Chapter 4220 Split the Zheng family
Heavy rain poured down, and the city wall that was blown down by gunpowder looked like the gaping teeth of a giant beast. The messy bricks and stones were piled up in all directions. The corpses of soldiers almost filled the place, and extended from there towards the city. Blood was diluted by the rain and flowed everywhere.
The defenders who had put down their weapons stood dumbly in the city, looking at the extremely tragic scene in front of them, their hearts filled with fear. The rows of heavily armored infantry waiting outside the city were like countless giant beasts. Although they were quiet and orderly, But he will pounce on anyone at any time to choose someone and devour him.
Zheng Rentai endured the pain and wounds on his body and walked step by step from the barracks. Along the way, he saw that all the soldiers under his command were looking miserable and distracted. It was obvious that they had lost their courage and morale. He couldn't help but shake his head and sighed in his heart. A sound.
He is a veteran of hundreds of battles and has been on the battlefield for half his life. Naturally, he knows that such an army will be difficult to win a war no matter what.
After all, unlike the Sixteen Guards in Suwei Pass and the hundreds of battle divisions who fought against foreign tribes in various frontiers for many years, these private armies guarding Xingyang City have never really set foot on the battlefield, and have never seen life or death. They are just a group of people wearing clothes. Sheep in wolf skins usually run rampant in the countryside, but now they are facing a pack of real wolves, and they will naturally collapse at the first touch...
Fortunately, he had experienced a huge defeat in the Battle of Banzhu, but he still hoped that such an army could gain some initiative for him. It was simply crazy.
At this point, all the little thoughts were gone, and all the ministries were strictly ordered to stay where they were and not to move without permission. Then they took several elders of the Zheng clan who had already arrived, wrapped in raincoats, and walked out through the gap in the collapsed city wall.
The sky is dark, dark clouds are rolling in, and the rain is not letting up at all.
With his eyes narrowed under the bamboo hat, Zheng Rentai looked at the motionless battle formation with thousands of men and horses on the opposite side, and his evaluation of the navy's combat effectiveness was improved again and again, especially since not only was it invincible in water battles, but it was also invincible in land battles. Such strength and sharpness made him even more shocked and frightened... If he had known this, why would he have done something extra and ended up in the current situation of losing face?
"Alas!"
A clan elder on the left sighed and said quietly: "During the Guanlong Mutiny, Donggong Liu led his own force to resist the fierce attack of an enemy that was more than ten times stronger, laying the foundation for the Youtun Guards' strange troops to break into the Jinguang Gate and win a complete victory. foundation; now this navy is not only invincible at sea, but also invincible in land warfare... With these two armies The troops are in the east and west, inside and outside. No matter how the King of Jin looks at it, there is no possibility of success. Before, we relied on the Shandong family and had to recruit private soldiers to support Tongguan, but the previous battle of Banzhu plus this. After the defeat in Xingyang, Rentai, you are a little impatient.”
"Rentai" is originally the character of Zheng Rentai, and his famous work is "Zheng Guang", which is written in characters...
As soon as this person finished speaking, another person said: "Who says it's not true? The entire Shandong family raised private soldiers to support Tongguan. Even if the King of Jin is defeated in the end, it will not be easy for His Majesty to pursue him. After all, the law does not blame everyone, but this time I'm afraid it won't be easy to explain after trying to block the navy. Someone has to be responsible for it to eliminate the anger of His Majesty and Fang Jundao, otherwise the whole family will be implicated."
Zheng Rentai frowned.
A person on his right said dissatisfiedly: "Now that the matter has come to this, what's the use of saying these words? When Rentai led his army to defend Banzhu, you all agreed, and you thought you could use this to achieve the great cause of the Jin Dynasty. As for the military exploits, now that we have lost, we have to think about how to keep the family instead of being sarcastic."
Zheng Rentai suppressed his anger and remained silent.
The core of the inheritance of the clan lies in the set of rules of "ancestral succession" that have been passed down for thousands of years. In short, it is the "inheritance system of the eldest son". The "eldest son" is always the first in line of succession. .
But things are unpredictable, and no rules can be consistent and remain unchanged forever.
Whenever we encounter troubled times, no matter how powerful the family is, they will rise and fall, rise and fall in the chaos, or establish new branches, or establish direct descendants, all for the sake of the survival and inheritance of the family.
For example, at this moment, once the King of Jin is defeated, the Zheng family in Xingyang will inevitably suffer a thunderous suppression from the emperor and the court, even more than other Shandong aristocratic families. The family inheritance is at stake. Under such circumstances, the most important thing is for someone to stand up and take all the blame, and to take out the entire family.
And he, Zheng Rentai, is naturally the best person to bear the responsibility.
He, Zheng Rentai, takes responsibility and will be punished. Regardless of his life or death, it will be difficult for him to continue to control the blood heirs of the Zheng family temple in Xingyang. The inheritance will naturally fall behind the other direct descendants...
The real situation has not yet come, and his family has already begun to fight for power and gain, and even throw him out, the head of the family who led the Zheng family in Xingyang to achieve greater glory, in order to appease the anger of the emperor and Fang Jundao.
I have spent half my life worrying about my family, going through life and death, and ended up with this ending...
Suddenly, the well-organized heavy armored infantry in front of them moved slowly. The middle part spread out to both sides, revealing a passage. A group of cavalry came galloping from far to near. The sound of horse hooves trampling on the muddy ground was heard by the soldiers standing on both sides. Blocking and shrinking, it became increasingly deafening, even covering up the sound of rain all over the sky.
