King Xiang of the Red Chamber

Chapter 725 Marching into Yili

It was actually not that outrageous that the Dzungars opened the city and surrendered.

After all, a few years ago, when the Ming army captured Hami City, the Khan at the time, Qiqige's father, was thinking about making peace with the Ming army.

However, a coup d'état took place on the day of the meeting, and almost all of Qiqige's family was killed. Her uncle Narisong usurped the throne of the Khan.

It's a pity that Na Risong was a puppet pushed up by others. Because he couldn't see his own position clearly, he was deposed by the powerful Agula two years ago, and ultimately died in vain.

This Agula had the support of the Russians and had no shortage of guns, cannons or food, so he quickly integrated the entire Dzungar state and continued to fight against the Ming army.

However, in the past year, although the coalition forces were powerful, they suffered repeated defeats. However, Agula still risked everything to stand firm, which made those who were already dissatisfied with him even more dissatisfied.

When the Ming army entered the Ili River Valley, everyone knew that the outcome was decided. Even the Kazakhs and Turkmen withdrew, and the Russians had left two days ago.

As a result, those who opposed Agulla inevitably came together and eventually launched a coup in the city, killing or arresting Alagu and his followers.

These coup plotters were smart and knew to capture Agula alive, which cost them a lot of brain cells.

Of course, one page of paper cannot record so much information. The news came from the captain who was summoned by the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

In order to convey the message before the Dzungars, the Jinyiwei put in a lot of effort, but they only arrived half an hour earlier.

About half an hour later, the envoys from Yili City arrived, and brought with them Agula and his followers, a total of more than 70 people.

This day was September 12, the sixteenth year of the Zhengtong period.

Regarding such a major matter, Zhu Jinghong certainly would not believe it easily, but instead sent people to verify it several times.

The first question is whether it was really Agula who was captured; the second is whether the surrender of the Junggar people was a false surrender; and the third is where the army of Rakshasa went.

About three days later, as the news came back and was verified several times, Zhu Jinghong believed that Yili had opened its doors to him.

The remaining 30,000-plus troops of Rakshasa and other countries have retreated 500 miles away with their Crown Prince Constantine.

More than 20,000 Junggar troops also withdrew from Yili at Zhu Jinghong's request and were all disarmed.

Immediately afterwards, Zhu Jinghong sent an advance force of about two thousand people to Yili and completely took control of the city.

The 20,000 surrendered Junggar soldiers were sentenced by Zhu Jinghong to three years of hard labor. They would be responsible for opening roads between mountain passes and valleys to ensure smoother supply for the Ming army in the future.

This project required construction work, so Zhu Jinghong gave the task to the Anxi Xingdusi.

On September 19, Zhu Jinghong convened a military meeting and determined all the agenda for accepting the surrender.

The most crucial link is to have each guard select 200 people, and then line up and march into Yili City.

Although Yili City is large, it cannot accommodate Zhu Jinghong's 70,000 troops.

The reason why there were 70,000 troops was that there were garrisons left in the cities captured along the way and important nodes, so only 70,000 troops entered the Ili River Valley.

Of course, in order to ensure that the honor was shared, troops were drawn from each guard, so there were many sources for the 70,000 men.

There were more than thirty guards including the Imperial Guard, the Beijing Camp, the Anxi Xingdusi, the Qinghai Xingdusi, Mongolia, Tibet, and the Jurchens, with a total of more than thirty infantry and cavalry.

In other words, there were about thirty phalanxes participating in the entry ceremony.

On September 20th, the selection of each phalanx was completed and they marched towards Yili.

On the afternoon of September 22, the main force of the Ming army arrived at the east of Yili City and then stationed there according to the plan.

The selected phalanx to enter the city, totaling more than 6,500 people, found a separate place to camp.

The battle was over, and the soldiers were all relaxed. After setting up camp, they began to dress themselves up.

According to Zhu Jinghong, they represent the face of the Ming Dynasty, and tomorrow is a good day to enter the city, so they naturally have to show their most glorious side.

On the banks of the Ili River, some soldiers were boiling water for bathing, some were polishing their armor, and some were trimming their beards.

In a secluded spot by the river, Qiqige and Nuomin were taking a walk, followed by a dozen maids.

Yili is right in front of her. It is not only Qiqige's hometown that she longs for, but also the place that makes her extremely sad.

Precisely because of this profound feeling, she had to come along, even though she was already pregnant.

She knew that if she couldn't go back to Yili this time, she would never be able to come again after returning to Beijing with Zhu Jinghong.

Of course, she came back not only to commemorate, but also to take revenge.

In her heart, there are too many people who deserve to die rather than continue to live in this world.

Nuomin followed beside her and looked at Qiqige with concern. She was afraid that her cousin would get angry and hurt the fetus.

Although Qiqige has a good physical condition, she should still be careful.

