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The Xiangjiang River flows through this place, forming a "ji" bay, and Xiangtan City is within the bay.The city wall is surrounded by water on three sides, and can only be attacked from one side. No amount of soldiers is of any use, and only a few can be arranged for each attack.

Huang Yao sat down across the moat and asked the archers to shoot books into the city.

Residents outside the city either entered the city or fled, and did not dare to stay in the land where the war was a disaster.According to the confessions of these residents, the county magistrate of Xiangtan had died of illness for two months, and the affairs of the county were represented by Li Youlong, the county magistrate.

In Huang Yao's view, how long can a county magistrate be able to suppress the soldiers?Sooner or later you will have to surrender!

Li Youlong was standing at the top of the city at this moment, looking at the rebels outside the city from a distance, he really couldn't hold back anymore.

This guy is from Xunyang, Shaanxi, and later followed Zuo Menggeng to surrender to the Qing Dynasty.

Not only surrendered, but also suppressed and disintegrated many anti-Qing troops during his tenure as governor.In the end, because of "suppressing bandits" in Tianjin, there were too many anti-Qing troops, so he could only entertain those leaders, hoping to recruit them all.As a result, he was impeached for colluding with Nanming, and was dismissed by the Qing court.

After this guy was dismissed from office, he was still reluctant to leave Beijing, hoping to be employed again.He has been living in Beijing for seven years, and was impeached by Yu Shi Wang Bingqian, saying that since he was dismissed from office, he should leave.The Qing Dynasty ordered him to return home within a time limit, and he died of illness soon after returning home.

Just a dog.

Drop or not?

Li Youlong wanted to surrender, but he was afraid that his clan would be liquidated by the court after he became a thief.

He regretted so much that he spent money to buy a county magistrate, but he didn't make much money before encountering rebels attacking the city.

"There are reinforcements!"

A regimental gentry pointed to the distance and shouted happily, but the guards were not interested.

The ambush arranged by Huang Yao was about to be dispatched, but the new regiment training troops were actually holding a Datong military flag high.

"The world is united, the world is united!"

Yuan Yingkui was wearing silk clothes, he looked like a rich man, but at this moment, Tuan Yong shouted the slogan of Datong.

The ancestor of the Yuan family in Xiangtan was Yuan Hong, the founding hero of the Ming Dynasty.

During the reign of Hongzhi, a descendant of Yuan Hong was transferred to the hereditary commander of Chalingwei.This branch was further divided into three, the main sect inherited the Chaling Wei generals, the other moved to Chaling as landlords, and the third moved to Xiangtan as landlords.

They are not big landlords, only a few thousand acres of land.

After Huang Yao surrounded Xiangtan, Yuan Yingkui immediately recruited his disciples, and then waited for the wind direction to stand still.

Seeing the collapse of the Zhou family's training, Yuan Yingkui finally moved.He didn't come to help the government defend the city, but brought more than 1000 village braves, and wanted to join the Datong Army to gain wealth.

Seeing the Datong military flag on the other side, Huang Yao couldn't laugh or cry.

He ordered Xiangyong to stay on the other side, and only sent a small boat to fetch Yuan Yingkui.

"Grassman Yuan Yingkui, meet the general!" Yuan Yingkui knelt down and shouted.

"Hahahaha!"

Huang Yao laughed and said, "Please get up quickly!"

The defenders in the city became even more frightened when they saw that the reinforcements from the rebels had arrived, and the gentry led the villagers to join the rebels.

Seeing this situation, Li Youlong, the acting magistrate, also made up his mind to follow the thieves and think about how to bypass the gentry and offer the city.

Li Youlong had no soldiers under his command, and the city guards were all recruited by local gentry.

In Xiangtan City, Ningxiang Lane.

Xiangtan was unremarkable in the early Ming Dynasty, even the city walls were made of wood.

In the mid-Ming Dynasty, Huguang was greatly developed, and the national commerce became more and more prosperous.As a water and land hub, Xiangtan quickly became the most important port city in southern Hunan, and its economic status even surpassed that of Changsha.

Therefore, Xiangtan in the late Ming Dynasty was jokingly called "Little Nanjing".And Ningxiang Lane, where wealthy merchants live in Xiangtan, is also known as "Wiaoyi Lane".

Representatives of the major families in Ningxiang Lane gathered at Xie's mansion at this moment.

"The business travel between the north and the south is cut off, so we can't fight anymore," Xie Li said, "No matter who wins or loses, we must resume business as soon as possible!"

Tan Qiulin said: "Now it seems that the officers and soldiers will definitely not win. We can only rely on Jiangxi thieves."

"Don't talk about Jiangxi thieves, that's Zhao Tianwang, Mr. Zhao!" Wang Hun reminded.

