There is no such thing as the Kangxi and Qianlong eras

Chapter 180 Preparing to Make Dumplings

Mingliang was carried back to Xiangyang. It was easy for the Qing army to march south from Xiangyang to Jingmen, but now they had to flee back in a panic.

Moreover, since they were fleeing back to Xiangyang from Yuan'an County, they couldn't go directly north. They had to first cross the Zhangjiang River to the east, bypass the Linzhang Mountains in the northwest, and then continue their escape north along the Han River.

Despite such a long journey, they still fled in disarray. They had no boats, no horses, and even the few hundred cavalrymen who managed to escape were forced to abandon their horses and cross the river in order to survive.

On their way to attack Jingmen, the Han army discovered hundreds of horse carcasses that had been devoured by wild animals along the Zhangjiang River.

They ran all the way without daring to rest, covering hundreds of miles in just two days and two nights.

Mingliang, an old man, was already traumatized by the army's defeat, and now, after all this hard work and toil, he finally fell ill before returning to Xiangyang.

Mingliang fell ill too suddenly, and the army suffered a terrible defeat. Of the 20,000 men, less than 3,000 returned, and the cavalry was almost completely wiped out, with not a single warhorse left.

Such a crushing defeat could not be concealed even if one wanted to. The day after Mingliang was carried back to Xiangyang, rumors began to circulate throughout the city.

The rumors were presented with great seriousness, not only detailing the battle report of that day, but also clearly describing the exact number of Qing soldiers killed or wounded, captured, and how many warhorses and cannons were seized.

Rather than a rumor, it was more like a battle report of the Qing army's crushing defeat in Yuan'an County.

In any case, Mingliang was greatly shocked when he learned the news. He even knew the specific casualties of the Qing army and the details of the battle that day. This was clearly not just an ordinary rumor.

Either a general who fled the battlefield deliberately leaked the secret, or a traitor had planted an inside agent in Xiangyang. It's hard to say if it was an inside agent, but Mingliang is more inclined to believe that a general was leaking military intelligence.

Because the news traveled so fast, they managed to return so quickly by fleeing day and night. The Han rebels still needed to tally the results of their battles, so there wasn't enough time for them.

Mingliang was unaware that the Han army possessed the incredible technology of radio communication, and he suspected that the Xiangyang army was up to some trickery.

Despite his illness, Mingliang, on the premise of "better to kill the innocent than the guilty," dismissed all the generals who had fled back from the battle that day and reappointed his own trusted confidants to take over their duties.

This series of major actions stirred up discontent among the Xiangyang generals who were otherwise relatively unscathed. Having barely escaped alive, they neither surrendered to the rebels nor abandoned Mingliang, the Governor-General of Huguang.

Now, instead of being relieved of his military command, Mingliang has used fabricated charges against him. Isn't this just discarding someone after they've served their purpose?

Mingliang is too old and seriously ill. His mind is not clear, yet he made such an impulsive decision without considering the consequences.

Almost immediately after Mingliang "replaced" these military officers, Chen Xingye, who had been lying in wait in Xiangyang for several months, sent the invitations to these officers one by one through the connections of Yao Yu and Fang Zhenzhong.

The fact that military and civil officials gathered together for a banquet at the largest restaurant in Xiangyang is beyond remarkable.

Unfortunately, Mingliang, the Governor-General of Huguang and the highest-ranking Manchu official in Xiangyang, had not received any information whatsoever.

Xiangyang has been thoroughly infiltrated by the Han army, leaving it like a sieve!

Mingliang, still suffering from illness, was raising money and supplies to recruit soldiers, while also constantly sending people to inquire about E Hui's whereabouts.

He had suffered a crushing defeat and fled back, losing most of his army, including his main force of three thousand cavalry, which was almost completely wiped out.

The three thousand Eight Banners cavalry under E Hui's command were the last trump card of the Qing army in Xiangyang and Hubei.

If those three thousand cavalrymen were also lost, Hubei could basically be handed over to the rebels, and either he or E Hui would have to be sent back to the capital to be punished.

"Cough cough... E Hui, E Hui, you absolutely must not lose in Wuchang again. Even if it's a minor defeat, and our main force is intact... cough cough... cough cough cough!"

Mingliang coughed incessantly, his handkerchief covering his mouth, with faint traces of blood at the corners of his lips.

This old Manchu general was already nearing the end of his life. He was over sixty years old, yet he still had to go to the battlefield. He suffered a major defeat and had to flee for several days and nights. Even young people couldn't endure that, let alone an old man.

……

Hanchuan County. Mingliang, who was thinking about E Hui, was leading his troops to besiege this county town, the site of the first battle of their eastward advance.

