Great Qing Dynasty talker

Chapter 558: The Qufu debate, the arrogant Duke Yansheng reveals his true feelings~
Yu Shihe stamped his feet anxiously:

"Brother-in-law, you are confused. What Northern and Southern Dynasties? If Emperor Wu is determined, he might attack the Forbidden City next year."

"Then let's wait until his troops cross the Yellow River and enter Shandong."

"My Lord Yansheng, if you submit your surrender letter as soon as possible, the new dynasty will have a better impression of you."

Kong Xianpei joked:

"Brother-in-law, you are too active a lobbyist, aren't you? What official position did the South promise you?"

Yu Shihe was silent for a moment. He was too embarrassed to say that he was eager to show off and had not received any assignment from Wu Ting at all.

He just instinctively felt that rare goods were worth buying.

……

Kong Xianpei looked outside the city and said to himself:
"Change of dynasties? We in the Kong family have seen a lot."

"My impression? Hahahaha~ There are so many emperors who hate my Kong family. Who is Emperor Wu? Emperors come and go, but Duke Yansheng remains. No matter which family or surname sits on the throne, the old emperor has to respect us."

"I hate him if I want to. What can he do? What can he do?"

Yu Shihe frowned and muttered:

"Brother-in-law, this time is different. Wu Ting held an imperial examination to select scholars, and the proportion of sage doctrines was very small. The core ones were eliminated."

"Brother-in-law, you are still too young."

"Please give me some advice, Lord Yansheng?"

Kong Xianpei put his hands behind his back, looked into the distance, and said in a sarcastic voice:

"As for the emperor, he always speaks according to his needs. He may dislike you today, but you may like you tomorrow."

"Emperor Wu is a scholar. He has failed in the imperial examinations many times, so he is upset. It is natural and understandable that he holds grudges against the sage. However, once he really sits on the throne, he will immediately change his mind and sincerely submit."

"Do you know why?"

……

"W-why?"

"Emperor Wu has a poor family background. Although he has built a considerable foundation, his mentality has not changed. He still has the mentality of an ordinary person."

"When he led his troops into the Forbidden City, walked into the Golden Palace, sat on the dragon throne, and put on a yellow robe, the real dragon energy rushed from his feet to his head. He woke up instantly and thought, hey, no, I am the emperor now, I have to herd the people~"

“The ruler is the ruler, the minister is the minister, the father is the father, the son is the son, how well the sage said it.”

"Abandoning the teachings of the saints, where can I find a complete and systematic theory to enrich the brains of the subjects of the empire?"

"From now on, the saint is me, and I am the saint. Duke Yansheng, be loyal, very loyal. You must preach, respect, and reward me generously. The saint's teachings must not change for a thousand years."

"The Sheep Herding Emperor, the Beggar Emperor, and the Wild Boar Skin Emperor can all figure it out, but why can't a Jiangnan scholar like him figure it out?"

After he finished speaking, a strange light flashed in Kong Xianpei's eyes.

this moment,
Yu Shihe was convinced, completely convinced.

Originally, he looked down on his brother-in-law. But after today's conversation, he found that he was indeed a descendant of Yanshenggong, very intelligent and knowledgeable.

The sage’s teachings are good.

……

Kong Xianpei was very interested and took the initiative to extend the topic.

"But I am a little confused. Wu Ting's rise was too fast. What did he rely on?"

Yu Shihe suddenly became energetic:
"The people of Jiangnan pay money, and the people of Huaixi risk their lives. It's similar to the team that Zhu Yuanzhang used to fight for supremacy in the world, and the team is much stronger."

Kong Xianpei frowned and said:

"How many times have I told you not to swear? It's disrespectful."

"Jiangning slang, not a dirty word."

"Nonsense! Jiangning is a sub-capital, an ancient capital of five dynasties, rich in culture and profound in heritage. Don't slander your fellow countrymen for no reason. You Jiangsu people have a bad habit of stepping on each other."

The two chatted casually until the rebels appeared outside the city. They had a crude and scary flag - "Dashi Army".

……

"Brothers of the Dashi Army, work harder to capture Qufu City, and then enjoy wine, meat, and white steamed buns."

"Kill."

