The spring breeze was proud of the horse's hoof disease, and it was much easier than expected to settle matters outside the customs. Chang Yu felt very proud in his heart. He bid farewell to his ancestors, crossed the river and set off his horses to gallop southward, nearly three hundred miles from Ningyuan to Shanhaiguan. At dusk on the second day, they arrived outside Guancheng. After hearing the news, Gao Di personally welcomed him into the city.
After washing away the dust of the journey, the young eunuch was treated to home-cooked meals as requested. During the meal, he learned from Gao Di that Shen Jianghu's five thousand soldiers and horses entered the city in the evening and were repairing in the barracks at this time.
Although Shen Jianghu sent troops half a day and a night earlier than Chang Yu, his troops had more troops to cross the river, which delayed his time. In addition, Chang Yu did not press the accelerator as low as possible, so he actually passed through Shanhaiguan.
"Why don't you call Shen Jianghu here for a chat?" Gao Di asked tentatively. Chang Yu sneered and glanced at him: "Is it because Shen Jianghu asked you about borrowing food? That's you and Wu Sangui. "My friendship with you, whether you borrow it or not has nothing to do with me, don't drag me into trouble."
Gao Di's attempt was slightly embarrassed when Chang Yu saw through it: "But there is not much food left in Guancheng...that's all. We can't let them go south on an empty stomach. Wu Sangui's favor and humiliation must be sold."
Chang Yu stretched out his hand and knocked on the table a few times: "You really don't have to complain to me about the food and grass. If you have it, I will borrow it. If you don't have it, you will ask the court. This matter is under the control of the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Household Affairs. It is the responsibility of this governor." It's Dongchang, you can't get there."
After saying that, he left to rest in the room.
This... the first person in high school was sitting alone in the lobby feeling embarrassed and confused. The little eunuch was quite talkative when he was out of seclusion a while ago, but his temperament changed drastically when he came back. He was extremely impatient with him. Could it be that the things outside the seclusion were not handled well, and Or you offended him.
But I have been pretending to be blind, deaf and mute these past few days. Even Shen Jianghu didn't say a word that I shouldn't have said. There was no reason to offend him.
In fact, Zu Dashou is to blame for this.
Chang Yu didn't know much about Gao Di's past before. He only remembered that when the Qing army entered the country, he and Wu Sangui teamed up to fight Li Zicheng on a piece of stone. That was all, so he didn't have any likes or dislikes about this man.
But when I was chatting with Zu Dashou a few days ago, I heard some dark history about Gao Di. He originally belonged to the eunuch party, that is, Wei Zhongxian. He once replaced Sun Chengzong in charge of military affairs outside the customs, ordered the withdrawal of defenses in Jinzhou, Dalinghe and other places, and even One hundred thousand shi of grain was lost... The situation that only Ningyuan is now an isolated city outside the pass is indispensable for his "contribution".
With Chang Yu's jealous temper, how could he give him a good look? Although he once belonged to the eunuch group, he was not Wei Zhongxian, and Gao Di was not one of his, and he did not like him.
The next morning, after receiving the news, Shen Jianghu came to pay his respects to Chang Yu. He was also very curious: "The factory supervisor is so anxious to return to Beijing, why don't you stay in Ningyuan for a few more days?"
Chang Yu smiled slightly and said, "The army is marching south. How can I, the governor, be so comfortable as to go outside to escape the summer heat under the orders of the governor?" Then he sighed longly: "My governor is born with a life of hard work."
"In that case, let's go together and be a companion to the governor on the way to relieve his boredom." Shen Jianghu said in a flattering manner. Chang Yu shook his head gently: "You can't relieve the boredom of this governor, but I don't have the free time to accompany you leisurely." Hang around, the governor must rush back to the capital within three days."
The capital has been very lively recently, and it has been non-stop since the Qing troops were driven out of the customs more than half a month ago to the military parade.
It has been even worse these two days, but it is not the excitement of the common people, but the excitement of the army.
It was heard that the war in the south had started again, and the imperial court mobilized troops and horses to go south to put out the fire. All the battalions in the city were busy with this matter, mobilizing, deploying, preparing food and fodder, and leaving the city to prepare... They were very busy.
Gao Jie and Er Liu, as the vanguard of the march south, broke up camp and left Beijing early this morning, and nearly 10,000 cavalry left in the dust.
No one saw me off.
Ji Town is an important border town and cannot be left without generals for a day. Tang Tong also led his troops back to the army. Zhou Yuji was ordered to return to Shanxi to guard against intruders on the west bank of the Yellow River and prepare for the counterattack in the autumn.
At this time, the only soldiers and horses left outside the city were those of Huang Degong and Ma Ke.
Huang Degong's troops originally numbered nearly 20,000 men. In the past few months, they fought thousands of miles and fought countless battles, and lost nearly half of them. Nearly 10,000 men were lost when they first emerged. However, they divided many war horses into a single cavalry, and their combat effectiveness and mobility were far superior to those before.
.
