In the Jiangdong Gate Tower, Zheng Sanjun, the head of Nanjing's household department, was lying on a simple bed and falling asleep soundly, when he was suddenly woken up by a servant.

"Master, the thief is here!"

"Fetch my sword!" Zheng Sanjun quickly got out of bed and put on his coat, took the sword and rushed out of the city tower, lying on the city wall and looking into the distance, he saw countless torches appearing in the distance outside the city, and the flickering fire was like stars in the sky, and he was thinking that the Nanjing city wall was approaching quickly.

"Beat the drums and wake up all the guards!" Zheng Sanjun commanded sharply.

The drum sound of "dong dong dong" sounded, waking up the city of Nanjing in the middle of dawn. Countless defenders woke up from their slumber and hurried out of the camp towards the city walls.

"Light the torch!"

"Light the fire on the city wall and prepare to boil the golden juice!"

"The officer guarding the battlement counts the soldiers and civilians under his commandment, and counts the materials guarding the city!"

One after another orders came from Zheng Sanjun's mouth, and the soldiers on the entire Jiangdong Gate section of the city wall were busy. Unlike other civil officials and nobles who have the intention of surrendering, Zheng Sanjun's heart is still on Zhu Youzhen's side. Even though he was very dissatisfied with Zhu Youzhen's various measures, it did not prevent him from being loyal to Zhu Youzhen. The king is the king, even if he has been, he is still the king, as a minister of the Ming Dynasty, he can only persuade the king to be good, and it is impossible to disobey the king or even take refuge in the thief, this is Zheng Sanjun's idea.

Therefore, after arriving at Jiangdong Gate, Zheng Sanjun has been preparing to actively defend the city, and in a short period of time, he reorganized the Jiangdong Gate defenders, and transferred more than 1,000 people nearby, and then arranged defense, and each battlement was specific to each guard.

In addition to Zheng Sanjun, who is responsible for guarding the Jiangdong Gate, it is Zhao Zhilong, the Bo of Yicheng, but Zhao Zhilong is bent on surrendering and rebelling, and he is naturally not active in defending the city, and has been staying in the mansion to drink and have fun after arriving at the Jiangdong Gate. Zheng Sanjun took on the matter of defending the city on his shoulders, and everything was arranged in an orderly manner. even recruited a batch of money and grain from the merchants in Jiangdong Gate and distributed it to the guards of Jiangdong Gate, so that many ordinary soldiers were grateful to Zheng Sanjun, and they actually collected the hearts of the army for a period of time, and most of the soldiers were willing to obey Zheng Sanjun's dispatch.

"Where's Uncle Yicheng?" After arranging the defense of the city, Zheng Sanjun suddenly remembered Zhao Zhilong, who was guarding the east gate of the river, and couldn't help asking.

"Yichengbo has never come." The city officer reported.

"It's ridiculous!" Jung Sam-jun was furious. When is it, the army of anti-thieves is about to attack the city, and the dragon of Yicheng Bozhao has not yet arrived at the city gate!

"My lord, in fact, it's better if Uncle Yicheng doesn't come." The officer said suddenly.

"How do you say that?" Zheng Sanjun frowned. Zhao Zhilong has two hundred families under him, and his combat power far exceeds that of ordinary soldiers, and it will definitely come in handy if he really fights.

The officer hesitated: "My lord, when you summoned the merchants in the city yesterday evening, Yi Chengbo sat in the city tower, and a few people from outside the city said that they were spies sent by Yicheng Bo, and Yi Chengbo asked them to be pulled up to the city, and then brought to the mansion where he lived. ”

"And this?" Zheng Sanjun was stunned, when did Zhao Zhilong send a sentry outside the city, why didn't he know?

Now that he has found out the enemy's situation, he should report to himself, according to the Ming Dynasty's tradition of literature and martial arts, he is the one with the highest authority in Jiangdongmen!

Could it be said? Zheng Sanjun suddenly remembered a possibility, and couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat.

