Chapter 173: The Western Nian Army is at the end of its rope (1)
In early December 1867, Liang Wang Zhang Zongyu received Lai Wenguang's blood letter asking for help, and urgently summoned Youwo Wang Zhang Yujue, Huai Wang Qiu Yuancai and others to discuss rescue matters.
Qiu Yuancai said, "Qi Liangdian, this is Suide in northern Shaanxi, two thousand miles away from Shandong. Even if we help, it will be too late to help."
Zhang Yujue said: To the north of Suide are mountains towering, to the east is the natural danger of the Yellow River, to the west are the three demons Liu Dian, Gao Liansheng, and Huang Ding, and to the south are Zuo Yao Zongtang sitting in command; the three demons Liu Songshan, Guo Baochang, and Liu Houji are following me. Coming soon. Where to go? I ask Liang Dian to make a quick decision.
Zhang Zongyu said: After the Blackwater Crossing, we and Zun Dian vowed to live and die together and endure all the hardships. Now that Zun Dian is in trouble, we must not stand idly by. Immediately pass on my order, the army quickly goes south, crosses the Yellow River eastward, and goes straight into Qilu to relieve the difficulties in Zundian.
Qiu Yuancai said: The demon ants of the Qing Dynasty gathered in Shandong, and Zhili will be in vain. If the troops are led out of Changhuai, the Ming Dynasty will be stronger, and they will approach Beijing. Then the Shandong demon army will definitely return to Zaosuwei, and the difficulties of Ren and Lai will be solved without a fight. That’s it.
Zhang Zongyu said: "Besieging Wei and rescuing Zhao has been the same throughout the ages. What Brother Huai said is absolutely true."
On December 12, 1867, Governor Zhang Zongyu led 30,000 cavalry southward from Suide, from Yanchang to the Yichuan area. They discovered that the Yellow River ice bridge at Longwangchang was blocked, and the Qing army on the east bank was heavily defended.
Zhang Yujue, the king of Youwo, volunteered and personally led five hundred elite soldiers to cross the ice bridge at night, pull out their antlers, burn their forts, and capture the east bank ferry in one fell swoop.
Zuo Zongtang was shocked when he heard the news and said anxiously: In the siege of Fuping, the thieves broke through the Jingshui River from Jingyang; in the siege of Weibei, the thieves swam across Baishui from Pucheng; in the siege of Suide, the thieves returned from Yichuan and crossed the ice into Shanxi. My talents are sparse and my knowledge is poor, and I am ineffective in supervising the troops. I am overwhelmed in all directions and fall behind the thieves at every step.
Liu Dian, the Inspector-General of Gansu Province, said: Report to Commander Zuo. Since the bandits have swam across the Yellow River, they can enter Henan to the south to harass Hubei, and to the east to invade Hebei and invade Beijing. Commander Zuo urgently needs to make additional plans.
Zuo Zongtang said: The Nian bandits have fast horses and can come and go easily. Zhang Ni entered Jin, how can he know whether he will return? In the current situation in Shaanxi and Gansu, the Nian bandits cover a distance of more than a thousand miles from north to south; the Fen bandits also cover a distance of more than a thousand miles from west to east. However, the number of our host and guest armies is only 40,000, which is less than one-third of the armies in Shandong. However, the Shaanxi Qing Dynasty suppressed the Nian bandits, the Qing Dynasty suppressed the Fen bandits, and the Qing Dynasty suppressed the bandits in Gansu. Our military strength is a drop in the bucket and cannot be saved. I will immediately report to the emperor and hand me over to the Ministry for severe discussion and punishment as a punishment.
Liu Diandao: Report to Commander Zuo that the most urgent task is to cross eastward quickly, cut off the route of the thieves, block the front and intercept the rear, and destroy the thieves in Jin. Even if the thieves cannot be destroyed, they cannot be allowed to advance eastward and harass the capital.
Zuo Zongtang said: It is an urgent matter and must be solved quickly! Immediately pass on my order to the Chen Shi tribe of Shanxi Province. They must strictly guard the Hanhou Ridge and the mountain trails of Lucheng and Licheng to prevent the bandit army from attacking the capital from the east. Liu Songshan and Guo Baochang's troops must quickly move westward from the east road of Jin. I stalked and followed the thieves and fell behind them. I had to trouble Brother Liu and Gao Lian to organize the military affairs of Shaanxi and Gansu. I immediately led my headquarters to enter the Jin Dynasty for encirclement and suppression.
