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

Chapter 262 Refusal to Counterattack
Early the next morning, Wang Xing, the general of Guangning County, came to the Red Army camp and apologized to Danchu.

"General, I am incompetent in controlling my generals. We suffered a series of defeats and almost ruined the overall situation. I beg you to forgive me." "Embroidery Needle" Wang Xing was very respectful and spoke in an earnest tone.

It is unexpected that many people who are righteous are butchers. Wang Xing was born a thief and is illiterate, but he is full of loyalty and obeys orders carefully. Although the righteous army of this town was defeated, the commander took the initiative to confess his guilt, which moved Danchu.

Historically, Wang Xing lived in Wen Village, Xinning County, controlled dozens of villages around him, and persisted in the war of resistance under the noses of the Qing army in Guangzhou. Shang Kexi led his troops to encircle and suppress the enemy many times, and Wang Xing used guerrilla tactics to fight against the enemy and won many battles. Until the 12th year of the Yongli reign, there was a famine in Xinning, and Shang Kexi took the opportunity to lead an army of 100,000 to besiege Wen Village. When Wang Xing ran out of food, the Qing army finally killed Wang Xing. His generals traveled to the sea and continued to resist the Qing. It was not until the 37th year of the Kangxi reign that Liu Boling died for his country, and the remnants of the Ming army in Wen Village were completely wiped out.

"Dian Ye, please stand up." Dan Chu addressed Wang Xing by his courtesy name, helped him stand up, and said, "You are loyal to the king. You came here without being summoned and fought against the invaders enthusiastically, which shows your sincerity. In yesterday's defeat, Shang Kexi personally led the elite troops to attack the old camp, and Geng Jimao personally led the musketeers to reinforce Dazhou. They are all the best troops of the Tartars. Although we lost, it was not your fault, and I have no intention of blaming you."

The organization of the righteous army is lax and unable to take on the task. Wang started out as a bandit and was surrendered to the righteous army. He is considered the best of the righteous army. He is definitely a talent. He is good at dealing with tenants, slaves and other lower-class people. He is good at guerrilla tactics in war, but not good at field battles.

Wang Xing guarded Xinning, Yangjiang, Enping and other places, and his strength was not bad. Danchu wanted to win over Wang Xing and did not intend to embarrass him.

On the contrary, Wang Xing, seeing the Red Army's growing strength and successive victories, admired Dan Chu very much. He was rough but meticulous, and although he was uneducated, he understood things and had the intention of joining the army.

"I will never forget the kindness of the general." Wang Xing looked around and saw that there was no one around, and whispered, "In the previous naval battle, our army seized more than 40,000 taels of platinum from the Red Flag pirates. I would like to ask the general how to deal with this money?"

The Red Army traveled thousands of miles to reinforce Guangzhou. There were many naval forces and firearms on the front line, and the military expenditure was huge. Being on the front line, the commander had to not only plan the military and coordinate with the military commanders, but also raise money for military pay. Among them, the most troublesome thing was raising money for military pay.

Forty thousand silver coins, this is a huge sum of money, which can be used to pay the Red Army on the front line for four months. Danchu was excited and asked Wang Xing: "What are your plans?"

Wang Xing hesitated for a moment and said, "Xing is under the control of the general. I plan to present the silver to the general. Please deal with it."

Wang Xing must have had some thoughts after he delayed reporting the case for so long. Perhaps he wanted to keep the silver for himself. Perhaps he wanted to use the silver to bribe Danchu so that he would not be punished. In history, he did send the seized silver to the imperial court, which moved Emperor Yongli.

To such a loyal and righteous person, one must be honest with him. Danchu asked, "What do you think? You can speak it out."

"Well," Wang Xing hesitated for a moment and said, "The emperor is touring Wuzhou today, and the supplies for the emperor and his ministers are insufficient. I want to present it to the court, and ask the emperor to deal with it. However, the general is in charge of the front-line military affairs, so I ask the general to make the decision on this matter."

Wang Xing is indeed extraordinary, as he still has the imperial court in his heart. Danchu will make great moves in aiding Guang this time, so he might as well make friends with the court officials in advance, so as to avoid the court officials accusing him of being domineering and disloyal in the future.

"Dian Ye worships the court, and is truly a model of meritorious service. It is the duty of a minister to return the seized silver and money to the court. I will report to the court and praise Dian Ye's loyalty. However, the military situation on the front line is urgent, and the expenses are huge. How about keeping 30,000 silver for military supplies, 10,000 for the court, and Dian Ye keeping the rest for his own use?"

Wang Xing naturally did not dare to object and agreed immediately.

Soon after, Duke Rui and Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi Du Yonghe sent an envoy to seek a meeting, and the envoy was still the Governor-General and Associate Governor Wu Wenxian.

"Congratulations, General. The Red Army has won a great victory and the Tartars have fled. The soldiers and civilians of Guangzhou have been saved and are grateful. Duke Rui has specially ordered me to meet with the General and present him with 100 taels of gold, 10,000 taels of platinum, as well as some pigs, sheep, fruits, and wine. Please accept them."

"Thank you, Duke Rui, for your kindness."

Wu Wenxian was very happy that Guangzhou was relieved. Du Yonghe, having swept away the bad luck of the past, was eager to counterattack the Qing army immediately, so he sent Wu Wenxian to give him a generous gift and urge Danchu to use the army.

