Zhang Zhidong sighed and said: "The shopkeeper of Fang Cai Qin told me about Deng Zixuan's situation, if what he said is the truth, the Qing Kingdom is in danger!" "How so?" The staff asked in surprise. "The annihilation of the 5,000 French troops in Annan was not done by the Black Flag Army, but by nearly 10,000 soldiers and horses led by Deng Zixuan. Now I understand what Deng Zixuan said before leaving. ”

"He has 10,000 soldiers and horses in Annam?" The staff exclaimed. Not only that, but the change in Fuzhou was also his man. The most terrifying thing is that the city of Shanghai has been controlled by his subordinates. His strategic layout is unparalleled. Shanghai, Fujian, and Guangzhou are in a line at three points along the coast, and at that time, he will lead a large army to sweep through Guangxi, and the troops will go out of the hinterland of the south of the Yangtze River. The staff lost their voice and said: "There are no heavy troops in Jiangnan, the Eight Banners Green Battalion has already been eroded and cannot resist at all, and it will take time for the imperial court to transfer troops from Jiangbei." Deng Zixuan's plot against Jiangnan is as easy as a snap, it's just too clever! ”

"There is one thing you don't understand, Deng Zixuan has been lying on salary for 10 years for this day, which is incomparable." Zhang Zhidong seems to be appreciative. "My lord, what are we going to do in that case? As the saying goes, heroes don't ask where they come from, and good birds perch on trees. The staff tentatively, and Zhang Zhidong closed his eyes again. He didn't expect the other party to hang himself up without looking for it, this feeling was unbearable.

Five days after the capture of Guangzhou, the atmosphere in the headquarters of the People's Army of the Telegraph Bureau was very tense. There is a military map on the wall, with a black arrow on the north and west sides, and the words "Qing army" are indicated on the arrow, so it is obvious that the Qing army in various places has begun to move. "Commander-in-chief, according to the reconnaissance of the 5,000 Qing troops in Qingyuan approaching the Liuxi River, the Qing troops gathered from Foshan, Zhaoqing, and Jiangmen are approaching the Nanhai District, and posing a threat to the fortresses along the river in our Panyu District." A staff officer reports.

Another operational staff officer continued: "The fort along the river in Panyu District and the fort fort in Dongguan should coordinate with the east and west, guard the mouth of the Pearl River and the waterway, and ensure the safety of the waterway, so Panyu District must not afford to lose. Pei Gejin heard that it was a little difficult to do, and he didn't have an idea for a while: "We have limited troops, and we have to deal with both the enemy in the north and the enemy in the west, taking care of both sides, do you have any good plans?" ”

Pei Gejin seems to be at ease in handling government affairs and scheming, and Zhang Zhidong's actions including foreigners are handled very well, but leading troops to fight is not his strength. An operational staff officer stood up and said, "Commander-in-chief, I suggest that we should concentrate on Liliang to eat the enemy on the west flank and completely eliminate the threat of the fortress batteries in Panyu District. Although there are 5,000 enemies on the west side, they are the Eight Banners Green Battalion, and their combat effectiveness is weak, so I think it is completely possible to concentrate 3,000 people? ”

Another combat staff officer stood up and echoed: "Commander-in-chief, I think this operation is feasible, at present we have a total of 4,100 combat troops, although 1,000 green battalion soldiers have been recruited as security forces, but they cannot be put into combat for the time being. The Liuxi River in the north forms a natural barrier, and we can send a large group of soldiers along the river to block it and delay the attack of the enemy from the north. A brigade assists the security forces in defending the city, and then concentrates the main force to eat the enemy on the western flank! Several other combat staff officers agreed.

The situation was urgent, Pei Gejin did not hesitate to take the suggestion, and then planned to fight. The location of the battle was the junction of Panyu District and Nanhai District, because there was an east-west Xijiang River in the south of Panyu District and Nanhai District, so the battle was to block on the east side, outflank it on the west side, and attack on the north side to drive the Qing army to flee to the Xijiang River. In this way, it can not only save troops, but also completely annihilate the enemy's army.

Pei Ge gave an order, the first brigade went north to the banks of the Liuxi River to block the Qing army, and the second brigade led the security forces to defend the city. The 3rd and 4th Brigades blocked the operation on the east flank, the 5th and 6th Brigades attacked on the north flank, and the 7th Brigade and the Cadet Brigade outflanked on the west flank. That night, the troops quietly left the city, and the troops quickly deployed. The 1st Brigade was the first to leave the city and arrived at the Liuxi River at midnight.

The Qing army had already reached the Liuxi River in the evening, but the ferry was limited, and the Qing army had to collect ferries along the river and prepare to cross the river after dawn. The tents of the Qing army on the north bank of the Liuxi River were densely packed, and the banks were full of large and small boats. When the troops reached the river, the activities of the Qing troops on the other side were clearly visible. "Captain, our task is to delay the Qing army's attack, and I suggest that their ferry be destroyed, so that the Qing army will not cross the river smoothly, and our pressure will be reduced." A combat staff officer in the dark suggested.

