The 35th Great Khan of the Mongols, Lindan Batur of the Borjigin clan, was defeated and fled near Guihua City. Sutei and his son Ezhe surrendered with the imperial seal.
Dorgon, the Khan of the Later Jin Dynasty, was defeated in the battle and fled to Heilongjiang. After being persuaded by people sent by Nara Zhongming, he surrendered to the Ming army.
Although the disaster continued, society had stabilized, thanks to the continuous shipment of grain from the south and overseas, and the skilled disaster relief work of the imperial court and local officials.
Therefore, the arrival of the two good news caused jubilation and excitement from the capital to the local areas.
Both Mongolia and Jianlu were long-standing enemies of the Ming Empire.
But now, they have all been defeated and surrendered, which means that the threat from the northern border has been completely eliminated, and decades or even hundreds of years of peace and prosperity have arrived.
"Emperor Qin, Emperor Han, Emperor Taizong of Tang, Emperor Taizu of Song, even Emperor Taizu, probably cannot compare to the great achievements of Wansui!"
"Compared to Emperor Wu of Han and Emperor Taizong of Tang, the only thing missing is the Western Regions. But Liaodong and the south of the desert have all been incorporated into the Ming Dynasty, which is far beyond the two emperors!"
The capital city, at the foot of the emperor, is the most sensitive to political and military changes. Even ordinary people can discuss them in teahouses and taverns.
The years of peace can be counted since the pacification of Liao. Since then, although the court has launched a series of wars, they have been proactive, and the border towns have not heard any warnings for a long time.
However, to call it a peaceful and prosperous era, when the great disaster had not yet passed, was obviously too early to call it that. At least the emperor did not care much, or perhaps did not want such a description to appear.
The empire had reached its peak, but now it was declining. The emperor's grand ambitions were still far from being realized. Peace was necessary, but prosperity, by his standards, would never be achieved.
Ezhe and Dorgon were on their way to Beijing. Regardless of their wisdom or stupidity, these two would not be allowed to return to their homeland. Giving them a sinecure would have a strong restraining effect on the Manchu and Mongolian peoples.
Traitors such as Fan Wencheng and Luo Xiujin are also on their way to be taken away. They will be cut into pieces in the capital as a warning to other traitors.
Although he knew full well the hardships of the remaining Jianlu, and that they would soon become wild men even if he did not attack them, their final destruction still lifted the gloom from the emperor's heart.
"We have advanced to Heilongjiang." The emperor looked at the large sand table, his gaze following the flow of the river to the sea, and then to Kuye Island.
The Northeast has two sea outlets, the Tumen River and the Heilongjiang River, which are crucial for development and construction.
The emperor's gaze moved northward, but this was far from his goal. Even if he turned these two rivers into inland rivers, the northern border would have no end.
It's time to slow down the pace of expansion. At least in the Northeast, it will take several years of operation and management to consolidate the foundation.
The emperor knew very well that the development had only reached Heilongjiang, and that construction was far from being involved. Even Jilin Prefecture, which was about to be upgraded to a province, was not yet very developed.
Of course, this is compared with later generations, and the emperor cannot be too harsh.
After all, the population size is there. Let alone one billion, even if it is 400 million, with the current weapons and equipment and the manpower for development and construction, the Ming Empire will dominate the world.
The surrender of the remaining Jianlu added ready-made manpower to the operations in the Heilongjiang region.
Some of them will be relocated to Kuye Island, some will be resettled locally and cultivated, and the remaining part, which belongs to princes and ministers, will be relocated to Jilin Prefecture.
Over the past few years, the remaining Jianlu population has not increased, but has decreased by nearly 30%. It must be admitted that without cold-resistant crops, the power of the disaster is indeed difficult to withstand.
The downfall of the Hudun Rabbits was also due to natural disasters. The cold climate, the southward shift of pastures, and the unpredictable winds and snowstorms made nomadic peoples far less resilient than agricultural peoples.
"Your Majesty." After entering the hall, Wang Tigan bowed and presented the latest document report.
As the eunuch holding the seal, Eunuch Wang was the highest-ranking eunuch. However, he was now old and could no longer compete with Tao Yan to announce the good news to the emperor.
The emperor was no longer a young man, and his whole body exuded a mature temperament, which was not reflected in his appearance or beard.
Reaching out to take the document, the emperor opened it and took a quick look. Then he smiled and nodded, then put the document on the desk.
The phrase "conquering the enemy without fighting" isn't quite accurate. Leveraging his increasingly powerful military, the emperor did indeed gain from the negotiations what he would have gained through war.
The Portuguese finally gave in and signed an alliance agreement with the imperial court to share each other's overseas bases.
The Ming Dynasty's Luzon, Pontianak, Temasek, Thammarat, etc., the Portuguese's Malacca, Ceylon, and the strongholds on the east coast of India became bases used by both sides.
For the Portuguese, the Ming navy was already an unrivaled military presence in Asia. However, the decline of their own power and the strength of the Dutch and British made their Asian strongholds precarious.
In the Battle of the Three Islands, the British and Dutch forces repelled the Portuguese, causing them to lose control of the Strait of Hormuz.
The Dutch and the Kingdom of Johor jointly attacked Malacca. Although they failed, this marked the beginning of the Dutch's alliance with the local forces in Southeast Asia. The Dutch's encroachment on the Portuguese colonial system in the Far East would intensify.
An alliance with the Ming Dynasty could not only resist the invasion of the Dutch and the British, but also allow us to seize territory from them.
Moreover, this was a mutually beneficial alliance. Don't think the Ming army wasn't strong enough to defeat the Portuguese. In Asia, the Ming navy was already a dominant force.
I'll give you some face and use courtesy before force. The Portuguese had witnessed the misery of the Spanish in Luzon and were driven out of the Asian market.
Therefore, the negotiations went quite smoothly. In the face of strength, the emperor did not believe that the Portuguese would not surrender.
If the negotiations break down, then let's fight! Given the Portuguese's strength in Asia, it would be easier to defeat them than the Spanish.
It was precisely because Portugal had declined that the emperor chose to form an alliance with it. This was not only a window to Europe, but also a way to gain more overseas territories through the Portuguese's experience in navigation.
For example, for control of the Strait of Hormuz, the emperor did not hesitate to join forces with the Portuguese and then snatch it from the British and the Dutch.
As for the Dutch, the emperor was not in a hurry to go to war. He let them occupy Java first and continue trade.
When Britain and the Netherlands fight and the Dutch are severely weakened, it will be the time for the emperor to reap the benefits.
It is good to know the trend of history, and the emperor can make the most of it.
With the Portuguese stronghold on the east coast of India, the Ming navy could enter the Indian Ocean and the military operations of the Southwestern Tusi coalition could be launched.
The emperor suddenly sneered, and the feeling of boredom came over him again.
What about breaking out of Asia and heading for the world? What about the sun never setting? Why can't I be so excited? It's far less joyful to interact with concubines and play with children.
Are you getting old? I’m tired!
"Send it to the cabinet and let them draw up a plan and present it to us." The emperor pointed at the documents on the table listlessly, not wanting to take another closer look.
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