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Volume 1: Fierce Battle in Changsha Chapter 490: Unbelievable

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    Unlike the First Opium War, although the British and French fleets blocked the Pearl River Estuary this time, maritime trade did not stop.  When Zhang Wenxiang heard about the situation in Guangzhou for the first time, he thought it was incredible.  The British and French fleets only restricted the movements of the Qing navy and trapped them in the Pearl River in Guangzhou, but there was an endless stream of merchant ships coming and going.  The reason was simple. Britain and France had declared war on the Manchus, so they had to block the Pearl River estuary and prevent the Qing navy from going to sea, but they needed trade.  Ye Mingchen, on the other hand, needs the tax money and food brought by trade, and he hopes that war will not come to Guangzhou.  As a result, the two sides maintained an incredible tacit understanding, just as incredible as the mutual protection of the five southeastern provinces during the invasion of the Eight-Power Allied Forces in history.

    Commercial ships in the Pearl River were free to travel, and the Qing army's forts on both sides of the strait paid attention. The two sides reached a consensus that they would not attack commercial ships, but only deal with each other's military units.  Grant had cleared out a series of forts along the Pearl River early in the morning, but Bao Ling's advice to him was that when the British army did not have enough troops to take down the city of Guangzhou, it was best to maintain the status quo. God knows when the damn riots in India would be put under control.  Suppress it.

    That's why this situation has formed. The British and French fleets are at the Pearl River estuary, and the Qing navy is in the Pearl River. No one can go in, and no one can come out. However, the trade between the two sides has not been affected at all. Merchant ships flying the flags of various countries can still enter and exit the Pearl River.  mouth.

    Although war was declared, there was no flames of war or gunpowder smoke. Zhang Wenxiang did not have much time to pay attention to this absurdity. He had to take advantage of the relaxation of the Manchu and Qing troops to capture the forts along the Pearl River in one go, clearing the way for the subsequent landing in Guangzhou.

    That night, Zhang Wenxiang sent two battalions of soldiers to Shajiao and Dajiao forts respectively for sneak attacks.  The route was the same as the route taken by the British army when they attacked the two forts in the First Opium War.

    The soldiers of the first platoon to land did not encounter any counterattack. On the quiet fort, the Qing troops seemed to be asleep.  When small sampans and boats brought a battalion of Taiping troops ashore.  Only then did the Qing army begin to notice.

    The battalion commander who landed was very nervous. He immediately ordered the soldiers to charge towards the fort. The first ones to be shot by the Taiping muskets were the Qing troops holding torches.  But after the first burst of gunfire, the Qing troops at Shajiao Fort fell into incredible chaos.

    "The foreigners are coming, retreat quickly!" "Master Ye has an order not to engage in battle with the foreigners, retreat quickly!" "Why don't you use swords and guns? It's important to escape!"

    The chaos and defeat of the Qing army was so rapid. When the Taiping soldiers occupied the Shajiao Fort, they discovered that a full two thousand Qing troops had fled back to the interior from the Shajiao Fort. Everything on the fort was still intact.  The neat cannons and the full red-printed type became the trophies of the Taiping Army. While the Qing army left more than ten corpses behind, only a few Taiping soldiers were injured because of darkness.

    Under the dumbfounded gaze of the Taiping soldiers, the Qing army fled with ease.  It's not that the Taiping soldiers didn't want to pursue them.  It's because they don't have enough troops, so they can only guard the fort first.  The situation was almost the same at the Dajiao Fort. When Zhang Wenxiang received the reward, he laughed dumbly and said: "How can you be so afraid of the enemy like a tiger?"

    Zheng Yantuo said: "Ye Mingchen doesn't want to go to war with the foreigners at all. Although the children of Guangdong dare to fight, they have no choice but to control the officials like this, so they have no choice but to escape."

    Zhang Wenxiang pondered for a moment and said: "Seize this time to transport more troops, and order the soldiers on the fort to turn the cannon's muzzle. Prepare to meet the Qing army's counterattack!"

    Zhang Wenxiang is right, wait until dawn.  When the Qing army discovered that the flags flying on the two forts were not foreign flags but the Fengtian Demon-Slaying Flag of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, they immediately exploded. Changmao actually hit Guangzhou directly?

    The chaos last night prevented Guangzhou General Mukdena from sleeping well all night. He found Guangzhou Governor Bai Gui in the middle of the night and took him to the Governor's Mansion to discuss a solution with Ye Mingchen, the Governor of Guangdong and Guangxi.  Also arriving later were Chief Envoy Jiang Guolin and Inspector Zhou Qibin, and the Governor's Mansion suddenly became lively.

    Under the dim candlelight, Ye Mingchen was sitting upright in his regular clothes. After listening to Mukdena's words, he just said lightly: "Although the Yi people issued a declaration of war with me for more than half a year, they only sent troops to fight north through Dagonkou.  After a battle, we lost the battle. Then it was calm. The British king wanted to attack our forts this time because he wanted to blame us for the defeat in the last battle. The British general had no choice but to find my first and second forts and seize them as prevarication. He ordered the soldiers  Just retreat to Humen, and the British general will have an answer to the British court and will not cause trouble again."

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    But he didn¡¯t expect that at dawn, when the frontline commander reported that both forts were hoisted with the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom¡¯s Fengtian Demon-Slaying Flag, Ye Mingchen was shocked.  Guangdong province civil and militaryAll of a sudden, everyone gathered at the Governor's Mansion to discuss countermeasures, but Mukdena did not come. When he learned early in the morning that it was actually the Taiping Army that raided the fort last night, he rushed to Humen to supervise the battle.  Are you kidding me? Even if the British occupy the fort, they will retreat sooner or later as long as the imperial court negotiates a 10% peace. The Taiping Army is different. They are here to dig up people's ancestral graves, but they must not be allowed to come to Guangzhou!

