The Lantern Festival in the first year of Guangzhong, or should be said to be the first year of Showa in the Qing Dynasty, was not peaceful.
The pain caused by the hair-shaving order has not yet subsided, and the people near Beijing have been burdened with a new heavy burden. Although the Qing government relied on the hair-shaving order and confiscated the property of many gentry, Dorgon still felt that the military resources were insufficient.
Therefore, after discussing with the cabinet, the inner court was ordered to draft measures to increase the annual revenue.
As a result, not only were the three rates restored, but in addition to Liao rates, training rates, and suppression rates, a new Eastern Division rate was added.
The burden on the people in the north seems to be particularly heavy.
In the early morning, the thick snow on the branches had not yet been disturbed. The whole tree lowered its head and leaned crookedly. The whole valley was quiet, as if it was afraid of waking anyone from their deep sleep.
The smoke slowly rose into the sky, the courtyard door was opened with great effort and made a creaking sound. People with shaved braided hair quietly followed the footprints. Bijia Mountain always stood there, and the Liuhe River was still mostly frozen.
No matter how mobile they are, when people meet on New Year's Day, they just exchange casual greetings and nod slightly.
The sky is filled with flying snow, the sun will not come out, and only the west wind is blowing quietly.
The snow that used to feel like sugar to the people in Beijing now only makes these people who have subjugated their country feel extremely sad and desolate.
The Hu cavalry rode through the snow, and the four legs of the war horse were nearly half deep into the snow. The regent Dorgon, surrounded by many relatives in Manchuria, stood on a hill and looked at the mobilization and march of the Qing army.
Fan Wencheng wore a thick mink fur coat, rubbed his hands repeatedly and said:
"In this big move, we will raise 300,000 troops to march south, which is twice as many as the deer we won. We will raise troops in front and back, but it is not as big as today."
Among the important clan kings in Manchuria, Duduo, the king of Yu, has gone to Shaanxi, Azige, the British king, is leading the army in Jinan, Shandong, and Daishan, the prince of Li, is staying in Beijing. The remaining powerful clans are headed by Jierharang, and the following are
Luo Luohong, the king of Yanxi County, Shuosei, the king of Chengze County, and Beilebohetuo, Boluo, Nikan, Shuotuo, Aiduli, the Duke of Zhenguo, Mandahai, Tunqika, the Duke of Fuguo, and all their attendants
Dorgon went to war.
Dorgon was riding on his horse. He looked at the row of Manchu clan nobles, all bowing their heads under his command, and finally felt that the real power of the Qing Dynasty had completely fallen into his hands.
Is this a situation that the wily and self-righteous Huang Taiji had expected?
He looked at such a huge and powerful army, and incredible pride arose in his heart. After the Huolu War, the Qing Dynasty was still able to gather such a terrifying army, so what else could Dorgon not do?
What about?
"In a few months, we trained troops and conquered the valley. We combined the strong troops from the left of Liao Dynasty, the weapons of Youyan, and the fast Mongolian horses to form an army. All men under seventy and over ten years old joined the army. Success or failure is judged in one fell swoop."
Dorgon said proudly: "Fire the cannon and set off!"
Dozens of salutes simultaneously played the marching music of the Qing army. In addition to these Manchu clans, there were also Mongolian princes from foreign vassals who submitted to the Qing army, Prince Sanshun and Duke Yishun who betrayed Haug and other Han soldiers. The army gathered, and the civilians
Countless people crowded into the capital avenue covered with snowflakes.
The effect of the hair-shaving order is very significant. Dorgon doesn't care what hairstyle people wear, what he cares about is that everyone is forced to be loyal to him and surrender to him.
For those who are unwilling to be loyal and surrender, the shaving order is also a good excuse to deprive them of their property.
At this moment, in the hands of Dorgon and in the treasury of the Qing Dynasty, the Manchus already had a huge wealth of more than 30 million taels of silver.
Dashun's 20 million stones of rice and wheat grain, and the Qing Dynasty's 30 million taels of huge silver. Which one is higher and which one is lower? Who can win?