The army of thieves had approached the city wall, and just a stone's throw outside the city, countless torches flickered, and under the torches were dark faces that were difficult to identify.

"Prepare to fire!" Zheng Sanjun shouted loudly.

There are two cannons on the tower of Jiangdong Gate, both of which are the most common old-fashioned artillery, and the age of the guns is very old, even dating back to the Hongwu period. These two cannons were seriously rusted, and after Zheng Sanjun arrived at the Jiangdong Gate, he ordered the defenders to clean up the two cannons, and they were barely usable.

"Boom", "Boom"

Two cannons rang out, and the cannonballs shot into the night sky, and I don't know where they went, but I saw a slight commotion in the starry torch array outside the city, and soon returned to normal.

Zheng Sanjun looked nervously at the army of anti-thieves outside the city, and couldn't figure out why these anti-thieves didn't wait until dawn and had to attack at night, although this could catch the defenders off guard, but when attacking the city in the dark, did the anti-thieves have such organizational ability?

"Lord Shangshu, Uncle Yicheng is here!" Suddenly, a soldier shouted.

Zheng Sanjun hurriedly ran to the inner city wall, and saw that a team was driving in the dark night, and the soldiers under the torches were all bright and bright, which was very different from the military soldiers in tattered clothes in the city, who was not Zhao Zhilong's personal team?

However, to Zheng Sanjun's surprise, Zhao Zhilong's family team did not follow the horse road to the city wall, but drove straight towards the city gate.

"Uncle Yicheng, what are you going to do?" Zheng Sanjun was shocked and angry, and shouted at the city.

The torch lit up the face of Zhao Zhilong, the uncle of Yicheng, Zhao Zhilong raised his head, looked at Zheng Sanjun on the city wall, and said with a smile: "Lord Zheng, Ben Bo is going to go out of the city to attack and kill the anti-thieves, the anti-thieves have just arrived, and they will definitely be able to kill them by surprise." ”

Zheng Sanjun's face is green, go out of the city to kill thieves, are you Zhao Zhilong deceiving fools? With 200 families to attack more than 100,000 thieves, do you think you are Zhao Zilong during the Three Kingdoms?

"The enemy situation is unknown, don't open the door, Yicheng Bo please come up to the city wall." Zheng Sanjun shouted sharply. At this moment, the doubts in his heart that had been in his heart were finally confirmed, Zhao Zhilong was going to surrender to the thief!

As the head of the household department in Nanjing, Zheng Sanjun is naturally not a stupid person, and he is also very clear about the situation in the city, knowing that Zhao Zhilong and other nobles are very afraid of Emperor Chongzhen, afraid that the emperor will lead troops to Nanjing City, and also know that because of the emperor's Juntian release of slaves and other behaviors, the gentry and officials in Nanjing City are all detached from the emperor.

But thinking that Zhao Zhilong is a noble who dies with the country, and his family is in the inner city, he should not surrender to the thief, with Zhao Zhilong and his two hundred elite families, there should be no problem in guarding the Jiangdong Gate. However, now, Zhao Zhilong's behavior has made the luck in Zheng Sanjun's heart disappear. Zheng Sanjun has already determined that Zhao Zhilong is colluding with the anti-thieves, and is about to open the city gate to lure the anti-thieves into the city.

"Zheng Shangshu, stay on the city wall, I'll look for you later." Zhao Zhilong said to Zheng Sanjun with a smile, and then turned his head to look at the city gate of the black hole: "Little ones, open the city gate!" ”

"Stop them, don't open the city!" Zheng Sanjun shouted.

However, there were only thirty soldiers guarding the city gate, although they preferred to listen to Zheng Sanjun's orders, but in the face of two hundred elite family members, where would they dare to stop them?

The gates of the city were soon opened from the inside, and the city of Nanjing opened its doors to 200,000 rebels.

Looking at the army of anti-thieves rushing towards the city gate, Zheng Sanjun's eyes were cracked.

