Anti-Qing: Starting from the Jintian Uprising

Chapter 96 Zhou Junlu: I fought against the British in the past!

On July 16, the first year of Emperor Xianfeng's reign in the Qing Dynasty, news of the fall of Wuzhou reached Guangzhou.

After receiving the news, Xu Guangjin, the Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi, made a quick decision.

Immediately send troops westward to Guangxi to suppress the bandits.

Just two days later, on July 18, the Qing army in Guangdong officially set out westward.

The reason why the Qing army reacted so quickly was that Guangzhou had received a request for help from the imperial commissioner, Seshang'a, as early as mid-June.

Since then, the Qing army in Guangzhou has been preparing to advance westward.

Nearly a month was enough time for the Qing army to prepare for its westward advance.

Therefore, after the news of the fall of Wuzhou came, the Qing army was able to quickly march westward.

By July 22, the main force of the Qing army advancing westward arrived in Zhaoqing.

On the 27th, the Qing army passed Deqing Prefecture.

Passing through Luopang, Dule, Fengchuan and other places, they advanced towards Jiangkou.

By the fourth day of August, the main force of the Qing army had arrived at the city of Wuzhou, confronting the Restoration Army defenders in the city from a distance.

……

Li Yi stood in Wuzhou City, looking at the Qing army camp outside the city, with a solemn expression on his face.

This was because the Qing army that invaded this time was not the 30,000 or so troops that the Restoration Army had previously discovered.

But there are as many as 50,000 to 60,000 people!

Among them, in addition to the Eight Banners soldiers of the Guangzhou Eight Banners, and the Green Camp under the command of the four generals in Guangzhou, Leizhou, Lianzhou, and Zhaoqing.

There are also a considerable number of militia forces.

Originally, the Guangdong gentry did not care much about the imperial court's efforts to suppress bandits.

But since the Restoration Army's slogan of "equalizing land rights" spread, the Guangdong gentry suddenly transformed themselves from potential anti-Qing elements into loyal servants of the Qing Dynasty.

When it comes to suppressing bandits, they are even more proactive than the government!
If time was not really limited, Xu Guangjin was worried that after the Restoration Army captured Wuzhou, they would go down the river to the east and spread the war to Guangdong, so he was anxious to send troops westward!

Let alone 20,000 or 30,000 militiamen, even if we add another zero, the Guangdong gentry may not be unable to mobilize them.

"Reporting to the Grand Commander, our scouts reported that the invading Qing monsters sent a detachment to bypass Xiaying Town to the north, and then crossed the Gui River from Daoshui Town."

"They may be trying to bypass Wuzhou City and cut off our army's retreat."

Chen Yucheng came to Li Yi and reported, with a solemn look on his young face.

When Li Yi heard this, his expression changed slightly and he ordered someone to bring a map.

The map was unfolded, and Li Yi quickly found the locations of Xiaying Town and Daoshui Town on the map.

Chen Yucheng stepped forward and pointed out to Li Yi the marching route of the Qing army that had been discovered by his own scouts.

The Qing army started from the east of Wuzhou City, went north around Xiaying Town, then crossed the river at Daoshui Town, and finally arrived at the west of Wuzhou City...

The Gui River is a tributary of the Xi River that flows from north to south.

If the Qing army wanted to go north to encircle Wuzhou, they had to cross the Guijiang River.

The scouts of the Restoration Army discovered the Qing army when it was crossing the river.

Li Yi looked at Guijiang River on the map, his eyes lit up and he asked.

"How many people are there in Qing Yao's detachment?"

Chen Yucheng recalled for a moment and then said.

"In reply to the Grand Commander, according to the report from our scouts, the number of people in this Qing army detachment is at least around 10,000."

Xu Guangjin sent troops to the north to the west of Wuzhou City in order to cut off the retreat route of the Restoration Army.

Instead of giving achievements to the Restoration Army.

The number of people in this detachment naturally cannot be too small.

Of course, it can't be too many, otherwise it will affect the situation on the front battlefield.

Seeing this, Wang An couldn't help but ask.

"Grand Commander, what should we do next?"

Upon hearing this, Li Yi pointed his finger at Gui Jiang's position and said.

"The Qing demons are circling northwards in an attempt to encircle Wuzhou and cut off our army's retreat. This is indeed a good move."

"But they overlooked one point, that is the Gui River. Once the Qing demons complete their crossing, it will be very difficult for them to increase their forces or retreat because of the Gui River."

"As long as our army can cut off the Guijiang River, we can cut off the route of the Qing army's detour and even annihilate them completely."

Of course, the premise of all this is that the Restoration Army must have sufficient combat effectiveness.

Otherwise, no matter how good Li Yi's idea is, it is just an idea.

After a moment of hesitation, Li Yi began to make arrangements.

"Send a message to Fang Haiyang, and have him lead our navy to attack immediately, heading north along the Gui River, and cut off the retreat route of the Qing monsters who crossed the river."

