Chengdu is still in the hands of the Ming army. The defenders belong to the old Sichuan army system, with limited troops and suspicious combat power.

Since Wu Sangui led his troops into Sichuan to conquer Chongqing, he divided Sichuan into two parts. The Ming army in western Sichuan had neither the ability to restrain nor the counterattack force, and could only barely defend the territory. The main reason why he could persist until now was that Li Guoying did not have much mobile force in his hands.

The current situation is that the Ming army has a warlike army in eastern Sichuan, and the number is quite considerable, but the military rations are exhausted; there are a large number of military farms in western Sichuan and the storage is also very considerable. Jianchang's grain and grass are piled up like mountains, but without an army, it is impossible to transport it to eastern Sichuan - even if there is transportation capacity, it is a question whether it will be transported here. The deployment of the Ming army in Sichuan has become like this, which is mixed with various complex factors over the years: the Yongli court did not want the power of the camp to break into the camp, and the local Sichuan army was unwilling to be occupied by others, and the camp was worried that it would be annexed if it was not carried into a group. In addition, the threat from the Qing army in Hubei, the rest of the camp was concentrated in the Three Gorges area.

A few years ago, Liu Wenxiu, the king of Shu, had the intention of managing Sichuan, but he was unwilling to enter Sichuan to share territory with him. He just needed to help him defend the flanks of the Three Gorges. This was obviously more beneficial to him. Liu Wenxiu had incorporated some Sichuan troops, which certainly weakened local armed forces and made the local tyrants a little uneasy, but with Liu Wenxiu's strength, he could completely suppress it. As for the problems caused by the decline in the strength of small warlords in various places, Liu Wenxiu's army could also solve it in Sichuan, and through the inclusion, his military strength was also improved. Although the camp was guarding and helping Liu Wenxiu in the Three Gorges area, he was also secretly warned against him.

Suddenly, Sun Kewang intended to usurp the throne in Yunnan, and Liu Wenxiu returned to Yunnan to assist Li Dingguo in serving the king. However, after driving Sun Kewang away, Liu Wenxiu and Li Dingguo had another friction. Liu Wenxiu publicly claimed that Li Dingguo took over power, just like another Sun Kewang; and Li Dingguo accused Liu Wenxiu of recruiting Sun Kewang's remaining troops to win people's hearts and have the intention of becoming Sun Kewang's second.

The result of the struggle was that Li Dingguo put Liu Wenxiu under house arrest. In order to eliminate the sequelae of the continuous struggles, Li Dingguo had to stay in Kunming and could not go to the Huguang front to command the battle personally - the lack of prestige people stabilized the morale of the army on the front line, and the inevitable panic and ideological confusion in the Ming army after the internal strife of the Three Kings led to the rapid collapse of the front line of the Ming army after the Qing army launched an attack in Hunan; it was almost the same in Sichuan. Liu Wenxiu brought the army to Kunming and then never came back. Sichuan was both empty and chaotic, and there were also a group of dissatisfied warlords, which gave Wu Sangui the opportunity to seize Chongqing easily.

"There are soldiers in the east of Sichuan, and the terrain of the Three Gorges is a place for use. As long as the military ration is in place, we can persist here for a long time." Liu Tichun and other generals in the camp have been operating in the Three Gorges for many years and trained many local soldiers. There is a lot of news now, saying that the war in the southwest is unfavorable. Although Liu Tichun claimed in the army that this was a rumor and tried his best to dispel the rumors, he had no scruples in front of Deng Ming: "If the King of Jin can reach Chengdu and try to conquer Chongqing and connect with us, we have great potential in Sichuan and Shaanxi."

"If the King of Jin was asked to lead the entire army north, I'm afraid there would be the troubles that the general said just now?" As far as Deng Ming knew, Li Dingguo now has many Yunnan people, and many Xiying officers and soldiers have started their families and businesses in Yunnan, which is somewhat similar to the situation in the camp.

"It's not too far from Yunnan to Jianchang. Recently, the Tartars have been claiming that they have captured Kunming. I think it may be the truth. Kunming is probably lost. When will it last if they don't run away?" Liu Tichun and Li Laiheng have both visited the Yongli court. Li Laiheng has also been stationed in Guizhou for a while: "I have heard of the situation in Guizhou and Yunnan. When Kunming is out, there are chieftains everywhere. If Kunming is really lost, what are you waiting for if you don't leave quickly? The soldiers will no longer be reluctant to leave. As for the principle that men and women are not allowed to meet, the King of Jin will definitely not know! Can you forget the rest of the Western Camp? "

"What if the Wu thief followed him?" Deng Ming felt that if Li Dingguo could come, then Wu Sangui could come too.

