Southern Ming: A boy soldier at the beginning, supporting the world

Chapter 23: Three Kings Besieging the City
When the Qing army learned that something had happened in Guilin, King Gongshun, Kong Youde, was overjoyed. He assembled a large army, passed through Pingle and Yangshuo, and rushed to Guilin in the rain.

On May 24, the vanguard of the Qing army arrived at the south of Guilin and set up camp in the area of ​​Qixingyan.

Qu Shisi immediately summoned Jiao Lian to the city and gathered all the generals to discuss the matter. Lin Yingchang, who stayed behind in the central army, Bai Gui, Zhao Guang, Ma Qijiao, and Zhu Minru, four commanders under Jiao Lian, Cen Danchu, the commander of the standard camp, Pang Tianshou, the eunuch who supervised the army, Qu Shawei, the imperial astronomical bureau, and Bi Fangji, the Portuguese mercenary priest, attended the meeting.

It was raining heavily outside. The generals had just sat down when the deputy general Ma Zhiji sent someone to report that the city wall of Fubo Gate in the east of the city was damaged and collapsed in two places, and they were organizing people to repair it.

Qu Shisi looked solemn and said slowly: "Yingchang, tell me about the enemy first."

Lin Yingchang was given the seal of General Pingyi, but in fact he was only the commander of the Central Army under Qu Shisi, in charge of more than 2,000 soldiers guarding the city. These soldiers were only responsible for maintaining order and could not kill the enemy in battle.

Fortunately, Lin Yingchang was diligent and had the trust of Qu Shisi. He said:
"Spies report that the Qing invaders at Qixingyan are from Tu Lie'ao's army, a general under Li Chengdong. Kong Youde was originally in Huguang, and upon hearing that Guilin had changed, he took a detour through Zhenxia Pass and headed for Yangshuo. He will arrive in Guilin tomorrow. The rebel kings Geng Zhongming and Shang Kexi are following them, with a force of 100,000."

Kong Youde, Geng Zhongming and Shang Kexi were the Three Shun Kings in the early Qing Dynasty. They all came from the Dongjiang Army and were highly regarded by Mao Wenlong. They were brave and good at fighting, and were extraordinary.

After hearing this, Pang Tianshou was frightened and said in a strange sissy voice:

"Kong Youde is good at using cannons and was appointed as a general by the Qing invaders. With the combined strength of the three kings, he is a formidable force. For now, the best plan is to stay in the fortress and ask the Duke of Anguo and the Marquis of Si'en to rush to the rescue. Then we can attack from both sides and hopefully defeat the enemy."

When this argument came out, everyone looked at each other in bewilderment. Liu Chengyong had just revolted not long ago, how could he forget the pain after the wound healed and still expect Liu Chengyin to send troops to rescue him?
When Cen Dan first saw him with fair skin and short, plump figure, he knew that he lived a life of luxury and took good care of himself.

This eunuch is more likely to cause trouble than to help. If he were not so low-ranking, Dan Chu would really like to stand up and give him a good scolding. Old man, I will find a chance to humiliate you later!
Although Pang Tianshou was the general commander, he had no prestige. The reason was that after Jiao Lian expanded the army, he became the only one in power. Qu Shisi relied on Jiao Lian, which made Jiao Lian's position even more transcendent.

But Jiao Lian was a man of integrity, not willing to flatter, and had no money to bribe eunuchs, so Pang Tianshou wanted to bring in external aid to check and balance Jiao Lian.

Qu Shisi did not speak, but looked at Jiao Lian. He was waiting for Jiao Lian to speak so that he could make the final decision.

Jiao Lian took the lead and said, "Although Kong Youde is good at using artillery, he is brave but not wise, and is not a great general. He has united the Three Feudatories and Tu Lie'ao's followers, claiming to have 100,000 soldiers and sufficient funds to be able to hold Guilin for a long time.

"Duke Anguo and Marquis Si'en cannot share adversity and are not reliable. In my opinion, the Qing troops are light and fast, and it is inconvenient for them to carry cannons. It has been raining for days, and even if Kong Youde has cannons, it is inconvenient to use their firepower.

"We should take advantage of the enemy's instability and launch a rapid attack. Otherwise, if the situation gets delayed for too long, the enemy will gather more and more, our army's morale will decline, and the number of rebels will increase. Over time, Guilin will fall without a fight."

All the generals echoed.

Pang Tianshou pretended to be calm, but the whisk given by the emperor in his hand was shaking slightly, revealing his inner anger and unwillingness.

He cleared his throat and said, "Marshal, you must not underestimate the enemy. The three feudal lords are all brave generals in Dongjiang Town. They have fought for 20 to 30 years. Many of them joined Guangdong. Even if there are not 100,000, there are at least 30,000 or 50,000.

"Marshal Jue has less than 10,000 soldiers, most of whom are new recruits and lack training. It is respectable to use the few to defeat the few and the weak to defeat the strong..."

Before the eunuch finished speaking, Jiao Lian interrupted him and said, "Two months ago, the Qing invaders invaded. I led 300 standard bearers and took the initiative to challenge them. I defeated the Qing invaders with one blow..."

