stubborn thief

Qingcheng Temple.

Under the plaque of the rebuilt Hongci Temple.

Liu Chengzong stood on the steps like the king of beasts, gazing into the distance.

In front of him, between two huge bronze lions, there was a group of lions, tigers, leopards and bears wearing open-shoulder battle robes.

The general of Yanmen and the Earl of Chahar, Qintu Taiji, stood in the middle. The patch on the chest of his scarlet battle robe with a golden knife pattern was painted with a unicorn with bared fangs and claws.

Next to him were He Huchen, the general of Shuofang Town, and Wang Chengen, the general of Wuyuan Town. The texture and color of the two generals' battle robes were the same as those of the粆图, except that there were lion patches on their chests.

Next to Wang Chengen stood Bai Wenxuan, the lieutenant general of Yunzhong Town. The patch on his body was a tiger, which made the Tumed Wanhu Omubu, who was wearing a leather robe and a large hat with pearls, look like a close follower and felt uneasy.

However, Sanang Taiji, the Wanhu of Wushen, was wearing the clothes in the direction of his personal attendants on purpose, wearing simple cloth-covered iron armor, but he was very calm with his brows lowered and his eyes downcast.

Because their lord, Ordos Jinong Elinchen, was really right next to them.

What's more crucial is that this time they came from Ordos to Guihua City to pay tribute to Liu Chengzong. Before departure, Sanang suggested to E'linchen that in order to please the Khan, it would be best to wear their ancestral armor.

E Linchen was very obedient and took out the golden scale commander-in-chief armor that Emperor Longqing had given to his grandfather Jinang. It sparkled in the sun and was very dazzling, like a big conspicuous bag.

This set of armor alone is enough to overshadow the Tumed leader Ombu, and all the messy peasants will be suppressed, as they are still at the stage of wearing whatever they can get.

Of course this will not overshadow Liu Chengzong's brilliance.

Because Sanang Taiji had been in the Wushen tribe before, he asked Lu Bin, the captain of the second brigade stationed there.

The chief guard of the Khan, named Liu Tichun, was awarded a set of silver-scale armor because of his earlier military achievements. This is new to him and he wears it every day.

Therefore, although E'linchen and Sanang Taiji, like the other Wanhu, also met Liu Chengzong for the first time, they were wearing armor and could be seen as a group.

He was standing in front, and anyone who saw him would have thought in their hearts that this was the Khan's confidant and the leader of the Qiexue.

This was Sanang Taiji's purpose. He wanted to establish the impression that E'linchen was an important official of the Khanate in the south and even north of the desert, enhance the prestige of his lord, and make the tribes in the south and north of the desert more dependent on E'linchen.

Only in this way can the scattered Mongolian tribes have a backbone when Liu Chengzong abandons Mongolia, and avoid being slaughtered by others and even being bullied by their own people as they did in the past decade.

To some extent, Sanang believed that he identified more with Liu Chengzong, the Great Khan, than any other Mongolian nobles.

Because in his heart, Liu Chengzong was a very competent Khan, but not very reliable.

The grasslands south of the desert have experienced so many years of chaos and struggle. Sanang Taiji's requirements for the Tianci Khan have become very low. Whoever can stop the disputes among the tribes south of the desert and stop them from fighting to the death for some bizarre reasons will be the only true Khan in heaven and on earth.

This means that the ruler needs to have a very powerful army that can suppress the various tribes and stop disputes, and can also give the tribes what they need as rewards and solve their urgent problems.

Who do these traits sound like?
Like the emperor of Central Plains.

This is also where Liu Chengzong is unreliable. Compared with the Mongol Khan, he is more like an emperor of the Central Plains who was appointed as an official on the Mongolian grasslands.

This is where Sanang's uneasiness stems from. As the de facto ruler of the Monan grassland, Yang Qi could run away and rush back to the Central Plains without stopping just because of two edicts of enthronement from others.

Yang Qi is like this, and I believe Wang Chengen and He Huchen are the same.

Liu Chengzong would naturally do the same.

The grasslands south of the desert were not that important to them. The pessimistic Sanang Taiji always believed that when a major war broke out in south of the desert, Liu Chengzong would abandon them and comfortably serve as his commander-in-chief in the Central Plains.

We prepare for a rainy day because we know it will rain sooner or later.

