The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 424: The Beginning of the Empire (Lu Xiangsheng Appears)
The third day of August in the first year of Wuding.

A military parade was held at the Guangjimen parade ground in Linqing. During the parade, more than 15,000 heads of Ming soldiers were built into a memorial to punish the Ming army for their burning, killing, looting and rebellion against the Great Qi, and to honor the Great Qi's military achievements for eternity.

On that day, the Guangjimen parade ground was bustling with people, and about 100,000 Linqing residents (500,000 people in the city) witnessed the entire parade.

More than 15,900 human heads were built into a pyramid shape that is narrow at the top and wide at the bottom by 30 Linqing bricklayers. The craftsmen used their superb skills to cover the upper layer of the pyramid with soil and then compacted the whole thing... The final effect can only be described as shocking.

More than 15,900 enemy soldiers' heads turned into a three-meter-high pyramid. The outermost layer of heads faced in all directions with hideous expressions that no living person dared to look directly at them.

At the beginning of noon, Emperor Wuding, dressed in military uniform, climbed up the Guangji Gate Tower and reviewed the Qi army soldiers who had lined up outside the city.

More than 13,000 soldiers of different types, each arranged in a tight formation, passed in front of Guangjimen City in turn.

In front of Guangjimen City, drums and horns sounded, bamboo whistles were blown continuously, accompanied by deafening shouts of "Long live the emperor". Troops from various units moved forward slowly, with the cavalry battalion in the front, musketeers, sword and shield soldiers, and spearmen in the middle, and artillery and auxiliary troops at the rear. After passing through the large parade ground, the teams continued to circle the north and south streets of the city, and finally returned to their respective barracks.

Emperor Wuding stood on the city wall and waved to the soldiers frequently. Finally, the emperor gave a brand new black antelope flag to the commander Pu Gang.

The black antelope flag is the flag of the 14th Guards Army. The flags of the Qi Army all use animals as patterns, which are decided by the first commander of the army and there are no restrictions.

When they were in Liaodong, ferocious beasts such as dragons, tigers, lions and leopards had been occupied by other guards. When it was Pu Gang's turn, even ferocious beasts and birds of prey such as wolves and eagles were gone, so he chose antelopes.

It is said that the antelope symbolizes the swift response of the 14th Army on the battlefield, and its ability to advance rapidly. Later, Emperor Wu Ding sent the 14th Army to aid Shandong, which was partly due to the antelope.

"Your Majesty, except for the artillery who are veterans, most of the other battalions were recruited in the past three months..."

Liu Zhaosun nodded slightly: "Alright, the Yangtze River's waves behind push the waves ahead, each generation is stronger than the last. After this battle, we will all be a strong army!"

The instructor Xing Zhongyi gave additional explanations on the side, and the emperor was quite satisfied with this troop of new recruits.

Now that Da Qi is torn apart, the time traveler, whose temperament has changed drastically and whose murderous intent has grown stronger, will certainly not tolerate those rogues to continue to survive.

Killing all without leaving a single one alive will become the new goal of future battles.

I don’t know whether it is fortunate or unfortunate for Du Du and Li Zong. Until now, Emperor Wuding has not yet grasped the exact situation of the Liaodong incident.

If this demigod knew about the heinous crimes committed by the Jiannu and Joseon in his old nest Kaiyuan, Liu Zhaosun would have to deal with these two ungrateful traitors by more than just building a Jingguan.

On that day, Emperor Wuding issued an edict to reward the three armies, and rewarded the officers and soldiers of the Qi army according to their merits and promoted them according to their achievements. I will not go into details here.

When the camps passed through the north and south streets of Linqing, the people gathered to watch.

Linqing was under siege for two months, and the Ming army repeatedly opened floodgates to flood the city, which was like a sinking stove giving birth to frogs (Note 1). The city was almost breached several times.

If it were not for the desperate fighting of the Qi army soldiers, this prosperous and wealthy place would have been looted by the bandits and the Ming army. The people in the state capital who were spared from the war were grateful and spontaneously stood on both sides of the street, holding bowls and basins filled with rice, flour and meat. They were reluctant to eat much of the food themselves and wanted to offer it to the royal army.

Although the Four Jiangbei Battalions also called themselves the Royal Army, that Royal Army was better at plundering civilians than the bandits. During this Northern Expedition, they would kill innocent people from time to time to claim credit and use the heads of fellow villagers in exchange for military merits.

It goes without saying which king the common people support.

