Although there were many difficulties, the siege of Shanyang was not just a feint attack, but a real attack.
However, the intensity of the siege was somewhat reduced.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Hauge led ten thousand cavalrymen, one person and three horses, with rations, and walked in the dark, bypassing Shanyang City.
The Qing army, which numbered about 100,000 people, was missing 10,000 people, which was hard to tell.
At this time in Shandong.
Wu Sangui went north, got rid of the dilemma of siege, and began to exterminate the bandits like a scalper, working hard and without complaint.
Almost every three to five days, he had to report to the court, describing his achievements and explaining his hard work.
Especially after he recaptured Qufu, his prestige in Shandong increased dramatically.
The gentry could only hold their noses and provide appropriate amounts of money and food to prevent Guan Ning's army from looting everywhere.
Half a month passed in an instant, and with the urging of Jinan officials, he reluctantly went to Caozhou to wipe out the so-called Yuyuan Army.
When he arrived near Caozhou, he frowned and stopped his horse's hooves.
Otherwise, this place belongs to the north of the Yellow River, with a large number of shoals and muddy puddles everywhere, yellow and wet.
If the war horse steps in accidentally, it is a trivial matter for the horse's hoof to get stuck on the stone, but it is possible for the horse to sink completely.
This is no worse than a swamp.
In addition, what impressed Wu Sangui's eyes was the endless elm forest, dry, tall, crooked, and densely packed, countless.
The combination of Yulin and riverbanks makes it even more difficult and daunting.
"Millions of acres of riverbanks and Yulin forests are everywhere. Even locals find it difficult to get out."
Fang Yichen shook his head, sat on his horse, stretched out his right hand, pointed at the elm tree and said:
"Moreover, there are tunnels criss-crossing under these elm trees. You don't know where the exits are or where the traps are."
"If you break in recklessly, you will only get hit all over the head, so the Yuyuan thieves attack secretly from time to time. If they can't defeat them, they go back into the tunnel and escape, which makes people helpless..."
“Then there’s nothing we can do??”
Wu Sangui scratched his scalp. Under the big felt hat, his scalp was still a little cold and there was a little draft.
Even after two or three years, he is still not used to the way he looks after shaving his hair.
"That's not true!"
Fang Yichen shook his head and showed a helpless smile: "There are many people who know this method, but it will harm the world, so no one dares to use it."
Wu Sangui became interested and hurriedly asked: "Oh? What is the method? I'm curious."
"Burn the elm garden and dig up the Yellow River embankment."
Fang Yichen said word for word: "Millions of acres of riverbanks and criss-crossing tunnels will be invisible in front of the Yellow River..."
"I heard that the people in several counties in Caozhou rely on elm trees to survive in years of famine. If they are burned, they will force hundreds of thousands of people to rebel——"
Wu Sangui was speechless and shook his head: "Moreover, the Yellow River burst its banks and spread for more than a hundred miles. The sins involved are immeasurable..."
Fang Yichen said: "If the king takes this strategy, even if it works for a while, he will be held accountable in the future. The gain outweighs the loss, so the student doesn't want to talk about it."
Historically, in the eighth year of Shunzhi, Zhang Cunren, the governor of the three provinces, in order to encircle and suppress the Yuyuan army across Henan, Shandong, and Hebei, he did not hesitate to burn the jungle with fire, flood the tunnels with the Yellow River, and then besieged Yuyuan with heavy troops.
In this way, although the Yuyuan Army was wiped out, the disaster affected the entire southwest of Shandong, and countless people died in the belly of the fish and fled their homes.
It is not clear in the Qing history manuscript that Zhang Cunren poured sewage on Hou Fangyu's head, but the "Proposal for the Suppression of the Governors of the Three Provinces" was written in the seventh year of Shunzhi, and the embankments were removed in the eighth year of Shunzhi.
Of course, perhaps it was retribution. In the ninth year of Shunzhi, Zhang Cunren died.
After these words, Wu Sangui fell into silence.
After a long time, he said: "It's better to look for a guide and walk slowly!"
"Your Majesty has made meritorious deeds in Shandong many times, why not give this good opportunity to Green Camp in Shandong? They really want to make meritorious deeds."
Fang Yichen said with a slight smile.
"Okay, brothers, it's time to take a break!"
Gu Ji
Wu Sangui laughed.
When you help others, you also help yourself.
For two or three days in a row, the Green Camp in Shandong was like a dog after seeing a bone, patrolling back and forth, thinking of atoning for the crime and meritorious service, and regaining military exploits.
This is somewhat troublesome for the Yuyuan Army.
There were no casualties, but the Green Camp was moving around, making it difficult to supply them.
Moreover, the Green Camp couldn't find the Yuyuan Army for a while, so they killed the good ones and took credit, which further reduced their channels for replenishing supplies.
Ren Qi and Zhang Qi looked at each other, spread their hands, and said to the angel Chu Yu:
"Angel, it's not an option if we continue like this. When will the reinforcements from the imperial court arrive?"
Reinforcements? How could there be reinforcements?
Chu Yu felt helpless. He was a royal guard and had no control over the local generals.
Besides, this is Shandong, not the south.
He had no confidence in his heart, but he was full of courage, and he patted his chest and said:
"If we wait a little longer, reinforcements from the imperial court will definitely arrive."
"Besides, although our food supply is tight, we are much stronger than those Qing troops. They will definitely retreat in less than ten days and a half."
Zhang Qi and Ren Qi thought the same thing.
They robbed a lot of good things from Jining City, and there will be no shortage of them for a while.
"It's not okay to hold back like this." Ren Qida said loudly: "Many brothers live nearby. If we are killed by the Qing army, we will definitely get stabbed in the back if we sit back and do nothing."
"You still have to attack!" Zhang Qi agreed: "If you can't beat us, just sneak back to the tunnel."
In this way, the two of them ignored Chu Yu's opinions and ended the discussion as soon as they made peace.
However, when they attacked, they suddenly realized that the Qing army was missing.
Only a few hundred people were monitoring and hiding from a distance.
Later, they learned that Jining City had been captured again.
"Angels are really good at predicting things!"
Zhang Qi and Ren Qi danced: "It is indeed reinforcements, reinforcements are really coming!"
Chu Yu showed a confident smile on his face, but he was extremely surprised in his heart: Did the imperial court win? The Northern Expedition reached Shandong?
However, when Wu Sangui and others were enjoying themselves in Caozhou, news suddenly came from Jining:
A group of Ming troops raided Jining City and fell in less than half a day.
"Where did the Ming army come from?"
Wu Sangui's face was full of anger, and at the same time he was also a little angry.
"It appeared suddenly, and the brothers didn't even react!"
Wu Guodong said angrily: "The place we worked so hard to conquer is gone again."
Fang Yichen on the side sighed deeply: "This Shandong Province is not yet the Qing Dynasty!"
"The situation has changed."
"It has changed, and it has become incomprehensible."
Wu Sangui rode his horse and set off quickly towards Jining City.
When he returned to Jining, it was a mess.
The money and food that had been saved so hard were almost wiped out, leaving behind an empty Jining City and very few people.