A small soldier of the frontier army in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 296 Can't Believe It
When Xuanda's victory personnel entered Beijing, Emperor Chongzhen was angry in the Qianqing Palace. There was definite news that Dorgon's main force had broken Jinan, and King Zhu Youshu of Germany and General Zhu Enshang of Fengguo were captured. All the people were taken captive.

Not only that, the Qing army is still raging in various parts of Shandong, and the soldiers are approaching Gunzhou and the Qingzhou prefectures.Could it be that none of the civil servants and military generals of the Ming Dynasty could block the pace of the Qing army?
"They are all useless people. Pass the decree to arrest Yan Jizu, the governor of Shandong, Zu Kuan and Li Chongzhen, the generals of aid and suppression, and take them to Beijing, deprive them of their posts, put them to death, put them to death..."

After the Battle of Julu, following Yang Sichang's suggestion, Emperor Chongzhen issued a decree to pardon the major crime of losing the general of the Xuanda Army and the Guanning Army.Guan Ning's various generals showed up one after another, but Xuan Dajun had no news yet, and it was not known where they went.

Yang Sichang had already greeted the generals in Guan Ning, so their tone was consistent with Yang Sichang's. It was because the Qing army was powerful in the Battle of Julu.When the military situation in Shandong was critical, Zu Kuan was appointed as the General Soldier of Aid and Suppression, and was ordered to support Shandong in fighting.

At this time, Emperor Chongzhen vented his anger on them.

The emperor thundered furiously, and all the maids around him were trembling, and everyone dared not show their anger, for fear of harming the fish in the pond.

At this moment, Emperor Chongzhen suddenly listened attentively, and bursts of cheers came from outside the palace city, and the sound became louder and louder, as if the people in the entire capital were cheering.Emperor Chongzhen listened carefully, but couldn't understand the content clearly.

He wondered in his heart, since the Battle of Julu, the endless defeats and defeats have left the capital inside and outside dead silent, what is it that makes the people of the capital boil?
He was about to send someone to have a look, but at this moment, Wang Dehua, the eunuch in charge of the supervisor of ceremonies, rushed over all the way, holding up a victory report and shouting: "Your Majesty, great victory, great victory..."

Seeing Wang Dehua rushing over, Chongzhen suddenly panicked: "What... a great victory?"

"Great victory, Your Majesty..."

"What victory?"

Wang Dehua was out of breath, and he spoke incoherently. Finally, he shouted: "Yang Guozhu, the chief soldier of Xuanzhen, Wang Dou, the guerrilla general of Xuanzhen, and Wang Dou, the general soldier of Jinzhen: the battle of Julu, the battle of Zhuozhou, the beheading of eight thousand slaves in the East!" Level Yu, beheading Yue Tuo, the slave chief of the Red Banner, and capturing his son Luo Luohong alive... Now the whole city is shaking, Your Majesty!"

Emperor Chongzhen took Jiewen tremblingly, and he read the memorial over and over again, also panting.

"This, this... By the way, quickly send Yang Aiqing to come to see me."

After Wang Dehua ran away, Emperor Chongzhen walked back and forth in the pavilion holding Jiewen, fidgeting.

Soon, Yang Sichang rushed over. Just now, he went to the Ministry of War to personally meet those personnel who announced the great victory. After hearing that the emperor had summoned him, he hurried over again.

He kowtowed to the emperor, and Emperor Chongzhen asked him to get up and speak, and gave him a chair to sit on.

For Yang Sichang, Emperor Chongzhen had unconditional trust. In fact, Yang Sichang made a mistake when the Qing army broke through Jinan.It was he who judged that Dezhou was the way for the Qing army to go south, and told Yan Jizu, the governor of Shandong, to lead his troops to guard it. As a result, the Qing army bypassed Dezhou and went straight to the city of Jinan from Duhuitong River in Linqing.

At that time, there were only [-] rural soldiers in Jinan City, and [-] Laizhou reinforcements, although the defenders refused to fight to the death.However, under the fierce attack of tens of thousands of Qing soldiers, the city fell quickly, many people died in street fighting, and finally King De and all the people were captured.

But even so, Emperor Chongzhen's favor and trust in Yang Sichang did not change at all, which made Yang Sichang grateful and more respectful in front of the emperor.

After watching Yang Sichang sit down, Emperor Chongzhen handed the Xuanda Victory Report to Yang Sichang, and said anxiously: "Ai Qing thinks that the Xuanda Victory article is true?"

