Since Li Zicheng spoke, Xu Ping was secretly vigilant in his heart, but he did not continue to argue with Niu Jinxing. At present, there are basically two factions within the camp on this issue, Xu Ping's subordinates (regardless of whether they have opposed it internally before) and Xiying's allies all support the continued exchange of grain, at least until the exchange of grain transported by Puguanshui is completed, such as Sun Kewang also said that if Xu Ping wants to continue to exchange, he will also support it. However, the other small forces under the Chuangying group are generally opposed, but these people's voices are limited, while the larger groups, such as the Luo Rucai group, have a neutral attitude - in Luo Rucai's view, if Xu Ping has not started this operation, then he will oppose it: the reason is that if Xu Ping's department has surplus food, it is better to distribute it to other Chuangying groups; But now that Xu Ping has begun to act, Luo Rucai feels that even the suspension is not good for him: Xu Ping will definitely hold a grudge and will not give it to him at all, in this case, Luo Rucai feels that it is better to remain neutral, anyway, it is not him who has lost the most benefits.

Since Li Zicheng did not object, Niu Jinxing had no choice but to talk about another question: "What about the grain in Sichuan?" ”

Due to the great damage caused by the war and the Ming army's policy of clearing the wilderness, the camp in Sichuan has completely lost the possibility of self-sufficiency, and the current food shortage is generally transported from Huguang or simply from Henan, and Xu Ping has borne a large share of it. During the Winter War, Xu Ping stopped exporting food due to intense consumption, and after the Winter War, Xu Ping did not resume the material replenishment to Gao Yigong, he couldn't take out so many materials at that time, and now he still can't take it out.

"We can't continue to transport grain to Sichuan," the loss of thousands of miles of transfer is extremely amazing, there are not many troops with a high level of merit, and now Sichuan is recruiting troops and horses, and also carrying the burden of the hungry people in Sichuan, even if Xu Ping does not exchange food with Kaifeng, he can't afford to supply: "Let's not talk about the problem of whether it is enough, that is, the governor of Henan no longer exchanges with us, and it is difficult to transport this grain to Sichuan safely." "Now the main force of the invasion army in Henan has moved eastward, and they are heading towards Kaifeng City, and the invasion army in Huguang has become lonely, and may be expelled back to Henan by the Chu army at any time:"Zuo Liangyu's hundreds of thousands of troops are watching there, and when our main force leaves Luoyang, he will definitely attack." If the king did not immediately let the brothers of Huguang retreat, they would have been easily wiped out by the officers and soldiers. ”

"What Brother Xu said is extremely true." Niu Jinxing also agreed on this issue. Although Henan's production has recovered a lot, it is far away from Sichuan, and only half of the grain sent from Henan can be transported to Chongqing at most. ”

"If there is no such food...... Li Zicheng is a little conflicted, he is unwilling to let the Sichuan army compete with the people for food, he is not willing to watch a large number of people starve to death, and he is not willing to see the army in danger because of lack of food: "Brother Gao, how is it good?" ”

"Let them withdraw to Henan." Xu Ping said without thinking: "As for the people, how much can they bring." If General Gao's whole army returned to Henan, Zuo Liangyu would not dare to intercept it. ”

Li Zicheng frowned and did not speak, it could be seen that he was reluctant to give up the half of Sichuan he had just won.

Niu Venus seemed more indifferent: "If there is really no way, then it has to be like this." ”

"We finally invaded Sichuan, and now if we let Brother Gao withdraw, wouldn't it be a waste of our previous efforts?" Seeing that Niu Jinxing and Xu Ping wanted to give up a large area of land so easily, Li Zicheng was quite dissatisfied: "If Brother Gao returns to Henan, the Sichuan army will be forced up again, and next time we will have to fight hard again to re-enter Sichuan." Besides, the way back is already in tatters, and I am afraid that many brothers will be lost. ”

"It is precisely because Sichuan is in dilapidation that it is necessary to withdraw as soon as possible," Xu Ping felt that it was to give up Sichuan, and it would be impossible for the Sichuan army to organize strong resistance when attacking again next time, because Chongqing and Chengdu were greatly devastated by the war, and the relationship between the soldiers and the people became very sinister, and most of the fortifications that the officers and soldiers relied on were destroyed by this war: "Let's bring more people back, so that we can greatly strengthen our strength in Henan, and when we are rich in the coming year, we can wave our troops to attack Sichuan." ”

