On the twenty-fourth day of the sixth lunar month of the New Calendar, the floods in Henan gradually subsided, and Emperor Zhao Han of Datong made a triumphal return with his troops.
To be precise, they only brought back their own troops, and they took a boat and stopped at Dangshan. Everyone, including Zhao Han himself, camped outside Dangshan City for isolation, and confirmed that no one was infected with the plague before continuing on their journey.
As for the various armies, each has its own arrangements.
The First Division and the Second Division, the former stationed in Dezhou and the latter stationed in Linqing, were isolated and rested in Shandong, and at the same time prepared for the Manchu and Qing Dynasties to move south. The army's food and salary were sent north along the Grand Canal for supplies.
The Third Division was stationed in Guangping Prefecture, the Fourth Division was stationed in Zhangde Prefecture, and the Fifth Division was stationed in Huaiqing Prefecture to guard against enemies in Shanxi and Northern Zhili. The army's food and wages were sent north along the Grand Canal, and then transported along the Yellow River.
The Sixth Division was transferred to Yunyang, Hubei to guard against Li Zicheng in Shaanxi.
The Seventh Division is responsible for clearing out bandits in Henan.
The Eighth Division stayed in Luoyang and was supplied with grain from Hubei.
Huang Fei, Ma Jinzhong and others from Shandong were demoted for their meritorious service, and temporarily left 1,500 young soldiers each to assist Shandong local officials in suppressing bandits. The remaining troops were all disbanded and became civilians.
To be honest, tens of thousands of people are piled up in the north, and the local area cannot be self-sufficient in food for the time being. All military rations have to be transported from the south. Manpower has to be mobilized along the way, and the civilians have to consume a lot of food. It is not much different from fighting alone outside.
Work-for-relief, allowing a large number of hungry people to transport food.
It is easy to conquer, but difficult to manage.
The goals set by Zhao Han for civil and military officials in Shandong and Henan provinces are: in the first year, eliminate bandits, control the epidemic, and divide households into households; in the second year, accept immigrants and make local people self-sufficient in food; in the third year
, can provide some food and fodder to the garrison.
Zhao Han plans to use ten years to restore Shandong and Henan to normal.
This speed has been astonishingly fast. Historically, tigers that were killed in Sichuan and liked to live alone appeared in groups. The Manchus had been immigrating to Sichuan for hundreds of years.
The immigration work of the Qing Dynasty was purely blind. Many early immigrants died. They were either eaten by wild animals or froze to death and starved to death. Whether they survived or not depended on God's will.
…
Taiyuan Shanxi.
Emperor Li Zicheng of Dashun returned to this city again.
When news of the war in Shandong and Henan reached Shanxi, and they witnessed Hauge leading his troops away, everyone knew that the Manchus would definitely not be able to conquer the world.
Since Li Zicheng returned to Shanxi, he would choose to defect again. Except for the generals who had made great enemies, such as those who had stabbed Li Zicheng in the back or killed important officials such as Song Xiance, the rest of the troops who surrendered to the Qing Dynasty fell into the arms of Li Zicheng.
"Your Majesty," Niu Jinxing suggested, "Shanxi and Shaanxi provinces have had sufficient rainfall this year, and the severe drought of more than ten years has ended. As soon as Your Majesty comes back, there will be happy rain in Shanxi and Shaanxi provinces. This is God's blessing on Your Majesty."
Your Majesty should select talents and make use of them, rectify the administration of officials, eliminate warlords, organize the people into households, encourage farming and mulberry cultivation, and must not rush to conquer the territory. There are serious epidemics in Beizhili, Shandong, and Henan. Even if they are conquered, they will still be infected with the plague.
It’s just a white space.”
Li Zicheng nodded and said: "I know everything you said. Where can you find such talents to manage the place?"
Niu Jinxing said: "We can learn from the pseudo-tong emperors in the south and use a large number of poor scholars. If they are outstanding in talent and learning, even civil servants who were demoted to the Qing Dynasty should also be reused. Restoring people's livelihood is the top priority, and the two provinces of Shanxi and Shaanxi must rest and recuperate."
"Aren't poor scholars greedy for money?" Li Zicheng asked.
Niu Jinxing said: "Everyone is greedy for money, even ministers are greedy for money. We should set rules and not change them overnight. We should also strictly control them and show no mercy to those who are corrupt and bend the law. Even brothers in the old camp who break the law must be severely punished!"
