Chapter 168 Zhang Shushan dies in Shuewan
Li Hongzhang received the order and urgently consulted Zeng Guofan: "My teacher has just met. Lai and Ren are raging in eastern Hubei. The war is urgent and cannot be delayed." Hongzhang intended to surround him on three sides, block the Jiang and Han Dynasties in the south, encircle the mountains and wild fields, and drive the thieves into traps to destroy them. In order to achieve this purpose, Hongzhang lists five sections, and I would like to ask my master to correct them. If there are any shortcomings, I would like to ask my master to supervise the implementation of each department.
1. On the North Road, Li Zhaoqing's troops were stationed in Runing and Xinyang to prevent the thieves from going north.
2. On the West Road, Bao Chunting and Song Qing were stationed in Xiangyang and Zaoyang to prevent thieves from breaking through into Shaanxi from the northwest; Jiang Changgui and Zuo Guangpei were stationed along the Han River to prevent thieves from swimming into Sichuan.
3. On the east road, Anhui Fu Yinghan, General Zhang Desheng and others led the Anhui army to station in Lu'an and Huoshan to suppress the bandits and drive them eastward into Anhui.
4. South Road. In the past, the governor of Huguang, Guanwen, was stationed in Wuchang, and the right minister of the Ministry of War, Peng Yulin, guarded Huangzhou to prevent thieves from crossing the river and invading Hunan.
5. The Ninth Commander-in-Chief ordered Liu Mingchuan, Guo Songlin, Peng Yuju, Liu Bingzhang, Zhou Shengbo, Zhang Shushan and other guerrilla divisions to attack separately and kill the thieves in the deep mountains and rivers.
Zeng Guofan accepted the advice, and because of Bao Chao's bravery and skill in fighting, there was no one in the world who could defeat him. He urgently ordered Ting's army to station in Henan not to move, to prevent Lai from turning back into Shaanxi.
In late December 1866, Lai Wenguang and Ren Zhu entered eastern Hubei again, and fell into cities one after another along the way, as if they were in an uninhabited country.
Zeng Guoquan, the governor of Hubei, did not dare to defend Nanyang, so he hurriedly marched into De'an Fucheng with the troops of Guo Songlin and Peng Yuju to intercept them.
Zeng Guoquan said: "Brother Guo Peng, do you have any good strategies to defend against the enemy?"
Guo Songlin and Peng Yuju both said: "Qi Jiu Shuai, we meet on a narrow road, but we will fight to the death!"
Zeng Guoquan said: This band of rebels has been able to fight Liu Songshan, Zhang Shiri, Song Qing, Ding Baozhen, and Ming, Ding, Sheng, and Shu armies for more than a year without falling behind. It is already a formidable enemy; it can also surround and kill the monk's residence. , is by no means an ordinary army, and the second brother cannot take it lightly. Wait for Ming, Sheng, Shu and Ting to arrive and join forces to surround and kill them.
Guo Songlin said: The monk king traveled thousands of miles and fought for a long time to a stalemate; Ming, Ding, Sheng, and Shu were all guest troops. The commander-in-chief Di did not suppress the guests, and the Huai people did not try their best. Don't worry, Ninth Commander, let's see Guo go out to fight and cut off the head of Lai Nigou.
Zeng Guoquan said: Liu Songshan and Zhang Shiri stalked the enemy and never lost. I will go out to fight in person to test Lai Nian's combat power.
After Zeng Guoquan finished speaking, he and his two armies, Guo and Peng, went out of the city to form an array.
Lai Wenguang left without any entanglement, crossed Huangpi and Huanggang, and went straight to Wuchang. Zeng Guoquan urgently ordered Guo and Peng to return to protect the provincial capital. Upon seeing this, Lai Wenguang suddenly turned back and marched westward, conquering Yunmeng and Yingcheng in one fell swoop.
Lai Wenguang waited until all the kings had finished plundering, had eaten and drank enough, and then said: "There is a blockade in front, and there are pursuers in the back. The Han River is in the west and the Yangtze River is in the south. Where can the army go?"
Li Yuntai, King of Wei, said: The two provinces of Henan and Shandong have been fighting for years, leaving people hungry and dying all over the fields, and it is difficult to find food supplies; in the land of Sichuan and Shu, there are flat rivers and fertile fields for thousands of miles, and great achievements can be made.
Tang Rirong, the king of virtue, said: The road to Shu is as difficult as climbing to the sky. I have many horse teams, so it is very difficult to enter Shu. King Yi is driving ahead, and I should learn from it.
Lai Wenguang said: After the two demons Guo Songlin and Peng Yuju looked at me, four demons Bao Chao, Liu Mingchuan, Pan Dingxin, and Zhang Shushan came one after another. It is impossible to move northward; to the south is the Yangtze River, with fast currents. I lack watermen and it is difficult to swim across it. It's difficult; the mountains to the east stretch out, blocking the fortified city, making it even more hopeless; but to the west, the Han River has a gentle flow, and you can find ferries and narrow places on the water surface, build bridges and fly across, and the army will drive westward, advance into Sichuan, and take over Tianfu. Earth, rebuild the Kingdom of Abundance.
King Lu Renzhu said: "It's not important to move west, cross south, or visit north. If we don't work together and kill the evildoers completely, everything will be in danger!"
Lai Wenguang said: Brother Lu is right. We must choose a critical pass to completely encircle and annihilate the Guo and Peng Yao armies and eliminate the danger of westward expansion.
Ren Zhu said: "What's the difficulty? King Zun quickly chooses a place to set up an ambush. I will engage Guo Yao and lure him into the urn."
Lai Wenguang said: Brother Lu, please remember that soldiers are deceitful! Guo Songlin and Peng Yuju have been on the battlefield for a long time, and they are very difficult to deceive. They must fight hard and lose miserably before they can lead them.
