Chapter 34: The Great Han Army Occupies the Three Towns of Wuhan

  Xianfeng glared at Su Shun for a while, seeing that he actually dared to look him straight in the eye without compromise. He let out a "hmmph" and sat back down on his dragon throne. Xianfeng was secretly puzzled as to why he wasn't getting angry, but instead felt a thrill of excitement in his heart. However, for the sake of maintaining his imperial dignity, he couldn't show it and could only continue to keep a stern face.

  Sushun took off his own peacock feather and placed it on the ground, knocking his head and saying: "I beg Your Majesty to reconsider, the Qing dynasty cannot be destroyed."

  Xianfeng was shocked and frightened, and secretly thought to himself: "I am similar to Chongzhen of the Ming dynasty. There are rebels causing trouble within and strong enemies watching from outside." But Chongzhen was arrogant and self-willed, which led to the downfall of his country. As for me? I absolutely cannot be like him. Thinking this way, he kindly comforted Su Shun: "You're good, able to speak directly and offer advice, much better than those officials who only know how to nod their heads and flatter."

  "The minister is ashamed."

  Xianfeng walked down, bent over to pick up Su Shun's hat, and personally put it on his head. He helped him stand up, patted his shoulder emotionally, and said: "You're doing a good job, but your experience is too shallow. I've already promoted you when I ascended the throne, so it's not suitable to promote you again now. Let's wait for a while, and I'll let you practice in various departments later. As for organizing the militia, I still think we should take our time and try it out first with Zeng Guofan returning to his hometown. What do you think?"

  Xu Shun said: "The Emperor is wise and brilliant, but the team leader has made military achievements again. He cannot be treated like before, being transferred to a distant place as an eighth or ninth rank official. Instead, he should be allowed to lead the army in reality and continue to suppress the bandits."

  "Very well," said Xianfeng with a smile, "I grant it. The greater the merit, the higher the official position."

  Suxun was overjoyed and said: "In this case, I am no longer worried that the bandits will not be pacified."

  …………

  "The minister retreated" Su Shun bowed and backed out of the imperial study.

  Wuchang City

  Governor Gong Yu. The governor of Bu Zheng, Chang Da Chun, and the commander-in-chief, Shuang Fu, gathered together to discuss military affairs.

  Shuangfu had been disheartened since he saw the Han army's endless troops on the river from the city wall, and he said dejectedly: "There are only three thousand defending soldiers in the city, not one more."

  Gong Yu didn't understand military affairs either, seeing that there were few soldiers inside the city, he said: "Call all the reinforcements outside the city to defend inside, then we'll have 5,000, can't we hold on for a few more days?" After finishing speaking, he looked at Shuang Fu with expectant eyes.

  Shuangfu intuitively felt that this was not appropriate, but couldn't think of any other way, so he vaguely said: "I hope Xiangrong can support Wuchang as soon as possible."

  Gong Yu nodded disappointedly and said, "Xiang Rong is still in Yuezhou. He used the method of holding out for reinforcements to harm the prefect of Yuezhou to death. Is he going to come and harm us too?"

  "What's the point of saying so much? When the time comes, I will be loyal to the country and die for it. Naturally, my name will be recorded in history and remembered for generations to come."

  Kong Yudao said: "That's right, even if you escape, you'll be held accountable and die."

  Shuang Fu rolled her eyes at them and thought to herself: I'll definitely run away when I get the chance.

  Jiao Liang brought two young women and a man in his thirties to pay respects to Li Yunzhong. Jiao Liang pointed at the slightly older woman and said to Li Yunzhong, "Your Highness, this is my wife Xu Yuegui, skilled with the long spear, riding horses as if flying."

  Xu Yu'gui bowed to Li Yunzhong and said: "Xu Yu'gui pays his respects to Your Excellency."

  Li Yunzhong hastily smiled and said: "No need for formalities, this must be your younger sister. Indeed, she is talented and beautiful."

  Xu Yuexiang's face turned red as she thought to herself that this person was so rude, hesitated for a moment, and then stepped forward saying: "Xu Yuexiang pays her respects to Your Highness."

