in the north.

Later, in 1643, Li Zicheng's victory against Sun Chuanting in central Henan reaffirmed his decision to march west to Xi'an. According to most accepted theory, Li made his mind during a meeting in Xiangjing as he already ruled out the choice of march towards Nanjing or to Beijing. Modern historian Roger V. Des Forges has suggested that Li Zicheng may have considered Shaanxi because he was a native of the province and the fact that the city had served as the political center of the Han and Tang dynasties, whose political models