Empress Dowager Ci'an received Zeng Guofan on October 2, 1865. Eight days later, on October 10, Zeng Guofan arrived in Suzhou. Jiang Zhongyuan watched in surprise as Zeng Guofan came in from outside, he hurriedly got up and asked, "Brother Disheng, shouldn't you be in the capital?" ”

Zeng Guofan has been in a hurry, tired enough. This person who has written a diary for more than ten years and repeatedly tempered his character does not care about decency, and after sitting down opposite Jiang Zhongyuan, Zeng Guofan urged: "Pour me some water!" ”

Jiang Zhongyuan hurriedly made tea for Zeng Guofan, Zeng Guofan's mouth was dry, and he said bluntly: "Cold water!" Cold! ”

Seeing that Zeng Guofan was thirsty like this, Jiang Zhongyuan had no choice but to pour him some cold water. After drinking two glasses in a row, Zeng Guofan relieved himself. Without waiting for Jiang Zhongyuan to ask, Zeng Guofan told Jiang Zhongyuan about the affairs of the capital.

Hearing that the prince of the capital and the Eight Banners Army were so unbearable, Jiang Zhongyuan gritted his teeth a little angrily. Hearing that the Guangfu Army might be doing business with the imperial court, Jiang Zhongyuan frowned again. After retreating north of the Huai River, Zeng Guozhen once predicted that the Guangfu Army would not continue to move north in the short term. As Zeng Guofan said, the Guangfu Army rested and recuperated south of the Huai River.

This is not that the Guangfu Army has no ambitions, does not want to forge ahead, and enjoys the wealth of the Southern Dynasty comfortably. Under the insidious and vicious mobilization of the Guangfu Army, on the surface, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and the Twist Army wreaked havoc in Hebei, Henan, Shandong, and Shanxi without any scruples. Secretly, the business of the Guangfu Army was done in the capital.

The Liberation Army naturally has its own calculations in doing this, and now it looks at the situation of the whole world and is also playing out according to the script of the Liberation Army. No matter who wins the chaotic war in the four provinces, these four provinces will definitely be in shambles. Jiang Zhongyuan asked in annoyance: "Can't we go south now and break the Guangfu army in Huainan!" ”

Zeng Guofan shook his head helplessly, he really didn't want to criticize such a backbone Jianyi. Jiang Zhongyuan said this just to vent, he himself knew very well that if he really did this, it was very likely that the Huai army and the Hunan army that crossed the Huai River would be annihilated, and the whole situation would immediately deteriorate in an all-round way. At present, the only way to maintain the Manchu Qing Dynasty is to defeat all the traitors in the four provinces, first solve the urgent need, and reorganize the four provinces.

It's just that even if the imperial court eliminates the urgent need, can the land of the four provinces that have been ruined by the war really be able to block the thunderous blow of the recovering army? Jiang Zhongyuan did not have the slightest such optimistic thoughts. So now it has become a desperate situation, and if the court does not do its best to win, it is to die now. But after surviving the current crisis, it is still a death. It's a terrible feeling. Too bad!

In order to break free from this heavy pressure, Jiang Zhongyuan talked about Zuo Zongtang with Zeng Guofan. The Chu army was first defeated by the Twist Army, and at the same time as being betrayed by Miao Peilin, the old nest Xuzhou was conquered by the Guangfu Army. Now there is no longer the name of the Chu army. The fact that the main forces of the three Hunan armies had been so completely annihilated made Jiang Zhongyuan feel very uneasy.

Whether it is Jiang Zhongyuan or Zeng Guofan, they all think that Zuo Zongtang has been "martyred". The two did not shy away from this issue, Jiang Zhongyuan had a strong personality and had long been downsizing about death. Zeng Guofan wants to stick to his loyalty, and he will not steal his life between death or surrender.

But on the whole, it was not without good news, Zeng Guofan himself was appointed governor of Henan, which made Jiang Zhongyuan feel that the Empress Dowager Ci'an was also wise. If Zeng Guofan could become the governor of Henan, and the Guangfu army allowed all sides to fight, then the Huai army in Huaibei would be able to join forces with the Hunan army in Henan.

