The Han culture is spreading strongly in Southeast Asia

Chapter 254 It’s the familiar moment again
The Art of War says, "When the enemy is strong, make him weak; when the enemy is weak, make him strong."

If you really can't fight anymore, you must pretend to be able to fight in order to confuse your enemy.

Of course, if you can still fight, you must try to hide as much as possible. It would be best if you can catch the enemy off guard.

Therefore, after slightly stabilizing the internal situation, seeing that the Zheng army was not going south, Mo Zibu immediately dispatched Wu Wenyong's Central and Southern Volunteers and Louis Coulon's Western Volunteers.

Together with an artillery battalion transferred from the Guards, a vanguard was formed, led by Wu Wenyong, and marched north from Hoi An.

At the same time, the navy also dispatched more than 30 warships, carrying a large amount of supplies and heading north.

This was the first time that Wu Wenyong had to act alone. This bearded Annan man looked mature, but he was actually only 23 years old.

When he left Rong City with Mo Zibu, he was not even eighteen years old.

As one of the Seven Tiger Generals of Xishan in history, he ranked only after Chen Guangyao. He was quite loyal in history.

His historical highlight was traveling to Beijing to pay tribute to Emperor Qianlong with Nguyen Van Hue's son-in-law Pham Cong Tri.

The reason why it was a highlight moment was that these two people went there at the risk of being beheaded.

Because after Nguyen Van Hue defeated Sun Shiyi, Emperor Qianlong still wanted to fight, and Nguyen Van Hue was afraid, so he agreed to Qianlong's request to come to Beijing in person to pay homage.

But Nguyen Van Hue had no intention of going, nor did he dare to go.

Seeing that Pham Cong Tri looked like him and was his wife's nephew and son-in-law, Nguyen Van Hue asked Pham Cong Tri to pretend to be him. Wu Wenyong, a famous general of the Tây Sơn Dynasty, was also named and asked to go north.

This is a very dangerous matter. If Fan Gongzhi is exposed, the delegation will most likely be executed by slow slicing.

But Wu Wenyong did not refuse and completed the task very well, which shows his loyalty.

The first stop heading north from Hoi An is Tuoba, but this is the name given by the Annamites, while the Chinese generally call it Da Nang.

This is a very failed city at this time.

The Nguyen Lords established the Ton Phuong Prefecture in Da Nang, which is only about 20 kilometers away from Hoi An, with the intention of replacing Hoi An or at least weakening Hoi An's unique status.

But after more than a hundred years of construction, it was finally declared a failure. Although Tuoba was a prefecture at that time, its population was only a few thousand, and it completely became an outer port of Hoi An.

When Wu Wenyong led 2,200 combat soldiers and 5,000 auxiliary soldiers and civilian laborers into Tuo'an, the entire town was almost empty.

Zhang Fuluan's extortion and plunder for more than a decade and the recent war have tortured the residents here to the point of death. Most of those who are still alive have fled to hide in the jungle and swamps.

As soon as Wu Wenyong arrived in Hoi An, he heard that a riot had occurred in Herong County to the north.

The people of Guangnan, who were in harmony with the people of Herong, drove out the army of the Zheng Lord, killed the local officials who surrendered to Beihe, and came to surrender with their heads.

At this time, the north and south of Annan had been in confrontation for two hundred years, and the relationship between the people of Beihe and Guangnan was very bad, which was quite similar to the "style" of the confrontation period between the Southern and Northern Dynasties in China.

In addition, Mo Zibu did a very good job in early publicity, so as soon as his army arrived, the people around Hue rose up in resistance.

In the eyes of these people, even Mingxiang people like Mo Zibu are Guangnan’s own people, while those from Beihe are almost standard invaders.

Mo Zibu was a time traveler, so naturally he couldn't understand this kind of feeling. His physical body was a little too stupid, and he had never been to the people.

Therefore, they could not understand the love and hate formed by regions and did not notice it at all.

So, Wu Wenyong, a Beihe native, watched awkwardly as a large number of Guangnan people beat his fellow villagers half to death and captured them, and he had to listen to them scolding the Beihe people for a full half hour.

Of course, embarrassment is only temporary, and military merit is the most important thing.

Wu Wenyong quickly realized that this was a good opportunity. After discussing with Louis Coulon, he decided to continue northward and completely expel all forces of the Northern River Zheng army south of Hue.

Afterwards, Wu Wenyong held high the banner of the loyal and righteous prince consort and continued to march northward in a mighty procession. When the people in the villages and towns along the way saw him, they all stood up to respond.

When we arrived at Phu Loc County, we saw a large number of Chaozhou people settling there, and it was also the place where Mo Zibu settled after he broke out from Hue.

Because they carried the mark of the people of the Celestial Empire, after Huang Wufu captured Hue, the Zheng army only came to extort some food and appointed a few officials, but did not plunder, let alone kill.

The surrounding Annan people also benefited from this and suffered little harm.

Although Hong Ahan, the former boss of Fulu, received a large reward for saving Mo Zibu and happily returned to Chaozhou to retire, not many Chaozhou people in Fulu left.