Niu Jinxing was originally not very opposed to withdrawing troops from Sichuan, but after hearing Xu Ping's words, he suddenly found that if the troops were withdrawn from Sichuan, it would mean that the headquarters of the camp had not achieved any victories worth mentioning, and it had only been circling around Huguang and Sichuan for more than a year. Moreover, there was nothing seized in the camp headquarters, except for its own consumption, most of the materials seized in Huguang were transported to Sichuan to support Gao Yigong before, and they were also distributed to many large and small forces within the camp, such as Luo Rucai and others. Now Li Zicheng's headquarters did not have enough supplies to change clothes, and the three-person alliance of Xu Ping, Li Dingguo, and Sun Kewang had achieved great results, almost completely consolidating the two prefectures of Kaifeng and Guide, and forming a large number of new battalions.

Niu Jinxing wanted to ask for some supplies from Xu Ping, but this behavior did not conform to the practice of breaking into the camp, the practice of breaking into the camp was to win the battle and divide the seizure according to the agreement, but in normal times, Li Zicheng had no right to take things from those under his command who served him as the master. If Li Zicheng's headquarters were eating and drinking on Xu Ping's territory, this would be normal, but Niu Jinxing was thinking about how to divide Xu Ping's taxes, and this would be difficult to do. Li Zicheng was worried that this would cause opposition from the other battalions, but Niu Jinxing did not think about it so far, he was worried that Xu, Li, and Sun would not give it, and Li Zicheng did not have a strong means of counterattack, not only did he not get anything, but he also lost his prestige in vain.

Today, Niu Jinxing tested Xu Ping's attitude by exchanging grain and found that the other party was very resolute, and obviously regarded the output of Kaifeng and Guide as his and Xiying's natural property, so Niu Jinxing had to find another way. Now the way he thinks of is not to withdraw to Sichuan to break into the camp first, first of all, if Gao Yigong can gain a firm foothold in Sichuan, he will not let Xu Ping's alliance dominate; Second, if the form of the Sichuan invasion camp is precarious, it may be justifiable to ask for a certain percentage of the income of Xu, Li, and Sun in the name of supporting the Sichuan invasion army.

In addition, it is also true that the areas around Chengdu and Chongqing have been seriously damaged due to the fierce fighting between the Ming army and the Chuang army, Henan can no longer continue to provide food to Sichuan, and the northern part of Huguang will soon be abandoned under the pressure of the Chu army. Gao Yigong in the Sichuan Theater had to bring a large number of people who had defected to the army according to the order of King Chuang, but there was no other reason, and Niu Jinxing was also worried about whether their food was enough: "If they stay in Chengdu and do not move, their food can last a little longer, and once it flows, the little grain in the hands of the Gao brothers will be used up immediately." ”

"Even if they stay still, they will definitely not be able to hold on." Xu Ping immediately retorted, he resolutely advocated pulling this army back: "The grain in the hands of Brother Gao will definitely not last until next year's autumn harvest, this year's cultivation in Sichuan has been delayed, and if there is no grain harvest, it is estimated that the seeds will be eaten up by next spring, where is the strength to farm?" Of course, Huguang is a big granary, but the threat of the new army in the north is so huge, and no one knows what variables will be there in such a long year, Xu Ping certainly can't persuade Li Zicheng to have expectations on this: "If you don't leave now, after the northern part of Huguang is recaptured by Zuo Liangyu, it will be very difficult for the Gao brothers to come back, the king, let's come back as soon as possible while they are still full." ”

"It's true that Chengdu and Chongqing can't have a harvest, but not in other places." Niu Jinxing saw that Li Zicheng was hesitant and saw that he was unwilling to give up the land he had obtained through hard fighting, so he advocated not withdrawing from the Gao Yigong Department and letting them attack the territory of the Ming army: "The officers and soldiers have baggage in their hands, and they can survive this year by capturing the baggage of officers and soldiers." ”

