Chapter 167: Escape to help the friendly troops on the islands
For Zhang Bang and others, socializing in autumn and winter is much better than the situation after heavy snow closes the mountains.
Along the way, they could find some wild fruits, pine nuts, hazelnuts, catch fish in streams and rivers, and even catch some small wild animals.
But even so, more than 60 people began to flee, and nearly 20 have fallen now. And there is still a long way to go.
Zhang Bang and others did not know that their ability to survive so much was already due to Guo Dajing.
Guanglu Island's army, led by Guo Dajing, launched operations in the Xiuyan area, dealing a heavy blow to Jianlu and destroying many outposts where Jianlu had left.
The Jianlu in the outpost were all elites, and there were also many prisoners of war. The Jianlu were shocked by this, and reduced the number of outposts, merging two outposts into one, increasing the number of people and defense of the outpost.
As a result, many loopholes appeared in the vast blockade, which increased the chances of survival for many escapees.
Zhang Bang turned around and said to his little sister, "Good boy, sit here for a while and I'll go get your sister-in-law."
The girl nodded and reminded: "There is also a little nephew." As she said that, she took out a few pine nuts from her arms and said, "He will stop crying if he has something to eat."
Zhang Bang looked at the girl with a sallow complexion and felt sad. He held back his tears and took the pine nuts, then crawled back.
He saw his wife, who was so thin that every crawling step seemed to be exhausting her strength and extremely difficult. But she still tried her best to arch her body and not press the baby in the rag bag on her chest.
Zhang Bang crawled over, half dragging and half carrying, and took his wife and baby into the woods. The family let out a sigh of relief and leaned against the trees to catch their breath.
"Let's go, if the child cries, it will mess up everyone." The wife was sweating, but she still urged her husband, not daring to drag down the fellow villagers.
Zhang Bang supported his wife and took the girl with him, and walked far into the woods before he dared to open the rag and check the child.
Seeing that the child was just sleeping, the couple breathed a sigh of relief. The last time they encountered the Jianlu patrol, in order not to be exposed, they covered the child's mouth and almost suffocated the child to death.
"Sister-in-law, you eat." Erya picked up a bunch of black berries. Most of them were shriveled, but she still let her swallow hard.
The wife reached out and touched Erya's head. She only picked two pieces and put them into her mouth, then pushed the girl to eat.
"Dabang, if you walk a few dozen miles, you'll reach the Biliu River. It's almost safe." An old man came over with a stick and handed over a dead snake about a foot long. "Let your wife eat it and hold on a little longer."
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"Uncle, you——"
As soon as Zhang Bang opened his mouth, he was interrupted by the uncle, "Don't be nagging, the roots of the old Zhang family must be preserved no matter how difficult it is."
After saying that, Uncle Zhang pulled Erya forward with a wooden stick, took out two hazelnuts from his pocket and stuffed them into Erya's hand.
They dared not light a fire for fear that the fire and smoke would attract the captives. Even women have developed strong adaptability in order to survive.
After peeling off the snake's skin, Zhang Biao's daughter-in-law ate the snake's meat raw one bite at a time. She was not living for herself, but also for the several-month-old child in her arms.
………………
Guanglu Island.
Rows of houses were built. In order to save time, they were all semi-underground structures, also called underground cellars.
Liu Xingzuo stroked his forehead. He did not feel happy or excited about the quickly built house. Instead, he felt sadness welling up in his heart.
"Don't be so sad." Guo Dajing could still joke with a smile, "We are the chief officials. If we let the people see it, it will not have a good impact."
Sighing, Liu Xingzuo nodded helplessly and said, "I know how to boost people's morale, but it's hard to be happy when I think about the difficulties."
"It's just food, don't worry, I'm here!" Guo Dajing still looked confident and said the same thing.
Liu Xingzuo smiled bitterly, patted Guo Dajing's shoulder lightly, and said, "It really depends on you."
Guo Dajing stretched out his hand and made an "ok" gesture. Regardless of whether Liu Xingzuo understood it or not, he grinned.
In order to alleviate the food shortage of the military and civilians in Dongjiang Town, and to prevent Mao Wenlong from going astray, Guo Dajing took the initiative to request that the Liao people who escaped from the Jianlu-controlled areas be resettled in Guanglu Island.
In addition to the Pidao headquarters, there are other islands, and the Liao people who have been sheltered in the coastal areas and along the Yalu River can be sent to Guanglu Island.
Guo Dajing's words were vague on purpose. If the chief officials of some islands thought that they were unable to feed so many people, they could be given to Guo Dajing as newly adopted Liao people.
In other words, don’t hold on, if you can’t, just send me to support you.
Liu Xingzuo didn't know where Guo Dajing had the confidence. It would be okay if he sent only a few, but if he sent a few thousand or even 18,000, what would he give to the people to eat the soil and snow?
