The sound of artillery outside Dengzhou City stopped. The people inside Dengzhou City could vaguely hear the sounds of fighting and shouting coming from the battlefield outside the city. This lasted for a long time, and then they heard the roar of the Hongyi cannon placed at the top of the city. There was a loud noise that shook the sky and the earth, and the shouts of killing outside the city gradually stopped. Many people in the city who were close to the city gate noticed that when the city gate opened, a large number of panicked officers and soldiers poured in. It looked like the officers and soldiers of Dengzhou Camp had suffered a defeat. Many people in the city began to be really nervous and scared. General Zhang's command was famous for his good fighting skills, and even They all suffered defeat, which is really worrying! It was already time to light the lamp. In the lobby of the Denglai Governor's Office, all the civil and military officials of the Governor's Office were present. Governor Sun Yuanhua's face turned gloomy and he roared to Deputy Commander-in-Chief Zhang Tao who was kneeling under the hall: "All the Liao soldiers under your command have surrendered. Rebel, what are you doing here! Are you here to see my joke?" Zhang Tao kowtowed quickly and said: "I am incompetent, please forgive me. I never expected that these despicable soldiers would suddenly turn against Kong Youde and join the rebels, please. Your Excellency, give me a chance to serve my crime." Sun Yuanhua's face was so gloomy that it almost turned to tears. He laughed angrily and said, "If you give me a chance, who will give me a chance? You led the troops outside the city and not only failed to quell Kong Youde's rebellion. Instead, he allowed his soldiers and generals to join in the rebellion and harm the people of Dengzhou. "Sun Yuanhua took a deep breath and continued to roar: "I think I have done nothing wrong to you Liaodong soldiers and generals. You were cornered in Liaodong, and it was me who took you in." We will support you so that you can continue to lead the troops. Food and salary subsidies will always be given first, but who knows, you will be raised as a pack of hungry wolves!" Sun Yuanhua couldn't help but burst into tears as he spoke of his sadness. He continued to say harshly: "Just wait, the imperial envoys from the imperial court will take you and me into the capital soon!" 90% of Zhang Tao's Liaodong soldiers defected to Kong Youde's rebel side outside the city. Now he is almost the top deputy general, and he has no generals at all. Just like a toothless tiger, it can only be slaughtered by others. Sun Yuanhua waved his hands feebly and said: "Take Zhang Tao down for temporary custody!" "My lord governor, I have something to say." The speaker was Zhang Keda, the commander-in-chief of Denglai, the right governor of Nanjing. According to his rank, Zhang Keda is A first-grade military attache, and Sun Yuanhua was a second-grade civil servant. According to the rank, it should be Zhang Keda who gave the orders in the hall. Everyone knew that the Ming Dynasty was a civilized and military elite, so even though Zhang Keda was a first-grade military attache, he still had to obey those who were one level below him. Lai Governor Sun Yuanhua dispatched. Zhang Keda, the chief military officer of Denglai sitting aside, also had a gloomy face. His Dengzhou main barracks was fighting Kong Youde's rebels with all their strength. However, they were suddenly attacked from the side by Zhang Tao's Liao soldiers. The officers and soldiers of Dengzhou Battalion were caught off guard and were naturally defeated across the board. Thanks to Sun Yuanhua, who was supervising the battle at the top of the city, ordered the Hongyi cannon to fire to deter the rebellious Liao soldiers, Zhang Keda and Zhang Tao led the defeated troops to escape back to Dengzhou City. After inspection, it was found that Zhang Keda¡¯s soldiers from Jiangsu and Zhejiang suffered more than 30% casualties, and only more than 300 cavalry fled back to the city. Looking at the innocent soldiers who followed him in the north and south and died tragically under the swords and guns of the rebel soldiers, Zhang Keda felt as if his heart was bleeding. These four thousand disciples are loyal to him. With these soldiers here, even if the battle is defeated, even if the court wants to punish him, he will still have some scruples, otherwise his end will not be better than that of Sun Yuanhua. Zhang Ke's mind was turning over and over with various thoughts. Sun Yuanhua was also full of resentment towards Zhang Keda. He fully hoped that the soldiers of the