Chongzhen revived the Ming Dynasty

Sun Chengzong was one of the first local governors to receive the news of the reform of the Five Courts.

As a Grand Secretary who was on a mission to supervise troops outside the capital, he would know something about any major events that happened in the court.

Not to mention that the reason for the restructuring of the five academies is closely related to the situation in Liaodong.

After the establishment of the Privy Council, Yuan Keli quickly wrote a letter to Sun Chengzong to inform him of the establishment of the Privy Council. Even in the confidential document, he mentioned the "four squares, six corners, and ten-sided net" plan that Yang Sichang was planning.

Sun Chengzong quickly realized that one of the purposes of the emperor's establishment of the Privy Council was to better command the war in Liaodong.

The establishment of the armboard communication system can also allow the court's orders to be transmitted to the front line more quickly:
"No wonder your majesty allowed Qin Shiwen, the right assistant minister of the Ministry of War, to concurrently serve as the governor of the Great Wall, and also allowed Zhu Xieyuan, who will take over as the minister of the Ministry of War in the future, to return to manage the affairs of the ministry."

"With the armboard communication, the Privy Council can directly manage the Great Wall area!"

Sun Chengzong was very concerned about the arm communication mentioned in Yuan Keli's letter and soon realized:
After the establishment of the Privy Council, it will definitely not be an empty shell. At least the defense along the Great Wall will be taken over by the Privy Council.

Even if the armboard communication system is reliable, Shanhaiguan, which is only 600 miles away from the capital, may be directly managed by the Privy Council.

As the commander-in-chief of Liaodong, I might only be in charge of the area outside Shanhaiguan in the future.

At this time, Sun Chengzong also thought about the emperor's arrangements for the Liaodong area, and realized that the emperor had previously appointed Wang Zhichen as the Great Wall Guardian in preparation for this matter.

This former Liaodong commander-in-chief, now the Great Wall Guardian stationed in Yongping Prefecture, may take over the defense of Shanhaiguan at any time.

He might also be transferred back to the imperial court to serve as a Grand Secretary or Privy Councilor.

"If this is the case, how can I become a hero of the Purple Pavilion?"

Muttering to himself, Sun Chengzong asked himself.

Although he once said in front of the emperor that he came to Liaodong only to stabilize the situation and asked the emperor to send a brave and wise general to replace him in the future.

But in his heart, he was unwilling to give up the opportunity to become a hero of the Purple Pavilion——

The emperor's series of actions not only gave the Purple Pavilion heroes posthumous fame, but also gave them divine status, titles, and fiefdoms.

Anyone who has the opportunity to become a Purple Pavilion hero will not give up the chance to make meritorious contributions.

Now Sun Chengzong does not want to return to the court, and would rather win the title of Purple Pavilion hero in Liaodong.

Therefore, he had to take action to show that he could not only help the emperor stabilize Liaodong, but also have the ability to defeat the Jianlu.

This made him pick up a strategy that he had already written and planned to present it to the court:
"With a net spread out in all directions, how can it compare to the main force of Liaodong attacking?"

"In the current situation, it is better to rebuild Dalinghe City, recapture Yizhouwei and Guangningwei, and build another line of defense in front of the Ningjin Line of Defense to block the Jianlu's way to bypass the grassland."

"This way, the imperial court won't have to worry about the Jianlu taking a detour through Yizhou to the grasslands and threatening the Great Wall in the Ji-Liao area."

"Your Majesty will surely be very pleased and allow me to continue to serve!"

(The seat of the Guangning Zhongzuo was Dalinghe City, now Linghai City, Liaoning Province. The Jianlu invaded the pass several times and looted along the Dalinghe Valley, entering the grassland from Yizhou and bypassing the Ningjin defense line.)

From Yuan Keli's letters, Sun Chengzong keenly sensed the emperor's concern that the Jianlu would bypass the grassland and attack the Ji-Liao Great Wall.

Even he himself was worried about this matter and reminded the court to be on guard several times.

According to his point of view, the city should be built on the Dalingh River, and then go north along the river valley to Yizhou and Guangning to block the gap.

In this way, the threat of Jianlu to the Ji-Liao Great Wall will be easily resolved.

Unless they don't take this route and go through the grassland from farther north, the pressure on logistics will kill the Jianlu.

Historically, when Sun Chengzong served as the commander-in-chief of Liaodong after the Ji Si Incident, facing the threat of the Jianlu breaking into the Central Plains through the grassland, he chose to rebuild the Dalingh City and re-establish defenses in this area.

Now, facing the threat from the Jianlu who would bypass the grassland, which the emperor was worried about, he also chose this method and prepared to send troops next year to rebuild Dalingh City.

But what he didn't expect was that besides him, there were others who proposed to build a castle in the Dalingh River area to defend against the Jianlu.

Moreover, this person's memorial was delivered to the emperor before his.

Zhu Youjian looked at the memorial in front of him and said inexplicably:

"Is this memorial really written by Zheng Qing?"

“Who wrote it, and who came up with the strategy?”

