1848 Great Qing Charcoal Burners

Chapter 177 Trading
Peng Gang carefully examined the map of Mapingcheng's defenses drawn by Li Qi.

Li Qi's cartographic skills were not the best among the senior officers of the Left Army, but in terms of meticulousness and attentiveness, no battalion or company commander in the Left Army could surpass him.

It was precisely because of Li Qi's meticulousness and attentiveness that Peng Gang dispatched Li Qi to accompany Luo Dagang to Macing City for reconnaissance, where he was responsible for drawing up a defense map of Macing City.

Besides its high walls and deep moats, all the walls are covered with two layers of blue bricks. The city wall of Maping City also has twenty-eight watchtowers (enemy platforms, watchtowers), with each watchtower spaced about sixty feet apart.

Even more troublesome than the horse-faced fortress were the twelve gun emplacements and the four corner towers.

Maping City was indeed a fortress armed to the teeth.

"Are there any defects in the walls of Mapingcheng?" Peng Gang interrupted Luo Dagang and Xiao Guoda's argument, looking at Luo Dagang and Li Qi, trying to find out the flaws in the walls of Mapingcheng.

"Although there are a few places where the blue bricks have peeled off, the main structure of the Ma Ping City wall is intact," Li Qi replied with great certainty after a careful recollection.

After asking Li Qi, Peng Gang then asked Li Rui, Chang Sheng, Yang Huwei, and Wang Zhi: "What kind of cannons are used on the twelve forts and four corner towers of Mapingcheng?"

Li Qi only marked the location of the artillery emplacements on the city defense map as heavy artillery, but the specific type of artillery was unknown.

Li Rui, Yang Huwei, and others had been stationed at Mapingcheng, so they should know what kind of cannons were equipped on the Mapingcheng fort.

"The twelve gun emplacements are all equipped with red-coated cannons, the lighter ones weighing two or three thousand catties and the heavier ones weighing four or five thousand catties. The cannons facing the Liujiang River are the best, used specifically to deal with enemies invading from the river." Li Rui carefully recalled his memories of Ma Pingcheng.

"The four corner towers are equipped with breech-loading cannons. General Peng, are you familiar with breech-loading cannons? These cannons are lightweight and have an extremely fast rate of fire, but they don't have a long range. They are used specifically to deal with close-range situations."

There were also mountain-splitting cannons in Maping City, but there were many of them, and their types were numerous and varied, so Li will not list them all.

The "Red-Clothed Cannon" refers to the cannons imported and imitated by the Ming Dynasty at the end of the Ming Dynasty. The Jurchens avoided the word "barbarian," so they also called them "Red-Clothed Cannons."

The breech-loading smoothbore cannon consists of three parts: the barrel, the breech, and the sub-cannon. To fire, gunpowder and projectiles are first loaded into the sub-cannon, then the sub-cannon is loaded into the breech and the breech is ignited. Multiple sub-cannons can be prepared in advance for combat, resulting in a very high rate of fire.

In this light, Ma Pingcheng can be described as possessing both long-range and short-range firepower.

"Are there any weaknesses in the defenses of Maping City?" Peng Gang continued to ask Li Rui, Yang Huwei, and others.

“The Dengtaishan Mountain outside the city is quite high, overlooking the entire city, and it has no outer fortifications. General Peng has heavy artillery, so he can occupy the high ground of Dengtaishan Mountain outside the city to set up cannons and bombard Ma Pingcheng.” Chang Sheng provided a feasible suggestion.

"Within twenty days, can sixteen heavy cannons weighing over 500 jin each bombard the walls of Maping City?" Peng Gang's eyes lit up as he pressed for an answer.

“No, the walls of Maping City are very strong, and the cannons can hit Dengtaishan directly. This is why the government troops dare not set up an outer fort on Dengtaishan,” Li Rui replied without hesitation.

Upon hearing Li Rui's answer, Peng Gang's gaze gradually dimmed.

The determination to attack Maping City also dimmed.

After gaining a preliminary understanding of Ma Pingcheng's situation, Peng Gang had a clear idea of ​​what was going on.

Given the current situation of the Left Army, it is indeed not advisable to attack Maping City.

However, if they don't attack Maping City, besides the long-standing food problem that has plagued the Left Army, Peng Gang also needs to be wary of the garrison in Maping City taking advantage of the Left Army's relocation to launch a surprise attack on the Left Army.

The regular troops of the Left Army were naturally not afraid of the Qing army's sneak attack.

Peng Gang was worried that the family groups composed of the children, the elderly, women and children would be attacked by the Qing army.

"Have you found out who the garrison commander of Ma Pingcheng is?" Peng Gang asked Luo Dagang.

Li Qi's city defense map indicated that the number of defenders in Ma Ping City was large, no less than four thousand.

The Liuzhou Green Standard Army was repeatedly conscripted to fight in Xunzhou Prefecture, and each time the number of conscripts was quite large.

