Yongli Ming Dynasty

Chapter 266 Persuading Surrender
Outside Bozhou City, thousands of Ming cavalrymen lined up at the foot of the city, firmly blocking the southern side of Bozhou.

The Western Army was defeated at Guiyang. Ma Bao led his troops northwards and encountered almost no resistance until they reached Wujiang Pass.
There were still more than a thousand Western Army soldiers guarding the Wujiang Pass, but as the defeated soldiers fled back, the Western Army in the city also learned about the defeat on the front line. Seeing the Ming army approaching the city, the Western Army in the city abandoned the city and fled across the river without saying a word.
Wujiang Pass is separated from Bozhou by a large river, which makes it difficult to transport food and supplies. If the city is surrounded by the Ming army, it is almost certain to die.

The Western Army guards in the city all knew that even if they really held on, the main force of the Western Army in Bozhou City would definitely not come to rescue them.
The Western Army of your province has been defeated. The Western Army's plan to seize your province has obviously failed. It is useless to guard Wujiang Pass.
After Ma Bao and his men occupied Wujiang Pass, they immediately built a pontoon bridge and constructed a simple camp on the north bank. When the Longxiang Army in the rear arrived to take over Wujiang Pass, Ma Bao led the Tengxiang and Zhongzheng Battalions to drive directly to Luomeng Pass.

The Western Army held the Luomeng Pass for three days, and then abandoned the city and fled. After the Ming Army occupied the Luomeng Pass, they began to withdraw their troops.

Luomeng Pass was the outpost of Bozhou. There were still three to four thousand people in the city at that time. It was not easy to attack the city, but the Western Army was already in a panic.

At this time, the attitudes of the various military commanders in Bozhou City were divided, and it was impossible to form a unified consensus. Some people clamored to continue fighting to avenge the Western Army under Guiyang City.

Some people have already proposed to give up Bozhou, move to Sichuan Province again, and then find an opportunity to escape from Sichuan Province to Huguang. They don't want to fight the Ming army anymore.

The Western Army was arguing in the rear. The defenders of Luomeng Pass saw that the reinforcements from the rear were not coming, while the Ming troops outside the pass were gathering more and more. Finally, they could no longer bear it and directly abandoned the city and fled back to Bozhou.

No one wants to die. They are resisting the attack of the Ming army here. If Bozhou decides to return to Sichuan Province, what will they do? Now that the attitudes of all parties in Bozhou are uncertain, they naturally have to protect themselves first.

On the top of Bozhou City, Sun Kewang, Li Dingguo and other generals of the Western Army stood on the city wall, looking at the thousands of Ming cavalry below, with solemn expressions on their faces.
There were only two or three thousand cavalrymen under the city, but they had no way to deal with them at this time.

At its peak, the Western Army had 7,000 to 8,000 cavalrymen, but that was in the past. Now, Bozhou City may not even have a cavalry of 1,000 men.

The Western Army was defeated in Xichong, and all the baggage and food were lost. During the process of escaping, the Western Army was short of food, and the war horses in the army were almost eaten up. At the most critical moment, they even had to use people for food. Now, almost all the soldiers in Bozhou City are infantry.
The Ming cavalry arrived outside the city, and then dozens of cavalry squads rushed out and killed all the Western Army cavalry scouts who came to investigate outside the city.
After killing the cavalry sentries on the southern wall, the Ming army did not stop there. They crossed the southern city and went around to the east and west. It was obvious that they wanted to completely eliminate all the cavalry sentries of the Western Army outside Bozhou City.

On the top of the city wall, Zhang Sheng, the general of the Iron Cavalry Battalion under Sun Kewang, looked at the Western Army cavalry scouts who were shot down from their horses below the city wall. He looked at Sun Kewang with anger on his face and said:

"These Ming dogs are too bullying. Do they really think that there is no one in our Great Western Region? Please give the order, General. I am willing to lead the troops out of the city and kill these Ming troops."

Before Sun Kewang could say anything, Liu Wenxiu's face flashed with anger and he shouted

"Kill, what are you going to kill with?"

"You have acted arbitrarily and attacked Ming without telling us, which has harmed tens of thousands of my brothers in Daxi. And now you are still making trouble here."

Zhang Sheng was about to retort with an angry look on his face, but he suddenly discovered that not only Liu Wenxiu was angry, but also the neutral generals of the Five Military Governor's Office, such as Wang Fuchen, were looking at him coldly.

