"Jincheng Mansion can no longer be defended. We really need to find a place to stay. Even if we surrender to the empire, given the current situation of the empire, will they accept our surrender?" Qiu Zicheng seemed a little upset. Asking himself seemed to be asking the lieutenant standing next to him.
"Sir, we still have 50,000 troops. If we are forced to panic, we will fight him to the death!" The deputy general wiped his mouth and roared fiercely: "Damn, this bastard Feng Qi knows how to play tricks. He's playing dirty tricks, if we didn't help him fight to the death, why would he sit in the position of Hanzhong Palace Master? This is good, but he has tricked us, bah! We won't help him work hard, it's not a job, just surrender The Empire, I don’t believe that the Empire is really going to kill everyone in this situation!”
Qiu Zicheng was moved. He had long heard from his colleagues in the sect that Emperor Situ Mingyue was currently in poor health. Several of his princes were vying for power and profit, and no one could subdue anyone. The trouble was so great that Situ Mingyue simply gave in. Several princes who are expected to be crown princes went to the capital for business, perhaps taking this opportunity to see what each prince is capable of. Right now, Situ Jun's army is marching westward, bent on achieving brilliant results. If he grovels and asks for surrender, maybe he will be able to surrender. I can really ask for forgiveness from the other party.
But how many of the 50,000 people under his command are willing to surrender to the empire with him? Qiu Zicheng was beating the drum again in his heart, and he was very sure that the number of his disciples was only a few thousand. In addition, he usually had a good prestige, and the number of soldiers who could follow his orders and had not yet joined the Taiping Religion was about 20,000. , among the remaining 30,000 people, two teams of 10,000 people belong to the Taiping Religion, which may be difficult to control. The other team of 10,000 people is hard to say.
"He Tong, go and ask Ji Laoer to come over. Let's discuss it carefully and be careful not to make any noise." With a dark light flashing in his eyes, Qiu Zicheng's expression changed again and again, and finally he gritted his teeth and said in a low voice.
The spacious tent is covered with soft and tight finely embroidered carpets. There are openings on all sides of the tent, and there is also a circle of hollow light holes on the top. The tent seems quite spacious, but it is very bright. The good ventilation effect makes He As soon as I stepped into the tent, I felt a chill all over my body. The uniformed generals sitting on both sides of the tent with swords in their hands all had serious faces. Among them, the cold-faced young man behind the handsome case was dressed in rich clothes, and a golden dragon column crown looked particularly dazzling. , needless to say, this person is naturally Situ Jun, the third prince of the Tanghe Empire.
"Are you the messenger of the Taiping Army?" The cold voice was not mixed with any emotion.
"Back to Your Highness, I am He Tong, the deputy general of the Taiping Sect's Kansai region Qiu Zicheng. I came here to see Your Highness on the orders of the commander-in-chief, General Qiu Zicheng." On the surface, he is neither humble nor arrogant, but in his heart, He Tong is still a little timid. After all, the Taiping Sect has become an empire. I heard that the Emperor of the Empire has issued an order that anyone who is found to be a Taiping cultist can be executed without trial. Now that I am here today, if the other party pushes me out and beheads me without asking any questions, it would be really unfair. .
"Oh? Taiping Army? Fish in the net, why do you want to see me?" Situ Jun still looked as cold as ice, as if he was not interested at all, but the trace of surprise revealed in his words made He Tong feel Only then gave birth to a glimmer of hope.
"Uh, this," He Tong looked around hesitantly, seeming to have some scruples.
"If you really have something to say, you can only say it boldly. Everyone here is my own person, so there is no need to hesitate."
"Since His Highness said so, He Tong will tell you directly. General Qiu Zicheng is willing to lead his troops to surrender to His Highness and dedicate Jincheng Mansion to His Highness as a gift." He Tong said while carefully observing the changes in the other person's expression.
Even though Situ Jun was cold-hearted, he couldn't help but be stunned: "What did you say? Say it again?"
The generals below were also astonished and whispered to each other. Obviously they couldn't believe what the guy in front of them said. You must know that although the Taiping Army retreated, they did so on their own initiative and their main force did not suffer substantial losses. If they relied on Jincheng Fucheng, with the support from other prefectures in Kansai, although its own side has the upper hand, it is indeed difficult to say in this battle.
"My General Qiu is willing to dedicate Jincheng Fucheng as a gift to His Highness, and lead his troops to surrender to His Highness. I only ask that Your Highness forgive us for our previous sins and accept us. We are willing to do your best for Your Highness!" He Tong has already said Seeing the surprise flashing in the other person's eyes, I felt happy, and when I spoke, I was even more confident and confident.
"Oh?" As if he was aware of his gaffe, Situ Jun tried his best to calm down and thought about the authenticity of what the other party said, "Take refuge in me? Of course I welcome you. As long as you can sincerely join me, I will not only You can be forgiven for your past mistakes, or you can continue to retain your military positions and be incorporated into the regular army of the empire and become a member of my command. It’s just how you prove your sincerity. Also, what is the reason why you suddenly thought of joining me at this time? What? These two points must be explained, otherwise I will never believe it!"
