The crowd gathered in Zhou Pei's public tent dispersed, and Zhang Changgeng returned to his tent, worried and unable to fall asleep. Now the whole army knew that Governor Hu was betting on his own future and career betting, but no one could disobey his orders. As long as Beijing did not dismiss Hu Quancai's position for a day, he represented Fulin's imperial power. Disobeying Hu Quancai was the emperor who resisted Beijing. Even if Fulin himself believed that Zhang Changgen and others were right to resist Hu Quancai, and the resistance was reasonable, it was impossible not to be severely punished, otherwise it would be commended to such an act of resisting the imperial power.

How could he lead the army to escape from the dangerous land and give the court a reason to forgive himself? Zhang Changgeng was thinking hard in the tent, but he didn't think of any idea except sighing.

"Governor!"

A person suddenly broke in outside the tent. This person was fierce. The guards at the door could not hold him back but let him break into Zhang Changgen's tent. However, although the person who came crashed into Zhang Changgen's tent like a bull, he did not shout loudly, but said anxiously in a low tone: "The big thing is not good!"

Zhang Changgeng looked at it and saw that the person who came was Governor Hu's guerrilla camp, and he was one of the few generals who would never participate in the Zhou Juren's conspiracy group.

"Why are you so panicked?" Zhang Changgeng was quite wary of this person and asked calmly in an official voice.

"The food route was broken," the guerrilla looked very flustered on his face, but he still tried his best to lower his voice: "The Governor just got the news that he would go and recruit the navy to the shore and then drill the ship."

"What!?" Zhang Changgeng jumped up, his agility so quickly that he was completely inconsistent with his age: "What do you think the Governor wants to do?"

"The Governor General wants to burn his boats..." The guerrillas of the Governor of Huguang did not hide any of the guerrillas at all, and told Hu Quancai's plan: "Just just sent an urgent report from the south, saying that Li Laiheng of Xingshan suddenly appeared downstream of the Han River and blocked the road. After reading the report, the Governor was not surprised but happy. He ordered the last general to immediately take his warrant to summon the navy to the camp, and then sink all the ships..."

Zhang Changgeng stared at the guerrillas in his personal military camp and determined that this person had lost his heart and was talking nonsense in front of him, so his performance was so realistic, because the other party thought that he was telling the truth.

The guerrilla inspector was obedient and knew that the governor of Hunan could not believe it, so he quickly took out the command arrow and hand-in-hand that Hu Quancai gave him, and held it in both hands and handed it to Zhang Changgeng: "This is what the governor just handed over to the last general. Please take a look at it."

Zhang Changgeng grabbed the warrant and looked over it. He felt dizzy and staggered for two steps and almost fell to the ground. The personal guerrillas hurriedly reached out to support the Hunan Governor, and still said in that low and anxious tone: "Governor, you have to persuade the Governor."

"The Governor is really going to burn his boat." Zhang Changgeng held the table and barely stabilized his body.

At this time, a loud noise came from the side of the tent. Zhang Changgeng and his personal soldiers looked at the sound. A Hunan general rushed into the underground of the tent. The general's tent was not far from Zhang Changgen's residence. He just saw Hu Quancai's personal soldiers guerrillas running into Zhang Changgen's tent in a hurry. He thought there was nothing good, so he smeared and sneaked outside the tent and eavesdropped through the cloth. He heard that Governor Hu was actually going to burn his boats. In a hurry, he got closer. He accidentally lost his balance and rolled in under the tent.

After getting up, the general didn't care about etiquette and rushed to Zhang Changgeng and shouted: "Governor, you must persuade the Governor."

Zhang Changgeng scolded: "Eavesdropping on the discussions of the superiors, do you have any rules? What kind of discipline?"

But this general could not care about any morals. He shouted that Zhang Changgeng would go to Hu Quancai immediately. The situation was urgent. The governor of Hunan had no time to argue with this guy, so he scolded him a few words and hurriedly left the camp with guerrillas to find the governor of Huguang.

Seeing that it was the personal guerrillas and the governor of Hunan, the guards at the door hurriedly entered the tent to report. After a while, the guards came out and nodded. Zhang Changgeng stepped into Hu Quancai's camp in three steps and shouted as soon as he entered the door: "Sir, this matter must not be done!"

