Sunset on the West Mountain, the sunset curls, a cavalry like a lightning, galloping, wrapped in galloping momentum, suddenly stopped at the Lugou Bridge west of Beijing City, dusty, gradually falling, slowly fading, and then revealing the military appearance of this cavalry, it is the Li Jiajun.

At this moment, Li Zicheng stood on horseback, at the front of the team, Li Laiheng was on one side, the horsewhip in his hand pointed to the northeast, and said excitedly: "Boss, you see, cross this Lugou Bridge and gallop more than 30 miles along this official road, and it will be the imperial city." ”

Hearing this, a picture appeared in Li Zicheng's mind, the general outline of the geographical map of Beijing City, the distribution of the six and nine gates, and then shouted: "Continue to advance, while the officers and troops have not yet discovered it, immediately occupy a favorable position, and at sunset, strive for Chen Bing to be outside the Fucheng Gate, and while receiving the follow-up troops, wait for the arrival of the loyal battalion and other troops." ”

"Yes, Boss!"

In an instant, as Li Zicheng shouted "drive", he galloped out first, and Li Jiajun followed closely behind, heading straight to the northeast, aiming at Fuchengmen in Beijing City.

The momentum of the rush suddenly formed again, like a rolling flood.

The sky is getting darker and darker, the sun has long been gone, only the remaining few wisps of sunset, are gradually fading, outside the Desheng Gate, a team of dozens of people galloped over, just approached the city gate, accompanied by a chaotic sound of horses' hooves, a burst of shouting: "Quick, open the city gate!" ”

"Who are you?" There was a disdainful rhetorical question from the city, and it seemed that he saw that the group of people was not simple, most of them were armor soldiers in armor, and then said in a slightly soothing tone: "It is already the time of the curfew, and if there is no text from the Admiral of the Nine Gates and the Ministry of War, no one can be allowed to enter the city." If you want to enter the city, please be early tomorrow. ”

"Hmph~ It's really blind to your dog's eyes, and you don't look at who we are......"

Before he finished speaking, he was interrupted by Gao Qiqian in the group: "Shut up!" ”

While speaking, Gao Qi Qian rode his horse to the front, took off his helmet, and revealed his true face in the dim light, then he looked at the city gate tower and shouted loudly: "I am Gao Qi Qian, Changping has fallen, and the chaotic army is approaching the capital, quickly open the city gate, let our family meet the emperor and report the emergency military situation." ”

However, there was only a sound of hesitation from the city gate, and it seemed that he had guessed the scruples of the guards guarding the gate, and Gao Qiqian then shouted: "If you are still not at ease, you can call Yang Sichang, the secretary of the military department, and identify it, and you will know whether my identity is true or false." ”

The general guarding the city gate secretly breathed a sigh of relief, as soon as he heard the other party call Yang Sichang's name, he believed a little in his heart, Gao Qiqian's next words were like adding another fire, although they were still hesitant in their hearts, but they had to make up their minds, fight hard, and go to invite Yang Sichang.

"I can tell you that the rebel army may come to the city at any time and attack the imperial city, if it is because of you, the military plane is delayed, our family will definitely join you!"

For a moment, the guard general remembered that when this group of people first opened, they claimed that Changping had fallen, if it was true, it would be a big deal, and the responsibility for delaying the military aircraft was definitely not something they could afford.

"Father-in-law, generals, wait a while, the last general will go to invite Yang Shangshu, at such a critical juncture, the capital is in a temporary state, and opening the city gate is definitely not something that can be decided by the next garrison, and I hope for Haihan, take care of it."

In the quiet evening, Gao Qiqian and his party could clearly hear the sound of the defending generals coming down the stairs, as well as the explosion of horses while riding, and the sound of tapping and tapping at the galloping of the war horses, which gradually drifted away.

In the Forbidden City, in Chongzhen's study, the angry shouts of the supreme man of the Ming Dynasty echoed, and he was no longer calm and calm in the past.

"Hmph~ A group of wine bags and rice bags, Shanxi has been lost for many days, why did you not send back the news until now? So many chaotic troops poured into Shanxi, and they didn't get a little wind before, what did those court officials and generals do to eat? ”

"Haha... What a 'good courtier' of mine... Except for Zhou Yuji, the chief soldier of Daizhou, who defended and died in battle, the others were all TMD a group of straw bales, Jiang Liang, the general soldier of Datong, surrendered, and Wang Chengyin, the chief soldier of Xuanfu, handed over the surrender table that night, Juyongguan, Changping and Xuanfu were even more precarious, and they could be captured by the chaotic army at any time. ”

Zhu Youzhen was crazy, laughing more ugly than crying, his voice became louder and louder, and suddenly, his eyes widened, and he shouted angrily: "Where is Yang Sichang, the secretary of the military department?" With so many things happening, Shaanxi, Henan, and Shanxi have fallen into the hands of thieves one after another, and as the secretary of the military department, shouldn't I explain something to me? ”

Through such a series of words, it is obvious that Zhu Youzhen is not aware that the real situation is more severe than he understood, and he does not know that Li Zicheng has captured Xuanfu and Changping in a row, and is pressing towards Beijing City!

