Late Yuan Dynasty: I am the true emperor

Chapter 578 Pacifying Yunnan (Part 2): Applying Maximum Pressure

Nine days later, on the third day of the eleventh month, the main force of the Ming army arrived in Kunming. Since Liang Wang Bazalawarmi had already hanged himself, the Ming army did not encounter any significant resistance in Kunming. As soon as the main force of the Ming army arrived, the Zhongqing Road General surrendered the entire city of Kunming.

At that time, the Yuan Dynasty did not directly establish a prefecture in Kunming, but rather placed it under the unified jurisdiction of Zhongqing Road, which was the capital of Zhongqing Road.

After capturing Kunming, according to the original battle plan, the Ming army was supposed to carry out a large-scale purge around Kunming, mainly to eliminate foreign religious forces such as Semu people and Tianfang temples. However, after discussions between military generals such as Zhu Liangzu and Tao An, the newly appointed Left Governor of Yunnan, it was decided to temporarily postpone the execution of this plan.

At present, the Ming army's foothold in Yunnan is still unstable, and it has not yet captured Dali. If it acts too aggressively and incites a large-scale rebellion in Kunming, which it has just captured, the Ming army may face the danger of fighting on two fronts between Dali and Kunming, and its rear and supply lines being cut off by local forces in Yunnan.

Even if the goal is to eliminate foreign religious forces, the main force should first be used to defeat the Duan family of Dali. Once the Duan family and the Liang King are no longer leading the way, the local magnates and chieftains in Yunnan will be nothing more than a disorganized mess. The Ming army can then deal with whomever it wants, and it won't be too late to launch a major purge at that time.

Therefore, after being persuaded by Tao An, Zhu Liangzu and Liao Yongzhong finally agreed to the suggestion.

Once the plan was finalized, Tao An, the Yunnan Provincial Governor, would remain in Kunming to oversee and pacify local forces across the region.

Zhu Liangzu left Tian Feng's 126th Division, a main force division, in Kunming to guard Tao An's territory. He also left half of the six immigrant divisions with him and equipped these immigrants with Yuan army weapons captured in the Battle of Qujing. After all this, Tao An suddenly had more than 50,000 troops at his disposal. Although most of them were just laborers, it was enough to guard the rear and supply lines for the main force.

After arranging the rear and subsequent supplies, the army only stayed in Kunming for five days before Zhu Liangzu led the main force to attack Dali again. There was no time to lose, as Kunming to Dali was more than 600 li away. If they did not hurry, they might not be able to finish the battle before the New Year.
However, Zhu Liangzu did not rush into a continuous forced march. Instead, he steadily advanced towards Dali at a speed of thirty to forty li per day. Along the way, he also sent a large number of civil officials and generals to persuade cities in various places to surrender. For each city that surrendered, he would send a portion of the immigrant division to escort the local officials to their posts in order to stabilize the safety of his grain supply lines. If there were any stubborn ones who refused to surrender, he would send a detachment to annihilate them.

At the same time, a large number of scouts were dispatched to scout ahead at a distance of thirty or forty miles, in order to prevent the Duan family of Dali from sending troops to ambush them.

As time went by and the Ming army continued to penetrate deeper into Yunnan, news of the great battle in Qujing gradually spread throughout Yunnan. The 100,000-strong main force of the Liang King was wiped out in one battle, and the Liang King himself committed suicide after his defeat. All of this demonstrated that the rule of the Yuan Dynasty in Yunnan had completely collapsed. Now, hundreds of thousands of Ming troops were still entrenched in Yunnan, and the change of dynasty in Yunnan was an indisputable fact.

Therefore, most of the prefectures and counties along the route that the Ming army passed surrendered without resistance. However, some people still adopted a wait-and-see attitude. After all, all the old powers in Yunnan knew that Yunnan actually had two rulers: one was the Prince of Liang of the Yuan Dynasty, and the other was the Duan family of Dali.

Although the Liang King has been destroyed by the Ming Dynasty, isn't the Duan family of Dali still around?
These old forces loyal to the Duan family, although they dared not openly confront the Ming army, could not be said to be extremely loyal to the Ming Dynasty. Now that the main force of the Ming army was advancing towards Dali, they naturally dared not do anything.

