Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 224 Let the Tartars into the city?
Although the cannons offered as tribute by the arms dealers were high-quality, non-exploding goods, the emperor had no interest in seeing them. So, while agreeing to allow the tribute ships to sail north to the capital, the emperor also ordered the Ministry of War to pack up the cannons and the Western artillerymen hired by Harald Brandt to man them and send them to Liaodong. He also instructed the Ministry of War to compile a separate list and pay the artillery unit in the name of the imperial court. The emperor's pay was generous: ordinary artillerymen received five taels of silver per month, and artillery captains received ten taels of silver per month. Food supplies were provided by the highest-ranking government office in the unit's garrison.

The decree was carried out with swift resolution, completing the basic procedures that same day. However, the military official in charge, perhaps out of his mind, opted to ship the cannons by land rather than water. This resulted in the cannons taking over a month to reach Liaoyang. Of course, the Liaoyang governor's office didn't protest, and the emperor remained unaware of this minor incident.

After the cannons arrived in Liaoyang, Yuan Yingtai immediately transferred the four heaviest ones to Shenyang, a major city on the front line.

Sun Chuanting pondered in silence for a long moment before answering Yuan Yingtai's question: "Because they were all long-barreled heavy artillery, it took some effort, but at least they were dragged to the city wall and installed without any damage. It's just that we didn't have enough gunpowder and shells."

Yuan Yingtai nodded slightly, signaling Sun Chuanting to continue.

"Including these four newly installed heavy guns, there are now a total of twelve cannons on the Shenyang city wall, but the gunpowder storage is only enough for each cannon to fire thirty rounds. There are also few shells, especially for the Red Barbarian cannons. Each shell of this cannon weighs more than ten pounds. The yellow-haired translator said that each of these Red Barbarian cannons needs 300 shells. But even if you count the iron that has already been cast into gun and cannonball shells, Shenyang only has 5,200 pounds of iron in total." Sun Chuanting swallowed a mouthful of half-cold tea and continued:
"Shenyang needs more gunpowder and cannonballs. Of course, crude iron or even iron ore will also be sufficient. Most of the city's blacksmiths have returned. To quickly fill the gap in blacksmithing, we've assigned some residents to serve as apprentices. As long as we have enough materials, Shenyang will be able to manufacture its own cannonballs."

Sun Chuanting didn't mention making his own gunpowder because the imperial court stipulated that gunpowder for Liaodong could only be manufactured within the Great Wall, under the supervision of a sixth-rank official dispatched by the Ministry of War. For convenience, Xiong Tingbi simply arranged for the gunpowder to be manufactured at Shanhaiguan. The last batch of gunpowder sent to Liaoyang was produced and escorted by Mao Wenlong, who had been promoted to a higher position.

Yuan Yingtai thought for a moment and replied, "Liaoyang currently has 14,100 kilograms of gunpowder in stock. I can allocate 5,000 kilograms to you first. As for iron, I will initially allocate 2,000 dan of ore to you."

"Okay." Sun Chuanting nodded.

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After discussing Shenyang's defenses, Yuan Yingtai inquired about the city's food reserves and the training of its soldiers. However, it wasn't a problem for him to ignore these questions, as Xiong Tingbi personally oversaw the training of the soldiers at the barracks every day. Training was divided among different types of troops, each with its own unique battle formations and tactics. Xiong Tingbi didn't expect to launch a counterattack anytime soon. Therefore, the majority of Shenyang's troops were the newly trained soldiers specifically tasked with defending the city.

Every day, these soldiers were required to run back and forth along the ramparts, endlessly repeating the maneuvers of throwing rolling stones and wooden planks and pouring hot oil and golden liquid down the walls. Beyond that, they only needed to learn simple hacking and stabbing techniques, as well as basic teamwork, such as pushing ladders. Furthermore, Xiong Tingbi would occasionally mobilize the civilians of Shenyang to cooperate in drills like transporting supplies.

After explaining this, Xiong Tingbi also prepared the broth and pancakes for everyone.

"Xiong Zuotang, many Tatars who have fled famine have gathered under the city of Liaoyang. They asked to surrender. On the way to Shenyang, I also saw many Tatars gathered outside the city." Yuan Yingtai picked up a piece of warm pancake from the basket and said.

"So." Xiong Tingbi raised his eyebrows, as if thinking about something, but responded to Yuan Yingtai indifferently.

Xiong Tingbi naturally knew what Yuan Yingtai could see.

Natural disasters are fair. After several heavy snowfalls, the Jurchens certainly weren't the only ones to suffer. The Mongols of the Khalkha and Chahar tribes, who were closest to the Liaodong border, also suffered severe snowstorms. The so-called "all tribes are suffering from severe famine, so please come to the frontier to beg for food."

