Desert Eagle Suletan Khan

Chapter 658 The two kings are at odds with each other before the battle (Part )
At this time, the Qing government was taking advantage of the internal strife in the Southern Ming Dynasty and the opportunity of Sun Ke's surrender to mobilize troops and generals to prepare for a large-scale attack. Facing the crisis that the Qing army was about to move south, Li Dingguo and Liu Wenxiu were at odds within the Ming Dynasty. Before the war, Li Dingguo transferred Liu Wenxiu and many front-line generals back to Kunming in the rear, seriously weakening the forward command and deployment.

In the face of the emperor's imperial edict, Liu Wenxiu chose to obey. He was originally from Yan'an, Shaanxi, and his real name was Liu Ruoqi. After being adopted as an adopted son by Zhang Xianzhong, he changed his name to Wenxiu. He had been a thief for the first half of his life. He followed his adoptive father to establish the Daxi Kingdom and became one of the four kings of Daxi. Only after being recruited by the imperial court did he get rid of the big "thief" on his forehead. Therefore, no matter what happens in the rest of my life, I don’t want to be a thief again!

Although he knew that calling him back to Kunming was not the emperor's original intention but that of Li Dingguo, he still chose to obey the order. After finally regaining his innocence, he was most afraid of those scholars scolding him as a reckless person, whose traitorous nature is hard to change, and who dare not do anything against the imperial decree; besides, he could also understand the difficulties faced by Emperor Yongli. If he had to choose between himself and Li Dingguo, His Majesty would definitely choose Li Dingguo. After all, Li Dingguo made the greatest contribution to the rescue and was more powerful than himself. For the sake of the stability of the court, he could only choose to follow Li Dingguo's suggestion and recall him.

He did not blame the emperor, obeyed the imperial edict, and returned to Kunming obediently. The first thing he did was to go to the palace to see the emperor. He firmly believed that his enduring humiliation would definitely win the emperor's trust and understanding. Once he saw Long Yan, his majesty would definitely comfort him.

The imperial palace in Kunming was originally a tribute courtyard in Yunnan. It was not too big, but it was orderly and guarded by guards.

"Your Highness, King of Shu, please wait a moment. I have ordered someone to pass the news. I believe that Your Majesty will announce your admission to the palace soon. Please follow me to rest in the wing first." The person in charge of the imperial guard was Mu Tianbo, an old acquaintance of the Duke of Guizhou. When he saw Liu Wen Xiu greeted him with a smile.

"Thank you, Duke of Guizhou." Liu Wenxiu bowed his hand to Mu Tianbo.

"What are you talking about? Do we need to say thank you for our friendship?" Mu Tianbo laughed.

Soon a chamberlain announced that Emperor Yongli had summoned him in his palace and that he was about to see Long Yan. Liu Wenxiu was so excited that she strode towards the palace.

"Your Majesty, Liu Wenxiu, comes to see you." As soon as they met, Liu Wenxiu saluted Emperor Yongli. Since the incident of Sun Kewang, the two kings of Jin and Shu treated the emperor with great respect, fearing that the courtiers would call them the second Sun Kewang. This made Emperor Yongli's life much easier, and he slowly restored his imperial dignity.

"Get on your feet," Emperor Yongli said majestically with a pale face, "Come here and give the King of Shu a seat."

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Liu Wenxiu thanked him hurriedly and waited for the real dragon to speak.

It is said that he defeated Sun Kewang and stayed in Guizhou to deal with the aftermath. He successfully stabilized the internal situation and prevented the Qing army from invading, which was a great contribution to the country. When the emperor summoned him, he should have expressed his condolences. Unexpectedly, Emperor Yongli's first words after granting him the throne were But it was: "How did Sun Kewang escape?"

The tone of this sentence was not harsh, nor was the tone high, but it had a faint flavor of questioning. In normal times, Liu Wenxiu would not care about it, but now that he has been deprived of military power and recalled to Kunming, it is a sensitive time. Being questioned by the emperor like this, he can't help but feel cold, disappointed and sad. But when the Supreme Being asked questions, he had to answer them. Liu Wenxiu calmed down and reluctantly replied: "When I defeated Sun Kewang, I didn't expect him to take a small road. I led the troops and chased him from the main road. When I went to Panjiang River and asked carefully, the soldiers on the bridge said: 'I have never been like this before.' It turned out that he was escaping by a small road, but he still had to chase down the main road. It was expected that there would be less than a hundred people on horseback. Horses were replaced everywhere. He didn't say the reason for the great defeat. Who wouldn't accept it? He went at night. I only pursued one station a day. , so we can't catch up. When I arrived in Guizhou, Feng Shuangli said that he had been gone for four days. I sent out troops to chase him again, but he was out of reach, so I hope I can escape."

