Forty-eight years of Qianlong

Chapter 583 More Teach Where To Ask Tianya

At the end of the first month of the 57th year of Qianlong, Fukang'an, who set off from Xining a year ago, traveled [-] miles in fifty days and finally arrived in Lhasa.

Since the Qing Dynasty, there have been only two routes from the Central Plains to the snow-covered plateau.One is the Sichuan-Tibet Road, from Chengdu to Jinchuan, Jiangka, Lumaling, and Mozhugong to Lhasa, the whole journey is 6170 miles; the other is the Qinghai-Tibet Road, which exits from Xining and passes through Qinghai Lake, Tongtian River, Xingxiu Sea, and Kunlun Mountain, chain bridge to Lhasa, the whole journey is 3560 miles.

Although the Qinghai-Tibet line seems to be a lot shorter in distance, in fact this road is extremely difficult to walk, even if the Beihai Navy with rich logistics support comes, it will have to be caught blind!

In order to enter Tibet as soon as possible to find out the situation in advance, Fukang'an took 2000 of his men to set off lightly this time, and the more than [-] Sauron soldiers who stayed in Xining will later command Taifeiyinga and Batu in Zhenghongqi Guards Led by Zhang Jing, Amantai, Mo'er Genbao, Yinggui and others, Lu's guards entered Tibet in five batches; as for He Lin, the deputy who led the Jianrui Battalion to escort a large amount of arms, just entered Gansu at this time, No matter what, it will take March to enter Tibet.

Unexpectedly, just after Riyue Mountain, which has an average altitude of 4000 meters, he caught a cold, and then he suffered from severe altitude sickness.After crossing the Tongtian River and resting for two days, we met again, and plunged into the vast snow-capped mountains and glaciers.I originally thought that the weather would improve after entering the border of Tibet, but in the end, I encountered a continuous snowstorm, and I almost didn't even have to pick up cow dung for the fire.

Later, when they arrived at Chuzhagala, the horses died one after another, and there was no horse to change there!Fukang'an waited for three days in a row, but thanks to Chengde, the admiral of Sichuan, who had entered Tibet in advance, he sent Lin Jun of the Salt Tea Road with horses to welcome him, which relieved the urgent need.

After Fukang'an arrived at Laiding Temple, he first met the senior officials sent by the Dalai Lama to greet him.In order to prevent these Kalon officials from concealing anything, he first asked the Gurkhas the reasons for the two incidents separately, and sent letters to Chengde, Mukden'a and other generals who had entered Tibet in advance, ordering them to discuss the issues between Tibet and Kurkha. Answer truthfully.

When he arrived in Lhasa, before meeting the Dalai Lama and the Panchen Lama, he made extensive visits and talked with all the monks and officials who participated in the Zangkuang peace talks. Only then did he finally understand the process of the looting of the Tashilhunpo Monastery. It's just dumbfounding!
In August of last year, the Kuo army invaded the bandits on a large scale, Dingri and Jilong fell one after another, and the Zongcheng of Shigatse was besieged.Baotai, the minister stationed in Tibet, escorted the [-]-year-old Seventh Panchen Hutuktu to Lhasa with troops, and let Zhongba Hutuktu, who was the general manager of Tashilhunpo Monastery, stay behind.

There are more than 3000 lamas inside and outside the Tashilhunpo Monastery, with sufficient weapons and food, and the temple is like a fortress; it is said that as long as you resist tenaciously, you may not necessarily lose.But who would have thought that the upper lamas headed by Jizhong Lama Lobu Tsangdamba, facing the invasion of the Kuo army, actually put two notes of "war" and "no war" into the tsampa balls and put them in the porcelain Disc, decided by lottery!
Needless to say, the result was "no war".Later, the lamas engaged in divination again, and the result was "peace talks"!
I'll fuck it!Earlier, Gurkha sent envoys to ask for a ransom of 300 ingots. The Karon side treated them like a monkey and only gave 150 ingots. They also said that one would be used as two flowers. Er became angry from embarrassment, and went to the bandits to rob on a large scale.

