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

Chapter 488 Sun Chengzong's Restoration

Yuan Chonghuan was smart all his life but confused at this moment. He had never thought of this at all, or perhaps his mind was confused because he was suddenly imprisoned. When his mind was confused, he lost his usual calmness in thinking.

After receiving Yuan Chonghuan's letter, Cheng Jiming hurried to see Emperor Chongzhen. After reading the letter, Emperor Chongzhen's face turned pale. As the emperor of the Ming Dynasty, he could not mobilize the Ming army. He actually needed a prisoner to recall the army with a letter. This was not only a shame for Emperor Chongzhen, but also a challenge to the imperial power.

But it's too early to say these things now. The most important thing now is to let Zu Dashou and others bring the Guanning Army back. Emperor Chongzhen handed the letter back to Cheng Jiming and asked him to send someone to chase Zu Dashou as soon as possible and deliver the letter.

At this time, Cheng Jiming asked Emperor Chongzhen whether it would be possible to take Yuan Chonghuan out of the imperial prison and transfer him to the prison of the Ministry of Justice to show the court's attitude. In addition, it would be inappropriate for the cabinet to send someone to do this. It would be better for Emperor Chongzhen to send a reliable eunuch to do this, which would be more trustworthy to Zu Dashou and others.

Emperor Chongzhen thought it made sense. Transferring a prisoner was also a form of attitude, which was acceptable. As for the candidate to be sent, he directly asked Wang Chengen who would be the most suitable person to be sent. Wang Chengen recommended Wang Yongzuo to Emperor Chongzhen. Wang Yongzuo was a senior eunuch and a member of the Imperial Household Department. He had never been to the Guanning Army before and had no conflicts with the Guanning Army, including Zu Dashou. He was important enough and was the most suitable candidate.

Emperor Chongzhen agreed and asked someone to find Wang Yongzuo and directly gave him the task. In addition to Wang Yongzuo, there was also the guerrilla Shi Zhuguo, who was suggested by Cheng Jiming. It would be much safer for him to lead troops to escort Wang Yongzuo along the way.

After dealing with these, Emperor Chongzhen was still worried after Cheng Jiming left. He was worried about what would happen if Yuan Chonghuan could not call Zu Dashou back? Although the troops from various places had arrived in the capital one after another, the defense of the capital was still weak. Although Man Gui was loyal, he was a military general and a Mongolian after all. It was not effective for him to control the troops. If he had enough prestige, the Guanning Army would not have left the capital under the instigation of Zu Dashou.

For this reason, Emperor Chongzhen had been considering who would control the various ministries, but after thinking about all the officials in the court from top to bottom, Emperor Chongzhen still couldn't pick out a suitable candidate. The more he thought about it, the more worried he became, and he frowned, feeling very embarrassed.

"Your Majesty, why don't you recall Lord Sun?" Wang Chengen, who was standing by, saw Emperor Chongzhen looking worried and couldn't help but remind him.

"Lord Sun? That Lord Sun?" Emperor Chongzhen asked subconsciously.

"Of course it is the former commander-in-chief of Ji-Liao, Lord Sun Chengzong." Wang Chengen replied.

This sentence made Emperor Chongzhen's eyes light up immediately. That's right! How could I have forgotten him?

Sun Chengzong was the teacher of his brother, Emperor Tianqi, and the former governor of Ji-Liao. He was also the leader of the Donglin Party. He had a high prestige both in the court and in the army. Especially in Liaodong, Sun Chengzong was well-known to everyone. Although some people said that the Guanning Army was created by Yuan Chonghuan, in fact, the Guanning Army was originally created by Sun Chengzong, because when the Guanning Army was first established, Sun Chengzong was the governor of Ji-Liao, and Yuan Chonghuan was just a military governor under Sun Chengzong.

Soon after Sun Chengzong arrived in Liaodong, he stabilized the situation there. He not only created the Guanning Army, but also set up the impregnable Ningjin Line of Defense, using defense instead of attack to put pressure on the Jiannu. If it weren't for Wei Zhongxian's slander that forced Sun Chengzong to resign, with Sun Chengzong's ability, the Jiannu problem would have been solved long ago.

Moreover, as Yuan Chonghuan's old superior, Sun Chengzong could completely control the Guanning Army if he came out of retirement. If he could take action, the difficult problems before them would be easily solved.

