Chapter 62 Three From Qizhou to Fuchi Town, the Taiping Army and Xiangyong are fighting fiercely

Early the next morning, Wang Jingqi brought several soldiers to pick up Zeng Guofan and Peng Yulin. Yang Guodong bid farewell to his old mother, and told Axiu to take good care of her mother and manage the housework, and then brought out Zaozima.Axiu just got engaged to Peng Yulin last night, she felt very shy, and didn't dare to say a word to Peng Yulin, she just watched them go down the mountain affectionately.After walking several tens of feet away, Peng Yulin couldn't help turning his head to take a look. He saw Axiu was still leaning against the door and looking out. After boarding the boat, Zeng Guofan introduced Yang Guodong to everyone, and announced Peng Yulin's happy marriage. Everyone congratulated Yulin.Zeng Guofan quietly said to Liu Rong: "Don't you want fake antiques? From now on, you will find Mr. Yang."

"Is he the one who copied Valley's poems?" Liu Rong asked in surprise. "Exactly, I didn't expect to meet him at the edge of Chibi." "Wizard, what a genius!" Liu Rong praised. The boat went straight down the river and arrived at Taoist Fu in the evening.Yang Zaifu's vanguard had arrived a day earlier.That night, Yang Zaifu made a report to Zeng Guofan: Chen Yucheng's 10,000 troops—3,000 sailors and 7,000 soldiers—were waiting in full force in Qizhou.How to start the war, let Zeng Guofan decide.Zeng Guofan sent three scouts overnight, one went down the river to spy on the enemy in Qizhou; one went to Jiangbei to inquire about Duolong'a's progress;

After lunch the next day, the three scouts came back one after another.A report of the enemy's situation: There are not many warships on the Qizhou River, and most of the army is stationed in the south of the Yangtze River. It seems that it is ready to assist Daye and Xingguo Prefectures at any time.This information is very important, Zeng Guofan rewarded the scout. A report from the North Road: There is no sign of many troops in the Bahe and Lanxi areas, and it is estimated that the troops have not yet arrived in Huangzhou.For Duolong'a and Guiming's North Road Green Camp, Zeng Guofan had no hope at all.He was not surprised by the slow march.A report from the South Road: The Tajik Army is currently stationed at Tielingkou, fifty miles east of Jinniu Town, waiting for orders.

Zeng Guofan had a big discussion with Peng Yulin, Yang Zaifu, Guo Songtao, Liu Rong, Yang Guodong and others on Tuoku.Liu Rong said: "According to the information, Changmao's military strength in Qizhou is not too strong. It claims to have 10,000 people, but at most half of them can actually fight. Although the four-eyed dog is a general among thieves, it probably won't play much role. The four-eyed dog is only good at land warfare, not water warfare. You can immediately notify Ta Zhiting and Luo Luoshan and order them to attack Daye and Xingguo prefectures separately, and lure Chen Yucheng to send troops to rescue them. Charge across Qizhou."

Yang Guodong said: "Brother Meng Rong is right. When I was in Huangzhou, I heard that the generals guarding Daye and Xingguo Prefectures were originally Chen Yucheng's subordinates, and their strength was only one or two thousand. Take Daye and Xingguo For the South Route Army under the command of Ta, it is easy to pick peaches, even if Chen Yucheng's soldiers don't move, they can't achieve the strategy of turning the tiger away from the mountain, and taking back the two cities is also a credit." Peng Yulin, Yang Zaifu, Guo Songtao and others all agreed with Liu Rong's suggestion, and Zeng Guofan also thought it was feasible, so the navy temporarily stationed Taoist priests in order not to disturb the downstream.

