Chongzhen revived the Ming Dynasty

"Nationalism is indeed a good way to boost morale!"

"Use its power with caution."

Zhu Youjian was aware of the power of nationalism.

However, we also know the harm caused by overemphasizing nationalism.

As the first army to promote nationalism, Zhu Youjian decided to use Fuzhou Guard as a model, extracting its beneficial aspects for use in other armies.

Upon reviewing Yang Yufan's memorial, Zhu Youjian summoned Yuan Keli and others and inquired:
"How's the situation in Shaanxi?"

"What is the situation regarding the disaster in the Northwest?"

Yuan Keli, having been involved in disaster relief for several years, had become somewhat numb and replied:
"Shaanxi is experiencing another severe drought this year, with no rain for many days."

"Shandong experienced severe flooding last year, and now it is experiencing severe flooding again this year."

"Moreover, both the north and south were flooded, and even the northern Zhili region was affected."

The court and officials have gradually adapted to the frequent droughts and floods.

The emperor's prophecies were becoming more and more accurate, and no one asked the emperor to pray for rain anymore.

Looking at the reports on disasters and civil uprisings in various regions summarized by the Committee for Suppressing Rebellion and Relief, Zhu Youjian had no other solution and could only say:

"The gold and silver collected from Jiangnan will still be used for disaster relief this year."

"We should encourage people in the north to migrate as much as possible, as the next ten years or so will be a period of frequent disasters."

Yuan Keli and others accepted the order and submitted another memorial:

"An earthquake occurred in Changde Prefecture and other areas of Huguang in July."

“Countless palaces, city walls and houses in Rongfu have collapsed, and city walls and houses in Lizhou, Jingzhou and other places have also collapsed, urgently requiring the court to provide relief.”

This was a famous major earthquake, later estimated to be around magnitude 7, with aftershocks lasting for three years.

Zhu Youjian, upon hearing this, sighed and could only issue the order:
"Order local officials to provide more relief and compensation to reassure the local people."

"Also, didn't the Chu vassal state establish a new territory in Borneo? They were allowed to recruit disaster victims there."

"The Rong Prince's Mansion..."

Thinking of Rongfan's matter, Zhu Youjian inquired:
"Did Prince Rong pass away this year?"

“Send someone to express your condolences and let the Crown Prince Rong choose a place overseas to establish a fiefdom.”

This is the imperial court's policy: not to force the existing vassal kings to go overseas.

However, if the prince is unwilling to establish a fiefdom, he will not be able to inherit the throne once the current fiefdom king dies.

If the imperial court becomes impatient in the future, it may even, like the Chu state, allow the royal family of this vassal state to fight for the throne.

The three vassal states of Min, Zhao, and Huai were all forced to open their vassal states for this reason.

After his elder brother's death, Zhu Youzhu, the third son of the former Prince Heng who was supposed to inherit the title of Prince Heng, was even more eager to express his stance to the court and take the initiative to go and establish a fiefdom.

They feared that the emperor might suddenly have a whim and cause the members of the Hengzhou imperial clan to fight for the throne.

Both the Prince of Dai and the Crown Prince of Jin were legitimate sons and wanted to hold on a little longer. However, as the disaster in Shanxi worsened and a major upheaval broke out, they found it increasingly difficult to persevere. Had it not been for the death of the Prince of Han overseas last year, they might have already requested permission to establish their own fiefdoms.

Zhu Youjian planned to press further, because the stipends of these two vassal states were quite substantial, totaling 400,000 taels, nearly half of the stipends of the three northwestern provinces.

It would be better to use so much money for disaster relief, and it would also prevent the safety of the vassal kings from affecting the court's plans.

Now, after several years of effort by Zhu Youjian, the following princes have been confirmed to be relocated: the Prince of Qin, the Prince of Su, the Prince of Qing, the Prince of Han, and the Prince of Rui in Shaanxi; the Prince of Zhou, the Prince of Tang, the Prince of Lu, the Prince of Fu, and the Prince of Zhao in Henan; as well as the Prince of Chu, the Prince of Min, the Prince of Huai, the Prince of Heng, the Prince of Hui, the Prince of Gui, and the Prince of Jingjiang. There are a total of seventeen princes.

After the Prince of Jin and the Prince of Dai were moved away from the north, only the Prince of Zheng, the Prince of Chong, the Prince of Shen, the Prince of Lu, and the Prince of De remained.

