scourge the qing dynasty

Chapter 395
In history, Jiang Yuanxun was not well-known on the San Francisco battlefield, but what many friends don’t know is that when Geng Jingzhong was cornered by the Qing army and the Zheng army and had nowhere to go, most of the Geng army’s civil and military officials suggested that Geng Jingzhong should surrender to the Qing army. Only Jiang Yuanxun and an official named Liao Yanyun firmly opposed the surrender, thinking that even if the Qing army accepted Geng Jingzhong's surrender, it was only to reduce consumption and use Geng Jingzhong to deal with Zheng Jing-the fact also proved that Jiang Yuanxun's vision was the same.It can be said that the anti-Qing attitude is quite firm, and he also has a big picture and long-term vision. It is a rare bright spot under the leadership of Geng Jingzhong, who is short of talents. Even Lu Fatzi agrees with and secretly admires the words and opinions expressed.

But it is a pity that even if Fatty Lu, who is ambitious in the world, agrees with Jiang Yuanxun's principles and views, he cannot agree with Geng Jingzhong's conditions for dividing Zhejiang into two.

After Feiqi rushed to Hangzhou City to see Fatty Lu, Jiang Yuanxun did argue with Fatty Lu, and presented to Fatty Lu the soldiers and money spent by Geng Jing’s loyal army in the anti-Qing war over the past two years. The list of money and food, using detailed data to prove the price and sacrifices Geng Jingzhong's army paid and made in the anti-Qing war, and then questioned Fatty Lu face to face. With military pay and several million shi of military rations, it took three-quarters of Zhejiang Province with great difficulty, but Fatty Lu wanted to take it away as soon as he reached out. Is it a bit greedy?
Before Fatty Lu answered, Jiang Yuanxun warned Fatty Lu again, that is, for the Great Zhou court and Fatty Lu, the Yanping Palace is actually far more dangerous than the Jingnan Palace, and it is also less trustworthy, because the Yanping Palace insists on anti-Qing Fuming insists that because the former Ming army claimed that its goal was to counterattack the mainland and annex the world, even if it is temporarily allied with the Fatty Army, it is just to use the Fatty Army to annex Fujian and establish a firm foothold in the mainland!If Zheng Jing's wolfish ambitions are allowed to succeed, then the day Jingnan Palace will perish will also be the day when the Fatty Army and Yanping Palace will start fighting!
Then, Jiang Yuanxun said something astonishing, pointing out that Geng Jingzhong's effect on the Great Zhou court and Fatty Lu was even far greater than that of Fatty Lu's uncle Shang Zhixin!Because Geng Jingzhong was not only the first firm ally to form an alliance with the Great Zhou court, but also the first ally to raise troops to contain the Qing army. Shang Zhixin's brother-in-law named Fatty Lu was not only the last to raise troops from the Great Zhou court, but he was also desperate The so-called allies who just started fighting!Moreover, after the army was raised, apart from using the Great Zhou court, Geng Jingzhong and Zheng Jing to protect his territory and take the opportunity to strengthen his strength, Shang Zhixin did not launch an attack on the Qing army, nor did he add a brick or a tile to the anti-Qing cause. It's just desperately preserving its strength, what is its ambition, can't the Great Zhouyue Palace really see it?

In addition, Jiang Yuanxun, who also found Fatty Lu's ambition, also implicitly hinted that if Fatty Lu is inconvenient to eradicate and weaken a big Zhou cancer like Shang Zhixin who has a heavy army, then Geng Jingzhong is definitely the most ideal fat person The spokesperson of the army can stand up for the fat army, weaken Shang Zhixin's strength, or completely eradicate Shang Zhixin! ——This point really moved Fatty Lu a little bit.

Observing his words, he found that Fatty Lu was beginning to waver. Jiang Yuanxun took the opportunity to propose a plan to divide Zhejiang into two parts. Geng Jun gave up Quzhou and Yanzhou to the Fatty Army. Let Geng Jingzhong's army clean up Zheng Jing and guard against Shang Zhixin—also clean up Zheng Jing and guard against Shang Zhixin for the Fatty Army.I also implore Fatty Lu to think twice carefully, and never make the choice of hurting loved ones and quickening enemies.