The deceased has been buried, and the pension will be distributed by the court, with a young eunuch as a guarantee. In addition, the court is currently recruiting military personnel, so this money will not be wasted and no one dares to withhold it.
As for the injured, they were sent to the military hospital in the capital for treatment, and compensation for their injuries was paid in place. Huang Degong did this more authentically than many generals. Although he had been paid empty wages, he was never greedy for the money his subordinates worked for their lives.
Huang Degong's soldiers and horses were waiting in Beicheng, and his food, grass and baggage were sent first. He, Zhou Yuji and Li Yan divided the food and grass that Dorgon had plundered. They were very rich and could survive to the south of the Yangtze River even if they ate less, but Li Yan
Yan once warned him to keep a low profile and cry for poverty.
He understood the reason for this. It was not that the crying baby would get milk, but to cooperate with the little eunuch's next begging plan.
There are now three troops outside the city. In addition to Huang Degong and Li Yan, there are also thousands of Ma Ke's men.
When Ma Ke joined the war, he had 8,000 men under his command. After an ambush outside the pass and a bloody battle with Dorgon who jumped over the wall, only 5,000 men went south on this trip.
Although the price was heavy, there were also many benefits in exchange. All the grain, fodder and horses obtained were shared, and they were all cavalry.
Ma Ke was supposed to guard Changping, but Chang Yu ordered him to go south. He knew that it was the young eunuch who was leading him, so he was grateful and valued this opportunity. Gao Jie and others left camp early in the morning, and he entered Huang Degong's tent.
, asked when to break camp?
Qia Liyan was also there, and after a brief discussion, the three decided to break camp in the evening when the sun was not so hot.
"Report, Uncle, the Shenji Battalion has left the city and gone south." At this time, some soldiers came to report. Huang Degong raised his eyebrows and scolded: "Don't call me that in the army."
The soldier quickly nodded in agreement.
"Wu Weiying is very positive." Ma Ke looked at Li Yan and smiled.
"This old boy has tasted the sweetness. I heard that he almost moved all the arsenal in the Beijing camp in the past few days. He needs to bring as much artillery powder as he needs. Wang Jiayan was a little reluctant, so he said
The little eunuch asked him to take it. If you don't accept it, go to the little eunuch." Huang Degong smiled bitterly and shook his head: "If the old guy fights so hard, does he still want to fight to become a Zhuguo or a Duke?"
"The Duke is in a bit of trouble. This Zhuguo... maybe, I heard him bragging to others that the young governor had discussed with him to set up a military industrial research institute in Beijing, specifically to convene some firearms craftsmen to develop and build advanced new artillery, muskets, etc.
"The military industrial research institute and the military hospital are under construction at the same time, and he will be responsible for them once they are completed," Ma Ke said mysteriously.
Huang Degong scratched his head: "I've heard of this Hanlin Academy, this Military Industry Research Institute... Hey, the little eunuch knows how to do new tricks." Then he looked at Li Yan: "Have you heard of it?"
Li Yan nodded: "I heard that the remainder of the money raised to prepare the military hospital will be used to build the military industrial institute, but I haven't heard who is specifically responsible for it."
"The Shenji Camp has too much baggage, and leaving early is not enough." Huang Degong raised his head and looked at a few white clouds in the sky: "Do you know when the Guards will leave?"
The soldier shook his head: "I haven't seen him leave the city yet."
"It doesn't matter what they do, they can leave whenever they want." Huang Degong shrugged and said to Ma Ke, "Go back and clean up. We'll leave in the evening."
This time, in addition to the six general troops outside the city who wanted to go south to quell the chaos, Emperor Chongzhen even once wanted to use all the personal guards in the city to help fight. The reason was that if they were not polished, they would rust into useless things.
However, this idea was strongly opposed by Chang Yu and the cabinet. The reason why the cabinet ministers headed by Li Banghua opposed it was very simple, that is, the Guards are the anchor to protect the imperial city and the emperor.
How can that be done? The military strength in the capital is already too thin. If you empty out the capital, why are you so worried?
Chang Yu's opposition is more realistic. Although the emperor's twenty-six personal guards are not as many as the hundreds of thousands or one hundred thousand in their heyday, they are still as many as fifty or sixty thousand. How much food and grass will be needed to mobilize troops thousands of miles away?
Supplies are in short supply, and there are so many novices who can’t carry them. It’s not like we’re going on a trip.
After some discussion, we finally selected the Tengxiang Four Guards and Jinwu Four Guards, who were experienced in combat, with a total of eight guards and more than 10,000 cavalry.
After all, going south to quell the chaos is a matter of real swordsmanship, and taking other rookies would just cost you their lives, so why bother.
As for Emperor Chongzhen who wanted to temper his personal guards, he could send them to Changping and various passes along the Great Wall to defend the area.
Soldiers and horses outside the city have been pulling out of camp one after another, and the eight guards in the city are also busy packing their luggage. Unlike other ministries, all their food and grass have been supplied by the imperial court since they left Beijing.