The great victory in Shahe made Kong Youde, Geng Zhongming and others even more carnivalous in Dengzhou.
Just celebrating was not enough, Kong Youde asked people to bring the captured Xie Lian and Qu Yiyang up.
"Xie Zhongcheng, the court is unethical and oppresses the good. Now that we have lost our troops and generals, we are actually destroying ourselves. Look, our Dongjiang Town has strong soldiers and horses, and it could have been used as a fortress for the imperial court. However, Your Majesty was deceived by traitors, which is why you are in today's misfortune. Think about it.
In this battle, the imperial court must be able to satisfy our brothers’ wishes, right?”
Surrounded by a pack of wolves, Xie Lian felt unafraid, his eyes suddenly widened, and he began to yell and curse at Kong Youde.
"A shameless traitor who despised Heaven's grace and humiliated the common people, wreaked havoc on the country and filled the country with murder. Now he still wants to deceive the court with clever words and tricks? Just wait, the court will definitely fight with you until death."
This thunderous talk really made the rebel generals change their colors.
They all thought of Ming's long-lasting virtue.
He does not accept the title of minister, does not pay tribute, and does not discuss peace. The emperor guards the gate of the country, and the king dies in the country.
During the Tumubao Incident in the past, the Yingzong fell into the hands of Wala, but the government and the public fought to the death. Today's situation is like this, and with the fierceness of the Ming Dynasty, I am afraid that as Xie Lian said, the court will fight for its lives in the future.
What they have captured now is only a small part of Shandong.
Thinking about the greatness of the Ming Dynasty, if they really used all their weapons to encircle and suppress them, would they still have a way to survive?
Only one person was unruly and jumped out on the spot, kicking Xie Lian.
"Next door to Mala, I fought bloody battles in Liaodong for the Zhu family emperor and even risked my life. But you are causing trouble behind my back and even hurt my foster father's life. If there is any grudge, I am the one seeking revenge from you."
It was none other than Mao Wenlong’s adopted son Mao Chenglu.
Hearing him mention the old events in Liaodong, Xie Lian kept silent, but his face was stubborn and his eyes were full of hatred and contempt.
What was right and wrong back then is now unclear.
But Dongjiang Town rebelled, and blood flowed like rivers, causing heavy losses to the court. The two sides were already locked in a fight to the death, and no words could be said in vain.
Kong Youde came out, stopped Mao Chenglu, and told his purpose.
"The matter has come to this, and the outcome has been decided. No matter what the emperor thinks, I am afraid there are no troops to send. What our brothers want is to ask Xie Zhongcheng to come and tell the emperor that if Shandong is handed over to us from now on,
Then we, Dongjiang, will still be ministers of the imperial court. If the emperor does not agree, we will go to the capital city in person to talk to him."
Xie Lian tilted his head and looked at these traitors, and after a while he sneered.
"Are you dreaming about the Spring and Autumn Period? Shandong is the throat of the imperial court, how can you allow you to run rampant here? I was not careful for a moment and fell into your trap. I will regret it for the rest of my life. I don't want to let you use me. I advise you to die.
Take heart."
Mao Chenglu pulled out his knife and shouted: "Old man, Zhu Dadian, Jin Guoqi, Xu Congzhi, we have all killed. Do you really think we dare not chop off your head?"
Xie Lian struggled to pull it up and stood upright, with no regard for life or death.
"If you want to kill or behead me, it's up to you. We are loyal to our country and have written inscriptions with our blood. How can we care about your violence and humiliation?"
After saying that, he suddenly turned to look at Qu Yiyang who was silent and scolded: "It is villains like you who have harmed the country and the people who have caused today's disaster. If I don't kill you, why should the people be angry?"
Qu Yiyang shivered in fright and waved his hands repeatedly.
"Xiaguan...Xiaguan...is really selfless..."
Xie Lian had nothing in his hand, so he took off his hat and threw it at Qu Yiyang. Not only that, he also wanted to pounce and hit Qu Yiyang.
Just as he took a step forward, a sharp knife penetrated his chest from behind.
After killing Xie Lian, Kong Youde was like killing a chicken. He went to Qu Yiyang again and said with a smile: "Master Qu, thank you for running back and forth and allowing me to have the situation I have today in Dongjiang. Speaking of which, Master Qu is my boss in Dongjiang."
As for my benefactor, I understand that you have made great achievements and become famous, so I will repay you today. As long as you return to the capital, inform the emperor of our wishes and promote peace, I believe that your rise to prominence will be just around the corner."
Qu Yiyang sat withered like a rotten tree, with a dull face, and just murmured: "The imperial court will never give up, so don't have your wishful thinking."
Kong Youde just refused to listen and drove him and several followers out of Laizhou City that day.
Qu Yiyang already understood that he had committed a heinous crime. Although the world is big, there is no place for him.
At this moment, when I think back to my previous hard work, it all turned into a stupid joke.
All the fame, fortune, and fame that went down in history were all in vain.
If the court investigates later, everyone in the family may not be able to escape.
In a daze, I walked to the bank of the Shah River.
The smell of blood was still lingering in the air, and as far as the eye could see, there were countless dead bodies on both sides of the river bank.
Every dead body seemed to stand up and rush to him, asking him why he listened to the rebels and killed them.
Qu Yiyang looked horrified, stepped back, and fell into the water with one foot.
Looking back, all that can be seen through the turbid water is a reflection that is neither human nor ghost.
