Chapter 141: Death of Nian Gengyao (Part 3)
As the twelfth month of the lunar calendar came, Yongzheng looked calm at the court meeting. The ministers looked at each other. Finally, Ma Qi stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, Shandong Governor Chen Shiguan failed to suppress the bandits and should be punished."
"Let him suppress it again." Yongzheng's expression did not waver at all.
Prince Yi looked at Ma Qi, who could no longer speak and had to retreat, and felt that this guy was simply asking for trouble. Although Huo Chong was very bad, he was not to the point where he had to be targeted in the court. Although it sounds ridiculous, Yongzheng was just like that. He had a very low tolerance for hidden stabs, but when the stabs were exposed, Yongzheng could take it and let it go.
Of course, if they could let go of this, Huo Chong would be crushed into powder.
Although Huo Chong inflicted heavy losses on four Shandong anti-bandit armies in succession at the end of November, each army had at least four or five hundred soldiers, and the largest number was the government troops sent from Jinan, with nearly two thousand people.
The troops sent from Laiwu learned that the other troops had been severely damaged, so they retreated directly. Even if the 700 officers and soldiers led by the Ninghai garrison were added together, the total loss was only more than 3,000 officers and soldiers. The Eight Banners of the Qing Dynasty had 200,000 soldiers, and the Green Camp had 400,000 soldiers. The loss of only 3,000 people was far from shaking the foundation of the country.
However, many officials in the court had already begun to stir, trying to portray Huo Chong's rebellion as a crisis that could immediately destroy the Qing Dynasty. Prince Yi did not want to underestimate Huo Chong, but he had to pay more attention to this group of officials who were trying to break free from Yongzheng's policies under Yongzheng's iron fist.
After the court meeting, Yongzheng called Prince Yi and said, "Thirteenth brother, we must speed up the process of clearing the debts! Those officials saw Huo Chong's rebellion and thought they could take advantage of the situation to fish in troubled waters. You are too modest and always unwilling to say harsh words. If you see someone thinking this way, don't give them any face!"
"Please rest assured, Your Majesty. I will never let those people succeed." Prince Yi answered decisively.
Yongzheng asked his thirteenth brother to take care of official business while he continued to review memorials. The eunuch came to report that Zhang Tingyu wanted to see him.
Since Yongzheng ascended the throne, he has been choosing collaborators. Nian Gengyao, the collaborator of the military generals, has made many contributions, but he ruined things. Among his brothers, the Thirteenth Brother is really his right-hand man. Although the Eighth Brother is someone Yongzheng has to flatter, Yongzheng really wants to see how capable this Eighth Brother, who is called the "Wise King", is.
Among the civil servants, Yongzheng chose Zhang Tingyu.
Yongzheng met with officials he trusted, while Huo Chong was somewhat puzzled to see his collaborator who had given him unexpected help in the previous battle.
"Mr. Huo has won great victories along the way, and his military operations are like divine help. I never knew that Mr. Huo's talent and learning could reach such a level."
"If it weren't for the help from the people sent by the Taoist priest, I wouldn't be able to achieve this. Thank you very much." Huo Chong sincerely expressed his gratitude to Taoist priest Changxin.
"Good deeds will bring good results. I didn't do anything. I just told those believers what Mr. Huo had done over the years. They were willing to help Mr. Huo because of his kindness."
"Why are you talking about Buddhism, Taoist priest? Although I heard that Laozi passed through Hangu Pass and transformed into three pure beings in one breath. One of them was Buddha. But I don't really believe it. Buddhism talks about reincarnation. When a cultivator dies, his body disappears. It talks about moving forward courageously. It is completely different from Buddhism."
Master Changxin laughed loudly. It was obvious that discussing the scriptures with Huo Chong always made him very happy. He took two steps forward and approached Huo Chong. He saw that Huo Chong's guards immediately became alert. Master Changxin saw Huo Chong wave his hand, and the guards relaxed their posture.
