Chapter 216 Chongzhen was very embarrassed

From early summer to early autumn, for a few months, with the help of Jin merchants, Shaanxi experienced a rare calm. It is also this kind of calm that makes the soldiers and horses of Shaanxi feel lax, and the Warat people and Tatars are also restrained by the soldiers and horses of Xuanfu and Yunfu, the Mongols are constantly infighting, and the trilateral border army of Shaanxi is even more lax.

No one expected that the peasant army led by Wang Jiayin would return to Shaanxi at this time, and the Ningxia border army did not carry forward the actions of Wang Jiayin's department. Between the two days, Kehua Pavilion, Lingtai, and Baishiyuan are three important towns. The main force led by Gao Yingxiang went south from Lingtai Town, and in less than half a day, they conquered Shiyao Pass.

Subsequently, Gao Yingxiang took Li Zi as the pioneer and Li Yangchun, the king of the Four Heavens, as the deputy general, and stationed in Duyang Mountain and Qishan respectively, cutting off the connection between Fengxiang Mansion and Xi'an Mansion in a blink of an eye. The reinforcements were blocked, and only the little manpower in Fengxiang Mansion could not stop the tide of peasant troops at all. The prefect Gao Wenjian actually ordered the evacuation of Fengxiang Mansion and retreated to Hanzhong along the ancient road.

However, Qin Yu and Ye Changhe, the garrison of Fengxiang Mansion, stayed behind and called on the army and civilians to defend the city together, but unfortunately, in just four hours, Gao Yingxiang broke the city. After this battle, Fengxiang City suffered countless casualties, Qin Yu and Ye Changhe were killed.

The speed of the peasant army's attack was really too fast, and the Xi'an government did not have time to react at all, and the western part of Shaanxi had already become the world of the peasant army. Yang He ordered all the troops to rush to Xi'an to prevent Xi'an from falling into the hands of the peasant army. At present, Yang He is staying in Xi'an City, if the city is broken and captured, then he Yang He will become the first governor in the history of the Ming Dynasty to be captured alive by the peasant army.

Liu Yingyu and Cao Wenzhao led the troops and horses to urgently assemble in Xi'an, and Wu Guofu in northern Sichuan was also ordered to go north to hold Hanzhong and prevent the peasant army from breaking through Hanzhong and pouring into the land of Bashu along the Chencang Ancient Road. For a time, the civil unrest in Shaanxi broke out again, and the situation was even more severe than half a year ago. For half a year, not only were the officers and men recuperating, but the peasant army was also vigorously fighting their troops.

In several previous encounters, Wang Jiayin profoundly realized the gap between the peasant army and the officers and soldiers, the peasant army seemed to have many people, but most of the time it was defeated in World War I and was chased and beaten by officers and soldiers. The reason for this is that the peasant army has not been trained and has not experienced real fighting. During this period in the northwest, Wang Jiayin reused Li Zicheng, Wang Monk and other people from the official army to conduct intensive training for various departments. In just half a year, although there has not been any qualitative improvement, at least now I understand the military orders and the order of marching.

Under the training of Li Zicheng and others, many changes have taken place in the peasant army, which is also the main reason why the peasant army can quickly conquer Pingliang and capture Fengxiang Mansion.

On September 13 of the second year of Chongzhen, Cao Bianjiao's vanguard soldiers and horses collided with Zhang Yichuan, the sweeping king under Wang Ziyong, and the two sides launched a small-scale battle in Sanshui County. In this encounter, Cao Bianjiao was extremely brave and took the lead in repelling Zhang Yichuan's attempt to conquer Sanshui County. Zhang Yichuan saw that the situation was not good and retreated to Lingtai Town. Cao Bianjiao had limited troops in his hands, so he didn't dare to pursue rashly, so he stationed in Sanshui County.

Although it was only a small encounter, it completely exposed the real intentions of the peasant army. Gao Yingxiang's department seemed to be attacking rapidly, and he made a big show in Fengxiang Mansion to attack Xi'an Mansion, but the real killing move of the peasant army was Wang's own soldiers and horses.

