Chapter 148 Zeng Guofan: Call your position when working!
The most important thing facing Zeng Guofan now is to find a way to deal with the Taiping rebels who are about to move south to Hunan.
As for the abducted Guo Songtao and Zuo Zongtang...
I can only say sorry to them!
Zeng Guofan really couldn't take care of them now.
Upon hearing this, Cai Bingwen immediately clasped his fists and responded with a "yeah".
However, Zeng Guofan had just made a decision and ordered people to invite the generals of Chuyong and Xiangyong to come and discuss the matter.
There was another sound of chaotic footsteps outside.
Zeng Guofan's younger brother Zeng Guoquan rushed in from outside, with obvious sadness on his face.
“Brother, something happened!”
Zeng Guofan frowned with obvious displeasure when he heard this.
"This is the imperial court, not my family's private residence. Who allowed you to call me brother?"
"Who is your eldest brother here?"
"When you go to the government office, you must use your official title!"
"Also, Zeng Guoquan, you are already so old, why don't you have a stable character? What does it mean to be so impetuous?"
"Well, what happened?"
"Calm down, I'm here, the sky won't fall!"
Upon hearing this, Zeng Guoquan completely ignored Zeng Guofan's reprimand. The sadness on his face became even more intense, and he spoke in a crying voice.
"Brother, mom is gone!"
"My mother is gone!!!"
When Zeng Guofan heard this, he was stunned.
There was only one thought left in my mind: the sky is falling!
His mother was gone, but for Zeng Guofan, what difference was this like the sky falling?
Zeng Guofan shuddered suddenly, strode forward, grabbed Zeng Guoquan by the collar, and shouted at him.
"What are you talking about, Old Fourth? How could mom suddenly disappear?"
"If you dare to talk nonsense again, I will beat you to death for you, the unfilial son!"
Zeng Guoquan had saliva sprayed all over his face, but he seemed to feel nothing and continued speaking with a sad face.
"Brother, everything I said is true. It's all true."
"Dad's letter said that Mom had caught a cold before the New Year, but at that time you had just been ordered to come to Changsha to supervise the militia training, and we all had military duties to attend to. Mom was afraid that her health would affect state affairs, so she didn't let Dad tell us that she was seriously ill."
"But my mother's health deteriorated day by day. Two nights ago, she passed away on her sickbed."
"That's why Dad sent someone to deliver a letter to us, announcing the death..."
When Zeng Guofan heard this, he knew that what his brother said was probably true.
No matter how much of a jerk he is, he wouldn't lie to me about something like this.
Zeng Guofan took a deep breath, and then his eyes went dark, and he almost fell to the ground.
"Mother... my mother..."
"Why did you just leave like that?"
"If you leave, how will I live as your son?"
"..."
Zeng Guofan couldn't help but break down, and he and Zeng Guoquan, who came to report the news, burst into tears.
Seeing this scene, Luo Bingzhang and Cai Bingwen couldn't help but look at each other in surprise.
Zeng Guofan's mother died and they expressed their condolences.
But looking at Zeng Guofan's current state, he is obviously unable to take charge. So what should we do with the Taiping rebels heading south?
What should we do with Changsha City?
What the hell, how come all these things happened at the same time?
Just as Zeng Guofan and Zeng Guoquan were crying in each other's arms, a chaotic sound of footsteps was heard outside.
Jiang Zhongyuan, Jiang Zhongji, Tazibu, Yang Yuebin, Hu Linyi, Peng Yulin and others arrived at the office of the Minister of Militia one after another.
A group of people looked at the Zeng brothers who were crying and holding their heads, and their expressions were a little solemn.
Fortunately, Zeng Guofan regained his senses after crying for a while.
He turned around and said to everyone.
"Guofan's mother passed away. Although Guofan was heartbroken, this was just a family matter after all."
"The Taiping rebels' invasion of Hunan is a matter of national concern."
"How can family affairs be compared with national affairs?"
"Guobao, Guohua, you two should go home immediately to attend the funeral and take care of your mother's affairs."
"Guoquan, you stay here and prepare to discuss how to fight the bandits!"
Upon hearing this, the Zeng brothers nodded in agreement.
Zeng Guofan took a deep breath, adjusted his mood, and then began to discuss matters with everyone.
"Governor Luo, tell me, which general led the long-haired bandits to attack this time?"
"Can I know the details?"
Luo Bingzhang heard this and spoke.
"In reply to your words, according to the news from Hubei, the long-haired bandits who came this time were led by a female general."
"This person's name is Hong Xuanjiao, and she is the wife of the long-haired thief, the false Western King Xiao Chaogui."
"After the long-haired false Western King was killed in battle by the Monk King under the city of Luoyang, his forces were all under the command of this woman."
"During the Battle of Nanyang, this woman personally led the troops into battle. She was very brave."
Luo Bingzhang told what he knew about Hong Xuanjiao.
When everyone heard this, they all looked thoughtful.
