Jingming

Chapter 503: All out

Over the past twenty years, I have given the impression to the emperors and ministers of the Ming Dynasty that I was cunning and aware of the situation.

In the Battle of Heye Mountain, one of his troops was unexpectedly defeated by Li Jin. It was Anda who saw the Ming Emperor's determination to implement the new law and organized the Khan's large-scale southern invasion.

But that time, after he defeated the Ming army in Yutailing, he used his initiative to create a situation where Bodi penetrated into the Xuanfu, and then quickly left, leaving Ming Dynasty to concentrate on encircling Bodi, and eventually became Chahar. He waited for "reinforcements" to rescue them and formed some good relationships.

In the eleventh year of Jiajing, the Ming Dynasty launched a large-scale northern expedition, but Anda abandoned Fengzhou Beach, leaving Ordos Wanhu and Yongxiebu Wanhu each alone. Using these two ten thousand households as bait and evidence, he used the great enemy of the Ming Dynasty to unify the other tribes and become the master of the Khan Court.

But then, he used avoiding the Ming Dynasty as his main strategy, avoiding the important and focusing on the Western Expedition.

Nowadays, wars are raging all over the Ming Dynasty. The judgments of the Ming Dynasty's monarchs and ministers are based on the clear situation and strength comparison. This has incited many vassal states, hoping that the Ming Dynasty will continue to lose national power on all sides, and eventually change its strategy.

But when more than 300,000 troops approached Xuanning, Hetao, Zhu Houcong's expression became serious.

"More than three hundred thousand? Are you kidding me!" Zhu Houcong stood up and stared at Ma Fang, who came here specially.

"You can't be wrong!" Ma Fang replied firmly, "Now it is only slowly moving south. Of the more than 300,000 people, most of them are herdsmen, but at least a few are coming south with cattle, sheep and horses. It seems that they are coming south. The purpose of the migration is to supply the army first. There are not many war horses, and they probably need to be strengthened, and then they are driven from the north to the south. I lost more than twenty sentry horses and went in depth to find out the news! "

The atmosphere was solemn.

What the Ming emperors and ministers misjudged was that Anda, who had been on the run for so many years, actually wanted to fight a head-on battle.

It was already the end of summer. Facing the Northern prisoners who were dispatched in full force, Zhu Houcong looked at Ma Fang, who was still very young, and his mind finally became clearer.

Qinggan, Outer Yunnan, Jiaozhi, Korea... there was movement in several directions. Although the Ming Dynasty focused on defense, it had to guard against it.

The Eastern Expedition was the first step for the Ming Dynasty. In this step, the Ming Dynasty wanted to do it simply and neatly. Reflecting on the specific arrangements, Xia Yan, Tang Shunzhi, Zhang Jing, Yu Dayou... so many famous ministers and generals have all gone in that direction.

Now, they can't come back.

The problem left for the northern border of the Ming Dynasty is: the civil and military ministers are not the first echelon figures of the Ming Dynasty.

If my answer is still to focus on raiding and harassing, then with the support of military equipment, just defending is not a big problem.

But in the largest national war of life and death in more than 20 years, will the generals in Hetao and Xuanning be worried?

Ma Fang has not really proven himself.

Zhu Qi and Li Quanli have both passed away. Guo Xun is old and has been unable to mount a horse for a long time. I am afraid that he passed away only in the past two years.

In fact, if not for different circumstances in this life, Guo Xun would be dead now. He was impeached and sent to Jinyiwei Prison in the 20th year of Jiajing's reign, and died in prison the following year. I have not experienced anything like this now, but I am already seventy years old. Do you have the courage to face such a war?

Mao Bowen... is also worse, he is just a temporary transition.

There are brave generals like Ma Fang here, but there are no handsome men who can preside over several aspects.

The decisive battle that Zhu Houcong had been dreaming of had arrived, but he found that in this situation, it was best for Ming Dynasty to just hold on.

