Nan Ming Sun Never Sets

Chapter 120 The Strategy of Westward Advancement
Bai Mingxiu felt that a storm was about to come, and a big battle that was expected to come might break out soon.He quickly occupied Guangdong by using the elite forces of the Ming Dynasty Restoration Army, whose equipment and tactics were obviously superior to those of the Qing Army in many eras, and he was bound to face a vigorous counterattack by the Qing Army.

He is confident that he will win this war, but Bai Mingxiu himself does not know how and how much he will pay.

In particular, he has initially implemented various reforms in Guangdong, and he is determined not to allow this process to be interrupted or destroyed.

Therefore, Bai Mingxiu must take the first measures to take the initiative before the situation deteriorates, so as to minimize the possible damage.But Bai Mingxiu also had to admit one thing, that is, the military strength of the Great Ming Restoration Army he currently has in Guangdong is still a little weak.

In his army, only the independent brigade is capable of fighting, and there are four mixed brigades under it, with a total strength of about 5000 people. It is also the most important and strongest force that Bai Mingxiu relies on.Bai Mingxiu is directly in charge of the Independent Brigade, and his Red Police Battalion is also directly under him, and the organization is not included in the Independent Brigade.In addition, there is the second cavalry division converted from the Mongolian iron cavalry. Now Bai Mingxiu has transformed it into a cavalry with a short-barreled carbine on the saddle, a bow and arrow on the back, and a saber in armor.It can be said that in the plains, these ten thousand cavalry are almost invincible.

But what Bai Mingxiu faced was the three-way Qing army, which may have a total size of more than 16. It was the largest battle he had encountered since crossing.

In order to allow the Ming Dynasty's Restoration Army to operate more efficiently at the tactical and operational level, after occupying Guangzhou, Bai Mingxiu established the Restoration Army's General Headquarters, General Staff Department, General Logistics Department and General Political Department to improve the overall operations of the Restoration Army. Decision making and operation.

Bai Mingxiu also held a military meeting to discuss the upcoming war with his military officials.In fact, there were not many people in his meeting.Sister Lion has not returned from Taiwan, and Li Dingguo is far away in Kunming.Bai Mingxiu here only has Prime Minister Tang Beilu, Minister of General Logistics Zhang Xianyu, and Zhao Xu, the former company commander of the US Army Infantry Company in World War II who returned from Burma. Promoted Bai Mingxiu to the current lieutenant general.

In addition, Jin Yiwei Commander Xiang Xingtian and King Ying Zheng Chenggong also attended.At that time, in order to replenish manpower, Bai Mingxiu also saw the right time and recruited several talents from the system talent list.They are Tian Guangan, the B-level staff officer, and Su Shuhuan, the commander of the positional warfare of the large corps.Tian Guang'an has been directly assigned by Bai Mingxiu to the position of chief of staff, and Su Shuhuan also works in the general staff.As for the heads of the general headquarters and the general political department of the National Restoration Army, Bai Mingxiu himself was the author.

Xiang Xingtian first reported on the intelligence work: "...the Qing army is actually still in the preparation stage. Shang Kexi and Geng Jimao's troops are the troops with the highest combat readiness, because they were dispatched to attack King Jin before, and now they are turning back to attack Guangdong is just a change of direction. However, they also hesitated. The armies of the two vassals fought several times with the troops of King Jin, but they did not take advantage of it. They even almost suffered a big defeat in Guangnan Prefecture. The two vassals were very frightened, and stayed in Tianzhou, and did not continue to advance. The Jin King was also quite stable, and did not make a big move. The Qing army on the East Road was led by Li Sutai and Dasu, and Dasu was still leading the Eight Banners stationed in the south of the Yangtze River. In Fujian, Li Shuitai also seems to be in the process of reorganizing the army. It may take two or three months before they finish their preparations. The Qing army in the middle road has not yet taken shape. It is not known how many troops can be mobilized, but it is probably the most powerful. Lima and Hong Chengchou have just arrived in Huguang. It will take time to deploy the Eight Banners and Green Battalion soldiers from various places."

It has been a month since Zhao Xu took over the Guangzhou Army Training Base. He said: "Your Highness, if we can wait until three months later, we can at least increase the combat strength of 1-2 divisions. Now the Guangzhou Training Base is training. There are 4 recruits and reformed soldiers, and 2 troops will be added from Taiwan soon, and if the war can be dragged on, we will be able to accumulate more troops.”

Zhang Xianyu also said: "There is no problem with the supply of our weapons and other logistical supplies, and we can continue to arm the current troops."

Zheng Chenggong sat in Bai Mingxiu's lower position, looking at the serious generals, his heart was full of ups and downs.Zheng Chenggong has never seen this way of discussing matters. There is a big oval long table, His Highness the Crown Prince sits at one end, and other officials and generals are also sitting. Higher than others.There was a small notebook in front of everyone, with a hard pen in their hand, and even His Royal Highness listened to other people's speeches and took notes.Zheng Chenggong was a little surprised by this way of working, and he couldn't say what was good or bad about it.

Bai Mingxiu put down his pen and said, "There is no reason to give the Qing army too much time just because we are waiting to replenish our troops. The advantage of our Great Ming Restoration Army lies in our organizational and execution capabilities, and these are what the Qing army owes us. No. My opinion is that, taking advantage of the fact that the Qing army’s three-way encirclement has not taken place, choose to break through one way first, improve our army’s defensive posture, and thus disintegrate the Qing army’s strategy.”

Zheng Chenggong was still slightly surprised. Obviously, the entire Nanming court was decided by the young prince, but the prince's attitude has always been very humble, and under such circumstances, he even asked for other people's opinions when speaking. .

Chief of Staff Tian Guang'an also agreed with Bai Mingxiu's opinion: "What Your Highness said is very true. I believe that it is the best solution for Xiangxi to join forces with King Jin to defeat the two vassals and connect the three provinces of Yunnan, Guangxi and Guangdong."

Bai Mingxiu also had the same idea. He said: "Yes, but there are two main problems here. One is that Guangdong has insufficient troops. If we mobilize troops to attack Guangxi, it will inevitably lead to a void in Guangdong's defense. In fact, our troops are currently on the defensive. It can be regarded as stretched in terms of strength, and there are cases where a city is defended in a row. In addition, in order to carry out grassroots work, many troops have been laid down. In terms of offense, I am afraid we will not be able to do it. Second, Li Sutai was in Guangdong. Once he knows that we have invaded Guangxi, it is inevitable that he will not take action."

Zheng Chenggong said: "Your Highness, let me write a letter to my son Zheng Jing, so that he can increase the pressure on Fujian and create conditions for His Royal Highness to go west."

Bai Mingxiu is very satisfied with Zheng Chenggong's current attitude. He has obtained Bai Mingxiu's guarantee that he can establish a career in Japan in the future, and he also knows that only when Nanming bucks the trend can the Zheng family change the situation.

(End of this chapter)