Just when the two armies were engaged in an offensive and defensive battle around Hengyang, the initially reorganized Dangshuo Army began to move, captured Zhenyuan, entered Hunan, arrived at Qinglangwei, approached Yuanzhou (Zhijiang, Hunan) on November 24, and captured Yuanzhou two days later, capturing Cui Shilu, the city's commander-in-chief. Subsequently, the Dangshuo army took advantage of the fact that most of the Qing troops in Hunan had been transferred to Hengyang, and the local garrison was empty, and drove straight forward, going down to Hecheng (Huaihua), breaking Chenzhou (Yuanling), and approaching Changde.

On November 17, after receiving the news that Wu Sangui's troops had surrendered to Cheng anyway, the Yanshuo army was led by the Duke of Xuguo, Ma Weixing, and his commanders-in-chief, Li Chengjue, Huang Yuancai, and Zhang Guoyong, led their troops from Guilin to march into Hunan. First break Yongzhou, then wave the army to the north, and then take Baoqing Mansion to govern Shaoyang on November 25, and form a flanking attack on the Qing army in Hengyang in the west. However, the Yanshuo army did not advance to the east, but continued to advance northward, and then attacked Xiangxiang (Loudi), making troops into Xiangtan and cutting off the retreat of the Qing army in Hengyang.

Wu Sangui returned to the Ming Dynasty anyway, and the Dangshuo army reorganized by his department was not strong, but for the Qing Dynasty officials and generals in Hunan and even south of the river, it was a bolt from the blue. In their minds, this meant that the general trend had gone, and the "three feudatories" on which the Qing court relied to rule the south had been destroyed or reversed, and all of them had been lost.

In addition, the Ming troops in Yunnan and Guizhou provinces broke free from their hands and feet, and the attack was rapid all the way, which frightened the officers and soldiers of the Qing Dynasty and fled when they heard the news.

Yang Yuming, the chief military officer of Changde, and Wu Sangui were old friends, and the official Zhiming garrisoned and surrendered to the Qing Dynasty, and was first awarded the guerrilla attack in Laizhou, Shandong, and was promoted to deputy general with military merits. In the twelfth year of Shunzhi, he was promoted to the chief military officer of Changde Town, Huguang. Hearing that Wu Sangui was anyway, the Dangshuo army was coming to the city, and his son Yang Baoying was also one of the generals of the Dangshuo army, so he was the internal response, and the city was opened to welcome the Dangshuo army, and the prefect Weng Yingzhao surrendered. The Qing soldiers fled.

Xia Guoxiang led the army to seize the north of Changde Lizhou, this battle did not go through a battle, when the soldiers arrived, the Qing army in the city dedicated the city to change banners, became a part of the Dangshuo army. The Qing general Commander Sang E and the chief military officer Zhou Bangning led their troops from Jingzhou to the outside of Lizhou City for reinforcements, and saw that the enemy's army was very prosperous. Feeling that the 1st Brigade "could not meet the enemy alone" and "had to retreat to Jingzhou", he complained to the imperial court and asked the "Soldier Xingchi" to come to the rescue.

On December 11, Wu Yingzhi, the general of the Dangshuo Army, and Zhang Guozhu led the army to Yuezhou, an important town on the shore of Dongting Lake.

The Yanshuo army marched day and night, breaking through the city of Xiangtan, and the Qing army defending the city "disintegrated." The lonely city has no help", Xiangtan went down in one go. Lu Zhen, the governor stationed in Changsha, heard that the Ming army had occupied Xiangtan, and in order to save his life, he gave up the responsibility of defending the land without authorization, and even abandoned Changsha and fled to Yuezhou.

Changsha deputy general Huang Zhengqing and staff general Chen Wuheng stayed behind to defend the city, seeing that the Ming army was close at hand, the whole city was panicked. The officers and soldiers had no intention of defending the city. The two knew that the general trend was gone and did not want to serve the Qing Dynasty. Then he sent people to Xiangtan to ask for surrender, and together with his subordinates and the city, he was dedicated to the Ming army.

