Crazy at the end of the Ming Dynasty

() After Wu Shigong called everyone together, he started a long speech.At this time, Wu Shigong hadn't calmed down from the excitement of robbing iron ore and saltpeter mines, so he was very excited and tried his best to explain the reason why he must send troops to Nanyang Mansion.It wasn't until Wu Shigong spoke for nearly half an hour that his mouth was dry, and he stopped his speech, waiting for his subordinates to express some opinions that agreed with him.

But what Wu Shigong faced next was silence, and everyone remained silent for a long time.This situation also made Wu Shigong see the signs, it seemed that all his subordinates did not agree with his sending troops.

In fact, at this time, Wu Shigong fell into a misunderstanding.For Wu Shigong who vaguely knew that the Ming Dynasty was about to perish, maybe his choice was not wrong.But none of his subordinates here knew this. In their view, Wu Shigong's troop dispatch this time was simply too risky.

You must know that Wu Shigong is now the leader and core of this group, so his decision is basically the final decision, and his subordinates basically have to implement Wu Shigong's decision, even if there are some objections, they are all Based on retention.

Moreover, the Runing Camp that Wu Shigong created now was basically created by Wu Shigong. It should be said that in the eyes of the people of the Ming Dynasty, these were also Wu Shigong's private property, so it should be How to use this private property should be the decision of Wu Shigong alone.

This view should also be said to be correct, but the group Runing Camp has already established a certain scale, and Wu Shigong's staff members also have a certain status in this group.Therefore, the rise and fall of this group is also closely related to the future of Wu Shigong's subordinates.

Therefore, when Wu Shigong proposed such a risky move, his subordinates were unwilling to accept it from the bottom of their hearts.If it weren't for Wu Shigong's success in the past and the great prestige that formed, perhaps these subordinates would have interrupted Wu Shigong's words to refute, and would not just use such a silence to express their attitude.

Seeing the scene, there was a long silence, and Deng Qifan, Wu Shigong's chief aide, had to start to speak: "My lord, why do you have to send troops? What the students said may not be right. But since those iron materials can be purchased, Those saltpeters should also be available for purchase. It’s nothing more than letting those miners build another saltpeter mine.”

"The students also know your judgment of 'Three years of chaos', and basically agree with your thoughts. But a few days ago, the students asked the accountant to do a careful calculation, even if the income from the Yangzhou salt merchants was included. Every year, nearly [-] taels of silver are included in the expenses of the Runing camp."

"My lord, don't think about it. What if the world is not in chaos? Or is the world in chaos, and the chaos won't come to our Runing Mansion for a while? Or will it take four or five years before the world will be in chaos? If your lord If you are so extravagant, don’t wait for the world to be in chaos. Maybe our Runing Camp will start to mess up because of the lack of money in a few years. My lord, I will advise you again, think twice!"

Deng Qifan opposed Wu Shigong's troop dispatch from a financial point of view, and it should be said that he was justified.But Wu Shigong was also moved by Deng Qifan's persuasion because he didn't know the exact time of the chaos in the world.Wu Shigong frowned and considered for a while, then decided to listen to other people's opinions: "You can speak up if you have anything to say, I'm not someone who doesn't listen to objections."

Therefore, Xue Yongli then raised an objection from a military point of view: "Young master, if you want to send troops, it will definitely not work if you have fewer people. At least [-] soldiers are needed, and the number of auxiliary soldiers cannot be less than This number."

"Because there are more than 4000 miners who rebelled after all, and they have all undergone military training. They are not the same as those rioters of the Holy Spirit Society at that time."

"Furthermore, the place where the battle was fought was in a mountainous area, and the families of the miners and local fellow villagers were all nearby. The news of those miners is definitely much better than ours. Therefore, I feel the difficulty of sending troops this time, and I may still be exterminating Li Yaozi The difficulty of those bandits is above."

"Also, according to your judgment, my aunt, those miners will definitely organize a decisive battle with us. But what if they don't have a decisive battle? What if they hide and seek with us in the mountains like Li Yaozi? The battle will definitely last for a long time And in the future, my lord will station an army there to wipe out the hidden miners, this approach will definitely hold back some of your troops, my lord."

