scourge the qing dynasty

Chapter 209
On November 11, the 22th year of Kang Mazi in the Tartar Qing Dynasty, Wang Xu and his party, the second wave of negotiating envoys sent by the Qing court, finally arrived at the Wuchang River.According to Kang Mazi's instructions, Wang Xu and others did not directly enter Wuchang City to contact Wu Jun, but came to Hanyang City, Hanyang Prefecture, which was facing Wu Jun across the river. Ni, Cai Yurong and the others did not dare to neglect, and rushed to the pier to meet them together.

There are no drums and music, some are just devastated, there is no laughter, some are just gloomy and worried, even Kang Mazi's uncle Yue Le and Kang Mazi's cousin Chani are all in a state of turmoil I don't know what kind of punishment Kang Mazi will give us - defeating so many battles in one breath and losing so many state capitals, lands and troops in one breath, and finally taking Wuchang City, which is heavily guarded and fortified like gold, with even the city and the army Lost together, Tu Hai, Yue Le and the others dared not dream that Kang Mazi would spare them.

Sure enough, after Wang Xu landed, he read the imperial decree on the pier in public, scolded Tu Hai, Yue Le and others for their ugly behavior of losing the city and land, losing their teachers and humiliating the country. Being harsh, he scolded Tu Hai, Yue Le and others until they were sweating profusely, trembling, trembling all over, and almost fainted on the spot.However, when finally announcing the decision to deal with Tu Hai and the others, Kang Mazi's imperial decree suddenly changed its tone and gave Tu Hai, Chani, and Cai Yurong a very light punishment—removal of all official titles and titles, and suspension of their salaries. Sin, still stay in the original position to pay the crime and make meritorious service!
Although Kang Mazi's decision was unexpected, it was already among the several possible consequences that Tu Hai and Cai Yurong and other official slickers expected-at present, the Qing army's elite has been completely lost, and the outstanding generals have been wiped out by the Wu army. , relying entirely on the natural dangers of the Yangtze River and the survival of the superior navy, in this case, it is almost easy for Xiao Mazi, who has almost no one to use, to cut off the heads of Tu Hai, Cai Yurong and others, but if he wants to find a suitable replacement, then it is impossible. It's so easy, so we can only temporarily keep Tuhai and Cai Yurong and other lackeys who can fight a little bit of fighting and are familiar with the enemy's situation, stabilize the Yangtze River defense line for the time being, and then find a way to replace them slowly.

The only thing that surprised people was Kang Mazi's treatment of Yue Le. For Yue Le, the only coach in the Qing army whose talents and abilities were comparable to that of Obai, Kang Mazi not only did not consider reuse, but entrusted him with the defense line of the Yangtze River. Instead of being punished lightly like Tuhai, Chani, and Cai Yurong, they were relieved of all official positions on the spot, and sent back to the capital for trial by the servants of the clan's government!As for the excuse, it was naturally that Yue Le escaped during the Battle of Wuchang, causing the soldiers and civilians in the city to surrender to the Wu army.

After hearing Kang Mazi's edict, Tuhai, Chani, Cai Yurong and the others naturally kowtowed to express their gratitude as if they had received amnesty, but Yue Le's eyes were full of tears, his forehead was on the ground, his whole body was trembling, and he couldn't speak for a long time. One word.At this time, among the Qing troops lined up on the pier to meet the imperial envoy, there was a sudden and earth-shattering cry of grievances, "You are wronged! You are wronged!"

"My lord, Prince An, he was wronged! He didn't run away. He was the last one of our Qing army to retreat across the Yangtze River. He didn't run away!"

"My lord, the servant can testify! When Prince An withdrew across the Yangtze River, the servant was by Prince An's side. It was Ye Zhongtang who couldn't find Tutang and took over the command of the entire army, and then ordered Prince An to retreat. , Prince An didn’t run away! This is what the servant said when he went to the hall of the Ministry of Criminal Justice, Dali Temple and the Metropolitan Procuratorate! Prince An is a good guy!”

"The last general can also testify that Prince An was the last to withdraw, and he didn't run away!"

Hearing the indignation-filled roars of the soldiers of the Qing army, Yue Le couldn't help but burst into tears. Tu Hai, Chani, Cai Yurong and the others felt ashamed. They lowered their heads and didn't even dare to take a breath. Xu also had a gloomy expression, and said to Yue Le in a low voice: "Prince An, for your own sake, you'd better come forward and stop it. The rumor about you spread by the old thief Wu Sangui has now spread to the capital. Calling out for you, I'm afraid it will be more unfavorable to you."

