I really don't want to be emperor at the end of Ming Dynasty

"Cheng Shuai, I'm afraid this will cost a lot of money, right? The Tianxiong Army has recently expanded its army and is strapped for cash. I'm afraid I won't be able to repay the money within a few years."

Lei Shisheng naturally knows the power of grenades and the power of the fire dragon. With so much equipment, the combat effectiveness of the Tianxiong Army will increase by more than ten times. This means that the soldiers of the Tianxiong Army will have more People can survive.

"No money, no money!"

Cheng Shijie waved his hand and said: "These equipments are given to you Tianxiong Army by me. If you want money, I won't give the equipment to you Tianxiong Army. For armor like ours, I asked Jiannu for 1000 taels of silver for a pair." , they will definitely not even frown!"

Cheng Shijie was not bragging. Huang Taiji dreamed of Ning Haijun's equipment, whether it was a spear, a musket, a horizontal sword, an artillery piece, a musket, or even armor. Huang Taiji wanted it in his dream. He really wanted it. want to.

Not to mention Huang Taiji, even Catherine wanted Ning Haijun's artillery. No matter how high the price was, Cheng Shijie was not willing to sell it.

Lei Shisheng is also a man of true nature. When he heard this, he knelt down in front of Cheng Shijie and said, "Shuai Cheng, I cannot thank you enough for your kindness. I, Lei Shisheng, owe you my life..."

"Oh, this has gone out the window. Now it's time to eat, let's continue eating!"

Cheng Shijie's generosity allowed the soldiers of the Tianxiong Army who came with the sound of thunder to have a feast of white noodles and good mutton soup.Last winter, Ning Haijun bought a large number of frozen cattle and sheep from Jiannu at a low price, and there was simply no way to eat them all. In this era, there was no equipment for preservation, so the only way was to prepare canned food.

Ning Haijun has stored a large amount of canned beef and mutton. These are not the small cans that are easy to carry, but the giant cans packed in fifty kilogram barrels. Open the cans, put them in the pot and boil them, add the appropriate amount of water, and then add cut potatoes, it is a pot of good potato stew with beef, or potato stew with mutton. When you come to Liaodong, Liaodong sea fish and shrimp are naturally indispensable. Of course, the Tianxiong Army soldiers are not interested in seafood. .

They were like a pack of evil wolves, staring at the steaming cauldron and sniffing the aroma. However, they did not swarm in like the refugees. Although they endured very hard, they still endured it.

To be fair, the Tianxiong Army is one of the few troops in the Ming Dynasty that can have enough to eat. However, they only have miscellaneous grains and wild vegetables.

The more than [-] soldiers of the Tianxiong Army who arrived in Liaodong following Lei Shisheng enjoyed a feast that they might not even be able to eat during the New Year. During that meal, every one of the soldiers of the Tianxiong Army had a round belly and hiccups.

The generals of the Tianxiong Army received a warm reception and enjoyed a sumptuous meal. Cheng Shijie also gave each of them a horizontal knife that can cut iron like mud, and a set of armor made of fine steel. The general of Tianxiong Army was so happy that snot bubbles came out of his nose.

The Tianxiong Army is really not a poor army, but it is afraid of comparison. Just like the beautiful country in later generations, which is the most powerful country in the world and is very generous per capita, the problem is that compared with Switzerland, the beautiful country is also considered poor. After all, the beautiful country is Per capita wealth is less than half that of Switzerland.

The Tianxiong Army is an army that Ming Dynasty can provide for food and clothing, but it is not well fed. As for the equipment, it can only be considered good. Now someone generously gives them such sophisticated armor for free, how can they be unhappy!

Cheng Shijie understood Lu Xiangsheng, and Lu Xiangsheng could also see that the Ming Dynasty was in troubled times, and it was best not to fight.But the problem is that this battle has to be fought. Huang Taiji and Nurhaci call themselves kings of Khan, which is understandable. After all, they are earth kings. There are not even a hundred but eighty such earth kings.

