Eunuch Ma saw the expressionless Pang Gang out of the corner of his eye, and he secretly hated him, but he had nothing to do about it. If he pissed off this man, everyone would not be able to bear it anymore.
"That's all, I'm a slave to you and I'm a fish to you, so let's listen to what the other person wants first."
Eunuch Ma gritted his teeth and forced a smile and said: "Pang Pang, the emperor said when our family left the capital that there are not many loyal ministers like Pang Pang who are loyal to the country in our Ming Dynasty. No matter what kind of reward I give you, it will not be too much."
, as long as it is what you want, the court will not wrong you no matter what."
"Chichi, you're kidding me. If you want to be the emperor, will Chongzhen give it to you?"
Pang Gang expressed his admiration for Eunuch Ma's ability to tell lies. He didn't believe that Yi Chongzhen's temperament would say such things. If he were in front of him now, he would definitely chop himself into eighteen pieces.
.
Pang Gang still stared at the tea cup in his hand with an expression on his face, as if he would not stop until he saw a flower.
This look made Eunuch Ma anxious and angry. He even said that he had won the job, so what else did he want? He couldn't help but asked: "Master Pangda, please say something."
"Big people, big people"
"Huh?" Pang Gang raised his head as if he had just woken up, with a confused look in his eyes, "I'm sorry, I fell asleep just now. The weather is too hot. Mr. Ma, what are you doing?
What did you just say?"
Seeing that Pang Gang was still pretending to be crazy and acting stupid, Eunuch Ma was so angry. He couldn't help but asked angrily: "Master Pang, if you give us an accurate answer, how can you save Hubei?"
"Rescue Hubei?" Pang Gang asked in shock: "Mr. Ma, are you kidding me anymore? Pang is struggling to even defend Shandong. How can he have the strength to rescue Hubei?"
"You" Eunuch Ma was furious for a while. He knew that this guy who didn't show his trump card would not agree. After stamping his feet, he said: "Mr. Pangda, before our family comes to Shandong, your Majesty
He also gave us a decree, now please kneel down and listen to the decree!"
"Oh, if you can't get soft, you can get hard. The thing I'm not afraid of is the hard one." Pang Gang thought that Chongzhen finally couldn't help but use the court and his fame and righteousness to pressure him, and the corners of his mouth couldn't help but curl up. If Chongzhen was like this
But his wishful thinking was wrong, and Pang Gang was about to have an attack when he saw Wen Renjun and Hua Yan, who had been silent until now, winking at him, meaning to listen to what the decree said before making any plans.
Okay, this is Qingzhou anyway. Are you still afraid that a mere eunuch and two small guards in royal robes can make a huge difference? Pang Gang slowly stood up, ordered his servants to put on the incense table, and went back to his room to change into an official uniform.
Afterwards, he led several of his daughters-in-law out, and there were dozens of people including the maids in the backyard. Everyone knelt on the ground densely in front of the incense table. Because Kong Ruolan was too heavy, two maids originally had to kneel down to listen to the order.
.But Eunuch Ma looked at Kong Ruolan's big belly and struggled to move, and was worried that if something happened to her because she obeyed the order, the man in front of her would not tear her into pieces, so he quickly smiled and asked the two maids to help her stand.
Listen to the order.
Seeing Pang Gang leading a large group of people to kneel down, Ma's father-in-law felt better after being so angry that Pang Gang had just made his liver tremble. At this time, he untied the yellow satin bag behind him and took out a red lacquer and gold coiled dragon box.
; Opened the box, took out a yellow silk dark dragon envelope, took out the edict from the envelope, and read it aloud.
"It is a blessing from heaven. The emperor decreed that bandits would cause harm to the country. It has been here for ten years. All the surnames have been ruined and the mausoleum was shocked (referring to the incident of Gao Yingxiang, Zhang Xianzhong, Li Zicheng and others who destroyed Fengyang and burned the imperial mausoleum in the eighth year of Chongzhen reign). All my ministers, Who wouldn’t gnash his teeth! After wandering around, Tian’s heart is in chaos. His fortune is about to turn around. The culprits are huge and evil, and they are leading each other, either conferring heads in Guanzhong one after another (referring to Gao Yingxiang and others conferring heads in Shaanxi), or pacifying and dismissing one after another, while Zuo waits and waits and wanders around Huaihe River. Dian, Lao Huihui and others are trapped in southern Henan. They are all prisoners waiting to be killed and are not a serious problem for the court. However, the intruder Li Zicheng, despite repeated defeats, has not been able to stop the fierce flames. He is running alone and still wants to succeed. He has the skills to win over and is a best friend. It is consolidated and never dispersed; small favors deceive people, and the ignorant people are willing to listen to it. The month before last, the army invaded Henan, so that all lives were devastated. If it is not wiped out with one blow, the disaster in the heart of the country will have to be stopped!
