The old man snapped and shook the whip a few times, and the sheep actually lay down on the side of the road, chewing uncontrollably. The old man beckoned to Yuan Chonghuan, sat cross-legged on the ground, and said, "Inspector Yuan, the little old man is destined for the earth, and it is not easy to die. It's just that after eight years, the little old man is getting older and older, and you are getting bigger and bigger. I heard that you later won consecutive battles, Ning Yuan's victory in red-clothed artillery killed the old chief Nurhachi, and Ning Jin's victory repelled tens of thousands of Huang Taiji's soldiers, both of them are a generation of heroes, but they were defeated by you talking and laughing, it is really admirable! Back then, I followed Li Chengliang's general army, fought in Liaodong for many years, and fought more than 100 battles of all sizes, but I couldn't kill Nurhachi, it was really terrifying, the back waves of the Yangtze River pushed the front waves, I was really old! "I seem to be overwhelmed with emotion.

Yuan Chonghuan lifted the cloth robe and sat opposite him on the ground, his expression was extremely respectful, and he thanked him: "The predecessor praised it falsely, how dare Chonghuan deserve it?" If it weren't for the good situation of General Li in those years, there might not be today's Liaodong. He looked at the old man's face with blazing eyes, and said: "When I returned to the capital, I went to the military department to check the case file, and I knew that Li Chengliang, the marshal of Liaodong, had a brother Li Chengcai, who must be a senior. ”

"Hahaha, after so many years, there are still people who know the cheap name of Xiao Lao'er, it's really an honor!" Li Chengcai's laughter was a little desolate, and he nodded at Yuan Chonghuan: "You are really a caring person." ”

Yuan Chonghuan was overjoyed to see that the mystery that had been hanging in his heart for many years was solved in an instant, and asked, "How did the predecessors get here?" ”

Li Chengcai looked embarrassed, and said abruptly: "The old man was all over the field back then, and dozens of wild wolves were not in his eyes, and he didn't want to do it for many years. I endured the pain and burned down the hut and scared the wolves away, not wanting my goats to be bitten and frightened by the wolves, and they fled to death, leaving only two, just a male and a female, so I took them all the way to the south, to the bottom of the Shanhaiguan, haha, now it is such a large group. Early this morning, I heard the guards of Shanhaiguan say that you want to enter the customs, and I rushed to meet you. He saw Yuan Chonghuan looking at the sheep with a smile, and then said: "These are the descendants of those two sheep, I will bring them with me to stop you." ”

"Why?" Yuan Chonghuan was stunned.

Li Chengcai muttered: "It's not easy to enter the customs!" ”

"The southbound road is an official road, the road is smooth, and it is much easier than the white mountain and black water."

"How many men did you bring?"

"Five thousand horsemen and four thousand infantry."

"You don't know about Huang Taiji's people, right?"

"Houjin Tie can't ride more than 100,000."

"As far as the old man knows, there are only 70,000 people in Ningyuan and Jinzhou, so it is not difficult to defend the fortified city, and the division of troops to help, there are distractions, and the soldiers are lonely, it is inevitable that the left and right will be deficient, if it is taken by Huang Taiji, how do you deal with it?"

Yuan Chonghuan said unhurriedly: "Defend the city, copy the back road, and gather the nine characters of annihilation." ”

Li Chengcai was disapproving, shook his head and said: "The strong Jingshi in the Guannei city is the best, but it cannot be used as a barrier. ”

"How can you not defend it?"

"Since you have entered the customs, King Qin is the first priority, since you should intercept Huang Taiji and make him as far away from Jingshi as possible, how can you set the enemy under the city and disturb Jinggi? But Zunhua has been lost, the gate of the capital division is wide open, Jizhou can be broken overnight, what city do you have to defend? Copying the back road, the two strategies of gathering and annihilating are not bad, but when will the divisions of the Qinwang in all parts of the Guannai meet? Can I listen to you? What is especially embarrassing is that the soldiers in the Guannai have not fought for many years, so they are naturally not as good as your Guanning Iron Cavalry, and the old man is afraid that you will be self-defeating, lose your grounds, and work in vain, but will be offended by the world, give people the truth, and repeat the mistakes of being spared back then. Li Chengcai said at the end, his voice was low, and his eyes were confused.