At this moment, when Zhu Youzhen was still angry, suddenly, a little eunuch hurriedly walked in from outside, stumbled and bowed: "Your Majesty, Gonggong Gao and Yang Shangshu are asking to see you outside the palace!" ”

"Let them in!"

Chongzhen's anger did not subside, and he waved his hand at the little eunuch who was kneeling on the ground, as if he didn't realize that in the abnormality of the report, why did he come back at this time when he was supposed to be in the Changping Supervision Army?

Soon, Yang Sichang and Gao Qiqian walked in with ugly expressions, and without waiting for Zhu Youzhen to ask, they pounced, and Gao Qiqian knelt on the ground when he stood up, and the whole person was prostrate there, his head was close to the ground, and he said in a trembling voice with seven points of apology and three points of crying: "Your Majesty, the slaves are guilty, Changping has fallen, and the slaves have colluded with the rebel army without observing the guards, resulting in the fall of Changping and the hands of Li Zicheng, the leader of the rebels!" ”

In an instant, Zhu Youzhen only felt that the world was spinning, that is, he was dizzy for a while, and his brain had a short circuit, and he was shocked for a moment, as if he had thought of something, and hurriedly asked anxiously: "When did it happen?" The rebel army attacked Changping, didn't Hong Chengchou and Sun Chuanting send people to support? ”

"It was this morning." Gao Qiqian instinctively replied, seeing that the emperor was not angry with him, he dared to raise his head, shook it gently, and then continued to answer: "The slave escaped from the east gate of Changping City, and I don't know if Lord Sun and Lord Hong rescued Changping. ”

Seeing Zhu Youzhen's angry face, he was about to reprimand something, he was very dissatisfied, Gao Qiqian hurriedly added: "Your Majesty, the rebel army has captured Changping, and it is not far from the capital. If the news of Changping's emergency did not reach the capital, the minions could still be sent to the capital by another way. ”

Without waiting for Zhu Youzhen to speak, and continued to ask, Yang Sichang stood up at this time, bowed down and saluted: "Your Majesty, the fall of Changping is a matter of the morning, and I have not yet received an urgent report from Changping, Lord Sun, and Lord Hong, so it can be seen that the road is controlled by the rebel army, and it is impossible to deliver news to Chang Chang at all. Now it seems that not only Changping has been captured by the chaotic army, but I am afraid that some unpredictable things have happened to the Shaanxi army led by Lord Sun and Lord Hong. If Gonggong Gao takes that road again, it is likely that something will happen to him, and I am afraid that the imperial court will not know the news of Changping's loss until now. ”

Yang Sichang's off-string voice not only shocked Zhu Youzhen, but also made Gao Qiqian stunned, even if he had already guessed and mentally prepared, his emotions still couldn't calm down for a long time.

Moreover, judging from various clues, combined with what happened in Shanxi, Weichen made a bold guess, not only the official road from Changping to Jingshi was controlled by the rebel army, but I am afraid that the vast majority of the official roads around Jingshi also fell into the hands of the rebel army. Otherwise, the news received by the imperial court would not be so closed and sluggish, and it would always be so late. ”

After Yang Sichang finished speaking in a deep voice, he didn't say anything more, but looked at Zhu Youzhen with an ugly expression, I'm afraid there are still some speculations that have not been exhausted, such as due to the slowness of getting the news, the real situation may be even worse than Gao Qiqian's words, and the rebellious army is approaching Gyeonggi.

At this moment, Zhu Youzhen's qi was extremely quiet, but his hands and feet were cold, and his voice trembled slightly: "Yang Shangshu, since the situation is so urgent, what do you think the imperial court should do?" Do you want to recover Changping immediately? ”

Yang Sichang's heart was also very bottomless, he didn't know how to answer, he groaned slightly, his brain was running rapidly, and after a while, he replied in a deep voice: "Your Majesty, in the humble opinion of the ministers, the best way for the imperial court to deal with it now is to immediately negotiate peace with the Qing army and stabilize the Tartars." ”

"Subsequently, gather all the troops around the Jingshi, defend Gyeonggi, and delay as much time as possible, so that the troops of King Qin in the south will not be the time to recover Changping, and keep the capital as the main."

