Chinese martial arts! Grandmaster

The fire in Jiujiang Prefecture burned for almost a day.

The fire was not extinguished until the early morning of the following day.

Tang Manjin's final move, though a suicidal act, successfully prevented Ximentang from pursuing Hong Chaoge's troops.

But at the same time, it also thoroughly enraged Chen Jie.

Under Chen Jie's command, the 110,000-strong army of Ximentang entered the firefighting and rescue operation.

All we can do is rescue a large number of innocent people in Bali Lake and other areas where the fire is weaker.

As for the areas where the fire was raging, Ximen Tang's elite troops were unable to advance and could only wait for it to burn out.

All the city gates and checkpoints of Jiujiang Prefecture were opened.

Whether they were innocent civilians or defeated soldiers defending the city.

Chen Jie no longer cared about the other person's identity; whether they could escape alive depended on their own fate.

This man-made disaster is destined to cause heavy casualties in Jiujiang Prefecture.

Ximentang built a huge refugee camp five miles outside the city.

Meanwhile, Simon's military medical team was stationed in the refugee camp to treat all innocent civilians.

Huang Mingsun, the former prefect, demonstrated exceptional coordination skills at this moment.

Under his arrangement,

The entire refugee camp was operating smoothly and efficiently.

Surprisingly, there was no panic whatsoever regarding the provision of various medical supplies, the arrangements for refugees, and the treatment of the injured.

have to say,

This former prefect of Jiujiang Prefecture was indeed quite capable.

No wonder Zeng Xuanhuai and Xu Shichang both recommended this person to Chen Jie; it seems the rumors were true.

After pursuing Hong Chaoge and the Kwantung Army's special operations vanguard battalion for fifty miles, they confirmed that Hong Chaoge was fleeing to Nanchang Prefecture.

When the Kwantung Army was about 20 miles outside the south gate of Jiujiang Prefecture, they suddenly changed direction and fled towards Wuchang Prefecture.

After receiving Chen Jie's order, the Special Operations Vanguard Battalion returned to Jiujiang Prefecture.

The next morning, as Chen Jie stepped into Jiujiang Prefecture and walked through the burned ruins and rubble-strewn streets, a surge of anger rose within him once more.

The entire Jiujiang Prefecture suffered heavy losses, and almost no intact houses could be seen.

Everywhere there were walls blackened by soot, and black smoke continued to rise from the ruins of collapsed houses.

A gust of wind blew by, and dust filled the air.

Walking on the streets of Jiujiang Prefecture was almost suffocating, and one's clothes were quickly covered with a thick layer of black ash.

Chen Jie's face turned ashen. From some of the captured defeated soldiers, he finally learned that the burning of Jiujiang Prefecture was all arranged by Tang Manjin.

The culprit, Tang Manjin, died in the fire and was burned to ashes.

Chen Jie stood on the street, looking at everything around him, his anger had nowhere to go, and he only felt a kind of toothache-like frustration.

Standing on the streets covered in black ash, looking at the devastated Jiujiang Prefecture, he felt helpless.

He never expected the battle of Jiujiang Prefecture to end like this.

Although they won the battle and quickly occupied the area.

but,

But he just couldn't be happy.

It would take several years for Jiujiang Prefecture to recover to its former glory, even if it were to be rebuilt.

This raging fire destroyed the foundation of Jiujiang Prefecture and left tens of thousands of innocent people homeless.

The official household register of Jiujiang Prefecture was also reduced to ashes by the fire.

If we want to rebuild it in the future, we will need to recreate the household registration list again.

According to some surviving officials, the garrison in Jiujiang Prefecture numbered 200,000.

Of the 20,000 men under Hong Chaoge's command, 50,000 men from the Kwantung Army left, and of the remaining 130,000 defenders, more than 30,000 were burned to death in the fire.

Another 50,000 or so defeated soldiers fled Jiujiang Prefecture, while the rest chose to surrender.

The most tragic victims were the people of Jiujiang Prefecture. After being engulfed by the fire, they had nowhere to retreat and ultimately became victims of this raging inferno.

According to preliminary calculations, the fire started by Tang Manjin resulted in the deaths of more than 100,000 innocent civilians.

The Ximentang refugee camp outside the city received more than 500,000 people.

After fleeing Jiujiang Prefecture, many more civilians dared not enter the military camps, but instead fled into the mountains, fearing they would be captured again and used as cannon fodder.

"Damn it—!"

Chen Jie couldn't help but curse.

Ximentang has been established for more than two years and has fought countless battles.

