There is no such thing as the Kangxi and Qianlong eras

Chapter 27 The Mongolian Governor Who Never Fought a War

Zhijiang County, on the south bank of the upper reaches of the Yangtze River.

This Zhijiang County is not the Zhijiang City of later generations. Zhijiang County has been named Zhijiang since the Qin Dynasty because the Yangtze River branches out here. Zhijiang belongs to Nanjun.

After that, the county was abolished and restored through several dynasties, and the location of the county seat was constantly changed until the old city was incorporated into Yidu and the new city was built on the north bank of Bailizhou.

Military camp by the river.

Zhijiang County Magistrate Li Huiguang, accompanied by his subordinates and gentry from the county government, bowed with a fawning look on his face and said, "Your humble servant, Li Huiguang, and the elders of Zhijiang, respectfully welcome the Governor-General to Zhijiang County!"

"Ok!"

Huiling nodded slightly, accepting it.

Li Huiguang saw the governor's indifferent reaction, and rolled his eyes before smiling apologetically, "Your Excellency, it must be exhausting for you to lead the troops from such a long distance. I have prepared enough food and wine to reward the troops. I hope you will not refuse!"

Hearing about the money and food for the soldiers, Hui Ling's expression finally showed some movement. He said, "Well, you are thoughtful. I personally led the army to suppress the bandits. Along the way, we passed through Songzi and Zhijiang counties. Only you in Zhijiang knew to prepare money, food, wine and meat. You are very good."

These words were a bit too plain, and Li Huiguang, who was fawning on the opposite side, couldn't help but despise them secretly, but at the same time he felt that he was so lucky!

These noble descendants of the Eight Banners, with the influence of their fathers, could rise to prominence even if they were incompetent, and become high-ranking officials such as the Governor of Hubei. In contrast, these Han scholars had to study hard for ten years before they had a chance to get their names on the imperial examination.

Even if they were named on the list of successful candidates, they still had to wait for vacancies, because the officialdom of the Qing Dynasty was even more crowded with officials than that of the previous Ming Dynasty. Those lucrative positions were reserved for the descendants of the Eight Banners masters. They, the Han scholars, were only qualified to eat what was left over, and even that required a lot of competition.

Li Huiguang was lucky enough to become the magistrate of Zhijiang County, because he was not yet forty years old. But his other classmates were in a miserable situation!
He endured it for most of his life and finally got the position as a candidate, but died before he took office.

Thinking of this, Li Huiguang couldn't help but miss the late emperor who had been dead for sixty years. It was said that when the late emperor was in power, "Manchus and Han people were truly one family". As long as they were capable, Han people could also become governors. Those who were incompetent and always made mistakes would be dismissed, even if they were the masters of the Eight Banners.

"How is it? What are the movements of the rebels in Yidu?"

Li Huiguang brought people to deliver wine, meat, money and food to entertain the troops, which quickly won Huiling's favor and finally made him willing to ask more questions.

Traitors? What are the movements of the rebels in Yidu?

What the hell does he know?
Li Huiguang was the magistrate of Zhijiang County, not Yidu County. Zhijiang and Yidu counties were only more than 30 miles apart. He didn't even have time to protect himself, and he went to inquire about the movements of the Yidu rebels. But he certainly couldn't say that.

Li Huiguang said seriously, "Your Excellency, based on my recent investigations, which have spared no effort, I have roughly ascertained the true strength of the Yidu rebels. Their true background is the White Lotus Cult, which the imperial court has banned."

"Yidu is the base of the White Lotus Cult. Its leader is named Nie Jieren. He was originally a powerful local tyrant in Yidu County. It's unknown when he joined the White Lotus Cult. The White Lotus bandits in Changyang County, Yichang's neighboring prefecture, are suspected to be under his command. This rebellion to kill officials is probably premeditated."

