Wind Rises in North America 1625

Chapter 504 Suian Fort

January 29, 1642, afternoon, deep in the dense forest on the east bank of the Tumen River.

The snow stopped, but the sky remained as gloomy as a giant lead plate, making it hard to breathe.

The lush pine branches were laden with heavy icicles, and the occasional hoarse cries of hardy crows added to the somber atmosphere.

A small team of twenty-seven people was riding in several dog sleds through knee-deep snow. Their fur coats were covered with white cloaks, making them almost blend into the snow. Only their breath and the crunching sound of the sleds pressing down on the snow proved their presence.

The leader of the team was Zhao Ergu, the militia captain of Suianbao. He was a middle-aged man whose face was roughened by the north wind and gunpowder smoke. He was originally a refugee from Liaodong. Six years ago, he boarded Xinhua's immigrant ship and traveled to Mokowei to settle down.

At this moment, his wary gaze swept over every snowdrift and bush that might be hiding danger.

In the middle of the group, three Qing prisoners, their hands bound behind their backs and tied together with leather ropes, slumped listlessly on the sled, their faces filled with fear and hunger.

At the rear of the column, several team members were tending to several cart frames, on which were wrapped coarse linen cloths containing the remains of two fallen comrades, as well as several sets of damaged armor, a dozen waist knives, and five hard bows captured from the Qing army outpost.

"Captain, we should be able to see the smoke signals from Suian Fort around dusk." A voice came from the sled in front of Zhao Ergu. It was a skilled hunter from the Warka tribe, whose Han name was Ge Wa. He was shading his eyes with his hand as he looked ahead.

Zhao Ergu grunted in response, but there was no joy on his face.

Taking down that Karen came at a great cost; one of his brothers was shot through the neck with an arrow, and the other was stabbed through the abdomen in close combat, and neither could be saved.

In this godforsaken place, every inch of peace is bought with lives.

He instinctively tightened his grip on the musket—this thing was far more reliable than the Qing barbarians' arquebuses; within fifty paces, a hit would be fatal.

Just then, the Hezhe team member in charge of the scouts suddenly let out a low whistle, imitating a grouse.

There is a situation!
Everyone instantly tightened the leashes, stopping the sled dogs, and quickly jumped down with their muskets, seeking cover nearby. Their movements were swift and silent.

The prisoners were suddenly pulled down onto the snow, and the rags stuffed in their mouths prevented them from screaming.

Several team members kept stroking the dogs' necks and whispering to soothe them, preventing them from barking and revealing their location.

Zhao Ergu and Ge Wa crouched low and moved quickly to the side of the scout, looking in the direction he pointed.

About 150 paces ahead, in a clearing in the woods, four figures were riding horses with difficulty.

They were neither hunters nor woodcutters; their clothes were a motley collection, with one man wrapped in a thick fur coat, his entire body huddled around the horse's neck to avoid the biting wind.

He was holding a wooden pole with its tip sharpened, a piece of gray cloth tied to the top of the pole, which seemed to bear some kind of flag, but it drooped weakly in the cold wind.

The other three were dressed in typical mountain tribe attire, with various odds and ends hanging from their fur coats. They were skilled riders and looked alert.

Suddenly, sensing a hint of danger, one of the leading tribal men whispered two shouts. Everyone immediately dismounted, drew their swords, and nervously looked in the direction where Zhao Ergu and his men were hiding.

“They’re neither Qing invaders nor Korean soldiers.” Ge Wa squinted and said in a low voice, “Judging from the direction they came from… it seems they came from Hamgyong.”

Hamgyeongdo, Kong Youde's man?
Zhao Ergu's heart tightened.

Two years ago, when Kong Youde was conquering and expanding his territory in Hamgyong Province, Suian Fort was also nervous, worried that the enemy would be satisfied and then attack towards Mokhowai.

Later, seeing that they seemed content to focus on conquering territory in North Korea and had no intention of moving north, they breathed a sigh of relief.

So, what are they planning to do by sneaking over here at this time?
reconnaissance?

