Chapter 281 Blackmail

In fact, Man Gui had already learned some information from Lou Daji and Heiyunlong people, and knew that the new artillery cost a lot. However, Man Gui didn't expect Tiemo to have invested for so many years. He invested 4.7 million taels in half a year, which was simply a waste of money.

"This...is such a big investment? Really?"

"Of course it's true. We are our own people. I won't lie to you. If you don't believe it, let Hai Lanzhu and Min Yue show you the account book? That Elizabeth knows? Aren't you curious about why I took her with me in a war? She is the one who is in charge of artillery supervision and asked me for follow-up fees before coming. If you don't believe it, go and ask her now."

"Is there anything else?" Man Gui rolled his eyes, obviously not really convinced. He waved his hand and called the personal soldiers from afar, muttered a few words, and the personal soldiers ran out to do business.

In just a moment, the personal soldiers ran back and whispered a few words. Mangui's face changed, "Do... this woman is really a cannon? Did she go to the money? Just sent someone to ask for money, but she actually asked me for money..."

"Hey, brother, do you believe it now? I'm very poor recently, so I still have money to let her continue to rush. Cannons, gold-swalking beasts, when the cannon fires, it's a thousand taels of gold. This is not something I said!"

Man Gui became more and more frightened the more he heard it. This cannon is really not something that anyone can play. But when studying artillery, Tie Mo can only play in the Ming Dynasty. With the wealth of Shanxi merchants and Tie Mo decides for a moment, this will be successful. Otherwise, how could it be possible to have millions of taels of silver a year? The Ming Dynasty treasury could not withstand such waste.

Although Man Gui muttered and complained, she still believed Tie Mo in her heart. She frowned, leaned back, leaned against the pillar and said awkwardly: "Brother, you know me. I am not as rich as you. I don't have much money in my hands. I have some extra money over the years, and I still earned it from reselling supplies with you. However, I really want to get two cannons for this gun. You see, how about 80,000 taels per jack? I will give you less money from the supplies this time... You sell two cannons to play with..."

Tiemo touched the corner of his eyebrows, pondered for a while, and said seriously: "Let's do this, we are all our own people, so we should be 80,000 taels per game. In addition, I will get twenty shells with one cannon. As for the more materials, don't talk about it. But in the future, the shells will be consumed according to the rules. You know, the matter here is complicated, so I have to think about it for others."

Man Gui was immediately overjoyed and hugged Tiemo's arm intimately. Man Gui could understand Zhang Bei's affairs clearly, and he knew that Tiemo was talking about the truth. Zhang Bei's military, politics and business were inseparable from Shanxi merchants everywhere, and all aspects were related to the interests of Shanxi merchants. Take the military workshop as an example. If there is no profit, it would be difficult for Shanxi merchants to continue investing money in the future. Therefore, Tiemo must let Shanxi merchants make money.

"Brother, don't worry, I know your difficulties. This time you will suffer a little. Brother will find a way to make up for it in the future. In my opinion, can the transaction of this artillery be bigger? Didn't Mr. Sun tell you about Liaodong's intention to buy artillery from you?"

Tie Moqi said: "No, there is still this matter?"

"Hehe, I heard Lao Cao say that. You know, Lao Cao is from what kind of origin, and the news is more informative than us. Those people are all local rich people. Don't look at them asking the court for money, but they actually have a lot of good goods in private. If they want to buy it, don't be polite. These people have been fishing for so long, and it's time to slaughter them!"

Mangui gritted his teeth, and the cold light shone. Tie Mo couldn't help but laugh. It seemed that the Nine Borders of the Ming Dynasty had opinions about Liaodong, and this matter was true. In recent years, Liaodong's golden beasts, the court's son, and several other border towns have been constantly eating soil. Most of the time, they have to find a way to solve the problem. Mangui seized this opportunity and took revenge on Liaodong, which is understandable.

Not to mention Man Gui, even Tiemo couldn't stand it. The Liaodong group of people are arrogant and should have bleeding. Since the teacher has not sent the news, it means he has made up his mind not to interfere in this matter. If the teacher is in charge of this matter, he will be embarrassed to take ruthless action.

......

Zhenxiwei can be said to be the strongest fortress in the northwest corner of Shanxi. Before, when the peasant army cholera and Shanxi was in a serious situation, Zhenxiwei was defended as solid as a god. Therefore, under normal circumstances, the peasant army would not have thought about Zhenxiwei at all. If Rao Yonghui had not made frequent moves this time, the situation would not have been so bad.