Yuan Chonghuan said heroically: "The predecessors are too worried, Huang Taiji has gone deep into the hinterland this time, and it is difficult to supply and rescue, it is a God-given opportunity. Otherwise, if he shrinks into Shengjing, when will Liaodong be pacified? ”

Li Chengcai said indifferently: "The young man's heart should be taken with the clouds." The old man was also young, and he had such ambitions, but the world is unpredictable, and it is by no means so easy. The old man came to block your way, originally wanting to offer a good plan, but now seeing that you are so determined, don't say anything. He got up and patted the dust off his body, and flicked his whip on the ground, and the sheep obediently straightened up one by one and squirmed forward.

Yuan Chonghuan stopped: "It's not too late for the seniors to say something, I am willing to listen to the teachings." ”

Li Chengcai let out a long sigh and said after a while: "After the elite of the Eight Banners of the Golden Dynasty is exhausted, Shengjing is bound to be empty...... Alas! The overseer may not be able to use it, so don't say it. The old man has delayed the army for so long, and it is time to retire. I didn't expect that I had been in seclusion for many years, and I still couldn't give it up, and it seemed that it was still difficult to purify the six roots! His face was grim, and the red scar was twisted horribly.

Yuan Chonghuan hurriedly shouted: "Senior ......"

Li Chengcai turned around and said indifferently: "Actually, it's nothing, there are only eight words: encircle Wei to save Zhao, and set up an ambush at the right time, then Liaodong can be peaceful for several years, otherwise the difficulties of the Liao people don't know when it will be." After that, he raised his whip and left, and after a while, he was hidden in the vast wilderness, only a wisp of singing came intermittently: "The official journey is in danger and danger, and if you bring it, you will be promoted to the rank of official, and if you transport it, you will be ruined...... How many Huan Hai are terrifying, and the storm is steep and big...... Just listening to the noisy singing in front of the sedan chair, you can know that the heart is as chaotic as numbness, and in the end it is empty...... Suddenly the lack of ice on the cake was icing on the cake, and the ground was thrown off the horse by Yan Shenshan sand......"

Sunset, jackdaws, wind, fallen leaves...... The singing became more and more desolate and poignant, Yuan Chonghuan got up and stared at it with tears for a long time, seeing that the twilight was gradually deepening, and his heart was heavy, as if he was aging a lot in an instant. Xie Shangzheng saw that his face was different, and said hatefully: "The superintendent doesn't have to listen to his nonsense, what kind of military affairs does an old man in the mountains know?" ”

Yuan Chonghuan was noncommittal, and asked in a daze: "Yunren, which is lighter and which is heavier, Fuliao or King Qin?" ”

"Since ancient times, the country has been rescued by high merit, and it is naturally the king of Qin who is the most important."