As long as the Ming Dynasty sends someone to persuade them to surrender, they immediately express their allegiance. However, if the Ming army is defeated in Dali and driven back by the Duan family, then these people will have something to say. It is possible that once the Ming army is defeated, these people will be the first to turn against them and kick them while they are down.

Therefore, the Ming army could only win this battle and could not afford to lose, because if they were defeated, it would be difficult for them to even retreat. They would likely be surrounded and intercepted by various forces in Yunnan and eventually be worn down and killed in Yunnan.
However, unlike these local forces that were observing the situation, the Dali Duan clan, which was the next target of the Ming army, was really anxious at this time. They were as anxious as ants on a hot pan. After all, others could surrender and submit, but the Dali Duan clan could not. This place was their foundation. If they lost this, would the Duan clan still be the Duan clan?

In Dali, at the Duan family palace, upon learning that the main force of the Liang King had been wiped out and that the Liang King himself had committed suicide after his defeat, and that hundreds of thousands of Ming troops were still advancing towards Dali, the Duan family immediately became restless and convened a family meeting. They even invited the elderly clan elders who had become monks to attend.

By 1356, the position of Dali Chief Administrator established by the Yuan Dynasty had been passed down to the tenth generation. It was not the twelfth Dali Chief Administrator Duan Shi who was overthrown by Zhu Yuanzhang in the original history, but Duan Shi's father, Duan Gong, who was the current tenth Dali Chief Administrator.

Contrary to popular belief, the feelings of the Dali Duan family towards the Yuan Dynasty were not simple or unchanging, but rather underwent a significant transformation.

The Duan family of Dali originated from the Duan royal family of the Dali Kingdom, which in turn inherited the legal system of the Nanzhao Kingdom during the Tang Dynasty. This kingdom endured through the late Tang Dynasty, the Five Dynasties, the Song Dynasty, and the Yuan Dynasty, and its reign was even longer than the combined reign of the two Song Dynasties. Therefore, the Duan family should not be regarded as just the "governors of Dali". If we start counting from the time when the Duan family established the Dali Kingdom, then the Duan family's rule over Yunnan would have lasted for more than ten generations.

However, although the Dali Kingdom had a long reign, it was also very bumpy. It experienced a usurpation by a powerful minister. Although the Duan family later successfully restored the kingdom and seized the throne, its history was divided into two stages: the pre-Dali and post-Dali. In the post-Dali stage, although the Duan family regained the throne from the powerful minister Gao, Gao had become too powerful to control and had become a behind-the-scenes manipulator. In the post-Dali stage, the Duan family had almost become a puppet and did not have much power.

This situation remained unchanged until the Mongols attacked Dali. Although Kublai Khan destroyed the Dali Kingdom, he did not eliminate the Duan family. Instead, he allowed the Duan family to continue serving as the governors of Dali, assisting the Yuan Dynasty in ruling Yunnan. He also granted the Duan family the right to govern tens of thousands of households in several parts of Yunnan.

Although the Dali Kingdom was gone and the Duan family seemed to have lost the throne, they were able to get rid of their puppet status by taking advantage of the Mongol power and suddenly have real power to govern Yunnan. Therefore, the first few generations of Dali governors were completely devoted to the Yuan Dynasty and were extremely loyal!

In the early Yuan Dynasty, the Duan family not only sent troops to help the Yuan Dynasty attack the Southern Song Dynasty, but also sent troops to help the Yuan Dynasty attack Burma and Jiaozhi. Whenever the Yuan Dynasty opposed going out to fight, the Duan family would send troops to follow them. There were even instances where the Duan family died on the battlefield for the Yuan Dynasty.

However, in the mid-to-late Yuan Dynasty, as the Duan family gradually deepened their control over Yunnan by leveraging the power granted by the Mongols, the conflict between the Duan family and the Yuan Dynasty gradually became apparent.

Originally, the Yuan Dynasty had three princes guarding Yunnan: two were the King of Yunnan and one was the King of Liang in Kunming. However, by now, the two Kings of Yunnan had been squeezed out by the Duan family and had nowhere to stand, leaving only the King of Liang in Kunming, who also had a huge conflict with the Duan family.

During the reign of Duan Guang, the ninth Dali governor, the conflict between the two sides broke out completely. First, in 1334, Duan Guang clashed with the Liang King over the division of territory. Duan Guang sent troops to attack the Liang King in Kunming, but the Dali army was unfortunately defeated.

