I

  Chapter 582 579 [Li Zicheng's trip to the grassland]

  The Qinghai envoy led by Chechen Daiqing had just entered the border of Henan, and Li Zicheng also received Zhao Han's reply.

Li Zicheng convened an imperial meeting and said directly: "This year's war, there is not much food left in Shanxi. People's hearts are not stable. If Zhao calls again next year, Shanxi will definitely not be able to keep it. I don't know how many civil and military surrenders. Let's discuss with Zhao. Yes, he agreed to release the captured brother back, and gave us alms."

"We are going to go out to fight and occupy the grassland to be the king. If you are willing to follow, I will take you to the grassland. If you don't want to follow, you can stay and surrender. We are all old brothers. Let's talk openly today. I don't want to go to the grassland. Shepherding sheep, we don't force it, who the **** is willing to herd sheep?"

   "Don't lose face, you don't have to express your opinion today. Those who want to go with us, and those who want to stay and surrender, go back and prepare secretly."

"If you want to go, just take the cavalry. Even if you don't have a horse, you must at least have a mule. If you don't have a wife, hurry up and ask for a wife. We are going to the grassland to settle down. Don't go to the grassland, and the mother is homesick and wants to come back. Don't search too hard, before you leave, just go to the local gentry and merchants to copy the salary, don't embarrass the poor people."

"After the beginning of spring next year, we will meet in Taiyuan on the second day of February, the day when the dragon raises its head. If you come to Taiyuan before the second day of February, I will take you to the grassland. If you don't come, we will treat you as staying and surrendering. Today is our farewell. banquet…"

   After Li Zicheng finished speaking, the audience was silent. The news was too sudden.

Finally someone wanted to express his opinion, Li Zicheng raised his hand to interrupt: "Today, just drink and eat meat, don't talk about anything else. If you want to leave, bring soldiers over at the beginning of spring; if you don't leave, don't show up again at the beginning of spring. If you talk bluntly today, you can drink too much." It's not a good time. Come, let's serve wine and food!"

  Good wine and good food, all served, Li Zicheng has not been so extravagant for a long time.

  A group of old camp brothers, it seems to go back ten years ago. They exchanged cups and glasses, and talked dirty jokes freely. Li Zicheng also let go of the emperor's airs and ran to hang shoulders with his old brothers.

After drinking for three rounds, and when he was emotional, Liu Zongmin said with tears in his eyes: "Our family is for planting land. If we couldn't pay the rent, my father hanged himself. Mother took us to beg for food. It's good to be a beggar. Ah, I heard that Zhu Yuanzhang was a beggar, and Emperor Zhao was also a beggar. My mother gave us clothes to wear, and my mother gave us what I begged for to eat, but my mother froze to death and starved to death..."

  Li Zicheng threw his glass and cursed: "They are all corrupt officials who are like dogs. Which one of us is not a good citizen? We are forced to beg for food, we are forced to kill people, and we are forced to be rogues!"

   "Isn't it? We used to just want to farm well, and we didn't ask for meat. We were content with a full stomach..." Liu Fangliang also began to recall the hard times.

Zhang Nai said: "Our parents are both dead, but luckily our adoptive father (Li Zicheng) took in us. We will follow wherever our adoptive father goes in this life. Isn't it the grassland? Let's occupy the grassland and recommend our adoptive father to be The Han people in the grassland are sweating profusely!"

   After a meal of wine and meat, the DNA of these guys' rogues was activated, and they returned to the state of being trapped in Shangluo Mountain back then.

   They fled from Tongguanyuan into the mountains, leaving only one or two thousand people, and many of them were frozen to death in winter. But after the beginning of spring, it came out of the mountains and quickly swept across Henan.

  The current situation is better than it was back then. One winter they came to collect money and food, and then they left with soldiers swaggering.

  The banquet dispersed, and each returned to the station, and began to arrest the gentry and merchants intensively.

   Regardless of the charges, torture first.

  Wait until you are beaten to death, you will hand over the money and food.

