How can one be Emperor Chongzhen without money?

Chapter 60 War Breaks Out Again, the Duke Wants to Flee (Early Update, Please Add to Favorites and Follow for More)

Kuanhebao.

Li Juzheng, the commander, leaned against the cold pine wood fortress wall, his eyes fixed on the moving cavalry upstream in the valley. They were the cavalry of the Kharachin tribe, like a pack of jackals, galloping back and forth on the frozen river. The Mongol men on horseback, wrapped in thick fur robes, were firing arrows intermittently towards the fortress.

"Puff puff……"

Arrows sparsely embedded themselves in the fortress wall, their force weak and feeble, barely piercing even the bark of pine. A few that occasionally flew over the wall were easily deflected by the shield-bearing soldiers inside.

"Sir, are those Tartar arrows... just tickling me?" a young soldier grinned, hiding behind the battlements.

Li Juzheng's face showed no trace of a smile. He knew that Buyan Ahai, the Hongtaiji of the Kharachin, would never have come to raid Kuanhebao with just these empty gestures. Furthermore, he knew that the Kharachin tribe had already submitted to the Jurchens.
"Don't be careless!" Li Juzheng's voice was hoarse. "The Tartars are testing us! Send the order! Load the breech-loading breech-loading arquebusiers, musketeers hold steady, and don't show yourselves without my command! Lookouts keep a close watch on the woods!"

His ominous premonition grew stronger. This small Kuanhe Fortress, strategically located in the Kuanhe Valley, was a thorn in the side of General Sun (Sun Zushou) after his campaign beyond the Great Wall. The fortress housed only a battalion of soldiers, a few hundred men, and although it possessed ten newly cast breech-loading cannons and over a hundred arquebuses, it was no match for the large enemy force…

"Bang! Bang!"

First came a muffled gunshot, followed by several shouts in Mongolian.

Buyan Ahai's banner moved. The Kharachin cavalry, like a surging tide, began to slowly retreat, leaving behind a mess of arrows and several corpses shot down from the fortress walls.

"They've retreated?" The soldiers looked at each other in bewilderment.

Li Juzheng frowned deeply: "Where is the messenger?"

"exist!"

"Immediately leave the fortress, cross the frozen Kuanhe and Luanhe rivers, and ride at full speed to the General's Office of Santun Camp to report an emergency! Tell them that Kuanhe Fortress is under siege by a large group of Tartars, and there are suspected Jurchens mixed among them! Please, General Sun, send reinforcements immediately!" He paused, then added sternly, "Light the beacon fires! Three piles! Black smoke!"

"Understood!" The messenger rushed down the wall.

A moment later, from the top of the highest watchtower behind the fort, three thick plumes of black smoke shot straight up into the gray sky.

……

Five miles away, the temporary camp of the Kharachin.

Buyan Ahai dismounted, looking utterly dejected, and slammed his whip onto the snow. "Bairin!" he roared at a large leather tent not far away, "That Ming dog's wooden fortress is incredibly sturdy! Arrows can't penetrate it, and horses can't cross the moat! We lost over a dozen warriors, and didn't even get a hair on our heads!"

The curtain was lifted, and Amin Beile, the banner lord of the Bordered Blue Banner, strolled out.

“Hong Taiji,” Amin said in a low voice, with the distinctive accent of the Jurchen people, “what’s the rush? I’ve seen that Kuanhe Fort. The wooden walls aren’t high, but they’re riddled with gun emplacements and the location is tricky. To charge in headfirst… would be to risk the lives of our warriors.”

He pointed to the outline of the wooden fort in the distance: "See that? That's a tough one. You can't just use brute force to break it open; you have to use skill."

Buyan Ahai was taken aback: "Skillful?"

“Yes,” Amin’s eyes flashed with a sly glint, “fill the trenches first. Use the shield carts for cover, fill the trenches, and the road will be open. Then load the shield carts with hay and oil, push them to the foot of the fortress wall… and set it on fire!”

