Fu Shanhe

Chapter 284: The Fall of Qufu
"enough!"

“National affairs are so difficult, and all you do is quarrel.

If quarreling could solve the problem, you would have killed all the Northern Tartars long ago!"

Emperor Yongning immediately scolded.

Although he cursed harshly, deep down he didn't take it seriously.

The confrontation between civil and military officials in the court was exactly what he wanted to see.

If the people below were really friendly, he would not be able to sleep.

The reason I chose to interrupt at this time was mainly because my shortcomings had been exposed.

During the previous emperor's reign, Liaozhen was still an obedient child, and its scale was far smaller than it is now.

The situation has changed since the replacement of the Liaodong governor.

In order to stabilize the situation in Liaodong, a large amount of resources were invested in Liaodong Town, which grew rapidly.

Other troops stationed in Liaodong were excluded and plotted against because of factional struggles.

Before we knew it, one company was dominating the Liaodong front.

In the past, everyone tried to keep the matter under wraps for the sake of the court’s reputation.

Emperor Yongning only knew that the Liaodong Town was unruly, but he did not expect that this army would be so perfunctory even in its mission to rescue the emperor.

Now that the Ministry of War and the Governor's Office were in dispute, the problem was suddenly exposed, making the emperor very embarrassed.

But Liaodong Town cannot be touched by the imperial court now.

No matter how domineering this army is, it is still the most elite legion of the Dayu Dynasty.

As long as this army exists, it will make the northern barbarians fearful.

For the sake of his country and his people, Emperor Yongning had no choice but to spend money to support this army, no matter how unhappy he was.

The rise of the military towns in Guangdong and Guangxi, to a certain extent, curbed the dominance of the Liaodong town.

However, this is just containment, and the scale of the two sides is still not on the same level.

Before the reorganization, Li Mu took many factors into consideration and deliberately placed auxiliary troops outside the organization.

The military establishment of more than 40,000 people was suddenly reduced to more than 25,000 people.

Compared with the Liaodong Town with a staff of more than 70,000 people, it is only one-third of the other side.

After a series of operations, the court's attention, which had originally been focused on Guangxi, suddenly shifted to Liaodong Town.

Including within the civil service group, they also had no good feelings towards the Liaodong Town that they had supported.

In the eyes of many civil servants, Liaodong Town is like a dog that does not obey their orders and needs to be properly disciplined.

Unfortunately, dog trainers are hard to come by.

The civil official sent to serve as the commander-in-chief of Liaodong was simply unable to control the group of arrogant and fierce generals under him.

Even this time, we had to coax them before they were willing to send troops to rescue the king.

In order to learn from past experience, they naturally would not allow a second army to get out of control.

The troops under Marquis Wuyang are now showing obvious signs of being out of control, and are often pretending to obey orders from the Ministry of War.

Although this force strictly carried out the orders of the Dudu Mansion, in the eyes of civil officials there was no essential difference between the two.

Any troops that do not obey their command need to be punished.

To a certain extent, the existence of Wuyang Hou's troops was more difficult for them to accept than Liaodong Town.

Although the Liaodong garrison pretended to obey them but secretly disobeyed them, the military garrisons in Guangdong and Guangxi obeyed the orders of the emperor and the nobles.

In order to gain greater voice, the Ministry of War ignored the "heavy losses" of Marquis Wuyang's troops and deliberately assigned them more difficult combat tasks.

Unfortunately, no one is stupid and can see this obvious targeting at a glance.

The noble group seemed to have a lot of troops under their control, but most of them were abandoned garrison troops, and there were only a few troops that could actually fight.

It is impossible to allow civil servants to cause harm to the family fortune they have accumulated with great difficulty.

As an emperor, Emperor Yongning also did not want to weaken his military forces in times of internal and external troubles.

……

"Rumble..."

Hearing the loud explosion, the teacup in Kong Yinzhi's hand fell directly to the ground.