Jiang Zhongyuan talked about the recent victory. Not long ago, the Twist Army in Henan wanted to return to his hometown in Wuyang, so he went south from Henan. No matter how erratic the movement of the Twist Army is, it can encounter trouble after entering Huaibei, and there are enclosures and fortresses everywhere. The Twist Army's ability to attack fortifications is not possible to capture these strongholds in the short term. When they tried to stop for a while to prepare for the attack, the Hunan army and the Huai army swooped down.

Twist Jun never expected that the hundreds of thousands of people in his hometown of Wuyang would disappear so silently. In accordance with their previous combat strategy, they avoided the main forces of the Huai and Hunan armies and continued to advance southward, trying to return to the core area of the Twist Army. But no matter how the Twist Army broke through, how skillfully shook off the approach of the Hunan Army and the Huai Army, they couldn't find their relatives, and they couldn't find any place where they could stay.

The Huai army of the Hunan army marched calmly, and they relied on the enclosure to station, rest, and replenish grain and grass. In the end, the Twist Army, which was sleepy in the wilderness, was forced to fight head-on with the Hunan Army and the Huai Army, and was finally defeated.

The beheading of 3,000 was the first wave of statistical exploits, and in the subsequent pursuit battles, 5,000 were beheaded one after another. Coupled with the Twist Army that was killed by the garrison inside the enclosure, and the Twist Army who died in the field, it is estimated that the elite of the Twist Army died between 10,000 and 13,000. This is the biggest achievement in recent years. Moreover, the strength of the Twist Army in Henan has lost so many more than 10,000 people, and the strength of the entire Henan has also been weakened a lot.

With this experience of fighting head-on with the Twist Army, Jiang Zhongyuan did not have a high evaluation of the Twist Army's combat effectiveness. His evaluation of Zeng Guofan's armor protection system was naturally rising all the way. Zeng Guofan put forward his own opinion, "If you act like this in Huaibei and Henan, you will definitely be able to exterminate the bandits." ”

Without waiting for Jiang Zhongyuan to speak, Li Hongzhang, who rushed over after hearing the news, listened for a while, and he got up and raised an objection, "Teacher, there is another reason for this big victory, the bandits have reached their deaths. The time and place are favorable, and they don't occupy any of them. But the twisters felt that they had occupied the right time and place. ”

As soon as these words came out, Jiang Zhongyuan had a feeling of sudden enlightenment. Zeng Guofan also nodded slightly, expressing his great appreciation for Li Hongzhang's views. Jiang Zhongyuan and Zeng Guofan both looked at the problem from their own perspective, so what they saw was what they had done and what preparations they had made. Therefore, I think that as long as I simply copy this kind of effort, I can succeed.

Li Hongzhang is from the twisting army, from the perspective of the overall victory, the height immediately increased a cut. In the idea of the Twist Army, they are in the limelight at this time, this is the time of the day, and the vortex sun is their nest, which is the geographical advantage. As for the people of Wuyang, they will definitely firmly support this army of soldiers who have returned to their hometowns, and this is peaceful.

In reality, the Hunan army and the Huai army are ready to stop and wait for work, this is the time of day. The Voryang Waizi provided a large number of strongholds to support the operations of the Hunan Army and the Huai Army, which was geographically advantageous. killed all the people of Wuyang, and built a armor protection system led by the Hunan army, which is human. The Twist Army has lost the right time, place and people, and it would be strange if it did not fail.

