***
Li Guo's camp was covered in mourning. Both the ordinary soldiers and the two main generals, Li Guo and Gao Yigong, had not yet recovered from the sadness and confusion over Li Zicheng's sudden death.
Ma Yongzhen met with Li Guo and Gao Yigong many times, and later Song Xiance also arrived to persuade them, but Li Guo and Gao Yigong found it difficult to make up their minds to submit to Qin Mu.
The two secretly sent people to Jingshan to contact Gao Guiying. Only then did Gao Guiying learn the news of her husband's sudden death. She was heartbroken and came to Yicheng with part of the old camp a few days later.
In the big tent, Song Xian Ce comforted her, "Empress, everything in the world has its destiny, and human power cannot change the fate. I hope that the Empress will be patient and accept the change."
After all, Gao Guiying had fought in battles for many years and was used to seeing life and death. She did not cry like an ordinary woman, but asked sentimentally, "Has the emperor been buried?"
Song Xiance quickly replied: "Her Majesty, the Emperor's coffin is still in Lingtan Temple in Dabie Mountain and has not yet been buried. Qin Mu said that if it is buried hastily, it would be against etiquette, and..."
"And what? At this point, Grand Master, why should you hesitate?"
"Your Majesty, Qin Mu has promised that as long as the Queen agrees to surrender, she can be buried according to the specifications of the imperial mausoleum in the future..."
"What if I don't agree to surrender?"
"This... ... ... Queen, Qin Mu has always been kind and trustworthy. When our Dashun Army withdrew from Yanjing, Qin Mu took the initiative to send people to contact Yuan Zongdi and promised not to attack Xiangyang. Only then was Yuan Zongdi able to lead the right camp to the north to meet the emperor. When our army retreated to Guanzhong, Qin Mu sent people to contact the emperor several times, hoping that the two families would fight against the barbarians together. During this period, Qin Mu kept his promise and did not take advantage of the situation to seize Xiangyang.
When Guanzhong was lost and the emperor retreated to Jianghan, Qin Mu provided our army with food and weapons for free. However, the emperor suddenly passed away, and the army was in mourning. When the army was about to collapse, Wu Sangui led his army to attack.
One hundred thousand old, weak, women and children in Dabie Mountain were about to be slaughtered, but it was Qin Mu who came to their rescue in time and saved them from the disaster. Now they have all been transferred to Huguang and properly resettled.
Your Majesty, it is not that we, the subjects, have any intention of betraying our master. We have no other choice but to do this because we have reached the end of our rope.
The Empress must also know that whoever wins the hearts of the people wins the world. Since the loss of the base of Guanzhong, almost all the officials of Dashun have fled, and the people's hearts are scattered. Moreover, the world is cruel, the emperor died young, and the morale of the Dashun army has also been weakened. How easy is it to make a comeback? I hope the Empress will think twice."
To be honest, apart from the initial battle in Jingmen for the territory, the Qin army did not do anything wrong to the Dashun army. When the Dashun army was in a difficult situation, if the Qin army had not come to their aid, not to mention the 100,000 elderly, weak, women and children in Dabie Mountain, even the 60,000 troops on her side would have died.
"Make up for it, one merit. What do you think?"
Li Guo remained silent.
Gao Yigong replied hesitantly, "Empress, Ma Yongzhen has placed our army in Yicheng. To the north is the strong city of Xiangyang. To the south are the strategic locations of Jingmen and Chengtian. Moreover, the food and grass provided to our army each time is barely enough for two days."
Gao Yigong's words were equivalent to telling Gao Guiying that we have no way out.
To the east is the difficult to climb Dahong Mountain.
To the west, there are deep mountains and old forests with no human habitation, such as Jingshan and Shennongjia;
To the north, the distance from Yicheng to Xiangyang is a hundred miles. By the time the army reached Xiangyang, the food had been eaten up. It was a pipe dream to attack Xiangyang City, which was defended by 10,000 Qin troops, on an empty stomach.
Xiangnan, forget it, it’s better to just surrender.
In fact, the Qin army had already defeated them. If they agreed to surrender, it would be good for both of us. If they disagreed, they would be cut off from food immediately and then face attacks from both the north and the south.
Now, every time the Qin army sent food, they would publicize the Qin army's policies and how good the Qin army's treatment was, making the Dashun army soldiers very envious.
In addition, the two sides had just fought side by side and had some friendship between them. Now they were eating food donated by others free of charge. They would be grateful for the food they had received and would be soft-hearted if they were given the money. I am afraid that many people would be reluctant to let tens of thousands of Dashun soldiers attack the Qin army.
