Saving the Ming Dynasty: I can exchange bodies with Chongzhen

Chapter 242 Sun Kewang and others ask for battle
Qianqing Palace

"Your Majesty, it is our duty to educate the world and govern the people with knowledgeable people. Why should we eliminate them?"

Zhu Changgan announced a decree that caused an uproar in the court.

That is, from the cabinet to the seventh-rank county magistrate, there is a time limit for each term, five years. After the term is completed, they will be rotated. If the next one wants to come up, he needs to compete and be assessed.

"Why do you think you are the knowledgeable people? For thousands of years, whether it is Confucianism or the various schools of thought, there has never been an article saying that literati are the knowledgeable people." Zhu Changgan looked at the memorials submitted by the ministers and could not help but smile. He raised his head and looked at them deeply and calmly.

"Even the Later Jin Dynasty has grown to its current size in just a few decades, and you gentlemen standing in the court can't see clearly. You allowed Nurhaci to grow stronger and stronger, and now he can fight against our Ming Dynasty. Do you still have the nerve to call yourself a man of insight?"

The atmosphere was extremely calm, yet somewhat frighteningly depressing. Civil officials and military officers lowered their heads, unable to bear the confrontation between the emperor and them.

It was quiet, and Zhu Changgan spoke after a long while. "I don't care what you think, I just want the result. If anyone makes mistakes, don't blame me for being merciless."

"Your Majesty..." Sun Chengzong, who had been silent all this time, finally spoke, "This is detrimental to your wisdom."

Zhu Changgan suddenly laughed and continued, "I don't need any wisdom, I just want the survival of the fittest."

"Among all things in the universe, how can anyone be immortal for tens of millions of years? Steel decays, stone decays, even humans die after a hundred years, let alone the Ming dynasty's officialdom."

"There are always things to try, such as the iron smelting of the Arms Department. In the past, we used low-temperature furnaces, which could only smelt a little at a time. But now the high-temperature furnaces can produce dozens of times more at a time, and the quality is better than before. Our firearms are developing rapidly and can already replace bows and arrows...so we have to keep pace with the times."

"You call yourselves literati, you can discuss the contention of a hundred schools of thought, you can study culture, not everyone has to become an official. Some people just read books by heart, and becoming an official is really a waste of their own time, and it also delays the Ming Dynasty and the people."

Zhu Changgan's words were as cold as the stones outside the Qianqing Palace, silencing everyone.

He did not blame Confucianism, nor did he promote other schools of thought. The concepts of Heaven, Earth, Emperor, Parents and Teachers, and the relationship between Emperor and his subjects had already been engraved in the bones of these people. If you say one word, they have a hundred words waiting for you.

Zhu Changgan asked them directly for the results. Whether you are "inducing human desires to follow the laws of nature" or "establishing the order of all things", I don't care about the process in between.

It is a fact that it is impossible to resolve the situation in Liaodong and the bandits in the Ming Dynasty.

Since the internal and external troubles have not been resolved for such a long time, those who should step down should step down, and those who should come up should come up.

Confucianism can indeed keep the people ignorant and stifle their instincts when a dynasty is stable, but once there are barbarians outside, this approach will no longer be applicable. Confucianism will become a stumbling block, blocking the road to change.

Zhu Changgan picked up a memorial and looked at everyone. "The Loyal and Brave Army, the White Spear Army, and the Beijing Camp encountered the Manchu Tartars and defeated them head-on, killing 7,000 of them. According to this progress, the five major camps should have arrived at the city of Jinzhou."

"Win again?" All the court officials were shocked.

For them, every victory of the five camps was tantamount to a flogging for these literati.

"Every man has a share of responsibility for the fate of his country. Regardless of whether you are a scholar, farmer, merchant or worker, anyone who defends the territory of the Ming Dynasty will be treated equally."

Zhu Changgan's voice was like thunder, shocking everyone above the Qianqing Palace.

