I

The monarchs and ministers of North Korea did not care about the life and death of their soldiers, and the soldiers did not care about the life and death of the people.

Before the Chinese New Year, the soldiers had a food quarrel, but they only had enough to eat for a few days. On the second day of the Lunar New Year, the army began to reduce meals again, and the soldiers were too lazy to fight for food and walked through the snow to the surrounding countryside to grab it.

It doesn't matter whether you are a landlord or a tenant, if you see a house, you will rush inside.

In the beginning, they just robbed food, but gradually developed into robbing property, and then even women were not spared.

Of course, the king's personal guards are still in the city. The officers are all children of nobles, and even the ordinary soldiers are the sons of noble families. They will definitely not be as hungry as the lower-class soldiers.

Lin Qingye killed several looters. Before a general was beheaded, he asked: "General Lin, we all respect you and love you, and are willing to fight with you. But can you keep us full? You If you can’t give us food and don’t let us grab it, do you want all of us soldiers to starve to death?”

These words made Lin Qingye silent for a while. Thinking back to what he had experienced in the first half of his life, the sixty-year-old veteran burst into tears.

Lin Qingye went to Song Shilie and said, "I am now a man and a dog. The king and the civil servants hate me for blocking them from ceding territory, and the soldiers hate me for not being able to get military rations. I am redundant now. Only when I leave can the ministers betray the country calmly." Only generals can launch troops and plunder. Although you started a party dispute in the past, at least there is a certain bottom line. I hope you can turn the tide."

"Alas!" Song Shilie sighed.

After bidding farewell to Song Shilie, Lin Qingye left with his seal.

Dozens of cavalrymen he brought from the south also spontaneously followed him, heading towards Chunchuan with only a few days of dry food.

Lin Qingye left like this, and the monarchs and ministers of North Korea were happy and hurriedly sent people to negotiate.

The person in charge of the negotiations was Xu Mu, the third-rank commander, who was the highest official in the Central Committee of the Southern People's Party.

What does it mean?

The traitors are still engaged in party disputes. The Westerners Party is unwilling to betray the country in person and forcibly sends the leader of the Southerners Party. After everything is over, Xu Mu can be impeached and the power of the Southern People's Party can be completely wiped out!

"Your Majesty, I dare not obey my orders!"

Xu Mu knelt in front of Li Di, took off his black gauze hat and said, "I am begging for mercy as I cede my land. I am a sinner through the ages. Please resign and return home!"

Li Di said: "It is not too late for Xu Qing to resign after his mission."

Xu Mu was so angry that he trembled all over, stood up suddenly, and slammed his head into the pillar next to him.

There was a muffled sound and blood flowed, and Li Di was frightened.

"Get treatment quickly!" Song Shilie shouted.

Xu Mu was carried out by the king's guards, and Li Di finally came to his senses. He pointed at Zheng Taihe and said: "Go... don't seek death, otherwise your home will be ransacked!"

Zheng Taihe said with a sad face: "Your Majesty, I am the leader of the government (chief assistant), and it will damage the dignity of the country if I go to negotiate."

"If I tell you to go, just go." Li Di was extremely angry and pointed at Song Shilie and Song Junji, "You two go together! If neither of you is going, then I will go. North Korea will annex the Celestial Empire from now on, and I will go to Nanjing Ask a free prince to do it!"

This is tantamount to asking the chief minister of the cabinet to cede land and betray the country along with the Minister of Civil Affairs and the Minister of War.

But how could the king not go when he said something like this?

The three people complained endlessly. They were both members of the Western Party, but they belonged to three different factions. Now they had to take the blame together. One can imagine how bad their reputation will be in the future, and how the Southern Party, who are local officials, will impeach them!

They had planned to let Xu Mu of the Southern People's Party take the blame, but Xu Mu committed suicide by hitting a pillar in front of the king, disrupting all the plans of the Western People's Party.

The calculation comes, the calculation goes, and now the calculation is on myself.

In Hanyang, the three of them met Dang Chongjun.

After greeting each other, Song Siyeol and Song Junji did not speak.

