The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 269: Throwing Beyond Shanhaiguan

On the tenth day of the twelfth month of the first year of Chongzhen, all 30,000 border troops in Ningyuan surrendered.

After a bloody battle that lasted for a month, with both the attacking and defending sides paying the price of tens of thousands of people, the war finally ended.

The fall of Ningyuan marked the complete end of the Ming Dynasty's rule outside the Great Wall.

Shanhaiguan is the only place left in western Liaoning. According to the current situation, Shanhaiguan is also in danger and may be captured by the Kaiyuan army at any time.

In just three years, the Ming Dynasty lost Liaodong and Liaoxi. The Jianzhou Jurchens were already a headache for the emperor, and now Liu Zhaosun was even more terrifying.

This man controlled the Jurchen tribes, Liaodong and Liaoxi, as well as part of Mongolia and part of Korea. He was simply an enhanced version of Nurhaci and could compete with Huang Taiji at his peak.

However, there is no need to compete with the Qing Dynasty now, because the time traveler has replaced Huang Taiji, and the Kaiyuan Army has replaced the Eight Banners of Manchu.

In fact, time travelers have now begun to imitate Huang Taiji's historical strategy against the Ming Dynasty intentionally or unintentionally.

Of course, those barbaric policies will be eliminated.

No massacre, no literary inquisition, this is the bottom line that time travelers insist on.

As the Kaiyuan army continued to advance, gentry and wealthy families from all over western Liaoning came to join them and act as guides.

If it weren't for Wang Zai Jin's tight defense and strict investigation of spies, Ningyuan City would have been opened by this group of enthusiastic gentry from both inside and outside.

The gentry even donated money and grain, expressing their willingness to follow Ping Liaohou to advance into the interior and achieve great achievements.

When these powerful families heard that General Anyuan had died in Shandong, they offered their female relatives one after another to establish a relationship with Liu Zhaosun, even if it meant that their daughters could only be maids in the wife's room to Marquis Ping Liao.

Ping Liaohou ordered Kang Yingqian to send these people away.

After expanding to western Liaoning, Kaiyuan had become a mixed bag of good and bad people, and there was no need for these speculators to take advantage of the situation.

At present, Liaodong and Liaoxi are all owned by Liu Zhaosun. In fact, he has the strength to secede and become a king.

In recent days, fewer and fewer people have come to persuade Ping Liaohou to ascend the throne, probably because they know that the Kaiyuan army will not enter the pass for the time being.

According to the plan that had been made previously, all military operations would end at Shanhaiguan.

The so-called bombing cannot cross Shanhaiguan.

During the attack on Ningyuan, the number of soldiers and civilians under Liu Zhaosun's command had skyrocketed to 400,000.

A mob of 400,000 is far beyond Kaiyuan's current control capabilities. Once they pass Shanhaiguan, the 400,000 will soon become 800,000, or 1.2 million. In the face of absolute numbers, no matter how elite the soldiers and generals are, they will be diluted out.

By then, if they were defeated once, they would be like Li Zicheng in the 17th year of Chongzhen, and their entire line would collapse after a single blow.

The most urgent issue now is how to negotiate peace with the imperial court, make the emperor accept Ping Liaohou's demands, and strive for the greatest benefits for Kaiyuan.

At the beginning of noon on December 10th, surrounded by the generals of Kaiyuan, Ping Liaohou rode his horse slowly into the city from Chunhe Gate.

The two streets of Ningyuan were already filled with pacification soldiers responsible for maintaining order.

The Guards were responsible for escorting the surrendered border troops out of the city and dealing with the prisoners after they left the city.

When Wang surrendered to Ping Liaohou in Jin, there were still more than 30,000 border troops in Ningyuan City. With the help of the strong city, 30,000 troops could have fought a battle. Even if they could not repel the hundreds of thousands of troops outside the city, they could still cause casualties to the Kaiyuan army.

After the fall of Liaozhen, there was no point for the foreign troops to continue fighting in Ningyuan.

In the past, there was Zu Dashou as a shield.

Now that Zu Dashou is gone, no one is willing to stand up against the Kaiyuan Army.

These generals and lieutenant commanders were all on the city wall that day and witnessed with their own eyes the scene of Zu's brothers being burned to death.

The head servant of Zu's family was executed by slow slicing outside the city of Ningyuan.

Liu Zhaosun's cruelty was no less than that of the slave chieftain.

No one wanted to provoke this killer, and the border army generals all had their own plans, thinking about how to preserve their own strength.

As the saying goes, a dead Taoist friend will never die if he is a poor Taoist.

In this way, Ningyuan could not be defended.

If Wang Zai Jin doesn't surrender, I'm afraid his subordinates will mutiny.

Under a 16-foot-long general's flag, Liu Zhaosun and Kang Yingqian rode side by side on horseback, surrounded by hundreds of guards in front, behind, and on both sides.

In the distance, Chunhemen Street was crowded with people. People in the city came from all directions and crowded on the roadside like ants to watch the excitement.

On the street next to the Wengcheng, Liaodong Governor Wang Zaijin, along with a dozen border army officers and the commander of his standard-bearing battalion, stood there respectfully with their heads bowed. When they were about a hundred steps away from the group of captives, Kang Yingqian asked:
"General Liu, to deal with these people, we still have to use both kindness and force. Yesterday, we executed five hundred Zu family servants in front of them. That was force. How do we win them over next? What are your plans?"

