The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 45 Eight Banners
To the north of Kaiyuan City, there is the Jing'an Fort.

Liu Zhaosun unscrewed his bow, slowly drawing the string, and gazed quietly toward the northeastern sky. Far above, a Saker Falcon was chasing a lone wild goose, its eagle soaring through the sky with lightning speed.

The large-brimmed Kaiyuan bow in Liu Zhaosun's hand was a family heirloom of Liu Jing, and a cherished memory left to him by his adoptive father.

The bow had a force of two stones, and the long arrows strung on the bowstring were specially made heavy arrows with iron arrowheads. Normally, Liu Zhaosun only used it to kill people, but he had never imagined that today he would be hunting hawks.

The black Saker Falcon was as sharp as lightning and could sense Liu Zhaosun's murderous intent even from several miles away.

It cried a few times, left the injured and wailing geese behind, crossed the underworld, swooped down, and its sharp eagle claws broke through the air, pointing directly at Liu Zhaosun's eyes.

Liu Zhaosun waited calmly, pressing his thumb lightly on his middle finger, sweat soaking the copper ring.

The short General Wang Qian stared blankly at the garrison commander, not daring to breathe.

The other people on the tower were all shocked by the aura of the bird of prey, with horror on their faces. Only Jin Yinghe remained calm and coldly took out his bow and arrow from his back.

Everyone in Liao knew that the Saker Falcon could capture and kill swans in the air and peck wild wolves to death on the ground, and was known as the "God of Ten Thousand Eagles."

Ordinary hunters dare not take the Saker Falcon lightly, because if they are a little careless, they may be blinded by the bird of prey and lose their lives.

Why would you provoke this bird of prey when you were just inspecting the fort?

What...what is the garrison commander going to do?
"This is the Sushen totem, also a sacred object of the Jurchens. Kill it and boost our army's morale!"

Before Liu Zhaosun could finish his words, the Saker Falcon had already reached the sky above the tower, startling the chickens and ducks in the fort and causing them to squeal in panic.

Two heavy arrows flew out of the pier, one after the other, making sharp whistling sounds, and shot straight into the sky, heading towards the Saker Falcon.

Just as the raptor was about to be hit, the Saker Falcon suddenly turned over and barely avoided one heavy arrow, while the other arrow grazed its wings.

With a cry, the injured God of Ten Thousand Eagles took advantage of the dusk mist to escape towards the northeast sky.

Liu Zhaosun looked at the flying Saker Falcon with a complicated look in his eyes.

The Saker Falcon fled from Jing'an Fort where the Ming army was concentrated, flew over the Songliao Plain, and flew into the vast Changbai Mountains.

Thousands of miles of cold sky only lasts for one day.

There is a vast forest on the edge of Changbai Mountain.

A wild wolf smelled danger in the air, let out a long howl, and fled in panic.

Across the forest and the sparkling Suzi River, the quiet distant mountains shrouded in clouds and mist are looming, and the towering mountain city appears in sight.

The land of Xingwang is shrouded in mist, and no wind or cloud can reach it. The water meanders in thousands of curves, and the mountains wind around in hundreds of layers.

On March 20th of the fourth year of Tianming in the Later Jin Dynasty, in the capital Hetuala, at the Khan's Palace.

As the power center of Hetuala and even the Great Jin Dynasty, the Khan Palace and the Yamen were important places for the Khan of the Later Jin Dynasty to govern the country, issue decrees, receive envoys, and reward beile ministers.

A month ago, when the Ming Dynasty threatened to use 470,000 Ming troops to advance in four directions, to stop the flow of rivers with a whip and to flatten Hetuala, everyone was very panicked. However, the wise Khan was not panicked at all. He summoned the four great beiles and Han ministers to discuss countermeasures and decided that "no matter how many directions they come, I will only go one way." The Later Jin army finally killed Du Song, defeated Ma Lin, and put an end to the old Emperor Wanli's delusion of sweeping away the country.

