Strategy for the Revitalization of the Late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 130 Vital Power

After He Tengjiao, Zhu Cilang summoned Ma Shixiu and Zhang Huangyan and emphasized to them the training and various military affairs of the Five Battalions of Zuozhen, especially the issue of military discipline during the suppression of bandits and rebellions.

This time when he led his troops to Changsha, he basically took away all the backbone and elite forces of the five battalions of Zuozhen, leaving only some grassroots officers from each battalion. This was a great opportunity for Ma Shixiu and Zhang Huangyan to reorganize the troops of each battalion and rally the morale of the army.

In addition, Zhu Cilang also left behind a thousand soldiers of the Palace Army to ensure that Zhang Huangyan had enough manpower to quickly establish the basic framework of various departments and teaching teams in the various camps of Zuozhen, laying the foundation for the reform.

What Zhu Cilang lacks most now is cadres, and the "Military Academy" is actually his alternative vehicle for training military and political cadres. Although the imperial examination can be reformed, it is impossible to change it beyond recognition.

This had to be done step by step, taking at least five years and at most ten years, and it had to be accompanied by a series of military victories to ensure that Zhu Cilang could overwhelm his opponents inside and outside the court at the critical moment of reform.

Otherwise, the gentry of the world would certainly unite to oppose it, and even the officials in the court would certainly refuse to cooperate and hinder it.

Zhu Cilang cannot push them all to the Tartar side. Moreover, there are so many things in this world that cannot be accomplished by one person alone!

Of course, the transformation of the five battalions of Zuozhen in northern Jiangxi can only be regarded as a simplified version of the Palace Army. The Ming Dynasty currently has limited financial and material resources. Zhu Cilang only requires this army to hold the defense line and does not expect the latter to take the initiative to attack, repel the main force of the Eight Banners, and regain lost territory.

This is actually the difference between the central army and the local army. Before ensuring that he can fully control the situation on all sides, Zhu Cilang certainly cannot tolerate any troops stronger than the Palace Army and the Beijing Camp.

After dealing with these matters, imperial edicts were issued from the temporary palace in Jiujiang Prefecture. After receiving the edicts, Zuo Menggeng, Ma Jinzhong, Jin Shenghuan, Xu Yong, Li Guoying and others hesitated because they were worried about the other soldiers they left behind, but they did not dare to slack off and immediately summoned the troops.

Among them, Wang Yuncheng was specially summoned to lead his cavalry battalion to set off first. Ma Jinzhong knew that this was a great opportunity for them to redeem themselves for their crimes, so he immediately separated half of his cavalry and asked Wang Yuncheng to take them with him to protect the emperor.

As soon as Ma Jinzhong rolled it up, the others saw it and began to speed up the assembly of their troops. Even the food and supplies allocated by Yuan Jixian had not yet set off.

From Jiujiang via Pingxiang-Liling to Changsha, food and fodder were naturally supplied by local prefectures along the march, while the baggage accompanying the army could be transported via Poyang Lake, Ganjiang River, and Yuanjiang River, and then unloaded at the dock outside Yuanzhou Prefecture. Laborers were recruited to transport these baggage across the northern foothills of Wugong Mountain, and then they could be transported to Changsha Prefecture via Lishui and Xiangjiang River.

Among these, the most difficult part is crossing the mountains. The amount of mules and horses required is secondary. The time spent crossing the mountains is the most important. Zhu Cilang must now lead the army to Changsha as quickly as possible to gain the upper hand.

Therefore, Yuan Jixian needed to recruit laborers from all over Pingxiang in advance so that he could transport the supplies to Pingxiang day and night as quickly as possible.

Du Yinxi had already prepared food and fodder in Changsha Prefecture, but after the chaos that swept across Hunan a few years ago, the remaining weapons in the prefecture's arsenal were no longer enough after equipping tens of thousands of garrison troops.

Not only that, the quality and specifications of these weapons were not enough to equip the field army, so Zhu Cilang had to bring the army's baggage and equipment with him.

Of course, the most crucial factor was the subsequent heavy artillery transported from Jiujiang and other cities. Wuchang was controlled by the Qing army, and it was extremely risky for the navy to pass through without the cover of the infantry.

Zhu Cilang wanted to transport the military equipment in northern Jiangxi to Changsha to deter the remaining troops of the Chuang army and for the subsequent battle of Jingzhou, so he could only take the Pingxiang-Liling line.

