? Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio The outskirts of the Taiping army had changed greatly.
The Taiping Army's uniforms on the periphery had changed a lot. As they moved deeper, more and more people wore more traditional Taiping Army uniforms, which made Lin Fengxiang feel a little better.
Lin Fengxiang did not want Vézé to leave the Taiping army. As an outstanding general in the Taiping army, he knew the role Vézé played in the war.
In the past two years, Vézé could set off from Anqing in Anhui and take over all the territory south of the Huai River in a year. He still had the strength to fight his way north into Jiangsu, Hebei, and Shandong to rescue the besieged Northern Expedition Army. When Vézé went south, he not only fought his way into northern Jiangsu and took over a famous city like Huai An. It only took him a little more than a month to break the Jiangnan and Jiangbei Barracks that had besieged Tianjing City for a year and a half. The Taiping Rebellion in the southeast of Tianjing City immediately changed from a defensive position to an all-out offensive.
After Vézé's troops went south and handed over control of Anhui, the three Prime Ministers of the Northern Expedition Army immediately expanded their strength. After Lin Fengxiang took over the strategic town of Huai An, he immediately realized that his troops had the ability to defend Huai An, but not the ability to use Huai An as a base to launch a large-scale attack.
If there was a powerful army like Vézé to take over the city and destroy the Manchu Qing army, Lin Fengxiang could establish actual control of Huai An with peace of mind. Without a strong army like Vézé who could crush all enemies like a hammer, Lin Fengxiang could only take care of defense and offense. He did not have enough troops to defend. If he attacked, he could not finish off the enemy in a short time. Therefore, Lin Fengxiang did not want to see Vézé leave the Taiping Rebellion. He hoped that he could temporarily calm the young and aggressive Vézé.
Upon entering Changzhou City, he saw that the troops were constantly being mobilized, as if a great battle was about to break out. Even though Lin Fengxiang was a Marquis and a famous general, he still had a high status in the Kingdom of Peace, even though the other kings had fallen. Vézé's troops searched Lin Fengxiang thoroughly before letting him into Vézé's headquarters.
After waiting in a small room in Vézé's headquarters for a while, Lin Fengxiang finally saw Vézé striding in from outside. After seeing Lin Fengxiang, Vézé forced a smile. "Lin Da Ge, it must have been hard for you to come here."
Lin Fengxiang also wanted to say something lighter, but he was quite anxious at the moment. In the end, he could only force a smile and said, "The Wayne Brothers have grown quite a bit."
"Oh? Have I? "Vézé smiled bitterly. He had been so busy for the past two years that he didn't have the mood to care about his own height. However, at this time, he could only say, "People say that they grow up at the age of twenty-three. I'm not even twenty-three yet. Looks like I'm still growing."
After saying this, no one said anything else. After a moment of silence, Lin Fengxiang finally said, "The Wayne Brothers, I heard that you were leaving, so I immediately rushed over. We are all old brothers in the Heavenly State, and you have already been conferred the title of Prince Of Qi. Why do you have to leave now? As long as you wait a little longer, with everyone here, everything will be fine after this matter is over! As long as you trust me, I will definitely not let you suffer. "
Vézé shook his head. "Lin Da Ge, if it was just me who offended the Heavenly King, with your words, I really have nothing to fear. But now, I'm not the one who offended the Heavenly King. No matter what I think, everyone thinks that I'm a subordinate of the King Of The East. The King Of The East was killed, the King Of The East's residence was wiped out, and now, even the relatives of the King Of The East's brothers who were killed have been wiped out. If I were to stay in the Heavenly State, what would the Heavenly King think? "
"Heavenly King …" Lin Fengxiang only started to say a few words before he couldn't continue. Vézé's words pointed out the root of the matter. Since the Heavenly King Hong Xiuquan had already started a massacre, then Vézé, the commander of the largest army under the King Of The East, had naturally become a thorn in the Heavenly King's side.
Seeing Lin Fengxiang's troubled expression, Vézé said, "Lin Da Ge, if I stay in the Heavenly State, will the Heavenly King be at ease with me? When he sees me, won't he be afraid that one day, I'll avenge the King Of The East? Moreover, the Heavenly King has killed the King Of The East's subordinates to such an extent, how can I be at ease with the Heavenly King? Won't I be afraid that one day, the Heavenly King will continue to kill the King Of The East's subordinates and turn around to kill me? I know that you mean well, Lin Da Ge, but if the Heavenly King really kills me one day, can I really count on Lin Da Ge to kill the Heavenly King to avenge me? I don't think you, Lin Da Ge, can do such a thing, right? "
Lin Fengxiang felt that he really couldn't argue with Vézé on this matter, but because of this, he couldn't help but want to say something. "Wayne Brothers, why do you have to do this? If we can talk things out properly … "
"Lin Da Ge, the things that can be talked about are personal grudges. I don't have any personal grudges with the Heavenly King at all!" Vézé said this from the bottom of his heart. His heavy tone made Lin Fengxiang's heart sink.
Everyone fell silent again. They had said everything that needed to be said. On the way, Lin Fengxiang thought of many words to persuade Vézé, but now he couldn't say a word. In his imagination, Vézé had decided to leave the Taiping Rebellion because of his personal feelings. He didn't expect that Vézé didn't leave because of personal feelings. Although Lin Fengxiang didn't want Vézé to leave, he didn't want to kill Vézé either. Vézé was right. He had to leave now, not because Vézé had personally offended the Heavenly King Hong Xiuquan, but because Vézé and the Heavenly King were already on opposing sides.
