Zhu Yuanzhang in the cellar

Chapter 294 Turmoil in Jiangnan
In late November, news of Ao Bai's complete annihilation swept across the entire land of China.

The Qing court was thrown into turmoil, and Qing troops in various regions were terrified.

The news spread the fastest, especially in the Jiangnan region, and officials in many places abandoned their posts and fled, leaving the area without government offices.

This was mainly because during the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, the Qing government's rule was not actually very stable.

Not only were there many righteous people in the general public who resisted the Qing, but there were also many scholars and intellectuals who tried to overthrow the Qing and restore the Ming. Even though the restoration of the Ming was hopeless, they continued to fight secretly.

As a result, the Qing Dynasty continuously engaged in literary inquisitions, prohibiting the literati and officials from writing books that were detrimental to the Qing Dynasty's rule, and even conscripting reclusive scholars.

Many local officials were former officials of the Ming Dynasty who surrendered to the government, or reclusive scholars who were forcibly recruited by the Qing court. They were not necessarily loyal to the Qing court.

Some of them were ostensibly Qing government officials, but secretly they were helping anti-Qing and pro-Ming organizations.

Therefore, in the current environment where the Qing Dynasty seems to have collapsed overnight and everyone is kicking it while it's down, many officials in Jiangnan have stopped pretending and directly took off their Manchu official robes, cut off their whips, and raised the banner of resistance against the Qing.

A wave of cutting off queues swept across the southern regions, and in many places, Qing officials either fled or changed their allegiance, and large areas quickly returned to the rule of the Ming Dynasty.

Ordinary people may not be able to get this information quickly, but officials and clerks in local county governments are the easiest to obtain information, and they have the most contact with the people.

Their changes were naturally noticed by the people.

Anqing Prefecture, Anhui Province.

Zhu Yuanzhang's army had reached Jiujiang. Under the gun and cannon offensive of the Hongwu Ming army, the Jiujiang garrison was completely annihilated. The news sent shivers down the spines of the entire Anqing Prefecture.

The city of Huaining, the capital of Anqing Prefecture, was thrown into chaos by war, and the prefect and deputy prefect of Anqing fled in droves.

Many officials in government offices and county offices took off their official hats, cut off their queues, and went back home to pretend to be ordinary people.

"Huh? Where have the officials gone?"

An old farmer entering Huaining City was puzzled to find that the soldiers who used to collect tolls at the city gate were gone.

Someone nearby chuckled, "They call themselves government officials? They should be called Tartars."

"Shh, you don't want to die."

"Oh, where's your braid?"

“He doesn’t have a queue. If the officials catch him, he’ll be dead.”

The old farmer was horrified, and many people behind him also showed expressions of fear.

They suddenly discovered that some people leaving and entering the city had cut off the money rat tail whips from the back of their heads.

This is a capital offense.

If discovered by the Green Standard Army soldiers guarding the gates inside and outside the county, or by government officials, they would be arrested and beheaded.

But those who cut off their queues were delighted.

Someone laughed and said, "You don't know yet, do you? The Tartars are about to be finished. All the officials in the city have fled. Now, in Huaining Prefecture, it's just that Liu Jinshi has organized some village elders to maintain order."

Liu Jinshi was not actually a Jinshi; he was Liu Yuhui, the son of Liu Ruozai, the first Zhuangyuan (top scholar in the imperial examination) from Huaining County, Anqing Prefecture, during the Ming Dynasty.

Liu Ruozai was one of Chongzhen's teachers. He died in the thirteenth year of Chongzhen's reign. Chongzhen then allowed Liu Yuhui to enter officialdom through his father's influence. After the fall of the Ming Dynasty, Liu Yuhui abandoned his official post and fled back to his hometown to live in seclusion.

Because the Liu family was the first family in Huaining to achieve the highest rank in the imperial examinations, they enjoyed great prestige. Liu Yuhui had also served as an official, so after the Manchu officials of Anqing Prefecture fled, the influential people in the city asked him to come out and help maintain order.

Nowadays, the city's security and basic systems are maintained by the Liu family's servants and other prestigious clans.

