Chapter Forty-Eight: The Salt Gang Recruits Officer Training

Although the people of Yaogang are very confident in defeating Li Zicheng from top to bottom. However, for the leadership of Yaogang, this is a dangerous move after all, and in the face of hundreds of thousands of Li Zicheng's Dashun army, Yaogang people still have to prepare seriously. During the Spring Festival, except for the thirtieth and the first day of the new year, the military production line has not been suspended.

The Yaogang command center is also in full swing carrying out military mobilization. The reserve soldiers on the side of Xishan Baozi were reorganized, and those who were not picked by Liu Yun in Tongguan and had battlefield experience were sent to these soldiers as their officers after training. These reservists were also very happy to hear that a large number of people with experience in the Great War had come to serve as their officers. They know that people who have experience on the battlefield and know how to deal with emergencies on the battlefield are exactly what they lack.

There are more than 20,000 reservists on the side of Xishan Baozi, forming eight regiments and two divisions. Each division had four regiments, each regiment had four battalions, each battalion had four companies, each company had four platoons, each platoon had four squads, and each squad had ten men. Each regiment had two thousand five hundred and sixty men. The cadres above the battalion level were all sent from Liu Yun's troops. The cadres below the battalion level are all served by the officers and soldiers who came down from Tongguan. Fifteen years later, a division was sent to Lingshui Wharf, and Liu Yun's 1,000 infantry were also assigned to Fan Chengkun and their Lingshui Wharf. Because the number of troops at the Lingshui pier is smaller. Since the artillery on Fan Chengkun's warship was sufficient, in addition to replenishing them with enough shells, he did not add ordinary artillery to them. But Li Wei's heavy mortars equipped them with five. This made Fan Chengkun very happy, but Fan Chengkun knew the power of this heavy mortar. He knew that these five cannons would make a big difference at a critical time.

The other main force of the reservists is the road construction workers who came down after the road was built, and they participated in military training a little earlier than the reclamation team of Xishan Baozi. They also have the advantage that the cadres of the road construction workers are all sent from the kiln gang, and most of them have participated in cultural studies, are educated, and have always regarded themselves as the old people of the kiln gang. The team is led by them, very well led and organized. There were 20,000 people who could be singled out to fight.

These reserve units were secretly transferred into the kiln posts in formation, and they were arranged to various preset positions. Then the position was strictly blocked, and ordinary people were not allowed to enter and exit casually. Since there were underground shelters built on the positions, it was not possible to see how many people there were outside. Considering the cold winter, the dwellings on the positions had stoves and other heating measures. When you enter the position, you don't have to worry about what the soldiers eat.

At this time, Liu Yun had already taken a command team to the smelting field, and brought Liu Yun 3,000 infantry, and the reserve soldiers were useless. Because there are more than 30,000 reserve soldiers on this side of the smelter, and there are more than 1,000 soldiers who are in charge of guarding in peacetime. Because the range of guards on the side of the smelting yard was too large, Liu Yun brought 100 mortars and 10 heavy mortars.

There are more than 10,000 elite cavalry on Liu Chenghuang's side, and there are no arrangements yet.

Since there are already more than 1,600 rifles, and each regular army squad is already rich with one rifle, Li Yunhe said that 1,500 to 2,000 rifles will be produced by the end of this month. Chen Yufeng decided to set up an infantry regiment composed entirely of rifles and 1,250 men to serve as a mobile reserve. Usually on standby in the Fangcheng of the kiln, it can also be the guard force of the kiln gang command center.

After listening to Chen Yufeng's suggestion, Ouyang He said: "That's fine, in fact, the combat effectiveness of a company equipped with rifles is amazing. Let's test it in this battle. ”

In fact, there are more than 15,000 workers on Li Yunhe's side, all of whom have undergone military training, but Zhang Zhimu ordered that they should not be used without special circumstances. In fact, their combat effectiveness cannot be underestimated, and they are all the earliest people to participate in military training. He was more disciplined and cultured. The love for the kiln is incomparable.

