Chapter 5 Chapter 3 The Luck of Li Zicheng and Dorgon
In the spring of 1644 AD, the balance of history began to tilt in favor of the Peasant Army.In mid-March, the Dashun Army surrounded the city of Beijing.
On March 19, 1644, the Dashun Army captured Beijing, and Emperor Chongzhen of the Ming Dynasty Zhu Youjian hanged himself to death.On the same day, Dashun King Li Zicheng entered Beijing, marking the fall of the Ming Dynasty.In just two or three months, the Dashun regime quickly took over a large area of the entire Yellow River Basin and part of the Yangtze River Basin by virtue of its military power and popular support. The entire territory of Shanxi, Henan, Hebei, Beijing, Tianjin, and Shandong, as well as parts of Hubei, Jiangsu, and Anhui.The Ming army outside Shanhaiguan retreated into the pass under the leadership of Wu Sangui, Bo Xibo of Pingxi, and Li Yutian, governor of Liaodong.The Manchu Qing took the opportunity to send Prince Zheng Jierhalang and others to take over the areas outside the pass, thus forming a situation where the Dashun regime and the Qing regime faced each other across the border.
The momentum of Dashun was unstoppable, and even the officials, gentry and landlords, except for a very few who were loyal to the Zhu Ming Dynasty, most of them believed that the Ming Dynasty was exhausted and turned their hopes to the Dashun regime.Although some of them scrambled to take refuge first, hoping to be among the heroes of the emerging Dashun Dynasty;In short, before the Dashun Army was defeated by the Qing army, a large number of civil and military generals among the Han officials and gentry took refuge in the Dashun regime as the only way out, and it was impossible to conceive of taking refuge in a country with a very different language and customs in Liaodong. The Qing regime dominated by the Manchu nobles.
There is a passage in Gu Yanwu that is worth noting: "There is a subjugation of the country, and there is a subjugation of the world. How to distinguish between subjugation and subjugation of the world? It is said: Changing the surname to change the name is called subjugation; benevolence and righteousness are so full that they lead beasts to eat people. People will eat each other. It is called the destruction of the world.... Those who protect the country are their rulers and ministers, and those who eat meat seek it out; those who protect the world are as humble as ordinary people, and have no responsibility for it!"
In ancient China, the country was a country of one family, a country of one surname.The subjugation of one dynasty and one surname is the subjugation of the country, and the subjugation of the whole nation is called the subjugation of the world. The history of the Jiashen year in 1644 was that both the country and the world were destroyed.In the eyes of Han officials and gentry, the replacement of the Ming Dynasty by the Dashun regime was just a change of surname, and the struggle of the Zhu Ming Dynasty was a matter for "meat eaters" such as the clan, relatives of the emperor, and hereditary ministers. The gentry and the people have little to do with each other; while the Manchu nobles' principle of becoming the master is to "be sent to the left lapel" (shave the head and restructure), and "destroy the world";This was the general psychological state of the Han military, civilian, officials and gentry in 1644.Because of this, the Dashun Army occupied the entire Yellow River Basin, including the capital, in just three months. Except for a little resistance in Ningwu and Baoding, there was a scene of hopeful surrender everywhere.
At this time, no one would have expected that the Manchu Qing would replace the Ming Dynasty and enter the Central Plains.No matter how you look at it, the Manchu Qing did not have the strength to destroy the Ming Dynasty. In terms of military strength, the Manchu Qing also lacked the strength to unify the Central Plains.Man Qing himself is quite aware of this.
In January 1644, Li Zicheng announced the establishment of the Dashun regime in Xi'an.The Mongolian Ordos tribe told the Manchus the news.On the twenty-seventh day of the first month, twenty-six days after Li Zicheng became queen, the Manchu Qing immediately sent an envoy to Xi'an.The letter was written by Dorgon, Prince Rui, and it said: "The emperor of the Qing Dynasty wrote to the commanders who occupied the Ming land in the west: ... I wrote a letter, intending to cooperate with the princes and take the Central Plains. Mixed in the same district, riches and nobles are shared. I don’t know what respect is like. But it is a sincere wish to send a letter to the envoy quickly and pour it all out.” Dorgon’s basic idea is to divide North China equally with Li Zicheng, and proposes that the Qing army Willing to establish an alliance with the Dashun Army who resisted the Ming Dynasty, "cooperate with each other" and "take the Central Plains".
From this point, it can be seen that long before Li Zicheng captured Beijing, the Manchu Qing had already considered occupying the Central Plains, but their initial idea was to divide North China equally with the Dashun regime.
When Wang Liangzhi, the Yulin guard of the Dashun Army, received Dorgon's letter, Li Zicheng had personally led the army to advance to Beijing.Wang Liangzhi sent someone to report this matter to Li Zicheng, but the leaders of the Dashun Army were full of ambition, thinking that the Manchus were trying to share the fruits of victory, and did not pay attention to it, so Li Zicheng did not respond to the proposal of the Manchus.The letter was later returned to the Qing envoy with a note attached.The note was written by Wang Liangzhi, who simply said that he had reported the contents of the letter to the higher authorities.
Dorgon's news lags behind a lot.Although he has been trying to contact the Peasant Army, and wants to cooperate with Li Zicheng to fight against the Ming Dynasty, but there is no result.It wasn't until Emperor Chongzhen of the Ming Dynasty urgently ordered Wu Sangui, the guard general of Ningyuan, to return to King Qin, that Dorgon knew that Li Zicheng's Dashun Army was unstoppable, and that the Ming Dynasty would rather give up the land outside the customs. There was no response to Qing's overtures, because the Dashun Army was already strong enough, and there was no need to borrow the power of Man Qing.
Dorgon only wanted to divide North China equally, but the Han advisers in the Qing Dynasty were not satisfied with just dividing North China equally with Li Zicheng.Long before the fall of Beijing, Fan Wencheng compared the Dashun Army to the Qin Dynasty in history with great insight.Qin Shihuang once straddled the Qinling Mountains and unified the Seven Kingdoms, becoming the first emperor in Chinese history, but soon lost the world because of tyranny.Fan Wencheng believes that under such circumstances, the Manchu Qing will play the role of Liu Bang, the emperor of the Han Dynasty, and will establish a long-term and stable dynasty after suppressing the rebellion and occupying the Central Plains.
This plan to replace the Ming Dynasty and establish the Qing Empire has been long awaited by the Han people who cooperated with the Qing people outside the pass.Fan Wencheng, in particular, kept urging Dorgon to concentrate on conquering China in order to realize Nurhachi's "major career".
Before Li Zicheng occupied Beijing, the two actual power holders, Prince Rui Dorgon and Prince Zheng Jierhalang, were still lingering.It is true that it is an irresistible temptation to rule the world, but the Manchu and Qing traditions have carried out raids on the pass and then retreated, and obtained slaves and wealth by means of robbery.Even Nurhachi and Huang Taiji had the dream of competing in the Central Plains, but they never had such extravagant hopes; in Dorgon's generation, they did not surpass the minds and ambitions of the heroes of their predecessors, and the other Baylor and Beizi had no intention of occupying the Central Plains. North China.
