Bai Wenxuan looked at the map and was calculating the military deployment of Li Dingguo. After thinking about it, it was entirely the good intention of His Royal Highness King Jin. He led the main force of infantry to occupy Guide, which was to be invincible. No matter what Shandong was like, it would be beneficial to the Three Feudalists in the southwest and the United States.

If the United States won the Shandong battlefield, then the infantry deployed along the Yellow River in Guide can block the defeated pseudo-Ming soldiers who retreated from the Shandong battlefield. After all, Jiangnan has been restored by the Southeast War Zone, and there are no elite troops in the two Huaihe areas. It is only a matter of time to lose. If the pseudo-Ming is defeated, it will definitely retreat to Huguang. Guide is the only way to go.

If the United States fails on the Shandong battlefield, its main force can retreat to several coastal strongholds, such as Qingdao, Dengzhou, etc., while the troops of the Hebei-Shandong-Henan Military Control Commission can join the South with the Sanfan infantry in Guide, retreat to the two Huaihe area, and join the Southeast War Zone.

"Yes, King Jin, I will leave the infantry to me. However, when you attack the Shandong battlefield, should you go from the north or the south?" Bai Wenxuan asked.

Li Dingguo thought for a moment and made a decision: "Of course, he went from the northern line, crossed the Yellow River from Kaifeng and entered the Hebei-Shandong-Henan Military Control Zone, got in touch with the United States, and then went along the Jinan and Qingzhou lines to fight. Otherwise, rashly entering the battlefield will easily cause misunderstandings."

After the Battle of Anqiu, the United States directly declared that the Nanjing court was a pseudo-Ming and the emperor was a pseudo-Emperor, and sent troops to attack and attack, which was completely beyond the expectations of the Nanjing court. Hong Chengchou and others' military operations in Anqiu were originally temptations and pressure, but they did not intend to directly lead to the collapse of relations between the two countries. In this regard, the Ming and Qing alliance was put on the agenda.

Soon, the pseudo-Ming court issued an order to the whole country to declare the United States of China as a rebellious foreign vassal, and Li Mingxun as a huge thief. The Nanjing court would implement the national policy of joining forces to pacify the enemy left over from the Hongguang era, unite with the Qing Dynasty to pacify the bandits in the Eastern Front.

Shunzhi also issued a wide range of manifestos in Qingzhou, claiming to avenge the king and father and to safeguard the enemy and the friendly countries. The two sides hit it off, contacted openly, and discussed alliances.

It was originally very smooth. Shunzhi abdicated, abandoned the rank, and returned the old land according to the conditions of the original explanation of the Suo'etu. Everything was well discussed. However, as the news of the change of Jiangnan reached the north, the situation changed, and the change of Jiangnan was very likely to be lost. The roles were reversed between the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Before the change of Jiangnan, the Qing Dynasty urgently needed an alliance and compromised everywhere. After the change of Jiangnan, Zhu Ming was unable to stand his mind.

The reason is very simple. This Northern Expedition of Zhu Ming almost scattered the country. The Jiangnan and Huaihe River were empty. Not to mention that the fall of the south would lose food and salary support, the soldiers would also be shaken by the capture of their families. They just couldn't stand the blow from the south. If they did not win immediately in Shandong, the Eastern Army that occupied Jiangnan would go north along the canal.

Therefore, the original strategy of Ming to be the ruler of Qing to be the vassal was unsuccessful. Hong Chengchou went to Qingzhou to meet with Shunzhi to discuss the matter and set the tone, that is, the Ming and Qing dynasties were made up of brotherly countries, equal friendly countries, and pacify the Eastern Federation. As for how to allocate territory and capture after Shandong won, these were not negotiated. The reason was very simple, and it was too late to go to the Qingzhou camp. Hong Chengchou received another news that caused him a heavy blow. As early as the end of last year, the Three Feudatories of the Southwest had already sent troops to Huguang and crossed the river to the north. The person who led the troops was Li Dingguo, King of Jin, who raised the banner - to go north to attack the Qing Dynasty.

Hong Chengchou didn't know what the relationship between Li Dingguo and the United States was, but he was no longer able to send elite troops to stop him. The Ming and Qing dynasties had been forced to the edge of the cliff. If it was delayed, it would be a collapse and failure. Only by striving for a fight and defeating the main force of Shandong Dongfan could there be a glimmer of hope.

After the alliance was confirmed, the Qing army marched from Qingzhou camp and marched towards Anqiu. The main force of the Ming army also set out from Yizhou and marched towards Anqiu. The two sides decided to attack the eastern nest in Shandong after Anqiu met, Qingdao.