After talking about this, Li Hongzhang put forward his thoughts these days, "Teacher, if you fail to become the governor of Henan, I will not be able to use this method, but since the teacher has become the governor of Henan, there is an opportunity to gather and annihilate bandits in Henan and Huaibei." ”

Zeng Guofan knew that his disciple Li Hongzhang had a somewhat frivolous personality, but he was an extremely smart person. Seeing that Li Hongzhang was so confident, Zeng Guofan motioned for Li Hongzhang to continue. Li Hongzhang's eyes lit up, and he said loudly: "To build a fence, the armor protection system must be vigorously implemented, but to deal with the bandits, we can still 'give up the dangerous place and encircle and annihilate it with one drum'. The bandits thought they could run, so we gave up some unproductive places for them to occupy. The bandits did not know anything, so they naturally felt that after seizing the county seat, they were surrounded by poor people, and it was easy for them to encourage them to pull up more soldiers and horses. But that's exactly where they died. As long as the bandits gather in a dangerous place, the officers and troops can directly surround them. No more chasing bandits. ”

Zeng Guofan and Jiang Zhongyuan have fought for so many years, and Li Hongzhang's views were immediately agreed by the two. Once the Twist Army is really assembled in a dangerous place, the time and place are favorable, and they are not on their side at all. The biggest headache for the officers and soldiers is that they are mobile combat, and the officers and soldiers are often killed by the Twist Army using their mobility ability. The recent battle proved that without the advantage of mobility, the Hunan army and the Huai army were not afraid of them at all.

"That's great!" Zeng Guofan said.

Jiang Zhongyuan also praised: "What a famous teacher is a high apprentice!" ”

Zeng Guofan was tired of saddle horses all the way, and at this time he got a way to relieve the burden in his heart, and he went to rest. Jiang Zhongyuan was depressed in his heart, so he told Li Hongzhang the news about the capital that Li Hongzhang had not heard. Li Hongzhang's expression became more and more solemn, and finally sat there.

Jiang Zhongyuan is chivalrous and has never been a person who likes to complain. It's just that at this time, he couldn't help it, "The Beijing officials fled, and the Eight Banners Beijing Battalion pushed back when they sent troops." Half of the country is not protected, and the traitors have all been harmed under the capital. This...... It's just ......."

It is precisely because of his chivalrous personality that Jiang Zhongyuan swallowed the words "the appearance of the dead country" back into his stomach. But this effort also made Jiang Zhongyuan hold his breath in his chest, and he couldn't say the rest of the words.

"This is what the country looks like." Li Hongzhang pierced this layer of window paper.

Jiang Zhongyuan lowered his head hatefully, unwilling to say anything more. But Li Hongzhang didn't stop, he said: "Jiang Gong, can we send a force across the Huai River to test the reality of the Liberation Army?" ”

"You think so too?" Jiang Zhongyuan asked with some surprise. Li Hongzhang is a slippery person, and Jiang Zhongyuan has a deep understanding of this. Zeng Guofan insisted on his own opinion. Carry out the set strategy to the end. For example, Zeng Guofan slaughtered the local people in Voryang, Jiang Zhongyuan was actually very unimpressed, but when he really encountered the Twist Army trying to kill back to his hometown in Voryang, Zeng Guofan's previous preparations showed their power. The slippery Li Hongzhang will not be like his teacher Zeng Guofan, Li Hongzhang is the kind of guy who will always find a way to collect as much more comprehensive information as possible and find a relatively easy path. The current crisis was already imminent, and Jiang Zhongyuan had already figured out that if he could not defeat the Guangfu army, the Manchu court would only have a dead end. The only possibility now is to determine the level of the Guangfu Army, if the Guangfu Army is now vulnerable, at least the Huai Army can deal with it, then there will be hope for the imperial court in the future. Otherwise, they can only wait for the Guangfu Army to make a change in Tianjing by themselves like the Taiping Army.

"Jiang Gong, if you don't fight, I'm really unwilling. Since the Guangfu Army is ready to sit on the mountain and watch the tiger fight at this time, even if we fight it, I think they will not necessarily cross the Huai River. If they had fought the Huai River, they would have come a long time ago. So I think it's okay to give it a try. Li Hongzhang took out the final calculation first.

After listening to Li Hongzhang's analysis, Jiang Zhongyuan gritted his teeth, "Okay! Let's take a look at it first. ”R1058