My father is Chongzhen? Then I have no choice but to rebel.

Chapter 192 Although we didn’t get Huang Taiji’s head, the heads of Yuetuo and Aobai could be used!
As the person who made the greatest contribution in this battle, Zu Dashou was naturally granted the title of Marquis for his outstanding command and fearless fighting.

His younger brother Zu Dabi was also made an earl because of his outstanding performance in the war.

Although Zu Dabi was not as famous as Zu Dashou in history, he was actually a rare and powerful general.

He was known for his bravery and fighting skills, and he liked to shout like crazy during battle, so he was nicknamed "Zu Er Crazy".

Zu Dabi's life was full of constant battles. During the Chongzhen period, bandits were rampant within the Ming Dynasty and the situation was turbulent.

Under the leadership of Hong Chengchou, Zu Dabi made great contributions to the court by fighting hard on the battlefield.

Basically, he led the charge in every battle and contributed his own strength to quelling the civil unrest.

Later, he joined his elder brother Zu Dashou in resisting the Jiannu.

In the battle with the Jiannu, Zu Dabi showed great bravery and fought the enemy single-handedly many times.

Facing the ferocious Jiannu, he was not afraid at all. Relying on his superb martial arts and extraordinary courage, he broke through the siege on the battlefield time and time again, making the enemy terrified.

This time, he followed Zu Dashou to raid the 100,000-strong army of the Jiannu, and also made great contributions. He was one of the few generals who survived.

In that thrilling raid, Zu Dabi took the lead and led his soldiers to charge into the enemy camp like a tiger, catching the Jiannu off guard.

Of course, any general who had followed Zu Dashou in the raid on the Jiannu army and survived were basically promoted three levels or more, and their reward was at least one thousand taels of silver.

These generous rewards were not only a recognition of their military achievements, but also a commendation from the court.

As for those generals who died in battle, they also received the highest level of pensions, and their rewards were much higher than those of the surviving generals.

There were more than ten viscounts and barons who were conferred and inherited by their descendants.

However, these titles are not hereditary.

Just as Zhu Cilang had thought before, if they wanted to inherit the title, they had to exchange it for military merit.

This move not only demonstrated the court's respect for meritorious officials, but also encouraged their descendants to continue serving the country.

In addition, several Ming Dynasty night guards who were previously sent to Yizhou City stepped forward in times of crisis and made great contributions.

As promised before, they were not only promoted three levels, but several of them were even conferred the titles of viscount and baron to commend their achievements.

Zheng Chenggong was also awarded the title of Viscount for his outstanding performance in this battle.

As Zhang Shize is the future Duke of England, ordinary titles are of no significance to him, so there is no need to confer any titles on him.

However, Zhu Cilang still gave him the honorary title of General Zhaowu.

This will not only recognize his contributions, but also allow him to continue his training in the military and accumulate more experience.

In addition, many soldiers who performed outstandingly in combat were rewarded according to their merits and posthumously conferred the titles of viscount or baron.

A rough estimate shows that after this great battle in Liaodong, at least four marquises, seven or eight earls, and more than thirty viscounts and barons will be conferred.

In addition, there are countless official positions and rewards.

Some people may think that this reward is a bit too much, but Zhu Cilang does not think so.

Because only he knew that the Battle of Songjin was an important battle that determined the survival of the Ming Dynasty, so these rewards were not excessive at all.

After a while, Zhu Cilang felt a little tired from handling affairs. He rubbed his sore wrists and decided to go out for a walk to relax his tense nerves.

Soon, Zhu Cilang arrived at the city wall.

The wind on the city wall brings a hint of freshness, making people feel refreshed instantly.

Zhu Cilang first took a deep breath, and then stretched his body.

At this moment, it seemed as if all the fatigue was thrown away with this action.

Just then, the sound of hurried footsteps broke the silence.

Zhu Cilang opened his eyes and turned around, only to see Li Ruolian rushing over.

