In the ninth year of Chongzhen, on this day in the fifth month of the lunar calendar, in Xi'an City, in the hospitality hall of Hong Chengchou, there was a person sitting side by side with him, it was Sun Chuanting, the new governor of Shaanxi, and there were only two people in the living room.

"Master Sun, this official is looking forward to the stars and the moon, and he is finally looking forward to you! If you don't come again, there will be no one to share some of the burdens of Shaanxi, and this official will have to be dragged to death by the chaotic army in Shaanxi. ”

"Hehe... Lord Hong, why do you say this? Exaggerated, right? Sun Chuanting smiled indifferently, and then continued in harmony: "When Xia Guan was serving in Beijing, I heard that the good news in Shaanxi was frequent, and the chaotic army was beaten to the head, and there were countless military achievements. ”

"Hey~ Master Sun, don't say that, it's really embarrassing for the official." Hong Chengchou waved his hand again and again, revealing a bitter expression, his expression froze, and he solemnly turned around and said: "Lord Sun, from now on, you and I will partner together to suppress the banditry in Shaanxi, and the official will open the skylight and say something straightforward." ”

"Lord Hong, please speak, the lower officials also want to know the real situation in Shaanxi." Sun Chuanting's right hand stretched out and made a gesture of invitation, and his expression was also retracted, looking extremely solemn.

"Master Sun, the news you heard is right, once the rebel army saw me, almost all of them broke up and fled, but the excerpts were written with more fiction and less reality, too one-sided, and not the real situation. During this time, the official did win many battles. However, there are very few rebel armies killed, in a word, they just get a reputation for winning battles, and there is not much benefit, but the momentum of the rebel army is getting bigger and bigger, and the arrogance is becoming more and more arrogant. ”

"No, Lord Hong, didn't the imperial court transfer the Guanning Iron Cavalry, how could it still be like this?" Sun Chuanting's face was full of surprise, and he couldn't help but interject.

"Hey... Master Sun, you don't know anything, which is why you rushed all the way to Shaanxi, and before you could have time to rest, you were called by the official. Hong Chengchou sighed again and again, shook his head helplessly, and then explained: "Although Zu Kuan, Zu Dale and others can fight well and are definitely good at fighting, they are limited to charging into battle, and they have no strategy at all, and they cannot assist me in governing Shaanxi." ”

"Nowadays, a large number of rebellious troops have returned to Shaanxi, and there are rebellious bandits everywhere, and mutinies often occur, and many matters cannot be solved by me alone. To stabilize the situation in Shaanxi, it is not only about encircling and suppressing the rebel army, but also about pacifying the people. ”

"Hey... Lord Sun, as soon as he said this, the official had a headache, although the Guanning Iron Cavalry was a big arm to suppress the bandits, it was really nerve-wracking, and if he could cause trouble, he was about to provoke a civil uprising. ”

"Lord Hong, this official has heard a little about this matter." Sun Chuanting frowned slightly, echoed a sentence, and then added: "Listening to my colleagues in Jingshi, since Zu Dale and others entered the customs to suppress bandits, when they were in Henan and Huguang, they often disturbed the people, and their behavior was extremely bad, especially when they rebellious the army, burned people's houses, and Yin women. The excerpts of the imperial court are almost piled up on the hills. ”

"Lord Sun, it's not a secret, if that's all there is, the official can still endure it, but these generals will only fight, but they won't share the worries of the official governing the place. Whenever the rebel army attacked the town, the official must personally sit in command and assign tasks. ”

Hearing this, a flash of realization flashed in Sun Chuanting's mind, and he probably guessed the reason why Hong Chengchou hurriedly called him, but he still said loudly: "Lord Hong, since the situation in Shaanxi is urgent, if you have something to say, just say it, and the lower officials will definitely obey the arrangement and do their best." ”

"Okay, Master Sun, this official is welcome!"

