readsfreenovel Chapter 205 Self-immolation
Chapter 205 Self-immolation
After taking the imperial city, Meng Jun personally arrived at the front line, looked at the palace, and exclaimed: "Taizu built this city without wasting manpower and material resources, and the four city walls are all strong."
At this time, the army had gradually swept away the remaining troops. The city walls, which had been shaken by the sound of killing, had gradually quieted down. Meng Jun looked at the majestic palace. If the Qing army burned down the palace in desperation, wouldn't it be a pity? He then said to his attendants, "Send a surrendered soldier to persuade them to surrender, and tell them that I don't like killing people. Except for Hong Chengchou and the Eight Banners soldiers, all others will be pardoned. Also, you are not allowed to burn down the palace."
Ma Degong, Babutai and others who retreated into the palace were already as pale as death. They retreated again and again. The remaining Qing troops had no morale. Zhou's army only made a breakthrough and countless soldiers surrendered. When they arrived at the palace, Ma Degong had only 600 troops under his command, Babutai had 380 banners, and Hong Chengchou had 1,000 guards. The one with the largest number of troops was Lin Guangyuan. He saw the opportunity quickly and his troops still had more than 3,000 people when they retreated into the palace.
After receiving Meng Jun's order, Lin Shiqi randomly picked a Green Camp soldier, repeated Meng Jun's words to him, asked him to recite them twice, and then drove him to the foot of the palace.
The Green Camp soldier raised his hand tremblingly and walked slowly step by step. Lin Shiqi was getting impatient and waved his hand. An archer shot an arrow behind the Green Camp soldier and shouted, "Why are you dawdling? If you don't hurry up, the next arrow will be shot at your head. Let's go and get someone else."
The Green Camp soldier ran forward with his hands raised like a frightened rabbit, and the Qing army on the city wall did not shoot him, but pulled him onto the palace wall.
Babutai, Lin Guangyuan, Ma Degong and others heard that Meng Jun had sent someone in, and they hurried over.
Seeing that the man was shaking all over and his lips were trembling, Lin Guangyuan comforted him, "Tell me slowly, what's your name? What did they say when they asked you to come in?"
"Hello...Hello...Hello General, my name is...Cai Yuan." Cai Yuan gradually calmed down, then swallowed his saliva and said, "King Meng outside the city asked me to come in and tell you something. I can't kill people. Except for Governor Hong and the Eight Banners soldiers, the rest will be pardoned. Also, you are not allowed to burn down the palace."
Upon hearing this, Babutai became furious and said, "That dog thief is wishful thinking. He wants an intact palace. He can dream on his own. I'm going to burn the city down now." Then he drew his sword and was about to kill Cai Yuan, but was stopped by Lin Guangyuan. Lin Guangyuan advised, "Please calm down, Duke. He is just a small defeated soldier. Why do you need to take action?" Lin Guangyuan gave a look and his bodyguards quickly dragged away Cai Yuan, who was like a quail. Babutai snorted coldly and left in a hurry. He wanted to discuss with Hong Chengchou immediately.
Only Lin Guangyuan and Ma Degong were left looking at each other in bewilderment. Needless to say, Ma Degong had personally kidnapped the great contributor to Emperor Hongguang, and he knew that if he fell into Meng Jun's hands, he would definitely be dead.
However, Lin Guangyuan had different thoughts. As the saying goes, one should do one's job within one's position. He had held on until now and had reached the end of his rope. He thought he had done his best for the Qing Dynasty.
At this time, Hong Chengchou chose a small attic as his final resting place. When Babutai rushed in, he saw that the attic was already full of firewood, and there was a can of kerosene around it, emitting a pungent smell. Babutai was stunned, looking at the old and frail Hong Chengchou, he sighed, hesitated for a moment, and said: "Governor Hong, Meng Jun sent someone to surrender, saying that he only wanted the heads of the eight banners and Governor Hong, and the rest of us would be pardoned, and he also wanted the intact palace."
