Desert Eagle Suletan Khan

Chapter 725: The court blames the town leader

"Bai Fuyuan, please don't say that. You are patrolling Shanxi on the emperor's orders. We are all looking up to you like looking up at the Big Dipper. The guards have broken through the Biantou Pass. Please make up your mind. I will just follow your orders." , Li Haoxian smiled and passed the responsibility to Bai Rumei.

"President Li, I am a civil servant, how can I know anything about military affairs? You are the chief of Taiyuan, and you have the responsibility to guard Taiyuan. Don't shirk it. Please tell me your opinion." Bai Rumei said modestly. This Governor Bai was neither a Han nor a Manchu, but a Korean who had lived in Shenyang for generations, and served under the banner of the Han Army. He said that he did not understand military matters. In fact, this was not the case. During his tenure as the governor of Shanxi, this man was very effective in suppressing the remaining rebels and received many awards from the Qing court. How could he not understand military matters? The main reason for saying this is that this person is very deep in the city and knows that his own situation is not good after the Wei army conquers the Biantou Pass, so he wants Li Haoxian to make the decision, so that he can shirk his own responsibility if he is defeated in the future.

"Since the Fuyuan insists on telling me, I will tell you my humble opinion." Li Haoxian smiled slightly when he saw this, but what he said shocked everyone present, "The Guards have already captured Piantou Pass and Laoyingbao. , our defenders stationed at Ningwu and Yanmen Pass must retreat immediately, otherwise they will be surrounded by the enemy. My opinion is to immediately order the troops of Puzhou Association Deputy General Xu Changchun and Pingyang Camp Staff General Liu Ding Withdraw to Xinzhou and Dingxiang; the Fenzhou camp's general Guo Hu, the Lu'an camp's general Liu Jingshan, and the Zezhou camp's chief Huang Shaojiong withdrew to Yuzaoguan; the Fubiao camp's general Gao Guosheng stayed in Taiyuan Fucheng; Manchuria Mailer with a red flag Zhangjing's Chahatai troops went north to Jingle and Shapo Ridge to set up defenses; I led Supervisor Biao and Taiyuan City to guard the camp and rushed to Xinzhou."

"Bang~" Chahatai slammed the table angrily when he heard this, "Everyone knows that the Ningwu and Yanmen passes are rare great passes in the world. Mr. Li wants to abandon these two passes without firing a single shot. Isn't he afraid that the emperor will blame him? ?"

"Yes, Mr. Li, the situation is not yet at the point where we have to give up on Ningwu and Yanmen. Why don't we stick to it for a while?" Shanxi Inspector Yu Jiqing has always liked Afu Manguan. When he saw Ha Tai's words, he immediately agreed. .

"Zhang Jing is a man who knows the military. He should know that food and grass go first before the three armies are moved. The Wei army has captured Datong, and the food and grass at Ningwu and Yanmen passes can only be transferred to Taiyuan. If the enemy army captures Ninghua again, , Wutai County, the grain road of the second pass is cut off, even if it is like Tiexiong Pass, what is the use?" Li Haoxian looked at Chahatai with a smile. Seeing that he remained silent, he suddenly said seriously: "If the court blames him, this town will bear the responsibility."

After hearing what he said, Chahatai's expression softened and he said, "The general is willing to listen to the commander's orders." This attitude was beyond the expectations of the generals. After all, the Yijiala Eight Banners Manchu and Yijiala Eight Banners Han troops led by Chahatai did not belong to the Taiyuan Town establishment. In theory, Li Haoxian had no control over them, not even Shanxi Governor Bai Rumei's account. Definitely buy it. But now the arrogant and rebellious Manchurian uncle was actually willing to obey orders, which made everyone admire him with admiration.

"Okay! As long as our army is united, why should we fear the rampant Xilu?" Bai Rumei praised loudly. Worthy of being the governor of a province, this praise was full of superb political wisdom, which not only bridged the unhappiness between the two sides during the dispute just now, but also cleverly contributed to the decision to retreat from Ningwu and Yanmen Pass. The best thing is that from beginning to end, Bai Fuyuan never said the word "agree". If the court blamed it, it could only blame Li Haoxian.

"The Guards have many cavalry, coming and going like the wind. Now they have broken through the Piantou Pass. Even if we order a retreat from Ningwu and Yanmen now, I am afraid it will be too late." Shanxi Inspector Yu Jiqing expressed his concerns. After hearing this, Bai Rumei's expression changed drastically. He has also experienced bloody storms, so he naturally knows the speed of cavalry.

"No problem, when we came to Taiyuan from Yanmen, I had ordered Xu Changchun's troops to withdraw to Xinzhou, Liu Ding's troops to withdraw to Dingxiang, and Guo Hu, Liu Jingshan, and Huang Shaojiong's troops to withdraw to Yuzaoguan. In addition, Daizhou, Fanzhi County, and Nao Officials, officers, and soldiers from the counties, Wutai County, and other counties along the way also evacuated to Xinzhou, taking away all their savings, rice, grains, and other materials that could be taken away, and burning those that could not be taken away. No, you are not allowed to leave a tael of silver or a grain of rice for the guards." Li Haoxian said calmly, as if he was just talking about a trivial matter.