Li Ruolian's steps were hurried, as if something extremely urgent was going on.

But the strange thing was that his face was full of excitement, as if there was some great joyful event.

Immediately afterwards, Li Ruolian came to Zhu Cilang and immediately knelt on one knee, his voice trembling slightly with excitement:
"Your Highness, I have something important to report."

Seeing Li Ruolian so excited, Zhu Cilang couldn't help but feel curious, and then said:

"Get up and answer!"

"What on earth could make you so happy? Tell me about it."

Li Ruo Lian raised his head, his eyes filled with irrepressible joy, and quickly replied:
"Replying to His Royal Highness, it is indeed a good thing, and a great thing!"

"According to your previous instructions, I have been sending people to secretly monitor the captured Jiannu."

"Just now, the Jinyiwei in charge of surveillance came to report that they found two large fish among these prisoners!"

"One is Aixinjueluo Yuetuo, the son of Nurhaci and the younger brother of Huang Taiji. The other is a general of the Jiannu army, whose name seems to be Aobai."

what?
Yuetuo and Oboi?
When Zhu Cilang heard these two names, a look of shock instantly appeared on his face.

Yuetuo was fine, he actually didn't know much about it.

But he was very familiar with the name Aobai. After all, as a time traveler, who hasn't read "The Deer and the Cauldron"?

But now is not the time to think about that.

Zhu Cilang quickly came to his senses, stared at Li Ruolian and asked:
"Is this news reliable?"

Li Ruolian nodded vigorously and said firmly:

"Your Highness, rest assured, the news is absolutely reliable! Moreover, I have asked people to confirm it again and again, and it is indeed Yuetuo and Aobai without a doubt!"

When Zhu Cilang heard this, he no longer had any doubts.

And he could probably guess what was going on.

It was simply that when the Jiannu were defeated, the two of them did not have time to escape, and they were afraid of death, so they surrendered to the Ming Dynasty together with the remaining Jiannu.

Then he secretly escaped back to Liaodong when no one was paying attention.

But they never expected that the Ming Dynasty would take such strict precautions against these surrendered people that they could not find any opportunities.

It was not until they were accidentally discovered by the Jinyiwei this time that their identities were exposed!
It has to be said that this is absolutely a godsend for Zhu Cilang.

Because he was worried that when he returned to the capital and went to the Taimiao to worship his ancestors, he would have no spoils to show!
Now the 'trophy' has come to your door.

Originally, the best trophy should have been Huang Taiji, but unfortunately, Huang Taiji had already escaped.

In that case, it seems like a good idea to use Yuetuo's head as a substitute.

Thinking of this, the smile on Zhu Cilang's face became even more pronounced.

Then he looked at Li Ruolian with a smile and said:

"I want to meet them in person and see what these two great Jiannu figures look like."

"Remember, be careful when you catch them. Don't kill them. I want them alive!"

When Li Ruolian heard this, he hurriedly bowed and said:
"I obey!"

Then he turned and left.

Because he discovered the two big fish, Yuetuo and Aobai, Zhu Cilang felt even happier and couldn't help humming a little tune.

But at this moment, Chongzhen's figure suddenly appeared on the city wall.

Seeing this, the guards nearby saluted one after another, but Chongzhen just waved his hand and went straight to Zhu Cilang.

Since there were no outsiders here at the moment, Zhu Cilang was too lazy to be polite with Chongzhen. He just nodded as a greeting.

Of course, Chongzhen didn't care.

Then, the father and son stood on the city wall, looking at the beautiful scenery with rolling mountains and crisscrossing rivers in the distance, and their faces showed an intoxicated look.

Sure enough, for the king, nothing could make him more intoxicated than this beautiful land.

This was the case with Chongzhen and Zhu Cilang!
After a while, Chongzhen suddenly said:

"Heng'er, tell the truth to your father. Are you really in love with that Mongolian princess?"

