My father is Chongzhen? Then I have no choice but to rebel.

Chapter 265 Li Zicheng: Tongguan is too damn hard to take!
Immediately afterwards, Li Zicheng picked up a cup of wine, looked at Luo Rucai and Zhang Xianzhong with a sincere gaze, and said loudly:
"My two brothers, I am truly grateful for your great help. Our great cause will surely flourish! Cheers!"

After saying that, he drank it all in one gulp without hesitation, his movements swift and decisive, displaying a bold and unrestrained spirit.

Upon seeing this, Luo Rucai and Zhang Xianzhong also raised their cups and drank them down.

The liquor slid down my throat, bringing a burning sensation.

After downing a sip of wine, Zhang Xianzhong finally mustered the courage to speak:

"King Chuang, I have something to say, but I don't know if I should say it."

His voice trembled slightly, clearly indicating that he was still somewhat uneasy.

Upon hearing this, Li Zicheng laughed heartily and said:
"Speak freely, we're brothers, why be so reserved? Just say what you have to say."

Zhang Xianzhong first took a deep breath before speaking:
"I had a long talk with Mr. Luo just now, and I suddenly saw through many things. Therefore, I have decided to hand over all my troops to the command of the King of Chuang."

"These brothers have fought alongside me for many years, and I regard them as my own brothers."

"But for the sake of our great cause, I am willing to reluctantly part with it."

"As for me, if the King of Chuang does not disdain me, and grants me an official position, I am willing to serve under him with utmost loyalty, charging into battle without hesitation!"

After saying that, he suddenly stood up and knelt down on the ground with a thud.

When Li Zicheng heard these words, he was taken aback at first, and a look of surprise flashed in his eyes.

But soon, this surprise was replaced by delight, and he smiled, his single eye sparkling with excitement.

It should be noted that when Zhang Xianzhong came to him for help, he had already been coveting Zhang Xianzhong's 100,000 troops for a long time, but he just didn't know how to get them.

After all, Zhang Xianzhong was his former colleague. If Zhang Xianzhong were to swallow up his troops in one fell swoop, he would lose face!
If this gets out, won't the reputation of the rebel leader be ruined?
Therefore, Li Zicheng always thought of using a gentler approach to annex Zhang Xianzhong's troops.

For example, he could win over the generals under Zhang Xianzhong and have them lead their troops to submit to him.

For example, next time when attacking the city, let Zhang Xianzhong personally lead the troops, and then do some tricks to make Zhang Xianzhong die under Tongguan Pass.

Once Zhang Xianzhong died, his army was leaderless and naturally had no choice but to submit to him!

Before he could even take action, Zhang Xianzhong surprisingly offered to surrender, not only handing over his troops but also willingly becoming one of his soldiers.

This was undoubtedly fantastic news for Zhang Xianzhong!
With these 100,000 troops, his strength will be greatly enhanced, and he will be more confident in confronting the imperial court.

Of course, he wasn't worried that this was Zhang Xianzhong's trick, because once he got Zhang Xianzhong's troops, he would immediately disperse them to various places, and within two or three months, these troops would completely become his men.

Thinking of this, Li Zicheng quickly stood up, strode over to Zhang Xianzhong, and forcefully helped him up with both hands, saying:
"Brother, what are you saying? We're family, why be so formal?"

"Your words today make it seem like I, Li Zicheng, am someone who covets your troops. If this gets out, what will my other brothers think of me?"

"Therefore, this is absolutely unacceptable!"

Although he was secretly overjoyed, Li Zicheng knew that he still had to maintain a facade of happiness.

Zhang Xianzhong naturally understood this, knowing it was just polite talk, but he still spoke respectfully:

“King Chuang, please don’t do this. I am truly and sincerely submitting to you. I always keep my word. Once I’ve made a decision, I will never go back on it.”

"If anyone dares to disrespect the King of Chuang because of this matter in the future, I will fight them to the death and never let the King of Chuang suffer the slightest injustice!"

Having said all that, having given him face and substance, Li Zicheng said no more.

He patted Zhang Xianzhong on the shoulder, a satisfied smile on his face, and said:

"In that case, I will no longer refuse."

"But don't worry, from now on you will be my second-in-command, and I will never treat you unfairly."

"As long as we work together, we will surely overthrow this corrupt court and build a new world that belongs to us!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Xianzhong secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Although he was unsure whether the title of "second-in-command" was truly deserved, judging from Li Zicheng's attitude, his future position in the peasant army should not be too low.

More importantly, this move demonstrated his sincerity, and Li Zicheng should no longer attempt to kill him.

After all, he had already voluntarily handed over his troops, so it would be unjust for Li Zicheng to attack him again.

