Chapter 78: Zheng Chenggong Raises the Army (Part 2)
At this critical moment, Zheng Chenggong decisively ordered to ignore the reinforcements outside the city and continue fighting in Quanzhou City to defeat the Qing army. At the same time, he sent people to invite the merchant army stationed in Liushi Village to attack the Qing reinforcements.-
But at this time, the Qing army in the city also received the news that reinforcements had arrived, and they couldn't help but feel refreshed. They gradually had the momentum to overwhelm the Zheng army. They killed the Zheng army and retreated steadily until they reached the west gate. They were about to be defeated. The Qing army was forced to withdraw from Quanzhou City.
Seeing this, Zheng Chenggong immediately drew his saber and shouted: "I will not leave the city unless I attack Quanzhou today." Then he took the lead and personally wielded the sword formation, killing several Qing soldiers. His generals Chen Bao, Yang Qihuang and Du Hui When the others saw Zheng Chenggong personally fighting, they all waved their weapons and joined him in the formation. They all fought bloody battles. Under the leadership of these generals, Zheng Jun was also aroused with high fighting spirit and finally stood firm.
At this moment, Shen Shouyue led the merchant army to the battlefield. Not only did he defeat the reinforcements of the Qing army, but he also sent a battalion into Quanzhou City to reinforce Zheng Chenggong. After a night of hard fighting, the Qing army at this time They were also exhausted, and it was obvious at a glance that the merchant army had joined the battle. They immediately lost all fighting spirit and retreated in defeat.
The Zheng Army and the Merchant Army took advantage of the situation to pursue and finally occupied Quanzhou City. Zhao Guoqi, with more than a hundred soldiers, fought his way out of Quanzhou and fled to Fuzhou.
On the other side, the reinforcements of the Qing army were also defeated by the merchant army. In fact, the Qing army did not have many defenders in Zhangzhou, and they could not muster many troops in a short period of time, so Wang Jin only brought more than two thousand troops. Man, the 30,000-strong army that raided Anping was just Wang Jin's deliberate bluff. He just took advantage of the darkness to catch Hong Zheng off guard. As a result, Shen Shouyue led his army to kill them, and they were immediately killed and scattered. He fled. In the melee, Wang Jin was also captured alive by the merchant army and imprisoned in Quanzhou City.
Although Zheng Chenggong suffered several setbacks and suffered considerable losses in this battle, with more than 1,200 troops and his general Yang Qihuang also died in Quanzhou City, Zheng Chenggong still captured Quanzhou in the end. Winning the first battle since raising troops, it also gained a foothold for itself.
When the gentry and common people in Quanzhou City learned that Zheng Chenggong had defeated the Qing army and occupied Quanzhou City, they were very happy and celebrated in the streets. Many people came to see Zheng Chenggong and begged him not to leave Quanzhou City again. Zheng Chenggong also became famous from then on. The great excitement completely overshadowed Zheng Cai and Zheng Hongkui.
Zheng Chenggong was naturally very happy and was about to send people to Nan'ao Island to invite Shang Yi to Quanzhou. However, he received a letter from Shang Yi. It turned out that Shang Yi had already taken advantage of the emptiness of Zhangzhou and led his army to capture Zhangzhou, so Zheng Chenggong asked Zheng Chenggong to send people to Quanzhou. Take over Zhangzhou.
After reading Shang Yi's letter, Zheng Chenggong couldn't help but admire him. He was indeed a famous general and would never miss an opportunity. So he immediately ordered Chen Bao to take over Zhangzhou.
At this time, Zhao Guoqi fled into Fuzhou and reported to Jueluo Bahana that the merchant army had penetrated deep into Fujian. When Jueluo Bahana learned the news, his face turned pale with fright. Because he himself After dispatching troops to reinforce the construction of Ningfu and Funing Prefecture respectively, the garrison of Fuzhou was less than 5,000 at this time. If the merchant army came to attack Fuzhou, he would not be able to defend it. Therefore, Jueluo Bahana also hurriedly ordered that The troops sent to aid the construction of Ningfu and Funing Prefecture were quickly withdrawn to Fuzhou to garrison. At the same time, Jin Shenghuan was ordered to withdraw his troops from Jiangxi and come back to protect Fujian. Then he closed the city gate tightly and never dared to go out again.
