After Jiang Baili got the news of Guo Shanhu, he has been waiting for further movements in the Lunan area. Jiang Baili knew that Xu Shuzheng's troops were the hope of the Beiyang Army in Licheng, and now Xu Shuzheng was ambushed by the Northeast Army and suffered heavy losses. And being so quiet in Licheng can only mean that Duan Qirui has blocked the news, but there is no impermeable wall in this world. Duan Qirui didn't want this news to leak out, but it didn't mean that Jiang Baili would let the Beiyang Army guard Licheng in peace.

The original purpose of the intelligence forces hidden in Licheng in the northeast was to find an opportunity to get out the city defense map of Licheng and prepare for the siege of the city. However, after receiving the news of Lunan's victory, Jiang Baili personally instructed the intelligence organizations in Licheng to stop their operations and spread the news on a large scale. It is necessary to let the news of the defeat of Xu Shuzheng's troops of the Beiyang Army spread throughout Licheng in the shortest possible time.

It is extremely difficult to obtain a confidential map of the city, but it is extremely easy to disseminate information. In just one day, Beiyang Xu Shuzheng's troops were ambushed, and the news of heavy losses was already known in Licheng. The forces of all parties were distracted and panicked, and their eyes were fixed on Duan Qirui's temporary residence in Daming Lake.

"Damn it! Who is spreading the news? Duan Qirui's face was ugly. The continuous losses during this period of time kept his mood in a tense state, which made his body much worse.

"Prime Minister, it's not our people, the news leaked out from a folk teahouse and wine shop, it should be done by someone from the Northeast!" Fu Liangzuo said.

"Not bad! I heard that the news also came from the people, and it was impossible for the common people to know such confidential information. The only explanation for this is that the people in the Northeast deliberately spread rumors in the city to affect the morale of our military. Ni Sichong said.

"How's the army doing?" Jiang Baili's sinister intentions Duan Qirui were clear, but now that the news has spread, it is impossible to block it. The mouth of the people is equal to the defense of Sichuan, after all, the news said by the Northeast is the truth.

"It's very unstable. When I went to inspect the troops today, the soldiers were very emotional. It's just that we haven't gotten accurate information from within us, and the soldiers are still in a state of panic. Prime Minister, we must find a way to calm the emotions of the soldiers as soon as possible, otherwise there is a real possibility of mutiny. Fu Liangzuo said. The state of the army worried him, originally these Beiyang troops were not elite, and the continuous defeats had already made the morale of the soldiers low to the lowest point. If the last glimmer of hope in the hearts of the soldiers is destroyed, a mutiny in the army has become almost inevitable.

"Damn it! No wonder the Northeast Army stopped attacking, they were watching our jokes! Duan Qirui said with a gloomy expression.

"Prime Minister, even if we appease the morale of the soldiers, with the current state of the soldiers, it is impossible for them to be your opponent of the Northeast Army, we must find a way to solve this situation." Fu Liangzuo said. His thoughts tended to abandon Licheng, preserve the power of Beiyang, and then the army went south to Tai'an, and Xu Shuzheng's army turned around. In this way, at least Beiyang can occupy a small half of Shandong Province. If it continues to die, it is really possible that the entire Beiyang power will be scattered and eaten by the enemy. In this way, even if these high-level Beiyang leaders escape, they will only have the fate of sitting on the cold bench in the future.

"Prime Minister, I think we should negotiate with the Northeast. This is the fastest way to resolve this dispute! Ni Sichong said. He was a little scared by the Northeast Army. The combat effectiveness of the Northeast Army is really very strong. Coupled with the superiority in firepower, the attack is simply overwhelming. Beiyang can't resist it at all. In terms of the future of Beiyang, he has the same idea as Fu Liangzuo, believing that the current Beiyang cannot be the opponent of the Northeast.

"Negotiations?" Duan Qirui's brows furrowed even deeper. He knew exactly who the commander of the Northeast Army was, and to be honest, he very much didn't want to meet his old opponent in such an embarrassed way as he is now. Back then, he teamed up with Xu Shuzheng and almost forced Jiang Baili to death. Now that he met him in such an embarrassed manner, Duan Qirui had instinctive reluctance in his heart.

"Prime Minister, no matter how we insist, with the current situation, I am afraid that Licheng will not be able to hold it. If Licheng is lost, the entire Luzhong region will also fall into the hands of the Northeast. In this case, it is better to give up Licheng generously, go south to Tai'an, and reorganize the defense line. Stay in the green mountains without worrying about no firewood. Fu Liangzuo was still more inclined to evacuate Licheng, go south to Tai'an, reorganize the defensive line, and continue to resist.

