Chapter 73 3.Aiyang Prefecture

The day when Zuo Liangyu's army went east to Jiujiang was also the time when Governor Duoduo led the Qing troops to go south. Zuo Liangyu was trapped in Jiujiang, and went down to Hukou, Jiande, and Pengze; Duoduo also fell into Yingzhou, Taihe, Haozhou, and Dangshan, and went straight to Xuzhou. Faced with such a severe situation, Ma Shiying, who was sitting in Jinling, believed that he would rather die at the hands of the Qing soldiers than let the left army succeed.When all the ministers said that only Huaisi was the most urgent, Ma Shiying threatened in front of the palace that those who defended Huai should be killed, so soldiers from the three towns were called to defend Nanjing, and Huaisi was withdrawn from the three towns, and the Qing troops went south smoothly.Shi Kefa Shangshu solemnly pointed out: the upper reaches are not on the side of the Qing emperor, and if the Qing soldiers are allowed to go south, the clan society will be destroyed.

But who would believe what he said? The civil war cannot be fought and must be fought, and Huaisi's soldiers cannot be withdrawn but must be withdrawn.After Liu Liangzuo and Liu Zeqing withdrew their troops and fled south with the excuse of "entering Nanjing", and Li Yuchun, the guard of Sizhou, surrendered, Shi Kefa, the supervisor, had no one to supervise and could only retreat to Yangzhou. On April 20th, Yangzhou City was in a precarious situation. The deserters in Nanming moved too fast, and it was too late for the Qing soldiers to collect them. In some places, it was impossible to say that they fled after hearing the wind, because the Qing soldiers were still too far away, and there was no "wind" at all. The people in Jiangbei did not want to The subjugated slaves took their families and fled to the south of the Yangtze River one after another. For a while, the roads were crowded with refugees, and the sound of children crying and mother crying was unbearable to hear.

Shi Kefa rode his horse to inspect outside the city of Yangzhou. He was wearing the robes of a first-class civil servant and the Jinxian crown. He was accompanied by Li Qifeng, the commander-in-chief. Anxiety and rogue. Yangzhou was one of the Kyushu in ancient times, and was changed to a government in the Ming Dynasty. It governs Jiangdu, Baoying, Gaoyou and other counties.In recent years, the Central Plains has been plagued by wars. Yingtian, Fengyang and other prefectures were once captured by Gao Yingxiang, Zhang Xianzhong and other troops, but Yangzhou has not been attacked by soldiers. Therefore, it seems to be more prosperous than before.It's a pity that the good times don't last long. The current Yangzhou City, the famous Slender West Lake and the ancient scenery of Jiangdu, are finally going to accept the test of war.

As early as three days ago, the Qing soldiers had set up camp in Shangguanqiao and Shaobo towns not far from Yangzhou City. The guides for the Qing soldiers were Xu Dingguo and Li Chengdong, the former generals of the Southern Ming Dynasty.Upon receiving these news, Shi Kefa only let out a long sigh.There was a sudden sound of horseshoes, he looked up and saw Liu Zhaoji, the commander in chief, galloping alone on horseback, as if there was something urgent.He hurriedly rode up with Li Qifeng to meet him, and called out Liu Zhaoji's name: "In the beginning, what happened?" Liu Zhaoji got off his horse, walked up to him and said: "My lord, there is a strategy to defeat the enemy, please go back to the city, and let me report it in detail."

When Shi Kefa heard it, he made a strong statement, so he turned his head to greet Li Qifeng to go back to the supervisory office, and at the same time asked his subordinates to go down and invite the Deputy General Supervisor Gao Qifeng, Deputy General Shi Dewei, and the prefect Ren Minyu to discuss together.In the main hall of the Supervisory Office, all civil and military personnel gathered together, Shi Kefa made a start, and then listened to Liu Zhaoji talk about his strategy to defeat the enemy. It turned out that Liu Zhaoji had sent people to find out the details of the Qing army very clearly - Duoduo's army went down to Baoying and Gaoyou. But the main force of the rear army is still far away in the Tianchang and Gaoyou areas.Liu Zhaoji believed that the Manchus came from the south, they were unfamiliar with people, and they didn't know the real situation of our army. In addition, before this, due to weak resistance, the Mantars had driven straight in, and they had almost never formally fought against our army. Therefore, they are very arrogant now. Where the camp is set up, there is neither a battle nor a fort, and the defense is very lax.Therefore, Liu Zhaoji suggested that our army should take advantage of the fact that the main force had not arrived and the camp was not stable, so as to surprise him overnight and catch him by surprise.

