Wind Rises in North America 1625

Chapter 469 Prologue (Part Two)

On June 20th, in Shengjing, hot winds carrying the dampness of the Hun River poured into the imperial city of the Qing Dynasty, and a restless heat emanated from the beams and pillars of the Chongzheng Hall.

Huang Taiji sat heavily on the throne in the hall, his knuckles striking the table heavily. The ink on the report by Dorgon spread out on the table was alarming. The words "Half of the five Niru of the Bordered Blue Banner were killed in battle" and "Three Jiala Zhangjing of the Plain White Banner were killed in battle" were like red-hot irons, burning his eyes.

In the bronze incense burner beside the table, the sandalwood incense had burned down to the bottom, and the last wisp of smoke drifted crookedly toward the beam, where it was dispersed by the draft.

"Take a look at them all." He felt a surge of irritation and suddenly threw the report into the hall. The bright yellow document flew in an arc and landed on the blue brick floor with a "thud".

Dai Shan, who was standing at the front, frowned slightly, bent down to pick up the memorial, and his gray eyebrows gradually furrowed as he scanned it line by line.

Finally, he sighed deeply: "The Bordered Red Banner just reported yesterday that the ambush outside Songshan was broken up by the Ming army, and Tan Tai led the remaining troops to retreat north of Xingshan, even losing his flag. This battle was too exhausting!"

A buzz of discussion immediately arose inside the hall, with several Mongol princes standing in the back row whispering among themselves.

Prince Nikan of Gushan took half a step forward, the copper studs on his armor gleaming in the dim light: "Yes, Prince Li is right! More than three months ago, when the garrison was rotated, I went to count the casualties of the Bordered Yellow Banner. Thirty percent of the armored soldiers in each Niru were gone, and most of the remaining ones were wounded. The Ming army's artillery is incredibly powerful; it can hit from three miles away. Our shield carts simply can't withstand it..."

Last June, Nikan followed Dorgon and Hauge in besieging Jinzhou. However, due to his inability to endure the arduous battle and frequent reprimands from Hauge, he ran away to Shengjing in a fit of anger.

Therefore, Huang Taiji stripped him of his title and fined him silver.

In March of this year, he once again accompanied Dorgon in a campaign to Jinzhou, where he achieved many victories and was reinstated as a Beizi.

Having fought several rounds at the front, they had some understanding of the Ming army's combat capabilities and harbored a degree of apprehension.

Several years ago, the various garrisons in Liaodong were already training elite troops to cope with the increasingly aggressive posture of the Qing army.

After Hong Chengchou took office, he transferred all the elite troops from various towns and concentrated them together for training. Then, he used these elite troops as the standard to urge each town and battalion to train.

It must be said that the Ming army, after undergoing reorganization, has significantly improved its combat effectiveness compared to a few years ago. At the very least, they dare to fight and attack the Qing army on the battlefield instead of fleeing at the first sign of trouble as before.

Since the start of the war, the Ming army has fought very tenaciously, launching repeated attacks. Even when scattered by the Qing army's elite Eight Banners, they were able to quickly regroup and launch another attack.

This initially made the Qing army, which was used to winning battles, very uncomfortable. In addition, the Eight Banners suffered heavy casualties, which made many Eight Banners generals want to retreat and feel that it would be difficult to continue the war.

They fought to the death, but it seems they didn't get a single benefit from it!

“It’s only been in the last two years that the Ming army has dared to fight us head-on.” Nikan swallowed and lowered his voice even further. “The other day, a scout reported that the Ming army at Songshan was thrown into disarray by the Bordered Blue Banner, but they regrouped in less than an incense stick’s time. Their musketeers were lined up like a wall and fired volleys at our cavalry… If this had happened back in Sarhu, they would have been long gone.”

These words touched the hearts of many people.

