Chapter 82: Astute and angry, with the help of a teacher to suppress
After Ma Shaoyu spent a hasty and simple New Year's Day in Shanhaiguan, he rushed to Shengjing outside the Shanhaiguan Pass with a heavy responsibility related to the life and death of the Ming Dynasty.
The deep winter of the 16th year of Chongzhen was even colder than last year. The weather showed no signs of getting better. Shortly after Ma Shaoyu left the customs, he encountered a severe snowstorm. It snowed heavily all day and night.
Sixteen of the war horses were frozen to death, and several officers and soldiers guarding the mission had their fingers rotten by the frost.
On the roads in western Liaoning, the goose-feather-like snowflakes were already up to the knees, and horses could easily sink into deep pits under the snow. The delegation arrived in the shortest possible time, enjoying the snow in the wind.
Shengjing City.
Ma Shaoyu knew very well how heavy the responsibilities he and his team were. As the head of the staff side of the Ministry of War, he was recommended by his own soldier Chen Xinjia, and he summoned his opponents twice on the platform. The emperor's favor was so great that Ma Shaoyu would do it at all costs.
ZTE in the Ming Dynasty tried its best to survive.
There are still many loyal people like him, and the Ming Dynasty cannot be said to be without people.
It's just that same sentence, Chongzhen couldn't use it, and even if he did, he couldn't use it in the right position.
Once it is used in the wrong place, the more people in the Ming Dynasty become more loyal and brave, the more the situation will develop in the direction of collapse.
Shengjing City is also covered in snow, and the Manchus who grew up in white mountains and black waters have long been accustomed to such severe cold weather.
However, there are also some younger generation of Manchu nobles who were born and grew up in Liaoshen after Nurhachi founded the country. They grew up in palaces and pavilions since childhood. Although they also followed the old Khan and the kings Baylor on many hunting trips and participated in
The war that invaded the Ming Dynasty.
After all, they are not inferior to those old people in terms of withstanding the severe cold weather.
As soon as Ma Shaoyu and his delegation arrived in Shengjing, they saw many young Manchu nobles. They were all covered in mink fur and thick brocade. Their faces were either red or pale, and their hands were clasped together for warmth. They were not like wolves and tigers in the legend.
Like the Jurchen warriors, they have a mysterious physique that is completely different from that of the Han people.
Ma Shaoyu, who was on his third mission outside the customs, saw more and more people and things as he saw the scenes. Ma Shaoyu couldn't help but have this thought in his mind:
Are Donglu really invincible?
The emperor tried to negotiate peace with the Eastern Lu to turn things around. Could Zhongxing's move really have a magical effect?
This time it was Fan Wencheng who greeted Ma Shaoyu at the post house, but both the residence of the mission and the level of banquet provided by Fan Wencheng when he entertained them were much grander than when Ma Shaoyu came to Shengjing last time.
The Qing people's approach made Ma Shaoyu slightly optimistic about the peace talks.
When he and Fan Wencheng were exchanging pleasantries, he asked: "I wonder when I will be able to see the Great Khan...to see His Majesty?"
"this……"
After Fan Wencheng glanced at the credentials brought by Ma Shaoyu, he slightly criticized the sentence written on it about the letter written by the Ming Emperor to the Khan of the Northern Kingdom, but he did not dwell on this topic, but said bluntly:
"My emperor has been suffering from cold recently and cannot see the envoy in person. I also ask the envoy to wait quietly in Shengjing for a few days. After my emperor recovers, he will summon the envoy to discuss peace."
Ma Shaoyu didn't know whether what Fan Wencheng said was true or false. After all, Donglu had deliberately found trouble to sabotage negotiations several times before. How could he know whether Fan Wencheng's statement that Huang Taiji was sick this time was a fact or something?
Another way to put pressure on yourself by retreating in order to advance?
He was confused in his heart and said anxiously: "Sir, your country and our country have exchanged more than ten letters in Ningyuan. The day before yesterday, General Wu from Ningyuan brought back 1,400 households of Liao people released by your country. The peace is achieved.