Although he did not capture Fuzhou as planned, he captured Quanzhou and Zhangzhou in succession, which made Zheng Chenggong very satisfied.
After Shang Yi handed over Zhangzhou to Chen Bao for guarding, he also came to Quanzhou. Zheng Chenggong welcomed him into Quanzhou. Shang Yi smiled and said: "Ming Yan, you did a good job in attacking Quanzhou this time."
Zheng Chenggong said: "The governor is too much of a reward. In fact, the ability to capture Quanzhou this time was entirely dependent on the help of the Jian army with the governor. Otherwise, Cheng Chenggong's own strength would never have been able to take down Quanzhou. The merchant army was brave and good at fighting.
The name is indeed worthy of its name.”
Shang Yi said: "You don't have to overestimate yourself. In fact, the plan you made for this battle and the command before the battle were really good. But the reason why your troops are not strong in combat effectiveness is because the army has just been formed.
Due to lack of training and lack of actual combat experience, as long as we step up our efforts in the future
Training can take as little as half a year or as much as one year, and you will definitely become a strong team, not to mention you have the opportunity to choose the sea. Therefore, from now on, you should base yourself in Quanzhou and Zhangzhou, recruit talents, expand your strength, and expand the sea.
Do business, accumulate money and food, compete with the Qing army, and wait for opportunities to regain the land of Fujian."
After a pause, Shang Yi added: "But there is one thing you must remember. Anyone who is going to achieve great things must put people first. Now you have Quanzhou and Zhangzhou, with a population of hundreds of thousands. Pay attention to recuperation, reduce taxes, and implement benevolent policies."
, treat the people leniently, only in this way can we be united and work together to fight against the Qing Dynasty. We must not ignore the will of the people and blindly impose force and expropriation. In that case, what is the difference between it and the Qing court?"
Zheng Chenggong couldn't help but said solemnly: "Your Majesty's golden words, success must be kept in mind."
Shang Yi nodded and said: "When the time is right and the troops are well-prepared, we will join forces in the Northern Expedition to regain the lost territory, expel the Tartars, and restore the world."
After hearing this, Zheng Chenggong couldn't help but feel excited and said: "When your Majesty raises his troops for the Northern Expedition, Chenggong is willing to fight on the battlefield as a soldier for your Majesty."
Shang Yi couldn't help laughing, patted Zheng Chenggong on the shoulder and said: "Okay, things here are almost done, it's time for me to go back to Zhejiang."
Zheng Chenggong was stunned for a moment and said, "Sir, are you leaving now?"
Shang Yi smiled and said: "Yes, the war in Zhejiang is tense now, and there are many military affairs that need to be handled by me back, so I can't stay in Quanzhou for too long. Now the Qing troops in Nanjing and Jiangbei are all held back by me in Zhejiang.
You don’t have to worry, but I predict that if Luo Bahana wants to regain Quanzhou, he will definitely send Jin Shenghuan back to Fujian to fight for three times, so you should be careful in what you do."
Zheng Chenggong hurriedly said: "Don't worry, sir, success will not disappoint you."
Shang Yi was very satisfied, and told Zheng Chenggong the next day that he took the army and returned to Zhejiang by boat. Of course, on the return trip, there was no longer a detour, and he directly crossed the Taiwan Strait and returned to Hangzhou, while Shen Shouyue
He also took his own army and returned to Taiwan.
After Shang Yi left Quanzhou, Zheng Chenggong also decided to follow Shang Yi's advice and use Quanzhou and Zhangzhou as bases to implement benevolent governance, develop his power, and prepare for a decisive battle with the Qing army. Therefore, he recruited soldiers, forged weapons, built warships, and strengthened city defense facilities.
