Chapter 24 Zhang Xianzhong's Story of the Founding of the Kingdom of Heaven (2)
Chongqing and Fuzhou were the last two strongholds of the Ming army in eastern Sichuan, and the Rui King Zhu Changhao who was hiding in Chongqing was a close member of the Ming royal family, so the resistance was relatively fierce.
Among the royal families in the late Ming Dynasty, the closest relatives to Emperor Chongzhen Zhu Youjian were the descendants of his grandfather Ming Shenzong, namely the four vassal kings of Fu, Rui, Hui and Gui.
Fu Wang Zhu Changxun died, and his son Xiao Fu Wang Zhu Yousong fled to Nanjing. After Huang Taiji took control of the Beijing court, he was named the so-called governor of Nanjing Rongzheng, which was used to divide the Ming army forces of the Southern Capital Lu Wang and Fu Wang.
King Rui Zhu Changhao himself was originally granted the title of Hanzhong in Shaanxi Province, but he heard that the invading army was approaching Shaanxi. Before the invading army actually entered Guanzhong, he left his fiefdom without permission and hid in Sichuan. It was difficult for Emperor Chongzhen to protect himself at this time, so he There was no time to take care of Zhu Changhao's unauthorized departure from the fiefdom.
King Hui Zhu Changrun was originally sealed in Jingzhou. Shortly after Li Laiheng destroyed Zuo Liangyu's group, he was captured by Chu Chuang soldiers and publicly tried and executed.
The last King of Gui, Zhu Changying, was the seventh son of Shenzong of the Ming Dynasty. He was originally granted the title of Hengzhou, Hunan, and became a vassal on September 26, the seventh year of Tianqi. When the Great Western Army marched into Hunan, Zhu Changying had no other choice and tried to escape to Guangxi. Because Running around in a hurry, the rebels took the opportunity to rob. Zhu Changying fled to Wuzhou, Guangxi with only his third son Zhu Youju, the king of Anren, while his fourth son Zhu Youlang, the king of Yongming, stayed in Yongzhou, Hunan.
After Zhu Changying himself ran to Guangxi, he was frightened to death three times a day because of the Daxi Army's repeated activities on the border between Guangxi and Hunan. His son Zhu Youzhu, King of Anren, died of the same illness in Guangxi before he could inherit the throne. Then it fell into Zhu Youlang's hands.
Unfortunately, the good times did not last long. Zhu Youlang was captured by the Daxi Army before he could escape to Guangxi. Originally, according to Zhang Xianzhong's practice, all captured Ming Dynasty clan members were to be executed, not to mention that Zhu Youlang was a close brother of Emperor Chongzhen. , and even more so, they belong to the ranks of those who are destined to die.
But at this time, the Great Western Army decided to make a strategic shift, preparing to stay away from Huguang to avoid Chu Chuang's attack, so it was marching towards Sichuan. In the midst of their busy schedule, the matter of killing Zhu Youlang was put on hold.
When they arrived in eastern Sichuan and the Daxi Army's several attacks on Chongqing were unfavorable, Zhang Xianzhong's advisers Pan Duao and Xu Yixian mentioned to Zhang Xianzhong that this was because the King of Rui, Zhu Changhao, was still in Chongqing.
Zhu Changhao was also a close brother of Emperor Chongzhen, and he had great appeal among the officials and gentry of the Ming Dynasty. With King Rui as the main tablet, the officials and gentry of Sichuan could gather together and organize a massive regiment to resist the invasion of the Western Army.
Therefore, Xu Yixian repeatedly persuaded Zhang Xianzhong not to execute Gui Wang Zhu Youlang rashly, but to keep him in the army to see the future, which may have unexpected effects.
King Gui Zhu Youlang was trapped in the Daxi Army, and his life was not even guaranteed. He lived in fear every day. Only Anwensi, a Jesuit missionary, valued Zhu Youlang's identity as a prince and actively treated Zhu Youlang. Lang spread Catholicism.
Zhu Youlang, who lacked spiritual sustenance, happened to need Catholicism as a tool to anesthetize him. The two hit it off, and soon An Wensi prepared a baptism ceremony for Zhu Youlang.
Because of the rudimentary conditions in the army, everything had to be kept simple. Anwensi arranged a simple altar with two lamps, three cups of tea, and a penitential memorial with the name and format of the person who requested the baptism, Zhu Youlang. as follows:
The boy Zhu Youlang knelt on the ground, sincerely repented and prayed
Heavenly Father, the Emperor, is extraordinarily merciful and forgives those who were ignorant and repeatedly violated the laws of heaven. I beg you.
Heavenly Father, God, have mercy, forgive your past mistakes, make a new start, and let your soul ascend to heaven. From now on, you sincerely repent, do not worship evil gods, do not do evil things, and abide by the laws of heaven. I beg you.
The Heavenly Father and Emperor God always sends holy winds to transform evil spirits, and never allows demons and demons to mistage you. He always watches over you and never allows demons to harm you.
We have food and clothing every day, and there are no disasters. See peace in this world, and see eternal blessings in heaven. Thanks to the atonement of Jesus, the savior, the heavenly brother, and interceding with the heavenly Father and God, may the holy decree be done in heaven, and be on earth as it is in heaven. Look down wherever you are.
Ask for what you sincerely wish for.
