The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 732: The Fall of the Liaodong Rebellion

In February of the seventh year of Guangde in the Great Qi Dynasty, Emperor Guangde conferred the title of Duke of Cheng on Deng Changxiong and appointed his son as the commander of the Five Cities Army, leaving him in Nanjing.

On the eighth day of February, Deng Changxiong led the First, Second and Third Corps, totaling 80,000 troops, to the north to quell the rebellion.

In early April, the army to suppress the rebellion left Shanhaiguan and approached Shenyang and Liaoyang, confronting the rebels besieging the cities at Hunhe River. The two sides fired artillery across the river, preparing for a decisive battle.

Before the decisive battle, Deng Changxiong adopted a strategy of persuading the Liaodong rebels to surrender as the main approach and killing as the auxiliary approach, in an effort to defeat the enemy without fighting.

Except for those who were stubborn and guilty of heinous crimes, Duke Cheng said that most of the rebels could be shown leniency and that if one person could be killed less, then one would be killed. If they surrendered in time, their past crimes would not be pursued.

The forces involved in the Liaodong rebellion were mainly composed of the Eighth Corps. Most of the combatants were Pu Gang's former subordinates. They were dissatisfied with being laid off. In addition, Pu Gang suffered in Ningguta, so some grassroots officers took the initiative to connect and recommend battalion commander He Longzhou as the commander-in-chief of the world to fight against the rebels and jointly carry out great events.

He Longzhou was the top general under Pu Gang. He refused the high position and generous salary awarded by Emperor Guangde and ran to Liaodong to raise the flag of rebellion. It must be said that he was very courageous.

He Longzhou had considerable experience in the army and was deeply loved by the soldiers. At that time, the eldest princess Liu Yufei was imprisoned by Emperor Guangde, and rumors spread that the princess had been executed by the emperor.

The rebels promptly raised the slogan of "clearing the court and restoring the old system", which aroused the people's enthusiasm and led them to support He Longzhou as Emperor Zhaode, name the country Liao, and compete with the Great Qi.

In just two months, the rebels gathered more than 100,000 troops (including more than 70,000 bankrupt households), and their momentum was so great that it shocked the world.

When He Longzhou started his rebellion, his momentum was huge. Many retired soldiers, bankrupt settlers, and workshop and school workers who were dissatisfied with Guangde from Liaodong, Shandong, Hebei and other places came to join him.

Among He Longzhou's many staff members was one of the Three Great Men of the Early Qi Dynasty, the historically renowned Grand Secretary of the Baohe Hall, Zhang Ying (Zi Dunfu, also known as Mengdun, and pseudonym Xuepu, a native of Tongcheng, Anhui, and the father of the famous Prime Minister Zhang Tingyu).
At this time, Zhang Dunfu would never have thought that he would become the most powerful prime minister of the Great Qi in the future, and he would never have thought that his son Zhang Tingyu would become a powerful official who could control the court of the Great Qi and be comparable to Zhang Juzheng.

When He Longzhou rebelled, Zhang Ying was just a small magistrate in Tieling. After the rebels captured Tieling, Zhang Ying surrendered to the rebels and was appointed as the right prime minister by Emperor Zhaode.

Zhang Ying was filled with gratitude and immediately offered the Liao emperor three strategies:
The best strategy is to attack Shanhaiguan, sweep across Yanyun, occupy Chu and Yu, and lead the heroes of the world to Nanjing.

Zhongce landed in Denglai, joined forces with the White Lotus Sect, and occupied Shandong, confronting Emperor Guangde from the north to the south.
The worst option is to close the Liaoxi Corridor, defend Liaoshen, and split off Liaodong.

In the end, He Longzhou chose the worst strategy and consumed a large number of troops to capture Liaoshen. As a result, when he was preparing to attack Shanhaiguan, Deng Changxiong's army had already left the pass in advance.

When He Longzhou and others rebelled, Zhang Ying gave them three strategies: the best, the middle and the worst. Why did the rebels choose the worst strategy?
Zhang Ying later recounted that the rebel generals unanimously agreed that the reason they chose to attack Liao and Shen was that the Great Qi had once used Liao and Shen as its capital, and while a small number of officials and their families had relocated to Nanjing, a significant number remained in Shen and Liao. Therefore, only by capturing Liao and Shen could they obtain a large number of hostages, thereby shaking the morale of the Great Qi army. This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that should not be missed.

Of course, the choice made by He Longzhou and other rebel generals cannot be said to be wrong, they were just forced to do so due to the circumstances.

Zhang Ying's strategy is indeed brilliant, but in terms of actual operation, it is actually extremely risky.

The best strategy was for He Longzhou to attack Shanhaiguan, seize the Central Plains and Huguang in one fell swoop, separate the Qi forces in Shaanxi and Shanxi from those in Shandong and Liaodong, and march straight down to Nanjing. This would achieve victory in a single battle, offering enormous rewards but also immense risks. Sun Tzu's Art of War states: "Do not stop the retreating army," implying that attempting to block the enemy's advance was extremely risky.

