Strategy for the Revitalization of the Late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 203 Far ahead
With the construction of villages and forts in various parts of Jiangbei, Huguang and Jiangxi, there are now 50,000 registered peasant soldiers under the Five Military Governor's Office. The peasant soldier system in Jiangbei has been developed for the longest time and is the most complete. The scale of Huguang is larger, and Jiangxi is promoted on a small scale. Due to the issue of land ownership, it has encountered many difficulties.

Now, under Zhu Cilang's deployment, the Ministry of War and the Five Military Governor's Office are planning to transfer officers during the slack farming season in various places to train these peasant soldiers in order to reserve manpower for future military expansion.

However, under the current productivity conditions, these peasant soldiers have very little slack time in the summer and autumn. If they want to carry out long-term training, they must make full use of the slack time in winter and make use of the retired officers in normal times to train basic formations in advance.

After all, as the imperial army gradually recovered to a size of hundreds of thousands and preparations were made for the Northern Expedition, the conscription of laborers became more frequent, and manpower became increasingly scarce. Farmers and soldiers from all over the country had to begin to bear part of the labor.

Moreover, under the current situation, the peasant soldiers may have to go to the battlefield at any time. If the main forces in various places all attack, the camp soldiers will participate in the war as auxiliary military forces, and they will become the key force of local garrison.

Zhu Cilang had only briefly expanded and reorganized his various armies over the past year, and the total strength was still insufficient to support a full-scale Northern Expedition. He also had no plans for a large-scale overhaul of the military's organization, simply increasing the proportion of cavalry within the army.

You must know that in addition to the navy of Zhang Mingzhen, Huang Fei and others going north to Denglai and Liaohai to harass and contain the Qing army, the terrain of the North China Plain has determined the final form of the Northern Expedition - large-scale mobile warfare, or formation warfare within mobile warfare.

Large-scale military operations on the vast plains required the Ming army to make adjustments and improvements in weapons, logistics, tactics, dispatch, and other aspects to increase the army's overall combat effectiveness. However, this kind of thing could not be rushed and required actual combat testing in order to make effective improvements.

Now, the Ming army has no ability to launch further attacks, and the same is true for the Qing army. Both Zhu Cilang and Dorgon are now recuperating and accumulating strength.

But the situations faced by the Ming and Qing dynasties were completely different. The Ming dynasty could now afford to lose, but the Qing dynasty could no longer afford to lose.

In other words, the situation has reached the point where the Qing court has no choice but to defeat the main force of the Ming army in the Northern Expedition.

Otherwise, there would be no need for Zhu Cilang. Even the Khans of Outer Mongolia and the Han military leaders in various parts of the north would have risen up against the Qing Dynasty. Even a civil war within the Qing court would have been inevitable.

You must know that if it were not for the powerful military force of the Qing court, the Outer Mongolians would never have surrendered. In the few years since the Qing army entered the pass alone, the Outer Mongolians had rebelled several times, and Duoduo personally led troops out of the border to suppress them.

Most of the Han Chinese military leaders in various places, even Wu Sangui, Shang Kexi, Jin Li and others, were not completely without a way out. In fact, they were all watching the situation, just like Wang Tizhong and Wang Deren, waiting for the opportunity to make a choice.

The Qing Dynasty was nothing more than a semi-slave regime that relied on high pressure and force to maintain its rule. Once it lost its military power, it could collapse at any time.

However, the time is not right yet, and Zhu Cilang's focus is still on expanding the army and enhancing its combat effectiveness. In particular, in order to cope with the characteristics of fighting on plains and fields, he must supply the army with sufficient war horses and firearms.

Prior to this, the Ming army's main firearms, aside from the turtledove-foot musket, were primarily the light matchlock muskets brought by Portuguese colonists, and their modified version, the bird musket. This type of musket was very popular in East Asia at the time due to its lightness, ease of operation, and impressive power.

