***
According to the data reported by Liu Boquan, the Prince Ji's Mansion was stockpiled with gold, silver and treasures looted by Zhang Xianzhong worth no less than eight million taels, as well as a large amount of food and supplies, which could be said to be piled up like a mountain. Fortunately, the Prince Ji's Mansion occupied four or five tenths of Changsha City, so this amount of treasure did not take up much space in the Prince Ji's Mansion.
After capturing Changsha, Qin Mu was overwhelmed by the complexity of the matter. Now that the administrative structure had finally been established, he could finally relax his tense nerves. So, Qin Mu decided to inspect the "mountain" himself.
The Prince Ji's Palace had many buildings and towers, and was as magnificent as the Forbidden City. However, the Ming Dynasty was now suffering from famine and the people were living in poverty. Such a magnificent and luxurious palace standing here made Qin Mu feel weird and out of place.
Entering the 19-foot-tall main gate of the palace, you will see double-eaved corridors on both sides forming a huge square that can accommodate thousands of people. Walking along the corridor in the middle that can accommodate four horses running side by side, you will find Chengyun Hall in the center, which is the main hall of Prince Ji's palace.
Behind the Chengyun Hall, the main halls are arranged in layers, showing an indescribable luxury. On the square outside the Chengyun Hall, there are three octagonal pavilions, each with a large iron cannon weighing more than a thousand pounds, which is used by the Jiwang Palace to fire cannons and play music during large ceremonies.
Qin Mu saw this and told Tie Yijin, "Tear down this cannon and move it to the city wall to defend the city."
Qin Mu is still flying the banner of the Ming Dynasty. No one dares to dismantle the things in Prince Ji's mansion without his order. In fact, Liu Meng and others have wanted to dismantle it for a long time. After so long, the Qin army still doesn't have a cannon. Zhu Yijin happily responded: "Don't worry, sir. I will ask people to dismantle it immediately."
Liu Boquan, who accompanied Qin Mu on the "mountain inspection", led him inside and introduced: "Sir, this Prince Ji's Palace has five halls and three palaces, with a total of 800 palaces and rooms. It was built according to the layout of the Forbidden City, but the scale is slightly smaller. In addition to the pools and mountains built according to the Forbidden City's imperial garden, there is also a mountain and river temple."
Qin Mu looked around and sighed at the majestic palace: "It's sad to see the places where the Qin and Han dynasties passed by. All the palaces have turned to dust. When the Ming Dynasty prospered, the people suffered; when the Ming Dynasty fell, the people suffered... If there were fewer palaces like this in the world, the Ming Dynasty would have been in such a state of decay."
"Your Excellency is right, Your Excellency is right." Liu Boquan did not dare to respond. He still said the same thing. After all, Qin Mu was still fighting under the banner of the Ming Dynasty.
"Are there any descendants of King Ji who survived?"
"Your Excellency, currently in Changsha City, apart from some princesses and concubines, only one princess has survived."
"Princess?" Qin Mu frowned slightly and told the truth. Leaving a princess behind was not a good thing. If it was not handled properly, it would cause trouble in the future.
Liu Boquan answered cautiously: "Yes, the one who survived was Princess Xiangyang, who had just reached the age of marriage and had not yet married. After the thief Zhang entered Changsha, he forcibly took Princess Xiangyang as his concubine..."
"Yeah." Qin Mu responded without comment. While checking the seized spoils stored in the palace's warehouse, he was thinking about how to properly deal with Princess Xiangyang's matter.
The mountains of treasure made Qin Mu very happy. Recruiting soldiers required money, and fighting a war cost even more money. If he could transport this wealth back to Ganzhou, it would be an immeasurable help to him.
Qin Mu, feeling happy, figured it out quickly. The important thing now was how to keep the wealth. As for the Xiangyang Princess, she could just sit there and cool down for now.
At this time, Huang Lianshan walked in quickly and reported to Qin Mu: "Sir, I just received two good news. General Huo Sheng in the south successfully captured Zhuzhou, and General Su Jin's army in the north just arrived. The rebels in Xiangyin County surrendered at the sight of the wind."
