The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 124: The Song of the Corpse

The walls of the city wall were filled with Liao people, holding spears and heavy swords, and wearing Jiannu armor.

The two servants of the Zu family were already frightened by the scene. They just glared at Kang Yingqian fiercely and ran away.

Kang Yingqian shouted loudly at the two riders:
"Give my regards to General Zu and tell your master that from now on, the Kaiyuan Army will be your neighbor in western Liaoning. Be careful."

Liu Zhaosun came over with his guards.

"General Liu, see? The people's hearts are there, and Liaozhen dares not act rashly."

Liu Zhaosun nodded, glanced at the Liao people on the city wall, and rode his horse towards the pontoon bridge. He was going to the battlefield to check the results of the battle.

The auxiliary troops piled up the captured food, armor, gold and silver in the north gate city wall.

After killing the Jin soldiers in the city, the order in the city was left to the Liao people to maintain. The Kaiyuan army withdrew from the main city and only rested in the north gate city wall.

Du Du brought Tong Yangxing before General Liu.

Tong Yangxing was covered in bruises and his nose was crooked.

"I killed your brother because he killed Han people indiscriminately and almost killed my woman."

Tong Yangxing knelt on the ground and kowtowed repeatedly, his body trembling and his words unclear. Pei Dahu came up to him, raised his head and said loudly:
"Master Thirteen, he said he would be your bondservant and work like a slave for you."

Liu Zhaosun came up to Tong Yangxing and said sternly, "What I've been fighting for is to make sure there are no more bondservants in the world. From now on, you don't have to be a bondservant either."

Tong Yangxing's gloomy eyes suddenly brightened. He had heard that Liu Zhaosun's behavior was different from that of ordinary people. It seemed that he was willing to buy his body for a huge sum of money today in order to spare him and win the hearts of the people.

Liu Zhaosun suddenly looked up:
"Tong Yangxing! You are a Han Chinese, and you come from a wealthy merchant family. You have no worries about making a living, so why do you want to be a dog for the slave chief?"

Tong Yangxing hurriedly said, "I am forced to do this. If I don't surrender to the Tartars, they will kill me. General Liu, please spare my life!"

"You were forced into a desperate situation? Last year, the Jiannu attacked Fushun and massacred tens of thousands of Han people. You helped them open the city gates, so your contribution was not small. Now that you have a repentant heart, I will grant you the favor and let you repay the dead. Give each of them a blow."

A cold light flashed in his eyes, and he waved his hand and said loudly:
"Send him to the capital, and report him to the Ministry of War for execution by slow slicing."

Pei Dahu, with a sinister look on his face, dragged Tong Yangxing away without saying a word.

Du Du trembled all over, he knew what would happen to Tong Yangxing if he was sent to the capital.

I thought surrendering could save my life, but I didn't expect that Liu Zhaosun was even more brutal than the Khan of the Great Jin Dynasty and killed people without blinking an eye.

He began to regret that he was too impulsive. He killed the witch who pretended to be a ghost, and then went to hunt down Tong Yangxing, eventually embarking on this path of no return.

Goshiha, who was sent by the Khan to kill him, was beaten to death by the Liao people.

The leader of the Bordered White Banner was thus convicted of rebellion.

At first, he wanted to explain clearly to Nurhaci that he killed Tong Yangxing for the sake of the Great Jin.

When he heard that the Khan had killed several Goshas, he gave up the idea.

Later, the Kaiyuan troops defeated the Zhenglan Banner, the Bordered White Banner, and the Two Yellow Banners, leaving only three Niulu of Dudu, who had no choice but to surrender.

Most of the more than a thousand Zhenyi armored soldiers from the three Niulu fled, and in the end, only less than three hundred people were left who were determined to stay with them.

"Are you Dudu?"

Liu Zhaosun looked at the thin child and imagined the scene of Du Du wielding a sword longer than himself, climbing up to the top of the city wall and killing Mao Wenlong.

"Master, no, General Liu, please spare my life. We, the Bordered White Banner, did not massacre the city, let alone kill people indiscriminately. It was the Khan who forced me to fight..."

Du Du knelt on the ground and kowtowed continuously.

"Everyone fights for their own master. If you had massacred the Liao people, you wouldn't be standing here. If you want to save your life, cut off the pigtail at the back of your head. Also, don't call yourself a slave anymore. There are no slaves in Kaiyuan! I'm warning you, if you have any disloyalty, you'll end up like Tong Yangxing!"

Liu Zhaosun pointed at the Liao people on the city wall behind him and said, "There's no need for me to do anything. Someone will kill you!"

"Of course, you can also return to Hetuala. I will not stop you."

There is a high probability that the young prince will not be able to return home. Given Huang Taiji's character, he will probably not let go of this nephew who turned against his allies and caused the Eight Banners to suffer a disastrous defeat.

Du Du's eyes flashed, he knelt down again and shouted loudly:

"I...I will serve General Liu well from now on and will not return to Hetuala! In the name of the Eternal Heaven, if I betray you, I will be torn into pieces!"

