The five thousand soldiers who defected were provided with two meals a day. Their weapons and armor had been confiscated by the Datong Army, but no one cared about it.
If their family members were not still in Shanxi, they would even want to settle in Huaiqing Mansion!
Missionaries came every day, one hundred people per team, divided into five teams to visit the countryside. Five hundred people set out in one day, and they all visited in ten days.
There are not many immigrants in Huaiqing Prefecture, and there are not many surviving local people. It can be said that the land is vast and sparsely populated. After the government allocates the land to the farmers, the unowned land can also be reclaimed. It is regarded as the government renting it to the farmers until the immigrants come.
Then divide them out.
Hard-working people always think about plowing as much as they can, and work hard day and night.
Two consecutive years of bumper harvests made them rich quickly. They cultivated some unclaimed land without reporting it, so there were always a few fish that slipped through the net, and the harvest was full of grain.
Another five hundred Dashun soldiers came back to the camp from a visit to a nearby village.
"The farmers here are extremely rich. Every household has food. The house I went to see had a big earthen warehouse filled with food."
"The government's land tax is not heavy, and you don't have to do corvee work. Your life is so comfortable, even if you were a god, you wouldn't do it."
"The whole family should have fled to Henan in the first place. Why did they stay in that damn Shanxi?"
"There was a plague in Henan a few years ago. I don't know how many people died."
"We are here, but my mother-in-law and baby are still in Shanxi. Even if Marshal Hao wants to run away, he should wait a few more days until we can bring his family with us."
"Yes, it would be great if my son's mother is here. When the time comes, he will not be a soldier, and the whole family will farm the land honestly. I will wake up laughing in my dreams that day."
"..."
A group of Datong dragoons suddenly rushed into the military camp and called Hao Yaoqi's subordinate general: "You can go back to Shanxi!"
The surrendered generals were stunned and at a loss.
The dragoon general's name was Sui Bin, and he said with a smile: "Don't be afraid. Go back and tell Li Zicheng that you were tricked by Hao Yaoqi. You didn't even bring your family with you. How can you show your sincerity?"
Five thousand unarmed soldiers surrendered and were escorted back to Shanxi by dragoons.
Before leaving, some single men and bastards who didn't care about their families knelt on the ground and cried that they didn't want to go back. They wanted to stay in Henan and divide their fields and become farmers.
If you don't want to go back, you have to go back. Five thousand soldiers are five thousand voluntary propagandists.
When they arrived at the pass occupied by the Datong Army, the general guarding the pass was shocked, thinking that the Datong Army was coming to kill them.
After some inquiries, the general guarding the gate did not dare to neglect and immediately sent someone to deliver the message quickly.
Li Zicheng, who was too far away, was extremely confused when he received the news. He called Niu Jinxing and asked: "Prime Minister Niu, what kind of medicine is sold in this gourd named Zhao? If there is a general from the south who defected with his troops, we will definitely promise him a high official and a generous salary."
, why did he kill Hao Yaoqi? When the news spreads, who will dare to surrender when the two armies fight in the future? "
Niu Jinxing was also confused and said: "It is better to recruit people to Taiyuan and interview them in person. As for the rebels who came back, they cannot be reused or severely punished. They did not bring their families and they were all kidnapped by Hao Yaoqi.
.”
The two sides handed over at the pass, and most of the dragoons returned. The remaining one hundred dragoons escorted the civilian officials of the envoy and headed all the way towards Taiyuan.
Li Zicheng was also generous and did not confiscate the equipment of the dragoons, allowing them to travel fully armed.
The civil servant who led the envoy was named Liu Xiangke, who was from Fuping, Shaanxi Province. He was a scholar and went south with Fu Shan. Now he is a junior official in the Ministry of Rites of the Datong court.
Historically, this guy had a bad reputation. He was the "Tiger Skin" among the "Five Tigers of Southern Ming Dynasty".
The five people controlled the government, excluded dissidents, took bribes and perverted the law. However, Liu Xiangke still had a bottom line and did not surrender to the Qing Dynasty in the end. Instead, he fled into the mountains and refused to become an official.
