The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 734 A Country Without Conquest
"The traitor Pu Gang! This Shanxi town is not under control... He was fortunate enough to gain some military merit and be appointed commander of a corps. He is deeply grateful to the country, yet he has no desire to repay his country. When Emperor Guangde came to power, Pu Gang became arrogant and conceited, harboring ulterior motives and obstructing the new policies. The emperor repeatedly pardoned him, but this traitor, taking advantage of the court's weakness, incited rebellion! The people of Liaodong are suffering, and the whole country is in turmoil, all because of Pu Gang! Killing him will not quell the anger!"

On the morning of the sixth day of the fifth month in the seventh year of Guangde, Pu Gang was tied up outside the city of Shenyang and escorted to the bank of the Hunhe River.

A drill instructor from Liaodong held up a wooden trumpet and, protected by two sword and shield soldiers, shouted loudly at the rebels on the other side.

"He Longzhou has no king or father, and is a traitor! He has reached the end of his rope. Listen carefully, if you continue to resist, you will be buried with him! Quickly kill the rebel generals, open the city and surrender, and Duke Cheng may spare your lives. Otherwise, you will end up like Pu Gang!"

Pu Gang knelt on the bank of the Hun River, his whole body tied up, his mouth blocked with a cloth, and he could not speak.

His face flushed red, and he looked up at the familiar Guangji Gate. He struggled to get up, but was pinned to the ground by two executioners.

Xing Zhongyi, the chief instructor of the First Corps, came to the bank of the Hun River, surrounded by guards. He leaned forward and asked the guards to remove the cloth strips. He said to Pu Gang:

"General Pu, now that things have come to this, you should persuade these men to stop fighting with eggs against stones. His Majesty has said that, with the exception of He Longzhou and a few other bandit leaders, all of his followers will be pardoned..."

"Pooh!"

A mouthful of thick phlegm fell on Xing Zhongyi's face. Xing Zhongyi's beard trembled, but he held back and did not lose his temper.

"As long as the New Deal remains in place, Great Qi will never be at peace! What did you, you bastard, say to Deng Changxiong? What made him so devotedly serve Liu Kan? You're actually planning to attack your fellow comrades! The Emperor's body is still warm, and you, ungrateful bastards, have completely forgotten his teachings. Xing Zhongyi, just wait! When Zhao Lujiao returns, he'll definitely skin you alive!"

"Humph,"

Xing Zhongyi sneered.

"Da Qi has already abandoned Japan, Korea, and Ryukyu. All overseas corps will be disbanded. Zhao Lujiao is not much better off. If he can support the new policies, that will be good. Otherwise, he will also go down to accompany the emperor!"

Pu Gang opened his mouth wide, unable to speak for a moment.

He didn't expect that Liu Kan would be so willful and reckless as to hand over the land that the previous emperor had won through bloody battles.

"Emperor Guangde gave you a chance to live, but you acted like an ant trying to shake a tree, insisting on obstructing the new policies of the Great Qi Dynasty."

Xing Zhongyi pointed in the direction of Guangji Gate and roared angrily:

"If it weren't for you, He Longzhou wouldn't have raised the flag of rebellion. If it weren't for you, the southwestern chieftains wouldn't have dared to invade Da Qi! Now, even a power like Annan Siam has begun to set its sights on Da Qi... The court is so embarrassed, how can Emperor Guangde swallow this bitter pill? You only have yourself to blame for what happened today! The court will take care of your family, so go with peace of mind."

There was a noisy sound of voices all around, and the rebels stretched their necks to look down at the city, looking at their former commander.

Pu Gang stared at Xing Zhongyi, his body trembling and his head swaying rhythmically. He wanted to say something when the executioner shouted and raised his knife.

At this moment, tens of thousands of troops on both sides of the Hunhe River suddenly quieted down, and even the neighing war horses lowered their heads.