It doesn't seem like it; this brazen attitude makes it seem like they're going to visit someone.

"Surround them!" Zhao Ergu ordered. "Try to capture them alive."

More than ten team members, carrying muskets and crossbows, spread out in a large fan shape and slowly advanced.

Seeing so many people attacking, the four men became even more nervous, gripping their waist knives and gesturing wildly as they huddled together tightly.

"Who goes there?" Zhao Ergu approached to within thirty paces and waved to his companions to stop.

The group exchanged glances. The man wrapped in a thick fur coat reacted the fastest, immediately throwing his saber into the snow, taking the flagpole from his horse, and unfurling it: "Don't fire! We are envoys... Envoys sent by Grand Commander Kong of the Jingdong Protectorate, requesting an audience with your Xinhua chieftain!"

He really is one of Kong Youde's men!

"Put down your knives!" Zhao Ergu shouted. "Then, raise your hands and come forward one by one!"

Upon hearing this, the man immediately ordered the other three to discard their knives, and then walked over first.

"Grand Commander... the Grand Commander sent us to find your leader." Lü Pinghuan approached, his lips purple from the cold after a long journey, struggling to organize his thoughts, "We... our Grand Commander wants to do business with you. We want to exchange the finest ginseng, sable fur, and deer antlers for... for grain!"

When he spoke of the word "food," his eyes involuntarily revealed an intense longing.

"Exchange grain?" Zhao Ergu and his team members looked at each other, their faces showing surprise and doubt.

They had considered all sorts of possibilities—attacks, reconnaissance, even negotiations to demarcate borders—but they never expected that they would come to do business or to buy life-saving food.

Ge Wa stepped forward and carefully searched the four men, removing their knives, short axes, and two bows. He then nodded to Zhao Ergu. Zhao Ergu put away his musket, but remained wary: "You claim to be envoys, what proof do you have?"

Lu Pinghuan quickly took out a letter wrapped in oilcloth from his personal leather pouch and presented it with both hands: "This is a letter written by the Grand Commander himself, and it has his seal on it!"

Zhao Ergu took the letter and opened the oilcloth.

The letter paper was rough, and although he didn't recognize most of the Chinese characters on it, they were written with considerable strength. The signature was stamped with the red seal of "Grand Commander of the Jingdong Protectorate".

Zhao Ergu's mind raced.

Kong Youde is so short of food that he has to ask us, the Xinhua people, to buy it?
This news is truly astonishing.

He recalled the rumors of famine in Hamgyong Road over the past few months, which seemed to be true and quite severe.

But the grain reserves in Suian Fort were already tight, and they had to supply the new immigrants who arrived this year and exchange for furs and mountain products from the local natives. Where would they find any surplus grain to help the hundreds of thousands of starving people in Hamgyong Province?
This is simply a fantasy!

He remained expressionless as he carefully put the letter away: "Tie their hands and take them with you. We'll talk about it when we get back to the fort."

The team members took out leather ropes and tied the wrists of the four messengers together.

Lu Pinghuan did not resist, but anxiously asked, "General, can we exchange it? We desperately need food! Many people are starving to death!"

Zhao Ergu glanced at him, didn't answer, but just waved his hand: "Let's go, speed up!"

The group moved again, with four more prisoners (or guests), making the atmosphere even more eerie.

The Xinhua militiamen hurried on their way in silence, their hearts filled with doubts and calculations.

The four envoys were uneasy, feeling somewhat relieved to have found their target, but also anxious about the unknown outcome of the negotiations. Their faces turned pale when they saw the bodies of the fallen soldiers on the stretchers and the Qing prisoners being escorted.

As evening approached, the sky quickly darkened.

On the distant coastline, the outline of the low but sturdy walls of Suian Fort finally came into view.

The brazier on the watchtower atop the wall was lit, like a warm star guiding the way home in the twilight of winter.

Suian Fort is situated on a promontory overlooking the sea. The wooden and stone walls are much stronger than they were two years ago, and several dark cannons are mounted on top of the walls, with their muzzles pointing towards the land and the sea respectively.

