You can't only love the Qing Dynasty when you're eating the fruits of others' labor.

Chapter 331 The Northwest Army is good in every way, except they can't stand the sight of money.

"The Grand Secretary said that Shaanxi and Gansu are impoverished, and the brothers are barely making ends meet with their meager salaries. Gentlemen, the Grand Secretary has always been thinking of you."

Wow~
It boiled again.

Dong Tianbao, the lowest-ranking officer present from the Green Camp, simply picked up a wine jar.

"Thank you for your generous gift, Grand Secretary."

Then he gulped down the wine, finishing the entire jar in one go, bringing the atmosphere to its peak.

"The Grand Secretary also said that if the brothers stationed in other prefectures and counties are short of money, they can come to the Xi'an Administrative Office to find me. We are all brothers, and we cannot favor one over the other."

When the party ended~
According to their rank, the person who took the least amount of money took two hundred taels of silver, while the person who took the most amounted to eight hundred taels.

The ladies and gentlemen who attended the banquet also received a gift.

Each of the ladies received a piece of gold jewelry.

Each of the young men carried a jewel-encrusted short sword.

Happy to everyone!

……

The next day.

The Governor-General of Shaanxi and Gansu, Meng Qiaofang, learned of the news from the previous day as soon as he got up, because a trusted confidant who had received an invitation but had not attended the banquet came to his door to inform him.

Why didn't you tell me yesterday?

"I thought it was just a meal, and I didn't want to stop them. But this morning, the whole city was talking about how every officer who went to Hongbinlou for dinner received several hundred taels of silver from the Grand Secretary."

Just saying.

The person in charge of monitoring the central government's Xi'an administrative office rushed over to report that several low-ranking military officers from other places who came to Xi'an on business had gone to the administrative office to collect their travel expenses today.

"Bastard!"

Meng Qiaofang was so angry that he started cursing, but it was unclear whether he was cursing Jiang Qingyun, the mid-level military officer who attended the banquet, or the low-ranking officer who went to the Xi'an Administrative Office to collect his silver.

That afternoon.

The Shaanxi-Gansu Governor-General's Office received a personal letter from Jiang Qingyun, sent from Yuezhou.

Brother Meng, seeing this letter is like seeing you in person:

Wu's forces are powerful, while our army is brave and fierce. The two armies fought fiercely on the Dongting Lake plain, and both sides suffered losses. The battle was deadlocked and no breakthrough could be made. I often think about this and cannot sleep at night.

Looking at the overall situation, Shaanxi and Gansu alone cannot hold up the battle. You must not have the mentality of sitting on the sidelines and watching the tigers fight.

We brothers share both glory and loss; as the saying goes, unity brings mutual benefit, while conflict brings mutual loss.

My greatest difficulty right now is that my forces are stretched thin. If I could add tens of thousands more elite soldiers to my command, I would be 90% confident that I could crush the Wu bandits in front of me in one fell swoop.

After much deliberation, the only option was to borrow troops!

If you, brother, are willing to temporarily place all the troops in Shaanxi and Gansu under my command, then the overall situation can be stabilized, and the future can be secured.

In addition,

The elder brother's eldest son, Meng Xiongchen, is exceptionally capable, but his resume is rather simple. He is slated to be appointed as the Governor of Anhui, in preparation for his succession.

The elder brother's younger brother, Meng Qiaomei, is commendable for his loyalty and bravery, and is proposed to be appointed as the Governor of Hunan.

……

After reading the letter, Meng Qiaofang coughed violently, so violently that she felt dizzy and her vision blurred.

After a while~
He struggled to his feet and looked at the calligraphy framed on the wall that read "Jiang Meng's marriage brings peace to the world," feeling nothing but irony.

"Men, summon the generals! All civil and military officials of the seventh rank and above in Xi'an, participate."

"As ordered."

in the afternoon.

The Governor-General's Office musters troops.

Meng Qiaofang, fully armored, publicly asked everyone for their opinions on borrowing troops.

Half support.

Half opposed it.

This result has already explained the problem. Meng Qiaofang realized that Jiang Qingyun's infiltration of the Shaanxi-Gansu military and political system was far more serious than she had imagined.

finally.

He made the decision on the spot.

"This Governor decides that, as requested by the Central Government, all troops from Shaanxi and Gansu should be deployed, except for those in important border towns."

