Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 1212 Indecision
In Kunming, the former residence of the Duke of Qian, now the "Dian King's Mansion," Sha Dingzhou sat in a chair with an uneasy expression, while beside him, his trusted advisor, the so-called "Prime Minister" Tang Jiabin, was trying to persuade him.

"Your Majesty! Please make a decision quickly!"

"Let me think about it some more, think it over carefully..." Sha Dingzhou frowned, hesitating for a moment.

When the attack on Chuxiong failed, Sha Dingzhou led his troops back to Kunming. When Sha Dingzhou returned to Kunming with his army, Tang Jiabin, who was left to guard Kunming, was greatly surprised.

In Tang Jiabin's view, it was almost certain that Sha Dingzhou would lead his army to attack Chuxiong. Although Chuxiong was a prefecture, it was not as large as the major cities in the Central Plains. Moreover, according to his knowledge, Chuxiong did not have many troops. On the contrary, Sha Dingzhou brought tens of thousands of troops. If you add the part of Wuding that he had already occupied in the north, the total number of troops would be almost more than 50,000.

Although nearly half of these 50,000 men were hastily assembled troops by Sha Dingzhou, not his elite forces and not particularly strong in combat, a large number of men was still a large number, and they could certainly play a role on the battlefield. Moreover, Sha Dingzhou had brought a considerable amount of firearms with him when he marched west, including muskets and cannons, making it easy for him to defeat a mere Chuxiong.

But who would have thought that after more than a month of campaigning, Sha Dingzhou would return to Kunming without achieving anything? This surprised Tang Jiabin greatly. After he understood the reason for Sha Dingzhou's retreat, Tang Jiabin almost spat out a mouthful of blood. It turned out that Sha Dingzhou had been fighting in Chuxiong for half a month and lost several thousand men. He felt that it was difficult to attack Chuxiong head-on, so he decided to temporarily retreat to Kunming to reorganize his army and then think of a solution.

Although Tang Jiabin was a scholar, he had read military books and was well-versed in history. Where had Sha Dingzhou ever fought a war like this? An army of tens of thousands attacked a Chu Xiong, and retreated after losing only a few thousand men? Sha Dingzhou had no shortage of men, provisions, or weapons; how could he retreat under such circumstances?
The loss of several thousand men seems significant, but the actual losses were not that great. Why didn't Sha Dingzhou grit his teeth and continue the offensive? Since the battle had progressed this far, what did losing another one or two thousand men matter? Taking Chuxiong would mean victory. What was Sha Dingzhou thinking? Why did he give up halfway?

Tang Jiabin was furious. If it weren't for Sha Dingzhou's status, he would have pointed at Sha Dingzhou's nose and started cursing him. Was this a war or a game of make-believe? Even a scholar like him knew how to fight a war, so how could Sha Dingzhou not know?

Helpless, Tang Jiabin suppressed his anger and asked Sha Dingzhou what the next steps were. Fortunately, Sha Dingzhou was still thinking about continuing the attack on Chuxiong. He told Tang Jiabin that he was returning to Kunming to reorganize the army first, because there were too many new recruits in the army and their combat effectiveness was too poor, which would be detrimental to the subsequent war. With a little reorganization and training, they could better cope with the war.

As for Chuxiong, it is still necessary to fight, but Sha Dingzhou thinks that it is not worth the effort to launch a strong attack on Chuxiong. It would be better to bypass Chuxiong and attack the enemy's rear. If they can directly attack Dali or Yongchang and capture Mu Tianbo, then it will not matter whether Chuxiong is attacked or not.