On November 28, the Qing army in Hengyang, which had been cut off from retreat, hurriedly retreated, and the Zhengshuo army took advantage of the situation to counterattack. The morale of the army was already scattered. The Manchu army was defeated under the siege of the Ming army, which had an absolute superiority in strength, and squeezed into the Xiangjiang River, drowning countless people. A small number of remnants did not dare to go north, escaped across the Xiangjiang River, and fled east to the west.

More than a month. The Ming army mobilized three armies, more than 100,000 horses, in Hunan to attack the city and plunder the land, long drive straight forward, even captured Yuanzhou, Changde, Chenzhou, Changsha, Yuezhou, Hengzhou and other strategic towns, in addition to the fierce war in Hengyang, the place passed, the prefectures and counties of the generals either fled or surrendered, almost repeated the scene of the "rebellion of the three feudatories".

"Since Wu Sangui's rebellion, many officers and soldiers of the Hunan Green Banner have attached themselves to thieves."

The traitor made a false intimidation, so that the governor Lu Zhen absconded and was investigated. The civil and military officials of Hunan can still protect the people, stick to the locality, allow them to perform their duties, and on the day of peace, they will be given preferential treatment. ”

"Thieves are rampant, and the officials of the prefectures and counties to which they belong cannot reassure the people and consolidate their territory, causing Chang (De), Li (Zhou), Chang (Sha), and Yue (Zhou) to be trapped as thieves one after another, and all of them are dismissed and investigated."

"Wu Sangui has a heavy responsibility, is willing to be a thief, rampant and rebellious, ruined the souls, the law is intolerable, and the gods and men are angry. Now cut his lord, and sent General Ningnan Jingkou to lead the strong army, go to extinguish, the army is mighty, and the time is flat. ”

"Local officials and people, etc., are in the realm of thieves, or are loyal and cannot extricate themselves; Or persecuted by thieves, suspected of fearing crime, as soon as the soldiers arrive, the jade is indistinguishable. The edict is issued, and the decree is passed, and everyone should protect themselves in peace, without listening to coercion, that is, they may mistakenly obey the thief party, but they can repent and return to sincerity, and they will forgive the past, and they will not be punished. ”

The counteroffensive of the Ming army was fierce and invincible, and the full army was defeated in Hengyang, while the Green Flag Qing army was about to collapse at the touch of a button, and even fled when they heard the wind. The Qing court was extremely frightened and could not stop the offensive of the Ming army, so it held the local military and political officials responsible for the loss of their land. It was again a holy decree, threatening with false voices and intimidating at the same time.

At the same time, the Qing court also realized that "Wuchang is an important place, and it must be defended", and urgently ordered Luo Zhuman to lead his troops to Wuchang as soon as possible to "secure the place". If the enemy is numerous, do not fight lightly; If the enemy army does not come, it can be stationed in the south of Wuchang and choose a "waterway important place to garrison". The Qing court was afraid that it would be too late to transfer troops, so it urgently ordered Mu Zhan, the commander of the capital in Nanchang, to lead his army to Wuchang to resist the enemy's offensive first.

Then, the Qing court carried out a series of emergency transfers, dispatched all the armies, appointed the commanders of the various armies, the generals, and quickly entered their respective theaters, such as Wuchang, Jingzhou, Yiling, Yunyang, Xiangyang, Hanzhong, Xi'an, Jingkou, Jiangning, Anqing, Shandong, and Henan. These strategic bases, relying on the natural hazards of the Yangtze River, will take Jingzhou as the center, focus on the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, and extend and crisscross with individual areas in the south of the Yangtze River, Shandong, and Henan, forming a rather tight military offensive and defensive line.

At this time, the Qing court finally realized that only the Eight Banners of Manchuria and the Green Banner of the Han Army were already insufficient, and they had to requisition the troops of the Mongol banners. First of all, half of the cavalry of the Har Protector Army was transferred, and from the 49 Mongolian banners, the 10 banners of Horqin, the 1 banner of Aohan, the 1 banner of Naiman, the 1 banner of Kexiketeng, and the 10 banners of Guihua City, which were slightly closer to Beijing, a total of 10,000 troops were dispatched.

