Dominate the Country

On the 12th, the battle of Duji ended. It rained for three days in a row. Yongsheng ran very fast. Feng Yinglian's troops arrived in Beijing from Changxindian after Yongsheng ran out of Beijing. They did not catch a single hair of Yongsheng, and even got a position as the counselor of the Beijing garrison camp. On the 17th, the Fu Han army of the large group arrived in Tongzhou where there was no Qing soldier, and the second ** was close to the edge of Beijing.

Before that, the Yinglian army in Changxindian rushed into Beijing City just before Emperor Yongsheng fled. After the defeated soldiers in Tongzhou also fled north, they controlled the entire periphery of the capital. This was the day before Emperor Chongzhen of the Ming Dynasty committed suicide 128 years ago.

It is said that on March 19 of that year, Li Chuang's army entered Beijing City. Except for a few very few people, all the princes, nobles, civil and military ministers in Beijing City knelt down and surrendered obediently, and the Zhengyang Gate was opened by people. The only resistance Li Chuang's army encountered when they entered the Forbidden City was the few eunuchs who were in charge of the internal military exercises.

Chen Ming will be ready to enter Beijing tomorrow. Beijing, which is left with only an empty city, naturally cannot play the trick of all officials kneeling and all people burning incense to welcome him. However, Ying Lian, who was appointed by Emperor Yongsheng as the counselor of the Beijing garrison camp, tied up hundreds of Manchu flag officials and flag soldiers from Fuheng and below, knelt in front of Chen Ming, and handed over Fuheng and other hundreds of flag soldiers.

"I am guilty of death for failing to capture Yongsheng alive." Yongsheng's momentary cowardice actually made him run to Chengde earlier than Ying Lian expected. Ying Lian has scolded himself in his heart and slapped himself more than once in the past two days. He was just a little late, just a little!

A great credit was let go in vain.

Although Yongsheng still had many guards around him, and some of them were from the Eight Banners New Army, Yinglian's army also had Fu Han Army, and they were the troops of the Third Division of the First Class Fu Han Army. And the most important thing was that Feng Yinglian was unexpected!

When the battle started, even if Yongsheng was not captured, some Qing troops could be left behind. They could also attack Tongzhou with the main force of the Fu Han Army. The Qing troops that regrouped in Tongzhou were the foundation of the Qing Dynasty. Just as Chen Ming had expected, the total number of Eight Banners infantry and cavalry in Tongzhou was more than 50,000, but after adding the guards left in Beijing, the number of troops increased to more than 60,000.

"Does your highness want to see Fu Heng?"

"Didn't he scold you?" Chen Ming asked with interest. Heshen was killed by Yinglian himself. The old man in front of him, with a smile on his face, was not as peaceful and harmless as he looked on his face.

Feng Yinglian smiled, how could Fu Heng not scold him. Feng Yinglian's ancestors were from Shenyang, and they belonged to the Yellow Banner of the Han Army of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. They had been good dogs of the Qing Dynasty for many generations. He never expected that this old dog would suddenly bite its master today.

"What's the point of seeing him?" Compared with Fu Heng, an old man in his fifties, Chen Ming was more curious about Feng Yinglian's granddaughter, who was Heshen's first wife.

"Yongcheng emptied Beijing. What about the books in the Hanlin Academy?" The Tartars had not had time to compile the "Siku Quanshu", but the "Yongle Encyclopedia" in Beijing was stored in the Hanlin Academy. Although many of them were lost, they were still treasures. In addition to the "Yongle Encyclopedia", there were countless precious documents and texts handed down from the Ming Dynasty. For Chinese culture, the voluminous ancient editions and rare books there were more precious than hundreds of millions of taels of silver.

In the original time and space, the year when the Eight-Power Allied Forces entered Beijing, the Hanlin Academy was burned to ashes by a fire. No one can tell who set the fire.

The textbook compiled by Rabbit naturally pointed the finger at the Eight-Power Allied Forces, but when the Internet age came, the tide of reversing the verdict swept the entire Internet. When black was a trend and reversing the verdict was a kind of pretense, countless experts, scholars and public intellectuals shouted that the fire was set by the Chinese themselves.

What reason is there to prove that the fire was set by the Chinese themselves? ——Some say it was the Gansu Army, and some say it was the Boxers.

The "evidence" is the accounts of many missionaries, Western scholars and diplomats in China, including the famous American missionary and journalist Reid and the then French Minister to China Pichon. The fire in the Hanlin Academy was "definitely" set by the Chinese officers and soldiers and the Boxers themselves.

