Jingnan Strategy

Chapter 202
"I am the canon of the ancestors of the kings. They were famous when they were alive and had posthumous titles when they died. Therefore, their virtues are reflected in their deeds. In the past, the feudal princes and kings became the vassal screen of the country in the Jin Dynasty. Now there are those who are very young and have passed away forever due to illness. Especially According to the classics, the posthumous title is Gong."

"Woohoo! The posthumous title is a public discussion between ancient and modern times and cannot be abolished. If you know how to obey it, the book of favors and fate is as complete as the system of the King of Qin..."

In mid-March, Jin Wang Zhu Fan, who had single-handedly solved all the nobles in Huaixi, Shanxi, died in a hasty way.

When the news of his death reached Yingtian, Zhu Yuanzhang cried until he fell asleep and stayed away from court for three days.

During these three days, he sadly dealt with many matters after Zhu Fan's death.

Although Zhu Fan is cruel, he is still a little better than Zhu Ping. Especially after Zhu Biao's death, his character became even more restrained.

Although this kind of restraint is an appearance made to compete for reserves, at least it makes his image much better than Zhu Ping's.

Because of this, in terms of posthumous title, even the officials in the temple who did not like Zhu Fan did not harshly give him a bad posthumous title, but gave him "Gong" as his posthumous title.

As a posthumous title, "Gong" is not considered a bad posthumous title, but it is not considered a good posthumous title either.

But for Zhu Yuanzhang, he did not refute the posthumous title given to Zhu Fan by the ministers. Instead, he believed that this posthumous title fit Zhu Fan's life very well.

After establishing his posthumous title, Zhu Yuanzhang selected [-] acres of land in Tuoshan, Shanxi to build Zhu Fan's mausoleum.

After everything was over, news of Zhu Fan's death began to spread across the country.

Get the news, whether it is in the temple or in the opposition.

Anyone with a shred of political sense would be able to guess who Zhu Fan's death would be most beneficial to, and who would be least beneficial at the same time.

If the person who benefited the most was undoubtedly the great grandson Zhu Yunwen, after all, Zhu Fan's fight for the throne was no longer a secret. Anyone who was inclined to become an official knew about Zhu Fan's fight for the throne.

However, everyone also knew that after Zhu Fan died, the only ones who still threatened the great grandson Zhu Yunwen were the King of Yan Zhu Di and the King of Zhou Zhu Ji.

For a moment, everyone stood on the sidelines, wanting to see how the two kings would react to the news of King Jin's death.

When Zhu Yu, who was in Kaifeng, learned the news, he immediately sent his eldest son Zhu Youdun to Taiyuan to mourn. At the same time, he appealed to Zhu Yuanzhang to request that he be allowed to preside over the funeral of his third brother, but Zhu Yuanzhang rejected it.

But even though he was rejected, Zhu Xi did not do anything extraordinary. Instead, he spent all day in the palace's fields, leading a dozen Confucian agricultural students to compile famine relief books.

His actions caused many people to stop paying attention to him and instead focus on Zhu Di in Peiping.

Just comparing their concerns, Zhu Di is more concerned about not the power struggle at this moment, but...

"Old monk, how are you?"

In the Chengyun Hall of Prince Yan's Mansion in Peking, when Zhu Di was asking Yao Guangxiao in front of him, Yao Guangxiao, who was sitting next to him, also put away his hand to diagnose his pulse.

"Your Highness has a strong pulse and no symptoms of Qi, blood or body deficiency. There is no need to worry."

Yao Guangxiao and Zhu Di told the answer to their pulse diagnosis, and Zhu Di breathed a sigh of relief: "It's okay, okay..."

When he learned the news of Zhu Fan's death, Zhu Di's first reaction was that it was impossible. It was not until he was repeatedly sure that Zhu Fan was really dead that he gradually became happy.

After all, he and Zhu Fan had never dealt with each other. In order to demand power from Zhu Biao and Zhu Yuanzhang, Zhu Fan often turned a deaf ear to them, saying that he was up to no good...

