At the end of June, Huguang really entered the rainy season, and it rained continuously for the last ten days, and it did not stop until July, the earth was muddy, and bows and arrows and firearms could not be used.

This battle could not be fought, so Zhu Di decisively called a halt and quit the army to rest.

The officers and sergeants were very happy in private, and finally they didn't have to attack Baling City every day.

However, although the two sides withdrew their troops, the rebel army lived in the city, and most of the officers and soldiers were in the field, only the headquarters of the emperor's central army was in the original Tumen Town Division, which was regarded as having a house to stay.

It rained every day, for more than ten days in a row, the morale of the officers and soldiers was low, and the generals were worried.

Even Zhu Di's temper has become irritable recently.

If you are fooled, if you are fooled, you should not come over to fight the rebels.

Zhu Di also regrets it now.

Think about the beginning of the rebel army, the momentum was like a bamboo, even down Guizhou, Guangxi, Sichuan provinces, when they hit Huguang, they suddenly stopped the army, and then they went all out to defend Huguang, which is really problematic.

The rebel son was waiting for him to attack, but he fell into the trap of the rebel and fell into the mud.

Hundreds of thousands of troops were trapped around Baling, and it rained every day, and their clothes could not be dried.

And now it's July, and even though it's raining, it's still hot, and it's almost like a beggar's.

The morale of the army was also low, just like after the fiasco of Qimeishan that year, and many people were thinking about retiring and returning to defend the Beijing Division.

Zhu Di couldn't help but think that when Jing was martyred, the northern army was defeated in Qimei Mountain, and the barracks were full of voices of retreat, at a critical time, Zhu Gaochu came with reinforcements, at this time Zhu Di asked his subordinates to choose a side station, at that time Zhu Neng chose to fight first, but only five or six henchmen followed, everyone looked at Zhu Gaoxu, and when Zhu Gaochu stood over, a large wave of generals followed over, and then decided that they would continue to fight.

On the same day, Zhu Di deeply felt the threat of Zhu Gaoxu, and had already decided in his heart that he could not let Gaoxu be the son.

Zhu Gaochu definitely didn't expect that just because he supported his father to continue fighting, which attracted Zhu Di's most important jealousy of him, there are more generals in the army who support Zhu Gaochu than I Zhu Di, how can I make you the son?

"Your Majesty." Just when Zhu Di recalled the past, Hou Xian came in outside the door.

"Your Majesty, the Pinghan Bu Political Envoy Department has sent news that due to continuous rain, the intersection of Honghu Lake and land and water is overflowing, and there is a landslide, and the local flood discharge and reinforcement are being organized, and ships cannot pass for the time being."

Zhu Di thought for a moment with a gloomy face: "Let them speed up the dredging." ”

"Yes."

After Hou Xian went out, Zhu Di's face became even more ugly, he knew that he wanted him to order him to withdraw from the army.

Hundreds of thousands of troops in the imperial court surrounded Baling, eating and drinking Lazar every day was a problem, and Jin Zhong, the political envoy of Pinghanbu, was his hardcore confidant, and he also quietly came to the secret letter a few days ago.

More than forty percent of the food sources of the Ming Dynasty relied on military fields.

Zhu Di mobilized a million troops (including young and strong people) to crusade against the rebels, these people are the main force of Tuntian, so that the military field labor is ten rooms and nine empty, this year's summer harvest is extremely difficult, and the output has dropped sharply.

In addition, there are still people in Jingshi and Jiangnan who deliberately hoard grain to raise the price of grain, and the logistics of the imperial court are actually in trouble.

As a staunch supporter of Zhu Di, Jin Zhong also found that it was not possible to go on like this, and if he did not consume the rebels, he would first consume the imperial court.

Jin Zhong wanted to retire, which was a great blow to Zhu Di.

Of course, Jin Zhong is standing in the position of the imperial court, and he is also thinking about Zhu Di.

Instead of hundreds of thousands of troops sinking into the mud, it is better to retreat to the capital division and hold on to the city.

The rebels could not defeat the city near Jingshi, and could only retreat to Huguang.

