Chapter 687: American service to entertain the troops!

Coming to Ye Mingsheng, An Miaoyi asked cautiously:

“Husband, has something happened to Bai Changrong…?”

Listening to An Miaoyi's words, Ye Mingsheng was a little surprised at first, wondering why An Miaoyi suddenly asked this. Then Ye Mingsheng suddenly realized what An Miaoyi was talking about. After pondering for a while, Ye Mingsheng nodded slightly and said:

"The First Army suffered a small loss in Anqing and lost 3,000 troops. Bai Changrong led the rear guard and was seriously injured. Does Bai Yuanyuan know about this?"

An Miaoyi was a little surprised to get a positive answer from Ye Mingsheng. When she first heard that Yuan Song had been defeated in Anqing, she thought it was a rumor. After all, since she and Ye Mingsheng got married, the Fengwu Army had been invincible all the way, fighting from outside the Great Wall to outside the Great Wall, from Liaoyang to Hebei and Henan, and had never lost a battle.

However, as the news became more and more true, there was even news that the First Army was completely wiped out in Anqing, which made her feel a little worried. Other people who heard the news, such as Shen Yutong and Jinyu, also came to her to confirm it. After hesitating for a long time, she finally decided to find Ye Mingsheng.

Although it was a little surprising that the Fengwu Army was defeated, An Miaoyi regained her composure when she heard Ye Mingsheng say that it was just a small loss. She replied to Ye Mingsheng:
"Sister Bai just had a baby and is in confinement, so I didn't dare tell her the news. I have already told the servants not to tell her the news!"

Ye Mingsheng nodded slightly when he heard this. As the ancients said, victory and defeat are common in the military. Moreover, although the First Army suffered a loss at the hands of Xu Zhaojie this time, it only lost 3,000 people and did not suffer any serious damage...

Therefore, Ye Mingsheng did not block the news, but the news spread so quickly that even the woman An Miaoyi knew about it in just one day, which still surprised Ye Mingsheng. It seems that he needs to strengthen the control of public opinion with the Case Procuratorate and the Coordination Office to prevent anyone with ulterior motives from taking advantage of the situation!

After talking about Bai Yuanyuan, because the situation on the front line was tense these days, Ye Mingsheng had been working in the study until late at night, and even slept in the study with his clothes on at night. So An Miaoyi reminded Ye Mingsheng again, asking him to pay attention to rest and take good care of his body, not to work too hard, and to leave it to Zhao Han, Gu Sansi and others for non-important matters.

Feeling the care and affection in An Miaoyi's words, Ye Mingsheng felt a warm current flowing through his heart. He agreed to An Miaoyi's request, and then asked about Xiao Jingren's recent situation. However, for a powerful man like Ye Mingsheng, happy and warm times are always short. Soon Ye Cheng came over and told Ye Mingsheng that Fengqiu had sent a handwritten letter from Yuan Song.

Hearing that Yuan Song had sent back a handwritten letter, Ye Mingsheng was immediately tempted. Seeing this, An Miaoyi was very tactful and said goodbye and left. Before leaving, she did not forget to remind Ye Mingsheng to have a good rest. In the evening, she would stew ginseng chicken soup for him and asked Ye Mingsheng to have a good meal.

After seeing An Miaoyi off with a smile, Ye Mingsheng took over the handwritten letter from Yuan Song, which had been sent 800 miles in an emergency, from Ye Cheng...

He opened the letter and took out the letter paper. Although he had not read the contents of the letter carefully, Ye Mingsheng felt relieved when he saw Yuan Song's familiar handwriting on the letter paper. The fact that Yuan Song was able to write a letter to him personally instead of asking someone to write for him meant that Yuan Song's injury was not serious.

Yuan Song’s letter was five pages long and contained a lot of content, which was mainly divided into three parts!
The first part is that Yuan Song apologized to Ye Mingsheng for the defeat in Chengfeng County and made an in-depth analysis of the reasons for the defeat. Yuan Song believed that the direct cause of the defeat was that as the main general commanding the entire army, he was not cautious enough and gave Xu Zhaojie an opportunity to take advantage.

Secondly, Yuan Song believed that the Huainan Army under Xu Zhaojie had made great progress in its combat effectiveness after obtaining tens of thousands of Shenwu guns and dozens of Zhengdong cannons from the Luoan court. If the Fengwu Army wanted to defeat the enemy, it would have to at least deploy troops on a one-to-one basis.

The second part of the letter is Yuan Song’s hidden concerns about the problems existing in the Fengwu Army.

