The most reckless man in the Ming Dynasty.

Chapter 339: History of the Development of Liaodong Jurchens

Liaodong, Kaiyuan.

Kaiyuan is located in the middle section of the Songliao Plain. The terrain is high in the east and low in the west. The central part is a semi-hilly and semi-plain area; the eastern part is mostly hilly, and the eastern part is the remnant of Changbai Mountain. The southeast is mountainous and belongs to the branch of Changbai Mountain; the western part is low-lying and is part of the Qinghe and Liaohe alluvial plains. The soil is fertile and it is a rare arable land in Liaodong.

It is precisely because of this that the imperial court during the Hongwu period established Sanwanwei, Liaohaiwei and Anlezhou here, and it has developed into a huge town in Kaiyuan.

At this moment, in the government office, Tang Hao was sitting on the main seat in iron armor.

On his left sat a square-faced general who looked intimidating even without getting angry, Han Fu, the commander-in-chief of Liaodong.

This famous general who guarded Liaodong had been stationed in Liaodong for decades, had made many military achievements, and was good at managing the army. He was able to subdue the barbarians and maintained the situation in Liaodong with great difficulty.

However, because the civil officials and gentry controlled the government during the Hongzhi period, Han Fu not only "failed to be granted the title of marquis", but was suppressed and criticized many times. He was demoted three levels once and was falsely imprisoned once. It was not until Zhu Houzhao ascended the throne that Han Fu was immediately reappointed as the commander-in-chief of Liaodong.

Sitting next to Han Fu was the deputy general Mao Lun, who was a former guard of the capital and a spy sent by the imperial court.

Tang Hao looked at Han Fu first and said in a deep voice: "General Han, the court will definitely make up for the reward you deserve!"

"After Liaodong is pacified this time, he will at least become a hereditary marquis. General Han can rest assured!"

As soon as these words were spoken, Han Fu's whole body trembled, and tears welled up in his eyes.

It's not that he is too sentimental, but he has suffered too much unfair treatment before.

Han Fu was promoted from the commander of Ningyuan Guard to the commander-in-chief of Liaodong. He had been on the battlefield for more than 20 years and had made outstanding military achievements. He had spent his entire life guarding Liaodong for the Ming Dynasty. However, his hard work did not receive any reward from the court. Instead, he was suppressed and framed!
It’s hard not to be chilling!

"Everyone knows about the unpleasantness in the past!"

Tang Hao sighed and said, "Now that the five prefectures have been re-established, the officers and men have a backbone. They will definitely receive the rewards they deserve, and the court will never blame any meritorious official!"

"I have been ordered to come here only to deal with the Liaodong barbarians. I hope the two generals will fully cooperate with me!"

The significance of rebuilding the Five Military Governor's Office is to safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of the soldiers of the three armed forces.

Instead of being like before, where all promotions and transfers were controlled by civil officials and gentry, military generals had to look to the civil officials for promotions!

Han Fu bowed sincerely to Tang Hao, who quickly supported him and then sat down again.

Tang Hao still has great respect for this old general.

If Han Fu had not been in charge of Liaodong, I'm afraid chaos would have broken out in Liaodong long ago!

"What is the current situation in Liaodong?"

Although Tang Hao had obtained intelligence about Liaodong from the Jinyiwei, Han Fu was the local tyrant in Liaodong after all. He had been stationed in Liaodong for more than 20 years and his understanding of the situation in Liaodong far exceeded that of others.

When talking about business, Han Fu's expression suddenly became serious.

"Lord Tang, to be honest, the situation in Liaodong is a bit corrupt!"

"During the Hongwu reign, the imperial court began to focus on the management of Liaodong in order to contain and encircle the remaining forces of the Northern Yuan Dynasty. During the Yongle reign, the imperial court established the Nurgan Regional Military Commission. Later, in order to consolidate its control over Liaodong and improve the situation in Liaodong where there were fewer Han people, the court even sent immigrants to Liaodong many times."

"However, because the imperial court adopted the policy of 'using barbarians to control barbarians', and Liaodong itself was a bitter and cold land, except for a few places where crops could be cultivated, it was difficult to grow food in most areas, so the results were minimal, and even a large number of people fled back to the interior."