Yue Le was stunned, and finally understood why his nephew was so eager to confiscate his military power, and why he was so eager to recall him back to the capital. If he refused to follow the order, he would be afraid of the catastrophe of ransacking his family and destroying his family. Immediately, it will descend upon oneself.In desperation, Yue Le had no choice but to stand up, waved his hands with tears in his eyes to stop the soldiers from shouting for grievances, and shouted loudly: "Brothers, Xiao Wang accepts your favor for Xiao Wang, but the imperial decree is like a mountain, and Xiao Wang has no choice but to obey it." Just do it. Don’t worry, the current Emperor Kangxi is a sage and martial artist, and when Xiao Wang comes to the capital to tell him the truth, the Holy Majesty will naturally return Xiao Wang’s innocence..."

After painstakingly persuading for a long time, the voices of the soldiers of the Qing army finally calmed down, and were replaced by low-pitched sobs and sobs.Yue Le, Tu Hai and the others were afraid of another accident, so they hurriedly welcomed Wang Xu, Xiong Zhilu and others into Hanyang City, arranged a banquet to welcome Wang Xu and his party, and at the same time secretly agreed that they were going to wait until the next day when the sky was still dark. At that time, Yue Le was escorted to the capital for trial, so as not to cause a mutiny by being escorted in public.

In view of the current political and military decline of the Qing court, at the banquet to welcome Wang Xu and others, there was no laughter at all. Even Kong Sizhen, the number one socialite in the Qing Dynasty, did not have the ability to coquettish and mobilize emotions. Hobby, wearing a uniform of guards, sat honestly beside Xiong Cilu, tasting wine and food, acting like a puppet, which greatly disappointed Cai Yurong and his son, Chani and Yang Jie, who had heard of her famous name for a long time. A pass.

After drinking for three rounds, the topic naturally turned to the purpose of Wang Xu and others' trip, and when Wang Xu briefly introduced his plan for this trip to Wu Jun, Tu Hai was the first to say: "Wang Tang Officer, excuse me for speaking bluntly, I am afraid that this task of yours will be difficult to handle, and the old traitor Wu Sangui is treacherous and greedy, the possibility of being able to agree to Wang Tangguan's two requests is probably very slim."

"The lower official also knows that this job is difficult, but there is no other way. The emperor's order is hard to break, and the lower official can only do it with all his strength." Wang Xu said with a sad face: "The biggest wish of the lower official now is to hope that I can use words To impress Wu Fan, please understand the court's difficulties, and allow a period of time for the payment of the general's salary, food, grass and ransom, and don't force the emperor and the court to sell their iron. As for whether Wu Fan can be persuaded to agree to release our prisoners of war early, to be honest, The lower officials are not sure."

"If it's just to persuade the old thief Wu Sangui to allow time, there is some hope." Tu Hai nodded, and analyzed: "The old thief Wu Sangui is now at the end of his battle, and urgently needs time to recuperate. As long as Wang Tangguan speaks properly and speaks clearly, believe Wu Sangui The old thief will still make appropriate concessions."

"Not necessarily!" A disharmonious voice sounded, and he said decisively: "Based on my humble opinion, Wu Sangui's old thief will probably not even agree to this request. He will only use the excuse that the Qing Dynasty has signed a peace treaty and ask our army to fulfill it!" Everyone looked for the sound, but saw that the person who said these words was actually Kong Sizhen who brought back to the front line from the capital this time and was about to return Tuhai to Tuhai's staff—Zhou Changzi Peigong!

"Pei Gong, how can you talk like this?" Tu Hai said rather displeased: "The situation of the imperial court is put here, and the situation of the old thief Wu Sangui who urgently needs time to recuperate is also put here, a little grace period of one or two years, yes There are great benefits for both parties, so why doesn't Wu Sangui agree?"

"According to common sense, it should be like this." Zhou Peigong said darkly: "But if the old thief Wu Sangui thinks deeper, he will definitely not agree to this request."

Although he doesn't like Zhou Peigong and Kong Sizhen's cowardice style, and basically didn't talk to Zhou Peigong on the way south, but it was related to his mission, Wang Xu still had a rare way to speak nicely to Zhou Peigong, asking Said: "Mr. Pei Gong, please explain in detail."

"Officer Wang Tang, in fact, this matter can be summed up in one sentence - the longer the payment of the military salary, food and ransom promised by our army, the more unfavorable it will be for the old thief Wu Sangui!" Zhou Peigong said in a dark voice: "Old Wu Sangui With the help of the traitor Lu Yifeng, the thief used the new firearm made by his ingenious skills to kill my Daqing by surprise, severely wounded our elite main force of the Qing Dynasty, and gained a strategic advantage in a short period of time. But even so, what the old thief Wu Sangui can control Manpower and material resources are still far from my opponents in the Qing court, given time, when our Qing army has matured in training and the advantages of manpower and material resources have been brought into play, then our Qing Dynasty is still sure to win!"

