Chapter 276: Unexpected Path (I)
"Who is this Zeng Jing? Why does the governor care so much about him?"
"I heard that he was Lu Liuliang's student."
"Who is Lu Liuliang?"
"If you ask me, I don't know."
The people's historical knowledge was not enough to understand Lü Liuliang and Zeng Jing. Even Gao Pang, Lei Hu, and Qian Qing, who had read books, did not know. Seeing that Huo Chong had spent a whole day receiving several Hunanese and Jiangsu and Zhejiang people who came from Jiangsu and Zhejiang, the Han regime officials who learned a little bit of the news were very puzzled.
Huo Chong was so busy that he never spent his time generously on people other than his own people. The only outsider who was worth Huo Chong's trouble was Yongzheng.
However, it was indeed because of Emperor Yongzheng that Zeng Jing and Lü Liuliang became famous in later generations. In history, Lü Liuliang was a scholar who opposed the Qing Dynasty and restored the Ming Dynasty. Zeng Jing, as a disciple of Lü Liuliang, listened to the stories told by the officials who were exiled from the capital to Guangxi and other places, and wrote a letter to Yue Zhongqi to encourage Yue Zhongqi to rebel.
Huo Chong's original knowledge of Zeng Jing came from literary works. After the conversation, he realized that he had made a mistake. Zeng Jing was not a disciple of Lu Liuliang. Instead, he had read Lu Liuliang's works.
Huo Chong sighed, "Knowing what you know and knowing what you don't know is knowledge. People may know what they know, but they often don't know that they don't know."
Just like Huo Chong finally knew this time that Zeng Jing was not a disciple of Lu Liuliang. This made Huo Chong feel that he still had to adjust his cognitive system and set the standard of "not knowing" more accurately and carefully.
If Huo Chong knew what happened in history, he would probably be even more shocked.
Emperor Yongzheng began to realize that the Huayi thought promoted by Lu Liuliang and others had a broad basis, while the rumors spread by Yinsi and others were indeed a serious problem.
However, Zeng Jing was a "pedantic and foolish person" in the countryside and was not a big threat. In September of the seventh year, Emperor Yongzheng compiled the conversations between him and Zeng Jing into "Records of Awakening from Delusion", and sent senior officials to lead Zeng Jing to Jiangning, Hangzhou, Suzhou and other places to give lectures and refute the remarks of Liu Liang and Yinsi.
As described in literary works, when Yongzheng was alive, he did not kill Zeng Jing, but instead used Zeng Jing to do propaganda for Yongzheng.
However, tolerance for "pedantic people" like Zeng Jing did not extend to the real scholar Lu Liuliang.
Yongzheng launched a literary inquisition and burned all of Lü Liuliang's posthumous works. Although Liuliang and his sons Baozhong and Hongkui were dead, their bodies were beheaded and displayed. Yi Zhong and Zai Kuan were both beheaded, and their clansmen were all executed, and their grandchildren were sent to Ningguta as slaves.
Huang Bu'an often claimed that he was a private disciple of Lu Liuliang. Che Dingfeng and Ding Ben had published Lu's books. Sun Yongke, Jing Yu and others privately collected Lu's books. They were all implicated and many died.
Because of Huo Chong's activeness, Yue Zhongqi was transferred to Shandong and Henan to fight, which did not give Zeng Jing any chance to cause trouble. Instead, many lives were saved without knowledge.
Although he didn't know the history, Huo Chong's evaluation of Zeng Jing was basically the same as Yongzheng's: Zeng Jing was a "pedantic person" with a head full of unrealistic ideas. However, this guy had a strange idea: those who till the land should own the land.
If it weren't for this reason, Huo Chong and Zeng Jing would not have talked for more than an hour.
I don't know if Zeng Jing was poor, or if he had seen the cruel side of superficial social conflicts. Or for some other reason, in short, Zeng Jing hoped to make the land equal.
Even so, Huo Chong would not give Zeng Jing more than two hours to meet him. What Huo Chong was concerned about were the two people who came with Zeng Jing. One of them spoke with a Xuzhou accent and called himself Kong Liangeng. The other was from Huangshi and was called Weber.
Kong Liangeng was of medium build, chubby, with a harmless smile on his round face. He looked like a kind gentleman. Weber was tall and a martial artist. However, his conversation was quite elegant. He looked like a man-eating tiger that was chewing on a human leg while keeping a book in hand and studying attentively.
Unlike Zeng Jing, the fisherman with great ambition but little talent, the two did not talk about any profound principles.
Huo Chong talked with them for a long time, asked Zeng Jing to rest first, and then continued to discuss with the two in private.
