Obviously, Fang Guangchen's unusual behavior just now was not unreasonable, nor was it purely a case of making excuses.

Even Yang Zhen himself did not expect that after he had won several battles against the captives in succession, the Qing captives were firmly restrained in Liaodong and could no longer enter the pass, but the situation on the battlefield of suppressing bandits in the pass was still not improving.

As a time traveler, Yang Zhen, of course, knew that Yang Sichang submitted a letter to resign when he saw that the situation was not good at the beginning of the 14th year of Chongzhen.

Moreover, he also knew that with Yang Sichang's resignation as a symbol, the thief situation in Huguang and the Central Plains would soon get out of control.

For example, on the twentieth day of the first month of the fourteenth year of Chongzhen, Li Zicheng captured Luoyang City with tens of thousands of troops, killed the emperor's uncle Fu Wang Zhu Changxun, gathered millions of people in a short period of time, and gained great momentum, and then continued to send his troops eastward and swept across the Central Plains.

For example, on the fifth day of February in the fourteenth year of Chongzhen, Zhang Xianzhong also captured Xiangyang City with tens of thousands of troops, killed the king of Xiang Zhu Yiming, massacred countless officials and civilians, and the situation in Huguang was completely ruined.

Correspondingly, according to historical records, on February 28, the fourteenth year of Chongzhen, Governor Yang Sichang went to Shashi. He was shocked to hear that Luoyang and Xiangyang had fallen, and King Fu and King Xiang were killed. He suddenly collapsed completely and could not eat or drink from then on.

Come in, bedridden.

Just three days later, Yang Sichang died in the Shashi Army. The strategy of suppressing thieves, the "Four Right, Six Corners and Ten Sided Nets", which he personally led, was declared completely bankrupt. From then on, thieves spread all over the world and became unstoppable.

Yang Zhen originally thought that he had opened up a battlefield behind enemy lines in the Liaodong Peninsula and contained the main force of the Qing rebels. Emperor Chongzhen and the capital court could concentrate on peace and security, devote more manpower and material resources to the battlefield to support Yang Sichang in suppressing the traitors, and then let him

The situation inside the customs has improved somewhat.

But I didn't expect that Yang Sichang still submitted a letter to resign in the first month of the fourteenth year of Chongzhen, just like what happened in history.

Of course, what Yang Zhen didn't expect even more was that Yang Sichang would actually "harm" himself in his resignation letter!

The reason why Yang Zhenfang was shocked was not because Yang Sichang personally submitted a letter to resign, but because Yang Sichang asked him to lead the troops of Jinhai Town to cross the sea and go south to suppress the bandits.

At the same time, Yang Zhen also knew very well that the reason why everyone else present turned pale with surprise was probably the same reason.

In fact, it’s not surprising that everyone behaves like this.

They may not know who Yang Sichang is and what Yang Sichang's resignation means.

But they all knew that once Emperor Chongzhen really issued an order to mobilize the troops of Jinhai Town to cross the sea and go south to suppress the bandits, then the hard-won good situation of Jinhai Town might be ruined.

Because of this, Yang Zhen saw that everyone was a little panicked after hearing what he said, including Zhang Chen, who was always calm and sophisticated. He was also shocked and looked at him anxiously, so he put down the tea bowl in his hand, took a deep breath, and looked towards

Fang Guangchen asked solemnly:

"What else did Fang Shibo say in his letter? Did it mention the emperor's reply to Mr. Yang Ge?"

Emperor Chongzhen relied heavily on Yang Sichang, so it was impossible for him to approve his resignation.

But because of this, Yang Zhen was particularly worried.

Because of the status of Yang Sichang and Yang Ge in the eyes of Emperor Chongzhen, if he really received such a memorial and asked Yang Zhen to go to the pass to help suppress the bandits while resigning, then Emperor Chongzhen would probably be unable to refuse such a move.

request.

Others present may not be very clear about the current situation in Guan Nei which is about to collapse or has already collapsed, but Yang Zhen himself knows it very well.

Although he did not understand the details of Yang Sichang's death in the army, and did not know whether he committed suicide because he was ashamed of Emperor Chongzhen, or simply died of illness, he knew very well that Yang Sichang was indeed short-lived.

And the mess left by Yang Sichang after his death was of no use to anyone, including Yang Zhen.

Because of the rogue thieves in the pass, the climate has become so bad at this time that the local governments in Huguang and other places in the Central Plains have been completely paralyzed and can no longer function.

Under such circumstances, it is useless for anyone to go.

Because if we want to eradicate the refugees, in addition to military victory, we must also have a complete set of methods to accommodate the refugees, provide relief to the refugees, and resettle the refugees so that they can live and work in peace and contentment.

Otherwise, winning one or two battles to suppress thieves does not make much sense.

In the early period, Yang Sichang oversaw the pursuit of bandits and achieved victory after victory. It can be said that good news came frequently, but was it effective?

Facts have proved that in the end, not only was it useless, but more and more thieves were suppressed, so that thieves were everywhere.

What is the root cause?

The fundamental reason is not that we cannot eradicate the soil where refugees or thieves breed.

In other words, the fundamental reason is that Yang Sichang's military strategy may be correct, but he cannot solve the problem of feeding millions of people.

When millions of people in the Central Plains were displaced in Huguang, without food and unable to survive, becoming bandits or joining the bandits was their only choice.

Whether it is due to natural disasters or man-made disasters, it is obvious what they will do when they are cornered.

Faced with this situation, Yang Zhen was powerless.