"Under such circumstances, if the old thief Wu Sangui agrees to extend the time, even if it is extended by one year, my Qing Dynasty can also get one more year to prepare for the war, train and equip an army of one million more, and regain our strength advantage. But If the old thief Wu Sangui refuses to give a grace period, then my Qing court will have to pay such a huge amount of money and food within a year, and it will be stretched when forming a new army for training, and it will be impossible to rebuild the army quickly, while the old thief Wu Sangui can Use this money and food to quickly form and equip more bandit troops, further expand the military advantage, and suddenly attack, continue to grasp the strategic initiative, it is easy!"

"Tangguan Wang, Tutang, my lords, do you think that if the old thief Wu Sangui has considered this point, is it possible to make concessions on the payment deadline?"

Wang Xu, Tu Hai and the others changed their faces together. Wang Xu was surprised, but he couldn't help looking at Zhou Peigong with admiration.After pondering for a while, Wang Xu said slowly: "So, it may be more difficult for me to go to Wu Fan as an envoy. The only hope is that everyone in Wu Fan is short-sighted and doesn't see this situation. It's one o'clock."

"Other people in the old thief Wu Sangui's shogunate may not be able to see it, but there is one person who can definitely see it!" Zhou Peigong replied decisively: "If the Wang Tangguan does not want to live up to the emperor's order, let the old thief Wu Sangui agree to a grace period." day, you must pass this person first!"

"Who?" Wang Xu raised his eyebrows.

"Tangguan Wang, your good friend." Zhou Peigong replied with a wry smile, "Lu Yifeng."

"Three good? How is it possible?" Wang Xu was taken aback.Over there, Tu Hai, Chani, Cai Yurong and others also laughed together, "Is Mr. Pei Gong too exaggerated? Just relying on Lu Yifeng, a gangster magistrate who is as big as a sesame seed and mung bean, can have such vision and brains?"

"My lords, if you continue to despise Lu Yifeng, a traitor, then prepare to continue to suffer losses." Zhou Peigong said sinisterly: "Let's not talk about Lu Yifeng's dog thief's attainments in Western firearms. Let’s just talk about his ability in military strategy—Masters, please think about it carefully. In the decisive battle in Guizhou, who was the magic soldier who descended from the sky and suddenly blocked the retreat of our Qing army? Surrounded the Allied Forces of the Three Provinces, and at the end, cleverly used their tongues to recruit the Allied Forces of the Three Provinces? Later, who used the weak enemy to be strong, and used shameless tricks to capture the Prince of Pingnan alive? Who proposed to attack the south and help the old thief Wu Sangui break through in one fell swoop? The fortified city of Wuchang?"

"One time may be a coincidence, two times may be called luck, and three times may be called a miracle, but four times in a row, Lu Yifeng's dog thief has grasped the right time, place and people, and grasped everything that can be used under impossible circumstances. To accomplish a miracle that no one else can even imagine—such a traitor, my lords, do you still dare to underestimate him?"

Tuhai, Chani and the others had nothing to say, but Xiong Cilu, the deputy imperial envoy who had never seen Fatty Lu but was always extremely hostile to Fatty Lu, sneered and said, "So what? Why did you conclude that the traitor Lu Yifeng must have seen this and considered it so far? What evidence does Mr. Zhou have?"

"I really have no evidence." Zhou Peigong shook his head, and said in a deep voice: "But I have an intuition that this dog thief must be able to do this. Judging from the fact that he gave up chasing our defeated soldiers and Xiaolu made a surprise attack on Bajiang City, this dog Thieves, the long-term vision is terrifying!"

"Heh..." Xiong Cilu laughed, and when he was about to refute, Yue Le, who was about to be escorted to the capital for trial the next day, suddenly said, "I agree with Mr. Zhou, and I think Lu Yifeng's dog thief can see at this point!"

"And what I can tell everyone is that." Yue Le glanced around the crowd, and said slowly: "Actually, whether it is Obai or Ye Bilong Ye Zhongtang, they have already issued a warning to Xiao Wang, thinking that this Lu Yifeng is both civil and military. If it can't be used by the Qing Dynasty, it will definitely be our number one enemy in the Qing Dynasty! Its harm may even be higher than that of Wu Sangui's old thief! Everyone, do you think that the vision of Oboi and Ye Zhongtang is different from yours? How does it compare?"

