In the third year of Chongzhen, at the beginning of February, at the spring equinox, the midwinter has gone, and everything has recovered. In the depths of the Qinling Mountains in Shaanxi, Li Zicheng had already brought people back.

On this day, Li Zicheng sat in a flat area, looking at the mountains that were gradually recovering their vitality, holding his breath and listening quietly to Tian Jianxiu's report.

"Boss, since Chongzhen suddenly arrested Yuan Chonghuan, Huang Taiji conquered Gu'an, Liangxiang and Fangshan in one fell swoop. There are also Zilharang, Abatai and others, who led an army of 3,000 and attacked in the Tongzhou area. It couldn't help but burn down the ships transported by the officials and soldiers, and even seized countless grains and grass. If this continues, the Tartars will have to besiege the capital for a few months, which really confirms your prophecy in Nanjing. ”

Li Zicheng looked straight ahead, still looking ahead, as if he felt something, nodded, sighed, and then said, "Hey... It could have saved the momentum of the Daming Building, but the innocent and tragic death, it was really the sorrow of a generation of famous generals, no wonder Chongzhen could not calm the chaos in the world. ”

Tian Jianxiu was stunned for a moment, of course he knew who Li Zicheng was talking about, and couldn't help asking: "Boss, is it wrong for Chongzhen to arrest Yuan Chonghuan?" ”

Seeing that the boss just nodded, Tian Jianxiu couldn't help but continue to ask: "However, those notices that show the world are clearly written." When Yuan Chonghuan was in power in Liaodong, he not only invested in the enemy, but also sold grain to various Mongolian tribes, so that they had the strength to unite with Huang Taiji to enter the pass. He also killed Mao Wenlong, so that Houjin no longer has any worries, so that today's Tartars will cause trouble in the capital, are these all fake? Moreover, it has always been rumored that Yuan Chonghuan wants to secretly negotiate peace with Huang Taiji, could it be that all this is just gossip? ”

"Maybe it's true~! Seven or eight times out of ten it's true. Li Zicheng shook his head slightly, and turned to look straight at Tian Jianxiu: "However, if Yuan Chonghuan is really suspected of being an enemy, why did he arrest him now?" There is also a good killing of Mao Wenlong, seeking peace with Huang Taiji, if there is no Chongzhen's instruction and connivance, Yuan Chonghuan really dares to do that? ”

At this moment, a flash of realization flashed in Tian Jianxiu's mind, his eyes widened, and he looked incredulous, and said sneeringly: "Boss, what do you mean, those rumors were deliberately spread by Huang Taiji, and Emperor Chongzhen fell for the Tartars' counter-plot?" ”

Li Zicheng first nodded, then shook his head, and replied uncertainly: "Regardless of whether Huang Taiji has used a counter-plot or not, at the very least, Emperor Chongzhen should not arrest Yuan Chonghuan at this time. Otherwise, the situation would not be the current situation, Huang Taiji looted around the city of Beijing with impunity, and the reinforcements from all walks of life watched from the wall, not daring to engage the Houjin army. ”

"In this case, it is impossible for Emperor Chongzhen not to know the consequences of arresting Yuan Chonghuan, so why did he still do this? Moreover, even if he fell for the counterplot, Chongzhen should also realize his mistake, so why didn't he change it and let Yuan Chonghuan go? Tian Jianxiu was even more puzzled.

At this time, Li Changmao, who was on the side, suddenly said: "Maybe it was because of Yuan Chonghuan's repeated requests, wanting the army to enter the capital for repair, which caused Emperor Chongzhen's suspicions. ”

Li Zicheng turned his head to look ahead again, regained his calm complexion, and did not say anything more. Tian Jianxiu stared straight at Li Changmao, waiting for further explanations from the other party.

