prosperous age

“The state treasury is insufficient, so we court officials must put state affairs first and find ways to supplement state treasury instead of just thinking about ourselves.

There is no family without a country. The Xu and Wei families have been blessed by the country for generations, not ordinary people. Only when the country is good can our two families be better. "

Wei Guangde could more or less guess what his wife was thinking, but he was still very open-minded about it.

In fact, when there is a certain amount of money, it is no longer money, but just a number.

What's the point of having more? Even if the Wei family seized all the wealth in the world, they would only become the target of public criticism and be coveted by people all over the world, and they would die without a burial place.

Now the family has tens of thousands of acres of land, and a large amount of investment can continuously earn money for the family. It can be said that the family's casual squandering will not reduce the amount, but will only increase.

Because there really isn’t much room to spend money.

Xu Jianglan also thought Wei Guangde's words were good after hearing them.

As long as the Ming Dynasty still exists, relying on the relationship with the Duke of Wei's Mansion, no one will dare to provoke his children as long as they do not commit the crime of rebellion.

This would remain true even if Wei Guangde retired and returned to his hometown in the future.

"By the way, the family went to Lanzhou to purchase a batch of Lan velvet, intending to make inner coats for all family members.

It was not easy to purchase this batch of blue velvet, and it cost a lot of money."

Turning around, Xu Jianglan put the matter of building a new city and opening a port in Songjiang Prefecture behind her and told Wei Guangde about the arrangements in the prefecture.

"It was only with your status as a minister that I was able to gather the blue fur. One of the strands was originally intended to be presented as tribute to the palace, but the quantity was insufficient, so I gave some to the mansion. The ones in the palace will be gathered together and sent in next year."

When Xu Jianglan talked about Lan Rong, she became talkative.

After all, this batch of blue velvet is of excellent quality and is no different from a tribute.

The government sent people to contact them three years ago, and it was with great difficulty that they managed to gather enough people for one family.

Even though the Chamber of Commerce at home already has cashmere fabrics, they are still far inferior to Lanzhou cashmere. Therefore, Xu Jianglan did not cancel the previous orders and still sent people to Lanzhou to purchase every year.

"Winter is coming soon. Have you arranged winter clothes for the servants in the mansion?"

Hearing this, Wei Guangde nodded and then asked.

"It's already been prepared. They are all cotton-padded jackets and cashmere. It won't lose face for you, the Lord."

At this point, servants are often the face of their masters.

No matter how high the status of the master is, it will also affect them if the servants are dressed shabbily.

"You can't be careless about the material. You must not use high-quality material."

Wei Guangde gave a reminder.

Cashmere is also divided into different grades. The best quality cashmere is prepared for nobles, officials and wealthy families in the capital. If the servants in the mansion also wear high-quality cashmere, it is hard to say what will happen if they are seen by those people when they go out. But those people will definitely not use cashmere anymore. They would rather wear thicker cotton clothes and never use cashmere.

"Don't worry, I saved it."

Xu Jianglan said happily.

In the following ten days, the number of fast horses heading west from the capital to Santunying and the Liaoxi Corridor increased day by day, and a large amount of intelligence was continuously sent back.

The intelligence obtained by Jinyiwei is still trustworthy.

The Ming army in western Liaoning simply analyzed the marching route of the Mongolian army and concluded that their target was in the western Liaoning Corridor, but this was just a guess after all.

Based on the importance of the towns in the Liaoxi Corridor, Qi Jiguang judged that the Mongolian Tatars' target was Jinzhou, because it was the richest area and convenient for them to plunder.

However, the final result was consistent with the report of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. The 40,000 Mongolian cavalry led by Huang Taiji headed directly for Jinxi, but it was not ruled out that they planned to invade Jinxi and then turn south to capture Ningyuan.

After all, the two places are too close to each other.

In fact, Jinxi is the Huludao City of later generations, and Ningyuan is the neighboring Xingcheng City. The straight-line distance between the two places is only more than ten miles.

Moreover, the Ming army garrison in Jinxi was also under the charge of Ningyuan Zhongzuo. In later generations, this place had a household name, Tashan.

