Fu Shanhe

Chapter 378 Ding Jiangnan

"Ha ha……"

"I have traveled all over the country, from Guangxi all the way to Nanjing, and I have seen all kinds of scenes.

You are dreaming of trying to fool your grandfather with such a childish trick.

Brothers, I will go first!"

After saying that, Fu Haoxuan fell to the ground and began foaming at the mouth.

Obviously, the poison was prepared in advance and taken while the battle was going on.

"His Majesty!"

After a shout, the remaining Wu soldiers chose to commit suicide.

"Stop them quickly!"

Shi Jingzhong shouted hurriedly.

In order to encircle and wipe out this remnant force, the Liaodong Army suffered hundreds of cavalry casualties.

This was the biggest loss they had suffered since entering the pass to quell the rebellion.

Although there were more casualties in previous battles, most of them were infantry.

Compared with the infantry who can go to the battlefield after a few months of training, the training cost of these elite cavalry is undoubtedly much higher.

Live fish and dead fish have different prices.

The casualties are so heavy, all the fish caught are dead. How can we tolerate this?

"Forget it, let's fulfill their loyalty!"

Shi Jinglin spoke up to stop him.

"Fifth brother, if we just let them go, wouldn't our people have died in vain?"

Shi Jingzhong said indignantly.

Killing the false emperor is certainly a great achievement.

But it is obvious that their contribution could be even greater.

He was unwilling to watch the credit slip away right under his nose.

"If we kill the bandit leader Fu Haoxuan on the spot, our men won't have died in vain.

These people are loyal and righteous people. There is no need to let them suffer physical pain.

Cut off Fu Ni's head and send it to the capital to report the achievement. Dig a pit and bury the rest!"

Shi Jinglin shook his head and gave the order.

It's not that he is soft-hearted, it's simply unnecessary.

The rebel leader Fu Haoxuan was dead, and so were the high-ranking members of the rebel army. Only a dozen soldiers were left, who were worthless.

On the south bank of the Yangtze River, the government troops captured hundreds of thousands of prisoners.

Unless they are well-known traitors, the imperial court will not care even if they are captured alive.

Regardless of their identity or position, "loyal and righteous people" are always worthy of respect.

Since there is no benefit to be gained, it is better to follow your heart and let these people commit suicide.

"Fifth brother, this credit comes too easily.

If the Fujian-Zhejiang Navy had just moved a little faster, Fu Haoxuan's troops would have been unable to cross the river smoothly.

Even the defenders of Anqing could be instigated to rebel, so it wouldn't take that little time, right?
Even if they didn't make it in time, the Anqing defenders were able to stab Fu Ni in the back in time, so it's impossible that the intercepting army was delayed, right?"

After calming down, Shi Jingzhong asked doubtfully.

One accident may be a coincidence, but when multiple accidents accumulate together, it is definitely not an accident.

Although the relationship between the Liaodong clique and the noble clique cannot be said to be as hostile as fire and water, it is certainly not worth it for others to give away a great achievement for nothing.

“It’s right to find the problem.

The only reason we were able to take advantage of this was that Duke Chengguo and Marquis Wuyang were afraid that their achievements would overthrow the ruler.

In this great war to quell the rebellion, the performance of the noble faction was too outstanding, and someone was needed to help share the pressure.

Looking at the entire Dayu, the only one who can compete with them for the limelight is our Liaodong Town.

This is an open conspiracy. We cannot refuse the military achievement that comes right to our doorstep.

Compared with the noble family, our Liaodong Town has been left behind in terms of military merit.

If this continues, we won’t be able to speak with confidence in the court in the future.”

Shi Jinglin replied with a frown.

The actual situation is more serious than he said.

What separated the two sides was not only their military achievements, but also their military strength.

Influenced by the war to quell the rebellion, the official troops in the seven provinces of Guangdong, Guangxi, Huguang, Fujian, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, and South Zhili were all replaced by people from the noble family.

Whether it is the resources they control or the number of troops, they are not comparable to Liaodong Town.

The imperial court has just issued an order for Marquis Zhenyuan to enter Shu to quell the rebellion.

If nothing unexpected happens, the military officers in Shu in the future will also be labeled as noble.

The most important areas of the Dayu Dynasty are all under their control, so it is hard for their strength not to grow.

They can't learn similar operations.

Not to mention that the imperial court would not agree, even they themselves would not allow their strength to be dispersed.

The noble family was jointly created by a group of nobles, but Liaodong Town was centered around the Shi family.

The emperor could tolerate the expansion of the power of the noble faction, but there were still several factions, large and small, within the noble faction.

