The breeze and drizzle were cool and comfortable. Chang Yu in Nanjing was busy mobilizing troops and generals. Hundreds of miles away, the Ming army in Chaohu was also in full swing. In just two or three days, Chaohu, Hanshan, Hexian and other prefectures and counties close to the Yangtze River Everyone knows that they have heard that the imperial court has sent 200,000 troops to cross the river to suppress the bandits. Now they are stationed on the other side of the Yangtze River from Wuhu. They can send troops across the river to recapture Wuhu at any time.
I don’t know whether the 200,000 troops are true or not, but there are indeed a large number of officers and soldiers stationed in Dongguan Town, Linjiang River, Chaohu Lake, and the whole government of Luzhou is mobilizing boatmen to donate food and grass. This posture is by no means groundless, and it seems that war is really about to begin.
Zhang Liang, the governor of Anlu, and Lu Zhenfei, the governor of Fengyang Prefecture. They are both loyal ministers and practical people. In just two days, they mobilized the entire government to assist reinforcements in preparing to fight against the rebels, from preparing food and grass to mobilizing troops along the river. It can be said that the fishermen’s boats are doing their best to complete the logistics work.
The speed and complete preparations surprised the three generals Gao Jie, Liu Zeqing, and Liu Liangzuo. In their impression, there were few local yamen that cooperated so fully. However, the three of them soon figured out the key. This was another The credit of the little eunuch.
The name of the person, the shadow of the tree, the little eunuch's strict military discipline and ability to conquer and fight have already been famous all over the country. Everywhere he went, the local government offices were trembling. He was too late to show his courtesy and dared to delay. In addition, Lu Zhenfei and Zhang Liang were both. People who do practical things will do their best.
People always have a comparison mentality. If the local government cooperates so well and suffers another defeat, it can only be said that they are useless. They can't find any excuse to let others take the blame. Gao Jie and the other three are unwilling to be second to others. In addition, the three of them at this time They all needed a great victory to make a pledge, so they were particularly concerned about the battle to cross the river. From early morning to dusk, they almost led their troops on the river bank to observe and make plans to cross the river.
The officers and soldiers were so loud that they naturally attracted the attention of the thieves on the other side. From early the next morning, groups of thieves could be seen spying on the other side from time to time. Sometimes there were dozens of people and sometimes hundreds of people. They continued from morning to night, and on the first In the afternoon of the second day, there were thousands of people, and construction works based on local conditions along the river had begun.
"Kill him directly or attack Chencang secretly?" Gao Jie, wearing a raincoat by the river, raised his eyebrows slightly in the drizzle.
"We cavalry are not good at water warfare. The rebels should set up obstacles on the other side and suppress them with bows and arrows. If they attack by force, the losses will definitely be huge. Attacking by force is not a good idea. But if they want to sneak into Chencang, how can the rebels not guard against it? I'm afraid there will be no way. It's so easy to get through secretly." Liu Zeqing looked solemn and turned to look at Liu Liangzuo: "Hua Ma Liu, you have been fighting the thieves here for several years and are the most experienced. Can you tell me if you have any good ideas?"
Liu Liangzuo had just returned from Luzhou early in the morning because he was afraid of being robbed by the two men, but he had no perfect solution at the moment. He smiled bitterly and shook his head and said: "Although I have been fighting with the bandits for several years, I have never fought on the water or forced to cross the river, but I agree. Brother Liu said that a strong frontal attack will inevitably lead to heavy defeats, so why not pretend to be a forceful attack to attract the attention of the rebels, and then send other troops secretly to Chencang to catch the rebels off guard?"
Liu Zeqing stroked his palm and said, "As expected of Liu, a beautiful horse, a good strategy."
Gao Jie curled his lips and snorted: "This method is not new. The question is, who among the three of us will attack head-on?"
This question comes to a head. A frontal attack will definitely result in heavy losses, and it may not be the greatest in terms of merit. Simply put, it is the most thankless. Of course the three of them are not willing to do such a thing by themselves.
The three of you looked at me and I looked at you, speechless for a moment.
