unclear

Chapter 1415 Unified Thoughts
"Bullshit! Did I insist on sending the Eagles Brigade into battle? Am I the kind of person who steals credit? There are some things you don't know, and you shouldn't know, so just keep quiet. When to strike, and who to strike, are all planned and approved by the Army General Staff. Why would we change anything without major changes? Who would dare to change anything!"

Seeing that accusations weren't working, Huang Taiji dropped his commanding presence as a theater commander, adopting a nonchalant attitude, and began emphasizing the seriousness of military deployments again. Dealing with these veteran thugs in the army couldn't be done with a hard approach alone, nor with too much softness; a combination of both was necessary.

"Aren't you afraid of scaring everyone away? If you lose most of your main force in the first encounter, how can you fight a battle? If it were me, I wouldn't even bring any equipment; I'd have to break camp and retreat overnight!"

Unfortunately, Chang Jiang was still unwilling to give up and changed his tactics, starting with the responsibilities of the theater commander. He raised the serious charge of missing a battle opportunity high in the air and saw whose head was the most suitable!
“I’d love for you to go to the other side to command. It’s good that you’ve withdrawn. Commander Huang has driven the enemy back a thousand miles in one battle. In less than three months, the three of us will be ordered to return to Beijing to receive commendation.”

"What a pity, the Russians look down on you! If it weren't for the Army General Staff assigning you, I wouldn't even look at you! Look at the troops you train, always last in the autumn exercises. If it were me, I would have retired long ago, and you still have the nerve to criticize others!"

However, when it comes to who has the strongest thuggish military habits, Huang Taiji can already rank in the top ten in the army. You want to provoke people with your words? Come on, let's see who gets angry first!

"How can you blame me! Every time, new recruits are crammed into my garrison. After they finally train, everyone splits them up, and then more new recruits are crammed in. If others said that, I would tolerate it, but Commander, you know the situation here best. How come it's my fault in the end!"

Chang Jiang clearly lacked self-control and immediately lost his temper. He stood up and pointed at Huang Taiji and Ma Lan, berating them. When he got to the point of hurting them, he even stripped them of their commander title.

"Brother Chang, Brother Chang, be careful not to fall into a trap! Commander, I don't quite understand why we don't take the initiative to attack when we have such a good situation. We have a half-guard cavalry ourselves, plus the cavalry of Zhongyuzi, which is enough to cover the logistics supply line."

No need for many, just send two guards to conquer Little Horde first, rest briefly, set up a simple logistical base, and then continue westward. As long as we reach the Caspian Sea, we won't have to worry about food and drink along the way.

I can't speak for other countries, but do we need to test the Russians' small army? We know more about them than the Tsar does about how many guns they have, what models they are, and how much ammunition they have.

Cossack cavalry? What era are we living in? Large-scale warfare relying on sabers, bows and arrows, and speed is no longer viable. If you want to stretch and delay supply lines, we also have cavalry—cavalry armed with double-barreled muskets and field artillery. Who will launch a surprise attack is another story!

I am not interfering with command, nor am I trying to demoralize the troops. I simply wish to ask the Commander to consider whether this western expedition is feasible. If it is, why must we be forced to passively endure attacks? His Majesty's personally authored army manual clearly states that offense is the most effective form of defense. Why not heed this?

Seeing that the alliance's emotions were about to be thrown into disarray, Ma Lan quickly interrupted. After taking a sip of tea to clear her head, she began to speak seriously about the strategic layout of the Ming Empire, mainly targeting the northwest.

"You've been busy all night and haven't eaten yet? I just woke up and I'm a little hungry too. Let's eat and chat. Don't frown, if you want some, it's roast meat and naan; if you don't, get out!"

When it comes to verbally demonstrating strategy and tactics, Huang Taiji is truly intimidated by Ma Lan. Not only does Ma Lan come from a military family, but he's also a classically trained professional, possessing both theoretical and practical knowledge. He can speak for half an hour without needing to prepare a draft. Based on this alone, he must be a descendant of a sage, having perfectly inherited Emperor Jingyang's eloquence.

So it will be difficult to muddy the waters again, but whether I can give a straight answer still needs to be considered. Using lunch as an excuse to stall for time and gather my thoughts is essential. I am indeed hungry. Saying I want to sleep is pointless; who can actually fall asleep to the sound of gunfire? Tossing and turning is more tiring and makes me even hungrier! "You just said you wanted to launch a western expedition, all the way to Russia and even Europe. The Ming army certainly has the capability, and the chances of victory are not low. But have you considered why His Majesty established the army and navy?"
If the goal is to achieve great deeds and expand territory, Your Majesty could have already personally led an army of hundreds of thousands on a simultaneous westward expedition by land and sea, sweeping across all European countries in one fell swoop, and even capturing their kings and nobles. Why wait for you and me to accomplish this?

Clearly, you weren't paying attention in history class and forgot His Majesty's evaluation of Emperor Wu of Han. For a country, if territorial expansion doesn't bring sufficient benefits but instead causes suffering for its people, then that king or emperor is a foolish ruler who prioritizes personal gain over the well-being of the nation and its people, indulging in endless wars and incompetence!

War requires money, money that could have been used to build factories, repair irrigation canals, and lend to farmers to cultivate land, supporting millions of people. Instead, it was all wasted on guns and bullets, which was a waste in itself, not to mention the deaths that occurred.

What did they gain? They reclaimed a large tract of land, but it was so far away that no one was willing to cultivate it, and the locals kept rebelling, requiring troops to be stationed there to guard it, which was another huge expense.

If a war cannot bring back dozens of times more spoils, nor create a continuous stream of profits for the future, then it's like losing money in business! But how can the deficit be made up? There's no other way but to exploit the people and collect it through various taxes.

This is still a victory. What if we fail or things don't go smoothly, and we suffer heavy losses along the way? How many families' sons, how many children's fathers, how many wives' accounts will be buried in foreign lands? How many years will it take to exploit the people to fill this huge hole?

You all always consider yourselves disciples of the Emperor, but do you even know His Majesty's maxim for commanding troops?

Roasted meat and naan are particularly suitable for popularization in the military because they are quick! From slaughtering to roasting to serving, a skilled guard can finish in no more than half an hour. If the weather is not too hot, the meat can be stored for a few days and can be eaten in ten minutes.

Huang Taiji tears open the hot naan bread, adds hot roasted meat and fresh scallions, and serves it with cocoa tea or milk tea, making it a delicious, filling, and nutritious meal.

The scallion, which is the same as the onion of later generations, was brought to China by Persian merchants after the conquest of the Yarkand Khanate opened the route to West Asia. In recent years, it has spread to various parts of the Ming Dynasty and has been widely cultivated due to its high yield and ease of preservation.

"...Shouldn't it be that every battle is profitable?"

Although the two commanders were also a bit hungry, they had something on their minds and didn't have much of an appetite, only eating a few skewers of grilled meat. They exchanged glances upon hearing the question, and Ma Lan answered, though she wasn't entirely sure.

"Yes, that's the sentence. But do you know why His Majesty set such a strange rule?" Huang Taiji, meanwhile, was eating with his mouth and beard dripping with oil, showing no trace of the demeanor of a great general.

(End of this chapter)