The other four people were extremely disgusting.
The tiger-headed Yuan Pengnian was the son of Yuan Zhongdao. After surrendering to the Qing Dynasty, he drafted a notice saying: "Money and rat tail are the elegance and integrity of the new dynasty; Eguan Bodai is the bad rule of the country."
When he learned that Jin Shenghuan was raising troops in Jiangxi and that Li Chengdong also intended to fight against the Qing Dynasty, he immediately helped Li Chengdong plan and took control of the affairs of the Southern Ming Dynasty. Emperor Yongli once got so angry that he directly said: "From now on, official promotions will be decided by Yuan Pengnian.
"This guy even dared to quarrel with Emperor Yongli in person.
After the collapse of the Yongli court, Yuan Pengnian surrendered to the Qing Dynasty again. Even the Qing Dynasty did not want him, thinking that he was a repeating villain.
Although Huya Jinbao did not surrender to the Qing Dynasty, he became a wealthy monk and often visited the homes of Manchu and Qing dignitaries. He also wrote "Pingnan Wang Yuan Gong Chui Model" to set up a monument and a biography for Shang Kexi.
Tiger tail Ding Shikui, Ma Liu Jiangqing.
Tiger Claw Meng Zhengfa lived in seclusion in Hunan and wrote books to clean up his party members and describe himself as an upright gentleman.
Today's Liu Xiangke is not a tiger skin. When he went south to defect to the south, he was even a passionate young man. Not only was he not corrupt and bending the law, but he was also known as "corrupt" in the generally clean Datong court. He had been an official for several years and still lived in official dormitories.
My usual salary is spent on buying books, and my only hobby is attending cultural events.
Zhao Han did not have a palace, nor did Li Zicheng. He had been living in the Jin Palace.
Liu Xiangke, escorted by several dragoons, came to the palace of Jin Dynasty to meet with him. He bowed his hands and said: "Liu Xiangke, the head of the Rites Department of the Datong Imperial Court, pays homage to His Highness."
"How dare you not kneel down before your Majesty!" a eunuch scolded sternly.
Liu Xiangke stood with his hands behind his hands, held his head high and said: "My Majesty, the Emperor of Datong, has canceled the kneeling ceremony. Even if I are to meet the Emperor of Datong, I don't have to kneel, let alone to meet the false emperor!"
The guards on the left and right were about to take action. Li Zicheng raised his hand and said with a smile: "If you don't kneel down, then you won't kneel down. From your accent, do you think you're from Shaanxi too?"
Liu Xiangke said: "I am from Fuping, Shaanxi."
Li Zicheng asked someone to give him a seat and said with a smile: "There are very few Shaanxi officials in Nanjing. If you are bullied by the southerners, you can stay in Taiyuan and serve as an official. You are very brave and courageous. I am short of such civil servants. You
You are a sixth-rank official in Nanjing. As long as you stay in Taiyuan, I will promote you to the fifth rank!"
Liu Xiang pointed his halberd and sneered: "If I stay, will you dare to accept me? To induce a country's envoys to defect is the same as starting a war!"
"Hahahaha," Li Zicheng laughed, "It's so interesting. How many officials like you are there in the Nanjing court?"
Liu Xiangke said: "In my Datong court, there are countless capable ministers and outstanding officials, and there are countless upright and honest officials. People like me are not worth mentioning at all. To be the head of the Ministry of Rites is already a great blessing from Your Majesty."
Li Zicheng didn't want to listen to the other party's bragging anymore, so he just asked: "Why did Emperor Zhao of Nanjing kill Hao Yaoqi?"
Liu Xiangke asked back: "Why did Hao Yaoqi defect?"
Li Zicheng said: "He is corrupt, perverts the law, and does not obey the emperor's orders. He is afraid that I will punish him."
Liu Xiangke laughed and said: "What's the use of keeping those who are corrupt and pervert the law? Will I, the Emperor of Datong, want something that you don't want? In my Datong court, anyone who embezzles more than 20 taels of silver will be punished by being thrown out of office, or even exiled!"
