Qing Dynasty Secret History

Chapter 72 Long Wind and Wave Confucian Generals Invite for a Tale
It is said that Guofan listened to Yulin's words, and asked all the counselors with a smile: "It is Xueqin who can't say that. Peng Xueqin is really a good friend of Zeng."

Everyone was surprised to see that Guofan didn't show any anger.At present, Guofan and all the counselors were discussing the method of fighting and defending. Guofan said: "The traitor Lu went to Ningxiang, and the water was cut off in Jinggang. I haven't been transferred yet, the situation is urgent and there is no time. Think about it, everyone, is there any way to save this emergency?"

Chen Shijie, a counselor, said: "It's only [-] miles away from Xiangtan at the top, and only [-] miles away from Jinggang at the bottom. The spring water is high and the north wind blows, and the thief boat goes up and down. It's just a moment away. It's special to stay here. It is not counted."

Guofan said: "I also know that it is not a plan to keep a company, and now the imperial edict is urging me to go east, what do you think?
"Chen Shijie said: "Hunan is not in peace, and my father seems to have not been able to go east.For the current plan, it is advisable to send troops to rescue Xiangtan. Even if it is unfavorable, the Hengyong area can still be kept. Keeping Hengyong is not difficult to plan again.If you ignore the fundamentals and only try to make progress, you will die in all defeats.

" Guofan said: "Your words are very true. We will discuss it when the deputy general of the tower arrives. "

Seeing that Guofan hesitated, Shijie knew that it would be useless to argue alone, so he looked at Peng Yulin.Yulin understood, and said: "The rescue of Xiangtan can be decided at one word, why bother to discuss it? Even if you want to inform the deputy general of the tower, you can only go with a corner of the official document."

Guofan summoned the generals of the navy, and all the generals said: "We are all willing to go west today and fight the rebels to the death."

Suddenly Junbian sent in a corner of the official document, which was sent by Taqibu. Ningxiang hastened to attack Xiangtan, and then returned to Changsha, and please send a navy to Xiangtan to suppress it."

Therefore, Guofan's strategy of advancing and suppressing was decided, so he divided the ten battalion navy into two teams, and asked Peng Yulin, Yang Zaifu and others to lead the sixth battalion, and set sail straight up to attack Xiangtan.Guofan personally supervised the Fourth Battalion and attacked Jinggang.

The two generals Peng and Yang jumped back to the ship, ordered the helmsman and sailors to pull the anchor and untie the cable, and immediately drove upstream to kill the enemy.With this order, the cannons were set off on the gunboat, with the three boards at the front, the long dragon and the fast crab at the back, pulled up the awning, broke through the waves, and flew towards it, with the flags and halberds densely covered like a forest.Although the ships were moving like flying, they were head to tail, and the ranks of the team were not in the slightest disorder.After traveling for less than ten miles, it was already night, and Yulin refused to let the sails be furled because he was eager to suppress the attack. The lights on the gunboat were lit, reflecting the stars all over the river, and they tossed up and down like thousands of golden snakes fighting in the water. It is unbearable to watch.

Suddenly, the sound of guns and artillery shelling on the shore was heard, which shook the sky and the earth.Yulin said happily: "Master Taqi Bulu has arrived. His master is so fast, Mr. Ta is really a hero."

Then he ordered the helmsmen and sailors to add sculls to hurry up. After a long journey, he looked at the upper reaches of the Xiang'an bank. The flags and flags were faint, and the halberds were heavy. There were dozens of miles of masts and boats. They seemed to be enemy boats. The top and bottom are red, the dry villages are connected, and the fireworks are endless.When the Hunan army saw it, they were all shocked.Peng Yulin didn't change his face, he sat in a three-board boat, went back and forth to judge, and had the ambition to swallow a tiger and kill a dragon.After exploring for a while, I suddenly got something in my heart, and I went back to the oars and rudder as ordered to pay a visit to Yang Yingguan.This Yang Yingguan, named Zaifu, is an outstanding talent among the generals of the navy. He has a lot of experience in wind and waves, sand lines, driving, and combat.At that time, when it was called the Naval Division of the Hunan Army, the two generals Peng and Yang were equally famous.When Yu Lin saw Zai Fu, he asked, "Do you know the reality of the bandit army?"

