Aspiration

Chapter 12

At the same time that Li Zicheng and the others were heading towards Gucheng, Zhang Shiqi also set off from Beijing.Their destination is Shangzhou.However, they received news on the way that the target they hunted might be on their way to Gucheng.

Zhang Shiqi changed his mind temporarily and continued to move forward.

He glanced at the tall and short man in front of him.They are known as the North and South Arrow Gods.Each has two special sharp arrows in their quiver.The word Gu is engraved on the shaft of the arrow.

Gu character is the surname of the arrow maker.

The North and South Arrow Gods only use arrows made by him.Because this kind of arrow is not used for general battles, it is specially used for hunting special targets.The only person who can make such a good arrow is Gufu.He only makes ten pieces a year, and if there are too many, he will not be able to make them.This kind of arrow is shot by the North and South Arrow God, and it can hit every shot within 150 steps, and it can shoot arrows within a hundred steps.That is to say, the arrows made by the North and South Arrow Gods with the grain talisman, within a hundred steps, no matter whether it is a fixed target or a moving target, they will hit every target without any deviation.

Gu Fu's arrows are very special, his arrow clusters are round and sharp.The arrow shaft is thin and straight, rolling it back and forth on the bronze mirror ten times will not deviate a single bit.The tail feathers are even more particular, they must be the hairs of vultures, which is completely different from ordinary arrows.Arrows made according to this requirement are not considered official "Gu" arrows. They have to pass the final test: that is, to experiment in water one foot deep, letting the arrow fall freely and vertically. In the water, the arrow body cannot There was the slightest wobble.This level is the most difficult, and it is also the key to choosing a good arrow.

This kind of arrow that does not shake in the water will fly to the target accurately in the air.

Now, they carry four precious arrows.

Gucheng is located in the northwest of Xiangfan, Hubei, with Hanshui River in the north and Wudang in the west.

Here, there is a black dragon entrenched. He is Zhang Xianzhong, one of the leaders of the famous peasant uprising in the late Ming Dynasty, known as the Eight Great Kings.In the first month of this year, he was attacked by Zuo Liangyu, the commander-in-chief of the Ming army, and suffered heavy losses.

Li Zicheng came to Gucheng, stayed in an inn, and secretly observed the situation in Gucheng.

Although Gucheng is not a prosperous place, under Zhang Xianzhong's governance, the people live and work in peace and contentment.Li Zicheng lived in the Zhengnan room on the second floor, and he could see the people coming and going at Xinjiekou, especially the entrance and exit of Zhang Xianzhong.After two days of observation, Li Zicheng discovered a problem. Zhang Xianzhong was very busy with entertainment, and most of the people he received were eight-person sedan chairs.This is very abnormal for people who have been in the army for a lifetime.

Li Zicheng thought, Zhang Xianzhong's life must be difficult, dealing with court officials, how could Zhang Xianzhong bear this trouble?Since the Wanli year, the Ming Dynasty has been extremely corrupt, and the people are in dire straits, and officials have used corruption as their ability.Zhang Xianzhong rebelled because he couldn't get used to the corruption of the imperial court. Now that he has fallen into this quagmire, can he bear it?In particular, he is a newcomer. Which of the officials at all levels in the province and the court will not come to beat the dog in the water?Who doesn't come to scrape his oil and water?Therefore, Li Zicheng guessed that Zhang Xianzhong must be miserable now.

Li Laiheng heard about the same situation. In the past two days, a total of five groups of officials came, saying they were here to visit colleagues, but they were actually extorting money.Li Laiheng saw Zhang Xianzhong's assistant leader of the Chinese army, he was busy helping Zhang Xianzhong, Zhang Luoyin and Zhang Luoyin's two jewels were almost exhausted.Therefore, the possibility of fighting for Zhang Xianzhong's uprising is very high.

