Southern Ming Rebel Army

Chapter 489 Zheng's Surrender

(I forgot to mention a few days ago that many friends said that the reign title Zhenchang was inappropriate, so I followed their advice and changed the previous text to Zhaowu. Although it was used by Wu Sangui, Wu Sangui had no chance to use this reign title in this time and space o＞_＜o)

Quanzhou Prefecture, Nan'an City.

Although Fuzhou is the capital of Fujian, Zheng Chenggong usually prefers to stay in his hometown of Nan'an.

The envoy of the Qian Dynasty was a young man. In fact, according to reason, Meng Hong should have come in person to deal with Zheng Chenggong, an important force. Unfortunately, Meng Hong had already been sent to Yongchang to persuade Yongli to abdicate.

The young envoy's surname was Chen and his given name was Wenjin. At this moment, he was standing under a banyan tree with an extremely broad crown. On a stone bench in front of him, Zheng Chenggong was sitting, drinking tea and enjoying the gentle autumn breeze. Several brave guards were standing behind him, staring at Chen Wenjin with sharp eyes.

Zheng Chenggong put down his teacup, coughed, and said in a slightly cold tone: "In the past, King Zhou and I raised an army together to fight against the Tartars. Now that King Zhou has become the emperor, what? Are you going to abandon your promise and send troops to attack me?"

Chen Wenjin raised his hands and said, "Your Majesty once fought side by side with the Prince of Nan'an. Before I was sent on the mission, Your Majesty personally summoned me and told me not to be rude to the Prince. This shows that Your Majesty thinks highly of the Prince, so how could there be any military exchange!"

As a person in control of a huge navy and with Fujian and Taiwan as his base, Zheng Chenggong's prestige has been growing day by day. Given his temper, he will only respond to soft actions and not hard ones.

Therefore, after hearing Chen Wenjin's words, Zheng Chenggong showed a hint of complacency, and softened his tone to Chen Wenjin, saying, "Messenger, please take a seat. Someone, serve tea."

Chen Wenjin cupped his hands and said, "Thank you, Prince."

After Chen Wenjin sat down, Zheng Chenggong asked, "Just tell me the reason why your emperor asked you to come here!"

Chen Wenjin spoke calmly, "Since Chongzhen, the world has been in turmoil and the people have been displaced. Fortunately, Your Majesty is wise and courageous. You have raised an army of righteousness to pacify the world. The barbarians have fled far away, and the overall situation of the world has been settled.

The emperor is wise and brave, benevolent and generous. He cannot bear to start a war again. The unification of the world is what the people expect. The Prince of Nan'an is a hero. If he can submit to the court, the world will be unified and there will be no more troubles! "

As the saying goes, a gentleman will die for his confidant. If there was anyone to whom Zheng Chenggong was loyal, it was Emperor Longwu. At a young age when he was full of vigor and vitality, he met an emperor who admired him very much. It would be a lie to say that Zheng Chenggong was not moved, but time cannot be turned back and facts cannot be changed. Longwu had already died for his country.

Although Zheng Chenggong still serves Emperor Yongli on paper, that is just a title. To Zheng Chenggong, the Gui clan is a hopeless person who does all kinds of stupid things that make his relatives sad and his enemies happy, and he fears the Qing army like a tiger.

If Zheng Chenggong had not disliked Prince Lu, he would have placed Prince Lu on the throne long ago, and would not even want to have his name associated with Yongli.

Zheng Chenggong's mind was full of thoughts, but in reality, it was just a flash. Zheng Chenggong said slowly: "King Zhou once said that the Zheng family can rule Fujian forever!"

Chen Wenjin stood up and bowed to Zheng Chenggong respectfully, "Prince, His Majesty has said that although I was not the emperor in the past, a gentleman's promise will not change even if it is worth a thousand gold. If the prince is willing to bring all his people to submit, His Majesty will still treat him as a prince. Fujian can be emulated by the Mu family of the former Ming Dynasty!"

Zheng Chenggong frowned, "Mu, can that be called a permanent town? Being watched closely by the civil officials, how miserable it must be."

Chen Wenjin called Zheng Chenggong's face a little uneasy, so he immediately said: "Prince, look through the history books, is there any vassal state that did not cause trouble? Even if Your Majesty is willing to accept your idea, the court will never accept that there is a place where the government orders are not implemented!"

Hearing this, Zheng Chenggong's expression did not improve. He asked in a deep voice, "Who commands our Zheng family's navy? And who commands our Zheng family's infantry?"

Chen Wenjin said: "The Zheng family navy is commanded by the county prince, and the Zheng family infantry is also commanded by the county prince. However, the number of navy and infantry should be determined after consultation with the court."

Zheng Chenggong asked again: "Sir, where is the land of Luzon?"

Chen Wenjin bowed and said, “Sir, Luzon is based on the fief of the prince, and everything is decided by the prince’s words!”

To be honest, Zheng Chenggong felt that since Fujian was the only place left in the world, Meng Jun was willing to offer such generous conditions. Zheng Chenggong felt that there seemed to be no point in struggling and opposing it.

One of the important reasons why Meng Jun was willing to give preferential treatment to Zheng Chenggong was the huge navy in the hands of the Zheng family and the craftsmen who were capable of building large warships that Zheng Chenggong had trained over the years.

The navy can now use Luzon as a base and attack Batavia and Singapore to the south. Even controlling Malacca in the future is an achievable goal. Craftsmen are the foundation of a country's navy. Without mature craftsmen, shipbuilding is out of the question. Once a war breaks out, these mature craftsmen will inevitably scatter. Starting over again will not be a matter of a day or two.

If Meng Jun and Zheng Chenggong went to war, of course, with the current strength of the Zheng family, there would be little hope of holding on to Fujian, but it would be easy for the Zheng family's navy to cause unrest on the southeast coast.

In addition, the Zheng family had never caused any trouble in all these years, and had mobilized its entire army to fight Duoduo together with Meng Jun. Therefore, due to a combination of many factors, Meng Jun was able to give Zheng Chenggong such favorable conditions.

Zheng Chenggong pondered for a moment. He now understood Meng Jun's meaning very clearly. The Zheng family could receive preferential treatment in Fujian, but the appointment and dismissal of officials, and the collection of taxes and grain, which were fundamental matters, must be controlled by the court.

However, Zheng Chenggong could still control the infantry and navy, which made him feel more at ease. The only thing he needed to discuss was the number, which would inevitably be related to the money and food needed to support the army. However, Zheng Chenggong was not worried about this. The taxes in Fujian were just a bonus for the Zheng family.

Just when Zheng Chenggong was about to nod his head in agreement, he suddenly seemed to remember something and asked hesitantly, "Prince Lu is still in Xiamen..."

Chen Wenjin laughed and said, "Your Majesty is a man of unparalleled benevolence and righteousness. The prince is worrying too much. As the prince of Lu is a vassal king of the previous dynasty, Your Majesty will properly place him and there will be no possibility of harm. If he wishes to return to his hometown, he can. If he wants to continue to stay in Xiamen, he can also stay. His freedom will not be restricted in any way."

Zheng Chenggong stood up at this time, turned around and looked at the banyan tree, then looked up at the broad crown of the tree. His tone was a little bleak, and he slowly said: "It is the time, the fate, and the luck. Since this is the case, I am willing to lead the people and bring the land with me!"

Chen Wenjin bowed deeply and said, "The prince has obeyed the will of heaven and made great contributions to the country. In the future, he will be remembered for thousands of years and his name will be recorded in history!"