Chapter 146 Zeng Guoquan covers the sky with one hand
After the great victory of Jiangpu, the Hunan army killed more than 100,000 people. Zeng Guoquan was so anxious that he took a boat overnight to Shuiying to negotiate with Peng Yulin and Yang Zaifu about attacking Jiusuzhou.
Peng Yulin said: "Two Pus have been captured, and then we can take off Guan, Caoshan Gorge, and Yanziji. Jiusuzhou will become a fortress on its own and will be destroyed without a fight."
Zeng and Yang both said yes.
That night, the Hunan army attacked by land and water. Xiaguan, Caoxiexia and Yanziji were defeated one by one overnight.
Early the next morning, Yang Zaifu led an army of 10,000 to besiege Jiusuzhou.
The Taiping Army fought stubbornly and refused to retreat. They were surrounded by thousands of artillery bombardments without stopping for a moment. They also ambushed the foreign gun teams on the three southeast routes and waited for the opportunity to attack.
Yang Zaifu fought hard for six days and nights, killing three battalion officers, several sentry officers, and more than 2,000 Bian Yong casualties before he conquered it.
When the Hunan Army conquered Jiusuzhou, Zeng Guofan was overjoyed and told Zeng Guoquan quickly: The way to encircle the enemy is to cut off the water and provide relief. In a city that is more than a hundred miles away, there are hundreds of thousands of thieves who cannot be supported by shoulder-to-shoulder land transport. In the past, there were red single ships to help and foreign ships to help. Now that Jiusuzhou has been conquered, both can be suppressed. My younger brother, Hou, and Xue put all their energy into checking the water supply and providing relief, and the time to conquer the city is not very far away.
Ouyang Zhaoxiong said: From now on, Commander Di will focus on Jinling?
Zeng Guofan said: No, I want to use Zhejiang to attack Fuyang and Shanghai to attack Suzhou. Jinling should also be encircled quickly, with equal emphasis on Jinling, Suzhou and Hangzhou, and Yangzhou and Zhenjiang to cooperate in the suppression. Make the counter-preparation more effective, not forgetting to take into account both, or focus on Jinling and achieve results in Suzhou and Hangzhou. One of the three places can be succeeded, and the two can be combined.
Ouyang Zhaoxiong said: According to reports, Chief Zhong has returned to Suzhou recently.
Zeng Guofan said: Send my order quickly. Xiao Qingyan's troops will be stationed in Pukou and Jiangpu to be on guard against Li Zhaoshou's troops. Liu Lianjie's troops will be stationed in Jiusuzhou, Zhongguan, Xiaguan and Caoxiexia. Together with the navy, they will inspect day and night to eliminate the thieves and help them. Bao Chunting The troops immediately crossed the river and stationed themselves in the Xiaolingwei area. They gradually formed an encirclement with Zeng Guoquan's troops. Luo Bingzhang came to consult and said that he had wiped out the Shidakai bandits on the banks of the Dadu River, and my department should also try our best.
Ouyang Zhaoxiong said: Shi is a bandit, and he will be destroyed sooner or later. The city of Jinling is vast and is more than ninety miles away, so Yuanfu and Chunting may not be able to support each other.
Zeng Guofan said: Bao and Zeng were seriously ill last year, and they must be prevented this year. Therefore, we must first seek to consolidate ourselves. Yuanfu consolidated himself on the south road, and Chunting consolidated himself on the north road. If there is a large group of reinforcements, the thieves will come. , each other is self-sufficient and does not need to help each other.
Bao Chao received the order and immediately led his troops to cross the river and build a fortification and camp near Mufu Mountain in Xiaguan.
The generals will be confused by his speed.
Bao Chao said: "In the past, Dukes Xiang Rong and He Chun were defeated outside the city. My Ting tribe had less than ten thousand soldiers. How dare you take risks!" Slowly advance to the Xiaoling Guards to intercept the route to Jurong and Danyang. Quickly inform Zeng Guoquan's troops that our army has arrived in the north of Jinling City.
Zeng Guoquan was very relieved when he heard the news and said: Ting's army has arrived in the north and the encirclement has been completed. Tomorrow they will attack the Fangshan stone fortification. If this fortification is conquered, they can attack the Seven Bridges Urn from the north and cut off the grain road to the southeast of the thieves; they can go straight to Moling from the south. Guan and Bowang Town, choked off the reinforcements of the thieves Lishui and Gaochun. I ordered the registered admiral Xiao Fusi and the commander-in-chief of Hanzhong Town Wu Weishou to lead their headquarters to besiege Fangshan.
In the early morning of July 8, Xiao Fusi and Wu Weishou divided their troops into two groups and immediately started to attack.
