Ming Dynasty: Moral blackmail? I, Emperor Chongzhen, have no morals!

Chapter 102 The Strange Armor Coverage of the Ming Army

After Li Banghua left, the imperial kitchen also sent over several newly prepared dishes.

"Your Majesty, this was made by the Imperial Kitchen." A young eunuch respectfully held up a tray containing twelve square hard cakes, each about the size of a palm.

"Try it," Zhu Jian said, pointing to the remaining four people: Zhou Yuji, Hu Dawei, Sun Chuanting, and Lu Xiangsheng, gesturing for the eunuch to bring it to them.

"Thank you, Your Majesty," the four said in unison.

One by one, the group picked up a piece, covered their mouths and noses, and took a small bite. They immediately felt that the thing was hard, dry and crumbly in their mouths, and had a faint oily taste. It was hardly a delicious snack.

"Your Majesty, this stuff really doesn't taste good," said Hu Dawei.

Hu Dawei is a Mongolian, so he says what he means without the ulterior motives of a civil official. If something doesn't taste good, he simply says it doesn't taste good, without any other implications.

Sun Chuanting and Lu Xiangsheng frowned slightly; they also thought it didn't taste good.

"It's true that it doesn't taste good, but it seems to keep for a long time," Zhou Yuji said, referring to the sweet version.

Zhu Jian smiled slightly and said, "This thing was actually made by the Imperial Kitchen using the method of making mooncakes, with dried shredded meat and lard mixed together and baked until dry, so it can be stored for a long time."

"Suitable for cavalry to carry during raids."

Upon hearing this, the four men paused, their hands still holding the hard biscuits, and turned to look at Inspector Zhu, exclaiming in unison, "Cavalry?"

Currently, most of the combat is a combination of infantry and cavalry, with some being purely infantry. The combined infantry and cavalry operations rely on cities and fortifications to amplify the power of infantry firearms. The Jurchens are the same; their combined infantry and cavalry tactics were learned from the Ming Dynasty, but they are now using them effectively.

Pure cavalry is not suitable for sieges and field battles, and the logistical pressure is extremely high. Pure cavalry units are only used to raid the flanks of the enemy in large-scale battles to disrupt the enemy's formation. Even for that purpose, there is no need to produce separate food supplies.

Zhu Jian nodded slightly: "The strength of cavalry lies in its speed, and its weakness lies in its logistics."

He paused and then said, "This doesn't taste very good, but it's filling and will give you the energy to fight. Hu Dawei and Zhou Yuji, you two go back to Xishan and take the head chef from the imperial kitchen with you. He will teach you the specific preparation method. Use Shanxi coal as fuel in Xishan and make a lot for the cavalry's rations."

Upon hearing this, the two immediately stood up and replied, "Yes!"

After the two men left, Sun Chuanting asked, "Is His Majesty preparing to launch a war?"

Sun Chuanting really didn't want to launch an offensive against Li Zicheng or the Jurchens now, as this could easily disrupt the current social order of the Ming Dynasty. He preferred to wait until sweet potatoes were widely planted before launching an offensive. What the Ming Dynasty lacked now was time.

"Your Majesty, could the war be postponed? This would be more beneficial to the Ming Dynasty," Lu Xiang-sheng couldn't help but say.

Lu Xiang-sheng shared this view. Although he was a proponent of war, he did not advocate launching unrestrained wars against the Jurchens.

Zhu Jian shook his head, slightly helpless: "It's not that I want to start a war, but that the Jurchens."

"The Jurchens are currently stockpiling grain and fodder in Liaodong, precisely in preparation for launching a war."

"Again, are we going to invade the border?" the two said in unison.

"I believe that the Jurchens will besiege Jinzhou to lure the Ningyuan garrison to its aid, thus allowing us to ambush and attack the reinforcements!"

Some say the Battle of Songjin was Huang Taiji's pinnacle battle, but for Zhu Jian, it was just that. Knowing that Jinzhou was surrounded by 100,000 troops, he still insisted on urging reinforcements. If he hadn't rescued Jinzhou, but instead attacked Jinzhou from Dengzhou and Laizhou, adopting a strategy of "besieging Wei to rescue Zhao," it wouldn't have been a bad idea. It was only because he insisted on rescuing Jinzhou that the army's food supplies were cut off, the last elite troops of the Ming Dynasty's nine border regions were lost, and the Ming Dynasty perished.

