Chapter 39 3.Borrow troops

Knowing that Zu Dashou had finally returned from Shanhaiguan, Dorgon summoned him immediately. As for Wu Sangui's generals Yang Kun and Guo Yunlong who came with him, they arranged to rest in the posthouse. Wu Sangui's letter to the regent was packed in a large kraft paper envelope, sealed with purple clay sealant, and stamped with the seal of Wu Sangui's chief military officer.After Dorgon received the letter, he turned around and handed it to Hong Chengchou, but turned around to ask Zu Dashou about Wu Sangui's transformation and the current situation in Shanhaiguan. At this time, King Azig of England and King Duoduo of Yu both came after hearing the news. They sat around the tent, listening to Zu Dashou talk about what they had learned, while watching Hong Chengchou peel off the cover with a knife.After Zu Dashou finished his introduction, Dorgon ordered:

"Mr. Hong, please read." Hong Chengchou then unfolded the letter and read it aloud: "Ping Xibo of the Ming Dynasty, the imperial envoy guarding the middle, left, middle and right of Ningyuan, the commander-in-chief of the local regiment, and the Tongzhi Wu of the right army's governor's office, wrote to His Royal Highness the Regent of the Qing Dynasty:" When Dorgon heard the beginning, he couldn't help frowning. At this time, Hong Chengchou had already looked up at him, but he waved his hand and said, "Keep reading." Hong Chengchou then read again: "Unfortunate for the former emperor, the nine temples were ashes, and now the head of the thieves assumes the honorary title and robs women. The crime is extremely sinful."

The title at the beginning made Dorgon quite unhappy, but at the beginning of the main text, he was unreasonable and angry. Fan Wencheng immediately found a flaw and said with a smile: "Since we knew that the late emperor was in misfortune, why didn't we send a strong army to help?" Dorgon couldn't help laughing and said: "This is just his talk, Mr. Fan, don't take it seriously." Hong Chengchou continued to read: "Sangui received the great kindness of the country, and sympathized with the victims of the people. He refused to guard the side gate, and wanted to raise the teacher to question the crime, so as to comfort people's hearts; the east of Naijing is small, and the troops are not assembled, so weep for help."

Dorgon couldn't help smiling and nodding when he heard this. Hong Chengchou read again: "The children of gold and silk gathered by the rogue bandits are innumerable. Once the righteous soldiers arrive, they are all owned by the king. This is a time when sincerity is hard to come by again. Please choose the best soldiers quickly, and go straight to the Central Association and the Western Association. Lead the troops, unite the troops to reach the gate of the capital, destroy the bandits in the court, and show righteousness to China, so those who repay the Northern Dynasty from our dynasty will only be rewarded with money and silk, and will be rewarded by tearing the land, and dare not break their promises."

After Hong Chengchou finished reading, Dorgon couldn't help but asked with a smile: "Have you finished reading?" Hong Chengchou read it carefully, smiled, and said: "It's over. My lord, his original intention was nothing more than this sentence: "I want to ask the teacher to ask the crime, but the land in Jingdong is small, and the troops are not gathered. I cry for help." It’s a warrior, it’s too straightforward to say that.” Dorgon nodded again and again and said: "Yes, it is a joke to talk big and want to use the woman Jinbo as bait when a catastrophe is imminent."

As he spoke, he looked around: "Everyone, tell me, what do you think?" King Azig of England has been listening with pointed ears. He thought Wu Sangui was asking for surrender, and he didn't want to hear it.In front of his younger brother Dorgon, he had been talking carelessly, but now he stared and said: "According to my lord, Chongzhen is dead, Ming Dynasty is dead, and the city of Beijing is full of smog. This is a good time for our army to send troops, just to take advantage of the random beating. If they don't surrender, they will be the enemies of the Qing Dynasty, and they will all be wiped out. What kind of land will be rewarded, children of gold and silk, forgive him and he will not cede the city of Beijing to us. With his plan to slow down the army, as long as he enters the customs, do you still care what he gives and what he doesn't give?"

Prince Yu Duoduo said with confidence: "There is no need to rush this matter. Wu Sangui is whimsical. When he dies, he still wants to borrow troops and use our strength to avenge him. This is too underestimating my Qing court. Now he He has turned against Li Zicheng, and Shanhaiguan is about to be captured. Doesn’t he have 50,000 to 60,000 Ningyuan soldiers in his hands? Just let them fight, he wants us to take advantage of the fire, but we want to see them fight with each other.” Dorgon nodded, but turned his gaze to the three kings Kong Youde, Geng Zhongming, and Shang Kexi, and asked, "What else do you think?"