Later, the King of Liang retaliated against the Duan family. In 1343, the King of Liang sent troops to attack Dali, but they were defeated by Duan Guang's troops.

These two weaklings fought each other, neither able to gain the upper hand. Eventually, they negotiated and demarcated their territory, each ruling their own domain from then on.

Although the conflict was quelled on the surface, the underlying contradictions remained. King Liang first tried to bribe the generals under Duan Guang, but failed. He then sent assassins to kill Duan Guang. Finally, in 1344, Duan Guang was assassinated by someone sent by King Liang, and the position of Dali Governor was passed to the tenth generation, Duan Guang's younger brother, Duan Gong.

After Duan Gong came to power, relations between the two sides eased slightly. In 1346, the chieftain of Luchuan, the Si clan, rebelled, and Duan Gong personally led troops to suppress the rebellion. He was later appointed as the Yunnan Provincial Councilor for his military achievements, and has remained in that position ever since.

As for the historical event in which Ming Yuzhen's Red Turban Army captured Kunming, Liang Wang fled to Chuxiong, and Duan Gong led troops to rescue him, driving Ming Yuzhen back to Sichuan, that happened in 1363. Of course, this has not yet happened in the present timeline.

Furthermore, the story of King Liang marrying his daughter, Princess Agai, to Duan Gong, and then, suspecting that the Duan family might plot to control the entire Yunnan region, having his daughter poison Duan Gong with peacock gall, has naturally not happened.

The current situation is that Duan Gong is neither the son-in-law of the King of Liang nor has he fought for the King of Liang. The relationship between the two sides has eased to some extent, but it is not much better, and the contradictions between them still exist.

After all, Duan Gong's own brother was assassinated by the Prince of Liang. How much goodwill do you think he could have towards the Prince of Liang?

This is why the Duan family of Dali watched from the sidelines when the Ming army attacked Kunming. Firstly, the Ming army launched a surprise attack, and Dali did not have time to send troops to support them. Secondly, the conflict between the two sides remained, and even if the Duan family knew about it, they probably would not send troops to help.

As for the attitude of the Dali Duan family towards the Ming Dynasty, they were certainly willing to submit to the Ming Dynasty. After all, with the strength of the Duan family, talking about conquering the Central Plains was nonsense. At most, they could only occupy Yunnan. But it was impossible for the Duan family to be willing to offer the entire Yunnan to the Ming Dynasty and give up their rule in Yunnan.

The Duan family is willing to submit, present a memorial to the emperor, pay tribute, and arrange a marriage alliance—all of these are acceptable. However, the prerequisite is that they can only accept a ruling style similar to that of the Yuan Dynasty, allowing the Duan family to continue ruling Yunnan. Otherwise, they will definitely not agree.

Putting everything else aside, the Duan family would definitely not agree to Lu Jin's conditions.

Inside the Dali Royal Palace, Duan Gong, along with his two sons Duan Bao and Duan Shi, his father Duan Long (who had become a monk), and many other members of the Duan clan, were all gathered together. However, after much discussion, they still reached the same conclusion: who would be willing to give up their power if they could continue their family's rule in Yunnan?

After discussion, Duan finally sent an envoy to negotiate with the Ming army, preparing to confront them directly.

On November 18th, just as the Ming army arrived at Weichu Road (Chuxiong), the negotiating envoy sent by the Dali Duan clan also arrived. Hearing that the envoy represented the Duan clan in presenting a letter of surrender to the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Liangzu, Liao Yongzhong, Gao Yao, Feng Sheng, and other generals of the two armies immediately received him. In the central command tent of the Ming army, Zhu Liangzu, sitting side-by-side at the head of the table, finished reading the Duan clan's surrender document, casually handed it to Gao Yao beside him, and then asked the envoy a question.

"Who are you, and how could you possibly act on behalf of the Duan family?"

The envoy quickly cupped his hands and said, “General, please allow me to inform you that my name is Duan Hong, and I am a cousin of the current chief steward, Duan Gong. As for whether I can make a decision for the Duan family, that depends on your reply, General. If the Ming Dynasty allows the Duan family to be hereditary vassals of the Ming Dynasty, then I can agree to other less important matters on behalf of the Duan family. However, if the General does not allow it, then I cannot make a decision and can only go back and convey a message to the head of the family on behalf of the General.”

