Chapter 281 Blackmail

In fact, Man Gui had already done some understanding, and heard some news from the mouths of Lou Daji and Heiyunlong, and knew that the cost of new artillery was huge. However, Man Gui didn't expect that Tiemo would be invested for so many years. invested 4.7 million taels in half a year, which is simply a loser.

"This ..... So much to invest? It's true? ”

"Of course it's true, we are our own people, my little brother won't lie to you, if you don't believe it, wait until you go back and let Hai Lanzhu and Min Yue show you the account book? That Elizabeth knows, right? Aren't you curious why your little brother is fighting with her? She's in charge of artillery supervision, and she asked her brother for follow-up fees before she came, if you don't believe it, you can ask her now. ”

"And this?" Man Gui rolled his eyes, obviously not really believing it. beckoned, called the pro-soldiers in the distance, muttered a few words, and the pro-soldiers ran out to do errands.

In just a moment, the soldiers ran back and whispered a few words, and Man Gui's face changed, "...... Is this woman really a cannon maker? Did she get into the eyes of money? As soon as she sent someone to interrogate, she actually asked Lao Tzu for money......"

"Hey, dude, do you believe it now? Recently, I've been very poor over there, so I still have money for her to continue to be a huo. Artillery, gold-swallowing beasts, as soon as the cannon goes off, there are 10,000 taels of gold, this is not to say! ”

The more Man Gui listened, the more frightened he became, this artillery is really not something that anyone can play. But the study of artillery, now the Ming Dynasty can play with iron and ink, relying on the wealth of the Jin merchants, coupled with the iron and ink to make a decision, this can be successful. Otherwise, how could it be a few million taels of silver a year? The Daming treasury can't withstand such consumption.

Although Man Gui muttered and complained, he actually believed in Tiemo in his heart. Frowning, he leaned back, leaned against the pillar and said embarrassedly: "Brother, you know me, I am not as good as you, I don't have much savings under my hands, and I have a little surplus money over the years, and I have earned it by reselling materials with you." However, this artillery, brother, I really want to get two, do you think it is otherwise, how about 80,000 taels for one piece? This time, I will share less of the materials obtained by my brother...... You sell two cannons to your brother to play ....."

Tiemo touched the corners of his eyebrows, pondered for a while, and said seriously: "In this way, we are all our own people, let's take 80,000 taels for each piece, and the junior brother will give twenty shells for one cannonball, as for the matter of more materials, don't talk about it." But after that, the shells will be consumed, and you have to follow the rules, you know, things are complicated here, and the little brother has to think about it for others. ”

Man Gui was immediately overjoyed, and hugged Tiemo's arm affectionately. Zhang Bei's matter, Man Gui felt it clearly, he knew that what Tiemo said was the truth. Zhangbei's military, political and commercial affairs are inseparable from Jin merchants everywhere, and all aspects are related to the interests of Jin merchants. Take the military workshop as an example, if there is no interest, it will be very difficult to get the Jin merchants to continue to invest money in the future. Therefore, Tiemo must make the Jin merchants make money.

"Don't worry, brother, I know your difficulties. You will suffer a little loss this time, and my brother will find a way to make it up for you in the future, in my opinion, the business of this artillery can be bigger, didn't Sun Lao mention to you that Liaodong intends to buy artillery from you? ”

Tie Moqi said: "No, there is such a thing?" ”

"Hehe, I listened to Lao Cao, you also know what Lao Cao is from, and he is better informed than us. Those people are all rich people, don't look at them asking the court for money, in fact, they have a lot of good goods in private, they want to buy them, then don't be polite. These people have been fishing for so long, and they should be slaughtered! ”

Man Gui gritted his teeth, and the cold light shone. Tiemo couldn't help but smile secretly, it seems that the nine sides of the Ming Dynasty have opinions on Liaodong, and this matter is not false at all. In recent years, Liaodong has swallowed gold beasts, the imperial court has been his son, and several other border towns have been eating soil, and most of the time they have to find a way to solve them. It is understandable that Man Gui seized this opportunity to take revenge on Liaodong.

Not to mention Man Gui, even Tiemo can't look at it. This gang of people in Liaodong is powerful, and it is time for them to bleed. Since the teacher hasn't sent the news yet, it means that he has made up his mind not to meddle in this matter, and if the teacher cares about this matter, he is really embarrassed to be ruthless.

......

Zhenxiwei can be said to be the strongest fortress in the northwest corner of Shanxi. Before the peasant army cholera Shanxi, when the situation was grim, the Zhenxi guards were impregnable. Therefore, under normal circumstances, the peasant army would not have thought about Zhenxiwei at all, and if it weren't for Rao Yonghui's frequent tricks this time, the situation would not have been so bad.

