Southern Ming Rebel Army

In order to keep abreast of the external situation, Meng Jun had sent out all his scouts to investigate Li Chengdong's troops in the direction of Jiading. At the same time, he sent Yang En to Shaoxing to contact the Lu Wang regime. On the one hand, he stepped up preparations for war, and on the other hand, he sent people to contact small groups of rebel forces in various places.

Meng Jun stood on the top of Suzhou City and looked into the city. Suzhou is a thousand-year-old ancient city. It was the capital of Wu State in the Spring and Autumn Period, the seat of Kuaiji County in the Qin and Han Dynasties, and an important town in the south of the Yangtze River during the Jin and Southern and Northern Dynasties. The city is prosperous and luxurious, and people all say "There is heaven above and Suzhou and Hangzhou below." Suzhou's geographical location is very important. It has been a battleground for military strategists since ancient times. Meng Jun stood on the top of the city and looked into the city. He couldn't help but sigh in his heart that the prosperous place was about to turn into a bloody battle. Meng Jun was determined to defend Suzhou and use war instead of training.

Meng Jun was patrolling the city walls. There were five people guarding each battlement at all times. Stones and wood were ready. There were more than a hundred cans of flaming oil in the Suzhou treasury. Scouts were also constantly investigating the movements of the surrounding Qing troops. Lin Shiqi and Han Xiong were accompanying Meng Jun at the moment.

"Shiqi, how long do you think it will take for the Qing army to arrive?" Meng Jun asked casually.

"In ten days at the shortest and half a month at the latest, the Qing army will arrive," Lin Shiqi said solemnly.

Meng Jun nodded. In fact, Meng Jun knew in his heart that Suzhou was an important town in the south of the Yangtze River and the Qing army would definitely take it back as soon as possible. Meng Jun knew that the Qing army would never wait for a long time before coming. Half a month was already a luxury. Ten days, Meng Jun only had ten days to prepare.

"Governor, what we are most worried about now is that the Qing army will delay the siege for too long. Without reinforcements, even the strongest city will be difficult to defend," Lin Shiqi said to Meng Jun worriedly.

"I know. I have sent Yang En to ask for help from King Lu of Shaoxing. If one is alone, the other will be in trouble. If they are not stupid, they will understand." Meng Jun said slowly, leaning on the battlements while looking outside the city.

Lin Shiqi nodded and said, "I hope so."

Han Xiong said with a worried look on his face, "There are many new soldiers in the city, and I'm afraid the militia is useless. I'm not worried about the future now, but I'm afraid that the Qing army will attack fiercely and the city walls will not be able to hold out, then Suzhou will be finished."

"Yes, the first time is always the most difficult, but we are united in our efforts. I don't believe that the Qing army can take it down in one go."

After walking for a while, Meng Jun suddenly felt a little uneasy. Given the nature of the Southern Ming Dynasty, it was hard to say for sure. Now Prince Lu was also fighting with Emperor Longwu in Fujian. What would he do if he really didn't come?

Thinking of this, Meng Jun said to Han Xiong, "Brother Han, I want you to go out of the city to contact the rebels. You can decide the timing yourself. You can take a thousand people with you. You can take as much silver and grain as you want from the treasury."

Han Xiong was surprised and said, "I am leaving Suzhou. If there is any accident in the city, can the governor make sure it is safe?"

"I can only gamble. If everyone gathers in the city, once the Qing army sieges the city, it will be lost if we defend it for too long. So, Brother Han, you will be our surprise force."

"As you command, Commander-in-Chief," Han Xiong solemnly clasped his fists towards Meng Jun, then turned and headed towards the city.

All the pig iron and wrought iron in Suzhou were purchased by the Henggang Army and used to make armor. All the blacksmiths who could make armor were recruited to the Military Equipment Bureau. More than a hundred spears and swords could be made every day, a thousand arrowheads could be made, and about forty to fifty sets of armor could be made in half a month. When Meng Jun arrived at the Military Equipment Bureau, he saw a scene of bustling activity. Money and grain from the treasury were spent like water, and the entire Suzhou city fell into a scene of abnormal prosperity.

