When the news came that Xie Muguan, who was important in the mountains, had changed hands, it was already noon on the third day.

However, it was a pursuit force led by Wang Yanzhang to pull out several key points in Jiuzhi Mountain, and was able to seize the fortress in one go, and defeated the rest of Chen Yanqian, who was defending, and killed 1,000 people, and only Chen Yanqian, including a few remnants of the enemy who saw that the situation was not good and ran fast, and once again routed Hunan along the mountain road.

And with the spread of this news in Guiyang City, it also represents that Chen Yanqian, a senior official, who had been commanding in the local area for a while, and had been driving from the government and the people for a long time to run the history of underground assassination, making people stop crying with children, Chen Daguan, basically no longer have the opportunity to return to Guiyang.

In the midst of the cheers and shouts under the city wall, the mine owners, bosses, and overseers who had been tried one by one under the guidance of many bitter masters were cut off one by one or hung on the edge of the city wall, becoming a new and old scenery of stiffness and erection, or struggling.

Many of the others who were flailed under the city walls to cry out and forgive were the accomplices and lackeys of the mine owners, bosses, and overseers, and this was also the main result of the search and seizure work carried out in the past few days around the main mining areas in the three counties.

and the person responsible for presiding over the public trial is Chai Ping, a deputy who seems to be a little ashamed and brave; Although due to the rush of time and the limited manpower, it is inevitable that there will be some fallacies and mistakes, or simply overcorrection, or the result of slander and implication.

But Zhou Huai'an will not hesitate or regret anything; After all, this is one of the inevitable costs to be paid on this difficult road that oneself has to take, destroying the old and rotten order and establishing a new one for one's own use.

Compared with the infamy and criticism of "one family crying" or "several families crying" that make a few people suffer and die, he is more concerned about letting more people no longer have to "cry all the way" and "cry all the way", and have the dignity of survival from generation to generation.

As for the mistakes and collateral injuries that may occur in the pursuit of ideals and beliefs, to avoid the contradictions and antagonisms used to escape the brutal struggle to overthrow an old class and the suffering of reality; and even leaving endless troubles and hidden worries for his career and prospects, which are just hypocritical and weak excuses from the little Bourgeovian of later generations;

I am not only sorry for the vast number of poor people who can fight for and mobilize, but also sorry for the countless righteous soldiers who fought bloodily for it and sacrificed themselves on the road of pursuit.

"Congratulations to the Lord, Lingnan has no worries since then."

Ge Congzhou, who accompanied the tour of the city, also congratulated loudly.

"Even if you enter Hunan in the future, you don't know."

Because, this means that since ancient times, three of the five ridges and four holes have fallen under the control of the Taiping army led by Zhou Huai'an. The remaining Yuecheng Ridge Road/Ancient Spirit Channel is actually within the sphere of influence controlled by the Righteous Army; Therefore, as long as a small number of capable troops are used as guards and guards, we can close the door for a period of time in the future and have spare strength to sort out the situation and internal affairs in Lingnan.

"It's just a long-term plan to survive for the people, and it's just a small step."

Zhou Huai'an, who thought so in his heart, also nodded slightly.

"There are still a lot of follow-up efforts that need to be made by my generation. Especially to continue to take advantage of the current good situation. To contribute to the cause of the righteous army in Lingbiao, it is... ”

"The word of the Lord is very true."

"That's what the leader said."

"Foresight, why do you say we can do it."

The left and right will also be a voice of approval and response.

On the other hand, there are tens of thousands of local miners in the three counties of Guiyang who have been mining for generations; It fell into the hands of the Taipings; At least compared with those peasant households in the small-scale peasant economic system, they have a more collective and organizational concept, and are also known for their hard-working, fierce and courageous fighting. As long as it is properly mobilized and transformed, it can become a good potential source of troops and a good basis for mobilization.

You must know that in the past, the powerful clans of Chen Yanqian and others took advantage of the natural geographical isolation of the place and used private soldiers to control the entry and exit of various places; and then by monopolizing the needs of people's livelihood such as grain, cloth, salt, etc., to further squeeze and divide them; Thugs and overseers were used to monitor and control their persons, so that they could not be turned over for generations.

Even occasional revolts can be suppressed through blockades and sieges, division and disintegration; Even if someone fled into the mountains and forests, there was also Mo Ximan, who was familiar with the mountains and forests, to help him recapture and concoct it; Therefore, although there are some bandits in the local area, they are basically carried out by wealthy and powerful families.

Anyway, lynching and torture abound here, and the whole family is killed at the slightest sign of resistance; And according to the stewards, supervisors, and bosses of the accomplices at the bottom, they can do whatever they want; Even if the foreign merchants and travelers were robbed, the corpses were killed and thrown into the abandoned mines, and there would be no news. Not to mention secretly acting as bandits or disguised as bandits, going to neighboring states and counties outside the mountains to loot the population, and filling the mines with young men and women.

Therefore, just through the public complaints and trials in these days, more than 3,000 miners and local young people from mountain people were recruited and gathered in this Guiyang; Although the vast majority of them suffer from some degree of malnutrition, the overall quality of their spirit and spirit is still better than that of most of the displaced people who are unable to serve as soldiers directly, but need a period of recuperation and recovery.

