Finally obtained the recognition of the Hubei Provisional Government by Britain, the United States, France and other Western powers, and avoided a rapid and direct conflict with these industrial powers, Wu Chaoyue only breathed a sigh of relief, but he did not dare to relax, let alone determine that the victory was in his hands, because Wu Chaoyue still had too many enemies. Pen @ fun @ pavilion wWw. ｂｉｑUｇE。 ｉｎｆｏ

There are countless enemies both internally and externally, internally, many Manchu officials, landlords and gentry who are unwilling to sincerely surrender will never mind suddenly turning against Wu Chaoyue as long as they have the opportunity, and stabbing Wu Chaoyue in the back, and even including some local civil and military officials who hold military power, in the case of not being able to distinguish between their loyalty, treachery, good and evil, Wu Chaoyue can neither kill them all, nor expel them all from the door, but can only rely on continuous victories to let them gradually see the situation clearly, and finally really use it for themselves.

Even many of the people in the areas controlled by the Wu army were Wu Chaoyue's enemies, and during Clarlon's visit to Hubei, the Ye Mingchen family of Hanyang thorn once again gathered to protest against Wu Chaoyue's establishment of diplomatic relations with the British; At the same time, many feudal literati who had been poisoned by the eight forces of the imperial examination also stood up to make trouble, or publicly protested, or chanted poems, or wrote books and essays, or explicitly or covertly ridiculed Wu Chaoyue's introduction into the house, wearing Western clothes to please foreigners, and even directly scolded Wu Chaoyue for being the reincarnation of Wu Sangui, leading the Qing army into the customs in his previous life, and recruiting foreigners to come to Hubei in this life, and he has been traitors and traitors for generations.

Some of them were particularly radical, and even shouted the slogan of the Boxer Rebellion, which would rather die than foreign goods. As Western industrial products are further dumped against China, and further fatal impact on China's current backward small-scale peasant economy, such a situation is naturally destined to be more preferential, and it is uncertain whether the Boxer Rebellion will be detonated in advance.

There are many hidden dangers inside, and the outside is also surrounded by enemies, the cunning and shameless Yungui thief army has been constantly consuming the precious grain and grass and military expenses of the Wu army by virtue of the advantage of the terrain, and the new Yungui Qing army that has just relieved itself is not reliable, and the strength is still weak, and it cannot directly undertake the heavy task of suppressing the thieves, forcing Wu Chaoyue to let the Huguang second-line army, which could have undertaken secondary tasks on the battlefield of the Northern Expedition, provoke this heavy burden, and could not launch a large-scale Northern Expedition under the condition that the Manchu court was already weakening.

The same is true of the battlefield in southern Jiangxi, with the elongation of the supply line of the Wu army, as well as the vigorous reinforcement of the Qing army in Guangxi and Guangzhou, the Qing army in Jiangxi has gradually stabilized its foothold at the junction of Guangdong and Jiangxi, although the threat to the Wu army is not large, but it has also restrained a lot of the strength of the Wu army in Jiangxi. At the same time, because of the threat of the Jiangxi Taiping Army, the Jiangxi Wu Army has actually been drawn into the most unfavorable war of attrition for Wu Chaoyue, and unless Wu Chaoyue vigorously reinforces Jiangxi, it will be difficult to break the deadlock.

Thanks to the enemy's relatively weak blessing, the situation on the northern front of the Wu army was slightly better, and after successfully forcing Cheng Yukaicheng, the governor of Jiezhou, to surrender, Liu Kun of the Wu army not only took the rich and heavy land of Jiezhou Yanchi, making the Manchu court, which had long been stretched thin on money and grain, even worse, but also joined forces with the Wu army Nie Shicheng to contain the main force of the Qing army in the Central Plains, forcing the Manchu court to continue to smash precious money and grain into the Central Plains battlefield to support the two main waste forces of Henan and Shanxi.

However, it is a pity that limited by industrial capacity and ammunition supply, it is difficult for Nie Shicheng and Liu Kunyi to make a major breakthrough, and it will also be difficult to break the deadlock unless Wu Chaoyue vigorously reinforces the northern front.

In addition, there is also the Anhui Qing army led by the father and son of the Weng family is also entrenched at the junction of Hubei and Anhui like a leper dog, although Wu Chaoyue can crush them to death with one finger, but because of the need for the Anhui Qing army to contain and weaken the Twist Army, to prevent the head of the Twist Army, which is basically not controlled by Yang Xiuqing, from entering the water, and suddenly attacking Hubei to kill people and set fire, Wu Chaoyue can only watch the toads of the Weng family crawl on the surface of his feet.

