Anti-Qing: Starting from the Jintian Uprising

Chapter 2 Logically? No, according to etiquette!
As soon as Li Yi walked out of the house with his horse, he met an acquaintance at his doorstep.

"This humble general greets General Wang Qian!"

Li Yi held the whip and bowed to a fat man who was leading a horse.

This was his superior, one of the three thousand commanders of Xunzhou Association, named Wang An.

Wang An heard this, smiled and waved his hand.

"Why do you call yourself Qianzong? Just call me Uncle Wang. Given the relationship between our two families, calling me Qianzong would seem a bit strange."

Li Yi's father, Li Lin, was also one of the thousand commanders of Xunzhou Association. He was a good friend of Wang An. The two families had been friends for generations and had always had a good relationship.

Therefore, Wang An always took good care of Li Yi in the army.

It is a pity that ten years ago, Li Lin was ordered to go to Guangdong to reinforce the Guangzhou war. He unfortunately died in the battle against the British, leaving only Li Yi as a male in the family.

Logically speaking, Li Lin was a captain of a thousand troops and he sacrificed his life for the country. Even if Li Yi filled the vacancy, he should still be a captain of a thousand troops.

But unfortunately, many times in this world, things are not done according to reason, but according to etiquette.

After Li Lin died on the battlefield, the Li family quickly fell into decline, and the family had no money to smooth over connections to allow Li Yi to fill the vacancy.

In addition, Li Yi was only ten years old at that time and was still young.

Therefore, the matter was delayed for the time being!
It was not until Li Yi became an adult in recent years that his family's savings were emptied and they borrowed another two hundred taels from Wang An, barely raising the money needed to smooth over the relationship.

But even so, Li Yi only filled the vacancy of a general manager.

The title of Qianzong that became vacant after Li Lin's death was sold to a wealthy military scholar by Li Dianyuan, the deputy general of Xunzhou Association, for two thousand taels.

Seeing this, Li Yi also called him Uncle Wang.

Soon, the two of them set off together on horseback to the Xunzhou Auxiliary Army Camp in the city.

On the way, Wang An suddenly shouted.

"Li Yi."

Li Yi subconsciously turned his head and asked.

"What's wrong, Uncle Wang?"

Wang An gritted his teeth, as if he had made up his mind, and spoke.

"I'm going to tell you something. Just keep it to yourself and don't tell anyone else."

Upon hearing this, Li Yi realized that Wang An had something important to tell him, and his expression became serious and earnest, and he nodded.

"Uncle Wang, you know me. I always keep my mouth shut."

Wang An turned around and said with a serious expression.

"I heard that the two leaders of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, Hong Xiuquan and Feng Yunshan, are not in Jintian Village now. Instead, they went to Huazhou in Pingnan County to organize a group camp."

"Lieutenant General Li has received the news and is preparing to lead his troops to attack Huazhou, capture Hong Xiuquan and Feng Yunshan, and destroy the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom in one fell swoop."

"When we arrive at the training ground today, Lieutenant General Li may bring up this matter. You must not rush to take credit for it. Just keep silent."

"Those members of the God Worshipping Society have been brainwashed and are not afraid of death. It would be very dangerous to confront them."

"If you really can't avoid this, then when we get to the battlefield, you must stay by my side and don't act rashly."

"You are the only son of your father. If something happens to you, I, as your uncle, will be too embarrassed to face your father in the afterlife."

Hearing this, Li Yi nodded solemnly, and began to think.

If he guessed correctly, this should be the first conflict between the Taiping Army and the Qing Army on the eve of the Jintian Uprising.

This conflict is also known as the Battle of Yingzhu or the Battle of Siwang.

Although the Taiping Army did not achieve great results, the victory over the Qing Army greatly boosted the morale of the Taiping Army and strengthened its momentum. It also played a catalytic role in the final outbreak of the Jintian Uprising!

The two of them arrived at the military camp in Xunzhou City together.

At the gate of the military camp, there were several Green Camp soldiers standing guard in a loose manner. When they saw Wang An and Li Yi coming, they hurried forward to greet them.

Wang Anli ignored him, but Li Yi nodded.

Soon, the two men rode into the military camp.

After entering the military camp, the first thing that catches your eye is a pile of messy tents and garbage and feces everywhere.

As soon as you enter the military camp, you're hit by the sour and foul odor of smelly socks and dirty clothes that have not been washed for a long time and have piled up together and fermented. It makes you want to cover your nose.

Many Green Camp soldiers were wandering around the camp freely and casually, and some even gathered in groups of three or four to play mahjong and smoke opium.

The entire military camp was filled with smoke and foul smells.

This was the spirit of the Qing army at that time, especially the Green Camp soldiers. Due to their hereditary military system, everyone from top to bottom was just eating and waiting to die.

Although Li Dianyuan has recently cracked down on the training of Xunzhou Association, how can the bad habits that have been developed over one or two hundred years be reversed in a short period of time?
Wang An took a look at the free and undisciplined Green Camp soldiers and sighed.

It is simply wishful thinking for them to go to war against the fearless followers of the God Worshipping Society with just these rotten soldiers.

After Wang An sighed, he continued to take Li Yi towards his military tent.

As soon as the two men sat down in the military tent, they heard a dull drum beating in the camp to gather the troops.

The two men immediately stood up and walked towards the training ground in the camp.

After the two men arrived at the parade ground, they saw Li Dianyuan, the deputy general of Xunzhou, who was tall and thin with a mustache. He was wearing heavy cotton armor and sitting high on the podium, looking majestic.

And below the reviewing stand, the Green Camp soldiers of the Xunzhou Association were gathering.

Although these Green Camp soldiers looked messy after gathering due to lack of training, their numbers were large enough that the scene was quite spectacular with densely packed heads everywhere at a glance.

Looking around, Li Dianyuan was full of vigor and vitality.

He stood up from the armchair, looked around and spoke.

"Three drum beats have been given. If you don't arrive, you will be punished with twenty strokes of the cane!"

"The rest of you, start practicing."

After the soldiers on the parade ground started training, Li Dianyuan continued.

"All officers above the rank of captain shall immediately go to the central army tent to assemble for a meeting."

As soon as Li Dianyuan said this, everyone in the training ground knelt on one knee and responded with a "yeah".

Immediately, Li Dianyuan walked towards the central military tent.

Behind him, the generals from Xunzhou also followed.

Li Yi and Wang An entered the central army tent one after another. After everyone arrived, Li Dianyuan immediately spoke.

"This general has received a tip-off that the two leaders of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, Hong Xiuquan and Feng Yunshan, are not in Jintian Village where the thieves have gathered, but have gone to Huazhoushanren Village in Pingnan County."

"This is a great opportunity for us to make achievements and serve the Qing Dynasty."

"If we can seize this opportunity, send troops to Huazhou, capture the two bandit leaders Hong and Feng in one fell swoop, and destroy the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, and eliminate this great threat to the imperial court, I believe the imperial court will certainly reward us generously."

Upon hearing this, all the generals responded.

"General, you are wise! How dare we disobey your orders?!"

(End of this chapter)