With the collapse of the Ming government in Beijing, Han collaborators such as Fan Wencheng and Hong Chengchou had new opportunities to persuade the Manchu nobles to attack the Central Plains.They believe that now that Wu Sangui has given up on Ningyuan, the land outside the pass is all he has, and the opportunity to enter the "Hongye" has finally come.The news of Li Zicheng's army looting in Beijing spread to Shengjing. University scholar Fan Wencheng was very happy after hearing this, thinking that the time was ripe for the Qing army to go south to the Central Plains.Although Li Zicheng's army is said to be in the millions, it did not shake Fan Wencheng's confidence in the slightest. He believed that the Qing army could completely defeat the opponent.This optimism was based not only on his confidence in the skill and discipline of the Qing soldiers, but also on his belief that Li Zicheng had lost all political supporters.At first, Li Zicheng aroused the wrath of heaven for overthrowing Emperor Chongzhen; then he aroused the opposition of scholar-bureaucrats for abusing gentry and officials; .Fan Wencheng said:
"Our country is united from top to bottom, the soldiers are selected and trained, and the crimes are sincerely punished, and the soldiers are motivated by righteousness. What is not successful." (Xiao Yishan's "General History of the Qing Dynasty")
At this time, Fan Wencheng promptly reiterated his plan to replace the Ming Dynasty and establish the Qing Empire.Although most of the Baylors and Beizi in the Manchu Qing Dynasty did not believe that the Manchu Qing could have this strength, in fact, the regent Dorgon himself did not believe in this wonderful blueprint; but Dorgon, who held real power, was eager to consolidate his The personal authority above Zhu Baylor and the control of the imperial power, so after repeated consideration, Dorgon accepted Fan Wencheng's suggestion and led the army south, intending to take advantage of the chaos in the Central Plains.Therefore, Dorgon's ambition to strengthen the monarchy, coupled with the persuasion of many Han officials in the Qing court, decisively contributed to the transition of the Manchus from the era of tribal warfare to the era of imperial rule.
In April 1644, out of his own needs, Dorgon adopted Fan Wencheng's opinion and led the Qing soldiers to the south.But at this time, in Dorgon's heart, he still just wanted to take advantage of the fire and go to the Central Plains to plunder.For Man Qing, competing in the Central Plains was just a dream, a very distant dream, neither expected nor achievable.In order to march smoothly, Dorgon decided to bypass Shanhaiguan, the "No. 1 pass in the world".
Wu Sangui, whose style name is Shuofu, and whose word is Xiongshuang, was born in Tieling, Liaodong.His ancestors were honored with military merits, and Ping Xibo was hereditary.His father Wu Xiang and Zu Dashou both successively served as the commander-in-chief of the Ming Dynasty. Wu Sangui grew up in such a family of warlords since he was a child, so he has received good military influence.Wu Sangui has a handsome appearance, extraordinary physical strength, and is good at riding and shooting; because of his proficiency in martial arts, he was also admitted to the martial arts examination of the Ming Dynasty.
Zu Dashou regarded Wu Sangui very highly and kept him by his side all the time.When Zu Dashou was guarding Ningyuan, Wu Sangui was in the army.Wu Sangui is good at running the army, his troops are strong and strong, and he will win every battle, and his name spreads outside the pass.
Wu Sangui's father, Wu Xiang, started as a Wu Jinshi and was an official in Jinzhou.When Wu Xiang joined the army, he took five hundred cavalry out of the city to spy.Just a hundred miles away from the city, it happened that Huang Taiji led 40,000 Qing troops to attack the city.Wu Xiang fled to the city in a hurry, and was surrounded by Qing soldiers more than forty miles away from the city.But Huang Taiji didn't order people to attack, but just besieged, intending to wait until Wu Xiang ran out of water and food, and then forced them to surrender.
There is almost desert outside the city, and it can reach forty miles at a glance.Wu Sangui saw his father trapped on the tower and asked Zu Dashou to send reinforcements to rescue him.Zu Dashou saw that the enemy had 40,000 soldiers and horses, while the Ming army defending the city was only 3,000, which was not enough to defend the city, how could he send people out to die?So he said: "I take the important task of sealing the frontier, how dare I act rashly! In case of failure, the general will be to blame?" He refused to agree to Wu Sangui's request.Wu Sangui knew that he couldn't force it, so he knelt down and begged: "My lord won't send troops, I am willing to lead my family out of the city to fight to the death." Zu Dashou seemed to agree.So Wu Sangui led twenty members of his family out of the city to help.
Seeing that only twenty people rushed out of the city, Huang Taiji suddenly became suspicious.So he ordered people to let Wu Sangui and others into the battle first, planning to encircle and wipe them out in one fell swoop.But Wu Sangui took the opportunity to rush left and right, and Wu Xiang saw the reinforcements coming, so he also sent his troops out from inside.Zu Dashou saw it from the city tower and ordered people to shout loudly and beat drums to cheer.
Huang Taiji suspected that this was Zu Dashou's trick to lure the enemy, so he quickly ordered people to let Wu Xiang and Wu Sangui go out, and did not pursue.Zu Dashou was overjoyed to see that Wu Sangui was able to rescue Wu Xiang without losing his troops. He went out of the city to greet him at the Xiangting Pavilion three miles away, expressing his condolences and admiration.
Later Huang Taiji knew the truth of the matter, and also praised Wu Sangui, saying: "What a man! If my family gets this man, why worry about the world!" (see "Wu Sangui Jilue")
Soon, Wu Sangui returned to Hong Chengchou's command.Wu Sangui has the strongest army among the commanders of the towns under Hong Chengchou's jurisdiction.Wu Sangui had 20,000 soldiers under his command. He specially selected 1,000 elite soldiers to form a team of 50 cavalry, and each team had a leader cavalry.Wu Sangui wrote the names of these 20 people on bamboo sticks and stuck them in his boots. In an emergency, he casually pulled out a stick from the boot and called out the names on the sticks.The leading cavalry who was called immediately led Xiang Guang's men and horses to follow Wu Sangui.Although this method is crude, it is always beneficial.
In the Battle of Songshan, Hong Chengchou's army was besieged.Wu Sangui offered a plan and said: "The law of war says: 'Put it to death and live later.' Gui is willing to go forward bravely, and he can lead the crowd to follow after him. Why sit and wait for death?" Hong Chengchou agreed.Wu Sangui then deliberately broke through to the heavy Qing soldiers, and went away from there.Hong Chengchou did not dare to keep up, and was besieged at Songshan. He surrendered soon after, and Liaodong was lost.
Of Hong Chengchou's 130,000 troops, only Wu Sangui broke through the siege.Huang Taiji said to the soldiers under his command: "Xiao Zongbing Wu, what a man!"
Wu Sangui retreated to defend Shanhaiguan, with about 100,000 troops at that time.The guerrilla Hu Xinshui is the left battalion, and Xia Longshan is the right battalion.The second battalion is full of brave young men with extraordinary courage, and Wu Sangui became his confidant.And married his daughters to Hu Xinshui's son Hu Guozhu and Xia Longshan's son Xia Guoxiang respectively.
Soon, Wu Sangui's most admired uncle Zu Dashou and Wu Sangui's elder brother Wu Sanfeng and other Ming generals took the lead and surrendered to the Qing Dynasty. Wu Sangui and his subordinates added a layer of rather ambiguous relationship with the Manchu camp.
