The wind rises at the end of the Ming Dynasty

The sky shone brightly, and the east suddenly turned white.

A dazzling golden light pierced through the clouds, like a sharp sword cleaving through the twilight.

Immediately, a radiant glow burst forth, instantly dispelling the gloom from the sky and earth.

In the distance, the rising sun, cradling the newly ascended wilderness, gradually rises, dyeing the still-dewy expanse a golden-red hue.

The sun has fully risen above the horizon, and the dark clouds that once obscured the sky have long since dispersed.

Without the obstruction of dark clouds, the dazzling golden light shone down on the ground without any hindrance.

On the open field, there was no longer a single shadow to obstruct the view.

The brilliant sunlight poured down like a waterfall, illuminating every inch of the land that had been ravaged by war.

Chen Wang rode slowly along the side of the official road, the morning light gilding his black armor with a golden glow. With a light flick of his whip, his generals surrounded him, their iron armor gleaming in the morning light.

After climbing a slightly higher mound, Chen Wang reined in his warhorse, taking in the view of the official road.

Countless soldiers clad in red armor and wearing red helmets marched along the official road, their fighting spirit high and their vigorous momentum no less than that of the rising sun in the east.

Crimson armor surged like a tide, helmets tasseled like fire, and the marching column, stretching for miles, resembled a giant dragon winding across the plains.

Banners of various colors fluttered in the strong morning wind, making a rustling sound.

The dull footsteps merged into a rumbling sound and faded into the distance.

The billowing smoke and dust filled the sky, even obscuring the sun's rays, making it appear somewhat dim and lackluster.

The spring sun is warm and gentle, without the scorching heat of midsummer or the biting cold of winter.

When it shines on people, it only makes them feel incredibly warm.

Chen Wang slowly reached out and caught a handful of sunlight.

The armor plates reflected the sunlight, dazzlingly bright.

The warm sunlight shone on the open field and fell into the Jingnan Army's formation, touching every soldier of the Jingnan Army.

Everywhere you look is a sea of ​​crimson gold, as if you've fallen into an ocean of crimson gold.

Their armor was still stained with the dust brought from Jining, and there was still a lot of mud and dried blood that had not been washed off.

They looked tired, but their eyes were full of spirit.

A strong wind howled, sweeping through the formation, and countless crimson banners fluttered in the gale.

What comes into view is like the surging Yellow River, with its majestic momentum.

Five days have passed since the Battle of Jining.

The main force of the Qing army, totaling 170,000 men, was concentrated in Jining.

The Jingnan Army inflicted a major defeat on the main force of the Qing army in the eastern suburbs of Jining, killing and wounding more than 50,000 men. The remaining troops all surrendered. The Fu River was stained with blood, and the river was filled with corpses that floated for several days.

Upon hearing of the main force's defeat, the Qing troops east of Jining City and inside Jining City fled directly north.

Chen Wang then ordered the Mongol vassals to pursue and kill them all the way, killing 10,000 more and capturing more than 2,000. The rest fled and disappeared without a trace.

The Jingnan Army suffered only over 8,000 casualties.

These casualties mainly occurred among the troops on the left flank and the two divisions in Henan Town, which were used by the central command as a decoy.

Chen Wang's gaze was forward.

At the far end of the plains, a majestic city stands quietly.

He had already visited this place in the eleventh year of the Chongzhen Emperor's reign.

The name of that city.

It's called Jinan.

just.

The Jinan of the past is now a completely different city from the Jinan of today.

This ancient city, which should have perished in the Wuyin Incident, has been given a temporary respite due to the changing times, but ultimately could not escape the net of fate.

However, it ultimately could not escape its predetermined fate and was eventually destroyed by war.

When the Qing army captured Jinan, they burned and killed hundreds of thousands of officials, soldiers, and gentry, reducing the entire city to ashes.

Survivors compiled the county annals, recording the horrific scene after the fall of Jinan, every word filled with sorrow and grief:

The house was charred and the walls were burned; the room had a deep pit; the lake and well were filled with debris; and the streets and alleys were overgrown with weeds.

A few words, yet utterly tragic.

The horrors of that hell on earth are beyond description.

Chen Wang unconsciously tightened his grip on the reins.

When he was ordered to defend the king and came to the northern country, he was just a minor battalion commander with no more than three thousand men under his command.

Amidst the raging storm, even with all our efforts, we could not turn the tide; we could only adapt to the situation and try our best to maneuver.

Now, five years later, everything has changed dramatically.

Everything has changed.

He is no longer a nobody struggling in the torrent of the times.

The hopes of millions of people were placed on him.

"Chen Wang..."

Chen Wang murmured his name softly.

After eight years of trials and tribulations, and having traversed thousands of miles, the goal of pacifying the world is drawing ever closer.