Among them, 6,000 people and half of its soldiers, about 10,000 people, were sent to Jingzhou by Gushan Beizi Zhunda; The remaining 4,000 Mongol soldiers and half of their soldiers, about 10,000 people, were led to Wuchang by Dorobelle Shangshan and others. The Qing court limited the Mongol soldiers to Beijing before February 1. At the same time, he ordered Tunahei, the auxiliary prince of the Horqin Ministry, and Dulbert Taiji Wenbu to go to Jingzhou to listen to the use, and the Bahrain Ministry Beizi Wenchun and Taiji Gelertu to go to Wuchang.

In fact. It was too late for the Qing court to remotely command and dispatch troops. Changde and Changsha "choke the danger of the lake and Hunan when the water and land rush", after the Ming army occupied, the "momentum of the whole Chu" has been transferred to the Ming army, if you want to reverse, how easy is it to say?

And. The complete victory of the Ming army in Hunan was like a shock wave, causing a chain reaction, and those who were dissatisfied with the rule of the Qing Dynasty rose up from time to time, and it was difficult to suppress.

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"The general gave the yellow belt, and the prince led the green flag soldiers." It is said that the generals who lead the troops are all royalty and nobles. These noble children, royal relatives and nobles, are all the younger generation in the royal family. They didn't go through the years of hard work of their ancestors. They were born or just sensible, Aixinjue Luo has already reigned in the world, enjoyed the fruits of the victory of their ancestors, inherited the title of their fathers, pampered and pampered, rarely seen battle formations, let alone rich combat experience.

In the impression of the Manchurian generals, the battle array was nothing more than riding horses and shooting arrows. Wielding swords and guns howled, but faced with the muskets, artillery, and bayonets of the Ming army. and a well-organized military formation, these seemingly simple and effective tactics lose their power.

Compared with the panic of the Qing court, compared with the confusion of the Manchurian generals, Zhu Yongxing was more confident and majestic, looking forward to Shenfei and pointing out the country. Reveal the wisdom and martial arts.

This is not because Zhu Yongxing is a military genius, and he has never thought so, but history is moving towards a familiar trajectory. Well, it should not be said about history, but about the war situation. The current shape is similar to that of the "Rebellion of the Three Feudatories". He knew why Wu Sangui was defeated, and he naturally knew why he was victorious.

Historically, after Wu Sangui raised troops from Yunnan and Guizhou, he waved his army and drove straight forward, even capturing Yuanzhou, Changde, Chenzhou, Changsha, Yuezhou, Hengzhou and other strategic towns.

After that, Fujian and Zhejiang have Geng Jingzhong, Ganshan has Wang Fuchen, Zheng Jing also sent troops to the southeast, Wu army continued to attack rapidly, successively seized Guangdong, Hunan, Sichuan and parts of Jiangxi, the front reached the south bank of the Yangtze River, drank the Yangtze River, looked north, has put on a posture of crossing the river to the north, can be described as a great shape.

At that time, the Wu army advanced to Songzi and could cross the river with a foot. At this time, the Qing army had not gathered, and Jiangbei was already rumored and the people's hearts were not solid. If it can quickly cross the Yangtze River, monopolize the danger of the Yangtze River, firmly control the military initiative, further expand its influence in politics, and mobilize Han officials and generals in the north of the Yangtze River and even the Yellow River valley to participate, the Qing Dynasty will not be able to clean up the situation and will inevitably continue to retreat to the north bank of the Yellow River in an attempt to hold on.

But at this time, Wu Sangui exposed his Achilles' heel of being good at both ends and being indecisive. He was stationed in Songzi for several months, and showed no sign of going north. This fatal mistake in strategy gave the Qing court the opportunity to dispatch troops and redeploy the defense, forming a situation of confrontation between Jingyue and Yue. Moreover, this kind of military conservatism also made the Wu army quickly lose its enterprising spirit.

If you delve into Wu Sangui's thoughts, Zhu Yongxing feels that Wu Yingxiong's family, who were stranded in Beijing, may be one of the reasons why Wu Sangui is unwilling to go north, but it is by no means the most important. The most important thing is that Wu Sangui lacks the determination and momentum to move forward bravely and without hesitation. This is due to his character, in the cracks of history, Wu Sangui can be left and right, rich and glorious, but when it comes to deciding history, he does not have the courage.