After Taqibu and Luo Zenan received the order, the 12,000 people were divided into two groups. Taqibu led 6,000 people to march southward to Xingguo Prefecture via Huayoubao, and Luo Zenan led 6,000 people to attack Daye along the Jinhe River. Hu Wanzhi, magistrate of Xingguo Prefecture in the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, was born in Jinling and was the first Jinshi in the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.On the tenth day of the eighth month in the third year of Guihao in the Kingdom of Heaven, it was Dongwang’s birthday, and the first general examination—the East Examination—was held in Tianjing City.The topic of the eastern test is "Is the true way the same as the way of the world", the title of the essay is "The Emperor God is the father and mother of Wan Guo, everyone is born by him, and everyone is raised by him", and the title of the poem is "There is an Eastern King in the four seas" .Hu Wanzhi was a poor scholar who failed the provincial examination several times and was very dissatisfied with the imperial examination.The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom established its capital in Tianjing, which brought vitality. Hu Wanzhi supported the Heavenly Kingdom and went to take the exam happily.The articles are colorful and the poems are well-written, so I went to high school in one fell swoop.Hu Wanzhi was very unhappy, and became more and more affectionate towards the kingdom of heaven.

After becoming a Jinshi, the Eastern King named him Dian Chaoyi. "The Western Expeditionary Army captured Xingguo, and Hu Wanzhi was sent to Xingguo as the prefect.When Hu Wanzhi arrived in Xingguo, he hired a group of newcomers, most of whom were poor scholars.For half a year, he devoted all his energy to rectifying the administration of officials in Xingguo Prefecture.Just as he was preparing to make great achievements in Xingguo Prefecture and establish a new policy, Taqibu led 6,000 troops to attack Xingguo City.There are only 1,500 people in Xingguo City, and the situation is critical.On the one hand, Hu Wanzhi arranged for the defense of the city, and on the other hand, he hurriedly sent people to Chen Yucheng's place to ask for help.Chen Yucheng had found out that the Xiangyong navy had gathered in Taoist Fu and had not moved. He expected that there would be no action for a while, so he personally brought 4000 soldiers to save Xingguo.When he had just arrived at the town of Huangzhou, he met a messenger sent by Wang Maoxian, the general commander stationed in Daye City, saying that Xiangyong had surrounded Daye.Helpless, Chen Yucheng sent another 2,000 troops to Daye.When Chen Yucheng arrived in Xingguo Prefecture, Taqibu had already captured Xingguo.Chen Yucheng was very annoyed, and led his troops to Daye again.On the way, he encountered a rout of soldiers and reported that Daye was lost and Wang Maoxian was killed in battle.Chen Yucheng's eyes were burning with anger, and he led his troops back to Qizhou in dismay.

On the day when Chen Yucheng left Qizhou, Zeng Guofan joined Li Mengqun's troops who had come the night before, and the 20th Navy Battalion, about 10,000 people, rushed through the Qizhou defense line with roaring and shouting, and parked on the opposite bank of Makou Town.Luo Zenan brought Wang Maoxian's head, hundreds of large and small yellow flags of the Taiping Army, and dozens of mules and horses to ask for credit.Taqibu also escorted Hu Wanzhi and other officials from various yamen in Xingguo Prefecture to join them.Zeng Guofan personally interrogated Hu Wanzhi.I saw Hu Wanzhi walking into the lobby with his head held high and his chest held high without any fear.Zeng Guofan ordered to kneel down, but Hu Wanzhi refused to obey.Several soldiers stepped forward and pressed his legs down. Zeng Guofan scolded: "Hu Wanzhi is a bold traitor. As a disciple of a sage, you surrender yourself to a thief and tarnish your innocence. You are really a Confucian scum and a beast in clothes."

Hu Wanzhi opened his eyes wide and shouted loudly: "Shameless traitor Zeng Guofan, as a descendant of Yan and Huang, you betrayed the precepts of your ancestors, took refuge in the Qing demon, and recognized a thief as your father. You are the real traitor and traitor, the scum of the nation!" Zeng Guofan was so angry that his face was livid, and he shouted: "Left and right, all the beasts like Hu Wanzhi will goug out their eyes and show their corpses to the public." Hu Wanzhi was not afraid, and continued to scold him, and the soldiers forcibly dragged him out. After Hu Wanzhi was executed, Zeng Guofan rode on a jujube horse and led a group of battalion officials and staff to the river bank.This place is less than ten miles away from Banbi Mountain, and the isolated peak of Banbi Mountain seems to be standing in front of you.At the foot of the mountain, the camp is heavily fortified, with many flags and drums and horns.Tianjia Town in the north of the Yangtze River also connected camps with camps, and warships patrolled in the middle of the river.From Banbi Mountain to Tianjia Town, the Taiping Army's water and land troops built an iron wall.Zeng Guofan felt melancholy after seeing it, and he went back to the mop silently, and said to everyone: "The long hairs stationed here are partly the defeated general of Wuchang, and partly are the rescuers of Qin Rigang. The defeated general is eager for revenge, and the rescuers are arrogant. Looks like there's been a few bad fights."

