Before the vanguard of the New Army arrived in Wuqing, heavy rain was already pouring down. This heavy rain cloud rose from the Yanshan Mountains and then pressed all the way east. The sky was leaking all over northern Zhili, and a heavy rainstorm swept across of heaven and earth.
At this time, no one cares about the life and death of the people, and no one cares about flood fighting and rescue operations. Almost all officials in North Zhili got a terrible rumor from different channels. The direct troops of the Queen Mother of the East and West are about to start a war in the Zhili Plain. .
In the past few days, the atmosphere in the entire officialdom of Zhili has suddenly changed. No one is drinking and visiting brothels, no one is reciting poems about mountain climbing and admiring the scenery. There is no longer any thought of corruption or bribery. Everyone's emotions have been tethered. Because they knew that this plain battle would determine the political structure of the Qing Dynasty in the next few decades.
"My dear, Empress Dowager Ci'an is only 29 years old this year, Empress Dowager Cixi is only 31 years old this year, and the emperor is only 10 years old this year. Now that things have become like this, the Qing Dynasty will be in chaos in the future. These are the years when the prime of life is causing trouble... "
This kind of issue is something that almost all officials have to consider. In the officialdom of the Qing Dynasty, it is not allowed to choose not to take sides. If you are considered to be a loser, then you are everyone's enemy.
Every major political event is an opportunity for officials to line up again. If you make the right choice, you will be promoted and make a fortune. If you make the wrong choice, you will lose your official position or lose your head. This is no small matter.
However, there are many officials in Zhili who are looking forward to Xiao Letian's victory. Through the efforts of the Xingtang, 40% of the county officials in Zhili are now receiving Xiao Letian's secret salary. The Zhili officialdom of the Qing Dynasty has been supported by Xiao Letian. The moths have gnawed holes all over it.
Xiao Letian is like Ming Jing in his heart. Money can never buy loyalty. Even if they write a letter in blood and seek refuge with him, they are not the most reliable. Everything depends on victory. It is the military, a violent group. As long as the victory continues and the military fortune continues, Then Xiao Letian can gain the greatest loyalty.
Xiao Letian wiped the rain off his face and shouted to the Japanese sword-striking team beside him, "Noheita, Hyoutaro...are you tired, are you cold, can you still fight, answer me loudly... …”
"Not tired... not cold... of course we can fight." More than 400 Baidao team members roared in the heavy rain.
Shoheitaro raised his head proudly, "What does this mean? In Japan, typhoons blowing from the sea are more terrifying, and we have never flinched. We are accustomed to volcanic eruptions, but they are just heavy rains."
"Well done...Japan's Bato team can still hold on, as are my loyal Ryukyu warriors."
"We have survived the blood and fire. We are afraid of the wind and rain... speed up and march quickly." There was a shout in the team.
Xiao Letian smiled evilly at Sima Yunluo Huo and the others and shouted, "Brothers from Japan and Ryukyu can hold on... Then what about us good men from China, can you hold on..."
"Sacrifice Xuanyuan with my blood, sacrifice Huaxia with my life, the new army speeds up... marches in a hurry." The roar was like a huge thunder on the ground, which made the war horses scream in fright, and almost knocked Xiao Letian to the ground.
"You brats, I know you are strong, so use that strength on the soles of your feet... Let's go, brothers, go into Beijing to eat hot food..." Xiao Letian rushed out immediately.
The old city wall of Wuqing County was left behind by the new army. Xiao Letian knew that there must be countless officials and gentry secretly watching him as an evil spirit on top of the city. They did not dare to fight him, and they also did not dare to fight with him. So close, all they could do was huddle on the wall and watch timidly.
A master on the city wall hid in a makeshift awning and whispered, "Master, you really missed this good opportunity to board the ship. Now if you send information to Xiao Letian, it will be a big favor. Li Hongzhang You can deceive Xiao Letian, but you can't deceive local snakes like us."
"Confused." The county magistrate glared and cursed, "Sir, I also know how to fight. If it hadn't rained like this, I would have sold it to Xiao Letian. But look at this day, even God is helping those Huai soldiers." …What are you most afraid of when it comes to firearms? What you’re most afraid of is water.”
"It was a sure-losing situation, so a fool only boarded the ship. He defeated Xiao Letian later, and asked the catchers to go out and capture some defeated troops. We can also get some credit, right..."
The master stopped talking. He listened to the county magistrate's confident tone and sighed in his heart, thinking to himself, "Master, master...don't you think about it, did it really not happen that Xiao Letian led his troops back from Europe?" What? If things are abnormal, they are monsters..."
In the 19th century, information transmission was still lagging behind. Even if Xiao Letian returned to the Qing Dynasty, no one in northern China knew what he did in Europe. Only a fast horse on the official road in Henan was running towards the north. It was the Lion City newspaper sent to the imperial court by Zeng Guofan.
It's a pity that this newspaper came too late, and war is now inevitable.
Heavy rain was pouring down, and hundreds of Huai Army soldiers wearing raincoats were hidden in a drainage channel. Everyone ignored the rolling waves under their feet and the pickled mud. Each of them seemed to have lost their life in the heavy rain. at every turn.
