Hong Xuanjiao looked confident, with infinite arrogance in her eyes, and left with Li Xiucheng arrogantly without even looking at Fu Shanxiang. After Hong Xuanjiao left with Li Xiucheng, the hall became noisy again.
The officials were whispering among themselves, discussing whether Hong Xuanjiao could win.
Yang Xiuqing looked at Hong Xuanjiao's leaving figure with a look of helplessness in her eyes. Although Hong Xuanjiao had certain abilities and good martial arts skills, the person she faced was Li Zhen. This person was as cunning as a fox, full of tricks and never followed common sense. Playing his cards, Hong Xuanjiao would probably fail if he went to fight.
After all, Yang Xiuqing herself had been defeated by Li Zhen. She knew very well how powerful Li Zhen was and was deeply afraid of Li Zhen.
Yang Xiuqing looked at Fu Shanxiang and asked, "Prime Minister Fu, do you have any opinion?"
Fu Shanxiang sighed and said helplessly: "Mrs. Xiao has a strong temper and will never regret her decision. Now that she has made a decision, it is absolutely impossible to change it. There are two things to do now. The first is The thing is to send soldiers to inquire about the situation of Queen Xiao and Li Xiucheng, and be ready to rescue Queen Xiao at any time."
Yang Xiuqing nodded and said, "What about the second thing."
The corners of Fu Shanxiang's mouth turned up slightly, and he said in a deep voice: "The second thing is what the official said before. He immediately transferred King Yi back to Tianjing and asked King Yi to lead the army to fight Li Zhen. Now, the only one in the Tatar army is Li Zhen is a capable man in fighting, and our Yi Wang has repeatedly defeated the Qing army, and they are all brave generals. I think the only solution is to transfer the Yi Wang back to confront Li Zhen."
After hearing this, Yang Xiuqing pondered for a moment, and finally nodded and said: "Okay, I agree with your suggestion. Bring Shi Dakai back from the outside and use all his strength to deal with Li Zhen."
Fu Shanxiang suddenly laughed and said happily: "Your Majesty is wise. Now the Tatars are counting on Li Zhen to support the situation. As long as King Yi leads his army to destroy Li Zhen, all problems will be solved."
Yang Xiuqing was convinced and agreed with Fu Shanxiang's statement.
…
Jiangbei Camp, in the military camp.
Li Zhen led eight thousand soldiers to settle down and set up camp. This time, the army led by Li Zhen was fully equipped with weapons. Not only did they carry new guns, but they were also equipped with metal egg-shell bullets, grenades, landmines and a series of other weapons. The new weapons of Li Zhen's "Shanghai Army".
In the big tent, a rectangular conference table was placed. Huang Shihai, Qi Zhenhai, Yang Banhou, Lu Shaochuan and other generals from the army were arranged on both sides, sitting neatly.
Using the conference table method was personally requested by Li Zhen.
According to the deliberation method of the Manchu and Qing army lieutenant generals, the commander must be sitting high at the top, and the positions of the army lieutenant generals are on the left and right sides below. Li Zhen felt that this method was too far away and could easily create barriers, so he resolutely banned it. In this way, it became a method of using the conference table. At this time, everyone had arrived, except Li Zhen who had not arrived.
Huang Shihai and others were not in a hurry, chatting with each other casually.
"The handsome man has arrived."
Suddenly, a loud shout came from outside the big tent.
Upon hearing this, Huang Shihai stood up quickly, raised his head and chest, and straightened his body. Immediately afterwards, Qi Zhenhai, Yang Banhou, Long Ao and others all stood up and looked at the door of the tent. The door curtain was raised. Li Zhen and Ye Chengzhong walked in. Li Zhen walked to his seat, raised his hand and saluted everyone, and said loudly: "Everyone, please sit down."
After finishing speaking, Li Zhen took the lead and sat down.
Immediately, everyone sat down. Ye Chengzhong found a seat at the end. Although he was not a general in the army, he had to assist Li Zhen in handling matters. He was equivalent to Li Zhen's confidential secretary. Li Zhen looked around everyone. , said slowly: "We are summoned today to discuss the matter of fighting the Taiping Army. Everyone expresses their opinions and expresses their opinions. As the brigade commander and the highest general in the army, Huang Shihai expresses his opinions first."
"yes."
Huang Shihai nodded and said: "Commander, I think we have an absolute advantage in wiping out the bandits. First of all, our eight thousand soldiers are all elite and a mighty force. This is incomparable to the ragtag group of bandits. , Secondly, our weapons are far superior to those of the bandits. Once the two sides exchange fire, they can defeat each other immediately. Even if they attack Nanjing, they are enough to break through."
"The marshal left Beijing alone, and now his wife is still in Beijing. Therefore, I think the marshal must act quickly and deal with the bandits as early as possible so that he can go to Beijing to reunite with his wife as early as possible."
"Therefore, I suggest that we storm Nanjing and wipe out the bandits."
Huang Shihai's hands on the table were clenched into fists, and his eyes were full of excitement.
Attacking Nanjing was a big deal.
If the bandits are wiped out, he will definitely be able to follow Li Zhen and become a noble.
"Commander, I think the brigade commander's suggestion is not feasible."
When Huang Shihai was extremely excited, Smith's voice came from below. Smith also looked serious and strongly disagreed with Huang Shihai's suggestion.
Huang Shihai was not angry and asked: "What suggestions does Captain Smith have?"
Smith said solemnly: "I agree with what Brigadier Huang said, we have enough strength to defeat the Taiping Army, but there is an old saying in China that a cunning rabbit dies and a lackey cooks. To put it more bluntly, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom is a cunning rabbit, and the general is the emperor's subordinate. If the commander-in-chief destroys the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom as his lackey, he will be dismissed from the army and return to Beijing to serve, or he will be killed in the worst case."
Yang Banhou didn't believe it and said, "Smith, what you said is serious."
Yang Luchan snorted and said coldly: "Captain Yang, I agree with Smith's statement, because this is not only a matter of cunning rabbits being cooked by dead lackeys, but also a matter of identity. We are Han people, not banner people. If The commander-in-chief has made great achievements and has unparalleled prestige among the Han people, even surpassing the ministers of the Manchu and Qing Dynasties. Will the emperor let the commander-in-chief let him go?"
Long Ao also continued: "I agree with Mr. Yang's suggestion."
Dong Haichuan frowned and said carelessly: "It's impossible to attack the bandits now, and it's impossible not to attack them. Tell me, what should we do now, and whether we should attack them or not."
Li Zhen glanced at everyone, his face expressionless, but his heart was filled with joy.
Smith's words spoke to Li Zhen's heart.
His words finally opened the skylight and made things clear.
Lu Shaochuan was a staunch supporter of Li Zhen and only recognized Li Zhen. He said indifferently: "Commander, you are the smartest among us. If you have any ideas, I will do what you say." "
Huang Shihai nodded and said: "I take back my previous opinion and agree with Captain Smith. If you make meritorious service, you will be dismissed, so it is better to stay in Guangdong."
Long Ao didn't say a word, staring at Li Zhen with burning eyes, waiting for Li Zhen to speak. After listening to the words of the generals, he had already seen some clues. The generals under Li Zhen did not pay attention to the emperor at all. They are all people who support Li Zhen.
Li Zhen nodded and said: "I listened to everyone's opinions and I have certain thoughts in my mind."
Huang Shihai said loudly: "Commander, please give me instructions."
Everyone asked Li Zhen to speak one after another, and they all wanted to hear Li Zhen's opinion.