In March 1644, Wu Sangui was conferred the title of Ping Xibo by Emperor Chongzhen, and led his troops into Guanqin King.Due to the abandonment of the land outside the pass, the family members of the officials and gentry and a considerable number of Liaodong people followed into the pass. The placement was not yet determined, and the Ming Dynasty fell.
After Li Zicheng entered Beijing, he began to detain hundreds of officials for payment.Liu Zongmin copied Wu Xiang's home and got the beauty Chen Yuanyuan (also known as Chen Yuan) who was "all over the country and all over the city".Wu Sangui's official wife, Mrs. Zhang, was ugly and fierce. Wu Sangui was quite afraid of her, so he didn't bring Chen Yuanyuan with him, but kept Chen Yuanyuan in the capital. (Qing·Cangbian Shanqiao·"Wu Ni Que Lu Lu") Li Zicheng heard that Chen Yuanyuan was beautiful, so he snatched Chen Yuanyuan from Liu Zongmin, intending to make her his concubine.
It happened that Niu Jinxing and Song Xiance advised Li Zicheng to do more benevolence and righteousness, in order to achieve long-term peace and stability, and not to kill too much.Only then did Li Zicheng come to his senses, and said: "Shanshan, Henan, and Jingxiang are already under my control, and the spread to the south of the great river can be determined. Only Wu Sangui in Shanhaiguan is a brave general, and he should be recruited under his command; and the powerful enemy in Liaodong has made me sit down." Uneasy." (Qing Sun Xu "Ping Wulu")
So Li Zicheng did not make Chen Yuanfang his concubine, but sent Tang Tong to write a letter to Wu Sangui to recruit him.Tang Tong surrendered to Li Zicheng at Juyongguan. At this time, he was already an upstart in Dashun and was named Dingxibo.Tang Tong used to work with Wu Sangui in Liaodong, and he came forward to persuade him to surrender, "Praise himself as a virtuous man, and make him a father and son as a marquis", which was very attractive to Wu Sangui.
Li Zicheng also asked Wu Xiang to write a letter to Wu Sangui, in which he said: "You were given a special job because of your kindness, but you waited and watched cowardly, and drove the western soldiers away. The opportunity is gone, and the destiny is hard to return. Your lord He has passed away, but your father still exists. Woohoo! Those who know the current affairs can know what to do. If you come down this morning, you will not lose the reward of Tonghou, and you will be called a filial son."
Before that, the Manchu Qing had repeatedly recruited and surrendered Wu Sangui.As early as April in the 15th year of Chongzhen (1642), after the Manchu Qing conquered Songshan and Jinzhou, Huang Taiji wrote to Wu Sangui to inform Wu Sangui that his uncles Zu Dale, Zu Dashou and other "relatives of generals" were all preserved. Advise him to "repent all of a sudden and make up his mind to surrender."He also ordered Wu Sangui's elder brother Wu Sanfeng, Zu Kefa, Zhang Cunren, Pei Guozhen, Hu Hongxian, Jiang Xin, Chen Bangxuan, etc. to write letters to Wu Sangui based on their relatives and old friendships.Wu Sangui did not respond to these persuading letters.
In October of the 15th year of Chongzhen (1642), Huang Taiji once again wrote to Wu Sangui: "The emperor of the Qing Dynasty ordered General Wu of Ningyuan City: Today, the Ming Zuo is declining, and the general has understood it. The general and I have never had any enmity. The relatives of the general are all in my place. But the general will measure the situation at the right time, so we can plan it early." ("Records of Emperor Taizong of the Qing Dynasty") At the same time, he ordered Zu Dashou to write a letter to Wu Sangui.After several months, Wu Sangui finally wrote back to Zu Dashou, which said "hesitating".Huang Taiji responded positively immediately, and wrote to Wu Sangui again, urging him to "quickly try to surrender and make a name for himself."However, at that time, Wu Sangui thought that there was quite a lot of room for maneuver, not to mention that his family members were all in Beijing, so he did not accept the Manchu Qing's offer to surrender.
Times have changed, and the situation in front of Wu Sangui at this moment is quite grim. His subordinates and Shanhaiguan General Soldier (also known as Guanmen General Soldier) Gao Di's army totaled only 50,000 people.Moreover, under the "Jia Ding" system that prevailed in the late Ming Dynasty, less than half of the 50,000 soldiers and horses who were truly brave and well-equipped.However, Shanhaiguan happened to be between the two emerging forces of Qing and Shun. For Wu Sangui, who was cramped in a corner of Yongping Mansion in the pass, fighting against either side would be self-defeating.Obviously, it is unrealistic to continue to be loyal to the Ming Dynasty, because the Ming Dynasty headed by Emperor Chongzhen no longer exists, and the Hongguang court in Nanming had not yet been established at that time.Shanhaiguan is too far away from the remnant forces south of the Huaihe River, and there is no communication. When Li Zicheng rushed in Shanxi, Beizhili and Shandong, he had severely damaged the north-south traffic.
Wu Sangui's current situation is difficult and the pressure he is under is unimaginable to ordinary people. Li Zicheng's hundreds of thousands of troops are close at hand, and Dorgon of the Manchu Qing Dynasty is leading an army southward, and he will be able to go to Shanhaiguan in a few days.According to the Korean envoy who was in Shengjing at that time: "The Nine Kings of Qingri (referring to Dorgon) heard that China was sitting empty, and within a few days, they rushed to gather troops and horses. All men under seventy and over ten years old Join the army. The judgment of success or failure is in one action." The mobilization of troops was so large that even the Manchu people said, "the army was raised before and after, which is not as big as it is today."For Wu Sangui, there are only two paths he can take, either surrender or surrender, time and situation are forcing him to make a choice.
A few days after receiving Li Zicheng's persuading letter, Wu Sangui has been deliberating over countermeasures. What should he do?This is not an easy choice for anyone.Of course, in the end, Wu Sangui’s thinking was the same as that of most of the former Ming officials who surrendered to Li Zicheng in the capital. It was logical to regard the fall of the Ming Dynasty as a common dynastic change in history; The Qing Dynasty was in a state of confrontation, and there were vendettas against each other, but there was not much grievance with the Dashun Army.After Wu Sangui figured it out, he quickly decided to join the Dashun regime.The defense of Shanhaiguan was taken over by Tang Tong sent by Li Zicheng.
On March 22, 1644, three days after Chongzhen Emperor Meishan hanged himself, Wu Sangui posted a notice in Yongping Mansion (the mansion is located in today's Lulong County, Hebei Province), saying, "This town leads the troops to Beijing to meet the new My lord, there must be no crime in the place I have passed, and the people in the local area need not be frightened", which proves that he has led his troops to Beijing to accept Li Zicheng's new order.
On March 26, Wu Sangui led his troops to Yutian County, Hebei Province, not far from Beijing.But in Yutian County, Wu Sangui suddenly changed his mind, from preparing to surrender Dashun to taking a hostile attitude.The reason for this drastic change is naturally what people like to talk about, "become a beauty when you rush to the crown".Wu Sangui met a servant who escaped from Beijing in Yutian. He heard that his concubine Chen Yuanyuan who was staying in Beijing was captured by Liu Zongmin of the Dashun Army. !"
