Dominate the Country

At the Hanyang Prefect's Yamen, Chen Ming has not yet received Chen Qi's battle report. The rain outside has stopped and the sun has come out. Has the south bank army surrounded and annihilated Shi Liang's army?

But the military reports from Hanchuan and Xiaogan were delivered first.

The two teams easily resisted the Qing army. Although the Henan Qing army and the Sichuan army came so quickly and seemed to be menacing, in fact they were both strong from outside and did not even have a capable cannon in their army.

Agui came too quickly, and all the logistical supplies were left in Guide and Kaifeng. More than 20,000 people went south, but only more than 20,000 people. Even the food was collected locally.

Where are the Sichuan soldiers? All the cannons in Ma Mingxun's hands were lost in Huangpi. The thousands of Sichuan soldiers in Jingmen had a few cannons, and the subsequent Sichuan reinforcements sent from Sichuan also had a few cannons. The Sichuan soldiers from Jingmen initially pushed their cannons to join Ma Mingxun in Anlu. However, after Ma Mingxun received Agui's strict order, he rushed to Hanyang Mansion with his troops and the cannons were all in Anlu. Does he still dare to transport it by water? Are the naval warships of the Fuhan Army just decorations?

Therefore, these two groups of clearing troops have a large number of troops, but their ability to attack difficult areas is weak.

The morale of the Sichuan soldiers was particularly low. They only launched one attack on Hanchuan. After being bombarded by the Fuhan army's artillery [twelve guns, two teams] and mortars there, hundreds of corpses were left behind. Completely afraid to attack.

The Qing troops coming down from Henan still had enough fighting spirit, but they had to face the first brigade and an artillery battalion that Chen Ming had strengthened. Both attacks were wiped out amidst the roar of the artillery, and the shells and shells exploded. Shotguns, especially the latter, are a great weapon against infantry.

Chen Ming was not worried at all about the fighting situation of the two armies, just as he did not think that the Fu Han army would be defeated in the battle under Wuchang City. Instead, he ordered both armies to stick to the Qing army, especially the Hanchuan army. The Sichuan soldiers cannot be allowed to escape again.

Here in Wuchang, the battle can be resolved in three to five days quickly or seven or eight days slowly. The army followed the waterway to Hanchuan, and all the people, horses, and equipment could easily reach it. Chen Ming was not willing to let the Sichuan soldiers go.

Previously, Ma Mingxun did not retreat to Hanyang, but fled westward, which unexpectedly allowed the Sichuan soldiers to escape. He didn't want to take advantage of Ma Mingxun this time.

The battle under the walls of Wuchang City was a cold-weapons fight by Chi Guoguo, and the artillery battle was just the icing on the cake. Hand-to-hand combat is a war of attrition, and the morale of both sides is plummeting. The difference is that the Qing army is falling faster, while the Fuhan army is falling slowly. Chen Ming was very confident in the combat effectiveness of his army. He believed that his team could wear down the Wuchang garrison and wear it down, so that they would no longer be able to inspire the slightest bit of fighting spirit. By the time the Fuhan army reached the city wall, the Qing soldiers and civilians who defended the city would no longer have the courage to fight in the streets.

At 10 o'clock in the morning, he received a letter handwritten by his father from the secret camp. The content of this letter was so inconsistent with the current atmosphere in the headquarters that Chen Ming felt much more relaxed.

In the letter, Chen Hui was already considering whether to declare himself a duke or a king. Rather than calling himself a duke, Chen Hui felt that it was better to declare himself a king directly. With the grass-headed kings in the late Ming Dynasty serving as "martyrs", proclaiming the duke would seem too petty. Chen Hui thought it would be good to be king, King of Han!

Then he talked about a series of rules and regulations of the King's Ceremony, as well as the official structure of the Fuhan Army, and his title - Chen Ming. Chen Hui wanted to give Chen Ming a title. Although it was not very direct, it was relatively clear. Establish his status as prince.

Regarding this issue, a group of people in my hometown have different opinions, and they are mainly divided into two groups. One group of people said that they wanted to call him "Lu Gong" because this is the place where he started and it has great and direct commemorative significance; the other group of people wanted to call him "Zheng Gong" because no matter what it was before, the word "Lu" now generally refers to people. Shandong, and Lushan traces its origins to the territory of Zheng State in the Spring and Autumn Period, so it should be called Zheng Gong;

As a result, a group of people who supported "Gong Lu" complained that the supporters of "Gong Zheng" were uneducated. During the Xia and Shang Dynasties, Lushan County was first called Lu, and later was renamed Luyang, which became the name of Lu Gong. The two gangs were in a quarrel.