He led so many troops westward, of course not just to show off his power. Jingzhou City was now only guarded by Zheng Siwei's troops, and unlike Wuchang, there were thousands of Eight Banners troops stationed there. This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

You know, if a strong city like Jingzhou is not recaptured at this time, it will be much more difficult to capture it after the Qing army has stationed tens of thousands of troops there.

Zhu Cilang led Chen Fu, Zhou Shixian and Wang Yuncheng to set off first. Relying on water transportation to transport supplies, the army traveled light and quickly arrived at Yuanzhou Prefecture from Jiujiang.

Here, Zhu Cilang received reports from Du Yinxi and Wang Yingxiong respectively.

"Your Majesty, the rebel forces in Pingjiang and Liuyang appear to have begun gathering their troops and preparing to move north to Jingzhou to join forces with Li Jin and Gao Yigong. With the exception of Hao Yaoqi and Wang Jincai, who have decided to remain in Hunan and await recruitment, and Liu Tichun, who is still hesitant, the remaining rebel forces appear to have already submitted to the Gao family."

After Zhou Shixian finished speaking, he turned to the next page and continued:
"Du Yinxi said in the Tangbao that he was confident of keeping Liu Tichun, but the soldiers and generals under the Gao family were the backbone of the rebel army. Although the various battalions combined only had 6,000 to 7,000 armored soldiers and a few hundred cavalry, as long as they had a foothold, they could quickly mobilize an army of over 100,000. He was now worried that after the Gao family moved north, the rebel army would have lost its backbone and would rebel again.

In addition, Du Yinxi had earlier sent an envoy to Jingzhou to inform the Northern Army of Li Zicheng's death, but the latter still did not believe it and explicitly requested to see Gao Shi and Tian Jianxiu first.

Although Du Yinxi strongly advocated for appeasement and did not oppose the peasant army, in his heart, the interests of the Ming Dynasty came first. It would be best if the remaining troops of the rebel army could be recruited to deal with the Qing army. If not, they must be wiped out.

The current complicated situation and the distrust between the two sides make it difficult for Du Yinxi and Chuang Jun to make judgments easily. They can only take the safest direction among many options, or delay for a while.

"The generals of the Chuang army don't have that much courage. Otherwise, they would have stormed Changsha long ago, or they would have headed for Changde and Hengzhou. Pass on my order and have Wu Jinxi gather all the boats near Yuezhou. Without boats, they naturally wouldn't dare to act rashly."

Zhu Cilang made a prompt decision. He was not going to beg the rebels to surrender, so his methods would naturally have to be tougher, and he had to demonstrate unquestionable strength in order to always have the upper hand in this game.

"Also, send a message to Du Yinxi to gather the troops in Changsha Prefecture. If necessary, win over Hao Yaoqi and Wang Jincai to block the actions of other rebel forces. I must meet with the Gao family in Liuyang."

"Hao Yaoqi and Wang Jincai are both from the Chuang Army. I'm afraid they won't really obey orders." Chen Fu on the side immediately reminded.

"They were both originally just ordinary generals in the Chuang army. If they had gone to Jingzhou in Jiangbei, would they still have their current status?" Zhu Cilang shook his head, then suddenly seemed to remember something and smiled:

"If I really come to it, Hao Yaoqi and I do have quite a connection!"

After hearing this, Chen Fu was also convinced. The current strength of Hao Yaoqi and Wang Jincai is very embarrassing. They are not enough to be independent, but they also play an important role in Xiangbei.

In other words, for the two of them, accepting the amnesty and establishing their own status with these troops is the best option.

When Zhu Cilang saw Chen Fu clasp his hands in agreement, he immediately said to Zhou Shixian, "These decrees must be delivered to Du Yinxi as quickly as possible. There must be no mistakes!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Zhou Shixian obeyed and immediately responded with a bow.

After the urgent report from Du Yinxi was processed, Wang Yingxiong's report was also delivered to Zhu Cilang. This time it was about the chieftain rebellion in Yunnan.

Although Mu Tianbo had received a secret order to be wary of Sha Dingzhou, he did not have the power to truly change the situation, and at this time he still relied on the strategy of appeasement and bribery.

However, this cannot be blamed on him. The chaos among the chieftains in Yunnan and Guizhou has been out of control since the "She'an Rebellion". Although the "She'an Rebellion" was eventually put down, the Ming army in the southwest suffered heavy casualties. The entire situation was already irreversible. The chieftains in various parts of the southwest had to suppress the rebellion one after another.

