The room was quiet, Yin Youcai was leisurely smoking and drinking tea and waiting patiently, Feng Yunshan and Shi Dakai were silent, Yin Youcai's words undoubtedly hit the death hole of the Taiping Army - the pool in Chiang Mai is too small, and it can't accommodate or feed the Taiping Army! If the Taiping Army wants to establish a state in Chiang Mai, live peacefully with Burma and Siam, and consolidate and develop its strength, it is impossible at all!

Without Yuan Qi's support behind or against Yuan Qi, the Taiping army in Southeast Asia is facing a situation where everyone shouts and fights, Burma, Siam, Britain, Yuan Qi, no matter which side of the force will not tolerate the Taiping army occupying Chiang Mai!

So, what about choosing to join forces with one of the forces? Obviously, it doesn't work, the Taiping Army is a rebellion of the Qing Dynasty, and it was expelled to Southeast Asia by the Yuanqi New Army, if Burma and Siam are allied with the Taiping Army, it is tantamount to luring wolves into the house and inviting trouble to the door, and they will definitely not agree, the biggest possibility is to collude with the British, but the British are not a good thing, so it is not as good as Yuanqi. Pen "Fun" Pavilion www.biquge.info

Now that I think about it, the front is really not a good place, and it is no wonder that Yi Zhixiang would suggest that they capture Chiang Mai as a foothold, Hong Xiuquan and Wei Changhui must also know why it is, so they can't wait to come to Chiang Mai.

With a long sigh, Feng Yunshan said: "There are more than 200,000 Taiping troops entering Southeast Asia, and the shopkeeper of Yida has to give us a way to live?" ”

"It's not 200,000, it's 300,000, and the 100,000 army of the king of the east has captured the northern part of Annam." Yin Youcai said: "If the Taiping Army wants to gain a firm foothold in Southeast Asia and create a situation, it is inseparable from Yuanqi, and I hope that all the kings of the Taiping Army can clearly realize this ......." ”

Shi Dakai said coldly: "Yuan Qi drove us into Southeast Asia, nothing more than using us as guns to annex Southeast Asian countries, as the so-called cunning rabbit dies and lackeys cook, left and right are dead, why should we work for Yuan Qi?" ”

"The Taiping army is against the Qing court, and Yuan Qi will also oppose sooner or later, why do you have to kill the Taiping army?" Yin Youcai said unhurriedly: "Letting the Taiping Army enter Southeast Asia is actually giving the Taiping Army a way to live." Although the Taiping Army will not be allowed to establish a country in Southeast Asia, the world is so big, can't it find a place for the Taiping Army to establish a country? ”

Feng Yunshan was overjoyed, and hurriedly asked, "What place?" Let's not go to the islands of the South Seas. ”

"Northwest Burma." Yin Youcai said: "The big treasurer allows and supports the Taiping Army to establish a state in northwest Burma!" ”

Northwest Myanmar? Shi Dakai frowned, "That's the territory of the British, should Assam go around there?" ’

"Whoever has a hard fist is anyone's, and Yuan Qi has not fought the British army." Yin Youcai said disapprovingly: "The northwest of Burma connects India, and the Taiping army established a country there, which can form a buffer zone between British India and the Qing Dynasty, and as for Assam, Yuan Qi is bound to win." ”

This is still to drive the Taiping Army to take the lead, not only to fight the Burmese Army but also to fight the British Army, the difference is that this time it finally gave a clear attitude, supporting the Taiping Army to establish a country, and finally gave the Taiping Army a hope, although the hope is very slim, but the Taiping Army has no other better way out at the moment, at the mercy of Yuanqi, it is the only way to live!

After pondering for a long time, Feng Yunshan said: "What is the plan of the shopkeeper Yida?" ”

"Now it's time to buy time!" Yin Youcai said: "The British are at war with the Russians in the Crimea, and they have no time to take care of the ...... in the East. ”

Shi Dakai unceremoniously interrupted him and said, "Yingyi has a large number of troops in India!" ”

After being interrupted repeatedly, Yin Youcai was very unhappy, glanced at him lightly, and said, "I don't mean the army, but the weapon!" The current Anglo-Indian army is not equipped with Minnie guns! But in the Crimean theater, the British army was already armed with mini guns.

So, you have to buy time! Strive to destroy Burma as soon as possible before the end of the Crimean War, with the absolute superiority of the Taiping Army's weapons, and advance to the northwest of Burma! Only in this way can the Taiping army minimize casualties!