"Soldiers, follow me to the city and recapture the city gates!" Zheng Sanjun shouted and rushed towards the city with his sword.

The defenders on the walls looked at each other, but none of them moved. Although they are willing to listen to Zheng Sanjun's words, they are not stupid, now it is obvious that Zhao Zhilong, the Bo of Yicheng, has surrendered to the anti-thieves, and the anti-thief army is rushing in, so with the more than 1,000 defenders above and below the city wall, what can they do to fight the anti-thieves?

Zheng Sanjun rushed down the city wall along the city road with his sword, followed by only two old servants with torches.

"Da Situ, what are you doing?" Looking at Zheng Sanjun, who came running out of breath, Zhao Zhilong laughed.

"Treasonous traitor, thief courtier, I will kill you!" Zheng Sanjun scolded angrily, holding his sword and killing Zhao Zhilong who was riding a horse.

A sneer overflowed from the corner of Zhao Zhilong's mouth, and he raised the spear in his hand and picked it up lightly, then picked the sword in Zheng Sanjun's hand away, and the spear pointed at Zheng Sanjun's throat.

"Da Situ, the so-called person who knows the times is Junjie, Chongzhen is tyrannical and cruel, the people of the world are not worth it for a long time, why should you be loyal to him? Da Situ, let's join the prison country in Jiangxi with Benbo. Zhao Zhilong persuaded.

"Rebellious ministers and thieves, disloyal and unfilial people, I, Zheng Sanjun, will die, and I will not be in the same stream as you!" Zheng Sanjun scolded angrily, his hands suddenly grabbed the barrel of the gun against his neck, and pulled it back hard, and the sharp spear suddenly pierced his neck, and blood gushed out along the blood groove.

"Ahh Zhao Zhilong was stunned, he never expected Zheng Sanjun to be so strong.

A large number of anti-thief soldiers swarmed into the city, crossed the side of Zhao Zhilong and his subordinates, and poured into the city of the black hole, many thieves rushed up the city wall along the horse road, and the two highest officials defending the city died and surrendered, where did the defenders still have the fighting spirit, and they threw down their weapons to give up resistance, and Jiangdongmen fell.

"Uncle Yicheng, what's going on?" Yuan Chonghuan frowned and looked at Zheng Sanjun's corpse on the ground.

"Zhao Zhilong knelt down to welcome Yuan Gebu into the city!" Zhao Zhilong knelt down and replied respectfully, "This is Zheng Sanjun, the secretary of the Southern Household Department, who was stubborn and tried to prevent me from opening the door to meet the cabinet and was killed by me. ”

Yuan Chonghuan sighed secretly, he and Zheng Sanjun are old friends, and their relationship has always been very good, and he thought that he could persuade Zheng Sanjun to assist Zhu Yousong of the prison country with him and rebuild the Ming Dynasty, but he didn't expect Zheng Sanjun to die in the hands of Zhao Zhilong.

But Zhao Zhilong killed Zheng Sanjun in order to open the door to greet him, and Yuan Chonghuan couldn't be harsh.

"The cabinet department is not afraid of danger and personally leads the army to attack the city, and the famous generals of the ancient times are nothing more than that, and I admire them so much." Zhao Zhilong patted the unnatural sycophant.

"Uncle Yicheng, this pavilion has an important task for you!" Yuan Chonghuan said suddenly.

"Although the cabinet department orders, the lower officials will definitely go to the soup and fight the fire." Zhao Zhilong patted his chest and expressed determination.

"The fall of the outer city is a foregone conclusion, but the inner city wall of Nanjing is still in the hands of Hong Chengchou, I want to ask Yicheng Bo to help me open the inner city gate." Yuan Chonghuan said lightly.

"Huh?" Zhao Zhilong was shocked, "This, this, the cabinet, I'm afraid the lower officials can't do it." ”

"Can't do it, or don't you want to do it?" Yuan Chonghuan's face sank.

