1850 American Gold Tycoon

Chapter 648 What a pair of wonderful opponents

After all, the country gentlemen and wealthy businessmen of West Virginia still sympathized with the Union.

The economic base determines the superstructure. With the help of the federal government and the persuasion of local sage Francis Pierpont, representatives of West Virginia gathered in Wellington for a convention on April 22, 1861, and on that day Announcing that West Virginia has decided to secede from the secessionist front and join the Confederacy as an independent state.

Francis Pierpont, who made great contributions to West Virginia's rejoining the Union, got his wish and became the first governor of West Virginia.

The addition of West Virginia has greatly alleviated the security anxiety of Washingtonians. From the congressmen in Washington to ordinary citizens in Washington, they happily took to the streets to celebrate.

It was the Union's greatest political victory since the suppression of the Maryland Rebellion. The Union Army succeeded in dismembering Virginia, the most powerful state in the South, without firing a shot.

West Virginia's secession made Richmond furious. In order to prevent the remaining southern swing states from falling into the arms of the North, the President of the Confederacy ignored the objections of Robert E. Lee, Beauregard and others and sent troops to Kentucky and Missouri. The border required the ambiguous state of Kentucky to make an immediate statement, either to secede from the Union or to go to war.

This move angered the Dukes of Kentucky, who originally had an attitude of neither allying with the Union nor those states that had seceded from the Union. Kentucky quickly made the decision to join the Union.

Although the situation in Missouri, the last southern swing state, was not as bad as that of Kentucky, which directly declared its intention to join the Union, the situation was not much better.

The Confederate troops sent troops to Missouri, which ignited the powder keg that had been suppressed for decades. Union supporters and Confederate supporters in Missouri fought fiercely.

Davis's move was undoubtedly a stink move that pushed Kentucky, a potential ally, toward the Union.

Even if Davis does nothing, the worst Kentucky can do is remain neutral.

Now, Kentucky has fallen to the north, Missouri is in internal turmoil, and its future is uncertain. So far, the South has not won any of the southern swing states.

The Confederacy's strategic plan to seize control of the Ohio River from Kentucky and then threaten Ohio through the Ohio waterway came to nothing. Unless the Confederate army could actually divide its forces to occupy Kentucky by force, instead of placing two or three second-line militiamen on the border who could not even stand in order, just pretending.

In the west, steam trains one after another clung to the winding rails and drove on the Pacific Railway. It was getting late, and the afterglow of the setting sun shone on the vast wilderness, dyeing the land golden. The steam locomotive in front of the train spewed out thick black smoke. The rising black smoke gradually dispersed in the air, forming a light and long tail.

On both sides of the train are the magnificent scenery of the west, and the rugged mountains can't help but make people feel a little depressed. Continuing to look upward, the mountain tops were faintly visible in the clouds and mist. The tops of the mountains were dyed orange by the setting sun. Occasionally, a few birds flew across the sky, dotting the somewhat monotonous scenery.

Passing through the eastern foothills of California, the original wooden bridges in the dangerous terrain have been replaced by cast iron and steel bridges that are stronger and more load-bearing.

This scene shocked the Taiping prisoners who took a train for the first time. How much steel was used to build this road and bridge? Where on earth did they get all that steel? If these steels were used to make weapons, how many weapons could be made? How many cannons were cast?

And the train they are riding now, carrying so many people and goods, can actually run faster than a horse. It is really a miracle.

"I heard from the guards that the distance from where we started to that city is more than three thousand miles, and the time it takes is less than three days. According to this calculation, this iron ox can travel a thousand miles in a day." Zhu Yidian pinched his finger. After all, he clicked his tongue and said in wonder, "Could this iron ox be a gift from heaven given to them by Heavenly Father?"

Zhu Yidian was a senior general of the Taiping Army who followed Shi Dakai and fought in various places. Long-term marching and mobile operations made him sensitive to distances.

"Heavenly Father himself may not have such a thing." Peng Dashun on the side heard the word "Heavenly Father" and said disdainfully.

The catastrophe that happened in Tianjing five years ago was still vivid in his mind. He had long been disheartened by the so-called Heavenly Father and had seen through the tricks of Hong Xiuquan and the top officials of Little Heaven. Otherwise, he would not have chosen to serve Liang Shaoqiong after being captured by Guangdong Yong.

"I heard that we are going to fight there, and we have to fight with foreigners. Foreigners are not easy to fight. Do you think Mr. Liang wants our old Guangxi brothers to be cannon fodder for them?" Zhu Yidian said worriedly.

Zhu Yidian was not afraid of war or death, but many of the brothers brought here this time were old brothers from Guangxi. Zhu Yidian felt that it was a pity to let these old brothers from Guangxi be used as cannon fodder.

If in the Qing Dynasty, these old brothers from Guangxi were pulled out, as long as they did not go head-to-head with the elite Yueyong Battalion, they would be a military force that could stand alone wherever they were placed.

"Aren't we just cannon fodder with Mr. Liang?" Peng Dashun said lightly, looking like he had seen through the world.

Although Liang Shaoqiong was much better than Zeng Guofan and was willing to accept surrendered soldiers from the Taiping Army, they were surrendering soldiers and generals after all, and there were local resentments. Naturally, Liang Shaoqiong could not give them full trust, so Peng Dashun did not do what he did under Liang Shaoqiong. Not very pleasant.

At least it was not as exciting as when they just started the rebellion. Thinking of this, Peng Dashun couldn't help but sigh: Why did the good heaven become such a mess today?

"The Northern Union and the Southern Confederacy are really a perfect pair of opponents."

In the special train, Liang Yao couldn't help but sigh after receiving the telegram that Kentucky joined the Northern Union and civil unrest broke out in Missouri.

"Davis and the others can't make up their minds? Are the tens of thousands of troops in Richmond kept to celebrate Christmas?" Sartre, who was traveling with him, shook his head after reading the telegram. "If someone in the South could make up their minds, they would have sent troops to Washington a month ago, even if they only sent one or two brigades and endured the casualties of one or two regiments. Washington, a small city, would have been taken down by force."

Although Washington is the capital of the United States, it is just a pure administrative center. Washington is not a big city, but a small city with a population of only 30,000 to 40,000.

What Sartre said is not unreasonable. The top leaders of the Southern Confederacy are too indecisive and timid. They want to leave the Union, but they are unwilling to kill the Union.

The North and the South have come to this point, it's either you or I, is there any possibility of a peaceful separation?

"The South doesn't seem to have such a brigade that can continue to fight street battles after suffering casualties of one regiment." Liang Yao counted the numbers of various Confederate troops, and it seems that the Confederate Army does not have such a fierce brigade at present.

"As for Davis, I think he has not yet completely controlled the Southern political arena. Perhaps the moderates in the South still have a relatively large voice. They want to fight, but they are afraid that the war will spread to their own state and affect their own industries, so they are timid."

"Do we have such a unit?" Sartre asked back with interest.

"It's hard to say."

Liang Yao didn't have a definite answer in his heart. Since he joined the army, he has not fought a battle with very tragic casualties, nor has he fought a serious street battle.

Of course, the siege battles against Mexico during the Second Mexican-American War are not counted. At that time, the Mexican army surrendered as soon as his troops entered the city, and his troops had no opportunity to train in street fighting.