Before hanging himself, Chongzhen lifted the table

Chapter 218 Acting according to plan
In the large tent of the Chinese army where the imperial officers and soldiers were located, all the civil and military officials were gathered together.

Two of them were greeting Emperor Chongzhen on the throne: "Long live my emperor, long live, long live!"

One of them, named Yang Weizhi and named Jiefu, was from Shaanxi and came from a poor family.When the bandits invaded his hometown, he led the village to resist the enemy bravely. His bravery and strategic knowledge were praised by the magistrate, and he became famous.After serving under Sun Chuanting for many years, he was recommended for special use in the 13th year of Chongzhen. He served as deputy envoy to Yunnan and patrolled Jincang Road.

When Yuanmou Wu Bikui rebelled, he led his troops to put it down directly, so that the chieftains called by Mu Tianbo had no chance to participate in the war.But Sha Dingzhou did not go back. Instead, he led troops to sneak attack Kunming with the trust of Mu Tianbo, forcing Mu Tianbo to flee in panic. It was only after he fled to Yang Weizhi that he was able to gain a foothold.

In the original history, the Great Western Army entered Yunnan, forced Sha Dingzhou away, and defeated Yang Weizhi.Because Yang Weizhi was well-known in the local area, Sun Kewang, who was in charge of the Great Western Army at the time, surrendered him and agreed to his three demands: no need to give the title of loyalty, but still respecting the Ming Dynasty; no killing of common people; no abduction of women.

But in the end, he angered Sun Kewang because he obeyed Emperor Yongle and was killed by Sun Kewang. The people of Chuxiong were grateful for his contribution to defending the city and protecting the people, and built a temple to worship him.

It can be said that this Yang Weizhi only became prominent in the troubled times of the late Ming Dynasty. Otherwise, he would have no fame and would not be an official.

This was the first time he met the current emperor, and the current emperor was still very famous. To be honest, he felt a little scared when he was excited, not knowing what the emperor's attitude towards him would be in the end.

The other person, needless to say, is the hereditary Duke of Guizhou, Mu Tianbo.At this time, he was even more uneasy than Yang Weizhi, not because of his background, but because of his responsibility.

The Mu family was ordered to guard Yunnan, but now that Yunnan is in chaos, it is because Mu Tianbo is not in a position to guard it.

At this time, Emperor Chongzhen looked at the two people below. He did not say "Ping Shen", but called by name: "Yang Weizhi?"

"Wei Chen is here!" Yang Weizhi felt nervous after hearing this and responded quickly.

Emperor Chongzhen looked at him and said: "You patrolled the Jincang Road, but you were able to put down the Yuanmou Rebellion, and you were the mainstay before Sha Dingzhou and other chieftains rebelled. You defended Chuxiong alone. I was very relieved. I named you a fellow Jinshi. The right deputy censor of the capital is appointed governor of Yunnan."

When Sha Dingzhou raided Kunming, Governor Wu Zhaoyuan and Inspector Wu Wenying were caught before they could escape in time.The two of them are the most powerful foreign officials of the imperial court in Yunnan, and they are naturally responsible for the chaos in Yunnan.

For the imperial court at this time, the governor of Yunnan was vacant, and Emperor Chongzhen appointed Yang Weizhi because of his outstanding performance.

When Yang Weizhi heard that the emperor was re-employing him, he was immediately overjoyed and kowtowed quickly to thank him for accepting the order.

Then he was able to level up and stand aside.

The only person kneeling in the Chinese army's tent was Mu Tianbo, Duke of Guizhou.

Emperor Chongzhen looked at him and said coldly: "The Mu family has been favored by the emperor to control Yunnan forever, and how can they end up in such a chaotic situation?"

When Mu Tianbo heard this, he lowered his head to the ground and replied: "The general will finally realize his crime, please punish him!"

What the emperor said was true. Even if Su Qin and Zhang Yi were alive, they would have nothing to say.

Emperor Chongzhen saw that he had a good attitude in pleading guilty, and he also knew that Mu Tianbo was really loyal to the court throughout his life. In the original history, he eventually died for the country in the Curse Water Disaster, and died at the hands of the Dongwu people.

Therefore, Emperor Chongzhen said: "In memory of your active resistance to the rebels after the fall of Kunming, and the merits of your ancestors, the hereditary Duke is Ping Nanbo, third-class earl. I hope you will remember your ancestors' deeds and realize your shame." Then be brave, atone for your sins, and restore the glory of the Mu family!"

After the title reform, the Mu family's hereditary duke naturally disappeared and was replaced by a descended duke. But now this descended inheritance is gone, and there is only a non-hereditary third-class earl.

However, if the previous emperor's behavior was followed, it would be possible for someone like Mu Tianbo to directly seize the title and be demoted to a commoner.For example, the famous Jingnan general Qi Guogong Qiu Fu was surrounded by the Tatar army because he underestimated the enemy during the expedition outside the Great Wall. His army was almost wiped out and he himself died in the battle.Zhu Di was furious after hearing the news. He seized Qiu Fu's hereditary title and exiled his family to Hainan.

