Anti-Qing: Starting from the Jintian Uprising

Chapter 160 History is a little girl who can be dressed up by anyone

Zeng Guofan led a team to inspect the Hunan Army camp outside Changsha City and gave instructions on the fortifications in various places.

"Deeper and wider the trench here! And reinforce it with logs and sandbags."

"And here, set up a few more trenches and traps outside the fort, and prepare more sandbags to protect against artillery fire."

"Don't be too lazy. If you sweat a little more now, you will bleed less in the future. Don't be careless!"

"..."

Zeng Guofan continued to give instructions, and the Hunan Army generals nodded to show that they understood.

Ever since the Tang army used sandbag fortifications to defend against artillery attacks, this tactic quickly spread throughout China.

Zeng Guofan didn't mind that this was the bandits' tactics, he decisively borrowed it and put it to use.

Before using it, Zeng Guofan also called in artillery to bombard the sandbag fortifications to test their anti-artillery effect.

It turns out to be quite good indeed.

Zeng Guofan couldn't help but marvel that the fake Tang King of the Tang thieves was truly a genius in military affairs.

It’s a pity that it is not used by the Qing Dynasty!
Zeng Guofan continued his inspection and led his men to walk near the artillery position. Looking at the few cannons in the artillery position in front of him, Zeng Guofan slowly exhaled.

"Our army still lacks artillery in this battle, otherwise we would have given the invading Tang bandits a heavy blow."

As the provincial capital, Changsha naturally has city defense artillery.

However, in order to limit the military power of the Han people, the Qing government began to strictly control the number and caliber of artillery of local troops since its founding.

As a result, the few city defense cannons in Changsha were all small and light cannons, the largest of which weighed only a few hundred pounds. Not only were there no large-caliber red cannons, but there were not many of them either.

These small and light cannons were inevitably unable to cope with the Tang army's artillery group.

Zeng Guofan felt powerless, but he didn't know what to do.

Because the enemy troops were about to attack Changsha, it was too late for him to write a letter requesting to transfer the silver from the capital or to cast it himself.

Just at this moment, a fast horse came running from a distance.

"Report! Repay!"

"Reporting to Lord Zeng, the enemy soldiers have passed Huilongtang and are heading towards Changsha!"

The knight on horseback dismounted, bowed before Zeng Guofan, then pointed in the direction of the Tang army coming from the south, and spoke with a somewhat frightened tone.

Upon hearing this, Zeng Guofan couldn't help but take a deep breath and then spoke.

"quick!"

"Inform the entire army, the enemy troops are approaching, everyone prepare for battle!"

"..."

As Zeng Guofan's military order was issued, all the Hunan Warriors in the Hunan Warrior camp outside Changsha City became busy.

One after another, the troops began to prepare for war under the command of their respective generals.

In the sky, dark clouds hung low, as if they were about to cover us.

It seems to foreshadow the fate of Changsha City!

……

Zeng Guofan, surrounded by his generals, climbed up a high observation platform.

He looked up and saw a streak of smoke appearing on the horizon.

The dark mass of Tang troops advanced steadily forward, like a giant gray-black carpet spread out on the ground.

A solemn and solemn atmosphere filled the air.

Faintly, one could hear the sound of footsteps, countless people shouting slogans and marching in unison. The scene was incredibly shocking.

The musket was carried on the shoulder, with the bayonet on the muzzle pointing obliquely at the sky. The dark clouds dispersed at some point, and the sun shone on the earth. The bayonet reflected a cold light under the sunlight.

Zeng Guofan put down the old monocular telescope in his hand, and his old face was full of solemnity.

Although he had never fought against the Tang army before, he had only heard rumors about the Tang army's powerful guns and artillery.

Now, although we have not yet experienced the Tang army's guns and artillery, just by looking at its formation, we can know that the Tang army is indeed an elite force.

How does the saying go? Not all elites can march well, but those who can march well are definitely elites.

Because, to a certain extent, marching in formation is the most external expression that reflects the level of training, discipline and organization of an army.

These three points are the important criteria for determining the lower limit of an army’s combat effectiveness.

If an army can march in formation well, it is hard to say what the upper limit of its combat effectiveness is, but the lower limit is definitely guaranteed.

Zeng Guofan looked at the Tang army appearing on the horizon, his expression becoming more and more gloomy.

"Dark clouds are gathering over the city!"

Zeng Guofan said with some emotion.

For some reason, he suddenly remembered the ancient poem.

"Dark clouds are pressing down on the city to destroy it, and the armor's light is shining towards the golden scales of the sun."

Now he only hopes that the shine of the Xiangyong's armor can break through the dark clouds brought by the approaching Tang army.

Bring a glimmer of hope to the increasingly declining Qing Dynasty!
Luo Bingzhang on the side couldn't help but sigh.

"The Tang bandits' soldiers are indeed elite, worthy of being the strong army that defeated the foreigners..."

When Luo Bingzhang said this, everyone fell silent, feeling sad.

Everyone couldn't help but feel a chill in their hearts and felt confused about their future.

