Changping.

Due to the request of Hong Chengchou, the governor of the five provinces, You Shiwei, the former commander-in-chief of Changping, led 5,000 Changping soldiers to move to Tongguan to assist in the defense of Zhuyang Pass, in case the Liukou returned to Shaanxi and threatened Xi'an. Chao Pichang, the former Changping staff general, was promoted to the chief military officer of Changping.

On this day, Chao Pichang was holding a banquet to invite Wang Xizhong, the governor of the inner prison, when suddenly the soldiers came to report that there was a group of soldiers from the north outside the city who were noisily going to enter the city.

The north of Changping is Juyong Pass, how did the soldiers of Juyong Pass run to Changping? Could it be that the mutiny failed?

Chao Pichang was taken aback, this wine can't be eaten anyway, and Wang Xizhong, the internal supervisor of the Admiral, is also a person who knows things, and he knows that the matter is very important, and he has nothing to say at the moment to pull Chao Pichang to the city.

After the two went to the city, they saw that there were indeed thousands of Ming troops making noise under the city, these soldiers were in tatters, many soldiers were still wearing bandages, obviously wounded, and most of the soldiers had no weapons in their hands. Seeing that the defenders of the city did not open the city gate, these Ming soldiers were furious and scolded their father and mother.

Hearing these soldiers scolding ugly, Wang Xizhong couldn't help frowning, but Chao Pichang didn't care about these scoldings, but leaned out and stretched out his head and asked loudly, "Where are you from?" ”

"Juyongguan!"

"Juyongguan?" Chao Pichang's heart suddenly fell, but he shouted: "Since you are from Juyongguan, why don't you see your general soldier Wang?" Why did you leave the station and come to Changping without permission? You can't wait for the mutinous rebels, and you can't rob me if you want to open the city gate! ”

Chao Pichang said that Wang Zongbing is the former Beijing Battalion General Wang Pu, Chongzhen four years had led the Beijing Battalion soldiers to Henan Pingkou, but suffered a defeat and returned to Beijing to deal with the crime, the family made a lot of money to keep Wang Pu's official position, but also could not gain a foothold in the Beijing camp, in the winter of last year to guard against Juyongguan. On the same day, Wang Pu passed through Changping on the way to Juyongguan, You Shiwei had come forward to invite him, and Chao Pichang was also there during the banquet, and Wang Pu also had a very happy conversation.

Listening to the shouts from the city, the general manager of the city walked out of the crowd and shouted: "On the city, we are not rebels, we are indeed the soldiers and horses of Juyong Pass, but the Tartar Kou Pass, the chief soldier led people to run, the brothers can't hold on, so they retreat to your Changping, quickly open the city gate and let me wait in, otherwise the Tartar soldiers will come and no one will help you defend the city!" ”

"Tartar Kouguan?!" Chao Pichang and Wang Xizhong were both taken aback, and the latter was even weaker and almost fell to the ground. When the defenders of the city heard this, everyone changed color.

Chao Pichang was also panicked in his heart, but he was able to stabilize his mind, and he hurriedly asked Mr. Qian: "How many people are here in Tartar?" Which tribe of Mongolia is it from? Where did you Wang Zongbing flee to? Where are the Tartars now? ”

"It's not a northern captive, it's a braided eastern captive! I don't know where the chief soldier fled to, and after the Tartar occupied Juyong Pass, I waited for the patronage to flee for my life, and I dared to turn back to investigate. ”

Dongyu with braids?

Chao Pichang and Wang Xizhong looked at each other, didn't they say that Dongyu was hit hard by our Ming Dynasty outside the pass, why did they come to Kouguan again? Thinking of the tens of thousands of troops besieging the Beijing division six years ago, the faces of the two of them were extremely pale.

In the middle of the sound, Chao Pi Changcai asked again: "How many of you are there?" ”

"More than a thousand." The thousand general manager shouted again: "Let us enter the city quickly, if the Tartars come over, we can help defend the city." ”

"Chief Soldier Chao, can't these people be let in, what if there is fraud?" Wang Xizhong was afraid that there would be chaos after these routs entered the city, and he was also afraid that there would be Tartar spies mixed in them, and if he took the opportunity to seize the city when the city was opened, then his life would be over.

Chao Pichang was also very hesitant and silent. The Ming army outside the city saw that there was no response from the city, and they were also anxious, they were worried that the Tartars would catch up, so they kept shouting and urging there. The Changping soldiers defending the city naturally did not dare to open the city without the order of the chief soldier.

After pondering for a long time, Chao Pichang made up his mind, gritted his teeth and said to his subordinates: "Open the door and let them in." ”

Wang Xizhong hurriedly said: "The general soldiers of Chao are not afraid that these routs will be chaotic?" ”

Chao Pichang shook his head and said, "They are tired and scarred, and they don't seem to be earning a city." Besides, do you still remember the fate of Zhu Guoyan and Wang Yuanya's refusal to allow Zhao to enter the city? If they don't commit suicide, the emperor will have to kill them! He pointed down and said, "Look at their bear-like appearance, they have no combat power for a long time." After saying this, he turned to his subordinates and commanded, "Treat them well, let them eat and heal their wounds." The Tartars are really here, and there are people who help us guard them together. ”

After the defeated soldiers who retreated from Juyong Pass entered the city and were settled, Chao Pichang and Wang Xizhong hurriedly reported the news of the Eastern Captives to the imperial court. I thought that the Tartars had just occupied the Juyong Pass, and they would not enter the customs immediately for a while and a half, and they would always have to wait for the follow-up grain and grass to arrive before they could take the next step, so there were still two or three days left for Changping, and the next day there were tens of thousands of Eight Banners with blue flags in the north.

