I

Chi Huchen, who got lost in the cave, and Zhu Minru, who was singled out in front of the battle, respectively made the first contributions to the Guangxi Army in the north and south, but they were severely criticized by their respective superiors.

Chi Huchen was demoted one level and became Qin Gongming's deputy. Deputy Qin Gongming was promoted to the chief general of the Tengjia soldiers.

Zhu Minru just informed the whole army of criticism, and the division commander Liu Xinyu reiterated again that he was not allowed to imitate the one-on-one fight in "The Romance of the Three Kingdoms".

In ten months, the Northern Route Army occupied the entire Sien Prefecture, and the Southern Route Army occupied the entire Nanning Prefecture (half of it was occupied last year).

The next step will be very difficult. Facing the enemy troops in western Guangxi who have fled into the mountains, although the policy of dividing households and dividing fields can gradually reduce the enemy's living space, and even force the enemy who has no food to eat, surrender voluntarily. However, it takes time to slowly grind it out, and it is impossible to regain the entire territory of Guangxi this year.

The remaining enemy forces in western Guangxi sent envoys to Yunnan to seek help from the puppet Ming regime.

Kunming.

Emperor Zhenwu of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Qifeng (beside gold), was drinking and having fun, enjoying the wonderful singing and dancing performances.

The civil and military ministers came to ask for instructions, but Zhu Qifeng said: "Leave civil affairs to Wang Qing, and military affairs to Mu Qing. You can handle it yourself. There is no need to report everything to me."

Several important Yunnan ministers looked at each other and couldn't help but sigh secretly. After kneeling, they bowed and left.

In Yunnan now, there are three powerful figures under Emperor Zhenwu:

First, King Mu Tianbo of Guizhou.

Second, Wang Shide, the first assistant.

Third, the eunuch Gao Lin.

There is no need to go into details about Mu Tianbo, who ruled Yunnan for a long time, supported the emperor, and was named Prince of Guizhou.

Wang Shide was not the Jinyiwei who wrote "The Legacy of Chongzhen", but the previous governor of Yunnan. This guy was originally from Yongkang, Zhejiang, and was working as a governor in Yunnan. Suddenly he heard that Chongzhen was gone and a prince had escaped, so he discussed with Mu Tianbo about establishing a new king.

As for Gao Lin, he was originally the eunuch guarding Yunnan, but now he is the eunuch Bingbi, the eunuch responsible for rituals.

"Your Majesty, the defenders of western Guangxi are asking for help. Should they be rescued?" Wang Shide asked.

Mu Tianbo sighed and asked, "What can I do to save him?"

Wang Shide said: "Your Majesty has mobilized various armies to annihilate the rebels in the mountains of western Guangxi."

Mu Tianbo shook his head and explained: "Mr. Wangge doesn't understand. The army I can command is only ten or twenty thousand. The remaining chieftains can fight in Yunnan. I'm afraid they are not willing to take them to Guangxi. Apply.”

Wang Shide said: "You can know the great righteousness. Wherever the Zhao thief rebelled, the chieftains were divided into fields and released as slaves. If the Zhao thief came to Yunnan, would the Yunnan chieftains be spared? Helping the Guixi chieftains in the war was also the Yunnan chieftain's responsibility. Fight the war by yourself. Such a simple truth, the chieftain of Yunnan will definitely understand."

Mu Tianbo smiled bitterly: "The truth is indeed simple, and the chieftains of Yunnan must understand it, but if the Zhao thief does not come to Yunnan, the chieftains of Yunnan will not be truly obedient. After all, the imperial court lacks military rations, and the chieftains have to bring their own rations when sending troops, who is willing to take advantage of themselves?" Where is the food for the imperial court to fight the war?"

Wang Shide was silent.

Mu Tianbo suddenly said: "In the current situation, the enemy is inside but not outside. We must get rid of that dead eunuch!"

Wang Shide said: "To remove this person, we must lead troops to force the palace."

Mu Tianbo suppressed the anger in his heart: "I have to do it even if I am forced into the palace. This is a last resort."

The eunuch Gao Lin had already thrown Kunming into chaos before Chongzhen hanged himself. After he became the new king, he became the eunuch of Bingbi. He was even more nepotistic, constantly cultivating party members and suppressing any ministers who dared to oppose him.

Mu Tianbo can tolerate these things.

However, after Gao Lin took control of the court, he actually reached out to the army, placed eunuchs everywhere as supervisors, and gradually took control of military food, military pay, and ordnance.

Even most of the Yunnan racecourses controlled by the Mu family were controlled by Gao Lin.

This damn eunuch searched for beautiful women everywhere and presented them to Emperor Zhenwu. He also handed over part of the money he collected to the emperor. Zhenwu Emperor Zhu Qifeng had already obeyed Gao Lin's advice and allowed the eunuchs to mess around in Yunnan.

