1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 2382
It has been several years since Haihan established a foothold in Dengzhou, Shandong, but the main control area has always been kept in Fushan County, and he is not in a hurry to expand his territory outward.Haihan's restrained attitude involves many aspects, including international relations and long-term planning considerations, but the most realistic reason is that Haihan has very limited resources to invest in Shandong at this stage, whether it is military power or management. It is difficult to meet the management needs after the site expansion.Therefore, it is a more practical strategy for Haihan to maintain the existing control area and not rush to expand externally.

But this attitude of restraint is only relative to the means of military occupation, and it does not mean that Haihan will really do nothing honestly.In fact, in the past few years, Haihan's influence has gradually penetrated into the surrounding areas of Fushan County through trade channels, and more and more people have become rich through these transnational trades, and there are even some official figures among them.

Sun Zhen really doubted whether the county magistrate who hid in the city and directed Mr. Lou to discuss cooperation terms was secretly a vested interest in transnational trade.Otherwise, how could he secretly provide material assistance to himself under the pressure of the Dengzhou government, and even ask the Haihan army to help defend the county.

Regarding the situation in this regard, Sun Zhen, who had just been transferred from North Korea, must not know the inside story. Even if he asked Lou Bin, he probably would not get a clear answer.So he can only make some speculations without evidence, unable to confirm its authenticity.However, such doubts did not bother him for too long, and soon someone who knew the inside story came to Zhaoyuan.

"Battalion Commander, a caravan came outside to ask for an interview, claiming that they belonged to us."

"One of our own? Take a look!" Sun Zhen got up and left the tent immediately after hearing the report from his subordinates.He had vaguely guessed the identity of the visitor, and now he was just verifying whether his premonition was correct.

"Brother Gong, long time no see!" Seeing that the visitor was indeed an old acquaintance, Sun Zhen cupped his fists and saluted from a distance.

The man also greeted him with a smile and cupped his fists: "It turns out that Brother Sun is leading the team this time. I heard that Brother Sun has been promoted to battalion commander. Congratulations!"

The person who came was Gong Shiqi, the number one ace of the Ministry of Security. When the Special Operations Group was still stationed on Zhifu Island, Gong Shiqi was also transferred to Shandong, and he got acquainted with Sun Zhen at that time.However, the Special Operations Group was first deployed to Liaodong, and then stationed in North Korea, and the two never had a chance to meet again.Although it can't be said that there is any fatal friendship, the two of them are the best in their respective departments, and there is a taste of heroes cherishing heroes.

Before setting off from Fushan County this time, Hao Wanqing had informed the military that the Gong [-]th Squad, which was still active outside, would return to Dengzhou in the near future, and the first stop was Zhaoyuan County.And someone as alert as Gong Shiqi, of course, would not miss the news that Hai Hanjun appeared in Zhaoyuan, and he would find Hai Hanjun to meet him at that time.

The reason why the military attaches special importance to this is naturally because Gong Shiqi may bring back the latest news about the battle in Jinan Prefecture, which will be an important reference for Haihan to adjust his response strategy.

The two exchanged a few pleasantries, Sun Zhen asked his subordinates to welcome Gong Shiqi's team into the camp to rest, and he took Gong Shiqi back to the big tent, and ordered the orderlies to prepare hot tea and hot food for Gong Shiqi as a treat. .

"The conditions are limited, and the care is not good enough. Brother Gong, please take care of me!" During the mission, Sun Zhen's team had to plan their food and grass according to the day, so naturally they couldn't come up with anything good to entertain Gong Shiqi.

However, Gong Shiqi didn't care about these hypocrisy. He waved his hands and said, "They are all from my own family. Brother Sun, you don't have to be so alien. I heard that you have only been here for two days. You must have come here for the refugees. After arriving in Zhaoyuan No trouble?"

Sun Zhen shook his head and said: "I didn't encounter any trouble, and the situation went much smoother than I expected. The local government is also cooperative, not only not interfering with us to guide the refugees to Fushan County, but also promised to send us some food , it seems that there is no fear of our appearance."

Gong Shiqi said with a smile: "The magistrate of Gu County in the city is a smart man, he knows what can and cannot be managed."

Sun Zhendao: "I haven't met Guzhi County face to face, he sent one of his masters out of the city to negotiate with me."

Gong Shishi said: "If you want to meet this Gu County magistrate in person, I can arrange it for you."

When Sun Zhen heard the words, he immediately confirmed his previous guess: "It turns out that the magistrate of Gu County has had contacts with our country for a long time."

