Usurpation of Mongolia: My father-in-law is Genghis Khan

Chapter 106: The Jin Dynasty’s version of the Jingkang Shame, shocking the world!

"What else can be done?"

Wanyan Yongji glared fiercely at the loyal old minister and said, "When we reached the agreement with the Mongols, Pusanduan was still the Right Prime Minister of our Great Jin, representing the Great Jin. Could it be that our Great Jin could go back on its word?"

Liang Tang said anxiously, "But the agreement signed by Pushanduan is too humiliating for the country. I'm afraid it will be too detrimental to the reputation of our Great Jin and the reputation of Your Majesty!"

Wanyan Yongji's disgust with him grew even stronger. He said, "I have made up my mind. The peace agreement with Mongolia must be completed. Liang Tang, aren't you responsible for the security of Zhongdu? It will be up to you to raise money and gifts from your children to satisfy the Mongols' demands."

"No! Absolutely not! Your Majesty, please reconsider!"

Liang Tang fell to his knees and kowtowed repeatedly. In the blink of an eye, a bright red blood mark appeared on his forehead. He vowed to give advice until his death.

"Liang Tang!"

Suddenly, Tushan Yi let out an angry roar, saying, "Before the Mongols invaded the Great Jin, I wrote to the court, saying that the 500-li defense line of Yehu Ridge was too scattered and undefensible. It would be better to gather troops in Dacheng and wait for the Mongols. What did you say?"

"I... I say, if we abandon the Yehuling defense line, the Mongolian army could use a small route to enter the Central Plains and threaten Zhongdu. That's too risky."

"So now it seems that you are wrong, or am I wrong?"

Liang Tang blushed with shame and said hesitantly, "It's me... I was wrong."

Tushan Yi continued, "My first petition was rejected by the court, so I immediately submitted a second petition. I argued that the people of Chang, Heng, and Fu prefectures are prosperous and strong. The governors of these three prefectures possess nearly a million war horses, and we must not allow them to be lost. We must relocate the entire population and war horses of these three prefectures to the interior to prevent them from being used by the Mongols. So, what did you say?"

Liang Tang felt even more embarrassed and said, "At that time, I said that this would damage the country and was absolutely not feasible."

"Now it seems that you are wrong, or am I wrong?"

"Yes...I was wrong."

Tushan Yi continued, "Also, back then, I not only sent 20,000 troops to aid Zhongdu, but I also wrote to the court, demanding that no more troops be dispatched from the Northeast. Leaving these 10,000 troops behind, and giving me full authority to mobilize troops from the Northeast prefectures and counties, I was able to protect Dongjing and Shangjing. What did you say then?"

Liang Tang said, "I think there's not much difference between leaving 5,000 or 10,000 soldiers in the Northeast. Besides, the Northeast is bitterly cold. The Mongols are drawn to the pleasures of the Central Plains and may not attack the Northeast."

"Now it seems that you are wrong? Or am I wrong?"

"I was wrong!"

The moat of Zhongdu is almost forty miles long.

When Temujin led 50,000 troops to guard Zhongdu, it was impossible to create an impenetrable encirclement. He could only prevent large enemy forces from escaping from the city. Therefore, for more than a year, news from Zhongdu was kept open to the outside world until the "million-strong army surrounded Zhongdu."

Liang Tang certainly knew that Shangjing and Dongjing had been destroyed by Zhebie.

Liang Tang was not a bad man, nor was he a treacherous traitor. On the contrary, he had always been loyal to the Great Jin. However, his abilities were not comparable to those of contemporary figures like Tu Shanyi, so every time he made a seemingly correct decision, it turned out to be a bad idea.

By now, Liang Tang's face was flushed with shame, and his head was almost touching the ground.

Tu Shanyi softened his tone and said, "Councilor Liang, since your three suggestions to the court were wrong, how can you be sure that blocking the peace talks this time is also correct?"

"I……"

"Also, how long do you think we can hold on?"

Liang Tang said, "Zhongdu City's defenses are strong, and the soldiers are dedicated. We have enough food to last us for three years!"

