For Liu Aita, or Liu Xingzuo, his rebellion and return to the Ming Dynasty was motivated by both national justice and the desire to seek benefits and avoid harm.
No gold is pure, and no one is perfect. Zhu Youxiao was not demanding perfection, and he also clarified his meaning in the secret decree. Using the Song Dynasty's Li Xianzhong as an inspiration to Liu Xingzuo was already a high evaluation.
Judging from the course of Liu Xingzuo's rebellion in history, Zhu Youxiao could trust him. Although history is sometimes unreliable, it is not Zhu Youxiao's character to always be skeptical.
The reason why Zhu Youxiao handed the matter over to the Pacification Office and to Teacher Yuan was that he was worried that his subjective thinking would lead to wrong results.
However, Mr. Yuan and the Pacification Office had no historical basis, but only analyzed and judged based on the situation at the time and the thinking characteristics of the people at that time. This should be more objective and easier for Liu Xingzuo to believe.
The Jiannu's several campaigns all ended in failure, resulting in losses not only of personnel and supplies, but also of military spirit and morale, and increasing the rebellious spirit of the Liao people in the ruled areas.
On the other hand, encouraged by the victory and with sufficient supply of weapons, equipment, military pay and food, the Ming army showed obvious progress and improvement in its overall combat capability.
Liu Xingzuo could not fail to see or feel these things. With the growing strength of the Ming army, the coastal areas of southern Liaoning became a chicken rib that was a pity for the Jiannu to abandon and difficult to defend.
Since it would be abandoned sooner or later, there would naturally be no heavy troops stationed there. It was almost entirely guarded by Han soldiers, while the Eight Banners were mobile outside to resist the increasingly intense harassment and infiltration of the Ming army.
This was also a key factor in Liu Xingzuo's rebellion. He believed that most Han people hated slavery. As long as he raised his arm and called for support, not only would many people respond, but with the cooperation of the Ming army, success would be very likely.
Despite his final effort to persuade him, Cao Zhenghua still insisted on turning things around a month later.
At the same time, Cao Zhenghua solemnly warned Liu Xingzuo that the emperor took this matter very seriously. If the plan was leaked due to greed and a large number of Liao people were killed, both he and Liu Xingzuo would have unshirkable responsibility.
Jin Shengkui and Liu Xingren also advised that since the emperor had taken notice, success was paramount. Don't let your greed ruin your efforts; not only would you fail, but you would also be punished, perhaps even face the emperor's wrath.
Liu Xingzuo suddenly realized that this was completely different from what he had initially envisioned. Now that his report had reached the emperor, the size of his achievements was no longer important; the key was to please the emperor.
"Even if we want to restore the state, we must be cautious and prudent. We must not be lenient with loyal slaves or those who are greedy and vicious—" Cao Zhenghua narrowed his eyes and made a downward cutting gesture. "We must eliminate them without mercy."
Liu Xingzuo pondered for a moment, then looked at his brothers and Jin Shengkui, and said uncertainly, "Wang Bing, the guardian of the imperial court, is corrupt, violent, licentious, and vicious. I wish to punish him. Is that permitted?"
Liu Xingren shook his head slightly and said, "It's not a capital crime, but I'm afraid he'll make a false accusation against me, so it's better to kill him."
Jin Shengkui nodded vigorously and said, "That's right."
Seeing that Liu Xingzuo was still hesitant, Cao Zhenghua said, "If you, Lord Liu, are worried about leaving behind trouble and arousing the suspicion of the Jiannu, then let me do it. As long as we can lead Wang Bing to the palace, I guarantee it will be done flawlessly."
Liu Xingzuo's eyes flashed, he gritted his teeth, and said with a bow, "Then I will trouble you, Lord Cao."
If he defended Wang Bing, it would inevitably arouse Cao Zhenghua's suspicion and make people think that he lacked the courage to kill. Liu Xingzuo also knew that Cao Zhenghua was so bold and bold, he must have some tricks to make Wang Bing's death go unnoticed.
After a long discussion, they finalized all the necessary details for the rebellion, deciding that it was too early to act. With ten days or half a month to spare, it should be enough time to contact and launch the rebellion.
The plan was decided and everyone began to act separately. Cao Zhenghua and two Jinyiwei stayed in the general's mansion, and Liu Xingzuo arranged suitable identities for them.
………………………….
If the Ming army launches an attack now and gathers the forces of Liaozhen, Jinzhen, Dengzhen and Dongjiangzhen, it is still possible to capture the three guards in southern Liaoning.
But war is dangerous, and if the Jiannu can't win, they can retreat. It is the Liao people who suffer in the chaos of war. They are all children of the Han family, so it is always better to protect them.
Besides, a possible victory is nothing compared to a certain victory, or a 70% to 80% chance of winning.
Anyway, it is scheduled to take place in a month, and the Ming troops from Liao, Jin and Deng towns participating in this operation have already begun intensive preparations.
Ships departing from Denglai were constantly coming and going, transporting food and supplies to Lushun and Pi Island; the port of Tianjin was also a busy scene, mainly transporting guns, ammunition, personnel and horses.
Xiong Tingbi received the secret order and immediately dispatched his troops, sending He Kegang to lead 4,000 defenders to cross the Daling River under the protection of the two Ming armies to defend Youtunwei. He also built several pontoon bridges across the Daling River to ensure that the reinforcements could pass smoothly.
At the same time, Xiong Tingbi also mobilized the navy of Juehua Island to land on the coast of Liaodong Bay south of Youtunwei to transport supplies and ammunition nearby.
Xiong Tingbi personally stayed in Jinzhou so that he could command the troops nearby.
Advancing eastward to Youtunwei again, all that is left is to recover Guangning, and the war situation seems to be the same as during the strategic contraction last year.
But this time was different from that time. Although the two armies were still facing each other across the Liaohe River, the situation was completely different with the presence of the Luda Ming Army and the Dongjiang headquarters.
The Dongjiang headquarters also received orders to intensify harassment and contain the Jiannu.
Although Mao Wenlong was unaware of Liu Xingzuo's rebellion, he still followed orders and moved along the Yalu River, using boats to frequently harass the Jiannu.
As the most important force supporting the counter-revolutionary movement, the Luda Ming Army also launched an operation. Using Guanglu Island and Dachangshan Island as bases, they launched a surprise attack by sea, successively occupying Wanghai Fort and Guifu Fort.
Although the Ming army's three-way action was not large in scale, it oppressed the Jiannu from three sides, forcing Nurhaci to divide his troops to counterattack, which greatly tied down the Jiannu's mobile forces.
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