Zhu Yuanzhang in the cellar

Chapter 176: The Blue Dragon Overlooking the World
Whether Zuo Liangyu lives or dies is actually a matter of a word from Zhu Yuanzhang.

Zhu Yunfeng did not clear Zuo Liangyu's name. He simply presented everything Zuo Liangyu had done to Zhu Yunfeng in full.

Killing and setting fire, looting civilians, and following orders but not notices, Old Zhu knew every single thing clearly.

same.

He persisted in resisting the Qing Dynasty and refused to surrender.

It is also true that he was not greedy for money, was kind to his soldiers, did not withhold their food and wages, adopted the children of soldiers who died in battle, and had been helping Chongzhen attack Zhang Xianzhong and Li Zicheng.

The duality and complexity of human beings, whether good or bad, is left to Lao Zhu to decide for himself.

Even Zhu Yunfeng didn't have a good impression of Zuo Liangyu.

After all, people in later generations stand on the side of the people. If you rob the people, it is a capital crime and there is nothing to argue about.

Therefore, Zuo Liangyu's fate really depends on Zhu Yuanzhang's own wishes.

Originally, Zhu Yuanzhang was planning to execute him and then send someone to recruit his troops.

The result is the same, just a little more cumbersome.

However, what was unexpected was that Zuo Liangyu did not lead the refugees to charge in the front, which surprised Fu Youde and Feng Sheng, so they asked Zhu Yuanzhang what he meant.

It can only be said that it was luck. Otherwise, Zuo Liangyu would have been blown to the sky by now.

After learning about this, Lao Zhu also had his own considerations.

He brought more than 5,000 people with him, which was definitely enough to conquer the world and defeat all the rebellions and even the Qing army in the north. It would be easy.

But it is easy to conquer a country but difficult to keep it.

Without his own team, it would be impossible to defend such a huge foundation, clean up the world and restore order by relying solely on these 5,000 people.

Therefore, the most appropriate choice is to win over a large number of late Ming natives and bring them together to form one's own team.

People in later generations, from the perspective of the people's history and from the standpoint of the common people, believed that Zuo Liangyu must be a bandit and should be brought to trial.

But from Zhu's perspective, he was a heroic historical figure who did great things without paying attention to trivial matters. Zuo Liangyu's loyalty to the Ming Dynasty became his advantage, and plundering the people was not a big deal.

After all, Cao Cao massacred the city and caused the Si River to stop flowing. Countless emperors and generals of all dynasties praised him, let alone Zuo Liangyu?

Originally, he was to be dealt with, but since the other party did not use the refugees as a shield, and he could be subdued, so as to avoid a decline in the loyalty of Zuo Liangyu's old subordinates, it would be a matter of killing two birds with one stone.

Thus, Zuo Liangyu's fate changed and he had a close call with death.

Zhu Yunfeng could actually guess what Lao Zhu was intending.

However, he would not interfere and force Zhu to kill Zuo Liangyu.

People in later generations are just more experienced. The emperor's mind is not something they can play with. It is better not to touch it. Recognize your own position. A life of wealth and honor is enough. Why bother to meddle in other people's affairs?

Therefore, let the situation develop naturally and let Lao Zhu make his own decision.

It won't be long soon.

Ji He brought Zuo Liangyu back again.

Compared to the shock of Liu Xizuo and Zhou Ernan, Zuo Liangyu is now much calmer.

He had certain psychological expectations before, so he was able to accept the reality.

When he entered the tent, Lao Zhu was giving instructions for the next step.

"It won't be long before Li Qiande sends someone to contact me. The next one is Lu Daqi. We must bring the surrounding Ming army forces under my command."

Zhu Yuanzhang drew circles on several spheres of influence on the map of Hunan during the Ming Dynasty and said, "Once I accept these forces and let them govern Hunan, I will be able to free up my hands to go south to deal with Zhang Xianzhong, and then advance step by step to Hubei and Henan."

"Your Majesty, Zuo Liangyu is back."

Ji He went in and bowed in a proper manner, imitating the ancients.

"Ah."

