Southern Ming: A boy soldier at the beginning, supporting the world

Chapter 147 If you don't take the gift from heaven, you will be blamed

"I was sent by Duke Qing to Yong'an for this very matter."

"Oh?" Danchu pretended to be puzzled and said jokingly, "Duke Qing has a strong army and horses, and he has been guarding Guangxi for generations and looking down on the Mu family in Yunnan. It should be easy for him to deal with a small Xu Biao, right?"

Zhao Hongyuan was slightly embarrassed and said, "You don't know, Vice Governor, Xu Biao was born a bandit. Although he has been pacified, his bandit nature has not changed. He occupied Nanning, amassed countless wealth, and used the money to recruit desperate criminals. Most of the soldiers were willing to fight to the death.

"Besides, Xu Biao was originally a general under the Zhao Fantai. When the Duke of Qing led his army to attack Xu Biao, those who said this thought that the Duke of Qing intended to embarrass the Fantai. If this got out, it would mean that the military governor was embarrassing the frontier, which would be very disadvantageous to our civil and military officials in Guangxi."

"Haha," Danchu smiled and did not comment. He asked, "I heard that the battle between Duke Qing and Xu Biao has lasted for more than three months. What is the situation? You have to tell me the truth so that I can make a decision."

"This..." Zhao Hongyuan hesitated for a moment, then decided to tell the truth, saying, "I dare not hide it from you, Vice Governor. Duke Qing has suffered more defeats than victories. Xu Biao has captured Hengzhou, and the two armies are facing off at Gujiangkou."

Fang Yizhi came over and whispered to Danchu: Gujiangkou is located at the confluence of Wujin River and Yujiang River. After passing Gujiangkou and going down along Yujiang River for ten miles, you will enter the territory of Xunzhou Prefecture.

It seems that Xu Biao is so aggressive that he is almost at the door of Chen Bangfu's house. Although Chen Bangfu came here to borrow troops under duress, he must be sincere. Maybe he is already at a loss and is desperate to seek medical help.

Looking at Guangxi, the only people who can help Chen Bangfu are Ma Qijiao, Zhu Minru and Cen Danchu. Zhu Minru is not strong enough, and Ma Qijiao is far away in Guilin, so distant water cannot save nearby fire.

"Well," Danchu smiled meaningfully and said, "Brother, you are quite honest and did not lie to me. What you just said is similar to what I know. So, if Duke Qing has any request, just tell me the truth. There is no need to beat around the bush."

Zhao Hongyuan hesitated for a moment and said, "The deputy governor is very clever. He took only two days to capture Wutunso, which shows that the Zhaoyong Army is strong. Duke Qing wants to borrow troops from the deputy governor to wipe out the Xu Biao rebel."

"Borrow troops?" Danchu sneered, "In this day and age, soldiers are the foundation of a military commander's career, how can we lend them lightly? Duke Qing has been in the military for a long time, so don't you know the truth?"

"Uh, uh..." Zhao Hongyuan was speechless, and then changed his words: "I am not good at speaking, and my language is wrong. Please forgive me, Vice Governor. The Zhaoyong Army will go south to suppress Xu Biao, and naturally it does not need to be controlled by the Duke of Qing. As long as we can defeat Xu Biao and annihilate this ugly guy, everything else is fine."

Everything else is easy to explain? There is a lot to talk about here.

Danchu was secretly delighted, but remained calm on the surface. He asked, "Duke Qing is stationed in Guangxi and has the power to control the generals. If the Zhaoyong Army goes south to suppress Xu Biao, will Duke Qing invite me to go south? Or will he order me to go south?"

Seeing that the great event was about to be accomplished, Zhao Hongyuan was delighted and said, "Of course I invited you. How dare you use military orders in vain!"

Danchu pretended to hesitate and said, "Yong'an is hundreds of miles away from Nanning, and it is difficult to transport food and grass. Zhao Yong'an went south to suppress the bandits, and thousands of people had to eat, drink, defecate and urinate, and they also had to fight against a big bandit like Xu Biao. It's not like you can just leave or fight. Even if I want to help Duke Qing, I am willing but unable."

"Deputy Governor," Zhao Hongyuan stood up anxiously and said, "As long as the Deputy Governor is willing to help, as long as the Zhaoyong Army can go south to eliminate Xu Biao, food and grass will be easy to deal with."

