Chapter 394 Surrender
"This is the South Vietnamese Road-Leading Party!" Several people present exchanged glances with each other, and the same thought flashed through their minds.
The war has reached this point, and anyone who is not a fool can basically understand the direction of the situation. Under the fierce attack of the Haihan people's powerful ships and artillery, the small court of South Vietnam was already in danger, and even the possibility of suing for peace had long been lost. Even if we can withstand the attack from the Haihan people and their old enemy North Vietnam this time, what about next time? On average, the Haihan people will launch a major offensive every half a year, and such a short time is simply not enough for South Vietnam to heal its wounds. Both military and financial resources are already in short supply. The reason why it has not collapsed until now is actually only because most people There is no way out, we can only fight as a trapped beast.
Ordinary people and soldiers at the bottom have no right to make independent choices. They can only obey the orders of those in power at the top. Even if they want to escape from this battlefield, they have no way to escape. However, some people in the middle and upper levels of the power pyramid still have life-saving cards they can play. Although it seems a little late to jump out and lead the way now, it is not completely without hope of success. At least in Ruan Jinggui's opinion, this matter can still be brought up to negotiate terms with the Haihan people.
Although Ruan Jinggui does not have an official status, he went to Sanya, the base camp of the Haihan people, last year on a peace negotiation mission, and had in-depth contact with the Haihan people. After returning, he was regarded as one of the top "experts on Haihan issues" in South Vietnam. Therefore, his Perceptions still have considerable influence. Ruan Jinggui believes that the combat power of the Haihan militia is indeed powerful and cannot be matched by today's South Vietnamese army. However, judging from his experience in Sanya, such a powerful combat power is also obtained by huge investment, and it is completely achieved with A heavenly army made from piles of silver.
Although the advantages of this force are outstanding, its shortcomings are also obvious. The investment is too great for the Haihan people to expand its scale, and the resources required to maintain cross-sea operations are even greater. This also explains why the Haihan people took the initiative to withdraw their troops when they were victorious in the first two times they crossed the sea to fight in South Vietnam. If they did not withdraw their troops and continue fighting, it would be difficult for the Haihan people to use the captured wealth to balance this army. The combat attrition of troops overseas.
Ruan Jinggui believes that the same reason applies to the Haihan troops to attack Hue this time. Moreover, the scale of the Haihan troops this time is far greater than the previous two, and the cost of the battle must be greater. With the way the Haihan people fight, fighting for one more day probably means spending tens of thousands of taels of silver, and this does not include the loss of personnel in the war. If certain conditions can be exchanged for ending the war earlier, Ruan Jinggui feels that the Haihan people should also be happy to see this happen.
Before Ruan Jinggui revealed his true intention, he made sure to check whether the Haihan people had any intention of negotiating peace, but Yan Chujie's unhesitating answer made him feel relieved. If the Haihan people are willing to negotiate peace for money, then there is no need for him to show all his cards.
However, for the Haihan side, whether to choose to cooperate with the Leading Party, the conditions that need to be considered are not only the reduction of material consumption or personnel losses, but more importantly, whether this choice will have an adverse impact on the post-war Annan situation. Will it interfere with the implementation of Haihan's strategic intentions for Indochina? Yan Chujie pondered for a moment before answering: "When Mr. Ruan talks about the Ruan family, does he mean the whole family or a part of it?"
Since 1558, when Nguyen Hoang, the son of Nguyen Gan, the minister of the Le Dynasty, came out of Hue, the Nguyen family began to operate their own power in the southern region of Annan. From 1593 to 1600, Nguyen Hoang had a falling out with Zheng Song, the "Marshal of the City, Chief Minister of the State, Prince Ping An," who controlled the government at that time. He sent troops to guard Quang Nan on his own, and no longer obeyed the orders of the Thang Long Palace court in the north. Although Nguyen Huang later married his daughter to Zheng Song's son, Zheng Jie, the actual leader of the current North Vietnamese regime, and the two families were married, the confrontation between Zheng and Nguyen had actually formed at this time.
