readx; In the early morning of the next day, Sun Chuanting, Yang Sichang and Li Dingguo, who had arrived from Shaanxi, also arrived in Kaifeng. Pen @ fun @ pavilion wWw. ｂｉｑUｇE。 ｉｎｆｏ

Because the main force of Gao Yingxiang's rebels was eliminated in World War I, Gao Yingxiang himself was awarded the head, and Sun Chuanting became famous.

As for Yang Sichang, Zhu Youzhen believes that he not only has the talent to control the overall situation, but also has enough fame and capital to help him check and balance the Donglin Party. After serving as the prefect of Xi'an for a period of time, Yang Sichang has enough experience as a local official, and now it is time to enter the imperial court counselor card. The official position assigned to him by Zhu Youzhen is the left squire of the military department, which is not a very conspicuous role in the Beijing Division, but now that soldiers are being used everywhere in the country, Yang Sichang has the opportunity to show his talents.

Of course, whether it is Sun Chuanting or Yang Sichang, to obtain a formal appointment, it is necessary to "court push", that is, after the deliberation of the senior officials of the six ministries and the Metropolitan Procuratorate, they will jointly sponsor the emperor, and then the emperor will approve it. As for the defense of Shaanxi and the military operation to recover the Hanzhong region, they will be temporarily handed over to Xie Yong, Zuo Guangxian, He Renlong and other generals, and they will have to return as soon as possible after being summoned.

Now Kaifeng City has gathered Wang Zaijin, Yuan Keli, Lu Xiangsheng, Sun Chuanting, Yang Sichang and other ministers, as well as Hao Yongzhong, Li Dingguo, Li Laiheng, Meng Gong and other generals, it can be said that there are many talents, and they are also the real ministers in Zhu Youzhen's mind. Taking this good opportunity, Zhu Youzhen convened a military meeting in the Kaifeng Prefecture to allow everyone to speak freely and express their views on the next step of counterinsurgency operations and the nationwide military deployment.

First of all, we analyzed the current situation together. The current situation is much better than when the rebellion first started, first of all, the emperor drove the imperial expedition in person, and had successively recovered Luoyang, Zhengzhou, and Kaifeng, and Hong Chengchou retreated to the south; The rebels on the Western Road had collapsed because of Gao Yingxiang's death, and it was only a matter of time before Hanzhong was recovered; Only on the East Road, the "Thirteen Families" headed by Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong are still very rampant.

However, it was pointed out that there should be no overly optimistic about the situation. First of all, the food problem that plagued the imperial court the most was temporarily alleviated because of the recovery of Luoyang, but as more and more places were recovered, and more and more refugees needed relief, Luoyang's inventory would soon bottom out. Grain from the south cannot be transported again, and the continued shortage of grain will certainly seriously restrict the movement of the officers and soldiers.

On the other hand, the military strength of the rebels should not be underestimated. Although Hong Chengchou was defeated, the main force of Hong Bing still exists, and judging by his movements, he should abandon Henan and retreat to Xiangyang. The officers and soldiers most hoped to fight the rebels in Henan, because first, it was mostly plains, which was convenient for the transportation of artillery and baggage; Second, it is relatively close to the Beijing Division, and the military supply can keep up. However, if the front advanced to Xiangyang, or even further south, both the geographical environment and the supply capacity would be very unfavorable to the officers and troops.

At this time, Yang Sichang also put forward a point of view, he believed that as far as the current situation is concerned, the rebels on the west route have been dispersed, and the rebels on the middle route are not to worry, and the only ones who pose the greatest threat to the imperial court are the rebels on the east road, that is, Li Zicheng, Zhang Xianzhong and other thieves. This group of people is nominally attached to Zhu Changxun, but they have always seen the wind and rudder and capricious, and now seeing Zhu Changxun retreating, I am afraid that they will relapse into their old ways and still be thieves.

