On June 24, the Guangfu Army sent people to contact the current governor of Hunan, Zhai He. After receiving Luo Bingzhang's instructions, Hunan Governor Zhai He began to convene a small number of high-ranking officials in Changsha on June 26 to talk about the matter. These high-level officials scolded the bastards of the Liberation Army at that time. After scolding the Guangfu Army, the officials were still angry, and then scolded the captured Hunan army for being spineless and unwilling to be loyal to the country on the battlefield.

Governor Zhai He looked at the indignant appearance of the Hunan officials, and felt a lot more relaxed in his heart. He did want to facilitate the exchange of prisoners of war, but he knew very well that he was just a transitional governor, and he didn't need to think about directing these Hunan officials. Since everyone is against this matter, Zhai He also died of this heart.

On the evening of the 26th, four low-level officials visited Zhai He's mansion. When they saw Zhai He, the officials all said with a sad look that their relatives might have been captured in Chenzhou or Guiyang Prefecture, and asked Lord Zhai He to open up the net and let them raise tea to replace them.

Although Lord Zhai He has not been an official in Changsha, he is also a person who has been in officialdom for a long time. He amiably explained to these officials the conditions proposed by the Liberation Army. The sad looks on the faces of the officials subsided greatly, and the focus of their attention was on the very clear question of "whether the Liberation Army wants to buy tea or whether these people want to ransom people with tea."

Everyone is a mixed official, and no one is a fool. Governor Zhai He clearly recognized that there were quite a few faction leaders to whom the officials here belonged, and they were high-ranking officials who scolded during the day. Zhai He did not widely spread the news, where did the news of these officials come from now? It must have been instructed by the officials who scolded during the day.

After receiving the confirmation of Lord Zhai Huan that the Guangfu Army was not asking for ransom, but buying tea, the officials begged Governor Zhai to give them the paperwork so that they would not pay any more centime along the way. In order to seek military spending, Zeng Guofan vigorously engaged in the gold system in Hubei, Jiangxi and other places. Luo Bingzhang, the former governor of Hunan, was in the same boat as Zeng Guo's domain, but he was unwilling to be left behind when he learned from "advanced experience". Naturally, Hunan has also implemented the "Lijin system". There are all kinds of checkpoints, and if you want to sell things, it is a layer of taxes.

Governor Zhai He knew very well that even if the Guangfu Army purchased tea at a low price, as long as it could pay no money, as long as the Guangfu Army could settle with Yingyang as agreed, the money from selling tea was already a huge profit. As long as you get the instructions of Governor Zhai He, the excuse of "redeeming prisoners of war" can go all the way without paying the money. Many clever officials have taken a fancy to this opportunity.

In the officialdom, it is naturally convenient for others, and Lord Zhai He gave the official document, and the officials left with a thousand thanks.

With the retirement of time, the Liberation Army showed no signs of going north, but marched all the way west. When the soldiers of the Liberation Army were pointing directly at Guangxi, there were more and more Hunan officials who came to find Zhai He. Many people said that their relatives were arrested, and whether they could use tea to replace people. Governor Zhai He is not a fool, he asked those officials, which relatives of these officials were arrested? The answer is either vague, or a relative who can hit with eight poles, or can't hit with eight poles.

In recent years, wars have been raging, and gold has been rampant. There are wars everywhere around Hunan, which is rich in tea, and the tea market is almost on the verge of extinction. The Yangtze River waterway has been cut off, and legitimate tea merchants have long since closed their doors. The remaining tea merchants, who were in danger of wealth and danger, could only pay various "cents" and "escort fees" to the official army, the Hunan army, and the Taiping army in order to send the industry to the lower reaches of the Yangtze River. The price of tea in the production area has plunged in an all-round way, and the price of tea in the demand area has soared.

By mid-July, Hunan's local tea market, which had been stagnant for several years, suddenly began to reopen. First of all, there is a large number of people who buy new tea. Then last year's autumn tea also began to be bought, and finally even last year's spring tea began to be bought. Officials who had the latest information first-hand took the lead and began to march towards Chenzhou from tea purchased from all over Hunan.

Lord Zhai Huan found that before he could notify the gentry and common people in Hunan according to the list given by the Liberation Army, many officials had already sent people to transport tea and embarked on the road of "ransom". By the end of July, the Liberation Army had not released any of the Hunan prisoners. Before the families of the Hunan army were notified by Governor Zhai He, about 10,000 loads of tea had been sent to Chenzhou to "rescue" the captured Hunan army.

It must be explained that Governor Zhai He is not a fool, in order to clear himself, he really tried his best to spread the news to the relatives of the Hunan army. When the family members of the Hunan army who had tea mountains or grew their own tea got the news, many people found that they had happily sold most of the tea that could save the lives of their relatives not long ago. It is a matter of relatives, and more importantly, there is money to be earned, and the governor is allowed to pay taxes only once, and they can transport tea to exchange for relatives.

After entering August, the relevant personnel in Hunan related to the commodity of tea were fully mobilized, and a large amount of tea was imported into Chenzhou, which was under the control of the Guangfu Army, by redeeming the righteous name of the prisoners. After being inspected by the Liberation Army, graded, and then given to these guys what they deserve.

There were more and more officials who came to thank Lord Zhai He for his "life-saving grace", and everyone brought some silver tickets or simply sent all kinds of extremely heavy "snacks". Since Lord Zhai is kind to everyone, of course everyone has to repay the kindness.

