Anqing is the first gateway to the western part of Jiangnan Province, and this place was taken bloodlessly, and the road behind it became more open for the Zuofu army. Pen | fun | pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 With the original intention of taking advantage of his illness to kill him, Pang Yue did not give the Qing army in the east the slightest time to react and adjust, leaving a small number of soldiers and horses to garrison Anqing, and the main force of the army immediately went down the river to the east, and it was the original green battalion soldiers of Anqing, Guangde, and Dongshan who acted as the vanguard of the whole army, but the green flag was replaced by a red flag.

A day later, before the advance of the army reached Guichi, they encountered the town of Chizhou, a green camp that was going upriver along the river bank. When Zhang Yangyuan was about to lead his troops to meet the battle and grab the first merit after the reversal, who expected that the opposite side did not give him this opportunity to make meritorious service at all, and more than 3,000 soldiers and horses immediately withdrew the green flag and replaced it with a white flag and surrendered after seeing the banner of the Zuofu Army.

Pang Yue then met with Gu Gaofeng, the chief soldier of the Green Camp Chizhou, who had come to ask for surrender with his hands tied, and personally untied the rope that tied his hands behind him. According to Gu Gaofeng, he was originally ordered to lead his troops to strengthen the defense of Anqing, and he got the news of the loss of Anqing halfway, but then he continued to lead his troops westward, but the purpose changed from reinforcing Anqing to going to find the Ming Dynasty to surrender. asked him the reason, and it was similar to Zhang Yangyuan and others, all of them were "instead of touching a stone with an egg, it is better to be a Han Chinese in a dignified manner" and so on.

With the previous experience of surrendering the Green Battalion of the Three Towns overnight, Pang Yue was not surprised by this matter, and also accepted the surrender of the Chizhou Green Battalion, and these more than 3,000 soldiers and horses were also classified into the vanguard sequence dominated by Zhang Yangyuan.

Subsequently, the whole army continued to march downstream, and for the next few days there was no resistance, and no Qing troops came to ask for surrender. The journey can be described as unimpeded, except for rushing or rushing.

From the original Ganzhou Town to Huguang Town and then to the current Zuofu Army, there has never been a time when the army has gone on many expeditions in the past ten years as it is now, and every time it has not yet engaged, it has surrendered the enemy army on the opposite side without blood. This unprecedented smoothness made most of the officers and men of the Zuofu Army feel a little uncomfortable, and it also made the soldiers who were bent on making meritorious contributions a little disappointed.

Four days later, the army arrived in Wuhu, less than two hundred miles from the city of Nanjing.

Wuhu is a familiar place for Pang Yue and many middle and senior officers in the Zuofu Army. Nine years ago, it was in this place that the Huang De Power Department fought the last battle of the Hongguang Dynasty with the Qing army. In that battle, Huang Degong was unfortunately plotted by Tian Xiong and Ma Degong, and the whole army was defeated, and Emperor Hongguang also fell into the hands of the Qing army. Only Pang Yue and Wang Dongri broke out with two battalions of soldiers and horses, and finally escaped alive. And now, Pang Yue and the soldiers who broke through from here back then are back, with a new identity and situation.

In the evening, after Pang Yue arranged for the army to camp, he revisited the hometown of Zhang Yunli and Shi Youliang, the old subordinates who broke out of Wuhu with him.

Nine years have passed, and the bloody battlefield has long been covered by verdant grass and trees, and the tragedy of the year is completely unrecognizable, only the sound of the rolling Yangtze River is still there.

"That's where our battalion was stationed at that time." Pang Yue stepped on the ground under his feet, took a few steps and pointed to another place, "At that time, Huang Shuai's Chinese military tent was set up there. ”

Zhang Yunli, Shi Youliang, Lu Qiwu, Cui Shoucheng and others all recalled the appearance of the battlefield in the direction pointed by Pang Yue, and the hidden memories began to surface in their minds little by little. Thinking that so many years have passed, things are wrong and things are wrong, and the situation has changed, everyone can't help but sigh.

"I remember that on the eve of the decisive battle with the Tartars, it was here that we discussed with the commander until midnight to discuss the specific matters of the second day's battle." Zhang Yunli said, "At that time, I didn't expect that Huang Shuai would be plotted by Tian Xiong and Ma Degong on the second day. Fortunately, these two dog thieves later died at the hands of our army, which can be regarded as revenge for Huang Shuai. ”

"I also remember that when I broke through from here and went south, I secretly vowed in my heart that one day I would fight back. Now, nine years later, I finally got what I wanted. Lu Qiwu said.

"I remember ...... too"

......

Everyone, you and I are saying a word, and you are expressing the feelings in your heart to your heart's content.

"Yes, after so many years, although the process was a bit bumpy, we finally came back. Huang Shuai and the brothers who died in battle have spirits in heaven, and they will surely be happy for us. Pang Yue sighed, "Now, let's say hello to them and tell them that we are back!" ”

After speaking, Pang Yue took a few steps forward, knelt down facing the place where Huang Degong was killed, and silently recited in his heart what he had suppressed in his heart all these years and what he wanted to say at this time. Zhang Yunli, Shi Youliang, Lu Qiwu, Cui Shoucheng and others also knelt down after him, although they didn't say anything, but some emotions were already silent.

Behind them, countless soldiers also knelt down one after another, for the sake of the predecessors who died in the battle, and for today's victory.

......

In the evening, Pang Yue went to patrol the night with the guards of the Central Military Department as usual, and chose the 1st Guards Battalion tonight. When I arrived at the camp of the 1st Guards Battalion, I happened to meet the battalion officer Zhou Tianzheng, who was also patrolling the camp.