Hungry people holding hoes, hatchets, dung forks and all kinds of weapons rushed towards Qufu City from all directions. There were over ten thousand of them and they were endless.

On the city wall, guns and cannons rang out.

It was a one-sided killing.

The Qing army was equipped with only firearms and was in a dominant position.

The Dashi Army had simple weapons and ragged clothes, and relied entirely on their bravery.

He put the ladder up the city wall despite being shot at, regardless of his own life.

This reckless fighting style shocked even the Qing army officers who were used to seeing killings.

A guerrilla drew his sword and shouted:
"Pour oil and gold juice."

……

The boiling golden juice poured down from the top of the city wall, and the Dashi Army gathered under the ladders let out shrill screams.

Burns are particularly terrible.

The hungry people who were splashed with the scalding golden juice wiped it with their hands and their skin peeled off instantly.

The wounded's flesh was bloody and their bones were white, and they did not look like human beings.

The rebels retreated~
The Qing army burst into cheers and sent them off with guns and cannons.

The defeated Dashi army ran head-on into the 500 musketeers sent by Yanzhou City to support them. As soon as they started fighting, the Qing army panicked.

The leading captain had been stationed in Weishan Lake for two years. He witnessed many rounds of collective fighting between people from Yanzhou and Xuzhou for the control of Weishan Lake, and almost got himself killed.

The nightmare reappeared and he actually turned his horse around and ran away.

The general panicked, and even a battalion of Green Camp soldiers panicked. As a result, more than 300 muskets became the spoils of the Dashi Army.

……

In the Central Plains, smoke of war was rising.

In Shaanxi, Gansu and Shanxi, there were crowds of starving people.

The reasons are different.

The former was caused by human factors, as the Qing government collected too much grain from the local area, causing skinning and cramping. The latter was caused by God, as heavy rains caused disasters.

And all of this is caused by the gravity of the sun.

Gravitational changes will affect sunspot activity and have a huge impact on the rotation of the earth. Specific phenomena include: volcanoes, earthquakes, La Niña, El Niño~
At last,
To sum it up in one word: hunger.

Hunger is the most terrifying word of all Chinese characters.

Everyone thinks that war is terrible, but in fact the loss of personnel caused by casualties on the battlefield can only be considered a small matter.

Hunger and plague, these two twin brothers are the real revolving door of hell.

Either don't come, or come together.

The first step is to format the partition.

……

Liu Qian was in charge personally, and except for the personnel stationed in the southwest, all other personnel of the Intelligence Agency moved north.

With Zhili in the Central Plains as the core, the actions were spread out.

Two tasks:

1. Assist Sihai Piaohao in attracting deposits.

Second, fund and support some rebel forces and eliminate the local forces in the north as much as possible.

Liu Qian did not quite agree with His Majesty's strategy. He felt that if His Majesty really set his sights on the property of the northern gentry, he could send a large army to sweep across the country, confiscate the property of these people and exterminate their families, and not a single house, field, or deposit would be lost.

Why bother like this now?

but,

Even if they disagreed, the Intelligence Agency still did its best to carry out the mission. Perhaps it was a test of his loyalty to me.

……

As intelligence from various places is transmitted back and summarized.

Intelligence Officer Miao Renfeng, the de facto second-in-command of the Intelligence Agency, sensed an unusual crisis.

"Director, something is wrong."

"What's wrong? Is the Qing army going to counterattack?"

"In my opinion, the North seems to be losing control."

Liu Qian stood up and gestured to go out and talk.

The two of them stood by the empty river to make sure no one else could hear them.

"Director, I think the North is likely to get out of control."

"Out of control? What do you mean?"

“The autumn harvest was interrupted, food shortages were widespread, rebellions broke out, and order completely collapsed.”

There was a fierce light in Liu Qian's eyes.

He slapped Miao Renfeng on the cheek with his backhand and asked angrily:
"His Majesty has repeatedly warned us not to let the chaos of the late Ming Dynasty happen again. How the hell did you mess up?"

……

Miao Renfeng covered her red cheeks and lowered her head and said:
"Director, it's not our fault."

"The heavy rains in the northwest caused disasters, and the Central Plains brutally collected grain. The combination of the two was already a simmering fire. We poured more oil on it."