"In addition, in the early years of the Yongle reign, the imperial court relocated the Daning Regional Command to Baoding Prefecture, which constrained the Liaodong Regional Command. Western Mongolia was able to develop towards Liaodong without any obstacles. In addition, Emperor Yongle led his troops to the northern steppes many times, and a large number of Mongolian tribes fled to Liaodong, making the situation in Liaodong even more unstable."

Just as Tang Hao had told Zhu Houzhao before, because Yongle abolished the Daning Regional Military Commission, the Liaodong Regional Military Commission lost its western barrier, and the entire northern border of the Ming Dynasty became a grazing land for barbarians on the grasslands. A large number of Mongolian barbarians poured into Liaodong, which directly led to the corruption and collapse of the situation in Liaodong!
When Han Fu mentioned this matter, his face was full of worry.

To be honest, if it weren't for Zhu Di's status as the emperor of the Ming Dynasty, Han Fu would have wanted to curse him. What the hell was he doing?

Daning, the seat of the Daning Regional Military Commission, was praised as "located at the elbow of Xuanliao and serving as a barrier between Yan and Ji". It controlled the passage between the Mongolian Plateau and the Songliao Plain. Its strategic position was very important and it served as the external defense line of Yan and Ji.

However, the imperial court directly relocated the Daning Military Region inland, which was equivalent to directly abandoning the strategic location of Daning. This directly led to the western part of the Liaodong Military Region no longer having a barrier. A large number of nomadic tribes could not resist the invincible army of the Yongle court, so they all fled to Liaodong! This is not the most critical thing!
The most despairing thing is that after Yongle, the Ming Dynasty declined after its peak. The Tumu Disaster made all the barbarians see directly that the Ming Dynasty was strong on the outside but weak on the inside, and Liaodong became the first choice for the barbarians on the grassland to plunder and wreak havoc!
Han Fu fought in Liaodong all his life. He repelled the Mongols, but soon after he encountered the Jurchens, he drove them away. Only to have the Mongols come back again. He fought all his life against the barbarians on the grasslands, and under his protection, Liaodong was finally able to stabilize the situation and avoid being completely reduced to a grazing ground for foreign cavalry.

The root of the problem lies in the fact that the Ming Dynasty lost the strategic location of Daning!
The Liaoxi Corridor lost its barrier, and foreign cavalry could come and go as they pleased, and the war never stopped.

Tang Hao naturally had a good vision for military affairs, so he could understand Han Fu's resentment.

But he is Emperor Yongle after all. Even if he made a mistake or lost his mind, you have to find a suitable reason to cover up his mistake.

"General Han, times have changed. His Majesty the Yongle Emperor has his own considerations."

"The Jingnan Campaign weakened the northern border defenses of the Ming Dynasty. His Majesty the Yongle Emperor wanted to temporarily turn the border into a vassal state and hand it over to loyal foreign guards as a barrier for the empire, and then try to restore it in the future. Not to mention that it also involves the issue of vassal kings, so let's not dwell on this matter any more."

"Besides, I am here with 10,000 soldiers from the capital to solve the problem of the barbarians in Liaodong."

Han Fu nodded when he heard this, he just couldn't help but complain a little.

"The situation in Liaodong is complicated now, but thanks to the efforts of the military and civilians, they have worked together to build a defense network including garrisons, post stations, and watchtowers, promote the military farming system in the hinterland, and implement tributary rule in the surrounding areas, forming a harmonious and unified dynamic border system."

In this regard, Han Fu did a really good job, even excellent.

For example, the Hushan Great Wall, Hushan is an isolated mountain protruding from the Yalu River. The whole mountain is shaped like a crouching tiger, and the two main peaks with similar shapes and similar altitudes are like the ears on a tiger's head, so it is also called the "Tiger Ear Twin Peaks".

Hushan has an extremely important strategic position because of its steep terrain, blocking the east-west traffic, and controlling the Yalu River waterway in the south. It has always been a battleground for military strategists.

Under the supervision of Han Fu, the Ming Dynasty built military facilities on Hushan, mainly including the Great Wall, wall platforms, enemy towers, horse faces, beacon towers, moats, horse-blocking walls, etc. These facilities constituted a relatively complete defense system, which firmly controlled this strategic location.

"The problem is that there are many barbarian tribes in Liaodong, and they are uncivilized and untamed!"

