The Revolt of the Three Feudatories: All-in at the start in Beijing

Mongolian warriors—it just sounds nice, nothing more.

In reality, the lives of the lower-class Mongols on the grasslands were worse than those of Han Chinese tenant farmers. They not only had to herd livestock but also fight, and they had to bring their own equipment. If they died, no one would remember them.

Although Galdan had only been in this world for a year, he immediately eliminated the nobles and distributed cattle and sheep according to the population.

This meant that all the Mongols in the Dzungar Khanate owned property throughout the year and were able to eat the sheep they raised themselves, no longer needing to wait for charity from nobles.

This small favor, however, could create fanatical worshippers who would be willing to sacrifice their lives for Galdan.

Five gunpowder packs exploded in succession, right in the middle of a crowd, directly shattering the morale of the Eight Banners army.

Many Eight Banner soldiers, terrified, began to retreat uncontrollably, and Fuquan and Feiyanggu were completely unable to intimidate them.

As the Han army pursued them relentlessly, they unknowingly arrived at Chongwen Gate, where Subutai immediately gave orders.

"Quickly, open the city gates!"

As more and more Han Chinese soldiers arrived in their new armor, and with Subutai's elite troops leading the charge, they quickly captured Chongwen Gate and engaged in a bloody battle with the ever-flowing Eight Banners troops on the city walls.

Click click click.

The inner gate of Chongwen Gate and the barbican gate were opened.

Under the towering flames outside the city, Zhou Peigong held a kitchen knife, his small eyes wide as he shouted.

"Men of Beijing, young and old, march into the city and kill the Tartars!"

"Revenge for those with grudges, and seek justice for those who have been wronged!"

Behind him were countless civilians, their heads wrapped in yellow turbans to distinguish them from the regular army, as they followed a thousand Han soldiers into the city.

Despite the fact that women and children were not allowed to enter the city, a large number of them still followed, carrying kitchen knives or bricks—anything that could kill.

I don't know if the Ming Dynasty was good or not.

But when the Manchus came, everyone said the Ming Dynasty was good!

Zhou Peigong had given speeches long ago and distributed households to these people, with one hundred soldiers leading a large group of people.

Their goal was to kill the Tartars and distract the able-bodied Tartars resisting on the city walls.

As agreed beforehand, these people did not enter the Zhenglan Banner family area, but instead split into three groups and stormed into the Xianglan, Xianghong, and Xiangbai Banners.

A large number of able-bodied men were conscripted, leaving only women and children in these houses. Upon hearing the shouts of battle, they quickly closed the doors and knelt in the main hall, praying to the shaman for protection.

However, they underestimated the Han people's desire for revenge.

Every defeat in history is a testament to the strength of this nation. How could they forget in just thirty years? They showed no mercy when they stormed into people's homes.

Even the soldiers leading the group, who were Han Chinese slaves on the grasslands, were terrified.

It turns out that the Han people are never weak; they can be extremely cruel and can even harm women and children.

One of the blacksmiths, who was nearly seventy years old, was with his son and two grandsons. They ignored the other residences and rushed straight into the ancestral home of the Guarjia clan.

As the gate was smashed open, the old blacksmith rushed in with his hammer, and a man wearing a fur coat was smashed in the head by the hammer before he could run more than a few steps.

After dealing with the bondservants, the entire family of ten was eventually trapped inside the main hall.

Despite being wounded by an arrow and stabbed three times, the old blacksmith, enduring the pain all over his body, stepped forward, his eyes fixed on an old Manchu man, as he walked step by step.

"Guarjia clan?"

"Heaven has eyes! You seized my Tang family's land and killed eighty-four members of my Tang family. Today, I, Tang Hao, will exterminate your entire family and extinguish your lineage!"

"Go to hell!"

Tang Hao shouted and rushed forward, followed by his nearly fifty-year-old son and two young and strong grandsons.

With only old men and women and children left, how could Guan Erjia resist? She was hammered to death in just over ten breaths, with almost every blow resulting in a headshot.

This shows the anger in their hearts.

Tang Hao's wish was fulfilled, and he collapsed to the ground, still holding his two grandsons' hands before he died.

"Ahem!"

"You must..."

"Join the Han army and fight our way to Liaodong!"

"The Manchu Tartars must be eradicated completely!"

……

Meanwhile, inside the Hall of Supreme Harmony, the lights were on full display, and the oil was crackling and popping as it burned.

Almost all the Eight Banners officials had gathered together, and most of them were extremely anxious.

Because the decision to encircle and suppress Zhenglan Banner had just been made.

Shortly after, news came that Dongbianmen had fallen.

I reckon they've already reached the foot of the Forbidden City!

Those who were jumping up and down in a panic were the families of the Eight Banners who had been strangled. Prince Kang, Jieshu, the banner lord of the Plain Red Banner, was pushed out by his Eight Banner nobles, revealing an embarrassed look on his face.

"Empress Dowager, Your Majesty, we must gather the elite troops and their families and retreat to Shengjing immediately. Once Galdan breaches the capital, there will be no chance to escape!"

At this point, after being reprimanded by Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang, Emperor Kangxi had come to his senses and stopped worrying about who his biological father was; after all, he was the one sitting on the throne.

"Then let's fight and retreat. All the banner lords and commanders of the three upper banners, quickly move your core families to Andingmen."

"At the same time, messengers were dispatched to send orders to the Eight Banners troops in the southwest and southeast to withdraw to the area outside the Great Wall as quickly as possible."

Seeing that Kangxi had made up his mind, Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang nodded, checked for any omissions or deficiencies, and then tapped her cane.

"Gentlemen, aside from the bondservant servants, the rest of you must hurry. Keep your valuables with you at all times; do not be greedy!"

As messengers spread the word, large numbers of Manchu families, along with their loved ones, rushed to Andingmen.

This is also a major characteristic of the Manchus. Besides not being as adaptable to the environment as the Mongols, they also migrated as quickly as possible.

They would put on their winter fur coats or cotton-padded clothes, take a few pieces of gold, and then the whole family would leave.

After all, during the heyday of the Central Plains dynasties, they used them as military merits to accumulate; this behavior was ingrained in their genes.

As the Manchus retreated, the Han army continued to advance.

The fact that the Upper Three Banners were located near Andingmen was a deliberate choice by the Manchus, as it was a convenient location for them to escape to the outside of the Great Wall, allowing them to take the most and fastest supplies.

The Bordered White Banner and Bordered Blue Banner were directly intercepted.

They were wiped out on a large scale by the army.

Galdan, accompanied by Batel and three thousand elite cavalry, arrived directly at the Meridian Gate.

Batel fought bravely, killing the Qing army commander Bukku in battle. He caught the eye of Galdan and was brought to his side as a lieutenant general.

At this time, only a few dozen people were stationed at the Meridian Gate. When they saw the army coming, they ran away immediately. Galdan looked at the tightly closed gate and showed a pained expression.

"Blow up the door!"

"Let's try using a gunpowder pack first!"

The main gate of the Meridian Gate is made of solid Phoebe zhennan wood and covered with sheet metal. If it were to be destroyed by an explosion, it would be impossible to find such fine wood again.

Agula, who was standing nearby, rushed across the white marble bridge with the gunpowder bag in his arms. After placing the gunpowder bag in the center of the door, he quickly lit the extended fuse and then scrambled away to avoid it.

With a loud bang, the door tilted and broke open, indicating that the lock inside had snapped. Agula quickly went over and pushed it open.

"Charge! Follow me and charge in!"

Galdan was thrilled. After a year of painstaking planning since his time travel, he had finally stormed into Beijing.

The fate of the Central Plains was forever changed!