Gao Qiqian, who was kneeling on the ground, hurriedly took over the conversation and echoed: "Your Majesty, Yang Shangshu is right, at this time, the first priority is to stabilize the Qing army, avoid the Tartars and the rebellious army from colluding with each other, and only by dragging one side can we wait for the times to change, wait for more Qinwang soldiers, and at the same time recruit soldiers in the capital and supplement them to the city defense camp." ”

As if it had been discussed a long time ago, Yang Sichang's words paused, and after Gao Qiqian finished speaking, he further said: "Your Majesty, the imperial court is in a very disadvantageous situation, and the city defense battalion in the capital only has twenty or thirty thousand old and weak soldiers, and the strength of the three battalions must be gathered together to defend the city of Beijing." At the same time, as Gao Gonggong said, it is necessary to recruit as many soldiers as possible. ”

Speaking of this, Yang Sichang suddenly spoke, his face showed hesitation, and he looked like he was stumbling, but Zhu Youzhen was secretly anxious, and couldn't help urging: "Yang Shangshu, even if you have something to say, no matter what you say, I will forgive you for your innocence!" ”

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

Yang Sichang responded loudly, respectfully gave another salute, and then said slowly: "Emperor Qiqi, it is still an old problem, if you want the soldiers to share the same hatred and swear to defend Gyeonggi, the salary can be suspended, but the abundance of grain and grass must be guaranteed." Otherwise, no matter how many troops are raised, the soldiers will be detached from morality and unwilling to defend the city with all their might. ”

Zhu Youzhen nodded frequently when he heard this, looking deeply appreciative, but he was very bitter in his heart, and he said bitterly, but he still looked at Yang Sichang and asked: "Yang Shangshu, do you have any good solutions to the matter of food and salary?" ”

Speaking of this, Zhu Youzhen's words were also paused, and he added: "Yang Shangshu, you have also been in charge of the household department, so you should know that whether it is my private treasury or the treasury of the imperial court, there is not much silver at all, and it is simply impossible to support so much military expenses. ”

"Hmm..." Yang Sichang let out a deep nasal voice, and he didn't understand Zhu Youzhen's difficulties, thought about it for a while, and then replied: "Your Majesty, at this time, the rebellious army is gradually approaching Gyeonggi, and if you want to solve the problem of food and salary, you can only start from the capital and collect grain, grass and silver from the officials. ”

Hearing such an answer, Zhu Youzhen's expression only eased a little, but it was still ugly, he shook his head, quite helpless, as if he didn't have much hope, and sighed in a low voice: "Hey... That's all it can be~"

Yang Sichang and Gao Qiqian left, but Zhu Youzhen was stunned, staring at the flickering candlelight, I don't know when, and suddenly said lightly: "Xu Gao, how do you say I should collect donations from the ministers in order to achieve the desired effect?" Raise enough silver taels. ”

Xu Gao, the eunuch on the side, turned sideways, looked at Emperor Chongzhen who was still looking at the candlelight, his eyes were dim, he couldn't bear it, he muttered for a while, and said vaguely with a slight reservation: "Your Majesty, if you want to succeed in fundraising, you must have a leader who takes the lead in responding to the emperor's fundraising strategy, and many other ministers can donate silver and food." ”

As if he had been empowered, Chongzhen's eyes suddenly lit up, as if he had thought of something, and said to himself: "Yes, Jiading Bo is the best candidate, not only my father, but also the queen's father, and he also serves in the Soldiers and Horses Division, so he should be able to play a good leading role." ”

Speaking of this, Chongzhen's eyes were full of light, he looked back at Xu Gao, and said excitedly: "Xu Gao, you immediately go to the Guozhang Jiading Bo Mansion, and talk about the stakes involved. ”

"Yes, Your Majesty, the servant will convey your message."

When Xu Gao answered, a sad feeling arose, and there were some sympathies for the emperor in front of him, but he was reduced to the point of "collecting donations" from his courtiers.

In the hall of Jiading Bofu, the candlelight was dim, and an old man with white silver hair stood opposite Xu Gao, although he was already in the age of the sixtieth year, his face was full of red light, after listening to Xu Gao's words, his expression was suddenly like a mournful examine, and he said with a bitter face: "Father-in-law Gao, you tell the emperor, the old minister is more gold?" Over the years as an official, the family was so poor that they could only buy moldy rice to eat, and the old minister could only take out 10,000 taels at most. ”

As soon as he heard this, there was a huge difference between the silver donated by Zhou Kui, the emperor, and Xu Gao suddenly pinched his teeth, and couldn't help but secretly slander himself: ", old guy, do you really dare to say it?" Who doesn't know that Jiadingbo has a large number of fields and houses, and there is a kabuki troupe, and 100,000 taels is simply drizzle. ”

Although he thought so in his heart, he couldn't say it clearly, Xu Gao had to be patient and continue to fight: "Lord Guozhang, after the emperor ascended the throne, he not only established Queen Zhou as the queen, but also named you as Jiading Bo, serving as a fat water yamen such as the Soldiers and Horses, and also gave the first place in Suzhou Fengmen, for the sake of the country, alleviate the emptiness of the imperial treasury, so that the soldiers can eat enough to fight and resist the chaotic army, you should also have something to say, right?" Ten thousand taels is too little. ”

Speaking of this, Xu Gao had a smile on his face, quite meaningful, and without waiting for Zhou Kui to refute, he preemptively said: "Lord Guozhang, the slave has heard that there is a kabuki troupe in the house, how can it not come up with a mere 100,000 taels?" ”

However, to Xu Gao's surprise, Zhou Kui pretended to be stupid, leaned on the neck of the old man, and said without relenting: "The old minister is indeed poor, and he can barely take out 10,000 taels, and he can't take out more silver at all." ”