Jiang Yuanxun said that Fatty Lu understood all these reasons, and secretly agreed, but it was a pity that Fatty Lu could not agree.Because Fatty Lu understands very well that Monk Zheng Jing's letter is indeed a stumbling block to his ambition to dominate, so why is Zheng Jing not a stumbling block to himself?Let Zheng Jing and monk Zhixin be in great danger, and let Geng Jingzhong be in great danger, wouldn't it be dangerous?Moreover, Geng Jingzhong has grown his army during the anti-Qing war for more than two years, and he has also formed a lot of elite troops. His strength has surpassed that of Zheng Jing and Monk Zhixin. A good economy solves the problem of money and food, isn't it a legacy of raising tigers and causing trouble for one's own future?

What's more, what Fatty Lu is more worried about now is that he and Guo Zhuangtu have torn their skins openly and publicly. In order to use Geng Jingzhong to restrain him, it is difficult to guarantee that Guo Zhuangtu will not disclose the production process of the new firearm to Geng Jingzhong.Zhejiang Qianliang, Fujian Army, and Yunnan-Guizhou's new firearms gave Geng Jingzhong time to integrate these, and it would be even more difficult for him to eradicate Geng Jingzhong.

So there is no way, in order to nip these dangers in the bud, Fatty Lu has only one choice, and that is to weaken Geng Jingzhong, and drive Geng Jingzhong back to Fujian, which has a weak economy and insufficient potential in this era, so that Geng Jingzhong, Zheng Jing and Monk Zhixin will be in the future. Fujian and Guangdong are killing each other and weakening each other in this narrow area. They can't find a little opportunity and time to grow and develop. Only in this way can the key interests of the fat army be ensured.

Another point is that if Zhejiang is divided into two, and the fat army occupies the north and the Geng army occupies the south, then in order to prevent the Geng Jingzhong army from turning against them, the fat army must invest a large amount of troops on the long defense line to deploy defenses. For the Fat Man Army, it is undoubtedly a huge hidden danger and a huge restraint.But if Geng Jingzhong is driven back to Fujian, it will be different. As long as the Fatty Army guards the important passes of Fenshui, Leishi, Dashi and Xianxia, ​​it can take precautions to the greatest extent. Even if there is a sudden change, there is still huge room for strategic return. , Gain precious time for the main force to adjust and reinforce.

Considering these problems, Fatty Lu can only express his regrets to Jiang Yuanxun, insisting that Geng Jingzhong's previous alliance with the Qing army to attack Huzhou is ironclad evidence of betraying the anti-Qing army and his compatriots, and demanded that Geng Jingzhong's army must unconditionally surrender Zhejiang province. The whole territory, return to Fujian, and then you can consider a truce with Geng Jingzhong.Otherwise, the Fatty Army can only take back Zhejiang by force and avenge Geng Jingzhong's betrayal by force!

Fatty Lu's attitude was so firm that Jiang Yuanxun had no choice but to leave with a sigh and return to Yanzhou to report Fatty Lu's answer to Geng Jingzhong.Geng Jingzhong was furious when he heard the news, scolded Fatty Lu for being ungrateful, and decided over and over again to let Zeng Yangxing and Bai Xianzhong give up the small county in the new town and return to Tonglu, Yanzhou, where they fought to the death with Fatty's army in Yanzhou, where the terrain was relatively familiar, and responded to Fatty Lu with force. aggressive.

Fatty Lu didn't let Geng Jingzhong's wishful thinking succeed. As soon as Jiang Yuanxun was sent away, Fatty Lu ordered Li Tianzhi to send troops to the new city, killing Zeng Yang and Bai Xianzhong to prevent them from returning to the army smoothly, forcing Geng Jingzhong's army to fight against Fatty's army. The decisive battle between Hangzhou and Yanzhou.On October 29, Li Tianzhi's [-] troops had arrived on the east bank of the Songxi River and confronted the Xincheng Geng army across the river.

On the first day of November, Geng Jingzhong's order to withdraw troops arrived in Xincheng. Zeng Yanghe and Bai Xianzhong were forced to ask Geng Jingzhong for a decisive battle, so as not to be chased by the fat army with heavy cavalry on the way to withdraw and cause greater losses.

