It only took a few hours to capture Zhaoqing. In fact, when the Zhujiang broke through the defenses of Antelope Gorge and appeared on the river outside Zhaoqing, the Ming army's resistance completely collapsed. Several shells fired by the Zhujiang towards Zhaoqing City only added to the confusion.
Xiong Wencan and his officials and staff were naturally well prepared. They immediately entered Yuejiang Tower, mounted fast horses that had been prepared, and were escorted by soldiers, and fled to Wuzhou by land.
As for the water, a group of "suspicious soldiers" were also arranged. Xiong Wencan's "official ship" escaped upriver under the escort of several naval vessels. Naturally, a boat sailing against the current cannot outrun a large boat that "self-propelled without wind". Although the entire army was wiped out along the way, Xiong Wencan and his party were able to escape smoothly.
As for the state and county officials, some fled with Xiong Wencan, and some committed suicide in the government office. The city was left without an owner, and it immediately fell into chaos. The underground organizations that had been lurking in Zhaoqing immediately rioted and formed pickets to maintain order in the city, put out fires and detect theft.
By the time Zhu Mingxia's ship arrived in Zhaoqing, "the whole city was at peace."
Zhu Mingxia's brigade immediately stationed at the Governor's Yamen in Zhaoqing.
After the recovery of Zhaoqing, the First Mixed Brigade did not immediately take advantage of the victory and go straight to Wuzhou.
Taking Zhaoqing is not a win-win situation. The establishment of Zhaoqing and its subordinate counties is actually related to "Pingyao" in Guangdong. In the mountains on both sides of the Xijiang River, there are Yao cave villages everywhere. In the Ming Dynasty, the "Yao Rebellion" in Guangdong and Guangxi has never been subsided. The Ming court established a governor in Zhaoqing, which itself had the meaning of "suppressing the Yao".
As the Ming army's deployment in western Guangdong collapsed, the suppressed Yao people were likely to take advantage of the situation and rise up. Historically, in this year - the eighth year of Chongzhen (1635), Yao platoons such as Bapai Yao Zhongjunliao and Ma Jian were the first to rise up in riots, attack officers and soldiers, and secretly colluded with the Yao people in the "Eight Platoons and Twenty-Four Charges". Prepare knives, guns, ammunition and other supplies in preparation for rebellion. Finally, in the twelfth year of Chongzhen (1639), they gathered into a large-scale riot. This riot lasted for three years. The Ming court mobilized troops from five provinces to suppress it, but it was not suppressed in the end. It lasted until the Kangxi period before it was basically pacified.
If the counties under the jurisdiction of Zhaoqing Prefecture cannot be quickly controlled, once the Yao people on both sides of the Xijiang River begin to riot, it will inevitably affect the Senate's pacification work in western Guangdong and contain the strength of the Fubo Army.
To occupy Wuzhou as soon as possible and establish the Senate's rule over the entire western Guangdong, colleagues also need to "protect Yao" and ensure the "quietness" of Yaodong. These are the two major tasks before Zhu Mingxia.
From Zhaoqing to Wuzhou itself there is no danger. Although the existence of shoals downstream of Wuzhou makes it difficult for the Pearl River gunboat to cross, the use of large boats alone is enough to break through the enemy's blockade. As long as the ferry goes smoothly, taking Wuzhou will only take a few hours.
However, judging from the battle situation when they broke through Antelope Gorge, the Ming army had already undergone certain changes in tactics and equipment. This made Zhu Mingxia realize that although the Ming army was decayed, there were still a few knowledgeable people inside. Explore tactics to improve combat equipment at low technical levels. Although these improvements are too insignificant for the Fubo Army's advantages, they may still cause certain damage to the Fubo Army under certain favorable opportunities. Be prepared accordingly.
"The whole brigade will rest in Zhaoqing for 2 days." Zhu Mingxia issued the order,
Since the restoration of Guangzhou, the First Brigade has always been in the process of maneuvering by boat. Marching by boat is certainly labor-saving, but if you don't move your body for a long time, it is inevitable that your blood will not be harmonious and your muscles will become stiff. Proper exercise in Zhaoqing will be beneficial to your next steps.
The headquarters of the first brigade is at the naval camp outside the east gate. Although the city's "surrendered" classics and Jin gentry have asked him to move to the most famous local scenic spot "Seven Star Rock" - a Jin gentry dedicated The other courtyard serves as his residence. But this place was too far away from Xijiang, so Zhu Mingxia still chose the naval camp.
Staying with your troops at all times is the only way to master them. Zhu Mingxia always practices this personally no matter which time and space he is the chief official.
There are several temples in the naval camp, and the brigade headquarters is located in the Pak Tai Temple. It is said to be a temple, but in fact it is just a small courtyard. A conference table was set up in the main hall, and a map was hung up to serve as the headquarters.
"Have all the troops arrived?" Zhu Mingxia looked at the map and asked.
"The 3rd Infantry Battalion and the brigade-affiliated team have arrived, and the 8th Infantry Battalion is expected to arrive before 16:00," the staff briefing reported.
"What about the National Army that accepted Zhaoqing?"
"On their way, they won't arrive until tomorrow morning. First batch of 2 squadrons."
"Too few." Zhu Mingxia said, "Have all the surrendered officers and generals arrived?"
"They're all waiting outside."
There were not many officials in Zhaoqing who surrendered. Among the civilian officials, they only had Gao Yaodianshi, the military attache of the camp was no more than a sentry officer, and the military attache of the guard station only had the general flag. They were all minor officials.
