As soon as Zhao Yan arrived in Shaanxi, he received a message that made him angry.

According to leaks from Shandong party officials in the court, Chongzhen was in contact with the envoys sent out by Duoduo and had agreed to negotiate peace with the Qing Dynasty.

The condition was that the Qing Dynasty paid tribute and vowed to never invade the pass.

Duoduo accepted these conditions one by one. At present, the Qing Dynasty was in danger in Liaodong, Zhao Yan was in the south, and the rest of the Ming army was in the west. If it was attacked on both sides, Liaodong could be recovered within half a year.

Although the Liaoxi official army cannot be compared with the Shandong army, it also has victory or defeat in fighting against the Qing Dynasty. If we really fight to the death, this ace army of the Ming court is no less than the Eight Banners of the Qing Dynasty.

The biggest difference between the Ming army and the Qing army is that one is loose inside and the other is united inside. The interior of the Shandong army can only be described as precision.

According to Zhao Yan's plan, after obtaining enough population so as not to hinder economic development, he would be forced to regain Liaodong in full.

On that day, Zhao Yan thought for a moment and asked the staff to draft a memorial and submit it to the capital.

The memorial that Zhao Yan asked someone to draft was very simple, with only a few words, "If your Majesty wants to be accurate in the peace proposed by Jianlu, can Yan give up the people of Shandong who are sprinkled with blood? Can Yan give up the Han people who were captured in Liaodong? Can Yan give up the ancestors of the Ming Dynasty?"

...Chongzhen was very upset in the Forbidden City recently, because of Zhao Yan.

According to reports from various places, Zhao Yan gathered refugees all the way, and the poor went to Shandong and Liaodong, and issued documents to convex thieves to be widely posted in the Central Plains.

In the Central Plains alone, Zhao Yan gradually gathered millions of people. Those were millions of people. Once he was placed in military farms, he would have a source of more than 100,000 or 200,000 troops in the war.

What made Chongzhen feel deeply frustrated was that the "Da Ming Dynasty Daily" started by Zhao Yan kept saying "promoting" Zhao Yan, at least that's what Chongzhen thought.

At the same time, as the trespass in the Central Plains subsided, Zhao Yan led his troops to Shaanxi again. For a moment, his reputation was as high as the Zhongtian and was regarded as the Wuqu Star by the vast number of gentlemen and merchants.

What else did these people make up: "There is a Zhao in the army, and the bandits heard it and asked for life." They cheered Zhao Yan everywhere.

In early July, Chongzhen received a secret report from Zheng Zhilong, saying that Zhao Yan was the descendant of the Song Dynasty royal family and the 14th generation grandson of Zhao Kuangmei.

Chongzhen used to be just afraid of Zhao Yan, but he never thought that the situation changed drastically due to the emergence of the Ming Dynasty.

In addition, Zhao Yan was the descendant of the royal family of the Song Dynasty. At this time, Chongzhen wanted to get rid of Zhao Yan and quickly. Zhao Yan, whose reputation was so high, had seriously threatened the status of the central dynasty.

Chongzhen had already begun to plan to take over the Ming Dynasty to the court, but Chongzhen could not find a suitable distribution method for the time being.

If the release method of offsetting the report is used, it will be far from reaching the current issuance speed.

"The Emperor, it has been found out. The Daming Yuebao was passed on by the 'Jimin Inn'. Although the Jimin Inn is called the inn, it is actually an inn. Each inn carries a stable. There are often emergency letters delivered to various places at a speed of 800 miles. The Daming Yuebao relied on the Jimin Inn. After the newspaper was published in Shandong, it immediately sent the newspaper to various provinces, and then printed it in various provinces quickly." After the Jinyiwei commander Luo Yang came to report to Chongzhen after investigating for more than half a month, he came to report to Chongzhen, "According to investigation, Zhao Yan set up a private inn in various provinces, which has reached the nine provinces of North Zhili, South Zhili, Shandong, Shanxi, Henan, Huguang, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, and Sichuan, Shaanxi, Yunnan, Guizhou, Guangxi, Guangdong and Fujian."

"Set up private stations, set up private stations, so bold and so big." Chongzhen was furious. He had just withdrawn the station to save finances, but Zhao Yan opened a private station. If he could communicate with him, it would be fine. The problem is that Zhao Yan had never mentioned it to him at this time.