"I also agree with Prince An and Mr. Zhou's views." Kong Sizhen said timidly: "Actually, the emperor is also very alert to this Lu Yifeng, thinking that if this Lu Yifeng cannot be used by my Daqing, it will become a huge disaster for my Daqing confidant in the future." .”

Kong Sizhen also quoted Kang Mazi's words, the Qing army generals present no longer dared to say anything contemptuous of Fatty Lu, and Xiong Cilu also did not dare to refute, but just glanced sideways at Kong Sizhen, feeling jealous in his chest.But Wang Xu was both shocked and slightly proud, secretly praising his eyesight, and his only confidant, Fatty Lu, is indeed a pillar of strength—it’s just that the traitor is rampant in the court, and Kang Mazi deliberately covers up and indulges the traitor to frame his only confidant , Only then did he force his good friend to Wu Sangui's side.

Congratulations to self-satisfaction, each is their own master now, and Wang Xu, who is loyal to Kang Mazi, did not dare to take it lightly, and hurriedly asked: "Mr. Pei Gong, since you have already expected that Wu Fan will not agree to a grace period, then according to your See, what should I do to persuade Wu Fan to make concessions at the negotiating table and agree to a grace period?"

"Of course there is a way." Zhou Peigong replied confidently: "But you must not expect to achieve your goals at the negotiating table. You must talk face-to-face with the old thief Wu Sangui, make demands in person, and show righteousness and reason to the old thief Wu Sangui. It is beneficial to make them accept it. The old thief Wu Sangui is indecisive and has a very soft ear, so negotiating with him face to face has the greatest chance of success, and it can prevent the Wu thief's lackeys from interfering indiscriminately and destroying our army's plans."

"Then how should we negotiate directly with Wu Fan?" Wang Xu asked.

"It's very simple, take advantage of the greedy mentality of the old thief Wu Sangui." Zhou Peigong said with a sly smile: "Although the old thief Wu Sangui has the upper hand now, he still has two weaknesses. I am afraid that the Qing court will tear up the covenant and refuse to deliver the military pay and food that Ye Bilong promised. Mr. Wang only needs to grasp these two points, adapt to the situation and make a big fuss, and point out that Wu's lackeys object to the grace period, but Deliberately breaking the armistice treaty for self-interest, it is not difficult to shake Wu Sangui's determination."

"This..." Wang Xu became embarrassed and said, "This old man is the worst at it."

"Lord Wang, why don't you take Mr. Zhou across the river and ask him to help you persuade the old thief Wu Sangui?" Yue Le suggested: "Mr. Wang Guan Zhou is pedantic, resourceful, eloquent, and eloquent. Take him across the river to help negotiate, I believe it will be successful."

"Take Mr. Zhou Peigong across the river?" Wang Xu was a little tempted.

"If Lord Wang does not give up, I am willing to serve you." Zhou Peigong said impatiently: "I have been good at eloquence since I was a child, and I have never met an opponent. I am willing to go across the river to debate with many lackeys of Wu Thief, and help Lord Wang achieve his goal. Serve the country and be loyal to the Holy One."

"Pei Gong, how sure are you?" Tu Hai also hoped that the confidant lackey whom he had hand-picked would win him over, so he couldn't wait to ask.

"I dare not say with [-]% certainty, but there is still a [-]% to [-]% certainty." Zhou Peigong said with great confidence: "And there is another advantage of humble positions, that is, Wu thieves and lackeys, even if it is not good for them to extend the payment time of military salaries, they will They dare not speak out in public, otherwise, they deliberately do not want to abide by the armistice treaty, and are ready to tear up the armistice treaty and start a new war at any time, so that the old thief Wu Sangui will lose his reputation in the world. Director."

"In this case, please trouble Mr. Lao Peigong to have a talk with the next official across the river." Wang Xu was finally tempted, and sincerely invited: "Mr. Wanwang Peigong is counting on the country and society, so don't pay attention to Wang Xu's treatment of Mr. Wang on the way." It's a crime of underestimating. After Mr. Peigong completes his great achievements, I will be the emperor and ask for credit for Mr. "

"How dare you disobey your orders?" Zhou Peigong agreed.

Seeing the smug expression on Zhou Peigong's handsome face, Kong Sizhen, who knew Zhou Peigong's eloquence, had some hopes at first, and then some anticipation, and said in his heart: "Zhou Chang's mouth is really good, Wu Gou's I'm afraid no one is invincible, but if Wu Sangui's old thief brings out Lu Yifeng, who is equally eloquent, and sings against Zhou Chang in public, it will be a good show."

"Three good things." Wang Xu also secretly said in his heart: "We can finally meet again, but this time, we meet as opponents, will you show mercy to me, follow my advice, and come back anyway?"

(End of this chapter)