Zuo Zongtang asked for credit for the generals under his command in the compromise, and the first one was Zhan Donglu, saying that "the work team and artillery team of the department are particularly effective, and they are the key to destroying the enemy through the three nos; The infantry of this unit is stoic and swift, skilled in military affairs, and too much of a peer. ”

Seeing this paragraph, Cixi couldn't help but have gold on her face. The "left mule" praised the descendants of the Qing Lang, and the royal sister was proud in her heart, and she had a sense of "honor".

In second place is Lei Zhengjuan, "The horse team is roundabout, unprepared for the enemy, attacking the enemy's key points, making decisions on the spot, and having the style of an ancient famous general." ”

"There is the style of ancient famous generals", from the mouth of Zuo Zongtang, it is a high praise.

In third place is Tao Maolin, who was able to follow Zhan Donglu and Lei Zhengwan closely, mainly because of Tao Bu's excellent performance in the Changwu Resistance Battle.

Needless to say, Zhan Donglu is interesting, Lei Zhengjuan and Tao Maolin also have a deep relationship with Xuanjun.

Lei Zhengjuan and Tao Maolin were originally Duolong's subordinates, and after Duolong'a died in battle, Guan Zhuofan entered the Shaanxi Governor's Division, and Lei and Tao Er naturally returned to Guan Zhuofan's control. After the rebellion in Shaanxi was pacified, Lei Zhengwan and Tao Maolin were dazzled by the prestige of the Xuan Army, and discussed in private, believing that only by joining the Xuan Army sequence could they be regarded as "truly promising", and solemnly expressed this wish to Guan Zhuofan.

Of course, it is a good thing that someone takes the initiative to join him, and Lei Zhengwan and Tao Maolin are also capable members, but Guan Zhuofan considered at that time that it was not appropriate to incorporate Lei and Tao at this time.

One is that the Xuanjun system has been established, and there is still no set of appropriate countermeasures for how the new forces can be integrated. Xuanjun's concepts, tactics, training, and equipment were not beyond the reach of Lei Zhengwan and Tao Maolin's knowledge at that time. These two general soldiers joined the Xuan army in a short time. The role is not as good as that of a deputy regimental officer.

And one more. Guan Zhuofan was just an "upstart" at that time. The foundation is still shallow; The twist bandits have not been leveled, and the merit value has not been brushed enough, so they are busy collecting the younger brother, which is too eye-catching.

Naturally, the Xuan army will further expand its army, but this has to be done step by step, and it cannot be rushed. On the premise of brushing up enough merit points, it is necessary to retrench the Hunan Army and the Huai Army in the future, as well as the reorganization of the Green Battalion. Keep a subtle interaction.

Therefore, when Guan Zhuofan left Shaanxi, he adopted a special "handling method" for Lei Zhengjuan and Tao Maolin's two departments - leaving an "advisory group" to help Lei and Tao rectify and reorganize the department.

This model has achieved quite good results - it has greatly improved the combat effectiveness of the two divisions of Lei and Tao, and the Xuan army and Guan Zhuofan himself have maintained their control over these two armies quite smoothly. Because of the excellent effect, this model was further strengthened and improved in the subsequent large-scale adaptation of the Green Camp. It is popularized.

As explained above, Zuo Zongtang went west. The old team of his own Chu Army only used a small part. He only selected 3,000 elites, and recruited 5,000 recruits in Hunan, a total of 8,000, which was regarded as his own personal soldiers and brought to the northwest. Most of the troops used by Pinghui were, in Guan Zhuofan's words, "to share the cause with the heroes of Guanzhong" — either to recruit and train locally, or to use local troops.

Before Zuo Zongtang left Beijing, Guan Zhuofan recommended Lei Zhengwan and Tao Maolin to him. Zuo Zongtang arrived in Shaanxi, and after the inspection, he was deeply satisfied and happily accepted. Sure enough, the two divisions of Lei and Tao came in handy in the battle.

The three generals Zhan Donglu, Lei Zhengxuan, and Tao Maolin are not Zuo Zongtang's descendants, but he praises them with all his strength and never hides his merits. This is not to please Kwan Zhuofan. Zuo Zongtang attacked Zeng Guofan and Li Hongzhang, and dealt with his in-law Guo Songtao, which gave people a sense of narrow-mindedness - in fact, this was a misunderstanding. Zuo Ji's great deeds, how can a narrow-minded person do it?

