Southern Ming Rebel Army

Chapter 324 Approaching Wuchang (1)

In Wuchang city.

Duoduo was lying on the bed, his face as pale as paper, his forehead covered with cold sweat, and he kept coughing as if he was going to cough out his lungs.

At this moment, Duoduo had completely lost his former majesty and dignity, and only looked extremely ill and dying.

Duoduo opened his eyes with difficulty, his eyes were dull and his heart was filled with despair. It was not only physical but more mental torture. The failure of the war had greatly dealt a heavy blow to Duoduo's confidence.

Boro stood beside the bed, his face gloomy and his brows furrowed. He had killed three doctors in a row, but Tudor's condition still did not improve.

At this time, the guards came to report: "Your Majesty, Prince Su has arrived at the palace gate.

Upon hearing this, Bolo hurried out to greet him, but Hauge ignored Bolo and passed by like air.

When he came into the house, Haoge covered his mouth and nose with his hands, and said with a look of contempt: "Prince Yu, when you sent out the troops, you vowed to defeat the Meng bandits. Why are you now defeated and losing your army? You are fleeing in panic. Even the pirates can ride on the heads of the Eight Banners warriors."

Duoduo was silent upon hearing this. Bolo at the side came to the rescue and said, "Prince Su, the primary fault for this defeat lies with Wu Sangui. He withdrew his troops without authorization, which led to the defeat. Your Highness is responsible..."

Hearing Bolo's words, Hauge just glanced at him. Seeing Bolo's endless explanation, Hauge waved his hand, signaling Bolo to shut up. He turned his head and stared at Duoduo, and asked in a deep voice: "The Meng bandits are about to join forces with the pirates to attack Wuchang. The court has appointed Prince Yu as the commander-in-chief. At this critical juncture, what strategy does Prince Yu have?"

Duo Duo looked at Haoge, coughed twice, and said in a hoarse voice: "For the defeat, the court will hold me responsible. Before the regent removes me from the position of commander-in-chief of the army, the battle situation in Huguang will still be decided by me. Does Prince Su have any objection to this?"

Haoge did not reply, but just hummed with his nose, and then Duoduo continued: "The Meng bandits' infantry is very elite, and the Zheng bandits' navy is huge. Ahem... ahem, our army is firmly defending Wuchang, and the bandits are surrounding it by land and sea. It is difficult to transport weapons, food and supplies, ahem, ahem."

After saying these few words, Duoduo started coughing non-stop. Bolo quickly brought water over. Duoduo took it and drank it all. He gasped and continued, "My intention is to abandon Wuchang and let Baiyintu guard Jingzhou. On the one hand, we will wipe out the Shun bandits, and on the other hand, we will resist the Meng bandits. Prince Su's cough... cough, Prince Su's troops will retreat to De'an Prefecture, and I will go to Huai'an cough... cough!"

Haoge became more and more irritated when he heard Duoduo coughing, not to mention that he was going to be placed in De'an Mansion. Haoge said angrily: "My subordinates have not rested since entering the pass. The soldiers are homesick every day. How can this be done?"

Duoduo wanted to say something when he heard it, but he kept coughing, and it seemed that his condition was getting worse. Bolo quickly ordered someone to call a doctor. Upon seeing this, Haoge snorted coldly and left.

After returning to the base, Hauge immediately summoned his generals to discuss the matter. All the generals said that they should not stay in De'an. Hauge has always looked down on those Han scholars, but at the critical moment, no one could give them guidance. Some generals even suggested that Hauge ignore Duoduo and directly lead his troops to withdraw to Beijing. Even a person with low political intelligence like Hauge felt that this suggestion was unreliable.

It was Leng Sengji who suggested that Haoge write a letter to the court, requesting the court to allow the army to withdraw to Beijing for rest, on the grounds that the soldiers had been away for more than five years without rest, their combat effectiveness had declined, and the troops were too exhausted to fight.

Haoge pondered for a moment and still felt that Leng Sengji's words made sense, so he immediately wrote a letter and had it sent to Beijing at an express speed of 800 miles.

Hauge had only stayed in Wuchang for two days when the news that Jirgalang of the Qing court was about to go to Wuchang reached Hauge and Duoduo.

When Hauge heard the news, he was delighted and thought to himself, "God is really helping me!"

In the past, Jirgalang had supported himself to inherit the throne, but ultimately failed to do so. Now, he came to Wuchang in person, which undoubtedly gave Hauge an excellent opportunity.

Hauge was secretly thinking about how to use this meeting to win the support of Jirgalang. Hauge was well aware of Jirgalang's influence in the court. If he could get his support, his chances of winning the battle for the throne would greatly increase. Even Baiyintu might turn to him. By then, with absolute superior military force in hand, what could Dorgon use to fight against him?

On the other side, the temporary Prince Yu’s Palace.

Duoduo shook his head and said to Bo Luo: "Prince Zheng is coming to Wuchang now, but the current situation is like this, and his coming won't change anything."

Bolo advised: "Prince Zheng has been through many battles and has a very high prestige. If Prince Zheng comes to Wuchang, he will surely be able to contain Prince Su."

At this time, Duoduo coughed violently and even coughed up some blood. Boro looked at Duoduo nervously and said, "Your Highness, this doctor is also a quack. I will go and find someone else to take care of your health."

…………

The Zhou army marched with flags covering the sky in an endless line, with a majestic momentum. Meng Jun wore black lacquered fish scale armor, a dragon helmet on his head, and rode a war horse, looking majestic.

On the march, Shen Congwen said to Meng Jun: "Your Majesty, if you defeat Duoduo this time and take Wuchang, but if you don't have Yuezhou, Changsha and other places, you will only have the name of Huguang's granary, but not its reality."

Meng Jun pondered for a moment after hearing this, and said meaningfully: "The King of Jin is stationed in Changsha City. If I send troops to seize it, it will greatly hurt the people of the world. However, the land of Yuezhou is not in the hands of the King of Jin. Our army must take it, and at least seize half of Huguang."

Meng Jun had no doubts about taking Wuchang. Even if the Qing army defended Wuchang to the death, with Zhou's army's great victory, the chance of winning the attack on Wuchang would be at least 80%. However, when it comes to battle, everyone is completely confident.

Now Duoduo was defeated and defeated by Zheng Chenggong and retreated to Wuchang. Only Haoge's troops were left in Wuchang City. Meng Jun was not sure whether the Qing army would defend Wuchang to the death or abandon Wuchang and retreat to Jiangbei. But according to Meng Jun's thinking, if Duoduo's position was changed, he would definitely withdraw from Wuchang and retain his strength.

Outside Ezhou City.

Zheng Chenggong looked at Meng Jun with a smile on his face and said, "Your Majesty Zhou has made a name for himself by defeating Duoduo. In Huguang, the Qing army is no match for Your Majesty Zhou. The affairs in Fujian are complicated. I want to lead the army back. What do you think, Your Majesty?"

Meng Jun could understand Zheng Chenggong's desire to return to Fujian, but he still said, "I want to attack Wuchang, and it is time to use the navy. You should know that the Qing army still has 30,000 brave men who are firmly defending Wuchang. They have only marched half of the way through a hundred miles, and have not yet completed their mission. How can the emperor escape?"

Zheng Chenggong was silent for a moment, then slowly said: "My infantry attacked Ezhou with great force, and suffered heavy casualties. We are powerless to attack Wuchang."

After he finished speaking, Zheng Chenggong glanced at Meng Jun, then changed the subject and said, "However, I can leave half of my navy behind to assist King Zhou, and return to Fujian after we capture Wuchang!"