"Among them, the Jurchens are the worst. Each tribe has risen up, each claiming to be the king and vying for supremacy. They often rob our Ming army and civilians, and then escape without a trace. Even if we want to punish them, it is extremely difficult!"

Tang Hao's eyes turned cold when he heard this.

"Jurchen!"

"They still dare to rob our Ming Dynasty?"

Didn’t Emperor Chenghua hurt them by performing the “Chenghua Plowing the Courtyard” twice?
Feeling the murderous intent of Marquis Zhongshan, Han Fu and Mao Lun looked at each other and were secretly frightened.

This Lord Zhongshan seems to have a strong murderous intention towards the Jurchen clan!

"The Jurchen tribe can be traced back to the Hongwu period, when Emperor Taizu Gao sent Feng Sheng as the general to conquer Haixi. As the last resistance force of the former Yuan Dynasty in non-Mongolian areas, Nahachu felt that it was difficult to maintain its position, so it chose to surrender. The Ming Dynasty opened the road to Liaodong. After Nahachu surrendered to the Ming Dynasty, the royal army occupied both sides of the Songhua River. The Jurchens and other tribes that were under the rule of the former Yuan Dynasty successively surrendered."

"The Jurchen tribe was divided into Jianzhou Jurchen, Haixi Jurchen and Wild Jurchen. Jianzhou Jurchen was the first to respond to the court's call for peace. It was divided into the Huligai tribe, the Tuowen tribe and the Odoli tribe. The court set up Jianzhou Guard in the territory of the Huligai tribe, with the leader of the Huligai tribe, Ahachu (given the name Li Chengshan), as the commander. Later, the Odoli tribe established Jianzhou Zuowei, with Mengtemu as the commander. Later, on the recommendation of Ahachu, the court appointed Mengge Timur as the commander of Jianzhou Guard."

"With the arrival of Ahachu, Mengge Timur and others in the Ming court, more and more Jurchen leaders came to submit to the Ming court. For example, the Jurchen tribes in Haixi were divided into several groups. The court then established 384 guards, 24 posts, seven grounds, seven stations and one village in succession, using the method of 'building them together and dividing their power'."

"In addition, the imperial court also established the Nurgan Military Region to govern the various garrisons, with the Haixi Jurchens and the internal official Yishiha as eunuchs to guard and govern the area. The Nurgan Military Region was equivalent to the Liaodong Military Region being an institution established under orders to specifically undertake the pacification of the Heilongjiang and Songhua River basins."

"But after Tumu, the imperial court was weak, and the Jurchens bared their fangs like hungry wolves. In the second and third years of Chenghua, the Jianzhou Jurchens invaded the border every year. From January to March of the third year of Chenghua, they even invaded twice in a row, gathering other tribes and killing and looting tens of thousands of border residents. They also robbed countless properties. The commander Shi Dengzuo was ambushed and killed in the battle."

"Then Emperor Chenghua sent Wu Jingbo Zhao Fu to lead 50,000 troops to suppress Jianzhou Jurchens. After a month of encirclement and suppression, the results were more than 630 beheaded and more than 240 captured. The bandit leaders Li Manzhu and Dong Shan were all executed. Ten years later, the Jianzhou Jurchens gradually recovered their strength and became restless again. They joined forces with the Haixi Jurchens and continued to invade Liaodong. This time, the court sent Baoguogong Zhu Yongzheng to suppress Jianzhou. He captured and beheaded 695 people, captured 486 people, and destroyed more than 450 camps. The Jianzhou Jurchens were completely defeated!"

Han Fu briefly recounted the history of the development of the Jurchens, and then sighed again.

"In short, the Jurchens have ostensibly submitted to the Ming Dynasty, and each tribe claims to be its defender, but in reality these barbarians are uneducated and ungrateful, and often attack and plunder each other. When the Ming Dynasty shows signs of fatigue, these bastards begin to show their fangs, plundering and invading again and again!"

"It has been several decades since Chenghua, and the Jurchens have accumulated a lot of strength and started to invade and plunder again!"

Well, the indestructible cockroach finally swallowed up the Ming Dynasty!
Tang Hao sneered, his whole body filled with murderous intent.

Let me see if you are really invincible!
(End of this chapter)