The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 271 Who is in favor and who is against?
Ningyuan City in western Liaoning.

Marquis Ping Liao hosted a banquet for the generals from the nine frontiers in the hall of the general's mansion.

General of Datong Town, Lieutenant General of Yansui Town, Deputy General of Ningxia Town, Lieutenant General of Guyuan Town, General of Gansu Town, Lieutenant General of Shanhai Town, Lieutenant General of Lintao Town, General of Jingxing Town, and Deputy General of Yongping Town.

A total of 23 people from the nine borders and thirteen towns were present, of course excluding the general of Jizhen, Man Gui, and the deceased general of Liaoxi, Zu Dashou.

After the Battle of Sarhu, the Ming Dynasty had only more than seventy generals and lieutenant generals in the nine frontiers and thirteen towns.

In other words, Ping Liaohou single-handedly forced one-third of the border town generals to join the game he organized, which shows that he had a lot of face.

Ping Liaohou sat at the head of the group, his eyes scanning all the generals in the hall. Many of those usually unruly border commanders did not dare to meet Liu Zhaosun's gaze, and instead looked timidly at the table.

Wang Zai Jin sat next to Kang Yingqian. In just a few days, the two had gone from being ordinary classmates to close friends who could talk about anything.

Compared with the young and successful but murderous Liu Zhaosun, Kang Yingqian is more mature, and Wang Zaijun prefers to deal with old Kang.

Kang Yingqian reminded Wang Jinglüe that Ping Liaohou had been in a state of restlessness recently and he should not provoke the young King of Liaodong.

Of course, Wang Zai Jin did not dare to provoke Ping Liaohou.

However, many of the arrogant and formidable generals under the Liaodong Governor's command looked down upon the Marquis of Ping Liao. Many of these lieutenant-generals of the Nine Frontiers were of the same generation as Liu Jing. In their eyes, Liu Zhaosun was nothing more than a young boy. If it weren't for the support of Yang Hao, Xiong Tingbi, Wei Zhongxian, and others, how could he have achieved so many military exploits, won the emperor's favor, and gradually risen to the rank of Marquis of Ping Liao?

Rumors abounded within the Nine Frontier Military Commanderies that Liu Zhaosun's victory over the Jiannu at Hunhe was due to the help of women and eunuchs. This former captain, a servant, rose to prominence by marrying into the Yang family.

Just ridiculous.

When there are no heroes, Shuzi became famous.

Many people firmly believe that if they were in Sarhu and Hunhe at that time, they would be able to repel the Jiannu and even pacify Liaodong more quickly.

It is actually easy to understand if you think this way. Before Sarhu, except for the Liaozhen, other border troops had never encountered the Jiannu. They thought that the Jiannu were just a group of rabble that would collapse at the first touch.

Of course, Ping Liaohou didn't know the little thoughts of these military leaders.

"Everyone, we've gathered you here today to discuss something important. Come, have a drink first!"

After three rounds of drinking, Liu Zhaosun publicly put forward the new order of the Nine Frontiers that he had set up.

The general content is as follows:

First, the Kaiyuan Army has no intention of becoming an enemy of the Nine Border Armies. Both sides value peace and will try to avoid future clashes similar to the Shanhaiguan incident.
Second, all parties should protect the shops and brokerages opened by Kaiyuan in the nine border areas. In return, Ping Liaohou is willing to concede some of his interests to the generals and lieutenant generals.

3. The treacherous people in the court are causing trouble. When the Kaiyuan army enters the pass to purge the emperor, the border troops must not stop them. Anyone who dares to stop them will be destroyed.

Fourth, recognize the Kaiyuan Army's full rights and interests in the Shandong Canal. All the business of Zu Dashou and Wu Xiang in the canal will be taken over by Ping Liao Hou.
5. The factories, mines, and salt industries owned by the military commanders of the nine frontier regions will be jointly managed by Kaiyuan and the border towns. No one other than the Liaodong Trading Company will be allowed to operate nearby mines.
6. When Kaiyuan intelligence personnel enter and exit border areas, border towns must provide necessary convenience and not make things difficult for them.

Seven,

·······
Liu Zhaosun read for half an hour, a total of twenty-one.

This covers military affairs, people's livelihood, intelligence, and even the movement of scholars and juren from border areas, all of which must be approved by Kaiyuan.

