Chapter 189 Zuo Zongtang pacifies Guanlong (5)
Cui Wei led the remaining troops to retreat to the mouth of the Grand Gorge, and said sadly: The demon army has fast guns and cannons, and we have no way to contain it, which only increases casualties.
Bai Yanhu said: Don't take advantage of others' prestige. The demon army will be arrogant after a sudden victory. I will definitely send out surprise troops again.
In the early morning of the next day, Bi Daqian, Yu Xiaohu and others gathered three thousand troops to attack Mayingwan and Sansanlipu. As soon as they arrived, they fell into an ambush, and most of the three thousand men and horses were lost.
Bai Yanhu sighed and said: "Liu Yao Jintang is really amazing." He ordered all the ministries to build forts and strongholds based on the southern and northern mountains to defend the mouth of the Grand Gorge.
Jintang was very pleased with the victory in both World War II, so he ordered He Zuolin, Tan Heyi, Li Shuangliang, and Zhang Jun to go straight to the mouth of the Grand Gorge and attack from the front. Tao Shenglin's troops quickly detoured from the side road to the west of the Daxiakou and copied the back road of Beishan; Tan and Yi's troops swam across the Huangshui River and copied the enemy in Nanshan. Jintang led the Chinese army and responded from behind.
Jintang gave an order, Krupp's field artillery roared immediately, several shells came out, and more than ten thousand Qing troops rushed out.
Bai Yanhu fought and retreated to the south bank of Xiaoxiakou, where he defended with Ma Sanwa, the commander-in-chief of the Xining Army, and Ma Shou, the commander-in-chief of the Datong Army, relying on the Huangshui River.
Liu Jintang occupied the mouth of the Grand Gorge and summoned the generals to discuss the attack.
Jintang said: "I also attacked him unprepared, sneaked across in the middle of the night, and attacked the mouth of the small gorge at night. How about that?"
The named admiral He Zuolin said: "To General Liu, this move is very dangerous. Shaanxi Ningfenmu is relying on the Huangshui River. Wait for me to attack when I am halfway across!"
The generals seconded the proposal.
Dong Fuxiang, the commander-in-chief of the Gan Army, said: "I have informed General Liu that I am willing to lead Dong's third battalion and swim across immediately to clear a bloody path for the army."
Jintang said: In early winter, the Huangshui is half frozen, so General Dong must be careful.
That night, more than a hundred soldiers from Li Shuangliang's left camp jumped into the glacier and built a pontoon bridge. Early the next morning, Dong Fuxiang personally led Dong Zi's third battalion. After a day of bloody fighting, he finally found a foothold on the south bank of Huangshui River.
Liu Jintang took the opportunity to lead the main force, forcibly crossed the Huangshui River, and relied on Zuoshan to build forts and form a formation.
Bai Yanhu did not hesitate to make more concessions, and then used three armies from Shaanxi, Xining, and Datong, totaling more than 18,000 people, to attack them brazenly.
Ma Sanwa, the commander-in-chief of the Xining Army, and Ma Shou, the commander-in-chief of the Datong Army, went up naked and besieged Zuoshan; Ma Zhenguo, Cui Wei, Bi Dacai and others from Shaanxi Province jointly attacked Liu Jintang's middle army.
Jintang immediately ordered all his tribes to fight calmly. From far away, they were bombarded by Krupp field cannons and flowering cannons. Nearby, foreign guns and muskets were fired at the same time. Even closer, they rushed out, slashing with swords and stabbing with spears.
The two armies fought fiercely for five days, when Yu Huen and Tao Shenglin suddenly charged out from behind. The Fen army was unable to hold up and retreated to Gaozhai.
Dong Fuxiang, the commander-in-chief of the Gan Army, said to General Liu: If the Gao stronghold is destroyed, Xining will be gained. Time waits for us not to wait, so I will lead Dong Zi's third battalion, roll up the flag, and rush forward to kill the rebel Bai Yanhu.
Jintang said: Bai Yanhu has many tricks and tricks. There are three big forts near Gaozhai. General Dong must not rush in alone. Deng Zeng Artillery Battalion is under the command of Dong Ziying and is at the mercy of General Dong.
At that time, Dong Fuxiang abandoned Zibao and personally led Dong Zi's Chinese Army to Gaozhai. Zhang Jun and Li Shuangliang joined the two armies on the left and right, together with Deng's artillery team, to guard the two wings and suppress Zibao's firepower.
At noon, Dong Fuxiang's army approached the main fortress. At Fuxiang's order, several cannons and Krupp field guns roared and fired. Three rounds of volleys were fired, and the Gaozhai suddenly collapsed.
Dong Fuxiang and Liu Jintang took advantage of the situation and captured the Xiaoxiakou.
The mouth of the small gorge was lost, and Marshal Ma Guiyuan of Hehuang and Shaanxi soldiers and horses no longer had anything to rely on, so he returned to care with sincerity.
Zuo Zongtang followed Ma Guiyuan's advice and said: The cause of the chaos in the northwest is that the people have religion but no country! Ma Hualong, the leader of the Zhehelinye Protestant Church, was executed, and now only Ma Guiyuan, an old leader, remains. When the country is in trouble, the country will be in chaos; this is the norm.
The guest in charge, Yu Shaonan, said: "I tell you, Commander Zuo, that although Ma Guiyuan is not an evil person, he is a man destined to die."
