My father is Chongzhen? Then I have no choice but to rebel.

Chapter 345 The Threat from the Ming Dynasty Navy!
In just a few days, hundreds of tents were erected along the several-mile stretch from the dock to the outskirts of the military camp.

The sounds of hawking, bargaining, and the clanging of metal blended together, creating a lively market scene.

One of the envoys, finding the atmosphere not lively enough, brought several jars of fine wine from the ship and drank with some familiar merchants, drawing bursts of laughter from the onlookers.

Zheng Chenggong and his generals witnessed this scene.

Military regulations stipulate that markets should not be set up near military camps, but they all chose to tacitly allow it.

This is beneficial to the stationed troops as well, as it helps them acquire more supplies, and once the local people benefit from it, they will be more likely to accept them!
Although Zheng Zhilong looked down on this small business, he couldn't possibly help these envoys transport goods for free, so he symbolically charged them some transportation fees.

Of course, Zheng Zhilong didn't keep a single penny of this money; he distributed it all as rewards to his naval forces!

Time flies like an arrow, and three days have passed in the blink of an eye.

The weather on Pilos Island has been exceptionally good these past few days; although it's still incredibly cold, it hasn't snowed.

The sky was a dazzling, jewel-like blue, and a gentle sea breeze carried the unique scent of the ocean. Waves surged in one after another, crashing against the rocks on the shore and splashing high white spray.

It was at this moment that Zheng Zhilong finally realized something was wrong. According to the timeline, Li Dingguo should have already arrived at Pi Island with the Jurchen envoys to meet him.

However, Li Dingguo has not appeared so far, which is enough to show that something is wrong with this matter!
It seems he needs to act quickly, otherwise it would be bad if he wasted too much time!
Without a word, Zheng Zhilong immediately summoned his trusted confidants and solemnly instructed them:

"Immediately send someone to contact the Jurchens stationed on the border and make them hand over the Ming envoys that the court sent to Shenyang earlier."

"If the Jurchens continue to delay like this, then the Ming navy will have to take direct action!"

The trusted confidant, upon receiving the order, dared not delay in the slightest and immediately departed.

Although Pi Island was more than a hundred miles away from Daishan's camp, that distance was obviously nothing in front of Zheng Zhilong's warships.

Therefore, in less than half a day, Zheng Zhilong's dozens of warships appeared in the sight of the Jurchens.

Meanwhile, in the Jurchen camp, Daishan was sitting at his desk, holding a military book in his hand, his brows slightly furrowed, as if he were pondering something.

Suddenly, at that moment, a personal guard rushed into the tent, knelt on one knee, and said urgently:
"Your Highness, something terrible has happened! Dozens of Ming warships have suddenly appeared on the coast, and they've even sent a letter!"

As the guard spoke, he handed a letter to Daishan.

Upon hearing this, Dai Shan's heart tightened.

No, is the Ming army about to attack them?
its not right!
If they were really going to take action, why bother sending a message? Wouldn't it be better to just launch a surprise attack?

Thinking this, Daishan put down the military treatise in his hand and took the letter handed to him by his personal guard.

When he unfolded the letter and quickly glanced through it, his eyes widened in disbelief.

The contents of the letter greatly shocked him.

They were told to hand over the Ming Dynasty's envoys to Shenyang as soon as possible, and to send envoys to the Ming Dynasty to attend Emperor Chongzhen's birthday celebration.

The letter also stated that Zheng Zhilong was currently leading 20,000 Ming Dynasty naval troops to garrison Pi Island, and if they did not agree, 50,000 Ming Dynasty naval troops would launch an attack immediately!

This is a real threat!
To be honest, Daishan was completely bewildered at this time, because he had no idea about the Ming envoy or that Emperor Chongzhen was suddenly going to celebrate his birthday!

The reason is quite simple: Huang Taiji and the other princes did not consider it a big deal, so they did not inform Daishan.

However, Daishan was a seasoned veteran, and even though he didn't know what was going on, he quickly calmed down.

Without hesitation, he immediately sent a reply to the Ming army to appease them, while also dispatching someone to Shenyang to deliver the message.

There was no other way; that was a fleet of 50,000 Ming Dynasty naval troops!

He really can't beat them!
At this time, the atmosphere in Shenyang was somewhat oppressive.

Because recently, Huang Taiji's health has been deteriorating, and he has even fallen into a coma again.

