Outnumbered? I'll conquer America with an unlimited number of suicide soldiers.

Chapter 151 Shengjing City and the Mormon Church (Supplement to yesterday's chapter)

Shengjing City, General's Office.

As dusk settled, a deep gloom enveloped the secondary capital. Inside the government office hall, however, candlelight shone brightly, and several bronze lamps illuminated the hall as if it were daytime.

General Yixing of Shengjing sat in the main hall, clutching a newly opened military report in his hand.

The military report was sent from Liaoyang by express courier, and the ink on the paper was messy: "The enemy's strength is great. They have captured Niuzhuang, Haicheng and Anshan in one night. We earnestly request that the general send reinforcements as soon as possible to defend Liaoyang."

Seated on either side of the hall were six officials: the Deputy Commander-in-Chief of Fengtian and the Vice Ministers of the Five Ministries of Shengjing. After General Yixing finished reading, he relayed the report to everyone, then glanced at the people below: "Let's discuss this. The rebels are very powerful; how should we deal with them?"

The people below the hall looked at each other, and finally Cheng En, the Vice Minister of Revenue, spoke first. He was a Manchu official of the second rank, the oldest and most prestigious among the five vice ministers of Shengjing.

He adjusted his court beads and slowly said, "General, I believe we should hold Shengjing firmly. Although the rebels have captured three cities, Niuzhuang, Haicheng, and Anshan are all small cities with low walls and weak defenses, so they are nothing to worry about."

Unlike Shengjing, whose city walls are high and thick, and whose provisions can last for months, we only need to send requests for reinforcements to Jinzhou, Kaiyuan, and the base. Even if the enemy besieges the city, we can rely on the city's defenses to wait and fight them off!

The Vice Minister of Rites, Shu Tong'a, echoed, "What Your Excellency Cheng'en said is absolutely right; it is a wise and prudent statement. If we rashly send troops now, and we happen to fall into the enemy's trap, it would be disastrous."

"Yeah yeah!"

The other vice ministers nodded in agreement with Cheng En's statement.

After listening to what these people were saying, Yixing did not express his opinion, but turned his gaze to the Deputy Commander of Fengtian sitting at the head of the left.

The deputy commander's name was Ji Ling, and he had served under Yi Xing for many years. Seeing his superior's gaze fall upon him, he immediately understood.

The adults are dissatisfied with their opinions.

"Ha, the mindset of a civil servant."

Ji Ling immediately stood up, walked to the center of the hall, bowed to Yi Xing, and then turned to face the five vice ministers: "I have heard your thoughts, gentlemen. May I ask a question if we follow the strategy of holding the city and then lose Liaoyang?"

Upon hearing this, Shu Tong'a, the Vice Minister of Rites, showed a hint of displeasure on his face and replied, "Lord Ji Ling, Liaoyang is lost, but that's all. It's just a city. As long as Shengjing doesn't fall, the overall situation is still in our hands."

"Oh?"

Ji Ling looked at Shu Tong'a and said urgently, "Liaoyang is 120 li away from Shengjing. Once it is lost, the enemy's cannons can be placed under the walls of Shengjing within two days."

"Shengjing City itself will be fine, but Fuling and Zhaoling are both outside the city!"

He said quietly, "What if the enemy troops, unable to capture the city after a long siege, become enraged and bypass the city to attack the two imperial tombs, disturbing the mausoleums of Emperor Taizu and Emperor Taizong? Even if we manage to defend Shengjing, how will we have the face to face the Emperor?"

Upon hearing this, the expressions of everyone present immediately changed.

Fuling is the mausoleum of Nurhaci, the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty, while Zhaoling is the mausoleum of Huang Taiji, the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty.

Both imperial tombs are located outside Shengjing City, without city walls or garrisons, only guarded by a few general offices and dozens of soldiers.

Ji Ling's implication was clear: if something really happened to Fuling and Zhaoling, not only would they lose their heads, but their three or even nine clans might also lose their heads.

Upon realizing this, Cheng En, the Vice Minister of Revenue, immediately changed his tune: "Lord Ji Ling is right. We must send troops to aid Liaoyang!"

The other vice ministers nodded in unison, echoing, "Sending troops is good, sending troops is a safe bet."

Wen Rui, the Vice Minister of War, slowly said, "Sending troops is also an option, but although there are more than 10,000 troops stationed in Shengjing, they are divided among various cities. At present, there are only 6,000 troops available in the city. Moreover, these 6,000 men are out of training and have not fought in battle for many years, so their combat effectiveness is worrying."

"And the bandits, having come from afar, were able to capture three cities in succession; their army must be quite large."

Ji Ling blurted out, "Then mobilize troops!"

"From which one?"