Zhu Tu accompanied Meng Jun to check the military equipment bureau with sweat on his forehead. He took Meng Jun to see the fire gun production area. Meng Jun came in and saw that there were forty or fifty people drilling pipes. Zhu Tu said to Meng Jun, "Commander-in-chief, the production of fire guns is too slow. The first batch will come out in a month, and there are only fifty or sixty guns in a batch. I searched all over Suzhou City and found only eighty-two craftsmen who can make fire guns. They were all made for the sea merchants who went out to sea."

Meng Jun frowned and said, "It's too slow. Find more apprentices to help."

"Yes, Governor, I will arrange it right away," Zhu Tu nodded and agreed.

After visiting the Military Equipment Bureau, Meng Jun returned to the prefectural hall. Just as he sat down, Gao Yi came in and said, "Governor, the old lady is here. She is almost outside the gate."

Meng Jun was startled, then quickly stood up and walked outside the hall. He looked closely and saw Meng Bian standing outside the hall. When Meng Bian saw Meng Jun, he knelt on one knee and bowed with tears in his eyes, saying, "Master, I have fulfilled my mission. The old lady has been picked up safely. After I picked up the old lady, I hid all the way. When I returned to Lizhuang, I heard that the young master had taken Suzhou. I didn't dare to stop for a moment. I just arrived in Suzhou."

Meng Jun helped Meng Bian up, patted Meng Bian's shoulder and looked at the carriage outside the door. After Meng Jun started the rebellion, he felt really sorry for the old lady. The old lady could have enjoyed her old age, but because of Meng Jun's rebellion, she had to leave her family and career to follow him at such an old age. Meng Jun walked outside the carriage, bowed respectfully and said, "Mother, I am unfilial."

The maid Huan'er was no longer as glamorous as she used to be in Changshu Mansion. She was now covered in dust and dirt. She looked at Meng Jun with complicated eyes and then helped Old Madam Zhou out.

When Old Lady Zhou came out and saw Meng Jun, she sighed and said, "My son has grown up. If you want to do something big like this, I can't stop you. It's just a pity that the foundation passed down by the ancestors of the Meng family will be wasted."

Meng Jun looked at the old lady, only to see her looking at him with some reproach. Meng Jun lowered his head again and said, "Every man has his share of responsibility for the fate of his country. Since ancient times, loyalty and filial piety cannot be achieved at the same time."

"Well, since you have already done it, you have to go all the way. I am old, you don't need to worry about me." The old lady saw that Meng Jun felt a little guilty and comforted him. Meng Jun saw that the old lady was a little tired, so he asked Gao Yi to take people to clean up the room for the old lady to rest.

.........

"Bi'an, did you encounter any trouble when you went back this time?" Meng Jun asked Meng Bi'an after the old lady returned to her room.

"Master, there was nothing unusual on the way back. We could have slowly evacuated everyone in the mansion, but the day after we returned, Song Jianping returned to Changshu. As soon as he returned, Guard Wang knew that you were rebelling, so he brought people to arrest the old lady. Fortunately, we saw the opportunity quickly and took the old lady out a day in advance. Everyone else in the mansion was also dismissed."

Meng Jun nodded and said, "I'm glad you came back safely, Bi'an. Now that you're back, take a few days off."

"Master, I'm not tired. I can accompany you," Meng Bian said to Meng Jun with a smile.

"You take a rest first. After you've rested, follow me like before," Meng Jun said with a smile.

Soldiers in the Suzhou military camp were practicing their spear formations in unison. "Thrust... withdraw... thrust... withdraw." In Lin Shiqi's opinion, these were all new recruits, far from being comparable to the elite troops of the frontier army. However, in just a few days of practice, they were already much better than when they were just reorganized. Lin Shiqi even thought cruelly that it would only take a few battles for the elite troops to survive. Didn't the old camp of Li Zicheng and his men become elite troops through repeated bloody battles? The bloody battle of Suzhou was not far away!