The Taoist priest walked to Huo Chong and patted the big stone next to him. There was no shortage of stones in Zibo County. The two sat down and the Taoist priest said , "Mr. Huo, since you compare yourself to a cultivator, I will also compare myself to him. The heavenly calamity is coming. I wonder how Mr. Huo will deal with it?"
I think the heavenly calamity that the Taoist priest was talking about is the wave after wave of attacks from the Qing Dynasty. Huo Chong sighed, "The heavenly calamity is coming, but if the core is weak, it can be resisted. What I am worried about is a star. If this star does not fall, I will be uneasy."
Master Changxin laughed and said, "That's a wonderful idea, but I don't know where this star is?"
"Tsk, Nian Gengyao is just a mortal, how can he have a star position?" Huo Chong replied with some disdain.
At this time, the eunuch had already brought Zhang Tingyu in. Yongzheng put down the memorial he had been reading for a while and asked with a stern face, "What's the important matter?"
"Your Majesty, I think Tian Wenjing acted too hastily in Henan. The land tax distribution system has been implemented in many places during the reign of Emperor Kangxi, and the results are not bad. Especially in..." At this point, Zhang Tingyu suddenly remembered something and hurriedly changed the subject. He continued a moment later, "In Zhili..."
"Haha. Hengchen, even if you mention Shandong, what's wrong? Not to mention the current situation, when the land tax is distributed, people like Huo Chong can also be useful." Yongzheng observed Zhang Tingyu while speaking. Seeing that Zhang Tingyu did not intend to use Yongzheng's words to mention Huo Chong, Yongzheng gave Zhang Tingyu a way out, "You continue."
"Reporting to the emperor. Tian Wenjing is too impatient. He wants to report to the emperor as soon as possible, implement the land tax system as soon as possible, and receive the tax money as soon as possible. This person is indeed loyal, but he is too impatient."
Yongzheng smiled slightly. Zhang Tingyu's words still had some meaning. When Zhang Tingyu said that Tian Wenjing was loyal, he actually meant that Tian Wenjing wanted to gain a higher status and reward by making contributions to Yongzheng. At least the title of "model governor" was very important to Tian Wenjing, who was already 64 years old.
For such people who seek fame, as long as they are willing to work hard to implement Yongzheng's policies, Yongzheng does not care how mean Tian Wenjing is. Father Emperor Kangxi is just too kind to these people. Look at what these officials have come up with!
After Zhang Tingyu expressed his point of view, Yongzheng did not give any harsh reply, but just asked Zhang Tingyu to leave.
After Zhang Tingyu left, Yongzheng picked up the memorial he had put down before, and anger inadvertently appeared on his face.
This is Nian Gengyao's petition for his life. The first half of the petition contains Nian Gengyao's evaluation of Huo Chong, saying that from the battles between Huo Chong and the government troops, this man used troops elegantly but very solidly. He was indeed a rare talent for commanding troops.
Especially after defeating two routes of government troops in succession, they even made a feint, pretending to cut off the main road for the Jinan government troops to leave Mengyin County. In particular, the captured government troops "rescued" by the government troops in Mengyin County told how they were ambushed by Huo Chong in the mountains, which really disturbed the government troops.
The government troops rushed into Mengyin County and then hastily withdrew. Huo Chong set up a battle formation again to lure the government troops to pursue. Huo Chong did not fight a decisive battle with the government troops at Zishui River, but retreated all the way, luring the government troops to cross the Zishui River, and set up a desperate battle at the fork of Xiaoqing River.
Nian Gengyao analyzed that this was clearly a trick to lure the enemy. Huo Chong set up his formation in this deadly place, and the government troops rushed forward. Behind Huo Chong was the river, and there was no escape. Seeing that they had more people, the government troops thought they could annihilate him in one fell swoop.
