Zhang Yi continued: "Yihu, you are bold and careful, and you usually have a lot of ghost ideas, this time you and Bagen will lead all the brothers of the blue wolf brigade to act, the main task is to attack the Japanese army's baggage team, and if you have the opportunity, you can raid the command post of the Japanese army, of course, this must have a full chance, and you must not act recklessly." Remember, I send you a four-word mantra: quasi-steady and ruthless. Before taking action, it is necessary to determine the accuracy of the information, and it is necessary to make a clear decision; If you plan carefully, one mistake may kill us brothers. If you want to strike hard at the devils, you must let them know that it hurts, so that the strategic deployment of the devils will be somewhat restrained and reduce the defensive pressure on Kaesong and my side; Last but not least, be quick, don't drag mud and water, and don't stay in the same place for more than once. Now you can move with your brothers, go down first, prepare your weapons and ammunition, and act now! ”

Zhang Yihu nodded and responded, "Boss, I understand." The Blue Wolf Brigade will never disgrace you! ”

Tan Feng on the side heard that he had nothing to do, so he was a little anxious, and hurriedly said: "Boss, what about me, what should I do, you have arranged them all, why should I go?" ”

Zhang Yi smiled and said: "You just follow me, this is my first time to conduct a defensive battle, you are stationed with me in the Kaesong strategic heights, for me to counsel the military affairs, and go to the blue wolf brigade to find four or five masters of artillery with you, let the devil have a long insight, see how Lao Tzu's artillery conducts artillery battles, we want to avenge last night's shelling!" ”

Tan Feng grinned, this time there can be a big battle, and his own work is indispensable.

Nie Shicheng looked at Zhang Yi's arrangement from the side, and secretly sighed in his heart, this Zhang Yi is really amazing, he has made military deployments, he is not leaky, he is thoughtful, he is really a genius in war, he is as old as him, he is still just an ignorant and ignorant recruit.

Nie Shicheng nodded and said: "In this case, without further ado, Tang Keqiang, you go back now and immediately straighten out the people and horses, replenish the baggage, and make proper arrangements before noon, and follow Zhang Yi out of the city to build fortifications." The supplies in the camp are given priority to your old battalion, and you should bring a few cannons and Makqin machine guns over in a hurry, if the Japanese army attacks you, you will suffer. ”

Tang Keqiang didn't say much, he was about to go down to prepare, Zhang Yi stopped him and said: "Brother Keqiang, you must remember to bring more tools such as shovels, we dig trenches and repair fortifications, but we can't do without these things." ”

Tang Keqiang smiled and said, "Okay, brother understands, you don't have to worry about this." ”

Zhang Yi turned around and said to Nie Shicheng, "My lord, do you have anything else to explain?" ”

Nie Shicheng said with a smile: "With you by my side, Xiao Zhuge is much easier. Now we are waiting for the arrival of the Japanese army and a decisive battle with them...... Order: The deputy middle battalion and the Beida battalion are newly formed into a battalion, follow me to guard the south gate of the city, and in the future, the Japanese army will attack the city, relying on the superiority of troops, it must be to attack head-on, and we must hold the south gate without losing. The first battalion of the training army guards the north gate, the second battalion of the training army guards the east gate, the third battalion of the training army guards the north gate, and the other two battalions of the northern battalion serve as reserves, ready to support at any time. In addition, send a team to guard the telegraph office, and do not let the Japanese spies in Kaesong destroy the telegraph machine. Feng He, you quickly go and transfer weapons and ammunition, and requisition all the weapons and ammunition in Kaesong City, and you will coordinate ......."

Thousands of miles away in Tianjin, Li Hongzhang's mansion. At noon, Li Hongzhang came back from his official visit with a heavy heart. In recent days, he has taken great pains to maintain the situation. Above the court, Lafayette didn't want to make a big move, and advocated peace, in order to have a stable birthday; The emperor is young and vigorous, and he will fight with all his might, and at the same time, Weng Tongxiao, the old guy, while advocating the war, makes things difficult for himself everywhere, and does not give himself funds to reorganize the army. Now that China and Japan have declared war and the war is imminent, the fire is burning their eyebrows, and these people know that they are in a hurry. However, in recent years, due to the lack of funds to maintain, the army is still barely maintaining its combat strength, and the coastal defense is not good, the naval guns are outdated, the artillery is lacking, the navy is seriously undertrained, and its own Huai army has been repeatedly downsized, and now there are only more than 50,000 people, how to resist the future Japanese tiger and wolf army? Today's Qing Dynasty, the wind and rain are shaking, the talent is withering, I think that at the beginning, Wen Zhenggong and Zuo Zongtang still have themselves, each town and one party, and strive to maintain, only then there is Tongzhi Zhongxing, and now the first two have long since passed away, but there is no good talent in the court. Weng Tonggong and his ilk are just scholars, they can only talk on paper, they don't know about military affairs, politics, diplomacy, corpse vegetarian meals, and silverfish of the country.