Zhang Sheng's expression changed slightly, and he finally dared not say anything.
Seeing the dissatisfaction of the people in the field, Sun Kewang's face also became gloomy.
If Sun Kewang and his men had previously attacked your province without authorization, it had only caused dissatisfaction among the Western Army. Then when the news of Wang Shangli and his men's defeat came back, the Western Army had already complained about Sun Kewang and his men.

Liu Wenxiu never participated in the disputes in the camp, and had good relations with the other three generals and the generals of the governor's office. But even he came out to rebuke Zhang Sheng at this time, which shows Sun Kewang's current situation.

The Western Army now has only about 40,000 people. First, He Jiuyi has 5,000 people, and later Wang Shangli and others have another 14,000 people. Because Sun Kewang insisted on attacking Gui Province, the Western Army has lost nearly half of its troops.
When the Western Army discussed whether to accept the Ming court's offer of amnesty, Wang Fuchen and others were noncommittal. However, when the Western Army was defeated, everyone put the blame on Sun Kewang. This was the price of Sun Kewang's arbitrary behavior.
Although the Western Army was extremely dissatisfied with Sun Kewang and his men, no one dared to directly accuse Sun Kewang.

Although the food and money for the attack on Guiyang were all provided by the General Pingdong's Office, Sun Kewang did not send many men. Now Sun Kewang still controls nearly 10,000 soldiers, almost more than half of the troops in the city.

The Ming army outside the city killed all the Western Army cavalry scouts, and then seven or eight cavalrymen came forward. When they arrived at the foot of the city, they shouted to Sun Kewang and others on the city wall:
"Listen, Western troops in the city. The rebel troops you sent into your province have all been wiped out by the imperial court. The imperial court is benevolent and does not want to cause any more killings. You Western troops are given three days to open the city and surrender. If you still refuse to surrender, the imperial court's heavenly soldiers will arrive immediately and you will have to take care of yourself."

The cavalry shouted several times at the top of the city wall, and then drove back to the battle line without paying attention to the reaction from the city.

Not long after, the Ming army outside the city suddenly moved together. Thousands of cavalrymen rushed towards the city, and the rumbling sound of horse hooves resounded through the top of the city.

Thousands of cavalrymen rushed to a place a few miles below the city, and then stopped together. The leading general waved his hand, and thousands of cavalrymen suddenly raised their hands, and thousands of arrows were instantly thrown into the sky.

After the Ming cavalrymen shot their arrows, they turned their horses and galloped away directly to the rear without stopping.
On the top of the city wall, Sun Kewang and others looked at the dense iron arrows on the ground outside the city, and their faces were gloomy.

Soon after the Ming army left, Sun Kewang and his men were about to leave when suddenly five or six riders and horses came running over from a distance.
When these people arrived at the foot of the city, they immediately revealed their identities. The people on the top of the city looked at the familiar faces below the city with astonishment, and immediately lowered the hanging basket and took Bai Wenxuan from the city to the tower.
At the Bozhou government office, all the generals of the Western Army gathered. They sat in the hall, while Bai Wenxuan stood at the bottom of the hall.

After everyone was seated, Sun Kewang could no longer bear it and asked

"What happened under the city of Guizhou? Why did your army of tens of thousands of people get wiped out?"

In the Battle of Guiyang, almost all the high-ranking generals of the Western Army were killed, and the remaining fleeing soldiers said all kinds of things.
Some said that the Ming army ambushed tens of thousands of cavalry outside the city and suddenly attacked when the Western Army attacked the city, which was despicable and shameless. Some said that the rear camp caught fire accidentally and the Ming army saw the opportunity and defeated them in one battle. Some even said that several generals on the front line were dissatisfied with Sun Kewang's attack on the Ming Dynasty and had rebelled against the Western Army and joined the Ming court.

These fleeing soldiers were already frightened out of their wits, and their words were more outrageous than the last. Sun Kewang and his men only knew that the army sent to Guiyang had been defeated, but they had no idea of ​​the specific circumstances. It was precisely because they had no idea of ​​the situation in Guiyang that the Western Army was unable to decide on the next move.

Bai Wenxuan looked at everyone in the hall and said in a deep voice

"We were attacking the city that day, but unexpectedly the main force of the Ming court suddenly entered Guizhou."

