is also a veteran of the Wu Army, Meng Ji has always felt that his status in the Shanghai Wu Army is inferior to Deng Siyuan, not only is his prestige somewhat inferior to Deng Siyuan, but the commander of the Shanghai Wu Army, Zhou Tenghu, also obviously attaches more importance to Deng Siyuan.

However, it is not surprising that when Wu Chaoyue went north to King Qin from the sea, it was Deng Siyuan who stayed in Shanghai, and in the case of the sudden outbreak of the Xiaodaohui uprising and the heavy encirclement of the Taiping army, Deng Siyuan not only successfully kept the ammunition depot and arsenal of the Wu army, proved his talent and loyalty, but also took the lead in forming a deep friendship with Zhou Tenghu, and the relationship was naturally more intimate. At the same time, when Meng Wei was under Wu Chaoyue's account, he was somewhat covered by the brilliance of famous Wu generals such as Huang Dasha and Cao Yanzhong, and his prestige and influence in the minds of Wu soldiers in Shanghai were naturally somewhat affected.

It's a pity that although Meng Ji also understands these objective reasons, he is not willing to accept this situation, and has always hoped to have a chance to prove that he is no worse than Deng Siyuan, and he hopes to prove that he is stronger than Deng Siyuan and more worthy of being entrusted with important tasks. - This is also human nature, and it is not surprising.

Meng Wei finally waited for this opportunity, and couldn't wait to grasp this opportunity, with three battalions of elite westward reinforcements Qibao, in the case of the Qibao battlefield still sporadic fighting, Meng Wei never considered any caution to slow down the march, relying on the elite equipment of the soldiers, as usual at the usual marching speed stride, or near Qibao encountered a small group of Taiping troops handed over, Meng Yu let the army slow down and carefully move forward.

However, Meng Wei also has the capital to do this, seeing that the Wu army is not advancing in a battle formation, the small Taiping army that encountered Meng Qi first also wanted to try his luck with a surprise attack, but after the Taiping army sneak attack fired the first row of guns, it launched a charge and did not rush out of ten steps, and was immediately killed and injured by the soldiers of the Wu army under Meng Qi's department, and fled in embarrassment.

Then, before the elite of the Wu army led by Meng Wei entered the Qibao battlefield, the small units of the Taiping army that had been cruising around the periphery of the Wu army's defensive position had all withdrawn to the self-army position.

Seeing this scene, the Qibao Wu army, which had been fighting fiercely with the Taiping army for many days, was of course cheering like thunder, and their morale was greatly boosted, and they couldn't wait to open the camp door to welcome Meng Qi's troops into the camp, and the old subordinates Xu Dali and Huang Jiacai also ran to Meng Qi's front to salute and greet him at the first time, and clearly expressed their determination to obey the leadership and command of the old boss. However, Meng Ji was quite regretful, and regretted that the Taiping Army did not send a large group of men and horses to intercept the troops stationed in the Qibao camp, and missed a good opportunity to kill the enemy and make meritorious contributions.

To Meng Yu's regret, at noon, the Taiping army on the periphery of Qibao suddenly abandoned its forward position and retreated, and soon disengaged from the Qibao Wu army, and directly withdrew to the main camp of the Taiping army in Sijing. At the same time, the camp of the Taiping Army's Lu Shunde Department in the northeast of Sijing was also heavily constructed to strengthen the fortifications.

The scout reported these news to Meng Wei, and without Meng Wei using his brain to analyze, his old subordinate Xu Dali had already rushed to say: "Brother Meng, it seems that Changmao is going to adjust his tactics, he should want to enter the army in a different direction, and he will not dare to fight with us head-on on the Qibao Battlefield." ”

"Count them smart." Huang Jiacai also said contemptuously: "We already have four battalions of elites in Qibao, and we have battalion fortifications to defend, and we still want to take Qibao by frontal attack, even if Li Xiucheng's big long hair comes in person, I can't be sure." ”

Meng Wei smiled, recognized Xu Dali and Huang Jiacai's analysis and judgment, but regretted it even more, and sighed, and said: "I hope that Changmao's next attack direction is not too far away from Qibao, otherwise, we will have to wait this time." ”

I don't know that Meng Si was anxious to prove his mind by fighting with the Taiping army, but out of respect for his old boss, Xu Dali and Huang Jiacai and other generals still hurriedly agreed, Meng Si regretted more and more, and remembered that Lu Shunde was preparing to trap and kill several Taiping army generals to surrender, and hurriedly ordered to strengthen the surveillance of Lu Shunde's army camp, and at the same time explained that if there was a Taiping army envoy who asked for contact, whether it was open or secret contact, all of them would be accepted, and they would immediately report to themselves. Xu Dali and the others agreed to the promise and immediately forwarded Meng Yu's order without mentioning it.

