0p0 Chapter 224: Entering Fuzhou
Chapter 224: Entering Fuzhou
Even when Guangdong, Guangxi, Fujian, Jiangxi and other places were in turmoil, Meng Jun still concentrated on internal work. He allocated craftsmen under his jurisdiction and established a huge firearms workshop in the remote suburbs of Nanjing, specializing in casting flintlock rifles and cannons. He also allocated half of the firearms craftsmen from the Military Equipment Bureau on Zhoushan Island to serve as the backbone of the newly built firearms workshop. At the same time, he built warships in various cities along the coast of Jiangsu and Zhejiang to expand the navy.
Meng Jun felt that the seven towns' soldiers were not strong enough to face the huge military pressure, so he expanded the army by two towns at once and named them Wuwei and Wusheng.
Wuwei Town was appointed as the commander of Gao Jinku, who had captured Lekedehun and surrendered, and Du Yonghe was transferred as the deputy commander. Wusheng Town was appointed as the commander of Liang Sanhu, who had made great contributions in the first assault, and Yang Wulie, the surrendered general, was transferred as the deputy commander.
At the same time, Meng Jun reorganized the 2,000-strong Fire Gun Battalion as the backbone and prepared to establish a pure firearms force. The Fire Gun Battalion was composed of squads, teams, teams, sentries, and battalions, with the largest organization being a battalion, with 2,000 people in a battalion, instead of more than 3,000 people in a battalion that mainly used cold weapons. The original 2,000 fire gun soldiers would be divided into five battalions, forming a five-battalion fire gun town of 10,000 people.
Although gunpowder originated in China, at that time, the manufacture of firearms had begun to lag behind the West. At the end of the Ming Dynasty, although flintlock rifles had been invented, they were not equipped in the Ming army due to the corrupt bureaucracy. Instead, most of the people used were old-fashioned matchlock rifles and three-barreled guns that could be used as iron bars to hit people after firing. At the same time, in Western European countries, flintlock rifles were already widely equipped in the armies of various countries.
Meng Jun had high hopes for these firearms soldiers. Although they had appeared on the battlefield before, their scale was still too small and the Qing army had not taken them seriously. Meng Jun believed that when this huge firearms town appeared, it would surely make a stunning debut. Therefore, Meng Jun gave this firearms town a mighty name - the Ke Lu Army, instead of using the town as its name.
It was not until the news of Zhang Cunren's surrender reached Jinling that Meng Jun put aside his work and pondered for a long time. He was quite skeptical about Zhang Cunren's surrender of Fujian. However, when Han Xiong's urgent letter arrived, saying that the guards of Xianxia Pass had opened the gate and invited Kewu Town to enter Fujian, Han Xiong asked Meng Jun how to deal with it. Meng Jun summoned Yang En and Gu Yanwu to inquire, and both agreed to send Han Xiong to Fujian. Meng Jun then ordered Kewu Town to enter Xianxia Pass and station troops in Fuzhou.
After receiving the military order, Han Xiong left a thousand men in Quzhou Prefecture, and the rest all entered Xianxia Pass. The original garrison of Xianxia Pass was driven away from the wall by Han Xiong. Han Xiong left a team of troops to guard Xianxia Pass as a retreat.
Zhang Klon, the former commander of Xianxia Pass, looked helplessly at the Zhou army rushing in. He said to the deputy commander beside him with a sigh, "Let the flags on the city walls change. We can't do anything about it!"
Some of the defenders touched their bald heads and racked their brains to understand why the high-ranking officials had to be so picky about their hair.
An older soldier complained, "These officials asked me to shave my head and leave a braid, and then asked me to shave my braid again. Now there's nothing to argue about. I'm bald now. When I go out, people will think I'm a monk!!"
Zhang Klon's troops were also unable to stay where they were and were forced by Han Xiong to follow the army. Zhang Klon had no choice but to obey Han Xiong's orders.
Han Xiong's troops rushed all the way to Fuzhou. Han Xiong looked at the terrain along the way in Fujian and said with emotion: "Fujian is so blessed by nature. It is surrounded by mountains on three sides and water on one side. It is easy to defend but difficult to attack. The Zheng family is a maritime merchant. They have been engaged in maritime trade for many years and are rich enough to rival a country. Fujian has iron and coal. It is such a good place to live. But Zheng Zhilong is determined to live in peace. Otherwise, with the financial resources of the Zheng family, money and food, it would be a pity!"
Six days later, Han Xiong's troops finally arrived at the city of Fuzhou. Looking at the city gate open, dozens of officials, led by Zhang Cunren, stood quietly by.
Han Xiong rode on a swift horse, his eyes were like torches. He slowly moved forward, his eyes fixed on Zhang Cunren. In front of the gate of Fuzhou, no matter what Zhang Cunren thought in his heart, at this moment, Zhang Cunren took a deep breath, then slowly knelt down, and said loudly: "The guilty general Zhang Cunren is willing to surrender."
Han Xiong dismounted, walked forward, helped Zhang Cunren up with both hands, and said happily: "General Zhang is very righteous and has abandoned evil to join the light. He will surely be remembered in history!"
It was not until the army entered Fuzhou that Han Xiong gradually put down his worries. He had been in Quzhou for so long, managing the army on horseback and the people on foot.
Meng Jun said in his military order to Han Xiong: "General, when you lead your troops into Fujian, there are several things that need to be arranged quickly.
First, although Zhang Cunren has surrendered, he cannot be kept in Fujian. If he is kept, there may be unexpected events. We should station troops in Fuzhou and quickly send guards to escort Zhang Bei back to Nanjing to eliminate future troubles.
Secondly, Fujian was newly annexed and the people’s hearts were not yet stable. We should educate the people with virtue, suppress rebellion with force, enforce strict military discipline, prohibit atrocities, and demonstrate the benevolence of our teacher.
Third, the surrendered troops may be mixed together and some may harbor ulterior motives. They should be reorganized quickly, the weak should be eliminated and the strong retained. If there are any unruly ones, they should be dealt with according to the law to avoid internal strife.
The following can be done slowly. The people in Fujian are in decline, so we can build water conservancy projects and encourage agriculture and sericulture. The Fujian Sea is vast, and Zheng is outside. Although he is not an opponent for the time being, we must guard against him. It is advisable to build a navy and train a boat division. "
As the last rays of sunset shone on the Fuzhou city wall, Han Xiong's mood also became peaceful. He stood on the top of the city wall, surrounded by the soldiers of Kewu Town, and the surrendered Qing army was stationed outside the city. He took a deep breath and then turned back and went down the city wall.
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As the news of Jin Shengheng, Li Chengdong and Zhang Cunren's rebellion against the Qing Dynasty gradually reached Beijing, Dorgon was furious. Jin and Li were out of reach, and Zhang Cunren's family was still in Beijing. Dorgon was furious and arrested all of Zhang's family members.
His son, Zhang Chaowu, grandsons Zhang Ting, Zhang Xun, Zhang Ke, Zhang Yan and other male and female relatives were all detained. The confidants sent by Zhang Cunren never arrived in Beijing at all. They disappeared without a trace somewhere in the panic.
Although the Zhang family was imprisoned, Zhang Cunren was an old minister during the reign of Huang Taiji and had countless close friends in the court. Even Manchu nobles such as Jirgalang and Daishan came forward to plead for him. After Dorgon calmed down, he realized that Zhang Cunren had no choice but to surrender when faced with enemies on all sides. So Dorgon finally released the Zhang family, young and old, and allowed them to return home.