I must remind you that the Crimean War will most likely end at the end of this year or the beginning of next year, leaving not much time for the Taipings, a year at most! ”

Shi Dakai naturally knew the huge advantage of the Mini gun, but this time was too urgent, and he groaned slightly, before he said: "Time is so urgent, why do you still let us divide our troops to capture Chiang Mai?" ”

"Chiang Mai is strategically located to deal with both Burma and Siam, and the Taiping army occupies Chiang Mai, which also has a constant supply from Yunnan and can accommodate non-combatants from the Taiping army." Yin Youcai said slowly: "The Taiping army has now occupied the city of Lampang, continue to move south, capture Laixing, the transportation center, and then go west, attack Mawlamyine in Burma, and attack the Heavenly King's department on both sides, it is not difficult to destroy Burma." ”

Shi Dakai said: "Capture Laixing and threaten the southern plains of Siam, and Siam will inevitably send troops. ”

"There is no need to worry about Chiang Mai, and there is no need to worry about the ammunition supply of the army." Yin Youcai said: "There is no shortage of ports in southern Myanmar, and Yuanqi can use the fleet to replenish. As for Chiang Mai, the troops in the car can be dressed up as the Taiping Army stationed in Chiang Mai to assist in the defense, and now it is about to enter the most suitable cool season for large-scale use of troops, so the two of them had better hurry up. ”

Yuanqi's new army dressed up as the Taiping Army and stationed in Chiang Mai? Feng Yunshan's heart sank, where is this to assist in defense, this is to come to Chiang Mai to supervise the battle! Don't give them a chance to choose and hesitate at all! Sighing secretly, Feng Yunshan slowly bowed his head and said, "Okay, let's send troops as soon as possible and send someone to contact the Heavenly King." ”

"That's the best." Yin Youcai grinned and said: "This tea and horse trade road is too narrow, it is best to organize manpower to widen it along the way, at least one or two zhang wide, otherwise it is not conducive to the rapid transportation of supplies." ”

Tibet, Houzang, Lazi.

A group of light horsemen galloped into the camp of the Qing army, led by an old man dressed in the official uniform of a first-class official -- the assistant minister in Tibet, Hethe, followed by Kalun Tsesokang Tsemat Duoji, before the horse team reached the camp of the Chinese army, Monk Lingqin strode out of the tent.

There were still more than a dozen steps away, and Hethe, Suokang and Tsemat Duoji rolled off their horses, quickly stepped forward and knelt down and said: "Hethe, the assistant minister of the lower officials, and others are late to welcome the general, and I hope the general will forgive me!" ”

Monk Greenqin waved his hand and said, "No courtesy, let's go into the account." As he spoke, he turned around and entered the account.

After entering the account and sitting down, and the people served tea, the monk Grinqin asked, "What did Zhong Bahadur say?" ”

Zhong Bahadur was the prime minister of the Gurkha and the commander of the Gurkha army that invaded Tibet, and it was only after receiving the definite news that the Qing court had appointed the prince of the county, the monk Grinqin Anbian Jingkou, to lead the 3,000 new troops of the Eight Banners and the 7,000 new troops of the northwest, totaling 10,000 troops, arrived in Lhasa.

"Go back to the general." Hethe calmly replied: "Chung Bahadur implores the troops to sue for peace, agrees to return to the five places they occupied, and guarantees that they will not invade Tibet again. ”

Monk Lingqin frowned, and said in a muffled voice: "That's it? ”

Seeing that Hethe didn't speak, the Kalun strategist Duoji hurriedly said: "General, Tibet is bitterly cold, supplies are difficult, and the army cannot be stationed for a long time, and the Gurkha guarantees that it will not be invaded again, and it can ensure the peace ...... Tibet for at least thirty or fifty years." ”

Can Tibet be kept peaceful for thirty or fifty years? The corners of Seng Lingqin's mouth hooked, revealing a sneer, and said in a deep voice: "10,000 troops enter Tibet, do you know how much silver it will cost?" He Gurkha is no more than a small country, a small land, if he wants to invade, he will invade, if he wants to stop the war, what is it when I am in the Qing Dynasty? ”

Hearing this, Hethe and Cedian Duoji didn't dare to say anything, bowed their heads and said nothing, Monk Lingqin glared at the two of them angrily, and said: "I heard that before the war, Gurkha proposed three conditions.....?" ”

"Go back to the general." Hethe hurriedly said: "This is indeed the case, and the Gurkha proposed that Tibet pay 10 million rupees to compensate the Gurkha merchants for their losses; return the two places of Nyalam and Jizhi, which once belonged to the Gurkhas; Ceded the Dalagang region in western Tibet. If you don't agree with these three articles, you go to war. ”

Monk Grinqin said, "What is the rupee?" ”

"Silver coins, one rulu is heavier than three cents and two cents." Hutt congratulated: "Three rupees are about two pieces of silver." ”

10 million rupees is worth 3.3 million taels of silver, which is not enough for the cost of 10,000 troops entering Tibet, Monk Greenqin pouted, it is really a small country, a small family, and it is estimated that there will not be much benefit from fighting Gurkha this time, "How far is Lazi from Duyangbu?" What is the climate like? ”

Duyangbu is the capital city of Gurkha, is this going to Duyangbu? Hetehe and Ce Pad are both the same, but thinking that during the Qianlong period, the troops sent to Tibet were also near Duyangbu, and the two of them felt relieved, leading the troops outside, which one didn't want to establish a special merit?