Old Zhu turned his head and looked at Zuo Liangyu and said, "Come over and see if you have any strategy?"

Although they have a lot of information, Zuo Liangyu was, after all, an eyewitness to the largest military power in the late Ming Dynasty, so he must have his own thoughts and suggestions.

Zuo Liangyu was puzzled and said, "Your Majesty, the army is so powerful, why did you insist on defending Changsha? Did you have to wait for Li Qiande, Lu Daqi and others? Why not just send troops to sweep across the eight directions?"

"hehe."

Old Zhu smiled and said, "Of course I have my reasons."

Would he tell Zuo Liangyu that he had to stay in Changsha to control the stone tablet that could travel back and forth?
"If that's the case, your majesty's strategy is foolproof. I am willing to help your majesty capture Lu Daqi."

Zuo Liangyu immediately expressed his loyalty.

Now that he has just joined the gang, it is time for him to make contributions, so naturally he can only betray Lu Daqi.

"Well, I'll leave this matter to you."

Zhu nodded and said, "Go back to the camp and arrange your troops first. You will be under the command of Feng Sheng, and Liu Xizuo and Zhou Ernan will take care of all the refugees."

"Yes, I'll take my leave now."

Zuo Liangyu let out a long sigh and backed out of the tent.

Although he was basically stripped of his military power.

However, this means following the old man Taizu.

Even if Taizu did not lead the army himself, he would have followed Duke of Song Feng Sheng.

Feng Sheng was certainly inferior to Xu Da and Li Wenzhong, but he was also one of the most important military generals and nobles in the early Ming Dynasty.

Being his subordinate is like traveling back to the Anti-Japanese War. Although I am not following a teacher, I am following a founding marshal. It is more than a great honor, it is a great honor.

Therefore, Zuo Liangyu had nothing to complain about, and even felt very lucky. He hurried back, followed Zhu's arrangements, and began to split up his troops.

In the next few days, Liu Xizuo and Zhou Ernan resettled a camp of 200,000 refugees around Changsha. They built houses on the spot, reclaimed wasteland, and diverted water from the Xiangjiang River in preparation for farming next year.

Piles of food were sent over, and the refugees, who were originally pale and thin and could barely survive starvation following Zuo Liangyu, went crazy.

During the chaotic times at the end of the Ming Dynasty, except for the wealthy gentry in the south of the Yangtze River, many landlords in the north had no surplus food. It is not an exaggeration to say that they were like reborn parents for giving so much food at a time like this.

What few people know is that it was only in the late 90s that we were able to completely solve the problem of food and clothing, which took about one or two generations.

In the 70s and 80s, hunger still loomed over our country.

Things were naturally even more terrifying in ancient times.

A natural disaster that sweeps across the country can cause the population to drop several times.

The cruelty of this cannot be understood by people in later generations. Even in history books, only one sentence is recorded: "There was a drought in a certain place and people were eating each other."

During the turbulent times at the end of the Ming Dynasty, people were worse off than dogs. Many people were on the verge of starvation and had very little food to eat in a day.

If you can give them food to keep them alive at this time, not to mention that they will be treated like slaves without dignity, even if you want their wives and daughters, it will probably be a piece of cake.

Liu Xizuo and Zhou Ernan recruited a large number of clerks to maintain order. They first cooked porridge to feed the people outside the city, and then gradually increased the food rations to feed the refugees.

At the same time, they vigorously publicized the story of His Majesty Taizu coming down to earth to save the world. Under such circumstances, now, let alone Taizu coming down to earth, even if they said that the Jade Emperor came down to earth, these more than 200,000 refugees would believe it.

For a time, every household offered sacrifices to Taizu's spirit tablet, and there was an endless stream of people kowtowed to Lao Zhu's tablet every day to express their gratitude. When Lao Zhu heard the news, he did not know whether to laugh or cry.

But he didn't say anything.

After all, he has been dead for more than 200 years in this time and space. If the people offer incense to his spirit tablet, it will also help to deify him, so why not do it?

Two days later, Lu Daqi received a letter from Zuo Liangyu, telling him that he had captured Xiangyin and was now preparing to besiege Changsha, and invited him to join him.