Liu Tichun shook his head again: "Where did the Wu thieves get the food? The Wu thieves have 180,000 troops, so there is definitely not enough food to transport grain. Most of the military thieves have to be collected from the local area."

Before, when Wu Sangui was entrenched in Shaanxi, he had accumulated food and grass for many years. At the same time, the Qing court kept transporting grain from Shanxi and Henan to him, so that he could reach Chongqing in one fell swoop. He stayed in Chongqing for another half a year, transporting a large amount of supplies from Jiangnan through the Yangtze River, saving enough food and grass for him to march for three months before attacking Yunnan.

"Mr. Deng doesn't know what the situation is like when the army passes. I dare not say that the Wu thief has been surviving for thousands of miles this time. But in three to five years, you can't think of passing the army again on Zunyi, even ten thousand people. Logically speaking, the Wu thief captured Kunming. In order to shock the local chieftains and appease the local area, it will take a year or two to free up. After all, Xiying has been in Yunnan for ten years, and the Wu thief army will not dare to leave without stationing for two years. But even if the Wu thief wants to return to Sichuan immediately, he will definitely take Jianchang's road that has not walked in the army for several years. If the King of Jin takes the lead, brings 100,000 people, eats up all the food along the way, and burns the warehouse, then Wu thief still wants to chase the Queen of Jin back to Sichuan? Humph, his 180,000 army will plant fields in Yunnan for three to five years, and then think about this matter."

After chatting with Liu Tichun carefully today, Deng Ming found that his understanding of transportation capabilities in this era had changed drastically. Without railways and a reliable highway network, it was very difficult to mobilize a 100,000 troops to go on an expedition. This time, the Qing court mobilized elite troops from the whole country to attack Yunnan. Although the results of the battle were great, it also consumed all the savings of the Qing court over the years. It was just that it needed to withdraw the troops sent to Yunnan back to the departure point, not to mention launching another large-scale attack immediately.

At this time, the advantage of breaking the camp to defend the Three Gorges was shown. If the Yangtze River was under the control of the Qing army, the waterways from east to west of Sichuan were smooth, the Qing army's transportation capacity could be greatly improved; and when the Yangtze River was cut off by the Ming army, the Qing court would pass through the barriers at any cost, whether it was transporting materials to Chongqing or Yunnan and Guizhou, it would have to cross mountains and wading to transport them by land, which was extremely staggering; it was very difficult for the Qing army to attack the Three Gorges from the downstream, and the Ming army had been prepared for defense for many years.

In Liu Tichun's strategic conception, the most critical point is Chongqing. As long as the Yangtze River from western Sichuan to eastern Sichuan is completely controlled by the Ming army, the grain from western Sichuan can be used to feed the army in eastern Sichuan, and the army from eastern Sichuan can be used to protect the military farms in western Sichuan. It is best if Wu Sangui and Hong Chengchou chased them out of Yunnan and Guizhou without knowing how to live or die. It is probably better that they would have been hungry after climbing out from the mountains and ridges in southern Sichuan again. The Ming army can use water transportation to facilitate the rescue of the east and west. Even if they don't fight with them, they can only be firm and clear the fields. In Liu Tichun's view, even if the Qing army touched the Yangtze River, they could not support more than ten, 200,000 people by fishing. Of course, Liu Tichun believed that Wu Sangui would probably still work hard to transport grain to the front line again and build warehouses to store supplies, but it would take several years. The Qing court's ten-thrust attack this time could not completely defeat the Ming army in Yunnan.

"We must win Chongqing!"

At the end of the discussion, Liu Tichun also made a special emphasis.

Like in Dachang, Liu Tichun also arranged exercises to show Deng Ming his training gains.

With experience with Yuan Zongdi, Deng Ming's face remained silent, but he was secretly paying attention in his heart to see if anyone would be specially recommended by Liu Tichun. After a young man appeared, Deng Ming noticed that Liu Tichun kept turning his head and observing his expression and reaction.

"What a hero!" Deng Ming exclaimed loudly. This was not a compliment. The young man performed well, and he was tall and looked good in nutrition. Deng Ming was probably a relative of Liu Tichun.

