Chapter 56 When the relationship turns against each other
Zhu Qizhen was pushed to the center of the Wala camp. Yesen examined him from head to toe again, and then had someone check his hands, feet and upper body. Indeed, there were only thin calluses, and not even any marks of armor left. He was completely different from the ordinary soldiers who wore helmets and armor.
It seems that the Ming court wanted to abandon the emperor and assume that he was dead.
Thinking of this, Yesen sneered and asked the Tatar official next to him who originally belonged to the Ming Dynasty and now surrendered to the Oirat to explain the situation.
"The Ming people have a new emperor. They no longer need you, the emperor we captured."
This sentence is not long or complicated, but it is a result that Zhu Qizhen could never have imagined.
A new emperor? The eldest prince wasn't even a year old yet. Who else could they choose as emperor? Could it be Prince Qing? But how could Prince Qing have such courage? And how could the eldest princess allow Prince Qing to take away the emperor's power, leaving herself with nothing?
"Your sister will be the emperor in the future. As for you, you are already a dead person."
Zhu Qizhen's ears almost couldn't hear anything at that moment. He looked at the Wala people in front of him in a trance and almost couldn't stand. He subconsciously took two steps back, stepped on a stone, and then barely supported his body.
The panic in his heart had completely transformed into a kind of anger that arose from the bottom of his heart.
When had he ever treated Zhu Yuhuan unfairly in terms of honor? He was even willing to suppress the dissent of court officials and give her some power.
But Zhu Yuhuan, a "minister", actually responded to him in this way...and that group of ministers didn't even object!
A gust of wind blew, bringing a slight chill. Zhu Qizhen came to his senses and saw that the Wala man's knife was at his neck.
The shadow of death hangs over Zhu Qizhen's head. For him, the most important thing now is to save his life.
Zhu Qizhen leaned back slightly, avoiding the sharp blade. He said, "If you kill me, won't you return empty-handed? I can take you to Datong. Shi Heng was defeated, and I summoned him personally, allowing him to atone for his mistakes. He wouldn't dare to avoid me like Yang Hong and the others did." He noticed that the blade showed no sign of retreating, but was actually getting closer and closer to his neck. He shouted, "Besides, it's only been a little over two weeks since Song Ying and the others were defeated in Datong. Datong's troops may not be fully manned. Even if we are shut out, we may still gain something."
After listening to the Tartar official's translation, Yesen was silent for a moment, then waved his hand to signal his subordinates to move aside.
He walked up to Zhu Qizhen and looked him up and down.
Yesen's mother, Mindashili, was originally from Suzhou, Ming Dynasty. She followed her husband to guard the border. After being captured by the Oirat Mongols, she gave birth to Yesen for Toghan. Therefore, Yesen was able to understand Chinese and knew some of the legal principles of the Ming Dynasty.
In the current situation, the ascension of Princess Shunde to the throne was obviously not in line with the ideas of the Ming people. Emperor Zhu Qizhen was only falsely claimed to be dead. If the guards could see him, perhaps they could sow discord within the Ming Dynasty.
The defeat of the Ming army in this robbery was a pleasant surprise for Yesen. He had already asked his younger brother to lead the army back with the spoils. It would be pointless to continue harassing the Ming Dynasty's closed borders with soldiers. It would be better to use Zhu Qizhen to cause trouble for the Ming Dynasty.
At worst, they can wait until this time next year to invade the Ming Dynasty again. No matter who the emperor of the Ming Dynasty is, it is impossible to completely solve the problems on the grassland. As long as the Oirat Mongols make a comeback next year, the Ming Dynasty will have to open up and do business with the Oirat Mongols.
After thinking for a moment, Yesen said, "Okay." He gave a look to one of the followers next to him, and the other person picked up the robe that had been stripped off and thrown on the ground and draped it over Zhu Qizhen's body.
He had only heard of the reputation of this former princess and current emperor, but had never actually met her.
