Chongzhen revived the Ming Dynasty

Turning North Korea into a quagmire was exactly Zhu Youjian's goal.

He knew that the current Ming army was not strong enough to fight against the Jianlu, so after he ascended the throne, he proposed the strategy of "building a strong camp and fighting a stupid battle". Use defensive tactics to stabilize the current defense first.

Now this strategy has paid off. He Kegang held Dalingh River firmly with 3,000 troops for nearly a month, which is a concentrated embodiment of "fighting a stupid battle."

The Ming army had already established confidence in defending the city. Ma Shilong and Huang Long's initiative to defend Gaizhou City was a reflection of this.

Cities along the Great Wall and in northern Zhili were also being renovated, using the experience gained from the Battle of Dalingh River to strengthen their defenses.

It can be said that the strategy of "fighting a stupid war" has been successful, and what Zhu Youjian will try next in Korea is a new strategy of "fighting a messy war."

A bad battle may sound unpleasant, but it is also an effective way of fighting.

A certain great country in later generations was the best at this, and it won many victories in history by fighting tough battles. It even had the largest territory in the world by relying on its tenacious resilience.

The Ming Dynasty today is quite similar to that country. Both have vast territories, a large population, and numerous internal problems, making it unable to fully exert its strength.

In Zhu Youjian's view, the most suitable thing is to fight a tough battle. Use the strong national strength and population advantage to outlast the enemy, and eventually win.

This requires a firm determination from the upper echelons and sufficient support from the lower echelons. It also requires inspiring morale so that the soldiers can go to the battlefield and continue to fight.

Zhu Youjian tested these points in Korea to see how much combat power the Koreans could exert under the looting and military rewards of the Jianlu.

If even the Koreans can use this method to stop the Jianlu, when the Jianlu come to Ming Dynasty in the future, the people of Ming Dynasty will naturally stand up and resist with more confidence.

In that case, the Jianlu, with less than 100,000 men, would basically have no way to fight against the Ming Dynasty. In the future, it would only become weaker and weaker until it was completely defeated.

As for the war determination of the North Korean upper echelons, he also sent Shi Fenglai to keep an eye on the North Korean monarch and ministers, to watch their actions and prevent them from dragging their feet.

If there were signs of ice forming on Yeongjong Island, Shi Fenglai would follow his arrangements and take the Korean king and his ministers out as soon as possible.

Even if the King of Korea was unwilling to come to Ming, they could be sent to Jeju Island, which was farther from the land and the Jianlu would not be able to attack it.

In short, no matter how the war in Korea goes, the Korean monarch and his subjects must not surrender. Encourage the Korean people to fight against the Jianlu and see how much money the Jianlu can afford.

What's more, Zhu Youjian gave them an advantage, which was the weapons they used.

He ordered the Ming equipment department to manufacture artillery and fire guns, which were far superior to the Jianlu in range and accuracy. As long as the Koreans learned the mountain warfare of the Afghans, they could drive back the invading Jianlu in the mountainous terrain of Korea.

Zhu Youjian had already asked the Academy of Military Science and the General Staff to explore the corresponding combat plan, and sent it to Hong Chengchou as a suggestion.

Hong Chengchou is now quite obedient because he has the same idea as Jiang Yueguang, which is to rely on the soldiers under his control to help himself achieve meritorious service.

When Mao Wenlong, Liu Xingzuo and even Cui Nanyi were all granted titles, he also hoped to make great achievements and obtain a hereditary title.

The power of Korea granted to him by the emperor was a good opportunity for him to make merit and be awarded a title. So he racked his brains during this period, and even thought about keeping the Jianlu:

As long as the Jianlu stayed in Korea, he could arrange his soldiers to shoot them one by one and turn them into his own merits.

If the Jianlu were completely eliminated, it could be said that he made the greatest contribution in quelling the Jianlu Rebellion.

By then, being granted the title of Duke would be too light a reward. He could become a Purple Pavilion meritorious official based on this achievement.

This title of meritorious official, which not only brought fame but also honor, touched the hearts of many officials.

The saying “Please go up to the Lingyan Pavilion for a while, so that you can become a marquis if you are a scholar” is probably just like this.

Hong Chengchou also had the ambition to become a meritorious official in the Purple Pavilion, especially since the opportunity to make contributions was now before him. When the emperor asked him to launch an ambush and turn the Korean war into a bad one, he was already thinking about how to suffocate the Jianlu in Korea and make the greatest contribution:

"Yalu River, Yizhou."

"If we can control this place, the Jianlu won't be able to go back even if they want to."

"Let them stay in North Korea and see how they fight."

Staring at the direction of Yizhou on the map, Hong Chengchou asked Chen Zizhuang, who came to report on the situation in Dongjiang Town:

"You said that when Dongjiang Town withdrew from Yizhou, it was ready to counterattack."

"Can those preparations still be put into effect and take down Yizhou City?"

Chen Zizhuang didn't know Hong Chengchou's intention, so he replied:

"Those preparations were originally intended to ambush Amin's troops left in Yizhou, but Amin saw the opportunity quickly and did not force his way south, but led his troops back to Yizhou."

"Later, they discovered that many of those arrangements were ineffective. Therefore, they were not activated during the battle of Dongjiang Territory."

"After Huang Taiji came to Joseon, he cleaned up Yizhou again and arranged more people to guard it."

"If we want to recapture Yizhou now, we must prepare for a strong attack."

This made Hong Chengchou frown, and he asked Chen Zizhuang:

"Where is Mao Wenlong? Where is he now?"

"Your Majesty has high hopes for him and has already decided on the title of Dongjiang Ling in advance, intending to confer him the title of Earl or Marquis."

"But his performance in this year's war was not good enough. He harassed many Jianlu in Liaodong, but he didn't bring back many heads."

"Does he mean to say that he is willing to be a viscount and occupy the little land in Dongjiang Territory?"

Speaking of this Chen Zizhuang, he had a lot to say, and said to Hong Chengchou with a bitter smile:
"When Cui Nanyi was named the Earl of Cijiang and his fiefdom was set in the Cicheng area in the east, Marshal Mao was annoyed because he thought that his fiefdom was being taken away."

"He has been very angry these days. Chen's coming here this time also has Mao Shuai's intentions."

"Please ask Governor Hong to arrange a mission as soon as possible so that Marshal Mao can achieve meritorious service."

Hong Chengchou laughed, and felt more confident about taking Yizhou. He said:
"There is a mission. If Marshal Mao can complete it, I will recommend him to be made a baron."

"I can also arrange for the fief of Lord Cijiang to move eastwards, so that he will not occupy Marshal Mao's fiefdom."

"The east side is close to the sea, so the conditions are better. Lord Cijiang should be more willing as well."

Hong Chengchou had a lot of say in how the fiefdoms were divided after the nobility was conferred. Because the nobility of Korea needed to be determined by the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty and the King of Korea, he, as the minister to Korea and the Prime Minister of Korea, could naturally make many decisions.

Not to mention that Choi Nam-yi was not well-received in the Joseon court, even if he had the support of the Joseon king, Hong Seong-chou could have him move his fiefdom. Anyway, as long as he kept Cicheng and his title of Cigangbok, it would be fine.

If Cui Nanyi dared to resist, Hong Chengchou would dare to give him a fiefdom according to the lowest standard, which would only be slightly more than 200 li.

I believe Cui Nanyi will not be tactless and refuse his kindness. (End of this chapter)