"
Hearing this, Li Zicheng was solemn and sighed for the last time.
Liu Xiangke added: "My Majesty, the Emperor of Datong, came from a humble background and started as a young scholar. It is precisely because I have a heart for all people and cannot tolerate corrupt officials that I have billions of people to return to my heart. Even after ascending the throne and proclaiming the emperor, I have not forgotten it.
Original intention. Your Excellency, do you know the "Sanyuan Chapter"? The people are the basis! I don't want a person who exploits the people! Even in the two provinces of Shanxi and Shaanxi, Your Majesty asked me to bring you a message."
"What words?" Li Zicheng asked.
"Your Majesty said," Liu Xiangke said with a smile, "in these two provinces of Shanxi and Shaanxi, I hope you will treat the people well. When Nanjing's money and food are ready, your Majesty will send troops to get them. If you are aware of current affairs, you can also come to Nanjing with your household registration map."
offer."
Li Zicheng was so angry that he laughed: "What a loud tone!"
The Datong court has gone through the most difficult period, and will have enough military supplies next year. This is deliberately irritating Li Zicheng. It is best for Li Zicheng to take the initiative to attack and cause a big defeat outside Shanxi.
The terrain in Shanxi is really difficult to penetrate, there are mountains and passes everywhere!
Even if the Datong Army wants to attack, it will attack Northern Zhili first, and then attack Shanxi after finishing the Qing Dynasty.
The beheading of Hao Yaoqi this time is also paving the way for the future attack on Shanxi. The soldiers and civilians may not believe what Xizuo said to the merchants. If the five thousand soldiers went back to publicize it, they could quickly spread the benevolence and righteousness of Emperor Zhao of Nanjing among the Dashun army.
, is very kind to the people, and everyone can have enough to eat.
Many landowners in Shanxi have been convinced by Xi Zuo that even if their land is taken away, they are willing to welcome the Datong Army.
Li Zicheng's official administration was indeed good, but that was only relative to the Ming Dynasty, and also relative to the people at the bottom.
The real situation is: Civil servants are suppressed by military generals. As long as there are military garrison places, military commanders basically have the final say. It is difficult for civilian officials to be corrupt, they can only be corrupt. The real corrupt officials are all local military commanders. Moreover, Shanxi has experienced
After more than ten years of drought and war, there are not many ordinary people left. If military generals want to plunder, they must attack landlords and businessmen.
Life for the gentry and merchants in Shanxi was not very easy.
What's more important is the psychological problem of those generals. They climbed out of the mountains of corpses and settled down for a few years before they felt that they could start to enjoy happiness. Moreover, they knew military affairs. After the Datong Army defeated the Manchu Qing Dynasty back to Liaodong, they
I don’t think Li Zicheng can win, and he will be destroyed by Zhao Han sooner or later.
In this case, take the opportunity to make some money and enjoy it.
Most of Li Zicheng's top generals were corrupt and depraved, and their morale as well as their military morale had long since disintegrated.
After waving Liu Xiangke to leave, Niu Jinxing walked out of the side hall.
"How?" Li Zicheng asked.
Niu Jinxing shook his head: "I have no clue. But I'm sure that Zhao doesn't take us seriously."
Li Zicheng said: "After two years of food storage, we are ready to fight. If we want to march south, where should we start?"
Niu Jinxing said: "When it comes to fighting, your Majesty knows better than I do."
Li Zicheng fell silent immediately.
Where else to start? Of course, attack Beizhili.
In the entire Northern Zhili, Li Zicheng occupies most of it, and Zhao Han occupies a small half. In future wars, Hebei will definitely be the battlefield, and there are no natural dangers there, and it all depends on the defense of cities.
By then, strategies and other tactics will have no effect, and combat effectiveness and logistics will have to be competed with real swords and guns.
Niu Jinxing suddenly said: "It's better to make an appointment with the Tatars and send troops together next year!"