Ming politicians

Zu Dale's attitude is even more radical than Zu Dashou's. After meeting Yan Yingyuan, Zu Dale's attitude is very respectful. Zu Dale didn't mention anything about the Ming court at all. Instead, he mentioned the affairs of the Liaodong Frontier Army The situation, such as low morale, difficult life, etc., was directly mentioned. If Mr. Su was still here, he would never say that such a situation occurred, and Zu Dale was very clear about the military salary of the Jiangning battalion soldiers, which was allocated according to the imperial court Calculating the military salary, Zu Dale is also the commander-in-chief of Shanhaiguan, and his position is equivalent to that of the commander of the Jiangning camp. The annual salary of the commander of the Jiangning camp is as high as 8000 taels of silver. , There is a world of difference between the two. With such treatment, who wouldn't want to enter the Jiangning Camp.

If it wasn't for Zu Dashou's dissuasion, Zu Dale didn't know what unpleasant words to say. In fact, Yan Yingyuan fully understood Zu Dale's meaning, that is, Zu Dale wanted to submit to the Jin court. The task, even if it was to kill Shi Kefa, I am afraid Zu Dale would not care about it.

The military pay allocated by the Ming court was indeed pitifully small. If it was increased later, it should also be thanks to Su Tiancheng. When Su Tiancheng was in Liaodong, he vigorously rectified the Liaodong frontier army, and the mutual market between Jingbian and Anning Fort, While supplying the Jiangning battalion's military pay, he also gave a certain amount of subsidies to the Liaodong frontier army. As for the military pay allocated by the imperial court, Su Tiancheng didn't move a penny, and all of it was distributed to the sergeants. Unfortunately, in such a situation, with the The expansion of the Liaodong Frontier Army has undergone tremendous changes.With the sudden increase of so many sergeants, it is impossible for the imperial court to fully bear the military salary.

The income of officers will not be small, and they can get a lot of income from any source. It is very common to deduct military pay and falsely report sergeants. If you are a valuable officer in the Ming army, you will not These things are simply unable to maintain life, let alone use money to manage superiors.But in the Jiangning camp.Such a situation does not exist. Su Tiancheng has very strict control over Jiangning Camp's military pay. False reporting of military pay and corruption of sergeants and officers are very detrimental to morale.The sergeant saw it in his eyes and remembered it in his heart.It's time to fight.They will be greedy for life and afraid of death, and unwilling to charge forward, so if something like this happens in the Jiangning camp.Officers cannot keep their heads.

Of course, the Jiangning Battalion was able to do this thanks to the guarantee of sufficient military pay. For officers above the commander of the guard, the usual salary and combat rewards are calculated to exceed ten thousand taels of silver every year. With such a high income, they still want to go Greedy ink, isn't it because the water is in the head? Even the most ordinary sergeant, the silver in his hand is mostly around 300 taels of silver every year. This silver is more than enough to maintain the family's expenses and can live a very comfortable life. After the soldiers of the Jiangning Camp were killed in battle, the care of their families was very good. The annual subsidy of silver for each household was almost 100 taels of silver. If you don't work hard, there is no reason.

It took more than an hour to chat about these things, but don't underestimate such small talk. Through these words, Yan Yingyuan completely grasped the thoughts of Zu Dashou and Zu Dale, and felt that there is no big problem in stabilizing Liaodong. It was the imperial court who wanted to mobilize the Liaodong Frontier Army, and Zu Dashou and Zu Dale would also lead the backbone of the Liaodong Frontier Army to defend the Guan Ningjin line of defense.

Feeling that the small talk was almost done, Yan Yingyuan turned to the topic. What he needed to care about was how to keep the defense line of Guan Ningjin, which was something Su Tiancheng especially emphasized.

A map of Liaodong was spread out on the table. The white area is the place controlled by the Ming army, and the blue area is the place controlled by the Later Jin Tartars. Compared with a few years ago, this map has undergone great changes. The white area It has expanded a lot. Although most of Liaodong is still occupied by the Houjin Tartars, the south of the Liaohe River is basically white, which means that these places are directly controlled by the Ming army.

Yan Yingyuan pointed in the direction of Liaohe and spoke.

"My lords, Daishan and Jierhalang have led the Houjin Tatars across the Liaohe River. Yesterday when I was discussing with Lord Zu, I talked about the situation in Guangning, Xipingbao and Yizhou. Judging from the current fighting spirit and deployment of the army, it is very difficult to defend these places. According to my estimation, the Houjin Tatars may launch an attack in the near future. The specific date of the attack, I think, is It's time for the Jiangning Battalion to march towards the capital."

Zu Dashou and Zu Dale raised their heads and looked at Yan Yingyuan. For two days, Yan Yingyuan hadn't talked about surrendering. The two of them felt that surrendering to the Jin court was a matter of course. The Golden Tartars, probably only the Jin court could do it, now Yan Yingyuan didn't hide the slightest thing, and he completely believed them when he said that the Jiangning battalion army was about to attack the capital.

