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

Chapter 177 Mao Sui recommends himself, I want to be the General of Dingyuan!
Shunzhi's arm was trembling.

"...Your humble servant Tunqi kowtows with tears of blood, saying that General Dingyuan Nikan has died in battle, and more than 7000 Eight Banner soldiers have died south of Hengzhou. After being trapped in Hengzhou for 11 days, my troops broke through the encirclement, but suffered another 2000 casualties."

"...In order to preserve the Manchu bloodline, this servant led his troops in a hasty retreat north with resentment."

"...The self-proclaimed Prince of Jin, Li Dingguo, divided his troops into several routes, sweeping across the southwest. The four provinces of Jiangxi, Hunan, Hubei, and Guangxi fell one after another. Countless officials in prefectures and counties surrendered to the rebels, and more than half of the Green Standard Army in the four provinces mutinied and joined the rebels. The unruly people in various places cheered. The southwest is in danger! Jiangnan is in danger! The south is in danger!"

The Qianqing Palace was eerily quiet.

The military report circulated among Emperor Shunzhi, Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang, and Aobai.

Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang suddenly sighed:
"Since the Qing Dynasty rose to power amidst the Changbai Mountains and the Heilongjiang River, it has never suffered such a devastating defeat. Ten thousand bannermen were lost in a single battle. How many bannermen did the Qing Dynasty have in total? It's heartbreaking!"

Emperor Shunzhi was even more heartbroken.

Of the 10,000 bannermen lost, the majority were pure-blooded Manchu bannermen eager for credit. And of the Manchu bannermen lost, the two Yellow Banners, known for their strong desire for credit, accounted for half.

My heart is bleeding~
……

"Damn the Council of Princes and Ministers! If it weren't for their urging, I wouldn't have been able to send so many Manchu soldiers on this southern expedition. I wish I could skin them alive."

Shunzhi instinctively wanted to shift the blame.

Ao Bai also sighed, his eyes reddening. All those who died were acquaintances.

Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang was the most composed.

"The most important thing for the court right now is to make a decision quickly: to fight, to make peace, or to defend? This is a matter of great importance. Your Majesty, please discuss it with your ministers."

Out of some concern, Emperor Shunzhi repeatedly met with important officials in the Qianqing Palace, privately listening to their opinions one by one.

He questioned all the Grand Secretaries, the Six Ministries and Nine Ministers, the Commanders of the Banners, and the officials of the Two Yellow Banners.

Empress Xiaozhuang did not appear.
Jiang Qingyun was the last to be summoned. The couple entered the palace together. After entering the palace, one of them went to see Emperor Shunzhi and the other went to see Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang.

"Vice-Host Chiang, this way please."

"How could I possibly trouble Steward Wu?"

"Oh my, you're too kind. We only have one servant. Hey~ you know, which mountain village did that bandit Li Dingguo come from? How come he's such a good fighter?"

"He was Zhang Xianzhong's adopted son, and he was from Shaanxi."

"That's strange. Besides, Qin soldiers are hard-working and resilient in battle; when driven, they are no different from dogs and chickens."

Jiang Qingyun feigned surprise.

"Manager Wu, what excellent writing!"

“Vice-Commissioner Jiang, please don’t make fun of me. It was written by Du Fu, how could I dare to steal it as my own?”

"Du Fu? Is there such a person in the capital?"

Wu Liangfu's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets in surprise as he scrutinized Jiang Qingyun repeatedly.

"Manager Wu, why are you looking at me like that?"

"Vice-Commander Jiang, you really don't know Du Fu?"

"I don't know this person. He must be a low-ranking official."

"Oh my, Du Fu was a great writer of the Tang Dynasty. Didn't you study when you were young?"

“My dad said that if you read too many books, you will start to overthink, and if you overthink, you will become disloyal. My dad also said that two horizontal lines and one vertical line mean ‘doing’, and one force and two dots mean ‘getting things done’.”

"Your father is truly a rare sight."

Wu Liangfu sneered, thinking to himself, "The whole family are lunatics and semi-literate."

……

Qianqing Palace.

One-on-one between the ruler and his subject.

