The 3rd Division and the 2nd Auxiliary Defense Division took the lead in making a breakthrough in Yangzhou City and occupied behind the western city wall.

However, according to the Chinese army's usual caution in siege operations to avoid casualties, they did not rush to advance deep into the city, but began to receive more troops from the south and northwest to capture the north and south walls.

At this time, the Qing army in the city was already in chaos, the loss of the west city wall made the defenders in Yangzhou lose the largest defense system, and could only shrink in the city, and so on until evening, the west city wall, the south city wall, and the north have been lost one after another, but fortunately, the east side can still hold for the time being due to the attack of the fifth army.

Although the night had already taken over, the Chinese army did not stop the pace of attack, and the 3rd and 2nd Auxiliary Defense Divisions, which had been fighting for a day, did not act as the vanguard troops, but the 1st Division and the 9th Auxiliary Defense Division acted as the main offensive force, launching an attack deep into the city with bright torches.

However, although the torches were lit, due to the many obstacles that led the attack on the night of the Qing army, many Qing soldiers hid in various buildings and occasionally came out to attack, so that the vanguard troops suffered certain losses.

Looking at the continuous casualties reported, Shi Qingxuan gritted his teeth: "Okay, since you use the buildings in the city as cover, Lao Tzu will burn them all, see how you still hide!" ”

Immediately, he ordered the troops not to shrink back when they attacked, to burn the houses when they saw them, and at the same time to pull down many four-pounder infantry guns into the city to serve as fire support for the incoming infantry.

In order to drive away the Qing army, the Chinese army took a large-scale arson, in fact, it was not only the Chinese army arson, in order to prevent the Chinese army from advancing deep into the city, the Qing army also set fire on a large scale, trying to stop the Chinese army's offensive pace.

As for the entire Yangzhou City that night, it was in flames, especially the Xicheng District, where the Qing army resisted fiercely, was burned by the leaders of both sides.

When the fire was soaring, in the Qing army camp in Dongcheng District, Huang Zonghan and Li Hongzhang, Dexing'a, Zhang Guoliang and other major generals of the Qing army quarreled.

"Now that the rebel army has entered the city, it will be too late if you don't leave!" Dexing's voice was trembling with a hint of trembling: "There is still night available, and there is still hope for breaking out of the city at this time, but after waiting for dawn, there is no hope at all!" ”

Zhang Guoliang, who has always been at odds with Dexing, also said to Huang Zonghan: "My lord, this battle is not that we don't want to die, but that the rebel army is too cunning, tens of thousands of soldiers are fighting to the death, and there are more than 5,000 casualties in today's battle alone, and it really can't be fought, and if it continues to fight, it will be all fought out!" ”

Zhang Guoliang said that at this time, his face was quite ugly, you must know that most of the troops defending the west city wall are his green battalion army, and Li Hongzhang's Jianghuai New Army also sent people, but only more than 2,000 people, and then retreated into Xicheng District to continue to resist stubbornly, its 20,000 main force is also the green battalion under Zhang Guoliang, and the Jianghuai New Army only has 5,000 people.

What is even more tragic is that in today's war, although the Jianghuai New Army also suffered a lot of casualties, the Jianghuai New Army is a new army under Li Hongzhang, which cannot beat the Royal Army of the Chinese Army, but a series of retreats are still relatively orderly, if they meet the auxiliary defense division of the Chinese Army, they can often win, so far, a large number of casualties of the Jianghuai New Army occurred in the gap operation, about four or five hundred people, and the follow-up urban battle and the city head battle did not have many casualties.

The most casualties were Zhang Guoliang's troops, who had already suffered at least 3,000 casualties and missing, and these were all troops brought out by Zhang Guoliang for many years.

At this time, Li Hongzhang also said: "Stay in Qingshan without worrying about running out of firewood, as long as we rush out to integrate our troops, this Yangzhou City can be attacked again in the future!" ”

Huang Zonghan is also like ashes, when he decided to defend Yangzhou with the main force, whether it was Zhang Guoliang or Dexing, or Li Hongzhang, who had high hopes for himself, they all patted their chests and said that although they did not have much confidence in the field battle, they could at least defend it for a year and a half by relying on the strong city, and even Zhang Guoliang also took the Chinese army's attack on Changzhou last year as an example.

What do you say that the Taiping thief army that was cowering in Changzhou at the beginning was no more than 10,000 people, but the Chinese rebel army could not attack hard and could only rely on siege.

In the end, he besieged Wei and rescued Zhao, forcing the Taiping thief army in Changzhou to retreat on his own initiative.

And there are many imperial heavenly armies in Yangzhou City, which is enough to defend Yangzhou and wait for the rebel army to collapse on its own!

But what Huang Zonghan didn't expect was how many days before and after?

Even the Chinese army occupied Guazhou, and the Zhenjiang rebel army began to cross the river, which was only a dozen days of effort.

If it is said that it took only three or four days to launch a general attack after the siege of the rebel army, but now, Yangzhou City, which was originally thought to be impregnable, has been breached.

Do you want to keep it going?

How to keep? Although Yangzhou City is large, there is no solid fortification like the city wall in the city, how can it resist the tide of Chinese rebels?

Do you want to break through and retreat?

But in this way, the guilt of losing the city and land has to be borne, and his reputation as Huang Zonghan I must not be tarnished.

Since he entered the Jiangnan region to suppress thieves, he has served as the governor of Zhejiang, Jiangsu, and Liangjiang, and he has never abandoned the city and escaped.

