He picked up a bowl of wine, most of which was filled with rainwater from the sky, and shouted: "Sacrifice to the brothers who died in Changde!"
All the troops stood in silence, looking towards the city.
Zhang Ning drank half of the bowl in front of everyone, and poured the remaining half of the bowl on the ground below the city. His voice choked with sobs and he said: "All the officers and soldiers of the standing army below Xu Guangfu, deputy commander of the Senate, died in the battle. I saw it with my own eyes as a secret agent.
, the officers and soldiers did not express their anger after killing the people, and ordered horses to trample on the corpses. The internal organs, brains, flesh and blood of the heroes were everywhere; some officials who surrendered were forced to kneel down and were humiliated and called "Lord". If they did not cry, they would be killed in public.
Massacre, is this still something that the Han people can do? After they captured the city, they raped, prostituted, kidnapped and plundered like barbarians, which is evident in the tyranny of the puppet government. They also threw the military flag that we respected on the ground and humiliated them for fun. It is a great shame and humiliation!"
After speaking, he threw the bowl on the wall tiles, drew his sword and pointed it at the rainy sky, shouting: "Fight to the death, annihilate the bandits, recapture Changde, and collect the bodies of the brothers who died in the battle..."
"Take back Changde, take back Changde, Changde, Chang..." The troops were so excited that they shouted loudly, and the angry roars of tens of thousands of people echoed in the mountains outside the city.
…
Following the cavalry army, the Northern Route Army camp had still not reached Changde, and at this time, those at the decision-making level had been discussing the new strategy for many days.
Yu Qian sat on the chair in the middle of the official office of the Changde Council, the chair where Zhang Ning once sat. He looked around at the generals present and said: "The best time to have a decisive battle with the rebels is when they withdraw from the Xiang River to Chenzhou.
It's a pity that the fighter plane has passed away. At that time, the rebels were not prepared to fight for a long time outside Changde. They were running out of food and grass supplies, their weapons were in disrepair, their ammunition was insufficient, and their men and horses were exhausted. If they could intercept the decisive battle, they could win. But at the moment, I don't agree with the Northern Route Army directly
Force a decisive battle in the capital city of Chenzhou."
Xue Lu, who was sitting aside, said: "Forgive me for being honest in Futai. I think the main force of the rebel army was not too small to lose on the South Road. They are still exhausted after walking so many roads. We have taken over our old home in Changde again, and many people died."
If people don't tell me, they have nothing to make firearms. We are approaching Chenzhou immediately. Isn't this a fighter plane? Do you dare to support my army of fifty thousand, with the power of Changde's victory, and attack ten thousand of them, and still be defeated?"
Yu Qian said in a strong tone: "How long will it take to approach Chenzhou immediately... The rebels are naturally weak at this moment. I can't say that they will not win, but it is not certain that they can win. From what I see, there are risks here. This battle
When it comes to the rise and fall of the world, everything must be absolutely sure, and we must not be impatient and spoil the event!
The rebels are currently in a bad situation, but there will be times when they will be even worse. As time goes on, it will be more beneficial to us. The harvest in Chenzhou has failed. How can they feed more than 10,000 people under the threat of our army, as well as two people looted from various places?
More than a thousand horses? Of course, if we stand still hundreds of miles away, we will be wary of them sending troops to plunder other places, so we must have a layout."
At this time, someone else said: "If the rebels simply abandon Changde, then abandon Chenzhou, and re-capture other places, such as the nearby Baoqing Mansion, won't we follow behind and eat ashes?"
Yu Qian said coldly: "If Zhang Ning really did this, it would be easier to deal with. How is it any different from a bandit? He has no place to operate for a long time. With the current situation in the world, what will he do? Attack Baoqing Mansion southward? Then
We are further away from threatening Wuchang... That's okay too. Let's just leave one more moderately ill person in Huguang to delay for a while. When the main force of our Beijing battalion captures Nanjing and pacifies the southeast, the general situation will become stable. Isn't the world as big as the king's territory?
, where can a group of bandits run to?"
Xue Lu sighed: "This thief is dead but not stiff. How long will the disaster be left?"
Yu Qian said: "Don't be greedy for merit. Seek medical treatment when you have the opportunity; if the opportunity is bad, prevent it from penetrating into the five internal organs and becoming a serious problem. We have also fulfilled our responsibilities."
After hearing this, Xue Lu finally gave in and asked: "How should the troops deployed by Futai just mentioned be arranged?"
Yu Qian said: "It can be said that there are only four words 'like a awn on the back', which means to let the rebels be like a awn on the back. I looked at the battle of Yuelu Mountain in the Southern Route Army. The official army did not have heavy artillery, the firearms were short of ammunition, and the troops were short of horses.
They were able to hold on for many days despite being in a difficult situation of food and grass, and continued to kill and injure the rebels until the rebels retreated on their own. After summing up the strengths and weaknesses of the enemy and ourselves, let me tell you whether this makes sense to all the generals who have personally visited the battlefield. The enemy's strength is not in the cavalry, but in the cavalry.
As long as the official army uses cavalry properly, its actual combat effectiveness will not be inferior to that of the rebel cavalry. Moreover, our cavalry is much larger than theirs. The enemy's strengths lie in its footwork, artillery and firearms.
Facing the enemy in an infantry formation, the rebels' muskets have a long range, strong armor penetration, and are more prestigious. Our infantry army will be defeated in the front. Moreover, its infantry formation can resist the charge of the cavalry and seems to be indestructible. In fact, it is not the case. There are two ways to defeat the enemy.
