Zhu Yuanzhang in the cellar

Chapter 188 Meeting with Taizu
It is actually very simple to seize the Ming Dynasty regime.

Zhu now has absolute control of military force, so he can just head straight to Beijing and deal with Chongzhen.

But doing so would also be a lot of trouble.

If the title of Taizu could not be justified, the Ming Dynasty would collapse overnight and the country would be in chaos.

In particular, Zhu's way of governance was to eliminate corrupt officials and eliminate land annexation.

Once Beijing was captured, it would very likely result in Li Zicheng's capture of Beijing. The landlord forces in the south would be terrified, fearing that their land would be taken away, so they would flatter various princes and rule their own regions. Then Zhu Yuanzhang would have to send troops to eliminate them one by one.

Secondly, it’s still the same problem.

Old Zhu needs to solidify his status as the founding emperor.

If this is done, it will only confirm that they are rebels instead of the Ming Taizu coming to earth.

Therefore, from the perspective of results, the method of brutally destroying the Ming Dynasty and rebuilding a new Ming Dynasty will lead to endless troubles.

It may take a long time to re-establish a new order.

It might not even be possible to eliminate a large number of corrupt officials and evil landlords, because the supervision system had collapsed and no one would help Zhu investigate these things.

In contrast, as we do now, we first govern the place we arrive at each time. Although it is slower, it is a cautious step-by-step approach.

Firstly, it could confirm the identity of Taizu. The officials in Hunan would believe it first, then it would spread to Hubei, then to the place Zhu would occupy next, and finally to the whole country.

As the saying goes, three people make a tiger. As long as the officials from Huguang and other places speak with one voice, and then the officials in Sichuan, Jiangdong and other places all believe it, then even if he is not Zhu Yuanzhang, he will become Zhu Yuanzhang.

In this way, Zhu Yuanzhang had a group of honest and capable people who died for their country in the late Ming Dynasty to help him govern, making it much easier to rebuild his empire later.

Secondly, whenever Zhu arrives at a place, he can quickly understand the local situation and take direct action.

With this team, he could confidently and boldly deal with local officials who surrendered and sold out their country, were corrupt, and those landlords and gentry who colluded with the officials, and solve the fundamental problem of land annexation.

Therefore, directly attacking Beijing is not a permanent solution and will cause serious consequences.

On the contrary, only by taking it step by step as we are doing now can we gradually eliminate future troubles and rebuild the new Ming Empire.

It is a little slower, but not that much slower.

After all, Zhu Yuanzhang took over Hubei and Hunan in just one month. As long as Sun Chuanting surrendered, he could quickly pacify Sichuan and Shaanxi in his name and then take Nanjing.

Then he went north to wipe out Li Zicheng's troops in Xuhuai, Henan, and then continued to go north. It was easy to take over the whole country within a year, which was enough to set the achievement of the fastest way to unify the whole country.

As for why we have to take Sichuan first, it is simple.

Because Sichuan and Jingxiang areas are the strategic extension areas of the southern regime upstream.

If Sichuan is lost, Jingxiang will be lost. If both Sichuan and Jingxiang are lost, the southern regime will inevitably perish. This is determined by the natural properties of the Yangtze River.

The most typical examples are the Western Jin Dynasty's conquest of Wu, the Sui Dynasty's conquest of Chen, and the Yuan Dynasty's conquest of Southern Song.

This is what is called a strip of water.

Therefore, after taking Sichuan and then moving south to Nanjing, basically the entire south would belong to Zhu, just like his own version of founding the country at the end of the Yuan Dynasty. If he could take over the entire south, the whole world would be under his control and the re-establishment of order would be just around the corner.

Basically, as long as the people in the south believed that he was Taizu incarnated, it would be a foregone conclusion that the north would be recovered, the Chongzhen pseudo-Ming would be destroyed, and Chongzhen would be made to kneel in the ancestral mausoleum in Fengyang.

Old Zhu understood this very well, which is why he praised Zhu Yunfeng for his strategic vision.