At present, once the agreement is reached, your two countries will be brothers. The east of Yuguan will be handled by your country with good justice."
Fan Wencheng smiled bitterly. He could tell from Ma Shaoyu's anxious expression that Ming Dynasty was determined to negotiate peace with the Qing Dynasty. But this time he did not lie. Huang Taiji was really ill.
"Envoy Ma, please be calm. I know that your country is worried about internal trouble due to the Western bandit troops approaching the capital. Now our court has sent Prince Rui Dorgon, Doro Rao Yubeile Abatai, Minister of Internal Affairs Turge, and
Soldiers on the border wall. As long as your country sincerely wants peace and is a brotherly alliance with our country, this force will naturally work together with your country to wipe out the Western thieves."
Ma Shaoyu was still worried and said:
"My emperor sent envoys to Liao to reward the country with silver coins. From now on, frost and dew in the spring and autumn will not harm the troops and horses, and trade between the north and the south will be carried out with Yuguan as the boundary, just like the story of Liaoyang in the past. China's business is profitable, and the people of Liaodong are profitable.
The Hua and Yi each settled in their own place and obtained their own desires. The benefit of China is also the benefit of your country. There are rumors on the road today that intruders are entrenched in the middle of Jin, and more troops and horses are sent to invade Qin and Yan, and they also garrison Zijing, Daoma, Jingxing and other passes.
.My country has raised one hundred thousand troops to kill the intruders. I am giving you silver coins, which means that if your country is willing to kill the thieves for me, you should be paid."
When Ma Shaoyu mentioned the word "ci" for gifting silver coins and the word "yi" for Huayi, Fan Wencheng looked displeased. He thought to himself that the Ming Dynasty had reached such a stage, but it still had such an arrogant behavior. It was really ridiculous.
But when Fan Wencheng thought that Huang Taiji was still on his death bed, he explained to Ma Shaoyu and said, "When you and I make peace, we are the kings of brothers. If two families work together to kill the traitors, they should share peace."
Fan Wencheng reluctantly accepted Ma Shaoyu's words, mainly because he was in a foreign country and had no other way to prompt the Qing to negotiate a peace as soon as possible.
As the military situation in the pass became more and more tense, the court's bargaining chips became less and less, and Chongzhen's attitude became more and more hasty. Donglu naturally took the initiative, and Ma Shaoyu felt more anxious because of this, feeling that Fan Wencheng's so-called emperor
Tai Chi's illness is just a delaying word, in order to obtain better negotiation conditions.
He squeezed the palms of his hands so tightly that his nails dug deeply into his flesh. Ma Shaoyu thought about the hundreds of years since the Ming Dynasty, even when Emperor Yingzong was hunting in the north, Yu Shaobao still managed to turn the tide. When would he be as humble as he is today?
When he went to the Qing Dynasty as an envoy, he still wanted to try his best to maintain the dignity of the court and Emperor Chongzhen. The bottom line conditions Chongzhen gave Ma Shaoyu were to give him coins and recognize the Qing Dynasty's right to rule Liaodong and Korea.
Liaodong and North Korea were originally occupied by the Qing Dynasty. This was actually a helpless matter, but it was just acknowledging the status quo. However, the gift of coins was really beyond the limit of Ma Shaoyu's tolerance. What he wanted to do was to find ways to negotiate with the Qing people.
The imperial court could give money to the Qing people, but only if the Qing people sent troops to assist the imperial court in suppressing the bandits. This money could not be called a gift, but was a military salary given to the Qing troops who helped suppress the bandits.
The reputation of military pay is more beautiful than the gift of coins, and if the Qing army really agrees to help suppress thieves, it will have the effect of suppressing thieves, and paying them will prevent the Qing army from looting places like the Uighurs in the Tang Dynasty.
Moreover, when troops are used, pay is used, and when the troops are stopped, pay is stopped. This is much more cost-effective than giving coins, which will lose the dignity of the court every year.
