I, Emperor Chongzhen, have extended the life of the Ming Dynasty by five hundred years.

Logically speaking, once a city gate is opened, it is difficult to close it in a short time.

There is a moat outside the city. Once the drawbridge is in place, it will take at least several strong men to turn the winch at the same time to raise it.

This is just the raising of the air bridge; if it were filled with soldiers, it wouldn't be able to be raised at all.

Because the winch and rope cannot withstand the load, forcibly pulling them up will only cause them to break.

The same applies to city gates; it takes several people working together to close them.

Now that the Shun army has entered the city, it is almost impossible for the Ming army to close the city gates.

However, when Zheng Siwei turned around unintentionally, he saw a huge iron gate hanging on the city gate!

The Da Shun army was entering the city in an orderly manner when Liu Fangliang arrived at the city gate.

Zheng Siwei suddenly shouted, and everyone immediately stopped in their tracks.

Although Liu Fangliang was not as suspicious as Ma Chongxi, he was not stupid either.

At the critical moment, there was no time to think about what had happened; they quickly turned their horses around and prepared to retreat!

Click!

Seeing that Liu Fangliang was about to run away, Li Ruolian made a quick decision and ordered someone to activate the mechanism in advance.

The massive iron gate at the city gate slammed down, crashing down on Liu Fangliang!

call!

Liu Fangliang felt a sudden darkness before his eyes, and the large iron gate had already fallen!

He instinctively rolled backward, barely dodging the fatal blow. When he looked up, he saw that his warhorse had been smashed into a bloody pulp!

The massive iron gate sealed off the city gate, and the Shun army inside immediately panicked, not knowing what to do.

Zheng Siwei, a veteran of countless battles, reacted swiftly, immediately shouting, "The Ming army is lying! Charge with me!"

If the Ming army closes the inner city gates at this moment, it will immediately create a situation where they are trapping the enemy inside!

Although comparing myself to a dog sounds rather dishonorable...

However, he was still a step too slow.

The inner city gates were slowly closing; despite rushing, I still missed them.

With iron gates blocking the outside and the inner city gates completely closed, the vanguard of the Shun army was immediately trapped inside the barbican.

Zheng Siwei panicked completely, a chill spreading down his spine!

On the city wall, Ming soldiers who had been lying in ambush for a long time suddenly appeared, holding muskets and bows and arrows, and shot at the Shun army in the barbican.

Arrows rained down, muskets roared, and screams of agony echoed throughout the barracks.

The Shun army inside the barbican scattered like headless flies.

Li Ruolian stood on the city wall, staring intently at Liu Fangliang below the city gate.

In his eyes, those inside the barbican were already dead, and he didn't even bother to look at them.

Having narrowly escaped death, Liu Fangliang was still in shock and immediately became agitated.

"Rinse! Rinse me!"

All that careful preparation turned out to be a scam!

What's even more infuriating is that Ma Chongxi repeatedly tried to dissuade him, but he didn't take it to heart at all.

They were completely unaware of this and almost lost their lives.

Over the years, in every campaign to the east and west, the Ming army has been routed!

Since joining the rebel army, when have I ever suffered such a loss?

This is an absolute disgrace!

His eyes were bloodshot, and he roared loudly like a mad beast, charging towards the large iron gate first.

Inside the gate were Zheng Siwei and several hundred Shun army cavalrymen, all elite troops!

Bang bang bang!

Bang bang bang!

Smoke billowed from the city walls, and this time, the target was none other than Liu Fangliang!

"My lord, retreat! Retreat!"

Ma Chongxi rushed up, grabbed Liu Fangliang tightly, and tried to pull him away.

However, Liu Fangliang, as if possessed, shouted, "We can't retreat! My troops are still inside!"

"Hurry up and get out of here! The people inside can't be rescued!"

Whoosh!

An arrow pierced Liu Fangliang's left arm, and blood immediately dripped down the arrowhead.

Ma Chongxi shouted, "Quickly, someone come and protect the Marquis as he retreats! Hurry!"

Unexpectedly, Liu Fangliang forcefully broke the arrow shaft, then pulled out the arrowhead and threw it on the ground.

"Hear my command! Take Baoding! Whoever breaches the city, I'll bestow upon him a noble title!"

Upon hearing the order, the Shun army immediately abandoned their escape and turned back to attack the city gate.

Whoosh!

Whoosh!

Whoosh!

Arrows rained down, and muskets fired in quick succession.

The charging Shun troops were like sitting ducks, constantly being shot down.

Blood flowed like a river at the city gate, cries of agony filled the air, and the air was thick with the pungent smell of blood and burning.

Seeing people around him fall one after another, Liu Fangliang felt as if his heart was being torn apart.

The pain in his left arm constantly reminded him that the battle was completely out of control.

Without siege weapons, they were unable to capture the city gates, which instead plunged the Shun army into an unprecedented crisis.

Ma Chongxi shouted, "The Ming army planned this all along! Their camp outside the city and Baoding Prefecture are poised to attack us from both sides. If we don't leave now, it will be too late!"

Liu Fangliang gasped for breath, and finally, reason prevailed over anger.

Continuing to persist will only lead to more soldiers losing their lives in vain, and may even result in the annihilation of the entire army.

"Retreat! Everyone retreat!"

Upon receiving the order to retreat, the Shun army began to flee.

On the city wall, Li Ruolian watched the Shun army retreat in disarray and finally revealed a slight smile.

Can you even escape?

The battle has only just begun!

"Artillery ready!"

Upon receiving the order, the Ming army immediately waved their command flags.

The artillerymen were already prepared, aiming their cannons at the fleeing Shun army and lighting the fuses.

chi chi chi...

boom!

The cannons roared and fired their shells into the Shun army's ranks.

