Chapter 247

After Bai Guangen finished speaking, the whole hall fell into silence.

The generals under Marco's command had different expressions, and for a while they didn't know how much they were thinking.

Ma Ke suddenly said: "Brother Bai, you said that the capital will be lost and the Ming Dynasty will be destroyed. What's going on?"

He stared at Bai Guangen with burning eyes, as if he didn't want to miss a word.

When Bai Guangen heard this, he felt happy and said with a smile: "Brother Ma heard it right. The capital will be lost and the Ming Dynasty will be destroyed. Our Lord's Northern Expedition, does Brother Ma think that only Shanhaiguan's troops are here?"

Ma Ke took a deep breath: "I heard that he only occupied Henan last year, and Henan was suffering from bandits and was almost a thousand miles bare. Where did he get the capital to go north? How did he lose Shanhaiguan? Could it be by water? ?”

Bai Guangen chuckled: "What Brother Ma said is true. Our lord did take the water route to seize Shanhaiguan. But Brother Ma's vision is limited, how can he know my lord's background? Brother Ma, do you know that I led 6,000 soldiers and horses to seize the pass? when?"

Marco shook his head.

Bai Guangen said: "When I heard the alarm bell, I immediately put on my armor and sent the order. Before I reached the wall, the city was already broken. In less than an hour, 5,000 of the defenders were beheaded, and the remaining 14,000 surrendered. I am the leader of the army. , Don’t talk about the Ming Dynasty, even the Tatars are far inferior. Our Lord’s divine power is unpredictable, and the world of Dingding is destined by destiny. The mere Tatars will be destroyed sooner or later."

He also said: "My lord is going on the Northern Expedition. This way we are seizing Shanhaiguan to repel the Eastern invaders. There are also two groups of soldiers and horses. Hehe, Brother Ma must not be aware of it. Isn't that why Emperor Chongzhen issued an edict to King Qin?"

After listening to this, Ma Ke was puzzled by Bai Guangen's fanaticism, but he knew that it was true that Emperor Chongzhen issued an edict to King Qin.

The so-called rebels have indeed arrived in the capital.

He took a breath and said, "If you want me to vote for him, what's the benefit?"

Bai Guangen laughed loudly when he heard this, pointing at Ma Ke and almost burst into tears: "Brother Ma is at the end of his rope, is there still any hope for good?"

Marco's face looked extremely ugly.

Bai Guangen said: "My lord is not Emperor Chongzhen. My lord is strong. If Brother Ma still relies on his own troops and horses to threaten my lord like he threatened the Ming Dynasty before, I'm afraid this is a wrong idea. My lord has something to say: Is there any chance of Guan Ning's army?" None. With the strength of my main army, only one Shanhaiguan is enough, not to mention the mere Donglu. Brother Ma, now is not the time to negotiate terms, life and death are at stake."

Ma Ke and others looked pale and ugly.

Bai Guangen said: "At this time, the troops in Shanhaiguan are probably being organized. For example, my servant Ding Biaoying must have been disbanded and reorganized. If Brother Ma surrenders to my master, the same will happen. However, the new dynasty has always been in charge of generals. Selfless soldiers, this is the truth. But after all, you don't have to be a slave to the Tatars, and you don't have to be shameless to see your ancestors. The balance between this, Brother Ma, should be examined by himself."

Then he stood up and said, "Brother Ma, please arrange a place for me to live. I will come back tomorrow to listen to Brother Ma's decision."

With that said, he went out.

Marco's face was expressionless, and he nodded to his side. Someone went out to arrange a place for Bai Guangen.

At this time, Ma Kecai said with a serious face: "In response to what Bai Guangen said, do you have anything to say?"

Generals, you looked at me and I looked at you. No one spoke for a while.

They are all in a mess and have no choice at the moment.

