Chapter 173 The Western Nian Army is at the end of its rope (3)
On April 2, 1868, Governor Zuo Zongtang led an army of 5,000 troops and marched out of Zhangde.
The curtain caller advised: Commander Zuo's show of strength may be taken advantage of by Zhang Ni; when the work is completed, beware of Zhang Ni's desperate attempt to jump over the wall.
Zongtang laughed and said: Zhang Ni is desperate and will take risks. This is the best opportunity to destroy him. Pass on my secret order, the troops of Liu Songshan, Cheng Wenbing, Guo Songlin, and Yang Dingxun must not leave my unit for a moment, and must not be more than 80 miles away from me. They must silence their flags and drums, hide their presence, and wait for thieves to suddenly attack our unit. At that time, all armies came out at the right time.
Zhang Zongyu was overjoyed when he discovered that Zuo Zongtang's lone army was advancing rapidly, and said to King Huai Qiu Yuancai: "Capture the thief first, capture the king, gather the whole army, kill Zuo Yao, and change the overall situation."
Qiu Yuancai said: "Zuo Yao's five thousand troops are pouring out Zhang De and marching south to Wei Hui. They can see it at a glance. Our army was caught by surprise and intercepted halfway. We will definitely win."
On April 5, while the Zuo Army was marching, it was suddenly intercepted by several groups of Nian troops. Zuo Zongtang was not afraid and ordered all the ministries to follow the previous arrangements. The cavalry and gun teams advanced, the artillery team followed, and the troops and money, grain and baggage were in the middle, forming a square formation and advancing together.
The Western Nian Army suddenly attacked for one day, but it was difficult to break the Qing Army's battle formation. It was getting late, and Zhang Zongyu ordered a retreat. When the Western Nian Army was about to retreat, Governors Liu Songshan and Cheng Wenbing rushed in with their cavalry. A short time later, Guo Songlin and Yang Dingxun also came out from the north. The enemies were extremely jealous when they met. Guo Songlin took the lead and penetrated directly into the Nian Army formation.
The Western Nian Army fought fiercely for a day and were so hungry that they could not withstand the attack of the Huai Army and were instantly defeated. The four armies of Liu, Guo, Cheng and Yang joined hands and pursued for twenty miles, killing more than a thousand people and intercepting countless horses and firearms.
Zhang Zongyu ordered the remaining troops to retreat to Yanjin from Huihui, and then withdrew from Yanjin to Yangwu in the west, hoping to cross the Weihe River in Hebei and move south into Hubei. The pursuers were helpless and could not get away; along the Wei River, the Wulong Ferry and Longwang Temple crossings were seized. Zong Yu had no choice but to turn back east again, forcefully cross the canal from Kaizhou and Nanle, and invade Shandong.
When Zhang Zongyu entered Shandong, he heard that Gao Yan, a native of Cangzhou, was leading three thousand salt lords to besiege Tianjin. Zongyu was very relieved and quickly advanced from Dezhou to Cangzhou, and then directed his troops towards Tianjin.
The former enemy general and Prince Gong, Yi Xin, did not dare to neglect and urgently ordered Li Hongzhang to lead the Huai tribe and gallop north from Jingzhou; Governor Chonghou, the Minister of Commerce and Industry of Sankou, led the foreign gun team to guard the Tianjin city wall; Suiyuan City General Ding'an and the deputy capital Tongfu He and Admiral Zheng Kuishi each led their headquarters to rush for reinforcements at starry night; Deputy Commander Yuliang rushed to Yangcun and Duliu to set up defenses.
Chonghou said: "Your Majesty, with this arrangement, the land route to Tianjin is watertight. But if the thieves make a surprise attack from the water route, what should they do?"
Yi Xin said: "What's the difficulty? Please consult with the British and French consuls immediately and ask their gunboats to assist in defense." The foreign rifle team of our army must secure the canal. If the canal is dangerous, the city of Jin will be in danger.
Chonghou said: In compliance with the prince's order, I will personally lead the foreign gun team to set up defenses near Yangliuqing and Duliu Town.
In late April, Governor Zhang Zongyu led the Western Nian Army to Duliu Town in Tianjin, built a bridge with boats, and rushed to cross the canal. Before the troops had crossed the halfway point, foreign guns and artillery from the other side came crashing down like a violent storm. The Western Nian Army lacked guns and artillery and was unable to compete.
Zhang Zongyu said to King Huai Qiu Yuancai: Our army lacks firepower and cannot cross the river to attack Tianjin; there are mountains to the west and a vast sea to the east. For the current plan, the only way is to go south to Qilu to find supplies, then send troops southward and seize the opportunity to break through the river defenses. Afterwards, they moved westward into Henan, got rid of the demon-hunting armies from all directions, and entered Shaanxi or Sichuan to pursue their great cause.
Qiu Yuancai said: Report to the Liang Palace, Qiu immediately supervises the troops and moves forward to clear the way for the army to fight.
