The death of Cao Wenzhao severely damaged the morale of the Ming army and made Hong Chengchou's troops increasingly stretched.
Facing the overwhelming peasant army in Shaanxi, Hong Chengchou felt powerless.
He could only hold on to a few big cities such as Xi'an and Hanzhong, but he could do nothing to deal with the peasant army in the wild.
Ironically, it was a natural disaster that came to his aid at this time.
In the summer of the eighth year of Chongzhen's reign, there was a severe drought in Shaanxi. The land was bare for thousands of miles and there was no harvest.
Wherever the peasant army went, they could not find a grain of food.
Rebellion is about having enough to eat.
How can you rebel now that your stomach is not full?
"What did General Chuang say?"
After finally resting for a while, Gao Yingxiang, who had just recovered from the losses, faced the problem of food and grass and decided to ask Li Zicheng for help.
"General Chuang said that his food and fodder will be exhausted, and he doesn't know where to go."
The messenger brought bad news.
Gao Yingxiang frowned, staring at the yellow and bald sky and earth, and couldn't help but murmur to himself.
"The world has changed, and so have people's hearts."
He didn't think that Li Zicheng had no food.
After all, compared to him, Li Zicheng has been living a stable life recently, and his fighting ability has been visibly enhanced.
It's unclear how many things Li Zicheng robbed, but he may have hid them all.
This nephew of his own met with him now.
But Gao Yingxiang has no choice, because his current strength is not much stronger than Li Zicheng.
Especially after Li Zicheng killed Cao Wenzhao, Gao Yingxiang judged that Li Zicheng's troops might be the most powerful among the rebels.
If they can't get food, the morale of the army will be weakened, and they will fall into death.
After much thought, Gao Yingxiang wrote to other leaders to discuss returning to Henan.
His proposal received responses from Zhang Xianzhong, Lao Huihui, Yiziwang, Chuangtianwang and others.
All ministries reached a consensus and without any further delay, they set out eastward from Tongguan and headed back to Henan.
Hong Chengchou saw the actions of various units of the rebel army, but had no choice but to write an urgent memorial and submit it to the court.
Knowing that the situation ahead was like this, Chongzhen was extremely helpless and didn't know what to do.
He was anxious, and Wang Chengen followed suit.
Sitting dryly in the ceremonial prison, holding Hong Chengchou's memorial in his hand, Wang Chengen had a splitting headache.
"Old ancestors, in my opinion, why not set up another capable general to take charge of the suppression of bandits in the Central Plains? In this way, Hong Bingxian will be in charge of Shaanxi, and the new chief official will be in charge of the Central Plains. Each can perform his or her duties and cooperate with each other to ensure that nothing goes wrong.
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Huang Ping is already very tall, and his features are becoming more and more delicate and lovable.
Who among the inner court today does not know the name of Eunuch Huang?
He was Wang Chengen's adopted son, and he was deeply loved. Although he did not hold any official position, even the high-ranking officials treated him with courtesy when they met him.
Huang Ping followed Wang Chengen all day long, helping to sort out the documents of the Supervisor of Ceremonies, and he naturally saw Hong Chengchou's memorial.
On weekdays, he just works quietly without saying a word to avoid overstepping his bounds.
Today I saw Wang Chengen frowning and showing his filial piety, so I couldn't help but talk a little more.
Although his words were soft, they all entered Wang Chengen's ears.
The eunuch's eyes lit up, and the spring breeze blew on his face. He looked at Huang Ping again, and he liked it even more.
After thinking about it, he casually took off the jade pendant from his belt and threw it towards Huang Ping.
"You little brat, you are as boring as a gourd when I ask you anything on weekdays. I didn't expect that as soon as I opened my mouth, it would be like this. From now on, if you dare to pretend to be deaf and dumb again, will our family accept you?"
Huang Ping hurriedly took the jade pendant and showed a silly smile.
