At the same time when these two literati, Zhang Zhongtang and Huang Shijie, who harbored the spirit of "Against the Classics", loyal to the Qing Dynasty and holding the leadership of militia, stepped into Changsha together, on the vast Xiangjiang River above, there were more than a hundred large wooden boats sailing southward with the north wind.
The hundred-plus large ships were packed with Qing troops, fifty more of which carried the Green Camp troops. The rank signs with a "soldier" character on the chest were worn out, mostly faded white, and about seventy-eight percent of them had patches. The soldiers were mostly thin and had a slightly dull expression. It was time for their evening meal now, and all they could see were the soldiers sitting in the cabin with their legs in their arms, eating dry and hard breadsticks with cold water.
The officers had separate cabins, gathered together, with several tables set with murky wine and fresh fish, and they were all hearty in their drinking and eating. However, each one wore a frown, looking troubled and anxious.
As each cup of amber liquid was consumed, these officers opened their mouths and began to whisper and argue among themselves.
"Have you heard? The bandits that have been causing trouble in Guangxi are quite formidable. According to those Manchu troops from Beijing, they are bandits sent by the gods from heaven!"
"Gods in the heavens? Aren't they just religious bandits? The White Lotus Society hasn't been defeated before, how can they be a match for our Green Camp in Gansu and Shaanxi?"
"That's right! Our troops in Gansu and Shaanxi have been the purple gold pillar and bridge supporting the Qing Dynasty since we suppressed the Three Rebellions. What matters are the Eight Banners or the Sorels, none of them can match our Gansu troops in enduring fierce battles and not fearing death! In recent years, both the Eight Banners and Green Camp troops in the south have taken opium, unable to endure fierce battles!"
"How does our endurance in battle and fearlessness matter? In the end, the glory still goes to the Manchus! This time, there are forty or so ships of Eight Banners troops heading to Changsha with us, all of them strong units from Beijing! There's also a Bahturu who leads the Exorcism, clearly going there to gain merit!"
"What Exorcism Bahturu. They couldn't subdue the White Lotus Society in Sichuan and Hubei back then!"
"Ah, be careful with your words, be careful with your words!"
A group of thousand-general and ten-thousand-general officers from the northwest spoke to a point of sorrow, each one hanging their head in despair. They had finished their wine, some taking out tobacco and smoking heartily, creating a thick cloud of smoke throughout the cabin. The faces filled with both bitter resignation and frustration were soon obscured by the smoke.
"Ah, those people are gathering again to smoke opium!"
Rong Lu pushed open the door and walked into the cabin of Fu Mo Tu, Yun Bao Jia, and Yuan Bao. The young face on him immediately showed a look of helplessness as he sat down in a chair.
Yuan Bao himself didn't indulge in that stuff. It not only hurt his body but also eroded his willpower. He was the Qing's Fu Mo Tu, with a promising future, why would he want something to numb himself? However, he wasn't like the young Rong Lu who despised opium. He simply smiled bitterly and said, "Let them go then. The descendants of the Eight Banners may not worry about their livelihood, but how many of them are truly successful? Most of them just pass their days in a haze, day after day of monotonous boredom. A few hits of opium are better than nothing!"
"But they are about to go into battle against the Taiping rebels. Not nourishing their strength, not preserving their vigor, and all they know how to do is smoke and inhale clouds. How can that be enough?"
Yuan Bao shrugged indifferently: "What's the use? If they don't smoke enough opium until they return to the battlefield and see the long-haired bandits charging all around them, they might be so frightened that before the battle even starts, they would faint from fear, and if they want to die like a man, it would be impossible."
"Such words," Rong Lu still wasn't satisfied, "At least we are descendants of the Eight Banners. Can we really be afraid of those who burn charcoal, mine, carry heavy loads, pull ropes for a living, and farm?"
Yuan Bao cast a glance at the eldest son of the double general family, simply shaking his head with a smile.
In fact, when he accompanied Sao Shang'a to leave Beijing at first, he also had the same thought.
Are they not just a bunch of poor bums desperate for food? How can they compare to the high-born descendants of the Eight Banners?"
"You'll see when you're on the battlefield," Yuan Bao shook his head, not wanting to argue further with Rong Lu. Instead, he pointed at the table of wine and dishes in front of them, "Come, have a few drinks with your elder brother. We'll be in Changsha tomorrow. Changsha is a great place! The girls in the Changsha brothels are fair and tender, all small and cute, but they don't compare to my Li'er or your Lan'er."
When Rong Lu heard this, his small eyes brightened: "Really?"
"True, true!" Yuan Bao laughed, "I've heard it from my elder brother. This time we're going to Changsha, no further south!"