The Western Nian Army overflowed from Henan and spread wildly, harassing Lu, Hebei, Zhizhi, and Tianjin. The Empress Dowager Cixi was furious and ordered Governor Zuo Zongtang to lead the Liu Songshan and Guo Baochang armies to guard the western line of the canal; Li Hongzhang stationed at Zhajing Prefecture, approach the president to pursue and suppress the army; within one month, all Zhang Ni must be annihilated in Qilu; those who delay and cause delay will be severely punished.
Li Hongzhang received the order and immediately wrote to Zuo Zongtang: North of the Yellow River, it is flat for thousands of miles. It is difficult to make a snare. Time changes and the situation changes. There is no principle that remains unchanged for thousands of years. This campaign of suppressing Zhang Ni should be considered in the long run. My intention is to plagiarize and destroy Lai Ni's old manuscripts, use silence to stop them, build walls along the river, strengthen the walls to clear the fields, and enclose the land for suppression. What does Ji Shuai think?
Not long ago, Li Hongzhang sent a letter to persuade him again: Zhang Nian was harassing the capital. His original intention was to control Qiuzhihuai and Wei, and then he wanted to control Wei and Huang's friendship. However, before he could make a decision, the thieves had escaped. Although the terrain to the north of the Yellow River is wide and sloping, the canal line is fortified and the east corner of the sea is still good. Strictly supervise all the troops to pursue and suppress them. They can defeat the thieves but are not enough to destroy them, and there is a long-term worry of overthrowing the army and exhausting the troops. Rather than working hard and without success, it is better to stay temporarily and wait for an opportunity.
Zuo Zongtang replied to the letter and said: The terrain is thousands of miles long and boundless, the river is shallow and the water is low. The defense relies entirely on the strength of the army, and the water cannot be used as a danger. This is a defense without fighting, and it is very difficult to suppress the rebel bandits. The troops of Erbu, Wubu, Du Xing'a, Guanwen, Ding Baozhen, Yinghan, Li Henian, etc., plus the Jingying Camp, Shenji Camp, Tianjin Foreign Gun Corps, etc., totaled more than 100,000 troops, standing guard and waiting. There are no regrets in changing a thief?
Li Hongzhang sighed and said: Zuo Gong claimed that Zhuge Kongming was following the generals and looking for thieves everywhere. I said it was not a plan.
Pan Dingxin said: "I am telling Li Shuai that in early summer, the sky is dry and the earth is dry. It will be found out at the end of the day that the more than 200 miles of the canal from Zhangqiu to Linqing is dry and can be crossed. Li Shuai must send his generals to take precautions."
Li Hongzhang said: "I will immediately ask Zuo Zongtang's troops to return to the west of the canal as soon as possible to prevent the thieves from escaping to the west. Brother Qinxuan, together with Guo Songlin and Yang Dingxun, will stalk and chase them away without giving the thieves a chance to breathe."
Pan Dingxin said: "It's a pity that Liu Shengsan returned home so suddenly. If he were here, he would have a good plan to stop the thieves."
Li Hongzhang said: Liu Shengsan sent a letter yesterday, instructing Zhang Nian to go to the narrow strip of the Yellow River, Canal, and Tuhai River to gather troops for a decisive battle and complete his victory in one battle.
Zhang Zongyu and others were trapped at the junction of Hebei and Lu, going south and north, and east and west, but failed to cross repeatedly. It was early summer, with continuous rain, and flash floods occurred frequently in the upper reaches of Zhang and Wei. Within half a month, the water level of the Yellow River rose several feet, and the water level of the canal also rose to one foot to five or six feet. The Xi Nian War Rider was trapped in mud and water, making the trek difficult.
Li Hongzhang was overjoyed, and ordered Pan Dingxin to open a dam in Zhangqiu, flooding the river with floods, and diverting the Yellow River into the Yangtze River.
Zuo Zongtang was also delighted and said: After Li Hongzhang opened the dam, Zhang Qiu arrived at the water surface 200 miles away from Linqing. The gunboats and drums were flying, approaching De and Jing. The yellow water surged again, and the canals and other rivers in Majia all overflowed their embankments and slapped the banks. They overflowed in all directions and flowed vertically and horizontally. The canal line formed a huge defense for Jincheng.
Liu Songshan said: God bless our people, the time has come for Zhang Ni to die.
Zuo Zongtang said: Li Hongzhang formulated a strategy to encircle the river and actually made a good plan. However, when the river was reduced before water was filled, the area was too long and it took a long time. I can't doubt it. Now that the gates of Jiedi are open, civilians can be used to build embankments for self-protection, and official weapons can be used to guard the area, freeing up the troops to suppress the bandits. I immediately wrote to Li Hongzhang to elaborate on the clues.
Li Hongzhang received the letter and replied: "Commander Ji has good opinion, I hope to take advantage of the favorable water situation and geographical location to shrink the river defense troops and use them for pursuit and suppression." Farewell to Jinling, five years passed by; is Ji Shuai all right? Hongzhang was very concerned, so he chose a place to meet and talked by candlelight at night.
