Red Mansion: I am Jia Lian

Chapter 364: The Enemy's Situation Is Unclear
Emperor Chenghui fell asleep in the early morning and woke up two hours later. He naturally couldn't sleep well because he had something on his mind.

He raised his hand to support his forehead, feeling a dull headache that made him uncomfortable, but he still asked anxiously, "How is the progress of each camp?"

Sending troops to fight is a very troublesome thing. The troops need time to assemble, and food, ammunition, vehicles, etc. all need time to prepare. If you want to travel at any time, you also need to bring some personal belongings and a wallet and a mobile phone.

"Your Majesty, at 1:00 pm, the vanguard of the Shenji Camp has already left the city. The other units are still preparing." Qiu Shian reported truthfully, and Emperor Chenghui was immediately shocked: "So fast?"

"Lord Jia's military order, the Shenji Battalion's vanguard of about a thousand men, carrying light rapid-fire cannons, will lead the way for the entire army and arrive in Changping in advance to monitor the Juyongguan defense line in case of any changes!"

Emperor Chenghui understood that Jia Lian was not a god, and even though the Shenjiying was an elite force led by him, it was impossible for the entire army to march out in a short period of time.

"Have you asked how long it will take for the whole army to set out?" Emperor Chenghui was satisfied, but still a little anxious. A vanguard of 1,000 people was still a little too few. If they could reach Changping before dark, they could at most reinforce Juyongguan as soon as possible. Thinking of this, Emperor Chenghui stood up, casually put on a coat, and examined the map.

"I have asked, and Lord Jia replied that the West Mountain Camp has many cavalrymen, and the required fodder will take a day to prepare. Fortunately, there are counties along the way where we can station troops, so we don't need to carry camping equipment, and we should be able to send troops out in two days. The armaments of the Shenji Camp are better, and considering the urgency of the military situation, Lord Jia will lead the Shenji Camp headquarters to set off at noon, and the baggage and logistics will set off with the main force of the West Mountain Camp. As for the West Mountain Camp, we can concentrate the cavalry to go ahead and meet Lord Jia's Shenji Camp in Changping. The required food and fodder will be provided by the local county government, and some will be purchased locally."

Qiu Shian explained it very carefully, and Emperor Chenghui was very satisfied. This arrangement was made to save time, and time is a very important factor in war.

"All the ministers, please get up." Qiu Shi'an reminded them that the ministers had not gone home last night. This matter was too big and it was not comparable to the previous minor incidents. It threatened the capital.

Emperor Chenghui got up to wash and comb his hair, and asked, "Any urgent news?"

Qiu Shian said: "Not yet!"

Emperor Chenghui relaxed a little, thinking that no news was good news.

The situation in the Xishan Camp was much more troublesome than that in the Shenji Camp. After much haste, the three thousand cavalrymen finally assembled, and it was almost noon. Jia Lian did not want to waste time talking to General Sun, so he took the opportunity to say goodbye and led the three thousand cavalrymen to go ahead. The Shenji Camp had too few cavalrymen. If it was an opponent with low mobility, Jia Lian was confident that he could deal with it, but this was an attack by a grassland tribe, a highly mobile force, and even if the Shenji Camp won, it would not be able to expand the victory.

Old Sun in the Xishan camp was also helpless, because it was a period of national mourning, otherwise the army would have assembled even slower.

Let's put it this way. According to the current situation of the Xishan Camp, not counting the auxiliary troops, the total number of combat troops is about 15,000. This is the full strength after the reorganization of the army. Among them, there are 5,000 cavalry, 8,000 infantry, and 2,000 artillery. Because of the national mourning, many are on missions. Just giving the order to assemble and waiting for the handover takes a day. Thanks to Jia Lian's understanding of him, he only asked to assemble the cavalry as soon as possible to cooperate with the Shenji Camp to set off first.

Even so, General Sun could only temporarily assemble 3,000 cavalrymen. The necessary food and fodder were not yet prepared, and he only prepared enough salt for the advance cavalrymen.

Don't underestimate salt. People don't eat a lot of salt, but horses do. Thanks to the Mongolian horse, it has enough endurance and is easy to feed. If it were another horse, it would be much taller and have higher requirements for food.

Jia Lian, who caught up with the main force of the Shenji Camp at noon, breathed a sigh of relief. He had a hunch that it was too late to send troops now. If he were the Little Loyal Prince, he would have led his troops to Zhangjiakou by now. He should seize the city as quickly as possible, replenish supplies, leave a part of the army to guard the city and monitor the direction of Xuanhua, and the main force should quickly move south to catch Datong Town off guard. Even if the city cannot be captured by then, it will prevent the local people from having time to transfer the population of villages and towns, making it easier for the various troops to plunder.

Of course, there are risks in indulging in looting without taking Datong. It is easy to send out troops, but it is difficult to bring them back.

To put it bluntly, Jia Lian even hoped that Li Ni really did so. The Great Zhou was not the Ming Dynasty, where the enemy could be allowed to plunder outside while the main force retreated into the city and dared not fight in the field.