But Ming Dynasty is the strongest in the world! If I just put the Ming Dynasty's energy and more than 100,000 border troops in the northern border, and passively defend, I can only defend a few cities in a place where the Great Wall has not yet been built.

So what are the results of the development in Xuanning, Hetao over the past ten years? Those fertile fields, pastures, mines, and villagers... are all targets of Anda's plunder.

Even if Zhu Houcong was in charge of Xuanfu, the military preparations made by Xuanning in Hetao were only to hold the pass during the attack and not let the northern captives in. The direction of research and assessment is Liaodong and North Korea. For this reason, there are even 30,000 soldiers from the Beijing camp sent over, pretending to reinforce Japan.

"Move to Datong!" Zhu Houcong made a decision, "In this battle, I intend to seize the Hetao and Fengzhou Beach! He wants to take back the achievements of the Ming Dynasty's more than ten years of construction. He wants to force the Ming Dynasty back within the border wall and regain He has lost ground and regained his prestige. We cannot let him succeed! Send an order to Zeng Mian and Zheng Xiao to meet him in Datong! Send an order to Mao Bowen and Li Mo to also come to Datong. Lu Bing, transfer all the special operations battalions. From Datong to Beijing First line, make arrangements! Escort the concubines back to Beijing!"

Zeng Xian and Zheng Xiao, who had arranged many things in one go, were governors of Hetao and Xuanning respectively. It was time for them to truly test their abilities.

Faced with the concerns that the middle and lower-level generals may have about their abilities, all Zhu Houcong can do now is to get closer to the front line.

During the two northern expeditions, the imperial commander was present.

The third time was no exception.

When the urgent news came back to the capital, Yang Shen was naturally shocked, and then he couldn't help but call Cui Yuan, Yu Chengye and Guo Xun: "At this time, we should go to the king together! Old Duke, you should go! Cui Yuan, Yu Chengye and Guo Xun." Brother, Maoxian, money, food!"

Guo Xun nodded silently, cupped his fists and saluted: "If you can die in battle, you will be worthy of Your Majesty's kindness."

The emperor did not mention his name, but Guo Xun felt that he should go.

It would be unlucky and impossible to die in battle. At most, the body would really collapse and die of illness.

But in his old age, he returned to the place where his achievements in this life really began, which was not a response to the outside world's discussions and his heart.

He, Guo Xun, did not become the Holy Family by patting the emperor's horses in the first place, nor did he achieve this status through the light of Yu Dayou and others.

You are already at this age, why not show yourself more loyal and brave?

With this mentality, Guo Xun began to ask Zhu Houcong for orders, and Cui Yuanhe and Yu Chengye also understood what Yang Shen meant.

This was a war on a larger scale than the Eastern Expedition. The Ming Dynasty had to quickly shift from focusing on military supplies for the Eastern Expedition to focusing on military supplies for the Northern Expedition. North Korea and Japan cannot cut off their military supplies, so they can only dig out new money and grain.

If we insist on not increasing the burden on the people, only the enterprises under the Xunqi and Huangming Assets Bureau can respond faster at this moment.

"Uncle Cai, I would like to halve the salary of officials this year." Yang Shen looked at Huang Zuo again, "It's time for me to resign until next year. Just say that it was me who advocated for it!"

"General Assistant...I will do the work of all officials." Huang Zuo bent down solemnly.

"Uncle Chang Ping, just tell me who you want to take with you!"

Yang Shen spoke to Li Mo again. Li Mo was now the Minister of State. When the emperor asked him to come over, he naturally wanted him to be responsible for logistics support in the Xuan Mansion after seeing the emperor.

At this moment, Yang Shen saluted Zhu Zaicheng and said, "Your Highness, there is something wrong with these arrangements. I would like to ask for your permission."

Yan Song looked at Yang Shen silently.

He was a student of Yang Tinghe, and Yang Shen was Yang Tinghe's son.

Now, Yang Shen, who is eight years younger than him, has a strong momentum at this moment, and even arranged the posture by himself in the first place.

