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

Chapter 357: The Righteous Army Responds
On February 12, Cen Danchu led the Huben Town and the First Infantry Town and the First Brigade to arrive in Yudu, with a total of more than 40,000 men and horses.

Yudu is adjacent to Ningdu, Ruijin, Huichang, Shicheng and other cities, and is close to Fujian, where volunteer armies have always been active. When the Red Army marched north to Jiangxi, the volunteer armies were excited and responded one after another.

In addition to the "Four Major Camps" led by Jie Chongxi, Zhang Zisheng, and Cao Dahao, there were also the volunteer armies led by Jin Jianchen, "Fourth Camp Leader" Yan Luozong, "Nine Dragon Camp" Ning Wenlong, and "Five Army Commander" Luo Rong, who all sent envoys to surrender.

The Qing army withdrew its defenses and held on to Ganzhou. The surrounding counties were short of soldiers and horses, so the righteous army rushed forward and mostly won the battle with a single order. Wang Xing and Jie Chongxi were the ones who captured Yudu.

Half a year ago, Jie Chongxi went to Guangzhou to request troops. Cen Danchu sent Wang Xing to lead 1,000 Red Army soldiers into Jiangxi, naming them the "Jiangxi Independent Association", and most of the Jiangxi volunteer troops were under his control.

"Commander Wang, I heard that your troops have grown a lot?"

Wang Xing suggested that Dan Chu go into Yudu City to rest, but Dan Chu refused and set up a large camp outside the city, surveyed the positions, and sent out scouts to monitor the enemy situation.

"Not many, not many. We have only 6,000 soldiers now. Let's organize two battalions first." Wang Xing said with a smile. He was originally a bandit, living in the mountains and forests, trustworthy and loyal. Later, he was recruited by the Ming Dynasty, so he could be considered a righteous army.

Jie Chongxi was the Minister of War and Governor-General of Jiangxi appointed by Emperor Yongli, and the nominal leader of the Jiangxi Volunteer Army. After the defeat of Jin Shenghuan and Wang Deren, the Jiangxi Volunteer Army gradually lost momentum, and Jie Chongxi deeply blamed himself.

When Wang Xing entered Jiangxi, Jie Chongxi transferred the imperial seals of the Five Garrisons bestowed by Emperor Yongli to Wang Xing and was willing to be under Wang Xing's control, thus greatly lightening the burden on his shoulders.

"Last year, the Tartars organized a joint suppression campaign in three provinces. After the war, they fought again and again, and wherever they passed, there was unrest. Ruijin and Shicheng counties were the worst hit. In the city, there were only a few thatched houses, and the rest were covered with weeds and thorns. Fortunately, Wang Xietai cleverly arranged and organized the various camps of volunteers to maneuver in the mountains and forests. After hard work, they occasionally won battles, and finally waited for the arrival of the king."

Wang Xing also sighed, "When I first came to Jiangxi, I realized that many of the great righteous people throughout the ages came from Jiangxi. When the King of Yulin rebelled and returned to the Ming Dynasty, many Jiangxi scholars and officials responded and were implicated. In Ganzhou alone, there were dozens of places where the righteous army set up forts and defended them to the death. Most of the rural people had their hair grown, and the few gentry who survived all hid in the mountains and forests, not seeing the authorities. The famous scholars did not come out to take the exam. From this, we can see that the people of Jiangxi want to be wise. The king led the army to the north to fight, which was the will of heaven."

This statement caught Danchu's attention. Jiangxi is rich and has developed culture and education. There is a saying in the Ming Dynasty officialdom: "Most Hanlin scholars are from Jishui (Ji'an Prefecture Jishui County), and half of the court officials are from Jiangxi." From Hongwu to Chongzhen, the Ming Dynasty produced 53 prime ministers, 10 of whom were from Jiangxi, the most in the country. Among them were famous officials such as Xie Jin, Yang Shiqi, and Xia Yan, as well as treacherous officials such as Yan Song.

The primary purpose of this Northern Expedition to Jiangxi is to annihilate the Qing army and expand the territory. It would be great if we can win over Jiangxi scholars and expand the Red Army's talent pool.

"A few days ago, four brothers came to join the army, all with the surname Wang." Wang Xing asked mysteriously, "Does your Majesty know who these four brothers are?"

Wang Xing had a long career and made great contributions, so Danchu did not take it as an offense and said, "Let me listen to your words."

"Wang Yishang, Wang Yitong, and Wang Yidong are the legitimate sons of Xinjian Earl Wang Yetai. There is also Wang Yibo, who is the son of Xinjian Earl's younger brother Wang Yeyao."

Xinjian Earl? Danchu remembered that the first Xinjian Earl was the famous Wang Yangming. Before the late Ming Dynasty, there were only three civil officials who were granted titles based on military officers, and they all had the surname Wang, namely Wang Ji, Wang Yue, and Wang Yangming.

