Even Chongzhen did not expect that the situation would turn out like this.
Originally, Chongzhen planned to deal with Zhang Xianzhong first, and then concentrate all his forces to attack Puppet Shun from several different directions at the same time, striving to destroy Puppet Shun in the shortest possible time.
However, Pseudo-Shun's initiative to send troops disrupted this plan.
After learning that the puppet troops were divided into six groups and sent troops from Xiangyang, Tongguan, etc., Chongzhen decisively changed his plan and decided to first concentrate the troops from Beizhi Zhentai, Nanzhi Zhentai and Chahar Zhentai to repel the puppet Shun first.
However, even Chongzhen did not expect that the puppet army would be so vulnerable.
First, the three armies of Gao Yigong, Zhang Neng, and Ma Chongxi were completely wiped out by Zhu Cijiong.
Then Li Yan's 30,000 cavalry were forced to rebel by the supervisory army and surrendered directly to the Ming Dynasty.
Then Du Yinxi also defeated Liu Zongmin's army in the Battle of Kaifeng, and took advantage of the victory to pursue them to Tongguan.
Then, Chongzhen also defeated Chen Yongfu in the Battle of Zhongxiang, and took advantage of the victory to pursue him all the way into Hanzhong.
At the same time, the main force of Beizhi Zhentai also entered Shanxi, leaving Datong Town all the way north, and heading south to Pingyang Prefecture on the other side to confront Xi'an Prefecture across the river.
Zhu Cijiong also led the 1st Cavalry Division to join forces with Li Yan and advance to Tongguan Guard.
In mid-July, the 1st Division of the Ming Army captured Hanzhong. Chen Yongfu led the remnants of the Right Battalion and fled all the way back to Xi'an Prefecture. At this time, there were only a few thousand remnants of the Right Battalion left.
After capturing Hanzhong, Chongzhen left 20,000 Huguang soldiers to guard Hanzhong, while he personally led the 1st Division along the Ziwu Valley Trail and entered Xi'an Prefecture in late July.
The Ziwu Valley trail is steep and difficult, and many people, young and old, were killed along the way.
After all, it was still the 1st Division. In the end, it was still ahead of the 2nd Division and the 1st Cavalry Division, and was the first to break into Xi'an Mansion and arrive at the gates of Xi'an City.
…
Before the Sixth Route Army sent troops, Dashun had about 500,000 troops.
There are approximately 350,000 mobile combat troops, including Tian Jianxiu, Liu Zongmin's Zhongquan pro-forces with 100,000 troops, Gao Yigong, Li Yan's rear camp with 80,000 cavalry, Liu Fangliang's left camp with 20,000 troops, and Chen Yongfu's right camp with 100,000 troops.
, He Jin, Xin Sizhong's front camp had 50,000 cavalry, of which 50,000 cavalry from the front camp were in Gansu and could not rush back in time.
Most of the remaining 150,000 were local warriors and mixed soldiers, guarding various prefectures.
After the disastrous defeat of the Sixth Route Army, the Zhongquan pro-army, rear camp and right camp were almost completely destroyed.
So now in the city of Xi'an, only Liu Fangliang's Zuoying of 20,000 people still has some fighting capacity.
Therefore, although they knew that there were only 20,000 Ming troops outside the city, and Chongzhen was also in the Ming army camp, the Dashun troops inside Xi'an still did not dare to take the initiative to attack.
The continuous disastrous defeats had demoralized the Dashun Army.
Strong generals such as Chen Yongfu, Bai Heming, Dang Shousu, and Bai Wang who were good at fighting were all frightened.
If you dare not fight, you may not be able to defend, because as time goes by, the situation facing the Dashun Army is deteriorating rapidly.
On July 21, Yan Yingyuan led the 2nd Division of the Ming Army to cross the Yellow River in Puzhou.
On July 23, Tongguan fell. Zhu Cijiong, Du Yinxi and Yan Yingyuan joined forces and led a mighty 170,000 horse and infantry army into Xi'an Prefecture.