Zuo Zongtang said: "Using Mu to control Mu, only Ma Zhan'ao can do such things. Ma Zhan'ao trapped the Ma brothers and made them surrender, thus offending Mu." Quickly pass the message to Shen Yusui, the commander-in-chief of Hezhou Town, that I, the noble minister, want to give you a face-to-face instruction.
Liu Jintang conquered Xiaoxiakou and was resting. He sent a message to Guo Xiang of Xining Road: Brother Ma Guiyuan had fled with his family on the 14th. Xining City had been besieged for two months and the food in the city was running out. They begged for help as soon as possible.
When Jintang heard about it, he quickly led the 18th battalion of troops and arrived at Xining City in the early morning of December 19.
Guo Xiangzhi, the governor of Xining Road, and Enlu, the magistrate of Xining County, together with 30,000 refugees, immediately made a bonfire and waited with tears.
Shaanxi Fenimu Bai Yanhu defeated the Xiaoxiakou, gathered and defeated more than 4,000 people, and rushed westward. At the end of December, Bai Yanhu occupied the important area of Talwan and was in close contact with the Ma Wenlu tribe of Fenmu in Suzhou.
Zuo Zongtang angrily accused Xu Zhanbiao of not knowing how to fight.
The curtain caller Yu Shaonan said: "I have reported to Commander Zuo that the walls of Suzhou are strong and vast, and Xu Zhanbiao has 6,000 soldiers. It will be extremely difficult to siege the city." Cheng Lu, the admiral of Urumqi, lay quietly on the high platform without sending any troops, which was extremely hateful. On the day Liu Jintang captured Xiaoxiakou, he ordered Tao Shenglin's Mabu 5th Battalion to rush for reinforcements.
Zuo Zongtang said: The fifth battalion is short! Immediately order Deputy Commander Jin Shun to lead the 20th Battalion of the Eight Banners Army; Song Qingyi's Army and Zhang Yaosong's Wu Army will arrive at Suzhou City within two months. If you become a busy person, it will be difficult for you to achieve anything. In the first month of this year, he was impeached for being disobedient and extorting food and salary; in May, he was impeached again for having little military merit and taking a concubine to accompany the camp. I originally wanted Jin Shun to replace him, but the court kept delaying it.
Yu Shaonan said: "Liu Jintang has invited all the surrendered fennels to be killed."
Zuo Zongtang said: Ma Guiyuan and Bai Yanhu are the first offenders of heinous crimes, and they were released from the province to the city. I then selected some good people, formed a cavalry team, charged in front of the formation, and made meritorious deeds.
After Zongtang finished speaking, he went back to Shangshu and said: Cheng Lu, the admiral of Urumqi, sent donations to Gaotai and sent soldiers and civilians to the camp to appeal. He further accused them of gathering people to fight for food and falsely accused them of rebellion, and killed more than 200 people. If you falsely report victory, please ask for rewards. This is truly unbearable behavior by anyone with a little bit of heart, and it is the only thing we have seen since the rise of the military. Now that I have found out the truth, how can I stand in this world if I am blocked by my superiors? I sincerely implore the six ministries and nine ministers under my emperor’s command to confer with the Admiral of Urumqi to punish Lu for the crime he deserves, so as to redress the injustice and bring justice.
Seven days later, Zongtang was sparse again: his eyes had been dimmed recently, his mind was in a trance, and he was in a state of decline. The situation outside the customs can only be predicted by mere foolishness. It cannot be planned and arranged from the inside. In order to express gratitude to Heaven for his kindness, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to you for taking over the seal seal duties of the Governor of Shaanxi and Gansu Province, and to tie up the imperial talisman so that I can be freed from my responsibilities and be relieved of my responsibilities.
Emperor Tongzhi followed Zongtang's two memorials and quickly issued an order to the Minister of Military Affairs and others: "According to Zuo Zongtang's previous memorial, the salary of Lu Mi was postponed, and his behavior was erratic." When the scriptures ordered Mutushan to perform a secret investigation, he was ordered to perform a secret investigation. According to Mu Tushan's re-examination, Cheng Lu didn't know how to check and control, and there was a reason for participating in the payment. According to Zuo Zongtang's report, Chenglu falsely accused Liang of being a bandit and killed more than 200 people. This admiral has a bad heart and a serious crime, and it is really difficult to tolerate him for a day.
The deputy capital commander, Jin Shun, immediately took charge of his troops, and went out to take charge of Chenglu's troops. He sent an order to Chenglu to be dismissed from his post and asked for questioning. On the same day, he selected and dispatched personnel to Beijing to await punishment. There should be no delay or any delay. Give way.
Zongtang, the left minister, was responsible for the military affairs of Shaanxi and Gansu. He declared his strength for several years, and the local area was gradually cleared, and the great work was completed soon. All subsequent aftermath matters and the management of people's livelihood depend on the minister's careful planning.
When it comes to Xinjiang’s military affairs, we must plan the arrangements from within or re-predict and regulate them. In the future, when the army leaves the customs, important ministers will be needed inside the customs to pacify them, as well as to raise pay, food, and transshipment. This will especially depend on the strength of the ministers to manage and deploy the troops so that the enemy's battalions in front of them will not have to worry about their rear. The minister has the overall situation in mind and has planned for this in advance. As soon as the Gan territory is leveled, we must first make an overall plan for the payment and military affairs, and report them according to the facts.
The imperial court is so deep that it can't suddenly retreat from its ambitions. Take one month off to rest and recuperate. The military situation in Hezhou and Suzhou is still recorded in detail at any time to comfort the relationship.
