Yongli Ming Dynasty

Chapter 289 Loyalty and Bravery
Outside Bozhou City, the Ming and Qing armies confronted each other. After defeating the Qing army with a heavy artillery surprise attack, the Ming army no longer concealed its

All the soldiers in the city went up to the city walls, and the cavalry of the Longxiang Army was also sent out of the city. The scouts of both sides fought fiercely between Bozhou and Loushan Pass, but the armies of both sides remained motionless. The Ming army did not leave the city, and the Qing army did not attack again. The situation on both sides was deadlocked.
Outside Guiyang City, Zhu Lang is checking the casting of cannons in the workshop.

The workshop was surrounded by wooden walls and guarded by imperial guards. The craftsmen were usually restricted to the workshop.
In the center of the workshop, on the open ground platform, a dark iron mold has been tied tightly with iron hoops and stands on the ground.

Dozens of craftsmen were surrounding the iron mold, each doing their own job. Spoonfuls of red-hot molten iron were poured into the mold from the reserved holes above the mold.

The seven red cannons in Bozhou City did not come from Guangdong Province, but were cast in Guiyang and transported directly to Bozhou.

In February, Zhu Lang proposed to use iron molds to cast cannons. In March, the people in the Armament Manufacturing Bureau made the iron molds and successfully cast a usable heavy cannon with the iron molds.
After Zhu Lang received the news in Huguang, he immediately sent the first set of iron molds and craftsmen to Guiyang. In fact, if the Qing army had arrived half a month earlier, there would be no heavy artillery available in Bozhou City.

The seven red cannons in Bozhou City were all made using the iron mold method within half a month.
Today, Guiyang can produce a Red Cannon almost every day with this first iron mold. This speed was unimaginable in the era of clay molds.
After arriving in Guizhou, the Ming army had already roughly ascertained the number of Qing troops in Sichuan Province.

When the number of people on both sides was similar, Zhu Lang dared to send troops to Yunnan Province to quell the rebellion because of these newly produced red heavy artillery.

The artillery shells used in this era were mostly solid bullets, unlike the later artillery shells that could explode again after hitting the target. The so-called solid bullets were actually just iron balls.
Although the 3,000-jin heavy artillery is ten times heavier than the 300-jin Portuguese machine gun, it cannot cause more than ten times the damage.
In the case of dispersed charge, the advantage of heavy artillery may be that it can fire farther than Portuguese artillery, but the actual number of casualties is not much different from that of Portuguese artillery.

But the deterrent power brought by heavy artillery is far from comparable to that of small Portuguese artillery. Portuguese artillery shells hitting soldiers may penetrate the soldiers' armor and bodies.
However, if the soldier is hit by the Red Barbarian heavy artillery, his entire body may explode directly. The terrifying sight of the soldier exploding out of thin air will quickly crush the morale of the enemy soldiers.
Moreover, the longer strike range is also a great advantage in itself.
Of course, it does not mean that the Ming army can easily defeat the Qing army with the red barbarian heavy artillery.
With these heavy artillery, the Ming army had no problem defending Bozhou, but if they wanted to defeat the Qing army, they would have to rely on cavalry and infantry to fight in formation.
The Ming army was not without the strength to fight at this time. Hauge and his men had 20,000 men, and the imperial army that followed Zhu Lang in person also had 20,000 men. The numbers on both sides were equal.
The Qing army's cavalry is sharp, while the Ming army has many artillery. If they really fight in the field, the outcome of the battle is only a fifty-fifty chance.
After defeating thousands of Manchu soldiers led by Bolo in Fujian Province, the two imperial armies of Longxiang and Tengxiang no longer feared the Qing army. However, Zhu Lang could not send his entire army to fight a decisive battle with the Qing army in Sichuan Province.
Haoge was just a detachment of the Qing court. Even if the Ming court tried its best to wipe out this Qing army, the foundation of the Qing court would still be there.

If the Ming army lost the war and the Longxiang and Tengxiang imperial guards suffered serious damage in Sichuan, the Ming court would immediately become turbulent.

The three imperial guards, Longxiang, Wuxiang and Tengxiang, were Zhu Lang's confidence in suppressing all parties in the court. It was precisely because of the deterrence of the imperial guards that the generals of Fujian Province and Huguang Province did not dare to act rashly.

Unless it is a critical moment, Zhu Lang will never take the risk of taking three imperial guards.

