Yang Zhenqing, who was dismissed from his post for violating military discipline, worked as a teacher at the Nanjing Military Academy for two years and was finally sent to the front line to lead troops.
Along with Yang Zhenqing, there were 3,000 hybrid long-hair sheep going to Shaanxi.
The long-haired sheep shipped from Europe have been bred in Liaoning after years of cross-breeding. Now, they are taking 3,000 sheep to Hetao to slowly replace the short-haired sheep there.
As long as long-haired sheep are successfully promoted in the Hetao area, the Mongolian herdsmen in the Hetao area will establish a strong economic relationship with Shanshan and Shaanxi. There are so many coal mines in Shanshan and Shaanxi, and they are close to wool producing areas. After the long-haired sheep are introduced, the wool textile industry will
will be more prosperous. The income of the herdsmen will also increase, and they will have money to buy goods south of the Great Wall. Unless they are really starving to death, they will not easily go south to plunder.
Fei Ruhe had been waiting for a long time. As soon as Yang Zhenqing arrived with three thousand sheep, he immediately led a large army to the Hetao.
Passing by the station of the Ordos tribe on the way, the leader Dazhamusu warmly greeted him, led the crowd to kneel down and said: "The vassal Zhamusu, please pay homage to the Great Governor of the Celestial Dynasty!"
"Huh?" Fei Ruhe raised his eyebrows.
Dazhamusu was stunned for a moment, his son knelt behind him and muttered, and then the guy finally came to his senses and said again: "The vassal minister Zhao Jinzhong has come to see the Grand Governor of the Celestial Dynasty!"
Fei Ruhe immediately smiled and helped the man with his own hands: "General, there is no need to be polite, please get up quickly."
Dazha Musu was sweating on his forehead, and he smiled and tried to please him the whole time.
This guy had been ravaged repeatedly by Li Zicheng, and he had been completely subdued. He didn't dare to have second thoughts at all.
Historically, when Shunzhi implemented the alliance flag system in the Hetao area, only Dazhamusu jumped out to rebel. After the rebellion, he discovered that his brother Xiaozhamusu, as well as other relatives and tribal leaders, all chose to hide and watch the fun.
Just when the Qing army was about to send troops to conquer, Dazhamusu surrendered. How could his tribe defeat him? Because of this, Dazhamusu's tribe became the only Mongolian outer vassal in Hetao, and was not conquered from the beginning to the end.
The Manchu and Qing courts are waiting to see you.
"Bring the sheep!" Fei Ruhe ordered.
Three males, three females, and six sheep were led to Dazha Musu.
Dazhamusu stared at the sheep with bright eyes, and said in wonder: "What kind of sheep is this? The wool is really long."
Fei Ruhe said: "I bought it from the West thousands of miles across the sea. Your Majesty has shown great kindness to the Mongolian tribes here in Hetao. Each tribe will reward six heads for reproduction. From now on, the wool can be sold to Shaanxi, and the price will definitely be higher than short wool.
"
Dazhamusu knelt down and worshiped again: "I, Zhao Jinzhong, would like to thank His Majesty the Emperor for the reward, and thank the Governor for sending the sheep."
The Tumut tribe and the Ordos tribe in the Hetao area were defeated by the Ming Dynasty's border troops during the Longqing period.
Why did Anda Khan accept tribute from the Ming Dynasty?
Because I was bullied so badly by the border troops!
At that time, the biggest resistance to my request for tribute came from the Shaanxi frontier army. The Hetao Mongols requested a ceasefire and accepted the imperial title, but the Shaanxi frontier army kept obstructing them.
Even when the imperial court sent envoys to Hetao for negotiations, the Shaanxi border troops actually went out to cause trouble, hoping to create conflicts and disrupt the imperial court's good deeds.
Wang Zhigao, the governor of the three sides, sent a letter to the court, clearly pointing out the reason: now that mutual trade is not allowed, even if they are allowed to pay tribute, it will be difficult to break the nest and drive the horses back. Not only will the border people be disappointed, but the soldiers will be disintegrated.
The translation is, Mongolia asks for a truce and mutual trade, and must not agree. Once agreed, the border army's raiding nests and horse driving operations will not be able to continue. The officers and soldiers of the Shaanxi border army will be very disappointed. The border army is full of resentment and I will not be able to continue.
Brought it.
After destroying the nest, the border troops broke out of the Great Wall and took the Mongolian tribe's garrison directly.
After driving their horses, the border troops broke out of the Great Wall and robbed the pastures of the Mongolian tribes.
At that time, the Shaanxi frontier army had their military pay deducted at all levels, and what they got was very little. The frontier generals and servants were counting on robbing the Mongolians to make extra money.