After the Prince of Rong was moved south, only five princes remained: the Prince of Shu, the Prince of Xiang, the Prince of Ji, the Prince of Jing, and the Prince of Yi.

These ten vassal states are easy to control; we can even exile them to barren lands and see what happens to those who don't cooperate with the court.
-
After briefly outlining the policy towards the vassal kings, Zhu Youjian instructed the Privy Council and the Court of Colonial Affairs to discuss it together.

He then asked Yuan Keli:

"How is Yang Zhaoji doing in the Northwest?"

"Is there anyone who can replace him?"

Yuan Keli was initially confused, but after seeing the memorial forwarded by the emperor, he realized that it was Yang Zhaoji's son, Yang Yufan, who wanted his father to go to Liaonan to make meritorious contributions.

He strongly opposed this, saying:
"The court appoints people from the central government, and they cannot be controlled by military generals."

"Furthermore, Yang Zhaoji made meritorious contributions in Shandong because he suppressed the White Lotus Rebellion, and he was also used to suppressing bandits in Shaanxi."

"If we transfer him to Liaodong, how can we be sure he'll win the battle?"

"Besides, Yang He, the military commissioner in charge of suppressing bandits in the three provinces, has just been transferred to Shanxi. Now is not the time to transfer Yang Zhaoji."

Zhu Youjian nodded in approval, knowing that Yuan Keli was acting entirely out of public interest.

Yang Zhaoji had cooperated with Yuan Keli when he was suppressing the White Lotus Rebellion in Shandong, and he is now on good terms with Yuan Shu, who is serving as the Northwest Garrison Commander.

The reason why Zhu Youjian did not directly reject Yang Yufan's proposal was because he was concerned about Yuan Keli.

Hearing him say this, Zhu Youjian immediately replied:
"In recognition of Yang Zhaoji's meritorious service in suppressing bandits over the years, he is promoted to the hereditary position of Commander-in-Chief. He is encouraged to perform his duties well and will be granted the title of Earl for his future meritorious service."

"For the position of General of Liaonan Garrison, does Minister Yuan have any candidates to recommend?"

"Yang Yufan and others lacked prestige and were unable to unite the various armies in southern Liaoning."

Yuan Keli frowned and pondered, then realized that this was indeed the case.

Among the four brigades of Liaonan Town, Chen Jisheng, the commander of the Second Brigade stationed in Lushun, was an old subordinate of Mao Wenlong and the leader of the generals on Pi Island.

The imperial court would not be wary of him because of this, but it also would not appoint him as the first commander-in-chief of Liaonan.

Zhang Keda, the commander of the Third Brigade, was transferred from Shandong and had the support of Sun Guozhen, the governor of Shandong, and was slated to become a general.

However, he stayed in southern Liaoning for several years, and while he didn't accomplish anything remarkable, he also didn't achieve any great feats.

The imperial court could only appoint Yang Yufan, who had rendered meritorious service in Korea, as acting commander-in-chief of Liaonan. However, Yang Yufan was too inexperienced. Huang Long, the commander of the First Brigade stationed in Gaizhou, had achievements no less than Yang Yufan's and was more senior.

This resulted in Yang Yufan being constrained in his actions in southern Liaoning, failing to integrate the four brigades into a cohesive force.

He was aware of this situation, which is why he wanted his father to come over.

Now that the court has rejected it, they must send someone else.

After much deliberation, Yuan Keli proposed a name:
"Yang Jiamo, the commander of the Shenji Battalion, requested to lead the expedition on several occasions."

"The armies in Liaonan are currently lacking a leader. I believe that Yang Jiamo should be sent to lead the new Shenji Battalion to command the armies in Liaonan."

This name was somewhat unexpected for Zhu Youjian.

However, after comparison, it was found that Yang Jiamo was indeed the most suitable.

This man was a famous general from Gansu, who earned his reputation through fighting against the nomadic tribes; his abilities are beyond doubt.

Moreover, he inherited the command of the Liangzhou Guard, and his loyalty was beyond question.

Otherwise, Zhu Youjian would not have transferred him to the Shenji Battalion as the commander-in-chief, in charge of the battalion's training.

After Cao Wenzhao led his troops into battle, Yang Jiamo had requested to go on the expedition several times, hoping to make a name for himself on the Liaodong battlefield.

Now that Yuan Keli has recommended him, Zhu Youjian immediately appointed him:
"Yang Jiamo was transferred to lead an expedition and appointed as the General of Liaonan Garrison."

