"King Chuang, something bad has happened. Wang Jiayin brought a large number of people to kill him!" The guards around Gao Yingxiang hurried into the courtyard where he lived and said loudly. He didn't have much sense of dignity, and coupled with the anxiety in his heart, the guard rushed in without waiting for a greeting from inside.
There was no light in the room, but Gao Yingxiang was sitting there strangely, which made the guard feel strange. He shouted tentatively: "King Chuang" while flashing the fire seal he was carrying. Then he froze, and the fire stick in his hand was not held firmly due to surprise, and fell to the ground with a "pop" and went out. "King Chuang" He shouted again in an unbelievable tone, but Gao Yingxiang in front of him could no longer answer.
Although he was sitting on a chair, Gao Yingxiang was already dead. There was still blood that had condensed and seeped out of his seven orifices, which looked particularly gloomy and terrifying to the guards. On the table to his right, there was an overturned wine glass. Apparently, what was missing from the glass was the key to Gao Yingxiang's death.
Just when the guard screamed in shock, Wang Jiayin and a group of angry people strode straight to the courtyard. Those people who were supposed to block Gao Yingxiang from their side did not step forward to stop them, either because they were intimidated by the opponent's momentum or for some other reason, allowing them to rush to the house smoothly.
Wang Jiayin did not rush in with others, but stood outside and shouted loudly: "Gao Yingxiang, if you are a man, come out and tell me clearly! Why did you send someone to do this to me!" Others behind him They all responded and asked loudly, their voices extremely loud, making Gao Yingxiang's face very embarrassed.
No matter how they shouted, Gao Yingxiang did not come out to answer, which made everyone more angry. In this situation, someone finally came to take charge, and that was Li Zicheng, who lived near Gao Yingxiang. He hurried over with a steel knife in his hand. When he saw this posture, he quickly said: "General Wang, what are you doing? What's the matter that you can't talk about clearly? Why did you bring this guy here? My family is Chuang Wang I must be tired, so I didn¡¯t come out to see you.¡±
"Tired? I think he has a guilty conscience and doesn't dare to see anyone! He is really good at it. He actually sent someone to assassinate me. Now that I have brought everyone to argue, he pretends to be dead behind closed doors. It's really disgraceful. !" Wang Jiayin sneered. As he spoke, the noisy people gradually became quiet. At this time, the screams in the room were finally heard by people outside the room. Everyone only heard a horrified voice shouting: "Breaking into the house" King! Break into the king!"
"Huh?" Wang Jiayin and Li Zicheng were both stunned, and then they quickly stepped forward and pushed open the half-open courtyard door, rushing inside, and everyone else followed. After entering the hospital, they went straight to the house where the screams came from. Under the light of several lit torches, everyone saw Gao Yingxiang sitting on a chair. Seeing Gao Yingxiang who was already a corpse, everyone was stunned. Look at me, I look at you, and were speechless for a moment.
"Whatwhat's going on?" Li Zicheng quickly reacted and asked loudly. Here, he is the only one who is most qualified to ask this question. After this uprising, Li Zicheng was more valued by Gao Yinghuo, and he even won the reputation of a general in the Chuang army. He was supported by everyone, and his status was second only to Gao Yingxiang. Now that Gao Yingxiang is dead, Chuang Jun will naturally respect him.
"YoungI don't know. I heard that General Wang brought people to the door, so I hurriedly came to report King Chuang. I didn't expect to find that King Chuang haddied on the seat." The guard murmured.
"It's poisonous wine!" Wang Jiayin saw the wine glass at a glance. After picking it up and smelling it, he said, "Brother Gao died under this poisonous wine, but he doesn't know who did it to him." ." In the blink of an eye, he, who was supposed to be seeking revenge, turned back into Gao Yingxiang's good brother.
At this time, many of Gao Yingxiang's subordinates also rushed over. When they saw that their leader was dead, but Wang Jiayin and other people who had many festivals with Gao Yingxiang were around, many of them immediately pulled out their weapons and said, "Isn't that right?" Did you harm King Chuang? We want to avenge King Chuang!" He said and was about to take action.
"Stop! King Chuang was not killed by General Wang!" Li Zicheng shouted at this time: "We just came in and found King Chuang" At the end, his voice was choked with sobs.
"Then who killed King Chuang?" someone continued to ask, with disbelief on his face.
"If I'm not wrong, King Chuang committed suicide." Li Zicheng picked up the wine glass and said to everyone: "Look, there are still some traces of poisonous wine in this glass. It's obvious that King Chuang drank it. He died of poison after drinking. And our people have always guarded this place, and outsiders can't get in at all. Except for King Chuang himself, I'm afraid there is no one??could have poisoned his drink. So I'm sure this must be King Chuang's own decision. "
"But why did King Chuang commit suicide because of his thoughts?"
"Because he is ashamed!" Wang Jiayin immediately interrupted: "He actually had malicious intentions and sent someone to assassinate me, but I caught the assassin. He felt ashamed of everyone, so he chose to commit suicide!"
