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Guangzhou was like a steamer after entering August. When the latest report was placed on Vézé's desk, the secretary of the secretariat couldn't help but wipe the sweat off his forehead with his sleeve. "Commander-in-chief, this is the recent changes in the north. + "
"Is there any classified content?" Vézé put down the document he was reviewing and raised his head to ask.
The secretary knew what Vézé meant. He replied, "The comrades in the political department have already sorted it out. The general type of information has been made into briefings and has begun to be transmitted to the lower ranks. This time, there is a classified piece of information in the north. Two days ago, we seized intelligence agents who snuck into Guangdong from Fujian by boat. We also seized a large number of Manchu Qing instigating local regiments to rebel, as well as a letter of appointment. During this period, we arrested many such people by sea and land, and found many suspicious people. The political department has already implemented a long-term plan for a group of suspicious people. "
"The troops are about to start producing summer clothing. Has this been notified?" Vézé asked.
"The troops have already been notified," the secretary replied.
After the secretary left, Vézé picked up the latest report. It seemed that the Yellow River's diversion to the north was more beneficial to the country. Vézé had long known about this news. The latest information was about the disruption of navigation in the northern section of the Grand Canal. In terms of the Taiping Rebellion, the latest news was that Shi Dakai was in charge of the government, and the turbulent situation in the Heavenly State was gradually calming down.
Of course, the Commander-in-Chief's Office had made preliminary agreements with England, France, and the United States on trade affairs. A large number of England's backlog of cloth was sold to the Commander-in-Chief's Office at a low price. The logistics department began to open a factory in Guangzhou and began to recruit workers in Guangdong.
For the regime of the old era, black box operations were instinctive. However, after industrialization, as more and more people were involved in the tide of industrialization, information transparency became a very important means of governance. Everyone would certainly have many doubts about the motives behind the matter and make up various explanations according to their own ideas. However, the so-called power of the media was the authoritative publication of information. If one had to sum it up, it would be: "I can choose not to lie, but I can organize the truth according to my will."
Vézé first incorporated newspapers and bulletins into the system of the Restored Commandery. Newspapers were more inclined to the general public, while briefings circulated within the system. If the people within the system were blind and had no understanding of the current situation, then there was no need to count on them to have a broader vision and a more accurate judgment.
Vézé was the last to pick up the report on the Manchu Qing government's large number of officials and promises to the local militia. This was not something that had a limited connection with the Restored Commandery Office. In response to Manchu Qing's actions, the Restored Commandery Office quickly made a plan to "cast a long line to catch a big fish." As an outsider, if he wanted to intervene in the land issue of Guangdong, apart from taking over the official land of Manchu Qing, he also needed to make some landlords give up their own land. The most effective way was to get the landlords involved in hostilities with the restored Viceroy's Office, and then kill them all. On the one hand, it could deter thieves, and on the other hand, it could legally confiscate the land.
During the discussion meeting, some comrades also raised the issue that the Viceroy's Office did not have enough control over the local areas. This kind of indulgence would cause too many landlords to get involved. There was never a perfect thing in the world. The result of everyone's discussion was that the risk of too many landlords and militia getting involved was still within an acceptable range.
At this time, the Liberation Army had already sealed off the land transportation between Guangdong and Fujian. Now everyone was waiting for Luo Dagang to break through Wuzhou. Once both doors were closed, they could safely close the door and beat the dog.
Luo Dagang was currently outside Wuzhou. The troops had already taken control of the commanding heights of the mountain ridge to the north of Wuzhou. From here, he looked down. On the south side of Wuzhou, many large, tall signs had already been erected. Although it could not be seen clearly from these places, the defending troops on the walls of Wuzhou, as well as the common people who had been coerced by the defending troops, could see clearly. On them were written, "The Liberation Army is only here to destroy Manchu Qing," "The Liberation Army will never plunder the common people," "Common people, please leave the top of the city walls now to avoid losing your lives in vain in future battles," "Brothers of the Qing Army, please put down your weapons in battle, we do not kill captives."
Other than these, in some artillery defenses built very close to the city, every day, there were people yelling at Wuzhou, "People will die in battle, please do not enter the battlefield on the top of the city walls." "Nine out of ten things in the world will not go your way, but only by protecting your life will you encounter good things."
