July, 1767. Huaibei had just entered the dog days of summer, and the temperature was still not high. At this time, the Earth had not entered the period of warming up. The temperature of summer was far lower than in the 21st century. It was not that hot to wear an official's robe.
In his official uniform, Jiang Zhongyuan listened to his subordinate's report in the Anhui Inspector-General's Yamen in Suzhou. The harvest season was about to begin, and the crops in the fields were about to be harvested. After Ceng Guofan pacified the bandits with Huoyang as the center, the entire Huaibei region became peaceful. All the surrounding areas were under the direct control of the Huai army, and the supply of rations was finally stabilized. With food, they would be able to continue the war, and by continuing the war, they would be able to maintain the Qing Dynasty. This was also what he was currently doing to the best of his ability to deal with one of the few loyal and important ministers of the Great Qing.
The news that Li Hongzhang had been made a duke made Jiang Zhongyuan happy, but it didn't make Jiang Zhongyuan jealous. He was able to see through the chaotic situation and recover Luoyang in one fell swoop. Jiang Zhongyuan praised Li Hongzhang for being able to compete with Li Ti Ge Gu Ge asks for the Emperor's Mansion? Ti Yi Gu Argon Seeking Wild Beasts? Leading his wife to fly away locusts and private tadpoles to the point of collapse? Leech? Sui? Chang? Mi Ye Lai Qian? Eh? Su Jiang Na fat Qiang? Trade frequency feed
Li Hongzhang was a member of the Huai army. Now that he was Luoyang's prefect, the imperial government had permitted Li Hongzhang to establish the Luo army. He could be considered a feudal lord. Many people in the Huai army suggested that the Huai army should also send out troops to fight in order to gain merit. Jiang Zhongyuan led everyone in hopes of being conferred the title of Marquis or King. However, Jiang Zhongyuan requested for the Huai army to obediently stay in Huaibei, "The world is currently in a perilous situation. We'll defend Huaibei and block the north. If we act blindly without thinking, we will only give Traitor Wei an opportunity to take advantage of. "
There had been several years of peace between the Liberation Army and the Huai army. In the beginning, the Huai army was also anxious all day long. The slightest movement could scare them out of their wits. However, humans had a strong ability to get used to it. Seeing that the Liberation Army had no intention of heading north, the Huai army first became accustomed to it. Later on, they even had the guts to challenge the Liberation Army of Huainan.
It was Li Hongzhang who led the troops that time. Li Hongzhang was attacked head-on by the Liberation Army. After the entire army was destroyed, the Liberation Army released Li Hongzhang and the others. Although this made the Huai army no longer have the intention to look south, the Huai army was even more relieved. The Liberation Army's actions were, in a sense, a gesture of goodwill. Even the captured Li Hongzhang could be released. The armies of both sides were more like troops guarding the border, not a situation where one side would fight to the death. Whether they really thought so or just wanted to relieve the pressure and find an excuse, this kind of thinking became prevalent in the Huai army.
Jiang Zhongyuan said not to give the Liberation Army a chance to take advantage of the situation, but the generals of the Huai army felt that Jiang Zhongyuan was worrying too much. However, Jiang Zhongyuan was the commanding general. Since he said so, everyone naturally had to listen to him. In fact, in their hearts, everyone was also quite disapproving.
After discussing the food problem, the generals of the Huai army once again proposed to send troops to battle. Of course, this time, their reason was no longer to achieve meritorious service and be conferred the title of King or Marquis. Liu Kunyi said, "Commander-in-Chief, the encirclement and suppression of the bandits has reached a critical juncture. The Xiang Army and the Monk King's Mongolian Eight Banners have almost driven the bandits to a dead end. If we can send troops to join in the encirclement and suppression, we will certainly be able to wipe out the bandits in one fell swoop. Luoyang is also in the hands of the imperial court, so we can temporarily calm down. "
Jiang Zhongyuan was seriously considering Liu Kunyi's suggestion. Joining in the encirclement and suppression of the Nian Army and ending the Nian Army as soon as possible. Jiang Zhongyuan had this idea for a long time. However, at that time, the situation was uncertain and the Nian Army moved like the wind. If too many troops were sent to Henan, they would probably be engaged in a long-term battle. At present, nearly half of the Xiang Army's food supply was handled by Jiang Zhongyuan. If the Xiang Army also mobilized on a large scale, they would not be able to keep up with the food supply. Therefore, no matter how strongly Li Hongzhang begged, Jiang Zhongyuan only gave him 15,000 troops.
"We still need to contact Lord Zeng about this matter," Jiang Zhongyuan replied.
Liu Kunyi's face lit up when he heard this. Jiang Zhongyuan had finally relented! He no longer strongly opposed the idea and wanted to discuss it with Ceng Guofan first. This was a very easy thing to do. After all, there was the precedent set by Li Hongzhang. In theory, Ceng Guofan was the commander-in-chief, but Li Hongzhang had taken advantage of the cooperation with the Xiang Army to obtain a higher title than Ceng Guofan. Liu Kunyi did not believe that Ceng Guofan did not have a grudge against him. Even if Ceng Guofan was magnanimous and could accept this fact, Ceng Guofan's subordinates would not. Now that Ceng Guofan was talking about cooperating with Ceng Guofan to exterminate the Nian Army, the Xiang Army's first thought was that the Huai army had come to fight for the credit again!
"Please, Commander-in-chief, take care of this matter quickly. The Nian Army is already struggling on the brink of death, and I'm afraid they are even more vicious now. If we do not join in the extermination, who knows what the bandits will do? "Liu Kunyi said to Jiang Zhongyuan with a straight face.
Jiang Zhongyuan did not expose Liu Kunyi's plan. He replied, "I will write to Lord Zeng right away!"
On the fourth day after the letter was sent, the messenger scrambled into Jiang Zhongyuan's mansion. As soon as he saw Jiang Zhongyuan, he knelt on the ground and shouted, "Commander-in-chief, a group of Vézé's troops are coming from Xuzhou along the official road. From what I can see, they are probably heading straight for Suzhou. Hurry back and report to the Commander-in-chief! "
Jiang Zhongyuan was shocked. He had sent a messenger north, so how did he end up running into a large group of Liberation Army troops? He was just about to scold the messenger when he understood the key point. Huaibei was north of Huainan. This was a very accurate geographical understanding. For more than a decade, enemies, including the Liberation Army, had been attacking from the south of Jiang Zhongyuan. In fact, after the Liberation Army occupied Xuzhou, Huaibei was actually surrounded by the Liberation Army from the west, north, and south. It was just that Jiang Zhongyuan was still used to thinking that the enemy would come from the south, so he was not used to the enemy coming from the north.
After correcting this idea, it was easier to understand why the Liberation Army would attack from Xuzhou in the north. Although the Huai River was not a natural stronghold, it was still a large river. The best way to attack Suzhou was to set off from Xuzhou and follow the main road all the way south. This was the most labor-saving and time-saving plan. It would be strange if the Liberation Army did not use this plan.
Jiang Zhongyuan opened his mouth and found that he had nothing to say. These years of peace not only gave Jiang Zhongyuan's subordinates all kinds of misconceptions, but Jiang Zhongyuan also felt that war would not break out so silently. It was not that the Liberation Army could not attack the Huai army, but the Liberation Army had to have a reason to attack the Huai army!
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