"Back to the general, Duyangbu is less than a thousand miles away from here, the march is smooth, it can be reached in January, as for the climate, Duyangbu's winter is not cold." Ce Bao Ji said slowly: "However, this time the Gurkha is an invasion of the country, and there are many troops...... ”

"It's less than 20,000 troops, but it can be considered a lot?" Monk Lingqin said: "Don't worry, the new army has good combat strength, and it is not comparable to the Gurkha army. ”

"General." Hethe hurriedly said, "The Gurkha army has begun to shrink its forces towards Nyalam and Ji Throat. ”

Monk Greenqin nodded and said, "Go down and rest first, and then start with the army tomorrow." ”

The next day, the Qing army marched out, and the troops were divided into two ways to attack Nyalam at the same time, Ji Throat, in order to intercept the Gurkha army in Tibet to the greatest extent, and also in order to capture the Gurkha capital city of Duyangbu before winter, Seng Lingqin urged the army to rush all the way.

In just 10 days, the army led by Seng Lingqin rushed to Nyalam, and he did not rush to attack the city and recover the county seat, but ordered the troops to first recover the key pass south of the county town - Musa Bridge, cut off the retreat of the Gurkha army, and only began to attack Nyalam the next day.

Nyalam was not large, and the walls were not strong, and under the intensive fire of Mini guns and mountain howitzers, the Gurkha army, which had always been known for its bravery, could not hold on for even a day before the city was broken, and the general of the Gurkhas, Dilsumsher, was killed, and the 3,000 defenders suffered more than 2,000 casualties and 600 surrendered. The casualties of the New Army were less than 300, and the battle losses were more than 1 to 10.

Hethe, who witnessed this battle, felt like a dream, the ultra-long shooting power and super high hit rate of the Mini gun, the curve of the howitzer bombarded the city wall, so that his jaw almost dropped, no wonder it was called the Eight Banners New Army, this fire was too sharp, and the musket artillery of the Gurkha Army was simply a burning stick.

Hethe was overjoyed, but Seng Lingqin was sullen, although he achieved a great victory and recovered Nyalam, but the new army also suffered half a battalion of casualties, the courage and tenacity of the Gurkha army was really a little unexpected to him, and what made him even more unhappy was that Zhong Bahadur actually fled back to the Gurkha first.

The next morning, the good news also came from Jizhi, killing more than 4,000 Gurkha troops, capturing more than 800 prisoners, and capturing countless artillery guns, but the casualties were close to 800.

Casualties approaching eight hundred? Monk Lingqin frowned, although the casualties were the Northwest New Army, but after all, it was under his command, and the casualties were really too great, how could he be embarrassed to go back with Yi Zhi**? Obviously, the brigade commander of the Northwest Army, Gong Deshu, the leader of the Twist Army who was recruited, was not good at commanding fortified positions.

Originally, he planned that the two armies would enter the territory of the Gurkha separately and attack Duyangbu on both sides, but now it seems that it is better to join forces together, and this time to enter Tibet, after all, is to destroy the Gurkha, but also to recover Ladakh by the way, and order the surrounding vassal states such as Zhemengxiong (Sikkim), Bulkeba (Bhutan) and other surrounding vassal states to be completely incorporated into the territory of the Qing Dynasty, and the casualties of fighting a Gurkha are too great, which will affect the follow-up use of troops.

"Someone, hurry up and give the order." Monk Lingqin said in a deep voice: "Ling Gong Deshu is waiting in the same place as Jizhi. ”

Seeing such a great victory, but there was no joy on the face of the commander of the monk, Hethe was secretly surprised in his heart, and hesitated for a moment before he said cautiously: "General, can the captured firearms be given to the soldiers stationed in Tibet to ........" ”

Monk Lingqin said casually without thinking about it: "These firearms have been eliminated, so let's use them for monks and native soldiers." ”

To monks and native soldiers? Hethe was a little blind, the green battalion and the Tibetan soldiers stationed in Tibet were not all firearms...... and he reacted when he thought about it, and he couldn't help but be surprised and happy, and said in disbelief: "...... the green battalion and the Tibetan soldiers?" ”

"Yuan Qi will equip the green battalion and Tibetan soldiers stationed in Tibet with Mini guns and marine artillery." Monk Lingqin said: "The third-class duke, the minister of Nanyang, the admiral of the Nanyang Navy, and the great treasurer of Yuanqi, Yi Guocheng, attaches great importance to the defense of Tibet.

Yi Guocheng attaches great importance to the Tibetan soldiers, hoping to expand the quota of Tibetan troops, expanding to two brigades, 15,000 people, all weapons and ammunition, Yuan Qi is equipped, and it is still under the command of the minister stationed in Tibet. ”

The quota of Tibetan soldiers is 15,000? Hetehe couldn't help but be stunned, he knew very well that the Tibetan soldiers that the other party was talking about were Fan soldiers, and hurriedly said: "General, Tibet can't afford to raise so many Fan soldiers. ”

Monk Lingqin smiled when he heard this, "Next year, you will know if you can afford it." ”