Everything happened suddenly.
Just when Chongzhen was dreaming about the coming of the Holy King and reviving the Ming Dynasty, while his ministers were fighting for power and criticizing endlessly, Hou Jin's army rushed into the sheepfold like an evil tiger.
The rotten nine sides are no longer a barrier to the Ming Dynasty, just like the door of a brothel, you can come in or out at will.
The benefactor will also give money, but not only will the benefactor not give money, but he will also give him his life.
On October 26, Abatai and Azig attacked Longjing Pass secretly, and it only took an hour to break through the pass.
At the same time, Jierhalang and Yuetuo captured Da'ankou.
The negative consequences of reducing military pay appeared immediately.
Later, when the Jin army attacked Hanerzhuang, Li Fengze, the left battalion officer, led his troops out of the city to ask for surrender.
The next day, Huang Taiji captured Hongshan Pass, and all the troops of Houjin's three routes entered the pass.
The Sanhetun sentry immediately sent a message to warn the people, and the government and the public were shocked.
Ironically, Zuo Mengeng received the military information even two hours earlier than the court.
This shows how shocking the corruption of the Ming Dynasty was.
Faced with the situation where tens of thousands of troops from the Hou Jin Dynasty broke through and entered, Chongzhen was in chaos. The first thing that came to mind was to put Sun Chengzong in charge of Gyeonggi defense.
But this idea was jointly opposed by Wang Zaijin, Wen Tiren, Zhou Yanru and others.
The reason is that Sun Chengzong is old and has been out of battle formations for a long time and is no longer useful.
Chongzhen suppressed his panic for the time being and waited for the good news to come.
Then the news from the front line was so good that the entire capital was panicked.
On October 29, Shanhaiguan Commander-in-Chief Zhao Shujiao, who was the first to receive the alarm, immediately led four thousand cavalry to return for reinforcements.
On the first day of November, Zhao led his troops to Santun camp after a long journey. Unexpectedly, the commander-in-chief Zhu Guoyan refused to open the door.
Helpless, Zhao led the teachings and had no choice but to rush to Zunhua, planning to rest and recuperate in Zunhua while blocking Hou Jin.
On the fourth day of November, when Zhao led the Ministry of Education to arrive at the outskirts of Zunhua, he was suddenly besieged by Azige and other troops of the Later Jin Army.
Zhao led his teachings to death in battle and his entire army was wiped out.
The next day, Zunhua City fell.
A series of bad news completely stunned the Ming Dynasty monarchs and ministers.
Chongzhen could no longer sit still and immediately held a court meeting to discuss countermeasures.
Hou Xun finished reading the note and threw it into the fire. After the note was completely burned, he stood up and entered the court.
In the court hall, hundreds of officials gathered, and the atmosphere...
Of course they can't get along.
"The ministers have misled the country! The generals have misled the country! Yuan Chonghuan has misled me!"
Chongzhen's furious roar resounded throughout the court, and beneath the splash of saliva were the heads of the ministers buried deeply.
After the Jin soldiers came to the border, everyone felt panic.
Is this another tumultuous uprising, or is the capital captured and the Ming Dynasty cut off?
Chongzhen scolded him for more than an hour, but there was no response at all. All I can feel is sadness.
Although there were many ministers gathered in front of him, Chongzhen was still afraid of the stinging feeling of loneliness.
"Pass an edict to summon Master Sun back to the capital."
Hearing that Chongzhen still wanted to recall Sun Chengzong, all the non-Donglin officials were unwilling to accept it. But facing Chongzhen's lustful eyes, they all couldn't help but shrink their heads.
Originally, Chongzhen had previously revealed his intention to suppress the Donglin Party, which made these people very happy and thought they could take advantage of the opportunity to ascend to power.
Unexpectedly, when the crisis broke out, the first thing Chongzhen thought of was Sun Chengzong, who was close to the Donglin Party.
The fame and influence of this two-generation imperial master are too great.
Once he is allowed to return to the court, the life of the non-Donglin family will probably become even more difficult.
But in the face of a crisis, until no one can come up with a solution, there is no reason to object.
But Zhou Yanru felt that this was a good opportunity.
Since there is no way to prevent Sun Chengzong from coming back, let's take action on other members of the Donglin Party.
Thinking of this, Zhou Yanru stepped out of the crowd and immediately launched his killing move.
"Your Majesty, today's disaster is due to improper preparations by the military department, negligence in defense, and chaotic deployment in the face of the enemy."
Zhou Yanru's action was like a signal.
Xiang Yu, who had a tacit understanding with the Ministry of War to review, immediately followed.
"Your Majesty, today the Eastern captives are rampant because all the armies are depleted and there is no court. In the past when Emperor Shizong killed Rukui, all the armies were frightened and they all fought to the death. The powerful Tatar enemies were afraid and fled because of this. The situation today is just like in the past. Without thunderbolts, the armies cannot be inspired.”
The poor Minister of War, Wang Qia, was stunned. He never thought that these people would actually take his own life.
Before he could make a judgment, officials from Zhou Yanru's group swarmed forward, speaking out in unison, and the mood was high. It seems that without killing Wang Qia, Hou Jin cannot be forced to retreat.
Wang Qia was not good at words and was unable to resist the siege.
However, Han Xu, Qian Longxi and others were all silent, and no one came forward, allowing Wang Qia to fall into death step by step.