"Dashuai!" Seeing Pang Yue coming, Zhou Tianzheng hurriedly saluted.

Pang Yue nodded, asked a few words about the situation in the camp, and Zhou Tianzheng answered them one by one. Then Pang Yue pointed to the side and motioned for Zhou Tianzheng to go with him, and Zhou Tianzheng immediately followed Pang Yue's side, looking like he was listening.

"It's not far from your house, isn't it?" Pang Yue asked.

"Yes, it's rare for adults to remember." Zhou Tianzheng said, "My subordinate's home is in Zhoujiazhuang, Jing County, Ningguo, about 150 miles south of this place. ”

"How could you not remember?" Pang Yue said with a smile, "Back then, I led my troops to break through from Wuhu to the south, and when I passed through Jing County, Ling Zun entertained me, and you were also the army that joined at that time." Now that I think about it, it seems like it happened yesterday. ”

Zhou Tianzheng nodded, a trace of sadness appeared on his face. After so many years, he still remembers the scenes of that year clearly, remembers his father's advice to him the night before leaving home, and remembers the scene when his parents and family bid farewell in Zhuangkou when they set off with the team the next morning. At that time, he left home with a full of pride and ambition and a vision for the future, but he didn't expect it to be a farewell to his family. At the end of the year after he joined the army, his father Zhou Yuanqing organized the brave people of the township to fight back when the Qing army attacked Jing County, and later was defeated and killed, and the whole family died.

"Ling Zun is a real hero, and I admire him very much for his personality and integrity." Pang Yue put away his smile and sighed, "Over the years, I have often wondered if the gentry of the Ming Dynasty had such integrity, how could they let the Tartars occupy this great river and mountain so easily. ”

"Thank you, Sir. The subordinates believe that the blood of my father and thousands of anti-Japanese righteous people will not be shed in vain, and there will always be a day when all the great rivers and mountains of Kyushu will be recovered. ”

"After so many years away from home, have you ever thought about going home to see it?"

"Think, often in my dreams dream about the moment I came home. Although the parents are no longer there, the pastoral house must have been deserted for a long time, but after all, it is where the ancestral tomb is, and it is also the place where the subordinates were born and raised, and the roots of the subordinates are there. The subordinates thought that after the Tartars were completely eliminated and the situation in the world stabilized, the subordinates took their wives and children back to their hometown to live, and they would never leave again in this life. ”

Pang Yue nodded: "Yes, that day is not far away." In three days, we will be able to arrive at the city of Nanjing, let's fight well, and Ling Zun will be proud and relieved because of you. ”

Zhou Tianzheng nodded heavily, Pang Yue patted him on the shoulder, and led the team to inspect the next place. After Zhou Tianzheng saw Pang Yue leave, he looked up at the bright stars in the sky, and there was a flash of crystal light in his eyes.

......

The Zuofu army went all the way down the river, and the 100,000 anxious Tang newspapers had already been sent to Nanjing, and presented to the general of Dingnan and Prince Jingjin Nikan, who was sitting in Nanjing. In addition to the western provinces of Jiangnan Province, there were also many urgent reports sent in northern Zhejiang, and even the sailors stationed in Wusong and Zhoushan also sent people to report that a huge Ming army fleet had been discovered on the sea and was coming north day and night.

There were enemies in three directions, and the enemy forces in three directions were approaching in an encirclement, and Nikan felt as if he was sitting on a powder keg, and could be blown to pieces at any moment. Although the troops at hand are not too weak, the total strength of more than 80,000 people, 10,000 banner soldiers, in other words, when they first entered the pass, such a small number of troops were enough to sweep one side. But Nikan didn't think that such a small number of troops today could defeat a total of more than 100,000 Ming troops on three routes.

Nikan knew how much of a role these 80,000 people could play. Let's talk about the green battalion first, the green battalion soldiers with the strongest combat effectiveness in the Jiangnan green battalion and the green battalion generals who were the most desperate to work for the imperial court have long been lost in many battles of the Southern Expedition, and now more than half of the tens of thousands of green battalions have only been trained into the army in recent years and the newly promoted generals. These people may be able to work honestly when the Qing Dynasty is stable, but once the Qing Dynasty is a little tired, these people at both ends of the first rat may immediately start to think crookedly. The fact that the green battalions of the four towns of Anqing and Chizhou surrendered without a fight is proof of this.

In addition to the Green Battalion, the Eight Banners are no longer as brave as they used to be. Back then, I ate a meal in a village in Liaodong, and only by killing and robbing could I live a good life. But now that they have entered the customs, they can live a good life without having to work hard, and naturally not many people are willing to work hard. In particular, a few years ago, nearly 20,000 flag soldiers folded in Jiangxi, and among the eight banners, in addition to the white flag and the red flag, almost every family member died in battle, and there was no attraction for the flag soldiers to go into battle. Now the 10,000 Eight Banners stationed in Jiangnan were mobilized by the imperial court with a lot of effort.

It is precisely because he knows his own strength that Nikan understands what he should do. He gave up the practice of taking the initiative to meet the Ming army, and also gave up the arrangement of dividing troops to garrison, but concentrated all his forces. Most of the troops in northern Zhejiang were concentrated in Hangzhou, while those in Jiangnan were mostly concentrated in Nanjing and Yangzhou. Only by holding these important towns and holding until the arrival of reinforcements from Zilharang may be able to exchange for an undefeated stalemate situation. That's all he can do at the moment.