The tenant farmers were dizzy from the impact. They held the land deeds in their hands, unable to believe that this was true.
The people of Yinxian County were also very curious about this army that did not offend the common people and even gave them land.
Using this as a basis, the Zhennan Army began to attack the surrounding areas with Yinxian County as its base. At the same time, they followed the principle that Xiao Ruxun had put forward, "The war of public opinion is also a part of the war." They began to spread the news that "Shen Yicheng conspired to rebel and killed the loyal and good, and Xiao Ruxun swore to punish the traitors of the country."
This was aimed at ordinary people. They were illiterate, so they could remember these kinds of words more clearly, and it could be spread further. At the same time, Chen Longzheng's second version of the declaration to suppress the rebellion began to be officially disseminated.
The southeast region was a place where scholars lived. There were many scholars, and the literacy rate was high. To them, vernacular novels were not interesting, and novels written by talented scholars and beautiful women were also not interesting. They still enjoyed reading the denunciation written in a genteel manner.
The explosive news that the sanctimonious Shen Yicheng conspired to launch a mutiny, imprison and force the Wanli Emperor to abdicate was enough to make them dizzy.
It made these old masters who flaunted their loyalty, filial piety and chastity panic.
It made them fall into chaos, and made them slowly collapse from the inside out.
Zheng Ying led his troops to launch an attack in the entire Ningbo Prefecture. The Zhennan Army was like a hot knife through butter. Everywhere they went, the city guards were exactly the same as the Japanese pirates had faced many years ago. Not only did they have no fighting strength, they were also unwilling to fight. After a wave of shouting and an attack by the Zhennan Army, they immediately ran away.
"We only kill the traitors, not the innocent!"
The Zhennan Army usually shouted like this in front of the formation, and then the city guards immediately ran away.
There were even some who asked if the Zhennan Army would provide them with pay and food. When they received a positive answer, they immediately formed teams and joined the Zhennan Army. In just two to three days, the Zhennan Army had taken in more than two thousand surrendered soldiers. These people turned their guns around and attacked their own people even more ruthlessly than the Zhennan Army.
The southern army, which had been reinvigorated during the Jiajing period, had now reverted to its original state. They were so weak that they could not withstand a single blow. However, after joining the Zhennan Army, they unexpectedly had the fighting strength and will to fight. They charged at the front and retreated at the back, which puzzled many officers and soldiers in the Zhennan Army.
During the siege of Ningbo Prefecture, not only did the Zhennan Army not suffer any losses, but the number of soldiers kept increasing, which made Zheng Ying, who had never fought a war like this since he joined the army, find it hard to adapt.
Was this a war?
Jiang Dahai continued to lead the smaller ships in the navy into the Changjiang waterway. They went up the river and headed straight for Zhenjiang Prefecture, preparing to defeat them in one fell swoop.
On the 29th day of the seventh month, Jiang Dahai led his army into Zhenjiang Prefecture and took Zhenjiang City by surprise. Then, he launched an all-out attack and seized important strongholds. The magistrate of Zhenjiang Prefecture tried to escape, but was shot in the head by the pursuing soldiers. The magistrate of Zhenjiang Prefecture was captured alive, and all the officials of Zhenjiang Prefecture were taken into custody.
After Zhenjiang was captured, Jiang Dahai calmly dispatched ships to cut off the Grand Canal. After completing Xiao Ruxun's initial plan, he moved his sights to the west and set the next target of attack on Nanjing, the southern capital of the Daming Empire and the important southern hub.
If they could take Nanjing, it would undoubtedly be crucial to the overall situation of the war.
When the eastern battlefront was in full swing, Xiao Ruxun's main force also began to move.
About ten thousand soldiers were left to guard the whole of Myanmar. The person in charge of the defense of Myanmar was the Police Admiral Chen Xie. Xiao Ruxun had entrusted the defense of his hometown to him, and Yuan Huang, Mei Guozhen, and Chen Longzheng were all taken away by him.
He really didn't have any capable staff officers by his side, so he could only work together.
According to the planned route, Xiao Ruxun would borrow the Siamese and Annan Kingdom, enter Guangxi from Zhennan Pass, and begin to conquer the city.
The Siamese and Annan Kingdom agreed to borrow the route because they were afraid that Xiao Ruxun would directly lead the army to attack them, which would make them want to cry but have no tears. Secondly, Xiao Ruxun promised them to cover the fact that they gave way in the name of attacking. Even if they were defeated, the Siamese and Annan Kingdom would not be blamed by the imperial court.
