In early September, Dorgon led more than 10,000 Qing troops from northern Zhili to the south and directly surrounded Jinan Fucheng. After several days of fierce fighting, the Qing army invaded Jinan City and killed King De's family. Almost all officials in the city were killed.
Dorgon resented the resistance of Jinan soldiers and civilians, so he sent troops to massacre civilians in Jinan City. The people in the city suddenly fell into hell on earth, with looting, massacres, and rapes everywhere. The Qing army used all possible means. If When Liu Yan saw this scene, he would probably lament that the Japanese army in later generations was nothing more than this.
In just four days, more than 300,000 people were killed in Jinan City. Springs and rivers everywhere were blocked by corpses. Streams of blood flowed everywhere, almost dyeing the streets in the city red.
Jinan City has become a ghost town!
Then Dorgon looked at the Qing soldiers who died because of the siege. The anger in his heart did not dissipate. Looking at the massacre of Jinan City was not enough, so he set fire to Jinan City and then led his army. Taking the looted money, food and supplies, they headed north and entered Beizhili again, continuing to loot and march along the way.
It was not until a few days later that the nearby Ming army entered the ruins of Jinan City.
At this time, the city of Jinan was full of ruins, and burnt corpses could be seen everywhere. These Ming soldiers could not help but vomit. The hatred and fear in their hearts were intertwined, and many of them burst into tears. In the hot summer, the entire city was eerie and cold, making people shudder. Vultures flew in the sky from time to time, hovering over the ruins of Jinan City, and swooping down from time to time to look for the corpses that had been destroyed by the Qing soldiers.
At the foot of Qingzhou City, the news reached the Lingshan Guard Camp. Conductor Li Jiwen immediately informed Liu Yan and other generals of the news. Everyone fell silent when they heard the tragic situation in Jinan Fucheng. Even though Wang Wenzhen, Hu Zongming and other generals were greedy for money, they couldn't help but feel sad when they heard what the Qing army had done.
Liu Yan was very sad because he was familiar with the history of later generations and knew more about the atrocities committed by the Qing army. Not to mention the various actions of the Qing army at this time, even after entering the customs and about to take over the Central Plains, the Qing army was still extremely cruel. They completely regarded China as a "colonial territory" of the Manchus and arbitrarily expropriated and destroyed it. The treatment of the people is based on the principle of fooling the people, and China has fallen into three hundred years of decline!
After a long time, Liu Yan came out of his contemplation and spoke first: "Sir, I think that after the Qing army goes north, the first thing the court will do is to liquidate the merits and demerits of the various departments in Shandong Dusi, so please be careful. .”
At this time, Liu Yan heard about the tragic situation in Jinan City, and his heart was naturally very heavy. However, Jinan City was destined to die. Now Liu Yan did not have enough troops to rescue him, and he was too late. Jinan City fell in just four days. , in these four days, Liu Yan's troops could not reach Jinan City at all.
So after mourning for a while, Liu Yan turned his energy to reality and brought up what happened after the war. As for the people who died in Jinan City, Liu Yan secretly swore in his heart that he would avenge them.
Li Jiwen nodded and said: "Not only did Shangguan tell us that the Qing army has finally left, but he also ordered us to return to our base and wait for the court to investigate our merits and demerits. I am also very uneasy. Do you have any opinions?"
Still no one spoke, Liu Yan looked at the crowd, and then stood up and said: "Sir, this time I saw that the soldiers and horses of the Shandong ministries had mediocre results. The various places either lost their troops or lost their cities. The imperial court will definitely take heavy responsibility for the officialdom of Shandong. With the subordinates, From what I see, the superior officers of Shandong Dusi will definitely look for bright spots, that is, merit, for their own official positions. The battle our army fought on the mountain road of Yaoshan is what those superior officers need."
"In my opinion, your Excellency might as well spend more time with those superiors during this period. Maybe you will gain something unexpected."
