Zhutian: Starting from the Space-Time Merchant

Chapter 176 You, can you even be called a human being?

"Your humble servant, Hong Chengchou, Grand Secretary of the Secretariat of the Great Qing Dynasty, pays respects to the Commander-in-Chief."

In the main hall of the Marquis of Jiading's residence, Hong Chengchou, representing the Manchu Qing dynasty to negotiate peace, finally met Lin Dao.

He was inwardly grumbling, 'Why isn't he staying in the palace? What was he thinking, living at the Emperor's father-in-law's residence?'

Lin Dao looked at Hong Chengchou and burst into laughter.

"Grand Scholar?"

"Aren't you a bondservant of the Bordered Yellow Banner?"

Slap someone in the face, deliberately reopen old wounds.

After Hong Chengchou surrendered, Huang Taiji did not grant him an official position, but instead assigned him to the Bordered Yellow Banner's bondservant unit.

This was only because Dorgon had no one else to rely on after he came to power, so he was pulled out of the picture.

Hong Chengchou was immediately enraged.

Commander Lin, that's incredibly rude!
If you had rebelled a few years earlier, how could I, Hong, have ended up in this state!
"General, please don't make fun of me."

Hong Chengchou shook his head with displeasure and a serious expression, "I have come here to quell the conflict between our two countries."

"two countries?"

"A bunch of bandits dressed as monkeys in crowns, how dare they speak of the country!"

Lin Dao's voice was like thunder, deafening: "I only have bandit suppression here, no peace talks between the two countries!"

Inside the lobby, Hong Chengchou stared blankly at Lin Dao, his eyes full of confusion.

"If the commander-in-chief has no such intention, why does he want to see us?"

If you don't have this intention, you can simply refuse to see them and send them away; there's no need to meet with them at all.

Isn't that redundant?

Lin Dao looked sharply at Hong Chengchou and slowly asked, "Why didn't you die for Songshan?"

Hong Chengchou's body trembled suddenly, and the rat tail behind his head also shook.

This knife pierced straight into his heart.

Lin Dao drew his knife and plunged it in again. "Losing troops and territory, what a grave crime!"

"You studied Confucian classics, yet all those works by Confucian sages taught you nothing about loyalty, righteousness, or responsibility?"

Hong Chengchou's face was deathly pale, and he was swaying precariously.

Lin Dao drew his sword and stabbed again. "The generals fought to the death, and Cao Bianjiao's desperate counterattack almost killed Huang Taiji."

"The civil officials held out until the very end, and were all killed in service to their country."

"As the Governor-General of Jiliao, all your soldiers and officials have died. Why are you still alive?"

"Not only are they alive, but they also surrendered to the Tartars who killed their soldiers and became their dogs."

"Now you're shamelessly licking my boots and spouting nonsense here."

"Return the Qing Dynasty, return the Grand Secretary?"

Lin Dao got up and walked over step by step.

At this moment, Hong Chengchou was already slumped on the ground, trembling like a defeated dog.

Looking down at him, Lin Dao's face was as cold as frost.

"If you throw a bone to a stray dog ​​on the roadside, it will wag its tail and say thank you."

"The people of the Ming Dynasty support you, and tens of thousands of soldiers follow you to the battlefield."

"You have caused the deaths of countless soldiers and the loss of loved ones to countless families."

"You...can you even be called a human being?"

“You deserve it!”

Hong Chengchou, slumped on the ground, had a pale face, a sweet taste in his throat, and was experiencing blurred vision and tinnitus.

In a daze, he seemed to see tens of thousands of soldiers in Songshan City gathered around him.

Wang Tingchen, Cao Bianjiao, Fu Qiumin, and the others all had ferocious expressions, baring their teeth and claws at him, shouting loudly.

'Why don't you die~~~'

In a daze, Lin Dao's voice seemed to come from the horizon.

“Drag them to the execution ground and have their hearts and lungs ripped out as a tribute to the soldiers who died in the Battle of Songshan.”

A guard whispered a report.

"General, executions in the capital are held at Xisi Archway."

"From now on, it will be renamed Caishikou!"

"Leader!"

