Forced to defend themselves, they have no time to save each other.
According to this idea, the Ming army set off beacon fires everywhere south of the Yangtze River, in order to make the Qing government focus on one thing and lose another, making it difficult to gather troops from all over the country.
The turn of strategy was astonishing. The eastern front, which had been fighting relatively smoothly, suddenly calmed down. The Qing army, which was converging in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, was determined to attack, but they were troubled by the dangerous Fenshui Pass held by the Ming army and had to defend the Ming navy.
Harassment, and dare not take action easily.
However, Tui Shuo's army suddenly exerted force in Jingxiang area, shocking Huguang, and suddenly attracted the attention of the Qing court.
Lieutenant General Hong Fu of Yunyang opened the city in the middle of the night, led the Ming army to rush into the city, and besieged the Yamen of Yunyang Admiral Tong Guoyao. Tong Guoyao and the guerrilla Du Ying resisted with more than 300 personal soldiers under the banner, and were eventually killed.
The wall of Gucheng was blown down with a thunderbolt, and the Ming army swarmed in. The defenders died in the battle, and the rest surrendered.
Thousands of soldiers and horses were left behind to guard the city, sweep the surrounding areas, move people and goods, and other aftermath work. Two groups of soldiers and horses from the Shuo Army gathered in Gucheng and marched down the Han River to Xiangyang.
At this time, the main force of the Qing army in Huguang was deployed in the Yiling area to prevent the Ming army from rushing out of the Three Gorges and down the river. There were not many troops in the lower reaches of the Han River, and their combat effectiveness was not strong. The Shuo army came to Xiangyang with 30,000 troops
Under the city, the Huguang Qing army was caught off guard and found it difficult to quickly reinforce them.
Prior to this, Suk Saha, the auxiliary minister of the Qing court, reminded the Ministry of War: Yunyang "is located in the middle of three provinces (Shaanxi, Henan, and Hubei). There is a lot of open land in the middle, and the valleys are blocked. The traitors are easy to gather, echoing the bandits in the east of Kui."
"Yang's talents are mediocre, and most of his officers and soldiers "disdain play", fearing that something will happen.
However, the Qing Ministry of War did not pay much attention to this. It only promoted Tong Guoyao to the rank of admiral and stationed himself in Yunyang City to "suppress" him. Yunyang City was destroyed, Tong Guoyao was killed, and all the Qing government's preventive measures failed.
On September 14th, the 16th year of Yongli reign (the first year of Kangxi reign), Yang Laijia, the commander-in-chief of Xiangyang, led an uprising and seized the west gate to welcome the Ming army.
In less than a month, the Tushuo army won three out of three battles, regained Yunyang, Gucheng, and Xiangyang, and the military strength was greatly strengthened.
"While the Qing army is empty in the lower reaches of the Han River, we should continue to go south. Attack Yicheng, then enter Chengtian Mansion, fight all the way to Zhongxiang, and then march to Jingzhou. If the reinforcements mobilized by the Qing army are strong, we will return to Xiangyang."
The victory made Hao Yaoqi so confident that he started talking wildly.
Half of the counties and towns under Yunyang Prefecture were originally in the hands of the Ming army, and Xiangyang was also conquered by the Ming army. But Chengtian Prefecture is different. It has always been controlled by the Huguang Qing army for a long time. If Zhongxiang, the city of Fucheng, can be conquered, it will definitely arouse great popular sentiment in Huguang.
shock.
After the recovery of the three cities, a considerable amount of food and supplies were indeed seized, but Chengtian Mansion and Zhongxiang City should have more abundant supplies. Moreover, the Ming army made rapid progress and has solved the shortage of food and supplies when sending troops. Only the armor was captured
, thousands of soldiers were redressed, and their combat power was greatly improved.
Hao Yaoqi's words triggered a discussion among the generals. Many generals expressed support. Some pointed out that Chengtian Mansion had not encountered war for many years, and Hong Chengchou had opened many military camps there. There were a large number of merchants and craftsmen in Zhongxiang City.