Li Jiwen nodded with satisfaction and praised: "Liu Baihu is not only brave and good at fighting, but also has a clear understanding of officialdom. His future achievements will definitely be limitless."
"Your Excellency, you are so complimentary!"
After everyone talked for a while, Li Jiwen ordered the army to return to Lingshan Guard three days later. Early tomorrow morning, the generals from all ministries would follow him into the city to bid farewell to King Heng and all the officials in Qingzhou.
The next day, Liu Yan followed Li Jiwen into Qingzhou City. First, he was entertained by the Qingzhou Magistrate and other officials. Then he came to Prince Heng's Mansion. For the first time, Prince Heng Zhu Changshu received everyone in the flower hall. Li Jiwen and others The general burst into tears of gratitude. This was a great honor.
Although Liu Yan looked like everyone else on the surface, he felt a little disapproving in his heart.
If the vassal kings in the early Ming Dynasty were all brave and good at fighting or ruthless people who were talented and knowledgeable, then by the end of the Ming Dynasty, the vassal kings supported by the Ming Dynasty were no different from raising pigs.
The vassal kings from all over the country were not allowed to enter the capital unless ordered to do so, and they were not even allowed to leave the city at will. They could only wander around the city in their fiefdom. The vassal kings were not allowed to interfere in politics or make friends with local generals. They could only eat, drink, have fun and do business. Over time, these vassal kings only had money in their eyes. They had no idea about the world situation and military and political affairs. It could even be said that they were very childish.
At this time, Liu Yan and all the generals sat down one after another. Liu Yan looked at Heng Wang Zhu Changshu. In fact, this prince was not too bad. At least he knew that when the army went to war, it was normal to send people to reward the army.
"Haha, all the generals fought bloody battles and finally annihilated the Eastern Slave Tatars. I will write a letter to Your Majesty to ask for your credit."
Li Jiwen stood up excitedly, clasped his fists and said: "Your Majesty is considerate of us, it is really a blessing for us. It is our duty as warriors to go to fight to defend the country, but if there is an invitation from Your Majesty, we can also inform you All officers and men in the army and all departments must praise the prince for his kindness, think about it every day, and never forget it!"
"Ha ha."
On weekdays, Zhu Changshu only talked to the servants in the palace, and at most he talked to military officers such as the sword-wielding masters and generals in the palace. How could he see so many new faces at the same time? He suddenly became energetic and smiled. Said: "I am also concerned about this war. I wonder who the general who blocked Dongnu on the Yaoshan mountain road is? Come forward and let me see."
Li Jiwen then called Liu Yan and said, "Prince Qi, this is him. This man is the team officer of our Qianhu Station and Wangjiazhuang Baihu Station in front of Xiahe Village, Lingshan Guard. He is now a Baihu official, and his name is Liu Yan." .”
I saw Liu Yan standing up, clasping his fists and saying, "I am wearing armor, so I cannot perform the courtesy properly. Please forgive me, Your Majesty!"
"Liu Yan? What a good man!"
Zhu Changshu said with a smile: "Liu Baihu is really handsome, and his appearance is really great. Come on, give me a reward!"
I saw a gorgeously dressed maid walking over with small steps, holding a mahogany tray with one hundred taels of gold on it.
"Liu Baihu, I hope that you have made great achievements in resisting the enemy. Take these gold back and regard them as my reward."
Now Liu Yan has a soap workshop, a winery, and a salt drying farm and earns a lot of silver every month. This one hundred taels of gold is equivalent to about one thousand taels of silver, and Liu Yan is not short of this gold. It's just that these golds were rewarded by Zhu Changshu, King of Heng, and they have different meanings, so Liu Yan accepted them happily, clasped his fists again and said, "I will thank you, Lord!"
At this time, Li Jiwen, Hu Zongming, Ji Xianhai, Tang Jingming, Wang Wenzhen, Jia Hongyu, Song Gongming and others next to them had their eyes red, and they wanted to rush up and snatch a few ingots of gold.
