Without wasting effort, the Manchus took over Huai'an Prefecture, which surprised the entire Nanjing court.
However, what is more exciting are the other three of the four towns in Jiangbei.
Azige was simple and rude, and directly asked Liu Zeqing's family to pack up and go to Beijing to divide his troops.
He also has reasons to do so.
Tens of thousands of soldiers and horses were captured from Pizhou City. Including those from Shanyang, Nanming's prisoners exceeded 80,000.
And you must know that the Qing troops going south were only 100,000, including 30,000 Guanning soldiers and 10,000 Han Eight Banners. If these 80,000 prisoners were added, it would be difficult to control them.
Therefore, it became a must-do choice to remove their leaders and seize their soldiers and horses, flooding the Eight Banners of the Han Dynasty to balance the Guan Ning Army.
Understanding is understanding, but for Gao Jie, Liu Liangzuo, and Huang Degong, it can be described as a bolt from the blue.
Although the four towns in Jiangbei are military towns, they are no different from warlords. All taxes from the prefectures and counties under their jurisdiction are collected but not turned over. Instead, they continue to demand military pay from Nanjing.
Last year, when the four towns in Jiangbei were not established, the four of them almost started fighting over the fertile land of Yangzhou.
The entire Huanghuai area was continuously plundered by him, so that the prefectures and counties closed the city to avoid his people.
As a last resort, Shi Kefa had no choice but to personally guard Yangzhou and avoid the party struggle in Nanjing.
However, it was said that Gao Jie joined forces with Liu Zeqing in Pizhou, preparing to block the Qing army and divert the disaster eastward.
Unexpectedly, the army was defeated like a mountain, half of the troops under his command were gone, and the remaining 20,000 to 30,000 people could only huddle in Suzhou, terrified.
Gao Jie was naturally embarrassed about surrendering. As long as it was not Li Zicheng, he could do it. However, after learning Liu Zeqing's result, he immediately became decisive:
"There must be no surrender."
Years of fighting have made him deeply understand that the soldiers and horses under his command are the basis for preserving life and wealth. Once he goes to Beijing, he has no choice but to do it himself.
"I don't want to go to Beijing."
Xing, who has a towering height, curvy hips and slender waist, has always been Gao Jie's think tank and controls military resources. She is not only beautiful, but also shrewd and decisive:
"Even a veteran minister like Fan Wencheng has had his wife taken away from him. I don't want to be spoiled."
"Where did you know that?"
Gao Jie was stunned, his fair face was full of doubts. Logically speaking, such secret information would never reach the Huaihai area.
"I know it from here."
Ms.
"This is an internal reference, made by King Yu. It records some information. It's very interesting. Look, it also says that Dorgon stayed in the palace overnight and was served by Emperor Shunzhi's wife."
"Hey, I'm talking at the end. Dorgon and Li Zicheng are both rotten men who can't give birth to cubs at all."
"King Yu..."
Gao Jie squinted his eyes and started thinking.
"Back in Xi'an Mansion, my relationship with Zhu Yixi was neither good nor bad!"
"Do you still want to vote for King Yu?"
Xing's beautiful eyes changed, and then she became shrewd: "The Qing Dynasty is coming fiercely, Nanjing is dangerous, Huguang is a good place, and if things go bad, you can still escape to Sichuan."
"I want to vote but I can't!"
Gao Jie shook his head with a wry smile: "Sister Xing, we are near Xuzhou. There are no rivers connecting us. We are separated by the Dabie Mountains. How can we get there?"
Mr. Xing frowned.
Just when the two were hesitant, a spy suddenly came to report that nearly 10,000 soldiers and horses fled in Guide Mansion, Henan, under the leadership of General Xu Dingguo.
"Um?"
The two of them had astonishment on their faces.
Soon, they realized that it was Hong Chengchou of Luoyang who was unwilling to be left alone. He sent troops to occupy Guide Mansion, drove away the Ming army, and approached Xuzhou. valley
As a result, Gao Jie immediately fell into trouble.
On the left is Hong Chengchou, on the right is Azige, and below is Liu Liangzuo. There is almost no way to escape.
At this time, Hong Chengchou sent lobbyists to persuade him to surrender:
"Governor Hong is in Henan. As long as my uncle returns and surrenders, not only will his family be safe, but he will also be promoted to a higher position and receive a generous salary."
Gao Jie hesitated for a while and said directly: "I don't want to live in Beijing. It would be great if I could lead the troops to regain Henan and contribute to the Qing Dynasty."
After hearing this, the envoy cannot make the decision and can only return to return to Germany.
Hearing this, Hong Chengchou tugged at his beard and sighed: "I can't make the decision on this matter. It seems that Gao Jie still has the vassal town in mind."
"In this case, the Qing Dynasty will not be able to tolerate you."
As he spoke, a trace of fierceness flashed in his eyes.
Soon, in his sleep, Gao Jie learned that the Guide army had rebelled and was attacking Suzhou City.
Before he could react, he was taken away by the Xing family. Along with thousands of soldiers, he left Suzhou and headed south.
"Many of the soldiers and horses under your command have already opened the city gates and are coordinating their efforts inside and outside. Those who cannot be defeated will have no choice but to flee for their lives."
Xing said decisively.
"Hong Chengchou has a vicious heart, Xu Dingguo deserves to die."
Gao Jie took a breath of air and sat on his horse, feeling resentful in his heart.
Who else could use such methods except Hong Chengchou, who was good at buying people's hearts?
The soldiers and horses collected since last year are almost all defeated and bandit armies from various places, which were barely controlled, so they were found to have flaws.
The only people who can truly trust him are the soldiers who escaped with him in Xi'an.
"Where are we going?"
Ms. Xing was riding on her horse, holding her son Gao Yuanjue in her arms, her chest rising and falling, and she asked hurriedly.
"There are Qing troops in the east, west and north, and now they can only go south."
Gao Jie's eyes were filled with resentment: "I, Gao Jie, must repay this grudge."
So, thousands of people came to Huaiyuan City to rest temporarily.
At this time, someone suddenly asked for a meeting in the city. Gao Jie was stunned and responded with a gloomy face.
Immediately, a philistine businessman came quickly. When he saw Gao Jie, he straightened his back, his eyes were bright, and he said seriously:
"Under the command of King Yu, he searched hundreds of households. Chu Liang met Uncle Xingping."
"Prince Yu?" Gao Jie was immediately startled. He looked left and right, frowned, and said with fear on his face: "How do you know I am in Huaiyuan?"
"I really don't know."
Chu Liang shook his head and smiled: "I was originally in Fengyang, and wanted to go north to inform my uncle. Who knew that when I arrived at Huaiyuan, my uncle would arrive."
Gao Jie breathed a sigh of relief and then said, "What orders does Mr. Yu have?"
When talking about King Yu, Gao Jie became more respectful and used honorific words directly.
When Chu Liang heard this, he thought about it, but said directly:
"Uncle, I was in Fengyang. I heard that Liu Liangzuo was bewitched by Hong Chengchou and was preparing to lead his troops to surrender. After much deliberation, in order to avoid you being attacked from both sides, I decided to inform you." Gao Jie breathed a sigh of relief. Then he said: "What orders does the old man, Prince Yu, have?"
When talking about King Yu, Gao Jie became more respectful and used honorific words directly.
When Chu Liang heard this, he thought about it, but said directly:
"Uncle, I was in Fengyang. I heard that Liu Liangzuo was bewitched by Hong Chengchou and was preparing to lead his troops to surrender. After much deliberation, in order to prevent you from being attacked from both sides, I decided to inform you."