On April 2nd of the third year of Chongzhen, the troops of Xuanfu and Datongfu were assembled and more than 14,000 were supplied. The troops were divided into two groups to approach Zhenxiwei. One of them rushed directly to Zhenxiwei, and the other was led by Geng Zhongming and Shang Kexi, and bypassed Zhenxiwei and rushed straight to the Fugu in the rear.

At this time, the people stationed in Zhenxiwei were not ordinary people, but Sun Kewang, the number one general under Zhang Xianzhong. It can be seen that Zhang Xianzhong still wanted to defend Zhenxiwei. Sun Kewang has not been idle and ordered the military and civilians in the city to continuously build fortifications to welcome the upcoming attack. Now, among the peasant army in northern Shaanxi, Sun Kewang has become famous and is even more powerful than Yuan Ma.

Yuan Ma became famous for his cannibalism and ruthlessness, while Sun Kewang relied on his reputation through tough battles. The officers and soldiers were also afraid of Sun Kewang's ability, so they did not rush to attack, but instead stationed outside the city.

Man Gui and Tiemo ordered the troops to seal the east and west sides, and the army divided into three camps to station, and were not busy attacking. But the more this happened, the more it made Sun Kewang feel nervous.

At the end of Zhenxiwei City, Sun Kewang kept patrolling. Looking at the barracks less than five miles outside the city, his brows were locked tightly. What the hell are the officers and soldiers doing? I want to wait until Fugu fights first before attacking Zhenxiwei. I felt very bad when I waited, and I felt like I had been prepared for a long time but hitting the cotton with one punch.

On the fourth day of April, after a day of calm, the storm suddenly changed. Mangui sent his guerrilla general Zhuang Zhiwei to attack the east side of the city wall. At the same time, the officers and soldiers also launched two strange-shaped cannons.

Since the new artillery is rarely used, at least Tiemo has never used artillery on the land of the Ming Dynasty, the uninformed peasant army's understanding of the new artillery is almost blank. On the top of the city, Sun Kewang raised his knife and sneered, "Haha, the officers and soldiers finally can't help it. Do they want to use two broken artillery to blow away my city defense?"

While speaking, a cannon sounded, and the sound of the cannon pierced the sky with a strange hiss. With a bang, it landed accurately on the northeast corner. There were not many people there, so there were not much casualties, but the shells fell, dust was flying, and the bricks and stones were shattered. After a while, when I looked closely, Sun Kewang's eyes were suddenly abrupt and his breathing was a little gasping.

What kind of cannon is this? Damn, after one shot, more than a dozen stone bricks were blown away. When did the cannon be so powerful? If it was hit by a hundred times, the city wall would not have a hole?

Sun Kewang is not an ignorant person. He has seen many artillery artillery. Cao Wenzhao has several artillery artillery in his hand in Shaanxi, but those artillery artillery are so heavy that it is terrible. With one shot, it can leave a piece of black and gray on the city, and its power is simply incomparable to the artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery artillery

"Mom, brothers, be cheer up, don't be afraid, the officers and soldiers will definitely not fire a few shots!"

Everything really made Sun Kewang tell the truth. After a few shots outside the city, the sound of artillery stopped. Thousands of soldiers carried the ladder to start the most primitive siege mode. It was not that Tie Mo and Mangui didn't want to continue firing the artillery, but the amount of artillery shells was limited. It would be a waste to pour all the firepower into Zhenxiwei.

The elite soldiers of Datong Prefecture are definitely not comparable to those of the soldiers under Rao Yonghui's command. As soon as they fought, Sun Kewang suffered a loss.

The firepower covers the battle, and the defenders on the city were so eager to lock their heads to the battlements. When the ladder was put on, many soldiers rushed up with shields. In less than a quarter of an hour, someone climbed up to the head of Zhenxiwei. Fortunately, Sun Kewang was not an easy person, and with his men counterattacked, he drove the officers and soldiers on the city wall down. Zhuang Zhiwei did not come forward either. After being driven down, he immediately ended the first wave of offensive.

Sun Kewang also knew in his heart that the first wave of attack was just a test, and the purpose was to see the combat effectiveness of the defenders. But just one tentative attack, the casualties were enough to surprise him.

Although the young Sun Kewang fought countless times, he had never encountered such a situation? In a brief battle, the brothers defending the city lost more than 1,000 people, while the officers and soldiers attacked the city only suffered more than 200 casualties. Who was attacking the city and who was defending the city?

Deputy General Du Zhongnian wiped the blood from his face, his eyes drifting, "Captain Sun, if this battle continues like this, all tens of thousands of brothers will die in Zhenxiwei."

