At the same time as the Middle Route Army was changing, Guo Ziyi of the East Route Army was also in the same trouble. The Dashun Army of the Middle Route Army died down a few days ago, and there may be an explanation.

As if they had agreed with each other, the two Dashun armies withdrew from the barracks at the same time and disappeared into the vast wilderness. It is foreseeable that a sudden storm will sweep through Shaanxi and even affect the entire northern land.

Overnight, the 120,000 Western Army "occupied the mountains as kings" and was busy enclosing land in Shaanxi, completely ignoring the great cause of the Northern Expedition. The 60,000 Dashun Army was also "short-sighted" and followed in the footsteps of the Great Western Army.

The Southern Coalition Army, almost cut in half.

Affected by this, the 120,000 Southern Ming army also had an unstable trend. If it weren't for Li Jing's foresight, he would have disrupted and reorganized the troops of the four towns in Jiangbei when he was in Yangzhou, and installed cronies, and the consequences would have been even more unimaginable.

The bait thrown by Dorgon succeeded in disrupting the Southern Alliance.

The vigorous Northern Expedition has not yet reached the halfway point, and it has been cast a deep shadow.

……………

Jingshi, Yanjing.

Dolgon read the striker, and a smile finally appeared on his lips.

Azig on the side saw it and said with a smile: "Lord Wang, isn't it time for us to appear?" Led his troops back to Jingshi, Azig felt very humiliated, and he couldn't wait to fight back.

"No!"

Dolgon's smile narrowed, and his expression suddenly became solemn, "Now is not the time. After the Great Western Army and the Great Shun Army really fight, when Li Jing can't clean up the situation, it is a good opportunity for us to make a move. ”

The Qing army was very particular about when to attack.

Too early, it is easy to expose the intentions and reunite the newly dispersed Southern coalition forces; Too late, the pressure exerted by the Manchu aristocracy will only grow, and once it erupts, it is unthinkable.

Among them, the grasp of timing is a great test of the level of the commander.

Dolgon was obviously sober, and said in a deep voice: "The order goes down, all the troops must not move, without my order, not a single soldier can be dispatched, otherwise, don't blame me for turning my face and being ruthless." ”

"Yes!"

Azig is not afraid of heaven or earth, but he is full of awe of Dorgon.

"Those who achieve great things must be patient and withstand pressure." Dorgon looked at the southern sky from afar, his gaze wandering. His comprehension of the Confucian classics is indeed praiseworthy.

…………

In Jianye City, there is a person who has been in a complicated mood lately and can't sleep well all night. This person is not the regent Ouyang Shuo, but the nominal master of the Nanming regime - Emperor Hongguang.

There is no emperor who is truly without ambition.

Since the end of the battle of Jianye, and then the start of the mighty Northern Expedition, Emperor Hongguang's heart has become more and more hot. He felt more and more that this was a sacred mission given to him by God - "to restore my great Ming country".

If there's no hope, that's it.

But when he really saw the dawn of the restoration of the country, Emperor Hongguang's heart could no longer calm down, and every victory on the front line could make Emperor Hongguang excited, because it meant that he was one step closer to the goal.

"Your Majesty, the current situation is very good, the Qing army has been scattered and fled, the coalition army is invincible, and the battle is victorious, and it will soon reach Yanjing City." So said the eunuch who reported.

Yanjing, the place where Emperor Hongguang is haunted by his dreams.

There are family businesses left by ancestors, prosperity far beyond construction, and magnificent palaces

Emperor Hongguang was immersed in happiness.

But the news that has come one after another in the past few days has made Emperor Hongguang very uneasy and dissatisfied, "How can this be, how can the Northern Expedition become an internal scuffle all of a sudden?" ”

Emperor Hongguang was puzzled.

He hates.

hates Zhang Xianzhong's greed, and hates the Dashun army's ignorance of good and bad.

"A traitor is a traitor after all, and his nature is difficult to change." Emperor Hongguang realized that he couldn't just let it go, and he couldn't say that the Southern Ming Army was fighting on the front line, so let the two gangs of rebellious ministers and thieves follow behind to pick up the bargain.

So, Emperor Hongguang, carrying the regent Ouyang Shuo behind his back, quietly issued a secret order to the generals of the Southern Ming Army: "In this Northern Expedition, the enclosure is the first, and the siege is second. Occupy the northern territories as much as possible, and don't let the rebels and thieves take advantage of it, remember, remember. ”

It was such a secret order that stirred up the Southern Ming Army and brought a lot of trouble to Li Jing and Guo Ziyi. The generals of the Southern Ming Army felt that they had the support of His Majesty the Emperor, and their confidence in speaking was naturally hardened.

Therefore, the human heart is unpredictable.

In addition to issuing secret orders to the front line, Emperor Hongguang gradually became active in the court, using the ministers close to him to begin to plan for the reception of the northern territory.

It's just that Emperor Hongguang still cares about Ouyang Shuo, the regent, and doesn't do it too obviously.

In any case, the direction of the imperial court has gradually changed, and it is normal to send officials to take over the lost territory, which is conducive to quelling the local turmoil, which is a good thing.

Ouyang Shuo had no reason to interfere.

In fact, Ouyang Shuo did not interfere, from beginning to end, he was a cold bystander.

If it were Ouyang Shuo three years ago, he might still be a little emotional when he encountered such a thorny problem, but now, Ouyang Shuo has already practiced a "heart of stone" and is as immobile as a mountain.

Regent's Palace.

Li Jing's secret letter with Guo Ziyi had been delivered as early as a day ago.

In fact, long before the Northern Expedition, Jia Xu had made various speculations about the Northern Expedition, and although Dolgon's strategy of retreating as advance was bold, it still did not leave this category.

In response to this situation, there is naturally a countermeasure.

"In the end, it's still a rabble, and it's useless." Ouyang Shuo shook his head in disappointment.

Historically, it was not for nothing that the Qing Dynasty was able to dominate the world.

As far as short-sighted regimes like Daxi, Dashun and Nanming are concerned, they can't move their legs when they see a little benefit, and they are busy fighting each other, how can they fight against the Qing Dynasty that is like the rising sun.

Fortunately, Ouyang Shuo didn't really count on them all.

Before the start of the Northern Expedition, with the assistance of Jia Xu, Ouyang Shuo formulated two sets of combat plans. If the Great Western Army and the Great Shun Army don't make any trouble, then it is naturally easy to say, all the way to Yanjing.

That's the best outcome.

With 450,000 Southern Coalition troops, under the command of Li Jing, and backed by the whole world, even if Dolgon was fully prepared, Ouyang Shuo was confident that he would besiege Yanjing and finally win the battle.

It is difficult to defend a lonely city, which is the law of using soldiers.

Another set of plans, which can also be said to be contingency plans. For a rebel leader like Zhang Xianzhong, Ouyang Shuo still can't expect much after all.

At the critical moment, you have to rely on the Inhuman Legion.

Of course, Ouyang Shuo didn't expect that the Praetorian Guards and the Flame Army alone would be able to defeat Yanjing, which was not self-confidence, but arrogance.

In extraordinary times, extraordinary means must be used.

Thinking of this, Ouyang Shuo looked at the phoenix prisoner opposite, and said with a smile: "Jianye's side will be handed over to you!" ”

"Go with confidence!" The phoenix nodded.