Tan Er was walking forward behind the imperial guards when suddenly a commoner came towards him with a bowl of chili peppers and a large carp that had just been fished out of the canal. As he had a special affection for the food, he could not refuse. After hesitating for a while, he secretly stuffed the carp into his arms, thinking of making a sweet and sour carp dish for Emperor Wu Ding when he returned.

Many years later, Tan Ershao couldn't help shedding tears when he recalled the scene of the people of Linqing welcoming the royal army with food and drink.

According to Kaiyuan military law, combat officers were not allowed to take even a needle or thread from the civilians. Because of this bowl of chili peppers and this carp, after the military parade ended that day, Tan Er was handed over to the pacification soldiers and was beaten with fifteen military sticks.

~~~~~
After this battle, especially the subsequent Jingguan and military parade, the reputation of the Qi army spread throughout Shandong.

The news of Emperor Wu Ding killing a hundred men in battle quickly spread throughout the North Canal, and all kinds of rumors were spread.

There are many different versions of the description of the emperor's power. The most authoritative and credible version is:
The current emperor is the reincarnation of the red-haired ghost Xiang Yu (it is rumored that Liu Zhaosun's hair was red), and the reincarnation of the Zhenwu Emperor of Jingle Palace in Junzhou. He is so strong that he can move mountains and has unparalleled power. He has two iron hammers weighing 800 kilograms hanging around his neck and a spear weighing 13,700 kilograms in his hand, which is comparable to the Wukong's Ruyi Jingu Bang.

Inspired by the military might of Emperor Wuding, on the fifth day of August, Qinghe and Guanxian counties surrounding Linqing sent people to send congratulatory messages to celebrate the great victory of the royal army. They also sent two thousand dan of military rations, ten fat pigs, and Southern Ming officials stationed there by Zhu Changling.

When Emperor Wu Ding ascended the throne, his decrees were limited to the capital. Many prefectures and counties in Shandong, Henan, and other regions pretended to obey, but secretly disobeyed, watching the Qi army and the rebels clash. After the plague and the Wanggongchang explosion, the county and prefectural magistrates sent by Liu Zhaosun were brutally murdered by local tyrants (such as Ma Qihong in Henan). Separatist factions emerged, and upon witnessing the rise of the Great Qi, they immediately dispatched envoys to Linqing Prefecture, expressing their willingness to submit to the new dynasty.

Liu Zhaosun knew very well that these fence-sitters were most likely pretending to obey but secretly disobeying, thinking that if they could just change the word "Ming Dynasty" on the plaque at the entrance of the yamen to "Da Qi", they would be safe and sound, and could continue to bully the people in their own territory and act like local tyrants.

Unfortunately, they were wrong this time.

~~~~~
On August 10, the first year of Wuding, Linqing Chaoguan Palace.

In the lobby of the Chaoguan Yamen, Emperor Wuding, fully armored, sat at the head of the table, scanning everyone present with a cold and sharp gaze.

Sitting below were Pu Gang, Xing Zhongyi, Zhang Dong, Li Sanguang, Old Song, Francis, and several county and prefectural governors from Denglai. With the Battle of Linqing drawing to a close and the spoils collected, Emperor Wuding gathered intelligence from all sides and prepared to begin a new battle.

On this day, the emperor summoned a group of civil and military officials and announced publicly that a large-scale cleanup operation was about to begin.

All the civil and military officials who stayed in Linqing were present, and the main hall of the yamen was packed with people.

Pu Gang, commander of the 14th Imperial Guards, Xing Zhongyi, instructor, Zhang Dong, commander of the Imperial Guards, Li Sanguang, assistant minister of the Ministry of Works, Qiu County magistrate of Guantao County under Linqing, and Francis, a missionary in the southeast region.

In the past two months, surviving Qi officials have been flocking to Linqing from all over Henan and northern Zhili to join forces with the 14th Army for survival.

Li Sanguang, a disciple of the late Minister of Works Xu Xiake;
Old Song, whose medical skills are not very good but who always likes to treat people;
Francis, a priest who was so keen on preaching that he was almost eaten by refugees;

The magistrate of Daqi who was expelled shortly after taking office;
Zhang Chun rebelled, bandits moved eastward, followed by the plague and drought, and finally the Wanggongchang explosion... Under these successive natural and man-made disasters, the northern provinces lost millions of people, and the officials originally appointed by the Great Qi in Henan, Shandong and other places either died or fled, and finally gathered in Linqing City to survive together. So now in Linqing, you can see many faces that you haven't seen for a long time.