"Jinzhou doesn't need so many people." Yuan Chonghuan looked at the faintly visible Shanhaiguan, and slowly got on his horse and said: "Pass my general order, the soldiers will not pass the meal, the horses will no longer be sheared, day and night, be sure to enter Jizhou City before Huang Taiji, and stop the Houjin soldiers from advancing westward." Then transfer the Jinzhou general army Zu Dashou, staff generals Zheng Yilin, Wang Chengyin, guerrilla Liu Yingguo led the horse infantry soldiers and then entered the customs to respond. With a whip, the horse rushed straight forward. The dust rose again, and the brigade continued to march south. Traveling all the way, flying five hundred miles in six days and stationing in Jizhou, Yuan Chonghuan learned that Houjin Bing was still two or three days away from here, and he secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Huang Taiji heard that Yuan Chonghuan rushed to Jizhou first, and his heart was also awe-inspiring, and he couldn't help but secretly admire, Yuan Chonghuan was a general, and Fan Wencheng discussed, sharp soldiers do not attack, avoid its edge, quietly bypassed Jizhou City to the west, between two days, successively conquered Yutian, Sanhe, Xianghe, Shunyi to the east of the Beijing Division, and set up a large camp in Tongzhou, less than 50 miles away from the capital. Yuan Chonghuan was shocked, cut off a few exploration horses that missed the military situation, led the army to follow and chase, and at night, crossed the Houjin camp, rushed to Zhangjiawan, and blocked between Jingshi and Tongzhou. The garrison was over, and the meal was not enough to eat, so he convened the generals to discuss, looked at the slightly tired demeanor of the group, and soothed a few words, before saying: "The Houjin soldiers are menacing, and most of them are fine horses, and they are fluctuating back and forth, and they are extremely fast, and it is difficult to predict what Huang Taiji will do. Today's plan, with the Beijing division as the priority, the Beijing division is safe, the monarch's father is safe, and the monarch's father is safe, and there is no need to stick to the gains and losses of a city and a place, and the best policy is to guard the Beijing division, so that Houjin has no chance to take advantage of it. ”

"The Beijing division is the foundation of the world, and although the policy of supervising the teacher to enter the Beijing division is feasible, it is also quite fearful and should not be underestimated."

The lights were not very bright, but listening to the voice, Yuan Chonghuan knew that the speaker was Zhou Wenyu, who was the domestic slave of Zhou Yanru, the servant of the Ministry of Rites and Rites, and was promoted as the deputy chief soldier, but Zhou Yanru's cronies and eyes were the eyes and ears of Zhou Yanru's cronies. ”

"The Ming Dynasty is a precedent: the soldiers of other towns are not allowed to leave the garrison lightly without the edict, not to mention that the superintendent wants to enter the Beijing Division, absolutely not. Now that there is a message from the military department, the matter is urgent, and it is a piece of loyalty, and this matter can be explained, but the superintendent did not confront the enemy and went straight into the capital, but it was a big inappropriate, I am afraid that it will attract suspicion, and everyone will be golden, and it must be guarded against. ”

"There is no slander or heroism in life, let them say. The monarch is in a hurry, and he can't take care of these, if he can help things, he will have no regrets even if he dies. You're too worried! Yuan Chonghuan was quite unimpressed.

"A few days ago, I heard some rumors in Jizhou, saying that someone in the imperial court said that someone was a superintendent ......."

"The matter is urgent, why are you still spitting, you have something to say! Zhang Cunren, why are you stopping him? Yuan Chonghuan caught a glimpse of Zhang Cunren, the general next to Zhou Wenyu, and couldn't help but pull his armor.

Zhou Wenyu broke free of his hand, stepped forward and said, "Those treacherous villains say that the superintendent is the enemy. ”

"What? Say I'm an enemy? Yuan Chonghuan couldn't help but be stunned, and said secretly in his heart: Maybe it's what your family said. Then he laughed: "I have been fighting and defending the border for many years, and I was born and died, how can I be the enemy?" It must be Huang Taiji's trick, disturbing my heart with this gossip and slander, don't believe him! ”

"The superintendent is a great hero who stands up to the sky and the earth, but the heart of defense is indispensable! The superintendent led a large army to aid King Qin, but if he did not meet the incoming enemy, he did not use a knife or a shot, and retreated to the Beijing division. The superintendent is frank and unscrupulous, and the lowly level also knows that the superintendent is full of the heart of serving the country, but can he stop the mouths of those villains? If the enemy goes deeper, ravages Gyeonggi, and disturbs the people of the capital, then complaints are everywhere, how will the overseer confess? ”

Yuan Chonghuan was silent for a long time before asking, "Have you discussed it in private?" Seeing that the generals nodded, he let out a long sigh and said, "Then what do you think is the best policy?" ”