Other than these, on the hillside where Luo Dagang was, there was also a large curtain made from dozens of pieces of cloth. On it was sewn many pieces of red paper with needles and thread. Together, they formed the large words "Two Days." The words were large enough that they could be seen clearly from the south of Wuzhou. Accompanying them were all kinds of shouting people shouting, "There are still two days before the attack begins! Everyone, please make a decision early. If you hide at home, you won't die. "
After Luo Dagang surrounded Wuzhou, he sent people to Wuzhou to persuade them to surrender. The Wuzhou government clearly expressed that they were not willing to surrender. Even after Luo Dagang told them that if they were not willing to surrender, they could hand over their weapons and let them leave on their own, this group of people still did not surrender.
According to Luo Dagang's intentions, he wanted to widely recruit his brothers in the navy. After the Liberation Army's superior firepower broke through Wuzhou, he would wipe out all those who resisted. In Vézé's newly established Society of Recovery, there was a brand new position called political commissar. Every unit had a commissar at each level. Although this group of people also had military positions, they had veto power in military meetings. The commissar of the brigade in this unit was called Shen Xin. He was still a brat who had just turned 20. He used the reason that "the army does not permit any massacres in the city" to reject this plan.
Luo Dagang was already over 50 years old. When had he ever had the experience of being vetoed by a 20 year old youth? He immediately changed his strategy and thought of using some roundabout methods to fool Shen Xin. Unexpectedly, Shen Xin's attitude was rather unyielding because all of the military operations were planned by the staff and then handed over to the front line for discussion. Shen Xin vetoed all of the operations that could lead to manslaughter or the possibility of a massacre.
In the end, Luo Dagang was so angry that he asked Shen Xin what to do. Shen Xin proposed to first surround the city and publicize it for five days, letting all the people in the city know that after seeing the Liberation Army break through the city walls, they would run home. Then, they would attack the city. Furthermore, Shen Xin also proposed a very imaginative strategy, which was to raise balloons to the north of the city walls when the north wind was blowing. The balloons would fly over Wuzhou and drop leaflets into the city.
Luo Dagang was very unhappy that Shen Xin actually wanted to make decisions for these 10,000 brothers. After hearing this plan, he said angrily, "I heard that this balloon isn't safe. If it falls from the sky, people will die for nothing!"
"Then I'll take people to ride in the balloon and drop leaflets!" Shen Xin immediately replied.
"You …" Luo Dagang choked on these words. Shen Xin didn't even care about his own life, but Luo Dagang actually had nothing to say. Even so, Luo Dagang wasn't truly convinced. He eased his expression and advised, "Brother Shen, why do you have to do this?"
Shen Xin also tried to relax his expression. "Comrade Luo Dagang, if the balloon falls, only two or three people will die. If we can make the people of Wuzhou not participate in the resistance, at least 20 to 30 people will die in our army. I'm afraid that two to three thousand people will die less. Brother Luo, I'm actually against letting the brothers of the boat army participate in the attack. Because the benefits of our Liberation Army come from the monthly military pay and from the subsidies for families. In the future, if the land is divided, our families will also have income from farming and can work in the factories to earn money. But the brothers of the boat army don't have these things. The benefits of them joining are nothing more than to rob and make a bit of money. No matter how strict the orders are given to them, it's impossible that there won't be looting. If we take down Wuzhou, all the benefits will belong to us in the Martial Manor. After we let them join, not only will we have to split a portion of the benefits, they will kill and loot, but the people of Wuzhou will be ruthless to us. We still have to clean up their mess. This kind of loss-making business cannot be done. "
Hearing these words, although Luo Dagang agreed with Shen Xin's analysis, he was a little skeptical about whether this 20-year-old Shen Xin was a political commissar or a businessman. At least, this analysis of benefits was too clear.