Zai Fu said: "The thieves' ships line up like a city, and they are not weak. If you start a war with him, you must first try to break through his water array. The cannonballs on the shore are roaring, and the deputy general of the tower has already done it. I don't know the outcome. If The deputy general of the tower has won, and the bandit army has taken the air, so it will be easy for us here."

Yulin laughed and said, "When we start a war and rely on Taqibu, the generals and officers of the navy will become wine bags and rice bags. Is it embarrassing or not? Let's just talk about our own, Master Lu's victory or defeat, and don't worry about him."

Zai Fu said: "That's right. Don't try to increase the ambition of others and reduce your own prestige. Let's think of a way to break the thief."

Yulin said: "I already know a thing or two about the fact that the thieves are false. It's not difficult to break the thieves. But I'm afraid that after the thieves are broken, the soldiers will be in disorder, and they will still be taken advantage of by the thieves."

Zai Fu said, "Why?"

Yulin said: "Although there are many thief ships, they are not battleships. Our ships are strong and powerful, so it is not difficult to destroy them."

Zai Fu said: "That's right. Why did the soldiers fall and mess up after the thieves were broken?"

Yulin said: "In the thief ship, there is a mountain of goods. Who among our soldiers is not envious? After the victory, they will surely compete to capture them. How can they not be chaotic when they are greedy? Seeing that our army is in disorder, the thieves will definitely attack against the flag. At that time, our army will suffer a lot.”

Zai Fu admired and said: "My brother predicts the enemy like a god, and Sun Wu and Wu Qi are no more than that. May I ask if there is any clever strategy to avoid this disaster?"

Yulin said: "There is no good strategy. It is nothing more than using my strengths and hiding my weaknesses."

Zai Fu said: "It's long, everyone will use it, so you don't need to talk about it. It's not easy to hide the short. After the big victory, all the soldiers will plunder. They can't be banned, and they can't be listened to. How can I hide it?"

Yulin said: "It is impossible to prohibit soldiers from plundering. I think it is better to use fire as a strategy. Let's divide the sixth battalion navy into three teams. When the gunboats rush into the bandits, they throw gunpowder bags and set fire to them." Burning, once the fire burns things, you can’t take them away. The bandits are in a state of confusion, so naturally they don’t have time to fight with us. Do you see this method, is it feasible?”

Yang Zaifu clapped his hands and said, "Great plan! How did you come up with this idea? Let's do it."

So he dated the other four battalion officers and attacked them together.

When Yulin returned to his ship, he sent his army to tell his subordinates: Quick Crab, Changlong, the cabin captain of No. [-] battleship Sanban, Bingyong, sailors, etc., all equipped with real cannons, set sails and oars, and obeyed the orders as soon as they came out. If there is a violation, it will be in accordance with military law.After receiving this order, all the soldiers were gearing up one by one, ready to go to war.He also ordered the three-panel boat, loaded with gunpowder packs, to move forward and reach the enemy's stronghold, but seeing the general raise his knife, he immediately threw powder and set fire to it.Yulin himself didn't ride fast crabs or long dragons, but stood on a three-board, holding a sharp knife, and ordered: "If you don't kill the long hair tonight, you won't quit the team!"

Sail on command.Sail with the wind, go straight up the river, the boat shoots like an arrow, breaks through the golden waves, breaks the green waves, and stirs the waves on the bow, like real foam.When we arrived at the Taiping army stronghold, we suddenly saw more than a dozen small patrol boats flying down the river with oars at the gate of the stronghold.The Taipingtian flag was planted on the stern of the boat, and the leader of the red scarf stood on the bow. When he saw the officers and soldiers, he shouted loudly: "Where are the demon soldiers, come and die!"

