The Revolt of the Three Feudatories: All-in at the start in Beijing

January 1, 1674 AD.

Outside Guihua City, there was a huge crowd of people. This was Galdan's 60,000-strong logistics army, all of whom were families with their elderly parents and children.

At that moment, the women and children were tidying up their belongings, while the men were working together to build the yurt.

Therefore, the main reason why the Mongols were able to conquer the west was that they could travel with their families, and even seven- or eight-year-old children riding ponies could keep up.

"Taiji!"

Upon seeing Galdan approach, all the people bowed and touched their chests in a gesture of respect to the important figure.

After receiving the chest-touching salute from his followers, Galdan went directly to the very center, where he saw more than three thousand craftsmen dismantling various tools, including hammers and blowers.

Dzungar's father, Batur Khuntaiji, was a very visionary leader who grew his followers from only 30,000 to 200,000.

In addition to their large population, the Dzungars also valued artisans, so they were not simply a nomadic people; they had their own fields and firearms workshops in Ili.

If Galdan hadn't targeted the nobility, and given a few more years, things could have progressed to the point where they were directly confronting Emperor Kangxi a decade or so later.

Batur Khuntaiji was like the reigns of Emperors Wen and Jing of the Han Dynasty, leaving Galdan with a considerable amount of wealth.

These craftsmen were good at making cold weapons, but when it came to making firearms, well, that was a different story.

The camel cannons that later generations have touted were actually just small cast iron cannons, a generation behind the Qing army of the same period, and were easily breached by the Qing soldiers' red-coated cannons.

Galdan preferred to use bows and arrows rather than that kind of thing. If he hadn't decisively manufactured cloth-covered iron armor and built 30,000 iron cavalry, how could he have made such a smooth progress with just those cast iron cannons?

Next, we'll have to rely on the Fan family. With these skilled craftsmen already in place, all we need is a top-notch cannon-casting master to create top-tier muskets and cannons.

If all else fails, we'll have to go to Beijing to rob it.

"Aku, Aku!"

Just then, a handsome young man, who looked to be eighteen or nineteen years old, wearing black cloth armor, strode over.

"Liu Weiqing, how was your first time leading troops? Were any soldiers disobedient along the way?"

When Galdan saw Liu Weiqing, he went up to him and gave him a big hug, then circled around him once.

It's not that Galdan was being too polite, because Liu Weiqing's Mongolian name was Tsering Dondub, who was his nephew and also a future famous general of the Dzungar Khanate.

Historically, this guy single-handedly took charge of the Dzungar Khanate after Galdan's death.

The Qing army suffered heavy losses in several battles, including the loss of several generals. Furthermore, the Qing army annihilated more than two or three thousand Russian soldiers with ten thousand cavalry, forcing the Russians to blow up their fortresses and flee. This victory marked the first invasion of the Western Regions.

There was also Celingdunduobu, a very capable general who was good at small-scale raids. The two of them were like downgraded versions of Wei Qing and Huo Qubing.

To distinguish between them, later generations divided the two into the elder and younger Tsering Dondrup, but in fact the two were not related by blood.

Now, little Tsering Dondub has been born and is just over a year old. Galdan has adopted him as his godson and given him the Han name Liu Qubing, while his Mongolian name remains Tsering Dondub.

Whether Liu Weiqing and Liu Qubing can live up to their names depends on how Galdan cultivates them.

This march, which gave him three thousand light cavalry, was a test for him. There was no danger; with thirty thousand iron cavalry charging all the way here, who would dare to get close?

The main purpose is to train them to lead troops.

The same principle applies to Subutai.

"Aku, the journey has been relatively smooth, except when we passed through Ningxia, we were followed by more than three hundred cavalry. Judging from the color of their armor, they should be from the Qing Dynasty's Bordered White Banner!"

Upon hearing Galdan's question, Liu Weiqing initially spoke quite cheerfully, but in the end, he lowered his head.

"In a moment of impulse, I couldn't resist and engaged them in battle on the banks of the Yellow River. After a round of clashes, our army suffered 142 casualties, while the enemy lost fewer than 50. In the end, I ordered a retreat!"

The Eight Banners soldiers during this period were not corrupt. The most elite 40,000 to 50,000 Manchu Eight Banners soldiers all had blood on their hands, and were particularly strong in hand-to-hand combat.

However, Liu Weiqing was no less impressive. He was able to fight against the Manchu army with light cavalry and achieve a three-to-one ratio, which was already quite remarkable.

If it were the Dzungar cavalry, who were on leave year-round, they would have no problem crushing the Eight Banners troops head-on.

Thinking of this, Galdan smiled like an aunt, stepped forward and gave her a big hug, then pointed to the banner on the city wall.

"Wei Qing, you are my nephew, the future Grand General of the Dzungar Khanate. You must be able to handle this, understand?"

"Tomorrow, select seven thousand men from your followers, then plunder along the Liaodong route to the Khorchin grasslands. I want all the people's food and supplies. Train your ten thousand cavalry!"

Galdan wanted to give Liu Weiqing money and people to hone his courage. With all this fear and hesitation, how long would it take for him to become a useful person?

In later generations of universities, children from wealthy families tend to be bolder than children from poor families because they know they have someone to back them up. After graduation, they often have a magnanimous style and strong management skills.

Children from poor families, upon graduation, don't immediately think about how to develop their careers; instead, they think about how to help support their families.

Upon hearing Galdan's words, Liu Weiqing smiled, a stark contrast to his previous submissive demeanor.

"Aku, I'm confident I can lead ten thousand elite cavalry to conquer the grasslands and become the greatest Khan!"

Just as Galdan was about to leave, Subutai, reeking of blood, approached and made a throat-slitting gesture. "Taiji, everything has been taken care of. Those two have been sent to see the Eternal Heaven!"

Upon hearing this, Galdan felt instantly relieved and, disregarding the bloodstains on Subutai's body, immediately put his arm around Subutai's shoulder.

"Let's go, let's drink!"

……

The head of the Fan family in Zhangjiakou, Fan Sanbo, was nearly fifty years old and had a full forehead. He listened to the information Fan Li had gathered and showed a puzzled expression.

"So, according to you, the leader of the Dzungars is ambitious and wants to attack Beijing? But even if these steppe barbarians have powerful cavalry, without cannons to breach the city walls, they probably won't even be able to get through the gates!"

Hearing Fan Sanbo say this, Fan Li disagreed, "Brother, the confidence and assurance in Galdan's words don't seem feigned!"

"After leaving the city that day, I saw their recruitment notice. They bought all the looted goods from the merchants in full. He's a man who values ​​rules a lot, just like Huang Taiji that my father mentioned!"

Fan Li was the patriarch of the Fan family and the illegitimate son of Fan Yongdou in his old age. He was called a "Qilin'er" when he was only ten years old. He was Fan Sanbo's half-brother.

"Once the rabbit is caught, the hunting dog is cooked; once the birds are gone, the bow is put away."

Fan Sanbo would have scoffed at such comments from others, but he agreed with Fan Li's praise.

"Since Wu Sangui raised his army, the Ministry of Revenue has sent officials to audit the accounts many times, for which we have already spent two million taels of silver, but I feel this is a bottomless pit!"

After a moment's thought, Fan Sanbo slammed his hand on the table.

"Sixth Brother, it's time to place your bets. Tomorrow, go to Taitong and bring Old Man Wei from the former Ming Firearms Bureau and his children to Galdan."