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Ma Yongzhen in Luoyang has been forced to retreat on a large scale, which will undoubtedly have a major impact on the war situation in the southeast.
Everyone, including Qin Mu, immediately felt the heavy pressure. If Duoduo really went south again, it would be almost impossible for him to completely block the thousands of miles of Yangtze River waterway and separate the north and the south with the hundreds of warships of various sizes in the navy.
All the navy can do is control some important ferry crossings, but it is impossible to completely defend the thousand-mile defense line.
As for the strategically powerful Manchu and Mongolian cavalry, even if there are only a few hundred of them, they should not be underestimated. Their advantages cannot be brought into play in city defense battles, but they can bring out their powerful combat effectiveness in field raids.
Previously, both western Zhejiang and Anqing were mountainous areas with narrow terrain, which was not conducive to the deployment of cavalry. The Qin army had always occupied the geographical advantage, and the army's food and fodder were all transported through the Yangtze River waterway, so there was no need to worry about the food route being robbed, so they won victory after victory.
But after advancing to the south of the Yangtze River, the situation was different. There were many lakes and waterways in the south of the Yangtze River. Although this greatly restricted the cavalry's performance, it was not as easy to stop as in the mountainous areas. The enemy cavalry could pass everywhere and use their speed advantage to launch wolf pack tactics, which was also hard to defend against.
This is also the reason why Su Jin and his men, although their forces in Jiangyin have reached 70,000 to 80,000, have yet to gain an overwhelming strategic advantage.
What worried Qin Mu even more was whether Ma Yongzhen's army could safely withdraw to Xiangyang. After passing Yique Pass to the south of Luoyang, the terrain in Xinye and Nanyang was flat, which was very favorable for the Tatar cavalry. Ma Yongzhen led mostly infantry and brought 100,000 old, weak, women and children with him, so his movements were slow.
The flat area of Xinye and Nanyang is an extremely dangerous place for them. Who knows if they can retreat from this land of death
"Come here, pass on my order to Tian Jianxiu from Wusheng Pass to transfer 10,000 troops. Station them in Xiangyang in the west and support Ma Yongzhen's retreat to the south." Qin Mu gave an urgent order.
The pressure at Wuyang Pass was also small. After Hauge received support from food and troops, he regrouped and headed for Wuyang Pass. However, Tian Jianxiu originally had 35,000 troops. Wuyang Pass was a one-man-gun pass, and ten thousand men could not break through. It was easy to defend and difficult to attack, and the supply line was also relatively close.
At present, Wuyang Pass is the least stressed, and only Tian Jianxiu can draw some troops.
After issuing the order, Qin Mu urgently summoned civil and military officials, asking them to put aside a military meeting as plans could not keep up with changes and the war situation in the southeast must be adjusted accordingly.
Sima An, He Liang, Gu Jun'en, Song Xiance, Lü Daqi, Shao Hua, Yu Dayou, Li Yuan, Meng Ke, Liu Meng, Ning Yuan, Huo Sheng, Guo Yunlong, Hao Yaoqi and others arrived at the simple government office in Dangtu. The government office, which was not big to begin with, felt even more cramped and had simple conditions. Everyone was either sitting or standing, and it was not enough.
Qin Mu, wearing a black royal robe, glanced at everyone seriously and said, "Before, the battle and defense strategy we agreed on was to maintain strong pressure on Ma'anshan and continuously attract the enemy's forces to destroy them;
Now it seems that this strategy has taken too long. Luoyang sent out troops hastily, and the logistics and weapons supply could not keep up. The Tartars' offensive was fierce. Ma Yongzhen has been forced to retreat. There is no time for us to slowly consume the enemy. Next, how to adjust, let's discuss it together. "
Liu Meng, the commander-in-chief of the Central Army, stood up and said, "King Qin, if we want to disintegrate the enemy in Jiangnan as quickly as possible, we must attack Nanjing directly. Currently, there are only 25,000 Qing troops in Nanjing, and most of them are Green Camp soldiers. I think our army can call back the navy and gather 40,000 land troops to attack Nanjing quickly. If we can capture it, the enemy will be cut in two, especially the enemy in Ma'anshan. They have no food and grass, and no way to advance or retreat. They will definitely be difficult to hold out under the two-sided attack of our army.
With tens of thousands of troops besieging the city, even if we cannot quickly capture Nanjing, the enemy will certainly not dare to take it lightly. The enemies in Ma'anshan and Jiangyin will definitely return to Nanjing for support. At that time, our army can also advance on both sides, especially Ma'anshan. Once a breakthrough is made, we can directly advance to the city of Nanjing, which can also achieve the goal of quickly ending the war. "
The tactics proposed by Liu Meng were the leapfrog tactics proposed by Qin Mu. Because they had control over the Yangtze River waterway, the Qin army could transport troops by water and launch attacks on any point on both sides of the Yangtze River, including Jinling. If the attack failed, they could retreat from the river, and the enemy would not even have a chance to pursue them.
Huo Sheng, Hao Yaoqi and others unanimously agreed with Liu Meng's suggestion. As soldiers, they considered the issue more from the perspective of victory or defeat in the war.
But if this happens, Jinling City will inevitably have a bloody battle, which is likely to cause serious damage to Jinling City. Even in a critical moment, the enemy may destroy Jinling City, and no one can guarantee that this will not happen. Now that the autumn weather is high and cool, it is very easy to destroy a city, and it only takes a big fire to do it.