"I heard that most of those people have been arrested... and they will be escorted back to Beijing after the new year. Then my sister will be able to have her revenge!" Nuomin spoke in a light tone, trying to make the atmosphere more lively.

Qiqige said calmly: "There are still people hiding in Yili City. We have to find them out!"

"But... they have already surrendered!" Nuomin reminded.

Turning around, Qiqige said, "I understand what you mean... You're afraid that I will act on my own and offend the prince!"

Touching her slightly bulging belly, Qiqige smiled and said, "Don't worry... I'm not that stupid. Do you know that the Han Chinese have a word called pillow talk?"

Nuomin understood immediately, so after thinking for a while, she asked, "Do you need my help?"

"No need... don't get involved!"

While the two sisters were chatting, Zhu Jinghong was patrolling the military camps with his guards.

The greater the victory, the more cautious he became, because danger might strike at this time.

He did not choose to enter the city, but waited for the stationed troops to conduct a thorough screening to ensure that tomorrow's entry ceremony was absolutely safe.

To this end, the number of troops stationed in Yili has been increased to 8,000.

Zhu Jinghong was busy, and the soldiers were busy.

The nobles of Dzungar, both big and small, were also busy recruiting herdsmen to come to Yili to witness the grand spectacle of the military entering the city.

This was of course arranged by Zhu Jinghong. The main purpose of organizing such a grand ceremony of entering the city was to demonstrate the military power and let the Dzungar people see the strength of the military so that they would not have the intention of rebelling in the next few decades or even hundreds of years.

In order to help Zhu Jinghong achieve his goal, these Junggar nobles racked their brains and drove as many people as possible.

In the afternoon, when the sun was setting, Zhu Jinghong had a meal with all the generals and finally finalized the details of tomorrow's entry ceremony.

"You mean... the South Gate of Yili is called the Arc de Triomphe?" Zhu Jinghong was quite surprised.

He comes into contact with too many reports every day, so it is easy for him to miss some information that he may be concerned about.

For example, this "Arc de Triomphe" caught Zhu Jinghong's heart, and he thought of entering from the South Gate.

"It is said that it was changed when Arabtan started his rebellion. The original intention was to refer to the south of our dynasty as the main gate, so that his rebels could return triumphantly through the main gate in the future!"

"It's a pity that Arabtan died at the hands of his own people before the war was over!"

The "Arabutan" mentioned by the general was Qiqige's biological father. After the man finished explaining, Zhu Jinghong ordered: "Since the South Gate is called the Arc de Triomphe, tomorrow we will enter the city... change from the East Gate to the South Gate!"

"Do you have any objections?"

This is indeed a good omen. Although it is a little troublesome, no one raised any objections.

After wiping his hands with a handkerchief, Zhu Jinghong said, "Well then...it's settled!"

"Have a good rest tonight and be more energetic tomorrow... This kind of grand occasion and this kind of glory will only happen once in a lifetime!"

Seeing Zhu Jinghong stand up, everyone present stood up as well and responded with a smile.

After Zhu Jinghong finished his meal, everyone quickly ate and returned to their respective barracks.

As for Zhu Jinghong, after he returned to the tent, Qiqige and Nuomin came out to greet him.

"It's cold, take a good rest, you don't have to come here!" Zhu Jinghong said to Qiqige.

"Taking care of the prince's daily life is my duty. How dare I neglect it!" Qiqige replied.

"What's more, Your Highness led his army to conquer Yili and helped me avenge my father... I am so grateful. I have no way to repay such a great kindness. I can only serve you wholeheartedly!"

"Let's go in and talk, it's cold outside!"

"Yes!"

Everyone entered the tent and helped Zhu Jinghong to sleep. They didn't talk about anything else except chatting.

In a blink of an eye, it was the next day. When the sun rose from the snow-capped mountains in the distance, a large number of people had gathered outside the city of Yili.

The crowds were distributed inside and outside the city, but there were more people outside the city, with a total of more than 100,000 people inside and outside the city.

Outside the south gate of Yili City, a road 30 meters wide had been opened up and chevaux de frise had been placed to prevent collisions. Soldiers from the Beijing camp were on guard and imposed martial law.

The common people who came to visit were kept further away, about twenty feet away from the center of the road.

At this moment, about a mile away, the military formation participating in the entry ceremony had finished their breakfast, put on their bright armor, and assembled in formation with their weapons in hand.

As for Zhu Jinghong, he had arrived at the Arc de Triomphe on the south side of Yili City accompanied by a group of senior generals.

Today he did not wear casual robes, but a red round-collar dragon robe that represented his status as a prince, and a black gauze winged crown on his head.

"Isn't it time?" Zhu Jinghong asked his left and right.

On his left, Geng Zonggui, the general officer of the Fenwu Camp, replied, "Your Highness, it is time!"

At this time, another general replied: "Your Highness, look, it's already moving!"