The Later Jin Dynasty reaped huge rewards in this battle. Except for the Ming army in the east who managed to escape, a total of 25,000 people, more than 20,000 mules and horses, and more than 10,000 French muskets of various types were captured in the other three routes.

After the great victory, the Later Jin took advantage of the situation to occupy the middle and lower reaches of the Hunhe and Qinghe rivers, incorporated Kuandian and Qinghe Fort into its territory, added 120,000 new people, and increased its power unprecedentedly. For a time, the Later Jin army threatened Kaiyuan and Tieling, and was eyeing Liaoyang and Shenyang.

At the same time, Mongolian tribes such as Aitu and Subudi sent envoys to Hetuala to congratulate the Khan and to test the strength of the Jurchens. After confirming that the Ming army had suffered a crushing defeat and Jianzhou had won a great victory, these grassland tribes immediately took advantage of their position as fence-sitters and expressed their willingness to form an alliance with the Later Jin high-level officials to jointly deal with the Ming Dynasty.

Not only Mongolia in the east, but also Huduntu (Lindan Khan) and Chaohua (Zhuoliktuhong Baturu) in the west expressed their desire to form an alliance with the Later Jin.

Among them, the Huduntu people responded to the military operations of the Later Jin army in Liaodong with practical actions. They repeatedly asked the Ming emperor for money and food, and threatened that if the Ming Dynasty did not give them, the Mongolian cavalry would attack the Ming Dynasty from the west, and they might even block the Tumu Fort of the Wanli Dynasty, which made the old Emperor Wanli grit his teeth in anger.

After the Battle of Sarhu, envoys from all parties came to the Khan's palace in an endless stream.

In addition to the Mongols who are good at sitting on the fence, Koreans, Japanese and even Ming people are also active in the Khan's Palace.

For many days in a row, the wise Khan Nurhaci, who was kind-hearted, communicative and friendly, sat upright at his desk, opened his heart to the envoys from all directions, had long conversations, and helped everyone resolve their doubts.

To those distant relatives in Liaozhen, the wise Khan said:

If you fight, how can the arrows fired by our soldiers recognize you? If you are hit by an arrow, you will die!
If you surrender, our troops will not enter the city, and all your soldiers and civilians will be safe!
The wise Khan also used the deeds of his Han Chinese son-in-law, Li Yongfang, as an example to the hesitant Liaozhen loyalists in order to dispel their doubts:
If you surrender without a fight, I will not disturb your soldiers and civilians... I will promote you, and then the Khan will marry you. Isn't that wonderful?
To those local nobles who had not yet submitted, Nurhaci said, don't worry that your property will become mine, you are all the Khan's subjects and are all equal.

In short, the Later Jin army captured Liaodong not to kill people, but to liberate everyone.

Of course, the Khan also used threats and intimidation against certain forces.

For example, he warned the Korean envoys who came secretly from Seoul to negotiate peace that the brave warriors of the Jin Dynasty (Jinyi soldiers) killed 5,000 Korean soldiers in Hunjiang River as a punishment for the traitor Jiang Hongli (Jiang Hongli had promised to cooperate with the Later Jin Dynasty to defeat the Ming Dynasty). If Korea dared to aid the Ming Dynasty again, Seoul would be lost, and the Khan would personally cut off Li Hui's head and use it as a chamber pot.

In short, after the Battle of Sarhu, under the various operations of the wise Khan, the power of the Later Jin Dynasty expanded further. It occupied many places without bloodshed and gained a number of younger brothers.

The military and civilians of the Great Jin were excited, and even the bondservants expressed their willingness to work hard, feed the horses and chop firewood, and contribute everything they had so that their masters could occupy Liaodong as soon as possible.

However, today, the atmosphere in the Khan's Hall was somewhat solemn.

Sitting at the imperial desk was Nurhaci, the Great Khan of the Jin Dynasty. Beneath the desk sat five seats. From west to east, they were Daishan, the ruler of the Plain Red Banner, Huangtaiji, the ruler of the Plain White Banner, Dudu, the ruler of the Bordered White Banner, Manggurtai, the ruler of the Plain Blue Banner, and Amin, the ruler of the Bordered Blue Banner. In the back row stood Abatai and Dergelei, the rulers of the lesser banners.