Many Mongols gathered at the foot of each fortress and city, but Xiong Tingbi pretended not to see them, even refusing to open a tent to distribute porridge. When receiving refugees returning north, he also ordered the local guards and generals to strictly screen them, allowing only Han people with proof of identity to enter the city. This proof could be the land deeds, property deeds, and house deeds taken with them when fleeing south. These were as important as life, and anyone who was not fleeing in a hurry would take them with them. If these three deeds were not available, the customs clearance documents issued by Shanhaiguan could be used. If no proof was available, then even if one had a distinctly Han appearance, there was no hope of entering the city. Just find a place to stay in the suburbs.

An ordinary person would have retreated after Xiong Tingbi's attack, but Yuan Yingtai was clearly no ordinary man. As if he hadn't grasped Xiong Tingbi's implication, he continued, "So I think we can admit them into the city."

"Impossible." Xiong Tingbi rejected it without even thinking.

"Why?" Yuan Yingtai frowned, his tone rising slightly. He bit off a piece of cake, chewed it, and turned sideways to face Xiong Tingbi.

"Heh." Xiong Tingbi chuckled. Then he stretched out his left ring finger and scratched his right cheek with it. With a hint of sarcasm, he said, "You're having problems again. You haven't been home long enough, have you?"

What Xiong Tingbi was talking about was an old story.

After completing his term as a military selector in the Ministry of War, Yuan Yingtai was transferred to Henan to serve as a military advisor to regulate Huai and Xu.

At the time, Shandong was experiencing a severe famine. Yuan Yingtai opened a porridge factory to provide relief to refugees, offering work-for-relief to ensure that the hungry received food. While this action itself was not problematic, by the time he issued the order for disaster relief, the official granaries were already empty due to the emperor's constant demands, leaving insufficient food for the victims. Consequently, Yuan Yingtai withheld and embezzled the excess taxes and grain transport fees that had been remitted to the Ministry of Revenue.

The embezzlement immediately drew the ire of the Ministry of Revenue and the Department of Revenue, who promptly impeached Yuan Yingtai. This kind of matter could have become extremely serious if it had been taken to the extreme, but fortunately, the emperor's work ethic remained unchanged. Consequently, Yuan Yingtai was able to resign on the pretext of illness and return home, thanks to the mediation of Liu Yirong and Sun Ruyou.

Xiong Tingbi's sarcastic remarks startled Yuan Yingtai. He felt a little annoyed, but not ashamed. "If I had to choose again, I would still do the same thing." "But now it's my choice, not yours. If I say it's impossible, it's impossible," Xiong Tingbi said firmly. "The Tatars swarming around Liaoyang and Shenyang are not victims of disaster in Shandong. The grain stored in the government warehouses was transferred from all over the country by order of the Emperor to the Ministry of Revenue for the Liaodong soldiers."

"That's different. I'm not making this suggestion just out of pity." Yuan Yingtai supported himself on the table, straightened his body, and said, "The Jiannu people plundered the places where they suffered disasters and were short of food. Does that mean the Tatars won't plunder when they are short of food? Since the beginning of winter, how many small-scale lootings have been reported from all over the country? Do you dare to say that these were all done by the Jiannu people? Aren't the three heads cut off by Mao Wenlong in Xingshan Village all Mongolian heads!" Yuan Yingtai casually gave a typical example.

Under the system of first merit, heads were highly valuable. Reporting the rank of those killed was also a complex undertaking. To minimize the risk of falsely claiming credit for killing innocent people, severed heads were subject to a series of scrutiny by civil officials at all levels, ultimately receiving approval from the Ministry of War before they could be recognized as meritorious service, rewarded, or promoted. Consequently, both Xiong Tingbi and Yuan Yingtai had seen the three heads severed by Mao Wenlong.

"What on earth are you trying to say?" Xiong Tingbi rolled his eyes and sneered, "Using the rations allocated by the court to the soldiers on the front lines to feed the Tatars? Asking them not to plunder?"

"That's not what I meant!" Yuan Yingtai said. "What I meant was that if we don't save them, they might very well defect to the Jiannu. But if we gather them together and provide food to these starving Tatars, it would be a timely help, and they would surely be grateful. In time, they could even become garrisons, or even help us fight back against the Jiannu and recover lost territory."

Yuan Yingtai spoke at length, but Xiong Tingbi replied with just three words: "No need."

"You!" This was Yuan Yingtai's plan, which he thought was a great success. But when Xiong Tingbi's three words hit him back, he immediately got angry.