"The Jiangning Battalion attacked the capital. Presumably, the Ming court will definitely mobilize the Liaodong frontier army. At this time, Liaodong's defense will definitely be affected. The impact is not small. The emperor has analyzed several situations, and I will tell you. Please, my lords." refer to."

"In the first case, Daishan and Jierhalang took advantage of the situation to take places such as Guangning, Yizhou and Xipingbao, coveting Heishan, Dalinghe City and even the Guanningjin line of defense. However, after taking these places, temporarily There will be no massive offensive."

"In the second case, Daishan and Jierhalang bypass Guangning, Heishan, Dalinghe City, Jinzhou, and Ningyuan, and go straight to Shanhaiguan, threatening the foundation of the Guanning-Jin defense line. Dorgon stationed in the direction of Datong, At this time, they will also launch a coordinated attack on Shanhaiguan, and reinforce Daishan and Jierhalang. Once Shanhaiguan is occupied by the Houjin Tatars, the entire Guanningjin defense line will collapse, and Liaodong will all fall to the Houjin Tatars. It's just a matter of time."

"In the third case, Daishan and Jierhalang bypass Shanhaiguan Pass and directly attack the capital. Under such circumstances, the capital is attacked from two sides. The Ming court will definitely mobilize all the Liaodong frontier troops for reinforcements. In the capital city, taking advantage of this opportunity, Daishan and Jierhalang returned their carbine guns and robbed Shanhaiguan. In addition, Dorgon, who was stationed in Datong, would also take advantage of the situation to attack Shanhaiguan. It's the same, but the people near the capital may suffer..."

When Yan Yingyuan analyzed the situation, Zu Dashou and Zu Dale didn't listen very seriously. Perhaps they thought that such considerations were a bit over-concerned. As long as they were loyal to the Jin court and led the Liaodong frontier army to guard the Guanning Jin line of defense, the problem would be solved. It will not be too big. As for the Liaodong frontier army shrinking the defense line and voluntarily abandoning places such as Guangning and Xipingbao, this is also understandable.

Yan Yingyuan didn't fully notice the emotions of Zu Dashou and Zu Dale.

After Yan Yingyuan finished speaking, Zu Dashou spoke first.

"Master Yan, Yan believes that these situations can be prevented. Apart from the first situation, the military deployment of Guangning and Xipingbao, including Yizhou, is already very weak. Those who want to resist Daishan and Jierhalang Attacking, I'm afraid it's intentional and powerless, but even if such a situation occurs, as long as Guan Ningjin's defense line is still strong, there is no big problem. As for the second and third situations, the possibility of occurrence is not great After all, Liaodong has an army of nearly 30. Daishan and Jierhalang have to think about what the end will be if the solitary army goes deep, especially bypassing the Shanhaiguan Pass and entering the pass, the possibility is even less likely. After crossing the Great Wall, the Houjin Tartars need to consume a lot of energy, and there is Jiangning Camp in the pass, if they really meet Jiangning Camp, Daishan and Jierhalang must know that it is a disaster for the Houjin Tartars. . .”

Yan Yingyuan thought about it, and felt that what Zu Dashou said had some truth, so he did not continue to discuss this issue. This small mistake was really fulfilled later.

Next, we will talk about Liaodong Governor Shi Kefa.

Zu Dashou and Zu Dale didn't know much about Shi Kefa. After all, Shi Kefa had not been in Liaodong for a long time, and the situation in Liaodong was not particularly tense. In other words, they didn't know Shi Kefa's ability very well, and they wanted to show it The ability to come out can only be reflected in the fight with the Houjin Tartars.

It is also because of this that Zu Dashou and Zu Dale are not particularly worried about Shi Kefa. Zu Dashou told Yan Yingyuan that in the last two days, he will find a way to let Yan Yingyuan and Shi Kefa meet to see what Shi Kefa's attitude is. According to the request of the imperial court to resist desperately, the focus is to keep Liaodong. Once Shi Kefa's attitude is too fierce, Zu Dashou and Zu Dale must find a way to stop it. After all, Liaodong cannot be completely occupied by the Houjin Tartars. The golden defense line cannot make any mistakes.

At this stage of the discussion, Yan Yingyuan was basically relieved. In fact, when he came to Liaodong, the key point was to ensure that the Houjin Tartars would not be able to break through the Guanningjin defense line. As long as the Guanningjin defense line was still in the hands of the Liaodong frontier army, the problem would not be a big one. , everything can be dealt with, the emperor also said that when attacking the capital, there will be no special anxiety, the key point is to ensure the stability around the capital, large-scale riots cannot occur, let alone the capital encounter Devastating damage.

After discussing for a long time, Yan Yingyuan was in a good mood. He was not an authentic scholar, and he also had a bold aura, so when he drank at night, he also picked up the wine bowl, and talked with Zu Dashou, Zu Dale and others Fighting wine, this greatly increased Zu Dale's interest. When Zu Dale followed He Renlong to fight, the two often fought with each other with wine bowls. Unfortunately, Zu Dale was not He Renlong's opponent, and was often beaten by others. Get drunk, this time drinking, Yan Yingyuan couldn't drink Zu Dale, and was also drunk. (to be continued..)