"It's not just that there is a relationship, there are huge interests involved... But before the matter is completed, it is inconvenient to publicize it to the outside world, please forgive me." Gong Shiqi stopped abruptly in the middle of his words. It's really not enough.

Although Sun Zhen couldn't help being curious when he heard it, he also knew that the Ministry of Security was directly under the executive committee, and the inside story of many secret missions should not be publicized. Even the military could only cooperate and not interfere with its actions. He said that this matter was classified, so he could not continue to ask questions.

Sun Zhen recalled the behavior of Master Lou when he visited before, and he did not show that he had been in contact with Haihan for a long time. This is either because his acting skills are so proficient that he does not show any flaws, or his master did not let him know at all. Related inside story.However, Gong Shiqi obviously had a certain degree of contact with the magistrate of Gu County, and had secretly reached some agreements involving interests. This shows that the Ministry of Security is indeed extremely powerful.

Sun Zhendao: "In this way, the trust shown by the magistrate of Gu County in the arrival of our army should also come from his private cooperation with Brother Gong."

Gong Shiqi said noncommittally: "To keep the peace in Zhaoyuan County is to keep his own black hat. As long as Zhaoyuan is not chaotic, there will naturally be a steady stream of benefits flowing into his pocket in the future. Compared with this, the Dengzhou government imposed The little pressure from him is nothing, if you really want to push him to turn his face, I'm afraid it will embarrass the Dengzhou government instead."

The more Sun Zhen listened, the more curious he was about what kind of project the magistrate of Guxian was secretly cooperating with Haihan, so that he could have such confidence, but he also knew that the rules should not be broken, so he took the initiative to change the topic: "Brother Gong should be doing well these days." Are you active in a war zone? I don’t know how the battle is going in Jinan Prefecture?"

When mentioning this matter, Gong Shiqi also quickly put away the smile on his face, and replied in a deep voice: "When the Qing army attacked Jinan Prefecture, I was in Zhangqiu County, [-] miles east of Jinan City. Originally, I was I planned to sneak into Jinan City and witness the battle with my own eyes, but the Qing army came too fast. As soon as I left Zhangqiu, some refugees who escaped from Jinan had already arrived in Zhangqiu, and they said that the Qing army had arrived. People and horses surrounded the entire city of Jinan. In addition, numerous small groups of cavalrymen were sent out to clean up the surrounding areas of Jinan city. Anyone with good arms and legs would be taken away as slaves if they were found. .”

"Brother Sun also saw the field operation team I led just now. Of course, such a small number of people cannot fight against the Qing army, so I can only give up the idea of ​​going to Jinan City first, and return to Zhangqiu to wait and see the situation. But it didn't work." Thinking that a Qing army arrived in Zhangqiu the next day, the garrison in the county only made a symbolic resistance, and the Qing army broke through the city gate. In desperation, we had no choice but to leave Zhangqiu and continue to retreat eastward. This withdrawal never stopped, and was chased away by the Qing army all the way. If we hadn't prepared enough horses in advance, I am afraid that even Jinan Mansion would not be able to escape!"

"The Qing army's combat method is mainly to encircle and fight for reinforcements. It has been searching the outskirts of Jinan Prefecture for Ming army troops who came to reinforce them. But judging from what I observed on the way, the Ming army probably failed to organize a decent rescue and Counter-offensive. I stayed in Zichuan and Qingzhou prefectures, but I didn’t see any signs of large groups of troops marching westward, and there were no decent guidance and resettlement measures for the refugees who escaped from Jinan prefecture. Obviously, Jinan The city was besieged and thrown into disarray."

"When we arrived in Wei County, there was news from the west. It was said that Jinan City had been captured by the Qing army. Later, we found people in the local government to verify that the news came from the Ming army. Its authenticity should be more reliable."

After all, Jinan City was still not defended. This news was not too unexpected to Sun Zhen. Chen Yixin had already told him about this possibility before he set off, but Sun Zhen still felt that it was confirmed news. I feel sorry for you.

In the face of the large-scale attack of the Qing army, Daming did not seem to perform better than North Korea, which was invaded two years ago, and was also killed by the Qing army all the way to the hinterland.Fortunately, North Korea invited the international coalition forces headed by the Haihan Army to help in the battle, and finally stopped the menacing Qing army on the banks of the Datong River.However, Da Ming, who fought alone, obviously overestimated his own strength. He set up several lines of defense but failed to stop the Qing army, and even allowed the opponent to cross the Yellow River and captured a big city like Jinan.

