Li Hualong comforted Liu Dadao, and Ma Qiancheng designed to defeat the rebels

In July of the 27th year of Wanli, Guo Zizhang, the governor of Guizhou, requisitioned and dispatched Han and Tu troops day and night to defend Yucheng, and divided Nanchuan, Hejiang, and Luzhou. Governor Li Hualong and Guo Zizhang discussed: "At first, Yang Yinglong had no objection, and his rampant behavior in Banzhou was still tolerated by the imperial court. Now Yang Yinglong has finally become a tiger riding a difficult situation, uniting all the seedlings, willing to take risks, but in fact, I still hope that I will be as good as the past, so I did not dare to go deeper, but the army has not yet been assembled, and it is not easy to start a war with Yang Yinglong. can be used to delay the army, to convey to Yang Yinglong the meaning of the imperial court's appeasement, Yang Yinglong will definitely be tempted, so as to negotiate repeatedly and wait for the arrival of reinforcements from all walks of life. ”

Guo Zizhang said: "If this plan is implemented, only the governor can be used, if it is in the name of the two provinces of Guizhou and Shu, then Yang Yinglong will never believe it." And I heard that there seems to be a strategist named Sun Shitai by Yang Yinglong's side, who is well versed in Tao Strategy, and often goes to Beijing to make points, as Yinglong's think tank, if the governor's plan can temporarily deceive this person, he can deceive Yang Yinglong. But please also ask the governor to know the emperor, so that even if someone in the court is impeached in this way, the emperor will definitely stay in the middle of the country. ”

Later, Li Hualong often criticized the soldiers of Qianshu and Shu provinces for being afraid of the enemy like tigers and being unbearable for a battle, and asked about the grievances between Qianshu and Banzhou. On the one hand, Li Hualong inspected various places, strictly reorganized the army, and strengthened the army, and on the other hand, frequently issued official documents to Banzhou to appease him, and was willing to avenge Yang Kedong's grievances.

Yang Yinglong was also difficult to make a decision on this, and asked Sun Shitai for advice, Sun Shitai proposed: "As far as I know, since the founding of the country, the imperial court has never made peace with the enemy. We have won many battles so far, and the elite of the imperial court's eastern expedition has only returned to the dynasty shortly after returning to the court, and is still recuperating, so it is reasonable to infer that the imperial court appeased Banzhou. But don't take it lightly, according to the following opinion, you can continue to exchange letters with Li Hualong to discuss the matter of appeasement. During this period, the movement of the Ming army was observed to distinguish the authenticity from the false, and if the peace of the imperial court was true, Banzhou could also turn the crisis into safety. On the contrary, we can also take advantage of this period to prepare for war with all our might. ”

Yang Yinglong wrote to Li Hualong, to the effect that the previous battles with the Ming army were mostly out of self-defense, from the unwarranted persecution of the two provinces of Guizhou and Shu, the tragic death of his parents and sons, and the fear of the pressure of the imperial army had to be done. If Li Hualong could find out the truth of Yang Kedong's death and impeach the emperor for the evil deeds of the two provinces of Guizhou and Shu against Banzhou, Banzhou would be grateful, accept the appeasement and implore the emperor to punish him, Yang Yinglong would be willing to surrender himself to the people, and send laborers and contribute gold and silver to atone for the raids on the military and civilian cities and villages of the two provinces.

After reading the letter, Li Hualong thought to himself: "This Yang Yinglong is full of lies, and what is highlighted behind it is arrogance, you are still too confident in the Banzhou Army." Now Banzhou is no longer as good as it was back then, but it still has considerable combat power, and when the imperial army is assembled, Banzhou can only sit and wait for destruction. ”

So Li Hualong replied to Yang Yinglong, claiming that he had verified the matter at the behest of Emperor Wanli regarding Yang Kedong's death. As for what the two provinces of Guizhou and Shu did, it still needs to be discussed by the imperial court. In order to show his sincerity, Banju immediately donated silver taels, sent laborers to repair the towns and villages that had been looted by Banshu, and set detailed terms for the resettlement of Banshu's troops. Over the next three months, Yang Yinglong and Li Hualong exchanged letters and repeatedly discussed the matter of discussing peace and dismissing the army.