During the armistice negotiations, the Ordos tribe was attacked and killed by the Ming Dynasty border troops. Not only did the leader Ji Neng not dare to resent the Ming Dynasty border troops, he also took the initiative and patiently explained the cause of the conflict to Governor Xuanda. Moreover, Ji Neng ordered the leaders of the ministries to be restrained and not allowed to send troops to find them.
The border troops of the Ming Dynasty took revenge, fearing that this armistice negotiation would be disrupted.
In the end, I was successful in paying tribute, and the border between Hetao and Shaanxi was peaceful for decades.
The Ming Dynasty could save countless military expenses every year, but the Shaanxi frontier army was declining day by day. First, the military pay was getting less and less, second, it could not rob the Mongolians to make extra money, and third, it could no longer use the Mongolians for actual combat training.
It's a pity that from the late Jiajing period to the early Longqing period, the Ming Dynasty was full of powerful generals.
Although the decadent military household system has not been abolished, in order to cope with the war, the recruitment system has become increasingly popular. Governors and generals rely on recruiting personal soldiers to fight wars, and do not completely rely on servants to fight.
After decades of fighting, although the finances have been ruined, real swords and real guns have produced elite soldiers and strong generals. In the southwest region, along the coast, and in several northern provinces, generals have risen one after another. Many of these famous generals have never been defeated in their lives.
Press the Japanese pirates, chieftains, Mongolians, and Jurchens to the ground and rub them.
Unfortunately, the decline of the Ming Dynasty had nothing to do with military affairs. It was systemic corruption.
If the finances collapse, everything will stop.
The Shaanxi frontier army could bully the Hetao Mongolia at will, but Emperor Longqing had to cease the war. Not to mention military pay, the imperial court could hardly pay civil servants' salaries.
Moreover, the recruitment system is too expensive.
At that time, the civilian governor had personal soldiers, who personally recruited and trained soldiers. In addition to personal soldiers, he also recruited directly-affiliated troops. Military generals also had personal soldiers and directly-affiliated troops, and they also recruited soldiers and trained them personally. However, the guard system was not abolished, which meant that the court had to spend more money.
You have to spend money to support military households, and you also have to spend money to recruit additional troops. How can you afford such horrific military expenditures?
Emperor Longqing carried out a comprehensive military contraction, and the short-lived recruitment era of the Ming Dynasty ended. In the end, the border army generals could only rely on supporting their families to fight the war.
Tribal leaders like Dazhamusu did not dare to jump in the late Ming Dynasty, and they were even more submissive when they encountered the Datong army.
This guy heard that Fei Ruhe was going to take over Li Zicheng's troops, so he volunteered to lead his army to accompany him. Halfway through, he pulled his younger brother Xiaozhamu Su along with him, and the surrounding Mongolian leaders who were canonized came with their troops to support him.
There were still twenty miles away from Yunzhong City, and Fei Ruhe said to the leaders of the Mongolian tribes: "Stay here and don't go any further."
In fact, this is already Li Zicheng's core territory.
Li Zicheng had already received the news and personally led his army to check the situation. These Mongolian tribes had already been conquered by him, but now they followed Fei Ruhe northward, which inevitably made Li Zicheng feel unhappy.
Zhang Nai rode up to Li Zicheng and said, "Your Majesty, this bully is going too far. He obviously doesn't believe us, and he has brought many defeated generals with him. It's better to have a fight first!"
Li Zicheng was speechless and just looked at the thousands of cavalry brought by Fei Ruhe quietly.
Suddenly, Fei Ruhe rode out alone and galloped all the way to Li Zicheng's formation.
Fei Ruhe rode on the horse, smiled and said with cupped hands: "In front of King Chuang, I, Fei Ruhe, have admired his name for a long time, and today I can finally see it with my own eyes!"
Li Zicheng also ran out on horseback and praised: "Captain Fei is so courageous. Aren't you afraid that I will give the order and all the troops will come out to capture you?"
Fei Ruhe said: "I have heard that King Chuang is a man who keeps his word and keeps his promises. The generals under King Chuang are also aboveboard and aboveboard, and they are not villains waiting to go back on their word. In this case, what else do I have to fear?"
This was said beautifully. Not only did Li Zicheng have a lot of face, but other generals also nodded.
"You are worthy of the world-famous Governor Fei, I admire him!" Li Zicheng raised his hands in admiration.
Fei Ruhe raised his hand to wave, and two more riders came running towards him.
One is the deputy general Yang Zhenqing, and the other is the civil servant Zhang Yunyi who came to confer the title.
Fei Ruhe said: "With too many soldiers, it will inevitably make King Chuang suspicious. The three of us will go to Guihua City (Yunzhong City)."
"It's easy to say," Li Zicheng reciprocated and ordered, "Prepare food and wine, ask the imperial army to station on the south bank of Tumo River, and send all the grain and grass there by boat! Governor Fei, please come."