Before Wu Wenyong arrived in Fulu, they, under the leadership of Hong Ahan's nephew Hong Tianwen, attacked and killed the Beizheng officials in Fulu and sent someone to report the news.

Wow, even Wu Wenyong didn’t expect this to be so smooth.

The way he came here was truly to welcome the royal army with food and drink. It was not a show like what Mo Zibu did in Yanqing and Suihe, but a real spontaneous act of the people.

With such enthusiastic support from the grassroots people, the Northern Zheng army did not dare to come and intercept them, because everything they did was under the surveillance of the Guangnan people and was completely transparent.

As for Mo Zibu, he was still considering whether he could let Wu Wenyong station in Herong County. After all, he did not want to have a military conflict with Beizheng immediately.

But just as the order to which he agreed was issued, a messenger came to report that Wu Wenyong had captured Fulu Village, welcomed by the people of Guangnan along the way.

This... this is a bit exaggerated. You know, Phu Loc County is less than 60 kilometers away from Hue.

So Mo Zibu had no choice but to quickly call Chen Guangyao over. "Ayao, lead the Jiading Town Dragon Banner and White Horse Regiments north. Fulu County must be defended even if it's indefensible. There are still more than 2,000 Chinese there."

As he spoke, Mo Zibu became a little angry. He had already told Wu Wenyong not to advance rashly, but this guy had traveled seventy or eighty kilometers in four days.

"Let Wu Wenyong lead his regiment to the city of Fulushe and hold it, then he will have accomplished a great feat."

Chen Guangyao nodded to show that he understood. What General Mo meant was that Wu Wenyong had to be able to defend Fulu, and then the credit for taking over several counties would be given to him.

If Fulu was not defended and was defeated by the Zheng army, he would definitely be punished for multiple crimes.

After Chen Guangyao went out to mobilize troops to prepare for the northward march, Mo Zibu also began to think about his Annan policy.

In Mo Zi Bu's design, Guangnan was divided into three parts: Hue, Qui Nhon and Gia Dinh.

Among these three parts, the Annan people in Jiading should be united strongly because they have lived together with the Mingxiang people for a long time and are the most sinicized among the current Annan people.

Moreover, Mo Zibu had 110,000 Mingxiang people in Jiading and Hexian alone, which was enough power to suppress the high-ranking families of Jinghan in Annan.

At the same time, if the Mingxiang people in Jiading could not be suppressed, then Siam would be the next step. There are probably more than 350,000 Chaoshan people in Siam. In the Andai area in the south, where Mo Zibu started his career, there are also about 200,000 Hakkas and Minnan people.

With such a large number of Chinese people present, they naturally did not fear the 200,000 to 300,000 Annan people in Jiading area who would cause trouble, not to mention that most of them were high-ranking families in Beijing and Han who studied Confucianism.

When they arrived in Guiren and other places, the Mingxiang people had little power here, and the high-ranking families in Jinghan here were not what Mo Zibu wanted most.

Among the more than 800,000 people, there are about 300,000 Annamites.

The rest of the Champa people were restless troublemakers during the Nguyen Dynasty, and most of them believed in Islam, so they had to be eradicated.

So Mo Zibu simply changed the cage and replaced the bird, leaving only the high-ranking officials in Beijing and Han Dynasty and a small number of Annan people who had come to him for refuge.

All the Champa men were taken away by their king Nguyen Van Triet, except for 30,000 to 40,000 who still believed in Buddhism. The rest were all locked up and those who resisted were all executed.

Many Annan civilians were also arrested on the charge of being remnants of the Tây Sơn Army.

Mo Zibu was determined to clear out the Qui Nhon area even if it meant fighting a security battle for ten or even twenty years.

If we can relocate 150,000 to 200,000 Chinese from the mainland to Southeast Asia, then the Qui Nhon area will be stable.

Originally, Mo Zi Bu planned to implement the same strategy as in Quy Nhon in the Hue area, but the means would be slightly softer.

But now it seems that it may not be so appropriate.

Thanks to the early publicity, the Annan people in Hue did not resist him, but rather supported him.

The Hue area was the ruling core of the Nguyen family of Quang Nam. Although its sinicization was average, its culture and education were very good.

The imperial examinations of the Nguyen family of Quang Nam were basically carried out around Hue, and almost every county and community had a Confucian temple.

Even ordinary people can recite a few lines of Chinese poetry in Chinese-Vietnamese dialect and are familiar with figures such as Li Bai, Du Fu, Yue Fei, Guan Yu and others.

Not to mention the upper class scholars, almost all of them are proficient in Chinese, and their level of Chinese studies is far superior to that of authentic Han Chinese like Mo Zibu.

In this case, it seems unnecessary to implement cruel policies in the Hue area.

Moreover, in the future Mo Zibu wants to destroy Bei Zheng and take over the Red River Plain, so naturally he will need a large number of southerners to follow him.

Just like Nguyen Phuc Anh in history, he used the southerners of Annan to rule the northerners, and forcibly carved out a base for himself within the nation.

