After all, as the lord of Jinhaizhen, Yang Zhen cannot leave his fundamental place for a long time.

But if Yang Zhen wanted to leave Zhenjiang Fort with peace of mind and lead the main force of the Eastern Expedition Army back to Lushunkou, he certainly couldn't just leave.

At least before leaving, Yang Zhen must make clear arrangements for the military defense in the Zhenjiang Fort area, such as the candidates for the generals who will stay at Zhenjiang Fort, the troops who will stay at Zhenjiang Fort and its surrounding areas, etc., etc., all must be properly arranged.

After Yang Zhen led his army for several months and fought many battles, the Zhenjiang Fort City was finally captured. It could not fall into the hands of the Qing captives again just because of his departure.

Although the gains and losses of Zhenjiang Fort have nothing to do with the life and death of the entire Jinhai Town, whether or not this place can be firmly controlled is directly related to the future growth of Jinhai Town.

For Yang Zhen, and even for the entire Jinhai Town, Zhenjiang Fort was a nail firmly nailed into the Qinglu's rear, and it was the first nail nailed into the coffin of the Qinglu Eight Banners.

On the one hand, from the strategic point of view of fighting against the Qing Dynasty, this place is in a superior location, right at the intersection of the water and land channels that enter the Yajiang waterway from the sea and the north from Zhuanghebao Castle on Jinhai East Road.

If this place can be firmly in his own hands, even if Yang Zhen only keeps troops to defend the city and does not send troops deep into the hinterland of the Qing captives, it will still be a powerful restraint for the Qing captives.

As long as the soldiers and horses of Jinhai Town firmly occupy this place, the Qing captives will never be able to march into western Liaoning or into the hinterland of the Ming Pass without any worries like before.

On the other hand, from the perspective of Yang Zhen's management of Jinhai Town, only by occupying this place can the future of Jinhai Town be clear and have unlimited space for continued growth and expansion.

First of all, after the soldiers and horses of Jinhai Town occupied the Zhenjiang Fort, they actually blocked the entrance and exit of the main channel of the Yajiang River.

At the same time, it was equivalent to blocking the Qing Dynasty's last chance to build a shipyard in the upper reaches of the Yajiang River, rebuild the navy, and then send troops to the rear of Jinhai Town.

Yang Zhen was not worried that the Qing puppet emperor Huang Taiji would build a navy in the lower reaches of the Liaohe River or at the mouth of the Liaohe River.

From a geographical point of view, the mouth of the Liaohe River is close to the sea and the location is very advantageous. It is also a good place to build a navy.

But the conditions there are far less superior than those in the Yajiang Estuary.

First, there are plains or swamps near the mouth of the Liaohe River, and there is not enough high-quality wood such as giant hardwoods that can be used for shipbuilding.

On the contrary, this kind of giant wood suitable for building sea-going ships is everywhere in the deep mountains and old forests on both sides of the middle and upper reaches of the Yajiang River. After being harvested, it can be thrown into the river nearby and flowed to the downstream shipyards.

However, Liaohe Estuary does not have such conditions.

Both, it is located in the northernmost part of Liaodong Bay. It freezes very early in winter and melts later than other sea areas in spring.

Such a situation might not have been fatal in the past, such as before Yang Zhen moved to defend Jinhai Town.

But now, when the town of Jinhai has risen, and the various naval warships in Jinhai town have gained control of the sea in Liaodong Bay, the puppet emperor Huang Taiji of the Qing Dynasty can only have a wishful thinking if he wants to build a large navy at the mouth of the Liaohe River.

No matter how much he invests, he will lose as much as he invests. In the end, everything will be in vain.

Therefore, in this regard, just to block the Qing Dynasty's way of building warships and naval forces in the middle reaches of the Yajiang River, it was already worth Yang Zhen's war to capture the Zhenjiang Fort City.

Of course, for the future growth of Jinhaizhen, in addition to safety, Yang Zhen also hopes to expand a larger living space.

He hoped to occupy more land suitable for reclamation and cultivation, and hoped to resettle more landless refugees who crossed the sea from Guanli and headed north.

As long as the soldiers and horses of Jinhai Town firmly occupy Zhenjiang Fort, it is actually equivalent to completely occupying a large coastal area south of Zhenjiang Fort and east of the Yajiang River.

Therefore, a small Zhenjiang Fort occupied a very important position in the game between Jinhai Town and the Qing Dynasty puppet emperor Huang Taiji.

If the defense here and the immigration and reclamation affairs that will be implemented after the arrival of spring cannot be arranged in advance, Yang Zhen will not leave easily no matter what.

Because of this, in order to arrange these things, after Yang Zhen met Qiu Biyong and learned about all aspects of the situation in western Liaoning, he quickly sent messengers from Zhenjiang Fort to Xiuyan Fort and Zhuanghe Fort to deliver orders.

After Yang Zhen called Zu Keyong and Yu Liangtai to arrange the defense of Xiuyan Fort and Zhuanghe Fort, they brought Shen Qicheng, Lin Qingye and others to Zhenjiang Fort as soon as possible to discuss matters.

At the same time, Yang Zhen did not forget to ask Liu Lin to send someone to contact his in-laws, that is, Marshal Shen Qiyuan of the Northern Second Military Command of Hening State who was in charge of Pyongyang Fucheng.

From Xu Tingxuan's narration, Yang Zhen already knew a lot about the changes in the Li Dynasty. At the same time, he also knew that Shen Qiyuan actively responded to the order of shaving his hair and changing clothes in front of Huang Taiji, thereby preserving his position in the new Hening Kingdom.

And under the approval of Huang Taiji, he left Pingluo City.

