Please call me the Emperor of the Great Ming Dynasty

Recalling those past events, Sun Chengzong was filled with emotion: "We had just completed the Guan-Ning-Jin defense line when the Later Jin army attacked."

That's precisely why the Ningyuan and Ningjin victories took place.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Youjian paced back and forth in the hall with his hands behind his back, listening quietly.

Didn't Yuan Chonghuan injure Nurhaci with a bomb?

Nurhaci died not long after returning, which dealt a heavy blow to the Later Jin army, and the morale of our Ming army soared to unprecedented heights.

Your humble servant has heard rumors that Yuan Chonghuan was secretly negotiating peace with the Later Jin, so he resigned from his post and returned to his hometown.

Your Majesty, I believe there must be more to this than meets the eye.

"Oh, what do you mean?" Zhu Youjian couldn't help but ask.

Sun Chengzong stroked his beard: "This humble subject has dealt with Huang Taiji before,"

The Manchus were very clever.

They're not as clueless about strategy as we might think; that's not the case at all.

They studied "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" as a military treatise, and became thoroughly familiar with the conspiracies and schemes of the Three Kingdoms period.

Therefore, they have an endless stream of ideas.

For example, they are also very good at things like counter-espionage.

Yuan Chonghuan was extremely loyal to the Ming Dynasty. Some people say that his peace talks with the Later Jin were definitely a rumor spread by Huang Taiji.

Because they feared and hated Yuan Chonghuan, who had killed Nurhaci.

If the imperial court were to kill Yuan Chonghuan, it would rid them of a major threat.

Zhu Youjian's heart was also stirred, because he understood that since ancient times, talent has always been the most important thing, and whoever gains talent gains the world.

"Your Majesty, do you remember Li Mu of the Zhao state during the Warring States period?"

"Li Mu was regarded by later generations as the foremost of the four great generals of the Warring States period."

"Yes, he was able to fight against the nomadic Xiongnu, and he was also able to defeat the Qin army, pioneering the method of combined cavalry and infantry warfare."

At that time, due to the Battle of Changping, the Zhao state lost 45 soldiers.

Taking advantage of the situation, the Xiongnu frequently raided the border regions of Zhao, including Dai and Yanmen.

The generals of Zhao often suffered defeats.

Later, the King of Zhao sent Li Mu to resist the Xiongnu.

After arriving at the border, Li Mu adopted a strategy of scorched earth, conserving strength, and luring the enemy deep into his territory.

The Xiongnu repeatedly came to challenge him, but Li Mu refused to fight, leading the Xiongnu to believe that he was a coward.

Later, Li Mu felt the time was right to counterattack, so he released the cattle, horses, and sheep to graze freely. The Xiongnu people were already starving and thirsty.

How could anyone resist seeing so many animals?

So the Xiongnu came to seize the livestock.

Li Mu sent out small detachments, which suffered five consecutive defeats.

The Xiongnu army was even more arrogant, believing that the Zhao army was no match for them.

This led the Xiongnu army into the Zhao army's encirclement.

Li Mu employed a flanking maneuver, annihilating 100,000 Xiongnu troops in a single day. Furthermore, he capitalized on the victory, destroying the Chanlan, defeating the Donghu, and subjugating the Linhu.

For more than ten years after that, the Xiongnu did not dare to invade the northern border of the Zhao state again.

Later, Qin Shi Huang launched a war to conquer the six states.

After Qin conquered Han, Qin Shi Huang dispatched generals Wang Jian, Yang Duanhe, and Li Xin to attack Zhao in three routes.

The situation in the State of Zhao was extremely critical. King Qian of Zhao appointed Li Mu as the Grand General and Sima Shang as the Deputy General to lead the army to meet the enemy.

Li Mu inflicted a major defeat on the Qin army and killed Huan Yi, a famous Qin general.

Wang Jian knew that without eliminating Li Mu, it would be impossible to destroy the Zhao state in a short period of time.