Tushan Yi snorted coldly and said, "Three years? That amount of food can only feed the 150,000 troops in the city for three years, but it can't provide a single grain for the millions of civilians in the city. Three months ago, some people's homes ran out of food. Yesterday, thirteen families committed suicide! What? Are you going to force the entire city to trade their children for food?"

"I……"

Tu Shanyi continued, "And what about the Mongol Empire? I don't know which master guided them, but they are no longer a barbaric country on the grasslands that only knew how to burn, kill, and plunder. Instead, they are a great power that has mastered the art of dividing and winning over others.

I know you will say that the people of the grassland have been away at war for nearly three years, and they miss their wives and children at home. They have also robbed countless children of their wealth and treasures, and they are eager to return home. I am afraid that even Temujin cannot go against such a trend of public opinion.

But how sure are you that Temujin can't grit his teeth and hold on for another three years?"

Liang Tang was left speechless by Tu Shanyi's words. He took off his official hat and said, "I am stupid and have failed the country for many years. I am truly unworthy of this position of Vice Minister. I resign now. Moreover, I will never again have a say in the affairs of state."

Tu Shanyi shook his head slightly and said, "Councilor Liang, you have been harming the country for many years. Do you think you can just walk away like this?"

"Then...then what do you think I should do?"

"One last thing for the court, help the Mongols gather the children and money they need." Tushan Yi helped Liang Tang up and said gently, "I know that Liang Canzheng is a loyal and honest gentleman, but he did some wrong things because of his lack of talent and ability.

"Now, the children and gold and silk that the Mongols want must be collected. If you do this, it will cause less harm to Zhongdu than if someone else does it, right?"

Liang Tang took a deep breath and said with difficulty: "Okay...Okay, I'll do it."

"So good."

Wanyan Yongji was overjoyed and said, "Pass on my decree. Liang Tang, the Minister of State Affairs, who is loyal to the country, will be the Left Prime Minister of the Great Jin Dynasty from now on, with full responsibility for negotiations with the Mongols."

The left prime minister Wanyan Gang and the right prime minister Pushanduan were both dead.

Now Liang Tang, the left prime minister, has become the de facto prime minister of the Great Jin, and has the power to mobilize all forces to meet the Mongols' needs for children, money and silk.

In the next half month, there was chaos in Zhongdu City, and the military, civilians and people complained.

There was no other way. In order to meet the numbers required by the Mongols, Liang Tang had to plunder as much as possible, just to ensure fairness as much as possible.

First of all, regardless of whether they were rich or poor, noble or humble, in the city, including Wanyan Yongji, all the gold, silver, copper coins, cloth, gold, silver and copper utensils, women's jewelry, precious stones and jade were sent to the Mongols outside the city without keeping anything.

All livestock, whether horses, mules, donkeys, pigs, cattle, sheep, or even dogs in the city were sent to the Mongolian military camp.

As for the Jurchen women?

Aside from the four princesses, no matter how fair the Liang family was, they wouldn't have the guts to touch the women of the royal family, or the wives of important court officials or military officers. However, ordinary women of the royal family, ordinary women of nobles, and even Jurchen civilians had absolutely no scruples.

The national treasury of the Great Jin Dynasty and the inner treasury of Wanyan Yongji were not spared at all.

If Liang Tang had not been afraid that the Mongols would turn against him and continue to attack the city after getting the property, he would have wanted to sell all the food and military equipment in the city to the Mongols in order to reduce the need to transport Jurchen women as much as possible.

However, despite Liang Tang's hard work and fairness, he still suffered a lot of criticism.

The soldiers, civilians and common people in Zhongdu City would hate Liang Tang so much during the day that their teeth would itch and they would wish they could eat his flesh raw and sleep on his skin.

When he got home at night, he no longer cared about cursing Liang Tang, but instead cursed Wanyan Yongji and the Jin Dynasty court!
What are you doing?
Who doesn’t know that Pu Sanduan is Wanyan Yongji’s black glove?