Emperor Yongli was silent for a long time and then said: "If I couldn't catch him, I wouldn't have pursued him that day. If I chase him now and I can't catch him, and I'll turn him around and throw him elsewhere, I'm afraid the disaster in southern Yunnan is not far away." This was actually a mixture of regret and fear. He was afraid that Sun Kewang would surrender to the Manchus and lure the Qing army to attack Yunnan and Guizhou. It would be better to let Sun Kewang go back to Guizhou to stand on his own feet and act as a barrier to prevent the Qing army from attacking him. Emperor Yongli, who had gone through many trials and tribulations, was timid, but not stupid. At this time, he could see that Sun Kewang's surrender to the Qing Dynasty might bring great harm to the Ming Dynasty, and he couldn't help but feel panic.

He does not mean that. These words fell into Liu Wenxiu's ears, which made him think that the emperor was blaming himself for failing to do a good job and not catching Sun Kewang, and he couldn't help but feel even more sad. I was so loyal and loyal, but I didn't get a word of comfort from the emperor. I only got questions and accusations. How could I not let my loyal minister break his heart?
"It is my crime to let Sun Kewang escape. Please be punished by your Majesty." Liu Wenxiu angrily fell to the ground to plead guilty.

"The king of Shu said something serious, I have no intention of blaming you." At this time, Emperor Yongli felt that he had gone too far and hurriedly left the garden.

However, once the heart is cold, it is difficult to warm it up again! After chatting for a few more words, Liu Wenxiu resigned from the palace.

Political struggles have always been cruel, and since Li Dingguo recalled Liu Wenxiu to Kunming, he would never give up. Not only did he remove Liu Wenxiu from military power, he also replaced many of his trusted generals with people he could trust. The imperial court had obviously relied heavily on Li Dingguo between the two kings of Jin and Shu, and he had left it to his own devices to make appointments and dismissals as needed. Emperor Yongli was unwilling to defend Liu Wenxiu, or in other words, he did not dare to disobey Li Dingguo. Some short-sighted measures made Liu Wenxiu deeply dissatisfied. He was very depressed in his heart, and even said to others privately: "If the wolf retreats and the tiger advances, the king of Jin will definitely lose his country."

This comparison of Li Dingguo to Sun Kewang is too extreme, but Li Dingguo's monopoly of power and improper handling of affairs did bring great harm to the court. After that, Liu Wenxiu suffered from heart disease and became increasingly negative. "Whenever he went to the imperial court, he would never go there." He "left all military and horse affairs in the care of the guard Chen Jian and never left the house."

Heart disease is the most harmful to the body. At first, Liu Wenxiu just excused herself from going to court, but soon she became seriously ill and bedridden. Emperor Yongli and Li Dingguo both visited him in person, comforted him repeatedly and sent doctors to treat him. However, there was no cure for the heart disease, and he gradually became thinner and thinner, and eventually died of the disease. Before he died, he wrote in his posthumous letter: "The troops from the north are approaching day by day, and the country is in danger. Please go to Shu to help the troops of the Thirteen Families. I have a hoard of 160,000 gold, which can be used for payment. All my wives and family members should bear whips." Mi Yi followed the king's affairs. Then he went out to camp in Shaanxi and Luo, and the common people turned defeat into success."

This posthumous note suggested that Emperor Yongli contact the Thirteen Kuidong families to manage Sichuan as a base to fight against the Manchus, and then capture Shaanxi and Luo and restore the Central Plains. It was full of insight and wisdom; he was willing to donate 160,000 taels of private money to recharge. It is his loyalty to pay for the army and let his wife and clan members carry whips to serve the king.

Seeing this suicide note, Emperor Yongli and Li Dingguo couldn't help but be moved, but before they had time to implement it, news came that the Qing army was heading south.

(End of this chapter)