Southern Ming, my destiny is too abstract

Chapter 131 I Ask Guan Shengdijun for Instructions
"Your Highness, Zheng Tai, Huang Ting and others are secretly colluding and trying to disobey the Northern Expedition plan."

Before the banquet, Hong Xu brought several meritorious generals to the government office to report Zheng Tai for his intention to rebel.

"You will return like lightning, and the whole country will rejoice. The earth, the sea, and the sky will all be under your light..."

Zhu Cixuan listened to the songs sung by the Greek Walcon and a group of Jinxia missionaries and Dutch people, while listening to Hong Xu's report sideways.

"Although the northern expedition to the two capitals is difficult, Zheng Tai intends to use his position as a household official to emulate the general in retaking Yizhou and cutting off the supply of food and fodder to create trouble."

Hong Xu glanced at the expressionless Crown Prince and continued, "Most of the veterans are from the righteous army and have always been lawless."

"The general used to rule his army with strict discipline, which made it unbearable. If Your Highness does not pursue their past, they are still willing to follow Your Highness to drive out the Tartars and recover our country."

Zhu Cixuan nodded slightly.

What military discipline can pirates have? Zheng Zhilong was once the emperor of the sea, and Zheng Tai, Huang Ting, Hong Xu, Shi Lang and others were already accustomed to doing whatever they wanted.

Not to mention, many people surrendered to the Qing Dynasty and followed Li Chengdong, who carried out the three Jiading massacres, to wreak havoc in Fujian and Guangdong provinces.

Zheng Yanping centralized power to fight against the Qing Dynasty. After his territory expanded, he wanted to eliminate his father's old subordinates step by step.

For example, Shi Lang, Huang Wu and others were not given important positions or were afraid of being punished for their crimes, so they shaved their heads and surrendered to the Qing Dynasty.

Huang Kai was Zheng Yanping's confidant, and he was killed to scare the monkeys.

Hong Xu had no intention of fighting and surrendered.

As Zheng Yanping's cousin, Zheng Tai's family has always been obsessed with power struggles, so he instigated the old heroes to establish their own regime.

Zhu Cixuan asked, "How does Zheng Tai intend to cause trouble?"

Seeing that the prince's face was rosy and he didn't look sick, Hong Xu muttered to himself and said slowly:
"They united with the generals and forced His Highness to continue to manage Jinxia's military supplies, just like forcing the general to go to Yizhou."

"Forcing His Highness to go to Nan'ao and Guangdong, he can continue to hold the power."

Hong Xu pursed his lower lip and said, "If Your Highness unites with the civil officials and the generals to suppress him with great power, he will use the army of Siming Prefecture to establish his own independence, and then go to Wuzhou Island and secretly follow Zheng Jing to establish a separatist regime."

"If Wuzhou Island becomes difficult to survive, then we should go to Penghu and Yizhou."

Hong Xu whispered, "He Bin, who previously persuaded the general to capture Yizhou, has a close relationship with Zheng Tai."

"Chang Shouning was slandered by Zheng Tai, dismissed from his post and exiled to Yizhou. Zheng Tai had He Bin monitor him."

Hong Xu didn't finish his words.

If it really comes to a life-and-death situation, Zheng Tai still has a way to go inland.

In addition to Shi Lang and Huang Wu, there were also many local generals who surrendered to the Qing Dynasty in the two years after the defeat of Nando.

Zhu Cixuan asked, "Isn't Zheng Jing already under strict supervision by Prince Yanping?"

Hong Xu bowed his head and said, "Zheng Tai has been operating on Wuzhou Island for several years, and many officials are dependent on him."

"Even if Zheng Jing is no longer able to do so, there are still many influential members of the Zheng family on the Jinmen and Xiamen islands. Duke Ping's fifth son, Zheng Xi, is still around. He is the general's younger brother."

"The underground tunnels of Siming Prefecture's government offices are crisscrossed and connected to the surrounding camps. If Zheng Tai really wants to rebel, the chaos in Siming Prefecture will be difficult to quell."

Zhu Cixuan looked at Hong Xu and the others who still chose to be loyal to Zheng Yanping, and let out a sigh:

"After all, it was after the defeat in Nandu that the generals began to doubt the fate of the country, and that's why they were hesitant."

"Wait and see how I ask for life from heaven."

The sacred chant has come to an end.

"In the three great halls of the Forbidden City, we will return again, together with all Chinese people, Constantine, Cixuan, and Zhu."

……

The banquet was postponed for one day due to the prince's illness and went on as normal.

All the officials in Jinxia heaved a sigh of relief when they saw that the prince looked normal at the banquet.

However, Zheng Tai and other honorary generals were late, and the atmosphere of the festive banquet suddenly became tense.