Now, it’s just that you, Wanyan Yongji, threw away a pair of black gloves called Pushanduan and replaced them with another pair called Liangtang.

Liang Tang is the one who does the dirty work, and you, Wanyan Yongji, are the real mastermind behind all this!

The original Jin Zhangzong Wanyan Jing was already very similar to Song Huizong.

Now, there is another Song Qinzong!

In Zhongdu City, the Jingkang Shame was directly created!
In the future, will it be like the State of Song, where the capital is lost and the court moves south?

Unfortunately, the area south of the Yangtze River belongs to the State of Song.

The Great Jin Dynasty is finished!
Wanyan Yongji will sooner or later be trampled to death by the Mongolian horses!

It is worth mentioning that the Han, Khitan, Xi and Bohai people cursed the least.

After all, the Mongols didn't want their women, did they? The comparison with the Jurchens made him feel much more at ease. Moreover, seeing the once high-and-mighty Jurchens become penniless along with him, unable to even keep their women, filled him with a sense of satisfaction!
Very few craftsmen cursed the Jin court.

Because most artisans in the city belonged to the "artisan household" and were registered in the "artisan register," they not only had to work in government-run workshops, but their salaries were also determined by the government. Furthermore, they had to perform "corvée labor," which meant working for the government completely for free.

As the Jin Dynasty's finances deteriorated, the wages of these craftsmen continued to decline.

Over the past year or so, the Mongolian army has besieged Zhongdu, and the treatment of the craftsmen has dropped to the extreme.

The Jin court conscripted all artisans in the city, including those from the "artisan households," to work day and night to manufacture weapons, build defenses, and repair the city walls. Even the artisans' families—women, the elderly, and children—were conscripted to help with logistics or to dismantle houses to obtain wood for making defense equipment.

As for the treatment?

There was only a little food ration that was not enough to fill their stomachs, and nothing else.

Many craftsmen and their families died of hunger or overwork.

Such treatment is even worse than that of slaves.

Now that the Jin court asked them to go to Mongolia, they should just go.

It's not who I'm being a slave to, is it?

Their treatment has already been reduced to the lowest point, and if they go to work for the Mongols, they might even live a better life!
Therefore, the craftsmen and their families walked happily into the Mongolian army camp.

so much?
When Liang Tang sold most of the craftsmen to the Mongols, even Zhao Shuo was dumbfounded.

Nearly 23,000 craftsmen!

There were 2,047 skilled craftsmen who made palace utensils and luxury goods.

3,456 craftsmen who made armor, swords, spears, bows and arrows, catapults, and divine arm bows.

There are 7,137 craftsmen who specialize in weaving cloth and making clothes.

There were 3,542 craftsmen making agricultural tools.

There are 2,641 craftsmen making rice, vinegar, wine, lacquer, ceramics, and paper!
There are 3,642 people working in printing, construction, vehicle and ship building, and funeral equipment construction.

Including their families, the total number was 120,000.

However, if you think about it carefully, it is not surprising. Among the millions of soldiers, civilians and people in Zhongdu City, could there be farmers?

Apart from the dignitaries and the garrison troops, wouldn't the only ones left be their families, some service workers, and craftsmen? Moreover, for security reasons, the emperor would inevitably place most of the country's workshops in the capital.

Okay, let’s settle the bill.

A total of 243 craftsmen were identified as senior craftsmen by Zhao Shuo, and each was paid 1,000 taels of silver, totaling 243,000 taels of silver.

The remaining craftsmen were worth 2.24 million taels of silver.

Their families were worth nearly two million taels of silver.

That’s 4.5 million taels of silver, and we still have a shortfall of more than 25 million taels of silver!
The Jin Kingdom continues to send!
One million six hundred and eighty thousand taels of gold were donated.

A total of 4.67 million taels of silver were donated.

A total of 14.56 million copper coins were donated.

The Jin Kingdom has already gathered one million pieces of silk, satin, brocade, gauze and silk, and 20,000 each of horses, camels, donkeys and mules.

