Late Ming Dynasty: Starting with the overthrow of the county magistrate, a rebellion was launched to

"Alas, who could have imagined that Zhang Xianzhong would actually take that path?"

Yang Sichang, who had been pacing back and forth in the tent in anger, seemed to have grown tired and stopped to sit on the platform.

After the anger comes a wave of regret and heartache.

"Why didn't you send more troops? If you had sent another three thousand, Zhang Xianzhong would surely be dead!"

When the strategy of defending the three passes was devised, he and his generals didn't even consider deploying a large force to garrison them.

On the one hand, they had enough manpower; on the other hand, they were clinging to a sliver of hope.

What if Zhang Xianzhong doesn't take this dangerous route? What if he heads towards Henan? Wouldn't it be ridiculous to use all our main forces for an ambush?

Who knew the bandit leader would be so audacious?

Seeing that Yang Sichang's anger was gradually subsiding, Wan Yuanji stepped forward, bowed, and advised him...

"Commander-in-Chief, please calm down! Your health is of utmost importance! Although we failed to capture or kill the rebels this time, we severely damaged their main force, killing and capturing over ten thousand, burning countless grain supplies, and driving them into the deep mountains of Sichuan. This is a major victory that has been rare in recent years, enough to report to the court and enough to stabilize the morale of the army..."

"Confess? Confess what?"

Yang Sichang suddenly turned his head, glaring at Wan Yuanji with extreme dissatisfaction.

It is because everyone in the imperial court held this kind of thinking that the war situation has deteriorated so badly!

"As long as Zhang Xianzhong lives, the bandits will never cease their rampage! Letting a tiger return to the mountains today will surely make him a great threat in the future! Now that he has entered Sichuan, relying on its natural defenses, it will be as difficult as climbing to heaven to encircle and annihilate him! If he leaves Sichuan again in the future, who can stop him? Me? Or you?"

He had been angry, pained, cursed, and blamed himself, but Yang Sichang eventually calmed down. He slumped back into his chair, leaned back, and let out a long sigh.

Zhang Xianzhong fled to Sichuan. What will our army do next?

Should we send troops into Sichuan to pursue them, or hold our ground in Hubei, Hunan, and Henan to prevent them from making a comeback?

Never mind, we'll talk about that later.

As for this battle… it was a victory, the most brilliant achievement the government army had attained since Zhang Xianzhong's rebellion. It was enough to shock the court and the public, enough to inspire morale, enough to give an account to His Majesty, and enough to stabilize the crumbling morale of the army and the people.

Although the ringleader was not captured or killed, it was enough to bring solace to the world.

"Never mind..."

Yang Sichang spoke slowly, his voice weary and hoarse: "Pass on my order to send this battle report to the capital as quickly as possible."

As for how to deal with Zhang Xianzhong in the future...

Only heaven knows.

……

……

The Ming Dynasty was not like the Song Dynasty, which was confined to a small corner of the country. Its territory was vast. Even if it was an urgent military report, it would take a long time, with horses galloping through prefectures and cities, day and night, to deliver the gold-embroidered report to the Imperial Study in the Forbidden City. It was not until mid-October of the twelfth year of Chongzhen's reign that the report was delivered.

Beijing is also facing severe challenges at this moment.

In fact, the Qing army had already entered the pass in September, capturing four cities east of Beijing in succession. As a result, martial law was declared in the capital, the nine gates were closed, and beacon fires reached the surrounding areas. The court and the public were shaken, panic gripped the people, and officials clashed. Just then, news of Chongzhen's peace negotiations with the Qing was leaked, plunging the court into chaos…

At this moment, Emperor Chongzhen was reviewing memorials in his study. A charcoal fire had been lit early in the morning, but the sound of the late autumn wind whipping withered leaves against the palace walls was like the sound of Qing soldiers' swords and spears—more unbearable than the chill itself.

Zhu Youjian wore a plain, patched-up dragon robe, looking gaunt with bloodshot eyes—he hadn't slept well for over ten days due to the dire state of affairs, and the mountain of documents on his desk contained not a single piece of good news.

Jingdong prefectures and counties fell, and the border troops retreated in disarray.

The loyalist troops were slow to arrive, and there was no food or supplies.

Henan and Shandong are once again suffering from severe drought, leading to cannibalism and the displacement of millions of people.

The failure to collect the three taxes depleted the national treasury and even led to rebellions across the country.

When the peace talks with the Qing were leaked, his ministers launched a relentless attack, causing his prestige to plummet.