The Ming and Qing dynasties were in a desperate battle, but Li Mingxun was not in a hurry at all. The news he received in Jiangnan was originally more comprehensive than what Hong Chengchou and Shunzhi received. He had already received the news on the fifth day after Li Jundu captured Nanjing. Li Jundu also briefly reported to him the plan of advance and recruitment. Li Mingxun believed that his son would quickly pacify Jiangnan, cut off the retreat of the Ming army and the source of food and salary for the Ming and Qing armies. After all, there were no natural dangers or troops between the Huai'an Grain and Grain Camp and the main force of the Southeast War Zone.

Therefore, after declaring war on the pseudo-Ming regime, Li Mingxun directly rejected the Beiyang War Zone's plan to take the initiative and defeat each one, and ordered the entire army to retreat completely, abandon all towns west of the Jiaolai Canal, and strengthen the walls and clear the fields. If it were not for the fact that more than three million people in Denglai would be threatened by the enemy, Li Mingxun would even withdraw the army directly to the Qingdao Fortress Area and use the fortress there to wipe out the hundreds of thousands of troops in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, instead of going to a fair showdown with the two armies.

Of course, withdrawing to Qingdao was just a beautiful fantasy. Li Mingxun would not allow the Qing Dynasty and the pseudo-Ming to rage Denglai again, and he did not want to lose this opportunity to achieve his contributions. What prompted Li Mingxun to take the initiative to fight was Hong Chengchou's secret trip to Qingzhou and connect with the Qing Dynasty.

The Security Bureau knew about the Qing Dynasty that Hong Chengchou had arrived in Qingzhou and met Shunzhi, but the same information was not obtained in Yizhou. The pseudo-Ming high-ranking officials including Ma Jixiang did not know about this. As a result, the Security Bureau and the Command made a wrong judgment that the enemy might have to escape.

The revival of Jiangnan, the emptiness of Huguang, and the three feudalists' northern expeditions, and they wanted to win the United States but failed. The safest way was to withdraw the two elite troops of Qingzhou Daying and Yizhou Daying to the north, and then slowly plan. Even if there is obstacles from the Hebei-Shandong-Henan Military Control Zone, even if there is a main force of the United States to pursue it, they can always take the main force away. If it is a decisive battle in the northern enemy territory, Li Mingxun would rather choose to decide the victory or defeat on the Jiaodong Peninsula.

The Security Bureau even predicted that the noble generals who led the troops of the pseudo-Ming might directly kill the Ming Emperor and return to the Qing Dynasty. Anyway, Jiangnan has been lost, and relatively speaking, the Qing Dynasty, which still controls North China, seems to have a more promising future. Of course, all this judgment is wrong. Whether it is Shunzhi or Hong Chengchou, they all want to make a fuss and decide the outcome with the United States.

The strategic decision Li Mingxun finally made was to shrink defense, preset the battlefield with the Qing army, and the Ming thieves fought to the death, while the battlefield chosen by Li Mingxun was the Baimaihu area west of the Jiaolai Canal.

Baimai Lake is located north of Gaomi City. It is a shallow lake formed by the low-lying land where Jiao River and Wulong River converge. In addition to the rainy season in summer and autumn, it is more like a swamp land of seventy or eighty miles in radius. Since the middle of the Ming Dynasty, local people have developed Baimai Lake on a large scale, digging trenches and releasing water, and silting soil and silting fields. The area of ​​Baimai Lake has been shrinking. The United States has been in charge of Shandong twice and has also carried out developments in order to cultivate grain, especially digging the Jiao River channel deep and introducing the Baimai Lake water into the Jiaolai Canal, making this lake completely disappear. It is only in the rainy season that it has become a swamp again.

The northeast of Baimai Lake is the canal, and the southeast is the old city of Jiaozhou and Jiaozhou New City. From Jiaozhou Port to Baimai Lake, land transportation is only more than a hundred miles. After the cultivation in spring, small sampan boats can go directly to the Baimai Lake area along the canal.

Li Mingxun set up the main army from the canal to the southwest, constructed fortifications and arranged camps along Baimai Lake, extending to the semi-aborized Gaomi City. He used Gaomi as an important node for defense and opened up a defense line of more than 60 miles. Except for a few soldiers guarding along the Jiaolai Canal, all the main forces were arranged in the camp in the southeast of Baimai Lake, including the 2nd, 4th, the Loyal Army, the First Guard Army, the seven mixed brigades or independent brigades under the theater, and North Korea.

, 40,000 Eastern legion formed by Japanese foreign aids, 45,000 Foreign legion led by Zheng Cai, and 38,000 Inner legion formed by Kowloon, Borneo, Africa, Palawan and other pioneering companies, with a total of more than 300,000 troops and horses. There are also reserve forces such as logistics, baggage, boat bridges, guards, and other reserve forces, as well as the command of the strong men, the rebel army, a total of 200,000, and the entire Baimaihu Camp, which stretched dozens of miles, had more than 500,000 people, and more than 200,000 horses and mules entered it.