The entire palace was shrouded in gloom. The imperial physicians were busy coming and going every day, but they were all helpless.

It seemed as if Huang Taiji was truly nearing his end.
The next morning, Daishan's personal guards arrived in Shenyang at top speed.

However, because Huang Taiji was unconscious, the news was delivered directly to Hauge, Jirgalang, Dorgon, and others.

It turns out that Huang Taiji had previously issued an imperial edict while he was still lucid, stipulating that these individuals would jointly handle state affairs during his coma.

These people were sitting at a large table, on which were placed various documents and memorials.

The letter sent by Daishan began to circulate among the people and eventually ended up in Jirhalang's hands.

After reading it, Jirhalang's eyes widened instantly, his face filled with disbelief.

No one expected that the Ming Dynasty would have such a backup plan!

Hauge frowned, crossed his arms, and said in a deep voice:

"The Ming Dynasty's move was clearly premeditated. We thought that the Ming envoys came from Liaodong and would return from Liaodong as well. We did not expect them to plan to take the sea route. As a result, our plan has completely failed, and we will even have to pay double the tribute."

Upon hearing this, Jirhalang could no longer contain his anger. He stood up abruptly, slammed his hands on the table, and angrily cursed:

"Those damned Han Chinese are so cunning! I thought I could finally vent my anger, but they tricked me instead. Now I have to give them double the tribute. I'm so angry!"

His face flushed red, veins bulged on his forehead, and his eyes seemed to be spitting fire.

The others also felt somewhat helpless upon hearing this.

Dorgon sighed softly, then said:

"Now that things have come to this, getting angry won't help. We really didn't expect the Ming Dynasty to take the sea route. Now let's think about how to deal with this troublesome matter."

"You have to understand that with Zheng Zhilong's navy included, there are now more than 50,000 Ming Dynasty naval troops stationed on Pi Island. If a war really breaks out, we have no chance of winning!"

The others also became somewhat nervous upon hearing this, as they all knew that now was not the right time to start a war with the Ming Dynasty.

Finally, Hauge rubbed his forehead helplessly and said:

"Forget it, since things have come to this point, we can only try to make amends. Let's send those Ming envoys and the prepared tribute over as soon as possible, so as not to really delay things."

"In addition, double the tribute, and the Ming navy will have no grounds for complaint."

Recently, Huang Taiji has secretly begun to allow Hauge to come into contact with and take control of the Plain Yellow Banner and Bordered Yellow Banner under his command. These two banners are the elite forces of the Jurchens, wielding enormous power and resources. Hauge is well aware that Huang Taiji's intention in doing so is to gradually allow him to seize imperial power, so his mind is no longer on these trivial matters.

He just wanted to resolve these matters as soon as possible so that he could devote himself fully to the important matter of inheriting the throne in the future.

After all, the throne was the most important thing to him than killing Li Dingguo and others.

Hauge's words were naturally echoed by the others present.

Abatai went even further, saying:
“That’s right. Since the previous plan has failed, we shouldn’t continue. The most important thing now is to maintain border security. If these naval forces can’t hold back and launch an attack, the border will be in turmoil.”

"At that time, we will not only have to face the Ming Dynasty's navy in the rear, but also Zu Dashou in the front!"

"Let's settle this matter here. As Hauge suggested, we'll double the tribute. I'm sure the Ming navy won't make things too difficult for us!"

When Jirhalang heard this, he was still indignant, but he knew that Abatai had a point.

Finally, he sat down helplessly, but couldn't help but mutter one last curse:
"That damned Fan Wencheng isn't as capable as His Majesty claims, is he?"

Hauge and Dorgon naturally heard this, but they didn't pay it any mind.

Because they knew that this matter could not be blamed on Fan Wencheng. Fan Wencheng's plan was indeed very good, but none of them expected that the Ming Dynasty would take the sea route.

In their view, this could only mean that the Ming Dynasty was too cunning and had exceeded their expectations.

And so, the matter of participating in the Chongzhen Emperor's birthday celebration was settled, and the Jurchens ultimately presented three times the amount of tribute!

That afternoon, sunlight streamed through the window into a quiet study, where various books and documents were laid out on the desk.

Fan Wencheng was sitting at the table, intently reading a book.

Suddenly at that moment, a servant hurried into the study and whispered:
"My lord, Prince Su has sent a letter, saying that he wants you to read it in person."

A letter from Hauge?

Fan Wencheng was slightly taken aback, seemingly unable to understand why Hauge would send him a letter.