"The young governor has always looked down upon civil servants, but Zhang Liang and Lu Zhenfei have been impeccable in their actions these past two days. Look at the three of us...hehe, let's not say how the young governor will deal with it if the battle is delayed or the war fails. We are in trouble, even those civil servants can break our spines and make us unable to hold our heads up. We are just slapping ourselves in the face." Gao Jie's mood is very different now. In the past, if he could fight, he would fight, but if he couldn't, he would just get along. But Not now, he has to work hard under the little eunuch, and he cannot be looked down upon by this favored brother to make himself more valuable. This is what his wife has warned before he came, and he himself is not very bright. , but I believe that my wife, Mrs. Xing, is absolutely right.
How could Liu Zeqing and Liu Liangzuo not have this idea? "The three of us are well aware of our current situation. It has not been just a day or two since the imperial court saw that we are not doing well. In the past, it was unwilling and unable to punish us. Now if it is not the time to employ people, it is likely that the governor will take action." Well, fortunately, the little governor is also very particular about asking us to spend money to eliminate disasters, but just eliminating disasters is obviously not enough. We also have to make contributions to protect ourselves. This time, we are not the only ones who came south to gain merit. , If we don't win this first battle, I'm afraid we won't even be able to take a sip of the soup later." Liu Zeqing said and looked at the two of them with a cold smile: "No one wants to suffer a loss, but this battle cannot be ignored. It's fair. How about we draw lots for the sake of it?"
The flower horse Liu and Gao Jie looked at each other, then nodded: "Let's follow Brother Liu and draw lots."
"Okay." Liu Zeqing turned over and dismounted, grabbed a few pieces of grass and fiddled with it behind his back: "Two long and one short, draw the short one, and attack hard from the front."
Gao Jie and Huama Liu nodded in agreement.
"Who comes first?" Liu Zeqing asked. As soon as he finished speaking, an urgent message came from the distance, which made the three of them frown slightly. They saw a fast horse galloping in front of them, but it was a fan from Dongchang who was already soaked through: "Three generals, the Governor has a secret order."
The three people listened attentively and frowned. Liu Zeqing asked Huama Liu: "Where are Zhang Liang and Lu Zhenfei at this time?"
"The two of them wanted to go here before I came. I heard that they were going to Chaohu Yamen. Maybe they are in Chaohu City at this time," Liu Liangzuo said.
"This matter should be discussed with the two of them." Liu Zeqing called for a personal attendant as he spoke: "Send people to Chaohu immediately to invite the two governors Zhang and Lu to the military camp, saying that we have an urgent matter to discuss."
When the waiter left in a hurry, Liu Zeqing looked back at the river and smiled bitterly. He raised his hand and the grass stems flew out in the wind: "Now we don't have to fight or give in."
"That's not necessarily the case," Liu Liangzuo chuckled, "I still have to show off."
The three of them stayed on patrol by the river for a long time. They told their subordinates to keep an eye on the movements of the rebels on the other side and inspect the boats on the river to prepare for infiltration. Then they returned to the Ma Army camp. The riverside was more than 20 miles away from the Dongguan Town military camp, which was close enough. At that time, they got news that Lu Zhenfei and Zhang Liang were waiting for each other at the military camp. It turned out that the messenger met the two people halfway when they went to Chaohu. Hearing that there were military affairs discussions, they hurried to the military camp.
After they met and exchanged greetings with each other, Gao Jie went straight to the topic: "The Lord Governor ordered us to pretend to cross the river, but in fact we secretly ordered Chen Cang to send troops to recover Anqing and cut off the rebels' retreat!" Zhang Liang frowned and wanted to say something but held back. Zhenfei Xianglu.
"Governor Zhang, please feel free to say anything," Lu Zhenfei said softly, observing his words.
"Yes, just say whatever you have to say." Gao Jie also yelled. Zhang Liang cleared his throat and said slightly worriedly: "Anqing has a high wall and thick walls, which is difficult to defend and difficult to attack. Even if the city is besieged with heavy troops, it is difficult to break the city in a few days, and it is dangerous to attack by force. The thieves are so cruel that they will destroy everything and harm the people in the city."
"No one will die in a war. If you are afraid of this or that, you will give me a beating." Gao Jie looked contemptuous, and the civil servant was really hypocritical: "Are we afraid that the rebel army will harm the people in the city, so we won't fight? It's extremely ridiculous."
