national surname chiming

Chapter 213 Internal Liquidation
Li Dingguo didn't know that Zhang Xianzhong was suspicious of him, seeing his father calling him to discuss important military plans, he hurried away immediately.

When he arrived at Prince Ji's mansion, he was led by the guards into the huge eight-deep garden. Along the way, Li Dingguo saw all kinds of broken walls and ruins.

Those exotic flowers and plants that he couldn't name, all woody ones, picked the strong and dry parts of the branches and chopped them off, probably to use them as firewood.

There were also some rare birds and animals that he didn't know, and they left a lot of feathers and fluff, which were obviously eaten.

As for the valuable gold, silver, pearls and jade decorated on various carved beams and painted buildings, they were all picked out, leaving all kinds of potholes, and even when Li Dingguo passed by, there were guards who continued to pick there——

I should have picked up all the large pieces of valuable materials before, and there are still some bits and pieces left. I didn’t like it when I first started, so I came to cut the second crop of leeks.

Although Li Dingguo didn't read much, he was also good at observation.

Seeing these scenes, he already guessed that the father did not intend to stay in Changsha for a long time from the beginning, nor did he expect to gain a firm foothold as a base.

Otherwise, if he planned to use this Prince Ji's mansion as his residence for a long time, how could it be destroyed like this?

While Li Dingguo was thinking in a trance, he had already been led to the lobby of Prince Ji's Mansion. Following the voice of the guards, he withdrew his thoughts and hurried inside to salute Zhang Xianzhong.

"Forget it, second child, you came at a good time. We are discussing what to do next. Right now, our troops are divided into three groups. I'm afraid it's not easy to fight Shen Shuren head-on. If we want to fight, we have to gather our troops."

Li Dingguo agreed, but also felt that the atmosphere was a bit wrong, because when he came in, he saw that his father was already having a lively chat with several confidant generals, and he didn't wait until he arrived before starting the conversation.

Among these generals, there was Bai Wenxuan who broke out with him, and Feng Shuangli who had been by his elder brother's side for the past few years.

The status of these two people was originally slightly lower than the four righteous sons under Zhang Xianzhong's command, but now they were summoned before Li Dingguo, which clearly meant to marginalize Li Dingguo.

At the same time, Li Dingguo was careful and noticed a detail, that is, among the generals directly under Zhang Xianzhong, there was originally Wang Shangli, whose status was similar to that of Feng Shuangli and Bai Wenxuan, but Wang Shangli was not seen in this meeting.

Could it be that Wang Shangli also offended the king and was treated coldly?Or is there another mission sent out?
Li Dingguo didn't dare to make mistakes, so he pretended to be open-minded to listen to other people's opinions: "My father has doubts, so I dare not stop thinking about it. It's just that I'm new here, I don't understand the situation, and I don't know what the generals think?"

Zhang Xianzhong was not polite either, he winked and asked Feng Shuangli to speak on his behalf.

Feng Shuangli was also inconvenient to show his favor to Li Dingguo, so he said bluntly: "Your Majesty discussed with us and thought that there are only two roads at present. If Shen Shuren continues to press hard, we must go south, pass through Hengzhou and cross Hengshan Mountain, coerce and expand the army all the way, and then look at the official army. Whether to pursue urgency.

If Shen Shuren is not afraid of the dangers of Mount Heng, dares to give up the benefits of the navy, leave the Xiangjiang River and pursue the mountain, we can fight back and fight.Otherwise, either continue to go deep into Nanling and flee to Guangdong and Guangxi.

Or, go west after crossing Hengshan Mountain, and enter Sichuan through Qianzhong Road in the west of Xiangxi—and the three generals who were stranded in Changde Mansion, and General Sun who was stranded in Guizhou, can also join up at Shizhouwei and go south to Guizhou Road Join forces with our army and enter Sichuan together.

I don't know what the second general thinks, which of these two sets of strategies is more secure, or has a better plan. "

The two routes recounted by Feng Shuangli have no disagreement on the point of going south to Hengzhou (now Hengyang, Hunan). Take Hengzhou first.