Many people still don¡¯t believe it, but at this time these people have nothing to say. Because not only do those who are willing to fight to the death for Gao Yingxiang not have an advantage in terms of numbers, but even Li Zicheng, whose status is second only to Gao Yingxiang, has the same view. Except for some of Gao Yingxiang's personal guards and other close confidants, others obviously accepted this view. Even though they still had doubts in their hearts, no one raised it again.
But at this time, Wang Jiayin said: "Brother Gao is really too reckless. Even if there is a big conflict between him and me, there is no need to do such a thing. As long as he is willing to admit his mistake, for the sake of the unity of our rebel army, I won't embarrass him, but why did he take this dead end?" He sighed again and again, seeming to feel sorry for Gao Yingxiang's death.
"Brother Gao, Brother Li, you should take the lead in matters related to Gao Yingxiang's death. You must be in good shape." After patting Li Zicheng on the shoulder, Wang Jiayin turned and left the room. Looking at him, he seemed to be very sorry for Gao Yingxiang's death. And sad.
But when he returned to his residence, the sad look on his face was completely replaced by joy. He looked at Li Yan who had been waiting there and said: "Master Li is really good at it. He can actually do it without anyone noticing." Get rid of him, and now I can sit back and relax."
Li Yan just smiled when he heard this: "The general has been rewarded. In fact, it is not difficult to kill him. The difficult thing is to avoid being suspected, and at the same time to prevent his subordinates from causing trouble again. This time he actually sent someone to assassinate the general. , which gave us a perfect opportunity.¡±
"Yes, with such an excuse, even if someone is suspicious, they dare not say it." Wang Jiayin said proudly: "It's just that I still don't understand two things. Mr. Li, how did you poison him, and us How can we get all his men and horses? Li Zicheng is not an easy person to deal with."
"General, you take him too seriously. Although Li Zicheng has a small reputation, it is only because Gao Yingxiang thinks highly of him. In terms of his ability and reputation among people, he cannot be compared with the general." Li Yan said: "And since we can get rid of Gao Yingxiang so easily, wouldn't it be easier to get rid of him as Li Zicheng? But now he is still valuable, we should let him work for the general, if If he dares to be dissatisfied in the future, it will not be too late for us to get rid of him."
"Well, what you are saying is that Li Zicheng is not our opponent yet. What we need to pay attention to now is everyone's thoughts. After Gao Yingxiang's death, no one should dare to go against me anymore, right?"
"Of course, General Wang is the most senior among us now. Who else would dare to disobey your words? However, necessary means to win over people's hearts are still needed, such as Gao Yingxiang's funeral. Only in this way can he Only then will his confidants turn to the general."
"Yes, I will do as you say. However, we have to be careful with the officers and soldiers in these two days. Henan is not like Shaanxi. There are still many officers and soldiers at the guard station, and Tang Feng will not let us go so easily. "
"What the general said is that we must be careful about this." After a few more gossips, Li Yan said goodbye and left.
Back to his residence, Li Yan saw the familiar figure waiting for him in the room. With the dim light, Li Zicheng's face with a proud smile was revealed.
"Why did you come suddenly at this time? These are extraordinary times. If people know the connection between you and me, not only will it be difficult to achieve the plan, but our lives may not be saved." Li Yan looked at it carefully. Looking around, after finding that no one else was paying attention, he closed the door and said.
"Don't worry. Since I came to you, I am naturally prepared. With my current status, no one dares to care about me."
"Hmph, do you think you will be safe once Gao Yingxiang dies? Don't forget, Wang Jiayin is still alive. He mentioned you just now. If I hadn't spoken for you, he would have been ready to attack you."
Li Zicheng frowned when he heard this: "It seems that this person should not be underestimated. I wonder if you have a way to deal with him?"
"We don't have a clue yet. We can't use the same method. This will only be self-defeating and make people suspect that Gao Yingxiang's death is weird. But with his trust in me, there is a lot of opportunity to kill him. I think once the officers and soldiers know about it, When Gao Yingxiang dies, they will definitely send troops to attack. By then, anything can happen on the battlefield, and we should be able to find an opportunity to let him die naturally." Li??Calmly and authentically.
"How can you be so sure that the officers and soldiers will know about this soon?"
"Not to mention that there may be people sent by the government in our army, just the Jinyi spies in Henan, there is nothing that can be hidden from them. And Tang Feng is very powerful in the Jinyi Guards. If you want to know this information, it's not enough Effortless?" Li Yan said with deep feeling, he couldn't help but think of what happened a few years ago.
"If that's the case, wouldn't we be in danger?" Li Zicheng looked worried.
"I can't care about so much now. Unless Wang Jiayin dies, you and I will never get ahead. And I can give you a guarantee that as long as we truly master this team, the imperial court will not be our opponent. In addition, I We can also find other forces to help, so that Mingting cannot deal with us with all its strength."
"Now it seems that's the only thing. Well, I still have to deal with some chores, so I won't delay any more." Li Zicheng nodded slightly and left. At this time, the genius was bright.