However, Luo Dagang wasn't completely moved by Shen Xin's words. He asked, "If we take Wuzhou for ourselves, the brothers of the boat army may not be willing to agree. If you let our army surround the city for five days, the brothers of the boat army will gather more and more. At that time, the people in Wuzhou will hate us for attacking Wuzhou. The brothers of the boat army will also hate us. "
Shen Xin couldn't resist revealing a glimmer of mockery on his face. "Comrade Luo Dagang, I heard that the Taiping army's military discipline is strict. Those who loot the people will be executed. If the brothers of the boat army want to overthrow the Manchu Qing, then we naturally have to recruit them into the army. If they just want to take advantage of the chaos to loot, then our army has no reason to condone them. After taking down Guangzhou, we chopped off hundreds of heads. Among them, there may not be no anti-Qing people. Comrade Luo Dagang, what do you think? "
Shen Xin was young and spoke bluntly. However, Luo Dagang could also see that Shen Xin was not prepared to make any concessions. The political commissar had the power to completely veto battle. Furthermore, each meeting had a special secretary to record it. The conversation between the two just now had already been recorded. Shen Xin's use of Guangzhou as an example was not bad. Vézé could not accept anyone looting Wuzhou.
Without a choice, Luo Dagang finally agreed to modify the battle plan. He was personally responsible for greeting the brothers of the boat army who were constantly gathering. Those who were willing to join the army would immediately be organized into a new navy unit. However, those who wanted to join and loot Wuzhou could only be "persuaded with kind words" to make them give up on this idea.
Fortunately, more than a month ago, Chen Kai, Li Wenmao, and the rest of the Tian Di Hui had already brought a large number of brothers of the boat army to Jiangxi. The brothers of the boat army who stayed behind were generally more attached to their families and were not as bandits. With a heavyweight like Luo Dagang holding down the line, they finally didn't cause any trouble.
However, a northwest wind was blowing. Shen Xin had brought two balloon pilots to ride a balloon over Wuzhou. Luo Dagang had no choice but to come and watch. Even if Shen Xin had rejected Luo Dagang's plan, Luo Dagang did not sincerely hope that the balloon Shen Xin was riding in would fall. After all, riding a balloon across an entire city was the first time in the Liberation Army.
This balloon was shaped like an olive. Behind the basket was a propeller driven by a chain that acted as a power system. Seeing this enormous thing floating in the air, Luo Dagang also felt very nervous. The hot air balloon was not driven by any magic power. It certainly was not as reliable as the flying of immortals. Luo Dagang couldn't help but worry about this.
In the oval basket, Shen Xin and the pilots put on goggles.
"Retract the rope!" "Retract the rope!"
"Release the rope!" "Release the rope!"
"Release the sandbag on the left!" "Release the sandbag on the left!"
"Release the sandbag on the right!" "Release the sandbag on the right!"
As the ground controller and the pilot alternately yelled out the commands, the rope ladder was retracted into the basket. The taut rope was untied and the sandbag was thrown down. The balloon began to vibrate and slowly rise into the air.
Along with everyone else, Luo Dagang raised his head to watch the slow movements of this enormous object. At this time, the conflict with Shen Xin had long been thrown beyond the highest heavens. This hot air balloon was as large as a house. For men, big was beautiful. For such an enormous object to be able to fly into the sky, this in itself was something that made Luo Dagang incomparably excited.
Under everyone's gaze, the hot air balloon began to slowly drift along with the northwest wind. The propeller at the back of the basket under the balloon also began to spin. Those with sharp eyes noticed that the basket also began to slowly sway. That was the movement of the chain. As everyone held their breath and focused their attention, the hot air balloon slowly and unstoppably flew toward the south.
Someone suddenly yelled out loudly. "It's flying! It's flying!" The people on the mountain to the north of Wuzhou City immediately followed suit and yelled. The entire crowd of onlookers was immersed in a joyous mood. Everyone yelled with all their might or raised their arms to point at the hot air balloon. It was not until a brother was too excited and accidentally slipped down the slope that everyone became alert.
Immediately, someone went down to rescue the brother who had fallen with a bloody nose and swollen face. The other commanders also quickly restrained their subordinates and told them not to get close to the dangerous slope. After this torment, a new wave of cheers immediately rang out from the crowd of onlookers. At this time, the hot air balloon had already flown within the walls of Wuzhou. Many pieces of paper were thrown out of the basket and fluttered down to the ground. Luo Dagang also stared unblinkingly at the flyers that the hot air balloon was throwing urging for surrender. At this moment, he suddenly felt that he understood a phrase, "a celestial maiden scattering flowers."