In fact, there is also a faction of voices in the DPRK, including Jin Zhong, who is more inclined to negotiate peace with the rebels, and rule by dividing the lake (with Dongting Lake as the boundary), that is, with the current occupied area, the army can strike and make peace, on the one hand, the imperial court can recuperate and hoard grain and grass, and secondly, it can see how long the rebels' double salary can be paid.

If there is no war, it will definitely be beneficial to the imperial court if it drags on like this.

Yao Guangxiao and Yuan Hui also agreed with this idea.

But Zhu Di was angry before Zhu Gaoxu raised his troops, and whoever dared to make peace would behead him.

Of course, at that time, he thought that with the thunder army of the imperial court, he could break the rebels with one blow, but he didn't expect it to be like this.

"Hey" Zhu Di couldn't help but sigh deeply.

After a while, Zhu Di heard the sound of a bang outside the courtyard, and it seemed that there were many people outside, and then personally reported to the governor Wu Da to see the emperor.

"Let him in." Zhu Di straightened his body and sat on the top position.

At the same time as Wu Da pushed open the door, Zhu Di looked up and found that there were many generals standing outside.

The generals should not dare to come to talk to Zhu Di, so they sent Wu Da in.

"Ministers knock to see Your Majesty, long live Your Majesty, long live, long live." Wu Da came in and worshipped.

"Get up." Zhu Di's expression was still relatively friendly, he looked at Wu Da, and suddenly smiled: "When I established the Fifth Army, Wu Da followed Gao Xu and Xu Zhong in the front army." ”

“。。” Wu Da's face suddenly turned red.

Before he could say what he wanted to say, the emperor suddenly came to this sentence.

In that year, Zhu Di got the soldiers and horses of the Daning Xingdu Division and the three guards of Duoyan, and the strength of the army increased to 200,000, and the fifth army was immediately established, Xu Zhong was the former army commander, Zhu Gaoxu was the left deputy general, and Wu Da, who was still the commander of Jiyangwei at that time, was the right deputy general.

Many years have passed in a blink of an eye, Zhu Gaoxu has reversed, and Xu Zhong has also reversed.

That's it?

"The minister will always be loyal to His Majesty, and he is willing to die for His Majesty." Wu Dagang got up and knelt down again.

"Of course I do." Zhu Di said: "The first time you went out of the fortress with me, it was just a small general banner, and then you rose all the way to the commander of Jiyangwei, of course I know your loyalty." ”

Jiyangwei was one of the seven guards of Beiping at that time, although unlike the three guards of Yanshan who were the henchmen of King Yan, most of them also fought with King Yan.

"The minister is fortunate to follow His Majesty." Wu Da said stiffly, what he wanted to say just now was swallowed in and he didn't dare to say it.

"Is there something wrong with me?" Zhu Di asked suddenly.

"It's okay, it's nothing." Wu Da had no choice but to say, his expression was quite depressed.

Zhu Di chatted with him a few more words, and Wu Da left.

Walking out of the house, it was still raining outside, and many generals were wearing robes and waiting in the corridor.

As soon as Wu Da came out, his own soldiers put on his robes.

"How's that, how's that?" The generals gathered around and asked Wu Da one after another.

Wu Da blushed and shook his head: "I can't open my mouth." ”

"Mother's." There was a lot of scolding all around.

It turned out that everyone wanted to withdraw from the army, but they didn't dare to mention it, so they asked Wu Da to mention it.

"I heard that the rivers in the rear are blocked, if they are blocked for a few more days, and there is no food to transport up, we are afraid that we will starve to death before this rain stops." Someone whined.

"It won't rain all the time, wait for a few more waves of rain to attack, and it should be able to break through Baling." Wu Da had no choice but to say.

"." The congregations were noncommittal.

At this time, someone saw Hou Xian coming back and hurriedly dispersed.

Zhu Di was standing behind the gate listening, his face was blue and very ugly.

The generals all wanted to retreat, making him ashamed and angry.

But now his important henchmen are not there, if at this time, as after the battle of Qimeishan, let everyone stand in line and decide whether to withdraw the army, he estimates that eighty percent of the generals can stand on the side of the retreat.