"Just to Changsha? We're supposed to subdue demons and evil spirits, aren't we?" Rong Lu was taken aback, "How can we subdue demons and evil spirits if we stay in Changsha?"
Yuan Bao picked up his cup and took a drink in one gulp: "Because that demon will soon arrive in Changsha!"
"To Changsha? Isn't it already blocked at Zerling, Quanzhou, and Lianzhou?" Rong Lu asked, while still pouring himself a cup of wine and taking a big swig.
"Uhm, Lingling is to the north, Quanzhou to the west, and Lianzhou to the south. It seems like there's still one direction missing, isn't there?"
"North, west, and south, but no east? How is that possible?"
"That's right!" Yuan Bao laughed, "If the east were also blocked, how would Zerling, Quanzhou, and Lianzhou report their victories?"
"Pfft!" Rong Lu spat out a mouthful of wine, almost covering Yuan Bao's face, "Is it true or not? Could Sa Zhongtang really do that?"
Yuan Bao smiled coldly: "A few days ago, the notice from the Acting Hunan Provincial Administrator Luo's office was delivered to my elder brother's ship. Both Guangyang and Chenzhou have been lost! There are also tens of thousands of Taiping troops marching along Chenzheng and Leishui rivers towards Hengyang. The General Gong of Hubei-Hunan is probably going to abandon the city and flee. After all, Hengyang is not within his jurisdiction."
"Now Changsha is vulnerable, with only 2000 Guomin standards and thousands of militia. The people are restless, with several alarms in one night. We can only rely on our 1800 strong Qing troops and 3000 Gansu-Shaanxi Green Camp troops!"
"Two thousand Guomin standards, several thousand militia, one thousand eight hundred Qing troops, and three thousand Gansu-Shaanxi Green Camp troops make it just over ten thousand in total. Can they hold the fort?" Rong Lu calculated on his fingers and immediately realized that something was wrong.
"Yes!" Yuan Bao nodded emphatically, "We still have a thousand sacred thunderbolts engraved with the cross symbol." He smiled coldly and lowered his voice, "My brother and Tulama, along with General Fu of the Xi'an Garrison, came up with a plan. We're going to set an ambush beneath the city of Changsha and arrange a spectacular thunderbolt disaster for that bull demon!"
"Thunderbolt disaster?" Rong Lu's eyes narrowed slightly, "That sounds good. Let's blow that demon to pieces!"
Changsha City, outside the Yellow Road Gate.
The official road is crowded with vehicles and pedestrians from the south heading north, fleeing the disaster.
With the increasing territory of Taiping Heavenly Kingdom in Southern Hunan and the popular "distribute land and properties" policy spreading like a snowball, the gentry who have left their homes and are fleeing for their lives become more and more numerous.
Not only have the wealthy landlords in Chenzhou Prefecture and Guiyang Prefecture, which were recently controlled by the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, noticed the signs and have "taken all measures of refuge," but many landlords in the north of Hengzhou Prefecture and Yongzhou Prefecture on the north bank of the Xiang River, as well as in Baosheng Prefecture, feel that something is amiss and are beginning to ponder countermeasures.
Some of the gentry who read "Fajing" (a book on strategic deception) after realizing there was a big opportunity began organizing militia in their hometowns to fight against the "Guangdong bandits," while those who felt they were no match for the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom fled to Changsha, the provincial capital.
Of course, there are also some gentry who came to Changsha with their militia, protecting their families along the way.
For example, Jiao Hong, a "big landowner" from Guiyang Prefecture, is now sitting on a donkey cart, leading his entire family and over a hundred laborers, travelling dusty roads to the Yellow Road Gate.
According to Zuo Zongtang's order, both inside and outside the old nine gates of Changsha had been put on strict control. The city gate was half open and half closed, and wooden barricades were erected. A group of Eight Banners Green Camp soldiers who had smoked opium to their fill stood there with their chests puffed out and bellies sticking out - Master Zuo had issued a strict order under the name of Luo Binying, stating that anyone who wanted to enter Changsha would be thoroughly searched. He emphasized that this was necessary to prevent Taiping spies from entering!
"Are you a spy for the Taiping?"
Po Yong, who poses as the head teacher of Jiao's militia training, is currently being checked by a Green Camp battalion leader!
"Not at all. My master Xu is a scholar from Guiyang Prefecture!" Po Yong responded with a smile, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a heavy package of evidence, "This is the proof."
The battalion leader took the evidence and looked at it: fine opium, and on the paper wrapping the opium were the four large characters "Huang's Old Brand!"
The evidence is quite convincing, definitely not spies for the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.