Thinking of these things, Zhu Di wanted to beat Zhu Fan severely, so it was naturally impossible for him to feel sad about his death.

After being happy for a while, he finally came to his senses.

My eldest brother and Zhu Fan both died of Qi, blood and body deficiency, so would I also have such symptoms?

Thinking of this, he quickly called Yao Guangxiao to check his pulse. Now that he was sure that he was safe, he said comfortably: "The third child is dead..."

"The poor monk already knew it when he came." Yao Guangxiao counted the beads and looked at Zhu Di with a solemn expression, which reminded Zhu Di of his own situation.

He asked tentatively: "The third child is dead, do you think Yun Wen will do anything to me next?"

"This..." Yao Guangxiao hesitated for a moment, and then thought about it seriously: "It's hard to say, but Your Highness has no second thoughts, and you don't have to worry about your grandson doing anything bad to you. Besides, Your Majesty is still here, even if your grandson wants to do something, It’s also hard to make.”

"That's true..." Zhu Di nodded. He didn't have any second thoughts. He just wanted to be a free and happy vassal king in Peiping.

If the eldest nephew in the south doesn't want to stay in the north in the future, then he can go to the south. Anyway, he has already been prepared for the matter of cutting off the vassal.

"Actually, His Highness's side is fine. But what the poor monk is worried about is His Highness's side."

Yao Guangxiao suddenly mentioned Zhu Gaoxu, which made Zhu Di stunned: "What's wrong with the second child?"

"The poor monk always feels that His Highness the Second Highness seems to be hiding something." Yao Guangxiao said the reason for his worry:
"A year ago, Your Highness went to Jilin City and saw rice and the thing called cement. What did His Highness say at the beginning?"

Yao Guangxiao asked Zhu Di, and Zhu Di replied without hesitation: "The second brother said that those things have not yet been successful, and they will be promoted after they are successful."

"Two years have passed, and it still hasn't been accomplished?" Yao Guangxiao asked Zhu Di, and told the information he had: "Based on what the poor monk learned, the Liaodong Dusi commanded that Fu Rang, the chief minister, was going to After Liaonan, preparations for farming have begun in recent days."

"However, even though many people learned that Jilin City had the technology to grow rice, Fu Rang did not let people grow rice, let alone hand over the cement."

"Maybe Fu Rang doesn't know either..." Zhu Di tried to explain, but in Yao Guangxiao's downcast eyes, his explanation could not convince even himself.

Zhu Di was silent, and Yao Guangxiao spoke after a moment of silence: "There is news from the south. His Majesty seems to be planning to let His Highness lead troops to patrol the north again. Although he did not say it specifically, judging from the whereabouts of Governor Xu Zuo, it should be aimed at From the tribes of Wuliangha."

"Your Highness, you should be given the military power of the Sandu Division this year and continue to preside over the affairs of the Northern Patrol."

Yao Guangxiao said this, and also said: "During the northern patrol, the poor monk wanted to send a disciple to Jilin City."

"Isn't this good..." Zhu Di frowned. He knew that the current situation should not be extraneous.

"Because of this, the poor monk prepared his Highness, His Highness the Second Highness, and Prince Ning to send troops before sending people to Jilin City."

Yao Guangxiao explained his thoughts. If he did what he said, even Zhu Yuanzhang would not think that Zhu Di and Zhu Gaoxu were conspiring. After all, both father and son were on the front line. There was no need to send one to Jilin City to cause trouble. .

If there is anything, you can definitely explain it clearly in the Northern Patrol's camp.

Yao Guangxiao's move was more like spying on Jilin City for Zhu Di.

But doing so made Zhu Di even more uncomfortable.

He has a very good relationship with Zhu Gaoxu. If Yao Guangxiao is provoked because of this move, there will be some trouble.

But he also knew that his second son did hide many secrets. As a father, he had to find out. So he took a deep breath: "You don't need to send anyone to the second son's side. You can go with me during this northern patrol." I'll go and ask the second brother face to face."