Sun Chuanting sighed: "If they really besiege Jinzhou, it's an open strategy, forcing the imperial court into a decisive battle!"

Zhu Jian's lips curled into a smile: "What if we don't fight a decisive battle, abandon Jinzhou, and the Jinzhou garrison breaks through to Ningyuan?"

This major battle had been planned by Zhu Jian for a long time. Huang Taiji's idea of ​​besieging the enemy and attacking reinforcements to launch a decisive battle was just a pipe dream. This time, Zhu Jian was prepared to adopt the strategy of "you fight your way, I fight my way" and see if the Jurchen troops and supplies were sufficient.

"Your Majesty, the historian's pen is as firm as iron, and the responsibility for abandoning the land..." Lu Xiang-sheng said, glancing at Zhu Jian.

While this is a good approach, can the emperor bear the responsibility for losing this territory? Will he have to execute the defending general to appease the people?

If the Jurchens take Jinzhou and remain silent for two years, then use the same method to besiege Ningyuan, what will happen then?

Zhu Jian scoffed, "I don't care what the history books say or how they write it. I have no interest in it. They can call me a foolish or tyrannical ruler, I don't care."

Emperor Chongzhen, Zhu Youjian, cared about his reputation, but Zhu Jian didn't care about it. That thing was useless to him. As long as he could defeat the Jurchens, great scholars would sing his praises.

"This..." Sun Chuanting and Lu Xiangshan were speechless for a moment. If the emperor completely disregarded his reputation, they really wouldn't know what to say...

Zhu Jian waved his hand: "This matter is not urgent at the moment. Sun Chengzong can keep things stable in Liaodong."

He then changed the subject: "Lu Xiang-sheng, you will lead 70,000 new troops to Luanzhou as a reserve force for the Guan-Ning-Jin defense line, awaiting my decree to leave the pass."

Originally, the capital had 140,000 new troops. 50,000 of them were sent to Shanxi to block the passage, leaving 90,000. Now, 70,000 have been dispatched to Luanzhou for defense. There are still 20,000 new troops, plus 20,000 soldiers to pay wages and 10,000 imperial guards. This is the last defensive force of the Ming capital.

"Guan Ning Jin has 130,000 troops, and another 70,000 in Luanzhou. If they were to go out of the pass to rescue Jinzhou, the consumption of food and supplies would be astronomical," Sun Chuanting said.

"The claim that the Guan Ning Jin army numbered 130,000 is exaggerated; I estimate it to be around 70,000."

The two remained silent after hearing this. This issue was far too sensitive. They couldn't possibly verify the number of troops in Guan Ning Jin now, could they? If, due to the verification, these people were to defect to the Jurchens, it would be a major blow to the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Jian also understood the seriousness of the problem. The matter of Guan Ningjun had to be dealt with sooner or later, but not now.

Seeing that the two remained silent, Zhu Jian stopped discussing the matter and said, "Mr. Lu, let's set off for Shenzhou."

.

"I obey your decree!"

"Mr. Sun and Bi Maokang, the Director of the Ordnance Department, continued to manufacture cloth armor, giving priority to supplying it to the Luanzhou New Army."

Sun Chuanting rose, cupped his hands, and said, "As you command!"

The new army's armor coverage rate is currently less than 60%. If they go out of the pass without armor, the winter will be very difficult. Therefore, it is necessary to increase the armor coverage rate of the new army in order to unleash its strongest combat power.

During the Wanli era, the Ming army had a high rate of armored soldiers, with some units even fully armored. However, for some reason, twenty years later, the armored rate dropped to 50%, a significant decrease. This included a considerable amount of old and worn-out armor.

Only after the establishment of the Military and Political Bureau and the Chongzhou Textile Bureau last year was the production of new cloth armor stabilized, and the quality of military equipment was guaranteed.