Kong Youde's character was rough, and he spoke straightforwardly. He said: "According to my minister, Wu Sangui's crotch is already on fire at this time. I hope our army has stood on tiptoe and stretched out his neck. It’s just pretending, it’s easy for our army to force him to surrender, and it doesn’t matter if he borrows it or not, first occupy Shanhaiguan before discussing.” After Kong Youde finished speaking, Geng Zhongming and Shang Kexi followed suit. They also believed that if Wu Sangui did not surrender to Li Zicheng, Li Zicheng would have to launch an army crusade. Therefore, they are now hoping that our army will go quickly. Pay attention to means and status.

Everyone's opinion, different people have different opinions, their attitudes are positive, and they are all full of confidence to win, but they don't seem to take this borrowed soldier seriously. Everyone understands that as long as you enter the door, please God will send you off easily. It's difficult, it doesn't matter if Wu Sangui is willing or not! So is the word "borrowing soldiers" completely useless?Dorgon thought about it, but he didn't take it seriously. Suddenly, he looked back at Hong Chengchou and asked: "Mr. Hong, tell me, is there any precedent for borrowing soldiers throughout the ages?"

Is Hong Chengchou a mediocre person?From Dorgon's hesitant expression, he saw the hidden worry hidden behind the smiling face, and also understood why there was such a question, so he hurriedly said: "The theory of borrowing soldiers has existed since ancient times. Let's talk about the Tang Dynasty. During the Anshi Rebellion and the later Huangchao Rebellion, the imperial court borrowed soldiers twice, once to Huihe and once to Shatuo. The people belong to the Tang Dynasty, and the children and treasures belong to the guest soldiers. The ministers see that Wu Sangui's theory of borrowing soldiers follows the ancient practice."

