national surname chiming

Chapter 298 If you want to take it, you must first give it

In the wind of the river at the end of the twelfth lunar month, Zhu Shuren was wearing a sable fur cloak, standing on the tower of the [-]-year-old battleship, looking at the distant Chongqing City with binoculars.

This was the first time he came to Bashu in the late Ming Dynasty, and the first time he witnessed Jiancheng, which ranked at the top of Bashu in the late Ming Dynasty.

The first impression Chongqing City gave him was that the city walls were not tall, thick and strong, and looked a bit in disrepair—of course, it may also be because it was breached by Zhang Xianzhong just less than a month ago, and it was smashed and destroyed. The place has not been repaired, and it looks even more miserable.

However, Zhu Shuren's second impression quickly turned to Chongqing's topography, and he had to admit that even if the city walls were a little weaker and shorter, it would still be difficult to attack given Chongqing's topography.

Because the city wall here was originally built on the mountain,

Even if there is no wall at all, just building a few checkpoints on the main roads on the mountain, and the siege troops climbing the mountain with crossfire on the high side of the mountain, half their lives will have to be removed.

In fact, just look at the Baidu map of later generations to know.The Yangtze River and the Jialing River, before reaching Chaotianmen, have a journey of fifteen miles, flowing eastward almost in parallel.

In the Eling Park area of ​​the later generations, there is only one kilometer of land between the Yangtze River and the Jialing River, but the rivers can't join here, and they have to flow another [-] miles downstream.

It can be seen from this that all along the fifteen-mile road are high mountains.As long as there is a small gap that can be broken through by thousands of years of scouring, the two rivers have already merged in advance.

If the officers and soldiers wanted to attack Chongqing by land, they had to go from Eling along the mountain road to Qixinggang, and finally attack from Dingyuanmen, Tongyuanmen, and Jintangmen on the west side. One hundred steps, the defenders only need to defend the front of the peninsula, which is just over two miles wide.

If you don't want to attack from both sides of this narrow mountain ridge, you have to cross the Yangtze River or Jialing River directly to fight the landing battle.

Of course, when we were in Wanxian, the government and army had already fought a landing battle and succeeded, so the landing battle is not completely out of consideration.

It's just that Zhu Shu was cautious by nature, so he carefully observed the banks of the Yangtze River and Jialing River carefully.

Winter is the dry season, and the water levels of both rivers have dropped.

However, the main stream of the Yangtze River is full of water from the upper reaches. No matter how little rainfall there is in Sichuan, the water level will not drop too much. There are only dozens of feet of mud and silt on the shore. It is quite troublesome for soldiers to land, and it is easy to get stuck in the mud. inside.

The water from the upper reaches of the Jialing River is entirely dependent on the precipitation in southern Hanzhong and Brazil, so more than half of it can wither in winter. In addition, the areas where the Jialing River flows are densely forested and mountainous, with very little sediment entrained. After the water level recedes, leaving There is not much silt, but there are many rough rocks and pebbles exposed at the bottom of the river.

This point, even if you are not familiar with the geography of Chongqing, the observers in 2022 should be no strangers—the Jialing River in later generations is almost half dry in the summer heat, leaving only a narrow main channel in the middle of the river. water.

In fact, summer is supposed to be the wet season, and winter is when the Jialing River has the least amount of water.

"It seems that the terrain on both sides is not very good for landing. Chaotianmen is flat after landing, but it will soon climb the mountain and attack the city. The silt on the Yangtze River side is easy for people to sink.

If you want to carry siege weapons ashore, you can only sacrifice some flat-bottomed boats, run aground directly on the beach, wade through most of the muddy road, and then remove the bow baffle, and retreat the siege vehicles.

On the Jialing River side, it was no problem for the infantry to land, and they could overcome the roughness of walking, but with so many rocks and pebbles, it was completely impossible for the siege vehicles to land.Even if you are willing to sacrifice the flat-bottomed boat to rush to the beach, you will probably hit the rocks early and leak water.

