Chapter 404: Wu Sangui Goes South to Yunnan and Guizhou

The night was as quiet as water, and the noise in the Prince of Pingxi’s mansion had faded away. Wu Sangui, Fang Guangchen, Wu Guogui, and Li Mingzhong were in high spirits and had a good conversation without any sign of tiredness.

“I heard that the Red Army won a great victory in Changsha and killed Shen Yongzhong?” Seeing that Wu Sangui was hesitant, Wu Guogui changed the subject and asked about the war in Huguang.

“That’s right,” Li Mingzhong replied, “Before the decisive battle, the two armies were in a stalemate inside and outside Changsha City. Tun Qi was stationed outside to defend the dangerous area, while Shen Yongzhong was stationed inside to defend the city. Both of them avoided fighting and had no fighting spirit.

“The Red Army unexpectedly landed at the lower reaches of the Xiang River and attacked the city from the north. Afterwards, the army was assembled, but Oboi was late. The Qing army was separated by the Xiang River, Liuyang River, and Laodao River, and was in danger of being surrounded. At this point, the soldiers had no desire to fight.

“The Qing army fought for the floating bridge, and was defeated. Tunqi and the Eight Banners of Manchuria and Mongolia broke through and brought back more than 10,000 soldiers and horses. Shen Yongzhong had more infantry, and when he broke out of the city, the floating bridge had been lost. He went south along Liuyang, but was chased by the Red Army and his entire army was wiped out…”

Recalling the Battle of Changsha, Li Mingzhong’s face was full of pride and his happy expression was beyond words.

Fang Guangchen also secretly cheered for the Red Army, muttering to himself: “The three kings and one duke of Dongjiang Town have been completely wiped out. Of the four kings of different surnames appointed by the court, only the prince is left.”

This was an inappropriate statement, as if Wu Sangui was about to follow in Shen Yongzhong’s footsteps. Fang Guangchen realized he was speechless as soon as he said this, and said, “Your Majesty is in Sichuan, a land of abundance, and has a large army under his command. If you march east, the Red Army will be in trouble, and if you march south, the Western Camp will be in chaos. The fate of the world depends on your words.”

Wu Guogui was also very enthusiastic about going south to Yunnan and Guizhou, but he had been through many battles and was unwilling to reveal his true feelings easily. Instead, he said, “General Aobai is stationed in Wuchang, with 50,000 Eight Banners and 100,000 Green Camps under his command, watching covetously. Although the Red Army won the victory in Changsha, it is under the dual threat of the Western Bandits and Aobai. Cen Danchu sent Xun Weng to lobby the prince, is he afraid that the prince will lead troops to the east to conquer Huguang?”

“Haha,” Li Mingzhong laughed and said, “Your Highness, the Eastern Expedition to Huguang will be full of difficulties! Aobai said that there were 50,000 Eight Banners and 100,000 Green Camps. In fact, there are only 30,000 or 40,000 Eight Banners left, and only 60,000 or 70,000 Green Camps. They are all defeated by our army and are not worth mentioning.”

He stopped smiling and refuted, “Li Guohan is stationed in Chongqing, nominally to assist, but in fact to monitor. The Thirteen Families of Kuidong occupy the dangerous pass and respond to each other from afar, which is beyond human power to suppress. Your Majesty crossed Chongqing and Kuidong to march to Hunan, relying on Oboi for food and grass, and relying on Li Guohan for shelter. Everything is controlled by others, and the soldiers are uneasy. How can they win the battle?”

Li Guohan was from Qinghe, Tieling Wei, Liaodong. As early as the first year of the Tianqi reign, he surrendered to the Qing Dynasty with his father Li Jixue. As a result, he was trusted by the Qing Dynasty and was incorporated into the Han Army Blue Banner. He was brave and good at fighting. He once killed the general of the West Camp, Wang Fuchen, in the Battle of Baoning. Now he is the general of Dingxi and the third-class marquis.

Since suppressing the Jiang Ge Rebellion in Shanxi, Li Guohan has fought side by side with Wu Sangui and was actually responsible for monitoring Wu Sangui.

“Hunan is a strategic route between the north and the south. Those who have fought for the world have always fought for Hunan. However, Hunan is like a hot potato that is not within the reach of ordinary people. Cen Danchu overestimated his own strength and led an army to conquer Hunan. Although he won a great victory in Changsha, he aroused the jealousy of the Western Camp. Now, he is like a mouse in a bellows, being bullied from both ends. In the north, there is Oboi, who is eyeing him covetously, and in the west, there are the Western Bandits, who are showing their vicious faces. If our army goes down the Yangtze River and conquers Hunan, Cen Danchu will be in trouble…”

Wu Guogui said this with a look of gloating on his face. In fact, he was in favor of going south to Yunnan and Guizhou. He just couldn’t express his feelings in front of Li Mingzhong.

Li Mingzhong was stunned and refuted: “No, no. The ancients said that we should make friends with distant countries and attack nearby ones. Even the small countries in the Spring and Autumn Period would not attack other countries. The Qing court ordered the prince to bring his family to the south in order to take the southwest, or choose Sichuan or Yunnan, and guard it forever, like the Mu family of the Ming Dynasty.