Ruan Huang had passed away in 1613, and the actual rule of the south was now in the hands of his son Ruan Fuyuan, Duke Renguo. The South Vietnamese envoy Nguyen Chu captured by the Hai Han warship off the coast of Hue a while ago was the son of Nguyen Phuc Yuen's cousin Nguyen Thong. Ruan Jinggui himself is also a collateral descendant of the Ruan family. Although he has not entered officialdom, he is still considered a member of the privileged class in South Vietnam. From Haihan's perspective, the South Vietnamese die-hards who have always been against them are of course led by the Nguyen family, and the capitulationist leading party that Ruan Ching Gui now represents should not be surprised to be also a member of the Nguyen family. The two factions should still be treated differently.
After hearing Yan Chujie's question, Ruan Jinggui knew that the matter was settled, but he still asked with the intention of bargaining: "Can General Yan make it clear, what about the whole clan? What about some people?"
"It's very simple. If the whole clan doesn't have to talk, some people can still discuss it." At present, the Haihan side has the upper hand, and Yan Chujie is not afraid to make it clear: "You have been fighting the north for so long, and you will eventually have to It is impossible for everyone to be pardoned if someone comes out to bear the crime. The last chance was given to you five months ago. As for anyone in your family who is willing to surrender and help our army capture Hue City, we will do the same. Depending on their performance, they will be given some care after the war.”
Ruan Jinggui quickly asked: "Can General Yan be more detailed?"
"Your life and family property can be saved, don't think too much about other things." Yan Chujie was not interested in bargaining slowly with Ruan Jinggui, but only gave a rough solution.
At present, the Nguyen family almost controls all aspects of politics, military, commerce, culture and education in South Vietnam. Even if some members of the Nguyen family escape this disaster, Haihan will never sit back and watch them continue to work after the war. Take control of these areas.
"Then, as General Yan said, it's a deal!" Ruan Jinggui was actually worried that Yan Chujie would regret it, so he quickly finalized the matter.
"Okay, let's talk about business first. How can your people lead the way... Oh no, help our army take down Hue City?" Yan Chujie waved his hand, signaling Ruan Jinggui to quickly show his trump card.
Ruan Jinggui turned his hand, took out a neatly folded piece of paper from his sleeve, and slowly spread it on the table: "General Yan, please look, this is the defense plan of Hue City!"
The few people who had been sitting nearby and watching the negotiation immediately stood up and came over to look at the picture that Ruan Jinggui showed. Compared with the military map drawn by Haihan, this map is undoubtedly very rough. It only has a rough outline of the city, and some places are marked with branches.
Ruan Jinggui pointed to the map and explained: "The places marked by these branches represent different garrison troops. The number A is the Royal Forest Army, with a strength of eight thousand, all deployed around the imperial city. The number B is the army that retreated from Quang Ngai. , with four thousand troops, to defend the west city..."
Like pouring beans out of a bamboo tube, Ruan Jinggui told them all about the deployment of the defenders in the city. Everyone also listened very carefully. Since Hue City had been closed long before the war started, it was impossible to collect such information in the city. A large part of the reason was that the Hai Han Militia was currently stationed in the northeast corner and was not in a hurry to launch an offensive into the city. Since we have not yet figured out the deployment status of the defenders, we dare not launch a rash attack.
Hue City is different from the city layout that most people think of. Because it is located in a developed water system area close to the Xiang River, several waterways were introduced during the construction of this city. In addition to the two surrounding moats outside the city, the city There is also a small moat outside the imperial city. In addition, there is a waterway running from west to east through the entire city, connecting the moat outside the city, and diagonally dividing Hue City into two large parts, northwest and southeast. The urban area currently occupied by the Haihan Militia belongs to the northwest plate, while the Imperial City is located in the southeast plate.
Ruan Jinggui traced his finger across the river on the map and explained: "There are six bridges on this waterway in the city. If your army wants to attack the imperial city in the south, it must first occupy these key traffic points. The two bridges in the north Our people are responsible for guarding this bridge. Your army will be able to pass here to the southern city without attacking. Now the people in the DPRK who are stubbornly resisting are thinking of relying on these waterways to fight against your army. Once the waterways are blocked, Breakthrough, the defenders of Nancheng have only two options, either to retreat into the imperial city and hold on, or to abandon the city and flee! No matter which one you choose, I believe your army can handle it easily."
