The warm sun stood in the sky, and the newly moist earth began to become hot again, and the green moss on the city wall returned to its dry state.
The Nanjing City Gate has opened at some point. The doorway, which is several feet wide, looks like a crawling giant beast, showing docile respect.
The officials headed by Hu Chong, the magistrate of Jiangning County, stood with their hands folded. The sound of horse hooves was approaching, and they shouted in unison:
"I respectfully welcome the King of Yu!"
For an instant, Zhu Yixi's face turned pale and extremely ugly.
"Ahem——"
"I respectfully welcome His Royal Highness the Supervisor!"
"Get flat!"
Riding on the horse, Zhu Yixi nodded, looking at the deep doorway and the soldiers who quickly eliminated the danger, with a serious expression:
"During this national crisis, you still bear the humiliation and bear the heavy burden. It is really a blessing for the Ming Dynasty!"
Several people were instantly happy, and now they were cleared and accepted.
So, a group of people divided into two sides, leaving a path open for King Yu to enter.
However, dangers were everywhere in the city. He originally wanted to pay a visit to Xiaoling, but thinking about his own life, he immediately gave up the idea.
Of course, we didn’t go to the imperial palace, but went to Nanjing City.
After dismounting in front of the ramp, Zhu Yixi climbed to the city on foot.
The ramp in Nanjing City is extremely wide, more than two feet wide, which can quickly mobilize troops and horses for support.
Climbing the famous Nanjing City Wall, Zhu Yixi faced the wind, her long hair was blown, and a strong sense of pride hit her face.
The rows upon rows of houses, the taller inner city, and the city walls that stretch as far as the eye can see. With the broadening of the field of vision, these all belong to Nanjing.
And from today on, it will also belong to you.
Looking down, I saw that on the broad plain, there were patches of blood red, a large number of flags had been trampled, and there were corpses one after another, so endless that it was impossible to count them.
Fortunately, these corpses all belonged to the Qing army.
The Ming troops lined up in formation, as if they were training in a new military camp. They lined up neatly and entered the city step by step in an orderly manner.
But as time passed, the excitement was instantly contagious, and the army seemed to be like the tide of the Qiantang River in August, rushing towards the city gate.
"Recklessly!"
Zhu Yixi was in a bad mood for a moment, frowned and said: "No matter what time, the rules must not be messed up."
"Yes!" My brothers-in-law, Sun Lin and Zhu Yi, have matured a lot through years of ups and downs.
At seventeen or eighteen years old, his face is full of stability.
Immediately, Sun Lin gave instructions in a low voice, and a group of military judges with yellow silk armbands walked away with swords in their hands in a menacing manner.
The slightly crowded city gate returned to normal in an instant, just like a flock of sheep meeting a shepherd dog, all of them behaved very well.
It can be seen that the Military Justice Department has been very effective in recent years.
"Nanjing city is colorful and charming, but we can't lose our face."
Sun Lin and Zhu Yi nodded, feeling quite stressed.
After half an hour, it seemed that the wind had blown enough, and Zhu Yixi led the army camp towards the Purple Mountain in a mighty manner.
Purple Mountain is included in the outer city of Nanjing and is located due east of the inner city, about a hundred miles away from where he is.
Zhu Yixi simply stopped procrastinating. He was supported by hundreds of cavalry and accompanied by a cavalry battalion, and left like a gust of wind.
It was not until dusk that we arrived at Xiaoling.
The Xiamafang, which is the entrance to the Xiaoling Mausoleum, is a stone archway with two pillars. On the forehead pillars are engraved six large regular script characters: "Officials dismount their horses." Civil and military officials visiting the mausoleum must dismount their horses and walk here.
Zhu Yixi and others are naturally not exempt from vulgarity.
"Where the Xiaoling Mausoleum is, those who come will stop!"
At this time, hundreds of men, women, and children, wielding hoes and spears and wearing shabby armor, poured out one after another.
"Xiaoling Guard?"
Zhu Yixi was startled, then woke up and asked.
"You are?"
Seeing the familiar flag of the Ming army, in front of me, a man in his forties stepped forward in a slightly embarrassed manner, as if he was in command.
"This is His Highness Prince Yu, who oversaw the Ming Dynasty and recaptured Nanjing!"
Li Jingwu hurriedly stepped forward, pointed at King Yu and said proudly.
"Supervise the country? King Yu?"
The man was startled and looked carefully before putting down his weapon and crying bitterly:
"The last general, Zhang Liangchen, the commander of the Xiaoling Guards, came to see His Royal Highness Jian Guo——"
"Kowtow to Your Highness..."
A group of people, old and young, also knelt down, their faces full of joy.
"You are loyal ministers, get up!"
Zhu Yixi sighed and stood up with help.
The former Xiaoling Guards had about five thousand people and were hereditary.
Moreover, unlike other military households, the Xiaoling Guards were eliminated at the bottom, and those who lacked ability would be replaced by their sons.
If you don’t have a son, you can take your salary and go back to your hometown to take care of yourself in old age.
This was unique in the entire Ming Dynasty.
"Thank you, Your Highness!"
Zhang Liangchen burst into tears with gratitude and bowed down to lead the way: "Since Chongzhen, military law has been relaxed, salaries have been withheld, and there are so many escapees that the personnel are uneven. Some unscrupulous people even dare to offend Xiaoling."
"After the Qing Dynasty entered the customs, even during the Hongguang period, it was quite difficult. After the fall of Nanjing, most of the people fled. Now, only us, old and young, are left to maintain..."
Zhu Yixi nodded from time to time, and then was led into the palace to pay homage to Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang and the spiritual throne of Queen Ma.
This is the past, only the emperor can do this.
Of course, the first one to set a precedent was King Zhu Di of Yan.
Everyone else fell into the empty palace. There were no incense candles for a long time. The white curtains looked shabby and the paint on the pillars was peeling off. It felt a bit desolate.
The scene of the end of the dynasty is clearly visible.
Zhu Yixi knelt down straight and kowtowed several times.
"If a child is unfilial, his ancestors will be humiliated..."
For a long time, I didn't know what he was thinking silently in his heart. A quarter of an hour passed before he came out of the palace.
At this time, he seemed to be the protagonist in a game, with various auras added to him. Everyone who saw him treated him respectfully.
He supervised the country and paid homage to Xiaoling again.
Once this is done, what happens next is self-evident.
Following his gaze, everyone lowered their heads, not daring to look at him.
It's a pity that he is wearing armor instead of a long-sleeved robe with the sun and moon side by side.
"Let's go to the inner city——"
With an order, the soldiers' camp and the cavalry camp's momentum surged in an instant. Everyone seemed to have taken a tonic pill and became a hundred times more energetic.
…
At this time, Wu Sangui covered the severely wounded Eight Banners soldiers and fled into Zhenjiang in embarrassment.
It seemed that he felt unsafe again, so he planned to retreat to Yangzhou overnight to recharge his batteries.
At this time, he met Hong Chengchou and his party.
Compared to them who were in a panic, although Hong Chengchou was out of breath and looked exhausted, he was still in good order after all.
"Governor Hong?"
Wu Sangui was surprised, how could this old man run so fast?
"Oh, bad luck!"
Hong Chengchou said with a sullen face: "This battle is not due to lack of strength, but because someone is holding us back."
"That's right!"
Wu Sangui nodded quickly and said with understanding: "Zheng Longfang and Yao Wenchang secretly surrendered to the enemy, leading to their defeat."