Upon learning of this, Lu Daqi had no doubts and led his men to Changsha in a hurry.

At this time, in order to let Lu Daqi and Zuo Liangyu deal with Zhu Yuanzhang in Changsha first, Zhang Xianzhong withdrew his troops to the southern part of Hunan, which is roughly the same place as Hengyang, Shaoyang, Yongzhou, Chenzhou and other places in later generations.

His main forces were in Hengzhou Prefecture and Chaling Prefecture, which is Hengyang and Youxian areas. He gave up the Pingxiang passage and watched the fight from the sidelines.

You County is located on a major transportation route. It can reach Liling in the north, Jiangyou in the east, and Zhuzhou and Changsha in the west. It can be said that if Lü Daqi and Zuo Liangyu got into a state of panic when attacking Changsha, he could attack them from behind at any time.

If things go well, not only can we eliminate Lu Daqi and Zuo Liangyu and recapture Changsha, but we can also continue to advance into Jiangxi, occupy Hunan, Guangzhou and Jiangxi, and threaten Jiangnan.

Lu Daqi knew this very well.

But Zhang Xianzhong's conspiracy was an open one, and you couldn't crack it.

During the imperial period, a man who claimed to be Chongzhen's maternal grandfather and the founding emperor appeared next to Zuo Liangyu and Lu Daqi.

If the problem was not solved immediately, the furious Chongzhen would definitely kill Lu Daqi.

So Lu Daqi had no solution at all.

But he is not pessimistic.

After all, in his opinion, Zhu Yuanzhang's troops in Changsha were small in number.

Although he had only a few thousand combat soldiers, and the number of elite Ming troops under Zuo Liangyu was less than 40,000, it was more than enough to defeat the bandits.

Unlike Zuo Liangyu, Lu Daqi's troops were not private soldiers, but troops transferred from Jiangnan, Jiangxi and other places when he served as governor of Jiangxi, Huguang, Yingtian and Anqing.

There were very few elite soldiers, most of whom were from local garrisons. The garrisons had long been corrupt by the end of the Ming Dynasty, and these soldiers were no different from refugees. The total number was as high as 70,000 to 80,000, but there were only 4,000 to 5,000 elite combatants.

Therefore, it was still very difficult to face Zhang Xianzhong, and he needed Zuo Liangyu's cooperation.

But he thought it would not be a big problem to defeat the small bandits in Changsha.

In Lu Daqi's opinion, although Zhang Xianzhong was sitting on the mountain and watching the tiger, he actually missed a good opportunity.

After he and Zuo Liangyu destroyed Zhu Yuanzhang in Changsha and recaptured Changsha, they would join forces and head south to cooperate with Li Qiande in Baoqing and Kong Xigui in Guangxi to encircle Zhang Xianzhong.

Now, hearing that Zuo Liangyu had easily captured Xiangyin and was approaching the city of Changsha, Lu Daqi did not think there was anything wrong with it and happily led his troops to Changsha.

Four days later, Lu Daqi led his troops from Yuanzhou, which is Yichun, to Pingxiang, passing through Liling and Zhuzhou, and finally arrived at Muyun Town, 40 miles south of Changsha City.

He was planning to send someone to Changsha to investigate, but he didn't expect that Zuo Liangyu had already learned the news and rushed over in person.

Zuo Liangyu said that he had captured Changsha and brought a large amount of food and military supplies.

Said it was captured spoils of war.

It was not surprising that Zuo Liangyu was able to capture Changsha and Lu Daqi so quickly.

After all, news showed that there were not many enemies in Changsha, only a few thousand people. If they still couldn't be defeated, Zuo Liangyu would have to die.

But Lu Daqi was flattered by the fact that so much food and supplies were brought over.

Although the status of civil officials in the Ming Dynasty was much higher than that of military generals.

But in the late Ming Dynasty, the status of a military leader like this who controlled a large number of troops was completely different.

People including Lu Daqi and Yuan Jixian often tried to win him over.

The reason why Chongzhen dared to kill He Renlong, Yuan Chonghuan, Xiong Wencan and others, but did not dare to take action against Zuo Liangyu lies here.

