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

Chapter 801 The Unlucky Eight Kings
Ming Dynasty, Forbidden City.

Zhu Shenzui has been in a good mood these days. Many things, both internally and externally, are going smoothly as he had imagined.

The opening of Shandong to the sea has officially begun. After Kang Youfu arrived in Shandong, he presided over the opening of the sea for trade in the name of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Originally, many people from all levels were paying attention to this matter, especially those merchants who had arrived in Shandong early. In addition, because of the previous crossing of the sea to the north, the large amount of materials obtained made the merchants who got in first earn a lot of wealth, and also attracted many merchants who were originally on the sidelines to flock in.

Not to mention Zheng Hongkui and Li You. Although the war to attack Liaodong in the north was stopped, they took this opportunity not only to destroy the navy in Huang Taiji's hands, but also to recapture the two important strongholds of Lu Island and Pi Island, clearing the obstacles on the sea route for the subsequent maritime trade. Moreover, thanks to this merit, Zheng Hongkui was promoted to the position of general, and Li You also had the title of general. Coupled with the rewards and additional titles from the court, the two can be said to be at the peak of their lives.

Zheng Hongkui was especially happy. Compared with his elder brother, his current official position not only surpassed Zheng Zhilong, but he also gained the recognition and trust of Zhu Shenzhui. Moreover, there was a piece of news that the court was preparing to restore the previous five ranks of nobility. You must know that after the founding of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang implemented three ranks of nobility, that is, the ranks of meritorious officials were duke, marquis, and earl.

But now, the court wants to restore the ancient five ranks of nobility, and re-establish the viscount and baron that were abolished by Zhu Yuanzhang. In addition, a civilian nobility title will be established. Compared with the five ranks of nobility, this civilian nobility title does not belong to nobles, but only belongs to personal honor and reward, and does not have the benefits of fiefdom and salary, but in political status it is equivalent to the lowest baron, and there is no restriction on the recipients of it, even if it is a businessman, as long as he makes certain contributions and is meritorious to the country, the emperor can still grant him a civilian nobility.

Once you have civilian nobility, the restrictions on the four classes of people will no longer exist, and your political status can jump directly from the lowest merchant to equal to the nobles, and enjoy some privileges. This is a big deal. If this is true, wouldn't all the merchants in the world go crazy? You know, although merchants are rich, their status is low, and this civilian nobility is a shortcut to change your status and identity. As long as you have civilian nobility, even if it cannot be inherited, your branch will completely break away from the merchant status and become a noble family.

Of course, Zheng Hongkui was not sure whether there would be a civilian title, as he had only heard some rumors, but the establishment of the fifth rank of nobility had already taken shape. Moreover, Zheng Hongkui had received news that after the court adjusted the nobility titles, he would at least be a viscount, and the same was true for his partner Li You. If he was lucky, he might even get the title of earl.

Opportunities are what people rely on to succeed. If someone hadn't recommended him, Zhu Shenzhui wouldn't have used Zheng Hongkui, and Zheng Hongkui wouldn't have changed so much.

Unexpectedly, Zheng Hongkui was very grateful to Xu Xiancheng for recommending him. If it weren't for Xu Xiancheng's recommendation, how could he stand out? It would be even more impossible for him to make such a contribution and rise to the top in one step.

In order to repay Zhu Shencui's kindness, Zheng Hongkui has been working as hard as a chicken these days and has cooperated very well with the work of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. With him and Li You, and with Li Xin as the governor of Shandong, Shandong's maritime trade has been very smooth from the beginning. Not only has the first batch of ships sailed to Japan, but Zheng Hongkui's subordinates and friends in Japan have also made preparations. As long as the ships and cargo arrive, huge profits are certain.

Apart from Japan, Korea's maritime trade is also going on, but because Korea is currently controlled by the Jiannu, the scale of maritime trade is not as large as Japan, and the traded goods are also subject to some restrictions. However, this is the best thing for the Korean monarchs and ministers. Since they were oppressed by Huang Taiji with force, especially not long ago, they were forced to help send troops to deal with the Ming Dynasty. Although the Korean monarchs and ministers were unwilling, they had no choice.

When Huang Taiji's navy was destroyed, the Korean monarch and his ministers were surprised and happy when they learned the news. They were shocked that the Korean navy they sent out was almost completely destroyed by the Ming navy, and the losses were extremely serious. Moreover, Korea had always been a vassal state of the Ming Dynasty. Sending troops to help the enemy attack their motherland was simply treasonous.

As for joy, it was also because of the great victory of the Ming army. It seemed that the Jiannu were not invincible. The strength of the Ming Dynasty was still there. Perhaps it would not be long before the Ming Dynasty could launch a counterattack and help Korea drive away or even eliminate these damn Jiannu, just like it repelled the Japanese army decades ago.

Now that the Ming Dynasty has opened the sea in Shandong and traded with Korea in the name of the government, the Korean monarchs and ministers have gradually put their minds at ease after their anxiety. Since the Ming Dynasty can do this, it means that they do not blame Korea. The motherland has treated them so well. If they help the Jiannu to deal with the Ming Dynasty, wouldn’t they be worse than animals?

In this way, the Korean king and his ministers secretly discussed and started trading with the Ming Dynasty without telling the Jiannu. Although the trade volume between the two sides was not large and the goods were restricted, the Ming Dynasty and Korea were close after all! Especially the Pi Island that the Ming Dynasty had taken back was only half a day's sea journey from the Korean mainland. Although the amount of each trade was small, it was frequent, and the profit was not small.

In addition to Japan and Korea, Kang Youfu also remembered what Zhu Shenzhui had said about the trade with Liaodong. The few Jinyiwei he brought with him were responsible for this matter. After the maritime trade began, Kang Youfu secretly sent these Jinyiwei to Liaodong to contact the Eight Banners nobles privately to explore the possibility of trade between the two sides.