In fact, until now, when Sanang Taiji stood outside Hongci Temple, he believed that Liu Chengzong came to the south of the desert in person this time because he had won a victory in the south and came here just to show off his military prowess.

He didn't know why Liu Chengzong came, nor why Subadi came.

But for him, there are so many strange things on the grassland, so this one is not a big deal.

Not long after, dust rose up in the streets of the city, and several riders came running and reported the news that Subati had entered the city.

A moment later, the Minister of Rites Zhang Xianzhong and Subadi arrived on horseback.

The officers and nobles standing in Hongci Temple split into two groups. Subadi dismounted and saw Liu Chengzong surrounded in the middle. He was about to salute when he dismounted, but Liu Chengzong, who had already stretched out his hand, held him up after taking two quick steps.

"Hahaha, brother has come from afar to come here, our friendship is self-evident, why should we perform formalities? Come, follow me into the temple to discuss in detail."

Subati didn't understand what he was saying, he was just being pulled. But seeing that he didn't look angry, he just laughed it off and let himself be pulled away.

After Gao Letu beside him translated, he smiled and agreed. As he walked towards the temple, he said to Gao Letu: "Tell the Khan quickly that I am here to report urgent military information."

As soon as he stepped into the temple gate, Liu Chengzong heard this, and without stopping, he asked with a smile: "Brother, what do you want to say, is the Later Jin sending troops?"

Liu Shizi had already guessed about Subati's purpose, and he thought there were only two possibilities, both related to military affairs.

Either they were seeking help after being attacked on the Khalkha West Road, or they were reporting that the Jin Kingdom had sent troops.

Apart from this, he couldn't think of anything that would make Subadi, one of the three khans of Mobei, come here in person.

Subati was also expecting his inquiry, and had an astonished look on his face.

He breathed a sigh of relief and said with a smile: "Sure enough, the Khan is leading the army here. I believe he has heard about this matter from somewhere else. It seems that I have done something unnecessary."

Liu Shizi stopped, turned around and looked at Subadi, and said very sincerely: "No, even if more people told me, I can't lead the troops so fast."

"I just speculated that since Huang Taiji wanted to proclaim himself emperor, the Jin Kingdom would most likely send troops to intimidate the surrounding areas, but I couldn't control it in my heart. I was just worried that he would attack my Mo Nan territory, so I led the army here just in case."

Liu Shizi naturally didn't think so.

In fact, his reasoning that the Later Jin Dynasty sent troops and he stationed troops in the south of the desert was a result that he was quite proud of.

But Subati did not shy away from travelling thousands of miles to deliver the intelligence, and in the face of such kindness, he did not want to show off.

However, Subati did not take credit for this. He was more sincere than Liu Chengzong and said, "To be honest, I did not know this military intelligence, but Babu, the son of Chechen Khan, was invited to the Kingdom of Jin to attend the coronation ceremony of Emperor Chongde and learned the information."

"As soon as Babu returned to Mobei, Chechen Khan reported this to the Western Route, and asked me to remind the Khan to be careful and on guard."

"Shuolei?"

This really surprised Liu Shizi, and he asked, "I remember that he had no hostility towards the Jin Kingdom, so why did he reveal the information to me? Why, isn't he afraid of being attacked by the Jin Kingdom?"

"As the Khan said, Chechen Khan is a neighbor of the Jin Kingdom and has no hostile intentions. It's just that Huang Taiji has been aggressive and aggressive in the past two years, which is...very annoying."

Subadi sighed, shook his head, and then explained the whole story to Liu Chengzong.

Ultimately, it's all about money.

In the past, the three Khalkha tribes had always traded with the Ming Dynasty in Xuanfu. Until the Ming Dynasty, in order to contain the Later Jin, awarded a reward of one million taels of silver to Ligdan Khan of Chahar, allowing him to control the entire Mongolian trade route except for the Kharashen and Tumed.

Subudi of Kharashen was the governor of Duoyan in the Ming Dynasty, and Bushitu of Tumed was the king of Shunyi in the Ming Dynasty, both of whom had the power to trade with the Ming Dynasty. Later, threatened by the rise of the Jin Dynasty, Ligdan Khan migrated westwards, not out of madness to make enemies, but because the market reward was in the hands of the king of Shunyi, Ligdan Khan's Khan power could not be concentrated, and his strength could not defeat the powerful enemy.

