As early as the fourth year of Chongzhen, Zu Dashou personally ordered the killing of the general He Kegang who was unwilling to follow him to surrender the city, then led his army out of the city to surrender, and offered Daling River City to the slave chief Huang Taiji!

During this period, Zu Dashou led his trusted generals to stay in Huang Taiji's camp for several days. They also made a blood alliance with Huang Taiji and expressed their determination to surrender to Hou Jin.

Then, he persuaded Huang Taiji on the grounds that he was willing to persuade the Jinzhou City defender to also surrender to the city, and Huang Taiji agreed that he would take some of his trusted generals back to Jinzhou City to serve as internal agents.

After Zu Dashou returned to Jinzhou, he first said that he was leading his troops to break out from the Daling River. After being exposed about the Xiancheng scandal, he lied again that he was in Cao's camp and his heart was with Han. This time, he came from the Tatar camp.

Looking for an opportunity to escape and return.

However, Qiu Hejia, the governor of Liaodong at the time, also had his own intelligence channels. Although he was unclear about the contents of the alliance oath between Zu Dashou and Huang Taiji and had no real evidence, he could still make a general guess.

After Qiu Hejia learned the general truth of the matter, he did not hide it for Zu Dashou, but immediately reported the situation to Emperor Chongzhen.

According to common sense, if such a thing is exposed, Zu Dashou will be beheaded and his family will be ransacked, and he will definitely not be able to escape.

Even if Emperor Chongzhen was merciful and spared the lives of Zu Dashou and the ancestral generals he brought back, he should have dismissed them from office and left them idle.

At the very least, they should all be transferred out of Liaodong Town and sent to the pass to suppress the bandits, so as to avoid suspicion!

However, after Zu Dashou's rebellion and surrender was exposed and reported by Qiu Hejia, the governor of Liaodong, Emperor Chongzhen ignored the matter on the grounds that the national crisis was at the forefront and it was the right time to appoint people. Zu Dashou was still appointed as the commander-in-chief of Jinzhou's vanguard.

On the contrary, Qiu Hejia, who wrote a letter bluntly exposing the matter, was unlucky. Because he could no longer work with Zu Dashou, the commander-in-chief, Qiu Hejia was soon transferred out of Liaodong.

Since then, things in Liaodong have become more and more mysterious. Jinzhou City, the gateway to Liaodong, has become more and more ineffective.

Zu Dashou and Huang Taiji seemed to have a tacit understanding. The Jurchen Tatar army no longer came to attack Jinzhou, and the Liaodong Army in Jinzhou City never left the city to go north and crossed the Daling River to attack or harass the Later Jin Dynasty.

Even if the Jurchen Tatar army bypassed Jinzhou to attack Songshan and threaten Ningyuan, the army in Jinzhou city basically turned a blind eye and ignored it.

Jinzhou City had tens of thousands of soldiers and spent countless money on food and salary from the imperial court, but it could not play any role as a vanguard, or even play a role in containing the Tatar army's retreat.

Especially in the second battle of Songjin, Zu Dashou had a heavy army to guard Jinzhou. Faced with the strategic trap of the Tatars who surrounded Songjin with heavy troops, he knew clearly that the Tatars were encircling the area for reinforcements and setting up an ambush, but he did not

He vigorously requested the imperial court to send a large army to rescue him.

Finally, under the repeated orders of Emperor Chongzhen and the ministers of the court, Hong Chengchou mobilized all the elite border troops around the capital at that time - from Datong to Shanhaiguan, a total of 130,000 troops, first out of Shanhaiguan, then to Ningyuan City, and then again

Go north to Songshan Castle.

Once here, Zu Dashou still kept asking for help from the imperial court, forcing Hong Chengchou to turn his back on Songshan City and command the army to take the initiative to attack the Tatar army besieging Jinzhou.

Songshan and Jinzhou are only a dozen miles apart. After Hong Chengchou arrived in Ningyuan, there was no need to go further north.

Especially after arriving at Songshan, there was no need to force the Eighth Army to find the main Tatar force for a decisive battle.

The result was great, but he just took advantage of the trap set by the Qing Dynasty.

Outside Songshan City, the last 130,000 elite officers and soldiers of the Ming Dynasty lost their food and grass before fighting, and their food routes were cut off. They were immediately surrounded by heavy Tatar troops, collapsed without a fight, and the entire army was wiped out.

What role did Liaodong Marshal Zu Dashou play in this?

Yang Zhen was unwilling to speculate on Zu Dashou's loyalty to the Ming Dynasty, nor to question Zu Dashou's loyalty to Emperor Chongzhen.

But if he didn't think about it, he wouldn't be able to understand the Second Battle of Songjin, including the many performances of the Tatar army in the current First Battle of Songjin.

Perhaps Zu Dashou himself had wavered back and forth between whether to continue to be loyal to the Ming Dynasty, which his ancestors had been loyal to for generations, or to change his loyalty to the foreign tribes that his ancestors had been enemies with.

However, history has clearly written what choice he made in the end.