To be honest, Mu Tianbo was even more serious than Qiu Fu. Not only did he almost lose the entire Yunnan, but he also managed to survive, which is a crime of losing the city and losing the land.

That is to say, Mu Tianbo's performance in the original history gave him extra points, so Emperor Chongzhen did not punish him severely.

At this time, when Mu Tianbo heard the emperor's punishment, a stone fell in his heart, and he immediately kowtowed to thank him for accepting the order.

The two people headed by Yunnan were dealt with, followed by those chieftains who were still loyal to the imperial court.

Several people walked in immediately outside the Chinese army's tent, namely Long Zaitian, the chieftain of Shiping, Wang Yangzu, the towering chieftain, Lu Yongming, the chieftain of Ningzhou, and others.Because of changes in history, those who originally died in battle are still alive today.

After they saw the ceremony, Emperor Chongzhen said to them: "Although several chieftains such as Qing are still loyal to the court, the large-scale chieftain rebellion in the southwest shows that the chieftain system has great shortcomings and can no longer exist. It is imperative. Before I came to Yunnan and Guizhou, I went to Shizhu, Sichuan and met Qin Liangyu, King of Shizhu, and mentioned this matter to her, and she also fully agreed."

As long as you are a chieftain, you will definitely disapprove of the national policy of reforming the native land and returning it to local people.However, given the general trend, what can you do even if you don't agree?
Not to mention the chieftain, even the emperor of a country cannot be permanent.Changing dynasties and returning to the country are actually similar methods.

Among all the toasts, the most famous one is the Shizhu toast.He has always been loyal to the court, and no other chieftain can compare with him.If Qin Liangyu doesn't take the lead in making trouble and say that the court is unkind, it is impossible for others to be qualified to make trouble.

Besides, given the current situation in Yunnan and Guizhou, it is true that most of the chieftains have rebelled, and this is also a fact.As a court, measures must be taken.

Therefore, no one among the several chieftains in the Zhongjun tent dared to object.

Emperor Chongzhen saw that their attitude was acceptable, so he named Long Zaitian, the chieftain of Shiping, as Marquis of Shiping according to the size of their contributions, and he was promoted to the Marquis of Shiping. King Yangzu, the powerful chieftain, was promoted to Bobo, and he was also promoted to the chieftain of Ningzhou. His permanent life is Ningzhou Bo, and he will inherit the title of Ningzhou Bo in the same way.

Just for a moment, they were at least higher in rank than Mu Tianbo.

After the chieftains received the order to thank them, they discussed how to deal with the Kunming rebels.

At this time, in the large tent of the Chinese army, there were He Zan, Wei Shizhen, Liu Jiuqing, Ning Long and other generals who were the first to follow the emperor in his own expedition, as well as Gao Jie, Tang Tong, Ma Ke, Chen Yongfu, Gao Yigong, Li Laiheng, Liu Yulan and others who followed the emperor southward. The generals were all knighted for their military merits.

Other generals, such as Zeng Ying, Li Dingguo, Liu Wenxiu, Sun Kewang, Yang Zhan, Zhang Tianxiang, etc., were not knighted and were most eager for military exploits.It can be said that except for the generals stationed on the front line of the capital, defending the grasslands and the Liaodong Jianlu, most of the other famous generals in the late Ming Dynasty have gathered here.

With the current strength of the imperial army, it is not a big problem to defeat the rebel alliance, which is nominally stronger but is actually just a ragtag group of rebels.

Therefore, Emperor Chongzhen was more concerned about not allowing the rebels to scatter.

The reason why he advanced slowly was not only to fight steadily, but also to give all enemies a chance to unite and gather together.Only in this way can he put down the rebellion with the minimum time and cost of manpower and materials.

No, he said to Yang Weizhi, the new governor of Yunnan: "I want to annihilate the enemy in front of me in one fell swoop. How do you think we should deploy it?"

After finishing speaking, he looked at Mu Tianbo and said, "In terms of familiarity, you are probably the most familiar with Kunming. If you have any ideas, you can tell me!"

After hearing this, Yang Weizhi and Mu Tianbo did not dare to neglect, and quickly explained to the emperor and other generals the terrain in Kunming, available military strategies, etc.

This meeting did not end until the evening.

Not long after all the generals dispersed, Li Laiheng returned to the central military tent and reported to Emperor Chongzhen: "Your Majesty, according to the report of the detective horse who lurked back, there is something strange outside Kunming City. There has been movement in the past two days and nights. , but the bandit leader forbids anyone to go outside the city."

As he spoke, he took out a folded piece of paper from his arms, unfolded it and presented it to the emperor.

