When Li Zicheng told the generals the news, warm cheers rang out throughout the military tent.
This is definitely good news for Dashun.
Song Xiance's words made everyone calm down quickly.
He bowed deeply to Li Zicheng and said, "Your Majesty, I also think this is good news, but I am afraid that Tan Hong and Tan Yi are pretending to surrender."
Niu Jinxing also expressed the same concern.
Liu Zongmin could not bear to watch any longer. He saluted Li Zicheng first, then looked at Niu and Song and said, "Left Assistant, the military advisor is worrying too much."
"Tan Hong and Tan Yi were born into a righteous army. They surrendered to the Ming court out of helplessness. Now that my Dashun Army has arrived, it is normal for them to surrender."
"Moreover, as far as I know, their military discipline is brutal and they have been targeted by Qin Liangyu. Even if they don't surrender, they will be destroyed by Qin Liangyu sooner or later."
Niu Jinxing and Song Xiance exchanged glances quickly and apologized at the same time: "Were we overthinking it, or was it General Zongmin who was thoughtful?"
They were jealous of Li Yan's ability to defeat the enemy without fighting, so they made those remarks.
Taking into account Liu Zongmin's attitude and the current situation of the Dashun Army, they decided not to discuss the matter anymore.
Seeing that no one had any doubts, Li Zicheng continued to ask, "What do you think of Mr. Li's plan to transfer troops from Xiangyang to besiege Chengtianfu?"
After some discussion, everyone agreed.
As the saying goes, to catch a thief, catch his leader. As long as Qin Liangyu is defeated, not to mention tens of thousands of Sichuan soldiers, even hundreds of thousands of Sichuan soldiers will collapse without a fight.
"Well, I will immediately dispatch troops from Xiangyang." After saying this, Li Zicheng looked at everyone and asked, "Before the troops from Xiangyang arrive, should our army continue to attack or rest for a few days?"
Xiangyang is two hundred miles away from Chengtian Prefecture, and it takes a whole night to deliver the message.
It would take another two to three days for the army to march.
If we continue to attack, the losses will only increase.
If the attack was stopped, the Ming army in Chengtian Prefecture would have a chance to rest.
This was very unfavorable for the war in a few days.
Song Xiance stepped forward in time and said, "Your Majesty, I think we should send a large army to hold the fort, and then send a small force to conduct a tentative attack."
"First, it prevents the main force of the Ming army from resting, and second, it preserves its strength to the greatest extent possible."
Li Zicheng was a little worried: "Zhang Xianzhong is attacking the city with all his strength, should we do this..."
Niu Jinxing smiled slightly and said, "Has the emperor forgotten the purpose of our army's battle?"
After Niu Jinxing's reminder, Li Zicheng remembered the two-level plan he had made before sending out the troops.
On the surface, they joined forces with Zhang Xianzhong to besiege Qin Liangyu and annihilate her in the Huguang area.
There are actually two other purposes.
One is to take the opportunity to annex Zhang Xianzhong's troops after defeating Qin Liangyu to supplement his own strength.
The second is to seize the opportunity to enter Sichuan and open up a new battlefield.
Zhang Xianzhong has his own troops, and if you want to annex him, you need to eliminate or divide these troops.
It would be bad for his reputation if he eliminated the enemy personally, but he would not have such concerns if he used the Ming army to eliminate the enemy.
"Send someone to tell Zhang Xianzhong to continue his assault!"
......
Ten miles south of the city, smoke rose from the Dashi military camp.
Zhang Xianzhong had just taken a sip of rice porridge when hurried footsteps were heard outside the tent.
"Godfather, urgent military information." Liu Wenxiu shouted outside the military tent.
"Come in." Zhang Xianzhong put down the bowl of porridge in his hand and looked towards the tent door.
Liu Wenxiu lifted the curtain of the military tent and walked in.
After he entered the military tent, he glanced around with the corner of his eye. Seeing that no one else was present, he whispered, "Father, my elder brother (referring to Sun Kewang) sent a message from Jiukou Post Station, saying that Ming scouts were spotted nearby."