In this Chongqing city, it is not advisable to directly attack by force. We still have to find a way to outsmart it. "

After Zhu Shuren read it, he told Zhang Huangyan and Qin Liangyu thoroughly.

Zhang Huangyan didn't know much about the local situation, so he took it for granted.

Qin Liangyu has fought all her life, so she is not so easy to be fooled, but she also has to admit that Guo Xingye still has a very clear understanding of difficulties.

So, leaning on a white gun, she asked worriedly: "Master Guoxing said to outsmart, that is, to temporarily encircle and not attack, and wait for the soldiers and horses of the Tan brothers on that road in Hezhou to arrive, and then resort to feigned surrender." Lure the enemy?"

Zhu Shuren was taken aback for a moment, and then laughed. He knew that it was because Qin Liangyu was still worried about his empty talk.

So he also answered heartily: "Soldiers are impermanent, and water is impermanent. How can I use tricks to surrender? I just mentioned it in private at the beginning.

Although it is difficult to break through with a strong attack right now, we can't just wait, we still have to fight, and we can try to persuade them to surrender before we fight.Only in this way can Bai Wenxuan stop thinking about it.Especially for some siege methods that are not likely to be successful based on common sense, we should first hide our clumsiness step by step, so that the opponent will be more paralyzed. "

Qin Liangyu felt at ease when he heard that he spoke so prudently and discussed the situation closely, and was willing to carry out all the specific instructions of Zhu Shuren.

After inspecting the enemy's defense situation on the river that day, the troops crossed the Jialing River in divisions, simply sandwiching the two banks of the Jialing River, and established advance camps respectively, and then devoted themselves to building siege weapons.

No matter how urgent it is, it is impossible to launch a strong attack in the first day or two, and there must always be time for building siege engines.

So that afternoon, after Zhu Shuren learned a little about the development of related work, he took some elite soldiers from the direction of the land road from the peninsula in the west of Chongqing to Qixinggang outside Tongyuan Gate.

The officers and soldiers set up some lookout points and a simple camp on Qixinggang, and set up muskets and French machines.Then they sent cavalry and scolding soldiers to the city to try to persuade them to surrender.

As for the Hongyi Cannon, it is not possible to get it to the Qixinggang camp for the time being, because it is too heavy, and it is impossible to pull up the mountain with things weighing several thousand catties.The purpose of Frangji is not to use it to attack the city, but to prevent the defenders from going out of the city at night to attack this lookout point.

……

Bai Wenxuan is in the city, and he has been busy all day long, deploying defenses everywhere.

His judgment on the possible attack direction of the army was similar to Zhu Shuren's idea. He felt that the army was most likely to attack the city from the west, and Tongyuan Gate was the most dangerous to be attacked.
Because the flat and open terrain outside the city gate is relatively the largest, it is suitable for deploying formations and heavy siege weapons.

As for the south of the city and the north of the city, although Bai Wenxuan was not familiar with the geography of Chongqing at first, but in the past 20 days, he has been sharpening his guns and doing his homework every day. It is possible to cross the river, but it is difficult to march quickly in an array, and the terrain is too poor to pass.

With such unanimous opinions, when Zhu Shuren sent someone to Tongyuanmen to persuade him to surrender, Bai Wenxuan happened to be inspecting the defense at the top of the city, so there was no need for anyone to send a message.

During the rumble of the war drum, the front team of the official army, under the protection of the cavalry, approached a distance of 100 steps outside the city wall. Some soldiers in heavy armor carried iron shields and approached more than [-] steps forward. This is also bullying Zhang Xianzhong. Bring heavy artillery, so you can get close and shout.

"Bai Wenxuan! You can recognize the banner of my family's Futai! Zhang Xianzhong was so rampant back then, even his ears were shot off and his face was pockmarked, busy like a bereaved dog!

