Since there were only empty cities left in the two prefectures and counties in Hejian, Baoding, the Ming army easily occupied them. There was no war, and naturally there were no battle losses. In each town, except for gold, silver, soft goods and food, there were no other pots and bowls. Ladles and other daily utensils are all available. When the Ming army entered it, it was like entering a comfortable home. In short, they didn't want to move again.
Moreover, no matter it is a big city or a small county, there are public bathhouses and various bathing facilities are also very complete. Just add water to the boiler and add firewood to the oven, and you can take a comfortable hot bath. This makes people tired All the Ming soldiers in the army felt like they were in heaven.
In big cities like Baoding Fucheng and Hejian Fucheng, there are actually many luxurious restaurants and teahouses, and tons of wine have not been moved away. This makes the Ming army soldiers even more delighted. The so-called The soldiers were drunk today, and many soldiers drank and caroused day and night, and some even fought for a few more sips of yellow soup.
The Ming army fell into a carnival feast. Even though Geng Xuan repeatedly issued orders to emphasize military discipline, the soldiers did not listen at all. They drank when they should and slept when they should. It was as if a regular army had been corrupted into an unorganized and undisciplined army. Even on the first day of April, when the whole army was scheduled to set out, many soldiers were still drunk.
In this state, the soldiers of the Ming army could not even walk down the aisle, let alone fighting. Geng Xuan had to wait for two more days for the soldiers to sober up. At the same time, he captured a few sharp-headed soldiers and chopped them off in public to scare the monkeys. However, Geng Xuan just After observing military discipline, I received an urgent military report. When I opened it and read it, I was dumbfounded.
"The Peiping water thieves have invaded the Yangtze River and have reached the outside of Jinling City. Upon hearing the report, all generals will quickly raise their troops to King Qin of Beijing."
"No wonder, no wonder." Geng Xuan was horrified and slapped herself on the head, "No wonder the Peking thieves retreated without a fight and abandoned the two prefectures of Baoding and Hejian. It turns out they really have other plans!"
As the Ming army was preparing to fight against the Peiping army, the main forces were sent to the north. There were not many garrison troops left in the Jinling area. The main force of the Peiping army took the sea route south and took advantage of the internal emptiness of the Ming Dynasty to raid Jinling, which was like a sharp knife. It pierces the heart of a person and kills with one blow.
"Quick, go and invite General Ping here. I want to reconsider the battle plan." After a brief shock, Geng Xuan regained his composure.
"General Geng, do we still need to discuss this? Jinling is the foundation of our Ming Dynasty. There is no room for failure. We must withdraw our troops immediately and return to rescue Jinling." Jing Qing, the imperial censor in charge of supervising the army, said in a panic. At this time, don't think about wiping out the Peking thieves. , the most important thing is to protect the imperial palace.
"Jinling needs to be rescued, but whether the whole army should be rescued or divided into groups can be decided after careful discussion. After all, we don't know whether the Peiping thieves are real or not. If we fell into their trap and retreated across the board, wouldn't it be a defeat? It's a good opportunity to suppress thieves." Geng Xuan rolled her eyes at Jing Qing. As a general who had experienced many life-and-death battles, he was not like a civil servant who would panic and be at a loss when encountering trouble.
Geng Xuan knew that according to intelligence, there were 120,000 troops in the Peking Army. Currently, more than 50,000 were trapped in the Korean battlefield and more than 40,000 were stationed on the Mongolian plateau. These troops would not be able to return to defend Peiping in a short period of time. Peiping had the largest number. There are only 30,000 garrison troops, which is a good opportunity given to the Ming army.
If you miss this opportunity, it will be too late to regret it. After the Peiping Army pacifies the Japanese army in Korea, the east will no longer have any worries. Once the 50,000-year-old army returns from Korea victorious, the balance of victory will tip to the Peiping Army. aside.
After all, the Peking Army was superior to the Ming Army not only in terms of the quality of its soldiers but also in terms of equipment. If the same number of Ming troops fought against the Peiping Army, the result would definitely be a crushing defeat. Even if they had more than 300,000 troops, Geng Xuan did not dare to say that he could stop the 100,000 Peking troops.
Precisely because the opportunity was too late and would never come again, Geng Xuan did not want to withdraw his troops. But when the imperial court asked him to return to King Qin in Beijing, he did not dare to disobey the order. After some weighing, he had a plan, and that was his own He led his 50,000 cavalry troops back to King Qin in Beijing quickly, while Ping Ping led his more than 200,000 cavalry troops to attack Beiping City in the hope of encircling Wei and rescuing Zhao.
Of course, there is also the risk of being annihilated by dividing the troops. Geng Xuan can't guarantee that it will succeed, so she wants to find Ping An and listen to his opinion. If he agrees to do this, then divide the troops and take action. And the military situation is like a fire. , while waiting for the arrival of the deputy general, he had already sent five thousand cavalry back south quickly.
Ping'an is also stationed in Baoding Fucheng. In the past few days, he has always come to ask for battle and to be the vanguard, but Geng Xuan always refuses his request for various reasons, which makes him very unhappy. But now that Geng Xuan calls him, he does not Do you dare to come? After all, I am a relative of the emperor, and I can’t afford to offend Ping An.
Geng Xuan was too lazy to talk nonsense. While handing over the edict from King Qin to Ping An, he directly explained his plan.
"Dividing the troops is indeed a feasible strategy, but the rebel army has already guarded the gates of Jinling City, and the water from far away will not be able to quench the thirst of the people nearby. Why don't you go to your Majesty and ask your Majesty to patrol the south, avoid the sharp edge of the traitor army, and wait until the attack of the water thieves is like a powerful crossbow. At that time, if our army strikes back again, it will definitely achieve miraculous results." Ping An frowned.