"That's good..." Yao Guangxiao returned the gift, which made Zhu Di realize that he had been deceived by this old monk.

"You old monk!" Zhu Di blew his beard and glared, but Yao Guangxiao slowly stood up and returned the salute, and said in a low voice:

"Your Highness, sometimes you have to plan ahead."

"Me?" Zhu Di was stunned, and subconsciously wanted to ask Yao Guangxiao back, but Yao Guangxiao didn't give him a chance, got up and left Chengyun Hall.

Looking at his back, Zhu Di was confused and didn't know what Yao Guangxiao's words meant.

He was still trying to figure it out, but he couldn't think of anything after thinking about it all morning.

But while he was trying to figure it out, thousands of miles away in the capital, Zhu Yuanzhang was also busy finishing Zhu Fan's funeral.

Zhu Jixi was sent to Taiyuan to inherit the title of king, and only two grandsons, Zhu Yunwen and Zhu Gaochi, were left in Wuying Hall.

Sitting on the chairs, Zhu Yunwen and Zhu Gaochi, dressed in plain clothes, looked at their grandfather carefully.

On the Dragon Throne, Zhu Yuanzhang's body was a little thinner than in previous days, which was worrying.

But even though his body was in such a state, he still came to handle government affairs after the funeral, as if he wanted to turn grief into strength.

In the next ten days, Zhu Yuanzhang took the trouble to come to Wuying Palace every day. Even when he returned to Qianqing Palace, he often dealt with memorials until early in the morning.

As time passed little by little, the news of Zhu Fan's sudden death began to gradually calm down.

Time entered April, and Zhu Yuanzhang summoned Yang Wen, who had returned from the counter-rebellion in Guangxi, on the third day of April.

Although Yang Wen was only ninety-nine in his forties, he once conquered the northwest with Feng Sheng and has been performing military affairs in the south since then. He is not well-known.

It was not until the 17th year of Hongwu that he was promoted to the hereditary command of Jianchangwei after accompanying Fu Youde in his expedition to Yunnan.

In the 25th year of Hongwu's reign, Yuelu Timur, the commander of the Jianchang Guards, rebelled. Yang Wen followed Lan Yu to conquer. After the war, he was promoted to the governor of the Right Army Governor's Office, and was granted the title of General of Hussars and a hereditary commander.

In the 27th year of Hongwu's reign, because Zhu Gaoxu recommended him to defeat the Japanese, he got more opportunities to perform on the stage.

During his counter-rebellion in Guangxi, the number of troops he directly commanded reached [-], so he was squeezed into the center of power of the Ming generals.

Perhaps because he saw that Yang Wen was doing well in Guangxi's efforts to reform the land-guiliu movement, he specially summoned Yang Wen today.

Yang Wen looked ordinary, but Zhu Yuanzhang could see that he was very calm, so after Yang Wen stood up and kowtowed five times and three times, he said to Yang Wen: "My son, King Yan, is in Peiping, and Peiping is the gateway to China."

"I have called you here now because I hope you can go to Peking as the chief military officer to counsel King Yan. At the same time, you can select elite horse infantry sergeants from the guards of Peiping Dusi, Peiping Dusi and Yangu Ning Prefecture to accompany King Yan to the north of Kaiping. .”

"What do you think?" Zhu Yuanzhang asked Yang Wen. Perhaps because of Zhu Fan's death, he accelerated his planned northern tour in July.

"As assigned by His Majesty, I will do my best!" Yang Wen didn't have any extra words to say. He just bowed his head and accepted the assignment.

Seeing that he had no requirements, Zhu Yuanzhang was very satisfied and asked: "Your old troops can be deployed at will. You just need to draw up a roster for me."

"The last general takes orders!" Yang Wen did not refuse Zhu Yuanzhang's kindness. After all, he had never led troops to fight in Hebei Province. Without the manpower he was familiar with, it was indeed difficult to control the army.