Zhao Yan's behavior once again aroused Chongzhen's suspicion.

"The emperor, another minister sent to North Korea, found out that the King of Korea had been arrested and questioned by Zhao Yan. The Shandong army was to control the entire territory of North Korea. It was also learned from Sichuan officials that Zhao Yan had mentioned this matter after entering Sichuan, but he did not deny it." The commander of the Jinyiwei, Luo Yang, continued.

"Okay, okay, very good, I have already established myself as king in Korea. I am really my good minister and tiger general." Chongzhen was so angry that he trembled all over and ordered Luo Yang, "Continue to investigate this son's actions."

"Yes, the emperor." Luo Yang said.

"Print an order." Chongzhen suddenly turned around and said to Wang Chengen: "I ordered all provinces to ban the Daming Yuebao and Jimin Inn, and strictly prohibit the sale of the Daming Yuebao."

"Your Majesty, this...this..." Wang Chengen didn't write for a long time and said to Chongzhen carefully: "I'm afraid this is inappropriate."

"What's wrong? Is it wrong?" Chongzhen frowned and said loudly to Wang Chengen. Wang Chengen had no choice but to write down Chongzhen's will one by one and then put it aside.

"Print the order again." Chongzhen said again at this time.

"Yes, the emperor." Wang Chengen quickly lifted the pen again.

"I ordered the governors of all provinces to strictly prohibit the migration of the people. I also set up checkpoints on the borders of neighboring Shandong provinces to intercept the people entering Shandong." Chongbai said with a determined look on his face.

Seeing this order, Wang Chengen couldn't help but sweat on his forehead. But Chongzhen was already like a turtle eating a weight, and he was determined to use thunder to limit Zhao Yan's expansion. He couldn't help but sigh in his heart, wrote down Chongzhen's order, and then sent it to Cao Huachun to stamp it.

When Yang Sichang learned about this, he hurried into the palace to ask for a meeting with Chongzhen.

"Your Majesty is very careful. This time, the new imperial army has not been established, so you should not provoke trouble with Shandong." Yang Sichang advised that not long after his plan to open a ten-sided network, the bandits were suppressed by Zhao Yan, which made him see how terrifying Zhao Yan's strength was.

"I have decided to do so. If I let this son let him go, the Ming Dynasty will not exist." Chongzhen said resolutely, leaving directly with Buddha's sleeve, completely ignoring Yang Sichang's opinions.

...In early August, Zhao Yan led more than 100,000 people to Xi'an and met with Qin Zhiyuan. What Zhao Yan saw along the way was that the wealthy Guanzhong Plain had experienced ten years of chaos and was already ruined at this time. However, there were porridge sheds opened by Qin Zhiyuan on the road, which greatly alleviated the conflicts on this land. There were still many people in the local area. Although the thieves were making a big fuss in Shaanxi, important towns were not conquered by the thieves. The people of the Guanzhong Plain have been recuperating in recent years, and the population has recovered to a certain extent.

"Since entering Shaanxi on July 11, the subordinates have followed the decision of the young master, recruited 13 thieves, including scorpion blocks, lighted lamps, and hummingtianxing, gathered a total of more than 400,000 refugees, and set up a porridge shed in the Guanzhong Plain to recruit nearly 700,000 people." Qin Zhiyuan reported to Zhao Yan, "In the Central Plains, more than 200,000 people were recruited later."

Zhao Yan nodded, very satisfied with the progress.

From him to obtain 800,000 people in the Central Plains, plus the subsequent more than 200,000 and Shaanxi's 1.1 million people, this time he advanced westward to obtain more than 2.1 million people.

In addition, the data from Sichuan has not been reported yet, but the Sichuan Basin is densely populated and recruiting 500,000 to 600,000 is not a problem. If efforts are increased, recruiting one million people is not a bad idea.

A population of two or three million is enough for Shandong to digest for a while.

"How did the Shaanxi officials react?" Zhao Yan asked.

