Although after receiving several million taels of silver from Wei Zhongxian, the financial situation of the Ming Dynasty improved in the first year of Chongzhen.
However, the Ming Dynasty is now also caught in an arms race with Liaodong.
Mao Yuanyi said: "According to reliable information, Chongzhen has ordered to recruit 20,000 new troops after the autumn harvest."
"In this way, the three major battalions in the capital have 90,000 troops, and the Yulin camp has also increased to 80,000. The Ming Dynasty has 170,000 troops stationed in the capital alone; plus the 60,000 border troops in the surrounding Jizhou and Xuanda, as well as the Beizhi The Ming Dynasty has 30,000 troops and 30,000 troops. Just around the capital, the Ming Dynasty has 260,000 troops, including many elite troops."
"Our army, not counting the navy, has 10,000 troops stationed in Monan, 120,000 troops stationed in Liaodong, 8,000 troops stationed in North Korea, 3,000 troops stationed in Ryukyu, 5,000 troops stationed in Taiwan, and 1,000 troops stationed in Nurgandusi, a total of 147,000 people. .”
"It looks like there are a lot of troops, but the territory that needs to be defended is too large. The maximum number of troops that Liaodong can march south is 80,000 people."
"But Monan Mongolia, Horqin Mongolia and the "Three Jurchen Guards" should be able to provide 70,000 to 80,000 horses to help me go south."
At present, the strength of these troops in Liaodong has almost reached its upper limit. They all say Liaodong cavalry. In fact, among Li Xianzhong's more than 100,000 people, there are only 20,000 real cavalry.
Most of them were dragoons who used horses as transportation and were nothing more than mounted infantry.
Li Xianzhong has also thought about this. There are so many Jurchen Mongolian cavalry that can be used. If you don't use them, they will be used in vain.
After all, the cost of one cavalry is almost as much as that of ten infantry. Even if you are a rich man, you cannot afford to support so many cavalry.
Fan Wencheng said: "After all, we, Liaodong, are fighting against the entire Ming Dynasty with one corner. Although the governor is not short of money after the establishment of Liaodong Bank, the money is borrowed after all, and we still have to pay interest."
"However, with the exception of Monan and Nurgan Dusi, all other local governments have a surplus in tax revenue. After Liaodong stopped large-scale projects such as building roads, docks, and shipyards last year, local finances also have a surplus."
"And the income from the Eastern Ryukyu Company and the Liaodong Trading Department is enough to support shipbuilding and raising troops. Of course, the premise is that there is no need to recruit a large number of troops."
"As for supplies, most of our supplies are currently self-sufficient."
"Only saltpeter and cotton need to be imported in large quantities from Daming Pass."
With the capture of Ryukyu and Taiwan, the sulphurous situation in Liaodong was resolved.
However, the demand for saltpeter was still huge.
In Liaodong, in addition to the original saltpeter extraction in corners, cellars, and toilets.
Under the guidance of Song Yingxing, Liaodong has begun to cultivate large quantities of nitrate soil on its own.
First, multiple trenches need to be dug, lined with clay, and then excrement and rotten leaves are piled layer by layer. Limestone or plant ash should be laid between each layer, and small branches should be set up to ensure a certain amount of air circulation.
Workers also need to regularly replenish urine and feces into the ditch to ensure it is moist.
After several months of "planting" like this, you need to dig out the dirt in the ditch, put it into a bucket, and then add pure rainwater to dissolve and leach the saltpeter crystals.
Finally, the water in which the saltpeter has been dissolved is boiled dry, and relatively pure potassium nitrate is obtained.
It is conceivable that the smell of this process is extremely sour, so ordinary people are not willing to do these nitrate soil workers, so they can only use a large number of North Korean laborers.
Although artificial nitrate harvesting is very difficult, in order to prevent it from being "stuck" in the future, this project has been launched in Liaodong.
There are also people in ordinary villages and towns who collect saltpeter regularly.