When Zhu Cilang heard this, he looked at Chongzhen speechlessly.

He thought Chongzhen just came to the city wall to relax and breathe fresh air as usual.

But I never expected that Chongzhen actually came to talk about this matter.

Although his face was full of helplessness, Zhu Cilang still asked:
"Father, why do you ask that? Did someone tell you something?"

Chongzhen raised the corner of his mouth slightly, revealing a smile, and then explained:
"No one told me anything, it just suddenly occurred to me. Actually, if you want, you can marry her."

"This is actually not a big deal for you."

"As early as the time of Emperor Taizu, there was a precedent of taking Mongolian women as concubines."

"But of course, they can't become queens, and their children can't become crown princes. Other than that, you can arrange it however you want."

Zhu Cilang was completely speechless, because Chongzhen now looked like an old father who was worried about his son's marriage.

Although he was not very opposed to Qiqige, it was still a bit too exaggerated to say that he wanted to marry her.

After all, in his mind, Qiqige is just a 'hostage'.

Besides, he is only fourteen years old now, and he is really powerless when it comes to these matters between men and women!
Thinking of this, Zhu Cilang could only say sincerely:

"Father, please don't worry about this matter. I can handle it myself. You should worry about other things."

Chongzhen was not angry when he heard this, but he still hoped that Zhu Cilang would take Qiqige as his concubine.

Because in this way, the relationship between Ming Dynasty and Mongolia will be more stable.

Zhu Cilang did not think so. In his opinion, as long as the military force at his disposal was strong enough and the weapons were advanced enough, all nomadic peoples would have to surrender.

Simply put, whether there is Qiqige or not, he will deal with Mongolia sooner or later, just not now!

For a moment, the atmosphere on the city wall seemed a little awkward. Just as Chongzhen felt bored and was about to leave, he suddenly caught a glimpse of something not far away.

Li Ruolian suddenly came over with a group of Jinyiwei, escorting two people who were tied up tightly like dumplings.

And with just one glance, Chongzhen recognized their identity as Jian slaves!
There's no way around it. The bald head and the rat tail behind the head are so obvious that it's hard not to notice.

When Chongzhen saw this scene, he couldn't help but look puzzled. He then turned to look at Zhu Cilang and asked:
"Didn't you say before that you would spare the lives of these Jiannu captives? What are you doing now?"

Zhu Cilang smiled faintly and explained:

"Other Jiannu can naturally be spared, but not these two!"

"Father, why don't you guess who these two Jiannu are?"

Chongzhen was immediately filled with curiosity. His intuition told him that the identities of these two Jiannu must be extraordinary, otherwise Zhu Cilang would never have taken them so seriously.

But he thought about it again and again, and finally shook his head helplessly.

"I can't guess. I'm not very familiar with the Jiannu."

Seeing this, Zhu Cilang no longer kept the secret. He looked directly at Chongzhen and said:

"These two Jiannu, one is Nurhaci's son and Huang Taiji's brother Aixinjueluo Yuetuo, the other is called Aobai, a general of the Jiannu!"

"It is said that he was named the bravest warrior in Manchuria by Huang Taiji."

what?
When Chongzhen heard this, his eyes widened instantly, and his eyes were full of excitement and surprise.

He had felt a little regretful before, as he had killed so many Jiannu but had not gotten a person of importance. However, he did not expect that this important person would come to him now.

Moreover, he is the son of Nurhaci and the younger brother of Huang Taiji. This is really a big fish!

And it’s a big, live fish!

It is much more precious than the head sent by the Ming Dynasty Navy before!

Thinking of this, Chongzhen suddenly became interested and was no longer in a hurry to leave. He sat down casually on a chair that had been prepared long ago, ready to enjoy this wonderful show.

Immediately afterwards, Yuetuo and Aobai were brought before Chongzhen and Zhu Cilang. Apparently, because they were afraid that they would offend Chongzhen and Zhu Cilang, their mouths were stuffed with coarse cloth.