Make peace now, why did you go early?
Tashilhunpo Monastery decided to send someone to seek peace, but the envoy was even worse. He was afraid that he would be captured by the Kuo army just like Lama Diwo Zhajiaba in the "Chongdui Bloodshed Incident", so he went to Came back halfway.
This is good, more than 3000 lamas have no fighting spirit after being tossed, and they ran away one after another; Zhongba Hutuktu became a polished commander in one fell swoop, what a fart, let's run!

So when thousands of troops entered the Tashilhunpo Monastery, there were only 9 elderly lamas left in the temple who couldn't run. up!

Based on a series of events that happened later, Fukang'an deduced that compared with the Eastern Kuo Army who stubbornly resisted the Sichuan Army, the Kuo Army who invaded the West Road was determined to rob, and their combat effectiveness was very average.

First of all, they first besieged the Lvying official village in Shigatse for eight days. The guard Xu Nanpeng led only 80 people to hold on, and the Kuo army did not beat them down!Secondly, when these guys returned to China and crossed the Himalayas, more than 2000 people were actually frozen to death, and the corpses were discarded everywhere.

Fukang'an stayed in Lhasa for 27 days, conveyed Qianlong's decree to the two lamas, and discussed official affairs in detail.At this time, the Tibetan side did not know that the Qing court had lost the Khalkha Mongol matter, so they had nothing to say about the emperor's decree and dared not violate it at all.

After that, Fukang'an went to Houzang again, told the upper class people everywhere, and ordered them to help raise food and grass for the army and comprador horses; and because Tibet produced raw materials such as saltpeter, sulfur, and lead, he directly purchased gunpowder and lead pellets on the spot.He also learned in detail about the rise and expansion of the Shah Kingdom, the territory and surrounding conditions, and the contradictions within the royal family from the captives captured by Chengde's troops.

Different from the history of another time and space, since the Qing court wanted to carve out a territory in the South Asian subcontinent this time to find a way out, Fukang'an paid special attention to the surrounding areas next to Gurkha.

According to the account of the captives, there is a place called "Galigada" near the south of Gurkha. Its people are the most tyrannical and tyrannical, and everyone hates it. The Gurkha people call it "Pileng", which means wicked people.

So at the beginning of February, when Fukang'an, the "general ordered by the emperor", sent a message to the vassal states around southern Tibet, asking for a joint attack on Gurkha, he also brought in "Pileng".But what he just didn't know was that this "Philen" was not a tribe at all, but the British East India Company.

Although the Qing Dynasty purchased several sailing battleships from the East India Company in the past few years, the British Admiralty also organized an officer corps to come to China for training, and participated in the Changxing Island naval battle, and was ravaged by the North Navy together with the Qing army. Speaking of it, the Qing court was not clear about the distribution of British power in the South Asian subcontinent, and some officials even called the East India Company a "red-haired country".

For example, on the [-]th day of the first lunar month earlier, Sun Shiyi, Governor of Sichuan, specifically reported the relevant situation in a memorial sent to the capital.The content of this memorial is Sun Shiyi’s inquiry committee defense officer Yan Tingliang’s journey to Yangbu, the capital of the Shah Kingdom; this person has been to Gurkha twice during the Tibetan-Korean peace talks two years ago, and has a certain understanding of the local situation , and also one of the important sources for the Qing government to find information about Gurkha.

".According to Yan Tingliang, I have been to Gurkha twice. It takes about seven or eight days to go to Yangbu from the exit of Jilong, and about five or six days to the south is Hongmao Country, and beyond is the West Ocean. The east and west of Gurkha About [-] to [-] miles, about [-] miles from north to south, there are more than [-] tribal places on the border with Gurkha.”

How can Sun Shiyi have been the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi for a few years? The British East India Company has a trading station in Guangzhou. Even he is confused, let alone others.

The main reason for this situation is the strict control of geographical information by the Qing court. In addition, out of the consideration of "Manchu-Han defense", the Manchu Qing strictly forbade the elites of the Han nationality from contacting the border, military, defense, etc. The surviving geographical knowledge, relevant information and materials are all concentrated in the inner court, and only Qianlong himself is entitled to access them.