Just when he bowed, Zhu Yunwen frowned, because if he remembered correctly, Yang Wen seemed to have several people close to Zhu Gaoxu.

He thought about it carefully and soon thought of those two people, so he smiled and said:

"Captain Yang goes north to patrol the border with his fourth uncle, and the situation in the north will be stabilized."

"However, recently, Japanese pirates have come from the south and are causing trouble in Leizhou, Guangdong. If they are not curbed, they may return to the Japanese rebellion in the past."

"I heard that Yang Qiu and his son under Governor Yang are powerful naval warriors. How about assigning them to Guangdong and Guangxi to lead the navy to defeat the Japanese?"

As Zhu Yunwen spoke, his eyes peeked at his grandfather from time to time.

Seeing that his grandfather was silent, he looked at Yang Wen with more confidence.

Yang Wen, on the other hand, pondered for a moment after hearing this, and then said: "Yang Qiu and his son are indeed powerful warriors in water warfare, but if they want to fight against Japan, either Yang Qiu or Yang Zhan will do." Obviously, Yang Wen didn't care about these two people with the same surname as him. And the subordinates who followed him from Zhejiang to Guangxi still liked it very much.

"If Yang Qiu is more mature, let him be appointed as the commander of the Guangdong and Guangxi Navy to pacify Japan."

At the critical moment, Zhu Yuanzhang gave his own advice. Zhu Yunwen didn't say anything after hearing the words, and Yang Wen also breathed a sigh of relief.

"After you go to the north, all orders will be made by the King of Yan. Just follow them. Don't have any doubts. Learn from the King of Yan how to deal with the northern captives."

"I accept your order!" Yang Wenzuo bowed in return, and Zhu Yuanzhang waved his hand: "Get ready and set off this month."

Seeing what the emperor said, Yang Wen also left Wuying Hall after saying "I resign."

However, not long after he left, Wuding Marquis Guo Ying appeared at the door of Wuying Palace, which made Zhu Yunwen and Zhu Gaochi look surprised.

"Your Majesty, Guo Ying, see Your Majesty, Grandson, and Crown Prince..."

Zhu Yuanzhang was considerate of Guo Ying, so he didn't have to bow five times and kowtow three times, he only needed to bow.

After he got up, Zhu Yuanzhang did not greet his old brother, but explained the reason for summoning him:
"Although the imperial court is at peace and the barbarians have been away for a long time, after all, the barbarians still have the force to harass the border fortress, so we must take precautions."

"I have called you here today to appoint you as the chief military officer. You will lead the Liaodong Dusi, in addition to the garrison troops, horses and infantry, together with the king of Liao, to go to Quanning Guards and garrison the embankments in danger. All orders will be given. Please listen to King Yan’s control..."

Zhu Yuanzhang's words made Zhu Yunwen's heart sink.

If the former sent Yang Wen to assist Zhu Di in controlling his troops and horses, he was still acceptable, but he was a little uneasy about sending Guo Ying to lead the King of Liao to participate in the northern tour and at the same time obey Zhu Di's control.

The third daughter of Guo Ying married Zhu Zhi, King of Liao, and the eldest granddaughter married Zhu Gaoxu, King of Bohai.

Now if he goes to the north and forms a good relationship with Zhu Di's in-laws, then he will cut down the vassalage in the future...

Zhu Yunwen was in a bad mood gradually. As for Guo Ying, he didn't think much about it. Facing Zhu Yuanzhang's order, he just asked: "When will I go to Liaodong and when will I lead my troops to station in the fortress?"

"Leave as early as possible. It is best to send troops in May. By that time, the snow in Gaoxu should have melted and we can send troops."

"I accept the order..." Seeing Zhu Yuanzhang's explanation, Guo Ying accepted the order and stepped back. After Zhu Yuanzhang left, he turned his attention to the memorial on the table.

After thinking for a while, he asked the eunuch to get some paper, and he wrote a letter from home on the paper.