The purpose of Chen Hui's letter is to explain the situation to Chen Ming, and to let Chen Ming make up his own mind. Then there is the issue of officialdom. This requires the entire system, with a clear context, to cover all aspects of people's livelihood, military and government.

Chen Ming couldn't laugh or cry after reading this letter. His father really believed in him 100%. He said that he wanted to capture Hubei, communicate with southwest Henan, and solve the problems in the old base area. He could then confidently and boldly claim the title of king. It’s public. Chen Huizhen really thought about this issue. Even though the battle in Wuchang has not yet concluded, the battle is reaching a critical moment!

Chen Hui and Chen Ming were very rude. In this letter, they also asked for money, food, salt, personal issues, good fabrics, and a good embroiderer. Chen Ming's army swept through the southeast, and there was no shortage of money. Nanjing, Suzhou, and Hangzhou were the three major weaving centers in the south of the Yangtze River during the Qing Dynasty. They had the best and most expensive fabrics and the best embroiderers in China.

If Chen Hui wants to be king, he must have auspicious clothes, and his grandmother Huang's family, my mother Gao's family, Chen Ming himself, Li Xiaomei's, and even little Chen Ding's must have a series of auspicious clothes. Chen Hui no longer looked down on the embroidery workers in Lu Shan. He also knew that Chen Ming had brought many good embroidery workers from the south when he was sweeping the south of the Yangtze River. For such a big event, it was natural to use the best.

As for the money and so on, it was Chen Ming who wanted to hand it over to the General's Mansion. In addition to going into the Ministry of Finance, part of it also has to go into the Chen family's internal funds. When Chen Ming raided southern Henan and traveled across northern Hubei, he also gave Chen Hui a lot of money. But for more than a year, money has been spent like a trickle. One million taels of silver is a lot, but in the face of tens of thousands of troops, an ever-expanding official system, and the coal and iron industry system with more people, can anyone What's the use?

"Grand Governor, we started our business in Mount Lu. Who knows whether Zheng is from the Kingdom of Zheng or not? I think the Grand Governor should be called Lu Gong."

"Lu Mountain is the place where our army thrives, so it should be named Lu."

Liu Wu and other people around him offered their opinions one after another. Most of these people thought that 'Lu Gong' was more suitable. At the same time, they also congratulated Chen Ming. After receiving this title, his position as crown prince was justified.

As for the officialdom, these people don't say much, not to mention that there are various laws and regulations to regulate. This is a big project.

"It seems that no one in our Fuhan Army can outline and lead the people like Xiao He and Li Shanchang. It is natural to set the laws and regulations of a country in a hasty manner. There will definitely be many people involved in this matter." The entire Fuhan Army rose up. It has been two years, but the culture and governance still feels very lacking. This time Chen Ming has been involved in the laws and regulations. His current ideas can be described as "people-oriented" thinking, but this is just what he said. , scholars do not agree. Some of the voices only became louder after he won the decisive battle in Northern Jiangsu. So after this new set of laws and regulations is released, I am afraid that they will be shameless and shameless by the gentry all over the world.

Everyone congratulated Chen Ming. After retreating, only Liu Wu was left beside Chen Ming. Liu Wu brought a cup of tea to Chen Ming and said: "Why should the Governor worry about this matter? I heard that the military advisers and other senior officials on the left and right now have many aides and Qingke. If they want to get involved, they will not be in the right place. "It doesn't matter where the staff came from or what their level is, they can be used anyway. As long as these Su Lao's voices can be heard, it's fine. Whether they work or not is another matter.

"Okay, this is a good saying. Only when people are in their proper place can they be used for what they are suitable for." These eight words aroused Chen Ming's emotion. After the Fuhan Army returned to Huguang, they were ready not to let go of Huguang. Huangzhou was already in The qualifications of some of these officials are really... hard to show off. "In fact, there are many talented people among the people, but they have not been placed in good positions before. Just like Xiao Lou in Jiujiang, he is doing very well in Hukou now. Can he settle the situation in Hukou? , recruiting thousands of people to go to the front line to transport supplies, dig trenches, and build positions, and if there is no instability in the county or township, such an official is a capable official.