"Your Highness, please rest assured. General Qiu has entrusted me to come down and report to His Highness. He will naturally explain everything clearly. However, we hope that His Highness can also give us a reliable guarantee."
"Okay, let's make it a deal. I will absolutely guarantee your safety and future prospects. As long as you are loyal to me, you will be rich and prosperous." Situ Jun also knew that this was not the right place to spread the light. , the other party definitely hopes to be able to explain it clearly to him on a separate occasion, so he readily agrees.
Qiu Zicheng sat upright with a gloomy face, staring coldly at the agitated subordinates in front of him without saying a word. This bitch didn't pay attention to himself as the commander at all. The moment he revealed his voice, he was punished. With the fierce opposition from these two guys, it seemed that I really needed to make a decision.
"Haha, you two have misunderstood me. What I mean is that the city wall of Jincheng City is now dilapidated and low, and it is really difficult to cope with the attack of the imperial army. If we hold on here, I am afraid it will cause great losses to our army. ." His face turned into a smile, and Qiu Zicheng calmly explained to the two people in front of him.
"Master Qiu, Feng Fuzun has ordered us to hold on to Jincheng. He has ordered the reinforcements from Longdong to go south. As long as we persist for one to two weeks, I believe the reinforcements will arrive. By then, we can still attack from both front and rear. , catching the enemy off guard! What you just said about evacuating Jincheng Fucheng is equivalent to abandoning Jincheng. This is the country that our brothers fought back with hard work, blood and sweat. We must not let it fall into the hands of the empire again. Help the rotten vampires!" Kong Wu, a powerful man, looked excited. Even in front of the coach, he still couldn't help waving his hands to express his feelings.
"Well, what you two said is indeed reasonable. Qiu was a little presumptuous just now. As long as we can hold on until Longdong reinforcements arrive, then we are done!" Qiu Zicheng explained apologetically with a sincere look on his face, "Fan, please take the time to organize the soldiers to continue to consolidate the defense facilities on the city wall. I think we need to work overnight tonight and strive to complete the repair of the city wall within two days. In addition, we need to prepare sufficient bows, arrows and stones. Well, there are still We need to prepare some rolling logs. The terrain outside the east city gate is sloping. If the enemy attacks the city from this side, these rolling logs will come in handy!"
The words immediately made the two men, who were a little excited just now, feel a little embarrassed. Perhaps because they felt that what they had just said was a bit too extreme, the two men immediately bowed respectfully, agreed in a deep voice, and then rushed excitedly. Went out to make arrangements.
When the two figures disappeared far away from the camp gate, Qiu Zicheng's face suddenly turned cold, and his cold eyes fell on the other uniformed general next to He Tong: "How is it? How are you thinking about it? Have you made up your mind? Three His Highness’s patience is limited, and I’m afraid he won’t be able to wait too long. If we don’t give His Highness an explanation, I’m afraid it will be difficult to get a pardon.”
The atmosphere in the room became dull and tense, and invisible pressure shrouded the uniformed soldiers, "Sir Qiu, since you have made a decision, your subordinates must abide by it. However, I am afraid it will be difficult to convince the two of them. I don't know if your Excellency has any good solution." What about this matter?"
The voice was a little deep, and the man in military uniform shrugged, looking nonchalant, but Qiu Zicheng did not dare to underestimate him at all. Although this guy was only a captain of ten thousand people and had been under his command for a long time, he still could not see through this guy. , looked listless all day long, but the ten thousand men under his command were no less than the soldiers he led. He really couldn't tell what kind of person this guy was, but one thing he was sure of was that this guy was just like himself. He is definitely not a devout Taiping believer. This can be seen from the other party's usual attitude towards the believers talking about doctrines. It is absolutely impossible for a true Taiping believer to have that kind of contempt mixed with contempt, although the other party can hide it well. Very good, but under the observation of a caring person like myself, his every move is difficult to hide.
"Hey, what do you think?" Qiu Zicheng did not answer directly, but asked instead.
"Haha, my lord has already laid out the case, so why bother asking my subordinates?" He easily pushed the topic away, and the man in uniform smiled slyly, his eyes flashing with viciousness.
"Really? I think the two of us seem to have the same idea. Hehe, do we think we have the same views as heroes?" Qiu Zicheng was not a kind person and smiled sinisterly.
"In that case, let's proceed according to your master's plan. Please rest assured, I will do my best to cooperate with you." The man in uniform straightened his face and answered solemnly.
When the Fifth Army of the Empire marched neatly into Jincheng Fucheng, everything was over. Except for a handful of the 20,000 loyal Taiping believers who escaped, most of them lost their lives in the endless dark night. Suddenly, they turned against each other. The comrades suddenly became the king of hell. The other two ten thousand soldiers who were deceived by Qiu Zicheng's beautiful lies were unprepared. The sudden attack was like a strong wind sweeping fallen leaves, and the more than ten thousand loyal soldiers were thrown into the abyss. More than ten years later, it seems that the people of Jincheng Mansion can still hear the screams of countless innocent ghosts on this night every year. More than 10,000 corpses are buried outside Jincheng Mansion in the north, forming a huge tomb area. Many people use the ghosts to practice their skills. The Taoist priests and masters regarded this place as a treasure of Feng Shui, from which many various things were derived.