In the howling cold wind, the vanguard cavalry of the Zhejiang Army appeared more than a mile away from the east gate of Suzhou City. After approaching the city gate, the vanguard cavalry of the Zhejiang Army pulled the reins, slowly slowed down the horses, and then dispersed to the left and right. Zhu Ping'an, who was in the second echelon, rode his horse forward, surrounded by Liu Dadao and others.
When they were two hundred meters away from the Suzhou city gate, Zhu Ping'an raised his right fist high, and the Zhejiang troops behind him reined in their mounts.
This is also because Zhu Ping'an comes from the modern era and is influenced by the military parade of the Flower-Growing Family. In addition to strict requirements on military discipline, he also has very strict requirements on formations.
In terms of military discipline and formation alone, the Zhejiang Army under the leadership of Zhu Ping'an has already left other Ming armies far behind.
At the gate of Suzhou city, Prefect Shang and a group of officials and soldiers were all stunned when they saw the Zhejiang army stop in unison when Zhu Pingan raised his hand.
"The discipline and enforcement of orders are the hallmarks of a strong army! Apart from anything else, Lord Zhu is quite good at training soldiers. The Zhejiang Army can be called a strong army."
"Yes, the Zhejiang Army has a well-organized formation, which is beyond the reach of ordinary armies."
Several officials were shocked by the Zhejiang Army's neat formation and discipline, and could not help but express their emotion.
"What's the point of having an orderly formation? War is not about being in good order. It's like a silver-plated spear head that looks good but is useless."
"Lord Zhu values firearms over weapons. If you rely too much on firearms, you will suffer great losses in field battles."
After hearing this, several generals whispered in dissatisfaction.
Firstly, they were really dissatisfied. Just now, those officials said that the Zhejiang Army was not something that ordinary armies could match, and they were being looked down upon invisibly. Secondly, they were dissatisfied on behalf of General Wang. General Wang was their main commander, and the Zhejiang Army shouted that General Wang had surrendered to Japan without any evidence, which was a slap in the face for their main commander and made them feel dissatisfied.
Prefect Shang looked at Zhu Ping'an and the Zhejiang army outside the city with a complicated expression. To be honest, he really admired Zhu Ping'an.
He was a boy from a poor family, and became the top scorer in the imperial examination. However, he offended Lord Yan and was demoted to be the magistrate of the small and crisis-ridden Jingnan County. However, within just half a year, he not only made a comeback, but even moved up to a higher level and became a fourth-rank official.
This is not something that ordinary people can do.
In addition, Zhu Ping'an was able to win the imperial examination in literature and had made many military achievements. Just to mention the battle in front of Fengqiao camp a few days ago, at least thousands of Japanese pirates were beheaded, which was enough for Zhu Ping'an to be promoted again.
However, in the way of martial arts, although Zhu Ping'an was far superior to himself, he was a latecomer after all and was young, so he still lacked experience. Just as those talkative generals had said, over-reliance on firearms was not in line with the current social order. Neither the emperor's royal guards nor the border troops nor the armies of the major powers, and even the Japanese pirates who roamed the south of the Yangtze River, relied so much on firearms. The proportion of firearms was at most 30% to 40%.
However, Zhu Ping'an not only relied on firearms, but was also very stubborn and would not listen to any advice.
This aspect made Prefect Shang feel uneasy.
Today, General Wang attacked from the east gate. Why did Zhu Ping'an, who was about ten miles away, conclude that General Wang had surrendered to the Japanese
Although the Japanese pirates' intention to lure the enemy out of the city was very clear, I have reminded General Wang many times, and I think General Wang must have had some suggestions before he dared to go out of the city to pursue them. Couldn't we let the Japanese pirates lose more than they gain and return triumphantly? !
Moreover, the Zhejiang Army's loud shouting of "General Wang has surrendered to the enemy, and those who entered the city through the east gate are Japanese pirates" could easily arouse confrontational emotions, and if not handled properly, it might even lead to mutiny or rebellion among the soldiers.
