Chapter 374: New Outlook of the Ministry of Rites (10)
After Ortai and Yue Zhongqi confronted Qian Qing, Qian Qing once commented on the Qing army, "Although they are not good at fighting, they are not rotten yet."
The Qing army was particularly strong in terms of team scheduling. When the Chinese army stationed in the capital saw that the Qing army led by Hong Zhou was retreating, they did not dare to continue chasing and could only retreat to the capital.
The meeting on what to do next lasted for a long time, and everyone discussed until they were dizzy, but in the end no result was reached.
This feeling of dizziness, exhaustion, and exhaustion was even more tiring than fighting a big battle. Just when no one could come up with a decision, someone reported, "Nonsense!"
Everyone was a little more excited. Xuzhou had said Hu Yue was coming. Everyone didn't like someone coming to attack. At this time, everyone found that they couldn't come up with an idea. Hu Yue, who Huo Chong liked very much, arrived. Everyone felt that Hu Yue could probably take on the responsibility.
Hu Yue arrived and immediately started a meeting. Hu Yue was not too young. When he first followed Huo Chong, he was in his twenties. Now he was almost 40 years old. In this era, people in their forties had to prepare coffins and shrouds.
I'm not kidding, forty years old is the age when the earth will almost bury your chest.
Perhaps because he is at this age, Hu Yue looks very open-minded. He has a round face like a Shandong native, and usually speaks whatever comes to his mind. At this moment, he looks a bit young.
When people asked why it was not Commander Qian who came, Hu Yue laughed and made a gesture in front of her stomach with her hand as if she was stroking her round belly.
At first, no one understood. Hu Yue was a little fat, but now he has lost weight and looks very energetic. This action...
Finally someone figured it out and couldn't help but ask happily: "Big sister is pregnant?"
This reaction was really good, but this person had obviously been in the capital for some time and was unable to attend the wedding ceremony that was not held. I couldn't help but follow up with a sentence, "It must be the emperor!"
Hu Yue couldn't help but spit after hearing this, "Pah! If it's not the emperor's, is it still yours?"
Now, the guy who was so happy that he didn't think anything happened suddenly blushed, and felt very embarrassed amid the laughter of everyone.
With this smile, the atmosphere became better. Hu Yue laughed a few times and continued, "I am here to steal the credit if you are sleeping. Raise your hand!"
Everyone was stunned. Originally, everyone thought Hu Shuo must be here to share the credit, but after hearing what Hu Shuo said in the beginning, they felt that they had lost their initial confidence.
Since he was hesitant in his heart, his expression would show it. Hu Yue's nickname was Nonsense. The reason why a guy who talks nonsense could still stay in the top fifteen was because he didn't care about many things, especially the credit.
Seeing that everyone no longer resisted, Hu Shuo asked: "Let's not talk about winning the battle or defending the capital. I will ask something else, what are our priorities at this time. Everyone speak up. Don't think you can avoid it, speak one by one."
Although whether people like Hu Yue or not is one thing, Hu Yue is in such a high position at this time, so naturally they cannot ignore his empty orders. So they started talking.
The wisdom of the people was gathered and the key points raised surprised everyone. For example, someone suggested that we should protect the books, documents and archives that we collected with great difficulty.
When the people from the logistics department raised this, most people suddenly remembered that this was indeed something that Huo Chong cared about very much.
Although the brothers in the capital city did use this incident as a gimmick and wanted Huo Chong to let everyone stay in the capital city, when everyone really stayed in the capital city, the incident was immediately forgotten.
Everyone cares about different things, so the answers here are surprisingly varied, which also surprises people who don’t care about those things.
Finally, Hu Yue made a brief summary. There are only two points in the summary: keep the literature and kill the Qing army.
"I have joined the Ministry of Rites. Everyone will join the Ministry of Rites in the future, so we have to hold meetings like this. Let me make it clear first. In my opinion, it is not important whether the capital is taken back by the Qing Dynasty. If the Qing Dynasty gathers hundreds of thousands of troops in the capital, it will only allow us to catch them all in one fell swoop. So there is no need to consider defending the city. Besides, a brother said that the capital lacks a place to supply water for our 50,000 people. Not to mention the food and drink for hundreds of thousands of Qing Dynasty troops. What do you think?"