The Caotou King can call himself, this is the last bottom line of Ming Dynasty. As long as they are willing to surrender, even if they surrender openly, Ming Dynasty can accept it.

However, becoming emperor is different.There are no two days in the sky, no two masters on the earth, and no two kings in the country. If you openly declare yourself emperor in Huangtaiji, you can only fight.

In history, Emperor Chongzhen was really helpless. He wanted to fight but had no strength. In this time and space, it was different. Because of the appearance of Cheng Shijie, he actually had the confidence. With six to seven million taels of silver, because of Emperor Chongzhen's support, this The Tianxiong Army in time and space is stronger than the original historical time and space.

In the original time and space, the Tianxiong Army only had 5000 men and horses, of which there were only more than 1 cavalry. However, in this time and space, the Tianxiong Army had more than 6 cavalry. After the Battle of Dingzhou, Cheng Shijie only had a small number of horses and horses. Equipped with equipment, the Tianxiong Army not only replenished the original battle losses, but also expanded the cavalry to more than [-], of which [-] were heavy cavalry. Together with the Tianxiong Army’s infantry, the total strength of the Tianxiong Army now stands at five Between [-] men and horses, there are two Tianxiong armies in history.

Because the Guan Ning Army has less use, and in the Battle of Liaoyang, Zu Dashou made use of the captures on the battlefield, the Guan Ning Army has become much stronger. At least the Guan Ning Army has more than 4 infantry and cavalry horses.

The Ming Dynasty is now full of chaos. Regardless of Li Zicheng, Gao Yingxiang, Wang Jiayin, or Lao Huihui, who among them dares to claim the throne?Because as long as he proclaims himself emperor, he will fight until death.

The destiny of the country is actually like sailing against the current. If you don't advance, you will retreat.When it is time to forge ahead, we should forge ahead; when it is time to fight, we need to fight hard.

Emperor Chongzhen wanted to devote all the power of the Ming Dynasty to conquer the slaves. This was politically correct and something that had to be done. Just like in the winter of the third year of Zhenguan, Li Shimin sent Tang troops into six groups to suppress the Eastern Turks. Li Jing led three thousand elite cavalry at night. Attack Yinshan and decide the outcome in one battle.

Although this battle was like sweeping away fallen leaves on an autumn mountain, it was hearty and hearty, and the Eastern Turks were wiped out in one battle.But in fact, Li Shimin also lived an extremely difficult period during that period. He came to power through the Xuanwumen coup and then ascended the throne. Nineteen days later, Jieli Khan led an army of 20 to the Weishui River and forced Li Shimin to sign the Weishui Alliance.

In the first year of Zhenguan, 39 prefectures in Hedong were hit by disasters, with millions of people affected. In the second year of Zhenguan, there was a severe drought and locust plague in the north. Due to the drought and locust disaster, Li Shimin confessed his fault, implemented an amnesty, and offered sacrifices to heaven. In the third year of Zhenguan, northern China Due to severe drought and locust disaster, Li Shimin confessed his fault and granted amnesty.

Many people thought that it would be easy for Li Shimin to defeat the East Turks in one battle. In fact, Li Shimin sent troops to attack the East Turks, just like the Xuanwu Gate incident. It was very risky. Li Shimin's luck was incredible, and he won the bet.

In fact, at that time, Li Shimin was also in trouble internally and externally. He wanted food but no food, and no money. The remnants of the princeling Li Jiancheng were very uncooperative. Li Shimin relied on the prestige of annihilating the East Turks to secure his position.

Faced with Jiannu Huang Taiji proclaiming himself emperor, Emperor Chongzhen simply could not be an ostrich and claimed that he did not know, so he had to fight, and the sooner the better. Even if Cheng Shijie himself was Emperor Chongzhen,
This battle must also be fought.

What we are fighting for is the fate of the country, the hearts of the people, the morale, and even more importantly, the breath of life.