"Good!" Qin Mu was in a better mood now. Among the surrounding counties, Ningxiang, Wangcheng, Yiyang, Liuyang, etc. have surrendered voluntarily. Xiangyin can be regarded as the northern gateway of Changsha, used to block Sun Kewang's 100,000 rebels entrenched in Yuezhou. Zhuzhou in the south is more critical. From Zhuzhou to the east are Pingxiang and Yuanzhou; from Zhuzhou to the south is Hengyang. From Hengyang to the east through Chaling, Yanling and other counties, you can return to southern Jiangxi.
It can be seen from this that Zhuzhou is an extremely important strategic node for Qin Mu. By holding it, he can block the way for Zhang Xianzhong's 200,000 troops to return westward; if he loses it, Qin Mu's passage back to southern Jiangxi will also be cut off;
Of course, if he was still willing to return empty-handed with the original one or two thousand troops, he would not have to worry about the problem of his return route being cut off. With such a small number of troops and no baggage, he could probably take a small road to southern Jiangxi. It would be a dream to rely on Zhang Xianzhong's mob to chase and intercept him.
"Pass on my order and have General Meng Ke lead another 10,000 troops to Zhuzhou to take full charge of the southern front. At the same time, allow them to recruit soldiers and quickly capture the counties of Liling near Zhuzhou, then take Hengyang in the south to open up a strategic channel connecting Ganzhou."
"Yes, sir."
Qin Mu turned and asked, "What new moves have Zhang Xianzhong and Sun Kewang made?"
"My Lord, Zhang Xianzhong has urgently withdrawn Hu Yansan who was heading south to Ji'an. According to the distance, Hu Yansan should have withdrawn to Yuanzhou by now. Sun Kewang in the north has assembled a large army, but because he is worried that Zuo Liangyu, who is stationed in Huangshi and Dazhi, will go south, he only dares to send 50,000 troops to attack Changsha. At present, Sun Kewang's army is still three days away from Xiangyin County."
"Well, when Hu Yansan's troops retreat to Yuanzhou, it will be the time when Zhang Xianzhong will withdraw his troops westward. Let Meng Ke hurry up. Also, order Ling Zhan to quickly reinforce Xiangyin County and have Ling Zhan enter the city to defend it. Su Jin's cavalry must all withdraw from Xiangyin County and fight in a mobile manner."
"Yes, sir."
After Huang Lianshan left, Qin Mu called Liu Boquan and Zhu Yijin into a pavilion alone and ordered them in a deep voice: "Listen carefully, the two of you. Boquan, immediately prepare a batch of vehicles and pack horses and wait for my next order. Once I give the order, you will take all the gold and silver in the palace to Zhuzhou in the name of transporting food and grass to Zhuzhou. Yijin, I will give you the 1,000 soldiers and horses recruited in Yuanzhou and the 500 soldiers and horses from Huichang. You will be responsible for the safety of these properties. This matter must be kept secret. If something goes wrong, I will hold you accountable."
Qin Mu explained the important and secret matter. Liu Boquan and Zhu Yijin couldn't help but tense up after hearing it, especially Liu Boquan, who was surprised and happy. While feeling Qin Mu's trust, he also felt a great sense of responsibility and accepted the order as if treading on thin ice.
After explaining the matter, Qin Mu looked relaxed, as if nothing had happened, and walked towards the garden northwest of Chengyun Palace with square steps.
This garden is called Zijin Garden. Stones are piled up in the garden to form a mountain, named Zijin Mountain. There are hollow walls and winding stone paths. There is a Wanchun Pond in the garden, a dressing pavilion in the south of the pond and a dressing tower in the north of the pond. It was the place where the concubines of the royal palace played.
It is late autumn now, but Changsha is located in the south. The flowers and trees in the courtyard are still lush, the mountains and rivers are shaded, the pavilions and towers are magnificent, like a fairyland on earth, and it is a rare enjoyment to walk in this landscape garden after busy official duties. It is a pity that there are no beautiful women's smiles, otherwise it would be more perfect.