In this way, the structure of the four local supplementary battalions was built and filled.

Then in addition to the former rebel soldiers rescued from the mine, there are also nearly 2,000 or so, driven by the desire to take revenge, most of them took the initiative to join the Taiping Army, although most of them are also in a somewhat worrying physical condition, but the situation they used to suppress and liquidate the place is basically not a problem.

After the accumulation of such things, the previous defeat and damage of Chai Ping in the Battle of Guiyang were suddenly replenished, and there was still a lot of surplus; Coupled with the fact that Zhou Huai'an brought five battalions of men and horses that were basically full and did not lose much, the number of soldiers that could be mobilized under the Taiping Army in Guiyang suddenly reached more than 12,000.

Therefore, as the so-called is to win the dragon and look forward to Shu, it is advisable to chase the poor bravely, and not to sell the basic truth of learning the overlord, Zhou Huai'an still understands it quite well. It's all come to this point, can you still stay for the New Year if you don't die after fighting snakes?

"Actually, there is no need to say anything about Hunan in the future."

Therefore, thinking of this section, Zhou Huai'an continued to say to the generals under his command.

"Now there's a chance to talk about it. But I don't know who is willing to lead the department to go. ”

"At least in Pingyang County, on the other side of the mountain, there are also hundreds of large and small pits and a large number of miners;"

"It would be good if they could be successfully mobilized to occupy them, or if most of them could be relocated;"

"No matter how bad it is, you can't keep it for nothing, and become a help and credential for the old thief of the Chen family to recuperate or make a comeback."

"Although a certain is not talented, I am willing to go hard. In order to live up to the cultivation of the leader. ”

This time, it was Deputy Commander Huo Cun who rushed out to ask for his life.

"Okay, that's you."

Then in the eyes and expressions of some annoyance, unwillingness, and sighing on the left and right, Zhou Huai'an said with a final word.

"I'll give you two battalions to complete and equip you with a full number of mules and horses, plus five garrison regiments for follow-up cooperation. First bring three months of food and equipment. ”

"When you can gain a firm foothold outside the mountain, the subsequent grain, grass and materials will be forwarded through Xie Muguan's Grain Taiwan Courtyard immediately."

"For the sake of cheapness, I will then report to Liusi, and you will be promoted to the rank of lieutenant in advance, and the power to lead Xie Muguan will be the general."

Zhou Huai'an added

"In addition, the manpower of the search team, the task force and the census may be preferred by you; The worst is to let the enemy rule chaos, and there is no peace to recuperate. ”

"Subordinate, respect the teachings. I will not live up to my expectations."

Huo Cun hugged his fists more solemnly and said solemnly;

At this moment, the expressions and eyes of the rest of the generals turned into some kind of undisguised envy and more obvious remorse in the uproar; And Ge Congzhou, who is a righteous brother, is also very pleased, after all, this is the eleventh captain under the six main books of the righteous army.

"Don't feel envious of others."

Zhou Huai'an glanced around until these voices had subsided spontaneously.

"Risks and opportunities always coexist and there are good and bad, only for those who have the ability and courage to seize them."

"If you want to kill the enemy and repay the service, I don't know that there is such a place, and now the situation in Lianzhou is also a place where you have a lot to do."

"I want to do my best."

Ge Congzhou immediately shouted.

"Follow the Lord to sweep away the demonic atmosphere and clean the world."

It is the so-called truth that morale and people's hearts can be used; In the following days after Huo Cun's troops left, the territory of Lianzhou was still soaked in some faint blood; However, the act of liquidation and judgment began to spread from the densely populated towns and towns to the nearby villages.

This is also an attempt by Zhou Huai'an to see to what extent and to what extent he can carry out the transformation and liquidation of the place under the catalysis of all his might. The geographical nature and military superiority of the feudal town were enough for him to be sure that he would be able to block the flow of information and people, and avoid spilling over and affecting the overall atmosphere in other parts of the rebel army.

For example, after being attacked in one go, more than a dozen large and small Zhai characters. Mo Ximan's remaining few leaders who had not yet been attacked Dazhai also sent people to beg for mercy and beg for peace; They are willing to hand over hundreds to thousands of young men and women half for hard labor, and hand over the price of those who fled to hide and go down to the mountains to open the market, in exchange for the coexistence of the rebels and their subordinates.

In the somewhat quiet city of Guiyang, Zhou Huai'an also received a request to meet, but he was a representative of the local merchants who were stranded. In addition to mining and metallurgy-related industries in Guiyang, there are also many other livelihoods and needs that have contributed to the flow of business travel.

These people mainly sell salted fish produced in coastal areas in truckloads, a high-quality and inexpensive specialty that is very marketable in the mountainous areas; Then they buy or exchange them for some mountain goods and bring them back to the plains or coastal areas;

This is actually a kind of side-lining ball salt trafficking in disguise to evade inspection, but it is not within the scope of the rebels' current severe crackdown. Therefore, Zhou Huai'an did not hesitate to see him, and asked for some news from areas outside the mountains by the way.

"In Xia Jin Qiude, see the general...

is a man with thick eyebrows, big eyes and rough hands and feet, and an official dialect with a strong mountain accent. It is said that he is also one of the bitter masters who has been harmed by Chen Yanqian.

(End of chapter)