Even the comrades in the rear were anxious to death, and the people in Beijing who were in the eye of the storm were of course even more stressed. You must know that there are not many combatants here, they are all businessmen, civil servants, and women
That day, most people gathered in Qiongshi Square as usual, each busy with their own business. Suddenly, as if something broke out in the crowd, the street suddenly became chaotic.
Qiongshifang has now become the business center of the entire Beijing city, the busiest and most prosperous place, and of course the most well-informed. After a large number of people suddenly rushed in to buy food and various supplies, Anna, who often worked in Fangshi, was the first to get the report. However, as a foreigner of this era, she did not have the historical sensitivity of many people. She only vaguely heard that there seemed to be a war somewhere in the Ming Empire, and barbarians invaded, which caused a rush to buy. .
But in Anna's mind, she definitely didn't think that a group of barbarians could break into Beijing - after seeing Beijing's magnificent city walls, towers, and the many artillery placed on the city walls, Anna didn't think so at all. She thought that this giant city might fall - in her hometown of Italy, even a small castle with dozens of people could defend it for a long time. There are tens of thousands of garrison troops here alone, and it is the capital of the Ming Empire. The emperor will never abandon this place, so who else can capture such a magnificent capital?
——After all, Anna has never read Chinese history books. She didn’t know that during the dynasty revolution, tall city walls never played any defensive role. When people's hearts are scattered, any great city or city will become an illusion.
So when the time-travelers got the same news from other channels, Anna was really surprised by the nervousness they displayed. She couldn't understand at all these companions who had strong military backing and were under the protection of China's most magnificent capital. Why are we so nervous.
So when she saw Guo Yi rushing into the house almost rolling and crawling, she finally couldn't help but said:
"Why are you so nervous, Guo? Those are just some barbarians, and this is the capital of the largest empire since Rome. There are three powerful armies guarding it, and I heard that the total number exceeds 60,000."
Hearing Anna say these words in an Italian opera-like tone, even though Guo Yi was full of thoughts, he couldn't help laughing:
"Are you referring to the three major camps of the capital? Alas, Sister An, you have been in Ming Dynasty for so long, you should know that this place is completely different from the China described in "Turandot". To be honest, in my opinion Come on, even if there are 60,000 pigs defending the city, it will give people a greater sense of security than those three camps - catching pigs will take more time after all!"
After saying this witty remark, Guo Yi hurriedly gathered everyone and announced the news of Hou Jin's invasion. After hearing the news, everyone's reaction was similar to his, they were all very nervous.
Under tension, the first decision they made was easy to guess - to run away quickly. To get on the ship in Tianjin and return to Qiongzhou, they must at least go to Weihai, where their own army is, in order to give them a sufficient sense of security.
However, after calming down for a while, especially after Lin Hanlong returned, the plan to retreat was quickly rejected - they now have too many assets in the capital, including land in the big market, real estate, and a large amount of goods stored in warehouses. Regardless, there are more than a thousand people working for them directly employed by them. Coupled with the people everywhere who indirectly made a living through "short-haired goods", the number of people affected by them must have exceeded tens of thousands.
“If they evacuate on a large scale at this time, many rumors on the street may immediately turn into real actions. When the time comes, there will definitely be chaos in the city of Beijing without the Hou Jin soldiers coming. It's hard to say whether they could have withdrawn under those circumstances, not to mention the damage to the relationship with the Ming Dynasty and the loss of the most important stronghold in the north that they had worked so hard to open upetc., many troubles, since Needless to say.
——You have to pay such a price just because of the rumor that "The Jin soldiers are coming"? When have they ever done such stupid things?
"So we can't leave, at least not all of usSister Hu arranges for the female family members and irrelevant personnel to retreat first, and I will stay and continue to preside."
At the critical moment, Lin Hanlong, who had worked as a contractor, took the responsibility and took the lead in making a statement. Later, Guo Yi and others also expressed their willingness to stay. Hu Wen did not hold out and agreed to take Wang Jiaojiao, Zhu Yueyue and other girls to leave first. By the way, Anna, Chen Yuer and other family members will also be taken away together. In addition
"Those ladies who are engaged to you, are they considered family members? Do you want to arrange to go together?"
Hu Wen asked this question, butAll the men who were about to become the prince's son-in-law were stunned - this matter was really not easy to handle.
When we first discussed the marriage, it was indeed agreed that the young couple would return to Hainan to live in Hainan after marriage. Now that the two parties have entered into an engagement, most of the procedures such as three matchmakers and six appointments have been completed, and the ruby ??rings have been given away. Theoretically, the marriage should be a done deal.