Bao Chao said: "Long Mao is bluffing, sir, don't worry too much. Tomorrow I will lead my troops to attack Banbi Mountain, and I will guarantee immediate success." Yang Zaifu said: "Tomorrow morning, I will lead the vanguard battalion to go down the river to explore the truth." Zeng Guofan thought it would be good to try it out first, so he nodded in agreement. Early the next morning, Bao Chao led the Tingzi Battalion to the foot of Banbi Mountain to beat drums and fight.Only a sound of cannon was heard, and a middle-aged general rushed out of the middle camp.This person was Luo Gang, and behind him were hundreds of soldiers of the Taiping Army wearing red and yellow turbans.Luo Gang stood by the fence on horseback, and shouted loudly: "Boldly clean up the monsters, come here if you have the ability!"

Bao Chao was so angry that he yelled immediately: "Fuck your ancestors for eight generations, I will cut you in half!" For a moment he forgot the rules of the Taiping Army's camp, and while cursing, he commanded his troops to charge forward. Before he had reached a hundred paces, he yelled "Not good", and he was already trapped in a ditch full of bamboo piles. Looking back, Most Xiangyong also fell into it.The soldiers of the Taiping Army on the other side clapped their hands and cheered: "It's trapped, it's trapped!" At the same time, thousands of arrows flew in, and Xiangyong fell down one after another.Bao Chao picked up the big knife and waved it back and forth, left and right, but he was not shot. He was so angry that his legs were tightly stuck in the horse's belly. The horse struggled to jump out, but it was stabbed with blood and whimpered endlessly.Luo Gang drove his horse out of the fence, and the drawbridge was lowered.At this critical moment, Zhou Fengshan brought two battalions of Xiangyong to the rescue, and Bao Chao was pulled out.He didn't dare to fight any more, and retreated with Zhou Fengshan.Counting the number of people, more than 50 people are missing. On the river, Yang Zaifu's vanguard battalion was also in trouble.When their boat came to the river at the foot of the mountain, what they saw was a row of warships nailed to death in the river, with six thick iron locks across them!It is said that it is a wooden boat, even an iron boat can't even think about rushing through it.Yang Zaifu is an experienced sailor, seeing this situation, he knew something was wrong, so he quickly turned the bow of the boat.The artillery bombarded from behind, and several long dragons that were walking slowly caught fire and were sunk.Yang Zaifu returned with shame on his face. The defeat of the land and water armies in the first battle added to Zeng Guofan's worries.In the past six months since the defeat of Jinggang, the Xiangyong army has gained momentum, especially the recovery of Wuchang and Hanyang, which has become famous all over the world.Zeng Guofan thought: The group of long-haired men in front of us is not yet the main force. If this line of defense cannot be overcome, wouldn't all previous efforts be wasted?In any case, you can't be blocked here, if you don't defeat this long hair, you must at least rush over quickly.He decided to launch a strong attack by land first, sending Taqibu to attack Fuchi Town, and Luo Zenan to attack Banbi Mountain.Early the next morning, the two troops followed the order and dispatched troops. Luo Zenan's troops came to Malingao, which is only two miles away from the Taiping Army Camp in Banbi Mountain.Luo Zenan learned from Bao Chao's lesson and did not dare to advance rashly any more. He ordered the troops to stop and set up camp on the spot.Luo Zenan led Li Xubin, guerrilla Peng Sanyuan, Du Sipu Chengyao and others to check the terrain.Between Maling'ao and Banbi Mountain is the tail of Wanghu Lake. The lake has many branches, but the left and right dikes are connected to the foot of the mountain.While he was pointing and checking, he suddenly heard the sound of a cannon at the foot of the mountain, and thousands of strong Taiping soldiers rushed out from the camps.They crossed the suspension bridge over the ditch and rushed towards Xiangyong.Luo Zenan hurriedly ordered Yong Ding to line up to fight.Peng Sanyuan led his troops to meet the enemy from the left embankment, and Pu Chengyao led his troops to meet the enemy from the right embankment.During