Ma Ke sighed: "What Bai Guangen said is not unreasonable. Shanhaiguan has been lost, and there are Eastern captives in front of me. There is no way to retreat. It is really a matter of life and death. If you surrender to the Tatars, after all, you will not have the longevity of your ancestors, and you will not be as good as Wu Sangui." Once he leaves, he will definitely become a slave and a maid, bringing shame to his ancestors. However, according to Bai Guangen's words, the one from Henan must be a strong man and cannot withstand threats. Everyone, life and death are at stake. I dare not make a single decision about the way forward. I dare not speak freely. Bar."

He waved his hand and ordered his family's personal guards to surround the meeting hall. No results could be obtained and no one could enter or leave.

Shanhaiguan.

After Bai Guangen left, Wang Yisheng began to select, reorganize and surrender the army.

In the military camp, 14,000 Ming troops who surrendered were driven out of the barracks and assembled in the school field.

Wang Yisheng stood on the general stage with a cold face and waited for more than half an hour before the surrender troops were assembled.

"It's so unorganized that it turns out to be a mob." He said to another general beside him.

The general nodded slightly: "After all, we can't compare them with ours. Brother Wang's expectations are too high."

Wang Yisheng smiled briefly and said, "From here we can see that the Ming Dynasty died for no reason."

The 14,000 surrendered troops were assembled. Looking from the stage, two groups were clearly distinguishable.

The ones in front are the servants of the generals who have been surrendered. Regardless of their posture, temperament, or equipment, they are almost completely different from the ordinary soldiers behind them.

Of course, it is not the same as the soldiers in golden armor surrounding it. There is no comparison.

Ordinary surrendered soldiers, except for a sword or a gun, only one-third of them even have military uniforms such as mandarin duck jackets. Most of them are tattered.

The Dingbiao camp is fully armed, of course, that's it.

Ordinary soldiers who surrender are often timid, and all of them are yellow-skinned and skinny. Servant Ding Biaoying is also much more capable, several times stronger.

In subsequent selections, the first round will be based on age. All those under the age of sixteen and over forty will be eliminated.

Next look at your physique. Those who are weak and sick are not allowed, but those who are in good health are qualified.

After two rounds of selection, nearly half of the 14,000 surrendered troops were eliminated, leaving 7,200.

Wang Yisheng waved his hand, dismissed those who were eliminated, and sent the rebels to their barracks.

Then comes the final round of selection.

Seven thousand two hundred people, divided into groups of 600, were tested for physical fitness and willpower. He ran around the school field until Wang Yisheng shouted to stop.

In this process, those who fail in physical fitness and perseverance will be eliminated.

The final round of testing did not end until the next day. In the end, 3,000 qualified soldiers were selected, and more than half were eliminated again.

In other words, out of the 14,000 surrendered troops, only 3,000 were initially qualified, which was exactly the size of a department.

"My lord, we will select three thousand people who are barely qualified, and the rest will be eliminated."

After hearing this, Ying Yi said: "There are five thousand people in the general's household, how come only three thousand are qualified?"

Wang Yisheng said: "Back to my lord, although the Ding Biao camp of the surrendered general is much more capable than the ordinary surrendered soldiers, it also has many shortcomings."

Ying Yi said: "Tell me and listen."

Wang Yisheng bowed and said: "Although Ding Biaoying, the general of the Ming Dynasty, is physically strong, he is domineering and bullies the weak and fears the strong. In terms of perseverance, he has no advantage over the ordinary surrendered soldiers. Among the three thousand people selected, Ding Biaoying is different from ordinary soldiers. The surrendered troops were almost equally divided."

Ying Yi suddenly understood.

When fighting in a group, physical strength is one of the main factors. However, if you only have physical strength without perseverance, it is just an embroidered pillow, which looks good but is useless.

Although the Ming army's Ding Biaoying was stronger than ordinary soldiers, they still could not fight a tough battle. In this regard, it is not much better than ordinary surrender troops.

Ying Yi shook his head: "The left and right are just waste, don't worry about them. Three thousand is already pretty good."