Countless pairs of eyes stared at Pu Gang, whose head and body were separated, at the corps commander who had once made countless enemies tremble in fear, and at his tall body falling to the ground with a bang.

Many people have not yet reacted. They cannot believe that Emperor Guangde would actually kill the commander of an entire corps, and in front of so many soldiers.

A deafening roar erupted from Guangji Gate. Amid the rebels' angry howls, a large crowd of people were escorted to the city wall, with cries and shouts ringing out all around.

"Master Xing, those are the families of our soldiers."

A disciplinary officer pointed at the civilians who were about to be executed on the city wall, his voice trembling.

"Master Xing, please save them quickly."

Xing Zhongyi threw the instructor away and roared angrily:

"Why are you crying? As a training officer, this is the best opportunity for you to teach the soldiers a lesson. Let the soldiers see how the rebels kill people. It's a shame that Duke Cheng treated them as comrades. Let them see the true faces of these comrades!"

The instructor looked at Xing Zhongyi with horror, as if he had seen a ghost, and left quickly.

There were constant shouts and cries of killing at Guangji Gate. The rebel generals cursed loudly and ordered the executioners to tie up the families of the Qi army, line them up, and take them to the battlements one by one. There, they beheaded the family members one by one like cutting vegetables and melons.

Hunhe River, which witnessed the sacrifice of Xiong Tingbi, the governor of Liaodong, the defeat of Nurhaci, and the rise of Liu Zhaosun, will now witness the Da Qi army killing each other.

Tenants and soldiers whose homes had been destroyed by the new policies brandished their weapons and attacked the unarmed civilians of Shenyang. Several blood-soaked rebel instructors also raised their wooden trumpets and shouted wildly to the Qi army below the city:
"See clearly, this is the result of your emperor's new policies. These people were killed by Liu Kan. If you want revenge, go find Liu Kan! If you dare to attack the city again, the same fate will befall you!"

The tenants, blinded by anger, raised their swords and killed the families of the Qi army on the opposite side.

"Kill them all! Kill them all, then go kill Deng Changxiong!"

"Kill! You bastard! You've lost your wife and children, and the landlord has taken your land. What's the difference between being alive and dead? Kill one and you'll break even. Kill two and you'll make a profit. Kill!"

Amid the rebels' desperate howls, the killing continued on the top of Guangjimen city wall.

Human heads with different expressions were thrown down from the city wall like raindrops, hitting the base of the wall heavily and falling into the dust.

Across the slowly flowing Hun River, earth-shaking cries and curses rang out from the city walls.

In the field of vision, a five or six-year-old girl was pushed by the rebels and stood next to the battlement of the city wall. She was kicked from behind and fell to the ground screaming...
"Kill! Kill them all! They are beasts. They have killed countless nobles, and now they are not even going to spare your families!"

"Kill! Those who obstruct the new policy will be killed without mercy. Kill them all!"

······
The instructor pointed at the Guangjimen city wall where blood was flowing like a river and howled at the top of his lungs.

Behind them, the three major corps were urgently lined up, the engineers were speeding up the construction of the pontoon bridge, the artillery began to calibrate the artillery, and the hot air balloons that were not originally prepared for the battlefield also began to be loaded with bombs and incendiary bombs, and the auxiliary soldiers were heating the airbags.

At three quarters past noon, a hot air balloon covering the sky rose into the sky. Under the intensive artillery fire from the city walls, incendiary bombs fell on the top of Guangji Gate. At the same time, the artillery positions outside the city launched a fierce bombardment. The defenders of various gates in Shenyang were instantly covered by heavy artillery fire that was ten times their own.

~~~~
On the morning of the eighth day of the fifth month in the seventh year of Guangde, the Qi army broke through the Guangji Gate and entered Shenyang. Street fighting lasted for three days, and a total of 57,000 rebel leaders including He Longzhou were killed, and 81 civil servants including Zhang Ying and Zhang Changgeng were captured alive.

The war in Liaodong was basically settled, and the news was passed back to Nanjing. Emperor Guangde went to the Taimiao alone to offer sacrifices, kneeling in front of Liu Zhaosun's spirit tablet and crying for half an hour.