[I observed that when the Zhou Dynasty was established, the world was in good order. The Duke of Zhou still informed King Cheng: "Your army and the army are safe, and you must not forget the way of danger." 】

[Although there is nothing happening in the sea today, the heavenly signs are warning us. How can we not prevent the troubles of the Yi and Di? 】

[My disciples, you are the only one who is talented and wise enough to handle your duties. The Qin and Jin Dynasties have passed away, and you are really the leader. Who is it not you to fight against the outside world and keep the inside at bay? 】

[I have ordered Yang Wen, the commander-in-chief of the Beiping Dusi, to conduct the Dusi and other armies, and Guo Ying, the commander-in-chief of the Liaodong Dusi and the Liao Mansion Guards. Please listen and exercise restraint. 】

[You, the general, will lead the kings to gauge the situation, prevent border troubles, and secure the people, in order to answer the will of God and to fulfill my entrustment. Please be respectful and cautious and do not neglect...]

More than a hundred words are filled with explanations for Zhu Di.

After Zhu Yuanzhang finished writing, he looked at Zhu Gaochi and said, "This letter is a letter from home. You can send the palace guards to deliver it to your father."

"My grandson accepts the order..." Zhu Gaochi stood up respectfully, came to the Long Case and took the family letter.

Looking at the family letter, Zhu Yunwen felt very uncomfortable, but he could only watch Zhu Gaochi walk out of Wuying Palace with the family letter.

He thought what his grandfather would say to him, but beyond his expectation, after Zhu Yuanzhang wrote the letter home, he continued to devote himself to handling government affairs.

As for the family letter, after several days of traveling, it was sent back to the Yan Mansion in Peiping by the Yan Mansion's guards.

After receiving the letter from his family, Zhu Di quickly began to prepare for the northern tour.

At the same time, Zhu Gaoxu, who was in Blackwater City, was still unaware of the various things happening in the pass.

"It's April, so my third uncle should be gone..."

On the arrow tower of Heishui City, when Zhu Gaoxu lamented the news that Zhu Fan was probably dead, what he saw before his eyes were the green mountains in the distance that were gradually turning green, and the Heilongjiang water that had mostly thawed.

"One two one!"

"One two one!"

"One! Two!"

As he sighed, passionate slogans rang out outside the city.

He looked down and saw thousands of soldiers wearing mandarin duck jackets running on the road in front of Heishui City outside Heishui City.

Their line was very long, stretching from the east to the west of the city. There were ten people in each row with a small flag. The line stretched for nearly a mile and they could not even see the tail.

After a minute or two, Zhu Gaoxu saw the tail of the team, and then a figure walked up the stairs behind him.

"Have the arrangements been made for the group of Jurchens who came just now?"

Zhu Gaoxu asked without looking back, and Meng Zhang, who walked out of the stairs, also had a smile on his face: "Everything has been arranged, 120 seven households, 410 six people, but there are 110 six men joining the army."

He stepped forward, stood half behind Zhu Gaoxu, and looked at the orderly team outside the city: "Counting these 110 people, the reserve force of Blackwater City reaches 920 people."

"Almost eight thousand." Zhu Gaoxu nodded, already very satisfied with this recruitment speed.

But compared to his satisfaction, Meng Zhang felt a lot of pressure. He hesitated and said: "Although there are almost 8000 people, their family members are a bit too many. At the end of the day, there are [-]." The rest."

"It's true that there are a lot of them, but there's nothing we can do about it."

Zhu Gaoxu looked into the distance. He was very reluctant to leave at this moment because he thought of Lao Zhu.

"If grandpa could live for a few more years, I might still have a lot of time, but it's not enough now..."

He sighed in his heart, and at the same time he was worried about the situation in Blackwater City.

"How long will there be enough food in Blackwater City?"

"Less than two months."

During the conversation between the two, Zhu Gaoxu's pressure was fully revealed.

The population is a burden to him, but he can't achieve what he wants to do without recruiting troops.