Zheng Yanping, who was sitting in the deputy position, had a changing expression. Despite repeated urging, Zheng Tai still did not come. Zheng Yanping's eyes were already terrifyingly cold.

It was not until the sun began to set that Zheng Tai and his group finally arrived.

After bowing to the Crown Prince and Koxinga, Zheng Tai finally took his seat and began to apologize, "Your Highness and General, please forgive me."

"After His Royal Highness the Crown Prince recaptured Haicheng, the Qing army has begun gathering troops in the surrounding area."

"I and the other generals were discussing matters concerning garrison and fodder, and so I am a little late."

Zheng Yanping didn't accept Zheng Tai's toast. "I've assigned Ma Xin to guard the Haicheng Haimen frontier. I've also left half of the food and fodder Your Highness brought on land. Is there anything I can do for you, Officer Zheng?"

Zheng Tai looked directly at his cousin. "The prince's title is so resounding that the Qing army was horrified. The Fujian Governor-General Li Shutai and Geng Jimao both began to transfer troops from Fuzhou and Quanzhou to defend Zhangzhou."

"It is very similar to the attack last year when General Dasu led an army of 200,000. Ma Xin's troops are small in number, so I have discussed with the other generals and transferred troops from Wuzhou and Penghu to defend Haimen and Simingzhou."

Zheng Yanping sneered twice: "The pseudo-Qing army really has an endless supply of troops."

"Last year, an army of 200,000 was defeated miserably. This year, an army of over 100,000 attacked Yunnan and Yunnan. Now, another large army is attacking Jinxia and Haimen."

Zheng Tai sighed slowly: "After all, the pseudo-Qing court owns the entire Chinese nation, with millions of people, and the conscription and payment of soldiers are much greater than ours."

"If we don't rest for a few years, it will be difficult to recover the lost territory. Even if we can capture one or two counties, we will still be trapped in the vast land."

Zheng Tai said, looking across at Zhang Huangyan: "Even if we rely on our maritime advantages to penetrate deep into our homeland, we will end up like Zhang Mingzhen, who entered the Yangtze River three times but returned empty-handed."

Zheng Yanping narrowed his eyes: "You are against His Highness and me marching north to attack the capital."

Zheng Tai bowed his head slightly and said, "I dare not, but after three years of war, Jin and Xiamen are indeed short of food and money."

"In previous years, the five major commercial enterprises and the contributions of the coastal gentry were sufficient to cover the daily expenses of the Jinxia army."

"Now half the soldiers are gone, and the pseudo-Qing has relocated its borders and closed its sea trade, completely cutting off the five major merchants' trade with the coast. There are no gentry in the coastal areas to contribute to the military pay. Even for this year's daily military pay, we are still short of 500,000 taels."

Zheng Tai looked at Zhu Cixuan and said seriously, "Your Highness has already inspected the silver and rice that he brought from Southeast Asia."

"Your Highness's two thousand elite troops are enough for the Northern Expedition. If Jin and Xiamen send troops, they will firstly have no food, and secondly, they can only come up with 100,000 taels of silver for military supplies by scraping together here and there."

Is one hundred thousand taels too little?
When Emperor Longwu tried to win over Prince Lu's army, he only sent 100,000 taels.

Two taels of silver for each elite soldier is enough for 5,000 elite soldiers to fight for a year.

Even the monthly allowance and wages of ordinary soldiers are enough to cover the annual expenses of 10,000 soldiers.

But it was indeed not much. Zheng Yanping paid out protection fees in the East China Sea. The protection fee for a large ship was two thousand taels a year, and one hundred thousand taels meant fifty ships.

Huang Ting, who was beside Zheng Tai, said, "Your Highness, Lord Guoxing, Haicheng will be deployed soon. To ensure the stability of Jinxia, ​​all troops and military pay should be used in Haicheng."

"Besides, the winds at sea are about to change. How can we possibly reach the capital? If we sail along the coast, we might be discovered by the Qing army in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Shandong, and Qi. Then the pseudo-Qing court would dispatch troops from all over the country to defend the capital."

"For now, it's better to focus on Zhangzhou, Jinmen and Xiamen. Once the food and supplies arrive from Southeast Asia, we can then plan for Guangdong, Jiangsu and Zhejiang, or even the two capitals."

The honorable generals behind Zheng Tai each looked at Crown Prince Yongli.

You recapture Haicheng and bring Zheng Yanping with you to bring down the enemy with overwhelming force.

Now we have to defend Haicheng and protect your achievements. There is nothing wrong with that.

This is the countermeasure they discussed, and it leaves you with no room for error in military terms.