"Lin Da Ge, let me give you a piece of advice. At this time, Tianjing City is already full of people. If you go to Tianjing City, I'm afraid that you won't be able to survive. Brother, I think it's better if you don't get involved in this mess. "Vézé stood up and made a concluding speech. He was ready to see Lin Da Ge off.
"Wayne Brothers …" Lin Fengxiang also felt that Vézé wanted to see him off. He subconsciously wanted to say something to persuade him, but he didn't say it in the end. Changing the topic, Lin Fengxiang asked, "Wayne Brothers, before you leave, can you give me some ideas on how to fight the war in Anhui in the future?"
This request wasn't unreasonable. Vézé sat down again. He asked the staff officer to bring some maps and began to explain to Lin Fengxiang. "Lin Da Ge, the most important thing now is to train a field army and continue to defend the Huai River. You can't defend it to the death. You have to constantly send small troops across the Huai River and attack the cities north of the Qing Yao River. If you can't train a field army, you can only consider retreating. There aren't any dangerous places in Huai An. If you're surrounded in Huai An, I'm afraid no one will be able to help you. "
In addition to military issues, Vézé also suggested that Lin Fengxiang keep a group of old officials who had been screened in the areas under his control, and recruit local scholars. Especially the implementation of the management system of paying taxes after the harvest. Although it was extremely difficult to reach the administrative level of the new China, it was very easy to surpass the management level of the Manchu Qing.
Lin Fengxiang had always thought that Vézé was a very powerful general, but he didn't expect that Vézé had such a deep understanding of the administration. Originally, he didn't want to persuade Vézé to stay, but the words were stuck in his throat, and he couldn't help but want to say them.
After Vézé gave a rough outline, he said, "Lin Da Ge, I have something to ask of you."
"What is it?" Lin Fengxiang asked immediately. Although he knew it was unlikely, Lin Fengxiang still hoped that Vézé could say that he wanted to stay.
"I want to send people to Anqing, Luzhou, and other places to take away the civil officials who used to follow me. At the very least, I want to take away those who are willing to go with me. But if I send troops to Anqing and other places now, I'm afraid that some of my brothers will dare to fight with my people. Lin Da Ge, if you think that we get along well, then I hope that Lin Da Ge can do me one last favor. The other two Prime Ministers in Anhui were both led by you, Lin Da Ge, and most of the brothers in Chaohu are the King Of The East's subordinates. If you can help me, Lin Da Ge, I will be very grateful! "
This request put Lin Fengxiang in a difficult position. His first thought was that he was afraid of offending the Heavenly King, Hong Xiuquan. Vézé wanted to leave, and if Lin Fengxiang helped Vézé, what would the Heavenly King think? He would definitely think that Lin Fengxiang was colluding with Vézé. Therefore, Lin Fengxiang's first thought was to refuse immediately.
But after a while, Lin Fengxiang suddenly remembered the purpose of his trip, and he couldn't help but feel that he was taking things for granted. In the current situation, Vézé chose to leave the Taiping Rebellion, and he actually had good intentions for the Heavenly State. If Vézé didn't leave, he could actually attack Suzhou and Zhejiang and defend these two places. Even if he didn't leave the Taiping Rebellion, with Vézé's military and political strength, it wouldn't be a problem for him to protect himself. But at that time, the Taiping Rebellion definitely wouldn't let Vézé go. No matter what Vézé thought, he was now representing the King Of The East's faction. All those who were dissatisfied with the Heavenly King would go to Vézé's side, and the end result would definitely be a big fight between the two sides. Was there anything more tragic in this world than brothers attacking each other?
Thinking of this, Lin Fengxiang said, "Wayne Brothers, I can't help you directly. But I'll go to the other two Prime Minister's side now. Wait for me to leave for two days, then you can send troops to pick them up. I can't say that I'll help you, but as long as I see the other two Prime Minister's side, Wayne Brothers's troops in Anhui won't be attacked … "
Vézé didn't wait for Lin Fengxiang to continue and interrupted first. "Brother, please give me a month's time. At most a month, my troops will completely withdraw from Anhui. "
Hearing Vézé's guarantee, Lin Fengxiang was also relieved. At least until now, Vézé had never lied to his brothers in the Taiping Rebellion. Since he said a month, Lin Fengxiang also believed that Vézé would definitely be able to bring all those who were willing to follow him away within a month.
Just as Vézé said, Lin Fengxiang had no intention of going to Tianjing City. There was no need for Vézé to lie to Lin Fengxiang that there was a massacre in Tianjing City. This kind of lie that could be exposed in the blink of an eye wouldn't benefit Vézé at all. Lin Fengxiang had no intention of usurping power. He was very clear that he couldn't go to Tianjing City.
After a simple meal, Lin Fengxiang left Changzhou with a large bag of maps and documents that Vézé had given him. It was evening, and the red sun in the west was slowly descending toward the end of the Yangtze River. Looking at the troops by the river that had changed their flags and uniforms, Lin Fengxiang couldn't help but feel sad. The King Of The East was already dead, and the King Of The East residence no longer existed. Now, the bravest and largest army of the Taiping Rebellion was about to leave the ranks of the Taiping Rebellion. Not long ago, the Taiping Rebellion was flourishing, and it was about to swallow up Jiangzhe and the two lakes. Unexpectedly, in the blink of an eye, such a change happened. Lin Fengxiang couldn't help but feel sad.
Moreover, Lin Fengxiang also felt something even more uneasy. Following the disappearance of the King Of The East's forces from the Taiping Rebellion, the red sun that once enveloped the Taiping Rebellion seemed to disappear forever.
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