Borrow wine to kill sorrow and sorrow! Although it is forbidden to drink alcohol in the army, Wu Shigong also knows what he looks like when he drinks, and it will be a little bad if he is seen by the soldiers of the Runing battalion, but that night, Wu Shigong and Liu Zeqing still got drunk.

Wu Shigong's heart was very unhappy. It was the reason why Yuan Heng was killed in battle. But the main reason is that Wu Shigong feels homesick.

Especially to his eldest son Xue Chenglin. When Xue Chenglin was born, Wu Shigong was not by his side for a long time, so that now Wu Shigong's only impression of him is that he has been sleeping in his mother's arms, and he can't even remember his appearance.

Wu Shigong thought that Dengzhou City would be conquered soon. He will also soon take his wife Xue Yufei and eldest son Xue Chenglin back to Runing to reunite with the family. But he never thought that the situation in Dengzhou City had evolved into a long-term siege, and he had to stay here for an unknown amount of time, Wu Shigong suddenly felt that his heart was extremely panicked.

Early in the morning, Wu Shigong got up from his big tent. Wu Shigong's situation in Zuihou last night was already a little vague, and he only remembered that he insisted on going back to his camp.

The feeling of hangover when he got up was extremely uncomfortable, Wu Shigong sat on the bed for a while, and felt that his body had recovered somewhat, so he put on his coat and got up.

At this time, Wu Shigong thought that since he also missed his family, the soldiers of the Runing Battalion must also be the same. Wu Shigong wanted to go to Zhou Xun and ask him to write a letter to each soldier and auxiliary soldier together with the literate soldiers in the army, and Wu Shigong would send someone to deliver these letters to their homes. If you can't go home in the war, there's no way, and there's only so much Wu Shigong can do now.

As soon as I came out of the big tent, a cold wind blew, and it was already late autumn and early winter. The wind was also blowing a little biting. Wu Shigong was trembling by the wind, and he thought of the guard Yuan Heng again. couldn't help but tighten his clothes and sighed: "This person is as dead as blowing a lamp, it really will be extinguished as soon as it is blown!" ”

The Ming army outside Dengzhou City is at a loss, and the rebel generals in the city are also full of gloom. In fact, there was not as optimistic as the Ming army outside the city estimated, and there was not much food in Dengzhou City.

Denglai is not an area with a lot of production, and during the long-term drought, the grain stocks of the government and the people have dropped to a very low level. So after Kong Youde's rebellion, he didn't actually collect much food.

Coupled with the long-term siege of Laizhou City, bandits and refugees have come to join again. These military rations must be supported by the grain stored in Dengzhou City. The rebellion brought a devastating blow to the agricultural production of the whole territory of Denglai, and the defeat of the Battle of Shahe and the Battle of Huangxian made a large amount of military grain fall into the hands of the Ming army, so that the current Dengzhou City. There are only three or four months' worth of rations left.

But that's not the worst. Originally, Kong Youde's rebels were not very flustered. Because in the water city of Dengzhou City, there are a large number of sailor ships. In case Dengju City is not supported. It was possible to evacuate the rebels through those ships. So when the Ming army first drove to Dengzhou City. The rebels still have the confidence to fight the Ming army again, because the rebels still have such a way to retreat.

However, those rebel generals never imagined that the weather would become unusually cold immediately, and in the past few days, a large amount of ice floes had appeared in the waters outside Shuicheng, and the sea surface would be completely frozen in a few days. So now ships are no longer able to go to sea.

Of course, Kong Youde and these rebel generals did not know that it was now in the period of the Xiaoice River. But they were cut off from the back road, and they were trapped in a desperate situation, and there was not much food in Dengzhou City, so they were gathered together now. Consider a way to come out.

"How many people are there in the city? How much food is in stock? Kong Youde asked.

"Dashuai, on your orders, the little one has touched the situation in the city these days." Kong Youde's personal soldier captain introduced on the side, "Now there are more than 17,000 of our soldiers in the city, of which more than 8,900 were originally our old Liao army. There are more than 3,100 horses, and more than 7,000 family members of the old Liao army. More than 1,800 coolies were captured. And also...... There are also more than 1,200 people in Dengzhou City. ”

The generals present all know that the people of Dengzhou City mentioned by the captain of the personal army are the young women left by the rebels as military prostitutes. Kong Youde nodded, and then said, "You go on!" ”

"There are more than 9,200 stone of grain in the city, and the amount of hay is very sufficient, and there is no shortage of food for horses. In addition, there are more than 200 catties of dried meat and more than 1,400 jars of wine. More than 600 stones of salt. More than 100,000 catties of firewood. The number of ordnance is sufficient. It is completely possible to arm more than 30,000 people. ”

"Stop talking so much nonsense. Just tell me how long our food stocks can last. A rebel general on the side interjected.

