Hong Chengchou left Beijing all the way to Qin, on the way he received an urgent report from Du Wenhuan, after killing Wang Jiayin, his remnants supported the left prime minister and military adviser Wang Ziyong as the king, and Cao Wenzhao for several days, around to contact the thieves in various places, Lao Huihui, Cao Cao, the neat king, the lamp, the five dragons, He Shuangquan, the king of Ying, the king of the river, the king of Zhengxi, the king of Fushou, the king of Qitian, the star of the sky, Jing Lianzi, the leopard five, the king of boldness, the eight kings, the king of the secret spirit Hao Guang, the monk Yan, out of the hunting goose, the black-hearted tiger and the Loushan tiger Lao Xing and the smooth king, etc., successively gathered in Zezhou, In the area of Qinyang and Yangcheng, plus the Heavenly Dragon, the Nine Dragons, the Eight King Kongs, the Sweeping King, the Shooting Collapse Sky, Yan Zhenghu, the Heavenly Star, the Armor-Piercing Cone, the Xing Red Wolf, the Manifestation God, the Black Demon God and other kings used their own twelve Liukou, known as the Thirty-six Battalions, the General Assembly Nanshan. Hong Chengchou smiled secretly: "Most of the thieves are in Shanxi now, I want to see what means Chen Qiyu has to clean up the situation?" "Ordered Du Wenhuan to guard the men and horses on the southeast border, and did not allow the thieves to return to Qin.

Chen Qiyu within a few months, he was awarded the governor of Yansui, became one of the few feudal officials, he was originally a native of Baodezhou, Shanxi, since Wanli forty-four years in the Jinshi, in Henan, Beijing and other places to do officials, now although it is still in Shaanxi, but the governor of the yamen of Yulin and Baode Prefecture adjacent, the good news has long been spread to the hometown, it is also considered to be a return to the hometown, inevitably give birth to the spirit of Zhenyi Qianrengang, full of thousands of miles, military equipment and in-law Zhang Fengyi this army to raise and dispatch, at the beginning of his tenure, the deputy general Lu Wenshan to cut off the mountain tiger, Liu thief, Jin Yinpeng, etc., and sent the guerrilla general Chang Huaide to behead Xue Rengui, Dai Junen, who participated in politics, beheaded a dragon, diamond diamond, mountain harrier, black god, tiger among people, five Yama kings, and immediately flyed, Du Si He Sixian beheaded Wang Denghuai, inspected Luo Shengchu and cut the horse red wolf, flying all over the sky, Zhang Bo whale who participated in politics and beheaded the goose, captured Huang Shenyao, flew across the ditch, garrisoned Yan Shiheng beheaded Zhang Cong, Fan Dengke, Fan Jirong, a piece of iron, green-backed wolf, pangolin, old general, second general, full of stars, and Shangshan tiger, and the general Bai Shixiang swept the tiger, and the garrison Guo Jincheng cut the tiger, Flying in the sky, guarding Guo Tai cut the jumping tiger, the new general, rolling on the spot, the little yellow warbler, the Fang Ri rabbit, the guerrilla Luo Shixun beheaded Jia, forced to the sky, the little red flag, he will chop the grass and fly, a tiger, a winged fly, Yunli hand, the four heavenly kings, Xue Hongqi, the one-tailed wolf, and achieved a great victory in Yanshui Pass, and won eight times, and the prestige was shocked. The king was anxious and anxious for his own use, and died of a violent illness. The 36th battalion was scattered and fled, and the remaining few supported the king Gao Yingxiang as the leader, and avoided into the lake and Guangzhou to the south, looting in Xiangyang, Yunyang and other places.