A mere officer from the Bordered White Banner couldn't help but chime in: "Isn't that right? We've been fighting for over a year, and we haven't gotten any gold or silver, but we've lost a lot of soldiers. Yesterday, my servant said that the price of grain in Shengjing has gone up again; one tael of silver can only buy half a peck of rice. If this continues, even if we win Jinzhou, we Eight Banner soldiers will probably be starving..."

"Shut up!" Jirhalang abruptly interrupted him, then glared fiercely at Nikan. "Nikan, your Bordered Yellow Banner lost its banner because of your poor command, and you're blaming the cannons? Back then, in the Battle of Sarhu, didn't the Ming army have just as many cannons as we do now? We still won! If you're just afraid of dying, then stop making a fuss and demoralizing the Qing army!"

Nikan's face turned bright red, but he dared not retort.

Jirhalang was the banner chief of the Bordered Blue Banner and also his uncle. In terms of seniority and military merit, he was three points lower than him.

Jirhalang strode into the hall, bowed to Huang Taiji, and said, “Your Majesty, my fellow princes, Dorgon’s report shows that he was cowardly, but he forgot that the Ming army can withstand hard battles and can regroup when their formation is broken, but our Eight Banners soldiers can’t fight to the death?”

"The Eight Banners have suffered heavy casualties and are short of armored soldiers. Then we'll fill the gaps with bondservant soldiers. If all the bondservant soldiers die, then we'll send Han slaves to take their place. If we still don't have enough troops, we, the princes and banner lords, will personally don armor and go into battle! I refuse to believe that the Ming army has many elite soldiers to wear down!"

"Hmph!" Daishan snorted coldly. "Jirhalang, don't just talk tough. Last month, the Korean hostage delegation reported that the rice they finally managed to get from Korea was snatched away by the Plain Yellow Banner soldiers as military rations as soon as it arrived at the west gate of Shengjing. Ha, now we're even stealing the hostages' rations. How much grain do you think we have left in our granaries to last?"

As he spoke, he glanced briefly at Huang Taiji, who sat comfortably in the hall, and dusted off his robes. "Look at this robe of mine. I've been wearing it for two years and haven't been willing to change it. It's not that I don't have the money to make a new one, it's that the silk from within the Great Wall can't be transported over, and the dye houses in Shengjing have long since run out of dye. If the fighting continues, let alone the armored soldiers, even we banner lords will probably be drinking porridge!"

Huang Taiji tapped his fingers on the table, making a soft "tap-tap" sound.

He avoided Dai Shan's gaze and turned to Zhang Cunren in the corner: "How is the situation with the military farms in Yizhou?"

Zhang Cunren fell to his knees with a thud, his forehead hitting the blue bricks hard with a dull thud.

"Your Majesty!" His voice was tight, with a slight tremor that was almost imperceptible. "After more than a year of reclamation, Yizhou has cultivated more than 36,000 mu of farmland. When spring sowing began in April, the seedlings of millet, soybeans, sorghum, etc., have all sprouted and are growing well. The growth is... well, it is quite good."

When he said "acceptable," he secretly glanced up and saw that Huang Taiji's brows were still furrowed, so he quickly added, "It's just that a hailstorm a few days ago damaged some of the seedlings along the field ridges, but... but they've been replanted. By the time of the autumn harvest, we should be able to get tens of thousands of bushels of grain."

"Hmph." Daishan's sneer echoed in the hall. "What good are ten thousand shi of grain? Last winter, my Bordered Red Banner reported running out of food three times, and we only survived by slaughtering a lot of livestock. Besides, we're almost starving right now. Wait for the autumn harvest? I'm afraid the soldiers of the Eight Banners will have already starved to death!"

Zhang Cunren's face turned pale instantly. His lips moved as if he wanted to say something but swallowed it back. He could only bury his head even lower, his bald forehead pressing against the cold floor tiles.

"Prince Li, stop with your nonsense." Huang Taiji's voice suddenly turned cold, carrying an undeniable air of authority.

