Chapter 244: Marshal of Jiangsu and Zhejiang Arms and Horses
Dong Tuanxiao did not look happy, because this strategy can achieve the greatest effect if it is combined with the previous methods to reinforce Qizhou.
If Xu Shouhui captures Qizhou and then recovers Jiangzhou, Raozhou and other places, even if he conquers Ni Wenjun, he may not be able to control Xu Shouhui!
Hama smiled and said: "General Dong, you just said that 50,000 troops can defend Xuzhou, right?"
Dong Tuanxiao thought he had changed his mind and said hurriedly: "Yes!"
Hama said: "Then you have 100,000 people now. I wonder if you can take the initiative to regain Sizhou, Huai'an and other places?"
Dong Tuanxiao smiled bitterly and said: "Yangzhou is newly defeated, the morale of our army is low, it is not appropriate to take the initiative!"
Hama frowned and said: "Then you mean that it will be difficult for the imperial court to regain Jiangbei?"
Dong Tuanxiao said hurriedly: "That's not what I mean. At the moment, our army should focus on Xuzhou, stick to the northern line, and slowly restore morale. When the vigor of the rebel soldiers dissipates and internal conflicts arise, it will be the time for our army to counterattack!" Hama said happily: "I see, then Xuzhou will be left to you. Let's stabilize the situation first. These thieves will be fierce for a while. After this period, we will deal with them again!"
Dong Tuanxiao was silent for a while and said: "What the Prime Minister said is that most of the thieves only focus on military affairs and do not know how to govern. As time goes by, the people will find that following them is worse than being under the rule of the imperial court, and the people's hearts will naturally return."
Come to our side, but..."
Hamazheng nodded repeatedly when he heard this, and asked quickly: "But what?"
Dong Tuanxiao said: "There are also aliens among the thieves, such as the Jiangdu Army. According to the detailed reports I sent, Zhang Yangquan managed Jiangdu in an orderly manner. The price of food is lower than most cities. The people have enough food and clothing and support the Jiangdu Army wholeheartedly!
”
Hama said in a deep voice: "So, this bandit army needs to be wiped out as soon as possible!"
Dong Tuanxiao said: "Prime Minister, I agree that this time Jiangdu's army marched southward in three directions. Although they are very aggressive, it is actually a good opportunity for us to eliminate them!"
Hama's eyes lit up and he said: "Oh? How do you say it?"
Dong Tuanxiao said: "The reason why Jiangdu's army has developed so fast is because they have never been defeated since the uprising, so their morale is high and their troops are fierce!"
"As long as we can disintegrate these three lines of offensive, the morale of Jiangdu's army will be greatly reduced and they will return to their original shape. When our army counterattacks in three lines, they will be defeated!"
Hama nodded and said: "Okay, I will pass down the order and let the barbarians Ha Ya, Shi Mo Yisun, and Yang Tongguan obey your orders. I hope you can defeat the three armies of thieves and regain Jiangdu!"
Dong Tuanxiao advised again: "In that case, it is better to let the general go to Jiqing to take command. If the distance is too far, the command will be very inconvenient!"
Hama shook his head and said: "General Dong, I just told you that Xuzhou is the top priority. If you don't guard Xuzhou, I won't be able to sleep at night!"
Dong Tuanxiao thought for a while and said: "Then I will recommend someone to take command in Jiangnan instead of the general!"
Hama hurriedly asked: "Who?"
"Jaru!"
Hama smiled and said: "Okay, I'll tell him about this!"
Because Jia Lu provided Hama with a lot of evidence against Tuotuo, and now that these evidences have been presented to Emperor Yuan, Tuotuo will never have a chance to turn around again, so Hama has a good impression of Jia Lu.
Dong Tuanxiao said: "Then I will take my leave first." He turned and left.
Hama drank another sip of tea and ordered someone to bring some pastries. After eating, he ordered: "Go and call Jialu over!"
The bodyguard has taken the order.
Not long after, Jia Lu came with his bodyguards and said respectfully: "Jia Lu, the guilty officer, pay homage to the prime minister!" He knelt down on the ground.
Hama smiled and said: "Get up, thanks to you for providing Tuoduo with a lot of evidence, I was able to bring him down. I will remember your contribution!"
Jia Lu sighed and said: "Tuotuo has been kind to me after all. The prime minister said this, which makes me ashamed!"
Hama smiled and said: "Everyone in the court knows that it is Tuotuo who is sorry for you, not you who are sorry for Tutuo! Justice is in the heart of the people!"
Jia Lu said: "Thank you, Prime Minister, for your understanding!"
Hama pondered for a moment and said: "I will return to Dadu tomorrow. The situation in Jiangnan and Jiangbei is not optimistic now. General Dong is guarding Jiangbei, which can make people feel a little relieved, but it is really worrying over Jiangnan."<
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Jia Lu said: "There should be nothing wrong with the barbarian General Hague and Da Shizuo in Jiangnan!"
Hama snorted and said: "I know the ability of Da Shi best. I can manage the place well, but I know nothing about fighting! Barbarian Hague has already had a hard time dealing with Xu Baisheng, and it is difficult to coordinate the overall situation!"
He turned to Jia Lu and said, "After discussing with General Dong, we both think you are the best candidate. What do you think?"
Jia Lu hesitated for a moment and said: "Please forgive me, Prime Minister. Although I have the intention, I am not strong enough. I am afraid that I will live up to the expectations of the Prime Minister!"
Hama frowned and said, "Aren't you trying to shirk it?"
