Anti-Qing: Starting from the Jintian Uprising

Chapter 299 Shi Dakai vs Yi

Henan, Zhangde Prefecture!

Outside Zhangde Prefecture, flags covered the sky, forming a continuous mass.

The elite Taiping Army soldiers with yellow turbans on their heads stood in formation, each holding a sword, spear, or musket, with their chests puffed out and their bellies protruding, looking very majestic.

Under the gaze of countless people, a cloud of smoke appeared at the end of the distant horizon.

The sound of horse hooves rumbled, and in the blink of an eye, a large stone flag with words fluttering in the wind appeared in front of everyone.

Under the big flag, Shi Dakai rode on horseback and galloped over.

Seeing Shi Dakai approaching, Shi Xiangzhen took the initiative to step forward a few steps and spoke without waiting for him to stop his horse.

"I respectfully welcome King Yi."

"Long live the Wing King!"

Shi Dakai dismounted from his horse and reached out to help Shi Xiangzhen up.

"How is the battle situation in Damingfu?"

"Have our vanguards made any progress?"

Upon hearing this, Shi Xiangzhen replied with a slightly serious expression.

"In reply to King Yi, after our vanguard reached Daming Prefecture, they encountered a stubborn resistance from the Qing monsters."

"At present, our army is stuck in front of Damingfu and has not yet achieved any results. However, the Qing army has attempted to organize a counterattack several times, but they were all beaten back by our army."

Shi Dakai nodded to show that he understood, and then said.

"Pass my order and call all the generals to discuss the matter!"

"Discuss the Northern Expedition to the capital!"

It is obvious that the reason why Shi Dakai personally led the main force of the Taiping Army to Zhangde Prefecture this time was for the next step of the northern expedition to the capital.

When he first launched the Eastern Expedition, Shi Dakai only wanted to capture Luoyang or Kaifeng, to avenge Hong Xiuquan and accumulate further political prestige for himself.

But he didn't expect that the Qing army in Henan was so vulnerable.

Under the attack of the Taiping Army, Shanzhou and Luoyang were taken almost in one go without encountering any obstacles.

Then Shi Dakai began to think: since the Qing army in Henan was so weak now, why not try to continue the expedition to the east?
In case of failure, the only option is to retreat to Tongguan.

But if it succeeds, he will make a lot of money.

Therefore, after taking Luoyang, Shi Dakai did not rush to move forward, but instead led his troops to continue the eastward expedition.

Afterwards, Huaiqing, Kaifeng, Weihui, Zhangde and other prefectures were also captured in one battle.

Seeing that the war was going so smoothly, Shi Dakai began to have another idea.

Since the battle in Henan went so smoothly, can we also give it a try in Zhili?
Then, the Taiping Army's vanguard launched an attack on Daming Prefecture.

After the vanguard tested and confirmed that the fighting capacity of the Qing army in Zhili was just so-so, Shi Dakai made a very decisive decision.

Northern Expedition to Zhili, recapture the capital!
If the capital could be recovered, the political capital that would be brought in would go beyond simply allowing Shi Dakai to take a step forward.

As soon as Shi Dakai finished speaking, Shi Xiangzhen beside him immediately clasped his fists in response, then turned around to convey the order.

Not long after, all the Taiping Army generals arrived at the Zhangde government office.

After everyone arrived, Shi Dakai walked up to a hanging map and began to speak.

"Tianjing fell, and the Heavenly King died tragically at the hands of the Qing demons. This is a shame for our Heavenly Kingdom."

"This time, I will lead you all into the capital to avenge the Heavenly King."

"Kill the Qing monsters and live in peace!"

Upon hearing this, all the generals of the Kingdom of Heaven shouted in unison.

"Kill the Qing monsters and live in peace!"

"Kill the Qing monsters and live in peace!"

"..."

Shi Dakai raised his hand to signal everyone to be quiet, and then continued.

"According to reliable information, the Qing demons have already discovered our Heavenly Kingdom's plan to march north to the capital, and they are not sitting idly by."

"Qing Yao Chieftain Yi will personally lead the main force of Qing Yao to come and stop our Heavenly Kingdom's offensive."

As he spoke, Shi Dakai used charcoal to outline the Qing army's marching route on the map.

"According to intelligence, the Qing army that came to stop our heavenly soldiers this time mainly consists of three parts."

"One is the Green Camp soldiers from Shanxi, Zhili, and Shandong provinces."

"The second is the militia that has just been organized in Shanxi and Shandong provinces."

"The third is the Eight Banners New Army that the Qing government recently organized and trained."

"Among them, the total number of Green Camp soldiers in Shanxi, Shandong, and Zhili provinces is about 50,000, the militia has about 20,000 soldiers, and the Eight Banners New Army has 20,000 soldiers."

"There are 90,000 troops in total. The Qing government claims that there are 300,000 troops. They are advancing towards Damingfu."

"And our army currently only has 60,000 men capable of fighting."

"In this battle, our army does not have an advantage in terms of manpower."

"Generals, please tell me, how should our army meet the enemy?"

As soon as Shi Dakai finished speaking, Shi Xiangzhen began to speak.

"Your Majesty, I think the invading Qing army is nothing to be afraid of."

"Although the Qing army has 90,000 troops on paper, this is only on paper. Apart from other things, the phenomenon of soldiers in the Green Camp of the Qing army eating empty salaries is not uncommon."

"The 50,000 Green Camp soldiers are just a figure on paper. The actual strength is only half of that, about 20,000 to 30,000."

"Not to mention the militias. According to the intelligence our army has obtained so far, the militias of the Qing army were newly formed."

"Lack of training, lack of equipment, lack of combat experience, nothing to be feared."