Yes, they are about to face an army that has defeated the foreigners before.

Even the foreigners were defeated, let alone them?
Upon seeing this, Luo Bingzhang realized that he had said something wrong and hurried back to try to make amends.

"It's not a big deal to have defeated the foreigners. If the Qing Dynasty had not considered that the expansion of the war would affect people's livelihood, we would have been able to defeat the foreigners as long as we persisted in fighting."

Upon hearing this, Zeng Guofan also spoke in agreement.

"Governor Luo is right."

"Besides, you know, our Qing Dynasty was defeated by the elite expeditionary forces of the foreigners, but what the Tang thieves defeated was just a weak troop stationed in the foreigner's place."

"How can the two be compared?"

"Just like our Qing Dynasty, defeating a Green Camp and defeating a Sauron soldier can both be called defeating the Qing army."

“But are these two the same thing?”

Zeng Guofan began to change the concept.

Although the British army defeated by the Tang Dynasty was not elite, it was actually of similar quality to the British army that invaded the Qing Dynasty.

The army also had a small number of white soldiers as the backbone, plus a large number of Indian colonial soldiers as the main force.

Because the British garrison in Hong Kong was originally part of the original expeditionary force.

However, not many people in the Qing court understood this, and since Zeng Guofan said so, they believed it.

The morale of the Hunan brave generals has been significantly boosted!
……

"Report!"

"Your Majesty, Changsha City is just ahead."

A communications soldier rode up to Li Yi and began to report.

Upon hearing this, Li Yi nodded immediately.

"Not bad!"

"Pass the order down. Let our troops set up camp while preparing for an offensive. Prepare to feint an attack on the Hunan Braves camp outside Changsha City to test the strength of the Hunan Braves."

Upon hearing this, the communications soldier clasped his fists and left to convey Li Yi's order.

The various units of the Tang army continued to advance and soon arrived outside the city of Changsha, setting up camp not far from the Xiangyong camp.

While setting up camp, the Tang army's gunners dragged out their artillery and fired at the Xiangyong camp.

Amid the roar of artillery fire, the battlefield was filled with smoke, and the outer wall of the Hunan Brave Camp was hit by artillery shells.

However, the kinetic energy of the shells was absorbed by the sandbags. Although the wall made of round logs was deformed, it did not collapse in the end.

The bomb fell inside the Hunan Army camp. Although the power of the explosion was still considerable, the shock wave and flames were inevitably absorbed by the sandbags.

The killing effect is greatly reduced!
Li Yi put down the telescope and frowned.

"I didn't expect that even the sandbag fortification method was learned by Qing Yao."

"I'm afraid the battle of Changsha will be difficult to fight!"

Of course, it’s just difficult to fight. As long as Li Yi is determined, Changsha can be taken in the end.

However, the casualty figures of the Tang army would probably not be so good.

Zuo Zongtang, who was standing by, heard this and spoke.

"Your Majesty, I have a plan that may work." Li Yi raised his eyebrows and said.

"Just tell me, Zuo Qing!"

Li Yi has no other advantages except that he listens to advice.

Since Zuo Zongtang has an idea, let's hear what he plans to do.

Zuo Zongtang heard this and spoke.

"As far as I know, the Qing demons' military strength in Changsha is extremely insufficient. The Green Camp soldiers are only about 3,000 to 5,000 strong, and they are not considered elite troops."

"The Qing Dynasty's evil Minister of Tuanlian Zeng Guofan wanted to defend Changsha, and he mainly relied on the Hunan Braves he recruited and trained. In other words, when the Tang Dynasty attacked Changsha, it mainly used the Hunan Braves."

"As long as we get rid of the Xiangyong, it will be easy for the Tang Dynasty to attack Changsha."

"If the Tang Dynasty wants to deal with the Xiang Yong, it doesn't necessarily need a violent attack."

"As far as I know, the soldiers of the Qing Dynasty's Xiangyong mainly come from the counties, towns and villages near Changsha."

"As long as the Tang Dynasty can control the counties, towns and villages around Changsha, it is equivalent to controlling the families of the Xiangyong. There is no need to worry that the Xiangyong will not surrender on their own initiative."

Upon hearing this, Li Yi showed a thoughtful expression.

After a moment he nodded.

"What Zuo Qing said makes sense!"

"Let's do it. Send a message to all our troops, except for the necessary troops to blockade Changsha City."

"All the rest of the troops will be divided up to capture the counties, towns and villages around Changsha, and then invite the families of the Xiangyong who are clearing the demons to Changsha for me."

Li Yi knew that this move was a bit despicable and shameless.

But what's the saying, history is written by the victors.

If Li Yi lost the fight, there would be no need to mention it.

The Battle of Changsha was naturally because of this despicable and shameless villain. He used the families of the Hunan Yong soldiers to threaten the Hunan Yong soldiers, and then his conspiracy was thwarted by the brave and fearless Hunan Yong soldiers.

But what if he won?