Pang Tianshou also interrupted him and said, "Gao Gushan is a mob, but Kong Youde is different. If the commander underestimates the enemy and fails, the people's morale will collapse. If Guilin is in danger, then the journey is in danger. Where will the commander put the emperor?"

"You!" Jiao Lian's eyebrows were raised, and when he saw the jade whisk in Pang Tianshou's hand, he had to suppress his anger.

With Jiao Lian arguing, Qu Shisi was more willing to talk. He looked haggard, but his eyes were bright and he said, "Although the Three Feudatories are strong, Shang Kexi has always been at odds with Kong Youde and Geng Zhongming, and he and Kong Youde are not on good terms.

"Our army relies on strong cities, cannons, and the help of Western soldiers. With favorable weather, favorable terrain, and favorable people, we may be able to defeat the Qing invaders. Today, we will send out scouts to observe the enemy's strength. Tomorrow, when the enemy approaches the city, we will find a way to defeat them."

Kong, Geng and Shang were all from Dongjiang Town and were brave generals under Mao Wenlong. Yuan Chonghuan killed Mao Wenlong without authorization, and Kong Youde and Geng Zhongming were indignant and went to Dengzhou to seek refuge with Sun Yuanhua, while Shang Kexi stayed in Pi Island.

When Kong Youde and Geng Zhongming rebelled, they surrendered to the Qing Dynasty by sea. Shang Kexi was ordered to stop them and beat them so hard that they had no place to hide.

Later, Shang Kexi was betrayed by his superiors. After surrendering to the Qing Dynasty, he also clashed with Kong and Geng. For this reason, Huang Taiji even mediated in person. Qu Shisi concluded that Shang Kexi would not fight to the death and still had confidence in defending the city, and obviously supported Jiao Lian.

Seeing this, Pang Tianshou stopped talking.

Therefore, Qu Shisi arranged defenses and withdrew all his troops into the city, with each general guarding the gate. Wenchang Gate in the south of the city was the focus of defense, and red cannons were placed, with 300 western soldiers going up to the city to fire.

The next day, it was cloudy. The Qing army attacked from Wenchang Gate with great force.

The cavalry rushed out of Wenchang Gate, and the infantry, wearing armor, pushed several trench-crossing carts and moved slowly forward. There were also a dozen Manchu soldiers riding large western horses, wearing silver armor and red helmets, very distinctive, supervising the battle from behind the formation.

Qu Shisi and Jiao Lian stood on the Wenchang Gate Tower and directed the Portuguese mercenaries to fire artillery fire.

It's no wonder that these mercenaries were well paid, fearless and brave. The captain was Nicolas Ferreira, an experienced artillery captain.

Ferreira did not order the Qing army to open fire until they approached the moat. The Western soldiers were in a commanding position, using more than a dozen red-coated cannons, rockets, and more than a hundred matchlock guns. Although the firepower was not dense, it was accurate and could hit whatever they pointed at.

The Qing army was strangled by the moat, and their vehicles crossing the moat were all destroyed, so they had no choice but to shoot arrows.

Arrows rained down, many of them from the Manchurian bows, which were very powerful. Qu Shisi's silk scarf was shot off, and Jiao Lian was also hit by an arrow, but fortunately it did not hit his vital parts.

The Portuguese soldiers were constantly being shot at by arrows, but they did not avoid them. Ferreira bravely stepped forward and directed the artillery to fire. One of the cannonballs landed next to the Manchurian supervisor, killing three of them with one shot, which drew cheers.

By noon, the wind was howling and raindrops as big as beans were falling. The rain was getting heavier and heavier, like a downpour, making it almost impossible to open your eyes.

The heavy rain made guns, cannons, bows and arrows ineffective. The Qing army retreated, and the Ming army also breathed a sigh of relief.

The fighting outside the city eased a little, and Cen Danchu led three teams to rush into the Dusi Yamen and demand military equipment.

The eunuch Pang Tianshou was staying at the Dusi Yamen. When he came to Guilin, he not only escorted the artillery, but also brought a batch of armor and weapons to win over the generals. The artillery had been moved to the top of the city, but the weapons were still kept in the Yamen.

Cen Danchu intended to demonstrate to him, so he neither went to see him nor asked for instructions. He led his men and rushed straight to the warehouse to move the weapons.

The guards dared not stop them.

There are quite a lot of good stuff, including armor, lances, goose-feather swords, bows and arrows, etc., enough to equip a team.

The soldiers were very enthusiastic in following the captain to grab the eunuch's belongings. In less than two quarters of an hour, all the weapons were taken away.

Eunuch Pang was restless in the mansion until Cen Danchu was about to leave, then he mustered up the courage to go out.

When Cen Dan first saw him, he bowed slightly on his horse and said, "Eunuch Pang, the war is urgent. I heard that there is a batch of military equipment in the government office, so I came to borrow it."

Pang Tianshou was so angry that he trembled and said, "This is my stuff, how could you just grab it without telling me?"

Danchu was furious. He stood on his horse with his spear in hand and said, "We have gone through life and death to protect your wealth and glory. Today, we are in a hurry. I will lend you some weapons. Why are you talking nonsense?"

When Pang Tianshou saw the gleaming sharp blade, he was already frightened and took two steps back in fear.

Cen Danchu laughed loudly and disappeared in the rain on his horse.

(End of this chapter)