Buyan Ahai's eyes lit up upon hearing this, but then he said worriedly, "Your Highness is brilliant! But... what about the Ming dogs' reinforcements..."

"Reinforcements?" Amin grinned, revealing a set of white teeth, but his smile was as cold as a knife. "That's exactly what we've been waiting for! If they don't come, how can we kill them? If we don't kill them, how can we plunder them? Hong Taiji, have your men cut down trees! Build shield carts! Make them thick! The more the better!"

Near Yihai Hall in Tsinghua Garden, there is a quiet and warm pavilion.

Duke Zhu Chunchen of Chengguo slumped in a rosewood armchair covered with thick brocade cushions, his plump face glistening with sweat, the usual rosy glow long gone. Before him, his trusted steward, Zhu An, hunched over, spoke in a low, tearful voice:

"My lord... it's all over, completely over! The Wang family's old business... has been raided by the Embroidered Uniform Guard! Tian Ergeng personally led the operation, and the seal on it read 'colluded with the enemy'! Wang Dengku's steward in Beijing... was arrested on the spot!"

"Treason...treason?!" Zhu Chunchen's entire body trembled violently, he sprang up as if pricked by a needle, then slumped back down, his face instantly turning deathly pale. Those two words pierced his heart like a sharp knife! Embezzling military pay, misappropriating rations, even inciting mutiny... these crimes, with his dukedom and noble status, might allow him to maneuver, at worst sacrificing some silver and land. But "treason"... that was a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of his family! It was utter damnation!
"Wang Dengku's steward... he... he confessed?" Zhu Chunchen's voice trembled uncontrollably. "I don't know, Your Highness!" Zhu An wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. "The Imperial Guard's prison... how many people who go in ever come out unscathed? Even if he doesn't confess, there's still Wang Dongjia himself in Xuanfu... those account books... those correspondence..."

Zhu Chunchen felt dizzy. He had sent Zhu An home to fetch bedding and food, but on the way back, he was stopped by the Embroidered Uniform Guard and his house was turned upside down! Meanwhile, the servants of other noble families living in Qinghua Garden could deliver supplies without any hindrance! This was clearly aimed at him! It was the Emperor… it was the Emperor who wanted to harm him!

"My lord...my lord!" Zhu An said anxiously when he saw his master's pale face. "We have to think of something quickly! How about...we offer up our sin money? Donate our land for redemption? Pour out our entire fortune and beg His Majesty for mercy?"

"A silver for punishment? Land for redemption?" Zhu Chunchen gave a bitter laugh, his eyes vacant. "My affairs... can be settled by handing over silver and land? That's colluding with the barbarians! That's betraying the country! That's... that's a capital offense!" He suddenly grabbed Zhu An's arm, his nails almost digging into his flesh. "Zhu An... tell me, what... what do we do now?"

Zhu An's eyes darted around, and with a determined bite, he leaned close to Zhu Chunchen's ear, his voice barely audible: "Master... how about... we run?"

"Run?" Zhu Chunchen shuddered. "Where do you think you're going?"

“Datong!” A hint of helplessness flashed in Zhu An’s eyes. “Datong Town…the emperor is far away! The Ma family of Datong Right Guard, don’t they have some history with our household? Before the New Year, the Prince of Dai’s Mansion embezzled military farms, almost causing a military mutiny. Wasn’t it you who helped suppress it? Besides, there are quite a few shady deals in the Duke’s Mansion, all done with Eunuch Pang of the Prince of Dai’s Mansion. Let’s hide for a while and see how things develop…”

"Datong?" Zhu Chunchen gasped, cold sweat trickling down his temples. "Datong... Datong is right next to the Tartar territory! And the Ma family and the Prince of Dai's mansion... can they be trusted? What if..."

He dared not think further. Seek refuge in a border town? That would be tantamount to treason! Flee to the grasslands? Even worse…

……

Inside Yihaitang, the charcoal fire crackled.