Although they are all bandits now, bandits should still have some sense of morality and righteousness, otherwise who would dare to come and seek refuge with them in the future?
Thinking of this, Zhang Xianzhong felt much more at ease.

The next second, he raised his wine glass to Li Zicheng and said:

"Thank you for your trust, King Chuang. I will do my utmost to serve you!"

After saying this, he drank the wine in his cup in one gulp.

At the same time, Li Zicheng turned slightly to the side, his gaze falling on Luo Rucai beside him. A meaningful smile appeared on his lips as he slowly said:

"Mr. Luo, I suppose it was thanks to your persuasion that this matter came to fruition?"

His voice was neither too loud nor too soft, yet it could be clearly heard within the tent, as if carrying an all-knowing confidence.

Upon hearing this, Luo Rucai's expression changed slightly, and he appeared somewhat embarrassed.

Because he knew in his heart that he had indeed tried to persuade Zhang Xianzhong to join Li Zicheng's side, since, given the current situation, sticking together might be a good option.

However, besides these, he also persuaded Zhang Xianzhong to break away from Li Zicheng's forces and even secretly planned to help him escape.

But given the current situation, bringing these things up again is obviously pointless; it would only create more embarrassment and trouble.

Thinking of this, Luo Rucai could only grit his teeth and bow to Li Zicheng, but he didn't say anything more, which was considered as tacitly agreeing to the matter.

Seeing this, Li Zicheng stopped asking questions. He no longer cared what Luo Rucai and Zhang Xianzhong had said.

Since I've already achieved my goal, why should I care about anything else?
Zhang Xianzhong naturally wouldn't say those words aloud, as it wouldn't benefit him and might even cause unnecessary suspicion and conflict.

The three of them then continued drinking at the table.

Unlike the somewhat oppressive atmosphere before, the atmosphere this time was noticeably more relaxed.

After a few drinks, the effects of the alcohol began to take hold, and Luo Rucai finally mustered the courage to get straight to the point.

He put down his wine glass, his expression turning serious, and said:

"Chuang Wang, Zhang Xianzhong and I just discussed the recent situation around Henan and discovered something quite strange."

"That is, the imperial court seems to have deployed a large number of troops in all the provinces surrounding Henan. These troops are like a huge net, trapping us tightly in Henan."

"Judging from this, it seems they want to trap us here and kill us next spring when the weather warms up. What should we do?"

"Oh? Is there such a thing?"

Upon hearing this, Li Zicheng's brows immediately furrowed.

He knew that the imperial army was not to be underestimated, and if what Luo Rucai said was true, then their current situation was extremely dangerous.

At the same time, Luo Rucai also roughly repeated what he had said to Zhang Xianzhong earlier.

Li Zicheng listened very attentively, his brows furrowing deeper and deeper.

Clearly, he didn't realize how serious things had become.

In his original plan, although the imperial court would be wary of them, it would not go to such lengths to deploy troops in all the surrounding provinces.

After a moment, Li Zicheng snapped out of his reverie, looked up at Luo Rucai, and asked:

"Then, Mr. Luo, may I ask if you have a way to break this deadlock?"

His voice carried a hint of anxiety and anticipation, after all, they were facing such a dire situation and urgently needed a viable solution.

Luo Rucai didn't have any good ideas to begin with, but when Li Zicheng asked, he could only pretend to ponder for a moment before saying:

"The best course of action would have been to capture Tongguan and then occupy Shaanxi, since Tongguan is a strategically important and easily defensible location."

"As long as we occupy Tongguan, we can defend Shaanxi with its natural defenses. Even if we can't hold it in the end, we can retreat to Sichuan."

"Even if the imperial court sends hundreds of thousands of troops, they won't be able to do anything to us."

"But now the Tongguan Pass is heavily guarded and its defenses are tight, making it extremely difficult to breach. So I don't know what to do."

"More importantly, it's already autumn now, the weather is gradually getting cooler, and if nothing unexpected happens, it will snow in another month."

“Once it snows, the roads become difficult to travel, and we won’t have much time to occupy other places.”

Upon hearing this, Li Zicheng nodded helplessly.

He had spent decades in the Shaanxi and Henan area and was very familiar with the local climate and geography, so he was certainly aware of the weather changes in recent years.

Every year around the end of October, the weather changes drastically, and it starts to snow, which continues until March or April of the following year, with heavy snowfall lasting for at least four months.

During this period, they were basically unable to do anything and could only sit and wait for their resources to run out.

This is why he insisted on capturing Tongguan.

Once he captures Tongguan and occupies the rich land of Guanzhong, he can seize more grain to feed his army.

Putting aside everything else, the savings accumulated by the Qin King's mansion over several hundred years could probably feed his army for one or two years.

