The weather at the end of November, coupled with the arrival of the Xiaoice period, was very cold.

And the Ming army had an order not to attack the peasant rebel army, so these officers and soldiers of the Ming court were also lazy.

With such a cold weather, it was really uncomfortable for them to keep an eye on the movements of those peasant rebels.

Just when the officers and soldiers of the Ming court relaxed their vigilance and loosened military discipline.

The peasant rebels had already begun to quietly cross the Yellow River with the help of the ice.

By the time the officers and soldiers of the Ming court reacted, it was too late.

The peasant rebels who had been besieged by them had already left, leaving behind some wounded or old, weak, sick and disabled.

The real main force of the peasant rebel army had already crossed the Yellow River into the hinterland of the Central Plains.

Strict encirclement and suppression had already been prepared, and these peasant rebels could not escape.

Even if they could not be completely annihilated, it would wipe out most of these peasant rebels.

The rest are estimated to be just some fish that have slipped through the net, and they won't make much waves.

Moreover, these peasant rebel armies surrounded by them are the largest groups, and it can even be said that almost all the core troops of the peasant rebel army in the entire northwest are here.

As long as the peasant rebel army here is annihilated, the situation in the northwest can be alleviated.

Besides, in the current Ming Dynasty, there are civil uprisings all over the country.

As long as the peasant rebel army in the northwest is defeated, it will definitely be able to effectively deter the people in other places.

It can also greatly increase the face of the Ming court and boost the morale of the officers and soldiers of the court.

Therefore, the Ming Dynasty cannot be said to have paid no attention to these peasant rebels.

But I didn't expect that these peasant rebels would surrender by fraud.

And coincidentally, at this time, the Yellow River actually froze, giving these peasant rebels a chance to escape.

First there were these peasant rebels who surrendered, and then the Yellow River froze.

This is simply God's help to these peasant rebels.

The army of the Ming Dynasty knew very well in their hearts that if these peasant rebels were allowed to escape, then their previous achievements would be wasted.

As long as they cross the Yellow River, it will be a flat river.

There will be no hills or rivers to borrow from the surrounding terrain, and it will be difficult to encircle and suppress these peasant rebels.

Most importantly, the Yellow River is the hinterland of the Central Plains.

Compared with the barrenness of the northwest region, the hinterland of the Central Plains is definitely the core of the core of the Ming Dynasty.

Those who win the Central Plains win the world, this sentence will definitely not be groundless.

Otherwise, the word "chasing the Central Plains" would not have appeared.

The hinterland of the Central Plains has always been a battleground for soldiers.

This is the core of the Ming Dynasty, if this place is lost, then I am afraid that the Ming Dynasty will also be subverted at any time.

In short, no matter what, the peasant rebels entered the hinterland of the Central Plains.

This is the last thing that the Ming court wants to see.

If the imperial court knew about it, it would definitely be unavoidable for them to be punished.

However, it was precisely because of the cold weather that there was no order from above to attack the peasant rebels.

Therefore, the officers and soldiers of the Ming Dynasty also neglected to monitor, which gave those peasant rebels an opportunity.

By the time they found out, most of the peasant rebels had already crossed the Yellow River.

This walk is out of control.

Although they hurried after them, it did not help.

After these peasant rebels entered the hinterland of the Central Plains, there was no way to encircle and suppress them.

Although the Ming court later increased its efforts and sent more troops, it was still in vain.

For these peasant rebels who had entered the hinterland of the Central Plains, the Ming court began to be really worried.

This was the first missed opportunity for the Ming court to Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong.

They were already surrounded, and as long as the thunder strikes, they will definitely be able to exterminate these peasant rebels.

At least it can completely disperse them, so that they no longer form a climate, and they will not pose a threat to the Ming court.

However, the chief generals of the Ming army and the eunuchs of the prison army underestimated the enemy again.

When Li Zicheng, Zhang Xianzhong and others accepted Zhao'an, they really stopped the attack and went to ask the imperial court instead.

The delay in the fighter plane had a great impact on the Ming Dynasty behind.

Speaking of which, this is also to blame for the chief general of the Ming army and the eunuch of the supervising army at that time.

The first thing that came to mind was to surrender, and it was to surrender with a big advantage, not annihilation.

I don't know if this is what Zhu Youzhen means or what the Donglin Party means.