From the Dagu Fortress in Tianjin, to Cangzhou in Hebei, then to Shandong, eastern Zhejiang, Songjiang Prefecture, Nanjing, southern Jiangsu, and finally the capital.

Conquer cities and seize territories, invincible in battle!
To Chen Jie's surprise, this capture of Jiujiang Prefecture was the most brutal one yet.

Even under the intense bombardment of the capital, Li Feihu, under the command of Prince Ning, was defeated and retreated from the capital.

He did not burn the city or do anything heinous to the people.

Therefore,
After Ximen Tang captured the capital, he recovered quickly without expending a lot of manpower and resources.

Even the streets and main houses of the capital city did not suffer any severe damage.

but,

Everything in Jiujiang Prefecture overturned Chen Jie's understanding.

If I had to describe this place, there would only be two words—horrific!
When Hong Chaoge was stationed in Jiujiang Prefecture, he had already looted everything in the city that he could.

The ten thousand silver dollars that Tang Manjin paid to his elite troops were all stolen.

Even more terrifying, a fire burned down Jiujiang Prefecture.

The reconstruction of Jiujiang Prefecture in the coming period will be very difficult and may even bring a huge burden to Ximen Hall and the Daqian Dynasty.

Not only was it necessary to build houses and repair city walls, but also to bring in a large influx of people.

The only advantage is that Jiujiang Prefecture is the largest hub on the Yangtze River, with convenient waterway transportation.

Ximentang can transport a large amount of supplies from various places to this place.

in addition,

If a factory is established in Jiujiang Prefecture, the materials produced can be easily transported to various parts of the Great Qian Dynasty.

call--!
Thinking of this, Chen Jie let out a long breath.

At this moment, he felt boundless hatred for Hong Chaoge and Tang Manjin.

He was not familiar with Tang Manjin before, and had never even heard of him.

We now know that this person is from the Tang family in the capital. After Ximen Tang occupied the capital last time, he wiped out some stubborn aristocratic families.

The Tang family was among those targeted for extermination; over three hundred members of the Tang family were executed.

of course,

These matters were not initiated by Chen Jie, but were handled by Huang Zhidao of the Imperial Household Department.

After learning about Tang Manjin's act of burning down Jiujiang Prefecture, Chen Jie finally understood why Tang Manjin had become so crazy.

Although Tang Manjin had the opportunity to escape, he chose to stay and perish together with the enemy.

Chen Jie was furious at his actions.

Compared to Li Feihu, who served under Prince Ning, Li Mu, Tang Manjin was simply insane.

Whether it's fighting on the battlefield or vying for power in the imperial court, winning and losing are normal occurrences.

The Tang family wanted to rise to prominence and climb the social ladder, but they chose the wrong side. Before they even started choosing sides, they should have been prepared for the entire family to be wiped out.

but,

Tang Manjin's actions, which resulted in the deaths of so many innocent people in Jiujiang Prefecture, have truly reached a point of utter depravity.

Even if Tang Manjin had used all sorts of vicious tactics on the battlefield and killed countless Ximentang elites, Chen Jie wouldn't have been so furious.

But his current actions have already lost all humanity.

this moment,
Chen Jie secretly reminded himself that he must be prepared in advance for any battle in the future.

Especially when attacking a city, infiltration from both inside and outside is essential to ensure success.

Otherwise, you might encounter those heartless and insane people who, for their own selfish reasons, drag the entire city's innocent inhabitants down with them.

Tang Manjin's burning of the city served as a lesson for Ximentang.

"I'll give you enough funds, including bringing in manpower from Qingzhou, Shandong for the reconstruction. How long do you need to restore this place?"

Chen Jie took a deep breath and asked with a profound look in his eyes.

Huang Mingsun, who was standing next to Chen Jie, was taken aback upon hearing this, and then glanced around.

Aside from his personal guards, he was the only person around him.

At that moment, he realized that the Prince Qian was speaking to him.

obviously,
The Prince of Qian asked himself this question because he wanted to test his abilities.

Huang Mingsun suppressed his excitement, considered for a moment, and then looked up to answer:
"The urban area of ​​Jiujiang Prefecture has suffered severe damage this time, and it will take at least three years to recover."

Chen Jie thought for a moment, his gaze fixed on Huang Mingsun, lost in thought.

After a while,
He looked up at Huang Mingsun and said, "One year! I can only give you one year!"

"I will give you two million silver dollars and have the canal gang send ten construction teams over to build a cement plant and a brick factory in Jiujiang Prefecture. I will also exempt Jiujiang Prefecture from taxes for ten years."

"One year from now, you must make Jiujiang Prefecture prosperous."

