Zhu Dadian nodded thoughtfully and said, "Then according to what the general said, wait a few days first." ”

Everyone waited with joy and excitement. Less than an hour later, it was obvious that the defenders had increased and that they were extremely well guarded.

This completely proves one thing, that is, Li Jiucheng is dead! And the Ming army actually intercepted some rebel deserters! From their mouths, it was learned that Li Jiucheng died after being rescued back into the city! Therefore, Zhu Dadian and Gao Qi held a banquet in the tent to celebrate, and wrote the report to the imperial court.

In the days that followed, the rebels in the city never left the city to challenge. Even if the Ming army went to challenge, it would not go out of the city to face the battle. So everyone can only wait.

The time soon came to the end of the year, and everyone was thinking that after the New Year, the food in the city should probably be almost eaten, and then the victory or defeat would come out. So happy from top to bottom! As for Zhu Dadian, he simply decided to celebrate this New Year in a grand way.

On the one hand, it is to wish success in counterinsurgency. On the other hand, it was also to demonstrate to the rebels in Dengju City. It is also to tell the rebels that we can wait for victory slowly!

On New Year's Day, all the soldiers were rewarded with a pound of meat and half a pound of wine. And there was no curfew that night, except for the earthen wall guards, no curfew was required. This made the whole barracks boil.

The soldiers in the siege were already very depressed, and they all took this opportunity to vent their depressed feelings. In order to channel the energy of the soldiers, so that they can vent without causing destruction. At Liu Pei's suggestion, a number of competitions were set up in the army. There are races, there are bows and arrows, there are fists and feet, there are weightlifts, and so on. The generals also made a lot of fun in order to make fun, which made the soldiers rush to it! So for a while, the barracks were very lively.

In the big tent, Zhu Dadian, Gao Qiqian and the generals were celebrating. Naturally, there was a discussion of how to quell the rebellion during the banquet. In the end, everyone came to the conclusion that the siege was still long.

However, it was agreed that more pressure should be put on the rebels in Dengju. Just when everyone was discussing how to exert pressure, Gao Qiqian put down his chopsticks and said, "Master Zhu, we have an idea that I don't know if it's okay or not?" ”

Zhu Dadian also put down his chopsticks and said, "If Gonggong Gao has something to say, please tell me!" ”

Gao Qiqian said: "When our family was reading the military book, I once saw that there was a way to build a mountain of soil. Say that the earth mountain is higher than the city wall, and you can shoot arrows into the city from the earth mountain! We thought, if we also build a dirt mountain like this, will we be able to suppress the rebels? ”

When everyone heard this, they all laughed secretly in their hearts, but no one said anything. I only heard Zhu Dadian shake his head and say: "Father-in-law Gao, Tushan's method is very good!" It's just that there is one point that Gao Gonggong overlooked. That is, there are thirty red-coated cannons in the city! If the rebels use artillery to bombard Tushan, the people of Tushan will not be able to stand at all, let alone build Tushan! ”

Everyone present quietly exchanged glances, and they all mocked Gao Qiqian in their hearts. In fact, this method has been discussed for a long time, but I didn't use it because I didn't think it was useful. But at this moment, Gao Qiqian said: "But we didn't say that it was just for archery?" We can also mount the cannons! ”

As soon as Gao Qiqian's words fell, there was a deathly silence in the whole tent. Moments later, there was an uproar. Because the method of high diving is really good!

When building the earth mountain, if it is too close to the castle, it will not be able to be built under the bombardment of the cannon in the castle! If you build a dirt hill a little farther away and install a magnifying cannon, it won't be a big problem! After all, the accuracy of today's artillery is too poor, and it will not be accurate if it is a little farther away. When building the earth mountain, use a little shading, and the people can build the earth mountain smoothly.

The crowd immediately deliberated and thought it was a solution. It was written by Zhu Dadian, and the people were recruited to build the earth mountain after the year. At the same time, Gao Qiqian sent a letter back to Beijing, asking the imperial court to send cannons.

Compared with the outside of the city, the inside of Dengzhou City is a miserable fog! The whole city was dark and unlit, like a dead city! That's not to say that Kong Youde doesn't want to celebrate the New Year, so as to boost morale. It's that there is a shortage of dry firewood for burning fires in Dengzhou City now!

At Kong Youde's house in Dengzhou City, Kong Youde had dinner with several rebel leaders and cronies, which could be regarded as celebrating the New Year. But the atmosphere at the banquet was not at all dull. It should be used with sorrow

Sleepiness is more appropriate.

Kong Youde and the others were eating silently, not like a celebration, but like completing some kind of task. When everyone had almost eaten, the cavalry cleaned up the table and brought tea. But everyone was not in the mood for tea at all.

After being silent for a long time, Kong Youde said: "We are completely hopeless this time!" The city will be broken in two or three months! ”

Geng Zhongming said: "It's not that fast! We still have a lot of food, and we can last for a while. It is estimated that it will be no problem to hold out until at least May! ”

Kong Youde was silent for a moment and said, "Before that, I'm afraid the team will mutiny!" ”

Kong Youde's words completely silenced the room. After a long time, Mao Chenglu muttered, "General, what should we do?" The world is big, and there is nowhere to go! ”

Wang Ziden raised his head and said, "Why don't we surrender?" ”

Kong Youde sneered and said: "Everyone can surrender, but the people sitting in this room can't surrender!" ”

There was silence in the room again! Ordinary rebel soldiers may be forgiven, but these rebel leaders will never be forgiven! If you are beheaded, it is light to be beheaded all over the house! Maybe there will be a result of Ling Chi's execution!

The room was silent for a long time, and no one spoke. Everyone knew that time was running out, but they couldn't come up with a good solution. This is Geng Zhongming said: "It's really not good, let's break through!" ”

Wang Ziden smiled bitterly and said, "Break through? What are we going to do to break through? Then you can still rush out! ”

Geng Zhongming stopped talking when he heard this. After a long and fierce battle, the number of dead and wounded in the city was close to 10,000. The rebel army, which originally numbered more than 30,000 people, is now just over 20,000 left! And these 20,000 people are very demoralized, and it is completely like a day at a time. Lead such a force out to storm the long trench wall, only to be afraid that it will be completely dispersed by a few rounds of artillery fire!

What's more, there are still a large number of rebels' families in Dengzhou City, and it is impossible not to carry them if they break through. In this way, it is even more unlikely that the breakthrough will succeed. Geng Zhongming was silent for a long time and said again: "The Dengzhou Sailor is still in our hands, so let's take a boat and go to sea!" ”