Yulin ignored him and went straight ahead.Opening the gun on the ship, the three-board cabin captain on the left string was shot and fell down, causing the whole ship to panic.The helmsman and sailor were just waiting to turn the rudder and run away. Yulin had already seen it, and sent troops to kill the helmsman, and the whole army was shocked.So he went straight ahead and arrived at the water village of the Taiping Army as early as possible.Yulin made a move with the knife, and the brave sailors fought to throw the gunpowder up. All the Taiping army camps were set alight. The fire took advantage of the wind, and the wind helped the fire.The two teams on the left and right also attacked, and they also set fire to it.The Taiping Army ran away with smoke and fire, but Peng Yulin and Governor Yang Zaifu led bravely to fire cannons and bombarded them unceasingly.The officers and soldiers were in the dark, and the Taiping army was in the light of the fire. They attacked from the dark and hit everything.Zhou Gongjin set fire to Wulin, and Du Huidu burned the boat with a pheasant torch.

This fierce battle lasted until dawn, and more than 700 warships of the Taiping Army were almost burned to the ground.People are refreshed on happy occasions, and won't feel tired at all after winning battles.He led his division ashore just as Taqibu came to meet him. When he asked about the situation, he found out that the Taqi army arrived here last night and fought five battles with the Taiping army, winning consecutive battles.In the first battle, three Taiping barracks were broken through, one wooden city was burned down, and more than 600 Taiping soldiers were killed.In the second battle, two Taiping barracks were burned down, and 700 Taiping soldiers were beheaded.In the third battle, the Guangdong Taiping Army fought desperately, but they were still rushed and killed by the soldiers of the Ta Battalion.The fourth and fifth battles were both complete victories.In five battles successively, more than 4000 Taiping soldiers were killed in total.Since the Taiping Army uprising, such a big setback is the first time I have experienced it.

At that moment, Taqi preached: "The emperor Hongfu, the land and water armies have won a great victory. Now the thieves in the city are exhausted, and they dare not build fortifications outside the city anymore. We only need to take advantage of the momentum to break through the city and wipe out this unit. Below Jingjiang, The thieves above Zhu Ting are easy to deal with.

" Yulin said: "Speaking of Jingjiang, I'm thinking about things. Xiangxiang is the hometown of the coach. I'm afraid that the thieves will divide the shares to disturb it. "

Tazi preached: "There is no need to worry about this. I sent a soldier there to invite an attack. If the thief runs away, he will just fall into the net."

Yulin said happily: "The deputy Rong has arranged so carefully, this thief can't do anything."

Tazi preached: "Our army has been victorious in successive battles, and the thieves' spirit has been greatly weakened. At this moment, they are advancing by land and water, so it is not difficult to retreat with one blow."

Peng Yulin said this deeply.

Just as the troops were about to enter the army, Meteor Spy Ma Fei reported the military information, and reported that Zeng Shuai personally supervised the Shui Army and attacked the Jingjiang thief nest. The people almost escaped, and the boats, guns and equipment were all thrown away.Even the hooks, sailors, and servants who did not leave the team abandoned the ship and fled.

Zeng was so handsome that he threw himself into the river twice and was rescued both times.Now Zeng Shuai moved to Miaofengfeng Temple, leaving only a few Lu Yong guards. "

Peng Yulin preached to Taqi: "Zeng Shuai is newly defeated, we should fight together in a bloody battle, break this thief, and the thief will burn, we will be in trouble."

So the teams attacked, everyone desperately trying to be the first, one can be used as a hundred, ten can be used as a thousand.The Taiping army couldn't resist the enemy, so they abandoned the city and fled.The two generals Peng and Ta regained Xiangtan, specially rode on flying horses, and went to Changsha to report victory.

