The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 288 Yao and Shun
In mid-May, Ma Shiying, the military governor of Qinghe, led a group of ferocious Kaiyuan pacification soldiers and, checking the records of the 108 generals in Wang Yushi's "Donglin Generals Record", went door to door one by one, searched the capital, and recovered stolen goods and money from the Donglin heroes.

Except for Ye Xianggao, Hou Xun and other Donglin Party members who had defected to Ping Liaohou, a small half of the officials mentioned in "Dianjianglu" had died, and some were not in the capital. After excluding a few good officials who worked for the people, there were still 32 people left.

There is still a shortfall of three million taels of military aid compared to the eight million taels stipulated by Marquis Ping Liao.

The final three million taels naturally fell on these thirty-two unlucky guys.

When Ma Shiying discovered that most of the thirty-two people were censors and all of them were extremely rich.

He was angry.

Thinking about how he worked diligently under Ping Liao Hou, his annual salary was only three hundred taels, and with the trade dividends it was only one thousand taels.

And these are called the "Emperor's eyes and ears" of the Qingliu.

He kept talking and writing in a flowery way, confusing right and wrong, and even dared to extort a thousand taels of silver from the impeached person once he sent out an impeachment memorial.

How could Ma Shiying maintain mental balance?
Several imperial censors were unaware of the impending disaster and were still stubborn and accused Ma Shiying of being a cruel official like Zhang Tang and Lai Junchen, and suggested that he be arrested and imprisoned.

As a result, these censors soon received special care from Ma Shiying.

For specific methods, please refer to Li Zicheng's plundering of Beijing officials.

After a lot of trouble, Ma Shiying confiscated 4 million taels of silver from the homes of 32 people. In this way, he recovered a total of 9 million taels of stolen goods, which exceeded the task assigned by Ping Liaohou.

At the same time, under Kang Yingqian's arrangement, the nobles in the capital took the lead in donating food to reward the royalist troops stationed outside the city - most of them were actually refugees - and under their leadership, officials and wealthy merchants in the capital also donated, and soon collected 5,000 stones of food.

Afterwards, the tens of thousands of refugees who came with the Jingnan Army gradually dispersed, and order in Beijing began to return to normal.

On May 10, the first year of Chongzhen, the Empress issued an imperial decree:

Prince Xin was summoned to succeed the throne!
On the same day, the Cabinet and the Marquis of Ping Liao announced the late emperor's will:
"Life and death are common sense, and are inevitable for all. The only thing left is to find a successor. The entire society and the people rely on him. If I accept his full submission, what regrets do I have? Your fifth brother, Prince Xin, is a brilliant and intelligent man, with a kind and filial nature. Therefore, in accordance with the ancestral precept that the elder brother succeeds the younger brother, I will succeed him and ascend the throne."

Before Prince Xin arrived in the capital, Marquis Ping Liao led several important ministers and elders including Huang Liji, Ye Xianggao, and Huang Kezan to present three letters of persuasion.

Prince Xin responded to the first two letters of persuasion as follows:
1. Reading your letter, I can see your deep concern for the country. However, I am deeply saddened and cannot bear to hear about the succession issue so soon! Your request is not granted.

Second: You all have expressed the sincere wishes of our ancestors, and your words are so earnest. Reading through them, I am filled with grief. How can I bear to ascend the throne so quickly? Your request is not granted.

It was not until the third note was submitted that Zhu Youjian expressed his consent to succeed the throne:
"You have all spoken together, repeatedly, with all your loyalty. The throne is of such importance that it cannot be vacant for long. I dare not decline your request, and I will do so with all my heart."

On December 13th of the first year of Chongzhen, the camp at Zuoanmen Wengcheng.

Kang Yingqian held the letter of recommendation he had just copied from the Xinwangfutang newspaper and said mysteriously:
"Marquis Ping Liao, did you see that?"

Liu Zhaosun looked out of the tent with disappointment.

One after another, horse-drawn carriages left the city through the corridor and distributed the food they were loaded with to the Ming army stationed outside the city. Liu Zhaosun noticed that as soon as the auxiliary soldiers unloaded the food from the carriages, the Ming army below in Jizhen snatched it all away.

He didn't listen to Kang Yingqian at all. He looked at the chaotic situation in front of him and muttered:
"As soon as we entered the customs, problems arose, but luckily we stopped in time."