All these things done by the kiln gang people are carried out in a secret state as much as possible, and they can keep it as secret as possible. Emperor Chongzhen sent people to understand the situation, it is impossible to know such confidential content.

On the twentieth day of the first month when Emperor Chongzhen issued two holy decrees, the old owner of Yuncheng Qiu led five thousand elite disciples of the Salt Gang to Yaogang.

Zhang Zhimu, Chen Yufeng and others who greeted the post saw that the children of the Salt Gang were neat and tidy, waving flags, and they were very majestic. Knowing in his heart that the people selected by the old club were elite, Zhang Zhimu arched his hand and said: "The soldiers of the old club are really majestic." We also have a lot of prestige for the kiln people. ”

Qiu Laodong said: "Okay, don't be polite between us." Save the kind words and defeat Li Zicheng. I'm going to hand them all over to you now, and it's up to you how you arrange them. ”

Qin Peng and the others went over and guided the five thousand soldiers directly to the camp in front of the cave.

This time, several big proprietors of the Salt Gang led the team together, and they came to Chen Yufeng's command center together, and just sat down to drink a little water. There happened to be a call to find Chen Yufeng, it turned out that Liu Yun was calling from the smelting field, and he had something to say to Chen Yufeng. Chen Yufeng didn't carry these people from the Salt Gang on his back.

However, seeing Chen Yufeng talking to a tube, it made Qiu's old boss puzzled. How did they know there was such a thing as a telephone?

When Chen Yufeng finally finished speaking, Qiu Laodong couldn't help but just ask, Chen Yufeng said, "How is it, do you want to know who I am talking to?" ”

Qiu Laodong said: "Come on, don't sell it, tell me what's going on?" ”

Chen Yufeng said: "Originally, this was still a top secret matter, but when Qiu Laodong asked, I said it, but it still has to be kept secret." Just now, I was talking to Liu Yun who was in the smelting field, and we were just discussing a little thing. ”

"What do you say? I know that the smelting field is dozens of miles away from here. Can you talk to him? "Qiu Laodong's don't believe it.

Zhang Zhimu took over and said: "Old Dong Qiu, Uncle Chen is telling the truth. Uncle Chen is holding the phone in his hand, he and Liu Yun are talking through the phone, and when the battle with Li Zicheng is over, we will first find a way to get the phone to Yuncheng, and at that time, Qiu Laodong's family can pick up the phone and say, there is no need to have a little trouble, and we have to come here. ”

Yan Boju also joked: "Yes, we will take care of your wine as soon as you come." ”

Everyone laughed for a while, and the old owner Qiu said, "It's so convenient to have this thing." Command the war is not to mention. After the battle, we have to get this phone on the Yuncheng side anyway. ”

Several other big proprietors of the Salt Gang also said: "Yes, yes, there is no way to get it." ”

Zhang Zhimu said: "There are already telephone exchanges at our smelter and at the Lingshui wharf. It is very convenient to have a telephone to direct the war. But everyone knows about it today, and it will be kept secret for the time being. ”

Since the family members of these big proprietors came in advance, and the kiln gang also arranged houses for them, Qiu Laodong's family said: "Today, we all go back to our respective homes, and we owe the wine first." I know you're the busiest time now, and you'll have time to drink again. I'll explain the matter to you, and we'll go back to our respective homes first. Soon after we left Yuncheng, Li Zicheng's army may have occupied Yuncheng. Before we left, the people at your passenger terminal also evacuated to Alexandria. Tens of thousands of our brothers from the Salt Gang and their families have moved to Alexandria. I went to see it, and the whole valley was full of houses, although they were simple, but they could keep warm and live in people. I also asked, and they said that it was no problem to eat grain for more than half a year, and the pickles, turnips and cabbage eaten in winter were enough. The brothers in Alexandra have made great efforts in the past six months. It is not easy to arrange tens of thousands of people. I explained to the brothers in Alexandria, and the Salt Gang came under their command when they arrived in Alexandria. Lishan is a place that is easy to defend and difficult to attack, if there are fewer people, you can't attack it, and if there are more people, you can't open it. ”

Zhang Zhimu said: "Okay, as long as they persist until the beginning of spring, they should be fine." ”

After explaining these things, the people of the Salt Gang left first.