Zhu Lang's order to Jiao Lian this time was to defend Bozhou, not to send troops to defeat the Qing army.

Although Zhu Lang did not intend to fight a decisive battle with the Qing army, it did not mean that he did not intend to take back Sichuan Province. He already had another plan on how to take back Sichuan Province.
Zhu Lang had seen the newly cast cannon in the workshop and was about to check other firearms in the workshop when Li Chengzhi suddenly walked in.
"Your Highness, Sichuan-Shaanxi Governor-General Fan Yiheng has arrived."

After hearing the report, Zhu Lang had no choice but to stop his journey today and rush back to the city.
After the Ming court was seized, the Hongguang and Longwu dynasties were based in the southeast.
The central government in the southeast was thousands of miles away from the southwest. During the great disaster, the emperor could not even take care of Huguang, let alone the more distant southwest Sichuan and Shaanxi.

The Southeastern court could only appoint important officials in Sichuan Province, hoping to maintain the situation in Sichuan and Shaanxi with the prestige of these high-ranking officials.

During the reigns of Hongguang and Longwu, there were many high-ranking civil officials in Sichuan Province. Wang Yingxiong was appointed Governor-General of Sichuan, Hubei, Yunnan and Guizhou Provinces, Fan Yiheng was appointed Governor-General of Sichuan and Shaanxi, and Ma Qian was appointed Governor of Sichuan.

Although these people had different official ranks and titles, they actually did the same thing, which was to lead the remaining Ming troops in Sichuan to expel Zhang Xianzhong and restore the Ming court's rule over Sichuan.

Under the organization of Wang Yingxiong, Fan Yiheng and others, the Ming troops from Sichuan Province, including Zeng Ying and Yang Zhan, were integrated and defeated the various Western Armies under Zhang Xianzhong.

Last July, Yang Zhan defeated Zhang Xianzhong's main naval force at Pengjiangkou, forcing Zhang Xianzhong to flee back to Chengdu. The situation seemed to be very good.

But in February and March of this year, the remnants of the Western Army led by Sun Kewang defeated the main force of tens of thousands of Ming troops led by Zeng Ying in one fell swoop and captured Chongqing. The situation of the Ming army in Sichuan Province took a sharp turn for the worse in an instant.
After Chongqing fell, Wang Yingxiong and Fan Yiheng fled to Bozhou, but Sun Kewang and others followed closely behind.
Wang Yingxiong and his men only had some newly gathered defeated soldiers at the time. Zeng Ying, the chief general of the Sichuan Ming army, had just died in battle. The army was in a state of panic and was unable to resist.
Wang Yingxiong and his men had no choice but to abandon the city again and flee westward to Chishuiwei.

Fan Yiheng and his companions fled to Chishuiwei, and the Western Army finally stopped chasing them. Fan Yiheng and his companions rested in Chishuiwei for a month, but they heard the news that the Qing army was about to march south.

At this time, all kinds of rumors were spreading in Sichuan Province. Fan Yiheng and others could not tell the truth from the false. Finally, they decided to continue to retreat westward to Bijie, the border of the three provinces, to keep a retreat route.

When Fan Yiheng and his army arrived at Bijiewei, they finally met the Gui army that came to guard Bijie. Fan Yiheng and his army then learned that Emperor Longwu had died and the King of Gui had ascended the throne as regent.
In the study of the Governor's Office of Guangxi Province, Zhu Lang sat on the main seat at the top, and below him was an old man in a bright red official robe.

Zhu Lang looked at Fan Yiheng, whose temples were slightly gray, and said

"I heard that Lord Wang has passed away?"

When Fan Yiheng heard this, a trace of sadness flashed across his eyes, and he said

"Mr. Wang is old and has worked hard for Sichuan. His health is not good."

"After the fall of Chongqing, Wang Ge Lao saw the fall of Sichuan Province, and he was so depressed that he became ill due to his worry and anger."

"After I got to Chishui, Wang Ge Lao fell ill and died within half a month."

Zhu Lang was silent when he heard this. Wang Yingxiong was appointed governor of Sichuan Province during the reign of Tianqi, and was appointed to the cabinet during the reign of Chongzhen.
When Wang Yingxiong was appointed during the Hongguang reign, he was already over seventy years old and had long since retired to Sichuan to enjoy his old age. However, after receiving the imperial edict from the Ming court, Wang Yingxiong resolutely returned to the army.
Although Zhu Lang did not know Wang Yingxiong, he was moved when he heard that this old minister had died of exhaustion in the army.
Zhu Lang was silent for a moment, then he spoke

"Wang Ge Lao was loyal and diligent in serving the country, and died in the service of the king. Our Ming Dynasty has lost another pillar, which is truly sad."