However, Zhu Yunfeng would not be able to analyze this kind of thing by himself. But he was standing on the shoulders of giants, and there was so much information to refer to that it was not difficult for him at all.

At this moment, the strategic layout has been determined. Zhu Yuanzhang decided to let Feng Sheng lead his men to pursue Li Zicheng's troops, while he himself would enter Sichuan first to win the hearts of the people of Bashu.

soon.

Two days later, Sun Chuanting arrived in Xiangyang.

He defeated Li Zicheng on the sixth day of October, and more than twenty days have passed since then.

Even if he did not go to Xiangyang via Henan, but took a detour through Wuguan, it would still take more than 30 days, less than kilometers, and even if he walked kilometers a day, he would have reached the destination by climbing.

The reason why he was late was that he had to stay in Shaanxi to make some work arrangements.

For example, in order to train troops, Sun Chuanting collected heavy taxes in Shaanxi, so much so that the people of Shaanxi and even the landlords and gentry could not bear it, and they knelt down and begged him to go out of the pass as soon as possible to fight Li Zicheng.

Now that Li Zicheng has been defeated and so many supplies have been confiscated, Sun Chuanting has to go back to appease the people, reduce taxes, and distribute some supplies to the people in Guanzhong who have already suffered many disasters. Otherwise, the people will rebel again.

In addition, various precautions must be arranged to prevent Li Zicheng from making a comeback.

Therefore, after some arrangements, we have only arrived in Xiangyang now.

Sun Chuanting went through Wuguan, and he and young Zhu Di sped all the way, maintaining contact with Xiangyang on the way.

By the end of October, amid the bleak north wind, they finally arrived outside the city of Xiangyang.

When we took a boat across the Han River, there were few people at the dock outside the city.

However, there were many Ming troops standing on the city walls, and the flags of the Ming Dynasty were planted all over the city walls.

Near the city gate, there were teams of soldiers in Ming army uniforms marching in neat steps, patrolling everywhere, reminding everyone entering and leaving Xiangyang - this place has returned to the rule of the Ming Dynasty.

"Your humble servant greets His Excellency the Commander-in-Chief."

The person who was ordered to come and greet him was Li Qiande, an official whose rank in Hubei during the Chongzhen period was second only to Lu Daqi.

Lü Daqi's rank was only half a level lower than Sun Chuanting, who was the governor-general of three frontiers and the prince's grand tutor, and a first-rank official. Lü Daqi was the governor-general of the fourth division, originally a second-rank official, but Chongzhen promoted him half a level to a higher rank, and now he is a first-rank official.

However, there is no subordinate relationship between the two parties.

After all, in terms of rank, Zuo Liangyu's rank was even as high as Lu Daqi, because Zuo Liangyu was named one of the Three Orphans by Chongzhen in the 13th year of Chongzhen, from the first rank of Prince's Guardian.

Li Qiande, the governor of Huguang, was also of the second rank. Under normal circumstances, his rank was the same as Lu Daqi's, but he was under Lu Daqi's control and they were not in a superior-subordinate relationship.

Therefore, to some extent, the Ming Dynasty was somewhat similar to the Song Dynasty in some aspects. Rank did not mean anything, and the real power still depended on the jurisdiction.

Putting aside Lu Daqi, the temporary governor, Li Qiande could be considered the highest official in the entire Hubei province, so it was not impolite for him to come and welcome Sun Chuanting.

As for Lao Zhu Tang and Feng Sheng, none of them came.

Although Sun Chuanting is currently the highest-ranking official of the Ming Dynasty and the last pillar of the Ming Dynasty, he is not yet qualified to be personally welcomed by Zhu Yuanzhang.

But Sun Chuanting still had some expectations in his heart, and felt a little disappointed when he saw that Lao Zhu did not come to greet him.

However, he quickly calmed down and greeted Li Qiande, saying, "Governor Li, you are polite."

After saying that, he asked anxiously, "I wonder where His Majesty Tai-Tai-Zu is?"

He had previously been somewhat unable to believe in the stories of Taizu and Taizong, but after experiencing the Battle of Tongguan, reality had made him feel that perhaps Taizu really had descended to earth.