The question now is, how can I get in touch with Zhang Xianzhong?This is a very difficult thing.One is that it cannot be known by people in the court.In Gucheng, there must be many spies from the imperial court. In history, the most famous military figure in the Ming Dynasty is Jin Yiwei. They are everywhere.In Gucheng, Zhang Xianzhong has just surrendered, and the imperial court must take strict precautions. Therefore, there must be Jinyiwei here.Li Zicheng had to be cautious. If the court found out about his coming to Gucheng, he would harm Zhang Xianzhong. Not only would the uprising fail, but he would be wiped out on the spot.The second is Zhang Xianzhong's attitude towards Li Zicheng. It is hard to say now. They used to be the breakthrough generals under Gao Yingxiang's command. , and one is active in the Yangtze River Basin.Will Zhang Xianzhong kill Li Zicheng now in order to show his loyalty to the court?Although unlikely, it cannot be ruled out.One more thing to be wary of is that Zhang Xianzhong will rebel sooner or later. He must understand that Li Zicheng will be the one who will fight against him in the future. So, will he use this opportunity to get rid of Li Zicheng?
This possibility is very high.

Therefore, seeing Zhang Xianzhong must be a surprise, so that he does not have much time to think about it.

In Zhang Xianzhong's study room, the book boy was rubbing his ink, and Zhang Xianzhong was about to write a few posts by himself. The eighth aunt still had to celebrate at the age of 20, especially since she gave birth to a fat boy for him, and his Zhang family had descendants.So, how can we not be happy on Aunt Ba's birthday?
Zhang Xianzhong had many wives and concubines, and he often lost his wives during battles, but he always maintained the level of having seven or eight wives.Zhang Xianzhong loves two things, one is a famous horse, and the other is a woman.The Eighth Aunt was snatched here. On the day she got married, Zhang Xianzhong happened to meet her, and they got married after snatching her away.It has been more than a year since this woman snatched her, and the boy was born, but she is a little willful and often moody.Zhang Xianzhong will always try to make her happy when he is not on official business, so he must make her happy on her 20th birthday, this is Zhang Xianzhong's long-awaited attention.

A man who looked like a soldier stepped forward and said, "Auntie Ba's birthday is coming up, how do you plan to arrange it? You have to find a way to make Auntie Ba happy for a day."

"I want you to talk about that group of people, why are you talking about women? Am I writing an invitation card?" Zhang Xianzhong has read books, and his handwriting is not bad, in order to let those imperial officials know him With beautiful handwriting, he told them that he was also a scholar, so he wrote this invitation himself.He invited Xunguan, Zhifu and others to come here with their families to watch the theater and play cards, so that the eighth aunt could have a good time.

The person who reported to him was the leader of his personal army and his confidant, so that person dared to ask him about the trivial matters of his life.

"That group of people is very alert, and we haven't contacted them yet. But what is certain is that they must be Li Zicheng's people, and their purpose seems to be to get in touch with us." The leader of the guards said.

As expected of Zhang Xianzhong.

It is indeed not an easy person to survive the sword and arrow. He is very good at running the army, and he was discovered by them even if he had a vision.Li Zicheng entered the city at dusk. They made up their makeup and sneaked into the city gate in batches, but they were still discovered.

Li Zicheng and other five people were discovered by them.Li Laiheng and other eight people were not found. They entered the city earlier than Li Zicheng.

"Who do you think it will be?"

"It was already late when they entered the city that day, and they couldn't see it very clearly. One of them seemed to be in his 30s, and the other four were only in their 20s. That person was either Tian Jianxiu or Gao Yigong."

"Oh? Tian Jianxiu. It's possible. He is known as Zhuge in Chuangying, and he is the most resourceful person. It makes sense to send him here." Zhang Xianzhong is smart and conceited. He thinks that Li Zicheng is now besieged in Shangluo Mountain. It must be extremely difficult, and he will definitely send someone to persuade Zhang Xianzhong to raise the banner again.If he sent someone, it would be Tian Jianxiu.In Chuangying, Tian Jianxiu and Li Guo were side by side, with a very high status, Zhang Xianzhong did not lose face when he came to persuade him, and besides Li Chuangwang himself, the only person who could persuade Zhang Xianzhong was Tian Jianxiu.

"Tomorrow, find a way to contact them, meet Li Zicheng's Zhuge scholar, and see what he has to say." Zhang Xianzhong looked conceited, he was thinking, you, Li Zicheng, finally have a time to ask for me. .