In October, Yang Yinglong held a big banquet, rewarded the whole army, cooked cattle and slaughtered sheep, drank and had fun, and the general Yang Zhu complained to Yang Yinglong while he was drunk, and only cared about negotiating peace with Li Hualong, so the Banzhou warriors were useless! insisted on asking Yang Yinglong to punish himself with three cups of apology. Sun Shitai, Ma Zhong, and He Tingyu all persuaded one after another, but Yang Zhu did not listen. Yang Yinglong laughed: "Brother, what are you talking about, it's just a play with Li Hualong, now is the preparation period, don't lose big because of a small loss, and soon rely on Yang Zhu Wanfu's improper bravery." ”

Yang Zhaolong privately persuaded Yang Yinglong: "Brother, with all due respect, why don't you take advantage of the disparity between the enemy and our forces to capture Sichuan and establish a princely hegemony, and repeatedly discuss peace with Li Hualong, I always feel uneasy." Yang Yinglong said: "Do you think Shu is a place that can be easily occupied? Although Banzhou has 160,000 troops, but Shu is difficult and dangerous, even if the Sichuan soldiers are all weak brigade generals, it will take several months to capture the whole territory, at this time, if the Ming army in each province counterattacks separately, we will suffer from the enemy on the back, and Banzhou will be difficult to protect. And Li Hualong is a stable person, tightly armed, and there are few opportunities to take advantage of. Only by basing on Banzhou can it be possible to win. As Mr. Sun said, if peace is true, we can turn danger into peace, and if we are requisitioned and suppressed, we can also hold the foundation of Banzhou by consolidating our border defense. ”

Outside the gate, it was reported that Li Hualong had moved to Chongqing, that the troops of Guizhou and Huguang had been assembled one after another, and that Liu Wei, the chief soldier of Sichuan, had stationed in Chongqing to stand by. Yang Yinglong was furious: "The shameless old thief really deceived me!" Li Hualong heard that Yang Yinglong had the intention of peeping into Shu, and also transferred troops to cut off the passage between Banzhou and Shudi, occupying the main road from Banzhou to Guizhou and Huguang, and gathering troops to deploy defense.

Liu Wei led the troops to Chongqing, but because Liu Wei had old friends with Yang Yinglong and had a close relationship, there were many discussions among the officials in the army and the two provinces, and Liu Wei also heard about it, so he was unhappy, and he scolded and whipped those who talked about it in private. Li Hualong knew that Liu Wei was coming, so he invited him into the bedroom and said: "Because of the merits of the Eastern Expedition, he was promoted to the governor of the capital, and he has been sealed for thousands of households for generations, and now he is the new chief soldier of Sichuan, which is really gratifying." I rushed to help day and night, and I don't have to worry about pacifying Banzhou. ”

When Liu Wei heard this praise, he couldn't hide his joy: "The governor has won the award, and the last general has a slight merit, and he has been rewarded by the court, and he feels ashamed." Perennial meritorious service does not disgrace the family, so the last general was ordered to rush to quell the rebellion, how dare there be the slightest slack, everything is according to the governor's orders. I wonder if the governor called the last man to give a secret decree here? ”

Li Hualong suddenly changed color: "Didn't slack off in the slightest? Liu Zongbing, since the imperial court ordered you to conquer Banzhou, you have stayed still and refused to take office, and threatened the imperial court with various excuses! The DPRK and China impeached and wanted to transfer you to the right government of Nanjing, but you actually threatened you with your resignation, thinking that there was no one in the Ming Dynasty!? You have to be Liu Ling!? Do you think that the emperor will not kill you, and I will not kill you!? What's the use of staying in the country, it's not beneficial to the country, and I can behead you now to show the public! ”

Liu Wei was frightened: "The governor is angry, the last general just hopes that there will be a cheap right to do it in order to pacify Banzhou, it is the last general who is a little arrogant, and the last general is guilty, but he has no second heart for the court and the emperor." Li Hualong said: "I read that you are still a good general, and pacifying Banzhou can be of great use, so I highly recommend it, insist on retaining, if you can make meritorious service this time, you can atone for your sins, I hope you will do it yourself." "Liu Wei thanked him.