But he is the prince's master, and the ministers in the palace don't think Yang Shen is too strong now.

The sentence that he should resign until next year shows that he just wants to take on important responsibilities at this time. After serving as Prime Minister and Minister of State for several years, Yang Shen has not yet reached sixty, and his hair is already gray. This is obvious to everyone.

Yan Song suddenly felt that His Majesty had never allowed him to sit in that position because he lacked something compared to Yang Shen.

Zhu Zaiyi nodded solemnly: "There is nothing wrong with it. There is only one thing. Do you want to continue to keep your feelings from the people as your father said?"

Everyone was silent for a moment.

I said before that I would not hide it from the people because although there are enemies on all sides, they are not strong and not that scary anymore.

But now more than 300,000 elite Northern soldiers and civilians are heading south, which may bring back bad memories and cause panic.

Yan Song stepped forward and said, "I think there is no need to hide it! The Ming Pao will publicize the results of His Majesty's two Northern Expeditions and tell the people that His Majesty has gone to Datong to defend the country and the results of twenty years of good governance. It is necessary to publicize it again. It is necessary to proclaim the righteous deeds of rich families in donating funds, to invent documents, and to recruit porters to help transport military supplies at a clear price. It is necessary to announce to the world that the northern captives took advantage of the Ming Dynasty to liberate the people of Korea, Ryukyu, and Japan. If we invade the south and actively seek war, then after this battle, the Ming Dynasty will have no more trouble from the north!"

"The family and the country are one, I take it for granted!" Yang Shen also bent down, "His Majesty once said that this battle is the battle for the Ming Dynasty's monarchs, ministers and people to shape the unity of the family and the country. Why do we fight and how do we win? At this hurdle, the Ming Dynasty will build a new foundation, the top and bottom will be the country, and the monarch and his ministers will be the people!"

Zhu Zaiyi couldn't help but feel a little excited, and then said: "I want to tell the world again that there will be no major disasters in the Huanghuai River due to heavy rains this summer, and there is hope for a bumper harvest in autumn. My father has been managing the river for more than ten years, and it will eventually benefit all people! Tang Zonghe has made outstanding contributions and should be promoted. !”

"Your Highness's words make sense!" Yan Song's eyes moved, "The Governor of Changping is transporting military supplies for the Northern Expedition, and the Minister of State needs to be one of them. I ask the Minister of State of Tang Zonghe Administration to lead the Ministry of Industry to ensure the production of ordnance!"

The prince wants to take the opportunity to show favor to some important ministers, but there is no need to avoid this matter.

He was the person to be promoted in the plan. The emperor asked him to supervise the country just to train him.

On the capital side, there was a tense situation in response to the new situation.

Over the past two decades, at least so many people in high positions have benefited from the new law. There may be some internal competition for positions, but everyone understands the importance of this difficulty.

In the face of the Northern Lu's invasion of the south, if this battle really has any bad results, then the rising momentum of new laws in the Ming Dynasty over the years will be interrupted, and many strategies will have to be adjusted.

The other things are not scary. The scary thing is that if those things happen, no one can predict how it will develop later.

Even His Majesty agrees, or in other words believes that everything has its pros and cons. It is not that there are no internal problems in Ming Dynasty, but they are just hidden under the current development momentum. As long as there is enough time, this new interest structure can be slowly digested and become more and more stable.

Once this development momentum was lost, even the emperor himself had to face reality and adjust his strategic focus.

In that case, these important ministers who currently occupy prominent positions will naturally be the targets of adjustment.

This is the fundamental reason why we must deal with it together.

At this moment, Ming's war machine was finally at full speed.

The public opinion propaganda and mobilization system built by Zhu Houcong, the material logistics response system with national relatives as the backbone, and the administrative system of many vertical ministries began to make every effort to deal with the unprecedented national war that will come this autumn and winter.

