The reason why it is said that the three-sided Hong Chengchou is a clear stream among the civil officials of the Ming Dynasty is not only because most of his exploits are achieved by the identity of a civilian official and when he commanded the army to fight against the enemy. What's more, Hong Chengchou has been adhering to the elegant demeanor of the Ming scribes in advocating neat and tidy clothing in his many years of career, in other words, Hong Chengchou is a person with a habit of life and thought.

The life of Huan Hai has made Hong Chengchou full of sophistication, he has almost worn out all the edges and corners, but the decisiveness in his heart is deeply hidden. He is not arrogant or impatient in the face of things, and can be described as a far-sighted and wise general. It is precisely because of these strengths that the arrogant soldiers and fierce generals under his command are willing to serve him, and even Yang Sichang, the first assistant of the Ming Dynasty in front of the emperor, has a blue eye for him, and the suspicious Emperor Chongzhen also relies on him very much.

Before Hong Chengchou left Xi'an, he received two edicts from the emperor and three military documents, all of which asked him to supervise the governor Sun Chuanting, and the generals who suppressed bandits in Shaanxi to quickly annihilate Li Bandit's uncle and nephew in one fell swoop, and then serve as the king in the starry night.

Although in the recital to the emperor, he also exaggerated the number of thieves geometrically according to his own ideas, and at the same time informed the court that the men and horses under his command lacked food and horses, as well as various other difficulties, as if he was not very sure of the victory in the battle with Li Chuang.

However, in fact, he understood that under the command of Li Zicheng and Li Guo's uncle and nephew, there were not many people left, and for a long time, Er Li was even more exhausted and isolated. On the contrary, the officers and troops under his own jurisdiction were already in the ascendancy everywhere, and his recital was just to leave more room for himself.

In Hong Chengchou's heart, he also hoped that he could complete his achievements in the battle of Tongguan this time, so as to relieve the imperial court's worries about the west and realize his unfinished ambition for several years.

On the eve of leaving Xi'an, Hong Chengchou taught a lesson to several of his cronies, and he was very satisfied with the results of helping Luan. He now not only hopes that he will win a big victory, but also hopes to capture Li Zicheng, Li Guo, and Liu Zongmin, the general under their uncle and nephew, in front of the battle.

Entering Tongguan City, he went straight to the Daotai Yamen, and the group sat in the signing room to rest for a while. Hong Chengchou separately summoned several leading generals and deputy generals, and briefly inquired about the military situation that he would face ahead. Following Hong Chengchou's orders, the generals above the rank of staff were left in his line, and the guerrilla generals and other generals immediately returned to the garrison and urged the soldiers to strictly defend to the death.

Not long after dinner, Sun Chuanting, the governor of Shaanxi, led a large group of generals from dozens of miles away. Hong Chengchou had a teacher-student friendship with Sun Chuanting, and he attached great importance to Chuanting's talents; although Sun Chuanting was even more arrogant and arrogant, and sometimes even argued with him about his strengths and weaknesses; Hong Chengchou always looked at the big picture and laughed at some unpleasant things between teachers and students.

He asked Sun Chuanting to let him into his signature room, and then retreated, the master and apprentice said a few words of greetings and condolences, Hong Chengchou smiled and said to Sun Chuanting: "Brother Baigu, since the death of the traitor Gao Yingxiang, the Shaanxi thieves have been divided into four major ......"

Sun Chuanting gulped down the tea in his cup, and unceremoniously poured it for himself, only then did he hear Hong Chengchou continue, "The scorpion block of the four teams of thieves has been exterminated last autumn; Now only the thieves Li Zicheng and Li Guo's uncle and nephew have not been eliminated, but the thieves are forced by the situation and exhausted, and they are just delayed. ”

Speaking of this, his eagle-like sharp eyes stared at Sun Baigu's eyes, and said one by one, "If tomorrow's battle can capture the thief and the 'one tiger' uncle and nephew Li Guosheng, my brother will be immortal." ”

Sun Chuanting bowed slightly, his face could not see the slightest fluctuation, and he said to Hong Chengchou with a side face: "The thieves are blocked by the officers and soldiers in front of them, and I have ordered all the soldiers and generals to know that they will never let the big and small Li thieves escape from this battle." If he can't be captured alive tomorrow, he will definitely be beheaded, and with the full merit of Shaanxi to suppress the thieves, my teacher will definitely be able to comfort and mourn and calm the people. This is all relying on the temple of the teacher, which is like a god to arrange it well, and also to visit the former enemy in person to boost morale. The protégé is incompetent, what a merit!"

Of course, Hong Chengchou could see that Sun Chuanting was complacent, and his arrogance was revealed, but he didn't care, he just said, "My brother is too humble", and laughed.

After the two of them laughed, Hong Chengchou lowered his voice: "Brother Baigu, the student received your secret code on the road, and knew that you were going to set up three ambushes to serve the thieves in the area from Tongluochuan to Jinpenpo south of Tongguan. According to your sentry, it seems that the thieves will be able to come to the vicinity of Tongguan tomorrow morning, and all the ambushes are ready?"

Sun Chuanting arrived later than Hong Chengchou, that is, he was arranging all the things for tomorrow's battle, he personally ran a trip to the preset battlefield in the area of Tongluochuan south of Tongguan to Jinpenpo, until he thought that every detail had measures to deal with, he left satisfied, seeing Hong Chengchou ask himself about tomorrow's arrangements, he smiled self-containedly, "The three ambushes are ready." It turned out that the troops were still insufficient, but fortunately with the permission of the teacher, all the horses under the command of the brigadier general Sun Xianzu and Zu Dabi were transferred to the former enemy, and they were temporarily controlled by their protégés, and the troops were not abundant. ”

"As long as we can catch the rebels alive and relieve the worries of the imperial court, that is, the students will also listen to my brother's command tomorrow. Hong Chengchou said to Sun Chuanting at a glance that his own standard battalion can be described as a strong soldier, and even if it is a fierce soldier of Xuan, Da, and Guanning, it is not comparable to the private standard battalion of the commanders and generals.

"Thank you, Master!" Sun Chuanting bowed again and sincerely thanked Hong Chengchou.

"In my brother's opinion, will the thief know that there is a heavy guard here, and treat him into the urn with ease, the thief has always been as cunning as a fox, if he turns around and returns to Funiu Mountain tonight, or takes advantage of the night to escape from elsewhere?"

Sun Chuanting smiled proudly, he turned sideways to Hong Chengchou and said in a low voice, "The teacher is extremely worried! But the protégé has already made arrangements, and he can be lured to come, and no matter how wise Li thief is, he will definitely make him fall into the net." ”

"Oh, my brother already has a clever plan?" The scheming Hong Chengchou also hooked his curiosity at this time for Sun Chuanting's words.

(End of chapter)