Prince Chongzhen

Chapter 199 You were rude first! And you blame me instead!
"Clap!"

Hearing what the soldier said, Duoduo threw the jar full of warrants to the ground with a flick of his hand.

Normally speaking, when two armies were fighting, the commanders would at most exchange letters. There were not many who would clamor for a meeting at every turn like Zhu Cilang.

But as someone who has seen his methods, Duoduo knows how much it costs to see this.

"That guy can do nothing but sow discord. Let's just disappear."

Seeing that Duoduo was already so angry that his mind was in a mess, Kong Youde tried to persuade him, but before he could finish his words, Duoduo said angrily, "See you!"

Kong Youde said that Zhu Cilang was used to sowing discord, and there was probably nothing wrong with what he said.

But Duoduo also knew that Zhu Cilang was not deceiving others, and every word he said was genuine.

Duoduo is now in adversity. Although he has decided to cut off his tail to survive, deep down in his heart he can't help but want to hear Zhu Cilang's opinion.

Such a mood seemed extremely ridiculous. Under such circumstances, the dignified Prince Yu of the Qing Dynasty actually wanted to hear advice from the enemy who had forced him into such a situation.

But if you break down his mind, you can probably find the reason.

When he first heard the name Zhu Cilang, Duoduo naturally did not take him seriously, but after so many battles, he had to admit in the face of reality that this young man who had just escaped from Yingtian Prison was indeed qualified to be on equal footing with him.

In the current situation, even though Duoduo appeared to be calm and confident on the surface, no one could deny that he had been a little confused over the past month.

If this situation happened to an ordinary person, he or she would probably find one or two good friends to talk to and communicate with, which would probably help heal the internal friction.

But looking at the whole of China, how many people can Duoduo take seriously?

How many people are qualified to give him advice?
Thinking in this way, it was both unexpected and reasonable that Duoduo accepted Zhu Cilang's request for a meeting.

However, this psychological activity is unknown to anyone at this stage.

Duoduo himself felt that the reason he agreed was probably because he did not want to show weakness to the enemy when he was at a disadvantage.

Zhu Cilang didn't care at all whether the other party would agree or not.

For him, it didn't matter whether he met Duoduo or not. Even if he couldn't tell Duoduo his analysis of the current situation verbally, couldn't he still do it through writing?
So after the soldiers left, he turned his attention to other things.

He had left the Wuhu camp the day before, and stopped by Zuo Menggeng's camp on the way before rushing to Xuancheng with his guards.

Unlike Yuan Jixian's troops, the morale of Zuo Menggeng's troops was almost collapsed.

If they had not learned that a Ming army was guarding their retreat, most of them would have dispersed by the time they separated from Yuan Jixian.

Faced with such a situation, Zhu Cilang had no good solution.

To put it bluntly, Zuo Liangyu was indifferent to the source of soldiers at that time. As long as a man who could breathe came to surrender, he would accept him directly without any screening.

Therefore, among this group of people, there were bandits who robbed houses and rioters who were dispersed by the government troops.

There were even a large number of ordinary people who had to be coerced because their families and properties were destroyed by the Zuo Army.

The complexity of its ingredients was so great that even though Zhu Cilang had anticipated it, he was still shocked.

However, for Zhu Cilang, the fact that these people were half-dead was not entirely a bad thing.

In the final analysis, these troops are real vassal states. Even if they are no longer the same as before, if their combat power is considerable, they will inevitably have to use a lot of tricks.

In the end, Zhu Cilang used money and food to temporarily stabilize the troops between Xuancheng and Wuhu, so that they could feel at ease to rush to Xuancheng.

"Your Highness, the Tartars have no way to escape to heaven or to hell. If they have any evil intentions..."

As soon as they arrived in Xuancheng, Zhu Cilang sent someone directly to the Qing army camp to deliver a letter, while Chang Guanlin kept chattering for a long time as if he was possessed by Xu Yu.

However, his concerns are not completely unreasonable. Duoduo is now just like he was in Hangzhou. At first glance, he seems to have many choices, but if he thinks about it carefully, he realizes that he has fallen into a dragnet.

Under such circumstances, if Zhu Cilang could be sent directly to heaven, the situation in Jiangnan would definitely change again.

Therefore, Chang Guanlin, contrary to his usual behavior, kept trying to dissuade him.

"Aren't you guys here?"

