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From Suzhou to Huoyang County, Ceng Guofan was surrounded by more people. The Xiang Army used several strongholds to control the vital areas from Suzhou to Huoyang. The Xiang Army could move between these safe strongholds at any time.
"Build a strong stronghold and fight a dull battle" was not Ceng Guofan's ultimate idea. After seeing the Taiping army's swift combat style, the Liberation Army's superb marching combat ability, and the kind of combat power that could easily destroy a city, Ceng Guofan would certainly have other ideas. However, Ceng Guofan firmly believed that things that couldn't be done were impossible. If he blindly pursued illusory benefits, he would only be completely finished. Therefore, when facing the Nian Army, the Xiang Army still insisted on their own way of fighting.
Of course, the Xiang Army didn't stay the same. For example, the Xiang Army had to build their own barracks by using fortresses built in different places. This saved a lot of time and greatly improved the marching ability of the Xiang Army.
Peng Yulin said, "Marshal, there are still several areas in the south that are still in the hands of the rebels, we must recapture them. The immigrants have already been prepared. As long as we take over the place, we can immediately replenish the population. "
This navy general basically had no ships to take with him, so he became the chief advisor of the Xiang Army. Peng Yulin was undoubtedly very responsible for this. When Ceng Guofan arrived at Vortex Sun, he immediately gave him the latest information.
"What's the situation in Henan?" Ceng Guofan asked.
After the main force of the Nian Army followed the Taiping army north, part of it entered Shaanxi and other places to fight, but the rest did not go to Shaanxi. It was said that this part of the Nian Army was divided into East and West Nian Army, with Xuzhou (now Xuchang) as the boundary. The Western Nian Army naturally cooperated with the Taiping army, while the Eastern Nian Army swept across Henan and Shandong.
Manchu Qing's main force was Sengrinchen's Mongolian cavalry, which had now entered the northwest to fight. The imperial court was trying hard to deal with the Nian Army in Henan, but the Nian Army in the east was mainly cavalry, they moved like the wind, it was difficult to annihilate them. But the place Ceng Guofan was fiercely purging was the Nian Army's old nest, Huoyang. No matter how strict the Xiang Army was, sooner or later the Nian Army would know that their own army had been wiped out. It was unknown how the Western Nian Army in Shaanxi would react, but the Eastern Nian Army in Henan and other places would not sit idly by and watch Ceng Guofan continue his slaughter.
This was also what Ceng Guofan hoped to see. Killing the rioters would allow more rioters to come to the rescue. At that time, he could wipe out all the rebels in one fell swoop. Therefore, Ceng Guofan paid great attention to the war situation in Henan. Right now, the Xiang Army's defense system had many flaws. If they could hold on for a while longer, Ceng Guofan believed that he could build an iron bucket of Huaibei.
Wen Yuewei looked at the Xiang Army's encirclement in the north. Right now, the encirclement was only in its embryonic form. The Xiang Army used the traditional method of ramming earth to build a wall, and then used bricks to build the inner wall. It seemed that it wouldn't be long before they started building the outer wall.
If this kind of encirclement was built, Wen Yuewei really couldn't think of any other way to break through the wall. Her subordinates were only the Nian Army, not the elite soldiers under Vézé. Vézé had been using the firearm for more than ten years. Now that more than ten years had passed, Wen Yuewei still hadn't been able to build an army that was fully equipped with the firearm. Not to mention the artillery unit that Vézé had been building for more than ten years.
"Chief Wen, how are we going to fight?" asked the group of people behind Wen Yuewei.
Wen Yuewei replied, "We can't break through the city, so we have to get the Xiang Army out of the city."
This kind of strategy was the Nian Army's choice, because they didn't have artillery, and they didn't have good rifles. It was also a very mature strategy of the Nian Army.
About ten cavalrymen rushed towards the encirclement that was being built. When they were close to the edge of the firearm's firing range, they turned around and started to circle around the encirclement. This was the process of a bandit attacking a city. What the Nian Army needed to do now was to let the enemy know that they had their eyes on them. As for whether or not they would really attack the half-finished encirclement, the Nian Army certainly wouldn't do that.
The Xiang Army's reaction was fast. Wen Yuewei and her men had only managed to do this on the first day, but on the second day, a group of Xiang Army had arrived at the encirclement. The real battle had just begun. The Nian Army needed to get the enemy out of the encirclement.
"Where are we going to fight? Have you decided?" Wen Yuewei asked her men.
Wen Yuewei's men said confidently, "Right here, thirty miles to the southeast. As long as Qing Yao follows us here, they won't be able to come back!"
The next day, before Wen Yuewei could send her men to provoke the Xiang Army, the Xiang Army moved out. This was a good thing. Wen Yuewei was waiting for the battle to enter her best stage. However, the Xiang Army's actions were completely beyond Wen Yuewei's imagination.
The Xiang Army had sent out two battalions. Every time they marched, they would use the elite soldiers as the vanguard and rearguard, with the captains in the middle. They would also send scouts to patrol the area to avoid ambushes. They had to spend two hours in the morning to break camp, and another two hours to set up camp before dark. Therefore, they could only march for about six hours a day. The two battalions also had to support each other. They could not advance rashly, so they could only travel about thirty miles a day.
Every time the Nian Army fought, they would find a way to mess up the enemy's formation, then launch a sudden close-range attack. They had never had the chance to try this kind of strategy on the Xiang Army, which surprised Wen Yuewei. As long as the Nian Army got close to the Xiang Army's formation, the Xiang Army would be extra vigilant.
This reminded Wen Yuewei of Vézé's army ten years ago. But when she thought about it carefully, Vézé's army was full of attacking spirit, and Vézé's army was faster. The Xiang Army was like a tortoise formation, while Vézé's army was like a fierce tiger's attack. If Wen Yuewei had to choose her opponent, she would rather choose the tortoise Xiang Army. If they fought against Vézé, any mistake would be caught by Vézé's army, and the whole army would be wiped out. If they fought against the Xiang Army, even if they couldn't win, they wouldn't be at a disadvantage.
But this idea only lasted for one night. Wen Yuewei also wanted to attack the Xiang Army's camp. But the Xiang Army had deep ditches and high fortifications, they couldn't rest or eat before the fortifications were built. They had to build walls ten feet high and five feet wide, with parapet walls for the soldiers who fired their guns. Outside the walls, deer abatis were planted to prevent people from climbing, and deep trenches were dug around the abatis. It was a very tight defense system.
The Nian Army couldn't do anything to this defense system, they could only watch the Xiang Army rest in the camp.
Although the Xiang Army's marching was slow, they were still marching. On the first day, the Nian Army couldn't do anything to the Xiang Army. The next afternoon, the Xiang Army arrived at Wen Yuewei's village. They started to set up camp three miles away from the village.
At this time, the Xiang Army was not the only one building the fortifications, the Nian Army also built a lot of fortifications to protect themselves from the government's attack. Looking at the fortifications the Xiang Army was building, and then looking at the walls of the fortifications, Wen Yuewei felt very uneasy. If the Xiang Army's tortoise formation really hit the fortifications, would they be able to break through?
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