From beggar to emperor: I am not Zhu Yuanzhang

Crouching Tiger Camp in Shugang, Yangzhou.

Accompanied by Tian Kai, Tao Ya and others, Yang Xingmi inspected the battle situation on the front line. As he walked, he asked Tian Kai about the progress of the war and did not forget to greet the wounded.

In this Yangzhou siege, Yang Xingmi adopted Yuan Xi's suggestion and divided his troops into two groups, led by Tian Kai and Tao Ya respectively. Tian Bo attacked the east city, and Tao Ya attacked the west city, scattering the defensive forces in the city, making them worry about one thing and the other, and they were exhausted.

After three rounds of battles, both sides had suffered losses. At this time, each side was flying a no-war card and actively replenishing food, grass and ammunition to prepare for the next round of offensive.

This time Yang Xingmi handed over the main attack task to Tian Kai. Tian Kai was the most capable general in Crouching Tiger Camp, but he had been idle at home during this period and had no place to use his skills, so he had been feeling very unhappy.

This time Yang Xingmi finally handed over the main attack to him. If he didn't show his hand, how could he hang out in the Crouching Tiger Camp in the future? Even the new brothers Cai Chou, Zhang Xun and others would almost look down on him.

Tian Weixin said that when I was the boss in Crouching Tiger Village, you were still queuing up to get gruel, but time is not forgiving, and heroes are no longer as brave as they once were.

Tian Kai is still a little bit bitter about being forced to give up his throne. Over the years, because of this worry, he and his brothers have become a bit out of tune and have become silent.

Therefore, some of the new brothers despised him. Tian Kai thought that if I don't fight a good fight, you really think I am a sick cat.

Here are some inside stories not mentioned before. After several years of development since the sworn brotherhood in Crouching Tiger Village, Yang Xingmi's sworn brothers have now grown to 13, known as the "Thirteen Heroes of Crouching Tiger".

These 13 people are listed in order:

Yang Xingmi, Tian Wei, Dai Yougui, Tao Ya, Gao Xu, Li Shenfu, Liu Wei, Tai Meng, Cai Chou, Zhu Yanshou, Li Yu, Zhang Xun, Xu Wen.

It can be seen that Tian Kai is ranked second and is still very strong. This is why Yang Xingmi gave him the main offensive task.

A few days later, Tian Kai launched a new round of offensive. This time he chose gunpowder, which was unheard of at the time, as the siege weapon. This was thanks to Lu Yongzhi's help.

This old magician studied refining elixirs every day and was very familiar with gunpowder. At that time, some people had already used gunpowder in wars.

According to historical records, during a battle in Hongzhou (now Nanchang, Jiangxi), gunpowder was used to blow open the city gate. It is said that this is the earliest record of the use of gunpowder in ancient wars.

With the help of Lu Yongzhi, Tian Wei successfully used gunpowder in actual combat. He first sent people to launch a frontal offensive to attract the attention of the defenders. Bi Shiduo mistakenly thought that Tian Kai was going to storm the city tower, so he quickly transferred the defenders to the east city.

At this time, Tian Kai sent a suicide squad carrying gunpowder and braved the fire suppression of cold weapons from the top of the city. They rushed to the city gate and buried the gunpowder in the pit.

After a loud noise, a plume of black smoke rose from the city gate, and then flames appeared, and the fire burned the city gate.

The wooden city gate collapsed in the fire. When Tian Kai saw that he had succeeded, he shouted: "Come in--"

He jumped up and took the lead in rushing out.

When everyone saw Tian Kai rushing over first, they also followed him with shouts.

It is said that if the generals are determined to die and the soldiers are not greedy for life, such an army will be invincible.

Tian Kai immediately rushed to the city gate. Regardless of the burning doorframe above his head, he jumped over the fire and rushed into the city. The soldiers behind him rushed in one after another.

Bi Shiduo at the head of the city was horrified when he heard that Tian Kai had entered the city. He called Zheng Hanzhang and said, "You will lead people to block the city gate immediately. I will kill all Tian Kai."

Zheng Hanzhang led his troops to the city gate and quickly blocked the gap. As a result, Tian Kai and others who rushed into the city were left alone and faced the risk of being surrounded and annihilated.