Because the Hanlin Academy is next to the British Embassy. The Chinese wanted to burn down the Hanlin Academy to attack the British Embassy.

Chen Ming could no longer remember the details of the posts that disgusted him, but he was very impressed by a record that was said to be the most detailed and reliable record of the burning of the Hanlin Academy. It was written by a British journalist named P. Will. He was said to be an absolutely upright person who took it as his responsibility to "witness" the true situation at that time. He observed the situation everywhere every day, recorded his personal experiences in a diary, and compiled it into a book called "The Siege of the Legation in the Boxer Rebellion". The book seemed to be written like a martial arts novel: "Yesterday there was an arsonist who crouched like a cat and used his clever surgery to throw the fire into the Hanlin Academy. In just one hour, the British Embassy, ​​where the ministers lived, was suddenly in danger. When the Chinese arsonists fled, they took cover under trees and houses, and while fleeing, they abandoned the oil-burning fire tools. Some of them fired guns while fleeing." Yes, hiding and abandoning the tools of crime, while fleeing and firing guns! Brain-dead.

Another British writer gave another description: For many centuries, the Hanlin Academy... its halls and courtyards have been a gathering place for the best Chinese scholars... There are gorgeous wooden carved eaves everywhere. Diplomats were aware of the danger. But they feel that the Chinese people's admiration for learning, tradition and architectural beauty will prevent them from destroying a library with the oldest and richest collection in the world by any means!

What a great description, Chen Ming still remembers this section vividly. Then as soon as he turned his pen, the British writer who seemed to be named Frye saw a scene that surprised him: the diplomats' judgment was once again proven wrong. The Chinese lit fires in the Hanlin Academy, and they burned them methodically, courtyard by courtyard. When the H believers led by Dong Fuxiang (referring to the "Gan Army" of the Qing Dynasty) opened fire violently through the thick smoke through the windows above, the roar drowned out the continuous gunfire. This ancient building burst into flames in this roar, like a tinderbox...

Between the two British people, Chen Ming didn't know who to believe even from a fair standpoint. What's more, his own position is unfair. He is not a student of history. He doesn't know the real situation at that time. He only knows that there are rebuttal posts saying that the Hanlin Academy was under the police guard of the British army at that time and was completely burned in the Hanlin Academy. Previously, there was a fire that was extinguished in less than half an hour, which seems to correspond to the first description, but foreign descriptions of the burning of the Hanlin Academy seemed to be done at once. Then the British minister sent people to defend the Hanlin Academy. The British army took full control of the Hanlin Academy and began to knock down many houses on the northern border line of defense.

Whether it was true or false, Chen Ming really couldn't tell. He just subconsciously didn't want to believe what those guys who were trying to overturn the verdict severely belittled the quality of the Chinese people and exalted the "fairness, integrity and justice" of the foreigners. Regardless of whether it was historical fact or not, he thought it was a bunch of rubbish!

China practices its own sanctity, and Western scholars are "unbearably angry." Against the historical background of the Eight-Power Allied Forces' invasion of China, doesn't it seem ridiculous? The quality of the Chinese people is really low, but the foreigners have such a strong sense of justice. Some people even say that foreigners took risks to put out the fire in the Hanlin Academy, especially the noble British gentlemen, because their supreme leader, the British Minister Dou Nale, issued a strict order to force the soldiers in the mansion to do something. Moreover, after the Hanlin Academy fire, the British minister urgently sent a telegram to the Qing court, asking the Chinese government to rescue the Imperial Academy and its manuscripts. He is truly a European gentleman who is noble and upright to the extreme.

This kind of "reversal of verdict" directly gave Chen Ming a ton of mental blow and left Chen Ming with too deep damage. So facing the empty city of Beijing, he didn't feel like there was anything to be angry about. Those treasures should be his or hers. Instead, he attached great importance to the Hanlin Academy.

Chen Ming didn't ask about the Forbidden City or the Old Summer Palace. The first thing he asked about was the Hanlin Academy. Feng Yinglian didn't know how to describe his mood at this moment. Very complicated and emotional! "All the books in the Hanlin Academy are in good condition. I have sent people to guard them day and night."

"Yongxun left in a hurry. There is still a large amount of gunpowder, iron, copper, saltpeter, sulfur, willow charcoal and other military raw materials left in Beijing. In addition, there are more than 100,000 stones of grain and 200,000 bundles of fodder. …”

Yongxun was gone. He never thought that Yinglian was a traitor. Of course he would not burn all the food and supplies. Now all these have become the seizures of the Fuhan Army.