Upon hearing this, Zhu Liangzu scratched his eyebrow with his little finger, too lazy to waste words on this kind of person, and instead gestured to the instructor Gao Yao next to him to speak.

Gao Yao then finished reading the surrender document, handed it to Liao Yongzhong who was standing next to him, and then spoke to Duan Hong.

"Duan Hong, is it? Let me tell you the truth, the Duan family can no longer act as vassals of Yunnan. You don't need to use those deceptive tricks in your surrender documents in the Ming Dynasty anymore. Don't mention those nonsense about being the Ming Dynasty's bulwark in the southwest again. The Ming Dynasty doesn't need them."

"If the Duan family truly wishes to submit, then they should obediently surrender their territory. His Majesty will naturally reward you handsomely. But if you continue to harbor illusions and attempt to become the local emperors of Yunnan, then you will only face death. Do you understand what I'm saying?"

Upon hearing this, Duan Hong immediately frowned and said, "But you are raising an unjust army. Yunnan has never been Chinese territory since ancient times."

"Bullshit, try spouting another word of nonsense!" Before Duan Hong could finish speaking, Liao Yongzhong, who had just finished reading the surrender document, suddenly stood up, pointed at him, and shouted.

Feng Sheng, standing beside him, also looked at him coldly and said, "I've heard that the Duan family admires Confucianism and reads the classics and historical texts of the Han people. If that's the case, the Duan family should understand that Yunnan has been part of China since ancient times. Stop spouting nonsense. If you haven't studied, go home and study as soon as possible."

“If the Duan family has no one else to talk to, then let’s find someone else. Otherwise, we can wait until our army is at the city gates. Perhaps by then you will suddenly be literate.”

Duan Hong had barely finished speaking when he was suddenly rebuked by two Ming generals. He was so angry that his face turned red, but the Ming army was too powerful, and he dared not argue back.

Finally, Gao Yao waved his hand, signaling the two to sit down, before saying to Duan Hong, "You can continue."

Duan Hong cupped his hands in greeting before continuing, “Yunnan was once home to Nanzhao and later Dali. Emperor Taizong of the Song Dynasty even drew the Dadu River as the boundary with a jade axe, declaring that this land was not his. Even the Mongols from the grasslands were allowed to continue ruling Yunnan.”

"The Great Ming Dynasty is also a Celestial Empire, rich in the nine provinces and four seas, yet it still covets the barren corner of Dali. Even when my Duan family voluntarily submitted and asked to become a vassal of the Celestial Empire, it still sent a large army to invade Dali. The Celestial Empire bullies the weak and oppresses the small. Is this not an unjust army?"

Upon hearing this, Feng Sheng and Liao Yongzhong were about to erupt again, but Gao Yao waved his hand and then personally refuted it.

"First of all, I want to correct your absurd statement. Yunnan has been part of China since ancient times. Emperor Wu of the Western Han Dynasty established Yizhou Prefecture here, and the Eastern Han Dynasty also established Yongchang Prefecture here. Yunnan was originally just Yunnan County of the Han Dynasty. How can it be said that it is not part of China?"
"As for the Nanzhao and Dali you mentioned, they were nothing more than rebels who usurped power on Chinese soil. The Celestial Empire has not yet punished you for treason, yet you dare to use Nanzhao and Dali to argue with the Celestial Empire? This is outrageous!"
"As for your question about an unjust army, the Celestial Empire's expedition to Dali this time is for two reasons: first, to recover lost territory, and second, to suppress the rebels. Both are legitimate reasons. No matter where you go, there is no such thing as an unjust army."

"If you, the Duan family, surrender, then surrender readily, and the Celestial Dynasty will not treat you unfairly. But if you still insist on going your own way, then don't say you weren't warned. The Prince of Liang in Kunming will be your fate!"

When Duan Hong's true colors were exposed and he saw that the Ming generals were so tough, his face turned pale and then red. Before he could say anything, Zhu Liangzu, who was next to him, also spoke up.

"You don't need to argue with us. The heavenly army is only three hundred li away from Dali now. Do you think it's still useful to tell us this now?"
"Furthermore, if we really want to make comparisons, Dali is just like Goguryeo County in the Han Dynasty. Goguryeo was originally a small county in Liaodong, China. Later, it rebelled and established its own state, usurping the title of a country. It went through the Jin and Southern and Northern Dynasties, but it was eventually destroyed by the Sui and Tang Dynasties."

