The optimism of Emperor Chongzhen and the ministers of the court was based on the people's long-term fear of the government and the authority of the Ming Dynasty that lasted for more than 300 years. However, the fall of Fengyang this time made the false power of the Ming Dynasty government collapse in the minds of many bankrupt people, and they suddenly found a way to live, that is, to join the peasant rebel army and completely overthrow this evil official government that made them bankrupt.

This really makes the spark start a prairie fire! Moreover, the morale of the peasant rebels was also greatly high, so that they had the confidence to start attacking the big city on their own initiative and dared to fight a decisive battle with the main force of the Ming army.

And don't forget that the mortal enemy of the Ming Dynasty at this time was not only the peasant rebel army. What is Huang Taiji, the king of the Later Jin Khan in Liaodong, doing?

Two things: one is to sweep away all the great enemies inside and outside Houjin!

First of all, after the surrender of Kong Youde's rebels, on June 19, the seventh year of Tiancong (that is, the sixth year of Chongzhen. Later, for the convenience of the text, all use the name of the Ming Dynasty to describe), Huang Taiji sent more than 10,000 Manchu and Han soldiers to attack Lushun on the left and right flanks, and on July 14, the fortress of Lushunkou, the southern gate of Liaodong, fell into the hands of Houjin, and at the same time captured a large number of people, animals and property.

In December of the seventh year of Chongzhen, Huang Taiji ordered the deputy capital to dominate Qilan and the staff leader Samshiha to lead 2,500 soldiers to conquer the unconquered land in Heilongjiang. In the second year, good news came from their homeland, and they subdued more than 7,300 people from Huerhazhuangding, young and old, men and women. At the same time, Wu Bahai went to Varka and won many battles.

Huang Taiji expanded his territory in the northeast from Lushunkou in the south, east of the Ussuri River in the north and the middle reaches of the Heilongjiang River. And with the participation of a large number of raw girls, the strength of the Eight Banners has been greatly improved.

In the sixth year of Chongzhen, Huang Taiji personally led the troops to conquer Har, and set out in April to pursue Lin Dan Khan. After crossing the Yellow River, the Jin army ran out of food, shot yellow sheep to satisfy hunger, had no water, and drank with a sheep easy cup of water, so he had to return halfway.

In the seventh year of Chongzhen, when Huang Taiji visited Har again, he knew that Lin Dan Khan had died of illness in Qinghai Dacao Beach, and everyone had nowhere to return, and Houjin had one less big enemy. In the second year, he sent Dolgon, Yue Zhi and others to collect his son Erke Kongguoer Ezhe and his subordinates. Dolgon, however, unexpectedly obtained the heirloom seal of the Yuan Dynasty.

This victory marked the return of all southern Mongolia to the Later Jin. The Manchu and Mongolian forces outside the Guanwai were unified in the hands of Huang Taiji, and Houjin was also able to have no worries. Deal with the Ming Dynasty wholeheartedly.

And Huang Taiji took advantage of the opportunity to conquer Chahar in the seventh and eighth years of Chongzhen and attacked the Ming Dynasty, but mainly lingered near Datong and Xuanfu, and did not fundamentally shake the rule of the Ming Dynasty. However, this also made it impossible for the Shanxi border army to join the Ming army that encircled and suppressed the peasant rebels.

And in domestic affairs, Huang Taiji has also made outstanding achievements.

Five years after the fourth year of Chongzhen. Huang Taiji focused his energies on building a more solid foundation for the reign of the Later Jin. On the twenty-ninth day of August in the fifth year of Chongzhen, he ordered the Eight Banners to Gushan Ezhen to inspect the poverty and suffering of the people in each banner under his control, and seriously judge the criminals. The rulers of the Later Jin Dynasty, who had always been engaged in hunting, also proposed at this time that they were not allowed to enter Zhuangtun privately because of hunting. It is forbidden to take firewood without permission. No noise.

In the first month of the seventh year of Chongzhen, Huang Taiji warned all cattle to record the truth: when there is a conflict between cultivation and conquest, it is better to obey cultivation. This brought a stable farming life to an important position.