Weber was already a little tired, so he leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes to rest. Kong Liangeng persuaded him, "General, follow the route that Dorgon took southwards and send troops to march along the canal. Ignore all other prefectures and counties and go straight to Jiangning. Take Jiangning and pay tribute to Zhu Yuanzhang's tomb. Announce to the world your wish to expel the Tartars and restore China. The orthodoxy of the world is on your side. If you continue to carefully manage Shandong like you did, the shock after Yongzheng's death will sooner or later pass. The general said in his manifesto that the barbarians will not have a hundred years of national destiny. People in Jiangnan are skeptical. If it drags on, the world will see that the general has not expanded and will think that the Qing Dynasty is not doomed."
Huo Chong also felt that his energy was almost exhausted. To put it in a negative way, the two guys on the opposite side did intend to use Huo Chong. If the Han army carried out such a bold military action, these two people would be reused. Not to mention rising to prominence, at least they would be able to take advantage of the situation in this chaotic world.
However, these two people are indeed capable. Huo Chong really didn't expect that people of this era would come up with a military plan that Huo Chong hadn't thought of. And this plan is not impossible to achieve.
As for the political significance of this military plan, it is indeed extremely huge. As the two said, Huo Chong only needs to capture Jiangning and raise the flag in front of Zhu Yuanzhang's tomb. With Huo Chong's merit in killing Yongzheng, at least he has obtained the orthodoxy of expelling the Tartars.
Huo Chong knew how important orthodoxy was. In Shandong, even though the Kong family was already a representative of reactionary gentry in politics and had offended Huo Chong slightly, none of Huo Chong's subordinates really wanted to destroy the Kong family.
This is the so-called power of orthodoxy. Unless you have a stronger power and a more just cause, you must be able to completely annihilate the orthodox owner.
Otherwise, attacking the orthodoxy would be equivalent to putting oneself in an environment where everyone in the world would want to kill oneself.
When Huo Chong hesitated, Weber opened his eyes. He looked serious and his eyes were bright. Just looking at him made him look pressured. Even the guards immediately seemed ready to take action.
Huo Chong is not afraid of Weber. He is confident in his skills.
"General. We don't know how to march and fight. If you go south, you will certainly encounter many difficulties and obstacles along the way. But that's how things are in the world. If you don't take what God gives you, you will suffer the consequences. Opportunities can't be missed. What's more, I heard that you have tens of thousands of elite soldiers under your command, and three thousand Vietnamese soldiers can conquer Wu. You also occupy Shandong, which is much stronger than Dorgon's situation back then. Or are you worried that if you go south, the Qing army will invade Shandong?"
Huo Chong was even more impressed. Weber hit the nail on the head. With the current strength of the Han army, they could send 40,000 troops south. If they only attacked Jiangning, even though the city was high and the moat was deep, they would still be able to take it down. After all, the troops guarding Jiangning, or Nanjing, were only the Qing army. They were the Qing army that had not received the support of the foreign devils.
However, at that time, the Qing army in Beijing and Henan had a total of 200,000 to 300,000 troops. Relying on a mixed force of more than 10,000 veterans and 50,000 new troops, there was a fear of mishaps.
The worst case scenario is that the city of Nanjing cannot be captured after a long siege, and the city of Jinan is lost instead. This will have a great impact on morale.
Moreover, Huo Chong himself did not want to leave Shandong so soon. Could he really conquer Jiangnan by just capturing an isolated city, Nanjing?
Weber did not continue to speak, but looked at Kong Liangeng. Kong Liangeng's eyes became firm and nodded to Weber. Weber then continued: "General, I wanted to invite another friend to come this time. But that friend is a little busy. Before this trip, that friend also helped us deduce. If you are worried about the Qing army, there is no need to worry..."
At night, Huo Chong invited the two to dinner. This was the end of the conversation. Before leaving, Huo Chong suddenly remembered something, "I wonder how I should address my two friends?"
Kong Liangeng and Weber looked at each other again, and Kong Liangeng said, "My friend is not well-known, his name is Gong Yu."
Gong Yu, Gong Yu. Huo Chong repeated this name several times in his mind before letting the two of them rest.
Back in the office, Qian Qing, Lei Hu, Gao Pang and others were yawning and chatting. The room was filled with the smell of cigarettes, and it seemed that they smoked a lot to stay awake.
Huo Chong explained Kong Liangeng and Weber's strategy to everyone, and Gao Pang was the first to applaud. "Commander-in-chief, if we do this, it will be the final word."
