Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 1152 Heart to Heart
Bumbutai was worried, and now she had no intention of restoring the Qing Dynasty.

The Qing dynasty was gone, so how easy would it be to build another one? Moreover, Bumbutai had no one under his command, no territory, and no one except Ebilun and Qitat. He could only survive here.

Even if the missing Dorgon found them, what would happen? When the Qing Dynasty had more than 100,000 soldiers and occupied most of Liaodong, they were unable to defeat the Ming Dynasty. Now that they were all helpless, could they still fight against the Ming Dynasty?
Let alone the Ming Dynasty, now even if a slightly stronger Mongolian tribe comes to attack them, they will not be able to defeat them with the power they have. Bumbutai is very clear about this, but some things are not due to her will. Although her identity is noble, she cannot make her own decisions.

Apart from other things, the existence of Ebilun alone made Bumbutai feel like a thorn in her throat. Don't forget that Ebilun was Dorgon's man and was loyal to the Qing Dynasty. If there was no Ebilun, perhaps Bumbutai could disguise herself as an ordinary Mongolian and completely conceal her identity.

But with Ebilun and his people, it would not be so easy. What's more, there is Dorgon whose whereabouts are unknown. Based on Bumbutai's understanding of Dorgon, it would be fine if this guy died, but if he is still alive, he will definitely find Khorchin and use Ebilun and his people to make some noise in Khorchin and restore the glory of the Qing Dynasty. Once this happens, it will be a dead end for Bumbutai. Bumbutai doesn't want to be like Dorgon, a madman, who is trying to hit a stone with an egg. Her mind is full of how to survive and how to protect herself and her son.

In fact, this idea came to him half a year ago. Especially when Qitate found this place, Bumbutai thought about leaving Ebilun and others aside and relying on Qitate to "transform" himself and Fulin from Jurchens into real Mongolians, changing their appearance and completely abandoning their original identities.

It was because of this consideration that Bumbutai not only took in Qitate, but also used Qitate's identity to improve his status within the tribe. In addition, as the former Prince of Khorchin, Qitate's current situation was also very embarrassing. In addition, they were originally aunt and nephew, so the two could be said to prosper together and were grasshoppers tied to the same rope.

These days, through Qitat, Bumbutai gradually gathered two small tribes nearby, which greatly strengthened the power of his tribe. Of course, this so-called strengthening was only based on the original foundation. You should know that they pretended to be Mongolians here, and there were not many people around them. Ebilun and his subordinates only had more than a thousand people, and adding the Mongolians annexed later, the total number did not exceed three thousand.

This scale is only considered a small tribe in Mongolia, and although Bumbutai wanted to expand the scale, she still didn't dare to do so after consideration. If the scale of the tribe is larger, it will be easier to attract attention. Now is not a good time, after all, the Ming Dynasty is still looking for their whereabouts. Once she makes too much noise in Khorchin, it will attract attention and cause trouble.

After the news that the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty had convened a meeting in Guihua City came, Bumbutai dared not take any other action. She even regretted her recent move to annex two small tribes. Now the scale of the tribe has reached a certain level. What if such a scale is discovered by someone with ulterior motives? Bumbutai was very worried about this.

Another thing that worries me more is the whereabouts of Dorgon. If Dorgon was dead, it would be fine, and Bumbutai would be able to rest assured. But Dorgon is now missing. After the defeat in Shengjing, we only heard that he fled to the north, but was not captured by the Ming army. No one knows where he is now and what his situation is.

But once he showed up, or even came to Khorchin, it would be a shock to Bumbutai instead of a surprise. The person Bumbutai least wanted to see was Dorgon, and she even hoped that Dorgon would never show up, because only in this way could she still have a chance to hide her identity. Once Dorgon came, everything she had done before would be in vain.

Thinking about this intently, Bumbutai's heart ached. She told herself that no matter how dangerous the situation was, she had to remain calm. Only by staying calm could she find a way to survive.

"Master..." On this day, in Bumbutai's yurt, Ebilun came to pay his respects as usual.

Bumbutai listened carefully to Ebilun's report. In fact, their tribe was so small that the situation was roughly the same every day. But because of their identities and the news of the previous alliance, according to Bumbutai's request, Ebilun would come to Bumbutai almost every day to report on the situation.

"So, the results of the meeting have just been announced, and the leaders of the Mongolian tribes have not all returned to their bases yet?"

"My lord, each tribe is close to naturalization and some are far away. Even if those that are far away have not all returned yet, they will eventually come back in time." Ebilun replied with a wry smile.

Nodding slightly, Bumbutai understood what Ebilun meant and sighed, "In this case, it will be even more difficult for us to hide. Moreover, Khorchin is currently under the jurisdiction of Chahar. The Chahar tribe is now led by Agudamu, and the Ming Emperor also conferred him the title of Prince Ning, using him to govern the Chahar and Khorchin tribes. You probably know who Agudamu is. Khorchin was defeated by him before, and now he is also in charge of Khorchin. I am afraid that in the future..."

