In April 1854, Zeng Guofan, who was known as the first perfect man in the ancient world, led the Xiang army to attack Jinggang in an attempt to eliminate the Taiping Army north of Changsha, so that the Hunan officials, landlords, and gentry could show off and find a reason for the establishment of the Xiang Army. Who knows, Zeng Guofan "pro-conquest" for the first time, but met Shi Xiangzhen, who was known as the "iron rooster", and the result was a tragic failure.
Shi Xiangzhen (石祥祯), a native of Guixian County, Guangxi, and the elder brother of Shi Dakai, the King of Yi, was the second most powerful general in the Guozong clan after Wei Jun. At this time, Zeng Guofan did not have much military experience, and his ability to personally lead troops to fight was average. In this battle, Shi Xiangzhen cooperated with the water and land to lure the Xiang Army's water division to attack, introduced him into the ambush circle, and violently beat Zeng Guofan, forcing him to commit suicide by throwing himself into the water twice. After this battle, Shi Xiangzhen's fame soared and he became a fierce enemy in the eyes of the Xiang Army.
He violently beat Zeng Guofan and twice forced him to commit suicide by throwing himself into the water, but Shi Xiangzhen failed to expand the results of the battle. There were two reasons: "Engineering man" Lin Shaozhang made a mistake in command, and 20,000 elite western expeditionary troops defeated Xiangtan; the "Jiangnan battalion" attacked Tianjing, directly approaching Chaoyang and Hongwumen, Yang Xiuqing hurriedly dispatched soldiers and horses to return to help, and Shi Xiangzhen also returned to Tianjing to participate in the battle.
At this time, Yang Xiuqing intended to suppress Wei Changhui, the second powerful faction of the Northern King, and transferred the responsibility of the Tianjing garrison to The Wing King Shi Dakai to show his co-optation. What about Shi Dakai? Although he was reluctant to offend the Northern King, he did not dare to disobey the Eastern King's orders. To this end, Shi Dakai had no choice but to deploy military defenses to counterattack the attack of the "Jiangnan Battalion".
Considering that the grain route was blocked, Shi Dakai decided to open up the river surface communication line, prevent the "red single boat" from sailing upstream, and ensure the safety of the grain transportation line. So, how do you open up the grain route? Shi Dakai decided to build a fort near the upper bridge and squeeze into the rear of the "Jiangnan Camp" side, forcing Xiang Rong to send troops from upstream to help, alleviate the pressure on the Taiping Army's "water camp", and facilitate grain transportation.
After Shi Xiangzhen returned to Tianjing, he undertook the heavy responsibility of building a fortification, camped dozens of camps around the upper bridge, and confronted the "Jiangnan Camp". On August 22, the construction of the fortification was completed, and Shi Xiangzhen led his troops to attack the Qing army, broke into the Seven Bridges Urn camp, burned the Qing army's grain and grass materials, and killed hundreds of people.
On the 23rd, Shi Xiangzhen attacked again, sending the first general of the Qing army to Rongze, Zhang Guoliang, who was praised by Xianfeng as the "Great Wall of Jiangnan", led hundreds of "Jie Yong" to cross the river and detour to sneak up on the Taiping Army. Shi Xiangzhen suffered from the enemy in his belly, so he had to lead his troops back to the camp, and Xiang Rong took advantage of the situation to pursue.
On the 25th, Shi Dakai sent troops from Hongwumen, Tongjimen, and Yuhuatai to attack the Qiqiao Urn Qing Army; chaoyangmen and dragon neck Taiping army also sent troops to assist, trying to capture the seven bridge urns in one battle and establish a forward base. In this battle, the Taiping Army filled the trenches with sandbags while braving artillery fire and directly killed the camp.
Not surprisingly, Shi Xiangzhen should be able to take down the Seven Bridge Urn. However, Zhang Guoliang and Subutong'a personally commanded the front line, and also sent outlaws disguised as the Taiping Army to mix in and create riots, thus stopping the offensive. In addition, Shi Dakai sent a detachment to gaoqiao gate to set fire, which was destroyed by Cai Yinglong's regiment. In this way, the strategic plan of Yiwang Shi Dakai was frustrated, and the "Jiangnan Camp" was indestructible.
