At this point in the war, anyone knew that the defeat of the Qingshun coalition army was decided, and the general trend was irreversible.

Almost at the same time, in the camp of the two armies of Qingshun, there was a continuous and sharp sound of gold.

The cavalry of the two armies that pursued to the edge of the rift, looking at the terrible environment inside like thorns, could only helplessly pull their horses back and retreat straight to the main formation.

When the two armies of Qingshun slowly withdrew like a low tide, inside and outside Jintang City, the cheers of spring thunder rolling through the sky suddenly sounded.

The two generals of the Tang Army, Duan Shidi and Liu Wenxiu, couldn't help but be overjoyed. Their faces are full of gunsmoke and fire, and the joy in their hearts is simply indescribable.

It's not easy! With a force of more than 40,000 troops, the Tang army resolutely defended the city, and only relied on the final sinkhole strategy to eliminate more than 50,000 siege enemy troops in one fell swoop, which was a narrow victory over the Qingshun coalition army of more than 300,000 people.

After all, with so many enemy forces and such a strong offensive, it would be very difficult to remedy it if something went wrong in any of the areas, and when time was so urgent.

And after winning this battle, the Tang army will usher in an excellent opportunity to recuperate.

After all, even if the Qingshun and Qingshun armies that had suffered heavy losses wanted to attack again, they would have to recover for at least more than a month, so that they had enough time to prepare again, so that they could better strengthen the city defenses and reorganize their forces to deal with the enemy's next attack.

Looking at the dust in the sky, a large number of auxiliary soldiers in the enemy army came out, hurriedly carrying away the corpses and equipment from the battlefield, looking like a mournful woman, and the Tang soldiers defending the city became more and more happy.

After the Dashun army slowly retreated to its own position in a depressed atmosphere, Li Zicheng quickly summoned his generals Liu Zongmin and Tian Jianxiu to come to the tent for urgent discussion.

Outside, the wind and sand were still blowing, the sky was dark, and the light of several candles in the tent was swaying, and there was a dead silence.

Li Zicheng, Liu Zongmin, and Tian Jianxiu all sat with tense faces, and everyone was full of sorrow.

They all knew that after this defeat, the Dashun army not only suffered a great loss in terms of troops, but also in terms of military morale and morale, it was difficult to recover in a short period of time, and they could fight again.

However, if more than 200,000 soldiers can only be stationed outside Jintang City like this, consuming a huge amount of grain and grass in vain every day, but living here in vain without doing anything, this is not a matter at all. Therefore, the current situation can be described as unstoppable and very embarrassing.

Li Zicheng looked around at Liu Zongmintian and Jianxiu, and said in a deep voice: "Two, our army has been defeated this time, the situation has collapsed, and morale is low. ”

After Li Zicheng asked, Liu Zongmin lowered his head and said nothing. Seeing this, Tian Jianxiu stomped his feet fiercely, and spoke first: "King Chuang, let's not go around the corner, let's be honest with you, this battle is really fucking unbeatable." ”

"Oh, why do you say that?"

"King Chuang, think about it, now that our army has suffered this defeat, losing nearly 40,000 soldiers, and now the morale of the army has fallen to the bottom, and all of a sudden, how can it recover quickly. Although the total number of soldiers and horses in our army is still more than 200,000, the soldiers have no morale and will have no fighting spirit. Have you forgotten King Chuang, after the defeat of our army in Kaifeng last year, it took half a year to rest and recuperate. In my opinion, even if everything goes well in this defeat, I am afraid that it will have to rest for at least two months before the whole army can use it again. “

"Zehou said this, but I have a different opinion." When Tian Jianxiu said this, Liu Zongmin coughed lightly and interjected: "Zehou, have you thought about it, although the Tang army has a favorable location and no major losses in its troops, it can still hold on to the city, but after all, they have limited grain and grass, and it is impossible for them to hold on all the time." As long as our army can continue to garrison here, so that the Tang army has no chance to break through and escape, even if it does not attack the city for the time being, it will definitely cause great pressure on the Tang army defending the city. And when there is an opportunity for civil strife in the city due to lack of food, our army will take the opportunity to counterattack and take this Jintang City in one fell swoop, wouldn't it be a very good thing? ”

