The third year of Tiancong was an extraordinary year. In that year, under the influence of Yunyi for many years, Huang Taiji proposed "using military force to quell the rebellion and using education to help maintain peace," which was a change from his father Nurhaci's policy of massacring scholars.
An examination was held that year, selecting two hundred students from Manchu, Han, and Mongolian backgrounds.
He also recognized the importance of developing education and culture for governing the country, and made great efforts to learn Han Chinese culture, even ordering Confucian officials to translate Chinese books.
Under the influence of the Great Khan Huang Taiji, the Han people of the Jin Dynasty lived much better lives than before.
In October, Huang Taiji led his army from Mongolia into the interior when the Ming Dynasty's Guan-Ning-Jin defense line was difficult to break through. He attacked Beijing but failed, which is known as the "Jisi Incident". This war lasted until January of the fourth year of Tiancong.
The Ming court mobilized troops from all directions to launch a counterattack, recapturing four cities including Yongping. The Later Jin army was defeated and retreated to Shenyang.
Huang Taiji was so saddened by the loss of the four cities he had already gained that he shed tears, and all his officials, high and low, wept upon seeing him.
After returning to the capital, Huang Taiji was heartbroken over the defeat in battle, while also planning to weaken the power of the four great princes.
In June, taking advantage of the fact that the Second Prince Amin had abandoned the four cities of Luanzhou, Yongping, Qian'an, and Zunhua, he convened a meeting of all the princes and ministers, listed 16 crimes against Amin, and sent Amin to be imprisoned in a high wall and never to be employed again. Amin died of illness not long after.
In August of the fifth year of the Tiancong reign, during the Battle of Dalinghe, Huang Taiji and the Third Prince Mangultai had a quarrel. Mangultai drew his sword and confronted Huang Taiji. Huang Taiji used this as a pretext to punish Mangultai and strip him of his title of Grand Prince. Not long after, Mangultai died suddenly from anger.
At this point, of the original four princes, only the eldest prince Daishan remained besides himself.
During the New Year's Day court ceremony on the first day of the first month of the sixth year of Tiancong, Huang Taiji accepted the suggestion of Li Bolong, the Minister of Rites, to abolish the old system of "sitting facing south with the three great beile" and jointly managing state affairs, and instead "sat alone facing south" to highlight the supreme status of the Khan.
In May of the seventh year of the Tiancong reign, Yunyi's eldest son, Ertenyi, turned seventeen and married a woman from the Xitala clan.
At this time, Yunyi was only thirty-three years old when she became a mother-in-law, which was quite helpless for her.
On the second day of the sixth month, Huang Taiji ordered his soldiers in a speech that they "must not harass the newly surrendered people."
Under Huang Taiji's influence, Ming generals Kong Youde, Geng Zhongming, Shang Kexi, and others surrendered to the Later Jin.
Huang Taiji led the princes to the Hun River to greet them, and they embraced each other in a gesture of respect.
Kong and Geng not only surrendered, but also brought with them more than 12,000 elite soldiers and cannons.
This move further accelerated the collapse of the Ming Dynasty's Liaodong coastal defenses, laying a solid foundation for the Qing Dynasty's later entry into the Central Plains.
In October of the year's end, Huang Taiji launched his second western expedition against Chahar in order to unify southern Mongolia.
In this battle, Huang Taiji brought along his two younger brothers, Dorgon and Dodo, as well as his nephew-in-law, Aguta, and other trusted confidants.
At the beginning of the war, things went quite smoothly, but the Chahar tribe had fought against the Jin Dynasty for many years, and their strength should not be underestimated.
With the war halfway through, Huang Taiji, due to carelessness, fell into the enemy's trap and was caught in a snare.
To boost morale, Huang Taiji always charged ahead in every battle, leading by example.
But it was precisely because of this that the enemy set a trap for him.
When news of Huang Taiji's ambush reached the camp, the soldier was most worried about his nephew-in-law, Aguta.