Guo Xun once again led the Wanwu Beijing Battalion to the border area, and the territorial armies from the four provinces of Shaanxi, Shanxi, Hebei, and Shandong also dispatched part of each, totaling Wanwu to reinforce the northern border.

Under such circumstances, the remaining troops in the Beijing Camp were at their lowest, and the surrounding troops were also at their most empty.

External troubles are the most serious, but should we guard against internal troubles?

Even the Beijing battalion that "reinforced Japan" could not be transferred back, because the reconnaissance team arranged by Ma Fang in the Daxingan Mountains also reported the news: while the Beibei had gathered such a large force north of Xuanning, Hetao, There was actually a group of about 20,000 people who crossed the Greater Khingan Mountains and went to Liaodong.

It looked like there had been plundering of Haixi Jurchens and Savage Jurchens in the past, but under this situation, it was obviously not possible to treat them like this.

Over in Datong, Zhu Houcong was listening to the reports from the tribes that had surrendered. Seeing their trembling looks, Zhu Houcong understood better why Anda did what he did.

Only by returning to the Hetao area can he contain the thousands of households in Khalkha that have been penetrated by the Ming Dynasty through the "smuggling" trade for more than ten years and become increasingly unstable.

There are indeed hidden worries within the Khan Court, and if I keep avoiding them, I will not be able to change this change, and will only usher in the outbreak of internal problems in the end.

Now that he can mobilize so many troops and logistics personnel, it can only be said that maybe the results of the "smuggling" between thousands of households in Khalkha and the Ming Dynasty in the past ten years have also been intercepted by him.

If he succeeds in taking back the Hetao and Fengzhou Beach, which are not protected by a border wall, then the Ming Dynasty's construction here in the past ten years will be like making a wedding dress for him.

Didn't he originally want to build the great city of Bansheng and develop farming, industry and commerce to enhance his strength, but he lacked farmers and craftsmen? Now it seems that abandoning Fengzhou Beach in the first place seems to be done with the help of the Ming Dynasty.

Nowadays, there are not many border residents in the border area.

Among them, some of them have surrendered to the Mongolian people. If Anda wins, it goes without saying that they will surrender again. If the Han people who moved to the border areas were also hit hard, it would be difficult for the Ming Dynasty to encourage people to move to the vassal country later.

Looking at the old Guo Xun, Zhu Houcong remained silent.

It was he who sent Xia Yan, Tang Shunzhi, Yu Dayou, and Yan Chunsheng to Japan. Now, he is the only one to deal with it with people who seem to be second-tier.

But looking back on his efforts over the past twenty years, Zhu Houcong is not afraid.

"Do you still remember that during peacetime, if I was just a little worried, I would avoid Daming in the future?"

Guo Xun laughed when he heard this: "Yes, Xia Gongjin and Tang Yingde were still discussing how to set up bait in Tubo to seduce me. Now he has come on his own initiative, Your Majesty. I congratulate Your Majesty!"

"Well said!" Zhu Houcong patted Guo Xun on the shoulder, "Gong Yi has also brought the Beijing camp, and the morale of the soldiers has been greatly boosted. This battle is upright, and you don't have to go to the front line in person, and you don't have to waste your energy. Please take good care of it and return to Beijing with me in triumph!"

When we walked outside the hall, the north wind started to blow.

Behind him, the reinforcements from the Beijing camp and the four provinces were still marching, and Guo Xun arrived first with a light chariot.

Civil servants who were recruited also transported military supplies along the route from Beijing to Xuanfu, Xuanfu Outlet, or via the Sanggan River to Datong.

Beyond the mountains to the north, further north is the territory south of Yinshan Mountain that already belongs to the Ming Dynasty.

On the front line of Yinshan Mountain, nearly 100,000 border troops were waiting in full formation.

To the north of Yinshan Mountain, in front of Anda were the fine cavalry of the Khan Court, a troop from Chagatai, and the slave soldiers he had kidnapped from the west and north over the years.

"Let's go!"

(End of this chapter)