The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 34 The Dispute between Host and Guest
"You are all veterans of countless battles. You have fought for many years in Liaodong. The Nu chieftain has invaded Kaiyuan and Tieling, slaughtering our people. The emperor is furious. Tell me, how should we fight this war?"

All the generals in the room were silent, and the scene was a bit awkward.

Only the censor Chen Yuting sneered.

He Shixian sat in the position of general, showing the arrogance that only a soldier could have.

While Yang Jinglie was giving him a lecture, He Shixian slapped his cheeks hard, trying to wake himself up a little and sit up a little straighter. After a while, he slumped his head and began snoring loudly.

Yang Hao couldn't save his face, so he suddenly stood up and pointed at the drunken General He and said angrily:

"Fork out and hit me with twenty military sticks!"

Hearing the noise, two standard-bearers stepped forward, supported the vomiting General He, and hurriedly dragged him out of the house.

There was still a faint smell of alcohol in the hall. Marin, who was sitting next to him, frowned and reached out to touch his rosacea.

Liu Zhaosun laughed inwardly. In the original history, this fierce general from Liaozhen was the one who, due to his greed for wine, eventually led to the fall of Liaoyang. He had never expected that this man would dare to get drunk in front of Yang Hao and Chen Yuting. He was truly a hopeless case.

He changed his mind and thought that this might be a strategy that General He came up with in order to preserve his own strength and avoid confrontation with the Jiannu.

Perhaps the disastrous defeat at Sarhu left too deep an impression on this drunkard, or perhaps he received the true teachings from his old boss Li Rubai.

Liu Zhaosun glanced across the room and found a man with a heroic face and an upright figure, wearing the uniform of a guerrilla general. His temperament was quite different from that of the people around him.

