The invasion of the abyss begins with the Laughing at the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 75: The bustling Liaodong

"General Shen won. Whether it was the Later Jin Jiannu, Jinzhou Guards, or Fuzhou Guards, they were no match for General Shen. He defeated them in no time."

"The Iron Guards are so powerful that they actually defeated the Blue Banner. It's incredible. If you didn't see it with your own eyes, who would believe it was true?"

"The Eight Banners of the Later Jin Dynasty defeated the imperial court, and General Shen led the Iron Guard to defeat the Tatars. Doesn't this mean that General Shen is more powerful than the imperial court?"

Early in the morning, the entire Yongning City, and even the entire Liaodong was in an uproar. For the first time, the three names Shen Yuanliang were known to everyone, and he was no longer referred to as the rebel leader.

Everyone knows that the Liaodong Peninsula belongs to Shen Yuanliang from now on, although he now only occupies Gaizhou, Fuzhou and Jinzhou.

Through an unprecedented war of annihilation, Shen Yuanliang gained a firm foothold in southern Liaoning, and rose from a mere rebel to a local tyrant who could not be underestimated by anyone.

At present, in the areas outside the Great Wall, the Ming Dynasty court, the Later Jin Jiannu, and Shen Yuanliang are in a three-way confrontation like Wei, Shu, and Wu, maintaining a fragile balance.

Liaodong Jinglüe Mansion.

"My lord, disaster has occurred!"

Master Li, dressed in a green robe and holding a white paper fan, rushed into the study room. Without caring about being rude, he took a sip of tea and spoke anxiously.

Shen Yuanliang successively defeated the imperial court's rebellion suppression army and the Blue Banner of the Later Jin Jiannu. Such shocking news finally reached the Liaodong Military Governor's Office.

As the military advisor of Xiong Tingbi, the governor of Liaodong, Li knew that disaster had occurred, so he rushed back from the front line without stopping.

On the desk, with smoke rising from the air, Xiong Tingbi was writing with his brush, imitating the calligraphy of Wang Xizhi. Just when he was feeling the mood, Master Li rushed in, ruining his mood immediately.

Throwing down the wolf-hair brush in his hand, Xiong Tingbi asked unhappily, "Why are you so panicked?"

"Sir, Shen Yuanliang wins!"

Without looking at Xiong Tingbi's ugly expression, Master Li sighed and said helplessly.

"Shen Yuanliang?"

Hearing this unfamiliar name, Xiong Tingbi thought for a moment before remembering it. He waved his hand and said nonchalantly, "Is it Shen Yuanliang, the rebel leader who killed Shi Guangxian, the military commander, and occupied Yongning City?"

"We have won, and now the most important thing is to deal with the Later Jin Jiannu. If there is a little rebellion, we can easily deal with it after the Jiannu retreat."

The Later Jin army was at its peak and was invading like fire. They successively captured more than a dozen fortresses and three important checkpoints in Liaodong, and their target was directly the city of Shenyang.

At such a critical moment, in Xiong Tingbi's eyes, the rebellion launched by Shen Yuanliang was nothing at all, and he didn't take it seriously as he was busy mobilizing troops.

"Sir, the army to suppress the rebellion is gone."

"Even the Blue Banner of the Later Jin Jiannu was completely wiped out at Jingbian Fort."

Seeing that Xiong Tingbi didn't take it seriously, Master Li, who was extremely anxious, had to speak again.

"Gone, what do you mean?"

After hearing Master Li's report, Xiong Tingbi hadn't reacted yet. After a moment's pause, he shouted, "All defeated?"

At this moment, Xiong Tingbi was no longer as calm and composed as before. His face turned pale and he sat dazed. He slumped in the armchair and did not speak for a long time.

As an old bureaucrat, Xiong Tingbi knew the significance of Shen Yuanliang's move. For the Ming court, it was like the sky falling.

The Later Jin Jiannu were a foreign race, equivalent to the Xiongnu, Turks, and Mongols in the past, and they were very harmful to the Central Plains dynasty, and it took the whole country to fight against them. However, Shen Yuanliang was a Han Chinese, and there were three to four million Han Chinese in southern Liaoning.