The most terrible enemy is still Tsarist Russia, no matter how it was heavily damaged by Britain and France in the Crimean War, the emaciated camel is still bigger than a horse, even if Tsarist Russia only sends the Far East army south, Wu Chaoyue has to deal with it with all his might. And if Tsarist Russia then draws heavy troops from Europe to the east and throws them into the Chinese battlefield, Wu Chaoyue will really have no choice but to ask Britain and France for help. - Although this may be very small, Wu Chaoyue really does not dare to take it lightly completely.

It is by no means alarmist, don't look at the British, French, American and other powers have recognized the legitimacy of the Hubei Provisional Government, but Wu Chaoyue still does not dare to take them lightly, these foreign devils who are forgetful of their interests can treat Wu Chaoyue as a friend today for the sake of interests, and they can also treat Wu Chaoyue as an enemy for the sake of interests tomorrow. At the same time, if Wu Chaoyue suffered any major blow on the battlefield and was reversed by the Manchu court, then these foreign devils may also turn to support the Manchu court at any time for the sake of their own interests in China.

Wu Chaoyue and Wu Jun still have a big trouble, that is, the Taiping Army, although the relationship between Wu Chaoyue and Yang Xiuqing is currently in the honeymoon period, so good that honey can help each other regardless of interests, but once the Manchu court falls, the embarrassed Wu Chaoyue and Yang Xiuqing will definitely be able to meet each other in the first time, continue to fight to the death, and are destined to die.

What's even more troublesome is that in the case that the militarization of the Taiping army has gradually become obvious, the Wu army may also misfire with the large and small warlords of the Taiping army at any time, resulting in the doomed decisive battle between the Wu army and the Taiping army breaking out in advance.

"Our situation is still not optimistic."

This was the wail of Wu Chaoyue at the internal meeting of the Wu army after sending off the Clarlondon envoys, and pointed out: "I am by no means unfounded, our situation now only looks good on the surface, but if we rest on our laurels and sit back and relax, then the situation on the battlefield in China may change dramatically at any time, or we will be caught off guard by huge changes." ”

"We can't afford to take anything lightly." Zhao Liewen gave Wu Chaoyue a helping voice, and also pointed out: "Especially when the Russian foreigners have already turned against us, if we don't seize the time to break the deadlock, lay a greater advantage, and give the Russian old Maozi the time and opportunity to vigorously support the chaotic party in the capital, we will inevitably be even more difficult if we want to directly attack the capital and eliminate the chaotic party in the capital." ”

"Everyone, if you have any good strategic and tactical suggestions, please feel free to speak." Wu Chaoyue said again: "Taking advantage of the good relationship between us and Yang Xiuqing, most of the Western powers are temporarily on our side, and also taking advantage of the fact that the Russian old Maozi has not had time to fully support the chaotic party in the capital, seize the time to give the chaotic party in the capital a heavy one, so that the Russian old Maozi can't help them if they want to!" ”

During the discussion, the proposal to go south to Liangguang was first vetoed by Wu Chaoyue, although the wealth of Guangdong made Wu Chaoyue very greedy, and the clan members of the old Wu family could also make waves at any time to meet the Wu army to the south, but the situation in Liangguang was too complicated, and the Qing army, the Taiping army and the foreigners were entangled in various interests, and the slightest carelessness could lead to the Wu army becoming the target of the public, and Wu Chaoyue did not want to wade this troubled water for the time being. At the same time, the supply line was too long, and it was too difficult for the ammunition produced by Daye Industrial Base to supply the Guangdong battlefield, and Wu Chaoyue, who was already dragged down by Yungui, did not want to carry a huge logistical burden.

