At the Xu Gate, Lu Xiangguan, the chief military officer of Zhongsu Town, had already boarded the city gate tower under the escort of his own soldiers. He was holding a telescope gifted by the emperor in his hand and watching the battle in the distant streets and alleys.
It was already broad daylight and the fighting in the city was basically over.
Although Kang Kara is brave and is the new generation leader of the Wanyan tribe, Tu Guobao had planned this battle for a long time and had the support of the Ming army, so he was bound to die.
People have been ambushed in all the streets and alleys. After Kangkara Qianba left the city, there was no way out. They stepped into the ambush circle step by step. The streets and alleys were blocked by earth bags and beams, and then there were countless crossbowmen.
Musketeers occupied rooftops and other high places to shoot, while shield bearers and spearmen surrounded them layer by layer.
It was midnight again, and Tu Guobao asked his subordinates to call out the name of the Ming army.
He also awarded a heavy reward.
Although the Eight Banners were brave enough to fight, they were helpless and unable to break free from the siege. The narrow streets limited their bravery, but Tu Guobao's soldiers were able to hide in high places and attack them in a safe place.
They even set up city defense artillery to bombard them.
Kangkara was the one who died the most grievously. Half of his body was cut off by a cannon right after the battle started.
"Tu Guobao does have some abilities. This person is a hidden danger. Why not take advantage of them when they are tired and catch them all in one fell swoop?" a Biaotong said.
Lu Xiang looked at the guerrilla. In fact, he was also very moved, but in the end he restrained himself. He also remembered the orders of Wang Xiang and Shen Wenzhong.
The imperial camp is the place where obedience is most important, and the emperor also likes to guard from it.
Although many officials privately said that the emperor's character was very similar to that of the Song Dynasty emperor, which was not a good thing.
Even Zhang Juzheng's great-grandson, Zhang Tongchang, who was a bachelor at the Hanlin Academy, wrote bluntly, saying that since the general, the king's minions, has ascended the throne to be awarded the sword and take charge of the military, he should have the power to make decisions on the spot, and the emperor acted to restrain him.
Don't be cheap, so be brave and brave, and be resourceful and resourceful.
He proposed that the general will win if the general is capable but the king does not control him. A good emperor should not deliberately restrain and restrict generals, but even establish authority for them.
But since today's army has been raised, the emperor has always liked to personally command and dispatch the Sixth Division, and now the imperial court has extended from Guanlong, Bashu in the west to the sea in the east, covering thousands of miles of land, but the emperor still has to personally command and deploy everywhere. This is obvious
It's out of time.
Although the emperor responded to Zhang Tongchang's request, he was not dissatisfied. He even named him minister of the Ministry of War and bachelor of the Hanlin Academy, and made him governor of Yunnan and other places, overseeing military affairs and managing food and wages. He was asked to go to Yunnan to preside over the affairs.
.
However, Zhang Tongchang's words were still agreed with by many people.
The emperor really liked to command. Even in wars far away in Huguang, Sichuan, and Guanzhong, he kept giving orders. For example, the Ming army in Guanzhong clearly gained momentum and marched all the way with 100,000 troops. It was overwhelming and hit the city of Xi'an directly, but the emperor did not win the gold medal.
One after another, He Zhen was ordered to withdraw his troops.
Another example is Sichuan. The Ming army in central Sichuan was also in a good situation and achieved a series of victories. However, the emperor asked for a ceasefire to appease Zhang Xianzhong instead of taking advantage of the victory to destroy the Western bandits in one go.
There are too many such situations.
Some people even attributed Huguang's defeat to the emperor's micromanagement.
Lu Xiangguan was a scholar by birth, but he was proficient in bow and horse, and was familiar with military books. He also assisted his brother Lu Xiang in handling military affairs in the army. He also raised a rebel army and served the clan and princes to raise troops to replace the Qing Dynasty.
