Frequent crusades made the southeast more and more afraid of Sichuan, and when the Ming army sailed down the river in the past, Deng Ming also needed to carefully consider the time and place of each docking to rest, and he needed to be careful to beware of Zhang Changgeng's sudden sneak attack. But now there is almost no need for this, Huguang has completely lost the possibility of intercepting the Ming fleet at a dangerous location, and anyway, if he stops the Hubei Green Battalion, he can't defeat the Ming army that has landed, so the Ming army naturally doesn't worry about him blocking it.

In Liangjiang, the river became wider, and the Qing army, which lacked a naval division, lacked the means to block the Ming army than the Huguang Qing army, that is, when the Ming army returned to the division against the current, the Qing army still had a chance to fight - when the wind was unfavorable, the Ming army needed to anchor and anchor. However, it was the first time he returned to the division with Li Laiheng, the Qing army in Jiangxi tried to attack, and when the Ming army returned to the division, the Qing army here in Liangjiang became as docile as the green camp in Huguang.

"Now the governor of the southeast has been frightened by us, but this will also make them even less confident in their own strength." Deng Ming said to Li Laiheng and Liu Tichun that the defeat of the Eight Banners of the Forbidden Brigade in the first battle of Gaoyou Lake was undoubtedly a shot in the arm for the Southeast Green Battalion, which made them eliminate some of their fear of the Eight Banners of Manchuria. However, this is still not enough, Deng Ming found that the green camp still has a general fear of the Eight Banners, and the accumulated power of decades is not so easy to completely remove.

In addition to the green battalion, even the Ming army lacked confidence in the Eight Banners, and after seeing the military flag of the Eight Banners of the Han Dynasty in the last battle of Chóngqìng, the Kuidong Army showed obvious morale fluctuations. That is, Yuan Zongdi's main battalion and some of Li Laiheng's subordinates who participated in the First Eastern Crusade were slightly better, and the richer battlefield experience allowed the former to control tensions within a certain range; The latter had captured real Manchuria under the city of Nanjing, and Deng Ming exhibited the troops that were captured to Little Tiger for a long time, making many people realize that even the Manchurian True Tartars were the same people as them and not some monsters, and even eliminated the fear of the Mongolian and Han Eight Banners.

Now the most fearless of the Eight Banners is probably the Sichuan Army, many Zhejiang Tongxiu has witnessed Zheng Chenggong in Zhenjiang to break the Jiangning garrison of the Eight Banners, tens of thousands of people are witnesses of the Battle of Gaoyou Lake, hundreds of Mongolian Eight Banners are working in Chengdu and Xuzhou, and the pitiful appearance of the Eight Banners of the Han Dynasty is even more unlikely to make the Sichuan Army feel afraid of them.

In addition to introducing the experience of previous victories to friendly forces and helping them face the Eight Banners correctly, Deng Ming felt that it was also important to help the Southeast Green Battalion improve its confidence in the Qing court. Therefore, Deng Ming discussed with Li Laiheng and them at the beginning of the army that if the southeast was invincible, then the Ming army would look for a Qing army that supported běijīng as a target.

"We can't let the Governor of the Southeast feel that we will only bully them, so that they will only have deeper and deeper resentment towards us, and at the same time, they will have less and less confidence to fight against Běijīng, and I certainly hope that the Governor of the Southeast will pay as little as possible to Běijīng, so that we can sell them more public debt." The last time the Ming army attacked the green camp in Zhejiang, this move relieved Jiang Guozhu of a lot of pressure from the south, and made the attitude of the green camp in Zhejiang ambiguous: "I don't know if Li Shutai and Geng Jimao will react, if běijīng has the intention of letting Geng Jimao move to Zhejiang, we will attack him." ”

It is said that the possibility of the Qing court letting Geng Jimao move to Zhejiang is very small, because Zhejiang is much richer than Fujian, and it is not safe to let a vassal king so close to Nanjing. However, Deng Ming had already changed history too much, and in the sixteenth year of Shunzhi, Běijīng thought that Yungui had already made up his mind, and his first thought was to move Geng Jimao from Guangdong to Sichuan, but soon changed his mind to change it to Fujian - this was not only to counter the threat of Zheng Chenggong, but also because the Qing court realized that Sichuan was different from Yungui, and as long as it was carefully managed and the wealth was sufficient, once it was seized by a certain vassal king, it could pose a serious threat to Shaanxi.