But the government troops did not expect that the government troops who attacked in groups had gone to where they were. It was obvious that they were defeated by Huo Chong. Trapping Huo Chong in such a place was a good opportunity to confront Huo Chong and summon other government troops to come.
However, the difficulty of attacking in a coordinated manner became apparent at this time. Each group of troops only wanted to make achievements for themselves and had no intention of cooperating in the battle. The so-called attacking in a coordinated manner could easily turn into fighting alone.
Although this deadly situation left Huo Chong with nowhere to escape, the government troops were also sandwiched between the two rivers and deployed their formations. The government troops had a great advantage in numbers on both sides, and the space between the two rivers was so wide that the number of people that could actually be deployed on the front line on both sides was exactly the same.
Huo Chong led his troops to fight head-on, defeating the first line of the government troops. Like an avalanche, the government troops in the back row could only run back under the pressure of the retreating government troops in the front row. Huo Chong, on the other hand, was able to chase them closely and defeat twice as many government troops with fewer troops.
At this time, the wide river channel became a more dangerous trap. In order to escape, many soldiers jumped into the river. Many of the two thousand soldiers were killed on land. However, compared with the number of people who jumped into the cold river and were unable to resist and were killed by Huo Chong directly in the river, I am afraid that more people died in the river.
Yongzheng had no objection to this analysis, and even felt very moved. Nian Gengyao's ability in fighting should not be underestimated, which is why Yongzheng valued Nian Gengyao.
Although Nian Gengyao did not participate in the battle, and even just heard some news from someone in the prison, he was able to deduce the situation on the battlefield with only this limited information. The result of his deduction was more thorough than what those people in the Ministry of War had said after receiving the complete battle reports from many parties.
In fact, Yongzheng did not understand at first why two thousand well-trained government troops faced one thousand rebels who were still farming not long ago, and blocked the rebels in the Sancha River where there was no way out. The final result was that the two thousand government troops were defeated, and less than 70 people returned to Jinan alive.
After reading Nian Gengyao's analysis, Yongzheng finally figured it out. What ordinary people saw as a sure win was actually a road to ruin in the eyes of a military expert.
These feelings of admiration did not change Yongzheng's mind, especially when he saw Nian Gengyao wrote at the end of the memorial: "I now fully understand my sins. If the master is gracious and pities me for my repentance, I beg the master to forgive me. I am not old, so I will stay here as a dog or horse and serve the master slowly." Nian Gengyao wept bitterly and wrote this memorial.
Yongzheng was so angry that he threw Nian Gengyao's petition for a position on the desk with a bang.
Know his sins? Did Nian Gengyao really know his sins?
All Nian Gengyao knew was that he had made Yongzheng unhappy. As for why Yongzheng was unhappy, Yongzheng gave Nian Gengyao nearly a year to repent, to reason, and to beg for forgiveness.
What arrogance, what lack of respect for a minister. These are actually not important. Yongzheng criticized Nian Gengyao like this, of course, not to let Nian Gengyao repeat these words like a primary school student. If Nian Gengyao felt that these were his real sins, then Nian Gengyao's book was really read to the dog's stomach.
As the thirteenth brother of Yongzheng, he knew Yongzheng's hatred for corrupt officials. Zhang Tingyu, a Han official, was also very clear about this. All the officials Yongzheng appointed knew this.
Even Concubine Nian, Nian Gengyao's biological sister, was well aware of this. Yongzheng had already written a secret decree for this woman, asking that after his death, Concubine Nian's coffin be buried together with Yongzheng and the empress' coffins.
However, he did not understand Nian Concubine's biological brother, Yongzheng's elder brother-in-law, a Jinshi during the reign of Kangxi, who was called incorruptible by Kangxi, Nian Gengyao.
Did Nian Gengyao think that Yongzheng didn't know that it was human nature to be proud of one's talent? Did Nian Gengyao think that Yongzheng didn't know that everyone likes to show off in front of others?