Zheng Taihe could only bite the bullet and go round and round for a long time, and said: "Angel Rong Bing, the "Datong Collection" is profound and unpredictable. I and other Confucian scholars from the country are still reading it. When we understand the mystery of "Datong Collection" , and it won’t be too late to spread it to Korean scholars.”

Dang Chongjun said: "How about this, you three, go to Nanjing with me, and His Majesty will personally explain the "Datong Collection" to you?"

"Don't dare disturb the Holy Emperor!" The three people refused quickly.

Seeing that he couldn't be fooled, Zheng Taihe simply broke the jar and said: "Lord Angel, the North Road was originally the land of Liao, Jin and Yuan Dynasties. Our country has been managed by the Celestial Empire for more than 200 years, and today we are willing to return it to the Celestial Empire. Then Yizhou... also Even in Baozhou, the Datong Army resisted the Tatar invasion in Baozhou and ensured the safety of our people in the country. They should also be dedicated to the Celestial Empire."

The dignified chief minister of North Korea even called out "Sir".

This kind of title was popular in the late Ming Dynasty, and the new Datong Dynasty prohibited officials from calling them "adult". The officialdom no longer calls it this way, but the common people have not yet changed their minds, and this North Korean official has learned well.

Dang Chongjun said angrily: "Are you sending beggars away? Beidao is the poorest place in North Korea. It is full of mountains and there is not much land for farming. What will the Chinese government do with it?"

Zheng Taihe was completely single. He cupped his hands and said, "Please give me some advice from an angel!"

Dang Chongjun's lion said loudly: "Ping'an Road, Hwanghae Road, Hamgyong Road."

"Impossible!" Song Shilie couldn't hold himself back and stood up anxiously on the spot, fearing that Zheng Taihe would agree immediately.

Dang Chongjun said: "Is it too few? How about adding another Gangwon Province?"

"There are too many, there are too many," Song Junji also became very anxious, "There are only eight paths in our country, and the angel will cut off three of them at once. I and the other ministers will not be able to go back and explain to the king!"

Dang Chongjun said: "Then what do you think we should do?"

Zheng Taihe gritted his teeth and said, "How about dedicating the entire Xianjing Road and half of Ping'an Road to the Celestial Empire?"

Dang Chongjun shook his head.

Song Junji said: "Hamgyeong Road and Pyongan Road can be ceded, but Hwanghae Road absolutely cannot! Moreover, the plains of Pyongyang Road and Pyongyang cannot be ceded."

Dang Chongjun sneered: "Isn't that still the entire Hamjing Road and half of Ping'an Road?"

"It's most of Ping An Road!" Song Junji corrected.

Dang Chongjun stood up slowly, waved his sleeves and said, "See you off!"

Of course, Dang Chongjun would not be happy to cede the impoverished mountainous areas.

The three of them returned to Cheorwon in despair, when the snow gradually melted away. The peasant army on the west route once again confronted North Korean officers and soldiers across the river, and the peasant army on the east route also headed towards Cheorwon. However, the North Korean officers and soldiers had very little food left, and they could not even go to the countryside to grab it.

In a truly desperate situation, there is no way to escape.

If you want to escape, you can only pass through the Datong Army's blockade, which means officially starting a war with the Datong Army.

The Korean monarchs and ministers discussed it repeatedly and finally came up with a charter. Li Di said to the three of them: "The Yellow Sea Road cannot be cut, otherwise it might as well be enclosed. You can go and talk about it later."

Three unlucky guys came to Hanyang again.

Song Shilie still wanted to fight for it and said: "Pingyuan County can be dedicated to the Celestial Empire, but Pyongyang must not be offered."

Dang Chongjun not only wanted Pyongyang, he even looked further south. He drew on the map: "All the way to the south of Huangzhou, both sides of the Datong River are Chinese land."

Zheng Taihe begged: "Lord Angel, please give me a way to survive."

Dang Chongjun thought about it carefully: "It's okay not to have Huangzhou, but use Tsushima Island instead."

"ah?"

Zheng Taihe, Song Siyeol, and Song Junji were all stunned.

Tsushima Island is located in the waters between North Korea and Japan.

North Korea once sent troops to conquer the country, but it was difficult for Ma Fan to resist and chose to accept official posts in North Korea. At the same time, Tsushima belonged to the Japanese lords. The official trade and business offices of North Korea and Japan are all located on Tsushima Island, and they mutually agree that Tsushima and Fan will surrender to both sides at the same time.