Hu Quancai lit a candle on the table and a military book was pressed upside down. He first raised his eyes and looked at Zhang Changgeng, then looked at the personal guerrilla soldiers who were huddled behind the governor of Hunan. He snorted, and did not answer Zhang Changgeng's words, but said to the guerrillas: "You are so brave."

No matter how Zhang Changgeng persuaded him, Hu Quancai was unmoved. He cursed hatefully: "Our army is obviously much stronger than the thieves. It is because of these dogs that they are timid and end up in such a way that they are not up or down. Now the Japanese official has been stolen and let the three armies have a full meal tomorrow, and then fight with the Deng thief. If they don't win, they will all die in Zhongxiang."

At this time, a noise suddenly came from outside the camp, and countless people shouted, "We want to see the governor." Then several generals rushed in. The leader was the person who eavesdropped outside the Zhang Changgeng's tent just now. He was afraid that Zhang Changgeng would not be able to convince the governor of Huguang, so he called a few close colleagues to cheer.

"Governor General, I heard that the food route and the retreat were cut off by the thief. Is this true?" The general who rushed in was extremely rude and asked loudly when he saw Hu Quancai.

Hu Quancai was calm and calm, so he did not answer at all.

"Governor," a general took a step forward and asked loudly: "No troops were sent to defend the retreat, but Governor deliberately wanted Li Laiheng to cut off our food route?"

Hu Quancai still didn't say anything. Seeing this, a general took his leave and shouted: "You must never dig a ship. The general will immediately order the entire army to break through overnight."

Others also agreed. Hu Quancai and a few people had enough trouble, so he retorted calmly: "Why should we keep the retreat? In order to give you a reason to escape in the last battle? If I send someone to stay, will you rush to be the back guard? If the fight starts in front, will you come and call you to come and support you? Would you really treat me as a fool?"

"The art of war is put to death and then live." After asking several Hunan generals who were causing trouble, Hu Quancai sneered again: "There is no food, no way out, Zhong Xiang is ahead. Anyway, if you can't defeat Deng Mingben, you will never live. If you abandon your army and escape, do you really think that the imperial court's great method is a decoration? If you defeat Zhong Xiang, everyone has a way out. If you can't defeat Zhong Xiang, no one can think of living."

After saying that, Hu Quancai scolded the personal soldier and guerrillas: "What are you waiting for? Why don't you go and dig a boat quickly?"

The guerrilla was scolded by the governor of Huguang, and his neck shrank and retreated. He was immediately pulled by other generals beside him. Seeing that they were so hard, they knelt down and begged together: "Governor, if the ship is really chiseled, as long as the thief Deng persists and does not fight, the army will be in chaos in a few days."

"Zhongxiang City is not big. Although there are many thieves with armor, most of them are new recruits. As long as you are willing to work hard, how can you not be able to defeat?" Hu Quancai sneered. Knowing that the people in front of him did not cry without seeing the coffin, he took out a memorial and shook it in front of Zhang Changgeng and others: "I know what you are planning now, it's just thinking about how to escape in the battle and preserve your strength. Look forward to it! This is the legacy of this governor. Here I report to the court and describe all your ugly things clearly."

Hu Quancai was afraid that these generals would be stupid and didn't understand, so he explained to them that if Hu Quancai was defeated and died, his death statement would be extremely lethal. Everyone who accompanied the civil and military officials in this memorial was on the list. In order to intimidate other civil and military officials, Beijing would also pursue their crime of escaping in the battle.

"It is easy for you to escape. If I am unhappy, I will send this memorial to Deng Ming. You said that you have fought with the thieves in Kuidong for so many years and have the opportunity to take revenge. Will they cover it up for you?" Hu Quancai said proudly. Even if his envoy cannot escape, he would be very proud to see such a letter in the camp.

Seeing that everyone, including Zhang Changgeng, had no words of resistance, Hu Quancai gently put the memorial together and said in a slow tone: "As long as you work hard and defeat Deng Ming, I will naturally never mention this memorial again, and I will ask for merit from the court for you."

After the coercion and temptation, Hu Quan paused for a moment and then drank to the guerrilla: "Don't you go to dig a boat?"

Guerrilla looked at Zhang Changgeng and saw that the Hunan Governor's sleeves were shaking. He was obviously extremely angry, but he had no choice but to the governor of Huguang, so he whispered, intending to execute the order honestly.

