The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 285: The World (I)

Liu Zhaosun smiled and nodded. Although he had fought all the way from Shanhaiguan to here and had long been numb to rebellion, this final blow did require some courage. Besides, he was not ready to kill Zhu Youxiao.

Finally, Marquis Ping Liao looked at Sun Chuanting, who had remained silent.

More than two months ago, Sun Chuanting was ordered to stay in Kaiyuan to assist Yang Qing'er in handling Liaodong government affairs. After the war broke out, he assisted in the transportation of food and firearms. Not long ago, he was urgently summoned to the Liaoxi battlefield by Ping Liaohou, and then he fought all the way from Jinzhou to the city of Beijing.

Over the past six months, Sun Chuanting has witnessed with his own eyes how the Kaiyuan Army crushed western Liaoning like a snowball, its strength growing stronger and stronger.

When the army arrived at the capital, its size had exceeded that of the previous year's campaign against Hetuala.

However, Sun Chuanting was also very clear that the more than 100,000 people in front of him were actually a mixed bunch and their quality was worrying.

Among the 100,000 people, many are surrendered soldiers or refugees and bandits from various places. These people can be used to fight in favorable situations.

It is impossible to use them to attack a fortified city, so they cannot stay near the capital for too long, otherwise there will be endless troubles.

Sun Chuanting said in a gentle tone:

"Marquis Ping Liao, our army is unstoppable. From Shanhaiguan to Tongzhou, we've conquered them all with a single proclamation, almost without bloodshed. We should now capture the capital without delay. Otherwise, if we face threats from all sides, or if we run out of food and fodder, the surrendered soldiers will rebel again, and the Mongols and Jurchens will inevitably have other plans."

When Liu Zhaosun heard this, his expression suddenly became grim.

He knew that what Sun Chuanting said made sense.

There are no absolutely loyal subordinates, just as there are no eternal friends.

During the Jingnan Campaign, Ping Liaohou did not allow Jianzhou and Haixi to participate in the war, and Mongolia only allowed Kalaqin to accompany them.

Liu Zhaosun was mainly worried about triggering strong resistance. After all, in the eyes of the people inside the Great Wall, the Tatars were no different from beasts.

Of course, Ping Liaohou did not forget to dispatch officers and chiefs of Niulu and above from each tribe to accompany him and watch the battle. There were about a hundred Jurchen officers dispatched, all of whom were the elite of each tribe.

It was called watching the battle, but in fact these people were treated as hostages and kept in the Kaiyuan army for surveillance to remind Dudu, Burhanggu and others not to act rashly.

After experiencing the rebellion of the Song brothers and witnessing the widespread corruption in Kaiyuan's civil administration, the time traveler gained a deeper understanding of Yuxia.

"Master Sun is right. What do you think should be done next?"

Sun Chuanting glanced at everyone and continued:
"General Liu, the capital is a prime location, with the Grand Canal running through it from north to south, funneling the entire nation's wealth and treasury here. It shouldn't be taken lightly. The dignitaries and prominent figures residing within the city are often closely connected to the powerful gentry of various provinces, prefectures, and counties, so a single move can have repercussions on the entire system. Unless you wish to make the entire nation your enemy, you must adopt different strategies for different officials and not just execute them all. To achieve this, you must carefully consider when and who will enter the city before attacking it, and what to do if unrest breaks out after you enter. The Kaiyuan Army has strict discipline, and the soldiers are unwavering in their obedience. Needless to say, they will all follow the orders of General Ping Liaohou, but the border troops who recently surrendered are a different matter."

"Therefore, I believe that we must not allow those surrendered border troops to enter the city, otherwise there will be endless disasters."

Liu Zhaosun clapped his hands and smiled, admiring that Sun Chuanting was mature and had more comprehensive thoughts and ideas about state affairs.

Suddenly I remembered Li Zicheng's entry into Beijing.

When the Shun army first entered the capital, military discipline was strict. Every day, soldiers were beheaded in public for violating military discipline, such as robbery and rape.

Later, after the defeat at Yipanshi by the Qing army, military discipline gradually weakened.

Liu Zhaosun believed he could do better than Li Zicheng.

After all, the Kaiyuan army no longer has to worry about the Eight Banners of the Qing Dynasty or other powerful forces suddenly entering the pass.

The Kaiyuan Army is now following the path of the Eight Banners of the Qing Dynasty.

As the saying goes, walk your own way and leave no way for others to go.

