Water Margin: The opening scene involves assassinating Emperor Huizong of Song and forcibly taking L

"Give him a quick death, don't humiliate him in every way."

Wanyan Zonghan's family members were also being massacred at this moment.

Wanyan Zongfu was the only one with excellent interpersonal relationships; people from all factions and ethnic groups came to plead for his life.

Even Wu Qimai and Wanyan Zongpan, father and son, felt that Wanyan Zongfu's family could be left behind.

Of course, if news came that Wanyan Zongfu had ordered the massacre of all the powerful leaders of Bohai, the Bohai civil officials in the capital would definitely be furious.

……

Just as the bloody massacre was taking place in the capital, a remnant of the army returned.

The leader was Wanyan Zongxian. When Liaoyang fell, he and Heshilie Zhining led their troops to flee to Shenzhou.

Shenzhou was attacked again by the Ming army on a long journey. He had too few troops at his disposal, and there were spies setting fires in the city.

So he lost Shenzhou again and escaped with only a small number of troops.

He wanted to tell Wanyan Zongfu, but was chased all the way into the mountains by hundreds of Ming soldiers.

Exhausted and hungry, Wanyan Zongxian cautiously emerged from the mountains and encountered routed soldiers who told him of Wanyan Zongfu's great defeat.

He gathered some defeated soldiers, bypassed the battlefield, and fled. The next day, he encountered Jin Wuzhu by the river.

The two joined forces, and their total strength finally exceeded one thousand men.

They rested for half a day in Xianping Prefecture, then looted the entire city before leaving. They then gathered troops in Hanzhou to prepare for another battle.

But they couldn't recruit any soldiers at all, and forcibly recruiting soldiers would only be a burden, so they simply fled all the way back to the capital.

Upon hearing that Wanyan Zongxian and Jin Wuzhu had returned with their troops, Wuqimai was on high alert and personally led all the troops and civil and military officials to welcome them.

Chapter 3474 Seizing Military Power

Upon seeing the civil and military officials surrounding Wu Qimai, Wanyan Zongxian immediately guessed what had happened. He asked directly, "Are my family members alright?"

Wu Qimai said, "Your connections with those rebels are not deep, so your whole family is naturally safe and sound."

Jin Wuzhu also asked, "Where are my family members?"

Wu Qimai said, "Eriduo's (Wanyan Zongfu) family is all fine. Since you are so close to Eriduo, naturally nothing will happen to you."

Wanyan Zongxian and Jin Wuzhu exchanged a glance, and the former said, "Bring our families here."

More than an hour later, the couple's families were taken outside the city.

Jin Wuzhu asked, "How does Your Majesty intend to deal with the southern bandits?"

Wu Qimai rebuked him, saying, "How can you refer to them as southern bandits? Those are all soldiers of the Ming Dynasty."

“I have already sent a messenger to surrender, and I will ultimately preserve the dynasty of the Great Jin.”

Jin Wuzhu clenched his fists, wanting to rush over and chop Wu Qimai down.

However, we cannot afford to have internal strife now.

Otherwise, it's uncertain how many of the remaining Jin troops would have survived.

Moreover, with their families under control, a fight between the two would inevitably result in mutual destruction.

Wu Qimai said, "Now that all the armies have been defeated, the Jin army should be reorganized."

"You two have returned just in time. Could you hand over the soldiers for unified command?"

Looking at his family members who were surrounded, Wanyan Zongxian said helplessly, "It's all up to Your Majesty's will."

Enraged, Jin Wuzhu slammed his spear to the ground.

News of their recruitment of soldiers in Hanzhou had already reached the capital.

Wu Qimai knew they were still alive and had troops, which is why he didn't massacre their families.

He had his family members taken hostage, and upon his return, he was stripped of his military power!

Beijing is too far away; it's located in Acheng District of Harbin City.

Fortunately, the Ming army obtained a lot of grain in Liaoyang, otherwise it would have been very difficult to transport it by sea from Shandong.

Even so, Liaoyang is still a thousand miles away from Shangjing.

This is just the straight-line distance.

The troops that marched straight to the Jin capital, Shangjing, were claimed to number 50,000, but in reality, they numbered only 10,000.

The laborers have also been replaced.

The laborers from Shandong have already returned to their hometowns one after another.

The laborers who transported grain with the army to Shangjing were mostly Han, Bohai, and Khitan soldiers who had surrendered.

Yang Yun was summoned back by Zhao Yuan and joined Yang Zaixing in commanding the cavalry.

Other surrendered generals, including Gao Jingshan, Wang Zheng, and Liu E, also followed with their cavalry.

There were a total of four thousand cavalry.

Shi Biao and Gu San led the emperor's personal guard, totaling two thousand infantrymen.

The armor was transported by mules, and the soldiers rode inferior horses.

Hua Rong led three thousand musketeers, and Xu Ning led one thousand spearmen, both advancing on horseback.

The laborers followed, leading horses and mules, carrying grain and fodder.

When the troops arrived in Longzhou, it was already snowing lightly.

Longzhou is Nong'an County in Changchun City. During the Liao Dynasty, it was called Huanglong Prefecture.

Hua Rong suggested requisitioning ships to transport grain and fodder by waterway.

Wang Zheng cautioned, "By the time we manage to gather boats, the river will almost be frozen over."

The group had no choice but to continue by land. Just after crossing the Songhua River, a sudden heavy snowfall began.