At most, there are only four months left. Even if you come with 18,000 yuan, it won't make me rich enough.
Guo Dajing naturally gained confidence after calculation. The food and silver in the space were enough. This did not include Lin Tiansheng's profit from selling mirrors and Shedra's income.
However, Guo Dajing still needs to store at least 100,000 shi of grain and 50,000 to 60,000 taels of silver in the space for next year's battle and emergency reserves in case of emergencies.
After all calculations, he now has hundreds of thousands of shi of food and hundreds of thousands of taels of silver. Although Guo Dajing spends a lot of money, he only spent less than half of the property he stole from the Korean battlefield.
Guo Dajing naturally had his own thoughts and intentions in taking in and resettling a large number of Liao people, and it was not all out of kindness and wanting to be a holy mother.
Only with a population can there be troops. The three thousand troops on Guanglu Island could no longer meet Guo Dajing's combat needs.
By the time Fujinomasa came back, there were 1,500 heavy muskets alone, plus 1,000 light musketeers. If all were deployed, the number would already be 2,500.
There are only 500 places left for the other arms, cavalry, artillery, pikemen, sword and shield bearers, etc.
Obviously, this ratio is unbalanced. Excluding the light musketeers equipped with bayonets, the ratio of heavy musketeers and melee soldiers is one to one, and at least a thousand men and horses need to be supplemented.
The muskets were purchased, and the musketeers were training intensively, so it was impossible to put them aside. Although it was an option to give them to other troops, Guo Dajing was reluctant to part with them.
We must go all out to fight in Jinzhou and occupy enough land. Not to mention housing 18,000 people, even more than 100,000 are more than enough.
Guo Dajing did not know exactly when food and wages would be restored, but he could analyze and judge the approximate time, which would be around the beginning of next spring.
Because Governor Yuan will cut off the food and salary after he takes office. If it has not been restored before, how can it be cut off?
Therefore, he believes that the food and salary cuts are not continuous, so the pressure will not be too great.
As long as the Jinzhou campaign achieves its goal, the potatoes and rye grown in the autumn harvest will be enough to support Dongjiang Town for several months. If the imperial court is cut off from food and salary, the situation will be much better than now.
Liu Xingzuo still did not get rid of his melancholy, but he also forced a smile and followed Guo Dajing into the newly built underground cellar for inspection.
The houses are all small, in order to facilitate heating and save firewood. But everyone knows that what the people want is not to live in a spacious and comfortable place, but to have a full belly, or at least not to starve to death.
As for the temporary housing, Guo Dajing didn't have too high requirements. After looking around casually, he and Liu Xingzuo walked out.
Sun Liuyan and Chen Sanxiang came forward. They were responsible for the management of the new village. They had been so busy these days that they hit the back of their heads.
"Sir." After Sun Liuyan and Chen Sanxiang saluted, they reported their work, mainly because they were lacking things.
The Liao people who escaped from the areas ruled by the Jianlu were very lucky to have one life, and they were expected to carry large and small packages with them, not to move.
Guo Dajing also expected this situation, he had personal experience!
"Made for the sake of simplicity, deal with it first." Guo Dajing gave the solution without thinking too much, "If the iron pot is not enough, use baked earthen pots instead; if there is lack of bedding, use straw mattresses, animal skins..."
"As for the firewood, I have sent a ship to Lushun to transport it. As long as we can make a fire to keep warm, we won't freeze to death."
The amount of firewood harvesting on the island was limited, so too many people flooded in at once, which would inevitably lead to excessive cutting. This was something Guo Dajing did not want to see.
There are mountains and forests around Lushun, so Guo Dajing asked Li Weiluan to send people to help cut down the wood and then transport it back to the camp by ship. As for the soldiers and civilians who landed for hunting and picking, they also had the same task.
The more people you manage, the more comprehensive things you have to consider. Not only Guo Dajing, but also Chen Youshan, Zhao Qingshan, and the elderly on the island have all reminded them.
After the explanation, Guo Dajing and Liu Xingzuo rode back to the military camp, chatting about recent events as they walked.
After the Battle of Ningjin, Yuan Chonghuan resigned and returned home due to his twilight spirits. Wang Zhichen became the Superintendent and Governor of Liaodong on his behalf.
Perhaps he saw that during the Battle of Ningjin, he did not dare to support others, but if he did not support them, he would just sit back and watch the friendly forces perish. Soon after he took office, Wang Zhichen had the intention to abandon Jinzhou.
Not long ago, Wang Zhichen finally put his idea into action. He reported to the court that the city of Jinzhou was damaged by rain, and the commander-in-chief You Shilu had to withdraw and temporarily stationed in Xingshan.
Jinzhou, which had not been conquered even by the Jianlu fierce attacks, was so damaged by rain that it could no longer garrison. It was really shocking and speechless.
No matter how bizarre the reason was, Ming Ting acquiesced to this result.