Zhang Xianzhong was shocked: "Where did the Ming army come from? Jingzhou?"
"No," Liu Wenxiu shook his head vigorously, "Judging from the equipment of the enemy scouts, it is Li Xingzhong's army."
Zhang Xianzhong was even more surprised: "How come he came so quickly?"
"I don't know." Liu Wenxiu continued to shake his head: "According to my elder brother's calculations, Li Xingzhong's troops are only about thirty miles away from Jiukou Post."
"If we hurry, we can arrive in half a day."
Zhang Xianzhong frowned and thought for a while: "Tell Sun Kewang that the camp under his command was previously Li Dingguo's elite troops. Not to mention Li Xingzhong, even if his father Li Rusong came, he would be able to fight."
Liu Wenxiu blinked, and there was a hint of...worry in his eyes as he looked at Zhang Xianzhong.
He was wondering if there was anything wrong with his godfather.
Also Li Rusong...
That was the Li family of the Ming Dynasty's Dongli Xima, a big figure who commanded the Ningxia Campaign and the Imjin War against Japanese pirates.
If Li Rusong had not died and had come, he would have persuaded his adoptive father to surrender without hesitation.
If you surrender you may live, but if you don't surrender you will surely die.
"My eldest brother just lost to Li Xingzhong before. He is not sure of winning against Li Xingzhong again, so he asked me to tell my adoptive father."
"Tell me what?" Zhang Xianzhong was very unhappy. "I gave him 15,000 soldiers and horses for the purpose of blocking the Ming army's reinforcements."
"Tell him to contain Li Xingzhong, otherwise he will be punished by military law."
"Yes, I'll tell you right away." Liu Wenxiu turned around and turned back: "Foster father, how are we going to deploy the troops tomorrow?"
"Continue the attack and don't give the Ming army a chance to rest."
......
Chengtian Prefecture.
After counting the losses of each department, Qin Liangyu frowned.
She suffered heavy losses under the double attack from Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong.
After dinner, Qin Liangyu arranged tomorrow's actions.
"Tomorrow, the White Spear Soldiers will continue to fight the enemy in the north of the city. Fan Yiheng, Ma Yingshi, Jia Liandeng and Yang Weidong will defend the city. Hou Tianxi, Gao Mingzuo, Cao Xun and Fan Wenguang will lead their troops to the south of the city to fight the bandits."
After receiving the order, the generals stood up and left.
After they were completely gone, Ma Wannian walked in with a mysterious look on his face.
He held an arrow in his left hand and a piece of white cloth in his right hand.
"Grandma, there are a few arrows shot from outside the city, tied with white cloth." After saying that, Ma Wannian placed the arrows and the white cloth in front of Qin Liangyu at the same time.
Qin Liangyu was in no mood to read it, so she asked directly, "What's written on the white cloth?"
"I don't understand." Ma Wannian answered simply and crisply.
"Could it be a letter written in code by the Embroidered Uniform Guard?" Qin Liangyu suddenly became interested.
She sent someone to call the factory guards left by Zhang Rong and asked them to decipher the contents of the letter.
The superstition was quickly deciphered, and the content consisted of only twelve words: Nanyang has fallen, and Tan Hong and Tan Yi surrendered without a fight.
Ma Wannian's face turned visibly pale: "Grandma, we'll give them money and food if they ask for it. How can we surrender without a fight?"
Qin Liangyu was somewhat surprised, but not particularly surprised.
Tan Hong and Tan Yi were brutal and undisciplined before they surrendered to the Ming army. Although they restrained themselves somewhat after surrendering to the Ming army, they still committed murders, arson, and raped women in private.
Even if they didn't surrender, she was going to get rid of them.
It’s a pity that the timing was not right.
"It's bad!" Ma Wannian suddenly said, "Tan Wen, the eldest of the three Tan brothers, is in Chengtian Prefecture right now. He is responsible for transporting grain and grass to Nanyang."
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