On the second day of the fourth month of the third year of Chongzhen, the soldiers and horses of Xuanfu and Datong Mansion after the assembly were completed, and more than 14,000 people were supplied, and the soldiers were divided into two roads close to Zhenxiwei. One way straight to Zhenxiwei, the other route led by Geng Zhongming and Shang Kexi, bypassing Zhenxiwei and going straight to Fugu in the rear.

At this time, the people stationed in Zhenxi Wei were not generals, but Sun Kewang, the number one fierce general under Zhang Xianzhong. It can be seen that Zhang Xianzhong still wants to defend Zhenxiwei. Sun Kewang has not been idle, and ordered the soldiers and civilians in the city to continuously build fortifications to meet the upcoming attack. Now, in the peasant army of northern Shaanxi, Sun Kewang has become famous, even more powerful than Yuan Ma.

Yuan Ma is famous for cannibalism and ruthlessness, while Sun Kewang is famous for fighting tough battles. The officers and soldiers were also afraid of Sun Kewang's ability, so they did not rush to attack, but stationed outside the city.

Man Gui and Tie Mo ordered the soldiers and horses to block the east and west, and the army was divided into three battalions and stationed, and they were not busy attacking. But the more this happened, the more Sun Kewang panicked.

At the head of the Acropolis in the west of the town, Sun Kewang kept patrolling, looking at the military camp less than five miles outside the city, his brows were tightly locked. What the hell are the officers and soldiers doing? Want to wait until Fugu's side fights first, and then make a move against Zhenxiwei? It feels bad to wait, there is a feeling of being prepared for a long time, but then punching the cotton.

On the fourth day of the fourth month of April, after a day of calm, the situation suddenly changed, and Man Gui sent his guerrilla general Zhuang Zhiwei to storm the east side of the city wall, and at the same time, the officers and soldiers also launched two strangely shaped artillery.

Due to the fact that the new artillery was rarely used, at least Tiemo had never used artillery in the land of the Ming Dynasty, the ill-informed peasant army's understanding of the new artillery was almost blank. At the head of the city, Sun Kewang raised his head with a knife and sneered, "Haha, the officers and soldiers finally can't help it, do they want to use two broken cannons to blast Lao Tzu's city defense?" ”

As he spoke, a cannon rang out, and the sound of the cannon pierced the sky with an eerie hiss. With a bang, it landed exactly on the northeast corner, where there were not many people, so the casualties were not large, but the shells fell, the dust flew, and the masonry shattered. After a while, when he looked closely, Sun Kewang's eyes were abrupt, and his breathing was a little panting.

What kind of cannon is this? Damn, when did the cannon blow up more than a dozen stone bricks, when did the artillery become so powerful? If you take a hundred blows, won't the walls be blown out of a hole?

Sun Kewang is not an ignorant person, he has seen a lot of artillery, and Cao Wenzhao has several cannons in his hands in Shaanxi, but those cannons are bulky and terrifying. If one shot goes down, it can leave a piece of black ash on the fortified city, and the power cannot be compared with the artillery in front of you.

", brothers, cheer up, don't be afraid, the officers and soldiers will definitely not be able to fire a few cannons!"

Everything really made Sun Kewang right, after a few cannons outside the city, the sound of the cannons stopped, and thousands of soldiers carried the ladder to start the most primitive siege mode. It's not that Tiemo and Man Gui don't want to continue firing, it's that the amount of shells is limited, and it would be a waste to pour all the firepower on Zhenxiwei.

The elite soldiers of Datong Mansion are by no means comparable to the guards under Rao Yonghui. At the first battle, the bravery of the border army made Sun Kewang suffer a loss.

Under the cover of fire, the defenders at the head of the city were eager to lock their heads behind the battlements, and as soon as the ladder was released, many soldiers pounced on their shields. In less than a quarter of an hour, someone climbed to the top of the acropolis in the west of the town. Fortunately, Sun Kewang was not an easy person, and he led people to fight back and drove down the officers and soldiers on the city wall. Zhuang Zhiwei did not come hard, and after being driven down, he immediately ended the first wave of offensive.

Sun Kewang also knew in his heart that the first wave of attacks was just a test, the purpose was to see the combat effectiveness of the defenders. But it was just a tentative attack, and the casualties were enough to surprise him.

Although the young Sun Kewang has fought countless battles, where has he ever encountered such a situation? In a short battle, the brothers defending the city lost more than 1,000 people, while the officers and soldiers who attacked the city suffered only more than 200 casualties. Who is besieging the city and who is defending it?

The deputy general Du Zhongnian wiped the blood on his face, and his eyes were a little fluttering, "Leader Sun, if this battle continues like this, our tens of thousands of brothers will have to die in Zhenxiwei." ”

"Hmph, I want to ask, most of the lost brothers are your people, how did you fight this battle?" Sun Kewang asked sharply, Du Zhongnian had a bitter face, and said bitterly: "The officers and soldiers sent a musket team to block the city wall and put guns, and the brothers poked their heads out to defend the city, and many people were directly killed. Most of our archers and musketeers counterattacked, but most of them were blocked by the opponent's shield wall, and some of the muskets couldn't reach others. ”

"This ..... And what's going on? Sun Kewang stared, a little unbelieving in his heart. But with his understanding of Du Zhongnian, the other party is not a liar. The defenders at the head of the city are condescending, but the range is not as good as that of the people under the city, which is also too unbelievable. Could it be that the group of people under the city is the Yunfu Musket Team?