However, he has won and lost, so he has a deeper understanding of today's situation.
It is true that the emperor likes micro-management, but he is not like Chongzhen's idea of a hammer in the east and a stick in the west. He will not change his orders day by day. The emperor always has his own clear line and strategy.
All tactics are based on the final strategic plan.
As the emperor likes to say, don't care about the gains and losses of one city or one corner, but consider the overall situation of restoring the world and consider everything.
"Tu Guobao has proven his loyalty to the court,"
Putting down his telescope, Lu Xiangguan sighed in his heart. The emperor had great plans. Although he was far away in Jiangning, under his command, all the six thousand and eight Tatars in Jiangnan had been destroyed, and the price paid by the Ming Dynasty was not high.
big.
Based on this, he, Lu Xiangguan, must conscientiously implement the holy will.
In the city.
Tu Guobao was covered in blood. This ruthless man came to the front line in person wearing armor and carrying a knife. He rushed to the front with his servants. In one night of fighting, he killed seven Tatars alone. It must be said that he was very tough.
"Uncle!" Yang Guoshang came forward, he was also carrying a knife. Although he usually likes smuggling and doing business, when it comes to cutting people, this guy is just as ruthless.
"Have they all been killed?"
"It's been cleared out."
Tu Guobao looked back at the city head not far behind him, where he could see bright flags flying and soldiers of the Ming army standing in awe.
"Have you found Kangkara's body?"
"I only found half of the body, the lower half. The upper half was destroyed by the shells. I can identify it from the armor."
"Take it with you and follow me on a mission."
Tu Guobao brought a group of generals under his command to see him, carrying half of Kangkara's body.
Lu Xiangguan came forward to receive him.
"Fortunately, we have fulfilled our mission and have completely wiped out Kangkara and other 1,800 Tatars. Not a single one of them escaped."
Lu Xiang looked at the half of the body and frowned slightly.
Fortunately, the armor on the corpse did belong to Kangkara's minister, Mele Zhangjing, and it also had his silver seal on it.
"Last night was blessed by the saints. Wang Junmen Shen Buyuan commanded well, and thanks to General Lu and others for supporting our army."
Tu Guobao flattered him, and then asked the Ming army to take over the defense of Suzhou City, and to count and inspect the Tatar heads. He also asked that the Suzhou soldiers be allowed to go out of the city to rest. He also proposed that he was injured in the battle last night and could no longer lead the army, so he requested that Lu Xiangguan
Temporarily command these Suzhou soldiers and horses.
Anyway, the posture is low enough that it can even be said to be completely flat.
Not only did he not take credit, he even took the initiative to hand over military power and the city of Suzhou.
This attitude was even beyond Lu Xiangguan's expectation. He originally thought that Tu Guobao would come to bargain, but he didn't expect it to be so straightforward.
"The native general's great contribution."
Lu Xiangguan first affirmed his contribution last night, and then gave Tu Guobao the last task, which was to lead the Suzhou soldiers to clear the entire city and hunt down the Tatar soldiers who had slipped through the city.
Tu Guobao agreed immediately.
Take the lead and return to the city.
"We have killed all the Tatars. What does this mean?"
But Tu Guobao just said, "Lu Xiangguan just doesn't want to get his hands dirty and wants to borrow our sword to kill some more people. Kill some and scare some. Let's just do what we are told and don't worry about anything else."
Although Suzhou City has been captured for the fourth time, there are still many gentry and common people in the city who have long since surrendered to the Qing court. Of course, the Ming Dynasty will not pursue the case against ordinary people.
But they are not so tolerant towards those wealthy gentry families. Even if they sound nice on the surface, they still have to deal with what needs to be dealt with.
It is more convenient for Tu Guobao to do it without getting his hands dirty.
Tu Guobao is a smart man, he takes action immediately after receiving the order without hesitation.