Qian Qing frowned her beautiful brows, "If something goes wrong along the way, it will be bad."
Lei Hu frowned and wanted to say something, but couldn't. Finally, he said, "If you lead the army, I am willing to be the vanguard."
Hu Yue followed up and shouted: "Let me be the pioneer."
"Stop making trouble!" Qian Qing shouted solemnly, suppressing the impulse of others to express their opinions.
Huo Chong saw something in Qian Qing's expression and couldn't help asking, "Do I look like I want to fight so much?"
Qian Qing was as straightforward as usual, "Yes, sir, I am interested."
Huo Chong simply stopped hiding his feelings and said, "If we really have to fight, what do you think we should be careful about next?"
None of the top leaders had thought of such an expedition. Apart from Gao Pang, only Huo Chong had been to Nanjing in the 21st century. Many others had never even been to Shandong.
No matter how much people talked about it, they didn't see anything big happening. All they could think of were things they had already seen.
Finally, Lei Hu opened the combat manual and read, "Combat plan, consider attack and retreat first."
After reading this sentence, Yang Wangfu suddenly woke up, "If our army goes south and the Qing army attacks Shandong, what should we do?"
This sentence really woke people up from their dreams. Some people who originally supported the expedition immediately stopped supporting it. Those who originally did not oppose the expedition began to oppose it instinctively.
Huo Chong was in a much better mood when he saw that the situation had finally returned to what it should be. But disappointment was inevitable, after all, these guys had fought so many battles but had not been able to come up with a strategic thinking.
On the contrary, several scholars in the south who had never fought in a war had already considered the situation comprehensively and even came to very bold conclusions.
Gong Yu. Huo Chong opened his notebook and read the name again. If Kong Liangeng and Weber were not lying and there really was such a person, Huo Chong would visit him if he had the chance.
On the fourth day of the tenth month of the second year of the reign of Emperor Kunlong, Huo Chong led 40,000 troops to the canal. At this time, the canal was full of large and small ships. The large ships had been remodeled, and the paddle wheels driven by the hot ball machine gave Huo Chong a completely retro feel. What he saw seemed to be the scene of paddle steamers on the canals of Europe in the 19th century.
The people surrounding the paddle steamer were all curious. They saw that the rear of the big boat was reinforced with iron plates. There were several large iron rings on the iron plates, and large iron chains were attached to the iron rings. The iron chains pulled the small boat behind. The central axis of the small boat was also reinforced with iron plates. There was another small boat connected to the back.
A large ship towing four small ships is a situation never seen before on the canal. Normally, several small ships tow a large ship.
Having made the decision, Huo Chong did not hesitate. The people on the ship were all transferred from the shipping department. They started the engine of the ship, and soon the paddle wheel began to turn slowly. Water splashed everywhere under the beating of the paddle wheel, and was partially blocked by the mud tiles on the paddle wheel. The water gathered on the huge mud tiles and fell back into the water along the edge of the mud tiles like a rolling waterfall.
The big ship started to move. The iron chain rustled and soon it was pulled straight. The small boat behind was a modified Wupeng boat. The original Wupeng boat was turned into a light-weight flat roof. There were passengers and some supplies on the flat roof.
The lower layer is reinforced with iron plates, so the center of gravity is quite stable, which can just balance the extra part above and prevent it from overturning due to shaking.
At least after capsizing many times during the experiments in the Daqing River, they finally calculated a design height that would not capsize.
The lower level was not empty either, with supplies in the middle and oars on both sides. Soldiers paddled at the same frequency with sharp whistles and drums. With traction and its own power, the largest ship ever seen on the canal towed and moved south along the canal.
Huo Chong had limited production capacity and only produced 30 marine hot-bulb machines. In addition to insufficient production capacity, there was another problem, which was the fuel used. There was no space on the ship to build a larger gas generator. It could only use vegetable oil such as castor oil to provide power. In order to reduce the viscosity of the oil, sunflower oil with lower viscosity and better fluidity had to be added.
Although the steam heater is not very picky about oil, Huo Chong still feels distressed by this method of burning.
Thirty small fleets transported more than 6,000 people in total. These 6,000 people were basically elite troops who served as assault forces.
The fleet continued to advance, day and night. To the south of Jining was Zaozhuang, also known as Lanling. This place had been captured long ago, and there was no obstacle at all.
The troops and horses advanced simultaneously by land and sea, and soon arrived at Suqian. When they arrived at the city, they saw that the gates were closed, but there was no one defending it. The Han army easily captured the city.
The troops continued to move south and soon arrived in Huai'an.