Li Mingxun set up a battlefield in Baimai Lake, and the Ming and Qing coalition forces had no choice. If they insisted on going east, crossing the canal to enter Jiaodong, or attacking south from the east side of Baimai Lake, then the army could cross the frozen Baimai Lake swamp area, cut off the Ming and Qing dynasties from the middle and divide and surround them. The Ming and Qing coalition forces could only attack from the northwest direction, crossing this frozen swamp area, and colliding with the powerful heavy army group of the United States.

Baimai Lake in early spring has not yet escaped from the cold cold of winter. The frozen ground and various weeds and shrubs are mixed in. Some areas are still ice surfaces with uneven thickness. There is no clean water, no trusted roads, and there is even less firewood for heating. The stones and wood for construction of fortifications have to be transported from dozens of miles away. Even if the soil is dug, the frozen ground must be dug. The nearby villages are completely destroyed and burned by the army. Even some grass nests and bushes in Baimai Lake have been ignited. In terms of strengthening the walls and clearing the fields, once the United States makes a decision, it will be implemented very thoroughly.

In Anqiu, after the Ming army and the Qing army completed their meeting, Hong Chengchou immediately provided 400,000 shi of military rations to the Qing army, which had not received effective supplies for half a year. Shunzhi and Yongli did not even have time to meet. The two armies set out at the same time and advanced towards Baimaihu. They had no time anymore. The news of Jiangnan would soon spread throughout the north, the morale of the army would be unstable, and the generals would have the intention to retreat. The only thing that was fortunate was that at this critical moment, the United States on the opposite side did not propose more tolerant conditions for persuasion of surrender, but the news of the United States entering the southeast of Baimaihu had already been heard. We must speed up the march, enter the battlefield as soon as possible, and start the war immediately. Otherwise, the professional army on the opposite side would definitely build a defensive fortification like Linqu and Qingdao. By then, the strength advantage of the Ming and Qing coalition forces would be completely lost. Once the war turned into a war of attrition, it would be destined to fail.

In the cold wind, Soetu stood outside the big tent of Shunzhi, and heard a low voice of discussion inside. It was the Emperor of the Qing Dynasty and the Ming Dynasty's supervisor discussing military strategy. There were only two of them, and no one else left. The discussion had lasted for an hour, and Soetu received a very urgent news and needed to see the emperor in an urgent manner.

Finally, Hong Chengchou walked out of the tent, frowned, and returned to the camp of the Ming Dynasty. Shunzhi quickly summoned Soetu, his favorite minister.

"Master, I got the news that the Jiangnan changes a lot, Nanjing, Suzhou, Yangzhou and Zhenjiang have been lost," Soetu said anxiously.

The teacup in Shunzhi's hand shook a few times and placed it on the table with a bang. He said angrily: "No wonder the old thief Hong Chengchou is so anxious to attack. I thought he was worried that the Eastern Fortifications were formed and difficult to unfold. It turned out that Jiangnan had lost it. Humph, this old thing!"

Soetu hurriedly said, "Master, Jiangnan is gone, the morale of the Ming Dynasty is unstable, and this war cannot be fought. Let's follow the Queen Mother's method and retreat to the north, back to the grassland, Great Wall, and south to Shanxi, Zhili, and plan again."

Shunzhi smiled coldly: "Shut up, Soetu, you are the method of boiling frogs in warm water, and will eventually ruin the Qing Dynasty. If you withdraw here, let the Eastern Band eliminate Zhu Ming and occupy the Central Plains and Jiangnan, then my Qing Dynasty will only last for a few years at most. No!"

Shunzhi stood up, walked back and forth in the tent, thought carefully, and said, "It's time to fight hard. At this time, you can't hesitate. This is the only chance to defeat the Eastern Band. In the future... there will be no more in the future!"

"But...Master, now the future is broken and the future is confused." Soetu said, but when he saw that Shunzhi was already furious, he shut up halfway.

Shunzhi cursed: "No need to say, this battle determines the general trend of the world. If you win, the sea will be wide open, and if you lose, you will be doomed. If you are unsure, you might as well go to the Buddha statue and pray for the Qing army."

"Slave deserves to die!" Soetu felt deeply incompetent.

Shunzhi waved his hand and signaled him to the map. The map in front of him was already a little confused. It can be seen that the emperor and Hong Chengchou arranged the coalition forces about four miles in front of the Eastern Ban array, occupying several dunes and earth platforms in Baimai Lake. The coalition forces did not mix together, but were divided into two parts. The left wing was the Qing army and the right wing was the Ming army, but both emperors lived in the central place to command the entire army. In fact, the Ming army was mostly former Qing army, and they were not unfamiliar with the command and allocation of the Qing Dynasty. They were just worried that Shunzhi would treat himself as cannon fodder, so they insisted on not being combined and not being mixed.

On the map, Soetu did not see the camp where the army and Baoyi were placed. He already understood that Shunzhi had already made a desperate move. When he entered the battlefield, he would launch an attack directly. This was to burn his boats and fight with his life!
Chapter completed!