These forces are all vested interest groups in Dayu, and it is impossible for them to overturn the table together.

The recruits in any town are filled with children from many noble families, forming a check and balance between them.

With the mutual restraints, it is difficult for a single noble general to completely control the army.

As long as the emperor does not harm the core interests of the noble group, this armed group, which shares the same destiny with Dayu, will not rebel.

Even if some of them are ambitious, others will pull them back.

If there had not been an institutional check and balance on the power of military generals, the situation of using civil officials to control the military would not have occurred in recent years.

Originally, Liaodong Town should have been like this, but the previous Liaodong governor was a fool.

In order to pursue personal gains, he ignored the institutional checks and balances and cooperated with the Shi family to eliminate dissidents in the military.

Once the system is destroyed, even the most stable power structure will be nonsense.

One is under control and the other is out of control. It goes without saying who is more likely to be suspected.

If they are pushed forward a little, the attention of Emperor Yongning and all the officials in the court will be cast on Liaodong Town.

“How despicable!

If these bastards want to play tricks, they can go find those civil servants.

Bullying honest people like us is nothing! "

Shi Jingzhong's complaints did not resonate with everyone.

If they were honest people, the Shi family would not be able to dominate the market.

You have to know that five years ago, there were many armed forces in Liaodong, and even the Liaodong general was not a member of the Shi family.

By now, the grass on the graves of those competitors has grown several times.

In terms of the speed of development and growth, they are no slower than the nobles.

However, Liaodong’s plate was not big enough and soon encountered a bottleneck.

The amount of money that the Dayu court could invest in the Liaodong front was only a few million taels each year.

The current Liaodong Town has reached the limit of its development within limited resources.

If they want to go further, they must either ask the imperial court to increase investment or defeat the Tatars.

As for jumping out of Liaodong, that is impossible.

If they really take this step, they will not be able to get a single cent of the court's resources.

The economy in the South was relatively prosperous, and the nobles could solve the military expenditure problem by raising funds on their own.

Natural disasters and man-made disasters continued to occur in the north, and it would be difficult to support Liaodong Town without the support of the central government.

What's more, they do not yet have control over the local government.

As long as the emperor and his officials were sane, they would never allow the Shi family to interfere in the local government affairs of the provinces. This formed a closed loop.

If Liaodong Town wants to obtain more resources, it must demonstrate its strength to the court.

Then, after demonstrating their strength, the Shi family will be subjected to even greater suspicion from the imperial court.

……

On the south bank across the river, the battle was also coming to an end.

However, compared with the desperate battle on the north bank, most of the rebel soldiers on the south bank chose to lay down their weapons and surrender.

The emperor has fled, and the morale of the army has long been lost.

The several Dayu government troops that suppressed the rebellion in the south had no habit of killing prisoners. After they surrendered, they were simply exiled.

Many of the rebels were originally from Guangxi, and exile was equivalent to returning home.

Even if life is miserable, it's better to go home than to die in a foreign land.

Although they also surrendered, the civil servants of Wu State looked as pale as death.

In the Dayu Dynasty, ordinary people still had a chance of survival if they rebelled, but scholars would be severely punished if they rebelled.

The reference standard is fame and honor.

He gained fame and enjoyed generous treatment from the court, which was considered as eating the salary of Dayu.

He receives the emperor's salary but instead of sharing his worries, he goes and rebels. This is definitely a more serious crime.

Especially those officials who were demoted, every one of them would be punished by the punishment of their entire clan.

There are too many people involved, so it is impossible to kill them all, but the close relatives will definitely not escape.

Distant branches and collateral descendants will also be subject to liquidation, and confiscation of property and exile are inevitable.

All previous connections have lost their effectiveness at this point.

No one would be stupid enough to stand up and plead for the traitors at a time like this.

It is precisely because the consequences are so serious that the wealthy families in Huguang and Jiangxi would spare no expense to buy their own lives.

The situation is different now.

The rebels were suppressed, and they had no chance to defect.

Those who finally remained on the rebel chariots were directly identified as diehards and must be subjected to the most severe purges.

"No one has been sent over yet. It seems that the Shi family should be very satisfied with the gift I sent."

Looking at the rows of prisoners of war being escorted, Marquis Wuyang said with a smile.

When everything is settled, whoever grabs the military merit will get it.

The dispute between the two sides was resolved and relations returned to normal.

Sitting together again, we are all members of the noble family and need to jointly safeguard the interests of the group.

“Whether they are satisfied or not, they must accept this gift.

You can't just give up the military merits you've earned just because you're angry.

The performance of the Liaodong faction in recent years is completely inconsistent with the strength they possess.

