History is similar, but it will not repeat itself completely. Although the Eastern Expedition took a similar route to that of the Jin king Li Dingguo's second attack on Guangdong, it was very different in terms of combat strategy.

First of all, the speed of the attack was not very fast, and it was only after the victory of the sailor that there was a slight acceleration of the advance; secondly, try not to divide the troops, temporarily ignore Wuzhou and Zhaoqing in the north, and always maintain a sharp military advantage; The last point, which may in some way justify the above-mentioned combat strategy, is that most of the ammunition supplies are supplied by sea, and the risk of being cut off from the food routes due to the elongation of the battle line is greatly reduced.

As a matter of fact, giving full play to the advantages of naval divisions and maritime transportation made the Eastern Expedition twice the result with half the effort, and the situation of the war also underwent a shocking drastic change.

On September 28, Haifeng County of the Qing Dynasty ordered Ruan Shipeng to send troops to attack Suli, who was obstructing the relocation, and Su Shipeng resisted, beating Ruan Shipeng's Qing soldiers to the ground, and took advantage of the situation to attack the county seat, kill Ruan Shipeng, and rebel against the Qing.

On September 30, on the same day that Li Changrong, the general soldier of Leizhou in the Qing Dynasty, surrendered to the city, Deng Yao, the newly promoted Marquis of Jinghai, led his naval division to break into the Xijiang River, captured Jiangmen (now Jiangmen City), and controlled the mouth of the sea in the Guangzhou area in one fell swoop.

On the second day of October, the newly promoted Ling Haibo Chen Shangchuan led more than 50 ships to break into the mouth of the Pearl River. At this time, the forts such as Shajiao, Dajiao, and Humen only had a rudimentary form, and even if there were artillery, there were not many of them and their performance was not good. The fleet went up the river, destroyed the weak resistance along the river, approached Canton, and bombarded the city with artillery shelling.

On the third day of October, Panyu fishermen Zhou Yu and Li Rong were forbidden to go out to sea to fish because of the ban on the sea. "Lost his old business" and had no life, so he took advantage of the Ming army's offensive to lead the fishermen to revolt and resist, led the people to break through the county seat, and killed the county.

On the fourth day of October, after recovering Leizhou, the Ming army resumed its offensive. Approached Gaozhou and began to siege the city.

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"This is not my concern." Shang Kexi, the king of the south of Qingping, climbed the city of Guangzhou, patted the city wall damaged by the cannonballs, and looked at the sail shadow in the distance, his face was full of sadness.

What do you mean? That is to say, the city wall of Guangzhou is strong, easy to defend and difficult to attack, and the arrival of Ming military ships is only a deterrent and harassment, and cannot constitute a real threat to the city of Guangzhou. Of course. That's just what we've seen so far. The Ming army's sailors drove to Guangzhou, and there was also a warning meaning. If Guangzhou was empty, the Ming army would transport troops by ship and attack Guangzhou directly, and this possibility would be gratifying for the Ming army.

"Father is worried about Gaozhou?" Shang Zhixiao hesitated for a moment, and said uncertainly: "Since Guangzhou has no worries, our army should be the main force to the west and fight a decisive battle with the Ming army." As long as the Ming army on land is defeated. The enemy's sailors are no more than harassing. ”

Shang Kexi shook his head lightly and said, "Su Li rebelled. The bandits are in turmoil, Jiangmen and Panyu are a stone's throw away from Guangzhou, and there are Ming army sailors to help, Guangzhou has no worries for the time being, and it cannot be empty. Otherwise, I am afraid that I will repeat the mistake of the defeat and death of the king of Dingnan! ”

Shang Zhixiao opened his mouth. Swallowed the words back. During the Battle of Zhaoqing, Shang Kexi did not dare to lead the main force to help, and Hao Shangjiu, who was afraid of rebellion, led his troops to attack Guangzhou in the west, so he would repeat the mistake of the Battle of Guilin of Confucius in Zhaoqing. Turn. Even if he guards Guangzhou, he will be worried about the danger that the main force will encounter after going to help. Just like the Battle of Xinhui, which lasted for half a year and was in danger several times, Shang Kexi still did not dare to lead the main force to reinforce, instead of waiting for the Manchurian troops to arrive before acting together.

