The Ming Dynasty: A bookstore sells the history of the Ming Dynasty, leaving Emperor Chongzhen bewil

"In my drunken stupor, I pick up my sword by lamplight; in my dreams, I hear bugles echoing through the camps. Eight hundred miles of roasted meat are distributed among my troops; fifty strings of music resound beyond the Great Wall; autumn brings the review of troops on the battlefield!"

"My horse gallops swiftly like the wind, my bowstring twangs like thunder. I have accomplished the affairs of the king and the world, winning fame both before and after my death. Alas, my hair has turned white!"

A young child recited a poem, swaying his head back and forth, then asked the tall, white-haired old man beside him, "Grandpa, did I recite it correctly?"

"Hahaha!"

The old man nodded in satisfaction, his wrinkles deepening as he smiled: "That's right, all right, Hang'er is really amazing."

"Grandpa, what does this poem mean?" the child asked the old man, blinking his big eyes.

"This poem tells the story of a very powerful old man. In his youth, he was a great hero who rode into battle and defended his country. But now he is old, the enemy is still there, and he can no longer go to the battlefield. One night, he was drinking wine, looking at his old sword, and drifted off to sleep, having a particularly majestic and exciting dream..."

As he spoke, the old man's thoughts seemed to drift back to the distant Jiliao defense line.

"Waaah—"

The bugle call seemed to come from the very bones. At first, it was extremely far away, as if separated by thousands of mountains and rivers, buzzing and vibrating in the eardrums; then it grew closer and closer, until the faint cracking sound of the leather bugle being inflated could be heard.

The walls of Shanhaiguan were erected inch by inch, frost seeping from the cracks in the bricks, and smoke billowing from the beacon towers of Jizhen.

"Commander-in-Chief! muster the troops at dawn!"

Fifty thousand Guan Ning cavalry stood there, a dark mass, their breath forming low-hanging clouds. Not a single person spoke; only the hissing sound of armor clashing against armor, like the flicking of a viper's tongue.

He walked toward the command platform.

The sensation of stepping on the ground was so real—the frozen earth, with its thin layer of frost, cracked underfoot with a crisp sound like rock candy breaking apart.

The moment he stepped onto the command platform, the first crack appeared in the eastern sky.

The light, like molten iron, splashed over, first reddening his helmet plume, then spreading over the 50,000 iron helmets below the platform, over countless upright spears, and finally igniting the withered grass waiting to be burned across the entire plain.

He took a deep breath, the October chill in Liaodong piercing his lungs. Just as he was about to speak—

"Master! Master!"

A sudden shout startled the old man, pulling his thoughts abruptly back from the distance.

The drill ground began to fade, the armor melted into ink stains, the soldiers turned into wisps of smoke, and the outline of Shanhaiguan in the distance resembled rice paper soaked in water, softening and fading inch by inch.

The old man turned to look at the breathless butler: "What's the matter that you're in such a panic?"

The butler took a deep breath to calm himself and replied, "His Majesty has arrived!"

Upon hearing this, the old man paused for a moment, but quickly recovered and hurriedly ordered, "Quick! Go and call everyone over..."

……

The main hall of the Sun residence.

"Your Majesty, we, your humble servants, respectfully welcome you!"

An elderly man with gray hair led his entire family, young and old, to kneel down before Emperor Chongzhen.

"Mr. Sun, please rise quickly!" Emperor Chongzhen smiled and personally helped the old man up.

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

The old man got up, and the whole family followed suit.

"Grandfather, is this the emperor you were talking about? He looks so young!" The child secretly peeked at Chongzhen and whispered to the old man.

"Stop talking nonsense."

The old man quickly stopped the child, fearing he might say something wrong.

"Haha, it doesn't matter! What's wrong with saying I'm young?"

Emperor Chongzhen laughed heartily, even bending down to the child, ruffling his hair, and asking, "Child, what's your name?"

The child was not timid and replied, "My name is Sun Zhihang."

"Sun Zhihang? Vast and boundless, what a good name!"

Emperor Chongzhen nodded in approval, then said to the old man, "Mr. Sun has a large and happy family, with filial sons and virtuous grandsons, a truly blessed family!"