Politically, no military general is clean. If they bring up the Chang Shouning case again to find fault with him and then use spy remarks to smear him, that would be great.

Zhu Cixuan calmly looked at the Jinxia generals and chuckled, "The gentry and common people of Siming Prefecture have sent many delicacies to this banquet. How can we enjoy them while wearing armor?"

"We'll talk about it after the march and the banquet. Now, let's take off our armor and enjoy the banquet."

Upon hearing this, Zheng Tai and others subconsciously looked at the fully armed imperial soldiers surrounding the office.

Why do I wear armor to the banquet? Isn’t it to prevent you, the prince, from hosting a Hongmen Banquet?
Zhu Cixuan spoke again: "It's a hot summer day, take off your armor and cool down."

Zheng Yanping slammed the table and said, "His Highness told you to take off your armor, didn't you hear?!"

Zheng Tai bowed and said, "Your Highness, please forgive me. The Qing army could attack at any time, and the town commanders are wearing armor so they can rush to the battlefield at any time." "Not only us, but the deputy generals and guerrillas outside the government office are also carrying weapons and preparing to go to Haimen and Haicheng to assist General Ma Xin."

Zhu Cixuan seemed oblivious to the threat in Zheng Tai's words. He turned to Chen Shangchuan and asked, "Chen Shengcai, you're from eastern Guangdong. Do you know the last words of Mr. Xi'an from your hometown?"

Chen Shangchuan was from Gaozhou Prefecture in eastern Guangdong. In the 15th year of Chongzhen, he studied at Zhaoqing Prefecture School.

It just happened that Emperor Yongli ascended the throne in Zhaoqing.

Although he was young, he was a veteran in the Yongli court.

Chen Shangchuan thought for a moment and said, "Your Highness, Mr. Xi'an was implicated in the Lan Yu case and composed a poem before his execution. The tortoise drum beats three times urgently, the sun sets over the western hills. There are no guesthouses in the underworld, where shall I stay tonight?"

The honored generals were no longer ignorant, but were reminded by their subordinates.

I also learned about Lan Yu's domineering behavior at Emperor Gao's banquet.

Zheng Tai felt pressured when Huang Ting and the others were looking at him. He paused for a moment and said, "Your Highness, please protect us."

"Simingzhou is still far from Haicheng, so there's still time to put on our armor. Then let's take off our armor and have a feast, so as to live up to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince's painstaking efforts."

Zhu Cixuan spotted the bird gun that Zheng Tai had placed on the table and waved, "It just so happens that I discovered a new type of fire gun from a Westerner."

"I need to introduce it to the generals. Someone bring two flintlock rifles and call all the generals outside the office to see it."

Zheng Tai couldn't figure out the prince's approach for a while.

Call the mid-level generals, eliminate them all at once, and take away their military power?

That's too naive. The deputy generals' guerrilla confidants are spread throughout the army, and then the army will really get into chaos.

When the deputy generals of each town came to the yard, Zhu Cixuan gestured and showed the musket to the honorable generals.

"I just realized that I had a flint-fired musket this morning."

"Compared to the old musket, this flintlock rifle is slightly faster to reload, has a slightly longer range, and is less susceptible to moisture."

Zheng Tai raised his eyebrows. Their army was also equipped with this kind of musket, so there was nothing special about it.

"Your Highness is right. Unfortunately, this flintlock gun is more expensive to manufacture than the old fire gun. Each gun costs an extra seven or eight taels of silver. Therefore, only the elite soldiers in the army are equipped with it."

Zhu Cixuan smiled and said, "I see. However, Nanyang is still much cheaper. Let's see what the difference is between those made in Jinxia and those made in Nanyang."

Zheng Tai and the others were startled when they heard this, and looked nervously at the prince's personal guards around them.

Then the latter did not take action to arrest anyone as they expected.

Zhu Cixuan loaded the gunpowder and lead bullets: "General Zheng, please use your bird gun to compare."

Zheng Tai hesitated for a moment, took out a gunpowder spoon from the bag on his waist, and poured gunpowder into the gun barrel.

Zhu Cixuan waited until Zheng Tai, Huang Ting and the others had placed the bullets, then he immediately said, "That's enough. Nine muskets are enough."

"Nine is a good number for me today."

"But before you test the gun, I still have to say something."

Zhu Cixuan looked at the honored generals who were clutching their muskets and swords: "I know that some of you have neglected your duties and exploited the people."

"But these are minor offenses, and the Imperial Censor will investigate them. Besides, I even forgave the West Camp generals for defecting to the Qing in Yunnan and Yunnan, so why would I bother with these minor offenses of yours?"

Upon hearing this, many generals breathed a sigh of relief.

