The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 716 Emperor Liu Kan of Qi, have you forgotten the late emperor’s last wish to unify the world?

The disarmament decree caused a huge uproar and triggered a huge uproar in all the military corps.

The imperial officers who hurried back to Nanjing to report were extremely shocked by this inexplicable disarmament order.

According to the decree issued by Emperor Guangde, seven of the original fifteen corps would be cut, leaving only eight corps, and the military reduction was expected to exceed 200,000 people.

Together with the capital garrison troops deployed around Nanjing, only 400,000 regular troops were retained.

The disarmament began with the Ninth Corps, and the remaining seven corps were all disbanded.

The dismissed officers will be incorporated into the eight corps or voluntarily retire.

Among the seven corps, except for technical arms such as artillery, aviation, cavalry, and medical personnel, all other combat troops were dismissed and sent home.

All the soldiers who were laid off received a subsidy of one or two taels of silver per month until their death.

Local chief officials and civil officials will arrange a way out for them. Veterans can choose to work in county and prefecture thieves prevention, militia training and other jobs.

Those who do not want to stay in the prefectures and counties can be allocated 300 acres of land and return to their hometown to become farmers (currently only limited to soldiers from Jiangnan).

Those veterans who had fought for many years and shed blood on the battlefields on various fronts scattered across the north and south of the empire, did not receive the honor of being rewarded or awarded medals. Instead, they were informed by a piece of paper that their flags, battalions, and even the entire corps were disbanded overnight.

It’s hard to imagine how these veterans would react when they finally received such news!
A mutiny or rebellion is probably inevitable.

In the Fengtian Hall, all the generals were silent and the atmosphere was extremely tense.

Deng Changxiong, who was over fifty years old, saluted the new emperor with a solemn expression:
"May I ask, Your Majesty, was the disarmament order your decision, or was it something the Emperor had previously informed you of?"

Qin Jianxun and Pu Gang raised their heads together and looked towards Emperor Guangde.

Liu Kan suppressed his displeasure. Jiang Liu'er, who was standing beside him, pressed his fingers on the scabbard and looked at the generals with a sharp gaze. Tiger Song was crawling beside the dragon throne with his eyes half open and half closed, as if he was taking a nap.

A eunuch jumped out from behind Emperor Guangde and shouted at the top of his voice:

"Your Majesty's will is the will of the Retired Emperor, and the will of the Retired Emperor is also Your Majesty's will. Da Qi has only one emperor. General Deng, why do you say that?"

Deng Changxiong didn't say anything, but just looked up and glared at the eunuch with an expression as calm as if he was looking at a dead person.

Li Juying shuddered, as if all her strength had been taken away by the god of death, and her body was unable to move. It was not until Deng Changxiong turned his eyes to the emperor that he hurriedly retreated in disgrace.

Emperor Guangde said with a half-smile, "Eunuch Li is a newcomer. He has been serving me in Wenhua Palace before. He doesn't know the rules of Fengtian Palace. Generals, please don't blame me."

The so-called rule of Fengtian Hall is that eunuchs and palace maids are not allowed to make noise when the emperor is talking with his ministers.

The emperor's words clearly showed that Eunuch Li was his confidant. He was reminding all the generals that they should give Li Juying some face in the future.

"Eunuch Li's words may be a little rough, but they make sense. Disarmament is not a sudden whim of mine. It has nothing to do with anything else. I am simply forced to do so."

When Liu Kan said the words "I was forced to do so", his voice was choked. It was unclear whether it was because he was really excited or just acting.

"My father has been on the throne for twenty-six years. During those twenty-six years, the country has been at war every year. We've fought against the Jiannu, the Ming Dynasty, the White Lotus Sect, and Japan and Korea... You all lead troops, so you should know better than I do how much it costs to maintain a soldier? How much does it cost to fight a war? The Great Qi not only has an army, but also two capitals, twenty-eight provinces, and trillions of people!"