Kang Yingqian shook his head and said:

"Marquis Ping Liao, it's okay to be prepared for danger in times of peace, but don't be too nervous. The matter of entering the pass is over. Right now, there are greater things to prepare for. I just came from the Ministry of War, and I heard from the Minister of the Marquis that Prince Xin will arrive in the capital to inherit the throne tomorrow at the latest. You will need to learn more by then."

"Huh? What are you learning?"

Liu Zhaosun turned around and looked at Kang Yingqian, somewhat puzzled.

Kang Yingqian put down the letter in his hand, angry at his lack of argument:

"What did you say you were learning? Of course, it's the various rules and regulations for ascending the throne. Take this letter of persuasion, for example. Look at what the Chief Secretary of Prince Xin wrote. It's neither humble nor arrogant, how wonderful! I'll help you write it later! You'll need it soon, too. The sooner you're familiar with it, the easier it will be to do it when the time comes. Wouldn't that be better?"

Liu Zhaosun forced a smile on his cold face:

It turns out that even becoming an emperor requires rehearsal.

Seeing that he was frowning, Kang Yingqian knew that he was still thinking about Jin Yuji.

After the Jingnan Campaign began, the Kaiyuan Army successively sent troops to Tangma in the direction of Dengzhou. The Intelligence Bureau sent people to investigate and finally learned from various sources that:
Pei Dahu and Shen Lian brought more than 200 people to escort General Anyuan and his daughter out of Wendeng County.

They headed towards Weihaiwei, but were pursued by Shandong soldiers along the way, suffering heavy casualties. They finally boarded a ship at Yingzui Port and were never heard from again.

Zeng Qixiao, Song Yingsheng, Wu Xiang and Yang Qilong, the four main culprits, saw that Yuan Chonghuan and Qiao Yiqi were making great progress in southern Liaoning and were about to land in Shandong. After returning from Weihaiwei, they did not dare to return to the capital. It is said that they finally led thousands of remaining soldiers south along the canal and disappeared.

After Ping Liaohou knew these things, he felt more and more guilty and depressed. He was fine when getting along with the generals outside, but he became silent and taciturn when facing Kang Yingqian and others in private.

On several occasions, Kang Yingqian saw Ping Liaohou sitting in a daze alone.

Although General Kang did not understand what depression or bipolar disorder was, he could feel that his young lord was heartbroken.

These days, whenever he has free time, Kang Yingqian takes the initiative to talk to Liu Zhaosun.

"Marquis Ping Liao, you should prioritize the overall situation. Once Prince Xin's coronation ceremony is over, I will definitely promote you. Then, I will send more people to Tianjin, Weihai, and southern Liaoning. A thorough search will reveal clues."

"Let's deduce what we should do when Prince Xin enters the city tomorrow. Which gate should he use? You know how, when Emperor Wuzong passed away and Emperor Sejong came to the capital from Anlu to inherit the throne, he argued with his ministers for a long time just over which gate to enter."

"I've sent people to investigate, and they all say Zhu Youjian is no ordinary man. Despite his young age, he possesses courage and determination, and he knows how to bide his time. If you want to control him, you'll have to be more resourceful."

Liu Zhaosun nodded to Kang Yingqian, his eyes regaining their sharpness. As long as he talked about business, he could keep himself focused.

Various memories about Zhu Youjian emerged in my mind. Putting aside his identity as the last emperor, Zhu Youjian's own experience could be considered a tragedy.

Zhu Youjian and Zhu Youxiao were half-brothers who grew up together in their father's palace. They were only five years apart in age.

Zhu Youjian's consort, Consort Liu, was a virtuous concubine (lower in rank than a talented person or a selected concubine) when she first entered the palace. She gave birth to Zhu Youjian in the 38th year of the Wanli reign. Soon after, she fell out of favor and was dismissed, leading to her death from depression. At the time, Zhu Youjian was only five years old, and his father, Zhu Changluo (Emperor Taichang), entrusted him to the care of the selected concubine, Consort Li (Dong Li).

Dong Li (Concubine Zhuang) was a kind person and treated Zhu Youjian like a mother. She taught him moral character in many ways. As a result, Zhu Youjian developed an overly strong character, which laid the groundwork for his tragic fate in the future.