They even arrested some Green Standard Army soldiers who had committed crimes in the past, imprisoned them, and would hand them over when the Ming army arrived.

"what?"

The man's words immediately caused a commotion among those around him.

The old farmer exclaimed in surprise, "Really?"

"It's true. Our Wang Daye from Huaining abandoned the camp and ran away before, but he was caught by Liu Jinshi's men and is still in jail."

"Yes, Wang Daye is so wicked. He always acted arrogantly because he was the commander of the Green Standard Army in our county. He bullied men and women and didn't even respect the county government. Now he's crying in jail every day."

"That was so satisfying."

People around were talking a lot.

The Manchu Green Standard Army had troops stationed throughout the country, mostly in counties.

However, the number of people maintained in the county was not large, ranging from dozens to hundreds, and the leading positions were Qianzong and Bazong, which were very low-ranking.

Huaining County was the seat of Anqing Prefecture and was located in a strategic location along the Yangtze River, so there were more soldiers stationed there, but in reality, there were only about two or three hundred soldiers. The entire Anqing Prefecture only had seven or eight hundred soldiers.

Only border regions or strategic locations have large numbers of troops.

For example, in the Jiangnan region, the areas with the most troops were Nanjing and Fujian.

Nanjing was chosen because it was the central hub of Jiangnan at the time, a strategic location.

Fujian was because of the war with Zheng Chenggong.

Therefore, in inland areas where there is no fighting, the number of troops is very small.

Even so, a Green Standard Army commander was already extremely arrogant in a prefecture, committing all sorts of evil deeds on a daily basis.

This time, Zhu De's army has entered Jiujiang. The nearby Anqing Prefecture has less than a thousand soldiers. Even if you include the yamen runners from various counties, you can only muster about three thousand people.

The Anqing military commander naturally dared not engage in battle, and simply chose to abandon his post and flee, only to be captured by Liu Yuhui's men.

In fact, the entire Jiangnan region is currently in turmoil.

Liu Liangzuo was the Governor-General of Jiang'an.

Jiang'an is actually an administrative region that combines the areas of Jiangnan and Anhui.

In the second year of the Shunzhi reign, the Qing government changed the former Southern Zhili to Jiangnan Province, which meant that the entire Jiangsu and Anhui regions were placed under the administration of the Jiang'an Governor-General's Office.

Therefore, Liu Liangzuo held a very high position and could mobilize troops throughout the Jiangnan region.

However, the claim that there were 200,000 troops in the Jiangnan region actually included Fujian and Zhejiang, which is the total military force of the four provinces of Anhui, Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Fujian.

Moreover, these troops were not concentrated; they were distributed across coastal areas and various prefectures and counties, and Liu Liangzuo himself only had a little over ten thousand men under his command.

The remaining troops were mainly stationed in Fujian and various other places.

A county has dozens to hundreds of people, a prefectural city has two to three hundred people, and a prefecture usually has around a thousand people.

The thirteen prefectures of Anhui had a garrison of about 10,000 to 20,000 troops.

Nanjing, as the capital of Jiangnan Province and the central hub of Jiangsu and Zhejiang, had a military force of over 10,000. The coastal prefectures of Jiangnan, needing to defend against Zheng Chenggong, had slightly more troops, totaling 30,000.

This means that, theoretically, Liu Liangzuo could mobilize approximately 60,000 Green Standard Army troops, plus several thousand Eight Banner troops stationed in Nanjing, making the total number considerable.

The problem was that the Ming army's offensive was too fast and too fierce.

Liu Liangzuo had only just received the news when the Ming army had already reached Hubei and Hunan, and was rapidly advancing into Anhui and Jiangxi.

He simply didn't have time to gather all the troops from Anhui and Jiangnan provinces.

In particular, the Qing army in Jiangnan was facing collapse.

By late November, he had managed to gather approximately 30,000 people.

In other places, they were either on their way or had not yet received orders. In some prefectures near Hubei, such as Chizhou, Anqing, and Lu'an in Anhui, large numbers of Qing Green Standard Army troops deserted and did not accept his orders at all.