Liu Qian pondered for a long time.

asked:

"Tell me about your judgment?"

"First of all, the number. According to reports from spies in Henan, Shandong, Shaanxi, Gansu, Shanxi, and Zhili, the number of local rebel forces has increased dramatically from 18 to 57."

"It's also possible that the rebels were on the move and were counted twice." "Yes. But it still illustrates the problem. The ability of the rebels to move quickly means a surge in combat effectiveness."

Liu Qian nodded and motioned to continue.

"There are battles around key towns in the north, such as Kaifeng, Jinan, Taiyuan, and Xi'an. According to court reports, the Qing army has basically abandoned the countryside and has reduced its forces to defend key cities."

"What about the gentry and their forts?"

"Take Shandong Yanzhou Prefecture as an example. Nine forts in the prefecture have been breached. After the hungry people broke into the forts, they killed all the gentry and their families."

……

"Was this information provided by Yu Shihe?"

"Correct."

"How did you gather intelligence from other provinces?"

"Through the post stations, we have instigated the rebellion of several key post stations in advance."

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"Hmph, that sucks."

"What the Director said is absolutely right."

The duck knows first when the river water warms in spring, and the Intelligence Bureau is that duck. Intelligence was written in secret language and passed through post stations openly, consuming the resources of the Qing court.

Liu Qian thought about it and asked:
"Is the food shortage in the North really that serious?"

"Yes. All the stored grain was confiscated, and the autumn grain was severely damaged. Maybe the Qing court did it on purpose to create a mess for us."

Liu Qian slapped his forehead in pain:
"Oh no, this is a big trouble."

……

Miao Renfeng asked tentatively:
"Director, please consult His Majesty as soon as possible. This matter is of great importance and requires His Majesty's decisive decision."

"Well. Please pass on this order from now on. No one is allowed to support the rebels with a single gun or a single bag of food. Otherwise, we won't be able to bear the blame in the future."

"clear."

Miao Renfeng is a scholar, and he understands what the director means.

Since ancient times, the secret service agencies have been the easiest to be targeted and blamed. The people of the North have suffered, and if they continue to add fuel to the fire, one day in the future, the Intelligence Agency may be liquidated.

The civil service group naturally disliked the "Jinyiwei".

Your Majesty's favor may not last long.

……

Outside Kaifeng City, black smoke billowed.

Henan Governor Liu Yong looked at the dark mass of rebel troops outside with a livid face. He had never expected that the rebels would rise so quickly.

"Futai, ask the court for help."

"No need. Send someone out of the city with a letter from me to recruit them. Tell the bandit leader that if he is willing to come to his senses and serve the court, he may become a general or a prime minister in the future."

"Whoo."

On the banks of the Huiji River, the rebel camps stretched for ten miles.

The flags are "White Lotus" and "Zheng".

The White Lotus Army led by Zheng Chunshou set up their flag in Lu'an Prefecture, Anhui Province, and marched all the way into Henan Province, passing through Guangzhou, Runing, and Chenzhou, constantly swallowing up small groups of their peers, and their expansion speed was like a snowball.

Different from other rebel armies.

Zheng Chunshou's troops have stricter discipline and clearer goals.

"Those who harm the people shall be killed."

"Those who disobey orders will be killed."

These two military orders maintained the bottom line.

……

Henan is not rich, but that doesn’t mean the gentry are not rich.

On the contrary, they are wealthy.

Along the way, Zheng Chunshou relied on breaking through the gentry's forts to obtain supplies and weapons, and also paid attention to collecting horses, mules, and donkeys.

Any creature with four legs will be incorporated into the core team and serve as a mount.

He already had an army of more than 2000 dragoons equipped with super-long spears, or according to Anhui custom, the Nian Army~
The total number of troops is as high as 3.

However, only 8000 of them were armed, while the rest held sticks and cheered.

It looks simple, but it is quite powerful.

For example, in the dock fort, Zheng Chunshou’s tactics are shield vehicles and ants.

As long as the determination is strong enough, and human lives are piled up until they reach the fort and the fort is held out for a while, the fort will surely be broken.

……

"General, a lobbyist is coming from Kaifeng."