"hahahahahahahahahaha……"
Qu Yiyang was completely desperate. He ignored the shouts of his followers and walked deep and shallow into the river, and finally disappeared.
When the followers on the shore saw Qu Yiyang committing suicide, they looked at each other and had to go back to deliver the message.
…………………………………………
In the early autumn, the palace was already in a state of decay. The dark wind blew between the spacious palaces, blowing away a lot of vitality.
"Kill... rush in... kill everyone inside... Chongzhen son, I will send you to meet your ancestors today..."
"ah……"
Chongzhen screamed and sat up suddenly from the warm couch. He was panting heavily and his whole body was soaked with cold sweat.
The little eunuch outside the tent rushed over and tried his best to help him calm down.
Chongzhen had a nightmare.
In the dream, the Forbidden City was breached, and I don’t know how many people rushed in. In the dream, there seemed to be farmers in ragged clothes, Jurchens with money rat tails, and rebels under the banner of Dongjiang.
There seems to be someone else, but I can’t remember them at the moment.
These people all wanted his head, and countless knives were slashed at him, as if they wanted to chop him into pieces.
After a lot of tossing, he finally calmed down a lot. He looked around and found that he was still in his bedroom, and he felt more at ease.
"What time is it?"
"Return to your Majesty, at three quarters of the Yin hour."
Chongzhen's head felt dizzy and he asked, "Will there be a court meeting today?"
"There will be no court meeting today."
Chongzhen breathed a sigh of relief.
He was a diligent emperor. Unlike his grandfather who had not been in court for decades, he never missed court meetings.
Since there was no court meeting today, he wanted to take the opportunity to sleep a little longer.
Just when he was about to fall down again, the chaotic footsteps outside his dormitory quickly approached. The sound had already reached him before anyone arrived.
"Your Majesty, urgent report from Shandong!"
Chongzhen's sleepiness suddenly disappeared and he hurriedly said: "Bring it over quickly."
Of all the things in the world today, Shandong is what concerns him the most.
After all, it was the last available soldier of the Ming Dynasty. Whether it suppressed the rebellion or not was related to the life and death of the Ming Dynasty.
The palace door opened, and someone came in wrapped in the cold wind, which made Chongzhen shiver.
But when someone came to report the news, Chongzhen's trembling turned into a show.
"Your Majesty, there is an urgent message from Babaili, Shandong. The Heavenly Army fought against the rebels in Shahe a few days ago, and the Heavenly Army was defeated. Zhu Dadian, the governor of Shandong, committed suicide. The commander-in-chief Jin Guoqi, Zu Kuan, Le Guochen and others died in the battle. Only the supervisor Gao Gao
After diving, Patrolman Xie Sanbin and a few others escaped..."
During the messenger's tearful announcement, Chongzhen's body shook uncontrollably.
"puff………………"
Finally, a mouthful of old blood spurted out, and the entire sleeping tent was in a mess.
Chongzhen didn't say anything. He fell on his back and fainted.
The accompanying eunuchs were frightened and rushed towards him in a hurry, their piercing roars resounding throughout the harem.
"Here's someone, come quickly, come and call the imperial doctor!"
When Chongzhen woke up again, he found that his house was surrounded by people.
The three closest people, Queen Zhou, Wang Chengen, and Cao Huachun, were guarding in front of her. Zhou Yanru, Wen Tiren, Wu Zongda, Zheng Yiwei, Liang Tingdong, Li Changgeng and other ministers were discussing something in a low voice.
The British were extremely public, and Duke Zhu Chunchen and other nobles were on the other side, all gloomy and silent.
Jin Yiwei Wu Mengming and Han Chuan personally guarded the entrance of the palace, their eyes full of murderous intent.
"Your Majesty is awake."
This sound was so loud that everyone seemed to have come alive and rushed to the front of the collapse.
Regardless of his weakness, Chongzhen asked tremblingly: "Shandong...is Shandong true?"
Everyone was speechless, their faces dark and decadent. But precisely because of this, Chongzhen was even more desperate.
Chongzhen closed his eyes and sighed, tears falling from the corners of his eyes.
"Could it be... is it true that God wants to destroy our country, the Ming Dynasty?"
Empress Zhou looked at her husband's weak appearance and couldn't help but turn around and glare at the ministers, hoping that they could find a way.
Zhou Yanru understood and took a step forward.
"Your Majesty, although we are defeated in this battle, our rebellion is still frightened by our heavenly power, so we sent envoys to seek peace. The situation in Shandong seems to be resolved."
Chongzhen opened his eyes suddenly, in disbelief.
"But it's the traitor's clever tongue again?"
Zhou Yanru gritted his teeth and told the truth.
"There is something rebellious, and I ask the imperial court to cede Shandong. Looking at it as a minister, it seems that it is something that comes from the bottom of my heart."
"Hahaha...hahaha..."
Chongzhen laughed and coughed at the same time, his eyes full of desolation.
"Cede Shandong? Cede Shandong? If Shandong is gone, will the Ming Dynasty still be there?"
The ministers were in awe, but no one responded.
The current situation was like this, and they racked their brains but could not think of a way to deal with it.
Moreover, as far as they were concerned, all the fighting troops had been lost, and it was a blessing among misfortunes that the rebels were able to sue for peace.
I just don’t know if the emperor on the sick bed can accept such humiliating and harsh conditions?