Wu Sangui also specially wrote a letter in response to his father Wu Xiang's surrender. The book said: "A father can neither be a loyal minister nor a son a filial son." Therefore, later generations ridiculed Wu Sangui's love for his concubine more than that of father and son.
But at its root, when Wu Sangui surrendered to Dashun, his original intention was to protect and expand his own interests. The news from Beijing made him suspicious, and he guessed that Li Zicheng's summoning was probably a scam, and he would take unfavorable actions against him. .So, in order to save his life, he suddenly changed his mind, led his troops and horses straight to Shanhaiguan, and launched a surprise attack on the Tangtong Ministry guarding the closed gate from behind.
Tang Tong's troops were only about one-fifth of Wu Sangui's troops, and he was caught off guard by an accident, and Shanhaiguan was re-occupied by Wu Sangui.Tang Tong led the remnants to evacuate to a place called Pianshi not far from Shanhaiguan, and other officials appointed by the Dashun regime also fled back.
Wu Sangui also ordered the soldiers to mourn for Emperor Chongzhen, set up a remote memorial ceremony, formed an alliance with blood, and vowed to wipe out Li Chuang and avenge the Ming Dynasty.This is what Wu Weiye chanted, "The three armies are lamenting, and they are all confidantes when they rush to the crown."If there is no beauty, how can you be plain?
The situation began to take a sharp turn from this time, and history was rewritten because of a woman.The choice of historical figures at important junctures has a huge impact on history and completely changes the direction of the country's destiny.
During the national revolution in 1644, if Li Zicheng was the tree planter, then Dorgon was obviously the one who picked the peaches.
Dorgon was the fourteenth son of Nurhaci, the Great Khan of the Later Jin Dynasty. When the Qing soldiers entered Shanhaiguan, he was only 32 years old, but he was already a battle-hardened commander.
In the 40th year of Ming Wanli (1612), Dorgon was born in Hetuala on October 25th. His biological mother, Abahai, was surnamed Ulanara.At this time, Nurhachi was no longer the leader of a small tribe with low status, but the "Congrui Jinghan" who unified the Jurchen tribes, and was further developing the unification cause, laying the foundation for the establishment of the Qing Dynasty.When Dorgon was born less than a hundred days ago, Nurhachi led an army to attack Ula, and finally destroyed the mother country of his wife Abahai. Dorgon, mother and son faced the danger of being thrown into the cold palace.However, due to Nurhachi's policy of giving preferential treatment to those who surrendered, and Abahai's scheming and good dealings, their mother and child survived the difficulties safely. As time went by, Dorgon also stepped into the ranks of Taiji.
In 1616 AD, Nurhachi established the Kingdom of Houjin and was named the Mandate of Heaven. Two years later, he declared to the heavens with the "Seven Great Hatreds" and launched an attack on the Ming Dynasty, which opened the prelude to the war between the Ming and Qing Dynasties.In the successive victories of the war against Ming Dynasty, internal contradictions and struggles in Hou Jin also continued to occur.In March of the fifth year of Destiny (1620), Nurhachi abandoned the Dafujin Fucha family.At that time, the Dafujin Fucha family had four crimes, one of which was the ambiguous relationship between Dabeile Daishan and the Fucha family.But in fact, there is not enough basis. In fact, someone framed them.
After the Fucha clan was abandoned, it was Dorgon's mother Abahai who replaced her as Da Fujin.In this way, Nurhachi loved the house and Wu, and Dorgon and his brothers Azige and Duoduo began to rise in status.
Daishan gradually lost his father's favor because of his shrewdness and calculation.Soon, Daishan listened to his second wife's slander and abused his son Shuotuo, who was born to his ex-wife. This gave people who coveted his crown prince an excuse to oppose him.In September of the same year, Nurhachi announced that he would depose Dabeile Daishan as the crown prince, and "Li Amintaiji, Manggur Taitaiji, Huangtaiji, Degelei, Yuetuo, Jierhalang, Azigea Brother, Doduo, and Dorgon are "Heshuo Ezhen" and discuss state affairs together.In other words, from this time on, Dorgon joined the ranks of Heshuo Ezhen who participated in state affairs as an eight-year-old boy.This is a major move to change the political structure of the post-Jin Dynasty. For the first time, the Dorgon brothers became one of the tripartite forces in the balance.
In the eleventh year of Mandate of Heaven (1626), Nurhachi led an army to attack Ningyuan (now Xingcheng, Liaoning).In July of the same year, Nurhachi suffered a recurrence of trauma and had to go to Qinghe Tangquan to recuperate.In August, the injury became serious, and he returned to Shengjing by boat.On the way, he knew that he was about to die, so he notified the concubine Nalashi to welcome him, as if he wanted to grant his will.On August 11, due to the deterioration of his injuries, Nurhachi died in Aijibao (now south of Shenyang City) on the way.It is rumored that when he was dying, he appointed his most beloved and valued fourteenth son, Dorgon, as his successor.
At this time, although Dorgon was ranked ninth among the top ten Baylors, known as the Nine Baylors, he was only fifteen years old at this time.The other Baylors have long been afraid of the rapid growth of the three Dorgon brothers. The eighth son, Huang Taiji (also known as the Fourth Baylor), has mastered the Zhenghuang Banner and the Bordered Yellow Banner of the Houjin Eight Banners. The power is strong, and the Baylors support Huang Taiji as Khan .Nine hours later, Zhongbeile ordered Abahai to commit suicide as a martyr, claiming that it was Taizu's "last order".From this time on, the situation of the three Dorgon brothers took a turn for the worse. They had lost their political support, and they also faced the robbing of their banner by their brothers, and they didn't know what disasters would come in the future.
After Huang Taiji succeeded to the throne, although he did not attack the Dorgon brothers, he also degraded their status a lot through three oaths of allegiance.But things changed soon after. At the beginning of Huang Taiji's accession to the throne, his position was not very stable. At that time, the three most threatening to the imperial power were the three Baylors - Daishan, Amin and Mangurtai.Huang Taiji wanted to weaken the power of these three Baylors, and his own strength alone was not enough, so he began to win over and support some brothers and nephews who had no conflict of interest with him, including Dorgon.In March of the second year of Tiancong (1628), Huang Taiji deposed the brave and arrogant Azige as the banner owner, and let Dorgon succeed Gushan Baylor.At this time, Dorgon had just turned fifteen.
Dorgon has had to survive in the cracks since he was a teenager. This very human experience sharpened his talent and scheming, and he began to show his extraordinary intelligence that he is good at hiding.On the one hand, Dorgon followed Huang Taiji closely, won his favor and trust, and never showed his ambition; on the other hand, he showed superhuman courage and wisdom on the battlefield, and made new achievements in battle.In February of the second year of Tiancong (1628), he accompanied Huang Taiji to the Chahar Dorot tribe of Mongolia for the first time. ) title, praised him as "both brave and wise".Half a month later, Dorgon succeeded Gushan Baylor, because his success at a young age laid the foundation for his future progress.