"Since Hong Xiangjiu left Shaanxi, the Shaanxi military affairs were controlled by Sun Chuanting. Sun Chuanting was quite supportive of immigration, but did not cooperate much, but instead rescued the thief everywhere." Qin Zhiyuan said to Zhao Yan: "As soon as our Shandong army entered Shaanxi, there were no thieves in Guanzhong. Sun Chuanting brought 30,000 troops westward to Gansu Xingdusi to suppress the rebel general Li Zicheng."

"Sun Chuanting is very arrogant, but he is more pragmatic." Zhao Yan couldn't help but nod. If Sun Chuanting could be as smooth as Hong Chengchou, he would have already risen to the top and soared.

"Now, most of the thieves in Shaanxi who are stubbornly resisting have entered northern Shaanxi. In the Gansu Xingdu Department, there are three major stocks, one is the general Li Zicheng, the second is Cao Cao Luo Rucai, and the third is the Li Ministry. In addition to these three major stocks, there are hundreds of small thieves." Qin Zhiyuan said.

"Ming Ming said, I will lead my army north to suppress the bandits in northern Shaanxi." After receiving the news of peace talks between the imperial court and the Qing Dynasty, Zhao Yan felt the urgency of Liaodong, but at this time he was about to speed up his progress.

"Young Master, the northwest is very dusty, so you should go back to Shandong first! You have been moving west for nearly three months, and Shandong's military and political affairs have to go back and preside over the presidency." Qin Zhiyuan suggested to Zhao Yan, "Another, we have gathered more than 2 million people this time, and the population matter has been resolved."

"It's okay, the land in northern Shaanxi is the top priority of this trip, and northern Shaanxi must not ignore it." Zhao Yan shook his head and saw Qin Zhiyuan's face was puzzled, so he said to him: "Northern Shaanxi does not produce anything, and since the change of the era, it has been a hotbed of thieves. This time, this time, the people in northern Shaanxi must be moved out of the Loess Plateau. Otherwise, even if the thieves are pacified, northern Shaanxi will be a poor place and will not be able to survive."

"I understand." After hearing Zhao Yan's words, Qin Zhiyuan understood why Zhao Yan attached so much importance to northern Shaanxi.

In areas with abundant resources, the world is full of resources. Why do we need to trap people in barren lands? That will only make the people live in poverty and easily cause chaos.

The reason why Shaanxi is so chaotic is that northern Shaanxi is not rich in resources and the border troops in northern Shaanxi do not pay military salaries in the court. If they want to survive, they have no choice but to grab them!

This caused chaos in northern Shaanxi first, and then it affected the Guanzhong Plain, known as the Little Jiangnan.

"Report to the general, the chief of staff is here." At this moment, a personal soldier from outside came to report. Zhao Yan was stunned. Why did Mao Yuanyi run into Shaanxi?

"Please invite him in." Zhao Yan said quickly.

After a while, Mao Yuanyi hurried into Zhao Yan's camp. Zhao Yan asked Mao Yuanyi in confusion: "Why is Zhisheng so in a hurry?"

"Lord, something is not good." Mao Yuanyi gasped and said to Zhao Yan with difficulty.

Zhao Yan quickly took out the kettle and said to Mao Yuanyi: "Drink a little water first."

Mao Yuanyi took the kettle, gulped and whispered, then said, "Lord, Chongzhen didn't know what was going crazy suddenly. He wanted to ban the post stations of the Ming Dynasty and our provinces, and even ordered the governors of the provinces to strictly prohibit the movement of the people. He also asked the neighboring provinces of Shandong to set up checkpoints to intercept the people into Shandong."

"What?" Zhao Yan's face suddenly changed and he said angrily: "What exactly does Zhu Youjian want to do? He first negotiated peace with the Qing Dynasty, and then he would ban our newspapers and post stations to better intercept the people into Shandong."

"Lord, your reputation is as high as the sky in the past few months, and Emperor Chongzhen is naturally afraid of it. Moreover, the Military Intelligence Bureau found out from the palace that Emperor Chongzhen seemed to have understood that you are the descendant of the Song Dynasty royal family, and you know that you will arrest the King of Korea for being punished. This time, Emperor Chongzhen will definitely think that the Lord intends to proclaim himself king in Korea." Mao Yuanyi analyzed to Zhao Yan.

"A tiger does not show its power, he thinks we are sick cats." Zhao Yan suddenly sneered.