With sufficient food, they could survive the cold winter and have the opportunity to continue developing their power.

After a moment, Li Zicheng sighed helplessly, and then continued:

"How could I not be aware of Mr. Luo's concerns?"

"But now in Henan, there is not much food left to plunder. Years of natural disasters have made people's lives miserable, and there is very little food left."

"This is why I am determined to take Tongguan."

"If we don't enter Shaanxi, the wintering of our 600,000-strong army will be a major problem." "But I didn't expect Sun Chuanting to be so formidable. For three whole months, we have launched countless attacks, but we still haven't been able to capture Tongguan."

At this point, Li Zicheng sighed helplessly to himself.

There's no way around it, Tongguan is just too damn hard to conquer!

Upon hearing this, Luo Rucai frowned and thought for a moment.

After a moment, he said:
"Chuang Wang, how about this: let's attack Tongguan first, for half a month."

"In the next two weeks, we will concentrate all our forces to attack Tongguan. If we can capture Tongguan, that would be the best outcome."

"But if we fail to capture Tongguan, we will immediately abandon Tongguan and begin to collect more grain and cotton in Henan to prepare for the winter."

"Although Henan is frequently plagued by war, there are still some places where grain and cotton are stored. If we spend more time and effort, we should be able to collect quite a lot."

"How about we discuss this further after winter has passed and the weather has warmed up?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Xianzhong echoed:

“Chuang Wang, I think Mr. Luo is right. Attacking Shaanxi is important, but preserving our strength is even more important.”

"If winter comes and we have nowhere to go and no food to eat, then everything is over."

“If the soldiers are not well-fed and clothed, they will become dissatisfied and may even mutini. At that time, we will collapse on our own without the imperial army to attack us.”

"Therefore, the most urgent task is to solve the problem of surviving the winter, preserve our strength, and make plans for next year."

Li Zicheng thought about it and felt that this was indeed a solution, as it would neither affect his plan to attack Tongguan nor the army's ability to survive the winter.

So he nodded and said:
"In that case, let's do as Mr. Luo says."

After saying this, Li Zicheng picked up another cup of wine and then laughed:
"Come on, brothers, let's have another drink! No matter how many difficulties lie ahead, we will face them together. Let this bowl of wine be a cheer for our upcoming mission!"

The next second, the three wine glasses clinked together, making a crisp sound.

Then came a burst of hearty laughter.

Clearly, they believed they had a foolproof plan.

But what they didn't know was that their plan was ultimately doomed to fail.

Because the imperial court has already begun planning to relocate all the people and all the resources in Henan to the surrounding provinces.

Once the people and supplies are all relocated, Henan will become a desolate and uninhabited place.

In the end, all that will be left for them is an empty shell!

Their lives will be even more difficult then, and it's hard to say whether they'll be able to survive the winter.

Li Zicheng and his men were completely unaware of all this, still immersed in their so-called perfect plan.

While Li Zicheng and his men were dreaming of their bright future, everything in the capital was proceeding smoothly.

The relocation of people from Henan to neighboring provinces was unsurprisingly approved by Emperor Chongzhen.

That very afternoon, Emperor Chongzhen convened several trusted ministers for an in-depth discussion of the matter, and ultimately reached a decision.

Of course, this matter was ultimately officially issued as an imperial edict in the name of Emperor Chongzhen.

To be honest, Chongzhen was initially somewhat unwilling.

Because he knew in his heart that forcing the people of a province to leave their ancestral homes was no trivial matter.

Perhaps during the migration, these people will curse the emperor in their hearts as they walk.

However, Emperor Chongzhen was well aware of the stakes involved. Once all the people were relocated, Henan would become completely empty.

As a result, Li Zicheng's army lost its source of manpower and could no longer grow.

Therefore, after some deliberation, Emperor Chongzhen finally gritted his teeth and agreed to the plan.

That same afternoon, the cabinet prepared the imperial edict and quickly sent it to various regions.

Over the next few days, the weather became increasingly cooler.

The trees around Beijing are gradually turning yellow. Even the famous crooked-necked tree on Coal Hill has not escaped the invasion of autumn. Its leaves slowly turn from green to yellow and sway gently in the breeze, as if telling the story of the vicissitudes of time.

As the weather gradually turns colder, it also indicates that winter is just around the corner.

Moreover, the Ming Dynasty is currently in the Little Ice Age, with an exceptionally cold climate. Once autumn arrives, preparations for winter supplies should begin well in advance.

The people of the capital city naturally realized this, so recently the city has been bustling with activity.

Cotton, coal, timber, honeycomb briquettes, and all other heating supplies became hot commodities, and they were almost sold out.