The captain did not hesitate, and immediately selected 20 water-based haode soldiers, each carrying short guns and grenades to wade across the river to destroy the Qing army's ferry. Darkness was the most cover, with 20 soldiers launching upstream and then quietly swimming to the opposite side. There were swimming sentinels on the shore of the Qing army, and other Qing soldiers were sleeping. Suddenly, gunshots rang out, followed by grenade explosions.

The Qing army barracks were in chaos, and I don't know what happened. I saw the ferries drifting away one after another, and it was too late when the Qing army found out that something was wrong. The Qing army tossed until dawn, and found that there was not much left of the ferry, and the leader of the Qing army ordered the artillery to shoot across the river. During the day, the Qing army could not cross the river, so they had to continue collecting boats. The operational staff officer also planned, and the troops were broken into parts, specifically attacking the soldiers of the Qing army looking for ferries. The blocking operation was fought very intelligently, and until the end of the western operation, the Qing army in the north did not cross the Liuxi River.

In the camp of the Qing army in Nanhai Town, a general soldier was drinking tea. "Report to your lord, encountered a rebel attack ahead?" A subordinate came to report. The chief soldier was stunned and asked, "How many rebels are there?" "About 1,000 people! They have foreign guns in their hands! The subordinate replied. The chief soldier's eyes rolled and said, "Pull the artillery team up and bombard me!" Then the general soldier was dressed neatly, and he had to go to the front line to command.

Pei Gejin was in the bunker of the position, and when he saw that the Qing army retreated as soon as he made contact, his self-confidence increased greatly: "Damn, it's really a bunch of grass chickens, now I'm worried that the Qing army won't run away." Soon the Qing artillery began to bombard, and the position was filled with gunsmoke. Although the artillery fire of the Qing army was fierce, the impact point of the bullet was a mess, and it was obvious that the artillery of the Qing army had been sparse for a long time, and the training level was low. Pei Gejin was depressed that he didn't have an artillery team, otherwise if there was an artillery bombardment, the Qing army in front of him would collapse immediately. Although there were a few artillery pieces in the city, there was no formed artillery team, so it was impossible to conduct field battles.

The general soldier of the Qing army was overjoyed to see that the artillery was very powerful in his binoculars, but he didn't care whether the impact point of the artillery was accurate, and to put it bluntly, he couldn't see it at all. After the artillery fire stopped, the commander-in-chief gave the order to attack. The Qing soldiers cautiously moved forward, and seeing the cautious appearance of the Qing soldiers, Pei Ge ordered to enter 100 meters before firing.

The other party did not move, and the Qing soldiers became bold and began to speed up. Accompanied by the order to open fire, dense gunfire rang out, and the Qing troops in front were knocked down. The Qing soldiers immediately fell to the ground and immediately began to return fire. The Qing officers hid behind and shouted, but the Qing soldiers lay on the ground and were indifferent. If the soldiers ran back, they would be shot, so the Qing soldiers did not move on their stomachs and fired indiscriminately.

The general soldier was angry when he saw this scene, but there was no way. In this way, they held each other until dark, and the general army had no choice but to order the withdrawal of troops. On the battlefield, Pei Gejin was a little depressed, this battle was too bad. After dark, the Qing army boycotted the battle, and the Qing army never had the habit of fighting in the field. At midnight, news came from the north that the 5th and 6th Brigades were in position and requested an attack. After a day's battle, Pei Gejin fully understood the combat effectiveness of the Qing army, so he decided to eat the Qing army in front of him cleanly and completely. He then ordered an attack to be launched tomorrow morning, to give the troops who had made a detour to the west enough time.

At 4 o'clock in the morning, Pei Gejin waited anxiously in the position, and the soldiers in the trench had bright bayonets on their guns ready to attack. Suddenly, there was a loud trumpet in the north, followed by a dense burst of gunfire and explosions. Pei Ge gave the order to attack, and the soldiers jumped out of the trenches and charged. At this time, the vast majority of Qing soldiers were sleeping soundly, and with sudden blows from three directions, the Qing army herded sheep almost without any resistance. Fleeing south was the only option, but ・・・・・・.

In a battle without suspense, the Qing army was almost completely annihilated, only a few hundred people escaped from the Xijiang River, and later after investigation, at least thousands of people crossed the river and drowned, becoming unjust souls in the water. The Qing army was captured. After hearing the news, the Qing army on the north side immediately fled back to Qingyuan, and the effect of deterrence was very obvious. At this point, the green battalions of the Qing army in various places began to stand still and guard the city.

The next day, Kwong Jiazhi got off the boat with a pale face on the dock. "Mr. Kwong, do you need me to explain? You already know that. "As soon as we met, Pei Ge would like to get straight to the point. Kuang Jiazhi nodded silently and said, "Commander Pei, what do you need me to do?" Pei Ge said respectfully: "Commander-in-Chief Deng asked you to temporarily serve as the mayor of Guangzhou, which is the political envoy. At present, the stability of the people and the livelihood of the people are a major matter, and the commander-in-chief is very concerned about this. ”

"I will do my best to live up to Mr. Deng's high expectations!" Kwong Jiazhi said firmly.