However, Ji Feng knew that the Jincao Kingdom was in chaos and showed its loyal ministers. Fortunately, Pang Gang, the right governor of Nanjing, General Dingguo, and Shandong Commander-in-Chief, served the country loyally and bravely. He resolutely sent troops to Henan and annihilated hundreds of thousands of bandits. I am very pleased. I will be loyal to the country. I will live up to you, so I hereby confer Pang Gang the title of Champion Marquis, award him with an iron scroll, and also grant him the title of General of Hussars, with a salary of thousands of stones, and the seal of the General who conquers captives. The three provinces of Henan, Hebei, and Shaanxi are all the places where the generals conquer. , Wang Qing has lived up to my great love and served the country with loyalty and courage. I appreciate this!"
When he read the last sentence, Eunuch Ma's words dragged out for a long time, like a rooster with its neck stuck. However, no one noticed this. Everyone, including Pang Gang, was already standing still. on the spot.
"Crazy, Chongzhen is crazy, he is crazy!"
This is the voice of all the people in Pang Gang's camp at the same time. Is this the same Chongzhen who has a tough attitude and claims that he will not admit his mistakes even if he is beaten to death? He actually started to ennoble himself again, not to mention others, even Pang Gang for a while My mind also fell into panic.
Let me say here that the titles of the Ming Dynasty were divided into two types: clan and relatives of meritorious officials, and the titles of the clan were further divided into two types: prince and county.
The titles of the relatives of meritorious officials are different from the five titles of the feudal society in the past, which were divided into five titles: Duke, Marquis, Prince, and Prince. A hereditary title means that it can be passed down to your son forever. As long as the Ming Dynasty survives, you can pass it on from generation to generation. Those without an iron scroll are a floating title, which means that as long as you die, the court will Take your title back.
But since the middle of the Ming Dynasty, the successive emperors of the Ming Dynasty seem to have a tacit understanding. They have not given anyone a title for more than a hundred years, let alone a title. Now, it’s crazy. Not only did he not mention his title, he also made him a hussar general and gave him the seal of general of expedition. He also stated that Pang Gang, who was in the three provinces of Shaanxi, Henan, and Hebei, could conquer rogue bandits at will.
This means that from now on, Pang Gang's troops can roam freely in these three provinces, and whatever they do is legal.
"What the hell is going on?"
Pang Gang, who felt a little dizzy, glanced at Wen Renjun and Hua Yan and forgot about the past, and found that these two people had not yet woken up.
Seeing that everyone was in a daze, Eunuch Ma coughed slightly and said: "Master Pangda, why don't you accept the order to express your gratitude!"
"Well, my lord, Pang Gang, accepted the order and thanked you for your kindness!"
Pang Gang took the imperial edict in a daze, and opened it with some uneasiness. Well, the materials of this imperial edict look very exquisite. They are all seven-color damask fabrics made of fine silk, and the patterns are mostly auspicious clouds and auspicious clouds. The crane is very magnificent, and there are flying silver dragons on both ends of the imperial edict as anti-counterfeiting signs. The words just read by Mr. Ma are indeed written on the imperial edict, and it is also covered with a bright red "Treasure of Making Imperial Orders" Big seal.
Looking at the imperial edict in his hand, Pang Gang thought maliciously: "This is a good thing. If this thing is passed down as a family heirloom, it will be worth tens of millions in four or five hundred years, right?"
Seeing that Pang Gang was still in a daze holding the imperial edict in his hand, Eunuch Ma said with a smile on his face: "Congratulations to the Marquis, you are now the first Marquis in the Ming Dynasty for more than a hundred years, and you will be the first assistant in the future.
The adults have to bow when they see you!"
Pang Gang hadn't woken up from the shock yet, so he said casually: "Well, we are all happy together!"
When Eunuch Ma saw that Pang Gang had no reaction, he couldn't help but coughed slightly and said: "Master Marquis, you see the emperor's kindness to you is beyond words. Being knighted is an honor that I have not had in the Ming Dynasty for more than a hundred years.
.You must not betray the Emperor's trust in you! I wonder when you will send troops to Hubei?"
"Uh what? Send troops to Hubei?"