If the original order was to kill, it is estimated that Li Zicheng, Zhang Xianzhong and others also directly received a box lunch in this encirclement and suppression.

How could there be so many later.

This is simply a fight with Zhu Yunwen at the beginning of asking people not to kill Zhu Di and making him bear the reputation of killing his uncle.

This kind of low-level mistake in command, if you make it once, there will be no chance to correct it later.

Because after the peasant rebel army entered the hinterland of the Central Plains, it was difficult for the Ming court to control it.

After these peasant rebels entered the hinterland of the Central Plains, they continued to flow.

Because the hinterland of the Central Plains was relatively rich, the peasant rebel army quickly recovered.

has even strengthened a lot of its own power.

Along the way, these peasant rebels kept conquering the city, using the food and weapons in the city to strengthen their own strength.

Soon a more powerful combat power was formed, making the Ming court even more difficult to deal with.

Because these peasant rebel armies began to sweep through the hinterland of the Central Plains, the Ming court and the Donglin Party really sensed the crisis and felt afraid.

In the following years, the Ming court cracked down on these peasant rebels more and more vigorously.

Constantly devoting a large number of troops and energy to begin to encircle and suppress these peasant rebels.

In the first few years when Zhu Youzhen first ascended the throne, in addition to killing Wei Zhongxian, almost all of his energy was spent on these peasant rebels.

Under the pressure of the Ming court regardless of the cost, almost all the resources of the imperial court were used to begin to encircle and suppress these peasant rebels.

Although these peasant rebels were difficult, they were still seized by the Ming court.

In May and June of the seventh year of Chongzhen.

Several peasant armies led by Zhang Xianzhong, numbering about 40,000 people, were surrounded by officers and soldiers led by Chen Qiyu, a general of the Ming army, in the mountains east of Hanzhong Prefecture.

Due to the mountainous area, the terrain is narrow, which is not suitable for large forces at all.

And in terms of terrain, it was the officers and soldiers of the Ming Dynasty who had the advantage.

Relying on the advantages of the terrain, they almost surrounded the peasant rebel army led by Zhang Xianzhong.

The peasant rebel army led by Zhang Xianzhong faced the situation of total annihilation under this encirclement.

Just when these peasant rebels could not escape, history repeated itself again.

Zhang Xianzhong sent someone to negotiate and offered to accept the court's recruitment.

As long as the imperial court spared them this time, he would disband all the peasant rebel armies.

Let them go home and farm honestly.

I don't know what Zhang Xianzhong thinks.

Not long ago, these peasant rebels had made a false surrender, and now they have come out to say that they want to surrender.

Even if they are really willing to surrender, they must be accepted by the Ming court.

And the Ming court, because it has already been fooled once, has also increased its vigilance against Zhang Xianzhong's recruitment.

They suspect that Zhang Xianzhong is a fraudulent surrender this time, and after waiting for an opportunity, he may turn back again.

Therefore, Chen Qiyu, the commander of the Ming Army at that time, did not relax his vigilance.

Instead, he still ordered the officers and soldiers of the Ming Dynasty to keep strict control over these peasant rebels, and surrounded them in the hills to prevent them from moving.

In the face of Zhang Xianzhong's surrender and recruitment, Chen Qiyu couldn't make the decision.

Immediately, he wrote a memorabilia, ordered someone to send it to the capital quickly, and asked Zhu You to make a decision.

And Zhu Youzhen really approved it after seeing Zhang Xianzhong wanting to recruit An.

Zhu Youzhen completely forgot the first fraudulent surrender of the peasant rebels in front of him.

It's only been less than two years.

Zhu Youzhen was still naïve to believe that these peasant rebels would really accept the imperial court's recruitment.

And Chen Qiyu had no choice after receiving Zhu Youzhen's edict.

Don't open the encirclement and let out the peasant rebels led by Zhang Xianzhong.

Sure enough, Zhang Xianzhong still had no intention of really surrendering to the imperial court this time.

After he walked out of the encirclement with the peasant rebel army, he directly killed the pacification officer sent by the Ming court and continued his rebellion.

Subsequently, Zhang Xianzhong led his men and horses to conquer Fengxian and Baoji one after another, and transferred to the Gansu region.

Because the northwest side is the stronghold of these peasant rebels.