"It's the dog." Liu Tichun replied happily.

"So he is a man, he is such a hero." To be honest, Deng Ming was still a little surprised. First of all, he didn't expect Liu Tichun to let his son come out to perform. Secondly, Liu Tichun looked in his early fifties. Deng Ming didn't expect that people in this era got married and had children so late.

Liu Tichun, the son, was obtained in Henan in the 14th year of Chongzhen. After the Eighteen Horsemen of Shangluo came out, he was the earliest one among the people to have a son, and he just turned 18 this year. After watching the exercise, Liu Tichun asked his eldest son to toast Deng Ming at dinner.

Deng Ming didn't like drinking, so he put down his glass when he touched his lips and said politely to Liu Tichun's son: "How old are I in the Major General? I call the Major General Brother Liu, how about it?" Now Deng Ming pretended to be a noble royal family and was more and more adept at it. Liu Tichun was obviously a guard, but Deng Ming and his son called brothers, but it seemed that others had taken advantage of it.

The young man looked back at his father with a little at a loss, and saw Liu Tichun nodding with joy, and then said honestly to Deng Ming: "Brother Deng is here, I am polite."

Liu Tichun's eldest son was named Liu Jinge. Since Deng Ming had shown obvious intention to win over, Liu Tichun immediately boasted about his son's martial arts, and then changed the subject and said that he saw that there were not many guards around Deng Ming, so he might as well take his son away.

Whether it was Liu Tichun or Yuan Zongdi, their thoughts were very bad. Today, Deng Ming could guess what he planned before Liu Tichun made the preparations. However, Liu Tichun actually sent his eldest son, which surprised Deng Ming and felt a little embarrassed. He felt that one of Yuan Zongdi's nephews was not easy to arrange - after all, unlike ordinary soldiers, if he neglected, Yuan Zongdi might think that Deng Ming looked down on him, but Deng Ming is basically a commander now, and it is impossible for him to provide soldiers with the nephews of these guardian generals to be subordinates.

This is Liu Tichun's eldest son. If he had a few big and two shorts, Deng Ming didn't know how to explain it - he has not fully adapted to his identity as he dressed up. In the eyes of Liu Tichun and Yuan Zongdi, it would be fine if his children died in battle to protect the Tian family's clan, and it may not be a bad thing for the family in the long run. Since Liu Tichun heard that Yuan Zongdi raised his nephew and the captain of the guard who had a good relationship with him, and had a good relationship with him to the third prince, he decided to let his son go to the third prince to serve.

Deng Ming expressed his concern tactfully, and Liu Tichun immediately stated that this was not a problem: "I admire Mr. Deng's style in the battle of Wanxian. Since my son is a military man, it is his duty to wrap a horse in the body!"

If he insisted on not being able to do so, Deng Ming was worried that Liu Tichun would have other ideas, so he had to accept it. At this time, he felt a little worried. If the military towns inspected in the future were Yuan Zongdi and Liu Tichun, then wouldn’t he have to bring back a group of children of the battalion generals when going back to Fengjie? If this continues, can his own guard still serve as a guard? Will these children have conflicts with the guards of soldiers? Is it necessary to form another real guard? The guards in the Battle of Wanxian are members of the real guard, and these children are honorary guards.

After staying in Badong for a few days, Deng Ming soon set off for his next stop. Liu Tichun called his son who was about to part with him to his study. In addition to the father and son, there was only the master in the room.

In Liu Tichun's view, Deng Ming's main job in the future is to soothe people's hearts. When inspecting the garrisons everywhere, if there are generals like Liu Tichun, Deng Ming will naturally not let Deng Ming take risks on the battlefield. Although they thought that the Ming Dynasty royal family was a cowardly person who dared not fight, hoping that a unique clan king would appear, when Deng Ming appeared, their mentality changed immediately. Now Liu Tichun and Yuan Zongdi do not want Deng Ming to take risks. If Deng Ming dies, they will have no investment targets.

"In the future, Mr. Deng will probably not be in a dangerous place like Wanxian again," Liu Tichun told his son: "But if you encounter an assassin or some critical scene, you must not embarrass me."

"Yes, father." Liu Jinge answered seriously.