Li Zicheng sighed: "I can do it, but I'm afraid I won't be able to kill all the corrupt officials."
"It's one thing to kill them all, but another thing to kill them or not," Niu Jinxing said. "After Shanxi is pacified, envoys will be sent to Beijing to reconcile with the puppet Qing Dynasty."
Li Zicheng frowned, obviously unwilling.
Niu Jinxing advised: "Your Majesty, today, the Three Kingdoms are in a tripartite state. I, Dashun, occupy Shanxi, Shaanxi, and Gansu. The Puppet Qing Dynasty has Beizhili, Liaodong and Mongolia. The Puppet Tong Dynasty is sitting on the rich land in the south, and it is the most powerful.
Just like Cao Cao in the Three Kingdoms at the end of the Han Dynasty. If we fight against the puppet Qing Dynasty, it will be like Liu Bei fighting against Sun Quan. Wouldn’t it be that we gain advantages for Cao Cao in vain?”
Li Zicheng shook his head and said: "Tatars are Tatars. Where did Sun Quan come from? But we really can't fight with the Tatars anymore."
Niu Jinxing said: "Before Shanshan and Shaanxi are in great control, we can't go to war with the puppets."
Li Zicheng smiled helplessly: "That Zhao Han in Nanjing has defeated the Tatars repeatedly, so he must be very good at running the army. In my current state, even Shanxi has not been pacified. How can I dare to start a war with someone named Zhao?"
Niu Jinxing said: "On the one hand, we can make peace with the Puppet Qing Dynasty, and on the other hand, we can express our surrender to the Puppet Tongren. What if a real man can endure what ordinary people can't tolerate, and then he becomes a vassal to the Puppet Tongong Emperor? Does Your Majesty think so?"
"That's it." Li Zicheng admitted.
Niu Jinxing said: "Your Majesty can donate a daughter to marry the pretended emperor."
Li Zicheng adopted many orphans, both boys and girls. Yuan Shizhong, who defected and made meritorious service in Henan, once married Li Zicheng's adopted daughter in history, and was made into a legend in later generations.
Li Zicheng said: "There is no need to mention the matter of marriage. Let's send an envoy to Nanjing to test the other party's tone. Otherwise, if I am eager to marry my daughter and the other party does not accept the good offer, won't it make everyone unhappy? Maybe there will be a war over this.
"
After the negotiation, Li Zicheng selected envoys, one to go to Beijing and the other to Nanjing.
Li Zicheng and Zhao Han had never fought before, and despite the fact that they had no conflicts, they still admired Zhao Han very much. After all, they were both "emperors" with a background of rebels.
As for the Manchus, Li Zicheng hated the Manchus to the extreme. He was sitting on the throne in Beijing, and was killed by the Eight Banners Army all the way to Shaanxi. If the power was not too weak at this time and the internal instability of the territory, Li Zicheng would not reconcile with the Manchus.
According to Li Zicheng's original intention, he wanted to drive the Manchus out of Shanhaiguan and then lead his troops to fight Zhao Han!
…
Beijing.
Before the Eight Banners Army had completely withdrawn from Shaanxi, Hauge rushed back all the way, making noises about reopening the Manchuria Eight Banners Nobles Conference.
Oboi, Sony, Tan Tai and others followed Hauge fully armed, fearing that Dorgon would plot against him.
Bumu Butai, also known as Dayu'er, was the Empress of Xiaozhuang in history, and is now known as the Queen Mother of the Holy Mother. She took the young Emperor Shunzhi to the main seat in the conference room, and the nobles of each banner sat down in order according to their titles.
Gang Lin was the first to ask Hauge: "Prince Su ignored military orders and led troops back to Beijing without authorization, resulting in the loss of Shanxi and Shaanxi. It was already a serious crime, why did he need to convene the conference in tandem?"
Hauge didn't bother to pay attention to Gang Lin, but looked to the other side: "When this junior speaks, does he mean Adali or Big Belle?"
Da Beile is Daishan, the leader of the red flag, and his son is the leader of the red flag, which means that one family controls the power of the two flags.
Adali is the grandson of Daishan, and Ganglin was originally Adali's general.
After passing the imperial examination in the Manchu Qing Dynasty, Ganglin became the minister of political affairs. After he was transferred to the Zhenghuang Banner, he completely surrendered to Dorgon.