Zhang Changgeng also sighed and bowed deeply to Hu Quancai: "I'll give my life to Zhong Xiang. If you win by chance, I hope you won't break your promise."

"Of course." Hu Quancai replied, then looked stern and shouted to everyone: "Don't you retreat yet?"

Zhang Changgeng turned around and left. Several Hunan generals also wanted to follow him when they saw this, but the person who questioned Hu Quancai just now did not move. His colleague pulled him but couldn't pull him. Zhang Changgeng, who had already stepped out of the tent, turned around and shouted to the general: "Didn't you hear what the Governor said? You won't leave yet!"

The Hunan general turned a deaf ear to the governor, his eyes appeared strangely, and suddenly he pulled out his sword and jumped forward, and shouted: "Governor, beware, there is an assassin!"

...

Zhou Peigong was sleeping in the tent when he suddenly heard the crowds of people outside and the noise was everywhere. After being woken up, Zhou Peigong rubbed his eyes, yawned and sat up. After listening for a while, he heard the sound outside the tent becoming louder and louder. Zhou Peigong walked towards the door, lifted the tent and went out to see what was going on.

As soon as I went out, I saw the camp with silhouettes, full of bright torches, and the crowds of people shouted in various ways.

"The food road is broken!"

"The Governor was assassinated!"

After hearing a few words, Zhou Peigong was shocked and hurried to the governor's tent. He saw a large number of soldiers rushing out of their tents, spinning around like headless flies.

The Governor's camp was in a very chaotic place. Before Zhou Peigong could squeeze over, he saw a Governor's aide running over in panic. He hurriedly grabbed the man and asked, "What's wrong with the Governor? What's wrong with the Governor? What's going on with the food route?"

"The big thing is not good." The aide said to Zhou Peigong with panic on his face and said, "I just met Governor Zhang. He said that our food route was cut off by Li Laiheng. The Governor hurriedly summoned the envoy who came to report the message. Unexpectedly, the envoy actually hid a short sword and assassinated the Governor."

"Where is the governor now?" Zhou Peigong was also cold when he heard this. Although Hu Quancai was unpopular, he was the leader of the army. If something happened, the Qing army would be in chaos immediately.

"Life and death are uncertain, and I have killed several guards of the governor." The aide actually started crying. He could not get close to the tent just now. The guerrillas from the personal barracks led their troops around the governor's camp. The governor of Hunan and a group of generals were defending the governor in the camp, discussing military information, and no one was allowed to approach.

"Where is the assassin? Where is the governor?"

"The assassin took advantage of the chaos to run away. The governor said he was a young man, about twenty years old, calling himself Liu Ming, and with more than a dozen followers." The aide told Zhou Peigong all the news that Zhang Changgeng had just released.

At this moment, a bigger noise suddenly came, and a group of messengers rode their horses in the camp, shouting orders: "I found that the assassin ran towards the Hanshui Camp, and did not return to Zhongxiang. The governor had led the team to pursue him. The governor died! Before his death, he ordered everyone to return to Wuchang."

"The governor died for his country? Everyone returned to Wuchang?" Zhou Peigong was stunned when he heard this.

But at this time, Zhang Changgeng had already brought a group of Hunan confidant generals and Governor Hu's personal soldiers, leading the army to roar out of the camp gate and heading straight to the water camp beside the Han River. The horse of a cavalry was also surrounded by a white cloth, and the human figure could be vaguely seen.

...

The Ming army discovered that the Qing army was in chaos for half an hour later, and they couldn't see clearly what happened at night, only knowing that the people were noisy there.

"Who went to rob the camp?" Deng Ming and Yuan Zongdi looked at each other on the top of Zhongxiang City. They didn't know that Li Laiheng had encircled the Qing army, but they also knew that it was the last one or two days. Therefore, the Ming army had already made a plan and did not intend to take the initiative, but waited for the Qing army to use the navy to retreat before hiding.

Deng Ming sent a messenger to Liu Tichun's army outside the city to inquire. Soon the army returned to them and they didn't know what happened to the Qing army. He Zhen even suspected that it was the enemy's plan to lure the enemy.

"The trick to lure the enemy? This is too similar." Deng Ming stood at the top of the city and looked at the Qing army's camp. It was obvious that the enemy was in chaos: "Is it because General Li had succeeded and the enemy soldiers began to retreat after hearing the news?"