Ma Shaoyu knew very well that once the peace talks were leaked, the public resistance from both the government and the opposition would definitely destroy the peace. After Emperor Chongzhen was lost in Datong, he finally made up his mind to unite with the captives to quell the invaders and use his teachers to help suppress them. He absolutely could not
What more mistakes could happen to me as an envoy...
He remembered what the Holy Emperor said to him when he was summoned by the platform:
There are many thieves and the captives are strong. The thieves want to capture the whole world; the captives want to capture gold and silk. Use gold and silk to control the captives and go south to suppress the thieves, while our division is behind. After the captives enter the pass and go south, even if
If you try to make some changes, you will be a thief in the front, and you will be a master of the imperial government in the back. You will lose ground in front and back, and you will be in a dilemma. If you really want to make a big move, you will only bring about your own destruction.
When Ma Shaoyu was in Shanhaiguan before, he had already informed the Qing people of the rough negotiation terms in a letter. At that time, Huang Taiji seemed to be very satisfied with the terms and sent people to release more than a thousand households of Liao people to express goodwill to the Ming Dynasty.
Thinking of this matter, Ma Shaoyu decided to trust the Qing people. He felt that the characteristic of the barbarians was that they had no other intentions. Although they were fierce and brave, they could not compare with the Han people in terms of strategy and wisdom.
The emperor and Chen Xinjia came up with a way to join forces with the bandits and use their teachers to help suppress them. It was indeed a clever move.
A cold wind blew, and a few snowflakes floated into the post house. Ma Shaoyu couldn't help but shudder. Fan Wencheng smiled when he saw this, and ordered the wrappers to add clothes and charcoal to the Ming Dynasty mission, and then left.
Ma Shaoyu returned to the palace.
Huang Taiji was indeed ill.
During the Battle of Songjin, the Great Khan's condition was actually very serious. But the war was urgent at that time, and the Great Khan did not care about his health. He supported his sick body and led his troops to the front line to reinforce Dorgon and Haug. The most serious thing was
At that time, Huang Taiji's nose was bleeding and he did not dare to take even one step away from the line of fire.
After the Songjin War, Huang Taiji returned to Shengjing to rest for a period of time, and his physical condition improved greatly. But looking at it now, the improvement during that period may just be a reflection of the past.
After winter came, Huang Taiji fell ill again, and his condition became worse day by day.
After Fan Wencheng returned to the Shengjing Palace, he saw Hong Chengchou still standing in the courtyard, his head and shoulders covered with snowflakes, still motionless. He knew that since the Battle of Dangshan, Hong Chengchou had fallen out of favor in the Qing Dynasty. Although Huang Taiji
They still valued him, but Xianghuang Banner, who had suffered heavy losses, was particularly hostile to Hong Chengchou.
Tan Tai, Ao Bai, Ye Bilong, and Li Guohan, these unlucky ones in the Battle of Dangshan were either dead or imprisoned. But their families still occupied important positions in the Qing Dynasty, so they naturally hated Hong Chengchou. The other kings, Beile
Everyone was happy to see Huang Taiji's newfound desolation among his cronies, but they had always been resentful of Huang Taiji's heavy use of Han ministers to suppress the kings.
"Director Hong...Mr. Hong, how is your Majesty's health today?"
Although Hong Chengchou has lost power, Fan Wencheng understands the importance and understands that as long as the time is right, Huang Taiji will definitely re-enable Hong Chengchou. Therefore, although Fan Wencheng despised Hong Chengchou in his heart and almost couldn't help blurting out Governor Hong, but in the end
Still controlled myself.
Hong Chengchou replied expressionlessly: "Your Majesty woke up for a while, ate something, and then fell asleep again."
Fan Wencheng nodded. He saw two Nikan coats carrying toilet bowls and poured them out, so he asked them: "Is your Majesty awake?"
The two coated slaves were both Han Chinese, with a deep-seated cowardice on their faces and eyes. They both nodded their heads at the same time.