But it was said that Zeng Guofan was defeated and returned to the province, and he was stationed at Miaofengfeng Temple outside the south gate of the camp. The public opinion was uproarious, saying that he was a defeated general.When Guofan heard this, he was sad and unhappy, and sighed to all his friends: "The ancients used soldiers to understand meritorious deeds and crimes first. Those who have made meritorious deeds must be rewarded, and those who have committed crimes must be punished. Since meritorious deeds are clear, rewards and punishments are appropriate. Now that the current situation is difficult, I use my voice of righteousness to advocate that the countrymen and princes follow me in a perilous place. It is not beneficial, so it is difficult to apply the law, and the two failures are all due to this."

After hearing this, all the behind-the-scenes friends were full of emotion.As he said that, Junbian handed in the official document of the Xiangtan Water and Land Victory. Guofan read it and said happily, "It depends on having such an ear."

So the night was held, and the meritorious personnel who protected the water and land, the deputy general Ta Qibu, the guard Zhou Fengshan, the Tongzhi Chu Ruhang, the county magistrate Xia Luan, the Qianzong Yang Zaifu, the Wensheng Peng Yulin, the sentinel Zhang Hongbang, and the instructor Jiang Zhongshu were all inside.On the one hand, Chen Ming was defeated in the battle of Jingjiang, and the navy was half defeated. In fact, the ministers dispatched the good side, and asked the Ministry to punish them severely.And ask the special minister, the president's army, before the minister goes to Beijing, he should still try to remedy it.After this fold, it took only half a month to open, and two decrees were received.One is: Gathered against the Jingjiang River, Zeng Guofan personally supervised the boat division to attack. Although there was a small gain, the wind and water rushed, and the warships were burned, so that many of the soldiers were defeated. deserved.Gu Nian was victorious in Xiangtan, and Shui Yong contributed a lot. He was dismissed immediately after being exempted from punishment by Jia En.Bao Qibao, the admiral of Hunan, has not led troops out of the province since the bandits fled to Hunan.The admiral has the responsibility of commanding the officers and soldiers of the whole province. It seems that this company is incompetent, which is really a big responsibility.Bao Qibao was dismissed as soon as he wrote it, and Taqibu was the temporary acting agent of all Hunan admirals, and the Ministry knew.This is it.

The second decree is nothing more than a word of forgiveness for the past and encouragement for the future.After reading the decree, Guofan wept and said to Muyou: "Twice pleading guilty and condemning dismissal, the deputy general of the tower was loyal and brave to fight, but he was promoted. The holy mirror of Gongming, the great kindness of heaven, is really grateful."

Invite Tazibu to come and tell him his kindness.Tazib said gratefully: "This is all the strength of Enshuai's cultivation, otherwise, he would still be a pawn in the camp under the bid."

Guofan encouraged him to serve the country loyally for several decades, and suddenly reported the arrival of Mr. Chen, the commander of the Guangle Navy.Guofan said happily: "Chen Huilong has arrived, it's all right. We are brave here. It's too bad. It didn't take long for the army to escape. In March [-]th and [-]th, in these two days, Cheng Zhangzhao camp , more than a hundred people fled, and dozens of people fled from Hu Weifeng's camp. On the [-]th day, another sentry officer fled from He Nanqing's camp, and abandoned the gun positions of the warship in Dongyang Port. He snatched all the canvas and other things. On the day of the twenty-eighth day, three or four hundred water warriors fled from each battalion.

Taqi preached: "In the battle of Xiangtan, Shuiyong won the battle."

Guofan said: "Discipline is not very strict at all. After winning a battle, they only know how to grab and share the stolen goods. None of them went back to the province. After robbing the stolen goods, they all fled back to the county. In the Xiangxiang River, there are warships drifting. Didn't they all escape from Xiangtan? Peng Xueqin handed out merit cards to the sailors, and the sailors suddenly saw that they were topped, which was unexpected, so they said to themselves that the names on the book were all fake, and the time of application was random. Pinching the name is nothing more than that after escaping, there is no place to pursue it. It is so heartless that it is like this!
Our Shuiyong has no one to rely on, otherwise, I would not have gone to Guangdong and Guangxi to transfer people. "

After finishing speaking, see you as you wish.When Chen Huilong entered the camp and saw the ceremony, Guofan asked him, "How many people did you bring?"

