"How come there's another Yue Tuo Khan? Wasn't the Great Khan of the Jurchens Haoge?"
The courtiers crowded outside the palace gates, all talking loudly about something.
"Could this Yue Tuo be another name for Hauge?"
"Hey buddy, is there a Jurchen named Yue Tuo?"
Hearing these ministers' speeches, someone finally couldn't hold back anymore.
An official from the Ministry of Rites stepped forward.
"Are all your memories this bad? Last time when my emperor summoned envoys from vassal states to pay homage, wasn't the envoy sent by the Jurchens named Yue Tuo?"
His reminder made the other ministers realize something as well.
"It seems there is such a person."
"But is this Yue Tuo the same as that Yue Tuo? Could it be a case of the same name?"
"It shouldn't be. I remember the Yue Tuo who came to my Great Ming last time was that old slave's grandson, so he could be considered a member of the Jurchen royal family."
"Unless the Jurchens are truly unscrupulous, even having princes and grandsons of the emperor with the same name, then the Yue Tuo we met should be the one who surrendered the city."
They finally remembered who Yue Tuo was.
But soon, another question arose.
"But why did the Jurchens change their Khan again? They can't be following in the footsteps of their ancestors, can they?"
The Jurchens always claimed to be descendants of the Jurchens, and they did the same thing when the Great Jin Dynasty was about to collapse.
Before the Jin Dynasty was completely destroyed, Emperor Aizong of Jin did not want to be the last emperor of a fallen state, so he selected a member of the imperial clan, passed the throne to him, and then committed suicide.
As a result, the Mongols breached the city as soon as that member of the royal family ascended the throne.
This unfortunate man was emperor for only one hour.
So it's no wonder that the officials of the Ming Dynasty would make such a guess.
However, at this moment, Bi Ziyan stepped forward.
The emperor and the soldiers at the front were naturally the happiest about the Ming army's smooth victory.
But the second happiest person was him, the Minister of Revenue.
The faster the war ends, the less the expenses will be.
He laughed loudly, "You've all guessed wrong!"
As the Minister, he was far more informed than other ministers.
"You may not know this, but it's because Hauge suffered a series of defeats in Korea, and the Jurchen leadership was dissatisfied with him."
"That's why they seized the opportunity to kill him, and then staged the coup of Emperor Gaozu, recommending Yue Tuo as the new Khan."
"But Yue Tuo wasn't stupid. He knew that the Jurchens were already doomed. If they insisted on resisting, then when Shengjing fell, other Jurchens might still have a way to survive, but he would definitely be doomed."
"So on the second day after he ascended the throne, he immediately left the city and surrendered!"
What Bi Ziyan said, while not entirely true, is largely accurate.
After listening to this, the ministers thought about it carefully and all nodded in agreement.
"It seems that's the case."
However, at this moment, someone sighed again.
"Alas, if we had known that the Jurchens were so weak, why would our Great Ming have gone to such lengths to wage war?"
"It's laughable that we were worried about the Jurchens back then!"
Because Zhu Youjian was well-prepared, the Ming army displayed great power.
Coupled with a series of coincidences, the Jurchens rose to power and then declined.
In just over a year, it went from its peak to its decline.
As a result, these ministers began to look down on the Jurchens.
As Luo Yangxing listened to the ministers' words amidst the crowd, he felt a surge of emotion.
"Ignorance is bliss!"
"If they knew that, in just over a decade or so of history, the Jurchens would have stormed the capital, how would you have felt?"
But Luo Yangxing naturally dared not say these things.
He approached the high-ranking officials, cupped his hands in greeting, and said, "My lords, His Majesty would like to invite you all inside to discuss some important matters."
"After the discussion, we will invite the other officials in to meet the Emperor."
This was perfectly normal, and the high-ranking officials all nodded in agreement.
"Let's go to the palace now!"
They straightened their court robes and official hats, and then followed Luo Yangxing into the palace to meet Zhu Youjian.
By this time, Zhu Youjian had gradually calmed down.
When the high-ranking officials entered the main hall, they found Zhu Youjian directing a group of eunuchs to draw on a map.
A sharp-eyed person glanced over and discovered that the eunuchs were actually dyeing the fabric of Liaodong and Goryeo.
It was re-dyed in the bright yellow of the Ming Dynasty.
Immediately, ministers knelt down and began to flatter Zhu Youjian.
"Our Great Ming Dynasty has finally recovered Liaodong, all thanks to His Majesty's wisdom and martial prowess."
"Your Majesty is wise!"
Zhu Youjian was already immune to such blatant flattery.
But he was in a good mood, so he smiled and said, "My dear minister, please get up first."
"Let's get down to business first."
"The Jurchens' sudden surrender is a good thing, but it also brings a problem."
Zhu Youjian frowned slightly as he said this.
"There are more than 10,000 Jurchens in Shengjing City alone."
"In addition to Mangultai who surrendered in Guangning City, there were also prisoners captured in Goryeo."
"Finally, we must also count the small groups of Jurchen troops scattered in all directions."
"A few months later, the number of Jurchens who surrender will probably be as many as 40,000 to 50,000."
"How should the imperial court deal with them?"
This statement caused quite a stir among the ministers.
The Jurchens were indeed difficult to deal with.
If it were any other rebel, the imperial court would simply disperse and resettle them.
However, the Jurchens had long since integrated their military and civilian populations.
If we disperse and resettle them, it might be like releasing a tiger back into the mountains.
But killing them all wouldn't be in line with the image of the Celestial Empire.
So they all kept quiet.
Only Bi Ziyan suddenly spoke up: "Your Majesty, I have a suggestion."
"Why not send all these Jurchens to Goryeo?"
"I have heard that Minister Yuan is in Goryeo and plans to use the local fertile land to recruit soldiers."
"Now that the news has arrived and the Goryeo rebels have been organized, it would be a waste to disband them now."
"Why don't we just let them go see Guan Jiannu?"
"It can be considered a way to make use of waste."
As for the matter of returning the Goryeo lands to the Yangban nobles, Bi Ziyan would never mention it.
This suggestion not only offended Yuan Chonghuan, but also brought no benefit.
He had no connection with either of the two Goryeo classes, so naturally he wouldn't stand up for them.
The other ministers also nodded in agreement.
"Lord Bi is absolutely right!"
However, Zhu Youjian noticed a Vice Minister of Works in the corner, who was bowing his head and remaining silent.
Zhu Youjian asked, "Lord Li, why are you silent?"
Minister Li sighed: "Your Majesty, I am a native of Liaodong, what can I say?"
Zhu Youjian immediately understood his meaning.
There was a deep-seated blood feud between the Jurchens and the people of Liaodong.
If the Jurchens were simply sent to Goryeo, the people of Liaodong would naturally be dissatisfied.
But since the other ministers all supported the idea, the vice minister, being of low status, naturally dared not say anything.
Zhu Youjian remained silent for a while, then suddenly slammed his hand on the table and stood up.
"A blood debt can only be repaid in blood! If we let the Jurchens off so easily, who will respect our Great Ming Dynasty in the future?"
Upon hearing this, Bi Ziyan hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, are you going to kill all the Jurchens? That won't do!"
Zhu Youjian shook his head.
"Who said we were going to kill them all? I'm going to make use of them!"
"The number of Liaodong people who died at the hands of the Jurchens was at least one or two million."
"Then let the Jurchens serve our Great Ming, fight the Mongols, fight the Japanese pirates, and fight the Jiaozhi!"
"When they kill one or two million enemies for my Great Ming, if there are any Jurchens left, I will spare them."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com