At this moment, Yue Tuo seemed to have his spine pulled out, and was dragged forward by the Jinyiwei limply and powerlessly.

His rat-tail braid was scattered messily on his dusty shoulders, and a few strands of dry and yellow hair were stuck to his face, which was twisted with fear.

The whole person looked embarrassed.

Although Oboi was tied up tightly with several ropes, he was still struggling like a trapped beast.

The veins on his sturdy arms were bulging and his muscles were tense, as if he was trying to break free from the restraints.

But the Jinyiwei did not tolerate him. One of them raised his foot and kicked him in the heart.

The force of this kick was controlled just right, not killing him outright but completely leaving him without any strength.

Then someone else came forward and kicked them hard in the knees, and then the two of them knelt down in front of Chongzhen and Zhu Cilang with a thud.

Zhu Cilang looked at the two people in front of him with a smile.

Tuo had an ordinary appearance, a typical Jiannu look, with a loose braid hanging behind his forehead.

Perhaps because he knew that his life was coming to an end and he had already lost hope of living, he looked extremely depressed.

Oboi standing aside looked quite unusual. He was tall and strong, with a broad back and broad arms. He exuded a very powerful aura. One could tell at a glance that he was a formidable military commander.

And even now, Oboi still stared at Zhu Cilang with angry eyes, as if he wanted to penetrate him with his gaze.

Originally, Oboi and Yuetuo planned to keep disguising themselves and wait until the Ming Dynasty completely relaxed its vigilance against them and stopped closely monitoring them, and then they would find an opportunity to escape.

But they never expected that they would be exposed in the end.

Given their identities, once exposed, there would be no hope of survival, so Yue Tuo ended up like a dead dog.

As for Oboi
Perhaps because of his status as a military general, he was unwilling to show cowardice in front of Chongzhen and Zhu Cilang even if it meant death.

At this moment, Li Ruolian respectfully reported to Chongzhen and Zhu Cilang:

"Reporting to His Majesty and His Royal Highness, this Yuetuo guy didn't have any special abilities, so it wasn't difficult to capture him."

"But this guy called Aobai is really capable. When we caught him just now, he injured several people."

After hearing this, Zhu Cilang looked calm and was not surprised.

After all, this guy has the title of "The Bravest Warrior in Manchuria".

But of course, even the most powerful warriors can only kneel before him now.

Then, Zhu Cilang smiled and looked at Yuetuo and Aobai and said:
"It's really hard for you. In order to survive, you actually hid among the prisoners."

"But you are unlucky, and you were eventually discovered by me."

"Don't worry, I won't kill you now. I will take you back to the capital and skin you alive in front of the Imperial Ancestral Temple."

"Especially you, Yuetuo, you are much more important than Aobai."

As he spoke, Zhu Cilang looked at Li Ruolian and instructed:
"Remember to smash his teeth later, and then closely monitor his every move. Don't let him die."

"If he goes on a hunger strike, pry his mouth open and force-feed him."

When Li Ruolian heard this, he quickly accepted the order and said:
"Don't worry, Your Highness. I know what to do."

Zhu Cilang nodded with satisfaction and then waved.

Immediately afterwards, Yuetuo and Aobai were dragged away by the Jinyiwei.

As soon as they got off the city wall, the coarse cloth in their mouths was torn away, followed by several heavy punches.

All of a sudden, all of Yuetuo and Aobai's teeth were knocked out.

The sudden pain made them howl in an instant.

"what!!!!!"

"what!!!!!"

Listening to the howling coming from under the city wall, Zhu Cilang felt even more relaxed today.

At the same time, on the Mongolian grasslands, after several days of travel, Wu Sangui and Yang Guozhu and his party finally arrived at Tayingzi.

Along the way, they only encountered a small number of scattered Jiannu, and these Jiannu had extremely poor combat effectiveness, and were basically strangled to death in one encounter.

