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

Chapter 861
Pursuing stolen goods and subsidizing wages was not only carried out in the capital, the Shun army attacked the city all the way, and stationed soldiers and horses in various prefectures and counties, and because there were too many people arriving in the capital, the inside and outside of the capital could not accommodate them, so they were stationed in various places for food.

When Liu Zongmin vigorously tortured officials and relatives in the capital, and soldiers went from house to house to ask for money, this trend also spread to all areas occupied by Dashun.

For example, in Daming Mansion, "all officials in Buzhou County poisoned and plundered the gentry."Hejian Mansion, "calls for the gentry's surname, with five trees, which are extremely cruel and cruel, and ask for money."In Shunde Mansion, "Scholar-bureaucrats tortured Miki, and many were brutally tortured to death."Tianjin Wei, "Extortion for wages went to brains, sticks, cannonballs, and torture."

In the process of chasing stolen goods and subsidizing salaries, all the officials and gentry have their dignity swept away, and their wealth and lives are hard to save.They originally hoped to take refuge in the new dynasty and maintain their previous wealth, but they were still disappointed.Dashun employs very few officials, such as Beijing officials, for example, there are thousands of Beijing officials, but there are no more than a hundred people, and all of them are below the third rank.As far as the localities are concerned, people who have never served as officials are selected as officials, and the original officials are basically not used, and all of them are arrested and tortured for payment.

This completely disappointed the former officials and gentry. Some of those who survived were even more indignant when they were arrested and handcuffed, saying, "It's just a new policy for the dynasty. It's just that there are still thieves."

In the capital, all the downgraded officials of the Ming Dynasty felt remorse. They either wanted to take the opportunity to escape, or they had hatred in their hearts and plotted secretly.

Some officials in office are also uncomfortable, especially local officials. "Whenever you encounter a soldier, first search for supplies from civilian women. If there is a slight or insufficient supply, the soldiers will come down with their swords on their backs. The state officials will suffer unspeakably. Those who abandoned it, still ordered my official to say, "Reserve it for later generations."

Chasing stolen goods and helping salaries turned into a trend of looting, which soon spread to the common people in various places. Since you high-ranking officials and generals can blackmail officials, my small soldiers and small schools can also attack ordinary people. The tragedy of the people in the capital is also staged in the areas occupied by the Shun Army.

"Soldiers broke in through the gates, plundering slaves and daughters of gold and silver, and the people were overwhelmed with poison, hanging each other to death."

"There is no day to kill people, and the people will suffer."

How much the people used to look forward to the arrival of Chuangjun, Shunjun, Li Zicheng and others. Before Li Zicheng entered Beijing, the people in the capital "every time a thief comes to the door, I will open the door and invite you in." Not only privately but also publicly. "

Unexpectedly, the front door drives the tiger and the back door enters the wolves. These hungry wolves are more cruel and greedy than the former tigers, so they regret it. The nostalgic thought of "the present is not as good as it used to be" first appeared among the people, and countless people began to miss the man who was cursed countless times by them. the Ming Dynasty.

As for Dashun, no, a thief!They hate it to the bone, how much they expected it in the past, how much they hate it now!
They secretly scolded Li Zicheng for being a thief, a liar who killed thousands of knives, and a group of thieves and bandits who wanted to kill people. They didn't look like a gentleman!

Li Zicheng and others have offended everyone by chasing stolen goods and paying wages. If many gentry opposed them when they raised their troops before, and many people still hoped to support them, now they only have hatred, deep-rooted hatred.

Therefore, a very strange phenomenon has also occurred in history. Before entering Beijing, everyone was looking forward to the arrival of King Chuang. The army he led was also looking forward to the scenery, attacking the city and capturing territory, and was invincible. However, this phenomenon stopped after entering Beijing. .

After he was defeated and left Beijing, he was undefeated in every battle, and no one cheered for his arrival in the counties and counties he went to. The people either watched indifferently, or followed the former Ming officials to kill false officials and drive out thieves like mice. When crossing the street, everyone shouted and beat them.

……

Things changed subtly. After entering April, all the officials in the capital regretted it, and the people in the capital all hated thieves.

Some rumors and false rumors are also quietly spread in the market. They have rumors with nose and eyes that the prince has been rescued from Beijing by a righteous man. Now he has fled to Xuanfu Town. It will wipe out the thieves and save the people from hanging upside down.

On the eighth day of April, someone suddenly posted a "private notice" on West Chang'an Street, saying: "The Ming Dynasty is not exhausted, and people want to be loyal. On the [-]th of this day, the East Palace will be established as emperor, and Yuan Yixing will be changed."

Although Liu Zongmin killed dozens of residents in the places where the posts were posted, new "private notices" spontaneously appeared from the people. Most of the contents of the "private disclosure" are absurd, but for the poisoned people in the capital, it is undoubtedly a mobilization order, and it also ignites the raging anger hidden in their hearts.