Tang Jiabin agreed with Sha Dingzhou's sudden idea, but he felt that Sha Dingzhou could simply take a detour if he felt he couldn't take Chuxiong in one go, or feign a detour to attack the enemy's rear to lure Chuxiong's army back to defend their rear. In this way, he could defeat Chuxiong's Ming army in open battle, and Chuxiong would be taken without a fight. Why bother fighting halfway and then regrouping and advancing westward again?
But now that things have come to this, there's no point in saying anything more. Since Sha Dingzhou has a new idea, Tang Jiabin can only devise a new plan for him based on it. But just as Tang Jiabin was racking his brains to make a plan for Sha Dingzhou, including preparing supplies for another war, news suddenly came from the east that Ming troops had appeared in Xuanwei and Fuyuan. Caught off guard, the two places were quickly captured by the Ming army. After occupying Xuanwei and Fuyuan, the Ming army continued its military campaign and was already heading towards Qujing.

Upon hearing this news, Sha Dingzhou was shocked and panicked. His original plan to advance westward was abruptly halted. Now, Sha Dingzhou hesitated, unsure whether to continue westward or turn east to reinforce Qujing. He spent several days deliberating, which greatly worried Tang Jiabin. Today, Tang Jiabin came to inquire whether Sha Dingzhou had finished his consideration and what his final decision was.

“Prime Minister, I am worried that if we advance westward, what will happen if the Ming army occupies Qujing? Qujing is east of Kunming and is a major city that leads from the east to Kunming. If Qujing is lost, not only can the Ming army directly attack Kunming, but if they advance south, they might even take Ami Prefecture and other places!” Sha Dingzhou said to Tang Jiabin with a hesitant expression and a sigh.

Tang Jiabin said, “Your Majesty! Qujing already has troops stationed there. Moreover, after learning that the Ming army had captured Xuanwei and Fuyuan, Your Majesty sent troops to reinforce them. Now, with Your Majesty’s 10,000 troops in Qujing, it will not be so easy for the Ming army to take Qujing with its city defenses.”

"Since Chuxiong could withstand Your Majesty's attack for half a month, why can't Qujing? Besides, according to the information, the Ming army is not large. Although the Sichuan White-Spear Army is capable, the Guizhou army is not strong. The two combined are roughly equal to the Qujing garrison. Not to mention that the Ming army lacks siege equipment and will find it difficult to take the city, even if the Ming army eventually takes Qujing, the Ming army will likely suffer considerable losses due to the garrison strength of Qujing. By then, the Ming army will be unable to advance westward to Kunming. Moreover, how can Kunming compare to Qujing? As long as Your Majesty deploys a few thousand troops in Kunming, even if the Ming army breaks its teeth, it will definitely not be able to take Kunming!"

"I believe that Your Majesty should immediately lead your troops westward, whether to continue the assault on Chuxiong or to bypass it and attack Dali or Yongchang. Once Mu Tianbo is eliminated, the advantage will be entirely in Your Majesty's hands. At that time, the entire western Yunnan region will be Your Majesty's territory, and Your Majesty will have no worries about the rear. Then you can turn around and march eastward to rescue Qujing, and encircling and annihilating the Ming army will be a piece of cake!"

“What… what if Qujing falls? If Qujing falls, even if the Ming army doesn’t attack Kunming, they can still advance south! Ami Prefecture and other places are my territory. I have been building up these two places for many years. If they fall into the hands of the Ming army, this foundation will be gone!” Sha Dingzhou said, frowning. “What does it matter!” Tang Jiabin said, “Let’s not even talk about whether the Ming army has the ability. Even if they do, temporarily losing two places will not affect the overall situation. Your Majesty is now the ruler of Yunnan. You should have your sights set on the entire Yunnan region. Why focus on small gains and losses? Let the other side gain some advantages for now. As long as the overall situation is in Your Majesty’s hands, won’t the whole of Yunnan eventually belong to Your Majesty?”

Sha Dingzhou frowned and thought for a while, then shook his head and said, "No, no, how can we lose our foundation? How can I face my fellow villagers? People will talk behind my back."

"I think it's best to send troops south and prepare defenses first. If Qujing can be held, that would be ideal. If it can't be held, it can still block the Ming army from advancing south. As for Kunming, I'm not at ease here either. It would be better to stay in Kunming for now and observe the situation. If the Ming army breaks through Qujing and then attacks Kunming, I can also stay here and defend against the Ming army..."