If it can be broken through, it should be possible to seize a lot of money.
To take a step back, even if we can't defeat Zhongxiang, we can still go a little further and capture Yicheng, which is right in front of us!
Liu Tichun also agreed in his heart. The tunnel blasting in Gucheng left a deep impression on him. He also had great confidence in conquering the city where he had been unable to do anything. However, the establishment of the staff group forced him to respect these reasons.
The opinions of the officers sent by the imperial court.
"Our rapid breakthrough of the Yunyang defense line this time must have surprised the enemy. Now that the Han River is empty, why don't we take advantage of the victory and attack a few more cities to further alleviate the lack of materials?" Liu Tichun looked at Yangwu Bowang for his merits.
, using a questioning tone.
Wang Yougong was the former commander-in-chief of Xianyang Hou Qi Sansheng's command. He joined Zhu Yongxing in Tengchong and was considered a veteran. However, he was a low-key person. Although he had military exploits, he never showed his prowess. When he was training in the martial arts hall, he served as Zhu Yongxing.
He noticed that he was sent to the staff department. Now he was operating with the Yangtze River Navy and was considered an official dispatched abroad. Zhu Yongxing specially promoted him to count in order to increase his weight in the Thirteenth Family.
In addition, Zhu Yongxing also took a fancy to his low-key and modest nature, which was not easy to conflict with others. He had worked in the staff department for a long time and had a good understanding of his own ideas and the overall grand strategy.
"Your Majesty has a thorough understanding of the situation and will obey your orders." Wang Yougong seemed unable to hear Liu Tichun's questioning tone and surrendered his hands to obey the order.
This is how he knows how to behave. As Liu Tichun is the king of a county and the commander-in-chief of an army, how can he make the decision in front of others? At the same time, this also reminds him that the staff team only has Liu Tichun and Hao Yao.
It is not enough to discuss and communicate with the flag, but also to make the generals understand the operational intentions. Of course, if it is a real discussion and Liu Tichun's decision is incorrect, he will still speak out, not only living up to His Highness Min's expectations, but also fulfilling his duties as a staff officer
Moreover, because the troops were stronger after gathering, Xiangyang City was surrounded and broken, and the news should not have been leaked. Wang Yougong already had a clever plan in mind, and he only wanted to explain it to Liu Tichun privately after the meeting.
"Then we will continue to move south and point our troops at Yidu." Liu Tichun nodded gratefully to Wang Yougong, turned his head and scanned the generals aggressively, "Remember: Don't be arrogant and underestimate the enemy because of your first victory, and don't relax military discipline to harm the people.
Harm the people. If there is any violation, military law will be enforced and will not be tolerated lightly."
"The generals must keep this in mind and never dare to violate military laws and regulations." The generals gathered together and shouted loudly.
…………
Wuchang, Huguang Governor's Office.
The two provinces of Hubei and Hunan are collectively called Huguang. The position of Governor of Huguang was specially set up by the Qing government to suppress the anti-Qing forces in Hubei and Hunan. The current Governor of Huguang, Zhang Changgeng, was compiled by the Secretariat in the eighth year of Shunzhi (1651).
He moved to Hongwen Academy as an attendant, moved to the Secretariat as an attendant and served as an assistant leader, a bachelor of the Academy of National History, governor of Huguang, and governor. He worked hard and became a high official in the border areas.
When he just received the reports from Yunyang, Gucheng and other places, Zhang Changgeng didn't take it too seriously. According to his experience, the Kuidong bandits known as the Ming Army could only carry out limited tactical plunder on land due to limited supplies.
, the number of troops dispatched cannot be too large. As long as we strictly abide by the rules and regulations formulated by Hong Chengchou in the past, move all the surrounding people into the city, and collect and protect the ships on the Han River, so that the bandits can only obtain limited supplies and cannot find them on the river.