In other words, Kaiyuan will firmly control the economic, military, cultural and other fields of the border areas, and the actual status of Ping Liaohou will be above that of the emperor.

The conditions were even more harsh than the Twenty-One Demands signed between Yuan Shikai and Japan later.

It is known in history as "The Twenty-One Demands of Ningyuan".

Before Ping Liaohou finished reading, the military leaders below were in an uproar and began to talk among themselves.

"Everyone, I have no other intentions," Liu Zhaosun said with a kind face, as if he was really considering everyone's concerns.

"I'm also thinking about you. I hope to have a stable Liaoxi and Liaodong region, and that problems like Zu Dashou won't happen again."

Ping Liaohou glanced around slowly, and the military leaders who had been chattering just now immediately lowered their heads like ostriches, not daring to look directly into Liu Zhaosun's sharp eyes.

To be fair, for these military leaders, the Twenty-One Demands only harmed the interests of the Ming Dynasty and had little to do with them.

Of course, if this were really implemented, the Kaiyuan Army would sweep across the Ming Dynasty even faster.

According to the Twenty-One Demands, the military leaders would not only receive 20% of Kaiyuan's annual profits, but would also immediately receive 500,000 pieces of silver and a large quantity of southern goods.

Liu Zhaosun spent one million taels of silver at once, which was really generous.

If the carrot is tempting enough, the stick can kill people.

Not to mention Zu Dashou, even the Jiannu were no match for the Kaiyuan Army. Now Man Gui clearly stood on the side of Ping Liaohou. For the other border towns, they actually didn't have many choices.

Liu Zhaosun picked up the wine glass with a calm expression:

"I have finished speaking. Who agrees and who disagrees?"

The generals and lieutenant generals looked at each other in confusion, and the military leaders all started to think about the pros and cons of forming an alliance with Kaiyuan.

One hundred and twenty guards of the central army, armed with muskets and heavy swords, stood around with murderous intent.

Liu Zhaosun spoke for a long time, and no one spoke, which made the scene awkward.

"I object!"

The generals looked in the direction of the voice and found that the person who was opposing was Wu Zimian, the Lieutenant General of Yansui Town.

"My Yansui Town is thousands of miles away from your Kaiyuan. I'm engaged in smuggling trade with Mongolia, why should you be in charge? I'm running a mine in Shaanxi, how does that bother you? I object!"

Wu Zimian was arrogant and domineering, acting lawlessly in Yansui Town, even disregarding the governor. Shaanxi had suffered from severe drought, locust plagues, and plague for the past two years, making life increasingly difficult for the common people, let alone the border troops. Therefore, Yansui Town was the most active of the foreign troops in the aid to Liao during this period. This was not because Wu Zimian was particularly loyal to the emperor, but simply to drive the Kaiyuan troops back to Liaodong and seize some silver and grain in Liaoxi.

The Zu family had been doing business in western Liaoning for three generations and had a fortune of tens of millions. After Zu Dashou's death, all this fortune fell into the hands of the Kaiyuan army. Wu Zimian came all the way from Shaanxi with great difficulty, but in the end he got nothing, and the more he thought about it, the angrier he became.

Wu Zimian allowed his men to rob in western Liaoning, kill and plunder in the countryside, and commit all kinds of evil. The day before yesterday, two Yansui soldiers were captured by Zhang Dong and his men and beheaded in public.

Wu Zimian was born into a military family in Yansui. He participated in the Ningxia Campaign, one of the three major campaigns of the Wanli Emperor, and won some military merits. He did not take younger generations like Liu Zhaosun seriously at all.

Ping Liaohou looked at this troublemaker.

After Wu Zimian finished speaking, the other generals remained silent, watching coldly and waiting for Liu Zhaosun's decision.

Wang Zaijin, the governor of Liaodong, and Zhao Zhenyuan, the general of Gansu Town, quickly signaled Wu Zimian to shut up.

Lieutenant General Yan Sui was still unaware and continued loudly:
"Liu Zhaosun, Ningyuan's surrender this time wasn't our idea. It was the General who opened the gates. He's old and foolish. I'm in Yansui Town, who am I afraid of? I only brought 5,000 troops this time. I don't want to fight you Kaiyuan soldiers to death. Are you still pushing your luck? Do you want to ride on our heads and shit on us?"

