Ancestors, please don't crawl out again.

Chapter 185 The First Eighty-Sixth Sacrifice at Xiaoling Mausoleum

The four Qing dynasties, each with its own distinct circumstances, followed a different course of events.

His Majesty the Qing Emperor in Chengde was essentially just the owner of the Summer Palace. Let alone the loyal farmers and Mongolian chieftains in Rehe, basically no one paid him any attention outside of Chengde.

There is no Chengde even now.

Chengde Prefecture was established by the Fourth Prince.

At that time, there were only eunuchs and palace maids from the Summer Palace, plus the loyal guards stationed around to protect the palace.

In short, this is the area he can control, with about five or six thousand soldiers, and tens of thousands of people including the soldiers' families.

The imperial troops, having advanced to the Great Wall, were too preoccupied with local reconstruction efforts to pay him any attention. Meanwhile, the Shengjing Regent, having secured the allegiance of the Mongol chieftains in the Rehe Mountains, ignored his second brother to demonstrate fraternal harmony, since the brother posed no real threat beyond issuing ineffective edicts. Similarly, the Qing emperor in Xi'an, along with his fourteenth brother who effectively controlled Xuanfu and Datong, disregarded him for similar reasons; in short, they simply treated him like a piece of trash.

However, the Fourteenth Prince and his elder brother had several armed conflicts over the ownership of the Rehe Mongol chieftainship.

But generally speaking, everyone does their own thing.

However, the Qing emperor in Hangzhou had already issued an edict to demote Yinreng, Yinsi, and others to commoners and expel them from the imperial clan, and to change Yinsi's name to Aqina.

He renamed Yin Tang, who, although already dead, was considered by him to be an accomplice in Aqina's patricide, as Seshehei.

However, he was very friendly to the regent in Shenyang. He not only sent people to explain, but also acknowledged the titles that Ma Ge had previously bestowed upon him, and recognized his control over the Northeast.

Of course, this wasn't his idea; it was simply that the gentry of Jiangnan were too fond of ginseng from the Northeast.

He's just a puppet. Forget about a harem; even the imperial palace is a makeshift one made from the Hangzhou General's Mansion. He's just a beggar from out of town, what power does he have? Making him emperor is simply a way for the gentry of Jiangnan to maintain a facade of loyalty—neither listening to the Xi'an emperor nor submitting to the "Immortal Lord," so they're just playing the game of the Southeast Mutual Protection Pact. Even the garrison cities across the land have been abolished by his edict. Although the loyal subjects still live there, all their privileges as conquerors of a foreign race have been revoked.

Even if you commit a crime, you will still be arrested and punished by the authorities.

Forget about controlling street toll collection.

Meanwhile, officials from the Manchu banner system in various regions were successively dismissed and replaced by Han Chinese officials from the southern system, ultimately creating a court that was nominally in the Qing Dynasty but was actually completely controlled by southern gentry.

Suddenly, the ruler became wise and the ministers virtuous.

Unfortunately, this golden age of a wise ruler and virtuous ministers was short-lived, as the heavenly army, having quickly completed its transformation of the north, marched south.

Nanjing.

"The capital? You actually want the new dynasty to make a place where ten dynasties were destroyed as its capital? What are your intentions? This is utterly vicious. Drag these bastards aside and take them to Xiaoling Mausoleum to be executed later."

Yang Feng looked at the officials and gentry kneeling before him and shouted.

These guys, just like the Qing army when they came, surrendered without hesitation.
However, there was still resistance within the city.

The sounds of gunfire continued unabated.

The staunch supporters of the Eight Banners garrison in Jiangning are now all atop the Ming Dynasty imperial city, fighting to the death against the attacking imperial troops and the able-bodied men within the city, just like during the reign of Hong Xiuquan. However, their fate is sealed; after all, they are mostly the old, weak, and disabled, and they have no other choice. Because the Eight Banners garrison in Zhenjiang surrendered earlier, only to be purged by the local young men who had been waiting for their chance, the Jiangning Eight Banners garrison, knowing how much hatred they had accumulated in this city, had no choice but to fight to the bitter end.

Of course, none of this concerned Yang Feng. Even the southward march of the heavenly soldiers was none of his business. He had only come south to preside over the sacrificial ceremony at Xiaoling Mausoleum.

It was not a sacrifice he made.

According to his explanation, Lao Zhu was a celestial being just like him, so of course he didn't need to offer sacrifices to Lao Zhu.

However, the latter also mentioned when he descended to the mortal realm that he should have the people inform him after the recapture of Nanjing. This was because Yang Feng informing him was different from the people informing him through the Xiaoling Mausoleum ceremony; he also cared about his reputation, and this way he could maintain his standing among the immortals. Therefore, to satisfy Zhu Yuanzhang's desire for face, and according to the immortal's request, a formal ceremony would be held at the Xiaoling Mausoleum, with worshippers from all over the country participating. As for Zhu's descendants, they were to be sidelined; these useless individuals couldn't even protect the empire, and Zhu Yuanzhang believed they were no longer worthy of worshipping at the Xiaoling Mausoleum.

