Dominate the Country

The whole world is a chess game. The main force of the Fu Han Army came from the west, allowing the Qing army in Jiangnan to revitalize the situation. Agui led his troops to the south and connected Huguang and the Central Plains battlefields.

Chen Ming was stationed in Hanyang, and Wuchang was right under his eyes, but his eyes were always on the whole Huguang. The battle in Wuchang could not attract his attention. That was a dull battle, and the current Fu Han Army generals were enough to solve this kind of battle. Chen Ming was more concerned about the Qing army in other directions, for example, he was now concerned about Shi Liang's "strange troops" flying to Jingzhou.

It's strange to say that Shi Liang is not a very responsible person, but now he is impatient to raise his troops and rush towards Wuchang. This requires a very bold strategy. Chen Ming felt strange because Shi Liang was not such a person in his impression. Chen Ming felt that this person was really complicated, and sometimes he was so strange.

Some people, before the danger came, smelled a little wrong, and wanted to leave early. For example, Yue Wenhai. I was staying well in my hometown in Anhui, but because I felt bad, I moved my family to the south, and ended up in the dark camp. Now I have become a shareholder of Chen Jigong Shipyard, and Chen Jigong has brought in a Jinshi as a shareholder, which is equivalent to putting on a big banner for myself, and my own safety is greatly improved.

But there are people like Shi Liang. Can't he really see the danger of Wuchang? He rushed here in a hurry. He only brought 5,000 people, 2,000 Qing soldiers, and 3,000 civilians. He left Zhu Gui in Jingzhou to continue to draw civilians from western Hubei. Jingzhou Prefecture is next to Yichang and Shinan. Let's not talk about Shinan. Yichang is quite wealthy. It was originally a node for Sichuan goods to enter Hubei. In addition to the recent Sichuan salt, although almost no local people personally came forward to organize militia, they donated a lot of money and food materials to the Yichang government. The Yichang government organized its own militia with 3,000 to 4,000 people, and the number is still increasing.

Shi Liang already had 3,000 to 4,000 Qing troops. If he patiently waited for the various militias in western Hubei to gather, he would be able to gather at least 18,000 people, right? Shi Liang himself thought so. But a letter of emergency from Aligun changed Shi Liang's mind.

On the battlefield of Wuchang, the Fu Han army fired cannons during the day and fought at night. Although there were lessons learned on the first day, the Qing soldiers' response had also improved greatly. For example, Enpu organized a number of grenade teams to hide in the intricate tunnels. If the Fu Han army came, they would turn from the interlaced tunnels to the side or tail of the Fu Han army's front and throw grenades. In addition, there were also hand-to-hand combat troops of the Qing soldiers. As long as the Fu Han army's offensive banner could not cover the entire Hongshan cross section, they would always have the opportunity to bypass the side and back of the Fu Han army's night battle troops. This often caused some unexpected troubles for the Fu Han army's night battles, but generally speaking, the Qing army was still at a disadvantage. Because the casualties of the Qing army defenders were getting bigger and bigger, the morale of the Qing soldiers, Hubei Lianyong, and Hunan Lianyong was gradually declining.

Aligun looked around and found that the only ones who could send troops to reinforce in the shortest time were Shi Liang in Jingzhou and Fang Shijun who had already arrived in Yueyang. He sent an urgent request for help and tempted Shi Liang with the tempting fat meat of the General of Jingzhou. The position of the General of Jingzhou is still held by Aligun concurrently.

And what about Shi Liang? His hatred with the Fu Han Army is irreconcilable. His whole family died under the sword of the Fu Han Army. He wanted to eat Chen Ming's meat, drink Chen Ming's blood, and sleep on Chen Ming's skin. Aligun used the position of General of Jingzhou as bait, and then used personal hatred and national hatred to guide Shi Liang, and finally persuaded him with the current war situation in Hubei: "This time, the Zhongtang led his troops out of Henan; Ma Junmen led his troops to attack from the Han River; Fang Futai's army in Hunan has also arrived in Yueyang, and will enter Wuchang Prefecture soon; and the Sichuan Army in Kuizhou has entered Yichang and will march east soon. With so many armies surrounding Wuhan, even if Chen Ni and his group of ugly people are strong and brave, how can they be tyrannical again?"

