Desert Eagle Suletan Khan

If you want to plan a big thing, you must be thorough. Even Wu Sangui, who was very shrewd, had already won the support of many local governors before he made up the story of the third prince of the previous emperor and proclaimed himself the Grand Marshal of the World.

Yunnan, Guizhou and Sichuan were his bases. Wu Sangui's confidants such as Yunnan and Guizhou Governor Zhao Tingchen, Guizhou Admiral Li Benshen, Yunnan Admiral Zhang Guozhu, Sichuan Admiral Zheng Jiaolin, Yunnan Governor Lin Tianqing, and Guizhou Governor Luo Huijin naturally listened to Wu Sangui. Even Zhang Dedi, the Sichuan Governor appointed by Emperor Zhenwu, submitted a letter of persuasion to Wu Sangui when he saw the demise of Emperor Zhenwu.

However, there are still forces that do not know the will of heaven. Zhao Butai, the Qing general stationed in Yunnan, heard the rumor that Wu Sangui wanted to revive the Ming Dynasty. He wrote to Guizhou Governor Luo Huijin to express his dissatisfaction and asked him to jointly support Tunqi, the Prince of Qingyang. Luo Huijin is the younger brother of the former Governor of Huguang, Luo Xiujin. He joined the Han army of the Bordered Blue Banner very early and was considered "one of our own" in Zhao Butai's eyes. Unexpectedly, this "one of our own" changed his mind and immediately sold him out after seeing the letter and reported Wu Sangui to be on guard.

"Hmph! I have endured humiliation for so many years, and these Tartars really think that my sword can't kill anyone!" After seeing the letter, Prince Pingxi showed a grim smile, and immediately wrote to Yunnan Admiral Zhang Guozhu, Yunnan Governor Lin Tianqing, General Guo Zhuangtu, and Yunnan Governor Cui Zhiying, ordering them to quickly execute Zhao Butai to prevent any accidents.

Zhao Butai was the younger brother of Oboi, who was known as the first Baturu of Manchuria. He had fought countless battles and had soldiers at his disposal. When Doni led the main force of the Qing army to leave Yunnan, he secretly ordered Tunqi and Zhao Butai to gather surrendered generals and recruit soldiers in Yunnan to prevent Wu Sangui from becoming too powerful. Later, Tunqi was transferred to Huguang by Emperor Zhenwu. Zhao Butai's troops were greatly reduced, but he still had 20,000 troops stationed outside Kunming. It was not easy to get rid of him. After receiving Wu Sangui's letter, Zhang Guozhu, who was responsible for staying in Yunnan, immediately conspired with Lin Tianqing, Guo Zhuangtu, and Cui Zhiying.

"This is not difficult. Although Zhao Butai claims to have 20,000 troops, he only has 5,000 strong Eight Banner soldiers. The rest are either recruited soldiers or surrendered generals. We are many and the enemy is few. You should gather your troops immediately and surround and annihilate them," Zhang Guozhu said nonchalantly. Yunnan was the home base of the Wu army, with 50,000 elite troops stationed there, far more than Zhao Butai. He felt that he could solve the problem by force.

"No. Yunnan is the prince's base, and Zhao Butai's troops are stationed outside Kunming. Once a fight breaks out, the noise will be too great and it might damage the foundation!" Guo Zhuangtu thought it was too risky and disagreed.

"I think we can lure Zhao Butai into the city under the pretext of discussing matters and execute him," Lin Tianqing came up with an idea.

"Although this plan is good, Zhao Butai is not stupid and may not fall into the trap," Guo Zhuangtu nodded first and then shook his head slightly.

"No matter what the result is, let's give it a try," Zhang Guozhu said with a smile.

"Don't worry, gentlemen. I am responsible for providing military supplies to Zhao Butai's subordinates. This matter has been planned long ago!" Cui Zhiying, who had been silent, suddenly spoke.

This person was born in the Cui family of Bazhou. It is said that he was a descendant of Jiang Taigong of the Western Zhou Dynasty. He was originally an inspector stationed in Yunnan by the Qing court and was also Wu Sangui's opponent. In order to prevent the Pingxi vassal from becoming too powerful, the Qing court insisted on appointing the governor, governor, and inspector of Yunnan, and even directly appointed some county officials without seeking the opinion of the King of Pingxi. Wu Sangui was very dissatisfied and believed that his actual power in the fiefdom was not as good as that of the Governor of Yunnan and Guizhou. The Governor could still recommend county officials, but he could not appoint administrative officials in the vassal state. Therefore, he made things difficult for the officials stationed by the Qing court. As the highest judicial and public security officer in Yunnan, Cui Zhiying would collect evidence in great detail whenever he encountered a case related to Wu Jun, and he would handle it impartially without any fear. This move naturally offended the King of Pingxi. Wu Sangui ordered people to review the case, but unexpectedly, there was no flaw in dozens of cases. While he was angry, he also secretly admired this person's ability. Later, when the post of Yunnan Provincial Governor was vacant, Wu Sangui actually recommended Cui Zhiying to the Qing court as the Yunnan Provincial Governor. This made Cui Zhiying feel very emotional. After the fall of Beijing, Cui Zhiying felt that the fate of the Manchuria was over, and took the initiative to join Wu Sangui, who was a Han Chinese.

