The top of the snake mountain, under the Yellow Crane Tower, a quiet path. Pen, fun, pavilion www. biquge。 info

On the path full of fallen leaves, Zuo Zongtang and the three of them walked along, but no one spoke, for Zuo Zongtang, the northwest is an opportunity to make progress, and it is also an extremely difficult choice, he understands very well, what does Yi Zhishu say about martial arts and civilians? It was precisely because he understood that he hesitated.

The three of them came to a pavilion like a gourd, Zeng Guofan took out his pocket watch and looked at it, and said, "It's almost two quarters of an hour, sit down." ”

Walking into the pavilion, the three of them sat down at will, Zuo Zongtang lifted his robe and lifted Erlang's legs, and said: "I have heard that Yi Guocheng has a long-term vision and has seen people, and when I see it today, it is really extraordinary His views on the current situation can be called a ...... from a lofty position." ”

Jiang Zhongyuan glanced at him and said, "Don't go around in circles. ”

"I'm not going around in circles." Zuo Zongtang said that he subconsciously glanced around, and then said slowly: "Yi Guocheng gives people the feeling of being condescending and controlling the overall situation, and today's attitude towards Yuan Qi is also well known...... As he spoke, he sighed lightly, "If you take this step, I'm afraid you won't be able to take it back." ”

"How many people want to take this step, but don't have the opportunity." Jiang Zhongyuan sneered and said: "There's no need to hide, Ji Gao is worried that Yi Guocheng has a heart of disobedience, and he is worried about getting on the thief ship!" ”

"What do you think about Minqiao?"

"Yuan Qi is rich in the world, the navy is unparalleled in combat power, the scale is not small, and it has the ability to rapidly expand the army." Jiang Zhongyuan glanced at the two of them, and said in a deep voice: "Now that the long hair is in turmoil, stirring up the world, for Yi Guocheng, the situation can be described as extremely favorable, if he has the heart of disobedience, will he wave his army into Chu?" Even if he is to protect the two rivers from being troubled by the long hair, then it is necessary to gallop in the starry night to rescue the monk king? ”

Zuo Zongtang said casually: "Now the officialdom says that Yi Guocheng is the out-and-out king of Nanyang, and all Nanyang officials are Yi Xuan officials. ”

Hearing this, Jiang Zhongyuan shook his head disapprovingly, "There are indeed such rumors, but let's think about it the other way around, if Yi Guocheng wants to divide Nanyang, it should be easy, with the current relationship between the imperial court and Yuan Qi, Yi Guocheng only needs to put Nanyang on hold, and it can form a de facto secession, and the imperial court has no time to ask, nor dare to ask!" ”

After a pause, he continued: "The Northwest is not the South Seas, and Ji Gao is not a person of Yuanqi, so why look ahead?" If Ji Gao can enter the northwest to take charge of the first brigade of recruits, the imperial court will inevitably be greatly valued. ”

Zeng Guofan slightly chucked his head and agreed: "It is indeed a bit far-fetched to say that Yi Guocheng has a heart of disobedience, if he really has this heart, he will not assist the imperial court to form a new army of the Eight Banners and provide guns and ammunition for it, nor will he divide his troops into the northwest, let alone think that Ji Gao and an outsider will enter the northwest to take command." ”

After a slight sigh, Zuo Zongtang said: "Even if Yi Guocheng does not have the heart of disobedience at present, there is no guarantee that there will be no in the future, the strength of the Nanyang Navy is increasing year by year, Luzon Java will gradually form a de facto separation, and Yuanqi's wealth will snowball bigger and bigger, and Yuanqi is also interested in vigorously developing the military ......."

The relationship between the imperial court and Yuan Qi is also worrying, one is a young man, the other is a man who dominates the southeast, has unparalleled financial resources, and is proud of the world's heroes, I am afraid that it will be difficult to reconcile. ”

"Why should Ji Gao think about it so long-term?" Zeng Guofan said slowly: "Time is not with me, retreat and be alone, Ji Gao enters the northwest, he will definitely be able to meet the source left and right, advance and retreat freely, and there is no need to look forward and backward." ”

These words made Zuo Zongtang's heart move, if he can meet the source left and right, he can advance and retreat freely, he immediately smiled, "Go?" ”

"Go." Zeng Guofan and Jiang Zhongyuan said in unison.