Now Deng Ming's threat to the Yangtze River is still regretting that he did not move Geng Jimao to Sichuan, and recently someone has built a way to hand over Guangxi to Wu Sangui, so that he will continue to be responsible for the defense of Li Dingguo; Sun Yanling, on the other hand, succeeded Shang Kexi in defending Guangdong, and transferred Shang Kexi to Fujian to guard against Zheng Chenggong, so that the Geng domain could be changed to Sichuan. However, these voices did not get a response from the imperial court, because now the prince and the auxiliary ministers are still thinking of using the zhōngyāng army to wipe out Sichuan in one fell swoop: when the issue of moving the feudal domain was discussed in the past, some people said that Sichuan was known as the country of abundance in ancient times, and it had the benefits of salt, iron, copper and silver, and the silk splendid was marketed all over the world, and under normal circumstances, the grain and grass of the border armies of Yunnan, Guizhou, Shaanxi and Gansu could be supplied with the power of a single province; Although Sichuan is now ruined, it is not possible to let the vassal king settle in, even if it is a vassal king who has no governing power; Now, in addition to the above reasons, there are more jadeite, ivory and other local products, běijīng has thought about it, and after the conquest of Sichuan, he will set up a minister in Chengdu in charge of tribute, and the profits of jewelry will be directly transferred to the national treasury. How could such an important place allow the vassal king to get involved?

"Geng Fan's predecessor was the Dongjiang Army, which followed the Manchu Qing Dynasty for many years, and was the most hardcore and most effective Han army in the hands of the Qing court. If Geng Fan Jīng Rui can be annihilated in Zhejiang, it will make Jiang Guozhu more fearless and increase the courage of the southeastern governor to fight against Běijīng. ”

Of course, Deng Ming didn't know that the princes and auxiliary ministers of Běijīng were thinking about his capital, so after hearing that Geng Jimao had moved to Sichuan to threaten him or move to Zhejiang to assist in the defense of the two rivers, he had always been very concerned about Geng Jimao's whereabouts. If Geng Jimao came to Sichuan, Deng Ming would not be afraid, but like the Qing court, Deng Ming was not worried that a vassal king was so close to Nanjing: for Běijīng, Geng Jimao was a vassal king of the Han people; For Chengdu, Geng Jimao was the vassal king of the Manchu Qing Dynasty.

After hearing Deng Ming say this, Li Laiheng said: "I think Geng Jimao will not come to Fujian, although the national surname is dead, but the army of the national surname is still there, and the Tartars dare not leave." Most of us ended up going north along the canal and fighting a battle with Tartar in Fengyang Province or Shandong. ”

Deng Ming and others already knew that the Qing court was mobilizing heavy troops to encircle and suppress Shandong Yuqi, and from the news sent by the Yamen, the governor of Caoyun, Yu Qi's defeat was already a certainty: at the beginning, when Shandong responded to the group, Yu Qi was timid, and never dared to go out to cut off Caoyun, for fear of angering the Qing court and completely cutting off the back road of Zhao'an; This year, after the Qing court increased its troops in Shandong, it first ensured the smooth flow of Cao Yun, and then used the canal to mobilize troops, first scattered all the rebel troops outside Yu Qi, and then surrounded the main force of Yu Qi on all sides. When the Qing army was dispatching troops and pressing step by step, Yu Qi closed his door and did not come out, which could be called sitting still, and now Yu Qi's allies were defeated, and the main force was also surrounded by the Qing army, and there was no chance to transfer.

It is estimated that by the middle of July and the end of the month at the latest, the Qing army in Shandong will be able to completely defeat Yu Qi, and the possibility of the Qing army taking advantage of the southern aid is very large. Now the banks of the Yangtze River are important trade areas, which provide Deng Ming with a large amount of financial revenue, helping him to continue to vigorously support the commercial banks in Sichuan, and it is also the income guarantee of the southeast governor, so that Deng Ming can obtain sufficient low-interest loans. Therefore, Deng Ming did not want a battle to break out on both sides of the Yangtze River, and destroying both sides of the Yangtze River would cause Deng Ming to lose a lot of income and affect the sales of Ming government bonds.

Neither Deng Ming nor the other members of the committee wanted the war to spread to the Yangtze River waterway, and now the Ming army was resting near Nanjing, and did not continue to march in the direction of Suzhou and Chongming, and as long as the order was given, the Ming army could enter the canal area from Yangzhou -- the trade on both sides of the canal was basically monopolized by Lin Qilong, and Chongming could not gain anything from it, so Deng Ming did not care about the impact of large-scale military action on the canal basin -- not a single member of the committee cared. Moreover, defeating the Qing army in Shandong can also serve the purpose of protecting Nanjing and boosting the morale of the southeast green battalion.

"Yes, just wait for news from Zhang Shangshu." Deng Ming needed Chongming and Zhoushan to help him spy on the enemy situation in Shandong, and at the same time monitor the movements of Li Shutai and Geng Jimao: "If the Qing army in Shandong shows its intention to go to Nanjing, our army will enter the canal immediately." Běijīng must now know that we have once again stationed troops in Nanjing, and I don't know how they will react. ”

……

As expected by the generals of the Eastern Expeditionary Army, the Qing court had indeed received news that the Ming army had once again arrived in Nanjing.

