You can't only love the Qing Dynasty when you're eating the fruits of others' labor.

Chapter 166 Chiang Kai-shek's Seven Rules: Quickly Identifying Pure-Blooded Manchus

Prince Lekedehun of Shuncheng:

"What should we do if the Emperor insists on protecting Jiang Qingyun?"

Prince Li, Mandahai:

"Unite and confront them head-on. I refuse to believe that the Emperor would dare to veto what all the banner leaders want to do!"

"From the Later Jin to the Qing Dynasty, our Eight Banners relied on collective wisdom and collective bloodshed. This vast land was not conquered by the old Khan alone. Back then, everyone supported the old Khan as the common leader of the Eight Banners, hoping that he would lead everyone to a broad path, not supporting him to ascend the throne as a Han Chinese emperor who ruled by his own power."

Everyone nodded silently.

……

"Prince Zhuang, what do you think?"

All eyes turned to Shuo Sai's face.

Shuo Sai was the fifth son of Huang Taiji and the elder brother of Emperor Shunzhi.

Of the six princes present at today's meeting, he is the closest to the Shunzhi Emperor by blood.

Shusser remained calm:
"To be honest, I stand with you. I will argue my case before the Emperor, demanding the execution of the treacherous minister Jiang Qingyun. But I declare beforehand that I will absolutely not participate in a forced abdication, nor will I help the Emperor suppress you."

"can."

Luo Keduo, the flag lord of the Bordered Red Banner, nodded.

He is the banner chief of this banner, and Shuo Sai is the junior banner chief of this banner.

The relationships among the Eight Banners nobles were intricate and complex, a classic case of interdependence and entanglement.

After Shuo Sai made his stance clear, everyone expressed their own opinions, which could be summarized in three words: "Purge the court of corrupt officials!"

An hour later, everyone left.

Not far away~
Someone was spying on them and recording the visitors' carriages and horses.

Jiang Qingyun had already drafted a list of about 20 people to be monitored, and assigned 3 people to each location to keep watch day and night. The main targets of the surveillance were the ministers of the Council of State.

He is far bolder than most people imagine.

Cruel officials—powerful ministers—regency—? Along this journey, the timid would have been terrified long ago.

He knew that this world was a battle of gods, and ordinary people could only frantically maneuver around.

He created a "cloud" algorithm that relies on his rich experience to try to achieve a local optimum in a nonlinear, illogical, and uncivilized environment.

……

A day after Jiang Qingyun received news of a private gathering of the ministers of the Council of State, a young man in the Forbidden City also received the same information.

Hidden agents – fixed mailboxes – the Thirteen Offices of the Directorate of Ceremonial – Emperor Shunzhi.

There is only a list, not the content of the conversation.

Emperor Shunzhi remained silent.

Ever since the defeat on the Guangxi front, he had a feeling that a storm was brewing and that some people below were bound to make trouble.

"Master? How about we go for a walk in the east to clear our heads?"

"Forget it, I'm not in the mood today."

Emperor Shunzhi's expression was grave as he repeatedly guessed what these princes and ministers were discussing in their private gathering. In any case, it certainly wasn't anything good.

If the princes want to reclaim power but refuse to relinquish it, the struggle will inevitably be bloody and a protracted tug-of-war.

Previously, when the military was winning one victory after another, the princes could not find an excuse to oppose him.

Now that the military has failed, the princes have no shortage of excuses.

"Wu Liangfu".

"The slave is here."

"Could the Thirteen Offices strengthen their intelligence gathering efforts?"

"can!"

"what do you need?"

“Funding, list of names, and the Emperor’s decree.”

Shunzhi whispered something to Wu Liangfu, who nodded repeatedly.

When Wu Liangfu walked out of the Qianqing Palace again, he was in high spirits. By imperial decree, the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs had increased its surveillance of all the major residences in the capital. Winter was almost over; spring was coming for the eunuchs.

……

Compared to Shunzhi's extreme caution, Jiang Qingyun did not pay particular attention to the meeting between the Princes and Ministers of State.