Today, Shen Yuanliang has made a call and established his own regime, just like the Chen Sheng and Wu Guang uprising and the Taiping Dao and Yellow Turban uprising. It has the greatest impact on the Zhu Ming royal family and can even shake the legitimacy of the throne.

One affects the country and the people, and the other affects the destiny of the throne.

"Sir, if it's a small-scale rebellion, it's fine. To be honest, there have been several rebellions in the Ming Dynasty every year."

"Shen Yuanliang is different. With the help of the Iron Guards, they completely wiped out the Bordered Blue Banner. Their military strength is strong and it is not so easy to pacify them."

"If Shen Yuanliang were to establish a country and proclaim himself emperor under the instigation of others, then everything would be over!"

Thinking of this, Master Li patted his head with his hand, feeling a chill in his heart. He felt as if endless dark clouds were approaching and a storm was about to come.

One country, two emperors. Who is the legitimate one in the eyes of the people of the world?
"Yes, a small rebellion has grown into a towering tree in the blink of an eye."

"How can we easily wipe out a tree with deep roots? If he ascends the throne and declares himself emperor, we will all lose our posts and even be sent to the Jinyiwei prison."

After applying a wet towel to his face and calming down, Xiong Tingbi looked at the lush green elm trees in the courtyard and spoke with inspiration.

In Liaodong, the Later Jin and Jiannu rose rapidly. The Battle of Sarhu wiped out hundreds of thousands of elite border troops of the imperial court in one fell swoop. Before the fire of the Later Jin was put out, Shen Yuanliang added fuel to the fire.

The Ming Dynasty, which was riddled with holes, was on the verge of collapse at this moment, just like the end of the Qin Dynasty more than a thousand years ago, when Qin lost its power and the whole world was chasing it.

Could it be that destiny has changed and heaven’s will no longer favors the Ming royal family?
"Sir, can I talk to Shen Yuanliang in private?"

"As long as he doesn't declare himself emperor and doesn't raise the banner of rebellion, everything is fine!"

Master Li's eyes rolled around, and after thinking for a while, he looked around, and when he didn't see anyone, he covered his mouth with a white paper fan and spoke in a very low voice.

Shen Yuanliang's secession of the Liaodong Peninsula is about to become a reality, and no one can stop it. The most important thing at the moment is to suppress this matter and prevent the situation from escalating so that there is room for maneuver.

"Who can take on this responsibility and serve as the negotiating envoy?"

Xiong Tingbi, dressed in a loose robe, stared at Master Li in front of him without blinking and said in a low voice, the meaning of which was self-evident.

"My Lord, I'll go!"

Feeling frightened by the deep gaze, Master Li sighed inwardly and reluctantly took on this difficult task.

At that time, Master Li, Li Duanyang, who passed the imperial examination at the age of 20, was very proud and rode his horse at a gallop, and saw all the flowers in Chang'an in one day.

However, fifteen years later, Li Duanyang, who was already 35 years old, failed every time he went to Beijing to take the imperial examinations, simply because he was not from one of the four major academies.

In order to make a living, or perhaps because he was indifferent to the petty intrigues in the imperial examination, Li Duanyang, the former child prodigy and now a failed candidate, applied for the position of Xiong Tingbi's legal advisor.

In a flash, twenty years have passed. Master Li and Xiong Tingbi, the governor of Liaodong, are deeply tied together. They suffer together and prosper together.

"Master, I'm sorry for that!"

Patting Master Li on the shoulder, Xiong Tingbi sighed again and said with a somewhat unnatural expression.

If the negotiation is successful, Li Shiye will have achieved great success, and Xiong Tingbi will be able to safely survive this crisis and continue to serve as the governor of Liaodong, or be transferred to another place.
If the negotiations fail, Master Li will be the best scapegoat. Xiong Tingbi can also survive this crisis, but he will have to stay at home and be unemployed.

(End of this chapter)