At this time, it was obviously a fool to attack Tibet to the west, and the advance in Shaanxi and Gansu was blocked by the Qinling Mountains, and it did not have any strategic significance, so continuing to go north naturally became the only choice for the decision-making level of the Wu army. Among them, Yan Jingming, who is good at financial management, also pointed out: "When the long hair is not chaotic, the commercial tax accounts for three out of ten in the world's commercial tax, and the Shanxi commercial tax in the world's commercial tax accounts for one of the three. ”

"So I suggest that if we send troops north again, the first choice can only be Shanxi! It not only cracked down on the money bags of the rebel party in the capital again, but also cut off the connection between the rebel party in the capital and Shaanxi, Gansu and Xinjiang, so as to facilitate the forced landing of local officials and soldiers! ”

Wu Chaoyue smiled bitterly when he heard this, and said: "Shanxi is of course the best choice for us to enter the northern front again, it is rich, and the enemy is relatively weak and easy to deal with. But we still have enough troops there to reinforce the Shanxi battlefield to help Liu Kun keep smashing Taiyuan and take the three important commercial towns of Qi Taiping? Also, the supply lines are too long. ”

"Can we emulate Liu Kunyi's tactics?" Yan Jingming refused to give up, and said: "With the elite soldiers in the rear, expelling the newly surrendered soldiers as the vanguard to go north, facing the chaotic army in Shanxi with average combat effectiveness, Liu Kunyi's tactic has proven to be effective?" ”

Considering the long distance, Wu Chaoyue, who was cautious by nature, still refused to take this risk - once the Northern Expeditionary Army was in any danger, it would be even more difficult for Wu Chaoyue to send troops to rescue in time. Steady and gradual expansion is Wu Chaoyue's character and habits, and Yang Xiuqing's lonely light advance regardless of the head and tail has always been despised by Wu Chaoyue.

At this time, Dai Wenjie, who was not very proficient in military affairs, proposed a strategy to surpass Wu's appetite, and said: "Dashuai, I think we should fight steadily. On the one hand, let Yungui's army seize the time, take advantage of the opportunity of the main force of the Yungui thief army to be hit hard, take advantage of the main force that will basically annihilate the Yungui thief army before the summer of next year, and free up his hands to go back and forth to the northern line of the division. ”

"On the other hand, let's not rush into Shanxi, where the distance is too far, and the back road where we advance too fast is really difficult to guarantee. We should first deal with the main forces of the rebellious army in Henan, and strive to completely annihilate them in one fell swoop, but it is really not possible to inflict heavy damage on the two main forces of the rebellious army, Chong'an and Tomin'a, so that they no longer have the strength to threaten our grain supply lines, and then it is not too late to consider marching into Shanxi. ”

"In this way, as long as the time is good, our army on the northern front can not only avoid the harsh cold climate in winter, and let our soldiers who are mainly from the south go north to Shanxi in the spring, but also transfer the Yunnan-Guizhou army to the north to strengthen our control over western Henan and ensure that our communication with the army on the front line in Shanxi is unimpeded."

Dai Wenjie, who usually rarely expressed his opinions at military meetings, rarely put forward insightful suggestions, Wu Chaoyue of course carefully considered his proposal, but Zhao Liewen rushed to say: "I object, not for the purpose of attacking the city and seizing land is a loss-making deal, no matter what kind of fight we can't take advantage of, on the contrary, we will help the Beijing rebels get rid of these two money and food burdens, and will also give the twisted bandits the opportunity to take advantage of the rampant, benefiting others and themselves, rather than cheap twisting bandits, it is better to leave these two main waste forces, It costs tens of thousands of taels of silver every day for the rebels in the capital. ”

"From the perspective of money and food, I am also opposed to fighting Chong'an and Tomin now." Yan Jingming also said: "Among these two chaotic party armies, only Tomin can slightly threaten our grain supply line, and Chong'an's side has been ruining the money and food of the chaotic party. Anyway, if you can extinguish it, why rush for a while? Wouldn't it be better to let them hollow out more money and food that the capital chaos party already has little money and food? ”

At the same time, it was opposed by Zhao Liewen and Yan Jingming, two important figures in the Wu army, and Dai Wenjie, who rarely expressed his opinions in the military, was of course a little embarrassed, so he could only turn his head to see what Wu Chaoyue meant. Fortunately, Wu Chaoyue did not blindly calculate the economic account, and after thinking about it for a long time, Wu Chaoyue still said: "You are all right, we can't rush to annihilate Chong'an and Tuo Ming'a, the two main forces of the waste chaos party that pose no threat to us, and let them continue to play the role of the camp in Jiangnan and Jiangbei, which is more cost-effective for us." ”

"But Mr. Wenjie's words are also very reasonable." Wu Chaoyue suddenly changed his words and said: "At this time, the large-scale march into Shanxi will be very unfavorable for us in terms of climate first, and it is our best choice to enter Shanxi after the spring next year." At the same time, we also have to dredge the road from the Shanxi battlefield, not only the road from Nanyang to Luoyang must be dredged, but the two flanks of Luoyang must also be protected to ensure that the road for our march into Shanxi is unimpeded. ”

"Comfort Pavilion, what are you going to do then?" Dai Wenjie, whose suggestions were finally not all rejected, hurriedly asked.

