Li Hongzhang and Yi Qi Daming, except for a few stubborn widows and young people crying and shouting, basically did not encounter any resistance.

On the one hand, this was due to the fact that after the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, the Manchu court's control over the south was greatly weakened.

On the other hand, it was also because Li Hongzhang used telegrams and security notices to make a gesture of loving the people and cherishing the strength of the Tang State Mansion at the first time, saying that he would continue to maintain the previous compromise policies with the local gentry.

As an analogy, the Huai Jun Junjun at this time was somewhat similar to Ji Han who entered Shu during the Three Kingdoms period and the Sun family who entered Wu.

Even far inferior to Ji Han and Sun Wu, Li Hongzhang had to gain support by giving the gentry extreme preferential treatment and granting many privileges that even the Manchus could not grant.

Fortunately, as the de facto comprador of the Ming Dynasty, the Huaijun junta is still very rich and can run smoothly.

In short, Li Hongzhang did not encounter much resistance in controlling the situation.

He also held the Northern Expedition of the Huai Army according to the plan.

As the severed head fell, one of the few doppelgangers in the Jiangnan region was shot in the head.

An apricot doll that has only been used more than 20 times exploded on the spot.

It was really the Taiping army that lasted for a long time, and slaughtered the whole city too quickly, so that Li Hongzhang couldn't find a suitable person to sacrifice the flag.

As for the father-in-law of Andehai An, who was Shenjiang, this person is greedy for money and incompetent, and he is still a eunuch in Beizhili, how can he be used to sacrifice the flag?

So I can only bother the almighty Xingzhen again.

After the oath, Grandpa Li geared up and prepared to order the three armies to go north.

The so-called Northern Expedition of the Huai Army is not to plow the court and sweep the holes, go to fight the city of Beijing, and fight to the death with the banner people.

Although Li Hongzhang felt that as long as the Hunan army did not interfere and the Chu army did not interfere with his ass, then it would be easier for the Huai army to break through the Forbidden City than to break through Tianjing.

But the word "as long" is the least reliable.

Although they are now immobile in the face of the Qing court's counterinsurgency, no one can guarantee what they will do if the Huai army reveals its flaws.

Anyway, is there any agreement such as the king who entered Xianyang first, and there is no genuine heirloom jade seal in Beijing, so Grandpa Li has no heart to knock Beijing City.

What's more, there is the ultimate variable of Daming.

If you want to go to Beijing and enter Luo, you must report to the Ming court.

Sitting alone is too much like a tiger, and the spirit is raised under the rocky mountain.

If I don't speak first, which insect dares to make a sound?

That's probably what it means.

The real targets of Li Hongzhang and Huai Jun were northern Jiangsu and northern Anhui.

Nominally, Li Hongzhang was the governor of Suzhou, because the Ming Dynasty appeared to renew the life of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, Zeng Guofan had not given him the position of governor of Liangjiang.

However, with Zeng Guofan's northward march to Henan, Shandong, and Beizhili, Li Hongzhang has secretly included the southern Anhui region south of his hometown Hefei.

Historically, Zeng Guofan, like Monk Greenqin, a generation of famous marshals overturned in the hands of the Twist Army.

The Twist Army broke through Zeng Guofan's Shahe defense line and marched to Zhongmu in Henan, Henan was eroded, Hebei was not protected, and Zeng Guofan resigned.

Finally, Li Hongzhang came forward to clean up the mess, under the courage of Liu Mingchuan and other fierce generals, he attacked the enemy with a large number of people, and broke the enemy army, after this battle, the Huai army soared into the sky, replacing the Hunan army and becoming the first army of the late Qing Dynasty.

However, now because the Ming Dynasty is frantically shaking people in Shanghai and other places, shaking away millions of victims who lost their homes due to the Yellow River's reroute, the basic plate of the Twist Army has been greatly reduced.

Therefore, the twisting army of this era is far less ferocious than it was in history.

For example, Chen Zexin, a general who broke through the defense line of the Shahe River of Zeng Guo together with Zhang Zongyu, the king of Xiaoyan, is now working as a workshop director in the fifth deputy food grain and oil factory of Daming Xinsui.

With a monthly salary of 20 yuan, I married a wife of the He clan, and I am already pregnant, and I have a pretty good life.

Therefore, Zeng Guofan's pressure was much less, and the Shahe defense line has not been broken through so far.

Therefore, now Li Hongzhang is not going north to go to the Northern Expedition to Beizhili and Jingshi, but to the yellowing area to catch twisters.

Speaking of which, I, Li Zhongtang, are indeed my great pure minister.

Even if you make it clear, you still don't forget to give me the Qing Dynasty to clean up the bandits.

It may not sound good to say that it is a twister, but in fact, what Grandpa Li intends to do is the same work as the black chieftain who catches black slaves for Europeans.

Of course, the Ming were not European slave owners, picking slaves like cattle.

Whips and sticks don't matter, even the necessary killings are acceptable.

But if the Huai army dares to abuse his compatriots, the iron fist of the Ming Dynasty is not a joke.

The Tang Mansion has just opened, and there are a lot of expenses for various expenses, and Grandpa Li is also short of money.

In the past, it was still too slow to attract victims by relying on porridge sheds, and in order to get more aid, Li Hongzhang planned to personally go into battle to catch twisters and sell them.

This is the case in troubled times, human life is as shaky as paper, but compared to the suffering of the people in the yellowed area in history, it is already the best result to be sold to the Ming Dynasty.

However, after the oath meeting, before Grandpa Li's twisting team started, he encountered a head start.

Since his family knows his own family affairs, what is the situation of Huaijun, Li Hongzhang still has points in his heart.

