On March 22nd, at the beginning of Mao hour, Li Zicheng camped outside the city.
After Li Zicheng listened to the reports of each general, he looked at Liu Zongmin and said, "Captain Zuo, how is the situation with General Zuo Zhi?"
Liu Zongmin was stunned for a moment, then remembered that Li Zicheng was talking about Liu Fangliang, and said in a deep voice: "Chuang... Your Majesty, General Zuo Zhi led his army northward the night before yesterday, and should be able to arrive tomorrow night."
"But I'm worried that after Wu Sangui gets the news of the defeat, he will lead Guan Ning's cavalry. However, Li Guo only has 3,000 black armor cavalry, which may not be Wu Sangui's opponent, so he has asked Liu Fangliang to lead 5,000 cavalry first. I believe that no later than today You can arrive in the evening.”
Li Zicheng frowned and said: "Captain Zuo, you handled this matter very well, but Wu Sangui is battle-hardened and cunning. Are you sure he is not in the army now?"
When Liu Zongmin heard this, he said with some displeasure: "The person monitoring Wu Sangui at Shanhaiguan is also an old spy from our Eighth Battalion. He is the most alert."
"After Wu Sangui's army set off, he saw Wu Sangui in Gao Di's mansion. Although he didn't see Wu Sangui the day before yesterday, he also saw Guan Ning's cavalry training. It is unmistakable."
Li Zicheng knew that Liu Zongmin had to have dinner in his early years, and he resented others doubting and looking down on him. Seeing that he was so confident, he comforted him and said: "Since Governor Zuo said so, I can rest assured."
"However, wars have been going on in Hebei and Hunan recently. It seems that the soldiers in Jiangnan have received the edict from King Qin from Chongzhen. If we can defeat the Guan Ning cavalry, we will definitely be able to frighten them and relieve some pressure on Mianhou and others."
After hearing this, Liu Zongmin's expression softened a little, and he nodded: "Your Majesty, don't worry, according to the spies' reports, Ma Chongxi has blocked Huang Degong and Gao Jie to the south of Zhending, while Yuan Zongdi and Bai Wang have also defeated Zuo Liangyu again in Henan. .”
"As for Nanjing, they are all poor and old Confucians. There has been no movement so far. I don't think it will lead to anything."
"At that time, as long as Liu Fangliang comes and joins forces with Li Guo to defeat Guan Ning's cavalry, we can attack the city with all our strength."
Seeing that he had arranged everything in an orderly manner, Li Zicheng praised him flatteringly: "Okay, Governor Zuo, I am very relieved that you are here. After entering the city, I will definitely reward you well."
When Liu Zongmin heard this, his face showed a proud look and he said a few polite words without sincerity.
Niu Jinxing on the side frowned when he saw this. He was about to speak but was stopped by Song Xiance.
However, he still glanced at Liu Zongmin with dissatisfaction before looking elsewhere unwillingly.
At this time, Li Zicheng looked at Li Yan again and said, "Commander Li, you have been negotiating with the Chongzhen people for the past two days. Didn't they realize my intention?"
A look of surprise flashed across Li Yan's face, and then he said ambiguously: "I obey your Majesty's will and have been dragging Shen Zhanran into peace talks without giving him a chance to spy on the reality of our army."
Li Zicheng heard something in Li Yan's words and said unhappily: "Commander Li, you must be careful about this matter and buy some time for the army."
"Now Chongzhen is also in urgent need of medical treatment. After massacre of courtiers, there should be no one available, so he sent the person who applied... to negotiate."
"From Chongzhen's point of view, I don't think this man has much talent. You only need to delay him for two days, and we can capture the capital."
"His Majesty......"
"What your Majesty said is true. I will do my best to buy time for the army."
Li Yan stopped the dissatisfied red lady and respectfully addressed Li Zicheng.
When Li Zicheng saw this, a look of anger flashed across his face.
Taurus on the side saw the angry look on Li Zicheng's face. Thinking that the city was about to be destroyed, Li Yan must not be allowed to make a contribution at this time, so he hurriedly added insult to injury and said: "Commander Li, this matter is of great importance. You are not trying your best, but you must ensure that nothing goes wrong. "
"I heard yesterday that Shen Zhanran stayed at Changyi's house for a long time after the negotiation. This is about..."
"Prime Minister Niu, if you are really too busy, think about the impact of the Jurchens' withdrawal of troops!"
Seeing Niu Jinxing's triumphant appearance, Lady Hong immediately counterattacked dissatisfiedly.
Niu Jinxing was stunned when he heard this, and looked at the Red Lady in surprise.
It turned out that he was unhappy when he saw the red lady, and he wanted to take the opportunity to anger the red lady, arouse Li Zicheng's dissatisfaction, and punish Li Yan. Unexpectedly, the Red Lady actually told the story about the Jurchens' retreat. He was surprised to know that he had only received a secret report this morning and had already sent the people away.
