Ch 14: Tianbao 13
Shengjing City, Imperial Palace
At this moment, the palace was filled with an uproar and unusual noise. Hong Taiji, his face grim, leaned against the Dragon Throne, the symbol of supreme power. His normally stern face was even more unpleasant. He pressed his lips together, his brows furrowed, and the veins on his forehead bulged, as if an uncontrollable rage was burning in his heart. His deep, abyss-like eyes coldly swept over the ministers standing below, revealing a chilling majesty and dissatisfaction.
In this suffocating atmosphere, Hong Taiji’s gaze suddenly fixed on one person—Jirgalang. He narrowed his eyes slightly, staring intently at the minister, as if trying to see through his outward appearance to understand his inner thoughts. After a moment of silence, Hong Taiji finally broke the silence and asked, “Jirgalang, what are your thoughts on this matter?”
Upon hearing this, Jirgalang’s face turned pale, and his whole body trembled. He hurriedly knelt down, kowtowing repeatedly in apology, “Your Majesty, please calm down! I know I have committed a crime, I know I have committed a crime…”
“Humph! At the beginning of the year, I ordered you to go and wipe out that band of bandits. At that time, there were only a few thousand people, nothing but a rabble, mere clowns. But who would have thought that in just a few months, these bandits have grown like a snowball, and now they not only have tens of thousands of soldiers but are so audacious as to attack the Korean Royal Capital, and even Dodo was captured by them! You Bordered Blue Banner always boasted of your bravery and prowess, yet you ended up in such a sorry state! You have utterly disgraced the warriors of the Great Qing! In those days, the Late Emperor, with thirteen suits of armor, rose up in anger to resist the tyranny of the Ming Dynasty. The Great Qing, after decades of bloody battles, has fought south and north, east and west, and yet we have never suffered such a great shame and humiliation! Tell me, what crime should you be punished for committing such a heinous offense?” The Emperor roared with fury, questioning him sternly.
Jirgalang, terrified and soul-shattered, lay trembling on the ground, whimpering, “Your Majesty, spare my life! I deserve a thousand deaths, I implore Your Majesty to severely punish me to set an example…”
Seeing the minister’s sincere remorse, Hong Taiji’s anger subsided somewhat. Now, Li Zicheng’s army from the Ming Court was pushing the Imperial Court back step by step, while his own backyard was suddenly on fire.
Hong Taiji knew that his health was failing. If Heaven gave him ten more years, with his ability, he could certainly seize this great empire. Alas, alas.
“You, what can I say to you! Let’s not talk about the Eight Banners, you alone have caused the loss of thousands of Great Qing warriors. You must know that the Great Qing population is not large to begin with. You’ve lost so many people. And there are thousands of veteran soldiers from the villages, they are the old men who fought alongside my Imperial Father to secure this empire. If you continue to be the Banner Lord of the Bordered Blue Banner, it will probably be difficult to maintain order.”
Seeing Hong Taiji say this, Jirgalang knew there was nothing he could do to change it. He could only plead guilty and accept punishment. Fortunately, his title was not reduced. This was probably because Hong Taiji considered the merit of his father and son for the Great Qing Empire.
Hong Taiji looked at his eldest son, Hauge, and then at his younger brother, Dorgon, sighing helplessly. Although he had temporarily abolished the Eight Princes’ Council, it was not easy to establish his son as the crown prince.
Hauge was brave in battle, but he was weak and lacked cunning. However, his other sons were too young and couldn’t possibly contend with Dorgon. Fortunately, Dodo’s capture was a blow to Dorgon.
Hong Taiji looked at the people and said slowly.
“Jirgalang failed in suppressing the bandits, he is temporarily stripped of his position as Banner Lord of the Bordered Blue Banner, and Hauge will temporarily manage the Bordered Blue Banner.”