Ever since he learned that the reinforcements would not arrive in time, he has been in torment.

He wanted to run away with his family, but was concerned about the political impact.

Because of their special status, all officials would pretend not to see the Kong family's usual violations of law and discipline.

But abandoning the city and running away, leaving behind the ancestral heritage, is considered "disloyalty and unfilial".

For Duke Yansheng, who claims to be a moral saint, a stain on his moral character is a hundred times more serious than murder and arson.

If Dayu declined and various places lost cities and territories, then we would just follow suit and run away.

In order to appease the people, the court will most likely not pursue the matter.

But it's different now.

The imperial court had just won a great victory in Jinan, and people's morale was at its highest.

Fleeing without fighting would be a major political stain.

The entire family may not be executed, but it is highly likely that the Yansheng Duke will be replaced.

There are many cases in history where Yanshenggong was removed from his post because of violating the law.

As for surrendering to the Northern Tartars, that is not an option for the time being.

Judging from the current situation alone, the Northern Tartars do not yet have the strength to fight for the world.

The invasion was successful mainly because of the serious internal strife in Dayu, and the various armies that came to support the king were unable to unite.

Putting aside the small number of reinforcements, as long as Wuyang Hou's troops cooperate with Liaodong Town, they will have the strength to fight a decisive battle with the Northern Tartars.

If they cooperate well, they might be able to keep most of the grassland coalition forces.

There is no doubt that a merger of the two companies is impossible.

Although they are all members of Dayu's army, the interests of both sides are diametrically opposed.

Not to mention the political stance, the competition for military funds and resources alone is enough to ensure that the two sides cannot live in harmony.

The military expenses of the military garrisons in Guangdong and Guangxi are currently raised by the local governments, but this does not mean that they will also be raised by the local governments in the future.

Once the war is over, the central government will inevitably have to centralize power and it will not be possible to allow the governor to hold power for a long time.

Power returned to the central government, including control over the military's money and food.

By then, the two elite forces, one in the south and one in the north, will inevitably have conflicts over the allocation of military funds.

"What's going on outside?"

Kong Yinzhi asked with concern.

He also put in a lot of effort to defend Qufu.

Although he was reluctant to donate money and food, he also asked about the city's defense many times, which can be said to be a hard work.

"Master, the Northern Tartar army is attacking the city.

The government troops in the city fought back with artillery, but perhaps because the artillery had been in disrepair for a long time, it accidentally exploded.

Only three artillerymen were killed in the explosion, it's no big deal!"

The middle-aged butler said calmly.

Being able to be a housekeeper in the Confucius Mansion, he must have seen big scenes.

Swords and guns are indiscriminate on the battlefield. The explosion of a cannon that took away three soldiers was not a big deal at all.

In the eyes of these bigwigs, soldiers are consumables, and deaths in battle are just cold numbers on a list.

"Why has it fallen into disrepair? Didn't I order the army to be reorganized and prepared for war?"

Kong Yinzhi asked unhappily.

In normal times, we don’t pay much attention to armaments, but when the war comes to our doorstep, we still have to seize the armaments.

The northern barbarians are not civilized people. They come here just to rob.

The title of Duke Yansheng could intimidate most people in the world, but it might not be able to intimidate these barbarians from the grassland.

It can be seen from the enemy's siege of Qufu that they are a group of extremely daring people.

According to historical experience, there were very few cases of Qufu being attacked during the collapse of dynasties.

More often than not, they were the ones who welcomed the royal teacher.

In troubled times, they will support whoever has the bigger fist.

It doesn’t matter if you place the wrong bet, as long as you correct it in time, it won’t be a problem.

Few of the princes fighting for the world could refuse the icing on the cake from the descendants of the saint.

They have extensive experience in this area.

As long as you surrender quickly enough, you don't have to worry about being liquidated.

"Master, it must be the people below who neglected their duties.

Qufu had been peaceful for more than two hundred years, with only a group of yamen runners and civilians in the city.

