Wuhan Northern Expeditionary Army Headquarters, Chief of Staff Pei Gejin said: "Commander-in-chief, after receiving a report from Li Tianxiang, Leng Yifei led his troops to cross the Yellow River and formed a solid position near Shangqiu. Chen Jintang said: "Commander-in-chief, you can't let the coalition forces stabilize the defensive line, you should take the opportunity to attack?" ”

Deng Zixuan said with a smile: "The coalition forces in Henan have already planted their wings and are in no hurry to attack. Soldiers, treacherous! Surrendering without a fight is the royal way. Besides, Luoyang and Kaifeng are ancient cities, and I don't want these ancient buildings to be destroyed in one fell swoop. Which country's army is currently defending Xuchang? Pei Gejin said: "The defense in Xuchang is the British army. Deng Zixuan pondered for a moment and said: "Order Li Tianxiang to launch an offensive in 5 days, to capture Xuchang in one go, compress the coalition army in the direction of Zhengzhou, and stop the offensive on all fronts after capturing Xuchang." ”

Chen Jintang's eyes lit up and said: "The commander-in-chief means to use the military technique of surrendering without a fight, and Zuihou to force the coalition forces to surrender." Pei Gejin also said: "Commander-in-chief, I understand, the British army and the French army left a large amount of grain in the defense line of Tongbai Mountain and Funiu Mountain. It is impossible to take all the food with you in a hasty retreat. After taking Xuchang, hundreds of thousands of horses and horses of the coalition army all retreated near Zhengzhou, and their food problems would soon appear. ”

"That's right, hundreds of thousands of troops have not eaten or drunk, how long do you think they can hold out?" Deng Zixuan is confident. Chen Jintang seemed to remember something: "Commander-in-chief, I'm afraid that the people in the encirclement will suffer!" Deng Zixuan said with a stern face: "After years of war and natural and man-made disasters, the population in Henan is no longer large. Civilians either fled or starved to death. Let's take a step back and say that the common people can use wild vegetables to satisfy their hunger and put it off, but can the coalition forces do it? ”

Chen Jintang said: "I understand what the commander-in-chief meant, before the people are in trouble, the coalition soldiers are afraid that they will first have civil strife and then collapse." Deng Zixuan was noncommittal, and there was no need to say it clearly. Chen Jintang was overjoyed and immediately went to deploy, Pei Gejin looked at Chen Jintang's back and said: "Brother Chen is an urgent son, you are torturing him by leaving him in the general headquarters." "This kind of torture must be adapted, and the general is not about charging into battle, but about being clever and winning a thousand miles."

Pei Gejin seemed to remember something: "An order has been issued, ordering Bai Sheng to raise troops to the north to quickly capture Tianjin, and then march to the northeast." Deng Zixuan asked: "What is the situation of the right-wing column led by Chief of Staff Wang of the Middle Route Corps?" After Chief of Staff Wang led his troops to occupy Xuzhou, he raised his troops to the north and encountered the fleeing coalition forces in Shijiazhuang near Dezhou, and 40,000 French troops were now surrounded in the west of Dezhou. We received the report three days ago, and it is estimated that the fighting is over. ”

Deng Zixuan said decisively: "Order Chief of Staff Wang, after the battle to encircle and annihilate the coalition forces, requisition two divisions to march to the eastern end of the Shandong Peninsula and control the eastern end of the peninsula." The rest of the forces joined the Baisheng Division of the East Route Corps, and the East Route Corps quickly marched to the northeast. At present, the Russian Far East is empty of troops, and we must seize the favorable opportunity to occupy the entire Far East before the arrival of winter, and to put forward the front line of the Green Mountains. Next year we will launch a large-scale war against Russia, and the occupation of the Far East is the first step. ”

Deng Zixuan continued: "Although the coalition forces in Chinese mainland have failed, they will not admit defeat. The most vicious enemy we face next is Russia. I suppose that Russia will fight me with all its might, and the Russian tsar will not rest on his laurels. The purpose of our operation next year is to crush the Russians and ensure the security of our north. A staff officer came in and reported: "Report to the commander-in-chief, Liu Guangdi led the northbound receiving officials to Wuhan." ”

Deng Zixuan said with a smile: "They came so fast, I'll go see them immediately." Now that the military field has become clear, the next step is to consider people's livelihood. In the Manchu-ruled areas, it is urgent to stabilize the region as soon as possible. When it comes to military strategy, you two have to worry a lot. After Deng Zixuan finished speaking, he waved his hand and walked out of the headquarters. Pei Gejin nodded and sent Deng Zixuan out of the room, and then picked up the pen to write down Deng Zixuan's words.

In front of the command headquarters of the Pingdingshan Middle Road Corps, a communications officer jumped off his horse. "Report! HQ Command! Li Tianxiang quickly took the letterhead and looked at it. The deputy chief of staff saw Li Tianxiang's face showing joy and asked, "The order for the general attack has been issued!" "The headquarters did not give the order for a general attack, but asked us to take Xuchang. The commander of the 2nd Division was quickly notified to temporarily form the commander of the 1st Division and the commander of the Heavy Artillery Division to come to the headquarters for a meeting. ”

The military meeting was very short, and the corps headquarters planned to use the strength of two divisions plus heavy artillery divisions to launch a strong attack on Xuchang, which was defended by the British army. On May 10, at the sound of an order, the Northern Expeditionary Army launched an overwhelming attack. The British army deployed three divisions in Xuchang, but the positions in Xuchang were temporarily constructed and not strong, under the strong artillery fire of the Northern Expeditionary Army, the Northern Expeditionary Army broke through the outer fortifications of Xuchang on the first day.