He looked at Zhang Cunren again, his gaze falling on the mud spots on the hem of his robe. "What about those newly introduced barbarian crops? How are they growing?"

The four characters “new barbarian crops” struck Zhang Cunren like a thunderbolt, shattering his predicament.

He suddenly looked up, his eyes shining brightly, and kowtowed three times: "Your Majesty! Speaking of this, I have good news to report!"

He straightened his back, his voice filled with barely suppressed excitement: "Two years ago, our spies brought potatoes and corn from Tieshan and Lushun. I had my bondsers plant them on a dozen mu (approximately 1.65 acres) outside Shengjing. Last autumn, when the potatoes were harvested, the baskets were piled up like small mountains—nearly a hundred shi (approximately 100 bushels) from ten mu! The corn was also good, yielding one and a half shi per mu, almost twice as much as millet!"

He crawled forward half a step on his knees, almost prostrating himself on the ground: "Your Majesty, these two are divine treasures! Potatoes, buried in the soil, are not afraid of frost; corn stalks are thick and drought-resistant. I request that they be planted on a large scale around Yizhou, Guangning, and Shenyang, replacing all the existing farmland! In less than three years, the granaries of our Great Qing will surely be full, and we will no longer have to worry about food shortages!"

The hall fell silent for a moment, even Jirhalang was taken aback. He had seen Han people grow millet and sorghum, but he had never heard of any crop that could yield dozens of bushels per mu.

At this time, whether in the towns of Liaodong or within the territory of the Qing Dynasty, the main crop planted in the military farms was millet. Because it was drought-resistant, highly adaptable, and easy to cultivate, it was the main food for the local soldiers and civilians.

Soybeans are the second most important food crop after millet. They can be eaten, used for oil extraction and as feed for cattle and horses, and they can also nourish the land. The planting area is also very extensive.

Although sorghum has a poorer taste, it has become one of the three major grain crops in Liaodong region due to its cold resistance.

As for wheat, its yield is low due to climate and environmental limitations, and it is far less widespread than wheat in the interior of China.

Although the Qing government actively promoted land reclamation and agricultural development within its territory in hopes of increasing food self-sufficiency, the poor climate and environment of Liaodong, the extremely backward serf management system, and the predatory collection methods meant that agricultural production in the Qing Dynasty never improved and remained in a state of severe decline.

The Ming army in Liaodong could still maintain its basic survival needs by transporting food and supplies from within the Great Wall, while the Qing Dynasty could only rely on plunder and extortion (from Korea) to barely guarantee the food supply for the Eight Banners tribes.

As for the bondservants within the territory and the captured Han slaves, they often suffered from hunger and cold, with hundreds of thousands dying of cold and starvation every year.

For example, two years later, the Qing army broke through the pass and ravaged the country for more than six months, looting more than 400,000 able-bodied people.

In the first winter, more than 126,000 people died, more than half of whom died from freezing and starvation.

When food was extremely scarce, the Eight Banners tribes preferred to use their meager rice and beans to feed cattle and horses rather than to help the Han slaves they had captured.

It can be said that since the old slave rebelled against the Ming Dynasty, both the former Jin Dynasty and the current Qing Dynasty have been in a state of food shortage.

It was after the "Dingmao Campaign" that the Qing army defeated Korea and obtained some of Korea's food supplies, which made their lives a little easier.

However, three or four years ago, Dongjiang Town and Xinhua people frequently crossed into Korea to plunder, and even stirred up the story of Gwanghaegun's restoration of the country and seizure of the throne, which made the whole situation in Korea chaotic and caused the Qing army to cut off the food supply from Korea for a time.

Huang Taiji also actively adjusted policies, encouraging Han people to reclaim wasteland, reducing taxes, and developing trade. He also engaged in large-scale grain smuggling and trading with Mongolians and Shanxi merchants to alleviate the problem of food shortages within the country.