Li Hualong asked again: "General Liu is known for his prestige, his good horses travel thousands of miles a day, and his soldiers also have 10,000 enemies. It's just that the officials of the two provinces persuaded me not to reuse you this time, just because you have an old relationship with Yang Yinglong, and it is said that you were like brothers and had too close contacts. Everyone in the army is suspicious, and some people even suspect that you will defect and fall under Yang Yinglong, but is there such a thing? ”

When Liu Wei heard this, he fell to the ground and argued: "The governor is clear, and the general will be wronged." The last general met Yang Yinglong in his early years, and he fought side by side, but at that time, Yang Yinglong was still extremely deferential to the imperial court, so he was called a brother. Now that Yang Yinglong has rebelled, he is rebellious, how can he be with this generation again! The words of the people are terrible, and the last general is always worried about being impeached, and he is speechless, and he has suffered unjustified injustice, which has humiliated his family, and he asks the governor to investigate! ”

Li Hualong helped Liu Wei up and comforted: "Your father's general, Governor Liu Xian, has repeatedly broken the Japanese with Qi Jiguang, Yu Dayou and others, and has made outstanding achievements and ruled the north and south of the river. Later, he entered Shuping and nine silk were in charge of the barbarian chieftain, and he used soldiers like gods, and his name moved the world. How could the governor Liu Xian give birth to a rebellious son, and the emperor was even more discerning, how could he be bewitched by the villain, so that the good general of the country would be wronged? I remember that when Ping Jiusi was barbarian, Liu Zongbing was also there. At that time, he was only fourteen years old, but he was extremely brave, and he climbed the city tower for the first time, captured the barbarian leader Ah Da, and was able to make the first contribution in the army at a young age, which is admirable. How could I listen to rumors? General Liu's army recruited Burmese Kou, Ping Luoxiong, and the war against the Japanese Kou, and worked hard, and I hope you can go all out this time. ”

Liu Wei mourned and swore to die. Li Hualong promised to immediately play Wanli, clarify Liu Ling's rumors, and ask for Liu Ling's autocratic power. And asked Liu Wei what he knew about Banzhou's military strength? Liu Wei replied: "The Banzhou army has lived in the southwest mountains for a long time, good at ambushing crossbows, hunting mountains and eating, roaring and advancing, good at arrows, climbing mountains and mountains like walking on flat ground, Banzhou military law is harsh, and it will fight to the death without fear, and it will not be forgiven if it is a little cowardly. Therefore, the Banshu army only died in every battle and was not defeated, and its bravery was abnormal. In addition, the seedlings under its control are also good at guerrilla warfare in the mountains, and the secret art is unpredictable. However, according to the observation of the last general in his early years, the Banzhou army is not as good as before, and it is no longer the division of tigers and wolves. In the past few decades, the wars encountered in Banzhou have only bullied the weak, and if there is a big war, they will show their defeat. ”

Li Hualong was overjoyed, praised Liu Ling, entrusted him with a heavy task, and sent him out of the house, Li Hualong issued a notice to clarify Liu Ling's rumors. Later, he met with Tan Xisi, the governor of Sichuan, and Guo Zizhang, the governor of Guizhou, to inspect the garrison camps in various places, strictly manage the army, punish corruption in the army, transfer military rations, and step up the supervision of reinforcements from all over the country to speed up the pace.

In November, Yang Yinglong burned down the rotten bridge on the eastern slope, the Chuqian road stalker, Huangping and Longquan were in a hurry, and the Banzhou army regained the partial bridge and plundered Xinglong and Zhenyuan. Li Hualong sent more than 10,000 troops to defend various dangers, and ordered the Guizhou general Tong Yuanzhen to support Tongren to deter Banzhou. When the conscription was gathered, Ma Gui and Dong Yiyuan all arrived, the Sichuan Army General Liu Ling, the General Ma Zhen, the General Ma Kongying, the General Zhou Guozhu, the General Wu Guang, the guerrilla Xu Shiwei, the deputy general Cao Bin, the General Wu Wenjie, the Shizhu Xuanfu Ma Qiancheng, the General Tong Yuanzhen of the Guizhou Army, the General Zhu Heling, the General Li Yingxiang, the Huguang Army Chen Luan, etc., and the soldiers of the four towns of Yanning, Henan, Shandong, Tianjin, Yunnan, and Liangguang were claimed to be more than 500,000.

