The Qing Dynasty is about to end

Chapter 136 Xiangjiang Dui——This is the cause of Hongwu! (asking for monthly tickets)

This is really a case of meeting a worthy opponent.

Luo Yaoguo thought: "I used a commoner from Xiangyin to stimulate Zuo Zongtang and invited him to serve the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom!

Zuo Zongtang was even more outrageous. He did not answer directly, but asked me in return, "Is it possible to ask about the weight of the tripod?" What did he mean? Did I, Luo Yaoguo, want to compete for the throne, and you, Zuo Zongtang, come to join me?
But is it possible for me to ask about this ‘Ding’ now? Obviously not! ”

Luo Yaoguo knew his own affairs. He had not yet established his own foothold and his team had just begun to be built. It was far from the time when he could carry out the story of Hongwu. From the time when Zhu Yuanzhang captured Zhongqing Road and was granted the title of Pingzhang of Jiangnan and other places of the Great Song Dynasty, to the time when Han Lin'er drowned in the river, his forces no longer used the Dragon and Phoenix era names but instead used the Wu Wang era name. This was all after eleven years of painstaking management and conquests.

How far has Luo Yaoguo come? It is too early to talk about "challenging for the throne" now.

Could Zuo Zongtang serve the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom now? It seems impossible.

Zuo Zongtang's warlord career was also just beginning. He did not have a foothold in any state or prefecture. Although he had some militia under him, they could not be considered his close friends. At best, Zuo Zongtang was just leading everyone to make a living in this chaotic world.

To put it bluntly, he is also a beggar, not a person who gives food to others. If he can't get food one day, the team will disband.

Only when one occupies a state or a prefecture and has one's own source of funding and manpower, can one be considered to have transformed from a "beggar" to a "recipient of reward". Only then can one be considered to have stepped onto the stage in troubled times. At that time, whether one is a running dog of the Qing Dynasty or a founding hero of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, one will have the capital.

If Zuo Zongtang, Luo Zenan and others could change from "beggars" to "rewarders", it would not be bad to first establish a few prefectures in Hunan and become semi-independent minor lords. Once they become "minor lords", they will no longer be loyal running dogs of the Qing Dynasty as they were before.

If the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom could offer a suitable price, they would change jobs, or simply be loyal subjects serving two masters, being officials of the Qing Dynasty and subjects of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom at the same time, which would be good without any delay.

Thinking about this, Luo Yaoguo smiled and asked Zuo Zongtang: "Mr. Ji Gao, are you willing to protect several prefectures for the Xianghu gentry? How about Changde and Lizhou? How about Chenzhou and Changsha on the west bank of the Xiangjiang River? If Mr. Ji Gao is willing to do so, my Taiping Heavenly Kingdom is also willing to lend a helping hand secretly."

Zuo Zongtang paused for a moment, then shook his head and said with a smile: "Changsha, the capital of a province, cannot be handed over to the Taiping Army."

Although Zuo Zongtang did not agree to anything, he had already called the army "Taiping Army" instead of "Long Mao Army".

The meaning is self-evident!

Luo Yaoguo's face darkened and he said, "Mr. Ji Gao, Changsha is mine!"

Zuo Zongtang smiled and said, "Not necessarily! We still have Tianxin Pavilion, Tiefu Temple, Chaozong Gate, and Yingchun Gate to defend. Besides, it is a province-wide meeting. Xianfeng is unwilling to abandon it, and Saishang'a dare not abandon it. Zongtang and the Hunan scholars are also unwilling to give it up easily.

If the battle of Changsha was still going on, Xianfeng and Sai Shang'a would have ordered all the Qing troops to gather in Changsha. When all the Qing troops arrived in Changsha, Changde, Lizhou, Chenzhou, Baoqing, and even Yuezhou in the north would be empty. Only when these places are empty, will we have a chance to take them.

If the Qing troops that gathered in Changsha were severely damaged or even destroyed, then Hunan would become a shared land between you and me. And His Royal Highness the Angel can first occupy Yuezhou in the north, then cross the river to the east, and take the rich places of Wuchang, Jiujiang, Anqing, Taiping, and Jiangning! The ambition of Hongwu may be fulfilled! "

When Zuo Zongtang said this, his eyes were fixed on Luo Yaoguo, as if he had seen through the ambition hidden in his heart!

Although Luo Yaoguo was not as old as Zuo Zongtang, he could still understand what this "Jinliang" meant after chewing on his words. Luo Yaoguo thought to himself, "You are so good, Zuo Zongtang. You first used the weight of the tripod and the ambition of Hongwu to lure me, but in fact you wanted to use the main force of my Taiping Army to severely damage the main force of the Qing Dynasty. You also wanted to send the main force of the Taiping Army out of Hunan to rob the Jiangnan financial land of the Qing Dynasty, so as to leave most of the prefectures in Hunan to be occupied by the Hunan gentry. What a good way to kill with a borrowed knife, what a good way to divert the trouble to the east, what a good plan, and it is also what I want!"