Cotton is entirely due to climate reasons.
Fortunately, the demand for military cotton is not large, and it is mainly used to make cotton-padded clothes to resist the cold.
However, Shanxi merchants headed by Fan Yongdou repeatedly assured that even if Liaodong went to war with the Ming Dynasty, they could continue to transport these two materials into Liaodong.
Relying on the strong foreign trade system, Li Xianzhong was still confident that he could defeat the Ming Dynasty.
Because Taiwan's nearly 4 million acres of high-yield Champa rice still gave him a lot of confidence, and according to the news from Sun Chuanting, southern Taiwan can achieve three crops a year.
In this way, on average, Taiwan can produce 5 tons of rice per mu per year, and the output is very stable, which is fully five times that of wheat in Liaodong when the wind and rain are favorable.
However, other people in Liaodong don't think so. They all believe that the longer it is delayed, the more detrimental it will be to Liaodong.
It is simply unbelievable that local governments can consume the central government and bring it to its knees.
Of course, they also understand that it will take some time before they want to raise troops.
Beginning in the 48th year of Wanli, the power of the small glacier climate in the late Ming Dynasty began to appear. Various natural disasters continued, including droughts, floods, earthquakes, and locust plagues.
But if you want to say where the drought was the most severe in the Ming Dynasty, it must be in Shaanxi, which has suffered from severe drought for seven consecutive years since the first year of Tianqi.
Especially since the fifth year of Tianqi until now, there has been almost no heavy rain in northern Shaanxi and Weibei.
Most of the land in the entire Weibei region is in a state of no harvest.
Baishui County is located at the junction of Baishui River and Luo River, and has relatively abundant water resources. In the situation where "vegetation and trees were all gone and people were eating each other" in the surrounding areas, the villagers of Nanlujiao Village, led by Wang Er, used water trucks to draw water from the Baishui River, and finally managed to save some crops and barely managed to avoid starving to death.
Just when everyone thought that Chongzhen had overthrown the eunuch party, the court would implement a new deal.
Hu Fan, the tax collector of Baishui County, came again to tax the little summer grain they had.
Not only does this year's summer grain tax have to be collected, but this year's "Liao rates" must also be collected.
Now the people were angry, and Wang Er said loudly: "The Jianlu were wiped out by the Duke of Liao a long time ago. Why does the court continue to collect 'Liao pay'?"
"Are you corrupt officials deliberately exploiting the people in the name of 'Liao salary'?"
Wang Er himself is tall and powerful, and he has great influence in Nanlujiao Village.
After he raised the question, the people behind him responded one after another.
Originally, the tax collectors wanted to take down the "thorn" who was leading the trouble, but they were immediately discouraged when they saw this posture.
The people in northern Shaanxi have always been tough and tough. How can these government servants under him be the opponents of this group of unruly people?
The court did not waive the "Liao rates", he just came to collect them in advance.
However, this summer grain was obtained by themselves. Due to the severe drought in Weibei, the imperial court had actually exempted Baishui County from grain tax this year.
Originally, when Wei Zhongxian was in power, they had to worry a little about the ubiquitous Dongchang and Jinyiwei. After all, there was a civil uprising, and these hawks and dogs still had very sharp noses; and there were tax supervisors everywhere, so it was difficult for them to allocate their taxes on their own. .
But now these barriers no longer exist.
Of course, he still felt guilty at this time, so he could only say in a good voice: "The relationship between Liaodong and the imperial court is not good now. Your Majesty is still pointing out the 'Liao Pay' to train the new army. Hu and Magistrate Zhang are also in a dilemma. .”
The royal families of Tianqi and Chongzhen, as well as the ministers in the DPRK, could use preparations for Liaodong as an excuse to continue to collect the so-called "Liao pay".
But the common people don't understand that all the Jianlu people have been wiped out by Li Xianzhong, the Duke of Liao, and you actually still want to collect "Liao pay"?
