A.D. 1644, April and May of the 276th year of the Ming Dynasty.

In the fifth month of the lunar calendar, there was a gradual summer heat, and heavy rain falling on the mountains and rivers of Shanxi greatly increased the difficulty of marching.

The dilapidated roads of Shanxi have given a real sense of the ruins of Shanxi, and the war and plague have made this beautiful place more and more barren. Similarly, the uneven ground and soft ground make the roads in Shanxi seem rugged and difficult, and walking on the roads makes Li Yan, the commander of the Shun army in charge of this road, feel like constipation.

After arriving in Pingdingzhou, the soldiers had already reached the pass of leaving the Taihang Mountains and entering the North China Plain. But reaching the pass does not mean that the march will be smooth.

More problems faced by Li Yan began to emerge.

Although the local poor people cheered at the arrival of the Shun army, so much so that the Pingding Prefecture was almost decided, Li Yan conquered this fortified city without any hard fighting.

But the next difficulties came one after another, and the poor people had no money to spare, so they naturally could not supply military funds. The gentry are rich, but Li Yan is a scholar and a child, so he understands too well that the real people in the local government are not the officials of the local government, but these landlords and gentry. Li Yan, who understood this, hated the matter of chasing stolen goods and plundering, and he couldn't stop Liu Zongmin from doing anything wrong, so he naturally wouldn't tolerate himself continuing to do such stupid things.

The difficulty of military funds can still be maintained by relying on temporary gains, but the capture of Jingcheng Pass made Li Yan hesitate.

Jing Cheng Pass is the fifth of the eight Taihang Mountains in the "Shu Zheng Ji", and the "Lü Spring and Autumn Period" and "Huainanzi" call "Jing Cheng" one of the nine stops in the world. The stone walls on both sides of the well are steep and narrow, the car can not be square, the riding can not be parallel, it is difficult to walk, but the terrain is dangerous and easy to defend and difficult to attack the place is extremely critical, but where the west enters Hebei or Hebei enters Shanxi and then kills to the pass, it is all to pass through this pass.

Therefore, such a dangerous place where a husband and wife are not allowed to open has become a battleground for soldiers, and Han Xin's battle against the water began here.

For Li Yan, the key is not yet. Jingcheng Pass is the hinterland of the Ming Dynasty, and Pingding Prefecture is still under the rule of the Ming Dynasty to the east.

From Pingding Prefecture to the east, you must first face the new Guguan Station, which is a marginal fortress set up to defend the Guguan. To conquer Guguan, we have to continue to attack Weize Pass. After passing the Reed Pass Pass, you still have to attack the Guguan Pass. In other words, after conquering three cities in a row, the main force of Li Yan's army could reach Jingcheng Pass.

"You can't wear Lu Min at the end of the strong crossbow......" Li Yan stood in his general's mansion, thinking quietly.

If it was Li Yan last year, he would not only have the elite Henan battalion under his command, but also a large number of recruits. In the face of such a tough battle, Li Yan will not spare his life.

But now, the soldiers under Li Yan have become Dashun's Imperial Forest Army, and the number of elite soldiers has increased, but the cannon fodder is getting less and less. Li Yan, who has become the Dashun Imperial Forest Army, attacked as the vanguard, of course, he was reluctant to waste these elite soldiers in his hands on the battle.

Just when Li Yan was looking at the map in a daze, at this time, a herald slowly entered, bowed down and said, "General, someone outside asks to see you." Be...... It's a Ming army general! ”

When Li Yan heard this, he immediately frowned, thinking impatiently about how there were still Ming army generals who could come in. Even if it is a surrender, it will not be called that.

But soon, Li Yan suddenly became enlightened: "Which department is it stationed in?" ”

"I heard that it is the guard of Guguan." As soon as the little soldier played, he immediately saw Li Yan rushing out of the mansion with joy.

He met the visitor in the living room.

The person who came was dressed in the usual mountain armor of a high-ranking general of the Ming army, with a beard on his face, his eyes were bright, and he looked at Li Yan carefully, and he also looked extremely strong and energetic. This person is Li Maochun, a general under the command of Xu Biao, the governor of Baoding.

Li Maochun's name is a little more literary than that of ordinary generals, in fact, he is indeed from Beijing and Beijing, and he works with Xu Biaozhi.

It's just that seeing the Shun army attacking cities and villages in several provinces, as if attacking half of the empire, Li Maochun's frozen heart was suddenly ready to move.

He is now almost forty years old, forty, and may be considered the prime of life in the next life. But in Daming, for most people, forty years old is already twilight. If he hadn't followed the governor, Li Maochun wouldn't have even been able to get the official position of a general.

Now, here's your chance.

