The Ming Dynasty: Starting with the border troops, it was overthrown and the Qing Dynasty was destro

Chapter 134 Hong Chengchou's Plan
While peasant armies across Shaanxi were plotting another uprising, Governor-General Yang He remained completely unaware.

Yang He has been extremely busy lately.

He was busy reporting Du Wenhuan to Emperor Chongzhen.

Yang He, together with Provincial Surveillance Commissioner Li Tianjing and Imperial Censor Wu Sheng, jointly submitted a strongly worded memorial to Emperor Chongzhen, impeaching Du Wenhuan.

The three men argued that Du Wenhuan had allowed his subordinates to kill innocent people and claim credit for their crimes, and hoped that Emperor Chongzhen would dismiss Du Wenhuan from his position as the commander-in-chief of Yansui.

(Last winter, Du Wenhuan killed 199 villagers, including Cao Mengxiao and his wife, under the command of Li Chongrong, who was part of the Yanchuan Column.)
The memorial had a remarkable effect after it was submitted.

When Emperor Chongzhen, who was far away in the capital, received the report, he may not have believed it entirely, but the fact that local officials jointly impeached the general for killing innocent people and claiming credit for them was extremely bad.

Given that Du Wenhuan's performance in suppressing bandits had indeed been mediocre, Emperor Chongzhen immediately issued an edict to dismiss Du Wenhuan from his post and await investigation.

As for the successor to the General of Yansui, He Huchen, who had previously been under investigation, was appointed to take over the military affairs of Yansui.

When this news came, Yang He was overjoyed.

He finally got his revenge!
Back then, it was precisely because Du Wenhuan was ineffective in suppressing bandits and repeatedly missed opportunities that Wang Jiayin fled to Shanxi.

Later, Du Wenhuan's attack on Bao'an allowed Shen Yikui to escape, which led to Shen Yikui's comeback and threat to Qingyang Prefecture.

Yang He had no choice but to personally oversee the suppression of bandits in Ningzhou at the advanced age of sixty.

He hated Du Wenhuan to the core at that time.

Now that they've finally gotten rid of that good-for-nothing guy and replaced him with the relatively obedient He Huchen, Yang He feels a significant weight has been lifted off his shoulders.

However, before Yang He could even catch his breath for a few days, something even worse happened.

Peasant soldiers like Chen Ping, unable to endure the oppression of local officials and gentry, once again raised the banner of rebellion in various parts of Shaanxi.

"Report! Liu Wu and Liu Liu have rebelled again in Ironhorn City!"

"Report! Bai Liuxi has rebelled again in Huan County!"

"Report! Chen Ping has rebelled again in Yichuan!"

In an instant, urgent reports from all over the country arrived at the Three Border Regions General Administration Office in Guyuan like snowflakes.

Yang He sat in the main hall, looking at the mountain of urgent documents and listening to the anxious reports from his subordinates. He felt his scalp tingle and his vision go black.

It’s over! It's all over!

His painstakingly implemented plan to appease the people and the benevolent policies he placed high hopes on turned into a colossal joke in the blink of an eye.

Yang He couldn't figure out where the problem lay.

After his subordinates explained the situation in detail, Yang He finally understood the whole story.

It turns out that the evil deeds were committed by local officials, gentry, landlords, and powerful figures in Shaanxi.

They treated Yang He's "exoneration certificate" as worthless paper, and organized their servants, colluded with clerks and hired local ruffians to launch a brutal purge and persecution against the unarmed surrendered soldiers.

They not only robbed them of their meager rations and resettlement funds, but also fabricated all sorts of baseless charges against them, wantonly beating, imprisoning, and even directly torturing and killing the surrendered soldiers.

This led to renewed warfare throughout Shaanxi.

"idiot!"

"A bunch of good-for-nothing idiots!"

Yang He was both angry and anxious, and quickly issued another stern order:

"I recently heard that when the famine victims were being sent back to their hometowns, many of them were robbed and killed by the locals as they passed through towns and villages."

“All such actions cut off their means of livelihood and strengthen their resolve to become thieves. If they commit robbery or murder, they shall be punished according to the law of killing and surrender, and their crimes shall be investigated and they shall be held accountable.”

"If the disbanded group does not repent and continues to loot and kill, and there is evidence of such acts, the local people are permitted to kill them without consequence."

The meaning of this command is very clear:

This was a notice to officials and gentry throughout Shaanxi, forbidding them from further robbing and killing starving people returning to their hometowns, or else they would be punished as murderers!

They were also informed that if the surrendered soldiers continued to plunder and kill, they could kill them on the spot.

However, Yang He seemed to have forgotten that Shaanxi at this moment was no longer a place where he could simply issue an order and move freely.

His prestige had already been greatly diminished when he defied public opinion and recruited Shen Yikui.

When Yang He issued an official document to Hong Chengchou in Ningsai, Hong Chengchou astutely realized:
Your chance has come!
Hong Chengchou handed the official document in his hand to He Renlong beside him and asked calmly:
"Commander He, what do you think of Governor Yang's order?"

He Renlong took the document, glanced at it briefly, and couldn't help but sneer.

He slammed the official document on the table and said in a gruff voice:
"Hmph, Governor Yang is just talking without understanding the situation!"

"If he doesn't lead the troops himself, how would he know how hard it is for us to lead the troops to suppress bandits?"

He got angrier and angrier as he talked.
"Back then, we were about to surround and kill that bastard Shen Yikui in Qingyang Prefecture, and the brothers were all waiting to receive their reward."

"The results of it?"

"Governor Yang actually kept it from us and recruited that Shen Yikui, even giving him the worthless title of Ningsai Garrison Commander!"

