0p0 Chapter 245 Swinging
Chapter 245 Swinging
Jin Shenghuan retreated all the way from Jing County in a panic. Some of the 50,000-man army took the opportunity to escape, while others were left by Jin Shenghuan as the rear guard to block Liu Kun's pursuit. When Jin Shenghuan arrived in Xiuning, almost half of the 50,000-man army had been defeated. They were frightened by the slightest sign of trouble. Jin Shenghuan was even more panicked, and urgently ordered Hu Zhan, Wang Deren, and Zhao Han to stop fighting with the Zhou army and withdraw the entire army to Nanchang.
The news of the Battle of Nanling City had slowly spread in all directions. The first person to get the news was Hu Zhan, who was still entangled with Wang Fugui near Wuhu. Hu Zhan knew that many of his soldiers were conscripted, their morale was low, and their fighting skills were unsatisfactory. For this reason, as soon as Hu Zhan entered the territory of Wuhu, he built a strong camp and fought a stupid battle. The army marched at a speed of only fifteen miles a day, which was almost as slow as a turtle.
This made Wang Fugui sick. He was extremely anxious and wanted to defeat Hu Zhan's detachment and then rush to the main battlefield. Although the king only asked him to delay Hu Zhan, Wang Fugui knew that the main battlefield was a good opportunity to make a name for himself. How could he have the chance to make a name for himself if he stayed here with Hu Zhan, who was like a turtle?
Wang Fugui wanted to attack by force, but the camp on the opposite side was indeed well-built. He tried to attack once, but gained nothing except nearly a thousand casualties.
Hu Zhan had full confidence in Marshal Jin Shenghuan. Although the Marshal asked him to take the opportunity to go south and join the battle with the Meng bandits, in Hu Zhan's view, the Marshal was several times stronger than the Zhou army. Even if the Zhou army was stronger, this was a battle of hundreds of thousands of troops. How could the outcome be decided overnight? The longer the time dragged on, the greater the Marshal's chances of winning. He did not seek merit, but only sought to avoid mistakes. He would first drag the opponent Wang Fugui to the point where he could not bear it, and then he would hold on to the camp and wait for him to become exhausted, and then seize the opportunity to break him.
When Hu Zhan received the message, his first reaction was that it was fake, this must be false information. But after confirming it again and again, Hu Zhan panicked. If he received the message, then Wang Fugui on the opposite side must have received it as well. If he was delayed, wouldn't he be dead?
Thinking of this, Hu Zhan hurriedly called his subordinates to discuss the matter. When they first heard the news, they were all stunned. One of his subordinates said with great sorrow: "Two hundred thousand troops! Is it so fast?"
The corner of Hu Zhan's mouth twitched, and he said: "The Meng bandits suddenly attacked, and the commander was caught off guard, which led to his defeat. The Meng bandits won unfairly..." The further he spoke, the smaller Hu Zhan's voice became.
It is no longer the early Spring and Autumn Period. There are no rules for wars between nobles. Winning is the ultimate goal. After listening to Hu Zhan's words, everyone knew that the Marshal was no match for Meng Jun, and he was still making excuses for the Marshal after losing.
Hu Zhan listened to everyone's shouting and said unhappily: "In the current situation, what's the point of saying these things? The Marshal has been defeated, so what should we do?"
When everyone heard this, they looked at each other. Some of them lowered their heads as if feeling guilty, while some wanted to say something, but when no one spoke first, they simply kept silent.
Seeing this, Hu Zhan knew that the people's morale was low and that he could not fight. If he waited a few more days, he was afraid that these people would surrender in droves. Thinking of this, Hu Zhan slammed the table and said loudly, "We are isolated and difficult to hold on. The only thing we can do now is to retreat temporarily. I have made up my mind. We will withdraw our troops today, abandon the baggage, and only take dry food and retreat back to Hukou!"
With the order, there was a commotion in the Hu Zhan army. In less than an hour, the army swarmed out of the camp, and all the baggage was abandoned. The entire army rushed westward, traveling fifteen miles a day when coming forward and fifty miles a day when retreating. When Wang Fugui received the news of Jin Shenghuan's defeat, he reorganized his army and prepared for battle. When he arrived at the Hu Zhan camp, it was already empty.