"He is posthumously awarded the title of Grand Tutor of Wang Ge, Grand Secretary of Jianji Palace, and one of his sons is appointed as a Thousand Householders of Jinyi Guards."

"Your Highness is wise"

Upon hearing this, Fan Yiheng immediately bowed and called out to the emperor, and at the same time, he felt relieved.

On the way to Guiyang, Fan Yiheng was actually a little uneasy. Although they had tried their best to resist, they were defeated and fled, and Sichuan Province was completely lost.

At this time, Fan Yiheng felt a little relieved when he heard that His Royal Highness the Regent had conferred the title of King Yingxiong on Wang.
Zhu Lang glanced at Fan Yiheng, who looked relaxed, and nodded slightly.

Although Fan Yiheng and his men were badly defeated, Zhu Lang had no intention of punishing them.
After the reign of Chongzhen, there were only three important officials of the Ming court in Sichuan Province. Wang Yingxiong died in the army, and the whereabouts of Sichuan Governor Ma Qian were unknown.

Now Zhu Lang has the only person who can connect with all parties in Sichuan Province, Fan Yiheng, who came to him.

Zhu Lang was the regent of the Ming Dynasty, and his legal system was very upright, so no one dared to question it.

But the matter still had to be done by the ministers below. Compared with sending a random person to Sichuan, it was obvious that Fan Yiheng could gain the trust of the generals in Sichuan.

At this time, Zhu Lang lightly disclosed the defeat in Chongqing, not only to appease Fan Yiheng, but also to appease the remaining Ming troops such as Yang Zhan and Li Zhanchun in Sichuan.
Zhu Lang ordered Fan Yiheng to stand up, and ordered Li Guoyong to give him a seat. Then he spoke again.

"How many people are left in the Sichuan Provincial Governor's Camp now?"

"There are more than 2,000 people left. After Wang Ge Lao passed away, this army was led by General Wang Xiang. This man was an old servant of Wang Ge Lao. He joined the army because of his bravery."

Zhu Lang nodded and said

"Later, you will order Wang Xiang to go to Zheng Wenxiong's army. These two thousand men will be directly incorporated into the Gui army. There is no need to list them separately." Upon hearing this, Fan Yiheng looked hesitant and said

"This Wang Xiang is quite unruly. When Lord Wang was alive, he could be restrained. But after Lord Wang passed away, he became more domineering. I don't have much power to restrain him now."

"If Your Highness wishes to recruit Wang Xiang's soldiers, I'm afraid you'll need to make more preparations to be on the safe side."

When Wang Yingxiong was in charge of Sichuan Province, Wang Xiang was highly trusted. After he gained control of the military power, Wang Xiang's temperament began to become domineering.

When Fan Yiheng heard the news that the Qing army was heading south, he was not ready to give up Chishui and flee eastwards. However, Wang Xiang insisted on leaving, and he looted the city of Chishui, which had a very bad impact.
Although Fan Yiheng wanted to stop him, Wang Xiang threatened that the army would mutiny due to lack of food. Fan Yiheng had no choice but to let him go.
Zhu Lang heard this, but there was no anger on his face, he just chuckled.

"It's okay, just tell him about it. There are only about 2,000 people, how can they be so rebellious?"

Fan Yiheng looked at the casual Regent above him, but he was startled. He also had a better understanding of the Regent's style of behavior when he met him for the first time.
Zhu Lang mentioned Wang Xiang because the three divisions of your province reported that the Sichuan Provincial Governor's Battalion had disturbed many places in your province when escorting Fan Yiheng to Guiyang. That's why Zhu Lang asked this question.

At this time, Zhu Lang asked a question and stopped paying attention to Wang Xiang and started talking about business.

"Have you read the military report sent back from the Bozhou front?"

Upon hearing this, Fan Yiheng's expression brightened and he said

"The imperial guards are truly the best in the world. This time, they defeated hundreds of Zhen Tatars in one battle, but they themselves were intact. This is truly a great victory for the world."

"It was just the power of the Red Barbarian Cannon. Besides, killing a few hundred Tartars is not a great victory."

