While busy with Shanghai's affairs, Wu Chaoyue did not forget the major events in Suzhou - not to mention the black yarn hat related to Wu Lao comprador in Fuzhou, just the threat of the Suzhou Taiping Army to Shanghai's nest made it impossible for Wu Chaoyue not to worry about the Suzhou battlefield.

There is still some light in the morning, on the fourth day after Rong Hong was included in the shogunate, Kunshan and Chun transferred an urgent document from Yiliang, the governor of Liangjiang, and returned to the Taiping army Zhou Lichun in the Wuxi battlefield for no reason, and really launched a surprise attack on the Yanghu camp of the Qing army, although the Qing army also tried its best to resist, but Zhou Lichun's army had been replenished with a large number of advanced Western weapons in Shanghai, and at the same time, the Zhou soldiers who seemed to be auxiliary soldiers were also disguised as elite soldiers of the Taiping army, and the Qing army planned to attack the back of the Taiping army. After being attacked head-on by the elite of the Taiping army, he suffered heavy losses, and even the battalion did not dare to return and fled directly to Changzhou.

In the end, although the Yanghu Qing army relied on the fortifications to barely block the attack launched by the Taiping army that day, but because of the heavy losses and too many friendly troops fled, they had to abandon the camp overnight and flee westward.

In this regard, although Xu Naizhao, the governor of Jiangsu, was 10,000 unhappy in his heart, he was also afraid of being charged with not saving the governor when he saw death, so he had to find Wu Chaoyue to discuss. And after Wu Chaoyue thought about it for a long time, he asked Xu Naizhao rhetorically: "Xu Futai, I don't know what you think about this matter?" ”

"This official doesn't know much about military affairs, and although he has plans, he doesn't know whether it's right or wrong."

Xu Naizhao is still a little self-aware, calmly admits his shortcomings, and says: "This official believes that Suzhou is a big city, the fortifications are strong, and the grain and grass are also very sufficient, and it is almost impossible to break through in a hurry, but if we send troops to Suzhou and set up a camp under the city only to encircle and not fight, then Changmao will not dare to attack Changzhou on a large scale, and the danger in Changzhou can be resolved immediately, and our army can also see the opportunity to act, attack the city and destroy the enemy if there is a chance, and if there is no chance, defend the camp to protect themselves, advance and retreat calmly, and be invincible." ”

Wu Chaoyue laughed when he heard this, and said: "Lord Futai is really modest, and he actually said that you are not good at military affairs, in the eyes of the lower officials, your strategy is actually the best choice for us now." In addition to encircling Wei to save Governor Zhao Tiyi and sharing the pressure, we can also rely on the waterway of the Wu Lijiang River and the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal to obtain a steady stream of grain and grass from Zhejiang and weapons and ammunition supplies from Shanghai. ”

When Xu Naizhao heard the great joy, he patted his thigh and said yes, this is the truth, and then Xu Naizhao couldn't wait to say: "Lord Wu, since you also agree to enter Suzhou, then you and I should quickly reorganize our troops and horses, and send troops to Suzhou to surround Wei and rescue Zhao as soon as possible?" ”

Wu Chaoyue smiled again, shook his head, and then suddenly left his seat, bowed to Xu Naizhao, and said: "Lord Futai, the lower official has a reluctant request, this time to enter Suzhou, the lower official does not want to go and cannot go, I just want to ask Lord Futai to lead the troops alone, and I hope that Futai will allow the lower official to stay in Shanghai." ”

If it was replaced by other Jiangsu officials who made such a request to Xu Naizhao, the dignified governor, Xu Naizhao would definitely be strange if he didn't turn his face with him immediately. But Wu Chaoyue is different, although Xu Naizhao, who knew that he had to rely on Wu Chaoyue in military affairs, heard it inexplicably, he was not angry, but asked suspiciously: "Lord Wu, what do you mean by this?" ”

"Because the lower officials want to strive to recover the state as soon as possible." Wu Chaoyue replied calmly: "The emperor's holy decree is to let the lower officials recover the state within three months, otherwise they will demote the grandfather of the lower officials to a concubine, and now the time limit given by the emperor is only two months and two days, and if the lower officials don't quickly find a way to take Suzhou, they will not be able to fulfill their filial piety." ”

Of course, Xu Naizhao can mix into the position of the feudal official, of course, he also has his advantages, just a little calculation, Xu Naizhao vaguely understood what Wu Chaoyue meant, and asked: "What does Lord Wu mean is to let this official lead the army to Suzhou to confuse Changmao, let Changmao think that the danger of Suzhou is not too big and take it lightly, and even continue to divide troops to fight Changzhou, and then you highlight the surprise soldiers and take Suzhou City in one fell swoop?" ”

