With the end of the military discussion, the news about Duke Xingguo's handling of the defeat also spread.
The originally frightening atmosphere, as soon as the news spread, was like a bonfire that was lit by someone, burning up with a "bang" and becoming very heated.
"Look, we should believe Duke Xingguo, right?"
"That's right, we will do whatever the court says. We will reorganize as they are told and do whatever they are told to do. This shows that we sincerely accept the recruitment!"
"Wang Laoliu, you seemed to have been mumbling before. Could it be that you were insincere?"
"No way? Don't talk nonsense, I'm the most cooperative!"
"..."
Sometimes, it's really unpredictable. There is nothing wrong with the saying that good fortune and misfortune depend on each other.
Because the early progress was so smooth, the soldiers on the front line underestimated the enemy and fell into an ambush. They were also attacked from behind by Sun Kewang's men who pretended to accept the recruitment, resulting in a major defeat.
As a result, there was distrust, even hostility, between the imperial officers and soldiers and the bandits who had been recruited.
If this situation continues like this, it is likely to lead to big changes next. If you don't do it right, the early victory will turn into a huge defeat.
However, after Zhang Mingwei's handling, this situation not only did not happen, but also accelerated the reorganization progress of the bandits.
Many things that were not cooperative due to various reasons during the original reorganization process suddenly became very smooth and very cooperative. As long as there is no major conflict of interest, it will basically be very smooth.
The reorganization of an army of hundreds of thousands of thieves was originally expected to take two months, but according to the latest situation, it may be completed in one month.
………………
This situation was something Zhang Xianzhong never expected. At this time, he was still having sweet dreams in Hanyang Mansion.
I heard him say to the military advisor Xu Yixian: "Thanks to the military advisor, I came up with this good idea. I pretended to accept the recruitment and won a great victory under the attack from both front and rear. More importantly, I made the court no longer believe in those traitors..."
When he said this, he suddenly stopped talking and his face became a little ugly.
Because he remembered that Li Dingguo, one of the adopted sons he had high hopes for, actually defected to the imperial court and persuaded several others to surrender.
Originally, he transferred Liu Wenxiu to defend Wuchang Mansion, just to let Liu Wenxiu, who was good at stabilizing the morale of the army, be able to hold on for a few more days under the court's offensive. This way, he would have more time to prepare for the ambush and make subsequent arrangements.
Unexpectedly, Liu Wenxiu surrendered without even fighting. And the same goes for Ainengqi.
Thinking of these three generals under his command, it would be strange if Zhang Xianzhong's mood improved!
When Xu Yixian saw his face, he knew what he was thinking, and he quickly explained: "Don't worry, Your Majesty. I guess they have already regretted it at this time. Let's wait until the situation in Wuchang Mansion becomes chaotic again." A little, and then counterattack, under the chaos, we will definitely win a complete victory! At that time, the king can do whatever he wants with the three of them!"
"Humph, what should I do? If they dare to betray me, they must be killed!" Zhang Xianzhong said angrily after hearing this.
"Yes, since they dare to betray their adoptive father and are ungrateful white-eyed wolves, why do they keep them here if they don't kill them?" At this time, Sun Kewang happened to come in and heard their conversation, so he hurriedly said.
In fact, Zhang Xianzhong just talked about it. He still has feelings for Li Dingguo, Liu Wenxiu and Ai Nengqi.
Therefore, after hearing Sun Kewang's words, he did not continue the topic. Instead, he looked kindly and asked Sun Kewang, "Is there any news from the imperial officers and soldiers?"
"Haier has sent someone to inquire about the information. I believe there will be a reward soon." After hearing this, Sun Kewang immediately replied, "Haier is ready to attack at any time."
After hearing this, Xu Yixian couldn't help but ask: "Then why did you come here?"
When Sun Kewang heard this, he turned to look at him, and then turned back to Zhang Xianzhong and said: "Father, those bastards in the army are making trouble, saying that the rewards promised before have not been distributed, and they will not fight again until they see the money." .”
Zhang Xianzhong became furious after hearing this and shouted sternly: "Which bastard is making trouble? I'll chop him up!"
"Your Majesty, calm down!" Xu Yixian heard this and quickly dissuaded them, "I have promised them before, but at this critical moment, it is better to give it to them. After defeating the imperial officers and soldiers and stabilizing the situation, the King wants to deal with them all Yes, but not right now.”
In the past, people under Zhang Xianzhong would not dare to ask him for money. It was also because the situation was very bad this time. In order to counter the imperial court's popular offensive, money had to be used.
Although Zhang Xianzhong made a lot of money in the Chu Palace, no matter what, he was still very unhappy when the day came to use money to help his men fight.
At this time, hearing what Xu Yixian said, Zhang Xianzhong knew that what he said made sense, and finally nodded in agreement.
However, less than an hour after Sun Kewang left happily, he saw him running back in a panic: "Father, something bad has happened!"