Now Heishui City spends 24 dan on military food and rations every month, which works out to [-] dan a year.

Regarding the situation in Jilin City, throughout the winter there were messenger dogs and Jurchens who were skilled in sledding on the river, sending messages back and forth. Therefore, he knew the situation in Jilin City and the other two cities very well.

Zhaozhou City was still a military fortress and its burden was military food and military pay. After a winter in Andong City, the Jurchen population recruited in the city reached more than [-], and nearly [-] shi of rations were consumed every month.

It was even more difficult on the Jilin City side. Throughout the winter, small tribes continued to flee from the southeast.

Since Zhu Gaoxu cut off the mutual food trade, many tribes have been unable to survive. They are the neighbors of Jilin City. Shanchubu in the east all accepted Jilin City's care.

At present, except for the Jurchens in the six cities who can barely survive, the rest of the larger Jurchen tribes have accepted recruitment.

But as a result, the population of Jilin City exceeded [-] this winter, and the monthly expenditure on food rations reached [-] shi.

Counting the [-] military households in Changchun who have not yet gone north, the number of regular troops in the Bohai Navy has reached [-]. In addition to the current [-] reserves, it costs more than [-] guan of money and [-] shi of military rations every month.

From the 28th year of Hongwu to the present, Zhu Gaoxu did not expect that he would also become a person with 15 civilians and [-] troops.

It's just that such a force carries on his shoulders the financial pressure of nearly [-] guan for military and civilian craftsmen and [-] guan for rations every month.

The increase in population and army meant that Bohai's treasury could only last until the beginning of June, and this was just normal times.

Once a war breaks out, where to find food may be what I should worry about most.

There were still fourteen months until his father launched an army in history. Logically speaking, he should wait until then, but Jilin City's treasury could no longer support that time.

The fur business was interrupted by Lao Zhu's policy of relocating wealthy households. He lost his largest source of income and could only survive by selling part of his flock.

If nothing else goes wrong, Lao Zhu will transport himself 10,000+ stones of grain and moon grain in the next few months, and he can only rely on them to last until the grain harvest in early September.

Although more than [-] shi of grain can be harvested, this batch of grain can only last until March of next year.

Even if they sell sheep again, they can only last until April after paying military pay.

He lost himself in the expansion of his strength, and gradually fell into the situation Lao Zhu set for himself.

Now it seems that I have only two options, either to appease the enemy in advance, and then defeat the Liaodong Dusi in the three months from June to September, seize the Liaodong army's grain garrison and Changping granary, and use the war to support the war.

Or, he can only temporarily dismantle his army, reduce the people's rations, and then recruit troops when the army is about to start next year...

It would be easy for the former to raise an army, but Zhu Yunwen had not yet reduced his vassal status and King Xiang had not yet set himself on fire. Once he raised an army, he would have lost his righteousness.

Without this righteousness, he would change from a vassal king whom others regretted to a hateful anti-king.

If this road doesn't work, then perhaps the only option left is disarmament.

Zhu Gaoxu looked at the nearly eight thousand soldiers outside the city, his eyes tangled.

Did he really have to dismantle the [-] soldiers and horses that he spent more than half a year training?
Zhu Gaoxu was reluctant to give up, and the reason for his reluctance was that he had a method in his mind that he had not implemented yet, because he felt that it might not be possible.

But the matter has come to this, whether it can be done or not, he has to take that step first to know.

He turned around and walked down the arrow tower.

"Tomorrow, we will return to Jilin City..."

　"Bohai Chronicles": "In April of the 31st year of Hongwu's reign, he went up to the Beishan Mountains to support the women, and organized eight thousand men into the army."

　　"Records of Emperor Shizong of the Ming Dynasty": "In the winter of the 30th year of Hongwu, the barbarians surrendered due to hunger and cold, and captured more than thousands of straight women and men. They were also afraid of the invasion of barbarians from all around, so they organized hundreds of men into the army to prepare for them."

　　
　
(End of this chapter)