The former Prince Chu's Mansion in Wuchang has now been occupied by Zhang Xianzhong.
At this time, outside the main hall, Zhang Xianzhong, his close men, and his most valued military advisor Xu Yixian were discussing the upcoming war.
"Father, let me tell you, no matter how many there are, we can only fight with that Xingguo Gong!" Sun Kewang, the number one adopted descendant who saved Zhang Xianzhong's life, was the first to stand up and suggest, "As long as we kill that Duke Xingguo, the other imperial officers and soldiers will definitely be in rout after hearing the news!"
A general who was obviously younger in the hall, Ai Nengqi, who was the last of Zhang Xianzhong's four famous adopted sons, immediately agreed and said: "Yes, that Duke Xingguo is so trusting and dares to divide his troops, we will Just assemble heavy troops and destroy him!"
At this time, Zhang Xianzhong had also heard the news and learned about the division of troops on Zhang Mingwei's side.
Zhang Xianzhong nodded after hearing this. After fighting for so many years, he had become proficient in this tactic. That is to say, concentrating superior forces and annihilating important imperial officers and soldiers along the way can break the encirclement and suppression by the imperial officers and soldiers.
However, at this time, Military Advisor Xu Yixian frowned and said: "This battle is not so easy! The most important thing is that it is no longer a competition of force!"
When they heard him speak, the people in the palace immediately turned to look at him.
After listening, Liu Wenxiu, the third among the four adopted sons, asked curiously: "Isn't war just about fighting with force? As long as our fists are stronger, we can beat anyone!"
After hearing this, Ai Nengqi wanted to agree, but Zhang Xianzhong waved his hand to stop them from talking, then turned to look at his military advisor and asked, "I wonder what the military advisor has to say?"
After hearing this, Xu Yixian shook his feather fan, looked at Zhang Xianzhong and replied: "Then Duke Xingguo came slowly and sent troops to block our way north. It is said that soldiers are very fast, why did he advance so slowly?"
"What's so hard to guess? They just want to contain us in Huguang!" After hearing this, Sun Kewang showed a trace of disdain and said lightly, "He is dreaming!"
After hearing what he said, Xu Yixian immediately stared at him and asked with a serious expression: "Then let me ask you again, have you ever heard that the imperial army came all the way and when they arrived at a place, the first thing they had to do was to rebuild the local government. , to appease the people, and even the whole army sang songs, do you know what songs they sang?"
Sun Kewang was stunned for a moment. It's not that he didn't know, it was his subordinates who brought the news and he reported it.
However, he didn't pay much attention at the time.
Liu Wenxiu didn't know, and immediately asked curiously: "Military advisor, the imperial officers and soldiers still sing songs, what kind of songs are they singing?"
In fact, Sun Kewang didn't even know the specific content. It was Xu Yixian who sensed something fishy and sent someone to find out.
This thing was meant to be widely advertised, so it was easy to inquire about.
At this time, Xu Yixian was in the main hall and roughly said the lyrics of "Defend the Yellow River" and "Three Major Disciplines and Seven Points of Attention".
What’s funny here is that because the tune is so catchy, he started singing as he spoke. Of course, it's not the formal kind of singing, but it has the meaning of singing.
After he finished, he looked at Zhang Xianzhong with a serious expression and said: "The Duke of Xingguo is the best at manipulating people's hearts. Don't underestimate these things. Not to mention the high morale of the imperial officers and soldiers, the people's hearts have also been won by them. If we lose the people's hearts, , it will be difficult!”
Having said this, he reminded very solemnly: "The coalition forces of Li Zicheng and Luo Rucai should have been far stronger than the Xingguo Gongsuo troops at that time, but they were defeated in the end. Why?"
Just paused, without waiting for others to answer, he answered by himself: "Song Dwarf has warned about this aspect. It can be seen that force is only one aspect. Although it is very important, it is not everything. The people's morale, that is, the military morale, is also the same. It is an important factor that affects the outcome of the war!"
After he finished speaking, he picked up the golden cup on the coffee table next to him and took a sip of the fragrant tea.
Xu Yixian was a military advisor that Zhang Xianzhong valued very much, so he specially gave him a seat and made him a pot of fine tea from the palace to show how much he valued Xu Yixian.
The other adopted sons of Zhang Xianzhong did not receive such treatment and just stood there discussing matters.
After seeing Xu Yixian drinking tea, everyone knew that he was done talking.
Zhang Xianzhong's other adopted son, Li Dingguo, who had been silent for a long time, nodded at this time, looked at Zhang Xianzhong, and said solemnly: "Father, what the military advisor said is very reasonable. In the past, the imperial officers and soldiers we faced were such as Zuo Liang The Jade Division, Liu Liangzuo's Division, and other officers and soldiers are all the same. They just steal things from the people, and they even often kill good people and take credit for their merits. Therefore, the people hate them."
Having said this, he raised his voice and said: "That's exactly what it is. Even if we are defeated by the imperial officers and soldiers, we can make a comeback immediately. This is why the people's support is so unpopular. When my brothers fight, those who have enmity with the imperial officers and soldiers , dare to risk their lives to fight, this is another example of military morale."