As long as Li Ni dared to do so, Jia Lian would take the initiative to attack and defeat him one by one.

"Any news from the vanguard?" Jia Lian hurriedly asked Commander Yang as they were on their way to join the main force.

"In reply to the governor, we have not received any news from the vanguard yet. Perhaps they are still too far away from Zhangjiakou. I have already instructed the vanguard battalion to keep as many people as possible awake at night and to conduct reconnaissance in the direction of Huailai and Xuanhua first. Any news should be sent back as soon as possible." Commander Yang was also an old acquaintance. He knew Jia Lian's leadership style and made detailed arrangements in advance.

Jia Lian's attack this time was different from the previous times. The last time he led troops to Shandong, he was given a temporary rank of general. This time, Emperor Chenghui gave him the temporary rank of commander-in-chief of the left army.

Because it was a temporary assignment, he had greater power during the war, but when he returned from the war, he no longer had this power and his title was also returned.

How to look at this matter? Jia Lian also realized that Emperor Chenghui had no trustworthy generals. Wang Ziteng and the two kings of the East and the West, who were good at fighting in the past, were all driven out of the capital. Although Yue Qi was very capable, he lacked experience and was not from a high family. It was difficult for him to command the three armies in the local army.

Jia Lian's situation was rather special, although he did not have high qualifications, he had a good family background. The local military leaders would give him some face for the sake of the deceased old Duke and the living Wang Ziteng.

In addition, Jia Lian himself led a group of capable and battle-hardened soldiers called the Shenji Camp, which had never been defeated in battle. As a result, the local military leaders were still convinced of his defeat.

The current organization of the Shenji Battalion is two artillery battalions with 2,000 men, three infantry battalions with about 6,000 men, and one cavalry battalion with about 500 men. Including the 2,000 men in the baggage battalion, the total strength is about 10,000.

Now with the support of 3,000 cavalry, the combined strength of the Shenji Battalion, which is fully armed with new equipment and well-trained, is absolutely unique in this era.

Even so, a part of the troops were still transferred to Niu Jizong and taken to Liangjiang, otherwise he would have been even more powerful.

Of course, there are still hidden dangers. Jia Lian didn't say it, but Commander Yang knew it. That is, there are only about 5,000 real veterans in the Shenji Battalion, and the rest are part of the later reinforcements.

There is certainly no problem with training, but training and fighting are two different things. For those who have never fought in a war and seen blood, it really is not the same concept.

Emperor Chenghui, the Ministry of War, and Yue Qi, none of the three parties actually wanted to see an overly powerful Shenji Camp under their noses.

Jia Lian was mentally prepared for this situation. Even Jia Lian's best friend Yang Tongzhi had a plan in mind. All he could do was to follow the drill that Jia Lian had left behind and kill the new soldiers!

Let’s put it this way, apart from other things, the Shenji Camp’s training is more rigorous than the other three camps.

The army was advancing on the official road, and a huge cloud of dust could be seen in the distance. It was far from the plains, and when they were on the way, they could vaguely see Changping County. There were cavalrymen coming to meet them in front of them. The sun was on the top of the mountain, and they had to set off for the night. The cavalry reported that the vanguard camp brought a piece of news that was neither good nor bad. The grain and grass in the granary of Changping County were insufficient, and were only enough to support the army for one day. There was no shortage of grass and fodder, and the grain was collected from the gentry. Jia Lian was helpless when he heard the news. Every county near the three borders had similar problems.

You said that the county town does not have enough food. That is both true and false. The government warehouses do not have enough food, but the gentry warehouses do have enough food. At least there is enough food to supply the Shenji Camp.

According to the system, the supplies needed by the three borders were supplied by the imperial court, but the problem was that the local area was not a grain-producing area. During the reign of Emperor Taizu, the Sino-French policy was implemented, but some merchants were too clever to purchase grain locally and supply it to the military town, and then go to apply for salt permits after receiving the receipt. One family did this, and all the merchants did the same. Now is the season of shortage, when the price of grain is high. The county magistrate is looking at the money, so he can't help but make some, right?
If there hadn't been a sudden war, this wouldn't have been a big deal. It was like this almost every year, and it would be the same every time a new county magistrate came. Or rather, he had no choice but to do so.

The magistrate of Changping County was so frightened that he took the initiative to go 20 miles to meet Jia Lian. He was really afraid. The main reason was that Jia Lian was notorious, and he was notorious for killing anyone who touched him.

When Jia Lian met Magistrate Zhang, he didn't waste any words and asked him directly: "It's getting late, Magistrate, please go back quickly."

In front of the marching group, seeing Jia Lian approaching from afar with flags and banners, Magistrate Zhang was so shameless that he knelt down on the side of the road, not avoiding the dust, and shouted loudly: "General Jia, save me."

Jia Lian had no time to waste on him. He said without stopping, "You must see three days' worth of food before dawn tomorrow, or you will hang yourself. Don't let me send anyone to do it."