"Lord Futai is wise, it is true." Wu Chaoyue replied in a deep voice: "If Changmao sees that your two armies join forces to march into Suzhou, then Suzhou Changmao will definitely defend it with all his might, and it will not give us a chance to win quickly." But if Chang Mao sees that it is just Lord Futai, your army goes to camp under the city of Suzhou, and our army does not move in Shanghai, then Long Mao will inevitably have a fluke heart, or seize the time to attack Changzhou with all his might, or risk going out of the city to fight with our army in the field, as long as Long Mao moves and leaves the city wall to protect, Xia Guan will have a chance to win by surprise. ”

is still the same sentence, if other Jiangsu officials put forward such a request, let Xu Naizhao, the dignified governor, give him a blue-collar worker and a coolie in the front, and hide in the back and wait for the opportunity to make meritorious contributions, then Xu Naizhao would definitely spray a mouthful of spit on his face. But Wu Chaoyue is different, knowing how reliable Wu Chaoyue is militarily, and during the war in Shanghai, he followed Wu Chaoyue behind him to reap the benefits, and at the same time, the credit of reviving Zhou City is definitely not small, so after thinking about it for a while, Xu Naizhao still nodded and said, "Okay, just do it." ”

"Thank you, Lord Futai, for making it happen." Wu Chaoyue was overjoyed when he heard this, and hurriedly thanked Xu Naizhao again and again, and instructed Xu Naizhao to go to the city of Suzhou immediately after the deep ditch and high fortress, only defend without fighting, and at the same time let out the wind, saying that Wu Jun Lianyong was not yet trained and mature, and at the same time he was helping the comprador grandfather to rebuild the Jianghai Customs, so he would not be able to go to Suzhou to participate in the war for a while. Xu Naizhao remembered them one by one, and then in the evening, Wu Chaoyue, of course, sent a box of silver embezzled by Wu Lao comprador to Xu Naizhao's camp to thank him.

There is another trivial matter, because Zhou Tenghu's family members are all in Changzhou, Wu Chaoyue specially told Zhou Tenghu the news of the Taiping army's entry into Changzhou, and asked Zhou Tenghu to quickly transfer his family. Zhou Tenghu replied with a smile: "Thank you for your concern, it's okay, in fact, as early as when Changmao fled back to Suzhou, the lower officials had already moved their families to Jiangyin for the sake of prudence, and they could come directly to Shanghai by boat at any time." ”

Admiring Zhou Tenghu's foresight and precautions, Wu Chaoyue asked Zhou Tenghu curiously: "Mr. Tao Fu, as early as when Changmao fled back to Suzhou, you already guessed that Changmao would attack Changzhou sooner or later?" ”

"It's not a guess, it's expected." Zhou Tenghu replied: "If Changmao wants to counterattack Shanghai, only with the money, food and manpower in Suzhou and Wuxi, it is absolutely insufficient, and the best way is to avoid the strong and attack the weak, attack the relatively empty Changzhou and Danyang, open up the direct connection with Jiangning Changmao, and further strengthen the strength, so even if Changmao is not so smart for a while, he will attack Changzhou sooner or later." ”

Wu Chaoyue nodded again and again, and always thought that the best choice for the Suzhou Taiping Army at present should be to attack Changzhou. At that moment, Wu Chaoyue first told Zhou Tenghu about his plan to temporarily hold his troops to confuse the Taiping Army, and then asked: "Mr. Tao Fu, in your opinion, how sure is my plan successful?" ”

"Lord Zhentai's plan is indeed a brilliant plan, but it ......." Zhou Tenghu spoke very directly, and after a deep sigh, he said: "But the student thinks that the most critical point is still missing. ”

"What about that?" Wu Chaoyue hurriedly asked.

"Let Longhair see the hope of conquering Changzhou City." Zhou Tenghu smiled and said: "Lord Zhentai, to put it rudely, you are already notoriously cunning as a fox on the battlefield, and it is already difficult to expect Changmao to fall for you again. ”

Speaking of this, Zhou Tenghu paused, and said with a smile: "But if Changmao sees the hope of conquering Changzhou, it will be different, the distance between Jiangsu and Changzhou is not far, and the rapid march can take a round trip in five days, and if we want to rush from Shanghai to the Suzhou battlefield, even if we take the waterway, it will take two days to travel, as long as Changmao feels that the grasp of conquering Changzhou is very large, then they can't help but move this heart, fight a time difference to conquer Changzhou first, and then immediately return to Suzhou." ”

"What Mr. Tao Fu said is very true." Wu Chaoyue nodded again and again, and then asked, "Then in Mr. Taofu's opinion, how can we let Changmao see the hope of conquering Changzhou?" ”

"Let Changzhou come forward, pretend to surrender the city, and lure Changmao to attack the city." Zhou Tenghu replied.

