In the distance, I saw hundreds of cavalry coming this way. What's special is that the cavalry on the outside are all wearing red military uniforms. They are obviously the cavalry of the imperial court. And in the middle, there are about a hundred cavalry, wearing red uniforms.
But it's the light colored one.
What surprised Sun Chuanting was that among the hundred cavalry, fifty or sixty were female soldiers!
In the army, female soldiers are very rare. If it is true, there will be some female soldiers in the Baigan Army commanded by Marquis Zhongzhen. In most cases, women will not be seen on the battlefield.
The arrival of this cavalry attracted the attention of many people.
For a moment, many people were curious and stared at the female soldiers.
After getting closer to Nanyang Fucheng, the cavalry stopped, and then a rider in red military uniform continued to ride towards Fucheng.
After a while, a Ming army soldier quickly walked to the top of the city and reported to Sun Chuanting: "Sir, Li Yan, the red lady under the rogue Li Zicheng, has come to surrender!"
"Oh!" Sun Chuanting was a little surprised when he heard this.
As the commander-in-chief of the suppression of bandits, he certainly knew the situation of bandits. Although Li Yan only became a bandit after he was imprisoned, Sun Chuanting also knew that Li Yan was one of Li Zicheng's important advisers, and he also proposed
The slogan of “Equalizing farmland and freeing grain” was adopted.
As for the Red Lady, she is a female prostitute. Regardless of her abilities, she is still famous among a group of prostitutes.
Therefore, Sun Chuanting had heard of both of these people. Especially Li Yan and Hong Niangzi, Emperor Chongzhen mentioned them emphatically.
Of course, Sun Chuanting didn't know that Emperor Chongzhen mentioned Li Yan and Hong Niangzi because Liu Weichao and Emperor Chongzhen mentioned these two people in a casual chat about the bandits.
Otherwise, Emperor Chongzhen would know at most who the traitor was, but as for the leaders of the traitor, it would be impossible to understand them one by one.
At this time, because Emperor Chongzhen had mentioned it, Sun Chuanting himself was a little curious, so he immediately ordered: "Invite the two of them over!"
He wanted to know why Li Yan took the initiative to surrender? Could it be a fraud?
Not long after, Li Yan and Hong Niangzi were brought to the top of the city.
Facing a group of Sun Chuanting's personal guards, Li Yan and Lady Hong did not show any fear or anxiety. They saluted Sun Chuanting calmly and said: "The sinner Li Yan and his wife have met Mr. Sun!"
Sun Chuanting looked at Li Yan. He indeed had the temperament that a scholar should have, and said calmly: "Li Yan, whose original name is Li Xin, is from Qinglonggang, Qixian County, Kaifeng Prefecture. He was elected in the year of Dingmao in Tianqi."
After he finished speaking, he looked at the woman in red and continued: "Your surname is Xing, from Changyuan County, Henan. Your parents died young and you make a living as a street performer. Because you wear red clothes, you are called the Red Lady!
"
When Li Yan and Lady Hong heard this, they were both shocked.
Rebellion is a serious crime. In order to avoid damaging relatives, friends, and even the reputation of ancestors, people who rebel will usually change their names. Including Li Zicheng, this was also his name after the rebellion. His original name was Li Hongji. There were also a lot of thieves in the late Ming Dynasty.
The King of Sweepers, the King of Troubled Times, etc. are all chosen because they don’t want their real names to be leaked.
Therefore, both Li Yan and Hong Niangzi, especially Li Yan, who came from the imperial examination, paid more attention to hiding their identity.
Unexpectedly, as soon as I met Sun Chuanting, Sun Chuanting revealed the details.
At this time, Li Yan and Lady Hong couldn't help but glance at each other, and then turned their heads. Lady Hong asked first, "How did you know?"
"Bold!" Sun Yingyuan on the side heard this and shouted sternly, "Don't be rude in front of your Excellency!"
In his opinion, these two were thieves. Not only did they not kneel down when they met Sun Chuanting, but they also showed no respect. They just said "you" and "you". This was extremely excessive!
Naturally, Li Yan also understood the rules of officialdom. After hearing Sun Yingyuan's scolding, he quickly explained: "I am from a humble background and do not understand etiquette. Please forgive me!"
After hearing this, Sun Chuanting stretched out his hand to show that he didn't care. Then he looked at Lady Hong, who was a little unconvinced, and said, "What I said is what your Majesty said."
"..." Upon hearing this, Li Yan, Lady Hong, and even Sun Yingyuan were all stunned.
They never expected that the current emperor would actually know their details and even tell them to Sun Chuanting!
The first reaction was to think: How is this possible?
Sun Chuanting would not wait for them to ask questions. After a little explanation, he asked according to his own thinking: "Why did you two take the initiative to abandon the dark side and turn to the bright side?"
At least he sent Yuan Zhuangfei to recruit troops for the Fifth Battalion of Gezuo. However, Li Yan did not send anyone and came over on his own initiative.
Therefore, no matter what, he had to ask clearly first to measure the authenticity of Li Yan and the Red Lady's surrender.
When Li Yan heard this, he quickly replied: "The government forced the people to rebel, and they had no choice but to rebel if they were not given a way to survive! But the sinners looked at the current policy of the court, which has already taken measures to calm the people, and the life and death of the people is the first priority. Apart from what was said in the newspaper
, the sinner has seen it with his own eyes..."