"My dear minister, please sit down."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

"Take these urgent reports and read them first, then we'll talk."

"Whoo."

Governors of Hunan, Hubei, Jiangxi, Fujian, and Guangdong; Prince Tunqi; Prince Pingnan Shang Kexi; Prince Pingxi Wu Sangui…

All the important officials in the south submitted memorials.

Jiang Qingyun watched intently for a full quarter of an hour without ever looking up.

At his normal reading speed, half an hour would have been enough. He deliberately delayed to figure out his next move.

An extremely crazy idea suddenly popped into my head, so crazy that I broke out in a light sweat.

In Shunzhi's eyes, he simply thought that Shunzhi, like himself, was frightened by the current deteriorating situation.

"My dear minister?" Seeing that he was continuing to drift off into a daze, Shunzhi couldn't help but call out.

"Your Majesty, I have been impolite. Please forgive me."

"At a time like this, I have no time to care whether you're being impolite or not. Tell me, what should we do?"

"Your Majesty, our Great Qing is beset by internal and external troubles, and the situation is extremely perilous."

"I know."

"My father and I are paid by the emperor, and it is only right that we share his burdens. I have a bold idea."

"speak!"

Shunzhi suddenly felt a sense of anticipation. He knew that whenever Jiang Qingyun mentioned a bold idea, it was bound to be exceptionally bold.

"I would like to recommend myself to succeed Nikan as the General of Dingyuan."

……

puff~
Emperor Shunzhi sprayed tea, and in his surprise, he didn't have time to wipe the water stains, staring at Jiang Qingyun.

"My dear minister, this is impossible."

"Your Majesty, I am not greedy for power. I want to defeat the Ming army, recover the lost territory, and share your burdens."

"I know, I..."

Emperor Shunzhi was speechless and on the verge of collapse.

Jiang Qingyun knew perfectly well what was going on.

This scene is somewhat like something out of a Western fantasy novel, where at a federal meeting, a weary president suddenly laments in public, "It's so difficult to get things done these days."

He stood up and said, "Sir, could you let the undergraduate serve one more term?"

Generally, when this happens, the person is sent to New York's First Mental Hospital that same day, given double the medication, and double the electricity.

……

Shunzhi's expression at this moment was quite interesting, a mixture of five parts dejection, three parts emotion, two parts speechlessness, and one part contempt, making up a very awkward situation.

But he still patiently explained it.

“My dear minister, you are neither a Manchu, nor a high-ranking official, nor a member of the imperial family. How could you possibly become the General of Dingyuan?”

Jiang Qingyun was very sincere:

"I am confident that I can restore the southern front to its former state."

"My dear minister, setting aside your rank and title, let me ask you this: have you ever been on the battlefield? Have you ever commanded thousands of troops? War is not child's play, and it is not the same as the Censorate's job of impeaching people. Alright, let's not discuss this matter any further."

"Yes. May I ask, Your Majesty, what do your colleagues prefer to do?"

Shunzhi sighed:

"Currently, the most common opinion among the ministers is: peace talks, withdrawal of troops, and abandonment of the southwestern provinces."

The emperor and his minister chatted for a while longer, but Shunzhi found it boring and hastily ended the audience.

……

Cining Palace.

The atmosphere was much more relaxed.

Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang was kind and approachable, and Jiangnan finally relaxed most of her tension, following behind her as they strolled through the small garden.

Princess Kong Sizhen accompanied them.
She stole glances at Jiangnan the whole way, and finally concluded that Jiangnan's waist was not as thin as hers, but her buttocks were bigger.

Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang smiled and chatted.

"Today, I'll show you the flowers I've been growing."

"Your Majesty, do flowers bloom in winter?"

"meeting!"

As soon as Jiangnan stepped into the small building, she exclaimed in surprise that the whole room was filled with roses in full bloom.

"Your Majesty, you are truly a god."

"Yes, these flowers are my masterpieces. By the way, what are your hobbies?"

Kong Sizhen answered first: "I love riding horses on spring outings."

Jiangnan: "I love archery!"

Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang nodded, then suddenly said, "You two have very similar interests. When spring arrives and the flowers bloom, you can arrange to travel together."

(End of this chapter)