In fact, Chongzhen was also lucky. Except for the Ming Dynasty, once the dynasty's talents withered in the last years, only the Ming Dynasty still had talents and a large number of capable ministers and generals emerged, not to mention Sun Chengzong, Xu Guangqi, Lu Xiangsheng, Sun Chuanting, Zhou Yuji, Xie Zhiliang, etc. wait.

Many people question why generals like Yue Fei and Han Shizhong emerged to protect the country when the Ming Dynasty fell. In fact, this is wrong.

It is precisely because those patriotic generals in the late Ming Dynasty were loyal to their emperor and their country that they were consumed on battlefields in various places, while the generals Wu Sangui, Geng Jingzhong, and Hong Chengchou who waited for a price and sat back and watched the situation preserved their strength.

Many people would also say that the problems faced by Chongzhen were hell-level difficulties. In fact, this is really not the case. The time when the Ming Dynasty still had a chance to turn the tide was before October of the fourth year of Chongzhen. However, Emperor Chongzhen missed the last chance. The country's affairs have been corrupted and it is difficult to recover.

Like Lei Shisheng's treatment in Liaodong, when Lu Xiangsheng and Li Chongzhen arrived in Beijing, Lu Xiangsheng also received warm hospitality from Emperor Chongzhen. Emperor Chongzhen greatly enhanced Lu Xiangsheng's remarkable achievements in defeating Li Zicheng, nearly capturing Gao Yingxiang alive, and encircling and annihilating the Chechen Khan tribe. Testimonials.

Of course, in the battle to encircle and annihilate the Chechen Khan tribe, Emperor Chongzhen did not mention Ning Haijun's contribution at all, and even touted Lu Xiangsheng as Wei Qing in the Han Dynasty and Li Jing in the Tang Dynasty.

This made Lu Xiangsheng feel a little embarrassed.

Emperor Chongzhen was still sighing: "If there were a few more figures like Lu Aiqing in the Ming Dynasty, the country of the Ming Dynasty would be as solid as an iron barrel and as stable as a rock!?"

Lu Xiangsheng said modestly: "It's all thanks to His Majesty's great blessings that I was lucky enough to win a few games!"

Lu Xiangsheng was a Jinshi in the second year of Tianqi's reign, and then he watched the government and the Ministry of War. In February of the fourth year of Tianqi's reign (1624), he was appointed as the head of the Guizhou Department of the Ministry of Husbandry.In August, he was in charge of Lin's warehouse clearance. In March of the seventh year of Tianqi (1627), he was promoted to Yuanwailang, Shanxi Department of the Ministry of Household Affairs, and was still in charge of Lin's warehouse clearance.In the same month, he moved to the Daming Prefecture and handed over in June.

Why could Lu Xiangsheng be promoted from a Jinshi to a famous magistrate in less than five years?In fact, Lu Xiangsheng is extremely eloquent and has a very high emotional level.

Emperor Chongzhen praised him as being comparable to Wei Qing and Li Jing. He praised Emperor Chongzhen as a famous emperor of ZTE.

It wasn't until Lu Xiangsheng took advantage of Emperor Chongzhen's happiness that he cautiously said: "Your Majesty, this is a time of crisis. As far as I know, there is a food crisis in the capital. What's more, the canal has not yet been dredged. If there is a big breakout, there is no guarantee that Dashun's army will not rush in." The state is attacking the government, and troops are once again approaching the gates of Nanjing. At this time, we are beset with internal and external difficulties, and it is really not suitable for a large army to fight. In my humble opinion, Your Majesty should hold back for a while, and wait until the autumn grains are put into the warehouse, the troops and horses are strong, and the ice and snow melt in the coming year before making plans!"

While listening to Lu Xiangsheng trying to dispel the idea of ​​Chongzhen Yujia personally conquering Shengjing, Emperor Chongzhen changed his expression, and his expression suddenly turned gloomy: "What, Lu Aiqing, are you afraid?"

Lu Xiangsheng said in astonishment: "I don't know what your majesty means?"

