Desert Eagle Suletan Khan

"Hanyang garrison commander Dong Chaolu sent an emergency message saying that the pseudo-Prince of Qin led more than 100,000 guards to attack Hanyang Prefecture, and the city of Hanyang is in danger. What do you think about this?" Inside the city of Wuchang, Governor-General of Huguang Zhang Changgeng summoned Admiral Hu Maozhen, Governor Liu Zhaoqi, Commander-in-Chief Sai Baili, Provincial Governor Cui Dai and others to discuss the matter.

"Governor, the number of over 100,000 is an exaggeration. I sent people to investigate and learned that when the Wei army first entered Huguang, there were only over 50,000 soldiers and horses. It was only after the two thieves Guo and Yang surrendered to the Wei army that the number of soldiers expanded to over 80,000," Cui Dai reported.

"Hmph~" Hearing him mention the names of Guo Yi and Yang Laijia, Zhang Changgeng could not help but snort coldly. As one of the earliest Liao people to surrender to the Qing Dynasty, he was incorporated into the Han Army Yellow Banner, and served as an editor of the Qing Dynasty Secretariat, a reader of the Hongwen Academy, a bachelor of the Secretariat, a bachelor of the National History Academy, and a palace examination examiner. He stayed by the side of Emperor Shunzhi for a long time and was highly valued. He was promoted to a higher position until he sat on the high position of Governor of Huguang. Because of this, he always felt grateful to Emperor Shunzhi for his friend's death, and he was also loyal to the Qing Dynasty. Even though the Qing Dynasty was already in a precarious situation, he still refused to change ships.

"The number of guards is so large, we should send troops to rescue Hanyang as soon as possible. Who should be sent to lead the army?" Governor Zhang looked at Hu Maozhen with anticipation.

"Wuchang and Hanyang are separated by the Yangtze River and form a corner of each other. They must not be lost. But now there are only more than 40,000 troops stationed in Wuchang. If we send troops to rescue Hanyang, it will be inconvenient to travel across the river. If the guards cross the river to attack Wuchang, we will not be able to rescue in time. Therefore, I think we can only send a small army to cross the river for support." Hu Maozhen felt the governor's fiery gaze and deliberately avoided the topic.

"Well, Mr. Hu's words make sense," Zhang Changgeng sighed. If only a small force was sent to rescue, it would not be appropriate to send Hu Maozhen, after all, his subordinates were the main force guarding Wuchang.

"I am willing to lead the governor's troops to defend Hanyang," Liu Zhaoqi, the governor of Huguang, volunteered. The governor was only 37 years old this year. Because of his ability, he was entrusted by Emperor Shunzhi with the important task of governor of Huguang and established his government in Wuchang to "handle military affairs." Like Governor Zhang, Governor Liu was loyal to the Qing Dynasty and volunteered to defend Hanyang.

"Great! With Ruitu (Liu Zhaoqi's pen name) going to Hanyang, what else do I have to worry about?" Zhang Changgeng laughed and immediately ordered Li Ruzhang, the lieutenant general of the Wuchang Water Camp, to use a boat to transport Liu Zhaoqi's flag to Hanyang.

"When Huguang is prosperous, the whole world is prosperous." Because it is located in a grain-producing area and has a large population, the number of expansions of the Green Camp in Huguang is higher than that in other provinces. Liu Zhaoqi's Fu Biao actually had 13,000 troops. After joining forces with the 2,000 troops of Dong Chaolu, the garrison commander of Hanyang, the morale of the Hanyang defenders immediately stabilized.
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After the discussion, Hu Maozhen rubbed his sore eyes and returned home, only to find that Deputy General Zhao Liang had been waiting for a long time.

"General, someone is coming from the other side of the river," Zhao Liang said in a low voice as soon as they met.

Hu Maozhen was startled and asked slowly, "Who did they send? What did they say?"

"The person who came is Liao Lian'an, deputy general under General Guo, who said he was ordered by the King of Qin of Wei to recruit you. I have placed him in a secret room." The "General Guo" mentioned by Zhao Liang is Guo Yi, a popular figure in front of the King of Qin, who killed Wang Lairen, the governor of Yunyang, and surrendered to Wei. Because they both belonged to the Huguang Green Camp, Guo Yi's deputy general Liao Lian'an and Hu Maozhen were also familiar with each other.