“Hunan is a place that must be fought over by military strategists. Since Zhang Xianzhong invaded Hunan in the late Ming Dynasty, Hunan has been through wars and has been devastated for a long time. It is not a place for a vassal. Even if the prince took over Hunan, it would be impossible to move troops to garrison there. If so, it would be a wedding dress for others, which is not a wise move.”

Wu Sangui’s expression changed, and he was undoubtedly moved by Li Mingzhong’s words. He was born in a family of generals in Liaodong, and like Zhu Chenggong, he put the interests of the group first. At present, the soldiers of the whole army have fought for many years, and their biggest dream is to find a place to be enfeoffed, guard it forever, and enjoy wealth forever.

Although Sichuan is good, it has a sparse population after all. Hanzhong connects to Shanxi and Shaanxi, and rivers connect to Huguang. It is not an ideal place for a fiefdom. The most ideal place is a remote province like Yunnan, which is farthest from the capital and has a thriving population. Wu Sangui can be a local emperor with peace of mind, just like the Mu family. When making major decisions, no outsiders should be present. Wu Sangui looked at the moonlight outside the window and said, “Mr. Xun, it’s getting late, please take a rest. Tomorrow at noon, this vassal will invite a few old friends to get drunk with Mr. Xun.”

Li Mingzhong knew that Wu Sangui was going to gather his confidants to discuss countermeasures, so he bowed and said, “Mr. Su, Mr. Ting, Mr. Guo, see you tomorrow.”

Fang Guangchen was about to escort them personally, but was called back by Wu Sangui, who asked his personal guard Li Mingzhong to rest.

“The Prime Minister must still be in the palace. Send someone to call him in to discuss matters.”

Fang Guangchen frowned and said, “The Prime Minister is frivolous and superficial, and cannot plan for great things.”

Wu Sangui disagreed and said, “My son is in the capital, and the clan regards the prime minister as the eldest, so we must discuss it.”

Xia Guoxiang was the second-in-command of Wu Sangui’s group, so it was impossible to exclude him.

However, Xia Guoxiang was short-sighted, and even Wu Guogui could not stand it. Among Wu Sangui’s many aides, Guogui admired Liu Xuanchu the most, so he said: “Mr. Mao has a plan of ghosts and gods, so please ask him to come and advise on the big plan.”

Wu Sangui hesitated for a moment, rejected Wu Guogui’s proposal, and said: “He is an old friend of Liu Wenxiu, and he will definitely not agree with the south attacking the west bandits. Don’t rush to find him, wait until tomorrow, and I will ask for his opinion.”

Soon, Xia Guoxiang came over, reeking of alcohol. When he heard that Cen Danchu had sent an envoy to persuade him, Xia Guoxiang was extremely excited and kept saying, “Very good, very good. The Western bandits were defeated by our army. If Sun Kewang sends troops to western Guangdong, Yunnan and Guizhou will be left empty. Your Majesty will lead the troops to attack them from behind, and the Red Army will attack them from the front. Sun Kewang will no longer be able to be defeated…”

As he was talking, Xia Guoxiang said under the influence of drunkenness: “Now the Red Army is growing stronger, and Cen Danchu is a rising star after all. The Eight Banners have suffered repeated defeats, and the Aisin-Gioro clan is a foreign barbarian after all. My father-in-law is from a military family, and he is a man of great military skills and military achievements. If he takes over Yunnan and Guizhou this time, he can simply raise the banner of “restoring the Ming Dynasty”. The heroes of the world will surely respond in unison, and who knows what will happen to the world…”

“Drunk talk, drunken talk!” Wu Sangui rebuked Xia Guoxiang, the eldest son-in-law, but a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth. He sighed and said:
“Time is not forgiving. Cen Danchu is only 25 years old, and I am already 45 years old. Back then, when I was 25 years old, I was just a small guerrilla in the Liaodong Army, in charge of the guerrilla affairs of the left wing and right camp of the Liaodong Cavalry. Because of my meritorious service in recovering Dengzhou, I was given the title of deputy governor. Cen Danchu is only 25 years old, but he is already the Prince of Nanyue County, and he will soon be named a one-character king.”

The position of deputy governor in the early years of Chongzhen was still very valuable, not to mention that he was in charge of a battalion of Guanning Iron Cavalry. The young Wu Sangui was brave and good at fighting, and was good at making friends with high-ranking officials.

“Times make heroes!” Fang Guangchen sighed, “Your Majesty, there is an extremely bright future in front of you right now.”

“Yes!” Wu Sangui finally revealed his true feelings in front of his confidants, saying, “I also want to go south and join forces with the Red Army to attack the western bandits and seize Yunnan and Guizhou. As for whether to cut off the braid, we have to wait and see. So, gather all the generals tomorrow and we will make a collective decision.”

“Li Guohan’s presence in Chongqing is like a thorn in our side,” Wu Guogui said. “Whether our army moves south or east, we must get rid of Li Guohan first.”

“Your Highness is in a very high position now. Not only will the Red Army want to curry favor with you, but the imperial court will also rely on you. You might as well write a memorial to the capital, saying that you want to march eastward to Huguang and join forces with Oboi to attack the Red Army. Please transfer Li Guohan to the east to open up the road eastward. The imperial court is suffering from the corruption of Huguang and will not refuse.”

(End of this chapter)