Great Qing Dynasty talker

Chapter 408 The Miners’ Corps’ Siege Skills!

The official name of Dongshan Civil Service School today should be Wu State Civil Service School.

The military band played music.

His Majesty came in person, surrounded by guards, one to inspect and the other to attend the graduation ceremony.

200 students have officially graduated and will soon take up their posts in various places.

Everyone was in high spirits and bowed to each other.

The 400 newly admitted students stood aside and looked at these unimaginably young "seniors" with envy.

They felt jealous and secretly complained that their "predecessors" were lucky and had good lives.

The golden black gauze hat fell steadily on the head.

All the vacancies are filled after being allocated!
In the future, when the Great Wu replaced the Pseudo-Qing Dynasty, it is hard to imagine how bright the careers of these people would be.

……

"Graduates went on stage one by one according to the roster."

The students, dressed in navy blue uniforms, hurried onto the stage when the guards announced their names.

Receive the 6-piece graduation set from His Majesty:

Graduation certificate, official seal, report certificate, sword, pistol, and a copper bowl~
The first five are pretty normal, but the last one is a bit confusing.

The graduates received the gifts, knelt on one knee, shouted "Long live", and then left.

This part lasted for half an hour.

after that,

Li Yu delivered another congratulatory speech, which was nothing more than consolation, encouragement, and warning. To everyone, it was nothing new.

"Old Gu, what does this copper bowl mean?"

"Perhaps His Majesty is worried that we won't have anything to eat on the road, so why not serve the rice?"

An older freshman nearby heard it and almost burst out laughing.

He came over and whispered:
"My dear seniors, your Majesty's words have a profound meaning. From now on, you will have an unbreakable rice bowl in your hands. Copper was also called gold in ancient times. So it can also be understood as holding a golden rice bowl in your hands."

Graduation bowl~
……

The graduates and freshmen had a simple handover.

Hand over the cleaned dormitory, exchange some unused personal items, as well as the experience of studying here, and which area has the best loquats and bayberries nearby.

"I heard there are many schools in Dongshan?"

"Yes, but I have to remind you that there are two schools that you cannot mess with."

"Which two?"

"The non-commissioned officer school is full of violent men. There is also the College of Arts, which has now been renamed the School of Journalism."

“What’s so scary about journalism school?”

"They will confuse right and wrong and frame you behind your back. If you don't want the people of Suzhou to know your name, you'd better stay away from them."

At last,
A graduate kindly reminded:

"Hurry up and prepare the tuition. Our tuition is expensive. 1 taels a year!"

"what?"

Half the freshman class was freaked out, Alexander.

However, they soon felt relieved.

There was a "Si Hai Piao Hao" in the capital city where one could borrow money at an interest rate of 5% (which, converted to an annual interest rate, would be 6%).

Li Yu had no intention of waiving tuition fees.

Except for military academies, all other schools charge tuition fees, which are not cheap.

Although some people advised that this was not very decent, Li Yu was not going to be "generous" and insisted on continuing to charge fees and making it a regular practice.

……

The Sihai Piaohao was a small-scale bank he had just established.

The bank's chief manager has now changed his name to a strange one, called manager.

The first manager was Liu Jinxin, the former "Southern Manager of Tianchengyuan Banknote House", and the deputy manager was transferred from the Finance and Taxation Bureau.

Because of its small scale, it did not attract much attention.

Led by Liu Jinxin,
He led the former backbone members of Tianchengyuan Piaohao under his command and was ordered to compile a "Piaohao Industry Textbook", which put all the Piaohao rules and common sense of Shanxi merchants on paper.

After screening and additions, it became the textbook of "Wu Guo Accounting School".

Accounting schools, health schools, technical schools, naval schools, shipbuilding schools, and a series of schools that have been established or are about to be established, the biggest difficulty at present is not recruiting students~
Instead, they were busy compiling textbooks.

