More than ten days later, Li Yan received news that Liu Zongmin had arrived in Taiyuan and was addicted to the gentle village. It is said that he had been staying in the mansion with a stunning beauty and did not go out easily.

At the same time, he also received echoes from Zuo Yi, Niu Chenghu and others in the northwest. The meaning was similar. Li Zicheng's troops were well prepared. If there was no good opportunity, they would not dare to act rashly. Another meaning was that if Li Zicheng's people were really driven away, they would open a government office and lead the military and political affairs alone.

Li Yan sneered in his heart and thought that these guys were really clueless and didn't even dare to leave a letter, but they just sent a message. However, it also shows that the troops left by Li Zicheng in the northwest were strong enough that they did not dare to be careless at all.

The next day, Li Mou returned to Beijing from Datong.

"Fourth brother," said Li Mou, "There are important prefectures and counties in various passes in the Great Wall. However, there are still some places where there are no soldiers to be sent, so they can only use Jiang Xiang and others. Also, most of the officials are still in their original positions. Whether they can be used can be identified after some time. Therefore, some troops have to be transferred to the fullest."

Li Yan nodded and said, "Well, I understand. The key is to defend the Great Wall line. You can put it in other places first. You can also take the opportunity to see who is nostalgic or ambitious. After waiting for two or three months, you can clean up together."

Li Mou smiled and continued to report: "By the way, Fourth Brother. We heard from the merchants outside the mouth that the Qing Dynasty wanted to establish an alliance with the Mongolian tribes. Life was quite urgent. Many Mongolian tribes were preparing tributes. Is the Qing Dynasty going to unite with Mongolia and prepare to enter the pass again?"

Li Yan thought for a while and said helplessly: "No matter what they want to do, we just need to guard all the passes. The large group of people will not be able to walk those paths. This Qing Dynasty is really troublesome, and it will be restrained by how many troops we have."

As soon as he finished speaking, a personal soldier came in to report that Li Zhong had entered the capital and was rushing towards him.

"Why are the second brother here? Did you call me by the fourth brother?" Li Mou asked in surprise.

Li Yan frowned and shook his head: "I didn't ask him to come. I hope he brought no bad news."

After a while, Li Zhong came in with great silence. After he came in, he didn't bother to say hello to his two brothers, so he sat on the chair first and said, "Pour some water and get some food."

Li Mou asked anxiously: "Second brother, is something wrong?"

Li Zhong adjusted his posture and made himself feel more comfortable in the chair. He waved his hand and said, "It's okay, everything is fine. I dare not come over with great fanfare, so I didn't inform you. I couldn't come out for a long time, so I rushed all the way and didn't get off."

"Then why do you have to?" Li Mou asked in confusion.

Li Zhong joked: "You are all making achievements outside, but I can't come out to see it?" Then he explained: "It's a joke. In fact, the troops left behind in Henan are a little unable to sit still. Seeing the troops going on the expedition continue to expand, almost everyone can be promoted. They are a little anxious and ask me for battle every day."

Li Yan finally spoke and said coldly: "It's good that you have a letter. Why do you have to go there in person? If there is any critical situation and no one presides over it, trouble will easily occur."

Li Zhong felt Li Yan's anger, sat upright, and said with a smile: "Now I am not worried about something happening. Whether it is Li Zicheng or Hongguang, as long as they dare to provoke, they will definitely be bloody. Now the soldiers and generals are waiting for this meritorious service. Although they cannot fight, they hope that the enemy can come to their door by themselves. Each unit has no shortage of weapons, ammunition, food and equipment, and even various plans have been prepared four or five, and they are fully prepared."

"It's not easy to leave the post without permission." Li Yan finally felt relieved, calmed down his tone and said.

Li Zhong sighed and said, "I have no choice but to behave like a good person, so that the generals will not feel that we are partial. And I came over and wanted to ask, since the north is almost done, should we develop in other directions? Hongguang in Nanjing is all shrimp soldiers and crab generals, which is easy to deal with. Zuo Liangyu knew that Li Zicheng had retreated to Shaanxi, and was also mobilizing troops to recover Xiangyang."

After hearing Li Zhong's words, Li Mou nodded and said, "Well, it's a good opportunity to expand a lot of territory to the south."

"Don't act rashly." Li Yan said in a deep voice.

"Fourth brother, do you want to deal with the Qing Kingdom first?" Li Mou asked in surprise. He immediately persuaded: "The Qing Kingdom is still connected to Mongolian troops. If such a long Great Wall defense line is not good, even if we fight, all our efforts will be wasted. Maybe, the army that forwards Ming will suffer heavy losses."

Li Yan said: "Of course it's not the Qing Dynasty. I have considered all the things you said. The south is not enough to worry about, and the north is powerless for the time being, so I can let it go first. I just received news from Niu Chenghu and others. They were only waiting for our actions to move to the northwest. We cannot attack everywhere and have to solve them one by one, so that we can be more secure."

"You mean," Li Zhong asked, "You have to deal with Li Zicheng first? Take Shanxi first, and then go west to Shaanxi?"

Li Mou said in confusion: "But Li Zicheng has also increased his troops in Shanxi. Li Guo has also been taking over the border with more than 10,000 troops."

Li Zhong smiled, "Well, the fourth brother has a good idea. The more Li Zicheng's troops, the better. Our troops head south to fight with them. As long as we are caught, they will have our heavy troops to guard the west, east and south. A decisive battle will greatly damage Li Zicheng's vitality."

Li Yan nodded and continued, "Sichuan is now in chaos, and people everywhere are attacking the government. This is a good opportunity to take advantage of. Even if Li Zicheng enters Sichuan, we can follow us and even enter the southwest region. With Li Zicheng in front of us, we can reap the benefits of fishermen. Since ancient times, Sichuan has been a place of chaos. If Sichuan can take over Sichuan and the southwest in advance, then the whole world will be much faster."

"It makes sense, but the fourth brother is thinking far away." Li Mou kept nodding in agreement.

Li Zhong thought for a while and asked, "But if this happens, wouldn't Hongguang Dynasty have more time to prepare? They claim to be the world's most upright and attract the attention of all the people."

Li Yan sneered: "What people in the world? They are just bureaucrats who are greedy for money and power. Aren't they fighting now? Southerners are fighting against northerners, Nanjing officials are fighting against Beijing officials, and Donglin Party and eunuch Party are fighting. So I said don't disturb them, let them continue to fight. Only when we attack them can we be destroyed."

Li Zhong finally nodded: "Well, what I'm right, I have no objection. You guys chat first, I'll take a break and set off tomorrow to rush back."

Li Yan did not try to keep him, but asked someone to prepare hot water and a room for Li Zhong. It was wrong for Li Zhong to leave his post without permission, and he deserved to be punished. If something went wrong, he would have to punish him severely, so naturally he would not delay his time.

When Li Zhong left, he instructed Li Mou again: "You should go back to Datong earlier, look at Jiang Xiang, and beware of the Qing Dynasty and Li Zicheng."
Chapter completed!