"Your Majesty flatters me!" the old man replied modestly.

In fact, Chongzhen knew that he was not exaggerating; in that unchanging historical timeline, this family was a family of loyal martyrs.

In the winter of the eleventh year of the Chongzhen reign, the Qing army under Dorgon broke through the Great Wall for the fourth time and penetrated deep into the interior, sweeping across the capital region and Shandong. Most prefectures and counties either surrendered at the mere sight of them or were quickly captured. However, Gaoyang County, a small county town, had no regular troops stationed there and relied solely on civilian defense.

At this time, the old Mr. Sun mentioned by Chongzhen had been dismissed from his post and returned to his hometown for eight years. He had no responsibility to defend the land, but when the Qing army approached, he refused to leave. He spent all his family wealth to recruit local militia and led his family members, relatives by marriage, and the people of Gaoyang to defend the city.

Drawing on his early experience in border defense, he reinforced the city walls with earth and stone, and made his own firearms and logs. Every day, Mr. Sun would patrol the city with his cane, his "white beard flowing and his voice like a bell," which greatly boosted morale.

Relying solely on the descendants of the Sun family, their in-laws, and the people of Gaoyang, they fought fiercely against the Manchu army for four whole days.

Finally, the Qing army deployed heavy artillery to bombard the city, and the defenders were reduced to nothing but arrows and bricks, a truly tragic scene.

After bowing to the capital, Mr. Sun hanged himself in the main room of his home. His sons, nephews, grandsons, women and children either died in battle or committed suicide. His family was truly a family of loyal martyrs. Even the Qing army was moved by their loyalty and ordered that their bodies not be harmed and allowed them to be collected and buried.

This Mr. Sun is none other than Sun Chengzong, the former Minister of War, Grand Secretary of the Dongge Pavilion, and Commander-in-Chief of Jiliao, who was dismissed from his post in the imperial court and returned to his hometown.

It was Zhu Ziming who recommended him.

Therefore, Emperor Chongzhen came in person and personally visited Sun Chengzong.

Although it was not common for the emperor to personally visit his ministers, it was precisely because it was rare that it showed the emperor's favor, and many such visits became celebrated stories in history books.

The most famous story is undoubtedly Liu Bei's three visits to Zhuge Liang's thatched cottage.

Emperor Taizong of Tang also personally visited Li Gang's residence to inquire about his illness and sent his crown prince to inquire after him, demonstrating his respect for important officials and teachers. Emperor Taizu of Song, Zhao Kuangyin, often visited Zhao Pu's home incognito to discuss strategies for unification.

Furthermore, Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang of the Ming Dynasty once personally visited Song Lian's residence, bestowed wine upon him as a token of appreciation, and ordered his crown prince to compose the "Song of the Drunken Grand Master Song Lian".

Now that Emperor Chongzhen has personally come to the Sun residence, Sun Chengzong is truly flattered.

"Your Majesty, what brings you here so suddenly? This humble subject is both surprised and delighted!"

In the study, Sun Chengzong personally poured Chongzhen a cup of hot tea.

Emperor Chongzhen took a sip of tea and got straight to the point: "I have come here today because I have something I would like to discuss with you, sir."

"Your Majesty, please speak. This humble subject is all ears!"

Sun Chengzong stood respectfully to the side, though he already had a rough idea of ​​why the Emperor had come in person.

"Come here, I want to show you something."

As Chongzhen spoke, he stood up, took out something that looked like a scroll, went to his desk, and slowly unfurled the scroll on the desk.

Sun Chengzong followed behind him, his face full of curiosity, wondering what it was that the Emperor had brought for him to see in person.

When the scroll was unfurled, Sun Chengzong was dumbfounded.

"This is?"

"A geomantic map?"

"hiss--"

Sun Chengzong couldn't help but gasp.

Having once commanded the defense of the Ji-Liao border and fought on the battlefield, Sun Chengzong was naturally very familiar with geomantic maps, but he had never seen such a detailed geomantic map before.

Upon closer inspection, their eyes widened in shock...