Letting He Longzhou lead a detachment of over 100,000 troops to fight against the elite Qi army, which was several times larger than his own, in the vain hope of a quick victory was nothing but wishful thinking. In the end, it would not be the Qi army that would be surrounded, but He Longzhou himself.
As for the middle strategy, Wu Aheng's navy was still loyal to the court at that time. The rebels were far away in Liaodong. If they wanted to land in Shandong, they would probably not be able to do so without thousands of warships. Even if they could gather enough merchant ships to land, if they wanted to go south to Shandong, they would have to challenge the defense line of Denglai. It was unclear whether the Qi generals stationed in Denglai were willing to follow He Longzhou's "clearing the court" and whether they were willing to restore the old system of the emperor emeritus.

To sum up, although Zhang Ying gave the rebels three strategies, in fact, He Longzhou and others could only implement the worst strategy.

Of course, this strategy was not so easy to succeed. Both Shenyang and Liaoyang were key cities for Qi State to maintain. After capturing these two major cities, the rebels were already severely weakened. By the time they wanted to break through Shanhaiguan and enter the capital, they had already lost their fighting spirit.

~~~
"General He, Duke Cheng is considering the future of you and your fellow soldiers. The army has already broken through Shanhaiguan, and a steady stream of troops and weapons are arriving in Liaodong. If we continue fighting, you know the outcome. Duke Cheng has a close relationship with General Pu, the commander of the Eighth Corps. He can't bear to see General Pu's men die innocently. If you all stop before it's too late, Duke Cheng can intercede for you..."

In the Guangjimen閣城 of Shenyang, the envoy sent by Deng Changxiong faced a group of rebel generals with an attitude neither humble nor arrogant.

The rebellious generals, their eyes bloodshot with killing intent, drew their swords and glared fiercely at the instructor who had spoken so arrogantly. They were about to rush forward and hack him to death when they heard Emperor Zhaode cough lightly and say:

"When two armies engage in battle, envoys are not executed. I will spare you today. I appreciate Deng Changxiong's kindness, but I am now the emperor, so you should address me as Your Majesty."

The envoy was not afraid at all: "Haha, you are the emperor who proclaimed yourself."

He Longzhou waved the hem of his dragon robe and shouted angrily, "How did he get the kingdom of Qi? It was Liu Zhaosun who snatched it from an orphan and a widow. If he can seize it, why can't I?"

The messenger laughed and said, "That depends on whether we can seize it or not. We have more than a million elite soldiers and generals, and you are just a small division. No, not even a small division. You know the outcome of the heavenly army approaching. Knowing that you will be annihilated, why don't you leave a good destination for yourself and your brothers?"

The Right Prime Minister stepped forward quickly, grabbed the envoy by the collar, and said angrily:

"Hmph! Being Liu Kan's lackey, an accomplice to the tiger, just like you! Do you think you can have a good ending by attacking your own comrades?!"

Zhang Ying continued to curse, "Xing Zhongyi! You were the instructor of the Sixth Corps. General Pu was persecuted to this point by the imperial court, yet you, for the sake of your own fame and fortune, didn't even dare to submit a single petition. And yet you have the nerve to come here and lobby today!"

Xing Zhongyi shouted, "I've said what I need to say. Now that you're trapped in Liaoshen, Duke Cheng couldn't bear to see more of his brothers die in this battle, so he ignored the emperor's wrath and negotiated a truce with you. If it were Wu Aheng or Zhao Lujiao, they wouldn't have said anything like this. After a brutal bombardment, I'm afraid you'd have been wiped out long ago!"

"kill him!"

"kill him!"

Xing Zhongyi obviously angered the rebel generals, who all drew their swords and roared, threatening to chop the man into pieces.

He Longzhou waved his hand and dismissed all the generals:

"What virtue and ability does Liu Kan possess? Soon after ascending the throne, he acted recklessly, appointing treacherous officials and giving his uncle a funeral even more elaborate than his own father's! His new policies drove the people into rebellion, infuriating both the people and the gods of Great Qi! Deng Changxiong's men are all skilled warriors. Go back and tell him that if we can unite our forces and bring peace to his country, there's no need to worry about his future. Why should we serve under a tyrant and surrounded by treacherous people, relying on their kindness and taking advantage of their power?"

Xing Zhongyi confronts:
"Duke Cheng is utterly loyal to Great Qi. He cares deeply about the people, as the sun and the moon bear witness to! On the other hand, the general, under the pretext of purging the emperor's entourage, is forging a desperate struggle for his own throne, sending the Liaodong army and people to their deaths! Even if you manage to conquer the world in the future, how can you truly rest in peace? Are your selfish desires simply too strong?"

He Longzhou stood up and said:

"With Liu Zhaosun's life or death unknown, Deng Changxiong hastily supported Liu Kan. For his own future, he didn't hesitate to disband various corps and brutally suppressed the Eighth Corps, not even sparing his former brother Zhang Dong! He used the blood of his comrades to blacken his official robes. He is more than just selfish! He is simply insane! Today, he has even negotiated peace with the Liao Dynasty behind the back of the court. Given Liu Kan's behavior, if he finds out in the future, how can he forgive you..."

"Xing Zhongyi, considering you saved the Eighth Corps, I will not kill you today. Let's end the peace talks and have Deng Changxiong send his troops to attack the city! I'll be waiting for you in Shenyang! Get out!"

(End of this chapter)