Chapter 830 Preparation

Without a ship, the soldiers and horses brought by the Duke of Zhen can't stop the rebels on the river, which means that the rebels will enter Nanjing from the Qinhuai River channel without hindrance, and a melee of more than 100,000 troops in the city will be inevitable. Everyone knows the terrible thing about this matter. Nanjing is prosperous and has a large population. If the war unfolds in the city, the suffering and destruction it will be unimaginable.

Nanjing officials who realized this quickly put forward a request to evacuate the people of Nanjing immediately. The opinions were divided into two factions. Some insisted that the people should issue a notice to evacuate immediately, while others thought it was not feasible. The two sides blushed and argued that they would not give in to each other's reasons.

Song Nan frowned and sat behind the desk, and his face was quite bad. Finally, he couldn't stand it. He got up and patted the table and shouted, "Don't quarrel. What's the purpose of noise?"

The officials were as cicadas and retreated to their original positions.

"Eval from the people? Thanks to you for coming up with it. How to evacuate millions of people in Nanjing? How to settle so many people? Spring is cold, and the night is cold and piercing. Do you let them sleep in the wilderness and freeze to death?

"But...the Duke..."

"No, however, it is absolutely impossible to evacuate the people. Not only is it not feasible, but also not allowed in time, but also because once we evacuate the people, we will lose people's hearts and morale, and we will lose this battle without fighting."

"Grandpa, you can't bet on the lives of millions of people. Once the city is broken... the consequences..." Wu Songyuan, the minister of the Ministry of Criminal Justice of Nanjing, muttered in a low voice.

Song Nan turned his head and shouted, "Who told you that the city must be broken? Moreover, Zhu Chenhao's rebellion was an attempt at Daming Society. He did not lead a Tatar soldiers and horses. Even if he captured Nanjing, the first thing to do was to comfort people's hearts. Do you think he would slaughter the city and kill all the people? Stupid words."

Everyone nodded one after another, and their hearts were too rebellious against Zhu Chenhao, but they forgot that Zhu Chenhao was also surnamed Zhu and a descendant of Taizu.

"We are here to discuss how to defeat the rebels, but you have been talking about the destruction of Nanjing, which is unique in the battle led by Song. Song has really seen the thoughts of all the adults in Nanjing. You should understand the importance of Nanjing. This is the capital of my Ming Dynasty, which is the core of Jiangnan. Whether in terms of strategic significance or people's hearts, this place must not be lost. Once Nanjing falls, the situation will turn sharply and the rebellion will be far away. If you can't suppress the rebellion in a short time, but let Zhu Chenhao stabilize his foothold in Nanjing, then there will be two Ming dynasties in the south and north. Have you ever thought about this situation?

The officials were silent. Even the incompetent and mediocre officials knew that what Song Nan said was not dangerous words. The Yangtze River was like a god splitting the upper and lower half of China with a knife. Since ancient times, many dynasties have used this as a boundary to form a situation of north-south division. This river is a natural border. As long as the regime at any end guards this chasm, it can rest assured. To cross this chasm, there will be an immeasurable price.

Even at the time of Zhao and Song, Meng Yuan was strong. After destroying the Northern Song Dynasty, he still could not cross the Yangtze River for decades, allowing the Southern Song Dynasty to continue for more than 150 years, which is clear evidence.

"The prince is angry, and you are just considering the worst situation. The problem now is that our warships are in short supply, and we really can't resist the enemy on the river, and there is nothing we can do." Huang Jue came up and whispered.

Song Nan slowly got up and paced, and suddenly pointed to Mao 18 and said, "General Mao, although only 33 warships of your navy can be used, is it possible to repair those damaged warships?"

Mao 18 frowned and said, "Those ships need to be repaired. Either the bottom of the ship is leaking, or the deck ship is rotten, and there is something wrong with the mast rudder. How can my sailor have the money to repair them..."

Song Nan interrupted him and said, "If I make a payment to you, can you repair the available ship within two days?"

Mao 18's eyes lit up and said, "If there is enough money, the craftsmen in the city will be immediately recruited to repair them day and night. In addition to those ships with big problems, it is possible to get 50 or 60 usable boats. However, these ships are only functional and can't be compared with new ships.

Song Nan said happily, "As long as it doesn't sink on the river, can 50 or 60 ships come out in two days?"

Mao 18 said, "I dare not say more. This number is absolutely okay."

Song Nan waved his fist and said, "Well, I will immediately send someone to allocate 100,000 taels of silver. Don't delay here. From now on, your duty is to supervise the repair of ships day and night, and be sure to get these 50 or 60 available ships out."

Mao 18 arched his hand and shouted, "If you can't finish the explanation of the Duke of Zhen, I will come to see you with my head in my hand."

Song Nan smiled and said, "I don't want your head, I just want a boat. Go ahead."

Mao 18 raised his foot and left. Song Nan suddenly remembered something and shouted, "Just wait."