……

The sudden fall of the capital was beyond everyone's expectations. When the news spread to Lengkou, Shanhaiguan and other places, Yang Guozhu, Liu Zhaoji, Wu Sangui and others couldn't believe it.

According to everyone's estimates, the capital is tall and strong, and its military strength is not small. Even if it is not as optimistic as the outside world that it can last for a year and a half, it is still possible to defend for two to three months.After all, the Tartars also entered the pass several times, and each time no less than [-] troops attacked and besieged the capital, but they were able to hold on.

They had been through the army, so they naturally knew that the Tartars were much stronger than the bandits, so there was no reason why the Tartars failed to fall after being besieged many times.

However, the cold reality is like this. The definite news came that the capital not only fell, but also fell within two days. The monarch died on the [-]th, and they all became lonely ministers and evil sons whose country was ruined and their families were destroyed.

After Yang Guozhu and others confirmed the news, they all wept loudly, the three armies died, and held a funeral for the emperor, and then the next thing was that everyone hesitated to face the choice of fate.

As important border generals, they naturally cannot simply die. At this time, no matter outside the Great Wall at Lengkou or outside the Shanhaiguan Pass, there are large armies of Tartars. If they die for their country, wouldn't it be easy for the Tartars Chance of entry?

Although the Tartars outside the pass wall stopped attacking at this time, apparently they also got the news of the death of the Ming emperor, but they still dared not be careless and guarded the pass wall.

Then they exchanged letters, asking each other what they meant and what to do next.

At this time, Li Zicheng, king of Dashun, sent Tang Tong to surrender, and the treatment was good. Yang Guozhu was granted the title of Duke, Liu Zhaoji was granted the title of Marquis, and both Wu Sangui and his son were named Marquis, and the original soldiers and horses remained unchanged.Then everyone is caught in conflicting choices.

It stands to reason that as the ministers of the Ming Dynasty, the emperor's father died, and they should send troops to avenge the emperor's father, but all the princes in the court surrendered, and the officials and generals from all over the country also surrendered.

When the capital fell, they were still fighting bloody battles at the border. They had been so loyal to this point that they could be said to be benevolent and righteous, and no one would say anything.

Moreover, Dashun can be regarded as the system of the Han family. The clothes, language, and system are all the same. Everyone will not have the psychological barrier of surrendering to the barbarians outside the Great Wall.

Every dynasty still has strength, and at this point in the Ming Dynasty, it is obvious that the strength is exhausted, otherwise the capital would not fall in two days, regardless of the officials and the common people, all welcome the Shun army to enter the city.Like the Tang, Song and Ming Dynasties, a new Central Plains dynasty will be born, or it will last for hundreds of years like the Ming Dynasty.

The prosperity of Dashun is a foregone conclusion, so why should he resist stubbornly and increase the casualties of his subordinates?Wu Sangui and Liu Zhaoji tended to take refuge in the new dynasty, and conditions such as feudal lords were also very attractive to them.Although they also have doubts in their hearts, after all, Li Zicheng was a rogue in the past.

But it is expected that there will be changes in the new dynasty and the new atmosphere. The princes in the court are not worried, so what are you worried about?
Li Yutian, Governor of Guanmen, and Fan Zhiwan, Governor of Jiliao, were all ready to take refuge in the new dynasty, and Qiu Minyang, Governor of Eastern Liaodong, also agreed to take refuge in Dashun.

Yang Guozhu was a little hesitant. He planned to ask Wang Dou for his opinion, but he did not object to Wu Sangui and others seeking wealth and honor in the new dynasty. As long as they did not surrender to the barbarians, he would respect everyone's choice.

In fact, at this time, the Qing Dynasty also sent people to persuade them to surrender. Dorgon fell into the Ming capital two days later. The death of the Ming emperor was shocking at first, and then quickly reacted.He personally wrote letters to Yang Guozhu, Wu Sangui, Liu Zhaoji and others one by one, promising more favorable treatment.

He said that if Yang Guozhu and others are willing to join the Qing Dynasty, they will all be crowned kings, just like the Sanshun kings back then.

For Li Yutian and Fan Zhiwan, they both agreed to be granted the title of Marquis, and for Liaodong Governor Qiu Minyang, he was even willing to give him the title of Duke.

Of course, although he was sincere, he was disappointed in the end. Between Daqing's throne and Dashun's marquis, Wu Sangui and others still chose Dashun.

Not to mention Yang Guozhu, he didn't even see the envoys sent by the Qing Dynasty, and expelled them on the spot without giving them a chance to speak.

The turning point of the matter came after the news of the recovery of stolen goods and payment of money came. Dorgon was surprised at first, and then said excitedly: "It's really God helping me."

(End of this chapter)