"Lou Fangbo actually had a plan in advance? Please tell me!" Zhang Guozhu was overjoyed.

"Most of the 20,000 troops under Zhao Butai are Han troops. Han Tianfu, a former general of the Western Army, was the general in the Ming Dynasty. After surrendering to the Qing Dynasty, Your Highness only appointed him as a guerrilla. This man was dissatisfied and defected to Zhao Butai. Unexpectedly, Zhao Butai despised Han generals and still only appointed him as a guerrilla. This man was resentful and often complained. If he can be promoted to general, he will be willing to be used by Your Highness," Cui Zhiying said with a smile.

"A mere general is not a big deal. But can Han Tianfu deal with Zhao Butai alone?" Guo Zhuangtu was a little worried.

"The most capable fighters in Zhao Butai's army are the five thousand Eight Banners, among which the one thousand Solon barbarians are the most ferocious. It's a pity that the salary they receive is far less than that of the real Eight Banners. If the Manchus were powerful, there would be no problem. Now that the Manchus are in danger, they will naturally feel dissatisfied. These days, I have deliberately made friends with Mugur, the Niulu Zhangjing of the Solon camp, and secretly allocated more food and salary to them, saying that Your Highness loves their bravery and ordered more distribution. This person is grateful in his heart and has expressed his willingness to serve Your Highness many times," Cui Zhiying smiled, stroking his beard.

"Well, what is there to worry about? First, lure Zhao Butai into the city. If he comes, that's great. If he doesn't come, we can attack his camp from inside and outside!" Zhang Guozhu was delighted.
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At the Qing army camp outside Kunming, when General Zhao Butai, the general of the Southern Expedition, received an invitation from Zhang Guozhu and Lin Tianqing to come into the city to discuss matters, he hesitated and called Deputy Governor He Ye and Sa Bitu to discuss. "Zhang and Lin are both Wu Sangui's confidants. At this time, China is without a master, and Wu Sangui, who has a large army, will inevitably have other intentions. You must not go," Sa Bitu advised.

"Yes, you are the commander-in-chief of the entire army. If anything goes wrong, what should the Qing Dynasty do? I am willing to enter the city on your behalf to find out what's going on," He Ye also said.

Zhao Butai nodded and made a decision. "In this case, He Ye will enter the city for me. Order the entire army to be on high alert!"

There was indeed a Hongmen Banquet in Kunming. As soon as He Ye entered the Admiral's Mansion in the city, he was questioned by Zhang Guozhu: "I invited you with good intentions, why didn't the General Zhengnan come?"

"The Marshal has caught a cold and is resting in the camp, so he really can't come," He Ye answered calmly without any panic.

"Capture him!" He heard the two cold words. How could a general who had fought many battles in the battlefield be willing to surrender? He immediately drew his sword to resist. However, the hero could not stand up to the large number of people, and was soon chopped down by the Wu army soldiers who rushed over from all sides.

"Send out the entire army to Zhao Butai's camp!" Zhang Guozhu grinned.
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"It's been two hours, why is there still no news from the city?" In the Qing army camp, General Zhao Butai, who was in charge of the southern expedition, muttered to himself anxiously. Before leaving, he and He Ye agreed that if there was nothing wrong, he would immediately send his attendants on fast horses to inform him. According to the time, there should be news.

"General, Zhang Guozhu's army has surrounded our military camp!" Just as he was worrying, Niulu Zhangjing Mugur came to report with a panicked look.

"Why are you panicking? You have followed me in battles all over the country. Are you afraid of a few Nikans (Han people)? Go and gather troops quickly to fight Zhang Guozhu to the death," Zhao Butai sneered and turned to get his sword.

"Puff~" The sharp waist knife pierced his body. Mugur succeeded in one strike, then drew out the knife and chopped fiercely.

Poor Zhao Butai, the great general, died in an unclear manner without any warning.

Mugur cut off Zhao Butai's head and led his army with Han Tianfu to attack the Sabitu tribe. He ordered his men to pick up the heads with long spears and chop them while shouting: "Zhao Butai is dead~Zhao Butai is dead~"

When the Qing army saw Zhao Butai's head, they were all terrified and lost their fighting spirit. The Solon soldiers were always brave and quickly killed Sabitu's personal soldiers and hacked Sabitu to death with their swords.

Without a commander, the Qing army lost their will to fight and knelt down to surrender and accept Wu's reorganization. Zhang Guozhu successfully reorganized Zhao Butai's troops with only a hundred casualties, and got 18,000 soldiers, divided into three battalions, led by guerrillas Guo Desheng, Yang Kaiyun, and Liu Kui. (End of this chapter)