"What's that going to do? Could it be to bypass our position and attack Baoding City? Or do you want to attack Tianjin? ”

Now that the Twist Army has just left the main force, it is still difficult to judge the next move of the Twist Army, however, Wang Huanzhang is not in vain, his mind is turning, and he said: "Tengjiao, immediately give the order, scatter the cavalry battalion, closely monitor any movement within 100 miles southeast of Baoding City, and report back immediately if you find the traces of the Twist Army!" ”

He Tengjiao immediately went down to deploy troops, Wang Huanzhang pondered for a moment, and secretly sneered in his heart, most of it was Zhang Zongyu's idea to start fighting Baoding City, to break our position defense in one go, if unlucky, they commanded thousands of troops, captured Baoding City in one fell swoop, and the weapons and baggage that were established were all about to change hands.

However, it is not so easy to attack my Baoding Mansion!

Wang Huanzhang shouted: "Someone! ”

A guard walked in and replied, "My lord! ”

"The order, ordering the First Artillery Battalion to retreat fifteen miles to the northeast to assist in the defense of Baoding East City, and sent a message to General He Qimou in the city, telling him that the Twist Army was going to attack Baoding City, and asked him to strengthen the defense of the East City and the North City, don't be careless! Order the three cavalry battalions on the right flank to withdraw and protect the safety of the first artillery battalion! ”

When Wang Huanzhang urgently deployed the defense of Baoding Mansion, Zhang Luoxing had already entered Shandong with a twisted army, and the army went straight to Jinan by bypassing Dezhou!

From Hengshui to Jinan, the two are more than 800 miles apart, even if Zhang Luoxing is light and rushed, it is difficult to reach Jinan Mansion without more than ten days, how can such a large-scale armed force enter Shandong to hide from the states and counties in Shandong?

You must know that now Zuo Guigui is leading the main force of the three towns and most of the training troops to Jiangsu and Zhejiang, and the defense in Shandong is empty, how can Guo Songtao not be more careful?

Zhang Luoxing's cavalry had just crossed Texas not far away, and the intelligence network of Texas quickly sent the information to Jinan, and when Zhang Luoxing was still two or three hundred miles away from Jinan, the news reached the governor's yamen!

Guo Songtao was shocked, now Jinan City really has no soldiers to fight! Now the twisting army is surging, and the comers are not good, this time Jinan is going to be unlucky!

"Come on, immediately invite Jinan General Zengqi and Green Battalion Commander Gao Sheng to come over and discuss matters!"

After a short time, Zeng Qi and Gao Sheng came to the governor's yamen.

The Jinan General's Mansion and the Governor's Yamen have never looked at each other since Guo Ye began, and they have never been harmonious, Zengqi is the new Jinan general, and he looks down on Guo Ye, and even more looks down on Guo Songtao, who was supported by Guo Ye.

When he came to the governor's yamen, Zeng Qi said proudly: "Guo Futai, I don't know why I was invited over this time?" ”

Guo Songtao handed the information to Zengqi, and said in a deep voice: "General Zengqi, Zhang Luoxing, the first bandit of the twist, led 8,000 cavalry into Koushan Shandong, and now he has passed Dezhou and is heading straight to Jinan!" ”

"What?"

Zengqi was shocked, eight thousand cavalry! Just kidding, now all the flag battalions under Lao Tzu are combined, and there are only 3,000 people, and even the nest of the horses that can't be used is counted, and the twist bandits came 8,000 people at once, that's going to be dead!

"Guo Futai, the stakes are very high, but you can't joke!"

Guo Songtao snorted coldly and replied: "General Zengqi, you also said that the stakes are very high, how can such a war be child's play?" It is only 600 miles from Dezhou to Jinan, they have already crossed Dezhou for a few days, presumably, there are still two years at most, and the troops will come to the city of Jinan, and now Lord Guanting will lead the three towns and the training army to the south to exterminate the Taiping army bandits, and the heavy responsibility of defense will fall on your shoulders......"

I'll go......

"Damn twist bandits, don't come early, don't come late, just wait until all the elites of Shandong go south to come and raid, how can this be good?"

Zengqi was so anxious that he kept cursing, and Gao Sheng on the side was also pale, his green camp was not the same as the three towns of Zuo, it belonged to the garrison battalion, it was a local army, and its combat power was not much stronger than that of the Eight Banners, and a garrison battalion was only about five hundred people, which was not enough to fill the gaps between the teeth of the twisted bandits!

Zeng Qi said urgently: "Guo Futai, what should I do this time?" With our small number of troops, we will definitely not be able to stop the crazy bandits! , damn Zuo Guigui, transferred all the elite soldiers of Shandong in one go, now it's okay! ”

Guo Songtao's face changed, and he said coldly: "General Zengqi, do I want to record these words you said and play them to the imperial court?" ”

Zengqi's face froze, and he hurriedly smiled and said: "Lord Bochen, this general is a momentary gaffe, please forgive ......me."

Zengqi's big mouth is popping out of everything, what he said just now, can he say it casually? You must know that Zuo Guigui is not willing to send troops this time, the imperial court has issued three or four holy decrees in a row, plus the regent personally came to Jinan, so he invited the three towns of Shandong and the training army to shoot, and it can even be said that the imperial court begged others to send troops, if Zengqi complained and cursed Zuo Guigui's words, it was transmitted to the imperial court or to Zuo Guigui's ears, I am afraid that I am also unlucky, this is a blatant contradiction with the Queen Mother of the Two Palaces and the Regent, and the dismissal is light!

"Lord Bochen, how is it now, all our troops in Jinan are less than four thousand, how can we resist six or seven thousand bandits?"

Guo Songtao's brain is also sweating, this is not a joke, six or seven thousand bandits, there may be more, and Zhang Luoxing personally led the army to raid, and now there is not a single elite in Jinan Mansion, how can he block the attack of others?

"That's it, General Zengqi, you lead the children of the Eight Banners to defend the north of Jinan, Gao Sheng, you lead the garrison green battalion to take charge of the west of Jinan, we can only hold on one day now, and also, immediately send a telegram to the direction of Laizhou, there are still some troops available in the harbor, and one can be mobilized, Jinan City is important!"

Zengqi opened his mouth, but he didn't say anything after all, what a word, let Lao Tzu's Eight Banners rush to the front, what are you doing as a governor? However, there is no point in dwelling on these things now, once the city of Jinan is broken, the big guys are grasshoppers on a rope, and no one wants to live!

Sent away these people, Guo Songtao couldn't sit still in the governor's yamen, now Guo Ye's two wives are in Jinan City, once the city is broken, if the bandits want to avenge the revenge of the arrow, Guo Ye's family, all of them want to be able to live, and take advantage of the fact that the bandits have not arrived, let them go out of the city to Yanzhou for a while!

Guo Songtao was just about to leave, when he suddenly remembered something again, and shouted: "Come on, immediately send a telegram to Shanghai, transfer it to Lord Zuo, and tell him that the bandits have raided Jinan, and ask for immediate return to the army to help!" (To be continued.) )