Chapter 25 of Part One

  As I walked on the shaded path outside the military camp, I said to Grandfather: "Grandfather, I think our next goal should not be in the two Guangs and Yunnan-Guizhou provinces. To put it bluntly, our purpose for attacking these four provinces is only one - to gain more resources. However, from the current situation, if we rashly launch an attack on Southern Ming, not only will we suffer a loss of reputation, but also face enemies on all four sides - east, south, west, and north. This would put our army under immense pressure and at a disadvantage. Now that we've left only Fujian as an opening, the goal is to make Li Dingguo focus his attention here. If they were to attack our base from behind, I think even Li Dingguo wouldn't be so foolish - it's like helping the Qing army fight against themselves. By blocking the Qing army's advance in front of them, we've increased their chances of victory." Grandfather nodded and said: "Let's discuss this further at the meeting later."

  In the conference room of Zeng Qing's department, Lei Feng said: "I think we can't take Li Dingguo lightly. He is not a simple person now, and his troops have gone to Nanjiang. Moreover, according to the intelligence department, they are ready to attack Fujian at any time. They have had great differences with Zheng Chenggong on who is the orthodox of the Ming Dynasty all along."

  Yi Tianxing stood up and said, "I think we should consider attacking Liangguang and Yungui now. If we let Li Dingguo clean up his troops, it will be a big problem for us in terms of both the people's hearts and the military."

  At this time, Wu Shuang stood up and said: "I think Zheng Chenggong is a national hero, but I don't think we can win him over. From Shi Lang's situation, we can see some of the problems with Zheng Chenggong. Shouldn't we consider turning Li Dingguo? On the issue of the emperor, Sun Kewang and Li Dingguo are fighting very fiercely. This is a huge psychological barrier for Li Dingguo. In the past, he had no one better to turn to, but now it's different, he can't help but be tempted."

  I stood up and said: "You don't just talk about Southern Ming. The Qing army's attack is also a big problem, how to fight it, you all have to express your opinions."

  Zeng Qing stood up, and at this time he was discussing the matter in the name of Deputy Commander of the Navy. He cleared his throat and said: "The view of our navy is as follows. Firstly, assist other enemies to attack Zheng Chenggong's troops and drive them out of Fujian. Secondly, strive for Li Dingguo's troops, so that we have a stable rear and can build larger warships in the coastal shipyards. Thirdly, occupy the Jiangnan region along the Yangtze River, so that our navy does not need to be stationed near the Yangtze River and can go out to sea directly to threaten Beijing. And with the troops from Sichuan, Shanxi, Tianjin Garrison, and Henan, attack Beijing from three sides."

  Wang Hu thought for a moment and stood up, saying: "Wu Sangui's total number of troops has already decreased by 60%. There are only four left. The proportion of Han people in the Qing army is still very large. Our main goal is to capture or eliminate this part of the Qing dynasty's running dogs in a short period of time. Although the Manchu and Mongolian armies were fierce on horseback, our current army has no disadvantage in terms of mobility. The enemy's dense charge is just a one-sided slaughter for us."

  Xu Jin stood up and said: "I think it's worth considering issuing newspapers within our base, so that we can grasp the direction and voice of propaganda, and let the masses come into contact with advanced ideas and culture. This is necessary for the stability of the base. I've even thought of a name for the newspaper - 'New Dawn Daily'. We should also have a unified newspaper name in major cities called 'Empire Evening News'. You discuss it and see how it goes."

  Song Yingxing also stood up and said: "My view is not in the military aspect but in the industrial aspect. Many high-demand weapons cannot be produced now. After discussing with Minister Han Zhi, I think that the improvement of metallurgical technology is an urgent problem."

