In order to rescue Jin Shengheng's family, Liu Ziguang used a secret weapon hot air balloon. Among the supplies Huang Degong sent was a small reconnaissance hot air balloon. It was not equipped with a power device or weapons and could only carry three people. However, this was enough for Jin Shengheng.
Sneaking back to Hankou alone can incite rebellion against the old army. He has been stationed in Hankou for many years, and his prestige is not comparable to that of Zuo Menggeng. Besides, now that Zuo Liangyu is dead and the imperial army is strong, who doesn't want to think about the way out?
Liu Ziguang sent a pilot to set off from the right bank with Jin Shengheng at night. The hot air balloon was painted black, and the flamethrower was carefully covered. It took advantage of the south wind to fly towards the north. The starting position of the hot air balloon was carefully designed.
, after taking off, the wind direction was just enough to float over Hankou City. Huang Degong slipped down along the rope, and then the hot air balloon continued to float away. It turned off and landed outside the city, and Wu Sangui's troops came to meet him.
It was late at night in the Hanyang camp, and Zuo Menggeng had not fallen asleep yet. He had already drank most of the jar of wine, but he used wine to relieve his sorrow and make him even more sorrowful. The deadlock in front of him made him frown. Even though he was young and promising,
Despite his resourcefulness, he could not think of any good tricks to deal with the imperial army on the other side. After Jin Shengheng surrendered, the forces on both sides had undergone fundamental changes, and as time went by, the situation would become increasingly unfavorable to him. Although Huangshi
, there are still his father's troops in Changsha and other places, but they may not obey his orders. The only one who is truly loyal to him is Li Guo. Now that Li Guo has been sent to Hankou to defend the city, I wonder if he can secure the remaining troops of Jin Shengheng.
Take control. Thinking of this, Zuo Mengeng couldn't help but miss his father Zuo Liangyu. If his father was still alive, all this would not be a problem. Jiang is still hot when he is old. Zuo Mengeng sighed and drank another drink.
Beside the white clouds.
Suddenly someone knocked on the door and shouted in an anxious voice: "Young Marshal, it's bad, there are fires in the direction of Hankou!" Zuo Menggeng dropped his wine glass and came out to take a look, and sure enough he saw fires in the sky in the direction of Hankou. Could it be that the imperial army had crossed the river?
Did they succeed? He quickly ordered the entire army to be on alert. He did not dare to move rashly at night and could only hold on to the camp. After a while, a group of people escaped from the direction of Hankou. They were the defeated soldiers of Chuangzi camp. Li Guo was panting.
He ran to Zuo Mengeng and reported that Hankou had been lost.
Zuo Mengeng said angrily: "Can they fly here with wings?"
Li Guo said that it was not the people from the other side who came, but the officers and soldiers from the east, who joined forces with Jin Shengheng's remaining troops in the city to seize Hankou. Jin Shengheng's fellow also appeared, wielding a long knife and hacking him to death. Many people from the Chuangzi camp were killed.
Brother, if he hadn't made a prompt decision to break out, I'm afraid all the Chuangzi camp would have been killed in Hankou City. After they escaped back to Hanyang, they also burned the pontoon bridge on the Han River, so there was no need to worry about the enemy coming overnight.
Zuo Mengeng was half awake from his wine, and he hurriedly asked: "How many people are there in the enemy army?"
"I don't know, I'm afraid there are tens of thousands."
Li Guo was covered in blood, his eyes were blurry, and he seemed to be seriously injured. Zuo Mengeng knew that it was difficult to know the enemy's situation in a night battle, so he waved his hand and asked people to help Li Guo down to heal his injuries. He paced back and forth with his hands behind his back, thinking quickly.
Covering all aspects of the situation:
It is certain that the situation is over. Now two of the three towns in Wuhan have fallen into the hands of the enemy. Hanyang is already under siege, and the number of available soldiers under his command is getting smaller and smaller. After tonight's battle, Chuangzi camp has lost a lot of people.
It would be good to have more than 10,000 remnants now. Fortunately, there is still a complete navy, but the navy can only show its advantage in the water. Once ashore, it is not as good as ordinary infantry.
There is money and food in Hankou and shipyards in Wuchang. These are the basis for the survival of the Left Army. How can the army fight if it loses its base area? Instead of waiting for death, it is better to run away as soon as possible. Zuo Menggeng made up his mind and called the chess and card official.
, asked him to notify the whole camp, pack their luggage and prepare to board the ship. Once the flood peak passes, he will sail to Huangshi, Ezhou, to meet his father's old men and make plans. If they are willing to listen to his young commander, everything will be easy. If they are not willing to listen, everything will be easy.
Then let's start fighting. After all, Zuo Liangyu's blood flows in Zuo Mengeng's veins, and some of his father's bravery has been passed down to him.
More than 10,000 people on the left packed up their troops and weakened them. They boarded the ships overnight and waited for dawn before sailing down the river, leaving an empty camp to their opponents. The left army's warships were dispatched in full force, but the Yellow Crane Tower was destroyed.
The observation posts on the top were startled, and they quickly sounded the warning siren, and the officers and soldiers were ready to prepare. However, the left army did not come to attack. Instead, they headed east along the center of the river and disappeared into the sky.
