The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 488 Kang Yingqian's Fate
The thirteen members of Huang Gongfu's delegation were "retained" by the Qi Dynasty on the pretext of "revising the alliance treaty" and were placed under house arrest in Huanglou, Xuzhou.

Zhang Dai, a famous scholar from the south of the Yangtze River, who traveled north with the diplomatic delegation and hitchhiked to Xuzhou to propose marriage, was exiled to Ningguta because of his willful behavior. He spent the rest of his life doing hard labor and was a slave to armored men.

This famous scholar will fulfill his beautiful fantasy of a romantic scholar and a beautiful woman among the white mountains and black waters.

Emperor Wuding wrote a letter and asked Du Yinxi to take it to Emperor Hongguang. Indeed, in the end, only the Huguang Governor Du Yinxi was released back to Nanjing.

Liu Zhaosun stated in his letter that Huang Gongfu and Lu Zhenfei had abandoned the dark and defected to the Ming, having been entrusted with important tasks by the State of Qi. Qi and Ming were fraternal states, so the Southern Ming should treat their families in Nanjing well. Emperor Wuding threatened that if anything happened to these families, it would be a betrayal of the Xuzhou Alliance, and the retired emperor would personally lead his army across the Huai River to capture Nanjing.

Emperor Wuding vividly demonstrated what shamelessness means through his actions.

The Hongguang court would never dare to do anything to the families of these "defected" ministers. Zhu Changling had been possessed by Wanyan Gou and was afraid of Qi like a tiger. Except for his good reproductive ability, he was simply the genuine Wanyan Gou of the 17th century.

