I, Emperor Chongzhen, have extended the life of the Ming Dynasty by five hundred years.

Chen Yan was not surprised to see Ma Chongxi.

Such a big matter requires caution from both sides; they cannot act rashly.

Liu Fangliang was known for his composure and would certainly not easily show himself just because of a letter of surrender.

"Strategist Ma, we meet again!"

Ma Chongxi returned the greeting: "Prime Minister Chen, congratulations!"

Chen Yan feigned surprise and asked, "What brings you this joy?"

Ma Chongxi smiled and said, "Chief Minister Chen's defection from darkness to light is a great achievement. When His Majesty conquers the capital and rewards are distributed, Chief Minister Chen will certainly be among those honored!"

"Thank you for your kind words, please!"

The two politely deferred to each other and went to the front hall.

The next step was to discuss how to hand over control of Baoding Prefecture and the 200,000 troops under its command.

When Chen Yanjin entered Baoding, he accused the prefect He Fu of treason.

Many generals and soldiers still believe that He Fu was colluding with the enemy, and that Chen Yan was forced to take over Baoding.

Little did they know, they had already been "forced" to surrender.

Chen Yan spoke first: "With my troops, your army can easily take the capital, and may even be able to do so before the rebel king... no, before His Majesty the Emperor of the Great Shun Dynasty. This would be an immense achievement."

After listening, Ma Chongxi smiled faintly.

The old man was haggling, worried that if he handed over his military power, he would be discarded like a spent bird after its harbinger has served its purpose.

He took a sip of tea and slowly said, "Please rest assured, Lord Chen, our Great Shun Army has always valued its reputation. As long as you sincerely submit, His Majesty and the Marquis of Cizhou will certainly not treat you unfairly."

A sly glint flashed in Chen Yan's eyes: "Military Advisor Ma is absolutely right. Since I have decided to submit to the Great Shun, I am naturally full of sincerity. However, the handover must be handled with caution to avoid causing unnecessary panic and chaos, which would delay His Majesty and the Marquis of Cizhou's important affairs."

"That's natural."

Ma Chongxi nodded in agreement, then asked, "What suggestions does Lord Chen have?"

Chen Yan pondered for a moment and said, "First of all, the transfer of military power can be carried out in stages. I will first arrange for several trusted generals to gradually transfer military power to the generals designated by the Da Shun Army. At the same time, in order to ensure a smooth transition of the army, we should also break up the troops as much as possible to stabilize morale."

Upon hearing this, Ma Chongxi nodded repeatedly: "Lord Chen's considerations are thorough, please continue."

Chen Yan continued, "Secondly, regarding the handover of government affairs in Baoding Prefecture, I will organize all documents, account books, and detailed information on the city's population, taxes, and provisions, and hand them over to the officials sent by the Da Shun Army."

Ma Chongxi nodded slightly and said, "Lord Chen is indeed very thoughtful. So, what are your thoughts on the matter of attacking Beijing?"

Upon hearing this, a hint of hesitation flashed in Chen Yan's eyes.

However, that look flashed by and quickly disappeared.

Ma Chongxi's goal was never Baoding, but the capital!

Now that we've come this far, we have to face what's coming.

"To attack Beijing, we naturally need a large army to overwhelm the city and create an absolute advantage. My 200,000 troops, combined with the Shun army, will give us an overwhelming numerical advantage!"

"Even with Beijing's high walls and thick defenses, even if we besiege it without attacking, once the city's food supplies run out, Emperor Chongzhen will have no choice but to surrender!"

Ma Chongxi suddenly asked, "In warfare, the fewer casualties, the more advantageous it is for our army. I wonder if Lord Chen has any good strategies?"

Chen Yan sneered inwardly; this Ma Chongxi was definitely no ordinary person!

Having acquired Baoding Prefecture and 200,000 troops, he was still not satisfied and wanted me to help him take the capital!

So you've made me do all the work while you all just sit back and enjoy the fruits of my labor?

However, given the current situation, he has no choice in the matter.

"If we can find an inside agent to open the city gates from the inside, we can succeed without losing a single soldier!"

Ma Chongxi's eyes lit up, and he quickly asked, "Does Lord Chen have an inside accomplice?"

"Hahaha……"

Chen Yan suddenly burst into laughter, then said, "I have served as an official for thirty years, and my students and former subordinates are all over the country! In the capital, how many officials, big or small, dare not give me face?"

Ma Chongxi was overjoyed and stood up, bowing deeply.

"Once we capture the capital, Lord Chen will be the foremost minister of the new dynasty!"

Chen Yan said with a smile, "Can Mr. Ma make the decision?"

"Lord Chen, you may not know this, but both His Majesty and the Marquis of Cizhou are willing to listen to my advice. Lord Chen has rendered great service to the court, how dare I not report the truth?"

"good!"

Chen Yan also stood up, took Ma Chongxi's hand, and said, "I hereby promise that after this matter is accomplished, I will never forget your kindness in helping me!"

"There is no time to lose. Please return to Zhengding immediately and request the Marquis of Cizhou to take over Baoding!"

