According to the strategy drawn up by the General Headquarters, the troops of the West Route Corps entered Sichuan in two or three routes. In order to confuse the Qing court, at the same time, the Middle Route Corps on the Wuhan line and the East Route Corps on the Nanjing line, mobilized troops on a large scale, put on a jiashi to cross the river, and attracted the attention of the Qing court. Leng Yifei, commander of the West Route Corps, led the 33rd Division's Lu Changlin Division, the 34th Division's Lin Xiong's Division, and the two regiments of the Corps' cavalry brigade and artillery brigade, including logistics troops, entered Sichuan with great fanfare from the Zunyi front line, and caused a situation of large soldiers pressing the border.

Khalid led the 32nd Division from the line of Dejiang in Guizhou into Sichuan and approached Chongqing. He Meng led the 31st Division, the ** Independent Regiment, and the 1st Regiment of the Independent Artillery Brigade from the front line of Yunnan into the Panzhihua area of Sichuan, and approached Xichang, which was heavily defended by the Qing army. The General Command demanded that the commanders of each front, by ad hoc decision. That is, according to the actual situation, once the fighter is captured, it can be cut first and then played, so that the front-line commander can give full play to the initiative of the supervisor.

Outside the city of Kunming, the army is in action. The long procession is imposing and majestic. Many people in the city spontaneously came to see off the army. After He Meng said goodbye to the mayor of Kunming, he came to his wife Deng Xiuhua. "Husband, do you really want to go on the expedition with you?" Deng Xiuhua begged. He Meng said helplessly: "If you are a female soldier now, there is no problem, but you are my wife, if I, the chief officer, take my wife to the battle, what kind of system will I become, how can you let me lead the army?" I understand your feelings, just wait at home for the news of my victory! ”

After He Meng finished speaking, he stepped on the war horse, forgot about his wife affectionately, and then resolutely whipped on the road. Deng Xiuhua's eyes were a little moist, and she kept waving her arms and couldn't give up. She watched her husband's figure go away, still standing for a long time. He Meng said goodbye to his wife this time, and it was two years before he reunited with his wife again, and two years later, He Meng had commanded hundreds of thousands of troops and became a powerful military god.

The Chengdu Governor's Mansion seems to be unfazed. Zuo Zongtang, who was recently promoted to Minister of Military Aircraft, Governor of Sichuan, and Generalissimo of Shaanxi, Gansu, and Horses, has been in extremely complicated moods for some time. Frankly speaking, he applauded Deng Zixuan's Guangzhou Military Government's policy program, but he knew in his heart that all the rebellions of the rebellion were all fallacious and confuse the people, the slogans were shouted beautifully, and the measures won the support of the people.

However, Zuo Zongtang was suspicious of his inherent judgment, because he had met Deng Zixuan and communicated with each other. This gentleman is full of wealth and knowledge, which is completely different from the grasshopper heroes of the past. Zuo Zongtang compared Deng Zixuan with Hong Xiuquan, the latter has more quality than the former. With the rapid rise of Deng Zixuan, and with the imperial court's continuous increase in officials and knighthood to Zuo Zongtang, it aroused the courage of Zuo Zongtang and Deng Zixuan to be unique in the world. He was deeply favored by the emperor, and he couldn't identify with rebellion in his bones, even if rebellion was so different.

After all, Zuo Zongtang is not an immortal, so it is impossible for him to know who Deng Zixuan is. Zuo Zongtang judged that although the rebels quickly occupied half of the country, the expansion of the territory also meant that the momentum of the rebels began to weaken. At present, the imperial court is going all out and united, and Western countries are setting a historical precedent to fully assist the imperial court. At present, the Western army has entered the defense line north of the Yangtze River on a large scale, so Deng Zixuan is no longer facing the Manchu court, but the joint operation of the armies of Western countries.

Zuo Zongtang believes that no matter how strong Deng Zixuan is, he will not be able to resist this joint strangulation. At present, there are only tens of thousands of rebels in Yunnan and Guizhou, and although the rebels have advanced weapons and strong combat effectiveness, if they want to enter Sichuan and occupy the cities one by one, they will not succeed in a year and a half, and as long as they can hold on to Sichuan for one year, the situation will change greatly, and the momentum of the rebels' offensive will disappear at that time. Therefore, Zuo Zongtang ordered to establish a solid defense line on the Yangtze River in Xichang, Yibin, and Luzhou, and demanded that one city and one pond should be held and the city would live and die together.