Fangshan's artillery roared day and night. Hong Xiuquan was frightened and said anxiously: "Jiusuzhou, Xiaguan, and Mufu Mountain are all lost. Fangshan is surrounded again. Tianjing will lose its voice. The loyal compatriots are strong. We must lead the heavenly army and return quickly." Assistance; this edict is extremely urgent, and it is urged one after another.
Xiucheng received the report, sighed deeply, and told the generals: It is difficult to carry out a four-pronged counterattack and return the monsters to relieve the siege of Suzhou. After I left, the guardian king Chen Kunshu, together with the troops from Danyang and Jiangyin, counterattacked Yang She. Yang She lives in Jiangyin and Changshu, which is the barrier between Jiangyin and Wuxi and the road behind Suzhou. If this place is obtained, Jiang, Wu, Su, and Chang will be safe. Yang Wang Li Mingcheng quickly took his headquarters to garrison Wujiang and Jiapu to protect the water and land passage into Zhejiang.
The servant king Li Shixian, the auxiliary king Yang Fuqing, Zhang Wang Lin Shaozhang, the guardian king Chen Kunshu, Mu Wang Tan Shaoguang, and Na Wang Gao Yongkuan all said that instead of running east and west, it would be better to fight decisively in Suzhou.
Xiu Chengdao: Tianjing is the center of the Kingdom of Heaven, the foundation for our survival and development; if Tianjing is lost, the Kingdom of Heaven will be complete!
After Xiucheng left Su, Li Hongzhang felt relieved and said to the generals: No matter whether the loyal chiefs stay or go, our army will advance every inch, attack steadily and nibble away at small bites. This is my consistent intention.
Gordon, the new commander of the foreign gun team, said: Dear Mr. Li Hongzhang, I think that if you always seek stability, you will easily miss your opportunity. In the past six months, your army has captured the towns in the east and north of Suzhou. Now, in the northwest of Suzhou, there are only two cities, Wuxi and Jiangyin; in the south of Suzhou, there is only one city in Wujiang. By conquering Wujiang, your army can cut off the connection between Jiangsu and Zhejiang; to the north of Wujiang, three miles away, there is a town named Jiapu , if this town is captured, the Gui army navy can use the canal to enter Taihu Lake; to the north of Jiapu, there is a town named Tongli, three miles away. If this town is captured, the Gui army can enter the Suzhou city. I thought that your army would attack Jiapu, Tongli, and Wujiang without delay.
Cheng Xueqi said: Recently, Yang Chief Li Mingcheng took over the defense of Wujiang. This is a new arrival and the terrain is unfamiliar. I can take the opportunity to attack it.
Li Hongzhang said: The handover between the old and the new will inevitably be chaotic, and we can take advantage of this opportunity!
On July 27, Cheng Xueqi led the Thirteenth Battalion, and Gordon led the 2,000-victorious army to jointly attack Jiapu. Cheng Xueqi and Gordon fired hundreds of cannons and defeated the city in half a day.
Cheng Xueqi ordered Liu Shiqi's troops to stay behind, and he led the main force, together with Gordon's victorious army, to besiege Tongli.
After hearing the news, King Mu Tan Shaoguang led 20,000 troops and quickly left Suzhou, marched by land and water, and counterattacked Jiapu; Li Mingcheng also divided his troops with 4,000 troops and attacked from the south.
Liu Shiqi had only 2,000 troops, his left and right were weak, and Jiapu was on the verge of collapse, so he urgently asked Cheng Xueqi for help. Cheng Xueqi also knew that the gains and losses of Jiapu were crucial to the overall situation, so he asked Gordon to counterattack Wujiang. Xueqi led the main force to return to support Jiapu.
On the 29th, Cheng Xueqi arrived with his troops and attacked Liu Shiqi from both inside and outside. Tan Shaoguang was defeated and retreated to Su. Cheng Xueqi did not pursue him, but moved his army southward, joined Gordon's victorious army, and jointly attacked Wujiang.
Wujiang was in danger, and Yang Wang Li Mingcheng asked for help in Jiaxing. King Rong Liao Rongfa received the report and personally led an army to rush to the rescue. On the 30th, King Rong arrived in Wujiang and immediately besieged Qixing Bridge.
Cheng Xueqi urgently asked Gordon for reinforcements. Gordon led the foreign rifle team and fought bloody battles with Liao Rongfa's troops for five days and nights. The Taiping Army refused to retreat. Gordon saw the tragic situation of the two armies' casualties and was afraid to fight. He took a break and led to The army left.
Li Mingcheng, the king of Yang, resisted for several days but was defeated. One night, he secretly led his army, opened the south gate and escaped. Wujiang was lost.
