?
Wei Changrong wasn't too excited when he found out that he had skipped over the division commander to become a general. Vézé wasn't someone who could keep his composure and respond to other people's emotions. Of course, this kind of requirement was too high for the "19-year-old" Vézé. Therefore, Wei Changrong stared at Vézé, who had a straight face, and waited for him to continue.
Vézé continued, "The King Of The East wants you to lead your troops to the King Of The East's central army. From now on, you'll be directly under the King Of The East's command."
Hearing this, the smile on Wei Changrong's face quickly disappeared from his face. "Why?" Wei Changrong asked.
"It's a military order. Why not?" Vézé could only say this.
"Fourth Uncle! I don't want to go! " Wei Changrong answered crisply. "Don't try to pressure me with some military order. It's a military order from the King Of The East, not from the King Of The East!"
"Changrong!" Vézé suddenly felt that it was ridiculous. Just now, he had also expressed his stance to the King Of The East, Yang Xiuqing, clearly stating that he didn't want to go to the King Of The West. Now, it was Wei Changrong's turn to make a fuss. Could this be the so-called retribution?
Wei Changrong no longer had the slightest joy from his promotion. He curled his lips and said unhappily, "Fourth Uncle, it's not a matter of promotion. Do you think I don't know why you don't want to follow others? You don't like the way those people fight wars. I only knew how to charge and follow you. Now, I understand more about how to fight wars. It's not just me. Zhang Yingchen, Hu Chenghe, and the other brothers all give thumbs up when it comes to fighting wars. They are willing to follow you this far because they believe that you can and will fight. Fourth Uncle, I'm afraid of death. I don't want to go to the King Of The East. "
Vézé was truly speechless to hear Wei Changrong say that he was afraid of death. Was Wei Changrong really afraid of death? Vézé didn't think so at all. Whether it was fighting the Qing Army or the local army, Wei Changrong always braved a hail of bullets and charged at the forefront. Hearing that Wei Changrong claimed to be "afraid of death", Vézé felt that he could understand Wei Changrong's feelings very well. It was because he had charged at the front lines, because he had truly passed through a battlefield of death, and after fighting so many battles with Vézé, that Wei Changrong didn't want to die a cowardly death under a low-level command.
But Vézé couldn't help but persuade him. "Changrong, don't look down on the King Of The East. The King Of The East is also very good at fighting wars."
Wei Changrong wasn't convinced by Vézé. He said, "Fourth Uncle, you said that the King Of The East is very good. But that is war … he is good at strategy and planning. But if we really fight, I still think you are the best in the Taiping army. Whoever wants to go can go, but I don't want to go. "
Wei Changrong was determined not to go to the King Of The East, and Vézé didn't want to ask anyone else either. Left with no choice, Vézé could only run to find Yang Xiuqing. Yang Xiuqing was at the top of the city wall, directing the North King, Wei Changhui, to arrange the city's defenses. Vézé went forward and saluted the two princes. Then he said, "Reporting to the King Of The East, although I have quite a number of Heaven and Earth Association brothers who have joined along the way, they are all new soldiers. Wei Changrong has fought with me for so long, and I really can't do without him. I am willing to transfer another 500 men to the King Of The East's troops. I hope that the King Of The East can let me keep Wei Changrong. "
Hearing Vézé say this, Wei Changrong narrowed his eyes and stared at Vézé in a condescending manner. Looking at his posture, it seemed like he was about to reprimand Vézé immediately.
Yang Xiuqing looked at Vézé's worried expression and couldn't help but laugh. "500 men won't do, I need 600."
"600 it is!" Vézé heaved a sigh of relief.
Wei Changhui interrupted. "King Of The East, the Wayne Brothers have been recruiting troops along the way. I'm afraid 600 men for 500 men is still too little."
Vézé cursed in his heart. Who do you think you are? You shouldn't be fawning over the King Of The East like this! You're just being generous with others!
But Wei Changhui was the North King, and Vézé had no right to criticize him. This wasn't modern society, where it was fine for a subordinate to scold the general manager. In this era, offending one's superior was a capital offense. Vézé could only pretend that he didn't hear it.
"Then 700 it is." Yang Xiuqing knew how to back down.
Vézé felt his heart ache at having to allocate 100 more men, but it was worth it to ensure the integrity of the troops that he had painstakingly built. Moreover, Vézé's troops paid great attention to training and screening. It wasn't as simple as picking out people with good physical qualities. This included willpower and initiative. These comprehensive judgments determined the division of the soldiers.
By June 15th, Vézé's troops, which used to have as many as 3,500 men, were reduced to 1,800 men. But these troops were all young adults and youngsters that Vézé valued, and the entire structure of the troops hadn't been destroyed. The staff officer system, the combat training system, and the combat system — these were the backbone of the troops. Many new soldiers were also added to the troops.
On June 17th, the higher-ups of the Taiping Heavenly Army held a meeting. As the Prime Minister, Vézé was naturally able to participate. There were no commander-level commanders attending this meeting. Even the lowest-ranking one had to be a soldier. The topic of discussion was the problem that the Taiping army had been facing, "food."
After resting for a few days, Hong Xiuquan seemed to have recovered some of his energy, and he began to speak frequently at the meeting. Vézé quickly discovered the difference between Hong Xiuquan and Yang Xiuqing. It wasn't that Hong Xiuquan wasn't quick-witted, but Hong Xiuquan clearly lacked the ability to solve specific problems. Yang Xiuqing, on the other hand, was very good at solving specific problems. The things that he talked about were the key to solving the problem.