Pang Gang, who was looking at the imperial edict with great joy, changed his expression when he heard what Eunuch Ma said, "Eunuch Ma, when did I say that I would send troops to Hubei?"
"Master Pangda, the emperor has just awarded you a title, you must acknowledge it!"
When Eunuch Ma saw that Pang Gang was about to refuse to admit his debt after eating it, he became anxious and shouted hurriedly: "Master Hou, the situation in Hubei is critical now. It's very critical. You can't just ignore it!"
Seeing Eunuch Ma's anxious look, Pang Gang shook the imperial edict in his hand and said: "Let's do this, Eunuch Ma. This matter is a big one. I have to discuss it with all the generals before I can make a decision. You can go to the court and take a rest."
The Japanese official will give you a reply in a few days."
"Master Hou, the military situation in Hubei is urgent. There is no need to delay!"
"Um"
Eunuch Ma wanted to say something more, but Pang Gang's sharp gaze made him speechless. At this time, a maid came over and whispered to Eunuch Ma and the others: "Eunuch, please, my lords."
Please follow your servant to the guest room to rest."
Eunuch Ma had no choice but to go to the front yard with two royal guards led by a maid.
Seeing Eunuch Ma and the others walking away, Wei Man Ting and other girls came to Pang Gang's side. Li Xuezhu, who was quick, took the imperial edict from Pang Gang's hand, leaned on Pang Gang's back, looked at it happily, and said with a smile:
"I didn't expect that my husband would be granted the title of Marquis, so wouldn't I be the Marquis's wife?"
"Ahem"
Seeing the elated Li Xuezhu, Wei Manting next to her coughed twice.
Only then did Li Xuezhu remember that there were others beside her. She blushed with embarrassment and then she quickly stood up straight, stuck out her tongue and ran towards the house with the imperial edict.
Knowing that Pang Gang had important matters to discuss with Wen Renjun and Hua Yan, Kong Ruolan said obediently: "General, I will go back to the house with you sisters first."
"Well, you go back first and walk slowly."
Pang Gang nodded and watched Kong Ruolan being supported by two maids as she slowly walked back into the house. Then he turned to his two subordinates and said, "Okay, you all have a discussion. The emperor has made me a prince and a prince."
General, what is the intention of this?"
Wen Renjun said without hesitation: "What else can you do? It's just to use a false name to get you to work for him. It's best to hurt both sides, and then he will deal with you."
Pang Gang turned his attention to Hua Yan, and Hua Yan also nodded and said: "Sir, this official thinks so too. Don't look at this imperial edict, which names you both a marquis and a general, but these are all false.
Yes, it has no practical significance at all. Did he allow you to mobilize money and food from the places along the way? Did he give you Shang Fang's sword to control the local government? None of this means anything. This means that if you want to suppress the rebellion, you can only
It can be accomplished by our own efforts in Qingzhou. We can’t expect to get any help from the local government.”
"I know!"
Pang Gang, who had recovered from the surprise just now, nodded. Chongzhen's method was not very clever. If he met someone who was die-hardly loyal to him, it would be okay. If Lu Xiangsheng did not die in the battle, if he received such an imperial edict, you
Let him climb the mountain of swords and he won't blink an eye.
"However, Chongzhen's strategy was used in the wrong place." Pang Gang sneered: "If my estimate is correct, he is hoping to drag Qingzhou and even Shandong into trouble, and then let us fight with the bandits and lose both sides.
, and finally he came out to clean up the mess, haha. I didn’t expect that he was really smart.”
Having said this, Pang Gang took a long breath, and a trace of resentment flashed in his eyes. This Chongzhen really had a good plan. In his opinion, by the time he wiped out Li Zicheng, his strength would have been almost exhausted.
Then he would send Hong Chengchou or Guan Ning cavalry to advance eastward in one fell swoop and take Shandong into his hands.
"Haha, Chongzhen, Chongzhen, you can't become Empress Dowager Cixi, and I am not Zeng Guofan. You made the wrong calculation!"
Looking at Pang Gang who was mumbling to himself, Wen Renjun and Hua Yan looked at each other. Who is the Empress Dowager Cixi and what kind of person Zeng Guofan is? How come they have never heard of it.
However, both of them knew that Pang Gang had made up his mind. Wen Renjun asked for instructions: "Sir, how should we reply to Eunuch Ma?"
Pang Gang answered with his nostrils: "Humph, let's just say that we just came back from Henan and suffered heavy losses of troops and horses. Moreover, our financial resources are limited and we are unable to pacify Hubei for the time being. We need to wait for another half year."
