"I've thought about it."

Huang Taiji nodded and said: "Now the soldiers and horses of the Ming Dynasty have gathered in Liaodong and Shanhaiguan. The defenses in other places are crude. We can bypass Harashen and break through the Xifengkou area, and we can also let the Mongols

All the tribes sent troops together, and after breaking through Xifengkou, they captured Zunhua, and then marched straight towards the capital of the Ming Dynasty."

"I have also arranged internal response over Zunhua. As long as we are fast enough and rush into the city before the defenders in Zunhua City react, we can easily capture Zunhua City."

"So where do we leave from?"

Amin frowned and said: "If we attack the Ming capital, Xifengkou will definitely be taken back by the Ming people."

The Eight Banners warriors under their command are good at attacking but not at defending, and it is impossible for them to leave too many troops to guard Xifengkou. After all, attacking the Ming Dynasty is extremely risky.

"Don't worry."

Huang Taiji said calmly: "As long as we invade Beizhili, the emperor of the Ming Dynasty will definitely order soldiers and horses from all over the country to work hard. By then the border will be empty, and we can leave from anywhere."

"Then do as you say."

Seeing that Huang Taiji had already thought about everything, Amin stopped looking for trouble. Anyway, it would be good for him to invade the Ming Dynasty.

After passing the consensus of the four Baylors, the Eight Banners troops and horses soon began to mobilize.

…

On the other side, after four days of long journey, Yuan Chonghuan and his party finally arrived at Huai'an Mansion. As soon as they arrived at Huai'an Mansion, Yuan Chonghuan took down the guard Zhou Tao who was guarding the army supplies.

"Zhou Tao, I trust you so much and entrust you with the important task of guarding the army rations. I didn't expect that you would collude with outsiders and become the rat in the barn!"

Looking at Zhou Tao, Yuan Chonghuan looked gloomy: "Tell me, who are the people colluding with you?"

If it had been anyone else, he wouldn't have rushed from the battlefield so anxiously, but Zhou Tao was sent by him, so he would have to be punished.

Glancing at Yuan Chonghuan, Zhou Tao opened his mouth, but finally closed it. Although Yuan Chonghuan is very powerful now, compared with those people, Yuan Chonghuan is not enough. Those people have been entrenched in the south of the Yangtze River for nearly two hundred years, and their relationships are intricate and powerful.

huge.

If he didn't say it, those people might still be able to save him, but if they did, not only would he die in Jiangnan, but the whole family would also die without a burial place.

"explain!"

Yuan Chonghuan shouted low, and an inexplicable aura came out of his body. At the same time, an illusory figure appeared behind him, which was Yuan Chonghuan's soul. Then, Yuan Chonghuan's soul shot out a ray of white light, hitting Zhou Tao's eyebrows.

The next moment, Zhou Tao's eyes suddenly went blank, and his whole person seemed to have turned into a puppet.

Yuan Chonghuan shouted again: "Tell me, who are the people colluding with you?"

"There are the magistrate of Huai'an Prefecture, the Dong family of Huai'an, the Zhou family of Shanyang, the Bai family of Yangzhou, and the Xu family of Huating..."

Zhou Tao was like a puppet, speaking a series of names intermittently. If there is a strong person here, it can be seen that Zhou Tao's soul is controlled by Yuan Chonghuan's soul.

Every time he hears a name, Yuan Chonghuan's face becomes uglier. These people are very important even in Jiangnan. Although these people are just some local wealthy families, their power cannot be underestimated. These people have a lot of power.

Land and money have taken root in the place for hundreds of years.

The literary style of Jiangnan is at its peak, and it is one of the two capitals. It has been leading the trend of the entire court in recent decades. The Donglin Party who came out of Jiangnan almost controlled the entire court. If Wei Zhongxian had not come out, the Ming Dynasty would have been

Completely controlled by the Donglin Party.

Behind the Donglin Party are these Jiangnan wealthy families. Even though the Donglin Party was founded by Gu Xiancheng and others, its foundation is these Jiangnan wealthy families. If these Jiangnan wealthy families had not been promoting and building momentum for him behind the scenes, otherwise Gu Xiancheng would have been a mere bystander.

How could a dismissed doctor from the Ministry of Civil Affairs have such great influence that he could persuade countless Jiangnan scholars to follow him?

You must know that there is an old saying that if you travel hundreds of miles away, life or death is uncertain. However, the Donglin Conference initiated by Gu Xiancheng and others holds a conference once or twice a year and a small meeting once a month. Each time there are many participants.

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Gu Xiancheng and the others were just some down-and-out officials. How could He Dehe allow countless Jiangnan scholars to travel hundreds of miles away to attend the meeting? Everyone made a choice because they wanted something. What they wanted from studying was fame and wealth. Gu Xiancheng and the others were down and out.

Officials cannot help others in the officialdom, and they cannot help others financially. Why do they have such great appeal? Naturally, there are people who are behind their backs to build momentum and spend a lot of money on their behalf.

Not only the Donglin Party, but also the shadows of these Jiangnan wealthy families are indispensable behind the folk book societies in various places in Jiangnan. Supporting the Donglin Party and these book societies is also of great benefit to these Jiangnan wealthy families.

These Jiangnan wealthy families are not short of money. The money to support Donglin Academy is just a drop in the bucket for them, but it can allow them to form a deep friendship with the Donglin Party.