The soldiers of the Eight Banners did not immediately start attacking the city after they came to the city, but waited for another half a day, and in the afternoon another 20,000 Korean firearms soldiers came, and carried siege equipment, and in the evening the eastern captives began to attack the city.

There are 8,000 soldiers in the Chang Plain, but the former general soldier You Shiwei transferred the defense of Tongguan and took away 5,000 people, and Chao Pichang only had 3,000 soldiers under him. Fortunately, it is to defend the city, Changping city defense is intact, deep ditches and high ravines, ordnance is well-read, plus Changping Mansion has organized more than 1,000 young and strong to assist in defense, although there are tens of thousands of people in the east to attack, but the urgent express to the Beijing division has been issued, and it only takes two or three days for reinforcements to arrive, so there is no need to worry that Changping will be lost for a while and a half, and the morale of the soldiers and civilians in the city is also high.

But what Chao Pichang never expected was that during the battle, there was a sudden shout in the city, and dozens of people lit fires everywhere in the city. After a while, hundreds of chaotic soldiers rushed to the city gate to seize the city, they killed the Changping soldiers who were defending the city, and opened the city gate with their corpses, so the Dongyu cavalry who had been waiting outside the city waved their troops to kill!

Changping is lost like this?! Changping was lost like this! Chao Pichang is stunned!

After the Dongyu rushed into the city, Wang Xizhong, the eunuch of the prison army who was powerless, although he was so frightened to death, shouted when the pigtailed soldiers rushed towards him: "Your Majesty, the slaves and maids are loyal to you!" Then he drew his sword and rushed at the pigtailed soldiers!

Seeing this, Wang Gui, Zhao Yue, and Wang Yuzuo, and Hu Weihong, the heads of the household department in Changping, said to each other: "The ministers are so loyal and brave, and we are not as good as him?" After that, he followed up and killed.

Although they are heroic, after all, they are civil officials, and they are outnumbered, and they are all chopped into meat sauce by braided soldiers in a moment! Wang Xizhong was still desperate with the pigtail soldier after several knives in his body, although he tried to swing his sword to kill the pigtail soldier, but he couldn't hurt anyone, the pigtail soldier intended to tease him, and after he was exhausted, he rushed up and hacked him to death. Wang Xizhong was still staring at him when he died.

It didn't take half a pillar of incense time, the city was full of pigtailed soldiers, the defenders had lost resistance, Chao Pichang saw that the general trend had gone, sighed and threw down the long sword in his hand, and then asked the guards to bind themselves. Soon the pigtailed soldiers rushed up to the city and held him in custody.

On the way out of the city, he saw that the defeated army of Juyongguan, which he had included in the city yesterday, was standing on both sides, and these defeated troops were all pointing at him with laughter, and there was no shame of being captured at all.

Chao Pichang was puzzled, stopped and looked at them and asked, "You are the northern soldiers?" ”

The Qian Zong, who was talking to him under the city yesterday, stepped forward and replied with a smile: "No, we are indeed the defenders of Juyong Pass, but we are not a rout, but a surrender!" We descended the emperor in the north, just to earn your broken city! ”

Hearing this, Chao Pichang bowed his head and was speechless.

Outside the city, Donglu was ordered to be the general, Prince Zheng Jierharang heard that he captured Changping's chief soldier Chao Pichang alive, and immediately walked over with a group of princes Baylor, stroked the knife with one hand, crossed his waist with the other, and stood on the horse and smiled at Chao Pichang: "Chao general, can't you think of it?" ”

Chao Pichang glanced at Jierharang, ignored him, but turned to the soldiers again, and couldn't help but ask them: "Since you can escape, why do you still want to surrender?" If you have escaped, why should you use it for the enemy? ”

When Mr. Qian heard this, he said, "There is no shortage of general's money every month, right?" What about us, we haven't been paid in months? My wife is going to run away with someone! Is it worth selling your life to the emperor of the Zhu family? As he spoke, he took out two pieces of paper and handed them over, "Has the general read these two books?" ”

Chao Pichang glared at him, shrugged his bound arms, and said angrily: "Are you blind? You read! ”

Mr. Qian snorted, but he shook off the paper according to his words and read: "The officials of the Ming Dynasty surrendered, and the hereditary fatherhood of the children and grandchildren remained unchanged; Kill the official and return, and confer the official position; When one person comes to surrender, the country will support him; Lead the crowd to descend and give office according to merit. ”

Then open another one: "I see that the people of Li are miserable, and I often think of harmony, and I have sent letters to envoys no less than several times, I don't know if the subordinates below deceive and deceive the court, or the court knows that the people of Li are miserable and the people are dead and don't mind, and they don't want peace?" I have repeatedly talked about peace, but your minister of the Ming Dynasty has not answered a word, this is deliberately causing trouble! Therefore the sorrow and death of your people is not my responsibility, but the fault of your king and your ministers. In the future, wherever our army goes, those who dare to oppose me will be killed; Those who escape from the mountains and forests are captured; If you live in peace and surrender, you will not commit any crimes. This time we will not withdraw our troops as easily as before! ”

After Mr. Qian finished reading, Zilharang laughed twice: "What does General Chao think, will it fall or not?" Even if I don't descend, I'm not embarrassed for you, but I can't let you go. ”

Chao Pichang pondered for a while, looked up to the sky and said: "Zhu Guoyan and Wang Yuanya died because they rejected their own people, I died because I accepted my own people, and the will of heaven died brightly!" I drop. ”