"Hmph, I want to ask, most of the lost brothers are yours. How did you fight this battle?" Sun Kewang asked sternly, Du Zhongnian said with a bitter face and said in pain: "The officers and soldiers sent a team of muskets to block the city wall and fire guns. The brothers poked their heads to defend the city, and many people were killed directly. Our archers and muskets fought back, and most of them were blocked by the opponent's shield wall. Some muskets could not reach others."

"This...is there any more?" Sun Kewang stared at his eyes, feeling a little unbelievable. However, with his understanding of Du Zhongnian, the other party was not a lie. The defenders at the city were condescending, but their shooting range was not as good as those under the city. This was too incredible. Could it be that the group of people under the city were the Yunfu Musketeers?

Not long after, a new round of attack began. This time, Sun Kewang finally experienced Du Zhongnian's suffering. The government army's methods were not novel at all, but they were still suppressed by the musket team and cooperated with the attack. The tricks were old-fashioned, but surprisingly effective. Although Sun Kewang prepared a lot of rolling wood, the rolling wood could not be thrown so far. Sun Kewang was very unwilling to accept it, and poked his head out to look. Not long after he poked his head out, he rang a gun, and he quickly retracted back behind the battlements, otherwise he would have to be bleeding.

The opponent's shooting skills were too accurate, and the shooting range was even more ruthless. Listening to the muffled groans, Sun Kewang's heart was bleeding, and every painful hum meant that a brother would leave forever.

"Don't poke your head, you'll bend down and put the officers and soldiers up and fight with them!" Sun Kewang yelled with red eyes. As long as the two sides fight together, the other party's musketeer will lose its effect. This kind of behavior is a bit risky, but it's better than being passively beaten.

After waiting for a while, the gunshots outside the city became much thinner, and no officers and soldiers climbed up the city wall. Soon someone shouted in shock: "Look, the officers and soldiers have retreated..."

Withdrawal? Sun Kewang still disbelief. He poked his head out and looked. Sure enough, he saw the officers and soldiers withdrawing from the battlefield, leaving only the musketeers to surround the formation. Seeing this scene, Sun Kewang was stunned. What was the other party going to do? Although he didn't want to admit that the combat power of the officers and soldiers could be defeated by the Zhenxiwei as long as he worked harder, why did he retreat at this time?

On this day, Zhenxiwei's offensive and defense development was too strange, making Sun Kewang dare not close his eyes when he was sleeping.

The next day, it was still the same. The officers and soldiers only relied on musketeers to kill the defenders on the city. As for the siege troops, they would attack each time. Sun Kewang's head was too big, and all the peasant generals in the city were in a panic and panic.

......

Outside the city, in a camp, Tie Mo and Mangui wanted to sit opposite each other, having dinner while chatting. At this time, there were no outsiders in the tent, and the two of them didn't shy away from speaking. Mangui rolled his eyes and asked in a low voice: "Brother, will you succeed in this method? Are you sure Zhang Xianzhong will pay the ransom?"

"Don't worry, this plan was planned by Mr. Wang. With Mr. Wang's understanding of Zhang Xianzhong, this matter is very successful. The tens of thousands of people under Sun Kewang's command are the aces in Zhang Xianzhong's hands. I heard that Sun Kewang is still his adopted son. If he knew that money could buy the lives of these people, Zhang Xianzhong would definitely agree!"

"I hope!" Man Gui put down the bowls and chopsticks and breathed a little nervously. In the past half of his life, he fought like this for the first time like this, using the defenders as hostages and forcing the bandits to redeem people with money.

It is incredible that the elite army of the border actually started to extort bandits. Fortunately, this matter was quietly touched. If the court knew about it, those people would not make a fuss. This was the first time Man Gui had done such a thing, and he was a little excited in his anxiety.

The situation of Zhenxiwei was confusing, but the Fugu was clear at a glance. With the troops under the command of Monk Geng Zhongming Kexi and the ruined city defense of Fugu, it only took a charge to capture Fugu. However, Geng Zhongming did not rush to attack Fugu, but sent a letter to Fugu. After Liu Wenxiu, who was in charge of the city defense, received the letter, he quickly delivered it to Zhang Xianzhong.

After a while, Zhang Xianzhong's unique curse came from the yamen: "Oh my mother, my head is turtle, what do they want to do? Are you scared by me?"

Liu Wenxiu wondered, what made Zhang Xianzhong so angry? He pushed open the door, came in again, and bowed, "Stop the angry father, why are you so angry? What's the officers and soldiers saying?"

"Hey, look at it yourself." I just handed over the letter, and saw Liu Wenxiu's embarrassed look, then I remembered that the other party was illiterate, so I explained: "The officers and soldiers said in the letter that we should hand over the money we plundered from Zhenxiwei, otherwise they would annihilate Sun Kewang's troops."
Chapter completed!