of kilograms of stone cannonballs four miles away.
His Majesty the Emperor is a believer in science. Any city that cannot be conquered is just because the cannon is not big enough. Increase the caliber and tonnage. As long as the cannon is big enough, the mountain can be destroyed. But this is also true. During this period, the Kaifeng City Wall
They were all bombarded into jagged shapes, and the city walls of Wuchang were also blown down in many places. The power of artillery siege was fully demonstrated. However, because the defenders took the initiative to attack with trenches, gun forts, and even forts, as well as a large number of cavalry in the city, the siege was still allowed.
The army rushed in again and again, and then had to be driven out. The offensive and defensive battles on the two battlefields caused the Ming Dynasty's military technology to improve dramatically. Now it has begun to enter the fortress era. Zhu Di was in the biggest gap opened by Kaifeng, and another
A simple bastion was quickly built and the gap was blocked.
Then it installed heavy cannons and blue jade counterfires made from the demolished temple bells in the city.
Lan Yu's heavy artillery was too far away to blast through this small bastion. Its city wall was three times thicker than the Kaifeng city wall. If it was too close, it would be hit by fire from the remains of the city wall.
Because these wrecks could not be connected, they became isolated forts.
Even the defenders have learned to build bunkers on top and shoot outwards.
However, the city wall is no longer the main line of defense.
It's a second-layer defense line behind the city wall, with a little distance between it.
Trenches, artillery forts, numerous defensive horses, and parapets to protect soldiers from firing, stretch throughout the entire city of Kaifeng to form a tight defense. Even maneuvers within the city are through tunnels, and the tens of thousands of elites guarding them have suffered very little losses until now.
, the total casualties were less than 20%. There were not many civilian casualties, because Kaifeng City was large enough and the population was not large. The civilians evacuated directly to the original Jin Prince's Mansion, and also hoarded food and ammunition there.
As for supplies...
As long as there is money, someone will always send it to King Yan.
The factory owners in Shanxi have become extremely rich in the past six months.
Yang Feng's tax package has already started to make money.
Suzhou.
Tiger Hill.
His Majesty the Emperor leaned over the telescope and looked confidently at the huge city in front of him.
This is currently the second largest city in the Ming Dynasty after Beijing. Although Suzhou at this time has not yet spilled out like it did in the late Ming Dynasty and turned into a super city with a population of two million, it is still huge enough at this time. Station
On this small highland, which is really just a hill, His Majesty the Emperor can have a panoramic view of everything with his telescope.
but……
"Fire!"
he said.
"Your Majesty, would you like to inform me first that there are actually only tens of thousands of Japanese slaves in the city, and most of them are just being kidnapped."
Wu Shouan said cautiously.
"Xiaoyu? The cannon is my Xiaoyu. Coercion? If it is really a coercion, my umbrella cover is standing here, why don't you see anyone rebelling? You have been fighting here for several months and you haven't seen anyone rebelling. Fire the cannon.
First blow open the city wall, and then issue an imperial edict."
His Majesty the Emperor said.
Wu Shou'an trembled and hurriedly signaled the signal soldiers to wave the signal flag.
The two giant cannons that had been loaded outside Pingmen immediately spurted out flames. Two 24-pound cannonballs cut through the air at supersonic speeds. One of them hit the city wall one mile away. You could see that the city wall seemed to be gnawed by something.
As if taking a bite, an eye-catching crater appeared in the flying debris in an instant, and then the upper part of the crater suddenly collapsed. The next moment was the eighteen heavy siege artillery, and almost all the shells fell around the collapse area, and the city wall
The collapsed area expanded rapidly during the impact of the shells. At the two giant cannons, the artillerymen were busy loading. Because the tonnage was too large, the loading was also very slow. It took almost a minute and a half to fire the second round of shells.
"Your Majesty, the cannon is so powerful. I would like to ask your majesty to name it a powerful and invincible cannon."
Fang Xiaoru next to him saluted and said.
Fang Daru's performance during this period can be described as flattering.
So many Confucian scholars scolded themselves for being blind in the past and mistakenly taking him for an iron-clad man. Now there is no iron-clad man at all. Instead, he is a servile servant fighting against Yan Shenggong. The latter is frightened because of the unstable situation.
, I have just given a memorial praising His Majesty the Emperor.
Among them, there is a line about the prosperous times of Bahuang Xiange, which disgusted the Confucian scholars.
Moreover, in order to prevent his family from being involved in the reform that was obviously aimed at Confucian scholars, he also specifically said that his ancestors showed up and asked him to report it.
All in all, I tried my best to flatter you.
Since Fang Daru surrendered, he has maintained his flattery towards the emperor.
It was as if he suddenly realized something.
After working hard for decades without getting anything in return, he suddenly woke up and began to imitate those sycophants. This move made him quite popular with the emperor recently, but he was still in shackles. As a criminal, he deserved meritorious services, of course.