"Deng Ming didn't come by himself this time, he also brought all the thieves from Kui Dong." If Deng Ming had come by himself, the Qing court might not have been so nervous, because Deng Ming had shown great restraint in the first three Eastern Crusades and did not plunder the localities on a large scale - although Jiang Guozhu, Zhang Changgeng and Zhang Chao complained vigorously, but from the perspective that the southeast could still satisfy the most basic Cao Yun, Deng Ming still regarded himself as a king and did not cause too much harm to the Yangtze River valley.

After learning that Deng Ming threatened Jiangnan in early May, the Qing court's first thought was to let Shandong's soldiers and horses rush to Yangzhou, but Shandong Yuqi had just been completely surrounded, and it seemed that this hidden danger could be pulled out once and for all, and it was a pity to give up halfway: this time Yu Qi was confused by the smoke of Zhao'an from beginning to end, and stayed in the base area honestly, and still had illusions when he died, still waiting for the imperial court to recruit him, until the Qing army launched a general offensive before waking up from a big dream. If the Qing army withdrew from the siege to the south at this time, Yu Qi would definitely not sit idly by again.

Besides, Deng Ming's progress was too fast, and in the blink of an eye, he once again approached the city of Nanjing, so that the Qing court had no time to withdraw troops from the Shandong battlefield.

"If Deng Ming, like the previous times, just collected some grain and grass and retired from the army, then leave him alone." Like Deng Ming, Běijīng did not want to break out on both sides of the Yangtze River, because the Ming army had water superiority, the possibility of annihilating Deng Ming was very small, but once the war started, it would definitely be a mess on both sides of the Yangtze River; A large number of Qing troops from other provinces marched into the Yangtze River valley to fight, regardless of whether the Ming army was driven away or not, there was definitely no need to count on taxes. The showdown of reinforcements to the local government, coupled with the looting of officers and soldiers, will only be more severe than Deng Ming's army, just like the last time Zheng Chenggong invaded the Yangtze River, it was not the Ming army but the Qing court's reinforcements that made Zhenjiang completely an empty city.

Deng Ming's habits and hobbies, which he now also understands, seem to have no idea of establishing a base in the south of the Yangtze River at all, but are just trying to relocate the population to Sichuan -- the lesser of two evils, and Deng Ming will not be prevented from escaping anyway, so it is naturally the best choice to keep the war away from the Yangtze River waterway. However, this time Deng Ming brought the Kui Dong Army, which made Běijīng worry that there would be variables in it, and these people might be like Zheng Chenggong, not seriously relocating the population, but thinking about changing the base area.

"Let Kupilon help Prince Kang and continue to encircle and suppress Yu Qi with all his might." The main general of the crusade against Yu Qi was served by Jieshu without any incident, and the commander of the crusade against Yu Qi was served in front of Prince Kang's tent together, and it didn't take long for the three auxiliary ministers who remained in Běijīng to get an agreement, and they would make two preparations: "If Deng Ming goes back to Sichuan honestly like the previous times, then don't let the army go down to Jiangnan, and don't think about recovering for three or four years." ”

If all the Ming troops returned to the west, then the Shandong army would also advance westward according to the original plan, looking for a place in Sichuan as a decisive battlefield, so as to avoid the destruction of the tax-bearing land in the southeast. And if Deng Ming had only returned with the Sichuan army, and the Kui Dong army had stayed alone and tried to open up a base area, Běijīng felt that relying on Jiangnan's own strength would almost be able to drive them out. Deng Ming has not been based in Jiangnan, which is of course a problem with his habits, but it can also show that the governor of the southeast still has a certain ability to resist, and if the southeast is completely capable of self-defense, it is impossible for Deng Ming not to be moved.

The biggest danger is that Deng Ming plans to help Kui Dongjun open up a base area, just like he helped Ma Fengzhi rob Chongming Island before. However, Chongming Island is still an island after all, and Ma Fengzhi has not shown any ability to develop on land in the past two years - since Chongming does not pose an immediate and direct threat to the taxation of Jiangnan, there is no need for Běijīng to send a large army to reinforce it, and he can leave it to the southeast to find a solution on its own, just like it did with Zhoushan, Jin, and Xia.

But if the Kui Dong Army had planned to open up a base around Nanjing this time, or try to pick up Ma Fengzhi from Chongming Island, the shape would have been completely different. That was a direct threat to the tax-paying lands in the southeast, and the Qing court did not want a major war on both sides of the Yangtze River, but if the Ming army pressed on, Běijīng had no choice but to go all out. If it is really necessary, it is to transfer the vassal kings back from Fujian, Guangdong and other places, and to drive the Ming army out of Liangjiang.

"If Deng Ming doesn't go, or he plans to cut off Yangzhou Caoyun, or he plans to capture Suzhou, the Shandong soldiers and horses will immediately march south, even if it is for Yu Qi to live for two more days, he has to do it."

The Auxiliary Minister sent an urgent letter to Shandong to inform Prince Kang and Kupilon to prepare in advance and await further orders from Běijīng.