What he wanted to do was to destroy the circle that Confucianism had created over hundreds of years in the Ming Dynasty.

"Your Majesty~"

"Your Majesty, no!"

All the ministers knelt on the ground, but Zhu Changgan had already left the dragon throne and left the court.

……

In Liaodong, the sky was covered with dark clouds, as if it was covered by a huge gray cloth, and a few birds were swimming under the clouds.

On the ground, thousands of troops were interweaving and colliding, and then shattered like waves hitting the shore.

Leaving behind corpses and remains...

In some places, the sunlight shines through the cracks, like the Milky Way suddenly appearing, giving a touch of bright color to the dark world, and making this gloomy land more scarlet.

This is war. For either side, every second counts.

It would not give the Ming army's artillery battalion a chance to move over from the rear and set up fire, nor would it give the Qing army a chance to assemble a large force. By the time the warning horn sounded, the battle between the two sides had already broken out.

In Jinzhou City, when the messenger's fast horses rushed into the central army camp, Dorgon realized that the five major camps had arrived.

Tan Tai's 20,000 cavalrymen were defeated by the Ming court's troops, which were twice their size, and more than 8,000 soldiers were killed. Not only that, Tan Tai also died on the spot. His subordinate, Lazhangjing, a red-bordered armored general, decisively led his subordinates to flee after witnessing the Eight Banners soldiers collapse at an alarming speed.

As a result, the Ming army chased them for ten miles, and the casualties increased.

"Waste~idiot~"

Dorgon kicked the messenger to the ground. "Sixty thousand cavalry? He is exaggerating the number of enemies... Even if the Ming court has so many cavalry now, it is impossible for them to leave Shanhaiguan so quickly."

It is indeed not 60,000, at most it is just over 40,000, but this exaggeration did not have much impact on the battle situation.

Before Dorgon could get even more angry, more battle reports came in like a tide.

And they come one after another, making it hard to keep up.

The troops of Hong Chengchou, the governor of Ji-Liao, appeared in Liaodong! The troops of Xuan-Da, the governor of Liaodong, appeared in Liaodong! The troops of Miyun appeared in Liaodong! The Korean troops mobilized against the Qing Dynasty! There are signs of mobilization in Mongolia south of the desert...

In less than an hour, all kinds of news exploded in the Qing camp.

Dorgon, Yuetuo, Ganglin from the National History Institute, Gong Adai, Xihan, and Baiyintu looked at the map on the table. According to these military reports, the situation was clear at a glance.

Several large armies formed a claw-like posture and pressed towards the Qing camp.

Dorgon gritted his teeth and said after a long while, "There is still a chance, charge again!"

"Let the Eight Banners disciples take the lead this time."

……

Waves of sound came one after another, shaking the walls of Jinzhou City, and the fighting at the east gate was expanding.

The outer city had been breached, and thousands of elite Eight Banners soldiers appeared on the inner city walls. They dragged hooks and ladders to climb the walls. The fierce fighting had lasted for two days. From top to bottom in Jinzhou City, no one was without blood on their bodies. Zu Dashou's face and neck were covered with blood spots.

As countless Eight Banners soldiers rushed over one after another.

The city wall was filled with arrows. Zu Dashou drew out his steel knife and wrapped the red tassel on the handle tightly around his hand. Others did the same.

"Kill!" Amid Zu Dashou's hysterical shouts, all the Ming troops stood up and were drawn into the whirlpool of blood.

……

Smoke and blood rose, and the smell of chaos filled the air.

In Li Banghua's central army camp, one troop after another was running. Many people had blood on their bodies, and some were injured, having retreated from the battlefield.

Zhang Shize, Ma Xianglin and Sun Yingyuan came to the central army to report on the war.

"It feels so good. I haven't played like this for a long time."

"Yes!" Sun Yingyuan is the most calm and introverted person, but now he can't hide his excitement and excitement from the bottom of his heart.