It won't take long for the boat to go back the way it came.
Now the strategic focus of the imperial court is not in Huguang. Even if it is Huguang, the strategic focus is not in Yunyang, but in Yiling. Originally, with the military strength of Huguang, Yiling could be defended and the thirteen families' way out to the east could be blocked.
There were merits and no faults. However, under the attack of the Yangtze River Navy of the Ming Army and the Thirteenth Family, the Yiling River defenses that had been painstakingly constructed were completely destroyed.
Faced with the sudden increase in strength of the Ming army, Zhang Changgeng could only continue to deploy troops and generals, repair and rebuild Yiling's river fortifications again. However, after seeing the power of the Yangtze River Navy's firearms, his confidence dropped sharply, and he had to continue to increase the number of troops.
The number of Yiling garrison comforted me.
As long as Yiling is not lost, the Kuidong Ming army will be like a tiger trapped in a cage. Well, even if it can pass by the river, Yiling is still the key that seriously threatens its freedom of entry and exit.
Based on this understanding, Zhang Changgeng casually looked at the report from Yunyang and Gucheng and threw it aside, with no intention of sending reinforcements. The garrison of Yunyang and Gucheng also understood this very well, and also stated in the letter
There was no such request at all, it was just in the nature of a notification.
But the subsequent emergency report surprised Zhang Changgeng. Xiangyang sent someone to send an urgent report, saying that some defenders in Gucheng had fled back, and the city had been breached by the Ming army using hole attacks. In the letter, the prefect of Xiangyang stated that the Ming army was collecting ships
, seemed to have the intention of going down the Han River to attack Xiangyang, and asked for reinforcements.
Zhang Changgeng compared the time of the Gucheng report and the Xiangyang emergency report back and forth. He was immediately furious. Yunyang's first-line defense has long been established. As long as it is followed in a disciplined manner, there will definitely not be too much danger. Although the Yunyang area
The troops were not very strong, but there were more than 10,000 Qing troops in total. As long as they defended the city honestly, it would never be possible for the city to fall so quickly.
Acupoint attack? You are trying to trick me into not knowing anything about military affairs! Zhang Changgeng has already concluded that the Gucheng defenders must have been negligent or fell into the enemy's trick. The theory of acupoint attack is just a cover-up of responsibility.
Well, that must be the case. The more Governor Zhang thought about it, the more certain he was in his judgment. The defender of Gucheng was stupid. As for Yunyang, could he make the same mistake? From this point of view, the Ming army was lucky enough to succeed in Gucheng, but it was trapped in Yunyang.
Between Yang and Xiangyang, nothing much can happen.
Although Governor Zhang felt that the Ming army, which was lucky enough to win, did not have the ability to continue to attack the city and seize territory southward, in line with the principle of showing leniency to the enemy, he still ordered an envoy to rush to Xiangyang and send his own order to the defenders, ordering Xiangyang to defend the city.
The army must not go to war under any circumstances. If anyone dares to go out of the city to meet the enemy, he will definitely be prosecuted according to military law.
Iron cables to block the river, rolling river dragons, wooden fortresses, shipbuilding and military training... After Governor Zhang made the arrangements, he began to concentrate on how to block the Kuidong Ming army on the river. All these measures were used. Although he also knew that such as shipbuilding and military training
The solution is impossible to achieve immediate results, but if you don’t do your best, how can you obey the destiny?
However, these days of peace of mind were too few, and an urgent report came again. This time, it was the deserters from Yicheng who ran to Zhongxiang, and the official from Zhongxiang issued the emergency document. Yang Laijia, the chief military officer of Xiangyang, had rebelled and surrendered to the enemy, leading a group of troops to pretend to be defeated soldiers.
They pretended to open the city gate and Yicheng fell.
"Only five days!" Zhang Changgeng was furious after seeing the report.