With just this one sentence, Chang Guanlin was speechless, but Zhu Cilang seemed very proud of himself for shutting up Chang Guanlin with just one sentence. After carefully observing his expression for a while, he continued, "I just want to see what Duoduo looks like when he gets angry and embarrassed."

Ever since that night when he was tricked by Zhu Cilang into Zhao Zhilong's mansion, Chang Guanlin could almost be said to be always by the Crown Prince's side.

But even someone as close as him had seen the Crown Prince either remain calm in the face of danger or have everything planned out for him.

Even though he occasionally joked with his ministers, he generally maintained the dignity of a prince. How could he ever reveal any of his youthful nature?
The burden is too heavy.

The country has fallen to this point, all thanks to this teenager who saved the day. Now that the overall situation is about to be settled, the pressure in his heart has been reduced a bit, so he will...
Thinking of this, Chang Guanlin, who had been a fighter for half his life, actually had red eyes. When his emotions were a little calmer, he bowed and said, "I will definitely protect Your Highness!"

Zhu Cilang didn't pay much attention to Chang Guanlin's unusual reaction. Seeing that he was no longer trying to stop him, he turned to look at Jin Sheng.

As the leader of this righteous army, he thought highly of Jin Sheng and praised him highly when they were about to arrive in Xuancheng. However, although Jin Sheng was also leading a righteous army, it was different from the other armies, so.
"Mr. Jin, although the Tartars didn't cause too much harm to southern Anhui this time, we still suffered from the war. I wonder what will happen after we repel the Tartars?"

"This"

After hearing what His Royal Highness the Crown Prince said, Jin Sheng immediately hesitated.

He is a local and has served in the court. Logically, such questions should not be difficult for him.

But a few days ago, he was thinking about how to stop the attack of the Tartars, and he was also prepared to die for his country. Now he suddenly heard such a question, and it was understandable that he was a little confused for a while.

It seems like a lifetime ago.

A few days ago, he was on the verge of death, but now he is planning for the post-war period? !

If they can wait until His Royal Highness arrives.
As his thoughts flowed, Jin Sheng couldn't help but burst into tears. If he hadn't been thinking about "improper conduct in front of the king", he would have almost burst into tears.

Needless to say, Jiang Tianyi was Jin Sheng's most valued student. Even the rebel army defending Xuancheng was led by him. In such a situation, how could he not be moved by the scene and shed tears?

Seeing this situation, even if Zhu Cilang was unable to react for a moment, but as a "veteran" who had experienced many battles, how could he be confused for too long?

When the Tartars attacked Yingtian at night, most of the three centurions they faced were killed; Fang Guoan's troops originally had more than 10,000 men, but by the time Zhu Cilang left Hangzhou and headed north, only four or five thousand were left.

As for the other troops, although their casualty rate was not as high as theirs, they were still not incomplete despite their lack of strength.

With all these things in his mind, Zhu Cilang's mood inevitably became depressed.

"Your Highness, someone from the Tartars has sent a message." The soldier who delivered the message saw from a distance that General Jin was crying beside His Highness the Crown Prince. If the matter was not too important, he would have planned to report back after a while.

It was not known whether it was because someone else interrupted him or because he had already vented his emotions for a while, but after the soldier's report, Jin Sheng gradually controlled his emotions.

"Your Highness, I am being disrespectful."

"It doesn't matter."

At this time, Zhu Cilang's eyes were slightly red. Seeing Jin Sheng apologize, he waved his hand and said nothing more.

"Southern Anhui is an important grain and fodder area. I have not thought about what to do next. Your Highness, please allow me to think about it for a few days. I will submit a memorial to the emperor when I have a plan."

"Well, don't worry. This war will take a few days to end."

After saying this, Zhu Cilang called out to Chang Guanlin and then took him out of the east gate.

At this point, some people may ask where Xiang Rensheng went.

It should be noted that this is a meeting between the two supreme commanders of the army, so someone must have checked the selected meeting place in advance.

After a cup of tea, the group arrived at the wilderness outside the city. Xiang Rensheng saw His Royal Highness the Crown Prince coming from afar and went straight to greet him.

"Your Highness, Tudor has also arrived."

"Well, let's go."

Huh? Your Highness's mood.
Thinking of this, Xiang Rensheng couldn't help but look at Zhu Cilang twice more. When he saw that his face was as gloomy as water and he didn't show any joy at all, he immediately realized that something must have happened during the time he was away.

