Chapter 28 Section 28 Secret Plan

In November of the first year of Tongzhi (AD 1862) in the Changshu area, the autumn wind was strong, and the leaves of thousands of trees were falling, and the weather was obviously getting cooler day by day.In Changshu, Zhaowen, Fushan and other places, the banner of the Taiping Army was flying everywhere.Li Xiucheng, the loyal king of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, had heavy troops guarding Zhaowen, Fushan, and Qingpu Haikou. At this time, the Huaiyong battalions and the Jiangsu Fubiao battalions were scattered around the Taiping Army, ready to attack at any time.The loyal king, Li Xiucheng, rushed from Tianjing, the capital of heaven, to Qingpu to sit in charge in person.Li Hongzhang, governor of the Jiangsu Department, also brought a group of staff to Shanghai to Zhang Shusheng's camp in Qingpu, and decided to compete with Li Xiucheng.

After several confrontations, Li Hongzhang gradually understood the opponent's strength and the relationship between the guards of the Taiping Army in this area. The chief general of the Taiping Army guarding Changshu was Qian Guiren, who was named a court general by Hong Xiuquan, and his subordinates were Luo Guozhong and Dong Zhengqin; the one guarding Taicang was Qian Shouren, Qian Guiren’s elder brother, and his general was Zhou Shouchang; the one guarding Fushan was the Marshal of the Kingdom of Heaven Hou Deli had two generals, Jin Tianfu and Xie Youcheng, under his command; Qingpu was guarded by loyal king Li Xiucheng himself with 5,000 troops.

Li Xiucheng was stationed in Qingpu, which greatly boosted the morale of the Taiping Army; although Huai Yong fought bravely, he did not take advantage of it.There were casualties on both sides, and the battle situation has been deadlocked.Both Li are racking their brains to find a breakthrough. Soon, Li Hongzhang learned from Zhou Xinglong, a guerrilla in the naval battalion, that although the generals of the Taiping Army in this area seem to be compatible, they are actually different, and some guards even sent messages to the naval camp through private channels. , revealing the words of deliberate surrender.

Li Hongzhang decided to change his strategy, and hoped to achieve the goal of defeating Li Xiucheng and regaining the Haikou of Changshu by disintegrating the opponent's army. Xu Peiyuan, the staff candidate beside him, was specially appointed to specialize in this matter.Xu Peiyuan was Su Qin in Li Hongzhang's shogunate. She was born with a sharp tongue, able to speak the dead back to life, and turn prostitutes into fairies.According to rumors, Xu Peiyuan was perfect as a matchmaker, and Xu Peiyuan's lawsuits written on behalf of others were all invincible.With this mouth, Xu Peiyuan was Xue Huan's senior counselor, raised money for Wu Xu, and helped Yang Fang in Kang Baidu's time.

After Li Hongzhang came to Shanghai, he switched to Li Hongzhang and was still highly regarded. Now, Li Hongzhang wants to use his mouth to achieve a great cause. When Li Hongzhang talked about things with Xu Peiyuan, he was in a secret room in the Chinese army's big tent. Li Hongzhang not only retreated from the left and right, but even the guards around him went out. Xu Peiyuan listened to Li Hongzhang's words, pondered for a while, and said in a low voice: "Commander, it is not difficult for you to succeed in what you are doing professionally. But the commander must agree to three things professionally, Dare to take orders only when you are professional.”

Li Hongzhang said: "Tell me three things first." Xu Peiyuan said: "The first thing is to allow time. This matter is not a child's play. It will take some time for the career path. First, we must sort out the context and find the key points before we can start." Li Hongzhang nodded and said, "This matter cannot be dealt with urgently. Let's talk about the second one." Xu Peiyuan said: "The second thing seems simple, but it is actually the root of success or failure. After I leave the camp, the commander-in-chief must not send anyone to follow my whereabouts. No matter how I go in and out of the long-haired barracks, the commander-in-chief will ignore me. , Right in office cast long hair."

Li Hongzhang thought for a while and said, "Okay, the headquarters also agrees to the second one. What about the third one?" Xu Peiyuan said: "Commander, the third thing in the career path seems easy, but it is actually the hardest!" Li Hongzhang couldn't help saying "Oh", and said, "Tell me about it." Xu Peiyuan said: "The third thing is that the commander-in-chief must grant Zhidao the right to do things cheaply. For example, Chang Mao agrees to surrender me, but there must be conditions for surrendering me. The conditions are nothing more than money and money. Zhidao promised to protect He is a third-rank guerrilla top guy, but he disagrees with the commander-in-chief, what will you do with his career?"

