The main force of the rebel army, who is at a downturn and underdog, is working hard for its future destiny.

In Jiangling City, when the battle of the outer capital came to an end with the surrender of the numerous officials who lost their fighting spirit, the strategy launched by the inner city was also ended in a very short time. In this way, the ultimate goal of Zhou Huaian leading the army to the battlefield was basically achieved and initially completed after many twists and turns.

According to the preliminary statistics afterwards, the total beheadings before and after the Battle of Jiangling reached more than 10,000, and more than 8,000 government troops were captured and captured; among them, hundreds of Xichuan (Shenji) crossbow soldiers, who were regarded as elite officials, and half a battalion of Jin Shang cavalry; most of the rest were also regular official troops.

This is very helpful whether it is used to supplement high-intensity labor positions in mines, quarries, and salt fields, or to absorb and transform some of them to enrich the organization and tactical content of the imaginary enemy troops in the Taiping Army.

The corresponding price paid by the Taiping Army for this was a casualty of nearly 6,000 people; but compared with the fierce battle in Yuezhou, the casualty ratio this time was much more normal; the ratio of the fallen soldiers to the minor and serious wounded was about 1:3 to 1:4; among them, at least half of the minor wounded people who could return to the team after short-term cultivation accounted for at least half.

Of course, this is mainly due to the general improvement of Taiping Army's protective measures and corresponding equipment, which reduces the probability of collateral damage; coupled with the skillful cooperation of the battle formation, most of the wounded soldiers who were in the battle were replaced and rescued, rather than abandoning them at will and trampling on the ground or dying slowly, waiting for death.

Although many shortcomings and problems were exposed in this series of battles, they were at least the result of winning; summarizing and summarizing the experience and lessons afterwards is of great benefit to the growth and construction of this army; and as long as you can be good at learning experiences and lessons, whether it is victory or defeat, it can become an important nourishment for the Taiping Army to become stronger in the future.

Of course, because the expansion along the way quickly absorbed a large number of soldiers from the former rebel army, the problem of general decline in the physical fitness and physical fitness of the overall soldiers can only be slowly completed through persistent nutritional intake and conditioning, as well as reasonable exercise intensity.

In addition, most of the baggage and equipment brought by the official army this time were left in the inner city. Although An sent someone to set fire to the fire, the specific person in charge was not very concerned, so the fire was quickly extinguished. So now these equipment, equipment and other goods plundered and captured along the way, have fallen directly into the hands of the Taiping Army.

In addition, in the list of rewards and rewards for merit and rewards afterwards, Zhou Huaian found that at a critical moment, the one who led a team out of the camp outside the city to entangle the official army was Zhu Cun, who had just joined the Taiping Army for a long time, as a general. This is quite impressive and inspiring.

And here there is good news and bad news.

The good news is that Cao Shixiong and others, one of the main targets to rescue Jiangling, are still alive, although only three or four hundred people are left to survive in the repaired city with a strong strong repair; when the Taiping Army finds them, almost everyone is injured, and most of them are hungry, leaving only the strength to barely pick up weapons to resist.

But for Zhou Huaian, as long as someone survived, the main purpose of sending troops this time was to conquer the palace perfectly and perfectly.

The bad news is that this Jiangling siege was too fierce and painful. Not only was the rebel army, which was originally known as the full army and the two orders, basically lost, but as the household registration in Jiangling, which was originally a Fuhua Dayi, it also lost in the war;

Especially the young man in the city, he was either pulled up to the top of the city to consume it, or was slaughtered by the government army after the city was broken, and starved to death and illness during the siege. Now it is just three or four, and even the work of cleaning up and aftermath in the city can only rely on the elderly, weak, women and children to make up for the numbers.

In this way, Jiangling itself, as a transport hub function for contacting and communicating with various places, will basically be abandoned in the future; after all, no matter how much materials and goods you have, you will have to rely on enough manpower to be able to be circulated in the entire era. If there is not enough external investment and interference.

Zhou Huaian thought about it so much that he saw Cao Shixiong, who was one of the survivors after the war in Jiangling, was led in by a haggard face and dull complexion, and sat in front of him.

"Brother Lao Xu, I really don't thank you for your kindness; in the end, I rely on you to lead the troops to rescue you..."

Then, he touched his face and smiled bitterly.

"But now, I can't think of anything else to give you thanks... in this city..."

"Why do you want to thank me so hard?"

Zhou Huaian was a little surprised and interrupted him with some disapproval.

"Aren't we brothers of the rebel army, and we have always been justified in watching each other and helping each other and communicating with each other? Are you and I only have interests left at the moment?"