There are many talented people in Jiangnan. Emperor Wuding hopes that the Southern Ming can regularly send pillars of talent to the Great Qi in batches, just like this peace talk.

~~~~
The Xuzhou Conference marked the determination of the north-south border. The war gradually faded away, and the empire's military operations in the south came to an end. The focus of the time traveler's next work will be on internal construction and the northern campaign.

After the Battle of Xiangyang, various local tyrants and evil gentry surrendered to the Great Qi. It was time to clean out these forces.

A new round of cleanup is about to begin. The people in the occupied areas will be effectively organized to criticize those officials who have objections to the new policies (including poor political performance) and those gentry who are rich and unkind.

When someone is eliminated, someone else needs to come in.

This group of envoys who came to the country on their own initiative would be the pillars of the future Great Qi.

On the sixth day of the tenth month of the second year of Taichu, Huang Gongfu and his entourage were brought to the temporary palace. The retired emperor intended to start with this person to break down the envoys' psychological defenses and make them all submit to Da Qi and serve him.

It is still difficult to achieve this goal. The Minister Huang in front of us would rather die than surrender, and it is said that he has not eaten for two days.

"Your Majesty!"

After Pei Dahu brought the man over, he shouted at Huang Gongfu and ordered him to kneel down.

Huang refused to kneel, but instead pointed at Liu Zhaosun, who was surrounded by women, and started cursing:

"How can a minister of the Celestial Empire bow down to a prince of a small nation? Liu Zhaosun, you beast, you killed the king and usurped power, slaughtered the gentry, are greedy for money and lustful, and are cruel beyond measure. Good deeds will be rewarded in the end, and you will not die a good death! I won't see the day you die, but someone else will!"

"How dare you!" Pei Dahu drew out his heavy sword with a clang and chopped it down fiercely.

Dang~~
A teapot flew from the throne and hit Pei Dahu's sword squarely. The leader of the imperial guards felt a numbness in his palm and his heavy sword flew out of his hand.

Everyone looked up and saw the retired emperor, who was sitting high on the dragon throne, rolled up his sleeves, grabbed another teapot on the table and continued drinking tea.

Everyone was shocked by the strength of the emperor's arm. He threw the sword so accurately and fiercely that it actually knocked the heavy sword to the ground!

The emperor's calm and powerful voice came from the throne:

"stop!"

"A few curses, no harm done."

The Emperor gently pushed aside Jin Yuji and Daphne, both dressed in gorgeous clothes, and freed himself from the lush embrace. He straightened his clothes, walked down the steps, and walked in two steps at a time to stand before Huang Gongfu. He personally untied the ropes from Huang's body and said with concern:

"Minister Huang, I'm sorry to be startled. Please stand up."

In Southern Ming history, Huang Gongfu was far less famous than Shi Kefa, Liu Zongzhou, and others, nor was he as capable and talented as Xiong Tingbi and Yuan Chonghuan. However, he was a perfect example of a loyal and valiant civil servant in the late Ming Dynasty.

On the seventh day of the first lunar month in the thirteenth year of the Yongli reign (1659), the Prince of Qingpingnan sent a letter to Gongfu, urging him to surrender. Gongfu, stating that he would rather die in glory than live in disgrace, resolutely burned himself to death at the age of 83. Later, his second son, Huang Duyu, died in battle at Xunzhou, and his eldest grandson, Huang Que, died a martyr in Guangzhou.

Although the time traveler is cruel and inhumane, people still feel a certain degree of awe when facing such a historical figure.

"Your Majesty!"

Zhang Dongqiang held the other person's neck and forced the old man to kowtow to the emperor. Huang Gongfu held his head high stubbornly, with veins bulging under his gray hair.

"Kneel! Kneel! Kneel for me now!"

Liu Zhaosun couldn't stand it any longer, so he stepped forward and kicked Zhang Dong away, shouting angrily, "Enough! Get out!"

Zhang Dong did not dare to hesitate and quickly retreated, not forgetting to wink at Dongfang Zhu before leaving.

Dongfang Zhu tiptoed forward, gently helped Nanming Shangshu up, and said in a smoky voice:

"Minister Huang, why do you have to do this? Back then, Zhu Changling betrayed the Great Qi and sent troops to attack Shandong, killing countless innocent people. My life was lost in Linqing, and I became an incomplete man... The Supreme Emperor is merciful and has pardoned your death sentence and even appointed you to a position of power. If you don't quickly thank the Supreme Emperor for this, what else can you do?"

When Huang Gongfu heard what the eunuch said, and then looked at Dongfang Zhu, who was already in tears, his rock-hard heart softened a bit. However, thinking of the kindness that Emperor Hongguang had shown him, he still said with a stiff upper lip:
"Emperor Hongguang has been so kind to me. I eat your salary and die for you. I am so grateful for your kindness. Although I am now in a desperate situation, I am ready to die."

Sen Ti advised, "Emperor Hongguang is not a direct descendant of Emperor Shenzong. He was established by the Four Commanderies of Jiangbei and Liu Zongzhou. How can he be called an emperor? Only our Emperor Wuding abdicated the throne from the previous Emperor Tianqi. This is known to all the world. In the Battles of Xiangyang and Hefei, the Qi army was invincible. The people welcomed the royal army with food and drink. It is clear that the people's hearts are against us and the destiny is on our side!"

Several civil officials nearby wanted to continue persuading Huang Gongfu, but Liu Zhaosun shook his head and ordered the delegation to be "placed in the North Pavilion" and let them decide whether to stay or go.

A few days later, Liu Zhaosun sent Ma Shiying, Sen Ti and others to persuade him to surrender.

Huang Gongfu just sat cross-legged in the guest room, not saying a word, neither agreeing nor running away.

Zhang Mazi led his men to rush in several times to chop people, but unexpectedly Huang Gongfu "extended his neck to receive the blade and never yielded."

The spy chief was helpless against this stubborn man.

In addition, Huang Gongfu also resisted by going on a hunger strike, "not eating rice or milk for seven days", showing his willingness to die for his country.

So how did such a stubborn Minister Huang finally surrender?

There are three theories among historians about Huang Gongfu's surrender.

First, the "Taizu Shilu" records that after the civil officials failed to persuade Huang Gongfu to surrender, Emperor Wuding personally visited the place where Huang Gongfu was imprisoned. Huang Gongfu stood rather than kneeled when he met Liu Zhaosun, and Huang Gongfu did not care. It was winter, and Emperor Wuding saw that Huang Gongfu was wearing thin clothes. He took off his own cloak and personally put it on Huang Gongfu, showing him great concern. This moved Huang Gongfu, and he finally submitted to the Great Qi.

Second, the "Annals of the Great Qi Empire: Biography of Huang Gongfu" records that Emperor Wuding, hoping to subjugate Huang Gongfu, ordered Ma Shiying to persuade him to surrender. Upon meeting Huang, Ma Shiying did not mention surrender, but instead engaged in a lengthy conversation about history and present-day events. Later, Ma Shiying reported to Emperor Wuding that during their conversation, snow from the eaves splashed onto Huang Gongfu's cloth shoes, forcing him to scramble out of the way. Ma Shiying concluded that if Huang Gongfu cherished his shoes so carefully, he must also cherish his life. Liu Zhaosun then personally visited Huang Gongfu. Seeing his thin clothing, he removed his own mink fur coat and draped it over him. After a series of warm greetings, Huang Gongfu was deeply moved and knelt in submission.

The third is recorded in "The Secret History of Emperor Taizu" (a historical novel of Qi in the mid-19th century), saying that although Huang Gongfu was upright, he was quite lustful. So the eunuch Dongfang Zhu, the chief eunuch of the Imperial Household Department of the Great Qi Dynasty, hid in Yangzhou, bought a beautiful girl with a large sum of money, and sent her to persuade him to surrender...
Although this skinny horse from Yangzhou was not stunningly beautiful, her bed skills had been well trained since childhood, and she was so charming that she bewitched Huang Gongfu. However, he kept having wild thoughts, and after some persuasion, Huang finally gave up the idea of dying for his country and agreed to surrender to the Great Qi.

In short, before the winter of the second year of Taichu, all thirteen envoys surrendered to Da Qi and served Emperor Wuding.

