***
When the Qin army, dressed in black and black armor, lined up in neat formations, carrying blood-stained swords and bows, stepped into the south gate of Shengjing.
All the people in the city were crawling on the ground. No matter they were Jurchens, Han Chinese, Mongolians, Koreans or other tribes, they all prostrated themselves in fear and trepidation, not daring to make the slightest movement, not even to breathe.
The black flag with the word "Qin" on it fluttered in the wind. Under the flag, the iron hooves clanged. Aobai was covered in blood and flesh. He held a big knife in his right hand and Ahanikan's head in his left hand, and rode his horse at the forefront of the Qin army.
Perhaps it was Tushan's repeated calls of him a traitor that irritated him; or perhaps it was the burning of Nurhaci's mausoleum that made him want to do it once and for all. He threw Ahanikan's head into the street and shouted, "Whoever doesn't cut off his braid before sunrise tomorrow will be punished for what happened to him!"
The people crawling on the street held their breath, the whole city was silent, Ahanikan's head rolled in front of the people, the bloody and hideous appearance scared many people to wet their pants, they felt that the rat tail on their heads suddenly became like a sharp sword, ready to cut off their heads at any time...
Tian Heng was secretly pleased when he heard what Aobai said. He then shouted, "Keep the braid or the head, keep the head or the braid!" The Qin soldiers immediately followed suit and shouted in unison:
"Keep the braid and lose the head, keep the head and lose the braid!"
"Keep the braid and lose the head, keep the head and lose the braid!"
"Keep the braid and lose the head, keep the head and lose the braid!"
Thousands of soldiers roared, the whole city shook, and even children stopped crying out of fear. The Qin army changed its friendly image in the Central Plains and became as fierce as a tiger. This was the result of the intentional indulgence of the commander Ning Yuan, and it was also the need of the reality.
In Liaodong, you must first have power, otherwise no one will remember your kindness.
The Qing dynasty has ruled this land for 20 to 30 years. Even Han Chinese under the age of 30 have been raised under the rule of the Qing dynasty since birth.
Their identification with the Qing imperial power is already very high. Keeping braids and wearing mandarin jackets have become a habit in their lives. If you treat these people with a conciliatory strategy as you treat the people in the Central Plains, big problems will arise sooner or later.
Therefore, as soon as the generals entered Liaodong, they promised Ningyuan to order the cutting of queues. Those who dared to resist would be beheaded without mercy. Wherever they went, the slogan of "keep the queue but not the head, keep the head but not the queue" was shouted loudly.
The Qing Dynasty had limited national power and Shengjing was not very big. The city was in the shape of a "well", with eight gates facing eight streets, and four roads inside surrounding the imperial palace in the middle.
Aobai led his army through the Great South Gate, the sound of iron hooves was shocking. When they arrived at the main gate of the palace, the Great Qing Gate, they were overwhelmed with emotions, and tears flashed in the eyes of this big man with a full beard.
Tian Heng quietly observed his expression. After a while, he said, "General Guaerjia, as the saying goes, a bow cannot be drawn without the first arrow. General Guaerjia should understand this. We cannot keep this imperial city."
"I understand." Aobai raised his head, as if looking up at the sky, but also as if trying to hide the tears in his eyes.
He waved his hand silently. Qin soldiers immediately rushed into the Daqing Gate, and an orderly looting began.
Although there are no Manchu royal family members living in the palace anymore, there are still some eunuchs and palace maids who do daily cleaning, and there should still be some valuable things.
Seeing the Qin army pouring in, the eunuchs and palace maids inside were so scared that they ran around and hid. The cries of grief echoed throughout the palace, as if the emperor of the Qing Dynasty had died.
The results of the search disappointed Tian Heng. When the Qing Dynasty entered the pass, they moved everything away. After the Qin army was busy, even the gold-inlaid dragon throne was counted, and the things collected were estimated to be less than 100,000 taels of silver.
Tian Heng waved his hand to his subordinate Wei Ying with little interest and said, "First, blow up the Daqing Gate, Chongzheng Hall, Dazheng Hall, Taimiao, and Sheji Altar."
"Yes, General."
Wei Ying received the order and immediately led people to bury the explosives;
Daqing Gate is the main gate of the imperial palace, also known as Wumen Gate;
Chongzheng Hall was where Huang Taiji met with his ministers, entertained foreign envoys and handled major government affairs. It is commonly known as the Golden Palace.
The Dazheng Hall is the most solemn and sacred place in the Shengjing Imperial Palace. It is used for grand ceremonies, such as the emperor's accession to the throne, the issuance of imperial edicts, the announcement of the army's expedition, and the welcoming of the triumphant soldiers. This hall was the place where Huang Taiji held major ceremonies and important political activities.
There is no need to go into details about the Taimiao and the Jiangshan Sheji Altar. These buildings were symbols of the Qing imperial power and had to be destroyed.