Boom!

The Warriors Battalion possessed the best weaponry and equipment in the Ming Dynasty, including the fearsome exploding shells.

Because of the instability of exploding shells and their tendency to spontaneously detonate in the chamber, there are not many in stock.

However, this is enough to give Liu Fangliang a hard time!

Boom!

Boom!

Explosions continued to erupt from the Shun army's ranks, resulting in countless deaths and injuries.

Liu Fangliang was also thrown off by the shockwave and crashed heavily to the ground.

When he got up, his ears were ringing and he couldn't hear anything.

Everywhere you look, there are severed limbs and broken arms, like a living hell.

The warhorses, startled, ran wildly in all directions, charging and trampling indiscriminately.

Liu Fangliang suddenly grabbed the reins of a warhorse, leaped onto its back, and fled south as if his life depended on it.

Inside the barbican, the battle was nearing its end.

The Shun army had nowhere to escape and could only endure the baptism of muskets and arrows.

The inner city gate slowly opened, and Li Ruolian, mounted on her horse, stepped into the barbican.

Corpses were everywhere, and the air was thick with the stench of blood.

Amidst the pile of corpses, a figure slowly rose to his feet.

The musketeer immediately aimed, but Li Ruolian stopped him by waving her hand.

He gently patted the horse's back and slowly walked forward.

"Who...who are you? Where is that old scoundrel Chen Yan?"

The man was soaked in blood from head to toe, making it impossible to see his face.

Li Ruolian looked her up and down and asked, "And who are you?"

"I...I am Zheng Siwei, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Southern Route Army of the Great Shun Dynasty!"

As he spoke, Zheng Siwei coughed up a mouthful of blood, his body swaying precariously, but he managed to hold on.

Li Ruolian nodded: "He's a man, but he followed the wrong person. If he sold his martial arts skills to the imperial court, he could easily achieve great things. Why become a rebel?"

"Haha, hahaha..."

Zheng Siwei burst into laughter, then said, "When Zhu Yuanzhang rebelled, why didn't you advise him to serve the Yuan court?"

Li Ruolian retorted, "The Yuan court is Mongol, not of our race. Their intentions are surely different. How could a Han Chinese man possibly submit to a foreign race?"

"So what if Emperor Chongzhen was Han Chinese? Did he treat us peasants as human beings?"

Zheng Siwei became increasingly agitated as he spoke, continuing, "Where was he, the emperor, when we were starving? Why didn't he stand up for us and speak a word of justice when we were bullied?"

"I had three older brothers and six sisters, and they all starved to death!"

"Do you know what it feels like to starve? Did Emperor Chongzhen know?"

"Didn't you ask me why I became a rebel? Let me tell you, if you don't rebel, you're just waiting to die!"

"Are kings and nobles born with a special destiny? If the Zhu family can rebel and seize the throne, why can't we?"

"With a million soldiers under the command of the Emperor of Great Shun, the Ming Dynasty is finished. I'll be waiting for you on my way to the Yellow Springs, waiting for Chongzhen!"

"You're right!"

Suddenly, a voice came.

Li Ruolian hurriedly dismounted and bowed, saying, "Greetings, Your Majesty!"

Zhu Youjian waved his hand and slowly walked to Zheng Siwei.

Li Ruolian dared not be careless and followed closely behind.

If Zheng Siwei makes any move, kill him immediately.

"You...you are Emperor Chongzhen?"

Zhu Youjian nodded: "That's right, I am the Chongzhen Emperor you mentioned."

Zheng Siwei looked him over in surprise, then said, "You're no different from us peasants! I, Old Zheng, thought the emperors of the Ming Dynasty had three heads and six arms!"

Zhu Youjian said, "I am just an ordinary person, just like you."

"Ha ha……"

Zheng Siwei burst into laughter again, then spat out a mouthful of blood.

"I never imagined that I, Old Zheng, would see the Emperor before I die. It's truly... truly..."

Zhu Youjian slowly asked, "Zheng Siwei, do you have any last wishes?"

Zheng Siwei was taken aback for a moment, then asked, "What do you mean?"

"I have indeed failed in my duties, causing suffering to the people!"

Zheng Siwei was even more bewildered and asked, "Can the emperor make mistakes?"

"No one is perfect, everyone makes mistakes. I am also a human being, so naturally I will make mistakes."

"But your mistakes affect the people of the world. Do you know how many people are left without clothes after the imperial edict imposed additional taxes? Do you know how many people have been displaced after those gentry seized our land? There are so many rich people in the world, why do they continue to exploit us poor people? Why?"

Zheng Siwei, his eyes red, roared loudly, as if he wanted to unleash the anger that had been suppressed for many years.

Zhu Youjian did not refute, but said, "I know I made a mistake. Just three days ago, I issued an edict that the Ming Dynasty will never increase taxes again!"

"Never increase taxes? Who would believe such a thing?"

"Believe it or not, if I make a mistake, I will correct it and make amends. But if you rebel, I will quell the rebellion. These are two different things."

Zheng Siwei was bleeding profusely, and his legs were trembling uncontrollably.

He had exhausted all his energy from saying those words, and now all he wanted to do was close his eyes and get a good night's sleep.

Perhaps in dreams, one can truly see a Ming Dynasty that never increases taxes.

Zhu Youjian asked again, "Zheng Siwei, what are your last wishes? I will try my best to fulfill them."

"I, we..."

Zheng Siwei slowly closed his eyes and leaned back.

"...We are not rebels!"

These were his last words as he fell.

Li Ruolian was still worried, so she went forward to check.

"Your Majesty, he is dead!"

Zhu Youjian said, "All those who died in battle today shall be buried with the same honors as soldiers of our Great Ming Dynasty."

Li Ruolian replied, "As you command!"