early morning.
Before Chongzhen even got up, he received the news that the bandits were about to attack the city.
He immediately ordered Wang Chengen: "Notify all civil and military officials immediately and have them follow me in person!"
Queen Zhou also received the news.
Although there is a rule that the harem does not interfere in government affairs, there is no need to strictly abide by the rule when bandits are besieging the city.
Queen Zhou came to the Palace of Heavenly Purity carrying a food box, looked at Chongzhen with tearful eyes, unable to speak.
She didn't want Chongzhen to lead the army in person. After all, the city walls were full of dangers and one could get injured or even die if he wasn't careful.
The emperor is worth a ton of gold and cannot be harmed in the slightest.
But she knew very well that the emperor had to go to the city wall to help.
The bandits were coming in full force, and the Ming army was mostly old, weak, sick and disabled, and most of them were newly recruited soldiers, so morale was low!
As long as the emperor appears on the city wall, the soldiers and civilians defending the city will sacrifice their lives to defend the city.
"It's dangerous on the city wall, Your Majesty, please be careful!" Queen Zhou handed the food box in her hand to Wang Chengen.
Chongzhen looked at Empress Zhou with tearful eyes and suddenly felt pity for her.
As a queen, she should have enjoyed wealth and glory, but since entering the palace, not only did she not enjoy it, but she was frugal in everything.
Such a good woman, but she was born at the wrong time.
All he could do was trust her and love her.
Chongzhen gently embraced Queen Zhou's waist and kissed her lightly on the forehead.
"Don't worry, I am the emperor, they can't hurt me! But you...Write the second edition as soon as possible in the 17th year of Chongzhen. I will publish it after this battle so that the people of the capital can see the might of the Ming army."
Empress Zhou was shy at first, but then quickly recovered and said seriously, "Your Majesty, rest assured, I will finish writing today."
"Good, very good!"
Chongzhen patted Empress Zhou on the shoulder, rushed out of the imperial city in a hurry and headed for Fuchengmen.
The main force of the Shun army is gathering outside Fuchengmen, which will become the main battlefield.
We met many soldiers on the way, both regular troops and temporarily recruited civilians.
They were the soldiers who had been replaced while defending the city, and most of them were eating breakfast in front of the porridge shop.
When they saw the emperor and the civil and military officials, they shouted excitedly: "It's the emperor! The emperor is going to lead the army in person!"
"Not only the emperor, but also all the civil and military officials will accompany him!"
"Long live our emperor! The Ming army is mighty! The Ming army will win!"
The shout was like a small flame, instantly igniting the capital's huge gunpowder depot.
The sound was like a tide, flowing westward from the vicinity of the imperial city along Fuchengmen Street and rushing up to the city gate tower.
The soldiers defending the city saw the emperor's carriage from afar, and they waved their weapons and cheered!
Li Zicheng had a bad reputation and the common people were already afraid of him. Now the emperor not only provided financial rewards to those defending the city, but also led the army in person.
Everyone had to take up arms and vow to defend the city walls to the death and repay the emperor's grace.
......
Liu Fangliang's army has assembled outside the city.
At the front were 10,000 civilians, all of whom were captured and forced by Li Zicheng. Their weapons and armor were very simple, even worse than those of the newly recruited soldiers in the city. They were divided into groups of four or five, carrying long wooden poles and various simple protective gear.
The second echelon consisted of 20,000 infantrymen, who were wearing armor and holding shields, swords, bows and crossbows, firearms and other protective gear and weapons.
The third echelon was the artillery troops. They had no artillery with them, but only used horse-drawn and ox-drawn carts to pull gunpowder and shells. Last night, they had dug holes in the ground and hid the artillery inside. As long as Li Zicheng gave the order, they could rush over, remove their disguises, and attack the city with artillery.
The fourth echelon was Li Zicheng's elite cavalry. These people were not responsible for attacking the city, but only for dealing with the Ming army that rushed out of the city.
Li Zicheng reined in his horse on the mound with a calm expression, holding the scabbard in his left hand and the handle in his right hand.
With a clang, the sword was unsheathed!
He raised his sword high in the air and shouted, "Raise the troops and attack the city!"
Liu Fangliang also drew his sword and shouted, "Raise the troops and attack the city!"
The laborers rushed out howling, holding tattered shields, pot lids, and even shields made of makeshift wooden boards in their left hands.
The 20,000 infantrymen quickly dispersed, hid behind the civilians, and rushed out with the same roar.
The artillerymen were faster. They divided into two teams. The front team quickly ran towards the place where the cannons were buried. They used the farm tools in their hands to dig the ground to make a cover for the cannons, while removing the camouflage covering the cannons, waiting for gunpowder and shells.
The rear team whipped the oxen and horses to transport the gunpowder and artillery shells.
......
At Fuchengmen!
Looking at the Shun army all over the mountains, Chongzhen was not afraid.
He stretched out his hand and drew out the Emperor's Sword, pointing the tip of the sword directly at the bandits below the city, and shouted:
"Soldiers, the Ming Dynasty was established for 300 years. The emperor guards the country and the king dies for the country!"
"I will fulfill my oath today!"
"Are you willing to fight alongside me?"
Chongzhen started to speak inspiring words, and a eunuch with a loud voice stood on the top of the city wall and repeated his words with all his strength. There was a eunuch every once in a while, and they repeated every sentence Chongzhen said.
"Yes!" There was a thunderous shout from Fucheng Gate.
"Are you willing to fight alongside me?" Wang Guoxing, the guard of the West Gate, read the imperial edict written by Chongzhen himself.
"Yes!" The defenders at the West Gate shouted in unison!
"Yes!" On Guang'anmen, General He Zhen of the Beijing Camp and the defenders were excited!
Chongzhen took a deep breath, accumulating the anger in his heart, and yelled:
"Put aside your mercy, pick up your weapons, defend this city, defend your homeland, and defend the glory of me and the Ming Dynasty!"
"The sun, the moon, the mountains and the rivers will last forever, and the Ming Dynasty will last forever! Kill!"
As Chongzhen said his last words, everyone went into a frenzy. They forgot their fear, the cold, and even their own flesh and blood.
boom!
The cannons on the city wall fired, and the rapidly advancing projectiles plunged into the crowd, crushing a string of enemies like a string of candied haws. The projectiles continued to move after landing, causing casualties to the infantry behind them again.
boom!
Hundreds of bullets fell from the sky like raindrops, and the bandits fell in large numbers, with unknown casualties.
Bang bang bang!
The bird guns hidden in the battlements opened fire one after another. The bullets, carrying the emperor's wrath, shot into the enemy's bodies, and the bandits fell one after another.
Immediately afterwards, the falconets, falconets, crossbows, muskets, and pistols fired continuously.
The bodies of the bandits fell in large numbers.
With a loud bang!
A cannonball hit the battlement of the city wall, shaking the nearby walls and raising dust. Several soldiers stumbled and fell to the ground, but they immediately got up and joined the battle.
At this time, the enemy had already rushed into the blind spot of the artillery. Seeing this, the artillerymen on the city wall adjusted their artillery and aimed their muzzles at the enemy's artillery in the distance.
Without artillery suppression, the pressure on Shun Army was suddenly relieved a lot.
The first group of civilians have arrived at the moat. They threw long logs into the river and stepped on the logs to rush towards the city wall!
He took out an axe, a hammer, and a chisel from his arms and started to chisel at the gaps in the blue bricks on the city wall.
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