In the 29th year of the Wanli reign, the Khan established the Yellow, White, Red and Blue Banners. In the 43rd year of the Wanli reign, in order to further divide the banner power and strengthen the Khan's power, he added the Yellow Bordered Banner, the White Bordered Banner, the Red Bordered Banner and the Blue Bordered Banner.

Four years later, the Eight Banners system had become quite complete. Nurhaci led the most powerful Zhenghuang and Xianghuang banners, and several other beile ruled the various banners. The banners checked and balanced each other and were independent of each other, forming the highest power center of the Later Jin Dynasty.

The Jurchens valued the west, and a statue of the god Sa was placed on the west wall of the main hall.

The shaman, wearing a divine hat, a divine skirt, a waist bell, and holding a divine sword and a divine drum, performed a shaman ritual in front of the Khan and the beiles to the original rhythm.

The Jurchens believed in shamanism, especially the powerful and wealthy.

Prayer ceremonies similar to today's have been popular in the Aisin Gioro family since the time of the fifth-generation ancestor Dong Shan.

When all the Beile were concentrating on listening to the shaman's oracle, Huang Taiji, who was sitting in the second seat, actually raised the corner of his mouth with a hint of disdain.

Huang Taiji, who had just turned twenty-seven, was Nurhaci's eighth son. Unlike his other brothers, who were rude and impolite, Huang Taiji was handsome, steady, and dignified, showing none of the bad habits typical of the Jurchens.

He was keen on learning Chinese culture and was also very smart. He could remember everything he heard and recognized everything he saw.

And unlike his other Beile brothers, he could also read. Huang Taiji had participated in such ceremonies countless times since he could remember, and now he was becoming increasingly bored.

He didn't understand why the future and fate of hundreds of thousands of people should be decided by a crazy woman.

Although the final decision is made by living people (the Khan and several Beile), these shamans who can only dance are really annoying.

"There can only be one voice that everyone can hear, and it's not God."

Huang Taiji muttered to himself.

The wind blew, and in the southeast corner of the hall, the Solo Pole (a sacred object of the Jurchens) emitted a low, mournful whine. Eighth Prince looked up at his bewildered brothers and continued to ponder the future of the Great Jin.

"If I were the Great Khan, I would definitely drive out these monsters!"

As the long shamanic ritual drew to a close, the shaman's dance steps became faster and faster, his expression became ferocious, and finally he fell to the ground and passed out.

After a moment, she regained consciousness, her pupils dilated, and her fingers scribbled in a wooden basin filled with sand. This simple physical movement seemed to have drained her vitality.

After she fainted again, two Geshiha hurried in and carried the woman away. The ceremony was finally over, and Huang Taiji turned around and looked at the Beile as if he had been pardoned.

Daishan still felt unsatisfied, and it was no wonder. The great prince loved watching shaman rituals the most, and he would not be satisfied until he saw the shaman completely unconscious.

Manggurtai looked indifferent, his throat moving as if he wanted to say something. The youngest, Dudu, looked calm, his head lowered at the ground, his thoughts unknown. He was the eldest son of the deposed Crown Prince Chu Ying, who, like Shuerhaci, had died under the Great Khan's imprisonment.

Second Prince Amin's face was filled with fear, and he didn't know where to put his hands. He took off the jade ring on his finger and put it on again, and put it on again and took it off again.

According to custom, after the shamanic ceremony, only the Khan knew the result of the oracle.

Humans and gods can coexist without conflict. Several beiles need to discuss among themselves first, then inform the Khan, and then combine the shaman's oracle to finally decide on a countermeasure.

At this moment, the wise Khan sitting on the imperial desk was silent, just waiting for a few beiles to discuss. Li Yongfang, Fan Wencheng and others were waiting outside the hall with excitement. They, the surrendered Han ministers, were not qualified to participate in such a sacred occasion. They had to wait until their masters had finished discussing it before they were qualified to give advice.