This is a force that is surrounded by mountains and relies on clans, teachers and students, families, blood relations, fellow villagers, and so on.

What maintains these mountains as a whole and does not fall apart is Li Hongzhang's personal prestige on the one hand, and on the other hand, what is more important is his interests.

Such an army naturally has no ideals and convictions, and it is more of a military-commercial complex than an army, in which there are mixed fish and dragons, and the good and the bad are mixed.

How can there be any good business in the army?

But it is impossible not to do business, and Grandpa Li himself took the lead in doing business, and was the largest labor dealer and agent of clear goods.

Therefore, the Huai army is chaotic and chaotic, and Grandpa Li also admits it, after all, this is the lifeblood of his own life.

But he never expected that the root of his life would be so rotten!

Before the army was mobilized, Li Hongzhang sent his henchmen to inspect the whole army, and they checked it three times, and the number of people reported each time was very different.

In the end, he personally led the team, one battalion leader and one by one, but he was shocked into a cold sweat.

On paper, the Huai army now has a total of 100,000 troops.

Among them, Li Hongzhang's henchmen who purchased Ming guns and cannons and carefully equipped them were 18,000 people in the inscription battalion, Dingzi battalion, tree battalion, and Shengzi battalion, among which 5,500 people in the inscription battalion led by the general Liu Ming were the most elite.

There are more than 80,000 people in other second-line camps such as Qingzi Battalion, Kaizi Battalion, Qizi Battalion, Songzi Battalion, Xunzi Battalion, and Huazi Battalion.

However, at this point, Li Hongzhang found out that Huaijun had already been riddled with holes!

The main force is still a bit measured, Liu Mingchuan's 5,500 inscription battalion actually has 5,000 people, Pan Dingxin's Dingzi battalion has 5,000 people and 4,000 people remain, Zhang Shusheng's tree battalion has 3,000 people and 1,700 people, and Zhou Shengbo's Shengzi battalion has 700 people left after 1,500 people.

The situation of empty pay is quite normal.

As for why even if the four battalions are all full, they are only 5500 + 5000 + 3000 + 1500 = 15000, but it was said before that "there are 18,000 people in the inscription battalion, the dingzi battalion, the tree battalion, and the shengzi battalion......

Naturally, Grandpa Li himself has already taken the lead in eating the empty salaries of 3,000 people.

As a regimental training, the salary of the Huai army is not low, in addition to self-raising, the imperial court has also allocated it, although it has been in arrears for a long time.

For Li Hongzhang, piling up a little more people, on the one hand, he can ask for more money and grain from the imperial court, and when he asks the squire for food, he can also ask for three melons and two dates, and on the other hand, he can also pull the banner and pull the tiger skin, which plays the role of intimidating colleagues.

Drink the blood of soldiers, don't stumble.

27,000 people, 3,000 eaten by themselves, 2,600 by the generals of each battalion, and there are 20,000 left!

Judging from Li Hongzhang's experience in officialdom for so many years, this can be regarded as the first-class honest and mighty army in the Qing Dynasty!

For this level of false reporting of the number of soldiers, Grandpa Li is completely acceptable, and even a little relieved.

But when it came to the second-line troops such as the Qingzi Battalion and the Huazi Battalion, the situation was miserable!

More than 70,000 soldiers and horses were checked, but there were less than 35,000 people left!

Half of the soldiers and horses disappeared from paper!

If it is said that in the early years of the Green Battalion, it is normal for half of the soldiers and horses to eat empty salaries.

But this is the Huai Army!

Although the imperial court also gives food and salary, it is mainly Lao Li's personal money!

drank the blood of the soldiers, and drank the blood of his old Li, Lao Li was distressed!

And now is not a peaceful age, the soldiers and horses in his hands are the capital to settle down, not to mention that he wants to go further.

If there are no soldiers, who will conquer the city for him?

If there are no soldiers, who will add to their yellow robes?

It's too much to eat your own lifeblood like this!

Li Hongzhang was furious and hurriedly investigated the matter thoroughly, and sent several generals to prison in one go.

Even Li Hongzhang's own younger brother Li Zhaoqing was personally whipped off by Grandpa Li, and kicked back to his hometown to think about it behind closed doors.

"The commander of the main battalion of the Huai army, there are thirteen commanders, and the duke has to dismiss four, and the deputy battalion commander has a total of thirty-one, and the duke has to dismiss nineteen......

My father-in-law is heartbroken!

My father advises you, the silver of the Ming Dynasty is all virtual, the water is very deep, you can't grasp it!

You all turn your hearts, lungs, and intestines out, and dry them, wash them, wash them, and pick them up!

……

If we are rotten, the Huai army will be rotten! If you are all rotten, my father will have to run away to Daming to eat railway stock dividends!

Come to think of it, it's only been a few years since President Lincoln was shot, forget it! Zhu Fugui's double-gun hole is still staring at you every day!

……”

·

Li Hongzhang angrily reprimanded the ministers in the Guogong Mansion for an hour and a half.

But it was useless for Grandpa Li to be annoyed, because after finding out, even he couldn't convince himself.

Because these vanished Huai army soldiers were not dismissed, but were secretly sold to the Ming Dynasty by the generals of each battalion and banner.

It's not that the brothers are unfaithful, it's that the silver is too fragrant!

If you can't grasp it, you have to give it a try!

They sold the soldiers to the Ming Dynasty, and the Ming Dynasty paid according to the capitation, and the children were not deceived, which was the first piece of silver.

After selling people, they were paid empty money, and this was the second share of silver.

If you think that these generals only earn these two pieces of silver, you are very wrong!

They also had a third source of silver.