Xie Ming

On the 27th day of the fifth month of the second year of the Hongguang reign.

Inside Yangzhou city, suddenly dozens of horsemen were seen galloping south from the north, their movements chaotic and disorderly, like surging waves. In the center of the procession was a commander. They had fled to the east side of the city, but the enemy troops were closing in on the city and could not stop them. The city subsequently fell.

Everyone fled, and I followed them out of the house. After taking only a few steps, I looked back at my dwelling and saw that the fire was already raging.

The soldiers killed anyone they encountered. Dozens of men drove them like dogs and sheep. If anyone didn't move forward, they would beat or kill them.

The sound of blades slicing echoed far and wide; cries for mercy filled the air like a bustling marketplace.

The number of those killed was countless. Those who hanged themselves, those who threw themselves into wells, those whose limbs were severed, those whose faces were covered in blood, and those who were cut but were still alive with their hands and feet still moving, lay scattered on the ground, their livers and brains smeared everywhere.

When the people of Yangzhou first heard that the Qing army was coming, many committed suicide. When the city fell, the soldiers searched the houses and found people who had hanged themselves. They would cut the ropes and let them come back to life before killing them.

Women were mostly abducted, and their cries of agony were unbearable to hear.

One soldier leads the way with a sword, another pursues from behind with a spear, and a third soldier stands in the middle, either to the left or right to prevent escape.

Several soldiers abducted several women, and they laughed and drank with them. If they refused to comply, they were killed.

Alas, the ten days in Yangzhou are too painful to recount in their entirety.
At that time, Nanjing had already suffered the loss of a large area north of the Huai River, and Yangzhou was no longer in existence. Shi Kefa had died for his country, and the news of the defeat came rushing to the palace on horseback.

On the third day of the intercalary fifth month, dark clouds covered the sky, on the eve of a rainstorm.

A sudden northerly wind swept across the river, engulfing Nanjing.

Suddenly, a violent and unstoppable storm swept through the area, swirling sand and dust in the streets and alleys. The people who witnessed this were terrified and filled with anxiety, believing the ominous celestial signs to be a harbinger of disaster.

It was past noon that day, around 2:30 PM.

In contrast to the clamor and chaos outside the walls, the atmosphere inside the palace, in the Wuying Hall, was deathly silent, with the gates tightly shut.

During this time, the cabinet ministers stood with their heads bowed, while Zhu Cilang, sitting crookedly on the couch in the center, coughed violently again, his expression filled with worry and indignation.

"cough--"

"Cough cough cough, cough, cough cough, cough cough cough."

After a long while, when they had a brief respite, Wang Zhixin, the eunuch from the Directorate of Ceremonial, carefully served them, bringing them tea and serving them teacups, while several servants followed suit.

After rinsing your mouth and cleansing your lungs, and then another round of complicated procedures.

"Cough, cough, cough."

After letting out a long sigh, Emperor Hongguang sat alone on his couch, reaching out to grab the report of defeat that had been presented to him, and clenching it in his palm.

"cough"

"This... this is the report of the defeat in Yangzhou. It was sent to the palace a couple of days ago, and you have all seen it."

“I’ve kept it right in front of me.”

"Cough cough... Shi Kefa died in battle for his country."

"Yangzhou was massacred by the enemy."

"cough"

"In today's cabinet, one of the six ministers is missing."

"I hereby summon Zeng Ji to take over."

"And, cough cough, we have also added two Lins to the cabinet (Lin Zengzhi, from the Northern faction, currently holding the rank of Vice Minister; and Lin Zhiwan, from the Southern faction, also currently holding the rank of Vice Minister), to jointly discuss national affairs."

"At a time of great difficulty and survival, well, cough cough, I guess you could say I was appointed to a critical mission."

"You eight, today we'll discuss how the imperial court should defend against the Jurchen enemy, who are just across the river from us, and how we should respond."

"The morning court session was so chaotic that I couldn't hear anything clearly."

"Cough, cough, cough."

Emperor Hongguang, Zhu Cilang, spoke first, taking the lead in the main room.

Xun saw that the enemy army was pressing in, closing in on them, and that the fall of Yangzhou was due to the death of Shi Kefa, who was used as a pretext to force the Southern Party to submit. He urgently ordered Duke Jingguo Xiao Jingchuan to withdraw his troops back to the capital to defend against the enemy.

The reason why even though the emperor is so high up in the imperial court and so noble in the south, he is still so hesitant and timid in doing things.

