After the rebellion was successful, I realized that this place was the Red Mansion

Chapter 3 Five days later, siege the city!

The 130,000-strong army - claiming to be 200,000 - was divided into three armies: front, middle and rear. Chu Yan was in the front army. The rear army only arrived at the camp designated for them on the afternoon of the second day of camping.

After Chu Yan inspected the front and center armies, he arrived at the rear army camp. They were digging trenches and building fences. The tents, bedding, armor and other things in the camp had not been unloaded from the vehicles. Soldiers were busy setting up camp everywhere.

His tall figure in armor and riding a horse appeared in front of the camp and was immediately recognized by the soldiers.

"It's the king! The king is here!"

The soldiers who were digging trenches gathered around excitedly, and people from afar also wanted to come over to see the real face of King Qian. The captain in charge of military discipline wanted to stop them, but Chu Yan smiled slightly and raised his hand to stop him.

Then more soldiers gathered around.

After Chu Yan dismounted, he took off his helmet and handed it to a guard beside him. He asked the soldiers, "Have you just arrived at the camp?"

"Y-yes, my king! We are still setting up camp."

"Well, we may not be able to finish it tonight. We can dig the trenches tomorrow. Set up the camp first. There are no imperial troops behind us. If the imperial troops in the city want to attack the camp, the front and central army can stop them."

"Yes Yes!"

The soldiers' faces flushed red, and they were obviously very nervous.

Chu Yan chatted with them for a few words and then walked into the camp. The soldiers digging trenches were not supposed to follow him, but they still rushed to follow King Qian, their eyes full of fanatical admiration.

In their eyes, King Qian was eight feet tall, majestic and powerful. He was wearing heavy armor but still felt at ease. He did not have the arrogance of a superior. He was willing to take off his helmet and walk in the camp. He was not afraid of possible cold arrows. He chatted cordially with these soldiers, asking them if they had eaten lunch and whether they were still tired after the battle the day before.

King Qian's voice was extremely loud. Even though hundreds of people surrounded him, the people behind him could still hear King Qian's speech clearly!

"You want to go back to your hometown? Are your parents, wife, and children there?"

Chu Yan was chatting with a soldier.

"My mother is still alive, and I want to go back to see her." The soldier said, scratching his head.

Chu Yan smiled and said, "You don't have to go back if you want to see your mother. After we defeat the capital, I'll give you this large piece of land—" He pointed around, and the soldiers looked. "I'll give it all to you. You can settle down in the capital. Isn't that better than going back home and cultivating a few acres of barren land?"

The soldier was stunned. A battalion commander quickly said, "The king has rewarded you with land, and you don't thank him enough?"

The soldiers cheered.

Chu Yan mounted his horse and shouted to the crowd, "Rest for five days and recuperate. After we enter the capital, I will personally reward the troops!"

Chang Neng, the deputy general of the front army who had been following him, immediately said, "Thank you, Your Majesty! We are willing to serve you till our death!"

Everyone followed suit and shouted, "Thank you, Your Majesty! We are willing to fight to the death for you!"

The sound was heard for miles and reached the ears of the defenders on the city walls of the capital, making them all look sideways with horror.

"Report, report... the enemy troops are moving!"

The messenger hurriedly reported the movements of Prince Qian's army outside the city to Lord Wang, the governor of the Beijing camp, who was at the city gate tower.

Wang Ziteng, who was over fifty years old, had a long beard and looked like a scholar-general. He hadn't slept all night and was resting with his eyes closed. When he heard this, he opened his eyes and asked anxiously:
"But the enemy army is attacking the city?!"

"Not yet. The enemy army is just making noise and clamor, but no troops have made any moves!"

"……fortunately."

Wang Ziteng actually breathed a sigh of relief and waved his hand, saying, "Go and investigate further. Don't panic. The enemy army will disperse in just a few days."

After hearing this, the messenger did not believe it. He still looked unhappy and said goodbye.

In fact, Wang Ziteng himself didn't believe it either.

A few days ago, the emperor believed the words of several counselors of the Grand Council and sent out an army of 200,000 in an attempt to stop Prince Qian's army and keep the bandits out of the capital.

But in just half a month, the 200,000-strong army was defeated, and only more than 20,000 people returned. The rest were either killed or captured.

The more than 20,000 remaining soldiers were frightened. Wang Ziteng thought they could no longer be used, but they were still forced by the Grand Council to defend the city!
Even if the remnants of the army are included, the defenders in the city are less than 50,000 at this moment. It sounds like a lot, but there are less than 10,000 people who can actually fight!

There were too many sons of princes and nobles who came to the army to collect empty-handed salaries. Wang Ziteng knew about this situation, but he could not and dared not touch them.

He himself is not clean either. Jia Lian, Jia Rong and others from his sister's family, which one of them did not donate money to buy an official position?
Now that disaster has struck, it's too late to say anything.

Half an hour later.

Wang Ziteng, distraught, received a message from a soldier: "The fake Qian Prince Chu Yan has arrived at the city wall with more than ten personal guards and specifically requested to see the Jiedushi."

