Chapter 172 Nanchong Ai Nengqi
The White Spear Army was incredibly powerful, and cities large and small surrendered along the way. But what puzzled Liu Wenxiu and Ai Nengqi was that the White Spear Army didn't even leave a single soldier to garrison the cities. They pursued them, killing all the Dashi troops or driving them towards Nanchong City.
At this time, the number of soldiers and horses in Nanchong City reached 100,000. Liu Wenxiu, because of his defeat, handed over the command of the army to Ai Nengqi and was willing to obey his command.
Ai Nengqi asked, "Second brother! Why did these white-pole soldiers suddenly come to attack Daxi? And they are so powerful?"
"I heard that they were the court's lackeys. The Zhao brothers gave the White Spear Soldiers nearly two million taels of silver. They also sent them a capable person to train and command artillerymen. They also have a Kongming lantern that can carry people flying in the sky, looking down at our army's actions. Our army's actions are all seen by them, so how can we not be defeated!" Liu Wenxiu lamented.
"What is this flying Kongming lantern? Can it carry people? Second brother, don't joke. There is no joking in the army!" Ai Nengqi said.
"When have I, Liu Wenxiu, ever joked? I understand the principle, but I don't know how the Ming army made it!" Liu Wenxiu said.
"I will give you some craftsmen later to make a few according to what you saw. I don't believe that we in Daxi can't make it!" said Ai Nengqi.
"Is it urgent? It's already late. The most important thing is to find a way to repel the Ming army. How is the situation with my eldest brother Sun Kewang?" Liu Wenxiu asked.
"Don't mention it! Big brother, Luzhou is almost gone! Zeng Ying's Ming army is not very powerful, but their artillery is sharp. Zeng Ying's soldiers are not well trained and have poor coordination. But big brother may not be able to hold on for long!" Ai Nengqi said.
"Submit a memorial to my adoptive father. Why don't we join forces, defeat the White Spear Soldiers first, and then go back to wipe out Zeng Ying." Liu Wenxiu suggested.
Ai Nengqi stood there pacing back and forth, wondering how to tell his adoptive father about this. Zhang Xianzhong was currently busy selecting a concubine in Chengdu! If he offended his adoptive father at this moment, he would probably suffer. However, the situation in Daxi was critical, and not telling his four brothers would be even more unfortunate. It would be better to find his third brother, Li Dingguo, who was his adoptive father's favorite, and give him the memorial to present to him.
So he said, "Second brother, third brother is now in Chengdu to defend. Why don't you tell him about what's going on here and let him talk to my adoptive father."
"Is it possible?" Liu Wenxiu said.
"It's possible! Let my third brother talk to my adoptive father and ask him to send troops quickly! Or we can just transfer my third brother over to attack the White Spear Soldiers with us. The old woman who was beaten by my third brother last time escaped back to Shizhu!" Ai Nengqi said.
"Okay! Then let's write a joint letter and ask him to come and help us!" Liu Wenxiu said.
So, the letter was delivered to Li Dingguo. Li Dingguo was anxious when he saw the letter. He thought to himself: Why did these two guys write to me so late? The White Rod Army is so powerful. It seems that I need to ask my adoptive father to give me more troops to support my second and fourth brothers.
Li Dingguo then entered the palace with the letter. No one stopped him, and everything went smoothly until he arrived at Zhang Xianzhong's bedroom. Zhang Xianzhong's palace was rebuilt from the palace of the former vassal king, Zhu Zhishu, the Prince of Chengdu. It can be said to be luxurious and grand, comparable to the Jin Palace in Shanxi!
Zhang Xianzhong had a full beard, a wide-brimmed cloth hat, and a dragon robe. It looked awkward no matter how you looked at him! Why didn't he wear the dragon crown of the Ming Dynasty emperor? In fact, there is a story here. After Zhang Xianzhong established the Dashi regime in Chengdu, he once angrily took off his crown when meeting with his subordinates, threw it on the ground, and stomped it to pieces. The people around him looked at each other in bewilderment, and no one dared to step forward to persuade him. After he was done stomping on it, he snatched the wide-brimmed cloth hat of the guard next to him, put it on his head, and laughed: "Damn it, I still feel more comfortable wearing this."
Everyone was embarrassed when they heard this. You're not even destined to be an emperor, even though you have something good to offer. Besides, this dragon robe is the official dress of Zhu Zhishu, the King of Chengdu. It's embroidered with a four-clawed python, not a dragon. It's just that no one told him. With his explosive temper, reminding him would be embarrassing. He might just find a reason to kill you one day!
So Zhang Xianzhong's current attire is quite out of place, but even so, it is hard to conceal his majesty. Sitting there, he exudes an aura of oppression that makes people afraid to approach him.
Li Dingguo came forward and knelt, saying, "Long live Your Majesty! I have something to report!"
Zhang Xianzhong curled his lips and said, "Now that you're the emperor, you don't dare call me foster father? Forget those lines from the literati opera, just call me foster father!"
Li Dingguo heard this and realized his adoptive father seemed to be in a good mood today. So he said, "My lord adoptive father, the battle situation ahead is critical! My second brother was defeated by the White Spear Army and Chongqing Prefecture was lost!"
"What? He was defeated by an old woman? He had no less than 70,000 soldiers and horses! How many people from the White Spear Army came?" Zhang Xianzhong said angrily.
"There are nearly 200,000 white-pole soldiers, and they also have red cannons. I heard that the Zhao brothers, the court's henchmen, gave Qin Liangyu nearly two million taels of silver to expand their army and prepare for war! I heard that Zuo Liangyu led his troops eastward because of this!" said Li Dingguo.
"Damn it! If we had known that would happen at that time, we should have sent troops to Huguang! Were the troops led by that old woman Qin Liangyu herself?" Zhang Xianzhong asked.
"No! It's her nephew Qin Yiming, his grandson Ma Wanchun, and her grandson-in-law Fang Xinyu. They are the confidants of the Mingting Zhao brothers!" Li Dingguo said.
"Damn it! We can't delay any longer! How many troops do they have now? Where are they?" Zhang Xianzhong asked.
"They are all in Nanchong, with my fourth brother! Their total military strength is about 70,000 to 80,000 troops!" said Li Dingguo.
"Damn it! I'll give you 100,000 soldiers! Last time you were able to beat that old woman back, this time you captured her alive! I want to see what this old woman looks like? Does she have three heads and six arms?" Zhang Xianzhong said. He thought Qin Liangyu was Nezha!
"Yes, godfather! I will definitely live up to your mission!" said Li Dingguo.
Li Dingguo left the palace, took the military order and led 100,000 troops to Nanchong City.
When Liu Wenxiu and Ai Nengqi from Nanchong saw Li Dingguo coming, they felt like they were seeing a relative. No matter how they had competed for credit and favor in front of their adoptive father in the past, they put it all aside now.
Li Dingguo's 100,000 troops were stationed outside the city, confronting the White Spear Army. When Li Dingguo was invited into Nanchong City, Ai Nengqi and Liu Wenxiu said, "Brother, you're finally here!"
"Second brother, fourth brother! What's the situation now? How many days have you been fighting with the White Spear Soldiers?" Li Dingguo asked.
"It's been three days! We've suffered heavy losses! More than 20,000 soldiers have died! You should have seen it when you came. There was someone in the Kongming lantern in the sky, watching our every move all the time!" Liu Wenxiu said.
"I saw it. I didn't expect that there were such talented people in the Ming court! Tell me how they fought?" Li Dingguo asked.
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