Moreover, Mo Zibu remembered Zheng Xiu's report that the labor shortage in Jiading had reached the point where even the pregnancy of a healthy woman would affect the cultivated area.

Among the 1.3 to 400 million people in Hue, there are at least 1 million Kinh people. Even if you successfully vacate their cages, where will the "birds" come from?
It was impossible to find so many people at once.

Thinking of this, Mo Zibu suddenly had an idea and immediately called Huang Zhongxin, Ruan Shanquan, Ruan Fuhui and others over.

Mo Zibu first reported the good news to them, "General Wu Wenyong has come from the front to report that civilians from all over the country have enthusiastically joined the army to help the royal army drive out the Beihe bandits. We have now recovered Herong, Furong, Fulu and other areas and are approaching Fuchun."

Strictly speaking, the name of Hue at this time should be Phu Xuan, because the core of Hue Prefecture was moved to Phu Xuan Commune by the Nguyen family.

Upon hearing this, the three of them immediately came over to congratulate Mo Zibu.

After Mo Zibu accepted the flattery, he continued, "I think back to what I saw in Fuchun in the past. Zhang Fuluan monopolized power, brought disaster to the country and the people, and the people lived in dire straits.

Since I have come today with the nation's army to avenge the people and restore order, I must abolish the harsh policies of Zhang Fuluan's time, return the estates, fertile fields, forests, and fisheries he has seized to the people, and reconvene a fair and just talent selection ceremony."

"The general is wise, and the people of Hue are blessed!" Huang Zhongxin immediately knew what Mo Zibu was going to do, and that it would be of great benefit to them, so he immediately began to sing his praises.

Because few of the manors and other properties that Zhang Fuluan forcibly occupied belonged to ordinary people.

The area around Hue is very small, and Annan is still in the late period of the aristocratic politics of the Northern and Southern Dynasties. It is impossible for the common people to own the best manors, land, etc.

All these assets that Zhang Fuluan had seized were from his political enemies and poor families who refused to submit to him. Now that Mo Zibu wanted to return them, how could people not be surprised?

"General, in addition to the land seized by Zhang Fuluan, the private property of his followers should also be confiscated."

Ruan Fuhui also suggested that not only was Zhang Fuluan being detained by Zheng's army, but Mo Zibu would also naturally come after him, and the remaining members of his gang would also be liquidated.

Ruan Shanquan saw that both of them had suggestions, and after thinking for a moment, he actually burst into tears.

"Six years ago, I went to Fuchun to take the exam, but I was rejected because I refused to bribe Zhang Fuluan. The general is now willing to help this key figure in the country. He is truly wise!"

This guy Zhang Fuluan, the imperial examination in Guangnan was already a formality, and he also engaged in fraud, extinguishing the last bit of hope for the lower-level scholars to climb up. No wonder he was so hated.

"Mr. Quan is knowledgeable and talented. He will definitely pass the exam this time." Mo Zibu thought that Ruan Shanquan was hinting to him to pass the exam, so he said with a smile.

However, Ruan Shanquan shook his head and said, "Since the general wants to hold the imperial examination fairly, we, the close ministers, naturally should not participate.

Leave room for more talented people from humble backgrounds to promote them. This is the only way to demonstrate fairness and justice in rectifying the wrongs!"

Damn, Mo Zibu is very satisfied!
Ruan Shanquan, this old guy, is quite knowledgeable and immediately followed the advice.

"What Lord Quan said is indeed good advice for governing the country." Mo Zibu hurried over and took Ruan Shanquan's hand to show his respect.

"Now I wish to restore order and drive out the brutal Beihe army, but I am afraid that the common people may not know about it. I dare to ask Lord Quan to write a manifesto to fight against the rebels and save the country and inform the world."

Ruan Shanquan chuckled, "General, I am a man from the remote frontier, unknown to the scholars of the north. Even if I wrote a letter, it would be impossible for it to be known to the world."

This time, Mo Zibu was certain he hadn't misunderstood, so he immediately put on a respectful demeanor and asked anxiously, "Mr. Quan, who among the scholars of the North lives up to such a high reputation?"

Ruan Shanquan and Huang Zhongxin exchanged a glance and said with a smile, "The capable Marquis Chen Taili is a descendant of the Miao people of the former Chen Dynasty and a member of the royal family.

His elder sister, Zhaoyi Chen Musk, was the beloved concubine of King Wu of Xian. The Chen family was a prominent family in Fuchun. All four of them, father and son, were famous for their literary talent.

Moreover, the ancestor of the Chen family was also a Chinese who migrated south from Fujian in the Celestial Empire. He could be said to have the same origin as the general. He was also highly respected and praised by the scholars in Beihe.

If he drafted a manifesto for the general to suppress the rebels, all the wise men in the world would come to him."

Mo Zibu laughed out loud. This was so familiar. He immediately said, "Such a virtuous and respected senior, I must hire him, no!"

General Mo Da acted as if he had just realized it, "I will go and invite him myself!"

(End of this chapter)