Therefore, he did not want to get involved at this time, and therefore, he was particularly concerned about Emperor Chongzhen's attitude.

"The emperor's reply was that he was not allowed to ask for resignation again and asked him to do his best. As for what Yang Ge said, 'vomiting phlegm and blood every day, sleepless at night, and dying', the emperor sent

I went to the imperial doctor and gave him some decoction."

Of course Fang Guangchen knew where Yang Zhen's focus was, so while answering, he took out a letter from his arms, stood up and handed it to Yang Zhen.

At the same time, he did not stop answering Yang Zhen's questions. After handing the letter to Yang Zhen, he stood in front of Yang Zhen and continued:

"As for mobilizing the governor to send troops and mobilizing our Jinhai Town soldiers and horses to cross the sea and go south to suppress the bandits, the emperor did not agree because the emperor did not know that the siege of the governor's Zhenjiang Fort had been lifted, so he did not agree.

"It is said that the emperor issued an oral order at that time, ordering Xu Renlong, the governor of Denglai to return to Defu, and Chen Hongfan, the general of Denglai, led the Denglai troops to rush south to Jingxiang to help suppress the rogue bandits!"

"Oh? The Denglai soldiers have moved south? That's good, that's good!"

Yang Zhen reached out and took the letter from Fang Guangchen, took out the letter paper and read it. Hearing what Fang Guangchen said next, he immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

However, just when Yang Zhen breathed a sigh of relief, just let go of his worries, and even before the expression of joy fully bloomed on his face, he heard Fang Guangchen add two more words:

"However, according to what Chen Benbing told my father, the emperor was quite moved by Yang Sichang and Yang Ge Lao's proposal at that time. It can even be said that he was very tempted.

"So, I'm afraid it's only a matter of time before the governor is mobilized to go to the pass to suppress the bandits. As long as the news of the triumphant return of the governor's class reaches the capital, the emperor may issue an order soon!"

Everyone present, including Yang Zhen, heard Fang Guangchen's words and felt relieved again.

At this point, everyone understood why the situation in Jinhai Town was very good, but Fang Guangchen was so worried.

Especially Zhang Degui and Zhang Chen, when they went to Fang Guangchen again, their previous suspicion and displeasure were no longer in their eyes, but they nodded directly at Fang Guangchen.

Soon, Yang Zhen also read the letter sent by Fang Yizao at a glance.

What Fang Yizao wrote in the letter was exactly the same as what Fang Guangchen said, and Fang Guangchen's paraphrase was not exaggerated in the slightest.

In fact, due to the time difference, when Fang Yizao sent this letter, the capital and Shanhaiguan should not have received the worse news from the Central Plains.

Otherwise, Fang Yizao's letter would not have just reminded him to prepare early, but would have told him to lead his army across Hainan as soon as possible.

Thinking of this, Yang Zhen let out a long sigh and handed the letter in his hand to Zhang Degui and Zhang Chen. They waited silently for them to finish reading before saying:

"Fang Youyi's worries are correct. The current situation of suppressing bandits in the customs is about to collapse. We should make preparations early!"

Others may not know that in January and February of the 14th year of Chongzhen's reign, the situation in Huguang, the Central Plains, was so devastated that the situation collapsed, but Yang Zhen knew it very well.

Although he has not yet figured out what he should do in this earth-shattering situation, he has become acutely aware that it may be difficult for him to stay on the sidelines and watch.

Not only Emperor Chongzhen and the Gonggun princes in the court would not allow this, but even Yang Zhen himself could not allow Jin Haizhen to stay out of the matter.

"This——, does the governor mean that we really have to be ready to cross the sea and go south at any time?!"

"Commander, we have been fighting hard for a long time and it's time to recuperate. Why go to that pool of muddy water?"

"Yes, Governor, Jinhai Town is the fundamental place for us to settle down and live. What should we do if Qinglu gets the news and takes the opportunity to attack?"

"Yes, Governor. The Governor is really going to lead his army across the sea to go south to suppress the bandits. What should we do here in Jinhai Town?"

What Yang Zhen said immediately aroused everyone's discussion in the meeting hall.

Including Pan Wenmao and Wang Shoutang, who came hand in hand with Fang Guangchen but kept silent, they couldn't help but expressed their doubts with worried faces.

Although they did not oppose with one voice, the meaning behind each person's words could not be clearer.

"The early preparations I am talking about are not just about crossing the sea and sending troops to assist in the suppression. And in my opinion, crossing the sea and sending troops to assist in the suppression is not the fundamental strategy."

Faced with the uproar of everyone present, Yang Zhen immediately expressed some of his considerations.

"Just think about it, the imperial court has spent a lot of money and troops to suppress bandits for more than ten years. Why did it suppress more and more bandits, leading to the situation we are in today?"

As soon as Yang Zhen said this, everyone knew that Yang Zhen had similar thoughts to their own, and had not already made up their mind to send troops to help suppress the attack, so they gradually became quiet and listened attentively to what Yang Zhen had to say.

And Yang Zhen didn't show any concern. Seeing that everyone was quiet, he immediately spoke out.

"Where do bandits come from? Of course they come from the people. If the people live and work in peace and contentment, how can they become wandering bandits? Therefore, the root of fighting bandits is to calm the people. And the root of peace of the people is to protect the people with clothes to cover their bodies and food to satisfy their stomachs.

"If the people can have enough food and clothing, the world will be at peace, and the bandits will naturally disappear. On the contrary, if the people of the world have no way to survive, then no matter how many soldiers and horses the court mobilizes, no matter how much money and weapons are spent, it will not help in the end.
Chapter completed!