However, the Ming Dynasty had lost its original emperor Zhu Qizhen, and probably would not allow the new emperor to face the Oirat army in person.
As for whether Zhu Qizhen's identity is true or false, I believe he will be able to make a judgment after meeting Shi Heng.
Even if Shi Heng avoided him, it would at least prove that Zhu Qizhen was no longer useful as a chess piece, and Yesen could just discard him at that time. As for Datong, even if Shi Heng had recruited soldiers, he would most likely not chase Yesen out of Datong, so it would not be difficult for Yesen to retreat safely.
Yesen raised his chin and ordered, "Be careful these days and don't let him die. Give him some of the dry food you have. After all, we snatched it from the Ming army. Let him have a good taste."
Everyone heard the sarcasm in Yesen's words and laughed. Only Zhu Qizhen stood there in a daze because of the language barrier. The Tartar official who followed Yesen was very responsible and "kindly" translated it for Zhu Qizhen in Chinese.
The way he deliberately imitated Yesen's tone of voice when speaking Chinese was very funny. Even though the Wala people around him did not understand what he was saying, they understood that he was ridiculing Zhu Qizhen, so they laughed at Zhu Qizhen mercilessly.
Even if Zhu Qizhen was the emperor, he was a captured foreign emperor. In the camp, anyone except Yuan Bin and Ha Ming could laugh at him.
Zhu Qizhen certainly understood the humiliation, but now that he was inferior to others, he could only endure it.
As long as he has the opportunity to meet Shi Heng and get more people to prove their identity, he will have the opportunity to return to the capital through Shi Heng.
By then, as long as he appeared, he would be able to make those ministers surrounding Zhu Yuhuan crawl back to his feet.
He is the true and legitimate successor recognized by the Emperor, and cannot be replaced by someone like Zhu Yuhuan who wins people's hearts by taking advantage of chaos.
Seeing Zhu Qizhen return, Yuan Bin and Ha Ming both stepped forward. Yuan Bin was a little anxious and took a long time to speak before asking, "Your Majesty, what did I say to you first? Did I hurt Your Majesty?"
Zhu Qizhen had put his clothes back on and sat back on the ground, looking a little calmer than before he was taken to the camp.
He sat down again and said, "Yesen asked to see me because he wanted to retake Datong."
Yuan Bin was horrified and asked, "Why do you want to go back to Datong..."
Before he could finish his words, Ha Ming quickly touched Yuan Bin with his arm, signaling him not to continue.
Now that the emperor has been captured by the Oirat Mongols, no matter what the Oirat Mongols want to do, as long as the emperor wants to save his life, he will not refuse the Oirat Mongols and Yesen.
Isn't it like persuading the emperor to wait for death to persuade him not to obey at this time?
They had accompanied the emperor to this point, worse than ordinary prisoners, with an emperor above their heads. They were not only prisoners of the Oirat, but also subjects of the prisoner emperor. There was no need to anger the emperor at this time.
Moreover, based on their observations of the Ming army during this period, even if they arrived in Datong, the Datong defenders might not open the gate for them. If the city gate was not opened, with the Wala's siege level, they might not be able to break into the city.
If that's the case, why should they try to persuade him?
Yuan Bin was still somewhat worried and said, "The Oirat troops are clearly showing signs of retreating, and Bayan Temur has even returned to the Oirat base camp. Why would they suddenly have the idea of taking Your Majesty to Datong again? Could it be that someone is instigating this..."
As he was speaking, he suddenly stopped, because Zhu Qizhen, who had been in deep thought, had looked at him with a cold light in his eyes. It was obvious that he had lost interest in what Yuan Bin was going to say next, so how could Yuan Bin dare to continue?
During this period, they lived with the emperor day and night and almost forgot that Zhu Qizhen was an emperor after all and would not allow others to influence his decisions.
If it weren't for such a domineering personality, how could Zhu Qizhen lead a group of soldiers to their deaths so easily, leaving only a few of them to survive in the world.
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