In the city of Beijing, it snowed for the first time of the year. In the Dongnuan Pavilion of Qianqing Palace, he didn't feel a trace of cold, but Chongzhen's face was like the gloomy sky outside the window, and he looked at Zhou Yanru, Wen Tiren, and Xu Guangqi, and his expression was extremely unhappy. Zhou Yanru's face was covered with sweat, his face was pale, and his eyes were staring at the fold on the case, which was half an hour ago, and the six-hundred-mile urgent document sent by the Ministry of War was lost in Dengzhou. Chongzhen said angrily: "This is good, the more I really want to clear my heart, the more troublesome things are, and now Zu Dashou is still besieged by Huang Taiji in Daling City, this day is cold, waiting for the soldiers and horses to relieve the siege, but I don't want the backyard to catch fire, Dengzhou is lost so easily." ”

"The minister was overlooked for a while, and recommended Sun Yuanhua, and the minister should be ...... guilt"

"This is not the time to pursue responsibility, let's think of a safe way!" Chongzhen interrupted Zhou Yanru's words, "That Sun Yuanhua Imperial Majesty was too lenient and failed to supervise, and he didn't know that tens of thousands of taels of silver had been made into a gambling book?" There was such a big mess, and he hid it and didn't report it, and he was delusional about it. He also dispatched perversely, dealt with mistakes, and was bent on being a good gentleman and appeasing Leniness, so that the rebels were like bamboos in Shandong and Zhili, and they were trapped in Lingxian, Linyi, Shanghe, Qingzhou, and Xincheng. Wow! Now that he is a prisoner of others, no matter how clever he is, it is useless, and the face of the court has been disgraced to him! ”

Wen Tiren laughed secretly, but he excused himself: "He must be dedicated to sharing the emperor's worries, thinking that he will put down the mutiny first, atone for his crimes, and then report to the court." ”

"Hmph, you've thought it through! Even if he is the master of me, he can't be the master of the rebels. What kind of appeasement is all the opinion of scholars, as long as they have a loyal and patriotic heart, they will never do such a kingless and fatherless beast behavior! There is also Yu Dacheng, the governor of Shandong, who heard about the mutiny, and was so frightened that he couldn't get sick, and I had to send Shen Tingyu of the Chinese army and Tao Tingyan, the general of the Chinese army, to lead the troops to conscript. The more Chongzhen spoke, the more angry he became, and shouted outward: "Xiao Chengzi ----"

Ma Yuancheng trotted in, and Chongzhen ordered angrily: "Order Cao Huachun to take the brocade-clothed Wei Tiqi to bring Yu Dacheng to Beijing and put him in prison." ”

Chongzhen seemed to be really angry, Yu Dacheng's guilt should also be tried by the Ministry of War and the Three Law Divisions, and he should be detained in the prison of the Criminal Department, not in the Imperial Prison. The three ministers knew that the emperor was angry, and no one dared to advise, seeing that Ma Yuancheng was leaving. Chongzhen Wu was angry and ordered: "I will cut off Yu Dacheng from the post of governor of Shandong, and Xu Congzhi, who participates in politics, will take over; Sun Yuanhua was removed from the post of governor of Denglai, and Xie Lian, the political envoy of the country, took over. Let's go! ”

The three ministers got up to leave, but Chongzhen stopped: "Mr. Wen, Mr. Xu, stay." Zhou Yanru was stunned, as the first assistant, he was above the two of them, but he was driven out of Dongnuan Pavilion, and he was sad and remorseful in his heart, and he bowed his head and hurried away.

Chongzhen looked at Zhou Yanru's back, was stunned for a moment, and asked Xu Guangqi: "I asked Mr. to brave the wind and snow to enter the palace to ask Sun Yuanhua how to dispose of the firearms in his hand, which is millions of taels of silver!" ”

"Shame on you!" Xu Guangqi got the news, he was already heartbroken, Sun Yuanhua was a student he had seen since he was a child, and he was also the successor of Western arithmetic and Western firearms. His voice choked and said: "Your Majesty, those firearms have been purchased since the Divine Sect, even if they are not silver, they must have more than ten years of hard work. Most of the firearms had never been used, and if they were smashed by the rebels, they could be repaired, but if they were thrown into the sea, it would be difficult to search for them. The hard work of the old minister's life----"

"What I'm worried about is that they took refuge in Houjin with firearms."

"The red-clothed cannon is inconvenient, and it is not easy for them to transport it to Liaodong......