Moreover, there were many uprising troops in various parts of Jiangsu and Zhejiang. When these people saw that the Green Standard Army troops in the county and prefectural cities had been transferred away, they rose up and occupied the county and prefectural cities.

Jiangnan was thrown into chaos for a time.

While the Qing government appeared to still control the Jiangnan region, chaos had actually broken out in many prefectures and counties. The rebels were engaged in fierce fighting with the county and prefectural governments and their officials. Some prefectures and counties had already been captured, while others had held out, but their situation was far from dire.

If Liu Liangzuo can hold Nanjing, there is still a chance for a turnaround.

but.

Can he hold on?

Many Qing Dynasty officials in Jiangnan had this question.

"The Tartars have already lost their momentum."

City wall in Yuyao, Zhejiang.

Looking down at the Yuyao County Magistrate who was already bound, Huang Zongxi spoke to his younger brother Huang Zonghui, as well as his friends Lü Liuliang, Zhang Luxiang, and others.

They learned of the news that Emperor Taizu had descended to earth to save the world on October 2nd, just as Zhu Yuanzhang was dealing with Ao Bai at that time.

After killing Ao Bai's 400,000-strong army, the news spread rapidly in November.

Not long after, Huang Zongxi made a decisive move and raised an army to start an uprising.

Normally, such a hasty uprising would be difficult to succeed, but Huang Zongxi was well prepared, and the time was close to two months, from the beginning of October to the end of November, which is about fifty days.

Secondly, he was highly respected in his hometown of Yuyao. When people heard that he was going to start an uprising, countless righteous people from all around came to join him, and soon nearly 10,000 people gathered.

Finally, and most importantly, although Yuyao was the third largest city in Shaoxing Prefecture, after the capital Shanyin County and Kuaiji County, it had a large number of troops stationed there to guard against the remnants of the Ming forces along the coast.

However, when Zhu Yuanzhang's army arrived, all the troops here were transferred away.

The remaining constables and yamen runners were mostly locals. When they heard that Huang Zongxi was going to start a rebellion, they tied up the county magistrate and dared not resist at all.

As a result, Huang Zongxi took control of the entire Yuyao without lifting a finger.

"Although Yuyao is an important town in the southeast, Zheng Chenggong has been driven to Xiamen and it is difficult for him to pose a threat to Jiangsu and Zhejiang. However, even the troops here have been transferred away, so the Tartars must be in dire straits."

Lu Liuliang, standing nearby, said in a deep voice, "It is clear that it is true that His Majesty the Great Ancestor annihilated Ao Bai's 400,000-strong army, otherwise the Tartars would not have been so alarmed."

"The divine might of the founding emperor was beyond measure."

Zhang Luxiang exclaimed in amazement: "To annihilate 400,000 men without losing a single soldier is simply unimaginable. Perhaps only someone with the divine abilities of Emperor Taizu could have accomplished this."

"The current changes in Jiangnan and the outbreak of war in various places are also due to the tyrannical methods of Emperor Taizu."

Huang Zonghui said with a smile, "I heard that Emperor Taizu has arrived in Hubei and will probably march into Jiangnan soon. Our situation is very good."

"Don't rush to celebrate. The most urgent task is to capture Shaoxing Prefecture and then contact various righteous armies."

Huang Zongxi said, "The most important thing is to send someone to find Emperor Taizu as soon as possible and express our intentions. We must not let Emperor Taizu think that we are rebels."

"This is indeed the most urgent matter."

Lü Liuliang said, “I have heard that in some places, the rebel army has failed to capture the government offices, so they have started to plunder the people. How is this any different from bandits? We must send someone to stop them, otherwise, when the Taizu army arrives, I am afraid they will all be killed.”

"Lord Taichong! Lord Taichong!"

Just then, the captured magistrate of Yuyao County shouted, "Save me! I'm willing to turn against them! I'm willing to turn against them!"

Everyone looked down, and Huang Zongxi sneered, "Zhang Qingwei, you sycophant, how dare you talk about turning against me? Back then you participated in the Fushe Society, but you turned around and betrayed all the students. You were transferred to Yuyao, just to hunt me down, weren't you?"