Everyone gathered around the giant eight-immortal table in silence. Kang Yingqian looked at Wu Zimian coldly, and Wang Zaijun beside him shook his head helplessly.

Seeing that no one spoke, Wu Zimian assumed that everyone agreed with his opinion, so he continued:
"When I was suppressing the rebellion in Ningxia with Liu Dadao, you were still a baby. Why are you showing off now..."

Ping Liaohou stepped on Xie Gong's clogs, flipped over and jumped onto the Eight Immortals Table, strode to Wu Zimian's seat, bent his body and drew his sword.

A cold light flashed, and Wu Zimian's head flew high into the air. Blood spurted out from his neck, splashing on the two generals beside him.

With a loud bang, the head hit the Eight Immortals Table and fell into the mutton soup on the table.

He stared at Liu Zhaosun who drew his sword with a pair of terrified and angry eyes, and died with his eyes open.

Ping Liaohou returned to his seat at the head of the table and glanced at everyone with a calm expression:
"You can question the knife! But please don't question my qualifications. Wu Zimian despises Kaiyuan. Do you think the blade of this knife is not sharp?" Wu Zimian's blood slowly flowed along the goose-feather knife and dripped onto the table.

"Who is in favor and who is against?"

Everyone was as silent as a cicada.

Liu Zhaosun looked at it for a while, picked up the bloody goose-feather knife, and said with a pleasant face:

"Don't worry, everyone. If you have any objections to the Twenty-One Demands, please speak up. I always convince people with reason."

"No."

"No."

"Agree."

"I have no objection!"

"I do not have either!"

The leaders of the Nine Frontier Armies avoided Ping Liaohou's sharp gaze and shook their heads like rattles.

Liu Zhaosun wiped the blood off the blade, kicked the head of the person lying on the Eight Immortals Table, raised the Peach Blossom Cup, looked at the group of trembling generals, and said quietly:

"Okay, let's continue the music and the dancing."

"Life is like morning dew; I don't know when or where we'll meet again. Tomorrow I have to go to Shandong to kill someone. So, excuse me, everyone, please enjoy yourself."

After saying this, Marquis Ping Liao pushed the door open and left.

The artists from the Zhao family troupe, who had been waiting outside for a long time, immediately filed in. Lively string music filled the living room. Ma Shiying, who was in charge of reception, waved the sleeves of his wide dragon robe. Sen Ti raised a loudspeaker and shouted loudly:
"Hey, hey, hey! All expenses for tonight will be charged to Master Liu!"

"Daiyu, Baichai, Cuihua, and Yulan, come in and serve the general!"

～~～~
Three days later, half of the surrendered border troops were allowed to withdraw and return to Shanhaiguan, and the remaining troops were escorted back to Liaodong as prisoners by Ping Liaohou.

The Battle of Ningyuan was completely over from then on.

Except for the two towns of Xuanfu and Shaanxi, the losses of other troops were not serious.

After the Hongmen Banquet, the morale of the border army officers was completely lost, and no one dared to talk about using troops against Kaiyuan again.

The generals and lieutenant generals wanted to escape back to the interior as soon as possible, away from Liaoxi and the madman Liu Zhaosun.

Wang Zaijun sent a message to the capital overnight, claiming that he had repelled the Kaiyuan army at Shanhaiguan and beheaded thousands of them. The Liu bandits were frightened and would no longer covet Shanhaiguan.

The memorial submitted by the two military supervisors to the emperor was roughly the same.

The so-called beheading of thousands of people was just the Liaozhen servants who were chopped off in Ningyuan City. Kang Yingqian used them as bargaining chips and gave them to Wang Zaijin.

In mid-October, the generals of the nine frontier towns and thirteen towns, including Datong Town, Yansui Town, and Ningxia Town, submitted memorials one after another, stating that their side had suffered heavy casualties and could not bear to fight again, and requested the court to withdraw the troops or increase the Liao salary.

Emperor Chongzhen had no choice but to announce the end of the war against Liao and ordered the Ming army to defend Shanhaiguan and not let Liu Bang enter again.

After Wang Zai Jin returned to Shanhaiguan, he immediately contacted the imperial censors to impeach the pro-war faction for their warmongering, and submitted a memorial to the emperor, hoping to take advantage of the victory at Shanhaiguan to send envoys to surrender the Liaodong rebels.