"If we lose the capital, the emperor will blame us!" The commander in charge of the capital's defense was shocked.
Hu Yue patted his chest and said, "At this time, I will take full responsibility."
Hearing Hu Yue start talking nonsense again, everyone didn't quite believe him. Hu Yue sighed, "Do you want me to write a document?"
No one said anything. Everyone thought it would be best if Hu Yue wrote a military order. Hu Yue did not hesitate, asked for paper and pen, and quickly wrote one. As soon as he finished writing, the commander grabbed it and crumpled it up, "Forget it, Brother Hu said so, we all believe it."
Seeing that the commander did not tear up the document, Hu Yue secretly laughed in his heart, but he could understand it. After all, it was good to have such a thing. But we were all old brothers, and we couldn't tear each other's faces.
Seeing that everyone had to accept the idea of "not paying attention to one city or one place", Hu Yue continued: "I will take the responsibility. We have to defeat the Qing army. The credit belongs to everyone. How should this credit be calculated?"
Everyone was still confused, so Hu Yue simply pointed it out, "I don't think we need to bother defending the capital. We just need to put all the books and materials in a defensible place, and put the necessary supplies together. Let's send some people to guard it. The other troops will attack in different directions. Wherever we encounter the enemy, we will defeat them. If we encounter the enemy during the day, we will defeat them during the day. If we encounter the enemy at night, we will defeat them at night. We have 50,000 people, so we can at least send out 40,000. 40,000 against 100,000, are you afraid?"
After hearing this, everyone was shocked by Hu Yue's opinion. After a long silence, the commander asked, "Brother Hu, if the capital is lost..."
"If the capital is lost, I will take the responsibility. If 40,000 cannot defeat 100,000, you will admit it, but I will not! We were 20,000 against 100,000 back then, were we afraid?"
Everyone was in a dilemma, but after thinking it over, someone suddenly stood up and said, "I am willing to fight. This capital city is just a burden! If we throw away the burden, what else do we have to fear!"
Others also gradually accepted Hu Yue's ideas. When someone took the lead, others followed.
The commander of the capital was not so excited. After the group of people finished shouting, he said, "The documents are piled up like a mountain and can't be transported out. Let's pile them in the warehouses in the Forbidden City and Qipan Street..."
Hu Yue immediately asked: "How many people are needed to defend this area?"
The commander was stunned for a moment, and after a moment's hesitation, he replied, "At least 10,000 people!"
"That's enough. That's why I asked whether the credit should be shared. If the Qing Dynasty didn't come around to attack the capital, the troops guarding these treasures would feel that they had no credit. But if the Qing Dynasty really attacked the capital, the pressure on these 10,000 people would be very great. I'm afraid they would feel wronged. So, let's agree on how to divide the credit. After it's agreed, everyone will do their job. If I say, it's better to share it together. Otherwise, some troops will feel wronged!"
Everyone listened to Hu Yue's straightforward words and didn't say much. They all looked at the commander of the capital. In fact, the initial difficulty was how to defend the capital and annihilate the Qing army. Everyone wanted to have both. However, with only 50,000 people, how could they take care of everything?
At this time, Hu Yue changed the defense of the capital to the defense of literature and books, which made the pressure of defense plummet. As Hu Yue said, with 40,000 troops in the field, everyone was really not afraid of 100,000 Qing troops.
At this time, the commander of the capital city saw that the pressure was on him, and he was a little indecisive. Then he heard Hu Yue say: "Before I came this time, my elder sister called me and said to me, nonsense, you are not going to steal everyone's credit. I told my elder sister to take good care of the pregnancy. Of course, I know that this time I am going to take responsibility. I don't want any military merits, and according to what the Ministry of Rites said, we need to develop people in the Ministry of Rites. If you have outstanding performance and really want to join the Ministry of Rites, I will be the introducer and recommend you. Again, as long as the books and documents that the emperor cares about are fine, the Qing Dynasty will smash the capital to pieces, and I will take the responsibility! As for 40,000 against 100,000, everyone will bear the responsibility! Does anyone have anything else to say!"
Hong Zhou retreated to a safe place and arranged to camp. Basai managed the army well, the troops and horses were well-organized, and the camp was well-maintained.
