Chongzhen revived the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 689 Weak Grassland

The reorganization of the capital's military system will definitely enhance the capital's military strength in the future.

However, during the reorganization period, the capital's defensive strength will be reduced.

This is the reason why Zhu Youjian, although he was not satisfied with the Beijing Army before, never made any major moves against it.

He was worried that the Ji Si Incident would happen again as happened in history, and he needed to maintain the Beijing garrison to defend the city.

Only after he was certain that the Jianlu could not defeat him and the Ji Si Rebellion was impossible did he begin to adjust the military system in the capital.

At the same time, we did not forget to contain the Jianlu. After last year's Ji Si Plan, the Privy Council formulated this year's Geng Wu Plan, continuing to launch offensives against the Jianlu, striving for strategic initiative, and making the Jianlu exhausted to cope with it.

This plan was basically a continuation of the Jisi plan, which still focused on defending Liaodong and the Great Wall, while focusing on attacking the grasslands, Korea, Heilongjiang and other places in order to tie down the Jianlu's energy.

However, after being looted last year, North Korea is now in ruins. Although many Koreans whose families were destroyed wanted to seek revenge on the Jianlu or rescue their families, the Korean monarchs and ministers who were frightened by the Jianlu did not have the courage to cross the Yalu River to provoke the Jianlu.

Except for the Dongjiangling and Jijiangling who sent troops to harass according to the court's orders, the other Korean troops did not move at all.

Hong Chengchou had no choice but to try his best to provide support to Mao Wenlong and Cui Nanyi and send the Korean soldiers under his control to support them.

Further north, Ningyuan Earl Li Zunzu was still training his troops, using his newly trained soldiers to conquer the nearby Donghai Jurchen tribe. It would be difficult for him to threaten the Jianlu heartland for the time being.

As for Jiangling Principality and Black Dragon Camp, it was just the beginning of spring, and the rivers were flooded and the roads were muddy. It was difficult for them to launch an offensive and attract the Jianlu.

Under such circumstances, the Ming Dynasty certainly hoped that the grassland could send out large-scale troops and organize a major war like last year.

The Lifanyuan has been busy with this matter recently, and judging from the news they sent back, the situation is not optimistic.

Kong Zhenyun, who had just returned from another trip to the grassland, said:

"King Shunli accepted the reward and wanted to return to his ancestral land."

"But the people of the Chahan tribe were frightened by the Jianlu and were unwilling to return to their homeland to face the Jianlu."

"King Shunli himself did not insist. From what I see from him, he seems to have lost his will."

This was Kong Zhenyun's biggest feeling during this mission, that is, after last year's failure, Lin Danhan seemed to have lost his spirit all of a sudden.

No matter whether he seduced or provoked him, Lin Danhan could only muster courage for a while, and then he would become obsessed with Buddhism, wine and beautiful women, and forget his previous ambitions.

This made Kong Zhenyun very helpless, and he was more worried about the people of the Chahan tribe. These people did not have the courage to fight again and again after repeated defeats, and just wanted to stay away from the Jianlu, which was even worse than Lin Danhan.

Kong Zhenyun estimated that these people would be defeated on the battlefield and would not pose any threat to the Jianlu. On the contrary, their defeat would affect other armies and lead to another defeat.

So he did not insist on sending Chahan troops, and this time they returned empty-handed.

Zhu Youjian listened to Kong Zhenyun's experience and sighed and shook his head. He felt that the potential of the Chahan tribe had been temporarily exhausted by him.

In the past two years, in order to buy time for the Ming Dynasty, he used titles, salaries, trade quotas, armor and weapons to encourage the Chahan tribe to fight back.

As a result, the Chahan tribe fought back last year, but was defeated miserably in the battle with the Jianlu. Even though the rebellious Naiman and Aohan tribes were defeated with the help of the Ming Dynasty at the end of the year, many people of the Chahan tribe were unwilling to return to their homeland to face the Jianlu.

This left Zhu Youjian with no choice but to say:
"Keep a close eye on the Chahan tribe and don't let them harass the border or invade other tribes."

"These people are not brave enough to face the Jianlu, but they are very brave when facing other weak tribes."

"Don't let them affect the stability of the grassland and consume the energy of the Ming Dynasty."

Kong Zhenyun agreed when he heard this and thought that the emperor's concerns were reasonable.