"Your Majesty! Wouldn't this put us at a disadvantage?" Tang Jiabin said anxiously. "If Your Majesty is worried, you can temporarily set aside Chuxiong in the west, send a large force to reinforce Qujing, and fight the Ming army directly in Qujing. Once you defeat the Ming army in the east, Your Majesty can then turn around and advance westward!"

“But that would leave Kunming vulnerable!” Sha Dingzhou said. “What if the Ming army in Chuxiong takes the opportunity to attack? If Kunming is lost, wouldn’t I be in a dilemma? I would have no choice but to retreat to the south, and our excellent situation would change in an instant?”

"I..." Tang Jiabin was extremely frustrated. At this moment, he wished he could find an axe and split open Sha Dingzhou's brain to see what was inside. Was it all straw?
How many Ming troops are there in Chuxiong? Moreover, after Sha Dingzhou's attack on Chuxiong, the Ming army in Chuxiong has suffered considerable losses. How can they possibly be capable of attacking Kunming in such a short time? Even if Mu Tianbo mobilizes troops in the rear, and other chieftains assist in sending troops, it will still take time to gather them together!

Now, time and initiative are in Sha Dingzhou's hands, so what is he afraid of? Besides, is a large city like Kunming so easy to conquer? Sha Dingzhou has a few thousand men here; if he's not comfortable with that, he can easily send tens of thousands. How easy would it be for the Ming army to take Kunming then? Once they've dealt with the Ming reinforcements in the east, they can turn around and coordinate with the Kunming defenders from the inside and outside. How could the Ming army possibly be a match for Sha Dingzhou? What is there to worry about?
"Better safe than sorry!" After Tang Jiabin's earnest persuasion, Sha Dingzhou finally replied with this sentence, leaving Tang Jiabin speechless.

"Your Majesty, why don't we contact Burma immediately and invite them to send troops as soon as possible? Once Burma sends troops, they can reach Yongchang in a few days. If we're lucky enough to kill Mu Tianbo in Yongchang, the situation in Yunnan will be settled!" Helpless, Tang Jiabin brought up the old issue again, suggesting that Burma be invited to send troops so that there would be no need to worry about the western problem.

“But Prime Minister, once Burma sends troops, western Yunnan will fall into their hands. Once the territory is in the hands of the Mang family, it will certainly be lost forever. Wouldn’t that be a huge loss?” Sha Dingzhou asked, his eyes wide and round, with great concern.

"Your Majesty, let's set aside the question of territory for now. Besides, western Yunnan is not currently under Your Majesty's control. Even if Burma occupies some of it, what difference would it make? As long as Your Majesty conquers Yunnan, giving Burma some territory would be worthwhile! Moreover, without the lure of territory, why would Burma be willing to send troops to help Your Majesty?"

“This is not good. I still have the upper hand. Yunnan is mine. Why should I share a piece of the pie with the Mang family? I really can’t bear to part with it!” Sha Dingzhou shook his head and said.

Tang Jiabin was practically going crazy. He cursed Sha Dingzhou in his heart, calling him a worthless strategist, and deeply doubted whether he had been out of his mind to have become such an idiot's advisor.

The priorities are obvious, so what was Sha Dingzhou thinking? Not only was he hesitant and indecisive, but he was also petty. How could someone with such a temperament achieve great things?

Then, Tang Jiabin tried to persuade him again, but Sha Dingzhou remained obstinate. He refused to advance westward immediately, nor was he willing to fully reinforce Qujing and fight the Ming army in the east. He also refused to invite Burma to send troops to help at the cost of his territory in western Yunnan. Instead, he chose what Tang Jiabin considered the worst option: to remain stationed in Kunming, send a troop south to guard his base, and observe the battle in Qujing and the changes in the west, thus remaining "unmoved".

(End of this chapter)