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

Just then, Li Zicheng continued to ask:

"Alright, let's put everything else aside for now! Tell me, what exactly does the Crown Prince of the Ming Dynasty want with you?"

Seeing that Li Zicheng had finally gotten to the point, Li Dingguo came to his senses and then said seriously:

"I'm here to persuade you to surrender. The Crown Prince of the Ming Dynasty promises that as long as the entire peasant army surrenders, everyone can live, including the rebel leader Li Zicheng."

Sure enough!

Li Zicheng was not surprised, because he had already guessed that Li Dingguo had come to persuade him to surrender.

After all, persuasion to surrender is a common tactic on the battlefield.

However, it was clear that the Ming crown prince had underestimated their determination.

The next second, before Li Zicheng could speak, someone stepped forward and cursed:

"Surrender my ass! This time we will fight to the death, we will never surrender! Do you really think we can't beat you? Every one of us in the peasant army is a hero, how could we easily submit!"

"Yes, that's right! As long as we wipe out the Ming army ahead and capture their crown prince, we can also use the emperor to command the other lords!"

Then another person stood up and shouted.

It's quite obvious, however, that this guy doesn't even understand the classical allusions.

The phrase "holding the emperor hostage to command the feudal lords" is something only someone who has captured the emperor is qualified to say, but Zhu Cilang was not the emperor, so this statement is somewhat laughable.

However, everyone was too excited to notice the error in his statement.

Faced with the crowd's excitement, Li Dingguo remained calm and composed, saying:
"Chuang Wang, you don't really think that the imperial army this time is only this small force in front of you, do you?"

Upon hearing this, the previously noisy tent instantly fell silent, and everyone's faces darkened, as if enveloped by an invisible chill.

Li Zicheng's brows furrowed deeply, like two small hills, and his eyes revealed a hint of doubt and wariness as he asked:

"What do you mean by that?"

Li Dingguo Road:

"To be honest, King Chuang, in addition to the 70,000 troops in front of you, there are 150,000 elite imperial troops behind you."

"In other words, you are now facing a full 220,000-strong imperial army, and you are completely surrounded."

Although his voice wasn't loud, it struck everyone's heart like a heavy hammer.

The moment those words were spoken, the room fell silent, as if time itself had frozen.

Fear immediately filled everyone's eyes, and that fear spread rapidly through their hearts like a tidal wave.

The previous ambition vanished without a trace, replaced by endless panic and despair.

You see, they had always thought there were only fifty or sixty thousand Ming troops in front of them. Although they were somewhat wary, the thought that the Ming army numbered 170,000 made them less afraid.

They even felt they had victory in the bag!

But to their utter surprise, the Ming army they were facing numbered a whopping 220,000, which was even more than their own!

That's not the most important thing. The most important thing is that although these peasant armies are numerous, only half of them are capable of fighting!
By this calculation, the imperial court mobilized twice as many troops as they did!
In an instant, everyone panicked, feeling that this was no longer a war, but simply a suicide mission!

Just when Li Dingguo thought that his words would shake Li Zicheng's confidence in the decisive battle,

The next second, Li Zicheng suddenly burst into laughter.

"Hahahaha"

The laughter was like a thunderclap, exploding in everyone's ears and leaving them all completely dumbfounded.

Because they didn't know why he was laughing at that moment.

Even Li Dingguo looked puzzled.

Immediately afterwards, Li Zicheng looked at Li Dingguo, his eyes filled with disdain and mockery.

"You're quite the cunning fellow, actually trying to trick us into surrendering with such a scheme! Perhaps that's something the Crown Prince of the Ming Dynasty taught you?"

"But let me tell you, it's useless! I've seen far too many of your schemes and tricks. Don't try to deceive us into surrendering!"

After a pause, Li Zicheng continued:
"Who doesn't know that to get to Hanzhong, one has to cross the entire Qinling or Daba Mountains? The Qinling and Daba Mountains are steep and dangerous, with high mountains and treacherous roads. Where did the imperial court get the resources to mobilize 200,000 troops to come to Hanzhong?"

"Not to mention, it's like sending a fourteen-year-old child to cause trouble. Unless Emperor Chongzhen was truly out of his mind, he wouldn't do such a thing!"

"Li Dingguo, it seems you've really gone to great lengths for your new master!"