Emperor Guangde's face flushed and he spoke very quickly.

In the early days, the Great Qi had only 100,000 soldiers, and it could only barely support them by exhausting all the resources in the world.

Now, the total military strength exceeds 500,000, and with auxiliary troops, it exceeds one million.

So many people eat, drink, defecate and urinate, they don’t farm or do business, and they are not like the soldiers in the garrisons of the Ming Dynasty who can support themselves.

In the pre-industrial era, if a country had to feed so many people for a long time, it would sooner or later be dragged down and die.

"Before the Eastern Expedition, my father said that we would obtain what we need from Japan: food, land, and minerals. We would fight to support the war. Now, Japan has sunk, leaving only Kyushu Island, and there are very few farmlands. Fighting to support the war is out of the question. Besides Japan, Yinzhou and Australia are all the same. They are constantly bleeding Great Qi, and they are all unable to make ends meet. This must be stopped immediately."

Emperor Guangde paused for a moment and looked at the sky outside the palace.

"Regardless of whether you are on the disarmament list or not, I can guarantee that the salaries of the selected generals will remain unchanged..."

"If we hesitate any longer, once the people are completely exploited by the army, Da Qi will be finished. By then, it won't be as simple as disarmament."

Emperor Guangde never had any good feelings towards the veteran generals left behind by his father.

These cumbersome old guys have always looked down on me from the bottom of their hearts, and regard me as a weak king like the fallen emperor Zhu Youjian, who was born in the deep palace and grew up in the hands of women.

If you want to end the tyranny of the Emperor Retired and put Qi back on the right track, you must first firmly control the army. After all, this country is still a military-political country.

"Disarmament has been brewing for a long time, and it is imperative to reduce it! As early as the Taichu period, the Emperor Retired discussed this matter with me. He supports the reform of the Qi Dynasty's Land System."

Like his father, Liu Kan felt no pressure when lying, and even his facial expression did not change.