If you hide in the deep mountains of Guizhou, my Futai is restricted by the imperial court, so it's not easy to kill and chase!Now that they dare to go out of the mountains and enter Sichuan, sooner or later the whole army will be wiped out!
You don't know yet, my Futai let you go temporarily, but His Majesty asked him to rescue Kaifeng and deal with Li Zicheng first!Now Li Zicheng's 30 troops were completely wiped out by my Futai, Li Zicheng himself was beaten into a one-eyed dragon, and he abandoned the army and fled back to Shaanxi!The thief Zhang Ni has one eye and one ear, which is a perfect match!Sooner or later, they will all die without a whole body!

If you let Zhang Mingzhi guard Wan County, his entire army has been wiped out!It took a day to break through!This Chongqing city will be opened early, and you will be spared. If you break the city, you will be spared! "

The words of the Ming army scolding the players seemed a bit lengthy, but they really couldn't be cut out, because each and every one of them was a real achievement.These soldiers under Zhang Xianzhong's command have been trapped in the mountains for a long time, and they don't know the news of the outside world, so it is not easy to feel awe.
It is necessary to forcibly pull their ears and open their eyelids, forcing them to know what is going on in the outside world, so as to be terrified.

Sure enough, under the repeated bravado of the officers and soldiers, the morale of the defenders at the top of the city was shaken.So much so that when Bai Wenxuan saw this, he had to take his confidant guards who supervised the battle to go up to the tower to suppress and try to dispel the rumors.

After a while, Bai Wenxuan, who was in a state of desperation, had to come forward in person, and asked his scolding opponents to scold and clarify:
"Shen Shuren, you are a running dog for the faint king, and you can't succeed with the disabled people! Chongzhen is self-willed and abuses corrupt officials. The people in the world are in dire straits, and the people can't be killed! As long as we have breath, we will kill corrupt officials and foolish kings... "

It has to be said that Bai Wenxuan's scolding team has a bit of a theoretical system, and Zhang Xianzhong doesn't have a program of action. Once he can't compare his strength with his fist, it's just a dream to compare his program.

Therefore, as long as the military does not gain the upper hand, the only thing left to talk about is eighteen generations of ancestors. It is impossible to sow dissension and shake the morale of the army.

Bai Wenxuan was able to make people say these words, and he had already thought about it after studying with Sun Kewang and Li Dingguo. Under Zhang Xianzhong's command, the person with the most political vision was actually Sun Kewang, and Li Dingguo was still a bit of a political novice.When Zhang Xianzhong broke through Chongqing and decided to massacre the city, it was Sun Kewang who mainly dissuaded him from massacring the city.

Of course, this doesn't mean that Sun Kewang has a better conscience than Li Dingguo, but that Sun Kewang is more politically savvy and knows how to establish a base and win over people and capital.However, Zhang Xianzhong still doesn't have this nerve in his mind at all.

Historically, after the summer of the 16th year of Chongzhen, both Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong briefly had the sprouts of political thinking in their minds, but they were both stifled by themselves because of the unfavorable war.

In this life, because of the butterfly effect, Zhang Xianzhong probably has no chance to grow this thing in his mind, and there are not many growth cycles left for him.

So, at this moment, the two armies scolded each other, and the defenders were unable to speak out any facts that could shake the morale of the enemy's army, except for their addiction to swearing.

The only gain was that when the officers and soldiers heard Bai Wenxuan mentioning Zhu Shuren's name taboo, they mocked Bai Wenxuan loudly for his ignorance and lack of information. He took the country's surname and was named Krupp.

When the officers and soldiers revealed the news, of course there was evidence, as evidenced by the banner of Zhu Shuren and the guard of honor of the earl.

It was this revelation from the officers and soldiers that made the defenders panic.

Wan County fell in one day, Li Zicheng's 30 troops were wiped out, and Zhu Shuren gave the country the surname Earl...

If he really freed up his hands and entered Sichuan so quickly, could the Eight Great Kings be his opponent?

Among the soldiers under Bai Wen, the most direct and most confidant old camp brothers also participated in the battle of Hengzhou.Back then Zhang Xianzhong was beaten so badly that he fled from Xiangxi to Qianzhong Road in a hurry. Everyone can vividly remember the suffering.