If such a result really happened, it would be a serious blow to the Qin State, both politically and economically. Just like Yangzhou now, an empty city, it would not make much sense to capture it.
Seeing Qin Mu's hesitation, Sima An knew that Qin Mu was unwilling to take the risk unless it was absolutely necessary. He thought for a while and said, "King Qin, there is still a compromise plan. Use the troops mentioned by Commander Liu to attack Zhenjiang;
Once Zhenjiang Prefecture is captured, we can move eastwards to encircle Bolo with Su Jin in Jiangyin, and move westwards to threaten Nanjing. We can also force Nikan in Ma'anshan to return to Nanjing, thus creating an opportunity for our army to break through Ma'anshan head-on."
Gu Jun'en approved of Sima An's strategy: "After taking Zhenjiang Prefecture, it will actually be equivalent to cutting off the enemy's route to retreat to Jiangnan. In this way, the enemy in Nanjing will be trapped and will not easily destroy the city and abandon it."
Lu Daqi disagreed with this approach. He said, "King Qin, this way, it seems that our army has cut the enemy into several sections, but on the other hand, our army's forces are also too dispersed. Although Zhenjiang is important, it is not enough to disrupt the enemy's formation. If the war goes smoothly, it will be fine. If we fail in one place, I am afraid that we will lose everything.
Attacking Jinling is to attack the enemy and rescue them. It will definitely disrupt the enemy's layout quickly. King Qin, Jinling City is important, but if we cannot win quickly, when Duoduo goes south, our army's eastern expedition will almost be declared a failure. What is more important, I hope King Qin will think twice. "
As soon as Lu Daqi finished speaking, the majority of people came out to support the attack on Jinling. Qin Mu thought for a moment and felt that there was really no better way, so he immediately said, "Okay, Liu Meng, the commander-in-chief of the Central Army, listen to my orders."
"I will obey your order."
"I order you and Huo Sheng to lead 40,000 elite troops, cooperate with the navy, and attack Nanjing directly."
"Your Majesty, obey your order!"
After the meeting, Qin Mu left Liu Meng and Huo Sheng behind, called Yan Gaofei, and asked Li Shi and Niu Wanshan to guard the gate personally. Then Qin Mu said, "Huang Lianshan is still in Jinling, and has planted many people among the Green Camp soldiers in the city. More importantly, Xu Dingguo, the deputy general of Jinling City, has also arranged death squads around him.
When attacking Jinling City this time, you should try not to act recklessly. You should first coordinate with Huang Lianshan in the city and strive for the cooperation of the insiders to capture Jinling City at the lowest cost."
Huo Sheng was very happy after hearing this, and laughed, "King Qin, with Huang Lianshan as your accomplice, why were you hesitating before? King Qin, don't worry..."
"I'm worried." Qin Mu interrupted him seriously, "Hong Chengchou is not a fool. On the contrary, he is an old man who has experienced many battles. He can guess that we have accomplices in the city and will definitely take strict precautions. Once you lead the army to arrive, under Hong Chengchou's strict defense, it will be a problem whether Huang Lianshan can pass on the news from the city.
Therefore, no matter what the circumstances, do not underestimate people like Hong Chengchou. To put it bluntly, he has eaten more salt than you have eaten rice. So if you are careless, you are likely to fall into his counter-treasonous scheme. Do you remember that Chen Youliang was defeated by a voice of "Lao Kang"
There is no fixed pattern for counter-espionage. No one knows what plans a cunning person like Hong Chengchou will have against you, so you must not be careless. "
Huo Sheng quickly clasped his fists and saluted, saying, "I have taken note of what the King of Qin said, and I will be careful in my actions."
Qin Mu nodded, and whispered some instructions to them, and finally said to Yan Gaofei: "You should go to Nanjing with Governor Liu. In Sichuan, Qin Zhaoming, Lu Wanzhong and others have done a great job. Nanjing City is where Ye Bu Shou has spent the most energy. This time, you and Huang Lianshan are working together personally. I hope you can do better than Qin Zhaoming and others."
"I will definitely fulfill my mission." Yan Gaofei did not dare to be negligent and immediately showed great courtesy.
Qin Mu specifically mentioned Qin Zhaoming and Lu Wanzhong from Sichuan. This was a spur to him and Huang Lianshan. If Ye Bu Shou's chief and deputy were to take action, it would not be as good as Qin Zhaoming's performance. Where would he and Huang Lianshan put their faces
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ps: Today, Ming Yang Tian Xia has reached one million words. To be honest, every word is the result of my hard work, and I can't help but feel a little emotional. In the cold winter, my hands were covered with chilblains, but I was still typing at night; during the Spring Festival, when thousands of families were celebrating, I turned on the music to block out the sound of firecrackers outside and continued to work hard on typing; during the May Day holiday, when others went on a relaxing trip, I worked hard to update for double the monthly tickets, sleeping only four or five hours a day. One million words, it took more than a hundred days and nights to get it. I have always believed that hard work will pay off, but the results of Ming Yang Tian Xia are heartbreaking... .... Forget it, I won't say more.
I will continue to work hard, and I hope you guys will support me! Only your support is my motivation to keep going.
.(To be continued..)
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