Huang Yi asked Geng Zhanghua: "How are you doing during this time?"
He did not have the awareness that Geng Zhanghua was already his immediate superior, and he did not call him Master Geng or General Geng. He still used the modern language of you and me.
Fortunately, Geng Zhanghua didn't care about these details. His understanding was that Huang Yi grew up in a barbarian land and was a little ignorant of etiquette.
He asked: "In which direction?"
"Of course I'm asking if your soldiers are worthy of a fight?"
"I think it's okay!"
Yang Shihu interrupted with a smile:
"My elders have been showing kindness. During this period, I have visited dozens or hundreds of homes of ordinary soldiers, and have donated dozens of kilo of rice flour.
The soldiers knew what was good and what was bad, and they all vowed to die for my lord! "
"Oh! That's right. Soldiers, morale is the most important thing. Those selected veterans don't lack combat skills, but they lack morale and a superior officer who can share the joys and sorrows!"
Geng Zhanghua agreed: "You are absolutely right. These days I basically eat and live with the soldiers, and I can clearly feel their changes."
It is already known that the main force of the slave establishment has retreated, but it has not completely retreated. There are still some troops occupying the four cities of Zunhua, Qian'an, Luanzhou and Yongping in the Ming Dynasty.
The leader is Amin, one of the four Baylors.
How could the Ming Dynasty tolerate Jiannu being entrenched in the capital area within the Great Wall?
Liao Town, Ji Town, Yansui Town, including King Qin's troops from Henan, Shandong and other places, will attack the four cities.
If it weren't for the unexpected collapse of Shanxi King Qin's troops, they should have had a share.
Geng Zhanghua wanted to make new achievements and suggested his father to report to the court and take the initiative to send troops.
Geng Ruqi also had his own plan. He immediately submitted the memorial and mobilized part of the troops from the Superintendent Biao Camp, the Zhengbing Camp, the Qibing Camp, and the Reinforcement Battalion to the east on the same day.
His intention was to gather another five thousand troops and still lead the troops himself. He wanted to see if he would fail in the same thing twice.
Learning from the past, this time he was even more careful and attentive, and he definitely managed to move forward with food and fodder before the soldiers and horses were used.
He did not trust the deputy generals and staff generals in Xuanfu Town, Shanxi, and Datong at all. He also doubted the commander-in-chief Zhang Honggong's ability to lead the army. He only placed his hope on the men of the Supervisory Biao Battalion newly formed by Geng Zhanghua.
Zhang Honggong, the former commander-in-chief of Shanxi Province, was historically a sibling who was killed together with Geng Ruxi in the fall.
Since there was a cause for the Shanxi Army Defeat case and the court no longer held Geng Ruqi accountable, Zhang Honggong was naturally fine, so he was reinstated.
The main purpose of Geng Ruqi's hope to lead Xuanda's troops to participate in the war was to avenge his humiliation, and of course he could not make any more jokes.
He knew that the great success achieved last time was entirely due to Huang Yi's command.
Therefore, he suggested that Geng Zhanghua invite Huang Yi to jointly send troops, and asked Geng Zhanghua to listen to Huang Yi's opinions. If necessary, he could even let Huang Yi command the troops sent by Xuanda on his behalf.
However, Huang Yi was remembered as having a weird temper, and he actually refused to enter the customs or enter the city. The reason was that he did not want to be unjustly killed by a civil servant.
Of course, Geng Ruqi knew the special nature of Huang Yi's troops. They were actually private soldiers and they were all stationed outside the mouth. It was not appropriate to give orders directly and they had to be communicated in advance.
Therefore, Geng Zhanghua came and brought a lot of people that Huang Yi urgently needed, as well as ten tiger squat cannons and two thousand kilograms of gunpowder.
After exchanging a few pleasantries, he went straight to the point, explaining clearly the situation in the capital and the intentions of the father and son.
After Huang Yi thought for a while, he replied: "In principle, I am willing to help you make new achievements!"
Geng Zhanghua was happy and said: "You are willing to send troops not only to assist me in my achievements, but also to avenge my father's shame! This time he will lead the troops in person."
Geng Ruqi personally led the troops last time, and everyone knows the result. Huang Yi said bluntly:
"Your father doesn't know how to fight. Does it matter whether he leads the troops himself?"
Geng Zhanghua's face turned red and he said awkwardly: "It's the same now! My father is already preparing food and grass, and there is no way he will make the same mistake again!"
Li Weida saw that Huang Yi spoke too bluntly, which made Geng Zhanghua lose face, so he interrupted:
"Governor Xuanda personally leads the troops and supervises the provision of food and grass. Who dares not to buy it? This time, the army must be well-equipped with food and supplies, and he will definitely make new achievements!"
Huang Yi realized that what he just said was inappropriate and said with a smile: "You and I are comrades who have been through life and death. You must not be angry because of my words!"
"I'm not angry! But I want to remind you to be careful with what you say in the future. There are many petty officials, and it's not worth putting your shoes on for just one word!"
"Because I know my temper, I don't want to be an official."
"You just promised to lead the troops to accompany me on the expedition?"
"I will definitely help you succeed, but that doesn't mean I'm willing to enter."
"How to do it?"
"I won't leave a name or a banner. I will use your banner. I will fight in your army for a few battles. I will make a gain of one or two hundred, then I will stop when I am good, and then I will come back quietly."
"This, how can this be so embarrassing?"
"If you're really sorry, don't fight with me to seize it, and give me more food, weapons and military supplies."
"I know this even if you don't tell me. Didn't I give you ten tiger squat cannons before you said anything?"
"I understand, I know you're interesting enough. Okay, let's not talk about how to divide the seizures after the war. Let's talk about how to win."
Geng Zhanghua admired Huang Yi's fighting skills very much. He said eagerly: "That's right! Only when you win the battle can you capture it. Please tell me what you think!"
"Jiannu are all cavalry, and their infantry can also ride horses and gallop. If we take the initiative to fight, the infantry will basically have no use."
Geng Zhanghua had objections and shook his head: "This time is different. It should be Jiannu defending the city. When we attack, we will not only use infantry, but also heavy artillery."
"You are right, the infantry that have been gathered in Luanzhou and Yongping must be the main force in the siege, and they will definitely bombard the city wall with heavy artillery.
However, if we rush to the four cities with Xuanda's infantry at this time, I am afraid that our trip will be in vain. At most, your father will get a positive comment, but in the end we will not make any achievements. "
"How can I see it?"
"Time waits for no one. With 5,000 troops and a lot of baggage, it would probably take more than a month to walk to Yongping, Luanzhou or Qian'an. By then, the Jiannu slaves had already escaped."
Huang Yi did not take this for granted, because historically the date for the complete end of the Four Cities War was at the end of May, and now it is already the beginning of May.
If Xuanda's troops arrived at the battlefield in early June, they would be able to bury the bodies and appease the people.
But Geng Zhanghua didn’t know! The entire imperial court was in a state of disbelief at the Jin Army, and no army has ever truly won a battle so far.
Plans to proactively attack the four cities occupied by Jiannu had been formulated for a long time. However, the various armies kept making demands and difficulties, and they had no idea when the attack would begin.
Therefore, Geng Zhanghua does not think that the battle to regain the four cities will end within a month.
