Huguang is familiar with everything, and the whole world is full.

This sentence is really not a prank. While the hinterland of Hubei has been disturbed to a certain extent by the Nian Army, Hua Shana and Wu Chaoyue can still support the Hubei Navy to launch the Eastern Front War, fighting with the main force of the Taiping Army's navy to compete for the control of the river in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River. Unfortunately, the result of the war was not satisfactory.

The key reason for the unsatisfactory Eastern Front is still the lack of strength. Just as Wu Chaoyue said to Du Xing'a, this battle was actually the power of a provincial navy in Hubei, and it fought against the vast army of the Taiping Navy alone. Even if the Hubei Navy has advantages in ship quality and firepower, the number of ships and troop strength is still at a disadvantage, so it is naturally difficult to successfully seize the power to control the river in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River.

Hua Shana's limitations in selecting generals also seriously affected the use of military forces of the Hubei Navy. In order to control the main force of the front line for the Qing court, Hua Shana chose to let Du Xinga be the head coach of the front line. Although Du Xinga has the advantages of being honest, upright, brave and good at fighting, and is qualified and capable of being the head coach, he suffered a loss because he had never fought a water battle and had a serious lack of experience in the water battlefield. He led the Xiangyang Navy, which was formed in five years of Xianfeng, and the Baizhang Navy of the Taiping Army, who was of course unable to gain any advantage.

The most typical example is the assault battle against the Taiping Army Shizhongshan defense line. In order to enter Poyang Lake and get the opportunity to fight the main force of the Taiping Army Navy, Du Xinga personally supervised the army to attack. However, even with the powerful artillery cover of the Zhongcheng and Renyi, he had an absolute advantage in firepower. The experience-deprived Xiangyang Navy still could not break through the Taiping Army's heavy anchor iron chain defense line, and was repelled by the Taiping Army's land artillery fire several attacks.

In a hurry, Du Xing'a actually led the charge like a land battle, leading the flagship to launch a charge. As a result, it was immediately attracted by the focus of the land firepower of the Taiping Army. Then the Taiping Army suddenly issued a cable that could be moved. The main force of the navy, who had been accumulating for a long time, launched a large counterattack. Taking advantage of the rapid flow of water, he suddenly broke out of the lake entrance and almost killed Du Xing'a's flagship. Later, in order to cover the panicked Hubei Navy retreat, the Wu army navy even set fire to the flagship Zhongsheng was burned by the Taiping Army Navy, and lost more than ten sampans. The casualties were even greater than the Jiujiang Battle in the New Year.

Afterwards, Du Xinga thanked the Wu army naval forces and learned some lessons. He did not rush to fight anymore. He also listened to Zuo Zongtang's suggestion and went around the northern part of Hukou to attack the Taiping Army Balijiang Camp in Jiangbei, seized this important stronghold and cut off the water connection between the Taiping Army and the downstream of Hukou, and forced the Taiping Army Navy to take the initiative to go out to the lake to fight. As a result, the main force of the Taiping Army Navy forced it out, but the Qing army navy still fought with the Taiping Army Navy and was forced to retreat under the circumstances of mutual losses.

Then, when the Taiping Army Balijiang Mingmen was pinched, the Xiangyang Navy did not need to attack the Shizhongshan defense line against the wind and against the current. As long as they wanted to fight with the Taiping Army Navy, they could force the Taiping Army to go out of the lake to fight with the Balijiang Camp at any time. However, the battles had their own victories and losses, and no breakthrough progress was made. At the same time, the Taiping Army had indeed invested a small amount of bitter and sour weapons bought from foreigners, which greatly offset the firepower advantages of the Qing army. It also scared the Wu army's main warships, the Zhongcheng and Renyi, which were made of wooden hull, so they were completely afraid to fight near-side battles and could not provide more help to the Xiangyang Navy. Therefore, the Hukou battlefield has always been in a stalemate and no one can do anything to anyone.

Fortunately, Hubei's financial and material resources can afford Duxing Ada's stalemate. After gaining practical experience, the combat effectiveness and experience of the Xiangyang Navy are also constantly improving. If this continues, Duxing A may not be able to defeat the Taiping Navy. Therefore, even if the war is not satisfactory, Jiujiang still has a slight advantage and is optimistic in the long run.

The water situation was slightly better, but the land was a mess. Chu Yong, who was ordered to reinforce the battlefield in Jiangxi, met Shi Zhenji, a strong man from the Taiping Army, on the battlefield in Linjiang. He was defeated in two battles and was forced to retreat to Qingjiang. He hoped that the Hunan Army who would enter Jiangxi would come to help. Who would have thought that the current Hunan Army is no longer the Hunan Army as before. Wang Xin, the general of the Hunan Army who led the army into Jiangxi, was not even able to reach Qingjiang. He was defeated by the Taiping Army's partial division on the way and fled to Fenyi in a mess.