Governor Zhai He thought that all parties in this matter would get some fat, and it was the limit that he could earn a few thousand taels of silver. He never expected that most of the officials in Hunan officialdom would intervene in this matter. For Manchu officialdom, the more people involved, the safer it was. And this time the reason is so above board, even if the emperor knows, he can't say that he won't let people be ransomed. In the end, Lord Zhai He not only redeemed more than 2,000 Hunan officers and soldiers as he wished, but also got 80,000 taels of silver in his hand. The reason why there is only so much is because Governor Zhai He is timid, and he chooses not to take a lot of money that can be taken or not.

As it turned out, Governor Zhai He's choice to strategically trust his fellow countryman and surname in the Liberation Army was a wise decision. By September, the Guangfu Army had already broken through Guilin, Baise and other important places. swept away the Qing army in the entire Guangxi. Guangxi Governor Cao Shuzhong and other civil and military officials were all able to escape. But Guangxi is boiling over, and Hunan is still very calm. The Liberation Army never went north to fight.

After it was determined that Guangxi had fallen into the hands of the Liberation Army. Zhai He knew that the official of the governor of Hunan had done it. He was not in love with the stack, and he was extremely satisfied with the fact that he had earned tens of thousands of taels of silver in the position of transitional governor. The ransom of the Hunan army gave him a reputation among the gentry who loved the people like sons. It's really fame and fortune. In the face of such a great success, Lord Zhai did not get carried away. On the contrary, his whole person seemed more composed. Zhai He knew very well that such a success did not depend on his own ability, but a great victory for the operation of the Liberation Army. Hunan is the province that stresses the most "morality" and the "way of the sage", but the Guangfu Army only gave these people a reason to satisfy them, and these people did not care about trading with the Guangfu Army for their own interests. This reality was an eye-opener for Zhai He.

The tea sales frenzy of several months came and went quickly, known as the name of "knowing people", and Mao Hongbin, who had served as the governor of Hunan, was once again appointed as the governor of Hunan. As soon as he took office, he immediately implemented a policy of pressing on the Chenzhou Liberation Army, and the once opened tea trade line was quickly cut off.

From the imperial court's point of view, the Guangfu army captured Guangxi and occupied several cities in the southwestern part of Hunan, thus firmly gaining a base for advancing into Hunan. Guangxi has just been captured, and the Guangfu Army may not immediately enter the army. But they don't have to shrink forever to stay still. When the Liberation Army is ready to go north, how is the Hunan Army going to deal with it?

The released Hunan army described a terrible battle, with the artillery of the Liberation Army firing as if they were not asking for money, and each shell exploded after it landed. This caused the gathered Hunan army to suffer terrible losses. The Guangfu Army opposite the Hunan Army was indeed firing guns, but the Hunan Army could not see where the Guangfu Army was. Without waiting for the Hunan army to figure it out, the Guangfu Army appeared in front of the Hunan army as if it had emerged from the ground. The battle was lost in such a muddle. When the Hunan army raised their hands and surrendered, they didn't understand what was going on.

Such a description downplays the bloodiness of the war, but instead creates a recovery army like a ghost. The Hunan army did not have much chance to fight with the Guangfu Army, and the Hunan civil and military forces did not understand the Guangfu Army at all.

Zeng Guofan soon sent a letter to Hunan, in which he built a strict defense of the city for the time being, and did not rashly start a war with the Guangfu army. The Hunan army has already begun to besiege Anqing, and taking Anqing will open the door to attack southern Anhui and the capital of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. Zeng Guofan needed time most now, and he told Hunan Wenwu in his letter that since Wei Ze was so interested in Liangguang, especially in poor Guangxi, he should let him stay in Guangxi first. After the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom was settled, the troops of the whole Manchu Qing Dynasty could gather to encircle and annihilate the Guangfu army, and when the time came, they would also pile up the Guangfu army to death.

Seeing that Zeng Guofan was so firm, the Hunan civil and military could only agree with Zeng Guofan's construction. They strengthened their defenses in central Hunan, hoping only that the Liberation Army would concentrate all their energy on barren Guangxi, as Zeng Guofan had said.

Zeng Guofan was right, Wei Ze really did not have a plan to enter Hunan immediately. Guangxi and Yunnan and Guizhou are both places rich in tea. Vietnam, which borders Guangxi, was also an important source of rice for the Liberation Army. At this time, there was something else that entangled Weezer's hands and feet. The French were trying to expand their sphere of influence in South Vietnam, and the Liberation Army wanted to go to Siam, that is, Thailand, to buy rice. It was necessary to communicate under the noses of the French, and the navy of the Liberation Army was temporarily incapable of annihilating the French fleet in one fell swoop. And Weeser now has no intention of annihilating the French. The diplomatic department of the Governor's Office was negotiating with the French in the hope that the French would ensure the smooth and safe passage from China to Siam.

"Governor, why did the French do it?" The General Staff did not understand Weese's attitude.

Weeser gave the answer, "It's not that I don't have an interest in Vietnam, so let the French invade Vietnam first and cede the land of Vietnam." We can intervene when Vietnam pleads, so that the French don't have too much appetite. When the land on both sides is settled, we will go to war with the French and take the land from the French. ”

The top brass of the Liberation Army didn't think that Wei Ze was a good person. But after listening to Wei Ze's strategic concept, everyone felt that Wei Ze should not be evaluated by the standard of "good and evil" in the future. It's even beyond the ordinary bad guys. Logically speaking, Weeser did not invade Vietnam, and Weeser did not bully Vietnam. Weezer had nothing to do with the war in France and Vietnam. Weese's decision is high-sounding, and there is nothing unreasonable about it. But that's just the reasoning. Everyone's heart is probably like this, "You can't play like this when you play Vietnamese!" ”R1058