Chapter 150 With and without horses

Chapter 150 With and without horses

Chapter 150 With and without horses

When Shao Quanzhong received the order to go to Shaanxi to fight, everything went dark before his eyes.

Hu Liuniang held him and said, "Yuting, what's wrong with you?"

Relying on the soft bodyguard and confidential secretary, Shao Quanzhong calmed down a little and cursed loudly.

"If Zeng Guofan hadn't come up with this bad idea, I would have performed a handstand in public - ahem, nothing else, just a handstand."

Hu Liuniang thought what Shao Quanzhong said was a bit strange. It is very easy to do a handstand.

He helped him sit down and asked with concern, "Is it impossible to go to Shaanxi? Is it because we can't defeat Chen Decai or the Eighteen Camps now? Since they have 300,000 soldiers, they must be powerful.

Shao Quanzhong slammed the table and said, "What a bullshit. The bandits' military strength is weak, and their families are old, weak, sick and disabled. The problem is that Shaanxi is full of bandits now. It will take years to eliminate them one by one. If I go to Shaanxi, I will have no chance to capture Hong Xiuquan alive. There is no reason not to go to Shaanxi."

"Is it possible to disobey the imperial court's orders?"

Shao Quanzhong threw his military cap on the table and said, "Whatever you want, I'm not going anyway. The worst that can happen is that the court will remove me from my position."

"Cough cough!"

Wenxiu's dry cough was heard behind me.

Shao Quanzhong came to his senses a little and found that Hu Liuniang was supporting him and sitting on the armchair, with his head leaning back. Wenxiu came in and couldn't bear to watch it anymore.

Shao Quanzhong pretended not to know what Wenxiu was coughing about. He was so angry that he felt dizzy and didn't feel anything. He leaned back twice and stood up. "Madam Xiu'er, you haven't recovered yet. Don't walk around."

Wen Xiu smiled lightly, "Jisi has been ill for two months. I rested for another month after my confinement and I am much better now. I heard what you said. I think it is useless for you to discuss with the bodyguards. You should discuss it with Lord Qiao and Military Advisor Zhang instead of making an impulsive decision."

"Madam, what you said makes sense. It makes sense."

Shao Quanzhong took the military cap handed over by the secretary with a dry laugh, "I will send a message to the military advisor first, and then ask godfather for details."

Wenxiu is so petty, she doesn't have the bearing of a first wife. I'm so honest, you should learn from Huier in this regard...

Zhang Zhidong, who was in Shouzhou, received the telegram and replied after a while, "This matter is not urgent. We can delay it for half a month on the pretext that the mine clearance is not yet completed. We can make a decision after my subordinates have collected enough intelligence."

Shao Quanzhong felt a little more confident and led his men to Xiaoxiang Cliff.

After more than a year of construction, Xiaoxiang Cliff has been completed. The two thousand acres of gardens are vying for splendor, with pavilions and winding corridors. It is indeed an elegant place. Although it is not as good as the Zhe Garden, it is already a first-class garden in Hailing.

When Qiao Songnian saw Shao Quanzhong, he was not in the mood for the grand occasion and was worried.

"Yuting, Zeng Guofan is the Minister of War after all. There are reasons for transferring you to Shaanxi, and we can't refuse."

"Hong Xiuquan hasn't been destroyed yet, why would he transfer our troops to Shaanxi?"

"On the Guangdong bandit side, Zeng Guoquan and Bao Chao have surrounded Nanjing and are attacking it day and night. They have enough troops and do not need any support. Zuo Zongtang and Li Hongzhang are contacting the foreign rifle team to besiege Li Xiucheng. Anqing has been liberated. Britain and France are also helping the Qing Dynasty. The British and French troops stationed in Shanghai have reached 5,000 people. They have also personally come down to help suppress the Guangdong bandits..."

"Then we have to find a reason to stay. I think Zeng Guofan's siege of Nanjing will not be so smooth. Sooner or later he will ask us for help."

Qiao Songnian shook his head. "It's hard to tell right now. Shaanxi, on the other hand, is short of manpower because of the troops deployed to attack the Guangdong and Nian bandits. As soon as the Guangdong bandit Chen Decai's troops left, chaos immediately broke out. Now there are three gangs of bandits, Chen Decai, Lan Dashun, and the Eighteenth Battalion, who are causing chaos and besieging Xi'an several times. Shaanxi is in danger."

"Didn't the court send Shengbao?"

"Shengbao was unsuccessful in suppressing the bandits, and suffered heavy casualties along the way. He finally managed to escape to Xi'an, but he also lied to the court and reported victory, allowing his troops to plunder Xi'an and kill innocent people to claim credit, making the situation in Shaanxi even worse..."

The situation had been clearly understood, and since his godfather could not help, Shao Quanzhong returned to Fengyang two days later.