On July 25, Zhu Cijiong led 50,000 cavalry and rushed to Xi'an to join Chongzhen.
On July 27th, after blocking Yinxi, Yan Yingyuan led his infantry to the outside of Xi'an City. Immediately, the Ming army completed the encirclement of Xi'an on all sides. This time it was not an encirclement of three towers, but a direct encirclement of all directions without leaving any room.
…
Looking at the soldiers and horses gathered outside the city, Chongzhen couldn't help but think of a Three Kingdoms game he often played.
Although the Three Kingdoms game was made when I was young, its playability is indeed very high.
When playing the Three Kingdoms game, the most difficult thing is the early stage of starting a business. The heroes around you will swarm up and attack you crazily. But as long as you can withstand the first wave of attacks by the heroes, you can save up.
With enough food, grass and troops, the next stage is the counterattack stage, and it will become easier towards the end.
In the final stage, there are often dozens of generals, each leading a legion, launching a mad siege on a city, flooding it like a flood.
Xi'an is almost in this situation now.
In addition to Xu Yingwei, there were also powerful generals such as Zhu Cijiong, Li Yan, Yan Yingyuan and Du Yinxi, each leading an army, which flooded Guanzhong like a flood. Xi'an was already in a state of turmoil.
…
Li Zicheng locked himself in Meiyi Palace and could not leave the house for more than half a month.
Li Shuangxi, Tian Jianxiu, Song Xiance, Gu Junen and other civil and military officials asked to see him, but Li Zicheng did not summon them at all, and even asked the eunuchs in the palace to bring in a lot of dry firewood.
Seeing this, Li Shuangxi and other civil and military officials were extremely anxious.
"Father!" Li Shuangxi and a group of civil and military officials knelt outside the palace gate and begged loudly.
"There are still 20,000 elite soldiers from the Zuoying camp in Xi'an, and there are 50,000 elite veterans from the front camp in Gansu. Not to mention your sons and ministers and other loyal ministers and generals who swear to follow you to the death. Why is this?"
Song Xiance also cried: "Your Majesty, although the current situation is bad, it is not as bad as in the eleventh year of Chongzhen. At that time, Your Majesty only led eighteen cavalry to escape into Shangluo Mountain. Didn't the situation turn over in the end?"
Tian Jianxiu and others also begged and begged Li Zicheng to lead them to break out.
Only Gu Junen laughed angrily: "Li Zicheng, I didn't expect you to be a coward! We were so blind that we followed such a coward like you. I hate it so much, I really hate it, I hate it so much!"
However, everything was in vain, no matter begging, begging or scolding.
Li Zicheng, who was hiding in Meiyi Palace, showed no reaction and did not open the door.
No one knows what Li Zicheng is doing or thinking at this time.
…
At this time, he was at the military camp outside the city.
"If we can avoid using force, we should try not to use force." Chongzhen sighed softly and said, "Since I was emperor, the people of Shaanxi have suffered too many natural disasters, followed by military disasters. In the past twenty years, the people of Guanzhong have suffered
Their lives are really hard, so I don’t want to rub salt in their wounds any more.”
"The Holy One is willing to take the common people of the world into consideration, which is really a blessing for the people in Guanzhong, and it is also a blessing for the people in Jiuzhou and all over the world." Du Yinxi, the governor of Nanzhi, changed the topic and said, "It's a pity that Li Chuang may not be willing to appreciate it."
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! Li Yan also echoed: "I also thought that it was impossible for Li Zicheng to offer the city and accept surrender."
Chongzhen said: "No matter whether Li Zicheng is willing to surrender or not, he must give it a try."
After a pause, he said to Zuo Maodi, who had just arrived at the army: "Zuo Qing, you and Li Zicheng are old acquaintances. I would like you to go to Xi'an City and tell Li Zicheng my intention. I agreed before at Bali Bridge.