"But I feel really uneasy when I ask you to raise troops and work hard, and spend money and food, and lose your manpower in the end, but I get nothing. "

Obviously, the difficulties and setbacks during this period have made this generous and cheerful man become a little lost in his words.

"Now I have nothing, and this city is the one that can be used to."

"If you can survive, it will be the best reward for me."

Zhou Huaian sighed inwardly and said earnestly.

"Can we wait for a long journey just to plan this city... Of course, we have a longer-term plan and what we want..."

"I understood from the beginning that the rebels acted as determined to seek justice and survive for the poor people in the world; they were doing the act of killing officials and overthrowing the court. What is the gain and loss of this mere Jiangling City? It is not in my eyes."

"Actually, compared to the gains and losses of this city and a place, I value you more than Brother Cao. I must not sit idly by and face you."

Speaking of this, Zhou Huaian continued to encourage him.

"Besides, if you hadn't been in Jiangling and blocked most of the threats from the government troops going south, how could I have calmly communicated with various rebels in Guangzhou and communicated with each other...?"

"The reason why rescue of Jiangling was not on a whim, but for the long-term plan of our rebel army. As the saying goes, it is a matter of public and private affairs, so don't have too much burden."

"But I'm thinking too much... I'm worried about the gains and losses in front of me and have messed up my basic situation."

Cao Shixiong shook his head in surprise and sighing.

"But I don't know what plans and plans are next for Brother Xu?"

"Of course, I am fully supporting you Brother Cao, and continue to maintain Jiangling's victory and hub for a long time..."

Zhou Huaian was confident; in fact, he had already thought of a specific plan before this.

“In the city…”

Cao Shixiong wanted to speak but stopped the Tao.

"It's not a problem in the city. Then I will divide my troops to recover the counties in Jingzhou, and then include the corresponding population to fill the Jiangling City..."

Zhou Huaian comforted him.

"Then I will gather in exile on the spot to recruit a group of new soldiers, and I will allocate a group of troops from you; the corresponding generals will be selected and appointed by you;"

"After the city defense in Jiangling is fully developed, I will hand over all the surrounding counties to you... It is necessary to manage well as the source of subsequent financial resources."

"However, I want to leave a garrisoned naval army to ensure the safety and proper transportation along the route."

"This is a matter of course. I also expect you to stay more people to share the burden for me."

Cao Shixiong couldn't help but nodded quickly.

"From now on, I will follow the Cantonian side to act in one direction."

"Brother Cao,"

Zhou Huai sighed when he said this.

"What our rebel army does is to fight against the government for a long time, and rely on it to go through repeated battles. If we are always bound by the gains and losses of the place, we will be at a disadvantage."

"If you want to deal with the official army for a long time, it is not enough to rely solely on defending the city. As the saying goes, the basic principle of losing people, losing people, losing people, losing people, and losing people, and losing people, and living people, and living people, and living people, and living people, and living people, and living people, and living people, and living people, and living..."

"We also need to train an elite soldier. We can rely on our fast footsteps and the wind-like geographical advantage, relying on Jiangling's water and land as our support. We will continue to fight with the invading official army for a long time, so that it will not be able to gain a foothold in the local area."

"But we need to mobilize local people to be suspicious and eye-catching. This will not allow them to plunder and disturb them wantonly, but also to comfort and protect them well."

"Since we are the rebels who ask for the people to live, we must reflect the fundamental righteousness and the bottom line of the situation, and we cannot be as obsessed with the momentary convenience and desire in front of us like an official dog, even if the subordinates do it arbitrarily."

"There are vast and fertile lands in Jiangling for thousands of miles, but the people's livelihood is declining and the villages are deserted. It can be done to organize the villages and households; it is also a place where there is enough food and military preparations..."

"And Jiangling is just a must-see in land and water. As long as he can concentrate on protecting the country and protecting the people, attracting and accommodating business and traveling, it will be a matter of time before he can return to a prosperous town."

"At least, after the official army of Shandong East Road was defeated, it would be impossible for it to make a comeback in a short time. Instead, the territory is quite weak; you can send a small number of people to the other land to disturb it."

"You can attack and kill, plunder large households, and then distribute money and grain to help hunger, encourage refugees or recruit people to invest... It can not only make the local area uneasy, but also weaken the source of their territorial output."

"Please give me some advice...the leader is willing to teach me..."

At this moment, Cao Shixiong seemed to have many touches and feelings, and changed his title without hesitation.

"Now the military government abandons us, but you are not far away to save us and plan these things for me. Even if you are a fan, it is difficult to repay the kindness of the lion. Please let me be honest and claim to be the leader. I hope to follow the horse under the banner of Taiping in the future."

.........

In the Poyang City in Raozhou, the town has been moved to the local Huai Army’s camp.
Chapter completed!