"Your Majesty, the Northern Captives refuse to sell horses to us, saying that they are allies with the Qing Dynasty, so they can't betray their allies, and no matter how high the price of the horses we give, it will never be possible to sell us a war horse!"

"Damn!"

Li Zicheng's eyes widened, as if he was about to erupt fire, his face was also angry, and his right hand subconsciously pressed on the hilt of his Huama Sword.

Seeing that the emperor was so angry, Niu Jinxing, Song Xiance and others who were waiting on the side also hurried over, but everyone couldn't think of any words of persuasion for a while, so they just blinked, and watched Li Zicheng standing in place, his anger rising and falling, and there was silence all around, except for the occasional sound of the war horse's nose, there was no sound to hear.

"Did you tell your uncle?"

"Anyway, my uncle heard that he also rode to Saiwai, but Beiyu refused to see him this time, and my uncle was so angry that he didn't close his eyes for a few days and nights, and he almost fell ill."

"Alas!"

Hearing that Gao Yigong had no choice but to be humiliated, Li Zicheng's heart was very sad, and the anger that was uncontrollable just now suddenly disappeared.

Yulin in northern Shaanxi has always been an important town in the Ming Dynasty, and not far to the north is the boundary of the Méng ancients. In the past, when the army was moving, they had dealt with the Méng ancients, and it was Gao Yigong and Wu Ruyi who went to the Méng ancients to buy war horses.

There is nothing that is not sold on the other side, as long as the money is given, what the ancients lacked was grain and tea, and some were cattle, sheep and war horses, and after the Shun army occupied the entire Shaanxi, it made many transactions with the méng ancients and bought a considerable number of war horses back.

"Unexpectedly, the film was defeated again and again, and even the northern captives were bullied to the head!"

The Ming army and the méng ancients confronted each other for more than 200 years, and beat the other party from a big empire into a foolish nation that gnawed sand on the grassland and respected the lama, even the poorest Han people looked down on these sāo flavored tartars, except for some cattle, sheep and horses, there was nothing at all, the poor were to die, not to mention armor and weapons, even the bows and arrows were shoddy, and even the iron arrows were insufficient.

Now that the Hu bandit group has entered the customs and occupied Beijing, it seems that even the arrogance of the méng ancients is also high, this time refusing to sell war horses, and the next time it may be to bring troops into the customs, this layer of truth, the people present are all very clear.

"I'm going to do it!"

The general Hao Shaoqi was as fierce as fire, and at this time, he spit out to the north. Spit scolded: "Sāo Tartar dares to be so rude!" Your Majesty, we still have more than 2,000 cavalry there, please give the emperor an order, I will immediately go and sweep those Tartars who don't know whether they are dead or alive, and grab some more war horses to come back! ”

"Forget it, wave the flag, now is not the time to erect more enemies!"

Although Li Zicheng was angry, he never lost his mind. Seeing that the war was imminent, Li Zicheng's judgment was particularly accurate for many years, and in terms of grand strategy, he may be a mediocre person who does not have a clear plan at all, even if he fights wherever he wants, he will not absorb the truly correct opinions.

But after more than ten years of dealing with the Ming Dynasty, not to mention small battles, I don't know how many times I fought a big war with more than 10,000 people, and when it comes to battlefield experience, who can surpass him?

Now, judging from the movement of the Qing army and the overall atmosphere, including the radius and density of the other side's horse exploration, Li Zicheng knew very clearly that a major war that would determine his own fate and future was about to start.

"Yes, there is something the emperor ordered anyway."

Li Zicheng didn't agree, Hao Shaoqi just retreated, and looked at Li Zicheng's eyes, which were a little more unruly and a little less respectful.

The current low morale of the army is not due to the fact that there are many defeats and few victories, and that the officers and men are about to collapse at the slightest touch, but because many people have lost confidence in Li Zicheng's ability to rule the world.

What distinguishes the camp from other rebels lies in this point.

From the time when he was a general, and then took over the flag to break into the king, Li Zicheng embodied ideals and aspirations that were far different from those of ordinary generals of the righteous army, and most of the things he did were very atmospheric and admirable.

After a long time, these "dàng" thieves who came out today and didn't think about tomorrow vaguely found that they were not rebels, nor were they "thieves", but followed this person named Li Zicheng to fight the world!

As soon as this idea is present, all kinds of military discipline and training will naturally be available, and the morale of the army will naturally be maintained.

Now Li Zicheng is really the emperor, but now Shunjun Henan has been lost, Shandong has been lost, and Shanxi has also been lost, and the current territory is only a small place in Xiangyang, Jingzhou, and Dengzhou.

This battle in northern Shaanxi must not only be fought, but also must be won!

"Where's Jiexuan?"

After being stunned for a while, Li Zicheng asked someone, and his voice was already calm.

"Back to the emperor," replied one of the generals of the imperial camp, "the Marquis of Ru will check at Zhangjiaqiao." ”

"Oh, I'm over!"

Now the Chinese army that broke into the camp is placed in this place between Mizhi and Suide, and it is also the most important position in front of the Gongwei Yan'an, and the main force of more than 150,000 people in the army is gathered in this important place within a radius of 100 miles.

As for Yulin, it is an important town on the nine sides, the city defense facilities are very complete, all kinds of defense means emerge in endlessly, Gao Yigong was ordered to stay in Yulin, there are 50,000 foot cavalry under his command, the Qing army wants to capture this city, it is almost impossible.