On January 12, 1868, Zuo Zongtang supervised five thousand troops, galloping eastward from Lintong, Shaanxi Province.
When Zuo Zongtang left the Qin Dynasty, Qiao Songnian, the governor of Shaanxi, was trembling with fear. He urgently summoned Liu Dian and said: Commander Zuo suddenly returned to Shaanxi during a difficult period. The Nianfen soil rebelled against brave bandits. They were of various types and preparations were extremely difficult. The war between the Three Qin Dynasties was But I have to ask Brother Liu to support me with difficulty.
Liu Diandao: Mr. Qiao once said that Liu is careless and careless in writing, has little talent and little ability, and is incapable of coordinating the overall situation of the Three Qin Dynasty. Gaotang's old mother was old and eager to return home, but Liu was thinking about returning home.
Qiao Songnian said: I have been sick for many years and have been exposed to the wind and frost many times, and I feel that I am about to die. I have been away from my emperor since I was last year, and I begged to retire and live in seclusion. If Brother Liu returns, he will go with him.
Liu Dian sighed and said: For the current plan, the only way is to supervise and order all the ministries to secure the city walls and use defense as attack. I mean, on the north road, Gao Liansheng's troops were stationed in Yijun, Liu Ruimian's troops were stationed in Linzhou, and Zhou Shaolian's troops were stationed in Luochuan; Liu Houji's troops immediately left Linzhou to carry out guerrilla attacks; the four troops relied on each other to prevent Dong Fuxiang from going south against the bandits. On the West Road Qian and Longxian, Luo Hongde's troops were stationed in Qianyang, Zhang Yueling's army was stationed in Longzhou, Zhou Dawu's army was stationed in Baoji, and Xiao Dejing's army was stationed in Linyou; on the Ping and Changxian lines, Huang Ding's army was stationed in Changwu, and Chen Ji's army was stationed in Sanshui. Tan Yulong's troops were stationed in Pizhou, and all the troops responded from afar and tried their best to stop Dong Zhiyuan's bandits. I immediately stationed myself in Miyuan, and the president went his separate ways, waiting for Commander Zuo to return.
Qiao Songnian also sighed and said: Zhang Zongyu crossed the bandits eastward to enter Jin Dynasty, which saved us a lot of trouble; however, Commander Zuo's sneaking to the east meant that our province lost more than the gain.
Zhang Zongyu galloped into the Jin Dynasty, but failed to attack the east. He panicked and quickly went south, bypassing Wangwu Mountain, reaching northern Henan, crossing the Zhang River, and directly attacking southern Hebei.
Zuo Zongtang entered the Jin Dynasty and arrived at Shouyang in the middle of Jin Dynasty from Lingshi and Jiexiu. He pursued and suppressed the troops for more than a month and searched in many directions, but there was no news of the Western Nien Army.
Zongtang was frightened and went to Shu and said: "I originally wanted to protect the capital with all my strength so as to make up for the intrusion of the bandits into the Jin Dynasty. Now that the thieves are moving southward, naturally they cannot stay in one corner and wait for the thieves to arrive." He only had the strength to follow the east road of Jin Province, from west to east, and lead his troops to attack the rebels when they encountered them, hoping to quickly annihilate the rebels.
Before Zuo Zongtang's memorial arrived in Beijing, 30,000 Xiniu war cavalry had already arrived in central Hebei. They forcibly crossed the Hutuo River from Shulu and advanced towards the capital.
The empress dowagers of the two palaces were frightened and immediately issued an edict: the troops from Hunan, Chu, Lu, Henan, Zhi, Anhui, and Jili must enter the capital to defend the capital at starry night.
Li Hongzhang received the order and quickly summoned the generals to go north to King Qin.
However, Liu Mingchuan, Guo Songlin, Pan Dingxin, Liu Bingzhang, etc. all sought to withdraw because their efforts to kill Lai Nian were in vain and they filed endless lawsuits.
Liu Ming preached: I reported to Commander Li that in the battle of Mihe, more than 30,000 thieves were killed and captured. I also lost 20,000, and my military morale was greatly reduced. Even if we go north, we still need to organize our troops and weapons and take a short rest.
Guo Songlin and others also attached.
