Qian Qianyi, who had no moral integrity, was just a microcosm of that era. The one who died was neither Li Zicheng's Great Shun nor Dorgon's Great Qing, but the Ming Dynasty itself.
In the middle and late Ming Dynasty, the Donglin clique rebelled and fought against each other.
After Chong Zhen hanged himself, the Crown Prince did not follow the ancestral system to supervise the country in Jianye, resulting in Chong Zhen's death, the Crown Prince and Chong Zhen's son were all captured, and the throne could only be passed on according to the rule of the elder brother.
At that time, the first candidate was Prince Fu, Prince Gui supported by Shi Kefa and the others, and Prince Lu supported by Donglin clique. The three princes and their supporters fought each other, completely ignoring the situation in the north, giving the Great Qing sufficient time to establish a foothold in North China and wipe out the Great Shun army.
In the end, Prince Fu won the support of Jianye's main armed forces, the four towns of Jiangbei, Gao Jie, Huang Degong, Liu Liangzuo and Liu Zeqing, and became the victor. He ascended the throne and was known as the Hongguang Emperor.
Zhu Yousong's request for help from the four towns' warlords had a major impact on the situation in the future.
The most direct effect was to fulfill his wish and smoothly ascend to the supreme throne, and the indirect effect was that the towns of Jiangbei regarded themselves as' the benefactor of the Son of Heaven 'and' the hero of the dragon '.
From the Emperor to the ministers of Jianye, no one could control this domineering and domineering army, and from then on, the Southern Ming warlords were unable to get rid of their power.
Gao Jie, Huang Degong, Liu Liangzuo and the others were all brave men from the army, and their subordinates each had their own worries, but there was no lack of good generals and brave men. If Zhu Yousong had a little of the experience of his ancestors, as long as he controlled it well, he could completely rely on the four towns' support to exert influence and make the four towns work for him.
Unfortunately, Zhu Yousong inherited his father's broad heart and fat body, but did not inherit his ancestor's military strategy.
Because of the internal strife, during the Battle of Yangzhou, Shi Kefa defended the city, but the four towns of Jiangbei watched from the sidelines and did not help, ultimately leading to the historical tragedy of the 'Ten Days of Yangzhou'.
After the fall of Jianye, the Prince of Lu of Hangzhou, Zhu Changchi, the Prince of Yi of Fuzhou, Zhu Ciyi, the Prince of Jingjiang of Guilin, Zhu Hengjia, and other regent regimes were established one after another. However, they were all short-lived and ended within a few days.
On the way to the imperial palace, Ouyang Shuo discussed the situation of the war with Feng Qiuhuang and said, "If we want to reverse the situation, just the two hundred thousand soldiers we brought with us is far from enough. We have to rely on the natives."
"The Four Towns of Jiangbei, the remnants of the Great Shun army, and even the Great Xi army are all targets that we can fight for."
Feng Qiuhuang wasn't completely clueless. She asked, "These fellows have their own thoughts. Will they listen to us?"
"Of course not!"
Ouyang Shuo wasn't arrogant enough to think that he could show off his domineering aura on the battlefield and make the various warlords bow down to him. On the battle map, no one cared about Emperor Xia.
"If we want to subdue them, we need to have an army. Two hundred thousand soldiers is our biggest bargaining chip. Secondly, you need to have a good battle record. If you don't show them your skills, how will they be convinced? "
After pausing for a while, Ouyang Shuo continued, "More importantly, we need to raise a flag so that the various warlords can temporarily stop their internal strife and work together to suppress the Qing army."
Feng Qiuhuang said, "This is not easy."
"It is not easy." Ouyang Shuo nodded, "Rome wasn't built in a day. We don't have much time to waste here. We can only combine strength and gentleness. If necessary, we still need to use some thunderous methods. "
"Do as you see fit!" Feng Qiuhuang was very straightforward and followed Ouyang Shuo's lead.
When Ouyang Shuo heard this, he shook his head in amusement. He'd heard that Hua Xia Region's sole remaining female lord would very soon become Hua Xia Region's first Queen, and that she'd used many thunderous methods in East River Province.
As they were talking, the two of them had already entered the imperial palace.
In the main hall, Emperor Hongguang sat on the throne, but he didn't have much of a high-spirited feeling. The civil and military officials in the hall looked at them with different expressions. Some were vigilant, some were probing, some were passionate, and so on.
"A big pot of hodgepodge!"
Ouyang Shuo came to such a conclusion. In front of the civil officials, Ouyang Shuo saw the notorious Minister of Rites, Qian Qianyi. A cold light flashed in his eyes.
If this person didn't die, Ouyang Shuo's trip would be in vain.
Following that, the meeting between Ouyang Shuo and Emperor Hongguang seemed calm, but it caused the officials to feel a surge of emotions. They looked at each other in dismay.
Ouyang Shuo acknowledged the legitimacy of Emperor Hongguang and was willing to protect and defend this legitimacy. The 200,000 mutant army under his command became the biggest bargaining chip of Emperor Hongguang against the four towns of Jiangbei.
This was Ouyang Shuo's brilliance.
The Southern Ming Empire's regime changed frequently and there was internal strife. One of the reasons was that there wasn't a trustworthy authority to rule over the four sides. This gave other people the space to play.
If Ouyang Shuo copied the An Shi Rebellion or the Battle of Cliff Mountain from the start, or abolished the Emperor Hongguang or left Emperor Hongguang aside and started anew, it would only worsen the internal strife and be of no help.
There was an old saying, "If you want to take something, you must give it back."
Ouyang Shuo could only stabilize Emperor Hongguang and put him on a pedestal. Only then could he realize his strategic intentions. There was a big premise for him to do this. Although Emperor Hongguang didn't have great military talent, he was not a fool.
Sure enough, after receiving Ouyang Shuo's "loyalty", Emperor Hongguang was delighted. He immediately returned the favor and appointed Ouyang Shuo as the Regent of Southern Ming.
When Feng Qiuhuang saw this, she could only sigh in admiration.
… …
After the meeting, the news of the imperial court appointing Ouyang Shuo as the Regent spread throughout the country.
"This is interesting!"
Great Qing had a Regent Dorgon, while Southern Ming had a Regent Ouyang Shuo. No one knew what kind of sparks would be produced from the confrontation between the two.
Just when the warlords thought that the newly appointed Regent would start a "new official making three changes", burning down the four towns in Jiangbei or reorganizing the court, Ouyang Shuo did not make any movements.
Rows of carriages were parked in front of the mansion that Emperor Hongguang bestowed upon Ouyang Shuo. They were all rushing to pay their respects to the Regent. Among them, there were soldiers who sincerely served the country and opportunists like Qian Qianyi.
But no matter who it was, they were all given a cold shoulder.
The Divine Martial Guards that guarded the mansion emitted a ferocious aura, as well as the faint smell of slaughter and blood. This caused the visitors to shrink back. No one dared to be impudent.
This made the cautious Gao Jie, Huang Degong, and the other warlords even more anxious. They thought that the Regent was preparing a big move and was preparing to catch them all in one fell swoop.
It was no wonder that Gao Jie and the others were so nervous. This Regent of Ouyang Shuo wasn't an ordinary person. His authority didn't come from the Emperor Hongguang, but from the 200,000 troops behind him.
Although they didn't know how strong they were, just the appearance of the army was enough to make people fearful. Facing such an opponent, how could Gao Jie and the others not be careful?
Just when the outside world was guessing, Ouyang Shuo was hosting a military meeting in the mansion.
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