What! This man was so bold that he ordered the withdrawal of troops without the consent of the governor. Where did he put the majesty of the imperial court and the dignity of the court! After hearing this, everyone present did not dare to say a word and glanced at Governor Bai with their eyes.

Bai Rumei's face turned green and white, and the veins on her forehead were exposed. After a while, he suddenly burst out laughing, "Wonderful! When the generals are out and you are not accepting your orders, General Li Zhen is a real general! In this case, I will entrust the entire military affairs of Shanxi Province to General Li Zhen. Don’t say goodbye.” On the surface, this is trust in Li Haoxian, but in fact it lays the foundation for the future. The victory was naturally attributed to Governor Bai; the defeat was due to Li Haoxian's arrogance and private orders to retreat from Ningwu and Yanmen Pass, and had nothing to do with Governor Bai. "Since the end of the Fuyuan Committee will have full power, you are welcome," Li Haoxian seemed not to notice Bai Rumei's selfishness and continued to deploy Taiyuan's defense calmly. "If you want to defend Taiyuan, you must first defend the outskirts of Taiyuan. For this battle, nine thousand troops will be gathered in Xinzhou and Dingxiang, and I will lead them myself. Five thousand troops will be stationed along the Hutuo River in the east of Dingxiang to Yuzao Pass, and from Fen Guo Hu, the state battalion general, is the main general; there are three thousand troops stationed on the Jinngle and Shapo Ridge lines to the west of Xinzhou, and Melezhangjing Chahatai is the main general. As a result, only Fubiao is left in Yangqu, Taiyuan Prefecture. We have a battalion of two thousand soldiers and horses. In order for the defense army to sneak attack Yangqu, the young men in the city must be immediately recruited to the city to assist in the defense. The soldiers from the governor's yamen, the two yamen, and the money making bureau must also go to the city. Do you all understand?" The so-called two yamen refer to those who guard Jining Road and those who patrol Jining Road. In the Ming Dynasty, Jining Road only governed Taiyuan Prefecture. In the Qing Dynasty, Jining Road had jurisdiction over a very wide area, governing the four prefectures of Taiyuan, Fenzhou, Lu'an and Zezhou and the three prefectures of Liao, Qin and Pingding, accounting for half of Shanxi. , because it is an important tax-paying land in the north and is close to the capital, so there are both separate guard roads and separate patrol roads.

"I am willing to listen to the command of the general town." Seeing his orderly arrangement, everyone accepted the order in unison.

"The soldiers and horses have not been moved, but the food and grass have gone first. Li Shengzheng, I wonder how the money and food are prepared?" Li Haoxian looked at Li Wenhuang, Shanxi's chief envoy. Now that Shanxi's chief envoy is vacant, Li Wenhuang has taken over the post of Shanxi's chief envoy. Naturally, I have to ask him about money and food.

"Don't worry, Mr. Li, Shanxi is still rich. I have ordered all the governments to send money and grain to Yangqu. If it doesn't work, I will allocate some to big merchants in Jiexiu, Taigu, Qixian, Pingyang, Lu'an and other places." Li Wenhuang Full of confidence.

Hearing him mention Lu'an, Bai Rumei suddenly said, "A war is a war, and not a single piece of Lu silk tribute to the palace can be left behind." The area around Lu'an Prefecture is rich in silk. Lu silk is one of the three most famous silk fabrics along with Hangzhou Forging and Shu Brocade. It is said to be "South Songjiang, North Lu'an, and Yitianxia". From the Ming Dynasty, Lu silk was mainly supplied to the imperial palace. After the founding of the Qing Dynasty, most of the silk used in the palace was Lu silk.

"Don't worry, Fuyuan, I will never miss the money of the palace." Li Wenhuang knew politics and answered immediately.

"Yeah", Bai Rumei drank her tea with a smile and stopped talking. He is also a master of politics, and nothing can be short of the emperor's expenses. As for the crime of losing land, giving up Ningwu and Yanmen is nothing. As the governor of Shanxi, as long as he does not leave Shanxi and does not lose Taiyuan, the capital of Shanxi, it is nothing. Besides, there is Li Haoxian, the commander-in-chief of Taiyuan Town, who is standing in front of him. , so his mind calmed down.

"Lords, Xinzhou has mountains all over the country. To the south are Liulinjian Mountain, Xiaowutai Mountain, Guanmao Mountain, Ping'an Mountain, and Ma Tou Mountain; to the west are Yunzhong Mountain, Gu Mountain, Wangfeng Mountain, Maquan Mountain, and Longwang Nao; to the north are Jinshan Mountain, Daqing Mountain; Wutai Mountain in the east; Guanchuan Mountain and Luya Mountain in the middle. A decisive battle in Xinzhou is good for us but not good for the enemy. Therefore, the battle of Taiyuan should be based on Xinzhou as the main battlefield," Li Haoxian continued his analysis.

"Mr. Li, even if the terrain in Xinzhou is favorable to me, the guards are not fools. They may not come to Xinzhou to fight me decisively." Chahatai, the Manchurian Mele Zhangjing with a red flag, interrupted rudely.

"Haha", Li Haoxian stroked his long beard mysteriously, "I guess the guards will come from Xinzhou."

(End of this chapter)