Autumn of the 17th year of Chongzhen

Chapter 407 Touring Eastern Guangdong
Before the new year, Wang Yan decided to go to the east of Guangdong for inspection. Unlike the Ming army, because the Qing army mainly came from the area north of the Yangtze River, the summer in the south was too hot for them to fight, but the winter was just right. The climate is very favorable for war.

The Eight Banners of the Manchu and Qing Dynasties would go back to the north to escape the summer heat almost every year. At that time it was the best time for the Ming army to dispatch, but it was winter now. Although the Qing soldiers also had a custom of celebrating the New Year, Wang Yan had to be more vigilant.

Chaozhou Prefecture and Huizhou Prefecture are located in the east of Guangdong. They were also the two prefectural capitals that suffered the most heavy losses when the Qing soldiers entered the south of Guangxi. Like all areas along the southern coast, they are surrounded by mountains and hills to the north, and only the area near the coast is narrow and long. plain.

The Hanjiang River, Lianjiang River, Nanxi River, and Beixi River in Chaozhou form a plain in the south. It is one of the best places in Guangnan. The tax paid is second only to Guangfu.

On the official road to the east of Chaozhou Prefecture, a cavalry force of thousands of people is slowly marching along the official road to Feishuiguan. This is the second time Wang Yan has taken this official road since he first entered Guangdong from Fujian.

Zhang Cunren, governor of Fujian and Zhejiang in the Qing court, was stationed in Fuzhou. Qing generals Li Chengdong and Tong Yangjia stationed troops in Zhangzhou.

Wang Yan and Li Chengdong are old acquaintances, and they were his subordinates, so after Wang Yan returned to Guangdong, he learned that Li Chengdong was stationed in Zhangzhou, so he wrote to him, promising Houjue to surrender. At first, Li Chengdong was also very moved, and sometimes replied , but in the recent period of time, there has been no news.

Wang Yan was a little puzzled, worried about what the Qing court would do, that's why he took this inspection of eastern Guangdong.

This time Wang Yan came directly from Guangzhou after inspecting the training of the new army. Wang Fuzhi was also in the team. He saw along the way that the fields were barren and the villages were burned. Although many people were rebuilding their homes, Still can't hide the dilapidation of eastern Guangdong.

Wang Fuzhi sighed and said: "During the reign of Chongzhen, all parts of the south were still very prosperous, and scenes of prosperity can be seen everywhere, but now from Huguang to Jiangxi to eastern Guangdong, as long as the places that suffered from military disasters are in ruins, it is really sad. Unlimited emotion. With the state of eastern Guangdong, I don’t know if the summer harvest will go smoothly next year.”

Wang Yan said: "Guangnan used to have a lot of people and little land, and there was a lot of conflict between natives and tourists. Before that, I could only develop Qiongzhou and find new land. Although the eastern part of Guangdong was destroyed this time, many unclaimed lands were created. But now it has been divided. I gave it to the military family, and I believe that after the New Year, some people will move over to cultivate, and it should not affect the planting."

"Food is the foundation of the country. The reason why the Ming Dynasty has such troubles is ultimately because of the lack of food. Although there is a granary in Huguang now, I am afraid that the food will not be enough when there is a war~"

Wang Yan nodded. This year, Hunan has a big autumn harvest, and finally saved a little food. As a result, a wave of refugees broke out in the northwest of E, and that little stock was consumed. They even mobilized the food and grass in Shaoguan in Guangdong, but the Qing court It should not be easy, Wang Yan said with a smile: "Nowadays, Guanzhong, Central Plains, and Hebei are dilapidated. There are actually only three granaries, one is Huguang, one is Bashu, and the other is Jiangnan. I am Daming, Zhang Xianzhong, Qing The court each occupies one place, but there are differences among the three places. In terms of grain production, Huguang is the first, Bashu is second, and Jiangnan is the third. It seems that unless the Qing court can restore the production in the north, otherwise it will not be as important in terms of grain production. Not much of an advantage."

Wang Fuzhi said: "The land in the south of the Yangtze River was originally a major grain-producing area, but since the Song Dynasty, Huguang has been gradually developed. The reputation of Tianxia Granary has changed from Suhu Shutianxiazu to Huguang Shutianxiazu. Plant cotton, tea trees and other higher-value crops, but now that Jiangnan's economy is being destroyed, Hong Chengchou will definitely encourage the people to re-plant grain, and with the potential of Jiangnan, it is not difficult for the grain output to surpass Huguang."

"Right now, the Qing court must be worrying about food. I am a little worried. After the spring, the Qing army will definitely target the two granaries of Bashu and Huguang."

Wang Fuzhi pondered for a while, "The Qing army attacked Huguang, so the south of the Yangtze River should not think about peace. This will not only affect the sowing of Huguang, but also the south of the Yangtze River. I think the Qing army is very likely to take Bashu first, seize this granary, and then occupy the upper reaches. From a strategic point of view, attack the land of Chu~”

Wang Yanwen frowned and said: "Zhang Xianzhong has only been in Sichuan for four years, and his foundation is not yet solid. However, he alone occupies more than half of the Bashu granary. The food should be sufficient. I don't know if he can keep Sichuan and Shu. Counting time, the information in Hanzhong is also It's time to send it over, but I don't know what it looks like?"

Soon, the team arrived at the Fenshui Pass at the junction of Guangdong and Fujian. The boundary between the Ming and Qing Dynasties was not a provincial boundary. In fact, they had to go a little deeper into Fujian, starting from Baisongling in the north along the Dongxi River to Fenshui Pass in the south.

The person in charge of guarding this line of defense is Li Guo of Zhongzhen Township. He originally wanted to control Guangxi, but now that Guifan controls Guangxi, Wang Yan didn't want to cause internal strife, so he put Li Guo here to fight against the Qing soldiers.

At this time, Li Guo led a group of generals to welcome Wang Yan outside the city. When Wang Yan approached, everyone stepped forward and saluted: "See you!" The new year is coming, and the governor will send a batch of wine and meat over, but it will be hard work for everyone during this period, so you must not let down your vigilance, lest the Qing army take advantage of it. After the spring, Zhongyong Town will come to replace it, so everyone here We will continue to maintain a state of combat readiness for a while." "Please rest assured, Duke, we will not slack off."

Li Guo and the others quickly clasped their fists to promise.At this time, Wang Yan went up to the Guancheng surrounded by the crowd. Many soldiers and civilians were reinforcing the wall of the pass. Wang Yan came to the Guanlou and looked at the Dongxi in the distance. Then he asked Li Guodao: "How is Li Chengdong's department doing recently?" "That guy seems to have raised the Zhengbai Banner of the Han Army recently. Not only has he changed the military flag, but he has also started to tidy up the wasteland near Zhangzhou. It seems that he is preparing to plant his own grain in the spring and fight us to death. .”

Wang Yan was slightly taken aback, and then he understood why Li Chengdong didn't reply to him. It turned out that the Qing court raised the flag for him.

There is little food in Fujian, and Zheng Chenggong is active at sea. Li Chengdong can't get much military rations, and now he is using the wasteland and preparing to grow food. It seems that after raising the flag, he is full of energy.

But from this point of view, Zheng Chenggong and King Lu must be in serious shortage of food now.

At this time, a group of cavalry suddenly rushed to Guanxia from the west, and the eunuch in the lead was the eunuch in the palace. Your Majesty asks the Duke to go back quickly to discuss important matters."

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(End of this chapter)