Harashen's Subudi was jumping back and forth, and had the support of the Ming Dynasty and the Later Jin Dynasty. Lin Danhan had no way to deal with him, so he had to move westward to attack Tumed.

He did rule Guihua City for a few years, but was defeated by the joint attack of Tumed and Houjin, and was expelled to the west, where he even gnawed at the border walls. Finally, he traveled thousands of miles and found his home with Liu Shizi.

In fact, between his failure in Ningxia and his finding his home in Qinghai, when the Chahar tribe moved westward to the border of Gansu, they also planned to attack the three tribes in northern Mobei to the north.

This directly led to the three khans' dislike of Chahar, especially Subadi's Jasaktu Khanate.

His subordinates and the leader of the Tohuit tribe, Erdeni, were in an extremely harsh geographical environment, with the Russians to the north, the Oirats to the west, and Ligdan Khan to the south. When they heard that Chahar had the desire to march north, in order to prevent any accidents, they swore allegiance to Russia on the one hand, and shook hands with the Oirats on the other.

But even though Ligdan Khan was gone, the Ming Dynasty's market was still there, and the Chechen Khanate, one of the three tribes in northern Mobei, received the market imperial edict handed over by Liu Chengzong.

Although they didn't buy what they needed most from last year's trade, they did solve their urgent needs through Yang Qi's circle trade.

However, when they returned to Mobei, Chechen Khan Shuolei received a warning from Huang Taiji.

Huang Taiji also set his eyes on the trade license in Chechen Khan's hand, and informed him that he was about to ascend the throne. He asked them to submit a petition to persuade him to ascend the throne and come to participate in the ceremony. In the future, they were not allowed to trade with the Ming Dynasty anymore, but to trade with Daiqing Gulun instead.

Shuolei knew very well what this plan was. It was simply that the Later Jin Dynasty itself was short of food and clothing, and did not allow the country to trade with the Ming Dynasty. So they wanted to trade with the Ming Dynasty under the name of the Chechen Khanate.

Normally, this is a fantasy that no normal person would even want to think about, but the military threat from the Jin Dynasty was real.

Shuolei had just returned to Mobei and was still frightened by Dorgon's westward expedition. He was very cautious about the reply and specifically took it out to discuss with Gunbu and Subadi how to respond.

Suba and the other man were also unable to make up their minds. As to whether or not to participate in the persuasion, the three of them agreed not to get involved in the muddy water, but no one could make up their minds about future trade and watching the ceremony.

As a result, after two months, we heard that Dorgon had returned empty-handed in the southern desert, and Yang Qi was still alive and kicking in Guihua City.

Sanhan's spine straightened up.

After discussion, Gunbu did not reply.

Subadi scolded Huang Taiji about the trade issue of the Chechen Khan's tribe. The dirty words that were used to bully people were all dictated by Shuolei, but they were signed with Subadi, which made the Chechen Khan very angry.

Shuolei himself wrote a very nice reply to Huang Taiji, congratulating him on his ascension to the throne and saying that Huang Taiji was a benevolent monarch who wanted to maintain peace by expelling Chahar Khan, and that he should make a wise decision. Trade could be discussed but not forced. He said he was very sorry that he had recently broken his leg and could not ride a horse, so he sent his son Babu to Shenyang with gifts to attend the ceremony.

Liu Shizi was so happy to hear this that he leaned forward and backward. He did not look for his attendants, but made tea for Subati himself, brought a porcelain tea bowl and handed it to him, saying, "My two brothers are really interesting. What is Chechen Khan's plan? Will he still work on the border market with Ming Dynasty?"

Subati stood up and took the tea bowl, thanking him repeatedly, then shook his head and said, "The Kingdom of Jin is right before his eyes, how dare he go to the market again?"

"Ha! Shuolei!"

Liu Shizi laughed and looked at Subadi, waiting for him to continue.

Subadi saw his disdain, put down his tea bowl, clasped his fists and said, "Chechen Khan has his reasons, but he has no intention of surrendering to Huang Taiji. He wants Tushetu Khan's people to continue to receive the market reward, and he will trade with Tushetu Khan's people."

"But the Khan must know about this matter. Should we continue to trade with the Ming Dynasty at Shahukou, or should we come to Guihua City and trade with the Khan?"

