Dengzhou, Denglai New Army Barracks.

150,000 Denglai new troops are concentrated in the military camp, and they have made all preparations.

After the Denglai New Army took complete control of Shandong, through unremitting efforts, it recruited 50,000 sergeants in just a few months and expanded the strength of the Denglai New Army. This is enough to prove that in the entire Shandong Province, Denglai New Army

The reputation of the Lai New Army is very good, and after entering Shandong Province, the discipline shown by the soldiers of the Denglai New Army surprised and delighted the people of Shandong.

Shi Kefa, the governor of Shandong, and Liu Ning, deputy commander-in-chief of the Denglai New Army, spared no effort to transform and rectify the yamen of Fuzhou and County in Shandong according to the models of Dengzhou and Laizhou, fully implemented the concept of government serving the people, and strictly required officials at all levels to

, they will never be allowed to bully the people at will. The successful implementation of this step played a key role in stabilizing the situation in Shandong.

Of course, doing all of this requires strong financial support, and banks all over the country have enough money to support the expenses required by Fuzhou County in Shandong and the Denglai New Army stationed here.

Denglai Governor's Yamen, Wing Room.

When Wu Zongkun, the governor of Denglai and the magistrate of Dengzhou, saw Wu Zongrui, Zeng Yongzhong, Liao Wenru, Qiao Mingjun, Dai Mingjie and others entering the wing, he quickly stood up and saluted, and spoke at the same time.

"Sir, all the money and food needed by Denglai's new army are ready."

Wu Zongrui looked at Wu Zongkun and nodded.

More than ten years have passed, and Wu Zongkun has undergone tremendous changes. Although his ability to govern the local area is average, he has become mature and follows the rules, which can reassure Wu Zongrui.

After Wu Zongrui and Zeng Yongzhong discussed it, they decided to let Dai Mingjie, the magistrate of Jinzhou County, serve as the magistrate of Dengzhou. Wu Zongkun's ability was limited, and it was too much for one person to serve as the governor of Denglai and the magistrate of Dengzhou.

"Zong Kun, the Ji Liao Governor's Office has decided that Dai Mingjie, the magistrate of Jinzhou County, will be appointed as the magistrate of Dengzhou. It has been reported to the emperor and the Ministry of Civil Affairs. After our discussion is over, you and Dai Mingjie will go through the transfer procedures."

"Zong Kun, Dai Mingjie, please also participate in our discussion today."

It was quiet in the wing room. Wu Zongkun looked at Dai Mingjie and nodded. After more than half a year, he was really overwhelmed. There were too many things to deal with. Dai Mingjie's appointment as the prefect of Dengzhou would greatly reduce his pressure.

"You all know that Zhang Xianzhong captured the city of Xuzhou. We, Denglai New Military Affairs, must seize this opportunity and attack decisively."

"Wenru, please tell us about the current situation."

Liao Wenru nodded and walked to the south wall where the map was hung. He held a bamboo whip and pointed at the map.

"According to reliable intelligence, there are more than 300,000 people in Zhang Xianzhong's army. After the capture of Xuzhou City, there was a certain loss in military strength, but it was quickly replenished. The additional troops were all sergeants stationed in Xuzhou City.

The combat effectiveness is pretty good.”

"The Governor of Water Transport, Mr. Ding Qirui, controls a total of about 70,000 troops, including 40,000 water transport soldiers, and 30,000 soldiers in various towns in Jiangbei, including the sergeants stationed in Fengyang Fucheng. The combat effectiveness of these troops is average and cannot be compared to Zhang Xianzhong.

How much, if Ding Qirui does not receive reinforcements, and with his 70,000 troops fighting against Zhang Xianzhong's more than 300,000 troops, failure is inevitable."

"We believe that Zhang Xianzhong will not stick to Xuzhou. He captured Xuzhou at all costs, just to prove his ability in front of Li Zicheng and Luo Rucai. Now, he has proved his ability."

"Where Zhang Xianzhong's troops will march next is a matter of concern to all parties."

"We believe that Zhang Xianzhong's troops will definitely choose to enter Fengyang Prefecture next, and use Fengyang Prefecture to attack Huguang. Zhang Xianzhong will not continue to fight fiercely in South Zhili, which would be detrimental to him. After all, the combat effectiveness of the Nanjing Jingying sergeants is still good. Besides,

Now, Nanjing is the companion capital, so Zhang Xianzhong may not have the courage to attack Nanjing."

"We can analyze it, and Lord Ding Qirui can also analyze it, so he will definitely deploy the main force in Fengyang Mansion. When entering Fengyang from Xuzhou, Zhang Xianzhong's troops must pass through Suzhou, so Suzhou is the city that Lord Ding Qirui focuses on defense.

"

"In the eighth year of Chongzhen's reign, Fengyang Fucheng was captured by Li Zicheng. Yang Yipeng, the governor of water transportation at that time, was beheaded by the court and abandoned the city. Lord Ding Qirui was never willing to take this step. He would do his best to save his own life."

"Under such circumstances, we cannot rule out the possibility that Zhang Xianzhong's troops may pretend to attack Huai'an Fucheng, attracting Lord Ding Qirui to deploy all his troops to Huai'an Fucheng, and then suddenly attack in the direction of Fengyang."

...

After Liao Wenru finished speaking, Wu Zongrui nodded and looked at Zeng Yongzhong to speak.

"Sir, please tell me your analysis."

Zeng Yongzhong stood up, bowed to Wu Zongrui and then spoke.

"My lords, you all know the situation just introduced by Governor Liao. The main purpose of our Denglai New Army's expedition is to enter South Zhili and take root in South Zhili. Our first step is to control Jiangbei.

There are four towns and three states, so Zhang Xianzhong’s attack on Huai’an Fucheng is the most beneficial for our Denglai New Army.”