When it was time to salute, Zhu Youlang read aloud a memorial of repentance, asking God to forgive his sins, and burned it after reading. An Wensi asked Zhu Youlang, "Are you willing not to worship evil gods? Are you willing not to do evil things? Are you willing to abide by the laws of heaven?"
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After Zhu Youlang said yes repeatedly, An Wensi took a cup of water from a large basin of water and poured it on Zhu Youlang's head, while saying: "Wash away the sins of the past, get rid of the old and create a new one."
The baptism ceremony is considered over.
Due to Zhang Xianzhong's high position and perverse temper, An Wensi had not dared to baptize Zhang Xianzhong in such an offensive way before. However, after he baptized Zhang Xianzhong, King of Gui Zhu Youlang, Zhang Xianzhong was curious and interesting about the baptism ceremony, so he took the initiative to persuade An Wensi to do so.
Wen Si also baptized himself.
Some other generals and soldiers in the Daxi Army who were influenced by Anwensi's preaching also requested baptism, including many of He Yilong's subordinates.
Zhang Kewang and Zhang Dingguo didn't say much about this funny scene. After all, the soldiers' mental outlook did improve slightly after being baptized, and He Yilong's subordinates were also baptized, which seemed to prevent this unit from having any problems.
Trouble. As long as An Wensi is careful not to contaminate the military and political power of the Great Western Army, it doesn't matter if the soldiers believe in some kind of Heavenly Father and Emperor.
After all, this is not the first time that Xiying has used this kind of religion. As early as when Xiying conquered Fengyang many years ago, Zhang Xianzhong used the popular White Lotus religion in Fengyang area to call himself the "Emperor of the Ancient Dragon True Yuan" spread by the White Lotus religion.
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After Zhang Xianzhong led his troops to Fuzhou to block the Ming army commander Zeng Ying, He Yilong stepped up his attack on Chongqing. Chongqing is located at the confluence of the Yangtze River and the Jialing River, facing the river on three sides. It is a mountain city that is easy to defend but difficult to attack.
However, the artillery troops led by Zhang Kewang and An Wensi showed great power. The Western Army first captured Futuguan from the west and entered the city. Then they concentrated their artillery to bombard the city wall near Tongyuan Gate. Under the guidance of An Wensi, the Western Camp's cannons were as strong as arms.
Using his fingers, the attack path was soon opened. He Yilong and Zhang Dingguo immediately led their troops to attack.
Zhang Dingguo's military discipline was strict. After he occupied the treasury, he did not allow the soldiers from the camp to enter Chongqing to rob. He Yilong was so angry that he actually ordered the soldiers from the camp to rob without permission. King Zhu Changhao of Rui, Governor Chen Shiqi of Sichuan, and Wang Xingjian, the prefect of Chongqing
As a result, Wang Xi, the magistrate of Ba County, and others died in the robbery.
Originally, after Zhang Xianzhong of the Great Western Army believed in Heavenly Father and Emperor, Zhang Xianzhong held a Bible and a cross every day, and used the so-called ten articles of heaven to talk about things. He changed his past habit of being prone to extreme changes in mood and strictly
The military discipline in Xiying was restrained.
After the Great Western Army entered Sichuan, they almost never robbed or killed innocent people wantonly. However, after conquering Chongqing City this time, He Yilong was blocked by Zhang Dingguo and could not get the treasures from the Chongqing treasury, so he actually used the "
Treating "Tian Tiao" as a fart, they killed and looted wantonly. The soldiers and civilians in Chongqing were horrified and fled to the military camps of Zhang Kewang and Zhang Dingguo for refuge.
However, the soldiers in the camp went so far as to rob and kill, and even ran directly into the friendly barracks. Zhang Dingguo tolerated it, but what kind of temper did Zhang Kewang have? He directly ordered the soldiers to fire artillery to fight back, and directly dispersed the rebel soldiers in the camp.
This incident immediately hurt the false harmony between Xiying and Geying. He Yilong wanted to attack immediately and lead his troops to attack Zhang Kewang's camp. However, after Zhang Xianzhong heard the news that Chongqing had been broken, he quickly left Fu.
I rushed back from the nearby state, and it was hard to do anything.
The next day, Zhang Xianzhong ignored the past grievances and held a big banquet for He Yilong. He also said that he would ask Zhang Kewang to apologize to He Yilong.
That night, He Yilong and dozens of his soldiers happily went to Zhang Xianzhong's mansion for a banquet. Just because of the habit he had developed over the years, in addition to his sword, he stuffed a short knife into his boot.
When they arrived at Zhang Xianzhong's temporary residence, Zhang Wenxiu had been waiting there for a long time. He Yilong and others followed him through several courtyards and came to a courtyard. The soldiers from the camp were led to the East Chief's wing to drink and congratulate him.
Yilong entered the north room accompanied by Zhang Wenxiu.
Zhang Xianzhong came up to him with a smile on his face, exchanged a few words, and invited him to sit down. There were three tables in the north room, and Zhang Xianzhong sat down behind the middle table. Ge Liyan sat down opposite Zhang Xianzhong, and when he sat down, he subconsciously
He glanced around the room and found that there were two candles lit on each table, which could illuminate the dishes clearly; there were some soldiers standing against the wall, but he couldn't see their faces clearly.