Before hanging himself, Chongzhen lifted the table

Chapter 196 The Situation in Central Sichuan

Of course, in the 18th year of Chongzhen, the butterfly effect was already very big. Although Sichuan was closed, it was still affected to some extent.At most, the message delivery is slow and the impact is delayed.

At the beginning, news spread to Sichuan, saying that the emperor personally led the army to fight and won the battle. There was a duel in front of the battle, and he surrendered Tianxing Zhang Tianlin, and there was a battle in front of which he captured a prince of Jianlu alive and defeated Jianlu. Total annihilation is nothing.

After the news reached Sichuan, no one believed it, whether it was the imperial officers and soldiers or the Daxi Army.

Not only was it further exaggerated in the process of spreading the news, but as far as the part itself was not exaggerated, it was also unimaginable for people here in Sichuan.

A simple fact: if the emperor really had this ability, how could he have caused the world to be in chaos for so many years, and how many times had he issued edicts to blame himself?

Therefore, the rumors cannot be trusted!
Later, news spread to Sichuan that Zuo Liangyu had surrendered to Li Zicheng, and Dashun's army, numbering one million, swept across the Yangtze River Basin, and then marched along the Yangtze River by land and water to attack Nanjing in a mighty manner.

When this news reached Sichuan, it happened to be when Zhang Xianzhong failed to capture Hanzhong. After hearing the news, he immediately felt the threat from the Dashun Army.

Not to mention that he and Li Zicheng didn't deal with each other before, but recently he took away Li Zicheng's territory in Sichuan and sent troops to attack Li Zicheng's home base of Shaanxi. The two sides were destined to not live in harmony.Once Li Zicheng takes Nanjing and has already occupied the Central Plains before, the possibility of Li Zicheng taking over the world will become extremely high.

This sense of crisis made Zhang Xianzhong immediately make a decision to capture the entire Shu region as the foundation.

Originally, when he mobilized his troops to attack Hanzhong, the imperial officers and soldiers took the opportunity to launch a massive counterattack.

Fan Yiheng, the former governor of Ningxia and censor of Youqian City, was impeached and dismissed from office and returned to his hometown. His hometown is Yibin, Sichuan.At the end of the 16th year of Chongzhen's reign, he was promoted to the right minister of the Ministry of War, deputy censor of the capital, and governor of Sichuan and Shaanxi military affairs.

In the original history, there were rebellions everywhere, and Emperor Chongzhen hanged himself before the appointment was delivered to him.In this dimension, it was finally delivered at the beginning of the 18th year of Chongzhen.

By this time, he had already fled to Bozhou Xuanwei Division in the southeastern corner of Sichuan, so he took office as governor of Sichuan and Shaanxi in Fucheng, later Zunyi, and began to lead the court's counterattack against the Daxi Army.

At the same time, Yang Zhan raised troops in Qianwei, and Cao Xun raised troops in Lizhou. Fan Wenguang, Liu Daozhen, Yuan Tao, Wu Dading and other officials responded with their own troops. Zeng Ying even recaptured Chongqing, which suddenly gained momentum.

Fan Yiheng then led his troops to attack westward and regained his hometown of Xuzhou, which was later known as Yibin.

However, by this time, Zhang Xianzhong had already made adjustments to his military strength and sent Sun Kewang to lead a large army to hold a stalemate across the river.

Sun Kewang deliberately spread the news that Li Zicheng's army had captured Nanjing. For the ordinary soldiers of the Daxi Army, they were a rebel team and an encouragement; but for the imperial officers and soldiers, it was despair.

Beaten to death, the imperial court will be destroyed!
With the morale of the officers and soldiers low, coupled with the lack of food and grass, Fan Yiheng had to retreat to Gulin, Yang Zhan retreated to Jiangjin, etc. The officers and soldiers of the imperial court were suddenly on the defensive.

On the other side, Liu Wenxiu and Ai Nengqi launched a massive attack on Chongqing along the Yangtze River in an attempt to regain Chongqing, an important stronghold.Li Dingguo set out from Baoqing Mansion and attacked Kuizhou Mansion, trying to cut off the eastern access to Sichuan in one fell swoop.

Zhang Xianzhong's military strength is roughly as follows. He established the governor's office of the five armies, with Wang Shangli in the middle army, Wang Dingguo in the front army, Feng Shuangli in the rear army, Ma Yuanli in the left army, and Zhang Hualong in the right army.The troops were divided into 120 battalions, with "Huwei, Leopard Tao, Longtao and Yingyang as the permanent guards", and the governor was appointed to lead them.There are ten large camps and twelve small camps outside the city. The old camp is placed in the middle, which is called the imperial camp and dedicated to loyal people.Sun Kewang was also appointed as General Pingdong, supervising the [-]th Battalion; Li Dingguo was General Anxi, supervising the [-]th Battalion; Liu Wenxiu was General Funan, supervising the [-]th Battalion; Ai Nengqi was General Dingbei, supervising the [-]th Battalion.

Most of his troops were used to attack the important areas of Chongqing. Sun Kewang and Li Dingguo divided into two groups to ensure the attack on Chongqing's flanks. For a while, the Great Western Army gained momentum.