This is a great opportunity to make achievements! Shi Liang was not mentioned in the several armies, but it gave Shi Liang great self-confidence.

Because the Qing army's several armies have more troops than the Fu Han Army. Agui's Henan army that went south had more than 20,000 people, plus Ma Mingxun's Sichuan soldiers, there were at least 40,000 people, and the Sichuan army that came from Kuizhou Prefecture also had 7,000 to 8,000 people, and the Hunan Green Camp led by Fang Shijun had a full 15,000 troops, which was more than 60,000 people.

The troops of Jingzhou have not been counted yet? There are also the defenders in Wuchang City, and the total force is less than 100,000.

Aligun said that the entire battle situation in Hubei is like two circles with a point. This point is Wuchang City, the circle outside Wuchang City is the Fu Han Army, and the circle outside the Fu Han Army is the Qing Army. As long as Wuchang can withstand the attack of the Fu Han Army, the Qing Army will be there in this battle.

Aligun told Shi Liang that the key to the battle in Hubei lies in how they can keep Wuchang. In addition to the more than 20,000 Qing soldiers in Wuchang City fighting bravely, there must be a Qing soldier outside the city to make a noise, so that the soldiers in the city know that the reinforcements outside have arrived, and inspire the defenders in the city whose morale is not high.

Aligun told Shi Liang frankly that the morale of the Wuchang defenders is average now, because they have suffered losses frequently in night battles, and the Fu Han Army is stronger in hand-to-hand combat than the government army and the trained soldiers. The Qing army suffered heavy blood loss in the night battle and it seemed that even Hongshan might not be able to be saved.

Aragon was a bit cryptic this time, but to a large extent it was the truthful emergency letter that moved Shi Liang. Because Shi Liang saw an opportunity for him. Although Shi Liang's fighting skills were mediocre, he could not achieve the position of deputy governor with just one surname. From the genuine letter, Shi Liang really saw the opportunity for him to ascend to the throne of Jingzhou General. As long as he leads his army outside Wuchang City now, there is no need to actually break into Wuchang City. He only needs to shout a few times to let the soldiers in the city listen. If Wuchang can be saved in the future, he will have an indelible contribution; if Wuchang cannot be saved, he can safely retreat to the west. There is no danger!

Shi Liang did not need to actually lead his troops to fight against the Fuhan Army. He just gathered his troops outside Wuchang City, fired a few shots, and shouted a few times to let the defenders in the city hear the movement. Shi Liang thought that the risk was very small, but the gain was huge.

Just as he said, Shi Liang immediately raised a thousand flag soldiers, a thousand green battalions, and then the three thousand Hubei militia that had gathered in Jingzhou City. Zhu Gui, another big boss in Jingzhou City, also didn't know how to fight. I heard that Aragon asked for help. Shi Liang was leading troops to rescue Wuchang. Regardless of whether it could be done or not, Zhu Gui had no reason to stop him. He was still there. I had a pretty good impression of Shi Liang in my heart. With Ma Mingxun as a precedent, Zhu Gui especially likes military attachés like Shi Liang who obey orders. As for whether Zhu Gui thought about the difference between Ma Mingxun and Shi Liang between Manchu and Han, no one could imagine it.

Part of the flag soldiers in Jingzhou City were the remnants of the Battle of Gunhe, and the other part were transferred from Qianlong's campaign in Shaanxi.

Although the whole city of Jingzhou suffered a devastating battle, Qianlong would not ignore the Jingzhou flag soldiers as a symbol of Da Qingguo's rule in Huguang. He not only dispatched some Xi'an banner soldiers to Jingzhou, but also wanted to move the family members of the banner soldiers there as well. In addition, the remaining flag soldiers in Jingzhou suffered heavy losses due to their family members, and many of them became widowers. Qianlong was also planning how to match wives for these people and rebuild the entire city of Jingzhou.