In the third year of Tiancong (1629), Huang Taiji led the army to attack the Ming Dynasty. Dorgon took the lead in the battles of Hanerzhuang, Zunhua, and Guangqumen in Beijing. In the Battle of Linghe, he was also responsible for conquering the Fortified City.In the eighth year of Tiancong (1634), Huang Taiji attacked the Ming Dynasty again, and the three Dorgon brothers entered Longmenkou and plundered Shanxi. They killed more people... and captured countless livestock."
"Drafts of Qing History: Biography of Dorgon" records that in 1629, when Huang Taiji soldiers besieged Beijing, Dorgon fought fiercely with Yuan Chonghuan's reinforcements outside Guangqumen. In 1635, when Dorgon led his army to conquer the remnant Chahar tribe of Mongolia (the descendant of the emperor of the Yuan Dynasty), he obtained the Jade Seal of the Yuan Dynasty that had been lost for more than 200 years (that is, the Jade Seal of the Jade Seal of the Yuan Dynasty that was carved with Heshibi by Qin Shihuang).As a result, Huang Taiji obtained the basis for proclaiming himself emperor and a tool to attract people's hearts. He was overjoyed when he heard the news, and he personally led the princes and ministers and all the Fujins out of Shenyang to meet the triumphant master. Naturally, he also praised Dorgon greatly.Soon after, Huang Taiji ascended the throne as the emperor. After changing the name of the Kingdom of Jin to "Qing" and the reign name Chongde, it was already on an equal footing with the Ming Dynasty.Dorgon was conferred the title of Prince He Shuorui ("Rui", which also means smart), and he was the third of the six kings. He was only 24 years old at the time.
After that, Dorgon led his troops to attack Ming Dynasty several times, all of which achieved brilliant results.In the third year of Chongde (1638), he was awarded the "General Ordered", and led the army to break through the Qiangziling, defeated the Ming army in Julu, and Ming commander Lu Xiangsheng died in battle.Then the troops divided into two groups and attacked Shandong and Shanxi. Dorgon's troops captured thirty-six cities in total, surrendered six, defeated the enemy in seventeen formations, captured more than 257,000 people and animals, and captured a prince of the Ming Dynasty. One county king, kill five county kings and so on.After class, Dorgon was rewarded with five horses and twenty thousand taels of silver.
In the battle of Jinzhou, which was besieged by Zu Dashou, the Qing army was initially led by Dorgon.However, without Huang Taiji's approval, he arbitrarily decided that each cattle record (one cattle record is 300 people) will go home to rest in groups of five in turn, so as to restore the morale and combat effectiveness of his troops, as well as the physical strength of the horses that have nowhere to graze. .Huang Taiji was furious when he heard about this, and Dorgon "said he deserved to die" ("Manuscripts of Qing History Volume 218 Biography of Dorgon"), Huang Taiji demoted Dorgon from prince to county king, and fined him one year of silver. Qianliang seized Liangniulu, and recalled him to Shengjing on May 1, 1641, and stayed in the court.
It can be seen from this incident that Dorgon is not a martial artist, and even Huang Taiji can see this clearly. Therefore, when the official system was changed, the official department, the head of the six departments, was handed over to him to rule.According to his recommendation, Huang Taiji promoted Xi Fu, Fan Wencheng, Bao Chengxian, Gang Lin and other civil servants respectively, and used their talents to govern the country.According to his suggestion, Huang Taiji made major reforms to government agencies and established the eight-yamen official system.In addition, the succession and promotion of civil servants and military generals, and even the appointment of princes and nobles who manage various ministries must be appointed by him.In the process of governing the six ministries, Dorgon exercised his administrative management ability and prepared the conditions for his later regent.
However, Huang Taiji did not expect that Dorgon was taking advantage of the emperor's trust to gradually weaken the power of those who had attacked him in the past, waiting for an opportunity, and coveting power.
Soon, the time finally came.Throughout his life, Huang Taiji was diligent in political affairs and brave in battle. He must personally handle many important military and state affairs.Due to the long-term high mental tension, the health was seriously damaged, and he became sick from overwork.At ten o'clock in the evening on August 9th in the eighth year of Chongde (1643), Huang Taiji died of a heart attack while sitting on top of the Nankang in the Dongnuange bedroom of Qingning Palace in Shenyang Imperial Palace (records say that Huang Taiji was the most Concubine Chen Hai Lanzhu, the elder sister of Concubine Zhuang's Dayu'er, died of grief due to the loss of her son, and Huang Taiji also died of pain).Because Huang Taiji did not make any arrangements for the affairs behind him, the princes and ministers were quickly brewing a fierce battle for the throne behind the scenes of mourning.
In all fairness, only three people are qualified to inherit the vacancy left by Huang Taiji: Daishan, Huang Taiji's elder brother, Hauge, the eldest son of Huang Taiji, and Dorgon.At this time, Daishan's power of the two red flags has been weakened, and he himself is over sixty years old, and he has long since ignored the government.But with Daishan's qualifications and the strength of the two red flags, his attitude can influence the development of the situation.In fact, the most intense competition is the latter two.As far as these two people are concerned, Haoge is the eldest son, and his strength is slightly stronger. This is not only because he possessed the Three Banners (when Huang Taiji was alive, he not only had two Yellow Banners, but also captured the Zhenglan Banner), and because Daishan and Xianglan Banner owner Ji Erhalang has felt Dorgon's aggressiveness, and is ready to vote for Hauge.But Dorgon's power is not weak, he has outstanding civil and military talents, behind him are two white flags and two brave brothers who are good at fighting, and there are also some clans in Zhenghongqi, Zhenglanqi and Zhenghuangqi who secretly support him. It made him even more powerful.
On August 14, the kings and ministers gathered in Chongzheng Hall to discuss the issue of succession to the throne.Whether this issue can be resolved peacefully is directly related to the safety of the Eight Banners and the future of the Qing Dynasty.The ministers of the Two Yellow Banners couldn't wait any longer. On the one hand, they sent people to surround the Chongzheng Hall with swords drawn;At this time, Azig and Duo Duo then came out to persuade Duo ErGun to ascend the throne.But Dorgon observed the situation and saw that the two yellow flags had been prepared for a long time, and they were guarded by heavy soldiers from the two yellow flags. He felt that it was not good for him, so he didn't agree immediately.Duoduo understood, and deliberately proposed Daishan as a candidate.Sure enough, Daishan argued strongly on the grounds of "old age and frailty", and raised both Dorgon and Hauge. His opinions were ambiguous, and neither side should be offended.Seeing that he could not be passed smoothly, Hauge threatened to withdraw.The ministers of the two yellow flags also left their seats one after another, pressed their swords forward, and said: "If we don't establish the son of the emperor, we would rather die, and follow the emperor to the ground!" Azig also went with him.Seeing this situation, Dorgon felt that it was impossible to establish himself as emperor, so he quickly proposed to make Fulin, the youngest son of Huang Taiji, as emperor, with himself and Jierhalang as assistants to the left and right, and Fulin returned to power when he was old.
Dorgon's suggestion was like a sudden peak, which was beyond everyone's expectations.After the establishment of the prince, the mouths of the two yellow flag ministers were blocked. Hauge was unhappy, but he couldn't say it.Dorgon himself made a concession, but as the auxiliary king, he was also the actual power holder.Jierhalang didn't expect that he would also be in the limelight, so of course he wouldn't object.Daishan only seeks stability in the overall situation, and personally has no intention of competing for position, and will not express any objection to this plan.In this way, the compromise plan was accepted by all parties, but the new political structure formed by it had a huge impact on the political situation in the next few years or even decades.