Wu Chaoyue was first moved when he heard this, but after a little calculation, Wu Chaoyue frowned and said, "But I'm afraid it's difficult, right?" The old fox abacus in Yi Zhitai is very well-played, how can he agree to apply such a strategy, let him deal with the main force of longhair alone, and let us take the opportunity to choose the cheapest? ”

"It depends on who will persuade Yi Zhitai to adopt this plan." Zhou Tenghu sneered and said: "Lord Zhentai, as long as you take out 10,000 taels of silver, and then promise to give the first credit of Guang Fuzhou to Yi Zhitai, and let the students act as lobbyists for you to persuade Yi Zhengtai to cooperate with our army, and the students are at least sixty percent sure that they can succeed." ”

Although the grasp is not very large, and at the same time, he has to bleed out the silver, but considering the small problem of the comprador grandfather embezzling 10,000 taels of silver in the post of customs superintendent, that is, ten days and eight days, Wu Chaoyue still agreed without hesitation, and immediately took out 10,000 taels of silver and handed it to Zhou Tenghu, and asked Zhou Tenghu to rush to Changzhou by water, and asked Yiliang to suffer some losses and cooperate with the army.

It also happened that the day after Xu Naizhao led the Qing army to Suzhou, the British sent an envoy to contact the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, led by the former minister to China, Lao Baoling's precious son, Xiao Baoling, to Shanghai to continue westward after supplying food and coal. After receiving this news, Wu Chaoyue also went to the concession to meet with Xiao Bao Ling to learn about the general situation of Xiao Bao Ling's mission to Nanjing.

Wu Chaoyue vigorously praised Lao Baoling's outstanding contributions to Sino-British friendship during his stay in China, and did not mention Xiao Baoling's upcoming mission to Nanjing, while Xiaobao Ling desperately praised Wu Chaoyue's understanding and respect for Western culture and his creative breakthrough in establishing Anglo-Chinese friendship. And I have good news to tell you, that Dr. Wenham has been carefully considering your invitation to send troops from our country to help your country defend against the barbaric invasion of the Russians, and I am sure that he will soon give you a satisfactory answer. ”

Wu Chaoyue smiled even more hypocritically, and said a lot of polite nonsense to Xiao Bao Ling, and was invited to participate in the welcome banquet held by Ali Guo for Xiao Bao Ling. And at the banquet, as Wu Chaoyue expected, Hong Renji, who had a cross on his chest, really appeared in the entourage of Xiao Baoling, and when he saw Wu Chaoyue's triangular eyes looking at him, Hong Renji quickly shrank back, trying to avoid Wu Chaoyue's discovery.

Of course he couldn't hide, he walked in front of Hong Renji with red wine, Wu Chaoyue first invited Hong Renji to touch a glass with himself, and then invited Hong Renji to a secluded place, and asked with a smile: "Mr. Shui, I don't know if you remember the incident I told you last time, the matter of bringing a message to your relatives?" ”

"I remember, but Master Wu, the student really doesn't understand what you mean." In the concession, Hong Renji is also a lot bolder, and he has the courage to face Wu Chaoyue head-on.

"Your relatives will understand." Wu Chaoyue smiled and said, "Just say one more thing, if your relatives are willing, they can let you serve as a messenger and get in touch with me at any time." ”

Hong Renji, who had long suspected that Wu Chaoyue had already recognized his identity, was about to widen, but Wu Chaoyue ignored him anymore, and returned to the crowd of the British envoys with red wine to be hypocritical and polite to everyone, and said in his heart: "Hong Renji's affairs here have been done, and then it is time to contact Xiuying quickly." Little baby, you must come to the concession again and meet me again, otherwise, you will probably be taken hostage by Yang Xiuqing. ”

Although when Xiao Baoling's steamer left Shanghai for Nanjing, Wu Chaoyue's eyeliner in the concession saw Hong Renji board the steamship bound for Nanjing, but Zhou Xiuying never appeared in the concession again, and never appeared in front of Wu Chaoyue again. In this regard, Wu Chaoyue was anxious, but there was nothing he could do.