Wang's self-use headquarters was stationed in the area of Lingtai Town, which could be Qingyang Mansion and Yan'an Mansion to the northeast, and Xi'an Mansion to the southeast.

In Chunhua County, Cao Wenzhao and several generals in the army urgently discussed the next plan, Sanshui County battle, the peasant army seemed to suffer a loss, but in fact there was not much loss, but Cao Wenzhao was a little headache.

"Now it seems that Wang Jiayin intends to divide his troops into two ways, Gao Yingxiang occupies Fengxiang Mansion and coerces Xi'an Mansion, and Wang Ziyong sits on Lingtai and can attack anywhere in the east at any time! In half a year, Wang Ziyong has tens of thousands of people with armor under his command, and his strength is much stronger than before. And we, now have two choices, either go directly to Xi'an Province or stay in Chunhua County. ”

As soon as Cao Wenzhao's words were finished, a deputy general arched his hand and said: "General Cao, at the moment, our troops are insufficient, and it is difficult to take into account all aspects. According to the meaning of the last general, let's go directly to Xi'an Mansion. ”

This proposal was echoed by many people. Cao Wenzhao frowned tightly and did not speak. He doesn't blame these people, and if he were someone else, he might have made the same choice. When they went to Xi'an, they responded to the order of Yang He, the governor of the three sides, so that no matter how much the situation in Shaanxi deteriorated in the future, they would not have to bear the main responsibility. But if you don't go to Xi'an Mansion, once there is a change in Xi'an Mansion, the court will have to punish you heavily.

Cao Bianjiao was young and vigorous, too lazy to care about the faces of others, and as soon as his temper came up, he stood up and said angrily: "Look at you one by one, the thieves haven't come over yet, so you have to think about how to shirk your responsibility." No wonder Shaanxi is so vulnerable, making a group of homeless people anxious, all because of your group of wine bags and rice bags. ”

"Brother Cao, who are you talking about?" The overseers glared angrily, and some of them had already pressed their hands on the hilts of their swords. If it weren't for Cao Bianjiao being Cao Wenzhao's own nephew, how could he be so arrogant?

Cao Bianjiao didn't mean to restrain at all, and snorted coldly: "Whoever talks to you will talk to whom!" ”

Everyone got up when they heard the sound, seeing that the two sides were about to stage an all-martial arts, Cao Wenzhao finally couldn't control his emotions and slapped the table heavily, "Enough, sit down for Ben, you, get out of the old man, go outside and calm down." ”

Cao Bianjiao was naturally unconvinced, it was obviously this group of wine bags and rice bags that were wrong, why was it himself who was driven out? Unconvinced, but looking at Cao Wenzhao's stern gaze, he still let out a sigh and obediently went out to punish him.

Cao Wenzhao is more mature than Cao Bianjiao, and it is naturally not so simple to consider things. Staying in Chunhua County is indeed a good choice, but the interests of everyone must also be considered. If you can't do it with grace and power, these people under your hands won't work hard.

Looking at the group of local generals in Shaanxi in front of him, Cao Wenzhao also had a headache. Not long ago, he was promoted to deputy chief of Suide, and Yang He was also very kind. At that time, Yang He intended to leave Cao Wenzhao, an elite soldier in Liaodong, and racked his brains before he thought of promoting Cao Wenzhao to the deputy chief soldier of Suide. It's a pity that Yang He didn't know that Suide after the war was long gone. As one of the nine sides, Suide has lax armaments to the point of making people Muggles.

Cao Wenzhao took a lot of effort to pinch this group of Suide generals together. If it weren't for the fact that there were some elite soldiers brought from Liaodong under his hands, Cao Wenzhao was worried about whether he could exercise the power of the deputy commander-in-chief.

I had a headache before, and now I have a headache even more. If the border troops of Xuanfu and Datong Mansion are still there, why are they so big?