Li Hongzhang thought for a while, and said: "This matter is also promised to you by the Ministry of the Ministry, but, your brother, don't make the official too high or too high, it should be within the third and fourth rank military officers. My Qing Dynasty There are hundreds or thousands of empty tops, so why care about how many more?" After speaking, he laughed at himself. Xu Peiyuan blushed, and said: "I've been with the commander-in-chief for so long, the fourth-rank cap on my head is still empty!" Li Hongzhang said with a smile: "Everyone says that your brother's mouth is three points, and this department has learned the lesson. Don't worry, brother, as long as you are successful this time, this department will guarantee you a short point!"

Hearing this, Xu Peiyuan got up suddenly and thanked her again and again. That night, she disguised herself as a beggar, left Qingpu, and went straight to Changshu. After arriving in Changshu, Xu Peiyuan was quickly taken in by the Taiping Army and became a member of the Taiping Army. Xu Peiyuan, relying on her sharp tongue and skill in writing, mingled with Qian Guiren to handle Qian Guiren's case within a few days, and gradually won Qian Guiren's favor, but at the same time, she also became suspicious.The happy thing is that Xu Peiyuan handles the paperwork very quickly, and his choice of words and sentences is reasonable. No one around Qian Guiren can surpass him; what makes Qian Guiren suspicious is: Xu Peiyuan has such a good pen, how did he fall to such a point?Could it be that Zhong Wang suspected that he was a spy sent over by Yixin?

After the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom started internal strife, the heavenly king Hong Xiuquan no longer trusted kings with different surnames, and the generals also began to suspect each other and guard against each other.The appearance of Xu Peiyuan made Qian Guiren, the general of the Heavenly Kingdom, first think of the confidants sent by the loyal king Li Xiucheng to watch him, and he didn't think of anything else. Since Qian Guiren began to doubt Xu Peiyuan, he naturally sought opportunities to find out the truth from Xu Peiyuan through his confidants.One day after drinking, Xu Peiyuan, relying on three points of his gallbladder, said to Qian Guiren's confidant: "The mountain man came to Daying to dedicate a set of glory and wealth to the court general."