However, although the light matchlock gun was useful in the mountainous southern region and at sea, it was not powerful enough to deal with heavily armored cavalry on the vast plains of the north, and it could not compare with the dove-foot gun and the Rumi gun.

The Jinyiwei spies deployed by Zhou Shixian in Beijing have already reported back the latest military intelligence. With the assistance of missionaries, Dorgon has begun to organize craftsmen to imitate heavy matchlock guns.

In the decisive battle on the Great Plains, if the Ming army's firearms units were not equipped with heavy matchlock guns, they would probably be at a serious disadvantage in the musket exchange.

Zhu Cilang has ordered the workshops to produce muskets other than the turtledove-foot gun as quickly as possible. The Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of Works and the Ministry of War have also come up with new production plans based on the existing resources. With the current financial resources of the Ming Dynasty and the productivity of the workshops, it is enough to produce 3,000 heavy matchlock guns in one year.

Moreover, he also used the help of the Portuguese in Macau to speed up the innovation of firearms.

Not only that, with the assistance of these Portuguese, Zhu Cilang successfully occupied a place in the maritime trade of Southeast Asia by strengthening the navy of Guangdong.

The Portuguese in East Asia were originally under heavy blows from various forces and were in a situation of internal and external difficulties. Zhu Cilang provided them with huge policy benefits and trade opportunities in a timely manner, which directly brought them back to life.

Of course, Zheng Zhilong still dominated the trade with Japan and Korea by virtue of his years of accumulated prestige and the relationships he had built up in Japan. However, after receiving clear instructions from Zhu Cilang, Zhang Mingzhen had also begun to interfere in trade with Ryukyu, Japan, Korea and other places in the name of the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, using the excuse of enthronement and tribute.

As time went by, the autumn harvest began in Jiangnan, Hubei, Jiangxi, and Fujian, and the training of new recruits in various departments also entered the intensive stage. Countless money, food, and people were being continuously transported to the battlefield along the Yangtze River system and the sea routes of the southeast coast.

With the strong support of the central court, accessible waterways, and constantly repaired official roads, the goods produced by workshops across the country quickly occupied every city with heavy troops stationed, and even formed a strong monopoly position. Consumable goods such as cigarettes were also smuggled in large quantities into the areas controlled by the Qing court through the Jinyiwei.

The products produced by small private workshops could only be sold locally. After all, the local taxes and customs fees, as well as the extortion by government officials and guilds, were simply too much for those small workshops to bear.

You have to know that in this era, even if a local gentry has extensive connections and deep networks, when he goes to a neighboring state capital, he may not be able to compete with the local tyrants who have been entrenched in the area for many years. He may even suffer losses and have to leave politely.

Of course, Zhu Cilang did not intend to turn the entire economy into a state-run enterprise. He only wanted to promote the development of productivity and raise enough military funds for the Northern Expedition, rather than destroy the private handicrafts and commerce.

Otherwise, in the end, as the business expands, local bureaucrats will become increasingly difficult to control, and the ones who ultimately benefit will only be the bureaucrats who depend on this system, not the people of the Ming Dynasty.

The time is far from ripe, and these constructions need to be stopped in moderation!

However, the huge expenses of more than 100,000 field troops, weapons and equipment, maintaining stability in various places, training new recruits, etc. exceeded the estimates of Zhu Cilang and the ministers in the court. Jiangxi took the opportunity to suppress the rebellious soldiers and could not avoid a round of killing and chaos. The construction of some village forts was eventually reduced than the original plan.

Of course, relying on the powerful military force and officials at all levels deep in the county town and the peasant soldier system deep in the countryside, Zhu Cilang has established a strong rule in various places, and the effect is quite significant. Various places in Jiangxi did not react excessively to the "bandit suppression".