Zhou Wenyu said: "We will discuss, there are three must-fights in today's situation. Our army is stationed in Zhangjiawan, and it is only fifteen miles east of Tongzhou of the Houjintun Army, and the two sides have become a confrontation, and they must fight. Houjin went deep into the pass, and it was difficult to receive food and salary, but it was difficult to last by taking captives for food, and our army was different, Zhangjiawan was west of the river, which was where the canal grain route was located, which was enough to supply, and it was necessary to fight. From Zhangjiawan to the capital in the moment of releasing the horse, there can be no slight difference in the important land of Gyeonggi, which is related to the safety of the community, and also related to the innocence of the superintendent, breaking rumors, protecting the monarch's father, and not fighting. Think twice. ”

Yuan Chonghuan's heart was hot when he heard this, and his suspicion was greatly reduced, and he patted him on the shoulder and said: "I am very grateful for your heartfelt words, both public and private. Killing the enemy in battle and serving Jun's grace is exactly what we do as military generals, how can we shirk it? It's just that this time when the police entered the customs, there were only a few thousand elite horsemen, but Huang Taiji had 100,000 horses, and the enemy was outnumbered; Our army traveled twice the distance every day, failed to rest, people were sleepy and lacking, Huang Taiji was near and far, waiting for work, the two armies clashed, in case there was any mistake, the Beijing division was shaken, it was not trivial. Jingshi is the foundation of the world, how can it be easily shaken? I am deeply afraid that the Huang Taiji soldiers will be divided into two routes, as in Jizhou a few days ago, to avoid our army, and directly approach the Beijing Division, and I am ...... left and right" He saw Zhou Wenyu puffing out his cheeks and wanted to argue, and waved his hand to stop: "The enemy and I have their own strengths, they are fast and arrowy, and they are accustomed to fighting in the wilderness. Besides, Huang Taiji led the troops far away, and couldn't hold out for a few days, presumably with the intention of a quick decision and unwilling to fight, I entered the defense of the capital, one can calm the people's hearts, and the other is that the city wall of the Beijing division is high and thick, far better than Ning Yuan, and there are Hongyi cannons to fear, Huang Taiji will inevitably be discouraged, and retreat in the face of difficulties. As long as the enemy soldiers are withdrawn, the rumors will be dispelled. Don't say it anymore, I can pay attention to your hard work, or the monarch is more important than the capital. It's late at night, let's eat and rest! ”

It has been nearly three watches, and Chongzhen is sitting in the East Warm Pavilion of the Qianqing Palace, without the slightest sleep. Yidi invaded Jingshi, which had not been seen for nearly 200 years after Emperor Yingzong. Since Yuan Chonghuan was used, there has been no war in Liaodong for more than a year, and he is happy to go to this big trouble in his heart, and he doesn't want Huang Taiji to suddenly come to the city. Chongzhen was extremely annoyed, and couldn't help but wonder what kind of person was Emperor Taiji, who dared to despise the Celestial Empire so much? Who gave him so much courage? Fortunately, the bachelor Cheng Ji, who had not been in the cabinet for a long time, recommended the former cabinet minister Sun Chengzong to supervise the soldiers and horses of the Beijing Division, Chongzhen also knew that Sun Chengzong had been the emperor's teacher, quite a literary talent and martial arts, and his brother Emperor Xizong respected and feared him, nodded happily, and named Sun Chengzong as the secretary of the military department and the scholar of the Middle Pole Palace, and came to Beijing from Gaoyang, and led the army to enter Tongzhou, defend the east, and protect the Beijing division. During the day, he received a report from Tang that Yuan Chonghuan had led elite troops into Jizhou and stationed in Jizhou, Mangui was stationed in Shunyi, and the divisions of Qinwang from all over the country also came one after another, and a high heart felt a little more peaceful. It's just that the face of the Celestial Empire remains? What is the face of the lord of Zhongxing? He was extremely disturbed in his heart, and in the past few days, the officials have impeached Yuan Chonghuan for his own selfishness, killing Mao Wenlong for no reason, and seeing no monarch's father, causing Huang Taiji to worry about worry, concentrate on entering the customs, and harass Gyeonggi, and his words faintly reveal that the emperor should not be indulgent. Chongzhen piled these folds aside, couldn't help shaking his head and smiling bitterly, five years of recovery is a big plan, it is not a pity to lose a Mao Wenlong, has he consumed less food and salary over the years? Because of this, Yuan Chonghuan was punished or even abandoned, who did Liaodong hand over? When will the Liao affair be over? He pondered intently, and secretly scolded the officials for being shallow and contemptible, not knowing the severity, the beacon fire in the capital is rising, and the vultures are attacking the border generals more than once, don't they want to die at home? Cao Huachun stood aside with his hands down, holding his breath, not daring to disturb in the slightest. Although he did not study in the inner study hall for a long time, he was only half a year old, but he was naturally smart and extremely well-behaved. Soon Chongzhen saw that Wang Chengen knew very much about the death of the royal diet of the Tang Dynasty, and he was not surprised, knowing that he was concerned about eating, so he promoted him to the imperial kitchen as the chief eunuch, and the lack of eunuchs of the head of the Qianqing Palace fell on Cao Huachun's head.