Dengzhou camp outside the city would pursue him and rescue the kidnapped foreign craftsmen. Who would have thought that the two hundred cavalrymen would not be able to catch the thieves who had kidnapped the foreign craftsmen in Dengzhou city. Instead, he threw away his helmet and armor, and all his horses and weapons were stolen by the thieves. Until now, we still don¡¯t even know where the thieves came from. He looked at Zhang Kedao with burning eyes: "What does General Zhang have to say?" Zhang Keda frowned slightly, his official position was the right governor of Nanjing. However, Sun Yuanhua called himself the commander-in-chief, obviously using the power to suppress him and indicating that he was insurmountable. Zhang Keda sighed secretly, how long has it been, and he still can¡¯t forget to fight to protect his face! Zhang Keda consciously glanced at the civil and military officials in the lobby and said: "Sir Governor, there are still many Liao soldiers in the city, and there are also some Liaodong generals. These Liao soldiers and Liao generals did not defect to Kong Youde's rebels outside the city, which shows that they They are all loyal to the imperial court and do not want to join forces with the rebels, which shows that they only follow the lead of Deputy Commander Zhang! Now that the situation is urgent, I think it is better to let Zhang Tao take the blame and wait for the rebels outside the city to be wiped out before dealing with him impartially. " Sun Yuanhua said with some surprise: "As the deputy chief military officer, Zhang Tao's officers and soldiers under his command conspired to defect. He didn't know anything about such a big thing. I saw clearly from the top of the city that it was the sudden attack of these rebels that caused the General Zhang¡¯s soldiers suffered serious casualties, and now General Zhang is interceding for such an incompetent person!¡± Zhang Keda said calmly:?The soldiers under my command were injured and killed, and I am naturally heartbroken. They are all veterans who followed me in the north and south, and now they are innocently harmed. But this is a critical moment. I am the commander-in-chief of Denglai, and I must serve the entire Denglai. Responsible. " More than a dozen civil and military officials standing under the hall had moved expressions on their faces. At the critical moment, the famous military commander resolutely put aside his personal grudges and actively responded to external threats. It was really touching. " Zhang Tao, who was kneeling under the hall, looked up. Zhang Keda showed gratitude in his eyes. Sun Yuanhua's gloomy face cleared up a little, and he said with emotion: "Guanfu (Zhang Keda's nickname) is reasonable. He can be as open-minded as Guanfu and wholeheartedly serve me in Dengzhou City. For the sake of this, why worry about the unstoppable rebellion outside the city! " He lowered his head and shouted to Zhang Tao who was kneeling in the hall: "Commander Zhang, please get up. This time Commander Zhang will intercede for you. This special case allows you to lead your generals to perform meritorious deeds. " Zhang Tao hurriedly kowtowed to the ground and said, "I would like to thank the governor for his generosity! " Sun Yuanhua snorted and remained silent. Zhang Tao stood up and bowed to Zhang Ke: "Thank you, Mr. Zhang, for your kindness. I will never forget it! " Zhang Keda raised his face and did not look at Zhang Tao at all. He said coldly: "I am just thinking about the safety of the entire Dengzhou City. Deputy General Zhang does not need to be grateful. " With one sentence, Zhang Tao was blocked back. Zhang Tao stood with an awkward expression and was a little at a loss. Sun Yuanhua shouted: "Deputy Commander Zhang, you are ready to be punished at this time. Remember to control your current subordinates to avoid any surprises. All that's waiting for you is a decapitation, so just step aside and wait! " His eyes turned to Zhang Kedao: "How to deal with Kong Youde's rebel troops outside the city. Does Mr. Zhang have any countermeasures? Zhang Keda shook his head slightly and said: "The soldiers of the Dengzhou Battalion have just experienced a disastrous defeat, and the Kong Youde rebels outside the city were suddenly joined by a large number of Liaodong soldiers. Their morale is high. It is not suitable to continue to fight with them in the field at this time. They must defend the city and wait for reinforcements." , is the best policy. " Sun Yuanhua nodded slowly. He turned his gaze to the officials in the hall and asked, "Do you have any good ideas here? ¡± Sun Yuanhua glanced at Song Guanglan of Dengzhou