This is Yuan Chonghuan’s final quatrains when he was executed at Caishikou in Beijing in 1630 AD. When future generations read this poem, they were filled with emotion for its loyalty and courage. This is a loyal minister for the ages, but what many people don't know is that when Yuan Chonghuan was singing this poem, the executioner was cutting his flesh one by one, and the people around him were eager to eat his flesh and drink his blood. Why did the people hate him so much at that time? Is it because they are ignorant and blind and do not recognize loyal ministers and good generals?
Regarding Yuan Chonghuan, his evaluation has been very controversial in history. Those who praised him said that he was a national hero, but she was different from another national hero Yue Fei. Yue Fei's reviews are basically positive, but Yuan Chonghuan's reviews are polarizing. Those who praise him wish to praise him to the sky, while those who criticize him wish to travel back to 1630 and eat his flesh.
For fans of Yuan Chonghuan, they like Yuan Chonghuan based on a story: The Ming Dynasty at that time listened to the villain’s slander and unjustly killed our loyal minister Yuan Chonghuan. Later, Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty revised it Historical records have clearly stated that although Yuan Chonghuan was an enemy of the Qing Dynasty, he did not betray the Ming Dynasty. Fans of Yuan Chonghuan used this as evidence that Yuan Chonghuan was a loyal minister who was unjustly killed.
However, as long as we read the history books carefully, we will know that the crime the Ming Dynasty government convicted Yuan Chonghuan at that time was not ordinary treason at all. The most serious crime was killing the commander without authorization. Moreover, the interrogation of Yuan Chonghuan lasted for eight months. If it was really because of a counter-intentional scheme, Yuan Chonghuan had enough time to defend himself. After all, counter-intuitive schemes only take advantage of people's temporary enthusiasm to make mistakes. For example, in the Three Kingdoms era, Jiang Qian stole books and used Cao Cao's impulse to kill Cai Mao and Zhang Yun. When he turned around, Cao Cao understood everything.
So why did Yuan Chonghuan die so miserably, and who was the commander he killed without permission?
Speaking of this, we must talk about the strategic shape of Liaodong before Yuan Chonghuan was killed. In 1600 AD, the famous Battle of Sarhu broke out between the Ming Dynasty and Nurhaci. This war The result was that the Ming Dynasty lost all its mobile forces in Liaodong and could only prepare for passive defense.
Xiong Tingbi, the Liaodong Economic Strategy at that time, proposed a three-sided arrangement plan. The first side was the Shanhaiguan defense line; the second side was North Korea's containment of Houjin in the Yalu River; and the third side was to go out to sea from Shandong and from After the sea attack on the Jin coastal areas, Mao Wenlong was responsible for opening up anti-Kim base areas behind enemy lines on the North Korean border. However, Xiong Tingbi, who proposed this plan, was highly capable, had a bad temper, and was not popular. He soon completely failed in the political struggle. ,
However, his proposal to open up anti-Qing base areas behind enemy lines was implemented. After Xiong Tingbi died, the person who succeeded him was named Sun Chengzong. This man built Ningyuan City and other strong fortresses on the basis of Shanhaiguan. An attempt was made to gradually shrink the living space of the Qing Dynasty through the strategy of building fortresses. Is this strategy useful?
Of course it is useful. In the Ningyuan War that broke out in 1626 AD, Yuan Chonghuan relied on Ningyuan Jiancheng to achieve the great victory in Ningyuan. The strategic situation at that time was like this. Yuan Chonghuan was responsible for defending the city and holding back Nurhachi. Mao Wenlong was responsible for Nurhachi's rear area. He could not look at each other from head to tail, and in the end he could only be defeated and retreat. This time, the first cooperation between the two people achieved very beautiful results.
In 1627 AD, Emperor Chongzhen came to power. This ignorant little emperor wanted to change the strategic situation in Liaodong. He summoned Yuan Chonghuan and said, "Ai Qing, is there any way you can help me solve the problem in Liaodong?" In Liaodong at that time, the strategic situation of the Ming Dynasty was actually good, but it was a strategic plan based on defense and reserve. It was impossible to eliminate Houjin through this strategy. More importantly, this strategy was too expensive to build. City! Most of the Ming Dynasty's annual military expenditures were invested in the Liaodong battlefield.
At home, Li Zicheng and others were causing great trouble in the Central Plains. Emperor Chongzhen did not want to fight on two fronts and urgently needed to withdraw from the battlefield in Liaodong. Unexpectedly, Yuan Chonghuan brazenly promised him a five-year peace period. Liao's promise, this was originally a bad habit of Ming Dynasty officials who liked to talk big and write bad checks. Yuan Chonghuan habitually used this bad habit to deal with Emperor Chongzhen, but a close official around the emperor told him: You can't do it this time. That’s wrong, this is a more serious master! What I hate most is being lied to.