After Sun Chengzong left his post in the Tianqi era, he retired to his hometown. However, his hometown was not far from the capital, in Gaoyang, Northern Zhili. It was only 300 miles from Gaoyang to the capital, and a fast horse could reach it in one day. In addition, Gaoyang was located in the southwest of the capital, and the road to the capital was not cut off. It was an excellent choice to let Sun Chengzong come to the capital quickly and entrust him with an important task.

The more Emperor Chongzhen thought about it, the more he felt that Sun Chengzong was the most suitable candidate. He immediately asked someone to draft an edict, ordering Sun Chengzong to come to Beijing urgently. At the same time, he also appointed him as the Junior Tutor and Grand Tutor of the Crown Prince, Minister of War, and Grand Secretary of Zhongji Palace.

The decree to summon Sun Chengzong to Beijing for reinstatement was issued soon, but it would take at least five days for Sun Chengzong to return to the capital. Before Sun Chengzong arrived, the defense of the capital still depended on Man Gui. Fortunately, Huang Taiji did not launch an attack on the capital in the past two days. Although there was a small-scale war between the two sides, the Eight Banners were busy plundering the capital and did not withdraw their main forces to attack the capital, which gave the Ming army in the capital a chance to catch their breath.

Wang Yongzuo left the capital under the escort of the guerrilla Shi Zhuguo and chased the Guanning Army without stopping. On the third day, the group finally encountered the rear team of the Guanning Army and hurriedly stepped forward to identify themselves and asked to see Zu Dashou.

Zu Dashou heard that Wang Yongzuo was chasing him with Yuan Chonghuan's letter, so he ordered the Guanning Army to suspend its march and met Wang Yongzuo in the central army. After meeting Zu Dashou, Wang Yongzuo handed over Yuan Chonghuan's letter and the imperial order of Emperor Chongzhen to pardon the generals of the Guanning Army, and at the same time stated his purpose and began to persuade Zu Dashou to return to the army.

At first, Zu Dashou was reluctant to go back. After all, there was no turning back. Why would he go back when he had already led the troops? But after reading Yuan Chonghuan's letter and then Emperor Chongzhen's handwriting, Zu Dashou couldn't help but hesitate. He was wavering in his heart, not knowing whether he should go back or continue to go.

At this time, Wang Yongzuo's eloquence came into play. He tried his best to persuade Zu Dashou to change his mind. At the same time, he presented facts and reasoned with Zu Dashou, asking him not to make mistakes and not to harm Yuan Chonghuan.

If Zu Dashou led his troops back, then all the past would be forgiven. If he insisted on returning to Liaodong, then many things would be irreversible. Whether it was Yuan Chonghuan or Zu Dashou himself, or even the Guanning Army, they would be regarded as rebels by the court. No matter how good the Guanning Army was, could it compete with the court? Moreover, Zu Dashou and other Liaodong generals were all Ming officials. Could they abandon their status and join the Jian Nu?

Who among the Liaodong army had no hatred for Jiannu? The Liaodong generals had a deeper hatred for Jiannu. They were angry about something that could have been completely saved, and thus made an unwise choice. This was not a good choice at all.

Under Wang Yongzuo's strong persuasion, Zu Dashou finally agreed to return to the capital. He immediately summoned all the generals to explain the situation, took out Yuan Chonghuan's letter and Emperor Chongzhen's handwritten letter of pardon and circulated them to everyone. After everyone read it, Zu Dashou told everyone that he decided to return to the capital and continue to fight against the Jiannu. At this time, everyone also agreed. After all, they were all ministers of the Ming Dynasty and understood the consequences of their previous actions. The reason why they followed Zu Dashou to leave the capital and return to Liaodong was because they were worried that Yuan Chonghuan would implicate themselves after being imprisoned, and they were even more worried that the court would attack the Guanning Army.

From this point of view, what he did was nothing more than self-protection. Now, not only did he have Yuan Chonghuan's letter, but he also had Emperor Chongzhen's handwriting, so he no longer had to worry about anything.

In this case, it is only right for them to go back. Moreover, they came to the capital to fight against the Jiannu. As generals, especially generals from Liaodong, it is natural for them to fight against the Jiannu. How can they refuse?

After a day of rest, Zu Dashou led the Guanning Army back to the capital. When the army marched towards the capital, Wang Yongzuo finally smiled. In any case, his mission was completed and he did not disappoint Emperor Chongzhen. When he returned to the palace, Emperor Chongzhen would definitely reward him handsomely.