"In this battle, the only Qing army that can pose a threat to our army is just their so-called Eight Banners New Army."

Shi Xiangzhen was very open-minded and did not take the Qing army too seriously.

In the battle of Jiangning years ago, the Tang army almost wiped out all the elite troops of the Qing army.

To put it bluntly, the current Qing army is almost entirely a mob. There are threats, but not many!

The fact that the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom's Eastern Expedition went so smoothly is the most powerful proof.

Upon hearing this, Shi Dakai said.

"That being said, even a lion will do its best to fight a rabbit, so we should not underestimate the threat of the Qing army."

"Let alone the Eight Banners New Army, they are definitely not easy to deal with!"

As a qualified general, Shi Dakai was able to clearly realize the threat posed by the Eight Banners New Army.

The Eight Banners New Army is the current focus of the Qing court. Even without mentioning its training methods and the Western-style warfare and tactics it uses, the fact that the Eight Banners New Army has sufficient food and wages is enough for Shi Dakai to pay attention to.

An army with sufficient food and wages is bound to have strong combat effectiveness!
Huang Yukun spoke.

"King Yi is right."

"After all, the Qing Yao chieftain is leading the expedition personally this time, and the troops he mobilized must be the elite among the Qing Yao."

"It's not too much for us to be more careful."

Shi Dakai nodded slightly, then began to give orders for the battle.

"In this battle, Xiangzhen's troops will be the vanguard. Immediately move forward to Daming Prefecture and capture Daming Prefecture before the Qing army's reinforcements arrive."

"Chen Yun, Wang Zhan, the two of you will be responsible for commanding the left and right armies respectively, and attack Guangping Prefecture and Dongchang Prefecture respectively, and prepare to meet the Qing army reinforcements from Shandong and Shanxi respectively."

"And I will personally lead the main force of the army to enter Daming Prefecture and engage in a decisive battle with the main force of the Qing army."

"In this battle, we must defeat the Qing army!"

Upon hearing this, all the generals clasped their fists in agreement, then took their leave and prepared to carry out their orders.

Shi Dakai also turned his gaze to the north, towards the direction of the capital, and muttered to himself.

Capital, I, Shi Dakai, am here!

……

Beijing, Deshengmen!

The main force of the Qing army marched out of the city in a mighty manner.

The Eight Banners New Army, wearing new uniforms, leggings, and carrying muskets, marched out of the city gate.

Boom!dong dong!

Wow! Wow!
These new troops of the Eight Banners followed their past training and marched in unison to the beat of drums, with neat formations and a mighty military presence.

Although the Eight Banners New Army at this time had never experienced the test of war, just looking at its formation, it did have a bit of an elite flavor.

Yi, wearing a cotton armor and riding on horseback, slowly walked out of the city gate surrounded by a group of imperial guards in yellow jackets.

After leaving the city, Yi looked back at the towering city walls of the capital. He took a deep breath, and it seemed as if a ball of blood was boiling in his chest.

He Yi must win this battle!
Yi led the Eight Banners New Army and slowly marched out of the capital, heading towards Daming Prefecture in a mighty manner.

When he reached Baoding, bad news came from the front line.

Shengbao rode his horse up to Yi and began to report.

"Report!"

"Your Majesty, bad news has come from the front. The long-haired bandit fake King Yi has personally led the main force of the long-haired bandits to attack Daming Prefecture."

"Daming, Guangping, and Dongchang fell one after another. Shunde and Jizhou are in danger..."

Upon hearing this, Yi couldn't help but look solemn and felt heavy in his heart.

But he still forced himself to suppress his surging emotions and spoke.

"Send a message to the reinforcements from Shanxi and Shandong, asking them to speed up their march and meet up in Baoding as soon as possible."

After giving the order to urge reinforcements, Yi once again ordered the Eight Banners New Army led by him and the Zhili Green Camp to speed up their march.

Go to Baoding as soon as possible!

……

Soon, Shi Dakai, who was in Daming Prefecture, learned of the movements of the Qing army.

He stood in front of a map and held another military meeting.

"According to the current situation, the Qing army has not yet completed its assembly."

"The reinforcements from Shanxi are moving through Pingding Prefecture and Zhengding Prefecture towards Baoding Prefecture."

"And the reinforcements from Shandong will move through Jinan and Hejian towards Baoding."

"If I am not mistaken, the Qing demons should first prepare to gather in Baoding Prefecture before heading south to fight against our heavenly soldiers."

After talking about the strategic purpose of the Qing army, Shi Dakai slammed the table and spoke.

"But, I will not let him have his way!"

"Send a message to Shi Xiangzhen's troops, and have him lead our cavalry to attack the Qing reinforcements in the direction of Shandong immediately."

"And annihilate them!"

"The rest of the troops should immediately send troops to threaten Zhengding Prefecture and Baoding Prefecture to contain the rest of the Qing army and prevent them from withdrawing troops to reinforce the Shandong army."

"Support Shi Xiangzhen's troops and complete the plan to annihilate the Qing monsters in Shandong!"

Shi Dakai’s idea was very simple. Instead of waiting for the various Qing troops to gather together before fighting, he should just fight.

It would be better to defeat them one by one before they have completed their assembly.

If the Taiping Army could annihilate part of the Qing army in Shandong or Shanxi, or even completely wipe out both, before the decisive battle began.

Then, in the next decisive battle, the Taiping Army’s probability of winning will greatly increase.

Upon hearing this, all the Taiping Army generals clasped their fists in agreement.

Shi Xiangzhen stood up and said.

"Don't worry, King Yi. I will ensure that the mission is accomplished!"

"If anything unexpected happens, I will bring my head to you!"

(End of this chapter)