   A bunch of traitorous Shanxi merchants for profit did not need to be dealt with by Zhao Han, but they were tossed to death by Li Zicheng's generals. Some Shanxi merchants hoarded millions of taels of silver in various cellars. This was the result of being tortured once a few years ago.

  After the Spring Festival, these Dashun generals, including a few generals who took refuge halfway, brought their soldiers and their families together towards Taiyuan.

  There are soldiers fleeing along the way, but it doesn't matter, ordinary soldiers run as they please, as long as they can't run if they can ride horses.

  After Zhao Han released Li Guo, Gao Yigong and other captives, Li Zicheng led the army to march towards the grassland. When crossing the Great Wall, there were more than 12,000 cavalry under his command, more than 40,000 soldiers' families and a few civilians, nearly 10 million taels of silver, and more than 20,000 livestock of various types to carry goods.

   Those gentry and merchants in Shanxi were almost looted of money and food. There were only a few who wanted money but did not want to die, and they were beaten to death without telling where the money was hidden.

  The north and south of the Yinshan Mountains today, including the vast Hetao area, are all the territory of the Xitumote tribe.

  Although the population of West Tumut is only 150,000, their territory is too large. The Manchu Qing was not at ease at all, so they did not grant autonomy. After the division of the banners, they were sent to take control. Therefore, they were also called the Guihua Tumote Department, and they did not even have a nominal chief.

  Since the decline of the Manchu and Qing Dynasties, the Xitu Mote Department has become a mess. Some tribes are fighting each other, some tribes are trying to form an alliance, how can they resist Li Zicheng's army?

  Li Zicheng led his army north out of the Great Wall, and immediately divided it into two.

  He personally led a group to go west, and Liu Zongmin led a group to go east, and when he saw the tribe of Xitumote, he fought.

"kill!"

  Outside Tuotuo City (Toketuo County), Li Zicheng led cavalry to attack long distances.

  Although it is not one person and two horses, it is one horse and one mule.

  War horses are used for riding, and mules are used for carrying armor. They ran three hundred miles and killed here directly.

  The Mongols near Tuotuo City were completely stunned by Li Zicheng.

   I heard that the Manchus were defeated and fled, and the Dalate tribe in the northwest just came to Tuotuo City to fight a battle. After suffering heavy losses, the Mongols here chose to surrender to the Dalat tribe. Unexpectedly, as soon as Dalat's troops left, Li Zicheng led his troops to kill him again.

  The well-armored Dashun cavalry beat the Mongols like autumn leaves.

   "Your Majesty, what about the prisoners?" Zhang Nai asked.

Li Zicheng said: "All the Mongolian leaders were killed, as were their children and grandchildren, leaving only the children who didn't remember anything. The Mongolian civilians stayed and let them help herd herds. This pasture belongs to us! Rest for two days before killing Dalat Department. After the Dalat Department is destroyed, we will attack Guihua City."

   Guihua City is near Hohhot, which used to be the Mongolian Khan Court. Like Tuotuo City, Guihua City is also in disrepair for a long time, and there is no way to retreat into the city and stick to it.

   It is worth mentioning that from Tuotuo City to Guihua City, all along the river can be cultivated. At that time, Altan Khan recruited a large number of Han people, and the military households in the border towns could still divide the land when they fled. Therefore, a large number of frontier soldiers could not bear the abuse and ran to join the Mongols. Several leaders of the White Lotus Sect also fled to become landlords.

  Unfortunately, after the death of Alda Khan, the policy of treating the Han people well was overturned. The 100,000 Han people at the southern foot of Yinshan Mountain are now very few. They were either killed, fled, or used as shepherds.

  Li Zicheng took a short rest in Tuotuo City, and soon killed the Dalat Ministry.

   In a **** battle, Li Zicheng lost hundreds of cavalry, and the Dalat troops were killed and fled north.