More importantly, their detachment had a special mission at the beginning, and their families were led by Li Zicheng during the retreat. Now, the families of many of the 60,000 soldiers were also resettled in Huguang.
Song Xiance advised again: "Empress, Dashun was destroyed by the Manchu Tartars. The Manchu Tartars are our real enemies. If it weren't for the Tartars, how could Wu Sangui be the enemy of Dashun? If it weren't for the Tartars, why would the emperor have to withdraw from Yanjing, and how could he lose his foundation in Guanzhong? Empress, if you want to avenge this great hatred to comfort the emperor's spirit in heaven, now the only way to achieve this wish is to rely on Qin Mu."
Whether to return to Qin Mu or not is indeed a difficult decision for Gao Guiying.
She sighed sadly and said, "I am just a widow now. It is enough for me to stay in front of the emperor's mausoleum for the rest of my life. You can do whatever you want with me, son and merit."
"Empress!"
*********
Regarding the next strategic direction, whether to go north to take Heluo and Guanzhong, or to go east to fight for Jiangnan, Qin Mu was unable to decide for a while, and the officials in the palace were divided into two different opinions and were at a stalemate.
The two plans each have their own advantages and disadvantages. At dusk, Qin Mu returned to the back garden of the palace, still struggling with this issue.
Li Xiangjun had already prepared a sumptuous dinner and placed the banquet in the Fenghe Pavilion beside the small lake. A cool breeze blew over from the lake, and the lotus leaves on the lake were like a canopy, and red lotuses were in full bloom, creating a beautiful scene of midsummer.
Li Xiangjun and Dong Xiaowan both wore light makeup and long skirts, and they were graceful and charming.
Bian Saisai was still wearing a Confucian robe, holding a folding fan, like a graceful young man. However, her slim waist and attractive curves could not be concealed. Against the backdrop of the Confucian robe, her softness added a bit of neutral beauty, which corresponded to her melancholy temperament, and had a kind of beauty that was difficult to describe.
A few people were feasting and drinking in a small pavilion, enjoying the sunset and the fresh breeze. When asked about what had happened since they separated, they all sighed.
Bian Saisai noticed that Qin Mu was a quiet person, and couldn't help asking, "Your Excellency just announced a great victory, annihilating 100,000 enemies, but you don't look happy, instead you look like you are worried, why is that?"
Bian Saisai had just arrived, and Qin Mu was afraid that she would misunderstand, so he did not hide anything from her and simply mentioned his concerns in a few brief sentences.
After hearing this, Bian Saisai frowned and thought for a while before saying, "This is a matter that concerns the safety of the world, and I shouldn't say too much, but..."
Qin Mu knew that current affairs and strategies were also compulsory courses for them. In the past, they talked and laughed with great scholars, and their contacts were all officials and ministers. Their knowledge was not comparable to that of ordinary people.
Qin Mu was somewhat curious about what their opinions would be, so he smiled and said, "Every man has his share of responsibility for the fate of his country. We need to pool our wisdom to avoid mistakes. If you have any opinions, please share them. If they are right, I will accept them. If they are wrong, we can just treat it as a casual chat."
"I don't deserve your opinion. I'm just being presumptuous and just want to express my thoughts. I hope you won't blame me."
"You're welcome. Go ahead."
"Sir, after the Manchus entered the Pass, they were unstoppable and almost all of the land north of the Yangtze River has been occupied. Therefore, for you, the most important thing right now is to seek stability, preserve your vitality first, and then counterattack step by step;
In fact, although Your Excellency has just won a great victory, the overall strength of the Tartars is still superior to Your Excellency. Whether going north or east, Your Excellency cannot guarantee that you will achieve your strategic expectations.
As the weaker party, it is particularly important to seek stability. I think you can compare and decide which plan has a greater chance of success, and then you should adopt that plan.
If you can make one step forward, the Tartars will have to take one step back. If your strength increases by one point, the Tartars will decrease by one point. This is like gathering small grains of sand to build a tower, and accumulating small steps to reach a thousand miles. "
Bian Saisai's words were actually very conservative, but they were not without reason. The overall strength of the Qin army was not better than that of the Tatars. It was just that they had the advantage of fighting on the interior and won the initiative by defending instead of attacking.
The 20,000 Guanning troops near Macheng had not surrendered, and Li Guo's 60,000 troops had not yet joined. These were extremely unstable factors.
If the problem is not resolved quickly, once we launch an all-out attack, whether heading north or east, these two unstable factors will be enough to affect the overall outcome.
Therefore, Bian Saisai is right when she says that stability is the first priority at the moment.
Li Xiangjun also became interested, and she asked coquettishly: "Master, can I also tell you something?"
"sure."
.(To be continued..)
...