Other cloth and livestock can be used as collateral for money.

In addition, there are countless rare treasures in Zhongdu City.

After all the calculations, there was still a shortage of 860,000 taels of gold and 5,420,000 taels of silver.

There is no other way, we can only use Jurchen women to make up the number.

A noble Jurchen woman was worth five hundred taels of gold, and a commoner woman was worth two hundred taels of silver.

A total of 1,326 Jurchen noblewomen and 25,637 Jurchen civilian women were sent to the Mongol military camp.

There is still a shortage of nearly 200,000 taels of gold and 300,000 taels of silver.

Liang Tang was so anxious that he was about to cry.

He told Temujin that he had already emptied out Zhongdu. If he continued to send women, he would have to move the wives of the military officers and important officials, which would inevitably lead to a mutiny.

Temujin was already very satisfied with such a huge fortune. He generously announced that the debts would be paid off with the four Jin princesses. Liang Tang left with many thanks.

Of course, Temujin couldn't have all four princesses.

The person who made the greatest contribution to the Mongol expedition against the Jin Dynasty was of course Genghis Khan Temujin.

Below Temujin were the son-in-law Zhao Shuo, Muhuali and Jochi.

Let’s just split it like this.

Temujin once said: "The greatest joy in life is to defeat the enemy, chase them away, seize their possessions, see their loved ones weep, ride their horses, and take their wives and daughters."

The Jin people did not want to give away their married princess, but Temujin insisted on taking their married princess as his concubine.

Immediately, Temujin took Wanyan Yongji's eldest daughter, Princess Zhengguo, into his harem.

Mu Huali was the oldest among the three meritorious officials, so Temujin gave him the second daughter of Wanyan Yongji, Princess Dening.

Subutai was given the title of Princess Jia'an, the third daughter of Wanyan Yongji.

Zhao Shuo was the youngest and was given the title of Princess Qiguo by Wanyan Yongji's fourth daughter.

In addition, it must be pointed out that according to historical records, this princess of Qi was married to Temujin.

At that time, the Mongols had few troops and could definitely not capture Zhongdu, so Temujin could only take the unmarried princess.

In the end, he chose the princess of Qi.

This Princess Qi was not only beautiful, but also gentle and considerate. Ehu Yishi recorded in his book "Old Fox Talks about Beauties of All Ages" that "Princess Qi, the daughter of King Jinwei, was graceful and charming, with a beautiful appearance and a charming demeanor. She was beautiful and admired by all."

Genghis Khan was overjoyed to have this woman. He built a huge Ordo Palace for her on the grasslands west of the Huan River and held a grand banquet lasting seven days. From then on, the Jin Dynasty lost a "Princess of Qi" and gained a "Princess Queen" on the grasslands.

Later, this "Princess Queen" had a high status in Mongolia and once received Qiu Chuji, the Changchun Zhenren.

When the Mongols were about to overthrow the Jin Dynasty, Princess Qiguo once persuaded the then Mongol Khan, Ogedei, to allow the Jin Dynasty to pay tribute and become a vassal, considering the close relationship between the two countries. Although Ogedei did not listen, the fact that she had such a say in the matter shows the princess's status.

No matter what, this princess of Qi has now become Zhao Shuo's woman.

It was only after Zhao Shuo met the "Princess of Qi" that he learned that her name was Wanyan Ningjia.

She was indeed gentle and charming, with skin as white as sheep fat and a slight blush on her cheeks, making her look full of energy and very lovable.

According to historical records, this Qi princess lived to a ripe old age. She was still alive when Alibugha ascended the throne in Khorum.

A long lifespan indicates good genes!

In history, Temujin was over 50 years old when he got the princess, and there were too many women, so it was not surprising that the princess could not give birth.

It would not be a problem for Zhao Shuo to ask her to give birth to outstanding offspring for him.

However, the Mongols attacked the Jin Dynasty three years in advance, and the Princess of Qi was still young and had not yet grown up, so Zhao Shuo decided to raise her first.