From the current perspective, the contact situation is still relatively optimistic. The Eight Banners nobles are not fools. Would they refuse good things? Moreover, there is no industrial capacity in Liaodong. Even if there are good things, they can't sell them. Not to mention ginseng and sable fur, even if gold and silver are in your hands and can't be exchanged for goods, they are also waste. The Eight Banners nobles have a lot of good things in their hands, but they also lack goods from the Central Plains, and smuggling with the Ming Dynasty is also a common thing. If you, Huang Taiji, can do it, can't they, the Eight Banners nobles, do it? What's more, they are using their own things to exchange for supplies. It has nothing to do with you, Huang Taiji. Even if you want to punish yourself for this matter, there is no reason!
With this mentality, the Eight Banners nobles began to tentatively contact each other, and everything was developing in a good direction. The news was gradually passed to Zhu Shencui through Kang Youfu and the Embroidered Uniform Guards. Zhu Shencui just smiled and did not intervene. He let Kang Youfu and the Embroidered Uniform Guards act freely. As long as they did not cross the red line he drew, everything was up to them. What he wanted was the result, not the process.

While Shandong opened the sea for maritime trade, the encirclement and suppression of bandits in the Central Plains continued.

Since Zhu Shenzui did not mobilize the troops in the Central Plains to go to Liaodong to relieve Jinzhou, the Ming army's military strength in the Central Plains and other places was intact, and the encirclement and suppression of the bandits progressed very smoothly.

Chen Qiuyu, Lu Xiangsheng, Sun Chuanting, Hong Chengchou, Qin Liangyu and other troops set up a net in all directions, and slowly but surely suppressed the range of activities of the bandits. The survival conditions of the bandits became increasingly worse. The bandits, who used to be able to roam around in Henan, Huguang, eastern Sichuan, eastern Shaanxi and southern Shanxi, had lost their mobility and were compressed to a main area of ​​Henan plus parts of nearby provinces. Moreover, most of the contacts between the various groups were cut off, making it impossible for them to join forces.

The one who had the hardest time among them was Zhang Xianzhong, known as the Eight Kings. After Gao Yingxiang was defeated and captured, Zhang Xianzhong became the most famous and the strongest among all the bandit tribes.

Zhang Xianzhong thought that he could replace Gao Yingxiang and become the leader of the bandit gangs, but he never expected that the Ming army did not stop after dealing with Gao Yingxiang. On the contrary, troops from various provinces rushed towards him from all directions, ready to wipe him out.

Seeing that the situation was not right, the cunning Zhang Xianzhong made a feint, first pretending to go north, and then suddenly led his troops south, intending to go directly to Huguang from Henan, then take advantage of Huguang's complex terrain to go west, and then go around Sichuan to get out of the encirclement of the Ming army.

But Zhang Xianzhong never expected that he would run into Lu Xiangsheng, known as the King of Hell, as soon as he entered Huguang. Although Lu Xiangsheng's Tianxiong Army was not as numerous as Zhang Xianzhong's, their combat effectiveness was extremely strong. Moreover, after the Battle of the Great Wall, Lu Xiangsheng's army not only suffered no losses, but also received reinforcements, and even their firearms were much more sophisticated than before.

Zhang Xianzhong ran into Lu Xiangsheng head-on and was beaten black and blue. He had no choice but to escape at the cost of breaking off his tail like a gecko, and fled with the main camp.

After running for hundreds of miles in one breath, he finally escaped from Lu Xiangsheng's pursuit. Just when Zhang Xianzhong was about to take a breath, news suddenly came from the front that Qin Liangyu's white-flag soldiers appeared out of nowhere and blocked her way.

Zhang Xianzhong had never dealt with Qin Liangyu because Qin Liangyu had been chasing Gao Yingxiang, and Zhang Xianzhong was wandering in Henan and other places at that time.

When Zhang Xianzhong learned that the Ming army blocking his way was Qin Liangyu, who led only 3,000 troops, he didn't care at all. In his opinion, Qin Liangyu was just an old widow whose husband had died. She was not at home to take care of her grandchildren at this age, but actually led troops to fight against him as a woman? It was simply a joke. Moreover, Qin Liangyu only had 3,000 troops, and although he suffered a defeat, his troops still had tens of thousands of people. Qin Liangyu was not Lu Xiangsheng who could wield a sword weighing dozens of kilograms. What was there to be afraid of! I couldn't beat Lu Xiangsheng, so why should I be afraid of you, an old widow?
Zhang Xianzhong sent his troops to attack without thinking. In his opinion, a mere 3,000-man army was simply vulnerable. One man in his army could drown the enemy with just a pee. As for the old widow Qin Liangyu, she was even less to be feared. After defeating the enemy and capturing the old widow, he would make her bring him water for washing his feet.

Zhang Xianzhong, full of confidence, started a battle with Qin Liangyu's White-Pole Soldiers, but he never expected that not long after the battle started, Qin Liangyu's White-Pole Soldiers not only defeated his vanguard in one fell swoop, but also directly killed his central army.

Zhang Xianzhong was dumbfounded when he saw those ferocious white-pole soldiers who were killing and chopping off people's heads, stringing the heads together with ropes and hanging them around their waists, grinning with their snow-white teeth showing, looking like demons from hell.

Before he could react, his own army was slaughtered by the White-Pole Soldiers. The battlefield was littered with his own people collapsing, fleeing and crying. An army of tens of thousands was defeated in one battle. If Zhang Xianzhong had not been protected by his subordinates and godsons, he might have been beheaded on the spot by the old widow he mentioned.

(End of this chapter)