, on the one hand, he ordered the reduction and exemption of taxes in Quanzhou and Zhangzhou, resumed production, and encouraged overseas trade. At the same time, he sent people to invite Zheng Hongkui and Zheng Cai to Quanzhou to discuss major plans.
Only then did Zheng Hongkui and Zheng Cai know that Zheng Chenggong had received the full support of Shang Yi and captured Quanzhou, with Zhangzhou as the basis. Therefore, they couldn't help but regret it. If they had known this was the case, they should have sent troops with Zheng Chenggong to capture Quanzhou. , can also get a share of the pie. But now it’s too late. Now that Zheng Chenggong has gained great power, and with Quanzhou and Zhangzhou as bases, his power has just begun, and Shang Yi is supporting him behind the scenes, he simply cannot compete with Zheng Chenggong. They were both smart people. After meeting Zheng Chenggong, they both expressed their willingness to accept Zheng Chenggong's command and jointly fight against the Qing army.
Zheng Chenggong was also very happy to receive the support of Zheng Cai and Zheng Hongkui, because these two people have considerable strength. With their support, his strength will be further improved.
After Zheng Chenggong captured Quanzhou and Zhangzhou, he also sent out troops to capture the prefectures and counties within Quanzhou Prefecture and Zhangzhou Prefecture. The gentry and common people everywhere were originally dissatisfied with the Qing army. When they heard that Zheng Chenggong's army was coming, they all started to rise up. In response to the incident, Zheng Chenggong's army was almost invincible wherever it went. In less than half a month, the entire Quanzhou Prefecture and Zhangzhou Prefecture were basically occupied by Zheng Chenggong.
Therefore, Zheng Chenggong also became famous. Although he had restored his surname of Zheng at this time, his subordinates all respectfully called him "Master of the national surname", and some of Zheng Zhilong's old subordinates also left the Qing army and defected to him. He served under his subordinates and also recruited a group of civil and military personnel. Among them, the scribes include Lu Ruoteng, the former governor of Zhejiang, Ye Yiyun, a Jinshi, Chen Ding, etc., and the generals include Gan Hui, Lan Deng, Qiu Jin, Lin Zhuangyou, Jin Yu, etc., who belong to Zheng Zhilong His old troops included Shi Tianfu, Shi Lang, Hong Xishan, Huang Ting and others. Therefore, Zheng Chenggong's men gathered talents and became increasingly powerful. Zheng Chenggong did not forget Shang Yi's teachings. He used the merchant army as an example, training soldiers and practicing formations every day. Tactics, preparation for a decisive battle with the Qing army.
At this time, Liu Zhongzao, who was revolting in Funing Prefecture, also felt that his strength was insufficient, so he also sent people to contact Zheng Chenggong and asked Zheng Chenggong to help him capture Funing Prefecture.
This played into Zheng Chenggong's plan, because Funing Prefecture is to the north of Fuzhou and borders Zhejiang. If he can capture Funing Prefecture, he will not only form a pincer attack on Fuzhou, but also establish land connections with Zhejiang, which will be a threat to both sides. Cooperation and joint fight against the Qing army would also be of great help to Li. So Zheng Chenggong immediately ordered Zheng Cai to lead his troops to Funing Prefecture by sea to support Liu Zhongzao. He also ordered Zheng Hongkui to lead his troops to Hui'an to protect Quanzhou's flanks.
Because the Qing army was now garrisoned in Fuzhou by Joro Bachanathusa, there were not many troops in Funing Prefecture. After Zheng Cai arrived in Funing Prefecture, he joined forces with Liu Zhongzao and quickly captured Funing Prefecture. .
At the same time, the Shaowu court, which had settled down in Guangzhou, also learned that Zheng Chenggong had raised troops and opened up a situation in Fujian, so it also sent people to Fujian to designate Zheng Chenggong as Nan'an Gong and Governor of Fujian. Because the Shaowu court was a subordinate of the Longwu court. Continuing, Zheng Chenggong also sent people to Guangzhou to meet with Zhu Yuxian to express his official recognition of the Shaowu court as Zhengshuo.