The government always said that the eunuchs were responsible for the chaos in government and the excessive taxation and expropriation. But now that the eunuchs have collapsed, they have not seen any reduction in these extortionate taxes?
At any rate, when Duke Wei was in power, he canceled the "Liao pay" for one year, and from time to time he reduced or exempted some taxes in the disaster-stricken areas.
Now if the government takes away this food, it will cut off their livelihood.
So Wang Er shouted: "Folks, this so-called 'Liao rate' must have been imposed on us by the county magistrate Zhang Douyao and the tax collector Hu Fan. Now half of the people in the surrounding villages have starved to death, and they still want to collect taxes." . Since they won’t let us live, let’s just rob the granary in Baishui County and open a granary for everyone!”
Wang Er's proposal quickly gained support from villagers such as Zhong Guangdao!
The ancestor of Zhong Guangdao was a general of the Zhong family in the Northern Song Dynasty. Although he has long been reduced to a commoner after so many years, his martial arts has not been neglected, and he also reads some military books and strategies from time to time!
But he also has another identity at the moment, a spy from the Intelligence Department.
Soon the two of them were elected as the leaders of the rebel army by the villagers.
They united two villages near Nanlujiao Village and gathered hundreds of people.
The miserable tax collector Hu Fan was directly tied with rocks by the angry Wang Er and pushed down the Baishui River to sacrifice to the Dragon King.
After everyone used Hu Fan to pray for rain from the Dragon King, they went to Baishui County in a mighty manner.
When the county magistrate Zhang Douyao saw this situation, he quickly abandoned the city and fled. It was originally very difficult for these people armed with wooden sticks and hoes to capture the county seat.
After Zhang Douyao ran away, Baishui County also gave up resistance, and Wang Er and others quickly occupied Baishui County.
Although there was not much food in Baishui's treasury, Wang Er and others distributed food to the nearby victims, attracting many people to donate.
These people were already on the verge of death. Now, as long as they have food to eat, do they still care whether they rebel or not?
After the rebels occupied Baishui County, they issued knives and weapons to the victims. They painted their faces with ink as a symbol of the rebels.
The rebel army fought its first battle in Chengcheng, which was severely famine-stricken.
Arriving at the foot of Chengcheng County, Wang Er said loudly: "Who dares to kill the county magistrate?"
Everyone responded in unison: "I dare to kill!"
"I dare to kill!"
"I dare to kill!"
Knowing that the army was united, Wang Er led his troops to attack the county seat and killed the magistrate.
After the rebels opened warehouses to release grain, their momentum gradually grew, and Wang Er wanted to hold on to the county seat.
Zhong Guangdao said: "At this time, hungry people are everywhere in Weibei, and food is scarce in Chengcheng. If we are trapped here, we will soon be surrounded by the army."
"It's better to retreat to the north of Luohe River first to avoid the sharp edge of the army and also make it easier for us to receive more victims!"
Soon the rebels abandoned the two county towns and retreated directly to the north bank of Luoshui.
In the north of Luohe, more and more hungry people followed the army, and their momentum grew. They then moved to various places in Weibei, attacking cities and seizing strongholds, killing evil officials everywhere, beating the rich and helping the poor, and the people supported them.
The rebels including King Weibei gathered tens of thousands of people, broke into several counties, robbed warehouses, and killed officials. They soon attracted the attention of the government and army.
Fu Zonglong, the governor of Shaanxi, quickly sent troops north to suppress it.
However, Wang Er followed Zhong Guangdao's strategy and started a guerrilla war with the official army.
The rebels were erratic in their whereabouts and were both bandits and civilians, causing the officers and soldiers to lose their target. In the end, they successfully set up an ambush in the Muar Mountain area north of Chengcheng, killing and wounding more than 300 officers and soldiers. The rest of the officers and soldiers fled as fast as frightened birds. Went back.
The victory of this ambush greatly boosted the morale of the rebel army. Seeing that Wang Er's rebel army defeated the official army, the people who were originally hesitant also joined the uprising team. Many of them were forced to leave because of lack of pay. The Ming army deserted.