After Li Sanguang escaped from Sakhalin Island, he stayed in Dengzhou to recuperate until the Dengzhou garrison was withdrawn to assist the capital. The situation in Dengzhou gradually deteriorated and he was forced to move to Jining. Finally, he followed the 14th Army to Linqing.

Like Yang Tong, he now only has one arm left (the other one was eaten by the Gesar people), but he has never asked the workshop blacksmith to add an iron hook - Li Sanguang mainly focuses on mapping and mining, and he does not need to swing a hook to kill people like Yang Tong.

By comparison, Francis' fate was less tragic. This Portuguese missionary had been staying in Henan, spreading the Archbishop's gospel to the local people and gentry. Whenever he met a scholar, he would announce the lengthy title of Emperor Wu Ding, which was over 30 characters long, first conquering these Confucian scholars with his momentum... Francis' missionary work ended with the drought six months ago. This loyal priest of the Archbishop was almost captured and eaten by a group of hungry refugees. Fortunately, two Qi troops passed by at night and rescued the Portuguese. Together, the three of them fled to Linqing...

Emperor Wu Ding planned to have missionaries intensify the promotion of concepts related to the reincarnation of the True Martial God in order to further deify himself and ultimately shape the Emperor of Da Qi into a demigod who was a combination of the Formation Sect and the Religion Sect - in fact, there was no need to shape him into a demigod, as he was already a demigod.

Yes, those things that the time traveler used to despise and hate, he now regards as the guiding principles.

Because the starting point of the empire will be reopened here.

~~~
Emperor Wuding was extremely dissatisfied with the conciliatory policy of the Linqing garrison. In the past three months, Linqing merchants had traded with the 14th Army, many merchants had infiltrated Linqing officials, and there were servants of merchants among the guards at the four gates of the state city.

If the 14th Army had not held the isolated city and had just won a great victory, given the emperor's current tyrannical character, he would have massacred the 14th Army based on this collusion with merchants.

One of the definitions of a tyrant is that he kills not only his enemies but also his own people.

In the past, the god of death always accompanied our emperor, but now, our emperor is the god of death.

This statement will be confirmed in blood and fire in the next few years and become the irrefutable truth of Da Qi.

However, Pu Gang, Xing Zhongyi, Francis and others could not deeply understand this truth because they did not follow the emperor to experience the great plague in the capital and the Wanggongchang explosion.

~~~~
"Within Linqing Prefecture, there are no fewer than a hundred families colluding with the traitor Zhu Changling, and half of them are conspiring with the Four Jiangbei Battalions, hoping to seize this opportunity to rebel!"

Emperor Wu Ding's voice suddenly rose, shaking the surrounding teacups and making them rattle. Everyone was frightened by his aura and did not dare to look up.

"General Pu!"

"The general is here!"

Pu Gang agreed, beads of sweat oozing from his forehead.

Liu Zhaosun glared at him and said, "How did you do things in Linqing? You let these rioters go and wait for them to assassinate me!
At that time, the city was short of troops and faced a powerful enemy outside the city. Pu Gang felt that he was unable to spare any effort to deal with these merchants, so he always adopted a conciliatory policy.

"Your Majesty, as you can see, the Qi army was short of troops at the time. They only had 5,000 men and horses, and they had to guard four gates. Moreover, their foundation in Linqing was shallow..."

"Not a single one of these merchants can be left alive! Kill them all!"

Instructor Xing Zhongyi whispered in defense, "Your Majesty, back in Kaiyuan, you said that commerce was the foundation, so..."

"That's not a reason!"

"Things are different now. With the canal blocked and commerce declining, what's the point of keeping these parasites around? Without the canal's support, Linqing will soon decline. Merchants are useless. I will not keep useless people. This is the real reason for killing them! Anyone who has any connection with the Ming thieves will be killed! Starting with that evil-minded Dongfang Zhu!"

Emperor Wu Ding was filled with murderous intent, and one could hear a pin drop in the hall.

No one dared to speak.

The magistrate of Qiu County, who was sitting in the corner, slowly raised his head without fear of the emperor's sharp gaze.

"Lu Xiangsheng, do you have something to say?"

Note:
1. "Guoyu·Jinyu ": "The Jin army surrounded and flooded the city, and frogs were born from the sunken stoves. The people had no intention of rebelling." "Zhanguoce·Zhaoce ": "Now the city has not been submerged except for three boards. Frogs were found in the mortars and stoves, and people and horses were eating each other."

(End of this chapter)