Ming Dynasty: Charge, Emperor Yongle!

"Gentlemen."

Zhu Di slowly walked to the huge map hanging on the wall.

Everyone's eyes were drawn to the wall as he moved.

"At present, our Great Ming has conquered Karakorum, and there are only two threats left on the grasslands."

"Firstly, there was the Northern Yuanqi King, Duoerzhiban, located in the Hexi Corridor."

"Secondly, there is the Northern Yuan Grand Commandant and Grand Tutor Hara Zhang, located east of Langjuxu Mountain."

"The Hehuang region is crucial to the safety of the Northwest and is a vital passage to the Western Regions; it cannot be lost."

"The Yuan army led by Manzi and Halazhang is the last elite force of the Northern Yuan. If even one of them goes missing, it will pose an immeasurable threat to the border of the Ming Dynasty."

In front of everyone, Zhu Di's finger swept across the marked locations on the silk, pointing out the main objective at hand.

"Does Your Highness intend to send troops from the northern desert to coordinate with the eastern and western armies and annihilate these two remaining Northern Yuan forces?"

Gu Cheng, the chief secretary of the central army, tried to deduce Zhu Di's strategic intentions, while the others all looked at Zhu Di, the Prince of Yan.

"Yes."

Zhu Di nodded.

"My 15,000 cavalrymen know the northern desert like the back of their hand and are at your disposal."

Wang Baobao made his stance clear by handing over all the remaining troops he had.

"Your Majesty!"

Nai'er Buhua tried to dissuade him, but Wang Baobao stopped her with a gesture.

"it is good."

Zhu Di gave him a deep look, everything was understood without words.

'Thump!'

Tang He and Mu Ying both showed surprise after hearing Wang Baobao's words.

They never expected that Wang Baobao would trust Zhu Di so much, entrusting him with his most valuable troops; they simply couldn't believe it.

"Uncle Tang".

"Eh!"

Tang He belatedly came to his senses and looked at Zhu Di.

"The northern desert is characterized by towering and precipitous mountain ranges, and the vast land spanning five thousand miles from east to west contains complex terrains such as grasslands, deserts, Gobi, basins, and river valleys."

"The Mongolians have put a lot of effort into managing this land."

"Not only was an administrative and military liaison network established with the post station system (Zhan Chi) at its core."

"Agriculture was also promoted, and land reclamation was encouraged in some suitable planting areas, such as Chenghai, Wutiaohe, and Qianzhou."

"In particular, the sea is located northeast of the Altai Mountains and is the most important gateway to western Mongolia."

"At its peak, it produced hundreds of thousands of shi of grain annually, supplying the Yuan Dynasty's troops stationed in the Mongolian steppe."

"I need you to lead your army to pacify the area west of Karakorum, take over these places, build cities here, and resume agricultural settlements."

Pointing to the vast land in western Mongolia on the map, Zhu Di said in a deep voice.

The Mongols had a keen eye; they chose strategic locations for their military settlements.

Known as the sea, later known as Kobdo, it was an important hub connecting the Mongolian Plateau and the Western Regions. Surrounded by mountains, with numerous rivers and lakes, it had a warm climate and fertile land. The Qing Dynasty established a minister here to govern a vast area of ​​nearly 40 square kilometers, from the western part of the Mongolian Plateau centered on the Altai Mountains and the Ertis River basin at the northern end of the Junggar Basin to Lake Zaysan.

The Five Rivers, later known as Mulun, is located in the northwest of Karakorum, between the East Sayan Mountains, the Tannu Ula Mountains, the Yanran Mountains, and Lake Baikal. It is a high-altitude river valley basin surrounded by mountains and carved by rivers, and is one of the few areas in northern Mongolia suitable for developing agriculture.

The Yuan Dynasty established a military agricultural settlement here, which cultivated more than 6,400 hectares of fertile land, producing more than 100,000 shi of grain annually to supply Karakorum.

Qianzhou, later known as Tannu Uriankhai, is a long and narrow basin surrounded by mountains, covering an area of ​​nearly 200,000 square kilometers. It is not only suitable for developing agriculture and animal husbandry, but also has abundant mineral resources, including coal, iron, gold, silver, and copper.

By managing these three regions, the Ming Dynasty's influence will extend to Central Asia and Siberia.