The handling of Hong Chengchou was just a minor incident.

As for the Tartars, their days are numbered once the torture and fines imposed on them in the capital are over.

In reality, the situation of the Tartars was already very bad.

The two major battles with Lindao resulted in the loss of almost a generation of the Tartars. The sharp decline in the number of men made them powerless to suppress the Mongol tribes and Han people under their command.

Various upheavals and battles broke out one after another, and even North Korea was quietly mobilizing its troops.

This is a classic case of everyone kicking someone when they're down.

Huang Taiji and Daishan did have some foresight.

By directly throwing away the lucrative Liaodong region, various forces have formed a cover.

Preserving their last remaining strength and retreating to the distant Hetu Ala to lick their wounds is the best option.

Unfortunately, the younger generation of Tartars couldn't bear to part with the easy prey.

As a result, they became entangled in fierce battles with various Mongol tribes, Han Chinese bondservants, and even Koreans.

Their last bit of capital was exhausted, and they were held back and unable to move.

Lin Dao did not stay in the palace; he moved into Zhou Kui's mansion.

He was the father-in-law of Emperor Chongzhen. His daughter raised money for him, asking him to take the lead in serving the emperor, but she herself pocketed a portion of it.

Such greed and shamelessness are common among the high-ranking officials of the Ming Dynasty.

Everyone is the same.

"Commander."

A guard presented a list of those who had died for Emperor Chongzhen, stating that "the list of those who died for Emperor Chongzhen has been compiled."

Upon receiving the list and scanning it, the first name that caught my eye was Zhou Yanru, the Grand Secretary and Chief Minister of the Cabinet.

"I never expected this, I really never expected this."

"This man is a notorious villain in history books; he did things that thousands of people wouldn't dare to do."

"As expected, the history books compiled by the Tartars are too fake."

"They even said that Cao Huachun opened the city gates to welcome the rebel leader, but Cao Huachun had been retired and returned to his hometown for several years. Did he fly over to open the city gates?"

"It was clearly the civil officials and nobles who opened the city gates."

"A group of shameless literati, glorifying traitors, actually threw mud at a retired old eunuch."

After putting down the list, Lin Dao instructed, "They are all loyal and righteous people; give them all a proper burial."

"Oh, and we can't forget about their family's stipends."

"Loyalty is loyalty, but the money that has been embezzled from the people must be returned." The term "extortion" was a word that sent shivers down the spines of all officials.

Soldiers came to the door, ransacked the house, and arrested the people.

Once imprisoned, the jailer will set out various instruments of torture to deal with you.

"Lord Qin, how many coins does your annual salary amount to?"

"How could someone live in a three-courtyard mansion and support hundreds of maids and servants, as well as seven or eight concubines?"

"Where did all those paintings, calligraphy, antiques, books, and money in the mansion come from?"

"What? You mean it's your wife's dowry?"

"Alright, bring Madam Qin here for torture."

Madam Qin, dressed in fine silks and satins, was brought over. Upon seeing the table full of various instruments of torture, she fainted on the spot.

When cold water was splashed on her, Madam Qin woke up.

Faced with numerous instruments of torture, he learned that Lord Qin had said all the silver in his house belonged to him.

Madam Qin immediately pointed at Lord Qin and began to curse him.

"The silver was all embezzled by him; it has nothing to do with me!"

The jailers stepped forward with instruments of torture. "Lord Qin, you're not being honest."

After being subjected to a set of clamps, Lord Qin answered all of his questions.

Household assets, hidden property, shares held in various locations, mistresses kept outside the home, etc.

I only pray that I will not suffer any more.

A similar scene keeps repeating itself.

The soldiers of the Guan Ning Army, weapons in hand, stared intently.

They all have their own KPIs, and if they fail to meet them, they will be dealt with according to military law.

The Guan Ning army coerced the prison guards, and the prison guards coerced the officials.

There is no sun or moon in the prison, only endless torture and screams.

Every day, carts hauled away numerous corpses.

The Guan Ning Army seized a massive amount of wealth, including gold, silver, jewelry, antiques, calligraphy, paintings, spices, and medicinal herbs, which were piled up like mountains.