Li Hongzhang saw that it was difficult to change the situation, so he postponed his journey north because of the uneven power and insufficient food and salary.
When Ding Baozhen, the governor of Shandong Province, heard the alarm, he immediately rushed to Dongchang. He led a thousand cavalry brigade and three thousand elite soldiers. They traveled day and night and arrived in Hejian in five days.
Ding Baozhen inspected the battle situation and quickly dispatched Wang Xin'an's troops to Raoyang to prevent the Western Nian Army from advancing northward.
On that day, Liu Songshan led the old Hunan Army to pursue him, and joined hands with the Lu Army to defeat the Western Nian Army's offensive again.
The Empress Dowager Cixi was delighted with Ding Baozhen's speed, and angrily reprimanded Li Hongzhang for not complying with the decree. She immediately issued an edict: The thieves were harassing the capital, and Zuo Zongtang, Li Henian, and the officials failed to pursue them, so they all handed them over to the ministry for discussion; He removed his eyes and flowered feathers, removed his yellow mandarin jacket, and removed his post as a cavalry captain; Prince Gong Yixin quickly joined the Shenji Battalion to handle patrol matters; General Du Xing'a of Shengjing was awarded the title of Imperial Envoy Minister, and now he is an official in all provinces under Zhili All the troops were under his command.
Li Hongzhang received the order angrily and said: Mr. Zuo let the thieves out of the mountain, which brought disaster to me. If the perpetrators of thieves are convicted, how can we motivate the soldiers? The servant's heart is like an ancient well. He hates to surrender and return home, and he will never care about the current honor or disgrace. There is no greater achievement than rescuing the driver, and Zuo Zongtang, Ding Baozhen and others can show their talents.
Zuo Zongtang wandered around Jin Dynasty. When he heard that the capital was in danger, he was frightened and ordered Liu Songshan and Guo Baochang to rush to Baoding to intercept them.
After Zongtang's order, the headquarters marched from Shanxi to Hebei, traveling day and night, and arrived in Huolu County, Hebei in eight days.
Empress Dowager Cixi took a long breath and said: Zuo Chen is here, the capital is all right for the time being! Where is Li Hongzhang's Huai Yong? Be sure to supervise strictly! The Shenji Battalion in Duxing'a temporarily looks back at the capital, and the officers and troops in the provinces now in Zhili are temporarily under the command of Zuo Chen Zongtang.
Li Hongzhang received the edict again, looked up to the sky and sighed, and quickly summoned the generals to discuss advancing northward.
Hongzhang said: There is no better way to plot poison than to run out of food, and no greater merit than to rescue a driver. If we continue not to be diligent, we will perish ourselves!
Guo Songlin said: "This is to inform Li Shuai, although I am wild by nature, I still know how to respect my relatives. I will follow Li Shuai and go north to defeat the enemy."
Pan Dingxin and Zhou Shengchuan also attached.
Li Hongzhang said: What does it mean to save three years?
Liu Ming preached: Reporting to Li Shuai, it is said that after many years of military service, the horse was injured in more than ten places, and became sick due to overwork. He could not ride the war horse, and he was afraid that he would not be able to go north.
Li Hongzhang said: Last year, Chen Guorui was entrusted by Prince Chun Yixuan to form the Shenji Battalion's brave team and flaunt it everywhere. Can he avoid the three evils?
Liu Ming preached: The Ruiyong Corps was formed by Prince Chun Yixuan and was the elite of the Shenji Battalion. It is said that An Dao has a grudge. In the Shouguang battle, missiles penetrated the bones, which was heartbreaking.
Li Hongzhang said: "In that case, I will rest in the army for a while." Nian Ni is erratic, and our troops cannot move in groups. Pan Dingxin speeds up his headquarters and the forwards open the way. If there is no obstruction, they must go around to Baoding to intercept them. Guo Songlin and Yang Dingxun, temporarily serving as rear troops, rush to the junction of Shandong and Hebei to observe If the thieves move, I will act with the camera; I will go to Hebei with Zhou Shengzhuan Shengziying and rush to Hebei to provide support.
When it was decided to go to the north for King Qin, Li Hongzhang was filled with emotion and wrote to Zeng Guofan, saying: "It's time to meet my mentor. Hongzhang's trip was forced by righteousness, and it was his duty to endure hardships and endure anger." I plan to discuss peace with Zuo Gong again, but do not meet each other and will never disrespect me.