For example, in the "Haiguo Wenjianlu", which was written in the eighth year of Yongzheng, it introduced in detail the situation of the British East India Company's three colonies in Bangladesh, Surat, and Mumbai, and clearly pointed out the British colonies in the Indian subcontinent The northernmost point borders Tibet.However, this book was later compiled into the "Siku Quanshu", and it is no longer allowed to be circulated among the people.

In the history of another time and space, there was the Second Qing Dynasty War before Macartney visited China.At that time, in order to find out whether the British provided assistance in the Qing Dynasty War, the Qing court specifically asked Macartney about the relationship between the three seemingly unrelated forces, the Red-haired Kingdom, the Phi Leng, and British India.Although Macartney denied this issue without knowing the war, the Qing court determined that the Red-haired country was British India through the interrogation of the Gurkha prisoners of war.Two years later, Qianlong confirmed this judgment again through correspondence with King George III of England.

In mid-March, Qianlong, who had just paid homage to the Western Mausoleum of the Qing Dynasty and was about to tour Mount Wutai, ordered the Minister of Military Affairs to confer Fukang'an as "General Fuyuan".As soon as the news came out, it shocked the ruling and opposition parties.By the way, He Lin, who was in charge of escorting the military supplies, was also promoted two days later, from the Deputy Commander of the Han Army in the Zhenglan Banner to the Deputy Commander of the Manchuria in the Bordered White Banner.

You must know that there were only ten people who were awarded the post of "Fuyuan General" since the Manchus entered the customs, including Fukang'an.Except for a few people who do nothing, they all shoulder the responsibility of opening up territories.

Although Qianlong said in the Shangyu that it was for the majesty and respect of the imperial court, it made all the people fearful and the bandits broke their courage.But he also used this to clarify to the Minister of Military Aircraft and Fukang'an the overall strategy for the Gurkha battle, that is, "intensify annihilation to destroy the country and seize all the land."

In order to achieve this operational goal, the Qing government did its best in terms of the number of troops it dispatched and the military expenditure on materials.

Regarding the dispatch of troops, the governor of Sichuan, Chengde, the commander-in-chief, Mu Kedeng'a, and the commander-in-chief of the green battalion, Zhang Zhiyuan, have already led 39 troops composed of rattan soldiers, Jinchuan native soldiers, and the green battalion into Tibet. The native soldiers arrived one after another along the Sichuan-Tibet line.In the direction of the Qinghai-Tibet line, in addition to the [-] Sauron soldiers led by Tai Feiying'a and the [-] Batulu guard Zhang Jing, there are also [-] Jianrui battalions and [-] soldiers led by the Minister of Affairs in Tibet He Lin. Eight Banners Firearms Battalion, Qinghai [-] Fanbing, and a small number of Eight Banners Mongolian soldiers.

As a result, the total strength of the two troops is expected to exceed 8000.

Originally, some people in the court suggested that Fanbing be recruited from Yunnan and Guizhou, but after careful consideration, Qianlong rejected this proposal.This is mainly due to the fact that the Jinchuan native soldiers among the Sichuan soldiers are far more brave than the Yunnan-Guizhou Fanbing, as evidenced by the previous "Battle of Jinchuan and Jinchuan".These soldiers are fully adapted to fighting in alpine regions, and they have strong rock climbing ability; we must know that the Dajianlu area on the Sichuan-Tibet line is full of mountains and difficult for horses, and there are mountain roads along the way, only Jinchuan soldiers regard it as flat ground.

In terms of the preparation of logistics materials, the Qing court also put in all its strength.Fukang'an and Chengde have raised funds for more than a month, and the existing 14 shi grain reserves and the number of cattle and sheep in Tibet can supply the army for nearly a year.In addition, in the direction of the Qinghai-Tibet line, Le Bao, Governor of Shaanxi-Gansu, and Kui Shu, Minister of Qinghai Affairs, were ordered to pre-arrange matters such as riding, transporting livestock, grain, firewood, stations, and guides; Counselor Hui Ling was ordered to organize food and grass.

