Slaying the Qing: My Taiping Heavenly Kingdom

"Your Majesty, the 1st Infantry Division of the Imperial Guard and the 2nd Army of the Eastern Expeditionary Corps have captured Xiaolingwei. Most of the more than 30,000 Qing troops stationed at Xiaolingwei have surrendered, a small number have been annihilated, and very few have actually escaped."

General Li Xiucheng, commander of the Eastern Expeditionary Army, reported excitedly.

"Excellent, excellent! The Tartars' Jiangnan Camp, with Xiaolingwei, Chunhua Town, and Dasheng Pass as its main strongholds, has now seen two of them captured. The entire Jiangnan Camp is now practically defunct!"

Hong Tian was overjoyed.

With the Jiangnan Grand Camp breached, the crisis in Tianjing City can be considered largely resolved.

If the other legions can hold their positions and withstand the Qing army's attack, then the Manchus' plan to completely annihilate the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom will naturally fail.

"How's the situation at Dasheng Pass?" Hong Tian asked.

"Your Majesty, Li Mingcheng is leading the 1st Army of the Eastern Expeditionary Force, which is currently holding back the Qing troops stationed there. The troops stationed at Dasheng Pass are the Jiangxi Army, numbering less than 20,000, led by Zhou Tianshou."

This man was originally a member of the Heaven and Earth Society, but later defected to the Tartars and served them.

Li Xiucheng reported.

"With Chunhua Town and Xiaolingwei successively captured by us, Zhou Tianshou will surely be frightened. Order Li Mingcheng to launch a preemptive strike and hold off Zhou Tianshou. Also, order the 1st Infantry Division of the Imperial Guard to quickly proceed to Dasheng Pass to assist the 1st Army of the Eastern Expeditionary Corps in annihilating this Qing army!"

Hong Tian gave the order.

Although he knew that the 1st Guards Infantry Division had suffered minimal casualties after a series of battles, even with its overwhelming superiority in weaponry, the soldiers were undoubtedly exhausted.

If possible, Hong Tian would certainly like to let the troops have a proper rest and recuperation.

However, speed is of the essence in war. If these nearly 20,000 Jiangxi soldiers are allowed to escape and return to Jiangxi Province, it will undoubtedly further exacerbate the situation in northern Jiangxi.

The Southern Expeditionary Army was already under immense pressure in Jiujiang and Chizhou prefectures, facing attacks from the main force of the Xiang Army.

If new enemy troops join the battle, the entire battlefield could very well collapse.

At that time, the situation will be even more unfavorable for the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Li Xiucheng, as a famous general of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, was also aware of this.

After capturing Xiaolingwei, the 1st Infantry Division of the Imperial Guard Corps received orders from Hong Tian himself, instructing them to quickly advance to Dashengguan and launch an attack on the Qing troops stationed there.

Despite the soldiers' exhaustion, Chen Yucheng and his men knew the situation was urgent and immediately led their troops out.

On the afternoon of January 24, the 1st Infantry Division of the Guards Corps arrived at Dasheng Pass.

The battle at Dasheng Pass has already begun.

The 1st Army of the Eastern Expeditionary Force engaged in fierce fighting with nearly 20,000 Jiangxi troops stationed here.

Although the Taiping army was far stronger than the Jiangxi army, the Jiangxi army relied on its passes for defense and held the advantage of terrain.

The two sides fought fiercely, resulting in a close battle with each side suffering casualties.

But as news of the fall of Chunhua Town and Xiaolingwei arrived, Zhou Tianshou, the General Commander of Jiangxi Province, was already terrified.

He had repeatedly tried to lead his troops to withdraw from Dasheng Pass, take the route through Ningguo Prefecture in southern Anhui Province, and retreat back to Jiangxi Province.

However, because the Taiping army's offensive was very fierce, if he ordered a retreat, it might lead to the collapse of the troops.

If the Taiping army seizes the opportunity to pursue, they will be completely defeated.

The entire battle situation will spiral out of control.

However, this very delay caused Zhou Tianshou's Qing army to completely lose the opportunity to escape the battlefield.

On the morning of the 25th, the 1st Guards Infantry Division, which had rested overnight, launched an attack.

Its formidable firepower was put to full use in the battle.

The Qing army was almost immediately stunned.

Although Dasheng Pass was considered a fortified pass, with strong artillery support, the Imperial Guard's engineers used large amounts of gunpowder to blow up the city walls.

With a deafening roar, a breach more than ten meters long was blasted into the city wall.