Chongzhen stood up suddenly, flicked his sleeves, and said angrily: "Lu Aiqing only knew about the food shortage in the capital, but she didn't know that in order to go out to build slaves, all the civil and military officials in the capital donated their salaries or property, raising more than 120 million taels of silver for me, and 300 more There are tens of thousands of stones of grain and grass, and although the canal is not dredged now, if the grain and grass are no longer in danger in a short period of time, do you still think that we cannot send troops?"

Lu Xiangsheng was very aware of the nature of those officials who were ruthless and greedy for money. Each of them was better at it than the other. When he was asked to work, as long as there was no benefit, each one would hide faster than the other.But the question is, how can they ask for their own money?
This made Lu Xiangsheng feel that something was wrong, and something must be evil if something went wrong.Lu Xiangsheng pondered and said: "The military is a major event for the country. I believe that we should be cautious. If we send out troops at this time, we must recruit civilians in the capital to help the army transport food. If an army of 30 million is sent out, at least 60 million civilians must be recruited. It will be difficult to supply the army. Besides, Even if we want to go on an expedition, autumn is the best time. Moreover, although there is heavy snow and ice in winter, it is much more convenient to mobilize troops and supply supplies than in summer!"

Emperor Chongzhen shook his head and said, "Lu Aiqing, are you afraid of what building a slave is?"

Lu Xiangsheng felt dumbfounded and explained seriously: "Your Majesty, please allow me to report this! Weichen has never been afraid of Jiannu. When he was still the prefect of Daming Mansion, Weichen dared to bring a group of people to the capital to follow Jiannu. Fighting to the death, now that we have tens of thousands of powerful troops in our hands, we are even less afraid of them! But now is really not suitable for large armies to fight. According to the opinion of the humble minister, the establishment of slaves can only be a small country, the land is no more than a corner, and the households are no more than dozens. Send one General, the military expedition is enough, why bother Your Majesty to conduct the expedition yourself?"

Emperor Chongzhen looked displeased: "Huang Taiji proclaimed himself emperor at this time, and it was clear that he was bullying me at a young age, thinking that I didn't know how to fight, so I didn't dare to fight. Even if I can bear it, I'm afraid Emperor Taizu can't bear it underground." !”

"Your Majesty is indeed young!"

Although Lu Xiangsheng's voice was not high, his tone was extremely firm. He did not mean to compromise or save face for Emperor Chongzhen. He continued: "Actually, it is better for the army to show off its power outside the pass, capture hundreds of heads and then withdraw immediately. If you want to defeat Shengjing, there are plenty of opportunities, so why choose this time!"

"Lu Aiqing, there is no need to say more. I have made up my mind. I will not withdraw my troops until Shengjing is captured!"

Emperor Chongzhen said irritably: "Jiu Nu has bullied me too much. Even if he goes against heaven and proclaims himself emperor, he actually sends people to Beijing to demand that I pay them 300 million longevity coins every year! Who do they think I am? Has the Ming Dynasty ever paid such a fee? The emperor of Biheqin! I can't swallow this breath, I must destroy them!"

Lu Xiangsheng was startled: "Is there still such a thing?"

"This is what happened the day before yesterday. Jiannu sent an unknown soldier as an envoy to the capital with a letter from the slave chief Huang Taiji. He sounded very arrogant and asked the Ming Dynasty to pay the so-called Qing Dynasty coins, otherwise he would lead his army southward. , razing the capital to the ground!"

Lu Xiangsheng frowned and said: "Your Majesty, this is probably a way to provoke the generals of the slaves. You must not be fooled!"

Chongzhen shouted angrily: "Stop talking! Lu Aiqing, I have made my decision and it will never be changed! I have appointed you as the commander-in-chief of the armed forces. Can you take down Shengjing for me and kill the traitor Huang Taiji?" Take off the dog's head and present it to me?"

Chongzhen's eyes were full of anger and hope, which made Lu Xiangsheng quite confused.

Lu Xiangsheng was silent and didn't speak for a long time.