The food that costs less than 140,000 shi is not much, but it is not much.

When Chen Ming entered Beijing, he accomplished his great cause. The Manchu Qing withdrew 70,000 to 80,000 troops [as well as half of the guards that had been sent out by Beijing]. This number was a bit too much. Although no one can say whether some of the Mongolian cavalry will continue to work for the Manchus after arriving in Chengde. But even if the Mongolian cavalry is removed, the Eight Banners alone can still have 60,000 to 70,000 troops, right? In addition to the Manchu and Qing troops in the Northeast and North Korea, as long as the puppet troops in North Korea are included, the number will exceed 200,000.

After the rain stopped, Chen Ming used the recovered cavalry troops in the direction of Zunhua, where hundreds of thousands of Han people were waiting for the Fuhan Army to rescue them. Moreover, attacking Chengde from Zunhua will lead to much more progress than attacking Beijing to Chengde.

This number would be more reliable if the Manchu Qing's fundamental strength was limited to about 30,000 to 40,000 people.

"There are so many eunuchs in Beijing?"

Looking at another number that needed attention, Chen Ming had a headache. There were actually 3,200 people. Damn it, how could he remember that there was a book in his previous life that said there were less than 3,000 eunuchs in the Qianlong Dynasty? If Yongxun oils his feet, won't he take away even one eunuch?

"Your Highness, this eunuch doesn't mean that you can work in the palace after being castrated. It's still unclear how many of the 3,200 people are pure. Except for a small number of these rootless people who escaped from the city, they are absolutely Most of them took advantage of the chaos a while ago and sneaked into the palace, pretending to be messing around. " Chen Ming understood when Feng Yinglian said this.

"This needs to be examined carefully." It would be best to remove all the eunuchs who had gained power during the Manchu and Qing dynasties, as well as the newly castrated ones. Who can guarantee that these are not dead soldiers left behind by the Manchu and Qing dynasties? People who have castrated themselves before and failed to enter the palace can be trusted more. Although the Manchu Qing Dynasty, which claimed to have accepted more than 90,000 eunuchs from the former Ming Dynasty, did not have the emperor's elder brother being avenged by eunuchs, you should always be careful.

After Chen Hui moved the capital, he proposed to Chen Ming to use eunuchs. At that time, Chen Ming was still a little confused, and Chen Hui himself was also considering that the capital had just been moved and the foundation had not been laid. If the matter got out of hand, the impact would not be very good. So the matter was suppressed. But Chen Ming knew that this matter had always been in Chen Hui's mind.

For the Chinese of this era, if you become an emperor, you must have eunuchs and palace maids to serve you. This has nothing to do with morality or immorality, but it is a matter of course and right. Chen Ming has always been troubled by this matter. Now, the ready-made eunuchs are here.

Yinglian himself was born in the Baoyi Banner and has some understanding of this matter. Among the 3,200 eunuchs in and outside Beijing, at least 1,000 of them were previously cleansed. The Qing Dynasty did not have a rule to punish private cleansing. In the Ming Dynasty, anyone who was caught would be "shackled for a month, beaten 100 times, and sent back to their hometown." In the Qing Dynasty, many people who were cleansed but could not enter the palace were hanging around in Beijing. Of course, this phenomenon was far less rampant in the Qing Dynasty than in the Ming Dynasty. After all, the eunuchs of Zhu Ming were first-class. Twenty-four eunuchs, the prime minister, how powerful. The Qing Dynasty created a banner and the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which can be said to be a real improvement.

"There are more than 200 palace maids in various places. Take them all out and keep them temporarily."

The palace maids of the Qing Dynasty are all from the banner. No matter how harmless they behave, Chen Ming will not use them. It's just that the age of these palace maids is generally older, basically in the 35th or 40th year, and they are the kind of people who can't go back home or don't want to go back.

For these women, Chen Ming will not throw them into the labor camp again. But the specific place has not been decided for a while, so just keep them in custody.

"Feng Yinglian, this name is not good, it has a Tartar flavor. In my opinion, you should be called Feng Lian from now on." The old man is almost seventy years old. In this era, at this age, he is already buried up to his neck in the earth, and he will not live for many years.

Chen Ming changed his name. Feng Yinglian, who had been worried since he met Chen Ming, finally put his heart at ease. "Thank you, Your Highness, for the name." From today on, he is Feng Lian, not Feng Yinglian. This is the name given by the Crown Prince of Chen Han himself. Who dares to say that he is a bondservant in the future?