The news was sent back to Yanzhou. Considering that the new city was too far away to supply food, grass and supplies, and it was easy to be cut off by the fat army, Geng Jingzhong had no choice but to bite the bullet and agree to a decisive battle. More than 3 Geng troops are ready to respond.

On the fifth day of November, Zeng Yangxing and Bai Xianzhong's [-] troops crossed the Songxi River and formed an array to confront Fatty's army head-on.In order not to waste firearms on Geng Jingzhong, a second-rate opponent, Li Tianzhi changed his habit of deploying the fat man's army and concentrated the cavalry in the central army, and deployed a large number of infantry on the two wings.Geng Jingzhong's army, whose number of cavalry was less than one-third of the fat man's army, concentrated all the cavalry on the left flank, and deployed the infantry on the center and right flanks. One hit chance.

The battle started, and amidst the sound of drums, the infantry on the left wing of the fat army took the lead and attacked the right wing of the Qing army, which was also dominated by infantry. Like his left uppercut, he slammed the right arm of Geng Jun, an equally tall giant, and Geng Jun steadied his formation to fight with all his strength, fighting brutally with the Fatty Army.

This was a typical fight of Li Tianzhi's style. The Fatty Army, known for its cunning and mid-line assaults, was uncharacteristically like a rookie boxer who had just entered the ring. Geng Jun's right-wing position was launched, and Geng's right-wing position was compressed, and Geng Jingzhong's army was exhausted.Soldiers from both sides fought each other on the right flank of the Geng army. Swords and guns exchanged, one row after another fell down, and one row after another surged up.

More than half of the 1 infantry of the Fat Man Army that went into the attack quickly wiped out more than half. Li Tianzhi threw in another [-] infantry without batting an eyelid, and continued to attack the right flank of the Geng Army. More than [-], and then rushed by the [-] fresh troops of the Fat Man Army, the right-wing position soon began to loosen, and the battle became more bloody and cruel. The corpses of soldiers from both sides were almost covered on the battlefield. It was dyed a dark red.

After fighting for more than half an hour, when the second infantry of the fat army was exhausted, Li Tianzhi calmly joined the third army, and the three thousand infantry of the fat army continued to attack the right flank of the Geng army.At the same time, the gap in combat effectiveness between the soldiers of the two sides was also fully exposed at this time. After losing more than 3000 infantry, the Fatty Army had wiped out more than [-] infantrymen of Geng Jingzhong's army. The army asked for help.

"Commander, who do you think this style of play looks like?" Bai Xianzhong asked Zeng Yangxing, "Do you think, Commander, we've seen this kind of crazy confrontation tactics before?"

"I also have this feeling." Zeng Yangxing nodded, and after a careful recollection, Zeng Yangxing and Bai Xianzhong exclaimed at the same time, "Shang Kexi! Shang Kexi is immortal! Back then, the old prince and monk of our Jingnan Palace's old prince and Shang Kexi was immortal to conquer the former Ming Dynasty. At that time, Shang Kexi fought like this, using the former Ming soldiers to fight the vanguard, constantly confronting the former Ming army, forcing the former Ming army to bleed, and also solving the troubles of the former Ming soldiers!"

"I remember." Zeng Yangxing slapped his forehead, pointed to the fat man's army flag formation five miles away, and said, "This time, Li Tianzhi, the dog thief who was fighting us, was born in the Pingnan Palace. He followed Shang Kexi at the age of 12. Old Immortal fights, but it is still gratifying that Old Immortal does not die, of course he has learned a lot."

"Fuck it!" Bai Xianzhong cursed, his forehead was covered with black lines, and he understood that although Li Tianzhi's move was clumsy and shameless, it hit Geng Jingzhong's weakness, because in the current situation, the rich and powerful The fat army with sufficient manpower can afford it. Even if Li Tianzhi exhausts the more than 6 fat army in his hand, most of which are surrendered from the Qing army, the vitality and muscles of the fat army will not be damaged. The same second-rate army!But Geng's army is dying. After exhausting the [-] troops, what else can they use to reach the next wave of offensive by the Fat Man Army, and what can they use to return to Fujian to expel Zheng Jing?Even if you can recruit strong men to serve as soldiers, what use is such an army without money, food and weapons?