According to the time calculation, probably as soon as the envoy he sent to Xiangyang left, the Ming army arrived under Yicheng and used a trick to conquer Yicheng. Zhang Changgeng, who originally regarded himself as a Confucian general, became an afterthought and slapped him in the face so thoroughly.
It made him annoyed and anxious.
The situation became more and more urgent. Anlu Mansion was much emptier than Xiangyang Mansion. Not to mention the lack of soldiers with combat experience, there were not many troops without combat experience. Zhang Changgeng knew that he must send troops to Anlu Mansion immediately.
If the Ming army invades Anlu Prefecture in Zhongxiang, it will shake the whole of Hubei, and the court may also accuse him.
It's just that the Ming army's advance in attacking the city has almost caught up with the march, or that many news have been blocked by the Ming army. If my order reaches Zhong Xiang, will it be an afterthought?
No matter what, Governor Zhang must issue an order immediately to save the Anlu Prefecture and Zhong Xiang. He issued a series of orders, ordering the troops from Huangzhou and De'an Prefectures to immediately concentrate on Wuchang, and ordered the Jingzhou garrison to reinforce Zhong Xiang, and even jumped over the rank.
It was ordered that the garrison troops in various parts of Anlu Prefecture no longer need to stay in the original defense area, and all rushed to the prefectural city as quickly as possible to rendezvous.
Although the Anlu Mansion was empty, each county had at least one to two hundred soldiers, and marching within the mansion could ensure the speed of support. With such a combination, Zhang Changgeng estimated that he could have more than 5,000 people. He also gave orders to Zhong Xiang's officials
, the city mobilized urgently, prepared a large amount of wood, stone, and kerosene, and recruited the people to assist in the defense. Don't think about leaving the city to counterattack. Block all the city gates immediately.
Just as the messenger who delivered the message left, Zhang Changgeng once again issued an additional order, asking all counties to send troops and at the same time send people to escort all the silver coins in stock to the capital.
Since the garrison troops in each county have been evacuated and have lost their defensive capabilities, it is better to transport these things to the capital for safety. The Ming army has no tricks to use. Once it is under the strong city, it will naturally repeat its old tactics and attack everywhere.
Capture. Moreover, with the money in the city, they can motivate the soldiers, set rewards for the people, and actively help defend the city until reinforcements from Wuchang arrive.
The situation was so urgent, and the enemy's intelligence was unclear. Just in case, Zhang Changgeng did not wait for troops from all over the country to gather in Wuchang before setting off together. Instead, he sent a part of Wuchang's green battalion to take a boat up the Han River and rush to the area.
Anlu Fucheng assisted in the defense.
"The thieves' offensive is so fierce. I'm afraid it's not all based on conspiracy." Zhang Changgeng was still worried after finishing the arrangement. He carefully analyzed and studied several reports before and after, "The enemy's navy met with the thieves, and they probably brought a lot of supplies.
"With the navy blocking the river for deterrence, the bandits felt that the defense was safe, so they dared to come out in full force. Well, not fifty or sixty thousand, but thirty or forty thousand, otherwise how could it be so powerful?"
Zhang Changgeng made what he thought was a correct analysis, but his eyes lit up. His eyes moved to the extremely old copy of "The Art of War" on the desk, and a clever idea came to his mind.
The thieves' lair is empty, but Yiling's army has not taken advantage of the opportunity to move. How long will it take? Isn't this the plan of "surrounding Wei and rescuing Zhao"? If we can take advantage of the opportunity to break through the eastern defense line of the thieves, go straight to their lair, and force the thieves to take their families with them.
By making a strategic shift, even if Jing Xiang is lost, it will still be a winning move strategically.
Although Jingxiang is richer than Kuidong, it is not as dangerous as it is. Moreover, it is located between three provinces. Henan, Shaanxi, and Hunan are surrounded by soldiers. Wouldn't it be easier to destroy the bandits?
