There is no such thing as the Kangxi and Qianlong eras

Chapter 437 Luring them out to kill
"You're saying that the eight of you took down Fuzhou?" Wu Liehu's face was full of disbelief.

The scouts who returned were also speechless. There were only eight of them in total. Their initial idea was just to scout out the enemy's situation. They didn't know what was going on, but the Tartars in Fuzhou City opened the gates on their own.

Then, the eight of them rushed up and hacked away, even planning to just chop off a few heads and leave.

As a result, they accidentally broke through Fuzhou City, causing chaos among the Qing army. The eight of them easily chased and beat the more than 600 Qing soldiers in Fuzhou City like pigs.

This battle report looks outrageous, and it is indeed outrageous, but compared to the past battles of Qi Jiguang's army and Japanese pirates, it seems nothing.

After all, if a dozen or so Japanese pirates, who weren't even regular troops, could chase and fight against thousands or even tens of thousands of former Ming Dynasty local garrison troops, then the current Han Chinese army could naturally fight against more than 600 Eight Banner troops with just eight men.

They're all equally rotten. The Ming Dynasty's garrison troops took over a hundred years to become so corrupt, and these Eight Banners troops outside the Great Wall will only be even more rotten than those under the garrison system.

The scout rushed back to report in a hurry, not to claim credit, but simply because the eight of them really couldn't control those hundreds of Qing soldiers and thousands of Fuzhou civilians!

Wu Liehu recovered from his astonishment. Although he was still somewhat speechless, now that Fuzhou had been captured, it was impossible for him to simply hand it over.

Moreover, the capture of Jinzhou, Lushunkou, and Fuzhou was easier than the capture of any other city, making his initial caution and vigilance towards the Qing army in Liaodong seem somewhat unnecessary.

Were the Qing troops outside Liaodong Pass all so weak in combat?
Speed ​​is of the essence in war, so Wu Liehu simply skipped the land route and took a boat directly north along Jinzhou Bay.

……

Xiong Yuecheng.

This area belongs to the residence of the Deputy Commander-in-Chief of Xiong Yue. In the entire jurisdiction of the Shengjing General, apart from the highest-ranking Shengjing General, there are only three Deputy Commanders-in-Chief: the Deputy Commander-in-Chief of Shengjing, the Deputy Commander-in-Chief of Xiong Yue, and the Deputy Commander-in-Chief of Jinzhou.

The Deputy Commander-in-Chief of Shengjing was stationed in Shengjing, and his main responsibility was to assist the General of Shengjing in managing the city. The Deputy Commander-in-Chief of Xiong Yue also had considerable authority, with the Liaodong Peninsula falling under his jurisdiction.

The Deputy Military Governor of Jinzhou was a special case. Although he was under the jurisdiction of the Shengjing General, his duties were limited to managing the Dalinghe Horse Farm in southern Jinzhou.

Galzhu, the deputy military commander of Xiong Yue, was born into the Manchu Bordered White Banner. In the second year of the Jiaqing reign, when Deputy Military Commander Qingyu was transferred to Jinzhou as Deputy Military Commander, Galzhu was promoted to acting military commander.

This guy is rarely recorded in historical books. He was only appointed as the deputy commander of Xiong Yue in the second year of the Jiaqing reign, and was dismissed six years later due to some incident.

As for the reason for his dismissal, it's actually quite easy to guess, because once he was dismissed, his career was over.

Although Xiong Yue was one of the three deputy commanders of Shengjing, the cold land was still a cold land. As a deputy commander, he commanded about the same number of troops as the garrison commander of Jinzhou.

In such a hopeless place, and because it's so remote they're unlikely to fight, what can Galzhu do? Besides receiving a salary without working and embezzling treasury funds, there's nothing else to aspire to.

Moreover, this is also supported by the case of the later Deputy Military Governor of Jinzhou. During the late Qing Dynasty, the Deputy Military Governor of Jinzhou was impeached by his subordinates for embezzling treasury funds, soliciting bribes, and receiving salaries without working.

Although the subsequent investigation found the individual to be "innocent," the investigating officials also submitted a memorial stating that the Deputy Military Governor of Jinzhou had "long-standing malpractices."

Xiong Yue, Deputy Commander-in-Chief's Office.

Galzhu was drinking and eating meat. It was bitterly cold here, but it certainly wouldn't affect him, the deputy commander.

After another cup of light wine, a personal guard came to report: "Lord Ga, a lot of Plain Red Banner soldiers have suddenly arrived outside Xiong Yue City. The leader claims to be from Shengjing City."

Galzhu asked with some confusion, "An official sent from Shengjing? Didn't we already pay the fish tax we were supposed to collect? Why are they here again?"

Although Liaodong was extremely poor, it still levied a fish tax. This was because the swim bladder glue from fish could be used to make powerful bows and heavy arrows, making it an absolute strategic resource, just like cowhide and tendons in the interior.

Galerzhu couldn't understand it, but he never expected that the Han army would come. This wasn't a matter of intelligence; it was purely a limitation of his strategic vision.

Who the hell could have imagined that while the Han Dynasty was still locked in a tug-of-war with the Manchus on the front lines, they would suddenly launch a sea-crossing invasion and raid on the Manchus' ancestral tombs and rear supply lines?