Wang Zhichen's test was successful and he became more courageous. He gave up on Xingshan a few days ago.
"Jinzhou, Xingshan has been abandoned, Tashan and Youtun should not survive long." Liu Xingzuo made a prediction, flicked his horsewhip, cracked, and said with a faint smile: "If it shrinks to Ningyuan, the mountains and seas will suit you very well.
strategy.”
Guo Dajing said: "Jinzhou and other cities are hanging out there, which costs a lot of money and has no practical value. It would be a good thing if they are really abandoned."
After pondering for a while, he shook his head again and said with regret: "It was a mistake to build the city in the first place, and hundreds of thousands of taels of silver were wasted."
Liu Xingzuo was noncommittal and did not completely agree with Guo Dajing's opinion. He thought for a while and then said: "Liao Town has received millions of taels of food and salary, but cannot regain an inch of land. I'm afraid it will be difficult to explain to the court, right?"
"Recover?" A sarcastic look flashed across Guo Dajing's face, and he sneered: "Jianlu didn't bother to occupy it, or he deliberately didn't occupy it. Wouldn't it be more accurate to say that this kind of regained land is received?"
Liu Xingzuo blinked his eyes and asked with some confusion: "What about Jinzhou? Jianlu didn't send troops to occupy it!"
"There must be a battle in Jinzhou." Guo Dajing concluded with certainty, "As long as the Jianlu had any sense, they would not allow our army to have a solid base in southern Liaoning. Lushun is only a stronghold without strategic depth. They are temporarily defeated. Be patient."
The Jinzhou area and the Liaonan area are in different locations, and the degree of threat to Jianlu is also different.
Even if Liao Town occupied Jinzhou and other cities, they would not dare to continue to advance eastward and put military pressure on the Jian captives. However, if the southern Liaoning area was firmly occupied by Dongjiang Town, it would be like a steel knife pressed against the vital points of the Jian captives' abdomen and chest.
When the main force of Dongjiang Town was in Pidao, Liaodong, Jianlu was not very worried. Zhenjiang was defensive and suppressed, and it was far away from the center of Jianlu's rule, so it was difficult to pose a direct threat.
However, if they were in Jinzhou, they could directly attack Liaoshen by heading north, and the navy could also attack Liaoyang via the Sancha River. The Jianlu forces would have to use heavy troops to defend themselves. The mobile forces that could be used for fighting elsewhere would be greatly reduced.
Zhang Pan's death in battle illustrates the problem. If you have a stronghold along the coast, the Jianlu will not be able to remove it immediately, but if you go deep into the land, you will most likely be attacked by the Jianlu cavalry.
In fact, in Guo Dajing's view, Jianlu's decision to abandon coastal areas and not occupy cities such as Jinzhou is almost the same operational idea.
You come and occupy it, and when the men, horses and materials reach a certain level, I will attack you; you will suffer greater losses, but I can achieve greater results.
"Strategic depth, thin stronghold?" Liu Xingzuo seemed to understand Guo Dajing's new term, unconsciously waving his whip and lost in thought.
Strategic depth is the geographical space in which strategic movements can be carried out. A large strategic depth area allows the army to have time to breathe and use the time to regroup and repair.
Moreover, strategic depth areas usually deploy a large number of war reserve forces, which are important bases for human and material resources and the basis for forward operations. They are of great significance to support wars and ensure the stability of the overall strategy.
For example, Lushun Fort can only garrison three to four thousand troops, while Jinzhou can garrison tens of thousands.
If Jianlu wanted to attack Lushun Fort, they could march straight in and march to the city gates; but Jinzhou had narrow and dangerous places such as Xiaoheishan, Shabei City, and Nanguan, which were equivalent to several lines of defense.
In addition, there is a relatively powerful navy in Dongjiang Town. When Jianlu attacks the long and narrow peninsula of Jinzhou, he must also be careful that the navy carries troops to land at Nanguan from Dalian Bay, and from Pulandian Bay to Xiaoheishan and Shiheyi, which will cut off their retreat. Or grain road.
Looking at the coastal areas of eastern Liaoning, only the three provinces in southern Liaoning have such geographical conditions, and Jinzhou is the best.
Because of this, Jianlu abandoned the coastal area, and Dongjiang Town did not take the opportunity to land and occupy land. The fear was that Jianlu would use the mobility advantage of the cavalry to launch a surprise attack, and the landing troops would not have time to retreat by boat and suffer heavy losses.
Guo Dajing did not reveal all his battle plans, but was making all-out preparations. Weapons and equipment, ammunition and supplies, troops, personnel, etc. were determined to determine the scale of the battle to achieve the goals.
If everything goes well, Guo Dajing believes that he can resist the rebel forces of the two banners and inflict heavy losses on them.
The two quickly arrived at the military camp and discussed the rotation of landing personnel before they dispersed.