Holding a telescope, Zhu Jinghong looked into the distance and saw that the army was indeed moving and it was obvious that the team had begun to march.

Putting away the telescope, Zhu Jinghong smiled and said, "It will be over in a while. Let's go to the officialdom in the city center first to see the big Buddha statue, and then go to the palace to take a look!"

"Yes!"

Today's arrangement is relatively relaxed. Zhu Jinghong and the generals will go on a tour. After all, this place is the capital of a country, and there are always places worth seeing.

The senior generals following Zhu Jinghong at this moment included Wang Ziteng, the commander-in-chief of the Anxi Xingdusi, and Yang Longshan, the commander-in-chief of the Qinghai Xingdusi.

These two have been stuck in the mud of the Northwest for several years. According to Zhu Jinghong's estimation, they should be promoted to governor-general and vice-governor, which can be said to be a happy ending after suffering a lot.

As for the others, they were Geng Zonggui, the general of the Fenwu Camp, Ding Guanglu, the general of the Xieyong Camp, and Shi Qian (father of Shi Chong), the general of the Yangwei Camp.

The five people mentioned above all served as deputy governors and concurrently held military positions, and they can definitely be called senior generals.

As for the two commanders Shi Guangzhu and Liu Fang, because of their old age and it was too hard for them to climb on ice and lie in the snow, Zhu Jinghong asked these two veterans to stay behind, one in Urumqi and the other in Jinghe.

As for the other deputy generals, commanders-in-chief, and lower-level commanders and assistant governors, as well as the Mongolian, Jurchen and Tibetan generals, they were all waiting on horseback outside the Arc de Triomphe, waiting for the army formation to come and inspect them in person.

Each of these generals had a bright smile on their face as they chatted with their colleagues. The atmosphere was much more relaxed than that at the Arc de Triomphe.

About a few minutes later, the vanguard troops appeared in the distance. They were the Jinwu Zuowei under Shi Chong. They all deserved the greatest credit for suppressing the rebellion.

"General Shi, you have given birth to a good son!" On the city wall, Zhu Jinghong turned around and looked at Shi Qian.

Everyone looked at Shi Qian with envy in their eyes.

Shi Qian was extremely modest at this moment. He bowed slightly and replied, "If it weren't for your Highness's favor, he wouldn't have had the opportunity to make great achievements!"

Zhu Jinghong didn't say much about this, but just leaned on the railing and looked down at the city.

The Jinwu Left Guard formation, with a total of 200 people led by two deputy captains, marched solemnly in orderly steps.

Their footsteps were powerful, their weapons and equipment were ahead of their time, and their morale and military spirit were like a sword out of its sheath...

This is a strong army, an invincible army... The people watching the scene all had the same thought.

Many of them had seen the army and the elite of the Rakshasa people, who shocked them at the time.

But now, the momentum and weapons and equipment of the Ming army are stronger than those of the Russians, so it is normal for these people to change their minds.

The Russians deserved their defeat. Even the coalition forces of the eight kingdoms were defeated. Who could defeat the Ming army? Who dared to disrespect the Ming emperor thousands of miles away?

The square formation continued to move forward, and when it was fifty meters away from the city gate, the deputy captain of the team gave the order and the square formation changed from starting to marching in step.

In the silent fields outside the city, the only sounds could be heard: the Ming army's boots and the movement of machinery, followed by the neat and loud shouts.

"Long live the Emperor, His Majesty!"

During the military parade, people shouted "Long live the emperor". This was a rigid rule. At the same time, the generals on the roadside waved their hands to signal the marching formations.

Of course, Zhu Jinghong also took the initiative to wave his hand to salute this army with the greatest military achievements.

After Jinwu Zuowei came Huben Youwei, then Wuxiang Zuowei, Wuding Youwei...

One army after another marched into the city, shocking hundreds of thousands of civilians along the way. Many people will never forget this scene today.

After a dozen or so infantry phalanxes passed by, the cavalry phalanxes passed by one after another. All the cavalry held their heads high with confident and powerful smiles on their faces.

"Victory...Victory!" the cavalry drew their sabers and shouted.

The military parade into the city lasted for nearly twenty minutes. The morale of the Ming army was high throughout the whole process, except for the silence of the Dzungar people.

Zhu Jinghong saw all this, and he felt more comfortable, which showed that the deterrent effect had been achieved.

Turning around, Zhu Jinghong looked at the people behind him and said with a smile: "Everyone, let's go... Let's go to the city center first. It is said that it is the place where the Junggars worship heaven and earth!"

"Your Highness!" Everyone made way for him.

So Zhu Jinghong walked down the city wall. There was already a carriage waiting for him downstairs, and they were all going to ride into the city.

The carriage is wrapped with iron sheets and has excellent bulletproof effect. Zhu Jinghong dare not go recklessly in such a place.

In the city, soldiers had already cleared both sides of the road he passed through, and the road was unobstructed.

(End of this chapter)