  Jiao Liang saw Li Yunzhong praising Xu Yuxiang, and already had the intention of marrying her to Li Yunzhong. He continued to point at Hanzi and introduce him to Li Yunzhong: "This is Tang Zhengcai, leader of the Hubei Tiandihui Hongshuitang, who has called on more than 30,000 boatmen to surrender to the Han King, and the boatmen are now behind the main army."

  Li Yunzhong was overjoyed and stepped forward to support Tang Zhengcai, who was about to bow down. "I have always been worried that our army does not have a naval commander," he said. "Now that you have come to join us, it is truly a blessing from heaven." Li Yunzhong also felt embarrassed to mention the victory of 100,000 brave soldiers again.

  Li Yunzhong originally intended for Luo Dagang to command the naval forces, but unexpectedly Luo Dagang was unwilling, saying he would rather be a battalion commander on land than a naval army commander.

  Tang Zhengcai said: "I've been making a living on the water since I was young, and I also know a thing or two about naval battles."

  "Alright, you can select 20,000 men from the navy to form a naval army, with you as the general, with the same rank as a division commander." Li Yunzhong thought for a moment and decided not to directly appoint him as the army commander, so he demoted him by one level.

  Hu Yihuang boarded the ship and said to Li Yunzhong: "Your Highness, the Qing army outside the city suddenly withdrew into the city."

  Li Yunzhong burst out laughing: "It's really great, I was worried that we would waste time outside the city and wait for Xiang Rong to come and rescue Wuchang. Now we can surround Wuchang with ease, let's go ashore."

  Wuchang is the provincial capital of Hubei, with the Yangtze River to its west and Hongshan Mountain to its east. The city is high and its walls are thick, making it a strategic location. Li Yunzhong led an army of 30,000 soldiers in landing and occupying the eastern part of the city, including Hongshan, Xiaoguishan, and Zijingshan mountains, without encountering any resistance. They then spread out to surround the city from both south and north, but Li Yunzhong did not order an attack on the city. Instead, he decided to use the old method of digging tunnels and burying explosives.

  Along the Wuchang city wall, it was discovered that the Wen Chang Gate in the southwest had a high and open terrain, which was most suitable for digging tunnels. This natural passage was not suitable for feigning an attack to cover up the sound of digging tunnels, so only the Wangshan Gate 1000 meters away could be attacked. To attract the attention of all the defenders inside the city, no feint was made, and a strong attack was launched instead. Li Yunzhong ordered the explosive team to dig tunnels during the intense battle.

  On the morning of February 15, Li Yunzhong ordered an attack on the city. The army prepared cannons, rockets, cloud ladders and other weapons. The Qing army used cannon fire, water pipes, rolling logs and stone pellets to defend themselves. After a day of fierce assault, in the evening, the tunnel was finally dug under the city wall, and Li Yunzhong ordered the withdrawal of troops. The Qing army on the city wall let out a cheer.

  On the 16th, at dawn, the blasting team ignited explosives to blow up a section of the city wall at Wenchang Gate. Li Yunzhong ordered the Boy Scouts to enter the city as the first echelon to exercise them, with the Second and Third Armies as the second echelon, while Li Yunzhong led the First Army as the last army to enter the city, and the remaining troops stayed outside the city or on ships to intercept the Qing reinforcements.

  The defenders inside the city were still mostly asleep, and when they saw the enemy entering the city, they all scattered and fled. Those who resisted to the end were few in number. Although the ones entering the city were just 15 or 16-year-old boys, they killed people more ruthlessly than adults, fearing neither death nor defeat. They would rather die together with their enemies than retreat. The boy soldiers charged forward with their eyes closed, killing all the way from the southwest to the northeast, only stopping when they saw the city walls. This left the soldiers of the second and third armies who followed behind them speechless. Previously, they had seen the king favoring young boys and thought it was just because the king himself was still young. But now that the boy soldiers were on their first battlefield, they were so mighty and powerful. Only then did they realize that the king was indeed wise and brave.

  Hubei Governor Gong Yu poisoned himself to death, and Commander Shuang Fu had "foreknowledge" and stayed in the east-facing Bin Yang Temple all night. When he saw the Han army enter the city, he directly opened the gate and escaped, fleeing to Henan where he was taken in by Qi Shan. Chang Da-chun failed in his attempt to kill himself and was rescued.

  On the day Wuchang was captured, Hankou and Hanyang were also occupied by Hu Yihuang's First Army.