"Prince Xin lost his mother at a young age and was raised by Concubine Zhuang. As a result, he is inherently cold-hearted, suspicious, and easily broken. The only person he trusts is his adoptive mother, Concubine Zhuang. Military Supervisor Kang, if you want to control Zhu Youjian, you must start with this woman."

After hearing this, Kang Yingqian stroked his beard and admired it, and could not help but praise:

"Marquis Ping Liao has a keen eye for people's hearts and hits the nail on the head. I admire you so much!"

Liu Zhaosun recalled what Zhu Youxiao said to his brother before his death in history.

"Come, my brother should be Yao and Shun."

He repeated it silently in his mind, then looked up and said to Kang Yingqian:
"As long as we continue to follow the path of Kaiyuan, our emperor will become a Yao or Shun."

Kang Yingqian nodded repeatedly after hearing this.

He rolled his eyes and squinted his eyes:
"Marquis Ping Liao, have you seen it?"

Liu Zhaosun was stunned again.

"What did you see?"

On ordinary days, Liu Zhaosun lived in the Zuoanmen city wall with the soldiers. Only on the night when Emperor Chongzhen was burned to death by the Donglin rebels, in order to prevent chaos in the imperial city, he led his troops to garrison around the Qianqing Palace and guard the palace.

That night, he stayed up all night and patrolled the Forbidden City with his guards.

It is said that on that night, Marquis Ping Liao also went to the Cining Palace and Kunning Palace where the empress and concubines lived.

Of course, it's just a rumor.

However, since that day, every time Kang Yingqian met Liu Zhaosun, he would ask him:

Do you see it?

Kang Yingqian had a wicked smile on his face, and the next moment he was about to take out the Vajra Powder from his arms.

Liu Zhaosun shook his head:
"What's so good about Zhu Youxiao's queen and concubines? They're not as good as Jin Yuji. I'm not Dong Zhuo, I'm not that crazy. I can't sleep in the dragon bed..."

Before he could finish, the tent door was suddenly opened from the outside. Qiao Yiqi broke free from the guards and grinned at Liu Zhaosun:

"came back!"

"what?"

Seeing Qiao Dazui's ecstatic expression, his heart also began to beat violently.

"Jin Yuji, Madam Jin, and Pei Dahu..."

Liu Zhaosun opened his eyes wide.

The dim eyes were filled with starlight.

"Joe Big Mouth! Say it again."

In a hurry, he actually called Qiao Yiqi by his nickname.

Qiao Dazui didn't care at all. He grabbed the coconut ladle, drank some water, took a breath, and added:
"Just now, the scouts reported that General Anyuan, Pei Dahu, Shen Lian, Wu Xiao... and someone named Wei have already passed Tongzhou. Oh, and there's also Yang, Yang Jinglie and a red-haired barbarian, and..."

Liu Zhaosun looked at Kang Yingqian:

"General Kang, am I dreaming?"

When Kang Yingqian heard that Yang Hao had arrived, he frowned slightly and said to Liu Zhaosun:

"Zhuang Zhou Xiaomeng, Ping Liaohou is not Zhuang Zhou, let's quickly make plans for Prince Xin..."

Liu Zhaosun took off the fish scale armor hanging on the wall, put on his helmet, and strode out.

"She must be injured. Tell Tang Ma to quickly send a message. Don't leave first. I will go to Tongzhou to pick her up."

Kang Yingqian stretched out his hand to stop him, but Ping Liaohou had already walked a long way, and the twelve guards immediately followed him like a tail.

There were only two military supervisors left in the tent. They smiled at each other, and Qiao Yiqi looked outside the tent:

"I love both the country and the beauties, just like when I was young."

Kang Yingqian gave Qiao Yiqi a cold look.

He was upset and poured cold water on his old partner:

"Yang Hao has finally come to Kaiyuan. Have you forgotten what happened at Sarhu? His daughter is a noble lady, and his son-in-law is the Marquis of Pingliao! He's not coming to Kaiyuan to retire this time! General Qiao, our good days are over!"

Qiao Yiqi was never interested in intrigue. He patted Kang Yinggan on the shoulder and signaled him to be patient.

Then he walked out of the tent with a grin, and said to acquaintances he met:

"You know what? Madam Jin is back, and Ping Liaohou has gone to pick her up!"

(End of this chapter)