Ming Dynasty entry: I am Chongzhen, the greatest emperor of all time!

Chapter 55: All Men Come to the Door

The situation that Zhu Youjian and Wu Xiang were most worried about happened.

Even if the rebel army split up to attack other city gates, it might be a feint.

They also did not have the extra manpower to defend the city.

There are less than 10,000 elite soldiers and 50,000 new troops with only two purple attributes, which can only ensure that the formation does not break up. They must be used to deal with the main force of the rebel army.

What's more, the length of the city walls of Desheng and Anding gates alone reached more than 20 miles.

They also have to resist the attack of 500,000 rebel troops, so it is impossible to divide the troops.

Wu Xiang also knew the key, but there was no other way at the moment. The empty city plan was a strategy of falsehood and reality.

If the two gates of Guangqu are breached, all previous preparations will be wasted.

After hesitating for a moment, he bowed and advised, "Your Majesty, the rebels' central army has not yet moved its main banner. The rebels must be weak in front of the Guangqu and Zuo'an gates. I request that 20,000 new troops and 3,000 elite soldiers be allocated."

"No!" Ni Yuanlu suddenly interrupted, his eyes sweeping over the dense siege equipment below the city.

The four-wheeled shield carts wrapped in wet cowhide were slowly advancing, and the iron-clad front ends of the battering rams shone coldly in the morning light.

"If we divide our forces now, where will your Majesty's safety be?!"

Wu Xiang opened his mouth, but was unable to refute.

All reasons seemed insignificant when it came to the emperor's life. He also knew that if he divided his troops at this time, if the enemy launched a fierce attack, he would not be able to hold the twenty-mile city wall for even half a day.

Several ministers who followed around also started arguing with each other.

The topic also changed from how to defend the city to who was more important, the emperor or the capital.

These are capable ministers who had been selected by Zhu Youjian many times. If it were the previous Ming Dynasty court, they might not be able to come up with a strategy in a month.

Zhu Youjian ignored them and stared at the formation outside.

Although the refugees and surrendered soldiers are not a big threat, they can’t be stopped...wait!
Refugees!

Zhu Youjian suddenly remembered the hundreds of thousands of civilians outside the Meridian Gate a few days ago.

Li Zicheng had refugees, and he had them too!

He quickly turned around and looked at Ni Yuanlu and asked, "How many males were counted under the rationing system?"

Upon hearing this, Ni Yuanlu blurted out after a brief recollection, "A total of 73,461 people, including..."

"Enough." Zhu Youjian clapped his hands. "Left Inspector Song Ye, listen to my order. Tell the Ministry of Works to temporarily suspend the armor repairs. Open the armory and distribute all usable weapons. Anyone in the capital who can bear arms will be given spears and swords. Women, children, the elderly and the weak will be assigned to carry stones and wood!"

"Tell the Imperial Clothes Supervisor to cut up all the yellow silk and red cloth in the palace and make banners and flags. They must be hung tighter than bandits!"

"Pull out another 3,000 border troops and quickly march to the second gate of Guangqu Zuo'an to await the arrival of the militia."

After saying this, Zhu Youjian remembered that he seemed to need a general to take command.

But there seem to be not many ministers in the capital who can organize such a large scale?

It was as if he could see what Zhu Youjian was thinking.

Minister of War Wang Jiayan suddenly knelt down and said, "I dare to ask Your Majesty to hand me over to the Zuo'an Gate of Guangqu. If you let this rebellious thief into the city, please kill my entire clan!"

Zhu Youjian nodded, "That's it, don't stop, go quickly!"

Wang Jiayan kowtowed again and left the city wall with Song Ye.

The capital city is big and there are not many horses.

In order to save some time, the two decided to split up into two groups.

Wang Jiayan was responsible for going to the Ministry of Works to repair the armor, arranging the distribution of weapons and armor first, and then going to Guangqumen to take charge.

Song Ye went to the soup kitchen at Wumen Gate to mobilize the militia.

Hundreds of eunuchs and Jinyiwei cavalry galloped back and forth in the city.

Driven by the Embroidered Uniform Guards, teams of militiamen arrived at the gate of the Armory.

The firewood seller held his grandson's hand and kept moving through the crowd.

When they arrived, they saw a young eunuch standing on a stool and pasting a notice on the wall, "The Emperor, by the Mandate of Heaven, proclaims: Anyone who kills bandits will be exempted from land tax for three years."

A tongue-twisting imperial edict was read out.

Xiao Tai, who was in charge of translation, stood on the grain cart and waved a flag, "Everyone listen up!"