Therefore, Lu Daqi was still a little surprised when faced with Zuo Liangyu's goodwill.

But he did not doubt it.

Thinking that Zhang Xianzhong was about to be destroyed and Hou Xun, Zuo Liangyu's backer, was imprisoned, he hoped that someone in the court could speak for him, and it was reasonable for him to do so as a gesture of goodwill.

For this reason, Lu Daqi also said to his generals Liu Tiansi, Guo Yunfeng and others with emotion, "At a time when the country is in danger, he can be so broad-minded. Liang Yu doesn't seem to be as arrogant as the rumors say. I think Hou Ruogu can be saved."

After delivering the supplies, Zuo Liangyu suggested to Lu Daqi that Zhang Xianzhong was eyeing the south covetously, and his troops had all entered Changsha. There were too many people in the city and there was no room for them. It would be better to leave the garrison troops behind to guard against Zhang Xianzhong, lead the elite troops to Changsha to discuss matters first, and after reporting to the court, march south to attack Zhang Xianzhong.

Lu Daqi thought it made sense, so he asked Guo Yunfeng and others to set up the guard camp and set up camp in Muyun. He and Liu Tiansi led elite soldiers and went to Changsha with Zuo Liangyu.

In the evening, as the sun sets, the majestic Changsha city wall becomes faintly visible in the distance.

It is late autumn and early winter.

Changsha in later generations has only two seasons, summer and winter.

Moreover, the summer lasts for a long time, from late spring to late autumn. It is common to have temperatures of 20 to 30 degrees Celsius in October and November of the Gregorian calendar.

However, the end of the Ming Dynasty was the Little Ice Age, and the temperature began to drop in late autumn. In the past two days, the daytime temperature has dropped rapidly from over 20 degrees to over 10 degrees. As winter is approaching, it is possible that the temperature will drop below 10 degrees.

Facing the howling north wind, the 45-year-old Lu Daqi involuntarily tightened his clothes and said to Zuo Liangyu beside him while riding on horseback: "Kunshan, winter is coming. After we recover Changsha and convey the good news to His Majesty, we should also ask for some winter clothes."

"Don't worry, Governor. Our soldiers won't be hungry or cold this year."

Looking at the Changsha city getting closer and closer in the distance, Zuo Liangyu smiled.

"Oh?"

Lu Daqi wondered, "Could it be that this trip to Kunshan yielded a lot of gains?"

"It is very abundant. The Governor has not seen the mountains of food and fodder, and large pieces of cotton-padded clothes. Now my men no longer have to worry about going hungry."

Zuo Liangyu gestured exaggeratedly with his hands, as if there was really a pile of grain as high as a mountain.

Lu Daqi was surprised and said, "It seems that Zhang Xianzhong left all his baggage in Changsha, and it was seized by the bandits in Changsha who pretended to be Taizu. Now it all belongs to Kunshan. No wonder Zhang Xianzhong lingered in the south, it turned out that he was short of food and grass."

He sighed and said, "If that's the case, then we must speed up our actions. Now that the bandits have no food and grass, they will certainly plunder the south and make the people suffer. If we don't send troops soon, I'm afraid that the land south and north of the Lingnan Mountains will be reduced to ruins."

"It's okay. With Taizu here, the bandits can't cause any trouble."

Zuo Liangyu said calmly.

Changsha City was within reach, and they could already see the Ming flag on the city wall.

Not far away at the South City Gate, teams of guards stood upright.

Lu Daqi was about to nod in agreement when he suddenly realized something was wrong. He turned his head and looked at Zuo Liangyu in astonishment and asked, "What did you say?"

"I said that with His Majesty Taizu here, the bandits can't cause any trouble."

Zuo Liangyu dismounted, knelt on one knee facing the city wall and said, "Your Majesty, I have brought Lü Daqi with me."

Lu Daqi looked up in horror.

I saw an old man in his sixties wearing a dragon robe standing on the city wall, with his hands behind his back, looking down, like a dragon overlooking the world, full of majesty.

(End of this chapter)