After touring Zijin Garden, we came out to see the academy, temple, and government offices such as the Office of Chief Secretary, Office of Trial, and Office of Discipline and Goodness. Finally, we came to the eastern part of the palace, where the concubines lived. The palaces and courtyards were lined up one after another, with green curtains and red curtains fluttering. The winding paths led to secluded places, and the archways and corridors connected to each other. Soldiers were guarding the gates tightly, and entry and exit were strictly prohibited.
When Qin Mu and his companions entered the place, they could still see some maids quietly walking along the corridor. When they saw someone coming, they shrank back in fear.
"Sir, Princess Xiangyang lives in this palace."
"Yes. Go in and report it, and say that I have something to ask you."
Princess Xiangyang was only fifteen years old. Although she was not stunningly beautiful, she had fair skin, delicate features, and a plump figure. Born into a royal family, she had developed a noble temperament since childhood and had a charm that was difficult for ordinary women to match. No wonder Zhang Xianzhong took her into his room.
As soon as Qin Mu entered the hall, before he had time to speak, Princess Xiangyang came up to him and asked, "You are Qin Mu, the military governor of Ganzhou. You came at the right time. I want to ask you, what do you mean by this? Why do you want to lock me up in the hall? Hurry up and prepare a carriage for me. I am going to Nanjing."
Qin Mu heard his condescending attitude and began to question him. He frowned slightly and said calmly, "There is chaos and disorder right now. I didn't know the princess's identity before. I only thought she was the concubine of the traitor Zhang Xianzhong, so I put her under house arrest temporarily. I hope the princess won't blame me."
"You..." Princess Xiangyang's face turned red and white as if she was stripped naked in an instant. She had indeed been Zhang Xianzhong's concubine before. Although she was forced, the concept of chastity was extremely important in this world. When the rebels entered the city, she did not die for her country. Instead, she endured the humiliation and lived on. She even went to bed with Zhang Xianzhong. In the eyes of the world, this was a matter that brought shame to even Zhu Yuanzhang.
If she hadn't put on airs as a princess as soon as they met, Qin Mu wouldn't have mentioned this. But if he didn't dampen her arrogance now, who knows what kind of evil things this spoiled girl might become.
"The princess wants to go to Nanjing, and I will do my best to fulfill her wishes. However, the war is fierce and Changsha is still surrounded by rebels. The road to Nanjing is blocked, so I have to ask the princess to stay in the palace for the time being. I will report the princess's matter to the court as soon as possible and ask the emperor to make a decision. During this period, the princess should stay at home and ask the outsiders to do anything you need. I am busy with official duties, so I will take my leave first."
After hearing what Qin Mu said, Princess Xiangyang looked ashen and watched Qin Mu leave without saying a word.
Qin Mu had no good feelings towards her at all. She succumbed to the tyranny of Zhang Xianzhong. Qin Mu could understand this. After all, it has been difficult to die since ancient times. She was a weak woman who was willing to be Zhang Xianzhong's concubine for the sake of her life. She could not be blamed for this.
But now that the whole family of Prince Ji has suffered a great disaster, she has not asked about her relatives and only thinks about herself. In this respect, she has lost her duty as a child and also lost some of the most basic things in human nature.
Besides, she had not realized her situation even after falling into this state, and she looked so arrogant, so Qin Mu was too lazy to pay attention to her.
Liu Boquan walked in front of a towering palace. While observing Qin Mu's expression, he said quietly, "Sir, this palace holds Zhang Xianzhong's princess and several concubines. Sir..."
Qin Mu naturally understood what Liu Boquan meant. Since ancient times, in wars, the wives and daughters of one side who were captured would only become playthings of the victorious side. I believe that few people would disagree with this.
Qin Mu laughed loudly, spread his sleeves, and walked towards the hall.
Liu Boquan and Zhu Yijin looked at each other quietly and stayed outside the hall obediently.
.(To be continued..)
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