After an unknown amount of silence, Manggurtai, who was sitting next to Huang Taiji, finally spoke. His voice was so strong and powerful that it instantly penetrated the entire hall.

"If you ask me, we should continue to pursue Yehe. The Great Khan chopped off half of the Yehe leader's body. I asked my father Khan to allow me to lead the troops. I will go to Haixi and chop off half of Buyanggu's body as well! And bring it back to Hetuala!"

In the Battle of Hunjiang, the Bordered Blue Banner was severely damaged by the Ming army. The Yehe tribe took advantage of the situation and pursued Amin for dozens of miles. If it were not for Manggurtai's timely assistance, the consequences would have been disastrous. The Plain Blue Banner also suffered some losses in the conflict.

Manggurtai had a good relationship with Amin, but Yehe killed more than a dozen bannermen and a Bayara, which made him very angry. These days, he was thinking about going to Haixi to take revenge all the time.

The great prince Daishan opened his eyes, nodded slightly to Manggurtai, and returned to reality from the shaman's dance.

"Third Prince, what you said is not true. The Yehe people are fickle. They can help the Ming Dynasty or the Great Jin Dynasty. Now is the time to use people. The Ming army in Hunjiang is very powerful. Look at what they did to the Bordered Blue Banner! They also implicated your Plain Blue Banner. So, as for me, we still have to win over Yehe and deal with the Ming Dynasty."

After Daishan finished speaking, he turned and looked at Huang Taiji, wanting to hear what this only literate Beile had to say.

Manggurtai was furious. He didn't dare to confront Daishan openly, so he had to vent his anger on Huang Taiji.

"Old Eight, every time the shaman speaks, you seem to be preoccupied, staring outside. Tell me, should we open the Yuan first or attack Yehe first?"

Huang Taiji glanced at his arrogant and rude brother with contempt and turned his head away.

Huang Taiji and Manggurtai have always been at odds with each other, and they are both strong contenders for the Khan throne.

In addition, the two are incompatible in terms of temperament and personality.

Huang Taiji, who was gentle and quiet, was very disgusted with his rude, selfish and cruel brother.

"I agree with the Great Prince's opinion. We will not attack Yehe for now, but will take advantage of the victory to march into Kaiyuan..."

Manggurtai interrupted Huang Taiji and turned to ask Dudu without waiting for his eighth brother to finish speaking.

"Little Beile, what about you?"

Dudu, who was lost in thought, was suddenly questioned by Manggurtai, and his body trembled involuntarily:
"I, I listen to what my uncles say..."

Manggurtai refused to give in and interrupted again:

"The Khan asked you to sit in the Khan's office to discuss matters. You have a place here, so you have to speak. What do you mean by listening to your uncle? If your uncle is a nerd, you will listen to him too?"

Manggurtai glanced at Huang Taiji as he spoke. His voice was so loud that even Li Yongfang outside the hall could hear it.

Fushun Prince Consort frowned and sighed softly:
"Masters, it is better to be harmonious."

However, Manggurtai was obviously not prepared to be friendly. Before coming to the Khan's Palace today, he received news that the Great Beile and Huang Taiji were planning to use the Beile meeting to bring up old accounts from more than half a month ago, and attack the two blue flags in the name of the defeat in Hunjiang, suppress Amin, and weaken the power of the Zhenglan Banner.

"Tell me! What do you think? Does the Zhengbai Banner want to attack Yehe?"

Du Du knew that he could not get away with it, so he pretended to think for a while, looked up quickly at his uncles and beiles, and finally said:

"I heard that the group of southern barbarians who attacked my second uncle at night have fled to Kaiyuan and gathered some troops, preparing to hold their ground there. If we leave this group of southern barbarians alone, it will not only damage the prestige of our Great Jin army, but also attract Ming reinforcements to Liaodong, which may not be beneficial to our Great Jin."

Manggurtai glared at Dudu and wanted to say something, but in the end he didn't say anything and returned to his seat angrily.

