bookcurios Chapter 232 Peace Talks
Chapter 232 Peace Talks
Meng Jun was pleasantly surprised by the news that Zheng Chenggong agreed to provide assistance. He felt that there might be a glimmer of hope that he could unite with the Zheng family. With the naval power of the Zheng family and the infantry combat strength of the Zhou army, whether it was marching north along the canal, attacking Shandong and Hebei along the coastline, or entering Korea, attacking Liaodong and opening up several battlefields, this would be enough to make the Qing army busy. So Meng Jun decided to write to Zheng Chenggong frequently to keep in touch.
Just as the preparations for the battle in Nanjing were drawing to a close, Baiyintu, who was temporarily facing off with the Qing army across the river, unexpectedly sent a messenger over, saying, "The Qing has sent an envoy to negotiate peace with King Zhou."
Meng Jun was puzzled. Anyone with a discerning eye knew that the civil war between him, Jin Shengheng and Li Chengdong was about to break out, and it was unlikely that the Qing army would not take the opportunity to attack, let alone negotiate peace. Moreover, the Qing court was powerful, and Meng Jun was now just a local warlord. Why would the Qing court lower itself and ask for peace?
Meng Jun then summoned all his ministers to discuss the Qing army's intentions.
After Shen Congwen circulated the letter sent by Bai Yintu to everyone, Lu Zhenfei was the first to speak. He was a little surprised and said, "Does the Tartar really want to negotiate peace?"
"I think it should be, and this time is different from the previous ones. Previously, messengers sent letters, but this time, Feng Quan, the Grand Secretary of the Qing Cabinet, served as the peace envoy." Wu Tai said to everyone.
"Who is Feng Quan?" Meng Jun asked Zhang Bo of Qingluan Guard.
Zhang Bo stood up and replied, "My Lord, Feng Quan, courtesy name Boheng, was from Zhuozhou, Hebei Province. He was born in the 24th year of the Wanli reign. At the age of 18, he passed the imperial examination and became a Jinshi. He was a poet and a handsome young man, and many people admired him. In the first year of the Tianqi reign, his father was framed by the Donglin Party and died of depression after returning home. In the fourth year of the Tianqi reign, Wei Zhongxian came to Zhuozhou to pay homage. Feng Quan knelt by the road and cried about his father's unjust death. Feng Quan joined the eunuch party because of Wei Zhongxian's appreciation, and even entered the cabinet as a minister."
Zhang Bo paused for a moment, and seeing that no one was impatient, he continued, "Feng Quan had joined the eunuch party for a few years. Chongzhen ascended the throne, executed Wei Zhongxian, and purged the eunuch party. Feng Quan was identified as a member of the "Wei Zhongxian party", and his crime was ranked second, and he was stripped of his official title. During the 17th year of Chongzhen, Feng Quan tried his best to enter the court, but unfortunately all efforts ended in failure. After Dorgon entered the pass, with the strong recommendation of Hong Chengchou, Dorgon personally wrote a letter to summon Feng Quan out of retirement. After the meeting, Dorgon gave him court robes, hats, saddle horses, and gold coins, and assisted in government affairs as a cabinet minister. In the second year of Shunzhi, Feng Quan began to preside over the compilation of the "History of Ming Dynasty."
Gu Yanwu said disdainfully: "Young talent? Great appearance? What benefit can he bring to the country? He is just another shameless scholar-official."
"Let's not talk about this person. Everyone, tell me, what is Dorgon's intention? Why would he propose peace talks at this time? What is his intention?" Meng Jun waved his hand and returned to the main topic.
"Perhaps the Qing court is short of food and grass, or there may be some other reasons. Your Majesty, if the Qing court really agrees to peace, then we can devote our energy to pacifying the south in one fell swoop." When Wu Tai heard this, he thought that perhaps the Qing court was really unable to go south for the time being, and immediately said to Meng Jun.