Being an official is nothing more than dealing with whatever comes your way, meeting challenges head-on. You need a very good mindset, a strong heart, smooth blood circulation, a calm head, and precise execution.

Walk your own path in the night, and kill whatever ghosts you encounter.

Always keep in mind the principles of the "office director":
They were firmly bound to imperial power, integrated with it, and transformed their own will into the will of the imperial power, and their own actions into the actions of the imperial power.

While waiting for news of Nikan's army's defeat to reach the capital, he introduced the "Pure Manchu Bloodline Identification Form".

It started spreading like wildfire in teahouses and taverns.

Manchus of pure blood should meet the following criteria:
First, the face should be long and narrow, and no shorter than 7 inches.

Second, the distance between the eyes should be slightly longer, not less than 2 points.

Third, the eyes are long and narrow.

Fourth, the eyebrows droop at the tail and lack an arch.

Fifth, the mouth shape protrudes.

Sixth, the nose should be slightly long, but no shorter than 2 inches.

7. Very little hair below the neck. For a Manchu woman, the number of hairs should not exceed one thousand. For a Manchu woman, the standard is halved.

The above seven criteria~
Those who meet five or more criteria are considered purebred.

Those who meet three to five criteria are considered suspects and require further investigation.

Those with three or fewer are identified as wild species.

……

On the day when the Eight Banners pay office distributed salaries, the "Pure Manchu Bloodline Identification Form" was posted at the entrance of the government office.

It contains text and graphics.

The Manchus in line couldn't help but glance at it a few times, and hey, the stereotype entered their minds, and the seeds of doubt were planted in their hearts.

The good thing about Jiang Qingyun's standard is that most people meet it.

He developed the standard based on the typical appearance of residents in the Tunguska region, ensuring that most people could pass the screening, while a small number were rejected.

The impact of the "Wulinzhu affair case" even surpassed that of "Li Dingguo's two defeats of famous princes." "The Heart of Wulinzhu" and "The Identification Table of Pure-Blooded Manchus" spread wildly and became household names.

Conflicts and bloody incidents frequently occur in the inner city.

According to incomplete statistics from the Five City Garrison, the patrol soldiers intervened in 132 neighborhood disputes and 47 fights this month.

Jiang Qingyun originally wanted to strike while the iron was hot and earnestly introduce "drowning in a pig cage," "foot binding," and "riding a wooden donkey" to the Manchu bannermen in the capital.

Unexpectedly, a major event interrupted the process of "stirring up trouble".

……

The end of November in the eighth year of the Shunzhi reign.

Hunan.

The armies of the Ming and Qing dynasties were heavily assembled, and a major battle was imminent.

The Qing army totaled 8 troops, commanded by Nikan. Among them, more than 3 were Manchu, Mongol and Han Eight Banner soldiers, and the rest were Green Standard Army soldiers from various provinces, roughly distributed in the Changsha-Yueyang area of ​​northern Hunan.

The Ming army totaled 17 troops, commanded by Li Dingguo. Among them, 2 were veterans, while the rest were semi-new recruits or new recruits. The army was internally divided into factions and its equipment varied greatly.

Xiangtan became the front line.

Small-scale skirmishes continued between scouts of the Ming and Qing armies.

Changsha Prefectural Government Office, the headquarters of General Dingyuan.

"Report! Urgent report from the Prince of Pingxi."

"To Your Highness, Sun Kewang of Guizhou has suddenly dispatched his vanguard to attack Shu. The offensive is fierce, and wherever they go, the unruly people of Shu are responding in droves. Our troops are struggling to quell the rebellion, but it will take some time. I know that the decisive battle is crucial. Despite the objections of many and the difficulties, I have dispatched 5000 elite cavalry from Guan Ning to Hunan. They will arrive at the battlefield soon."

Enraged, Nikan kicked over the large table in front of him.

“That damned Wu Sangui! He told me two months ago that his 8-strong army would arrive next month. After this battle, I’m going to slaughter his entire Wu family.”

(End of this chapter)