When Guarjia Zhuobutai, one of the few remaining warriors in the Qing Dynasty, followed Nalan Mingzhu into the South Study Room, the night was already deep. But the lights were still on in the south study room. Emperor Kangxi was holding a cup of tea, sitting cross-legged on the cold Kang, staring out of the dark window in a daze, as if thinking about something.
On the imperial record, there are piles of title books, memorials, etc. They are all military reports sent from various places, as well as some domestic and foreign affairs reports. Ever since Wu Sangui released the news that he was going to cross the Yangtze River, the atmosphere in the provinces north of the Yangtze River, which was originally relatively stable, suddenly became tense. From time to time, there was news of rebellion or that the generals of the Green Camp were about to take action. Mo Luo, the governor of Shanxi and Shaanxi, reported that General Cai Yuan, deputy generals Shao Lingzhi and Bai Guangyong were suspected of secretly communicating with Wu Sangui. Pingnan General Leerjin, who had arrived in Jingzhou, secretly reported that Yang Laijia, the commander-in-chief of Xiangyang, and Hong Fu, the deputy general of Yunyang, had signs of rebellion. It's not a big problem for a few generals and deputy generals in Shaanxi and Gansu to cause trouble, but once chaos breaks out in Hubei when Wu Sangui crosses the river and goes north, it will be really troublesome.
The Battle of Jingzhou was Wu Sangui's first battle after crossing the river, and also his first battle after Xuanye's personal expedition. Very crucially, if Kangxi wins, not only Wu Sangui will be contained south of the Yangtze River, but also the third prince and grandson of Zhu San in Guangdong will also be unlucky - because once Wu Sangui is defeated, the Qing Dynasty's heavy troops in the Yangtze River Basin will be mobilized , they can maneuver along the Yangtze River at any time. If Zhu San and his son dare to go across the sea to seize Jiangning, what awaits them will be crushed by 100,000 or even 200,000 heavenly soldiers!
But if the Qing Dynasty was defeated in Jingzhou, the situation would take a sudden turn for the worse!
When Kangxi was feeling restless, Wang Fuchen, who was standing guard outside the door, suddenly shouted: "Master, Mingzhu and Zhuo Butai are here."
"Tell them to come in!" Kangxi said, "Wang Fuchen, you come in too."
Wang Fuchen has now been granted the title of "Minister of the Concierge" and has not officially taken office yet. But this slave was so loyal that he offered to guard the south study door with a knife.
Kangxi actually didn't doubt him, and even personally gave him a precious knife that was particularly effective at killing people, and asked him to guard the gate of the south study room - this was a "living Lu Bu"! His martial arts skills were so high that he had few rivals among the Manchus of Dorgon's generation. If there was a rebellion at the gate of South Study, Emperor Kangxi would not die immediately?
But Wang Fuchen's performance tonight was very consistent with the temperament of a loyal slave. Not only did he not resist, but he also looked at the door very seriously. He is a goalkeeper!
I saw the "door god" Wang Fuchen leading Zhuo Butai and Mingzhu into the south study room. The palm of Emperor Kangxi's right hand once again pressed on the handle of a revolver...
Walking in together with Mingzhu and Wang Fuchen was an old man with gray braids and a gray beard. However, her figure is very upright, and her movements of taking off her horse hoof sleeves and kneeling down to salute are also very neat.
Kangxi looked at his old loyal slave and said warmly: "Zhuo Butai, you have been wronged."
"Slave..." Zhuo Butai burst into tears as soon as he heard Kangxi's words, "Slave, I am not wronged..."
You've cried so much, why don't you feel aggrieved?
"Wang Fuchen, quickly bring a stool to Zhuo Butai and let him sit down and answer the question." Kangxi continued to coax Mr. Zhuo, "Old man, stop kneeling and sit up... It's quite cool at night in the Forbidden City. On the floor tiles It's even colder. If you kneel for a long time and your knees are frozen, you won't be able to ride on horseback and fight, and you will defeat Wu and Zhu for me."
What a kind gentleman!
Zhuo Butai almost thought that the person who killed his two brothers was not Emperor Kangxi...
Zhuo Butai still sat down on a stool brought by Wang Fuchen. Mingzhu and Wang Fuchen continued to "kneel down as punishment" - waiting with excitement for Emperor Kangxi's Tianyu inquiry.
It was late at night, and apart from Emperor Kangxi and the eunuchs and guards on duty, there were only three people in the South Study Room: Zhuo Butai, Mingzhu and Wang Fuchen... not even Suo'etu was present!
