Desert Eagle Suletan Khan

Baoning Prefecture was governed in Langzhong, and the Governor's Office was full of generals. The sixty-year-old Governor-General of Sichuan and Shaanxi, Li Guoying, was energetically encouraging his civil and military officials, "Gentlemen, the court's document on meritorious appointments has arrived. Deputy Envoy Chen was promoted to Governor of Sichuan, Li Tongzhi was promoted to Prefect of Baoning, Li Zongzhen was promoted to Admiral of Sichuan, Deputy Envoy Xu was promoted to General-in-Chief of Songpan, Deputy Envoy Liu was promoted to General-in-Chief of Baoning, Deputy Envoy Cao was promoted to General-in-Chief of Long'an, Deputy Envoy Liu was promoted to General-in-Chief of Shunqing, Dang Canrong was promoted to Deputy General of the Governor's Brigade, Zhang Youji was promoted to Lieutenant General of the Governor's Brigade Front Camp, Zhao Youji was promoted to Lieutenant General of Jiangyou..." The list was very long, and Governor Li was well versed in the ways of officialdom, and no meritorious official was left out, whether civil or military. Upon hearing the appointment, Chen Zhengzhong, Deputy Envoy of the Sichuan Provincial Surveillance Commissioner and the Military Inspector of Songlong, Chen Zhengzhong, Co-Governor of Baoning Prefecture, Li Liangzhen, General, Lieutenant Generals Cao Chunzhong, Liu Hanchen, Xu Xueyi, Liu Yingju, Lieutenant General Dang Shichang, Guerrilla Zhao Wenkui, Zhang Wancang and others were all delighted and expressed their gratitude.

"The court has seen your contributions. The current emperor is wise and will not treat his meritorious officials unfairly. Tell us, how is the defense arrangement going?" Seeing the happy expressions of his subordinates, Li Guoying nodded with satisfaction and asked about military affairs. He was born into a family of military generals and had been in battle since early in life. He served under Zuo Liangyu and made many military exploits. Later, he followed Zuo Liangyu's son Zuo Menggeng to surrender to the Qing Dynasty and joined the Zhenghongqi Han Army. He was awarded the second-class Adahahafan hereditary title. He has a lot of experience, especially a thorough understanding of the minds of military generals. Isn't it for a military man to fight for promotion and wealth? As long as he is willing to give them rewards, he can inspire them to fight for their lives.

"Reporting to the governor, I have already strengthened the defenses of Langzhong and the nearby Liangshan Pass, Nanjin Pass, and Hexi Pass, and also sent troops to guard the two counties of Nanbu and Zitong," Li Liangzhen reported calmly.

"I have been repairing the cities of Yilong, Xichong, Pengzhou and Yingshan these days, and they have begun to take shape," said Liu Hanchen, the general of Shunqing, proudly. These places were seized from the Wei Army by the Qing Army when the two were fighting. He himself also made many contributions in the battle, which was why he was awarded the position of general.

"I also repaired the city defenses of Bazhou and Tongjiang, and sent Deputy General Yang Bingyin to advance to Tieshan Pass to deploy defenses," said Liu Yingju, the general of Baoning, who also looked very pleased. He took advantage of the battle between the Wei army and the Ming army to occupy Tieshan Pass, which originally belonged to Kuizhou Prefecture, and thought it was an unprecedented achievement.

Next, Songpan General Xu Xueyi, Longan General Cao Chunzhong, Dubiao Deputy General Dang Shichang, Qianying Lieutenant General Zhang Wancang, Jiangyou Lieutenant General Zhao Wenkui also introduced their deployment and military preparations, and Li Guoying nodded repeatedly. As a veteran, he saw the importance of Baoning at a glance. This place is not only the gateway to Hanzhong, but also a springboard to the south of Sichuan in the future. He proposed the strategic idea of ​​"defending Baoning and guarding the key passes", hoping to block the guards south of Mianzhou, Tongchuan, Suining, and Shunqing. At present, the preparations of his subordinates are quite sufficient.

"How are the food and supplies for the army being prepared?" Li Guoying asked Sichuan Governor Chen Zhengzhong with hopeful eyes. Chen Zhengzhong was very capable and had made a lot of efforts during his tenure as Deputy Envoy of the Sichuan Provincial Surveillance Department and Deputy Inspector of Songlong Military Preparations.

"Your humble servant and Magistrate Li have been raising military supplies these days. Fortunately, we have been cultivating land and recruiting refugees to reclaim wasteland in recent years, and have accumulated some food and fodder, enough to last for most of half a year." Chen Zhengzhong did not disappoint him and gave a satisfactory answer.

"Thank you for your hard work. We will end our discussion here today. The Wei army has captured Kuizhou. In order to prevent them from heading north from Kuizhou to Hanzhong, I must return to Nanzheng. After I leave, Sichuan military affairs will be presided over by Admiral Li. All generals must return to their garrisons immediately to guard against attacks by the Wei army," Li Guoying nodded with satisfaction and dissolved the meeting.