General Liu waved his hand and asked Du Du to leave.

The surrendered Zhenyi soldiers had no families in Hetuala, so they had no worries. When the Yehe people massacred the city, the Bordered White Banner fought a bloody battle with Mao Wenlong at the east gate and did not enter the city to kill anyone.

After some consideration, Liu Zhaosun decided to keep some of the captives.

These prisoners will be sent to the mines to work for a period of time. Those who perform well will be allowed to join the garrison and be allocated land.

This group of surrendered Jiannu will be used as a model for converting the Xia people to the Yi people, so as to influence more foreign tribes. In future wars, many problems can be solved without bloodshed.

Liaodong should be a multi-ethnic Liaodong.

Kang Yingqian was full of expectations for the future. Since he could pacify Liao in half a year, it would not be difficult to conquer the world in three years.

It seems that it was a wise move for me to surrender in time.

However, this professional bureaucrat who had been in the Ming Dynasty officialdom for a long time had already anticipated a sharp problem.

After the Jiannu's defeat, a power vacuum was bound to appear in Liaodong. The imperial court, Liaoxi, and even Shandong would all come to grab a piece of the pie. In fact, Liu Zhaosun had already replaced Li Chengliang and would soon become a more powerful figure than Li Chengliang.

It was impossible for the imperial court not to take action against Kaiyuan.

In other words, the Kaiyuan Army's main focus now should shift from fighting the Jiannu to dealing with the imperial court and dealing with Zu Dashou.

~~~
The next day, the Liaozhen troops from Gaizhou and Jinzhou arrived one after another, confronted the Kaiyuan army across the river, and clamored to enter the city to help kill the Tartars.

Deng Changxiong led a thousand soldiers to confront them on the south bank.

Thousands of crows flew in from all directions, like a dark cloud covering both sides of the Hun River. Like the Liaozhen military leaders who rushed to claim the credit, these birds also wasted no time in devouring the corpse.

Although everyone was exhausted, burying the fallen comrades was urgent.

Over the next few days, soldiers from each camp buried the bodies, and the Liao people in the city also spontaneously came out to help.

October 26, the 47th year of the Wanli reign, the first seven days.

East of Shenyang City, at the foot of Qixing Mountain, the weather is freezing cold.

General Liu, covered in mud, wielded a shovel and pickaxe to dig a grave on the black soil.

More than 18,000 heroic souls of the Ming army will rest in peace on the banks of the Hun River.

Because of the severe damage in Shenyang City and the short time, they were unable to prepare enough coffins.

Some soldiers who died in battle could only wrap their bodies in mats or armor and bury them in graves.

It is a blessing to die in battle. Xiong Jinglüe was killed by the Jiannu, and his body was not found.

General Liu held the armor and the Shangfang sword he wore during his lifetime in his hands, chanted a dirge loudly, and walked towards the cemetery step by step.

"Naihe Bridge, Naihe Bridge, seven inches wide and ten thousand feet high! The blessed cross the bridge, the unfortunate fall off."

Two guards followed Liu Zhaosun, carrying a soul-calling banner with black characters on a black background, and threw paper money into the sky as they walked.

Liu Zhaosun climbed up the ladder to the roof of a thatched hut at the foot of the mountain, leaning against two spirit-calling banners. He took a blood-stained mandarin duck battle jacket from Kang Yingqian.

The owner of the mandarin duck coat is now lying quietly in a tomb somewhere at the foot of the mountain.

Liu Zhaosun waved his mandarin duck coat and sang the song of waiting for the corpse from his hometown Junzhou, Huguang:

Hunhun, follow my steps.
I hold the soul-guiding Nadufan in my hands

I point the way to the dead

Hey hey...
It's called the soul-guiding banner, and the road points east.

I advise you not to go east.

The sea on the east coast is impassable.

The soul-guiding banner pointed to the south.

Then I advise you not to go south

There is also a Flaming Mountain on the south bank.
The soul-guiding banner pointed north.
I advise you not to go north.

You can't go to the North Shore in this cold weather
The soul-guiding banner pointed westward.
I advise you not to go west.

There is also a Wu Zixu on the west bank
·····
The sound of summoning spirits gradually spread far away.

The sky was clear, the wind dry, and the Hun River was silent. The time traveler stood on a rooftop, gazing into the distance. On both sides of the Hun River, countless souls broke free from the suffering earth and soared into the sky like dandelions.

Among the millions of souls of Ming soldiers who died in battle, he saw Mao Wenlong, Li Yuchen, and Peng Yong.

"Go back home!"

Three thousand soldiers and civilians followed General Xuanwu in shouting, their voices reaching the sky and shaking the earth.

After the soul-calling ceremony ended, the soldiers cried for their dead comrades again.

Finally, the living began to bury the dead.

Liu Zhaosun climbed down from the roof using a ladder.

Kang Yingqian took the mandarin duck jacket and put it back on its owner. General Liu wiped away his tears, picked up his shovel, spread the black soil, and personally buried the long-handled player who had been the first to cross the pontoon bridge.

