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

Chapter 271: The Qing Army Invades Guangxi
On September 6, Nanning sent a report saying that the Qing army had broken through Zhenxia Pass and that the Manchu Dingnan King Kong Youde led his troops into Guangxi. Upon hearing the news, Danchu immediately led his personal soldiers to help the camp and rushed back to Nanning to stabilize people's hearts.

On the way, there was an endless stream of Tang cavalry, and the situation on the front line gradually became clear.

It turned out that Shen Yongzhong, the second generation of the Qing Dynasty's Xushun Gong, led his troops to Hunan and arrived in Hengzhou in late July to hand over defense to Kong Youde.

In early August, just after the hot summer, Kong Youde began to counterattack Quanzhou, trying to clear the way south to Guangxi.

The Ming army in Hunan was defeated one after another. Ma Jinzhong and Wang Jincai retreated to western Hunan again, while Jiao Lian, Hu Yiqing and Yang Guodong retreated to Guangxi. Many meritorious generals surrendered, including many brave generals, such as Wang Yongzuo of the Yunnan Division and Wang Yuncheng of the Chu Division.

Wang Yongzuo and Hu Yiqing were good friends, both were famous generals of the Yunnan Division. Wang Yuncheng and Ma Jinzhong were good friends. When Zuo Menggeng surrendered to the Qing Dynasty, only Wang and Ma refused to surrender. Both of them were brave and good at fighting, but they were frustrated and excluded.

There was also a heavyweight, the Duke of Yongguo, Cao Zhijian, who led his troops to retreat to Zhenxia Pass. Zhenxia Pass was inhabited by many Yao and Dong people, and Cao Zhijian was as cruel as a tiger, and abused the local Yao and Dong people in every possible way.

In late August, the Qing army advanced to Yanguan and launched a fierce attack. Yanguan and Lingqu have the best conditions for passing through, and are the most convenient passages for entering Guangxi from the north. This is a natural barrier that the Ming army has been operating for a long time, and it is difficult for the Qing army to conquer it in a short time.

At the end of August, Kong Youde found out that the area behind Zhenxia Pass was empty, so he bribed the Yao people and sent elite soldiers to take a small path to the back of Zhenxia Pass to attack the Ming army at Zhenxia Pass. The defenders were unprepared and the soldiers were shocked and fled. The Qing army took the opportunity to advance, and Cao Zhijian led his troops to block them, but was defeated by Kong Youde, with more than 10,000 soldiers killed or wounded.

The natural barrier of Zhenxia Pass was then captured by the Qing army, and Cao Zhijian led his defeated troops to flee to Guanyang and seek refuge with his younger brother Cao Si.

On September 4, Kong Youde ordered Dong Ying, He Jinsheng and others to attack Guanyang. Cao Zhijian and his brothers fled first and then fled to Qingtangwo, Gongcheng. On the 5th, the Qing army approached Cao's camp and attacked in three directions. The Ming army was defeated, and more than 3,000 officers and soldiers were killed. Cao Zhijian led a small number of remnants to escape into the mountains.

The Ming army was in a state of panic. Cao Zhijian's Yongguo seal was also seized by the Qing army, and they had to carve another one out of wood. The Qing army also seized 28 red cannons and more than 500 heavy matchlock guns. Cao Zhijian had been operating in Zhenxia Pass for many years, intercepting merchants and plundering the local area. It is said that he had accumulated a million taels of silver, which were all seized by the Qing army.

Zhenxia Pass is located on the southeast side of Guilin. After the Qing army captured Zhenxia Pass, the gateway to Guilin was wide open.

The two major passes in northern Guangxi, Zhenxia Pass has fallen into the hands of the Qing army, and Yanguan Pass is also in danger...

On September 10, the imperial guards returned to Nanning. The military government organized a city entry ceremony, with more than 10,000 soldiers, civilians, officials and gentry participating. The imperial guards were in high spirits, with neat formations and bright armor and weapons, trying their best to show off their military might. However, the news of the fall of Zhenxia Pass had already reached Nanning, and a major change was imminent. The gentry and civilians were in a bad mood and were faintly panicked.

At 5 p.m., Danchu returned to Ningguo Mansion, washed up, met with his family, had a quick meal, and then went to the Privy Council to discuss matters. The Qing army had already invaded Guangxi, and the military situation was urgent, so a response must be made as soon as possible.

There are only two members in the Privy Council, Yu Houji, the Left Councillor of State, and Fang Yizhi, the Left Councillor of Military Affairs. As today's agenda is important, two more people are specially added to attend: Director of the Intelligence Bureau Feng Jiali and Director of the Secretary Bureau Yang Yunqing.

Feng Jiali first introduced the military situation on the front line:

The Qing army was divided into two routes. The eastern route passed through Zhenxia Pass and captured Guanyang and Gongcheng. Gongcheng belonged to Pingle Prefecture, adjacent to Pingle and Yangshuo, and was Jiao Lian's garrison. Jiao Lian led the army to resist, and with the assistance of Ningwu Earl Ma Yanglin, they temporarily blocked the Qing army's attack.

The conditions at Zhenxia Pass were not as good as those at Yan Pass, and it was inconvenient to transport food and supplies. Therefore, the Qing army's main attack direction was still at Yan Pass.

The Ming army had three garrisons at Yanguan Pass, which were under the command of Hu Yiqing, Yang Guodong and Pu Ying. Yang Guodong and Pu Ying had relatively weak troops, so Hu Yiqing actually led the battle at Yanguan Pass.

"So, the key to the battle is still in Yanguan?" Dan Chu asked, pointing out the key point directly.