No one had a hard bow with the strings removed. There were long spears, short knives and other melee weapons on the ground, and the strings of the bows and arrows were wrapped in oilcloth and deeply hidden in their arms.
The commander's order was clear. The bowstring would soon become soft due to such heavy rain. He could only fire three arrows at most. After three arrows, the bowstring would be useless, so he had to wait until the enemy appeared before hanging the string.
"Listen carefully... If you don't see the Japs, you won't be hanging." In the eyes of these Huai soldiers, the soldiers led by Xiao Letian, the Japs, were ghost soldiers.
Any famous army in history was full of momentum when it first formed. Those grassroots officers trained by famous generals and those veterans who have experienced countless blood and fire are the backbone of an iron army. .
This is the case with the Huai Army now. They are not the Beiyang after the desperate expansion of later generations. The Huai Army's strength to pacify the Nian Army was only 50,000 or 60,000. In history, after the Nian Army was completely pacified, the total strength of the Huai Army did not exceed 7 Ten thousand, while the Hunan Army already had half a million at the same time.
This is a medium-sized and extremely strong army. The slightly smaller force allows Li Hongzhang's command to penetrate deeper, and orders can be issued smoothly.
Moreover, with fewer troops, it is easier to produce elites, especially when there are more than 3,000 iron troops in front of them, and it is Li Hongzhang's old foundation. The level of elites can be said to be unparalleled in the world.
There was pouring rain, lightning and thunder, and the sky and the earth were as dark as ink. In such bad weather, these three thousand Li Hongzhang's disciples did not flinch, and they set up an ambush quietly without even a single complaint.
This is a group of wolves fed by money, this is a group of villagers united by the blood of the villagers, this is an iron army led by Li Hongzhang himself that can change the modern history of China.
At this moment, they met their destined opponent, Xiao Letian's new army.
Without Xiao Letian, history would roll forward along his inherent trajectory. Li Hongzhang would eventually become the leader of the Han Dynasty and a member of the Western Affairs Bureau. Under his influence, the Manchu Qing Dynasty would carry out backward changes unwillingly and even let the Qing Dynasty make backward changes. surpassed by the small country of Japan.
Without Xiao Letian's new army, the Huai Army would still have become the largest military group in the late Qing Dynasty. It would not have withdrawn from the stage of history until the Republic of China, and the civil war between the Beiyang warlords and the National Revolutionary Army would not have lasted for 17 years.
Of course, Li Hongzhang and his men did not know what would happen in the future, nor did they know that Xiao Letian and his army would take away the glory that should belong to them, but there was cause and effect, and Li Hongzhang and his Huai army He just hates Xiao Letian unreasonably.
In the past two years, the person Li Hongzhang was most dissatisfied with was Xiao Letian, and the Huai Army was sour when they saw the results of the New Army. If you asked them why, they couldn't tell you, but jealousy is jealousy. , maybe this is the real destined enemy.
"Silence... Everyone, silence... Found traces of the enemy..." Numerous drainage ditches are countless trenches, and low-pitched orders began to come one after another.
Sure enough, on the official road in the east, a group of soldiers in blue uniforms appeared in the heavy rain. Each of them lowered their heads, and then the brim of their patent leather hat blocked the rain, barely maintaining their sight.
"Wind up... wind up... everyone, remember, we only have three chances to fire volleys... launch in the direction of the wind, we are in the upper hand, we will definitely shoot accurately... everyone is ready to fight..."
In a forest is Li Hongzhang's hidden command post. This commander in a bamboo hat is not special at all. He is also soaking in the rain with the soldiers. However, when he needs to use a telescope to observe the battlefield, there are guards holding up the tarpaulin. The umbrella protects the handsome man from the rain.
"It's coming..." Li Hongzhang couldn't help shouting when a bright blue light flashed in the telescope, "It's indeed here. As expected, Xiao Letian is really proud. Isn't there awe in his eyes?" Heaven and earth, he came despite the heavy rain..."
"If it was a sunny day today, you might still have a slight chance of winning, but now this heavy rain and mud will be your burial place... Pass the order and prepare to fight according to the plan..."
Li Hongzhang's order was redundant. These veterans had extremely rich battlefield experience. When Xiao Letian's vanguard had entered the ambush circle, the ambush soldiers at the front did not launch an attack. They just used their bodies to protect the bows and arrows that had just been strung, for fear of fear. The rain softened the bowstrings.
Three serrated wolf-tooth arrows are placed next to each soldier. Once they are inserted into the flesh, when you pull them out, they will be a piece of flesh and blood.
More and more New Army soldiers entered the pocket. When the leading troops were almost approaching the bottom of the pocket, countless shrill roars suddenly sounded in the heavy rain.
"Three consecutive shots..."
There was only a burst of intensive trembling of bowstrings, and a black cloud followed by the wind blew towards the new army. The unprepared vanguard suddenly screamed in agony, and the smell of blood in the air hit their faces.
"The enemy is attacking... There is an enemy attack... Prepare for battle, countercharge... Brothers, countercharge." This book was first published from, be the first to read the authentic content!