Although they were not frightened by a woman, they still couldn't help feeling solemn.
Luo Bingzhang continued.
"This time, the Taiping rebels came south from Henan, passing through Xiangyang, Yicheng, and Anlu, heading towards Jingzhou. Wherever they passed, the troops of the Qing Dynasty did not dare to engage them..."
After listening to Luo Bingzhang's narration, everyone's faces became even uglier.
At this moment, Jiang Zhongyuan suddenly spoke.
"My Lords, I think that instead of passively waiting for the Taiping rebels to attack us, we should take the initiative to attack and defeat them north of the Yangtze River, so as to prevent Hunan from being disturbed by them."
"It can also buy more time for Master Zeng to form the Hunan Army!"
Upon hearing this, Zeng Guofan showed an interested expression and asked further questions.
"Zhongyuan, tell me in detail what you think."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Zhongyuan began to explain his ideas.
Everyone pricked up their ears and listened...
……
Zuo Zongtang was stuffed into a carriage, blindfolded with a black cloth, and two big men in cloth clothes sat on his left and right to guard him.
As the carriage rocked, he could feel himself moving, and the general direction should be south.
But where exactly to go is unknown.
After an unknown amount of time, the carriage finally stopped. Zuo Zongtang knew that it was time to stop and rest.
He asked tentatively.
"I wonder who you are, gentlemen? Where are you taking me?"
"Has Zuo ever offended you?"
However, the two men beside him ignored him.
They just lifted him up one by one and took him down from the carriage.
Zuo Zongtang was a little panicked. Could it be that one of his enemies had come to find him and wanted to kill him and destroy his body in the wilderness?
Zuo Zongtang couldn't help but feel a little panicked.
"You...what are you going to do? Let me go! Let me go quickly!"
But just as he was frightened, suddenly, the black cloth covering his face was lifted.
After he got used to the glaring sunlight.
What appeared before him was the face of a middle-aged man with dark complexion.
Zhao Wu clasped his fists and spoke very politely.
"Mr. Zuo, don't panic. My king wants to see you. Before that, you don't have to worry about the safety of yourself and your family."
"We will protect you and your family."
Zuo Zongtang looked around and found himself being brought to the bank of a river.
There were weeds everywhere, it was extremely desolate.
Zuo Zongtang took a deep breath and felt solemn, knowing that he could not escape from such a place, and asked with a serious expression.
"I wonder who your king is? And why does he want to see me?"
Zhao Wu shook his head and said.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Zuo, I can't tell you this."
"You'll know when you get there."
Zuo Zongtang took a deep breath, his eyes flickering constantly, obviously thinking about something.
After a moment, he spoke. "If I'm guessing correctly, you should be from the Tang Kingdom in the south?"
This is actually very easy to judge. Although the middle-aged man speaks Mandarin, he has a distinct Guangxi accent.
Plus, the carriage was heading south.
It's obvious!
In fact, Zuo Zongtang originally wanted to say "Tang thief".
However, thinking that his family was still in the hands of the other party, he suppressed this bold idea.
Zhao Wu was silent for a moment, then smiled and said nothing, which was considered as his agreement.
"Why did your king tie me up?"
"I, Zuo Zongtang, am just a poor scholar. Is it worth your making such a fuss?"
Zhao Wu said with a serious expression.
"The king admires Mr. Zuo's talent very much and is willing to reward him with a high position and generous title to hire him to serve the Tang Dynasty."
"I was afraid that you would refuse, so I ordered us to invite you and your family to Guangdong."
Zuo Zongtang couldn't help but twitch his lips when he heard this.
Do you guys hire people this way?
Those who know think it is a request, while those who don’t think it is a vendetta!
However, what even Zuo Zongtang himself did not realize was that after listening to Zhao Wu's words, he felt a little proud in his heart!
Although he failed to pass the imperial examination, his talent and ability were still in high demand.
Zeng Guofan, the Minister of Militia of the imperial court, wanted to hire him as his aide.
Later, the rebels were willing to kidnap him in order to bring him back to Guangzhou.
This feeling of being valued and even sought after made Zuo Zongtang secretly happy.
Intellectuals have this bad habit.
I like to be admired, and it would be best if I were admired by someone in a higher position.
Just at this moment, several black-sailed boats floated on the river.
The black-sailed boats approached the shore, and Zuo Zongtang, Guo Songtao, and his family were placed on different boats.
Zhao Wu stood on the shore and said to Lu Jun on the boat.
"Brother Lu, I'll leave the person to you. You must bring him back to Guangzhou safely."
Upon hearing this, the thin man Lu Jun clasped his fists.
"Brother Zhao, rest assured. This is a person that the king personally ordered us to bring back. Even if all of us die, we will definitely send him to Guangzhou safely."
"Take care, Brother Zhao!"
"If we meet again in the future, I will treat you to a drink, brother."
Lu Jun looked at Zhao Wu with some admiration in his eyes.