"Fortunately, the governor acted decisively and personally led a large army to suppress the rebels. Otherwise, if the rebels in the two counties were to gain power, the consequences would be disastrous!"

Good guy, Huiling's head was buzzing when she heard this. He was indeed a fool, but not really stupid.

The Zhijiang County Magistrate in front of him seemed to be talking a lot of nonsense, but it was all information he already knew. He didn't say a single word of new information that was really useful or could be used.

Huiling was somewhat dissatisfied, but he did not lose his temper directly. He just continued to ask: "How many soldiers and horses does the Yidu religious bandit have now? Do they have all the weapons, food and wages?" Li Huiguang was not dumbfounded when he heard the governor directly asking how many rebels there were and what kind of weapons and equipment they had. He didn't know, but couldn't he make up a story?
In his opinion, the rebels in Yidu were at most a group of cult lunatics who had bewitched the ignorant people in the countryside and happened to capture the county town.

What kind of decent army can we have?

As for weapons and armor, although he had never dared to investigate the strength of Yidu County and only guarded the three mu of land in Zhijiang County, but because it was located in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, he could still make some inferences from the passing merchants.

Food is easy to get, but weapons and armor cannot come out of thin air. Judging from the level of Yidu County, these rebels composed of White Lotus bandits are at most not much stronger than rioters.

Li Huiguang did not come here solely to curry favor with the troops. He also secretly observed the officers and soldiers brought by the governor. Not to mention the more than 2,000 soldiers and civilians, their combat effectiveness could be seen from their weapons.

But aren’t there still 300 full soldiers?
Those all-cotton armors were not something that ordinary Green Camp soldiers could afford to wear. These were the "most powerful" elite Eight Banners of the Qing Dynasty, and they were cavalry equipped with war horses.

Li Huiguang quickly bowed and flattered, "Your Excellency, Governor, you're worrying too much. The White Lotus bandits in Yidu are nothing more than a bunch of foolish men and women who have been bewitched by this evil cult. As long as the Governor's cavalry passes by, these mere rebels and religious bandits can be wiped out in the blink of an eye!"

This statement is general, but it is not to say nothing.

At least Huiling was sure that the rebels in Yidu were indeed the White Lotus Sect. Perhaps their fighting power was not that bad, but it would still be relatively easy to deal with them compared to his own elite Eight Banners troops.

That's good. After confirming that the Yidu rebels were a mob, Huiling finally felt relieved.

Hui Ling was able to rise to prominence thanks to his father's influence. Although he had visited border towns many times, he had never actually commanded a serious battle so far.

That’s right, this guy is a rookie, a complete paper tiger.

Because he had no military experience at all, after he sent out his troops, he did not even exaggerate his military strength to the outside world, and really said that he only brought 3,000 people to suppress the bandits.

After a short rest in Zhijiang and confirming that there was no major threat to Yidu, this Mongolian Eight Banners Governor, who had never fought a war, led his 3,000-strong army and marched directly towards Yidu County, neither attacking via the Yangtze River nor making a detour.

The Qing army set out from Zhijiang.

Nie Yu also received the news that the distance between Yidu and Zhijiang counties was only more than 30 miles, and even with regular marches, they could reach the destination in one or two days.

Seeing the information sent back by the scouting personnel, Nie Yu was somewhat confused: "What the hell is the Qing army doing? They are coming to attack us by land. They really didn't go by water, or secretly split up their forces to go around us?"

The person who came back from the investigation shook his head and said, "General, the Qing army did take the land route. I even saw a large flag. Judging by the number of troops, there must be at least two to three thousand. However, most of them seem to be civilians. They don't even have many decent weapons. Moreover, the Qing army didn't take the water route to divide the troops."

"You dare to come head-on?"

Nie Yu was a little surprised, then said: "In that case, then everything should proceed according to plan!"

　I'm working normally these days, and I'll be working overtime tomorrow. I'll be on vacation in two days, so I can concentrate on writing.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)