"The lower officials can't do it, it's not that they don't want to do it," Zhao Zhilong was startled, and quickly explained, "The cabinet department doesn't know, then Hong Chengchou has long been suspicious of us and other lords, and tried every means to drive us all to the outer city, he will definitely not open the inner city gate for me." ”

"That's not necessarily," Yuan Chonghuan said coldly, "Hong Chengchou doesn't have many troops under him, and it's not enough to hold the seventy-mile-long inner city wall. If you wait for the defeated army to flee back, maybe they will let you into the city to strengthen the garrison. ”

"Cabinet, I, I ......" Zhao Zhilong cried with a sad face, very reluctant. He just killed Zheng Sanjun and opened the Jiangdong Gate, and let the thieves enter the city, where did he dare to see Hong Chengchou again?

"It's only been a moment since you opened the city, Hong Chengchou didn't know what was going on, and he didn't know that you opened the city gate. Your family members are all in the inner city, Hong Chengchou shouldn't think that you will surrender to this pavilion, now you take your men to flee to the inner city Sanshan Gate, Hong Chengchou may let you enter the city, you enter the city and then open the Sanshan Gate at the right time to welcome our army into the inner city. In this way, you are the first merit to capture Nanjing, I will ask for credit for you in front of the prison country, and after the prison country comes to Nanjing to ascend the throne, I will definitely be able to crown you a national prince! Yuan Chonghuan coaxed.

"But, but ......" Zhao Zhilong still didn't dare to agree.

"It's nothing, even if Hong Chengchou sees through you and doesn't open the city and let you into the city, won't you have nothing to lose?" Yuan Chonghuan said.

It's not a loss, but I'm afraid that Hong Chengchou will let me into the city, if he knows that I am a traitor, I am afraid that I will fall into a place of no return! Zhao Zhilong roared inwardly. He is a thief with a weak heart, where should he go to see Hong Chengchou again?

"Yicheng Bo rest assured, you first take your subordinates to pretend to be a rout and flee to Sanshanmen, and then I will lead the army to attack Sanshanmen, I will not give Hong Chengchou a chance to detect you, if things go well, I can take Sanshanmen and attack the inner city today." Yuan Chonghuan said.

"Uncle Yicheng hurry up and act according to the order, the cabinet has always been like a mountain of military orders, and what you say is a military order, do you want to disobey the military order of the cabinet department?" Huang Li stood beside Yuan Chonghuan and said to Zhao Zhilong with compassion.

Zhao Zhilong shuddered in his heart, looking at Yuan Chonghuan and his subordinates who were glaring angrily, he knew that if he dared to refuse, he would never end well.

"Xiaguan is going, this is going." Zhao Zhilong got up with a roll, climbed on the war horse, and led his subordinates to the Sanshan Gate.

"Cabinet Department, do you really believe that he can help us take down the Three Mountains Gate again?" Looking at Zhao Zhilong's back, Huang Lihu said suspiciously.

"It's naturally good to be able to take it down, and there's nothing to lose if you can't take it down, right?" Yuan Chonghuan said lightly.

There is no loss, at most Zhao Zhilong was detected by Hong Chengchou and then killed. For a disloyal and unrighteous person like Zhao Zhilong, such a noble who only knows how to eat empty pay and drink the blood of soldiers, Yuan Chonghuan can't look down on it at all.

"Xu Fuzhuo, I will give you 3,000 soldiers and horses, you follow Zhao Zhilong, if Zhao Zhilong can really open the gate of Sanjiang City, you will lead the army to cover and kill and capture the Sanshan Gate!" Yuan Chonghuan ordered.

"Subordinates obey." Xu Fujuan, the deputy general of the Chinese army, clenched his fists and left.

"Order the adjutant generals of the general army of all walks of life, according to the prior arrangement, to take down the eighteen gates of the outer city separately and capture the granaries and other important facilities in the outer city!" Yuan Chonghuan continued.

Zhao Zhilong can deceive the inner city gate is the best, if he can't open it, then he will attack the inner city, and before attacking the inner city, he must first take the entire outer city.