Yongli Ming Dynasty

Chapter 317 Army Reorganization
Hengzhou government office, at this time it was the third day since the Ming army entered the city. In the hall, Zhu Lang sat at the top, with He Tengjiao, Zhang Kuang and other officials of the governor's office on his left, and Ma Jinzhong, Hao Yongzhong and other Huguang generals on his right.
On the left side of the hall, He Tengjiao sat on a chair with a pale face.
He Tengjiao had been guarding the city for two months and was already injured. After the Ming army arrived, He Tengjiao suddenly relaxed. On the night the Ming army entered the city, He Tengjiao caught a cold.

Zhu Lang discussed matters today and originally planned to let He Tengjiao rest in his mansion instead of coming.
But when He Tengjiao found out, he insisted on coming, saying that Huguang had been experiencing a series of major events this year and he was worried that Zhang Kuang and others could not report clearly. When Zhu Lang found out, he did not stop him.

However, He Tengjiao had a severe cold, and even his voice was hoarse when he spoke. At this time, Zhang Kuang was reporting in the hall, and He Tengjiao was listening on the sidelines, adding a few words from time to time.

Zhu Lang listened to Zhang Kuang's report while looking through the information summarized by the Jinyiwei. By comparing the two, he had a general understanding of the current situation in Hengzhou.

Without mentioning Huang Chaoxuan and Cao Zhijian, before the Qing army besieged the city, He Tengjiao had gathered 15,000 soldiers. After two months of siege, only 3,000 soldiers from Ma Jinzhong and Wang Yuncheng were left, 3,000 from Hao Yongzhong, 2,000 from Wang Jincai, and more than 1,000 from Hu Yiqing.
After the Qing army retreated, the Huguang Governor's Office, which was originally said to have hundreds of thousands of soldiers, was reduced to less than 10,000 people.
It is not accurate to say that there are only 10,000 people left. According to Zhang Kuang, Hao Yongzhong still has 10,000 troops in Chenzhou.

Just look at how Hao Yongzhong came to Hengzhou to fight with all his might, but he only brought 5,000 men with him, and left the 10,000-man army in Chenzhou, and you can see the quality of these people.

Zhang Kuang reported the situation of the Huguang army, and then began to report the rewards for defending the city.

Before the Qing army besieged the city, He Tengjiao opened a large number of salary officials and students, selling quotas to the gentry and common people in Hengzhou Prefecture to raise food and salary.

The so-called salary for officials and students actually meant that ordinary people were asked to spend money to buy official positions and to purchase student quotas at various levels such as prefectures, states, and counties.

He Tengjiao had used this method when he first entered Hunan Province, and it had long been a common method used by the Huguang Governor's Office to raise grain.
In the past, when the Huguang Governor's Office sold a position, it would directly issue a written confirmation and then report it to the court.

But now that His Royal Highness the Regent has come to Huguang in person, the Huguang Governor's Office naturally dares not act on its own and can only report one by one, and let His Royal Highness the Regent decide on the number of salary officers and students that have been sold, as well as the rewards for those who have made contributions in defending the city in this battle.
Zhu Lang glanced at the long list in his hand and unexpectedly found a few familiar names on the list. However, Zhu Lang did not ask any more questions and directly accepted the list.
If it were a peaceful time, most of these people who bought their positions with money would probably be evil and treacherous. But now, the people on the list are just the opposite. Most of them are probably loyal and righteous.
He Tengjiao was defeated and returned to Hengzhou. From the perspective of the people in Hunan Province, the Ming court was already in danger in Huguang at that time. It was hard to say when the Qing army would occupy the whole of Hunan.

Anyone who is willing to spend his wealth to buy an official position at this time can truly be called a loyal minister of the Ming Dynasty.

He Tengjiao and others below were relieved to see His Royal Highness the Regent approved the list of these officials and students. Zhu Lang then decided on the rewards for those who had made contributions in defending the city, and then looked at the group of Huguang military officials on the right.

The rewards from the Huguang Governor's Office are minor. The real focus of today's meeting is on Ma Jinzhong and other Huguang military commanders.

While Zhang Kuang was reporting on the situation in Hunan Province, Zhu Lang was also checking the intelligence collected by the Jinyifu on the various armies in Huguang.
The intelligence from the Jinyifu not only recorded the origins of Ma Jinzhong and others, but also recorded the various situations of the various groups of people in Hunan Province.