It can only be said that although the Liaoxi Corridor is inconspicuous in the territory of China, it has always been a battleground for military strategists, from the Ming Dynasty to the War of Liberation.

This is the throat of land transportation between the three northeastern provinces and the interior.

It may seem like a small battle, but if the Ming Dynasty loses, the entire Liaodong will be in danger.

In the lobby of the Ministry of War, the head of the Zhifang Division was already considering Huang Taiji's identity on a huge sand table, guessing his ideas about the battle.

In fact, it is hard to believe that Huang Taiji's coveting of Jinxi this time was for the purpose of plundering, but it is more likely that he has set his sights on the entire Liaodong.

The Ming Dynasty's march into Liaodong was originally intended to attack Mongolia from the east.

For them, the existence of the Ming army in Liaodong became a threat to Mongolia, and they wanted to get rid of it as soon as possible.

It’s just that due to the strength of the Ming Dynasty, the Mongolian Khan has been constantly changing since the demise of the Yuan Dynasty. Perhaps they all had this idea, but due to the comparison of strength between the two sides, they did not dare to act rashly.

I don’t know if Huang Taiji drank too much fake wine or what, but he actually set his sights on Liaodong at this time.

All I can say is that not overestimating one's own abilities is a very good evaluation of Huang Taiji. His ambitions are as high as the sky, but his life is as fragile as paper.

He might have wanted to use Liaodong to prove that he was stronger than his father Aldan Khan, and to influence the Mongolian tribes in exchange for their support when Aldan Khan only had a few years left to live, but unfortunately he was not destined to do so.

The Mongolian Khans of all generations were self-aware, and no one dared to really take over the Liaoxi Corridor even if they wanted to. But Huang Taiji did it.

“I think Mr. Huang’s analysis is excellent.

Cutting off the Liaoxi Corridor may be Huang Taiji's real purpose. He wants the entire Liaodong."

Wei Guangde was talking freely at the seat on the right side of the lobby.

This is the Ministry of War, he will not take over Tan Lun's position.

"So the Ming Dynasty must not lose this battle. If there is any mistake, not only will the Liaodong army be punished, but the Ministry of War will also be punished."

After Wei Guangde finished speaking, he looked at Tan Lun.

"Lord Wei, the Ministry of War has sent a message to the Guangning Guards, asking them to strictly guard Guangning City and not give the Tartars any chance.

The Liaodong Army, led by Qi's troops, has already moved south from Jinzhou to support Jinxi. The vanguard will arrive by tomorrow afternoon at the latest."

Tan Lun leaned forward slightly and said.

"Where is Huang Taiji?"

Wei Guangde asked.

"According to reports, the people should be in Shaerhe Fort, and now the Tartars are gathering their troops between Shaerhe Fort and Changlingshan Fort.

If we break in from here, we can reach Jinxi City as quickly as possible."

Tan Lun said.

"Qi Jiguang's troops defeated Huang Taiji in Jinxi, and they will certainly take advantage of the situation to push forward the border wall."

Wei Guangde spoke slowly, but in his mind he was also quickly thinking about the time when the Ming army from Jizhen would leave the pass and arrive at the battlefield.

A forced march would definitely not work. When they arrived at the battlefield, the soldiers were exhausted and tired. They were not going to fight but to deliver food.

"How are the troops in Jizhen arranged?"

Wei Guangde looked at Mr. Huang and asked.

“The plan is that after the battle of Jinxi is over, regardless of whether Huang Taiji contacts the Liaodong tribes such as Taining and Tuman, the Jizhen government troops will go east from Lengkou, go north along the Qinglong River, and deploy in the Longshan, Changling, and Jianchang areas to complete the encirclement of the western part of the Mongolian Tartars.

At a distance of thirty to fifty miles, we should be able to avoid the scouts sent by Huang Taiji.

Moreover, Huang Taiji would not have thought of the dispatch of the Jizhen government troops. Otherwise, he would definitely not have thought about the Liaoxi Corridor. "

It seems that Huang Zhushi has figured out Huang Taiji's psychological activities very thoroughly. The fact that he dared to set his sights on the Liaoxi Corridor shows that this person is rather stubborn. As long as he thinks that the Ming army from Jizhen will not appear, he will definitely not consider the necessary preparations.

