Chapter 299 The inside should be combined with the outside
Among the people who took refuge with Huang Hao, two of them were stationed at the city gate, which saved Huang Hao's operations.
Luo Dayou, who could not find Huang Hao in the government office, was full of anger and had nowhere to vent his anger.
Return to your humble bedroom to rest.
Luo Gangyou lived a very restrained and self-disciplined life. All his family members were trapped in Tianjing City, leaving him alone.
After the expedition, he had been working hard and did not dare to slack off at all. There was not a woman around him.
He was busy with his daily life. During the war, he spent most of his time with his soldiers.
During the day in the military camp and running around in the warehouse, Luo Gang was already exhausted.
Luo Dayou is fifty years old this year, and his energy is much less than before.
People in this era can be considered old at the age of fifty. They were fighting and killing when they were young.
He has many old injuries on his body, which often relapse when the weather is cold or rainy.
The most uncomfortable thing is the psychological loneliness. There are not many people in Ruzhou City who can talk to me.
With each battle, there are fewer and fewer old brothers, and the remaining old brothers are also alienated from Luo Gang because of the useless battles they fought recently.
Because there were not many supplies left in the warehouse, Luo Gang could only reduce the food rations for the army. I wonder how the soldiers would react?
Tomorrow I should go around the camps and talk to the soldiers.
Luo Dayou was thinking about tomorrow's events in his mind and fell into a deep sleep.
In Huang Hao's villa, he sent away his trusted generals who came to drink. A middle-aged man with a big belly walked out of the back room.
This person is Zhang Yan, a grain merchant from Kaifeng who has returned.
"Master Huang, are these people reliable? For this important event, the governor mobilized 20,000 troops." Zhang Yan asked, seeming a little worried.
I have always been the central liaison on this matter. If something goes wrong, I will be the first to be taken out and take responsibility.
He is just a businessman, and it is not easy for him to get to where he is today.
"Don't worry, Mr. Zhang, these people are all latecomers to the Taiping Army, and they are not the kind of people who can't get enough of them."
"The only thing I can worry about now is how to capture Luo Gang. As long as I can control Luo Gang, I will be sure to control the other armies." Huang Hao said. In his eyes, the plan is almost certain.
Luo Gangyou only knows how to lead troops to fight. How can a vulgar warrior defeat him?
"But when will the governor's army arrive?" Huang Hao asked.
"Master Huang, don't worry. When the time comes, the army will surround the outside of the city. It will be too late for Master Huang to cooperate with the army inside and outside."
In fact, Zhang Yan didn't know when the governor's army would arrive.
This time the governor took advantage of the fact that the Nian army was no longer on the move in the winter. He transferred some green battalion soldiers from the east and cooperated with some landlord regiment training to manage to gather 20,000 people.
But when the army sets out in winter, at least it must be equipped with cotton-padded clothes. This alone is enough to make the governor's Yamen think hard.
In addition, a large army must have money to go out, which is different from the landowners' regiment training to defend the place.
"You can control Hong Xiuquan's son in advance, which is a great achievement!" Zhang Yan reminded.
"It's natural. Don't worry, Mr. Zhang. In order to avoid Luo Gang's suspicion, I can't take him out yet, but the people in the backyard are all mine and can take him out at any time."
Huang Hao didn't snatch Hong Tianguifu away to save the child.
He just wanted to add a bargaining chip to himself.
For a child to make such a huge sum of money, Huang Hao felt that what he had done was truly a stroke of genius.
Therefore, he has always held Hong Tianguifu firmly in his hands.
Fortunately, Luo Dingyang was not the kind of scheming person who led troops to fight all the way, and Luo Dingyang did not have time to take care of the crown prince.
This allowed Huang Hao to hide behind his back and make bold plans.
Three days later, the scouts in Ruzhou City finally saw the Qing troops coming.
Luo Gang summoned the generals to discuss matters.
In the past few days, Luo Goutou has been running among the troops to reassure people.
The shortage of food and grass had a huge impact on the morale of the army.
Especially in such a cold winter. The cold will increase human's desire to eat, and the pain caused by not having enough food will be more obvious.
Luo Gang could understand the dissatisfaction of the soldiers, but he could not produce food.
There have been several robberies targeting people in the city in the past few days.
In this cold winter month, where do ordinary people have any food?
There are some landlords and gentry, but the gentry and landlords in Ruzhou have either had their homes confiscated by the Taiping Army a long time ago, or they have fled with their property.
Soldiers can only attack ordinary people.
But Luo Dayou has a jealous temper, how could he let such a thing develop?
He arrested the soldiers who robbed the people and beheaded them in public.
The punishment was very decisive, and it immediately calmed down the soldiers who were about to rob.
But it also chilled the hearts of some soldiers. They didn't have enough to eat, didn't have enough clothes to wear, and they couldn't rob.