Jia Lu said in a low voice: "I don't dare, but I know that I am not capable enough. I lost to Jiangdu Army before, so I might miss important events of the court!"
Hama waved his hand and said: "The Han people have a saying, which is to know one's shame and then be brave. I believe you can learn valuable lessons from failure and defeat the Jiangdu bandit army!"
Jia Lu took a deep breath and said: "Since the Prime Minister trusts me so much, I dare not shirk anymore. I am willing to do my best to defeat the Jiangdu bandit army!"
Hama nodded and said: "That's very good! You go to Liyang first and divide Liyang's 100,000 horses into two. You take 50,000 people to help quarry, and let Shi Moyisun take the other 50,000 to attack Zhenjiang.
!"
Jia Lu hesitated for a moment and said: "Prime Minister, in my opinion, instead of rescuing Caishi, it is better to concentrate our forces on Zhenjiang first, so that Caishi's side does not have to divide its troops to defend the north!"
Hama frowned and said, "Are you saying that Shi Mo Yisun's 50,000 men can't attack Zhenjiang?"
Jia Lu said: "Please forgive me for speaking frankly. The name of the bandit general guarding Zhenjiang is Wang Da. He once defeated Fang Guozhen. He must not be underestimated!"
Hama nodded and said: "I have also heard people mention this thief, saying that he is one of the four great kings of Jiangdu, ranking higher than Li Er!"
Jia Lu said: "That's right. This man led 30,000 troops to guard Zhenjiang. Shi Moyisun only had 50,000, so it was difficult to capture the city! Moreover, Zhenjiang is connected to Jiangdu by water. Whenever Zhenjiang is in danger, Jiang can always support him!"<
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Hama took a deep breath and said: "Yes, yes, I neglected this point!"
Jia Lu said: "So now we should gather 100,000 troops to capture Zhenjiang first, so that the Jiangdu bandit army cannot gain a foothold in Jiangnan!"
Hama hesitated for a while and said: "I'm afraid that the barbarians in Hague can't stand it!"
Jia Lu said: "You don't have to worry too much. Even if the quarry is lost, the barbarian General Hague can still retreat to Jiqing and wait for us to regain Zhenjiang before destroying the quarry bandit army!"
Hama slapped the table and said, "Well, as you said, I hope you can regain Zhenjiang within a month!"
Jia Lu cupped his hands and said: "I will accept my order!"
Early the next morning, Hama and Tuotuo returned to Dadu by boat, while Dong Tuanxiao stayed to guard Xuzhou.
Jia Lu was appointed as the Marshal of the Jiangsu and Zhejiang Provinces, and headed towards Liyang with Hama's letter of appointment.
Because the canal was blocked and most of the routes southward were blocked by the rebels, it was very difficult to travel to the south of the Yangtze River.
Jia Lu had no choice but to go around to Ninghai in the east, planning to take the sea route to Changshu and then go to Liyang through Changshu.
He didn't know that three days after he set off from Ninghai, Dong Tuanxiao sent a messenger to Ninghai to tell him about the fall of Changshu.
A few days later, the passenger ship Jia Lu was traveling on docked at Haimen Port, and many passengers came on board. These people were talking in the main cabin, saying that Changshu was captured by Jiangdu's army.
Jia Lu was shocked and frightened, and asked a boat passenger urgently: "There are 50,000 defenders in Changshu, and Fang Guozhen's 50,000 soldiers. How could it be possible that Changshu could be lost?"
"A fall is a fall. Jiangdu's army has already settled in Changshu. You are not a Tatar, are you? How do you know the situation of the Changshu garrison so clearly?" The boatman was from Tongzhou and looked at Jia Lu with suspicion.<
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Jia Lu hurriedly said: "I am a businessman, but I am just afraid that thieves will enter the city and destroy my shop!"
The boatman snorted and said: "Jiangdu's army is not a traitor, you are so ignorant!"
Another boat passenger shouted: "Yes, we are from Changshu. When the Tatars occupied Changshu before, they allowed Fang Guozhen and his group of pirates to bully us. After Jiangdu's army came over, they did not mess with us and other common people!"
Jia Lu was too lazy to argue with him and hurriedly led his men to the bow of the ship to find the owner, hoping that the owner would turn around and return to Haimen.
The captain cursed: "I'm already more than ten miles away from Haimen. If you want me to go back now, how many people will be delayed? No!"
Jia Lu took out five ingots and twelve taels of gold and said anxiously: "If you return to Haimen, all this gold will be yours!"
The captain shook his head and said: "No, there are many distinguished people on the ship. If I miss their time, I will not be able to explain it!"
Jia Lu winked at his subordinate, who immediately pulled out the knife and said sternly: "Can you go back?"
The captain's face turned pale and he had to give in. He ordered the ship to turn around and return to Haimen.
This immediately angered the boat passengers. Everyone came to the bow of the boat and argued with the boat owner, who pushed Jia Lu out.
The Tongzhou boat passenger shouted: "This man must be a Tatar. After knowing that Changshu was captured, he didn't dare to go!"
Another boat passenger shouted: "Look, a warship is coming, a warship from Jiangdu Army!"
Everyone turned their heads and looked, and sure enough, a warship was approaching on the sea.
It turns out that during the water war a while ago, Fang Guozhen's army and Changshu army were defeated, and many of the defeated troops fled to nearby desert islands and became pirates.
Therefore, Jiangdu Army sent many warships to patrol the coastline.
The Tongzhou boat passenger shouted: "Let's catch this Tatar spy together and hand it over to Jiangdu Army for reward!"