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

Chapter 109 The Shadow of War Looms

"Since Jirgalang believes that we can win with fewer troops, then you will be the commander-in-chief for this expedition!" Dorgon said unhurriedly.

It seems that the decision to invade the Central Plains has already been made, and now the question of who will lead the campaign is being discussed.

"I'll take it, I'll take it," Zirhalang said, his tone tinged with resentment.

"Enough!" Huang Taiji jumped up and shouted angrily, "What kind of behavior is this, making such a racket!"

He discovered that ever since Dorgon's failed invasion of the Central Plains, these people had been arguing every now and then. If things continued like this, the Qing Dynasty would soon be falling into the same factional strife as the Ming Dynasty.

Seeing that the emperor was truly angry, the men fell silent. But none of them would yield to the others.

Huang Taiji's gaze swept over the group, and he said, "News from Chahar indicates that Shanxi is currently ravaged by plague. Otherwise, do you think Xuanfu and Datong are only guarded by 20,000 troops?"

The news of the plague in Shanxi was deliberately leaked by Wang Tingchen, the governor of Xuanfu and Datong, when he was exchanging warhorses with the Chahar people. This was to prevent the Jurchens from being unaware that they had entered from Shanxi. If the Jurchens contracted the plague and brought it back to Liaodong, it would be fine, but it would be a case of killing a thousand enemies while losing eight hundred of your own, and no one would benefit.

"Plague?" The group looked at each other in bewilderment upon hearing the word "plague."

If that's the case, they don't want to go. Going to a plague-ridden area now is suicide for anyone.

"This has been going on for a while now. There's nothing good about Shanxi and Shaanxi provinces, so there's no need to consider them anymore," Huang Taiji said.

Huang Taiji thought, with the plague in Shanxi, the disaster in Shaanxi, and Li Zicheng and Luo Rucai still there, what were they going there for? They couldn't plunder much from those two provinces. Were they going to Shaanxi to fight Li Zicheng and Luo Rucai on behalf of the Ming Dynasty?

Huang Taiji thought for a moment and slowly said, "After the autumn harvest, prepare to encircle Jinzhou!"

The Guan-Ning-Jin defense line is constantly harassing their military settlements. Although they have withdrawn inland, they have lost a lot of military settlement areas. If they don't remove Jinzhou, this thorn in their side, they will never be able to pry open the gates of the interior.

Looting and pillaging is possible, but to completely occupy the interior, it is impossible to enter without taking down Jinzhou, Ningyuan, and Shanhaiguan. Huangtaiji thought for a long time and decided to take advantage of the abundant food supplies to besiege Jinzhou and attack reinforcements. As long as the last elite force of the Ming Dynasty outside the pass is eliminated, the time to enter the pass will be just around the corner.

When Jirgalang heard that Huangtaiji wanted to attack Jinzhou, he glanced at Dorgon and said, "I am willing to lead troops to besiege Jinzhou."

Seeing this, Dorgon did not try to take the job. Jinzhou was a tough nut to crack, and there would be no benefit in attacking it; in fact, it would result in heavy losses. He was too lazy to fight for it.

Seeing that Dorgon showed no intention of moving, Huangtaiji directly ordered: "This time, Prince Rui of Jinzhou will be the commander-in-chief of the front line, Ajige will be the general, and the two White Banners will be led to surround Jinzhou. Jirgalang and Hauge will be responsible for the Ming reinforcements from the Songshan direction."

Huangtaiji meant that Dorgon had to go even if he didn't want to. He was not comfortable leaving the two White Banners in Shenyang, and he would only feel at ease if this powerful army was sent out.

"Yes." Although Dorgon was unwilling to go, he still bowed and accepted the order. He couldn't possibly disobey the imperial decree in front of Huangtaiji.

Huangtaiji has recently stockpiled a large amount of grain and fodder for this battle, which can also be said to be a battle he has painstakingly planned and researched. He is 90% certain that Emperor Chongzhen will send a large army to rescue Jinzhou.

Once the reinforcements are defeated, the Liaoxi region will be under our control, leaving only Ningyuan, an isolated city outside the Great Wall, for the Ming Dynasty.

At the same time, sunlight pierced through the Guanningjin defense line, shining on the yellow dirt road and making it dusty.

Batch after batch of fast horses were constantly traveling between Jinzhou, Songshan, Xingshan and other places.

The Ningyuan bunker complex is now complete, and all that's left is for the military and civilians to move in. Sun Chengzong plans to complete the deployment before the autumn harvest, withdrawing the troops outside the Ningta bunker complex to the three major cities of Jinzhou, Songshan, and Xingshan. All personnel, weapons, and provisions inside the remaining bunkers will be cleared and fortified in preparation for war.