Luo Gangyou himself was not a person who worshiped God, so there were no dedicated missionaries in his army.
This means that he has one less means of controlling his soldiers.
In the past, veterans in the army were quite convinced of Luo Gang's character.
But most of the people under my command now are the Qing troops who were on hand later, or the young men gathered along the way.
These people do not have the kind of heartfelt love they have for Luo Gang.
They focus more on immediate interests.
This kind of dissatisfaction spreads easily from person to person, and continues to ferment in the process of spreading.
Luo Goutou has noticed this subtle change in the army, but he can't do anything now.
After so many years of marching and fighting, Luo Dayou has never felt such helplessness and isolation.
"Everyone, the Qing army is pressing down on the border. I am going to take advantage of the Qing army's unstable foothold to lead an active attack."
Luo Dingyao directly expressed his thoughts to everyone. In the army, Luo Dingyao always made his own decisions.
Huang Hao glanced at a familiar general.
The man understood, raised his hands and said: "Master Check, recently the brothers have not even had enough to eat, how can they still be able to take the initiative?"
"It's freezing outside now, and the Qing army is coming to attack the city at this time. The weather is favorable, the location is right, and the people are here. We can first defend the city and wear down the Qing army's morale. Then when the Qing army's morale is completely depleted,
, fight out of the city, this will definitely defeat the Qing army."
I have to say that this general's suggestion is quite reasonable.
Even Luo Dianyou somewhat agreed.
"Junshuai Li's suggestion makes sense. Our army is currently short of food and grass, and its morale is low. Taking the initiative at this time is equivalent to giving up the right time, place and people to others, which is really unwise. General Luo is invincible and is the god of war in our heaven."
, But the soldiers are not made of iron. They are not full of food and clothing, so how can they attack in the cold wind? I hope the inspection master will understand the soldiers." Huang Hao echoed with some yin and yang.
You guys have the nerve to say that you have squandered all the military rations and supplies. Luo Dayou originally wanted to ask Huang Hao why the military rations and supplies were consumed so quickly.
But this guy was never caught. It wasn't until today's military meeting that Huang Hao showed up.
He refutes himself in front of so many people, but he still has the nerve to mention military rations.
But now that all the generals are here, Luo Gang is concerned about the overall situation and does not want his subordinates to see the scene of discord between the generals and the generals.
Many generals came out to support the idea of holding on to the city. Luo Guangyuan was not stubborn in his opinion. The main reason was that he had some agreement with the suggestion of holding on to the city and then counterattacking.
Huang Hao naturally did not want Luo Outline to lead his troops to take the initiative.
In that case, how can he still cooperate inside and outside?
Moreover, the Qing army came with 20,000 soldiers. Huang Hao was really worried that Luo Gang would defeat the Qing army in a field battle.
In that case, all my plans would be ruined.
Only under the condition of defending the city, Huang Hao will have people open the city gate when the time comes.
If the city gate is suddenly lost, it will inevitably severely damage the morale of the soldiers in the city. When the time comes, I will lead a counter-attack in the city, so as to ensure that everything is safe.
The military deliberation finally decided to stick to the counterattack. The recent failure to attack Henan Prefecture, the loss of troops and generals, and the shortage of food and grass in the army have severely damaged Luo Gang's prestige.
This is why in today's military discussion, everyone is opposed to Luo Gang.
The lower-level generals seemed to be expressing their dissatisfaction in this way.
Huang Hao was very satisfied with today's military meeting. He was secretly pleased with his successful layout.
Luo Doutiao, Luo Doutiao, you have two skills when it comes to fighting, but you don’t understand the human heart. Human hearts are all selfish, and you can’t expect others to be as noble as you.
Huang Hao thought in his heart.
He feels that he has a good grasp of people's hearts and is a master at playing with people's hearts.
But Huang Hao didn't know that people who like to play with people's hearts often become the targets of others' play.
He felt that he had played a trick on Luo Outline and the Taiping generals who had taken refuge with him. Even Yinggui, the governor of Henan, was under his calculations.
However, veteran Manchu officials like Yinggui had actually plotted against him.
Poor Huang Hao was still doing his best to help the Qing army seize the city.
The Qing army surrounded the four gates and tried to attack the city several times, but was repulsed by the Taiping Army.
This group of Qing troops was pieced together, and their combat power was only average. Huang Hao in the city was the key to breaking the situation.
The general leading the troops outside the city was the chief military officer of Guide Town, who was Yinggui's confidant.
"Sir, the Taiping Army is resolute in defending the city and our army cannot attack." A deputy general came over and reported.
"It doesn't matter, you go down and let the soldiers eat, and we will attack the city after dusk."
To use the plot of inside and outside, it is best to choose a time when the weather is dim.
Otherwise, there would be no chaos in the city.
