"How about it, have you found out the details of the Ming troops in Zhenyitai?" Outside Shanhaiguan, guard Gao Basi Timur asked with an anxious look on his face.
"Among those bright dog legs, there is a very powerful cavalry. Their sentries can't get close to the beacon to investigate." Gao Ba thought about the error that Timur asked about. Hong Boyan Timur, another guard of Shanhaiguan, put his helmet on
Putting it on the table, a pair of narrow eyes with a dangerous gleam of coal slightly narrowed. "The banner they are flying is the King of Qin's Guard. The ordinary Ming army will not be so elite. He thought, those people are really the son of the Emperor of the Zhu family.
Fake."
"Damn it." Gaobasi Timur slammed the wine bowl in his lap on the table. "Did that Ming army come out of nowhere? How could it suddenly appear here?"
"The prime minister (Naha had an official position in Yuanting at this time) asked them to guard Shanhaiguan and clean up the Ming army forces in Liaodong... Seeing that the Ming army was about to be wiped out by them, those few people appeared out of nowhere.
Here comes the son of Emperor Zhu’s family.”
"What a fuss is going on, I'm really depressed! Why don't Mingyue and the others mobilize a large army to get out of the seclusion, and force them to come out and run around, no matter how hard it is, mules or horses!"
"Don't be reckless!" Hong Boyan Timur waved his legs. "They don't know their true and false intentions. They came out of seclusion on their own. What if they were wiped out?"
"Moreover, the Ming army named Ye has also joined them. It is obvious that the Ming army has regained a foothold in Liaodong and is planning to seize the Shanhaiguan. They must not act rashly at that time."
"Could they just wait and see?" Gaobasi Timur asked dissatisfied.
"It's okay, we can't wait long." Hong Boyan Timur narrowed his eyes slightly. "Emperor Zhu's son came to Liaodong without anyone noticing, but he brought tens of thousands of stones of food and grass without anyone knowing!
"
"Tens of thousands of stones of grain and grass! How many civilians, chariots and horses would have to be mobilized! How much waste would be incurred along the way! If the Ming Dynasty had such confidence and ability, it would be better for my brother and I to join the Ming court early. Therefore, although they are not
We know how many people they have, but one thing is certain: their army at this time is definitely not short of food."
Don't forget that when Zhu Su was in the south of the Yangtze River, he easily raised tens of thousands of stones of grain and grass by raiding merchants. I want to know whether the grain and grass in the south of the Yangtze River is completely different from that in the northern Xinjiang area.
First of all, there is the issue of production. China has experienced hundreds of years of chaos, especially in the north. At this time, the Ming Dynasty was not long established. In the vast northern region, the scene of "red bones exposed in the wild" has already been seen.
However, the five words "there is no cockcrow for a thousand miles" are not an exaggeration at all.
The people in the north are sparse and the productivity is lacking. Due to the difference in weather and geography, the fertility of the land is not as good as in the south. From time to time, the Yuan people in the north are good at plowing grass and grains from the south and east. Although the Ming Dynasty has already been established in the east, the people will not let Yuanting fish and meat.
, but it is difficult for every household in the north to grow enough food to support their own family. It is impossible to have a large amount of surplus food to pay to the court for the court to raise troops and fight.
Based on that fact, Lao Zhu also implemented a policy of light corvee and low tax on a large scale in the north, hoping that the northern region could recuperate and live well, and did not expect them to purchase forts to support the imperial army.
But Yuan Ting was still watching outside the pass, and most of the Ming Dynasty's army was still stationed in the north. Where did the food and grass to support those armies come from? It was naturally a "south-to-north food diversion". Every year, the court organized a large number of food transport teams.
, transporting grain to and from northern Xinjiang.
If the food grown in the south was to be delivered to the soldiers in the north, it had to bear a huge amount of losses. First of all, the imperial court needed to recruit a large number of civilians. In ancient times, half of the heavy "corvee" that the people had to bear was
What I am referring to is the task of transporting grain. At that time, the roads were inconvenient, and the time for a round trip was often calculated in months. And the people also asked for food eaters on the way to transport food. They ate while walking, and the food naturally
The loss is very fast. In addition, it is not easy to store food on the road. If it encounters rain or snow, or becomes moldy due to moisture, or is exposed to rats or thieves, all of it will be lost.
Even if a grain transport team initially had tens of thousands of shi of grain, by the time it was delivered to the northern frontier troops, it would often have less than a hundred shi left.
Such a huge loss meant that every attack on grain and grass in northern Xinjiang was enough to devastate the Ming Dynasty's national power. The 100,000 stones of grain and grass burned by Naha would have prevented the Ming Dynasty from counterattacking Liaodong and hoarding it.
The grain reserves that lasted for several years had all been destroyed in the Ming Dynasty. Is the Ming court so powerful that it could assemble another million shi of grain in a short period of time?
Where are the legs of the Dingliao Guards who unknowingly bypassed the frontline battlefield and quickly transported them to those who were short of food?
Absolutely wrong.
"Since the Ming army is short of food, they have to stay behind closed doors and clear the country. Naturally, the Ming army cannot continue to stand still." Hong Boyan Timur said confidently. "Whether they want to plunder food and grass in the east and west of Liaodong, they must attack by force.
It must have been in those months that he contacted the Ming army at Shanhaiguan. He had people monitor their movements."
"As for a Ming army without food and grass, it is very difficult for them to decide whether they can fight or flee?"
"Okay! That's great!" Gaobasi Timur was overjoyed. "You're so proud of me, big brother!"
"If we take Emperor Zhu's son, it will be a great achievement! Even if he is granted the title of marquis and worships the prime minister, it is not impossible! Looking back, he will be like the prime minister of Zuo, supporting the army and becoming the leader of the grassland.
…”
The two of them looked at each other and smiled, quite in the style of the Han Chinese idiom of colluding with each other.
"Sir! Your Majesty!" While they were drinking hot wine from a large bowl, a young boy outside shouted and rushed into the palace door. The night wind blew directly into the faces of the two Timurs. They both stood together.
Stunned, Gao Basi cursed: "You thief, what's the name of a ghost in the middle of the night? Do you want to kill these two grandpas in the cold?"
The young man quickly closed the palace door and continued to say quietly: "Two adults, do you have any important military information?"
"The Ming army in Zhenyitai suddenly broke out of camp at night!"
"What?" The two Timurs were not surprised but overjoyed. Hong Boyan glanced at Gao Basi and said, "Look what he said? The Ming army has indeed run out of food!" Gao Basi threw the wine bowl in his lap, "
Quick, blow the trumpet! Let me put my armor on!" He kicked off the table and strode out of the hall.
When the military merits come, why don't you care about the wind at night? Please be careful if you capture the son of the emperor of the Zhu family!
…
Just as the boy said, the Ming army, which had been silent around Zhenyitai for several months, was unusually active tomorrow night. Even in Shanhaiguan, you could see that the top of the mountain where Zhenyitai was located was surrounded by countless soldiers.
The torches shine brightly.
"Woooo...woo!" Three deep horns blew, and Taitung was suppressed. Countless Ming troops filed out, everyone's face looked anxious. Even in the night, banners could be seen covering the sky.
War is about to break out!
However, what the Ming army didn't realize was that there were many Yuan army sentries hidden in the dark and gloomy jungles and shrubs around them.
"Quick! Report the movements of the Ming army quickly to the two generals outside the customs!" A Yuanting brand leader scolded his legs in a low voice, and then continued to open his eyes wide, watching the anxious Ming army in the darkness.