Wen Rui asked, "There are 3,000 garrison troops in Jinzhou, but it will take them at least five days to reach Liaoyang. There are 2,000 garrison troops in Kaiyuan, and it will take them three days."

Reinforcements from Jilin will arrive in ten days.

"Isn't that enough? First, send 3,000 cavalry and infantry stationed in Shengjing to reinforce Liaoyang. Adding that to the existing troops in Liaoyang, that's a total of 4,000 soldiers. Even if they were 4,000 pigs, they could hold out for at least ten days, right?!"

The argument below grew increasingly heated when General Yixing of Shengjing suddenly coughed lightly and said, "Enough!"

Upon hearing this, everyone present fell silent.

Yi Xing slowly said, "As Ji Ling said, first mobilize three thousand troops to reinforce Liaoyang. Then mobilize troops from Kaiyuan and Jinzhou, and send someone to request reinforcements from General Jing Chun of Jilin."

He paused, then said, "Also, send a military report to the imperial court with urgent dispatch, requesting that the court send troops to quell the bandits."

No sooner had he finished speaking than a series of hurried, heavy, and chaotic footsteps came from outside the yamen.

A man named Goshha practically stumbled into the hall, his face pale and his braid mostly undone: "My lord, urgent military report! Liaoyang has fallen! Liaoyang has fallen!"

Lingdong Province, river valley.

The river flowing down from the eastern foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains makes a sharp bend in this valley, creating a narrow strip of flat land.

The valley is well-organized, with rows of wooden houses lining the riverbank, clearly separating residential areas, storage areas, and livestock pens.

Winter wheat and vegetables were planted in the fields. Although the soil in the highland area was not fertile, the crops were growing well thanks to irrigation from the river. Cattle and sheep were kept in the pastures, providing meat and dairy products for the soldiers.

In a mine more than ten kilometers away, steam engines drove water pumps, roaring day and night, pumping buckets of scalding spring water gushing from the mine shafts to the surface.

Several hauling machines, panting heavily, dragged the heavy ore back to the ground along the rails.

These ores are sorted and crushed on the ground, then sent to factories downstream in the valley for refining, eventually turning into gleaming silver or gold ingots.

Jingde led his men on a tour around the mine, and by the time they finished, it was nearly dusk.

It seems the news of the mine here has leaked out, as more and more white miners have been coming to spy on the area these days, and I run into a few of them every day during my patrols.

He ordered his men to send the captured people to the mines to be miners' slaves, and then returned to the wooden cabin in the valley camp.

I had just poured myself a glass of water and taken a few sips, but before I could even swallow it, the door was pushed open.

The one who came in was a bodyguard in charge of the valley's security. He said calmly, "Boss, something's happened on the east side."

Jingde raised his head, put down his water cup, and said, "Speak."

"This morning a company of white cavalry attacked the farm to the east, injuring three people slightly. They fled after reinforcements arrived, and patrols are pursuing them."

"White cavalry?"

Jingde raised an eyebrow: "Lingdong Province is such a remote place, without even a few large white settlements, yet there are still white forces that have managed to put together a cavalry company?"

Having spent half a year in Lingdong, Jingde knew this area very well.

The terrain alternates between mountains and basins, with a winding and rugged landscape completely devoid of transportation. The climate is arid and receives little rainfall; as far as the eye can see, there are only desolate shrubs and exposed rocks, making it no exaggeration to say that it's a place where even birds wouldn't bother to defecate.

"It is speculated that they are Mormons."

"Mormons?"

Upon hearing these words, Jingde immediately guessed what was going on.

When I came here six months ago, the white people in the town came to provoke me, and they slaughtered the town and took it over.

According to the seized documents and letters, the town was established by Mormons to guide Mormons in California to Salt Lake City.

After so much time, anyone in Salt Lake City who isn't blind or deaf probably already knows the town is gone.

This group of cavalry was most likely sent by Salt Lake City in retaliation.

With this thought in mind, he began calling out to the patrol: "Patrol, this is Jingde. Have you dealt with those white cavalrymen?"

"Reporting, boss, it's resolved."

Outside the valley, the patrolmen were binding the white prisoners tightly and tying them together with rope.

Upon hearing Jingde's call, the patrol captain replied, "There were ninety-three men in total. Fifty-seven were killed on the spot, thirteen of the seriously wounded were finished off, and the remaining twenty-three surrendered. We plan to send them to the mine tomorrow."

"Has it been reviewed?"

"They were interrogated on the spot. These people were terrified, so they confessed very quickly."

The captain said, "They are the Mormon cavalry company sent by Salt Lake City. Brigham Young personally ordered them to avenge the massacre at Mormon Station. The leader was a company commander from the Nashville Regiment named Porter, who is already dead."

"9

"it is good."

Jingde lost contact and instead contacted Zeng Tai, who was far away in San Francisco.