Meng Jun's army stopped outside Nanling City. After resting for two days, Meng Jun formally ordered, in the name of King Zhou, to appoint Lin Shiqi as the General of the Southern Expedition, and led his troops to Ningwu Town and Liang Sanhu's troops to Wusheng Town, and ordered five battalions of troops to serve under his command. The cavalry was also transferred to his banner to obey his orders. The entire army had more than 36,000 people and more than 30,000 auxiliary soldiers to transport supplies for their troops. They went south from Nanling City to Jing County, through Xiuning, to Shangrao, and joined forces with Changlin Town, and then attacked Nanchang together.
Meng Jun led the Ke Lu army, Qian Biao's troops, the heavy armored troops, and personal guards, north to Wuhu, attempting to encircle and annihilate Jin Shenghuan's small army and Hu Zhan's troops.
Jinling City, teahouse.
"What? The Jin bandits were defeated so quickly?" In that same teahouse, the owner posted more than a dozen notes asking people not to talk about state affairs, but it still couldn't stop the people in Jinling City from discussing state affairs.
"Why? Do you still feel it's a pity?" a scholar asked with a chuckle.
"How could I be like that? I am just amazed at how Your Majesty is invincible and victorious in every battle, and how quickly news of victory comes in," another scholar responded with a laugh.
"Your Majesty is a man of extraordinary talent. I have said it before. Your Majesty will win every battle, and this one is no exception!"
"But I just heard you say last time that the Jin bandits are very powerful and it will be difficult to defeat them."
"Yes, fighting is not easy, but that refers to ordinary people. The king is not an ordinary person!"
"Hahaha"
As soon as Tao Luzhuo stepped into the teahouse, he heard heated discussions coming from inside. Tao Luzhuo came from Shaoxing and decided to join Meng Zhou. In the past few years, Shaoxing had suffered from wars repeatedly, and the Tao family had also dwindled in numbers. During these days, the Ming court's various regrettable actions had greatly disappointed many gentry who had been committed to the Ming Dynasty.
As the old saying goes, "Born in sorrow, die in comfort." This saying is most appropriate for the Hongguang court. The Hongguang monarch and his ministers were only willing to borrow the help of the enemy to suppress the bandits, but they had no intention of reviving themselves and just lived in peace in the Jiangzuo area. At first, they did not pay attention to the storm caused by the Qing court's entry into the pass. Later, they wanted to divide the river with the Qing court and recreate the history of the Southern Song Dynasty. Unfortunately, the Qing court was not the Later Jin Dynasty, and the Southern Ming Dynasty was not the Southern Song Dynasty.
Emperor Hongguang was addicted to alcohol and lust, pursuing pleasure and not caring about state affairs. As soon as he ascended the throne, he began to enrich his harem and select women to enter the palace. Ma Shiying, Ruan Dacheng and others who held real power in the court were also drunk and dreaming, using their power to sell official positions and enrich their families. The Hongguang court's complacency reached a crazy level, and the Qing army immediately collapsed when it went south.
As for other party struggles, corruption, the struggle for the throne, and various attempts to hinder each other, Tao Luzhuo was greatly disappointed. After a secret discussion among the Tao family, most people believed that the Ming Dynasty had lost its power and the whole world was chasing it. Meng Jun was the most promising person in the eyes of the Tao family.
As soon as Tao Luzhuo arrived at the teahouse, he sat quietly aside and listened to everyone's discussion. At this time, he knew that Meng Jun had defeated Jin Shenghuan. The more he heard, the more anxious he became. It was over. Before, the Tao family bet on Meng Jun, and there was still some element of gambling. Now there is no need to gamble. It is almost a clear card. Even if Meng Jun is not good enough, it is estimated that the situation will be like the Northern and Southern Dynasties. Now it is not just the Tao family. The gentry and wealthy merchants from all over the country have to squeeze in to add to the icing on the cake. Tao Luzhuo sighed and whispered: "Alas, they have to compete for the first place again!"