The Chahan tribe was very weak compared to the Ming Dynasty and the Jianlu, but very powerful against other tribes.

Especially the 5,000 sets of armor sold to them by the Ming Dynasty, after the war damage and replenishment, there are now more than 4,000 sets. This is a strength that can almost sweep across the grassland. Shunyi Wang and other tribes need to unite to resist the Chahan tribe.

Therefore, the Ming Dynasty needed to pay attention to the Chahan tribe and not let them become an unstable factor.

Thinking about this, Zhu Youjian asked Kong Zhenyun again:

"How are arrangements for Guiyingcha's descendants going?"

"He died in the battle against the Jianlu, so he can be considered to have died for the Ming Dynasty."

"We must ensure that his descendants inherit the title of Duke and serve as a role model for the Ming Dynasty on the grasslands—"

"I want all the people on the grassland to know that as long as they work for the Ming Dynasty, the Ming Dynasty will guarantee their wealth and prosperity."

Kong Zhenyun was overwhelmed by the emotion he felt when he heard this. He knew that the emperor treated all the people who had made contributions on the grassland so well, not to mention the contributions made by himself. He responded:

"I have read out your majesty's will on the grassland."

"The descendants of Guiyingqia will inherit the title of Duke of Shuntian Yiyun Tuicheng Xuanli Wuchen Yongguo, and have corresponding titles and trade quotas."

"King Shunli and I have divided up the households and pastures for Duke Shunyong."

"The nobles on the grassland praised this and believed that the Ming Dynasty was trustworthy."

"Gui Yingqia's widow wants to come to the capital to express her gratitude."

Zhu Youjian frowned slightly when he heard this and asked:

"Guiyingqia's wife is King Sunryeo's sister, right?"

"Is she being bullied on the grassland and wants protection from the Ming Dynasty?"

Kong Zhenyun explained:

"King Sunrye and Guiyingcha arranged marriages with each other, and each married their sister to the other."

"So after Guiyingqia died in battle, his descendants were not bullied, and King Sunrye and I even divided up households and pastures for him."

"Gui Yingqia's widow, Princess Wuliangha, is grateful for the Ming Dynasty's kindness and envies the prosperity of the capital, so she wants to come to the capital to express her gratitude."

Zhu Youjian now understood that Princess Wuliangha was restless and wanted to come to the capital of the Ming Dynasty. He asked:

"Does Princess Wuliangha want to pay tribute and then go back?"

"Or will you stay in the capital for a long time with Duke Shunyong?"

"If it is just tribute, the Lifanyuan will make arrangements according to the system."

"I can agree to their long-term residence, but I intend to place the mansions of these grassland nobles in Chengde."

The area west of Beijing was building palaces for princes and nobles, but they were all for the royal family and Ming nobles.

Zhu Youjian only needed to allocate land to them and let the Ministry of Works make an overall plan. They would fund the construction of the mansions and manors, and the Inner Court Construction Group could even make money from them.

As more and more royal family members and nobles went overseas to establish fiefdoms, the land in western Beijing became somewhat tight.

In addition, most of the Shuntian nobles on the grassland did not have much wealth, so it was impossible for them to build their own mansions.

Therefore, Zhu Youjian still planned to allocate residential land to them in the Chengde area, and only build some necessary buildings, leaving the remaining open space for them to set up tents according to tradition.

Now Chengde has not been built yet, but Princess Wuliangha is coming to the capital, and things are suddenly a bit troublesome.

Kong Zhenyun was also a little troubled by this, because he also didn't know how long Princess Wuliangha planned to stay in the capital.

From his perspective, he certainly hoped that the princess would stay in the capital for a long time. This represented the obedience of the Chahan nobles such as Prince Shunli and Duke Shunyong to the Ming Dynasty, which was the achievement of the Lifanyuan.

So he tried to arrange it:
"According to the system, envoys from vassal states who send tribute should be placed in Huitongguan. I think the Princess of Wuliangha can be temporarily placed in Huitongguan."

"If the county lord wishes to stay for a long time, I think we can grant him a house similar to the one granted to King Sunin."

King Sunin was the King of Joseon. After accepting the title of nobility from the Ming Dynasty, he was granted a house of 500 mu by the Emperor. When Joseon had just suffered from war and financial difficulties, the King of Joseon still allocated money to let the Crown Prince of Joseon build a mansion in the west of Beijing.

