Five people gathered together in a house in the eastern suburbs of Songshan. They were fat or thin, tall or low, but they were all wearing general armor, all of whom were middle-level generals of the Ming Dynasty.

One of them was black and square, tall, and was the highest-ranking one among these people. He slowly glanced at everyone and said in a deep voice: "Everyone, you all know the matter. Master Hong has ordered that the entire army abandoned all the troops in three days to evacuate Songshan. What should we do next, we must make an idea."

Another middle-aged man with short beards and a fair face said, "General Xiao Shen, what do you mean..."

General Xiao's surnamed Chancellor kept his hands on his chest and said slowly: "We are all natives from Songshan. The old and young people in our family and everything we have accumulated over the years are in this Songshan City. The army is evacuated, and the old and the weak cannot carry them, and the treasures cannot be carried, and we cannot guarantee that we can safely retreat to Mingjing. Think carefully, what are the benefits of this for us?"

Another general patted his thigh hard, "What's the benefit? Songshan was surrounded for nearly eight months, and we tried our best to defend the city, but we didn't expect that we could still not keep it. As soon as we were about to separate from our relatives and evacuate our hometown. I don't know if there is a chance to come back in this life."

General Xiao Shen nodded and said, "That's it. A great man is born in this world. If he can't even protect his relatives, what a shame it would be? We have been so hard that we have been loyal to the Ming Dynasty. Next, we should also be filial to our family."

The short-bearded man asked in confusion: "General Xiao Shen, we are all military generals, and we follow orders. Since Commander Hong issued the order to retreat, what can we do? Moreover, once the army evacuated, Songshan City will be taken away by the Tartars in a moment. Should we stay in the city and accompany the old and young people in our family to die?"

General Xiao Shen glanced at the general and said, "Since we cannot obey the orders of Commander Hong, let's change the master who gave the orders. Everyone, I have seen clearly that the Tartars are powerful and the Ming Dynasty is completely helpless. We voted for Dorgon at this time, not only can we protect our relatives in the city. If the Qing Dynasty settled in the Central Plains and became emperor in the future, you and I may also be able to achieve the merit of following the dragon."

As soon as this was said, everyone in the venue changed color. One of them said, "General Xiao Shen, no one among us knows Dorgon. Now he went to surrender. Will he kill us directly as a meticulous act?"

General Xiao Shen smiled and said, "I have already thought about it. If you agree, I will send someone out of the city and inform Dorgon of the entire evacuation plan of our army. As long as this is the case, I will gain his trust."

The short-bearded man frowned and said, "Where is Deputy General Xia! Do we want to ask him for his opinion too?"

Xiao Shen waved his hand and said, "Xia Chengde has sent his two children to Denglai, and he has no concern in his heart. How could he be united with us? If he is told about this, he will definitely notify Hong Chengchou. At that time, we will definitely die without a place to bury."

Another said, "But Deputy General Xia is the chief general of the original defenders of my Songshan City. Without his support, the few soldiers under our command could not fight against the other Ming troops in the city. Wouldn't we seek death if we do that?"

General Xiao Shen smiled faintly and said, "It is definitely not possible to seize the city, and we don't have to do that. The few of us, the lowest positions are also guards. Some of them resist the enemy on the east wall, while others defend the city gates under the city. As long as we look for an opportunity to open the east gate to welcome the Qing army into the city, they will deal with the Ming army in the city."

"You guys have enough..."

A tall and thin man who seemed to be only over twenty years old and had never spoken from beginning to end stood up, glared at General Xiao Shen, and scolded: "General Xiao Shen, if you take back your words just now, I can pretend that I didn't hear anything."

General Xiao Shen laughed twice, looked at the man coldly and said, "What if I don't take it back! What can you do?"

The tall and thin man pulled out his long sword from his waist and looked around and said, "Everyone, we are all famous Han men. How can we surrender to the Tartars? What Xiao Rongqi said is nothing but to betray his ancestors and seek a reason for his return to the Tartars. Think about it, if the Tartars enter the city, our family will be preserved, but what about the others! What should they do if the Tartars are nearly 20,000 brothers in the city and the same number of people in the city? We have been in Liaodong for a long time, and everyone knows how cruel the Tartars are. For their own relatives, do you ignore tens of thousands of creatures in the city?"

The other three were ashamed and lowered their heads without saying a word.

General Xiao Shen clapped his hands and sneered: "It's good to say, it's really good to say. You are willing to exchange the lives of tens of thousands of living beings for the lives of tens of thousands of living beings, but have you ever asked others if they are willing? There is only one life for a person, how many people will be willing to do that? Of course, you may not be."

The tall and thin man looked stunned and looked at everyone in the room. Although his expressions were different, no one stood up. Obviously they were all standing on Xiao Rongqi's side. His face was extremely disappointed, and he pointed at the knife and said, "You, you..."

Xiao Rongqi's confidence increased sharply, and he smiled and said, "Zhang Shouge, I will give you another last chance. Are you involved in this matter or not?"

The tall and thin man stood with a knife and said angrily: "I won't participate if I die?"

Xiao Rongqi's eyes suddenly became sharp and he said in a deep voice: "Then you go and die!"

The tall and thin man suddenly felt a pain in his body. He looked down in disbelief. Two long knives stabbed from his back and directly penetrated his entire body. He spat out a mouthful of blood and fell to the ground with a crooked look. His eyes were wide open until death, with endless hatred and regret.

Behind him, two men dressed in ordinary soldiers were standing there, holding a long blood-covered sword in their hands.

Xiao Rongqi waved his hand and said, "Zhang Jian is ungrateful, and he will die. Do you have any other opinions?"

Xiao Rongqi's move completely shocked the other three people. The short-bearded man stood up and said, "I am willing to follow General Xiao Shen, and everything will be followed by your orders." The other two generals also quickly bowed and expressed their willingness to serve him.

Xiao Rongqi nodded with satisfaction and looked at the two of them and said, "You two go out! Take Zhang Jian's body out and find a secret place to bury it. Remember to bury it deeper and act more meticulously, and don't let anyone discover it."

The two bowed and bowed to Xiao Rongqi, and pulled Zhang Jian's body outward.
Chapter completed!