Li Yan, who originally planned to cross the river to Lingbao to check on the defense in the direction of Tongguan, rushed to Puzhou after receiving the provocative news from the Yuyuan thieves.

"What's the situation?" Li Yan asked immediately after seeing Li Mu.

Li Mu directly demanded: "Send me another 6,000 soldiers, and then transfer the cavalry, and I will level them within half a year."

Li Yan frowned, and asked instead, "How many people are there?"

Li Mu replied: "A total of four hundred and twenty-three households and two thousand and twenty-nine people came out. However, since the robbery and baggage incident, fewer people have come out. ”

"Half a year," Li Yan said dissatisfiedly: "These Yuyuan thieves have affected our prestige, where can I give you half a year, at most a month, we must be exterminated"

Li Mu explained: "Three hundred miles of elm forests, there are countless tunnel caves in it. I still have to guard against the officers and troops in the north, how can I exterminate them in a month?"

Li Yan sat down and said to himself: "Three hundred miles of elm forests, tunnels, caves." ”

Li Mu and Chen Zuoting both waited quietly to see what good way Li Yan could come up with.

After waiting for a long time, Li Yan finally made up his mind. He instructed: "Let out the news, and within ten days, the people in the Yuyuan will come out and surrender, and they will not be blamed for the past, and they will be distributed to the fields, and each will be in peace." Those who do not fall within the time limit will not be treated leniently"

After that, he ordered: "Let Bai Shixiong bring all the cavalry over, transfer the two battalions of Wei Cheng and Guo Chengdong, and within ten days, they must arrive." Also, all the existing stone throwers will be brought over, and ten truckloads of oil and bombs will be brought over. ”

Sun Sifu immediately went to pass the order, and Chen Zuoting asked worriedly: "What are you going to do, there are more than 100,000 people in Yuyuan, you plan to kill them?"

"Didn't you give them ten days" Li Mou said: "If they don't come out, it's no wonder that we can't blame us." ”

"What do you want" Chen Zuoting said a little anxiously: "The people inside are not all the families of thieves, but also ordinary people hiding to avoid trouble. ”

Li Mu sneered: "The conditions given here are good enough, if they don't come out, they choose to stand with the thieves." ”

Chen Zuoting also knew that Li Yan was going to attack with fire. Now in winter, the weather is dry, and the north wind is blowing, which is indeed a good time to set fires. He said dissatisfiedly: "How did you become like this, there is no distinction between good and bad people, can the people resist those thieves?"

Li Yan said lightly: "100,000 people, all come out with wooden sticks and stones, those thieves can stop whether they want to be thieves or good citizens, they can choose for themselves." ”

Chen Zuoting said angrily: "If the people can be organized, they will not be the people. ”

"This is a war, not a competition, and there are no etiquette and rules." Li Yan was unmoved, and said: "In ten days, even if they don't come here to surrender, they will run to other places." I'm just destroying their lair, and I'm just cutting off the thieves from continuing to cause trouble, so you don't have to worry too much. ”

Chen Zuoting thought for a long time before finally saying: "I'm afraid I'm not suitable for the army, I'd better go home and continue to ponder my Taijiquan." When the world is calm, I will come out to do things. ”

Li Yan and Li Mu both looked at Chen Zuoting in surprise, he also had a heart for fame. Otherwise, he wouldn't care so much about the results of martial arts, and he would have beaten the examiner to death.

However, Li Yan still nodded: "Okay, do what you want." However, chivalry is forbidden by martial arts, and while paying attention to martial arts, it is also necessary to cultivate the mind. ”

Chen Zuoting nodded, clenched his fists and said, "Well, I know." I won't stay any longer, so I'll leave now. ”

Li Yan and Li Mu sent Chen Zuoting out of the camp, and neither of them was worried about Chen Zuoting's safety. Chen Zuoting's spear skills are no longer below them, and his riding and archery skills are also first-class, even if he encounters a small group of thieves, he can deal with it calmly. Moreover, the bandits in other places have basically been cleaned up, and only the Yuyuan bandits are the largest bandit organization.

After returning to the barracks, Li Yan said: "I just received the news that Zheng Jiadong, Niu Chenghu, Zuo Guangxian and Bai Guangen have all surrendered, and Gao Jie fled to Shanxi with the remnants. ”

"So fast," Li Mu said in surprise: "It seems that this court is really going to end." ”

Li Yan continued: "It's not that we heard the news, it was Tian Jianxiu who sent someone to inform him. ”

"What does he mean" Li Mu frowned and said, "You want to put pressure on us"

Li Yan nodded: "It should be this idea." That's why I had to attack with fire, we don't have much time. Li Zicheng was attacking Yulin, and Liu Zongmin was continuing to advance westward, attacking Gansu and Xining. However, they were about to return to Xi'an and prepare for the eastward crusade. ”

"Then what should we do," Li Mu asked.

Li Yan said casually: "What else can I do, I can only continue to cooperate." ”

"No, I mean, if they really take Beijing and sit in the Dragon Court, what will we do?"

Li Yan smiled and said, "How can it be so easy to sit in the Dragon Court. There is also the Qing Kingdom in the north, and half of the imperial court and Zhang Xianzhong in the south. Whoever sits on that dragon chair is the current court and the target of everyone. ”

"But we're closest to them, so we're the first to bear the brunt." Li Mu reminded: "If Li Zicheng starts a war with us, we will be more passive." ”

Li Yan was not worried, he replied easily: "A big city like Beijing can't be defeated in a while. And there are Taiyuan, Ningwu, Datong, Xuanfu and other important towns in the middle. When he enters the city of Beijing, we can also train 100,000 new soldiers. The artillery workshop had already produced four-inch and four-and-a-half-inch cannons, which were heavier than three-inch cannons, but they were more powerful. Moreover, several copper mines in Luoyang and Nanyang have also begun to be mined, and as long as there is a year, we will be able to have dozens of cannons of more than four inches. At that time, it was our main attack. ”

After Li Mu listened, he also nodded with a smile and said, "That's good." An army of 100,000 will knock him down in a battle as long as he grabs his main force. It's a pity that there are some fewer cavalry. ”

Li Yan also nodded and sighed: "Yes, so we have to find an opportunity to fight him." I'm still waiting for the Fan family to come over, they are big businessmen in Zhangjiakou, and the Jin merchants are the most righteous, I think his shopkeeper and guys can be worth one or two thousand horses. There are also these Yuyuan thieves, and there are a lot of horses among them, so I can get more than a thousand of them this time. ”

"As long as Liu Zeqing doesn't make trouble, there should be no problem."

Li Yan nodded: "Liu Zeqing shouldn't dare to come over." The holy decree given to him by the imperial court had come down early, but he had shrunk all his troops to Jinan. If we don't beat him, he'll be secretly happy, and he won't take the initiative to provoke us. The Baoding soldiers in the north are the same, don't worry too much, just let go and deal with this group of Yuyuan thieves. ”

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