"Where is there such a retreat?" Yuan Zongdi disagreed with Deng Ming's speculation and shook his head and said, "Retreatment requires water and land to advance together. The army explores and ambush for the navy. The navy transports supplies, wounded soldiers, and covers each other. This is not withdrawing troops at all, but bombing the camp."

After seeing the Qing army's chaos, the Ming army had already sent vanguards to see if they could catch a few prisoners in the chaos. Before obtaining the prisoners who could be questioned, Deng Ming had no choice but to wait honestly.

Until an hour later, Liu Tichun and others sent a new envoy to tell Deng Ming that Hu Quancai was assassinated and that the Qing army had collapsed. Liu Tichun's envoy also said to Deng Ming: "The main villain of the family came to see the admiral, see the admiral with his own eyes and then repay it."

"Why is this?" Deng Ming was confused.

"According to the prisoner, he was a thief who was assassin in his early twenties. He also rushed out of the Qing army camp with a dozen skilled guards. If the admiral's envoy had not been passed by, the head of the family would have thought it was the admiral who was going to kill."

"Of course it's not me." Deng Ming laughed and said, "I've been staying in the city honestly."

Soon He Zhen and Hao Yaoqi's envoy also sent the same information. The prisoners they caught also described the same situation. The two envoys also asked to meet Deng Ming. When asking about the prisoners, He Zhen and Hao Yaoqi both felt that the Qing soldiers were very familiar with the assassin's description, which was exactly the same as Wu Sangui and Zhao Liangdong's description of the Kunming fire. This made both of them suspicious, worried that the assassin was Deng Ming, who was bored in Zhongxiang and had a scheming skill and went to make a big fuss in Hu Camp. If this is true, the pursuit of the Qing soldiers must be put on the first place. The most important thing is to pick up Deng Ming and confirm that he is safe and sound.

After learning that Deng Ming was safe and sound, the three generals outside the city immediately dispatched their entire army to pursue the Qing army. At the same time, they asked the fast horses to grab the Qing army and go downstream to report the news, notifying Li Laiheng to intercept him.

At dawn, a large number of prisoners were escorted to Zhong Xiang. The escorted officers reported to Deng Ming that the Qing army's navy had already escaped first. It is said that only Zhang Changgeng was taken away. His few Hunan generals under him and Hu Quancai's personal military camps were abandoned by the Han River. Now they can only escape south on foot. It is estimated that not many of them can escape back to Wuchang under the encirclement and blockade of the Ming army.

Deng Ming rode a horse and looked at the long queue of prisoners, and suddenly saw an acquaintance from it.

"Zhou Peigong?" As an art student, Deng Ming had a strong ability to remember people's appearance, so he immediately recognized Zhou Juren.

"It's the student." After seeing Deng Ming, Zhou Peigong was as if he had been amnesty and hurriedly agreed loudly.

Several people around Zhou Peigong also knew Deng Ming, and the old man who threw money at him last time was among them. After being recognized by Deng Ming, the old guest also smiled and had no intention of throwing things at Deng Ming again: "I am so happy to see Your Highness healthy."

"You are polite, call me Deng Ming, General, and Admiral."

There were some whom Deng Ming didn’t know. Zhou Peigong introduced these literati to Deng Ming one by one. These people saluted Deng Ming one by one: "I heard that the admiral hero is so great that I saw him today, and I am really worthy of his reputation."

After the literati was introduced, there were a group of guys dressed in military officers standing behind Zhou Peigong. After seeing Zhou Da Talent and Deng Ming in friendship, these military officers who thought they were familiar with Zhou Peigong refused to follow the captive team honestly, but stood there waiting for Zhou Peigong to introduce him.

...

Nanzhili, Zhenjiang.

The 20,000 Qing troops on the opposite side had already set up their formation, and the Fujian army also had more than 20,000 vanguards. They were deployed opposite the Qing army, and they were just as good as possible.

Zheng Chenggong stood firmly in the Central Military Office. Today he asked the Zhejiang Army to monitor Zhenjiang and transferred all the Fujian Army to confront Guan Qizhong.

"Thirty-five wins, five losses." Zheng Chenggong said softly about his previous field record and said to himself: "Before noon, there should be thirty-six wins."

"Bang the drum." Zheng Chenggong raised his voice and waved the whip in his hand.

{Piaotian Literature www.piaotian.net Thank you for your support, your support is our greatest motivation}
Chapter completed!