At that time, if Zheng Chenggong had not made a northern expedition to Nanjing, he would have taken advantage of the main force of the Qing army to pacify the Yongli regime in the southwest to take over the entire Fujian province with his troops.
Maybe, he wouldn't have been defeated so miserably back then!
He really admires Zhu Hongyu's strategic determination now!
That's Nanjing, the resting place of his old ancestors of the Zhu family!
It’s the old capital of Ming Dynasty!
Today's Nanjing is empty. As long as Zhu Hongyu wants to fight, it is not impossible to do it in one go!
As long as he can capture Nanjing, Zhu Hongyu's prestige will skyrocket.
To what extent has it skyrocketed?
It has skyrocketed to the point where Zhu Hongyu can legitimately inherit the throne even if he is from a distant branch of the clan.
Zheng Chenggong felt that if he were placed in Zhu Hongyu's position, he would most likely not be able to resist the temptation of Nanjing City.
However, Zhu Hongyu held back!
Zhu Hongyu looked around and then spoke.
"In this battle, the purpose of our army is only to annihilate the Qing army's effective forces as much as possible, rather than deliberately pursuing the siege of the city."
"It would be best if the Eight Banners soldiers stationed by the Qing court in Nanjing could be lured out of the city and eliminated in a field battle. There is no need to storm Nanjing!"
His eyes looked at Xu Bin, and then he spoke.
"The staff department will come up with a corresponding combat plan as soon as possible!"
"..."
…
The Ming army repaired on Zhoushan Island for a few days, and then continued to advance towards the Yangtze River.
The navy team of the Ming Army arrived at Chongming Island!
Amidst the overwhelming artillery fire, the Qing navy's naval camp in Chongming was completely destroyed by artillery fire.
The flag of Ming Dynasty is flying again on Chongming Island!
The defenders on the island fought hard and surrendered, and no one dared to resist anymore.
The Ming army's naval fleet made some repairs and continued its mighty advance towards the Yangtze River Basin.
The Yangtze River Navy of the Qing army was severely damaged in Zhoushan, and even the admiral Shi Lang committed suicide.
The remaining naval forces of the Qing army were unable to resist the Ming army's entry into the Yangtze River.
The huge navy of the Ming army sailed upstream and entered the Yangtze River.
…
At the same time, the news of the Qing army's defeat in the Battle of Zhoushan quickly spread throughout Jiangnan, as if it had wings.
Jiangnan is shocked!
Great riots broke out in the city of Nanjing, which was renamed Jiangning by the Qing Dynasty.
More than a thousand Manchurian Eight Banners and nearly ten thousand elite Green Battalions were annihilated by the Ming army in Zhoushan. Jiangning was empty, and Jiangnan was empty!
The former Ming Dynasty Palace is now full of Jiangning, and the sound of mourning echoes through the sky.
A defeat in Zhoushan caused almost every household in Jiangning to mourn and mourn.
After Zheng Chenggong's Northern Expedition to Nanjing, the Qing government deployed heavy troops in Jiangning and mobilized many Eight Banners soldiers from the north to garrison south.
But even so, due to Manchuria's severe population problem, the number of Manchu Eight Banners soldiers stationed in Jiangning was only seven or eight thousand.
In the Zhoushan Fortress offensive and defensive battle, nearly a year of tug-of-war, the Qing Eight Banners accumulated casualties.
In addition to the Zhoushan defeat, more than a thousand Manchurian Eight Banners soldiers were wiped out by the Ming army.
Almost two thousand of the Eight Banners garrisoned in Jiangning were gone!
For the Eight Banners garrisoned in Jiangning with only 7,000 to 8,000 men, it is no exaggeration to say that the casualties of 2,000 people were severe.
At the residence of General Jiangning, Lang Tingzuo, the governor of Jiangnan appointed by the Qing government, and General Tulehun of Jiangning walked side by side.
Suzhou Commander-in-Chief Liang Huafeng, Zhenjiang Commander-in-Chief Yao Qizheng and others followed suit.
Lang Tingzuo was wrapped in a thick blanket and felt the cold and humid winter air in Jiangning.
His face is not very pretty.
As a northerner, he can withstand the cold wind in Liaodong, but he cannot withstand the cold and wet in the south of the Yangtze River!
Jiangning General Tulehun's face was so gloomy that it looked like water could drip from his face.