There was really no other way; there was nothing that could be done.

After all, given the current chaotic situation, and after days of analyzing the circumstances, the Southern Party is stubborn and unyielding. Even though they are wearing the yellow robe, no one in the inner court or government is willing to take the lead. So they have brought in their confidants to advocate for this matter.

Alone and isolated in the deep palace, even with his cunning and the overwhelming majority of the court demanding his surrender, he was powerless to stop it.

However, he was unaware that even if Xiao Jun were to return, if Xiao Jingchuan harbored ulterior motives, he would be unable to control the situation, like adding fuel to the fire, creating an uncontrollable predicament.

However, without this person, the current enemy situation will be deadlocked, and Nanjing will fall at any moment.

The two powers harm each other, whichever is less.

He had no other choice but to do this. After speaking, the emperor, now living in a chaotic and isolated place, looked at each of the cabinet members with a complicated expression.

silence!

Nod!

Unexpectedly, at this critical juncture, at the brink of life and death, not a single one of these high-ranking officials, who were paid by the emperor and held positions of power in the court, was willing to share the emperor's burdens.

My heart is deeply wounded; such coldness and indifference are truly appalling.

Left with no other choice, the Hongguang Emperor had to continue to force a confrontation and pressure the emperor.

"Cough, cough cough cough"

"Why is no one talking today?"

“Zeng Ji,” Zhu Cilang called out.

"Ah, Your Majesty, I am here."

Zeng Ji, the newly appointed Minister of War, was filled with apprehension upon hearing that he was the first to be noticed by the cabinet.

In reality, he concealed his cleverness within his clumsiness, and his plans had already been clearly laid out.

"Yes, regarding the Ministry of War, Shi Kefa has now died for his country."

"I promoted you because I saw your character in you."

"If we must say something empty about placing high hopes on something, that's a story for another time."

"If we can't get through this crisis, what future can we expect?!"

"Cough, cough cough cough"

"Come, you, tell me, the Jurchens are so close, they're practically pressing north of the river. How can the court possibly defend itself against them?"

In order to open up the situation and follow his own wishes, Emperor Hongguang had no choice but to struggle to his physical condition and explain the advantages and disadvantages, using veiled meanings to force Zeng Ji into the game.

"Ah, yes!" He bowed once, and continued speaking.

"In my opinion, the failure of Minister Shi's northward advance to relieve the siege of Yangzhou may serve as a warning for two things."

"Firstly, the lack of logistical supplies and provisions makes it difficult for the defending troops to hold out for long."

"Secondly, judging from the current situation, the troops in the various towns of Huaibei may no longer be able to be deployed and used."

"The troops did not obey orders, and as a result, Minister Shi's reinforcements were intermittent, which led to Yangzhou's inability to hold out and the fall of the city and the loss of territory."

"From this, we can understand the importance of food supplies and logistical support."

"At present, the imperial court still has more than 10,000 troops from the former Chuzhou army available in the northern suburbs outside Nanjing."

"Your Majesty, I request that the Ministry of Revenue, together with the Ministry of War, expedite the collection of gunpowder, arrows, and other military equipment."

"On the south bank, a line stretching for a hundred miles from east to west, was fortified with walls and cleared of the fields."

"Control the ferry terminal."

"To reward the troops, pay their wages, and replenish their provisions."

"With this natural barrier, we can fight the enemy troops who are based on the river."

Zeng Ji spoke with a clear and resounding voice, displaying a posture of eagerly assuming responsibility.

But what is the point of such deliberate avoidance of the main issues and high-sounding rhetoric in dealing with the current situation?

They put on a show but never actually deliver.

This man was well-versed in the ways of officialdom and deliberately feigned ignorance. As you can see, he managed to protect himself while keeping the emperor and the Southern Party at bay.

It was clear to the discerning eye that the Hongguang Emperor was displeased.

To intimidate this newcomer, Zhu Cilang suddenly slapped the back of the bed hard with his palms!
clap clap clap-

The cough started again as soon as I changed the bottle.

"Cough, cough cough cough."

"That's all nonsense!"

"Former subordinates from Chuzhou?"

"Are those soldiers even capable of doing anything?!"

"You expect ten thousand old and weak people to defend Nanjing?!"

Enraged by the dragon's might, the Hongguang Emperor pressed him with three questions, immediately refusing to back down and tearing off all pretense of civility.
(End of this chapter)