In late July, Xiucheng arrived in Beijing. With half a month's preparation, he led an army of 20,000, divided into Yifeng and Taiping gates, and launched a fierce counterattack. After a day of fierce fighting, he suffered more than a thousand casualties without breaking a single base.
On August 14, Xiucheng carried heavy artillery and went out of Taipingmen again to surround and bombard the Hunan Army's Xiaguan camp.
Liu Lianjie, the registered inspector, was injured and refused to retreat, so he quickly called for help.
After Peng Yulin heard the news, he sent General Li Chengmou to lead an army of four thousand to assist Xiaguan.
Xiucheng attacked for two days but made little progress, so he had to retreat.
Xiucheng failed to win in three battles. Zeng Guoquan's confidence doubled, and he went to the front line of Fangshan to encourage the generals: I have observed for more than a month, and the loyal chiefs are no match for me. If we want to separate the rebel forces on the north road and the west road, it is better to storm the enemy base on this mountain. , send my order quickly, barbarian artillery clears the way, attack in three directions, don't break it, don't fight back!
Zeng Guoquan gave an order, and Xiao Fusi and Wu Weishou bravely took the lead. They attacked all night and killed a thousand people under Pei Wang Feng Zhenlin, and the stone barrier was finally broken.
Fangshan connects the south to the north, and the terrain is extremely heavy; it is not allowed here because the road to the southeast of Tianjing is cut off. Xiucheng did not dare to be careless, so he led ten thousand people, all armed with foreign guns, to fight back brazenly.
After Zeng Guoquan heard the news, he went to the front line in person and set up an ambush to attack.
Xiucheng, unaware of the deception, led his army into an ambush by mistake, suffered heavy losses and had to retreat.
Xiucheng was defeated repeatedly in battles. Hong Xiuquan felt unhappy and blamed him: How can Tianjing be protected if we fight like this?
Xiu Chengdao: Report to the Heavenly King, Suzhou battle report, south of Suzhou, Wujiang and Zhenze fell, the demon army navy went straight into Taihu Lake, and the land and water between Suzhou and Hangzhou were cut off. In the northwest of Suzhou, our army's counterattack is ineffective. The areas at the junction of Jiangyin and Wuxi are all occupied by demons. The road to Suzhou and Changzhou may not be protected.
Hong Xiuquan said: How is the war in Hangzhou?
Xiu Chengdao: Our army is holding on to Fuyang and Yuhang, and Hangzhou is fine for the time being. To report to the King of Heaven, it would be better to take advantage of the situation in Hangzhou to attack the demon army in Suzhou, and then relieve the siege of Tianjing.
Hong Xiuquan said: Tianjing's waterway has been cut off and food supplies are scarce. I'm afraid it won't last long.
Xiuchengdao: east of Tianjing, the land road is still open; try to protect Su Chang, and the grain road is open.
Hong Xiuquan said: The loyal compatriots will gather the entire army and fight Zeng Guoquan Yao'er for ten days. After ten days, the loyal compatriots can go to Suzhou to kill the demon.
Zeng Guofan was stationed in Anqing during the festival. He was worried about Jinling and told Zeng Guoquan: If thieves had not come to attack the camp, it seems that there would be no need to constantly look for thieves to start wars. The enemy's food road will be cut off, and there is no other way to survive except through fighting. Our army's food road is cut off, so we can no longer fight hard every day.
Zeng Guoquan responded to the complaint and said to Zhao Liewen: If we don't start a war, others will think that I am just sitting back and enjoying the success! Recently, we have fought many battles and won every battle. If this continues, Jinling will be destroyed within a year.
Zhao Liewen said: "Only Ting's army on the northern route has been delaying the attack."
Zeng Guoquan said: Bao Chunting relied on his military exploits and admired himself.
Zhao Liewen said: The way to control the enemy is to attack the city with one person; if there are two, it will be twice the result with half the effort! Please tell me, brother Yuanfu, can you make Bao Chunting?
Zeng Guoquan said: His qualifications are still young, his military exploits are insufficient, and he is still incapable of controlling him!
Zhao Liewen said: "You can't control it, but Commander Di can. I will ask Commander Di to persuade the tiger to leave the city."
Zeng Guofan received Zhao Liewen's report and immediately transferred Bao Chao back to Wannan, and all matters regarding the siege of Jinling were handed over to Zeng Guoquan for coordination.
Zeng Guoquan received the order and ordered Zhang Shiri's tribe to move to Mufu Mountain to make up for the shortage of Bao's tribe; he reconstituted Xiao Qingyan's tribe and crossed the river to station at Qiqiao Weng; he also sent Yi Lianghu back to Hunan to recruit bravery again.