Two days before Zu Dashou returned to the capital, Sun Chengzong, who had received the imperial edict and set off overnight, finally arrived in the capital.

On the day of arriving in the capital, Sun Chengzong, who was exhausted from the journey, had no time to rest before he was received into the palace by people sent by Emperor Chongzhen and met Emperor Chongzhen on the platform.

"I, your old minister Sun Chengzong, kowtow to Your Majesty..." Seeing Emperor Chongzhen, Sun Chengzong hurriedly paid his respects with great ceremony. Before he could do so, Emperor Chongzhen hurriedly stood up and helped Sun Chengzong up.

"Teacher Sun, there is no need to be like this. Please stand up quickly!" Although Sun Chengzong was the teacher of Emperor Tianqi and not his own teacher, when Sun Chengzong taught Emperor Tianqi, the young Emperor Chongzhen accompanied Emperor Tianqi to listen to several classes of Sun Chengzong because of their deep brotherly love. Therefore, it is not an exaggeration for Emperor Chongzhen to call Sun Chengzong his teacher now.

"Thank you, old minister..."

"Wang Chengen!"

"The slave is here!"

"Bring a stool for my teacher Sun."

"Yes!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Wang Chengen personally brought a brocade stool and placed it below Emperor Chongzhen. Sun Chengzong thanked Emperor Chongzhen once again, nodded to Wang Chengen to express his gratitude, and then sat down steadily.

Emperor Chongzhen first asked about Sun Chengzong's health. Sun Chengzong said that he was in good health. Although he was old, he could eat and sleep well, and he would have no problem leading the troops into battle.

Sun Chengzong was an old and experienced man, so how could he not know the purpose of Emperor Chongzhen's restoration? When he was in his hometown, he heard the news that the Jiannu were besieging the capital. When the order of Emperor Chongzhen arrived, he knew what the court was thinking.

In addition, Sun Chengzong also heard about Yuan Chonghuan's imprisonment on his way to Beijing. Upon learning that Yuan Chonghuan was thrown into the imperial prison, Sun Chengzong did not speak for a long time and finally sighed.

Sun Chengzong was not optimistic about Yuan Chonghuan's fate. He knew very well that Yuan Chonghuan might not survive this time. Thinking of Yuan Chonghuan's past under his command, Sun Chengzong could not help but sigh and regret. In his opinion, Yuan Chonghuan was a rare talent, but he also had great character flaws.

In the early years, Yuan Chonghuan's problems were exposed. If it weren't for Sun Chengzong's protection of Yuan Chonghuan, how could he have risen step by step later? But now Sun Chengzong regrets that he was too protective of Yuan Chonghuan back then. If he knew what would happen today, Sun Chengzong would definitely not do that again.

In fact, when the news came earlier that Mao Wenlong was killed by Yuan Chonghuan, Sun Chengzong was stunned by Yuan Chonghuan's actions. He never thought that Yuan Chonghuan would be so bold that he would kill a first-rank military general in the name of the commander-in-chief of Ji and Liao, and a great general like Mao Wenlong.

At that time, no one knew the reason why Yuan Chonghuan killed Mao Wenlong, but Sun Chengzong saw it clearly. He also knew that the reason why Yuan Chonghuan attacked Mao Wenlong was not because of the overall situation of Ji and Liao, but out of personal grudges and because he had targeted Mao Wenlong's trade transportation lines.

Yuan Chonghuan did something similar when he was the military governor. For this, Sun Chengzong scolded Yuan Chonghuan and directly rebuked him for his audacity in killing generals, especially without any procedures and without the imperial sword or the royal flag, which was neither reasonable nor legal.

Yuan Chonghuan admitted his mistake at that time, but he didn't think that Yuan Chonghuan didn't take his warning to heart. He remembered the last two sentences he said. Now that Mao Wenlong had been killed, he would have the imperial sword and the royal flag. But he was so bold that he didn't think that even if he had such things, could he kill a general of Mao Wenlong's level? From that day on, Sun Chengzong was not optimistic about Yuan Chonghuan, worried that Yuan Chonghuan would eventually burn himself if he played with fire like this. As expected, Yuan Chonghuan was imprisoned this time and there was no way he could escape.

(End of this chapter)