Zhang Qingwei from Yuyao County hurriedly replied, "No, no, I have always held Lord Taichong in high esteem, how could I dare to harm him?"

"Hmph, lock him up and deal with him later."

Huang Zongxi was too lazy to argue with him and said coldly.

Zhang Qingwei wasn't even a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations); he was merely a Juren (a successful candidate in the provincial imperial examinations) from the seventeenth year of the Chongzhen Emperor's reign.

During the Southern Ming Dynasty, he joined the Fushe Society, saying that he wanted to save the country from its crisis.

As a result, when the Qing army marched south, he turned around and surrendered to the Manchus, using the betrayal of his classmates from the Fushe Society to obtain an official position.

He has now been appointed as the magistrate of Yuyao County.

It was only out of Huang Zongxi's kindness that he spared such a person for the time being, and naturally he didn't want to waste any more words on him.

Zhang Qingwei still begged for mercy, but was dragged away by the guards of the "Shizhong Camp" formed by Huang Zongxi.

Seeing him being taken away, Huang Zonghui sighed, "How many such Tartar lackeys are there in the Jiangnan region?"

"It is precisely because there are so many opportunists and lackeys like these that the Ming Dynasty has perished. I really wish I could kill them as soon as possible. Brother Taichong, you are too merciful. Back then, you were the one who personally killed your enemy in the Ministry of Justice. How come you have suddenly become so compassionate in recent years? What is the point of keeping such traitors alive?"

"It doesn't matter."

Upon hearing Zhang Luxiang's words, Huang Zongxi waved his hand and said, "These traitors will be dealt with in their own way. When the Taizu Heavenly Army arrives, all demons and monsters will be swept away. Spare their lives so that they can confess their accomplices, making it easier to hunt down their remnants later."

"Oh?"

The group looked at each other and then burst into laughter.

There were indeed many righteous people in the Jiangnan region who fought to save the country, but there were also many traitors like Zhang Qingwei who surrendered to the enemy for personal gain.

It could even be said that there are countless such treacherous villains, and many of them don't even know who they are.

Let's spare their lives and let them confess on their own, so we can catch more such traitors in the future.

"With morale high, let's continue our advance!"

Huang Zongxi waved his hand and said, "Let's go, march on Shaoxing Prefecture, and capture Zhang Sanyi alive!"

"Charge to Shaoxing Prefecture and capture Zhang Sanyi alive!"

Everyone shouted loudly.

For a time, the rebel army was in high spirits.

Such things are common throughout Jiangnan.

Many people began to kill officials and rebel.

Many officials also abandoned their posts and fled.

In fact, there are many honest and upright officials who perform their duties well.

For example, Zhang Sanyi was a Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examination) in the sixth year of the Shunzhi reign

During his twelve years in office, whether as a county magistrate or a prefectural assistant, he achieved outstanding political results, protected the territory and ensured the safety of the people, and was not a corrupt official.

However, the conflict between the Ming Dynasty and the Manchu Qing Dynasty was no longer a simple dynastic change, but a life-or-death ethnic war.

Just like the Han Dynasty versus the Xiongnu, the Tang Dynasty versus the Turks, the Song Dynasty versus the Liao and Jin Dynasties, and China versus the Japanese pirates, this is a foreign invasion, an attempt to destroy our Chinese civilization.

In other words, the Manchu population was not as large as that of the Japanese pirates, so they could not kill all the Han people, but could only destroy the Han people's clothing and customs.

Even so, millions, even tens of millions, of Han Chinese were directly slaughtered.

Tens of millions of people died indirectly due to the massacres by the Manchus. The population of Sichuan was reduced to less than one in a hundred, and the country was on the verge of extinction.

Therefore, even if some officials are good people and do a good job.

But since you have chosen to serve a foreign race that wants to destroy China and kill our Han people, then you should be prepared to die.

This has nothing to do with personal morality.

It's simply a matter of national survival.

Amidst this upheaval, the Jiangnan region was engulfed in war and quickly descended into turmoil.

(End of this chapter)