Now that Prince Ren's Palace has begun construction, Kong Zhenyun believes that the same arrangement can be made for Prince Shunli, Duke Shunyong and other grassland princes.

Zhu Youjian thought about the number of grassland princes and nodded slightly, saying:
"Let's make this arrangement for now!" "Prince Shunli is a prince of the Ming Dynasty, and his sister is a princess, or the wife of Duke Shunyong. We must receive him according to the corresponding standards, and there must be no mistakes in etiquette."

"If Prince Sunrye and Duke Sunyong plan to build residences in the capital, let the Ministry of Works allocate 500 acres of land for each of them, just as they did for Prince Sunin."

"Other nobles of lower ranks should be arranged to go to Chengde."

Although the nobles on the grasslands were poor, the princes and nobles still had some money. Most of them were the leaders of large tribes, with tens of thousands of households under their command. Only such grassland nobles could be named princes and nobles by the Ming Dynasty.

Guiying was not the leader of a large tribe, but he was the most powerful person in the Chahan tribe, otherwise the Ming Dynasty would not have conferred the title of Duke on him.

I think his widow can build a duke's palace, and if all else fails, she can ask Ligdan Khan for help.

After setting this policy, Zhu Youjian instructed the Lifanyuan and the Ministry of Works to allocate residential land to the Shunyi King. The descendants of Mrs. Zhongshun, Sanniangzi, who was canonized as the Duke of Zhongshun, were also to be granted residential land.

These measures should be able to appease the hearts of the grassland dignitaries. At the same time, they should let Lin Danhan know that the Ming Dynasty supports him as much as it supports the Shunyi King, so that he will no longer have the ambition to unify the grassland.

The biggest destabilizing factor on the grassland today is Ligdan Khan.

Zhu Youjian was very worried that if he could not defeat the Jianlu, he would bully other tribes, causing chaos on the grassland and allowing the Jianlu to gain an advantage.

As for Kong Zhenyun's claim that he had lost his spirit and was addicted to Buddhism, wine and beauties, Zhu Youjian did not believe it. Because Lin Danhan had a history of spreading false news of assassination and actually marching west, he might have some plans.

Therefore, Zhu Youjian ordered Zhu Xieyuan to be the head of the Wenxuan Department and keep a close eye on Ligdan Khan. If he found that the Chahan tribe had the intention of marching west, he would immediately send troops to warn them.

At the same time, he also planned to let Man Gui send troops to harass Liaodong by the Ming army.

At a standing meeting to deal with military affairs, he asked:
"Have all the bonds of the Duke of Dongping been sold?"

"Has the imperial court allocated all the corresponding supplies to Man Gui?"

The 150,000 yuan national debt of the Dongping Marquisate was the first batch of national debt issued by the Ming Dynasty.

The purpose of the national debt funds was also to establish fiefdoms.

What does it take to establish a vassal state on the grassland? Of course, it requires soldiers and horses.

After selling the national debt, Man Gui purchased military equipment from the imperial court to equip his own troops.

Bi Maokang, the equipment minister in charge of this matter, said:
"General Man bought 5,000 sets of armor. The price given to the grassland nobles was 20 taels per set, but the price for General Man was reduced to 10 taels. This part of the price was 50,000 yuan, and it has now been transferred."

"General Man ordered another 100,000 muskets, including 4,000 valve-type smoothbore muskets and 1,000 breech-loading rifled muskets, enough to equip a guard."

"These muskets are still being manufactured and have not yet been delivered."

This was Man Gui's use of his 150,000 yuan, all of which was used to purchase weapons.

Among them, the iron armor was from the Ming Dynasty’s inventory and was delivered after being refurbished.

As fire guns were difficult to manufacture and had to be delivered to the Imperial Camp, the Beijing Camp, and the Yingyang Army first, they were not delivered.

Zhu Youjian asked:
"How many new-style muskets were made?"

“How much has been delivered?”

Bi Maokang replied:
"The craftsmen in the Equipment Department are mainly responsible for modifying old muskets. They have already modified 20,000 muskets."

"The production of the new musket is still under trial, and the Tongzhou Arsenal and Zhuolu Arsenal have just started construction."

