Wind Rises in North America 1625

Chapter 498 Intervention
December 6th, Jinzhou.

The cold wind, carrying snowflakes, scraped across the city wall like countless tiny knives, slapping against the window frames of the Left Assistant General's residence in Jinzhou, making a rustling sound, occasionally mixed with the crisp sound of an old locust tree in the corner of the courtyard being blown down.

Fan Hualong's study, however, exuded a warmth completely different from that outside. The charcoal brazier in the corner was burning brightly, with several pieces of oily charcoal resting on the bronze fire grate. The red flames wrapped around the embers, making the surrounding air scorching hot.

On the rosewood table, a bronze kettle with a celadon glaze was bubbling away, the rising white steam hitting the cold windowpane and condensing into fine water droplets that then slowly slid down the wood grain.

Zhong Minghui sat behind the rosewood desk, gently put down his teacup, and fixed his gaze on Fan Hualong, the deputy general of Liaonan Town, opposite him.

Fan Hualong was forty-two years old, with a resolute face and a hint of weariness between his brows. His fur coat was luxurious and smooth. After feeling Zhong Minghui's gaze, he looked up and smiled gently. Then he picked up his teacup, raised it slightly towards Zhong Minghui, and took a sip. The scalding tea slid down his throat, but it did not dispel the melancholy in his heart.

“General Fan,” Zhong Minghui began slowly, his voice low and steady, “General Ma is so cowardly of the enemy, withdrawing troops from Haizhou, Gaizhou, and Yaozhou to Lushun. The soldiers of Liaonan Garrison must be quite unhappy about this, right?”

Fan Hualong put down his teacup and sighed, "General Zhong, to be honest, the brothers below are indeed quite resentful. Haizhou, Yaozhou, Gaizhou—which one wasn't won with the brothers' lives? Now, look what's happened! Only a few dozen men are left in each city, it's practically like they've been abandoned. Isn't this just blatantly letting the Tartars come and pick up the pieces?"

Zhong Minghui nodded slightly, a hint of sarcasm flashing in his eyes: "Ma Degong's move is nothing more than an attempt to withdraw all his troops back to Lushun for self-preservation. But now that the Manchu chieftain Huang Taiji has just passed away, the Qing army is in turmoil, and the various Eight Banners are vying for power. This is a golden opportunity for your Liaonan Garrison to consolidate your existing territory. His retreat is truly a waste of such a golden opportunity."

Fan Hualong remained silent for a moment, then said calmly, "General Ma... has always been cautious."

“Cautious?” Zhong Minghui scoffed. “Old Fan, let’s stop with this cryptic chatter. Ma Degong’s actions are clearly cowardice! After the Battle of Songjin, your Ming court began to gradually transfer elite troops from Liaodong to the pass to suppress the bandits. Liaonan Garrison should have taken the opportunity to go north and harass the Qing forces, thus tying down their strength and effectively cooperating with the readjustment of Liaodong’s strategy.”

"But Ma Degong, instead of advancing an inch, has pulled back the defensive line, watching the Qing troops reorganize internally. His actions clearly shift all military pressure back to Jinzhou and Ningyuan. Tell me, how can such incompetence and inaction be worthy of the Ming court's trust?"

Fan Hualong did not respond immediately, but held the teacup in both hands and gently rubbed it.

Ma Degong was the general, his superior. What could he, a mere deputy commander, say?
Seeing this, Zhong Minghui softened his tone, adding a hint of persuasion: "Old Fan, you've been in Liaonan Garrison for many years, with outstanding military achievements, and your soldiers respect you. If you could replace him and take command of Liaonan Garrison, you would surely reverse the decline and make Liaonan a sharp dagger for the imperial court in Liaodong."

Fan Hualong suddenly looked up, a sharp glint in his eyes: "General Zhong, what do you mean by that?"

“Ma Degong is a lazy bum who holds a position without doing his job and is cowardly like a tiger. What’s the point of keeping him in Liaonan Town?” Zhong Minghui leaned back in his chair and stared into Fan Hualong’s fierce eyes. “You should write a memorial listing his crimes of cowardice, embezzlement of military pay, killing innocent people and claiming credit, as well as nepotism. Submit it to the Liaodong Governor and the Ministry of War. Hmm, it would be best if it could reach Emperor Chongzhen.”

Fan Hualong smiled upon hearing this, then placed his teacup on the table and said softly, "General Zhong, you may not know this, but in the officialdom of our Great Ming Dynasty, it is extremely risky for a subordinate to impeach a superior. If one is not careful, he will be accused of 'insubordination' or 'disrupting the morale of the army'."

"In the twelfth year of Chongzhen's reign, Liu Tong, the deputy commander of the front garrison of Gubei Town, impeached General Wu Guojun for embezzling military pay. What was the result? Wu Guojun turned around and accused Liu Tong of 'inciting a mutiny.' In order to stabilize the morale of the army, the court and the Ministry of War ultimately dismissed Liu Tong and exiled him. Heh, if I were to impeach General Ma without authorization, I'm afraid I would not have a good end either."