Several nearby garrison troops had also been stationed in the mountains for many years, and their hereditary artillery had no combat experience at all.

It’s normal to have some accidents when you first start.”

The middle-aged butler immediately explained.

Artillery pieces that have been out of repair for a long time should be retired.

It is obviously a pipe dream to expect to recover by temporary maintenance.

There was no choice but to eliminate the unqualified artillery pieces. Those were the artillery pieces on the city wall of Qufu, all of which had a history of more than a hundred years.

If the standard is really implemented, the defenders will have no artillery to use. "There is no need to explain for them. They are just a bunch of good-for-nothings and cannot be relied upon.

Inform the servants in the palace to prepare, once Qufu is breached, we will immediately break out and leave."

Kong Yinzhi thought for a moment and gave the order.

He had also thought about living and dying with the city, and earning a name for loyalty and filial piety that would last through the ages.

However, my desire to survive is too strong and I really can't bear to gamble my life.

If you run away without receiving the news, you will be worthy of the kindness of the Dayu Dynasty.

"Master, all the servants in the mansion are in place and can break out at any time.

However, the Northern Barbarians are coming with great force, and we may not be their match if we encounter them on the battlefield.

Our death is a minor matter, but if it affects the safety of the master in the mansion, that would be…"

The middle-aged butler persuaded nervously.

Family members know their own business. As the overlord of Shandong, the servants of the Confucius Mansion are also famous far and wide.

But it is limited to bullying civilians and is far from being able to go to the battlefield.

They are completely different from the servants of those military generals.

Theoretically speaking, the total number of registered servants in each branch of the Confucius Mansion was several thousand.

In fact, it is filled with a large number of people with connections.

From an octogenarian to a baby who has not yet been weaned.

Many people are there just to take up a spot and earn some monthly income.

If you have the right connections, you can follow the manager to collect rent and make some money.

Anyway, the Kong family is wealthy and can afford to support them.

If you feel that financial resources are tight, just pick a few unlucky people and swallow up their property.

This has been the way it's been played for a long time.

He really didn't have the confidence to count on these people to go to the battlefield.

“No need to say more!
The Northern Barbarians are all a bunch of lunatics. How can I, a descendant of a saint, associate with them?

Tell the tribesmen to try their best to help defend the city.

When we really can’t hold on any longer, we’ll just break out and leave life and death to fate.”

Kong Yinzhi refused decisively.

If possible, he also wanted to reach a tacit understanding with the Northern Tartars so as not to embark on the road of exile.

Unfortunately, the Northern Tartars’ credibility is too poor, and breaking their promise is as bad as eating and drinking water.

If they stay and the enemy does not abide by the agreement, they will be meat on the chopping board.

In addition to this reason, Kong Yinzhi also wanted to kill someone with a borrowed knife.

The number of members of the Kong family has grown to such a large number.

Things are rare.

If the number of descendants of saints increases, they will also become worthless.

What's more, many guys inside were not very obedient and were all staring at his position.

If anyone gets into trouble outside, he, as the head of the family, will be responsible for cleaning up the mess.

It's okay once or twice, but anyone would get tired of having to clean up other people's messes every now and then.

We are all of the same race, so many methods cannot be used.

Now that the Northern Tartars are invading, it is undoubtedly the best opportunity.

The grassland cavalry could not understand the Shandong dialect, so it was difficult for both sides to communicate.

The descendants of the saints also have one head on two shoulders, and there is no difference in their appearance.

The Northern Tartar cavalry are used to killing and will certainly not mind attacking these fat sheep.

He can take advantage of the opportunity of breaking out and eliminate the forces in the tribe that are dissatisfied with him without any effort.

……

The roar of artillery fire continued.

The Qufu city wall, which had fallen into disrepair for a long time, soon became precarious.

The defenders, lacking combat experience and forced to take action, were very powerless in the face of the enemy's fierce attack.

After a loud bang, a gap appeared in the city wall.