If it continues to remain in Liaodong, it will become the spiritual sustenance of the Jurchens and inspire them to continue their resistance.
Two hours later, in the blood-red sunset, several loud noises were heard from the palace of Shengjing, shaking the whole city.
From afar, one could see the Daqing Gate, Da Zheng Hall, Chong Zheng Hall and other tall buildings that represented the imperial power of the Qing Dynasty collapse one after another, with smoke and dust billowing and flames blazing.
The setting sun is blood-red, and the pain is silent. Perhaps what collapsed is not just a few buildings, but an entire dynasty... ... .
The Jurchens in the city watched all this in horror. They wanted to shout, to fight, to... but they dared not do anything. They could only hide in their homes and cry, then fetch a pair of scissors and with great difficulty cut off the small braids on their heads.
The next day, Tian Heng sent soldiers to check every household. Anyone who dared to keep a braid would be beheaded without any further ado and his head would be hung on the city gate for public display.
Although the Qin army was fierce, there were not many people in the city who dared to keep their braids, so the bloodiness of their actions was not even one-tenth of the atrocities committed by Duoduo in Yangzhou.
***
Shangqiu.
A fierce argument broke out in the government office. This time, Ning Wanwo refused to give in and argued with Duoduo: "Your Majesty, we can't wait any longer. We must break the dam immediately. This way, we can stop Meng Ke for a while, so that we can turn west and defeat Ma Yongzhen first."
"No!" Duoduo roared, "This is the Qing Dynasty's last chance. We must submerge Meng Ke, otherwise the Qing Dynasty will never have a chance to turn the tide."
"Your Highness!" Ning Wanwo shouted, trying to wake Duoduo up. "Your Highness, please wake up. Meng Ke's 100,000-man army did not attack Shangqiu, but suddenly turned to attack Xiayi. This was clearly to avoid the Yellow River. His army's logistics were originally transported through the Yellow River. There was no reason for him to attack Xiayi instead of Shangqiu. Your Highness, Meng Ke must have guessed our plan, so he deliberately avoided the Yellow River."
"Xiayi is not far from the Yellow River. Once the dike breaks, it will be flooded..."
"But it's not enough to wipe out his entire army. He will be trapped for three or four days at most. Once the flood recedes, he can still march north."
"These are all your guesses. How could Meng Ke guess our plan? Xiayi is like the southwest gate of Shangqiu. Isn't it normal for Meng Ke to sweep the periphery before attacking Shangqiu?"
Ning Wanwo saw that Duoduo was like a drowning man, still clinging to the straw tightly. This was simply deceiving himself. But no matter how he persuaded him, he just didn't want to wake up.
"Your Highness, Ma Yongzhen's 40,000 infantry and cavalry are almost at Weichuan County, only 200 miles away from Kaifeng! In Kaifeng right now, even with the troops that Lekedehun has gathered back, there are less than 5,000 people. And they are newly defeated armies. Ma Yongzhen's 40,000 troops can encircle Kaifeng in two days at the fastest and four days at the latest. If Kaifeng is lost by then, even we will have no way to retreat. Your Highness, wake up and don't be bewitched by the devil!"
Although Ning Wanwo is a Han Chinese, he is a die-hard supporter of the Qing Dynasty. Seeing that Duoduo was stubborn and wanted to cling to that unrealistic straw, he cried out in despair and tried his best to persuade him, regardless of the consequences of contradicting Duoduo.
Pah! Duoduo suddenly slapped Ning Wanwo hard, knocking him to the ground. Half of his face became red and swollen, and blood flowed from the corner of his mouth.
Duoduo rushed forward like a madman, kicked Ning Wanwo twice fiercely, and then pointed at the bloody Ning Wanwo and cursed: "Do you still think you are a god? You still want me to listen to you in everything. You and that old dog Fan Wencheng are the ones who deserve to die! If you hadn't tried your best to persuade my fourteenth brother to enter the pass, saying that the Central Plains would be within reach, how could the Qing Dynasty in Liaodong have been doing well? How could it have ended up like this today? You deserve to be killed! You deserve to be killed!"
Duoduo cursed loudly with a ferocious look on his face, and was very emotional. He kept kicking Ning Wanwo with his big feet, like kicking a dead dog.
There is no greater sorrow than a dead heart. Seeing that Duoduo had lost even basic sanity, Ning Wanwo felt completely hopeless, and even the pain in his body was not that intense anymore.
Duoduo's behavior is completely the kind of hysteria and blind madness on the eve of the fall of a dynasty. I seem to see the scene of Emperor Chongzhen a few years ago shouting "I am not the king who lost the country, you are the ministers who lost the country"... ... ...
************************************
ps: Please subscribe, please subscribe, just to have enough food and clothing... .
.(To be continued..)
...