Chapter 321 Gold Mountain and Silver Pile Hold Steadily
The gambler won again, leaving Dengzhou empty.
On the ninth day of June in the fifth year of Chongzhen in the Ming Dynasty, Jinzhou Army forward Cao Bianjiao stormed Shuicheng in Dengzhou. The rebel general Wang Bingzhong's 3,000 soldiers defended Shuicheng and resisted stubbornly, preferring to die rather than surrender.
On the tenth day of the lunar month, the left camp of the Jinzhou Army's infantry used explosives to blow up the water city. The battalion officer Song Qing took the lead and led 60 dead soldiers to break through the city. Then the two infantry battalions on the left and right swarmed in, and guns were fired in the water city. There was a loud noise, and by sunset, seeing that the situation was over, Wang Bingzhong committed suicide by taking poison, and 1,200 generals including deputy general Geng Zhongwen were deceived into the water city and massacred.
Shuicheng was destroyed and Dengzhou was able to fight again. On the 11th, Song Guanglan, the former Dengzhou Road Supervisor Wang Zheng, Dengzhou Magistrate Wu Weicheng, Tongzhi Jia Mingjie, Penglai County Magistrate Song Cheng and others killed Dengzhou guard Li Guolu , the Jinzhou Army presented the city. On the same day, the Jinzhou Army entered the city, and Shi Dayong issued the "Three Nos" military order: no one should be killed, no one should be robbed, and no one should be burned.
Under this strict order, after the Jinzhou Army entered the city, the people in the city were greatly calmed down. Half of the more than 1,000 rebels in the city were demobilized and half were incorporated into the Jinzhou Army.[
On the 12th, Song Guanglan was entrusted by Shi Dayong to persuade Qian Dagang, the chief military officer of the Dengzhou Navy, to surrender. After receiving the promise that he would not be held accountable for past crimes, Qian Dagang led the Dengzhou Navy and the warship 148 The ship surrendered.
After the rebels occupied Dengzhou City, they carried out a brutal massacre. They drove the residents out of the east gate and massacred them. Corpses were strewn all over the ground, and even the trenches were filled up. There were now more than 15,000 women in the city, and others. There are more than 6,000 rebel family members.
The Jinzhou Army made a huge harvest in this city, capturing 1,200 war horses, 1.2 million taels of pay, 26 Hongyi cannons, 360 Western light and heavy cannons, and 14,000 new firearms. There are countless other firearms and weapons. With these captures, the Jinzhou Army can be expanded ten times or more.
While inspecting the city, Dayong was extremely proud and excited that he had achieved such a great achievement. Little did he know that there was no history of him. It was not until the first day of September that the Ming army arrived in Laizhou one after another. The Liaodong cavalry led by Jin Guochen killed Li Jiucheng. Seeing that the situation was not good, Kong Youde hurriedly retreated to Dengzhou. Zhu Dadian, the governor of Shandong, Lin Jiantai, the commander of the Beijing camp, Gao Qiqi, the supervisor, Xie Sanbin, the patrol commander, and others decided to separate the defenses in view of the strong city of Dengzhou, which was easy to defend and difficult to attack. The battle plan is to build fortifications, besiege for a long time, attack and defend in separate divisions, block sea lanes, and offer rewards for thieves.
In October, the Ming army began to attack the city on a large scale. The rebels defended the city tightly, forming a stalemate. It was severe winter, the weather was freezing, and the city was running out of food. The rebels captured women, killed them, ate their meat, and burned their fat. Illumination killed tens of thousands of people, and their lives were devastated. After the city was broken, there were only more than a hundred survivors, and most of the rest fell into the belly of the rebels.
After the food in the city was exhausted, Kong Youde began to break out. On February 12, he gathered 3,000 horses and formed a cavalry team to lead the charge. 5,000 infantry followed, and the troops were divided into three groups. He, Geng Zhongming, and Li Yingyuan each led one group. , forcibly broke out of the siege from the west gate. Kong Youde planned to join forces with the Central Plains bandits after breaking out, and also became a rogue soldier to storm the government and seize the state. Unexpectedly, a junior officer in the rebel army crossed the city at night and reported this In response to a major military situation, Zhu Dadian and others quickly deployed a three-way ambush. When the rebels entered the ambush, officers and soldiers rushed to kill them in an attempt to capture Dengzhou in one fell swoop. However, after being ambushed, the rebels quickly retreated, and the remaining rebels in Dengzhou City also fired artillery fire. In response, the Ming army approached the city wall with military tactics. At the same time, the Ming army also stepped up its attack at the east gate of Dengzhou and had captured the outer protective wall of Shuicheng. Kong Youde understood that if a decision was not made as soon as possible, Shuicheng would be destroyed by the Ming army. Occupied, they became turtles in a urn and had no choice but to be captured.