Hong Taiji looked at everyone, seeing that no one had any objections, only Dorgon showed displeasure, but he had previously managed Dodo’s Plain White Banner, so he couldn’t say anything now.
After this matter was settled, Hong Taiji said again,
“Now, this group of bandits in the coastal areas of the Great Qing is becoming increasingly rampant, and their activities are escalating. Both the soldiers in the army and the common people are living in fear and anxiety because of these bandits.
These bandits not only severely damage the economic order of the court but also seriously disrupt the normal farming lives of the people, resulting in barren fields and no harvest. In the long run, if these bandits are not quickly eliminated, I fear that before the Ming Dynasty is destroyed, our Great Qing will perish first!”
However, when it came to how to deal with these troublesome bandits, the noisy court suddenly fell silent. After exchanging glances, everyone suddenly became like frostbitten eggplants—wilted. They lowered their heads, closed their lips, and dared not make a sound.
This scene made Hong Taiji, sitting on the Dragon Throne, so angry that his face turned livid, and his chest heaved violently, triggering bouts of violent coughing. He glared at the silent ministers below, secretly annoyed: usually they would talk big, boasting about their abilities, but at the critical moment, they all became cowards!
However, just as the atmosphere in the court was at its most depressing, a figure stepped out from the crowd. This person was tall and strong, and full of spirit, it was Dorgon. He said loudly, “Imperial Brother, since all the ministers are at a loss as to what to do, let your younger brother lead the army to encircle and suppress these bandits!”
Hong Taiji felt helpless in his heart but overjoyed on his face.
“Good, you will lead the Two White Banners this time. Return victorious, and I will greatly reward you. But you also know that there is not much grain in the court now. I will issue an imperial edict to have Li Zong of Korea cooperate with you. Korea will be responsible for the funds and grain for this army. These bandits not only attacked our Great Qing, but also Korea this time. We are helping them quell the rebellion, and they should be responsible for all the expenses of the army.”
Dorgon said nothing, only accepting the order and withdrawing. Apart from establishing more military merit this time, the most important thing was to see if he could rescue his younger brother, Dodo. He and Dodo and Ajige were brothers born to the same mother. He would never allow Dodo to die so easily.
And what was Tianbao doing at this moment? Seeing crate after crate of gold and silver being unloaded from the ship, he was overjoyed.
Originally, he had estimated that even if this operation could yield one or two million taels of silver, it would be considered quite good! Who would have thought that the final tally would be more than 20 million taels! And this was only after a simple search of the national treasury and the residences of several ministers!
You must know that Korea, although it has always been a tributary state of the Great Ming, every time they came to pay tribute, their demeanor was just like Liu Laolao’s first visit to the Grand View Garden. They just kept crying poor and playing the victim! The tributes they offered were nothing more than beautiful women for the current Emperor, and occasionally a few ginseng roots. But even so, they always managed to get a large basket of rich gifts from us! Isn’t this clearly taking us for suckers, like fools celebrating the New Year?
Tianbao looked towards the bow of the ship, and saw Cao Bianbiao getting off the ship, with two people in tow. The burly and fierce man was tall and muscular, seeming to contain endless power. His forehead was smooth as a mirror, reflecting the surrounding light, with a rat tail at the back of his head, swaying with his movements. His face was ferocious, his eyes revealing ferocity and defiance. Even though he was tightly bound by chains, he struggled constantly, cursing incessantly, showing no weakness.
The other person was in stark contrast. He was dressed in clothes similar to those of a Ming scholar, appearing refined and cultured. However, his hands were tied, and he bowed his head without any backbone, a fawning smile on his face, begging for mercy. His eyes were filled with fear and cowardice, as if begging for the other’s mercy.
Tianbao looked at Cao Bianbiao and asked, “General Cao, who are these?”
Cao Bianbiao said respectfully
“Leader, this is Dodo, the Tartar Prince.”
“What? He is Dodo?”
Tianbao looked at Dodo, and sure enough, he was not a good person.
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