Zhu Lang put down the letter in his hand, glanced at Ma Jinzhong who was sitting upright on the right side below him, and said

"I heard that General Ma was a righteous soldier who surrendered to the imperial court, and was once a general under Zuo Liangyu?"

Ma Jinzhong's heart sank when he heard this. The so-called righteous army was actually bandits, and Zuo Liangyu also had no good reputation in the court.
When Ma Jinzhong heard His Royal Highness the Regent mention these two things, he felt uneasy, but he had no choice but to reply.

"Yes, in the eleventh year of Chongzhen, I was recruited by the imperial court, and since then I have been serving under Zuo Hou."

"As far as I know, when Zuo Menggeng surrendered to the Qing Dynasty, General Ma also surrendered with him. Why did he eventually choose to rebel against the Qing court and surrender to the imperial court?"

He Tengjiao and the others all looked at Ma Jinzhong after hearing this. Ma Jinzhong looked at the expressionless Regent and was silent for a moment before he spoke.

"Although I was once a great bandit, I also have an upright character. The Tartars occupied our Central Plains, enslaved our Ming people, and forced us Han people to shave our heads and keep braids. We Han people are the people of the Celestial Empire, why should we follow the barbaric customs of these Tartars?"

"Although I was born in the countryside, I also know the importance of defending against foreign invaders. The Tartars want to force us Han people to abandon our ancestors. This is a wolfish ambition. I cannot work for these Tartars."

Zhu Lang intended to recruit these people from Huguang into the army. Ma Jinzhong and Hao Yongzhong were both names that Zhu Lang had long recorded in his booklet. In their previous lives, they had never surrendered to the Qing court until their death.

Ma Jinzhong was relatively lucky, at least he died in the army before the fall of the Southern Ming Dynasty, but Hao Yongzhong, also known as Hao Yaoqi, had a much more tragic final fate.

Zhu Lang let the people of Huguang go this time, and all the officials in the court thought that he wanted to win over He Tengjiao, an important official of the frontier. However, Zhu Lang's real purpose was actually to get Ma Jinzhong and other military officials.
The Ming and Qing dynasties will inevitably fight each other in the future. Compared with He Tengjiao, a civil official, it is obvious that Ma Jinzhong and Hao Yongzhong, two military officials who have been verified by later generations and are capable of leading an army, are more important.
Although Ma Jinzhong and the other two stood firm, they were born as bandits and had a lot of problems. Killing, looting and torture were common things for them.

After reading the intelligence of several people, Zhu Lang originally planned to use their backgrounds to suppress these Huguang soldiers and then take away their military power. However, Zhu Lang did not expect Ma Jinzhong to say such a thing.

Zhu Lang thought for a moment and said

"I have heard people say that those who are loyal are usually butchers, and those who are unfaithful are usually scholars. When the government troops rebel and flee, the righteous thieves swear to defend the city to the death. This shows that there are loyal and righteous ministers everywhere in the countryside."

"He Qing was able to recruit you and others to serve under his command in Huguang, which can be regarded as recruiting some useful people for the court."

Everyone in the field was relieved when they heard this. Hao Yongzhong and Wang Jincai below had a gleam in their eyes and their minds were turning rapidly, thinking of a response. They were ready to stand in front of His Highness when the Regent came down to ask questions.

But Zhu Lang only glanced at the two of them and passed them by. Zhu Lang asked Ma Jinzhong because he was really curious. However, the situation of Hao Yongzhong and the other two was clearly written in the intelligence of Jinyifu.

One of them was in an illegitimate position, and the other took advantage of the chaos to fight with his general and annex his people. These two had no choice but to surrender to the Ming Dynasty.
Zhu Lang glanced at the people below, and without hesitation, he spoke

"I said in front of the city gate the other day that the affairs of Hunan Province will be forgiven. Since you can defend Hengzhou to the death, you will be formal generals of the imperial court in the future, and there is no need to worry about your background."

"But the court wants to march north and recover, so the army can no longer be as disorganized as before."

"I will give you two choices. First, you will resign from your military duties, and the soldiers in the army will be disbanded and reorganized. You can all be made barons, and then return to the court with me to become rich and noble officials."