Tan Ma reported the battle situation to Yang Xingmi. Yang Xingmi was surprised and asked Yuan Xi: "Is Tian Kai too reckless? How can he escape if he is besieged?"

Yuan Xi replied: "General, don't be anxious. I believe Tian Kai is strong enough to deal with Bi Shiduo. In addition, I have ordered Tao Ya to launch an attack in Xicheng to support Tian Kai."

At this time in Xicheng, Tao Ya had long been impatient. As soon as he received the military order, he immediately grabbed the mace, jumped on his horse and ordered an attack.

Xicheng is Qin Yan's defense area. When he saw Tao Ya attacking, he immediately called for help from Bi Shiduo, but Bi Shiduo was currently fighting fiercely with Tian Bo and was unable to escape.

When Tian Kai saw that the opponent's formation was in chaos, he guessed that Tao Ya must be attacking the city. He must not relax at this time. Once he relaxes, it will be over. It depends on who can last until the end.

Tian Kai roared, brandished his spear and went straight to Bi Shiduo. The two fought several times and it was difficult to determine the outcome. After the desperate counterattack of the Crouching Tiger Camp, they finally opened a hole, broke out of the tight siege, and gradually withdrew from the city. Tian Kai also retreated while fighting, and was the last one to withdraw from the city.

Bi Shiduo did not dare to pursue him, because Qin Yan's west side of the city was in danger. He sent people for help again and again, so Bi Shiduo had no choice but to lead people to rush for reinforcements.

This time it was too dangerous, and the city was almost broken. Bi Shiduo's forehead was covered with sweat.

Although this round of offensive was repelled by Bi Shiduo, the defenders suffered heavy casualties and it was difficult to hold on. In addition, the city had been without food for several days. At first, they could still kill war horses and eat dog and rat meat. Later, all the small animals that could be eaten were eaten. Tens of thousands of defenders and hundreds of thousands of people were hungry every day. struggle.

At that time, Yangzhou, which was the most prosperous in the world, was shrouded in the shadow of hunger and death, and it was a scene of the end of the world.

Just when Qin Yan was distraught and had no choice but to do anything, another warlord stationed nearby, the former Suzhou governor Zhang Xiong (the same name as Zhang Shenjian, not the same person) waved to him:

"Brother Qin, why did you come from Xuanzhou to Yangzhou to make a fortune? Look, you don't even say hello when you see someone else. Hey, you look bad lately. How about we talk?"

Suzhou has been known as the "Land of Fish and Rice" since ancient times. Zhang Xiong has been entrenched there for many years and accumulated a huge amount of food in his hands. This person has always coveted Yangzhou's wealth. Seeing that Qin Yan could no longer play anymore, he planned to use this opportunity to blackmail Qin Yan and make a huge fortune.

Zhang Xiong wrote to Qin Yan, generously expressing his willingness to sell grain to him to meet his urgent needs. You and I are not outsiders, so I will give you the exclusive membership price, 9.5% off, which is interesting enough.

After reading the letter, Qin Yan almost spit out a few mouthfuls of old blood. The world is really cold. He calls you brother and sister in person, but turns around and gives you a knife. What happened to this person.

Although he hated Zhang Xiong's robbery, his hunger gave him no choice. Gold and silver are indeed good things, but they cannot satisfy hunger. Filling his stomach is the top priority now.

Qin Yan was forced to agree to Zhang Xiong's deal and exchange gold and silver treasures for the grain in Zhang Xiong's hands.

In order to survive, the people of Yangzhou who were suffering from hunger had to spend real money and silver to buy food from Zhang Xiong. A fine belt was exchanged for five liters of rice, and a brocade fur coat was exchanged for five liters of rice bran. Zhang Xiong made a fortune from war and made a fortune.

Zhang Xiong, who was lying on the kang counting money until his hands cramped, was so happy that he didn't want to help Qin Yan fight off the enemy.

This guy thinks about it, I helped you fight off Yang Xingmi, will you still ask for anything from me? Then how can I make war fortune? After making up his mind, Zhang Xiong began to slack off in his work and did not contribute to the work. He even secretly flirted with Yang Xingmi and made bets on both ends to ensure the harvest was guaranteed due to drought and floods.

Seeing the numbers on the books of Yangzhou's treasury decreasing little by little, Zhang Xiong was given less and less food. In the end, he was not given any food at all, only bran, whether you like it or not.