Before, he worked as a master for Cao Chuande, the supervisor of Gutang branch. He was just an ordinary person who was knowledgeable in literature and calculation. Now he is doing well in the position of county magistrate. "When Xiao Lou was at the Gutang branch, he dealt with businessmen and old men in the gate every day. He saw too many collusions between officials and private people. He saw too many secrets and plots, and the ones who were involved in the battle were not inferior to those veterans. The Fuhan Army After taking Jiujiang, Xiao Lou hid in the countryside, but after the decisive battle in Northern Jiangsu, he jumped out and joined the Jiujiang Fuhan Army. He was quickly promoted to county magistrate, and he did well in Hukou County! There are too few people.

"And Chen Jie from Xinghua, Fujian [today's Putian City, Fujian Province], he is just in his twenties. He started from his hometown with hundreds of villagers, but he defeated the Tiandihui rebels in a few months. Now, It has been named Putian County by the Manchu Qing Dynasty The number of soldiers under his command has increased to two to three thousand. Isn't this more useful than those in Fujian? Just a poor scholar."

To be honest, Chen Ming was very impressed by Chen Jie, a member of his family, and once sent a secret camp to contact him, but the person he sent was driven back with his nose and ears cut off, so Chen Ming gave up. But it cannot be denied that Chen Jie is indeed good. I heard that he has now changed his name to "Destroy Thieves", which makes him a proper mortal enemy. Maybe this person can become Chen Youding's second best!

Speaking of Chen Jie, Chen Ming remembered that he also had a man named Tang Feipeng, who was a fellow townsman with Chen Jie and was from Putian. It's just that this Tang Feipeng's bones are much softer, and he can handle the boat well. Before the Tiandihui rebels reached Putian, they had contact with the Fuhan Army's secret camp and saved a wealthy family. Now he is sent to Japan by Chen Ming, because the Tang family is a maritime merchant in Fujian. Of course, it is not a maritime merchant, but it also has several connections in Japan. Chen Ming had no good intentions towards Japan, so he put his talents to use and directly intervened and sent Tang Feipeng to Japan, where he lurked first. He left his parents and relatives in hand and allowed him to flee to Japan with his two concubines and tens of thousands of taels of silver. That's why he remembered Tang Feipeng's name.

"... Ruo Fu's crystal clear appearance, light and bright quality, elegance and elegance, appear in all directions. In the midst of everything, I can't say anything similar. What I see is that the vassal gun blows, and the corruption is lifted into the sky. The snow does not gather into pieces, but flutters. In. House of filth Zong, horses and cattle avoid it, and the snow accumulates on it. If the water rises in the salt pond, it will touch the top of the Tongshan Mountain. I can't say that I hate it and go down. What is the pure and white nature..."

Chen Ming suddenly memorized the book. Liu Wu frowned and remembered: "The governor was talking about "Hou Xue Fu"?" Liu Wu felt vaguely familiar.

"It's Tang Luoyin's "Hou Xue Fu"." When Chen Ming saw this article, it happened to be snowing in Nanjing, so he wrote it down.

"The snowflakes are falling gently from the sky. The same snowflakes have completely different fates depending on where they land."

"Some fall on the top of the mountain and become crystal clear. Some fall in the lakes and streams and melt into clean water. Some are mixed with dust and mud and trampled on by people. Others fall into the stinking ditch and toilet. No matter what their original nature is, they all become filthy."

"Xiao Lou and Chen Jie are like this. So is I, your governor. Even you, are like this."

"If we are born noble, as long as we have a little talent, we can stand out and hold a high position. With wealth and glory, who would still love poverty and lowliness?"

Luo Yin's "Ode to the Snow" is about people and life. Snow is just a carrier used for metaphors. And this snowflake is really similar to people who are born into the world. But Chen Ming thinks that this snowflake is a talent among the people. It falls into the mud and sewage, has a low status, has no chance to stand out, is trampled on and ignored by people, and over time really becomes a companion of mud. Then if I move them to the top of the snowy mountain, give them time and opportunities, and train them, can they also become ice crystals of ten thousand years, and shine as dazzlingly as the ten thousand years of black ice?

It doesn't have to be a talent like Xiao He, Cao Shen, and Zhou Bo, as long as there are two or three percent of them, or even eleven..., or a few Li Yan, Song Xiance, and Niu Jinxing will do. I don't want them to be brilliant and dazzling all of a sudden, and blind people's eyes. Chen Ming can wait.