In the Ming Dynasty, there were only three classes of nobility: duke, marquis, and earl, and they were not downgraded, so they were extremely valuable. Of course, the number of nobility was too high in the Southern Ming Dynasty, and they were no longer valuable.

The previous Earl of Xinjian, Wang Xiantong, died after Li Zicheng captured the capital. Wang Yetai returned to his hometown of Yuyao to observe mourning, and was conferred the title of Earl of Xinjian by Emperor Hongguang. After the fall of Hongguang, Wang Yetai organized an army of righteous men in Zhejiang, but was defeated and killed.

"Among the four brothers of the Wang family, Wang Yishang is the eldest, twenty years old, and the youngest is Wang Yidong, thirteen years old. They are all talented, stern and resolute, with a majestic look. Since the Siming mountain stronghold in Ningbo was destroyed and the righteous army in eastern Zhejiang was disbanded, the four brothers had nowhere to go, so they came to Jiangxi and wanted to join the Red Army." The Red Army advocated the School of Mind, and the descendants of Wang Yangming joining the Red Army would undoubtedly attract more followers of the School of Mind.

"Very good, please invite Brother Wang to come to my tent to talk."

On February 13, Cen Danchu received an astonishing piece of news: the Qing army was advancing very fast, and the vanguard had reached Xiuling on the 12th.

Whenever the Red Army faced a major battle, they would send scouts 300 miles away to obtain information about the enemy in advance.

Xiuling is about 300 li away from Yudu, and is adjacent to the official road to the east of Ganzhou. It is under the jurisdiction of Jianchang Prefecture, but it happens to be located at the boundary between Jianchang Prefecture and Ganzhou Prefecture. Cavalry can reach Yudu in about three days by taking the official road.

Then, under normal circumstances, the Qing army will arrive in Yudu the day after tomorrow, that is, February 15th, and come into contact with the Red Army.

Since the enemy troops were the Eight Banners of the Beijing Camp, they must have marched very quickly. But it was amazing that they arrived at Yudu so quickly.

"Which banner do the Tartars belong to? How many people are there?" Danchu asked.

The detective shook his head and said, "The colors of the Tartars' flags are very mixed. They don't look like they are a group of one or two Tartars. According to the righteous army, this group of Tartars may be a firearms battalion. They are all on horseback and carry artillery. There are at least 10,000 of them."

Dan Chu's heart sank. Could this be the Manchurian Firearms Battalion?

"Haha," he said with a casual smile, "The Red Army's firearms are the best in the world. The two vassal states of the Qing Dynasty, Jingnan and Pingnan, had established firearms battalions, but they were just imitating others and were all wiped out by our army. The young Shunzhi also established a firearms battalion in the Eight Banners of the Manchus. Do you dare to show off your skills in front of my Red Army?"

They set up camp and deployed military forces.

Yudu County is backed by Yu Mountain in the north and faces Gongshui in the south. The northeast is relatively open, which is the direction from which the Qing army came to support. There is a wide post road in the north of the city leading to Ganzhou, which is convenient for marching. If the Qing army marches south of Gongshui, they can bypass Yudu, but when they reach Huangmu Mountain, the mountains are towering and press against Gongshui, so they still need to cross Gongshui and go to Ganzhou along the north bank of Gongshui.

Therefore, the focus of blocking the Qing army was still north of Gongshui.

In addition to the righteous army, Danchu also had 50,000 Red Army soldiers, which was more than enough to stop the Qing army. Wang Xing led the Jiangxi Independent Brigade to guard Yudu City. Danchu personally led the Huben Town and the First Infantry Brigade, camped in the north and east of Yudu City, and set up the central army camp on Yu Mountain. He also sent a detachment to the south of Gongshui.

Huben Town was well-equipped with firearms and had a cavalry brigade, which had a heavy logistical burden, so it was equipped with an auxiliary brigade of 10,000 men and horses. This time, when they marched out of Yudu, the auxiliary brigade divided 6,000 men and horses into the personal guard brigade, cavalry brigade, and artillery brigade, and there were 4,000 men and horses, all stationed at Huangmuling to ensure the army's retreat.

On the 13th, the Qing army arrived in Ningdu. Ningdu was where the righteous army was active and had been occupied by Zhang Zisheng, the righteous army leader. However, after the joint suppression of the three provinces of the Manchu Qing Dynasty, the city of Yudu was in ruins and could not be defended. Zhang Zisheng was ordered to abandon Ningdu, burn the food and grass in the city, and then retreat into the mountains, waiting for an opportunity to harass the Qing army.

The Qing army occupied Ningdu, which was almost deserted. There were no officials to arrange wine and meat for the generals, and there was no way to replenish food and grass, so they could only plunder inside and outside the county.

(End of this chapter)