"In the winter of this year, we will fight a limited expansion war on the northern front." Wu Chaoyue replied: "Not for the purpose of annihilating the two main forces in Henan, but to force them to retreat with a steady and steady momentum, dredge our road connection with Luoyang Shanxi, and also strengthen the protection of the two wings of the Luoyang battlefield, so that Nie Shicheng can free up his hands to reinforce the Shanxi battlefield at a critical moment." At the same time, he also left the two waste armies of Chong'an and Tomin'a, so that they could continue to waste the money and food of the rebellious party in the capital. ”

After carefully calculating for a long time, it was found that although this was destined to cost Wu Jun a lot of money and food, it was still the Manchu court that suffered in comparison, and Zhao Liewen and Yan Jingming supported Wu Chaoyue's decision. Then, Wu Chaoyue, Zhao Liewen and others also quickly drew up a specific strategy, deciding to send an army from Hubei to the north, and take the two cities of Xiangcheng and Xuzhou in Henan within the winter of this year, so as to consolidate the eastern defense of the Wu army in Henan. At the same time, Nie Shicheng sent troops to take the three cities of Yanshi, Gongxian and Bishui to protect the eastern front, while Liu Kun's army was responsible for capturing Tongguan and protecting the western front, laying the foundation for Wu's army to march into Shanxi.

In the end, Wu Chaoyue took another suggestion from Dai Wenjie, asking Dai Wenjie to write a letter to the Li Xubin brothers and Jiang Zhongji, who were currently fighting on the Yunnan-Guizhou battlefield, telling them not to completely annihilate the enemy as the goal, but to concentrate their forces to take Dali before the beginning of spring and eliminate the main force of the thief army there, so as to free up their hands to go back and forth to the north. As a result, Dai Wenjie was inevitably a little worried after hearing this, and hurriedly reminded: "Comfort Ting, is it too urgent?" There are many large and small thief armies in Yunnan and Guizhou, and we will return to the north after taking Dali, what should we do if the big and small thief armies take the opportunity to recover? ”

"Tell Yungui's army to clean up." Wu Chaoyue replied with a sneer: "When you spoke just now, you also reminded me that you have calculated an account, since the new army of Yungui is unreliable and useless, why should I use our precious mobile forces to charge for them, let them hide in the rear and live in peace?" ”

Speaking of this, Wu Chaoyue's smile began to be a little hideous, and he said with a cruel smile: "Anyway, even if the ghost place of Yungui is completely pacified, it won't be able to collect any money and food, so it's better to only kill the big thief army there, leaving the small thief army and the new army of Yungui to contain each other, so that none of them can afford to make a big storm." ”

Originally, Wu Chaoyue planned to transfer some troops from the province to strengthen the border of Hubei, Henan and Anhui provinces, and transferred Nie Shicheng's general Zhou Zaisheng to lead his headquarters to the north to assist Shu Bao in carrying out the task of seizing Xiangcheng and Xuzhou. It's a pity that General Zhou Zaisheng, who is unknown in history, is destined to have no chance to show his face - on the night when the limited expansion strategy was finalized, Wu Chaoyue happened to receive a letter from Feng Sanbao from Hunan, saying that Zeng Guoquan, who had forgiven Wu Chaoyue for molesting his niece, couldn't bear the loneliness, and some old people in the Hunan army who were also unwilling to be lonely re-raised more than 3,000 Hunan troops, and voluntarily ran to Feng Sanbao to ask for requisition, wanting to go to the battlefield again to charge for his future niece and son-in-law.

Nepotism is put in front of us, and considering the complicated situation in Hubei, Henan, and Anhui, the main force has already been dispatched to the north and the new army has been replaced, and it is inevitable that some flaws will be exposed. Wu Chaoyue thought about it again and again, but still said helplessly: "Okay, let's ask Zeng Guoquan to go north to make meritorious contributions, give my junior sister a face, and also give full play to the characteristics of my ninth uncle." ”