For these wealthy merchants, dividing the land is a trivial matter. They are mainly engaged in commercial trade from Huguang to Guangdong!These people were known to be more business oriented from the fact that they moved their families to the city rather than living on country estates.

Since Zhao Han protects business, he is worthy of the trust of merchants!

If they encounter unreasonable people, they will fight desperately.

For example, in another time and space, the Qing Dynasty committed all kinds of crimes, such as burning, killing, looting, and these merchants paid money to recruit troops to defend the city.

Due to the fierce siege battle, it lasted for three months.After the Qing army broke through the city, it directly ordered the massacre of the city. According to historical records, "hundreds of thousands of men and women were killed".

Two years later, Nanming regained Xiangtan, the Qing army broke through the city again, and carried out a second massacre, and the entire Xiangtan was almost wiped out.

Only for the second massacre, Hui merchants Huang Kenian and Cheng Xun couldn't bear the righteous people's corpses to be exposed in the wilderness, so they paid money to buy land and asked monks to collect the corpses.The corpse was packed in a bamboo cage and buried for three months.

After the San Francisco Rebellion, the Qing army captured Xiangtan again and carried out the third massacre.Most of the people killed this time belonged to immigrants from Jiangxi!

After the merchants unanimously decided to take refuge in Zhao Han, they began to discuss how to dedicate the city.

Although they have a lot of money, they have no soldiers.

Juren Wang Dai got up and said: "First, pay for recruiting soldiers, saying that they want to defend the city; second, set fire at night and take the opportunity to seize the city gate. Burn Li's house!"

"For burning Li's house, haha, this plan is very clever!"

All the merchants praised in unison, the Li family has already committed public anger.

Li Tengfang belonged to a famous minister of the Chu Party, from the official to the Ministry of Rites, and there are many beautiful words in the history books.

But in the literati's notes in Xiangtan, the Li family did a lot of evil.After Li Tengfang was promoted, the Li family began to expand aggressively. For example, the Wang Dai who spoke just now was seized by the Li family with their power.

Now, although Li Tengfang is dead, his descendants are highly valued by Yang Sichang.Because Li Tengfang was Yang Sichang's father's best friend during his lifetime!

After the discussion, Wang Dai, as a juren, went to see Li Youlong on behalf of the merchants.

The gentleman was filled with righteous indignation and said: "Zhao thief is hateful, he killed the gentry and ravaged the common people. The Xiangtan merchant gang is willing to raise 5000 taels of silver to help the officers and soldiers defend the city!"

Li Youlong had already made up his mind to follow the thief, and when he heard these words, he was frightened and said quickly: "You are so righteous, you are admirable."

How to do?How to do?

Li Youlong was afraid of death and did not dare to reveal his intentions, so he could only smile and support merchants to recruit soldiers.

These merchants were really rich, they spent a lot of money, and the vagrants in the city joined the army one after another. Anyway, they got the enlistment money first.

A few days later, the city suddenly caught fire.

But the mansion of the Li family was burned, and the merchants came to help put out the fire with great enthusiasm, bringing the soldiers they had recruited.

How to destroy it?

Demolish all the places near the neighbors of the Li family mansion!

Wang Dai personally led hundreds of soldiers, rushed to a city gate, and ordered his subordinates to shout: "The rebel spies set fire, the rebel spies set fire!"

The city guards were in chaos, and the gentry leading the soldiers could not suppress them, so they fled indiscriminately.

Li Youlong, the deputy magistrate, came and asked in panic, "Have you ever caught a spy?"

"Caught!"

Wang Dai rushed over and cut down Li Youlong with one knife.

Well, not hacked to death, the literati are weak.

Li Youlong struggled to get up, and shouted in horror: "Don't kill me, I would like to be a thief, I... ah!"

Wang Dai slashed down again, but he still didn't kill him, so he could only quickly make up a few more knives.He was so tired that his waist was sore and his back ached, he gasped and said, "Go and open the city gate!"

In history, Wang Dai and Wang Shizhen were as famous as "three masterpieces of poetry, calligraphy and painting".

He was massacred three times in Xiangtan, and his whole family almost died. They escaped by hiding outside the city.Until he was in his 50s, Wang Dai was recruited by the Qing Dynasty, and in his 60s he served as the magistrate of Chenghai.Chenghai County was also sparsely populated, and there was only one Town God's Temple in the county that was full of incense.

Wang Dai recruited refugees in Chenghai, reclaimed wasteland, built dams, restored markets, and set up free warehouses to help the poor.In the end, he died in Chenghai without any belongings, and the people wept bitterly to send his coffin home.

So what about the Qing dynasty?

He never slaughtered rebels. He became an official only after the San Francisco Rebellion, and he actually saved countless people.

At this time, Wang Dai was less than 20 years old.

He led the soldiers to occupy the gate of the city, and when Huang Yao led the troops over, he immediately stepped forward and bowed: "Please send troops to maintain law and order in the city, and suppress those who take advantage of the fire!"

