June 21, the 27th year of Chongzhen.
When Chongzhen learned that it was Shi Kefa who was guarding Xuzhou, he felt somewhat complicated.
In history, when he was defending Yangzhou, the city was breached by the Jiannu in just two days.
Now that Shi Kefa went to guard Xuzhou, Chongzhen still did not think highly of him.
However, this happened to coincide with Chongzhen's plan.
(On April 18, the 17th year of Chongzhen, Duoduo led his troops to the outskirts of Yangzhou. While they were arrayed in battle array and trying to persuade the enemy to surrender, they also built siege equipment and waited for artillery fire. On April 24, Duoduo bombarded the walls of Yangzhou. On April 25, Duoduo ordered the entire army to attack Yangzhou and broke the city that day.)
After learning that Shi Kefa had left the capital, Chongzhen privately summoned Li Ruolian, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.
Li Ruolian was very excited.
Since Chongzhen stopped attending court, only a handful of people could see him.
Even he, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, had never had the opportunity to meet him.
Now that Chongzhen suddenly summoned him, it was hard for him not to be excited.
After the greetings, Chongzhen asked, "Did Shi Kefa go to Xuzhou?"
Li Ruo Lian bowed and said, "Your Majesty, we left half an hour ago."
Chongzhen said slowly: "Can the Jinyiwei in Xuzhou help?"
"Yes!" Li Ruolian assured immediately: "It may not be possible to kill the enemy on the battlefield, but it is no problem to spy on the enemy and persuade the enemy generals to defect."
"That's good. Let them find a way to lose Xuzhou as soon as possible."
"Your Majesty, don't worry. The Royal Guards will definitely..." Li Ruolian stopped talking halfway.
Lose Xuzhou as soon as possible?
Shouldn’t we save Xuzhou?
He thought he had misheard, and asked softly: "Your Majesty, please forgive me. I was deaf and dumb just now, and I didn't hear your Majesty's order clearly."
Chongzhen said seriously: "You heard it right, it's to let them lose Xuzhou as soon as possible."
Li Ruo Lian was stunned and said, "Xuzhou has been a battleground for military strategists since ancient times. If we lose Xuzhou, the situation will probably...I am afraid it will become out of control."
Chongzhen nodded and said, "It is precisely because I know that Xuzhou is a place that must be fought for by military strategists that I want to find a way to lose Xuzhou."
"Ah?" Li Ruolian was so shocked that she didn't know what to say.
Chongzhen smiled slightly and said: "Commander Li, just follow my orders and don't worry about anything else."
Li Ruolian did not agree immediately, but raised his head and stared at Chongzhen's face carefully for a while.
We haven't seen each other for more than a year, and Chongzhen is still so thin.
No...
Seems thinner than before.
Apart from being a little thinner and looking a little worse, there was nothing abnormal.
After reading it, Li Ruolian was sure that the Chongzhen in front of him was not a fake.
The reason why he had such doubts was mainly because what Chongzhen had just said was so shocking.
Xuzhou was so important, but Chongzhen said he wanted to get rid of it as soon as possible.
He had to suspect that this Chongzhen was a fake.
Chongzhen understood Li Ruolian's reaction very well.
Xuzhou is indeed very important, otherwise it would not have become a battleground for military strategists.
This is important for three reasons.
First of all, the geographical location.
In the Ming Dynasty.
Xuzhou is located in Nanzhili, at the junction of Henan and Shandong.
The terrain is very complex.
There are both open plains and steep mountains, as well as numerous rivers.
When attacking, you can send troops from the plains and march quickly.
When defending, you can build a defense line with your back against the mountains.
There are two major rivers in the territory: the Huai River and the Yellow River.
It is well known that rivers are natural defensive barriers.
When the enemy attacks, the defenders only need to hold their ground along the river, and the attackers may not be able to cross the river even at a huge cost.
In addition to the Huai River and the Yellow River, there are also canals and countless tributaries.
The waterways formed by these rivers will greatly reduce the cost of transporting materials.
Wars are fought for money and food.
Whoever has lower transportation costs will have an advantage.
And there is one more most important point.
Xuzhou has fertile land, abundant water resources and a dense population.
Although the grain output is not as high as that in the south of the Yangtze River, it is still much better than that in the north.
The more people there are, the more tax revenue there is and the more sources of soldiers there are.
Plenty of food means there won't be any problems with supplies.
Various factors made Xuzhou a battleground for military strategists.
Chongzhen did not explain why he took the initiative to give up Xuzhou, and Li Ruolian did not dare to ask directly.
The king and his minister discussed some specific matters, and then Li Ruolian said goodbye and left.
As soon as he left, Zhang Rong, the governor of the East Factory, arrived.
He knelt down and saluted, "Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you!"
Chongzhen said slowly: "Get up, do you know what I want to talk to you about?"
"I know. It's about Qufu."
Chongzhen nodded: "Good to know, do it immediately."
"But..." Zhang Rong raised his head, his face full of worry.
"But what? Just say what you want to say."
"Yes," Zhang Rong bowed his head, "I am afraid that after the news spreads, officials and generals from all over the country will be in danger. This is the second most important thing. If local officials and generals take this opportunity to turn to Nanjing, the situation will become out of control."
Chongzhen stood up and walked to Zhang Rong: "Don't worry, I know what's going on."
"I obey your command." Zhang Rong kowtowed again, stood up and left.
It was already dark by then.
Chongzhen did not rest, but asked someone to notify Prince Yong Zhu Ci Zhao to come and see him immediately.
At this time, Zhu Ci Zhao was drinking in a restaurant in the capital with a group of Mongolian brothers.
He was very surprised by Chongzhen's summons.
You know, the father and son haven't seen each other for more than a year.
Zhu Ci Zhao began to feel uneasy at this sudden summons.
A Mongolian boy asked, "What's wrong, big brother?"
Zhu Ci Zhao frowned: "Father summoned me suddenly, I don't know why."
The younger brothers present thought about it, and one of them whispered, "It should be about the prince's matter."
The news that Zhu Cilang had raised an army to support the emperor had spread throughout the capital, and they had no choice but to remain unaware of it.
Zhu Ci Zhao nodded: "It should be for this matter, but I don't know what my father will let me do."
Another Mongolian brother guessed: "I think they want you to send troops."
"Send troops?" Zhu Ci Zhao was even more surprised: "I only have a caravan, no soldiers."
The Mongolian brother patted his chest and said, "Although you don't have soldiers under your command, we have soldiers in our tribe! As long as your majesty gives the order, we will lead the warriors in our tribe and follow you south to quell the rebellion."
Zhu Ci Zhao frowned and shook his head: "I don't want to get involved in the prince's affairs."
Zhu Cizhuo was only eleven years old when he went to Nanjing, and grew up under Zhu Cilang's care.
In his heart.
Zhu Cilang is both the eldest brother and the elder.
Regardless of whether Zhu Cilang was a rebel or not, he did not want to become a direct enemy of Zhu Cilang.
On the contrary, if possible.
He would plead for the prince in front of Chongzhen.
"Brother, don't let your imagination run wild. You'll know once you go to the Imperial City."
"This is the only way!" Zhu Ci Zhao took a deep breath, stood up, and left with heavy steps.
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