Fang Haiyang was originally a bandit on the Xunjiang River. He traveled back and forth on the Xunjiang River, killing people and robbing, collecting protection fees from passing ships, and at the same time opposing the government.

When Li Yisan attacked Xunzhou and was evacuating to Cenxi, Fang Haiyang took the initiative to lead his people to surrender.

Li Yi did not treat him unfairly and directly appointed him as the commander of the navy of the Restoration Army.

After saying that, Li Yi turned to Li Sheng and gave him instructions.

"Li Sheng, your entire army must prepare for battle immediately. When the Qing demons' troops move to the west of Wuzhou City, you must attack decisively and defeat and annihilate the Qing demons' troops that have crossed the river as quickly as possible."

"any questions?"

Upon hearing this, Li Sheng pondered for a while before speaking.

"Your Excellency the Grand Commander, I request that our field artillery regiment and one of your guard battalions be deployed to support the battle."

"This battle is the first clash between our army and the Qing demons in the Battle of Wuzhou. My idea is to concentrate our army's advantages as much as possible to achieve a quick victory and a complete victory, so that our army can get off to a good start in this battle."

"I hope the Grand Commander will grant my permission!"

With the continuous production at the arsenal over the past two or three months, the number of breech-loading rifles in the hands of Li Yi's troops has increased again, and is enough to arm an entire regiment.

Therefore, Li Yi's guard battalion was also expanded and upgraded to a guard regiment with three battalions.

Therefore, Li Sheng’s request for a guard battalion using breech-loading rifles to support the combat was not excessive.

After hearing this, Li Yi thought for a while and nodded immediately.

"can!"

"I will have my field artillery regiment and the second and third guard battalions all report to you later."

Li Yi knew that what Li Sheng said made sense.

This battle is a prelude to the Battle of Wuzhou. The victory or defeat is related to the morale of the army, so they must win quickly and decisively.

It is natural to concentrate advantages on the battlefield as much as possible!

Therefore, Li Yi directly allocated two battalions to Li Sheng instead of the one battalion he applied for.

A guard regiment has three battalions in total. Li Yi was able to transfer two battalions to Li Sheng at once, while leaving only one guard from the first battalion by his side. This is enough to show Li Yi's courage.

Upon hearing this, Li Sheng immediately clasped his fists and said.

"Thank you, Commander-in-Chief. I promise to complete the mission. If we fail in this battle, I will bring my head to you!"

Upon hearing this, Li Yi nodded slightly, then turned to give instructions to Wang An and Zhao Xiang.

"Once our army goes to war with the Qing demons, the main force of the Qing army will certainly not sit idly by."

"By then, the main force of the Qing demons will most likely attempt to attack Wuzhou City to support their detachment in the battle."

"When the time comes, Wang An and Zhao Xiang, you two must lead the army to withstand the offensive of the Qing monsters. You must not make any mistakes."

Upon hearing this, Wang An and Zhao Xiang clasped their fists together to show that they understood. …

Outside Wuzhou city, the Qing army camp!
Xu Guangjin sat behind his desk, picked up the teacup, and sipped the fragrant tea.

And on the desk in front of him, there was a document.

The document records Li Yi's life and experiences in detail!

To be honest, in Xu Guangjin's view, Li Yi's experience in the first twenty years of his life was unremarkable.

It was normal for a hereditary Green Camp officer to have his father killed in the Opium War and for his family to fall into decline after his father's death.

There were at least eighty people in the entire Qing Dynasty who had similar experiences as him.

Not weird!

However, since the end of last year, Li Yi's life has begun to become somewhat legendary.

First, before the Taiping rebels started their uprising, he gave up his hereditary military officer status of the Qing Dynasty and resolutely chose to join the rebels.

After surrendering to the rebels, Li Yi attacked Xunzhou three times, captured Xunzhou's deputy general Li Dianyuan alive, set a trap and killed Guizhou's general Zhou Tianjue. In the battle of Dahuangjiangkou, he was surrounded but still managed to break through successfully.

Instead, it was Ulan Tai, the troop commander, who died in unclear circumstances!

After he broke away from the long-haired bandits and became independent, everything he experienced can be said to be smooth sailing.

In just two or three months, they successively captured the two provincial capitals of Xunzhou and Wuzhou.

This person really has some luck!
"Governor, all units of our army are ready."

"As long as you give the order, the soldiers will definitely recapture Wuzhou for you and open up the road for our army to march westward to Guangxi."

"Please give the order!"

At this moment, Guan Bao, deputy commander-in-chief of the Eight Banners in Guangzhou, walked in from outside the big tent and urged Xu Guangjin.

Upon hearing this, Xu Guangjin raised his head and asked.

"Has Zhou Junlu also completed the exercise?"

Zhou Junlu was the general of Zhaoqing. In order to achieve the goal of outflanking and annihilating the Restoration Army, Xu Guangjin deliberately sent Zhou Junlu to lead a detachment to take a detour and go straight to the rear of the enemy troops before the war.