Luo Yaoguo collected his thoughts and asked calmly, "But Mr. Ji Gao just burned 100,000 dan of my grain! What should we do with the 200,000 or 300,000 Hunanese people in Changsha? I hope Mr. Ji Gao can give me some advice!"

Zuo Zongtang smiled and said, "That's true. Angel, can you still take care of the food for those 200,000 or 300,000 people? If they want to eat, they still have to pay for it themselves, right?"

Luo Yaoguo's face darkened: "But you have already burned down the rice warehouse. They can't buy rice even if they have money!"

"It doesn't matter," Zuo Zongtang said with a smile, "Money makes the world go round! As long as people in the city are willing to pay a high price, we will transport the grain to Chao Zongmen for sale."

"Ah?" Luo Yaoguo was stunned.

He thought, "You are good at business. You first set fire to Changsha's largest rice market and rice warehouse, and then smuggled rice to make money from Changsha people! Doesn't your conscience hurt?"

Zuo Zongtang smiled and said, "Don't worry, angel. I have asked my family to transport the food from Xiangyin. It will arrive at Chaozongmen Wharf the day after tomorrow! Don't make a big fuss about it. Tell the public that the Taiping Army risked their lives to rob it. Sell it at three times the price and consider it a charity. I will also do a little charity and only charge you twice the usual price for rice. How about that?"

What a kind-hearted person Zuo is!
Zuo Zongtang continued, "It's not that I'm greedy, but it costs money to recruit and maintain soldiers! Your soldiers came too quickly, and I really didn't get much money from Changsha City to support the troops, so I had to resort to this last resort.

Besides, outside Changsha City, there are many properties owned by the gentry of Hunan Province. There are manors of the gentry in Huilongtang, Shimapu, Muyun City, Langli City, Baijiashan City, Lukou, Zhuzhou, etc. The angels have sent people to rob them. They should be able to get some floating wealth and divide up the land. Don't be polite, just go ahead and make sure those people feel some pain!"

Another good plan!

Luo Yaoguo thought: "If they know the pain, they will fully support you, Zuo Zongtang, in organizing militia! And if I have money and food, I can defeat Xiang Rong, He Chun, Bao Qibao and the others in Changsha. If they are defeated, if the Xian demon still wants Hunan, he can only tolerate you occupying the prefecture and becoming 'Zuo Siqi' and 'Zuo Liangbi'!"
You are not Jinliang at all, you are Jinbei!"

Luo Yaoguo thought about it and said, "But I am not at a disadvantage in this matter. I defeated Xiang Rong, He Chun, Bao Qibao and others. Zuo Zongtang, Luo Zenan and other Hunan Army leaders went to the west bank of the Xiangjiang River to grab territory and become 'Zuo Siqi' and 'Luo Liangbi'. Then Feng Yunshan and Wang Yan can gain a firm foothold in southern Hunan and the border between Hunan and Jiangxi. Wang Yan's people are all my people, and Feng Yunshan's grassroots in Chenzhou, Guiyangzhou and Yongzhou also have many of my people.

Moreover, as long as southern Hunan and the Hunan-Jiangxi border are in hand, it will not be so easy for the Hunan Army to leave the Three Hunans in the future. Even if they can leave, they will only go to Hubei to compete with Xiao Chaogui, and are unlikely to pose a threat to Nanjing and Shanghai.

It seems that the deal between Zuo Zongtang and I can be a win-win situation. This should be a deal in which only Emperor Xianfeng will be hurt.

But it seems that your contribution in this transaction is a little too little, and the benefits are really great!"

Thinking of this, Luo Yaoguo lowered his voice and said coldly: "Now my Taiping Army has 100,000 combat-capable soldiers, and there are still a million people in Hunan who want to rebel. My Taiping Heavenly Kingdom plans to take over Hunan first, then go north to Dongting Lake, return to Jiangdong, sweep south of the Yangtze River, and then raise a million troops to sweep Yanyun. Follow the story of Hongwu! What do you think, Mr. Zuo?"

Zuo Zongtang shook his head: "No, no, the present is the present, and the end of the Yuan Dynasty is the end of the Yuan Dynasty. If His Majesty the Angel wants to carry out the affairs of the Hongwu period, he must go east as soon as possible, and he must not stop at Jiangning. He must make a concerted effort to take over the two Wu states in the east and west, and it would be best if he could also take over the Jiaxing, Huzhou, Hangzhou, Shaoxing, and Ningzhou prefectures!
Only in this way can we fulfill the ambition of Hongwu and build the foundation of the emperor! As for Hunan, Zongtang is willing to guard it for the wise ruler. "

Luo Yaoguo was stunned. What Zuo Zongtang said was actually what he had planned - the world today is undergoing a change that has not happened in three thousand years. The success or failure of China's hegemony cannot be judged solely by China, but must also look at the world. With Zuo Zongtang's ability, it would be a pity if he did not rebel himself.

(End of this chapter)