Interview professionals from scratch, summarize their experiences, and gradually fill in the textbook content.

Except for a small number of full-time teachers, most of the teaching staff are front-line personnel, from directors to technicians, similar to the training system of medical schools.

Education is a long-term plan.

to this end,

Li Yu also established the Education Department, Science and Technology Department, and Health Department in the same compound.

There is no minister for the time being.

When the time is ripe, a Minister of Education will be appointed to oversee science, education, culture, and health.

……

These students went to various places to take up their posts either by boat or by carriage.

Among them, 80 people went to Jiangxi by boat.

"My Lords, the 5th Army of the Wu Kingdom is attacking Jiangxi. The newly occupied counties and cities urgently need to restore order. It's up to you."

"Don't worry, Lieutenant."

The 5th Corps sent a second lieutenant and 1 soldiers on board to escort the students safely to Nanchang City.

Afterwards, they will move with the army.

They would move into the government office wherever the military flag was raised.

Implement all the systems of the Wu State in the shortest possible time and achieve deep control over the local areas.

There are no military commanders in the core areas such as Suzhou, Songjiang, Changzhou, Hangzhou, Jiaxing and Huzhou.

All prefectures and counties in Jiangxi must have military judges.

Your Majesty permits each county to recruit 200 to 500 militiamen, depending on the situation. The county will be responsible for their food and salaries, while the weapons will be allocated by the Ministry of the Army.

The militia is temporary and has no fixed term.

The patrol police in each county are fixed and, in theory, can work for a lifetime and be paid for their entire lives by the court.

Therefore, the militia can be recruited at will.

Patrolmen need to be carefully selected, loyal and strong.

……

The city of Nanchang is extremely noisy from day to night.

The number of people in the city was less than one-third of its original number; due to long-term wars, most of them had fled or died.

War is more ferocious than a tiger.
Today, there are 5 troops from the 1th Corps, 4000 cavalry from the Light Cavalry Corps, and 1 troops from the 4000st Expeditionary Army.

There was a constant stream of fleets coming and going.

There were weapons and ammunition shipped from the south of the Yangtze River, and food shipped from southern Anhui and northern Jiangxi.

Miao Youlin stood on the city wall, feeling very proud.

Speaking to a group of unfamiliar lieutenants.

"My name is Miao Youlin. I was previously in charge of the Second Army. To be honest, the Second Army is very capable in fighting. They fought bravely on the battlefield and were never afraid of the enemy."

"But I believe that the 5th Legion is more capable of fighting!"

The lieutenants looked up and stared at the new commander.

……

Miao Youlin smiled slyly:
"I was born into a poor family. I have farmed and been to the mountains. People in the mountains have a hard time. The soil on the gentle slopes is only as thick as a palm. You can't dig deep. There are rocks underneath. You can only plant a lot and get a small harvest. In the south of the Yangtze River, one mu of land can easily produce 500 to 600 kilograms of grain, but in the mountains, you can only get 100 to 200 kilograms."

Everyone nodded,

Most of the members of the 5th Corps were miners and mountain dwellers, and they felt the same way.

"It's okay to have a bad harvest, but God still makes things worse from time to time. A landslide destroyed the harvest. A herd of wild boars came and destroyed the harvest again."

"Farming can't support a family. So we have to work as miners, blasting or drilling. I don't need to explain how life was like in mining. If you die in a war, your body will be intact, but if you die in a mining job, no one will collect your remains."

"We mountain people have a hard life."

When Miao Youlin said this, his eyes even turned slightly red.

The lieutenants also wiped their tears.
All of a sudden, the distance between the chief officer and his core officers was shortened.

Keyword——our own people!

……

Miao Youlin saw that the fire was ready and suddenly pointed to the south:
"Your Majesty is wise and has given us a chance to turn things around. The battlefield in Jiangxi is our fertile land and our gold mine."

