Under the city of Changzhou, the fire is as bright as day, and the sound of killing is shocking.

Countless Qing soldiers continued to flock to the city, running forward and running on the battlefield of blood and fire, and there were corpses everywhere that were in terrible condition. The Qing soldiers who killed the red eyes, behind them were the warlords with big swords, and they had no way to retreat but to step on the corpses of their comrades and continue to attack the city.

The defenders of Changzhou City are not much better, most of these soldiers are recruits, and they mostly violate the taboo of defending the city. Although Yan Yingyuan was in command of the city tower, there were still many Changzhou soldiers who were shot and killed by Manchu banner soldiers who were good at riding and archery. The bows and arrows they shoot often have no strength before they reach the city, and they shoot at the Qing soldiers like mosquito bites. There was not much gunpowder left in the city, and the day's pouring was just to hold on to this fateful blow, and at this moment, the Qing soldiers under the city suddenly and slowly retreated.

Yan Yingyuan was relieved when he saw this, and relying on the power of the artillery, he finally held off a round of attacks that Duoduo did not want to die. All the defenders breathed a sigh of relief and sat down on the ground.

After the Qing soldiers retreated, the burning torches did not go far, and Yan Yingyuan suddenly felt a trace of fear in his heart.

Suddenly, the cannon shot into the sky again, this time from under the city to the city walls. Every time a shell fell, the smoke of the city wall was blown up, choking the soldiers who defended the city.

It turned out that the Duoduo camp also brought artillery, but for fear of being blown up by Changzhou's artillery, he had to wait for the opportunity. Now that the sound of artillery in the city is gradually thinning, coupled with the darkness of the night, I am no longer afraid of being blown up by the Changzhou soldiers. Duoduo was finally willing to use the cannon, and it didn't work badly.

As soon as the earthen wall of Changzhou exploded, it was a big crater, which was riddled with holes, and there were shells that fell into the city, causing a fire.

Hou Xuanyan hurriedly climbed to the city tower, found Yan Yingyuan and asked, "What's the matter, why did you blow yourself up?" ”

Yan Yingyuan smiled bitterly and said, "Commander, it's the artillery of the Qing soldiers. ”

Hou Xuanyan gritted his teeth and scolded: "Duoduo, this dog thief is so ruthless, he keeps the artillery and uses it at this time, but he fills it with human lives during the day, he really fucking treats human life like a mustard." How about Liheng, can you still hold on? ”

As soon as the words fell, a cannonball landed on the city wall, and finally smashed a hole open. Fortunately, this hole is in the middle of the city wall, and the Qing soldiers can't get in.

Yan Yingyuan's face was bitter, the city of Changzhou was only a little better than the average small county. "The last general will do his best."

As soon as Hou Xuanyan heard it, he knew that the matter was urgent, and most of them couldn't hold it. The person in front of him, who has been guarding Jiangyin for three months, is a person who is easy to say without giving up, and if he can say such things, it is enough to show the seriousness of the matter.

Hou Xuanyan immediately ordered: "Keep as much time as possible, don't be brutal, I have my own decision." ”

Yan Yingyuan nodded heavily, turned around and went to the city wall, commanding Ruoding.

Hou Xuanyan hurriedly walked down the city tower and sent his own soldiers to call all the Changzhou officials, officials, and yamen officials.

When everyone arrived one after another, Hou Xuanyan said: "You have also heard, Qinggou has mobilized a batch of artillery, and our Changzhou is in danger." ”

The crowd suddenly fell into panic, and most of them looked at each other with panicked expressions. Gu Shouzheng raised his head and said, "Commander, open the city gate and fight with them, and the jade will be burned!" ”

Hou Xuanyan glanced at him helplessly, ignored him, and said: "You go back immediately, the officials of the yamen will work hard, and notify them door to door, be sure to take the people out of Changzhou, and I will let Xia Wanchun outside the city escort you to Suzhou." First transfer the wounded soldiers out of the city, let the people bring their valuables as much as possible, and withdraw in turn according to the streets, without worrying. ”

When Hou Xuan said this, he turned his head to Hong Yixun and said, "Send someone to Suzhou to give an order, mobilize all the carriages and horses, and come to transport the people." The boats on the canal also helped to transport, and all the important things in the city were moved out as much as possible. ”

Gu Shouzheng was ignored by him, and he didn't care at all, and said: "Changzhou has been preparing for the war for half a month, and even children know that the war is about to break out, and half of them have already fled to the south to join relatives and friends, waiting for the fight to come back." There are more than 10,000 remaining people, and they will be able to withdraw tonight. ”

The knife and pen official in Changzhou asked: "My lord, there are no less than 10,000 people in Changzhou City, do you want to leave?" ”

"Men and women, young and old, evacuate! I'll just say one last time, if anyone doesn't leave, they will be regarded as traitors and killed. By tomorrow at the latest, I want Changzhou to have no living people other than soldiers. ”

The officials and officials were forced by his momentum and did not dare to ask any more questions, so they went back to prepare.

Outside the city of Changzhou, there was artillery fire and thick smoke billowing out. The city of Changzhou was even more chickens and dogs, and the people reluctantly packed up the softness and escaped from Changzhou overnight. There are some people who are lively and reluctant to leave, just thinking that the Qing soldiers are coming, and they can't be obedient people, and their braids have been cut once anyway. These people relied on their familiarity with the terrain of Changzhou and hid in various dark corners, and the number of officials was limited, and it was the middle of the night, so there was no way to count the number of people.

Hong Yixun looked at Hou Xuanyan with a gloomy face, stepped forward and asked, "Big brother, what are you going to do here?" ”

Hou Xuanyan turned around, held Hong Yixun's shoulder, and said, "The people who brought you and Qin He's people will sprinkle all the coal on the outskirts of Dongcheng and the stocks in the city into the city, and take out the fierce fire oil and gunpowder from the arsenal. ”

In the small city of Changzhou, there are two large coal mines, these coals are burned with thick smoke, which is generally not used for heating, but can be used to smelt iron or something. Hou Xuanyan killed the heads of people in Changzhou at the beginning, and finally took the mine into his own hands, and the hoarded coal was originally intended to be kept for later use. In the midst of the chaos, there was nowhere to place the coal mined in their coal mines, and they had accumulated a considerable scale. When Hou Xuanyan inspected the coal mine, he had a crazy idea.

Hong Yixun didn't know why, Hou Xuanyan urged: "Go quickly!" ”

The houses in the Jiangnan area are all made of wood, and with the help of coal, gunpowder, and fierce fire oil all over the city, there is no fear of fire.

Hou Xuanyan grabbed Qin He's clothes and said, "Go up and tell Yan Yingyuan that he will die until Ming'er is old, and when the sky is about to dawn, abandon the city!" Assemble outside the eastern city and listen to my command. ”

Qin He turned over and took the order, without hesitation or asking more.

Looking up at the sparse stars and waning moon occasionally exposed under the dark clouds in the sky, Hou Xuanyan said to himself: "I want to use this city to exchange for the national honor of the Han people for hundreds of years." ”