Among the core members of the meeting, Vézé's attention was drawn to a burly man. This was a soldier named Luo Dagang. Vézé didn't know if he was imagining things, but he felt that when Hong Xiuquan talked about how to win, Luo Dagang's face always had a hint of mockery.
After Hong Xiuquan, Yang Xiuqing, and the others had finished their discussion, Hong Xiuquan finally began to ask his subordinates for their opinions. What Vézé wanted the most was a chance to fight independently. Therefore, he simply proposed to attack Jianghua and Yongming Districts from the south. Vézé had already taken the detour to reach Daozhou, so he was familiar with the route. Once he took control of these two districts, Vézé would be able to obtain food and other resources from the locals. The Qing Army was definitely trying to besiege Daozhou. Once they occupied Jianghua and Yongming, they would be able to form a triangle with Daozhou, which would be advantageous in terms of strategy.
As Vézé's immediate superior, the Western Prince Xiao Chaogui was in favor of Vézé's opinion. First of all, Vézé guaranteed that he would be able to fight this battle independently. Second, Vézé had 1,800 subordinates. These 1,800 people needed food and water, which would put a lot of pressure on the city's food supply. Third, Xiao Chaogui couldn't bring himself to say it. Vézé's attack on Jianghua and Yongming would attract the Qing Army's troops. If the Qing Army assembled a large army to attack Vézé in Jianghua and Yongming, it would undoubtedly lessen the pressure on Daozhou.
Since Xiao Chaogui had spoken, the other princes couldn't object. The Wing King, Shi Dakai, looked at Vézé with an odd expression. In this group of people, Vézé was the youngest, and the second youngest was Shi Dakai. In this unfamiliar place, Vézé actually dared to lead an army to attack a provincial city by himself. This boldness couldn't even be described as heroic; it could only be described as extremely daring.
However, Vézé didn't care what Shi Dakai thought. He didn't even notice that Shi Dakai was looking at him. Vézé was already silently considering how to carry out a mobile battle in Jianghua and Yongming, how to deal with the Qing Army that would inevitably come to kill Vézé.
Just then, someone said, "King Of The East, Prime Minister Wei doesn't have a navy. Relying on him to attack Jianghua and Yongming will be too much of a lone wolf."
Vézé had been deep in thought with his head lowered. When he heard this, he felt a wave of irritation. Just who had nothing better to do than come and stir up trouble?
He raised his head and saw that the speaker was Luo Dagang.
Yang Xiuqing said, "What do you think, Luo Jian?"
Luo Dagang replied, "I can send a navy to go south with the Wayne Brothers. He will go by land, I will go by water. If we advance by land and water, we should be able to attack the provincial city. "
"I'm not planning to attack the provincial city by force," Vézé immediately replied. Everyone was surprised to hear this.
Vézé explained, "When I went north from Guilin, I passed through Jianghua and Yongming, and quite a few of the local Tian Di Hui brothers joined us. They all said that the local Tian Di Hui had long wanted to take action, but they also knew that they wouldn't be able to attack the provincial city by themselves. When I go to Jianghua and Yongming this time, I will first contact the local Tian Di Hui brothers. If I can rope in these locals, it will be a bit easier to attack the provincial city. "
Luo Dagang didn't have any dissatisfaction because of Vézé's open refusal. On the contrary, he applauded and then turned to Yang Xiuqing. "King Of The East, if the Wayne Brothers have such a plan, I am willing to go with the Wayne Brothers to Jianghua and Yongming. I also know some Tian Di Hui brothers there. "
"No!" Without waiting for Yang Xiuqing to speak, Hong Xiuquan spoke first. "Right now we don't even have enough soldiers to defend the city, how can we have enough soldiers to attack Jianghua and Yongming? If we all leave, who will defend the city? "
Since Hong Xiuquan had already expressed his position, the other princes didn't dare to interrupt. In his heart, Vézé cried out in disappointment. He could be considered to have fought in a war for so long that he had gradually developed a sense of the battlefield. Thus, Vézé's perception of mobile warfare became much clearer. If the Taiping army had been able to adopt mobile warfare when they were in Yongan, with Yongan as the core, mobilizing the Qing Army and eating up the Qing Army bit by bit, it would be hard to say what the final result would be. But the Taiping army defended Yongan to the death and was surrounded by the Qing Army for more than half a year. In the end, they had no choice but to break out of Yongan. This time, Vézé didn't want to repeat the same mistake, so he wanted to fight out from the beginning. He didn't expect that Hong Xiuquan would actually reject it just like that.
With Hong Xiuquan speaking, it was tantamount to setting the tone. And the other princes didn't have any strong objections to Hong Xiuquan. In the end, the discussion turned to how to defend Daozhou to the death. Daozhou City was a mountain city surrounded by mountains and water, so it was very easy to organize a defense here.
It seemed that mobile warfare had exhausted these people's spirit! Vézé evaluated in his heart. But he didn't give up. After the meeting ended, Vézé went to find his immediate superior, the Western Prince, Xiao Chaogui. He directly said to Xiao Chaogui, "Western Prince, I feel that it's still not appropriate to defend Daozhou. If we defend it to the death, Daozhou will just be a second Yongan. "
Xiao Chaogui still had a humorous smile on his face as he asked, "Wayne Brothers, do you still want to attack Yongming and Yonghua?"
"Yes, I want to lead my troops to attack Yongming and Yonghua," Vézé replied.
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