There was no conversation that night. The next morning, Hong Zhou went to the tent with the civil and military officials. They knelt down in the order of their official rank, bowed three times and kowtowed nine times, and shouted "Long live the emperor". Hong Zhou asked the civil and military officials to stand up and asked what to do next.
Basai suggested sending a group of troops to go around the rear of the rebel army and threaten the capital, so that the rebels could not take care of both ends. Then send two more groups of troops to move towards Tongzhou and Fengtai.
Tongzhou is an important land and water area. If it is captured, there should be many granaries there, which can also solve the problem of food and grass.
As for Fengtai Camp, it was an important garrison of the Qing army in Beijing, and the Qing army was very familiar with it. If they could really capture Fengtai, they could secure the key points for the subsequent siege of the capital.
All the civil and military officials agreed. Hong Zhou also thought so and ordered his men to move out. Listening to the drums, shouts, and rumbling footsteps of the army outside, Hong Zhou felt a surge of emotion.
After noon, news came from various groups that the progress was very smooth and they did not encounter any obstacles.
Even though this news came from an hour or two ago, Hong Zhou was still very satisfied.
However, in the afternoon, new incidents were reported almost simultaneously from all directions. First, the troops sent out sent back scouts to report that the four gates of the capital were wide open. The enemy troops came out in full force and divided into several groups to attack Hong Zhou.
After that, reports came one after another, all of which were about the bandit army heading straight for Hong Zhou's side. First, the troops sent out reported, and later, the troops sent out by the main force of the central army to patrol the surrounding area also reported the news.
Basai was a little surprised. "Master, the people I sent out were all brave. If the situation was really like this, they should have attacked the city!"
Hong Zhou was also a little confused. He had no idea what was happening dozens of miles away. He could only hope that what General Basai said was true.
In fact, Basai's understanding of his subordinates was completely correct. At this time, the three Qing armies had all arrived at the gates of the outer city wall of the capital. Although each gate was different, the city gates were wide open, and there were no people on the top of the city. There were only some people with pigtails sweeping the ground at the gate.
There were also some theatre troupes setting up a stage at the foot of the city, with actors performing on it. The commander-in-chief saw this scene and had no idea what the Chinese army was up to. He immediately sent scouts to take a look.
The scouts galloped and circled the safe place outside the city gate. One of them especially galloped close to the stage to take a look, then circled back. When they arrived in front of the commander, the scout jumped off his horse and reported, "We can't see any thieves at the city gate. They are probably hiding inside the city."
The commander felt that this scene was indescribably strange, even a little strangely familiar. He asked, "What are those actors singing?"
"Reporting to the commander, it seems that they are singing the empty city plan." The scout hurriedly reported.
Although the three commanders had heard the words "Empty City Strategy" sooner or later, they all frowned and seemed a little at a loss.
The iron-clad crop system in which everyone in the Eight Banners of the Qing army was given money and food was maintained until its collapse in the late Qing Dynasty. The Qing government implemented this decree with the aim of preventing the Sinicization of Manchu customs and the gathering of literati from various provinces to cause chaos, while at the same time ensuring the martial customs of the Manchu Eight Banners soldiers to practice riding and shooting hard and to be brave and good at fighting.
The iron-clad soldiers seemed to have no worries about food and clothing, but the iron-clad soldiers of the Eight Banners were not so easy to eat. These people had to practice martial arts to ensure that every family could provide fierce Eight Banner soldiers. However, the assessment was not easy, and the Eight Banner soldiers had quotas. As the population of the Eight Banners increased, many dissolute Eight Banners with caged birds appeared.
These people had nothing to do on weekdays and needed cultural entertainment. This led to the rapid development of operas that could be performed by many people at the same time. The Empty City Strategy was a very important play among them.
When the scouts came closer to check, the commander also used his clairvoyance to see. Inside the mirror tube, a "city gate tower" was set up on the stage. The actors on the upper stage wore feather fans and silk scarves, and the actors below had painted white faces. It was obvious that they were not good people.
The commanders already felt that it was an empty city plan, and they learned from the Eight Banners Army that it was indeed an empty city plan. Sooner or later, the commanders cursed out loud!