It didn't take long for a new round of attacks to begin, this time directly attacking from both sides, and Sun Kewang finally experienced Du Zhongnian's suffering. The method of the officers and soldiers was not novel at all, and it was still the musket team to suppress and cooperate with the attack. The trick is old-fashioned, but surprisingly effective, although Sun Kewang has prepared a lot of rolling wood, but the rolling wood can't be thrown that far. Sun Kewang was very unwilling, poked his head out and looked, but not long after poking his head out, a gunshot rang out, and he quickly shrank back behind the battlements, otherwise he would have to be bled out.

The opponent's marksmanship is too accurate, and the range is even more amazing. Listening to the muffled snort, Sun Kewang's heart was dripping blood, and every painful snort meant that a brother would leave forever.

"Don't probe, get on the ground, put the officers and soldiers up, and fight with them!" Sun Kewang shouted with red eyes, as long as the two sides were entangled together, the other side's musketeers would be useless. This kind of behavior is a bit risky, but it is better than being beaten all the time.

After waiting for a while, the gunfire outside the city was much thinner, and no officers and soldiers were seen climbing the city wall, and soon someone shouted in shock: "Look, the officers and soldiers have withdrawn ......"

Withdrawn? Sun Kewang still didn't believe it, poked his head out to look, and sure enough, he saw that the officers and soldiers were withdrawing from the battlefield, leaving only the musketeers to sweep the formation. Seeing this scene, Sun Kewang was stunned, what did the other party do? Although I don't want to admit it, the combat strength of the officers and soldiers, as long as they work harder, it is possible to defeat Zhenxiwei, why did they withdraw at this time?

On this day, the Zhenxi Guard's attack and defense were too weird, so weird that Sun Kewang didn't dare to close his eyes when he slept.

The next day, it was still the same, the officers and soldiers only relied on musketeers to kill the defenders at the head of the city, and as for the siege troops, they made a feint every time. Sun Kewang's head was big, and all the generals of the peasant army in the city were anxious and flustered.

......

Outside the city, in a tent, Tiemo and Man Gui wanted to sit opposite each other, eating and chatting at the same time. At this time, there were no outsiders in the tent, and the two of them did not shy away from talking, Man Gui rolled his eyes and asked in a low voice: "Brother, can you succeed in this method, are you sure that Zhang Xianzhong will pay the ransom?" ”

"Rest assured, this plan was planned by Mr. Wang, and with Mr. Wang's understanding of Zhang Xianzhong, this matter is very successful. Sun Kewang has tens of thousands of people under his command, which is the trump card in Zhang Xianzhong's hand, and I heard that Sun Kewang is still his righteous son. If he knew that money could buy the lives of these people, Zhang Xianzhong would definitely agree! ”

"I hope so!" Man Gui put down the dishes and chopsticks and exhaled a little uneasily. After fighting in the south and north for half his life, he fought like this for the first time, taking the defenders as hostages and forcing the rogues to ransom people with money.

It is unbelievable that the elite of the dignified border army actually did the thing of blackmailing the rogues. It's a shame that this matter is quietly touched, if the court knows about it, those people won't make a fuss. It was the first time for Man Gui to do such a thing, and he was a little excited in his apprehension.

The battle situation in Zhenxiwei is confusing, but it is clear at a glance on the side of Fugu. With the soldiers and horses under the command of Geng Zhongming and Shang Kexi, coupled with the dilapidated city defense of Fugu, only one charge can defeat Fugu. However, Geng Zhongming did not rush to Fugu, but sent a letter to Fugu. After Liu Wenxiu, who was in charge of the city defense, got the letter, he hurriedly sent it to Zhang Xianzhong.

After a while, Zhang Xianzhong's unique scolding voice came from the yamen: "His old mother drops, turtles and turtles, what do they want to do?" Was Lao Tzu frightened? ”

Liu Wenxiu wondered, what made Zhang Xianzhong so angry? Pushed open the door, re-entered, and arched his hand: "Father-in-law is angry, why are you so angry, what do the officers and soldiers say?" ”

"Hey, take a look for yourself" I just handed over the letter, and when I saw Liu Wenxiu's embarrassed expression, I remembered that the other party was illiterate, so I explained: "The officers and soldiers said in the letter, let us hand over the money and property looted from Zhenxiwei, otherwise they will annihilate Sun Kewang's department." ”

"What?" Liu Wenxiu was stunned, are we rogues or are the other party rogues? This fucking blackmail on the battlefield is unheard of.