Zhu Xieyuan exterminated Tusi in Guizhou, and he also personally surveyed the terrain.

What is marked on the map and what the spies say is not as good as seeing it with their own eyes. Only when you have actually been to that place can you have a clear understanding of the terrain of the war.

Of course, it was too dangerous to go to the territory of the anti-thieves, so Zhu Xieyuan pretended to be training, and even his staff Wang Tingqian didn't know that he had left Nanchang.

Disguised as an old man visiting relatives in Guangdong, he took a merchant ship transporting porcelain, observing the topography of both sides of the strait along the way.

"Master, there is Jinshui, all the way to Shanggao County, Wanzai County," the guide is recommended by Chen Yuding, who is familiar with the geography of Jiangxi, "If you take a boat along Jinshui, you can make the strange soldiers get off the boat in Wanzai County, and then go over the mountains and mountains to Yichun." Yichun is the territory of the sweeping king......"

Zhu Xieyuan interrupted: "Isn't Yichun the territory of the Zhao thief?" ”

The guide corrected: "No, the three counties of Yichun, Pingxiang, and Yongxin are all the territory of the sweeping king. If the Zhao thieves can't be eliminated quickly, they can also recapture the four counties of Fengcheng, Qingjiang, Fenyi, and Xinyu first, so that the Zhao thieves lose a lot of commercial taxes and iron ore. ”

Zhu Xieyuan nodded in approval, and at the same time paid more attention to the sailors in his heart, and had to march along the rivers in Jiangxi.

Back then, Chen Youliang occupied the entire territory of Jiangxi, and Zhu Yuanzhang wanted to eat Chen Youliang, but he also had to win the Poyang Lake Water Battle.

Zhu Xieyuan pointed to the east bank and asked, "I see that there is another river on the bank of the river." What kind of river is that? ”

The guide replied, "That's the old way of the Fuhe." Starting from Nanchang along the old road of the Fuhe River, you can go straight to the rear of Fengcheng County to the southwest, and you can send a strange soldier to ambush day and night, and hide in the mountains in the southeast of Fengcheng County as an ambush. From Nanchang, along the old road of the Fu River, you can enter the current Fu River to the southeast, and then turn into a tributary after reaching Fuzhou. You can send strange soldiers to climb over the mountains, take Yongfeng County and Jishui County, and attack the foundation of the thieves. ”

Suddenly, merchant ships pass through a bustling estuary town.

Zhu Xieyuan asked, "What kind of town is this?" ”

The guide replied, "Xigang Town, this small river is a tributary of the old road of the Fu River. Don't look at it as just a small river, but when the flood occurs, this is the only river connecting the Ganjiang River and the Fuhe River in the south of Nanchang, so there are several flood gates at the mouth of the river. ”

Ten miles further, you will reach Fengcheng County.

The merchant ship did not dock until it reached Zhangshu Town, where it finally docked to replenish water and food.

Zhu Xieyuan didn't dare to get off the boat, but hid in the cabin and took out the map to digest what he saw and heard today.

The next day, after the merchant ship set sail, Zhu Xieyuan continued to go out of the cabin to observe.

This section of the channel is very magnificent, with mountains on both sides, and the Gan River passes through the middle.

The guide pointed to Xingan County and said: "Occupy this city, control the north and south, Grandpa Yue and Han Shizhong used to train here back then. Moreover, sending troops from Xingan County can bypass the mountains and mountains along the river and directly attack Xiajiang County and Jishui County by land. ”

The more Zhu Xieyuan looked, the more headache he felt, he only held the map, he couldn't figure it out, and he knew how terrible it was when he observed it on the spot.

Jiangxi's mountains and rivers are too suitable for war, and there are too many places for soldiers to fight.

If you want to conquer the thieves, Linjiang Mansion must be defeated, but it is very difficult to attack.

Even if Linjiang Mansion is defeated, Zhao Thief can still hold the county seat of Xingan.

Even if Xingan County is laid, Zhao Thief can still hold the county seat of Jiajiang, Jishui County, and Ji'an Fucheng, all of which are stuck in the mountains and rivers.

Moreover, due to the spread of mountains, the route of the officers and men was very simple. Even if you can send strange soldiers to go around, you can only send a small group of strange soldiers, because you have to go over the mountains and mountains after going around.

The single route of the officers and soldiers meant that the defense of the Zhao thieves was very easy.

