Although the Qing army failed to attack the city, Huang Taiji was pleased that his fourteenth brother was very capable and collected no less than 200,000 shi of military rations in a short period of time.
If you save some food, it will be enough to feed the army for two months. But this is not enough. Huang Taiji's goal is at least 500,000 dan, and the difference is still 300,000 dan.
Only if this amount is reached, the army can survive the cold winter safely, because if they come out in full force this time, if they cannot break into the city, they will annihilate King Qin's army in one fell swoop.
Then the troops returned to the court, trained their troops and horses, and waited until next summer to enter the pass. By then, the Man Ming court would no longer be able to organize the troops of King Qin, and the Qing Dynasty would be able to conquer the capital in one fell swoop and then take over the Central Plains.
"Slave, I bow to my emperor. Long live, long live, long live my emperor!"
In order to demonstrate the Qing Dynasty's virtue of caring for the people as their own children, Emperor Taiji also asked Dorgon to invite wealthy gentry who donated more military rations, specifically more than one hundred dan, to the camp and be received by him in person.
Most of these rich gentry felt that the dog prince could no longer stop. Since the capital was in danger, it would be better to join the Qing Dynasty as soon as possible. Maybe he could continue to live peacefully in his hometown, and maybe he could even buy an official position.
Being summoned by the Emperor Taiji made the rich gentry even more flattered and overjoyed. No matter what, they should become familiar with each other first. In the future, when the Qing Dynasty conquers the world, they can brag to everyone around them.
"You are all exempt from courtesy, there is no need for this! You are all wealthy gentry with high prestige in various places. You have made a lot of contributions to our army of the Qing Dynasty. I will naturally bear it in my heart. Don't worry, no matter how much military rations you donate today, After I ascend the throne in the capital, I will double your tax exemption. If you donate one hundred dan, you will be exempted from 200 dan, and so on. There is no upper limit. Come and give the written tax exemption certificate to you."
"嗻!"
Huang Taiji is not as serious as discussing major military matters, but shows an amiable and approachable appearance, which makes it easier to win people's hearts.
In order to get the wealthy gentry to donate food enthusiastically, they cannot just use threats with swords and guns. At least they must use both soft and hard tactics to get twice the result with half the effort. Once their reputation is ruined, it will be difficult to do anything in the future.
The Qing Dynasty not only wanted to compete with the Man Ming for the world, but also wanted to compete with the Man Ming for the hearts of the people.
Not only do you want to win the world, but you also want to win the hearts of the people!
Acting this way was also a countermeasure thought up by Ning Wanwo, Fan Wencheng and other Han officials, because there were few Eight Banners people and fewer Eight Banners soldiers.
If we were to confront the tens of millions of Han people in the pass, we would have no chance of winning, and we must implement the strategy of "using the Han to control the Han".
Use the Han army to fight the Han people, use Han ministers to rule the Han people, and use the barbarian land to feed the Eight Banners soldiers.
Ensure that the interests of the Eight Banners are not affected and that the number of Eight Banners soldiers is not lost.
As long as the 60,000 elite troops of the Eight Banners do not suffer major attrition, the Qing Dynasty can be in an invincible position.
The Battle of Lushun caused heavy losses to the Red and White Flags, so Huang Taiji had to order the implementation of this strategy in advance.
The king's division that attacked the capital was mainly composed of the Han army and King Sanshun's troops in the early stage.
The elite Eight Banners soldiers must be used at critical moments, and they must not suffer large losses before the city is broken.
From the current point of view, all departments are executing reasonably well, except for that idiot Hauge who is confused...
"The servants and others are deeply grateful for the emperor's kindness and are extremely grateful for the emperor's forgiveness! The world has been suffering for a long time, and it has long been difficult to survive. The frequent natural disasters are a sign that the emperor has no virtue. The world has always been ruled by those who are capable. Your Majesty His literary and martial arts skills are famous all over the world, and all the people in the pass admire him, and they are all willing to submit to the Qing Dynasty. If the emperor ascends the throne in the capital, it will be a great blessing for Wanmin. He should erect a monument and pass it on, so that he can be praised by future generations!"
Zhang Enzhong from Yanqing Guard was not illiterate. He had been selected as a scholar in his early years. With this special status, he could obtain preferential exemptions from the imperial court.
However, since he didn't win the imperial examination, he had no chance to climb up the ladder further. So instead of thanking the court, he felt jealous because he didn't win the imperial examination.
In his opinion, his failure was not due to shallow knowledge or low ability, but because other candidates bribed the examiners. Such a dim Ming court must be replaced by the Qing Dynasty.
Taking advantage of the opportunity of being summoned for donating food, Zhang Enzhong also wanted to perform well and wait for an opportunity to buy an official position in the future, so as to dominate Yanqing Wei and make his enemies who usually ridicule him miserable.