Emperor Chongzhen sat in the main seat, with five Grand Secretaries—Huang Lijie, Shi Fenglai, Zhang Ruitu, Li Guopu, and Sun Chengzong—sitting on either side below him.

"...Although Hudun Tu Khan was driven back twenty miles by Wei Zhongxian during his invasion, his main force was not damaged and remained entrenched within the border wall, posing a constant threat." With Minister of War Wang Zaijin absent, Sun Chengzong, a seasoned military expert, spoke slowly, "However, the most pressing threat to our Great Ming Dynasty right now lies in Jianzhou. We should not prolong our conflict with Hudun Tu Khan."

Emperor Chongzhen tapped his fingers unconsciously on the armrest: "Mr. Sun means... to negotiate peace?"

“It’s not about negotiating peace, it’s about ‘appeasement’,” Sun Chengzong corrected. “This barbarian is greedy and fickle, but he is ambitious yet incompetent, and his followers are disloyal. All we need to do is… give him a good beating, and then offer him a way out.”

"Did it hurt?" Chongzhen raised an eyebrow.

“Li Huaixin has most likely already led his elite cavalry out of the border,” Sun Chengzong advised. “According to the Xuanfu report, the Chahan tribe’s troops that invaded this time are all strong and healthy, with no elderly or weak tribesmen. Their elderly and weak must still be outside the border. If General Li can find them, burn their pastures, plunder their cattle and sheep, slaughter their elderly and weak… kill several thousand of them, let them know the pain! Let them know fear! Then, send envoys to question them, promise to open the market, and give them some rewards, and we can temporarily pacify the north and free up our hands to deal with the Jurchens.”

Kill a few thousand more and that should be enough!

Emperor Chongzhen nodded in satisfaction: "Mr. Sun's plan... is very much to my liking! Issue an edict to Datong, and... thoroughly raid his stronghold! Show no mercy to the elderly, weak, women, and children! Kill them until it hurts!"

At the same time, outside the Yihai Hall, Zhu Chunchen paced back and forth, looking utterly dejected. His face was ashen, his eyes unfocused, and despite being wrapped in a heavy sable coat, he trembled slightly. He had come to plead guilty to the emperor, but as he approached the imposing hall, his legs felt like lead, and he couldn't bring himself to cross the high threshold.

"Lord Duke?" A shrill voice rang out, startling Zhu Chunchen.

Xu Yingyuan, the Grand Eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial, appeared beside him at some point, his face bearing his usual smile, which sent chills down one's spine. "You... have come to request an audience with His Majesty?"

Zhu Chunchen turned around abruptly, looking at Xu Yingyuan's fair face, and for a moment he didn't know how to answer.

Just as he was about to speak, speechless...
"Da da da da...!"

A rapid, thunderous sound of hooves approached from afar, and a rider on horseback galloped like a whirlwind to the front of Yihai Hall. The rider was covered in snow and his voice was hoarse: "A 600-li urgent dispatch from the Capital's Office of Transmission to Jizhou! Extremely urgent!"

Xu Yingyuan's expression changed drastically. He no longer cared about Zhu Chunchen. He rushed down the steps, snatched the urgent report held up by the knight, and ran into Yihai Hall!

Zhu Chunchen was so startled by the knight's roar that he staggered, staring blankly at Xu Yingyuan's disappearing figure in the hall, then at the warhorse that was foaming at the mouth and nose and soaked in sweat, and at the knight's face that could not be concealed in fear...

Jizhou... a 600-li urgent dispatch... an extremely urgent matter?
Are they the Jurchens, or the Tartars of the Kharachin Mongols? Or perhaps both have come together? The army of the Chahan tribe hasn't even withdrawn yet, and now the troops of the Kharachin and Jianzhou are coming. This world is going to be in chaos! Should we go to Datong and see what's going on?
He had never dared to explain the problem to Chongzhen, and now he had a reason to convince himself. He turned around abruptly, no longer looking at the majestic Yihai Hall, and stumbled and ran towards his own warm chamber as if fleeing a flood or a ferocious beast!
(End of this chapter)