"Deputy Chief, if the Northeast Army continues to aggressively move south to Tai'an after swallowing the Luzhong region, and re-establish a confrontation with us in Tai'an, the defense of Tai'an City is not as good as Licheng, and the Northeast Army has such a sharp weapon as heavy artillery, and no city can stop its progress. If we continue to fight like this, we will only consume the vitality of our Beiyang Army. And if we lose Tai'an in the future, our power in the entire Shandong will be over. Ni Sichong said. Fighting a war depends on strength, and the current strength of Beiyang is inferior to others, so it should not continue to fight recklessly. I'm afraid it's not easy to have a hard time in the Northeast now. Judging from the situation in Zhili Province, the war potential of the Northeast Army is also about to reach its limit. Now the two sides are only competing with who can hold out more. However, as long as there are no major changes in the Northeast, with the current family business in the Northeast, it will always last longer than Beiyang. Therefore, Ni Sichong does not recommend fighting with the Northeast. In this case, it is better to end this war quickly, and then recuperate in Beiyang and retrain the army. The old-fashioned Beiyang Army has not been able to adapt to the development of forms.

"Humph! Now that we have failed in a row, it is impossible to gain a slight advantage if we negotiate. Everyone knows the greed in the Northeast, and they will never give up such a good opportunity for blackmail. What if we can't agree to the conditions proposed by the Northeast? If we fight again at that time, we will be even more unreasonable. For the honor of Beiyang, we must persist in this battle. What's more, Li Chunbu, the overseer of Jiangsu, and Zhang Xunbu, the overseer of Anhui, have already raised troops to the north. If we go to Tai'an, we may not have a chance to win! Fu Liangzuo said.

"Don't make any noise! Si Chong, you go and be responsible for contacting the Northeast Army! Ryosa, you go and secretly arrange the evacuation of the army! Duan Qirui said.

"Prime Minister, ...... you?" Fu Liangzuo asked suspiciously.

"Let's take a look at the conditions in the Northeast first! If it's really hard to accept, you can only continue to fight. A look of helplessness flashed on Duan Qirui's face. Duan Qirui was defeated, not only in the army, but also in terms of will. The Beiyang system, which has spanned China for decades, has finally begun to come to an end.

At this moment, Duan Qirui suddenly understood why Feng Guozhang skipped him Duan Qirui at that time, abandoned Beiyang's huge foundation in Beijing, and established a new Beiyang government in Nanjing. In addition to the fact that he doesn't want to be a puppet in name only, there is also the fact that he has seen that Beiyang is not an opponent of the Northeast. The army of Beiyang has decayed. If it continues like this, it can only accelerate the demise of the Beiyang system. Therefore, in that case, Duan Qirui chose to continue to fight, while Feng Guozhang chose to jump out and rebuild the new Beiyang Army.

On the same day, Ni Sichong took a few guards and personally sat down from the city with a hanging basket. There's no way around it. The city gate of Licheng is thick and heavy, and it is inconvenient to open and close, if it is taken advantage of by the Northeast, then the entire Licheng can be dangerous.

For the Beiyang envoys, the Northeast Army gave enough respect. Jiang Baili personally came to greet him.

"Brother Ni, it's been a long time!" Jiang Baili clenched his fists and said. When Jiang Baili was favored by Yuan Shikai back then, he was really proud for a while. At that time, Ni Sichong was already a senior general in Beiyang, assisting Duan Qirui in controlling the army. Jiang Baili had several contacts with him, but Ni Sichong did not have any prejudice against Jiang Baili, but admired his ability very much. It's a pity that his boss and Jiang Baili are not on the right path, and he can only watch from the sidelines. Back then, I once lamented the fall of a generation of generals who were so aggrieved.

"Brother Baili, I haven't seen you for a few years, and your style is better than in the past!" Ni Sichong said with a sigh. He knows Jiang Baili's affairs very well, the reason why Jiang Baili shot himself back then was basically from Duan Qirui's idea and Xu Shuzheng's specific operation. But now it can be regarded as 30 years in Hedong and 30 years in Hexi, and now Jiang Baili has become the commander of the Northeast Army, leading more than 100,000 Northeast Army to destroy most of the entire Beiyang system. Now they are even more forced to come to the peace talks. It can be said that all the face has been earned.

"Brother Ni is polite. You and I both know the form now, and it will not be good for you and me to continue fighting. Since it is Brother Ni as the representative of the peace talks, let's get straight to the point! We want Shandong! Take the entire province of Shandong, and both of us will have the conditions for a strike! Jiang Baili said simply.

"What! Shandong province, this is impossible! Although your Northeast Army has achieved a great victory, please don't forget that we still have 70,000 troops in Tai'an, and the troops in the south are also in a steady stream of reinforcements, so it can be said that we still have the strength to fight on the battlefield in Shandong. In this case, it is impossible to cede Shandong! I can't agree to your conditions. Ni Sichong said.

"Brother Ni, you also know that although I am the deputy commander of the Northeast Army, there are many things that I cannot say. Our young marshal has already spoken. In any case, Shandong Province must be completely taken! Shandong is the province to be defended by the Beijing government, and if it cannot take it all, what is the authority of the Beijing government? Please forgive Brother Ni for this. Jiang Baili said with a smile. Jiang Baili is a very powerful military strategist and strategist, but he is not a qualified politician or negotiator. He also knew that he had a strong military aura, so when he negotiated with Ni Sichong, he didn't go around in circles and directly said his conditions.

(To be continued)