There is no such thing as the Kangxi and Qianlong eras

Chapter 352 Invading Zhejiang

While the Northern Route Army of the Great Han was conquering cities and territories in Huainan, the Southern Route Army of the Great Han had just set off from Huizhou Prefecture and was advancing along the river to attack Zhejiang.

The first to be affected was Yanzhou Prefecture. The prefect and assistant prefect of Yanzhou had already fled, leaving only the prefectural magistrate of Yanzhou and the assistant magistrate of Jiande County (the vacancy for county magistrate) to guard the city's defenses.

Li Chengduan, the magistrate of Jiande County, said, "Sir, a messenger has brought news that Chun'an County has been captured by the rebel army, and the magistrate of Chun'an County has surrendered. There is also a letter from the other side urging us to surrender!"

Surprisingly, Zhang Zhuo, the prefectural magistrate of Yanzhou, was not angry upon hearing this. Instead, he said, "Show me the letter!"

Li Chengduan handed over the letter of persuasion to surrender, but Zhang Zhuo only glanced at it a few times before instantly losing interest.

The letter was far too blunt, consisting of just two sentences: "Either surrender the city and I will spare your life! Or wait for the army to breach the city, drag you out and behead you, so that you may be cursed by ten thousand people after your death!"

This can no longer be considered straightforward; it's a blatant threat, and a rather arrogant and presumptuous one at that.

This is also the fighting style of Wu Jun, the division commander of the Southern Route Army. I have already led 10,000 troops south, and they are still an elite force with ample weapons and supplies.

If we don't act more assertive, do you really expect us to be polite to a dog slave of a pseudo-Qing dynasty like you?
Since you've decided to defend the city and become a lackey of the puppet Qing dynasty, a lackey should be prepared to act like a lackey and stop thinking of yourself as a human being!
“My lord…” Li Chengduan frowned and stepped forward.

Zhang Zhuo put the letter away and changed the subject, asking, "The rebel army has already captured Chun'an County. Immediately, in the name of the prefectural government, borrow grain and manpower from several wealthy and powerful families in the city. Also, where are the governor's reinforcements now?"

Li Chengduan said, "The Han rebel army arrived too quickly, almost without warning. I have been trying my best to persuade wealthy landowners and gentry to contribute money to raise troops, but to little avail. As for the Governor's reinforcements, they should take some time to arrive, so..."

Before he finished speaking, Zhang Zhuo already understood what he meant: reinforcements might arrive, but it was unclear when.

There was no other way; there were only so many Qing troops in Zhejiang. First, there was the peasant uprising of the Eighteen Bureaus in central Zhejiang, and then the Red Turban Rebellion in eastern Zhejiang.

Oh, by the way, there's also Cai Qian, the Marquis of Zhenhai of the Han Dynasty, who is currently gathering his massive pirate fleet. They plan to head north, launch a surprise attack on the Zhoushan Islands, and then use them as a resupply point to land and cooperate with the Han army in attacking Hangzhou.

Ruan Yuan, the governor of Zhejiang, was driven to the brink of madness. After his troops were divided once, they would have a hard time even fighting the peasant army of the Eighteen Bureaus.

Now, Han troops are attacking Yanzhou Prefecture again. The prefect and assistant prefect of Yanzhou reacted quickly, and knowing that Yanzhou could not be defended, they fled immediately.

With only the prefectural magistrate of Yanzhou and the assistant magistrate of Jiande County left in Yanzhou Prefecture, there was only one big cat and one small cat. They could only frantically send people to ask Ruan Yuan for help.

How could Ruan Yuan possibly save them?
By saving Yanzhou Prefecture, Jinhua Prefecture would be doomed. The peasant army of the Eighteen Bureaus would lose its enemy and could attack any surrounding prefecture or region. They could even go east and join forces with the Red Turban Army in Wenzhou to attack Li Changgeng's army from two sides.

Ruan Yuan had no other choice but to follow suit, and he also dared not risk sending troops to Yanzhou, knowing his own limitations in military strategy.

Hearing that the Red Turban Army was subordinate to the Han Army, without even knowing if it was true or not, this guy was so frightened that he hurriedly sent Li Changgeng, who was knowledgeable in military affairs, to fight the war, and he also took half of the army with him.

With the Zhenhan army attacking from Huizhou Prefecture, he dared not send troops out alone.

At the very least, we should recall Li Changgeng and let him command the army in battle. If we lose, we can shift the blame to the incompetence of the commander and generals.