Sun Chengzong stood atop Ningyuan City, his eyes fixed on the Tashan defense line ahead, filled with many emotions.

Back then, he strongly advocated for the construction of the Guan-Ning-Jin defense line, but now more than ten years have passed, and the past is like smoke.

"Grand Secretary Sun! Grand Secretary Sun!" Liaodong Governor Qiu Yangmin climbed the city wall, panting like a bellows: "The imperial court has sent 30,000 shi of grain!"

"Send these 30,000 shi of grain to the three major cities of Jinzhou, Songshan, and Xingshan," Sun Chengzong instructed.

Two days ago, he received an imperial decree instructing him to hold Jinzhou for a year before withdrawing from Jinzhou, abandoning all positions outside the Ningta bunker complex, and defending the Ningta defense line to the death.

Taking advantage of the good weather and the fact that the Jurchens have not made any moves, they are accelerating their efforts to stockpile grain towards Jinzhou.

As long as there is food in Jinzhou, the Jurchens cannot take it. If they launch a full-scale attack, they will attack the rear from the Ningta defense line. If they surround it without attacking, they will also wear it down at the Ningta defense line. Although the emperor said this, his specific intentions were not very clear. If they keep wearing it down, they will not be able to solve the Jinzhou problem.

"Of the 30,000 shi of grain delivered to Jinzhou, only 20,000 shi remained," Qiu Yangmin muttered, reflecting on the losses incurred along the way.

The Guan-Ning-Jin defense line is divided into two sections. The first section is from Shanhaiguan to Ningyuan City, and the second section is from Ningyuan City to Jinzhou. The second section consumes more than twice the amount of food as the first section. This is also an important reason why Zhu Jian wanted to abandon Jinzhou. It was too costly in terms of money and food. Rather than spending the time in Jinzhou, it was better to reduce the troops to the Ning-Ta line.

If the Jurchens occupy Jinzhou, Songshan, Xingshan, and other places, it will accelerate the depletion of their food and military strength. As long as the Ming Dynasty abandons the decisive battle with the Jurchen army, it will not give the Jurchens the opportunity to annihilate them completely. In a war of attrition, the Jurchens cannot outlast the Ming Dynasty.

After all, the Ming Dynasty's population and financial resources were equivalent to more than a dozen Liaodong regions; it all depended on how the emperor managed these resources.

"Send it. It will be easier to fight if we stockpile more grain in Jinzhou." Sun Chengzong knew Zu Dashou well. He was a man who prioritized self-interest, but he was still a capable general. If there was a way to survive, he would not surrender to the Jurchens again. If there was no way to survive, he would choose to surrender first. Therefore, Sun Chengzong had been transporting grain to Jinzhou during this period.

The emperor ordered him to guard Jinzhou from the autumn harvest until the following autumn, for a year, and in return, he provided Zu Dashou with fourteen months' worth of provisions.

Damn, this is the limit. Any more and it will shake the Ningta bunker complex.

"Yes!" Qiu Yangmin sighed and agreed.

Liaodong isn't short of money, but it is short of grain and cloth. From last year to this year, the emperor has been sending silver coins to Guan Ningjin, which is giving him a headache now. Finally, on the eve of the decisive battle, some grain has been transported, but most of it has been stockpiled in Jinzhou. Although the Ningta fortress complex can continuously transport grain from the interior, who knows if there is any grain left in the interior? What if Jinzhou hasn't fallen yet, and the Ningta defense line collapses due to lack of food?

"When you return, escort the women and children of Jinzhou, Songshan, and Xingshan to the Ningta defense line, and tell them you are repairing the city," Sun Chengzong instructed.

Since the construction of the Ningta defense line began, Sun Chengzong had been conscripting people from these three major cities to avoid leaving them behind in Jinzhou and other cities during the retreat from Jinzhou. So he brought back as many people as he could to strengthen the defense of the Ningta defense line.

"Yes."

Qiu Yangmin then changed the subject: "Could we arrange for people to be stationed in Guangning City, which is behind the Ningta defense line?"

It's inappropriate to cram women and children into the bunkers, which are already nearly full. If something happens in Jinzhou and the garrison retreats, they'll need to move into these bunkers immediately. Where will they be placed then? It would be better to evacuate them to the more remote city of Guangning beforehand.

Sun Chengzong thought for a moment and nodded slightly: "Make the arrangements, with priority given to military families."

Placing family members behind the defensive line enhances the fighting capacity of the frontline soldiers; their wives, children, and elderly parents are all behind them. It's a matter of expediency in an emergency. As for when the emperor intends to activate Guangning City... we'll see.

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