Upon hearing this, Shi Dewei and Ren Minyu nodded repeatedly, but many people shook their heads.Shi Kefa thought to himself: Xu Dingguo, Li Chengdong, Li Yuchun and others have all surrendered now, the Manchus should be well aware of our situation, it is unreliable to say that "the Manchus come from the south, people are unfamiliar with the land", but it is appropriate to talk about lax precautions To be honest, he was considering whether to accept it, but Li Qifeng couldn't help it. Li Qifeng was originally Gao Jie's subordinate, they rebelled together and started a family together. Once Gao Jie died, he lost his support. He usually cares about power. He thinks that in this troubled world, power is the capital. Does he care whether his country perishes or not?Right now, his army is the strongest and is stationed in the north of the city. If he goes out to fight, he will bear the brunt of it. Wouldn't he suffer?So, quickly say:

"General Liu has good ambitions, but according to the bid, this plan is absolutely unfeasible." Liu Zhaoji gave Li Qifeng a dissatisfied look, called his watch and said, "Brother Tongsun is so sure, he must have another good idea. You might as well say it and let us discuss it." Li Qifeng said: "In the beginning, you had never fought against the Manchus, and you didn't understand their power, so you spoke so rashly. As far as my younger brother knows, there was a saying in the past that 'many troops are tens of thousands, and the world is invincible'. At present, there are no less than 100,000 soldiers, and the newly surrendered troops of Xu Dingguo, Li Chengdong, and Li Yuchun have reached 200,000. Our army has only 45,000 people. The difference in power is too great. According to the art of war, ten Encircle them, attack them five times, and divide them when doubled. Our army can't say twice as many, it's not even a quarter of theirs, and it's not bad to be able to barely defend for a few days. If you want to go out of the city to attack them, it will be successful ?"

Hearing that Li Qifeng's history was only going to stay for a few days, and obviously there were still unfinished things to say, Shi Kefa, who presided over the meeting, and Ren Minyu, who was sitting next to him, couldn't help being surprised. Shi Kefa wanted to give Li Qifeng a few words of advice, but Liu Zhaoji sneered road: "Brother, it is true that I haven't fought against the Mantas yet, but when have you fought against the Mantas? It's barely a few days, how many days do you plan to defend? What will happen after these few days? " Li Qifeng knew that he had made a slip of the tongue, but he was not an easy-going lamp, so he still said tit for tat: "I won't argue with you, no matter how many days, if you can defend, I can defend anyway, but if you want to fight, take your men and horses to fight Come on, I won't touch the egg on the rock."

After speaking, he walked away. What is it that the same defenders divide each other?Moreover, the meeting has only just started, so why did they just walk away?Therefore, Shi Dewei, Ren Minyu, etc. spoke one after another, accusing Li Qifeng of not wanting to guard the land, shaking the morale of the army, and should go to the court to remove him from office, but Liu Zhaoji, who was so vicious and hated, stood up "suddenly" and said: "Master Supervisor, it seems that Li has changed his mind. It is better to kill him to avoid future troubles." Seeing this situation, Shi Kefa quickly held Liu Zhaoji down and said, "At the beginning, sit down quickly, the strong enemy is overwhelming, if there is internal strife, Yangzhou will be over immediately."

Seeing all this, Gao Qifeng, the deputy superintendent, remained calm, occasionally sneering once or twice.Shi Kefa understood that the eunuch had something to say, so he couldn't help but say: "Master Gao, what's your opinion?" Gao Qifeng sighed for a long time and said: "Your Excellency, you can't blame Li Zhentai entirely. In the current situation, the left army is coming to the west, and the Qing soldiers are going south. It is already imminent, but our Emperor Hongguang is still making a big effort. The palace, the election of beauties, this situation, anyone with a discerning eye knows, this small imperial court is hopeless, what is the use of us in a hurry? Your Shige department is Zhuge reincarnated, do you have the art to return to heaven?"