When Dorgon heard this, he nodded again and again and said: "Since it has existed in ancient times, of course it can be used. He has been an enemy of our court for many years, and he couldn't lose face for a while. It is understandable to find an excuse. Besides, at the beginning of the founding of the Qing Dynasty, it is understandable to use it with us. In the Ming Dynasty, there was no lack of contacts. It was only because the Emperor Ming used the strong to bully the weak and dealt with injustice that there were wars in the future. Is it dangerous or not? I can promise him this matter. Once we enter the pass, we will play the banner of revenge for Chongzhen. However, it is the teacher of benevolence and righteousness to quell chaos on behalf of others, and there must be teachers of benevolence and righteousness Look, burning, killing and looting must never happen, let alone killing innocent people." As Dorgon spoke, he emphasized discipline again. Articles, paragraphs, and even riding on young crops are considered illegal, and those who violate them will be killed without mercy. To put it bluntly, all the soldiers under his command are awe-inspiring... After everyone left, only Azig and Duoduo refused to leave.Dorgon knew that they had something to say, so he waved the guards back, and then pulled them to sit on the camp bed together, saying: "It seems that you still have something to say?" Azige looked at Dorgon, and said in a sharp tone: "Fourteenth brother, what was the purpose of my father, Nurhaci, to defeat the Ming Dynasty with the Seven Great Hatreds? It's a pity that in the city of Ningyuan, the first battle was lost, and the father died with hatred. After that, my brother Huang Taiji attacked the Ming Dynasty four times, all because the Shanhaiguan Pass could not be overcome, which prevented our army from carrying out its ambitions. Fortunately, the civil strife in the Ming Dynasty allowed us to enter the pass. It's time to breathe a sigh of relief. Ningyuan and Shanhaiguan soldiers and civilians have been our enemies for many years. Even if Chongzhen ordered them to retreat westward and follow Wu Sangui to the pass, why do we feel sorry for them? Wu Sangui has nothing to do. We have taken Shanhaiguan. It's so easy to take advantage of the sheep, why do you still want to be fooled by Wu Sangui and agree to borrow troops?" Facing Azige who asked aggressively, Dorgon couldn't help but think of his saying of "getting a hand" before he set off, and couldn't help smiling slightly—since Huang Taiji died of illness last year, and now he is the regent with all the power, the two in front of him The brothers have done their best, if they enter the customs and fight for the world, they are my right and left arms. Duoduo can follow his own opinions in everything and be cautious, but Azig is a bit careless and makes his own decisions because of his seniority Well, if you don't take the opportunity to persuade this twelfth brother right now, not only will there be no one to help you, but sometimes you will get in the way.Thinking of this, I couldn't help but also took out the words in my heart, and said: "Brother Twelfth, you are right. Wu Sangui came to vote for me after he really had nothing to do. He is like a bereaved dog, begging for mercy. We can look down on this bereaved dog from the bottom of our hearts, but we cannot do without him. Not to mention that Shanhaiguan is a throat, The position is important, so the word borrowing soldiers is not without merit. Even if he surrendered, we can still say that we should borrow it from the outside world, because without this borrowing, we became uninvited guests; with this Once borrowed, we have become teachers of benevolence and righteousness who are able to deal with people's difficulties. The four characters of "righteousness and obedience" have been firmly held for me. At present, these four characters are really important for the Qing Dynasty who entered the customs and conquered the world. Because scholars in the Central Plains In our hearts, we are barbarians, and the teachings of Confucius are the great defense against barbarians and Xia. Therefore, in their view, the Ming Dynasty was destroyed by bandits, which was just a change of dynasty; At that time, they fought to the death to entangle us, and they did not hesitate to shed blood. How many Manchus and Hans are there? When can we surrender to them? So before sending troops, it is best to be able to fly the banner of righteousness. These days, I have been worrying about this. I am not worried that I will not be able to defeat the bandits, but I am worried that this name is not correct. Confucius said well that if the name is not correct, the words will not go well, and the words will not go well. Therefore, The word 'borrowing soldiers' can be worth 100,000 soldiers." When Doduo heard this, he couldn't help but nodded in admiration, and turned back to Azig and said, "Brother Twelfth, Brother Fourteen's arrangement really stands tall and sees far. Why, why do you say that Brother Huang defeated Ming four times? Is it really just to make a profit, why don't we want to go further?" Azige grinned disapprovingly. He ignored Duo Duo, but said to Duo ErGun: "Fourteenth brother, you can't do without Confucius. What is this Confucius capable of? Bing, what tough battles have you fought so that you can't do without him?" Dorgon couldn't help sighing when he heard such an ignorant question from Azige's mouth. It's no wonder that poor Azige, although he couldn't beat his father's order, had reluctantly picked up Chinese books, but so far he has not only "Four Books" If you can read non-stop sentences, and you can't even recognize the characters, what can you know about Confucius and Mencius?Thinking of this, Dorgon had no choice but to say in a reproachful tone: "Brother Twelfth, you are the prince of the Qing Dynasty. You don't need to pay attention to the culture and art of the time, but at least you should know some common sense. How many soldiers did Confucius lead? I haven’t fought a single battle, but for thousands of years, the way of Confucius and Mencius has been like the sun and menstruation, and the rivers and rivers run on the earth, making people pay homage to them. Why? According to his theory, the eight characters of single monarch, monarch, minister, father, son, and son are millions The Eight Banners cavalry can't overthrow it, because these eight characters, from the court monarchs to the family fathers and sons and brothers, all follow their Shengmo and fall into its scope. No matter what he is superstitious about or what he believes in, Anbang cannot do without Confucius and Mencius when governing the country, and no matter if you are Mongols, Khitans, or Jurchens, after entering the Central Plains, as long as you want the world to be peaceful, you must respect Confucius. After reading the power of the Four Books and Five Classics, the so-called half of the Analects can rule the world!" Next, Dorgon opened up the conversation box, and told the history with this brother, telling the story of their Jurchen ancestor Wanyan's establishment of the Great Jin Kingdom in the Central Plains. Dorgon admired Jin Sejong the most, so he told Sejong Wan Yanyong's deeds are the most talked about, how he respected Confucius and read the scriptures when he came to the Central Plains, and how he used Sinology to use Han people. As soon as the fourteenth brother mentioned Confucius and Mencius, he showed a look of sincerity and fear, more respect than his father Nurhachi, Azige couldn't help but angrily said: "Since you admire Confucius and Mencius so much, let me ask you, should we, the Qing Dynasty, conquer the Han people, or invite Confucius and Mencius to rule our Manchus?" This is really a fool’s choice, and a wise man’s mistake. Once Azig’s words came out, it was hard for Dorgon to refute them, because it involved a very deep and thorny issue. Dorgon had never thought about it before entering the customs. Now that the military affairs are in a hurry and everything is done, he has no time to think about it, so Azig's question actually stopped him, and he was speechless for a while, unable to answer. .Fortunately, Duoduo saw his hesitation on the side, and pulled Aji away with all his strength, otherwise, he could only become angry from embarrassment. In this way, neither of the two brothers convinced the other, and Dorgon held his breath and had to endure it for the time being.When we left, it was already late at night, and the barracks was completely dark, except for the sound of ice cracking when the Daling River thawed in the far distance, there was silence around us...