The most worrying thing is that Chongzhen did not show any expression amidst the criticism from the officials. The emotions on his face changed several times, and his gaze became more and more dangerous.
Finally, Chongzhen issued a verdict.
"Someone, put Wang Qia into a prison and interrogate him severely."
"His Majesty……"
Wang Qia was lying on the ground, as if his heart was dead.
The Han general rushed up and didn't give him a chance to speak. They took off his official uniform and hood and dragged him down like a dead dog.
This scene chilled many officials present.
Hou Xun stood among the officials and watched the entire process carefully. This farce-like scene made his anger uncontrollable.
"Your Majesty, Zhou Yanru, Xiang Yu and others are clever and sharp-tongued, specializing in criticism. At this time of crisis, if they do not think of serving the country and retreat from the enemy, but instead disrupt the government, they are an unpardonable crime."
Hou Xun's appearance shocked everyone.
Because he had a very good personal relationship with Zhou Yanru and had frequent contacts with each other. To think that on such an occasion, he would completely fall apart.
In fact, even Hou Xun himself didn't know that he had been deeply influenced by Zuo Menggeng, and his way of thinking had undergone a huge change.
If it were him in the past, he had no friendship with Wang Qia, so he would never come forward.
But after getting the overall response idea from Zuo Mengeng, Hou Xun couldn't help but feel sad when he looked at the people in the court.
What's the use of such a court that doesn't distinguish between good and bad, and keeps fighting among itself in times of crisis?
Zhou Yanru was called out on the spot and couldn't avoid it, and he was very angry.
"I am stupid. I don't know what the Minister Hou said. As a minister, I should speak up and help your majesty distinguish between loyal and traitorous people. But I don't know what the crime is?"
Hou Xun is majestic and full of momentum.
"The Eastern pirates are ravaging the capital, ruining the lives of the people, and the country is in dire straits. I dare to ask Zhou Shilang, what is the strategy to retreat from the enemy?"
Zhou Yanru flicked his sleeves, his expression unchanging.
"I am acting as the Ministry of Rites and can do my own thing. Why should I go beyond the policy of war and defense?"
Hou Xun shouted loudly: "You are neither in charge of the Ministry of War nor a general on the battlefield, so why do you talk about rewards and punishments?"
This moment forced Zhou Yanru into a corner.
You said that you are an official in the Ministry of Rites, and I cannot ask you about the war. Why are you talking so loudly about the responsibilities of the Minister of War?
In an instant, there was a lot of discussion in the court, and many people were pointing fingers at Zhou Yanru.
Of course, most of the criticism is not about his transgressions, but his villainous behavior.
Zhou Yanru's face turned red and he couldn't help asking: "Shilang Hou is a member of the Ministry of War, but he doesn't know what strategy he has?"
Hou Xun snorted coldly, stared at him for the last time, and turned to face Chongzhen.
"Your Majesty, the top priority is to deal with the enemy."
These words made Chongzhen quite excited.
Although what Hou Xun said just now was quite meant to excuse Wang Qia, but now that the court meeting was going on, all the officials were like cowering in the face of Hou Jin's invaders, and they were unable to come up with any solution, which completely disappointed him.
Now someone finally talked about strategies to defend against enemies. Regardless of whether they were right or not, Chongzhen must reward at least this courageous spirit.
"Hou Qing, feel free to speak your mind."
Hou Xun took a deep breath, straightened out his thoughts, and just started.
"Now Governor Yuan is returning to the army for rescue. The journey is long and difficult. However, reinforcements from Xuanfu, Datong, Shanxi and other places will arrive soon. Without coordination, the armies will be in chaos and may be defeated by the Eastern captives one by one."
His words made Chongzhen frightened, and then he realized that he had overlooked something.
He had previously given an order to Yuan Chonghuan, asking Yuan Chonghuan to quickly return reinforcements.
But now Zunhua, the main road from Shanhaiguan to Beijing, has been captured by Houjin, and Yuan Chonghuan must go around Yongping and Yutian.
No one can guarantee whether they can reach Jizhou before Hou Jin.
If Yuan Chonghuan fails to occupy Jizhou first, he will have to choose a route to march again. By then, reinforcements from all walks of life have arrived, who should we listen to?
Hou Xun said again: "Your Majesty, it is a good idea to revive Sunge Lao. However, Sunge is far away in Gaoyang. Even if you run at full speed, it will take time to get back to the capital. Discussing countermeasures and purging the armies will be delayed even longer. At that time The overall situation has collapsed and may be difficult to recover.”
Hou Xun first affirmed Chongzhen's approach of recalling Sun Chengzong.
In fact, in the face of the critical situation where the troops of the Later Jin Dynasty were pressing down on the country, apart from Sun Chengzong, the Manchu Dynasty could not find anyone else who could coordinate and command the various reinforcements.
The only problem is that Sun Chengzong is now in his hometown in Gaoyang County, Baoding Prefecture.
He was nearly seventy years old. Even if he rushed all night, it would still take three days to reach the capital. Then discuss strategies with Chongzhen and straighten out the situation and relationships. It will take seven or eight days.
But the question is whether Houjin will give Daming seven or eight days to prepare.
Obviously, judging from Hou Jin's speed, it is impossible for Daming to have such a long buffer time.
Chongzhen understood it, and so did the ministers.
For a moment, everyone was helpless and could only place their hope on Hou Xun.