Although Yang Zhen didn't know why Shen Qiyuan had not sent anyone to contact him so far, many of Yang Zhen's next deployments were inseparable from Shen Qiyuan's cooperation.

So no matter what Shen Qiyuan was thinking, Yang Zhen had to get in touch with him as soon as possible.

And to be honest, now that things have come to this point, Yang Zhen is not afraid that Shen Qiyuan will not cooperate with him.

Under the current situation, Shen Qiyuan had no choice but to cooperate with him and bind himself more deeply.

Including the road of being loyal to the Qing Dynasty, he has no way to go.

Although he actively responded to the Qing Dynasty puppet emperor Huang Taiji's order to shave his hair and change his clothes, it seemed that he left a pretty good impression on Huang Taiji. However, as long as he secretly protected Liu Lin, Lin Qingye and other defected ministers' families were exposed, he would be

It's a dead end.

Therefore, under the current circumstances, he can only have a future if he continues to cooperate with himself, or even if he is firmly bound to himself.

In this way, after Yang Zhen sent out several messengers, he was thinking about the future defense arrangements around Zhenjiang Fort while waiting for the arrival of several major generals who had been summoned by him.

The generals who guarded the city of Zhenjiang Fort, who were unaware of Yang Zhen's hidden worries, learned from Qiu Biyong the reason why the Qing puppet emperor Huang Taiji withdrew his troops. They all knew that Zhenjiang Fort was now as stable as a mountain, and the morale of the troops suddenly increased.

stand up.

Everyone was beaming with joy from top to bottom, and they were full of energy in everything they did. They cleaned the battlefield, took inventory of seizures, renovated the city defenses, and expanded the warehouses. They were working in full swing.

Because for many of them, now that the battle on Zhenjiang Fort is over, the next step is to reward them based on their merits.

And now, it is their last chance to show their strength in front of Yang Zhen.

If we don't perform well at this time, if we don't take advantage of the opportunity of taking Zhenjiang Castle and repelling the siege of the Qing Dynasty to move forward, who knows where the next opportunity like this will be.

Including Song Guofu, who never received a clear appointment after surrendering, he cut off his braid early and shaved his head into a monk's head. He rushed to Qiu Zhenhai, Jin Yukui, Yang Shen and others every day, doing his best while asking these people to help Yang Shen.

Tell the story.

From Qiu Zhenhai and Yang Shen, Yang Zhen also learned that Song Guofu was good at using artillery with his troops, so he hoped to be incorporated into the artillery regiment of the Eastern Expeditionary Army and become a battalion leader who would continue to use artillery.

However, Yang Zhen has never thought about this and has not yet made up his mind, so he has not summoned him for a long time and has not made clear arrangements for him.

The reason why Yang Zhen did not make up his mind was not entirely because Song Guofu and his troops had not yet gained Yang Zhen's complete trust.

In fact, the two Tatars like Shi Mingxiong and Song Guofu who have returned anyway will have no other way out except following Yang Zhen and serving Yang Zhen.

Especially on the Qinglu side, Shi Mingxiong, Song Guofu and their troops had no way of turning back.

Therefore, at least on the battlefield in the Qinglu rear area in Liaodong, Yang Zhen was not worried that they would suddenly betray him and return to the Qinglu side.

In fact, Yang Zhen is thinking more about the city defense of Zhenjiang Fort and the defense of nearby areas after he leads his army to leave.

Once Yang Zhen leaves Zhenjiang Fort, he will inevitably take away several main regiments and battalions of the Eastern Conquest Army, among which Yang Shen's artillery regiment and battalion are the most important.

If Song Guofu and his troops are integrated into the artillery regiment of the Eastern Conquest Army, then when he leaves Zhenjiang Fort next time, should they follow him?

If they leave Zhenjiang Fort with the Artillery Regiment and Battalion of the Eastern Conquest Army, what will happen to the defense of Zhenjiang Fort?

Yang Zhen has now seen clearly that to this day, his side relies on the strong city to carry out defensive operations and cannot do without the heavy artillery team.

Of course, the same goes for siege.

If the attacking party does not have enough heavy artillery, they will suffer huge casualties under the fortified city.

And if the defending side does not have enough heavy artillery, no matter how strong the fortified city is, it will eventually fail.

Therefore, Yang Zhen deliberately wanted to leave a heavy artillery team that was good at using heavy artillery in this place where he could advance, attack, retreat and defend when he left Zhenjiang Fort.

On the one hand, after I leave here, if Jierhalang or other Qing rebels come back, Zhenjiang Fort has a heavy artillery team, which is enough to protect itself.

On the other hand, when I return to this place in the future and launch a large-scale attack on the rear of the Qing Dynasty, the heavy artillery team left here can continue to play a role, and I will not have to travel thousands of miles with too many heavy artillery teams.

After all, each of Tianyou's heavy artillery weighs three to four thousand kilograms. It is very difficult to go south or north on the east coast of the Liaodong Peninsula where there is no thoroughfare when the offshore sea is frozen and cannot be navigable by large ships.

The heavy artillery team that Yang Zhen planned to stay in Zhenjiang Fort to help defend the city was Song Guofu's heavy artillery team.

If they are now organized into the artillery regiment and camp of the advance army for the Eastern Expedition, then in the future the order will have to be changed day and night to transfer them out of the artillery regiment and camp, which will be very inconvenient.

Therefore, the arrangements for Song Guofu and his troops are one of a series of arrangements Yang Zhen will make for Zhenjiang Fort in the future. He cannot make specific appointments separately until he has sorted out the entire issue.

However, this day came soon.
Chapter completed!