There was no way, Cao Wenzhao could only listen to everyone's opinions and go to Xi'an Mansion. If the troops are insufficient, if you can take care of the north, you can't take care of the Xi'an Mansion in the south, and in contrast, the Xi'an Mansion involves more and wider interests.

The next day, Cao Wenzhao ordered his troops and horses to march to Xi'an, but Cao Wenzhao's headquarters encountered a large number of peasant troops in Xianyang. Coincidentally, a gust of wind Wang Yan and Yingshan Honghua Xiaorong were ordered by Li Yangchun to attack Xianyang and cooperate with the main force of the peasant army Xi'an Mansion to encircle. Not long after Wang Yan and Hua Xiaorong conquered Xianyang, they heard that an army of officers and soldiers from the north had killed them.

Xianyang, guarding the northern gateway of Xi'an Prefecture and relying on the Yellow River, has a very important geographical location, and has been a battleground for soldiers since ancient times. Wang Yan and Hua Xiaorong finally defeated Xianyang, so they naturally refused to let it out. It's a pity that Xianyang City was broken and could not form an effective defense, so the two could only send someone to inform Li Yangchun while organizing the remaining soldiers and horses to meet the enemy.

Xianyang's geographical location is important, Wang Yan and others know it, and Cao Wenzhao knows it even more. Therefore, in this battle, Cao Wenzhao did not play any fancy, and directly thought that the few cavalry were detouring from the flanks, and the army was covering the past from the front.

Wang Yan's department fought Xianyang City for a long time before, exhausted, and this will encounter Cao Wenzhao's unreasonable onslaught, just one hour, Wang Yan and Hua Xiaorong were beaten and withdrawn to the west, and Li Yangchun and Li Zicheng, who lost money, responded in time, otherwise it is still unknown whether Wang Yan and Hua Xiaorong can withdraw alive.

Back in Duyang Mountain, Wang Yan scolded unwillingly: "Niangdi, seeing that Xianyang is in your hands, I ran into someone surnamed Cao, hey, the boiled duck flew." ”

Li Yangchun didn't blame Wang Yan and Hua Xiaorong, how capable Cao Wenzhao was, he had personally learned it. Seeing that the two of them looked unwilling, they comforted them loudly: "The two brothers don't have to mind, no one thought that Cao Wenzhao would come so quickly, I believe that after the king knows about the matter, he will not blame us." ”

"I hope that, in the final analysis, we are all outsiders, although we are under the command of King Gao Chuang, but Zhang Dashou and Zhang Cunmeng have always looked at us unpleasantly, if these people secretly make it bad, but our brothers will suffer."

"If you are angry at the moment, you can only endure it, hey, if Leader Wu is still here, how good would it be?" As he spoke, Li Yangchun's face showed a lonely look. When he followed Wu Yangui before, what status did he Li Yangchun have? Li Yangchun, the Four Heavenly Kings, is under one person and above ten thousand. It's good now, when I get to Wang Jiayin's side, I am angry everywhere, if it weren't for Gao Yingxiang's help from time to time, I would have been squeezed by Zhang Dashou and Zhang Cunmeng.

The starry Zhang Dashou and the non-muddy Zhang Cunmeng and others are all Wang Jiayin's cronies, and the things that Zhang Dashou did these people, if Wang Jiayin didn't know anything about it, it was purely a liar.

.......

Xi'an Mansion, after learning that the Xianyang crisis was resolved, Yang He and Hong Chengchou breathed a long sigh of relief. Yang He was born as a civil official and did not know how to fight, but there is one thing that is worthy of admiration, that is, he can listen to the opinions of others. Now that I think about it, the most correct thing to do is to listen to Hong Chengchou's suggestion and try my best to keep Cao Wenzhao in Shaanxi.

In the current situation, if it weren't for Cao Wenzhao supporting him outside, Shaanxi wouldn't know what it would become.