And Huang Taiji himself has a very haode cultural literacy, at this time he implemented measures to revitalize culture and education. He changed his father's policy of massacring literati by Nurhachi, and conducted examinations, and selected 200 Manchu, Han, and Mongolian students. He has recognized the importance of the development of culture and education in the governance of the country. I can't think that if I don't read, I won't make a mistake.

Therefore, Huang Taiji stipulated that from the fifth year of Chongzhen, the children of all ministers under the age of fifteen and over the age of eight were ordered to study. And began to circle the full text. Absorb the advanced culture of the Han nationality. The ones that have been translated and are being translated are: "The Dictionary of the Criminal Department", "Sushu", "Sanluo", "Wanbao Quanshu", "Zizhi Tongjian", "Liutao", "Mencius", "Three Kingdoms", etc. And eight years after Chongzhen, the ministers of Jin's Wenguan translated the history books of the Liao, Jin, Song and Yuan dynasties.

What is even more valuable is that Huang Taiji also attaches great importance to ethnic policies. Another success of his was to expand his influence by "raising people with kindness". Huang Taiji advocated that both the government and the people should give the family and the village, and not let one lose his place.

On the second day of the sixth month of the sixth year of Chongzhen, Huang Taiji ordered the soldiers in a speech to the newly attached people, "do not disturb everything". Therefore, under the influence of Huang Taiji's policy, the Ming generals Kong Youde, Geng Zhongming, Shang Kexi, etc. surrendered to Houjin one after another.

Moreover, Huang Taiji reappointed Kong Youde as the marshal of the capital, and Geng Zhongming and Shang Kexi as the commander-in-chief, so that they could continue to lead the troops and be tied with Heshuo Baylor. It turned out that the army of Houjin was all Manchurian Eight Banners, Chongzhen four years Tong Yang was appointed as the chief military officer, the management of the Han soldiers, the attack on the Daling River this army called the old Han soldiers with red cannons many meritorious service, to Chongzhen six years when Ma Guangyuan led the Han soldiers, the actual formation of a Han army flag, Manchu called Wuzhen Chaoha.

Therefore, on March 13 of the seventh year of Chongzhen, when Huang Taiji paraded in the suburbs of Shenyang, he participated in the eight banners of Manchuria, the two banners of Mongolia, and the one flag of the old Han soldiers, a total of 11 flags. What is very different from the past is that the army has changed from a private army to a state army.

The other thing is complete recuperation. Although the Later Jin Dynasty achieved brilliant results in the Battle of Dalinghe City, this kind of war that was the strength of the whole country also consumed a considerable amount of the Later Jin's national strength. It can be said that the great victory of the Great Linghe of the Later Jin Dynasty, like the great victory of the Runing Army in Ruzhou, was a great military victory and a financial fiasco.

Let's make an interesting assumption here, if the Ming Dynasty did not have the internal trouble of the peasant rebel army, as long as the Ming Dynasty relied on the national strength of the Ming Dynasty and constantly sent large armies to Liaodong to fight against the Houjin, even if it was a big defeat, it might wear down the strength of the Houjin.

Anyway, this assumption that it can't happen is not much to say. After getting the jade seal of the country, I heard that the capital of the Ming Dynasty had been captured by the peasant rebels. The rulers of the Later Jin Dynasty were swept away from the humility of the central power of the Ming Dynasty, and they began to prepare for the establishment of the country, to be on an equal footing with the Ming Dynasty.

It is somewhat sad that the Ming Dynasty gradually moved from civilization to barbarism at this time, while the Later Jin Dynasty gradually moved from barbarism to civilization. The Later Jin Dynasty is also the same as the Runing Army, they are establishing their own order and civilization, although the objects of their study are the Ming Dynasty, but the Later Jin Dynasty wants to suck blood from the matrix of the Ming Dynasty, and the Runing Army wants to parasitize and develop on the matrix of the Ming Dynasty.

The only difference is that although the speed of development of the Runing Army is fast enough, it is still far inferior to Houjin, which occupies the entire Guanwai.

But no matter what happens in the future, the most important thing now is to recover Fengyang as soon as possible. The fangs of the Runing Army were directed at the peasant rebels who had withdrawn from Fengyang and headed south. (To be continued......)