Historically, Tsushima Island belonged to both Japan and North Korea, which lasted until after the Meiji Restoration. It was the Russian warship that broke the deadlock...

"That's it!" Zheng Taihe quickly agreed, fearing that Dang Chongjun would regret it.

Trading Tsushima Island, which is a Japanese island, for Huangzhou on the Datong River was simply a costless transaction. They thought Dang Chongjun had made a mistake.

The three of them went back to resume their duties. Li Di convened all the ministers to discuss and finally recognized the result.

Ping An Road, Hamgyong Road, and Tsushima Island were ceded to China. The Datong Army was responsible for quelling the peasant uprising. After the rebellion was quelled, it had to leave North Korea immediately.

China, on the other hand, will no longer force North Korea to lift the ban on "Datong Collection", but North Korea must lift the ban on silver and allow Chinese merchants to use silver dollars for transactions. In addition, when Li Di returns to Hanyang, the Chinese envoys will officially crown him as king, and North Korean ministers will not be allowed to establish a new king.

Whoever dares to launch a coup and oust Li Di will surely have the Datong Army come back.

It's probably a line drawn from the mouth of the Datong River. The area north of 38.65 degrees north latitude is owned by China, and the area south of this line is still North Korea.

Songshang, who was jumping up and down from beginning to end, and instigated the peasant uprising in Hwanghae Province, was betrayed by the Chinese envoy Dang Chongjun, and the peasant army in Hwanghae Province was also betrayed. They will still be under North Korea's rule from now on... Of course, there can be changes.

Dang Chongjun personally met Li Enai, the leader of the Huanghaidao uprising army, and said to him: "You must take your tribe and move collectively to Ping'an Road. Your tribe will be disbanded on the spot after they go north, and the government will allocate land to them. You I can recommend four people to go to Nanjing to attend the military academy together. It’s okay not to go to Nanjing. You can stay in Pingan Road and work as a policeman. You can be in charge of the security of Pyongyang City.”

Li Enai originally belonged to a small landowner in Hwanghae Province. People from the north were not welcome, and the small landowners also had a hard time.

Being the head of the police in Pyongyang City is not bad for him.

After all, if the Datong Army leaves the rebels alone, his rebel army will definitely be destroyed by North Korean officers and soldiers.

The other two peasant army leaders also received promises of officialdom, and then... started acting.

The Datong army pulled out cannons and bombarded them, then charged with bayonets. Tens of thousands of peasant soldiers fled in confusion, holding people hostage along the way, and fled all the way to Ping'an Road.

North Korea did retain the Yellow Sea Road, but only one-third of its population was left, and they were all taken to China in the north. It was repeatedly ravaged by the Tatars, and the population has never recovered. Now it is just time to replenish the population. The rebels then killed the landlords, and the land was divided naturally.

Han Qiyuan's troops on the east route did the same thing. They were driven away by the Datong Army and fled, coercing the people all the way to Xianjing Road.

A group of pine merchants, watching the leaving peasant army and the departing Datong army, collectively stood in the wind with their thoughts in confusion. What are they doing for half a year?

Of course, these businessmen also made money. Most of the goods stolen by the peasant army were handed over to them for sale as stolen goods, and everyone made a lot of money.

Li Di returned to Hanyang and formally accepted the canonization as king.

Immediately, the party struggle began again.

The Southerners Party, who were serving as minor officials in the imperial court, gathered together the Southerners Party, which served as local officials, and impeached the Westerners Party for ceding territory and betraying the country for glory. The chief assistant Zheng Taihe was beaten to the end, Song Shilie and Song Junji were demoted to county guards, and Li Di took the opportunity to drag a bunch of southerners into the court.

At the same time, a Chinese warship headed for Tsushima.

Zong Yizhen received the imperial edict from the Chinese emperor and did not recover for a while.

He was the lord of the Shikwanshi domain consecrated by the Japanese shogunate, the lord of Tsushima Island consecrated by the King of Korea, and now he is the magistrate of Tsushima Prefecture consecrated by the Emperor of China?