The well-prepared Imperial Guards stormed into Dasheng Pass from here.

Faced with the fierce attack of the Imperial Guards, the Qing army could no longer hold out.

Even before Zhou Tianshou issued the order to retreat, the Qing army had already begun to flee.

The 1st Army of the Eastern Expeditionary Force has already deployed a large number of troops to the rear of the Qing army.

This made it impossible for the Qing army to escape, even if they wanted to.

Ultimately, of the nearly 20,000 Qing troops stationed at Dasheng Pass, only a little over a thousand escaped; the rest were annihilated.

Most of the Qing troops surrendered.

After this battle, the Qing army's Jiangnan Grand Camp was completely crushed.

In this battle, the Taiping army annihilated nearly 80,000 enemy soldiers. The number of prisoners alone reached nearly 60,000.

This was undoubtedly one of the greatest victories achieved by the Taiping Army after establishing its capital in Nanjing.

This made the people of Tianjing City overjoyed.

As a result, Hong Tian's reputation as the new Heavenly King also rose to its peak.

"Your Majesty, I have led the Imperial Guard and broken through the Tartars' Jiangnan camp, lifting their blockade of the southern part of Tianjing!" Lieutenant General Chen Yucheng reported.

"Very good, the Imperial Guards did a wonderful job this time. I am proud of you!" Hong Tian's eyes were full of praise.

The performance of the Imperial Guard in this great battle was nothing short of perfect.

As the armed force that Hong Tian created himself, the Imperial Guard is a force to be reckoned with, and Hong Tian is proud of its strength.

This also made everyone in the Heavenly Kingdom completely believe in Hong Tian.

Even the generals who commanded large armies no longer dared to underestimate Hong Tian.

Furthermore, after learning about the performance of the Royal Guard, these generals were not only shocked but also hoped that their own troops could be reorganized and equipped with the same advanced weapons as the Royal Guard, so as to have a more formidable fighting force.

"Were the casualties high?" Hong Tian asked immediately.

This is his core base, so naturally he attaches great importance to it.

"Your Majesty, our casualties are not great. The total number of soldiers killed in action and seriously wounded is less than two hundred. Including those with minor wounds, it is less than five hundred!" General Chen Yucheng replied.

Upon hearing the casualty figures, Hong Tian breathed a sigh of relief.

However, soldiers with minor injuries can return to their units after recovering. But those who are killed or seriously wounded are truly lost.

These are all old stock!

It felt as if Hong Tian's heart was bleeding.

"Your Majesty, such casualties are already quite small. The performance of other troops on the battlefield is far inferior to that of the Imperial Guards." General Li Xiucheng's eyes were full of envy.

Hong Tian nodded.

"Many of the Imperial Guards served alongside me in the orphanage. Naturally, I hope they can all survive," Hong Tian said.

"Your Majesty, those fallen and wounded soldiers all gave their all, even their lives, for the cause of the Heavenly Kingdom," General Chen Yucheng said.

This was the sentiment of almost all the Imperial Guard soldiers, including him.

Or rather, it's the sentiment of everyone who came from an orphanage.

This made Hong Tian very gratified, as his efforts over the years had finally yielded results.

"Yu Cheng, although we have temporarily broken through the Tartars' Jiangnan camp, the crisis facing the Heavenly Kingdom has not been completely resolved. The enemy we face is still very powerful."

Therefore, I can only give the 1st Guards Infantry Division three days of rest. After three days, the troops must continue their attack!

Hong Tian said with a serious expression.

Although Hong Tian knew that the Imperial Guards were exhausted.

But there was no other way; he only had this one very capable elite force at his disposal, and he could only hope that the Imperial Guard could break the deadlock at this moment.

"Yes, Your Majesty. Please give the order. The Imperial Guards are not afraid of hardship, nor are they afraid of death. We guarantee to complete the mission!" Chen Yucheng replied with a firm expression.

"The 2nd Army of the Eastern Expeditionary Force has already entered Zhenjiang Prefecture and is launching an attack on the Manchu city located in Danyang. The Qing army suffered heavy losses in this battle and should not be able to withstand the attack of the 2nd Army of the Eastern Expeditionary Force."

Three days later, the 1st Infantry Division of the Imperial Guard Corps continued its advance, assisting the 2nd Army of the Eastern Expeditionary Corps in capturing Danyang. Then, it continued its southeastward offensive, capturing Changzhou Prefecture. Afterwards, it launched an attack on Suzhou Prefecture, completely conquering the entire southern Jiangsu region!

Hong Tian gave the order.