He made a quick decision and immediately dispatched a team of men to the rescue. By the time they arrived, very few of Huang Taiji's soldiers remained, as they had been protecting him.
If Aguta had arrived any later, he might have seen Huang Taiji's corpse.
Running all the way to Huang Taiji's side, Aguta felt a little scared. If he had arrived later, it would have been all over.
"Your Majesty, is something wrong? I am late in coming to your rescue."
With Aguta's help, the danger on Huang Taiji's side was greatly reduced, and his tense state of mind, which had been tense from the beginning, was able to relax a little.
"You've come at the right time!" Patting Aguta on the shoulder, Huang Taiji, for the first time setting aside his perspective as a rival in love, sincerely thanked the young man.
Even though he was already a father of two, Aguta was still very shy. When he heard the Khan praising him, he scratched his head, feeling a little embarrassed.
Danger often comes so suddenly. Just as Aguta finished speaking with Huang Taiji and was preparing to break through the encirclement, the number of people lying in ambush outside not only did not decrease, but actually increased.
Huang Taiji's expression suddenly changed as he had just relaxed.
Oh no, this is probably part of the enemy's plan; they want to wipe out the reinforcements as well.
Aguta now understood what was going on, and he was somewhat annoyed. "Great Khan, I was too stupid. I didn't realize the enemy's real plan and fell into their trap."
Huang Taiji didn't mind what he said. It was already very good that Aguta risked his life to save him. He was too impulsive and hadn't thought things through. His heart alone was commendable.
Only then did Ligdan Khan, the leader of the Chahar tribe, finally appear. He was quite smug, saying, "Hahaha, Huang Taiji, you didn't expect this day to come, did you?"
Ignoring the other party's provocation, Huang Taiji whispered his plan to the soldiers around him.
Seeing Huang Taiji's response tomorrow, Chahar leader Ligdan Khan was somewhat embarrassed and angry. He raised his hand and ordered, "Go! Whoever can capture Huang Taiji alive will be richly rewarded."
At his command, the Chahar soldiers swarmed forward and charged toward Huang Taiji.
The soldiers around Huang Taiji were already injured and exhausted, but fortunately, there was a group of men brought by Aguta. However, the enemy was numerous and powerful, and they could resist for a while, but they could not hold out for long.
While fighting and retreating, Aguta led Huang Taiji to fight his way out.
Just as they were about to escape the encirclement, Aguta made a tough decision, pulled Huang Taiji onto his horse, and charged out.
Huang Taiji is the Great Khan, the pillar of the Great Jin Dynasty, and cannot be allowed to perish here. Therefore, he must help Huang Taiji escape safely today.
Therefore, he had to be ruthless, abandoning the soldiers who fought alongside him and fleeing with Huang Taiji.
Seeing the Great Khan mount his horse, the soldiers fought even harder, determined to stop the Mongol troops from pursuing him.
Lin Danhan was getting anxious. He couldn't let the duck that was already in his mouth fly away. If he couldn't catch it alive, then he would have no choice but to...
Thinking of this, his eyes turned cold, and he gave a few instructions to his trusted confidant beside him.
A moment later, a trusted aide came over carrying a large bow.
This bow is a treasure passed down through generations of the Chahar tribe. It is exquisitely crafted, highly lethal, and of course, quite heavy.
Taking a deep breath, Lin Danhan raised his hand, nocked an arrow, and drew his bow. With a piercing whistling sound, the arrowhead pointed directly at the two men on horseback.
Aguta dodged the arrow thanks to his superior horsemanship, and it missed them.
Lin Danhan didn't mind. When his first arrow failed, he immediately shot a second one.
Perhaps it was truly fate; during the second arrow's trajectory, Aguta's horse encountered a large crater, and as he dodged, he happened to...
Suppressing the pain, Aguta only let out a low groan, which Huang Taiji did not notice.
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