Prince Chongzhen

Chapter 16 Commander

In fact, Zhu Cilang is still not sure whether this body is that of Prince Chongzhen, and he doesn't know whether Wang Duo lied to him when verifying the identity.

But are these important?

Everyone present needs to use the status of the crown prince to achieve his own goals, and executing Wang Duo is the best way to clear the crown prince's name.

Therefore, Wang Duo was already dead from the moment Chen Si broke the door.

"Everyone, take a break."

Zhu Cilang sat back in his chair tiredly, said something to everyone and closed his eyes.

What he experienced on this day was much more exciting than what he had experienced in the decades before he traveled through time, but it also brought a huge burden to his dilapidated body.

Now that things had stopped for a moment, he really couldn't hold on any longer. In his drowsiness, he seemed to see the moment when the Qing army was driven back to Jiangbei, and he also seemed to see himself being tied up and thrown in front of Dorgon.

Various images came one after another, and finally Zhu Cilang exclaimed in surprise and returned to the study.

He was in a daze for a long time, and only after careful identification did he remember the names of these people.

"Fourth brother, has Brother Xiang returned?"

"I just reported that the messenger has been gone for quite some time. He should be back soon after he has travelled so far."

What Zhu Cilang is most concerned about now are the military generals. If there is any mistake in the communication, it may lead to mutiny. Then why would he need the Tartars to come and take his head themselves?

After waiting for a while, Xiang Rensheng finally came back with the old servant.

"Your Highness, the people have arrived."

"How many are here?"

"Eighteen."

The two were asking and answering each other when Xu Yinjue suddenly interrupted, "Why are there so few?"

Before Xiang Rensheng could reply, he heard Zhao Zhilong, who was tied up like a dumpling in the corner, laugh a few times.

"You may not know this, but when Ma Shiying ran away, he took away more than 20 guards, and the remaining ones are not fully staffed. I wonder how you can defend the city."

As soon as these words came out, a buzzing sound suddenly sounded in the room.

When Ma Shiying mobilized troops, Zhao Zhilong did not know that the emperor had fled, otherwise he would not have allowed him to spend most of his own capital.

After the news came, although Zhao Zhilong was full of regret, he could only strictly order the news to be blocked.

Now seeing that Zhu Cilang was unaware of this, he couldn't help but feel happy.

"Is that small number of troops worth laughing at like this?"

Zhu Cilang cursed in his heart but said he didn't care.

"There are only about 60,000 to 70,000 soldiers in the city right now. I wonder how you can defend the city wall that's over a hundred miles long!"

"Will I not recruit young and strong men?"

Zhu Cilang walked out while talking, but Zhao Zhilong was still roaring: "There are only 200,000 or 300,000 young and strong men in the city. I wonder how long you can hold out!"

"Please follow me, Dukes." Zhu Cilang had no intention of paying any more attention to the dying man. He just said this and walked out of the room.

Zhu and Xu looked at each other and guessed that he was going to subdue those commanders, but the news Zhao Zhilong said was too shocking, so the two dukes just followed without saying a word.

"What, you were scared?"

"Your Highness, I just calculated that the outer city is 120 miles away. Apart from rotation, preparation, and maintaining order in the city, each mile can only be allocated one thousand households."

After Xu Yinjue finished speaking, he shut up, obviously wanting Zhu Cilang to judge for himself whether Yingtian could be defended.

"What if we add another 200,000 young and strong men?" "Your Highness, young and strong men can only carry sand, stones and wood. Once they see blood, they will lose their courage and only know how to save their lives and escape. What's more, the government has not been running smoothly in recent years, and corvée labor has to be forced by soldiers. How can we easily recruit 200,000 people?"

Xu Yinjue raised two questions. Any one of them would pose a fatal threat to the defenders of the city, but if defending Yingtian was so easy, how could it be his, Zhu Cilang's, turn?
"Don't worry about conscripting laborers. I will find a way to raise them for you. As for courage," Zhu Cilang paused and said, "Can training solve it?"

"If we practice for ten days or half a month, there will be some effect, but the Tartars have already crossed the river, I am afraid..."

"Just focus on training. I will try to delay it for ten days or half a month."

Xu Yinjue nodded in agreement, but Zhu Guobi, who remained silent, was filled with mixed feelings.

To be honest, whether it was him, Zhao Zhilong, Wang Duo, or Qian Qianyi, if they had not lost the last bit of faith in the court and the emperor, how could they have given up the honor of the Ming Dynasty and done something that would be infamous for thousands of years?

Thinking about the Majesty who had run away, and then looking at the Prince in front of him, Zhu Guobi couldn't help but have a thought in his mind: It would have been better if he could have come earlier.

But there are no "ifs" in this world. In Zhu Guobi's opinion, there is still not much hope of defending Yingtian. Once there is a chance to seize military power, he will act without hesitation.

The three of them each had their own thoughts, and in a short while, under the guidance of Xiang Rensheng, they arrived at the courtyard where the general was.

"Your Highness, what do we need to do?"

Xu Yinjue seemed to be inclined to follow the crowd. If everyone wanted to surrender, he would follow suit. If His Highness wanted to fight, then he would follow suit.

Anyway, in troubled times, human life is worth more than a dog's. No matter what the outcome, there will always be a big family.

"Yes, Your Highness, how should we cooperate?"

Although Zhu Cilang is in control of the situation now, Zhu Guobi still wants to find out his plan as soon as he gets the chance.

"You don't have to do anything. If you can't hold it in, just smile."

Several people had the same thought in their minds at the same time: Is it okay to laugh? You should understand that we are going to seize military power!

Zhu Cilang greeted the guard, then pushed open the door and walked straight in.

"Your Highness pays respect to the Duke of Wei and the Duke of Bao."

"Bring a chair."

All the generals knelt on the ground, but before the master could say no, the young man in front of them asked someone to bring chairs.

Everyone immediately became curious about his identity.

A few more breaths passed, but the two dukes still did not let anyone get up. At this point, some people began to feel dissatisfied.

In these days of war and chaos, the status of military men is no longer what it used to be. Moreover, they are the real powerful ones, and even Zhao Zhilong has to try to win them over. So why are these two empty-handed dukes so arrogant?

"Tell me what you think."

The generals glanced at the others, but no one spoke.

The messenger had stated the purpose of this trip, but the situation is delicate now. Even if Zhao Zhilong came to ask in person, he would have to find out his attitude before he dared to speak, let alone the current situation?
"Didn't Zhao Zhilong tell you?"

Everyone continued to bow their heads in silence.

"Zhao Zhilong doesn't say anything, how can I ask him? Go call him over!"

When the generals saw that the two dukes only dared to smile awkwardly and did not dare to reprimand the arrogant young man, their curiosity grew even more.

At this time, some smart people noticed that the scene was strange and started to think:
The Duke did not reprimand him, but he also ignored his order, which meant that the young man must be of noble status and he had to maintain his appearance, but he did not pose any threat at all and was just like a Buddha statue.

At this time, there was no other sound in the room except the young man's breathing. The dukes had long put away their awkward smiles, but the generals were still kneeling on the ground, as if the nobles had completely forgotten about them.

"Excuse me. Excuse me, is it His Royal Highness the Crown Prince?"

(End of this chapter)