Salt Lake City isn't a small town with a few dozen or a hundred people; it's a large city with tens of thousands. Whether to fight, and to what extent, is not up to him.

San Francisco, Ship Market Street.

As its name suggests, the street is located next to the docks, and it is home to most of San Francisco's ship-related industries.

The street stretches southeast along the coastline, with rows of ship tool shops and blacksmith workshops on one side and a row of shipyards on the other, which extend diagonally into the sea from the shore, where hundreds and thousands of suicide soldiers are busy at work.

On one of the slipways, a steam-powered sailing ship is under construction.

The keel of the ship was made of California redwood, and the ribs were made of Oregon pine. The ribs were bent into arcs and fixed to the keel with iron bolts, making it look like a huge fish skeleton from a distance.

One-third of the hull planks have been laid, stacked in three rows from the keel upwards, each plank being planed smooth and flat.

The assassin picked up the rivet from the red-hot anvil and shoved it into a hole in one of the wooden planks. Another man grabbed a hammer and smashed it down, instantly turning the red-hot rivet head into a mushroom shape.

Finally, they covered it with a thick cloth soaked in seawater. With a hiss, the rivets cooled down quickly, clamping the wooden board and ribs tightly together.

"This steamship is expected to be completed and launched by the middle of next month."

Guilliman, who was in the distance, turned his gaze back and reported to his superior: "By the end of next month, the first batch of twenty 1,000-ton steamships will all be able to be launched."

Zeng Tai nodded: "I trust you to get things done, but the shipbuilding speed needs to be increased. Nowadays, ships are needed to transport people, ore, and even bird droppings, and we still don't have enough ships."

"It's been expedited. Apart from the suicide squads responsible for the battle, this place has the most suicide squads."

Just then, a messenger from Jingde interrupted.

Zeng Tai raised an eyebrow: "Jingde sent a message that the Mormon Church has sent cavalry to cause trouble in Lingdong Province."

"The Mormon Church, Brigham Young?"

Guilliman said, "Leon mentioned them briefly when he sent the intelligence last month."

In early April, Brigham Young held a meeting in Salt Lake City and announced that the settlement would be moved 300 kilometers to the east, west and south.

He said: "We want to build a kingdom in this desert that no outsider can touch."

"Want to establish their own kingdom, yet they only send a company of cavalry for revenge?" Zeng Tai scoffed. "They're treating Jingde and his men like bandits, completely disregarding them!"

Guilliman asked, "Are you going to seek revenge?"

Zeng Tai replied matter-of-factly, "Of course, I'm not so magnanimous as to not fight back when someone hits me."

"Moreover, Salt Lake City has copper mines that we lack, so it's like killing two birds with one stone."

Bingham Canyon Copper Mine, the world’s largest open-pit copper mine, is located near Salt Lake City.

The copper mine was discovered in 1863 and mining began in 1906. Over the course of more than a century of mining, it produced more than 17 million tons of copper.

Even in the 21st century, the area was not yet fully mined and still maintained an annual copper production of 30 tons.

Although copper mines in Calaveras County, now renamed Sequoia County, are already in operation, for Zeng Tai and his team who are currently in dire need of copper, the more copper mines the better.

Copper is a raw material for all industrial products, including wires, shell casings, and steam boilers.

Thinking about this, Zeng Tai felt a little envious of South America.

The total proven reserves of copper, whether in my homeland or the United States, are not large.

Laos and China each have 41 million tons, while the US has 47 million tons; they can be considered brothers in misfortune.

Chile alone has proven copper reserves of 190 million tons, accounting for nearly 20% of the global total. Peru is slightly less, but still has 100 million tons, accounting for 10% of the global total.

It's rich in mineral resources and also suitable for raising cattle and sheep. It's such a good place, it's a real shame to give it to them.

"Then it's not just a question of whether or not to fight."

After a moment's thought, Guilliman said in a deep voice, "Brigham Young has been operating there for ten years. Salt Lake City has nearly 40,000 people, and there are dozens of settlements around it."

We must strike hard and resolve this once and for all, otherwise we'll give Yang Baihan room to breathe. He has more men, knows the terrain well, and can easily organize guerrilla warfare in the surrounding mountains, which would only make things more difficult.

"So Brigham Young had to be dealt with, as well as those high-ranking members of the Mormon Church."

Zeng Tai picked up the conversation, his tone flat: "As long as Salt Lake City is leaderless, the surrounding settlements will be scattered and unable to cause any trouble."

"My lord, I suggest sending an infantry regiment, an artillery company, and two cavalry companies."

Guilliman said, "Thirteen hundred men are enough to take Salt Lake City completely."

Taking Salt Lake City would allow us to use it as a base and a springboard for advancing into the eastern United States!