Ma Chongxi asked, "The Marquis of Cizhou still needs to make some preparations. How about we arrange to meet in three days?"

Chen Yan shook his head vigorously and said, "The longer we wait, the more things can go wrong; things might change if we delay!"

Ma Chongxi pondered for a moment, then said, "Lord Chen's consideration is indeed thorough. I will ride back immediately!"

Chen Yan nodded and said, "The sooner the better!"

The two sides reached an agreement, and Ma Chongxi led his men out of the city, speeding southward.

Zhang Wenyuan stepped forward and said, "Lord Chen, I have replaced the main generals with my own people. There may be some who are disobedient below the rank of commander, but they should not be able to cause any trouble."

"That's good!"

Chen Yan nodded, then asked, "What do the gentry and wealthy families in the city say?"

Zhang Wenyuan immediately replied, "Rest assured, Lord Chen, I have taken care of everything. All the wealthy households have pooled together a total of 1.5 million taels of silver, which you are all happy to accept!"

Chen Yan smiled with satisfaction and said, "You did a good job. Miao Gang is unreliable. It's all thanks to you for running around these past few days."

"You flatter me, Lord Chen. These are all things that I should do."

Chen Yan then said, "And those men under you, they can't work for nothing. Here's what we'll do: take 300,000 taels from that, and you decide how to distribute it!"

"This humble servant thanks Lord Chen for his generous reward!"

Zhang Wenyuan bowed respectfully, but inwardly cursed, "That stingy old fox!"

I got you 1.5 million taels of silver, so just round it up and take 1 million. Isn't that enough?

They only gave me 300,000, while you kept 1.2 million for yourself. That's outrageous!

After stepping out of the courtyard, Zhang Wenyuan said to the guard beside him, "Immediately send someone to move the silver to Lord Chen's residence, take out 30,000 taels and distribute it to everyone, and take out another 270,000 taels and move it to my residence."

"yes!"

"Keep a close eye on things when they're moving the silver. Anyone who dares to lay a finger on it, if I find out, I'll chop them up and feed them to the dogs!"

"yes!"

The guard readily agreed and then arranged for someone to move the silver.

The wealthy families in the city gathered together, with the Sun family at the head, to settle the silver transaction.

Watching the gleaming silver being carried away, I felt my heart bleeding.

But there's nothing I can do!

If the city falls, not only will we lose our money, but we'll also lose our lives.

Money can be earned back, but if you lose your life, you lose everything.

Finally, the last chest of silver was taken away, and the storeroom became empty.

Sun Laiwang looked at everyone and said, "As you all have seen, the silver has been taken, which means everyone is safe."

"Master Sun, I've heard... that this Grand Secretary is preparing to surrender the city?"

"No matter who governs Baoding, we are safe, understand?"

"If the rebel army enters the city, won't they just loot it?"

Sun Laiwang suddenly smiled, then reached into his pocket and pulled out a small flag.

Puzzled, the crowd asked, "Master Sun, what does this mean?"

"Everyone, watch carefully!"

Sun Laiwang slowly unfurled the flag, which had the character "顺" (shun, meaning smooth/favorable) in the center.

"This is the flag of the Shun army. Grand Secretary Chen said that as long as we embroider one of these flags and hang it at the gate, the Shun army will not loot when they enter the city!"

Everyone exclaimed in surprise, "Thank goodness we paid!"

Otherwise, the consequences would be unimaginable if the Shun army entered the city.

At this moment, someone asked, "Master Sun, do you have any more of these flags readily available? I'm willing to pay for them!"

"Me too! Me too!"

Seeing everyone scrambling to grab it, Sun Laiwang shook his head and said, "They only gave one away, so take a good look and go home to embroider it yourselves!"

The crowd immediately gathered around, wishing they could gouge out their eyes and embed them into the flag.

"Did you see it clearly?"

Sun Laiwang put the flag away and then said, "This matter must not be spread. Otherwise, if the entire city's inhabitants hang it up, the Shun army will have nowhere to plunder, and in the end, we will be the ones who suffer."

"Don't worry, Mr. Sun, who would tell anyone about something like this?"

"We spent real money on this; if anyone tells others, wouldn't that money have been wasted?"

"Exactly, they didn't pay, so why should they be protected?"

The crowd immediately erupted in commotion, for this had cost 1.5 million taels of silver!

Those who didn't contribute can only blame themselves for their own misdeeds; who told you not to contribute?

At this point, someone else asked, "Didn't Grand Secretary Chen say that Prefect He was colluding with the enemy, that he was arrested, and that he only took over Baoding after that? Why has he surrendered now?"

Sun Laiwang laughed and said, "Are you stupid? Don't you know who He Fu is? How could he possibly be a traitor?"

"So, Prefect He was framed?"

"What time is it? Why are you still bothering with this kind of thing?"

Sun Laiwang, somewhat impatient, waved his hand and said, "It's getting late, everyone hurry home and embroider your flags! If you can't get your flags up when the Shun army enters the city, you'll bear the consequences!"

With a smug look on their faces, everyone hurried home.