That night Kong Youde ordered that in addition to leaving more than a thousand people to cover the city of Dengzhou, the remaining more than 12,000 rebels and their families (including 3,600 combat troops) took more than 100 large ships, together with weapons, guns, etc.
A corresponding object broke through the sea route from the north gate of Shuicheng, braving the artillery fire intercepted by the Ming army.
The Ming army quickly invaded Dengzhou City, but the remaining rebel troops were still resisting in Shuicheng. The Ming army guerrilla Liu Liangzuo secretly led his men to sneak into the Yongfu Temple near the water city wall, dug a tunnel from it to the bottom of the city, filled it in, and destroyed a section of it.
city wall and captured Shuicheng. Another part of the rebels retreated to Danya Mountain on the seaside of Dengzhou City, preparing for a battle between trapped beasts. Zhu Dadian did not kill the last rebel team, but persuaded them to surrender, and most of the rebels came down the mountain.
Surrendered, some people threw themselves into the sea and committed suicide. Kong Youde, who fled to the sea, initially thought of occupying an island or a place on the coast of Liaodong and separatist armed forces. However, Huang Long, the Ming army commander in chief of Lushun, who was stationed on Pi Island, led the navy
They were intercepted and killed. Li Jiucheng's son Li Yingyuan was beheaded, and Mao Chenglu and Chen Guangfu were captured, completely shattering his dream. He and Geng Zhongming led the remaining ships and personnel to drift at sea for several months, also at sea.
After the New Year, Kong Youde, desperate, made the final decision to surrender to Hou Jin, the enemy of the Ming Dynasty. After contacting Hou Jin, they landed at the designated location. Huang Taiji sent the generals of the Eight Banners of the Han Dynasty to repel them.
The Ming army pursued and suppressed Kong Youde's rebels and entered the territory of Houjin. After it was confirmed that Kong Youde had indeed come to surrender, Huang Taiji was overjoyed and personally greeted Kong Youde and Geng Zhongming outside Shenyang City.
Since then, Kong Youde's rebellion, which lasted for eighteen months, ended. However, in this counter-insurgency war, neither warring party was victorious. Although the Ming Dynasty quelled the rebellion and held a grand prisoner dedication ceremony at the Ancestral Temple, two bandits, Li Yingyuan and Mao Chenglu, were killed.
The execution of Chief Lingchi was a shot in the arm for the empire, which had been losing consecutive battles. However, the two prefectures of Denglai in the Ming Dynasty, the logistics training base for the Liaodong front line, were smashed to pieces by the rebels, and they were also destroyed by the rebels in the Shandong region near Gyeonggi.
It brought about the consequences of killing more than 100,000 people and destroying 300 miles of land. Several officials from the imperial court and a large number of local officials were killed. At the same time, the two chief criminals of the rebellion were not arrested. Although Kong Youde once captured many prefectures and counties in Dengzhou.
, but he also failed to realize his idea of establishing himself as a king and armed separatist regime to fight against the Ming Dynasty. He eventually became a traitor and became a dog of the Manchu people. The biggest winner was Manchuria. Huang Taiji finally got the sophisticated weapon he dreamed of.
For Western artillery, Kong Youde brought at least twenty original red barbarian cannons from the Portuguese Macau Artillery Manufacturing Bureau. From then on, they no longer feared the fortified city of the Ming Dynasty. Moreover, they also received gun manufacturing technology directly taught by Kong Youde and other Portuguese military advisers.
As well as military technical talents aiming at knowledge and instrument operation. With the addition of Kong Youde's rebels, Tong Yangxing's Han army flag began to live up to its name. Kong Youde's gold drop led a group of people. From then on, the number of Ming generals who dropped gold began to increase.
The more and more, the Ming Dynasty’s national power continued to weaken.
The history that should have happened did not happen, all thanks to Shi Dayong's gambler character. If it weren't for his desperate gamble, Dengzhou would not have been won so easily. Of course, it was not him who made Shi Dayong successful, but
As luck would have it, when danger came, Kong Youde rushed to Laizhou with the main force of the rebels in Dengzhou.
Wang Bingzhong's willingness to die rather than surrender brought some troubles to the Jinzhou Army. It was just trouble. The method of digging into the tunnel and using gunpowder to blow up the city wall was not Shi Dayong's idea, but was offered by Wang Tieshi, a Pingdu rebel in the army, and took pictures.
I guarantee that I will succeed, because the rebels used this move to blow up the city wall that day. After taking Shuicheng, Shi Dayong summoned Wang Tieshi, assigned him a general title, temporarily led a group of soldiers, and rewarded him with a
One hundred taels of silver.
The feeling of successfully capturing Dengzhou was really wonderful, especially when he saw the more than a thousand war horses, the dazzling silver, and the coveted cannons and firearms, Dayong felt nothing but ecstasy in his heart.
If the goods and weapons seized from Shahe and Pingdu gave Dayong the joy of becoming rich overnight, then the seizures in Dengzhou City made him the richest man in the Ming Dynasty.