In fact, from Ping An's point of view, there was no need for the imperial court to issue an edict to King Qin at every turn. The emperor's master only needed to move to an inland area far away from Jianghai for a period of time. When the Peiping army ran out of ammunition and food, they would counterattack in one fell swoop. This would not only enable If we can recapture Jinling, we might even be able to severely damage the Peiping army.
"Jinling is the imperial capital, the foundation of the world, and there is no room for failure." Geng Xuan didn't know how to take a step back to see the sea and the sky. However, it was the imperial capital, and the imperial court would not abandon Jinling unless it was absolutely necessary, so he knew that he might not be able to make it in time, but Have to rush back.
"Since Master Geng has made up his mind, let's act according to your plan. As long as my subordinates have 200,000 troops, they will be able to capture the city of Beiping within a few days." Ping An didn't give any more advice. Anyway, it was Geng Xuan who went back to rescue him. It wasn't him. Moreover, once Geng Xuan left, he became the commander-in-chief of the Northern Army. He finally stopped listening to other people's looks and could fight at his own pace.
"General Ping, the Peiping thieves are cunning and changeable. We should not underestimate the enemy. I still hope that the general can march cautiously and never rush forward in a hurry." Geng Xuan said seriously. He knew that although Ping'an Yong was brave, he was impatient. He was really afraid of Ping'an. In one act of impatience and carelessness, these more than 200,000 troops were destroyed.
"Master Geng's lesson is to be remembered in the end." Ping An said this, but he disagreed in his heart.
Geng Xuan told Ping An some more things, then put on his armor and mounted his horse, led the 50,000 elite cavalry who had already ordered them, and left Baoding Fucheng at full speed, galloping south at full speed.
At this moment, on the vast river outside Jinling City, five Xia-class warships were lined up on the river, facing each other from a distance. Between each warship, there were six or seven Zhenyuan warships lined up, like Like an invisible chain, it stretches across the Yangtze River for dozens of miles.
The Yangtze River was blocked. All merchant ships, passenger ships, fishing boats and other large and small vessels that originally traveled between the north and south of the Yangtze River. Anyone who dared to cross the river would be detained. If they dared to break through, they would be sunk. The traffic between the north and the south was cut off. If you want to cross the river, you have to take a detour to the Wuchang area.
The control of the Yangtze River fell into the hands of the Peiping Army. Jiangnan was like experiencing a tsunami. The longer time passed, the greater the damage. Because the handicraft industry in Jiangnan was developed, but many raw materials and supplies had to be supplied from upstream, and the river transportation was blocked. , will definitely cause a serious blow to Jiangnan’s economy.
The Ming court did not have time or energy to consider such trivial matters as the Jiangnan economy. There were so many large ships lying outside Jinling City, which was like dozens of knives on the neck of the court, making it difficult for Emperor Jianwen to sleep and eat. However, the water sent by the court The division was defeated by fierce artillery fire as soon as it approached. Now the imperial court has no warships left to fight.
The navy of the Ming Dynasty was gone, so it was impossible to fight a naval war. Emperor Jianwen had no choice but to issue another order to the King of Qin, asking the Ming troops from all over to come back to the King of Qin to defend Jinling City and push back this abominable fleet. Of course, there was no other option but death. In addition to this move, the imperial court also came up with many countermeasures. No, early that morning, a small boat with a white flag entered the river.
"Report, the Ming Dynasty sent an envoy." A sailor on the Xia-1 battleship came to report.
"Let Staff Officer Li first ask about their purpose of coming." Liu Wenxiu didn't even raise his head, still working on various documents at his desk.
Since the Xia-class battleship is a steamship and consumes coal, the inventory and supply of coal are top priorities. Although a large supply was carried out before going to sea, it has been driven at full capacity for so many days and the consumption is very fast. Now only There was less than half of the inventory, which gave Liu Wenxiu a headache. After all, this was the territory of the Ming Dynasty, and it was difficult to find coal supplies.
"Commander, the Ming army sent people here at this time to delay the attack. Why don't we take advantage of it?" Sitting next to Liu Wenxiu was a staff officer. Although he was not old, he looked smart and capable. He had been lurking around for many years. Zhao Quande, who served as a Jin Yiwei in Jinling, now changed his career to a staff officer, but also went on expeditions with the navy.
"Well, since there is no navy in the Ming Dynasty, they will naturally not be our rivals. They come at this time and they must want to win over us. We can take this opportunity to get dozens of tons of coal." Liu Wenxiu raised his head and said again. : "Send the order, and all the warships outside Jinling City will sail to the edge of Jinling City and bombard Jinling together."
"Bombard Jinling?!" Zhao Quande's expression changed, but he immediately understood what Liu Wenxiu was going to do, and said happily: "Yes, we should bomb Jinling City hard, otherwise the emperor is not in a hurry."
Liu Wenxiu gave an order, and dozens of river boats that were still parked on the river started to move and sailed towards the river one after another. The roar of steam engines from the two Xia-class warships resounded throughout the streets. Ten miles away, the people outside Jinling City were so frightened that they went straight to hide inside the city.
Soon, the warships were in place, a burst of fire flashed, hundreds of artillery fired in unison, the roar of cannons sounded, and countless slings flew quickly like raindrops, hitting the city wall not far away from the river, and suddenly Debris flew randomly, walls cracked and rocks were broken, and the heaven and earth trembled.