According to Meng Ji's expectation, after the afternoon Shen Shi, sure enough, a secret envoy of the Taiping Army dressed as a civilian was escorted into the Qibao camp of the Wu Army, and the person who came not only claimed to be Lu Shunde's brother-in-law Lu Jixiang, but also brought a letter from Zhou Tenghu who had secretly contacted Lu Shunde before to prove his identity. Meng Ji was overjoyed when he heard the report, and immediately ordered a summons, and after meeting with Lu Jixiang, he directly showed his hole cards, saying that he already knew about Lu Shunde's secret request to surrender, and asked directly: "How is General Lu's preparations?" When will it start to capture and kill the long-haired big man and come down? ”

"General Huimeng, you can do it at any time." Lu Jixiang said respectfully: "My brother-in-law has already made arrangements, and at any time I can find an excuse to invite Li Xiucheng's cronies and generals to our camp to do something, take their heads and bring the army to surrender to General Meng, and my brother-in-law sent a small one to meet General Meng, just to make an appointment with you, General, please prepare in advance." ”

Meng Ji was even more happy when he heard this, and hurriedly calculated when it would be safest and most beneficial for his army to let Lu Shunde do it, and he didn't want Lu Jixiang to continue: "General Meng, my brother-in-law sent a little one to contact the general, in addition to wanting to agree with the general on a pick-up time, I also want to discuss a major matter with the general." ”

"What's the big deal?" Meng Yu asked casually.

"General Meng, are you interested in joining forces with my brother-in-law to gamble?" Lu Jixiang asked cautiously, and said even more cautiously: "General, if you are interested, my brother-in-law may be able to give you Li Xiucheng's head directly!" ”

Meng Ji's heart sank, and he subconsciously looked at Lu Jixiang's expression carefully, and saw that although Lu Jixiang's expression was a little timid, there was no trace of a fake performance, and then Meng Ji asked, "How to bet?" ”

"Return to General Meng and join forces to attack Li Xiucheng's camp." Lu Jixiang's voice was very low, and he said: "If you are willing, General, you can send troops to attack my brother-in-law's camp tonight, and then my brother-in-law will pretend that he can't stop you from entering our camp, and then my brother-in-law will retreat to Li Xiucheng's camp with his cronies' army, as long as Li Xiucheng is fooled into opening the camp gate and letting my brother-in-law's army enter his camp, and then when General Meng's pursuers chase Li Xiucheng's camp gate, my brother-in-law can take the opportunity to do it, and the inside and outside should join forces with the general and your army to kill Li Xiucheng's camp, Directly cut off Li Xiucheng's head! ”

In fact, before Lu Jixiang finished speaking, Meng Wei had already understood Lu Shunde's plan, and his heart had already begun to pound, and he almost blurted out that he wanted to agree to join forces with Lu Shunde to take an adventure. Because the tactical plan proposed by Lu Shunde was an opportunity that Meng Wei had already seen when he was ordered to reinforce the Qibao battlefield, and he had already pondered this tactical plan in his heart more than once that might turn things around in one fell swoop.

Fortunately, Meng Ji was also quite calm, in addition to continuing to carefully observe Lu Jixiang's expression, he asked vigilantly: "Didn't General Lu make an appointment with our Zhou Futai to ask for surrender, why did he suddenly change his hexagram?" ”

"General Meng misunderstood, it's not that he changed his hexagram, but his brother-in-law said that this opportunity is too rare." Lu Jixiang hurriedly explained: "My brother-in-law said that because General Meng, you personally brought the elite to reinforce Qibao, forcing Li Xiucheng to change his plan, not daring to attack Qibao head-on, and withdrawing the other Heavenly Kingdom troops, leaving my brother-in-law's army just stuck between General Meng and Li Xiucheng, and there is a great hope of directly killing Li Xiucheng, and the opportunity is rare, so my brother-in-law asked General Meng if you are willing to gamble on this." ”

"My brother-in-law also said that if General Meng thinks you are too risky, or has any concerns, he will never force it, just continue to do what Lord Zhou asks. This is a letter from my brother-in-law, and I would like to ask General Meng to read it. ”

Explaining the reason why Lu Shunde suggested a surprise attack on Li Xiucheng's camp, Lu Jixiang took out Lu Shunde's personal collection of letters and presented them, Meng Wei asked his own soldiers to take it and forward it, seeing that the content of the letter was similar to Lu Jixiang's oral introduction, the main content was just one more Lu Shunde dared to guarantee that more than seventy percent of his subordinates would follow him, and the core main force could also guarantee complete obedience to his own command orders.

In addition, Lu Shunde also suggested that Meng Wei had better attack Li Xiucheng's camp tonight, so as not to have too many dreams at night, and Li Xiucheng made other defensive adjustments to make up for this loophole.

"Could it be a trick to lure the enemy?"

Meng Wei also had such worries, but when he thought of the wonderful picture of directly killing Li Xiucheng and completely reversing the battle situation in Shanghai, Meng Wei couldn't help but feel his heart beating wildly, and his breathing couldn't help but be a little short, coupled with his absolute confidence in the elite main force of his own army, after hesitating again and again, Meng Qi, who was anxious to prove himself in front of the soldiers and gentry of the Wu army in Shanghai, still made up his mind......