"Even if Lord Ding Qirui gathers all the water transport soldiers and the troops from the four towns and three states in Jiangbei, he may not be able to defeat Zhang Xianzhong. If Zhang Xianzhong's troops are determined to attack Huai'an Fucheng with all their might, Lord Ding Qirui will definitely be unable to resist and will report to Lord Zhang Guowei, the Minister of War in Nanjing.

Asking for help, Lord Zhang Guowei knows that Zhang Xianzhong’s troops are powerful and must be sticking to Nanjing and Jiangnan, and it is impossible to really rush to help Huai’an Fucheng.”

"Under such circumstances, if we seize the opportunity and completely defeat Zhang Xianzhong's troops, we will have enough reasons to stay in Southern Zhili."

"Zhang Xianzhong's troops captured Xuzhou City, received a large amount of supplies, and their morale is strong. It is impossible for them to obey our orders. Therefore, our Denglai New Army needs to take some necessary measures to force Zhang Xianzhong's troops and Lord Ding Qirui to fight in Huai'an Mansion."

"According to your Excellency's plan, the first place our Denglai New Army will attack is Suzhou."

"Zhang Xianzhong's troops will not attack Huai'an Fucheng desperately. His goal is not Southern Zhili, so our Denglai New Army will force him so that he can only attack Huai'an Fucheng desperately, and only by making a single-minded effort to capture Huai'an Fucheng can he

Survive, so that the strategic purpose of our Denglai New Army will be achieved."

When Zeng Yongzhong said this, he looked at Wu Zongrui.

Wu Zongrui coughed twice and looked at Dai Mingjie.

"Mingjie, this is your first time to participate in such a meeting. I hope you can carefully understand its meaning. Dengzhou and Laizhou are the most stable base camps of our Denglai New Army. The Jiliao Governor's Office recommends you to serve as Dengzhou

Magistrate, I have complete trust in you. The grain and grass needed for the next Denglai New Army expedition will need to be raised by Dengzhou and Laizhou. After you take office, you must assist Zong Kun in doing this without making any mistakes."

Dai Mingjie's face turned a little pale, and he clasped his fists and bowed his head in salute to Wu Zongrui.

"My lord, I understand. I will do my best to work with Lord Wu to complete the matter of raising food and grass for the new army in Denglai."

Wu Zongrui nodded and walked to the front of the map.

"Mr. Wen Ruhe has made it very clear, but some of his words are not very clear. Let me emphasize it."

"The main purpose of Denglai's New Army's attack on Xuzhou is to control South Zhili. The situation in the Central Plains is chaotic and confusing. Denglai's New Army does not need to interfere for the time being. Zhang Xianzhong's troops captured the city of Xuzhou, giving Denglai's New Army a good opportunity.

We must seize this opportunity. In other words, Zhang Xianzhong is a chess piece of the Denglai New Army. Through this chess piece, we can achieve the goal of fully controlling Southern Zhili. Of course, we cannot let go of Zhang Xianzhong's chess piece.

"

"South Zhili and Jiangsu and Zhejiang were the most prosperous places in the Ming Dynasty. If we control South Zhili and Jiangsu and Zhejiang, we control half of the Ming Dynasty."

"Whether it is Zhang Xianzhong, the Governor of Water Transport, Mr. Ding Qirui, or Mr. Zhang Guowei, the Minister of War in Nanjing, it is impossible for him to obey our orders. Therefore, the soldiers of the Denglai New Army must show their strong strength to achieve our goals. The Denglai New Army must

Force Zhang Xianzhong to attack Huai'an Fucheng, and force Lord Ding Qirui to lead his sergeants to fight to the death with Zhang Xianzhong."

"The first step of the Denglai New Army is very critical. If this step is taken well, the development of the subsequent situation will be easy to control."

"Suzhou is the first stop of Denglai's new army. Lord Ding Qirui will send heavy troops to garrison the city of Suzhou, but he will not really launch an attack on Zhang Xianzhong's troops. He hopes that Zhang Xianzhong will leave Nanzhili via Fengyang and enter Huguang. That way

It has nothing to do with him. Denglai's new army must beat Zhang Xianzhong's troops in Suzhou, so that Zhang Xianzhong's troops dare not continue marching in the direction of Huguang and can only attack in the direction of Huai'an Fucheng."

"The Governor's Palace of Water Transport is in Huai'an Fucheng. Once Zhang Xianzhong's troops attack Huai'an Fucheng, Lord Ding Qirui will definitely defend it to the death. In this way, our strategic purpose will be fully achieved."

"Wenru, you are the commander-in-chief of this battle. You understand all the battle deployments and the goals we need to achieve. However, I still want to remind you that your thinking must be clear and you must always think about what we need to achieve.

For our purpose, whether it is Zhang Xianzhong's troops, the canal soldiers, or even the sergeants in the four towns and three states in Jiangbei, they are all opponents. The greater their losses, the more beneficial it is to us."

Liao Wenru cupped his fists and saluted Wu Zongrui.

"Sir, I understand that I will fulfill my mission."

"Very good, the 100,000-strong army has been assembled and will set off tomorrow for Suzhou. Luo Dianyong and Luo Diazhao are already in the military camp. This battle is of great significance and we must win a complete victory."

...

In the side room, Dai Mingjie was left, his face pale and his body trembling slightly.

At this point, if Dai Mingjie still doesn't understand the situation, his life will be in vain.

"Mingjie, are you a little scared?"

"No, Xianguan, Xianguan is not afraid..."

"It's not surprising to be afraid, and it's not a big deal. There's no need to be secretive. I'll give you three days to think about it and make a final decision. If you don't want to stay with me, I will recommend you to the emperor and the court.
Chapter completed!