"His Majesty is in the city."

Li Qiande smiled and stretched out his hand towards the city and said, "Your Majesty praised the commander-in-chief highly, saying that he was the last pillar of the late Ming Dynasty. I have also heard this from His Royal Highness the Prince of Wu, who said that Chuan Ting's death would lead to the end of the Ming Dynasty."

Although Sun Chuanting had learned from the young Zhu Di that Li Zicheng would capture Beijing and the Ming Dynasty would be destroyed in March of the following year after his death.

But now, when Sun Chuanting heard about his own death, he still felt strange, so he forced a smile and said, "It is also the great fortune of the Ming Dynasty that the Great Ancestor came to the world. Otherwise, I don't know how much more sorrow there will be in the future."

Li Qiande also said with emotion: "Yes, I also learned that the Ming Dynasty will fall next year. Even I will eventually drown myself for my country. If it weren't for Taizu and Taizong, the Ming Dynasty would have been in turmoil and its future would be bleak."

"Perhaps it is because Taizu knows the suffering of the people that he is willing to come to the mortal world in person."

Sun Chuanting responded.

"What are you guys talking about?"

Just then, little Zhu Di came out of the cabin yawning and jumped directly from the deck to the dock.

He was so tired from the recent bumpy journey that he actually fell asleep on the boat. Sun Chuanting didn't dare to call him, so it was Li Wenzhong who woke him up.

Little Zhu Di stretched himself, followed by Li Wenzhong and more than a dozen guards. He looked around and cursed, "Damn Yunfeng and Xiao Ji for not coming to pick me up."

"Ouch." "Tsk, tsk, tsk."

Two arrogant voices came from near the city gate.

Zhu Yunfeng and Ji He walked with a swaggering step, saying, "Where did this Emperor Chengzu come from? He was submissive in the early Ming Dynasty, but he became arrogant in the late Ming Dynasty, right?"

Seeing the two of them, the young Zhu Di, who was used to showing off in front of Sun Chuanting, shrank his neck, but soon straightened his back and said, "That's right, let me correct you. I'm not Chengzu, I'm Taizong. If I have the chance to meet Jiajing in the future, I must let him know why the flowers are so red."

"Now you are awesome, Old Four. Do you remember what is in your computer's hard drive? Who downloaded it for you? Do you want me to show it to the ancestor?"

Ji He went up and put his arms around his neck, and his huge weight made Zhu Di unable to breathe.

"Hey hey hey hey."

Zhu Yunfeng also walked over with a chuckle and held him down, controlling his hands.

Ji He was groping, twisting and grabbing at his arms.

At his heaviest, Lao Ji weighed nearly 300 kilograms. Later, he followed Zhu Di to lose weight for many years, and often did heavy physical work - helping the Ming Dynasty transport things. Now his weight has dropped to about 180 or 190 kilograms.

But even though he lost weight, his muscles became much stronger. With Zhu Yunfeng holding him down, little Zhu Di couldn't break free.

"Wrong, wrong."

Zhu Di knew what was happening. He struggled for a while but couldn't get free. He begged for mercy again and again, "My two lords, I was wrong."

"Just because you went out and fought a battle, you think you're awesome, right?"

Zhu Yunfeng attacked his direct ancestor with a heavy punch: "If we hadn't worked so hard to carry ammunition for you, would you have gone to fight with others with a gun barrel?"

"That's right. You use automatic rifles and mortars to bully others, and leave us two to help you move things. You should have some shame."

Ji He also hated it.

In the past, it was the three of them who were responsible for moving things.

Although the work was a bit tiring, the benefits were great. Zhu Di was also a beast, and he could do the work of two people, so he could at least help share the burden.

As a result, when he came to the end of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Di fled to Tongguan, leaving Zhu Yunfeng and Ji He there to carry the goods.

God knows how they both managed to get through that time.

Two people.

We moved tens of thousands of tons of stuff.

Although they used automatic conveyor belts and forklifts, they didn't have to do anything to transport the goods until the end of the Ming Dynasty.