Most of the Jiannu had already evacuated Mongolia and returned to Shengjing.

But this was actually within their expectations. After all, according to the plan, Zu Dashou should have arrived at Changning Fort by now.

But the Jiannu did not know that Zu Dashou's target was Changning Fort, so in their opinion, Zu Dashou's target should be Shengjing.

There is no doubt that Huang Taiji would mobilize all his forces to rescue Shengjing, which led to the fact that they did not encounter a large number of Jiannu along the way.

And because some soldiers had to be left behind to guard the city along the way, when they arrived at Tayingzi, there were only less than 20,000 troops around them.

Tayingzi is located on the Mongolian grassland and is quite small.

The city wall looks very short. It is simply made of adobe and stones, about three or four meters high, as if it cannot cause any ripples on this vast grassland.

However, it has vital strategic significance and is the key to preventing the Jiannu from attacking the Ming Dynasty through Mongolia.

As you step into Tayingzi City, you can feel a unique and simple atmosphere. The architectural style here is a fusion of multi-ethnic cultures.

Walking along the narrow and slightly rugged streets, the first thing that catches your eye is the numerous Mongolian-style tents.

Most of these tents are made of thick felt, round in shape, with slightly raised tops, like large bowls upside down on the grassland.

Going further into the city, you can see some Han-style civil engineering buildings.

Most of these houses are single-story structures with gabled roofs covered with tiles, allowing rainwater to flow smoothly down the tiles.

The walls of the house are made of adobe mixed with straw. Although simple, they are very sturdy.

In a corner of the city, there are some Jurchen-style buildings. These buildings are mainly made of wood, with walls made of closely arranged logs and gaps filled with moss or mud to ensure warmth.

In short, this is a city made up of many ethnic groups!

When they saw the sudden arrival of the mighty Ming army, the Mongols, Han Chinese and Jurchens in the city were thrown into chaos.

The women hugged their children in panic, hid in the house, and looked out in horror through the cracks in the windows.

The men stood at the door, holding farm tools, their faces full of vigilance and anxiety.

Fortunately, no conflict broke out between the two sides in the end. After briefly explaining their purpose, the people here naturally accepted the fact that Tayingzi had changed its owner.

The reason is very simple. This place used to be the territory of Mongolia, but Mongolia could not protect them, and then it became the territory of Jiannu.

But the Jiannu never treated them well, and only knew how to demand and plunder.

So from the perspective of the people here, changing the ruler is not a bad thing.
Then, Yang Guozhu and Wu Sangui methodically arranged for the soldiers to register these civilians one by one and directly incorporate them into the Ming Dynasty.

In fact, they had done this many times during the march, and all the people they met along the way would be registered.

The number of people who have been incorporated into the government has now reached more than 30,000.

From now on, these people will become citizens of the Ming Dynasty and accept the protection of the Ming Dynasty!

Standing on the short city wall of Tayingzi, Wu Sangui looked at the bustling crowd of civilians and soldiers in the city, a wry smile on his face, and he couldn't help but sigh to Yang Guozhu beside him:

"General Yang, it looks like we'll be busy from now on."

Yang Guozhu smiled and agreed:
"Yes! But since we shoulder such an important responsibility, we must not disappoint His Majesty and the Crown Prince!"

Unlike other ethnic groups, when the Han people occupy a territory, they will definitely build cities and establish corresponding defense systems, and this is what they are going to do now.

Then, the two men let the soldiers have a good rest while preparing to repair the tower camp.

They wanted to build a new city on the basis of the original one to enhance the defensive capabilities of Tayingzi.

Building a city on the Mongolian grasslands has never been an easy task, but they have to do it!

Because as long as this city is built, it will be like a sharp blade inserted into Mongolia and Liaodong, which can give Jiannu and Mongolia a fatal blow at any time!
(End of this chapter)