So Wang Jian resorted to his old tricks again, spending a large sum of money to bribe Guo Kai, a close advisor to the King of Zhao.

Guo Kai is truly a despicable person. As expected, he took money to do things, and he not only harmed Lian Po, but also Li Mu.

Guo Kai told the King of Zhao that Li Mu was amassing troops on the border, thus creating a threat by supporting bandits.

They have reached an agreement with the Qin state and intend to betray the Zhao state.

King Zhao favored Guo Kai, did not investigate further, and believed what Guo Kai said.

King Zhao appointed Zhao Cong, a member of the royal family, and Yan Ju, a Qi man who had surrendered, to replace Li Mu and Sima Shang.

For the sake of the state of Zhao and its people, Li Mu refused to relinquish his military power, but was captured by the King of Zhao through a scheme.

Not long after, Li Mu was killed.

King Zhao destroyed his own defenses, and three months after Li Mu's death, Handan was captured by the Qin state.

If Li Mu hadn't died, the State of Zhao probably wouldn't have perished so quickly.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Youjian was deeply moved and remained unsettled for a long time.

He thought to himself that the State of Zhao was not without talent. Of the four great generals of the Warring States period, two were from Zhao: Lian Po and Li Mu. However, the King of Zhao could not use them.

Zhu Youjian understood that Sun Chengzong told him the story of Li Mu so that he would not doubt Yuan Chonghuan.

"I intend to reinstate you as Minister of War. Are you willing?"

To everyone's surprise, Sun Chengzong shook his head: "Your Majesty, isn't Cui Chengxiu now the Minister of War?"

Zhu Youjian's eyes were filled with resentment: "You must know that Cui Chengxiu is a member of Wei Zhongxian's faction."

Wei Zhongxian held absolute power and controlled the court.

I am worried that something might happen at Shanhaiguan, so I plan to send 3,000 troops to garrison Shanhaiguan to increase the defenses there.

Currently, the troops there have all been transferred away by Wei Zhongxian and his men under the pretext of suppressing bandits, leaving only two thousand men.

Sun Chengzong was surprised and astonished: "What? How could Wei Zhongxian do such a thing?"

There are too few troops at Shanhaiguan.

Shanhaiguan is of paramount importance to our Great Ming Dynasty. As long as the Later Jin army does not enter the pass, we will not suffer any major setbacks.

However, on the other hand, if the Later Jin army were to advance beyond Shanhaiguan Pass, it would directly threaten the capital.

"Therefore, I planned to send troops to reinforce Shanhaiguan, but Cui Chengxiu refused to send troops under the pretext of suppressing bandits."

"How dare he defy the imperial decree?" Sun Chengzong was furious upon hearing this. "Cui Chengxiu is truly audacious!"

"Currently, I have obtained a great deal of evidence of Cui Chengxiu's crimes."

At this point, Zhu Youjian took out the agreement signed between Cui Chengxiu and Daishan of the Later Jin Dynasty and handed it to Sun Chengzong.

Sun Chengzong took the document with both hands, opened it, and was filled with rage: "Cui Chengxiu is a traitor! He actually dared to sign such an agreement with Daishan, betraying the Ming Dynasty's Shanhaiguan Pass!"

He's trying to hand over Shanhaiguan to someone else.

Fortunately, Your Majesty, you personally went to Shanhaiguan and repelled the Later Jin army.

Otherwise, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Your Majesty, this agreement alone is enough to exterminate Cui Chengxiu's entire clan.

Do not be soft-hearted. People like Cui Chengxiu, who secretly collude with the Later Jin, should be eliminated as soon as possible.

I wonder what kind of shady agreement he and Huang Taiji have reached.

"My dear minister, will you return to my side?"

Sun Chengzong waved his hand: "Your Majesty, I am old and ill. I get out of breath after walking just a few steps."

It would be better to appoint Wang Zaijin as Minister of Justice, and then appoint him as Minister of War after Cui Chengxiu is dismissed.