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Thick fog filled the air. Even in the darkness before dawn, the thick fog strangely made people feel uncomfortable. Even when the dark clouds completely covered the mountains, the feeling of thick moisture wrapping around one's skin was still very clear. Even the biting cold mountain wind could not dispel this feeling.
Although Vézé was afraid of the dark and ghosts when he was young, he never believed in ghosts. In the mountain wind, he seemed to hear the sound of crying and wailing. In the past, Vézé would only think that it was purely a sound made by nature. Because it was similar to the sound in human memory, it made people associate it with nature. But now, Vézé was not completely sure that the sound he heard was not made by nature.
During the day yesterday, which was the 7th of April, the second day after breaking out of Yongan City, the Qing Army led by Ulan Tai attacked the rear of the Taiping army at Longliao Ridge. The sounds of guns and cannons were heard for a long time. When the valley of Longliao Ridge finally calmed down, Dadong, where the center of the Taiping army was located, was filled with the sound of crying.
Everyone knew that the Qing Army would never let the Taiping army go. Since the valley of Longliao Ridge had calmed down and no Taiping army rear could break out, the only possibility was that the two thousand Taiping army had been completely annihilated. Vézé came here from Longliao Ridge. It was a place with high mountains and deep valleys. When Ulan Tai's troops suddenly attacked and cut the rear of the Taiping army in half, the ending was already decided. It was either death or destruction.
Many of the rear troops were family members, so their fighting strength was even weaker. Thinking of the men, women, old and young who were killed, whether they had family members or not, everyone in the Taiping army burst into tears.
In the midst of this sorrow, the King Of The East, Yang Xiuqing, issued an order to raise the tent. The guard who delivered the order said that all the soldiers' captains and soldiers above them were to gather at Yang Xiuqing's place.
The so-called raising the tent was just a way of saying that it was a big tent with a simple circle of cloth. Everyone had unsightly expressions. Some officers even came to Yang Xiuqing in tears.
Yang Xiuqing was overwhelmed by grief and had no fear. He shouted angrily, "Zhu brothers, we only have one thing to do now, and that is to take revenge!"
"Revenge! Revenge! "Vézé was the first to shout. Wei Ze did not have any relatives in the rear team, so he only felt sympathy for the deaths of these people. Moreover, Hong Xiuquan's actions of breaking out of Yong An City at night had left a bad impression on Wei Ze, making it impossible for Wei Ze to feel any grief.
However, Yang Xiuqing's resolute attitude at this moment, as well as her determination to fight back to the death, shocked Wei Ze deeply. If Yang Xiuqing had given Vézé the impression that he was a prince who had participated in the Taiping Rebellion, then right now, Vézé's evaluation of Yang Xiuqing was only left with one word: "Hero!"
With Vézé taking the lead, the officers whose family members had been killed also roared angrily, "Revenge! Revenge! "
Yang Xiuqing casually picked up a few stones and a rattan and laid out a simple terrain on the ground. Although Zhang Yingchen was a military major, Vézé had given Zhang Yingchen the title of Brigade Commander's assistant, so he also attended the meeting. After taking a look at the terrain Yang Xiuqing laid out, Zhang Yingchen couldn't help but take a deep breath.
Even though Vézé wasn't as sensitive to terrain as Zhang Yingchen, he had walked all the way here. This simple thing that couldn't even be called a sand table had completely marked out the terrain of Dadong.
This was a military plan to lure the enemy deep into their territory. Yang Xiuqing wanted to lure the Qing Army into the Taiping army's encirclement, then wipe out the Qing Army in one fell swoop in the valley of Dadong.
If they couldn't annihilate the Qing Army's pursuing troops in the field, the Taiping army would be doomed. Vézé was very clear about this. In fact, Vézé had made similar suggestions before. However, when the rear troops were annihilated, Vézé realized that he couldn't come up with such a countermeasure immediately. His first thought was to strengthen his defenses to prevent further losses.
Even after listening to Yang Xiuqing's plan, Vézé couldn't be sure that the Qing Army wouldn't fall for it. However, Yang Xiuqing's decisive decision and determination to fight back was something that Vézé couldn't compare to.
After setting up an ambush according to the terrain, the King Of The East, Yang Xiuqing, shouted, "Brigade Commander Wei!"
Hearing Yang Xiuqing's summons, Vézé straightened his back and stepped forward. He cupped his hands and said, "Your subordinate is here!"
Yang Xiuqing's expression was grim. "Your brothers still have the strength to march. I order you to depart now and circle to the entrance of Da Dong Mountain. Once the Qing Army starts retreating from the valley, kill your way down the mountain and do your best to block the Qing Army's path of retreat!"