Staring at Zheng Zhihu in front of him, Zhu Youjian found it hard to believe that this memorial with clear strategy and sophisticated wording was written by Zheng Zhihu, a former pirate.

So he asked directly, who wrote the memorial and what was the purpose?
Zheng Zhihu scratched his head, feeling that he had been tricked, and could only say honestly:
"This memorial was indeed not written by me. It was written by the former Minister of War Huo Weihua."

"After seeing Fort Zeelandia, he said that this kind of fortress is particularly suitable for the defense of thousands of soldiers."

"So I asked to build a fort in Daling River and establish merit in Liaodong."

"He was afraid that Your Majesty would not agree, so he asked me to say that I wrote it myself and build the fort in the name of the Marine Corps."

As the former Minister of War, Huo Weihua was very familiar with the situation in Liaodong.

He even admired Yuan Chonghuan very much and had carefully studied the battles of Ningyuan and Ningjin. He knew that the most suitable tactic against the Jianlu was to stick to the city defense.

So when the Dutch who had forced Fort Zeelandia to surrender learned that the emperor had specially sent people to inspect Fort Zeelandia, Huo Weihua also became interested and went to Fort Zeelandia to take a look and ask the surrendered Dutch soldiers how to defend it.

This question suddenly made him feel incredible. He discovered that according to the Dutch defense method, if he really attacked Fort Zeelandia, the 2,000 soldiers under his command might not necessarily win.

This small castle built by the Dutch is very suitable for garrisoning hundreds or thousands of people and serving as a fortress defense.

So he immediately had an idea in his mind, planning to select a thousand elite soldiers from Dongning Prefecture and go to Liaodong to build a fortress.

If he succeeds, he will no longer be an insignificant overseas criminal, but a general who can fight against the Jianlu.

Compared with the previous status, it is no longer comparable.

This led to this memorial, proposing the use of naval ships for transportation, landing of marines, and construction of fortresses for defense on the south bank of the Daling River.

After understanding the causes and consequences, Zhu Youjian increasingly realized that Huo Weihua was a talent.

This person was not only Wei Zhongxian's former adviser and experienced in court struggles, but also very talented in military and political affairs.

This person and Xu Dahao made the greatest contribution to the rapid settlement of Dongning immigrants.

The construction of Dalingh Fort was extremely far-sighted.

In view of the fact that the strategy he proposed coincided with Sun Chengzong's plan to build Dalinghhe City, Zhu Youjian summoned Yuan Keli, Yang Sichang and other privy ministers to discuss the two plans.

Faced with two similar proposals put forward by Sun Chengzong and Huo Weihua, Yuan Keli was emotionally more inclined to Sun Chengzong, with whom he had a closer relationship.

However, Sun Chengzong's plan to build Dalinghe City was a bit risky. The city that Sun Chengzong wanted to build would require more than 13,000 people to defend it. About 20,000 people would be needed to serve these soldiers in the city.

Once so many people were besieged by the Jianlu, the rear had to rescue them.

It is impossible for Liaodong to lose one tenth of its 130,000 troops easily.

Huo Weihua's plan for Dalinghhe Fort was different. It only required one thousand people to defend it.

Even if all these thousand people were lost under the siege of Jianlu, it would not be a big deal at all.

Even if Huo Weihua couldn't defend the castle, he could abandon it and escape.

Last year, the emperor abolished the rule that “the commander-in-chief should not defend a city” and allowed cities outside the Great Wall to be defended or abandoned according to the circumstances.

The Dalinghe Fort that Huo Weihua proposed to build was right beside the Dalinghe River. If he really couldn't hold out against the siege of the Jianlu, the imperial navy could help him escape when he abandoned the fort.

It can be said that his plan for Dalingh Fort was both offensive and defensive, and was far more perfect than Sun Chengzong's plan to rebuild Dalingh City.

Therefore, Yuan Keli was in a dilemma, not knowing whether to support his old friend or to ask the emperor to reinstate Huo Weihua, the remnant of the eunuch party.

Yang Sichang did not have so many concerns. He was only thinking about realizing his own four-square and six-corner plan, and said:
"Your Majesty, if we follow Commander Sun's plan to rebuild Dalinghe City, when the 30,000 soldiers and civilians in Dalinghe City are besieged by the Jianlu, the court must send troops to rescue them, just like when they were besieged in Jinzhou."

"This could easily turn into a major war between Liaodong and Jianlu, just like the battles of Ningyuan and Ningjin."

"My four-square and six-corner strategy assigns the Liaodong troops the task of defense. We should do our utmost to avoid such a war."

Based on his own plan of four sides and six corners, he believed that Sun Chengzong's plan to build Dalinghhe City should be rejected.

Where there is opposition there is support. Li Banghua, who belonged to the Donglin Party like Sun Chengzong, said:
"Although Commander Sun's plan to build Dalinghe City is an offensive one, its main purpose is defense, blocking the route of the Jianlu from the Dalinghe Valley to the grassland."