"How do you think your Duan family compares to Goguryeo? Even if you can hold off my hundreds of thousands of troops this time, the Ming Dynasty still has at least four such armies. The Ming Dynasty has hundreds of millions of people and millions of soldiers. The Ming Dynasty will not stop until the Duan family surrenders. You yourself said that Dali is just a barren corner of the country. In terms of money, food, population, and military strength, can you withstand the repeated attacks of the Celestial Empire?"
"If you don't have the ability, I advise you to give up those unrealistic fantasies as soon as possible. If you surrender now, you can still keep your lives. Once my army is at the gates, even if the Duan family begs for mercy, they will not have a good outcome."

Under this series of threats, Duan Hong's expression changed several times before he finally asked helplessly, "Then what does the Celestial Dynasty mean by 'submission'? And how does it plan to deal with the Duan family?"

Seeing that this fellow's attitude was open to negotiation, Gao Yao immediately presented the conditions offered by the Ming Dynasty.

"His Majesty had previously given instructions on how to deal with the Duan family."

"His Majesty once said that if the Duan family of Dali could take the initiative to bind the Liang King of Hu Yuan and bring all the land of Yunnan to submit to the Celestial Dynasty, His Majesty would not hesitate to reward the Duan family with a dukedom, and would also be willing to take a Duan family woman as a concubine and establish a close family relationship with the Duan family. From then on, the Duan family would live and die together with the country. This would certainly be the best outcome."

"Unfortunately, the heavenly army has already arrived in Yunnan, and the King of Liang has been killed by the heavenly army. The Duan family did not seize this opportunity, so you can forget about being granted the title of Duke."

Upon hearing this, Duan Hong's brow twitched, and Gao Yao continued speaking.

"Now that the army has advanced more than 300 li to Dali, I will give you one last chance. If the Duan clan surrenders before our army reaches Dali and agrees to move to the capital, His Majesty will still grant you the title of Marquis of Guide and may also take a woman from the Duan clan as a concubine. The entire Duan clan will be spared."

"But if you remain obstinate, and wait until our army is at the city gates before signing any treaty under duress, then all these benefits will be forfeited. If our two armies shed blood, you can weigh the consequences for yourselves. I guarantee that the entire Duan clan will be wiped out, and in the future, there will be no more people with the surname Duan in Dali or even Yunnan."

"So, are you ready to submit now?"

Duan Hong was forced to sweat profusely by these strong threats, his forehead constantly soaked with sweat. But how could he possibly agree to such conditions on his own? Even if he could agree, would the rest of the Duan clan agree?

Seeing that all the Ming generals were either looking at him with unfriendly expressions or with mocking smiles, Duan Hong then said, "This is a major matter that I cannot decide for the Duan family by myself. I wonder if the general would allow me to go home and discuss it with my clan?"

Zhu Liangzu immediately waved his hand and said, "Of course you can. You can discuss it however you want, but you must remember one thing: the hundreds of thousands of Heavenly Soldiers will not wait for you here. No matter how you discuss it, our army will continue to advance towards Dali. In ten days at most, if you still do not have an answer, our army will be at the city gates, and the price will not be the same. Go back now."

Upon hearing this, Duan Hong's heart skipped a beat. In just ten days, the Ming army would be at the city gates, and Weichu Road (Chuxiong) was more than 300 li away from Dali. He would have to go back and discuss the matter with his clansmen, so he really didn't have much time. Thinking of this, he dared not linger and quickly clasped his hands in a fist and said to everyone, "Thank you for informing me, General. I will go back and persuade my clansmen right away."

"Well, let's go."

Zhu Liangzu waved his hand casually, and before Duan Hong could even leave the tent, he ordered the generals around him, "Pass on my military order: tomorrow we will continue our advance towards Zhennan Prefecture (Nanhua). All units must be prepared, and there must be no mistakes!"

"Yes!"

The generals immediately obeyed the order in unison, which startled Duan Hong, who had just reached the door. He quickly ordered his guards to bring horses, and they galloped towards Dali. He now had to race against the main force of the Ming army.

(End of this chapter)