"Disarmament is a national policy that affects the fate of our nation and cannot be changed. Even if I cannot accomplish it, my son and grandson can!"

~~~~~
Da Gong Fang.

The night is deep, and the noble mansion, which was brightly lit in the past, seems particularly deserted tonight.

Every household turned off the lights and closed the doors early. The night watchmen seemed to have received some news and walked around the residential area of civil and military officials.

Deng Changxiong's house is located in the core area of Da Gongfang. It is a large house with five courtyards and is said to be the residence of the Minister of Revenue of the former Ming Dynasty.

Walking through the front yard and the patio, the courtyard is deep. Through the long corridor, in the innermost room, the whale oil lamp flickers.

Several tall guards stood at the door.

In the side room, a group of warriors gathered around an octagonal table, drinking tea and discussing something in low voices.

Deng Changxiong, with gray hair and beard, squinted his eyes, played with two walnuts in one hand and held a teapot in the other. In addition, he was wearing casual clothes, and it was impossible to tell that he was the most powerful military general of the Great Qi.

"Brother Deng, if you hesitate to make a decision, you will suffer the consequences. Just say the word and we brothers will follow your lead!"

The person who spoke was Pu Gang. He slammed his fist on the table, and the teacups and teapots collided with each other, making a clinking sound.

"What? What do you want to do?" Wang Zengbin glanced at Pu Gang and said threateningly, "The Emperor's life or death is unknown. What are you going to do?"

Another Mongolian general beside Pu Gang said, "For the sake of the Emperor, for the sake of Great Qi, we must do something."

Wu Ah Heng, with a calm expression, glanced at Pu Gang and said leisurely, "Half of the navy was laid off, and I didn't say anything. You guys are all so shabby."

Pu Gang responded sharply:
"Your navy fights every day, the food is good, you get paid a lot, and you lay off the least people, so of course you don't care!"

Seeing that everyone at the table was about to start arguing, Deng Changxiong coughed twice.

"Ahem, listen to me for a few words,"

The surrounding area suddenly became quiet.

"Do you still remember why you followed the Emperor to fight? I, Deng Changxiong, was at Sarhu back then. I saw tens of thousands of people being mowed down like grass."

Deng Changxiong waved his hand and made a grass-cutting gesture.

"The Emperor Emeritus suddenly appeared and saved many people. Later, when he arrived in Liaodong, he saved many more people. The Emperor Emeritus was different from other military leaders at the time, like Zu Dashou and Li Rubai. That's why I followed him until later."

Everyone was silent, each lost in memories.

"Let's not talk about or care about what the retired emperor did in Japan. Perhaps it's time for Great Qi to change its path... The new emperor is still young, he has his own ideas and opinions. As elders, we should support him. Whether it's disarmament or unemployment, as long as we can have a stable home, it will be good for the country and the people."

Pu Gang angrily said, "Nonsense! If the Emperor Retired were still alive, he would never let the young emperor do whatever he wants. What is Liu Kan going to do? He wants to abolish the land system, support the landlords again, re-examine the eight-legged essay, establish a military council, and let the civil officials rule over us again. If we lose our military power, we will lose everything, and the Great Qi will be destroyed in our hands."

Pu Gang pointed to the sky above his head and vowed, "When we die, how can we face the emperor?" The commander of the 14th Corps, Anger, who was about to be driven back to Khorchin to herd sheep by Emperor Guangde, echoed him with his arms raised:

"You're right. Back then, the Emperor was honored as the Heavenly Khan, and the tribes voluntarily submitted to Kaiyuan because he was concerned about us, the vassal states. Now, the young emperor has abandoned Japan and has disregarded Khorchin. The Great Khan, Bumbutai, hanged himself in Nanjing for no apparent reason and remains unburied! The Eternal Heaven Society will be enraged by the Great Qi! We must have a serious conversation with Emperor Guangde."

"The Mongols like to speak frankly, so I boldly propose that the Emperor return power to the two Empress Dowagers, preferably to Empress Dowager Cisheng. She was born in Korea and should not be overly partial to the Han people, and will not easily give up on us foreigners..."

Pu Gang shook his head and said, "The yurt has no skylight. The princess is very dissatisfied with her younger brother. The princess is the daughter of the retired emperor and the Empress Dowager Cisheng. Instead of allying with the Empress Dowager, it would be better to directly ally with the princess..."

Pu Gang continued to talk incessantly, and the other generals around him all opened their mouths wide, staring blankly at this most radical commander.

"Are you done yet?"

Deng Changxiong suddenly slammed the table and stood up.

"As if this isn't chaotic enough, do you want to be Dong Zhuo or Jin Yinghe?! I finally have a chance to rest and recuperate, but you're saying such things out of selfish selfishness!"

Deng Changxiong looked around and said, "Whoever wants to rebel, kill me first!"

More than ten years ago, in the game that determined the future of Da Qi, Jin Yinghe became a pawn of a certain force and sacrificed his life.

Pu Gang sighed deeply and shook his head.

"What's with all the selfishness? Once the disarmament order reaches the various camps, the soldiers won't listen to reason. By then, it won't be just a mutiny."

Deng Changxiong said coldly, "With hundreds of thousands of people, it's inevitable that there will be a few rebels among them. We can't do anything about it! But please rest assured, Emperor Guangde has the Imperial Guard and three major military corps. A few rebellions will not cause a big problem! Pu Gang, don't repeat the mistakes of Yang Tong, the ruthless person!"

"You, you are harming Da Qi!"

Pu Gang stood up with a flick of his sleeves.

"Alright! You guys continue to be loyal subjects. I'll go find some help and get rid of that annoying uncle first!"

~~~~
"Li Dingguo, are you also going to force me to kill my uncle? Are you also going to force me to abdicate?"

Wenhua Hall.