"My ancestors are wise and wise, and no one can disapprove of them. How can a child show off his strength? There are times when children feel sorry for their ancestors and don't think about eating and drinking, for fear of ruining their health."
Wang Chengen had already stood up and got off the kang, letting Huang Ping help him put on his shoes while sighing.
"We, as slaves, can share the Emperor's worries, even if we die. Does it matter whether we eat or not, whether we drink tea or not?"
Wang Chengen did not dare to delay and hurried to find Chongzhen. Chongzhen was also very happy when he mentioned this method.
"I really didn't expect that the little eunuch next to my eldest companion would be so knowledgeable. It's a pity that no one in the civil and military dynasties can help me share my worries."
Seeing Chongzhen praising Huang Ping, Wang Chengen was also happy for him.
"That child has always been smart and very discerning, and he does not rely on the power of the servant to bully the good. If the emperor is destined, will the servant let him serve in front of the emperor?"
Chongzhen was very moved.
"Let him come to see me."
Huang Ping stood outside the hall. After being summoned, he quickly walked inside and knelt down obediently.
"My eldest companion has recommended you to me, are you willing?"
"Your Majesty, I don't want to do this."
Huang Ping's unexpected answer surprised Chongzhen, and Wang Chengen's expression even changed.
"Asshole, we are slaves just to serve the emperor. If you dare to be rebellious, I will kill you first."
While scolding, Wang Chengen felt heartbroken.
He also didn't understand why Huang Ping was so smart in the past, so why was he so stupid today?
After getting a good idea, Chongzhen was in a good mood.
"Tell me, why don't you want to?"
It was obvious that Huang Ping was trembling with fear, and he obviously knew that what he said was seeking his own death.
But then a look of perseverance flashed across his face, and he murmured the reason.
"In the whole world, when it comes to serving the emperor, my ancestor... my ancestor said he was second, and no one dared to say he was first. But my ancestor is old and not in good health. I saw this slave yesterday... I saw it last night
He kept coughing. I just thought... I just wanted to serve my ancestor well and let my ancestor be healthy so that I can better serve the emperor."
Wang Chengen stood stunned on the spot, his old eyes full of tears.
Chongzhen was also agitated.
"In the past, other slaves tried their best to get close to me, for fear that I would not look down on him. It is rare that this baby has a pure heart, and he is a blessing for his great companion!"
Wang Chengen quickly wiped away his tears and bent down deeply.
"It's all thanks to His Majesty's great kindness, old slave...old slave..."
Wang Chengen, who had not lost his composure even before the collapse of Mount Tai, lost his composure in front of the emperor for the first time.
The imperial edict was issued quickly, and Lu Xiangsheng, the governor of Huguang, became the second celebrity in Chongzhen after Chen Qiyu.
The Prime Minister is responsible for the military affairs of Zhili, Henan, Shandong, Sichuan, and Huguang. Although Shandong is in name only, the title of Prime Minister of the five provinces is still very scary.
In order to allow Lu Xiangsheng to quell the northwest rebel army as soon as possible, Chongzhen also dispatched Zu Dabi, Zu Dale, and Li Chongzhen to lead Guan Ning's army to rush for reinforcements.
This made Lu Xiangsheng's military strength extremely strong.
He finally had the confidence to annihilate the northwest rebels who had returned to Henan.
Not only that, he also received a secret letter from Hong Chengchou.
[If you want to strengthen your army, you must first use heavy weapons; if you want heavy weapons, you should ask Shandong.]
After listening to Hong Chengchou's detailed explanation, Lu Xiangsheng's heart surged, and he realized his bitterness.
"I didn't expect that the imperial court would be reduced to such a state, but the bandits in the northwest were suppressed, but they asked the rebels in Shandong to press the gourd and lift the gourd. When will it stop?"
Despite this, Lu Xiangsheng was not stubborn.
He took out the one hundred thousand taels of silver that he had finally accumulated, gave it to his staff, and quietly went to Huai'an.