"What is this?"

The mention of this incident still filled Hong Chengchou with resentment.

To support Yang He, upon receiving orders, he immediately led several capable lieutenants, including He Renlong, Ma Ke, and Ai Wannian.
They traveled day and night, rushing from Qingjian to Qingyang Prefecture, ready to participate in the siege of Shen Yikui.

Just when it seemed that Shen Yikui was about to be completely wiped out, Yang He secretly recruited him behind everyone's back!
The military merits that were within their grasp vanished, and the generals in northern Shaanxi were furious.

Hong Chengchou had to reluctantly and personally "escort" Shen Yikui's troops to Ningsai to take up their posts.

I can't even describe how frustrating it was!
What angered him even more was that Shen Yikui had been acting strangely lately, showing signs of turning back on his word.

This made Hong Chengchou, who was in charge of "keeping an eye on" him, even more uneasy, and he dared not let his guard down.

Hong Chengchou's eyes darted around, and he sighed as he looked at He Renlong:
"Alas, Governor Yang's plan to pacify the bandits has failed, and rebellions have broken out again in various parts of Shaanxi." "We who lead troops will probably have to travel around again to suppress bandits."

He Renlong snorted coldly:
"If we had killed them all back then, none of this would have happened."

"In my opinion, the way to deal with these bandits is to kill them one by one as soon as we find them, and wipe out the whole gang as soon as we find them!"

"Kill them until they are terrified, kill them all, and Shaanxi will naturally be at peace!"

Hong Chengchou sighed and continued to guide He Renlong:
"That being said, our governor is someone who is determined to win over the people."

"If he doesn't agree, what can the soldiers below do?"

Upon hearing this, He Renlong could only shake his head helplessly.
"Yes."

"If only someone who was in charge of suppressing the rebellion were appointed as the governor!"

"In my opinion, Governor Hong, you are very suitable!"

That's exactly what Hong Chengchou was waiting for.

A glint flashed in his eyes, and he beckoned to He Renlong:
"General He, I have a plan that might allow us to replace this governor."

"Would you like to hear it?"

Upon hearing this, He Renlong's spirits lifted, and he quickly clasped his hands in greeting:
"Please speak, my lord, I am all ears!"

Hong Chengchou lowered his voice and leaned close to He Renlong's ear:

"Now, Governor Yang's plan to pacify and recruit is already more than half ruined because of the rebellion of surrendered soldiers in various places."

"Even if he were to order the suppression of local officials and gentry and prohibit the killing of surrendered soldiers now, it would be to no avail."

Hong Chengchou paused for a moment, then continued.
"Think about it, what if we give it another push at this moment?"

"If you take this opportunity to ruin the other half of Governor Yang's 'achievements,' do you think the Emperor will continue to trust him?"

He Renlong's eyes lit up:
"Then, Governor Hong, what do you mean by the other half?"

Hong Chengchou's lips curled into a cold smile as he gestured with his chin towards Ningsai City:
"The remaining half of his achievements, of course, belongs to Shen Yikui right under our noses."

He Renlong continued to press for answers:

"What are you going to do?"

Hong Chengchou patiently explained:
"Didn't Ru Chengming, one of Shen Yikui's subordinates, beat up Lieutenant General Wu Hongqi and Lieutenant General Fan Li a while ago because of some verbal disputes?"

"Although I managed to suppress the matter, the feud between the two sides has been established, and they are now practically irreconcilable."

“I was thinking, why not take this opportunity to personally host a banquet at the government office and invite Shen Yikui, Ru Chengming, Wu Hongqi, Fan Li and others over?”

"Just say it's to help them resolve their conflict and reconcile."

This left He Renlong completely stunned:

"Is Your Excellency going to negotiate a peace on behalf of Shen Yikui and the others?"

In He Renlong's view, this was inconsistent with Governor Hong's consistent tough style.

"Make peace?"

Hong Chengchou let out a disdainful sneer.

"When have I, Hong, ever negotiated peace for traitors?"

His gaze suddenly sharpened:

"What I mean is, when the time comes, you should ambush three hundred axemen in the inner hall!"

"After we've had a few rounds of drinks, when I smash my cup, you immediately lead your men in and arrest them!"

After hearing this, He Renlong nodded in agreement repeatedly:

"Governor Hong has a brilliant plan!"

"When they're drunk, we can wipe out Shen Yikui and his confidants in one fell swoop!"

Upon hearing this, Hong Chengchou immediately interrupted He Renlong, his tone becoming unusually grave:
"No!"

"I want you to deliberately let Shen Yikui escape, you must let him get out of Ningsai City!"

He Renlong was taken aback, his face full of confusion:

"They let Shen Yikui escape?!"

"Isn't this like letting a tiger return to the mountains?!"

Hong Chengchou shook his head and slowly began to explain:

"I want you to let Shen Yikui escape, so that Shen Yikui will rebel again!"

"Think about it, pacifying Shen Yikui is our Governor Yang's most proud and outstanding achievement."

"If even Shen Yikui, whom he personally recruited and praised to the court as an 'example,' rebels again, what face will Yang He have left?"

"What other achievements does he have to speak of?"

Hong Chengchou raised his head, a confident smile spreading across his face.
“At that time, I will immediately join forces with the Imperial Inspector Wu Sheng to submit a memorial.”

"He accused Yang He of incompetent pacification and improper personnel management, which led to the surrender and subsequent rebellion, and the devastation of the region!"

"Believe it or not, once this memorial is submitted, Yang He will surely resign obediently!"

　2K, 4K, 3K, a total of 9K words, all burned out.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)