In the end, he had only lived in peace for a few months, and his old enemy was chasing after him. This was simply suppressed by blood.

If someone here understands English, I'm afraid they will ask frantically: "Why is it always you?"

Bai Wenxuan also forced himself to bite the bullet, and then let the scolders shout back:
"Zhu Shuren, don't talk nonsense! If you want to attack the city, just attack it! So far, have you ever defeated any city that the Eight Great Kings swore to defend? Isn't it because our army took the initiative to turn in to give you a chance? Yes, today the Governor of Japan will live and die with the city!"

Of course Zhu Shuren wouldn’t be provoked either. The siege weapons weren’t ready yet, so he just asked the Musketeers to line up secretly when they scolded the defenders to attract the attention of the defenders, and they were ready to step forward at any time. Langji, ready to steal another one.

Because it is stealing, the number of people used can't be too many, only a few hundred musketeers and a few Francophones.

Bai Wenxuan was cursing and cursing, realizing that the atmosphere was not right, thinking of Zhang Xianzhong being beaten into pockmarks, he also quickly backed away, and reminded the soldiers to be careful.

But he was still attacked by a burst of guns from the government army, killing dozens of defenders, and Bai Wenxuan was so angry that he yelled at the other party for being despicable and shameless.

The officers and soldiers prepared again with firepower, and the battlements caused the battlements to collapse, the surface fortifications were damaged in several places, and dozens of soldiers were killed and wounded. Put down the words and tell the defenders to wash their necks and wait. Once the siege weapons are built, it will be their end.

……

After being frustrated for the first time, his morale was also hit. After Bai Wenxuan went back, he was inevitably depressed. The key point was that he would be made things difficult by the counselors left behind by Zhang Xianzhong to supervise the army.

That night, after Pan Duao learned of what happened outside Tongyuan Gate, he never forgot to accompany Smiley to Bai Wenxuan to inquire about the situation.

Of course Bai Wenxuan knew that this was the other party's visit to test whether he had the possibility of betraying the Eight Great Kings.So he could only bite the bullet and choose what the other party was willing to listen to. He also said that he would definitely deploy heavy troops near the Tongyuan Gate and fortify layers of defense. Even if Zhu Shuren finished building heavy siege weapons, he would still be unable to break through such a dangerous terrain.

However, Pan Duao had already had a thorn in his heart. The more Bai Wenxuan talked about it, the more worried he became, so he asked again critically:
"You Dudu, is it only the Tongyuan Gate and the west side of the city that need to be strictly guarded? The Jialing River is not wide and deep now, and there are ten miles to the north of the city. The officers and soldiers may cross the river everywhere. Do you want to be on strict guard?"

Bai Wenxuan really wanted to follow the other party's words, but he still had military common sense, so he couldn't act against his conscience, so he showed off: "It's true that the Jialing River is shallow and slow in the last month of the month, but the bottom of the river is exposed with jagged rocks. From here to sneak attack, how to drive? You can’t even climb up the ladder, so don’t worry, Military Master Pan.”

But Pan Duao said suspiciously: "Zhuge should be cautious when deploying troops. Now that the enemy is strong and we are weak, the key is not to leave any loopholes. Since the Jialing River can be crossed, we should fortify it tightly. The right governor will not take it seriously... it's a fluke."

What Pan Duao originally wanted to say was "half-hearted and half-hearted", but he was not stupid. He knew that if Bai Wenxuan was really half-hearted when he said this word, he would not be able to win good fruit.

So, let's just be lucky.

Bai Wenxuan and him were also afraid of each other.He was left here by Zhang Xianzhong to lead the army, but Zhang Xianzhong is not stupid, since he would think of leaving a military adviser to supervise the army, of course he would bring all of Bai Wenxuan's relatives and friends with him, and Bai Wenxuan was once a general of Li Dingguo, so he also To worry about implicating the old.