Then, Shi Zhenji did not attack Xinyu fiercely, but decisively pointed the blade towards Ji'an Prefecture in the south, quickly captured the two cities of Xiajiang and Jishui, and approached Ji'an Prefecture to govern the city of Luling. Liu Changyou and Jiang Zhongji had no choice but to quickly lead Chu Yong to reinforce, but were attacked by Shi Zhenji again, defeated and retreated to Anfu. Shi Zhenji's army also successfully captured Luling and completely took root in southern Jiangxi.

The Ji army in Shizhen alone had already blocked Chu Yong and the Hunan Army, which was at a dead end. The other main force of the Taiping Army in southern Jiangxi was of course even more invincible. It was like entering a deserted land. It almost swept across southeastern Jiangxi with the autumn wind sweeping the fallen leaves, connecting many small control areas of Taiping Army isolated in southern Jiangxi into a large area. Li Wen'an and Li Hongzhang and his son went south to attack Fuzhou, trying to cut off the left and right contacts of the Taiping Army in southern Jiangxi, but because they were not good at attacking the tough, they could not do anything to the city of Fuzhou, which had few Taiping Army defenders. The only new weapons were consumed, and letters asking for ammunition to Wu Chaoyue were also constantly born in Li Hongzhang's writings.

When the Qing army controlled the capital of Guangxi, Jiangxi, which had been persisting for a long time, was actually only Ruizhou, Nanchang and Jiujiang, which was in the northwest. Under such circumstances, it was actually only a matter of time left for Jiangxi Governor Wen Jun to land. Wu Chaoyue also began to fight for Yang Wending to take over as the governor of Jiangxi for Yang Wending. However, just sent a letter begging Sushun to act on behalf of the court, but someone suddenly came outside the door to report that it was Xiao Baoling, the son of Hong Kong Governor Bao Ling, came to see him.

In an eagerness to grasp the news of the Second Crow War, Wu Chaoyue of course immediately welcomed Xiao Baoling into the back hall and sat down. As a result, Xiao Baoling was also very direct and said straightforwardly: "Wu, I am here to inform you of a piece of news. In view of the brutal acts of your officials in serious violation of diplomatic conventions and your government's refusal to respond to the protest documents we submitted, our parliament has made a decision and is determined to launch a punitive war against your court again."

After saying that, Xiao Baoling added another sentence and said: "Also, the French parliament has also passed a resolution to go to war against your country. At that time, Britain and France will act together to launch an attack on your government forces!"

"What should be come, it's finally here."

Wu Chaoyue sighed lightly, then asked bitterly: "Dear Mr. Bao Ling, so we will become enemies in the future?"

"No." Xiao Baoling shook his head and said, "Our main target of punishment is your Guangdong army. Unless your court declares war on us, we will not attack the other army of the Qing Dynasty, nor will we terminate and cancel all trade contracts signed between us."

"Of course, in exchange." Xiao Baoling added: "Wu, I hope you can protect the lives and property of our expatriates in Hubei and their freedom of trade."

"This is no problem." Wu Chaoyue agreed immediately, "As long as the court does not issue an order, your expatriates can continue to trade normally in Hubei. As for the safety of their lives and property, Mr. Bao Ling, you don't have to worry. I can make a written promise. Even if the imperial court orders, I will never harm your expatriates or confiscate their property."

"Wu, you are the only Chinese who understands the world."

Xiao Baoling nodded with satisfaction, then put away his diplomatic rhetoric and said to Wu Chaoyue with a relaxed attitude: "Wu, don't blame us. We were forced to initiate this war. We still don't understand how your court can be so stupid? Why do we have to let our diplomatic envoys stationed in Beijing? Why do we have to block the country's doors and not allow Qing people to get along with us foreigners on the same level and communicate freely?"

Seeing that everyone is intimate, Wu Chaoyue said a few heart-to-heart words and said, "Dear Mr. Bao Ling, one is because they are stupid and unwilling to learn advanced Western technology and culture. The other is because they are treacherous and afraid that after the Chinese people have too much contact with the outside world, they will stand up to resist their brutal rule and liquidate their blood debts that they have accumulated for more than two hundred years."

"What does it mean to liquidate the blood debt they have owed for more than two hundred years?"

Xiao Baoling, who didn't know that Chinese history, was confused, and Wu Chaoyue was not polite. He directly introduced Xiao Baoling to Xiao Baoling the atrocities after the Qing Dynasty entered the pass, as well as the cruel oppression and vicious exploitation of the people of all ethnic groups in China, as well as the fear and fear of gunpowder weapons from the heart. Finally, Wu Chaoyue said: "Dear Mr. Baoling, there is a saying in Europe that gunpowder smashes the knight class. Although our court must have never heard of this, it also understands this truth. They are afraid of being smashed by gunpowder weapons, so they are so afraid of you who bring advanced gunpowder weapons, and the advanced cultural system you bring, so they hate and boycott you."

Xiao Baoling, who reviewed the history of the Qing Dynasty in China, nodded repeatedly, and although he did not believe in the superficial truth introduced by Wu Chaoyue, he also agreed with it. Then Xiao Baoling suddenly asked: "Wu, since you understand the West so much and understand the advanced Western culture and technology, why can't you stand up and lead the Chinese people to resist the ignorance and cruelty of your court, and accept and learn from our Western advanced scientific and technological culture?"