Wei Guangde thought for a while and decided that once Huang Taiji recruited helpers, the Jizhen army would appear behind them in two days at most.

This time seemed to be enough for Qi Jiguang's troops to defeat the Mongolian Tartars head-on. With the appearance of the Ming army behind them, the battle would be decided.

However, when thinking of Huang Taiji, Wei Guangde suddenly inexplicably thought of Qi Jiguang and wondered whether the Liaodong Ming army led by him could defeat this group of Tartars head-on.

Before, Wei Guangde had never considered Qi Jiguang’s combat capability, because it seemed that the time travelers were full of inexplicable respect for Qi Jiguang, and absolutely no one questioned his combat capability.

"How many Liaodong troops did Qi Yuanjing mobilize?"

Wei Guangde looked at Tan Lun and asked.

"All the new recruits, including not only the chariot and cavalry camps, but also two baggage camps, totaling 15,000 people, as well as two cavalry camps left by Li Chengliang in Liaodong, more than 6,000 cavalry, and about 20,000 elite soldiers from the garrisons, totaling 40,000.

There are still more than 10,000 soldiers and horses in the Liaoxi Corridor ready to be deployed at any time, and a total of more than 50,000 Ming troops. "

Tan Lun was very clear about the troops mobilized by Qi Jiguang. Needless to say, the importance of the Liaoxi Corridor was self-evident, and Qi Jiguang would not underestimate the enemy and advance rashly.

In fact, Qi Jiguang never underestimated his opponents in battle and would always mobilize troops to the maximum extent, which was quite similar to Han Xin's principle of the more soldiers the better.

"There are less than 20,000 soldiers and horses left in other places in Liaodong?"

Wei Guangde muttered in a low voice.

Liaodong does not include the Liaoxi Corridor, and the official army had a strength of more than 80,000 people, but in fact Li Chengliang only had more than 50,000 people at that time.

This time, nearly 30,000 troops were transferred away, leaving only 20,000 troops in Liaodong.

"Can the Guangning Front Guard send troops to support Ningyuan?"

Wei Guangde suddenly asked.

The Guangning mentioned in later generations generally refers to Beizhen at that time, which is the location of Guangning Wei.

Beizhen is located in the north of Jinzhou, with the Guangning Central, Left and Right Guards stationed nearby, and the Guangning Houtun Guard to the west.

The familiar Jinzhou is garrisoned by the Guangning Left and Right Tunwei.

The Guangning Qiantunwei mentioned by Wei Guangde was stationed around Sanshanbao, north of Shanhaiguan. Further north was Ningyuanwei, and further north was Jinzhou.

In fact, the Ming troops stationed in the entire Liaoxi Corridor were mainly Guangning Wei and Ningyuan Wei.

When Tan Lun heard Wei Guangde asking about the troops that Qiantunwei could mobilize, he guessed that Wei Guangde was trying to provide as much support as possible for Qi Jiguang.

When the troops arrived in Ningyuan, they were actually providing support to the Jinxi battlefield.

“It shouldn’t be many, at most we can gather more than a thousand people.

There are dozens of military forts of all sizes under the jurisdiction of Qiantunwei, from Balibao to Sanheyi, all under its protection, so it is difficult to transfer many troops to the north. "

It only took Tan Lun a moment to make a judgment.

Although the Qiantunwei was fully staffed, they were actually scattered across many locations and could not be mobilized at all.

"Good loan, Qi Yuanjing has never lost a battle since he became famous."

At this time, Tan Lun leaned towards Wei Guangde and said softly.

He saw that Wei Guangde was a little worried about Qi Jiguang at this time, so he thought of sending more troops there.

"Brother Zili knows how important the Liaoxi Corridor is. We must not allow it to be lost."

Wei Guangde only gave a reminder. Since Tan Lun was confident, Wei Guangde did not say anything more and changed the subject, asking, "Have you contacted Ma Fang's troops?"