Now, he has reached a crossroads in history.

The road ahead was still shrouded in a thick fog, and he did not know where he should lead the people following him.

However, along the way, the confusion in his eyes had disappeared.

He lived up to his name.

He has already presented the hopes and aspirations of all the people under heaven, and the day of restoring China is just around the corner.

To achieve this goal, to seize power that could shake the world, and to accumulate the strength to sweep away all obstacles, he made too many significant and even cruel decisions, even... resorting to any means necessary...

Many things have been passed down to future generations.

It will all lead to doubt, ridicule, and even contempt.

His hands were stained with blood, not just from his enemies.

He has let down many people, especially those who were displaced by famine and war because of his decision.

I am sorry to Yang Sichang, I am sorry to Lu Xiangshan, and I am even more sorry to Sun Chuanting, who has always been my mentor and friend and my benefactor in my career...

I have also let down the many people in this world.

Perhaps if he had another chance, he could have done better and saved even more people.

However, Chen Wang felt no regret whatsoever.

He chose his path and moved forward resolutely.

He was not a saint, he was not a god, he was just an ordinary person who was pushed to the forefront of the times.

He also has emotions and desires, and he also has the limitations of being a human being; he cannot predict all situations.

What he can do.

all the time.

All we can do is give it our all.

He did indeed do his best.

Right and wrong, merits and demerits.

All will be judged by later generations.

The dazzling golden light was unbearable for Chen Wang's eyes, causing his thoughts to wander. However, now was not the time for sentimentality or lamentation.

The world is not yet settled, and there are still many things waiting for him to deal with.

"Battle report for Qingzhou!"

Nearby, the voice of the staff officer interrupted Chen Wang's wandering thoughts.

Chen Wang lowered his arm, tightened his grip on the reins of his warhorse, and said calmly.

"read."

The nearby staff officer gave a crisp military salute and then reported in a formal voice.

"Upon hearing the news of the defeat at Jining, the enemy chieftain Ajige led over ten thousand elite cavalry in a nighttime flight north, while the remaining troops scattered and fled, only to be defeated by our army."

"Earl Ningwu Zuo Liangyu has led his troops to recover the entire territory of Qingzhou Prefecture, beheaded 857 Zhenyi, and taken 2,560 heads of the remaining enemy, and captured 15,000 enemy soldiers."

The first batch of military commanders to be granted titles were basically all selected by Chen Wang, and the titles and rewards were all given to his direct confidants. Apart from Ma Xianglin, these were the generals and officers of the Hanzhong Garrison who led troops in their respective regions, in order to consolidate their power.

Zuo Liangyu was among the second batch of people to be granted a noble title.

Zuo Liangyu led troops in battles in the north and south from the beginning of the Chongzhen reign, and his military achievements were remarkable and his prestige was high. However, he gradually became arrogant and spoiled.

However, Chen Wang did not forget Zuo Liangyu, who had taken good care of him when he was a battalion commander.

Along with Zuo Liangyu, Zheng Zhilong, who served as the commander-in-chief of Fujian and was a powerful figure in the southeastern coastal region, was also granted a title, as were several other generals who led troops to resist the Wanmin Army after the fall of Nanjing.

At the same time, posthumous honors were bestowed upon the officers and soldiers who had died in battle in Songjin, Beijing, and other places.

Chen Wang actually wanted to reject Zheng Zhilong's offer of a noble title.

After all, Zheng Zhilong was two-faced. Historically, when the Qing army entered the pass, it was precisely because of his cowardice that the situation of resistance against the Qing in the southeast was in dire straits.

But in the end, reason prevailed over emotion.

With the world still unsettled and the navy incompetent, we must temporarily appease Zheng Zhilong.

It's not too late to deal with Zheng Zhilong when we have the time and resources.

The day the overall situation is settled will be the day of reckoning and judgment.

Zheng Zhilong ran rampant in the southeast, and his activities were impossible to withstand investigation.

First, lower their guard, then lure them ashore. With just a few soldiers, you can arrest them.

By then, the navy will be fully established, the country will be stable, and Zheng Zhilong's generals will find it difficult to cause any trouble, and will naturally submit.

"On April 15th, the Earl of Ningwu led his troops northward and advanced to Wuding Prefecture, north of Jinan Prefecture. All the prefectures and counties were pacified by the proclamation."

"It has been discovered that the enemy chieftain Ajige and his troops have already passed through Tianjin on the same day."

Chen Wang nodded slightly.

Chen Wang had anticipated that Ajige would escape.

“The troops led by Ajige were all elite cavalry. Ningwubo acted prudently and handled the situation properly. He was commended.”

To secure victory in the Battle of Jining, Chen Wang deployed almost all the elite cavalry from various towns to the battlefield.

"Order them to hold Jinan Prefecture, suppress the defeated troops, and pacify the displaced people."