He let out a long sigh again, and returned to his throne in a gloomy mood.

After a while, Hou Xian came in to meet him and reported something to him.

Zhu Di didn't have the heart to listen carefully, and when he heard half of it, he suddenly asked: "Is it feasible to make peace with the rebel son now?" ”

“。” Hou Xian's face changed slightly, and he looked at Zhu Di incredulously.

At the beginning, Zhu Di was above the court, and he had a blatant attack, and whoever dared to make peace would be killed.

Therefore, the officers and troops in the back suffered heavy defeats one after another, and the soldiers of the whole country were requisitioned and transferred, and the labor and wealth were lost, and the heavens were angry and the people were resentful, and no one in the DPRK and China dared to speak out.

But Zhu Di is Zhu Di, thick-skinned, there is nothing he can't do.

Now he wants to delay it for the time being in the name of peacemaking.

Because he wanted to withdraw from the army and wait for the results of the battle on the Fujian side.

If there is no reason to make peace, once he retreats, the rebel will definitely advance and pursue, and he is afraid that it will turn into a rout.

Hou Xian didn't expect Zhu Di to ask him about military affairs, he hesitated, and said stubbornly: "If the King of Han knows that His Majesty still thinks of family affection, he will definitely understand the righteousness and make peace with the army." ”

"Hou Xian, are you willing to make peace with Gao Xu?" Zhu Di immediately said.

"The slave obeys." Hou Xian immediately said.

So Zhu Gaoxu soon received the news that Zhu Di sent Hou Xian to negotiate peace.

As soon as he heard the news, Zhu Gaoxu smiled.

Zhu Di is still this virtue, everyone in the world is a fool, he is the smartest?

Perhaps Zhu Di used discordant letters, peace negotiations and other ways to deal with the court many times during the Jing Rebellion, and he also gained the upper hand, so Zhu Di thought that he could also treat Zhu Gaoxu like this.

"Okay, let Hou Xian come in." Zhu Gaoxu was even bolder, and directly opened the city gate and put Hou Xian into the city.

"The slave and maid pay homage to the king." Hou Xian lowered his eyebrows and knocked on Zhu Gaoxu.

"Hou Xian, although we don't have much intersection in Yanwang's Mansion, this king has always respected everyone, you know it in your heart."

"Corporal Wang Lixian, treat the slaves and maids like relatives, and the slaves and maids in the palace are all boasting in private." Hou Xian's words were not sycophants, mainly because Zhu Gaoxu deliberately won over people's hearts at that time, and he did a better job than the two brothers in this regard.

Hou Xian immediately said: "Your Majesty and the king are blood-melting and water--——."

Zhu Gaoxu waved his hand and motioned for him not to say anything yet.

Hou Xian was stopped in the middle of speaking, and he was stunned in place, his face flushed.

"Just say it, how does Zhu Di want to negotiate peace?" Zhu Gaoxu asked.

Hou Xian was helpless, so he said: "Your Majesty's will, the king withdraws from Huguang and is bounded in Huguang--"

Zhu Di's meaning asked Zhu Gaoxu to retreat to Guizhou and Guangxi, and then the Ming Dynasty was divided into two, from top to bottom, Shaanxi, Huguang, Jiangxi, Zhejiang, provinces and east, to the imperial court.

The Han Dynasty occupied Sichuan, Guizhou, Guangxi, Fujian, Guangdong, Yunnan, Jiaozhi and its west.

The two sides will strike and negotiate peace, and will never go to war.

As soon as Zhu Gaoxu heard it, he knew that Zhu Di was obviously delaying time and wanted to reverse the unfavorable situation.

And now Shaanxi is still in Zhu Di's hands, and it is uncertain.

Because at this time, Qu Neng and Sheng Yong were fighting.

Seeing that Zhu Gaoxu didn't say anything, Hou Xian hurriedly said: "Your Majesty also said that they are all blood relatives, why bother to meet each other, what thoughts and opinions does Gao Xue have, now you can tell your father face to face, everyone, they are all relatives." ”

Hou Xian learned Zhu Di's tone, and spoke earnestly and affectionately.