When the Zhengzhou Allied Army Headquarters heard that the Northern Expeditionary Army had launched a large-scale attack in the direction of Xuchang, they immediately panicked. Russian Dzerzhinsky, chief of staff of the coalition forces, panicked: "Obviously, the Northern Expeditionary Army is going to launch a general offensive, and Xuchang cannot afford to lose, once Xuchang is occupied, our defensive area will become even narrower." "Bergney's eyes are on George, meaning that Xuchang is your defense area. George said: "I personally went to Xuchang to supervise the battle, and I will stick to Xuchang and never retreat." ”

After George left, Bergny said: "General Dzerzhinsky, Xuchang does not have strong fortifications, and the British army cannot hold Xuchang. You immediately order one of your divisions to form a second line of defense in Xinzheng, and we will prepare for the worst. "Bergney did not distrust the British, but considered how long the British would be able to fight, after all, the British had not experienced a brutal war. As soon as the line of defense was breached, the British would collapse on all fronts.

George arrived in Xuchang, and Xuchang was already in jeopardy. He quickly set up a temporary headquarters in Liuzhen, behind Xuchang, and George's arrival, although it boosted the morale of the officers and soldiers, was of no avail in the face of the powerful offensive of the Northern Expeditionary Army. That night, the Northern Expeditionary Army broke into the city on the right flank of Xuchang City, and the British army desperately counterattacked. By dawn, one-third of the city of Xuchang had been captured.

George was shocked to hear that one-third of the northern part of Xuchang had been captured, and thought that the situation was very critical, and immediately ordered the entire line to retreat. The British army retreated and the Northern Expeditionary Army did not pursue, and after Li Tianxiang heard that the British army was retreating, he ordered his troops to stop the pursuit. The officers and men were in a strong fighting spirit, and after receiving the order, they were naturally full of complaints. The commander of the 2nd Division and the commander of the provisional 1st Division were puzzled and asked for the pursuit of victory. In the corps headquarters, Li Tianxiang said with a smile: "Don't say that the officers and soldiers on the front line are not enjoyable, frankly speaking, I am not addicted either." Tell them that grumbling is grumbling and that orders must be carried out. ”

The British army retreated to Xinzheng in disarray, and the British army finally settled down because the Russian army formed a second line of defense here. George returned to Zhengzhou in a depressed mood, and when he entered the headquarters, George sighed: "The Northern Expeditionary Army did not follow the pursuit, otherwise my losses would have been greater." I don't understand that the Northern Expeditionary Army Weishenme does not pursue, they can completely hit the city of Zhengzhou. Dzerzhinsky analyzed: "Stumped that the Northern Expeditionary Army wants to besiege us? ”

A word alerted Bergeni, who looked to the map and asked, "How long will our food last?" Dzerzhinsky said: "According to the statistics of the ministries, the grain can last about 20 days. "That is, in 20 days, we will be faced with nothing to eat, and apparently the Northern Expeditionary Army thought of this. Their capture of Xuchang is to compress our space for activity and force us to collapse ourselves. Bergni said.

Dzerzhinsky said confidently: "Don't be pessimistic, maybe the situation of the war will change in 20 days, we can't lose hope, even if there is a glimmer of life, we have to wait." I immediately went to deploy and effectively manage all the food I could collect. "The so-called collection is actually a clear robbery. Seeing the figure of the Russian going out, George said: "General Bergeny, the Northern Expeditionary Army is very clever in using siege methods, once there is no food, we will collapse ourselves, and the Northern Expeditionary Army can easily clean us up." So we have to face reality. ”

"You mean surrender!" "It's not surrender, it's negotiation!" "Do you think the Northern Expeditionary Army can negotiate with us in the current state?" Bergeni shrugged his shoulders and did not approve at all. George analyzed: "The Northern Expeditionary Army obviously has concerns about not launching a general offensive, after all, we have hundreds of thousands of horses, and if we want to eat us, we must pay a price, maybe this is the concern of the Northern Expeditionary Army." "What are the terms of your negotiation?" Bergoni bewildered.

George said: "We laid down our arms and asked the Northern Expedition to let us leave Chinese mainland safely." "I'm afraid the Russians won't agree with you?" "The Russians don't agree, let them resist alone! I just want to hear your thoughts? Bergany pondered for a while and said, "If the negotiations are really successful, I will not object to your proposal." But who is negotiating? "I'm going in person?" George said decisively.

A few days later, George's figure appeared at the forward position of the French army in Kaifeng. I saw him riding a war horse and carrying no weapons. The first British officer in front of him was holding a white flag and was also unarmed. On this day, the weather was sunny, the sky was clear, the dazzling sunlight was shining, and the figures of the two were very eye-catching. Soon the soldiers on the position of the Northern Expeditionary Army discovered them, and the two successfully entered the defense area of the Northern Expeditionary Army.

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