  "Grandfather finally stood up and said: 'Now our regular army has a total of around 180,000 people. It can fully meet the comprehensive combat needs in all aspects. The difficulties in supplies have also been greatly alleviated. During this period, the production of military factories is sufficient to provide strong support for our war supplies. I think we can first consider the work of recruiting Li Dingguo's troops. If they are not willing, we can consider attacking them before their command is unified and strive to take down the two Guangs and Yunnan-Guizhou regions as soon as possible. Second, Zheng Chenggong can also be considered for surrender. I believe that Shi Lang can abandon his family feud for the sake of national righteousness. In those years, Lin Chong was able to abandon his family feud and surrender to the Song Dynasty, so why can't we do better than the ancients? As for the Qing army, I think we can let Peng Ying's troops pass through Sword Gate Pass and enter Shaanxi Province. We will launch a frontal attack from Hubei into Shanxi and Henan provinces. Zhu Xiao's third army can be responsible for the attack on Yunnan-Guizhou, and the second army can be responsible for the two Guangs. The first army and the navy can be responsible for the comprehensive attack on Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces. If Li Dingguo's troops can be recruited, we can consider granting him a nominal title of king and putting him under house arrest in Changsha. In this way, the second and third armies can turn north, and Li Dingguo's original army can also go north to merge with the first, second, and third armies for reorganization. We must disintegrate Li Dingguo's power. We can transfer him to the first army as a military commander, and other matters can be arranged by the Premier and the responsible persons themselves. As for Xu Jin's proposal on newspapers, I think it can be implemented. This should be a good thing for the ordinary people who are isolated from information. After next spring, you will be responsible for handling this matter well. In terms of metallurgy, Song Lao and Jiang Hao should study together to quickly produce high-quality steel materials that support military industry and civilian industry development."

  After seeing off the grandfather and a group of government officials leaving Nanchang by airship, I said to the military commanders of various units: "Then we will act according to the meeting this morning. After the traditional Spring Festival, we must take action immediately. You will go back to your troops tomorrow to convey the spirit and outline of the meeting. Hope you can prepare as soon as possible. After the Spring Festival, launch a comprehensive attack immediately."

  The Spring Festival of 1657 finally arrived after a long wait. The first newspaper in the base area was officially issued on New Year's Eve, and the faces of the people in the entire base area were filled with smiles and happiness. Some goods from Western Regions and new-style clothing and food from overseas could be found in major markets throughout the base area, and the people had some savings left over from the past year. The goods for the Spring Festival were purchased in great abundance. People from all over spontaneously organized to visit government offices to pay their respects. They also spontaneously went to comfort our officials at all levels. Every household had meat and fish during the Spring Festival, which was a stark contrast to their usual lives. Many educated people even took out their spare money to buy a copy of the Xin Ming Daily to read. This is a report from the Xin Ming Daily's Spring Festival edition: "The entire city of Nanchang spent New Year's Eve in laughter and cheers, welcoming the new year with the ringing of bells. The people spontaneously took to the streets of Nanchang, where various performances were staged by the people themselves. The sound of firecrackers filled the air, and the fireworks display organized by the Nanchang municipal government attracted everyone's attention. Looking at Nanchang today is truly a sight to behold, with its vibrant atmosphere and joyful celebrations. This is a report from the Xin Ming Daily's Nanchang news bureau."

  The city of Changsha is also filled with a joyful atmosphere. As one of the earliest liberated cities, the lives of ordinary people in Changsha are relatively more prosperous and fulfilling. Meat products and dairy products have become common foods for citizens of Changsha. Various out-of-season vegetables have been put on the table during Spring Festival. This is the first out-of-season vegetable planting base in Changsha, led by Minister of Agriculture Zeng Yushu, which finally brought peppers and cucumbers to the citizens of Changsha and Yueyang before Spring Festival.

  Reporters saw a wide variety of goods in the market, including spices from Southeast Asia, clothing from Persia, and small decorative items from Western countries. Some young people were riding the latest Huaxia brand two-wheeled vehicles, speeding through the streets of Changsha, bringing management troubles to our police.