The Zhao thief can completely skip the water fight, hide the water master, hold the city, and wait for work. When the officers and men were exhausted, the waterways marched together, killing the officers and soldiers in confusion and fleeing.

Zhu Xieyuan thought to himself: You can't fight city by city, you must lure the thieves out to fight a decisive battle. Otherwise, if you fight an offensive and defensive war with the anti-thief, you won't be able to destroy the anti-thief after ten years.

Jiangxi's riverside cities are too outrageous, and those small county towns are all built beyond specifications.

The main reason is that there are often heavy floods, and once there is a big flood, it is easy to wash away the county. Every time the county town was destroyed, funds were raised to repair it, and then it was built more grandly and strongly. The county town here is far more defensive than most of the state cities in other provinces!

It can't be moved, the offensive and defensive battles really can't be moved.

All the way south, enter the cabin when you land on the shore, and exit the cabin when you are offshore, Zhu Xieyuan has come to Wan'an County a few days later.

Seeing the scale of Wan'an County, and then looking at the towering mountains on both sides of the river in front of him, Zhu Xieyuan only felt that his scalp was numb.

According to the tour guide, the guest soldiers of Liangguang and Fujian can only go north from here to suppress the thieves, otherwise they will have to go around in a big circle, and they will not be able to form a situation of attacking from the north to the south.

And the thieves don't have to do anything else, just a few chains across the river, and they can blind the soldiers of Liangguang and Fujian.

Even if the chains are disposed of, there is still Wan'an County blocked there.

The walls of this county town are more than 7 meters high. To the west is the Gan River, to the east is the mountains, and to the south there are mountains.

If the officers and soldiers attacked from the south, they had to first capture the mountains south of the city, or go around to the north of the city to attack the city (which was very dangerous). It seems that the city wall is not as good as Nanchang City, but with the victory of mountains and rivers, the difficulty of conquering this city is no different from attacking Nanchang City.

After Wan'an County, it is the territory of the government.

Zhu Xieyuan met Fujian Governor Zou Weilian in Ganzhou, and the two exchanged pleasantries for a while, and then began to discuss the affairs of suppressing bandits.

Zou Weilian sighed: "Alas, after garrisoning Ganzhou last year, due to the corruption of military discipline, lack of grain and grass, and lack of warships, the army has been reorganized. I wanted to attack Ji'an this spring, but I sent spies many times, and there were heavy guards. A few days ago, Zhao Yaonian, the number one general of the anti-thieves, led his troops to personally guard Wan'an County. ”

"Confused, why didn't you surprise Wan'an last year?" Zhu Xieyuan asked.

Zou Weilian said: "When Fujian guest soldiers enter Jiangxi, military discipline is very corrupt, and the army must be purged. Moreover, although the Zhao thieves did not occupy Wan'an last year, Wan'an was occupied by two thieves surnamed Fang. With only a thousand men garrisoned, the city would be difficult to attack. At that time, if I sent troops to occupy Wan'an, the Zhao thieves would definitely attack with large troops. He has the advantage of being a sailor, and he doesn't need to recapture Wan'an at all, but he can send troops to take Ganzhou directly. Ill-prepared, I really didn't dare to send troops easily. ”

Zhu Xieyuan said: "Last winter, Zhao Thief was fighting in Fengcheng County, and he fought with Guangxin soldiers and Fuzhou soldiers in Jishui. How can you go south? ”

"But it's so far away, I don't know," Zou Weilian said, "The spies sent to Ji'an didn't detect Zhao Thief's big move." There is only one possibility, Zhao Thief didn't use all his strength at all last winter. If the thief used all his strength, he would order the peasant soldiers to be gathered. The superintendent can know that under the rule of Zhao Thief, each household must send peasant soldiers to practice, and once all are recruited to fight, the number of troops may exceed 20,000! ”

Zhu Xieyuan was silent, he knew the news, and there was no way to deal with it.

The Zhao thief divided the field to the small people, and in order to keep the land, the small people trained to form an army. In his spare time, he served as a soldier, fought for his own land, and his morale even far exceeded that of officers and soldiers.

Zhu Xieyuan changed the topic and asked, "Hasn't the civil rebellion between the two Guangxi people subsided?" ”

"How can it be so fast," Zou Weilian said, "Shen Fushuai (Shen Youlong) wrote a few days ago, saying that most of the rebellious people in Guangdong have been cleared, and they will go to Guangxi to suppress bandits. ”

"It seems that we can only find a way from Hunan." Zhu Xieyuan said.