Wang Zaijun's memorial was strongly opposed by the Ministry of Revenue and the Imperial Household Department.

As a result, the court was divided into two factions. One faction advocated continuing to use troops against Kaiyuan and transferring more troops to attack Ningyuan and Guangning. The other faction believed that the national treasury was empty and food and grass were insufficient, so war should not be talked about lightly, and peace should be made with the thief Liu first.

While the two sides in the court were arguing, Qiao Yiqi and Yuan Chonghuan were leading the southern army and advancing rapidly in southern Liaoning.

Most of the Ming troops stationed in various places in southern Liaoning were local garrison soldiers. Not only was their combat effectiveness worrying, but most of them were unwilling to be enemies with the Kaiyuan army.

The Kaiyuan Army passed through southern Liaoning several times before, and each time they gave a lot of benefits to the local garrison soldiers, such as silver and food, which left a very good impression on these garrison soldiers.

So when Yuan Chonghuan appeared in southern Liaoning, the soldiers from the garrisons in various places offered almost no resistance and rushed to surrender to the Kaiyuan army.

The selection of these guards is easy to understand:
After surrendering to Kaiyuan and entering the garrison, the whole family had food to eat and continued to farm under the generals of Liaozhen. After a year of hard work, most of the food had to be given to the master, and the whole family had to go hungry. In years of disaster, they had to consider how much silver they could sell their daughter for.

The Third and Fourth Guards captured cities along the way and successively occupied Anshan, Haizhou, Yaozhou, Gaizhou and Yongning.

On November 12, the Third Army, the Fourth Army and the Fifth Army that set out from Kuandian met at Hongzui Fort in southern Liaoning.

The remaining troops of Liaozhen retreated to Jinzhou. On February 15, the Kaiyuan army captured Jinzhou and all the defenders of Jinzhou surrendered.

The Kaiyuan army continued to pursue southward and was met with a fierce counterattack from Liaozhen in Lushun.

On November 20th, the Liaodong Navy arrived at the Shuangdao Islands in southern Liaoning.

Wu Aheng immediately ordered the bombardment of Lushun, and Qi Jin led the Fourth Guards Army to attack from the south of Jinzhou. Under the pincer attack from the north and the south, Lushun was captured on the second day.

Qiao Yiqi was shocked to hear that Yang Hao had gone to Wendeng.

He told Wu Aheng in detail about Song Yingsheng's collusion with Liaozhen and his defection to Shandong. Wu Aheng was furious when he heard it:

"Marquis Ping Liao treated the Song family well, yet he repays kindness with such ingratitude! How could he have the heart to kill so many civilians?!"

When Yuan Chonghuan saw that the fleet only had eleven warships, he asked where the other one was. He remembered that Wu Aheng had twelve large ships in Korea.

"Pei Dahu insisted on going to Dengzhou, so I sent a small boat to escort them there."

"Them? Who else?"

"There are also Wu Xiao, Shen Lian, Yang Hao and his servants, a total of ten people. Oh, and there is also a woman."

"Where's the big guard?"

Wu Ahheng knew that Qiao Yiqi was asking about Lin Yu, and quickly said:
"I don't know where he is."

Qiao Yiqi thought to herself that it was bad news. These people were going to Shandong, probably to send more hostages to Song Yingsheng.

"Marquis Ping Liao ordered us to land in Weihai as soon as possible after clearing southern Liaoning and rescue General Anyuan. Now,"

Qiao Yiqi shook his head helplessly:

"Now there's another Yang Hao, it's really..."

He didn't have a good impression of Yang Hao. The last time he met Yang Hao was three years ago in Sarhu. That time, Qiao Yiqi was almost killed by this old man.

However, since Ping Liaohou gave the order personally, he could not care about these personal grudges.

"There's no time to lose. Southern Liaoning has already been captured. We should immediately attack Weihai. If anything happens to Lady Ping Liaohou, we can't bear the responsibility."

On December 20th, Qiao Yiqi led the Fifth Guard Army to stay in southern Liaoning, waiting for Ping Liaohou to come south.

Yuan Chonghuan, Wu Aheng and Qi Jin led 6,000 soldiers to Shandong to quell the rebellion.

The Fourth Guards crossed the Liao Sea by ships and Fuzhou ships, landed in Dengzhou, and fought against Song Yingsheng to clear the way for Kaiyuan.

(End of this chapter)