According to the judgment of Song Xiance and others, if the Qing army wants to fight a decisive battle and break the stalemate, the only way to go south is to go blatantly. Defeat the main force of the army defending Mizhi and other places, and go straight to Yan'an, so that even if Yulin is still in the hands of the army, it is not enough, and it is enough to leave a soldier and horse to contain it.

Therefore, the center of the battlefield must be here, the center of the meandering flow by several small rivers, from Zhangjiaqiao to Xuejiahe, it is the most open northeast of Mizhi City, and there are several small rivers, suitable for the brigade of soldiers and horses to be stationed, especially the Donglu cavalry, war horses and people need to drink water, so they will definitely come from this direction, go along the river, and after laying these market towns, you can go straight to the county towns such as Mizhi and Suide, and then go down to Yan'an, at that time, the door of Xi'an is opened, which is equivalent to the loss.

In fact, at this time, the Qing army had also moved south from Taiyuan and other places in Shanxi, and Chen Yongfu and other Ming generals led by Ye Chen were ready to cross the river from Shanxi, enter Guanzhong after penetrating Tongguan, and drive to Xi'an from Huayang and Shaanxi County.

Li Zicheng didn't know about this new situation, and if he knew at this time, he would definitely take care of one or the other, and he didn't know if it was good at all.

"Lin Quan, how is the recent military training?"

The team began to move with Li Zicheng and went to Zhangjiaqiao to meet Liu Zongmin and other generals. Everyone knew that the decisive battle was imminent, and the look on everyone's face was very dignified, since withdrawing from Beijing, they had lost several battles in Hebei, and the Shanxi defense line was also easily broken by the Qing army. Of course, at that time, Li Yan suggested building a real defense line in Shanxi, instead of letting a few Ming Dynasty descend to defend in the future, Li Zicheng did not listen, and now that Shanxi is lost, even if everyone thinks that Li Zicheng's original decision was wrong, at this time, there are people who dare to mention it at will.

"The army's spirit is unstable, how can it endure?"

Although the morale of the intrusive army was good, it still could not be compared with the time when they entered Beijing last year, and the defeat of generals such as Gu Yuanying and Hao Ying could not stop the pace of the Qing army's forward.

Moreover, although there are many teams now, there are very few truly qualified soldiers, so all the major generals have stepped up their training separately, including Li Yan, who has also been entrusted with the responsibility of training.

Hearing Song Xiance's question, Li Yan first answered, and then whispered: "Now the training is not urgent, and besides, if there is not enough armor and horses, what is the benefit of training?" ”

Listening to his words, Song Xiance was taken aback, first looked left and right, and then quietly asked, "What is the purpose of Lin Quan's words?" ”

"Northern Shaanxi should not be a place for decisive battles, nor a place for raising soldiers, let alone a place for establishing a foundation."

Li Yanshen was very calm, but what he said was shocking, which surprised Song Xiance.

Seeing that the other party looked at him with a suspicious look, Li Yan sighed and said, "The military advisor knows me, although Yan is not talented, he has no different ambitions after serving King Chuang, please rest assured." ”

Li Yan and the eldest son have a secret communication channel, Song Xiance vaguely knew about this matter, Li Yan was afraid that he would be suspicious, so he explained first.

"What Lin Quan said, I probably understand. Northern Shaanxi is poor and sore, this is the most important, right? ”

"Yes." Li Yan nodded and said: "Northern Shaanxi is too poor, Guanzhong is not rich, it is still difficult to raise 100,000 soldiers, and it is impossible to be caught off guard. If the military salary is not thick and the soldiers are separated, the morale will get worse and worse, and in the end, there will be no defeat. ”

Recently, the main force of the army has gathered, the morale has recovered, and it is no longer the appearance of a thousand miles after the defeat at Shanhaiguan, and Song Xiance is also very encouraged in his heart, thinking about defeating the main force of Manchuria in northern Shaanxi, and even recovering Shanxi and returning to Beijing.

Listening to Li Yan's words at this time, he was taken aback in his heart, but after thinking about it carefully, he also knew that what Li Yan said was very reasonable.

Northern Shaanxi and Shaanxi are no longer the situation in the Han and Tang dynasties, water conservancy is dilapidated, land is overdeveloped, production is limited, and commerce is not good, and it is not the foundation of the king at all.

After King Chuang abandoned Shanxi, the Qing army could also cross the river to the south at any time, and the enemy and us were in danger, and the so-called natural danger naturally could not be discussed.

"What else can be done now?"

"No, only fight to the death, quickly defeat the enemy, and then abandon Shaanxi without defending, enter Dengzhou to Xiangyang through Shangzhou, pass through Jingxiang Lake, go to Hunan, think it is the foundation, and the camera moves again, then there is a chance for revival in the Shun Dynasty!" Li Yanshen is resolute, and there is also a wise and wise light in his eyes.

What he said was also a strategy that Song Xiance had secretly discussed with Li Zicheng, and only in this way could there be a glimmer of life.

Thinking that he suspected that Li Yan might have his heart set on the Ming Dynasty, Song Xiance was also consciously ashamed, and the beautiful son in front of him was still the same as when they met a few years ago, wise and smart, and above board。!。

...