Fei Ruhe rode forward on his horse and rode side by side with Li Zicheng, and the two of them headed towards Yunzhong City together.
Fei Ruhe introduced: "This is Zhang Yunyi, the envoy sent by the imperial court, and this is Yang Zhenqing, the deputy general of the army."
Li Zicheng ignored the civil servant and looked at Yang Zhenqing in surprise: "Is this General Yang who captured the Tatar capital and killed the Tatar queen mother and emperor?"
"King Chuang is quite well-informed," Fei Ruhe said with a smile.
Yang Zhenqing said: "I conquered the Tatar capital, but it was a little eunuch who killed the Tatar queen mother and emperor."
"Good man!"
Li Zicheng praised it greatly, but he still held a grudge in his heart.
If it weren't for the damn Tatars, he would probably still be emperor. How could he occupy Beijing for a month and then run away in despair?
The generals under Li Zicheng also looked at Yang Zhenqing curiously.
The story of Yang Zhenqing is so legendary that there have been many interpretations among the people.
Putting aside the gimmicks of the descendants of the Yang family, it is basically true that a hunter in the mountains was killed by the Tatars and his whole family was killed, so he changed his name and determined to take revenge. With hundreds of soldiers, he defeated several Tatar passes.
City. With 3,000 soldiers, they fought through several Tatar checkpoints. Finally, with 5,000 soldiers, they received a raiding mission, but they successively broke through the city to recruit and surrender. Finally, they succeeded in a surprise attack on the Tatar capital.
The retreat route of the main Tatar force was blocked.
When they arrived at Yunzhong City, the Han people here lined the streets to watch Fei Ruhe.
The younger brother of Emperor Zhao, the younger brother of the empress, and the governor-general with a heavy army, Fei Ruhe held much more weight in the hearts of the people than Yang Zhenqing.
That night, there was a big banquet.
While pushing cups and changing cups, Fei Ruhe said drunkenly: "Brothers, we are all leading troops and we will not engage in vain schemes. Your Majesty said that you can each bring ten carts of goods back.
Go to their respective hometowns to settle down and divide the fields. Those who don't want to go back to their hometowns can also go to the city to do business, as long as they are not in the Hetao, they can go anywhere. If you still want to lead troops to fight, that's fine, first go to the military academy in Nanjing to study.
If you don’t want to go to the military academy, you can recommend one of your sons to go there. After graduating from the military academy, you can be assigned to the army as an officer. How about that? Although I haven’t given you any official titles or wishes, the imperial court will treat you well, right?"
Li Zicheng asked: "What should I do if I go back to my hometown and encounter corruption and persecution by corrupt officials?"
"Your Majesty makes the decision for you!"
Fei Ruhe said with a smile: "You are very close to Shaanxi. You must have heard about the methods of the new Datong Dynasty, which are merciless in dealing with corrupt officials. When you raised righteousness in Shaanxi, His Majesty and I raised troops in Jiangxi, wasn't it all because of
Corrupt officials? You and I are actually ordinary people, and we are all brothers. Come, come, brothers, have a full drink of this cup!"
"readily!"
"Captain Fei, I toast you with this cup!"
"Done it, done it!"
"..."
The atmosphere quickly became heated, and Li Zicheng's generals happily raised their glasses and drank.
Each person can bring ten carts of goods back to his hometown, which is enough to be a rich man for the rest of his life. He can also recommend a son to go to the military academy and become an officer after completing the military academy. The future development of the family is also guaranteed. This seems not as good as the arrogance they have in Hetao.
Fortunately, the Hetao could not be defended against the Datong Army. Li Zicheng's troops had long been disheartened.
Everyone recommended their sons one after another, saying that their sons were outstanding in martial arts.
Only a few young people, such as Zhang Nai, who are only about 30 years old, are willing to go to Nanjing to attend the military academy in person and plan to continue to seek development in the new Datong Dynasty. The rest of the old thieves and generals don't want to go through any trouble anymore. Wouldn't it be better to return home in glory and enjoy the blessings?
Li Zicheng suddenly said: "My brother is going back to his hometown, and I want to go to Nanjing to visit. Zhao... His Majesty the Emperor in Nanjing, I really admire him very much. If I don't see him in person, I will never sleep well in my life."
Fei Ruhe said with a smile: "If King Chuang asks for an audience, Your Majesty will definitely sweep up the couch to welcome him. By the way, Zhang Xianzhong is a landlord in Taiwan, so King Chuang can also go to Taiwan to reminisce about the past."
"Zhang Thief? It's okay that the guy is missing." Li Zicheng said disdainfully.
While Liu Hanyi was still besieging Batavia, Li Zicheng led a group of military academy students all the way south to Nanjing to meet Emperor Zhao.