It was like drinking a glass of clear ice water in the midsummer. The instant refreshing feeling made Yinglian fly. Throwing away the troubles and irritability, an old heart became lighter.

Chen Ming picked up a roster that Feng Lian gave him. This was the roster and resume of all the officers above the rank of Dusi under his command. Chen Ming took a look and put it aside. "Go back and tell your officers that there is a reason for raising the flag. It is a vicious plan of the Tartars. The new dynasty is not violent and cannot distinguish right from wrong. Nanjing will issue a notice soon, announcing to the world that new people who join the banner are not considered as members of the Eight Banners."

"But Beijing is too empty. Yongcheng took away all the treasures of the Forbidden City and the Old Summer Palace."

"Go and select one person from the captured prisoners, and let him go to Chengde to tell Yongcheng, so that Yongcheng will obediently give Return all the treasures. What's the use of taking those things to the Northeast? Can they buy food or drinks? "

"This governor does not want their real gold and silver, but those precious antiques, calligraphy and paintings, all of which should be sent back. Otherwise, this palace will be too plain, and I will go to the Eastern and Western Tombs to find Shunzhi, Kangxi, and Yongzheng to get some things as decorations. "

Qianlong was not buried in the Yuling Mausoleum that he prepared for himself. Yongsheng obviously had a bad premonition and sent people to send Qianlong's coffin to the Chengde Rehe Palace, which is the Summer Resort.

However, there are also coffins of Empress Xiaoxianchun and three imperial concubines, Huixian Imperial Concubine, Zhemin Imperial Concubine, and Shujia Imperial Concubine in the underground palace of Yuling Mausoleum.

Let alone Chen Ming's opening of the mausoleums of Shunzhi, Kangxi, Yongzheng, Xiaozhuang and others to let in some fresh air, just say that Chen Ming opened the coffins of one queen and three imperial concubines in the underground palace of Yuling to replenish them with the heat of the sun, and the face of the Qing Dynasty would be cleaner than the author's wallet.

No matter how deep Feng Lian's scheming was, his face became unnatural at this moment.

Chen Ming just laughed at this, "Yesterday's cause, today's result. The Tartars are too arrogant, they deserve this disaster. Look at the emperor's mausoleum of the Yuan Dynasty, how clean it disappeared? The Tartars themselves did not learn from their predecessors, and insisted on building the imperial mausoleum, just like they can do it forever in the Central Plains. Don't they deserve it now?"

Chen Ming remembered very clearly that a considerable part of the wood and stone used in the mausoleums of the emperors of Qianlong and the previous Shunzhi, Kangxi, and Yongzheng dynasties was obtained by demolishing Ming Dynasty buildings and the Ming Tombs.

After the Tartars entered the pass, they ordered the destruction and looting of the Ming Tombs, and burned the Ming Dingling, Deling and other mausoleums. The wood of Shunzhi's Xiaoling Mausoleum was mostly old materials, and the source of the old materials was the demolition of Ming Dynasty buildings. The ceilings of the Longen Hall and the Shendao Pavilion were confirmed by later generations to be from the Qingfu Hall, Jinfang Pavilion and Cuifang Pavilion built during the Jiajing period of Ming Shizong in Xiyuan, Beijing. The location of this hall and two pavilions was exactly where Ming Shizong practiced Taoism. In front of the hall, there were originally Danxin Gate and Jinfang and Cuifang Pavilions. When Shunzhi's Xiaoling Mausoleum was built in the early Qing Dynasty, the Qingfu Hall and the two pavilions were demolished. Not only were the nanmu materials used to build the Xiaoling Mausoleum, but even the ceilings were taken to the Xiaoling Mausoleum for use. After that, the mausoleums of Kangxi, Yongzheng and Qianlong all demolished a large number of Ming Dynasty buildings. Qianlong also reduced the size of the Dingling Mausoleum and other large halls in the name of repairing the Ming Tombs, and replaced the beams and pillars, and used the best wood and stone to build the Yuling Mausoleum.

Now they deserve to be threatened by Chen Ming! Besides, the treasures in the Forbidden City and the Old Summer Palace are not theirs.

"Tell Yongsheng to return the treasures to me as quickly as possible, and don't play tricks on me. I don't want to waste time with them on this. Either return the treasures, or I will loosen the soil of the East and West Imperial Tomb!"