After dividing the princesses, it’s time to divide the other spoils.

According to the previous agreement, Temujin would receive 30% and Zhao Shuo would receive 10%. The remaining 60% would be divided among all Mongolian soldiers according to their merits, including Zhao Shuo's.

Everyone made almost equal contributions to the siege of Zhongdu.

Then let’s divide it based on the number of people.

The Baru Camp can only take the three components of spoils as normal soldiers.

The fighting power of those newly surrendered soldiers was not strong, and they certainly could not be compared with the grassland warriors. After careful discussion, they were considered to be 60% of the normal warriors.

All in all, Zhao Shuo's share of the spoils was 31% of the total spoils of Zhongdu, which was a lot. You should know that Temujin only got 38%.

The luxurious spoils of war made Zhao Shuo gasp for breath. These spoils were:

Five hundred and twenty thousand taels of gold!
One million four hundred and fifty thousand taels of silver!

Four million six hundred and fifty thousand copper coins!
A total of 3.42 million pieces of silk, satin and other various fabrics!

32,000 heads of livestock of all kinds.

There were 411 Jurchen noble ladies.

There were 7,947 Jurchen civilian women.

Seven hundred and sixty-eight boxes of various jewels and jades.

Seven thousand craftsmen.

Of course, these spoils are the total spoils, and belong to Zhao Shuo personally, but only 30% of them.

Zhao Shuo will distribute the remaining 70% to his soldiers.

Ordinary soldiers took about 50% of the spoils, and the remaining 20% ​​was divided among the nobles under Zhao Shuo.

The soldiers under Zhao Shuo were divided into two types: one was the grassland soldiers, and the other was the newly joined Han army Eight Banners soldiers.
Since the Eight Banners of the Han Army were new recruits, they could only get 60% of the grassland warriors.

However, no Han army Eight Banners soldier complained.

Because there is so much spoils, only 60% of it belongs to the grassland warriors, which is quite a lot!
Each person received four taels of gold, ten taels of silver, three pieces of cloth, and some jewelry. All in all, each person received the equivalent of one hundred taels of silver.

One hundred taels of silver!
It’s enough to buy the life of a skilled craftsman like Sun Wei.

These Han soldiers were ordinary farmers a year ago, and even if they were sold, they would not be worth 50 taels of silver. In fact, many of them did not even have 30 taels of silver even if their entire family's wealth was added together!

Now they have made a dizzying fortune.

What's more, there are women who do it.

Although there were definitely not enough women for every soldier, many of the 45,000 soldiers were married.

If you want a woman, you can just buy her with money!
You just got so much reward money, why keep it instead of buying a woman to enjoy it?

Besides, we are not unscrupulous and we won’t ask for too much from you. We can at least come up with fifty taels of silver, right?
And the most important thing is that Zhao Shuo deliberately took some personal female slaves to sell.

There is no way, Zhao Shuo now has too many female slaves.

In Zhongdu City, Zhao Shuo divided 123 Jurchen noble ladies and 2,384 ordinary Jurchen women.

But aren't there still women in Hebei who were reduced to slavery? Zhao Shuo can also get 30%.

In addition, when Subuchi conquered Shanxi, Jebe conquered the Northeast, and Muhuali conquered Shandong, they also had to give him 10% of the share of the female slaves they obtained, and he didn't have to share any of the shares with others.

Therefore, Zhao Shuoguang now has more than nine thousand female slaves.

What use is Zhao Shuo to having so many female slaves?

It would be better to keep the thousand most talented and youngest people, either for Zhao Shuo to use himself or to reward meritorious soldiers in the future.

The remaining 8,000 or so were sold to Han soldiers. The Mongol army didn't need to worry about that. After years of war, there were already more women than men on the grasslands. The successive campaigns had divided up many women, leaving virtually no unmarried men.

With the addition of these 6,000 female slaves, basically all Han troops had wives.

With a wife, you have a family.

If Zhao Shuo gave them some land, they would be considered "good family kids".