"Hahahaha... I've said it! I know some history to some extent, and I think I can't be compared with Emperor Qin, Emperor Wu of Han, Emperor Tang, and Emperor Song. But I can guarantee that after the Qing Dynasty takes over the Central Plains, An Min will be the leader. There is absolutely no exploitative tactics in our affairs. It is my goal to let the people live and work in peace and contentment, and not close their homes at night. In the future, if there are officials who oppress the people, everyone in the fish and meat village can report it. You can allow such filth and harm to the place, but we, the Qing Dynasty, can tolerate it No! If the capital is my head, the place is my hair and skin. How can I only care about my head and ignore my hair and skin? I have conquered the world with the Qing Dynasty, and the people's lives can only get better and better, otherwise I will be ashamed To all of you here, I am ashamed of all the people in the world!"
No matter what happens in the future, let’s speak frankly for now.
Min Xin not only wants to bribe, but also wants to deceive.
The only thing Huang Taiji can be sure of is that if the Qing Dynasty were to govern the world, it would definitely be much better than Man Ming.
I dare not say in other aspects, at least in terms of taxation, the annual income will definitely reach more than 20 million taels of silver.
Man Ming had a mistake in his annual income, which led to the lack of military pay, low morale, and repeated defeats.
The Qing Dynasty was not good at anything else, but in terms of scraping land, it was much better than Emperor Chongzhen who could only collect three salaries.
Those wealthy businessmen in the south of the Yangtze River are all fat sheep. They have been watching them for a long time early in the morning. They can catch them all in one fell swoop by just crossing the river with their troops.
"The Emperor cares for Wan Min, and is even more willing to save Wan Min from fire and water, and to destroy the Ming Dynasty for Wan Min. He has made great achievements. He is truly the emperor of the ages!"
Zhang Enzhong took his flattering ability to the extreme. As long as the other party was happy, he could call him ancestor.
"No courtesy! You don't need to do this. I will definitely lead the king to do justice for heaven and eliminate violence and bring peace to the good! May I ask where this gentleman is from?"
Huang Taiji couldn't help but be convinced by the title of "Eternal Emperor". He made a promise and asked about the person who seemed to have some eloquence.
"The slave Zhang Enzhong lives in the Yanqing Guard and is a scholar. He has some land at home, but it has been exploited by the barbarian officials for years, and his income is not much. When the slave heard the news in his hometown, he took out his family's savings of 500 shi to welcome Master Wang. Come. The Man Ming court has long been in turmoil. Only the dog prince is left to guard the capital, and the surrounding defenders are huddled here. If the emperor can change the dynasty, it will really solve the slave's worries. From now on, the slave will be the emperor's saddle, and no one dares to disobey. !”
Zhang Enzhong really wanted to be an official, but when the words came to his lips, he swallowed them back. After all, he had not made any achievements. Just asking for an official position would be too childish, so he had to take it one step at a time.
"Yanqing?"
"Exactly!"
"Yeah! Yanqing is a good place. It's rare to find someone who understands the general situation like you. I have always been thirsty for talents. If all the people in the world are people like you who can make clear decisions, the Qing Dynasty will naturally stabilize the world and the people will naturally live and work in peace and contentment. Come and pass on my oral instructions. After Master Wang takes control of the Central Plains, rewards will be given in various places based on the total amount of previous donations of grain and donations."
Huang Taiji didn't open his mouth and directly reward the other party with an official because he hadn't sorted out the reported grain donation amount.
If the official position awarded to this person is high, other wealthy gentry will be dissatisfied; if it is low, it will appear that he is too stingy.
After it is clarified, a standard can be made that convinces all parties, so that it can be easily announced to the world.
Being able to donate five hundred shi of food shows that he still has a good impression of the Qing Dynasty, at least much better than those who don't donate or donate less.
If one million stones of grain can be raised from Shuntian Mansion, Master Wang can wait until March or April next year before leaving seclusion.
If you can break into the city during this period, there will be no need to leave the border at all, and you can settle down.
"On behalf of the people of Yanqing Guard, I would like to thank the Emperor. Your Majesty will definitely lead the royal army to defeat the Ming soldiers and horses, and decide the world in one battle!"
After realizing that his official position seemed to be promising, Zhang Enzhong immediately kowtowed and thanked him.
As long as the Qing Dynasty allowed itself to buy officials, then it would be necessary for him to find a job in the future.
I will earn back the five hundred shi of grain I donated with interest later, and I will have to do more ruthlessly than the wise officials.
"Hahahaha, I'd like to lend you some kind words, sir!"
The emperor was very happy to meet these knowledgeable people, but it relieved the boredom of the unfavorable war these days.
However, the Qing army's search for food in the Xishan area did not go as smoothly as they expected.
Dorgon broke up a large number of Menggu cavalry under his command and formed small teams. Each team was captained by an Eight Banners soldier, with one Han soldier and twenty Menggu cavalry under its command. The Han soldiers acted as translators, and the Menggu cavalry were responsible for sweeping and transporting. grain.
One team is responsible for one village, so 200 teams can sweep out 200 villages, and can quickly clean up the huge area in western Beijing with the force of a storm.
There was nothing that could be done about it. Master Wang brought too many coated aha this time, more than 100,000, but he brought very little military rations, and they were about to run out.
Due to time constraints, Dorgon could only make two preparations. On the one hand, he asked his brother Azig to lead the Eight Banners soldiers with five armored flags and two white flags and the Menggu cavalry with six flags to be ready to fight against the possible emergence of Man Ming. The teacher of King Qin.