The contradiction between Zuo Zongtang and Zeng, Li, and Guo is essentially a struggle for resources, not a quarrel. He is a person who is ambitious and wants to do great things, but if he wants to do great things, he must have enough capital in his hands, and the capital of the imperial court is limited.

Guo Songtao was also forced to resign because when he was in charge of Guangdong, he was only willing to accept the Hunan army and refused to "co-pay" the Chu army, so he was forced to leave his post because Zuo Zongtang was "heroic and deceitful".

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After reading the excerpt, Cixi sighed softly, and said with a smile: "Zuo Zongtang has a comprehensive plan and is well planned!" Zhan Donglu, they also played well! Well, Dong Zhiyuan took it down, and you just said, 'The door of Gansu has been opened, and the road to Jinji Fort is unimpeded' - does it mean that it is ...... to take Jinji Fort Not far away? ”

Guan Zhuofan said: "Back to the Queen Mother, the situation in Jinjibao is quite different from Dong Zhiyuan. The bandits hurriedly gathered Dong Zhiyuan, and they didn't have much time to operate, so they couldn't deserve a thunderous blow from the official army. Ma Hualong is in Jinji Fort, but it has been operating for many years, the fort is tall and strong, there are many of them, each other is horns, the officials and soldiers gnaw this bone, and they have to take a bite at a time, and they can't be in a hurry. ”

Cixi nodded and said, "I know. ”

Guan Zhuofan continued: "Also, the ordnance of the Jinji Fort bandits is not comparable to Dong Zhiyuan's bandit shares-Ma Hualong has foreign guns. ”

Cixi raised her eyebrows, then frowned slightly, and said, "Foreign guns? Where did the bandits get their foreign guns? ”

Guan Zhuofan said slowly: "Judging from the existing intelligence, it should have been smuggled by the Russians. ”

Cixi's face changed, she was silent for a moment, gritted her teeth and said, "The Rakshasa ghost is hateful! ”

Guan Zhuofan nodded slightly and said, "The Russians do have ill intentions. However, the Queen Mother does not need to worry about it. The number of foreign guns of the Hui bandits is small, and the medicine is also limited - the most important thing is that after the war, they cannot continue to replenish the guns and medicine. Moreover, the training of the Hui bandits is insufficient, and the ability to use guns is not comparable to that of the officers and soldiers. ”

"Also, the bandits don't have cannons."

Hearing this, remembering the earth-shattering power of the "Napoleonic cannon" during the "cannon", Cixi's face greatly eased. She nodded and said, "Yes, no matter how strong Huizi's fortress is, it is just a pile of lumps, how can it withstand the bombardment of artillery?" ”

Guan Zhuofan said: "After Dong Zhiyuan's big battle, the officers and soldiers will also have to rest for a while. Now that it is winter, the minister thinks that after the New Year, the spring is open, and it is more appropriate to march into Jinji Castle again. When will Jinji Fort be defeated, it is not easy for the minister to say anything. But in any case, within next year, there will be good news to report the Queen Mother. ”

In fact, Guan Zhuofan doesn't think that it will take a whole year to get the Golden Fort, but there is no harm in leaving more redundancy. Besides, in this way, when the errand is done "in advance", the royal sister will have a surprise.

Cixi's face was overjoyed and she said, "It's not easy. After the Jinjibao incident is over, the situation in Gansu will be roughly settled, right? ”

Guan Zhuofan said: "Back to the Queen Mother, when Jinjibao is taken, the Ma Zhanao bandit units in the Gannan Hezhou and Didao areas must have been cleared, and the situation east of Qilian Mountain and most of Gansu will be settled." At that time, only Ma Wenlu's bandit shares in the Ganxi Suzhou area were left. ”

After a pause, he continued: "That place in Suzhou is almost out of Jiayu Pass, far from the Central Plains, and it will take a little time to completely exterminate this Hui bandit. However, the fall of Ma Wenlu's bandits is a matter of time, and it is not enough to worry about the Queen Mother. ”

Cixi gently patted the fold on the table and said, "Okay, after the Hui bandits in Gansu are eliminated, they can march into Xinjiang!" ”

Speaking of this, his face sank slightly, and he said: "I don't know if the officials and troops entered Xinjiang to quell the chaos, will the Russians get in the way?" ”

*(To be continued......)