"Yeah. That's okay." Hua Yan nodded and said, "Let them wait for a few days before we talk."
With the deliberations of several people, the fate of Hubei was decided, but Chongzhen, who was far away in Beijing, still had no idea about all this.
The news that Pang Gang was conferred the title of Champion Marquis by the emperor quickly spread throughout the Ming Dynasty in less than a month. Even the Jurchens as far away as Liaodong also knew the news.
At this time, in the Chongzheng Palace in Shengjing, Huang Taiji was discussing state affairs with the civil and military ministers. Suddenly, news came that Pang Gang had been named Champion Marquis. This news surprised the entire Qing Dynasty's senior officials.
Huang Taiji is now fatter than half a year ago, and his small eyes are often squinted, but the cold light emanating from these eyes is sharper.
In the past six months, many things happened in the Qing Dynasty. First, Yue Tuo died of illness two months ago. His eldest son Luo Luohun inherited his title and became Baylor.
The two white flags controlled by the two brothers Dorgon and Duoduo were also silently licking their wounds due to the damage in strength during the southern invasion. On the contrary, the two yellow flags and Zhenglan flags directly under Huang Taiji were safe and sound. Therefore, for now, Huang Taiji's
On the contrary, power has become more consolidated.
In view of the fact that the Jurchens suffered too much strength in this southern invasion, Huang Taiji expanded the Han military flags that originally had only two left and right flags to four flags, each with more than 8,000 people. In this way, the number of Han military flags increased from one to one.
The number of people increased to more than 30,000, and the obedient King Kong Youde, who was familiar with firearms, was appointed by Huang Taiji as the flag master of Zhongzhenglan Banner, the Han army flag, with more than 8,000 soldiers under his command.
At this moment, the proud leader of the red flag was reporting his training results to Huang Taiji.
"I would like to report to the Emperor that the more than 8,000 soldiers under my command have been initially trained. These soldiers are already proficient in using firearms in combat. As long as the Emperor gives an order, the servant will immediately lead them to fight for the Emperor."
Huang Taiji's fat face trembled, "Oh, King Gongshun is really amazing. He actually trained a powerful firearms team so quickly. It seems that I will give you a credit."
Kong Youde quickly knelt on the ground and kowtowed: "This is all thanks to the emperor's great blessing. I don't dare to take credit."
Looking at Kong Youde with a smug look on his face, someone next to him became unhappy and heard a strange voice asking: "Since King Gongshun is so confident, why don't you lead your "elite" southward next month?
How about grabbing some more population money and food for me from the Qing Dynasty?"
"this"
Kong Youde choked at these words and his face turned red and his ears pricked. If he was asked to go south with less than 10,000 troops to rob, wouldn't that be a death sentence? Do you really think that Wu Sangui who guarded Shanhaiguan and Hong Chengchou of Xuanda were freeloaders?
Huang Taiji couldn't stand it anymore and shouted from above: "That's enough, Duduo, please stop saying a few words. Since you so want to go south again, how about I send you to go with King Gongshun?"
"Brother I know my mistake!"
Seeing Huang Taiji's anger, Duduo quickly stood back to his original seat and became silent.
After Huang Taiji drank away Duoduo, he kept looking at everyone with his sharp eyes, and said slowly: "Everyone, our Qing Dynasty has suffered frequent misfortunes this year. So far, nearly 100,000 troops have been killed, which has greatly damaged our strength.
This is all related to one person. I don’t need to tell you who this person is. I thought about it today and decided to make peace with the Ming Dynasty."
"What peace?"
Everyone couldn't help but look at each other. If they made peace with the Ming Dynasty, how could they go south in the future?
Du Du, the leader of the banner with the red flag, couldn't help but stood up and said: "Your Majesty, if we make peace with the Ming Dynasty, where will we go to harvest grass and grain?"
Huang Taiji didn't answer, his eyes swept over everyone's faces. He also knew what everyone was thinking, shook his head and sighed: "Do you think that if we don't make peace with the Ming Dynasty, we can go south as much as usual? It's still the same person who went south these two times.
Aren’t the lessons profound enough and the losses not big enough?”
As soon as Huang Taiji's words came out, everyone fell silent. In these two southern invasions, their losses totaled more than 100,000. Although most of them were from the Mongolian Eight Banners and those miscellaneous soldiers, the Jurchens' losses were no less than
Fifty thousand was enough to make the Qing Dynasty's liver tremble with pain.
(To be continued)
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