In northern Zhejiang, he effectively resisted the southward movement of the Taiping army, although it was due to the original Yu Shengjun, but to ensure that Zhejiang is not lost, he Huang Zonghan can be said to have made great contributions, if there is any stain during his tenure as governor of Zhejiang, it is to support and let Lin Zhe Yu Shengjun become bigger, so that it caused today's disaster.

In Jiangsu, while pacifying and suppressing the expansion of Yu Shengjun, he worked hard to resist the Taiping Army, which was considered to have maintained the situation for two years, and the credit was not small.

Later, he was appointed as the governor of Liangjiang, in order to curb the northward movement of the Chinese army, rebuilt the Jiangbei camp, and gathered more than 50,000 people from the Jianghuai New Army, Zhang Guoliang's department, and Dexing's department to garrison Yangzhou, which can be regarded as keeping the peace of Jiangbei for half a year.

But now, with the destruction of Yangzhou City, all his efforts in the past years have come to naught!

Huang Zonghan was thinking about these things in his heart, but the faces of Dexing'a, Zhang Guoliang and even Li Hongzhang on the side were getting more and more anxious, now time waits for no one, there are not a few hours before dawn, and now there is still night cover, although it will be scattered if it breaks through, but there is hope, but if it is dawn, after the army is completely encircled, there is really no hope at all, so you can only sit and wait for death.

The anxious three people glanced at each other, and they all saw the intention of retreating from each other's eyes, but now Huang Zonghan was slow to speak.

And they have been persuading for a long time, it can be said that it is useless to talk too much, and now they can only wait for Huang Zonghan's initial final decision.

After a long time, I saw Huang Zonghan, who was silent, speak: "How many people do you still have in your departments now?" How many people can be taken out? ”

Hearing Huang Zonghan say this, Zhang Guoliang and the others were overjoyed, and immediately Zhang Guoliang took the lead and said: "There are still 20,000 people under the command of Xiaguan, and if you break through now, you can gather about 15,000 people." ”

Dexing Ah also said: "I can still make up about 5,000 people here!" ”

Li Hongzhang said: "Our department is not badly damaged, and the state is relatively good, so we should be able to gather 8,000 people to participate in the breakthrough!" ”

Huang Zonghan said: "Twenty-eight thousand people, if you can break through, it will not be less!" ”

Immediately, his eyes swept to Li Hongzhang and the others, and he continued: "For this breakthrough, the first order is based on Governor Li, and the Jianghuai New Army is the vanguard!" ”

"After you break through, don't stay, go directly north to Huai'an, build a new camp there, be sure to delay the speed of the rebel army going north, as long as it drags on for a month or two, the reinforcements of the imperial court can also arrive, and then you can block the rebel army in the north of Jiangsu."

Hearing this, Zhang Guoliang and a few others showed doubts on their faces, some of the strategic arrangements behind were quite proper, and they must not run around after fleeing north, the best thing is to go north along the canal, and then continue to hold on to the Huai'an Mansion area of Huaiyang Road, relying on Huai'an City to defend the northbound canal channel.

But let Li Hongzhang call the shots? They don't mind, because at this juncture, everyone knows that the Jianghuai New Army is the main force, and although he Zhang Guoliang's troops are more, their combat effectiveness is weak, and the thousands of people in Dexing'a are even more unbearable.

But this doesn't make Li Hongzhang give orders, because there is still a Huang Zonghan above.

But soon Huang Zonghan gave them the answer:

"You take away the men and horses that can be taken away, and I will personally command the rest of the soldiers and horses!"

Although Huang Zonghan did not say it explicitly, several people here understood Huang Zonghan's thoughts, and while he wanted to cut off Li Hongzhang and others, he also had the determination to live and die with Yangzhou.

Huang Zonghan is a famous minister, he is different from Zhang Guoliang, a veteran general, different from the Manchu magnate like Dexing'a, and different from the regimental training commander who has just gotten up, and Li Hongzhang, a rookie in the officialdom.

When he was forced to withdraw from Jiangnan and stick to Jiangbei, he already felt pressure, and this time he absolutely couldn't tolerate his defeat and escape, this escape, Li Hongzhang and Zhang Guoliang are generals who lead troops, at most they are deprived of their posts, but there will definitely be an opportunity to temporarily take charge of military affairs and make meritorious contributions, and now Xianfeng does not have the courage to directly ask Li Hongzhang and Zhang Guoliang for their crimes.

But he Huang Zonghan is different, Xianfeng dares to directly ask him as a civil official.

Of course, this kind of questioning is actually not something that Huang Zonghan is worried about, because he never planned to abandon the city and flee.

In order to clear his name and not be stained, on the other hand, it was also to atone for his crimes, if he hadn't gotten Yu Shengjun out of Yuyao County and thrown him to northern Zhejiang and Hubei to fight against the Taiping Army, there would be today's Chinese Empire.

These are all caused by him, and he has no power to destroy them, so all that remains is to die!

That night, Li Hongzhang was the main general, and took Zhang Guoliang and Dexing'a and the three of them, a total of more than 20,000 troops, to break through to the north.

At this time, the Fifth Army had not been able to take the East City Gate, and it simply did not attack, and its main force, the Fifth Division, directly bypassed the city wall and rushed to the northeast, trying to intercept the breakthrough of the Qing army.

At the same time, Huang Zonghan also personally commanded the remnants of nearly 10,000 Qing troops who remained in various parts of the city and could not be gathered and taken away.

On this night, the battle between the Chinese army and the Qing army was more fierce and cruel than during the day, and in order to prevent the Qing army from breaking through, even the first division paid a certain amount of casualties.

It was also on this night that Huang Zonghan refused Shi Qingxuan's personal surrender and killed himself at dawn in Yangzhou Mansion! (To be continued.) )