Since Zhang Xianzhong was strongly advised by Sun Kewang after the massacre in Chongqing, he has become more and more paranoid, always feeling that the people around him are unreliable.After all, if he doubted both Sun Kewang and Li Dingguo, who else could he trust?
Therefore, at this moment, Bai Wenxuan was beaten, so he had to rely on Pan Duao for the time being, and chose to readjust the deployment, and strengthen the west and north equally with the small number of troops, just like spreading pepper noodles.

The next day, the officers and soldiers did not come to attack the city, they just scolded the formation and prepared firepower, probably still building equipment.

But in the early morning of the third day, the situation finally changed.

At about the end of Yin's hour, dozens of medium-sized troop carriers came quietly on the surface of the Jialing River, each carrying nearly a hundred people, a total of several thousand soldiers.

The defenders at the top of the city were only illuminated by torches, so of course they couldn't see far away, so until the ships on the river laid down most of their soldiers and lined up for a sneak attack, the top of the city still didn't know anything.

In the end, the landed officers and soldiers carried the flying ladders and began to charge, and the warships on the river began to support them with Francophones and musket fire. Only then did the defenders at the top of the city react and organize resistance quickly. Bloody fighting.

Unfortunately, due to the lack of siege weapons, and the government's Fran cannons from the remaining waterway of the Jialing River, the range is not enough to bombard the city wall.After more than half of the bloody battle, the officers and soldiers retreated decisively.

The defenders won a small victory for a while, and immediately cheered.

The guards stayed on guard until dawn, and the defenders saw several warships on the rocks at the mouth of the Jialing River, which had been smashed through the bottom of the ship. They seemed to be larger than the troop carrier that the officers and soldiers went deep into the Jialing River to attack last night. , the waterway was shallow and could not enter, so it hit a rock and was damaged, and was temporarily abandoned.

The soldiers on board were obviously rescued by other small and medium warships.

Seeing this scene, the defenders became more and more rejoiced, and the soldiers in Beicheng felt a little underestimating the enemy.

After learning about the battle in Beicheng at dawn, Bai Wenxuan and Pan Duao also rushed here to check the situation at dawn.

However, regarding the interpretation of the battle situation, the two apparently disagreed again.

Pan Duao fanned himself with a feather towel, waving his fan lightly, talking and laughing happily there, saying that if he hadn't "Zhuge is only cautious in his life" and reminded Bai Wenxuan to focus on defense in the north of the city, he might have been attacked by the officers and soldiers last night!In the future, the right governor should listen more to the teachings of his reincarnated Zhuge!

Bai Wenxuan rolled his eyes when he heard it, and he could only endure it, thinking that the officer and army's way of stealing hard by carrying the ladder last night could be defended without strengthening the troops!

But Pan Duao acted like an afterthought, so he couldn't assume it at all, so he had no choice but to admit it, and continued to deploy troops here evenly.

It was precisely because the defenders insisted on dividing their troops like pepper noodles on the front of the city more than ten miles north, that day, the official army broke out in the west of the city for the first time to attack the city, but it was extremely difficult for the bandits to defend.

Bai Wenxuan's troops in Tongyuanmen and Dingyuanmen were completely insufficient, but Zhu Shuren spread his troops in an all-round way, and even went to the Hongyi cannon to bombard the city, beating Bai Wenxuan's troops to the limit, and the ratio of casualties was not lower than that of the attacking side.As the defender of the city, such a number is really embarrassing enough.

Bai Wenxuan repeatedly pleaded with Pan Duao to tell the truth, and the northern part of the city repelled a sneak attack, so the officers and soldiers should retreat in spite of the difficulties, and change all the brothers from the old camp to the two gates in the west of the city to guard against death.

However, Pan Duao always doubted Bai Wenxuan's intentions, and insisted that he only allowed to increase the conscription of strong men and recruits in the city, and went to the west of the city to fight and fill up the pits. Bai Wenxuan had no choice but to follow suit.

Under such circumstances, the North Route Army of the Sichuan Army that Zhu Shuren had been waiting for finally arrived after a long time.

The troops of the three Tan Wen brothers passed through Hezhou in a detour, went down the Jialing River, and joined forces in the west of Chongqing.

(End of this chapter)