Zhu Gaoxu watched him perform interestingly, almost thinking that he was back in the martyrdom, and Zhu Di came to trick himself again.

After Hou Xian finished speaking, Zhu Gaoxu's face suddenly moved, and after a few breaths, he began to choke: "Erchen often thinks of his father's love for Erchen when he was young, and his mother, Erchen -——Wow-——"

Zhu Gaoxu cried as he spoke, dumbfounded Hou Xian.

"The sons didn't see the last look of the concubine, and the sons are not filial-——"

“。。” Hou Xian.

Zhu Gaoxu cried for a moment, and then slowly stopped.

Hou Xian also pretended to wipe his eyes, and sure enough, there were tears, I have to say that his acting skills are not willing to be inferior.

The two exchanged acting skills and gave each other a thumbs up in their hearts.

Zhu Gaoxu said again: "Erchen is still thinking about it, during the Jing Disaster back then, my father said that my eldest brother was not in good health, and he would -—— me at any time, and he would crown me as the son-"

“。。” Hou Xian, I didn't hear, I didn't hear, I didn't hear anything.

"Later, I don't know why, my father listened to the rumors of Yao Guangxiao and Yuan Hui, and insisted on making the eldest brother the crown prince."

"Hou Xian, although you didn't go to the battlefield in the battle of Jingnan, you should also know that this Jingyan was fought by me, how much credit I made, if it wasn't for me, my father would be able to become the emperor?"

Hou Xian's expression was embarrassed, the slave didn't know anything, King Han, don't say it.

"What my father said is right, we are still flesh and blood, inside and outside the city, we are also Ming soldiers, we Mingren, we shouldn't beat Mingren." When Zhu Gaoxu said this, he slapped it on the table: "Hou Xian." ”

"The slave is here."

"You go back and tell my father that the son is also willing to stop the army and negotiate peace, but this Huguang has to be given to the son of the minister, and the son has not obtained the position of the crown prince, and now he has a small request, and he refuses to give it to his father if he asks for a Huguang?"

Zhu Gaoxu meant, in addition to the territory just now, Huguang also gave it to me, so let's stop the army and make peace.

Of course, Zhu Gaoxu is just trying to stall for time.

It is impossible to strike the army, unless you, Zhu Di, give me the emperor's throne.

Now he also wants to stall for time.

First, look at the results of the battle in Fujian, second, look at the battle situation in Guanzhong, third, use the defense of the city to reduce the morale of the officers and soldiers, and finally wait for the officers and troops to withdraw before pursuing the decisive battle.

If Guanzhong is taken by him, Fujian will be defeated by the official army, and he can completely disagree with what he just said.

Because he likes to watch Zhu Di half dead when he arrives, and he can't kill himself.

Hou Xian just opened his mouth on purpose, and now seeing that Zhu Gaoxu wants the whole Huguang, of course, bargaining, the two bargained, and finally said that they would go back to report to His Majesty the decision. (In fact, it delays time).

Zhu Gaoxu waited for him to leave, and summoned the generals: "Zhu Di can't stand it, he may have to retreat, let's prepare for the pursuit." ”

"King, it's still raining?"

"Well, once the rain stops, Zhu Di may retreat, let's be prepared."

"Ask the craftsmen to make more canopies, and the fire cannons can't be used."

Zhu Gaoxu used bamboo and wood as pillars, spliced with sheepskin or oiled paper, or iron sheets and wooden boards to create many simple rainproof shelters to ensure that the cannon could be used even on rainy days.

Strange to say, the next day, the rain suddenly stopped after more than ten days.

But recently it is the rainy season, the sky is still relatively dark, Zhu Gaoxu estimates that it will fall again, and still let people make more rain shelters as a precaution.

And Zhu Di was in the formation, and he had already considered the matter of retiring from the army.

But this matter is very demoralizing, and the hundreds of thousands of troops in the imperial court have to withdraw after a month or two of fruitless fighting, and they must find a suitable reason.

(End of chapter)