"Follow me and conquer the Poyang Lake Plain and the Ganjiang Plain at the fastest speed, rush all the way to Dayuling Mountain and capture Meiguan. Military merit and rewards are waiting for you."

Miao Youlin suddenly drew out his sword, and dozens of people around him followed suit.

in the sun,
Dozens of swords flashed with cold light.

"Take down Jiangxi and aim at Guangdong. Kill, kill, kill!"

……

The Light Cavalry Corps remained stationed in Nanchang City and did not move south. There was little point in using cavalry to attack Jiangxi.

It would be better to stay in Nanchang to guard against the heavy Qing troops from Hubei, and to provide support to Jiujiang at any time.

4 days later,

The Wu army arrived at the city of Ruizhou.

The prefect of Ruizhou was a Manchu. He was arrogant and stubborn, and he was determined to fight to the death.

The city walls have been reinforced, and many surrounding trenches and pits have been added inside the city, so even if the city walls are collapsed, it can still hold out for a while.

There were more than 3000 defenders, mainly from the Green Camp, with 2% being yamen runners and civilians.

There were quite a few bows and arrows and muskets.

In addition, tens of thousands of young and strong men were mobilized to defend the city, and a large amount of kerosene was prepared to use fire walls to repel the enemy when necessary.

"Is what you said true?"

"Yes, I guarantee it with my life."

A gentry in Ruizhou Prefecture sent his steward to sneak out of the city and provide city defense intelligence.

"Okay, a man who knows the times is a hero. After the city is conquered, the lives and property of your master's family will be protected."

"Thank you, sir."

……

The butler knelt on the ground and kowtowed repeatedly.

His master judged that once the Wu army returned, they would be unstoppable and Jiangxi would definitely belong to Wu.

The two lakes and Guangdong are also in danger.

The probability of the Northern and Southern Dynasties is at least 7%.

The Manchu governor was determined to defend the city and refused to surrender. Under such circumstances, the king's army would probably suffer a lot of casualties.

After the city was captured, the king's army was furious. What if they massacred the entire city to vent their anger?
Gentlemen who are well-versed in history never believe in the existence of a benevolent and righteous army.

Even though the Wu army had a good reputation before, this could not conceal the cruelty of the change of dynasties.

In the past, we had few soldiers and little land, so we needed to win over the hearts of the people.

Now that the Wu State has become powerful, it has surrounded and annihilated the main force of the Qing court in Jiangbei, and the offensive and defensive situations have become easy.

in the South,
Except for the southwestern provinces, where the Eight Banners, Green Camp, and Tusi soldiers stationed there may have the strength to fight back. The rest of the provinces have no hope.
……

"Tell me, is there any way to quickly break into the city?"

A warrant officer knelt on one knee:

"I have been mining for two generations. I can dig a tunnel and pile the gunpowder precisely under the center line of the city wall."

"How much gunpowder do you need?"

"300 pounds."

"With so little, can it collapse?"

"Of course it's enough. I'm used to explosions in mines. If you use too much gunpowder, the mine owner will beat you up."

The warrant officer said this with full confidence.

When he was a miner, he personally participated in dozens of explosions.

"Okay, if this is successful, I will recommend you for promotion to second lieutenant."

Late autumn and early winter,

The groundwater level is low and the soil is firm.

Digging a mine is a technical job as well as a physical job.

Judging the depth, width, height and extension direction of the hole all depends on experience.

……

During excavation, 30 people worked in a group.
Five people were digging in the front, 5 people were responsible for crawling and transporting the soil, and 20 people were supporting on the ground.

Wu Jun made a lot of fake moves, with loud gongs and drums, people shouting and horses neighing, and occasional cold guns and cannons to cover up the noise of digging the hole.

Ruizhou prefect, Ha Tong, was loyal and impeccable, but lacked battlefield experience.

He was born in Mancheng, Guangzhou, and had never seen a real war since he was a child.