There are few of those generals who are literate, and let them do mathematical division, it will really kill them. So some of the generals also made an uproar, and they wanted to know the exact time they could support.

"Be quiet!" Kong Youde saw that the scene was a little chaotic, and immediately shouted loudly, "Old Kong, I found a bookkeeper yesterday and counted the grain in the city. Save a little, and it can also be supported until the end of the first month of next year. ”

The rebel generals present here breathed a clear sigh of relief. One general spoke everyone's mind: "If you kill all those horses, it will be enough to support the sea freezing in March of the following year." At that time, we can leave the sky high. ”

Kong Youde shook his head and said a different opinion: "Horses can't be killed. In the unlikely event that the Ming army breaks the city of Dengzhou within a few months, we can also concentrate three thousand cavalry and find a way to rush out. This is also a retreat for us. If this retreat is blocked now, and God is as strange as it is now again in March next year, if the sea does not freeze, then we really have no way out. ”

"Then according to Brother Kong's words, we really can't help it? In my opinion, we'd better come down! Let's find someone to talk to the officers and soldiers outside the city about the conditions, and if the conditions are not too excessive, let's go back and eat the military salary. ”

Suddenly hearing this suggestion, the room was quiet. The rebels have come to the present and have offered to surrender several times, but those surrenders are all for the sake of future surrenders. And this proposal for surrender was the first real surrender made within the rebels.

Kong Youde was very disgusted with this suggestion in his heart. Because he knew that he had deceived so many times and deceived so many civil and military officials. If he really surrendered this time, even if Emperor Chongzhen let him go, those other officials would definitely not let him go. Therefore, among the rebel generals present now, only himself and Geng Jingzhong, as well as Li Jiucheng's son Li Yingyuan, will absolutely not be able to surrender.

However, Kong Youde could not deny this proposal, otherwise, it was possible that there would be a fire between the rebels in Dengzhou City now. Even the other rebel generals present would cut off their heads and send them to the Ming army outside the city to invite rewards. During this troubled time, what kind of brotherhood will they believe, that is really still in their mother's belly!

So after thinking about it for a while, Kong Youde said: "It's okay to go and explore the wind." Arrange for someone to go out, but there is also a condition for surrender, all of us here must be preserved, and the past is not investigated. Otherwise, tell the officers and soldiers outside the city that we will fight to the death. ”

"Also, don't be anxious for all of you. When the time comes, there will really be no food, and the coolies and people in the city will be able to satisfy their hunger. We also came here in hard times, don't tell me Lao Kong, you don't know how to eat human flesh. As soon as it is consumed, we will immediately fly away. That's it for now. Lao Geng, you stay for a while, I still have something to say to you. ”

After the other generals left, Kong Youde said to Geng Jingzhong: "Old Geng, you and I, plus the old Shang who is now in Phi Dao, are all people who started with Mao Shuai back then. After all these years, we have drunk together, blushed and fought, but we have never stabbed us in the back. So now I, Lao Kong, only believe in you. ”

"And in the current situation, even those of us who came out of Dongjiang Town can't fully believe it. You and I will each send a force to guard the granary and water city in the city, and then move the families of those old Liao soldiers to the water city. No matter what, we all have a way out. ”

Geng Jingzhong nodded and accepted Kong Youde's kindness. But he asked, "What about those who want to surrender?" ”

Kong Youde sneered and replied, "Just let them talk." Let them die of this heart. I can also see that those officers and soldiers outside the city are thinking about our heads, where will they accept our surrender. Even if we really wanted to surrender, they wouldn't believe it. In the past, we played too the trick. ”

"Is that ......?" Geng Jingzhong asked with a knife slashing motion with his hand.

Kong Youde thought about it for a moment and replied, "It's not necessary now. After all, they are still sitting in a boat, and there is no chaos in this city. However, it can be considered to break through the siege a few more times in the future, and it is not possible to defend the city to the death, and it is also necessary to put pressure on the officers and troops outside the city, so that they cannot be bold enough to attack the city. ”

Geng Jingzhong nodded again. You can also borrow a knife to kill people, and you can consume some soldiers in the city to save food, Kong Youde's strategy is quite good.

At this time, Wu Shigong had already arranged to send a letter home. But we can't get busy with this yet. The Henan army had to first drive to the south of Dengzhou City and build its own camp. Next, we need to build fortifications to surround Dengju Castle.

That night, when the camp was rudely built, Wu Shigong ordered Yang Rusong: "Tomorrow I will find a few guides who are familiar with the local situation." It is best to have someone who is familiar with the situation in Dengzhou City. After finding it, he went to the outside of Dengzhou City with his official to observe the terrain. (To be continued......)