Gong Shiqi took out a letterhead and handed it to Sun Zhen: "This is the official battle report we intercepted, you can take a look."

According to the battle report, when Jinan City was besieged, there were only [-] Xiangyong troops in the city, [-] Laizhou reinforcements, and more than [-] Qing troops outside the city.But even with such a huge disparity in strength, the soldiers and civilians in the city fought fiercely with the siege Qing army for nine days and nights before finally declaring that the city defense had fallen.

It is reported that Song Xuezhu, the official censor Song Xuezhu of Shandong, Zhang Bingwen, the governor of Shandong, Gou Haoshan, the prefect of Jinan, and Han Chengxuan, the magistrate of Licheng County, who were in the city at that time, all died in battle.De Wang Zhu Youshu was taken away by the Qing army. Among his clan were Ninghai King Zhu Changfen, Taian Palace Fengguo General Zhu Changbian, Taian Palace Fengguo Fourth General Zhu Changhao, Linqu Palace Fengguo General Zhu Changxuan, and Dewang's son-in-law Chen Fengyi's family. All died in the battle of the city.

In addition to these famous and famous figures, the casualties of the people in the city were also extremely tragic. Only 350 scholars who participated in the battle and patrolling the city defense died. Many women in the city threw themselves into lakes and wells to avoid being humiliated. Up to ten thousand people.

But the exact number of casualties was not available when Gong Shiqi intercepted the battle report.The main purpose of the Qing army attacking Jinan City was to plunder wealth and population. It is conceivable that they would only leave an empty city for Daming after they evacuated. It is difficult to calculate in detail how many Ming people were killed or injured in this battle. up.

Although the battle report is only a description on paper, as a soldier who has experienced many battles, it is not difficult for Sun Zhen to appreciate the cruelty of this battle from the text.The ferocity and brutality of the Qing army and the incompetence of the Ming court were fully revealed in the First World War in Jinan.

Gong Shiqidao: "If Ming hadn't foolishly concentrated Shandong's troops on the front line of Dezhou, but insisted on deploying defenses with Jinan City as the center, perhaps this battle would not have been lost so badly. If more than [-] Qing troops could be dragged to Jinan Under the city, if we can buy more time for dispatching troops, then maybe we can fight a beautiful counterattack and wipe out the main force of the Qing army south of the Yellow River."

Sun Zhen sighed: "If the generals of our country were to command this battle, they would not have made such a stupid mistake. It's a pity that the Ming court had too many people who harmed the country. The emperor asked these people to command the war against the Qing army. I am afraid that in the future, we will only be able to fight one game and lose one game, and it will be like this every year.”

Gong Shiqidao: "One goes down and the other goes up. The Qing army is getting stronger every year. One day, they will no longer be satisfied with sending troops to plunder every year like this. They will definitely find a way to replace Daming!"

Sun Zhen was silent for a long time before saying: "Our country should not sit idly by and watch such a situation happen. At that time, the Executive Committee will definitely order to send troops to aid Ming Dynasty."

Gong Shiqi said: "That also depends on Daming being willing to accept aid... According to the current situation, the Emperor Daming sees everyone as an enemy. The Qing army has already invaded Shandong, and there is no sign of asking for help from our country. Be afraid of us, afraid that we will take this opportunity to dominate the Central Plains."

Sun Zhen sighed again: "If Daming is willing to join forces with our Haihan Kingdom, why should we be afraid of these barbarians outside the pass!"

Daming and Haihan nominally had a military alliance and regarded the Manchu Qing as their common enemy.But what Daming wants is only the advanced weapons produced by Haihan, and there is no sign of cooperating with Haihan or asking Haihan for military assistance measures.On the contrary, he was cautious about Haihan's army, lest Haihan would take advantage of it.

Of course, Daming’s worries are not entirely unreasonable. In essence, what Shanghai Han is doing is similar to that of the Manchus, encroaching on Daming’s territory year after year, and using various means to continuously obtain wealth and population from Daming.The difference is that the Manchus used simple and brutal means of force, and the whole thing would be over with a single shot; while Haihan used both soft and hard methods, absorbing Daming's wealth through trade means, and at the same time used powerful force to frighten Daming, making it difficult for Haihan. All he could do was swallow his anger.

Although the two countries should tend to be consistent in their attitudes towards the Manchu Qing, Daming obviously still does not trust Haihan, and has no intention of letting Haihan intervene in the Shandong war.I don't know if the tragic consequences of the First World War in Jinan will make the Ming court, who is still intoxicated with the status of the celestial kingdom and unable to extricate itself, sober up a little bit.

(End of this chapter)