Last autumn, Gao Lin even forced the generals and chieftains to rebel!

The chieftains of Maitreya Prefecture and thousands of households in the Eighteen Villages joined forces to launch a rebellion because they could not bear the exploitation. Then, the chieftain of Weimo Prefecture followed the rebellion, and the three parties joined forces to capture the entire Guangxi Prefecture. (Guangxi Prefecture and Guangnan Prefecture are both prefecture-level administrative units in Yunnan.)

Mu Tianbo mobilized tens of thousands of troops, fought fiercely in May, and finally suppressed the rebellion.

From then on, Mu Tianbo couldn't bear it at all and made up his mind to "clear the emperor's side".

Wang Shide, the chief minister of the cabinet, is certainly a target of wooing. Because many ministers of the cabinet and six ministries are also colluding with the eunuchs, frantically trying to get money from their own pockets. Only after Wang Shide was dealt with could Mu Tianbo dare to force the palace, otherwise the Yunnan court would be in chaos.

Wang Shide also couldn't bear Gao Lin and quickly said: "Since the prince has made up his mind, I will sacrifice my life to accompany you!"

The next day, at night.

Zhenwu Emperor Zhu Qifeng was still drinking and having fun. He knew that he could not live in peace for long and could only enjoy it one day at a time.

Suddenly, shouts of killing broke out.

The dancers and singers ran away in panic, and Zhu Qifeng also rolled around and asked the eunuch as he ran: "But Thief Zhao... Emperor Zhao is here with his troops? Come with me... Follow me to surrender the city!"

The eunuch accompanying him didn't understand either, so he followed the emperor and ran all the way.

He didn't run far when he saw Gao Lin coming in panic. The eunuch cried and said, "Your Majesty, the King of Guizhou has rebelled. The King of Guizhou has rebelled!"

Zhu Qifeng is like falling into an ice cave. When the Datong army comes, he can ask for surrender. Mu Tianbo's rebellion will be fatal.

"Hurry... escort me out quickly!" Zhu Qifeng was even more frightened.

An emperor and several eunuchs were running around in a panic.

No matter which way they ran, they were frightened back by the shouts of killing, and the palace seemed to be surrounded.

Just as Zhu Qifeng was looking for a hiding place, Mu Tianbo and Wang Shide led troops in.

Zhu Qifeng was trembling all over. He knelt down on his forehead and begged: "King Qian, please spare my life. King Qian, please spare my life. I... I will not be the emperor anymore. I will abdicate the throne to King Qian. Please spare my life, King Qian!"

The chief minister, Wang Shide, looked ugly. How could there be such an emperor?

I hope you don’t look like a human being!

"Take it!" Mu Tianbo ordered.

Hearing this sound, Zhu Qifeng collapsed on the ground, so shocked that he lost the ability to think.

But the soldiers caught the eunuchs and did not attack the emperor.

Mu Tianbo also personally helped the emperor up: "How can your majesty, who is ninety-five years old, kneel on the ground? The chief of etiquette embezzled military rations, deducted military pay, framed loyal people, excluded dissidents, raped civilian women, occupied civilian fields, Deceiving the emperor and ignoring the superiors...it is really too many to describe. I came with my troops just to protect the Qing emperor. Your Majesty, please kill Gao Lin and his followers!"

Aren't you here to kill me?

Zhu Qifeng was immediately overjoyed. He pointed at Gao Lin and said, "Kill, kill this guy!" He then said to Mu Tianbo, "King Qian has done great work in suppressing treachery, and he will be granted... a title..."

There is no way to seal it.

Zhu Qifeng had an idea: "Seal the Zhu Kingdom!"

In the Ming Dynasty, there were only left and right pillar states. Although Li Shanchang and Xu Da were granted the title of Shangzhu state, they were all changed to left pillar state in the end.

Chang Yuchun and Yao Guangxiao's Shangzhu Kingdom were both given posthumously.

Xia Yan was sealed in the Zhu Kingdom, and once he was sealed, he was really finished.

Zhang Juzheng was also posthumously given to Shangzhu Kingdom, and he had no peace after his death.

Is this a reward or a curse?

Mu Tianbo knelt down and kowtowed and said, "I don't ask for rewards, I just want to bring order to your majesty."

"Then... then let's confiscate the house of Gao Lin, the rebellious minister and traitor, and give all the money to the King of Guizhou," Zhu Qifeng said to Wang Shide again, "Old Wangge has also made meritorious service, and he was granted the title of Zuozhuguo and the title of Grand Master!"

"I don't ask for rewards." Wang Shide completely gave up on the Yunnan court.

His hometown is in Zhejiang. Although the family's land was divided and the tribesmen were divided into several groups of immigrants, no one died and the wealth and shops were saved.

Wang Shide now just wants to go home to retire, and does not want to continue toiling in Yunnan.