Wen Tiren smiled cruelly: "No matter how easy they are, it is necessary to intercept even people with cannons, especially those gunners are not allowed to get out of one." Without a gunner, even if Houjin got a cannon, he wouldn't be able to use it, which was like a pile of rotten copper and scrap metal. ”

"Well, that's the safest thing to do. The edict ordered Huang Long, the commander-in-chief of Phi Dao, to patrol back and forth on the sea to strictly prevent the rebel army from fleeing north on the sea, and to encircle and annihilate the rebel army in Denglai. Chongzhen's face finally softened, and said to the two: "The thief Gao Yingxiang has smuggled into Huguang and plundered everywhere, I am worried that the governors of various places will pass the buck to each other, and the thieves are not in the territory under their jurisdiction, so they will stand by and watch. There are different powers, and it is inevitable to wait and see each other, so it is advisable to set up ministers and consuls-general to do their work. Thinking about it, there must be a special errand for thieves, and the governor of the military affairs of the five provinces of Henan, Shanxi, Shaanxi, Huguang, and Sichuan. In fact, he talked to Yang Sichang about this a few days ago, and today he learned that Dengzhou had fallen, and he felt that he could not delay any longer.

The office of governor has always been a province, a place or a thing, and although there is no precedent for such a setting of five provinces, it is a good way to adapt to the times, and the two of them nodded their heads when they heard it. Wen Tiren was overjoyed, Chongzhen put aside Zhou Yanru today, summoned the ministers, and asked about the secret plan, which was also unprecedented, and he was busy praising him: "The emperor is wise." In this way, they will be driven to heaven and earth, and there will be no escape. ”

Chongzhen asked, "Gentlemen, who do you think is suitable for this position?" ”

Wen Tiren was silent and bowed his head in meditation. Xu Guangqi said: "It must be the governor of the three sides, Hong Chengchou. ”

"Mr. is right, it's just that Hong Chengchou has been the governor since he became the governor, and he is proud of his achievements, and now he is in Shaanxi to wait and see, and I understand the hunting ...... Ah, Maxima can't be overfed either, how can he run when he's fed? ”

Wen Tiren heard the emperor's change of words, and knew that the emperor originally wanted to compare Hong Chengchou to a hunting dog, and the hunter always starved the hunting dog before hunting, otherwise it would not want to hunt down the prey anymore. He pondered and said: "People may not be the same from person to person, how does the emperor look at Chen Qiyu?" ”

"He is famous in Guanshan, and he is a general, so he will be given the title of squire of the military department and be the governor of the five provinces. You don't have to go to Beijing to see Your Majesty, and go straight to your post. Chongzhen's gaze swept over their faces, and he said: "Promote Yang Sichang's military department to the right servant and the right to the imperial history, and the governor of Xuanfu, Datong, and Shanxi military affairs." ”

"That Hong Chengchou ......" Wen Tiren was surprised, he clearly saw two fierce lights hidden in Chongzhen's eyes, and hurriedly swallowed back the following words.

"Go back and continue to be the governor of Yansui." After speaking, he took out a roll of paper from his sleeve and threw it on the desk, and said with a smile: "This is Zhou Yanru's guilty plea, I will allow him!" Then, pacing out of the temple gate, the eunuch outside the door was so panicked that he was clothed in fur and put on a snow hat.

Xu Guangqi secretly exclaimed: "It seems that Hong Chengchou is going to be hungry." Leaning over to look at the case, I saw three big characters on the fold: let him go. The emperor said plainly, but in a moment, he dismissed the first assistant, and with a few words, he sent it away. He looked at Wen Tiren in surprise, Wen Tiren stretched out his right hand and quietly put it into his sleeve, but the wide sleeves of his robe shook a few times, as if it was difficult to suppress his joy.