Li Hualong invited them one by one: "The army is assembled, the fierce generals are gathered, and the day of the defeat of the Yang clan in Banzhou is not far away." Yang Yinglong's crimes are monstrous, the saints are angry, and they must be exterminated by the traitors, everyone, now that it is winter, we need to study the tactics in order to conquer the entire territory of Banzhou in one fell swoop in the first month of next year. Liu Wei, the chief soldier of Sichuan, knew Yang Yinglong very well, and was also familiar with the tactics of the Banzhou army, and asked Liu Zongbing to also explain to the generals, so that everyone knew what to expect. ”

Ma Gui said: "I didn't expect that since the last time Hanyang said goodbye, I would meet the governor here again. With the governor in command, Yang Yinglong has little time. As for the Banzhou Army's tactics, General Liu has just roughly explained to us that during the Eastern Expedition against the Japanese Invaders, the war was difficult due to the echelon increase of troops, and now that the army is assembled and marches together, it will be difficult for it to take care of the enemy on all sides. Banzhou's military strength is comparable to that of the Japanese Invaders, and although the tactics are different, they are only mountain and forest field soldiers after all, and as long as they are cautious, there should be no big problem. ”

Chen Lan reminded from the side: "The mountains are high and the forests are dense, there are risks everywhere, and the territory of Banzhou is where the seedlings are located, and there have always been many unbelievable things, so you can't take the enemy lightly." The Banzhou Yang clan has been here for hundreds of years, and the geographical advantage alone is enough to resist a million heroes, and the slightest carelessness will inevitably lead to heavy losses. ”

Dong Yiyuan said: "Occupying the geographical advantage also requires proper planning, and the soldiers can only turn the geographical advantage into a sharp weapon with their lives." I heard what Liu Zongbing said before, the fighting spirit of the Banzhou army has declined, compared with the great reduction in combat power back then, the generals of Banzhou are just barbaric, and Yang Yinglong is only more ferocious and cunning than the ancestors of the Yang family, and the use of soldiers is far inferior to his ancestors. I also ask the governor to plan before arranging the military plan, and we will act according to the plan. Li Hualong ordered all the troops to return to the camp and prepare for the big war.

Yang Yinglong learned that the Ming army had assembled, and appealed to Banzhou and said: "The war is about to break out, and Banzhou has reached the point of life and death. If the Ming army invades Banzhou, everything you have now will be in vain! Your land will be expropriated, your wives and daughters will be enslaved, and your men will be beheaded in different places! I, Yang Yinglong, swore to the sky, swore to protect the safety of Banzhou, the Yang family is about to Banzhou, and the strong enemy will have no bones left, and live up to the spirit of the ancestors of the Yang family in the sky. The essentials of the military aircraft, the first strike, Banzhou needs to maintain a vigorous offensive, control the fighters, and lead the Ming army to divide and encircle and annihilate. Our army attacked the Longquan Division for the first time, with Yang Zhu as the general, Yang Zhu, you may take Longquan? ”

Yang Zhu swore an oath: "The head of the family can rest assured, the big knife in Yang Zhu's hand has long been hungry for blood, and only Longquan is a problem, I only need 3,000 warriors to completely annihilate the Longquan defenders." Yang Yinglong said: "The Ming army has arrived, you only bring 3,000 if you meet the Ming army reinforcements, will not suffer from the enemy, this attack on Longquan sent 50,000 troops, a strong momentum, two to prevent the enemy to help, need to make the two provinces of Guizhou and Shu always under the deterrence of my Banzhou, only so, and the decisive battle with the Ming army will be beneficial to me." ”

Yang Chaodong asked when the troops would be sent? Yang Yinglong immediately ordered a big witch to pray to the sky, Miao Wu practice, the sky suddenly changed, the wind suddenly rose, the heavy rain poured, and then the clouds opened and the fog dispersed, and the sky was clear. Everyone was amazed, Miao Wu attached a few words to Yinglong's ear, and Yang Yinglong shouted: "The gods of heaven signal that the first month is auspicious, and the flag is victorious!" The dark clouds are thick for the war is coming, and there will be a bloody battle in the storm, and after the bloody battle, Banzhou will enjoy peace forever! Banzhou children, a thousand years of good luck! The whole army in Banzhou was excited, morale was high, and Yang Yinglong was also excited, looking forward to an early decisive battle with the Ming army in Banzhou.