The Green Standard Army in Liuzhou certainly doesn't have many soldiers left.

Peng Gang speculated that the large number of troops stationed in Maping City likely included a large number of visiting soldiers from other provinces.

"The generals guarding Maping City are Qin Dingsan, the garrison commander of Guizhou, and Zhou Fengqi, the garrison commander of Yunyang, Hubei." Luo Dagang truthfully informed Peng Gang of the information he had gathered about the Qing army generals guarding Maping City.

Qin Dingsan was defeated by Peng Gang. Most of Qin Dingsan's veteran soldiers from Guizhou were killed in the Battle of Mocun.

Qin Dingsan's current troops are mostly new recruits and local militia, and their combat strength is not particularly strong.

As for Zhou Fengqi's Hubei troops, there is currently no record of them engaging in combat with the Taiping Army.

However, Hubei is relatively stable, a place that has enjoyed peace and tranquility for a long time.

Unlike the Green Standard Army in Hunan, Guizhou, Sichuan, and Yunnan, which frequently suppressed bandits and local chieftains, the Green Standard Army was more experienced and capable in fighting.

It's unlikely that the fighting strength of the pro-independence camp in Hubei is very strong.

If we were to find a point of reference, the Green Standard Army of Yunyang Town brought by Zhou Fengqi would definitely be inferior in combat strength to Xiang Rong's Chu Army and Zhengan Army.

Speaking of Xiang Rong, the last time I heard news of him was when he led his troops away from Guiping and disappeared without a trace, vanishing from Peng Gang's sand table map.

The most dangerous enemies are often the unknown ones. The disappearance of Xiang Rong's troops is something that Peng Gang has been worrying about lately.

If Xiang Rong had only led the Chu army and Zhengan soldiers, who had been crippled and destroyed by the Left Army, away, Peng Gang would not have cared so much about Xiang Rong.

The key point is that the troops Xiang Rong took from Guiping City included not only his Chu and Zhengan soldiers, but also four or five thousand Fujian and Chao soldiers.

The Minyong and Chaoyong militias are the most capable militia teams besides Jiang Zhongyuan's Chuyong.

The main force of the Taiping Army had fought against the Fujian and Chaozhou militias and had a high opinion of them.

In particular, the rattan shield soldiers among the Fujianese were one of the few Qing army deployments that could hold their own against the main force of the Taiping Army in close combat. "Are you sure the Qing army commanders defending Maping City are Qin Dingsan and Zhou Fengqi, not Xiang Rong?" Peng Gang confirmed with Luo Dagang.

“If a commander were stationed in Maping City, such a major event would surely have been announced without a word.” Luo Dagang pondered for a moment before giving a positive answer.

Peng Gang had a better understanding of the situation. Since the main attack faction and the detour faction inside the tent were still arguing, Peng Gang gave them half a day to conduct a siege simulation.

The main attacking faction, led by Xiao Guoda, Cheng Dashun, and Xiao Maoling, played the role of the left wing in the siege.

The bypass faction, led by Luo Dagang, Lu Qin, and Li Qi, played the role of the Qing army defending the city.

Based on what they had seen and heard during their reconnaissance of Liuzhou City, Luo Dagang and Li Qi found mud, gravel, and grass roots and sculpted a rough sand table of Maping City on the spot. They then improved the sand table based on the suggestions of Li Rui, Chang Sheng, and others.

After completing the sand table, Li Rui, Chang Sheng, Yang Huwei, and Wang Zhi were very interested in the simulation that Zuo Jun was about to conduct and were eager to join in.

Peng Gang nodded in agreement, and assigned Li Rui and Yang Huwei to the defensive team, while Chang Sheng and Wang Zhi joined the offensive team.

The attackers initially proposed a siege from underground, while the defenders countered with the fact that the city of Maping had a foundation built of stone blocks.

The attacking side chose to dig deeper tunnels to traverse the stone foundation of the city.

The defenders remained calm and asked the attackers how long it would take to dig a tunnel nearly ten feet deep and more than two miles long, beyond the range of the Qing army's heavy artillery, deep into Maping City.

Ma Pingcheng is surrounded by water on three sides, and the ground is full of water. How did they solve the drainage problem of such deep tunnels?
If the Qing army garrison discovers that our army is digging tunnels by listening in the jars, how should our army respond?
When the siege by tunneling failed, the attacking side adopted Chang Sheng's suggestion to occupy Dengtaishan and, taking advantage of the terrain, bombarded the walls of Mapingcheng with heavy artillery.

The defenders responded with the longer-range Hongyi cannons, engaging in artillery duels with the left-wing heavy artillery company at Dengtaishan.

Since artillery fire from the high ground outside the city was insufficient to breach the city walls, the attacking side turned its attention to the Liujiang River and devised a plan to launch an attack by boat from the Liujiang River, with two boat battalions as the vanguard.