The historical record would be that the Xiangyong were grateful for Li Yi's kindness to their family, and then they turned to the light and surrendered voluntarily.

History is like a little girl who can be dressed up by anyone. As long as you can win in the end and have the opportunity to dress up this little girl, then it doesn’t matter if the little girl has some flaws.

"Oh, right, tell all the troops to maintain military discipline. If anyone takes the opportunity to rape, plunder, or violate military discipline, they will be executed immediately!"

Li Yi added another sentence.

He attached as much importance as ever to the military discipline of the Tang army.

He could not tolerate the Tang army's massacre and looting.

This is Li Yi’s bottom line!
Although he is a man of low morals and shameless, his bottom line is still somewhat higher than that of the Qing rulers.

Besides, who stipulates that an army with strong combat effectiveness must have poor discipline?

Isn't this nonsense?
Since the Tang army began distributing land to its subordinates based on their military merit, not only has the army's combat effectiveness increased dramatically, but its military discipline has also improved significantly.

In order to protect the land in their hands, the Tang army soldiers were all very obedient.

Zuo Zongtang heard this and spoke.

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty!"

At the same time, he couldn't help but sigh that compared with the Qing army, which had poor military discipline and was accustomed to rape, looting, massacre and murder, the Tang army was obviously more like a royal army.

I definitely made the right decision by voting for Tang!

The more he got along with Li Yi, the more he could appreciate Li Yi's style. He was a very qualified founding leader.

He lived a simple life, was not interested in women, was respectful to the wise and humble, appointed the virtuous and capable, was decisive in killing and punishing, attached great importance to the army, and cared for the people...

Most importantly, he is shameless!

Yes, shamelessness is also one of the important qualities of a founding father.

Following Li Yi, Zuo Zongtang really saw a future.

Taking a deep breath, Zuo Zongtang began to recommend.

"Your Majesty, when Zeng Guofan and Zeng Yaotou formed the Hunan Brave Army, Brother Yunxian also participated in it."

"I think Yunxian should know where the Xiangyong soldiers are from."

"In this case, I think Yunxian can lead our soldiers this time, and it will be easier and more convenient to invite Xiangyong's family."

After hearing this, Li Yi thought for a while, then nodded and said.

"So good!"

"If we can get Mr. Guo's help, our Tang Dynasty's chances of winning this battle will increase again."

"Let's arrange it this way!"

……

Outside Changsha city, the Hunan Army camp.

After arriving in Changsha, the Tang army first launched a tentative artillery bombardment on the Hunan Army camp, and then called off the offensive.

The two sides began to confront each other!
However, Zeng Guofan was not happy about this.

Because he had just received intelligence that after the Tang army called a halt to the offensive against the Hunan Yong camp, the army dispersed and went to plunder the prefectures and counties near Changsha.

The purpose is self-evident!

It is obvious that they are planning to use Xiang Yong's family to control Xiang Yong.

This was extremely bad news for Zeng Guofan.

"Everyone, tell me, how should our army respond next?"

"Once the families of the Xiangyong soldiers are captured by the bandits, the Xiangyong army will be in chaos, and Changsha will be undefendable..."

Zeng Guofan asked with a somewhat depressed look.

Tazib spoke up.

"Master Zeng, I think we should take the initiative to defeat the scattered Tang bandits and save the current situation."

"We, the Xiangyong, are from Changsha. We are much more familiar with the terrain and environment around Changsha than the Tang bandits. If we make proper arrangements, we are sure to defeat the Tang bandits in a field battle."

Tazib is somewhat radical.

In other words, there is no way for him not to be radical now.

The purpose of the Tang army is obvious. If the Hunan Army does not take the initiative to attack, it will only face a slow death.

Upon hearing this, all the generals nodded in agreement.

Apparently, they shared Tazib's opinion.

Zeng Guofan took a deep breath and then spoke.

"Okay, let's arrange it this way!"

"Tazibu, you will lead a cavalry to attack and stop the scattered Tang troops."

"At all costs, we must not allow the Tang army to take Xiang Yong's family members outside Changsha."

"As long as you can achieve this goal, you can use any means!"

Zeng Guofan’s attitude was very clear.

Tazibu: If you can defeat the Tang army, then fight. If you can't, then use your cavalry advantage to escape.

As long as the Tang army is not allowed to take the families of the Xiangyong soldiers to the outskirts of Changsha, it will be fine.

Apart from this, they don’t have to care even if the Tang army massacres and loots the city.

If it comes to the last resort, Tazibu can even lead his troops to kill the families of Xiangyong.

Well, after all, if they killed everyone, they naturally couldn’t reach the city of Changsha.

Is not it?
Tazib understood the implication in Zeng Guofan's words, took a deep breath and expressed his opinion.

"Don't worry, Master Zeng. I understand!"

"I will not let you down!"

After saying this, he prepared to lead his troops to attack.

Zeng Guofan looked at Tazib's leaving back and couldn't help but sigh again.

"The state affairs are so difficult!"

……

PS: I am out of town today, so this is just one chapter.

(End of this chapter)