He himself had been in Suzhou for a long time, and of course he knew which people were loyal to the Qing Dynasty and which ones were loyal to the Ming Dynasty. Those of his own people who had a good relationship with him and were very flattering to him, now turned against him and swung his sword against them.
Suzhou City is in trouble again.
In one day, Tu Guobao wiped out hundreds more families, and then other wealthy gentry also hurriedly obeyed and cooperated, and donated money to atone for their sins.
Tu Guobao turned his face around and once again gained countless infamy and resentment, and then used this to confront Lu Xiangguan.
Lu Xiang looked at the report handed over, which also stated which traitor lackeys had been dealt with, how much gold, silver, fields, houses, food, etc. had been confiscated, and he was very satisfied.
These traitors should indeed be dealt with, but Tu Guobao, the former governor of Jiangning in the Qing Dynasty, could deal with them quickly without getting his hands dirty.
So Lu Xiangguan represented the Ming army and formally accepted the surrender of Tu Guobao.
Tu Guobao also repeatedly requested that the military power be handed over to Lu Xiangguan as his deputy. He and his main generals all surrendered the military power on the grounds of being injured.
Although I feel a little unwilling to do so, the Ming army is now surrounding Suzhou with heavy troops. What can I do about his local national treasure? I can only try to keep a low profile and see if I can win the approval of the Ming army.
This can be regarded as taking a step back to make progress.
When Suzhou soldiers left the city, Zhongsu Town held a city entry ceremony. Wang Xiang, Shen Wenzhong and other generals entered the city. They met with the famous gentry in the city, comforted them with kind words, and even gave them some rewards.
He also gave out porridge in the city to help the people.
The Ming army declared that the whole city was maintaining order. Some local gangsters still wanted to fish with their own hands. They were tied up and paraded through the streets by the soldiers patrolling the city. Then a dozen of the leaders were beheaded, and the rest were whipped and punished in public. All of a sudden
The order was stabilized.
The granary began to supply food to the people of Suzhou, and Suzhou quickly became stable.
Suzhou's soldiers originally numbered 10,000, but after the First World War, there were still more than 8,000.
Jingnan Hou Wangxiang retained more than a thousand of the more elite people, including Tu Guobao's original pacesetters, and dispersed them into the armies in the right wing to strengthen them. Many of the rest of the people were recently temporarily recruited or even forcibly recruited.
At this time, all the strong men were given severance money and were dismissed directly on the spot.
Some of those who were homeless were directly organized to work in the fields near Suzhou. Cattle, seeds, farm tools, and even fields and houses were all provided by the government. The government sent people to take charge of the production organization, and each person was given twelve shi of grain per year.
In other words, they are equivalent to official villages, and these people are equivalent to long-term workers. Because they have no family members and no property, they cannot rent the land themselves for the time being, so they use this method of employment to farm the fields.
It was also agreed that if the harvest reached a certain per-acre yield, there would be additional grain sharing to encourage the enthusiasm of these people.
Of course, this is an employment relationship. When these people have other places to go in the future, or have a certain amount of property, and are able to rent their own land, they will be allowed to leave freely or change to a tenancy relationship.
The current kind of farming is actually a temporary resettlement method for disaster victims and refugees, allowing them to gain a foothold and avoid being displaced, famine-stricken, and helpless in their lives.
The government can also resume farming and increase grain harvests, etc., getting the best of both worlds.
Not only that, the Prime Minister also gave these Suzhou military merit rewards based on their merits in the battle to annihilate the Suzhou Tatars. If they have merit, they will be rewarded. If there is no merit, there will be collective military merit. If there is no merit, there will be hard work. Finally, there will be severance pay.
Anyway, after the order was given and the money and food were laid out, the soldiers in the Suzhou military camp outside the city became excited. They were still a little nervous and didn't know how they would be dealt with.
But everyone was very satisfied with the current handling. Some people even took the lead and knelt down one after another, shouting "Long Live Long Live" in the direction of Nanjing.