In Old Zhu's view, the fact that these good-for-nothings claimed to be his descendants was already enough to make him feel ashamed in front of the other gods.

How dare they still hold a sacrificial ceremony?

Is the intention to make him unable to hold his head high in front of other gods?
Just keep a low profile and behave yourself; stop embarrassing him.

This completely extinguished any hope among the common people of bringing the descendants of the Zhu family back into the spotlight.

After all, this was a decision made personally by the Zhu family's ancestor. Their ancestor believed they were useless and unworthy of being emperors, so of course they would not be promoted again.

This sentiment has always existed. After all, the anti-Qing and restoration movement has been going on for over two hundred years, and there are still some people in the public who believe that since it's a matter of choosing an emperor, why not just choose the Zhu family?

This can be considered as the Immortal Venerable completely severing this idea with the will of Heaven.

As soon as the Immortal Venerable arrived in Nanjing, these officials and gentry who had already surrendered rushed over to ask the Immortal Venerable to make Nanjing the capital of the new dynasty.

As for the purpose...

What if it happens?
The immortal lord was overjoyed, and their wealth and glory were thus preserved, weren't they?
Even if they need to lie low for now, as long as this is the capital, they will have opportunities. If they can't become ministers of the new dynasty, they can at least become low-level officials. They can infiltrate little by little whenever they have the chance.

But they lost their bet.

Following Yang Feng's order, the heavenly soldiers immediately stepped forward and restrained these officials and gentry.

"Immortal, please spare me! I was just confused for a moment."

"Immortal Lord, spare my life!"

……

The latter were filled with wails of despair.

"Absolutely vicious!"

Yang Feng added another sentence.

They destroyed ten dynasties...

It truly lasted for ten dynasties.

Eastern Wu and Eastern Jin, though their rule was ceded through abdication, still saw the fall of a dynasty. Then came Song, Qi, Liang, and Chen, followed by Southern Tang, then Zhu Yunwen, and finally Hongguang. Whether they were usurped or destroyed by others, ten emperors perished in this city—that's a fact. These guys actually wanted the new dynasty to make this place its capital; their intentions were absolutely malicious, downright wicked. Therefore, they all deserved to die. They were all dragged to Xiaoling Mausoleum and beheaded—a sacrifice for Zhu Yunwen.

After all, these bastards' ancestors all sold his descendants.

Amidst the cries of officials and gentry and the prostrations of the common people, the immortal deity walked straight toward Xiaoling Mausoleum.

Before he could even pass under Yuhuatai, the battle inside the city was already over. Hundreds of thousands of able-bodied men who had stormed the imperial city quickly overwhelmed the tens of thousands of elderly, weak, women and children of the Eight Banners garrison. Those who should be killed were killed, and those who should be dragged away were dragged away. Those with official positions were arrested and sent to Xiaoling Mausoleum. After all, it wasn't enough for only officials and gentry to offer sacrifices; there also had to be foreigners. Since it was a sacrifice for Old Zhu, it had to be done in an orderly fashion.

Xiaoling.

Before the main hall, hundreds of thousands of soldiers and civilians knelt on the ground.

At the very front of them was an elderly man, reading a eulogy.

This is where Zheng Chenggong was wounded during his attack on Nanjing. He was then secretly kept by the people and left here in hiding.

Of course, this is actually his hometown.

Moreover, his family was a military household in Nanjing, and his father was a minor official. However, after the fall of Nanjing, his father refused to shave his head, so the whole family fled south. They eventually fled all the way to Fujian. He was still a child at the time, so of course he followed along. Later, when he grew up, he joined the army and followed Zheng Chenggong. He was wounded in the Battle of Nanjing and caught up with Zheng Chenggong's retreat. He didn't have time to retreat, so he was hidden by his father's old friend. His father shaved his head and said that he was a wounded civilian, so he could hide. He has been waiting until now for the heavenly army to recapture Nanjing.

So now they've been chosen to report to Old Zhu in the heavens.

This also lets Zhu De know that his military households ultimately stood by him until the day of liberation.

Before him lay hundreds of people bound and kneeling on the ground, awaiting execution. So the descendants of the officials and gentry who surrendered the city and the descendants of the foreign tribes who conquered it were all waiting to be sacrificed.

Yang Feng sat upright on the side of the palace, watching this scene as a witness.

"Immortal, the Third Army reports that they have captured Tongguan. However, the Qing demons did not fight to the death. According to intelligence sent from Xi'an, Yin Tai and Nian Gengyao both advocate moving west. They know that they can no longer resist the heavenly army. Rather than being killed on the battlefield, they would rather move west to survive."

The Qing court largely supported them, and now all the Qing and demons in Xi'an were terrified, none daring to fight the heavenly army.

The attendant reported.

While the heavenly army marched south, it also launched an attack on Shaanxi.

However, due to their overwhelming advantage in combat power, and the fact that the Heavenly Army has now expanded to its full size, that is, a true army of 30,000 men, only the Third Army was sent to attack Shaanxi.