Suddenly, this group of cavalry came galloping through the wind, rain, and wind, until they were in front of Zheng Rentai and his party. They suddenly reined in the reins, raised the front hooves of the war horse, and let out a "Herodian" neighing. With the powerful momentum, it was breathtaking. .
Zheng Rentai raised his head slightly, and his eyes under the bamboo hat intertwined with the leading general on the opposite side through the rain curtain. The man was holding the reins and riding on the horse, looking down at him. His face under the hat was as cold as iron. , not satisfied.
After a pause, Zheng Rentai took a breath, knelt on one knee in the muddy water, and said loudly: "Xingyang Zheng Rentai, I have met General Liu!"
The elders of the clan around them did not dare to make excuses. They looked at the back of Zheng Rentai kneeling on the ground in front of him with complicated eyes. They all bowed to the ground and said in unison: "I have seen General Liu!"
Liu Rengui sat on horseback with his upper body straight, standing still in the wind and rain.
Behind him, thousands of soldiers and horses were lined up and their morale was as high as a rock.
For a few moments, the only sound between heaven and earth was the sound of rain.
Zheng Rentai's heart was shocked, and his heart slowly sank. Could it be that Liu Rengui really had the intention to annex Xingyang and exterminate the Zheng family...
A moment later, he heard a "pop" sound, and someone jumped off the horse and knelt on the ground. It was the voice of his eldest son Zheng Xuanguo: "The Zheng family in Xingyang is loyal to the Tang Dynasty and has absolutely no rebellious intentions! The reason why my father To stop the navy, someone in the Gaiyin clan was bribed by a traitor to deceive my father. Please ask General Liu to find out and allow the Zheng family in Xingyang to serve your majesty! "
Listening to this voice, Zheng Rentai, who was gradually despairing, felt relieved and filled with relief...
But behind him, the elders of the Zheng clan who had previously tried to push Zheng Rentai out to bear the wrath of the new emperor all felt a "thump" in their hearts, secretly thinking that something was wrong.
Someone must take the responsibility, and if it's not Zheng Rentai, it might be them. Originally, maybe Zheng Rentai would still protect them out of the love of his family, but just now they secretly and openly tried to get rid of Zheng Rentai, hoping that Zheng Rentai would take the initiative to be the scapegoat, but they didn’t know how Zheng Rentai would retaliate against them...
After a moment, Liu Rengui jumped off the horse, took two steps forward, put his hands on Zheng Rentai's shoulders, lifted him up with force, and said in a sincere tone: "How can I bear such a gift from the Duke? You are an honorable minister of Zhenguan, You have made great contributions to Sheji, please come up quickly, please come up quickly!”
Zheng Rentai used his strength to stand up, with a look of shame on his face: "I mistakenly believed in the villain's words, so that I made a mistake, causing the land of Shandong to be devastated by war, and not even a single one of the young and strong people in Xingyang remained. It is really a serious sin, and I am ashamed. I have no confidence in the late emperor and I have no face to see your majesty now.”
The elders of the Zheng clan behind him became increasingly panicked.
Sure enough, Liu Rengui said with emotion: "What did the Duke say? It is said that knowing a mistake can correct it, there is no great virtue. Now His Majesty's reputation for kindness is resounding throughout the world, and he respects and worships the Duke even more. What's more, the Zheng family in Xingyang is now attached to a Shandong family. Actually suffered an adulterer How can you blame the Duke for being deceived? It's just that military affairs have their own rules. Please point out who are disloyal, unjust, dependent and rebellious, and finally arrest them one by one, so that they can set the record straight and return justice to the County. I am innocent!”
All the Zheng clan members were trembling, but they could not say anything to beg for mercy.
As they said before, now that the city of Xingyang has been destroyed, someone must take responsibility for the actions of the Zheng family in Xingyang, either Zheng Rentai or the other direct branches of the Zheng family. Now that the navy has accepted Zheng Rentai's surrender, the person who takes responsibility must choose one of them.
Even if they can face Zheng Rentai's cynicism and wind and frost swords and force them to do so, they have the same goal as Zheng Rentai, which is the inheritance of the Zheng family in Xingyang.
Some people die for the family inheritance, and some people live for the family inheritance.
If we can't give an explanation to the navy and the new emperor, how can the Zheng family in Xingyang still have any chance of survival?
So now they can only wait silently for fate to be pronounced and see who Zheng Rentai chooses to bear this responsibility...
Zheng Rentai was silent for a while, then let out a long sigh.
He thought deeper than the clan elders behind him. The real purpose of Liu Rengui's move was not only to ask someone to take responsibility and appease the Zheng family, but also to use it to destroy the Zheng family's houses one by one and severely damage the foundation of the Zheng family in Xingyang. power.
Nowadays, there are three direct descendants of the Zheng family in Xingyang. One of them must bear the responsibility and be completely destroyed. Although the other one is still alive, how can he not be suspicious and resentful of him, the first direct descendant?
The Zheng family in Xingyang, which had already suffered heavy losses, was able to survive after this incident, but it was also severely damaged and would probably not be able to recover within a hundred years.
It can be regarded as being completely broken up...
This Liu Rengui... is a strategist, evil-minded and ruthless, and is definitely not a thing in the pool.
Feeling bitter in my heart, I had to smile bitterly and said: "This matter will be discussed later. I also ask General Liu to lead his troops into the city and take over the defense. I can also prepare a banquet to cleanse the general of the dust." (End of Chapter)
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