the fight, more than a thousand soldiers with sharp knives emerged from the houses, and Li Xubin hurriedly led the Dizi Battalion to meet them.More than 10,000 troops from the four groups of the Taiping Army have been waiting here for half a month, looking forward to the arrival of this day.Luo Gang rushed forward and charged towards Luo Zenan from the left embankment.Luo Zenan was no match for Luo Dagang, so he hurriedly dodged, but fortunately Peng Hexiang, a sixth-rank soldier, came to catch him.Within ten rounds of fighting, Peng Hexiang was shot in the throat by Luo Dagang.Du Si Pu Chengyao was annoyed over there, and came over to fight Luo Dagang with his horse and sword.Halfway up the mountain, Wei Jun commanded the sergeant to beat drums to cheer his comrades in arms.On the right embankment, Peng Sanyuan led more than a hundred death squads to the side of the suspension bridge. Just as he was about to enter the camp, gravel rained down from the mountainside. .Peng Sanyuan reined in his horse and backed away in fright.At this time, cannons, rockets, and spray guns were shot from the doors and windows of various houses, and Xiang Yong retreated in a hurry.Luo Zenan had no choice but to order Ming Jin to withdraw his troops. In the afternoon, Li Xubin led two thousand people to fight again.After less than half an hour of fighting, Li Xubin retreated in defeat.Luo Zenan became more and more anxious.Li Xubin said: "Master Luo, don't need to worry. When the students go to battle again this afternoon, they have already seen half of the military deployment at the bottom of the mountain. The next time they fight, the students are sure to win." Luo Zenan was pleasantly surprised and asked, "How can Di An win?" "Changmao's three victories were mainly due to the favorable location. The location is naturally two, and man-made is one. Naturally, there is a lake embankment in front and a high mountain in the back. The lake embankment restricts the place where our army can attack, and half of the mountains are condescending. All activities are under its watchful eye. If it is man-made, Changmao digs ditches and buryes lottery at the edge of the camp, this work is powerful." "Since the favorable terrain has been occupied by it, we cannot compete with it." "We can't compete with it, but we can make the location of long hair less of its effect." Li Xubin's words inspired Luo Zenan: "You mean you can sneak attack at night?" Li Xubin said happily: "Master Luo, we have thought of getting together. Today is cloudy and there is no moonlight at night. It is a good time for night raids." "A night attack can make Banbishan lose its condescending advantage, and it can also sneak across the lake embankment, but the ditches and traps in front of the Changmao Camp are still there." Li Xubin thought for a while and said: "There is a way. Immediately make thousands of cloth bags, fill the bags with soil, carry one on each person's shoulders, throw the soil bags into the ditch, and bury the bamboo sticks and even the ditch." Luo Zenan appreciated this idea very much, and immediately sent an order to make cloth bags.There was no cloth in the army, so Luo Zenan ordered the quilt to be removed.At the second watch, Li Xubin led three thousand warriors, each carrying a cloth bag full of soil on his shoulders, holding a weapon in the other hand, and a short knife in his waist, quietly crossed the left and right dikes, and rushed to Taiping. By the side of the barracks. Because bamboo sticks were planted around the camp, ditches were deep opened, and Xiangyong was defeated in a fierce battle during the day, Luo Dagang never guarded against the enemy stealing the camp in the middle of the night.The soldiers who were on routine patrol were hacked to death by the vanguard of Li Xubin's stolen camp. Three thousand Xiangyong hurriedly filled the ditch with earth bags to pave the road.Most of the pavement has been filled, but it has not been found in the camp.A second Sima named Wei Dachun woke up and went to pee outside the camp.In the darkness of the night, Wei Dachun heard heavy noises outside the fence.He became alert, rubbed his eyes, and walked gently towards the fence, finally seeing clearly.Wei Dachun almost screamed. He ran into the camp and woke up Luo Dagang: "Commander Luo, the Qing demon has stolen the camp!" Luo