Pu Mingsheng, the chieftain of Ami Prefecture in southern Yunnan, greatly increased his power after participating in the "She'an Rebellion". Seeing that the strength of the Ming army in the southwest was greatly damaged, his ambition grew and he launched a rebellion in the fourth year of Chongzhen.

At that time, the Ming army was no longer able to encircle and suppress the rebellion. After the inspector Zhao Hongfan sent troops to besiege the city, he also deliberately tried to appease the rebellion. Pu Mingsheng sent people to pretend to surrender, and then he led the chieftain army to attack Dashiping and twelve other chieftains including Sha, forcing the latter to surrender. Then he joined forces with Yuanmou chieftain Wu Bikui and defeated the Ming army.

Of course, after Pu Mingsheng achieved his goal, he quickly accepted the Ming Dynasty's amnesty. This was a very common thing for the chieftains of Yunnan. After all, after being amnesty, they did not have to obey the Ming court's orders.

As for local officials, almost all of them adhered to the principle of less trouble is worse than more. As long as the mutiny was not during their tenure, they would not care about the chieftains' unruly behavior.

Pu Mingsheng was poisoned soon after, but his wife Wan Shi continued to lead the chieftains of southern Yunnan and continued to dominate the area. After that, Wan Shi recruited the Annan chieftain Sha Dingzhou as her son-in-law, and the Sha Pu and Pu forces became stronger.

From the 17th year of Chongzhen to the first year of Dingwu, the situation in the north completely collapsed, especially after Zhang Xianzhong led his troops from Hunan to Sichuan and established Dashi. After consultation with Governor Wu Zhaoyuan and Inspector Wu Wenying, Duke of Qian decided to mobilize the Ming army and chieftain army in Yunnan to the north to prevent the Dashi army from entering Yunnan, which gave the chieftains in Yunnan an opportunity to rebel.

Among them, Wu Bikui, the chieftain of Yuanmou who had allied with Pu Mingsheng in his early years, had long harbored rebellious intentions and repeatedly declared behind Pu Mingsheng's back: "Emperor Zhu is gone, so how can there be any Duke Mu!"

After receiving Zhu Cilang's secret order, Mu Tianbo immediately ordered the mobilization of the loyal Ming chieftains Long Zaitian of Shiping, Wang Yangzu of Li'e, Lu Yongming of Ningzhou, Diao Xun of Jingdong, and Sha Dingzhou of Mengzi.

Now, Wang Yingxiong has assembled a large army in Zunyi, so Mu Tianbo does not need to send troops to guard the north and can focus on guarding against Wu Bikui and Sha Dingzhou. However, the situation has changed because of this. The two of them have actually contacted each other secretly and are likely to act at the same time.

In the original history, Wu Bikui successively captured Dayao, Dingyuan, and Yao'an, shocking Yunnan. However, Mu Tianbo assembled a large army and defeated him in September, capturing Wu Bikui and his followers alive. Later, Sha Dingzhou, with the support of his brother-in-law, Tang Jiabin, a student from Lin'an Prefecture, exploited the conflict between the Mu Prefecture and the Yunnan Governor and the Three Officials, as well as the dissenting stances of the various chieftains and the turbulent situation in the Central Plains, to launch a rebellion in Kunming.

This massive rebellion, which swept across most of Yunnan, was not finally put down until the Dashi Army entered Yunnan. However, the remnants of Shapu's forces still existed and were not finally put down until Wu Sangui came to power in Yunnan. This shows how strong their foundation was.

After Zhou Shixian finished reading the report, Chen Fu's mind was still very confused. At this time, the Ming Dynasty was in chaos. In addition to the Qing army in the north, all parts of the south were unstable. This two-hundred-year-old house was completely leaky.

Yunnan is located in the southwest. In the early stage of Zhu Cilang's overall grand strategy, it did not occupy an important position and was rarely mentioned in military meetings. Chen Fu naturally did not understand the situation, but after hearing so much military intelligence, he also realized that the situation was critical.

"Your Majesty is worried that Duke Mu's troops are insufficient and wants to transfer the troops assembled by Lord Wang to the south?"

However, after hearing this, Zhu Cilang just shook his head and said:

"Southern Yunnan has a complex terrain, and the Tusi are powerful and have deep roots. Even if Wang Yingxiong mobilized all his troops, the elite would only be 5,000 to 6,000 strong. Although the rest of the troops are said to number in the tens of thousands, they cannot have a fundamental impact on the situation.