The entire process did not take a short time. After almost an hour, the hot air balloon flew past Wuzhou City and immediately began to lower its altitude. Seeing the hot air balloon land steadily in a place where a large number of troops had arrived and were protecting, Luo Dagang finally let out a long breath. At this time, a gust of wind blew. Luo Dagang felt his entire body was incomparably cool. Only now did he realize that at some point, his entire body was drenched in sweat.
The effect of the hot air balloon was far better than Luo Dagang had imagined. That night, a representative of the Qing Army came out of the city to request an audience. The Qing Army envoy who had come did not have the solemn and stirring attitude of preferring death to submission that he had not long ago. His mind was uneasy. His gaze unconsciously wandered. When he looked at Luo Dagang, his entire person immediately appeared very humble.
"Sir, may I ask if this is the document you sent people to throw out in the city today?" The representative of the Qing Army respectfully handed over a piece of paper. A few days ago, the representative of Wuzhou City had used the name of a Cantonese bandit fearlessly to call Luo Dagang.
Luo Dagang accepted it and looked at it. He had people bring over a few flyers that were to be thrown out the next day and handed them to the representative of the Qing Army along with the flyer the Qing Army had brought. Luo Dagang smiled and said, "Won't you know when you see for yourself?"
The representative of the Qing Army carefully looked at the flyer again and again. In the end, he asked hesitantly, "Sir, are the people flying in the sky really your people?"
This question, which was filled with fear, elicited laughter from the command center. Luo Dagang smiled and said, "How can this be fake? If you don't believe me, you can wait until tomorrow to see. "
The representative of the Qing Army had already confirmed that the flying object that had shocked all of Wuzhou during the day was sent by Luo Dagang. In a trembling voice, he asked, "Will you attack the city the day after tomorrow?"
"Of course. I will wait until tomorrow to persuade them to surrender. If Wuzhou does not surrender, naturally, we will attack the city. "Luo Dagang had already confirmed that the Qing Army had no desire to fight at this moment, so he said these words very easily. However, Luo Dagang changed his mind and his voice also became stern. "We can not only throw paper from the sky. Go back and tell the general defending Wuzhou to let him see our artillery tomorrow. That is a sharp weapon that will explode as soon as it lands. When the battle starts, not only will paper fall from the sky, there will also be bombs. We have the virtue of cherishing life, so let Wuzhou surrender on its own. If you do not surrender, then there will be no need to be polite on the battlefield! "
The representative of the Qing Army nodded his head like he was pounding garlic. "Sir! I will immediately go back and pass on the message! "
The next day, Luo Dagang had wanted to fire a few explosive shells near the city walls of the Qing Army as a demonstration. He had not thought that the representative of the Qing Army might have been frightened badly and brought a few people to see the bombs early in the morning. The people following him were obviously not of low status, but they were all wearing the uniform of normal Qing Army soldiers.
Luo Dagang did not expose them. He first showed the group of people the preset artillery position and gave them a few wooden shovels to make sure there was nothing buried underground and that there was no possibility of it being faked. Following this was the firing of five explosive shells. The Qing Army had never seen artillery shells that would explode as soon as they landed. After the artillery attack ended, they immediately ran to the preset position to check. Looking at the wooden piles that had been blown to pieces, the group of people's faces all turned green.
At noon, the hot air balloon flew again and once again dropped leaflets. In the evening, the Qing Army sent out an official representative to discuss the matter of Wuzhou surrendering.
On the leaflets dropped by the hot air balloon in Wuzhou were printed letters urging surrender as well as the conditions of surrender. These conditions were very generous. Not only did they include the protection of the property of the people inside Wuzhou, after surrendering, foreign officials could bring a certain weight of property out of Vézé's territory. Of course, Luo Dagang also repeatedly stressed that no matter what, if the Qing Army did not surrender by noon the next morning, the Liberation Army would attack the city.
When the time came, Luo Dagang was surprised to find that the Qing Army did not open the city gates to surrender. "Attack the city!" Luo Dagang ordered angrily.
However, the attacking troops did not encounter any resistance. The Qing Army on top of the city walls fled to the bottom of the city at the same time the Liberation Army opened fire. When the troops successfully ascended to the top of the city walls, they saw the Qing Army kneeling on the ground outside the range of the artillery. Inside Wuzhou, every home was closed. The common people did not resist at all.
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