"Very good, you lead the way!" Huang Yao praised.

Wang Dai first took Huang Yao to Ningxiang Lane to maintain the law and order in the rich area.Then he called various merchants as guides, and led Huang Yao's troops to various places in the city to suppress the riots.

As for Wang Dai himself, he followed Huang Yao to occupy the county government.

Everything was done in an orderly manner, and Huang Yao and the mission officers didn't have to make any effort.

At dawn, Huang Yao praised: "You are very talented, follow me to do things first. After the war, I recommend you to Ji'an, the general town must like you. Do you have fame?"

"Juren." Wang Dai replied.

"Very good, very good." Although Huang Yao is uneducated, he especially admires educated people, provided that the other party does not harm the common people.

Wang Dai offered a plan and said: "Changsha and Xiangtan are both large commercial cities. To besiege Changsha, you can shoot the inside of the city. If you explain the truth clearly, the merchants in the city will be willing to respond internally."

"Why?" Huang Yao asked.

Wang Dai explained: "The longer our army besieged Changsha, the greater the losses for merchants."

Huang Yao shook his head and said, "Changsha's garrison is tens of thousands, and merchants can't make waves. But this strategy can also be used, and it shouldn't be a bad thing to have a few more."

The two didn't talk about Changsha, and Huang Yao began to ask about the situation in Xiangtan.

While talking, a messenger suddenly came to report: "Huang Bingyuan, our army has captured Changsha!"

"what?"

Both Huang Yao and Wang Dai were shocked, thinking they had heard it wrong.

Changsha Fortified City, how can it be so easy to take down?

Chapter 246 [Wonderful Night Attack]

In the south at the end of Ming Dynasty, there were really no decent battles to fight.

The city is in disrepair, and the military equipment is slack. If Zhao Han really encounters a tough guy, Chongzhen can wake up with a smile from his dreams.

This can be seen from the city walls in various places in southern Shonan.

Many are new!

Take Changsha Prefecture as an example, including Changsha City, there are eleven counties and one prefecture.Of these twelve cities, seven of them did not have proper city walls in the last years of Zhengde.

For such an important commercial city as Xiangtan, wooden city walls were still used in the early years of Wanli.

But at the end of Wanli, all the prefectures and counties in Changsha Prefecture had all the masonry walls repaired.The fundamental motivation of the local officials to build the city was to prevent peasant uprisings that occurred one after another in southern Hunan during the Wanli period.

When a group of untrained peasants came to kill them, the officers and soldiers would run away with their heads in their arms.

The local officials were unable to resist, so they could only build cities and defend them, allowing the peasant army to wreak havoc on the villages and towns.When the commotion became serious, the imperial court sent troops to encircle and suppress it, and the suppression lasted for several years.

This is the normal state of war in the south, and it is impossible for Zhao Han to encounter decent resistance.

When Li Zheng was besieging Changsha, the Xia clan in Xiangyin, Ningxiang, and Yiyang joined forces to recruit troops.

The Xia family originally lived in Yiyang, and migrated to Ningxiang during the Northern Song Dynasty.During the Yongle period, one branch of the Xia family in Jiangxi migrated to Xiangyin, and matched the genealogy with the Xia family in Huguang.

The three Xia Clans stand on top of each other, all of which are located next door to Changsha.

Although they reacted slowly, the battle was very big. A total of more than 7000 brave people from the countryside were recruited to come to support Changsha.

Li Zheng sent spies to Xiangyin a long time ago, mainly to investigate the enemy's situation in Xiangyin and see if he could send a small number of troops to steal the city.

As a result, the direction of Xiangyin was detected, and thousands of regiments bravely marched towards Changsha.

Li Zheng was so happy that he wanted to besiege the city and fight for aid!

Not many soldiers were dispatched. Hu Dinggui and Chen Fugui each led [-] regular soldiers, set out at night to circle north, and lay in ambush in Matan Mountain, [-] miles away from Changsha City.

The Xia family's regiment training troop walked very slowly. Hu Dinggui and Chen Fugui rested in Matan Mountain for two full days, and those guys finally arrived late.

The spies sneaked back into the mountains and said: "More than ten miles to the north, those regiments camped bravely by the river. I don't know what kind of river it is, but it's a small river anyway."

Wu Dinggui asked: "The south bank or the north bank?"

"The south bank," said the spies, "the enemy army started to cross the river in the morning, and they brought all their luggage over in the afternoon. They were probably tired and hungry, and they didn't want to continue their journey, so they camped directly by the river. The camp was in a mess, so it was cut down. Some bamboos were used as fences. There are not many tents in operation, most of the enemy soldiers sleep in the open air, and they burn grass everywhere in the camp to smoke mosquitoes.”

Is this motherfucker here for an armed outing?