"The court now has red barbarian cannons to defend the city, so it should be no problem to defend Bozhou. The key is the 20,000 real Tartars in Sichuan Province. What is the current situation in Sichuan Province?"

Fan Yiheng saw that His Royal Highness the Regent was looking at him, but he did not reply immediately.
Fan Yiheng thought for a moment, sorted out the situation in Sichuan Province, and then reported. With Fan Yiheng's report, Zhu Lang also figured out the situation of the Ming army in Sichuan Province at that time.
Wang Yingxiong and his men have made great achievements in managing Sichuan Province in recent years. Under the management of Fan Yiheng and his men, even though Sichuan Province has been in chaos for several years, there are still a large number of remnants of the Ming army in Sichuan Province.

As of March this year, before Zeng Ying was defeated by Sun Kewang and others, the strength of the Ming army in Sichuan Province was still extremely strong.

In Jiading, east Sichuan, there were the tribes of Yang Zhan and Cao Xun, and in Zhongzhou, west Sichuan and Wushan County, Kuizhou Prefecture, there were the three brothers Tan Wen, Tan Hong and Tan Yi.
In Songpan Prefecture, Long'an and other places in northern Sichuan, there are General Zhu Hualong and Northern Sichuan Circuit Inspector Zhan Tianyan and others, while in Xuzhou, Luzhou and other places in southern Sichuan, there are even more Ming troops.
Zhu Lang was relieved to hear that there were still so many former Ming army members in Sichuan Province.
Zhu Lang had only 15,000 imperial guards who could actually fight the Qing army head-on, which was even less than the number of real Tatars who entered Sichuan. This was not counting the Western Army, Ming Army and other Green Camp Han soldiers who were forced to surrender by the Qing army.
It is not advisable to confront the enemy head-on, but this does not mean that Zhu Lang intends to give up Sichuan Province.

Zhu Lang planned to use his title as the regent to contact the Ming troops in Sichuan Province, unify the Ming troops in Sichuan Province, and then order them to cooperate in attacking and seizing the various prefectures in Sichuan Province, cutting off the food supply of the Qing troops in Sichuan Province.
With chaos in the rear and food supplies uncertain, the Qing army had only two choices: either divide its forces to quell the rebellion or withdraw.

If the Qing army splits up, the Bozhou Imperial Army will be able to fight the Qing army at any time.

If the Qing army chose to retreat, the Ming army would advance step by step, using the advantage of the iron mold method to quickly cast artillery, and fill the passes and cities along the way with red-haired artillery until the red-haired artillery was placed in front of the Qing army.

There are three conditions for realizing this plan. The first is that the Ming army must have an elite force that can fight against the main force of the Qing army. Otherwise, if the Ming army in Sichuan Province disrupts the rear, the Qing court can also send out elite forces to wipe out the Ming army one by one.
The second is that the Ming army must have the ability to quickly cast artillery. Otherwise, if the Qing army temporarily gave up the city due to unstable food supply, the Ming army would be unable to defend it.

The third is that the Ming army in Sichuan Province must have enough strength to disrupt Sichuan Province, or at least be able to defeat the Green Camp soldiers stationed in various places by the Qing army. Only in this way can the Qing army be forced to send out the elite Zhen Tatars to quell the rebellion.
Zhu Lang has already met the first two conditions, but the third condition depends on the former Ming army members in Sichuan Province.
After hearing Zhu Lang's plan, Fan Yiheng thought for a moment and then spoke in a deep voice.

"Since the defeat in Chongqing against the Western Bandits, the main force of Sichuan Province has been scattered. Although there are many generals in Sichuan now, they are numerous but not strong. If Your Highness wants to use the old generals of Sichuan Province to disrupt the rear of the Qing court, I recommend Yang Zhan, the general of Jiading."

"Yang Zhan has 7,000 to 8,000 soldiers under his command, and they are all elite. In the past, he was the general with the largest number of troops in Sichuan Province, except for Zeng Ying, who was in charge of Pingkou."

"During the Battle of Chongqing, Yang Zhan was stationed in Jiading and did not participate in the battle. His soldiers should not have been injured. It is estimated that Yang Zhan still had nearly 10,000 troops at this time."

"This Yang Zhan is a member of the imperial court's military examination. He is strict in military discipline and leads the troops in battle. He is very popular with the soldiers. What's more rare is that he is loyal and brave. He should be able to take on important tasks."