As soon as everyone left, the veteran frowned. The destruction of the Ming army in Kuidong not only caused the court to lose contact with other provinces, but also allowed the Wei army to attack Baoning from Kuizhou to the west or attack Hanzhong to the north. I have been strengthening the defense of Baoning and its surrounding areas. I am not afraid of the Wei army attacking Baoning, but what if the Wei army attacks Hanzhong? Hanzhong is my old nest, I must not lose it! Fortunately, Li Liangzhen has followed me for many years. He is steady by nature and is best at defense. With him, Baoning should be able to hold on.

However, the governor underestimated the determination of the Great Khan Lianhua to quickly subdue the Zhenwu court and unify the north. His opponents were not only old acquaintances such as the General of the Southern Expedition Xirimo and the Sichuan Governor Asumu, but also the Great Khan who cared about him sent his son, Prince of Qi Mailas, to come.

After pacifying Kuidong, Mailas wanted to stay in Huguang to pursue his ambitions, but his old father ordered him to join forces with Xi Rimo to march north to eliminate Li Guoying who occupied northern Sichuan and Hanzhong. After joining forces with Xi Rimo, the number of guards in Kuizhou exceeded 110,000, and the momentum was amazing. One day, Mailas was reviewing official documents in the camp, and the old general Xi Rimo asked to see him. As soon as they met, he anxiously asked: "I wonder when Your Highness will lead the army north? I am willing to be the vanguard!"

"I have been worried these days. My father Khan asked me to go north, but Hanzhong is the place where Li Guoying has worked hard. How can I not be prepared? And if our army goes north to Hanzhong directly, what if the Qing army in Baoding cuts off our food supply? In my opinion, we must first go west to capture Baoning, and then move the entire army north." Mailas did not hide his thoughts and expressed them to the infamous Wolf of Oirats.

"Li Guoying is a very difficult person. According to scouts, the Qing army has been reinforcing the city of Baoning these days. I'm afraid it will be difficult to defeat them," Xi Rimo laughed.

"It's okay. I have ordered Sichuan Governor Asumu and Tianquan Sixth Recruiting Envoy Yang Xianzhu to go north from Nanchong and pretend to attack Baoning to attract the attention of the Baoning defenders. Then we will concentrate our forces to attack westward. It shouldn't be difficult to capture Baoning," Melas told his plan.

"Your Highness, this plan is feasible," Xi Rimo nodded in agreement.
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After receiving the military order from the King of Qi, Sichuan Governor Asumu and Yang Xianzhu immediately led more than 20,000 troops from Nanchong to attack Xichong. At the same time, they ordered Muping local commander Jian Cannanha and Dege local commander Danba Ciren to lead troops to harass Songfan. This move was indeed effective. After hearing about the Wei army's actions, Li Liangzhen, the Qing Sichuan governor in charge of military affairs in northern Sichuan, urgently dispatched Long'an General Cao Chunzhong's troops to reinforce Xichong, and ordered Songpan General Xu Xueyi to strengthen vigilance.

Hearing that Cao Chunzhong's troops were transferred to Xichong, Mai Lasi laughed and immediately joined forces with Xi Rimo to march westward from Kuizhou to Baoning with 110,000 troops. The army camped in Dazhou, with densely packed camps that stretched as far as the eye could see, and the momentum was terrifying.

Changshengtian seemed to want to help the Kingdom of Da. The Wei army was gearing up to attack Tieshan Pass opposite Dazhou. The guard of Tieshan Pass, Yang Bingyin, unexpectedly surrendered. Yang Bingyin was originally a bandit, and was subdued by Li Guoying. He was very dissatisfied with the fact that Liu Yingju, the general of Baoning, sent his lone army to occupy Tieshantou. He thought that Liu Yingju wanted to exclude dissidents. Now that he saw that the Wei army was powerful, he surrendered without thinking. Since he surrendered, he had to offer a gift. So he suggested to Melas: "Liu Yingju is a reckless man. I am willing to send someone to ask for his help. He will not doubt it. Your Highness can ambush outside Tieshan Pass, and Liu Yingju can be captured in one blow."

Maidas was overjoyed and acted according to the plan. Yang Bingyin then asked Liu Yingju for help. Liu Yingju did not doubt him and led more than 10,000 troops from Bazhou (Bazhong) to reinforce. They were ambushed outside Tieshantou. In front of the 110,000-strong army, a mere 10,000 troops were nothing. Soon the whole army was annihilated, and Liu Zongzhen himself lost his life in confusion.