Yan Chujie did not rush to reply this time, but exchanged a few words in a low voice with Qian Tiandun, Wang Tom, Qiao Zhiya and others before saying to Ruan Jinggui: "This matter is of great importance, please Mr. Ruan to rest outside for a while and let us discuss it." Reply again.”
After Ruan Jinggui was taken out by the militia, several senior officials in the tent immediately began to study a new combat plan. There was not much doubt about the reliability of the information Ruan Jinggui said, because even if the information was false, with the strength of the South Vietnamese defenders, it would be difficult to dig a hole and set up an ambush for the Haihan militia on such a small battlefield in the city. . Of course, the most important thing is that at this stage of the war, South Vietnam has no chance of winning. Everyone thinks that the Ruan family cannot be monolithic and they are willing to fight Haihan to the end. There are always some smart people who will jump out and do Ruan Xinggui. things. If anyone dares to play tricks with Haihan on this kind of thing, he will probably be the first group of people to be pulled out and executed after the war.
As Ruan Jinggui said, if the defenders rely on the waterways in the city to resist, the offensive efficiency of the militia will be greatly affected. If the bridge passages on the rivers in the city can be controlled, it will undoubtedly greatly speed up the capture of the city. After everyone discussed for more than an hour, they invited Ruan Jinggui in again, agreed with him on the time of action and contact information, and asked him to be sent out of the camp.
On March 21, the Haihan militia, which had been dormant for two days after breaking the city, suddenly launched an offensive at dawn and launched an attack southward along the eastern city wall.
A musket formation of ten men was responsible for clearing the way in front. The few defenders who dared to come out to block were quickly exhausted by the dense lead bullets. After advancing two miles south, they arrived at the location of the river in the city. There were dense barricades erected on the bridge over the river, and two artillery pieces were erected on the other side. From a distance, you could see at least nearly a thousand defenders crowding the streets on the other side of the bridge. If you want to forcefully capture this place, it is indeed not a battle that can be solved in a short time. Maybe in the middle of the battle, the defenders will see that the situation is not good and just use their cannons to fire at the bridge piers, which will be really troublesome. "Show the flag!" Qian Tiandun, the leader of the team, ordered: "The Musketeers suspend the attack!"
A red flag was raised in the militia camp, which was the agreed signal for action. Ruan Jingui said that when the internal forces saw this signal, they would immediately take corresponding actions.
After waiting for a while, a red flag was also raised in the garrison camp on the other side, and then a group of soldiers ran onto the bridge and began to clear various horse-repelling horses, deer villages and other obstacles arranged on the bridge. After the defenders cleared the passage from the bridge, a young officer came out of the camp over there and crossed the bridge alone to the Haihan Formation.
"I'm the Black Flag Army Staff General Ruan Wenwen!" The dark-skinned officer announced his name when he arrived at the formation.
"I am Qian Tiandun, the commander of the Heitu Port Independent Battalion of the Haihan Militia." Qian Tiandun also stepped forward and cupped his hands in the same manner: "General Ruan, according to the agreement in advance, your army now needs to surrender and accept my Army arrangements.”
Ruan Wenwen responded: "I will fulfill my agreement, and I also ask your army to treat my men well and not to hurt their lives!"
"Don't worry, our army has always kept its word. As long as your men are honest, I guarantee that they will be safe and will be released unconditionally after the war!" Qian Tiandun patiently gave Ruan Wenwen reassurance. .
Ruan Wenwen nodded, then turned around and waved towards the other side of the river, and then said to Qian Tiandun: "Please cross the river and surrender!"
"Takahashi South!"
"Arrived!"
"Lead a company across the river, collect weapons, and control the surrender of troops!"
"Yes!"
