Besides the four major bandit groups, dozens more have directly raised their banners in rebellion, establishing themselves as mountain kings; almost every province has some. My Great Qing Dynasty, truly, has suffered countless calamities.
However, after a moment of reflection, Sai Shang'a began to calculate just how many troops Guangzhou had.
“There are eight towns in the whole of Guangzhou, each with about four thousand people. If you take away those who are not paid, there are at least three thousand. That’s twenty-four thousand people. In addition, there are twenty thousand Green Standard Army soldiers at Baiyun Mountain.”
"Add my battalion and Ye Mingchen's battalion, plus the 10,000 Green Standard Army soldiers in Guangzhou, and that makes 62,000 men. If we add your cavalry, Tacha'er, that's 70,000 men," Sai Shang'a calculated, counting on his fingers.
“Seventy thousand against thirty thousand is more than two against one. If we still can’t win, we’ll have no choice but to abandon the city and flee. The battlefield will definitely be on a plain. It seems that the only hope of victory is with the Eight Banners cavalry,” Tacha said with a deep frown.
To be honest, even if it was 70,000 against 30,000, and even if Zhu Datianzi's army was only a little over 20,000, Tachaer still felt uncertain.
After thinking for a moment, Tacha continued, "The key to this battle lies with the Green Standard Army. We must make the Green Standard Army fight to the death. Only if the Green Standard Army is willing to fight to the death and severely depletes the Zhu rebel army's energy can I send the cavalry to charge. Only then will we have a chance of winning."
"And what gets the Green Standard Army to fight for them is money. As long as there's money, the Green Standard Army will fight for them. So, the key now is money! Lord Sai, how much money is left in the Guangzhou treasury?"
"Probably more than four million."
Originally, it was only a little over two million. But since Emperor Zhu came to Guangzhou, the commerce has flourished considerably, and therefore, the amount of silver has increased.
"Good, bring them all out. Before the battle, each Green Standard Army soldier will receive twenty taels of silver. Each battalion commander will receive fifty taels of silver. Each centurion will receive one hundred taels of silver. Each captain will receive five hundred taels of silver. Moreover, make it clear to them that they will receive the same amount again after the battle. In addition, those who die in battle will receive ten times the amount in compensation!"
"In addition, fifty taels of silver will be awarded for the head of a traitorous soldier. Three thousand taels of silver will be awarded for the head of a battalion commander. Furthermore, a suicide squad will be formed, and each member will receive a one hundred taels of silver as a pre-battle reward."
“As long as there is money, these Green Standard Army soldiers are still usable. I don’t expect them to have the fighting power they had when the Three Feudatories pacified Jiangnan, but at least they can reach the strength they had during the White Lotus Rebellion decades ago,” Tacha said confidently.
Only if they possess the fighting strength of decades ago, and cooperate with the Eight Banners cavalry, could they possibly win a decisive battle on the plains.
"Wow, the banner lord is really going all out, but what about Guangzhou?" Sai Shang'a asked, puzzled.
Upon hearing this, Tacha smiled slightly: "Hehe, if we lose, will Guangzhou still be in the hands of the court? Won't it all belong to Zhu the traitor? So, don't be stingy with the four million taels of silver, just take it all out."
"Moreover, the gentry of Guangzhou will also have to pay. Anyone who doesn't pay will be considered a traitor, and their property will be confiscated. At the very least, they'll have to come up with ten million taels of silver!"
"snort!"
"Let's see who dares! I'm not even dead yet, and they're already preparing to abandon Guangzhou. I wonder how the gentry of the city will view the imperial court after they find out about this!"
After he finished speaking, another violent coughing fit followed. Looking in the direction of the sound, the speaker was none other than Ye Mingchen, the Governor of Guangzhou.
At this point, he was clearly still seriously injured. Even so, without his cooperation, Sai Shang'a couldn't possibly have taken all the silver from the treasury, let alone the remaining ten million taels.
“My troops cannot go into battle, and half of the Green Standard Army must remain. I am the governor of this region,” Ye Mingchen said loudly.