When the Japanese pirates were approaching the city, the soldiers of the garrison mutinied and revolted. What does this mean? !
Zhu Ping'an is still a little immature and lacks experience.
Of course, the main reason is that Zhu Ping'an is still young, and he is only in his twenties, so he certainly lacks experience. I believe that with time, when he has more experience, he will surely soar to the top, and he will definitely have a place in the court, and there is a great possibility that he will enter the cabinet and become a prime minister.
But it’s still a little immature now.
As Prefect Shang looked at Zhu Ping'an who was surrounded by the Zhejiang army outside the city, all kinds of thoughts came to his mind.
"This Zhu guy is really not easy to deal with. Not only is he good at using firearms, he is also quite good at leading and training troops. How can his troops be so disciplined?! It seems that the Zhejiang Army has only been recruiting soldiers for a few months?!"
Outside the city gate, Xu Hai watched the Zhejiang army stop in an orderly manner two hundred meters away, and he became even more cautious about Zhu Ping'an!
Under the watchful eyes of Prefect Shang and others, Zhu Ping'an dismounted from his horse and walked slowly forward under the protection of Liu Mu and others.
Zhu Ping'an felt somewhat relieved that there were still more than a thousand disguised Japanese pirates outside the city who were forbidden to enter. However, when he saw the city gate was still open, Zhu Ping'an couldn't help but sigh in his heart and shook his head slightly.
My voice is hoarse...
"Lord Shang..." Zhu Ping'an said in a hoarse voice and bowed to the governor Shang on the city wall from a distance.
"Sir Zhu, how are you? I need to confirm with you about what you just said about General Wang defecting to the Japanese." Prefect Shang returned the salute on the city wall. Just as he was about to ask Zhu Ping'an about General Wang defecting to the Japanese, he heard a commotion at the city gate and saw General Wang leaving the city angrily.
"Zhu Ping'an, Master Zhu, we have no grudges in the past and no hatred in the present. Why are you slandering me and framing me? You said that I surrendered to the Japanese pirates and that the soldiers who returned with me were Japanese pirates. What is your intention, Master Zhu?!"
General Wang walked out of the city gate angrily, stood in front of the group of people disguised as Japanese pirates, pointed at Zhu Ping'an from a distance, and asked with gritted teeth.
"That's right. We followed the general through thick and thin, chasing the Japanese pirates. We suffered numerous wounds and finally returned victorious. Lord Zhu actually turned black into white with a single word, and called us the Japanese pirates? Why did he treat us like this?!"
"My family has been loyal and brave for generations, but Lord Zhu actually said that we are pirates, which makes my ancestors restless. If Lord Zhu does not give us an explanation, I will die on this city wall today and wash away my innocence with blood."
A group of disguised Japanese pirates also started to make a lot of noise, each of them acting like Dou E who had been wrongly accused.
"General Wang, no, you are no longer worthy of being called a general. You surrendered to the Japanese pirates and cooperated with them to seize Suzhou City. You are the enemy of hundreds of thousands of ordinary people in Suzhou City, the enemy of the emperor, and the enemy of the Ming Dynasty! I shoulder the responsibility of protecting Suzhou. I have the responsibility and obligation to expose your conspiracy with the Japanese pirates! Protect Suzhou City!"
Zhu Ping'an spoke in a hoarse voice, looking at the cowardly General Wang with scorching eyes, and said loudly.
"Bullshit! That's nonsense! It's all your one-sided story!" General Wang cursed and gritted his teeth, "The truth of the matter is that you are jealous of my achievements in defeating the Japanese, and you are afraid that my achievements will surpass yours. In order to protect your first merit, you used all means to deliberately slander and frame me for defecting to the Japanese!"
"Hehe, you are not worthy..." Zhu Ping'an looked at General Wang with contempt, pulled the corner of his mouth and sneered.