"Thousands of Ming cavalry first broke into the camp and burned the food and grass in the camp, and then rushed to the city. The Ming army in Guiyang also came out of the city to fight, and the army under the city was also completely defeated by the Ming army."

Sun Kewang frowned when he heard this and asked

"The main force of the Ming army? Do you know where the Ming army came from?"

"It's the imperial guards of the Ming court. The emperor of the Ming court led the imperial guards into Guiyang. Now the emperor of the Ming court is in Guiyang city."

The generals of the Western Army were all shocked when they heard this. They had never expected that they would encounter the elite troops of the Ming and Qing dynasties one after another. First, they were ambushed by the Tartars, and now when they were heading to Gui Province, they were ambushed by the Ming emperor's army.

Everyone felt heavy-hearted. Although they had followed the rebels to burn the Ming imperial mausoleum in the past, the Ming emperor was still an unattainable figure to them.
And now this kind of person actually appeared in front of them, which made everyone subconsciously feel a little panic.

Although Sun Kewang's face was solemn, he did not show any fear. He asked directly

"You can tell the number of the imperial guards of the Ming Dynasty." "The cavalry consists of at least 4,000 to 5,000 people, all of them are armored cavalrymen, and there are tens of thousands of infantrymen, almost everyone is also armored. The infantry and cavalry are well-trained and are all elite. They are definitely not the kind of rural soldiers who are put together."

"Before the Ming army let me go, they took me to the army to watch a round of

Liu Wenxiu and the others became more serious when they heard this. If what Bai Wenxuan said was true, the Ming army actually had tens of thousands of elite soldiers in armor, then they would not have to fight at all. The only way to survive was to flee back to Sichuan Province as soon as possible.
Everyone also understood the intention of the Ming army. The Ming army sent Bai Wenxuan to observe the army in order to deter the Western Army and prevent them from having any more luck.

Sun Kewang took a deep look at Bai Wenxuan below him, and remained silent for a while before continuing to speak.

"Why did the Ming court let you come back? What happened to Wang Shangli and the others?"

"Generals Wang Shangli, Feng Shuangli, Yang Wu and others were captured by the Ming court and are now being held in Guiyang. Their lives are not in danger. Six thousand soldiers of the Western Army were also captured by the Ming court and are now also being held in Guiyang."

Bai Wenxuan glanced at the people who looked slightly relieved, gritted his teeth, and said in a deep voice:
"Ming Tinggui, the regent, asked me to come back and pass on a message, saying... saying that the four generals should go to Luomeng Pass within three days to meet and surrender, otherwise they will send troops to attack."

As soon as Bai Wenxuan finished speaking, Zhang Sheng's face turned furious and he shouted:
"You are dreaming! The Fourth General is the leader of our Western Army and cannot go."

"The Ming court is always cunning. They must be trying to trick the four generals into coming and leaving our Western Army leaderless. We must not be deceived by the Ming court."

Seeing everyone remaining silent, Zhang Sheng spoke again.

"So what if the Ming cavalry is powerful? We have a strong city. Can the Ming cavalry break through the city wall? We will defend the city. I want to see what the Ming army can do to us."

The four generals above were all silent at this time. The hall was quiet for a while, and then Wang Fuchen spoke in a deep voice

"Our food and wages are running out, how can we defend the city?"

Zhang Sheng's expression remained unchanged. He said directly

"Let's go. If we can't enter Guangxi, can we still go back to Sichuan?"

"The Tartars are also in Sichuan at this time, so it's a good opportunity for the Tartars and the Ming court to fight each other."

Everyone in the hall nodded slightly after hearing this. Their only choice now was to return to Sichuan Province. In fact, this was not a good way out either. The Western Army was killing people indiscriminately in Sichuan Province, and now everyone wanted to kill them.

Moreover, since Zhang Xianzhong decided to move north, the Western Army had already voluntarily abandoned all prefectures and counties in Sichuan Province.

Now, the people in Sichuan Province are either Qing troops or the old Ming Dynasty troops. Even if they return to Sichuan Province, they will be surrounded by enemies. But now they have no choice.
Bai Wenxuan glanced at the people in the field who were slightly moved, and after a moment of silence, he told everyone about Zhu Lang's plan to block the city and jointly strangle the Western Army with the Qing army.