But no matter what, it’s unrealistic to ask someone to leave with you without a formal wedding, isn’t it? Besides, behind every noble lady there is a big family. Normally it's fine, but in this situation, if you suddenly run over and say you want to take someone away, it's fine if they don't allow you to leave. But what if there are a large group of people who want to follow you?
“Everyone had a headache and it was difficult to make a decision after deliberation for a long time. And not long after, new news from outside personnel completely eliminated the possibility of their leaving.
"Don't leave either - all nine gates of the capital have been closed. No one can enter or leave except for military intelligence detectives."
——The city of Beijing is on lockdown.
…………
As the capital of the Ming Dynasty, the closure of Beijing was a big deal. So many people in the city needed to communicate with the outside world every day to eat, drink, poop, burn firewood, and use water. Once the city gate was closed, everything was gone.
Back then, Emperor Zhu Di moved his capital to Beijing and stationed himself at the gate of the country with the dignity of the emperor. This confidence and courage are indeed worthy of admiration. Throughout the history of the Ming Dynasty, Beijing was besieged quite a few times. The most recent one was the "Ji Si Change" in the second year of Chongzhen's reign.
Time has just passed, and the garrison of the capital has some experience in how to manage a city that is about to face war. Regardless of whether your news is true or false, and whether the enemy is near or far, the gates should be closed first to prevent the chaos outside the city from running into the city. , and also prevent unruly people in the city from escaping out of the city. It not only stabilized the morale of the people, but also calmed the morale of the military.
After the nine gates were closed, the streets were cleaned immediately, and everyone was driven into the nearby neighborhood - no matter whether it was your home or not, just go in and stay there. Anyone who dares to linger on the street will be arrested and detained. If anyone refuses to obey, they will be shot to death!
Guo Yi previously said that he had no confidence in the defenders of the capital, but now it seems that he is a bit underestimated. I don't know if it was influenced by their short-haired management strategy of Qiongshifang, but this time the Beijing defenders responded quite rightly. After a whole set of actions, the effect was really impressive - even their short hairs were blocked in Qiongshi Square and were not allowed to go out, not to mention other ordinary people and middle and low-level officials.
That night, as many as thousands of people were locked up in the big market. Fortunately, there was everything in Qiongshifang, and there was no shortage of food and drink. Lin Hanlong quickly organized people, provided food, and made room for everyone in an empty warehouse. The market soon became quiet, including other places. Although it was not as thoughtful as Shorthair's arrangements, it was not enough to starve to death in just one night. The people who had been driven to strange cities crowded together, and the whole city of Beijing spent the night in panic.
Of course, as a huge city with millions of residents, Beijing cannot remain closed forever. In fact, from the next day, the city gates were partially opened and movement on the streets was allowed again. However, only three of the nine doors are open. Except for convoys transporting necessary daily supplies, ordinary people are not allowed to enter or leave. Of course, entry and exit must be strictly inspected before release.
On the other hand, there are soldiers stationed and patrolling the streets and alleys. Pedestrians can only pass by quickly, but they are not allowed to stay on the streets. All shops and restaurants have been ordered to close, and all commercial and entertainment activities have been terminated. In short, people are told not to go out unless they have nothing to do, and this "martial law" state will be maintained until more practical information is conveyed from the front.
So Qiongshifang had to close its doors. Of course, no one is still focusing on business. Everyone gathered together to discuss countermeasures. After calming down all night, they had new ideas about the retreat plan. Now everyone has basically decided: if they want to evacuate, they will go to Tianjin. Because it is the most convenient way to go, and the rear reinforcements must also land in Tianjin.
However, the specific withdrawal is still under discussion, because if we want to leave, the defense force will have to be dispersed. The number of guards they brought to Beijing this time was limited. The Ming Dynasty gave them a limit of three hundred people. But in fact, they didn't bring enough, just a reinforced company with more than 200 people.
When we came here, we were escorted along the way by this company. If we evacuate some people to Tianjin, we will definitely need the same number of troops to escort them, and Qiongshifang will be empty. Although Qiongshifang itself has some bodyguards to protect the courtyard, as well as laborers and handymen hired by them, which add up to hundreds, but there is no regular army as the core of the organization. Once real trouble occurs, it will be a group of rabble.
——After all, the large amount of wealth in Qiongshifang is seen by the rich and powerful in the capital.??, I'm usually a brother to you, but it's not unusual for me to stab you at a critical moment. Although it only takes about ten days to travel by land from Beijing to Tianjin, Shorthair never dares to believe the moral integrity of those powerful people in this regard.