Fang Zhenghua on the other side went over and took the paper and put it on the desk in front of the emperor. He also turned on some oil lamps so that the emperor could see more clearly.

I saw that this was a sketch, and I could barely tell that it marked an area outside Kunming City, where something strange should be suspected.

While Fang Zhenghua turned on the oil lamp, he was naturally watching.After this look, combined with the previous news, he reminded Emperor Chongzhen: "Long live Lord, look at this place, it seems that if you want to fight in front of the battle, it should be in this place."

In a duel in front of the formation, it must be far away from both armies and cannot be directly supported by muskets and artillery.In other words, it is necessary to ensure that the two people in a duel will not be interfered by the outside world, otherwise the duel will be empty talk.

Therefore, once the two armies set up their positions, taking Kunming City as the starting point, we can roughly estimate where the duel will take place before the formation.

When Emperor Chongzhen saw it, he couldn't help but smile and said: "Sure enough, they are afraid of me and have some evil intentions!"

After hearing this, Fang Zhenghua hurriedly said: "Since ancient times, there is only one emperor who dares to challenge him in battle. What he did before will be famous throughout the ages!"

Not counting the founding emperor, but the shoucheng emperor, there really was no other emperor who would challenge him to a duel. At least he didn't expect it, so he used a different method to remind the emperor that he must not be fooled and not challenge him in a duel.

How could Emperor Chongzhen not recognize the meaning of his words? He immediately smiled and said nothing.In the end, it is his own decision whether to challenge him or not.Even if you want to fight one-on-one, you must have enough benefits. Otherwise, who is stupid?
Putting this topic aside, how to attack the city is still a headache.

After all, Kunming is the capital city of Yunnan. The city walls are tall and there are many rebels inside. It is really difficult to attack by force. Not only will it cause huge losses, but it will also destroy Kunming. In the end, the court will have to pay for reconstruction.

This is the disadvantage of fighting in your own home. If you damage the pots and pans, it is your own loss!
For the time being, the only method that can be thought of is the one that has been used before, which is to use special forces such as Longwei Camp to steal the city at night.But before that, the morale of the rebels defending the city must be dealt a heavy blow, so that once the city is broken, the morale of the defenders inside will collapse, thus ending the war smoothly.

If the morale of the rebels defending the city is still high, even if the city is defeated, they will still resist stubbornly in large numbers. It will still be difficult for Kunming to capture it!
Fighting, in the end, wins the hearts of the people!

It's not that there is no idea. Most of Li Zicheng's men are from Shaanxi. They believe that Shaanxi has surrendered to the imperial court, and they don't want to continue to follow Li Zicheng. This can be taken advantage of.

In addition, the subordinates of various chieftains can also ask former chieftain slaves who have received benefits from the imperial court to speak out and explain the benefits of submitting to the imperial court.

In other words, there are only a few foreign troops, and there is no good way to deal with them.The people on Annan's side are small and can be ignored, but King Talong of Togo brought [-] elite troops, which was a very important army.

According to the information he received, this Dongwu elite is the royal forest army of King Long, including sword and shield soldiers, spearmen, elephant soldiers, musketeers, and also includes Western Yi mercenaries.

This Ta Long Wang dared to come to Yunnan to mix things up, he really had the capital.

The result of the previous military discussion was to show military power tomorrow, then surround Kunming, and then look for opportunities to attack the city.

Thinking of this, Emperor Chongzhen, in addition to asking Li Laiheng to arrange for the surrendered internal officials to secretly promote the court's policies, went to read Dong Wu's information.

The next day, after it got dark, it was time for the imperial officers and soldiers to show off their muscles and strength.

Therefore, each battalion, led by the general soldiers from each route, went out of Kunming City.

Compared with the rebels, the imperial army has an advantage in cavalry. In terms of equipment, it has firearms and artillery, especially artillery. The imperial army has far more troops than the rebels, and there are many types of artillery.

Of course, the biggest advantage is the strict military discipline. Each army is an elite force developed over the years.

In addition, it is a righteous name.

Whether an army can fight and whether it is elite can, in most cases, be determined at a glance.

The actions of the imperial officers and soldiers naturally attracted the rebel leaders in Kunming City to come to the top of the city one after another.Whether it was Li Zicheng, Sha Dingzhou, or Prince Long, they felt awe-inspiring when they saw the imperial army appear.

Although the strength of the coalition forces is still larger than that of the imperial army, most of them are elites or not.If they really could be as elite as the imperial officers and soldiers, how many of them would there be in the coalition forces?
Li Zicheng felt a lot of pressure. He really couldn't lose this battle.If they fight openly and honestly, it is basically impossible to defeat the imperial officers and soldiers.In this way, we can only hope that if we shoot the man first, we shoot the horse, and if we capture the thief, we can capture the king first!
So, he immediately said to Sha Dingzhou: "Act according to plan!"

(End of this chapter)