With this small number of troops, if a war really breaks out, it will probably be like the previous pacification of She'an. It will take at least three to five years to completely resolve the problem.

"The Qing army, having been blocked from advancing south, will certainly be forced to regroup in Sichuan. If the troops Wang Yingxiong has assembled are diverted, another heavy force will have to be deployed to guard Chongqing and Guizhou. Otherwise, the situation in southern Sichuan will be difficult to control."

Chen Fu also understood that the current situation was still grim, and Yunnan's geographical location was not critical. At least Sichuan was blocked by western bandits, and Chongqing and Guizhou were still in the hands of the Ming Dynasty. Yunnan was just an ordinary rear base, and it was indeed inappropriate to directly transfer Wang Yingxiong's troops.

"So, Your Majesty is asking Duke Mu to first stabilize the chieftains of southern Yunnan and buy time?"

"The remaining rebel forces have yet to be properly dealt with, and the situation in Huguang remains uncertain. This is all we can do for now," Zhu Cilang sighed. "Whether the current situation in the southwest and Huguang can be revived depends on the success of the Chuang army's pacification efforts!"

The Ming Dynasty currently lacks troops, but needs to defend everywhere. For Zhu Cilang, Yunnan is simply out of reach.

Therefore, the remaining troops of the rebel army were of vital importance to him, not only concerning the situation in Huguang, but also the stability of Yunnan.

Chen Fu looked at Zhu Cilang's expression and felt even more puzzled for a moment. Since Yunnan was not that important, His Majesty should not have such an expression!
Zhu Cilang did not say much, and immediately drafted a new decree, instructing Mu Tianbo to continue to stabilize the chieftain, especially to guard against Sha Dingzhou.

Although the Wusha and other chieftains were powerful, they did not have strong enough appeal to other chieftains. This was determined by the special provincial conditions of Yunnan.

Due to its special geographical location and historical development, Yunnan's management system is very different from that of other Han provinces. In addition to the Military Command, Provincial Administration and Censorate established in Yunnan in the early Ming Dynasty, the Ming Dynasty later established a governor to govern.

Moreover, since there are many chieftains in Yunnan, Xiping Hou Mu Ying has been guarding the area for generations since the Hongwu period. The Mu family not only holds a great deal of military power, but also holds a pivotal position in politics and economy.

What Zhu Cilang actually valued was the copper mines in Yunnan. He had to mine them as soon as possible to alleviate the court's current financial crisis caused by the large-scale military expansion, and through financial means, squeeze military funds from the gentry who controlled silver.

But now, Yunnan's copper mines are in the hands of chieftains and local forces. He needs a minister who is loyal, capable, and powerful enough to lead a strong army into Yunnan and take over Yunnan for him.
.
At the same time, on the official road southwest of Nanchang City, Ma Jinzhong and Jin Shenghuan's troops were on the road, with Xu Yong and Li Guoying in front of them and Zuo Menggeng behind them.

Jin Shenghuan quickly caught up with Ma Jinzhong's troops and came to the center of his army, riding side by side with Ma Jinzhong. At first, the two of them just chatted with each other incoherently, including some words of loyalty to Zhu Cilang.

But soon, the two men each brought dozens of personal soldiers to the side of the official road, and signaled their personal soldiers to be on guard all around, for fear that the spies of the Jinyiwei would overhear their private conversation again.

Of course, this is not just a problem for the Jinyiwei. Ever since the news came that Li Zicheng was killed by the militia in Jiugong Mountain, these generals of Zuozhen would bring dozens of personal soldiers for self-defense every time they left their main force.

"Your Majesty has mobilized all the elite troops from our five battalions this time. I'm afraid he intends to fight the rebels head-on." Jin Shenghuan said in a deep voice:
"This is a rare opportunity for us. We might even be able to take advantage of it to recruit a group of elite surrendered soldiers to strengthen our forces and surpass Xu Yong and Li Guoying."

Ma Jinzhong was now very afraid of Zhu Cilang, especially after his conspiracy with Wang Yuncheng was discovered by him, he was often uneasy. After hearing this, he looked around habitually, then turned back and whispered:

"That's right. Given your majesty's temperament, if those rebels don't know what's good for them, you'll definitely resort to force. I was once a rebel, and their strength is no match for the Palace Army. Now they've been divided into several parts. It's easy for us to defeat them one by one."