The term "regional governor" refers to a high-ranking official who governs a region. These officials held great power and influence, almost like local emperors, but also bore heavy responsibilities. For example, if Guangzhou fell, Ye Mingchen would not be able to escape and would have to be executed.
Therefore, their demand for troops was made with a clear conscience.
"The city is already in a state of panic. If you do this, will Guangzhou even survive?" Ye Mingchen said excitedly.
“I can leave you some troops, but it will cost five million taels of silver. And at most, I can leave you your military command and give you two thousand Green Standard Army soldiers,” Tacha said.
"No, that's too few. We need at least 20,000 DPP supporters!"
"Damn it, I think I don't have enough for my own final battle, how could it be 20,000? At most, it's 3,000!"
"..."
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Chapter 51: Boom, Boom with all your might
Dongjiang Plain
This place is not far from Guangzhou City, and the terrain is very flat. It was the battlefield that Tacha chose after careful selection.
Behind him was a full army of 60,000, including local Green Standard Army troops, elite units like the Dubiao, and 8,000 Plain Red Banner cavalry, totaling 200,000.
As for the remaining ten thousand, Ye Mingchen left them in Guangzhou. It is said that he intended to call upon the gentry to defend Guangzhou to the death and resist to the very end.
"We have 60,000 troops, claiming to be 200,000. The rebel Zhu on the other side has 20,000 troops, claiming to be 50,000. Even if we can't win in a head-on battle, we can still hold our camp," Tacha said confidently, looking at the trenches that had already been built around us.
It was surrounded by moats and armed with foreign guns. In addition, there were many large shields, cannons, and crossbows. Even the old Eight Banners who entered the pass back then would have no way to defend it.
Looking at the Qing army, which was defending like turtles, Zhu Jishi couldn't help but frown. Although his soldiers were far more elite, belonging to a modern army, while the opposing side was a backward feudal army, he still felt somewhat uneasy before the battle began.
After all, before this, Zhu Datianzi was just a surgeon, not a high-achieving student from a military academy.
Having arrived in this world, how long has it been? Yet, he is already leading an army of 20,000 against an enemy army of 60,000, and on the offensive.
Therefore, although Old Pierre said they could win, Han Si said they could win, and Lin Yang also said they could win, Zhu Datianzi was still somewhat apprehensive before the actual victory.
"Old Peer, how do you plan to play?" Zhu Jishi asked directly, looking at the confident Old Peer beside him.
Seeing this, old Pierre laughed and said, "Your Majesty, there's no need to worry. The enemy army is still stuck in the Middle Ages. Whether it's logistics, organization, officers, soldier training, or even weapons, they are all a generation behind us. You could say they are ahead in every aspect, so there's really nothing to worry about."
"Unless, unless a few people like Master Tianxuan and his group suddenly appear on the other side, there's no need to worry." After glancing at Lin Yang and the others, Old Pierre, who had been as proud as a rooster, immediately lost his joy.
Originally, in his view, there were no real rivals in the whole of China; they were all just trash. But after being thoroughly humiliated by Lin Yang, he dared not speak so confidently anymore.
"So how do you plan to fight?" Zhu Jishi continued.
"Nowadays, our army has a strong military spirit, which is an advantage. Our army's training is very strict, and most soldiers obey orders, which is also an advantage. Our army's muskets and artillery are far superior to the enemy's, which is also an advantage. So, in my opinion, if we make good use of these three points, we can win battles even with our eyes closed," Old Pierre said with a smile.
Warfare, whether ancient or modern, hasn't really changed much. To win, you need to outnumber the enemy or defeat the weak. Master these two core principles, and victory would be inevitable.
"Our artillery consists of Napoleonic nine-pound or twelve-pound cannons, with a very long range, far superior to the enemy's mighty and invincible general cannons. Since they are willing to defend, let's bombard them to our hearts' content. This makeshift camp won't hold out for long," Old Peel said, pointing at the Qing army's temporary camp.
Upon hearing this, Zhu Jishi nodded. They were all temporary structures, many built with wood and mud. The quality wasn't great either; without artillery, relying solely on rifles, it might have been quite difficult.