"Order the guards at all city gates to open the gates immediately. Those who want to leave can leave at any time. Those who don't want to leave can stay and join me in encircling and suppressing Zhang Xianzhong!" Seeing that everyone was hesitating, Yuan Jixian began to give orders.

The composition of the troops under Zuo Liangyu was very complex.

The majority were Ming Dynasty official troops, and among the rest were surrendered soldiers from Zhang Xianzhong and Li Zicheng.

There were also armed forces of landlords in Henan and Huguang. They were attached to Zuo Liangyu and were government troops on the surface, but in fact they were private armed forces.

These people are fine if used well, but if not used well, they will stab him in the back.

After a while, someone asked, "Sir Yuan, we followed Zuo Liangyu's orders to rob the people and the grain transport ships. How does the court plan to deal with this?"

"The fault of what happened before was Zuo Liangyu. Now he has been executed by me. The court will not hold you accountable for your past crimes."

"But..." Yuan Jixian changed the subject, "I, Yuan Jixian, am the governor of the Ming Dynasty, and the soldiers under my command are officers and soldiers. I will never allow you to rob again."

"If you can't do it, please leave here. I, Yuan Jixian, can't afford you!"

The generals looked at each other, and several of them quickly stood beside Yuan Jixian and put on a guarded posture.

Their attitude was very clear: protect Yuan Jixian and continue to serve the court.

After someone took the lead, others began to express their opinions.

Among the senior generals present, 70% stood beside Yuan Jixian. The remaining 30% stood there with solemn expressions, wanting to leave but not daring to.

Yuan Jixian continued, "Everyone, I will keep my word! Before sunrise tomorrow, I will not leave the Wuchang government office, nor will I issue any orders. You can leave anytime you want."

With this guarantee, the remaining 30% of the generals turned around and left.

They don't trust Yuan Jixian!

Zuo Liangyu's fate frightened them and made them feel heartbroken.

"Please give the order, Lord Yuan. I am willing to capture all those who have surrendered to the enemy and betrayed the country." As soon as the generals left, someone stood up and said.

Yuan Jixian shook his head slowly: "Everyone has their own aspirations, and they cannot be forced. I will do what I say."

"But...if the civil servants in the court knew about this, Lord Yuan might not be able to protect himself...!" A Ming army general's face was full of worry.

His worries are not without reason.

Leading troops in the Ming Dynasty was a very dangerous thing. No matter what difficulties the civil officials in the court had in leading the troops, as long as they were slow in sending troops, suffered a defeat, or failed to fight the war according to the ideas of the civil officials, they would all be impeached.

In minor cases, the punishment is to make meritorious contributions while serving one's sentence, while in serious cases, the punishment is beheading

If the people in the court knew that Yuan Jixian had let these people go without permission, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Yuan Jixian didn't care: "At worst, I'll die. What's there to be afraid of?"

Amid the admiring looks of the generals, Yuan Jixian turned his gaze to the bodies of Zuo Liangyu and his son.

He stood up and walked over to the body.

Looking at his former best friend, Yuan Jixian had a thousand words in his heart, but at this moment he didn't know what to say.

Zuo Liangyu spent his entire life in military service, and he had been seen in Liaodong, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Henan, and Huguang.

He fought against the Jiannu, encountered the Mongols, and fought against Zhang Xianzhong and Li Zicheng.

If he had raised an army to support the king from the moment he was granted the title of Pingnan Bo, perhaps he would have been granted the title of marquis by now.

but...

There is no such thing as "if" in the world.

Zuo Liangyu's death was entirely his own fault!

In order to raise military pay, he captured all the women in the city and sold them on the Qinhuai River for money.

Is this what the government troops should do?

He asked the King of Chu for military pay, but the King refused to give it.

Zuo Liangyu directly allowed his troops to plunder and burn, kill and loot in Nanchang for more than 20 days.

This is definitely not the government army!

Yuan Jixian didn't know whether he should be sad.

After a long silence, he took out a silver ingot from his bosom and said to a nearby Ming army general: "Please help me buy two coffins and bury Zuo Liangyu and his son properly."

"They are prisoners appointed by His Majesty. Sir Yuan's actions..."

"In public, they deserve to die; in private, I am a good friend of Zuo Liangyu, and I should bury them. I will bear all the consequences of this matter, so you don't need to worry about it."

"Lord Yuan is a man of integrity and righteousness, and we admire him! If His Majesty blames us, we are willing to share the responsibility with you!" More than a dozen generals clasped their fists and bowed at the same time.

Yuan Jixian smiled bitterly and shook his head. It was already early May! Among the three fronts of the Ming Dynasty, his was the least noticeable one.

The emperor, who was thousands of miles away, had no time to care about him.

"Start recruiting soldiers and gathering food and fodder tomorrow morning, and after the flood is over, you will march to Yueyang with me!"

The generals standing beside Yuan Jixian looked embarrassed...

"What's wrong?" Yuan Jixian was puzzled.

"Master Yuan, we have no money! We have already squandered 60% to 70% of the money we looted. We have no problem defending the city, but if we want to go out of the city to fight, we need to raise some more money and food."

this...

Yuan Jixian looked in the direction of the capital and prayed in his heart: Your Majesty is able to make plans and win battles thousands of miles away. There must be a way to resolve this matter.

Thousands of miles away in the Qianqing Palace in Beijing, Chongzhen was considering the contents of the newspaper.

"Your Majesty, Huang Fei, the commander-in-chief of the Guanliao Dengjin Navy, and Zheng Zhilong, the deputy governor of the Qianjun Military Governor's Office, and his son Zheng Sen are requesting to see you outside the palace." Wang Chengen's voice sounded outside the palace door.

Um?

"Let them in quickly!" Chongzhen put down the newspaper in his hand, looking a little excited.

On the one hand, the Ming navy had finally gathered together, and on the other hand, he was about to meet Zheng Chenggong, one of the three famous pillars of the Southern Ming Dynasty in history.

At that time, there was no name Zheng Chenggong. His real name was Zheng Sen. Historically, he was given the surname Zhu and the name Chenggong by Emperor Longwu.

This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading!