I

Page 375

Lu Xiangsheng said: "While the main force of the enemy army is going to Shanhaiguan, our army can loot the countryside of Haizhou and Yaozhou with one man and two horses. When we see fake Qing's crops, we destroy them, and when we see fake Qing's houses, we burn them down. If there are people and livestock, they will be plundered! With such a method of warfare, within a year or two, those Tartars will starve to death!"

The Gaizhou offensive and defensive battle was anticlimactic, but the real war had just begun.

The Manchus must be short of food this winter, and North Korea and Mongolia have already robbed it. Let's see where they will go to grab food.

Chapter 455 [The Manchus also want to practice dragoons]

In fact, the Manchu Qing had no shortage of population, because tens of thousands of Han people were brought back from Northern Zhili, and many slaves were captured in North Korea and Mongolia.

Only the banners are missing, that is, the source of soldiers for the Eight Banners of Manchuria!

Dorgon retreated to Yaozhou, while raising military rations, while recruiting and reorganizing troops, the number of troops in the Eight Banners quickly recovered to [-].

But the [-] Eight Banners soldiers at this time are not the same as the [-] a few years ago.

Shandong, Henan, and Liaodong were defeated several times. Although the Eight Banners of Manchuria and the Eight Banners of Mongolia were replenished to about 7 people.But firstly, the combat effectiveness of the army has declined, and secondly, there are fewer and fewer bannermen available for recruitment.

In the Eight Banners of the Han Army, the decline in combat effectiveness was even more obvious, and the loss was close to [-].After the replenishment and reorganization, many Han Eight Banners guarding the city have surrendered their troops and generals in the past two years.

The military and political system of the Manchu Qing Dynasty could not rest and recuperate, and it was necessary to maintain a large number of troops for a long time.

Especially in the face of a downturn, it is even more necessary to expand our troops and prepare for war.Only in this way can the savage Jurchen be subdued, the foreign vassal Mongolia be subdued, and the Korean monarchs and ministers be subdued.

To the north of the grassland, Khalkha Mongolia is eyeing.

The Mongolian tribe that the Manchu Qing attacked and plundered last time was only the Chechen Khan tribe in Khalkha Mongolia. This tribe alone was able to mobilize [-] cavalry (who were disabled a few months ago).In addition, the large tribes of Khalkha Mongolia, as well as the Tuxietuhan tribe and the Tuohuite tribe, all waited for the decline of the Qing Dynasty to make a vote.

In the area around Lake Baikal, there are also Buryat Mongols, and the Balahu tribe borders on the Manchu and Qing territories.

If Dorgon does not maintain the army, the outer Mongolia will rebel in minutes, and Khalkha Mongolia and Buryat Mongolia will attack with large armies!

It dragged on until mid-October, when the reorganized main forces of the Qing Dynasty set off from Jinzhou to rescue Shanhaiguan—if they didn’t go to the rescue, the Eight Banners defenders in Shanhaiguan would have to kill the people for military rations.And when Dorgon besieged Gaizhou, more than 2000 defenders in Ningyuan and Jinzhou had already gone to Shanhaiguan to rescue them once, losing more than [-] people and fleeing in embarrassment.

The Manchu Qing army marched to Shaheyi (near Suizhong), and Dorgon received a battle report from the vanguard: "Your Highness, the enemy is already withdrawing!"

Dorgon's face was gloomy, and he ordered: "The whole army stops, order the vanguard battalion to take back Weiyuantai, and immediately station there to prevent the enemy's counterattack."

The army came to the rescue, saved a lonely person.

Dorgon's main force is still nearly a hundred miles away from Shanhaiguan, and the vanguard is only [-] miles away from Shanhaiguan.

It's so far away, those damn southern barbarians actually ran away by boat!

It was completely a war of attrition of grain and grass. Fei Ruhe and Zhang Tieniu besieged Shanhaiguan without attacking it, wasting three months of military rations in vain.Dorgon brought a large army to the rescue, and even if there was no battle, he had to consume a lot of rations.

Let's see who can't hold it first.

Afraid that the Datong army would come again, the small Weiyuantai was deployed by Dorgon with [-] defenders.With so many soldiers, Weiyuan Terrace was crowded with people, and they had to be stationed nearby at ordinary times, and they could only retreat in and hold their ground in case of a war.

Just when Dorgon was done with the withdrawal, he received another message: "Your Highness, the Nanmans are looting the countryside of Yaozhou and Haizhou, and they are spreading lime everywhere in the plowed farmland!"

"Liming?" Dorgon didn't understand.

The messenger explained: "According to the nobleman who knows farming, if lime is sprinkled on the field, the crop yield will be reduced in the next year. If there is too much lime, the seeds will not germinate."

The lime mentioned here is quicklime!

Dorgon was stunned when he heard that, and then he gritted his teeth and said, "What a vicious heart, what's the difference between this and burning pastures in the grassland?"

……

As far as the Liaodong Peninsula is concerned, there are lime mines in the mountainous area east of Fuzhou City.

Zhao Han sent some craftsmen over to burn cement in Liaodong. Each town built a simple fortress, and most of the lime mining workers were prisoners of war.

After the Gaizhou Defense War, cement production was temporarily suspended, and quicklime was burned in large quantities!

Thousands of dragoons, each with two horses, set off with dozens of catties of quicklime.Just tie it horizontally on the horse's back like that, and poke a hole in the sack when encountering land with less weeds (cooked land), and sprinkle it along the way while the horse gallops.

At this time, it was already snowing in Liaodong, and quicklime was scattered on the snow, so it was guaranteed that there would be no way to grow food next year.

"The enemy is coming!"

"Haha, let's go!"

Wu Huapu laughed and rode his horse away. In Haizhou and Yaozhou cities, there were thousands of Manchu defenders each.It is estimated that he was irritated by the actions of the Datong Army, and occasionally bravely went out of the city, and all of them chased after them on horseback.

However, the dragoons did not engage in battle at all, they spread out sentry cavalry far away, and ran away immediately when encountering the enemy, and never went deep into the hinterland of Manqing.

On the contrary, the population in the countryside was transferred further north, and the Datong Army did not take any prisoners this time.

Anyway, there is one meaning, Gaizhou, Yaozhou, and Haizhou, the three cities are more than a hundred miles away, and in the next two or three years, no one will be able to grow food again!

Dorgon returned to Shenyang and convened a meeting of the Eight Banners nobles.

This time they actually united, stopped mentioning past grievances, and focused on discussing how to develop in the future.

Dai Shan said: "The dragoons of the Southern Barbarians are very annoying when fighting. I, the Qing Dynasty, should also train one."

Ji Erhalang echoed: "The shotgun vest of the Han army flag can be converted into a dragoon."

Dorgon nodded and said: "This statement is reasonable, and it is time to practice in the beginning of spring."

The shotgun vest of the Eight Banners of the Han Army was included in the Qing Xiaoqi Battalion.They dispatched together with the Manchu Qing cavalry, rode horses to attack the battlefield, and then dismounted to fight in the posture of firecrackers, essentially no different from the Datong dragoons.

In terms of tactics, there is a big difference.

The shotgun vest and horse of the Han army flag are only used for traveling, and the formation of musket infantry is still used in combat.

Now being hurt by the Datong Dragoons, the Manchus began to learn new tactics, and they wanted to fully transform the shotgun vest into dragoons.

Ji Erhalang also said: "The southern barbarians are not Ming, and Gaizhou City cannot be attacked by force. Maybe we can send agents to the south to drive apart Nanjing's monarchs and ministers, and spread rumors that the guards of Gaizhou intend to rebel."

Tong Yangxing said: "I have already inquired. The generals of Gaizhou are Hu Dinggui, the generals of Fuzhou and Jinzhou are Li Zheng and Xiao Zongxian, and there is also Lu Xiangsheng who is in command of Xiaoqi. Hu Dinggui, Li Zheng, and Xiao Zongxian are all the emperors of the Southern Man. Only Lu Xiangsheng is the descendant of the Ming Dynasty, and it is best to start with Lu Xiangsheng for the plan of alienation. It is said that Lu Xiangsheng is trying to restore the Ming Dynasty, and he is arrogant and domineering in Liaodong, and often has words of yearning for the old master of the Ming Dynasty."

Dorgon said: "This Hu Dinggui is also a general, but if he forges his letter secretly informing us of the Qing Dynasty, he may be able to recruit him to surrender."

Dorgon has been learning from Huang Taiji, including this strategy of recruiting enemy generals.

Take Zu Dashou as an example. He once led his troops to feign surrender, and then left his son and his generals and ran away.

Instead of expressing anger, Huang Taiji wrote to Zu Dashou, saying that he would treat his son and generals kindly.He also asked Zu Dashou to pay attention to safety, and not to let Chongzhen know about the surrender. After asking for warmth, he said that the Qing Dynasty was waiting for Zu Dashou to return at any time.

In history, Zu Dashou feigned surrender and fled, and fought against the Manchus for ten years, killing many Manchu soldiers.In the end, he was forced to surrender, and Huang Taiji did abide by the agreement, entrusting Zu Dashou and his family with heavy responsibilities.

Putting aside the righteousness of the nation, do you feel any emotion in the face of such a "British Lord"?

Fortunately for Zu Dashou, at least he did well in Daming.People like Kong Youde, Shang Kexi, and Geng Zhongming were treated so badly in Daming, but when they went to Manchuria, they were treated auspiciously by Huangtai. Comparing the two, those guys can be moved to tears.

Dorgon has also started to play this trick now, and he plans to write letters to Hu Dinggui, Li Zheng, Xiao Zongxian, and Lu Xiangsheng himself.

Not to surrender, just to express admiration, to send a few leather jackets in winter, and to ask for warmth.On the one hand, it is a relationship with the generals of Datong, and on the other hand, it is a precursor to the estrangement. Using this method to disgust the monarchs and ministers of Datong.

Next, you can also quietly give gold and silver, and quietly give beautiful women and maidservants.

Especially in Nanjing, starting from the family members of Datong civil servants.Giving benefits to the family members bit by bit, unknowingly dragged into the water, thus creating an established fact.The civil servant got the property again, and was afraid of exposing his family's connection with the Manchu Qing Dynasty, so he might secretly help him become an insider.

These Manchu nobles are not only good at fighting!

"The most important thing now is food," Dorgon said. "The army first went to Gaizhou, and then went to Shanhaiguan. The army has been dispatched repeatedly, and the food consumption is huge. If we don't do something, we may survive this winter." , There will definitely be a famine next spring."

Hauge said: "It's windy and snowy in winter, and we can't go to the grasslands. The Han people in Beizhili are also so poor that they have no food to grab. Why don't we go to North Korea?"

"How much food can North Korea have?" Man Dahai asked back.

Hauge said: "It doesn't matter how much food he has, go grab it, you can always grab some. Moreover, North Korea is full of shrimp soldiers and crab generals, and they will flee when they see the Qing soldiers. It is much easier to go to North Korea to fight than to go to the grassland. You don’t need to bring the peasants, everyone sets off with a soldier, and you don’t need to prepare much food and grass. After the spring snow melts, kill all the way to the King’s City of North Korea, forcing the North Korean king to send the grain by himself. , In this way, the lost population will also be there, and next year's food will also be available."

"Good idea!" Zierhalang praised.

Going to the grassland to rob is somewhat risky, but going to North Korea to fight the autumn wind is extremely safe. You don’t even need to think about logistics. You dare to send troops with half a month’s food.

Poor North Korea has not recovered from the previous looting, and has been forced to sell grain by the Datong Army many times. Next year, it will usher in another looting by the Qing Dynasty.

The whole of North Korea will be emptied, and even the two classes of nobles will not be spared!

After discussing the matter of robbing food, Dai Shan suddenly said: "There are signs of rebellion in Outer Fan Mongolia. Gulu Siqibu, who took the lead in avoiding the war, must be dealt with according to the rules. But he can't be killed directly, otherwise Outer Fan Mongolia will be forced opposite."

Dorgon had thought about it a long time ago and said: "Remove this man's military title and support his brother to replace him. It is best for the two brothers to kill each other."

Chapter 456 [Wenwu Emperor Temple]

In the first year of the Republic of China, the first year of Datong Emperor Zhao Han, this is obviously not a good year.

Severe droughts have hit many southern provinces, and food prices have almost doubled!

In fact, the drought has eased a lot compared to the previous year, and the drought in the north has completely improved.But the more intuitive feeling of the people in the south is that the price of food has soared, and Zhao Han's life will be worrisome when he ascends the throne.

So after the autumn harvest of this year, some officials and civil scholars asked Zhao Han to observe the sacrificial rituals, and worship the heaven and the earth in Nanjing in the next spring, praying for the emperor to bless the weather and the earth.

"Great worship of heaven and earth in the southern suburbs", this is the most frequently appeared sentence in "History of Ming Dynasty".

Every year in the first lunar month, between New Year's Day and Lantern Festival, the emperor of Ming Dynasty would choose an auspicious day to offer sacrifices to heaven and earth.

Because there were too many people in Shangshu, Zhao Han had no choice but to express his opinion.He summoned the cabinet and officials from the ten ministries, and said: "The heaven and the earth can be sacrificed, but it is not necessary. It is only for auspiciousness. The scale should not be too large. It is enough to send a few officials from the Ministry of Rites to sacrifice to the heaven and the earth on my behalf."

Except for special occasions, Zhao Han usually refers to himself as "I", and calling himself "Zhen" means that he has made up his mind.

Many ministers who were sitting to discuss matters stood up in unison at this moment, including Pang Chunlai.

Pang Chunlai remonstrated: "Your Majesty, the important affairs of the country are sacrifices to the army. Although the emperor of the old Ming Dynasty often sent his relatives to sacrifice, they were only offering sacrifices to the gods of mountains, rivers and rivers. The worship of heaven and earth must never be handed over to others! Sacrificing heaven and earth, controlling The six armies must be the emperor himself!"

Li Banghua even knelt down directly: "I know that your Majesty is the emperor who is responsible for the people and does not care about the blessings of heaven and earth. His Majesty will definitely refute, saying that the Chongzhen Emperor of the previous dynasty worshiped heaven and earth every year, and the whole country is still suffering from severe drought and continuous military disasters. But your majesty must know, This is not a matter of belief or disbelief, but something that can and cannot be done. The emperor must be the emperor, and he can only be the emperor. If any minister dares to sacrifice the heaven and the earth on behalf of his majesty, the minister will definitely impeach him for attempting to rebel. Do not dismiss this People, I will resign and return to my hometown!"

"Your Majesty, please think twice!" Many ministers knelt down one after another.

Zhao Han suddenly smiled and said, "Get up, it's because I didn't think carefully, don't kneel down at every turn."

There are some things that an emperor cannot disobey, such as the Confucian etiquette that has been formed for thousands of years.

Etiquette is the norm, and it is also a system of rules.

This thing is the root of Confucianism. Compared with it, Zhao Han's reform of the imperial examination system is just a child's play.Etiquette is not only reflected in the folk, but also in the court. It is the emperor's right and duty to sacrifice to heaven and earth.

Anyone who dares to do it for them is treason!

Zhao Han's smile was fake, and he said, "Cabinet, Li Cao, and the Ministry of Rites, go down and discuss the sacrificial etiquette. Just like the national flag, keep its charm, but try to simplify it as much as possible."

The national flag has been revised, and the rising dragon, crane, and unicorn patterns are still there, but they are simplified to only keep the charm of the lines.

Chen Maosheng asked: "How far is the simplification?"

Zhao Han replied: "No matter how far you simplify, you have to remember one gist: don't waste money and people!"

"Obey!" Chen Maosheng cupped his hands.

Since the mid-Ming Dynasty, a very disgusting phenomenon has appeared.

Due to the lack of finances in the Ming Dynasty, the monarchs and ministers had no money for disaster relief, so when faced with a catastrophe, they often allocated symbolic funds for relief, and at the same time labored and mobilized the people to start offering sacrifices and praying.