"As the saying goes, an incompetent commander tires out his troops. Guo Xingnan's arrogance led to the disastrous defeat of a 200,000-man army and the utter defeat of the anti-righteous forces in Jiangsu and Zhejiang. Isn't he the most guilty?"

Zheng Yanping was stunned on the spot, and immediately bowed his head and apologized: "Your Highness, please punish me."

Zhu Cixuan shook his head and knocked on the table. "The Qing army is stalling, making it difficult to conquer the Southern Capital. The failure of the Northern Expedition is due to fate, not man. What is the crime of the Prince of Yanping?"

"In my opinion, your crime is that Yuedong missed the opportunity to fight, which led to the defeat of the King of Jin in Yuedong."

"Zhoushan murdered his colleagues and harmed Zhang Mingzhen."

"Jinxia arbitrarily imprisoned members of the royal family, disobeyed the imperial edict, and placed Prince Lu under house arrest."

"You can admit these three crimes."

Zheng Yanping was somewhat indignant, but he opened his mouth and sighed, "I admit these three crimes."

Zhu Cixuan immediately looked at the shocked Prince of Lu, Zhang Huangyan:

"Prince of Lu, Zhu Yihai, Emperor Longwu ascended the throne in Fujian. You took over the state without authorization. Even with the enemy on the battlefield, you still engaged in internal strife. You must plead guilty to this crime."

Zhu Yihai was also stunned when he was suddenly mentioned. When Zhang Huangyan pulled his sleeve, he immediately came to his senses and said, "I know my crime. Please punish me, Your Highness."

"Zhang Huangyan, you are arrogant and self-centered. You refuse to follow the national flag and fight for the restoration of the Dutch. You are guilty."

Zhang Huangyan, who had been prepared, immediately stepped out and knelt beside Zheng Yanping and Zhu Yihai: "I acknowledge my guilt."

Zhu Cixuan asked three questions, and the three most powerful people in Jinxia knelt on the ground, and everyone was at a loss.

Only Zheng Tai was terrified, sweating profusely, as if he had fallen into an abyss.

Nine muskets, only five sins.

Who else does Zhu Cixuan want to talk about?
Zheng Yanping and Prince Zhu both pleaded guilty, and the meritorious generals who were not implicated would definitely not be involved.

The alliance between veterans and veterans has split.

Zheng Tai found that some of the generals began to distance themselves from him and Huang Ting and his men, and almost wanted to start a rebellion immediately.

But the Book of Life and Death has already called his name.

"Housekeeper Zheng Tai, you have been corrupt and abused your power, harming the people. Do you admit your guilt?"

Zheng Tai immediately stood up and said, "The Crown Prince has just arrived in Jinsha. I'm afraid he has been misled by villains and believed the rumors."

"I have served as the household official for six years, working diligently and conscientiously. It is Chang Shouning, on the other hand, who is a spy from the Eastern Tartars and has been trying to sow discord between the old generals and the imperial clan in Jinxia."

"Now they are alienating us from His Highness."

Zhu Cixuan chuckled twice. "I don't know who Chang Shouning is. It's just that in Siming Prefecture, some people complained about grievances, so I did some research on you."

Liu Xuanchu seized the opportunity, holding a piece of paper, stepped out and said, "This is an investigation into the corruption and dereliction of duty of the household official Zheng Tai. Zheng Tai has become a protective umbrella for himself and his family and subordinates, exploiting the people of the village, and violating the righteous cause of resisting the Qing and saving the people."

"The gentry and common people contributed to the military pay, but the over-collection was under-reported by 920700 taels."

"113362 taels of grain were extorted from the people, and their property was seized."

"Jinxia Trade embezzled 529560 taels of profit."

"He pocketed 52500 taels of Yizhou tax revenue."

"The military supplies and grain department reported an over-reported loss of 584100 taels."

"66000 taels of Japanese silver and South Asian spices."

"100000 taels for private use of ships for business."

"Household official Zheng Tai served for six years and embezzled a total of 2,366,222 taels of silver."

Zheng Tai shouted, "I didn't do that, you are slandering me!"

How could he be so greedy? It was only a few hundred thousand taels. Was the extra two million just to settle the account?
I thought Zhu Cixuan was going to use Chang Shouning to cause trouble, but it turned out to be a fabrication.

Seven sins, won’t all nine muskets hit him?

While Zheng Tai was still crying out for justice, Huang Ting and Huang Zhao had already snatched the bird gun from his hand, twisted his arm, and forced him to kneel beside Koxinga.

Prince Yongli only criticized the main culprit, which was unfair to you, Zheng Tai.

Damn it, we thought you only embezzled more than a hundred boxes of silver. No wonder you have always been at odds with Koxinga and refused to submit to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince.

(End of this chapter)