Zuo Zongtang said with a smile: "Since this is the case, then it is difficult to make it difficult." ”

Reluctantly? Jiang Zhongyuan shook his head a little speechlessly, and secretly scolded himself before he said, "Martial arts? Civilian? ”

"Since you want to be in charge, it is naturally a military position." Zuo Zongtang said and looked at Zeng Guofan, "Does Disheng think so?" ”

Zeng Guofan didn't know what he was thinking, and immediately smiled: "Ji Gao can rest assured, in terms of the imperial court, Minqiao and I will definitely speak." ”

When the three of them returned to the Yellow Crane Tower, Zuo Zongtang walked straight to Yi Zhizu, bowed down, and said, "Xiangyin Zuo Zongtang, I've seen the big shopkeeper." ”

This is a courtesy as a subordinate, Yi Zhizhi was happy in his heart, and stretched out his hand to raise it, "Ji Gao doesn't need to be polite." As he spoke, he stretched out his hand to invite the three of them to the table, and said with a smile: "Let's start the table." ”

Everyone sat down, and Yi Zhizhi smiled and said: "Hunan and Hubei have many talents, and now there is a shortage of officials in Nanyang Luzon Java, and the Nanyang Prime Minister's Yamen and the Navy Admiralty are also eager to be talented. ”

Jiang Zhongyuan glanced at him and said with a smile: "Master Hou is still dissatisfied with Ji Gao, and he still wants to kill all the talents of Huguang Junjie. ”

Zeng Guofan said tentatively: "I heard that there are many alternate officials who want to go to Nanyang, but it is difficult to enter the eyes of the Hou Ye. ”

"Alternate officer, Ben Hou really doesn't dare to use it indiscriminately." Yi Zhishu said in a relaxed tone: "That is the lord of the sky three feet high, the new land of the South Seas, but can not withstand their toss, Ben Hou hopes to select a group of young and promising, honest and disciplined officials for the South Seas, the Nanyang Islands are not only the sea barrier of the Qing Dynasty, but also the gateway of the Qing Dynasty to the Western Ocean, and may become the wealth of the Qing Dynasty in the future, since it is included in the territory of the Qing Dynasty, it is not allowed to be divided again, and the Hou does not want to be separated from Germany by those alternate officials who will waste the South Seas." ”

Hearing him say this, Zeng Guofan stroked his beard and smiled: "Master Hou is really far-sighted and well-intentioned. ”

Yi Zhishu looked at him seriously and said, "Brother Disheng is interested in Governor Nanyang?" ”

Governor of the South Seas? Zeng Guofan's heart jumped, this is simply a hot potato, he hurriedly waved his hand and said: "Hou Ye spares the bottom, he is not good at water, he is stunned when he sees the sea, and the post of governor of Nanyang, Hou Ye is still looking for another candidate." ”

Seeing that he was not interested, Yi Zhizhi was not reluctant, he laughed, and while he was talking, the wine and food had been sent up in a steady stream of flowing water, Yi Zhizu stopped talking, personally held the pot and poured a glass of wine for Bao Shichen, and deliberately transferred a plate of Wuchang fish to him, and then filled the wine for the three of Zeng Guofan, and then raised his glass and said: "This first glass of wine, let's wish Brother Ji Gao to go to the northwest to make a big difference." ”

Jingzhou Mansion.

Yang Xiuqing stood in front of a large map of Huguang and muttered, captured Jingzhou, the Taiping army seemed to be at a crossroads, I don't know where to go, now Seng Lingqin, Xiang Rong, and Chun joined forces to defend Xiangyang, which is equivalent to blocking the Taiping Army's road to the north, easy to be content with the navy stationed in Wuchang, the fleet cruised the Yangtze River, blocking the road to the east, for the Taiping Army, there are only two roads left to go south to Hunan and west to Sichuan.