Because in the area of ​​Changsha and Xiangtan, the waterway traffic is too developed, and the Xiangjiang River has a wide depth and a slow flow rate, which is very suitable for the party with the advantage of the navy to maneuver and intersperse.

In Zhang Xianzhong's several battles around Dongting Lake this time, the most disadvantaged thing was that he came out of the mountains and had no large warships, so no matter what happened, he had to retreat the battlefield to an area where warships and sailors were abolished before he could think about it. war.

After going south through the Hengshan Valley, the water transportation was completely over, and Zhang Xianzhong's advantage came.And if you want to run again at that time, the official army will have no boats to use, and the "rebel army" will definitely march faster than the official army.

After hearing this, Li Dingguo always felt a little awkward, but he couldn't put it into words.

He pondered for a while in silence, only to find out where the problem was: Zhang Xianzhong had never considered trying to join forces with Liu Wenxiu at the beginning, or dissipating all the huge wealth intercepted in Changsha City for recruiting soldiers, and then fighting the official army what?All you think about is running away?

It's not that it's wrong to run away, but now that we have so many newly recruited troops, if we move thousands of miles away, we will definitely lose all the new attached troops, and the old battalion in Shanxi and Henan may not be able to survive. , Morale prestige is also lost.

Li Dingguo thought for a while, and persuaded: "If the father wants to join forces with the elder brother and the third younger brother, my son has nothing to say. I just want to remind: our army already has [-] to [-] people. At least two-thirds of the troops will be separated, and it would be good to have [-] old battalions left in the end.

The land of Changsha is indeed not dangerous to defend, and Shen Shuren also came in a turbulent manner, but if we temporarily retreat to the mountainous area south of Hengshan Mountain, there is danger to defend, hold on to time, and then spread money to recruit soldiers and train them slowly, it may not be impossible to repel them Shen Shuren.

As for the soldiers and horses on the third brother's side, the father can actually let the third brother temporarily retreat and join the eldest brother. At that time, our army will be divided into two parts. The eldest brother is in the west, and the father will take me to the south. There are dangers in the mountains. Shou,
It is also impossible for Shen Shuren to lead Wuchang soldiers to attack Hengshan all year round. If his rear is empty, then the eldest brother and third younger brother will naturally attack everywhere, making it impossible for them to look at each other.

In this way, our army's difficulties will be solved by itself, and we will be able to return to the state of last year when we were guarding against danger and dormant in the mountains. We will also have an additional territory than last year, which can be echoed in eastern Sichuan and southern Hunan. "

When Zhang Xianzhong heard this, he remained calm at first, but only encouraged Li Dingguo to go into more detail as if he was luring the enemy deeply:

"Oh? Is that so, then tell me, what danger is there to defend the south of Hengshan? Could it be that our army is allowed to directly guard Hengzhou City? The valleys of Hengshan can stop Shen Shuren? Are you going to retreat all the way to Guangdong and Guangxi? Wuling area?"

Li Dingguo was a little uncomfortable being asked, but he still didn't think in the worst direction. He thought that Zhang Xianzhong just thought that he ran too far, and it would be difficult to contact Sun Kewang and Liu Wenxiu in the future.

So he thought about it carefully for a long time, and came up with a better option than directly fleeing south to the Wuling area on the Hunan-Guangdong border:

"Father is very worried. The smoky land of Wuling is really not suitable for northerners like us, and it is now the midsummer at the end of June. If we go to the mountains and forests at the junction of Guangdong and Guangxi, I am afraid that the army will not acclimatize to the soil and there will be many diseases.

That being the case, after passing Mount Heng, we can turn slightly eastward and enter the southern section of Luoxiao Mountain.It is located at the junction of Huguang, Jiangxi and Guangdong, and there are also several prefectures that are easy to defend and difficult to attack.

Although I don't read books, I have also heard "The Romance of the Three Kingdoms". At the end of the Han Dynasty, after Sun Jian expelled the stars of Changsha District, the rest entered Luoxiao Mountain, and Sun Jian could not restrain them.No matter how good at chasing Shen Shuren is, can he be stronger than a hero like Sun Jian?