Zhang Xianzhong was in an unhappy mood. Seeing how panicked he was, he started to say something bad was going on. Suddenly, Zhang Xianzhong's face was as gloomy as rain, and he asked in a cold voice: "What's going on?"
After hearing this, Sun Kewang quickly reported: "The people sent to Wuchang Mansion to find out the news are back. The situation did not happen as we imagined!"
As he spoke, he relayed the news brought back by the spies.
When Zhang Xianzhong heard this, he was speechless for a while. After Sun Kewang's anxious call, he came to his senses and immediately ordered: "Get the military advisor immediately!"
"Yes!" Sun Kewang agreed quickly, and then ran away in a hurry.
Zhang Xianzhong frowned and lowered his head in thought. Apparently he realized that his situation was very bad and he was thinking of a solution on his own.
Not long after, Xu Yixian arrived in a hurry. After he learned about the situation, he was a little dumbfounded.
He did not expect that Duke Xingguo would be so responsible. Not only did he shoulder the responsibility for the defeat, but he also saw the key to sincere recruitment and solved his plan in one fell swoop.
If Duke Xingguo severely punished the defeated generals, it would inevitably cause the court generals to turn their grievances on Li Dingguo and the others; even if Duke Xingguo suppressed them, there would definitely not be harmony in private.
If there is no severe punishment, then those court generals will probably not learn lessons in the future, which will also benefit Zhang Xianzhong.
Thinking of this, Xu Yixian couldn't help but sigh.
He never thought that Zhang Mingwei actually wanted to find some responsibility for himself. Because he was already the Duke of Xingguo, and he led the army to great victories in succession. Although he didn't care, Emperor Chongzhen wanted to reward him anyway, so what should he be rewarded for?
But now that he has this responsibility, he has a reason not to let Emperor Chongzhen give him too heavy a reward.
Of course, this kind of thing is also prepared for a rainy day. Anyway, it is something that can achieve multiple things with one stone, so Zhang Mingwei doesn't mind doing it.
At this time, both Zhang Xianzhong and Xu Yixian understood that if their wishful thinking failed, there would be no place for them in Huguang.
Fortunately, they were already used to wandering around, so a few people immediately began to discuss, what should they do next?
…………
On the Wuchang Prefecture side, Zhang Mingwei asked Zhou Yuji to lead an army to attack Zhang Xianzhong's troops, and publicly issued an order to give Zhang Xianzhong and Sun Kewang a chance, but they refused, so when they encounter Zhang Xianzhong and Sun Kewang's troops in the future, they will not accept them again. of surrender.
In this regard, Li Dingguo and Liu Wenxiu had nothing to say. It was not that Duke Xingguo refused to give them a chance, but that their adoptive father was in the wrong. No wonder Duke Xingguo gave such an order!
Regarding their arrangements, Zhang Mingwei also gave them a choice.
The first is to go to Liaodong to build captives, but currently the focus is on defense. Winter is coming soon, so taking the initiative will have to wait until at least next year.
The second option is to follow him to Sichuan to fight Zuo Liangyu's rebels and Li Zicheng's troops.
In the end, Li Dingguo, Liu Wenxiu and Ai Nengqi all chose to go to Sichuan. After all, they were about to achieve military success, and they had no psychological burden for fighting Zuo Liangyu or Li Zicheng.
As for asking them to fight Zhang Xianzhong, although doing so could test their loyalty to the court, and some commanders might do this, Zhang Mingwei didn't even mention it, which made Li Dingguo and Liu Wenxiu secretly grateful.
But one thing Zhang Mingwei didn't expect was that Zhou Yuji's side did not make any achievements, because Zhang Xianzhong still ran away, and he had already ran away when Zhou Yuji led the troops.
The main reason why it was difficult to exterminate the bandits in the late Ming Dynasty was because they ran away if they couldn't be beaten.
In this regard, Zhang Mingwei had no good solution. He could only order the army and local government offices in nearby provinces to be prepared to guard against thieves. On his side, he asked Zhou Yuji to lead 20,000 troops to follow him, so that Zhang Xianzhong would not have the opportunity to reorganize his troops and recharge his batteries. It would be best to drive Zhang Xianzhong and this bandit away to Sichuan.
On Zhang Mingwei's side, he still had to wait for the prince to take over his duties in allocating fields, and at the same time reorganizing the place like Kaifeng, conducting a population census and other matters.
In addition, the newly reorganized army must not only issue military uniforms, but also prepare winter clothes for the entire army. These are all things.
…………
Just when the army was almost reorganized, Sun Yingyuan escorted the prince to Wuchang.
The fighting in Huguang wiped out the main force of Zhang Xianzhong's army, which was equivalent to quelling the rebellion in Jiangnan. When the prince came over, he was obviously very excited.
But when he saw Zhang Mingwei, he was a little embarrassed because the things Zhang Mingwei assigned to him did not go smoothly.