Li Dingguo traveled thousands of miles from Yinzhou back to Da Qi and arrived in Nanjing yesterday.

This loyal governor had no time to report the good news to the retired emperor, nor did he have time to offer the European scalps and various fancy colonial specialties he had hunted in Yinzhou over the years. He was confronted with the sudden incident of the king's brother-in-law killing people in the street and the Nanjing Rebellion.

On the way to the Forbidden City, he heard that Yinzhou had been abandoned by the court, the empire planned to cut its military by 200,000, and many privileges of military generals were suppressed... This was also the root cause of the Nanjing riots.

In the streets and alleys of Nanjing, angry Nanjing soldiers and civilians burned down the residence of the emperor's uncle and were heading towards the Forbidden City, ready to "tell their grievances" to Emperor Guangde.

Someone in the crowd who knew Governor Li held up a torch and shouted:

"Li Dingguo, why did you come back? The Emperor was killed by them! Now they want to kill everyone! Let's go to the palace together to purge the emperor and kill all those treacherous officials!"

The Emperor of Da Qi became the son of the retired emperor, and all previous foreign strategies, including support for Yinzhou, disappeared overnight.

Li Dingguo, who firmly supported the great cause of the empire, could not bear this series of cruel blows. He lost control of his emotions and roared angrily:

"I am not here to force Your Majesty, I have something to ask!"

"Emperor Liu Kan of Qi, have you forgotten the Emperor's wish to unify the world?"

"I didn't forget!"

"Did I forget?!" Liu Kan gritted his teeth and glared at Li Dingguo.

"I was never loved by my father since I was born! When my mother died, who of you helped me? Zhu Youjian sent someone to poison my mother's food, and no one around helped! When I was a child, even the palace maids and eunuchs bullied me. I almost starved to death in the Beijing Palace! I was frozen to death!"

"Where were the people of Qi at that time? Where was the emperor?"

"I had no food, no clothes. What did the people of Qi give me? My mother was murdered. Besides the two queen dowagers, only my uncle supported and cared for me. I sat on his lap, and he gave me all the desserts that my father had given him. He also taught me my first Chinese character, 'ren' (ren), and how to be a good emperor!"

"But the emperor only knew how to fight wars. He was always at war, and we were nowhere to be seen year-round! His men died one after another! Finally, one day, he finished the war and brought us from the north to the south. I thought my uncle could stay too. But the emperor said my uncle was plotting a rebellion. He beat him with fifty canes, nearly to death, and sent him to Sakhalin! Liu Zhaosun treated our Zhang family even more harshly than he treated his enemies! Now, Liu Zhaosun is dead! I finally brought my uncle back, and you still want to kill him? None of you can kill him!"

Li Dingguo's expression was solemn. "Your Majesty, please kill me! Twenty years ago, I nearly starved to death in Shaanxi. It was the Emperor who took me in and sent me to Yinzhou. Everything I have today, including my life and property, was given by the Great Qi. My soldiers and I fought bloody battles with the Indians in Yinzhou, and finally gained a small piece of land. Why should we give it up so easily? And Australia!"

Liu Kan roared angrily: "I will kill you..."

"Even if you kill me, there will still be people who will ask Your Majesty to kill the King's uncle! There will still be people who oppose disarmament!"

Liu Kan's eyes were filled with tears, and his mood gradually recovered. He staggered to Li Dingguo.

"I can't kill him, I really can't kill him. I don't want to continue the war, I just want the Great Qi to be peaceful..."

"Emperor Liu Kan of Qi, have you truly forgotten your ambition to conquer the world?"