Moreover, the advantage of going to Luoxiao Mountain is that it connects to the three provinces. Even if Shen Shuren is appointed as the governor of Huguang, or even the governor of Huguang, it will be difficult for him to go beyond his authority and chase him down.Isn't this much better than the lack of maneuvering after entering Sichuan?
Although Yang Sichang was able to govern the six provinces and coordinate the siege, there were no military disasters in Guangdong, Guangxi and Jiangxi. He also lacked local coordination, and it was difficult to stop the siege in a hurry.

Coupled with the fact that Yang Sichang was dying of illness and aging, the secret work sent by his father was not a reward before, did he say that he had only one breath left?Last year when we killed King Xianggui, we failed to kill Yang Sichang.This time, King Rong and King Ji were killed again, and he was killed in the fall of the city, not a surprise assassination.

Even if Chongzhen still wanted to cover it up, it would be embarrassing!When Yang Sichang dies, maybe Fang Kongzhang will be severely punished, and Shen Shuren will be too busy to take care of himself, so there will be no one to coordinate the war across several provinces, and our army will have another chance to breathe and expand its army! "

The "Southern Section of Luoxiao Mountain" mentioned by Li Dingguo is actually Jinggang Mountain in later generations, but there is no exclusive place name at the end of Ming Dynasty, and this place name only came into being in the Qing Dynasty.

The earliest record of the aborigines in the south of Luoxiao Mountain is that at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, after Ou Xing was killed by Sun Jian, the prefect of Changsha, the rest fled into the mountain.

It has to be said that Li Dingguo has a good vision in military geography, if Zhang Xianzhong really listened to his words and went to Luo Xiaoshan, Shen Shuren might not be able to chase him down.

However, Zhang Xianzhong finally had a complete showdown. After listening to Li Dingguo's statement carefully, he couldn't help but burst out laughing:
"Oh, the ancients said that a son is better than a father, but we don't understand you - you also know that it is midsummer now, and the northerners go to the mountains and forests in the hot summer in the south, and there will be more plagues! How dare we persuade our army to go to Huguang , The border between Guangdong and Guangxi instead of entering Sichuan!

Do you wish that I can't afford to be seriously ill, and your elder brother and third younger brother are not around, so that this army can be your commander!When the time comes, our foundation will be divided into two by you, Guiwanger who stayed in Eastern Sichuan, and the rest will belong to you!

You have the nerve to keep saying that you are thinking of the soldiers of the three armies!You are so reluctant to abandon the new attached army, why did you throw Pan Shirong's more than 1 horses to Shen Shuren when Baling withdrew?Everyone in the army has the face to say this, but you have no face!You are the hardest seller when it comes to selling new appendages! "

These words finally completely exploded the triple dissatisfaction and distrust Zhang Xianzhong had accumulated towards Li Dingguo in the past few months, as well as the recent situation in the past few days, and the temptation of today's words.

Li Dingguo attacked with Ai Nengqi last year, and Ai Nengqi died.This year, he was advised to attack the empty area in the south of Huguang as soon as possible, but in the end he was recruited and lost troops.

In the end, he left so many new attached troops in Baling, but now he came to persuade Zhang Xianzhong not to give up the new attached army.

In the end, I also advised Zhang Xianzhong, a native of Shaanxi, to go to the tropical jungle in the mountainous area of ​​South China during the hottest time in June of the lunar calendar!Isn't it clear that the father is too healthy to die fast enough?

Several suspicions and dissatisfaction were superimposed together, making Zhang Xianzhong completely torn apart.

It may be difficult for modern people to understand these concerns. It is because modern medical conditions are good, and people from Shaanxi who go to Guangdong to work will not feel that the door of hell is closed.

But in ancient times when the medical conditions were backward, it was very dangerous for northerners to go to Guangdong and Guangxi, especially in summer——

Zhu Di made several expeditions to Vietnam, because of the hot summer and the tropical rainforest, many soldiers died of illness.In the early years of the Yuan Dynasty, the Mongols could not conquer Vietnam, and it was also a problem of hot weather and disease. The people in the Central Plains could only survive in the southern tropical rainforest during the winter months.