"bring it here."

The visitor was a minor official from Kaifeng government office, holding a letter and trembling with fear.

"The governor asked me to tell you something. Put down your weapons and surrender~"

Before he finished his words, a huge head flew up.

Zheng Chunshou shouted sternly:
"What use is there in having such a foolish government?"

Amid the cheers of the soldiers, he walked to the Huiji River to scoop water to clean the blood from the blade, and only sheathed the blade after it had dried in the wind.

It was his ambition to capture Kaifeng.

If we can capture the provincial capital, our strength will increase dramatically.

For thousands of years, cities have been places where wealth gathers and the essence of the surrounding areas within hundreds of miles, let alone provincial capitals.

……

The seal is not easy to chew.

Relying on the tall and solid city walls and abundant firearms, the Qing army inflicted terrible casualties on the rebel army that was attacking the city.

There were corpses everywhere under the city walls.

In just one day, the rebel army lost more than 1 people.

The next day, they attacked again and lost more than 2000 people.

The rebel army began to waver and disintegrate.

That night, the Qing army launched a night attack on the city. 500 elite cavalrymen set fire to the enemy along the way, and the flames illuminated the Huiji River red.

Seeing this, Liu Yong on the top of the city wall couldn't help but burst into laughter.

……

Zhuxian Town.

Zheng Chunshou gathered the remaining troops, including 1500 Nian troops and 2000 infantrymen, and lost the rest.

The surrounding Tongxu County and Weishi County were well prepared, closing the city gates tightly and guarding against the enemy with all their might.

After the 2rd,
To the southeast, Taikang County is a hundred miles away.

The gatekeeper stopped two little beggars:
"Go away, go away now."

The two little beggars knelt down silently, kowtowed first, then took out their tattered flower drums and sang and begged.

The soldier also felt compassion and waved his hand:
"Go into town and stop being a nuisance."

Just like that, two or three people entered through the East Gate in the morning, two or three people entered through the West Gate at noon, and two or three people entered through the North Gate in the afternoon.

……

In the early morning, the night watchman was suddenly horrified to find that the city was on fire.

A group of beggars armed with sharp knives rushed to the city gate, stabbed the gatekeepers to death, and lowered the drawbridge.

outside the city,

Rows of torches pierced the night.

A quarter of an hour later, the Nian Army riding on donkeys entered the city first and easily defeated the armed forces that the county magistrate had just summoned with spears along the streets.

Taikang became a trophy.

After this battle, Zheng Chunshou unexpectedly opened up a new mode of siege - the Boy Scouts entered the city early and coordinated inside and outside.

This method is ineffective for large cities, but it can be regarded as a dimensionality reduction attack for ordinary small cities.

In Kaifeng City,
Liu Yong was surprised to find that the surrounding county towns were being captured one after another.

……

An atmosphere of panic spread throughout the city, and the gentry and merchants frantically searched for their last lifeline - the Sihai Piaohao.

The banknote exchange offices were also in an awkward position, as they suddenly had to receive mountains of gold and silver and also be responsible for transporting them out.

How to transport?
Neither the Qing army nor the rebel army would stand idly by.

The Intelligence Agency can't handle it either, so we have to call in the Army for help~
Kaifeng is just a microcosm.

The gentry from the Central Plains fled to the big cities with their families, and the memories that were deeply rooted in their bones were collectively awakened to them - the old events of the late Ming Dynasty.

Be it brutal or benevolent.

As long as they are rebels, they will not let these rich people go.

The gentry were terrified, in pain, tossing and turning, extremely disappointed with the Qing court and realizing that the empire was about to collapse.

……

The best outcome they are praying for now is probably that Wu Ting will launch a northern expedition, first destroy the Qing army, then destroy the rebel army, and restore order as soon as possible.

The Wu court merely deprived the gentry of their village rights and abolished the tax exemption, but did not demand their lives or their money.

The rebels demanded both money and lives.

Under such circumstances, letters of loyalty from gentry in various places flew to Suzhou Prefecture like snowflakes, and the content was highly consistent - requesting the wise and brave Emperor Wu to launch a northern expedition to save the people of the north from the dire straits.

(End of this chapter)