Gao Qiaonan saluted with a military salute, then led a group of militiamen across the river, began to clear the weapons of the defenders, and drove the surrendered people together. This is the first time since the beginning of the war that South Vietnam has taken the initiative to form an organized unit to surrender. It can also be regarded as a precedent in the history of vigilante groups in foreign wars. Later, these prisoners will be escorted outside the city and held in temporary prison camps. Although these surrendered soldiers will inevitably be prisoners for a period of time, if nothing unexpected happens, the lives of these prisoners have been saved.
"What do you call General Ruan and Mr. Ruan who came for peace talks two days ago?" Qian Tiandun noticed that the two names seemed to be related, so he asked with interest while taking advantage of the time to clean up the prisoners.
"It is my brother who negotiated peace with your army!" Ruan Jinggui did not hide it at all, and directly stated his relationship with Ruan Jinggui.
"You two brothers understand the righteousness well... Well, there will be a chance to make a comeback in the future." Qian Tiandun was halfway through his words when he suddenly felt that it seemed a bit sarcastic and stopped quickly.
Ruan Wenwen glanced at Qian Tiandun and responded in a deep voice: "My two brothers are not greedy for life and fear of death, but they just don't want to increase their killings and let these good men lose their lives in vain. After this battle, my two brothers He will be regarded as a traitor by the local people, and it is impossible to be used by the court in the north. He will probably not even be able to keep a foothold. "
"The world is so big, as long as you have the ability, you can't go anywhere?" Qian Tiandun said with a smile: "Your brother is a smart man. Even if he can't stay in Annan anymore, he will find other ways out. If it doesn't work, you can also consider it. Do something for us.”
"You and I are enemies, so why would you use my two brothers? General Qian, don't make fun of me!" Ruan Wenwen obviously didn't think Qian Tiandun's statement was feasible.
"When dynasties change, the successors use the surrendered generals of the previous dynasty. There are countless such things. It is not surprising. Just like after the city of Hue was captured, would the northern court kill all the officials in the south? ? No, after all the killings, how can we find so many people who are familiar with the geography and people's conditions to fill the vacancies? Most of the grassroots officials will still be retained, it's just a matter of changing the boss. " Qian Tiandun looked at Ruan Wenwen. With a look of confusion, he nodded to him again: "If you brothers are not named Ruan, it will not be difficult to arrange an errand for you locally after the war. But considering the feelings of the court in the north, you'd better leave here. Go somewhere else to develop.”
Qian Tiandun's words of friendship were not just casual remarks, but a real attempt to recruit people into his group. Hai Han's plans in Indochina are huge. Four large ports in Da Nang, Quy Nhon, Cam Ranh and Vung Tau have been planned south of Hue. To develop these areas, in addition to Hai Han's own personnel, it will also It requires the assistance of a large number of indigenous leading parties who are familiar with the local geography and people's conditions. The best candidates to do this kind of thing are businessmen and retired officials. To put it bluntly, they need people who understand management and can operate.
After the collapse of the small court of South Vietnam, a group of officials and businessmen with interests in it will definitely be eliminated to make room for northern forces to intervene and control the situation. In Haihan's view, these cleared personnel can be hired on a merit-based basis, especially those related to the Ruan family. Due to political reasons, there is no way to get development opportunities in Annan. These people can be recruited to serve as their own. used. Qian Tiandun would naturally rather kill the active members of the leading party like brothers Ruan Ching Kui and Ruan Wen Wen, and give him a dose of ecstasy first. As for how effective this can be, Qian Tiandun won't worry about it. After all, his main business is fighting. The recruitment of surrendered personnel should be the responsibility of those in charge of political workers. If he takes too much care, it will It will cause unnecessary trouble.
After waiting for about half an hour, the surrender finally came to an end. Fortunately, the whole process was very smooth. There were no conflicts during the process of collecting weapons and gathering the surrendering soldiers. It was so quiet that the nearby South Vietnamese defenders did not notice it. Something went wrong.
This made Qian Tiandun's impression of Ruan Wenwen better. It was impossible to inform his subordinates in advance of such a voluntary surrender, so as not to leak the news. If he did not have absolute control over his subordinates, the process of surrender would probably be It is impossible to complete it so smoothly. From this, it can be seen that this Ruan Jingwen should still be somewhat capable.
(End of chapter)