"Let Brother Gao go south? Or going north? Xu Ping was still opposed, he asked Niu Jinxing: "Although the Qin army is newly defeated, but there is still strength in Guanzhong, the Qin army is known as 600,000, although there must be a shortage, but it is not a big problem to make up 200,000 in the local battle, the Gao brothers have no food and grass, no reinforcements outside, once the army is fortified, it will be a big trouble." ”

Seeing that Niu Jinxing had nothing to say, Xu Ping emphasized again: "The Qin army is the border army of the Ming court, not the Bianjun army and the Lu army in the mainland. ”

"If only the opening could have been brought down earlier...... We'll have the spare strength to reinforce Brother Gao. Niu Jinxing observed the expressions of Li Zicheng and Xu Ping, and saw that neither of them was moved, so he had to put away his thoughts of persuasion again, and sighed: "I think Brother Gao may be able to go south." ”

"The terrain in southern Sichuan is treacherous, Yang Zhan is defending according to the danger, I'm afraid it won't be able to fight in a moment and a half, in case the military food runs out and can't take southern Sichuan, it's still a big trouble." Xu Ping has always considered from a military point of view, so he still disagrees with Niu Jinxing's opinion. The general soldier Yang Zhan guarded southern Sichuan very firmly, and his people were quite talented, both government and military affairs were well organized, and this person made Zhang Xianzhong helpless back then, and now he is still helpless when he meets him. The Chuang army attacked southern Sichuan several times with superior forces, but was repelled by Yangzhan several times and did not get an inch of land. Although Niu Jinxing said that Gao Yigong did not use all his strength is true, Xu Ping is worried that even if he uses all his strength, he may not be able to quickly defeat Yang Zhan and seize southern Sichuan, even if he defeats Yang Zhan and captures southern Sichuan, he may not be able to obtain enough food, not to mention that the Sichuan army may still continue to strengthen the wall and clear the wilderness: "The terrain in southern Sichuan is treacherous, and it is not a place for a large army. ”

Last time, Gao Yigong wrote to Shanghai saying that Yang Zhan is still providing food to vigorously support other Sichuan troops, so that the combat effectiveness of those Ming troops can also be maintained, so it is difficult for Gao Yigong to get rid of the situation of being attacked from all sides. And Xu Ping thinks that since Yang Zhan can come up with food to support friendly forces, it shows that he still has spare strength to use, and Gao Yigong is not optimistic about going south.

Li Zicheng felt that what Xu Ping said was quite reasonable, but after all, Chongqing and Chengdu were won by the blood and sweat of several battalions of his brothers, and Xu Pingyuan did not lose a single subordinate or shed a drop of blood in Henan to capture Sichuan, of course, it can be said that he didn't care, but Li Zicheng was reluctant, and he also felt that if he gave up Sichuan, he would lose to those brothers and soldiers who died in battle.

"We are thousands of miles apart, and there is definitely no Brother Gao who knows the situation there." Unlike Xu Ping, Niu Jinxing can't consider the problem of Sichuan purely from a military point of view, since Li Zicheng is reluctant to give up Sichuan, then Niu Jinxing will use this psychology to continue to insist, since there is no reason to refute Xu Ping, then simply kick the ball to Gao Yigong: "I think it's better for us to leave it alone, if Brother Gao thinks he can go north to Shaanxi, he will enter Shaanxi; If you can go south to seize southern Sichuan, you will go south, and if Brother Gao plans to come back, it will be up to him. ”

"It's okay," Xu Ping is not very clear about the details of Sichuan, but according to Niu Jinxing and Li Zicheng's description, he feels that there is no development in Sichuan, but the so-called generals are outside and the military orders are not subject to it, if Gao Yigong, the front-line commander, feels that there is something to do, then Xu Ping will not insist on dropping this army back, anyway, Xu Ping will not be able to control Gao Yigong, and now there is no need for Kaifeng Mansion to continue to provide grain and grass, so Xu Ping will have no room to speak. It's just that Xu Ping is nominally the general who broke into the camp, so he did his duty to put forward his military proposal to Li Zicheng, and now Xu Ping has no objection to Niu Jinxing's proposal: "The fighter plane is fleeting, Brother Gao has been fighting for many years, and it is close at hand, so he must see it much more clearly than us." ”