"We shouldn't have turned against Lu Yifeng." Zeng Yangxing sighed, "We can't fight him head-on, and we can't afford to fight him head-on. To turn against him, we are looking for our own death."

Knowing Li Tianzhi's sinister intentions, Zeng Yanghe and Bai Xianzhong couldn't solve it. In order not to suffer greater losses, they could only bite the bullet and send reinforcements to the right wing to maintain the crumbling right wing battlefield, and at the same time send a cavalry attack from the left wing , Tentatively attack the right wing of the Fat Man Army composed of infantry, looking for fighters to destroy the enemy.But Zeng Yang and Bai Xianzhong soon despaired again. Just as their cavalry rushed to the infantry of the fat army, they were already beaten by the three-stage firearms of the fat army, and fled back to the main formation in embarrassment.

Almost at the same time as the cavalry of the Qing army fled back to the main formation, news suddenly came from the upper reaches of the Songxi River. Copy Geng Jingzhong's army's retreat.Hearing this news, Zeng Yanghe and Bai Xianzhong were inevitably terrified again. Fortunately, Guo Yingfu's team was still more than 30 miles away from here, and it could not affect the morale of Geng Jun's team for a while.

The brutal war of attrition continued. Li Tianzhi, who was trying his best to confront Geng Jingzhong's army, sent [-] troops to the right wing of the Geng army, and forced Zeng Yangxing to send more than [-] reinforcements to the right wing. On the right-wing battlefield, there was a mountain of dead bodies, and blood flowed down the ditches, dyeing the Songxi River red. The Geng Army commander Liu Bangren, the commander-in-chief Sun Kede, and Li Jie, who were in charge of the right wing, were also beheaded by the fat man's army one after another. Zeng Yangxing sent his deputy Bai Xianzhong to the right wing, and let Bai Xianzhong personally command and preside over the right wing battlefield.

The gradually darkening sky saved the lives of countless soldiers on both sides. The winter days were short, and the sky began to darken just after Youshi. When it was halfway through Youshi, Li Tianzhi, who had never found a chance for a general attack, finally ordered to call gold to let the fat army on the right-wing battlefield The troops withdrew from the battlefield one by one, and then the Fatty Army withdrew and returned to the camp ten miles away to rest and station. The Geng Army did not dare to chase after them, so they also retreated with Mingjin, and withdrew to the new city to station and rest.At the same time, the two sides negotiated through envoys, and each sent an unarmed infantry to the battlefield to receive the wounded soldiers, and did not invade each other during the rescue of the wounded soldiers.

On the first day of the battle, the situation was a tie, but in terms of the consumption of troops, the Fatty Army won a complete victory. At the cost of killing more than 7000 Qing troops and surrendering troops, the Geng Army consumed more than [-] troops , The ratio of casualties reached one to two.Facing such a favorable situation and withdrawing troops back to the camp, Fatty Lu’s brother-in-law Lu Zhangtai was inevitably a little puzzled, and couldn’t help asking Li Tianzhi on the way to retreat: “Brother Li, we clearly have the advantage? Why don’t we continue to fight?” ?”

"There is no chance to launch a general attack." Li Tianzhi replied frankly: "Zeng Yangxing is quite capable, and the formation has always been very stable. If we rashly attack, it will only cause unnecessary casualties to the soldiers. Continuing the night battle will not only harm our soldiers. It consumes a lot of physical strength, and it is easy to show flaws in the dark, giving the enemy a chance to take advantage of the loopholes."

"Really? It seems that we can only fight tomorrow." Lu Zhangtai was disappointed, but after being taught by Fatty Lu and Li Tianzhi for so long, Lu Zhangtai also developed some skills, and soon said happily: "It's okay. , Xincheng is a small city, it can't accommodate so many troops, so it can only be used as a granary, if we challenge again tomorrow, Zeng Yangxing will definitely have to fight against it."

"Do you think that Zeng Yangxing still has the guts to continue spending time in Xincheng?" Li Tianzhi said with a smile: "I told him on the battlefield today that I am here to fight a war of attrition with him this time. If he has the guts to fight me If it's a waste of money, then he and I will continue to spend it, if you don't have the guts, get out overnight."