"Master, this is what I am worried about." Ebilun reminded, "The atmosphere in Khorchin has been a little strange these days. It is said that Agudamu is planning to enter Khorchin again and summon all the tribes of Khorchin. If this happens, it will be difficult for us to hide if we don't respond properly."

"What do you think should be done?"

"I think it's better not to show up for now. When Agudamu summons the tribes, we must send people. If we don't send people, it will be bad. If we send people, we can meet with the emperor as ordinary tribesmen. As long as we prepare in advance, we still have some chances to fool them." Bumbutai agreed with Ebilun's words. This was what she thought. There was no way to avoid it. Since the Ming Dynasty divided the Mongolian tribes, and now the major tribes will also implement similar policies on the subordinate small tribes, there will be little room for them to maneuver.

What's more, the person in charge of Korchin at present is Agudamu. Both Bumbutai and Ebilun know clearly who Agudamu is. Other tribes, such as Mobei or Moxi Mongolia, will not be so strict in implementing the policies, but Agudamu is different. In addition, after he defeated Korchin before, Korchin Prince Qitata has not been caught. In addition, after the Qing Dynasty was destroyed, Bumbutai and others were also missing. Korchin's geographical location is quite special. It is not only adjacent to Mobei in the north, but also connected to Liaodong in the east. Therefore, in this case, Agudamu not only wants to unify the Korchin tribes and implement the policies set by the alliance, but he is also looking for their whereabouts in Korchin with this idea.

At this time, if their tribe migrated and avoided the north, it would be like trying to cover up the truth and telling the other party that there was something wrong, right? If this was the case, Agudamu would definitely react, and then Agudamu's Mongolian cavalry or even the Ming army would follow.

Therefore, Bumbutai and Ebilun both knew that the best way to deal with the situation now was to pretend to be ignorant and continue to stay here as ordinary Khorchin tribesmen. When Agudamu summoned the Khorchin tribes, they would send people to fool them. Once they fooled them, they would be safe and continue to hide as Mongols. As time went by, there would be no risk after a few years.

"Have you decided who to send?" Bumbutai continued to ask.

"That's up to the master to decide." Ebilun replied with a wry smile. He himself was a noble of the Eight Banners, and his men were also the elite of the Eight Banners. Although they had learned Mongolian for so long and pretended to be Mongolians for so long, they were not real Mongolians after all.

If he met ordinary people, it would not be a problem to fool them, but once he was involved in such an occasion, and even had to face other Khorchin tribes, Ebilun had no confidence at all.

Bumbutai understood this in her heart, and after hearing Ebilun say this, she thought about it and decided to let Qitate find a way. Qitate definitely could not show up, as there were too many people in Khorchin who knew him. If he went, wouldn't it be like walking into a trap?

However, it should not be a problem to select a smart and reliable person from among the subordinates who followed Qitate. Besides, Qitate was originally the Prince of Khorchin and was very familiar with the various Khorchin tribes. He could fabricate the origins of a tribe and impersonate them. As long as there was no in-depth investigation or on-site inspection, there should be no problem in concealing the past.

"I forgot that this should be handled by Qitat. You reminded me."

"Master is wise." Ebilun said hurriedly.

Bumbutai sighed: "The situation is difficult now, and we have to be more careful. You have worked hard these days." As she said that, she took the initiative to pour a cup of milk tea for Ebilun and handed it to him.

Seeing this, Ebilun hurried to take it. Whether intentionally or unintentionally, Bumbutai's fingers touched the back of his hand lightly. Ebilun's body trembled slightly as if he had been electrocuted. He subconsciously looked up at Bumbutai, but saw that Bumbutai looked normal, as if the feeling just now was an illusion.

"Thank you, master..." Ebilun bowed his head quickly.

Bumbutai nodded without comment, then asked after a pause: "The whereabouts of the regent has been unknown. What do you think about this?"

"Minion...minion..."

"Don't worry. You are not an outsider. There are only you and me here. Just say whatever is on your mind. It can be considered as a private heart-to-heart talk between you and me. How do you think?"

Ebilun was stunned for a moment, his expression a little hesitant, but seeing the way Bumbutai was looking at him, he had to answer the other's question. Bumbutai was right, there were only the two of them in the yurt today, even Wu Liangfu, who usually served Bumbutai, was not seen, and it was normal for Bumbutai to suddenly ask about Dorgon. After all, it has been almost a year since Shengjing was captured, and Dorgon's whereabouts have been unknown since he escaped from Shengjing. In addition, the Ming Dynasty's policy towards Mongolia has changed dramatically, so it is normal for Bumbutai to ask about Dorgon.

(End of this chapter)