Zhang Xianzhong nodded, and Li Dingguo further explained what Xu Yixian said more clearly.
Sun Kewang felt a little uncomfortable when he saw it, and immediately snorted: "Who doesn't understand these principles? My foster father still needs you to teach me?"
"I..." After hearing this, Li Dingguo opened his mouth to explain, but in the end he did not speak or argue.
Zhang Xianzhong didn't take it seriously when he saw it. It can even be said that he didn't want these adopted sons with heavy weapons to wear a pair of trousers. Therefore, he seemed not to have seen the somewhat disharmonious scene just now, and just looked towards Xu Yixian asked: "What do you think we should do best?"
Obviously, the next most important thing is the battle for the hearts and minds of the people and the military, which is what later generations call the war of public opinion.
Zhang Xianzhong knew this, but he still wanted to listen to the military advisor's advice on how to do it well.
But who knows, Sun Kewang stole the topic and answered first: "Father, this is actually very simple! As long as we compose a song about what the imperial officers and soldiers have done, and sing it so that everyone knows it!" "
When Zhang Xianzhong heard this, he just turned his head to look at him, and then turned back to look at his military advisor with a look of anticipation in his eyes.
When Xu Yixian saw it, he put down the golden cup in his hand, glanced at Sun Kewang first and said, "I hope General Wang is right. On the one hand, we want to talk more about the fatuousness of the imperial court, the rampant corruption of corrupt officials, and the brutality of the army. This has to be done!”
Obviously, if he said this, there would still be a sequel.
Therefore, Zhang Xianzhong continued to watch and did not draw any conclusions immediately.
Sure enough, Xu Yixian suddenly stood up, his expression became very serious, and he said seriously to Zhang Xianzhong: "The Duke of Xingguo came here well prepared, that is to say, the one who comes is not kind and kind, so he will not come." This is not enough. In order to stabilize the morale of the army and prevent the consequences of what happened to Li Zicheng and Luo Rucai, I implore the king to give the soldiers something to look forward to, so that they will not treat themselves as thieves again and out of thin air be inferior to the imperial officers and soldiers."
Although they can be said to be rebels, no one can deny that they are actually thieves. At this time, in order to highlight the meaning he wanted to explain, he directly called himself "thief".
Zhang Xianzhong obviously thought for a while, then looked up at Xu Yixian and said with the same serious face: "Then what hope can I give the soldiers?"
The four righteous sons standing below also became curious one by one, wanting to know what shocking words their military advisor would say.
They actually admire Xu Yixian very much. After all, Xu Yixian's ability can impress Zhang Xianzhong, let alone them.
Xu Yixian said solemnly: "Didn't Li Zicheng claim to be a civil and military general in Fengtian? Why don't you, your Majesty, just go a step further and declare yourself king directly, set up officials at all levels, and ennoble civil and military ministers. In this way, the soldiers will know that your Majesty will follow you. I just want to conquer the world. Once I succeed, all the soldiers will have the merit of following the dragon. From now on, the war with the imperial government and the army will no longer be a relationship between soldiers and thieves, but a conflict between two countries!"
Upon hearing this, Zhang Xianzhong's four adopted sons were obviously excited, and they all looked up at Zhang Xianzhong, waiting for his reply.
In fact, Xu Yixian's statement is not very abrupt.
Because when Zhang Xianzhong captured Luzhou Prefecture, under Xu Yixian's persuasion, he had already begun to set up local officials to govern the place.
But at that time, his way of managing the place could actually be called an officer, which was not normal.
After hearing what he said, Zhang Xianzhong was not so excited. Instead, he frowned and said, "Military advisor, doesn't the saying go: Build high walls and store up food before you become king? Why do you want me to become king?"
He definitely didn't suspect Xu Yixian's bad intentions, but he just didn't understand the point, so he asked this question.
When Xu Yixian heard this, he immediately smiled and said: "It's the same time as that! When Taizu of the Ming Dynasty, the rebels were everywhere, and the former Yuan army wanted to attack the rebels. At this time, it was not appropriate to be the leader, and it was right to hide and accumulate strength. But now, the imperial court But the army is here to attack us. Even if we want to hide aside and accumulate strength, it is impossible. In this case, it is better to raise the flag and give the soldiers something to look forward to!"
After hearing this, Zhang Xianzhong suddenly realized that there was such a saying, and he admired his talent as a military advisor even more.
After asking some more questions, he made a decision and did what the military advisor said.
As a result, things that were supposed to take place in the early 16th year of Chongzhen were brought forward by the flapping of butterfly wings.
Zhang Xianzhong claimed to be the "King of the West" and renamed Wuchang Tianshoufu and Jiangxia as Shangjiang County. He also established the governor's office of six ministries and five armies, and appointed local officials.
In addition, he also opened courses to recruit scholars and recruited talents in a very short time. A total of 30 Jinshi and 48 Linshan students were admitted, and they were all awarded state and county officials.
Suddenly, Huguang, Jiangnan and even the entire Ming Dynasty were in an uproar.
