In the last years of the Ming Dynasty, during the reign of the Chongzhen Emperor, it can be said that he was already riddled with holes and suffered from enemies in his abdomen and back. On the one hand, an internal peasant uprising broke out. On the other hand, the Qing army was pressing forward step by step, constantly harassing. At this critical juncture, those civil and military officials who were full of mouths on weekdays were "loyal to the king and serve the country" were also looking for ways to survive in order to seek self-protection. Among them, the behavior of the Ming Dynasty general Zuo Liangyu is also quite elusive to us today, when he held 800,000 troops in his hands, but he was indifferent in a critical moment, and he did not move, which was controversial. So why can he still be called a loyal servant?
Zuo Liangyu was a major general of the Ming Dynasty, heroic and good at war. Initially, he fought against the Qing army in Liaodong, and also fought several fierce battles, and because of his outstanding performance, he was also promoted by Hou Ke. Later, the domestic peasant army uprising broke out, and Zuo Liangyu joined in, and it was also in the process that Zuo Liangyu continuously expanded his army and greatly increased his strength. Speaking of General Zuo Liangyu, he also has a particularly interesting place, that is, "every loyalty must win, and success must be defeated", the loyalty here refers to Zhang Xianzhong, Zuo Liangyu can be said to be Zhang Xianzhong's nemesis, and every time the two sides fight, they can be defeated. And the cheng here refers to Li Zicheng, for Zuo Liangyu Li Zicheng is his nemesis, in front of him, Zuo Liangyu lost all his divine power, and eventually will be the party that fled into the wilderness. Therefore, this is also one of the reasons why Zuo Liangyu did not dare to move casually.
In 1644, Li Zi grew up and drove straight in, encircling the entire city of Beijing, and Chongzhen was in trouble. At this time, the Chongzhen Emperor immediately thought of Zuo Liangyu, because he knew that Zuo Liangyu had heavy troops in his hands, so he ordered Zuo Liangyu to come to the rescue, and for this reason he also named Zuo Liangyu as Ning Nanbo and his son as a general. However, although Chongzhen ordered him to come many times, Zuo Liangyu was indifferent and did not react at all. Because in Zuo Liangyu's heart, he knew very well who his opponent was, and when he heard Li Zicheng's name, he didn't have the courage to confront him.
Zuo Liangyu also had selfish intentions, he knew that even if he could win in the end, he would definitely suffer heavy losses, and Zuo Liangyu did not want his own troops to grow up to be gone like this, and it would be a heavy loss for him. In addition, because Zuo Liangyu's family was very poor when he was young, and he did not receive any education, the idea of "loyalty to the king and serving the country" did not have a very profound impact on him. When faced with the Chongzhen Emperor's request for help, he actually did not have any feelings in his heart. Moreover, although the conditions given by the imperial court were very favorable, Chongzhen's meanness and widowhood were notorious, and even if Li Zicheng was defeated, the Chongzhen Emperor would definitely weaken his strength. If the Chongzhen Emperor did not recognize his previous promise, Zuo Liangyu would be helpless. In this situation without guarantees, Zuo Liangyu would certainly not act rashly.
Later, soon after, the city of Beijing was breached, and the Chongzhen Emperor eventually hanged himself. After learning this news, Zuo Liangyu also showed grief and wept bitterly. I think that at this time, he was not only crying for the death of the emperor, but also crying for the destruction of the country and the death of the family. It's all about being a loyal subject. However, when the Chongzhen Emperor encountered danger, he chose to ignore and choose not to move, and these behaviors and performances can be said to be contradictory, so the character of Zuo Liangyu was controversial. But in fact, this was not the result that Zuo Liangyu wanted to see, under the circumstances at that time, he must have considered all aspects before making such a decision. The trend of the Ming Dynasty has gone, and as the saying goes, "The grasshoppers after autumn will not be able to bounce for a few days." Zuo Liangyu was also helpless about this.
After the death of the Chongzhen Emperor, Li Zicheng retreated south and wanted to occupy Wuchang, but knowing that Wuchang was Zuo Liangyu's lair, he could not let it go. Moreover, at that time, Chongzhen's crown prince was also in Nanjing, and Zuo Liangyu also wanted to take this opportunity to support Chongzhen's crown prince, and also wanted to use this action to show his loyalty to the former emperor. However, on the way to Nanjing, Zuo Liangyu died of illness. But this action has already demonstrated Zuo Liangyu's loyalty. Moreover, zuo Liangyu had also made great achievements in order to resist the Qing army, and his battle achievements were outstanding. In addition, in the face of peasant uprisings, he also participated in them many times. Most importantly, neither in the Ming Dynasty nor in the Southern Ming Dynasty, he had no intention of surrendering to the Qing army. He did not descend to the Qing like Wu Sangui, he knew that he was a Ming Dynasty courtier no matter what, so from this point of view alone, Zuo Liangyu could also be regarded as a loyal subject.
Whether Zuo Liangyu is a loyal vassal or a traitor, everyone will have a different opinion on this. When we evaluate a historical figure, we should actually look at it with a dialectical eye. No one is perfect, and when you can magnify Zuo Liangyu's contribution to the country, he is a loyal servant. Human nature is often complex, in the face of life and death, in the face of survival and death, Zuo Liangyu will also have fear, but also have helplessness. Although he did not have the courage to confront Li Zicheng head-on, he also held his position after the Ming Dynasty and showed heroic courage, which was not also a kind of loyalty?