The video takes us to ancient times; Li Er transforms into the Tongtian Emperor of Shu Han.

"Pah, pah, pah! Does this kid think he's Chen Youliang?"

"Besides, he's not even in Chen Youliang's league. Chen Youliang had at least 600,000 troops, while he only had 150,000. Where does he get such confidence?"

Upon hearing the phrase "the battle is the end of the battle," Old Zhu immediately became annoyed.

Why did Chen Youliang say that the first battle would be the final battle, and that one battle would decide the fate of the world?

Was it really because he held an absolute advantage and was extremely confident that he could conquer the world in one battle?

of course not.

In fact, the Battle of Poyang Lake was not the first battle in the true sense.

At that time, Zhu Yuanzhang mostly used a strategy of retreating after a brief engagement, taking advantage of any small gains and then running away, gradually eroding Chen Youliang's advantage.

Indeed, in the beginning, when Zhu De was still under the command of the Red Turban Army and had not yet truly raised his own banner, Chen Youliang had a great advantage.

However, as time went on, although Zhu De never faced Chen Youliang on the main battlefield, he always managed to gain an advantage in other surprise attacks.

After being gradually eroded, by the time of the decisive battle on Poyang Lake, Chen Youliang's advantage was no longer as great as it had been at the beginning.

Rather than calling it a decisive battle, it would be more accurate to describe it as a desperate act by Chen Youliang after failing to capture Hongdu.

By then, the morale of his army had been largely worn down in the Battle of Hongdu, and the soldiers had long lost their belief in victory.

In such a decisive battle, how could there be any chance of victory?

"However, although the soldiers under Zhang Xianzhong's command seemed to have good morale, they actually seemed to be somewhat timid."

"After all, they had been suppressed by Li Zicheng for so long, unable to even leave Sichuan, and suddenly they had to face an enemy who could easily defeat the Shun army."

"Being cowardly before the battle is not necessarily an unacceptable thing."

"However, if they were to engage the Qing army in battle first under these circumstances, the outcome would likely not be good."

During the Yuanguang era, Liu Che looked at the sky with some worry.

This wasn't something he figured out himself, but rather something Huo Qubing, who was standing beside him, said.

He was not knowledgeable in military affairs, but he completely trusted Huo Qubing's judgment.

After acquiring Wei Qing and Huo Qubing, his war against the Xiongnu truly began to go smoothly.

He couldn't help but believe the judgment of these two men.

"Fortunately, Emperor Gaozu will receive the news soon. Let's just hope he can make an accurate judgment."

Liu Bei nodded repeatedly in agreement with Emperor Wu's assessment.

As long as Liu Bang could accurately judge Zhang Xianzhong's plans, he would certainly be able to make the best response.

Inside the sky.

Looking at the urgent intelligence sent back by his spies, Liu Bang fell into deep thought.

He didn't have the perspective of those outside the canopy, couldn't see the choices made by various forces, hadn't experienced this history, and didn't know the character of those forces.

He could only make his own judgment based on the limited information he had.

Furthermore, he had no chance to make mistakes.

With only these 10,000 troops, it would take at least two or three months for reinforcements to arrive.

If you make a mistake, you lose everything!

The Southern Ming made a move, but did not send a large army. Instead, they sent small groups of soldiers to nibble away at the surrounding areas while Li Zicheng's forces were in disarray.

Clearly, this is a reckless and cowardly person.

At this point, anyone with even a modicum of ambition should have launched a massive military offensive, boldly raising the banner of restoring the lost territories and rebuilding the Ming Dynasty.

Even though the Ming Dynasty's reputation is ruined at this moment, there are still some people who still recognize it.

If some of the Ming dynasty's orphans could see hope, they might abandon their idea of ​​independence and instead support the Ming dynasty.

"This is what the Southern Ming should really be doing. Small-scale skirmishes, even if they gain some advantage now, will eventually have to give it all back."

"The Ming Dynasty still hasn't produced a ruler who can restore its prosperity. It seems that the time for the Ming Dynasty to perish has truly come."

After shaking his head slightly, Liu Bang tossed the intelligence about the Southern Ming aside.

They lack courage and strategy, and are not even of any use.

The next piece of information did indeed catch his attention.

Or rather, Zhang Xianzhong's movements seemed rather strange to him.

Except for a small number of garrison troops, almost the entire force came out.

Compared to the Southern Ming, which at least had a legitimate title, Zhang Xianzhong was a complete rebel.

However, his actions were exactly the opposite of those of the Southern Ming.

"What is this going to do?"

"Trying to profit from the chaos on both sides?"

"But that doesn't make sense either; Zhang Xianzhong probably didn't have that kind of opportunity."

Without the reputation of being the legitimate successor to the Southern Ming, he was the one who should have built high walls, stockpiled grain, and slowly nibbled away at the cities after leaving Sichuan.

As long as he conquers enough cities, he will have Shu as his backing. He can fight if he can win, and retreat to Shu if he can't. It can be said that he will be almost invincible.

On the contrary, being too aggressive would make him vulnerable to being exploited, leaving him no chance to retreat to Shu alive.

"That's interesting. If the decisions of these two sides were reversed, that would have been the right thing to do, but now..."

Liu Bang was not entirely sure about Zhang Xianzhong's plans.

Indeed, he realized that this man might have sent troops to resist the Manchus.

But he was also a little hesitant to gamble.

If Zhang Xianzhong is an ambitious and reckless person who gets carried away by opportunities, then this gamble could cost him his entire fortune.

"Should we bet or not?"

If you win the gamble, you'll naturally have a greater chance of success in everything you do next.

But if you lose the bet, you'll lose your wife's savings and even your life.

In this challenge, Liu Bang's life was the most valuable thing; his death meant failure.

What if we don't gamble?

If Dorgon had first eliminated Li Zicheng and then Zhang Xianzhong, and with the arrival of various gentry and literati who were now in power, he would have been able to command at least 200,000 troops.

By then, it's uncertain whether Han Xin and Xiang Yu will be able to defeat him even if they return to reinforce, not to mention what kind of devastation the Central Plains will be in during this period.

I lost the bet, and the result was unacceptable.

Without gambling, with his mere ten thousand men, it would be incredibly difficult for him to turn the tide.

"Your Majesty, if you are having trouble making a decision, why don't I take the messenger to see Zhang Xianzhong?"

Seeing his predicament, his personal guards immediately offered a suggestion.

Since we can't figure out Zhang Xianzhong's plans, we might as well just ask him directly.

"The time wasted going back and forth might make it too late."

"If nothing unexpected happens, Li Zicheng shouldn't be able to hold out for that long."

Liu Bang frowned, wanting to reject the suggestion.

"This humble general may ride a fast horse and travel day and night."

"Your Majesty only needs to give me fifteen days, and I will be able to bring the message back."

"If I have not returned by the end of fifteen days, then Your Majesty will surely know the answer."

If he comes back, then there's no need to say more.

If they can't come back, it means Zhang Xianzhong has no intention of joining forces against the Manchus, and we can still make further plans.

"Fifteen days? That should be enough time."

"I will give you three fine horses. It doesn't matter if the horses die from exhaustion; as long as you bring back the news, you will be credited with the greatest merit!"