Liu Kan subconsciously stepped back, clasping his hands together, as if begging someone not to shout anymore.

~~~~~
Side hall of Wenhua Hall.

"The military and civilians are clamoring and will soon come to the Forbidden City. Your Majesty, please make a decision immediately."

"Your Majesty, please accept my condolences. This is the first time Your Majesty has met with the defenders of the capital. These defenders are all elite soldiers of the Great Qi, many of whom are veterans from the time of the Emperor Emeritus. This meeting is of great significance to Your Majesty. It will not only stabilize the morale of the troops, but also dispel the various recent rumors!"

Kang Jingxiu looked back at the group of civil and military officials of the Great Qi following behind him, and raised his voice and said:
"Among the ministers present, which family hasn't sacrificed their lives for the country? Why can't your family mourn for the country? The death of one uncle is better than the death of everyone!"

"Lord Kang, tell me, what happened to my uncle?"

Emperor Guangde's voice trembled, like a wounded beast, with his teeth chattering.

"Karma, it's unwavering. I knew they would strike back, I knew they wouldn't accept it, and they'd come after me with whatever they had! Why are you looking for my uncle? He's suffered for half his life! He just came back from Sakhalin Island, and he's still sick. He didn't have time to see the beautiful scenery in the southeast, and he didn't have time to enjoy the glory and wealth, and then..."

Kang Jingxiu remained calm and collected.

"I can tell your majesty about the torture endured by the Emperor's uncle in the Pacification Office, but your majesty must obey my orders. Now that things have come to this, your majesty must change your robes and go to the North Gate to appease the soldiers. You must execute the Emperor's uncle and announce his crimes to the world."

Liu Kan nodded.

"They first found a drunkard who provoked the prince's servant in the street. The servant accidentally stabbed the drunkard to death. Then they dressed the drunkard in a military uniform and incited the soldiers to accuse the prince's servant of bullying the retired soldiers. The prince went to argue and injured the man, and then the two sides started fighting."

Kang Jingxiu looked at his colleagues around him awkwardly.

"Now, the rebels say they want to purge the emperor's court and get rid of the treacherous officials around His Majesty!"

Liu Kan said anxiously, "Purge the imperial court? Who is behind this? I will kill him!"

"There are troops stationed in Shandong, as well as members of the Suoyi Guard..."

"Shandong garrison? Pu Gang?"

Kang Jingxiu said, "Your Majesty, now that things have come to this, let's not talk about killing anyone! A three-foot-thick ice doesn't form overnight! With the dismantling of the army and streamlining of administration, all the regiments are complaining, especially the middle and lower-level soldiers. Our dynasty's military system is different from that of the previous Ming dynasty. The compulsory military service system established by the retired emperor allows soldiers to remain in the camps forever. Many soldiers have served for more than ten years and only know how to fight. Sending them home, even if they have work and money, will eventually cause problems. Your Majesty, please make a decision sooner, or they will become too numerous to count. By the time they arrive at the palace, it will be too late!"

Liu Kan angrily shouted, "Let the Imperial Guards suppress it! Are the First Corps just here to do nothing? Send out the combat troops!"

Liu Xingzuo said, "Your Majesty, the various corps and the Imperial Guards all know each other, and the relationship is complex and intertwined. Now that the rumors of disarmament have spread so widely and so outrageously, I'm afraid it will be difficult to suppress them for the time being..."

Mao Chengdou, the Minister of War, said, "The Suoyi Guards have intelligence. Since they knew all this, why didn't they report it to His Majesty earlier?"

Liu Xingzuo said helplessly, "The Corps has its own intelligence system, and the Suoyi Guards are not allowed to interfere. The Emperor set it up this way to make the two sides hinder each other. Moreover, many people in the Suoyi Guards have complaints about the disarmament..."

"Forget it, forget it, let's not talk about this anymore." Liu Kan closed his eyes and bit his lips until they bled.
"I hereby announce to the world that Zhang Duan, as the emperor's uncle, has disregarded human life, allowed his slaves to commit violence, bullied men and women, and harmed the people. I order you to strip me of my title and execute me immediately! Jiang Liu'er, escort me to the north gate and appease the troops!"

(End of this chapter)