In September, Luo Gang captured Taiping Province, threatening the safety of the "Red Single Ship" fleet, and Xiang Rong had to send Zhang Guoliang upstream to fight with Luo Gang in an attempt to recover the lost territory. As soon as Zhang Guoliang left, Shi Dakai immediately divided his troops into four routes, attacked the Qiqiao Urn Qing army, and destroyed the 7 forts newly built by Xiang Rongxin.
Then, under the cover of artillery fire, the Taiping Army crossed the river to attack, and Subtunga personally supervised the counterattack. As a result, he was shot by a fire bomb, severely burned, and died soon after. Another Eight Banners general, Fuxing, was burned to his right finger, and the Qing army had to hold the camp and no longer fight.
After killing Subtunga and the morale of the Taiping army was high, Shi Dakai decided to completely destroy the Seven Bridges Urn Camp and pull out the nail placed by the "Jiangnan Camp". To this end, Shi Dakai asked the soldiers of the upper bridge to build a pontoon bridge to connect the stone bridge, which was convenient for the mobilization and cooperation of troops.
On September 10, Shi Da's troops split into three routes, under the cover of artillery fire, and crossed to launch an attack. Who knows, Zhang Guoliang had already rushed back from Taiping at this time, directly copied the Gaoqiao Gate, and cut off the back road of the Taiping Army. In this way, the Taiping Army not only failed to cross the river, but also suffered from the Qing army's front and back attacks, and the situation was very bad.
Shi Xiangzhen was very helpless and had to order the withdrawal of troops. The Qing army took advantage of the situation to cover up the killing, and there was chaos in the retreat of the Taiping Army, with countless casualties, and Shi Xiangzhen fled back with water, and he was embarrassed. It can be seen from this that with Zhang Guoliang present, it is difficult for the Taiping Army to take down the Seven Bridge Urns, he is definitely a fierce enemy, and his combat effectiveness is explosive.
Repeated attacks were defeated by Zhang Guoliang, and Shi Xiangzhen was very annoyed. To this end, Shi Xiangzhen decided to follow the story of the overlord Xiang Yu finding Liu Bang to single out, and personally repaired the book and sent it to the "Jiangnan Camp" to find Zhang Guoliang single-handedly, and the victory and defeat of the battle were decided. What about Zhang Guoliang? The fierce general from the Heaven and Earth Society was naturally not Liu Bang, who accepted Shi Xiangzhen's challenge and went to the appointment on time.
However, Zhang Guoliang knew that Shi Xiangzhen could fight, and there was almost no chance of winning a fair duel. Therefore, Zhang Guoliang carried a dagger with him in case of an accident. What about Shi Xiangzhen? Thinking that he was victorious, he had no defense against Zhang Guoliang, and as a result, he lost his life.
In the single challenge, Shi Xiangzhen easily took Zhang Guoliang, captured him alive, and then placed him on the horse and ran back to Tianjing. The horse ran wildly, and Shi Xiangzhen's joy overflowed into words. Who knows, Zhang Guoliang took advantage of his lack of preparation, took out a dagger, and cut Off Shi Xiangzhen's calf. Shi Xiangzhen was suddenly attacked, fell off his horse, and was cut off the first rank. The Chronicle of the Kingdom of Heaven says: "The middle shin fell off the horse, and the national beam broke its head and returned."
Shi Xiangzhen looked for Zhang Guoliang to single out, and as a result, he was killed on the upper bridge, which was a pity. Once Shi Xiangzhen died, Shi Dakai did not have a strong general in his hands, and Yang Xiuqing had to dispatch Luo Gang and Wei Jun back to Beijing from upstream to participate in the battle.
Shortly after Wei Jun left Wuchang, Zeng Guofan led the Xiang army from Yuezhou into Hubei, and the Wuchang defenders Shi Fengkui and Huang Zaixing retreated without resistance, and the Xiang army took the city in one fell swoop and attacked the town of Tianjia. In this way, the situation in the upstream is tight, and the downstream is also difficult.
Bibliography: Chronicles of the Kingdom of Heaven