Yang Sichang's thoughts turned to him. In fact, when the first wave of victory-reporters from Xuanda came, he went to the Ministry of War to personally entertain those Xuanjie knights. He got far more information than Emperor Chongzhen.On the surface, he stood up respectfully, and said: "Your Majesty, the two chief soldiers of Xuanzhen and Jinzhen, and General Wang, have reported victories several times before, and they are true every time!"

"Beheading Dong Nu at eight thousand levels may be a false number... However, the beheading of the slave chief Yue Tuo and the rebirth and capture of his son are of great importance. They absolutely dare not fake it. And as Jiewen said, the two chief soldiers and General Wang won the battle. The armor with the banner of the slave chieftain will be known by the Ministry of War after inspection."

Emperor Chongzhen walked back and forth in the pavilion with a smile on his face: "Yang Guozhu and Hu Dawei are so good, and they are so kings fighting. Before, I thought they were hiding in fear of crime. How could there be such a great victory and such great achievements in the battle? Huh, Zhuozhou's great victory, the morale of the army The hearts of the people are boiling, to see Dong Nu dare to wreak havoc!"

Yang Sichang tidied up his clothes and prostrated himself on the ground: "Lai Sheng ascended to the power of heaven, and the soldiers worked hard to achieve such a great victory. I would like to congratulate the emperor and the Great Ming!"

His tears rolled down, sobbing choked up.

Emperor Chongzhen was moved, and said softly, "Ai Qing, please come up!"

Yang Sichang lay on the ground: "I dare not commit the crime of death!"

Emperor Chongzhen wondered: "What is the crime of loving Qing?"

Yang Sichang said: "I have committed a serious crime of deceiving your father!"

He said: "The emperor issued a decree to pardon Xuanda. The two armies of Guan and Ning lost the major crimes. Xuanda's generals sent their soldiers to Yizhou. They sent envoys to contact Chen Xinjia, the governor of Xuanda, and allowed them to be used in moderation. The minister knows the slave chief, Yuetuo. Set up camp in Zhuozhou, and got a report from Governor Chen. Knowing the bravery of Xuan Da's army, he let his army lie in ambush, thinking it was a surprise soldier, and made a great contribution. The emperor will punish you severely!"

Speaking of this, he burst into tears and kowtowed again and again.

Emperor Chongzhen was dumbfounded, then he laughed, pointed at Yang Sichang and said, "Ai Qing, you have made it hard for me to hide it, it's hard for you to hide it from me..."

He smiled happily: "Qing is also working hard for the country, and the military documents are frequently exchanged. It is inevitable that there will be worries about leaks, so the slaves are on guard. This battle is also a surprise for the Xuan army, so we can achieve this victory. Well, next time I love you, don't do this! "

Yang Sichang burst into tears: "The emperor is kind and generous, and I thank you for your kindness."

Emperor Chongzhen was very satisfied. Yang Sichang was so talented that he actually commanded Xuan Dajun to make such great achievements. He said: "The three generals have made great achievements. According to Qing, how should we praise them?"

Yang Sichang said: "The three generals have made great achievements, and they need to be rewarded and encouraged, so that they can make new achievements for the emperor!"

He said: "However, the news of victory has just arrived, and the military achievements have not yet been verified. I believe that it needs to be carefully checked before making a decision."

He said: "I would like to ask you to leave the capital and go to Zhuozhou to test your merits and comfort the army."

Emperor Chongzhen was a little bit reluctant to let Yang Sichang leave the capital, but seeing his enthusiasm, he nodded and said: "That's fine, then Qing will leave Beijing, and encourage you to do meritorious generals on behalf of the emperor."

Yang Sichang came out respectfully, walked a long way, and heard the joyful laughter of the emperor in the cabinet.

When he returned to the cabinet, several cabinet ministers were talking about it, and Yang Sichang could see everyone's secret thoughts.He summoned a confidant official and whispered: "Go to Tianjin and let Chen Xinjia go to Zhuozhou quickly. If he wants to join the cabinet in the future, let him be more careful."

……

On the 12th day of the first month of the [-]th year of Chongzhen, Tianjin.

At this time, Tianjin, let alone the city, spread from the west bank of the canal to the Jinghai area, densely covered with Ming army camps.Chen Xinjia's Xuanda army consisted of more than 4000 people, as well as tens of thousands of Guanning troops, and some local soldiers and horses, all gathered here, forming a seemingly endless banner and camp.