On the other hand, he asked his younger brother Duoduo to lead two Jiala Eight Banners soldiers and two Banners Menggu cavalry to Changping, Yanqing, Shunyi, Huairou and other big cities to collect grain.
Moreover, Dorgon warned Duduo in advance not to act recklessly. This time, he must give priority to appeasement and supplement with strikes. He must first get the food, and he must not fail to get the food and lose soldiers and horses.
The Battle of Port Arthur is a lesson learned from the past. If Duduo messes up such a simple thing again, he will have to think about it behind closed doors in the future.
Duduo, who had planned to burn, kill and plunder, received instructions from his second brother, so he could only put away his arrogant temper and finish the job honestly.
He also knew that no matter how powerful the soldiers of the Eight Banners were, they could not fight on an empty stomach. Once the food is frozen and no food can be collected, the Qing army will be defeated without a fight.
Fortunately, there are plenty of weak-kneed Han Chinese, and there are even more people who hate the exposure of the Ming Dynasty like crucian carp crossing the river. There are also many wealthy gentry who take the initiative to deliver food in order to please the Qing emperor.
Duduo took advantage of the situation and accepted their kindness. This time, he showed no airs at all, and the smart wealthy gentry all praised him for being kind and approachable.
"The Dog Tartars are coming!"
"Dang! Dang! Dang!"
"Go down to the burrow!"
"Dang! Dang! Dang!"
In a village in Xishan, the people here do not want to hand over their hard-earned food in vain. The land here is barren and the harvest is not much every year. There is not much left except for subsistence.
If you have to hand over food to the dog Tatars, you will really starve to death. On balance, many villages, under the call of Yan Yingyuan, the governor of Ji Town, dug holes to avoid disasters.
Now it has come in handy. After seeing the horse-riding dog Tartar appearing, the man in charge of security at the entrance of the village ran into the village and beat the gong and shouted, warning the village min to get down to the underground cave as soon as possible.
Although there was a handful of hunters in the village, they all hunted wild game. After all, they were not soldiers whose main purpose was to kill enemies. Facing dozens of vicious dog Tatars, they really had no chance of winning.
The only way to sign up is to go down to the underground cave to hide. If the Dog Tartars also come down and find an opportunity to deal with them, since our own people are familiar with the situation below, the Dog Tartars will not be able to play.
"It's his old age! Where did these people die?"
After Li Guoba who led the way entered the village, he didn't see a single person, which made him puzzled.
If there is no one, there will be no food. It is impossible for people to run away these days and leave food for themselves.
If you can't collect food, you can't go back and deliver the goods. Even if you dig three feet into the ground, you have to dig out the people.
"Where's Nikan?"
The leader of the team was an Eight Banners soldier named Ao Tu. He could speak Mandarin and Menggu dialect, which facilitated command and coordination.
They rushed towards the village very quickly, but they unexpectedly missed the target, which really surprised him.
Judging from the situation of the house that entered, it seemed that there had been activity not long ago.
But where the person went, they don’t know...
"Go back to the master, I'll look for you now!"
Facing the murderous Eight Banners master, Li Guoba could only agree in a low voice, and he would be whipped if he returned empty-handed.
"Only when you capture Nikan can you have food. If you have food, you can return to camp. If you don't have food, you can't return to camp!"
Ao Tu would not go to see his master empty-handed. He thought so for every Eight Banners soldier. Otherwise, everyone would starve to death and have to eat food on their way out.
"I'm so poor!"
Li Guoba looked at the pot in the room. It was really clean. There wasn't even half a piece of Guoba.
This is where his name comes from. His master rewarded him with a piece of Guoba, and he changed from "Li Fool" to "Li Guoba"!
After looking around, he couldn't find anything to eat, which made Li Guoba feel angry and helpless.
If you come to such a poor place, consider yourself unlucky.
If you really can't find food, there's no need to say more about what's waiting for you.
Then I thought, maybe Diao Min hid the food in the stove.
So Li Guoba picked up the pot, and instead of seeing food, he saw a dark hole!
If you listen carefully, you can hear the whistling wind coming from the cave.
Li Guoba didn't know the depth of the hole, so he took a piece of firewood and threw it into the hole.
Judging from the sound it made when it hit the ground, the hole was estimated to be half a foot deep.
Maybe damn Diao Min was hiding inside. If he hadn't seen the entrance of the cave, he would never have guessed where they were hiding.
"Master! Master! The slave has been found!"
"Oh? Where is Nikan?"
"My slave found a hole, and there might be a Nikan in the hole!"
"……Um?"
After hearing the news, Ao Tu led a group of Menggu soldiers to the entrance of the cave. After taking a look, he threw a torch down to illuminate it.
Then Ao Tu asked a Menggu soldier to go down first to inquire about the situation, and then two more went down so that they could protect each other.
Without the torch, there would be no light in the cave.
Even with a torch, he could only see about half a foot in front of him.
Meng Gubing had never seen this thing before, and he felt a little uneasy, so he walked very slowly.
Just after the three people got down from the cave and walked about twenty steps forward.
suddenly……