Liu Zhaosun looked at Wang Zaijin, who was still in a mess in the wind in the distance, and said with a stern expression:

"Leave them alive and allow them to return and negotiate with the court."

Kang Yingqian was shocked. "Didn't Instructor Mori say a few days ago that Your Excellency was already negotiating peace with the imperial court?"

Liu Zhaosun immediately denied it, saying, "No, that was just a fabrication."

Kang Yingqian stared blankly at Liu Zhaosun, but he continued, "Go meet Wang Zaijin and explain the interests involved. Ask him to be the middleman and assist us in the negotiations with the court."

Liu Zhaosun said with a grim expression, "His value lies here. If you can use him, then use him. If you can't, then it's up to you."

Kang Yingqian shuddered inwardly and took the order and left.

At the Ningyuan Jinglüe residence, Kang Yingqian supported Wang Zaijin, who was bowing to him, and said with a pleasant face:

"Wang Jinglüe is a second-rank minister of the imperial court, and he also holds the title of governor of Liaodong. His rank is higher than mine, so we should not perform such a grand ceremony, lest we violate the court etiquette."

"You and I are both third-class Jinshi in the 20th year of the Wanli reign. I am no match for Wang Jinglüe. It is a great pleasure to meet an old friend in Ningyuan today!"

Kang Yinggan tried to get close to Wang Zaijun as soon as they met, but Wang Zaijun had no impression of Kang Yinggan at all.

He was a first-class Jinshi that year, while Kang Yingqian was only ranked at the bottom of the third class.

If Liu Zhaosun had not appeared, these two people would have no intersection.

Kang Yingqian smiled awkwardly:
"Wang Jinglie fought bravely against the enemy the day before yesterday, armed to the teeth. Why did he suddenly surrender?"

Wang Zaijin said without hesitation, "At that time, I didn't know the might of Kaiyuan's army and offended the Marquis of Ping Liao. Now I know that Kaiyuan's fighting power is unparalleled. I am ashamed! Ashamed!"

Kang Yingqian laughed heartily: "Marquis Ping Liao has been feeling uneasy these past two days. Because of our friendship, I have entrusted this peace negotiation to you. In the future, when Marquis Ping Liao enters the pass and establishes his rule over the world, he will not forget it..."

Wang Zaijin wiped the sweat from his forehead, looking surprised:
"Negotiation? Didn't they say a few days ago that they had already reached an agreement with the imperial court?"

Wang Zai Jin looked confused.

This was an important reason why he finally chose to surrender.
Kang Yingqian laughed:
"Oh, what Ping Liaohou meant is that the candidate he needs has been decided, and that is you, Wang Jinglue. You will return to the capital and be responsible for negotiating peace with the court."

"What? You want me to negotiate peace with the imperial court? I'm the governor of Liaodong!"

Wang Zai Jin was stunned on the spot, and in his mind he greeted all eighteen generations of Liu Zhaosun Kang Yingqian's ancestors.

"certainly,"

Kang Yingqian added:
"Marquis Ping Liao will convince the generals and lieutenant commanders in Ningyuan City to work together and discuss matters together. There's no need to rush into battle like this time, leaving both sides with rivers of blood and causing great regret."

The persuasion that Kang Yingqian mentioned was not just talk. Ping Liaohou was not afraid of killing a few more border troops who were disobedient and unwilling to cooperate.

"Wang Jinglüe, we are both well-read scholars. You should understand the current situation of the Ming Dynasty better than I do. The She'an Rebellion in the southwest is out of control. Shaanxi has suffered from famine for years. People have already started cannibalizing each other, and refugees are rising up in large numbers."

"Plus, the Kaiyuan army occupied Liaodong and Liaoxi."

When Kang Yingqian talked about occupying Liaodong and Liaoxi, the corners of his mouth rose slightly, as if he was showing off to Wang Zaijin.

"A great disaster is about to come. Ping Liaohou is only bringing everything to an early stage."

Kang Yingqian paused for a moment, glanced at Wang Zaijin, and continued:

"Wang Jinglie is loyal to the emperor and patriotic, but he must also leave a way out for himself and his family. It's only a matter of time before Ping Liaohou enters the pass. If you are willing to negotiate peace for Ping Liaohou, the Kaiyuan army can stop at Shanhaiguan. In the report to the court, Lord Wang can do whatever he wants."

Wang Zai Jin was stunned.

When he was in the capital, he often heard censors scold the Liaodong military supervisor for being shameless. Today, he finally saw how shameless Kang Yinggan was.

When he spoke of these outrageous words, he did not even blush or breathe heavily, and even said that he was reading books of sages.

"Master Wang, please think twice. The Marquis of Ping Liao has just lost his beloved wife and is in a state of flux. It's possible that he will order a massacre of the entire city and the border troops tomorrow. Therefore, please make a decision as soon as possible."

After saying that, Kang Yingqian turned and left, leaving Wang Zaijun alone at a loss.

The border troops suffered huge losses in aiding Liao this time, and the emperor must be furious.

Wang Zaijin was thinking about how to achieve a "great victory at Shanhaiguan" with the cooperation of the Kaiyuan army.

In this way, his position as the governor of Liaodong was preserved, and at least he would not be thrown into prison.

(End of this chapter)