Of course they do!
Within the Great Ming Dynasty, famine was rampant, with millions of people starving and peasant uprisings never being quelled. How much better could the situation be outside the Great Wall?
However, during the Qing Dynasty's ongoing conflicts with Dongjiang Town and Korea, it learned that the new Chinese from the mainland were engaged in large-scale land reclamation in the Liaohai Islands and near Tieshan, and were also planting a number of high-yield grain crops, which fed hundreds of thousands of soldiers and civilians.

So the Qing spies devised a plan to steal corn and potatoes from Tieshan, and also kidnapped more than ten Ming and Korean farmers with planting experience.

In the first year of trial planting, the yields of potatoes and corn were not high due to soil and water conditions and the farmers' lack of effort.

But compared to millet and sorghum, this stuff is practically a "miracle crop." Corn yields over 1.5 shi per mu, and potatoes yield as much as four or five shi per mu.

If this were planted on a large scale, covering hundreds of thousands or even millions of acres, wouldn't it yield millions of shi of grain every year, thus reversing the predicament of frequent food shortages in our Great Qing Dynasty!
Therefore, Zhang Cunren dared to write to Huang Taiji last year, suggesting that land reclamation and military farming be carried out near Jinzhou to implement a long-term siege of the Ming army.

With the production of potatoes and corn, our Great Qing Dynasty had the confidence to continue its standoff with the Ming army without worrying about attrition warfare.

However, to his surprise, the Ming and Qing armies would engage in fierce fighting over the land reclamation in Yizhou. From scouts of dozens of men to small-scale skirmishes of hundreds, the battle has now escalated to an armed standoff of over 100,000 troops. The scale of the battlefield, the number of soldiers, and the intensity of the fighting have all exceeded everyone's expectations.

To compensate for the lack of troops at the front, the troops of the Eight Banners frequently transferred bondservants and Han slaves from the Yizhou garrison to serve as laborers, carrying cannonballs and digging trenches. Nearly half of them died, and the work in the fields was abandoned. As a result, not only was the effect of the garrison farming greatly reduced, but the continuous losses at the front also made it difficult for the rear to support the army.

The stored grain and fodder were running out, but the battles at the front lines, such as Jinzhou, Songshan, and Xingshan, had not yet gained an overwhelming advantage.

Dorgon and Hauge had just led their troops to replace Jirgalang's forces and launched a three-month rotational war, but unexpectedly, after only half a month of fighting, they were already complaining that they could not hold on any longer.

They either send reinforcements or withdraw their troops.

They simply couldn't defeat the Ming army!

They not only mobilized the eight generals inside and outside the pass, and assembled an elite army of 130,000, but also had ample food and supplies. Bijia Mountain near Xingshan alone had more than 100,000 shi of grain stored there. If they continued to hold out, they would be much more confident than our Qing Dynasty.

So, should we grit our teeth and continue fighting, or should we stop while we're ahead, withdraw our troops northward, and let the Ming army consolidate and strengthen the defenses along the Jinzhou line?

For a time, Huang Taiji was caught in a dilemma.

His fingers began tapping on the table again, this time with an even more erratic rhythm.

He looked out of the palace. The sun was past noon, and the sunlight slanted across the steps, casting long shadows of the stone lions.

withdraw troops?

Jinzhou became a thorn in Liaoxi's side, and Hong Chengchou would definitely take the opportunity to strengthen the defenses, making it extremely difficult to take it down later.

Should we not retreat? The grain in the granary is only enough to last for one or two months. If we really wait for the potato harvest in autumn, the Eight Banners soldiers will probably starve to death on the battlefield.

The murmurs in the hall gradually subsided, and everyone stared at the figure on the throne.

Jirhalang clenched his fists, Daishan stroked his beard, and sweat dripped from Zhang Cunren's forehead onto the blue bricks, spreading out a small wet patch.

Huang Taiji took a deep breath, and his Adam's apple bobbed again.

This decision was even more difficult than the one the old Khan made before the Battle of Sarhu.
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(End of this chapter)