The nobles, high-ranking officials, distinguished families, and gentry families in the Gyeonggi area have been swept away and plundered by the Manchus like fire. The huge wealth they accumulated through mergers and corruption over the years has now completely fallen into the hands of Dorgon.
.
The regent used part of this windfall to reward and bribe the soldiers of the Eight Banners. The remaining wealth was still astonishingly high, but the regent was not satisfied yet, and offered three salaries to the Eastern Division.
Rates have been exploited once again.
Regarding the opposition of some Han civil servants, Dorgon argued:
"In this southern expedition, Kublai Khan will succeed, and Wan Yanliang will fail if he fails. The army will never return north until it reaches Wuchang. If the Manchu soldiers are defeated, our army will have no chance to return north, leaving the people of Yanbei alone.
What good is life?”
The snowflakes in the North are constantly flying, and the heavy snowflakes are flying all over the world like butterflies. The tired gray snowflakes fall layer by layer on the vertical and horizontal gullies and mountain ridges.
Baiyangdian has completely frozen. Compared with the situation a year ago, the temperature this winter has actually risen slightly.
Dorgon has long been accustomed to the bitter cold outside the Pass, so why would he worry about the weather in Beijing? What he worries about is that if the rising temperature continues to rise, the window time left for the Qing army to break through the natural dangers of the Yellow River will become increasingly long.
not enough.
The regent asked Feng Quan, an important minister of the Ming court who surrendered to the Qing Dynasty: "Is there any news from Jiangnan?"
A long time ago, the Nandu regime sent envoys to Beijing to contact the Qing court. However, later a civil war broke out in the Nandu regime between three towns that came to Beijing. Although the three towns successfully supported King Fu as emperor, they were close to Dashun, led by Li Jiantai and Su Guansheng.
The other faction supported Tang and Lu forces, and their military strength was not weak.
The Donglin Party, which has deep roots in Jiangnan, is also likely to raise the banner of supporting Lu again.
Feng Quan therefore suggested that the Qing government should start from here and use strong diplomatic support for the Hongguang regime to attract Nanming to the direction of uniting with the Qing Dynasty to control the country.
For the Hongguang regime, this strategy was first of all to obtain the recognition of the Qing court diplomatically, which was still very valuable - after all, Prince Chongzhen was still serving as a puppet in the hands of the Beiting;
Secondly, it was because Dashun controlled Huguang and Shandong, surrounded Jiangnan from two angles, and formed a condescending trend towards the Hongguang regime. Judging from the geographical interests of distant relations and close attacks, Nanming did adopt the policy of uniting with the Qing Dynasty to control the Shun Dynasty, which seemed more
Be strategic.
Feng Quan had already shaved his head, and the leading surrendered minister of the Ming Dynasty among the remnants of the eunuchs, he knelt down in front of Dorgon and said:
"Reporting to the regent, all the soldiers south of the Yangtze River are weak and the generals are cowardly. Only Gao Qian's brigade stopped in Huai'an and went north to conquer the evil plan."
Dorgon waved his hand and said to himself: "At most, in March, the ice of the Yellow River will melt, and my army's southern expedition will be restricted by the Yellow River's natural moat... Then we will be able to get these people!"
Dorgon also sent many documents and notices to Wu Sangui. He hoped that Wu Sangui could instigate Zhang Xianzhong's regime in the Western Ming Dynasty, induce the Western Ming army to leave Sichuan and flank Huguang, and deliver a fatal blow to Dashun.
The Qing army that stayed near Beijing were all the most elite among the Eight Banners of Manchuria. These colorfully armored elite cavalry were flying left and right, and the army was coming and going.
All the clan dignitaries were waiting at the foot of the mountain, waiting for Dorgon's final order.
After all the dozens of salutes had roared, Dorgon paid homage to the hall in the direction of Shengjing and took out his sword from its scabbard:
"Southern Expedition!"
"The Great Qing Dynasty conquered the south!"
The remaining elite soldiers of the Eight Banners all followed Dorgon and shouted: "Conquer Chuangie in the south!"
In this situation, Dorgon, who had been lurking in the shadow of Huang Taiji for half his life, finally felt the joy of spreading his arms and legs.
Dorgon was also interested in not only the Qing Dynasty but also the world.