In the first month of the twenty-eighth year of Wanli, Yang Yinglong sent 50,000 troops, divided into five ways and went out, with Yang Zhu, Yang Chaodong, Yang Zhaolong, He Hanliang, and He Tingyu each leading 10,000 to attack Longquan. Longquan garrison Yang Weizhong only had 2,000 guards, Yang Weizhong wanted to set up an ambush first and then make a plan, lead troops out of the city, and set up an ambush to wait. Yang Zhu was the first to arrive all the way, and Yang Weizhong ambushed his troops to assault from all sides. Yang Zhu ordered the soldiers to meet the enemy on two wings, Yang Weizhong's soldiers were far lower than Banzhou, and they were killed and scattered for a while, Yang Weizhong was invincible, so he had to abandon the Longquan Division and defeat Sinan Parrot Creek.

Yang Zhu chased to Longquan, and the local official An Minzhi led 500 foot soldiers to guard, Yang Zhu laughed at An Minzhi's mantis arm as a car, and he was not able to measure his strength. An Minzhi angrily reprimanded the Yang clan for causing trouble in Bozhou and disturbing the southwest, Yang Zhu was furious and launched a fierce attack on Longquan Division, which was unstoppable, and An Minzhi died in battle. Liu Yuluan, the official of Longquan, sent a letter to the Ming army for help, and then guarded the big treasury in person, cast and sealed the treasury door, and the Banzhou army rushed into Longquan and forced Liu Yuluan to open the treasury door, Liu Yuluan did not obey, and died under the Banzhou sword with his wife.

Deputy Commander-in-Chief Chen * Liang received Longquan's request for help, because of the 50,000 soldiers in Banzhou, he did not dare to fight alone, and he could not rescue Longquan under the pretext of strictly guarding the partial bridge. He Hanliang's department was the weakest of the five roads in Banzhou, so Ma Qiancheng persuaded Zhou Guozhu to lead troops to block this road, and he could also enter Banzhou while he was victorious, and the remaining four rebels returned to help, and Qin Liangyu seconded the proposal.

Shi Zhu Xuanfu made Ma Qiancheng and the general Zhou Guozhu will Banzhou Army He Hanliang a part of the Dunkan, Zhou Guozhu is jealous of the enemy and I am outnumbered, Ma Qiancheng offered: "The enemy will be arrogant and arrogant, please put on a banquet tonight, the enemy thinks that our army will be lax and will attack rashly, I and my wife Liangyu led the wall to block the enemy, and the general led the whole army to copy its back road, if the enemy is defeated, there will be chaos in the middle of the night, and we can win a complete victory by covering up the killing." Zhou Guozhu according to the plan.

Zhou Guozhu held a banquet at the end of the night, and the smoke rose and the aroma was fragrant. He Hanliang saw that the Ming army was so lax, and he couldn't help but sigh in his heart: "It seems that most of the generals of this official army are people with wine bags and rice bags, and they don't want to stick to the counterattack, but they even set up a banquet leisurely. So He Hanliang ordered his subordinates to change their outfits, sneak into the army, and take advantage of the night banquet of the officers and soldiers to cover the attack, but they were blocked by Ma Qiancheng and Qin Liangyu's subordinates.

He Hanliang was surprised, and when he saw that the surprise attack was revealed, he ordered a fierce attack, Ma Qiancheng had already ordered people to set more traps, and secretly ambushed bows and crossbows, the night was dark, and there were many casualties in the Banzhou army. After Zhou Guozhu led his troops to bypass the flank, he suddenly attacked, and the front line of Banzhou soldiers collapsed and retreated one after another. He Hanliang was furious, even beheaded the defeated soldiers, the Ming army counterattacked on all fronts, set fire to chase the enemy, He Hanliang saw that the big thing was not good and hurriedly retreated, He Hanliang was in chaos, retreated all the way into Banzhou, Ma Qiancheng and Qin Liangyu chased into the enemy's territory, and even broke Jinzhu, Qinggangzui, Tiger Leaping Pass and other seven villages.

At the same time, Youyang Xuanfu made Ran Yulong avoid the soldiers of Banzhou Five Roads and take Sangmu Pass directly, and the Sangmu Pass guards were caught off guard, rushed to the battle, and were defeated by Ran Yulong, beheading three hundred. The Banzhou army captured Longquan and prepared to move troops to Wuzhou, when it was suddenly heard that He Hanliang was defeated, the Ming army invaded Banzhou, Yang Yinglong ordered all roads to retreat, and the Ming army knew that the Banzhou army was back to the rescue, and they evacuated. Yang Zhu and other soldiers from the Fourth Route plundered 27 towns and returned.