He must be shackled, otherwise His Majesty the Emperor would be afraid that he would suddenly pull out a knife and pounce on him.
Once the shackles weighing dozens of kilograms were put on, Fang Daru could sing praises to the emperor like a royal clown.
"The Mighty and Invincible General Cannon? This is a good name. The one that hit the city wall just now is named the Mighty and Invincible General Cannon."
The emperor said with a smile.
Wu Shouan and several other ministers quickly praised the emperor for giving him the name.
"This cannon is so powerful that if a flesh-and-blood body is hit, the whole person may be turned into powder. Even the steel and iron bones may be shattered."
Fang Xiaoru said very meaningfully.
The emperor smiled lightly, as if he didn't understand what he said.
At this time, the two cannons fired again. This time, due to good adjustment, the two cannonballs hit almost at the same time. One of them hit the crater that had been severely damaged, and then it was seen that it penetrated the upper part of the city wall with flying fragments.
, the next moment the city wall collapsed directly, and there was a gap in the originally complete city wall.
Then there are the eighteen heavy siege artillery pieces.
The gap quickly expanded during the impact of the artillery shells.
"Continue until it collapses!"
The emperor said with satisfaction.
At this time Zhang Xianzong walked next to him...
"Your Majesty, the Marquis of Rinan reported in Daning that Ambassador Yang stopped the war with Zouyu banners. At present, the two vassals of Liaoning have returned to their own cities to await their punishment. The governor-general Chen Heng is an old minister of the emperor who is willing to die to follow Daxing.
He was the emperor, so he committed suicide in front of the battle.
Marquis Rinan and Ambassador Yang are heading towards Kaiping."
he said.
At this time, because the key point of Peiping was disconnected, Yang Wen's report had to be sent to Jinzhou, then to Dengzhou by sea, and then to the post station, so there was a lot of delay.
"Kill yourself, hum!"
The emperor sneered.
Of course he understood that this suicide must have been forced by Yang Feng.
However, this does prove that Yang Feng's prestige in the army has reached the point where a single sentence can make tens of thousands of elite veterans in command, who would rather kill themselves than dare to become his enemy. Although he knew that Yang Feng would not covet his throne.
, but having such an existence in his country still made him feel awkward, but Yang Feng was helping him after all.
"Send a message to Yang Wen and ask him to tell Ambassador Yang that all matters in the north will be decided by him. Soon I will pacify Suzhou and Wuchang, and then join forces with Ambassador Yang in Kaifeng."
he said.
Just then...
"Your Majesty, the Gate of Heaven is open!"
Wu Shouan suddenly shouted.
His Majesty the Emperor quickly leaned over the telescope, and then he saw a group of cavalry rushing out from the Chang Gate, but there were only a dozen of them, with a civil servant in the middle.
The soldiers from the Shenji Battalion outside the city immediately stepped forward and led him here.
"It's Huang Yue, Qian Ge Shi Zhong."
Wu Shouan said.
"You don't have to bring him over, just ask him what he wants to do?"
said the emperor.
The signal soldier beside Wu Shouan immediately waved the signal flag.
The Shenji Battalion soldiers stopped immediately, and soon an officer came out, rode straight towards this side, and was brought over by the Jin Yiwei.
"Your Majesty, the traitor Huang Yue said that he came on the orders of the puppet Prince of Guangze. The puppet Prince of Guangze wants to invite your Majesty to meet at Fengqiao. He is willing to leave the city alone. If your Majesty is willing to grant the meeting, Suzhou will open the city to welcome you.
drop."
The officer saluted and said.
"Meet?"
Zhu Yunxi was surprised.
"How can a fake be qualified to meet His Majesty?"
Fang Xiaoru said quickly.
"Your Majesty, I think this generation knows that it will be inevitable, and I want to ask Your Majesty to pardon his death penalty. The Maple Bridge area has long been controlled by the Shenji Battalion, and is beyond the reach of artillery fire from the city. If this can be used to make Suzhou fall without a fight, it will be fine.
It shows that wherever His Majesty’s power comes, he will bow his head and accept punishment.”
Huang Guan, who was accompanying him, said quickly.
Several other accompanying ministers agreed.
His Majesty the Emperor used his binoculars to look in the direction of Maple Bridge. It was indeed the area controlled by the Shenji Battalion, and it was indeed beyond the firepower of the city wall. It was impossible to ambush soldiers or snipe them from a distance. The only remaining possibility was...
Even the fake King Guangze carries a musket with him, but this is impossible. After all, you have to search him before you can see him.
"Your Majesty, in that case, let him take a boat and sail under the bridge. Your Majesty will meet him on the bridge to show his dignity."
Fang Xiaoru said.
"That's not bad. Let him take a boat to have an audience under the Maple Bridge."
His Majesty the Emperor thought for a while and said.