Suddenly, Wang Shide came up with the idea that he might as well write to the Datong Army and ask the Datong Army to send troops to Yunnan as soon as possible. Yunnan could not be stopped by loose sand. When the time comes, if I encourage the emperor to surrender, won't I be able to make meritorious deeds in the new dynasty?

It was not all for himself. Wang Shide felt in his heart that the early destruction of the Yunnan imperial court could be regarded as saving the people and accumulating evil virtue.

Although Wang Shide serves as the chief minister of the cabinet, he has no real power at all, otherwise he would have been eliminated by the eunuchs!

Mu Tianbo has succeeded in seizing the emperor, but the chaos in Kunming has not subsided yet. Soldiers or gangsters are everywhere taking advantage of the chaos to plunder. Mu Tianbo's army arrested Gao Lin's remnants everywhere, and many innocent people were extorted as remnants.

It is normal for military generals to take the lead in plundering when soldiers are scattered and cannot be recovered for a while.

In the imperial edict, a group of ministers who had been squeezed out by the eunuchs were released.

Wu Zhaoyuan, the seventy-three-year-old Wu Zhaoyuan, the Zuobu Governor of Yunnan during the Ming Dynasty and the Second Assistant to the Cabinet of the Yunnan Puppet Dynasty, finally dragged his old body out of prison.

After he figured out the reason, he immediately asked to become an official and wanted to return to his hometown to live out his life.

No matter how much Mu Tianbo and Wang Shide tried to persuade him to stay, Wu Zhaoyuan was determined to leave. In desperation, Mu Tianbo gave a gift of silver and sent his own soldiers to escort Wu Zhaoyuan away.

Wu Zhaoyuan took his family back to his hometown. He did not dare to go back to Fujian through the war zone, so he went to Sichuan via Guizhou, and soon found that the appearance was completely different.

The people of Guizhou are satisfied with food, but many are so hungry that they cannot walk. Due to the melee between chieftains and warlords, fields were often deserted along the way, and it was an apocalyptic scene where people were in dire straits.

But in Sichuan, although the lives of the people are also very difficult, their mental outlook is still good. Not only are there no barren fields, but there are also grassroots officials organizing people to build water conservancy facilities. It was not the Ming Dynasty's method of conscripting laborers, but building it in sections by villages and towns, and people were very motivated to bring their own dry food.

When Wu Zhaoyuan was crossing the river, he asked the boatman: "How long has this place been governed by honest officials?"

The boatman replied with a smile: "It has been a year. The Datong court is doing very well. Now the Qingtian Lord is everywhere."

In the eyes of the people of Sichuan, an official who does not mess around is a good official, and one who does practical things can be called the Great Master of Qingtian.

Wu Zhaoyuan said in surprise: "Only one year?"

The boatman said with longing, "As soon as Mr. Qingtian comes, there will be a bumper harvest this year. If it takes a few more years, how rich will we be? I'm afraid I will be able to eat meat every now and then!"

Wu Zhaoyuan continued northbound and then eastward along the Yangtze River.

The situation gets better as you go east, because the eastern Sichuan area has been governed by Datong officials for more than two years.

The old gentleman was not in a hurry to leave. He dismissed Mu Tianbo's soldiers and took his family to the countryside along the river to visit farmers.

After traveling through several counties, we took a boat and entered Huguang.

When he came to a village in Hunan, he only stayed for two days, and then he danced and said to his son: "The world is in great order, the world is in great order, and I can die in peace!"

Wu Yingxi said: "My father will live a long life."

When Emperor Chongzhen succeeded to the throne, he personally met with the four most honest officials.

And Wu Zhaoyuan is the leader of the four corrupt officials!

When he was the county magistrate, he reformed the system, cleaned up taxes and levies, treated the people well, and reviewed unjust cases. When he left office, the people sent each other for dozens of miles, grabbing carriages and begging him to stay and continue to be an official.

Not only was he good at governing the people, he was also good at managing the army, and the military pay from his hands was exactly the same.

Then he was imprisoned.

Although he was revived in the Chongzhen Dynasty, he kept wandering around in different places, and was finally thrown to Yunnan as the chief envoy.

Wu Zhaoyuan visited primary and secondary schools in Hunan villages and asked about the education of the New Dynasty. He went home that night and said to his son: "After returning to Fujian, you should go to the New Dynasty to be an official. Your grandchildren need to study well. Practical learning is excellent, and physics is , Mathematics should also be practiced hard.”

Wu Yingxi said: "Kid, remember this."

Wu Zhaoyuan suddenly laughed: "I thought it was the end of the dynasty, but I didn't expect that the world was about to be in chaos. My heart is so happy, my heart is so happy, hahahaha..."

Smiling and laughing, the laughter suddenly stopped.

Wu Yingxi felt something was wrong, stretched out her hand to feel her breath, and suddenly cried out in grief: "Father!"

This old gentleman was laughing to death while sitting in his chair.