  When Li Zicheng led his troops to Yinshan and Liu Zongmin led his troops to Daqingshan, they captured more than 3,000 Mongolian herdsmen and rescued more than 1,000 grassland Han slaves. They also kidnapped more than 30,000 livestock and robbed a large amount of grain—hohhot and other places can grow grain. There are many Han people and slaves there, and the nearby tribes have almost become resident herdsmen.

  They not only attacked the Situmot department, but also plundered the Chahar department along the way, because the Chahar department was also in a state of disunity, and the infighting among each other had already played out the dog's brains.

   Then, Li Zicheng did not keep his promise and did not lead his troops to cross Yinshan Mountain.

  Li Zicheng led his troops to station in Guihua City (near Hohhot), Li Guo led his troops to Heishan (near Baotou), and Liu Zongmin led his troops to Jining (near Ulanqab).

  They intend to accumulate strength here, capture more Mongolian slaves, rob more Mongolian war horses and livestock, grow more grain in farming areas, and train the rescued Han slaves into cavalry.

  At that time, if the Datong army comes, they will go to the north of Yinshan Mountain; if the Datong army does not come, Li Zicheng will dominate here.

  The Chahar tribe, who had surrendered to the Nanjing court, sent envoys crying for help, asking the Datong Army to drive away Li Zicheng.

   It can only be said that the Mongolian ministries in Inner Mongolia have been abolished by the Manchu Qing, otherwise Li Zicheng would not be so smooth.

  Of course, the right wing of Chahar and the Situmot Ministry were forced by Li Zicheng to seek an alliance. Only by uniting can they fight against Li Zicheng, and if they continue to fight among themselves, they will die.

  If Li Zicheng wanted to gain a firm foothold at the southern foot of Yinshan Mountain, he had to repel the joint attack of the Mongols.

   No matter who wins or loses, the population of this large grassland will drop sharply!

   "Da da da da!"

  A fast horse came from Baotou direction and galloped to Hohhot.

   "Your Majesty, the Dalat tribe who fled to the northwest has returned with the Urad tribe further west. There are many enemy soldiers, and the general (Li Guo) requests to send troops to rescue quickly!"

"got it."

  Li Zicheng immediately summoned the cavalry, but before he set off, he received Liu Zongmin's request for help, and Liu Zongmin was also attacked by the Chahar Ministry.

Niu Jinxing came over on horseback and said, "Your Majesty, we are all outsiders. Although the battle went smoothly a while ago, now we are surrounded by wolves. Also, there are many Mongolian herdsmen who have run away. We have to change our methods. First, fight a few victorious battles; second, massacre one or two tribes to gain prestige; third, split up and win over some small tribes."

   "The prime minister is right, but wait until the battle is over." Li Zicheng got on his horse.

Niu Jinxing said: "Let General Liu (Liu Zongmin) withdraw and temporarily reconcile with Chahar Mongolia, and first gather troops to completely subdue Tumed Mongolia. We are outsiders and cannot provoke two big tribes at the same time. Let's withdraw , Chahar Mongols will inevitably have another internal strife, and it will not be too late to fight Chahar Mongols after the Tummet Mongolia has been cleaned up."

  Li Zicheng nodded and said: "Immediately send someone to pass an order to Liu Zongmin, asking him to lead his troops to Guihua City, and let the Jining side go to the Chahar Department."

  Less than two months after Li Zicheng occupied Hohhot, he encountered a joint counterattack by the Mongols, and it was not a big alliance of the whole clan. This was enough for him to drink a pot in the grassland.

   This guy quickly went to support Li Guo, who had already been defeated and retreated to Lingzhao Temple.

  The two fought back together and won a big victory. They chased all the way to Bayannaoer, and directly slaughtered the Urad Rear Banner tribe there.

  Li Zicheng is not a shit-stirring stick, but a river dragon living in the grassland.

  The Prairie War will last for many years.

  And in the spring of this year, the Qinghai mission led by Chechen Daiqing finally arrived in Nanjing to pay tribute to the emperor.

  (end of this chapter)