If this continues, the officials in the court will have to reconsider whether it is worth spending so much money on Liaodong Town. "

Duke Cheng responded calmly.

After Fu Ni was suppressed, the critically ill Dayu Chao breathed a sigh of relief.

Next, we just need to wipe out the rebels in Shu and Shanxi, and the internal hidden dangers will be mostly resolved.

The remaining foreign threats no longer threaten the life of this ancient empire.

With the addition of armies formed by noble families, the imperial court had more choices.

These noble leaders performed too brilliantly in the war to quell the rebellion, and they will most likely not be allowed to do so in the future.

But the younger generation of noble children are different. They have just started to make their mark and are not yet feared by the emperor and officials.

As long as the emperor is sane, he will definitely support these young generals and make them the cornerstone of a stable empire.

Once the imperial court has more useful military generals, the situation of the Liaodong faction will become increasingly embarrassing.

"Ha ha……"

"Your Majesty is right. Those guys in Liaodong Town have always been arrogant. It's time for them to suffer.

Now that the war in Jiangnan is over, why don't we submit a petition and transfer them to Shanxi to quell the rebellion?

If they continue to conserve their strength, His Majesty will not be able to explain it to him."

Marquis Wuyang said after laughing for a while.

For the Dayu Dynasty, the damage caused by the White Lotus rebels was almost fatal.

But for Marquis Wuyang, these rebels were the stepping stones for him to rise to prominence.

Before the White Lotus Rebellion broke out, he was just an ordinary relative of the emperor in the capital, with at most a reputation as an expert on military affairs.

None of the civil and military officials in the court took him seriously.

When people give him face, they are only giving face to the emperor and the empress dowager, not to himself.

With the end of the White Lotus Rebellion, his status and position changed dramatically and he became a core figure of the noble faction.

No matter who he was facing, whether it was civil or military officials in the court, he could always hold his head high.

Even a powerful vassal state like Liaodong Town can control its fate.

"Since the Marquis has spoken, let's do it!
After fighting for such a long time, it is time for our men to rest and recuperate.

Those guys from the Liaodong faction have been watching the excitement for such a long time, it’s time for them to contribute.

But others can rest, but you, my lord, cannot sit idle.

The Annan War is at a critical moment, and there is not much news coming from there. I am afraid you will have to worry about it."

Duke Chengguo said slowly.

Li Mu chose to leave the court, and the conflict of interest between the Li family and the Jing family no longer existed, and that was his good son-in-law.

When support is needed, we should naturally provide it.

However, he was the Governor-General of Fujian and Zhejiang, and was still far away from the battlefield. Even if he sent troops to participate in the war, it would be more appropriate to send troops from Guangdong and Guangxi.

Marquis Wuyang, who also serves as the governor-general of Guangdong and Guangxi, has a greater say in this matter.

“This is a simple matter. After the troops have rested for a few days, I will send the troops from the three towns back to reinforce.

The main problem is that the troops in Nanzhili have not yet been organized, otherwise it would be fine to send the six towns in Guangdong and Guangxi back together."

Marquis Wuyang agreed immediately.

These were all discussed in advance, and we are all family, so there is no need to breach the contract midway.

Compared with the period before the war broke out, the strength of the six towns in Guangdong and Guangxi has been greatly weakened.

The casualties on the battlefield were not too serious, mainly because a large number of officers and soldiers were drawn from it.

Now the troops in the southern provinces are basically formed by drawing core forces from the six towns.

The six towns in Guangdong and Guangxi, which had a total military force of more than 70,000, now have less than 40,000 left, including a number of new recruits.

Not only were the six military garrisons in Guangdong and Guangxi understaffed, but most of the military garrisons in other provinces also had vacancies.

It would take at least a year or two to restore combat effectiveness.

“Just a few garrison troops can hold off the enemy.

I think with these reinforcements, it will be enough.

If the war situation becomes intense, we will send more troops.

If I hadn't been so busy, I would have personally participated in the great cause of regaining the Jiaozhi Provincial Government!"

Duke Chengguo said with a hint of sadness.

The Jiaozhi Provincial Administration has an extraordinary significance to the Chengguo Mansion.

When the rebellion broke out in Jiaozhi, the third generation Duke Chengguo was the commander-in-chief of the army.

After finally stabilizing the situation, they were forced to withdraw their troops from Jiaozhi due to the imperial court's order.

His name was linked to the loss of cities and territories.

After the third generation of Duke Chengguo returned to his country, he died of depression and kept talking about Jiaozhi until his death.

This incident was regarded as the greatest shame by the lineage of Duke Cheng.