If you are Yuan Chonghuan, what can you do? If you speak out, it will throw water away. The emperor has given you so much power. If you can't do it, then He is someone who deceives the king and wants to behead him. Yuan Chonghuan thought that since the emperor wanted to withdraw from the battlefield in Liaodong, he would hand in a certificate of surrender. If he negotiated peace with the Qing Dynasty, he would still be able to withdraw from Liaodong.
After Yuan Chonghuan did some operations. Basically, we have the acquiescence of the ministers of North Korea and China: As long as you can negotiate this peace agreement, then we will ratify it for you in the end. If the agreement cannot be negotiated, it will be your own business. Okay, we have obtained the consent of the big guys in North Korea and China, so who is the biggest obstacle to peace? Of course, it is Mao Wenlong in the base area behind enemy lines.
So Yuan Chonghuan went to Mao Wenlong's base island in the name of inspecting military affairs, sent money and food to Mao Wenlong to relax his guard, and then suddenly asked Shang Fang's sword to kill Mao Wenlong. He listed eight charges against Mao Wenlong in one go.
Let’s talk about two of them. The first one is that you, Mao Wenlong, opened the Anti-Japanese War base area behind enemy lines for eight years and have not recovered an inch of land in Liaodong. What you said is so heartless. , Mao Wenlong is the Anti-Japanese War base area behind enemy lines, how could he go to attack the city? Moreover, Mao Wenlong's base area was well established. When he first opened the base area, he killed Nurhachi's son-in-law. After that, Mao Wenlong mobilized the Han people in the Liaodong area to hunt down the Jurchens. According to old Manchu records at the time, Nurhaci stipulated that, Houjin people must go out in teams of ten. Violators will be fined 2 yuan and all wooden sticks in the hands of Han people will be confiscated. Those are white mountains and black waters, and the most indispensable thing is wood. Nurhachi was forced to even use such stupid tricks, which shows that Mao Wenlong really hurt him.
The second crime he listed for Mao Wenlong was that Mao Wenlong built an ancestral hall for Wei Zhongxian, because Wei Zhongxian was in power at that time, and all officials had to take political sides in order to curry favor with Grand Eunuch Wei and build it for him. The ancestral hall actually shows that you and Jiu Qiansui are of the same mind. As for whether Mao Wenlong built an ancestral hall for Wei Zhongxian, we don’t know, but there is one person who definitely built it for Wei Zhongxian, and that is Yuan Chonghuan himself. If you want to kill the first one, you should kill him. he.
It must be said that Mao Wenlong's head was of some use. Soon after, the peace negotiation between Huang Taiji and Yuan Chonghuan was almost completed, and all that was needed was to sign and seal it.
But just when everything was going smoothly, Huang Taiji regretted it. After Mao Wenlong's death, Huang Taiji quickly led his troops through the Mongolian Plateau and raided Beijing from the north of Beijing, Gubeikou and Xifengkou. These two passes were used to guard against the nomads on the Mongolian plateau, but the Ming Dynasty and the Mongols had been reconciled for decades, so the defense lines at these two passes were relatively loose. During the period when Yuan Chonghuan was killing Mao Wenlong, Huang Taiji conquered Mongolia westward, defeated Genghis Khan's unfilial descendants and took the Mongolian plateau into his hands.
From then on, Huang Taiji no longer had to take the Shanhaiguan route to attack those fortified cities and passes. Instead, he could bypass Mongolia and directly raid Beijing. Someone once wrote a memorial to the court and said: Xifengkou Gubeikou The defense line is related to the lifeblood of the imperial court. Once it is lost, the cavalry from the north can move across Hebei and Shandong, and even drink from the Yangtze River. This man's name was Mao Wenlong, but unfortunately he was already dead at this time.
Without Mao Wenlong's rear restraint and the ability to bypass Mongolia, Huang Taiji no longer had any need to negotiate a peace agreement with Yuan Chenghuan. At this time, Yuan Chonghuan was plunged into a desperate situation. land.
Chongzhen was furious. He felt that he had been deceived by Yuan Chonghuan. The people whose families were killed by Huang Taiji hated Yuan Chonghuan even more. If he hadn't killed Mao Wenlong, how could there have been so many things? Huang Taiji took Mongolia, but he didn't dare to be so presumptuous.
Finally, the Ming court convicted Yuan Chonghuan of the first major crime of "killing the commander for money", which means that you secretly killed my commander in order to seek peace terms with Huang Taiji. In the end, the court sent Yuan Chonghuan to the guillotine, and he was chopped into pieces with more than three thousand knives.
As for whether Yuan Chonghuan was wronged or not, we have to draw our own conclusions.