Seeing Liu Zhaosun looking at him, the man smiled slightly and bowed to Liu Zhaosun.

~~~
Since Nurhaci launched his rebellion last year, the Later Jin first captured Fushun and then Qinghe. Now they want to open Yuan and Tieling. It is clear that they want to cut off the arms of the two cities of Liao and Shen and ultimately take full control of Liaodong.

At that time, the slave chieftain was not yet fully grown, and everyone kept reporting to the court, suggesting that Emperor Wanli take action, but there was no response.

Now the Jiannu army has 100,000 soldiers. The imperial court has summoned the best soldiers in the world. The four armies in Sarhu are divided into two groups to attack together, but they are no match for the Jiannu. Yet they want to force the Liaozhen to die. How can this be justified?

Several generals and lieutenant commanders knew that the Jiannu bandits were nothing to be feared. As long as they were willing to abandon their own servants and fight to the end with the Jiannu like Liu Dadao, exchanging their lives for theirs, Nurhaci with his tens of thousands of troops would be no match for them.

But the fate of Liu Jing and Du Song was clear to the Liaozhen soldiers. General Du fought bloody battles at the border, but was ultimately defeated and torn apart by the enemy. The court, however, accused him of underestimating the enemy and advancing rashly, bringing the entire army's defeat upon himself. Forget about compensation; he might even face a reckoning, with his property confiscated and his family exterminated.

Although the old Emperor Wanli was broad-minded and not as mean-spirited and ungrateful as his two treacherous grandsons, his benevolence was not enough to stop the treacherous villains under him from sowing discord. Especially the imperial censors in the capital, who always liked to seize on the slightest mischief in Liaozhen and were more troublesome than vicious dogs.

"Yang Jinglue, it will take time for the bandits to gather their troops. How could they reach Kaiyuan so quickly? Furthermore, the Ministry of War sent for reinforcements from Jizhou six months ago, and now there's not even a sign of General Xiao (Xiao Ruxun). Kaiyuan City is so vast, how can we hold it with our few remaining soldiers?"

"That's right. And Qi Jin's Zhejiang troops, when will they arrive? They get the most pay, but they're so slow in fighting!"

In the middle and late Wanli period, the monthly rations for soldiers in Liaodong were very little.

Each garrison's monthly military rations ranged from one liang (approximately 1 taels) to seven or eight qian (approximately qian). Only Liaodong received five qian (approximately qian). (Note ) Feng Rujing, the doctor in charge of grain in Liaodong, also stated that Liaodong's monthly rations were significantly lower than those of other garrisons.

After Yang Hao took control of Liaodong, he agreed to a uniform system for military pay. Regardless of whether they were northern or southern reinforcements, the monthly rations were all set at one liang and five qian. Horse feed, except for those who received it in cash, was to be given three liters of beans and one bundle of grass weighing fourteen catties, for example. This was converted into silver and paid at three fen per day... (Note 2)

Despite this, due to the fact that the main troops had their own strengths, their salaries were lower than those of the guest troops for a long time. This was the case in all military garrisons across the Ming Dynasty.

In addition, after the Wanli aid to Korea campaign, it became a regular practice that the monthly salary of southern soldiers was higher than that of Liao soldiers.

The Liaozhen officers in the room became more and more angry as they thought about it, and began to curse the foreign soldiers by name.

The governor and the general looked at each other, and Yang Hao interrupted with a wave of his hand:
"If there's insufficient food and money, I'll urge the court to do so. Without foreign troops, will we not fight this war? Don't bring up those old issues!"

A harsher voice sounded from the front:

"What Yang Jinglie said is really a betrayal. The Liao tribute for the 46th year of the Wanli reign hasn't been paid yet. Soldiers deserve to be paid, that's only natural. Look at those southern troops, going to fight the bandits. They led three armies, but were defeated on two fronts, missing the opportunity to fight. And who knows where they got the heads from? Why didn't Yang Jinglie verify them before reporting them as merit? Aren't you afraid that the Eastern Army will kill innocent people and take credit for it?"

"Besides, if General Li hadn't held back the Plain Yellow Banner at Qinghe, how could the Southern Army have escaped from Hunjiang? The credit should go to our Liaozhen! The Liaozhen soldiers don't even have armor now. Kaiyuan is surrounded by Jiannu on both sides, and the Mongolian Aitu is also coming to take advantage. Since the Southern Army is so brave, in my opinion, it's better to let them defend!"

Liu Zhaosun looked coldly and saw that the person who spoke was a tall man with a yellow beard.

Qiao Yiqi explained in a low voice that this person was Ding Bi, the lieutenant general of Tieling.

After the fall of Kaiyuan, the Later Jin army attacked Tieling. Nurhaci personally sat on the hillside outside the city to command. When guerrilla generals Yu Chengming, Shi Fengming, Li Ketai and others were fighting desperately with the Later Jin army in the front, Ding Bi, who was bribed by the Later Jin, took the initiative to open the gate of Tieling and led the Later Jin army to slaughter everyone in Tieling.

Ding Bi looked around with a smug look on his face, and inadvertently saw Liu Zhaosun standing opposite him.

Seeing Liu Zhaosun staring at him, Ding Bi gritted his teeth and looked ferocious.

"Why, am I wrong? Do you have something to say?"

Liu Zhaosun unsheathed his Miao Dao, pointed at Ding Bi's nose and cursed:

"You dare to slander the Southern Soldiers and insult my adoptive father? I will kill you!"

Ding Bi's servant stood in front, raised his knife to block, but was knocked away by Liu Zhaosun.

The Miao Dao slashed at the servant's arm, cutting through the chain mail. Blood immediately gushed out. The servant howled miserably and fainted.

The remaining Ding Bi servant took out a short crossbow and shot two arrows. Jin Yu Ji, dressed as a personal soldier, stood in front of Liu Zhaosun and swung her sword to cut off the arrow feathers.

Liu Zhaosun pushed Jin Yuji away and looked at the opposite side with murderous eyes.

Seeing that the two sides were about to engage in a fight, Kang Yingqian hurried forward and grabbed Liu Zhaosun.

After all, this is on Liaozhen's territory. If a real fight breaks out, it will not benefit anyone.

Yang Hao shouted, "What do you think of the Governor's Office? Get out!"

Censor Chen also shouted angrily: "The Jiannu haven't even attacked us yet, and you are already fighting yourselves! Do you still have the court and the emperor in your eyes?" Seeing this, the generals hurried forward to pull the two men apart. Liu Zhaosun shook Pei Dahu off, put away his Miao Dao angrily, glared at Ding Bi, and chopped down with his palm, making a beheading gesture.

Ding Bi spat and gritted her teeth at Liu Zhaosun.

Both sides were about to retreat.

A burly Liaozhen general jumped out and yelled, "Ding Bi, you bastard, how dare you come out and bite me!"

"During the Battle of Sarhu, how did the gunpowder in the Western Army's Left Camp ignite? Hundreds of my brothers haven't returned yet. Tell me! Are you a spy for Nurhaci? Do you want me to publicly expose what you did in Qinghe?! Why are you raising Tartars in Tieling? Are you trying to emulate Li Yongfang?!"

This general stood between Liu Zhaosun and Ding Bi, and everyone was a little confused.
Every word this person said was heartbreaking. Some Liaozhen generals lowered their heads and remained silent, while others just looked at Ding Bi.

Ding Bi was provoked by these words, and he left Liu Zhaosun alone and cursed the general:
"Yu Chengming, you bastard! Didn't I just give you five thousand taels of Liao Dynasty salary last year? You bastard, you go against me every day, you traitor! I'm dealing with the Southern soldiers, you have nothing to do with me, get out of here!"

After Ding Bi finished speaking, he turned to Yang Hao and Chen Yuting and said:

"Yang Jinglue, Chen Yushi, you've all seen today. This is the Southern Army. This is the character of the Southern Barbarians. A mere servant, a dog-like thing, relying on Liu Jing and the support of our Liaozhen, and luckily gaining some military merit, dares to speak so rudely! He even murdered an imperial official in public. How is this different from the Qi Family Army that rioted in Jizhou for pay?! He's even worse than the Tartars!!"

He pointed at Liu Zhaosun and said word by word:

"Liu Zhaosun, I'll remember you, just wait!"

After saying that, he took a group of servants, pushed through the crowd, slammed the door and left.

Qiao Yiqi chased after him and yelled, "What the hell! Why didn't I see you being so brave when we were fighting the Tartars?"

Pei Dahu, Zhang Dong and other southern soldiers beside them had veins bulging in their veins, and even Jin Yuji clenched her sword tightly.

Everyone's eyes were on Liu Zhaosun, waiting for his order.

Yang Hao looked at Liu Jing's adopted son with sharp eyes.

Liu Zhaosun did not curse anymore, nor did he chase after him. He just quietly put away his Miao Dao. When he looked up again, there was a sinister look in his eyes that he had never seen before.

Yang Hao gave a meaningful smile.

Chen Yuting's expression remained unchanged, obviously he was used to this kind of scene.

"Yang Jinglie, why don't you say a few words?"

The two gentlemen were scheming against each other just now, but now they finally realized that they were actually on the same side, fighting against these military leaders on behalf of the imperial court.

It seems that the court’s opponents are not only the rapidly rising Later Jin, but also these unruly military leaders in the future.

The imperial court had long been suspicious of Liaodong, and some of these military leaders had ties with the Jiannu.

The imperial court has always been aware of these complex relationships in Liaodong. As long as they don't expose them, it's a win-win situation for both sides.

Now, Liu Zhaosun has arrived. Under his stimulation, the contradictions between Liaozhen and the foreign soldiers, and between Liaozhen and the imperial court have rapidly intensified...

The situation began to develop rapidly in an unpredictable direction.

But one thing is certain, Yang Hao can no longer suppress these Liaozhen military leaders.

Previously, Yang Hao was only the governor of Liaodong, and his interests did not conflict with everyone else's, so they could get along well. Now that he has become the emperor's man, he wants to mobilize the resources of Liaozhen to fight Nurhaci to the death. This threatens everyone's interests, and the military leaders will certainly not cooperate.

This is also one of the reasons why Nurhaci seemed to be invincible since he started his army.

Fortunately, the imperial court still had authority at that time, and the nine frontiers were under the control of the Ming Dynasty. The Liaozhen still had a fear of the imperial court, unlike the later Tianqi and Chongzhen dynasties, which "used Liao people to guard Liao land" and directly treated the Ming Dynasty as a host to suck blood.

Since Yang Hao had no allies, Liu Zhaosun decided to take the initiative to surrender.