Then Zheng Zhen agreed: "My lord has a lot of soldiers now, but it is difficult to mobilize them. You may not know, my lord, that there is a severe drought in Henan this year. Except for those farmlands that my lord has, many other places still have no harvest."

"And now that the autumn harvest is approaching, around your farmland, some hungry people sneak into the farmland every day to steal the grain that is about to ripen. And the number of those hungry people is so large that the people in the farm guard team can't take care of it at all." It is often maintained by the soldiers of the Runing Battalion.”

"If my lord sends troops this time, there will definitely be insufficient manpower to maintain and protect the autumn harvest, and the food in my lord's farmland will also suffer a lot. My lord, please don't lose the big because of small things!"

Yuan Xingshan went on to speak: "My lord, after the shopkeeper in the firm met those horse bandits this time, those horse bandits were very polite and did not act against them. According to the villain's estimation, buying iron materials from those horse bandits There should be no problem with buying saltpeter. My lord doesn't necessarily have to send troops!"

Zhang Xuebin also came up with an idea: "Boss, the student has an immature idea. Since the boss wants these two mines so much, why does it have to send troops to fight? It is absolutely possible to recruit those horse bandits and miners. According to the student's In my opinion, those horse bandits and miners also want a good way out. If the master agrees, the students will send someone to explore their ideas first, and the master will make a decision after we have news."

Wu Shigong saw that only Zhou Xun who was sitting on the side did not speak, so he called by name and said, "Zhou Xun, what do you think?"

That Zhou Xun immediately stood up and clasped his fists and said, "My lord, gentlemen, I don't quite understand what the villain said, but I think it makes sense. But as long as the lord makes up his mind and gives an order, the villain will definitely lead his soldiers and go through fire and water." Clear the way for your lord, and drive those rebellious miners out of those two mines."

Wu Shigong immediately smiled and made a gesture for Zhou Xun to sit down, and then joked: "Look, Xiao Zhou's glib skills have improved since he got married! Good! If you send troops in the end, the general who leads the team will The officer must be you."

Wu Shigong's words made everyone present burst into laughter.

Wu Shigong continued to think for a while, and then said to the crowd: "I did not think carefully just now. But I still decided to send troops."

"After listening to everyone's opinions just now, I have two objections: one is that I don't think the Runing Battalion will send troops, and the iron and saltpeter can also be purchased. But there is no need to discuss this point, this officer knows For a reason, holding something in your own hands is better than looking at other people's faces."

"And the iron and saltpeter are simply too important to our Runing Camp. This is no less important than the blacksmith workshop and those farms. I am absolutely unwilling to put my lifeline in the hands of others."

"What's more, I feel that sending troops outweighs the gains. This is what I consider. If you can take those two mines, and if you can add the salt business of the two counties where Li Shoubei is stationed, in terms of income and expenditure, this is a big deal. The first dispatch of troops is not without income. Even the food and salary for raising soldiers in the mining area in the future can be solved."

"As for the protection of the food in the farmland, I will soon establish an army dedicated to local security, and Xue Qiang will be the commander of that army. In the future, the Runing Camp will only prepare for war. There will be no further involvement in local matters.”

"Also, Mr. Zhang's idea of ​​recruiting security just now is very good. But if you want to recruit security, you must also hurt those miners who made trouble. Otherwise, those miners just won the battle with Li Shoubei and are in full swing. If We rushed to recruit security, maybe they are hotheaded and put forward some unacceptable conditions for us."

"However, Mr. Deng's considerations about Runing's marketing expenses are indeed reasonable. That's it. Let's set a time for one month. If the troubled miners are not driven out of the two mines within one month , our Runing Battalion would rather just withdraw from Nanyang Mansion just like that, and don’t care about this matter anymore. In this way, if we don’t succeed, the loss in expenses can still be borne.”

"Also, all of this must be discussed with those gentry who own private mines. If they give us enough benefits, our Runing Camp can send troops. Otherwise, I would rather give up this opportunity. .Look, is it appropriate to do this?"

Seeing that Wu Shigong had made up his mind, everyone reluctantly nodded in agreement.

So, after the meeting was adjourned, Wu Shigong immediately called Chang Meng over and said, "Go to Li Shoubei's place now. Tell him, Master, I will hold a family dinner for him tonight. Remember, let him Come alone."