Having said this, he pointed in the direction outside the city with his hand and said: "The imperial court no longer condones Zuo Liangyu and his ilk. In addition to strict military discipline, it actually helps local areas. Since the people are safe, why are they rebelling?"
After a pause, Li Yan looked at Sun Chuanting and continued: "The Lord of Sinners first listened to the Sinner's advice, strictly enforced military discipline, opened warehouses to release grain, and helped the people. However, when things went wrong, he no longer listened to the Sinner's advice.
He actually excavated the Yellow River embankment, flooded Kaifeng, and poisoned the people in the lower reaches of the Yellow River. Along the way, he went south, enslaved the people, and reappeared the nature of thieves. It is difficult for sinners to agree. It is said that people with different paths do not conspire against each other. I am willing to obey your lord and let your punishment be punished!"
After he finished speaking, he finally knelt down on his knees and put his head on the ground.
The red lady was a little reluctant to kneel to Sun Chuanting like this, but seeing Li Yan acting like this, she eventually imitated Li Yan and knelt down.
When Sun Chuanting saw them, he did not speak immediately. He only looked at Li Yan and his wife for a while and then said calmly: "Get up and talk!"
Obviously, there is no intention of condemnation.
This made Li Yan feel relieved. Just when he was about to say thanks, he was helped up by the red lady who got up first.
"Thank you, sir!" Li Yan quickly added to avoid being rude again.
Sun Chuanting looked at him and said calmly: "Your Majesty has decreed that except for Li Zicheng, Zhang Xianzhong and Liu Zongmin, everyone else can be recruited. It would be best if you can abandon the dark side and turn to the light."
When Li Yan heard this, he felt relieved and quickly thanked the emperor for his kindness.
After he finished thanking him, Sun Chuanting continued: "I have also heard about you. I have kind thoughts in my heart. Perhaps this is why His Majesty named you. But this time, I am busy, so I will not send you away yet."
The capital."
"???" When Li Yan heard this, he couldn't help but be a little curious. The meaning of Sun Chuanting's words seemed to be that he had been named by the emperor and would be sent to the capital. Moreover, there was another meaning in this sentence, that is, they were not the first couple.
There are people in front of me.
However, although he was curious, he did not dare to ask.
However, the red lady also understood the meaning of Sun Chuanting's words. She was curious about what she was thinking, so she asked directly: "Who else was named by the emperor and sent to the capital?"
This time, Sun Yingyuan did not scold her. Because Sun Chuanting had just said that the two people in front of him had been named by the emperor, so they were almost his own.
Sun Chuanting seemed to be in a good mood and did not mind the blunt words of the red lady. Hearing the sound, he turned to look at him and replied: "Zhang Xianzhong's subordinates Zhang Dingguo and Zhang Wenxiu have now restored their original surnames. Li Dingguo and Liu Wenxiu are already in the capital camp."
I have been appointed as the Commander-in-Chief."
"What?" Hearing Sun Chuanting's words, even Li Yan, who knew what was right and kept his duty, was shocked, or he confirmed in a very rude manner, "Zhang Dingguo and Zhang Wenxiu, two of the four adopted sons of the Eight Kings,
The two of them are now serving as generals in the capital camp?"
To be honest, this news was so shocking to him!
Because the four adopted sons of Zhang Xianzhong are very famous, they can be said to be Zhang Xianzhong's right-hand men. If they were replaced by Li Zicheng, they would be equivalent to the level of Liu Zongmin and Li Guo.
Such a person was actually recruited by the imperial court and served as a general in the capital camp?
This matter was definitely a big deal, but he had never heard of it before. When he heard it all of a sudden, he was really out of his mind!
Sun Chuanting actually knew that they would be surprised, because he also knew that this news would definitely shock the bandits. For this reason, he had already reported to the emperor, suggesting that the news be made public to further dampen the morale of the bandits.
At this time, seeing Li Yan being so surprised, he nodded and said, "Just stay with me and listen to me. After the war is over, go to the capital to see me."
After defeating Zuo Liangyu, he would soon defeat Li Zicheng. Since Li Yan was a counselor in Li Zicheng's army, Sun Chuanting would not miss the opportunity to learn the details of Li Zicheng's army.
Upon hearing this, Li Yan immediately said to Sun Chuanting: "Sir, Li Zicheng's troops have marched westward, intending to seize Kuizhou and enter Shu."
Kuizhou City is located at the mouth of Qutang Gorge and has a dangerous terrain. It has always been an important military town in eastern Sichuan. It is a battleground for military strategists and is the throat of eastern Sichuan. Everyone knows that if you control Kuizhou City, you control the east gate of Bashu.
Li Yan didn't need to say anything more. He believed that Sun Chuanting naturally knew the importance of this matter.
Apart from anything else, there will definitely be a surprise. It is best to catch up with Li Zicheng's troops before Li Zicheng captures Kuizhou City, so as to avoid a more complicated situation.
But who would have expected that after Sun Chuanting heard what he said, he didn't show any signs of surprise. He just frowned and said, "Oh, it seems that this thief Li still has some eyesight."
After saying this, he saw Li Yan's expression and explained to him: "Your Majesty has long expected the possibility of bandits entering Sichuan, so he has already made a plan!"
"..." When Li Yan heard this, he was so surprised that he was a little stunned.