Chen Huilong replied: "A total of [-] sailors and [-] foreign guns were brought along.

Guofan said, "I'm building new warships here."It's just right to come here and help me organize everything. "

It turns out that most of the sailors trained by Guofan have lost two times in the storms of Yuezhou and the battle of Tangang.Now appoint cadres to set up two shipyards in Hengzhou and Xiangtan, hire all craftsmen and workers, and rush to build the No. 60 warship.In Changsha, a shipyard has also been set up, specializing in the repair of old ships.

All the sailors and warriors who have been defeated are not collected. They are specially sent to the Heng and Yong areas to recruit again, reorganize their scale, and renew their military appearance.So when I told Chen Huilong that, Huilong said a few words of humility, and he was in the navy battalion, helping with military affairs.Nataqibu went to Titai Yamen to accept the seal.Four or five days later, Li Mengqun, the prefect appointed by the governor of Guangxi, also arrived.Li Mengqun led a total of [-] Guangxi water warriors, so Guofan ruled the water army, drilled day and night, and attacked immediately.

Suddenly, meteors came to visit the horses, and it was reported that Changmao had committed crimes again. Huarong and Tazhou were all occupied. The area around Dongting West Lake, Longyang and Changde were in danger.Guofan was shocked, hurriedly adjusted Taqibu, and led three thousand soldiers to Yuezhou to attack.Then ordered Hu Linyi, Zhou Fengshan and Li Fuchao to supervise and lead the brave team to defend Changde from Yiyang.Before leaving, Longyang and Changde were reported to have fallen.When the generals heard the news, they didn't dare to neglect, they traveled day and night, and marched side by side.

Unexpectedly, when they reached Longyang, the lake suddenly rose four feet high, and the sailboats attacked the camp by water. Zhou Fengshan was caught off guard and suffered a small setback.Seeing the opportunity, Hu Linyi retreated to Yiyang, and had to change his way to Changde.At this time, the enemy atmosphere in Hubei was very strong.The Taiping army in Hanyang went back to the river in separate shares, and even captured the cities of De'an, Suizhou, Jianghan, Anlu, Jingmen and Jingzhou, all of which were tight.After being guarded by the general's official document, the Taiping army had to go down again, from Yidu and Zhijiang, all the way south, through Taipingkou, into Dongting Lake, and merged with the West Lake bandits to form a team.The cities of Lizhou and Anxiang collapsed upon hearing the wind.The governor, Qinglin, was originally a student of political affairs. He was not skilled in the army. He was in a panic when he faced the enemy.Guofan said to all the friends: "The current situation is like this, our army can't wait any longer."

Write down a document, mobilize land and water generals, and all go to the camp to listen to orders.But in a day or two, they have all been transferred.Guofan was promoted to sit in the camp of the Chinese army, issued military orders, and dispatched troops.There are three gangs in the navy, and Chu Ruhang, Xia Luan, Yang Zaifu, and Peng Yulin are ordered to lead the warships as the head gang.Guofan himself supervised and led Guangxi Shuiyong to be the second gang.Also called Chen Huilong to lead the Guangdong warships into three gangs.The generals of the Lu division are also divided into three routes: Taqibu is the middle route, camped at the new wall; Hu Linyi is the west route, attacking Changde;The land and water soldiers, a total of six routes, are mighty and mighty, and they go down to the east of Hunan.A long time ago, the Taiping military camp was reported in detail. All the leaders discussed the strategy of resisting the enemy. They all advocated abandoning Chang and Cheng and guarding Yuezhou exclusively.

So all the plundered ships were gathered in Nanjin under the Yuezhou River, ready to resist desperately.

But it is said that Zeng Shuai's subordinates helped the navy fleet, with masts and sails, drums and boats floating on the river, sailing like arrows.On this day, about fifteen or six miles away from Nanjin, the breeze was blowing, blowing the sails, overlooking Junshan Mountain, green and green.Peng Yulin said to Yang Zaifu: "Battleships are flying like shuttles, and they are in a hurry. We should divide into two wings and surround them."