As for land deeds, salt permits, and the like, they were countless.

"Elder Uncle".

Lin Dao smiled kindly, "I'm a man of my word."

"As previously agreed, half of the silver seized would be given to the Guan Ning Army."

"What was the total again?"

Wu Sangui, standing to the side, smiled obsequiously and said, "Reporting to the Commander-in-Chief, it should be 91,475,200 taels."

"Alright." Lin Dao slammed his hand on the table. "Then let's round it down and give the Guan Ning Army four and a half million taels."

Wu Sangui hurriedly bowed and said, "Thank you for your generous reward, Commander!"

"With this matter settled," Lin Dao changed the subject. "So many Guan Ning soldiers died at the hands of the Tartars, didn't you ever think of revenge?"

Wu Sangui's hand trembled slightly.

Without even raising his head, he shouted loudly, "Reply to the Commander-in-Chief!"

"The entire Guan Ning Army hates nothing more than to exterminate the Tartars! To sleep on their skin and eat their flesh!"

"We beg the commander to give the Guan Ning Army a chance to seek revenge against the Tartars!"

He finally understood that Lin Dao's money wasn't given away for free.

Once you've taken the commander's money, you have to work for him.

Fortunately, the Tartars have had their teeth and claws removed, so they are not as scary as before.

"I'll say it again." Lin Dao sat there expressionlessly, without the slightest emotion. "After we wipe out the Tartars, the Guan Ning Army can get half of the silver we seize."

"Yes, yes." Wu Sangui bowed repeatedly. "Rest assured, General, I will certainly eradicate evil completely!"

"Commander."

Wu Sangui lowered his head and said, "This humble general has a request."

Lin Dao narrowed his eyes and sized up Wu Sangui before speaking.

"This humble general requests permission to obtain the daughters and relatives of the Tartars."

I thought he would bring up the matter of Zu Dashou confiscating the property of Shanxi merchants, hoping to get some of the benefits.

I never expected it to be such a request.

Lin asked, "What are your thoughts?"

"Reporting to the Commander-in-Chief," Wu Sangui said with utmost respect, "this humble general intends to sell the children and families of the Tartars."

"Seventy percent of the income was offered to the commander-in-chief."

Lin Dao stared at him, his gaze cold.

A moment later, he grinned and said, "Okay."

"The Guan Ning Army is not allowed to recruit soldiers."

"Only members of the clan are allowed to join the Guan Ning Army."

Wu Sangui, with his head bowed, wore a smile, but that smile was quite terrifying.

"Leader!"

With the affairs of the capital settled, the next step is to seek out Li Zicheng, who has already established the Great Shun Dynasty.

For so many years, the bandits have been massacring cities, enslaving people, forcing them to fill moats, and causing countless people to starve to death.

And the countless innocent souls lost due to the breaching of the Yellow River dike are all waiting for the bandits to take revenge.

Yonghe Time and Space.

"Now that the grain has been harvested, we can finally breathe a sigh of relief."

Lin Dao and Wang Meng sat down to play chess. Lin Dao said, “Now that the world is at peace, we can’t just let our hundreds of thousands of Beggars’ Army go to waste.”

"Master Lang."

Having made his move, Wang Meng looked up at Lin Dao and asked, "Do you have a target?"

"Have."

Lin Dao held a chess piece in his hand and said, "Arrange for Qin Lang to lead a group of people through the Three Han regions and take a boat to Japan."

"After you go there, clean it up, leaving the land but not the people."

“Japan is not worth mentioning.” Wang Meng’s eyes were piercing. “They are not worth the trouble of the Lord.”

Lin Dao looked up and gazed at Wang Meng. "Japan is just a side issue."

"Send Ran Min and the others to the Western Regions."

"The Jie people came from Central Asia and have caused countless disasters in the Central Plains."

"The enemy can go, and so can I."

"First, we will reclaim the Western Regions, and then continue westward to the homeland of the Jie people."

"Whatever the Jie barbarians did in the Central Plains, the Qihu Army will go there and repay them tenfold or a hundredfold!"

(End of this chapter)