Chapter 66 247 Zhang Xianzhong surprises Xiangyang

In May 1639, Zhang Xianzhong revolted again in Gucheng, Hubei.It turned out that Zhang Xianzhong had accepted the Ming Dynasty's enlistment in Gucheng, but he didn't really surrender, but secretly accumulated troops and prepared to rise again.The generals of the Ming Dynasty discovered Zhang Xianzhong's intentions and prepared to send troops to suppress them.Zhang Xianzhong preemptively killed the county magistrate of the Ming Dynasty in Gucheng, burned down the government office, and raised the banner of the uprising again.Soon, Luo Rucai also raised troops to respond. Zuo Liangyu, the commander-in-chief of the Ming Dynasty, sent troops to attack, but was completely defeated by Zhang Xianzhong, leaving only a few hundred remnants of the defeated generals to flee back. Emperor Chongzhen was so angry that he dismissed both the commander-in-chief Xiong Wencan and the commander-in-chief Zuo Liangyu, and sent Yang Sichang, Minister of the Ministry of War, to the Huguang besieged Zhang Xianzhong.

Yang Sichang took the Shangfang sword of Emperor Chongzhen, led a hundred thousand horses, and flaunted his might to Xiangyang.He sent Zuo Liangyu and other generals to surround the rebel army on all sides.When Zhang Xianzhong moved to Manao Mountain, the rebel army fell into the enemy's encirclement due to spies mixed into the ranks of the rebel army. They were defeated by Zuo Liangyu's army and lost a lot of gold, silver and war horses.Zhang Xianzhong's wife and son were also captured. Zhang Xianzhong took a thousand cavalry and moved from Hubei to Sichuan.Yang Sichang followed and pursued, moved his headquarters to Chongqing, and prepared to wipe out the rebels in Sichuan.

Yang Sichang put up lists everywhere in Sichuan, saying that whoever could catch Zhang Xianzhong would reward him with ten thousand taels of gold and make him a marquis.Unexpectedly, the next day, many slogans were found in Yang Sichang's camp, which read: "Anyone who can behead Yang Sichang will be rewarded with three coins." Yang Sichang sent a large number of officers and soldiers to chase and suppress the rebels everywhere, but Zhang Xianzhong's rebels were always moving from east to west, making the officers and soldiers unpredictable. It was not until the first month of the following year that the officers and soldiers caught up with the rebels in Kaixian County.When the Ming army generals Mengruhu and Liu Shijie arrived with exhausted soldiers, Zhang Xianzhong's rebel army went around behind and rushed down from the mountain shouting.The rebel army killed the enemy and sang in the battalion, clapping their hands and singing: "In the past, there was Governor Shao (referring to Governor Shao Jiechun of Sichuan), who often came to dance with the troupe; later, there was Liao Junjun (referring to the supervisor Liao Daheng), who would follow me without fighting; The Yangge Department (referring to Yang Sichang) is three feet away from me."

This ballad was spread to the Ming army, which made Yang Sichang dumbfounded when he heard it.In 1641 AD, Zhang Xianzhong discovered that Yang Sichang had put all his troops in Sichuan and that Xiangyang was empty, so he got rid of the Ming army and suddenly led his troops to leave Sichuan and move eastward.When they arrived in Dangyang, Hubei, they were blocked by another Ming army. Zhang Xianzhong left Luo Rucai in Dangyang, and personally led the elite troops to Xiangyang. When Yang Sichang got the news in Chongqing, he quickly sent envoys to Xiangyang and ordered the Ming army in Xiangyang to defend closely.Unexpectedly, the envoy was caught by the rebel army while walking halfway.The rebel army found tokens and documents on the envoys, which were stamped with Yang Sichang's Xingyuan seal.Zhang Xianzhong called his adoptive son Li Dingguo and asked him to dress up as Yang Sichang's envoy and bring a few "entourages"

And tokens, documents, mixed into Xiangyang City. Li Dingguo brought official documents and tokens and came to the edge of Xiangyang City, when it was dark at night.He shouted to the defenders outside the city gate. The defenders heard that they were envoys sent by Yang Ge's department. After checking the tokens and documents, they had no doubts and let Li Dingguo and the soldiers with him into the city. That night, the rebel soldiers who sneaked into Xiangyang set fire to several places in the city. The people in the whole city woke up from their sleep and found that there were flames everywhere and the whole city was in chaos.In the chaos, the rebel army opened the city gate, and the brigade arrived, and it was too late for the official army to resist.

After the rebel army entered the city, they sent people to open the prison to rescue the captured rebel soldiers and their families; at the same time, they went straight to the Xiangwang Mansion and captured Xiangwang Zhu Yiming alive. Zhang Xianzhong sat in the lobby of Prince Xiang's Mansion and sent soldiers to escort Zhu Yiming to the hall.Zhu Yiming was so frightened that he shuddered and knelt on the ground begging for mercy. Zhang Xianzhong said: "I don't want anything else, I just want to borrow your head for a use." When Zhu Yiming heard that he was going to kill him, he was so frightened that he kowtowed and said, "I have gold and silver treasures in the palace. I let Qiantui use them. I just beg for mercy."

Zhang Xianzhong laughed loudly and said: "I have entered Xiangyang, how can I not move your gold and silver treasures? However, if you don't lend me your head, then Yang Sichang will not die!" As he spoke, he yelled and dragged Zhu Yiming down to kill him. Zhang Xianzhong occupied Xiangyang, seized a large amount of food, salaries and weapons stored there by Yang Sichang, and distributed hundreds of thousands of taels of silver in the treasury of Prince Xiang's mansion to the local hungry people. When the people heard that the guilty King Xiang had been executed, they were very happy. Needless to say.

The news of Zhang Xianzhong's attack on Xiangyang spread to Sichuan, which stunned Yang Sichang.All his well-planned plans to besiege the rebel army went bankrupt, especially when Zhang Xianzhong made a sudden attack under his nose, killing a vassal king.How to explain to Emperor Chongzhen? Yang Sichang fled from Sichuan to Hubei in desperation. He had just arrived in Shashi when he heard another news that the rebel army led by Li Zicheng left the Shangluo mountain area, regrouped, and took advantage of the lack of troops in Henan to attack Luoyang and kill Fu Wang Zhu Changxun.This made Yang Sichang even more startled and frightened. After much deliberation, he had no choice but to commit suicide.