Although Zhang Xianzhong is not too old, he is about 35 to 40 years old, but he is also afraid that he will not be able to afford it if he gets sick.Li Dingguo is in his twenties, young and strong must be more able to bear the disease.

Now that the words have been made clear, Zhang Xianzhong must not continue to entrust Li Dingguo with important tasks.Although it is not enough to question the crime, it is clear that deprivation of power is necessary, otherwise it will be a legacy of raising tigers.

He only heard Zhang Xianzhong order with a cold face: "Feng Shuangli!"

Feng Shuangli: "The end is here!"

Zhang Xianzhong: "Transfer Li Dingguo to your camp! Just give him a lieutenant, and let him take the blame and make meritorious deeds!"

Feng Shuangli: "My lord, the second general..."

Zhang Xianzhong: "How dare you disobey orders?!"

Feng Shuangli immediately swallowed his saliva, and closed his voice: "The last general obeys orders!"

Then Zhang Xianzhong ordered: "The whole army will go south to Hengzhou, and then wait for the opportunity to turn westward. In addition, send a messenger to inform the third child, let him choose the opportunity to retreat and join Wang'er. When the time comes, he will act accordingly and strive to cooperate with us. Entering Sichuan——

Let them be stricter, and never explain the ultimate purpose to the soldiers in advance.Let's just say that we hid back to Shizhouwei and Yongshun Xuanweisi, fought with those tribal chieftains, and found a place to avoid Shen Shuren.

Also, pick out all the treasures obtained from Rongwang Mansion and Jiwang Mansion, and don’t recruit new recruits in Huguang. Anyway, you can’t bring too many people by taking the Qianzhong Road, and recruiting is useless. There is no need to invite people in Huguang. up. "

Zhang Xianzhong is also a typical two-faced person for the people under his rule, and he is very pragmatic.In history, after he conquered Wuchang in the 16th year of Chongzhen, it was said that he was very kind to the common people. He tried not to kill a single person in Hubei, opened a course to recruit scholars, and set up six officials. He looked like he was about to change the dynasty.

But this kind of "not addicted to killing" and the attitude of "benevolent government" are only limited to when he wants to develop in this place for a long time.

If he is destined to know that he can't hold it anymore, Zhang Xianzhong will not waste any kindness on those who are no longer of use value, he will be killed when he needs to be killed, and he will be robbed when he needs to be robbed.

Li Dingguo listened again, and finally understood why he was marginalized by his father.

What he thought was that one day he would return to Huguang, but in Zhang Xianzhong's heart, everything in Huguang was already an abandoned son.

Just now, I persuaded my father to take all the gold, silver and jewels looted from Prince Rong's Mansion and Ji Prince's Mansion to expand the army and train troops. This alone, under the wrong route, is destined to make him lose trust.

Every piece of gold and silver distributed in Huguang was wasted in Zhang Xianzhong's eyes.How could a person who persuaded him to waste be still reused?It will definitely be considered that this is an invitation to buy people's hearts, and it is for Li Dingguo himself.

Li Dingguo was disheartened, but he still wanted to explain two sentences in the end: "Father! You have adjusted all the military power of the child, and the child has no complaints! Defeated by Shen Shuren, with a loss of [-] soldiers, he was reduced to a soldier. It should be.

But Hai'er must make it clear that the death of the fourth brother has nothing to do with Hai'er!At the beginning, I persuaded my father to march into Huguang, and there was absolutely no other purpose!It's just that I really feel that there is an opportunity for Shen Shuren to transfer his troops to the north!This time, he persuaded his father to stay in Luo Xiaoshan to watch the changes of the times, and he has no other intentions!We can learn from each other! "

Zhang Xianzhong snorted coldly, saying that he didn't do anything to Li Dingguo, at least he could continue to fight under Feng Shuangli's command!What an explanation!
As for the external statement, of course it is that Li Dingguo was demoted because he was defeated and abandoned his teammates.

There is no need for outsiders to know about these dirty things.

If Li Dingguo keeps his mouth shut and doesn't mention the inside story, he can still get along.If he dared to chew his tongue outside, that Zhang Xianzhong would really hit him hard.

(End of this chapter)