This is an extremely wealthy place. Although Huai'an in the 21st century is not a particularly famous city, at least Huo Chong has heard of the glorious history of Huai'an chefs in the Ming and Qing dynasties.
I thought I would encounter a stubborn resistance from the Qing army in Huai'an. But I didn't. Just like in Suqian, the Qing officials showed no backbone at all and fled from top to bottom. They disappeared without a trace.
The progress was so rapid that Huo Chong was a little uneasy. Going south from Huai'an, you will reach Yangzhou in the north of the Yangtze River. Entering Yangzhou means entering the Yangtze River.
Opposite Yangzhou is Zhenjiang. After arriving in Zhenjiang, they can either go south to attack Hangzhou or go west to attack Nanjing.
No matter which route is chosen, it depends on whether Yangzhou and Zhenjiang can be easily captured.
Huo Chong was uneasy, but he didn't show it. Hu Yue asked to be the vanguard, and when Huo Chong agreed, he joked with Hu Yue, "Maybe Yangzhou is also an empty city."
Two days later, Hu Yue was waiting for Huo Chong outside Yangzhou City. When he saw Huo Chong, he immediately stepped forward and saluted Huo Chong excitedly. Huo Chong saw that Hu Yue had an indescribable change. Although Hu Yue tried to look bold before leaving, he still had some uneasiness in his eyes and eyebrows. At this time, Hu Yue looked a little tired, but that uneasiness turned into confidence. He was not as arrogant as before.
Huo Chong was delighted to see Hu Yue's change. After returning the greeting, Hu Yue stepped forward and said, "Report to the governor. It is just as the governor expected. The Qing army in Yangzhou fled across the river when they saw us coming."
Instead of boasting about his own achievements, Hu Yue simply recounted everything that happened…
Huo Chong couldn't help but praise his hard work, and then said to Gao Pang, the chief clerk who was traveling with him, "You have lived here for a long time. What do you think the Qing army is going to do?"
Gao Pang thought for a moment and replied unconfidently: "Could it be that the Qing army has moved all the ships to the south bank?"
When Hu Yue heard this, he became anxious and said, "That's what I thought. I saw that the Qing army didn't have many people, so how come they took away so many boats! It turned out to be just for this." After saying this, he couldn't help but sighing with regret.
Huo Chong didn't want to see Hu Yue's mood being affected by this matter again, so he simply put his hands on Hu Yue's shoulders and said, "Hu Yue, you have done a good job! Don't worry, let me handle this matter. You have done a good job!"
Seeing that Huo Chong did not blame him, Hu Yue calmed down even though he still felt regretful.
Huo Chong began to prepare boats for crossing the river. They also began to discuss whether to cross the river in Zhenjiang or go west along the river and go upstream. Both options have their own advantages. These Shandong heroes who have never had any experience in naval warfare discussed it a lot, but no one could come up with a plan that could really convince them.
In Hangzhou, at the end of the Grand Canal across the Yangtze River, the bannermen in the city already knew the situation.
Hangzhou Manchu City was located in the city of Hangzhou at that time. It was built by building a boundary wall 19 feet high and 6 feet wide in the west corner of the city. It "extends from Jingzilou in the north, Junjiang Bridge in the south, West Lake in the west, and Main Street in the east", with a circumference of more than nine miles. Manchu City has complete walls, gates, and moats, just like a city within a city.
There are five gates in the city. Pinghai Gate and Yingzi Gate (south of Pinghai Gate) are built on the east side, located at Bijiaofang and Huashi respectively; Yanling Gate is built in the southwest, located at Yanling Bridge; Gongchen Gate is built in the north side, located at Jingzilou; Chengqian Gate is built in the northwest, located at Cheqiao. Gongchen Gate and Chengqian Gate are relatively narrow, and Chengqian Gate is also known as the convenience gate, which is convenient for "woodcutters to enter and leave".
The eight banners of the Manchu army were stationed in different positions. The Plain White Banner was stationed in Gongchen Gate in the north of the city, the Bordered White Banner was stationed in Pinghai Gate in the east of the city, the Plain Blue Banner was stationed in Yingzi Gate in the east of the city, the Bordered Blue Banner was stationed in Junjiang Bridge in the southeast of the city, the Plain Red Banner was stationed in Chengqian Gate in the northwest of the city, the Bordered Red Banner was stationed west of Jingting Bridge in the south of the city, the Plain Yellow Banner was stationed west of Hongfu Bridge in the south-central part of the city, and the Bordered Yellow Banner was stationed east of Changsheng Bridge in the north of the city.
A heated discussion broke out in this most important city in Jiangnan.