Just when he was surprised, Li Zicheng said with some dissatisfaction: "Prime Minister Niu, why don't I know what happened to the Jurchens' retreat?"
Niu Jinxing quickly collected her thoughts and replied: "I also heard about this matter this morning, but because it has not been confirmed yet, I did not report it to Your Majesty!"
Li Zicheng frowned and said: "Prime Minister Niu, hurry up and implement this matter. You must know that we have not set up troops in Xuanfu and Datong. If the Jurchens withdraw their troops, we must make arrangements in advance."
Hearing this, Niu Jinxing nodded in agreement, and at the same time glared at the red lady resentfully.
At this time, a messenger hurried in and knelt down to report: "Your Majesty, General Zhang Tianlin sent someone to report that enemy troops have appeared outside Zhengyang Gate. Will your Majesty attack?"
Everyone in the big tent was shocked when they heard this.
Seeing this, Li Zicheng forced himself to be calm and said: "How many people are there in the enemy army, and who is leading the army?"
The messenger said: "According to General Zhang Tianlin's information, the person leading the troops is Wu Sangui's father Wu Xiang. He does not lead many troops, only about two to three thousand people."
"Okay, that dog emperor of Chongzhen must have been angry with Wu Sangui, so he took it out on Wu Xiang!"
"Your Majesty, please give your order. I will immediately wait for five thousand cavalry to capture Wu Xiang. When the time comes, Wu Xiang will be used to deal with Wu Sangui, which may save a lot of trouble."
When Liu Zongmin heard that Wu Xiang had only brought two to three thousand people out of the city, he immediately shouted and asked Li Zicheng for help.
After Li Zicheng stopped Liu Zongmin with his eyes, he asked the ordering soldier: "Is it really Wu Xiang who is leading the army?"
When the messenger heard this, he hesitated and said: "There seems to be another person, but standing behind Wu Xiang, I think he must be a deputy general!"
Li Zicheng pondered for a while, then looked at Song Xiance beside him and said, "Military advisor, what do you think?"
Song Xiance shook his goose feather fan, glanced at Liu Zongmin, and said slowly: "What Governor Zuo said is reasonable. I think Chongzhen waited for a long time before he came to Wu Sangui."
"I didn't expect that Wu Sangui would be defeated in one battle. With Chongzhen's temperament, it is possible that he would do such a thing in anger."
Li Zicheng heard this and said hesitantly: "It's just that General Zuo Zhi hasn't arrived yet. If the war starts now, will it affect our plan?"
Song Xiance looked confident, waving his goose feather fan and said: "It doesn't matter, although our army is at Zhangyimen... uh, its combat power is still far superior to that of Chongzhen, so there is no need to send troops."
"It's just that I heard that Wu Sangui and his son have a good relationship, so I must capture Wu Xiang alive so as not to offend Wu Sangui and give Chongzhen a boost."
Seeing that what he said was reasonable, Li Zicheng was about to give instructions to Liu Zongmin when he heard Li Yan's voice: "Your Majesty, I think this matter is a bit strange. It's better to find out more before making a decision."
Seeing that he was acting out of character, Li Zicheng was a little surprised and said: "Commander Li, did you find anything wrong?"
Li Yan shook his head and said: "I have not been to the scene, so I dare not make false claims. However, I have heard that there have been several riots in Shanxi in recent days, and a large amount of food has been looted. It may be that some southern troops have arrived."
"In addition, Wu Xiang's departure from the city today is too unusual. I am worried that Chongzhen will use this as bait to force Wu Sangui to fight to the death. If..."
"Commander Li, you are worrying too much. Didn't Governor Zuo just say that if Wu Sangui is not in the army, how can Chongzhen force him to fight to the death?"
"What's more, the incident in Shanxi has been confirmed to be just some people trying to cause trouble for the people, and Governor Zuo also said that Zuo Liangyu and others have been defeated. Do you even doubt Governor Zuo's words?"
Niu Jinxing interrupted Li Yan righteously without waiting for him to finish speaking.
Liu Zongmin was a little dissatisfied with Li Yan's words, but when he saw that he looked ashamed and Niu Jinxing was so aggressive, he couldn't help but feel weak when he thought of the past friendship.
So he snorted coldly and said to Li Zicheng: "Your Majesty, I think what brother Li Yan said is reasonable, but Wu Xiang only has two thousand people. I can capture him without a cup of tea, no matter what he is." Stratagems are useless!"
Li Zicheng heard this and saw that Li Yan didn't speak anymore, so he nodded and said: "Okay, I will leave this matter to Governor Zuo, but be careful!"
Liu Zongmin cupped his hands, ignored Li Yan who was looking at him and hesitated to speak, turned around and walked out of the tent.