Zhu Lang was thoughtful when he heard this. Of course, he knew Yang Zhan, but the reason why he remembered Yang Zhan was not because he was a military candidate or because he was a strict military commander, but because he robbed Zhang Xianzhong's silver.

Shilong vs. Shihu, gold and silver are worth 500,000. After hundreds of years of salvage, huge amounts of gold and silver were still excavated in later generations. As the person who defeated Zhang Xianzhong, Yang Zhan must have robbed more silver at this time.
If there is silver, there is food, and if there is food, there are soldiers. Before Yang Zhan defeated Zhang Xianzhong, he already had nearly 10,000 soldiers. Now he has even more soldiers.
And from what Fan Yiheng said, this man is quite good at commanding troops. More than 10,000 well-trained soldiers are enough to disrupt Sichuan Province at this time.
Zhu Lang thought of this and said

"How loyal and brave is Yang Zhan?"

When Fan Yiheng heard this, he looked puzzled. Seeing Fan Yiheng's expression, Zhu Lang spoke again.

"What I mean is, if the court wants to employ this man, should they give him soldiers and food to win his loyalty and bravery, or should they give him an official title to win his loyalty and bravery, or should they allocate him a prefecture and county as a place for his salary to win his loyalty and bravery?"

After seeing so many military officials in the Ming court, Zhu Lang no longer had any hope for the military commanders in the provinces of the Ming Dynasty.
Loyal military officials like Jiao Lian are only a few exceptions. Even Li Mingzhong was initially recruited by Zhu Lang under the coercion of Ding Kuichu and the lure of official titles, fame and wealth.
The central authority of the imperial court has been lost, and military commanders in various places have become independent and have taken advantage of the situation to plunder land for pay. Since they already have their own food, pay, and soldiers, why should they still listen to the orders of the imperial court?

At this time, if you want these local military officials to obey orders, first of all, you must have enough military force to deter them, and secondly, you must grant them official positions and promise them great benefits.

At this time, the generals were already capable of sitting down at the negotiation table and asking for a price from the court.

In fact, if these generals could really obey orders after receiving food, salary and official titles, it would be a good thing.
But now more often than not, even if the court gave them food, salaries and official titles, the generals still did not obey orders.

The generals will only think that the court can only rely on them now, and then they will become more and more demanding. This is the case with the generals in Huguang now.
Fan Yiheng was also shocked when he heard this. He had never thought that His Royal Highness the Regent would be so straightforward. Fan Yiheng subconsciously said

"Yang Zhan is a serious military scholar, not a rough warrior. When he was in Sichuan Province, he was always loyal and brave. He should not be so rebellious..."

Fan Yiheng was talking when he suddenly fell silent. He had been in Sichuan for a long time, so how could he not know the situation of these military officers? There were no fewer arrogant military officials in Sichuan than in other places.
After Ma Yingshi, the Lieutenant General of Luzhou, entered Luzhou, he immediately robbed the wealthy people in the name of paying salaries. If they did not obey, he would immediately behead them and confiscate their property on the charge of colluding with the Western bandits.

The entire Luzhou Prefecture was in chaos because of him. If it were an ordinary time, Fan Yiheng would have taken action first and killed these evil military officials.
Although Yang Zhan was quite submissive at first, after Zeng Ying's death, no one could suppress him. Who knows what he will become?
Sichuan Province is in chaos now, and even if Yang Zhan becomes like Ma Yingshi, Fan Yiheng will not be surprised at all.

Zhu Lang looked at the silent Fan Yiheng, waved his hand, and said

"Fan Qing is the one who knows the situation in Sichuan best. I am just saying this, so Fan Qing doesn't need to worry about it."

"I want to ask Fan Qing to go to Sichuan on my behalf. Guiyang is too far away, so I will go to Wujiang Pass."

"After entering Sichuan, Mr. Fan can order all the generals in Sichuan to come to Wujiang Pass for a meeting. If all the generals can come, that would be great. If some are unwilling to come, Mr. Fan can ask these generals what they want to see what conditions they want in order to cooperate with the court's actions in Sichuan Province."

Upon hearing this, Fan Yiheng immediately stood up and responded respectfully.

The Ming and Qing armies have already begun to confront each other outside Bozhou City. It will take time for Fan Yiheng to enter Sichuan, and it will also take time to contact the generals in Sichuan Province.
This matter could not be delayed, so Fan Yiheng only stayed in the city for half a day. The next morning, Fan Yiheng headed north under the protection of dozens of personal guards.
(End of this chapter)