Zuo Zongtang said at the joint military meeting: "Don't look at the rebels' strength and strength. Although the rebels quickly occupied the hinterland of the south of the Yangtze River, the territory was expanded and the battle line was lengthened, and the rebels would face tremendous pressure on grain, grass, and military supplies. The rebels opposite us only have tens of thousands of horses, while I have an army of 400,000, as long as everyone works together and holds on to Sichuan for a year, the situation will change dramatically. Therefore, I ask all ministries to unite in good faith and provide immediate support in the event of a crisis. Now I will promulgate military discipline: the first is to defend the city, and those who escape from the battle will be beheaded, the second will be beheaded if they do not save and the rescue is not effective, the third will be beheaded if they are not able to restrain themselves, the fourth will be beheaded if they do not obey orders, the fifth will be beheaded if they shake the hearts of the army, and the sixth will be beheaded if they are deceived by evil words. ”

Zuo Zongtang gathered power and recruited people to dig trenches and fortify the city. At the same time, the Green Battalion units were reorganized, the ineffective officers were replaced, the old, weak, sick and disabled were eliminated, and a logistics unit was formed. For a while, the Qing army's defensive confidence increased greatly, and the only thing lacking was the support of the people, which was a fatal wound, and Zuo Zongtang was powerless.

At the beginning of April, the sun was blazing. On this day, Zuo Zongtang was inspecting the military deployment in the Chengdu Governor's Palace, and the defense of each city had to be personally supervised and inquired about. He seemed to have aged a lot over the months, his temples had turned gray, the braids on his head had thinned, and his beard had turned much grayer. If you don't judge by his majestic face, he is almost a serene old man. Zuo Zongtang is 68 years old this year, and his physical strength is not as good as before, and the only sensitive thing is his smart brain and a pair of wise eyes.

"Lord Zuo, the person who went to Hunan to inquire about the news is back!" A subordinate came in to report. Zuo Zongtang was shocked and immediately ordered the comer to come in, and after a while, a man in a strong suit entered. "How's my family doing?" Zuo Zongtang asked. "Lord Zuo, my subordinates sneaked back to Xiangyin. Just like the announcement issued by the rebels, your family is not harmed, they are all fine, and it seems that the rebels are very good at not confusing people. Zuo Zongtang nodded and ordered the people to go down and rest.

"My lord! It seems that the rebels are not in vain, and the high-sounding tricks are indeed superb! A subordinate spoke. This is Deng Zixuan's most powerful hand, and it is also the most terrifying hand. His purpose in doing this is to divide and disintegrate us, Deng Zixuan can do this, it can be called a big deal, the old man has to admire his measurement, in comparison, the old man can't do this. I can tell you frankly that if there were no foreigners to support the imperial court, the Qing Kingdom would have been finished. Zuo Zongtang closed his eyes helplessly.

"Report to your lord, the rebel soldiers entered Sichuan in three ways!" A subordinate came in in with a panicked look on his face. "What's the panic, calm me down, tell me the details・・・・・・." After listening to the report, Zuo Zongtang looked at the map and said: "Order the line from Xikang to Luzhou to enter combat preparations, and order the front-line troops in Chongqing to take advantage of the favorable terrain to block the rebels." All yamen immediately took action to fully support the frontline operations. Zuo Zongtang gave orders very calmly.

After crossing the Jinsha River, the troops advanced along the valley, the sky was overcast, and then a light rain fell for miles. Soon the road became muddy, and the horse-drawn artillery of the artillery regiment on the road was often trapped, and the soldiers were pulling the trapped artillery out on their shoulders and shouting trumpets, and the squirming of the troops began to slow down. Suddenly, there was gunfire from the front, and the troops stopped advancing. "What's going on, what's going on?" He Meng reined in his horse and asked.