The court official in Chongqing was the acting governor of Sichuan, Ma Gan. He joined Feng Liangmo, the counselor of eastern Sichuan, to lead Zeng Ying, Yu Dahai, Li Zhanchun, Zhang Tianxiang and others to defend Chongqing.

Although the Chinese New Year is approaching, there is no festive atmosphere here in Chongqing Mansion. Instead, people are more anxious.

The imperial court is almost gone. If we continue fighting like this, can we still win?This is probably the doubt in the minds of every imperial officer and soldier!
If Zhang Xianzhong hadn't followed the advice of his left prime minister Wang Zhaolin and went on a killing spree, which frightened people, these imperial officers and soldiers might have surrendered to the Western Army long ago.

In the lobby of the governor's office in Chongqing City, Ma Gan was sitting in the main seat. He looked at the generals below, all of whom seemed to have low morale, and felt worried in his heart.

At this time, I saw a general with a scar on his face coming out of the queue. He clasped his hands and said to him: "Master Zhongcheng, as the Chinese New Year is approaching, maybe you can give some money and food to boost the morale of the army!"

The imperial officers and soldiers in Sichuan and the original regular army had long been wiped out.Nowadays, those who nominally belong to the imperial army are all local warriors recruited by generals and officials from all walks of life. They have not received any military pay from the imperial court.

Maybe he knew something, so he added: "The general can donate 500 taels of silver."

Donating 500 taels of silver sounds really small.However, he really couldn't afford more money.

Before Zhang Xianzhong entered Sichuan, he was handsome, eager for justice, willing to give money to help in emergencies, and he was considered a rich man.However, when Zhang Xianzhong entered Sichuan and defeated the original imperial army, he used all the money to recruit local warriors, and then led the troops to fight against Zhang Xianzhong's troops.

More than two years have passed, and no matter how much money he had, he would have spent it long ago.

No, when Ma Gan heard what he said, he couldn't help but asked with a little curiosity: "Where did you get 500 taels of silver?"

"Returning to Master Zhongcheng is the dowry of the last general's wife."

His wife is a rich girl named Dong Qiongying, who is as skilled in martial arts as Zhou Yuji's wife Liu Lanyu.There are hundreds of barbarian maidservants, who are especially good at fighting and can climb mountains like an ape. They are his virtuous helpers.

Hearing his words, Ma Gan couldn't help but sigh: "Yanhou's loyalty is really a model for everyone!"

Yanhou is not the name of a title, but the name of Zeng Ying.

At this time, in the lobby, Zeng Ying received no response to his words. The reason was very simple. At this point in the war, he really had no money!

There are not many people like Zeng Ying who are so philanthropic and can even pay for their daughter-in-law’s dowry.Besides, it’s really hard to be demanding about this kind of thing, unless people volunteer!
Seeing this, Feng Liangmo sighed slightly and said: "Now it is not a matter of money and food rewards, but the general trend of the world! The imperial court is weak, how can it win the hearts of the people?"

In fact, not to mention the ordinary soldiers of the imperial court, even a few of them don't know what will happen in the future?
Confused can sum up everything!
Although they cannot be said to be dragons among men, those who fought in the imperial examinations and fought on the battlefield are better than ordinary people.How can you not be aware of the general trend of the world?
It was also because they had their own judgment, so they didn't believe the news that the emperor was heroic and proficient in battle and unparalleled in bravery.Instead, they knew that Li Zicheng's million-strong army attacked Yingtian Mansion, and it should be right.

There are various signs that this is already the eve of the country’s subjugation!Where do they go now?

It is definitely impossible to surrender to Zhang Xianzhong.That Zhang Xianzhong hated most of the court officials.

I heard that his right prime minister, Yan Ximing, was a Jinshi for ten years in Chongzhen. He surrendered to Zhang Xianzhong and became an official. However, when Zhang Xianzhong passed by Yan Ximing's hometown, he found that the most luxurious house in the place was Yan Ximing's mansion. So he slaughtered his whole family directly.

Under such circumstances, who else dares to surrender to Zhang Xianzhong?

However, under the current situation, the Daxi Army's offensive is fierce and has forced the imperial officers and soldiers into the corner of eastern Sichuan. There is no way out!

The impact of Li Zicheng's news on the situation in central Sichuan is really great!
Originally, the imperial officers and soldiers were fighting back and forth with Zhang Xianzhong, but because the news reached central Sichuan, the situation changed drastically. The morale of the imperial officers and soldiers was low, leading to a defeat on the battlefield.

At this time, Zeng Ying saw the sad faces in the lobby, frowned, and immediately said loudly: "Mr. Middle-level Master, Master Feng, if we can't cheer up, how can we cheer up the soldiers below?"

After Ma Gan heard this, he smiled bitterly in his heart. Why didn't he know that it was just...

When he was about to say something, he suddenly heard hurried footsteps outside, and then saw Zeng Ying's general Zhang Tianxiang appearing in front of them.