Among the five beile sitting there, except for the second beile Amin, the ratio was now three to one. Daishan, Huang Taiji, and Dudu all supported the attack on Kaiyuan, and only Manggurtai supported the attack on Yehe.

In this case, it doesn't matter whether Second Prince Amin speaks or not.

However, out of respect or sympathy, several Beile still looked at him.

After the defeat at Hunjiang, Amin led the Bordered Blue Banner back to Hetuala.

It was also in this Khan's Palace that Amin was criticized by all the banner owners, who surrounded him and criticized him for several days.

In the Battle of Sarhu, the Later Jin Dynasty won a great victory, and all the banners gained rich gains.

The Plain Yellow Banner and the Plain Red Banner chopped off Du Song's head, and the other banners captured countless Ming soldiers. Only the Bordered Blue Banner was beaten by the Ming army in Hunjiang. Although they lost more than a thousand soldiers in total, it was a great humiliation for the Eight Banners.

It should be noted that since the old Khan started his army, the Jin Dynasty has never suffered a defeat.

Afterwards, everyone learned that the southern barbarians who injured the Bordered Blue Banner were actually the weakest of the four armies of the Ming army, the Eastern Army led by Liu Jing.

The Eastern Army had few soldiers and lacked firearms. The great prince Daishan also placed Korean spies in this army.

Even so, the Bordered Blue Banner was defeated by them, and was completely routed at Hunjiang River, leaving behind thousands of corpses and fleeing in panic.

If it weren't for Manggurtai's assistance, the Second Prince would probably not be able to discuss matters with everyone here today.

Manggurtai pleaded for Amin, insisting that the Bordered Blue Banner killed at least 10,000 Ming soldiers in Hunjiang and was forced to withdraw because of the sudden appearance of Yehe.

Later, the Khan sent people to Hunjiang to inspect the battlefield, but found only thousands of beheaded bodies of the Later Jin soldiers. There was not a single body of the Ming army, and even their burial place could not be found.

Nurhaci did not want to punish Amin excessively. Ever since he tortured his brother Shurhaci to death, he felt a little guilty towards his nephew Amin.

However, this time the Bordered Blue Banner and the Plain Blue Banner joined forces to deceive him, which the Khan could not tolerate.

Amin was fined seven Niulu and distributed to other banners. The second Beile's two personal Geshaha were also executed in public for failing to protect their master.

After this incident, the gap between the Bordered Blue Banner, which was originally the weakest, and the other banners further widened.

After returning to Hetuala, Amin became depressed and began to think about many things. He never dreamed of the beautiful Borjigit or other women at night.

Many of the Goshas who were around him had left, and there were very few Niulu Ezhen who were willing to continue to follow the Second Beile.

Amin knew that Emperor Daishan was determined to take over the Bordered Blue Banner. These people were like vicious wolves. They would come and bite you if they saw you bleeding from a wound.

When several beiles were speaking just now, Amin remained silent. He was not interested in the Yehe people and was always thinking about how to attack Kaiyuan.

Manggurtai only lost a dozen Zhenyi in Hunjiang, but if he did not fight back, he would soon lose his position as the leader of the Bordered Blue Banner.

Seeing that everyone wanted him to speak, Amin's frustrated expression changed slightly.

"I will kill all of this Ming army, including Liu Zhaosun! Great Khan!"

Amin suddenly sat up from his chair, knelt down in front of the imperial desk, and said excitedly:

"Let me lead the Blue Banner warriors to Kaiyuan! This time we must not bring shame to the Great Jin! Kill Liu Zhaosun! Kill all the southern barbarians!"

Several beile looked at the emotional Amin. Daishan and Huang Taiji exchanged glances. Huang Taiji pointed to his head, implying that his cousin's mental state was not stable. Daishan smiled and nodded.

Manggurtai was suddenly stabbed in the back by his ally and made a fool of himself by Daishan and others, so he was furious.

The youngest, Dudu, looked at Amin kneeling in front of the Khan with admiration. His expression changed, perhaps because he was thinking of his father who was tortured to death.

Everyone waited silently, waiting for the old Khan to speak.

(End of this chapter)