Soon a fast horse came to the front, "Report to the deputy commander, the forward troops encountered a small number of Qing troops on both sides, and our forward troops rushed up the side hill, and the Qing army disappeared." "This is a small number of Qing troops harassing, don't care about their troops speeding up!" He Meng decisively gave the order. Soon, however, gunfire was heard from the front, and the troops were forced to halt their advance. "Order the forward troops to send search troops to search along the two flanks, and to eat the small blocking force of the Qing army as soon as possible." He Meng realized that trouble was coming, and the enemy did it on purpose.

"Deputy Commander! It seems that Zuo Zongtang has two shots, and it is by no means in vain, his purpose is to harass us and delay my march. An operations staff officer analyzed. Zuo Zongtang is known as the military god of the Qing Dynasty, and his outstanding achievements are indeed admirable. Especially when he led his troops to Xinjiang and beat the traitor Agu Bai, this gentleman must not be underestimated. Commander-in-Chief Deng admired Zuo Zongtang very much and respected him as a national hero in public. He Meng said clearly.

"Since the commander-in-chief respects Zuo Zongtang so much, Weishenme won't persuade him to abandon the darkness and turn to the light?" Operational staff is confused. He Meng shook his head and said: "Commander-in-chief, if you can persuade him, why bother to fight." Zuo Zongtang was deeply favored by the emperor and was a strong warrior. He is permeated with the essence of killing and humiliating in his bones, and even regards reputation as more important than life. Zuo Zongtang's loyalty to the monarch is unshakable, which is why the commander-in-chief strives to defeat him militarily. ”

"Alas! It's a pity that he was wise! The operational staff officer lamented. He Meng continued: "Although Zuo Zongtang has a lot of complaints about the various dissatisfaction of the Qing court, he will not make a living in terms of this person's character. To put it bluntly, he would rather die on the battlefield and achieve a lifetime of wisdom than live in humiliation. Not to mention who he is loyal to, this kind of integrity is moving. It's a pity that he led an incompetent army, and the doom was decided! ”

It was night, and the army was camped. The sky was still overcast, about 10 kilometers from the camp of the army, and the search detachment numbered about 30 people, and climbed a hill in the night. "Stop!" Someone gave a verbal order in the dark. "Platoon commander! weishenme stop moving forward! "You see, the post road under the hill stretches out, and it's an excellent place to stop it. I judged that the small group of harassing troops of the Qing army must be blocking it here, so we came to him to wait for him to set up an ambush. ”

Soon it was dawn, and the wet mist gradually dissipated. Sure enough, a group of Qing troops appeared. They came to the point of the blockade and quickly dispersed. The Qing army also happened to number 30 people, and all of them were armed with Remington single-shot rifles. Seeing the Qing army disperse, a soldier in the hiding place said anxiously: "Platoon commander, let's do it!" Now is the time! A soldier muttered quietly. Pass the order! Without my order, who would dare to act without permission to engage in military law! The platoon commander shouted in a low voice.

"Brothers, after a while, the rebels came, and the beauty retreated after three bullets, and the rebels can't be entangled, understand?" One of the generals shouted. At dawn, the figure of the Northern Expeditionary Army appeared on the road, and the Qing soldiers nervously pulled the bolt to prepare. At this moment, the platoon commander fired a shot into the sky, and the soldiers quickly jumped up and shouted: "You are surrounded!" Don't move, don't shoot! Rebels suddenly appeared behind them, and the Qing soldiers were stunned.

The platoon commander waved his hand and shot him in the head, and the guy fell to the ground with the sound of the gunshot, his head gurgling and bleeding. The other Qing soldiers were so frightened that they threw their guns on the ground and raised their hands in surrender. The platoon commander grabbed a Qing soldier by the neck, then put a gun to his head and asked, "Are there any Qing soldiers around here?" "Master Jun spares his life, I say I say." "If you tell a lie, your head will be opened!"

"There is also a team 5 kilometers on the left, and the small ones dare not lie, and everything is true!" The Qing soldiers were so frightened that their faces turned green. "You lead the way!" The Qing soldier nodded frequently. The platoon commander ordered two soldiers to escort the other prisoners down the mountain, and then with a wave of his hand, he led his subordinates to the goal.