Chen Qiyu received the holy decree, it was the first month, the weather was cold, and it was not suitable to use troops, so he calmed down, first asked for the decree to depose Jiang Yunyi, the governor of Yunyang, who had fled to see the thief, and then transferred Lu Xiangsheng, the deputy envoy of the daimyo. Lu Xiangsheng is a jinshi in the second year of the Apocalypse, although he is a scribe, but he is good at riding and shooting, skillful and strategic, generous and righteous, and has been a policeman, who has recruited 10,000 people to join the Beijing Division. After the siege of Beijing, the three prefectures of Daimyo, Guangping and Shunde were armed, and the men and horses were not disbanded, and the Tianxiong Army was called the elite division that had been carefully skilled. After Lu Xiangsheng led the Tianxiong Army to take office, Chen Qiyu immediately dispatched troops and sent generals, arranged sieges on all sides, and ordered Shaanxi, Yun, Henan, and Chu to lead troops to discuss, and Shaanxi Governor Lian State Affairs was stationed in Shangnan and intercepted in the northwest; Lu Xiangsheng, the governor of Yunyang, was stationed in the house and bamboo, and intercepted it in the west; Henan Governor Xuanmo was stationed in Lu's and intercepted in the northeast; Tang Hui, the governor of Huguang, was stationed in Nanzhang and intercepted in the southeast. Chen Qiyu led his elite troops from Nanyang to Junzhou City, Xiangyang Prefecture, Huguang, and attacked from Zhuxi in Yunyang Prefecture, and fought in Pingli, Wulinguan, Gouyangjie, Qijiagou, Ganxi, Lion Rock and other places, and all reported good news in more than ten battles, killing nearly 5,000 people and capturing 11 leaders. The deputy general Liu Qian attacked between Pingli and Zhuxi, and the guerrilla He Renlong and others pursued to Ziyang, and won a big victory, and He Renlong killed more than 10,000 people in the first battle of Ziyang. Chen Qiyu took advantage of the victory to pursue, stepped up the siege, and ordered the four governors to continue to hold the key passages in the four directions, and the generals He Renlong, Liu Qian, and Xia Hao guarded Luoyang and Chuxian; Yang Zhengfang and Yu Shiren guarded Baocheng; Chen Qiyu personally led Yang Hualin and Liu Guozhen to stationed in Yangxian County, carefully arranged, step by step, and constantly shrinking the encirclement.

Gao Yingxiang, the king of Chuang, led more than 40,000 people from the eight kings Zhang Xianzhong, Scorpion Block, and Zhang Miaoshou to cross the Yellow River from Michi, enter Henan, and won several battles in a row, and entered Yunxi County, Yunyang Prefecture, Huguang, and then broke through Shangjin, Fang County, and Baokang counties in the north of Yunxi.

The 36th battalion was held in the south mountain of Yangcheng, Li Zicheng was ranked last because of the least number of soldiers and horses, and looked at Zhang Xianzhong, the eight kings nicknamed the Yellow Tiger, who had many soldiers in the meeting hall, and was proud, so he secretly paid attention to making friends with the heroes of the world. Crossing the Yellow River in the south, he led the army to break through the pond and subdued Gu Junen's troops, although there were not many people, but Gu Junen was born and talented, quite strategic, Li Zicheng fell in love at first sight, thought that he was a military advisor, and participated in the secret. Before Li Zicheng and Gu Junen entered the conference hall, they heard that there was already a lot of noise inside, Zhang Xianzhong advocated entering Sichuan, and Scorpion Block and Zhang Miaoshou were noisily hiding in Shangluo. The two crept in and sat down to listen. After more than half an hour, Gao Yingxiang saw that they were arguing endlessly, and there was no conclusion, so he dissuaded: "Everyone is bothering here, but the officials and soldiers don't wait for us, and it will be useless to continue arguing like this...... Self-contained, why don't you say a word? Belch! The Confucian scholar next to you hasn't asked for a high name. He saw that Gu Junen was in his thirties, dressed in Confucian clothes, with a sparse long beard floating under his chin, and his demeanor was quite elegant.

Li Zicheng pulled Gu Junen and said, "This is my new military advisor Gu Junen, who has entered the county school. I've seen King Chuang! ”

Gao Yingxiang didn't wait for Gu Jun'en to give a gift, and hurriedly said: "We have all gone to school, so let's make a move!" ”

Gu Junen insisted on refusing, and said: "Since ancient times, respect and humility have been orderly, and there should be no chaos. "Kneel down and bow.