"Dear Mr. Bao Ling, you must not say this outside. You are instigating me to rebel. Our court will definitely kill you." Wu Chaoyue replied with a wry smile.

"Wu, I will remember your advice." Xiao Baoling nodded and asked in a deep voice: "Wu, I just want to ask you now, are you willing to do this? If you want, my father and I will definitely help you with all our strength."

Wu Chaoyue quickly called, shook his head and refused to say anything. Then Wu Chaoyue said to Xiao Baoling again: "Dear Mr. Baoling, I happen to have a gift for you. I am going to order three medium-sized steam gunships with a displacement of more than 1,300 tons from you. Please offer the price."

Wu Chaoyue turned the topic to business. Xiaobaoling, who came to China for money, had his eyes shining, and immediately started bargaining with Wu Chaoyue. As a result, the business was negotiated quickly. Wu Chaoyue, who had already accumulated a batch of silver, also agreed to pay the deposit immediately at the same time as the contract was signed, and ended the pleasant conversation with Xiaobaoling.

It was getting late, and there were still many things to be done in Hankou. Xiaobaoling refused Wu Chaoyue's invitation to dinner and said goodbye to return to Hankou. When Wu Chaoyue was about to deliver Xiaobaoling in person, Xiaobaoling asked others to leave for a while, and then asked Wu Chaoyue in a low voice: "Wu, you haven't answered the question I asked you yet?"

"Dear Mr. Bao Ling, no answer, it's my answer." Wu Chaoyue replied in a low voice in English.

Although I don’t like the implicitness of the Oriental style, Xiao Baoling, who had been spending a lot of time in China, still understood what Wu Chaoyue meant, so he patted Wu Chaoyue on the shoulder and whispered in English: “Wu, my father and I will definitely help you.”

"Thank temptation." Wu Chaoyue nodded and thanked, and whispered in English: "Dear Mr. Bao Ling, as a Guangdong native, I must make a plea to you. When your army takes revenge by force, can you not vent your anger on the innocent Guangdong people? What causes all this is our stupid court. The real object of revenge should be them."

"Wu, I will tell my father your words and ask him to consider it carefully."

Xiao Baoling nodded and agreed. Wu Chaoyue nodded and thanked him. He muttered in his heart, "My fellow villagers, I have done my best to help you. When I really start the army in the future, you must remember to repay my favor."

It must be added that when we officially signed a contract to purchase a steam gunship with Xiao Baoling, Wu Chaoyue took the first photo of this era. Excited, Wu Chaoyue bought a suit and took a photo as a souvenir. Not to mention, Wu Chaoyue, who was fucking and thin, was in the Qing Dynasty zombie suit, was so energetic after wearing modern clothes. At a glance, he looked a little bit chic. As a result, not only Zhao Liewen and Wu Dasai and others praised him, but even Xiao Baoling couldn't help but praise him, "Wu, you are so handsome when you wear our clothes, and your temperament is much better than Hong Ren's name in Taiping Heavenly Kingdom."

"Hong Renyi?" Wu Chaoyue was stunned and asked casually: "Mr. Bao Ling, when did Hong Renyi wear a suit? I remember that in the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, the regulations on clothing were stricter than that of the Qing Dynasty?"

"Some time ago, he walked through it when he went to Hong Kong to visit my father." Xiao Baoling also answered casually.

"Hong Ren-ye went to Hong Kong some time ago? What did he do when he went to pay homage to your father, Sir Bao Ling?" Wu Chaoyue asked again quickly.

Xiao Baoling refused to answer, saying that it was a diplomatic secret. But even if Xiao Baoling did not answer, Wu Chaoyue vaguely guessed some of the reasons why Hong Renyu went to Hong Kong to contact Lao Baoling, the British ambassador to China, and understood why Hong Renyu could not contact him some time ago. After realizing it, Wu Chaoyue couldn't help but smile and said intimately: "You have grown up and you can know that you have joined forces with foreigners to fight against the Qing Dynasty. It seems that helping Yang Xiuqing kill Wei Changhui this trick is the right move. The Taiping Army will only be stronger than in history in the future."

It happened that on the same day, three steam paddle-turret gun ships that were not very rare on the coast of China, crossed Wusongkou and drove towards the upper reaches of the Yangtze River with their whistles. Because the three steam gun ships were all hung with British flags, and the decks were all blonde and blue-eyed foreigners. At the same time, no banned smuggling items were found in the cabin. Wu Quanmei, the Qing navy stationed at Wusongkou, directly released them without any obstruction.

However, what Wu Quanmei's Qing army never dreamed of was that the three steam gun ships with a displacement of more than 600 tons entered the Taiping Army's controlled area and immediately lowered the British flag and raised the yellow dragon flag representing the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom! At the same time, Hong Renyi, who had disappeared in Nanjing for a long time, also appeared on the deck of the first steam gun ship, laughing wildly at the direction of Shanghai, which was shaped like an isolated island, "Dog Qing Yao, didn't expect it! Our Heavenly Kingdom army can start the steamship so quickly?!"
Chapter completed!