In this way, Zhang Xianzhong once again escaped the encirclement and suppression of the Ming court.

After Zhang Xianzhong left this time, it was like letting the tiger return to the mountain.

In the days that followed, Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong became more and more powerful, and even directly shook the foundation of the Ming court.

Until Li Zicheng broke through the city of Beijing, forcing Zhu Youzhen to hang the coal mountain.

The Ming Dynasty, which lasted for nearly 300 years, became history after Li Zicheng broke through the city of Beijing.

Looking back on it now.

Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong, the two most important leaders of the peasant army, were forced into desperation by the officers and soldiers of the Ming court.

Even once it was to be completely exterminated.

But they escaped again and again, and continued to make waves under the noses of the Ming Dynasty again and again.

All this, I have to say that the decision-making level of the Ming court bears a great responsibility.

It was completely possible to strangle Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong, the two largest rebel forces, in the cradle.

But the Ming Dynasty just made mistakes again and again, allowing the two of them to grow bigger and bigger.

The most important of these is the order of the emperor Zhu Youzhen.

is because Zhu Youzhen is indecisive and too naïve.

In the face of these rebellious peasant rebel army leaders, they were still naïve and delusional that they could surrender to the Ming court.

Again and again, he was given the opportunity to escape.

Zhu Youzhen lacked the determination that an emperor should have.

In that case, Zhu Youjia should directly order the annihilation of all those peasant rebels.

Instead of fantasizing about letting them surrender to the Ming court.

Zhu Youzhen was also not wary of rebels like Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong.

When they proposed to surrender to the Ming court, Zhu Youzhen did not have the slightest suspicion.

Instead, I believed them directly.

wasted the opportunity of the officers and soldiers of the Ming court.

If he had been able to gain a good insight into the minds of these people at that time, he would have thought decisively.

directly ordered the annihilation of the peasant rebel army led by Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong, then there will be so many things in the future.

The Ming court behind it can completely muster all the spirit to deal with the Houjin in Liaodong.

In the absence of civil strife, Houjin may be wishful thinking if he wants to break through the city gate of the Ming Dynasty.

Twice sparing the two main leaders of the peasant rebel army was also one of the fatal mistakes made by Zhu Youzhen.

It was also in the early days of his succession that he missed the first very important opportunity in the face of the peasant rebel army.

Li Xiao looked at Zhu Youzhen lightly.

Zhu Youzhen not only has no experience and ability to rectify, but he also does not even have the most basic decisiveness to kill as an emperor.

In the face of the peasant rebels, he was so merciful.

If this were Zhu Yuanzhang, it is estimated that one would have been killed a long time ago.

"Zhu Youzhen, this is your second fatal mistake."

"It's not decisive enough, it's too naïve."

"I really believe that Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong are really willing to surrender to the Ming Dynasty."

"You missed two opportunities to annihilate those peasant rebels, and then gave them the climate."

"If you can deal with Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong well at that time, then there won't be so much trouble within the Ming Dynasty later."

"In the face of the Houjin in Liaodong, the Ming court will not be so difficult."

Li Xiao looked at Zhu Youzhen and said lightly.

Zhu Yuanzhang on the side also frowned.

He didn't expect that his descendants would not even dare to kill people.

Those are all rebels, what's so soft.

and surrendered, that would be to destroy their nine clans.

"Zhu Youzhen, you are really embarrassed by our old Zhu family." Zhu Yuanzhang said dissatisfiedly: "It's just that you can't fight the Donglin Party." ”

"I didn't expect you to even dare to kill people."

"What is there to hesitate about those rebels, just kill them all, and leave no one behind!"

"What do you want these rebels to do?"

Hearing the words of Zhu Yuanzhang and Li Xiao, Zhu Youzhen fell into memory.

All this Li Xiao said was true, and Zhu Youzhen had no way to refute it at all.

In fact, he already regretted letting Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong run away at that time.

But the man has already run away, and he can't do anything about it.

Looking back now, I really made a shocking mistake at that time.

If Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong could be killed directly at that time, then he would not have hanged himself in the coal mountain later.

Don't you need to talk about your queen, concubine and daughter forced to death with their own hands?

Zhu Youzhen asked himself silently in his heart.

It's a pity that there are no ifs.

To blame, only Zhu Youzhen made the wrong decision at the beginning.

(End of chapter)