Because he knew that next, Zhao Wu and his men would continue to take the land route as bait to attract the attention of the Qing army pursuing them by water.
This mission is a life-or-death mission!
Zhao Wu and the others should have been prepared to die heroically.
Zhao Wu laughed out loud when he heard this.
"Haha, just for what you said, brother, I will crawl back to Guangzhou!"
After that, the two teams said goodbye.
Lu Jun led his men to Guangzhou by water.
Zhao Wu led a team of 20 people on horseback and drove a horse-drawn carriage back to the official road, and continued to move south along the official road, preparing to attract the attention of the Qing army's pursuers.
……
Zhao Wu and others headed south, and it was afternoon.
A knight came on a fast horse to report.
"Captain, the Qing Yao's pursuers are catching up."
"It's probably still about ten minutes before I'm waiting."
"All cavalry!"
Although Zeng Guofan would focus his main energy on resisting Hong Xiujiao's troops heading south.
But it doesn’t mean that we can’t send out any pursuers!
After all, those who were kidnapped were Zeng Guofan's staff and quasi-staff. If he really ignored it, he would lose the support of the people.
Zhao Wu's heart sank when he heard this, but he still spoke.
"Drive the carriage faster. When the Qing monster approaches, abandon the carriage and run away on horseback."
Their mission was to attract the attention of the Qing army's pursuers, not to die.
It was enough to attract the Qing army's pursuers here and make them follow them for such a long distance.
There's no need to go on!
For the sake of the Tang Dynasty, they don't mind making sacrifices.
Because the Tang Dynasty paid these spies from the Military Intelligence Department a sufficiently generous monthly salary, and also gave each of them a piece of land to settle down.
You know, that is the most valuable paddy field outside Guangzhou city, and it used to belong to the bannermen lords.
Thirty acres of good paddy fields per person is enough for them to risk their lives for.
But the same thing goes, no one wants to die if they can live!
A group of people continued to drive the carriage at full speed.
About a quarter of an hour later, a cloud of dust appeared at the end of the horizon.
A cavalry team of about a hundred men came charging along the official road.
The distance between the two sides is getting closer!
Upon seeing this, Zhao Wu made a prompt decision.
"Quick, abandon the carriage and escape on horseback!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he pulled out a dagger from his arms, cut the rope connecting the shaft and the horse, then jumped on the horse and rode away.
The carriage was left where it was, lying on its side on the roadside.
The Qing cavalry rode up and checked several of the vehicles.
When they found the carriage empty, they could not help but feel angry at being fooled.
However, he did not return immediately to look for clues again, but continued to chase after Zhao Wu and others.
Because in the eyes of the Qing army's pursuers, capturing the thieves for interrogation would definitely be much faster than going back to look for clues.
As time goes by, the distance between the two sides is getting closer.
Although the Qing army's pursuers had been chasing for a long way, their horses were already exhausted.
But Zhao Wu and the others were not much better off.
The horses under their crotch were pulling carts just now. Even if they were not pulling carts, they would have galloped all the way from Xiangyin with almost no rest in between.
Their physical strength is not as good as that of the Qing army!
As time goes by, the distance between the two sides gradually narrows.
Seeing that he couldn't run away, Zhao Wu said angrily.
"Brothers, the Qing demon is getting closer and closer. We will definitely not be able to escape if we continue like this."
"Grab your weapons and fight them!"
"Even if we die, we brothers have to take a few people with us."
When everyone heard this, they looked at each other, and then they all made up their minds.
Zhao Wu shouted loudly.
"Kill the clear demon!"
After saying this, he took out the revolver that was provided to them from his bosom, turned his horse's head, and rushed towards the Qing demon that was chasing him.
The people around him also followed suit, following Zhao Wu, shouting and charging towards the Qing army.
He looked as if he was ready to die!
"Kill them! Kill one to break even, kill two to make a profit!"
"Go to hell with Qing Yao, and give me your life!"
"..."
Soon, the distance between the two sides narrowed.
Zhao Wu and others raised their guns and pulled the trigger.
Snapped! Bang bang!
There was a burst of pistol shots.
A barrage of bullets flew towards the oncoming Qing army.
Although the revolvers they are using now still use paper shell fixed bullets, they are capable of continuous firing.
In China of this era, it can definitely be considered a powerful weapon!
A burst of gunfire rang out and the air was filled with smoke.
Seven or eight Qing cavalrymen who were coming towards them fell off their horses one after another, and chaos spread among the crowd.
After their pistols emptied, Zhao Wu and his men drew their swords, ready to charge and fight for their lives.
But at this moment, they discovered that the Qing cavalry on the opposite side collapsed directly after being shot by them.
The Qing cavalrymen turned their horses around and fled backwards.
Zhao Wu and others couldn't help but look at each other when they saw this scene.
This is just the beginning, why did Qing Yao collapse?
……
PS: Today's update is 8,400 words. Please subscribe, give monthly tickets, and recommend tickets.
(End of this chapter)