The current Huguang is divided into two theaters.

The area north of the Yangtze River in Huguang, referred to as Hubei, is under the jurisdiction of Lu Xiangsheng, the premier of the five northern provinces.

The area south of the Yangtze River in Huguang, referred to as Hunan, was under the jurisdiction of Zhu Xieyuan, the governor of the five southern provinces.

Zou Weilian said: "Hunan must send troops, which can be directly inserted into the lair of the Zhao thief." At that time, the south, south and west will be attacked from three sides, and the Zhao thief will definitely lack skills. ”

Zhu Xieyuan said: "The three counties of Yichun, Pingxiang, and Yongxin are stealing for the anti-thieves. I will order all the prefectures and counties in Hunan to recruit troops and form an army, and clean up the king of the land first, and it is best to force this person to surrender. Only after Hunan has formed an army can it make a big move, and it is impossible to use troops again within this year. Once the army is used, it will inevitably be defeated. ”

Zhu Xieyuan was really not in a hurry to suppress the bandits, he conscripted the Sichuangui Tusi during the Apocalypse, fought for several years, and went home to serve three years of mourning in the middle of the way, and then went to Sichuangui to be the governor, all of which added up to nearly ten years.

He believed that it was necessary to first rectify the rule of officials, lightly punish the meager endowments, train the army, and then strike a fatal blow against the anti-thieves.

Zou Weilian complained bitterly: "I'm afraid that if we can't wait for next year, the Fujian soldiers will be in chaos." ”

"Why?" Zhu Xieyuan wondered.

Zou Weilian said: "The whole family below was taken away by the Zhao thief, and the relatives who were close to him were taken away. ”

Zhu Xieyuan was speechless for a moment.

Zou Weilian said: "Even if I can ignore my mother, wife and children, but who believes it?" The thief Zhao was cunning and sent people to spread rumors that I had become a thief, and now the officers and men in the army suspected that I had become a thief. Moreover, these soldiers are from Fujian, and I have not allowed them to plunder in Jiangxi, nor have I allowed them to deduct military salaries, and I have long held a grudge against me. Soldiers of Fujian...... I can't hold it anymore. Before the autumn harvest this year, if the troops are not dispatched quickly, those generals will definitely take advantage of the autumn harvest to plunder the countryside. ”

"Within this year, we can't fight," Zhu Xieyuan sighed, "When I first came to Jiangxi, I found that the officers and soldiers were embarrassed and useful, and they had to train for at least one year before they could fight." Moreover, the troops of Hunan have not yet formed an army, and they cannot form a three-sided encirclement, and it is difficult to have a chance of victory once they are attacked. In Linjiangfu City alone, I had to besiege it with a large army for months. ”

Zou Weilian said: "The government trains the soldiers, and the thieves don't train the soldiers?" The longer it drags on, the stronger the Zhao thief becomes. His territory has been harvested year after year, and the jurisdiction of the government is indescribable! ”

"Do you have someone who can calm the soldiers' henchmen?" Zhu Xieyuan asked.

Zou Weilian shook his head and said: "No, these Fujian generals are used to being arrogant and domineering, and they have all been involved in smuggling before, and they have always not taken the court seriously. ”

Zhu Xieyuan had an even more headache, he wanted Zou Weilian to divide his troops.

No matter how many Fujian soldiers are stationed in Ganzhou, the attack on Wan'an County cannot be launched. A third of the troops can be divided and detoured to Fuzhou, and some Jiangxi officers and soldiers can also be sent to join the division and attack Yongfeng County from the east over the mountains.

But in the current situation, let alone let the army in Fujian divide its troops, I am afraid that if we get together, we will have to make trouble.

The Ming Inspector is so difficult to be, he is very hardworking, and only one point can be used in the war.

What do you do with the rest of your mind?

To deal with Emperor Chongzhen, to deal with court battles, to deal with local civil officials, to deal with military generals, to deal with the eunuchs of the prison army, to deal with the gentry and strong, and to rack their brains to raise money and food.

And the anti-thief, just rebel wholeheartedly.

Just when Zhu Xieyuan went all the way south and surveyed the terrain along the river. Zhao Han, a thief, has already sent troops in advance, not to attack the government, but to conquer the sweeping king.

Pingxiang County must be taken, and if it occupies the pass of Pingxiang County, it will be able to block more than half of the officers and men of Huguang County, so as to ensure the safety of its rear.