"Since they've come from Shengjing, quickly summon some men to come and greet them." Galzhu ultimately dared not be negligent. Even though he was the Deputy Commander of Xiong Yue, he was just a local tyrant in the Liaodong Peninsula and certainly couldn't compare to Shengjing.

Moreover, the soldiers who came were from the Plain Red Banner, which was four ranks higher than his Bordered White Banner.

As the banner directly under the control of Dorgon's brothers, the Bordered White Banner was as illustrious as Dorgon was during his lifetime, and as miserable as he became after his death.

Out of habit, Galzhu did not open the city gate immediately, but instead went to the city wall to take a look first.

Sure enough, there were 500 soldiers from the Plain Red Banner, each wearing bright cotton armor, which was incomparable to their old cotton armor. They also brought more than 1000 auxiliary troops from the Han Banner.

As expected of someone from Shengjing, even the Han Banner's lackey Nikan is dressed so well. It's just that the uniforms are a little different from before. Has Shengjing changed the style of the Han Banner again?
Fuzhina, who was below the city, keenly discovered Galju. It was because Xiongyue City was too small, and its city walls were much shorter than those of inland cities.

Fu Zhina angrily shouted, "I have been ordered by the General of Shengjing to come to Xiong Yue City to collect the fish tax for the second half of this year. Why don't you open the city gates and let me in? Do you all not want to pay the tax?" Galzhu's face darkened when he heard the shout.

Damn it, those insatiable jackals in Shengjing, they just collected fish tax a few months ago, and now they're coming to collect more taxes.

Even if you curse in your heart, you still have to give it.

Galzhu personally ordered the Xiong Yue city gate to be opened, and then led his personal guards to the city gate to welcome Fuzhina and other important figures from Shengjing.

The city gate opened, and Toshina rode forward.

"My lord," Galju said with a forced smile.

Fuzhi did not reply, nor did he dismount. He simply walked slowly to Galzhu's side.

Galerzhu inadvertently noticed that this man from Shengjing was always holding a sharp knife.

Wait a minute, isn't that knife a bit pointed at me?
"Big……"

Just as Galerzhu was about to speak, a knife suddenly came down.

“Crack!”

"Ughh ...

Galerzhu was immediately slashed to the ground by Fuzhi's blade, blood gushing out, leaving the surrounding Xiong Yue Qing soldiers completely dumbfounded.

Galzhu endured the excruciating pain, equally bewildered. Why would an official from Shengjing suddenly slash at him?
Could it be that the capital city found out about his embezzlement of public funds and his receiving a salary without working?
No, even if he were truly guilty, it was the General of Shengjing who sent men to arrest him and then send him to...
The trial would be conducted in the capital, with the Emperor himself making the judgment; it was impossible for the General of Shengjing to be allowed to carry out private punishment.

Moreover, the more pain Galzhu felt, the clearer his mind became. He suddenly realized that these "Shengjing Eight Banners" in front of him, which looked fine, were actually full of flaws.

Although there were Han Chinese bannermen in Shengjing, there were very few of them. How could they possibly bring so many auxiliary troops from the Han Chinese bannermen, and each of them would have a horse to ride? That was simply unrealistic.

Furthermore, Fuzhi claims he's here to collect fish tax, but who comes to collect taxes with a large army?
It was still a force far exceeding his own as the deputy commander of Xiong Yue. So many troops were clearly there to seize Xiong Yue City.

Finally, there was the time to collect the fish tax, and there were no documents from the Shengjing Household Department (equivalent to the Shengjing Ministry of Revenue). He was fooled purely by his brand-new cotton armor and his words.

He still doesn't even know what Tomishina's name is.

Galju struggled to speak, but Fuzhina didn't give him the chance and directly spurred his horse and kicked Galju on the ground.

Galerzhu, who was already seriously injured, was trampled to death by the horse on the spot.

As soon as Fuzhina made his move, the soldiers of the "Eight Banners Army" and "Han Banner Auxiliary Army" around him also drew their swords.

"Kill the clear dog!"

"Kill the Tartars!"

There's no need to distinguish between Han and Manchu; anyone who can wear Qing army uniforms and cotton armor outside Liaodong Pass is 100% a member of the Eight Banners or a traitor.

The Qing army under Xiong Yue had just lost its deputy commander, and morale was already in chaos.

They didn't even know who their enemy was; all they saw were the Eight Banners officials from Shengjing suddenly attack and kill their deputy commander, then shouting "Kill the Tartars!"

No, aren't you Tartars too?
They could clearly see the money-tail braid at the back of her head.

The Han army and the Nur army joined forces, numbering about 1,500 men, and brought cannons and muskets.

This troop deployment already exceeds the Eight Banners garrison force of Xiong Yue City. Even in a normal siege, the Eight Banners garrison forces in Xiong Yue City would definitely not be able to withstand it.

Moreover, this was a surprise attack. The Han army used the Nur army to lure out the Qing army's deputy commander, then killed him and stormed the city.

Before many of the Eight Banners soldiers in the city could figure out what was going on, the Han army had already taken control of the Xiong Yue city wall.

The fighting lasted less than half a day before Xiong Yue City was completely controlled by the Han army. More than 500 Eight Banner prisoners were captured, and more than 300 Eight Banner soldiers were killed.

The Han army suffered no casualties, while the Nur army lost two men who twisted their ankles in the pursuit.

(End of this chapter)