"Will Zeng Yangxing leave the new city tonight?" Lu Zhangtai's eyes lit up.

"Of course, he can't afford it." Li Tianzhi smiled confidently, then turned to Zhu Sanshui next to him and said, "General Sanshui, I'll see you tomorrow night. Tonight your four thousand cavalry rest earlier. Send out more troops, bring more dry food, and be prepared for a long-term pursuit. If you find Zeng Yangxing retreating, immediately bite his tail and hold on. I will arrange for General Hutu to lead the cavalry to meet you. The two of you take turns to attack. Let’s try to weaken Zeng Yang’s children.” Zhu Sanshui agreed, and after the Fat Man’s Army returned to the camp, Zhu Sanshui took the cavalry back to the camp to rest, and Li Tianzhi rewarded the brave Qing army who surrendered today without mentioning it.

Sure enough, as Li Tianzhi expected, that night, Zeng Yangxing, who really couldn't exhaust the fat man's sloppy tactics, gave up the small county of Xincheng, withdrew the tributary of the southern section of Songxi, and fled all the way to Yanzhou. The cavalry of the Fat Man Army who had been standing still in the army finally had a place to use. They were divided into two teams and took turns chasing the retreating Zeng Yangxing team. Li Tianzhi personally led the main force to pursue them all the way, and went south to Yanzhou to fight Geng's army.

The news of the Battle of Xincheng spread back to Hangzhou. Fatty Lu, who was in Hangzhou, was very satisfied. He immediately named Li Zhifang, who had surrendered to the Fatty Army, as the official of Yue Wangfu, Cao Yuanwai, and the head of the army. He ordered Li Zhifang to catch up with Li Tianzhi's army and surrender all the way. Prefectures and counties, the formation of local government.He also appointed Tian Fengji, who was in Ningbo, as the chief envoy of Zhejiang Province, and accompanied Yang Yingyuan and Li Guodong to send troops to the south to attack the Geng army in Taizhou, and set up a local government in eastern Zhejiang for the fat army.He also ordered Guo Yingfu to send troops to attack Jinhua, and ordered Wu Qi, the governor of Zhejiang, and Huang Ming, the commander-in-chief of Hangzhou, to sit in Hangzhou to transport food, grass, and military salaries for the two armies, train recruits to act as backup, and set up a West Lake firearms battalion to prepare for the production of firearms for the southern battlefield.

After issuing the official seal to Li Zhifang who had lived idle for a year, Fatty Lu confessed to Li Zhifang: "After seeing Li Tianzhi, tell him that I will hand over all the southern lines to him. Yang Yingyuan, Li Guodong and Guo Yingfu all follow his command. Three ways to win Zhejiang. If Geng Jingzhong asks for peace, he can agree, but the premise is that the whole territory of Zhejiang, plus Geng Jingzhong, will surrender to the Great Zhou court!"

"My lord, what about you?" Li Zhifang asked curiously, "Your lord, don't you care about the war on the southern front?"

"It doesn't matter, Li Tianzhi is enough in Zhejiang. His character and combat style happen to be the nemesis of Zheng Jing, Geng Jingzhong and my unlucky brother-in-law. I will return to Nanjing tomorrow." Fatty Lu waved his hand proudly, "I also It's time to be a hands-off shopkeeper and prepare for the Northern Expedition and Western Expedition."

Li Zhifang agreed, and Yao Qisheng next to him said: "Master Li, it is a long distance from the southern line of Zhejiang to Nanjing. Asking for instructions on everything may not delay the battle. You can discuss some things with General Li Tianzhi. Remember, we don't care whether it is Exterminating Geng Jingzhong, Zheng Jing and Monk Zhixin will do more harm than good to our army. Only the three of them are confined to the small areas of Fujian and Guangdong to fight back and forth, which is the most beneficial to our army. I believe , with Master Li's intelligence and wisdom, there must be a way to turn the three of them upside down and lose all three."

"I will do my best." Li Zhifang respectfully agreed, and said with a smile: "Fortunately, these three families are ambitious masters, they all want to eat each other with one bite, so it's not difficult to instigate them to beat them to death."

(End of this chapter)