"Secondly, you will continue to hold your original positions and command your soldiers, but the court will need to send missionaries to the army to supervise them."

"You choose for yourself"

Ma Jinzhong and the others all changed their expressions when they heard this. It seemed that the court had given them two choices, but in fact, no matter which one they chose, they would lose their military power.

However, they had no power to refuse at this time. They had also secretly observed the imperial guards entering the city. Every one of the 20,000 imperial guards was fully armored, and there were countless artillery pieces in the army. If the court wanted to, it could forcibly seize their military power at any time.
The court is very sincere in offering these two conditions.

"We are willing to continue to lead the army and serve Your Highness and the court."

Ma Jinzhong and his companions were silent for a moment, but finally decided to stay in the army.

These people have fought for most of their lives. To put it bluntly, if they can no longer lead the army, they will probably not be able to sleep well at night.
Zhu Lang heard this and a hint of satisfaction flashed across his face. He looked at Hu Yiqing, who was sitting at the end of the seat, and said, "I have also heard He Qing's report about General Hu. He came thousands of miles to help, first fighting in Jiangxi Province and then in Hunan Province. His loyalty and diligence are rare."

"General Hu, are you planning to return home now, or do you want to stay and continue fighting for your country? The court will still have frequent wars in the future, and it would be a pity if the general returns home now."

"I am a general of the imperial court and I shall serve the imperial court. I am willing to follow Your Highness and continue to fight for the country."

Hu Yiqing did not hesitate at all, he stood up and replied respectfully, Hu Yiqing wanted to return home before, that was because the situation in Jiangxi and Hunan provinces was bad, and it seemed that they were about to collapse.
But at this time, His Highness the Regent personally led the army, and the Eastern Tartars fled before they even fought. The situation in the court was obviously very good, and His Highness personally tried to keep them. Everyone knew what to do now.

Zhu Lang nodded slightly after hearing this. Hu Yiqing was also someone Zhu Lang had already decided on.
In the past, apart from Li Dingguo and Ma Bao, there were very few Ming court generals who could leave a decent record of military success. The first one was Jiao Lian, and after Jiao Lian, there were Hu Yiqing and other people from the Yunnan camp.
Zhu Lang seemed to be giving Hu Yiqing a choice, but in fact he didn't give him a chance to refuse. His Highness the Regent praised you for your loyalty and diligence, so how could he allow a minister like you to give up and return home?

Zhu Lang waved his hand, asked Hu Yiqing to sit down, then looked at Ma Jinzhong and others and said

"Do you know the Tengxiang Army's horse treasure?"

"We have heard of the reputation of Duke Huai."

Upon hearing this, Ma Jinzhong immediately replied that since the news of the Ming court's great victory in Fujian and Zhejiang spread, the three imperial guards of the Ming court also began to fall into the sight of all parties. At this time, the origins of the commanders of the three imperial guards of the Ming court were no longer a secret to those who were interested in the world.

The three commanders of the imperial guards of the Ming court, Jiao Lian and Li Mingzhong, are both Ming generals of good origin, and they are also military officials who first advocated and supported the establishment of the throne. It is natural for them to lead the two imperial guards.
The most peculiar among the three is Ma Bao of Tengxiang Army. He was born as a bandit, then surrendered to the Qing Dynasty, and finally to the Ming Dynasty.
It was puzzling to all parties that such a person with such a complicated background could suddenly become the commander of the third imperial army of the Ming court in a short period of time.
In fact, the reason why Ma Jinzhong and others decided to defend Hengzhou was also due to Ma Bao.
No matter how much chance and opportunity Ma Bao had in becoming the commander of the Tengxiang Imperial Army, or how much the times helped him, Ma Bao eventually became one of the top three high-ranking military officials in the Ming court as a bandit.

The Ming court was willing to use Ma Bao, which proved that Ma Jinzhong and other bandits who were born as bandits would also have the opportunity to stand out in the Ming court in the future. This was one of the important reasons why Ma Jinzhong and others did not choose to abandon the city and defend themselves.
Zhu Lang continued to speak at this time

"Since you know, then I don't need to say more. I have said that the court does not look at family background, but only looks at loyalty and ability. The Duke of Huai's family background is similar to yours, so you should also encourage yourselves with the Duke of Huai's example."

"Duke Huai will lead the army to retake Hunan Province. You can go find Duke Huai and serve under his command."