This is just like after the Qing army in the south of the Yangtze River "recaptured" Hangzhou, the Hangzhou bannermen hiding in Ningbo immediately returned to Hangzhou beating gongs and drums, while the Nanjing bannermen watched the Qing soldiers' battles on the Nanjing-Zhenjiang line with bright eyes. .

In March, preparations have begun for grain shipments from the south of the Yangtze River to be transported to Tianjin by sea. Among them, canton ships and navy warships from Guangdong are gathering in Guangzhou Bay, waiting for the monsoon to blow. Qianlong never thought of transporting the bannermen from Jiangnan to Tianjin by sea.

"Drive..."

As night gradually fell, hundreds of cavalry were galloping on the loess official road. These piao cavalrymen could be identified as the Eight Banners cavalry at a glance. They had bright helmets and strong horses under their crotches. The dark helmets were decorated with long red tassels, and they were slightly moving as the horses galloped. Trembling, watching from a distance, the majestic and majestic momentum is overwhelming.

They wore all white cotton armor, studded with densely packed golden copper nails. In March, the thick cotton armor can already cover people's sweat.

This cavalry is the Jingzhou cavalry soldiers personally commanded by Shi Liang, the deputy commander of Jingzhou.

From a global perspective, with the development of firearms, full body armor is destined to be eliminated. But at least in the current Eastern battlefield, these Eight Banners cavalry wearing thick cotton armor are still more intimidating to the Fuhan Army than the unarmored Green Camp cavalry.

Shi Liang, who led this cavalry team, took a boat and traveled 500 miles from Jingzhou in two days to the Honghu area. From here to Wuchang there are only two hundred miles left. Shi Liang asked the large troops to be stationed far away from the river. Going east from the Honghu area, the warships of the Fuhan Army could be seen on the Yangtze River. He led his team to explore eastward and reached Red Cliff.

The ancient battlefield back then is now a land of plenty, and the murderous intent of fighting has long since disappeared. The land and water transportation within the territory is developed, with hills, plains, and lakes dotted all over.

"Find a place to rest..." Captain Geshiha shouted as he rode beside Shi Liang.

"Uu, uh!" The guards tightened their reins one after another, and the cavalry slowly decreased. There was a faint village in front of them. At that moment, several horsemen rode away to see if they could find some meat. .

As for whether to rob or buy with money, Shi Liang no longer cares. The disaster that befell the whole city of Jingzhou made the two thousand remaining bannermen of the Battle of Gunhe heartbroken. They hated the Fuhan Army, but many people also expanded their hatred to the entire Han people, especially the Han people in Jingzhou City. Why don't they die either?

Shi Liang completely understood this violent heart. Didn't he want to kill every Han Chinese he saw? That kind of uncontrollable pain can only be alleviated by killing people and cutting enemies with one's hands.

Now even the newcomers from Xi'an are slowly assimilating to this sentiment.

It was dusk, and the sun slowly penetrated the thin clouds and turned into a red ball. Large areas of pink appeared in the western sky. The cool breeze blew, but it could not calm Shi Liang's excited heart.

Whenever something big happens, people can't help but think about it, either thinking about the worst outcome or the most wonderful outcome. If at the beginning, the imagination in the brain is still half good and half half bad, then it will slowly turn to pure beauty. Shi Liang was looking forward to it, hoping that he could defeat the Fu Han Army's blocking force outside Wuchang City, and hoping that the Battle of Wuchang would end with a complete victory for the Qing Army. By then, the defeated Chen Ming will be like a bereaved dog, escaping from Hubei with its tail between its legs, and they will kill them all along the river, Jiujiang, Anqing, Nanjing..., kill them all, kill them all, kill them all, leaving no one behind!