Under normal circumstances, he might have asked Chang Guanlin a question, but now that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince had already ridden out, he could only suppress his doubts in his heart for the time being.

“Oh~~~~.”

Both sides stopped their horses at the same time when they were about 20 to 30 feet away. After they had identified each other, Duoduo took the initiative to speak: "Wang Zhiming, you are a fraud who has deceived the world and stolen the reputation. How can I not bow down to you?!"

Wang Zhiming was the name that the previous owner of Zhu Cilang's body confessed to after he could no longer endure the torture. Duoduo called him that as soon as they met, obviously not intending to acknowledge his identity as the crown prince.

In this way, the subsequent question of “how not to worship” becomes a natural consequence.

"Duoduo, you Jurchens are just a garrison in Jianzhou. How can you not bow down to the King of Ming?!"

Wang Zhiming, the king of Ming.

Although Zhu Cilang didn't know the identity of this body, he could counterattack Duoduo's doubts just by using the name.

In fact, if Zhu Cilang continues to follow his current path, unless he encounters solid hard evidence, the authenticity of his identity as the crown prince will become less and less important.

Of course, if someone intends to cause chaos, they can use this as an excuse, just like the excuse that the blue sky is dead and the yellow sky should be established.

But if he could always maintain his powerful strength, this would probably be the same as "passing the throne to the fourth prince", which would only be something used to disgust people.

In fact, Duoduo knew this very well. He never expected that just saying this could turn the situation around. In the final analysis, he was just angry. After hearing Zhu Cilang's response, he got to the point.

"You are sharp-tongued. Tell me what you want to see me for."

"I summoned you this time for no other reason than to ask, is there no one in Jianzhou Guard who knows the etiquette?"

"you!"

The words Jianzhou Wei and etiquette undoubtedly touched Duoduo's sore spot.

Since the establishment of their regimes, both Nurhaci and Huang Taiji wanted desperately to get rid of their barbarian identities. Because of certain things, they even felt that their Han ministers would look down on them because of their origins.

According to rumors, Nurhaci once repeatedly yelled at his Han son-in-law while whipping him with his own hands, "I know you look down on me!"

From this we can see how damaging these words are to the older generation of Manchus.

However, when Duoduo was born, he was already wealthy, so Nurhaci's deep-rooted inferiority complex was not passed on to him much.

So he just uttered one word and immediately calmed down his emotions.

"If you just want to show off your eloquence, then I will take my leave."

After saying this, Duoduo made a move to turn his horse and leave, and Zhu Cilang's rebuttal came immediately: "You were rude first! You actually turned the tables and slandered me!"

Hmm? When was I rude?

Hearing the other party's words, Duoduo was naturally confused and showed some doubt on his face.

"Don't pretend. I wrote to you out of kindness last time, but why didn't you even reply?!"

I'll give you a big gourd!
When Duoduo heard these words, he secretly complained.

According to Han Chinese rules, even if there is nothing to say after receiving a letter, one still has to reply to express gratitude. But now, not only are the two armies at war, but the letter is also full of words to sow discord.

How should he respond in this situation?
Does it mean: I accept your kindness, but I will be on guard against that bunch of bastards when I go back?
"It is indeed impolite of me not to reply to your letter. If you have nothing else to do, I will take my leave."

After he finished speaking, Duoduo made a move to leave again, but Kong Youde and Geshaha on the side stood there in a daze as if they were frightened by something.

They thought Duoduo would avoid the topic or simply remain silent, but they never expected Duoduo to admit that he was wrong.

"Well, it seems that you have read the words of the saints," Zhu Cilang praised one after another. When he saw Kong Youde and others understood something, he continued, "I came here mainly to remind you that those people in the north are afraid that you will use them as a scapegoat, so they must be planning something."

The same thing, when expressed in different words, has different meanings.

Although those people in the north did have some ulterior motives, their plan was just to not get involved in the war in the south of the Yangtze River, and they had no other ideas.

But after Zhu Cilang told this story, no matter how you listened to it, it seemed that those guys had set their sights on Duoduo.

"Humph!"

Before Zhu Cilang finished speaking, Duoduo snorted coldly and rode away.

But it still took some time for the horse to get up to speed, and Zhu Cilang's annoying voice reached his ears again.

"You must believe it, at this point in the war, they are all Hauge's men."

(End of this chapter)