The reason why Dorgon chose Fulin as emperor was once drawn by some poets to his "love affair" with his mother Concubine Zhuang.In fact, the reason why Dorgon chose Fulin was because he was only six years old and easy to control, so he also excluded the princes Haoge, Yebusu, and Shuosai; He was favored by Huang Taiji and had a high status. There was always a saying in the Qing Dynasty that sons should be valued by their mothers. Choosing his son as emperor was easier for the ministers to accept, and it could even be said to be in line with the late emperor's wish.Although the name of Concubine Linzhi Palace is higher than that of Concubine Zhuang, her actual status is not high, so her two-year-old youngest son, Bomu Bogor, cannot be selected.
At the same time, the candidate for the assistant king also represents the balance of forces among all parties.Since the Yellow and White Banners are the main competitors, Fulin's accession to the throne already represents the interests of the two Yellow and Zhenglan Banners, and it is inevitable for Dorgon to serve as assistant government.But he may not get the opponent's consent if he takes the stage alone, so he pulls Jierhalang.In the eyes of the other party, this is the centrist who suppresses Dorgon, and in Dorgon's mind, this person is easier to deal with.As far as the lower class subjects were concerned, Dorgon and Jierhalang were the most trusted and valued people in Huang Taiji's later years. They took the lead in handling many government affairs, so it was not surprising that they served as regents.
在达成协议两天之后，代善之子贝子硕托、孙郡王阿达礼，又图谋推翻成议，劝多尔衮自立。多尔衮从大局出发，揭发了这一乱国阴谋，并忍痛将他们诛杀。于是六岁的福临于1643年十月八日即位为顺治帝，改明年为顺治元年。睿亲王多尔衮和郑亲王济尔哈朗同辅政，继而称摄政王；“刑政拜除，大小国事，九王（多尔衮）专掌之”。济尔哈朗仅管“出兵等事”。
就这样，多尔衮妥善地处理了十分棘手的皇位争夺问题，自己也向权力的顶峰迈进了一步。尔衮的这一方案，在客观上避免了八旗内乱，保存了实力，维护了上层统治集团的基本一致。
就在八旗贵族还在因为内部矛盾争吵不休的时候，明朝后院的火已经一发不可收拾。1643年十一月，李自成农民军攻破潼关，占领了西安，然后分兵攻打汉中、榆林、甘肃，在年底以前已据有西北全境，以及河南中、西部和湖广的数十府县。另一支农民军在张献忠率领下，转战湘赣鄂数省，亦给明廷以重创。
而在关外，一直蠢蠢欲动的多尔衮一待政权稳固，立即伺机派济尔哈朗和阿济格等率军出征，攻克明朝关外据点中后所、前屯卫、中前所，割断宁远与山海关的联系。此时明朝内外交困，已经无力抵御满清的新一轮进攻。但是，山海关依旧雄立其中，称为满清难以逾越的障碍。在1644年的新混到来之际，李自成农民军和清军一南一北，都距明朝政治中心北京数百里之遥，究竟谁能逐鹿得手呢？
多尔衮当了摄政王不到两个月，就发生了豫亲王多铎阴谋抢夺汉族大学士范文程妻子的事情。多铎是多尔衮的同胞弟弟，他们的生母纳喇氏大妃被皇太极等贝勒强行逼迫为努尔哈赤殉葬时，小弟多铎才只有五岁，一直依附在多尔衮身边，一直到长大成人。因此，平日最受多尔衮的疼爱。
多铎偶然见到范文程的妻子非常漂亮，动了邪念，想抢占她，经常派人到范文程家周围观察动静，弄得范家日夜担忧，恐慌不安。多尔衮听到这件事，十分生气，马上派人把多铎叫来，当着满朝王公贵族和文臣武将的面严厉斥责了他，命令他上交二千两白银和十五个牛录的兵力作为惩罚。
平时受到满族权贵欺凌的汉族大臣见摄政王不避亲贵，重重处罚了多铎，从心底里释去疑虑和怨愤，从此更竭力为清朝出谋划策了。范文程当即上书朝廷，分析关内的形势，请求严申军纪，笼络人心，进兵中原，同农民军争夺天下。多尔衮觉得有理，便拿定主意，率领军队南下出发了。
历史就在1644甲申年两度奇妙地改写。
谁也料不到的是，历史的偶然性使吴三桂扮演了一个举足轻重的角色，整个转折点就在山海关发生。
吴三桂在山海关接受了李自成的招降后，就由唐通接管了山海关，然后率兵前往北京，预备去朝见新皇帝李自成。但当吴三桂走到玉田时，得知自己的私人利益遭到损害，便“翻然复走山海关”，出其不意地击走唐通，背叛了李自成。至此，历史的天平才开始戏剧性地向满清偏倒。
让我们重新回到吴三桂“恸哭六军俱缟素，冲冠一怒为红颜”的那一幕。