Those around him, upon careful consideration, found this statement to be quite reasonable.

Although they had never been to Hanzhong, most of them had some understanding of the geographical situation there.

This place has never seen any major battles, the biggest being probably the Battle of Hanzhong during the Three Kingdoms period.

At that time, the total number of troops deployed by both sides was only around 300,000, and that included the number of people in logistics. The number of people who could actually fight was probably only a few hundred thousand.

For more than a thousand years after that, no large-scale battles broke out in Hanzhong.

But now, Li Dingguo actually said that the imperial court has mobilized more than 200,000 troops to Hanzhong. If you add the logistics personnel, the number is estimated to be at least 500,000.

Was Emperor Chongzhen crazy to mobilize 500,000 people in such a small place as Hanzhong?
Can he be transferred?
This is absolutely a huge joke!

As a result, everyone's expressions returned to their previous relaxed state, and smiles reappeared on their faces.

Their gazes toward Li Dingguo grew increasingly disdainful, feeling that this guy had gone to great lengths to trick them into surrendering, resorting to such lies.

Some generals even spat thick phlegm at Li Dingguo, muttering curses under their breath:
"Pah! You despicable scoundrel, trying to fool us? Don't you even know who you are!"

Upon seeing this scene, Li Dingguo sighed inwardly, his sigh like a leaf falling in the autumn wind, carrying endless helplessness and melancholy.

As expected, Zhu Cilang had guessed all of this.

Thinking of this, Li Dingguo could only say helplessly:
"I'm telling the truth. If you don't believe me, there's nothing I can do."

"However, I still have to advise you, King Li Zicheng, surrender. You are really no match for the imperial court."

"If war really breaks out, the peasant army will suffer countless casualties!"

Upon hearing this, Li Zicheng's face instantly darkened, as gloomy as the sky before a storm.

The next second, he shouted at Li Dingguo:

"Li Dingguo, even at this point you still dare to try to demoralize my army! If it weren't for the fact that you are Zhang Xianzhong's adopted son, I would have killed you long ago!"

Immediately at that moment, Li Zicheng seemed to have thought of something, and then looked at the other generals present and said:

"You all go ahead with your work. I have some questions I'd like to ask him."

Hearing this, the crowd, though somewhat puzzled, dared not disobey Li Zicheng's orders and could only disperse. Even Zhang Xianzhong did the same!
Only a few loyal confidants of Li Zicheng remained. They were all vigilant and closely guarded Li Zicheng to prevent Li Dingguo from suddenly attacking him.

After everyone else left, Li Zicheng looked at Li Dingguo again, but this time his eyes were filled with complex emotions.

After a moment, Li Zicheng asked:
"Did you arrest Li Guo?"

Upon hearing this, Li Dingguo's heart tightened, and he immediately thought of Li Guo's unseeing eyes after his death. However, he still nodded, which was considered an admission.

Li Zicheng continued to ask:
"What did you do to him?"

His voice trembled slightly as he said this.

Li Dingguo took a deep breath and then slowly said:
"I originally wanted to persuade Brother Li Guo to surrender, but Brother Li Guo resolutely refused to surrender. Afterwards, his personal guards launched a sneak attack and killed him."

"His body has now been collected by me. After this great battle is over, I will give him a proper burial and will not allow anyone to desecrate his body."

Upon hearing this, Li Zicheng's body trembled violently, as if struck by lightning, and he almost fell to the ground.

Fortunately, someone behind him caught him in time.

Immediately afterwards, an anxious voice rang out.

"King Chuang! King Chuang, are you alright?"

Li Zicheng steadied himself, waved his hand, and stood up in the middle.

However, at this moment, he could not suppress the pain on his face.

Although he had already guessed that Li Guo might be dead, he still felt a great sadness when Li Dingguo said it to him.

What he didn't expect was that Li Guo would eventually die at the hands of his own people.

To be honest, Li Guo wouldn't mind dying at the hands of the Ming army. After all, life and death are predestined on the battlefield, and this would be a worthy death!
He simply couldn't accept dying at the hands of his own people!

In an instant, his heart was filled with anger and regret—anger at the betrayal of his personal guards, and regret for why he had sent Li Guo out in the first place!
But it's too late to say all this now.
After a moment, Li Zicheng calmed down and then looked at Li Dingguo and said:

"Thank you for helping to collect his body. I will not kill you after this battle is over."