With this thought, Zhang Changgeng suddenly became enlightened. After thinking for a long time, he came up with a plan to turn from defense to attack. Zhang Changgeng immediately issued an order to the admiral Dong Xueli of Yiling to dispatch a large army to attack Xishan, break through the bandits' defense line, and go straight to the bandits' nest.
After the order was issued, Zhang Changgeng still had not finished his thoughts and drafted a memorial in advance, saying that the Kuidong bandits were lured to the hinterland of Jingxiang by him, their old nest was destroyed, and they had become rogue bandits. The three provinces would attack together, and they would be wiped out in a matter of seconds.
After putting the memorial away, Zhang Changgeng stroked his beard and felt complacent. He felt that if the plan was successful, the missing Jing Xiang would also have an explanation to the court. Such a bold strategic change would be difficult for a non-ancient general to carry out. Now, he just waits for Dong Xueli's answer.
Good news.
……………
The Taishuo army captured Yicheng lightly, and continued to move southward without stopping, aiming directly at Zhongxiang. They successively conquered Dichi, and their equipment and supplies were greatly improved. They also collected many ships and transported them by water, which was faster.
Everyone knows the most common principle among military strategists. Intelligence work is the primary contributor to continuous victory. The unpreparedness and emptiness of the Qing army is also a key reason. The Qing army in Huguang has not had time to adjust, or has just reacted.
, if you can get more, get more, if you can make more impact, make more.
"Anyway, we have nothing to worry about. The upper reaches of the Han River are in our hands. If we can't fight, we will leave. The Qing army will not be able to do anything to us?"
Hao Yaoqi was riding on the horse, talking, looking at the water with a telescope, and muttered uneasily: "Those two guys don't be dishonest and kidnap our things away."
"Don't be suspicious." Liu Tichun said with some humor: "Yang Laijia and Hong Fu have both made contributions. The Qing court has no way out for the generals who captured the city this time. Besides, their families have all stayed in Xiangyang.
, this temporary naval force is not all their people, so what else is there to worry about?"
Hao Yaoqi thought for a while, nodded and said with a smile: "It's the same reason. They are the old members of King Yanping, and they are good at water warfare. If we don't use them, it will look like we are petty and don't trust them."
"If it is said that there is no doubt in employing people, His Highness Min can be the best in the world." Liu Tichun sighed: "If this is not the case, just because he is a member of the clan, even if he has the reputation of being left behind, it will be difficult to win people's hearts!"
"Although His Highness is tolerant of others, he may not be so generous to others." Hao Yaoqi looked to the side and saw that the guards were a little far away, so he lowered his voice and said, "Although King Jin is famous, he has no ambition.
At this time, he is leading his army in western Sichuan to slowly push towards Chongqing, and the time of contact with us is probably not far away."
Liu Tichun hesitated for a moment and said: "He leads an army, and we are also an army. We don't belong to each other, so it doesn't matter, right?"
Hao Yaoqi shook his head repeatedly and said: "Although we don't belong to each other, we have different titles. My brothers and I have discussed it privately. We will risk our lives to get more military exploits, and I will help you become the king of one word. Then two times.
When we meet, with your support, we won’t bow too low.”
"I'm very grateful for the kindness of brothers." Liu Tichun bowed his hand and said, "You have to get the credit, but you don't have to work hard. Doesn't His Highness Min have such scheming ideas and make the armies at odds? In my opinion, Jin
The king is in charge of Sichuan and Shaanxi, and we are the land of Huguang."
"Even if this is the case, shouldn't we keep contact with each other forever?" Hao Yaoqi said stubbornly: "There are already three one-character kings from the Western Army, and there are also several county kings. Just for this, we have to fight for it, right?"
"We have to fight." Liu Tichun cast his sights on the vast Han River and said in a deep voice: "But we must also be prudent and cautious, and don't rush forward rashly, so as not to suffer defeat and lose our strength. The war south of the Yangtze River has not stopped, and there will be more wars in the future.
If we are to launch the Northern Expedition, there will be many opportunities for us to make great contributions! We must take a long-term view!"