Because Guangdong and Jiangxi have always had frequent commercial exchanges,

After he became an adult, he took advantage of his ancestors' influence and obtained the position of prefect of Ruizhou.

After inspecting the city walls,

He began to study the two military books again, "Postscript to the Jing Kang Chao Ye Qian Yan" and "Secrets of Defending a City" written by Chen Gui, a civil official in the Southern Song Dynasty who was good at defending a city.

Whenever Hotung came to a key point in his reading, he would immediately write a note asking people to follow the instructions.

……

no way,
Since his father's generation, they have rarely touched weapons. The Manchus in Guangzhou have always been proud of their elegance.

Hotung was an expert at reciting poems, composing essays, and writing eight-legged essays.

His thin gold style of calligraphy even has 6% of the charm of Emperor Huizong of Song Dynasty.

If the world were peaceful, he should have lived a carefree and smooth life like this.

The soldiers in Ruizhou all thought that the prefect was a veteran on the battlefield, and his orders were well-organized and methodical.

But they didn't know that they were being forced to copy books to defend the city.

Apart from inspecting the city defenses, Hotung spent the rest of his time frantically reading books.

He was amazed by the wisdom of his ancestors hundreds of years ago.

"Brother Chen, you are truly a talented person."

"If the Song court had more talents like him in both civil and military affairs, there would be no need to fear the Jurchen barbarians."

The concubine next to her widened her eyes when she heard this.

"Husband, you can't say this carelessly, it's taboo."

Hardong turned to the next page without moving his eyes:
"It's okay. The current emperor has personally approved that Song is the only legitimate dynasty, and Liao and Jin cannot compete with it. Everyone in my banner respects Yue Wumu~"

……

"My husband, please have some wine and food."

"Leave it here. If the city is destroyed, how will you deal with it?"

The concubine's face was gloomy and she didn't know how to answer.

Hardong sighed and took out two pills from the wooden box:
"This is a deadly poison. If the city is breached, you must take it quickly. Confucius said to die for benevolence, Mencius said to pursue justice. Death is a small matter, but losing one's integrity is a big matter."

The house is quiet.

Hardong turned several pages again.
Suddenly, his face turned pale and his fingers began to tremble violently:

"Cave siege method~"

"Oh no! The situation outside the city is exactly the same as described in this book. The thieves must be digging a tunnel~"

Holding the book, Ha Tong rushed out of the mansion.

"Bury the jar and listen to the sound."

"A city-wide reward is offered to find the thief's tunnel."

……

The city was in chaos and the situation lasted for half an hour.

Finally, a soldier shouted excitedly:
"I heard the enemy soldiers digging a tunnel. I just couldn't tell the direction."

Hotung quickly flipped through books, seeking the wisdom of his ancestors.

"Cylinder 3 positioning, quick, snap it up."

outside the city,

Several soldiers who looked like mud monkeys crawled out of the tunnel.

"Commander-in-chief, we are ready to blast."

"Light the fire."

The fuse crackled and the sparks quickly retracted into the hole.

Everyone was quietly waiting for the exciting moment.

……

After about a hundred breaths,

There was a loud, dull thud from underground.

The gunpowder sealed in the coffin was ignited, and gushed out upward with overwhelming force.

The miners had developed a vague intuition about directional blasting from their long-term blasting work and applied it here.

The walls of Ruizhou trembled and collapsed, and black smoke billowed.

The explosion affected an area of ​​several dozen feet in radius.

The city walls were blown down, the moats inside the city were filled in, and the surrounding deer forts were thrown far away.

Three cannons were overturned to the ground.

Hundreds of people were buried in the rubble, and dozens of others were shaken so much that they were bleeding from their mouths and noses and fell to the ground twitching.

Of course, this is because Ruizhou is just a provincial capital and the thickness of the city walls is limited.

If it were a strong city like Jiangning or Xi'an, or even a provincial capital like Changsha or Wuchang, double the amount of gunpowder would not produce such an effect.

(End of this chapter)