Holding the official document, Yang He read it over and over again, and said with some confusion: "General Cao's official document said that he wanted to lead the army to be stationed in Xianyang and form a horn with Xi'an Mansion. Lord Hong, what do you think? ”

Hong Chengchou thought for a while, and said with a deep brow: "Supervisor, according to the lower officials, General Cao's suggestion is an old move. Xianyang, it's too important, if Xianyang doesn't keep it, then Xi'an Mansion will have no danger to defend, and then we will be too passive. Therefore, General Cao should be allowed to lead his troops to stay in Xianyang. ”

"But..... The strength of Xi'an Mansion ......" Yang He hesitated, some words he was embarrassed to say, but Hong Chengchou heard it very clearly. But Hong Chengchou also had no choice, so he could only smile and sigh bitterly.

Although there are many soldiers and horses in Xi'an, the quality of the soldiers is uneven, and it cannot be compared with Cao Wenzhao's soldiers and horses. In short, Cao Wenzhao's soldiers and horses are not stationed in the city, and there is always some helplessness in his heart.

"Inspector, we really need General Cao to sit in Xi'an City, but again, we need Xianyang even more. Although the quality of the soldiers in the city is not very good now, and the combat effectiveness cannot be guaranteed, relying on the thick walls of the city, the thieves will not be able to please them for a while. ”

"For today's plan, it is to hurry up to the imperial court to ask for reinforcements, as long as the Xuanfu and Datong Mansion send troops and horses to help in time, they will be able to drive the thieves out of Shaanxi again."

"Hey, that's all there is to it!" Yang He had to agree with Hong Chengchou's opinion.

Cao Wenzhao was stationed in Xianyang and sent troops to defend Qishan to the death, and in a short time, the peasant army of Fengxiang Mansion failed to curry favor. However, Wang Ziyong, near Lingtai Town, saw the opportunity and sent troops to the northeast to attack Sanshui County again, this time without the hindrance of Cao Wenzhao's department, Zhang Yichuan only took half a day to take Sanshui County.

As soon as Sanshui County was broken, it could be regarded as opening a gap in the east, and the peasant army under Wang Ziyong passed through Sanshui County like a tide and poured into Qingyang Mansion. In the face of this situation, Shaanxi's shortcomings in insufficient military strength have undoubtedly been revealed. Cao Wenzhao and Yang He watched the peasant army ravage Qingyang Mansion, and they really didn't have any tricks at all.

There were too few officers and soldiers in Shaanxi, or too many peasant troops. Not long after Wang Ziyong broke Qingyang Mansion, Zhang Xianzhong, another leader under his command, attacked Yan'an Mansion all the way, and at the same time, Yu Jingyuan, the garrison of Baoan County and the former general manager of Ningxia, led the people to mutiny, killed the county Wenduo, and opened the city gate to welcome Zhang Xianzhong into the city. Zhang Xianzhong knew that the soldiers were fast, and after taking Baoan County, he attacked Ansai City non-stop to the south, and the soldiers pointed directly at Luochuan.

In less than half a month, the peasant army set fire to Shaanxi, and now Shangluo Road in the southeast of Xi'an Prefecture is relatively calm, and other places are already wailing and war-torn everywhere.

The official documents from Shaanxi for help were sent to the capital one by one, and under the shock of the imperial court, court meetings were held one after another. In the face of the chaos in Shaanxi, the Manchu civil and military forces couldn't come up with any good ideas.

If you want to solve the affairs of Shaanxi, it is actually easy to do, as long as there are enough reinforcements, the peasant army is not enough to trouble. But the key is that the transfer of troops requires money and food, and those who are soldiers also have to eat and drink to support their families, but where does Chongzhen get money and food now? In desperation, Chongzhen once again proposed to collect business taxes and sent people to Jiangnan to urge the donation.

However, as soon as this idea was proposed, it was vigorously opposed by many officials including the cabinet. As for the matter of Jiangnan donation, it is even more useless, Chongzhen wants to send people, but none of the civil and military forces of the Manchu Dynasty stand up, Chongzhen personally named them, and those people are also urging them to obstruct and find various reasons to shirk.

At this moment, Chongzhen is really embarrassed!

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