After hearing this, Liu Shizi nodded in approval and praised, "The Chechen Khan is quite courageous."

Shuolei was obviously born with a silver spoon in his mouth and had everything he wanted.

I can trade with the Ming Dynasty, or I can give up the trade with the Ming Dynasty to others and then trade with the middlemen.

I can even let others trade with Liu Chengzong, and then I trade with him, and it doesn’t matter if the goods change hands four times.

The only thing is, you can't force me to trade with you. No matter how good the conditions are, I won't agree.

This guy is interesting.

However, he did not reply to Subati immediately.

The city reward in Mobei was indeed an issue worthy of careful consideration for Liu Chengzong.

This aspect had not been taken into consideration during the earlier battle in Ningxia, but now that Subadi had suddenly asked him about it, he needed to think about it carefully.

His army assembled in the south of the desert. This land was very friendly to marching. The horses could be fed within three to five months if they were let out into the open, but they would just lose some meat. Then they could go back to Shaanxi to replenish their feed and then trade horses again.

But it is not friendly to soldiers and it is very expensive to eat here.

The local area did not have the capacity to support a large army, and it was impossible for him to plunder and replenish supplies in his own territory.

However, if we want to fight against the Later Jin, the battlefield cannot be held in the Mo Nan Governor's Office.

The generals of the Later Jin Dynasty were all veterans. No matter who led the troops, seeing that he was on guard, they would not be foolish enough to attack Guihua City again.

He wanted to support Mo Nan and use war to tell everyone that Mo Nan was his territory, not a place where anyone could come, fight or leave as they pleased.

The three progressive objectives of the battle were to prevent the Later Jin army from entering, defeating them, and leaving.

Of course, even with the lowest expectations, without considering killing the enemy, and just preventing the Later Jin army from entering the south of the desert and returning empty-handed, the huge consumption of food and grass would also bring unbearable pressure to the logistics route.

The livestock from the three tribes in Mobei were undoubtedly a timely help to him.

However, the production level of trade goods of the Marshal's Office at this time cannot yet match that of the Ming Dynasty.

He has a large number of handicraft products of very high quality, but his product range does not include the hard goods that the Mongolians urgently need.

His inspectors had just been established, and he had no stock this year, and the grain was just enough for himself to eat. Neither of these two hard goods was enough to support trade.

While Liu Chengzong was thinking, his silence was obviously misunderstood by Subadi.

Subati clasped his fists and said, "Besides that, I came here this time to lead the army to help the Khan. However, my subordinates and the Tohuit tribe are fighting foreign enemies, so I have to leave some people in the northern desert. Therefore, I can only send 10,000 troops. I hope the Khan will not despise me."

Liu Chengzong would certainly not despise it. Although he did not really need this fighting force, it was even possible that Subadi would transfer troops from Mobei and the war would be over by the time the army arrived.

But this is related to the support that Mobei has shown to him.

He nodded immediately and said some words of thanks. When he finished, he suddenly realized a problem: "With the Tohuit tribe... Didn't brother just say that he formed an alliance with the Rakshasa in the north and made peace with the Oirat in the west?"

Liu Shizi sat up straight and folded his arms: "Who is he fighting against?"

"I'm not too sure. A Temeng Khanate rose up in the Tomu River Basin. They plundered and attacked the settlements of the Russians and robbed the people of the Tohuit tribe. Erdeni accepted the invitation of the Russian envoys and sent troops to help in the war when the north thawed in exchange for the support of the trading tribes that urgently needed muskets and artillery... Great Khan?"

As Subadi said these words, he felt that they were irrelevant. After all, the territories of the three tribes in northern Mobei were very large, and the Zasaktu Khanate was almost separated from the Tohuit tribe. He really didn't know much about what was going on over there.

But as he spoke, he noticed that Liu Chengzong's originally kind face turned fierce.

"Brother, send someone back now and hurry up to stop the Ho-Tohite tribe from sending troops. For this year's trade, let Gunbu still go to Shahukou to trade with the Ming Dynasty. Brother, bring livestock and horses to my place. It will be like the Ming Dynasty horse market, which is better than theirs. It has everything from cloth, tobacco, alcohol, weapons and armor."

"The Temeng of Tomu River you mentioned is not some Khanate. It is the garrison established by our Tianshan Army when we attacked Luosha. It is called Taimeng Garrison!" (End of this chapter)