E Hui said expressionlessly, "I thought I had dispatched troops quickly, but I didn't expect the Han traitors to be even faster than us. Hanchuan County has been captured, and I'm afraid Hanyang and Wuchang are also in grave danger!"

Upon hearing this, the deputy general hurriedly replied, "Your Excellency, although the Han rebels are fierce, Hanyang and Wuchang are important towns in Hubei. No matter how fierce the Han rebels are, they will not be able to take Hanyang and Wuchang so quickly, let alone take Hanchuan County and block our army's eastward advance."

"This humble general believes that the Han rebels have already captured Hanchuan County, and their main force is still besieging Hanyang and Wuchang prefectures. As long as our army quickly dispatches troops, we will be able to cooperate with the defending troops of the two prefectures and utterly defeat the Han rebel army!"

This makes perfect sense. E Hui's plan to surround the rebels in Hanyang and Wuchang was well in advance, ensuring that the news would not leak out, or if it did, it would not have leaked to such a far place as Hanyang.

Therefore, it is absolutely impossible that the rebels had prior knowledge of the situation and had taken precautions in advance; it must all have been just a coincidence.

The rebels may have captured Hanchuan County in their first battle and turned it into their second county for defense, while their main force was probably still besieging Hanyang and Wuchang.

It is highly likely that the main force of the rebels was in Wuchang. Wuchang was well-defended and it would be difficult to take it quickly without a large force. Moreover, Wuchang was full of important local officials in Hubei, and few of them held truly low-ranking positions. It was unlikely that they would surrender.

The Han army has gained momentum, but not completely; at least not to the point where the provincial governor would bow down in submission. Therefore, it is unlikely that Wuchang and Hanyang will surrender. If they do not surrender, they will have no choice but to fight to the death. The garrison strength and food reserves of the two prefectures can hold out for at least half a year.

"Pass down the order: demolish the houses and prepare to attack the city!" After much deliberation, E Hui decided to quickly take down Hanchuan County first.

The Qing soldiers brought by E Hui were all local soldiers from Hanyang and Wuchang, so they were relatively restrained. When they said they would demolish houses, they only demolished houses and looted them, without indiscriminately killing or killing people.

Seeing that the Qing army had started demolishing the houses, Liu Zhiyu, the acting magistrate of Hanchuan County, hurriedly found Lin Hu, the Han army captain stationed in the county to assist in the defense: "Captain Lin, the Qing army has indeed arrived and is now demolishing the houses in preparation for attacking the city."

Lin Hu nodded: "Then proceed according to plan. You first gather the able-bodied militia in the city to prepare for the defense of the city. The soldiers I brought will also help. Also, keep an eye on these wealthy families in the city. The General said that these wealthy families are known for their fickle nature, so we must not let them cause trouble in the chaos."

Liu Zhiyu cupped his hands in greeting: "I understand."

He was originally a scholar who led an uprising in the county, killed the county magistrate, and joined the Han army. So, he naturally had no problem doing these things.

First, he went back to conscript able-bodied men to defend the city against the enemy. At the same time, he posted notices and implemented a wartime system of mutual surveillance and reporting among the common people and wealthy households.

Anyone who acts suspiciously and whose neighbors know about it but fail to report it will be punished as a traitor.

This arrangement, while still leaving the question of which major players had ulterior motives unanswered, deterred anyone from making any overtly malicious moves. Instead, they either lay low and waited for an opportunity or prepared to assess the situation further.

The next day, it was just dawn.

E Hui launched a fierce attack on Hanchuan County, but he had very few laborers to use for the siege. They had all received advance warning and were either already in the city or in the mountains, leaving little food or supplies behind. This almost made E Hui suspect that there was a traitor among his own ranks.

The villagers have all disappeared, which is clearly not right, and it doesn't make sense that the Han army took precautions in advance.

E Hui couldn't find any traitors on the spot; the battle was already won't stop now. He should focus on quickly capturing Hanchuan County and making it a base for the army.

Twenty thousand Qing troops launched a fierce attack. Countless Qing soldiers carried makeshift carts made from door panels, while Qing laborers carried sand and soil mounds on their backs, risking casualties to fill in the moat.

After the first day of fierce attack, several sections of the moat were filled in to create passageways, and the defensive materials of the city's defenders were also severely depleted.

Lin Hu looked at the Qing soldiers' corpses abandoned below the city walls, silently returned to the city tower, and took out his walkie-talkie: "Reporting to Commander Yang, the Qing army's offensive is extremely fierce. They must have really fallen into a trap."

“Very good. Continue to defend the city and let the Qing army think that Hanchuan County is undefended. We are still unaware of the situation.”

"understand!"

The Han army was already preparing to encircle the Qing army, but the Qing army was completely unaware, believing that the Han army was still besieging the two prefectures of Hanyang and Wuchang.

(End of this chapter)