Controlling and restoring the military-agricultural colonies was only the first step. Zhu Di would continue to send immigrants to the northern deserts and vigorously develop the region.

"call!"

Tang and his expression were heavy.

If it were merely a matter of pacifying the western part of the northern desert and capturing Chenghai, Qianzhou, and Wutiaohe, that wouldn't be difficult.

However, Zhu Di demanded that he build cities and cultivate land in these three places, which was no easy task.

"Your Highness."

"I need more soldiers and artisans."

After some thought, Tang He made his request.

"Can."

Zhu Di agreed without hesitation: "You will be the commander-in-chief, and Gu Cheng will be the deputy commander-in-chief."

"In addition to the five thousand Ming soldiers you brought, I will give you another ten thousand cavalry."

"You are permitted to take 1500 artisans and their families from Karakorum."

"Batu, from this moment on, you and your 10,000-strong army will await the orders of the Marquis of Zhongshan."

"Yes."

Batu looked at Tang He and responded loudly.

"Big brother."

Immediately afterwards, Zhu Di turned his gaze to Mu Ying.

When Mu Ying was 8 years old, he was adopted by Zhu Yuanzhang as his godson. Even the crown prince Zhu Biao had to call him elder brother, and Zhu Di was no exception.

"Your Highness."

Mu Ying's eyes showed some emotion; he hadn't heard that title in a long time.

"I am entrusting Fu Youde's five thousand cavalry to you, and Nairbuhua will serve as your deputy general."

"You have only one goal: to march south to Hami and cooperate with the Western Route Army to annihilate the forces of the Northern Yuan King, Dorjiban."

"Yes."

Mu Ying's expression changed, and her eyes shone brightly.

Zhu Di gave him not only 5,000 Ming cavalry, but also 15,000 Yuan cavalry under Wang Baobao's command. 20,000 cavalry were enough to pacify the Hexi Corridor.

"Nai'er doesn't spend money."

Wang Baobao glanced at Nai'er Buhua and said coldly.

"This subordinate obeys."

Nai'er Buhua dared not disobey Wang Baobao's will and accepted the military order.

"I will personally lead the guards of the Prince of Yan's Palace eastward to cooperate with the eastern army and annihilate the forces of the Northern Yuan Grand Commandant Manzi and Grand Tutor Hala Zhang in one fell swoop."

Zhu Di left the final task to himself.

"Yes."

Everyone responded in unison and went down to prepare in turn.

"You're incredibly brave."

After everyone left, Wang Baobao looked at Zhu Di and shook his head.

"The bold get rich, the timid starve."

Zhu Di disagreed, saying, "The 150,000 Ming troops in the second northern expedition were the last elite troops that Father Emperor could use."

"Once these people remain in the northern deserts, the Hehuang region, and Beiting, the border troubles of the Ming Dynasty will be resolved immediately."

"Among all the civil and military officials in the court, as long as the meritorious officials of Huaixi are not blind, they will surely be able to see that I am helping them."

"Even if my second and third brothers are enfeoffed, and the Kings of Qin and Jin each appoint three guards, what does it matter as long as they are not granted the power to control the guards of Shanxi and Shaanxi?"

"I have learned my lesson."

Wang Baobao understood Zhu Di's plan.

The Ming Dynasty controlled the northern deserts and the northern court through the garrison system, which was equivalent to setting up a barrier.

Thus, neither Shaanxi nor Shanxi could be considered frontier regions, leaving Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang's policy of appointing border princes to guard the frontiers with only Liaodong and the southwest as viable options. Zhu Di was the Prince of Yan, with his fiefdom of Beiping, directly facing Liaodong.

As for the southwest, it is not yet pacified, and it is impossible to reach a conclusion in the short term. Who can say for sure what will happen in the future?

Compared to the idea of ​​the prince guarding the border, this plan was clearly more likely to win the support of civil and military officials and even nobles in Huaixi, thus placing them on the opposite side of Zhu Yuanzhang.

Although Zhu Di could not place people in these places, Tang He, Gu Cheng, Mu Ying and others would certainly remember his kindness, and the Prince of Yan's influence in the northern deserts, the Hehuang region and the Beiting region would inevitably far exceed that of Zhu Yuanzhang.

This is a blatant, overt scheme, and there's no way to counter it!