Inside the fort, wisps of smoke rose from chimneys, and figures moved about, giving it a lively atmosphere.

The fort gate creaked open, and the militiamen and residents who remained behind came out to greet them.

Upon seeing the spoils and prisoners, there was initial joy, but then the atmosphere instantly sombered upon noticing the remains of fallen comrades.

When they saw the four unfamiliar and suspicious-looking people behind them with their hands tied, they were even more puzzled.

"Captain, this is..." a militia squad leader asked cautiously.

"The messenger sent by Kong Youde says he wants to buy grain." Zhao Ergu said succinctly. While arranging for people to take care of the remains of his companions and to detain the Qing prisoners, he ordered someone to take four messengers in, "Give them some hot soup to warm them up, and keep a close watch on them."

The chief of Suian Fort was a thin man in his thirties named Chen Dafeng. He had previously served as a village head at a settlement on Beiying Island and was transferred here last year to manage two forts and six villages in the Mokowei area.

At this moment, Zhao Ergu was sitting by the stove checking the grain register when he heard Zhao Ergu's report and nodded in satisfaction.

"So, the Tartars have once again broken through the passes at Qiangziling and Qingshankou and invaded the capital region and Hebei?" Chen Dafeng put down the grain register in his hand, a solemn look on his face.

“That’s right.” Zhao Ergu stretched his hands toward the stove. “However, those prisoners had no idea how many troops the Tartars had deployed. But judging from their previous incursions into the pass, it should be no less than 50,000.”

“Hehe…” Chen Dafeng chuckled. “The Tartars just finished the Battle of Songjin and couldn’t wait to send troops into the pass to plunder. That means they are having a very difficult time. Even if the Tartars mobilized 50,000 Eight Banners infantry and cavalry, after deducting the Ming troops who need to defend the Ningjin line, I estimate that the number of troops they can put in the rear must be pitifully small.”

"..." Zhao Ergu's eyelids twitched twice. "We're going to launch a large-scale attack on the Tartars in winter?"

"Strike while the iron is hot!" Chen Dafeng sneered. "Even if we can't raid important cities and strongholds like Hetu Ala and Fushun, we must at least drive the Tartar forces out of the Tumen River, Suifen River, and Beiqinhai (now Xingkai Lake) line, squeezing their living space to the maximum extent possible."

“This weather…” Zhao Ergu subconsciously looked out the window, where the howling north wind made the window frame rattle.

“Of course, we can’t risk fighting the Tartars in the freezing winter, but we can mobilize the native inhabitants of the mountains and forests,” Chen Dafeng said. “As long as we offer a high enough reward and provide enough food, I think many hunters will be willing to take the risk.”

"Oh, right!" Speaking of the reward, Zhao Ergu immediately remembered the four envoys sent by Kong Youde. "Kong Youde sent envoys over, saying that he wanted to do business with Xinhua and buy grain."

As he spoke, he handed the letter brought by the messenger to Zhao Dafeng.

Chen Dafeng quickly glanced through the letter, his brows immediately furrowing.

He paced around the room a few steps, the firelight reflecting on his ever-changing face.

"Captain Zhao, you've done a great service, but you've also brought back a huge problem," Chen Dafeng said with a wry smile. "Grain? We do have some grain stored in our fort, but that's just to prepare for the new immigrants that might arrive after spring, and to trade and maintain relations with the surrounding tribes. Hundreds of thousands of starving people in Hamgyong Province? Even if we empty our coffers, it'll be a drop in the ocean!"

He walked to the window and looked at the gray sea in the twilight outside the fortress: "Unless... unless we can get support from Beiying Island. Only there will the granaries have enough surplus."

He turned to Zhao Ergu and said, “Captain Zhao, you brought these people, so you’ll have to make the trip again. After resting for two days, besides taking those Qing prisoners to Yongming City (now Vladivostok), also send the envoy sent by Kong Youde there. Whether to start trade with Hamgyong Province and whether to sell grain to them must be decided by the Commissioner of the Expansion Zone. We, Suian Fort, have no authority to make such a decision.”
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(End of this chapter)