Ever since Emperor Chongzhen insisted on sending troops, he felt something was wrong. When he heard that the ministers actually donated food, grass and silver, this made him even more suspicious. Now he heard that Jiannu actually asked the Ming Dynasty to donate annual coins to them, which makes it even more impossible. .

When Zhu Di, the founder of the Ming Dynasty, went on his second Northern Expedition, he issued an imperial edict: "The great power of our dynasty is beyond the ancients. He controls the northern barbarians to the west and invades the western barbarians on the southern island. He has no fraternity with the Han Dynasty and no alliance with the Tang Dynasty. There is no Song Dynasty's thin coin, nor is there any gift from brothers and enemies of the country."

This is the origin of what later generations of netizens said about not being in harmony with each other, not paying tribute, and not being professed to ministers. The emperor guarded the country and the king died in the country.

As the saying goes, don't slap someone in the face when you hit someone, and don't expose your weaknesses when you curse someone.

Huang Taiji was not a fool. He thought he didn't die quickly enough, so he provoked the Ming Dynasty unscrupulously?Lu Xiangsheng didn't know what conflict happened between Cheng Shijie and Emperor Chongzhen, but if Emperor Chongzhen sent Cheng Shijie to lead Ning Haijun on an expedition, Lu Xiangsheng was sure that if Huang Taiji didn't run away, he would knock off his eyeballs.

Seeing Lu Xiangsheng's silence, Chongzhen waited anxiously and said disappointedly: "Why, Lu Aiqing has no confidence??"

Lu Xiangsheng is now certain that this is a conspiracy, a huge conspiracy.

How could he jump down when he knew it was a fire pit?

Lu Xiangsheng gritted his teeth and knelt down and said: "I dare not obey my order! Attacking Jiannu at this time is a loss of time and location. Only Renhe is on the side of the Ming Dynasty. Weichen really can't bear to ruin the lives of hundreds of thousands of soldiers with his own hands." , I beg your Majesty to take back your order!"

Chongzhen laughed angrily and said repeatedly: "Okay, okay, okay! This is the champion I trust most! This is the champion I rely on to be the pillar of our country! Lu Jiandou, you have betrayed my trust in you. Meet my expectations for you."

Lu Xiangsheng kowtowed several times, and his forehead became swollen.He said loudly: "I have no fear of war and greed for survival. I beg your majesty to hold back for a few more months. When spring comes next year, I will lead the army out of the customs, attack Shengjing, capture Huang Taiji alive, and escort him back to the capital, so that your majesty can do it for thousands of years." Cut into pieces!"

Emperor Chongzhen roared: "I can't wait that long! If I wait any longer, I will be disgraced and become the laughing stock of the world! You don't want to lead the army to attack Jiannu, right? Well, I will lead the army myself! Don't think that Without you, no one in Ming Dynasty can fight!"

After Emperor Chongzhen finished speaking, he pointed his sleeves and walked out angrily.

Lu Xiangsheng was so anxious that he kowtowed his head and shouted: "Your Majesty, think again! He has rashly proclaimed himself emperor since Huang Taiji. This is a conspiracy. You really can't go! Your Majesty, if you go, I'm afraid you will fall into the trap of establishing a slave. Your Majesty , please think twice!”

Emperor Chongzhen just pretended not to hear and disappeared in a blink of an eye.

Lu Xiangsheng stared blankly at Chongzhen's back, feeling his heart sinking.

In the past, he had always felt that Chongzhen was good at listening to the opinions of his ministers, fully trusted his capable ministers, and boldly delegated power, which made him grateful. Now he saw another side of Chongzhen, headstrong, impatient, and intolerant of disobedience!These character weaknesses are very fatal when put on the battlefield!

It wasn't until he left the palace and returned to his station outside the capital. Through Li Chongzhen's information, Lu Xiangsheng knew why Emperor Chongzhen was so angry. There were rumors in the capital that Emperor Chongzhen was Cheng Shijie's puppet, and he would do whatever Cheng Shijie asked him to do. , he is an emperor who can only seal jade seals. As long as he leaves Cheng Shijie, he can't do anything.

