Zhang Dongtao has already felt tremendous pressure.

According to the scouts' investigation and the urgent information from Nanjing, he already knew that the Great Western Army concentrated in the direction of Shaoguang had a total of 100,000 troops, and he led only 60,000 sergeants in total. The disparity in strength already existed.

Zhang Dongtao insisted on leading 60,000 sergeants to Shaoguang, leaving 40,000 sergeants to garrison in Guangdong Province. For this reason, he had a certain degree of controversy with Li Yan. The original plan was for Zhang Dongtao to lead 80,000 sergeants to Shaoguang, but Zhang Dongtao felt that,

It was necessary to stabilize the situation in Guangdong Province to the greatest extent. There were only 40,000 sergeants left, which was already very few, so he finally made the decision to lead only 60,000 soldiers to Shaoguang to prepare for the battle in Huguang.

The Denglai New Army soldiers led by Zhang Dongtao totaled 15,000 people, leaving 5,000 people stationed in Guangzhou Prefecture. Among these 15,000 people, more than 10,000 people were recruited under the command of Gao Jie and Zuo Liangyu.

Sergeants, these sergeants need to undergo a period of intensive training before their combat effectiveness can be significantly improved.

More importantly, the Denglai New Army sergeants led by Zhang Dongtao did not receive much replenishment in terms of weapons. Except for the 5,000 Denglai New Army sergeants who had followed them before and were well equipped, the other newly entered Denglai New Army sergeants still held steel weapons.

There was a serious shortage of swords, spears, and war horses, and there were only a few dozen Hongyi cannons.

In other words, no matter in terms of combat effectiveness or military strength, the sergeants under Zhang Dongtao were not sure of defeating the 100,000-strong Western Army.

The man who commanded the 100,000 sergeants of the Western Army was Zhang Xianzhong's adopted son Li Dingguo. This man fought bravely. He followed Zhang Xianzhong to fight all year round and had very good combat experience and ability. Zhang Dongtao once heard the emperor talking about this man.

Gao Jie and Xing both stayed in Fucheng, Guangzhou, while Zhang Dongtao led the army alone to fight in Shaoguang.

Outside the city of Shaoguang Prefecture, at Heifengyan, the army campsite and the temporary Chinese military tent are located.

Zhang Dongtao looked at the map on the desk and said nothing.

When the scouts entered the Chinese military tent, Zhang Dongtao raised his head, his face full of gloom.

"Report to the Commander-in-Chief, the vanguard of the Great Western Army is only 150 miles away from Heifengyan. There are 20,000 of them. The person leading the vanguard to Heifengyan should be Zhang Xianzhong's adopted son Li Dingguo..."

The scout's report was not over yet. The sound of horse hooves sounded again outside the temporary military tent. This time the sound of horse hooves was a bit rapid, and there was more than one person.

Zhang Dongtao frowned, waved to the scout who was reporting, and strode out of the Chinese military tent.

"General Zhang, on the order of General Wu Sangui, the last general is here to report. The last general Liu Wenxiu..."

A smile appeared on Zhang Dongtao's face, and he took a closer look at Liu Wenxiu, who was clasping his fists and bowing in salute.

"It turns out that it is General Liu who has failed to welcome us. The vanguard led by Li Dingguo is only 150 miles away from Heifeng Rock. It is expected to arrive at Heifeng Rock tomorrow and start fighting with us. General Liu is so critical.

Come here at any time, just in time to give us some advice..."

Zhang Dongtao has known Liu Wenxiu for a long time, but he has never met him. When he was still working under Li Zicheng, he heard Li Zicheng talk about Zhang Xianzhong's four adopted sons, the eldest Sun Kewang, the second Liu Wenxiu, the third Li Dingguo, and the fourth Ai Neng.

Strangely, these four people are Zhang Xianzhong's main support and arms, Sun Kewang's ability is the most outstanding, and Liu Wenxiu and Li Dingguo have the best relationship.

Over the years, Ai Nengqi has been killed by the Denglai New Army, Liu Wenxiu has surrendered to the Denglai New Army, and Zhang Xianzhong is still left with Sun Kewang and Li Dingguo, both of whom have become absolute warriors under Zhang Xianzhong.

Zhang Dongtao has received Wu Sangui's letter, but he still has a trace of doubt in his heart. It is impossible for Liu Wenxiu to completely forget Zhang Xianzhong, Li Dingguo and others. Zhang Dongtao has personal experience in this regard.

Entering the temporary Chinese military tent, Zhang Dongtao waved to the scouts.

"Let's continue investigating and report any situation at any time."

After the scouts left the Chinese military tent, Zhang Dongtao looked at Liu Wenxiu, smiled and spoke.

"General Liu, the fighting will begin tomorrow. I have a lot to do. I would like to ask your forgiveness for my poor hospitality..."

Before Zhang Dongtao finished speaking, Liu Wenxiu quickly clasped his fists again.

"Commander, the general is here to fight. He doesn't want to do anything else..."

Zhang Dongtao smiled slightly. He still knew that there is no need to trust people who are suspicious. When he left the Denglai New Army and lurked with Li Zicheng for more than ten years, the emperor had no doubts about him and fully trusted him. Zhang Dongtao had this in his heart.

He was grateful, so he had the same mentality when facing Liu Wenxiu.

"General Liu, our combat deployment has been made clear. According to the scouts' investigation..."

