I am the prince of the Ming Dynasty, I don't give up

Chapter 451 Naturalized Army

Zhu Houzhao looked at Niu Zhongxia in the crowd, with a hint of appreciation in his eyes. What Niu Zhongxia had done had far exceeded his expectations.

Then he turned to He Song and said, "Do you still think it's hasty now?"

He Song's face turned awkward, and he said, "Your Majesty, I was rude just now. Now it seems that your Majesty's reputation has made these people sincerely convinced."

"However, these Mongols have only been here for a short time and their hearts are settled. Even if Your Majesty wants to recruit Mongols into the army, the number should not be too large." He Song continued.

Zhu Houzhao nodded without comment, and then said to Jiang Jiangong: "I'll leave this matter to you, and I'll also leave that kid to you. Organize a cavalry unit composed of Mongolians, call it the Naturalized Army, and let this unit follow us to conquer the bandit chieftain Barsborot."

"As you command!" Jiang Jiangong said immediately, "But I don't know how many naturalized troops should be established?"

"Let's temporarily set the number at 3,000. The King of Jing will send a batch of weapons and armor to equip them. They can provide their own horses, and each person will be given one or two taels of silver per month!" Zhu Houzhao said.

"Your Majesty, are you still going to lead this naturalized army to the battlefield?" He Song asked hurriedly.

"Yes, I want to see how these Mongols perform on the battlefield."

He Song was very anxious after hearing this, and he knew that he could not persuade Zhu Houzhao, so he gritted his teeth and said: "Then please bring another 10,000 cavalry from the Hetao Commandery when your Majesty goes to fight in person, just to be on the safe side."

Zhu Houzhao's face darkened after hearing this. He said, "The Hetao Commandery only has 20,000 cavalrymen in total. If you let me take 10,000 of them, I will only have 10,000 cavalrymen left. How can you deal with the Tatars who keep harassing us?"

"Don't worry, Your Majesty. I have my own way," He Song said with his neck stiff.

"How can I feel at ease if you do this?" Zhu Houzhao said coldly.

He Song stopped talking
"I know what you are worried about. Aren't you afraid that those Mongols will turn against us? I'm not afraid at all. The bandit chief has only 20,000 followers and 5,000 troops. I have 13,000 cavalry guards. Even if those Mongols turn against us, I'm not afraid at all. I think you are being too cautious." Zhu Houzhao said unhappily.

"Your Majesty is responsible for the country and the people. I have to be careful. I can't be careless," He Song said immediately.

Zhu Houzhao's expression became even more unhappy. He was about to speak when Jiang Jiangong at the side spoke first.
"Since Your Majesty and General He are unable to reach an agreement, why not come up with a compromise solution?" Jiang Jiangong said with a smile.

"How to compromise?" Zhu Houzhao asked.

"The Tatars have been harassing us a lot recently, and the Hetao Commandery's cavalry can't be moved easily, but the Hetao Commandery still has 10,000 infantry guards. It would be better to let these 10,000 infantry ride on horses and dismount to fight when they encounter the enemy." Jiang Jiangong said. He Song's eyes lit up after hearing this, and he felt that this suggestion was really a win-win strategy.

The 10,000 infantrymen of the Hetao Dusi were usually stationed in various Han towns in Hetao to guard the towns.

Moreover, there is no need to worry about the towns being left unguarded by withdrawing them for a period of time, because the immigrants in Hetao are mainly military households from the three garrisons. Although they have been transformed into civilian households, their weapons and equipment have not been taken back because they are settling in Hetao. These former military households still have some combat effectiveness, and there is no problem in guarding the towns.

Zhu Houzhao's frown also relaxed a little.
"The bandit chieftain and his followers are hiding in the Yin Mountains, where the terrain is complex. If the bandit chieftain defends himself, our army, which is composed entirely of cavalry, will have no means of attacking the enemy, and a forced attack will only result in heavy casualties. If we bring along 10,000 infantry equipped with various artillery pieces, we can suppress the enemy or attack the enemy," Jiang Jiangong continued.

These words were well-reasoned and Zhu Houzhao nodded repeatedly after hearing them.
There is no shortage of various mules and horses in the Hetao area, and these mules and horses can be used to improve the mobility of the infantry.

He Songze could fully accept this plan. With 23,000 guards around him, the emperor was as stable as a rock.
"I agree with Chief of Staff Jiang's proposal," He Song said immediately.

Zhu Houzhao's mood also improved a lot. He looked at He Song and said, "I understand your intention, but if the Ming Dynasty wants to completely control the Mongolian grassland and ensure long-term peace and stability on the entire grassland, it must mobilize and arm the Mongols who are loyal to the Ming Dynasty. Just like the recent offensive of the Tatars, if we can mobilize and arm 20,000 naturalized Mongolian cavalry, the current situation on the battlefield will be reversed. So sooner or later we will have to take this step. In this case, why not take this step now?"

"Your Majesty is wise." He Song, relieved, completely followed Zhu Houzhao's lead.

"I'm leaving the man named Niu Zhongxia in your care. Please pay more attention to take care of him and don't let him die so easily on the battlefield." Zhu Houzhao said to Jiang Jiangong.

"I accept your order!"

The content of Niu Zhongxia's speech spread quickly. His speech touched the hearts of naturalized Mongolians, and more and more young and strong Mongolians came to sign up.

"Brother Tuzhigen, it's done, it's done. Within one day, five or six thousand people signed up to join the army." Chenggeltu said excitedly.

"I see!" Niu Zhongxia looked at the Mongolian applicants around him with high spirits.

Niu Zhongxia was quite surprised that so many people applied for the military service. After all, being a soldier is a dangerous thing. The living conditions of Mongolians are much better now than before, and not everyone is willing to take the risk to join the army.
However, Niu Zhongxia figured out what was going on, because these naturalized Mongolians were really frightened or awakened by the massacre.
They want to be re-armed, to have armed forces
Because before that they were all prisoners of the Ming army, and their weapons and armor were confiscated. Even today, the Mongols in the Hetao region are strictly restricted from owning weapons and armor.

So they wanted to arm themselves urgently and regain their military power, not to rebel against the Ming Dynasty, but to prevent similar massacres from happening again.
Niu Zhongxia soon learned about the organization of the naturalized army, and selected the best Mongolians who had applied for the army. It took him two days to set up the basic structure of the naturalized army.
Jiang Jiangong unceremoniously sent a group of Guards soldiers and officers to serve as officers at all levels of the Naturalized Army. He personally served as the temporary chief of the Naturalized Army, and Niu Zhongxia served as the deputy chief.

The corresponding weapons, equipment and supplies were quickly delivered to the naturalized troops.
"Brother Tuzhigen, these are all good stuff!" Cheng Geletu drooled as he looked at the weapons and armor in his hands.
These things that the guards looked down upon seemed so excellent in his eyes.
(End of this chapter)