After all, the Qing army was now levying heavy taxes and even robbing people to meet their needs. In comparison, Zhu Cilang was too kind to these gentry!
He has already used the huge profits from the rapid growth of maritime trade, the tremendous productivity of workshops, as well as banks, trading companies, and the recovering business and tax cards in various places to use most of the resources under his rule for war in a more efficient way with relatively mild means.

This has enabled his army to surpass the Eight Banners Army of the Qing Dynasty in terms of logistical supplies, weapons and equipment, and training intensity. With the accumulation of this over time, it is only a matter of time before their combat effectiveness surpasses that of the Eight Banners Army.

As the earlier technological accumulation gradually fermented, good news came from the "Yingtian Weapon Bureau". The six-pound gun that was more suitable for mobile warfare had been successfully developed and passed the military's acceptance test.

When Zhu Cilang heard the news, he became impatient and immediately ordered Lin Changfu to arrange people and horses, and he wanted to personally inspect the artillery workshop of the Ordnance Bureau.

He had been a little distracted by dealing with government affairs during this period, and now it was a good opportunity for him to go and see these big guys and see the current development of the "Yingtian Weapon Bureau" to see if it was really as good as reported.

After receiving the order, Lin Changfu immediately mobilized hundreds of soldiers from the imperial camp and led the team personally to escort Zhu Cilang on horseback towards the artillery workshop in the north of the city. Most of the firearms workshops of the "Yingtian Weapon Bureau" were concentrated there.

They soon arrived at the north of Nanjing, a workshop surrounded by two high walls. There were three checkpoints outside the gate alone, and two small watchtowers and arrow towers on the left and right sides. More than thirty fully armed soldiers were on duty.

This is currently the largest firearms workshop in the Ming Dynasty. Not only cannons, but also muskets and gunpowder are produced here, ensuring the supply of most of the military equipment for the central army, left army, right army and Beijing camp in front of the palace. Naturally, it needs to be strictly guarded.

Moreover, since the incident happened suddenly, Zhu Cilang did not leak any information about his inspection in advance. The officials in the workshop had no idea that the emperor was coming, so they naturally could not make preparations to welcome him in advance.

He originally planned to launch a "surprise attack" so that he could see the most authentic "Yingtian Weapons Bureau".

The most difficult thing for people in Zhu Cilang's position is to see the real situation at the grassroots level.

When the soldiers of the imperial camp rode up to the gate to report, before they showed their badges, the sergeant leading the sentry in front of the gate was startled. He sent someone to ask for instructions from his superiors and also ordered the gate to be opened.

Although these soldiers had been stationed in Nanjing for many years, this was essentially their first time seeing Zhu Cilang's face. They knelt on either side of the road, not daring to raise their heads for fear of offending him. After crossing the outer wall, Lin Changfu left most of the imperial camp on guard duty while he, along with dozens of other soldiers, escorted Zhu Cilang into the heavily guarded artillery production workshop.

If other ministers came to inspect, the inspection would actually be more strict, and there would not even be any possibility of leniency. But Zhu Cilang was different. Although he still ordered Lin Changfu to cooperate fully.

Zhu Cilang quickly entered the artillery workshop, where there were more than 900 craftsmen and thousands of miscellaneous logistics personnel. Together with other firearms workshops in the surrounding area, the various equipment such as muskets and artillery produced accounted for about 30% of the current Dingwu court.

At this time, the "Yingtian Weapon Bureau" was still divided into more than a dozen workshops such as "cannons", "muskets", "bows and crossbows", "swords and guns", "armor", "shields", etc. according to the division originally made by Zhang Huangyan and several officials from the Ministry of War.

Nowadays, with sufficient materials, the local craftsmen of the Ming Dynasty can manufacture not only various cold weapons and old-style muskets and artillery such as the French cannon, the tiger squat cannon, and the bird gun. Various excellent firearms imported from overseas can also be manufactured, and to a certain extent, they can bring forth new ones.

As early as three years ago, Zhu Cilang had planned the future expansion of the army, especially the new types of muskets and artillery to be equipped after the army was transformed from a defensive army to an offensive army.