It can be said that at this time, the pressure on Emperor Chongzhen was no less than that on Zhang Xianzhong, who was ambushed at Daning Pass.

Just then, light but hurried footsteps came from outside the Imperial Study. Wang Chengen, the Grand Eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial, bowed and entered, his voice extremely low.

"Long live the Emperor! This urgent message has arrived from the Huguang Military Headquarters, delivered over a distance of 600 li."

In these times of great upheaval, urgent dispatches were everywhere. Chongzhen, accustomed to this, didn't even raise his head, only wearily waving his hand.

"Bring it here."

He assumed it was another document requesting payment, issuing an alarm, or requesting reinforcements.

So I opened it but only glanced at it until my eyes swept over it.

When I read the lines of text such as "Great victory at Daning Pass... Defeated the bandit Zhang Xianzhong... Zhang Xianzhong barely escaped with his life and fled to Sichuan," I was suddenly jolted, as if struck by lightning.

While the government troops may not be the best at fighting, their ability to compile battle reports after a battle is certainly unmatched.

The battle report was extremely embellished, portraying the ambush as a great victory, with 17,000 killed and captured, countless grains burned, the bandit forces greatly weakened, and the banditry in Huguang completely eradicated...

Of course, this was indeed a great victory, and the writer must have had no psychological burden to write such a magnificent and moving piece.

"Good! Good! Good!"

After reading it, Emperor Chongzhen's hands trembled uncontrollably.

The oppression, fear, humiliation, and exhaustion of the past few days have finally dissipated somewhat.

Finally, there's good news!

He suddenly straightened up and praised again.

"Good...good! Minister Yang has not failed me! He has not failed me! He must be rewarded handsomely!"

Emperor Chongzhen read the victory report again and again, becoming increasingly excited with each reading. In the end, he lost his composure and paced back and forth in the palace, repeatedly praising the victory.

"With this victory, morale will be boosted and the people's hearts will be at ease! There is still hope for the Ming Dynasty! There is still hope!"

As Chongzhen read the report, he noted down the names of the generals who had contributed to the victory, intending to reward them publicly in front of the court officials.

But halfway through reading, Chongzhen's gaze suddenly paused, landing on a name:

Zhang Da.

The battle report regarding Zhang Da states that Zhang Da was the first to anticipate the enemy's entry into Sichuan. It was only after the generals discussed which route he would take that the victory was achieved. Then, Meng Ruhu, Zhang Yingyuan, and others guarded the three passes, and everyone followed the plan.

"Zhang Da..." Chongzhen repeated softly, his brows furrowing slightly. "Why does that name sound so familiar?"

Emperor Chongzhen thought about it carefully. This name didn't seem to be the name of a general who was suppressing bandits in Huguang.

So Chongzhen took out the case files from Huguang and, after flipping through them for a short while, suddenly realized...

"It's him!"

It turns out that not long ago, an urgent report came from Huguang: Zhang Da of Shaoyang had gathered a crowd to kill officials, breach the city walls, and even defeated the government troops for the first time...

At the time, Emperor Chongzhen was busy dealing with the Qing army and didn't really care about the outcome of that battle... He just didn't expect that Zhang Da would have such insight and be able to offer advice and make contributions.

Emperor Chongzhen's mind raced as he looked at Wang Chengen.

"Daiban, what do you think we should do with this Zhang Da?"

Wang Chengen bowed and said softly

"Long live the Emperor! Zhang Xianzhong was pacified and then rebelled again; the precedent is not far off..."

Seeing Chongzhen hesitate, Wang Chengen added softly...

"This servant is nothing but a vile eunuch, how could he know anything about state affairs? Your Majesty should ask the governors and other officials."

Yang Sichang included Zhang Daqi's name in the victory report, and the governor of Huguang also stated in his memorial that Zhang Daqi was forced into this situation...

Without a doubt, their attitude has already shown

Since Yang Sichang and Song Yihe were both protecting him and keeping him to appease central Hunan.

At this moment, I desperately need to maximize the significance of this victory...

Chongzhen nodded slowly, his eyes showing no more hesitation:

"I understand. Although Zhang Da has made mistakes, he has contributed to the court by offering advice and has his heart set on the court. He is hereby ordered to temporarily lead the local militia of Shaoyang, to pacify the area, collect taxes, and defend the border, so that he may atone for his crimes through meritorious service. He need not be granted an official post or a formal government position; he shall act solely as the commander of the Yi tribe."

From then on, Zhang Da's identity was finally recognized...