The defenders who should have blocked the enemy’s way immediately could not bear the pressure and simply turned around and ran away.

On the battlefield, the collapse of an army often happens in an unexpected moment.

Seeing some soldiers running away, the surrounding soldiers quickly chose to follow suit.

The yamen runners who were in charge of supervising the battle were usually very powerful, but now they became weaklings.

Apart from shouting "go back quickly", his body involuntarily retreated.

"What are you standing there for? The supervisory team, kill the deserters immediately and stabilize the battle line for me!"

The Qufu County Magistrate who was watching the battle gave orders in a panic.

He originally thought that his military level was just that of a rookie, but he never expected that the defending generals were even less capable than him.

The drawbacks of hereditary military commanders are vividly demonstrated here.

Except for a few generals who inherited the bravery of their ancestors, most of them were good-for-nothings.

The work that should have been done by the defending general now requires him, the county magistrate, to command.

"Sir, let's go!"

"Duke Yansheng led a large group of people and opened the South Gate and fled."

Upon receiving this sad news, the Qufu County Magistrate, who was still struggling, turned pale in an instant.

The worst thing still happened.

I thought the enemy was composed of cavalry and not good at attacking cities, so there was hope of holding Qufu.

They never expected that their side was even weaker and the city defense was in a mess. The enemy had torn a gap in the city less than a day after the siege began.

If the soldiers fight for their lives, this is a small problem.

There were many gaps torn open during the siege, and as long as the gaps were filled in time, it would not be a big problem.

But there is no worst, only worse.

At the critical moment, the stupid teammate opened the city gate and ran away without even saying hello.

“Are they crazy?
The enemy is cavalry. Even if we break out, we can't outrun them on four legs!"

The Qufu County Magistrate asked in disbelief.

"My Lord County Magistrate, now is not the time to dwell on this.

The news that Duke Yansheng took the lead in running away had spread like wildfire in the city, and many people had witnessed it with their own eyes.

The northern barbarians surrounded the city on three sides but lacked one, so they deliberately left the south gate open. Now many people are leaving the city through the south gate."

The master urged hurriedly.

After encountering such a tragic incident, the Qufu County Magistrate’s career was definitely over.

Even if he managed to break out, he would be punished by the court afterwards, so it would be of little value to him.

If he had not betrayed his benefactor and fled for his life, which is the most despicable thing in the staff world, he would have run away long ago.

"Mr. Zhou, please take my son away!

Qufu is where the temple of the saint is located, and we must not allow it to be destroyed by the northern barbarians.

Now that Qufu has fallen, the saint's temple is difficult to preserve.

I am the magistrate of Qufu County appointed by the imperial court. I need to take responsibility for this matter. Living and dying with the city is the best choice."

The Qufu County Magistrate said in a firm tone.

He was destined to die, so rather than be punished by the court, he would rather die for his country.

According to the tradition of Dayu officialdom, no matter how great the crimes committed during one's lifetime, as long as one died for his country, the court would not pursue the matter further.

It is better to sacrifice oneself than to have the whole family be implicated.

“My lord, please take care of yourself.

Student, I will take the young master with me now!"

Master Zhou said with a slightly sad tone.

The scene before him was undoubtedly what he wanted to see most.

His benefactor died for his country, and he left with his benefactor's blood and orphans, which would have been a good reputation if it were spread out.

If nothing unexpected happens, the court will most likely reward him.

If we all really left together and were later questioned by the court, we would lose all our reputation.

……

“Wan Hu, a large group of people suddenly appeared at the South Gate and left with a convoy.

The vehicle has a lot of tracks, so it must be carrying a lot of valuables. Do you think we should send someone to chase it?"

Erdun was slightly stunned when he heard the news brought by his subordinates.

He had seen people who were greedy for money, but he had never seen someone so greedy that he would not even give up his property to save his life.

"There's actually such an idiot. What are you still standing there for? Send someone to chase him!"

(End of this chapter)