The atmosphere in the air was oppressive and dull, as if it was the calm before the storm.
The people accompanying the two men didn't even dare to fart, and followed cautiously, keeping their steps as light as possible.
"Zhoushan was defeated. Shi Lang and Duolong lost their troops and humiliated the country. They really deserve to be killed!"
As if he was fed up with the silence around him, Tulehun said with a cold face and a cold tone.
Lang Tingzuo on the side sighed and said.
"It really deserves to be killed!"
"But fortunately, both of them were not on the battlefield, and they did not do anything to surrender to the Ming thieves and insult the majesty of the imperial court!"
Tulehun spoke again.
"Now the Ming thieves are going upstream and entering the Yangtze River, with their swords drawn to Nanjing. How should we respond?"
Lang Tingzuo sighed and said.
"Stick to the old rules!"
"Order the Manchu Eight Banners troops in the city to prepare for war, mobilize troops from all over the south of the Yangtze River, and prepare to go out of the city to stop the Ming army!"
Tulehun couldn't help but frown and said.
"Go out of the city to stop the attack?"
"The Ming thieves have the advantage in strength and are coming with great momentum. Shouldn't we avoid their attack at this time and defend the city?"
"Why did you take the initiative to leave the city and fight with the Ming army in the field?"
"In this case, is it too much?"
Tulehun's idea was to defend the city and wait for reinforcements from the south and north of the Yangtze River to arrive.
Once again they recreated the glorious victory they had when they defeated Zheng Chenggong’s Northern Expedition army.
He didn't expect that Lang Tingzuo wanted to leave the city to fight!
Lang Tingzuo sighed and said.
"I don't want to fight outside the city, but I can't do it without fighting!"
"Outside Nanjing, there is a Longjiang Shipyard."
"I don't need to say much about how much the imperial court attaches importance to the Longjiang Shipyard. I believe General Tulehun also knows something about it."
"If we sit back and watch the Longjiang Shipyard fall into the hands of the Ming army, I don't need to say more about the consequences!"
The Qing government suffered a huge loss in the navy, so it was natural to think about how to regain its position.
Since this year, a large number of shipbuilding craftsmen, shipbuilding timber, and Western missionaries who know how to build ships have been gathered at the Longjiang Shipyard.
After almost a year of rush production, the first batch of naval warships manufactured by Longjiang Shipyard will soon be launched.
Under such circumstances, the Qing government would never accept it. The Longjiang Shipyard outside Nanjing was destroyed by the Ming army.
Tulehun nodded vigorously and said with great courage.
"In that case, let's fight!"
"How can I, the warrior of the Eight Banners of the Qing Dynasty, still be afraid of the Ming thieves?"
Lang Tingzuo then spoke.
"Haha, there's no need to be so serious, it's not to that level yet!"
“The Qing Dynasty set up forts, river-blocking iron cables, and shore defense embankments around Songhu, the estuary of the Yangtze River.”
"Although the navy of the Ming Dynasty is strong, it may not be able to break through the defenses set up by the Qing Dynasty at the mouth of the Yangtze River!"
Tulehun nodded slightly in agreement.
…
At the mouth of the Yangtze River, the shadow of sails covers the sky!
A huge fleet sailed from the direction of Chongming and entered the Yangtze River.
The fleet consists of hundreds of large and small ships, arrayed on the wide river surface, but the edges are not visible at all.
The red sunset hung high, turning the river surface into a bloody color.
The white river fish jumped out of the water, flopped in the air a few times, and splashed into the water with large splashes.
Large flags with clear characters and twelve-pointed sun and moon flags are hunting in the wind on the mast!
The head of the Li family, Li Weiliang, stood on the bow of his ship, holding a telescope and looking at the broad Yangtze River in the distance, laughing loudly.
"In this battle, if our Ming Dynasty can successfully regain Nanjing, it will be considered as a sign of ZTE!"
Li Weiliang didn't know Zhu Hongyu's plan for this battle.
Seeing the Yangtze River, he thought that Ming Dynasty was heading towards Nanjing.
The servants, guards, and attendants around him also spoke in agreement.
"My master has a clever plan and has boarded the Ming Dynasty's chariot in advance. When the Ming Dynasty is restored in the future, the future of my Li family will be bright, and my future will definitely be limitless!"