"These 20,000 muskets are now mainly equipped to the Imperial Camp and the Eagle Army."

Zhu Youjian thought for a moment and said:

"Allocate 2,000 fire guns to Man Gui and have his Dongping Guards form combat capabilities as soon as possible."

"The Jianlu have no one to hold them back now, so we don't know when they will attack us."

"Have Mangui establish contact with the tribes on the grasslands and monitor the movements of the Jianlu."

Then he said to Yang Sichang:

"You are back from the grasslands. Do you think Mangui can gather all the tribes from the grasslands to fight the Jianlu?"

Yang Sichang was not optimistic about this and said:

"The reason why so many troops were gathered last year was because the Shunli King's tribe was the main force, and the Shunyi King and other tribes responded."

"After playing well last year, they didn't have the energy to continue playing this year."

"Besides, the Naiman and Aohan tribes, which were easy to attack, have already been conquered. If we continue to fight, we will have to face the Jianlu."

"These grassland tribes don't want to fight a tough battle, so most of them will not respond."

"Moreover, many of the Halashen tribes have connections with the Jianlu."

"Once General Man sends his troops, Jianlu will get the news."

This situation, coupled with the fact that Man Gui's Dongping Guard was still being organized, made Zhu Youjian realize that Man Gui was temporarily unable to go on the expedition.

But if he did not take the initiative to contain the Jianlu, he was worried that the Jianlu would find a strategic breakthrough. Once the Ming's ten-sided net was broken, the Jianlu might run wild.

At this critical moment of reorganizing the capital's military system, he didn't want any accidents.

The emperor and his ministers discussed for a long time, but could not come up with a good solution. Because the war last year had almost exhausted all the preparations of the Ming Dynasty, it was impossible to organize an offensive like last year this year.

It was not until the end of the meeting that Yang Sichang proposed a strategy when he was alone:
"The soldiers of the Chahan tribe have no fighting spirit, and King Shunli is obsessed with Buddhism."

"Whether it is true or false, I think the news can be revealed to Jianlu."

"This way, the Jianlu will focus their troops on the grasslands this year and will not threaten the capital."

Following last year's strategy of luring the Jianlu to Korea, we directed the Jianlu's forces to target the Chahan tribe.

Zhu Youjian thought about this and said:

"The grasslands are different from Korea. After the Jianlu conquered the grassland tribes, they were able to rule them."

"Now among the Eight Banners of Jianlu, there are Mongols."

"I think the Chahan tribe is simply incapable of resisting the Jianlu. Once they are conquered by the Jianlu, and then the entire grassland is conquered, their strength will increase dramatically."

This was what Zhu Youjian tried his best to avoid, and it was also the reason why he tried his best to win over the Chahan tribe and support Ligdan Khan in his confrontation with the Jianlu.

Once the grasslands are conquered by the Jianlu, the Later Jin will transform into the Qing Dynasty, which will be far more difficult to deal with than it is now.

Yang Sichang did not think this was possible and said:
"Even if the Chahan tribe cannot defeat the Jianlu, they can still escape."

"The grassland is vast, and it would take the Jianlu a few years to conquer it."

"Moreover, the Ming Dynasty can provide support to the grassland tribes, or even send troops directly to interrupt this process."

"As long as it takes a few years, the Ming Dynasty will be able to train hundreds of thousands of troops using new muskets."

"When the time comes, destroying the Jianlu will be as easy as pie."

Obviously, he was also very confident in the new type of musket, believing that this type of musket could completely change the power comparison between the Ming Dynasty and the Jianlu.

What the Ming Dynasty needs most now is time. In his opinion, it is very cost-effective to use the grassland tribes to delay the Jianlu.

He also had an idea, which was to use the Jianlu to clean up the grassland tribes to make it easier for the Ming Dynasty to rule the grassland in the future.

Last year, the success of the Jianlu in Korea, but Korea accepted the Ming Dynasty's canonization and submission, which gave Yang Sichang a lot of inspiration. In his opinion, many grassland tribal leaders did not have the strength to be canonized as nobles, so it would be better to let the Jianlu clean up and reduce the burden on the Ming Dynasty.

Only those who are loyal to the Ming Dynasty and resolutely fight against the Jianlu are qualified to become nobles of the Ming Dynasty and share weal and woe with the Ming Dynasty.

(End of this chapter)