"You know, just two months ago, our General Ma had just received a reward and commendation from the imperial court for his great achievement of 'recapturing the four outlying fortresses of Jinzhou and beheading three hundred enemies.' If I were to rashly submit a memorial to the emperor, wouldn't that be going against the imperial court? In that case, the imperial court would only think that I was jealous of Ma Degong's achievements and was deliberately picking a fight."

"What if all the other generals in your Liaonan Garrison also submitted memorials impeaching Ma Degong?" Zhong Minghui said leisurely.

"Hmm? You mean..." Fan Hualong was taken aback, a strange light flashing in his eyes.

Zhong Minghui smiled slightly, took a secret letter from his satchel, and pushed it in front of Fan Hualong: "This is a joint memorial from several generals, including Shang Kexi, Zhang Dalu, and Wu Rujie, listing Ma Degong's merits and demerits. Now, all that's missing is your signature before it can be submitted to the Ministry of War. With so many people signing it, the court can't just consider it a matter for you alone, can it?"

Fan Hualong took the secret letter, removed the sealing wax, and carefully unfolded the letter.

By the light of the charcoal brazier, he read line by line carefully, his brow furrowing more and more deeply.

Most of the charges in the letter were ones he already knew about.

Last winter, Ma Degong embezzled three months' worth of military pay, using the money to buy land for his father in Dengzhou. He promoted his brother-in-law to the rank of cavalry captain, but the brother-in-law struggled even to ride a horse. Some things were even more serious than he knew, such as Ma Degong's secret dealings with Tartar merchants, exchanging grain for Tartar furs.

"Hiss..." Fan Hualong gasped, secretly surprised.

Xinhua is indeed remarkable; he actually managed to persuade so many Liaonan garrison generals to jointly impeach Ma Degong!

Just a month ago, Ma Degong firmly refused to join the Xinhua attack on Liaoyang, which made them resentful of him.

Impeaching a superior is a serious matter; failure could result in losing one's position or even one's head.

Zhong Minghui, noticing his hesitation, added fuel to the fire: "General Fan, allowing such a mediocre talent as Ma Degong to continue commanding Liaonan Garrison will only demoralize the soldiers. If you are willing to lead the impeachment, Xinhua is willing to lend you a hand."

"How can we help?" Fan Hualong asked in a deep voice.

Zhong Minghui took out a document from his satchel, unfolded it, and revealed it to be a record of the victories in the Battle of Liaoyang: "When Liaoyang was captured, our army beheaded more than 530 Qing enemy heads. Of these, 200 were taken by Shang Kexi. If you lead the impeachment, not only will your name be listed in the Liaoyang victory, but the remaining 300-plus heads can also be attributed to you, Zuo Xie. With this merit, coupled with the joint impeachment petition from many generals, the court will surely consider it carefully."

Fan Hualong's breath hitched slightly, and his fingers unconsciously touched the document.

With over three hundred decapitations and the fall of Liaoyang, this is already a considerable achievement on the Liaodong battlefield today.

If he can use this to surpass Ma Degong, he will indeed have a chance to take his place.

"Why did you choose me?" Fan Hualong took a deep breath, suppressing his excitement, and asked in a deep voice.

In Liaonan Town, Shang Kexi is the closest to you Xinhua people and also the most powerful. Why not support him to become the new commander-in-chief, but instead come to me?
The benefits that Xinhua people get are not so easy to take!
“Because you need our help the most.” Zhong Minghui looked at him intently, his eyes revealing no sincerity.

Upon hearing this, a bitter smile appeared on Fan Hualong's lips, and the last trace of hesitation in his eyes vanished.

Yes, my Left Party branch is the weakest, and in this place in southern Liaoning, which is isolated from the Qing invaders and the sea, it needs the support of the new Chinese the most.

Food, weapons, clothing, and even silver all needed the assistance of the new Chinese.

If you rely on the meager allowances from the imperial court, you'd be starving, let alone supporting your army.

Even when the imperial court issued its own and its own special allowances, it prioritized the "important towns" of Jinzhou and Ningyuan. By the time the allowances reached Liaonan Town, only scraps remained, and payments were often delayed by three to five months, or even six months to a year.

If he hadn't still harbored some loyalty to the Ming Dynasty, he probably would have surrendered to the Qing Dynasty long ago, just like those generals who had surrendered to the Tartars.

On the other hand, Shang Kexi had over 3,500 veterans, a sizable navy, and controlled the Liaohai Islands, including Changshan, Guanglu, and Shicheng. He could do business with the Xinhua people and Dengzhou-Laizhou merchants, and even without the strong support of the Xinhua people, he could still live a relatively comfortable life.

"If I sign my name, what can you Xinhua people give me?" Fan Hualong clenched his fist, his voice filled with determination.

He knew that once he took that step, there would be no turning back.
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(End of this chapter)