When the Western Army heard this, they were all shocked, and then they all cursed the Ming court for being despicable and actually wanted to cooperate with the Tartars to strangle them, the Great Western Army.
But after everyone finished cursing, a trace of panic flashed across their faces. Ming Ting had already told them the plan clearly, but after thinking about it, everyone in the field could not find a solution at all.
The more they thought about it, the more they realized how vicious the Ming court's tactics were. Suddenly, everyone in the hall fell silent, and then they all looked up at Sun Kewang and the other three.
The generals of the Western Army could not think of a way to deal with it, and Sun Kewang and his four men also had no good ideas. No matter how you look at it, accepting the surrender is the only way out for the Western Army.

However, the four generals were the leaders of the Western Army at that time. No one knew how the Ming court would act after Sun Kewang and his men went to the Ming court, so no one dared to persuade the four to go to the Ming court to pay homage.
Lian Bai Wenxuan was silent at this time, just standing aside, looking at Sun Kewang and the other three above.
There was silence for a long time, but Li Dingguo suddenly looked at Bai Wenxuan below and asked

"Since the Ming court already has a way to trap and kill us, why do they still want to persuade us to surrender?"

When everyone heard this, they also had a little doubt in their hearts. They, the Great Western, had rebelled against the Ming court for decades, and the two sides had long been enemies of life and death. Now, as Li Dingguo said, the Ming court had a way to wipe them out, so why did they want to surrender them?
Zhang Sheng's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he immediately said

"General Anxi is right. We have long been enemies with the Ming court. Now that the Ming court has the opportunity to take advantage of our misfortune, how could they sincerely recruit us?"

"The Ming court sent four generals to go in the name of appeasement. The ultimate goal must be to wipe us out. We must not be deceived by the Ming court."

Bai Wenxuan ignored Zhang Sheng, glanced at Sun Kewang who was silent above him, and said in a deep voice:

"Before we returned, Ming Ting Gui Jian Guo had met the three of us. General Wang Shangli also questioned this matter at the time. According to Jian Guo, the reason why he decided to recruit us was because the old Wansui was killed by the Tartars."

"Then Gui Jianguo said that our Western Army has been causing trouble in the Central Plains for decades. If it were in the past, the Ming court would have strangled the Western Army to death."

"But we Han people have been killing each other for decades, and finally let the Tartars enter the pass, and they are about to take over the world."

"These Tartars forced our Han people to shave their heads and change their clothes, and even treated our Han people as slaves and livestock, imprisoning and killing them at will. These Tartars are now a great threat to our Han people."

"Then Regent Gui said that even if our Western Army is a bandit, it is still a bandit of the Han people. Even if it is a rebel, it is still a rebel of the Han people. The Regent Gui is now gathering our Western Army to unite the Han people in this world, drive out the Tartars, and restore the Central Plains."

The generals of the Western Army were also shocked when they heard this, but after some thought, they understood that the Ming court had obviously regarded the Tartars as its primary enemy.

Zhang Xianzhong was dead, and the threat of the Western Army to the Ming court had been greatly reduced. What was even better was that Zhang Xianzhong happened to die at the hands of the Tartars, so the Ming court and the Western Army immediately had a common enemy.
The generals of the Western Army could not help but sigh in their hearts at this time. The old emperor was really kind to them. Even if he died, he left a good way for them.
The generals below understood this and finally believed the Ming court's proposal of appeasement.

But whether they believed it or not was useless. The Ming court specifically asked the four generals to go and pacify. Whether this pacification could be successful still depended on the decision of Sun Kewang and the other three.
Sun Kewang saw the eager expressions on the faces of the generals below, and his heart sank. But before he could say anything, Li Dingguo above him had already spoken.

"I will go to the Ming court in three days. My soldiers will be led by Jin Tongwu. If I am really captured by the Ming court, you don't have to avenge me. You can lead your troops to escape."

After Li Dingguo finished speaking, he stood up and walked out of the hall without waiting for anyone to reply.
Liu Wenxiu glanced at the crowd, was silent for a moment, and then spoke

"In three days I will go to the Ming court to ask for a way out for you brothers. If I am captured, you don't have to avenge me and can leave."

After Liu Wenxiu finished speaking, he also stood up and left. Gao Chengen, Lu Mingchen and other generals under the Dingbei General's Mansion also followed him and left.

As Li Dingguo and Liu Wenxiu made their decision, all the generals under their command followed and left, and half of the seats in the hall were immediately empty.
Sun Kewang looked at the empty chairs in the hall, and his expression finally became completely gloomy.
(End of this chapter)