Travel through the Qing Dynasty and become emperor

Chapter 51 All-round counterattack
It took only two hours from Feng Zicai's occupation of Zhennan Pass to the complete annihilation of a brigade of the French colonial vassal army in Daqingshan.Lu Yiwei left five battalions of troops on the mountain, and the main force went out.Detour along the right side of Shanxi City to Xuanguang City, and surround all the [-] French troops outside Shanxi and Beining City.

And Liu Mingchuan's troops stationed in Beining also swarmed out and launched a counterattack against the French army from the front.

When the [-] troops rushed towards the exhausted French army, which had been unable to attack for a long time, the French army immediately collapsed and gave up a large area of ​​land north of the Red River with little resistance.

When the good news spread to the capital, Guan Xuqing let out a long breath after seeing it.Looking at the map of Vietnam, one-fifth of the army of the Qing Dynasty is now concentrated in Vietnam, and at this time the rest of the country is empty of troops.The remnants of the French army should be resolved as soon as possible to end this protracted war.

Otherwise, Xinjiang, North Korea, and Mongolia are lands that Japan, Russia, and other countries have successively harassed and encroached upon.

However, the Red River has the newly formed Far East Fleet of the French Army, and there is only a very narrow piece of land between the South and North of the Red River.The army crossing the Red River and going down the river will undoubtedly be massacred by the French fleet!

It seems that another decisive battle between the Qingshui Division and the French fleet is inevitable.But how can today's Daqingshui Division defeat the newly formed French Far East Fleet.

Guan Xuqing's head was buzzing unknowingly, his whole profile picture was about to split open!
The last big victory in the East China Sea was caused by too many chances and the French army's underestimation of the enemy. Now the French who have suffered a lot will not let the Daqingshui Division take advantage of it, and the current strength of the Daqingshui Division can keep up with Is the French army fighting?

Wang Shang, who was standing next to him, had watched Guan Xuqing grow up, and it was very painful to see the emperor's frowning face. Didn't he say that he won a big victory?A large amount of Vietnamese land has been taken back ahead, why is the emperor still so sad?
Guan Xuqing staggered, probably because he stood in front of the map for a long time and looked up.Almost lost his footing, Wang Shang and others hurried over to support Guan Xuqing.

"Your majesty, please rest. This servant sees you working day and night, and I feel uncomfortable." Wang Shang said that tears flowed from the emotional part.

Guan Xuqing pressed his temples with his thumb and index finger, and said with difficulty: "Is Zuo Zongtang back?"

"Back to the emperor, Mr. Zuo entered Beijing in the morning. He will be in the Ministry of War. The emperor summoned him tomorrow." Wang Shang said.

"Go, call me Zuo Zongtang. I have something to discuss with him." Guan Xuqing waved his hand.

"twitter."

After a while, Zuo Zongtang came to the Hall of Mental Cultivation.It has been half a year since the war between China and France started between the monarch and his ministers!
"My lord, kowtow to the emperor!" Zuo Zongtang knelt on the ground.

"Get flat." Guan Xuqing still had that calm expression on his face.

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Zuo Zongtang stood in front of him.

Guan Xuqing raised his head and looked at the increasingly old Zuo Zongtang, feeling a little emotional in his heart.

"Zongtang, do you know why I recruited you back?"

Zuo Zongtang's heart was shocked, he knelt on the ground, and said in a trembling voice: "I, my minister is guilty of death. I destroyed the Fujian Navy and Mawei Naval Port. I also lost Keelung!"

Guan Xuqing was filled with emotion when he saw a veteran who had served the Qing army all his life kneeling in front of him.Frankly speaking, Zuo Zongtang gave everything for the Qing Dynasty in his life. It seems unfair to blame him for the defeat of World War I when he regained Xinjiang and founded the Fujian Navy.

"Zongtang is serious. Victory or defeat is a common matter in military affairs. I don't have an excellent naval admiral in the Qing Dynasty. I can't blame you for the French army's undeclared war at the end of the horse. It is also right to abandon Keelung for the sake of the overall situation. I don't mean to blame you. Now that China and France are at war again, I am not very familiar with Vietnam. This Qing Dynasty cannot do without you, and I have sent you back to assist me in the next battle." Guan Xuqing helped Zuo Zongtang.

At this time Zuo Zongtang was in tears, thinking that the emperor would not reuse him even if he didn't kill him.After all, the loss he brought to the court is immeasurable.Unexpectedly, the little emperor not only did not blame himself.He still regards himself as an important minister to discuss the war in Vietnam.Can you not impress this old general?As the saying goes, women look good for those who please them, and men die for those who know them well.The emperor treats him so disregarding previous suspicions, so he should be even more loyal to the emperor.

"How can the emperor's slave, how can he be so honored by the emperor? Huh"

Guan Xuqing saw an old man in his 70s crying when he was emotional, and laughed out loud at the scene.

"Okay, okay, the commander-in-chief of the Qing army is actually crying here, like a bitch. If this is going to spread, what is the power of our Qing army?" Guan Xuqing continued pointing out the window: "Look, where is the capital? Is it ever this hot?"

Zuo Zongtang looked out of the window, the white sun made his eyes hurt.This year's summer is indeed much hotter than in previous years. It's already September, and it's still like July and August.It's hot as hell!

"Anomalies in the weather are like changes in people's hearts. It is unpredictable. But blaming others can't solve the problem, it can only increase troubles." Guan Xuqing said pointedly.

Zuo Zongtang didn't know what to do, and asked cautiously: "What does the emperor mean?"

Guan Xuqing continued: "The legal person mobilized more than 20 warships from the Indian Ocean, including 3 large ironclad warships, which arrived at the Vietnamese military port and merged with the previous "Elegance" to form a new Far East fleet. Our Vietnamese army could not survive the war. Red River, facing the French army on the opposite side across the river. My Qing Dynasty cannot afford to delay a protracted war. Russia in the north and those in the east are taking advantage of the opportunity when my Qing Dynasty is at war with France. And the battle with the French army The money in the national treasury has been wiped out, tell me, how can we solve it quickly?"

Zuo Zongtang thought for a while and said: "Russia's harm originated from the French war. The Sino-French war began with the weakness of the navy. I thought that if we want to win the battle quickly, we have to start with the navy. Defeating the French fleet, Then the war between China and France will end in a short time. Once the war between China and France is over, Russia and Russia will retreat one after another."

Guan Xuqing nodded in satisfaction, and continued to ask: "So, do you think my Qingshui Division is capable of defeating the French fleet? If all the warships go south, what should the Jingshi and Jiangnan Shipbuilding Bureau do if they encounter a sneak attack from the fleet? Not for the time being." Speaking of this, even if we all go south, what do you think we have a chance of winning?"

Zuo Zongtang thought for a while and replied: "Going back to the emperor, I thought that the Japanese pirates would not dare to go to war with the Qing Dynasty. Moreover, the Dagu Fort in Tianjin has introduced a full set of German forts, so there should be no problem in defense. In addition, Jiangnan Shipbuilding Bureau left a few ships. Coastal defense gunboats built in Britain will do. The Qing now has six ironclad ships, more than the number of French ironclad ships, and after going south, the victory is evenly split."

Guan Xuqing looked at Zuo Zongtang, and asked after a long time: "Are you willing to lead all the navy to fight? Open the road to the north and south banks of the Red River for the Vietnamese army!"

Zuo Zongtang was stunned for a moment, and immediately knelt down on the ground: "I would like to issue a military order to not destroy the French fleet. I will die to thank the emperor for his kindness."

Guan Xuqing smiled in satisfaction, this old general still has some potential to explode after being excited!

(End of this chapter)