Listening to Liu Zongmin's rebuttal, Tian Jianxiu frowned, he saw that Li Zicheng was listening carefully, so he said again: "Ruhou, you said this easily!" Do you know how much pressure our army's more than 200,000 soldiers and horses stationed here is on the supply of grain and grass logistics? If King Chuang insists on staying here, he can do it, but in this way, more than 200,000 soldiers and horses of our army will stay in Xuanfu North Road, where the Tang army has long been fortified, and the people eat horses and chew, and the grain and grass consumed every day are an extremely terrible number. There is a lot of grain and grass, and the local supply is not available, and it is only transported to this place for a long distance, and the logistics are quite difficult. In this way, I am afraid that the Tang army in the city can still hold on, but our army is forced by the pressure of grain and grass, but has to withdraw and return. What is the point of such a futile perseverance with an uncertain future? ”

Tian Jianxiu's words made Liu Zongmin bow his head and be speechless, but Li Zicheng sighed again and again.

"Jianxiu is right, and I think the same way." Li Zicheng stroked his beard and sighed: "Now that the enemy army has won such a great victory, the morale will inevitably be extremely high, and the defense of the entire city will be more stable." If our army wants to attack again, I am afraid that it will be much more difficult than it is now. And if our army, as Zong Min said, just besiege but not attack, of course, it can consume the grain and grass of the defenders in the city, but relatively speaking, the pressure on our own long-distance transportation of grain and grass is greater, and it is really possible that because of the problem of grain and grass, the Tang army will still be fine, and our army will collapse without a fight. ”

Then, Li Zicheng coughed lightly and said to Tian Jianxiu: "However, if it is really as you said, it is absolutely not advisable for the whole army to abandon the city because of the defeat in this battle. Because if this is the case, it is equivalent to completely lifting the siege for the Tang army, and all the sacrifices of our army will be in vain. Moreover, with the withdrawal of our army, in addition to the Tang army will continue to occupy this Jintang, they will also occupy the entire Xuanfu North Road. And how does this make. ”

Li Zicheng's dilemma made his two generals, Liu Zongmin and Tian Jianxiu, speechless, and finally they discussed for a long time, but they did not come up with any good results.

Li Zicheng was helpless and was about to order the two of them to go back first, but at this time, his soldiers suddenly came to report, saying that Dolgon, the regent of the Qing army, came urgently to ask for a meeting.

Hearing that it was Dolgon coming, Li Zicheng's heart became more and more depressed, but it was not easy to attack. Liu Zongmin and Tian Jianxiu, who were next to them, were also unhappy.

All three of them were thinking that this Dolgon, who had almost failed to calculate and could not achieve anything, could say a very good thing when he came this time.

Li Zicheng thought about it, and let Liu Zongmin and Tian Jianxiu each return to the account, and then ordered the sergeant to invite Dolgon into the account to talk.

When Dorgon entered the tent, the guests and hosts were silent, and for a time the atmosphere in the tent was extremely dull.

In the end, it was Li Zichang who sighed and opened his mouth first: "Regent, this time you and my two armies have been defeated in a joint siege battle, and the situation has collapsed like this, let me ask you, what do you think about the current situation?" ”

As if he had expected Li Zicheng to come to ask him like this, Dolgon replied calmly: "King Chuang, victory or defeat is a common thing in soldiers, who can be so stubborn. Speaking of which, the reason why you and I failed to join forces in the final analysis was because the Tang military dug the semi-circular giant hole first. Their miraculous plan caught your two armies off guard, and only then did they have this defeat. There is a way to eat a trench and grow a wisdom, next time if you are in the ......"

"Alas, let's talk about the next time, now that our army has made such a big defeat, the morale of the army has collapsed, and the morale is low, I don't know when we can fight again. Moreover, the Tang army won this victory, but the morale of the Tang army is rising and falling, and I am afraid that it will be more difficult to deal with in the future. Li Zicheng interrupted Dolgon's words with an irritated expression.

Dolgon was stunned by him, he thought about it, and then replied tentatively: "Listen to the king, but don't you want to fight it?" You have to know ......"

"Of course I want to fight!" Li Zicheng got up from his chair with an irritated face, and then paced around the tent: "It's just that our army has experienced such a big setback, how can we recover its morale in a short time and fight again." Of course, the Tang army has few soldiers, and it is impossible to break through the siege, but my Dashun army, more than 200,000 troops, even if I want to garrison troops outside the city, to consume the Tang army's grain and grass, to achieve such a strategy that makes them finally succumb because of lack of food and food, how easy is it to talk about it! You must know that on this Xuanfu North Road, the Tang army has already been fortified and cleared, and our army can only transport grain from Shanxi and other places for thousands of miles, which is extremely difficult. Therefore, I am extremely worried, but I am afraid that the Tang army has not collapsed, and our army will collapse on its own due to the lack of food and grass. ”

Hearing Li Zicheng's repeated complaints, Dolgon kept thinking deeply.