~~~~
The meeting ended in a bad mood and all the generals left.

Yang Hao's face was gloomy. Chen Yuting, who was sitting next to him, narrowed his eyes into a line and sat there motionless, like a Maitreya Buddha.

The two superiors had used up all their bargaining chips. Liaozhen had a big appetite, and no one was satisfied with the small amount of money given by the emperor.

If the current situation continues to develop, and if Liu Zhaosun does not show up, the two superiors will have to wait until they return to Beijing for a day trip to the Zhenfu Division Prison.

Liu Zhaosun took the initiative to talk to Yu Chengming who had just spoken for him. Yu Chengming was still indignant and bowed to Liu Zhaosun.

The guerrilla general's final end was tragic and heroic. He admired him very much and said quickly:

"Thank you, General Yu, for speaking up for me. Your generosity is profound, and I appreciate it."

Yu Chengming waved his hands carelessly:

"General Liu, you're too polite. This is what I had to do. You defeated the Jiannu at Hunjiang, rescued tens of thousands of Liaodong refugees, and brought them back to Shenyang. You're truly a good man of the Ming Dynasty. Ding Bi is a piece of shit. Not only did he suck the blood of the soldiers and collect the empty salaries, he also traded with the Jiannu, buying and selling human lives, sable furs, ironware, everything... I wonder how much money he's made over the years."

Yang Hao waited until they finished their greetings before coughing awkwardly twice:
"He Shixian is brave, but he's addicted to alcohol. Kaiyuan can't be defended. You've seen the situation in Liaodong. I think you two are different from them. You have troops at your disposal and are not constrained. If you can hold out in Kaiyuan until the foreign troops come to aid Liao, Liao's cause can be accomplished. I will recommend you for promotion in the future. If nothing else, I can appoint you as a lieutenant general in any of the nine border areas."

The Imperial Inspector smiled like Maitreya Buddha and nodded repeatedly to Liu Zhaosun and Yu Chengming, proving that what Yang Hao said was correct.

Liu Zhaosun bowed to Censor Chen and said to Yang Hao with a smile:
"Thank you both for your guidance. Liaodong is a dangerous place, and Supervisor Kang once advised me to return to the interior... But someone has to lead the charge. If Liaozhen doesn't go, we will. I am willing to lead the Eastern Route Army to defend Kaiyuan, fight bloody battles against the Jiannu, and serve the emperor. I also ask the court to provide sufficient food and wages..."

Note:
1. Cheng Kailu: "Planning Liaoshuohua" Volume "Official Yingzhen: A Comprehensive and Perfect Plan for the Temple"

2. The Veritable Records of Emperor Shenzong of the Ming Dynasty, Volume

(End of this chapter)