Now these soldiers and horses are all under the control and control of Xuanda Governor Chen Xinjia. Originally, Tianjin also had the chief assistant of the cabinet Liu Yuliang as the inspector.But Liu Yuliang is not to mention mediocre, and he is still confused in his work.Earlier, when he impeached Chen Hongxu, the prefect of Jinzhou, he caused a lot of trouble, and Emperor Chongzhen issued an order to reprimand him.

After he ran to Tianjin, he talked about the retreat of the generals, and talked about Liu Guangzuo, the general soldier of Baoding in the memorial.When the Qing soldiers crossed the Yongding River, the water was rising and the luggage was heavy. Cao Bianjiao and others dared not attack each other. Liu Guangzuo was especially timid. Liu Yuliang was impeached, and before Emperor Chongzhen ordered Liu Guangzuo to beheaded, it happened that Liu Guangzuo was in a hurry to report the victory of Wuqing, and Liu Yuliang returned. He also begged for forgiveness for Liu Guangzuo.

Emperor Chongzhen issued a decree to reprimand, Liu Yuliang's department discussed staying idle, but Liu Guangzuo's death was still discussed. After Liu Yuliang left, Chen Xinjia, governor of Xuanda, took charge of the soldiers and horses in Tianjin.

At this time, there was a commotion in these Ming army camps, and an astonishing news spread: "Xuan Dajun's great victory in Zhuozhou, beheading more than [-] ranks, and beheading the red flag, Gushan, and Zhenyuetuo, captured him alive. Son Luo Luohong..."

The news came from the Biao Camp in Chen Xinjia Town. The Shun Township Army, which set off on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month and galloped for more than 300 miles, entered the Tianjin Governor's camp shortly after.Immediately, the news spread to all Ming military camps in Tianjin at a fast speed.

All the generals couldn't believe it after hearing this, beheading eight thousand ranks, how is this possible?With the fighting strength of the officers and soldiers of the Ming Dynasty, beheading the [-]th rank is a rare victory, not to mention beheading Dorobeile of the Qing Dynasty, Zhenghongqi Gushan, Zhenyue Tuo, and rebirth captured his eldest son Luo Luohong...

Impossible, absolutely impossible!
None of the officers and soldiers believed Xuan Dajun's report, everyone thought they were exaggerating, and the bragging was too big.From the mouths of the generals in Guan Ning, they already knew that after the Battle of Julu, the Xuan Dajun who accompanied Duchen Lu to Julu was almost wiped out and fled without a trace. How could there be such a great victory all of a sudden?Definitely bragging.

In the Guanning camp, several general soldiers also discussed urgently in the camp of Shanhaiguan General Ma Ke, and their conclusions were also unbelievable.In their words, they all have the meaning of taking pleasure in others' misfortune.

During the Battle of Julu, they did nothing to save them, but they didn't feel guilty at all. After their own defeat, they blamed Xuan Dajun for not helping them, and felt deep resentment in their hearts.They are all happy to see Yang Guozhu, Hu Dawei and others suffer a little in the future.

After the general soldiers left the field, Wang Tingchen, the former commander-in-chief of the garrison guards, called Cao Bianjiao, the commander-in-chief of Yutian, and said, "Little General Cao, do you think the report of the commander-in-chief Yang and others is true?"

Cao Bianjiao said: "Someone thought..."

He shook his head, but finally did not come to a conclusion.

However, everyone in the Ming army camp in Tianjin was spreading whispers. This commotion reached its peak after envoys from the capital rushed into Chen Xinjia's camp. There are rumors: "Governor Chen's town standard battalion seems to be setting up a camp."

Cao Bianjiao and the others looked at each other in blank dismay: "Could it be that the great victory of Yang Guozhu, Wang Dou and others is true?"

※※※

Old White Bull:
The amount of gold and silver looted by the Qing soldiers was written by Lao Niu based on historical data, but he found that he was wrong.This time in the 11th year of Chongzhen: more than 97 taels of gold and more than 15 taels of silver.In the 220th year of Chongzhen, Qing soldiers looted more than [-] taels of gold and more than [-] million taels of silver.

I overstated the amount of gold and silver seized by the Qing soldiers in Zhuozhou and Tongzhou, but considering that the Qing soldiers had the habit of hiding spoils, the total amount of gold and silver lost by the Ming Dynasty this time should be as much as this.

(End of this chapter)