This news made Fan Wencheng feel slightly happy. It seemed that Dahan's condition had improved a little.
At this time, a voice came from the room. It was from the inner court. Heshelisoni, a nobleman of the Zhenghuang Banner who had been accompanying Huang Taiji recently, called Fan Wencheng and Hong Chengchou to come into the inner room.
The Shengjing Imperial Palace cannot be compared with the Forbidden City, and is much simpler. However, the interior decoration of Huang Taiji is still very grand. Hong Chengchou is still expressionless. His look often makes Fan Wencheng feel unpredictable. He doesn't know who this person is.
What was the former Ming Governor thinking in his mind?
Fan Wencheng himself was cautious, his face was full of concern, and he was more nervous about Huang Taiji's condition than his own parents.
Huang Taiji, who was lying on the hospital bed, leaned against the bed with Sony's support. His body was still strong and strong, and he had not lost weight due to the illness, but his face looked sallow and a bit ugly.
But Huang Taiji's eyes were exactly the same as the pair of fox eyes in Fan Wencheng's memory, exuding a sharpness and depth that made people feel bone-chilling.
Huang Taiji coughed twice and asked, "Is the Ming envoy getting anxious?"
"Reporting to your Majesty, that is exactly what it is."
"Ha ha."
Huang Taiji grinned. Due to his illness, his voice was deeper than before. He turned to Hong Chengchou and said:
"Mr. Hong, Your Majesty, at this time, you still dare to say that you will give coins to Liao and Korea, so that the soldiers of the Qing Dynasty can defend him against the bandits. Why is Your Majesty so funny?"
Hong Chengchou looked directly at Huang Taiji and said: "My emperor only has one person, the Great Khan, and Chongzhen is crazy and rebellious. That's all."
"Hahaha. Chongzhen is right in his wild rebelliousness. Then I will allow him to be wild and rebellious. Fan Wencheng will go and tell the horse envoy that the matter of granting coins will be as he said. According to the soldiers of our army who assisted the Qing Dynasty in suppressing the army.
Well, he will be paid once a month in the name of military salary. But he must also be told that in order to prevent the Ming Dynasty from deceiving the Qing Dynasty, the Ming Dynasty needs to pay three months' salary first."
Of course Fan Wencheng knew that Huang Taiji's agreement to lend his troops to help in the suppression did not mean that the Qing army really wanted to sell blood to aid the Ming Dynasty.
This is just a means of entry...
Chongzhen thought that after borrowing troops, as long as the Qing army was in front and the Ming army was behind, there would be no way for the Qing army to change sides and threaten the Ming Dynasty if there were intruders in front and Ming troops behind.
It is sad and lamentable that the wisdom and power of Chongzhen's emperor and ministers are so poor, how can they resist the Great Khan?
He didn't know that Chongzhen's strategy of borrowing teachers to help suppress the army was actually planned by him and Chen Xinjia, and even his chief assistant Zhou Yanru was not really involved in it.
Historically, Chongzhen had already planned to negotiate peace with the Qing army, and sent two missions from Ma Shaoyu to contact Huang Taiji. However, due to Chongzhen's tendency to procrastinate in doing business, until Huang Taiji fell completely ill, the peace talks and withdrawal of troops had not yet been completed.
After Huang Taiji fell ill, the matter was put on hold, and the Chuang army attacked the city of Beijing at an alarming speed. As a result, Chongzhen had already climbed up the old crooked neck tree before the plan for peace talks and withdrawal of troops was completed.
At this time, the Chuang Army invaded North China a year in advance. Although Huang Taiji was ill, he was still able to manage. Chongzhen's demand for peace talks and withdrawal of troops was stronger than before. Sun Chuanting had previously proposed peace talks and withdrawal of troops in his memorial, and transferred the Guanning Army
To resist the invading army's strategy.
Chongzhen took a step further and decided that since he wanted to imitate King Shunyi in paying tribute, why couldn't he imitate Duoyan's precedent and borrow soldiers to suppress the bandits?