"Tell them to wait in the courtyard."
The demoted officials gathered in the courtyard. Except for Gaoyao County Dian Shilan Rutian who surrendered voluntarily, most of them were just because they were junior officials and were not even qualified to escape. The city was broken and they couldn't escape, but they didn't want to commit suicide, so they all surrendered. Among them, most of them were officers from the guard station.
Most of them described how embarrassed they were, especially the officers of the guard. After the chaos after the city was broken, riots broke out in all the camps, and most of the officers who had committed crimes were massacred. Most of these people were humble and had little public grievance. However, many people were beaten and robbed in the chaos, and some almost lost their lives. If the Fubo Army had not arrived in time to restore order, it would probably have been too late to "surrender the Song Dynasty". .
As soon as Zhu Mingxia appeared on the steps, the civil and military officials headed by Lan Rutian were stunned, because Zhu Mingxia was not wearing the uniform of a senior officer, but a standard training uniform. Except for the hat on his head, which was a large-brimmed hat, and Apart from the differences between the soldiers, they were almost the same as the ordinary soldiers standing guard in the yard.
"The Fubo Army formed the first brigade, brigade commander, Colonel Zhu Mingxia!" the adjutant announced his official title loudly.
Only then did the demoted officials realize that the person coming was the high-ranking official of "Kun Thief". Lan Rutian took a step forward and took the demoted officials with him to attend the ceremony.
Zhu Mingxia waved his hand: "No need, everyone get up."
"Here!" shouted a chorus of voices in the courtyard.
"This time you abandon the dark side and turn to the bright side. On behalf of the Senate and the Fubo Army, I would like to extend a warm welcome!" Zhu Mingxia stood on the steps. There was no public seat.
"Thank you, General..." Lan Rutian took the lead and bowed to the end.
"Are you..." Zhu Mingxia asked.
"Hizhilan Rutian, Gaoyao County - A classic history of Gaoyao County in the Ming Dynasty."
"Okay, I heard that you were originally our comrade——"
"Yes, I have already turned over to serve the Senate last year." Lan Rutian said respectfully.
"Okay," Zhu Mingxia nodded, "I will appoint you as the deputy county magistrate of Gaoyao County and temporarily act as the county administrator!"
"Yes, thank you for your cultivation, Chief!" Lan Rutian knelt down with a bang and kowtowed three times in gratitude.
Although the demoted officials do not know what a "deputy county magistrate" is, they probably know the second-in-command in the county, such as the county magistrate. This can be regarded as a three-level upgrade in the classic history of officials and officials in the past. It was almost impossible for Dianshi to be promoted to county magistrate or county magistrate under the Ming Dynasty system. Even if there were a few, they were rare.
"Since you act as county administrator, I have a few things to tell you first." Zhu Mingxia said, "The first one is to appease and relieve the people. I went into the city to take a look and found that the city was still plagued by rebels and bandits. Some families were killed. Houses have been burned down, and some have been robbed of food and property. We must find ways to provide relief. The bodies must be collected and buried as soon as possible. Secondly, you take the cadres we brought and take over the government and county offices as soon as possible, and seal the warehouses and pavilions. Treasury. The original clerks and clerks in various yamen are asked to report to work immediately and are not allowed to stay at home."
Lan Rutian said "yes" several times - this was what he meant.
"The third one, more troops are coming here soon, and the joint logistics transportation is temporarily unavailable. You have to contact my logistics director to provide a good supply of food and fodder - the specific types and numbers will be told to you by the logistics director. We will issue a settlement statement for the expenses, and you will settle the bill with Lianqin at that time. How is the food storage situation here?"
"It's quite enough - there are many official warehouses in the local area."
"Okay, just go ahead and take care of these three things. I will naturally send people to handle other public security matters. The National Army will arrive tomorrow, and from now on the local public security will be the responsibility of the National Army."
"Yes, I understand my humble position." Lan Rutian listened to each item and noted it down. After hearing Zhu Mingxia's instructions, he quickly made another bow, bent down and retreated.
"As for you," Zhu Mingxia looked at the dozen or so young officers of the guard station who were all different in height, short, fat, and thin, but most of them were disheveled and embarrassed, "I can see that you have suffered a lot since Zhaoqing was restored. So bitter."
There was an awkward silence among everyone, and one of the older ones came out and responded: "Commander Qi, this is because we usually fail to lead the troops..."
Zhu Mingxia nodded, but did not go further and said: "Since you have surrendered to our Senate, in the future, as long as you work hard for the Senate, your bright future will be indispensable."
"Thank you, chief!" everyone said in unison.
"I heard that many of the officers from your garrison are related to each other?"
This question somewhat puzzled them. But this is true. The health clinic is stationed in one place for a long time, and the scope of marriage is often settled within the clinic. As time goes by, we have more or less relatives. This is even more true for hereditary military officers.
"What the chief said is true. Most of the military households in the institute are related to each other."
"You probably have acquaintances and relatives in all the camps in Zhaoqing Guard, right?"
"Yes." People with quick minds already knew what Zhu Mingxia was going to say.
"That's it, I'm going to have to work hard for you here." Zhu Mingxia said, motioning the orderly to bring out a tray with many letters piled on it.
"You set out immediately, each with a few followers, and go to various camps to recruit Ming officers and soldiers."
PS:
Introduce and sort out important figures and event information;
Showcase the style of the Lingao community and a traveling exhibition of outstanding fan and material works;
Organize online or offline gatherings of elders from time to time;
In a word, Senatus Populusque Magnus