"Young Master, if you go out in the future, you will not be with the old coach," said the master earnestly. Liu Jinge is still too young, and Liu Tichun and his master are not at ease, worried that he would not get along well with Deng Ming, and will cause trouble for himself and the Liu family in the future: "There are rumors everywhere now that the King of Jin has abandoned Kunming and the court is nowhere to be seen. Are these rumors true? Where is the emperor now? Can he arrive in Sichuan with King of Jin safely? These are all things that I don't know. Although Mr. Deng's identity is still uncertain now, the young master's family will not be wrong. You can't be ignorant just because Mr. Deng called the young master and said brother."

"I understand, sir." Liu Jinge said impatiently. For several days, the master has been instilling similar content into him.

"Listen to me!" Liu Tichun glared and scolded.

"Father, I have said this many times," Liu Jinge defended himself: "The child is kept in mind, the king and the king, the elders and teachers of heaven and earth, and the son regards the prince as his father, and is filial to him as if he is filial to you."

"The young master's words are inappropriate," the master hurriedly corrected: "The king and father are very different. No matter what the young master said in front of the old man, the old man will not care about it or take it to heart. However, the king and father are different. The young master must be careful in front of Mr. Deng, and never rebel against Mr. Deng's meaning. In the service of the king, sometimes he just thinks that Mr. Deng is wrong and doesn't mention it, just do what he means. For example, if Mr. Deng doesn't nod, don't mention it again."

Liu Jinge asked in surprise: "Don't you say anything if Mr. Deng is wrong? If Mr. Deng wants to take everyone to death, don't you care?"

"How did you know that Mr. Deng would take everyone to death? You are just smart?" Liu Tichun cursed: "You dare to talk back!"

"The boy knew he was wrong." Liu Jinge immediately lowered his head and apologized.

"Young Master." The master knew that Liu Jinge was still dissatisfied, so he explained seriously: "Mr. Deng will most likely not be in danger again in the future. Even if he wants to supervise the master, you will not agree. Even if the supervisor has this meaning, you must try your best to stop him. If Mr. Deng really goes to the battlefield again, and you think there is something wrong with his order, it is best not to be the first to come forward to mention it."

"What if I don't mention it?" Liu Jinge was indeed dissatisfied.

"If you don't mention it, it means that Mr. Deng's idea is right, you are wrong!" Liu Tichun shouted.

The master obviously needs to be more patient and said, "If you are wrong, you will be unable to calm down and speak first, and the young master will agree; if you are wrong, no one will say anything, if you mention it, Mr. Deng may not follow it. Even if Mr. Deng's order is indeed wrong, it may not be beneficial to the young master afterwards. Mr. Deng will feel that you have embarrassed him in front of everyone. Does the young master still remember the story of Yuan Shao and Tian Feng that I told you? If the young master really thinks that Mr. Deng's order really doesn't work, and you have to point it out, then don't say it in front of everyone, and say one or two sentences in private..."

"And it's definitely right to do it according to your idea? If the Battle of Wanxian was your command, can you defeat twice the Tartars?" Liu Tichun was a little dissatisfied with the master's compromise and interrupted his son and taught his son a lesson: "If Mr. Deng listened to you and ended up losing, you should just wipe your neck with your sword! Tell you not to talk nonsense, just don't say it." Liu Tichun sighed: "I just talked too much a few days ago. I wonder if Mr. Deng will be unhappy."

...

After returning to his room, Deng Ming was still thinking about Liu Tichun's strategy. He felt that Liu Tichun's reason was very convincing. He had been persuaded by Liu Tichun a few days ago, but he was a little suspicious these days because he knew that the Qing court had achieved the final victory in history, that is, the referee of history determined that Liu Tichun's strategy was wrong; just like Liu Tichun believed that he could defend the Three Gorges and continue to wait for opportunities, but Deng Ming knew that it was actually time to fight to the death now, which is also the reason why he was obsessed with entering Jiangnan - if you already knew that the path chosen by the people around you would eventually lead to failure and destruction, you couldn't help but want to try another path, which might bring another result.

Just when Deng Ming was in a state of confusion, the guard reported that Fengjie had sent him an urgent letter. After opening the letter, Deng Ming scanned it and looked up to the guard and said, "Please come here."

After Liu Tichun arrived, Deng Ming said to him: "I must return to Fengjie immediately. I can't go to other military towns for the time being. Please ask General Liu to apologize to all the generals."

"What happened to Fengjie?" Liu Tichun asked.

"There is nothing wrong with Fengjie," although it was a secret letter from Wen Anzhi to him, Deng Ming did not intend to completely conceal Liu Tichun: "But I received the news that Jianchang was unstable."

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