At the same time, Xiao Ruxun ordered them to organize people to transport the food purchased by the Zhennan Army to the military camp. This would reduce the burden of the Zhennan Army on the march and reduce the consumption of food. After they reached Zhennan Pass, they could get food by attacking the city.
On the third of August, Xiao Ruxun led the army to Zhennan Pass. To his surprise, Zhennan Pass not only did not defend, but also opened the gate to welcome his arrival.
This was Cen Dalu's doing. Cen Dalu had led the army to sneak attack Zhennan Pass from the rear and captured it. He had been waiting here for a day.
"I thought you would wait until I entered Guangxi before you made your move. Now it seems that Guangdong is progressing smoothly."
Xiao Ruxun said with a smile.
"Yes, Guangdong is progressing smoothly. General Xiao has shown his strength to all of us. Therefore, I have decided to support General Xiao's march to the north to suppress the rebels. This is my greeting gift! Of course, I also have a gift for General Xiao. "
Cen Dalu clapped his hands with a mysterious smile. Then, his subordinates escorted a panic-looking middle-aged man.
"This is?"
"Dai Yao, the Governor of Guangdong and Guangxi. When Chen Lin attacked Guangzhou, this man escaped to Guangxi and tried to gather my troops to fight back. General Xiao's spy contacted me and told me about this. Therefore, I decided to send troops and capture this man. Now, I will hand him over to General Xiao."
Cen Dalu stood aside.
"You … you are …"
"Correct, that Xiao Ruxun who almost died in the capital. Shen Yicheng said that I died, right? In truth, it's about the same. I wasn't far from death, but in the end, I still survived. There are still many things that Shen Yicheng doesn't know. Governor Dai, I've heard of you. You're a rare and capable official, but there's no place for you to use your skills now. "
"You …"
Dai Yao was speechless for a long while.
"I know what you want to say, but everything I said is true. Shen Yicheng launched a coup and tried to kill me. He didn't succeed, but the old Grand Secretary Zhao and Song Butang were killed. His Majesty also abdicated, and I was lucky enough to escape. Now, I want to kill my way back to the capital and help His Majesty restore the throne."
"This … this … this is impossible!"
Dai Yao's mind seemed to have suffered a massive blow.
"It's not important whether you believe it or not. The truth will eventually come to light. Chen Yongbin also thought it impossible, but this matter truly did happen."
Xiao Ruxun shook his head.
"Chen Yongbin? Governor of Yunnan? "
"Mm. Before coming here, I had already taken Kunming, and I've probably already taken Yunnan. I'm in the middle of conquering Sichuan, and I'm almost done with Guangdong. There are also people supporting me in Guangxi, and the first line of defense has been completely shattered.
I've probably cut off the Beijing-Hangzhou Canal, and I've probably broken into Shen Yicheng's home as well. But if Shen Yicheng wants to hear this news, he should still have some time. If he mobilizes his troops to deal with me, it might take even more time. At least in Jiangnan, I'm certain to win. "
Xiao Ruxun chuckled.
Dai Yao's face was covered in disbelief.
"Look at Daming right now. You've tormented him into this state. Those stragglers of the Japanese pirates were able to roam the southeast for decades without being able to deal with them. Now, I'm a trifling general with an army of one hundred thousand, yet I'm able to sweep through everything without any resistance. No one can stop me in my path, and those who wait and see are surrendering one after another. If this was during the reign of Hongwu and Yongle, I probably wouldn't even be able to escape the capital.
Sigh, it doesn't matter anymore. It's useless to say anything now. Governor Dai, just bear with it for a while! After this matter is settled and His Majesty regains his throne, I'll let you out. Of course, I don't know what arrangements His Majesty has for you at that time. "
After saying that, Xiao Ruxun did not waste any more words and directly dragged him away.
The main show was still on Cen Dalu.
"With your help this time, how many provinces can you persuade to not resist and help me?"
Xiao Ruxun looked at Cen Dalu with a smile.
Cen Dalu smiled.
"We originally didn't care about you Han people changing emperors. You can change your emperors as long as you don't disturb our lives. But since the mastermind is you, Marshal Xiao, then I have no choice but to participate. If I can't not participate, then all the Yi people also have no choice but to participate.
I don't dare to say about the Han cities, but I can guarantee that the Yi people will not become enemies with you. Of course, if you want us to send troops, we'll follow the old rules. Bring the money and food! We'll give you the people! "
Xiao Ruxun also smiled.
"Then I'll follow the old rules as well. I'll give you the money and food, the people will be under me. I'll also be in charge of military discipline. If there's anyone who violates military discipline, you can deal with them yourself!"
"It's a deal!"
"It's a deal!"
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