Now Yang Zhen knew very well that after the Tatars withdrew their troops this time, Zu Dashou would be able to return to Jinzhou city smoothly soon.

However, next year, the thirteenth year of Chongzhen, the Tatar army will come back again, and the second Battle of Songjin will begin.

At that time, it was time for Zu Dashou to make the final decision.

Thinking that he would have to fight side by side with such a complicated and ambiguous person in the future, Yang Zhen felt a headache.

Yang Zhen did not explain in depth to Yang Zhan'ao and Guo Xiaowu, and he could not explain clearly how he guessed that the Tatars were going to withdraw.

However, at dusk, he heard the sound of shelling outside Songshan City, which gave him some new ideas.

After dusk that day, night fell, and the light control was released on the Shazhou Island where Yang Zhen's troops were stationed, and several camps were brightly lit.

Yang Zhen took Yang Zhan'ao, Yan San, Guo Xiaowu, and Ma Liu to Pan Wenmao's ammunition depot team to have a simple dinner, made some arrangements for Pan Wenmao's ammunition depot affairs, and then led these relatives

Follow the people back.

On the way back, Yang Zhen said to Guo Xiaowu: "Xiaowu! I think you are brave, careful, and flexible, and you are very suitable for being a sentry in the expedition! If you are willing to serve in the advance camp, be my dear friend."

Bing, I will go to Yuan Shoubei and ask you to come to the advance camp! Are you willing?!"

Guo Xiaowu had already heard that Yang Zhen mentioned him alone when he reported his merits in the afternoon. He was grateful to Yang Zhen in his heart. After hearing Yang Zhen's words, he did not hesitate and said immediately:

"I am willing! Although I have been on the boat since I was a child, after all these years, I still feel that fighting with Mr. Xie Zhen these days is quite enjoyable! I am not aggrieved!"

Seeing that Guo Xiaowu was willing, Yang Zhen felt happy. He smiled and nodded, then asked Yang Zhan'ao and others: "What about you? What do you think?"

Yang Zhen naturally asked Yang Zhan'ao and Yan San. After all, these two people were nominally the captain and deputy captain of Yang Zhen's personal army.

As for Ma Liu, he took the initiative to filter him out. He was a prisoner from two Tatars, so it would be great if he could have something to eat and not starve to death under Yang Zhen's hands.

"Agree! Of course I agree! Xiaowu is a good seedling! If you give it a little cultivation, you will surely succeed in the future!"

Yang Zhan'ao wished he had more servants under his command. When Yang Zhen asked, he was in full agreement.

He was very touched that Yang Zhen could ask for his opinion, which showed that Yang Zhan'ao had his place in Yang Zhen's heart.

Not to mention Yan San, Guo Xiaowu was seconded to work under Yang Zhen. It was originally recommended by him. He also knew this person thoroughly and felt at ease.

"In this case, I'll go talk to Yuan Jin! Just work hard in the advance camp. I, Yang Zhen, will never mistreat a meritorious brother!"

At this point, Yang Zhen stopped, thought for a moment, and then said to the people following him: "Zhan'ao, Xiaowu, you have to go out tonight!

"This time, you go directly to the mouth of the Xiaoling River, go north along the Xiaoling River, and simply go to the Tatar camp at the Empress Palace to see what the Tatars are doing! -"

After Yang Zhen said this, he suddenly made a fist with his right hand and punched the heart of his left hand. As if he had made some determination, he looked up at the direction of Songshan Mountain under the night sky in the distance, and then said: "Forget it! I'll stay with you.

Let’s go there!”

"How can that be possible?! Sir! You can't go!"

As soon as Yang Zhen said what he said, the other four people present were shocked and objected one after another, especially Yang Zhan'ao's opposition became more intense:

"Regardless of whether the Tatars are really withdrawing their troops or pretending to do so, the area around the Queen's Palace outside Songshan City is definitely in chaos right now, with the Tatars running around in chaos. What if they are in danger?!

"It doesn't matter if we are in danger, after all, you are still here! If you are in danger, the hundreds of us will collapse in an instant. The hundreds of us are all counting on you!"

"What the hell are you talking about!? My life is life, but your life is not life?! You can go, but I can't go?! How can there be such truth!?"

As soon as Yang Zhen got angry, no one else dared to say anything more.

Next, none of them spoke and hurried back to their camp shacks.

Yang Zhen insisted on following Yang Zhan'ao, and Guo Xiaowu and others went out together to investigate, but even if Zhang Degui, Li Lu, and Zhang Chen came to dissuade him, it would not work.

In the end, the team of sentry detectives had to be expanded again. Except for Yang Zhen who insisted on joining, under Zhang Degui's strong suggestion, Yang Zhen had to agree to let Zhang Chen and Yan San join.

Less than half an hour later, several people packed up, each brought their own weapons, and enough iron grenades provided by Li Lu, and set off towards the northwest corner of Shazhou Island where Guo Xiaowu and others parked their boat.

When it was time to board the ship, Yang Zhen remembered that Ma Liu could understand Manta's Jurchen speech, so he waited for a while and asked someone to bring Ma Liu over.
Chapter completed!