Li Hongzhang sighed deeply, sat on the sofa chair tiredly, rubbing his temples gently, he was too tired. At this time, Sheng Xuanhuai hurriedly walked in from outside, saw Li Hongzhang's tired appearance, lightened his steps, and said softly: "Lord Zhongtang, Nie Shicheng of North Korea sent an urgent telegram, and the situation in North Korea has changed. ”

Li Hongzhang was shocked in his heart and said, "Bring me the telegram!" ”

Sheng Xuanhuai handed the telegram to Li Hongzhang and said: "Nie Shicheng said that in the early morning of July 27, the Japanese army raided the two large camps in the north and south of our army. As a result, the Beida Battalion only lasted less than half an hour, and was completely defeated by the attacking Japanese army, Ye Zhichao was ambushed by the Japanese army on the way to escape, and our army was plundered in the court. Nie Shicheng was attacked by the Japanese army in front and back, but fortunately, Zhang Yi led a cavalry to attack the Japanese camp, burned the Japanese army's baggage, and led most of the Japanese army to come back to help, so as to relieve the siege of Asan. Today, Nie Shicheng has retreated to Kaesong to garrison, and the Japanese army has more than 20,000 troops in Korea, and it is still increasing. Please ask the imperial court to urge reinforcements to enter the court as soon as possible. “

After reading the telegram, Li Hongzhang said angrily: "Ye Zhichao, Ye Zhichao has mistaken the country!" The army of 3,000 didn't even last for half an hour! This is the shame of the Huai Army and the shame of Beiyang! ”

Sheng Xuanhuai said: "Zhongtang, now is not the time to be angry, you should quickly send a report to the imperial court, ask the emperor and Lafayette to see the statement, and ask for a quick gathering of elites from all over the country, and deploy defenses in Fengtian and strategic fortresses along the northern coast, beware of the Japanese invasion of the three provinces outside the Guanwai." At the same time, it is also necessary to quickly send reinforcements into the court to support Nie Shicheng, otherwise, Nie Shicheng's troops will inevitably be wiped out. ”

Li Hongzhang muttered: "Xingsun, now that there are many constraints in the DPRK and China, and all the armies are not well prepared for war, how can we complete the war in a hurry? I can only urge Ma Yukun, Zuo Guigui, Wei Rugui and Fengsheng A to march at full speed for the time being, hold Kaesong first, and then I will plan other good strategies to see how we can unify the opinions of the imperial court and then make a decision. At the same time, the telegram ordered Ding Ruchang to immediately reorganize the army and horses, and transport a reinforcement to Korea through the naval division. Well, Nie Gongting strongly recommended this Zhang Yi to me, praising him in the sky and in the earth, and it is rare for a person like Gongting to praise him so vigorously. ”

Sheng Xuanhuai smiled: "Also, this young man is also quite legendary." Four months ago, I was an ignorant kid who had just joined the army. First of all, he fought bravely and was not afraid of death, and was promoted to sentry commander. This guy dared to meet the general army in person and asked for a new army. This Nie Gongting didn't know what medicine he had taken, so he agreed in one bite and let him take full responsibility and act cheaply. In just three months, he trained an elite army, and the group of arrogant soldiers under Nie Gongting were obedient to rectification. It's amazing. ”

Li Hongzhang nodded and said: "Indeed, Gongting is powerful, it is worthy of the four famous generals of my Huai Army, and his eyes are vicious." Since the beginning of the Battle of Asan, this Zhang Yi must fight with every battle, and it is the most critical task he undertakes. This is indeed a rare talent. I am in the Beiyang lineage, and now the talents are sparse, and the younger generation, except for Yuan Xiangcheng, there is no one who can handle it. This Zhang Yi, we have to use it well, and after a hundred years of the old man, this will be the pillar of Beiyang. ”

Sheng Xuanhuai pondered: "Lord Zhongtang, now the situation in the imperial court is in turmoil, and the party struggle is becoming more and more intense, even you are struggling. Since Nie Gongting has praised this Zhang Yi as such a genius, and he is proficient in military, politics, and Western diplomacy, it is better for you to call Gongting and ask this Zhang Yi to share your worries with you, and see if there is a good plan, just try to see if Zhang Yi is really full of economy or empty stomach. ”

Li Hongzhang nodded and said: "Maybe Nie Gongting is a little exaggerated, but this Zhang Yi should still have some skills, otherwise Nie Gongting will not obey him, and retreat from the Asan - Cheng Huan line." Anyway, I'll call Nie Gongting to consult. ”