Honeycomb briquettes, in particular, are very popular among the people.

Even though many businesses in the capital were already engaged in this industry and had set up honeycomb briquette workshops of all sizes, honeycomb briquettes were still in extremely high demand.

This is because when people come to buy, they usually buy in increments of several hundred yuan, as if they are afraid that if they don't buy enough, they will freeze this winter.

It's important to know that Beijing has a population of over one million. The amount of honeycomb briquettes needed for so many people would be an absolutely enormous and astonishing number.

Therefore, all businesses are stepping up production of honeycomb briquettes to ensure supply.

Fortunately, prices in Beijing have remained relatively stable overall.

All of this is thanks to the state-run shops of the Ming Dynasty. For the past six months, these shops have played a crucial role in strictly controlling prices in the capital.

If those merchants dared to set the prices too high, the common people would not hesitate to come to the state-run shops of the Ming Dynasty to buy things.

Moreover, the state-run shops in the Ming Dynasty were directly supplied by the national treasury, so the supply was sufficient and there was no problem of stockouts or shortages.

This meant that if merchants wanted to continue doing business, they certainly wouldn't dare to offer prices higher than those of the state-owned shops in the Ming Dynasty.

However, Zhu Cilang was very considerate of these merchants, so when he controlled prices, he would leave them enough profit to ensure that they could continue to do business.

In addition, to prevent some poor people from not being able to get through the winter, Zhu Cilang also ordered the construction of new houses in various places.

The interior layout of these houses is somewhat similar to a large communal sleeping area, with rows of them arranged neatly.

When it snows, honeycomb briquettes are constantly lit inside the house for heating, to ensure that the people living there don't freeze.

However, not just anyone can come in here; it only takes in homeless people.

Moreover, three meals a day are provided here, but don't expect to eat too well. Three bowls of thin porridge a day, guaranteed to be bland and watery, are only enough to keep one person alive.

This was not because Zhu Cilang was heartless and deliberately mistreated these people, but because he knew that if the food here was too good, those people who already had enough food at home to get through the winter would definitely be envious and might gather here.

This would place a heavy burden on the imperial court and would also contradict the court's original intention to help those who are truly in need.

Therefore, the conditions here must be made harsher so that those who are truly desperate can receive help.

Meanwhile, cement roads in Beijing were being built at a rapid pace.

The officials of the Ministry of Works knew that it would snow soon after autumn, and once it snowed, construction would be forced to stop. Therefore, they had to finish building the roads in the capital before the snow fell.

Otherwise, if the task is not completed, the Ministry of Works will be punished.

After all, the Ministry of Public Works had promised to finish repairing all the roads before the snowfall this year.

Therefore, the Ministry of Works has been extremely busy lately, with everyone working like ants on a hot plate.

The original plan was to work only during the day and not at night, but recently it has been changed to a 24-hour shift system.

At night, candles, lanterns, and all sorts of lighting were used on the construction site to illuminate the entire site.

Then the workers had a clear division of labor: some carried stones, some mixed cement, and some laid roads, keeping them extremely busy.

Although it may affect some people's rest, there's nothing we can do about it.

The only saving grace is that it hasn't rained recently, so the project hasn't been affected much and is progressing relatively smoothly.

In general, winter will arrive in about a month, and Beijing will greet the cold season with a brand new look.

On this day, Li Banghua, the Minister of War, was concentrating on his official duties in the inner hall.

The inner room was very quiet, with only the sound of pen tips scratching on paper.

Suddenly, at that moment, an official rushed in in a panic, clutching a letter tightly in his hand.

"My lord, this is a memorial from Xuanfu. Please take a look."

As the official spoke, he handed the letter to Li Banghua with both hands.

Was it sent from Xuanfu?
Li Banghua was somewhat surprised to hear this and subconsciously glanced at the letter.

It's no wonder Li Banghua was surprised, since nowadays most of the memorials concerning military affairs are sent directly to the Eastern Palace after arriving in the capital, where they are reviewed by Zhu Cilang personally.

However, this memorial was sent to the Ministry of War, which can only mean one thing: the matter mentioned in the memorial was not very urgent, so it was sent to the Ministry of War according to the original rules.

Thinking of this, Li Banghua then slowly said:

"Understood, you go down."

Upon hearing this, the official respectfully placed the letter on the table and then turned and left.

Immediately afterwards, Li Banghua picked up the letter and took a closer look. He discovered that the memorial was indeed from Xuanfu, and it was written in the handwriting of Qin Liangyu, the general of Xuanfu.

Without the slightest hesitation, Li Banghua opened the memorial directly.

After a cursory glance, a bitter smile suddenly appeared on Li Banghua's lips.

(End of this chapter)