“Recall the veterans who were previously dismissed and send them south together.” “Send personnel to areas where civil uprisings have occurred frequently over the years to recruit young men, promising them generous rewards, and organize them into battalions to send them south together.”

"The urgent message to the Grand Secretary is: I have done my best to gather troops, and there are no fewer than 50,000. Once the army crosses the Yellow River, all provisions and pay will be provided by the central government. Furthermore, if the campaign lasts more than five months, there may be unforeseen circumstances in Shaanxi and Gansu."

All the civil and military officials bowed in unison.

"As ordered."

……

Looking at the empty hall, Meng Qiaofang couldn't help but sigh softly, "My Northwest Army is good in every way, except for the money!"

Meng Qiaofang was a rare military and political genius in the early Qing Dynasty.

He saw clearly.

If they refuse to lend troops, there are only two possibilities.

First, Jiang Qingyun has lost, and the Meng family will be thoroughly purged by the victors.

Second, even if Jiang Qingyun wins, he will also severely punish his own family.

His younger brother, Meng Qiaomei, was in Yuezhou. If Jiang Qingyun supported Meng Qiaomei to succeed him as governor, the resistance in Shaanxi and Gansu would be minimal.

Furthermore, his son Meng Xiongchen was stationed in Baoning, Sichuan. If Jiang Qingyun were despicable enough, he could easily assassinate him.

Considering that he had already fulfilled Jiang Qingyun's many requests—sending troops to Fenglingdu, to Jiangnan, to Baoning, and to Yuezhou—
When making decisions, these sunk costs must be taken into account.

And then there are those officers who can't stand the sight of money!
Also, I am old and have many illnesses!
Taking all these factors into account, Meng Qiaofang realized she was no match for Jiang Qingyun and could only sigh to the heavens, "I admit defeat! I surrender!"

……

The peasant uprisings in Shaanxi and Gansu were the most famous in the world.

There is nothing to it but poverty.

The government frantically conscripted soldiers in the areas where popular uprisings were most frequent, promising a monthly salary of 4 taels of silver. The governor's office paid the first month's salary in advance.

There was a flood of applicants.

Four taels of silver a month! An unprecedentedly high price!
As a result, large numbers of potential rebels joined the Green Camp and were then organized into new recruits.

Amidst the swirling snowflakes, countless men from Shaanxi and Gansu crossed the Yellow River in droves, heading south with the hope of making money.

Yuezhou.

Jiang Qingyun was initially pleased, but later became worried.

The good news is that he has plenty of troops at his disposal, so he can fully display his unique war tactics and let Wu Sangui experience his prowess, and then offer up his beloved concubine Chen Yuanyuan with both hands.

The worry is that the number of troops at hand is too abundant, and the expenditure of funds is like water flowing out.

……

December.

Yuezhou Prefecture.

The atmosphere was tense, with guards standing in rows.

This was the last meeting before the war began.

"According to reliable intelligence, Wu Jun's main troop deployment is roughly as follows: 25000 troops stationed in Changsha, Hunan; 7000 in Changde; 6000 in Baoqing; and 25000 in Hengzhou. 55000 troops are stationed in Nankang, Jiangxi, and 10000 in Ganzhou. 30000 troops are stationed in Kunming, Yunnan. In addition, there are no fewer than 6 garrison troops distributed in various places."

"Prime Minister, is the source of this intelligence reliable?"

"Reliable. Wu Jun is not a monolithic entity; many are eagerly awaiting the arrival of the royal army."

Everyone laughed.

Jiang Qingyun laughed too. It wasn't bragging; he had quite a few people providing him with intelligence.
In the morally bankrupt region of the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, the path of traitors was extremely congested.

Wu Sangui had a group of old men from Liaodong under his command. These men were terrified of his banner and rushed to jump ship and join him. The best among them even sent their sons.

"Prime Minister, where should we attack first?"

Changde!

"and then?"

"We've besieged Changsha, but we won't attack it." Jiang Qingyun pointed to the map. "Our second target is Liling-Pingxiang, the only passage between Hunan and Jiangxi. We'll block it, cut it off, and then quickly sweep across the entire Hunan province."

"Gentlemen, you must act quickly. Don't be afraid of the dead. You don't need to pay for the compensation. I, Jiang, will sell everything I own to raise the money for you."

"As ordered!"

Everyone responded in unison.

(End of this chapter)