Similarly, only the Second Army and the Fourth Army, which recruited soldiers from Huaiyang, were also attacking south of the Yangtze River.

By this time, there were already six armies, in addition to the fifth and sixth armies, which recruited soldiers from Shandong and Hebei. However, these two armies primarily targeted the Northeast, while the First Army was deployed to Shanxi. Essentially, these two armies were responsible for suppressing the Qing dynasty. Two armies were sufficient. An army of 60,000, at a late 19th-century level, could easily conquer Europe, let alone just wipe out the Qing. The only limitation was logistics, as they still relied on the Celestial Venerable for supplies. But this problem was being addressed. The use of reloaded bullets was increasing, and even hand-molded cartridges had been produced, though production was very low, as hand-manufacturing brass cartridges was still quite an exaggeration.

However, gun parts can already be manufactured in-house.

Researching science and technology is now a national craze, with everyone involved, even an old farmer trying to improve his farming tools.

After all, the Celestial Venerable said that researching technology is the cultivation of mortals, and it is possible to ascend to the Celestial Realm after death. In fact, those of great significance can even lead to godhood. Therefore, the craftsmen with strong superstitious beliefs also devoted themselves to researching how to make their own divine artifacts, fantasizing that they could ascend to the Celestial Realm.

In order to research technology and ascend to the immortal realm...

The art style is somewhat strange.

"Tell them not to pursue too closely, and just let the Qing demons migrate westward."

Yang Feng said with satisfaction.

What he wanted was to drive Yinzhi's group westward.

It remains to be seen whether they can reach a compromise with the various Oirat tribes, given that Tsewang Arabtan is also ambitious.

If they could reach an agreement through the mediation of the masters, they would truly sweep across the Western Regions.

The small kingdoms of the Western Regions were no match for this alliance.

If they cannot reach an agreement...

Then just fight.

It's also very interesting.

"Dragon, look! The dragon has descended!"

Suddenly, a chaotic scream erupted.

Yang Feng looked up in astonishment, and then saw two familiar golden dragons squeeze out of the spatial rift and fly straight toward him.

"Don't panic, those belong to Old Zhu. Old Zhu heard you."

Yang Feng stood up and shouted.

At the same time, the two dragons descended in a winding manner, raising their heads and looking down in front of the main hall.

The person who was reading the eulogy was stunned, standing there trembling as they looked up and stared at the dragon.

However, the person sitting on the dragon head was not Her Majesty the Empress of the Ming Dynasty, but his adopted son and daughter. Since Yang Feng was mostly absent from the modern world, while Her Majesty the Empress of the Ming Dynasty was, they were always with her. The two dragons then lowered their heads, sliding down the dragon's head. After a moment of terrified worship, they walked straight to the palace. The servants, terrified, immediately knelt down, but the two ignored them, went directly to the palace, and then approached Yang Feng to pay their respects.

"Reporting to the Immortal, the Jade Emperor of Heaven has decreed that the Immortal has retrieved the Imperial Seal of the State, and therefore the Twin Dragons will unlock it for the Immortal."

"That's what the older sister in the lead said."

"understood."

Yang Feng nodded.

It's obvious that this was another one of those so-called gods' doing.

However, his biggest problem right now is how to find all the descendants of Qin Shi Huang. In fact, it is hard to say whether Qin Shi Huang actually had any descendants. Even if they were indeed among those surnames as rumored, it would only be a part of those surnames. In this era, it is still very difficult for him to gather blood like the Nine Cauldrons.

Of course, the real key point is that the royal family of the Xia Dynasty were all descendants of Yu the Great, but the Qin Dynasty only lasted two generations. The royal family of Qin was certainly abundant and easy to find, but the descendants of Qin Shi Huang were very difficult to find.

The descendants of the Qin royal family are not the same as the descendants of Qin Shi Huang.

Yang Feng walked straight forward, and amidst the awe-inspiring worship of countless soldiers and civilians, he raised the Imperial Seal of the State in his hand.

The next moment, the two golden dragons simultaneously raised their heads and took flight.

The Imperial Seal of the State also emitted light and rose slowly, quickly reaching the center of the two dragons.

The two dragons flew straight towards the Imperial Seal of the State, their heads colliding with it simultaneously from the left and right. In an instant, their heads vanished into the seal, followed by their massive bodies. Before the astonished eyes of hundreds of thousands of soldiers and civilians, they swiftly entered the Imperial Seal. The immense spiritual energy that constituted their bodies, like a raging tsunami, instantly broke through the seal of the Imperial Seal. Accompanied by a dragon's roar that shook the Xiaoling Mausoleum, the Imperial Seal, originally only the size of a palm, suddenly expanded, turning golden, and in the blink of an eye, it resembled a mountain, pressing down on the entire Purple Mountain.

An energy shockwave spread outwards instantly, like a whirlwind sweeping across the ground, and the heads of the sacrifices fell off...

(Three years of accompanying my child to school, 640, it was worth it)

(End of this chapter)