Fu Shanhe

Chapter 231 Preparation before the war
After dividing the troops, Li Mu led his troops to bypass Shaozhou City and head straight for Yongzhou Prefecture.

This time, the army is not advancing alone. In addition to bordering Guangdong, Yongzhou is also close to Guangxi.

Even if something unexpected happened in Shaozhou, the army's retreat would not be cut off.

If the rebels really had such a big appetite and wanted to swallow up the 40,000 troops led by him in one gulp, it would be a good thing.

"Commander, we have just received news from Yongzhou that the rebels are planning to transfer supplies.

However, serious differences arose within the rebels over the issue of the Northern Expedition to the Central Plains and the Eastward Advance to Nanjing.

The two sides argued endlessly, and the bandit leader was undecided for a while. "

When Li Mu heard the news brought by Xiang Xinghan, his brows slightly frowned.

As long as the thieves leave Yongzhou, he doesn't care.

But he was very jealous of the treasures and supplies that the rebels had looted.

A large portion of the wealth looted by the White Lotus rebels in Guangdong and Guangxi was stored in Yongzhou.

If he could intercept these things, it would be enough for him to become the richest man in Dayu.

Even if he gave a discount and kept only one third of it, it would be enough to make him rich overnight.

"Assign people to keep watching. If the enemy transports supplies outside, report it immediately."

Li Mu immediately gave the order.

It would be a waste not to take the war profits that come to your doorstep.

Now he is not alone. In addition to the tens of thousands of troops and soldiers' families under his command, he also has to support a large number of refugees and prisoners.

And this is just the beginning. As the war continues, the number of prisoners of war and refugees will continue to increase.

Only when he was in the situation did he understand why military generals in every dynasty liked to massacre prisoners.

It’s not that they don’t care about their relatives, it’s mainly because they can’t afford to support them.

The money and food allocated by the imperial court was barely enough to supply the army.

Suddenly, there were tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of prisoners of war, and there was no choice but to take up arms.

At the very least, Li Mu received hints from civil servants many times, hoping that he could share the worries of the court.

However, in this regard, his moral bottom line still exists and he would not commit mass killings.

He simply pretended not to understand the civil servants' hints.

If anyone is not afraid of being infamous for eternity, he can give the order to massacre himself. In any case, he will not do it.

Guangxi has a small population and is supported by the output of military farms, so the pressure is not that great.

The situation changed after entering Guangdong.

The local government was unable to take over the large number of new prisoners of war and refugees, so he had to deal with it on his own.

Li Mu didn't mind it, because population itself is wealth.

The prisoners of war were all young and strong, and they were free labor. They could create wealth immediately by being sent directly to the mines.

Resettling refugees is a bit more troublesome, but you only need to pay for the initial food expenses, and they can support themselves later.

But in doing so, his wallet quickly became empty.

In order to avoid bankruptcy, more financial resources must be developed.

No matter what kind of business you do, it can't compare to a business with no capital.

Li Mu's demands were not high. He just wanted to seize a few months' supply, or treasures of equivalent value, from the rebels.

……

Yongzhou City.

"Humph!

That bastard Li Mu is targeting us.

From Lianzhou to Guilin, and then from Guangdong to Yongzhou, that bastard kept chasing me.

My dear ministers, who is willing to share my worries and kill this bastard!"

It was obvious that Shi Rongxian was so angry that he even threw aside the dignity of a monarch.

The ministers below also showed their solidarity in fighting a common enemy.

But when it came time to volunteer, everyone regained their rationality.

The joint forces of Guangdong, Guangxi and Fujian provinces claimed to have an army of 300,000.

Even if the number is cut in half, there are still 150,000 troops.

Judging from the intelligence collected, Li Mu happened to be the commander of this army.

If you want to defeat this government army, it will be difficult to succeed unless you draw elite troops from the front line.

“Saint Emperor, the Pseudo-Dynasty army has been chasing us from behind, which is not a solution.

I propose to draw troops from all over the country and launch a decisive battle with the pseudo-dynasty in Yongzhou.

Only after we defeat that villain Li Mu can we march north and east with peace of mind!"

Wu Zekai was the first to express his position.

Since the Holy Emperor proposed to annihilate the government troops led by Li Mu, he, as the prime minister, had to find a way to accomplish it.

The army of Yongzhou alone is not enough to defeat the enemy, so we should withdraw a large force to provide support.

However, as to where to draw the troops from, which involved the dispute over the strategic routes of the Eastern Expedition and the Northern Expedition, he wisely chose to avoid it.

"Um!

The evil bandit Li Mu is the most vicious in using his troops. It is difficult to gain an advantage without superior military strength.

If we want to defeat him on the battlefield, we really need to draw troops from the front lines.

Jiujiang is entering a critical moment, so we will not withdraw troops to provide support this time.

The Xiangyang battlefield and the Linjiang battlefield each dispatched 100,000 troops to provide reinforcements, and another 100,000 troops were dispatched from other secondary battlefields.

Together with the troops in Yongzhou, the total force will reach 400,000.

I will use these 400,000 troops to turn Yongzhou into the burial place of the thief Li Mu!"

Shi Rongxian said viciously.

Being chased by others is an indelible shame for any monarch.