~~~~~
In early November, on the eve of the army's return to the north, Wang Huazhen pleaded for Kang Yingqian, begging the retired emperor to allow General Kang to retire and return home.

Only then did Liu Zhaosun remember General Kang who was far away in Shenyang.

After Kang Yingqian lost power, those who had trampled on the threshold of the Prime Minister's Office immediately scattered and disappeared without a trace.

Everyone stayed away from Kang Yinggan, fearing that they would have any contact with the Prime Minister of Da Qi and be implicated.

Only Qiao Yiqi, Wang Huazhen and Xie Yang stayed with their old partner and took good care of him.

Emperor Wuding read the memorial under the whale oil lamp, read it carefully several times, then turned around and handed it to Empress Dowager Cisi.

Jin Yuji winked at Pei Dahu, and the head servant pleaded with the emperor:
"General Kang and General Qiao are veterans who have served His Majesty for many years. Although they have made some minor mistakes, their hearts are with the Great Qi. Kang Yingqian is sixty-two years old, and I don't know how many more years he can live..."

Liu Zhaosun said coldly, "He made some minor mistakes? Tell me, what mistakes did he make?"

Pei Dahu was speechless. He was a little overwhelmed by the sudden question from the emperor.

"minister·····"

"Let them retire and return home. In my name, I will allocate 80,000 taels of silver from the Ministry of Internal Affairs to reward Kang Yingqian and Qiao Yiqi. In addition, they will be allowed to return home with their own guards. The Ministry of Rites will inform the world that the two ministers, Qiao and Kang, have made great contributions to our great Qi and will be allowed to be enshrined in the Imperial Ancestral Temple after their death."

Wang Huazhen and Pei Dahu thanked him in unison:
"Your Majesty, your grace is so great that we are filled with gratitude! I thank Your Majesty on behalf of Kang Qiao and the others."

Liu Zhaosun looked out the window. The cold wind was howling and dark clouds like black cotton hung low in the Huaiyang sky. During the twelfth lunar month, a heavy snow could fall at any time.

"The world is changing. I am going to kill again."

(End of this chapter)