Late Ming Dynasty: Oops, I am surrounded by the Donglin Party

Jirgalang had every reason to take the lead. The humiliation in Jinzhou caused him to lose four fingers on his right hand, which was the greatest humiliation for a warrior.

After that humiliation, Jirgalang was depressed for a long time. Finally, it was with the encouragement of Huang Taiji that Jirgalang regained his courage.

Huang Taiji also told him that it was useless to just talk about it, unless one day he personally defeated Zhang Shikang and cut the guy into pieces, then he would truly overcome his fear.

Now that the Qing army is approaching, it is a good time to avenge our previous humiliation.

"Okay, if that bastard dares to go out, I will order you to be the vanguard." Huang Taiji calmly agreed to Jirgalang's request.

Knowing shame leads to courage. Huang Taiji’s greatest strength was not his personal bravery, but because he was too fat.

But he knew how to unite forces and win over the hearts of the people. The Qing Dynasty had many powerful soldiers and generals, and one of the reasons why they were able to work together was mainly because of his own prestige.

"This battle is a battle that will determine the fate of the Qing Dynasty.

Before Zhang Shikang shows up, you must not take it lightly. Huang Taiji also warned the generals present.

Considering the failures in the previous two attempts to capture the pass and the defeat in Jinzhou last year, the morale within the Qing Dynasty has not been very high.

Along with the Mongolian tribes south of the desert that had been conquered in recent years, some tribes also began to doubt whether the Qing Dynasty could rule over the Central Plains.

Not to mention the Mongolians in the northern desert. He had previously issued an edict ordering the Mongolian tribes in the northern desert to come and pay tribute and pledge allegiance. Some tribal leaders had already replied in agreement, but due to successive defeats in the past two years, none of these fence-sitters came.

Although they defeated Li Zicheng and the Xitumed tribe a while ago and saved a lot of face, it was far from enough.

The Qing Empire needs greater victories to intimidate the villains in both the northern and southern deserts. This is like a snowball. If it can keep winning, more and more tribes will come to join it. Otherwise, it will be dangerous.

"Your Majesty's order will be obeyed!" Everyone responded in unison.

Afterwards, Huang Taiji asked everyone to leave, except Prince Li Daishan, who did not leave immediately as if something had happened.

"Your Majesty, I have recently received news from the interior that the Ming Dynasty seems to have a rift with the Zheng family." Prince Li Daishan bowed again.

"Second brother, there are no outsiders here, so let's just call each other brothers." Huang Taiji sighed.

Although the battle was won, as an insider knows, the situation of the Qing Dynasty did not improve at all. The fate of the country was at stake in this battle. If they won, it would be fine, but if they lost, the consequences would be disastrous.

Perhaps, it is still unknown what the territory of the Qing Dynasty would be if it retreated to the level of the Later Jin Dynasty.

Whether it was to win over the hearts of the people or to show respect to the wise, Huang Taiji still trusted his brother very much. After all, if Daishan had not supported him, he might not have been able to ascend to the throne.

"Zheng family, that big pirate?" Huang Taiji frowned slightly.

The Qing Dynasty had only been established for a few years and had never been involved in the ocean, so naturally it did not have a navy. In Huang Taiji's view, forming a navy was a very low cost-effective thing. With that money, he would rather build a few hundred more sets of heavy armor.

Most of the Qing Dynasty's spies in the interior were managed by Daishan. Huang Taiji certainly knew Zheng Zhilong's name, but that was all.

"Yes, Your Majesty, it is Zheng Zhilong. Your Majesty, do not underestimate this man. The reason why the Ming Dynasty's coastal defense is safe is because of this man's existence."

Daishan didn't really dare to call Huang Taiji his brother. Although he felt warmed in his heart, he remained respectful as usual.

"Why did he have a rift with the Ming Dynasty? Could he dare to go against the power of the dynasty with his own strength?" Huang Taiji asked puzzledly.

Although he had always been eyeing the Ming Dynasty covetously and had once defeated the Ming Dynasty without any chance to fight back, even so, Huang Taiji never looked down on the Ming Dynasty.

No matter what, the Ming Dynasty was a big country with a vast territory. As the so-called orthodox Han dynasty, it could not be challenged by one family alone.

"Your Majesty, Zheng Zhilong's main combat force is at sea, with nearly 3,000 ships of various types.

Relying on his power on the ocean and making profits from maritime trade, Zheng Zhilong had always lived in peace with the Ming Dynasty and even accepted the Ming Dynasty's amnesty.

But the reason why the two sides could live in peace was all because the Ming court banned maritime trade and had no conflict with Zheng Zhilong over profits.

In the past two years, that bastard Zhang Shikang seemed to be vigorously building a navy, which touched Zheng Zhilong's sore spot.

The Han people have a proverb that goes, "Destroying a person's financial resources is like killing his parents." So why would Zheng Zhilong pretend that his financial resources were cut off?

Perhaps the Zheng family did not make much achievements in land warfare, but on the sea, the Ming Dynasty court might not be a match for Zheng Zhilong.

I believe that the enemy of my enemy is my friend.

If Your Majesty can write a letter to win over Zheng Zhilong, it may have a miraculous effect, but we don’t know yet.” Daishan explained again.

Huang Taiji was silent for a while after hearing this, and then he dragged his heavy body and slowly paced around the big tent.

He has written countless letters of surrender over the years and is very familiar with such matters.

Previously, he did not attach importance to the navy. One of the main reasons was that the Qing Dynasty only had a small maritime area in Liaodong and the Qing Dynasty's finances had always been tight.

What Daishan said was true. If Zheng Zhilong could be won over, with his naval power, troops could be transported from Liaodong by water, bypassing the Great Wall of the Ming Dynasty and reaching the coastal areas of the Ming Dynasty directly.

By then, attacking from both the north and the south, perhaps we can really catch the Ming court off guard.

"I will write him a letter in person later. If he can help me attack the Ming Dynasty, I will make him a king." Huang Taiji said confidently.

The reason why the Qing Empire was able to win over so many surrendered ministers of the Ming Dynasty was not only because Huang Taiji was very good at treating people with respect, but also because he really dared to give.

King Samsoon is a good example.

However, neither Huang Taiji himself nor Daishan and other members of the Qing royal family truly believed in any Han Chinese.

"I wish Your Majesty can subdue this man. Zheng Zhilong will be stripped of his title and will have no place to stay in the Ming Dynasty. Only our Qing Dynasty can give him a chance." Daishan flattered.

Huang Taiji's face became much better after hearing this, and he said to Daishan:

"I dare not hide it from my second brother. This time, conquering cities is not my main purpose."

Daishan was stunned when he heard this.

"I wonder what your majesty wants to achieve?"

This time, the whole country was mobilized. He thought that Huang Taiji's goal was to capture Guanningjin.

After all, this was the first time such a large number of troops were dispatched since the founding of the Qing Dynasty.

If we gamble the fate of our country but fail to capture cities and territories, wouldn’t it be too much of a joke?

Huang Taiji did not answer Daishan directly, but looked at the map of the Ming territory on the wall and pondered for a while, then suddenly turned around and looked at Daishan and said:

"I have only one goal, to get rid of Zhang Shikang!"

……