And the danger of the thieves is far greater than that of the rebels, because they have no clear strategic goal, they will only wander around, and plunder everywhere they pass, no less than the locusts crossing the border. Moreover, they basically do not go head-to-head with the officers and soldiers, and as soon as the officers and troops come, they will run, and it will be difficult to annihilate them. In the long run, the national strength will be exhausted by the thieves, and when the time comes, it will be difficult for the border army lacking food and salary to withstand it.

Zhu Youzhen very much agreed with Yang Sichang's point of view, thinking that Yang Sichang saw the problem really accurately, the Ming Dynasty in history was really exhausted by thieves, and finally once the Manchu Iron Cavalry entered the customs, the offensive was like mercury, and no one was able to stop it, so the thieves must be cut off as soon as possible.

Zhu Youzhen also asked Yang Sichang to make some suggestions on specific military deployments. Yang Sichang took the lead and said confidently: "Your Majesty has asked Prime Minister Lu Xiangsheng to do military affairs in five provinces and four governments, and the minister thinks that this move is extremely appropriate." The minister once proposed to the Ministry of War the strategy of 'four positive and six corners, ten sides of the net', the key of which is to order one or two ministers to raise elite soldiers, and follow the thieves to the special levy, wherever they go, the officers and soldiers are subject to their control. Now that the entire territory of Henan is about to be recovered, Lu Shangshu should strive to advance eastward and find an opportunity to fight a decisive battle with the thieves. ”

"Lu Xiangsheng, what do you think?" Zhu Youzhen asked.

Lu Xiangsheng replied angrily: "Your Majesty, the ministers have been waiting for this day for a long time!" Please give an order to Your Majesty, the thief has a bad day, and the minister will not dare to come to the king to return to his life! ”

"Good! I look forward to righteousness... Looking forward to the success of Lord Shangshu! Zhu Youzhen also said excitedly, "Even if you want to chase the thieves, the infantry army can't keep up, so you can only use cavalry." I see that Li Dingguo's ministry had too many battles in the early stage, and now it can be stationed in Henan, and seize the time to rest; The Shaanxi armies still made every effort to recover Hanzhong and eliminate the thieves who fled to Sichuan. Hao Yongzhong and Li Laiheng are left, both of them are following you, plus your Tianxiong army, with a strength of nearly 20,000, they can already fight with the main force of the thieves. What do you think? ”

"Obey the holy decree!"

"Then it's settled." Zhu Youzhen pondered and said, "On the Jingshi side, the ministers urge me to return to Luan every day, but the rebellion is still too early to be quelled, and I don't want to go back in a hurry." Henan has made the rebels toss too badly, and I have to try to restore this place as soon as possible! I still have to work hard for you, Wang Zaijin and Yuan Keli, the two of you will leave for Nanjing tomorrow, and Lu Xiangsheng can send troops to escort them on the way; Lu Xiangsheng will lead the army tomorrow to see if there is still time to relieve the siege of Pengcheng; Sun Chuanting will also return to Shaanxi immediately to preside over the situation. However, Yang Sichang can stay, and the official should be here soon, so you can help me here. ”

Before dawn the next day, these civil and military generals shouldered their respective missions and set off against the stars. Zhu Youzhen and Yang Sichang sent them back, and passed down two decrees: one was to order Zuo Liangyu, the general of the Ping Thief who had quelled the rebellion in western Henan, to return to Kaifeng to recuperate; The second is that the first division of the Ming Army, which was obviously adjusted and Li Shouyu, moved to Kaifeng. The Li Dingguo Department was temporarily stationed in Kaifeng for recuperation, and the Meng Gong Department was temporarily stationed in Zhengzhou.

In this regard, Yang Sichang asked with some puzzlement: "Your Majesty, Kaifeng is the closest to the thieves, and the Ming army has just formed an army, is it a bit hasty to let them go to the battlefield now?" ”

"Sir is right." Zhu Youzhen said, "But I don't let them go to war, but to help the people rebuild Kaifeng!" ”