"Let him lead a battalion from the Shenji Battalion to train the various armies in southern Liaoning."

Hei Yunlong, the commander-in-chief of Xuanfu, was also transferred to the garrison with a battalion to serve as acting commander-in-chief of the Shenji Battalion.

After the Jurchens swept through the grasslands and returned east, the pressure on Xuanda was relatively small, and troops could be dispatched there.

This is the advantage of having the main force of the Jurchens tied down, allowing the imperial court to freely deploy troops and allocate forces from various regions.

Even the Tianxiong Army, which had always served as a reserve force for the Great Wall, was to be transferred to Liaonan by Zhu Youjian to see the strength of the troops trained by Lu Xiangshan.
-
Upon receiving the transfer order, Yang Jiamo of the Shenji Battalion was overjoyed.

After years of training, what could be more exciting than finally getting the chance to shine on the battlefield?

He walked to the drill ground and shouted:

"My lads, who is willing to follow me to Liaonan to make meritorious contributions? Give me your names."

"This time, I will bring you honors and titles for your wives and children, and we will also have a share of the land in Liaonan!"

The soldiers of the Shenji Battalion cheered with joy.

They're willing to be professional soldiers precisely because they want an opportunity to earn merit.

Soon, more than 3,000 people signed up, and many even went in groups.

Yang Jiamo, worried that bringing too many people would displease the emperor, loudly proclaimed:
"That's enough! That's enough!"

"Three thousand soldiers will suffice!"

He then selected another 500 men to prepare in advance, to serve as his personal guards.

Afterwards, he went to the palace to bid farewell to the emperor.

Zhu Youjian pointed to the two Imperial Guard generals and said:
"This is Cao Bianjiao, Yang Qing should know him. His uncle, Cao Wenzhao, is a general in the Shenji Battalion."

"And this Marco, the world's number one warrior this year."

"I entrust these two men to you; you will surely achieve great things!"

Both were fierce generals. Yang Jiamo had heard of their names and said happily:

"Thank you for your support, Your Majesty. May I ask how many soldiers they have brought?"

Zhu Youjian said with a smile:

"Each person leads three hundred soldiers, all of whom are capable of becoming officers."

"How many you can take with you to the front lines depends on your arrangements."

Let Yang Jiamo use them freely and dispatch them at will.

Yang Jiamo was even more pleased to hear this, because he knew that Liaonan was not short of soldiers at the moment, as Tian Jianxiu had recruited tens of thousands of people.

With the addition of these officers from the Imperial Guard, an elite force was formed.

He was confident that he could lead this army to achieve great success, not just as a detachment.

With this in mind, Yang Jiamo, along with Cao Bianjiao and Ma Ke, led more than a thousand soldiers to Liaonan ahead of him.

The remaining 3,000 troops were led by his trusted confidants, and only after sufficient supplies were prepared would they go together.

Upon arriving in southern Liaoning, Yang Jiamo quickly summoned his generals and selected elite troops from various brigades.

He burst into laughter upon seeing the spirited new recruits in Tianjianxiu's camp.

These troops, though not as formidable as the Divine Machine Battalion, were more than capable of sweeping through southern Liaoning.

He divided Tian Jianxiu's guerrilla battalion into three, assigning Cao Bianjiao and Ma Ke to lead one battalion each, and together with the elite troops drawn from four other brigades, they surveyed Liaonan from south to north.

Whether it was wild beasts in the mountains and forests, or barbarians and Han people hiding inside, almost none escaped; they were all driven out.

The military strength in southern Liaoning expanded further, and more than 10,000 Han Chinese who had been rescued were incorporated into the garrisons, while more than 10,000 households of Shaanxi disaster victims recruited from Cangzhou arrived.

Yang Jiamo handed these people over to Sun Guozhen, the military commissioner, and ordered him to reorganize the troops and allocate land to the garrisons.

He himself led 40,000 selected soldiers from southern Liaoning, along with 10,000 Tianxiong soldiers transferred from Hebei, northward to Haizhouwei.

That place was the front line where the Guan Ning Army and the Jurchens were locked in a standoff.

Yang Jiamo was unwilling to remain a minor force, so he led his troops to participate in the main battle.

This was also a force prepared by the imperial court to break the deadlock, using a somewhat bloated army to threaten the Jurchens and force them to change.

A total of 100,000 Ming troops were gathered along the entire Niuzhuang and Haizhou front lines. (End of Chapter)