"Your Highness, His Royal Highness the King of the South and His Royal Highness the King of Wings are here to visit."

Yang Xiuqing slowly turned around and said, "Please let them in." ”

Feng Yunshan and Shi Dakai walked in slowly, and Yang Xiuqing, who saw them, stood in front of the large map with his back to them, and couldn't help but glance at each other. ”

Yang Xiuqing turned around, looked at Feng Yunshan and said, "The Heavenly King has made a decision?" ”

Feng Yunshan said slowly: "Now that Hunan's troops are empty, return to Hunan, capture Changsha, and establish a small paradise." ”

Yang Xiuqing glanced at him and turned to Shi Dakai, "What does the Wing King think?" ”

"If you want to occupy and consolidate Hunan, then you can't give up Jingzhou." Shi Dakai said slowly: "In addition, it is best to send a partial division into Sichuan." ”

"Jingzhou has been a battleground for soldiers since ancient times, and if you occupy Jingzhou, you will face endless attacks from Qing demons." Feng Yunshan said: "Besides, Yuan Qi will not allow us to occupy Hubei. ”

"Jingzhou can't give up." Yang Xiuqing said in a deep voice: "If the Qing Demon is not destroyed, we and the Qing Demon will have been endlessly crusading, whether to give up Jingzhou or not is the same, as for Yuan Qi, don't pay attention to it, Yuan Qi cares about Liangjiang, afraid that we will occupy Hubei and threaten Liangjiang, for Jingzhou, Yuan Qi will not care." ”

Speaking of this, he paused and said, "Partial teacher into Sichuan? By water? ”

"Yes, go upstream, take Yichang, and enter the river by water!" Shi Dakai nodded and said: "If we can occupy Sichuan, we can be invincible, at least, there is one more way out." ”

Feng Yunshan said slowly: "It is not easy to enter the river by water. ”

"I'm in favor of sending a branch teacher into Sichuan, and it's good to explore the way." Yang Xiuqing said: "Sichuan is the land of abundance, and it is also vast enough, and it is easy to defend and difficult to attack. ”

Hong Xiuquan does not approve of entering Sichuan, Feng Yunshan does not approve of either, both of them are scholars, and they are very clear about the history of Sichuan, although Sichuan is known as the country of abundance, and the terrain is dangerous, easy to defend and difficult to attack, but the regime established in Sichuan has always been short-lived, Yang Xiuqing and Shi Dakai are in favor of entering Sichuan, Feng Yunshan pondered for a while before saying: "Since ancient times, those who founded the country in Sichuan have not exceeded two generations, Sichuan is easy to defend and difficult to attack, but it is also easy to enter and difficult to exit. ”

"Partial teachers into Sichuan, it will not hinder the overall situation." Yang Xiuqing pondered for a moment before saying, "What is the intention of the Heavenly King?" ”

"The meaning of the Heavenly King is to occupy Hunan for the time being, recuperate and recharge, and then try to advance north or east." Feng Yunshan said slowly: "The current strength is expanding too fast, it must be rectified and trained, the 20,000 Eight Banners New Army will inevitably come to attack Jingzhou when it goes south, even if we want to defend it, we can't hold it, we don't need to stick to one city and one place, and repeat the mistakes of Yong'an and Changsha." ”

"The king is wise." Shi Dakai said slowly: "The muskets of the Eight Banners New Army are powerful, we really don't need to defend one city and one place, but Jingzhou is near the river, and our water camp can completely control the Jingzhou River and can evacuate at any time, so there is no need to rush to abandon Jingzhou." As he spoke, he looked at Yang Xiuqing, "The soldiers are very fast, the main force will return to Hunan first, attack Changsha, and leave 20,000 troops to garrison Jingzhou." ”