吴三桂的骤然变卦，使山海关地区顿时彤云密布，笼罩着一片紧张的战争气氛。当地人士佘一元《述旧事诗》记录说：“吴帅旋关日，文武尽辞行。士女争骇窜，农商互震惊”，真切地反映了百姓们的惶惧不安。跟吴三桂采取同一立场的只有原山海关总兵高第和卫城（即清代的临榆县）一小撮缙绅地主。关、辽两镇兵力合计不过五万，山海关一隅之地又难以筹措粮饷。“维时内无军需，外无援旅，人心汹汹，不保朝夕”。
吴三桂当然明白凭借手中现有的一点军事和经济实力，根本不足以同大顺政权抗衡。为了在大顺和满清的夹缝中求得生存，为自身谋得更多的讨价还价的资本，他决定回师夺取山海关。吴三桂职业军人出身，自然明白山海关将成为他手里的王牌。正因为山海关地理位置的重要性，满清和李自成的大军隔关对峙，吴三桂才有机会在历史的转折关头扮演了举足轻重的角色。
回师攻打山海关实际上意味着吴三桂同大顺政权决裂，他这时在心中已经把投靠满清作为出路。但战场上磨练出来的吴三桂并非善类，为了给自己增添一些本钱，他不是立即率部出关，以丧家之犬的形象向满清投降，而是玩弄手腕，一面派人给多尔衮送信，依旧以明朝忠臣的形象出现，请求满清出兵为崇祯皇帝报仇，愿以“大利”及满清已占领的辽西为代价，来换取清军的帮助；一面又派人送信给李自成，表示仍然希望投诚，以作为缓兵之计，等到满清大军到来。
实际上，吴三桂非常了解满族军事制度，所以他用“大利”来投其所好。满清在当时依旧是一个部落，他们的传统是靠掠夺战利品，所以清军各旗的将士很少得到军饷。正因为这种传统，满清的贵族们才一直坚持认为，与其占领中原，不如将其作为劫掠之地。因此吴三桂的设想是，清军进关可以支持他对大顺军的反击，而当满清得到大量财物后，便会跟往常一样撤回家乡。当然，满清也许会以割占整个辽西为条件，但对他吴三桂来说，他将为明朝建立更大的功勋，使天下重新恢复秩序。
在这个时候，吴三桂依旧是站在明朝的立场上来考虑的，他最初的用意并不是要投降满清，而是想与满清结盟，满清在他眼中是要扮演友军的角色。他的这一举动在后来得到了南明政权的相当肯定。
但是，仅仅掠夺中原不是多尔衮的汉人谋士的设想，在他们的头脑中有一个截然不同的历史模式。
吴三桂意外改变了历史的走向，并不意味着他能继续控制历史后来滚滚的潮流。局势在飞速地发展，而且出乎所有人的意料。
李自成获悉吴三桂叛变占领山海关的消息后，经过紧张的商议，决定一面安抚吴三桂，由吴骧出面，写信规劝吴三桂，希望借父子之情使他幡然变计；一面作好武力解决的准备，出兵平叛。
不过这个时候，北京城中的李自成还不知道满清多尔衮正亲自率大军南下，骤然而至的胜利和权力使大顺军的领导们几乎忘记了东北关外还有虎视耽耽的清军。
1664年四月十三日清晨，李自成、刘宗敏亲自统率大军向山海关进发。随行的有明朝太子朱慈烺、永王、定王和吴骧等人，这说明李自成仍希望通过君、亲之义招降吴三桂。
李自成决意亲征前，矮子军事宋献策和大将李岩都劝他不可贸然出征，说：“皇上去于皇上不利，三桂来于三桂不利。”这话说得相当精辟。但李自成不听，执意要去。但他嘴上说打仗，心里还抱有幻想，还想招安吴三桂。短期内巨大的成功已经挑起了李自成天一样的欲望。从这个意义上讲，短期内的成功也许不是成功。
对于这个时候的吴三桂来说，重新投降大顺已经不可能。他正天真地设想如何与满清结盟，然后借满清的兵力平定天下，那么他将是一个名垂青史的人物。
李自成并不知道吴三桂同清方勾结已成定局，招降的可能性早已经不复存在。行至三河县时，大顺军遇到了吴三桂派来的使者，谎称吴三桂仍愿意投诚，请求缓师。在这个关键时刻，李自成又一次麻痹大意了。机遇就像阳光，它会公平地照在每一个人身上。捕捉机遇就是捕捉历史，李自成就在这里丧失了机遇，从而与历史擦肩而过。他派明朝降官密云巡抚王则尧以兵政府尚书的官衔去山海关同吴三桂谈判，随即下令大顺军放慢了进军速度。
李自成优柔，吴三桂果断，多尔衮更加果断。三家在山海光风云际会，碰撞的结果自然可知了。
我们再来看看多尔衮这边的动向。
具有讽刺意味的是，多尔衮的大军采纳了洪承畴的进军路线，准备由蓟州、密云破边墙而入，避免顿兵山海关坚城之下。清军行至翁后，意外地遇上了吴三桂的使者副将杨珅、游击郭云龙，携带求援书信，里面写着：“三桂受国厚恩，悯斯民之罹难，拒守边门，欲兴师问罪，以慰人心。奈京东地小，兵力未集，特泣血求助。……王以盖世英雄，值此摧枯拉朽之会，诚难再得之时也。乞念亡国孤臣忠义之言，速选精兵，直入中协、西协；三桂自率所部，合兵以抵都门，灭流寇于宫廷，示大义于中国。则我朝之报北朝岂惟财帛，将裂地以酧，不敢食言。”
吴三桂还请求多尔衮继续按原来的路线进军，从喜峰口、墙子岭一带进入长城，截住李自成的退路，与明军一齐聚尔歼之。
很明显，吴三桂的信在措词上经过斟酌，他以明朝孤臣的名义请求清方合兵共讨农民军，尽管当时明朝廷并不存在，“裂地以酧”也不是他所能决定的。
此时形势咋变于呼吸间。昨天的敌人变成了朋友，更强的敌人出现了。留给多尔衮的时间只有一天。这是这个年轻人短暂的一生中最长的一天。多尔衮果断决定，大军急行军转向山海关，他才不会理会吴三桂要他走喜峰口和墙子岭的要求呢。
历史就是这么富有戏剧性。一直到收到吴三桂书信的那一天，多尔衮才知道崇祯皇帝已经死了。
明朝天子竟然暴死，这太令人意外。多尔衮第一点想到的是，对满清来说，大顺政权不再是潜在的盟友，而变成了他们的主要敌人。于是本来要来侵略明朝的满清反倒打出了为明朝天子复仇的名义，接受了吴三桂的邀请。这个时候，多尔衮并不知道吴三桂引清军入关的前因后果，也根本不知道吴三桂曾经投降过李自成。
对于吴三桂这封邀请满清入关共同抗击李自成的邀请信，多尔衮感觉有如神助，简直要欣喜若狂了。他立即给吴三桂回了一封信：“伯虽向守辽东，与我为敌，今亦勿因前故尚复怀疑。……今伯若率众来归，必封以故土，晋为藩王，一则国仇得报，一则身家可保，世世子孙长享富贵，如山河之永也。”
多尔衮明确表示愿意联合吴三桂对付李自成，但他的立场与吴三桂不同，他是从清廷一方考虑的，他并不打算复兴实际上已同清廷处于战争状态的明王朝，所以他才下令清兵直接开往山海关。多尔衮说他们已得知明朝皇帝惨死的消息，因而决定集合“义兵”，“期必灭贼，出民水火”。于是，满清从入侵的外敌摇身一变成了为明讨贼的义师。同时，多尔衮在信中也直截了当地以晋封藩王为诱饵，招降吴三桂。
而一直等候吴三桂答覆的李自成久久不见王则尧回来，心中起疑，这才继续向山海关进发。
吴三桂得知李自成亲统大顺军主力迫近山海关，再次派郭云龙催促清军火速来援时，请求多尔衮“速整虎旅，直入山海”。这时候的语气已经全然变了，吴三桂不再要求多尔衮去抄李自成的后路。吴三桂是个精明的机会主义者，事情到了这个地步，他已经明白，多尔衮的眼光和抱负决非李自成所能相比。