It was only after Li Zicheng finally finished talking to himself and sat back on the chair that he said with a smile: "King Chuang's concerns are also human nature. In such a difficult place, the king is in the ground, and he is afraid that he will also contemplate the same. If you are concerned about this, the king has a suggestion. ”

"Oh, Lord Regent, but you can be blunt."

"King Chuang, in fact, this king has also thought about it, now that the alliance between you and me has been defeated, it is indeed impossible to restore morale in a short time. And the morale of the Tang army is strong, and there is enough time to prepare, the defense of this Jintang City will definitely become stronger and stronger, and it will indeed be more and more difficult for you and my army to take this city. And if you abandon the city, you will waste all your previous achievements, and it will be a very unwise and foolish act to make all the sacrifices you have made in the water. Therefore, the king wondered if he could take a compromise to continue the siege of Jintang City. ”

"Huh? What do you mean? ”

"The king's intention is to continue to besiege the city, so that the Tang army cannot break through, let alone let them expand their power to the entire Xuanfu North Road. That is, if we do not let the Tang army relieve the pressure and continue to maintain the siege state, we can also greatly reduce the number of troops besieging the city, so as to reduce the pressure on the transportation of grain and grass as much as possible. As long as they continue to besiege without attacking, they can sit back and wait for the Tang army in the city to run out of food, and finally make them chaotic without a fight. And at this time, you and I will quickly send a large army to respond, and then seize the city in one fell swoop. Dolgon's eyes burned.

When Li Zicheng heard this, his eyes lit up.

That sounds like a good idea.

As long as they can leave enough troops to prevent the Tang army from breaking through and withdraw most of the other troops, they can sit on the food and grass of the Tang army defending the city, so that they can finally collapse without a fight. At that time, it would be a good strategy for me to come and pick this ripe fruit in one fell swoop.

"Then, according to the regent's opinion, how many troops should be left? Where should it be stationed? Li Zicheng followed up and asked.

Dolgon smiled faintly and said: "King Chuang, now there are only two exits from the north gate and the east gate in this Jintang City, and if the Tang army wants to break through, it mainly has to go from these two places." After all, the trenches they dug could barely reach the infantry to move, and it would not be easy to withdraw on a large scale along with the common people. Therefore, in the eyes of this king, the troops that you and I have left behind can focus on besieging these two city gates, and in the rest of the places, the number of troops can be greatly reduced. Therefore, in my opinion, it is enough to leave a total of 120,000 troops in the ground for you and me. In this way, the strength of your and my armies will only be one-third of the existing number of soldiers and horses, and the pressure on the transportation of grain and grass will be greatly reduced. ”

Dolgon paused, and then said: "As for how many troops you and I will keep in each of our armies, in the eyes of this king, I will leave 30,000 Qing officers and troops to guard the north gate." Your army left 90,000 and guarded the rest of the east gate and the south side, which should be enough to prevent the Tang army from breaking through and dealing with all incidents. This king's arrangement, I don't know what the king wants? ”

Listening to Dolgon's words, Li Zicheng's eyes lit up again, and he nodded again and again, his face full of joy.

Dolgon, that's a good plan. If he really only left 90,000 troops here to achieve the attrition of the Tang army, then his own logistical pressure would be greatly reduced. Moreover, he can also transfer these troops to other places to seize the rest of the Ming Dynasty's territory.

It should be said that in the present situation, Dolgon's plan should be the best arrangement.

So, Li Zicheng replied briskly: "Okay, the regent has a very good plan!" I agreed, so let's do it. ”

After the two reached an agreement, they discussed some related matters and dispersed.

Next, Li Zicheng officially appointed Tian Jianxiu as the general of the unified army, and let him command 80,000 infantry and 10,000 elite cavalry, and continue to garrison outside Jintang City, responsible for the east gate and south defense of Jintang City.

The commander of the Qing army, Dolgon, left Abatai and ordered him to command 27,000 infantry and 3,000 cavalry, stationed outside the north gate of Jintang City, responsible for encircling and blocking the north gate of Jintang City.

As for the rest of the troops, under the leadership of Li Zicheng and Dolgon, after resting for three days, they were all withdrawn from Jintang City and returned to their homeland.