Dozens of imperial guards translated simultaneously. "The emperor provides you with food and clothing, and now the intruders want to break into the city and kill you..."

"Anyone defending the city will receive an additional three jin of rice every day! Killing one enemy will earn you five liang of silver!"

After the shout, another Jinyiwei came with baskets filled with multi-grain cakes that Empress Zhou had hurriedly prepared, and distributed them to the militiamen one by one.

The firewood seller stared blankly at the multi-grain cake handed to him.

Two complete pieces, still steaming.

You can even see oil spots on it.

Even in a good year, it can't be eaten twice.

While it was still hot, the firewood seller hurriedly stuffed the multi-grain cake into his grandson's mouth. Looking at his grandson's bulging cheeks, the firewood seller finally smiled.

As the young eunuch spoke, the crowd gradually became agitated.

Several short, brown-clad men pressed their fingerprints on the military register with red eyes. Behind them followed pale and skinny children. The relief food they received from the government warehouse these days was the first time the children had a full meal in six months.

"Get out of the way! Get out of the way!" The sound of horse hooves crushed the noise, and Wang Jiayan's personal soldiers whipped their whips to clear the way.

The old minister had an imperial sword hanging next to his saddle, and behind him were five thousand new soldiers carrying various general flags such as "Shenwu" and "Longxiang". At first glance, it looked like tens of thousands of troops were marching out.

The firewood seller smiled, wrinkling his face. He grabbed the broken gun barrel on the ground and said, "Count me in..."

Half an hour later.

Tens of thousands of common people were carrying door panels and pouring onto the horse road.

A white-haired old man carried stones on a shoulder pole, a child with a pigtail held bundles of arrows, and a refugee in patchwork clothes was grinding bricks with a kitchen knife.

Inside the Guangqumen Arrow Tower, Wang Jiayan watched this scene and breathed a sigh of relief.

Turning around and looking back, one can clearly see the scouts of the Chuang army wandering two miles away, and the bandits flying the Dashun flag are obviously waiting for orders from the central army.

The 150,000-strong army was arranged into several irregular formations, and the only siege equipment was a simple ladder.

There didn't seem to be any signs of an attack on the city. The heavy stone in Wang Jiayan's heart finally fell to the ground, and he waved his sleeves.

"Bang the drum!"

In an instant, dozens of military flags were erected on the city walls, and the new army soldiers ran back and forth behind the city walls dragging tree branches, and the smoke and dust raised by them covered the sky.

The militiamen lifted the iron-clad wooden boxes as they had rehearsed, and in the sunlight they looked like a row of artillery pieces.

Suddenly, the sound of golden gongs rang out from the bandits' formation, and the ladders that had been advancing slowly retreated.

Several knights who looked like leaders rode their horses around the city half a circle, but in the end they did not dare to step into the range of the bombardment.

The firewood seller lay behind the parapet, his palms full of cold sweat.

Next to him squatted a boy of about thirteen or fourteen, trembling with fear as he held a spear.

"Don't be afraid." The firewood seller rubbed the child's head with a smile and stuffed the half cake left by his grandson into the child's pocket. "Where is the doll house?"

The child was obviously afraid to talk to strangers. He didn't even dare to take the biscuit and wanted to lean back timidly.

The firewood seller was already used to this kind of child. He stuffed the cake into his arms and said with emotion, "After we beat back the bandits, the emperor said we'll divide the land. Then I'll help you build a big house and find a wife. That's how good life will be..."

Before he could finish his words, a series of explosions suddenly came from the direction of Deshengmen.

The drums of war beat like thunder.

"Don't be afraid! Look up! Look up!" The captain in the mandarin duck-shaped battle jacket patrolled back and forth, suppressing the frightened refugees and shouting angrily, "Remember! If the bandits' ladders get caught on the city wall, we'll pour gold juice on them! We'll have to get the rolling log stuck on the battlements before pushing!"

The firewood seller nodded along with everyone else.

To his left squatted an old man with missing front teeth, pouring kerosene into a clay pot.

Opposite him was a young man in a Confucian robe, his hand holding the sword shaking like an autumn leaf in the wind.

Suddenly, there was the sound of approaching horse hooves. Wang Jiayan's personal guards passed by holding command flags. "Minister's order! People raise the flags!"

Before the firewood seller could react, the captain grabbed his collar and lifted him up.

Looking up, I saw that the entire section of the city wall was suddenly covered with countless triangular flags. The silk that was used to make the opera troupe's dragon robes yesterday was now all tied to bamboo poles of 10 feet long.

Eunuchs in palace costumes ran back and forth behind the city in groups of two, dragging colorful silks decorated with copper bells.

(End of this chapter)