~~~~~
In light of Taizu's reckless military spending, which exhausted national resources and ultimately yielded no results, Emperor Guangde issued a special edict at the end of May, announcing to the world: "The barbarians on all sides are all bounded by mountains and separated by seas, isolated in remote corners. Their land is insufficient for our supplies, and their people are insufficient for our command. If they attempt to harass our borders without due consideration, it will be a misfortune. Even if they pose no threat to China, it would also be a misfortune if we rashly attack them. I fear that future generations, relying on China's prosperity and strength, may be tempted by temporary military success and launch unwarranted military campaigns, resulting in loss of life. This must be avoided."

Emperor Guangde formulated the "Imperial Qi Ancestor's Instructions", announcing that 15 overseas countries (regions), including the three provinces of Korea and the Japanese archipelago, would be listed as "countries not to be conquered", warning future generations not to arbitrarily conquer them.

These 15 countries (regions) are: the three provinces of Korea, the four islands of Japan (now sunk), the Ryukyu Province, the Kingdom of Annan (now northern Vietnam), the Kingdom of Zhenla (now Cambodia), the Kingdom of Siam (now Thailand), Sumatra (now Pasai, Sumatra Island), the Western Kingdom (now the Coromandel Coast), the Kingdom of Java (now Java Island), the Kingdom of Penheng (now the Malay Peninsula), the Kingdom of Baihua (now the northwest of Sumatra Island), the Kingdom of Srivijaya (now Palembang, Sumatra Island), the Kingdom of Brunei, the Yinzhou (now the North American continent), and Australia.

This was a country designated by Emperor Guangde as not to be conquered.

On June 12, the first batch of soldiers stationed in Ryukyu Province returned to Nanjing, including Lin Yu's son Lin Zhenyu.

Emperor Guangde summoned Lin Zhenyu to the Fengtian Hall.

Lin Zhenyu is 22 years old and currently serves as the deputy general of the military corps stationed in Ryukyu Province.

This son not only inherited his father's tall and mighty stature, but also possessed Fujiwara Chiyoko's intelligence and alertness. He was stationed in Ryukyu for several years, and repeatedly repelled the invasion of the red-haired colonists, making great military achievements.

Emperor Guangde looked at the Ryukyu deputy general, who was tall and strong, with a sharp face, and was very pleased:
"Your father was a fortunate general of the late emperor, having weathered countless battles without a scratch. You, too, are a fortunate general of mine! Come, bestow my Seven Star Sword upon General Lin!"

Under the guidance of Eunuch Li, Lin Zhenyu took the sword and kowtowed to express his gratitude.

Lin Zhenyu traveled thousands of miles back to the capital, still brooding over the court's abandonment of Ryukyu. He was flattered to see the emperor treating him so well.

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for not abandoning me. I am a dull person, but I relied on my father's merits to join the army in Ryukyu. I have made only a few contributions, but I have received such a generous reward from Your Majesty. I feel ashamed..."

Emperor Guangde clapped his hands and laughed.

"Zhenyu, you're too modest. Last year, you led your troops to repel the Red Haired Barbarian pirates. You outnumbered them and achieved a surprising victory. You were very much like your father in his time."

Emperor Guangde said earnestly:

"I wish to inherit the late emperor's will and unify the world, but my new policies are hindered. I have assessed the situation and believe that the overseas territories are not sustainable and cannot be sustained. It is better to abandon them. Although Ryukyu is gone, I will never forget meritorious officials like you."

"Eunuch Li!"

Li Juying brought forward the Black Bear Flag of the Fourth Corps.

"Zhenyu, you must have heard about the Liaodong rebellion when you came to the capital this time."