Because of the ample clothing provided, the surrendered soldiers and generals in Liaodong were alright, but the Ming soldiers were freezing cold.

They had never encountered temperatures of minus 20 or 30 degrees Celsius before!

Yang Zaixing, in particular, a native of Hunan, caught a cold and fever that very night when the temperature dropped in the Songhua River region.

Chapter 3475 Heavy Snow

Shi Biao and Gu San were not much better off; they were both from Hanzhong.

The group continued their journey through the snow, stopping at Daru City where the entire army took shelter from the wind and snow.

The city was abandoned; laborers were helping to tidy up the houses, and soldiers were busy dismantling collapsed buildings to start fires.

"The soldiers whose hometowns were in Sichuan, Hubei, and Huainan suffered the most from illness or frostbite,"

Yang Yun convened a meeting of his generals.

"This place is about two hundred li away from the capital of the Jin Dynasty."

"Either we press on with all our might, brave the snow, and take down the capital without regard for casualties."

"Or we can wait until spring arrives and the weather warms up before attacking the capital."

"What do you think?"

Yang Zaixing was wrapped in a cotton quilt: "I can't ride a horse anymore, and it's even difficult for me to speak. My throat hurts."

Shi Biao said, "I can still fight, but many of my soldiers are injured or sick."

"Most of the soldiers I and Brother Gu San are from Sichuan and Hubei, and some are from Hanzhong."

"It's too cold here, the soldiers can't stand it."

"Of my thousand soldiers, nearly two hundred are sick," Gu San said.

Hua Rong said, "The musketeers can still fight."

"But the weather was too cold, and the loading speed was extremely slow. My hands were so cold that they wouldn't obey my commands."

What a fart!

If another heavy snowfall occurs halfway through the journey, even a rapid advance will be difficult, as the deep snow makes marching very difficult.

If we were to encounter another ambush by the Jin army, we would suffer a crushing defeat if we were not careful.

"Let them rest for the winter and focus on recovering," Yang Yun decided.

The soldiers not only brought enough food and clothing, but also enough doctors and medicine.

Aside from accidental frostbite, the Ming soldiers mainly suffered from colds and flu, but they would probably be able to adapt after a while.

Once the weather clears up, we can also fight in winter.

Two days later, Ma Kuo, who had returned from the northern desert some time ago, arrived here with more than ten light cavalry.

Ma Kuo said, "From the southern grasslands to Liaodong, His Majesty has dispatched 150,000 troops, each returning to their original garrisons."

"His Majesty has also returned to Liaoyang. The temperature in Liaodong dropped earlier than usual this year, so it is definitely impossible to continue the war. Therefore, he sent me here to handle the aftermath."

Yang Zaixing's cold and fever had almost subsided, though he still coughed frequently. He asked in surprise, "Does this mean we're going to negotiate peace with the Jin Dynasty?"

Ma Kuo said, "The situation here is very complicated."

"We can't kill all the Jurchen tribes. If they hide in the deep mountains and forests, how can our Ming soldiers conquer them?"

"But the Jin dynasty must be destroyed; we cannot leave any future troubles."

“Choose some riverside locations that are easily accessible and arable as bases.”

“Every year, criminals were exiled here to cultivate the land, and they had to be from the north, otherwise they couldn’t stand the cold.”

"His Majesty said that all death row inmates in the northern provinces could be pardoned and exiled instead, and sent here in droves."

“Soldiers and officers of all armies may also sign up to garrison here.”

“Those who voluntarily come here to guard the border will be promoted two ranks for generals and one rank for soldiers, and their parents and brothers will be granted land in their hometowns.”

“Those who are not yet married will be given the wives of female relatives of Jin officials.”

"If there are not enough female relatives of officials, then unmarried women of all ethnic groups will be forced to marry Ming soldiers."

"If the Jurchen tribes are willing to submit to the Ming Dynasty, we will demarcate their territories and grant them official positions in the Ming Dynasty."

"No tribe may cross the border to attack its neighbor; any tribe that violates this rule shall be exterminated!"

Chapter 3476 The Protectorate of Andong

"The imperial court plans to establish the Andong Protectorate, with its capital located in Shangjing of the Jin Kingdom."

"The head of the Andong Protectorate is called the Andong Protectorate, a military rank of the third grade."

"A term of five years, with a maximum of two consecutive terms."

"After ten years, one may be promoted to the Privy Council, and there is also an opportunity to enter the cabinet and become a prime minister."

"General Li Cheng has requested to stay, and His Majesty has agreed to appoint him as the Protector-General of Andong."

"He will come to take up his post after the spring."

"The imperial court will also establish the Linhuang Protectorate in Linhuang Prefecture (Bairin Left Banner)."

"The first Protector-General of Linhuang has been chosen as General Yue Fei."

Ma Kuo spoke at length, leaving the generals stunned.

The so-called Andong Protectorate covered the area that later became Jilin and Heilongjiang, as well as all areas outside Heilongjiang.

The jurisdiction of the Linhuang Protectorate extended south to Chengde and Jianchang, north to Xing'an League, west to Keshiketeng Banner, and east to the Horqin Grassland.

Whether it was a grassland tribe or a Jurchen tribe, all of them designated their own territories.

Fighting to the death can only take place within one's own territory.

If troops are allowed to cross the border, they will be warned by the imperial court.

If repeated warnings are ignored, the Protectorate will definitely send troops, along with other tribes, to wipe out the disobedient tribes.