"If you want to be perfect, you will not abandon Yunnan and Guizhou." Wu Sangui has worked hard to run Yungui for more than ten years, and regards this as the foundation, and going north means abandoning the foundation and opening up a new world. If things don't go well and the middle way is frustrated, you will fall into a dangerous situation of losing ground.

And the troops south of the Yangtze River, consolidate their positions, gain a firm foothold, even if the major events do not accomplish, they can still "divide the river for the country" and establish half of the country. Although this consideration is stable, it is difficult to ensure victory. In the art of war, there is no advance or retreat. Only by attacking can we achieve and consolidate the victories we have won. And once the military offensive stops and becomes defensive, it will be passively attacked.

Holding back was a fatal strategic mistake. However, the failure of the Wu army to achieve decisive victories in Ganshan and Jiangxi, opening up the connection with Wang Fuchen and Geng Jingzhong, and connecting the occupied areas into one, was the key to being caught in the crisis of being defeated by each other.

Anyway, at that time, no matter whether the Wu army crossed the river to the north, or went down to the Jiujiang River, choked the Yangtze River and the Huai River, and cut off the north-south transportation route of the Qing Dynasty. Or according to Bashu, stuff the letter to self-consolidation. is more suspicious than moving forward, fantasizing that Kang Xiaosan will be scared stupid, put back to Wu Yingxiong's family, and talk to Wu Jun about peace is much more realistic. At the crossroads of history, so to speak. Wu Sangui made the stupidest decision.

The current form is similar to the "Rebellion of the Three Feudatories", but there are many differences. Zhu Yongxing is the emperor's Ming clan, and the appeal of this banner is not comparable to Wu Sangui, who calls himself "King of Zhou"; Fujian and Zhejiang have the extermination army, there are naval divisions on the sea, Fuzhou in Jiangxi has two divisions led by Wei Junzhong, and it is not difficult to open up the connection from Pingxiang and Yichun in Changsha; Jingxiang has a Shuo army and a Yangtze River water division. Changsha surrendered without a fight, and the ships belonged to the Ming army, and the Ming army had a clear advantage in water power; Yun, Xiang, and Gucheng were still in the hands of the Shuo army, controlling the upper reaches of the Han River, and the Qing army would be threatened from the east and north if they wanted to set up camp in Jingzhou to confront each other.

The Qing court chose to urgently deploy defenses in Jingzhou as a strategic priority, firstly, to cut off the connection between the Ming army and the Jingxiang army. Second, it is also estimated that the Ming army will go north and cross the river in Hunan. Therefore. The Qing court tried to take advantage of the danger of the Yangtze River to deploy defenses in Jingzhou, blocking the Ming army from crossing the river. If the military pressure of the Ming army is withstood here, a large army can be assembled and used as a base for a counteroffensive across the river.

The goods of Wu Yue (referring to the Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions). The martial arts of Shanxi (west) and Shaanxi (west) are concentrated in Jingzhou, Xiangyang, Yangtze River, and Hanshui. Wu Sangui's reversal caused the situation in Hunan to deteriorate sharply, and the two sides dispatched troops and adjusted the arrangements. The focus of the war south of the river suddenly focused on Jingyue.

And Zhu Yongxing's movements also seem to indicate to the outside world that the Ming army will cross the river and go north, and the front of the army will be directed at Jingzhou. Because Zhu Yongxing's Wang Qi is now in Yuezhou, the clan is personally conscripted, and Zhu Yongxing, as a figure who has attracted the attention of both the enemy and us, where he is, of course, is likely to be the main direction of attack of the Ming army.

Yuezhou is not only Hunan, but also the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. It is located on the bank of the vast Dongting Lake, on the south bank of the Yangtze River, surrounded by water on three sides and open to land on one side. The water of Dongting is connected with the Yangtze River, so with the help of the waves of Dongting, you can go down the water to the Yangtze River and out of Hunan Province.

And by taking advantage of one vein, you can enter Dongting from the Yangtze River, enter Hunan Province, and must pass through Yuezhou. North, south, east and west, travel and transshipment, if you want to get the benefits of both land and water, Yuezhou is an insurmountable area. Militarily, Deyue Prefecture can control the lifeblood of Hunan, and can cut off the north-south traffic, so the city is a battleground for soldiers.