??? ......, the Western clock on several cases suddenly opened two small doors, and a child with two horns jumped out, holding a small golden pestle aimed at the golden bell and knocking it several times, Chongzhen looked up, it was already time, got up and asked: "Xiao Chunzi, but what are the sharp turns?" ”

"Hooray, it's time for you to rest." Cao Huachun waved his hand outside the hall, and a palace maid came in with a red lacquer food box, opened it carefully, and served a bowl of steaming bird's nest soup, he took it and said: "Long live the lord, use some first, don't be too tired." ”

Chongzhen pinched the blue and white porcelain spoon, but suddenly stopped and snorted: "It's all bastard talk!" The soldiers are about to arrive at the city, and the situation is changing rapidly, how can they delay the urgent matter of 100,000 because of eating this bird's nest soup! What's the word? Say it! ”

Cao Huachun signaled to the palace maid to retreat, and then whispered: "Wang Yongzuo, the commander of the Dongchang Factory, sent someone to tell Yuan Chonghuan that Yuan Chonghuan had entered the city when he was approaching the Tsing Yi hat. ”

"Ahh ”

"Han and Qian Erge are in the old mansion."

"What did you do?"

"Han Ge Lao closed the door and blocked him from the mansion gate, he went to the Qian Mansion again, and it took half an hour to leave the city and return to the camp."

"What did you say?"

"As soon as you know the end, Wang Yongzuo said that you will play it in person again."

Chongzhen's face sank like water, and he said in a sullen voice: "Jingshi is under martial law, and it is difficult to send Tang newspapers in, how did he get into the city gate?" ”

"Yuan Chonghuan has the sword of Shang Fang given by the Lord of Long Live Lord, and the generals who defend the city in Beijing are extremely obedient to him, and it is not difficult to enter the city."

"The capital is heavy, the defense is strict, and the power is one, how can you talk about it without a father and a king?" He took a bite of bird's nest soup, seemed to feel difficult to swallow, frowned and waved his hand to withdraw, took a red pen to draft a holy decree, handed it to Cao Huachun and said: "The situation is critical, extraordinary. I ordered Shen Liangzuo, the celebrant of ceremonies, Lu Zhi, the internal official supervisor, to supervise the Nine Gates and the Imperial City Gate together, and Li Fengxiang, the chief of ceremonies, to supervise the Zhongyong Camp and the Admiral Jingying. Express and the minister on duty to transcribe and do it quickly! ”

Cao Huachun agreed, accepted it respectfully, and was about to retire. Chongzhen advised: "Tell Wang Yongzuo that you must find out tomorrow!" ”