Half a month later, the mine-clearing project in Shouzhou was finally completed. The Huai Army troops stationed in Shouzhou, led by Shao Hengzhong, returned to Fengyang, and Zhang Zhidong followed them back. As soon as Zhang Zhidong entered the barracks, Shao Quanzhong hurriedly greeted him, "Brother Zhang, you look so unhurried, it makes me anxious. Zeng Guofan has sent people to urge us to move forward, are you going to move forward or not?"

Zhang Zhidong laughed loudly, "Of course we left. We are the imperial army, how can we not obey orders? However, my lord, there are different ways to leave. Come closer and listen——"

The next day, the Huai Army, which had expanded to 16,000 people, obeyed the court's order and set out from Fengyang. Hundreds of grain transport ships sailed up the Huai River, with their target being Shaanxi.

The fleet traveled 200 miles a day. Five days later, it arrived at the dock of Tongbai County, Nanyang, Henan, and could not move forward.

The Huaihe River waterway ends here. The next step is to travel by land via Nanyang and Shangluo to Xi'an.

Shao Quanzhong ordered, "Set up camp and continue training."

The engineers showed their prowess near the Tongbai Wharf. The barracks they renovated were similar to the Fengyang Barracks, and classes at the Huai Army Field Camp Military Academy also resumed.

Shao Quanzhong stayed in Tongbai for half a month and felt very relaxed and happy.

On July 15 of the first year of the Tongzhi reign, Shao Quanzhong's report envoy slowly arrived at the Ministry of War.

"We are a modern army that relies heavily on baggage. We don't have enough horses to transport ammunition, artillery, and food. We have no fighting power. Please provide 20,000 horses for military needs. Otherwise, without logistical support, the army will be defeated."

Four days later, the imperial court's urgent reprimand arrived, eight hundred miles away.

The Guangdong bandit Chen Decai marched westwards and arrived in Shaanxi in no time. Shengbao chased Chen Decai and also chased him in no time. The imperial court's second route of reinforcements to suppress the bandits, Duolong'a, said nothing. Now the troops have all arrived in Weicheng, why do you, Shao Quanzhong, have so many problems?

Shao Quanzhong argued, "Ahem, I was wrong." He sent his self-defense memorial to the capital again. After being reprimanded, he reflected on his mistakes. This time it was much faster, arriving in eight days at an express delivery of 400 miles.

The self-defense letter stated that the Guangdong bandits had no logistics and were roaming around and robbing. The Black Flag Army under Shengbao was also roaming around and robbing, without food and supplies, and robbed the people along the way, causing the court to lose the support of the people. Before they could catch up with Chen Decai, they were attacked by the bandits of the Eighteen Camps on the road and were beaten badly.

Duolong'a was able to reach Weinan because he was a bannerman and led a whole cavalry team.

So, logistics is very important. I have food, but it has to be transported from the Jiangnan Provincial Government and northern Anhui. Anyway, if the Huai Army wants to march into the northwest, it must have enough horses.

The risk of going uncensored is too great, that is absolutely not possible.

The Ministry of War did not care about the typos in the memorial submitted by the uneducated general Shao Quanzhong. After studying it, they felt that what Shao Quanzhong said made sense.

Coincidentally, at this time, Duolong'an had won several victories and had initially stabilized the situation, so Shaanxi was no longer in such urgent need of troops.

The imperial court gritted its teeth and said, "You wait in Tongbai. I have plenty of horses in the Qing Dynasty, and they are all outside the Great Wall. I will raise them for you right away."

Shao Quanzhong settled down in Tongbai steadily and stayed there for four months.

During the spare time of military training, insurance teams were set up along the Huai River in Tongbai County, Runing Prefecture in southeastern Henan, and Guangzhou Prefecture along the Huai River. In four months, wired telegraphs were pulled over.

Shao Quanzhong did not go to Shaanxi. He stationed his troops in Tongbai and actually annexed a small piece of Henan.

On the first day of December in the first year of the Tongzhi reign, 20,000 horses were delivered to the Tongbai military camp, free of charge...

Shao Quanzhong had no reason to delay, so he pretended to be preparing to march to Shaanxi, moved his camp and mobilized the entire army.

A speedboat arrived on the Huai River. Tian Xing, who was sent back by Shao Quanzhong to urge for grain during the period of stationing, jumped off the boat and almost flew to Shao Quanzhong's tent.

"Second brother, Zhang Lexing's troops had previously fought with Senggelinqin's troops in Qi County. The leader of his musket team, Dong Zhixin, rebelled and was attacked from both sides and suffered a great defeat. He sent someone to contact me and agreed to the idea we proposed a year ago to go to America as mercenaries."

The road was covered in dust, and a Mongolian soldier rode up on horseback, covered in dust. "The Imperial Envoy, Monk King, urgently mobilizes the Huai Army to intercept Zhang Lexing's troops fleeing in your direction."

(End of this chapter)