"Your Excellency the Duke, things have come to this point and it is beyond human power to reverse. When the Prince was defeated, I had already made preparations. As for the palace, I advise Your Excellency the Duke not to burn it down. If the palace is intact, the Ming court's desire to return to Nanjing will be stronger. In this way, the Ming court's fight with Meng Jun will do more good than harm to the Qing Dynasty. You should know that the internal strife in the Ming court is extremely fierce. If God blesses the Qing Dynasty, there may be an old story like Fengbo Pavilion." Hong Chengchou said slowly while sitting on a chair.
Upon hearing this, Babutai's impulsive heart gradually calmed down. He walked out of the door and was surprised to find a large cloud of black smoke rising not far to the east. He led his guards and rushed over, only to see Fulsheng laughing ferociously, and dozens of his subordinates holding torches and setting fires all around.
Babutai rushed over, slapped Fulsheng to the ground, and ordered his subordinates to put out the fire. In Fulsheng's puzzled eyes, Babutai told Fulsheng what Hong Chengchou said.
Hearing this, Fuersheng sneered, "Hong Chengchou still thinks he is a Han Chinese after all, and he can't bear to give up this palace. What do you mean the Ming court wants a complete palace, even if the palace is completely destroyed? Doesn't the Ming emperor want to return to Nanjing? I destroyed the palace completely. When the Ming emperor returns to Nanjing, he can't be left with no place to live, right? Isn't it better to build a large palace and waste manpower and material resources!"
Babutai was stunned when he heard this. He suddenly felt that what Fuersheng said was right. After hesitating for a moment, Babutai looked back at the attic and said in a deep voice: "Order, light the torches, burn down the palace, and leave a piece of white land for the Meng thief!"
The black smoke rising from the burning palace was clearly seen by Meng Jun and the other generals outside the palace. Lin Shiqi said anxiously: "Your Majesty, the enemy must be trying to burn the city. We must attack them immediately."
Before Meng Jun could say anything, Qian Biao also became anxious and shouted, "Yes, my king, if you let these Tartars burn down the palace, you will have no place to live. Let's attack the city. I, Old Qian, will be the first to go!"
Meng Jun listened to Qian Biao's words, laughed, then looked at the billowing black smoke and said softly: "Attack!"
Qian Biao shouted anxiously: "Follow me quickly, take down the palace and put out the fire!"
The Zhou army outside the palace city gathered in front of the towering palace gate like a surging tide. The war drums were beating, and the soldiers' eyes were burning with the desire for victory.
Following a command, the Zhou army launched a fierce attack. Arrows rained down, and battering rams repeatedly hit the solid palace gate, making a heart-shaking noise. The palace gate was shaky under the continuous impact, but it still stubbornly held on to the last line of defense.
However, at this critical moment, Lin Guangyuan made a shocking decision. He shouted to his men guarding the palace gate: "Brothers, Jiangning City has been breached. It is useless to defend it any longer. Open the city gates and surrender!"
Lin Guangyuan's men responded as if relieved. They put down their weapons. A defender on the wall shouted, "Stop ramming! Open the palace gate." The defenders removed several horizontal gates, and the palace gate slowly opened inward.
As the palace gate opened, Qian Biao was the first to rush into the palace and led his troops towards the fire point.
Hong Chengchou was in the attic, watching the Zhou army swarming in, then he went back into the house, closed the doors and windows, and as the kerosene tank fell, he threw a candle in and stood beside the blazing fire, the light of the flames illuminating his resolute face. All around him was chaos and cries of despair.
He recalled the past years when Emperor Chongzhen appointed him as Governor-General of the Three Borders of Shaanxi, Prince Taibao, Minister of War, and Governor-General of Military Affairs of Henan, Shanxi, Shaanxi, Sichuan, and Huguang. He was so glorious at that time.
Those days of fighting for the country, those times of discussing state affairs with colleagues, and those moments of making impassioned speeches in front of the emperor.
He recalled his past betrayal, which was an instinctive choice for survival. Facing imminent death, his feelings towards the Qing court were complicated and contradictory. He didn't know how history would evaluate him.
Hong Chengchou murmured: "The emperor's grace is as deep as the sea, and the minister's loyalty is as heavy as a mountain. The right and wrong, merits and demerits, will be judged by future generations."