kingnovel Chapter 944 Precarious
Chapter 944 Precarious
At the end of August, the Suzaku Army in the south successively captured various prefectures in Hunan, Jiangxi, Fujian and other places, and some troops had already reached the banks of the Yangtze River.
At one time, areas such as Jiangbei and Jianghuai were in a state of emergency, and wealthy families from all over the country either fled with their families or secretly contacted the Suzaku Army to express their willingness to surrender.
At the same time, Wang Ziteng of Liaodong received the imperial edict from Emperor Changtai and had to find an opportunity to quickly fight a decisive battle with the Jiannu.
The Jian Nu also received news of the unrest in Jiangnan through certain channels, and learned through insiders that the imperial court had ordered Wang Ziteng to fight a decisive battle.
Therefore, the Jiannu united with the various Mongolian tribes in the northeast and formed a cavalry, preparing to lure the enemy deep into their territory and destroy as much of the Ming army's vitality as possible in Liaodong.
For a time, the war situation in the north and south changed drastically, and the Ming Dynasty was in danger.
In the Forbidden City, inside the Hall of Mental Cultivation.
Emperor Changtai, who had not eaten or slept well for a long time and was worried all day long, finally couldn't bear it and fell ill.
Since ascending the throne, Emperor Changtai has been constrained by all sides. In the court, there are endless struggles between civil officials and military officials, and behind him there is an emperor emeritus who is attached to power and unwilling to give up all power.
In addition, there were constant natural disasters and man-made disasters outside, the Ming Dynasty's administration was corrupt, the military system was broken, and rebellions of all sizes continued one after another.
All these things, one after another, exhausted Emperor Changtai and he was unable to deal with them.
In terms of his ability to govern and judge people, Emperor Changtai was not outstanding. His only strength was his diligence. If he had been born in a peaceful and prosperous era, he might have been able to be a king who maintained the status quo.
But now the Ming Dynasty is facing internal and external troubles, and the empire is on the verge of collapse. In addition, Emperor Changtai has been busy seizing power from military heroes and the emperor emeritus. How can he shoulder the responsibility of the precarious country?
"Your Majesty, it is getting late. Your body has not recovered yet, so you should not work too hard. It is more important to take care of your body."
"Ahem, I also want to have a good rest, but the country is in danger, how can I sleep peacefully?"
"Your Majesty, there are ministers in the court who can help you with your worries."
"Humph~ On weekdays, when talking about governing the country and maintaining peace, everyone is eloquent and endless. Now when we have to send troops to quell the rebellion, they are all timid and cowardly. Can I count on them? Hasn't Liaodong sent back the latest news yet?"
"Your Majesty, there has been no latest news in the past two days. However, according to previous news, Lord Wang should be preparing for war and looking for an opportunity to wipe out the main force of the Jian Nu in one fell swoop."
"I hope you, my dear Lord, will not disappoint me."
Afterwards, Emperor Changtai flipped through another memorial in his hand. After reading the contents clearly, he immediately threw it away. “This is outrageous! A great scholar of Wenyuan Pavilion, a role model of the literati of our Ming Dynasty, actually submitted a memorial to me, asking me to send an envoy to negotiate with the rebels. When did our Ming Dynasty come to such a situation that we have to negotiate with a group of rebels? Ahem… ahem… I am so angry!”
"Your Majesty, please calm down. Your Majesty, please calm down."
Since the fall of Fujian, Jiangxi and Hunan provinces, the court's attitude towards the southern rebels has undergone a great change.
In just half a year, the five southern provinces fell one after another, and the southeastern half of the Ming Dynasty was occupied by the rebels, and they were about to divide the country with the imperial court.
Even a fool could see how powerful this group of rebels was.
Since April, many civil officials have advocated sending troops to the south to recruit the rebels, but they were reprimanded by Emperor Changtai and a group of officials were dismissed. No one dared to mention the matter of recruiting again.
Now, the rebels have reached the Yangtze River. Many of the court officials in the south have their hometowns occupied by the rebels, which has led more and more officials to bring up the issue of amnesty again.
Some fence-sitters have even started betting on both sides.
Emperor Changtai was naturally aware of the current situation, but he was even more annoyed by the court officials' compromise and inaction.
"Humph, if these civil officials and military officers were not so incompetent, how could the rebels have become so powerful? And the Prince of Nan'an... I am the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, and I will never compromise with the rebels easily."
The rapid expansion of the Suzaku Army has brought about far more impacts than this.
Throughout the southwest, many local toasts also took this opportunity to rebel, leading their tribes to attack government offices in order to seek benefits.
There were also some ambitious local princes who began to win over the hearts of the people, train their armies, and plot to seize power.
Areas in the Central Plains and within the Great Wall that had already suffered from floods and droughts raised the banner of uprising.
Under the influence of this environment, the price of grain and commodities in Kyoto began to rise. Daiyu in Rongguo Mansion also heard about the situation in the south and the Central Plains. She couldn't help but worry about her father, so she sent someone to ask Lu Cheng to come and ask.
"Brother, I heard that the Central Plains and the South have been in chaos recently. My father is the prefect of Nanyang Prefecture. I don't know if he will be in danger."
"Don't worry, Junior Sister. I have already made arrangements for the teacher's safety. After a while, I will send you out of the capital to reunite with the teacher."
"Well, it's all up to Senior Brother to arrange."
According to Lu Cheng's plan, after the autumn harvest, the Suzaku Army will join forces with the expanding Azure Dragon and White Tiger armies to try to capture the Yunnan, Guizhou, Sichuan, Chongqing, Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions south of the Yangtze River.
By next year, we can march into Jiangbei and conquer the world as soon as possible.
At the same time, in Liaoyang Prefecture, Liaodong.
Wang Ziteng and the generals of various towns in Liaodong gathered together. In front of them hung a huge map with a series of marching routes marked on it.
"This time, our 210,000-strong army of the Ming Dynasty will be divided into four routes, targeting the Hetuala City of Jiannu. We will encircle the four routes and completely wipe out the Jiannu in one battle. Everyone, the emperor is in the capital, waiting for the news of our triumphant return. We must not only win this battle, but also win beautifully, completely wipe out the enemy and pacify Liaodong.
This battle is the time to achieve great success, to honor your wife and children! When the time comes, I will personally recommend you all for your achievements, and will never let any meritorious person shed blood and sacrifice in vain! All troops, return to the camp immediately, prepare for battle, and get ready to set off! "
"The last general takes command!"
At noon the next day, in the Jiannu city of Hetuala.
"Great Khan, we have received accurate information. The Ming army will be divided into four groups this time. Among them, the Ming army commander Wang Ziteng will command the Eastern Army and personally go to the front line. According to the deployment of the Ming army, the number of troops in the four groups is..."
Nurhaci looked at the map in front of him and quickly selected a place for the decisive battle: "Our strategy this time is very simple. First, lure the enemy deep into our territory, lead the Ming army's western army here, and then annihilate them. After that, we will defeat their northern army and their eastern army... You can come from several directions, but I will only go one way. Concentrate our superior forces and defeat the Ming army one by one!"
"The Great Khan is wise!"
At this time, the wooden stick in Nurhaci's hand just pointed at one place, Sarhu.
In early September, the Ming Dynasty's Liaodong Army divided into four routes and advanced towards Hetuala City.
As the various armies were far apart and transportation was inconvenient, the communication scouts were quickly eliminated by the Jiannu cavalry, and communication between the four armies was cut off.
Immediately afterwards, the Ming army's western route was eager to make achievements and advanced rashly, and soon fell into the trap of the Jiannu army.