"What is the lord planning to deal with it?" Mao Yuanyi asked Zhao Yan.

Zhao Yan said decisively: "Don't break out in silence, you can only perish in silence. Since Zhu Youjian relies on his actions as the emperor, it is time for him to be sober and immediately draft the "Report of the Qingjun" to publish the world, and do not say that Shandong sends troops to clear the king."

Mao Yuanyi looked complicated, but he nodded and said nothing.

Chongzhen dared to jump out and cause trouble now, but he relied on his throne of imperial power. If he wanted to eliminate the subsequent troubles in this area, he would only be forced to force himself, otherwise he would be rushing to the point.

"Let's put aside the affairs of northern Shaanxi for the time being, and then I will return to Denglai." Zhao Yan said resolutely and decisively abandoned the actions of Shaanxi.

As long as Chongzhen’s backbone is broken, it will be no longer too late to talk about the matter in Shaanxi.

After Zhao Yan's decision was made, the entire staff immediately became busy.

"A letter with Lu Xiangsheng and Zhu Dache, explaining the incident and explaining the reason."

"A letter was sent to Sichuan Governor Shao Jiechun, and then sent him ten thousand taels of silver to watch it."

"Order You Xuefeng to stay in Sichuan and continue to operate immigration."

"Order Yingzhou and Handan to martial law and strictly prevent internal rebellion."

Zhao Yan issued orders one by one, and the General Staff began to execute urgently. After only half a day, Zhao Yan's orders were executed.

Then Zhao Yan counted his troops and returned to Denglai.

Zhao Yan returned to Denglai and divided into two routes. Zhao Yan led 8,000 cavalry first. Qin Zhiyuan ruled Han Sheng's Fourth Battalion, and 30,000 township tyrants in Yingzhou, followed by Shandong.

Zhao Yan walked all the way and returned to Zhaojiabao after only ten days. Zhao Quan said to Zhao Yan: "Young Master, can we postpone the journey to clear the emperor until next year? If we fight with the court this time, it will be a war on the third line. If one is not good, it will affect the war in Liaodong."

This is Zhao Quan's considerations in terms of military strength and logistics. Although he supported Zhao Yan's decision very much, it was a three-line battle after all, and the troops were very scattered.

"It's okay, this time, you can mobilize two cavalry battalions, one infantry battalion and 30,000 rural warriors, and the battle can be resolved within one month." Since Zhao Yan had the banner of clearing the court, he was confident of winning this war.

Zhaojiabao quickly entered a state of war, and orders were issued from Zhaojiabao.

First, he ordered martial law in all parts of Shandong, Yingzhou and Handan. At the same time, Zhao Yan sent several confidant education committees to Yingzhou and Handan to prevent internal problems.

At the same time, Zhao Yan released the news that the court wanted to negotiate peace with the Qing army.

Furthermore, Zhao Yan sent someone to send the letter. This time, if you want to clear the king, someone must support him. He wrote a letter to Lu Xiangsheng and Zhu Dadian just to get the support of them or to keep them neutral.

In the letter to the two, Zhao Yan made it clearer. He assured them that he would send troops to the capital to clear the monarch and would not stay in the capital, and would never use the emperor to command the princes.

Zhao Yan was not sure about the attitudes of the two of them. However, even if they opposed it, it would be a little more troublesome and would not affect the overall situation.

Although the soldiers and horses in their hands were elite, a large number of officers in the army were from Zhao Yan.

The letters to Sichuan Governor Shao Jiechun tried to keep him neutral as much as possible to avoid breaking the immigration plan. In addition, he also gave him ten thousand taels of silver. Shao Jiechun was a guy who was greedy for money and wanted to contribute to his preferences. In addition, he just kept him neutral. Chongzhen would not take the account to him.

Under Zhao Yan's banner of clearing the king's side, I believe this person will watch the wall. Zhao Yan takes the initiative to contact him, so Shao Jiechun will naturally not give up the kindness expressed by Zhao Yan. After all, this is a political retreat. Without knowing who wins and who loses, the bargaining chips on both sides are the best. Just like when Cao Cao and Yuan Shao fought, Cao Cao's counselor wrote to Yuan Shao and left a way out for himself.
To be continued...