"During this expedition to the southwest, all the imperial guards in the court have suffered losses. The court is also looking for suitable soldiers to supplement the imperial guards. You should do your best to accompany the army on this expedition. If you can be selected into the imperial guards, your future will be better after all."

"Yes, we will do our best to make new contributions to the court."

Ma Jinzhong and the others were moved when they heard this, and then they all responded.
At this time, the reward for the Huguang Governor's Office had been decided, and Ma Jinzhong and other Huguang soldiers had been successfully reorganized. He Tengjiao and others also bowed and left.
Hao Shangjiu collected food and money in Hengzhou that day, and then led the cavalry to chase after the Qing army, hoping to tie up the main force of the Qing army again.

Hao Shangjiu rushed all the way and finally caught up with the rear of the Qing army at Leijiabu. Seeing that more than 5,000 soldiers in the rear of the Qing army were without any armor and their formation was in disarray, Hao Shangjiu led his men to charge directly and defeated the 5,000 Green Camp Qing army in one fell swoop.

But these 5,000 people were actually bait set up by Kong Youde. Hao Shangjiu led his men to pursue the remaining soldiers, but they were led into the mountains and ambushed during the pursuit.
Although Hao Shangjiu realized it very quickly, he had already stepped into the encirclement. The Qing army's camp artillery set up in the mountains fired in unison, instantly killing nearly a hundred cavalrymen at the forefront of the Ming army.

Geng Zhongming led 3,000 Liaodong veterans and rushed out from the mountains to block the Ming army's way back, but fortunately the Ming army noticed the ambush in advance and had not yet completely entered the mountains.
Hao Shangjiu led the cavalry to charge and finally broke through the encirclement after suffering 500 to 600 casualties.

But Kong Youde did not want to let this elite Ming army cavalry go. As soon as Hao Shangjiu led his men out of the mountain pass, they were chased by 2,000 Liaodong cavalry led by Xian Guoan.
At this time, the Ming army had just been ambushed and did not dare to turn back to fight, so they could only flee.

Xian Guoan led his men in pursuit, and more and more Ming troops fled and fell behind. Just when Hao Shangjiu decided to turn back and fight, Li Dingguo's 3,000 cavalry finally arrived and frightened away the 2,000 Qing troops led by Xian Guoan.
The Loyalty Camp also had 3,000 cavalrymen at this time, 1,000 of whom rode Liao horses allocated by the court, and the other 2,000 rode Dian horses.

The troops returning from Yunnan Province brought back not only the gold, silver, jade and other precious stones they had seized, but also a lot of local products from Yunnan Province.
The Tengxiang Army also brought back a lot of Yunnan horses, but they only used them as auxiliary horses to carry baggage, while Li Dingguo trained them into cavalry.

Hao Shangjiu led his troops to underestimate the enemy and advance rashly. This ambush caused the Tengxiang Cavalry, which had finally increased to 3,000 people, to fall back to just over 2,000.

Ma Bao was also very angry when he learned about this. Hao Shangjiu, who was the general who led a battalion of thousands of people, was directly demoted to a captain who only commanded a hundred people.

Although the Ming army's pursuit was frustrated, it did not affect the Ming army's action to recover Hunan Province.
After the grain and money from Yongzhou arrived in Hengzhou, Ma Bao once again led Tengxiang, Zhongyi Camp, and the newly established Xiang Camp, totaling 30,000 people, and began to march towards Changsha.

When the Ming army arrived at Hengshan City, the Qing army had already abandoned the city and evacuated. Ma Bao left hundreds of soldiers to guard Hengshan, and then continued to lead the army forward.
When the Ming army arrived at Xiangtan, there were no soldiers in the city. The Qing army had obviously withdrawn its troops and was ready to defend Changsha with all its strength.
After the Ming army occupied Xiangtan, they quickly arrived at the city of Changsha. At the top of Changsha City, the Ming army finally saw the Qing soldiers defending the city.
After the Ming army arrived at Changsha, they did not attack. For five days, they only dug trenches outside the city and challenged the Qing army in the city to fight. Kong Youde and his men finally retreated into Changsha. It was impossible for them to abandon the city wall and fight the Ming army in the field.
Although the Qing army successfully ambushed the Ming army in Hengshan, Kong Youde also discovered the elite of the Ming imperial guards during the ambush.