Li Maochun looked at Li Yan, suppressed the excitement in his heart, and carefully looked at the person who came.

The person who came was strong and steady, without the brainless evil spirit of an ordinary martial artist, nor the sour spirit of a weak scholar, but with the wisdom and calmness of a Confucian scholar and the ability and neatness of a martial artist.

"No wonder you can be a general of Shunguo, you are really a talent!" Li Maochun had more admiration in his heart, and saluted: "Under Li Maochun, meet the general!" ”

"Why be polite! I usually hear my subordinates talk about heroes from all walks of life in the world, including the name of General Xu. I saw it today, but I was overjoyed. Where to care about his red tape! Li Yan said, pulling Li Maochun to sit down.

Li Maochun was a little excited in his heart, and said with a smile: "It is a blessing for the villain to be famous among the generals of Dashun." Since that's the case, the villain won't say much. The villain has been working for decades, just to sell the emperor's family one day. At the moment, it seems that Zhu Ming has no future. The real Son of Heaven in the future is still true to Emperor Dashun! It's just that the villain has always suffered from having no way, so he once took the risk and was willing to vote for the general! ”

"To be able to get Brother Xu to vote, that's my Li Yan's good life. Brother, hurry up! Li Yan hurriedly got up, helped Li Maochun up, and said: "Don't worry, you can do things in my Dashun country, but everything is the credit of the general." In terms of meritorious deeds, you will be given a future for the marquis! ”

The two of them did not mention it politely, and Li Maochun finally mentioned the long-awaited matter in Li Yan's heart: "In the future, even if there is a vacant name of a general, if it is not an inch of merit, then there is no word to let the general ask for credit for the villain." Today, I happened to have a topographic map of the vicinity of Guguan. Please also appreciate it! ”

"Good!" Li Yan was overjoyed when he heard this, and he didn't mention the problem in Li Maochun's words in his heart. The topographic map near Guguan is such a confidential thing, how can it be said that it is just to carry it? Obviously, Li Maochun was prepared.

As Li Maochun carefully spread out a yellowed and worn drawing from his arms, the terrain near Guguan gradually revealed in front of the two of them.

Guguan is an important pass of the Great Wall, which is in the territory of Pingding. It is about 6 km from Niangzi Guanfu. Five miles north from Guguan is Jingcheng Pass. It is quite famous that the Guguan Water Gate is built very uniquely, and the two walls of the brick coupon arched water gate hole are built with fine workmanship of the water protection beast stone carving. With Guguan as the center, a section of the city wall extends to the west and south. The westward section is about 3 kilometers long from Guguan Gate to the west end of the enemy tower, and the southward section is about 5 kilometers, and the whole stone masonry is very solid. The wall is one zhang high, ten steps wide, the same easy to defend and difficult to attack, it is one of the four famous passes in the western part of Gyeonggi, and it is the screen of Gyeonggi Domain.

Li Maochun pointed to Guguan and said: "This time, the last general will be ordered by Xu Biao, the governor of Baoding, to lead the army to garrison Guguan. Among them, the Baoding general army was stationed at Jingcheng Pass. In addition, after Zhu Cihong knew that Dashun was coming, he sent people overnight to supervise Li Jiantai, a bachelor stationed in Zhending Mansion. Li Jiantai claimed to have more than 10,000 soldiers and horses, but in fact there were only a few thousand. But as a scholar, Li Jiantai has a sword from Shang Fang, and he can order all troops and horses to urge all departments to fight to the death. There is Li Jiantai in the front, and Zhu Cihong in the back, and all departments will work as one. Once the war starts, it is bound to be forced to storm Jingcheng Pass! ”

Hearing Li Maochun mention the word "strong attack", Li Yan's brows suddenly twisted into a Sichuan character.

"It is not advisable to storm it." Li Yan shook his head without thinking about it.

Li Maochun was waiting for Li Yan's words, and suddenly felt slightly arrogant, and said: "General, the last general has a plan, which can outwit Jingcheng Pass for the general!" ”

"What is Brother Xu's plan? If this battle is successful, I will personally ask for credit to my emperor for you! Li Yan's face was full of anticipation.

Seeing this, Li Maochun hurriedly said with a humble posture: "The key to this battle still falls on the cabinet scholar Li Jiantai. I know this person, into Shanxi is to keep the family wealth, I heard that most of Shanxi was occupied, Taiyuan and broken, and hurriedly retreated to Baoding, seeing that Baoding has Baoding Governor and other local officials strong, like a turtle with a shrunken head, close the door, as if pretending to be dead. Such a person is timid when he hears the war, and he is anxious when he hears the merits. The strategy of the last general fell on this......"

