The First Gongsheng of Ming Dynasty

Yansui.

Wang Qiong learned the news that Tatars were approaching Huamachi on February 19. At first, he did not pay enough attention to it because in his opinion, it was impossible for the Tatars to attack an area of ​​the Ming Dynasty where heavy troops were stationed one after another.

But then Shen Ying brought him the news discovered by the scouts in Hetao.

"Sir, Ye Bushou has found out that the Tatars have gathered 20,000 to 30,000 soldiers and are heading towards Huamachi. If we don't send reinforcements now, I'm afraid there will be a major war in the Huamachi area, and this time the Tatars may come out in full force."

As a military general, Shen Ying would exaggerate some of the news he received, commonly known as making a fuss out of nothing.

Wang Qiong said: "The Tatars have experienced defeat in the past two years. Do they still have the guts to enter our important border town? There are hundreds of cannons in Huamachi, plus muskets, etc. The Tatars are asking for trouble."

Shen Ying asked, "Then should we just... pretend we don't know?"

This also put Wang Qiong in a difficult position.

The news of the Tatars' invasion of the border has been reported in Huamachi. Although Huamachi is not completely under the jurisdiction of the Sanbian General System in terms of defense, the troops are still within the territory of Sanbian.

Wang Qiong said: "From the perspective of the organization, the troops stationed in Huamachi are under the command of Your Majesty, and I cannot command them. Even if we need to send troops, we should send troops from Ningxia to help, not from Yansui."

What I mean is that I can't help.

Shen Ying sighed, "At this point, there is still no news about the troops coming from Datong. If Huamachi is really attacked by the Tatars again, and Xinjianbo fails to mobilize troops in time, I am afraid the court will hold him accountable."

He was talking about Xinjianbo, but actually he was hinting at Wang Qiong that you must take action.

After all, the defense of Huamachi has nothing to do with the Xuanda defense line. The biggest connection is that the emperor asked Ma Yi to bring three thousand elite cavalry to Huamachi for rotation. If something really happened in Huamachi, the three-border general would not be able to escape the responsibility.

Wang Qiong said: "During this famine, it would be too much of a disaster to mobilize troops hastily. What if the Tatars are just bluffing and they just want to disrupt the morale of our three armies and make it difficult for us to deal with them? Earlier, Ningxia was in danger and there were reports of war from all over, but in fact, only the Huamachi fortress was trapped."

Shen Ying nodded and said, "That's true. If Duke Ying hadn't been deceived and led his troops away, or if Marquis Anyuan had sent troops in time, such a big change wouldn't have happened."

Wang Qiong sighed, "So we can't cause chaos at this time. With over 10,000 soldiers stationed in Huamachi and reinforcements from the surrounding Ningxia ready to rush in at any time, let alone 20,000 or 30,000 soldiers from the Tatars, even 50,000 or 60,000 soldiers would be enough to deal with them."

"Yes." Shen Ying seemed to be relieved after hearing Wang Qiong's words. He said, "As long as the garrison at Huamachi can guard the pass and make necessary arrangements with the Tatars, it will be in vain for the Tatars to send more troops."

……

……

Wang Qiong did not immediately send troops from Yansui to rescue Huamachi.

Against the backdrop of the Tatar army approaching, Liu Jin hurriedly entered the garrison at Huamachi, an earthen city that looked shabby from the outside.

It was Liu Jin's first time to set foot in Huamachi. Before entering the city, he had high expectations for the level of defense here. But after entering the city, he suddenly felt that there was not much difference between having a city defense or not. Xu Shen, the temporary general commander in charge of military affairs, and Zhang Ao, the deputy general commander, personally went to the city gate to greet Liu Jin.

"Close the city gate, close the city gate!" Liu Jin was still a little worried.

Xu Shen came over and said, "I am General Xu Shen, honored to meet Eunuch Liu."

"Xu Shen? Are you the Xu Shen who followed Jingshan Hou and dared to charge into the enemy camp with only 200 men and horses?" Liu Jin looked at the man in front of him.

When Xu Shen heard this, he straightened his back and said, "That's right."

Liu Jin said: "You do have some reputation. You made great contributions in that battle. Why are you still staying in the northwest? And you haven't been promoted to a high position in Beijing?"

Xu Shen felt depressed when he heard this. In the battle in Ningxia, both Yang Yiqing and Cui Yuan were awarded military merits and were promoted.

Although he was promoted, he still wandered around Ningxia because he had no background. If Cui Yuan was his backer, Cui Yuan would have forgotten him long ago after he became successful. Cui Yuan himself had no background and in the eyes of many people, he was just the eldest princess's son-in-law who relied on nepotism to get to the top.