Piles of gold and silver, piles of ordnance, and high-quality war horses, Dayong's ambitions began to swell. He was no longer satisfied with just being a general commanding thousands of troops. He began to have the desire to guard one side and act alone.
Commander-in-Chief, the Zhentai with the General's Seal, this is what Dayong wants!
Dayong believes that the great achievement of capturing Dengzhou is enough to wash away his sins, but if he wants the general seal, Dengzhou alone is not enough. If he can bring the heads of Kong Youde and Li Jiucheng to Beijing, plus Jinzhou
For the great victory, no matter how much the emperor blamed himself, he would probably always be rewarded with the Great Seal of the General Soldier.
Cao Bianjiao suggested an immediate attack on the rebels in Laizhou, but Jiang Wanli and Song Qing disagreed, believing that Dengzhou had just been captured and it was better to hold it firmly first. There were still tens of thousands of rebel troops outside Laizhou City, and the Jinzhou Army's new elite,
However, there are only more than 3,000 soldiers capable of fighting. Fortunately, more than half of them were able to capture Dengzhou. If the defenders were not empty, it would be impossible to capture Dengzhou with the strength of the Jinzhou Army. It is better to hold on to Dengzhou and digest it first.
Just take the spoils of war, expand your strength, reorganize the city defenses, and wait for the rebels to come and die on their own.
The Jinzhou Army was not those Dongjiang Liao soldiers, and Shi Dayong was not Sun Yuanhua. With those hundreds of cannons, Kong Youde could not even hope to break into the city even if all his teeth were broken.
Shi Dayong chose the suggestion to secure Dengzhou. The credit for killing Kong Youde and Li Jiuzheng is tempting, but the comparison of strength must also be considered.[
"Send hundreds of rebel family members to report to Kong Youde. We will wait for him here in Dengzhou City."
After Dayong gave the order, he added, "Tell those Liao soldiers that if you want your family members to survive, come and surrender to me within half a month. Once the time limit is over, I will kill people."
"Your Majesty, there is news from Laizhou that Xie Lian is dead." In the Dongnuan Hall, Wang Chengen reported cautiously and glanced at the chief minister Wen Tiren who was standing there.
The young emperor was a little surprised when he heard the news. He raised his head and glanced at the favored eunuch who had wanted to die with a stick, and asked in a low voice: "How did you die?"
"Hunger strike to commit suicide." Wang Chengen gritted his teeth.
Chongzhen was stunned, gritted his teeth, and made two dimples on his cheeks. He sighed and said, "It's Zhang Chun again." Wen Tiren also sighed, and then said: "Your Majesty, Xie Lian, Zhu Wannian is
Because Liu Yulie stayed and refused to advance, Laizhou lost support, so the two ministers sacrificed their lives for the country. I thought that Liu Yulie was ordered to supervise the army, but he failed to advance, so there must be something wrong in it."
Hearing this, Chongzhen held it in for a long time and said coldly: "He needs to be caressed." His expression changed, "Catch Liu Yulie and put him in jail!" Then he said again: "Who can take his place?"
Wen Tiren was secretly happy in his heart, but his face remained unchanged and he said: "I thought that Governor Zhu Dadian of Shandong could take my place."
Chongzhen thought for a while and found that the situation in Lu had changed since Zhu Dadian patrolled Shandong. Zhu Dadian was indeed a capable minister, so he nodded and said: "Okay, I will ask Zhu Dadian to take full responsibility for Liu Yulie on behalf of Liu Yulie. Gao Qiqian will supervise the military pay."
, I sent a message to tell them that I am tired of waiting. If they don't move, will they tell me the good news of the fall of Laizhou and give me another surprise?"
Chongzhen was in a good mood, and the servants outside the palace reported that Xu Guangqi had arrived. Chongzhen asked Guangqi to come in. After Guangqi entered the palace, he kowtowed to the Holy Ann.
Chongzhen looked at him and said: "Gao Yingxiang, Zhang Xianzhong, and Li Zicheng broke into Henan from the south of Jincheng and captured Xiuwu. The squires of Henan jointly petitioned the imperial court for help. They must have a good general to rescue Jin. The situation in Henan is in danger. Who do you think I can send?"
"
Xu Guangqi thought for a moment and said, "My lord, Zuo Liangyu."
"Zuo Liangyu?" Chongzhen pondered. This person first aided Daling River and then defended Jinzhou, both of which were meritorious. Moreover, Liaodong came to report that the first contributor to the battle of Jinzhou must be Zuo Liangyu. Is this true?
Really, it's not clear yet. But one thing is clear. I think Zuo Liangyu is indeed a capable general. If he is asked to go to rescue Henan, he will make sure nothing goes wrong. Thinking of this, he nodded and said: "Ask the Ministry of War to transfer Zuo Liang."