Seeing that Xu Ping and Niu Jinxing had the same opinion, Li Zicheng nodded and said, "I will immediately send a fast horse to Sichuan and let Brother Gao make his own decision." ”

"One more thing." Niu Jinxing saw that the goal had been achieved, so he hurriedly mentioned another matter, and he peeked and carefully observed Xu Ping's face: "It's about the war in Nanjing." ”

The battle with the Nanjing Jiangbei Army was monopolized by Sun Kewang, and Niu Jinxing wanted to involve some of the troops who broke into the camp, and the cause of this idea was very complex and had a long logical chain. Roughly speaking, the base area in western Henan is running very badly, there are many troops in the camp, and the expenses of the king are very large, and if these fat meats are controlled by the Xu, Sun, and Li alliances, then the other groups in the camp will have a very difficult time, and some small groups that have just defected to Li Zicheng may not even be able to survive - it is not completely impossible to leave, be annexed, or even defect to accept the court's recruitment.

In the past year, the main forces of Li Zicheng and Luo Rucai have mainly fought in Huguang, Sichuan and western Henan, and Li Zicheng has no literati except Niu Jinxing; Because Li Zicheng and Luo Rucai's activities of chasing stolen goods and helping them were much stricter than Xu Ping's, and they basically killed all the scholars everywhere they went, so the officials who defected to him were even more pitiful.

But the effect is still very bad, first of all, there are almost no scholars to take the exam, and finally a few come, but it turns out that they are all people who have a common enmity with Li Zicheng and come to scold him. Li Zicheng was looking forward to holding the imperial examination, but he was scolded for a bloody squirt, of course, he was furious, Niu Jinxing persuaded him for a long time, Li Zicheng still didn't hold back his anger, and killed one of the most scolded and obscene.

After seeing that person's head was hung on the head of the city, Niu Jinxing's heart was cold and cool, and he knew that Li Zicheng's reputation in the eyes of the scholars was ruined again. Because of the lack of support from the scholars, the base area in western Henan and centered on Luoyang was still a mess, and it was completely unable to provide food and soldiers for the camp. Niu Jinxing had to follow Li Zicheng to fight in the south and the north on weekdays, and tried his best to persuade Li Zicheng to behave in line with the requirements and habits of scholars, so he was always not idle to run the place himself. This time, taking advantage of the opportunity to meet the Qin army near Luoyang, Niu Jinxing personally visited some scholars, and tried his best to win the hearts of some scholars for King Chuang. However, the results were not good, and what worried Niu Jinxing even more was that many scholars had obviously shown interest in Xu Ping and Sun Kewang, and they had stopped persecuting scholars who had not been Ming court officials, which was an obvious signal to the scholars in Henan: Xu Ping and Sun Kewang were not against the class of scholars, but against the group of scholars who supported the Ming court.

Coupled with Sun Kewang's declaration of return, many Henan scholars began to face up to the Xu, Sun, and Li alliances, and began to observe the alliance's every move, explore the meaning of the orders they issued, and discuss them. Niu Jinxing had never seen such an interest in Li Zicheng's subordinates in the Shiren Group, and no matter what order Li Zicheng issued, he would be scorned by the Shiren, and he would never pay attention to it, let alone discuss it.

In Niu Jinxing's mind, this is not only a competition with the Ming court, but also a reaction to the faint challenge of the Xu Sun Li Alliance-the result is that it ended up like this.

After hearing the word Nanjing, Xu Ping really frowned, raised his head and looked at Niu Jinxing, Niu Jinxing's heart tightened, and he pondered the words and said: "General Sun seems to have insufficient troops and has been unable to open up the situation in Nanjing, so I think we should send a force to support him." In order to seize the land of Huaiyang as soon as possible. ”

Although Jiangbei is not as rich as south of the Yangtze River, it is still much stronger than the broken Henan.

The army in Luoyang is of course much stronger than a year ago, but compared with the camp here in Kaifeng, Niu Jinxing has heard many leaders of the camp, and even Li Zicheng's cronies and generals are talking about it: they all hope to be transferred to work under Xu Ping.

And in fact, the troops of the other ministries are now eating here in Xu Ping, and even Li Zicheng is here?

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