"Fighting a war is an adventure! Rich and dangerous, bet on this! ”

…………

Meng Di, who was anxious to make great achievements, finally made a risky decision, but unfortunately, Meng Di never dreamed that only two hours had passed since he made this decision, and Li Xiucheng, who was in Sijing, not only knew that he was going to launch a sneak attack, but also knew that he planned to send troops to attack Lu Shunde's camp at the third watch tonight, and then drive Lu Shunde's defeated army to Sijing before the fourth watch, and open the gate of his main camp.

The informant is, of course, Lu Shunde himself, in order to reward his brother-in-law for risking deep into the Wu army camp twice to cheat, Lu Shunde also specially sent Lu Jixiang to Li Xiucheng to tell the informant. However, after learning the good news that he had gradually deceived him, Li Xiucheng did not immediately show joy and reward Lu Jixiang, on the contrary, he was very careful to ask Lu Jixiang about the details of the meeting and conversation with Meng Jixiang, and when Lu Jixiang truthfully explained that he had verbally introduced Lu Shunde's plan before submitting the letter, Li Xiucheng interrupted Lu Jixiang's words and asked: "You first told your brother-in-law's plan, and then presented your brother-in-law's letter to Meng Jixiang, the demon general?" Isn't that the order? ”

"Huizhong Wang Chitose, the order is like this." Lu Jixiang replied honestly.

Li Xiucheng's eyes finally showed some joy, and he asked again: "So, you haven't presented your brother-in-law's letter to Meng Wei's demon general, and he already believes that you are Lu Shunde's envoy and allows you to speak in front of him on behalf of Lu Shunde?" ”

"Chung Wang Chitose Shengming, that's true." Lu Jixiang hurriedly said: "The little one just met with the demon general Meng Qi, and the demon general took the initiative to say that he knew about my brother-in-law taking the initiative to ask for surrender. ”

Li Xiucheng smiled, and Li Shuxiang, Li Xiucheng's right-hand man next to him, also smiled, and said to Li Xiucheng with a smile: "Congratulations to King Zhong, congratulations to King Zhong, the demon general Meng Qi is in a hurry like this, it seems that it is absolutely true." ”

Li Xiucheng smiled, first ordered to promote Lu Jixiang to two levels, and then ordered his own soldiers to lead Lu Jixiang to receive the reward, and then waited for Lu Jixiang to leave happily, Li Xiucheng turned to Li Shuxiang, and said with a smile: "Tell me to go down, act according to the original plan, tonight I will not only give this king to annihilate the elite of the Shanghai demon soldiers, but also take the seven treasure strongholds of the demon soldiers for this king." ”

Li Shuxiang smiled and promised, and was about to go to give Li Xiucheng an order in person, but he didn't think that outside the tent, he rushed to a personal soldier first, presented an official document to Li Xiucheng, and said: "Loyal to Wang Chitose, Ren Tianan's military intelligence report, please be loyal to Wang Chitose to take a look." ”

Ren Tianan of the Taiping Army is Li Xiucheng's son-in-law Cai Yuanlong, and he is also the temporary commander of Li Xiucheng's army. As a result, what made Li Xiucheng a little annoyed was that the military intelligence report sent by Cai Yuanlong only reported the current situation of the ships and defense of the Taiping Army Naval Division, and there were no important matters, so Li Xiucheng was not polite, and scolded in front of the outsider Li Shuxiang: "This Cai Yuanlong, he took the wrong medicine, and he didn't have anything to report to this king what steamer is running normally, and how many small boats have been arranged to protect the dock?" ”

"His Royal Highness King Zhong, Ren Tianan didn't take the wrong medicine." Li Shuxiang smiled and said: "Seeing that our Heavenly Kingdom army is fighting so smoothly on land, Ren Tianan is also anxious, and wants to take the steamer directly into the Huangpu River earlier." Otherwise, when the Heavenly Army directly conquered Shanghai from the land, what chance would he have to be rewarded for meritorious service? ”

Thinking of the importance of this battle, Li Xiucheng suddenly realized, smiled first, and then instructed the soldiers who came to deliver the official documents: "Go tell Cai Yuanlong's messenger and ask him to bring a message back to Cai Yuanlong, tell Cai Yuanlong to take care of the steamer first, don't give the demon soldiers a chance to sneak attack, wait patiently, if it goes well, in two or three days, he can take the steamer into the Huangpu River to show his skills." ”

The soldiers took the order and left, and Li Shuxiang next to him smiled and said: "Zhongwang Chitose, in fact, you can directly tell Ren Tian'an and let him sail into the Huangpu River with a steamer tomorrow." Tonight we have wiped out the elite of the demon soldiers, and tomorrow the steamer will enter the Huangpu River, which can just hit the morale of the demon soldiers and facilitate our next battle. ”

"There's no hurry." Li Xiucheng shook his head and said, "Anyway, the distance is not too far, and it will be too late to introduce the elite of the demon soldiers into our encirclement first, and then give Cai Yuanlong an order." Otherwise, if the order is given and the demon soldiers are not fooled, then our joke will be big. ”

said cautious words, but Li Xiucheng's eyes were full of pride, as if he had seen the elite of the Wu army under Meng Qi's army annihilated, the Taiping army captured Qibao, and then the Taiping army's steam fleet entered the Huangpu River and concentrated its firepower to bombard the city of Shanghai............