Am I the emperor or are you the emperor? Are you asking me about this?

On the other side, the Emperors had already set off, beginning their campaigns of conquering cities and seizing territory.

In just over a month, the four Emperors had led their massive armies, pushing all the way to the capital. Along the way, they had encountered almost no significant resistance.

Perhaps it was because their banner was "Overthrow the Qing and Restore the Ming." Every region they entered saw some Han People who supported Overthrow the Qing and Restore the Ming lending a hand. When attacking cities, Han People inside would directly open the city gates, playing a tactic of coordinating from within and without.

Along the route, the four Emperors' forces not only weren't depleted but actually grew larger with each battle.

Clearly, the Han People of the Great Qing were not yet the completely numb, ignorant masses they would become in the future. Many Han People still wished to resist the Great Qing, but they lacked a leader and the strength to contend with it.

So, they could only resort to minor actions.

And the existence of the four Emperors was precisely the leadership they needed.

Then, those tyrannical Manchu Lords were in for a world of suffering.

During this time, Chang Yuchun received special instructions from Zhu Yuanzhang to treat the enemy well. Thus, Chang Yuchun mercifully decreed that anyone shorter than the wheels of the war chariot would not be killed. And to ensure fairness, Chang Yuchun specially prepared a wheel.

"Now, I'll give you a chance. Dig a large pit yourselves, and my soldiers will have less work to do. Once the pit is dug, I can spare your lives. Anyone shorter than this wheel will not be killed."

Chang Yuchun said, holding up the wheel to the captured Manchu Lords.

Although the captured Manchu Lords were filled with despair, they at least felt a sense of relief. Judging by the wheel Chang Yuchun held, the young children of their clans would be spared. After all, the wheel was more than half a person's height.

With no other choice, in order to secure a sliver of hope for their clans, these men desperately dug the pit. Once the pit was dug, they looked expectantly at Chang Yuchun, hoping he would keep his promise.

Chang Yuchun looked at the large pit and nodded in satisfaction. Then, he tossed the wheel onto the ground. After the wheel fell, Chang Yuchun said, "Now, we measure. Anyone taller than this fallen wheel will be killed."

The Manchu Lords: "..."

If you wanted to slaughter us all, you could have just said so! Giving us hope only to dash it away, don't you find that cruel? And you made us dig our own graves, how can you be like this!

At the height of the wheel lying on the ground, unless we bury ourselves in the soil, who could possibly be shorter than this wheel?

Chang Yuchun paid no mind to their grievances. He ordered his subordinates to pull all the captives to the side of the pit. After a perfunctory process of comparing their height to the fallen wheel, he swung his blade, killing them and tossing their bodies into the pit.

Chang Yuchun watched the bodies pile up in the pit, sighing and shaking his head. "What a pity, the dead can't bury themselves. We still need our men to fill the soil."

The deputy general beside Chang Yuchun suggested, "General, perhaps we could offer the brothers some pay."

Chang Yuchun heard this, nodded thoughtfully, and looked at the deputy general. "Go and distribute some of the gold and silver jewelry from their homes to the brothers. Consider it payment for their service in wielding the blades and filling the soil. I will seek approval from higher up for this."

"The General is brilliant!" The deputy general chuckled, indicating his approval.

The Manchu Lords who had yet to face their fate, upon hearing Chang Yuchun's undisguised conversation, were so enraged they nearly vomited blood. They cursed Chang Yuchun for being inhuman.

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Chang Yuchun narrowed his eyes at those who were cursing. "These few are quite spirited. Guards, bring these fellows over and give them some torture. I heard they developed something called the 'Ten Great Tortures of the Manchu Qing.' Let's try them out and see their effectiveness."

As soon as he said this, those men turned pale with fear. They immediately knelt and begged for mercy. They knew those tortures all too well; no one could endure them. Now, they wished for a swift death.

Unfortunately, Chang Yuchun would not allow it.

The generals under the other Emperors learned of Chang Yuchun's methods and all declared that they must come up with even more outrageous tactics. They were not nameless figures; how could they lose to Chang Yuchun in such a display of audacity?

And so, the Manchu Lords suffered even greater torments.

A little over a month later, the four Emperors convened again outside the capital. Their four armies completely encircled the city, leaving no room to maneuver.

The four Emperors issued a proclamation outside the city, giving the people inside three days to leave. Han People could safely depart the capital. With the aid of their real-time map, they could distinguish whether those leaving were Han People.

This had been their trump card in hunting down Manchu people in other cities, and it had rarely failed.

As for whether the Manchu people would resort to desperate measures and take Han people hostage, that was not their concern. At this point, it was up to the mettle of the Han People.

Those with mettle, they didn't ask them to kill Manchu people, only to break through their encirclement and escape. Now that they were in disarray, if they couldn't escape, they could only consider themselves unlucky.

Inside the Forbidden City, the once proud and ambitious Qianlong was no longer filled with self-satisfaction. His eyes, originally bright and sharp, were now bloodshot, filled with the despair and madness of a cornered beast.

Qianlong could never have imagined that the Great Qing Dynasty, which he believed to be the strongest in history, was so fragile and powerless!

In just over a month, it had been utterly overrun by the armies led by those few Emperors, and now they were at the very gates of the capital.

Anger and terror intertwined, driving Qianlong to the brink of losing his sanity. Barely a month ago, he was an Emperor reigning over a prosperous era, proud of the Kang-Qian Golden Age. Now, in an instant, he had become a trapped beast confined to a lonely city.

"Heshen! You swore to me that the Manchu Eight Banners were an invincible force, victorious in every battle, unstoppable in every siege! But where is this invincibility now?

Where has the enormous military expenditure I allocate to the Ministry of War each year gone? Why are my subjects utterly incapable of fighting back against those rotten remnants from a thousand years ago, unable even to offer the slightest resistance?

Didn't they say that Jurchen, if not ten thousand, are invincible when they reach ten thousand? Where is this invincibility you spoke of? Tell me!"

Qianlong roared in fury, his voice echoing through the vast hall.

At this moment, Heshen knelt before the throne. He dared not look up at Qianlong seated on the dragon throne.

He inwardly grumbled, 'Ten thousand Jurchen are invincible,' wasn't that something Your Majesty liked to hear? I was just flattering you, buttering you up, and you actually believed it. Are you blaming me now?

Anyone who believes that is a fool.

However, despite his internal complaints, to save his own life, Heshen braced himself and explained, "Your Majesty, please calm your anger. This defeat is not our army's fault. It is because the Han People are too cunning and treacherous. They planted spies in various cities, and with their inside help, we were so easily defeated."

Qianlong's face turned ashen. "I don't care about that. Now, tell me, what should we do?"

What do I know about what to do? Am I the Emperor or are you? You're asking me this? If I had a solution, would you still be the Emperor? Heshen continued to grumble inwardly.

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