Just when some people in the rebel army were happy and some were sad because of Gao Yingxiang's sudden death, a homing pigeon had quietly flown into the sky of Jiangming and headed north. Just as Li Yan expected, the city The secret agent promptly spread the news
Two days later, a message about Gao Yingxiang's sudden poisoning was read by Tang Feng, who was about to lead his army into Henan. Knowing that this would be an excellent opportunity to attack the rebels, Tang Feng made a prompt decision and led his troops to Henan. At the same time, he also sent people to send messages to the officers and soldiers of other guards in Henan who had not yet fallen to the enemy, asking them to cooperate with him to quell the rebellion.
After receiving Tang Feng's order, the officers and soldiers of the Henan Guard did not dare to neglect and immediately began to gather troops and horses, preparing to cooperate with Tang Feng to completely annihilate the enemy here. The reason why they cooperated like this was not only because of Tang Feng's transcendent status, but also because these people also knew how powerful the rebel army was. If they allowed the rebel army to continue like this, they would also be harmed. So within a few days, more than 20,000 people from a dozen health centers in Henan Province were ready.
In late July, the official army officially attacked the city of Shangqiu where the rebels were entrenched. This time, in addition to Tang Feng gathering the surrender troops from Shanxi and Shaanxi and the elite troops from Liaodong, 20,000 troops from Henan also arrived, totaling nearly 80,000 troops. , trapping the entire small town of Shangqiu airtight.
However, for some unknown reason, Tang Fengbing did not rush to let the most elite Liaodong Army attack and seize the city. Instead, he asked the surrendered troops from Shan and Shaanxi to conduct a tentative siege. The rebels in the city were obviously well prepared, and all the weapons used to defend the city had played a great role. In addition, they knew that they would not be able to survive if the city was broken, so everyone worked bravely, but they were at a disadvantage. The troops withstood the continuous attacks of the government troops, causing them to return without success.
Seeing that Shangqiu City could not be captured after a few days, some soldiers in Liaodong could not sit still. They came to see Tang Feng one after another and petitioned him to lead troops to attack the city, but Tang Feng refused. . At this time, Wu Sangui, who was entrusted by everyone, came to Tang Feng's tent again and asked him to lead the Liaodong Army to attack the city.
"Master Hou, it's been six or seven days. It's not that I look down on those brothers, but in terms of combat power and understanding of siege, our Liaodong Army is really much stronger than them. Why is it that Master Hou always refuses to use us?" What?" Wu Sangui finally couldn't help but speak out what was in his heart: "Is it possible that Lord Marquis can't trust us?"
Tang Feng had enough time to pick up a piece of watermelon and took a few bites, then smiled and said: "You are too excited, General Wu. I have my own plan. This Shangqiu is just a small city, and the defenders in the city are just rogue rebels." Thieves are naturally no match for the Liaodong Army. But this is also a rare opponent for military training. You have also seen how weak the soldiers and horses in Shanxi and other places are. After a few days, they cannot even climb the city. Such soldiers and horses Can we hope that they can serve the country one day? So I will use these rebels to train them. This is more effective than ordinary drills. What do you think? This time it is not only the surrender of Shanxi and Shaanxi, Even for the Henan Army, I have to train them well. Only by experiencing real battlefields can these sergeants grow, which is why I have never let the Liaodong Army get involved."
"I see" Wu Sangui nodded suddenly, but then added: "But I don't know how long Lord Marquis is planning to practice? Now the court is also watching. We spent a lot of military rations but we can't even get a small town. Come down, aren't you afraid of being impeached?"
"Those who don't understand soldiers, let them go. As long as we know what we are doing. By the way, you are good at commanding. Let's try to lead the Henan army to attack the city tomorrow. Shan, The Second Shaanxi Army is tired after attacking the city for so many days, and it¡¯s time to train the Henan Army.¡±
"Yes! I humbly obey the order!" Wu Sangui hurriedly agreed, the dissatisfaction on his face disappeared.?? is gone.
After watching him go out, Tang Feng's lips curled up, and he was very satisfied with the excuse he had made. In fact, it was not what he said. He did not let the Liaodong Army go in order to train troops. He did it for himself. Attacking the city will inevitably cause damage. This elite Liaodong army that has gradually come under his control is too precious, and Tang Feng is reluctant to let their sacrifice be in vain. In addition, he actually did not want to drive out the rebels. He did this to put constant pressure on the rebels, hoping that they would retreat in the face of difficulties and break out. As long as these birds are not completely eliminated, no one will care about my bow, and I can continue to consolidate my power and achieve what I want.
In the next two days, the attackers were replaced by the Henan Army. Their combat power was inferior to the surrendered armies in Shanxi and Shaanxi that had been carefully trained by Tang Feng. Naturally, Shangqiu City was harder to capture. However, the siege in the past few days still put a lot of pressure on the rebels defending the city. Many people were injured, and there were not many weapons available in the city. This made Wang Jiayin very worried.
He originally thought of leaving such a small town for Kaifeng after uniting people's hearts, but he didn't expect the officers and soldiers to be so fast. They came just a few days after Gao Yingxiang's death, and now the rebels are up and down Shang If you can't concentrate, you won't be able to exert your greatest strength.
Looking at the army of officers and soldiers constantly attacking in the city, he began to retreat in his heart. Should he lead the army to break through and leave?