  In short, most citizens of Changsha expressed their desire to work harder next year during interviews with our newspaper, and they all believe that next year's Spring Festival will be even better. This is a report from the New Ming Daily News' Changsha reporter station.

  Yue State, as the earliest liberated area, has taken the lead without hesitation. Look, the city is already showing a metropolitan atmosphere. People from all over are celebrating the Spring Festival together in harmony. Foreigners from Southeast Asia, France and the Netherlands can be seen in the streets of Yue State. Our high school and university students have formed their own parade teams to perform rich and colorful cultural performances for the masses on the streets. Military representatives are also shopping for New Year's goods. With the arrival of the new year, a brand-new ironclad warship was launched on the shores of Dongting Lake amidst firecrackers, and Admiral Shi Lang was visibly excited during an interview with our reporter, saying that according to reliable sources, this is the most advanced warship in the world, and our navy aims to become the world's number one. Admiral Shi Lang stated that he will build a fleet even more powerful than Zheng He's fleet. Tens of thousands of people witnessed the launch of the new ship, all expressing their excitement and determination to work harder to protect our land in the new year. This is a report from the New Ming Daily Yue State News Station.

  "Wuhan, as the key location of the Central Plains, welcomed the first Spring Festival after liberation. The entire city appeared with a rare prosperous scene, and citizens were carrying full loads of New Year's goods back home with joy. The welfare institute's war orphans and elderly without support also received many New Year's goods under the care of the local government. They all gathered together to make dumplings. The orphans performed our base area song "The March of the Volunteers" on the spot, expressing their desire to study hard and strive to join the army or participate in the construction of the base area as soon as possible. An old man burst into tears on the spot, asking our newspaper staff to convey his gratitude to the government and the military. He said that if it weren't for the government and the military, he would still be begging on the streets and might have already died in some corner. Here, all the staff of our Xinming Daily express our highest respect to the comrades of the Liberation Army."

  "Sichuan, when we were in the first half of the Lunar New Year month, our army finally took down the last stronghold in Sichuan, Panzhihua. At this time, our base had expanded to four provinces: Hubei, Hunan, Sichuan and Jiangxi. Today is New Year's Eve, on the streets of Chengdu, we saw people coming and going, their faces filled with smiles. In Xikang, the ethnic minority compatriots who are good at singing and dancing were celebrating the arrival of the new year with songs and dances. General Peng Dehuai's ethnic minority policy has been widely welcomed. The policy of equality among all ethnic groups has won the full support of many ethnic minority compatriots. Today, our General Peng Dehuai will meet with the visiting Dalai Lama and Panchen Lama in Chengdu to negotiate on Tibet's development and integration. We wish for a successful outcome that brings happiness and welfare to the people."

  I looked at the newspaper that was delivered and said to Zhou Lun, "Ah Lun, unexpectedly, this kid Xu Jin's hands and feet are so fast. I think he must have been prepared early on. He might have even mobilized the Mingfeng troops." Zhou Lun smiled and said, "Yes, these reports are all written very well. Now the citizens of Nanchang are reacting strongly and gathering in front of the city government building, saying they will work harder to surpass Changsha and other places."

  I said, "Haha, this is a good thing. With competition comes development, don't you think? Oh, right. The other day Li Dingguo sent someone to deliver a message saying we shouldn't attack Panzhihua and face them directly. What do you think about this?"

  Zhou Lun smiled and said, "What to do, Liang Ban. If we don't go to fight his Guizhou, he will thank heaven and earth. I think let's tell that messenger. As long as they don't take the initiative to attack us, we won't attack them either. What do you think?"

  I thought for a moment and said, "I think we must get the Mingfeng troops to figure out Li Dingguo's bottom line as soon as possible. For now, let's send someone who can talk to invite Li Dingguo over to take a look. As long as he is a soldier, I don't believe he will be willing to guard that dying Southern Ming emperor after seeing such a powerful army."

  "Alright, I'll go arrange it right away."