Groaning slightly, Yang Xiuqing said: "20,000 troops are less, leave 40,000 horses for you, there is no need to defend Jingzhou, if the Qing Demon crosses the river, capture Jingzhou again, cut off its retreat, let's close the door and fight the dogs, if the Qing Demon does not cross the river, it will confront you across the river, and it is good to be able to contain the main force of the Qing Demon in Jingzhou." ”

After a pause, he continued: "Before the Qing Demon arrives, it is best to clean up the nearby prefectures and counties, first, to strengthen the strength, second, to practice in actual combat, and third, to strengthen the army... The wall is clear, kill three birds with one stone, I will leave you 10,000 elites. ”

Jingshi, Forbidden City, military aircraft duty room.

Seeing the fold of Monk Greenqin, Mu Zhang'a had a gloomy face and was silent for a long time, it has only been a few days since the recovery of Wuchang, and the situation in Hubei has been eroded to such an extent! More than half of the 10,000 Eight Banners New Army was lost, the elite of the Taiping Army reached 200,000, most of Hubei was sacked by the Taiping Army, and even more hateful was that even Jingzhou was lost!

After taking a sip of tea, he deliberately tied two soft cotton pads on his legs, and then got up and entered the palace.

"Bang" Xianfeng threw the fold on the desk, Mu Zhang'a jumped in his heart and hurriedly bowed down, but Xianfeng did not have an immediate attack, but looked out of the window in a daze, the situation in Hubei was so erosive, the Taiping army swelled so fast, it was really much beyond his expectations, and what made him even more sad was that in the two battles of Jingshan and Jingzhou, the casualties of the children of the Eight Banners were as high as more than 10,000.

After a long time, Xianfeng asked in a flat tone: "Can the bandits still be exterminated?" ”

Mu Zhang'a hurriedly kowtowed, and said: "Your Majesty, in the battle of Jingshan, although the New Army of the Eight Banners lost more than half, it also annihilated 30,000 bandits, which is really a great victory, which shows the strength of the new army. ”

After a slight sigh, Xianfeng said: "Jingshan is besieged, Jingzhou is lost, and Monk Greenqin asks for removal from his post for investigation, what do you think?" ”

Mu Zhang'a had already considered this, and immediately said slowly: "Your Majesty, Jingshan is besieged, and the monk and king are to blame, but they can move the camp in time, stick to the help, and hit the bandits hard, and the contribution is indispensable. ”

Xianfeng glanced at him and said, "What about Yi Zhi's contentment?" ”

In the excerpt, Monk Grinqin recounted in detail the achievements of the naval fleet and the Marine Corps, and bluntly implored the imperial court to reward Yi Zhizhi and the meritorious officers and men of the Marine Corps.

For how to reward Yi Zhi, Mu Zhang'a has no bottom in his heart, the navy assisted in recovering Wuchang, Xianfeng did not mention a word, this galloping Jingshan rescue monk Grinqin, although there are merits, but not a single shot has been fired, on the record is not as good as assisting in the recovery of Wuchang, and Yi Zhi's title, the official position is already very high, how to reward?

Undecided, but the emperor couldn't help but answer his question, Mu Zhang'a didn't dare to hesitate, and hurriedly said: "Yi Zhishu led the navy into Chu and did have merit, but at present, the situation in Hubei is so rotten, it is really not appropriate to reward ...... in a big way." ”

Meritorious service is not rewarded, it is difficult to motivate the morale of the army, boost morale, this truth, how can Xianfeng not understand, he also knows that the situation in Hubei is eroded to the point of no return, and there is no direct relationship with the easily contented navy, whether it is to assist in the recovery of Wuchang or to gallop in the starry night to rescue the monk Greenqin, to avoid the annihilation of the Eight Banners New Army, the easy to be content navy is not a small achievement, but how to reward it, he is also embarrassed.

After thinking about it, he picked up Monk Greenqin's fold again and looked at it carefully, and then said in a rambling voice: "The ammunition supply of the Eight Banners New Army still depends on Yuan Qi?" ”