Upon hearing the voice, Magistrate Zhang hurriedly stood up and without saying a word, he spurred his horse into a gallop, overtaking Jia Lian and the entire marching team.

By this time, the sky was already dark. Although they were less than twenty miles away from Changping, it would take at least three hours for Jia Lian's main force to arrive, and by then it would be dark.

There was no other way. To save time, we had to travel at night. Fortunately, we could stay in the county town and didn't have to camp in the wild. If we really wanted to stay outside the city, the baggage camp would not be there and we wouldn't even have tents.

The county town was not big, and there was not enough space to accommodate the Shenji Camp. Jia Lian had to ask County Magistrate Zhang to make sure that the cavalry was settled, or at least the horses. The other officers and soldiers were not allowed to enter the houses of the people, and they could just find a place in the streets and alleys to clean up and rest. The only trouble was that they had to find enough space to dig dry toilets, as the Shenji Camp was forbidden to urinate and defecate at will.

In order to survive, County Magistrate Zhang showed amazing fighting power. Before dawn, 15,000 men and three days of food and fodder were ready. It is unknown how he convinced the local gentry.

Later, Jia Lian realized that there was no need to persuade them. They just reported Jia Lian's name directly. The gentry were more enthusiastic than anyone else. They had to be enthusiastic. It was really scary.

This bastard was tortured to death by the gentry in Nanyang and Yunyang, and he was impeached countless times but nothing happened to him.

The rumors among the people are so wild that the Nanyang gentry's family was destroyed and their families were broken up, which is a big deal. It is said that the Shenjiying made a fortune every time they fought a war, and the soldiers earned a lot. Why?
If you think about it carefully, you must be scaring yourself. Soldiers want to get rich quickly, so they let their soldiers rob.

Don't think this is just wishful thinking. Gentlemen who have read history books know that when soldiers and officers fight, they are really cruel. If they accidentally bump into women, they will have no place to cry. Afterwards, women will hang themselves.

That night, the gentry and common people of the entire county spent their time in fear and anxiety. When there was no movement in the second half of the night, many people even quietly climbed over the wall to look outside.

What he saw was a blanket spread on the ground, with the officers and soldiers of the Shenjiying sleeping on it.

In order not to disturb the normal life of the people and also to save time, Jia Lian ordered the troops to get up at the third watch and leave at the fifth watch.

After daybreak, the main force of the Shenji Camp had already left the county, leaving behind a thousand men waiting for food and fodder.

The entire county was in an uproar, and the people spontaneously stood on both sides of the road, watching this unprecedented group of soldiers escorting food and fodder away.

A day later, General Sun led the Xishan Camp and the Shenji Camp baggage train to Changping. Following Jia Lian's military order, the entire army passed through the city and camped outdoors at night.

When the news reached the capital, Emperor Chenghui was filled with emotion and said, "Jia Lian leads the troops with strict military discipline, even better than his ancestors."

Three days later, Emperor Chenghui received a message from Jia Lian, saying that when the army reached Huailai, there were countless refugees and the roads were blocked. On the same day, the Dragon Guard sent back a message that when the army passed Huailai, some soldiers robbed refugees and insulted women. Jia Lian ordered the execution of 36 people and hung their heads on poles by the road to correct military discipline. No one in the left army dared to disobey.

In fact, Jia Lian was very troubled at this time. Although he was in charge of the Xishan Camp, Sun Tongzhi was not ruthless enough. When he found that some soldiers violated the rules, he did not punish them severely, but just locked them up and waited for Jia Lian to deal with them. After Jia Lian knew about it, he sent someone to pass on the order overnight. Before sending troops the next day, Sun Tongzhi chopped off 36 heads and hung them on the roadside to warn the whole army, and sent people to properly deal with the victims and their relatives.

Jia Lian was very sure of one thing: without strict military discipline, there would be no guarantee of combat effectiveness. This was true for both Yue Family Army and Qi Family Army.

As for the People's Army, it is a special case and cannot be confused with the others. There is no other army like it anywhere in the world. When the flag is raised, the people cheer and say that the savior has arrived.

Although Jia Lian thought that he was not being too demanding, Sun Tongzhi, who was also a veteran general, was shocked by this. Any resentment he had previously felt was gone.

Less than twenty miles away from Xuanhua, the Shenji Camp could no longer move.

The reason is simple: the road is blocked by refugees.

The panicked refugees, carrying the elderly and children, or driving carts, or carrying loads on their shoulders, or leading animals, and carrying whatever belongings they could take away, moved little by little along the main road to the official highway to the capital.

Upon seeing this, Commander Yang hurried to the central army to see Jia Lian and said, "Commander-in-chief, send troops to drive them away!"

Jia Lian did not make a decision immediately, but looked ahead with a telescope. Smoke was rising from the direction of Xuanhua City.

"Pass on my order. If the enemy situation is unclear, everyone should go out at night to find out the news. The rest of you should leave the official roads and deploy defenses in the wild. Remember, it is best not to damage the crops. If you can't avoid it, please make a note and send someone to compensate you in the future."

(End of this chapter)