As soon as Zhang Dongtao started talking about combat deployment, Liu Wenxiu's face showed a look of embarrassment and embarrassment.

"Well, Commander, when the general comes to the time, he will follow the commander's command and dispatch to fight. As for the combat deployment, the general does not need to know..."

Zhang Dongtao was stunned for a moment, then looked at Liu Wenxiu and smiled.

"General Liu, it seems that you have not understood the emperor's painstaking efforts, nor have you understood the meaning of General Wu. Since you have come to Shaoguang to fight with me, you must try your best. You and the commander of the Great Western Army, Li Dingguo,

It's a brother. You are Zhang Xianzhong's adopted son. Everyone knows this, and the emperor understands it even more. If it is according to your understanding, the emperor can let you stay in the capital or Nanjing without having to go out to fight. Since you are sent to fight,

That is the emperor's complete trust in you..."

Liu Wenxiu's face suddenly turned red, and she clasped her fists at Zhang Dongtao and spoke.

"Commander, to be honest, General Wu asked the general to persuade Li Dingguo. The general did not agree. The general felt that he could not do it. The general also had no way to face Zhang Xianzhong directly, so General Wu sent the general to Shaoguang...

.”

Zhang Dongtao waved his hand.

"I know all this, it's nothing. It was difficult for me to attack Li Zicheng directly at the beginning. I can understand your mood, but after you come to Shaoguang, you must completely put aside these thoughts and kill the enemy with peace of mind. This time

The person who commanded the 100,000-strong Western Army was Li Dingguo, your brother. You have the best relationship with Li Dingguo. I didn’t want you to persuade Li Dingguo to surrender, but you can tell me Li Dingguo’s fighting habits and let me know.

The Denglai New Army is ready for all responses..."

Before Zhang Dongtao finished speaking, Liu Wenxiu clasped his fists and bowed his head.

"Commander, I understand. I will try my best to save my brain..."

Zhang Dongtao pondered for a moment.

"We have a total of 60,000 sergeants, of which 40,000 sergeants are in ambush at Black Wind Rock, and there are 20,000 sergeants in reserve. According to the scouts' investigation, 100,000 Great Western Army sergeants are heading towards Black Wind Rock, leading them

The person fighting was Li Dingguo. The scouts had just detected the news. Li Dingguo personally led the 20,000 vanguard troops in the direction of Heifengyan. The remaining 80,000 sergeants gathered about 20 miles away. In other words, 100,000 sergeants of the Great Western Army.

, the front army and the Chinese army are not far apart, and they can rush to help at any time..."

Liu Wenxiu nodded.

"Commander, this is as expected by the general. The third brother still has the same temper. He likes to charge at the front in every battle. When deploying, the distance between the front army and the middle army is generally not more than twenty miles.

In this way, we can support each other front and back. The third brother's fighting habits have been supported by the sergeants below, so every time he leads the troops in battle, the third brother can get the support and dedication of all the sergeants under his command..."

A look of appreciation appeared on Zhang Dongtao's face.

"It's really good to take the lead and get the support of the sergeants under his command. It seems that Li Dingguo is really good. He must be a strong opponent for us..."

A look of hesitation flashed on Liu Wenxiu's face, but quickly disappeared.

"Commander, Liu Wenxiu also has a fatal flaw in fighting, that is, he refuses to admit defeat. When the danger really comes, he rushes forward with anger and lacks clever ways to deal with it..."

Zhang Dongtao squinted his eyes, looked at Liu Wenxiu, and spoke word by word.

"You mean to say that the sergeants of the 20,000 vanguard troops led by Li Dingguo will not retreat easily even if they are besieged and face the danger of the entire army being annihilated..."

Liu Wenxiu nodded vigorously, met Zhang Dongtao's eyes and spoke.

"Li Dingguo refuses to admit defeat in battle. Many people know that this time he led an army of 100,000 people to fight in Shaoguan. I am afraid that he will not admit defeat. As a commander, it is not appropriate to lead an attack with 20,000 soldiers in the vanguard.

This situation has never happened before.”

"Li Dingguo was in charge of garrisoning Huguang, and the capital of Huangzhou was attacked by Zheng Chenggong. At such a critical moment, Liu Wenxiu should have led the army to fight Zheng Chenggong, but Liu Wenxiu rushed thousands of miles to Shaoguan to fight. There must be something fishy."

"The last general once made an analysis to General Wu and believed that Zhang Xianzhong is very likely to have arrived in Huangzhou Fucheng. The last general was not sure about this before, but now he is sure."

"It was precisely because Zhang Xianzhong arrived in Huangzhou Fucheng and personally commanded the army to attack Zheng Chenggong, which aroused Li Dingguo's fighting spirit that Li Dingguo personally commanded the front army to fight. Li Dingguo must have wanted to defeat us as soon as possible, and then led the army to Huangzhou Fucheng.

Guard Zhang Xianzhong..."

Zhang Dongtao stared at Liu Wenxiu with his eyes widened, and it took him a while before he spoke.

"General Liu, are you sure..."

Liu Wenxiu nodded firmly, with a serious look on his face.

Zhang Dongtao walked around hurriedly, stroking his forehead with his right hand.

When he stopped, Zhang Dongtao's expression became solemn.

"In this case, our battle plan will have to make major adjustments. We must hold back Li Dingguo and the 100,000 sergeants of the Western Army to prevent them from returning to aid Huangzhou Fucheng. If we can use
Chapter completed!