Zhang Liang blushed deeply, and Lu Zhenfei quickly smoothed things over for him: "Governor Zhang didn't just mean this. I'm afraid he may have other concerns. General Gao will calm down and listen to what Governor Zhang has to say." Gao Jie then snorted and stopped talking.
"I feel that the leader of the bandits is in Anqing and cannot be defeated easily. If other members of the bandit army hear the news and come, they will easily trap us, or they may work harder to capture other prefectures and counties. Encircling Wei and rescuing Zhao, if Anqing is not captured, other prefectures and counties will be put into trouble..."
"Damn it, I really can't listen anymore. No wonder Anqing Fucheng was lost in a long time." Gao Jie muttered and cursed. Although his voice was low, Zhang Liang still heard it. He immediately blew his beard and glared angrily: "My officer, that's..."
"Okay, okay, Governor Zhang, don't worry..." Liu Liangzuo and Lu Zhenfei quickly stood up to persuade each other, but Liu Zeqing and Gao Jie looked back and forth with mocking smiles on their faces.
Zhang Liang was just a civil servant. He really didn't know how to fight and had almost never fought in a war, so he aroused ridicule as soon as he opened his mouth.
"Since you don't like me, let's listen to the opinions of the generals." Zhang Liang was a little self-aware at first, but he really didn't dare to break up with Gao Jie and others. After all, they are big bosses in the army and have a bad reputation. , I couldn’t afford to offend, so I held back my anger for the time being.
Liu Zeqing stood up and cupped his hands: "Commander Gao and the soldiers are talking harshly, Governor Zhang, don't take it to heart, we are dealing with the wrong people. I feel that Lord Governor's move actually has its subtlety. Governor Zhang just said that he was worried about the rebel army surrounding Wei to rescue Zhao. Isn’t this move of the Lord Governor also aimed at encircling Wei and rescuing Zhao?”
Zhang Liang was startled, and then Liu Zeqing continued: "The vanguard of the bandit army is only a few thousand, plus the number of refugees is tens of thousands. Let's cross the river to attack its favorable territory and people, and the outcome will be 50-50. But if the main force from behind comes, Perhaps we can only retreat steadily, either to the west bank or to Nanjing. By then, hundreds of thousands of bandits will form a siege in Nanjing. This is not a situation the Lord Governor wants to see."
"To put it bluntly, the Lord Governor doesn't want to be led by the other party. He wants to take the initiative in his own hands. The so-called seven inches of the snake is in Anqing Fucheng." Liu Zeqing said with a slight smile. Xiang Lu Zheng: "Governor Lu, what I said is reasonable."
Lu Zhenfei was different from Zhang Liang. He had rich combat experience and knew how to set up a march. He nodded slightly after hearing this: "If we attack Anqing and cut off our retreat, the morale of the bandit army will be disturbed. No matter whether they return to rescue or continue to move forward, Once the retreat is cut off, the army will be demoralized, and the bandit army is determined to run Anqing, so they will not give it up easily. They will most likely return to fight with us. In that case, the dilemma in Nanjing will be solved immediately, and we will be able to conquer everything. Troops were transferred to Anqing to compete with them."
"So, Anqing will be the main battlefield in the end!" Zhang Liang sighed slightly.
"This is the fastest and most effective way to defeat a thief," Liu Liangzuo said solemnly.
Zhang Liang smiled bitterly and shook his head: "I am not as good as you in marching and fighting, and I am not as good as the governor in strategizing. Since you all think it is feasible, I have no objections. I just want to help you."
Lu Zhenfei also said: "The three generals can give orders wherever they are needed."
"I don't dare to give you orders." Liu Zeqing raised his hand and said, "But we do need the help of two adults. The war is about to begin, so we will have to help you with supplies and logistics."
Zhang Liang didn't think anything was wrong when he heard this, but Lu Zhenfei was a little unhappy. The young eunuch transferred him from Fengyang Mansion to fight the war and quell the chaos. How come he was sent to do logistics after he was in trouble? Well, it was obvious that these three people arranged this deliberately for fear of taking advantage of themselves.
He wanted to protest, but at this time he had no soldiers and no power, and the young eunuch was not here. He knew that no matter how noisy they were, they would not be able to make the three of them stick together and that the harmonious relationship would be ruined and affect the overall situation, so he had to swallow his anger and temporarily comply.
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