Liu Ziguang, who came after hearing the news, used a telescope to observe an empty camp in Hanyang. Only then did he realize that the left army had fled, so he ordered the Imperial Army on the other side to find a way to cross the Han River and take over Hanyang.
Last night's Battle of Hankou was the first major battle that Wu Sangui fought since he led the army. Ten thousand troops attacked Hankou City at night and killed two thousand enemies. It was considered a great victory. Hanyang was already an empty city. All we had to do was find some ships to cross over.
However, Jin Shengheng helped Wu Sangui seize some civilian ships in Hankou and built a new pontoon bridge. The officers and soldiers swarmed in and captured Hanyang without bloodshed.
All three towns in Wuhan fell into the hands of the imperial court. The task of recovering Huguang was more than half completed. What was left was disaster relief and pursuit of the remaining enemies. The left army went down the river and must have taken Ezhou. Liu Ziguang ordered Huang Degong to lead three thousand troops.
Rushing to reinforce Ezhou, Wu Sangui divided his troops and garrisoned Hanyang and Hankou, and then found some large ships to ferry grain, grass, money and money across the river every day. With grain and money in hand, Hou Xun officially became the imperial envoy for disaster relief.
Zuo Liangyu's forces still remain in Huangshi, Changsha and other places. Liu Ziguang is not willing to do the task of eradicating them personally. On the one hand, it is not difficult, and on the other hand, he also wants to leave some credit to his brothers for the task of regaining Huangshi and Changsha.
Just leave it to Wu Sangui and others, and Liu Ziguang can stay in Wuchang to supervise the logistics.
Wu Sangui was very grateful to Liu Ziguang for his generosity, which was equivalent to putting the credit in his hands. The southern expedition army was quickly organized, with Wu Sangui in command and Jin Shengheng as an assistant. He led 30,000 horses and went to Ezhou. Among the 30,000 people, there were two
Wan is Jin Shengheng's old team, eight thousand is the forbidden army brought by Wu Sangui, and two thousand are young men recruited from the local area. They will grow up faster if they see the world.
Liu Ziguang stayed in Wuhan mainly because he wanted to integrate the Wuchang Shipyard. He had coveted this big factory for a long time. The marine steam engines produced in Wuchang were very good, and the river boats built were also first-class. If it could be compared with his Jiangnan Shipyard
Complementing each other's advantages will definitely create greater profits. In the previous battle, many factory buildings collapsed in the shipyard, and a boiler was also exploded. However, most of the machinery and equipment, slipways, gantry cranes, and hydraulic presses are intact, and the skilled craftsmen are more
The whole thing has been preserved. The overall value is still very high.
It stands to reason that all of Zuo Liangyu's property should be returned to the public, but Liu Ziguang played a little trick and said that the shipyard had been destroyed by the war and only a piece of white land was left. It would be better to sell the ruins and the land to private merchants. The court
After receiving the telegram, there was naturally no objection, and the emperor immediately agreed. So Liu Ziguang held an auction again. He would not interfere with the specific affairs. Anyway, the winning bidder must be his Jiangnan Shipyard.
Zuo Liangyu occupied Wuhan for ten years. The most unlucky person was the King of Chu who was granted the title of Wuchang. The reason why this poor prince did not "suddenly die of illness" like the princes of other warlords was because Zuo Liangyu felt that he was still alive.
It's useful. In the early stage of conquering the world, you can push him to be a puppet emperor in order to be justified.
Over the years, the King of Chu has been under house arrest in Hanyang by Zuo Liangyu, and his movements have been strictly controlled. It was not until Zuo Menggeng fled Hanyang that night and forgotten him in a mess that the King of Chu was free. Wu Sangui sent him to Wuchang and lived there.
Entering the original palace, he was also a descendant of the Zhu family anyway, so Liu Ziguang, Hou Xun and others all gave him face. They came to visit him, presented him with silver coins and gifts, and also equipped him with a small guard. Regardless of good or bad, the prince should
Some of them have been equipped, but princes are not worth much these days, and the little emperor far away in Nanjing has no feelings for these uncles and brothers, so King Chu's orders are limited to his own house, Wuhan and
The surrounding areas all obeyed the orders of He Tengjiao, the governor of Huguang.
He Tengjiao was really good at handling civil affairs. He suggested that the court provide money to help the victims rebuild their homes, and then hire the victims as laborers to build the river embankments. This not only provided labor but also alleviated the occurrence of various unstable factors. It was indeed a good idea.
.
The Jiangfang Embankment is a huge project. It will probably take decades to build the thousands-mile-long embankment, and the bid amount is no less than tens of thousands. This plan was reported to the Ministry of Industry, which followed the usual practice of inviting bids from the private sector. The imperial court provided money and civilians, and the private sector
It is a good way for institutions to provide technology and management, which can control costs and reduce corruption. Since it involves the construction of dams in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River, the bidding conference was naturally held in Wuhan. For a while, various private institutions flocked to Wuchang, and the Wang family
Mr. Wang Jiulao from the construction company had several dealings with Marquis Zhenwu and felt that he had a good chance of winning, so he naturally participated.