For example, the Yellow River broke its embankment, the government did not allocate money for disaster relief, and the embankment was temporarily unable to be built due to flooding. The governor of the river channel first offered sacrifices to the god of the river.Occasionally, he would be impeached by the censor, and the content of the impeachment was: the object of sacrifice was wrong!

A certain river channel worships this god, and a certain river channel worships that god. They must not be confused.

Offering sacrifices to the wrong gods may result in loss of office.

The Guanzhong earthquake killed 83 people. Emperor Jiajing only allocated tens of thousands of taels for disaster relief, which was less than the money he allocated to the Taoist Temple in Wudang Mountain.Then, Emperor Jiajing sacrificed with great fanfare, and the civil and military forces of the Manchu Dynasty were mobilized. The focus of the court changed from earthquakes to sacrifices in an instant.

Zhao Han would never allow this kind of phenomenon to happen. In his opinion, offering sacrifices is fine for auspiciousness, but that's all.

Facing these ministers, Zhao Han said: "My dear friends, Mencius has a saying: When heaven will send a great mission to a man, he must first suffer from his will, exhaust his muscles and bones, starve his body and skin, empty his body, and disturb his behavior. For, so tempted and tolerant, it has benefited what it could not. It is the same for people, and it is the same for the country. I am united with China. In the face of natural disasters and visions, we should unite as one. Overcome the difficulties. At the beginning of the rebellion, I did not own the entire territory of Jiangxi, but encountered a flood that did not happen in a century. At that time, officials at all levels fought against the flood together with the people. After the flood, although there were losses, the officials and the people were united. This is not heaven Is the true meaning of the great appointment?"

"What Your Majesty said is true!"

The officials shouted.

Zhao Han said: "It is said that the emperor is the son of heaven, Chongzhen is the son of heaven, and I am the son of heaven. They are all sons of heaven, which one should God love? Then use disasters as a test, and whichever emperor can handle it will be chosen as the true son of heaven! As fathers, if you are given a test, a son who only knows how to beg his parents is a waste, and a son who knows how to overcome difficulties by himself is a thousand-mile horse. I agree with the sacrifice of heaven and earth, only to express the respect of the emperor to heaven, not to ask for blessings from heaven The whole country and the people. The real son of heaven should face up to difficulties by himself. Have you never read "Yi"? Tian Xingjian, a gentleman must strive for self-improvement!"

"Listen respectfully to the teachings!" the officials shouted again.

Zhao Han said to Wang Tiaoding, the head of the Imperial Academy: "Write down these words, write an article, and compile it into the "Datong Collection" next year. Officials at all levels should not indulge in sacrifices in case of natural disasters. They should lead the people to tide over the difficulties together. Sacrifices cannot be used for political achievements. They only know sacrifices but do not know how to relieve disasters. From now on, they will be dismissed from office! I have only heard that King Yu controlled the water, but I have never heard that King Yu sacrificed to heaven and earth and the flood receded by itself!"

This sets the tone for sacrifices, which are just rituals and have nothing to do with political achievements, and are reserved as a form.

Chen Maosheng took the opportunity to say: "Your Majesty, please appoint the sages of Wenwu Temple."

After the Confucius family in Qufu was prosecuted in large numbers, Kong Zhenyun of Nanzong was canonized as Yan Shenggong, but the sacrificial system of the Confucian Temple and the Confucian Temple, as well as the corresponding sacrificial objects, are still pending.

Even, Zhao Han has been dragging his heels on whether the Confucian temples in various places will restart the annual sacrifices.

Zhao Han glanced at all the ministers: "The sages of the Confucian Temple, Confucius and his disciples, only keep the four sages of Confucianism. The ten sages of Confucianism, except the four sages, are all invited out of the Confucian Temple. Whether the Confucian Temple worships the ten sages is a matter of the Confucius family. My own business, but I think the Confucian Temple should be changed."

Invite the ten philosophers of Confucianism out of the Confucian Temple?

Ninety-nine out of [-] ministers were dumbfounded. How the hell did this happen?