Traveling through the late Ming Dynasty to promote Chinese civilization

Chapter 617 Why Not Stay by the Emperor's Side

Liu Ye sighed deeply: "Yes, from beginning to end, the Ministry of War didn't want us to win this battle. We even went to the Ministry of War to ask for reinforcements. We feel like we've all become fools." He said bitterly, "No wonder they would rather burn tens of thousands of catties of grain than let me have it. And General Wang Hong of Tianjin refused to send troops no matter what. It turns out that the future Minister of War was the one who was interfering."

Qin Tian said, "Since Wang Hong is also one of the accomplices, let's arrest him too?"

“You know Wang Hong is just an accomplice. Although I won’t let him off the hook, there’s no rush,” Liu Ye said, frowning. “The real culprit is Yang Sichang. He set up this scheme and tricked me badly. We need to think about how to deal with him first. We can deal with these small fry slowly.”

Yan Guang pondered for a moment and said, "I've heard of Yang Wenruo. He's the son of Yang He, the former governor of the three border regions, and is highly regarded by the emperor. But why is he, a Minister of War who hasn't even taken office yet, doing everything he can to obstruct our fight against the Tartars? If he just follows the established procedures, he'll be more than just a Minister; he'll be a prime minister, or even the Grand Secretary. Would someone with such a promising future collude with the barbarians?"

"It's not that he's colluding with the barbarians; scholars still have that much integrity. Yang Sichang is favored by the emperor, and his career is bright. There's no need for him to waste his time trying to curry favor with Huang Taiji. After all, the Ming Dynasty is the legitimate dynasty, and the Tartars are barbarians!" Liu Ye tapped the armrest of his chair with his index finger and said slowly, "Have you ever considered that even if Yang Sichang, the vice minister of the Ministry of War, were promoted to the rank of vice minister, what right would he have to send the Embroidered Uniform Guard to deliver a message? No matter how small the Embroidered Uniform Guard is, it is still the emperor's personal guard. It's impossible for a civil official to command it."

Yan Guang's eyes widened, and he asked tentatively, "Could it be that the Emperor himself gave the order? Did Yang Sichang have the Emperor's support in doing this? But that makes even less sense. Wouldn't the Emperor prefer that as many Tartars as possible be killed?"

“Emperor Chongzhen was not a simple-minded military general like Liu Guozhu, who only cared about killing the Tartars. He had to consider the overall situation of the Ming Dynasty.” Liu Ye said slowly. “If we make a bold assumption, that both Emperor Chongzhen and Yang Sichang wanted to negotiate peace with the Tartars so that they could free up their hands to deal with the bandits and stabilize the situation in the Central Plains, wouldn’t their actions make sense?”

"Peace talks?" Everyone was taken aback.

“Abatai is, after all, a prince of the Tartars, and my own son. Killing him wouldn't cripple the Tartars, but it would enrage them and affect the overall peace negotiations—a net loss. However, Chongzhen and Yang Sichang couldn't openly order me to spare Abatai and become universally condemned. So they secretly sabotaged me, hindering my progress. In this way, they both saved face and achieved their goal…”

After careful consideration, everyone realized that this reasoning made sense of everything that seemed illogical.

Yan Guang exclaimed in admiration, "General, you are truly born with knowledge. Nothing can escape your discerning eyes. I admire you wholeheartedly."

Liu Ye smiled. He wasn't born with this knowledge; it was just that in the original history, Yang Sichang was the instigator of the peace talks with Cele. Once people knew he was involved, it was easy to make connections to this. That was the advantage of a time traveler.

Liang Xiaoming said dejectedly, "But what good would it do to find out? Would Chongzhen and Yang Sichang admit it? We painstakingly chased the Tartars all the way from Shandong to Tianjin, only to be betrayed by our own people in the end, with nowhere to seek justice. It's so frustrating to think about."

A fierce glint appeared in Yan Guang's eyes. He gestured with his hand as if beheading someone and said, "General, since there are treacherous ministers around the Emperor, why not take this opportunity to come to the capital and purge the court of these corrupt officials?"

"Purge the court of corrupt officials?" Xu Yifan and the others exchanged bewildered glances.

“The Emperor will never acknowledge the peace talks, otherwise he will lose the people’s support. Yang Sichang will have to take the blame,” Yan Guang explained. “Why don’t we inform the world about Yang Sichang’s secret plot to negotiate peace, then march into the capital under the banner of ‘cleansing the court of corrupt officials,’ and then emulate Emperor Chengzu and take his place!”

The room fell silent after these words. Even a fool could tell that Yan Guang was advising Liu Ye to emulate Emperor Yongle (Zhu Di) of the Ming Dynasty, to find a pretext to "punish treacherous officials" and recreate the Jingnan Campaign. Theoretically, this wasn't impossible: Zhu Di could use a single fiefdom to resist the central government, and Liu Ye, with a single garrison, could do the same. Moreover, Qionghai Garrison's strength was no less than that of the Prince of Yan, and perhaps even greater. Furthermore, Emperor Chongzhen, beset by internal and external troubles, was in a far worse position than Emperor Jianwen, lacking the power for direct resistance.

The thought of potentially becoming a meritorious official who had helped the emperor rise to power made everyone's hearts race, and they all turned their expectant gazes toward Liu Ye.

Liu Ye didn't seem particularly excited. He calmly asked, "How many years did the Jingnan Campaign last?"

Yan Guang paused for a moment, then replied, "From the time the Prince of Yan raised his army in the first year of the Jianwen reign to the capture of Yingtian in the fourth year, it lasted a total of four years..."

"How much damage was caused by four years of war?"

Yan Guang hesitated and said, "It is said that at that time, 'north of the Yellow River, there was no smoke for a thousand miles, and between the Yangtze and Huai Rivers, the land was overgrown with weeds.' Nine out of ten houses in Hebei and Shandong were empty, and the roads in Huainan were blocked by weeds..."

"Were there internal or external troubles at that time?"

"In the first year of the Jianwen reign, the seas were calm and the rivers were peaceful. The Prince of Yan and others guarded the northern frontier, and the Tartars dared not invade the south. The people of the Central Plains lived in peace and prosperity..."

Liu Ye tapped the armrest and said, "A prince with a righteous cause is merely fighting for the throne between uncle and nephew, not a change of dynasty by a different surname. There is less resistance from the court and the people. Moreover, at that time, the army in the north was stronger than the army in the south. Even without the interference of internal and external troubles, this war still lasted for four years, leaving the people destitute and the land barren. Now you want me to hastily raise an army? Where does the righteous cause come from? Can the mere act of purging the court of corrupt officials win the support of the people? Even if I capture the capital and kill all the officials who do not submit to me, who will I rely on to govern the country? What good will it do me to turn the northern and southern provinces into a wasteland? Besides, do you think the bandits and the Tartars are fools? If I fight Chongzhen for the throne, won't they take advantage of the situation? If the Tartars invade and the bandits move north, the country will be in chaos. What use will it be for me to defend Beijing?"

Yan Guang was sweating profusely and filled with fear. He knelt on the ground and said in a trembling voice, "I did not consider things carefully and almost made a big mistake. Please punish me, General."

Liu Ye raised his hand: "Get up. Your intentions are good, but the timing is wrong. Rather than letting Huang Taiji reap the benefits, it's better to sit back and watch the tigers fight, observe the changing world, and then make your move at the crucial moment."

Yan Guang couldn't help but ask, "May I ask, General, when is the best time?"

Liu Ye revealed a meaningful smile: "The best opportunity is when the rebel Li Zicheng enters the capital and forces the emperor to go to Coal Hill."