Li Zicheng captured Xi'an Fucheng without expending much energy. Without the dispatch and support of the court, Xi'an Fucheng could not hold on with no hope. The sergeants who defended Xi'an Fucheng chose to open the city gates and surrender. The Shaanxi governor and other officials committed suicide and died for their country.

The sergeants of many Shaanxi garrison troops also chose to give up resistance and surrendered to Li Zicheng.

When Hong Chengchou was appointed governor of seven provinces, Henan, Shaanxi and other places all fell into the hands of Li Zicheng.

This was a fatal blow to Hong Chengchou. Shaanxi, Henan, Shanxi and other places were unable to mobilize troops, and it was impossible for Huguang to mobilize large armies. The remaining ones were Sichuan, Shandong and Zhejiang. Strictly speaking, it was impossible for Hong Chengchou

Mobilizing the army from Zhejiang, because the army in the south is basically under the direct control of Zhang Siwei, the Minister of War in Nanjing, and the rogue Zhang Xianzhong has begun to cause trouble in the south. If Hong Chengchou wants to mobilize the army from Zhejiang Province, he needs Zhang Siwei's approval, or in other words

To put it more unpleasantly, if Hong Chengchou rashly dispatched a large army from the south, causing Zhang Xianzhong to capture the southern provinces and lose the Central Plains and the South, then the emperor and the court would be completely plunged into an abyss.

Under the current circumstances, Hong Chengchou could dispatch some troops from Sichuan, but that would inevitably allow Zhang Xianzhong, who had long coveted Sichuan, to enter Sichuan in a large scale.

There is no need to consider Shandong at all. The Denglai New Army is stationed there, and Hong Chengchou is not qualified to dispatch it and cannot dispatch it.

In other words, Hong Chengchou, the seemingly powerful governor of seven provinces, was basically a polished commander.

The emperor's sincere expectations were still swirling in his mind. Hong Chengchou was about to leave the capital and go to Huguang to take up his post, but found himself completely confused.

This time, Song Xian was also assisted by Hong Chengchou in taking on the important task of exterminating the bandits.

Song Xian had also just been appointed. He had been appointed as the right minister of the Ministry of Industry more than a month ago. When Hong Chengchou was the governor of the five provinces, a temporary camp was set up in Xi'an Fucheng. The cooperation with Song Xian, who was the governor of Shaanxi, was very good. Later, Hong Chengchou

After suffering a disastrous defeat, Song Xian was also implicated and was removed from the post of governor of Shaanxi, but he was not thrown into prison.

After Song Xian returned home, he spent some leisurely time, not listening to what was going on outside the window, and just drank and had fun every day. Unfortunately, this time did not last long. More than a month ago, the emperor's edict arrived, and Song Xian had to follow Jin Yiwei.

Arrive in the capital.

After arriving in the capital, Song Xian learned that Hong Chengchou was imprisoned in the prison of the Ministry of Punishment. Although he had a good relationship with Hong Chengchou, he, the right minister of the Ministry of Works who stood aside, had no qualifications to speak in the court and was unlikely to give him any advice.

Why did Hong Chengchou help? Besides, Hong Chengchou was indeed defeated.

Song Xian was very concerned about all the news from the Central Plains. He tried his best and even used some means.

The reason for such attention was that Song Xian had a premonition that he might have to participate in the battle to exterminate the bandits when he came back this time.

The situation in the Central Plains was already in a mess, and could even be said to be irreversible. When Li Zicheng wrote a document to the emperor and the court, requesting to be canonized as the King of the Northwest, Song Xian agreed in his heart. He believed that the court did not have the strength to destroy Li Zicheng's tribe at the moment, and the great power was lost.

Li Zicheng can be canonized, and then the emperor and the court can even ask Li Zicheng to annihilate Zhang Xianzhong's tribe. In this case, the court can get some breathing time, slowly gather strength, and then annihilate Li Zicheng's tribe when the strength is sufficient.

It's a pity that the emperor and the court ignored Li Zicheng at all.

Hong Chengchou came back as governor of seven provinces, and Song Xian was immediately appointed as the right minister of the Ministry of War to assist Hong Chengchou in his battles.

Song Xian's premonition was completely accurate.

It's just that at this time, Song Xian was completely pessimistic. He couldn't see any hope of defeating Li Zicheng.

Before leaving the capital, Song Xian wanted to have a good talk with Hong Chengchou, but unfortunately he didn't have the chance. Besides, the limitations of the capital were a little tight. Many officials in the DPRK and the DPRK privately discussed that Li Zicheng's troops had taken over the capital of Xi'an.

, it is very possible to turn around and attack Beizhili and even the capital. If such a situation occurs, the capital will be in great danger.

...

The autumn wind blows in waves, and there is still a hint of heat in the air.

Hong Chengchou, who was on horseback, looked at Song Xian beside him, sighed and spoke.

"Brother Song, you and I are both ordered to be in times of crisis. I have been thinking hard these days, but I have not thought of a good solution. The rogue Li Zicheng has captured Xi'an Fucheng and almost controlled the entire Shaanxi. Ningxia's garrison troops have all surrendered to Li Zicheng.

, you and I no longer have any troops to mobilize in Shaanxi, let alone Henan."

"As well as Shanxi, it's not much better. I heard rumors yesterday that the troops stationed in Datong and other places have no fighting spirit. If Li Zicheng enters Shanxi, these troops may also surrender."