If he wanted to rebuild his monarch's prestige, he had to get up from where he fell. Especially in this process, the Holy White Lotus Kingdom suffered heavy casualties.

From Shi Rongxian's perspective, if Li Mu had not jumped out to cause trouble, Guangdong and Guangxi would not have fallen.

If Guangdong and Guangxi had not been lost, they would be flourishing in all directions now.

While attacking Huguang and Jiangxi, we can also launch attacks on Yunnan, Guizhou and Fujian.

Maybe he has already taken over half of Dayu and established his own empire.

Of course, the premise of all this is that Dayu does not respond and allows them to attack from all sides.

Throughout history, no dynasty has had a smooth journey in the process of rebellion.

Basically, those who rebel first will suffer the strongest backlash and it will be difficult for them to survive to the end.

If the elite troops in the north of Dayu had marched south in large numbers, the situation would have been very different.

From a global perspective, the Dayu Dynasty still has many elite soldiers and generals.

However, due to financial constraints and the hindrance of the national policy of controlling military power with culture, there is no way to let these people give full play to their abilities.

“Saint Emperor, withdrawing so many troops at once will definitely affect the battle situation on the front line.

Especially the Xiangyang battlefield, which is also at a critical moment.

The reinforcements from the Pseudo-Dynasty were only a few hundred miles away from Xiangyang City.

Once we withdraw a large number of troops, the enemy is likely to attack us immediately.

If we are not careful, the Northern Expedition will be ruined!"

Shi Qichuan opened his mouth to object.

No one can tell for the time being which is more important, the Northern Expedition or the Eastern Expedition.

However, one thing is certain: withdrawing troops at this moment is extremely disadvantageous to the Northern Expedition Army.

In terms of military, the Dayu Dynasty has always been a situation where the north is strong and the south is weak.

In addition, the troops from the northern provinces have never suffered losses on the battlefield, so their enthusiasm for support is much higher.

The Yu Army in Henan Province had entered Xiangyang a month ago.

Xu Wenyue built the Xiangyang defense line with the support of reinforcements.

Otherwise, the remaining troops in Huguang would never be a match for the Northern Expedition Army.

“Don’t worry about the Northern Expedition, there is news coming from the Guanzhong area.

There has been no rain in the northwest this year, and the Central Plains has also been affected by drought. There are now signs of unrest.

If the Pseudo-dynasty dares to mobilize the troops in Guanzhong, we will support the believers in the northwest to launch an uprising."

Shi Rongxuan said calmly.

The benefits of having a wide range of friends are now evident.

There are numerous factions within the White Lotus Sect, and no one can unify all the followers.

Before he raised his army, his influence as a cult leader was limited to his own faction.

However, with the success of the rebellion and the growth of the power of the Holy White Lotus Kingdom, his status as the Holy Emperor continued to grow and he was recognized by most of the believers.

It turns out that a large sum of money is needed to gain the support of believers from all over the country.

Now you don’t have to do anything, believers will come to you and offer help.

Although he knew that these people came here for the credit of following the dragon, Shi Rongxian was not a nitpicking person.

As long as they are willing to come and work for him, their purpose is not that important.

“Holy Emperor, in addition to that thief Li Mu, we also need to be wary of the Xiang Army of the Pseudo Dynasty.

In the past three months, we have defeated the enemy three times.

After each defeat, the enemy can recover quickly and its combat effectiveness is significantly improved compared to before.

Especially in recent days, the pseudo-dynasty militia has begun to absorb official soldiers scattered among the people.

If we don't take it seriously, Bai Yifeng, that villain, may very likely become the second Li Mu in the future!"

Wu Zekai added.

In troubled times, heroes emerge.

Originally, Bai Yifeng was just an inconspicuous scholar. Under normal circumstances, he would take the imperial examinations again and again until his fighting spirit was worn out and he spent the rest of his life in a daze.

The emergence of the White Lotus rebels gave Bai Yifeng the opportunity to organize official militia training.

Relying on the support of the villagers, he managed to gather a group of people.

The combat effectiveness is indeed average, but the troops are resilient.

Most of the soldiers were organized into villages, and looking around, they were all our own people.

Even if they were defeated on the battlefield, they could still support each other and escape, greatly increasing the probability of survival.

The core elites have been retained, and it won’t be long before they can make a comeback.

In the long run, this kind of landlord armed forces, which are linked by local gangs, can pose no less threat to them than Li Mu.

“Well, it does need to be taken seriously.

How about this, after we deal with the thief Li Mu, we can also deal with the butcher Bai Yifeng!"

Shi Rongxian said coldly.

From his tone, it can be heard that he has a very bad impression of Bai Yifeng.

The level of disgust deep in his heart was even greater than that of Li Mu.

After all, they were fighting against Li Mu head-on, and each side served its own master.

Bai Yifeng, who commanded the militia army, was different. He couldn't defeat them on the frontal battlefield and always stabbed them in the back.

He especially liked to settle accounts with the families of soldiers who joined the White Lotus Sect.

Once you fall into the hands of the enemy, there is almost no chance of coming out alive.

In order to cover up their crimes, village massacres and entire families were common, causing countless White Lotus officers and soldiers to grit their teeth in hatred.

……

(End of this chapter)