Upon seeing this, Zeng Ying was suddenly startled and said, "Why are you here?"

Zhang Tianxiang was ordered to garrison Kuizhou Mansion and guard the entrance and exit of the Yangtze River in eastern Sichuan.Now, the bandit general Li Dingguo is making a large-scale invasion over there, and the situation is also very critical. As the general, why did he come to Chongqing? Could it be that Kuizhou Prefecture was lost?

However, after asking, Zeng Ying was very curious. If this was the case, Zhang Tianxiang should have a very ugly face, at least it couldn't be what he saw in front of him, as if he had picked up a big ingot that fell from the sky, and he looked very happy.

Naturally, everyone else in the lobby had the same idea as Zeng Ying, and they were all very strange.

Seeing that Zhang Tianxiang had forgotten to salute, he excitedly said to Zeng Ying: "Commander, what a great happy event, Li Zicheng has failed..."

Before he finished speaking, everyone in the lobby was shocked.

Ma Gan jumped up from his seat, leaned forward, and lay on the table in front of him. He stared at Zhang Tianxiang and asked hurriedly: "What's going on? How did Li Zicheng defeat the thief? Didn't he have millions?" A big army?"

Others were asking almost at the same time.

Only then did Zhang Tianxiang remember that there was Master Zhongcheng in the lobby, so he faced Ma Gan and quickly replied: "There is news from downstream that around the middle of this year, your Majesty led the army to a great victory over Li Thief's troops. They hunted for thousands of miles. Now the remnants of Li's thieves, less than ten thousand, have fled into Yunnan and Guizhou. The thieves in northern Huguang are all panic-stricken. After the news reached Kuizhou Prefecture, Zhang Dingguo had led his troops to withdraw to Baoning Prefecture. Gone. That’s why the general personally came to Chongqing to report the victory!"

After hearing his words, everyone in the lobby showed incredible expressions.Suddenly, several people started asking questions one after another.

"His Majesty personally led the army to defeat Li Thief's million-strong army. Is the news true?"

"To put it this way, does it mean that all the main force of the Li thieves was defeated by His Majesty?"

"No, His Majesty personally led the army, did he personally lead the army? Could it be said that the previous rumors that His Majesty led the army to defeat something were all true?"

"..."

What they thought was impossible before, after being corroborated by this news, they suddenly discovered that the previous news seemed to be true.All of a sudden, everyone, whether they were civil servants or military generals, was very excited.

However, after the people in the lobby were excited for a while, someone immediately thought of something, and immediately asked Zhang Tianxiang: "Since it happened in the middle of the year, and then the imperial officers and soldiers have been chasing Li Thief's remnant army to Yunnan and Guizhou, why did the news come here? ?”

Upon hearing this, several other people also came to their senses.If this is the case, it means that the main army of the imperial court should have arrived in Huguang, and Huguang is adjacent to eastern Sichuan. Shouldn't this news come so late?

After Zhang Tianxiang heard this, he immediately explained: "The imperial army's food supply was out of supply, so the new Lord Ge Laodu led some troops to garrison in the south of Huguang, blocking the Yunnan-Guizhou exit. The main army of the imperial court returned to Nanjing to rest."

After a pause, he immediately added: "By the way, Your Majesty did not come to Huguang in pursuit. Instead, he led troops to quell the thieves in Zhejiang, Fujian and other places."

Having said this, he raised his voice and emphasized: "In short, the imperial court has achieved a great victory, Your Majesty is mighty!"

At this time, such news came. Even if the news was not true, the officials present were willing to regard the news as true.No, Ma Gan immediately ordered: "Quickly, spread this good news to the whole army, spread it throughout Chongqing, and spread it throughout Shu!"

Outside of Shu, His Majesty has fought and won in succession, defeating the million-strong army of Li Thief, leaving only ten thousand remnants who fled into the mountains and forests of Yunnan and Guizhou. This kind of news is more exciting than any reward of money and food, because it is hope. !
Ma Gan also understood people's hearts, so he immediately made a decision, launched a vigorous propaganda campaign, led the generals and officials of Chongqing, and sent Feng Liangmo, the counselor of Eastern Sichuan, to the dock and asked him to go down the river to ask for help from the imperial army downstream!

Everyone who learned the news knew that as long as they persisted, victory would be theirs.

Suddenly, the morale of the imperial officers and soldiers in the Chongqing area of ​​eastern Sichuan was greatly boosted as the New Year was approaching.

And the news is still spreading, and it is estimated that it will spread throughout Shu in less than a month!

The Xi'an side of Shaanxi received the news earlier than the Shu side.

Because the Dashun Army in the north of the Yangtze River was separated by the Yangtze River, they only knew that the south side of the Yangtze River had suffered a defeat at first, but it was difficult for them to figure out what the battle was like and what the situation of Li Zicheng and others was.

He sent people to secretly cross the river to inquire about the news, and they had all the news. They chased him to Yunnan and Guizhou, and after contacting the remnants of Li Zicheng, they hurriedly crossed the river again.At this time, it was almost the end of the year, and bad news was immediately reported to Xi'an.

(End of this chapter)