Chen Wang's tone was calm, as still as a deep well.

Although Zuo Liangyu had an army of nearly 50,000, he actually had fewer than 6,000 or 7,000 cavalry.

The battle in Qingzhou was already at a stalemate. The two sides had been fighting fiercely under the city walls for over a month, with neither side able to gain the upper hand.

Even Li Wanqing, the former commander of the camp, died in battle in Qingzhou Prefecture.

Generals Ma Shixiu and Du Yingjin also died in battle against the Qing army.

Although Zuo Liangyu's detachment had 50,000 men, most of them were old soldiers with insufficient weaponry. It was no small feat that they were able to achieve such results.

Ajige did not flee because of the defeat of his army, but because he learned of the defeat of the main force in Jining and knew that if he did not escape to the border, he would be in danger of being surrounded.

Therefore, Ajige chose to cut off the tail of a gecko and led only his elite cavalry to retreat.

Although Ajige had retreated, he still had tens of thousands of cavalrymen under his command. If Zuo Liangyu pursued him at this time, he would hardly gain any advantage. In fact, if the Qing army turned against him, he would risk losing even more men.

"The news of the victory in both places will be sent to the Southern Kingdom and reported to His Majesty. Now that the Jurchens have retreated and the Northern Kingdom is in ruins, restoring the livelihood of the people in all regions is the most urgent task. Please send officials to oversee the restoration..."

Chen Wang now commands a strong and well-equipped army, with no shortage of elite troops and generals. Even though he is the one who actually holds the highest power in the Ming court, he has few capable civil officials.

To govern the country and restore people's livelihoods, the current imperial court is still needed.

However, in the near future, these civil officials and academic cliques who have long held sway over the court's lifeline and discourse will also fade from the historical stage.

In the five prefectures of Hanzhong, Kaifeng, Yunyang, Xiangyang, and Xuzhou, Chen Wang has ordered the establishment of new schools.

Students from impoverished families and orphans of soldiers are diligently studying.

The new schools of thought, being piloted in the five prefectures, have quietly taken root.

They don't teach the rigid, formulaic essays there, but rather impart practical knowledge such as agricultural administration, water conservancy, mathematics, and the study of things.

When the first batch of students who were well-versed in practical skills walked out of the school gates, it marked the beginning of the demise of the millennia-old imperial examination system.

When these students begin to graduate from these schools.

The official careers of those civil officials and academic cliques will then come to a complete end.

Those deeply entrenched civil service groups will never sit idly by and allow change to happen.

Chen Wang knew this clearly.

However, Chen Wang did not take the resistance from those civil officials and academic cliques to heart.

because.

From beginning to end.

His foundation does not lie with them.

From the very beginning of his military training in Hanzhong, his foundation was deeply rooted in the common people.

His soldiers, officers, and officials were almost all ordinary people.

"Have you received any news from Chen Gong and Cao Bianjiao?"

Chen Wang did not spend too much time on political affairs.

Now is not the time to govern the country.

The northern kingdoms have not yet been fully recovered, and the northwest remains under Li Zicheng's control.

Hearing Chen Wang ask about the military situation on Chen Gong's side.

Dai Zhenglin's stiff expression changed, and a hint of relief appeared in his eyes.

"A messenger brought news last night at midnight."

"General Cao has led his troops past Daming Prefecture and is heading towards Zhengding Prefecture. All the prefectures and counties have changed their flags, and all the officials appointed by the Qing court have been executed."

"The Earl of Xuanwu led his troops northward, advancing unimpeded. The Jurchens collapsed on all fronts, and all the prefectures and counties were abandoned. When the message arrived, the Earl of Xuanwu had already led his troops into Hejian Prefecture."

"Judging by the time, the Earl of Xuanwu has already led his troops to Jingzhou, south of Hejian Prefecture."

Dai Zhenglin paused for a moment, as if he had remembered something, and then reported.

"The Northern Intelligence Division sent a message, which was verified by the Central Military Department through cross-referencing."

"Dorgon fled north all the way, day and night. His trail was discovered in Hejian Prefecture. His troops looted extensively in Jiaohe County. On the evening of the 13th, he went north again."

"Based on deduction, the retreat route of the troops should be through Hejian, through Baoding, north to the capital, and they intend to cross the border from Jizhou."

"The Intelligence Division has already taken the seal of Gumu and is rushing north. Given the speed at which Dorgon is heading north, it should be able to inform the southern Mongolian tribes in advance and send troops to intercept him."

Chen Wang turned his gaze northward.

At the northernmost edge lies the land of Youyan, where the smoke of war has yet to dissipate.

Dorgon and Ajige escaped for a time, but not forever.

At this time, the messenger sent to Guan Ning should be arriving soon... (End of Chapter)