"We haven't found it yet, but the encrypted documents have been sent to Yongning, and scouts have been sent out to the border forts along the way. I think there will be news soon."

Tan Lun was also paying attention to the Ming army outside the Great Wall, so he spoke in a low voice.

"Once they are found, have them follow the plan and move westward along the Great Wall."

Wei Guangde ordered.

"Shandai, is the imperial court really determined to expand northward?"

At this time, Tan Lun suddenly asked in a lower voice.

"what for?"

Wei Guangde was puzzled and asked immediately.

"I have been looking at the map over and over again these past two days and found that a place that was abandoned during the Yongle period seems to be extremely important to the defense of the northern part of the capital. If it can be recovered now, the northern part of the capital will have no worries."

Tan Lun whispered, "If we don't have enough money and food to recover this place, I'm afraid we will lose it again sooner or later."

"where?"

When Wei Guangde heard about Beijing's northern barrier, he immediately became interested and asked hurriedly.

"Daning."

Tan Lun replied.

Daning is the former site of Liaozhongjing, also known as Daming City or Daming City.

During the Yuan Dynasty, Daning Road was established here. It was changed to Daning Prefecture in the early Ming Dynasty and was the seat of Daning Dusi.

The Daning Military Commandery, abbreviated as Daning Military Commandery, was a military and political organization established by the Ming Dynasty in present-day northern Hebei and southeastern Inner Mongolia.

In the 20th year of the Hongwu reign of Emperor Taizu of the Ming Dynasty, the Daning Regional Military Commission was established with its seat in Daning Wei. It governed areas north of the Great Wall in Hebei and south of the Xilamulun River in Inner Mongolia. The following year, it was changed to the Beijing Regional Military Commission.

In the first year of Yongle, the Daning Regional Military Commission was restored and its seat was changed to Baoding Prefecture. Later, all the guards under its jurisdiction were abolished and some were moved to the south of the Great Wall.

Daning has great geographical location and strategic value. To its west is Qilaotu Mountain, to its east is Nuruhuer Mountain, and the Laoha River, the southern source of the West Liao River, flows through its south.

Daning controls the upper reaches of the Liaohe River in the north, the Dalinghe River basin in the east, is connected to Xuanfu in the west, and is backed by the Yanshan Great Wall in the south. Its strategic position is quite important.

The upper reaches of the Liaohe River where Daning is located has a semi-arid climate, which is suitable for farming and animal husbandry. Historically, grassland peoples migrating south and immigrants from the Central Plains migrating north often met here, thus forming a mixed economic zone or cultural area.

For a considerable period of history, this place was the focus of contention between the southward-migrating grassland tribes and the Central Plains dynasties.

This place was once the fief of Prince Ning, but after the Jingnan Campaign, Prince Ning moved inland and Da Ning was soon abandoned.

There are many different opinions as to why Zhu Di gave up Daning. Most people in later generations believed that it was to reward his merits and gave this place to the three guards of Doyan to graze their horses.

However, Daning has a special strategic location. It is not only a northern barrier to Beijing, but also a western barrier to the Liaoxi Corridor. Therefore, Zhu Di never allowed the Three Guards to be stationed here, leaving a vacuum area of ​​rule.

That is to say, the three guards were allowed to roam around and herd sheep, but they were not allowed to stay there permanently, so as to prevent them from becoming a scourge to the capital.

However, for high-ranking officials in the court, there was definitely no such thing as rewarding the Three Guards for their merits, as Zhu Di had killed them ruthlessly before.

Therefore, the most likely reason for giving up Daning was the Ming Dynasty's consistent idea that if the cost of ruling was too high and the benefits were not worth the costs, then it could be considered for abandonment.

At this time, Tan Lun pointed out Daning, actually he was also testing Wei Guangde's attitude.

If the Ming Dynasty could truly restore its rule over Daning, the capital and the Liaoxi Corridor would be safer, as it would be an extra layer of protection.

However, this would require the imperial court to spend more money and grain.

But from the perspective of the Minister of War, he thought it necessary to bring up this matter.

Ma Fang's troops moved eastward from Xuanfu, which seemed to be a good opportunity to recover Daning. (End of this chapter)