"Yes." Fang Yizhi, the left military officer, replied, "Although the Tartars have conquered Zhenxia Pass, the road there is rugged and inconvenient for transporting food and grass. Jiao Lian and Ma Yanglin are defending the city in Pingle and Yangshuo, and the Tartars cannot break through the city for a while. Although Cao Zhijian is domineering and arrogant, he is quite determined and will not surrender to the Tartars. He can lead the remnants to retreat into the mountains to threaten the Tartars' flanks. "On the contrary, Yanguan is quite worrying. The Yunnan Division is mainly guarding Yanguan, and the commander Zhao Yinxuan is lying in Lingchuan, drinking day and night, and not thinking about making progress. Wang Yongzuo and Zhao Yinxuan are enemies and have surrendered to the Qing Dynasty. Hu Yiqing is guarding Yanguan, relying entirely on Zhao Yinxuan to supply food and money. In Guilin City, Qu Shisi and Yu Yuanye are both commanders, but they are not able to respond to each other."

Feng Jiali added: "The latest intelligence sent by the scout said that most of the troops guarding Yanguan had retreated from Quanzhou. They had been fighting the Tartars for many months and were short of firearms and food. Their morale was very low."

"So, Yanguan is already very dangerous?"

Fang Yizhi and Yu Houji looked at each other and said, "If we don't send reinforcements in time, Yanguan will definitely not be able to hold on."

If Yanguan cannot be defended, then Guilin will certainly not be defended. Guilin is the capital of Guangxi Province and the gateway to the north of Guangxi. Its gains and losses affect the world's perception. Qu Shisi stayed behind to defend Guilin, so Cen Danchu had to send troops to reinforce it no matter what.

From Nanning to Guilin, people usually travel by land, passing through Kunlun Pass and then Liuzhou to reach Guilin, a journey of about 700 miles. This requires passing through the Zhongzhengying garrison, making it difficult to transport baggage.

If you want to go by water, you can go down the Yu River, through Xunzhou to Wuzhou, then go up the Gui River, and arrive at Guilin via Pingle. This waterway is nearly 2,000 miles long, and you need to pull a boat up when crossing the Gui River and the Li River, which is quite inconvenient.

"What are the reactions from the West Camp and the Loyal Camp?"

The West Camp was the Dashi Army. In the first year of the Yongli reign, the Dashi Army conquered Yunnan. After three years of operation, Yunnan was settled, the people were prosperous, and the Dashi Army expanded to more than 100,000 soldiers. Last year, the Dashi Army entered Guizhou, swept away warlords of all sizes, and prepared to send troops to fight against the Qing Dynasty.

"In early July, Sun Kewang personally led his troops into Guiyang. Duke Kuang Pi Xiong and Duke Zhong Wang Xiang sent envoys to negotiate peace and attempt to form an alliance. Sun Kewang ignored them and sent Feng Shuangli and Wang Ziqi to attack Pingyue and capture Pi Xiong alive. He also sent Liu Wenxiu and Bai Wenxuan to the north to Zunyi and Yongning. It was rumored that the vanguard of the Dashi Army had already reached Tongren in Guidong and was about to occupy the entire Guizhou.

"The Loyal Camp used Liuzhou as its garrison, which bordered Liping Prefecture in Guizhou. Gao Bizheng was particularly unconvinced and unwilling to yield to Sun Kewang, claiming that 'the two armies knew each other well and could fight each other to equal strength.'"

Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong had a bad relationship during their lifetime. The Dashun Army and the Dashi Army had attacked each other, like enemies. At present, the strength of the Zhongzheng Camp and the Xiying Camp is much different. Although Gao Bizheng is tough on the surface, he is actually in a difficult situation. He has written to Cen Danchu for help to deal with the invasion of the Xiying Camp.

Historically, after the Dashi Army occupied Guizhou, the Qing army invaded Guangxi. The Zhongzheng Camp was in a difficult situation and was forced to move north to Kuidong to persist in resisting the Qing. They formed the "Kuidong Thirteen Families" with Liu Tichun, Yuan Zongdi, Hao Yongzhong and other remnants of the Dashun Army.

"It is expected that after our army sends troops to aid Guangxi, landowners in various places will rise up in rebellion. Mr. Zuo, according to your estimate, how serious the situation will be?" Danchu asked bluntly, shocking everyone.

"Nanning, Xunzhou, Zhaoyong, Yulinzhou, Si'en, Tianzhou, Xinning and other places will not have rebellions, or the scale of rebellions will be small. In other places, mainly the chieftain fiefdoms and the three prefectures of Lei, Qiong and Lian, there may be large-scale rebellions."

Yu Houji's answer was in line with Cen Danchu's judgment. The situation was still under control, and as long as the front line won the battle, the rebellious landlords would not be able to cause any trouble.

The elite Red Army was the Imperial Guards, who had just withdrawn from eastern Guangdong. Their horses needed to rest, and their officers and soldiers needed to rest, so it was inconvenient for them to go north to rescue Nanning. The Qing army had been resting in Hunan for a long time, and had just entered Guangxi, so they were in high spirits.

The supply of food and fodder also had a direct impact on the war. Nanning was far away from Guilin and the supply line was long.

Some landowners and chieftains within the military government had been suppressed for a long time and were ready to make a move. Leizhou, Qiongzhou and Lianzhou were newly acquired territories and needed to be integrated urgently.

There are many inconveniences in sending troops to aid Guilin at this time. Danchu had a bold idea in mind, and blurted out: "Why not give Guilin to the Tartars? Kong Youde has captured Guilin, and he is proud and will not give it up easily. Our army will fight hard to seize Yanguan and Zhenxiaguan, cut off the Tartars' retreat, and then we can surround and annihilate them."

(End of this chapter)