Of course Kangxi and his group of ministers, governors, and deputy governors were not crazy. They were all crueler than wolves and smarter than monkeys. How could they be crazy?
And the reason why they were so happy was, of course, because they heard the really good news!
Emperor Zhou's five-pronged expedition to the Qing Dynasty was a step for them to untie and withdraw their troops for those who had already robbed and profited enough in North Korea, and were also tired of fighting!
In fact, Kangxi and his men had been preparing to abandon North Korea's North Third Road and retreat since late November last year.
The reason why we did not run away immediately but delayed it until now is mainly because of four reasons. First, it was too cold to walk... Kangxi's 100,000 troops could not just leave, they had to be prepared. For a large amount of supplies, we have to wait for the weather to get warmer, and for the soldiers and horses who have been fighting continuously to regain some strength and morale.
The second reason is of course that they were robbing money, food, women, and serfs!
It was not easy for Kangxi and the others to come here, so how could they go back empty-handed? And after they go back, they probably won't be able to come back again. Why don't they eat enough to get some blood back? Isn’t that why the Qing Heavenly Soldiers came for this matter? In fact, they started doing these things as soon as they entered North Korea!
Starting from late November, the looting has intensified... If we don't rob them all, will they still be left to Zhu Heji?
The first to suffer was the plain area north of the Imjin River.
At that time, after Kangxi's army retreated to Linjin River, it basically broke away from Zhu Heji's army.
Kangxi's army did not return with a disastrous defeat. The Battle of Seoul was actually a draw, and neither side really let go of the fight. Only the eight battalions commanded by Liu Yan were led by twenty soldiers after breaking through the Qing army's first-line positions. The Qing troops surrounded him and fought in a queue to be shot, which was quite brutal. The Qing army used artillery to blast back and forth for more than an hour, and launched two more rounds of platoon shooting, fired twenty rounds of volley fire, and then fired a burst of random gunfire. The casualties on both sides exceeded 2,000!
But at the end of the battle, although the Qing army had to withdraw from the battle because of the approaching reinforcements of the Ming army, they retreated relatively calmly. Liu Yan, who had suffered heavy losses, did not have the guts to launch a pursuit. Even the "Ruthless Ling" who came to support him did not dare to launch a pursuit because the "Iron Fist" carried by his troops had basically been used up.
Due to the lack of cavalry, Zhu Heji was unable to pursue the Qing soldiers who used a large number of cavalry behind them. He could only watch the opponent retreat while burning, killing and looting.
After Kang Mazi's army retreated across the Linjin River, Zhu Heji's army was no longer visible. Because all the pontoon bridges on the Imjin River were set on fire by the Qing army, and the river was full of floating ice at that time, the Ming army engineers could not build the bridge at all, and it was difficult for even the ships to sail. .
Seeing that Zhu Heji's army was temporarily unable to cross the Imjin River north, Kangxi immediately issued an edict and generously "granted" the status of slaves to the people in the plain areas north of the Imjin River and up to Pyongyang!
Then they immediately sent cavalry everywhere to "escort" strong men and young women to join the Eight Banners as slaves. At the same time, they collected grain, grass and livestock, burned a large number of useless villages and towns, and destroyed useless bridges.
By February of the 18th year of Kangxi's reign, the three-hundred-mile plain area from Imjin River to Pyongyang, except for the official road from Haeju to Pyongyang, had not been destroyed, and the rest was in ruins!
Two to three hundred thousand newly coated slaves and a large amount of grain, livestock, and property have been concentrated in Pyongyang and can be transported northward at any time!
The third reason why Kangxi stayed in North Korea was, of course, waiting for a batch of guns and artillery from the West. Although the Sixteen-Nation Anti-Ming Alliance cobbled together by the Dutch and Spanish had no other purpose than giving Ming an excuse to go to war. However, these two countries still tried their best to support the Qing court... Of course, this support was paid!
However, because the entrance to the Bohai Bay was filled with warships of the Ming Dynasty, the ships of the Dutch and Spanish could no longer pass through, and North Korea's Haeju and Wonsan (in the direction of the Sea of Japan) became the territory of the Ming Dynasty. The lifeline of Western arms, so Kangxi wanted to get these arms before leaving.
The fourth reason why Kangxi stayed in North Korea was to bring Japan next door to North Korea into trouble... This was actually not his intention, but the layout of Masui Ke of the Dutch East India Company.