So the happiest thing tonight is actually Mingzhu - Suo'etu is the son of Sony, and Suo'etu is the biggest hero in capturing Obai! In order to get rid of Obai, Suo'etu resigned from the position of right minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs and was appointed as a first-class bodyguard. He kept secrets with Kangxi every day and helped Kangxi find thugs.
The deaths of Obai and Mulima were probably done by Suo'etu under the instructions of Kangxi... This Suo'etu killed two invincible generals of the Qing Dynasty in one go. What a sin!
At this time, Kangxi asked straight to the point: "Zhuo Butai, has Mingzhu told you about the current situation of the war against rebellion and suppression of bandits?"
"I told you," Zhuo Butai said, "I talked for a whole hour."
Kangxi nodded approvingly, this pearl will do a good job!
"Then what do you think?" Kangxi asked again, "Can I, the imperial commander, personally conquer Wu Sangui and win?"
"We can win!" Zhuo Butai said, "Wu Sangui really has nothing to worry about. There is only one person who is in serious trouble for the country!"
"who?"
"Zhu Heji!" Zhuo Butai was a little excited, "Destroyed Macao, captured Ke Ke, defeated Tuhai, swept Guangdong, captured and killed more than 70,000 to 80,000 of our heavenly soldiers... Your Majesty, please don't think of him as a remnant of the previous Ming Dynasty. , you have to regard him as the pioneer of a generation!
And that Wu Sangui is actually a remnant of the Ming Dynasty. I, the Qing Dynasty's defeated general, are nothing to worry about. "
Mr. Zhuo saw in Zhu Heji the edge that he had during the rise of the Qing Dynasty!
Zhuo Butai's view was actually similar to Yue Le's - Yue Le personally went to Jiangning to take charge, just to prevent Zhu Heji from going north.
"Zhuo Butai," Kangxi said, "I have asked Prince An to stay in Jiangning to prevent Zhu Heji from going north. As long as we can concentrate our forces to defeat Wu Sangui first, we can use all the power of the world to destroy the rebels in Guangdong. "
"Your Majesty!" Zhuo Butai said it nicely, but he was unsure in his heart.
He was actually sure of defeating Wu Sangui. As he said, Wu Sangui was just a remnant of the Ming army. No matter how strong you are, how strong can you be?
Although Zhu Heji was the "certified" grandson of Chongzhen, his army was newly built and had almost nothing to do with the earlier Ming Dynasty's sluggish army.
And this newly built army is obviously still on the rise... In the next few years, they will likely have room to continue to rise.
But Zhuo Butai didn't want to say this to Emperor Kangxi now, because nothing could be done about it.
Although Wu Sangui's rebellion was not enough to overthrow the Qing's rule in Guannei, it made the Qing court unable to expedition to Guangdong, and at least bought Zhu Cijiong, Zhu Heji and his son a few years.
"Zhuo Butai," Emperor Kangxi asked again at this time, "how many troops do you think I need to send to defeat Wu Sangui in Jingzhou?"
"Returning to the emperor," Zhuo Butai said, "I feel that the heavenly soldiers cannot defeat Wu Sangui in Jingzhou Prefecture."
Kangxi was stunned: "What? Didn't you just say that Wu Sangui didn't have enough to worry about?"
"My slave did say that," Zhuo Butai said, "but the imperial court still cannot fight a decisive battle in Jingzhou."
Kangxi wondered: "Why is this?"
“Because the imperial court’s biggest advantage on the Huguang battlefield lies in Shi Lang’s navy... As long as this navy is there, the imperial army on the Yangtze River east of Hanyang and the army along the Han River south of Xiangyang will be one. .So I suggest that Huguang’s heavenly troops should always be deployed around this waterway that is completely owned by me.”
Kangxi whispered: "Doesn't that mean we have to give up Jingzhou City?"
Zhuo Butai said: "Your Majesty, Wu Sangui did not cross the river for a small Jingzhou City, and Your Majesty, you did not march personally to defend Jingzhou City. So why do you have to compete with him for the gain and loss of a city or a land? I suggest General Pingnan. Immediately move troops to Jingmen Prefecture, Anlu Prefecture, and Xiangyang Prefecture to establish defenses."
Kangxi was noncommittal and then asked: "Zhuo Butai, how many Eight Banners soldiers do I need to mobilize to Hubei to ensure victory?"
"Your Majesty," Zhuo Butai looked at Emperor Kangxi and said, "I think the Eight Banners soldiers are no longer enough... At least the Eight Banners soldiers in Beijing are no longer enough to defeat Wu Sangui!"
"What?" Emperor Kangxi stood up suddenly, "The Eight Banners' powerful troops are no longer useful, so who can I rely on?"
Zhuo Butai said calmly: "Your Majesty, you can still rely on your servants!"