Zhang Xianzhong laughed and said: "You two old talents, you are going to put the knife on your neck, and you are so blind!" ”

Gu Junen made a gesture and saluted everyone before responding: "The eight kings are not bad, are they useless scholars!" However, after listening to everyone's words, the students thought it was impossible. The Eight Kings said that they entered the river, but it was actually inappropriate. ”

Zhang Xianzhongyuan opened his eyes and asked, "What's wrong?" ”

Gu Junen glanced around at everyone and said eloquently: "We are in Yunyang, extending in all directions, and there are many ways out. To the northeast, you can pass through Xichuan and Neixiang in Henan, to the northwest you can pass Pingli, Xing'an, Xunyang, Shanyang in Shaanxi, to the southwest you can pass Dachang and other places in Sichuan, to the south you can pass Jingmen, Yuan'an and Yiling in Huguang, and to the southeast you can go straight to Xiangyang from Hanshui. At present, Chen Qiyu has heavy troops in the west, northwest, northeast, and southeast, but he is only open in the southwest, what does he want to do? Without waiting for everyone to answer, he continued to say, "He intends to drive us into Sichuan." Yes, Sichuan has been the land of abundance since ancient times, but don't forget the difficulty of Shu Road, it is difficult to go to the blue sky, the Sichuan soldiers are in danger of defending, Chen Qiyu sent elite soldiers to chase and kill, we are back to the enemy, it is really dangerous. Even if we desperately fight into Sichuan, where the mountains are full of miasma, our ancestors live in the north, and the water and soil are not adapted, so it will take a few years, and we will fend for ourselves without the encirclement and suppression of the official army. ”

"What a vicious trick!" The crowd was shocked. Zhang Xianzhong rubbed a pair of big hands and said, "Then, where is it good?" ”

Gu Junen's eyes burned and said: "There is only one way to go back to Shaanxi." ”

The scorpion block was puzzled: "There is a practice in the northwest to intercept state affairs, how can you get by?" ”

"Soldiers, treacherous ways are also ......" Gu Junen thought that most of the people in front of him were rough men who didn't know big characters, and hurriedly changed his words: "I don't know much about state affairs, he must think that we will not return to Shaanxi, and secondly, he has Hong Chengchou behind him, although he has heavy troops, he must be careless." Besides, the mountains in the northwest are continuous, how can he cover everything without the slightest mistake? We were taken by surprise and attacked unprepared, and when the officers and soldiers understood, we had escaped from the encirclement and killed the horse gun in Shaanxi. ”

Gao Yingxiang said worriedly: "That Hong Chengchou is extremely good at using soldiers, and he should not be underestimated, you must have never dealt with him, so I don't know much." ”

Li Zicheng said: "Hong Chengchou has just been demoted, and he is feeling uncomfortable!" may not be willing to die. When we arrived in Shaanxi, we were familiar with both people and land, and we went into the ravine to circle with the officials and soldiers, and no matter how many of them were, they couldn't help us! ”

Gao Yingxiang looked around, saw that everyone no longer objected, and said: "The soldiers are lonely, and it is easy for the officers and soldiers to break through." Let's work together, tear a hole in the northwest, and go back to Shaanxi. ”

Chen Qiyu sent more than a dozen scouts, and flew back and forth every half an hour to report the movements of the thieves. He received a secret report that the thieves were marching northwest, took the map, looked at it carefully for a long time, and sneered: "They relied on the rugged and difficult road of Pingli, Xing'an, and Xunyang, and it was inconvenient to pursue them, so they made a wishful calculation, but they forgot that the mountains and valleys were the easiest to ambush. Ha ha...... There is a carriage gorge in Xing'an County, which is forty miles long and has cliffs on all sides, which is a suitable place for ambush. Chuan Yu gave him a state affair, ordered him to be false and wronged, lured Gao Yingxiang and others into it, and killed them! ”