In fact, He Shixian and You Shigong also agreed with Yuan Yingtai's suggestion. Their personal guards and retainers were mostly recruited Mongols. These Mongols were skilled riders, fierce fighters, and extremely loyal. They were a rare force capable of being deployed outside the city walls to engage the Jurchens in open combat. He Shixian's initial courage to disobey Xiong Tingbi's orders and fight the enemy cavalry was due to these Mongol retainers. If he had only these newly recruited soldiers, he would have been forced to retreat and defend the city.

But at this point, neither He Shixian nor You Shigong dared to chime in. Even though Xiong Tingbi used sarcastic sarcasm when speaking to Yuan Yingtai, it was quite reasonable. If he were to confront people like them, Xiong Tingbi would have slammed the table and cursed.

Li Huaixin, the Gansu Aid Suppression Commander currently stationed in Liaoyang, had been publicly scolded several times by Xiong Tingbi because the city's defense preparations hadn't met Xiong Tingbi's expectations. The last time, he was scolded so harshly that he broke down in tears. It's said that if Yang Youqian hadn't personally visited him to offer his condolences, Li Huaixin would have resigned on the pretext of illness. He Shixian, with his much thicker skin than Li Huaixin, certainly wouldn't be scolded to tears, but he certainly didn't want to hear Xiong Tingbi's deafening roar.

"Xiong Zuotang, I think what Yuan Youqian said does make sense. If you think it's not right, tell us why." Yang Lian sincerely thought Yuan Yingtai's idea was unreliable, but at this moment, he had to side with Yuan Yingtai and let Xiong Tingbi explain his reasons, so that he could mediate gently. Xiong Tingbi was already strong enough, and even if he was right, there was no need to support him. Otherwise, causing a rift between the governor and the governor would only harm the overall situation.

"It's simple. It doesn't matter. We don't need it." Xiong Tingbi didn't even turn to face Yang Lian, but continued to face Yuan Yingtai. "Where are you going to place these Tatars?"

Hearing Yang Lian's support, Yuan Yingtai straightened his back a little. "Where else can they go? Put them in the city and use the empty houses to house them."

Although many refugees have returned, there are still large areas of vacant houses in Liao, Shen, and other cities. These days, it is common for entire families to disappear.

"Are you kidding me? Forget about whether the Tartars occupying the empty houses will be willing to move out after the original owners return. The mixed residence of Han and Mongolians is a problem in itself. If we bring them into the city, will the city's public security be maintained? Are the Tartars so submissive? If they plunder everywhere in the city, will you still send people to arrest and discipline them?" Without waiting for Yuan Yingtai to reply, Xiong Tingbi continued, "Before a war, the most taboo is the mixing of people and the gathering of foreigners. If the Jiannu sent spies to infiltrate these so-called Tartar victims, how would you tell them apart? Do they have documents or deeds? If the spies enter and leave the city and leak the city's defense situation, the battle will be lost before it even starts."

"You can allow people to leave but not come in." Yuan Yingtai said.

"Let them out but not in? They're just raising livestock!" Xiong Tingbi made this scholar-minded guy laugh. "Livestock can butt heads. If they stab you from inside while you're defending the city, and someone inside opens the gate and breaks through, even chopping off the heads of your entire family wouldn't be enough to make up for it."

"As for the Tatars' surrender to the bandits, let them surrender if they want. Let's see whether Nurhaci is willing to accept them." Xiong Tingbi sneered.

"How could he not be willing if someone came to surrender?" Yuan Yingtai asked back.

"Where will the food come from? Where will the money go? It's unclear whether Nurhaci can even figure out the situation with the Yehe tribe," Xiong Tingbi replied. "And if the Tatars were truly willing to serve as vanguards and fill the moats for the rebels, they wouldn't be running to the gates of Liao and Shen to beg for submission. To put it bluntly, these Tatars are now a hot potato that neither side wants. Nurhaci doesn't want them, and I certainly don't want them either."

"Just let them freeze and starve to death under the city?" Yuan Yingtai frowned. "Liaoning and Shenyang don't lack food and fodder."

After over a year of painstaking efforts by Xiong Tingbi and the dedicated coordination of Yuan Yingtai, Liaodong's supplies had been significantly restored and replenished. The major border cities had stockpiled two to three months' worth of grain. Liaoyang, the transportation hub for Liaodong's supplies, had accumulated over 300,000 dan of military rations, nearly one-third of the region's annual military ration needs.

"You're still saying you're not suffering from your old illness." Xiong Tingbi leaned back in his chair, his eyes rolling upwards. "Whether they freeze or starve to death is none of my business. You're using the imperial grain to feed these untreatable creatures!" Xiong Tingbi snatched the half-sliced ​​pancake from Yuan Yingtai's hand and said, "You're just full!"

(End of this chapter)