Chapter 421 Eastern Expedition
Unexpectedly, Zhang Huangyan sent a letter asking for a meeting.

Two years ago, the Manchus captured Zhoushan, and Lu Jianguo issued an edict to abdicate and attached himself to Zhu Chenggong. Zhang Huangyan came to Guangdong and presented a memorial to Emperor Yongli to pledge his loyalty. On the way, he passed through Guangzhou, where Danchu met him. At that time, Zhang Huangyan was still full of heroic spirit, and Cen Danchu and he discussed the country together, bitterly discussing the gains and losses of the court, which was very enjoyable.

Last year, as soon as Zhu Chenggong entered the Yangtze River, he led his naval forces to besiege Nanjing. Zhang Mingzhen volunteered to be the vanguard. Zhang Huangyan had always been Zhang Mingzhen’s military supervisor and had been with Zhang Mingzhen since then. Zhu Chenggong kept his troops outside Nanjing City, and Zhang Huangyan suggested to Zhang Mingzhen that he should go upstream of Nanjing and recruit counties and prefectures to surrender. At one time, more than 30 counties and prefectures in Nanzhili responded.

However, Zhu Chenggong was defeated outside Nanjing and did not inform Zhang Mingzhen when he retreated. The Qing army dispatched troops to attack upstream. Zhang Mingzhen was defeated and became angry. Before he died, he handed over the military power to Zhang Huangyan. Zhang Huangyan was also powerless to save the situation. He led the remnants to flee to the north of the Yangtze River, and his troops were completely defeated. Fortunately, with the help of the righteous army, Zhang Huangyan escaped the pursuit of the Tartars, crossed the river and came to southern Anhui, and later contacted Renwu Bo Yao Zhizhuo.

Yao Zhizhuo, a native of Qiantang, Zhejiang, once organized an army to fight against the Qing in eastern Zhejiang and was named the Earl of Renwu by the governor of Lu. After the Qing army conquered Siming Mountain Stronghold, Yao Zhizhuo led the remnants to escape to the Tianmu Mountain area and fought at the junction of Jiangxi, Zhejiang and Nanzhili provinces.

Zhang Huangyan and Yao Zhizhuo decided to march westward to Jiangxi and submit to the Red Army, first joining the Jiangxi Garrison Commander Wang Xing. After Wuchang was recovered, the two met with Cen Danchu and persuaded him to take Nanjing in the east.

Upon hearing the news, Dan Chu put aside his official duties and immediately met with Zhang Huangyan.

Zhang Huangyan was dressed as a Taoist priest, looking thin and frail, with gray hair on his temples, as if he had aged a lot.

“Your Majesty!” As soon as they met, Zhang Huangyan was overwhelmed with emotion, bowed deeply and said, “I have harmed my teacher and humiliated my country. I really have no face to see you, Your Majesty.”

Danchu stepped forward to help him up, and said solemnly: “Cang Weng stood up to the danger, full of loyalty and righteousness, determined to fight against the Qing Dynasty, and this vassal has admired him for a long time. The previous defeat was because he retreated without asking for the surname, not because of the war.”

Zhang Huangyan’s eyes turned red, as if he had met a close friend. He sighed and introduced Yao Zhizhuo who was beside him to Danchu.

After asking about Zhang Huangyan’s experience, Cen Danchu was filled with emotion and sighed endlessly.

Zhang Huangyan was still full of fighting spirit. He drank a sip of hot tea and offered a suggestion to Danchu, saying, “The Tartars have a weak defense in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River. Although they have built fortresses everywhere below the Yangtze River, there are fortifications but no soldiers. The large fortresses have dozens of soldiers stationed there, while the small ones have seven or eight. There are only one or two soldiers in some fortresses, and some are even empty fortresses without any soldiers. From Anqing and below, there are even fewer soldiers.”

This statement is not false, and it can be confirmed by the report of the Intelligence Bureau. The Qing army is short of soldiers, and the troops are either concentrated in cities such as Jiujiang, Hukou, Anqing, and Wuhu, or stationed in key passes such as Dagushan, Xiaogushan, Tianjia Town, Wuxue Town, and Jinzhuguan. The thousand-mile river defense is full of loopholes.

Yao Zhizhuo said: “The Tartars have suffered repeated defeats and have a broken jar mentality. They have been plundering Jiangnan and exhausting their resources. The people of Jiangnan have been resentful for a long time and their minds are clear. If the king sends a large army to attack Nanjing, it will surely be conquered by a single order.”