Yuan Song believed that as the Fengwu Army fought from outside the Great Wall to inside the Great Wall, from Liaoyang to Hebei, Henan, Yunnan and Bing, it was invincible wherever it went. On the one hand, it accumulated the courage and confidence for the Fengwu Army to win, and on the other hand, it also made the Fengwu Army begin to be filled with some underestimation of the enemy and arrogance. Many Fengwu Army officers and soldiers felt that as long as the Fengwu Army launched an offensive, the enemy would collapse...

In addition to underestimating the enemy, Yuan Song also pointed out that the Fengwu Army is currently very dependent on firearms. Without the advantage of firearms, the soldiers will become anxious. At present, the limitations of firearms are still not small, especially on rainy days, it is difficult for firearms to play their due role. The defeat in Chengfeng County this time was partly due to the fact that it had been rainy for several consecutive days, the Fengwu Army's gunpowder was damp, and the power of the firearms was not fully exerted!

In the third part of the letter, Yuan Song believed that Xu Zhaojie, who had led his troops to attack Hebei and Henan, was waiting for an opportunity to observe the attitude of the Fengwu Army towards Hebei and Henan. If the Fengwu Army did not launch a strong counterattack in Hebei and Henan, then Xu Zhaojie might change his tactics and not erode Hebei and Henan controlled by the Fengwu Army.

If the Fengwu Army increases its troops in Hebei and Henan, then Xu Zhaojie will take a step back and rely on his many years of operations in Anqing to consume the Fengwu Army.

In addition to the analysis of the situation, Yuan Song also told Ye Mingsheng that the First Army had already begun to take countermeasures against the invasion of the Zhennan Army in Hebei and Henan. In addition, he also ordered Gu Shouting to temporarily relax the suppression of the riots in Hebei and Henan, so as to gather more troops to deal with the invasion of the Zhennan Army.

Thanks to these efforts, the invasion of the Zhennan Army has been basically controlled around several counties in southern Hebei and Henan, and has not affected the most densely populated central and northern regions of Hebei and Henan. However, according to intelligence from Huainan, the Zhennan Army is gathering troops in Huainan, but its whereabouts are unclear. Once the Zhennan Army sends reinforcements from Huainan, the current deployment of troops will not be enough.

After reading Yuan Song’s letter, Ye Mingsheng felt that Yuan Song’s opinions were very pertinent, and were the wise words he needed at the moment...
After pondering for a while, Ye Mingsheng walked to the desk and started writing quickly.

First, he appointed Yin Biao as the commander of the Fourth Army of Fengwu Army. The Qi Army troops under Yin Biao's command will be reorganized into the 11th Division of Fengwu Army. The 12th Division will be provided with firearms and instructors by Fengwu Army. From the date when the order takes effect, the Fourth Army will launch an attack on Anqing together with Zhang Meng's Seventh Division of Fengwu Army to block Xu Zhaojie's way back!
The second point is to appoint Yuan Song as the governor of Hebei and Henan, giving him the power to command all soldiers in the Hebei and Henan regions, including the reserve forces!

The third general, Yuan Song, reported to all the generals above the rank of captain in the army about the Fengwu Army's underestimation of the enemy and reliance on firearms. He asked the Fengwu Army to guard against arrogance and rashness, and to severely punish those who underestimated the enemy or exaggerated their military achievements.

Fourth, the 10th Division of the Fengwu Army was formed by selecting elite forces from the 6th Division, the Imperial Guard Battalion, and the Reserve Forces. The 10th Division must be formed within three months. Fifth, the ticket license system was relaxed. Interested merchants could apply to the Fengwu Army after passing the review of the local governors. The registration fee was 1,000 taels of silver. In addition, after successfully applying for a ticket license, they would need to pay a deposit of 100,000 taels of silver.

Sixth, strengthen private trade with private businesses in Jiangnan, and strive to obtain more silver to build the Tenth Division.

Looking at the order he had written, Ye Mingsheng had a serious expression. Right now it was a difficult time for the Fengwu Army, but as long as they could overcome this difficulty, the situation in the world would become clearer, and the momentum of the Fengwu Army to unify the Great Zhou would be unstoppable. No one could stop him, Ye, from creating a prosperous era with all nations coming to pay tribute and congratulations from all directions!
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Fengqiu, Fengwu Army Camp
Yuan Song, with a bandage on his left hand, was standing next to the sand table, observing the situation on the sand table with a serious expression. In the battle of Chengfeng County, because of the surprise attack by the main force of the Zhennan Army led by Xu Zhaojie himself, Yuan Song was in a hurry to move closer to the front line to command. The Zhennan Army seemed to have recognized his identity, and Xu Zhaojie dispatched the Zhengdong cannon for bombing, wanting to kill Yuan Song directly.

Xu Zhaojie's idea is very good. If this idea succeeds, the Fengwu Army would not have lost only 3,000 people in the battle of Chengfeng County after Yuan Song's death. In addition, it would have been a major blow to the morale of the Fengwu Army.