"The emperor ordered you and I to go to Huguang and dispatch the armies from all over Huguang to exterminate the bandits. This is a mission to reach heaven. Zuo Liangyu, the chief military officer of Huguang Suppression, has never obeyed the orders of the emperor and the court. When Zhang Xianzhong's troops attacked Wuchang Fucheng

, Zuo Liangyu, who was supposed to defend Wuchang Fucheng, actually led all his troops to withdraw to the Xiangyang Fucheng area, causing Wuchang Fucheng to be easily captured by Zhang Xianzhong's troops. Even if you and I reach Xiangyang in Huguang, it will be of no avail."

"Mrs. Qin Liangyu, the chief military officer of Sichuan, can be trusted, but Zhang Xianzhong has always coveted Sichuan. If we dispatch Qin Liangyu's troops to the Central Plains to destroy Li Zicheng's troops, Zhang Xianzhong will definitely seize the opportunity to enter Sichuan in a large scale. At that time, Mrs. Qin will not have the intention to fight with Li Zicheng's troops.

It’s time to fight.”

...

Hong Chengchou looked bad, and Song Xian also looked bad.

Song Xian, who was on horseback, looked at Hong Chengchou, sighed and spoke.

"Master Hong, your analysis is very correct, but there are some things I have to say."

"Brother Song, if you have anything to say, just say it."

Song Xian thought for a moment and then spoke.

"Master Sun Chuanting was defeated miserably and died for his country. The army of more than 100,000 people was almost wiped out. There are no more troops to dispatch in the Central Plains. Moreover, the southern bandit Zhang Xianzhong has occupied Wuchang Fucheng and is attacking the Guangdong and Guangxi areas. Under such circumstances, Your Majesty

The imperial court should assess the situation, recuperate, avoid another war, and allow the people to recover. Moreover, Li Zicheng wrote a document requesting to be canonized as the King of the Northwest. The lower official believes that the emperor can definitely agree..."

Hong Chengchou waved his hand to Song Xian.

"Brother Song, I understand what you mean. Although I am not very clear about the details of the document written by Li Zicheng, I also know that Li Zicheng is trying to completely control Henan, Shaanxi, Shanxi and other places, appoint officials and conduct scientific research on his own.

To obtain scholars, and the emperor and the court are not allowed to interfere in the affairs of these places, this is equivalent to open separatism. Under such circumstances, it is reasonable for the emperor and the court not to agree..."

Song Xian frowned and then spoke.

"Sir, if Li Zicheng's troops march into Beizhili and the capital next, how will the emperor and the court respond?"

"Well, aren't there more than 100,000 sergeants in the Beijing camp? Letting them guard the capital should not be a big problem. Besides, if Li Zicheng really dares to attack the capital, won't Liaodong, Shandong and other places ignore him?

.”

Hong Chengchou's words obviously lacked confidence.

Song Xian was a little angry. He looked at Hong Chengchou and spoke word by word.

"My lord, what I say is from the bottom of my heart. If your Excellency responds to me with the tone of a cabinet official in the DPRK and China, then I won't say anything. If my lord can turn the tide, I will do my best..."

Hong Chengchou's expression changed slightly. To be honest, he was a little scared. He was imprisoned in the prison of the Ministry of Justice for several months and his life was always in danger. There were many things that he dared not say even if he thought about it. Although he is now the governor of seven provinces,

However, life is always in the hands of the emperor and the court. If you are not careful, you may not be as simple as returning to the prison of the Ministry of Justice.

"Brother Song, you must never say such words. You know I just came out of the prison of the Ministry of Punishment..."

Hong Chengchou's answer made Song Xian a little moved.

"My lord, it's because Xiaguan is impatient. When Xiaguan was dismissed by the imperial court and returned home, he didn't think about anything about the imperial court at all. He was recalled to the capital more than a month ago. He didn't want to take up his post. I look forward to it."

In order to be able to take care of the elderly at home, Xianguan did not suffer greater grievances and did not think about the situation of adults. This is Xianguan's fault. However, the situation has reached such a critical point. Xianguan feels that if he continues to ignore the facts, he will eventually

The ending may be extremely miserable..."

Hong Chengchou had a wry smile on his face.

"Brother Song, I came out of the prison of the Ministry of Punishment. As the governor of seven provinces, I don't have a single soldier under my command. Is it possible to rely on you and me to defeat Li Zicheng's tribe? I have fought against Li Zicheng. The current Li Zicheng is different from the past.

It’s completely different. Even if I have a hundred thousand powerful troops under my command, I dare not say that I can completely defeat Li Zicheng. The imperial court asked me to go and exterminate Li Zicheng’s tribe. What else can I do? Does Brother Song think I can do anything good?

The ending..."

Song Xian was stunned for a moment and looked at Hong Chengchou, not knowing what to say.

Hong Chengchou sighed again.

"Brother Song, do you have any good ideas? Can we mobilize a large army to deal with Li Zicheng's troops..."

Song Xian hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and spoke.

"My lord, I feel that there are not enough troops to mobilize. It depends on whether the emperor and the court dare to make up their minds. If they are determined and deploy a large army, they will definitely be able to completely defeat and annihilate Li Zicheng's troops..."

Hong Chengchou looked at Song Xian and spoke expressionlessly.
Chapter completed!