Although the eunuch was disgusting, what the eunuch Gao Qifeng said was to the point. Shi Kefa just rubbed his hands anxiously, and said repeatedly: "Although that is the case, a courtier can't sit still and wait for death!" Gao Qifeng said: "Let's do this. I have a fellowship with Li Qifeng. I will talk about him and cheer him up. No matter what, I will advance and retreat with everyone." Upon hearing this, Shi Kefa couldn't help but nodded and said, "Then please." Gao Qifeng walked out of the supervisor's office and came to Li Qifeng's camp. When Li Qifeng saw Gao Qifeng, he hurriedly said, "Mr. Gao, I get a headache every time I see these desperate guys. I don't know what you think. You still have to hesitate, but don't Blame the younger brother for leaving alone." Gao Qifeng said, "Don't, don't, didn't I come here?" Li Qifeng said: "Then, shall we go?" Gao Qifeng said: "What's the hurry? Xu Dingguo surrendered and dedicated Suiyang; Li Chengdong surrendered and dedicated Xuzhou; we just left without even a greeting gift. What will people say when we arrive in the new dynasty?" Li Qifeng's heart moved, and he said, "You mean, we still have to kill Shi Daolin?" Gao Qifeng shook his head and said, "Don't talk about killing him. I can't bear to kill such a good man and he has such prestige in the army. How about I persuade him to come with us?" Li Qifeng hurriedly said: "Okay, brother Gao, don't expect this Shi Daolin to be of one mind with us. Let me tell you, he even made a will before he came to Yangzhou. If you try to persuade him, he will be suspicious. At that time, don't say that you and I can't walk, I'm afraid our lives are in danger." Gao Qifeng pondered for a while, then said: "In this case, it can only be ducks crossing the river - each goes his own way." Looking at Gao Qifeng's back going away, Liu Zhaoji couldn't help but said: "My lord, this superintendent has been working with Li Qifeng on weekdays, at this moment, I'm afraid it's unreliable." Shi Kefa nodded, and said helplessly: "In the beginning, I was not clear about this matter, but at this moment, it is going to rain, and my mother is going to marry, so I can only protect myself. No one can force anyone, even if you want Go, I will never stop you." When Liu Zhaoji heard this, he couldn't help crying like rain, and said: "My lord, why did you say this? Although I, Liu Zhaoji, don't study much, I still know that the righteousness of the monarch and ministers should be kept in my heart. If my lord is determined to live and die with the city, I will definitely follow my lord to the end." , never back down." Ren Minyu, the magistrate on one side, was also emotional, and said: "My lord, in this critical autumn of life and death, what else do you have to say? Prime Minister Wen's righteousness song said it well, the time is poor and the season is coming. Danqing. Although the lower officials cannot kill many thieves, they will never frown when they die for the country." Seeing this, Shi Kefa hurriedly said: "Since you all agree with me, it's easy to talk about." At that moment, he asked Liu Zhaoji to send someone to monitor the North City that Li Qifeng was in charge of guarding, and to report immediately if there was any trouble. I didn't think they had just finished setting up. Suddenly, they heard loud shouts of killing outside. Shi Kefa was about to send someone to inquire about the news. Li Qifeng and Gao Qifeng rushed to report: Li Qifeng and Gao Qifeng brought about 20,000 people from the headquarters and set off to head north. Yes, because some people in their army did not want to go north to surrender to the Qing Dynasty, there was a conflict, and this cry came from it.Shi Dewei asked if he should send troops to chase after him, Shi Kefa was silent for a long time, and said: "Didn't I just say that it's going to rain, and my mother is going to get married, so let's take care of each other." The next day, under the command of Duoduo, the brigade of Qing soldiers marched to the city of Yangzhou. In order to facilitate their activities, they set up pontoon bridges on the canal and built forts on the hills on the east and west sides of the city.Liu Zhaoji once again proposed to Shi Kefa to send troops out of the city for a sneak attack, but Shi Kefa was afraid that the city would not be able to protect the city if it was lost, so he persuaded Liu Zhaoji not to go out of the city. The fort was built, and the red cannons of the Qing soldiers