"Captain Tian, since ancient times, the most taboo between monarchs and ministers, especially between the emperor and the generals who hold military power, is suspicion. Once there is suspicion, and someone fanning the flames and slandering many times, that general will surely have a great disaster. ”

Tian Jianxiu suddenly realized, but Li Changmao continued: "Maybe Yuan Chonghuan has a thousand reasons for wanting his generals to be deployed into the city to repair and replenish supplies. However, the capital is no more sensitive than other places. If the commander of the reinforcements has bad intentions, once he enters the capital, the royal family will be precarious and will be greatly restrained. ”

"Therefore, it is only a matter of time before Yuan Chonghuan is sent to prison." Tian Jianxiu nodded, as if he was emotional, and then said: "It's just that Emperor Chongzhen was too anxious, but it gave Huang Taiji an opportunity to take advantage of, so that the original advantage of having the upper hand was gone, and he could only be beaten passively, and he was helpless." ”

It seems that Li Changmao understands the situation of Daming better, and understands the thoughts of the reinforcements from all walks of life, and added: "So, Yuan Chonghuan was arrested and imprisoned, and was charged with various treason. For a time, there were no more famous generals in the capital, and the commanders of the reinforcements from all walks of life were convinced, so that a unified command could not be formed. Although there are many reinforcements, they are equivalent to scattered sand. ”

At this time, Li Zicheng, who had not spoken again, suddenly said: "Damn, no matter when the Houjin army leaves and returns to Liaodong, it doesn't matter to us, that's what Emperor Chongzhen should worry about." ”

As if he had figured out something, Li Zicheng's eyes brightened, and he turned to say, "Mr. Li, see Xiu, you immediately return to the temporary village and gather the brothers." Let them get ready, and I will lead some people out of the Qinling Mountains in the next two days, continue to enliven the Shaanxi area, expand our troops, and improve the strength of the confrontation with the imperial court. ”

The sudden change of topic, Tian Jianxiu and Li Changmao were both slightly stunned, and then looked at Li Zicheng's serious appearance, not like he was joking, and then nodded at the same time, and said in unison: "Yes, boss!" ”

After the two left, Li Zicheng fell into deep thought, began to organize his thoughts, and recalled the past. Especially the memories before the crossing, all kinds of knowledge about Li Zicheng, the famous emperor's evaluation of the Dashun emperor, why the founding of the country was only a little more than a month, and the army was defeated like a mountain, and it was out of control.

Among them, many Li Zicheng are content with pleasure and indulge in the sense of accomplishment of capturing the capital. There are also after being proclaimed emperor, some good generals are wantonly purged, stay away from loyal ministers, listen to the traitorous words of traitorous ministers, and so on.

However, now Li Zicheng clearly remembers that there is such a point of view. The reason why King Chuang was defeated was not only because he lost the hearts of the people, but also because his foundation was not stable. From occupying the land of Henan to completely controlling Shaanxi, it was only a few months.

In such a short period of time, there was no actual control of Henan and Shaanxi, and there were many hidden concerns. After the death of King Chuang, the Dashun army lost control of Shaanxi and Henan almost overnight, which is a very strong proof.

After the establishment of the Great Shun Dynasty, within a month, he captured the entire territory of Shanxi and took the capital. In this way, while magnifying the vanity of King Chuang, it also dispersed the forces of the Dashun army, and it was even more unable to firmly control the occupied areas.

Therefore, losing the hearts of the people, Wu Sangui's sword fight against each other was only the last straw that broke the camel's back, and it was not a decisive factor.

Thinking of this, now Li Zicheng has already taken countermeasures, his eyes flashed with an inexplicable light, and he muttered to himself: "Now is not the time to blatantly pull up the anti-Ming, the strength of the official army is still there." Once the attention of the Ming army is aroused, the situation will be very difficult. ”

"In this case, why not take advantage of the rebel armies from all walks of life to create a secret base in the deep mountains and old forests at the time of Shaanxi's calamity. First, they can cultivate their own henchmen, and second, they can store grain and grass to prepare for a complete anti-Ming in the future. ”

The more Li Zicheng thought about it, the more excited he became, as if he saw that one day in the future, he would ascend to the heights, and the squads hidden in various parts of Shaanxi poured out, occupied the nearby cities, and quickly controlled the entire Shaanxi between day and night.

In that case, there will be no such thing as controlling the instability of Shaanxi!

Thinking of this, Li Zicheng's thinking is clearer and more open, and this idea can be promoted to implement this practice in Henan and other places!

"Hey, hey..."

Li Zicheng laughed, smiling very proudly and brilliantly.