However, because the Zhennan Army's artillery and shells had to be transported from Guanzhong and were extremely rare, the Zhennan Army was reluctant to use live ammunition for gunners during the training process. This resulted in the Zhennan Army's gunners being of very average level. They could only ensure that the shells were fired, but where they would hit was up to fate!
Therefore, the cannon aimed at Yuan Song hit Yuan Song ten feet away, causing Yuan Song's arm to be scratched by broken shrapnel. Although he bled a lot, fortunately, it was only a superficial injury and nothing serious. Yuan Song could still continue to command the First Army to fight.

Just as Yuan Song was studying the enemy and our own situation, the general of the First Division, Ma Zhongjun, walked into the tent and asked Yuan Song, who was sitting in the main seat:
"Reporting to Commander Yuan, the owner of Yuchun Hall, Wang Jiang, has brought people with pigs, sheep, chickens, ducks, and some medicines to entertain the troops..."

Hearing this news, Yuan Song was a little surprised. He frowned and thought for a while before asking:
"Wang Jiang from Yuchun Hall? Aren't they doing jade business in Yujing? Why don't they stay in Yujing and come to Fengqiu to entertain the troops? Does our army have any contact with that woman?"

Ma Zhongjun nodded and said:
"Our army and Wang Jiangshi had no previous dealings, but Wang Jiangshi came to entertain the troops this time with a note from Zhang Zhiwen, entrusted by Zhang Zhiwen!"

When he heard the name "Zhang Zhiwen", Yuan Song's suspicion was reduced. After a moment's hesitation, he said to Ma Zhongjun:
"Since Zhang Zhiwen sent us here to entertain the troops, Zhongjun, you should go and take care of them. I have some things to do here!"

"Yes!"

After receiving Yuan Song's order, Ma Zhongjun immediately took the order and left.

As one of the most senior generals in the Fengwu Army, Yuan Song knew very well that Ye Mingsheng was most taboo about the army having too many contacts with local areas, and he had always been avoiding this point. Moreover, the one who came to entertain the troops this time was a woman named Jiang Wang. Although he had never met her, Yuan Song knew some rumors about this woman who was quite famous in the circle of powerful people in Hebei and Henan. Therefore, Yuan Song felt that it was better to keep a certain distance from her.

However, for Zhang Zhiwen’s sake, Yuan Song still planned to meet with Jiang Wangshi later to thank her for her hospitality. After all, Zhang Zhiwen was only a deputy governor now, but based on current news, it wouldn’t be long before he could get rid of the word “deputy”...
The First Army is fighting in Hebei and Henan and needs the cooperation of the Hebei and Henan Provincial Government, so they have to give Zhang Zhiwen some face!

At this time in the tent, Ma Zhongjun looked at the beautiful woman with a veil on her face and said with a smile:

"Thank you, Madam Wang, for coming to comfort our troops. The medicines you sent have solved our army's urgent needs!"

As he spoke of Ma Zhongjun, the young hero of the Fengwu Army, his eyes flashed with some strangeness as he looked at the beautiful woman in front of him.

Although he had heard of the reputation of the woman in Ji and Henan, his heart still beat faster when he saw Wang Jiang in person. Bai Xi's delicate oval face was embedded with affectionate peach blossom eyes. Although she was wearing a loose robe, it still could not hide her exquisite figure. Her every frown and smile touched the man's heart!
In response to Ma Zhongjun's thanks, Jiang Wang smiled politely and said:

"It's just a small favor, not worth mentioning! General Ma, you are too polite. These are what I should do. If there were no mighty men like you to protect the peace, how could we small merchants do business in the rear with peace of mind?"

Hearing Jiang Wangshi's praise, Ma Zhongjun's expression also showed some brilliance, and he said with great emotion:
"Although Madam is a woman, her knowledge is far beyond that of many gentry and powerful people. They just guard their own small piece of land and would rather their food and property be robbed by refugees and bandits than cooperate with our Fengwu Army. If they all have Madam Wang, with your knowledge, how could you let the lunatic Xu Zhaojie take advantage of you!"

At the end, Ma Zhongjun seemed to have remembered the defeat in Chengfeng County not long ago, and subconsciously pounded the table in anger.

"boom!"

Hearing this loud noise, Ma Zhongjun realized that there was a beautiful woman named Jiang Wang beside him, and said to her a little embarrassedly:
“Madam Wang, I’m sorry…”

Looking at Ma Zhongjun who wanted to explain, Jiang Wangshi smiled and shook her head and said:

"General Ma, you don't have to apologize. People with your temperament are rare!"

(End of this chapter)