pointed at Yangzhou.At this time, someone called the pass at the west gate, and Shi Kefa was at the pass at that time. He looked down and recognized the person who came was Li Yuchun, the former guard of Sizhou.At this time, Li Yuchun, although still dressed as a general of the Ming Dynasty, was holding an arrow commanded by Prince He Shuoyu, and shouted loudly: "Please answer the Ministry of History." When Shi Kefa saw it, his eyes couldn't help but get angry. He leaned forward and replied: "Li Yuchun, you shameless thing, you still have the face to come here to see me, you should go quickly, otherwise, be careful of your dog's life." When Li Yuchun saw Shi Kefa in the city, he couldn't help shouting: "Master Shi, you have to recognize the current affairs. Now that Ma Shiying is in power, the eunuch party is in power, and all Donglin party members have been killed by them. Hongguang is really a helpless Liu." Ah Dou, are you worthy of being loyal to him?" Shi Kefa said angrily, "Li Yuchun, shut up quickly. The governor doesn't like to hear such shameless words!" Shi Kefa started, followed by scolding from left and right, such barbarian dogs, bastards, and Manchus all scolded, but Li Yuchun continued to persuasion from below. Shi Kefa got impatient, stepped aside, and ordered: "Shoot the arrow!" Li Yuchun was still under the city to surrender, he didn't want to see a thousand arrows fired from the city, he was shot in the arm immediately, fortunately he was wearing heavy armor, so he was not seriously injured, so he had to retreat. Shi Kefa saw Li Yuchun retreating in the city, and understood that the Qing soldiers were about to attack and a fierce battle was inevitable.Li Qifeng and Gao Qifeng surrendered and took many soldiers with them. There are currently less than 30,000 defenders in the city. Although some people volunteered to help in the battle, they are untrained and not skilled in martial arts.Thinking of this, he couldn't help but make final preparations. Sure enough, just as Li Yuchun retreated, the cannon commanded by Duoduo rang out. This was still a test of the cannon, not a formal attack.Hearing an earth-shattering roar, it was like a muffled thunder on the ground, and a corner of the Xiguan city tower was immediately thrown away. The people helping the battle on the city couldn't help but screamed in panic, even the defenders were a little panicked.But Shi Kefa sat upright in the west city. Although there was a lot of dust on his clothes and everyone urged him to go down the city again and again, he remained steadfast. The god of luck took care of Doduo in every possible way—he went so smoothly with Prince Shuoyu. He almost went straight to Henan, Shaanxi, and Anhui provinces without fighting a bad battle.Although the total number of soldiers in these three provinces exceeds his by several times, none of the prefectures or counties resisted, not even a small amount of resistance. Civil and military officials opened the gates of the city, held albums, and burned incense. Congratulations, he and his soldiers seem to be here to enjoy the landscape of the south of the Yangtze River.When he was still in Beijing, he heard from Hong Chengchou, and in Suizhou, from Xu Dingguo, that Shi Kefa was the best among men, a man of iron, others might surrender, but Du Shi Kefa would never surrender.Duoduo heard it in his ears and remembered it in his heart. After arriving in Yangzhou, he still asked Li Yuchun to hold his command arrow and go to the city to make some tests. , bastard, full of Tartars, Dodo couldn't help but get angry. You, Shi Kefa, want to be a loyal minister of the Ming Dynasty, so there is no need to scold our ancestors; the small city of Yangzhou is only a tiny place, how can it stop the lonely horseshoe?In a fit of anger, the blood of the unyielding Aixinjueluo family began to boil in his veins, and the wildness cultivated in the virgin forest in the northeast was revived. He pulled out the steel knife, raised it, and said to Berenikan on the side: "Nephew, didn't you say that Uncle Fifteen didn't give you a chance to make meritorious deeds? Now it's up to you." Nikan said: "Uncle Fifteen, my little nephew has long thought that this battle is not enjoyable. If you open your mouth today, you have to let my little nephew do it!" At this time, waiting aside, Belle Boluo, Beizi Tunqi, Shang Shan, He Tuo, Gong Tulai and other generals who had already been impatient all said together: "Yes, Prince Yu, this time we will have a good time!" "The barbarian who killed the dog day!" "Cut this Shi Kefa alive!" On the spur of the moment, Duoduo quickly nodded and said, "Okay, okay, okay, if the Southern barbarian doesn't surrender, let's kill him for ten days and eight days without sealing his sword!" With his order, all the generals fought bravely, and Duoduo finally gave the order to attack. The soldiers of the Qing Dynasty were only good at field battles and not good at attacking fortified positions. Since the availability of red cannons, they used red cannons to attack cities.At this time, Dorgon had issued an order to transport more than ten cannons in red clothes to Yangzhou along the canal. At this moment, they were placed on the hill in the north of Yangzhou City. , The city tower was beaten into flames, and rubble flew across the battlements. The defenders on the city had suffered many casualties before they could meet the enemy. After three days of continuous bombardment, Yangzhou City was shattered by cannons, and the casualties of the defenders on the city were increasing. Shi Kefa stood anxiously on the top of the city, looking at the south eagerly, but he couldn't see the arrival of the reinforcements. shadow. Why didn't he understand that Liu Zeqing may have surrendered to the enemy when he plundered Huai'an to the west; Huang Degong and Liu Liangzuo were ordered to stop Zuo Liangyu, so they might have no time to take care of Yangzhou. It seems that even if the imperial court intends to rescue, there is no soldier to send , let alone Ma Shiying who is currently in charge? On April 25th, the red-clothed cannons of the Qing soldiers finally knocked down several parts of the city wall, and a large group of Qing soldiers climbed up from the gap. Shi Kefa, Liu Zhaoji, Ren Minyu, and Shi Dewei guarded the four cities. , fought bitterly with the Qing soldiers, but still could not stop more and more Qing soldiers. At noon, the Qing soldiers finally took control of the three gates in the east, west and north. Shi Kefa still led all the soldiers to engage in arduous street battles with the Qing soldiers, and the shouts of killing pierced the sky. This was the first tough battle fought after the Qing soldiers went south.This group of Northeast men are all accustomed to fighting and have extraordinary skills. Their buttocks will swell when they are not on the horse for three days, and their hands will itch if they do not kill for three days.But these days, they are unimpeded all the way, the city gate is wide open, the Han people saw them, one by one converted to Buddhism and Dharma, nodded and bowed, there is no reason to kill them; what's more, the prince's military order is strict and he is not allowed to kill innocent people, so they have long been looking forward to If you can indulge unscrupulously for a while, isn't Yangzhou City a famous city that produces beauties and literati, but you should appreciate the charm of literati and beauties. Shi Kefa was imprisoned on the day the city was broken. Duoduo once persuaded him to surrender, but wouldn't it be futile to persuade him to surrender with the Shige Department who had already lived and died with the city?So, Duoduo waved his hand, and his subordinates were about to kill Shi Kefa. His subordinates Liu Zhaoji, Shi Dewei, Ren Minyu, etc., all fought to the end. Because of their tenacity, the Qing soldiers finally found a chance to vent their anger. They were like a herd of red-eyed bulls, with their two horns outstretched, they would go up to anyone they saw, and they would not look up until their stomachs blossomed. There is a legend: For every 10,000 people who kill 10,000 people at a time, one person will raise their hands; for every 100,000 people who kill 100,000 people, one person will be standing. Of course, that's just a legend.According to historical records: Qing soldiers invaded Yangzhou City on April 25th, and Duoduo went south on the second day of May, killing for eight days before sealing the sword, known as "Yangzhou Ten Days" in history.According to the cremation book after the robbery, the death toll in the city reached 800,000, not including those who fell into the river and were burned behind closed doors. On a moonlit night at the Twenty-Fourth Bridge, where can jade people teach to play flute? At this time, Yangzhou people can feel the ghostly spirit from this ancient poem chanting Yangzhou, and they suddenly feel hairy.