"If the Zhaoyong Army defeats Xu Biao, will Nanning belong to Duke Qing or to me?"

"Of course it's the governor."

Dan Chu wanted to play hard to get and said, "This matter is serious. I have to discuss it with my assistant before making a decision. How about you rest in Yin Hotel for one night and wait for my reply tomorrow?" After sending Zhao Hongyuan away, Dan Chu immediately summoned his confidants to discuss countermeasures.

The Right Military Assistant praised the matter with intelligence, saying: "Nanning is located in a strategic location, which must be fought for. There are many fertile fields along the Yu River, which can be regarded as a base. The general has been interested in Nanning for a long time. Chen Bangfu sent an envoy to request troops. This is a heaven-sent opportunity that must not be missed."

Fang Yizhi was knowledgeable, erudite, and had a great strategic vision, but he was not up to the task. Danchu knew how to appoint the right people to the right positions, and often relied on Fang Yizhi's opinions on major issues.

Yu Houji, the left assistant general, is energetic, decisive, and has strong execution ability. He is an administrative talent who is quite good at handling complicated and redundant tasks, which saves Danchu a lot of worries.

Yu Houji held a reserved opinion and asked Danchu: "If the Marshal wants to seize Nanning, he must pass through Xunzhou and travel over 600 miles to fight Xu Biao. The safety of the grain route must rely on Chen Bangfu. Even if our army seizes Nanning, it will be divided into two parts by Chen Bangfu and it will be difficult to unite them."

"After the Marshal captures Nanning, will he give up Yong'an and Zhaoping?" asked Feng Lin, deputy commander of the personal guard.

Danchu hesitated for a moment and said, "Yong'an is where our army was formed and it is also our blessed land. Even if we take over Nanning, I will not give up Yong'an."

Some people were so smart that they said, "The Art of War says, make friends far away and attack those near. Chen Bangfu has evil intentions. Will he take advantage of the fact that our army and Xu Biao are both defeated and reap the benefits?"

"No," Fang Yizhi was very enthusiastic about attacking Nanning and retorted, "Nanning is a base, located in the rear, and is safer. After the Marshal captures Nanning, he can move the General's Mansion, as well as the families of the soldiers, Yong'an University, the Military Equipment Bureau, and the Iron Equipment Bureau to Nanning.

"As for Chen Bangfu, he is actually not worth worrying about. Although he is a duke, he only knows how to flatter his superiors. His soldiers have no will to fight, and the people have no intention of submitting to him. He can't even beat a local bandit like Xu Biao, so he poses no threat to our Zhaoyong Army."

He paused and continued, "There is not much arable land in Guangxi. The largest plain is in Xunzhou, followed by Nanning. Chen Bangfu has ulterior motives, but he has occupied Xunzhou for a long time. Doesn't the Marshal have any intention?"

Yes, if you want to do great things, why should you look ahead and behind? If Chen Bangfu dares to have second thoughts, he can take the opportunity to seize Xunzhou and connect Yong'an and Nanning. With the money, grain and population of Nanning and Xunzhou, the future is promising!

Danchu smiled knowingly and asked Wei Guosong, "Old Wei, what do you think?"

Wei Guosong, the commander of the First Infantry Battalion, is the most senior in the army and once served as captain alongside Danchu. If Danchu wants to fight Xu Biao, he must rely on Wei Guosong.

He didn't want to waste words, so he said, "The two officers are responsible for making plans, the commander is responsible for making decisions, and I am responsible for leading the troops to fight. As long as the commander gives an order, the First Infantry Battalion will obey it without hesitation."

"Good! If you don't take the gift from heaven, you will suffer the consequences!" Danchu made a resolute decision: "The situation in Hunan may seem good, but it actually hides a huge crisis. The Duke of Yu in Jiangxi is isolated and helpless, and the future is even bleaker. Once Hunan and Jiangxi are lost, the Qing invaders will have no worries and will go straight into Lingnan. The time left for the Zhaoyong Army is running out. We must seize this opportunity and capture Nanning."

Having made up his mind, Danchu did not allow anyone to question him and began to make arrangements on the spot. This time, he dispatched the personal guards, the first infantry, and the auxiliary soldiers to fight in the south, leaving the second infantry to guard Yong'an, Zhaoping, and Wutun.

The army was scheduled to move out in five days, and it went without saying that they would demand all kinds of food, fodder, and military equipment from Chen Bangfu.

(End of this chapter)