Ma Xianglin clenched his fingers and said happily, "It's still more exciting to fight the Tartars."

There is not the slightest bit of tiredness, only excitement and desire.

Not only the generals, but also the soldiers under them, were all in high spirits and as fierce as wolves and tigers.

This atmosphere directly shocked and made Sun Kewang, Shi Daoshen, Li Dingguo and others feel jealous.

From yesterday to today, the attacks of the five major camps of the Ming Dynasty were so fast that they were shocked and surprised. Now they knew what it meant to be as fast as the wind and as fierce as fire.

Compared with them, these bandits... couldn't even think of fighting them.

"Sir, you say, the Ming court does not allow us to be cannon fodder. Is it because they are afraid that we will slow down the progress of the war?" Sun Kewang didn't know why he had such an idea.

"No wonder they let us serve as soldiers in the old camp. Perhaps they are afraid that our defeat will affect the morale of the Ming court." Shi Daoshen felt the same way and agreed with the question raised by Sun Kewang without hesitation.

Li Dingguo also lowered his head and said nothing.

This feeling made them feel both fortunate and ashamed.

Fortunately, if I had not persuaded them to surrender, I would have been wiped out by now. But what is more humiliating is that as a general, in the eyes of the enemy, I am not even qualified to be cannon fodder. This feeling is even more painful than killing them.

At this moment, the old maid who had been taking care of Hong Niangzi suddenly ran over in panic, "Prince, Hong Niangzi is missing."

"Gone?"

"There is only one letter left. Take a look." The old maid quickly took out a letter. Chongzhen unfolded it and saw only one line of words on it, "As long as you haven't divorced me, I am still yours. Rather than living like this, I'd rather go to the battlefield and kill the Tartars."

Chongzhen was stunned. "She is... going to the front line?"

"Ah?" Sun Kewang and the other three were also stunned when they heard this. They came closer and saw the words on it. "Sir, do you want me to get it back now?"

"How can it be so easy to find a huge army?"

Chongzhen took a deep breath and fell into deep thought, but his train of thought was completely interrupted by the next words of the three people.

"Prince Xin, we want to join the front line and fight for a chance to be crowned a marquis."

Sun Kewang, Shi Daoshen and Li Dingguo all knelt down and begged.

"Have you thought about it? The Later Jin army is not a pushover. It's one thing for the five battalions to attack them, but it may be another situation if you fight them."

"We have thought it through. Since we have accepted the surrender, we might as well take this opportunity to fight for a better future instead of living a cowardly life."

People like them have been rebelling all the way, and their experience has taught them so much, and they understand too well what kind of army the Five Battalions are.

Since it is impossible to defeat this kind of army that has military spirit, equipment and morale, the best way is to join it and take advantage of this opportunity to fight for a future.

Chongzhen looked at them for a long time and said, "Okay, I'll go find the commander."

Half a day later, Sun Kewang, Shi Daoshen and Li Dingguo led their troops away, but Chongzhen was left in the central army camp by Li Banghua, who sent hundreds of guards to protect him day and night.

In this atmosphere, Chongzhen finally saw Jinzhou City from afar on the next day.

When he saw the ruins, he couldn't help but tremble slightly all over.

As an emperor, Chongzhen never thought that the war would be so brutal.

……

Five miles outside Jinzhou City, Hong Niangzi, dressed in men's clothes, followed a group of Ming soldiers, holding iron spears, and marched towards Jinzhou City.

All the way from Jiangnan, everything around her has changed beyond recognition. She doesn't know how to get along with Zhu Yonggan, and her life is completely filled with anxiety and bleakness.

After my physical condition improved, I felt even more bored.

To her surprise, after entering Shanhaiguan, the tense and solemn atmosphere made her feel the past again.

"Since we can't save the people, we might as well kill the Tartars and save the country."

This was her choice and also her answer to Zhu Yonggan.

Suddenly, a roar interrupted her thoughts.

"Get ready~"

(End of this chapter)