Danchu could not help but think of Qian Qianyi’s secret letter, which mentioned the defense of Nanjing, saying that the Tartars were training the navy in the military training ground outside the city, with only more than 800 soldiers, all of whom were old and weak, like a child’s play; and the warships were small, mostly sampans, which could only accommodate a few people, and they looked at the sea ships like looking at mountains. The emptiness of the river defense was roughly like this.

In the past few years, Qian Qianyi actively contacted volunteer forces in various places and constantly reported intelligence to the Red Army, which almost became an open secret in Jiangnan. However, the Qing officials were afraid of Qian Qianyi’s reputation and did not dare to do anything to him.

“To be honest with you two, our clan is planning to go down the river and attack Nanjing. Today, I have received your report on the enemy situation, and my clan is more determined. I will definitely lead a large army to Nanjing, cleanse the famous city, and comfort the emperor’s tomb.”

“Yes!” Talking about the Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum, Zhang Huangyan was very excited and said, “Nanjing is the place where Taizu’s mausoleum is buried. If the king can capture Nanjing, the world will be in an uproar, and heroes will respond, and the Qing Dynasty will be destroyed.” “Everyone says that Jiangnan is weak, but there are still many righteous armies in Jiangnan, including many powerful ones. For example, Zhang Chongfu of Maoshan, Wu Yi of Taihu Lake, the canal soldiers of the Grand Canal, and the salt soldiers of the coast all have soldiers who can fight. Although they are dormant in the wild, once the Red Army arrives, they will surely respond. Qian Muzhai, He Wangsheng and even Liu Rushi are all full of loyalty and righteousness, and can serve as internal responses.” Yao Zhizhuo said, his eyes full of expectation.

“This clan knows,” Danchu said with a smile, “This clan has a navy. Although it is a small boat in the inner river, it is enough to go east along the river. Although it is a journey of two thousand miles, it can go straight ahead.”

Sun Kewang had been defeated, and his remaining troops retreated to Qujing, Yunnan, and Liping, Guizhou. The Dashi Army was doomed, and generals led their troops to surrender to the Red Army from time to time.

Wu Sangui was busy occupying Yunnan and Guizhou, and did not dare to covet Hunan and Guangxi for the time being.

Zhu Chenggong’s elite army lost most of its troops and was recovering in southern Fujian. After the defeat at Nanjing, Zhu Chenggong became extremely cautious and no longer pursued high goals. He concentrated his troops to besiege Quanzhou.

Fujian was not a strategic location, and the Qing army had few troops in Fujian. Zhu successfully captured Quanzhou and led his troops north to besiege Fuzhou. With Fuzhou in hand, Cixing hoped to capture the entire Fujian province and gain a stable base on the mainland.

For the time being, Wu Sangui and Zhu Chenggong were powerless to hinder the Red Army. The Red Army promoted the taxation of tenants in the East and West and Hunan, and the food and grass supply was sufficient to support the Eastern Expedition.

The weather was getting warmer, which was good for the southern troops but bad for the northern troops. The great plague that had swept the capital showed no signs of weakening, but was getting worse. In the capital, almost every family of the bannermen had been infected with the plague, and if they had an old illness, there was almost no chance of survival.

The situation has never been as favorable as it is now, so Cen Danchu decided to launch an eastern expedition.

Right Assistant General Yang Yuqi stayed in Wuchang, commanding the 4th Infantry Regiment, the 5th Infantry Regiment, the Hunan Garrison Town, and the Jiangxi Garrison Town. He was stationed in Hunan, Hubei, and Jiangxi, focusing on defending Ebilun in Xiangyang and Aljin in Jingzhou.

Danchu decided to split Huguang into Hunan and Hubei provinces, with Changsha as the capital of Hunan and Wuchang as the capital of Hubei. The Red Army took a defensive position in Hunan and Hubei provinces, based on the status quo, stabilized the rear, and ensured the safety of the Eastern Expedition Army and the supply of food and grass.

The fourth regiment replaced the second regiment to besiege Jiujiang and Hukou. The Qing army only had two isolated cities left in Jiangxi, Jiujiang and Hukou. With low morale and no external aid, it was only a matter of time before the cities were broken.

In order not to delay the overall situation of the Eastern Expedition, the Red Army planned to directly cross Jiujiang and Hukou and attack Anqing downstream.

The Eastern Expedition Army was composed of the Huben Town and the Second Infantry Town, with a total of about 130,000 soldiers. They advanced along the river, only taking cities and key passes along the river along the way, without going deep into the inland, and their direct target was Nanjing.

Before the army moved, propaganda was carried out first. The Red Army issued a “Proclamation to Punish the Enemy” and sent people to distribute it everywhere. Volunteer troops from all over the country responded one after another, and messengers came in an endless stream.

(End of this chapter)