Yongzheng knew it. Yongzheng was very clear. That was why Yongzheng gave Nian Gengyao treatment beyond what a minister should have, thinking that if he was satisfied with these, Nian Gengyao would have nothing else to ask for and would concentrate on fighting and serving Yongzheng.
However, Yongzheng misjudged Nian Gengyao, whose greed was no different from those officials of Kangxi's reign. The honor he received only emboldened Nian Gengyao, who thought that Yongzheng would tolerate Nian Gengyao's acceptance of bribes and recommend those dirty talents to Nian Gengyao.
Yongzheng waited for a year, but Nian Gengyao did not confess his guilt or admit that he was greedy and started to amass wealth.
Even in this petition for his life, Nian Gengyao said that he knew his crime, but he still refused to mention "Nian Gengyao is guilty of corruption!"
Feeling a burning pain in his heart, Yongzheng stood up suddenly.
Nian Gengyao, this bastard, turned out to be a villain. He used his strengths to analyze the battle situation and Huo Chong. His purpose was to make Yongzheng appreciate talents again and appoint him to eliminate Huo Chong.
Such a villain really cannot be used, and such a villain must never be forgiven!
Yongzheng felt that he suddenly calmed down, and all his emotions left his body. Picking up the pen, Yongzheng wrote: I beg you to read it. Since you are unwilling to commit suicide to apologize, I have no choice but to allow you to commit suicide. You are also a scholar. Looking through the history books, have you ever been as rebellious and lawless as you? There have been lawless ministers since ancient times, but before they were exposed, they all pretended to be reluctant and pretended to be loyal. Has there ever been such a person in ancient times who is so lawless as you? I treat you with the highest kindness. And the kindness I treat your father, brother, son, and your family is also the highest kindness I treat. I think you are sincere to the country and will never deceive, so I have removed all suspicions and appointed you wholeheartedly. You acted arrogantly and formed a party for personal gain. How can you bear to betray me like this?
After putting down his pen, Yongzheng read it again. Although he had mentioned "illegal" repeatedly, Yongzheng felt that Nian Gengyao might not understand what "illegal" meant.
This law refers to national law, not the master-slave law between Yongzheng and Nian Gengyao.
Thinking of this, Yongzheng suddenly realized that Nian Gengyao did not even call himself a "slave" even in his begging letter.
This discovery made Yongzheng, who was in a state of sage, so angry that he burst into laughter.
Since Nian Gengyao was so stubborn, Yongzheng still wanted him to die with a clear conscience. Thinking about it, Yongzheng remembered that he and Nian Gengyao had exchanged witty remarks many times. He picked up his pen and wrote: After you commit suicide, if you have any resentment, you will be eternally condemned to hell as the Buddhist scriptures say, and even ten thousand calamities will not be able to eliminate your sins. December 11, the third year of Yongzheng's reign.
After putting down the pen, Yongzheng felt as if all his strength had been drained from him and he sat down on the chair.
There was a sense of relief in the powerlessness. Yes, he was relieved, finally relieved. Yongzheng was finally free from Nian Gengyao, the man who had made him place so much hope in him and had suffered the same disappointment. Nian Gengyao could die.
It was already dark at this time. Master Changxin listened to Huo Chong's expectation for Nian Gengyao's death and the reasons for this expectation.
The Taoist priest laughed and pointed to the sky, "Mr. Huo, Nian Gengyao is just an ordinary man, so naturally he can't have any star position. But Mr. Huo is a genius, and since it is said that a star general will fall, the heaven should only do it for Mr. Huo."
"Master..." Huo Chong had to drag out his voice to express his helplessness, "Can we not play this trick?"
Before he finished speaking, he saw a meteor streak across the sky in the direction of the priest's finger. The bright star tail was long, but it disappeared silently. When he looked at the sky again, it was dotted with stars again, as if nothing had happened.
Then I heard Master Changxin laugh and say, "Mr. Huo, the heavens have responded. The star has fallen!"