Although his plans had been changed in recent years due to actual combat tests, the products produced by the workshop, thanks to the skilled masters recruited from Macau by the Ministry of War and the advanced management system, had directly replaced the artillery factory in Macau.

The new management system, the organization of primary assembly line production, division of labor and cooperation, the training of new craftsmen, and a flexible salary incentive system, all of which are related to the efficiency and progress of firearms production, have indeed improved the productivity of the workshop through management reforms.

When the officials from the Ministry of War set out for Macau, Zhu Cilang instructed them to buy more books on weapons manufacturing, military strategies and military formations. These books are now beginning to come in handy.

He originally planned to translate the weapon manufacturing books bought from Macau into Chinese characters, and then print them into books, in preparation for establishing a special craftsman school and training craftsmen in batches.

Now, the Craftsman School has taken shape, and these books have been widely circulated in the workshops. All types of production processes in the workshops have been improved to various degrees, and it is time to reap the rewards.

In other words, the current craftsmen of the Ming Dynasty not only know how to create new firearms, but also do not follow the old ways of copying. A considerable number of them have the ability to learn and have already understood the scientific theories involved, know the caliber ratios and even the modules of different artillery pieces, and are able to optimize and develop artillery technology in terms of structure.

This is how Zhu Cilang, the superior, used his advantages to accelerate the establishment of the scientific system in the Ming Dynasty.

In the near future, the Ming Dynasty will use this to gain an overwhelming weapon advantage over the Qing Dynasty, and even after recovering the Han territory, over the Russians in the north and the Dutch in the southeast.

After entering the workshop, Zhu Cilang went straight to the workshop's chief officials. Accompanied by these officials, he personally inspected the production process of six-pound cannons, four-pound cannons, other siege cannons, and even gun mounts, special fixed explosives for cannons, etc.

Today, all workshops of the "Yingtian Weapon Bureau" have established a complete set of record and innovation systems, and have begun to establish a systematic experimental system based on written records and scientific manufacturing methods.

Of course, Zhu Cilang didn't actually understand the specific issues of weapons manufacturing, but he knew that the essence of scientific and technological inventions was actually a matter of probability. As long as the environment and conditions were right, as the experiment deepened and the number of experiments approached infinity, success would come sooner or later.

As the emperor of the Ming Dynasty, he certainly couldn't directly direct the development of science, but he could create the right conditions. It seems that results are already slowly emerging, and in another three to five years, or even a dozen years, everything might enter a new stage.

After Zhu Cilang completed a routine inspection and found no problems, he went directly to the artillery test site to watch the test firing of the new six-pound cannon. This was the real purpose of his trip.

He came to the artillery test site of the "Yingtian Weapon Bureau". In the direction of the artillery position, more than twenty artillerymen were fiddling with three newly made six-pound cannons in the shooting range. Zhang Tianxian, the flag commander of these artillerymen, watched his soldiers adjusting the artillery from afar. He was very nervous, fearing that these people would make mistakes.

"Your Majesty, once they have measured the angle of the artillery, they can start test firing. It may not be very accurate at the beginning, but..." Zhang Tianxian said, swallowing his saliva uncontrollably.

He was now standing next to the current world. Where had he seen such a scene before? How could he not be nervous?
"I know, just let them do it!" Zhu Cilang also felt the other party's nervousness and said slowly.

However, this did not relieve Zhang Tianxian's nervousness. Hearing this, he hurriedly asked tremblingly:
"If your majesty has any further instructions, I will carry them out immediately."

Zhu Cilang couldn't help but smile after hearing this, and then he said softly, "Don't be nervous. I came here recently to check out the six-pounder cannon. Even if this cannon doesn't fire well, it has nothing to do with you."

"Yes, yes." Zhang Tianxian was usually a good talker, but he was uneasy because of the various crackdowns and rectifications during this period. When he saw Zhu Cilang at this time, he was even more scared.