~~~~~~~
A group of Liaoxi servants crossed the river and quickly retreated to the north bank, telling the masters who were anxiously waiting on the south bank about the situation.

From the east of the city came the Kaiyuan Army's shouts to summon the souls.

Hearing the unanimous shouts of "Return Home" by thousands of people, the lieutenant generals who came to "reinforce" weighed their own weight and unanimously agreed that the troops they brought were no match for the Kaiyuan Army.

They quickly evacuated the Hunhe battlefield and turned around to plunder the wounded Later Jin soldiers who were abandoned by the Eighth Prince.

~~~~~

After burying the dead soldiers, Liu Zhaosun decided to leave Shenyang as soon as possible and return to Kaiyuan.

Li Ruzhen, the general of Liaodong, was killed by the Liao people, and the Li family's rule in Liaodong came to an end.

It is said that the Liao people robbed the Li family of everything and hacked all the descendants of the Li family to death.

As for Ding Bi, he was eventually bitten to pieces by the angry Liao people, his servants were all killed, and his huge fortune left in Shenyang was also looted.

~~~~
On the second day of November, the bearded lieutenant general Man Gui hurriedly arrived from Xifengkou with two thousand cavalrymen.

When Man Gui heard that the Jiannu were attacking Shenyang, he knew that the Kaiyuan army would definitely go to rescue the Baigan soldiers and Zhejiang soldiers, so he volunteered to fight.

Li Huaixin and Chai Guozhu used the excuse of winter shortages of horses to delay sending troops. In desperation, Man Gui directly informed Wang Huazhen and ordered General Xiao to lead the charge. They finally managed to gather 2,000 troops and rush to reinforce. However, they encountered the Duoyan (a Mongolian faction) in Pinggu and engaged in a battle that delayed them for a long time. By the time they reached Hunhe, the battle was already over.

"I am late, please forgive me, General Liu!"

Liu Zhaosun laughed heartily and hurried forward to help Mangui up.

After taking a closer look, I found that his beard was thicker and there were several arrow wounds on his face and body. Looking at the cavalry under his command, they were all extremely exhausted.

Man Gui has now been promoted to Lieutenant General of Xifengkou and is highly valued by Wang Huazhen.

Back in Kaiyuan, Jin Yuji and Man Gui became sworn brothers and sisters, and together with Liu Zhaosun, they became the Three Heroes of the Wind and Dust.

"General Man is so kind to me that he's willing to travel thousands of miles and risk his life to come to my aid. It's truly commendable. Hurry up and get up. Today, we two brothers will get drunk together!"

At that time, Man Gui's troops were arranged to rest in the city wall.

Liu Zhaosun decided to give some Jiannu heads to his brothers. Tartar heads were now hard currency and more valuable than silver.

Although this great victory was achieved through bloody battles by the Kaiyuan Army, the White Spear Army, and the Zhejiang Army, the unprecedented achievement of pacifying Liaodong and killing Nurhaci was not something that Liu Zhaosun could accomplish alone.

Liu Zhaosun had been in the army for a long time, so he certainly knew that the court could not take all the credit for him.

Checks and balances are always a trick that civil servants like to play.

Since Man Gui is so loyal, we can give him some of the Tartar heads. This will not only bring them closer together, but also reassure the court.

That night, General Liu hosted a banquet for Man Gui at the Wengcheng military camp.

Although they were going to get drunk, the funeral had just ended and everyone was sad, so they didn't hire any musicians to sing or dance, and they drank very little wine.

Man Gui suddenly asked, "Where is Jin Yuji? And where is Xiong Jinglie?"

Liu Zhaosun was drunk and speechless for a long time.

Kang Yingqian gave Man Gui a wink, and the rough but subtle warrior immediately stopped asking questions.

Liu Zhaosun felt sad, recalling that day in Kaiyuan when he, Xiong Tingbi, Man Gui, and Jin Yuji were walking on the street, chatting and laughing freely, as if it was just yesterday.

But now, there are only two people left.

Seeing this, everyone lost interest in drinking and hurriedly drank a few cups before taking their leave. Man Gui returned to the city wall.

After everyone left, Kang Yingqian shook his head and sighed:
"Such a deep love story is just about a woman. When we get back to Kaiyuan, I'll find you any woman you want. Han women, Mongolian women, even Japanese women and Portuguese women!"

Liu Zhaosun ignored him, staggered to his feet and left the table, and Pei Dahu stepped forward to support him.

Kang Yingqian looked at the two men from behind and said loudly, "The court will not sit idly by and watch us monopolize Liaodong. Next, they will either support Zu Dashou to contain Kaiyuan, or directly reduce your power as general, or perhaps do both. I have seen many such imperial edicts that discard the donkey after it has served its purpose. General Liu should prepare early."

(End of this chapter)