In early January 1867, Guo Songlin and Peng Yuju fought bloody battles for five days and recaptured Yingcheng and Yunmeng; they were defeated by Renzhu in Fuhe and Yangze.
Ren Zhuqie occupied and retreated to Jiukou Town, Jingshan County. Guo Songlin, unaware of the deceit, led his troops in lightly, and was defeated in the ambush. He lost more than 300 people including the general Zhang Fengming, the deputy general Zhong Guangdou, and the guerrilla Yang Juefa.
Peng Yuju was furious and personally led two thousand elites to attack the camp of Lai Wenguang's army at night. They burned any tents they encountered and cut down anyone they encountered. The Nian army was in chaos and scattered in all directions. Nian general Chen Huaibang had no time to escape and surrendered with his troops.
Guo Songlin occupied Jiukou and personally interrogated Chen Huaibang. He knew the strategy of the Nian army to advance westward to encircle and kill him. He happily told Peng Yuju that the bandits were trapped between Jiang and Han and were at the end of the road. Brother Peng attacked at night and dispersed in an instant. It is a frightened bird. Without further delay, I immediately took advantage of the victory and pursued the enemy. Brother Peng quickly arrived at the mouth of the river to set up an ambush to prevent the thieves from advancing westward.
After Guo Songlin finished speaking, the governor led 6,000 Xiang brave men and headed straight for Luojiaji with overwhelming force. Halfway through the journey, I suddenly heard the sound of three cannons, and the various units of the Nian Army were surrounding them with their roars from all directions.
Guo Songlin was not afraid and divided his troops into three groups to fight. However, the Nian army was surrounded by horse and foot, and became thicker and thicker as it gathered. After half a day of fierce fighting, the Hunan army collapsed first on the left, and the commander-in-chief Cao Renmei and Xie Liansheng died in the battle. Guo Songlin's army was also surrounded; the battle lasted until midnight, when deputy general Guo Fangjian died in battle. Guo Songlin suffered seven wounds, his left foot was broken, and could not walk, so he was captured alive. The Nian soldiers did not realize that Guo was the general, and abandoned him by the roadside.
After Peng Yuju heard the news, he desperately came to help, and then rescued the remnants of Guo's army.
After the great victory of Luojiaji, Lai Wenguang was so relieved that he found a boat and a raft between Zhongxiang and Jiukou to cross the Han River. He also ordered Ren Zhu, Tang Rirong and others to besiege Peng Yuju's tribe to eliminate future troubles.
Peng Yuju remained calm in the face of danger, and first used mountain-splitting cannons, foreign guns, and rifles to bombard them in turn. Ren Zhu and Tang Rirong's hummers were defeated by the guns and artillery, and fell to the ground one after another. Peng Yuju attacked suddenly with his cavalry. Ren and Tang were defeated and fled in despair. Lai Wenguang was unable to find a boat or build a raft, so he had to return to De'an.
Peng Yuju wanted to pursue him, but Zeng Guoquan refused. He hurriedly sent troops from Ming, Sheng, and Shu to help.
When news of Songziying's defeat reached Xuzhou, Li Hongzhang said: "Lai, any one of them is very powerful and soaring, and should not be underestimated."
Pan Dingxin said: Report to Li Shuai, Liu Mingchuan's Ming army is arrogant and should not be worried. The Sheng and Shu armies cannot be commanded by us, and we are not ordered to do so, so I am concerned about them for the sake of my son.
Li Hongzhang said: A soldier can easily end up dead if he is not careful. Immediately pass on my order to the Sheng and Shu armies. They must not move lightly. They must join up with the Ming army.
However, before Li Hongzhang's military orders arrived, Zhou Shengbo's and Zhang Shushan's armies had already pursued them to Hujiadian in De'an. They fought fiercely for the entire day, killing more than a thousand Nian troops.
Lai Wenguang, Ren Zhu and others resumed the old route and retreated at a gallop to defeat the exhausted enemy.
Zhou Shengbo said: In the past, when thieves encountered our army, they would try to avoid them. Now that we have entered the territory of Hubei, he has been victorious in every battle. If he dares to fight directly, he will surely be punished before he comes back.
Zhang Shushan said: "Brother Zhou is absolutely right. Let's join forces and fight again tomorrow to eradicate the banditry!" Brother Zhou rests for a while, and I will lead the tree army to find out the whereabouts of the thief.
Zhou Shengbo said: "Brother Zhang is very capable in running the army and fights fiercely. He is often at the vanguard of the army. However, this group of rebels is extraordinary. Brother, be careful in everything you do. You must retreat when encountering an enemy. Don't fight lightly."
The next day, Commander Zhang Shushan led his army to pursue them again.
Deputy General Wang Xiaochu said: The thieves are fierce and there are many, so we should not attack them lightly; wait for the army to flourish.
Zhang Shushan angrily scolded: You fear the enemy like a tiger! I go forward to look for the enemy, and you lead the main army and follow closely behind me.
Zhang Shushan was afraid that the Nian army would escape, so he personally supervised two hundred soldiers to rush forward and chase them to Daoshu Bay, where they were again surrounded by the Nian army. Zhang Shushan fought hard and refused to retreat. He fought fiercely until night, and his horse immediately piled up corpses and refused to leave. Shushan dismounted and fought again, but was exhausted and was executed.
Guo Songlin and Zhang Shushan were defeated in a row. Zeng Guoquan sighed and said: Zimei was defeated in the front, and Haike was killed in the rear. Both of them were strong soldiers and knew they had fallen into the thieves' tricks. Although each army is brave and vigorous, it still contains a sense of stability and prudence, so that common people can make sure plans.