Seeing Xiao Guoda, Cheng Dashun and others using the boat battalion in this way, letting the boat battalion withstand the bombardment and charge of the Qing army's heavy artillery, Luo Dagang felt his scalp tingle.

The Liujiang waterway was the main area of ​​focus for the defenders of Ma Pingcheng. The city walls along the river were all around four zhang high, and the water gates along the river were reinforced with iron chains. Even if two battalions of boatmen and soldiers were to die, they might not be able to climb the city walls or breach the water gates.

Finally, the attacking side, in a fit of rage, launched a full-scale land assault on the north gate of Maping City.

Each gate of Maping City was equipped with heavy gates and barbicans. The Qing army's defenders, with their formidable firepower, complete defense system, and ample garrison, awaited the attacking troops.
Based on the simulation, regardless of the method of attack, even if the attacking Left Army invests all its troops and ammunition without regard to cost, it will be difficult to capture Maping City within twenty days.

Xiao Guoda, Cheng Dashun, Xiao Maoling and others were greatly discouraged by this.

Peng Gang, who had been watching them use their talents to conduct the siege and defense simulation of Mapingcheng, saw that the simulation was almost over. He walked to the messy sand table, looked at the officers playing the left wing of the attacking side, and asked, "Is Mapingcheng worth fighting for?"

“It’s too difficult to fight. We really shouldn’t fight. We should save our strength and head to Guilin quickly, and save some food to attack Guilin.” Xiao Guoda and the others, their faces flushed, finally gave in and stopped insisting on attacking Maping City.

“To obtain the grain from Maping City, we don’t necessarily have to launch a full-scale attack. There are other ways,” Peng Gang said, stroking his chin.

"What method?" Everyone turned to look at Peng Gang, wanting to hear his idea.

“Talk to the Qing army commander guarding Mapingcheng and buy grain from them,” Peng Gang suggested.

The Qing army not only had to provide food for its soldiers and militia, but also had to pay them wages to support their families.

When Lin Zexu was in charge of the overall suppression of bandits in Guangxi, he was still able to maintain the region by relying on his personal prestige and ability to obtain funding from neighboring provinces.

After Lin Zexu left, the civil official in charge of suppressing bandits in Guangxi was Zhou Tianjue, who had been dismissed for seven years before being reinstated.

Zhou Tianjue didn't have the same influence as Lin Zexu to secure sufficient funds from neighboring provinces.

Even though Lin Zexu left Zhou Tianjue a substantial fortune, the military pay reserves could nominally last for two or three months.

Corruption was rampant throughout the Qing court; the Qing army's treasury was lucky if it could last a month.

The families of the soldiers of the Left Army also need to be supported, but their families are supported by the Left Army's sacred treasury.

At present, Peng Gang does not need to pay his soldiers' wages; he only needs to provide them with enough rations.

The Left Army doesn't have a huge need for silver, so they can allocate some silver to buy military rations from Qin Dingsan and Zhou Fengqi for the Qing army.

“It’s worth a try. I think this deal can be done,” said Qiu Zhongliang, the fourth battalion commander, with sound reasoning.

"The Qing troops in Guiping City dared to sell grain to the main force right under the noses of the governor and the commander-in-chief. Ma Ping City is far from the governor and the commander-in-chief, and the governor and the commander-in-chief can't control them. They can exchange military grain for some silver. Qin Dingsan and Zhou Fengqi have no reason to refuse."

If they refuse to sell, we can feign an attack on Maping City to coerce Qin Dingsan and Zhou Fengqi into selling grain.

If the Qing troops in Guiping dared to sell grain and salt to the main force of the Taiping Army, there was no reason why the Qing troops guarding Maping in Liuzhou Prefecture would refuse to sell grain to their Left Army.

Qin Dingsan and Zhou Fengqi are not innocent white lotuses who dislike gold and silver.

"Who's willing to go to Ma Pingcheng and talk to Qin Dingsan and the others about this deal?" Peng Gang asked, looking around at everyone.

“I’ll go,” Qiu Zhongliang volunteered.

Young people are very curious. After returning from Mapingcheng, Li Qi kept describing to Qiu Zhongliang the city walls of Mapingcheng, which were covered with blue bricks. Qiu Zhongliang was itching to see the legendary first fortified city in Guangxi with his own eyes.

“I’ll go with the Fourth Battalion Commander,” Luo Dagang said, stepping forward. “Back in the submarine force, I had dealings with the Green Standard Army and did business with them.”

"Be careful and don't go into the city easily. Try to keep the price of grain down as much as possible. The price per shi of grain should not exceed three liang. As for how much to buy, the more the better." Peng Gang nodded and agreed that the two of them should go to Ma Pingcheng to discuss the deal with Qin Dingsan and Zhou Fengqi.

Qiu Zhongliang managed the Qiu family's businesses and engaged in trade.

Luo Dagang was a seasoned veteran, and it was just right for the two of them to go and negotiate the purchase of grain with the Qing army generals in Ma Pingcheng.

(End of this chapter)