四月二十日，多尔衮接到吴三桂的第二封信，他知道形势紧迫，为了防止大顺军占领山海关，下令兼程前进。在向南行进途中，清军曾与唐通遭遇。唐通奉命率几百人绕到关外，从背后攻击吴三桂。他的人马在抚宁西北的“一片石”偶然遇到清军主力，遂被歼灭。唐通逃脱，后降清。
四月二十一日，清军以一天二百里的速度急行军（相当于红军抢渡大渡河的速度），于当晚到达距关城十里的地方驻营。这时，大顺军与吴三桂的部下正在激战之中。
从北京到山海关大约五天可达，大顺军四月十三日出发，却在八天之后即四月二十日才进抵关西。这时，李自成才知道王则尧早已经被吴三桂拘押，吴三桂和高第的军队已经在关内沿石河一线做好了作战准备，除了武力解决，已经没有招降余地了。
如果李自成早一天到，山海关之战就不是后来那个结局了。
李自成已经丧失了先机，到了这个时候，他竟然还不知道多尔衮已经率领清兵在一旁虎视眈眈。
四月二十一日上午辰时（约为八点），历史上著名的决定中国命运的山海关战役开始。李自成知道吴三桂的戍边部队顽强善战，所以决心全力以赴；为了全歼关辽兵，防止吴三桂部被击败后引残部出关降清，作出用兵部署：把主力放在石河西，另外派遣部分军队包抄至关内外，进攻山海关的东罗城、西罗城、北翼城。吴三桂的军队也下决心与大顺军死战到底。双方激战一昼夜，到四月二十二日上午，吴三桂军已有不支之势，据守北翼城的一支吴军向大顺军投降。
此刻清军已经于前一日晚上赶到，却始终按兵不动，保存实力，坐视双方消耗。多尔衮的这一策略使吴三桂损失惨重，因而更加依赖清军。此时，吴三桂的处境和心情都已经发生了很大的变化，他知道局势已经不是他所能控制了，除了投降满清，他已经没有其他可以自保之路。这样一来，当初请兵相助的初衷完全变了质，吴三桂终于被后人认为是不折不扣的开关延敌的民族叛徒。
情况危急下，吴三桂亲自带领部分兵马和当地乡绅冲出关门，请求清军立即参战。
多尔衮统率的清军二十一日晚驻营距关城十里，二十二日晨，清军进至离关城仅二里，多尔衮在欢喜岭的威远台上观战。吴三桂到后，多尔衮当即“赐坐赐茶，面谕关门为第一功”。他对吴三桂等官绅说道：“汝等愿为故主复仇，大义可嘉。予领兵来成全其美。先帝时事，在今日不必言，亦不忍言。但昔为敌国，今为一家。我兵进关，若动人一株草、一颗粒，定以军法处死。汝等分谕大小居民勿得惊慌。”
吴三桂同意在闯贼平定后，整个中国都将属于多尔衮之“贵国”，并杀白马黑牛立誓。实际上在这个时候，吴三桂已经接受了多尔衮的招降。然后，多尔衮令吴三桂按满族习俗剃发，并当场许诺将皇太极的女儿建宁公主嫁给吴三桂的儿子吴应熊，“折箭誓为婚姻”（清·孙旭《平吴录》）。
多尔衮又吩咐吴三桂说：“尔回，可令尔兵以白布系肩为号。不然，同系汉人，以何为辨？恐致误杀。”吴三桂立即回关准备接应。同时，多尔衮下令清军从南水门、北水门、关中门三路进关。
清兵进关后，见大顺军从北山至海边排列成一字长蛇阵，多尔衮即令清军沿近海处鳞次布列，吴三桂军排列于清军的右边，采取重点突破战术。这时正值大风扬尘，能见度很低，清军得以从容布阵。少顷，风止，多尔衮一声令下，清军呼啸出击，万马奔腾，飞矢如蝗。大顺军虽拼死抵抗，但强弱易形，兵员同吴三桂军已鏖战一昼夜，面对以逸待劳的清军很快就被击败，阵容大乱，大将刘宗敏也负了伤。
李自成立马小岗阜上，在山上督战，见败局已定，下令急速撤退。风沙如此猛烈，以至清军直到风停沙住之后，才知道敌军已被击溃。据地方志载，被丢弃在沙河战场上的尸体有数万具，其中许多是支援大顺军的当地农民。
为了明白山海关战役的胜负，分析一下参战各方兵力情况是必要的。大顺军开赴山海关平叛的兵马大约为近十万名；吴三桂、高第的关、辽兵合计约为五万；多尔衮所统满、蒙、汉军队大约为七八万人。在三支军队中，清军战斗力最强，他们的人和马都披着甲胄，非常坚硬，百步之外无法洞穿，所以才有铁骑的称号；而吴三桂的部队则是原明朝官军中的精锐；大顺军大部分都是农民，而且新加入不久，没有经过正规的军事训练，兵员素质不如清方和明方。但是，大顺军也是一支不容小觑的“虎狼师”。大顺军平时杀俘虏的血饮马。马饮惯了血，对水不屑一顾。打仗前一天，往往不饮马，让马特别饥渴。上了战场后，战马一旦闻到血腥味，奔腾嘶鸣，眼睛发红，简直像狮子一样。大顺军将士骑这种马冲锋陷阵，往往攻无不克。
在这样的形势下，介于顺、清之间的吴三桂部队就非常关键：如果吴三桂投降大顺，则李自成的兵力约为来犯之清兵一倍，而且山海关要隘不致拱手让敌，即便在同清军作战中局部失利，大顺政权可征调的增援兵力较清方要大得多；如果吴三桂叛投满清，双方兵力对比和局势就完全颠倒过来，清、吴联军在数量上也占了优势。
但李自成事先并没有料到满清会这么快介入，他以为集结在北京地区的大顺军击破吴三桂的部队绰有余裕的。不少史籍记载清军投入战斗以前，大顺军毫无觉察，等到发现突阵而来的是清军，立即失魂落魄地奔逃。这和当时情况不符，大顺军同吴三桂部作战时已经包围了山海关，吴三桂往威远台请清军参战时是“冲”过大顺军阵地的，清军随即入关，大顺军不可能不知道。问题是直到清军入关时，李自成才获悉清军进至山海关地区，但他已经来不及檄调援军，只有凭手头现有的兵力付之一掷了。这是李自成自己的重大失误，不仅仅是他对吴三桂的判断失误，他对整个局势都缺乏大局观。仅从这一件事上，就知道在群雄并起的动荡时刻，李自成坐不了天下。
山海关战役是明清之际直接影响全国局势发展的一场关键性战役，对于推翻明朝后究竟是由大顺朝廷还是清朝廷统治全国关系重大。战役的结果是清胜顺败，根本原因在于李自成等大顺军领导人目光短浅，政策和战略上犯了一系列重大错误。山海关战役后，大顺军的形势急转而下，而满清梦寐以求的入主中原迈出了极其关键的一步。
从此，历史又翻开了新的一页。
我们先来看看陈圆圆的一生。
陈圆圆原姓邢，名沅，字圆圆，又字畹芳，幼从养母陈氏，故改姓陈。她本为昆山歌妓，幼从养母陈氏，故改姓陈。她殊色秀容，花明雪艳，能歌善舞，色艺冠时，人云“声甲天下之声，色甲天下之色”。因为她曾寓居过秦淮，由于她色艺超群，更与重大历史事件相系，所以清人便将她列入了“秦淮八艳”之中，并说她是“前朝金陵倡家女”。
明朝末年，内有起义军风起云涌，外有满人虎视眈眈，弄得大明朝廷摇摇欲坠，崇祯皇帝更是心神俱疲。而后宫中明争暗斗也正激烈，田贵妃施展狐媚手段，迷得崇祯皇帝神魂颠倒，正宫周皇后却倍受冷落。周皇后的父亲嘉定伯周奎为了帮女儿夺回恩宠，盘算着要找一位才貌迷人的美女安插到皇帝身边，作为周皇后的心腹与田贵妃一争高低。
崇祯十四年秋天，周奎因营葬先人遗骨之事回到了原籍苏州，相中了正值二八佳龄的红歌妓陈圆圆。
陈圆圆最早与复社四公子之一的冒襄（辟疆）相恋，冒襄的甜言蜜语糊弄得她芳心半许。被周奎选中后，陈圆圆大为惊慌，求冒襄出面替自己周旋。冒襄却