Those who pass him are still counted. As long as he is willing to surrender to the Ming Dynasty, I will appoint him to the post office of the Ministry of Internal Affairs."
"According to the decree." Zuo Maodi received Chongzhen's decree and turned around to leave.
Chongzhen then said to generals Xu Yingwei and Yan Yingyuan: "The 1st Division and the 2nd Division must also be prepared. If Li Zicheng refuses to surrender, this battle cannot be delayed for a long time and a strong attack must be launched immediately."
At present, there is no railway in Guanzhong, and water transportation along the Yellow River is also blocked. Therefore, the military supplies for the 170,000-strong army have to rely on merchants from Huguang and Nanzhi for transshipment, costing hundreds of thousands of dollars every day.
Xu Yingwei and Yan Yingyuan received Chongzhen's order and prepared to go.
…
Li Zicheng held the wine bottle and stared at the young and beautiful Dou Meiyi like a wolf.
Dou Meiyi felt a little uncomfortable being stared at by Li Zicheng, so she subconsciously covered her clothes.
As a result, this action angered Li Zicheng. Li Zicheng couldn't help but peel off the only thin gauze clothes on Dou Meiyi's body, and she became completely naked in an instant.
However, Li Zicheng did not rush forward.
After taking a sip of soju, Li Zicheng suddenly asked: "My dear concubine, are you afraid of death?"
"Long live the Lord." Dou Meiyi looked at Li Zicheng with frightened eyes, and for a moment she didn't know how to answer.
However, a scene from six years ago suddenly appeared in Dou Meiyi's mind. In March six years ago, before the fall of Beijing, the single husband also forced the concubines in the palace to commit suicide, and even hacked two of them to death with a sword.
A daughter, but they, the palace maids, had a chance to escape because they had not been lucky enough to be visited by the solitary husband.
Six years have passed, but you still can't escape the punishment of fate?
Li Zicheng took another sip of soju and said drunkenly: "Last June, Chongzhen promised me that as long as I was willing to surrender, he would let me be the postmaster of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. This official is not
Xiao, is in charge of all the inns in the entire Ming Dynasty and the communications between the two capitals and the thirteen provinces of the Ming Dynasty. My beloved, do you think I should agree to him?"
"Long live my lord, I don't know, I really don't know." Dou Meiyi said while shrinking back.
"Come here, you!" Li Zicheng hugged Dou Meiyi, grabbed an unopened jar of grains, opened the mud seal, and poured it directly on himself and Dou Meiyi.
Dou Meiyi immediately screamed in horror.
Li Zicheng has fallen into madness.
"You want to return to Chongzhen, right?"
"I won't let you get what you want. If I die, you have to pay for my burial!"
"You will be my woman for all eternity, you must stay with me for eternity!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the closed palace door was suddenly kicked open, and then a woman in palace attire with a heroic face appeared outside the palace door. Seeing Li Zicheng's appearance, she immediately showed a look of regret on her face.
"Madam, you came just in time." Li Zicheng immediately grinned.
"It just so happens that our family of three is on the road together, so we can have company."
The person who dared to kick open the palace door and break in was Li Zicheng's wife, Gao Guiying, the empress of Dashun Dynasty.
In Li Zicheng's heart, only Gao Guiying and Dou Meiyi were family members, not the other concubines.
Gao Guiying said with a look of regret: "Why did my husband do this? In the eleventh year of Chongzhen, there were only eighteen horses left under my husband's command and they fled into Shangluo Mountain. Didn't they eventually sweep the world by storm? The situation today is much better than that then."
"Madam, things are not what they used to be." Li Zicheng said secretly, "Things are really not what they used to be. Today, the Ming Dynasty is flourishing under the rule of Chongzhen. Those Guanzhong merchants wish that the Ming army would invade Guanzhong and occupy Xi'an tomorrow.
It is no longer the Nine-Border Army that had broken military discipline and caused more harm to the people than the rebels. We have no chance."
After a pause, he murmured again: "I won't have another chance."