As long as someone in Donglin Academy can ascend to a high position, they can use this friendship to let the children of their family become the disciples of these people, such as Yang Lian, Zuo Guangdou and many of their many disciples.

A descendant of a wealthy family in the south of the Yangtze River.

For these wealthy families in the south of the Yangtze River, it is not difficult for the children of the family to obtain the title of scholar or scholar. Even if they become Jinshi, it is not particularly difficult. And becoming a disciple of people like Yang Lian, Zuo Guangdou, etc. can make their children

The official career is smoother.

Moreover, there is another huge benefit of supporting academies and book clubs, that is, finding some potential stocks with great potential and investing in advance. With a small investment, you can form a deep friendship with these potential stocks, so these Jiangnan giants have great influence in officialdom.

Has an extremely large network of relationships.

"How dare they do this!"

Thinking of this, Yuan Chonghuan couldn't help but grit his teeth. Even he couldn't possibly touch so many wealthy families in the south of the Yangtze River. As long as he dared to touch these people, what awaited him was the overwhelming impeachment of countless officials. Even Zhu Youjian had to worry about it.

two.

"Dong Weng, these people can't move."

At this time, Yuan Chonghuan's aide Tang Fang also quickly advised him that compared to Yuan Chonghuan, he was born in Shaoxing Prefecture and he knew more about the power of these Jiangnan wealthy families.

"But what should we do with the military rations?"

Yuan Chonghuan gritted his teeth and said: "If I don't recover these military rations, how will I explain to the court?"

He also knows that taking down these people is not an easy task. He may be able to take down these people by force with the thousands of troops left in Huai'an Mansion, but doing so is tantamount to rebellion. In a few days, countless people will be killed.

The impeachment memorial will be placed on Zhu Youjian's head, and he will definitely be imprisoned.

But if the more than 200,000 shi of military rations are not recovered, he will not end well. Being dismissed from office and demoted back to his hometown is the best outcome.

As for finding out the truth, to be honest, he himself is not sure that stealing military rations is a capital crime. These people will definitely not be stupid enough to do it themselves. In the end, they will at most find some scapegoats, and they may not even be able to find the scapegoat.

arrive.

"Dong Weng, I'll go talk to them and ask them to return the rations!"

After thinking for a moment, Tang Fang gritted his teeth and said: "As long as the army rations are gathered together, this piece of eucalyptus will not exist."

Hearing this, Yuan Chonghuan frowned and said, "Will they spit out what they eat?"

Tang Fang whispered: "Dong Weng, I don't think they want to lose both sides."

Although those people have a huge network of connections in the officialdom, these are only connections after all, not actual power. Yuan Chonghuan has a high position and has real power. If Yuan Chonghuan is really pressed for help, both sides will suffer, and they will not feel comfortable.

More than 200,000 shi of food, which is more or less, but with the strength of those people, it is not difficult to collect it in a short time. They may not lose both sides with Yuan Chonghuan for these food.

"You go ahead."

Hearing this, Yuan Chonghuan closed his eyes and sighed. Although he could collect military rations by doing this, it was tantamount to showing weakness to those people. Those people would definitely become more and more courageous in the future, which would definitely cause a big problem in the future.

………

The sun was rising, and a layer of mist enveloped the entire capital. Outside the city gate, countless people were pushing carts and carrying burdens, waiting for the city gate to open.

squeak...squeak...

The city gate slowly opened.

At this time, the sound of horse hoofbeats sounded in the fog in the distance, and then a fast horse broke through the fog. On the horse's back was a messenger with a small red flag on his back.

"Eight hundred miles urgent!"

"Eight hundred miles urgent!"

The messenger was speeding up his horse and shouting loudly.

Seeing the appearance of the courier, the knowledgeable people in the Imperial City got out of the way one after another. The only thing that could use the eight hundred miles to rush was the urgent military situation. If the courier was accidentally stepped on, it would be in vain. If he died, it would be even worse if he could be charged with delaying a military flight.

…

Dang! Dang! Dang!

Not long after, the clear bells rang throughout the capital. All the people couldn't help but look towards the palace, and the civil and military officials who heard the bells hurried towards the palace. This bell was an urgent summons to the civil and military officials. , if there is no big deal, it will not be sounded at all. The last time it was sounded was when Zhu Youxiao passed away.

Qianqing Palace.

"Wang Zhichen is a waste! Liu Ce is also a waste!"

"A bunch of losers! All a bunch of losers!"

Zhu Youjian roared angrily, clutching the urgently sent information from Eight Hundred Miles in his hand, his expression extremely gloomy, and there was a hint of invisible panic in his eyes.

The Jurchens broke through Xifengkou and crossed the natural barrier of the Great Wall!

Han Xu and others also looked shocked. The Jurchens had entered the pass. This was the second time that the natural barrier of the Great Wall had been breached since the Gengxu Incident.

"Your Majesty, before Jian Nu arrives, please send an order to send troops from all over the country to Beijing to serve the King!"

Seeing that Zhu Youjian still hadn't responded, Han Xu said quickly.

"Immediately spread the edict to all places."

Hearing this, Zhu Youjian also woke up and said quickly.

"Your Majesty, this may not be a bad thing."

At this time, Liu Hongxun suddenly spoke.
To be continued...