More than one woman annoyed Wu Chaoyue, and the marriage with Yang Yuru also gave Wu Chaoyue a headache, although Wu Chaoyue didn't want to have a round house with Xiao Lili, who was not yet fourteen years old, and repeatedly begged Wu Lao comprador to postpone the marriage, but the marriage age of this era was only fourteen years old, and Yang Yuru happened to be eligible, and the old comprador Wu who was anxious to hug his great-grandson said that he would not agree to postpone anything, and he must see the baby Dumiao's grandson get married before leaving office, so he forcibly set the day of Wu Chaoyue and Yang Yuru's marriage on the eighth day of September, and immediately started to do a big job, and sent someone to Xiangshan early to send a letter to Wu Chaoyue's parents, asking them to also come to Shanghai to attend Wu Chaoyue's wedding.

There is also Feng Wanzhen, who is thirteen years old, and the marriage date set by Wu Lao comprador for her and Wu Chaoyue is the fifth day of the first month of the fifth year of Xianfeng, and she also took the initiative to let Feng Wanzhen's sedan chair enter from the main gate with the etiquette of marrying a wife. In this regard, Yang Yuru and Feng Wanzhen blushed and did not speak or object, but Wu Chaoyue complained bitterly and scolded the absurd method of counting the age of this era - even if you are born as a year old, you will be counted as a year old after a year, and you will be counted as a year old after another, which will cause you to commit crimes one after another.

Wu Chaoyue, who was dissatisfied with the marriage system of this era, complained constantly, but after helplessly accepting the criminal behavior imposed on him by Wu Lao's compradors, looking at Wu Chaoyue's dejected thin face, Zhao Liewen laughed and said: "Weiting, you really don't know how to be blessed in the midst of happiness, such a good marriage, you are still so unhappy?" ”

"It's too small." Wu Chaoyue said with a sad face: "Yuru was born in March of the twenty-third year of Daoguang, with the Western method of counting the age, even if it comes to the day of marriage, she is only thirteen and a half years old. ”

"Weiting, you misunderstood, I didn't mean that the day you got married was good for your wife." Zhao Liewen smiled and said, "I mean, this wedding period is no better for us to recover from the state." ”

"What do you mean?" Wu Chaoyue was a little confused.

"Weiting, if you were the leader of Suzhou Longhair, what would you think when you officially got married?" Zhao Liewen said with a smile: "The long-haired leader of Suzhou will not think that before you officially get married, you will never lead the army to fight Suzhou in person?" ”

Wu Chaoyue was stunned for a while, only to find out that the comprador grandfather had actually inadvertently done himself a big favor, as long as Zeng Lichang knew that his marriage day was so close, he would definitely have a lax mentality, and with Zhou Tenghu's plan to lure the enemy, the possibility of the Suzhou Taiping Army planning to fight Changzhou would immediately increase! After regretting it, Wu Chaoyue did not hesitate, and immediately called Huang Zhisheng and asked him to capitalize the invitation for him, and invited people from all over Songjiang to participate in his wedding at that time, and at the same time arranged for the soldiers of the self-army to go around and announce their wedding date, and did everything possible to let the Suzhou Taiping Army know their official marriage time.

"The eighth day of September is the eighth day of September, as long as I can take it back to Suzhou to help my grandfather keep the fat difference of the customs, it's a big deal to go to the church and go to bed, I won't touch her." Wu Chaoyue once planned to do so, but when he thought of his fiancée's moving face, Wu Chaoyue was a little bitter, knowing that he must have a difficult time in bed.

…………

On the same day, under Zhou Tenghu's unremitting efforts and clever persuasion, Yiliang, the governor of Liangjiang, finally nodded and agreed to adopt Wu Chaoyue's tactical plan, allowing the Qing army in Changzhou to take the risk of attracting the main force of the Taiping army in southern Jiangsu to attack, and divert the tiger from the mountain to create a fighter plane for Wu Chaoyue to attack Suzhou. But of course, the treacherous Yiliang put forward another harsh condition, that is, after the plan was successful, Yiliang must be on the excerpt, and the commander-in-chief of the battle on the excerpt must also write the name of Yiliang Yiyi.

Knowing the importance of customs oil and water to Wu Chaoyue's expansion of armaments, Zhou Tenghu of course agreed to Yiliang's shameless request, and then when Yiliang asked who to send to carry out the plan to lure the enemy, Zhou Tenghu immediately smiled, and said with a smile: "Yizhitai rest assured, you don't have to worry about the rest, the student is a native of Changzhou, looking for a dead soldier to lure Changmao to attack the city, you can wrap it on the student." If it goes well, maybe we can also make a small gain on the battlefield in Changzhou. (To be continued.) )