When Qian Guiren's confidantes saw Xu Peiyuan's nonsense, they were inevitably stunned, so they bid farewell immediately and reported to Qian Guiren. After Qian Guiren listened to it, he put his heart into his heart, called Xu Peiyuan into the secret room of the big tent overnight, and said with a smile: "Is your brother from Anqing? What kind of set did Yaotou Zeng want?" Give me your wealth? Who are you? What is your purpose here?" Xu Peiyuan knew that Qian Guiren had long wanted to surrender, so he said loudly: "Since the general treats each other with sincerity, the mountain man will tell the truth. The mountain man is not someone else, but Xu Peiyuan, the fourth-rank candidate of the Jiangsu Futai shogunate. The official was entrusted by Master Li of Futai to come to Changshu from Qingpu Daying, and he really wanted to offer a set of glory to the court general, but it is not yet known whether the court general will have the courage to accept it." Qian Guiren said: "Are you Xu Peiyuan, a famous debater in the world? What did Li Yaotou say?" Xu Peiyuan said: "General Qian, after the civil strife in heaven, it is at the end of the road, and the government and army can only conquer Jinling sooner or later. Once Jinling is conquered, even if you have the intention to do anything wrong, the imperial court will not allow it. At that time, even if you are not punished, you must He fled in all directions. The so-called misstep will cause eternal hatred. What's more, the king of heaven no longer trusts the kings with different surnames, and the kings no longer trust their generals. Enjoy the glory and wealth, and also let the nine clans be preserved!" Qian Guiren asked: "Brother, you have talked so much, but you still haven't explained it clearly. I want to know at this moment, what kind of crown can the court reward me? A court general in the kingdom of heaven is equivalent to a servant of the Qing Dynasty." Level three guerrilla, if it is lower than level three, even if I die in battle, I will not surrender!" Xu Peiyuan smiled and said, "Qian Chaojiang, do you want to know how big the roof that the Shanren gave you is? Before the Shanren left, Master Li repeatedly said that if Qian Chaojiang was really willing to abandon the dark and turn to the light, he would always recommend the court general." He is a dignified second-rank lieutenant general of the Qing Dynasty! If the court general does not want to lead troops, Futai will send him off with a fourth-rank Taoism!" Qian Guiren thought for a while, and suddenly said in disbelief: "I believe my brother's words, but I can't believe what Li Yaotou said. I have been born and died with the king of heaven since I was thirty years old, and now I have rewarded this court general." .I voted for it, but Li Yaotou was willing to recommend me to be a second-rank lieutenant general before I made an inch of merit? I don’t believe it! Li Yaotou has always been cunning, he must be deceiving me.” Xu Peiyuan said: "The court commander's words are wrong. Li Futai is the governor of a province, and he is also the favorite student of the governor of Liangjiang, Zeng Dashuai. If the general still doesn't believe it, let the Shanren go back to the Qingpu camp tonight, how about the Shanren ask Master Futai to make a written statement?" Qian Guiren said: "If Li Yaotou is willing to make a written proof, I will not only vote for it myself, but also bring my brother Qian Shouren and Qian Jiaren over." Xu Peiyuan said: "It's very good. However, after all, the court general will be my brother and an official of the Qing Dynasty. If he still calls Futai a demon head..." Qian Guiren hurriedly said: "Brother, please don't worry. One moment, another moment. The governor is my superior, I'm afraid I won't be able to compliment you, how dare you call him a demon head!" Xu Peiyuan disguised herself as a beggar the next day, left Changshu, and returned to Qingpu Daying by accident. When Li Hongzhang saw Xu Peiyuan come back, it was like seeing Gan Lin after a long drought. Xu Peiyuan discussed with Li Hongzhang for a long time that night.Xu Peiyuan went back and forth three times in this way, and finally set the date for Qian Guiren's attack.Just at this time, Li Hongzhang received a secret report from Li Hengsong, the general of the Changsheng Army, who sent it quickly.After Li Hongzhang dismantled it, he couldn't help being taken aback. He didn't expect that Bai Qiwen would close the city and make trouble at this time.Li Hongzhang hurriedly summoned his staff Feng Guifen, Wang Kaitai, Qian Dingming, Wang Dajing and others into the big tent for discussion.He first handed the secret report to all the staff to read, and then said: "Do you have any good opinions? You might as well speak up!" Qian Dingming said: "Xiaguan has been by Xue Huan's side for a long time. As far as I know, Xue Huan and Bai Qiwen have a very close relationship. In this matter, I saw that Xue Huan had tampered with it. Otherwise, Bai Qiwen would not be bold. Go to the private Songjiang City to ask for payment." Wang Dajing said: "The lower officials are thinking that Xue Huan and Yang Fang are not ordinary friends. Half of Xue Huan's antique shop business is in the hands of Yang Fang. Xue Huan encouraged Bai Qiwen to fight for salary, which is of course to be given to him." The commander suffered a bit, but why did he surround Wu Xu and Yang Fang in it? Yang Fang was beaten until his nose and mouth bleed, and the Wu Mansion was looted. Xue Huan's doing so is not quite in line with common sense!" Feng Guifen said: "Commander, did Li Canjun tell you where Bai Qiwen went after he left the Yang Mansion?" Li Hongzhang also felt strange: "This is the most puzzling part of the headquarters. Bai Qiwen, a bastard, ransacked the Wu Mansion and injured Yang Fang, but he did not return to the camp. He even took hundreds of soldiers and escaped without a trace. No trace. Isn’t he a snitch? The Ministry originally wanted to issue a arrest warrant to arrest him, but he is an American and has a hundred soldiers with him. The government really drove him into a hurry Now, he turned his face and cast long hair, isn’t it my confidant’s serious trouble? There is another layer, he is a military general hired by China and Britain, and he needs to issue arrest notices from both countries.” Feng Guifen said: "Speaking of which, the most wronged person this time is Yang Fang." Li Hongzhang snorted and said, "What is wrong with him! Being insulted is nothing more than ignorance of world affairs. He thought that no one would dare to provoke him if he hugged a foreigner's thigh?" Wang Kaitai said at this time: "Master Futai, what will happen if you go to Shanghai to see Xue Huan? He is the Minister of Commerce and Industry, and he is in charge of foreign affairs!" Qian Dingming also hurriedly said: "Master Wang is confused! Xue Huan has prejudice against the commander-in-chief. What did you ask the commander-in-chief to see him? It is true that Xue Huan is the minister of trade and commerce, but Bai Qiwen is not a businessman, he is Soldiers! Commander, I think that as a matter of urgency, you should go to meet the British land admiral Sir Tivoli first, and talk to him about Bai Qiwen's private closure of the city gate to make money, and see what he has to say. Commander I once said that Bai Qiwen was able to be the leader of the Ever Victorious Army, and it was recommended by Shidi Fuli." Li Hongzhang thought for a while and said, "Okay, about Bai Qiwen, this department already has a solution. After this department leaves the camp, I hope that everyone will do things as usual, and don't slack off because the department is not here. Everyone, please go back!"