"In the coming period, the Ministry of War of the Great Qian Dynasty will station 50,000 troops in Jiujiang Prefecture to ensure that this place will no longer be affected by any war."

If the 50,000 elite troops of the new army of the Daqian Ministry of War were stationed in Jiujiang Prefecture and fortifications were built.

Other armies would need at least ten times the number of troops to conquer Jiujiang Prefecture.

Huang Mingsun hesitated for a moment, then bowed slightly and said:
"Your Majesty, I will do my utmost to accomplish this!" Half an hour later.

Chen Jie arrived at Tang Manjin's residence, the place where the fire was first started.

but,

The surrounding area was pitch black, having long since been burned to ashes.

Chen Jie took a deep breath and gave the order:

"Erect a stone tablet here and inscribe the burning of Jiujiang Prefecture on it. At the same time, place the statue of Tang Manjin kneeling on the ground in front of the stone tablet."

"I want future generations to be warned, to despise him forever, and to make him infamous for ten thousand years!"

Huang Mingsun nodded and said, "Understood, I will arrange for someone to take care of it immediately!"

finished,

Chen Jie turned and left.

Back in the military camp tent, Liu Qi and Xu Xiaodao were both waiting for him.

Since entering Jiujiang Prefecture, the two have been busy all day, directing rescue work and arranging the lives of refugees, etc.

Chen Jie asked, "Is everything almost done?"

Xu Xiaodao nodded and said:
"The defenses of Jiujiang Prefecture are complete, the city walls are being repaired, and our garrison at Ximen Hall has completed its defenses."

"The refugees inside the city have been moved outside the city. We have notified the Canal Gang and Tongbeimen that supplies and manpower will be arranged to come here next."

Chen Jie nodded, then sighed and said:

"Let's arrange things in Jiujiang Prefecture like this. Xiaodao, your troops have suffered heavy casualties recently. For the time being, you will stay in Jiujiang Prefecture to rest and recuperate, and assist Lord Huang Mingsun in rebuilding Jiujiang Prefecture."

"This is a strategic location connecting Huainan, Nanjing, Hanzhong, and southern Jiangxi. Ximentang needs to develop this place into a crucial military stronghold."

The battle of Jiujiang Prefecture has ended.

Although the losses in this battle were enormous, with the entire Jiujiang Prefecture almost burned down.

but,

Ximentang has achieved its strategic objective, occupying the most important military route.

Ximentang has begun to deploy its forces across the entire Hanzhong region.

Press the attack and take Wuchang!
Chen Jie set off from Jinling, personally leading a large army to support the Hanzhong region, but his purpose was not limited to Jiujiang Prefecture.

He completely annihilated the Kwantung Army in the Hanzhong region.

and,

This suppression of the rebellion in the Hanzhong region is in line with the current interests of the Ximen Hall from every perspective.

Chen Jie wanted to quell the rebellion within the Daqian Dynasty as quickly as possible.

On the one hand, it was to stabilize the situation of the Great Qian Dynasty so that Ximentang could free up his resources to expand outwards.

On the other hand, it is imperative to completely eliminate the 300,000 Kwantung Army troops who have infiltrated the Great Qian Dynasty.

therefore,

Hong Chaoge led his army to Nanchang Prefecture and then directly to the Guangdong and Guangxi regions. Chen Jie did not send troops to pursue him.

At least for the time being, he has no plans to deal with Hong Chaoge.

Judging from the current situation of the Great Qian Dynasty, although Prince Ning, Li Mu, is entrenched in the Northwest, Prince Shu, Li Chuang, is ambitious and wants to expand towards Hanzhong and other places.

but,

The main forces of the two major vassal kings remained stationed in Xiangyang, holding their positions.

Especially since Prince Ning, Li Mu, still has his main force, his fighting power should not be underestimated, and it will not be easy to attack Xiangyang.

therefore,

Attacking Wuchang Prefecture was the wisest choice.

After the Japanese occupied Wuchang Prefecture, Prince Ning, Li Mu, and Prince Shu, Li Chuang, both observed the situation.

As long as Ximen Tang takes Wuchang Prefecture and defeats the Guandong Army, he will definitely be able to deter the two major vassal kings and prevent them from making any rash moves.

Although Xiangyang was the largest strategic location in the central part of the Great Qian Dynasty.

but,

This place is open on all sides, making it easy to attack but difficult to defend.

If Wuchang Prefecture can be used as a major rear base, then Xiangyang can be taken to the north and western Hunan can be attacked to the south.

To the east lies Jiujiang Prefecture, which serves as a hub connecting Nanjing and Huainan.