Zheng Sui said, "General Xu is wise and brave. He should be the one commanding the battle. The court should not send anyone else."

"I don't deserve it." Xu Shen said, "I am just following orders. I heard that the court has transferred Pinglu Marquis to this place, and I am just temporarily taking over the military affairs. Now that Eunuch Liu is here, the affairs here should be handed over to you."

Xu Shen also knew that he did not have much ability. If he had to talk about his strategic prowess, it was when he and Cui Yuan rushed forward desperately, which was the simplest and most direct.

Apart from that, he couldn't think of any good tactics.

Liu Jin said, "Let's talk as we walk. Where is the camp? We are exhausted from the journey and want to rest. Take us there."

Xu Shen said: "Eunuch, you may not know that the conditions here are difficult. A lot of food and supplies are transferred from all over Ningxia. There are few wells in the city where you can draw water. After three months of hard fighting, the soldiers are also..."

Liu Jin frowned and said, "The Tartars are coming to kill us, and you are complaining to us?"

"That's not what they meant." Xu Shen said, "The soldiers meant to ensure the stability of the city first, you see..."

Liu Jin said impatiently, "We just entered the city. We have been sleeping in the open air all the way. We haven't even figured out the situation here. Do you want us to set the strategic tone for you now? We can't do it! Bring us the battle report from the Tartars quickly. We need to study it carefully."

……

……

Liu Jin then went to his yamen, and after entering he found that it was indeed a very ordinary place, but it was the place Zhang Mao had left behind.

The supplies inside were quite complete. For Zhang Mao, the conditions were very difficult, but Liu Jin just accepted them because he had suffered a lot in the past two years. It was a blessing for him to find a place with a roof over his head.

Before Liu Jin formally met with the generals in the city, Xu Shen first comforted the generals in the city.

"This eunuch Liu is not a simple person. I heard that he is the admiral of the Martial Arts Academy. He is a very important person. He should have contacts with officials in the current Ministry of War. I also heard that he is an old friend of Wang Zhongcheng."

"After entering the city, we can tell you about General Xu's past. It seems that he knows a lot about our affairs."

"That's right. The previous Duke Ying only advocated that we hold on. Often when the Tartars came, he let us deal with it on our own. This eunuch Liu should be... not show off. Can he take charge of the overall situation for us?"

……

A group of people were gossiping. The Northwest Army generals were well aware of Zhang Mao's abilities. They all knew that they couldn't rely too much on a warrior like Zhang Mao who had lived in the capital for most of his life and had never been on a battlefield.

But Liu Jin was too mysterious to them.

"General Xu, you have contacts with high-ranking officials in the court. Do you know anything about this eunuch Liu?" Many people surrounded Xu Shen, wanting him to comment on Liu Jin.

Xu Shen frowned and said, "As far as I know, this eunuch Liu, in addition to being the commander of the Yanwu Hall, has also traveled to the northwest and Liaodong many times, and has served as a garrison in many places. This time, something happened here, and the court transferred both Duke Ying and Marquis Anyuan and sent Eunuch Liu here. It is obvious that he has the ability to do this."

"So that's how it is." The group of people seemed to have found their backbone in an instant.

When Zhang Mao was here, his influence on the morale of the troops below was too great. Everyone felt that they were worried about the coming day. After a lot of effort, a mysterious figure finally showed up. Now, based on the comprehensive information, they felt that this guy was quite capable. Only then did they feel that they didn't have to stick to this path of holding on.

"General Xu, please tell Eunuch Liu that the brothers are willing to serve the country, but they also need to know how to do it. Now that the Tartars are invading, we can also come forward to kill the enemy."

"Yep!"

When these people heard that Liu Jin had a good background, good strategies, and was also an experienced person, their morale was immediately boosted.

Xu Shen said, "I will tell Eunuch Liu that you should quickly organize your troops. The Tatars are coming with great force this time. If they really want to break in, even if we hold on to the city, we will have a hard fight. Don't let Eunuch Liu down."

"Yes." The soldiers were very excited. Some said, "This eunuch Liu has connections in the capital. He is finally doing things that people can see. We also want to enter a martial arts hall in the future."

"That's not easy. It's just a matter of a word from Eunuch Liu."

"Hahaha……"

A group of people laughed.

When Xu Shen saw the reactions of this group of people, he also felt emotional. They were all like me. Without a strong background in the court, no one noticed what they did in the northwest, and any achievements they made would most likely be snatched away by others.