But he quickly reached out and took the letter from the servant, and then read it carefully.

After reading the letter, Fan Wencheng's expression didn't change much; he simply sighed helplessly and muttered to himself:
"I underestimated the Ming Dynasty after all!"

Clearly, even Fan Wencheng did not expect that the Ming Dynasty would actually take the sea route this time, let alone that Zheng Zhilong's Fujian Navy would appear on Pi Island.

In order to resolve the matter as soon as possible, the Jurchens began to make preparations in earnest that afternoon.

The various offerings were carefully arranged and packaged, and then loaded onto several horse-drawn carriages.

Subsequently, the Jurchens sent people directly to Pi Island to escort Li Dingguo and others, along with a group of Jurchen envoys.

To be honest, everyone except Li Dingguo was confused when they set off, because they didn't understand why they were taking the wrong route when they were supposed to be going back to the Ming Dynasty.

Just then, Li Dingguo realized that Zheng Zhilong must have started to take action, so the Jurchens let them leave. This meant that their plan to return to the Ming Dynasty by sea was no longer a secret.

Therefore, Li Dingguo then told everyone about this matter.

After hearing Li Dingguo's explanation, everyone finally understood why Li Dingguo remained as calm as a rock even though the Jurchens kept delaying.

So it turns out the imperial court had a backup plan all along!

However, everyone was immediately overjoyed, because returning to the capital by boat would be much faster and more comfortable than walking.

After three or four days of bumpy travel, they finally arrived safely at Pi Island.

At this time, Pi Island was bustling with people coming and going, and even local North Koreans were constantly crossing the sea to sell their goods.

However, when the Jurchen troops arrived, they immediately attracted a crowd of onlookers.

After all, the appearance of the Jurchens on Pi Island at this time is indeed a novel thing.

However, because the Ming Dynasty navy was there to protect them, it did not cause any major chaos.

Although there were less than twenty days left until Emperor Chongzhen's birthday celebration, there was still plenty of time because the journey was by sea.

Moreover, Pi Island has been quite busy these past few days.

Ever since they learned that Emperor Chongzhen was going to hold a grand birthday celebration this year, the naval commanders on Pi Island began to plunder all kinds of rare and precious treasures in the area, intending to present them to Emperor Chongzhen as gifts.

Because they knew they were isolated overseas, they had to express their loyalty to the emperor from time to time in order to maintain their position in the court.

As a result, all sorts of rare and precious items were frantically loaded onto Zheng Zhilong's ship like a tidal wave.

Even though Zheng Zhilong had said that he had prepared a congratulatory gift for them and had even taken it out himself, the naval officers were still not at ease. They felt that only by sending more rare and precious items could they express their loyalty and respect to Chongzhen.

Therefore, recently, various rare medicines and ferocious wild animals in the Pi Island area have suffered.

Some busybodies even captured two tigers, chained them with thick iron chains, and said they wanted to present them to Emperor Chongzhen as a congratulatory gift.

Zheng Zhilong was a bit stunned at the time, and couldn't help but mutter to himself:
This thing is probably going to scare the emperor to death, isn't it?
However, since ancient times, the Ming Dynasty has had a tradition of sending wild beasts as gifts from foreign envoys. In the past, even elephants and giraffes were sent as gifts. Moreover, the Ming court also kept a group of professional animal trainers who had rich experience in animal training and could ensure that these wild beasts would not harm people.

So Zheng Zhilong accepted these so-called congratulatory gifts and then moved them all onto the ship.

In no time, the ship was piled high with all sorts of treasures and exotic animals, making it as bustling as a zoo in later times.

Of course, the one who prepared the most and the best tribute this time was undoubtedly King Injo of Joseon!

When the King of Joseon learned that Emperor Chongzhen was going to celebrate his birthday, he was overjoyed. He knew this was a good opportunity to curry favor with the Ming Dynasty, so he immediately ordered that all the few treasures in Joseon be looted.

After much effort, they managed to gather a full thirty boxes of treasures.

In addition, the King of Joseon specially selected three hundred beautiful women to send to Emperor Chongzhen.

However, the quality of these beauties was indeed not very good, and they were quite different from the palace maids in the Ming Dynasty.

But since it was a token of the King of Joseon's goodwill, Jeong Ji-ryong reluctantly accepted it.

Besides, what if Emperor Chongzhen had a taste for that?
(End of this chapter)