The sun is gradually setting behind the horizon, and it gets dark very early in winter.
The outside of Ruzhou City is bare, and the nearby trees have been cut down by residents or the Taiping Army and used as firewood.
Although coal is produced here in Ruzhou, few people are mining it, and the mining efficiency is low, so ordinary people cannot afford it.
Everyone still mainly burns wood.
The Qing army could only go to the distant woods to cut firewood. While it was still dark, they lit piles of bonfires outside the city gate.
Huang Hao returned to his home and met Zhang Yan.
"Master Zhang, we are ready. When the time comes, I will ask my older brother to wrap a white scarf around his right arm."
"The east gate and north gate of Ruzhou City are in the hands of my people. You allow the generals outside the city to concentrate their troops on these two cities."
"Okay, Lord Huang, after this battle, I will call you Lord Admiral."
Huang Hao glanced at Zhang Yan, and the two laughed at the same time.
"Master Zhang, I will send you out of the city now." Huang Hao said.
"Okay, Mr. Huang, don't forget that kid." Zhang Yan reminded.
"Don't worry, everything has been arranged."
"In this matter, in the backyard of the Ruzhou government office, several maids and women who usually take care of Hong Tianguifu sneaked out of the back door of the government office under the protection of several Huang Hao's personal guards."
"Where are we going?" Hong Tianguifu asked in a childlike voice.
"Your Majesty, Mr. Huang said he would take you to the opera. But Mr. Luo refused, so I secretly took you there." A woman who was familiar with Hong Tianguifu said.
"Okay, okay, I want to listen to the show." Hong Tianguifu cheered in a low voice very sensibly.
"Your Majesty, don't say anything. We can't let Mr. Luo find out."
"Yeah, good."
Luo Gang was not in the mansion at this time. He took advantage of the fact that he went to the city for the last time before dark to deploy defense work to prevent a night attack by the Qing army.
After walking around in a circle, Luo Gangzhong returned to the government office and prepared to have dinner. When the war started, Luo Gangzhong knew that he had to conserve his physical strength.
The next few days are going to be a stalemate with Qing Yao. What really matters is the counterattack.
It was getting dark soon, and many of the Qing army were "blindfolded", as was the Taiping army. The battle must start before it gets completely dark.
The returning soldiers outside the city were already waiting anxiously.
At this time, the soldiers outside the tent came over with a middle-aged businessman in brocade clothes with a big belly.
"Oh, it's Brother Zhang, come in quickly, how about it? Are you ready?"
As soon as they saw Zhang Yan coming, the General Guide soldiers rushed to greet him.
Although this person is a businessman, he is a popular person around the governor.
As a small military commander, I am not qualified to put on airs in front of others.
"Commander Sun, without further delay, you should quickly concentrate your troops at the east gate and north gate, and enter the city from the second gate." Zhang Yan came all the way just now, and he was also very tired, so he panted.
"Okay, brother Zhang, please have a sip of tea first." With that, General Sun went out of the tent and told his subordinates to make arrangements.
Zhang Yan took a sip of tea and then chased out to tell Mr. Sun some details.
When it gets dark, don't kill one of your own by mistake.
When the sky is ready to take away the last ray of light and the earth returns to darkness.
Luo Gangyou was having dinner in the government office when he suddenly heard deafening shouts of killing.
With many years of battlefield experience, Luo Gangyou could tell right away that the sound of the charge was wrong and came from inside the city.
Luo Gangxian quickly summoned his own soldiers.
Arriving on the street outside the city, Luo Gangyou listened for himself and found that the sound came from the east gate and the north gate.
How could two city gates be breached at the same time?
Luo Gangyang had a bad feeling in his heart.
"Luo Hao, take a group of people and go to the backyard to pick up the crown prince and then go to the west gate." Luo Dayou ordered a Qing army officer.
"Others, follow me and go to the east gate to have a look." At this time, Luo Gangyou didn't have many troops in his hands.
The troops in the city are basically deployed on the four gates and the city walls.
Although he had a bad premonition, Luo Dayou prepared to go and see it in person.
On the way to the east gate, Luo Gang met a group of soldiers who had escaped.
"What's going on? Why is the city gate lost?" Luo Gang grabbed a young officer and asked sternly.
The young officer quickly knelt down and replied: "Check your lord, Junshuai Li and his men rebelled, opened the city gate and let Qing Yao in. The young ones were unwilling to surrender to Qing Yao. Most of them were killed. The young ones were killed.
Helpless, he escaped back with his people."
"General, you have to make the decision for your brothers!" Luo Gang's eyes turned red. If the east gate rebelled, then the north gate must also rebel.
Rebellion at the same time must have been premeditated. Then there must be someone who can bridge the gap.
Considering the recent abnormal behavior of Huang Hao from Lenovo, Luo Dayou is a fool and can guess who is behind all this.