In the eyes of the Qing leaders, this was indeed infuriating. Everyone knew what the Empty City Strategy was. At this time, the city gates were wide open and there were people sweeping the streets, which was enough to entertain people. The bandits on the city were worried that the Qing army didn't know they were using the Empty City Strategy, so they brought some actors to remind them. After the angry leaders finished cursing, they ordered the cavalry, "Go shoot all those actors to death!"
The Qing army did not have horse riding as a basic skill, but archery was the most important. Immediately, the cavalry rushed to the stage, ready to execute the orders of the commanders. Unexpectedly, the actors were the most discerning people. They were not afraid when they saw the scouts coming. When they saw the cavalry rushing towards them with bows and arrows drawn, they immediately stopped singing. They jumped off the stage and fled to the city gate.
If we talk about the usual appearance, the actors seem to be less miserable than the people. Unexpectedly, these people ran away, one by one, very fast.
Seeing the actors running away, the people sweeping the gate also felt something was wrong, dropped their brooms and ran away. Unexpectedly, the actors were still running very fast in their costumes, and they rushed into the gate before the people sweeping the gate and disappeared inside the gate.
The cavalrymen saw that they could not catch up, and they did not dare to really believe in the empty city plan. Since the people had escaped, they could only turn their horses around and return to report.
At this time, Hu Yue, who was standing on the southern city wall, laughed out loud and said repeatedly, "Interesting, interesting."
The commander of the capital had already led his troops to set off, and the one who stayed in the capital was the director of logistics. Although the director thought the scene was funny, he did not laugh out loud. After all, this empty city plan was real. There were only more than 200 defenders on the southern city wall, and there was only one squad of people around Hu Yue. Including Hu Yue's guards and the director of logistics, there were only 20 people. The other soldiers were scattered on the city wall to look out and report the news.
Seeing the helpless look on the logistics director's face, Hu Yue laughed and said, "Haha, don't be afraid, I will take responsibility for this matter. These Qing soldiers are all elite. If they can break into the city, it will reduce the pressure on the field troops. Why are you not happy?"
Hearing this, the logistics director was stunned. This makes a lot of sense. The Huaxia Army has divided its troops. If part of the Qing army enters the capital, it is also equivalent to dividing its troops. The field army must be the most elite troops. Hu Yue looked at him with a smile, but his words were particularly serious.
"Commander Hu, why didn't you say it at the meeting?" asked the logistics director.
"If I speak at the meeting, it will be considered as taking credit. Besides, if no one comes, I will be humiliated. Although I like to talk nonsense, I am not shameless." As Hu Yue spoke, the smile on his face disappeared.
The smile was gone, and Hu Yue's round face showed a stern look. The logistics director was shocked. This was the look of decisive generals. Not only did he not take the lives of the thousands of soldiers on the battlefield seriously, but he also did not consider his own life.
Unable to bear this feeling, the logistics director who was actually responsible for secretly watching Hu Shuo turned his head and looked down at the city. He saw that the Qing army's reaction was extremely slow, as if they were in great trouble.
Although the 36 Stratagems were mentioned in the internal training of the various armies, the Empty City Strategy was not actually true. However, the Director of Logistics had some doubts at this time that it might not be untrue. Because the Qing army just didn't dare to come in. The Director of Logistics put himself in their shoes and thought about it. If he encountered such a situation... he would definitely follow the Infantry Manual and immediately send troops to feint. After all, it would be good if they could take down the city gate.
Soon, smoke signals were seen rising from the west of the city. This was the agreed signal, and if the Qing army began to advance, this signal would be used to inform everyone.
Hu Yue did not hesitate and said, "Retreat!"
Beijing City consists of two parts: the inner city and the outer city. After the Qing army entered the pass, they implemented the policy of Manchus living in the inner city and Han people living in the outer city. At this time, the Huaxia army was guarding the inner city to protect precious books and documents. Of course, Hu Yue also made it clear that as long as the inner city was guarded, the Qing army would not be able to break through the inner city in a short time. After annihilating the Qing army outside the city, they could turn around and attack from both inside and outside to annihilate the Qing army that entered the outer city in one fell swoop.
With this arrangement, the surveillance troops quickly began to return to the city. The city walls, gates, and street corners were heavily defended, protecting the precious cultural assets tightly.
Hu Yue summoned his generals and shouted, "I'll say it again, the roots of Chinese culture are here. Everyone must protect our roots! We cannot destroy our roots even if we die!"