"Oh, Guo Yi is sincere enough to even send Liao Lian'an. Send someone to guard the door of the secret room and don't let anyone see it," Hu Maozhen instructed calmly.

"Yes," Zhao Liang took the order and left.

Hu Maozhen came to the secret room and saw a short and sturdy man sitting there drinking tea. Who else could it be but Liao Lian'an? He couldn't help but laugh, "Deputy General Liao is in a good mood. Aren't you afraid that I will chop off your head?"

"'It is a great pleasure to have friends coming from afar', Hu Gong is a man who values ​​friendship and loyalty. When I come to Hu Gong's place, it is like coming to my own home. What is there to worry about?" Liao Lian'an was not worried at all, and sipped his tea leisurely. "You still have the nerve to talk about friendship. Guo Yi, Yang Laijia and I are stationed in Huguang together, and we should be united in doing things. They surrendered to the Wei without even saying hello, and now they are leading the Wei army to attack Wuchang. What's the reason?" Hu Maozhen asked angrily.

Liao Li'an heard that the point of this was not the surrender to Wei, but the fact that he was not included in the surrender. He said with a smile: "It's not the fault of the two generals. The Wei army is approaching. If you don't make a prompt decision, I'm afraid the soldiers of the two towns will be crushed to pieces!"

"Hmph!" Hu Maozhen snorted coldly and said nothing.

"Mr. Hu, you and I are both Han Chinese. Why should we die for the Qing Dynasty? His Royal Highness Prince Qin's mother is the daughter of the Ming royal family. If you are willing to submit to Prince Qin, I believe that Minister Shi Ge will be happy for you in his netherworld," Liao Lian'an advised.

When he mentioned Shi Kefa, Hu Maozhen showed a complicated expression. He was originally a general under Gao Jie, one of the four towns in northern Jiangnan, and Gao Jie respected Shi Kefa the most. Later, Gao Jie died in the Suizhou Incident. Mrs. Gao wanted Shi Kefa to adopt his son Gao Yuanjue as his adopted son, but Shi Kefa despised the fact that Gao Jie's troops were once Li Zicheng's subordinates, and refused to do so. This made Gao's troops very angry, and when the Qing army marched south, they surrendered to the Qing. Despite this, Hu Maozhen still respected Shi Kefa's integrity, and he sighed when he heard that he died for the Ming Dynasty.

Seeing his complicated expression, Liao Lian'an threw out another bait, "His Royal Highness the King of Qin said that if you surrender to David, you can be granted the title of first-class earl."

"First-class Earl?" Hu Maozhen was finally moved. He was old, and he was not too tempted by official positions. But the title was different, which could be passed down to his descendants. However, he was old and wise, and although he was tempted, he did not express his opinion immediately, but laughed, "This is a serious matter, let me think about it for a few days. Deputy General Liao is an old friend of mine, please rest in my humble home for a few days, let me do my best to be a good host. Hehe~"

"Obedience is worse than respect. I will wait for good news from Mr. Hu," Liao Lian'an laughed and left leisurely.

"General, the conditions offered by Weiguo are not bad. Should we change the flag?" After he left, Zhao Liang asked Hu Maozhen for instructions.

"The number of the guards entering Huguang this time is not large. Zhang Changgeng has urgently transferred the troops of Zhou Zhaonan, the governor of Pianyuan, Liu Zhigang, the general of Changsha, Zheng Liuwei, the general of Jingzhou, Liu Wenjin, the general of Qiyang, Cui Shilu, the general of Yuanzhou, Fan Shaozu, the general of Dongting Lake Navy, and Chen Wuheng, the lieutenant general of Yuezhou, to Wuchang. These troops together with the Wuchang garrison are more than 100,000, which actually exceeds the guards. That's not all. People have been sent to Jiangxi, Guangxi, Guangdong and other provinces for help. Let's wait and see if Hanyang can be held before making a decision." After all, Hu Maozhen is a shrewd man and he kept his composure and wanted to continue to wait and see how the situation changes.

"I understand. Then how should we deal with Deputy Commander Liao?" Zhao Liang asked again.

"'It is a great pleasure to have friends visiting from afar', you should read more books when you have time", Hu Maozhen laughed, "put this man under house arrest in a side room in the back garden, treat him with good wine and meat every day, send more people to guard him, and don't let him leave the back garden even a step".

"Yes," Liao Li'an took the order and left. (End of this chapter)