Zhang Zhimu was no longer polite, because there were indeed a lot of things. When the people of the Salt Gang left, Zhang Zhimu asked Chen Yufeng, "How do we arrange these soldiers of the Salt Gang?" ”

Ouyang He said: "If the estimate is good, we should have a month of training time. Qin Peng and the others have drawn a lot of people from Liu Yun's infantry, they have been training for a long time, and they are preparing to receive the defeated soldiers of the official army, let them train these people first. At least they should be able to use muskets. When you go to war, you may not need them. But when we counterattack, the more troops we have, the better. ”

Chen Yufeng didn't hide from the wine tonight, because Gonggong Li came. Gonggong Li's amount of alcohol can only be dealt with by Chen Yufeng.

Seeing Gonggong Li, Zhang Zhimu said: "Gonggong Li didn't go to Jinyang to hide, and came out to make a danger again." Be careful to let Li Zicheng catch you? ”

Gonggong Li laughed and said, "With you Zhang Dong's family, I'm not afraid." ”

"Come on, let's get down to business, don't delay the night drinking." Zhang Zhimu said.

Gonggong Li smiled again and said, "The emperor is not at ease, let me take a look, how are you preparing?" Li Zicheng has to be well prepared to deal with it. ”

Zhang Zhimu said: "You tell the emperor that we kiln gang people will not quit the kiln gang if we die." With our Yaogang people here, Li Zicheng did not dare to enter Beijing. ”

"Okay, the emperor is waiting for your words." Gonggong Li said.

By the end of the first month, the atmosphere of war had become a little thicker. The King of Jin in Jinyang sent people to Yaogang to raise it and asked the people of Yaogang to support 1,000 muskets and 10,000 **.

Zhang Zhimu discussed with Chen Yufeng and others, and replied that there is no ready-made musket, and if it is to be produced, it will take a month.

Chen Yufeng said: "This dog prince is damned." He didn't know how much silver he had in his hand, but at this time, he didn't say anything about taking out some **and**, he was so embarrassed that he asked people to give them muskets and **. Why? ”

Zhang Zhimu said: "They will still send people, and we will not see any of their people in the future, and when they come again, they will say that we are not there." ”

Sure enough, both the King of Jin and the dismissed Cai Maode sent people to ask for help, but none of them said that they would spend a little money to buy weapons. Zhang Zhimuxin said: "The money they saved was left to Li Zicheng. ”

In terms of military preparations, Zhang Zhimu didn't want to interfere, Chen Yufeng and Ouyang He had already spent a lot of energy. Zhang Zhimu felt that he should consider taking over Shanxi. He looked at the files of the literati who came from the smelter one by one, and singled out those who had worked in the local real positions and had no important positions in the kiln gang, a total of more than 260 people.

In early February, Zhang Zhimu held a symposium with them, and the central topic was the current situation and views. The symposium was held in a large classroom in a middle school.

These people didn't know what Zhang Zhimu meant by such a meeting, so they couldn't speak.

Seeing that the classroom was full of people, Zhang Zhimu said: "Today, please come and discuss the current situation. I hope you will be able to speak enthusiastically. Maybe everyone is concerned about the current situation every day. Let me start by telling you some of the things I have learned. ”

The people below were quiet all of a sudden, and they were all waiting for Zhang Zhimu to introduce the situation. Because of the so-called situation they hear every day, most people guess that the situation released by Zhang Zhimu is really authoritative.