Lin Zhenyu wanted to say something but stopped himself. His mother had taught him more than once that serving a king is like serving a tiger, and that one should not say a single word that should not be said.

"I have indeed heard some..."

Liu Kan looked up at him casually and continued to ask:

"I want to hear what you think: the new policy is better, or the previous equal distribution of land between the rich and the poor?"

Lin Zhenyu was speechless.

Emperor Guangde's sharp eyes swept over him.

"Your Majesty, I believe that any policy that benefits the people is a good policy, regardless of whether it is new or old."

Li Juying's face changed drastically and she kept winking at Lin Zhenyu.

Emperor Guangde clapped his hands and laughed.

"Hahaha, well said! The new policy abolished the Qi Dynasty's Land System and implemented distribution according to work, with more work, more pay. It was for the benefit of the people of the world, but the people were slow to realize it!"

Emperor Guangde spoke in a high-pitched voice, very emotional:
"The people have been misled by the rebels, accusing the court of encouraging annexation and exploiting the people... While the new policies currently have many shortcomings, as long as we persevere, we will surely have a bright future! As subjects, if you feel that Da Qi is not good, you should work to build it! Instead of slandering and complaining, and certainly not becoming a mob and becoming cannon fodder for ambitious individuals!"

Lin Zhenyu said respectfully:

"Your Majesty has a broad mind and a broad perspective. I am grateful for your guidance."

Liu Kan regained his composure and said calmly:

"Unfortunately, there's a battalion commander in the Fourth Corps who can't see the truth. He was bewitched by Pu Gang and plotted rebellion. He's now been imprisoned. The battalion commander position is vacant, and I've decided to send you to the Fourth Corps to replace him."

"Ah? Your Majesty..." Lin Zhenyu was stunned again.

"I was only a deputy general in Ryukyu, with more than a thousand men under my command... I'm afraid I won't be able to lead thousands of troops, and the soldiers of the Fourth Corps will not obey..."

Emperor Guangde waved his hand and said disapprovingly:
"Your father is Lin Yu. Taking the head of a general from a million-strong army is as easy as taking something out of a bag! You are Lin Yu's son, and I believe you are capable of doing this. The Great Qi is currently in trouble. As the descendant of a loyal minister, please help me share some of the burden within your ability."

Eunuch Li struck while the iron was hot and said, "Your Majesty has promoted me so much! General Lin, why doesn't you thank him?"

Lin Zhenyu was hesitating when he heard Liu Kan continue:
"I know you've been in Ryukyu for many years and are dissatisfied with the court's abandonment of the island. However, Ryukyu is, after all, a barbarian land. Food and cloth must be shipped from China, which is a huge expense. It was only a matter of time before they abandoned it... Now that you've returned to the capital, I'm worried about your mother staying in Ryukyu. I've sent someone to bring her back so you can be reunited."

Eunuch Li added, "General Lin, His Majesty has always been concerned about you. He ordered a villa to be built for you by Xuanwu Lake, with cherry blossoms planted in front and behind it. The scenery is just like Osaka. He also asked Zhao Lujiao to select some samurai daughters from Kyushu to return to Nanjing to serve your mother... I have been by His Majesty's side for so many years, and I have never seen him treat his subjects so well!"

Lin Zhenyu knew that this was Emperor Guangde's trick to take hostages, but the Lin family was loyal and righteous, and his father taught him to be a loyal minister since he was a child. Even though he knew it was a fire pit, he had to jump in.

"Your Majesty's grace is unforgettable! I will die with my head down, and in death I will serve you like a dog!"

Liu Kan helped the giant up and said meaningfully:

"Strong winds reveal strong grass, and a nation in turmoil reveals loyal ministers. Some generals are wavering right now, pretending to obey the new policies but secretly disobeying them. I'm sending you to the southwest not just to lead the troops against the local chieftains, but also to have you in the Fourth Corps. I can rest assured, and I hope you can understand my good intentions..."

(End of this chapter)