In this way, they could not only control the two lakes region, but also deter Sichuan, eastern Guizhou, Guangdong and Guangxi, and southern Jiangxi.

Therefore,
From any perspective, Wuchang Prefecture was a strategically vital location.

This is why the 300,000-strong Kwantung Army established its base in Wuchang Prefecture after entering Guanzhong.

Chen Jie decided to abandon the pursuit of Hong Chaoge and head straight for Wuchang Prefecture. After discussion, all the commanders of Ximen Hall unanimously agreed.

To know,
Although Chen Jie held absolute power in the decision-making meetings within Ximentang.

but,

He did not operate as a one-man show; instead, he consulted with other high-ranking officials on any important military matters.

He needs to listen to other people's opinions to avoid falling into a cognitive trap.

After the situation in Jiujiang Prefecture stabilized, Chen Jie followed the army to Xianning Prefecture, planning to send troops to Wuchang Prefecture.

Although Ximentang occupied Xianning Prefecture a year ago when he quelled the rebellion of Prince Li Ben of Han, he has been stationing troops here ever since.

but,

Ximentang did not occupy the entire territory of Xianning Prefecture.

Chibi, Jiayu, Chongyang and other places west of Xianning Prefecture are in the hands of the rebels and are currently controlled by the Kwantung Army under the command of Daisan Iwao.

therefore,

After Chen Jie arrived in Xianning with the army, he took the lead in ordering Zhang Feifan, Feng Bao, and He Chaolin to lead three reinforced regiments to attack Chongyang, Chibi, and Jiayu, and completely occupy the entire territory of Xianning Prefecture.

The three were originally generals under Li Qiong, the Grand General of the Ministry of War of the Great Qian Dynasty.

but,

When Ximen Tang quelled the rebellion in Hanzhong last time, the three of them defected to Chen Jie and became commanders under Ximen Tang.

After nearly a year of testing, all three became key members and confidants under Chen Jie.

The three were extremely loyal, and Chen Jie's mark was etched into their minds.

The three places were about 60 kilometers away from Xianning Prefecture. Zhang Feifan led his army to set off, with Chongyang County as their destination.

After a forced march of two and a half hours.

Zhang Feifan's reinforced regiment arrived in Chongyang Prefecture.

at this time,

Colonel Aoki Kurao of the Kwantung Army in Chongyang Prefecture had already received the news and was preparing for battle.

When Li Zicheng, the King of Shu, and Li Mu, the King of Ning, launched their rebellions, their primary concern was territory.

They are willing to pay a heavy price to seize territory.

therefore,

The two vassal kings would never easily give up the territories they had conquered.

but,

After the Kwantung Army infiltrated the Hanzhong region, their ideas were completely different from those of the feudal lords of the Great Qian Dynasty.

Their goal was to deplete Ximentang's strength.

Although they have currently occupied the area surrounding Wuchang Prefecture, they are ready to retreat at any time.

therefore,

The main force and elite troops of the Kwantung Army remained near Oyama Iwao and were stationed in Wuchang Prefecture.

As for Chongyang and other places near Xianning Prefecture, Dashanyan did not pay much attention to them at all.

If it weren't for the need to prevent the Ximentang army from entering Xianning Prefecture, the Kwantung Army would never have considered stationing troops in Chongyang, Chibi, and Jiayu, which are located around Xianning Prefecture.

but,

Even so, Chongyang Prefecture only left 5,000 Guandong Army soldiers to garrison it, the rest were some of the Daqian rebel army's soldiers.

All of them together numbered only 20,000 troops, and their main purpose was to be on guard, not to defend the city.

Colonel Aoki Kurao was an unknown figure under Oyama Iwao, and could only be considered a minor character.

This shows that

Chongyang, Chibi, and Jiayu were not considered important by Dashanyan.

Right,

This place is too close to Xianning Prefecture; it has no value in defending the city.

As long as it serves as a warning, that's enough.

the reason is simple,
If Ximentang were to launch an attack on Wuchang Prefecture from Xianning Prefecture, he would have to capture Chongyang, Chibi, and Jiayu.

but,

Never underestimate Aoki Kurao, a colonel in the Kwantung Army.

Although he was not a big shot in the Kwantung Army, he was a very low-key person.

but,

After he took office in Chongyang, he transformed the entire county into an impregnable fortress.

After Ximentang achieved a great victory in Jiujiang Prefecture, Aoki Kuran immediately realized that something was wrong.

therefore,

He concentrated his most elite troops in the south of Chongyang County and built numerous fortifications to prepare for the attack by Ximentang. (End of Chapter)