It can only be said that the Qing Dynasty's officialdom during the Qianlong and Jiaqing eras was truly a gathering of talented individuals. The number of capable and competent officials and military officers was not pitifully small, but it was certainly very limited.

Jue Luo Changlin, the Governor-General of Fujian and Zhejiang who is still in Fuzhou, is also a very talented person. He has been involved in various scandals, including but not limited to condoning his subordinates to kill innocent people and claim credit for their crimes, fabricating military achievements and political accomplishments to curry favor with Emperor Jiaqing. He even did not clean things up afterward, and when Emperor Jiaqing found out, he was furious and dismissed him from his post.

He truly is a "pillar of the nation"!
Compared to this guy, the Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi was much more normal, because at least he didn't kill innocent people to claim credit. He was just completely useless and knew nothing. Emperor Jiaqing couldn't stand it anymore, so he demoted him but kept him in service. After Wu Jun captured Chun'an County, he didn't rush to advance. Instead, he sent two detachments to capture Suian and Shouchang counties respectively.

The magistrates of these two counties were both very sensible.

After receiving news that the magistrate of Chun'an County had surrendered and been pardoned, the magistrate of Sui'an County followed suit and surrendered, offering up official documents and seals. He also took the initiative to help protect and organize the yamen archives, thus redeeming himself through meritorious service.

The magistrate of Shouchang County did not believe that surrender would spare him from death, so he chose to run away. To avoid being discovered by his subordinates, he specifically told them before he fled that he had decided to surrender and had already sent a letter of surrender.

The clerks and runners of Shouchang County believed this wholeheartedly and obediently waited for the county magistrate to lead them to surrender.

While they waited, the Han army arrived, and the county magistrate fled!

The chief clerk had no choice but to step forward and lead them to surrender the city. The Han army was speechless after taking over the city.

With the capture of all three western counties of Yanzhou and the complete control of the rivers and waterways by the Han navy, Wu Jun's main force marched directly from Chun'an County to the outskirts of Yanzhou Prefecture.

Looking at the densely packed warships on the river, Zhang Zhuo was trembling all over. He forced himself to calm the others, while also reassuring himself, saying, "Yanzhou is located at the confluence of three rivers. As long as we can hold the city to the death, the Han rebels will not be able to take Yanzhou. They can only waste money and supplies and suffer heavy losses here. Moreover, even if the Han rebels want to bypass Yanzhou and attack Hangzhou, the governor can come down the river in time to cut off the rebels' supply lines and rear. At that time, the rebels will be like turtles in a jar, and can be wiped out with a snap of the fingers!"

After all that analysis, it sounds reasonable, but it's all nonsense.

why?

As Wu Jun led his army to the city of Yanzhou, he looked at the tall and well-built city walls and carefully observed the geographical location of Yanzhou.

This place does indeed have a unique terrain. In addition to being the confluence of three rivers, it is also a relatively semi-closed city, with only one mountain valley connecting it to the outside world.

That being the case...

Wu Jun decisively ordered, "Search all the ships here, leave none behind. We're not going to attack Yanzhou anymore, we're going straight to attack Tonglu County and Lanxi County."

Wu Juncai had barely arrived in Zhejiang when he began to divide his forces.

They traveled north along the river to attack Tonglu County, which was behind Yanzhou.

Another route went south along the Yangtze River to attack Lanxi County in the south.

In just one day, the river outside Yanzhou City went from being densely packed with warships in the morning to being completely empty by the afternoon.

Zhang Zhuo was dumbfounded. Staring at the river surface, which was even cleaner than his face, he asked in a panic, "The Han traitors... the Han traitors have already left? Aren't they afraid that the governor will take the opportunity to send troops to cut off their supply lines and retreat?"

Li Chengduan, the magistrate of Jiande County standing nearby, couldn't help but say, "Sir, I have just sent men out of the city to check. All the boats on the river, including fishing boats, have been taken away by the Han rebel army. Without boats, Yanzhou Prefecture is isolated by the Han rebel army. Moreover, according to the people on the riverbank, the Han rebel army has split into two groups to attack Tonglu County and Lanxi County respectively. Now our supply lines and rear supply routes have been cut off by the Han rebel army!"

"This...this...isn't it said that all the Han traitors' generals prefer strong attacks and hard battles? How can there be such treacherous and cunning individuals among them?"

Zhang Zhuo was already incoherent, and Li Chengduan was equally at a loss for what to do.

Now they can't even send a message to the governor. Without a boat, how can a person's two legs outrun a boat?
(End of this chapter)