Li Yan listened to Li Maochun slowly talk back, the smile on his face gradually increased, and in the end, he clapped his hands and said, "That's it!" ”

……

Wei Rong led the knights behind him to sweep away the casualness that came from Gyeonggi to Baoding, he looked at Xu Huanwu behind him, and said the doubts and uneasiness that had accumulated for several days: "Strategist, with such an army, our psychology is always a little unstable. ”

"Wei is worried about the next war with Li Zicheng? What, not optimistic? Xu Huanwu rode on a horse, walked slowly, and spoke slowly.

Wei Rong shook his head slowly: "Military Division, of course I am optimistic that Your Majesty will lead us to exterminate the traitors. But...... I really don't think about them! ”

As he spoke, Wei Rong stretched out his hand and pointed to an "army" in front of him.

In fact, Wei Rong was quite unimpressed with thinking that they were an army.

In Wei Rong's view, only soldiers like the Royal Guards are truly qualified absolutely. And what about the present?

It was a rabble of disheveled clothes, mixed banners, low morale, and every now and then someone left the queue, appearing undisciplined.

Most of the soldiers not only had dishes on their faces, and they looked like they hadn't eaten for a long time, but more importantly, these people had a smooth face, wearing tattered battle jackets, shoes and hats, and they didn't have the vigor and vigor of the soldiers of the Royal Guards that Wei Rong had seen.

How to follow such an army to give him the confidence to win?

"I'm not optimistic about these people either." Xu Huanwu smiled, which made Wei Rong stunned for a moment.

"It's hard for you to believe that these people are actually an army, right?" Xu Huan Wudao.

Wei Rong nodded firmly: "A rabble." ”

"It's not even as good as a rabble." Xu Huanwu shook his head slowly: "Nominally, the army of the scholars is the soldiers of the Beijing camp, but in fact, when they were in Baoding, they fled five or six out of ten. Later, these two or three thousand people, but our pavilion elder painstakingly pulled up the team. Well, at least the green-skinned scoundrels in the city have been looted by this pavilion elder. ”

"A bunch of ruffians just became soldiers?" Wei Rong understood where those treacherous spirits came from, many of the soldiers here were originally forcibly conscripted ruffians and hooligans, how could they not be cunning?

"It's not a ......soldier who has entered the Royal Guards Legion," Xu Huanwu said, and sighed slightly: "It doesn't matter how these soldiers are. After all, for so long, everyone knows what the soldiers of the Ming Dynasty are like. ”

Wei Rong was silent, he naturally understood.

"What matters is how our university scholar ...... A soldier is a bear, and a nest of bears will be a nest! Xu Huanwu said, rode forward, and walked towards Li Jiantai's position in front.

Li Jiantai set off in a carriage, and he didn't get his sedan chair into the barracks. Moreover, Li Jiantai likes this four-wheeled carriage very much.

This was given to Li Jiantai by the baggage battalion of the Royal Guards Legion, and the four **** carriages were pulled by four war horses, and Li Jiantai, who was loaded with a shock absorbing device, almost did it once, and he could no longer do without him.

Having sat in a pony carriage that shook so much that it could shake people's brains out all his life, Li Jiantai could sleep peacefully in the face of the slightest shock in the daily march.

At this time, when Xu Huanwu arrived near the big carriage, a burst of cheers rang out.

In the face of noisy voices, Li Jiantai woke up immediately, he opened the curtain and said, "What happened outside?" Xu Junshi? You're coming from the rear! ”

Looking at Xu Huanwu, Li Jiantai felt a cry of distress in his heart.

After all, instead of serving as a supervisor of the army, no one wants to be close to the battlefield of life and death. But this military advisor actually followed all the way, so Li Jiantai couldn't be lazy.

"yes. Seeing that I was about to go to Jingcheng Pass, no, I had to come over and see what the cabinet had ordered. Xu Huanwu said with a smile.

Li Jiantai had a big head for a while, and said: "How dare you, let's go first." Guarding this well, the old man will have nothing else to ask for......"

If there is, Li Jiantai will definitely not be humble. But he thought about it for a while, and finally realized that he couldn't find a reason to leave the battlefield.

Calling sick again? The crime of bullying is not fun.

Thinking so, Li Jiantai entered Jingcheng Pass in a tangled manner.

……

Zhu Cihong's army suddenly stopped on Zhuozhou, which was only a dozen miles away from leaving Gyeonggi.

On a hill outside the town, Zhu Cihong walked with his hands behind his back and looked to the northwest.

There, is the northwest border of the empire, the nine-sided Great Wall defense line that stretches for thousands of miles.

"Ningwu Guan, Ningwu Guan...... We're going to fight......" Zhu Cihong muttered.

…… (To be continued.) )