Mao 18 stopped and turned around doubtfully. Song Nan said, "There is one more thing that needs your help, General Mao. The soldiers and horses I lead are all elite in the Beijing camp. Although there is absolutely no problem with their land operations, they are laymen in water combat. General Mao has been with a navy for more than ten years, and your men must be familiar with water combat. I need you to send your capable people to the Jiangpu camp immediately and seize the time to teach our battalion lieutenant generals and soldiers the key points of water warfare. I don't expect them to become proscipative of water warfare. They just need to understand the essentials of simple water warfare. General Mao may be able to do it?

Mao 18 arched his hand and said, "The Duke of Zhen is thoughtful and should be like this. Finally, he will go back and arrange for the repair of the ship and take people to Jiangpu Camp in person."

Song Nan arched her hand and smiled and said, "General Mao is here."

Mao 18 was excited and his eyes were red, not because Song Nan was so polite to him, but because he had served in the Nanjing Marine Division for more than ten years. The Marine Division had always been despised by other soldiers and horses, calling them water mice, doing nothing and consuming the food and salaries of the imperial court. Mao 18 is also at a bad time with Nanjing officials and has never been looked at by them.

Today, Mao 18 is raising his eyebrows and exhaling. There is no doubt that his sailor will play an important role in this rebellion. This is the time when Mao 18 has expected to show his skills for more than 18 years. Mao 18 is somewhat grateful for Zhu Chenhao's rebellion.

Song Nan saw Mao 18 go out of the government and turned around and said, "If General Mao can get another 50 or 60 ships, we will have hundreds of warships available. But this is not enough. In order to block the rebels on the river, more ships are needed. There is no way to have warships for a while, but civilian boats are also available. Ladies and gentlemen, at present, the officials here need to put down everything and immediately call for civilian boats for my use. This is what I ask you to do. Regardless of the size and style, the ships are all gathered at the mouth of the Qinhuai River, and there must be no mistake.

Officials finally understand Song Nan's determination to end the rebellion here. The number of soldiers and ships in Nanjing is small, but there are many civilian boats. There are many fishermen on the river, fishing boats and cruise ships on Mochou Lake, and small boats on the Qinhuai River. Although it takes some time to gather these ships, they will definitely reap a lot. It's just that whether these ships can enter the battle is another matter.

Many people hold the same mind, but they only have to carry out the orders of the Grand Duke, and don't have to worry too much about other things. If they accidentally touch the Duke of Zhen's reverse scales, it is not beautiful. Now in Nanjing City, everyone is a foil. The Grand Duke is the one who controls the overall situation, which annoys him and cut him with a knife. I have nowhere to avenge myself.

For a while, nine cities in Nanjing widely publicized notices to collect ships used by the army. The people of Nanjing knew that this was a life-and-death battle. At the critical moment, their awareness was not low. Many people saw the notice and took the initiative to drive their boats to the mouth of the Qinhuai River to gather.

The news spread rapidly in the city. The topic of the people who slaughter dogs and the inner houses of dignitaries is all about this war of rebellion, and the name of Song Nan, the leading Duke of Zhen, has also spread all over the streets and alleys of Nanjing. All the past about the prince has also been dug out as a discussion, and some people even know that the prince once came to Nanjing and had a secret relationship with Shen Yunyan girl in Yunxiao Pavilion.

"Hey, do you know? Song Nan, the Duke of Zhen, once had a good time with Shen Yunyan in Yunxiao Pavilion. The year before last, the Huakui competition was when the Duke of Zhen hid in her flower boat to make suggestions, so that Shen Yunyan made a series of tricks to suppress the crowd. If everyone hadn't been killed and the finals had been cancelled, it would have been possible for Shen Yunyan to win the championship.

"Really? This is the first time I heard that why didn't Shen Yunyan go to the capital with the Duke of Zhen? It's strange."

"Bah... pig brain, who is the Duke of Zhen? His wife is the princess of the British Mansion. His concubines are all official ladies. How can it be so easy to enter the Duke of Zhen? Although Shen Yunyan is full of appearance, after all, it is the identity of a brothel. Will the princess's wife allow her to enter the house?

"Yes, it's a pity. I said that Shen Yunyan has always refused to be good. Although he is in charge of Yunxiao Pavilion, I haven't seen him appear for the rest of the year. Many people who want to spend a lot of money to kiss Fangze can't get what they want. I think it's about the old feelings of the Duke of Zhen, but she is an affectionate woman.

"Yes, this time the Duke of Zhen came to suppress the rebellion. I would like to see if Shen Yunyan will go to the Duke of Zhen after hearing this news, and whether the relationship between the two will resume. Tut-t-tut, it must be very exciting."

"Damn, everyone is worried about this war, but your boy cares about this. It's really hopeless."

"Can't you care about it? Who knows if there is still life after this war? It's really boring. I'll go first.

“......”

These words were quietly circulated privately, which became a little seasoning in the tense atmosphere, covering the upcoming cruel war with a layer of pink ambiguity.