In terms of raising military expenses, in addition to the 300 million taels allocated by the Ministry of Households, there were also 50 taels donated by Changlu salt merchants and Shandong merchants, and 80 taels donated by Liangzhe businessman He Yonghe. Huguang collects a government apportionment called "help post money".

In late March, Fukang'an sent someone to issue an order to Bahadur, the regent of Gurkha, with an extremely tough tone:

".The recent letter from Ercheng Chengde stated that the Tibetans abandoned their foreword and refused to give the silver, so they competed over the details. You should report the actual situation to the minister of the Ming Dynasty in Tibet and wait for investigation, or the minister in Tibet will not apply for it. , You should also report to the governor, general, etc., and you must judge impartially for you. Moreover, since you have sent leaders to pay tribute, that is, you want to show that you have sent leaders to play the emperor. Who can stop you from sending people, but dare to say Soldiers occupied the border, destroyed and plundered Tashilhunpo! Don't you think that the land of Weizang is the land of the Celestial Dynasty, how can you allow it to be practiced! Now you are ordered to lead the army to ask for it, and the details of the money and debts discussed by you in the past are not worth the theory. It's definitely not like I used to make peace with you!"

During this period, Fukang'an also dispatched a Balebu businessman to sneak back to Gurkha, premeditatedly seeking divorce to overthrow the royal family, but failed.

Until then, the Gurkhas, who didn't take the Qing army seriously at first, finally felt something was wrong.On the one hand, they strengthened their fortifications in Jilong, Rongjia and even the adjacent Nyalam area, preparing for desperate resistance; on the other hand, they gradually retreated the main force fighting against the Kingdom of Sikkim in the Ghawal area.

In April, in order to avoid the expansion of the war, Bahadur, the regent of Gurkha, sent envoys to Tibet, released a Qing soldier who had been detained before, and brought gifts to the "General Fuyuan".However, what Kuo Fang didn't know was that the purpose of the Manchu Qing war was to destroy their country and seize their land; it was impossible to even think about submitting a petition for peace like the previous one.

Fukangan threw back six gifts including golden brocade, telescope, cloth and felt on the spot, and sternly refuted the envoy.

In the first ten days of April, officers and soldiers from Xining had already entered Tibet one after another. Fukang'an's most trusted Solon Daur Army and troops led by He Lin arrived in Shigatse one after another; Because Bing walked to Lhasa on foot, it took almost late April to arrive in Houzang.

On April [-]th, Fukang'an, Taifei Ying'a, and Helin left Shigatse and rushed to Lazi to supervise the delivery of military supplies to Dzongkha.

On April 25, the three of Fukang'an set off from Lazi, and arrived in Dililangu on the 27th, where Cheng De, the admiral of Sichuan, was stationed here.After that, several of them went separately to Rongjia and Nyalam to check the terrain and Kuojun fortifications, and finally decided to focus on Jilong and Balebu as the main attack direction, and planned to send troops to attack in early May.

At this time, Kuofang was still kept in the dark. They thought that there were only a small number of Qing and Tibetan soldiers on the opposite side, so there was nothing to be afraid of.In Bahadur's view, the Qing government would never deploy heavy troops to support Tibet due to the long-term laissez-faire policy of "governing according to custom" in the border areas.Since there is no heavy army, relying on the natural danger of the Himalayas, how can the opponent be blocked outside the country.

On the other hand, after receiving Fukang'an's appeal, the British in Bangladesh decided not to get involved in this matter after analyzing it, and waited and watched the progress of the situation.

But what they didn't know was that a fleet consisting of the refurbished Thor and Beihai No. [-] and No. [-] set off from Beihai Town in late March, and after a short supply stop in Ryukyu and Hoi An, at this time Indigenous administration, the French stronghold in India, is just two days away.

The ancient South Asian subcontinent is destined to be turned upside down by Beihai Town.

　This chapter is too difficult to write, and there are so many materials, I read it for two days.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)