But they have to transport it back and forth, and send it back and forth. The number of WeChat steps in the factory every day must be at least 100,000. You can see how resentful Zhu Yunfeng and Ji He are now.

The three of them played around for a while, and no one else dared to stop this hilarious and frivolous farce.

Not to mention the highest-ranking officials from the late Ming Dynasty present, Li Qiande and Sun Chuanting.

Even Li Wenzhong and Tang He wouldn't dare to do that.

Apart from Zhu Yuanzhang, Empress Ma and Zhu Biao, the three little ones were the most handsome guys in the Ming Dynasty.

The three of them can't be said to be honest and well-behaved, they can also be described as lawless and overbearing.

When you walk on the street and see poor beggars, you should give alms; when you see laborers working hard to carry things, you should go up and help them; when you see elderly people, you should be courteous.

If they see arrogant and domineering dignitaries running rampant on the streets, they will dare to attack them. If they are unhappy, they will not give anyone face. If they are right, Lao Zhu will be scolded even if he comes to plead for mercy.

After teaching Old Four a lesson, Zhu Yunfeng finally remembered the important matter and patted Zhu Di on the shoulder and said, "Let's go, the ancestors are waiting for you."

Zhu Di then waved to Sun Chuanting and said, "Let's go."

The group then entered the city.

Because of the war, Xiangyang had become extremely depressed, with dilapidated streets and few pedestrians.

It’s not that there was a shortage of population in the late Ming Dynasty.

In fact, by the end of the Ming Dynasty, according to conservative estimates by later historians, there were at least 100 million people.

However, Xiangyang was looted in turn by Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong, and many people in the city fled, either joining the two rebel forces or running away to other places with their families.

Therefore, the city became empty.

After crossing the streets, the group soon arrived at Prince Xiang's Mansion.

Mao Xiang was standing guard at the door. When he saw Zhu Di, he quickly stepped forward, knelt on one knee and bowed, saying, "Greetings to His Royal Highness the Prince of Yan."

"Get up, where's Father?"

Zhu Di asked.

"In the hall."

Mao Xiang stood up and said, "I will take His Highness away."

"Ah."

Zhu Di nodded.

Mao Xiang led the way and quickly passed through the vestibule and arrived at the central hall.

Old Zhu continued his previous habit and liked to study all kinds of information in the command post, including various situation research reports at the end of the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Di went in and shouted, "Father."

Li Wenzhong also came in and bowed, "Your Majesty."

"Ok?"

Zhu Yuanzhang raised his head and saw little Zhu Di coming, so he put down the information in his hand and said with a smile: "Old Four, Baoer, you are back."

"came back."

Zhu Di pointed at Sun Chuanting and said, "Father, he is Sun Chuanting."

Lao Zhu looked over.

Then I saw Sun Chuanting, who was about fifty years old, with a kind face, a mustache and a goatee. He stepped forward and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, I, Sun Chuanting, pay my respects to you. Long live your Majesty, long live your Majesty."

"Ah."

Old Zhu nodded and said, "Stand up."

Sun Chuanting raised his head.

It was not until this time that he could see Lao Zhu's appearance clearly.

He was about sixty years old, with black and white hair and beard, and wore a simple bright yellow dragon robe. He exuded elegance and the majesty of a superior.

The moment he saw Zhu Yuanzhang, Sun Chuanting truly began to believe that Taizu had descended to earth.

That calm and composed demeanor that comes from being in a high position for a long time cannot deceive anyone.

What's more, low-level officials were unfamiliar with Zhu Yuanzhang, but high-level officials like Sun Chuanting had met the emperor many times, and Zhu Yuanzhang's portraits were circulated inside and outside the palace.

These include the shoe-horn face portrait that has been circulating since the Jiajing period, as well as other types of portraits. Among them, the one hanging in the Taimiao in the imperial palace is extremely similar to Zhu's current appearance.

Sun Chuanting was once appreciated by Chongzhen and had the opportunity to worship Taizu with Chongzhen, so he had seen the portrait.

Now it seems.

They are exactly the same, basically the same person!

(End of this chapter)