There was no threat behind Ping Liaohou, and he would not suffer a crushing defeat like the Dashun Army in history, which suffered one defeat and then suffered repeated defeats until it was completely destroyed.

"Deng Changxiong! Immediately dispatch two thousand soldiers from the First and Second Guards Armies, and prepare to follow me into the city after the city is broken. The remaining soldiers will guard the nine gates of the capital and prevent other soldiers and civilians from entering the city! Anyone who dares to enter Beijing without my order will be executed!" Deng Changxiong took the order and left.

Kang Yingqian coughed twice, leaned close to Liu Zhaosun's ear, and whispered:

"Marquis Ping Liao, would you like to tell the world the story of Jianwen that I told you before?"

Liu Zhaosun was stunned for a moment and looked at General Kang hesitantly.

Emperor Jianwen Zhu Yunwen disappeared after the Jingnan fire. Some said that he escaped from Nanjing disguised as a monk, while others said that after the city fell, he was killed by Prince Yan and thrown into the fire, where he was burned to charcoal.

"Emperor Shenzong was kind to me back then. If it weren't for Emperor Wanli's support, I don't know where I would be now. I can't bear to see his descendants..."

Kang Yingqian hurried forward and pretended to cover Ping Liaohou's mouth to stop him from speaking any further.

Qiao Yiqi, Sun Chuanting, Ma Shiying and others around pretended not to hear anything. They turned their heads away and stared at the moat in a daze.

"Marquis Ping Liao! Is this the time to be soft-hearted? Take a look."

Kang Yingqian pulled Liu Zhaosun's hand and pointed at the endless camps surrounding the city wall.

A hundred steps away from the two men, a family of refugees who had followed the army to war were busy cooking. The four skinny people gathered around a campfire, and the aroma of meat wafted from a broken pot. It was unclear whether it was a human leg or a dog leg being cooked inside.

As the food supply route stretched for thousands of miles, the Kaiyuan army had long been running out of food and grass, and could only barely supply part of the surrendered Ming army. Ping Liaohou strictly prohibited the looting of the people in the capital.

Those refugees who followed the army had to solve their food problems on their own.

"Marquis Ping Liao! Do you see that? Hundreds of thousands of people are eagerly awaiting the siege and the distribution of food. They're staring at us with their eyes wide open! And you still care about Emperor Shenzong? He's buried deep underground. Dig him out and try to talk righteousness to the dead! Have you forgotten how harshly the imperial court treated us during the bloody battle at Sarhu?!"

Liu Zhaosun sighed and was about to speak when Sun Chuanting suddenly broke the silence.

"General Liu, the emperor must be eliminated, otherwise, there will be endless troubles. Right now, the Ming Dynasty is in turmoil, and civil unrest is breaking out everywhere. We cannot be soft-hearted, otherwise, ten Zhu Youxiaos will emerge tomorrow, under the guise of restoration. By then, more than just the dozens of people will die today."

Kang Yingqian took the lead in kneeling, and a large group of people knelt down around him. Ma Shiying took the lead and shouted:

"Now that things have come to this, if Marquis Ping Liao refuses to comply, please chop off your head!"

Liu Zhaosun was silent for a long time, then shook his head and sighed:

"Are you going to roast me in the oven?"

Kang Yingqian hurried forward and whispered:
"Don't worry, Marquis Ping Liao. Everything has been arranged. Prince Xin Zhu Youjian is on his way..."

On April 20th of the second year of Chongzhen, the sky over the capital was filled with fireworks and a light rain fell.

The people spent the whole day in fear. In the afternoon, hail, thunder and lightning came, and there was bitter wind and rain.

The people were spreading rumors that strange phenomena had appeared in the sky and that the Ming Dynasty was doomed to fail.

At dusk, the imperial city could be seen burning in the distance.

Later historical records recorded:

The Emperor (Liu Zhaosun) saw smoke rising from the palace from Zuo'an Gate and hurriedly sent Military Supervisor Kang to rescue them. However, it was too late and the Qianqing Palace was engulfed in flames. The Military Supervisor pulled his body out of the fire and reported back to the Emperor.

The emperor was extremely grief-stricken and cried out:

If (Emperor Chongzhen) was an idiot! I came to quell the rebellion, not to take your life, so why did you burn yourself to death? If not coerced by the Donglin rebels, why?
Then all the treacherous Donglin people were killed.

(End of this chapter)