Danchu knew this very well, but he did not mention a single word about the counterattack. The Red Army was ordered to rescue Guangzhou, and the mission had been accomplished, so they could live up to the expectations of the world.

Although the escorting towns had many soldiers and horses, not many of them were really capable of attacking and fighting in the field. The Red Army's land division had only 10,000 people, and they also had to take care of Sanshui, Foshan and other places. Even if they counterattacked and captured Qingyuan, Conghua and other cities, it would only be a wedding dress for Dongxun.

As expected, Wu Wenxian lost his temper and said with great joy: "General, according to the scouts, Shang Kexi led his troops to flee towards Conghua, and Geng Jimao led his troops to flee towards Zengcheng. The Tartars have been defeated repeatedly and their morale is low. The Heavenly Army should pursue them. I wonder when the Red Army will move out? The soldiers and civilians of Guangzhou should also prepare food and military pay to reward the Red Army at any time." Guangzhou is a famous pearl in Lingnan. The city is very large and has a population of nearly one million. The Ming Dynasty further expanded the city wall, combining the three cities of the Song Dynasty into one, and the northern city wall was built all the way to Yuexiu Mountain.

This created a siphon effect. The towns of Foshan, Jinli, Mude, and Huashan around Guangzhou were all very prosperous, with a population larger than that of large counties in the interior. However, the Ming Dynasty did not set up prefectures and counties in the above towns, nor did it build cities.

Once the Red Army arrived, the Qing army was exposed in the wilderness. If they were defeated and their water routes were cut off by the Red Army, they would be in danger of total collapse.

The Qing army had no choice but to withdraw from Guangzhou, further shrink its defense line, and abandon the camps in Jinli and Mude.

Conghua is the closest to Guangzhou and poses the greatest threat to Guangzhou. Zengcheng is located between Huizhou and Guangzhou, connecting Huizhou and Guangzhou. Huang Yingjie, the defender of Huizhou, is a former general of Dongxun and is fickle, so he must be treated with caution.

If the Qing army in Guangzhou wanted to retreat, the most ideal direction would be Conghua and Zengcheng. It became an inevitable choice for the two commanders, Shang Kexi and Geng Jimao, to be stationed in Conghua and Zengcheng respectively.

"Since Duke Rui is so keen on counterattacking, why doesn't he come out of the city to meet me in person?"

This sudden remark stunned Wu Wenxian for a moment. Guangzhou was the base of Du Yonghe's life, and he dared not leave the city easily, fearing that the Red Army would take advantage of him.

"Uh, uh... Duke Rui is ill and cannot leave the city." Wu Wenxian made up a satisfactory excuse.

"The rainy season has arrived, which is not conducive to fighting. He Gelao led the northern army to counterattack Qingyuan, and the outcome is still undecided. The southern army must not move lightly. The Red Army has fought a series of battles, and although it has won by chance, it has also suffered heavy losses and has run out of food and money. Moreover, as the general of the aid and suppression, I have already defeated the Qing army and my mission has been completed. Guangdong East is Dongxun's garrison, and the counterattack has to be carried out by you Dongxun."

Danchu said it very straightforwardly, directly refusing to send troops to counterattack. Instead of making things difficult for Dongxun, it would be better to focus on expanding the army.

"Great General! ..."

"No need to say more, I have made up my mind." Danchu was firm and showed no sign of compromise. He said, "It's not that I don't want to counterattack, but there is a reason why I can't. The Red Army is a guest army, and we have come thousands of miles to help Guangzhou. Now that we have relieved Guangzhou, our mission has been accomplished.

"Conghua, Qingyuan, and Zengcheng are Dongxun's garrisons. If we want to counterattack, we must use Dongxun as the main force. Otherwise, if the Red Army uses guest troops to counterattack Dongxun's garrisons and then seizes Conghua and other places, will they belong to the Red Army or Dongxun?"

Wu Wenxian was speechless. What Danchu said was indeed reasonable. The Red Army had come all the way to rescue them, and they had done their utmost.

If there is anyone to blame, it can only be blamed on the incompetence of their own people. Hao Shangjiu and Huang Yingjie have surrendered to the Qing Dynasty, and Yang Dafu and Luo Chengyao have been executed. The various towns in Dongxun have already been scattered, and they can't even maintain the most basic unity on the surface. They still want to counterattack? Isn't it just wishful thinking?
"However, I have a favor to ask of you, and I hope Duke Rui will grant it to me."

Wu Wenxian said hurriedly: "General, you have helped Dongxun by relieving the siege of Guangzhou. If you have any instructions, Dongxun will do it even if it means danger."

"Haha," Danchu smiled and said, "It's just a small matter, there's no need to go through fire and water. Before the Ningxia King rebelled, Chen Bangfu had sent money to Tong Yangjia and the Ningxia King, preparing to surrender to the Qing Dynasty. I wonder if there are any letters left?"

Wu Wenxian was hesitant and said, "I don't know everything about this matter. I need to go back and ask Duke Rui."

"It's okay. If there is a letter, please forward it to the headquarters as soon as possible. If there is no letter, please find the person who transferred the money at that time and ask him to come to see me. I have some grudges with Chen Bangfu, and I want to get to the bottom of this matter." Danchu spoke calmly, but there was a hint of murderous intent on his face.

Dongxun and Chen Bangfu were political enemies. Cen Danchu wanted to deal with Chen Bangfu, and Dongxun was happy to add insult to injury.

Wu Wenxian wanted to please Danchu, so he naturally agreed.

(End of this chapter)