Li Dingguo didn't say anything upon hearing this, only gave a bitter smile, because he knew that Li Zicheng probably wouldn't have that opportunity again.

Li Zicheng then said no more, simply waving his hand to signal Li Dingguo that he could leave.

Without hesitation, Li Dingguo clasped his hands in a salute to Li Zicheng and then turned and left.

He had said everything he needed to say, but Li Zicheng still refused to surrender, so there was nothing he could do!

He's done all he could, now all he can do is wait for the war to begin!

After walking a few steps, Li Dingguo encountered Zhang Xianzhong again.

Upon seeing his godfather again, Li Dingguo felt a strange sadness.

If he could, he actually wanted to take Zhang Xianzhong with him, but he also knew that if he dared to say it, Li Zicheng would definitely kill Zhang Xianzhong without hesitation, and might even kill him as well!
This was absolutely unacceptable to Li Zicheng, as it was undoubtedly a huge challenge to his authority.

"Godfather."

Looking at Zhang Xianzhong in front of him, Li Dingguo opened his mouth as if to say something, but after only uttering the words "godfather," he could not say anything more.

His throat felt like it was blocked by something, and he couldn't make a sound.

Zhang Xianzhong wasn't stupid; he naturally knew what Li Dingguo wanted to say.

But there were too many people around, and Li Zicheng's confidants were all around, so there were some things that absolutely could not be said.

If they were to speak out, not only would their lives be in danger, but it could also implicate many of his former subordinates.

Thinking of this, Zhang Xianzhong quickly said:

“Some things don’t need to be said. I understand them in my heart. Dingguo, you should take care of yourself.”

"If fate allows, we will meet again; if not, then..."

At this point, Zhang Xianzhong could no longer continue.

Zhang Xianzhong didn't know if Li Zicheng believed what Li Dingguo had said before, but he absolutely believed it.

Because he knew that Li Dingguo would never lie, even if someone asked him to lie!
In other words, everything Li Dingguo said before was true. The imperial court really did mobilize more than 200,000 troops in Hanzhong to completely wipe out the peasant army!

This filled Zhang Xianzhong with utter despair!

He was convinced he was doomed this time!

A person who is about to die has nothing to be attached to.

He only hoped that his adopted son could live a good life, and if possible, that he could eventually collect his body.

"Hey! Are you guys done chatting? Hurry up and leave! If you don't leave now, you won't be able to leave!"

Just then, someone nearby couldn't help but urge them on.

The man looked impatient, and his eyes were filled with disgust as he looked at Li Dingguo, as if Li Dingguo were an unforgivable sinner.

Seeing this, Li Dingguo no longer hesitated. He clasped his hands in a fist salute to Zhang Xianzhong again, and then quickly left.

After Li Dingguo left, Li Zicheng began issuing battle orders.

A great battle is about to break out!
On the other side, seeing that Li Dingguo had indeed returned safely, Zhu Cilang's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled down.

To be honest, he was initially worried that Li Zicheng might turn his back on him and kill Li Dingguo.

If that's the case, he'll probably be upset for a long time.

Fortunately, he was worrying unnecessarily.

While Li Dingguo was on his way to persuade Li Zicheng to surrender, Zhu Cilang was not idle. He ordered the army to move all the more than one hundred cannons that had been transferred from various places to the front of the battle.

In an instant, the dark muzzles of cannons stood in a menacing array, seemingly poised to unleash a devastating attack.

In fact, Zhu Cilang did not initially intend to use cannons.

Because he had learned from Shaanxi and some surrendered peasant soldiers that Li Zicheng had already melted down all the heavy artillery and recast it into other weapons in order to speed up the process.

This is actually quite normal, after all, cannons at the end of the Ming Dynasty were not light, especially the red-coated cannons, which generally weighed around 1,500 catties.

If they wanted to travel as quickly as possible, especially in the Qinling Mountains, it was impossible to carry such large cannons. However, they could not leave them to the Ming army, so melting and casting them was the best option.

However, Li Zicheng was not stupid; he still retained some relatively lightweight cannons, although these cannons had poor range and power.

This is also a key reason why Zhu Cilang dared to increase the distance between the two sides to three miles.

At this distance, Li Zicheng's artillery couldn't reach him, but his side's red-coated cannons could! (End of Chapter)