Zhu Youjian, who lived in Chongzhen, knew that the Ming Dynasty would fall within five years. He backhandedly signed the Treaty of Nerchinsk, exchanging the territory east of Lake Baikal for Russian firearms, instructors and a non-trespassing covenant. Huang Taiji was furious after hearing the news and sent Suo Etu to Russia to lobby for repentance; Wu Sangui secretly colluded with the Qing court; Zheng Zhilong waited and waited for the price. However, Zhu Youjian has laid out a bigger chess game behind the treaty - using Russians to train the new army, using maritime business groups to reform finances, and using "transnational treaties" to force the government and the opposition to change. This is the beginning of a destiny-defying change that uses a diplomatic nuclear bomb to break the dead end of history.
