1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 3882

After listening to Yue Shizong's explanation, Meng Jinfeng couldn't help but feel somewhat disheartened. He had been quite excited when he left the capital, believing that although the task assigned by the court was arduous, it was also a great opportunity to make merit. If he could successfully persuade Haihan to stop the war, he would surely be promoted and ennobled, and his future career would be bright.

But after encountering so many setbacks in Hangzhou, Meng Jinfeng realized that his initial ideas were too simplistic and he had not anticipated the extent of the difficulties in reality.

To put it bluntly, his current status as the Ming Dynasty's diplomatic ambassador meant he was unwelcome by anyone in Hangzhou. Neither his adversaries nor his colleagues would give him a friendly look. All his pre-prepared strategies were rendered useless, and he could only watch helplessly as the situation continued to deteriorate against the Ming Dynasty. This predicament truly frustrated him.

With a bitter expression, Meng Jinfeng asked, "Lord Yue, is there really nothing we can do right now, and we can only wait for Haihan to eat and drink his fill and then stop fighting on his own?"

Yue Shizong retorted, "Lord Meng, if I may speak a treasonous word, does the imperial court have the courage to fight Haihan to the death? If the higher-ups are not prepared to fight to the death, but instead intend to prolong their lives through negotiations, do you think the Haihan people will not see through such a trick? Since they know that our dynasty has neither the will nor the ability to resist this offensive, why should the Haihan people stop the war?"

The questions raised by Yue Shizong left Meng Jinfeng speechless and unable to respond.

Having come from the capital, he was naturally aware of the court's reaction after the outbreak of war. The cabinet ministers proposed various solutions, but almost all of them aimed to resolve the crisis through negotiation. No one dared to explicitly suggest mobilizing troops from across the country to defend Jiangxi and hold out against Haihan. Even the hardliners' opinions were limited to issuing an edict ordering Jiangxi to resist and await reinforcements.

As for where the reinforcements were and how they would provide assistance, Meng Jinfeng was initially unclear, but now he understood that he was the "reinforcements" sent by the imperial court, and the means of rescue was to persuade Haihan to voluntarily cease hostilities through diplomatic negotiations.

As for resistance on the main battlefield, it could only be organized by the local government and the Ming army in Jiangxi, and they would not receive much support from the imperial court.

Everyone knew that the imperial court was currently incapable of large-scale troop mobilization, let alone organizing and commanding a full-scale war. Forcing an uprising would not only fail to counter Haihan's invasion but could also hasten the end of the Ming Dynasty.

Looking back now, Meng Jinfeng felt that the court's response had a sense of doing its best and leaving the rest to fate. If negotiations could be held, they would try; if not, they would hope that the resistance in Jiangxi would deplete Haihan's troops and resources, thus relieving some pressure on the Ming Dynasty.

Just as Yue Shizong said, the two countries have been at odds for two or three decades and know each other well. How could Haihan not see through the Ming Dynasty's plans? Knowing that the Ming Dynasty was weak and powerless, how could Haihan show any mercy on the stage?

Meng Jinfeng inwardly agreed with Yue Shizong's view, but as an envoy, he couldn't voice his disheartening thoughts, and could only sigh repeatedly. This reflected both his disappointment and resentment towards the country, as well as his sorrow for his own future and fate.

Looking at Meng Jinfeng's sighs and lamentations, Yue Shizong felt as if he were seeing his younger self. Back then, he was just like Meng Jinfeng, suffering every day over national affairs and feeling lost and helpless about the future. Now that he was no longer involved, he finally understood what state he was in back then.

However, Yue Shizong has now emerged from his predicament. Since deciding to resign, he has found that his observation and judgment of the situation have become clearer. Perhaps this is the reason why those involved are confused while bystanders are clear-headed.

However, Yue Shizong knew that he could offer limited help to his successor, Meng Jinfeng, given his predicament. As an official appointed by the court, Meng Jinfeng was obligated to fulfill his duties and could not escape the immense pressure of his position. Only by voluntarily relinquishing his post and related work, like himself, could he find true relief. But no matter what efforts Meng Jinfeng made, he could hardly influence the war situation thousands of miles away. The Haihan Army continued its relentless advance, gradually eroding Jiangxi and encircling the capital, Nanchang.

On June 3, the vanguard of the 1st Battalion of the 3rd Army Division advanced from west to east into the territory of Fuzhou Prefecture and began attacking Jinxi County without stopping.

Lu Ershi's attack on Linjiang Prefecture, which is adjacent to Fuzhou Prefecture to the west, was only one day later than Lu Sanshi's attack.

Both prefectures border Nanchang Prefecture to the north. If they fall, Nanchang Prefecture will be in danger of being attacked from the north, east, and south.

Meanwhile, Zhao Mingyu, the Left Provincial Governor of Jiangxi, who was in Nanchang, also received another letter urging him to surrender, delivered to him through secret channels.

This time, however, the main writer was no longer his student Yue Shizong, but Shi Chengwu, one of the commanders of Haihan's operation.

Shi Chengwu's demands in the letter were very clear: Zhao Mingyu should cooperate with Hai Han's actions and arrange for the Nanchang garrison to surrender. If this could not be done, he should at least express his stance as soon as possible and persuade other officials to give up resistance to avoid Nanchang suffering an undeserved disaster.

In return, the Haihan Army will guarantee the personal and property safety of Zhao Mingyu and his relatives and friends after taking over Nanchang. Zhao Mingyu will also be free to choose whether to stay in Jiangxi, move to the Ming Dynasty's territory, or choose to settle anywhere within Haihan territory. The government will do its best to provide convenience.

After reading the letter, Zhao Mingyu sighed and placed it on his desk. Next to it was a secret imperial edict that had just arrived that day. Its contents were equally concise, ordering the three provincial offices of Jiangxi to hold Nanchang and prevent Haihan from conquering the entire province of Jiangxi, so as to gain more leverage in the ceasefire negotiations.

One letter demanded immediate surrender, while another urged them to hold out to the end. Zhao Mingyu found himself in a situation that was both laughable and frustrating.

He was certainly more aware of the current situation in Jiangxi than the bigwigs in the capital. There were very few prefectures left that had not yet been touched by Haihan, and it seemed that it was only a matter of time before they captured Nanchang.

Whether the garrison in Nanchang could hold out and repel the aggressive Haihan army was uncertain. Not only Zhao Mingyu, but even those military leaders who clamored to fight the Haihan army to the death, were not confident of victory.

Zhao Mingyu had reviewed the battle plans devised by the Commander-in-Chief's Office. There were several plans, but all of them were based on the premise of defending the city and did not intend to go out and engage in battle. It seemed that the Commander-in-Chief's Office was well aware that their combat strength was far inferior to that of the Haihan Army, and that they would have virtually no chance of winning in a head-on confrontation. They could only adopt a tactic of retreating and defending.

"If we couldn't even hold Nanjing, how can we possibly hold Nanchang?" Zhao Mingyu thought of this and couldn't help but shake his head, extremely pessimistic about the situation.