Hong Chengchou praised it, but did not go straight to the point, but said slowly: "In today's Shaanxi, there are many chaotic armies, and there are countless bandit leaders of all sizes, among which Li Zicheng, Zhang Xianzhong and Gao Yingxiang have the largest force, the largest number of troops, and the strongest combat effectiveness. ”

At this time, seeing Sun Chuanting's appearance of wanting to speak and stopping, Hong Chengchou suddenly penetrated his heart, and without waiting for the other party to ask, he immediately added: "This bandit leader Gao Yingxiang, when he was in Henan, although he was hit hard by Lord Lu, but after fleeing back to Shaanxi, he quickly became bigger and regained his strength again, and his strength reached tens of thousands again. ”

"It's no wonder that Shaanxi has been in drought for many years, and there is no harvest in the ground, as if it has become the soil for the breeding of the chaotic army, no wonder Gao Yingxiang has developed so fast." Sun Chuanting showed a sudden look, nodded slightly, stretched out his right hand, and made a gesture of invitation again: "My lord, you continue to speak." ”

"Among the many rebel armies in Shaanxi, the largest forces are mainly concentrated in Xi'an and northern Shaanxi, and the others are small players. Li Zicheng conquered the city in northern Shaanxi, and the official led his troops to suppress it, Zhang Xianzhong, Gao Yingxiang and others were bound to make a mess in Xi'an, so that the official could not return to help, and often ran at both ends. ”

"That's... Lord Hong, what do you want this official to do? And how to share the worries of adults? Sun Chuanting threw out the question at the right time.

"It's very simple, Lord Sun, I want you to be responsible for guarding Xi'an Mansion, encircling and suppressing Gao Yingxiang and Zhang Xianzhong, and this official will go to northern Shaanxi to suppress Li Zicheng's chaotic army, let's fight separately and stabilize the situation in Shaanxi together."

Hong Chengchou finished speaking in one breath, and looked at Sun Chuanting directly, with anticipation on his face.

"Okay, Lord Hong, Xia Guan has taken over this task." Sun Chuanting agreed, then showed hesitation, and then said: "However, Lord Hong, the matter of encircling and suppressing the rebellious army, I still hope that the grace period will be for a few months, and the lower officials want to re-recruit soldiers and form the Qin army." ”

Under Hong Chengchou's stunned gaze, Sun Chuanting immediately listed the reasons.

"My lord, the reason why Xia Guan recruited soldiers, first, can stabilize the situation in Shaanxi, the reason why the rebel army is developing fast is because there are too many idlers in Shaanxi, if these people are recruited as soldiers, the rebel army will have less sources to expand its troops."

"Second, although the combat power of the Guanning Iron Cavalry is strong, it is still a dispatched army, and it is possible to leave at any time and rush to Liaodong to resist the Tartars. With such a local army, not only will there be no emptiness of troops, but it will also reduce a lot of trouble. ”

Hong Chengchou came to his senses, nodded frequently when he heard it, and couldn't help but echo: "In this way, they are all locals, and although the Qin army formed cannot be said to be a disaster for the people, it is also very few. Moreover, what you said is right, Zu Kuan and Zu Dale may leave at any time, and Huang Taiji is becoming more and more dissatisfied with the status quo and wants to expand his territory. ”

"That's... Lord Hong, what do you mean about the formation of the Qin army......? ”

"What's the need to say? Such a good thing, counted in one fell swoop, how can this official not agree? Hong Chengchou laughed heartily, and after agreeing, he said aloud: "This official will jointly play with you and show the emperor the many benefits of forming the Qin army, so that he can report to the military department, so as not to be truthful." ”

......

A few days later, the news of Sun Chuanting's formation of the Qin army soon reached Li Zicheng's ears, and the latter directly ordered Tian Jianxiu: "Inform Mr. Song Yingxing and ask him to select some extremely loyal and clever people from various base areas in Shaanxi to join the Qin army, the more the better, and there will be no mistakes." In a word, as long as I want, this Qin army can be surnamed Li at any time. ”

"Yes, boss, I'll inform Mr. Song now!" Tian Jianxiu agreed, and couldn't help but praise: "Boss, this move is amazing, in this way, Sun Chuanting is equivalent to training for us." As soon as there is any action, we can know it as soon as possible. ”