In order to delay the Ming Dynasty's move south, and to sell Dutch arms to Japan, Masui Ke has been pushing Japan into the battlefield since he established the Sixteen-Nation Alliance.
However, before Zhu Heji personally conquered Korea, Japan's Tokugawa shogunate was not very interested in intervening in the Ming and Qing wars... At most, it was just talking about the Ryukyu issue.
But when Zhu Heji sent troops to Korea and then announced the withdrawal of vassals and the establishment of provinces in Korea, the Tokugawa shogunate was a little panicked.
From Busanpo in North Korea to Tsushima Island in Japan, there is only a hundred miles of waterway... With the Ming Dynasty's ability to deliver tens of thousands of troops across the East China Sea to the coast of North Korea, this mere hundred miles of waterway is basically impossible It is not enough to guarantee Japan's security.
Therefore, since the end of last year, the Tokugawa shogunate began to quietly increase the number of samurai stationed at the Choryang Japanese Hall in Busan. From the original less than a hundred people, it increased to over a thousand, and the personnel stationed there were also replaced by the original Tsushima feudal lords to the Tokugawa shogunate's Hatamoto, Hatamoto's accomplices and imperial family members. The "kind-hearted" Dutch also presented advanced flintlock guns, six-pound cannons and a large amount of gunpowder to the samurai stationed at the Japanese Pavilion in Puchoryang, Busan. They also sent officers and engineers to help them strengthen the Choryang Japanese Museum (this Japanese museum is very large, covering an area of about 300,000 square meters) and guide them in training.
The presence of Emperor Kangxi's army at North Sand Road in North Korea at this time could give the Tokugawa shogunate the illusion that they could join forces with the Qing Dynasty to force the Ming Dynasty to give up "annexing" North Korea.
At the same time, Zhu Heji seemed to be really restrained by Emperor Kangxi's army. He turned a blind eye to Japan's continuous increase in troops at the Caoliang Japanese Pavilion, and even ordered local Korean officials in Busan to "compromise and avoid conflict"... They even ordered the officials in Busan to "if they encounter Japanese invaders, there is no need to resist and they should abandon the city"!
Look, the non-resistance policy has been prepared for Japanese imperialism, just waiting for them to take action!
However, the current generation of Japanese imperialists stationed at the Choryang Japanese Imperial House were a little timid. Until mid-February, they did not dare to leave the 100,000-pyong area assigned to the Japanese Imperial House by the Koreans.
This is really not in line with the nature of imperialism... There must be a "big conspiracy"!
...
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, good news... Haizhou is on fire!"
"Your Majesty, Qing Yao is about to withdraw!"
Seoul, Gyeongdeokgung Palace. Because he felt that the feng shui of Changdeokgung Palace was not good, Zhu Heji, who moved to Gyeongdeokgung Palace, was a little uneasy because of the abnormal behavior of the Japanese pirates. Yan Yuan and Yu Xiaoqian brought him Kang Mazi's full load and wanted to evacuate. good news.
"Are you going to withdraw?" Zhu Heji had a complicated expression on his face when he heard the news... As soon as Kangxi withdrew, would Japanese imperialism also withdraw?
"Your Majesty, there is news from the navy. Fires are raging in Haizhou Port. All the houses and warehouses are burning, and the Dutch and Spanish ships anchored in the port have also disappeared. It seems that Kang Yaotou is going to withdraw to deal with Emperor Zhou. Got it!"
"Your Majesty, as soon as Kang Yaotou withdraws, I will have the three northern roads of North Korea! Should we prepare to withdraw? Is Princess Ming'an going to be taken away?"
Zhu Heji also knew about Emperor Zhou's five-pronged attack on the Qing Dynasty. Wang Fuzhi and Wan Sitong had already arrived in Nanjing!
So it's time for Zhu Heji to leave North Korea... He still has to preside over the war against Emperor Zhou!
But he still has one last task to complete, which is to fight against Japan! Japanese imperialism is so bad, so of course it must be resisted.
Thinking of this, Zhu Heji frowned and said to Yan Yuan and Yu Xiaoqian: "Although the Qingyao left, the Japanese pirates came again... The Japanese pirates have now invaded Busan and stationed troops in Caoliang City. How can I just sit back and watch?" Ignore it? I want to personally fight against the Japanese!"