Types: First, if you have better heavy artillery, or more dense general artillery, and the terrain is conducive to bombarding the enemy, and then attack with cavalry, you have a chance to defeat it. Second, if you occupy a relatively steep and deep high ground,
And relying on the fortifications and using heavy arrows to fight against the enemy's firecrackers, we can also fight. This is also the reason why the South Route Army was able to hold on at Yuelu Mountain. If they had enough arrows at that time, the battle situation would have been better; I was condescending and used it to break the armor.
Better heavy arrows can be fired repeatedly due to the height of the terrain, which can make up for the disadvantage that the range of the heavy arrows is far less than that of the enemy's fire cannons. The lead bullets of the fire cannons shoot flatly and have little effect on high and low terrain; and the bow and arrow shoot faster than the fire cannons.
, so it’s not a huge disadvantage to use heavy arrows against fire guns from a high position. Don’t forget that we still have a military advantage that is far greater than the rebels.”
When talking about the use of weapons and tactics, the generals not only understood it but were also very interested. Yu Qian continued: "So I have an idea of deploying troops. The main force of the army will advance along the Yuanshui River to Chenzhou, and divide it into separate operations on the pre-selected terrain.
Three battalions are stationed; the reason for dividing the troops is firstly because our strength is much greater than that of the rebels, and secondly to reduce risks. If a battalion in front is accidentally defeated, we still have three battalions, so that we will not be completely defeated.
The terrain selection is particularly important. There are several key points: first, it must be on high ground; second, the place must have width and depth to prevent the main road from blocking the supply on the mountain; third, it must have a water source, preferably close to the Yuan River to facilitate water and grain routes;
Fourth, the three places should not be too far apart to facilitate front and rear coordination.
In this case, we will not attack, and they will not be able to attack and defeat us, but they will always be under the threat of our army. There is also famine and poverty, which means we are in a dilemma. But our army can use Changde as its foundation, and can come from Yuan River or land.
With constant supplies of weapons, food and fodder, we are confident; just outside Changde is Dongting Lake, which is connected to the river, and all the war preparations and military supplies of Huguang can be transported here.
Our army camp can still fight flexibly and rotate at the right time. The 50,000-strong army takes turns to go into battle, and the cavalry is flexible and maneuverable to find its weak points to attack. In this way, Zhang Ning cannot even control Chenzhou itself. In just a few months, the rebels will be dead without a chance.
None."
After listening to this, a fat man clapped his hands and said happily: "It's really harmless and husbandless." After a moment, he realized that he had said the wrong thing and the words he used were not very good. He hurriedly slapped his mouth with his hand, "I made a mistake. I made a mistake."
Yu Qian looked at him coldly and said: "If the general could think of how many people would be displaced during the country's turmoil, how many people would starve and freeze to death on the roadside; if the general could understand the brutal things that happened when the dynasties were divided and fighting.
. Then you will know whether to be poisonous to someone or not!"
The fat general's face was full of embarrassment, his neck was red, and he lowered his head and said: "I am so ashamed, I will be so ashamed in the end."
Yu Qian didn't have any polite words at all. He stood up, fluttered his sleeves and left his seat, saying, "If you want to discuss it again, just sit down for a while. If you don't want to, just leave."
After saying that, he picked up a file, left the hall, and walked to the dilapidated courtyard inside. There was a study room on the side of the upper room at the end of the corridor. According to the demoted official, this was where Zhang Ning processed official documents, almost every day.
You have to sit there for a long time.
Yu Qian walked over and couldn't help but push the door open and walk into the study. In fact, he admired Zhang Ning from a certain perspective. Zhang Ning left a deep impression on him when they collaborated on the plan to go from Nanjing to Beijing;
If Wang Jian's qualifications were compared with Zhang Ning's, Yu Qian could see at that time that one was in the sky and the other was on the ground.
It's a pity... If we could serve as officials in the same dynasty, share the same goals, cooperate tacitly to do business in peacetime, and enjoy flowers, drink, and write poems in our free time, it would be a good story for scholars.
The small study room is very simple. It can be seen that Zhang Ning is not a vulgar person who is extravagant and lustful. "Quietness is used to cultivate one's morality, and frugality is used to cultivate virtue." Yu Qian read out while looking at a picture on the wall. But here
However, it was kept very clean and almost spotless. Someone must have cleaned it up before the army broke into the city.
The owner here will not survive this year, Yu Qian thought confidently. But why did he want to understand a dying person?
Yu Qian brushed his hands over the books on the bookshelf and looked at the books that Zhang Ning usually liked to read. There were also a few pieces of paper placed next to the bookshelf. When Yu Qian picked them up and looked at them, he was a little surprised. They were actually drafts of several articles written by Zhang Ning.
.
Discussing the advantages and disadvantages of naval strategy? Shu means to report to the emperor. This article may be some time old. Yu Qian read it carefully and felt that it was quite far-sighted. The wording was pleasing to the emperor, but it also contained substantial insights.
Reading it again, Yu Qian understood many of Zhang Ning's ideas at the time. When he wrote this article, he was probably still an official: he entered the official position with the reputation of being a civil servant.
Wuwei, so he began to outline a blueprint for his official career not long after he entered the official career; and striving to make achievements in ocean strategy and trade was not only a beneficial career, but also created opportunities for promotion and reuse.
Yu Qian thought to himself: It would be great if Zhang Ning really went on like that. The reason why this person rebelled was probably due to his family background in Jianwen... When he found out about his life experience, he was more forced to do so, or he was aroused.
A little more ambitious?
Perhaps those who understand Zhang Ning best are also his opponents and enemies.