It's not that everyone is greedy for money, but because this is a reward from the prince, and it can be passed down to the family after returning!
"OK!"
Heng Wang Zhu Changshu said with a smile: "My king is very happy today and has prepared a banquet in the side hall. Let's sit down right now. Generals, please tell me what happened on the battlefield. I haven't seen the battlefield yet. On weekdays, We just summon some storytellers to talk about it, which is really boring."
Li Jiwen said with a smile: "The generals dare not obey orders. It's just that we should let Liu Baihu handle matters on the battlefield. Liu Baihu is not only brave and good at fighting, but also good at speaking. He is a rare talent."
King Heng Zhu Changshu looked at Liu Yan and asked, "Liu Baihu, are you willing?"
Naturally, Liu Yan would not let go of this opportunity to get closer to Prince Heng Zhu Changshu. He smiled and clasped his fists and said, "I will do my bidding."
"Well, that's the best!"
Three days later, Liu Yan led his troops back to Lingshan Guards with the army. After resting for a day at Lingshan Guards, Liu Yan said goodbye to Li Jiwen, Hu Zongming, Tang Jingming, Ji Xianhai, Wang Wenzhen, Jia Hongyu, and Song Gongming, and led his troops. The horse returned directly to Wangjiazhuang.
"Haha, Liu Baihu will wait for the news after he returns. These 134 heads will be placed here with me. I will definitely entertain the superior officers sent by the Ministry of War to inspect military merits. Liu Baihu's merits will definitely not be There will be problems.”
As Li Jiwen said, Liu Yan was not worried that Li Jiwen would take his credit. After all, he had more than a thousand elite armored troops at this time, and their combat power already surpassed that of the entire Lingshan Guard. As long as Li Jiwen was not an idiot, he would definitely win over him, and It’s not about taking credit from yourself.
"It's easy for Liu Baihu to leave. With this battle, Liu Baihu will definitely take over Qianhusuo in front of Xiahe Village. I and Deputy Jia Baihu will be waiting for you in Qianhusuo City!"
These were Wang Wenzhen's words. At this time, Wang Wenzhen, Jia Hongyu, and Song Gongming were treating Liu Yan respectfully and treated Liu Yan like a superior official. The three people's mentality adjustment was very fast, which made Liu Yan a little uncomfortable.
After chatting with everyone, Liu Yan led his troops on the return journey and arrived at Wangjiazhuang two days later.
At this time, the flag officer Chen Xun, the garrison officer Zhang Lei, the flag officer Yue Ming, the commander Zhao Min, who had received the news in advance, as well as Tan Xiaoda, Xu Le, Qian Zao, Chu Yunfei, Gao Yunshan, Chen Jiangshi, Several principals of Bao Xuezhen were all waiting outside the gate. Everyone gathered around Wang Yunhe to welcome the army's triumphant return.
Hundreds of soldiers and civilians also spontaneously came to greet him. Amid the warm cheers of the crowd, Liu Yan led his troops into Wangjiazhuang.
On that day, Liu Yan ordered that all soldiers who went out to fight would be given a reward of five taels of silver each. The pension for the fallen soldiers would be twenty taels, and the pension for the wounded soldiers would be ten taels.
It was very hard for Chen Xun to stay at the post, so everyone was given two taels of silver, which was a bit of comfort.
That night, Liu Yan and Wang Yunhe went door to door to visit the families of the wounded and wounded soldiers, and personally delivered pensions to them.
After a busy circle, the two of them didn't bother to eat until late at night. But when Wang Yunhe saw the sumptuous meal, he retched directly. Liu Yan was stunned at first, and then burst into ecstasy.
"Look at you like that!"
"Haha, I'm going to be a dad!"
"What dad? I'm a father now."
Liu Yan said with a smile: "Haha, same, all the same."
Some people died, but not completely...