Road, Wu Weicheng, the prefect of Dengzhou, Jia Mingjie, the magistrate of Penglai, Wang Ming, the magistrate of Penglai County, Zhang Keda, Denglai commander-in-chief, Zhang Tao, deputy commander-in-chief of Denglai, Geng Zhongming, commander of the standard battalion, guerrilla Chen Guangfu, etc. Civil and military officials, big and small. Seeing many officials in the hall, some were staring at the ground, and some were staring at one place with empty eyes. They all looked like they were thinking hard. Sun Yuanhua's eyebrows were frowning. A man in the uniform of a seventh-grade civil servant came out from the crowd and said, "My lord governor, I have some bad opinions, and I would like to express them for your consideration. " Sun Yuanhua turned his eyes to the speaker and relaxed his frown slightly. Two days ago, a foreign craftsman was robbed in Dengzhou City. The words and deeds of Wang Ming, the magistrate of Penglai County, left a deep impression on him. Sun Yuanhua's tone was relaxed. He said slowly: "If you have any high opinions, Magistrate Wang, feel free to speak, I and all of you are here to listen attentively!" " Wang Ming quickly bowed and said: "I don't dare. He straightened up and continued: "Kong Youde's rebellion has been going on for nearly a month now. They burned, killed, and looted through various state capitals along the way, making the entire hinterland of Shandong miserable. This has caused many constraints for the imperial court to use troops for external operations. From the Di newspaper, we learned that the imperial army is now dealing with Houjin slave soldiers and Shaanxi bandits. It was impossible to mobilize troops to encircle and suppress it for a while, and I was afraid that Kong Youde would dare to send troops to cause chaos. It is precisely to seize this favorable opportunity that the ruling and opposition parties cannot take into account for a while and take advantage of it. " Many officials in the lobby, including Sun Yuanhua and Zhang Keda, pricked up their ears. They listened carefully to what the magistrate Wang said. Wang Ming continued: "Kong Youde's people set up troops to cause chaos, just to gain benefits for themselves. There was no real intention to rebel against the imperial court. The lower official thought that before the rebels caused more harm, he took the initiative to recruit them. If he could be successfully recruited, this scourge of the local area could be quickly eliminated, and the imperial court would reduce the verbal criticism of our generation and others! "The proposal of Penglai County Magistrate Wang Ming immediately caused an uproar in the lobby, and civil and military officials began to confront each other. Zhang Keda pointed at Wang Ming and said: "What nonsense, Kong Youde's soldiers burned, killed and looted along the way, destroying everything they touched. After all, today I have killed and wounded many of my soldiers in Denglai. According to the laws of the Ming Dynasty, they are already unforgivable. As long as the court sends reinforcements, these clowns can be wiped out in one fell swoop. "Zhang Keda and several trusted generals around him agreed one after another, while Zhang Tao, Geng Zhongming, Chen Guangfu and others remained silent. Most people on the civilian side nodded in agreement with Wang Ming's proposal. They could conquer the rebels outside the city without bloodshed and minimize their own losses. Dengzhou Road Song Guanglan ignored Zhang Keda's accusations. Although Zhang Keda was two levels higher than him, he did not get his favor. ?View. I had seen Sun Yuanhua¡¯s irritable and anxious expression before. After hearing the proposal from Penglai County Magistrate Wang Ming, he obviously restrained himself and even showed a smile. It seems that the governor has already had this plan in mind! This Wang Ming's proposal is in line with the governor's wishes. Song Guanglan bowed to Sun Yuanhua and said: "I think what the Penglai County magistrate said is to the point and is the best way to solve the current situation. I also ask the governor to make a decision." Dengzhou prefect Wu Weicheng, Tongzhi Jia Mingjie and other officials The minor civil servants agreed one after another and asked the governor to recruit Kong Youde's rebels. Sun Yuanhua has long been inclined to recruit Kong Youde's rebels. Being able to quickly subdue Kong Youde's rebels can at least alleviate the verbal criticism of him by the imperial censors and officials in the court, and let those who cause trouble have less excuses, which can somewhat alleviate the pressure of the chief minister Zhou. pressure. ! ! ! (To be continued)