As soon as Wu Tai finished speaking, Gu Yanwu suddenly slammed the table and stood up, loudly refuting: "Absolutely not! Regardless of whether the Tartars are sincere in the peace talks or whether the talks can be successful, as long as the news of peace talks with the Tartars spreads, the king will surely be condemned by thousands of people, and the popularity that the king has painstakingly gathered will be destroyed in an instant!"
When Wu Tai heard what Gu Yanwu said, he was shocked and looked ashamed. He glanced at Gu Yanwu, lowered his head, and dared not say another word.
Chen Zilong also said: "This must be a conspiracy of the Tartars. No matter whether we agree to negotiate peace or not, and no matter what the terms are, as long as we make contact, we will lose. Just as Ning Ren said, as long as the rumor of peace talks comes out, and with the rumors spread by those with ulterior motives, we will find it difficult to argue even if there are hundreds of mouths."
Yang En snorted coldly and said, "The Tartars are killing millions of heroes in various places in Jiangnan. How can we compromise? Moreover, Dorgon must have bad intentions. Even if the peace talks are successful, can we trust the Tartars? Will we not defend the river? In my opinion, the Tartars simply want to paralyze us and sneak across the river when we are not prepared!"
At this time, Qian Biao, who was drowsy in the corner, became energetic. He was waiting for the supplies to be prepared so that he could lead the army to set off first. Qian Biao was not interested in the political discussion. He heard everyone arguing about an old man, and each voice was louder than the other.
Qian Biao laughed twice and said, "What's so difficult about this? When Feng something comes, as soon as he reaches Nanjing, we will cut off his braids with a knife, whether he likes it or not, and then spread the word and say it's Feng something?"
"Feng Quan," Gao Yi reminded quietly from the side.
"Ah, yes, it's that Feng Quan. It's said that Feng Quan admires the king and thinks that the king is the son of destiny. He cried and shouted that he wanted to serve the king. Don't talk about the nonsense that when two countries are at war, envoys will not be killed. We didn't really kill him. We just cut his braids and locked him up for a while. Isn't that how everything is solved!" Qian Biao finished speaking in one breath, and then looked at everyone present proudly.
When these words came out, everyone was stunned. No one thought that there was such an operation. Gu Yanwu, a great talent, also opened his mouth for a long time before saying: "General Qian is really a genius!"
After listening to this, Meng Jun was also confused by Qian Biao's brain. Although this method was simple and crude, it was really feasible. He also had newspapers, so he could just detain the delegation and have his say come true.
While Meng Jun and a group of generals and civil officials were discussing peace talks with the Qing court, Wang Huacheng, Jin Bao and Ma Jixiang finally arrived in Nanjing. These three people represented the angels of the Yongli court. When they entered the city of Nanjing, they did not cause any waves. The city was calm, as if only a few insignificant people had arrived.
Although the shogunate prohibited the publicity of the news of Yongli's envoys, it did not ignore these people. When they arrived, the shogunate officials first settled the three people and their entourage, and then in the evening Yang En personally led people to hold a welcoming banquet in an elegant courtyard in Jinling City.
At the banquet, there was fine wine and delicious food, and the scene was harmonious. Yang En was chatting and laughing at the table, and Wang Huacheng and others did not have any unpleasant incidents with the shogunate officials during their first meeting.
As the night gradually deepened, the welcoming banquet gradually came to an end. The first night of Wang Huacheng, Jin Bao and Ma Jixiang in Jinling ended in this calm and subtle atmosphere.
The next day, Wang Huacheng and his two companions asked to see Yang En and revealed their purpose. They wanted to know what Yang En, an extremely important official in the Meng Zhou forces, thought about the court's desire to return the capital to Nanjing.
Yang En replied calmly, "Hasn't the court just moved the capital to Kunming? How can they change their mind and move the capital to Nanjing? Moreover, the court in Kunming once issued an edict, angrily accusing my king of being unworthy and calling on the whole country to attack him. The words are still fresh in my mind, which greatly hurts my king."
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