Li Laiheng told King Chuang what he had heard.

"Okay, I'll pick it up tomorrow. How do you arrange it when we meet?" Li Zicheng said excitedly.He was going to meet Zhang Xianzhong as Tian Jianxiu.

Li Laiheng also has extremely important information.

Zhang Xianzhong had an extremely insidious military adviser named Xu Yixian.There is also a cruel and fierce general Zhang Kewang.They seemed to be plotting something behind Zhang Xianzhong's back.

There are big risks in meeting.

The key is his adopted son Zhang Kewang and military adviser Xu Yixian, who are very firm in their belief that Zhang Xianzhong can be emperor.Anyone who stands in the way of their realization of this ideal will be shot.This meeting, once they know that it is King Chuang himself, they will probably play tricks outside.Of course, Zhang Xianzhong's mind is also hard to figure out, will he immediately turn his face and deny him?Hard to say.

Li Shuangxi and Li Qiang had followed King Chuang for many years, and they were even more worried. They felt that there was no reason not to chop the meat that was offered as a gift.

Li Ziben had this concern. The reason why he took the risk was also related to his character. He was betting, betting on Zhang Xianzhong's generosity and mind, and betting on his own judgment.

Because of this, Li Zicheng felt it necessary to take the risk.He thought it was necessary to have a good talk with Zhang Xianzhong.Now, the strength of the imperial court is still there. When they are not fighting for the throne, they need each other. Whether Li Zicheng is gone or Zhang Xianzhong is gone, it will be a heavy blow to everyone. It can be said that no one of them can do without now. Who to drive.If you don't explain this issue thoroughly, you will always be suspicious of each other, which is not a good thing for anyone.

At dusk the next day, Zhang Xianzhong seemed to be going out to meet the magistrate.The sedan chair and attendants went far to the east gate.At this time, a small hotel not far from Ximen had already cleaned up the guests.Zhang Xianzhong turned in on foot, three of the five people following him remained outside the door, and only two followed him in.

Zhang Xianzhong was taken aback for a moment before entering the door, and he found that it was Li Zicheng who greeted him.He stopped in his tracks, he was stunned for a second, and he drew his knife for a second.But soon he calmed down.

"It's you?"

"Yes, it's me. If it was someone else, I would feel sorry for you. I, Li Zicheng, can be rude, but can your eighth king lose face?"

"Brother Li, I didn't expect it. I didn't expect it. It's been a few years since our brothers met. Today, I feel a little embarrassed as a brother. Brother Li, how are you doing recently? I heard that you There are only eighteen riders entering Shangluo Mountain, is that true?"

Eighteen rode into Shangluo Mountain!History is unreliable.Li Laiheng understood that Hong Chengchou, Sun Chuanting, and Ding Qirui reported falsely to the Chongzhen Emperor.Therefore, it became an official historical record that Li Zicheng rode into Shangluo Mountain at eighteen.Li Laiheng revisited history and found it amusing.

Li Zicheng was noncommittal about the eighteen riders entering Shangluo Mountain, so he laughed.He said: "Brother Zhang, I, Li Zicheng, had a setback this time, but I finally came here. As soon as I enter the mountain, within three months, I will have tens of thousands of elite soldiers coming out again. Recently, Henan, Anhui There are a lot of hungry people, as long as you raise your arms and shout, it will be a vigorous scene. I came here today to tell you, come out, how can there be excitement without you, the Eighth King?"

What Li Zicheng said seemed to be to invite Zhang Xianzhong to watch a big show, and he said it in a relaxed and fun way.

Why didn't Zhang Xianzhong know Li Zicheng's purpose, and he didn't expose it, he only asked about Li Zicheng's Tongguan battle.

"I heard that there is a powerful person in your place. Who is it? The officers and soldiers are talking about it, saying that you will start a war with your brother Li. Be careful of a young general named Li. It can't be Shuangxi, right?"

"Haha, where is it? It's all the officers and soldiers who are cowardly, playing tricks, deceiving their superiors, and fabricating this person."

Two famous leaders of the rebel army were chatting here, while in Zhang Xianzhong's camp, there were a few people muttering there, their faces showing a strong murderous look.

(End of this chapter)