The Qing soldiers crossed Beijing from the late December of the tenth year of Chongzhen, approached Zhuozhou from Liangxiang, and went deep in three ways: one route out of Yizhou from Laishui, one route from Xincheng out of Xiongxian County, and one route from Dingxing out of Xushui, with a siege of Baoding. At the beginning of January of the eleventh year of Chongzhen, one of the Qing soldiers crossed Baoding to the south, plundered Dingkou ploughing cattle everywhere, and the generation of North Zhili was almost ten rooms and nine empty, making Jingshi, Baoding and other fortified cities become a tree without roots and water without a source.

In early February of the 11th year of Chongzhen, the Qing soldiers who went south on this road crossed Gaoshui unscrupulously, preparing to plunder Gaoyang and other prosperous places with large populations along the way.

After the end of the month, Chongzhen got the news, which greatly shocked Chongzhen, who had grand plans.

In the Qianqing Palace, Chongzhen walked around irritably on the Danqi with his hands behind his back, sighing as he walked, "How good is it that the captives go deep into Jifu like this, like entering a no-man's land!"

He sighed from time to time, and the little eunuch standing outside the hall only heard Chongzhen sigh, "Alas, Lu Xiangsheng is really a waste!

The situation in the Ming Dynasty was worrying in front of him, and he put all his grievances on Lu Xiangsheng, the governor of the world's Qinwang soldiers and horses. Thinking that Lu Xiangsheng had failed to live up to his ardent expectations, he suddenly felt furious, and angrily wrote an edict with a Zhu pen, in which he urged Lu Xiangsheng to avoid the enemy and avoid the war, work in vain, and try to get food and wages, and ordered him to take back the Shang Fang sword in his hand, and give it to the good general who dared to fight the bloody battle in the east.

At this time, he really wanted to find a capable general who could replace Lu Xiangsheng's governor and the world's reinforcements, he thought of the eunuch Gao Qiqian, but although Gao Qiqian was capable, but as the chief of the army, it was not easy for him to stay away from Beijing; Chongzhen couldn't think of a suitable candidate for a while, in the young emperor's heart, Hong Chengchou was a good candidate, but Jinggi and the Central Plains were almost isolated by the Qing soldiers, he didn't know whether Hong Chengchou was on the way to Beijing, or was in Tongguan by the thief's uncle and nephew, and he couldn't help it at the moment.

This morning, the stars are still hanging in the distant sky. As usual, he got up when the sky was unknown, and the palace people had already heated the earth dragon, poured the jade dew in the jade plate into the copper basin, and placed these copper basins containing a finger of deep jade dew in the four corners of the dormitory, and suddenly the heat in the warm pavilion was no longer the heat just now.

Chongzhen finished freshening up under the service of a group of palace maids, put on the crown clothes of the Chang Dynasty, and he walked out of Yangdezhai to the courtyard in front of the Qianqing Palace to burn incense and worship the sky. After bowing four times, he prayed silently for a while before returning to the room at the west end of the Qianqing Palace.

After taking off his crown robe, he changed into a dark dragon yellow satin robe, and sat down in front of the imperial case to review the documents. On top of this nine-foot-nine-inch-long imperial case, Chongzhen has been reviewing various documents related to military affairs for eleven years, and he has personally written countless edicts, but every time he faces this imperial case, he is inexplicably worried.

The various notes and newspapers piled up on the case are like a small mountain, and almost none of these complicated military affairs make him happy. Some of these documents report the severity of the famine, and are full of shocking and tragic phenomena such as thousands of miles of bare land, the loss of people, and the loss of food.

Others reported on the local thieves and bandits who had rebelled and had gone through the grate of man-made disasters; and then there were reports on what prefectures and counties the Qing troops had broken after they had penetrated deep into Kifu and continued to advance, how badly they had burned and plundered, how many Ding Zhuang and ploughing cattle had been captured, and that some local officials had fled and some local official cities had been destroyed and martyred.

Such documents were something Chongzhen had to read every day, but he really didn't want to read them, and sometimes, he wanted to burn them clean.

Today, his mind was particularly heavy, and he did not immediately review the recital as usual, but just looked down at the bronze incense burner on the imperial case.

From under a peach-colored agate carved dragon paperweight, he picked up a list of petitions submitted by the Cabinet, listing the names of ten people one by one, all of whom were to be conferred various official positions and transfer documents. It is said that in the current situation in which the enemy troops are deeply penetrated, there are many great urgent matters waiting for him, and since he has the discretion of the officials and the cabinet, he does not have to spend so much effort to approve the document of approval, and if he does not agree, he will check off the name of that person.

However, Emperor Chongzhen has developed the habit of bowing to himself in some small things, and he is not very willing to let go of his courtiers who accept his fate.

He had read the list several times in his hand, but he still couldn't make a decision. Some of them had names he knew, others he didn't. As he studied the names he knew, many questions arose in the warm animal's mind. He often wondered if this person was not a fellow countryman, could that person be a protégé of this person, and whether this person was instructed by someone to change his position from the imperial history?...... In thinking and suspicion, I often have to put down the pen in my hand and be in a daze alone.

At this moment, the eunuch Wang Chengen, the eunuch of the celebrant Bingpen, walked in with a notebook and respectfully placed it on the imperial case. Chongzhen was afraid that there would be another bad military situation or famine, so he asked suspiciously, "What paperwork?"

"Emperor Qi, this is the transcript of the scholar Liu Yuliang, and the clerk's room was sent to the master of ceremonies and supervisors just now. Wang Chengen's voice was very clear, which made Chongzhen sound very comfortable.

Liu Yuliang ...... What's the matter?" Chongzhen glanced at Wang Chengen

"Because of the deep cavalry, he was eroded, and begged the Lord of Long Live to send him to supervise the reinforcements of the towns. Wang Chengen lowered his eyebrows and told the things in the notebook.

Chongzhen's low heart suddenly rejoiced: "What? He is going to supervise the reinforcements of Zhuzhen?"

"Yes, Your Majesty. ”

"Read it to me! Read it to me!"

Wang Chengen opened the music in his hand and recited it in a tone rich in modulation and frustration. Many of the sentences in Liu Yuliang's recitals were written passionately and generously, full of loyalty and patriotic passion, which deeply moved Wang Chengen, and he couldn't help but tremble in his voice and boil his blood. Chongzhen was also deeply moved, he listened to the statement in the recital, nodded and smiled, and tears habitually flashed in his eyes.

Chongzhen's heart shouted: "Rare! Rare loyal minister!"

When Wang Chengen finished reading this letter, Chongzhen's mood was already very good, and in a moment he had already made a decision in his mind, Chongzhen decisively ordered: "Go, quickly prepare a decree for me, and send Liu Yuliang to replace Lu Xiangsheng, the governor of the world, the king of Qin's soldiers and horses." ”

"What about Lu Xiangsheng?" Wang Chengen was stunned for a moment and asked timidly.

(End of chapter)