Daishan seemed to be drowsy, and opened his dim eyes: "This junior belongs to the Zhenghuang Banner, not one of my two red flags."
Ganglin had offended Hauge miserably since he defected to Dorgon, and he could not let Hauge come back. He asked: "Does Prince Su admit that he is guilty?"
Hauge did not answer directly, but scolded: "Am I guilty? Even if I am guilty, it is not your turn to speak. Who do you think you are? For a second-class La Zhangjing, allowing you to observe is already considered a compliment, so what are you doing?
Dare to really speak up and discuss matters!"
Hauge pointed at Dorgon again: "If I lose Shanxi, what will happen to Shaanxi? The soldiers of the Eight Banners under my command were not damaged at all, but it was you who suffered a series of defeats in Shandong and Henan. This is the land of the Han people, and one or two provinces have been lost.
, as long as there are still Eight Banners soldiers, we can fight back at any time. If all the Eight Banners soldiers are dead, what is the use of occupying more territory?"
As soon as this statement came out, the Manchu nobles nodded one after another, thinking that what Hauge said made sense.
The Manchu Qing Dynasty relied on its strength. If Dorgon's strength was not damaged, it would not matter no matter how big a mistake he made. However, Duduo and Azige who died in Shandong were both Dorgon's brothers.
It can be said to be a heavy loss.
Facing the menacing Hauge, Dorgon took the initiative to back down: "The defeat of Shandong and Henan was due to my command error. I did not expect the epidemic in Beijing and forcibly moved the capital of Banner and Ding, leaving Liaodong empty and exploited by the enemy. I
It has been decided to step down as regent and recommend Hauge to take up this position. The Niulu that was taken away from Hauge should also be returned to him."
When Hauge heard this, he was stunned for a moment.
Isn't it so smooth to seize power this time that Dorgon actually admitted defeat?
"Ahem!"
Daishan suddenly coughed twice and said: "Although the regent was at fault, Duduo's defeat was due to Duduo underestimating the enemy and advancing rashly. Azig was defeated because the entire army was infected with the plague, and Azige himself also died of the disease.
.The defeat of Shangqiu was due to Tong Yangjia's incompetence. If he could hold on for one or two more days, the regent would have been able to annihilate the main force of the enemy army. Moreover, although Shangqiu was defeated, the Eight Banners of Manchuria did not suffer any losses, only thousands of Han soldiers and Eight Banners died.
."
Hauge suddenly changed his color, and Daishan's speech represented the opinions of the two red flags.
Why did Dorgon admit defeat, but Daishan helped Dorgon speak up?
Bumbutai also hugged the little emperor and spoke: "What Prince Li said makes sense."
Hauge felt a chill in his vest. The two yellow flags and the two red flags all supported Dorgon!
The reason is simple. Dorgon was indeed arrogant and domineering before, but this time he has suffered heavy losses. By letting him continue to be the regent, the Empress Dowager can rest assured that Daishan will no longer feel threatened.
If Dorgon is convicted and Hauge, whose strength is intact, takes over as regent, both the Empress Dowager and Daishan will have a bright light on their backs.
Of course, Hauge also had to appease him.
After some discussion, it was decided to return all the Niulu that had been deprived last time to Hauge.
Bumbutai said: "Don't ask who is to blame. What we are discussing today is whether the plague in Beijing should be moved back to Liaodong."
Dai Shan said: "There is no danger to defend Beijing. Once the south has sufficient food supplies, more than 100,000 troops will be forced to attack the outside of Beijing. In addition, there will be a severe drought in the capital this year, and few grains of food can be harvested. There is also a raging plague.
I think we should abandon Beijing and return to the west of Shanhaiguan."
"I agree!"
"I agree too!"
A group of nobles from the Eight Banners joined in. They were all frightened by the plague.
Moreover, the Datong Army in the south is obviously not a soft persimmon. Since it cannot capture the south, why should it be trapped in Beijing? It is the last resort to retreat to Liaodong!
Dorgon, who had narrowly retained his position as regent, could not stop this decision.
When Li Zicheng's envoy arrived in Beijing, he found that the Manchus were packing their bedrolls and rolling back to their hometown in Liaodong.
So, should Beizhili, which is plagued by plague and suffers from severe drought this year, send troops to occupy it?
Li Zicheng was a little unsure, and Zhao Han didn't know how to deal with it.