"Have you retired from the army? Have you been staying in the workshop all this time?" Zhu Cilang asked again when he saw that the other party finally relaxed.

In his impression, those who could serve as officers at the workshop artillery test site should be veterans who retired due to injuries, or excellent officers with extremely rich experience, so he was very kind to Zhang Tianxian.

"Your Majesty, I was hit by a Tartar cannonball while on the city wall during the Battle of Fengyang. Although I was rescued, my legs and feet are no longer in good condition and I cannot go to the battlefield. Thanks to Your Majesty's grace, I am now able to command the artillery inspection in the workshop."

After hearing this, Zhu Cilang smiled and nodded, then asked Zhang Tianxian a few more questions about his recent situation. He felt relieved when he heard that his monthly salary was five taels and three cents, and that as an officer who had won medals, he was respected everywhere, had a wife and a concubine, and lived in a house with two courtyards.

Due to Zhu Cilang's special attention, the workshop's assessment system was also biased. Craftsmen who made firearms, as well as officers in the firearms testing ground, found it easier and higher to get promoted or receive monthly salaries. This also made the firearms class the most popular in the craftsman school.

Today, each of these artisans thrives, with no layers of exploitation within the workshop and a fair assessment and promotion system. However, as the first batch of students from the Artisan School graduate, many are under increasing pressure, which is one of the reasons that motivates them to research day and night.

Zhu Cilang then chatted with the other party about some specific things happening inside the workshop. Under such circumstances, the latter told him everything he knew and did not dare to hide anything.

In this era, the emperor's deterrent power over ordinary people is really too great.

About a quarter of an hour later, the gunners at the artillery position finally adjusted the angle and began to test the gun. The first test was indeed inaccurate, but a hole was directly created where the shell hit, which shows how powerful it was.

After the artillery test firing, Zhu Cilang walked over and took a look at the three six-pound cannons. He had been in the army for a long time and was very familiar with military weapons. He could tell at a glance that this new six-pound cannon was much smaller than the original six-pound cannon, and the barrel was also very short, less than seven feet.

On the battlefield, the four-pounder, due to its small caliber, was not powerful enough for long-range harassment and could not capture simple fortifications. The eight-pounder, weighing a thousand pounds, was powerful but had poor maneuverability and could not meet the needs of mobile warfare.

"Your Majesty, this newly developed six-pounder has a measured net weight of approximately 670 kilograms. Its rate of fire is the same as that of a four-pounder. A skilled gunner can fire it faster than a musket. Each gun generally requires four crew members. In extreme battlefield conditions, two can operate it, but the rate of fire will be lower."

Zhang Tianxian followed Zhu Cilang closely and nervously introduced:

"This six-pounder is much more powerful than the four-pounder. Even at a distance of more than 500 steps, it can shatter a shield cart. At a distance of about 300 steps, nothing can stop it, and it can fire scattershot.

The artillerymen carefully collect and strictly record the experimental data of this gun at the artillery test site every time. The medicine used and ammunition weight, distance and power of each shot are now reliably recorded. Based on these records, the artillerymen will adjust the entire firing process to the best possible level and provide feedback to the workshop.

As soon as Zhang Tianxian finished speaking, three explosions sounded instantly. Five of the targets in a row five hundred steps away from the artillery position shattered and fell down instantly. The surrounding targets shook violently, and even the wooden stakes supporting these targets vibrated.

Seeing this scene, Zhu Cilang nodded with satisfaction. The shooting accuracy of these artillerymen was quite good. They could achieve such an effect after just one test.

Of course, he also knew that this was related to the range and caliber of the artillery. At the same time, these artillerymen fired at the same target countless times, so the accuracy was naturally far beyond the actual situation on the battlefield.

However, none of this matters. He has already seen a trend of technological advancement in the "Yingtian Weapon Bureau", and this is the most important thing.

(End of this chapter)