This order shocked Vézé. Not only Vézé, but the faces of the Southern Prince, Feng Yunshan, and his subordinates also changed slightly. Vézé didn't have many subordinates. Sending such a small number of troops to block the entrance of Da Dong Mountain was like throwing an egg against a rock.
"Reporting to the King Of The East, I only have 300 men. I might be able to block the entrance of the valley, but I can't block it completely." Vézé didn't lie and directly explained his current situation.
Yang Xiuqing replied coldly, "I only want you to do your best to block the entrance of the valley, but I don't want you to block it completely. In this battle, all armies can only advance and not retreat. Once the Qing Yao army enters the valley, they will definitely lose. As long as one of our brothers can attack the Qing Yao army at the entrance of the valley, they will lose their footing there. When that time comes, our army will launch a surprise attack and the Qing Yao army can only flee. For this matter, I feel that Commander Wei should be able to accomplish it. "
Vézé always felt that the French soldiers described Napoleon very well: "The Emperor leads us by marching to victory." The Red Army was also known for its outstanding marching ability. The first sentence of Yang Xiuqing's order was to confirm that Vézé's troops were the only ones among the Taiping army that still had the ability to march. On this point, it could be said that Yang Xiuqing's observation skills were very sharp and he knew how to appoint people well.
There was no point in saying any more nonsense. Vézé replied loudly, "As the King Of The East commands!"
Once he returned to his subordinates, Vézé immediately issued the marching order. The bedding in the backpacks were all handed over to four or five people who stayed behind to watch over them. The troops wore straw hats for concealment. The first to set off was, of course, General Zhang Yingchen. Just before they set off, Zhang Yingchen couldn't help but say with lingering fear, "The King Of The East looks like it could scare someone to death!"
Whether it was scary or not, Vézé didn't know. In any case, Vézé knew that this battle would either end with the Qing Army or the Taiping army. Although it was said to block the entrance to the valley, it was likely that the King Of The East, Yang Xiuqing, had another goal. If the Taiping army was defeated, Vézé would think of a way to delay the enemies at the entrance of the valley and not let them participate in the pursuit.
But Vézé didn't care. In history, if the Taiping army could fight their way to Nanjing, they would definitely win the battle. Moreover, if Vézé's appearance caused history to change, then after the Taiping army was defeated, Vézé wouldn't have a good ending. During the mobilization before they set off, Vézé first explained the situation, then raised his arm and shouted, "If we don't fight to the death now, we will only be killed! Kill one and break even, kill two and you will be one! Brothers, follow me to kill Qing Yao! "
In fact, the brothers understood the situation they were facing. Without hesitation, all 300 of them raised their arms and replied, "Kill Qing Yao!"
No matter how emotional they were, the marching and fighting naturally had to follow the training they had for the past month. Before the sky turned dark, Zhang Yingchen sent someone back to inform them that the marching route had been confirmed, but the ambush position had not been found. Vézé didn't wait any longer and immediately ordered the troops to set off.
The mountain breeze in the middle of the night made Vézé feel more awake. He suddenly felt that the reason why Yang Xiuqing sent Vézé's troops to attack was not entirely because of Vézé's marching ability. During the training, Vézé only urged his subordinates to practice long spear techniques and flintlock shooting. In the valley of Da Dong, long spears couldn't be used at all. It had been raining for the past few days, so the flintlocks couldn't be used. Thousands of soldiers and horses were fighting in the valley, and Vézé and the others couldn't find any targets with their flintlocks. If Vézé and the others were to switch to short weapons, they wouldn't be able to display their fighting strength because they hadn't practiced before.
Could it be that the King Of The East, Yang Xiuqing, has been secretly watching my movements? Vézé couldn't help but think.
After thinking about it for a while, the troops finally arrived at the entrance of Da Dong Valley before daybreak. Zhang Yingchen had finally confirmed the ambush position. It was a col near the entrance of Da Dong Valley. If they set up scouts, it would take them at most half an hour to reach the entrance of Da Dong Valley.
Vézé finished studying the terrain. This place was directly above the entrance of the valley, so the Qing Army wouldn't leave it alone. If the Qing Army had set up a troop here, Vézé and the others would first encounter the Qing Army when they charged out.
"Is there a place to choose from behind the Qing Army?" Vézé asked Zhang Yingchen.
Zhang Yingchen's expression changed slightly. He paused for a moment before saying, "There is one."
The second location was much better. After passing through four to five miles of rugged mountain roads, the exit would lead to the rear of the Qing Army. It was the best place to stop them. However, Vézé understood why Zhang Yingchen was troubled. If Vézé suddenly charged here when the Qing Army was retreating, then the retreating Qing Army would have no choice but to fight Vézé to the death. If Vézé didn't die, the Qing Army would die.
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