See me? Wang Ziteng thought for a moment, then stood up and said, "Which city gate is he outside? Lead the way for me."

"Yes! Please, sir. Chu Yan is at the east gate."

After a while, Wang Ziteng and several of his subordinates climbed up the city wall and saw a tall figure on horseback a few hundred meters outside the city, accompanied by more than ten guards.

Wang Ziteng looked at the camp behind him again. It was about three miles away from the city wall, just outside the range of the cannons. The rebel army was still digging the earth and building the wall, showing that they were willing to besiege the capital for several months!
Just as Wang Ziteng was considering whether to leave the city to meet the other party, he saw the tall figure riding a horse alone, with his personal guards staying where they were.

"How dare you come to the city wall! My lord, please give the order to shoot this thief to death with arrows as soon as he reaches the city wall!"

Someone said with great joy.

"No, no!" Another man hurriedly stopped them, his face horrified. "It's said that King Qian possesses the strength of the Overlord of Chu, capable of lifting a tripod. He's led his troops into battle many times, galloping across the battlefield and killing countless people. He must have something to rely on if he dares to come!"

"Lord Li is right. Don't offend King Qian easily. If the city is breached..."

How could they not understand what he was trying to say? It was simply to leave a way out.

So the several battalion commanders and city gate generals who were guarding the city agreed.

The man who had spoken first was furious and scolded them, "You're asking for peace before the battle even begins. How can we continue this war?!"

"Why fight again? An army of 200,000 has been defeated."

"We are trusted by His Majesty and receive salaries from the court, yet you dare say such things!"

"Humph, I'm telling the truth. Chu Yan occupied Jinling Yingtian Prefecture a year ago."

During the argument, a tall figure rode up to the city wall. The soldiers saw him take a deep breath, and then shouted like thunder: "I am Qian Wang Chu Yan. I have come here today to tell you a few things!"

Everyone was shocked by the thunderous roar. Could the description of a roar like a huge bell in the book actually be true?!

This is what Zhang Fei did when he shouted at Changbanpo and scared away a million-strong army!
Wang Ziteng was stunned. It turned out that the fake Qian King Chu Yan was not here to see him, but just wanted to tell him some things unilaterally.

"the first thing!"

Chu Yan's voice was so loud that thousands of people at the east city gate heard him shout, "I proclaimed myself king after occupying Yingtian Prefecture. A year later, I led my army north and defeated your 500,000-man army in a month and a half. I laid siege to the capital, and your emperor has no more soldiers left!"

The crowd was in an uproar.

Cold sweat broke out on Wang Ziteng's forehead. The intention of the fake King Qian was self-evident. He wanted to undermine the morale of the government troops and make them surrender without a fight.

But, every word Chu Yan said was true!

The million-strong army of the Dashun Dynasty was defeated by him within a few years. The imperial court no longer had a single soldier. The border troops might still have tens of thousands of soldiers, but they were out of reach. The border troops that could be withdrawn had already been recalled, and most of the remaining ones were indecisive.

"The second thing." Chu Yan shouted, "Those who surrender will not be killed. If you surrender, I promise not to kill a single person after entering the city. I will confer the title of Duke of Anle on the Emperor of Shun Dynasty, the title of Duke of Chongle on the Emperor Retired, and you officials of the seventh rank and above will be allowed to keep 20% of their wealth!"

Duke Anle?
Any soldier who has read a little history knows that during the Three Kingdoms period, the Wei State named Liu Chan, the emperor of Shu Han, as Duke of Anle.

As for Duke Chongle, they were not quite sure about his origin, but they roughly knew the meaning:
The emperor is Duke Anle, and his father is Duke Chongle.

If the emperor really accepted this title, few people would be willing to follow him in plotting to restore the country in the future. Everyone knows that Liu Chan has a famous saying, "I am happy here and don't miss Shu."

On the city wall, Wang Ziteng and others looked at each other in confusion.

"The third thing." Chu Yan continued, "If you want to fight, for every soldier in my army who dies, I will kill three of you powerful people, starting with the royal family and ending with all the ninth-rank officials!"

The sound was as deafening as a raging storm. The murderous intent from King Qian Chu Yan penetrated dozens of meters and struck them directly, chilling everyone from head to toe.

Surrender and you can survive.

If they refuse to surrender, I will start killing them starting with the princes. For every soldier of Prince Qian who dies, I will kill three princes. If 10,000 people die in Prince Qian’s army while attacking the city, then all the tens of thousands of officials and their families in the entire capital will be slaughtered by him!
Instead, the soldiers and civilians were able to survive.

"One last thing! Five days from now, attack the city!"

After he finished speaking, Chu Yan rode his horse back, with his back to the hundreds of soldiers on the city wall, but no one dared to shoot an arrow at him. They watched him walk away and returned to the camp with his personal guards.

Everyone on the city wall was silent for a long time.

"I heard that Chu Yan loves his soldiers like his own sons, and now I see that it is indeed true."

Someone said something quietly, and everyone looked at each other.

This time, Prince Qian came alone to the city gate to challenge the enemy, which shattered the morale of the imperial army. Who could stop him?

(End of this chapter)