This will be used to complete the encirclement of the Wuzhou bandits!
Guan Bao heard this and nodded.

"General Zhou just reported that he has led his troops across the Gui River and is heading west of Wuzhou City. He will be there soon."

Upon hearing this, Xu Guangjin spoke immediately.

"it is good!"

"Order the army to prepare for battle. Once Zhou Junlu arrives, we will immediately launch an attack on Wuzhou City."

"In this battle, we must recapture Wuzhou in one fell swoop, annihilate the traitor Li Yi, and establish the overall situation in Guangxi."

At this time, Xu Guangjin was in great spirits.

With tens of thousands of troops at his disposal, he felt confident when he said this.

Upon hearing this, Guan Bao immediately clasped his fists and accepted the order.

But at this moment, a dull sound of artillery fire suddenly came from outside.

Boom! Boom!
"What happened? Who ordered the artillery to fire without my order?"

Xu Guangjin opened his mouth and asked.

"Check it out quickly!"

Guan Bao also turned around and spoke to a close follower beside him.

Order him to investigate the situation immediately.

Soon, the people who went to investigate returned to the big tent, and they spoke with anxious looks on their faces.

"Your Excellency the Governor, the sound of artillery fire came from the west of Wuzhou City. It was not our artillery firing."

"It should be the bandits firing cannons!"

Upon hearing this, Xu Guangjin immediately realized the seriousness of the matter and his face darkened.

"broken!"

"Zhou Junlu's troops have been exposed. I'm afraid the enemy soldiers are ambushing in the west of Wuzhou City..."

Now the Qing army only has one troop led by Zhou Junlu, the general of Zhaoqing, in the north of Wuzhou City.

Suddenly there was artillery fire from the north of the city. Xu Guangjin could not think of any other possibility except that Zhou Junlu was ambushed.

……

After Li Yi's military order was issued, Li Sheng immediately withdrew to prepare for battle.

Soon, the field artillery regiment of the Restoration Army, which received the order, and the second and third battalions of the guard regiment, reported to Li Sheng and prepared for battle.

Just as the Restoration Army was actively preparing for war, Zhou Junlu's troops also completed the crossing of the river and moved to the west of Wuzhou City.

Li Sheng's troops immediately marched out of the city, preparing for a decisive battle with the Qing demon army.

In the wilderness west of Wuzhou City, battle flags were fluttering and two armies were marching towards each other.

The distance is getting closer and closer!
Zhaoqing General Zhou Junlu rode on horseback, looking at the bandits on the opposite side with a serious expression on his face.

Although the battle had not yet officially started, he had already seen that the enemy soldiers on the opposite side were no simple men.

Not to mention anything else, just the neat formation they formed while marching was something that ordinary bandits could not achieve.

However, although Zhou Junlu realized that the Restoration Army was not simple, he still spoke because of the natural psychological advantage of officers and soldiers when facing bandits.

"These bandits are really arrogant."

"How dare you use inferior forces to actively fight against our imperial army? You really don't know how to live or die!"

As soon as Zhou Junlu finished speaking, a militia leader beside him immediately began to flatter him.

"If you ask me, the soldiers in Guangxi are all useless. Otherwise, why would these bandits dare to be so arrogant in front of the government troops?"

"This time, the general led his army to Guangxi. We must let these bandits see the general's might and the power of our imperial officers and soldiers."

This time, Zhou Junlu led his troops to encircle the Restoration Army's rear. He brought not only his own Green Camp soldiers, but also a part of the militia organized by the gentry of Zhaoqing.

As for the militia, everyone who knows about it knows that they can be used as cannon fodder in wartime and as beasts of burden in normal times. No one would think it is too much.

After hearing the flattery of the militia leader, Zhou Junlu said with a smug look on his face.

"It's natural!"

"I have been to the battlefield and fought against the British before. It will be easy for me to deal with these bandits now."

Although he almost collapsed at the first blow when he fought against the British.

But, don't worry about whether he was defeated or not, just tell me whether he fought or not!
Upon hearing this, everyone praised again.

"The general is wise!"

……

Li Sheng put down the telescope in his hand. The sweat that had appeared in his palm at some point had already wet the telescope in his hand.

This was his first time leading troops to fight the enemy alone, so he was naturally a little nervous.

"Pass the order down, the entire army adjusts its formation, and advances steadily forward in three rows in a horizontal formation, ready to fight the enemy."

"Send a message to our artillery unit to immediately calculate the firing parameters and prepare to open fire!"

But precisely because he had no experience, Li Sheng had no intention of trying any fancy tricks. Instead, he planned to command the battle strictly according to the tactics in the infantry drill manual.

To put it simply, after the artillery bombards, the infantry charges, and after the infantry charges, the artillery bombards.

This tactic may be a bit clumsy, but it is safe and will not go wrong.

(End of this chapter)