Gang suddenly sat up from the bed, and while dressing, he gave an order: "Hurry up and send the order, and immediately leave the barracks to fight!" Since Luo Dagang's uprising, he has fought dozens of battles with the Qing army, large and small, and has never encountered a precedent of stealing a camp in the middle of the night.He secretly admired Xiangyong's ferocity and ability to fight.Wei Jun on Banbi Mountain also quickly got the information.Immediately, from the mountainside to the foot of the mountain, lights were brightly lit everywhere, and Li Xubin complained endlessly.More than 1,000 Taiping Army soldiers gathered by the ditch.Luo Gang gave the order to fire the arrows.Sharp arrows like locusts shot from the other side of the ditch, and Xiangyong fell one by one on the side of the ditch, and the timid ones turned around and ran away in fright.Li Xubin's eyes were burning with anger, and he swung his knife furiously, killing one Xiangyong who fled at the front, while the others behind stood still in shock.Li Xubin raised his saber again, killing four or five Yong Ding one by one, and then restrained the Yong Ding who were fleeing one after another, and bit the bullet to fight again.Li Xubin raised his knife and shouted: "Brothers, we fought hard tonight. Anyone who runs backwards will be shot to death! Everyone wins this battle with one heart, and I will ask for credit for the brothers!" Li Xubin ordered Pu Chengyao and Peng Sanyuan to guard the two ends, and he dispatched them in the middle, and sent Jizu back to the camp to move reinforcements.Most of Xiangyong shot at each other, and the rest tried their best to fill in the soil.Many people fell down on both sides, but the earthbags also increased step by step, advancing step by step.Soon, more than 2,000 Xiangyong guarding the camp led by Luo Zenan also came to help.The two sides started a life-and-death struggle by the side of the ditch and with bamboo sticks.The ditch was filled for a long section, and the nearby bamboo sticks were also buried in earth bags. Li Xubin personally beat the battle drum for the charge.Seeing that they had gained the upper hand, the Xiangyongs ran forward like crazy.Amidst the rapid drumbeat, Xiangyong and the Taiping Army started a hand-to-hand fight.Xiangyong's eyes turned red, and he chopped off anyone wearing red and yellow turbans.It was the first time for the Taiping army to encounter such a fierce and fearless opponent, and they were three points timid at first.After a while of hand-to-hand combat, the Taiping army gradually became exhausted.The cannon had already been placed by the fence, but he didn't dare to fire it because he was afraid of hurting his own people, so Luo Gangang stomped his feet in anger.Seeing that the situation was not good, Wei Jun personally led a thousand soldiers down the mountain to rescue. The two sides fought fiercely for another half an hour.The fatal weakness of the Taiping Army is that there are many temporary participants and the training is not strict. The old brothers from Guangdong and Guangxi are not used to hand-to-hand combat.Seeing that they couldn't win, Wei Jun discussed with Luo Ganggang and decided to retreat up the mountain.Xiangyong chased after him, but they were all repelled by the rocks on the mountain. He had to watch helplessly as the Taiping army climbed half of the mountain.Luo Zenan ordered the camp to be set on fire, and ordered someone to cut off the iron locks tied at the foot of the mountain.At the hour of Chenzheng, Luo Zenan and Li Xubin led Xiangyong, loaded with all kinds of spoils, and returned to the camp triumphantly. During the fierce battle at the foot of Banbi Mountain, Taqibu led 6000 Xiangyongs, and the battle with Lin Shaozhang's troops in Fuchi Town was also extremely fierce.This is the second time that Lin Shaozhang and Taqibu have faced each other face to face.In the Battle of Xiangtan at the end of March this year, Lin Shaozhang was defeated by Taqibu in ten battles and ten battles. In the end, the entire army was wiped out, and Lin Shaozhang escaped alone.This is not only a great shame in Lin Shaozhang's personal life, but also an irreparable loss to the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.Since then, the Taiping Army has been unable to attack Hunan, and Xiangyong's arrogance has been fierce since