Glancing at the venue, Zhang Zhimu said: "As far as I know, now after Li Zicheng became emperor in Xi'an on the first day of the first lunar month, he swore to go east on the eighth day of the first lunar month. This time, he personally commanded hundreds of thousands of troops to go out to attack Beijing after setting foot in Shanxi. They claim to be millions, which is a bit of a false number, but there are still 600,000 people. Now that he has led his Dashun army to cross the Yellow River at Yukou, I estimate that soon they will surround Taiyuan, and it will not be long before they will take Taiyuan. After taking Taiyuan, it will soon surround our kiln. What do you think? What do you think? ”

The people below began to buzz and discuss, and after a while, someone below shouted: "Mr. Zhang, with the strength of our kiln, we should fight out, and we can't let the thieves hit the kiln!" ”

Zhang Zhimu said: "Your suggestion is good, but have you thought about it, if we occupy any city before Li Zicheng, what will happen to your colleagues in Beijing?" Let me say it directly, they will tell the emperor that the Yaogang people have rebelled like thieves. In that case, we will all be thieves. ”

There was another discussion below, and someone said: "Mr. Zhang, today you can talk about the countermeasures of our kiln, so as not to make everyone a little panicked." ”

Zhang Zhimu said: "Okay. I'll tell you. We must defend at Yaogang, and we will definitely not let Li Zicheng's Dashun army step into our Yaogang for half a step. But just defense is not enough, if we are surrounded by Li Zicheng's Dashun army, our kiln gang will not survive. So we still have to beat Li Zicheng's army away. I think we drove Li Zicheng's army away. Those of you colleagues in Beijing can't say that we are rebelling. ”

The following began to discuss for a while, Zhang Zhimu just wanted them to slowly enter his own arranged circle.

Zhang Zhimu continued: "If we beat away all the thieves in the towns occupied by Li Zicheng, will someone have to take care of these places, right?" But is the imperial court still capable of taking over these places? Or do they still have the money to help these places restore the damage caused by the war? ”

"No, there is still silver in the court. Even if they are reluctantly dispatched, they are empty-handed. It didn't work either. "There's a lot of talk going on below.

Zhang Zhimu said: "The imperial court is no longer capable of taking over these places. So we can't ignore it, we can't send officials. But we can send people to help the people build self-government. This requires us to have a group of people with administrative experience after the war to represent us and follow our army into the cities we have defeated to assist the people there in organizing. The city can be effectively managed so that it can recover from the wounds caused by the war as soon as possible, and let people recover as soon as possible. ”

At this moment, these smart people understood that Zhang Zhimu was going to kill Li Zicheng, so he sent someone to take over the city occupied by Li Zicheng.

Zhang Zhimu said: "I have read your files, and I hope that all of you here at that time can go out to manage the city that our army fought hard to defeat for us." ”

Zhang Zhimu didn't finish speaking, and some people below couldn't help it, they were all people who thought they were terrible, and as a result, they were made to be ghosts and ghosts, this time there was another opportunity, and they could show their skills, and they shouted: "Mr. Zhang, we are willing to go, wherever we go." "We will definitely fight for the kiln people." "Let's go back and be a good officer."

Zhang Zhimu said: "What I am telling you today is just my basic thoughts. As for how to take over those cities, I haven't figured it out yet. But my idea is, to put it simply, I want to build all the cities in Shanxi to be the same as our kilns, so that all the people's living standards can reach the level of our kilns, and if anyone doesn't have this confidence, then you don't want to delay the people there. ”

Now, the discussion is going on again. They said, "It's too hard. ”

Zhang Zhimu said: "Our kiln gang was originally just a small earthen hill for a few families, but why can't we build it like it is today, why can't we have so many cities in a much better situation?" ”

Someone was unconvinced and said: "Isn't there you Mr. Zhang here." ”

Zhang Zhimu said: "You go out to be an official and have the kiln post as your backing, regardless of financial and military strength, as well as cultural influence, they all support you, if you don't have confidence, it means that you are stupid." A stupid guy who doesn't have a lot of potential. ”

Zhang Zhimu's words made these people bow their heads and keep silent.

Zhang Zhimu said: "I just say hello to you today and introduce the situation. Everyone should think about it when they go back. In addition, if some of you want to be an official, you should think about what you want to do. I'd love to hear from you. I think a lot of things seem difficult, and if we can brainstorm them, I think we'll come up with a good way. ”

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Paragliding, rubber model airplanes, piano making, and building an air force. --Progress of "Memories of the Southern Song Dynasty".