The Ming cavalry was first bombarded by artillery fire, and then ambushed by the enemy. However, they were able to escape without causing any chaos. Compared with the elite troops of the Qing court, these brave soldiers were no match for them.
The Ming army had been at the gates of the city for five days without any attack. On the fifth day, the Ming army suddenly brought out five 3,000-jin red heavy cannons and began to test fire.

The Qing army evacuated in advance, and when they retreated to Changsha City, there were still more than 25,000 people. But for some reason, Kong Youde and others suddenly divided their troops.

Kong Youde and Geng Zhongming led 2,000 Liaodong veterans, 10,000 Green Camp soldiers, and 10 heavy artillery pieces to stay in Changsha, while the rest of the troops, led by Kong Tingxun and Geng Jimao, continued to retreat to Xiangyin.
When the Ming army tested the artillery on the first day, the Qing army on the city immediately counterattacked with heavy artillery. However, after only one day, the Ming army had five more heavy artillery pieces. After another day, five more were added.
After the Ming army surrounded the city, they did not attack the city at all, but bombarded the city walls with artillery day and night.
While the Ming army was bombarding the city wall, they sent a detachment to capture Ningxiang and Liuyang on the left and right sides of Changsha, and at the same time used cavalry to cut off the Qing army's food supply route in the direction of Xiangyin.
On the tenth day of the Ming army's siege, there were already thirty artillery pieces under the city, and the number was still increasing steadily at a rate of five pieces per day.
Changsha is an important city in Hunan Province, and its walls are extremely thick. After days of bombardment, the walls of Changsha were only slightly damaged.

However, under the continuous artillery bombardment of the Ming army day and night, the Ming army attacked Changsha South Gate. Except for the Liaodong Old Camp under Kong Youde, the ordinary Green Camp soldiers did not dare to defend on the city wall.

Kong Youde and his companions finally had no more luck. On the twelfth day of the Ming army's siege, Kong Youde seized all the horses and mules in the city. At dawn, Kong Youde and his companions blew up ten red-haired heavy artillery in the city, and then led 5,000 soldiers to escape from the north gate.

After dawn, the remaining 7,000 Green Camp soldiers in the city found that Kong Youde and others had fled, and there was an instant chaos. The remaining 7,000 Green Camp soldiers immediately cut off their pigtails and opened the city to surrender.

These people were the Ming army from Huguang half a year ago. Kong Youde had already fled now. If they didn't surrender, would they really work for the Tartars to defend the city?

After Ma Bao discovered that these Green Camp soldiers were all from the Huguang Ming army, he only left a thousand or so as prisoners of war, and then continued to lead the main force northward, chasing the Qing army.

Changsha and Xiangyin were occupied by the Qing army less than half a year ago. Although the Qing army forced the people in the city to shave their heads with knives, the people in the city were very resentful. Seeing the Ming army attacking, the people in Xiangyin and other cities were already in turmoil.

Kong Youde and his men had abandoned an important city like Changsha, so they naturally did not expect to be able to stop the Ming army in Xiangyin.

After Kong Youde and his men fled back to Xiangyin, they joined Shang Kexi who had just withdrawn from Changde. The 30,000 Qing troops used gunpowder to blow down the Xiangyin city wall, and then abandoned the city again and fled north to Yuezhou.
When the Ming army arrived at Xiangyin, there was no soldier in Xiangyin, so the Ming army occupied Xiangyin.

Ma Bao ordered the Ming army to rest for a while in Xiangyin City, and then marched again, heading straight to Yuezhou City.

Yuezhou is the gateway to Hunan and Hubei. If Hubei Province gains Yuezhou, it can easily attack Hunan Province. If Hunan Province gains Yuezhou, it can also attack Hubei Province.
After the Ming army surrounded Yuezhou City, they did not attack the city. Instead, they set up camp and set up artillery as they did in Changsha, and began to bombard the city walls day and night.
Yuezhou was also a big city. Although the Ming army had many artillery pieces, they were unable to blast open the city walls in a short period of time. After Kong Youde and his men retreated to Yuezhou, they finally did not dare to retreat any further and only wanted to defend Yuezhou.

The Ming and Qing dynasties were facing off in the cities under Yuezhou, and the battle in Jingzhou was also at its most intense.

(End of this chapter)