This rumor was so fatal that it hit Emperor Chongzhen's weakness.

Chongzhen was extremely angry. Now Lu Xiangsheng urged him not to go on a personal expedition, let alone the idea of ​​establishing slaves. He immediately became angry!
Nowadays, Chongzhen is already riding a tiger, and he is afraid that even if Cheng Shijie asks for a fight, he will not let Cheng Shijie participate in the Northern Expedition. Otherwise, how can he prove that he is no worse than Cheng Shijie?
No matter what, Emperor Chongzhen must go to the north to establish slaves. He can only kill Huang Taiji and prove to the world that he is no worse than Cheng Shijie!

Perhaps even Cheng Shijie never thought that there would be such a big rift between him and Chongzhen just because of those sarcastic remarks.

Li Chongzhen sighed and said: "Your Majesty was dazzled by Ning Haijun's achievements. Ning Haijun never lost a battle against Jian Nu. He captured the four states in southern Liaoning in one battle, fought in Haizhou, and recovered Guangning and Liaozhong. In the Battle of Liaoyang, Liaoyang was recovered, and the area south of the Taizi River was recovered. In particular, a while ago, the Ning Navy easily captured Shenyang, Tieling, Kaiyuan and Fushun. This gave Your Majesty the illusion that Jiannu was easy to fight, and it was completely unacceptable. This is untrue advice..."

Li Chongzhen shook his head repeatedly. Although he was not afraid of fighting against the powerful Eight Banners of Manchuria, it did not mean that he liked to go to the Seven Mongolian Plateau to fight against Jiannu who had the home field advantage. Li Chongzhen was very worried about this personal expedition of Chongzhen Yujia. The outlook is not optimistic, not only pessimistic, but even pessimistic and despairing.

Lu Xiangsheng also sighed: "At this point, there is nothing we can do. We can only fight to the death. With the strength of the Tianxiong Army and God's mercy, there is still hope to win this battle."

Li Chongzhen smiled bitterly and said: "That's all we can do, do your best and obey fate!"

Lu Xiangsheng refused to take up the post of commander-in-chief of the army, and his pessimistic attitude toward the Northern Expedition angered Emperor Chongzhen, who was even more disappointed with Lu Xiangsheng.

Within three days, Emperor Chongzhen issued an imperial edict, appointing the Crown Prince Taifu, the Prince Consort Duwei, and the Admiral of Beijing Ying and Chengguo Gong Zhu Chunchen as commanders-in-chief of the three armies.

Although Zhu Chunchen himself is not well-known, his ancestors are very famous. The first generation of Chengguo justice was Zhu Neng, a famous general in the early Ming Dynasty.Zhu Neng served under Ming Chengzu Zhu Di in his early years. He was one of the biggest contributors to the Jingnan Campaign and made great contributions to Chengzu's accession to the throne.After Zhu Di came to the throne, he once awarded many rewards to the officials who contributed to Jingnan. Zhu Neng ranked second in the list of meritorious officials and was named Cheng Guogong, second only to Qiu Fu.

The Duke of Chengguo, Zhu Chunchen, was not Zhu Neng. More than 200 years of royal service had turned Zhu Chunchen into a useless person. As soon as this order came out, the whole world was in an uproar.

Wen Tiren, Wang Yingxiong and other ministers hailed Emperor Chongzhen as a wise man, but in the eyes of the Tianxiong Army officers and soldiers, if Cheng Shijie was not ordered to take command, the only daimyo qualified to take command now was Lu Xiangsheng.

Even if Lu Xiangsheng is not willing to be the commander-in-chief of the three armies, isn't there still Hong Chengchou, the governor of the three armies?No matter how bad it is, Zu Dashou is still better than Zhu Chunchen, who can only talk on paper.

However, now Emperor Chongzhen has handed over the army to the hands of a man who has never led a soldier, has been a Duke of Cheng since he was born, and holds the title of first-grade governor. Is this because the Ming Dynasty has many soldiers and generals have not died enough? (End of chapter)