Zhu Yongxing sat in Yuezhou and personally supervised the division, and did not immediately prepare to attack Jingzhou, but carried out a troop transfer.

"The Zhengshuo army moved from Changsha to Changde, took over the area occupied by the Dangshuo army, attacked Shishou (now still named), Huarong (now still named), and Songzi, and Yuezhou became a corner, and opened up the land connection with Kuidong."

"After the Dangshuo army changed its defense, it turned to Changsha, went to Zhuzhou, attacked Pingxiang, and after entering Jiangxi Province, it went north with Wei Junzhong's troops to threaten Nanchang."

In order to make the Dangshuo Army, which was reorganized by the Dashun Army and the Wu Army, not meet early, and give their respective generals a buffer time, Zhu Yongxing was also helpless. At the same time, transferring the Dangshuo army farther away from Guizhou is also one of his careful thoughts.

"The sailors stepped up their rectification, set off three days later, anchored in the upper reaches of the Hudu River (now still named, belonging to the border of Hubei Province), and intercepted the throat of the Qing army in Jingzhou."

This is the common sense of soldiers, mentioned by the staff officers, and it is also the case in history, Zhu Yongxing is as good as a stream.

"The Intelligence Bureau, send someone to Yiling with a lonely secret letter, and order the Kuidong departments and the Yangtze River Naval Division to go down the river, meet the division in Songzi, and control and contain the upper reaches of Jingzhou."

Although there is a Changsha naval division, there are few small ships and cannons, and most of them are warships, which are far less powerful than the Yangtze River naval division, and the attack on Jingzhou will inevitably require the help of the Yangtze River water.

"The Yanshuo army was deployed in Yuezhou, and the Duke of Xuguo was in charge, and he went to Songzi to supervise the division after three days."

On the one hand, it is necessary to motivate morale, and on the other hand, it is also necessary to meet with the generals of Kuidong to communicate their feelings and dispel some of their doubts.

"Pass the lonely edict that the materials of Yunnan, Guangdong, and Guizhou provinces can go more to the Xiangli waterway until Changsha."

There is no rapids below the Xiangjiang River from the dividing reservoir, and the water depth is often more than one and a half meters, and it can be passed by civilian boats. In the 33rd year of the reign of Emperor Qin Shi Huang (214 B.C.), Shi Lu was sent to dig a spiritual canal in present-day Xing'an, bringing Sancheng of the Hunan water into the Li River to connect the Yangtze River water system and the Pearl River water system, and since then the river has become the main water transportation route for economic, military and cultural exchanges between the Central Plains and Lingnan. It is obviously faster to transport supplies by boat by water, and it can better meet the needs of the front line.

After some arrangement, the strategic focus of the Ming army was shifted to Jingyue. According to estimates, it will take at least half a month for the Qing army to dispatch troops and strengthen the defense of Jingzhou. Even if there are light horsemen to come to the aid of the starry night, it is impossible to have too many. The Ming army's control and containment of Yuezhou was equivalent to cutting off the Qing army's support along the Yangtze River in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, and Yunyang and Xiangyang were in the hands of the Shuo army, so the Qing army could only take the land route from Wuchang, or along the Han River to Qianjiang or Shayang and then turn to land.

If the Qing army poured troops from Wuchang to reinforce Jingzhou, the Ming army did not necessarily have to attack it. Only part of the naval division and part of the army could contain the Qing army in Jingzhou, and the Ming army could go down the river and attack Wuchang, or gather troops to march eastward, attack Nanchang, the capital of Jiangxi Province, and then go north to Jiujiang, quickly compressing the encirclement of the Qing army.

Fighting along the river, the sailor is the most important. With the help of the Yangtze River Naval Division, the Ming army could flexibly use its troops and advance by land and water, which added to its prestige and chances of victory. During the "Rebellion of the Three Feudatories", the Wu army had an advantage in the strength of the naval division in the early stage of the confrontation between Jingyue, but it only delayed for a long time, and watched the Qing army establish a base camp in Jingzhou and build a large boat division, gradually losing the initiative on the water. (To be continued......)