A good family man from the Han Dynasty, the most powerful soldier in history!

Of course, ordinary Han army soldiers would not think so much.

All they knew was that after only one year with the prince consort, she had money and women, and watched her transform from a state of extreme poverty where she could barely afford food and clothing to the winner in life she is today.

Everyone's face was filled with happy smiles, and they were happier than during the Chinese New Year.

Everyone was excited and filled with gratitude towards Zhao Shuo.

"I am willing to die for your majesty!"

Someone shouted, and the 45,000 Han soldiers responded one after another, with an overwhelming force, and the sound was heard beyond the sky.

The next day, Zhao Shuo was summoned to Temujin's Golden Tent to discuss the withdrawal of troops and the aftermath of the withdrawal with other generals.

Hu Nan said, "Everything else is easy to discuss. The key is that we cede the area north of Jin's Ruihe Fort. Forget about the Yehuling defense line. There's no need to defend the 500-mile defense line, and we don't have that many soldiers. However, someone must defend Fuzhou, Changzhou, and Hengzhou. After all, that's our territory."

Temujin swept his majestic gaze over the faces of the generals and said, "So, who among you is willing to defend these three states?"

"..."

The generals looked at each other in silence.

Who is willing to guard it?
Grassland warriors were both soldiers and civilians. Not only did they have to provide their own weapons and equipment during battles, but they also had to pay taxes to the grassland nobles on weekdays.

Now, they are being stationed outside, unable to take care of their families or plunder, so they must be paid, right?
How much loss is this in and out?

As for using the taxes from the three states of Fu, Chang and Heng to make up for the income of the nobles on the grassland?
Forget it, let alone now, even after the establishment of the Yuan Dynasty, according to historical records, the Mongols did not know how to collect taxes and had to rely on the Semu people as tax farmers. The little tax collected could not make up for the losses of the grassland warriors.

During the reign of Kublai Khan, many grassland warriors became impoverished due to military service. They first sold their wives and children, and eventually even sold themselves into slavery.

When the Mongols annexed the cities of Wuluohai and Keyimen from the Western Xia, no one wanted to defend the cities. Eventually, a rotation system was established.

After some practice and calculations, these Mongolian nobles realized that the job of defending the city was too unprofitable, so they would avoid it whenever possible.

Zhao Shuo knew the inside story of the Mongols, which is why he promised Zhang Rou that he would give them land suitable for farming.

Finally, Zhao Shuo coughed lightly and said, "Father Khan, I will guard the three states of Fuchang and Heng."

"It's Ah Shuo who can help me share my worries!"

Temujin breathed a sigh of relief and said, "It's settled. The land north of Huihe Fort and south of the Wusha Fort Great Wall is Ashu's fiefdom."

If even Zhao Shuo was unwilling to defend the three cities, Temujin would have no choice but to continue to let the generals take turns guarding them.

However, these three states are too big, unlike the two small cities of Wuluohai City and Keyimen, which require a lot of troops to defend. Every time it is the turn of the nobles to guard these three states, they need to bear a huge economic pressure.
Even with Temujin's prestige, he was unwilling to offend all the nobles.

Zhao Shuo's statement really solved his urgent problem.

Starting from the next day, the Mongols began to retreat in batches.

First, Zhebei led 20,000 troops as the vanguard, Muhualiwei led 20,000 troops as the rear guard, and in the middle was a large number of craftsmen, and they retreated outside the Great Wall.

Then the 48,000 Han troops under Zhao Shuo and their families were temporarily settled in Fu, Chang and Huan states.

Next came the 20,000-strong army led by Subuchi.

Temujin's central army.

Finally, there were Zhao Shuo’s main troops and Baru Camp.

The entire retreat process was orderly and did not give the Jin army any opportunity to take advantage.

With the withdrawal of the Mongols, the results of the Mongol invasion of the Jin Dynasty, and even the "Da'an Agreement" reached with the Jin people (the Jin Dynasty's reign name this year is Da'an), quickly spread throughout the world.

The world is shocked!

(End of this chapter)