Yang Zaifu said: "Okay. You will enter from Junshan Mountain, and I will enter from Leigong Lake. If you attack from both directions, you will win a complete victory."

While talking, he saw Xia Man and Chu Ruhang were already marching forward with drums, like a whale salamander and as fast as a falcon.The Yang and Peng fleets spread their wings and went straight forward. Unexpectedly, the Taiping warship strangled Nanjin and did not fight.Peng Yulin waved the sunflower fan and ordered the forward boat to rush into the port.The chief of the third-board cabin got the order, and ordered the sailors to fly in with drums and arrows, rushing in like arrows.When the Taiping warship in the harbor saw the small boat rushing in, it immediately flew to meet the enemy. Three or five three boards fired only three cannons, and they all turned back and turned away.The Taiping warships scrambled to chase them out, there were hundreds of them in all.Yulin was overjoyed, Du Zhou intercepted, took advantage of the situation and set fire to it, and the flames burned like a mountain of flames on the river.The Taiping army fled with noise and panic, countless people threw themselves into the river, and those who rushed out were all blessed by the officers and soldiers. In this battle, more than a hundred Taiping warships were burned, and dozens of small boats were captured. Countless Taiping soldiers were killed.The Taiping army was out of power, and led the crowd to flee at night.The official army then conquered Nanjin, and Peng Yulin's grass dew cloth army came to Daying to report victory.

Five days later, the Taiping army came to attack again with giant ships, firing guns and sails. The battleships covered the river, and the masts and sails were like forests. The momentum was ten times stronger than the previous one.Yang and Peng two generals tried their best to resist, but they were not attacked by him at last.The Taiping army retreated to Leigutai, and the official army attacked, but they were not very successful.Everyone planned to retreat and rest, Yang Zaifu said to Peng Yulin: "Our warships are less than a hundred, and the number of thieves is ten times that of mine. You don't have to risk your life to make a surprise, I'm afraid it will be inevitable."

Peng Yulin said: "Go forward at the risk of death, I think so too."

So he ordered the long dragon and the three boards to rush forward.With this order, all the athletes drummed together, broke through the green waves, rushed away from the golden waves, and made the bow of the boat spray like spray.In the Taiping Army formation, a hundred cannons fired together, and a thousand bullets were fired simultaneously, and the cannons flew towards us like raindrops.Yang Zaifu went straight ahead, and Peng Yulin swung his boat forward, shouting "The one who retreats will be cut!"

Before the shout was over, a stray bullet flew over and hit Yulin's finger, blood flowed, half a knot had already been bounced.Yu Lin didn't look back, and even said, "Drive forward!"

All the sailors were outraged, and the drums became more and more urgent, and the boat moved like flying.At this time, the three-board boat on which Yang Zaifu was sitting had rushed to the Taiping army commander and threw gunpowder bags on it.The Taiping Army Commander was on the boat, and it caught fire immediately, with black smoke rising and red flames flying across.The Taiping warships returned to rescue one after another, and there was a sudden chaos.Peng and Yang, two generals, waved their boats and rushed to kill them, riding the waves like flying.In the matter of war, one is the momentum, and the other is the formation.

Although the Taiping army is numerous, it is nothing like timidity is no match for courage, and chaos is no match for order.The warships of the two generals, Peng and Yang, cut through the waves, and they were as lively as dragons and tigers.The strings and rudders of the Taiping warships were broken, and the masts were completely destroyed. I don't know how many ships were injured.At the end of the war, the river was full of bright moons, and only the flags of the officers and soldiers were illuminated. There were not a single trace of the thousands of Taiping warships.The humming of horns is the order for the officers and soldiers to withdraw.Sanxiang athletes walked slowly with drums and clubs, all of them sang triumphant songs with their voices straight, with a very proud look on their faces.If you want to know what happened next, let's listen to the next chapter.

(End of this chapter)