After hearing this, Jin Shenghuan rolled his eyes inwardly. When Zuo Liangyu withdrew his troops from Wuchang, he sent Ma Jinzhong to lead the troops to block them. The enemy fled before they even saw the shadow of the Chuang army. Now he started bragging.

However, he came to Ma Jinzhong today to cooperate with him, so naturally he would not show such emotions.

"After Li Zicheng's death, the various armies of the rebel army were no longer a force to be reckoned with. Otherwise, they wouldn't have been confined to Pingjiang and Liuyang, delaying their attack on prefectures and counties. The few troops under Du Yinxi's command were of little combat power.

Right now, the most important thing is to secure an opportunity to dispatch troops. Wang Yuncheng is currently by Your Majesty's side, so he must be aware of the latest military developments and Your Majesty's thoughts."

Ma Jinzhong nodded after hearing this. He had long wanted to atone for his sins, but hadn't found a way to do so. Furthermore, his strength wasn't enough to take all the credit alone. He and Jin Shenghuan were a perfect match.

"I've already told Wang Yuncheng that any news will be reported back immediately. You don't have to worry about that. We have to be on guard against Xu Yong and Li Guoying now."

"Humph, what's the point of guarding against them?" Jin Shenghuan also selectively ignored Zuo Menggeng and said coldly:
"The people we should be most wary of right now are Ma Shixiu and Zhang Huangyan, the chief instructor sent by His Majesty. During the time we followed His Majesty on the expedition, I'm afraid those tens of thousands of troops must have been bribed by them."

"But can you and I disobey His Majesty's order?" Ma Jinzhong had thought of this, but he had already given up resisting Zhu Cilang's order.

"We are subjects after all. Even if we don't accept it, we have to endure it. And..."

"Just say what you want to say. There are only two of us here, so why hide things?" Jin Shenghuan raised his eyebrows.

Although they all wanted to make up for their previous mistakes and deceive the army about its true situation and falsely report the number of soldiers, they all had complaints about Zhu Cilang's arrangements, especially towards Zhang Huangyan and the group of officers he brought to Zuozhen. They were quite hostile to him.

Zhu Cilang also anticipated that they would definitely interfere in the process of military reform, so he took the opportunity of subduing the Chuang army to transfer them westward.

"Old Jin, don't say that I, Old Ma, am cowardly, and don't think that I, Old Ma, am stupid. I, Old Ma, was born into a peasant family, and I have made it to where I am today. In terms of means and abilities, I am no worse than you, and in terms of loyalty, I am no less than you." Ma Jinzhong sighed, even changed his address, and said quietly.

"Damn it, stop playing tricks and say what you want to say!" Jin Shenghuan got a little anxious and cursed at Ma Jinzhong.

Ma Jinzhong still looked as if he was hesitant to speak, and looked mysterious. He paused before saying:

"I've actually figured it out. We can't be like General Zuo and disobey the imperial orders. Your Majesty is different from the late emperor. Can you and I handle that? Even if General Zuo were to come back to life, I'm afraid he'd only be able to hold on for a while.

Think about it, His Majesty has only been in Jiujiang for a few days, and he's already figured out everything about our five battalions in the Left Town. And that Fu Shangrui is so arrogant, and he demoted him without hesitation, without any hesitation."

After listening to this, Jin Shenghuan did not say anything, but just stared at Ma Jinzhong. He probably guessed what the other party wanted to say, and suddenly he felt a little regretful that he had just wanted to take the opportunity to annex the troops of the Chuang Army and expand his strength.

Upon seeing this, Ma Jinzhong angrily shouted:
"Damn it, don't think that I, Old Ma, will sell you out. I'm telling you all this today just to remind you not to play tricks in front of His Majesty.

If Your Majesty grants us this opportunity, we will fight with all our might and achieve great things. Your Majesty is clear about rewards and punishments, and will certainly not treat us unfairly. If Your Majesty has other arrangements, we will strive for them if we can, but if we can't, we should not be too clever. Otherwise, we will only end up bringing shame upon ourselves."

Jin Shenghuan nodded meaningfully. He naturally understood the implicit meaning of Ma Jinzhong's words, and he also knew that he could not defeat the current emperor.

However, on this issue, he did not think as thoroughly as Ma Jinzhong. Until now, he was still thinking of taking advantage of the chaos to annex troops and expand his strength.

Ma Jinzhong and Jin Shenghuan both believed in the promises that Zhu Cilang had made for them. After the grand military review, they truly believed that Zhu Cilang could defeat the Qing army and revive the Ming Dynasty!

(End of this chapter)