    "Why did Changmao come to Guangzhou?!" Ye Mingchen said angrily: "Isn't Li Tingyu guarding Meizhou and Jieyang to stop Fujian's Changmao?!"

    Bai Gui couldn't help but whispered: "Master Taiwan, this long hair should have been brought from the sea. I think it was invaded from across the sea from Fujian."

    Ye Mingchen was even more angry: "Why are these Changmao so unreasonable? If we don't fight the good land route, how can we fight the sea route? How much money do we spend every month on food to support Li Tingyu, so that he can stop Changmao Nan in Meizhou and Jieyang?"  Offender, this long hair jumps directly to the sea to commit offence, what should you do?"

    "What else can we do? Fight to the death! Even if the foreigners take over Guangzhou, nothing will happen to them. If Changmao takes over Guangzhou, we will all be dead!"

    The Chief Envoy Jiang Guolin and the Inspector Zhou Qibin both looked at this short and fat Manchu with disdain. The Taiping Army conquered Wuchang, Jiangning and other places and slaughtered all the cities. This guy is a Manchu and naturally he is afraid of losing his life.  ah.

    "Master Zhu Tai, hurry up and gather all the young men in the city to garrison in the city. Changmao is a master who is desperate for his life. If you are late, you may not be able to protect the city!" Shuangxi shouted hurriedly, fearing that the mobilization would be too late and the city would be destroyed.  generally.

    At that moment, Ye Mingchen had no choice but to order the entire city of Guangzhou to close its city gates in preparation for war, and ordered Bai Gui to mobilize all the young men in the city to help defend the city. Civil and military officials from various ministries guarded the city walls and gates in sections, preparing to survive or die with the city!

    Shortly after dawn, the Taiping troops on the two forts were ready to resist the Qing army's counterattack. The Qing army, which had been defeated last night, returned with great momentum. Guangzhou general Mukdena personally sat at the Humen fort to supervise the battle, watching thousands of  The Qing army launched a counterattack on the fort.

    We kept transporting troops all night last night. At dawn, a regiment of Taiping troops from each side of the strait landed ashore, and they quickly dug trenches and stood ready.  Taiping Navy General Tang Zhengcai also led dozens of red single boats to block the Pearl River Estuary, preparing to engage the Qing Navy.

    Zhang Wenxiang and Zheng Yantuo were still waiting for the military report from the front on Guishan Island, but when the military report from the front did not arrive, Grant of the British and French fleets came to Guishan Island.

    Grant would never miss the opportunity to have close contact with the Taiping Army. He always felt that the powerful Taiping Army would become Britain's enemy in the future, and the sooner he understood it, the better.  He knew about Tan Shaoguang's troops going north, which were a vigorous young Guards, but he didn't know about the newly formed First Army of the Taiping Army from Fujian. It is said that they were the first new Taiping Army to be reorganized.  , Grant wanted to see them up close.

    After entering the Taiping Army¡¯s camp on Guishan Island for just a few days, Grant already didn¡¯t recognize the place.  The Taiping Army built many fortifications and barracks here in just a few days, enough to station tens of thousands of people.  Their soldiers are all veterans, and the bloodthirsty and murderous aura can be felt from afar.

    Arriving at their commander¡¯s camp, busy officers can be seen everywhere, and the battle map is also very detailed, which shows that they are well prepared.

    As if aware of his wandering gaze, Grant was embarrassed to be invited out of the camp by the young division commander of the Taiping Army. This shrewd man seemed to be aware of his intentions and did not intend to talk to him in the commander's tent, so Grant was invited to  Detailed discussion in the tent on the side.

    After the accompanying officers on both sides sat down, Grant said with a smile: "The Taiping Army's military operation last night was beyond everyone's expectations. We thought you would rest for at least a week before launching an offensive."

    Zhang Wenxiang smiled lightly after hearing the translation. He had no good impression of the British man and just said: "I don't have the habit of waiting."

    Grant said without any nonsense: "However, the Qing army seems to have discovered that it is the Taiping Army that is attacking them. They will definitely counterattack next. We just want to ask if the Taiping Army needs naval artillery support from the British Empire fleet?"

    Zhang Wenxiang said without thinking: "General Grant, you seem to have found the wrong person. I am only an army general and am not qualified to agree with you on naval matters. You should discuss these matters with General Tang Zhengcai, the naval general of our operation."

    Grant was at a loss for words again. In the embarrassment, a staff officer came quickly. It seemed that there was an urgent military situation, but he hesitated to speak when he saw several British people.  Zhang Wenxiang looked at the itchy expressions of several British people, waved his hands and said, "If you have anything to say, it's okay to just say it."

    "There are about three thousand Qingyao."They began to counterattack the Shajiao Fort. There was also a counterattack of 2,000 people at the Dajiao Fort!  "The staff officer said loudly. Zhang Wenxiang hummed and said: "I understand.  "After speaking, the staff officer saluted with a military salute and left.

    After hearing the translation, Grant said hesitantly: "General Zhang, aren't you going to take some measures?"

    Zhang Wenxiang smiled lightly and said: "We have already made a combat plan before logging in. The officers on the front line know what they should do. What I am thinking about now is the next military action!" (To be continued)
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