After taking Bazhou, Melas continued to advance and quickly advanced to the city of Langzhong. Li Liangzhen, the Sichuan governor who was defending the city, was shocked and regretted that he should not have sent Cao Chunzhong's troops to Shunqing for reinforcement, resulting in the loss of an elite force in the city. Fortunately, there were still 20,000 troops in Langzhong, and the city and the nearby passes were also very strong. On the one hand, Cao Chunzhong was urgently sent back for assistance, and on the other hand, he and Sichuan Governor Chen Zhengzhong and Baoning Prefect Li Xingyuan recruited the people in the city to help defend the city. Although Langzhong's city defense was strong, there were only 20,000 troops after all, while the Wei army had 110,000 tigers and wolves, most of whom were veterans of the battlefield. In just five days, the Wei army took Liangshan Pass, Nanjin Pass, and Hexi Pass near Langzhong and reached the city. Melas also ordered the surrendered general Yang Bingyin to send people to call for surrender to the defenders, which made the defenders' morale low. Li Liangzhen was in a panic all day long, but he had no idea what to do. Three days later, Langzhong City was broken, and Li Liangzhen, Chen Zhengzhong, Li Xingyuan and others were all beheaded by the guards.

When the news of Langzhong's fall came, Liu Hanchen, the general of Shunqing, and Cao Chunzhong, the general of Long'an, who were fighting in Xichong with Asumu, the governor of Sichuan of the David State, were shocked.

"General Liu, our army's retreat has been cut off. What do you think we should do?" Cao Chunzhong asked Liu Hanchen tentatively.

"Alas! We are Han people, and there is no need for us to die for the Manchus. The reason we have persisted until now is because of the kindness of Governor Li. However, the situation is hopeless, and we cannot harm the lives of our subordinates anymore," Liu Hanchen found a good reason for surrender.

Seeing that he also agreed to surrender, Cao Chunzhong was overjoyed and immediately led 15,000 troops with Liu Hanchen to surrender. Melas was overjoyed and comforted the two generals with kind words, ordering them to stay in their original positions. Hearing that Cao Chunzhong and Liu Hanchen had surrendered, Songpan General Xu Xueyi also raised the flag of surrender without saying a word. Jiangyou Lieutenant General Zhao Wenkui saw that the situation was not good and led his troops to flee to Hanzhong.

Li Guoying had never expected that the northern Sichuan, which he had worked so hard to build, would fall into the hands of the Wei army in just over a month. Cao Chunzhong, Liu Hanchen, Xu Xueyi, and Yang Bingyin had all received his favors, but he had never expected that they would be so disloyal and surrender to the enemy without firing a single shot at a critical moment!

"Father, the Wei army is powerful. We are Han people. Why should we die for the Manchus? Why don't we surrender?" the eldest son Li Bin pleaded with Li Guoying.

"I have received great favors from the late emperor and I cannot bear to surrender. You should quickly take your mother and two brothers out of the city and hide," Li Guoying ordered in a deep voice.

"Father~" Li Bin wanted to persuade him again.

"Don't say anything more, just go away~" Li Guoying was furious.

After his eldest son left, the governor took out an imperial edict from his study and stroked it carefully. The imperial edict was Shunzhi Emperor's evaluation of him: "... Li Guoying has served in Yanjiang for a long time, and his talents and plans are well known..." When he was the governor of Sichuan and Shaanxi, Sichuan suffered from war disasters many times, was sparsely populated, and the people were living in poverty. The imperial edict requested the court to reduce taxes and recruit refugees and immigrants from other provinces to reclaim wasteland. With the strong support of Emperor Shunzhi, under the general "three-year tax collection" in the country, it was agreed that Sichuan "five-year tax collection" and the tax burden was very light. "The land tax is only two or three coins per mu, and only a few cents less." For a time, there was a saying that "the national tax is the heaviest in the southeast, and Sichuan is the lightest." It gave the people of Sichuan a chance to breathe, attracted many refugees to return to Sichuan, and made Li Guoying very grateful. Now it's time to repay the emperor's grace!

After all, he had been through many military battles, and although he had few soldiers and generals, under the perseverance of this governor, it still took the guards two months to capture Nanzheng, the capital of Hanzhong Prefecture. The Qing army's resistance was extremely fierce. Zhang Wancang, the lieutenant general of the front camp, was shot by several arrows but still refused to retreat and died on the top of the city wall; Dang Shichang, the deputy general of the governor's flag, and Zhao Wenkui, the lieutenant general of Jiangyou, continued to fight in the streets after the city was captured and died of exhaustion.

Li Guoying's body was found in a private house with more than ten wounds on his body, covered in blood, and the blade of his sword was bent.

Melas didn't expect that the attack on Nanzheng would cost him nearly 20,000 troops. Although most of them were surrendered soldiers, he was still furious. He ordered the execution of the male members of the Li family. His subordinates searched everywhere and finally found the entire Li family in a ruined temple outside the city. Li Guoying's three sons, Li Bin, Li Lan, and Li Wen, and the eldest grandson, Li Yongsheng, were all killed. (End of this chapter)