then.If the Battle of Xiangtan was like the Battle of Jinggang, maybe there would never be the name of Xiangyong in the modern history of China. Lin Shaozhang was eager for revenge, and before Taqibu could secure his camp, he led his troops to attack, but Taqibu fled in a panic.Lin Shaozhang was overjoyed to withdraw his troops.Taqibu discussed with Li Yuandu, Zhou Fengshan and others, and Li Yuandu offered advice: "Lin Shaozhang is brave but not resourceful, and has an impatient temper. Taking advantage of his current eagerness to win, try to lure him out of the town tomorrow, and lay two ambush soldiers in the Tongmuling area to intercept and kill him. .” Tazib agrees. Early the next morning, Tazib brought a thousand people to fight.As soon as Xiang Yong shouted, Lin Shaozhang went into battle.Kang Lu persuaded: "Let them shout and scold outside, ignore them." Lin Shaozhang saw that there were few people in Taqibu, and he wanted to swallow it all at once. He refused to listen to Kang Lu's dissuasion, and rushed out of the ditch with three thousand soldiers, and Kang Lu had to follow.Taqibu smiled and said, "General Lin, do you still remember the grand meeting in Xiangtan in March?" Lin Shaozhang opened his eyes wide and scolded angrily: "Ta Yaotou, do you still remember the defeat yesterday? Today you don't want to escape again!" After finishing speaking, he rode forward and Tazibu caught him.Soon after the two sides fought, Xiangyong broke up and fled.Seeing Lin Shaozhang's opening, Taqibu turned his horse's head and ran towards Tongmuling. Lin Shaozhang patted his horse and chased after him.After running for more than three miles, Kang Lu reminded: "There are many trees ahead, there may be ambushes." Lin Shaozhang suddenly came to his senses and hastily reined in his horse.Suddenly, dozens of Xiangyong army flags were erected from the grass, and Li Yuandu and Zhou Fengshan each led 2,000 people to fight out from both sides, encircling Lin Shaozhang and Kang Lu in the middle.In a scuffle, more than half of the Taiping soldiers were killed or injured.Kang Lu protected Lin Shaozhang to kill a bloody road and rushed out of the encirclement.Zhou Fengshan chased after him and shouted: "Don't let Lin Shaozhang go!" After turning into a small forest, Kang Lu said to Lin Shaozhang: "Prime Minister Lin, take off your clothes and let me wear them. I will lure the demon away." .” Lin Shaozhang said: "How can it be done! Hurry up to Banbi Mountain, and when you get to the side of the mountain, you won't be afraid of the demon soldiers." Kang Lu said: "Master Prime Minister, Qing Yao has been staring at you and will not let it go easily. I will lure them away for you." Kang Lu couldn't help but reach out and tear off Lin Shaozhang's bright yellow embroidered dragon trench coat, and shouted: "Throw me the hat!" Lin Shaozhang took off his hat and said emotionally, "Brother, after leading them for two or three miles, turn around and run towards Banbi Mountain!" With a promise, Kang Lu turned his horse's head and rushed towards Zhou Fengshan's pursuers, shouting: "Qing Yao, Grandpa Lin is fighting with you!" Zhou Fengshan stood on his horse and persuaded him: "Lin Shaozhang, get off your horse and surrender! The imperial court can make you a lieutenant general." Kang Lu scolded: "You scum, do you think that a lieutenant general can make your grandfather betray his ancestors?" As he said, he raised his knife and chopped at Zhou Fengshan.Zhou Fengshan didn't know Lin Shaozhang, but seeing the single dragon and single phoenix hat on Kang Lu's head, and the bright yellow embroidered dragon robe on his body, he definitely believed that it was Lin Shaozhang.Zhou Fengshan cheered up and used all his skills to fight Kang Lu.After more than ten rounds, Kang Lu guessed that Lin Shaozhang was far away, so he secretly took out a dart from his boots, waved it, and the dart flew straight towards Zhou Fengshan's heart.Zhou Fengshan was clever, when he saw the dart flying, he quickly dodged and the dart passed through his right arm.Zhou Fengshan yelled and fell off his horse.Kang Lu took the opportunity to flatter his horse and leave.Zhong Xiangyong helped Zhou Fengshan up, knowing that "Lin Shaozhang" was hiding a hidden weapon, he didn't dare to chase after him, so he blew the trumpet of victory and returned to Fuchi Town.