Kong Youde's death in Guilin was like a curse, haunting the last two of the Sanshun kings, and also made them full of fear of Li Dingguo, the king of Jin. But now in the future of Li Dingguo, Shang Kexi has committed this hesitant mistake again, Shang Zhi is unwilling in confidence, but it is not good to say anything to his father.

"I have ordered Xu Erxian, the chief soldier of Zhaoqing, to lead the army to Gaozhou for reinforcements." Shang Kexi looked into the distance, and did not notice his son's strange appearance, but said faintly: "Xu Erxian defended the city well, and he once thwarted the old thief (Li Dingguo) to attack the city. I hope that he can make another meritorious service this time, so that the enemy will be trapped under the fortified city for a long time. When the enemy is tired, I will lead the army to attack again and break the enemy's ears. ”

"My father is thoughtful and well-planned." Shang Zhixiao said respectfully: "Su Li traitor, you can't let it go wild. It's better than a child—"

"Defeat the enemy's main force, and the crowd will be scattered." Shang Kexi pondered again and said, "Jiangmen is extremely important, you can send an army to recover it first." Well, you'd better stay with your father! ”

The eldest son, Shang Zhixin, is still in Beijing, and like Wu Yingxiong, he is a hostage. Because Shang Zhixin is short-tempered, brave but reckless, he is not liked by Shang Kexi. The filial piety of the second chief Shang is steady and filial, and he has been around for a long time, and he is even favored by Shang Kexi. The soldiers are fierce and dangerous, and of course Shang Kexi refuses to let his son take risks.

"What about the thieves in Panyu?" Shang Zhixiao asked a little unwillingly: "It's so close to Guangzhou, do you want to let it go?" ”

"Those chaotic people and bandits, just send a staff leader and bring a thousand men and horses, it is enough to clean up." Shang Kexi showed a disdainful expression, the regular army and the rebellious people were worlds apart in his mind, and he didn't take it seriously at all.

Shang Zhixiao also felt that it was no big deal for the people to rebel, but he just wanted to go out to make a meritorious service, practice his hands, and increase his weight in his father's mind.

"Sully is also going to send troops to recruit and suppress." Shang Kexi clenched his fists, traitors have always been the most hated, especially at this time, what Su Li did was to stab him in the back, but Su Li has soldiers and ships, but he is not comparable to those chaotic people, "General Gao Liangfu and garrison Gao Liangzhen are Chaoshan people, who can fight well and can be the main general." ”

"My father knows that people are good at his job, and Su Li will definitely give him the head soon, and the threat to the east of Guangzhou will be lifted." Shang Zhixiao complimented him, but when he looked up, he saw a small officer rushing over.

"What?" Shang Kexi also saw it and asked in a deep voice.

"Lord Wang, urgent report, Gaozhou has been attacked by the enemy-" The junior officer knelt down on one knee and presented the army report in his hand.

Shang Kexi's face changed greatly, and he snatched the military newspaper, tore open the seal, and began to read it carefully. After a while, Shang Kexi snorted and scolded: "Leaning on the city to defend, but it is only three days, it must have fallen into the enemy's tricks, and he was defeated in the battle of the city." ”

"Father, send reinforcements as soon as possible to resist the enemy's eastward advance." Shang Zhixiao knew the consequences of the loss of Gaozhou, and if the Ming army continued to advance, it would be able to reach Xinhui, the southwestern gateway of Guangzhou, and thus directly threaten the provincial capital of Guangzhou.

Shang Kexi thought for a while, finally sighed, and said: "Fortunately, I have sent troops to Xinhui, and then sent someone to inform the chief soldier Xu Erxian to reroute for reinforcements, it should be no big deal." Hey, the puppet king Dingguo was defeated in Xinhui, and now he should also make the enemy return. ”

…………… (To be continued......)