It's a rare opportunity to have a big shot here, even though he's just an unknown eunuch garrisoning there. Unfortunately, this eunuch Liu doesn't have much power in the court, so whoever performs well will be appreciated by eunuch Liu... Perhaps this is exactly the person who is in charge of the overall situation that the Northwest needs.

……

……

After Liu Jin entered the city, he had no idea that he had become the backbone of more than 10,000 soldiers.

He originally wanted to stay in the city for a few days to get over the physical fatigue, and wait for the generals under him to send the Tatars away so that he could spend a few days of peace here.

Unexpectedly, Xu Shen brought several generals to see him that night, under the pretext of hosting a banquet, in order to curry favor with him and get instructions from him for the next step.

"What do they mean?" Liu Jin looked at Zheng Sui who came in to deliver the message.

After these few days, Zheng Sui had been constantly courting Liu Jin. In addition, as he was a captain of the Jinyiwei, he had been appreciated by Liu Jin and gradually became Liu Jin's top man.

Zheng Sui smiled and said, "They all want to please you, eunuch. They know that you are a man of foresight. I have talked to them and they all look forward to you leading them to achieve great things."

"What do you mean by accomplishment? Is it that easy?" Liu Jin frowned. "They haven't figured out how many troops the Tartars have and how many we have. They also don't understand what the Tartars' intention is in attacking during the spring famine. How can you still want to accomplish something?"

Zheng Sui said: "Don't we have the Shenwei Cannon and the Flintstone Gun?"

Liu Jin sighed, "Those are just means of winning by surprise on the battlefield. Unless we can ambush the Tatars, we can only rely on frontal battles... The Tatars are not stupid, so why would they set up their positions and let us fight? Don't the Tatars have artillery and muskets?"

"Little." Zheng Sui said, "But I heard that they have also been casting in the past two years, but their technology is very backward, there are no good craftsmen, and the conditions are also incomplete. Eunuch, are you going to the banquet tonight or not?"

Liu Jin thought for a moment, waved his hand and said, "If we don't give them a meal, we won't go! Let them submit the battle report as soon as possible, as we still need to study it overnight. Let's leave the matter at the dinner table until after the Tatars withdraw their troops!"

"Yes." Although Zheng Sui felt that this seemed a bit rude, he still obeyed the order and went out to pass on the message.

……

……

After Liu Jin's intention was conveyed through Zheng Sui, it also shocked the group of generals guarding Huamachi.

"This eunuch Liu is truly extraordinary. After entering the city, he declined invitations to banquets and actually... wanted to study war strategies overnight? Does he want us to go in and discuss it?" A group of people seemed to be vying to offer suggestions to Liu Jin.

Zheng Sui said, "My fellow officers, don't you think about this? Eunuch Liu has just arrived. He doesn't know the situation here at all. He doesn't even know who you are. What can you do to help?"

The group of people were a little confused.

Isn’t it precisely because we don’t know each other and are not familiar with each other that we are needed?

What do you mean, Zheng Sui? I heard that you, Zheng Sui, were exiled to Yansui. Why did you come to our Ningxia Defense Zone to show off your abilities?

Xu Shen walked over and said, "Captain Zheng, please tell Eunuch Liu that the Tartars have been attacking frequently in the past few days, and their main force may still be gathering. It is difficult for Ye Bu Shou to approach the place where the Tartars are gathering. Once the Tartars have reorganized, they may attack in full force."

Zheng Sui said, "Eunuch Liu knows this."

Xu Shen said: "We must formulate a strategy now. Should we retreat to Ningxia or continue to station troops here? If we want to station troops here, we must request reinforcements from other places. As for the other way... it is to take the initiative to attack, which is relatively risky."

"We have to wait until Eunuch Liu studies the situation before making a decision," Zheng Sui said.

Xu Shen nodded and said, "It should be soon. There is not much military food and supplies in the city. Even if the city can still hold on, once it is surrounded, I am afraid that food and supplies will become a problem. I am afraid that after the Tatars trap us, they will send troops to harass the surrounding earthen forts and towns. At that time..."

Zheng Sui said, "Eunuch Liu also knows that by then, we will be forced to send troops, right? If we don't send troops and allow the Tatars to wreak havoc, we will also be held responsible."

"Yes." Xu Shen said, "For now, it would be best to use Eunuch Liu's connections as soon as possible to transfer reinforcements. Because the number of Tatars' troops is difficult to estimate. If they are many times more than us... I'm afraid..."

"How can you be a general if you are afraid of this and that?" Zheng Sui said, "I told you that Eunuch Liu will make a judgment, are you so anxious? Eunuch Liu has just arrived, even if he is in charge of military affairs, shouldn't he give him a break first?" (End of this chapter)