"Your Majesty appointed the Great Wall Supervisory Division because he was worried that the Jianlu would bypass the grassland and invade the Great Wall defense line in the Jiliao and Xuanda areas."

"If we succeed in rebuilding Dalinghe City, we won't have to worry about these things."

"I think Dalinghe City should be renovated and made into a city like Jinzhou."

The emperor's concerns about the defense of the Great Wall were known to all the privy ministers. Otherwise, Qin Shiwen would not have been appointed as the governor of the Great Wall and Zhu Xieyuan, who had won a victory in the battle, would not have been transferred to the Great Wall area.

After Li Banghua put forward his view, Qin Shiwen, Bi Maokang and others supported it. They believed that Sun Chengzong should be supported in rebuilding Dalinghe City and establishing the Dalinghe defense line.

Yang Sichang agreed with their previous statement, but he was firmly opposed to rebuilding Dalingh City.

First, he did not want to destroy the four-square and six-corner plan by rebuilding Dalingh City. Second, he believed that Dalingh City had been destroyed twice by the Jianlu after the battles of Ningyuan and Ningjin, and the difficulty of rebuilding and restoring it was about the same, so it would be better to find another place to build a new one.

Huo Weihua's Dalinghe Fort plan was very feasible. It was more realistic to build a city with a thousand garrisons. The court did not have to worry about a war. Even if the fort failed, it would not cause any harm to the court.

The two sides argued fiercely, and Li Banghua, Bi Maokang and other Donglin Party members firmly opposed Huo Weihua's plan. They opposed the use of Huo Weihua, a eunuch, and believed that a Dalinghe Fort with a thousand people garrisoned could not affect the overall situation.

When the Jianlu took the Dalinghe Valley and detoured to the grassland, they did not care about these 1,000 troops. The Dalinghe Fort was there only for surveillance.

The debate was very intense, but Zhu Youjian saw that Li Banghua and others were not confident enough, because how could a castle with a thousand people be completely ignored? Otherwise, why did the Ming Dynasty set up so many guards?

It not only serves the purpose of surveillance, but also allows the imperial court to know in time when the Jianlu will bypass the grassland and come.

So he slowly made a decision in his heart and asked Yuan Keli, who had been silent the whole time:
"Yuan Qing, do you think we should build Dalinghe City or Dalinghe Fort?"

Yuan Keli considered for a long time and finally chose to support Yang Sichang's four-square and six-corner plan, saying:
"I agree with what Deputy Chief Yang said about building the Dalinghe Fort."

"Rebuilding Dalinghe City is too risky. If we are not careful, the entire Liaodong army will be involved and another major war will break out."

"Instead of doing that, it is better to build a small fortress with a thousand people, gain a foothold in the Daling River Valley, and gradually increase the number of fortresses."

"Nowadays, with the armboard communication, castles within ten miles can quickly transmit messages. The role played by these fortresses working together is not necessarily weaker than that of a big city."

"I think it is far better to build a fortress every ten miles along the Daling River than to rebuild the Daling River City."

"General Sun intends to use 13,000 soldiers and horses to rebuild Dalinghe City, which can build 13 fortresses."

Between the thirteen fortresses and one city, which one can better defend the Daling River Valley? Anyone present who is not a fool can know the answer.

So after Yuan Keli spoke, Li Banghua, Bi Maokang and others stopped supporting Sun Chengzong's Dalinghhe City plan.

However, they also do not support the current Dalinghhe Fort plan, believing that remnants of the eunuch party like Huo Weihua must never be reinstated, and someone else should be sent to oversee the construction of the fortress.

Seeing this, Zhu Youjian asked:

"Who among you is willing to go to Dongning and inspect Fort Zeelandia?"

"Huo Qing was confident that he could defend a small fort with a thousand men because of this kind of bastion."

"The general in charge of building a fort must be familiar with bastion construction."

The ministers did not agree with this statement. Li Banghua said:

"Your Majesty, the Ming Dynasty has built so many castles. Why should we learn from foreigners' bastions?"

"I think if we ask the Liaodong governor to send troops, we can build a small fort with a thousand men."

I think there is no need to learn about bastions, and traditional fortresses will be enough.

Zhu Youjian knew the defensive capabilities of the bastion, but without actual examples, he was unable to convince his ministers.

Finally, under the advice of Yuan Keli and others, the order was issued:
"Let Commander Sun select a thousand men from Liaodong and go to Dalinghe to build a fortress."

"Remember, tell the soldiers in advance that these 1,000 people are the death squad—"

"If they encounter the Jianlu, don't expect Liaodong troops to rescue them."

"At most, the navy can deliver supplies to them through the Daling River waterway."

Then he said:
"Huo Weihua's 1,000 men are also allowed to build a fort in the Daling River area."

"Together with the fortresses built in Liaodong, we can form a pincer attack and jointly resist the Jianlu."

"If he can build it, he will be transferred to the Liaodong Army in the future."

"If it can't be built well, we will still be exiled overseas."

Let these two groups build the fortress together.

When the time comes, we will know which one is better built and which one has stronger defense when we encounter a war. (End of this chapter)