Wang Er also followed Zhong Guangdao's suggestion and abolished the old and weak, retaining only thousands of elite troops with combat capability. The rebels were active in Pucheng, Yijun, Luochuan, Baishui and other places.
The "Wang Er Uprising" was like opening a Pandora's box. Countless Shaanxi people struggling on the verge of death discovered that they were not just waiting to die.
Soon the peasant uprising in northern Shaanxi turned from a spark into a prairie fire!
Soon after, Wang Jiayin, a farmer in Fugu County, northern Shaanxi, gathered a group of hungry people to rebel. Wang Er immediately led his team north to join them, and the rebel army expanded to five to six thousand people.
Soon Wang Er and Wang Jiayin led their troops to the south and garrisoned in Huanglongchuan.
Wherever the rebel army passed, they killed corrupt officials, broke down prisons, opened granaries, and helped the hungry people, becoming popular in Weibei.
At the same time, under the planning of the Intelligence Department, Ansai Gao Yingxiang, Yichuan Wang Zuoguai, Yanchuan Huntian Wang, Luochuan Heisha Shen, Jingbian Shen Yiyuan, Qingjian Dengzi, Suide Bumu Mu, Mizhi Xichuan Prince Shun, Miao Mei and others took action one after another.
For a time, the whole of Shaanxi was in turmoil. Not only did the peasant army spread throughout Shaanxi, but large-scale peasant uprisings broke out in eastern Gansu, southern Shanxi, and northern Sichuan.
The news reached the capital, and the court was in an uproar.
Because these rebels who participated in the rebellion were not only farmers, but also many border troops who had been dismissed by Tianqi Emperor Zhu Youxiao a few years ago.
In addition, due to the frequent arrears in pay from the imperial court and the exploitation of the Ming Dynasty's governors and generals, a large number of frontier troops in northern Shaanxi actually received only half a tael of pay per month, which was only one-third of the normal pay.
These frontier troops simply could not support themselves and had to become deserters to find another way to make a living. Nowadays, there are many elite border troops among these rebels.
This is the reason why these rebels are so powerful. Many of them were originally Ming troops.
Sun Chengzong visited Jiubian, and he had heard about these situations, but he couldn't just say it openly, otherwise he would offend many people.
He said: "The people of northern Shaanxi are fierce, and most of the elites of the northwest frontier army are from here. This time Wang Er and others are coming with a fierce force, and we must not underestimate the enemy. The veteran suggested that the elites of the Yulin Camp be mobilized immediately to go to Shaanxi to put down the rebellion."
"Be sure to kill the rogues as soon as possible!"
Sun Chengzong, as the chief assistant in charge of the Ministry of War, also single-handedly established the elite Yulin Battalion. His suggestions were naturally recognized by most people.
All the ministers agreed.
But at this time, Yang He, the deputy censor of the left deputy capital, didn't think so.
He said: "Mr. Sun Ge is too careful. They are just bandits. They are just a group of farmers who only know how to cultivate the land."
"Although the people in northern Shaanxi are tough, the frontier troops are also tough!"
"Among the nine borders, Yansui Town (also known as Yulin Town), Ningxia Town, Guyuan Town, Gansu Town and other towns are all in the north of the bandit's activity area. Why should we abandon the near and seek the far away?"
"What Mr. Sun Ge said is right, we must kill the rogue bandits as soon as possible."
"You know, soldiers are valuable and quick. The terrain in northern Shaanxi is complicated. We left the elites of the Nine Sides who are close at hand, but mobilized troops from the capital."
"Although the Yulin Battalion is elite, it is not familiar with the local climate and terrain after all. It is definitely not as understanding as those of the frontier troops!"
Yang He was actually a civilian official, but this guy was a bit like today's military commentator.
Even though he has never been on the battlefield, he always likes to comment on each battle.
During the Battle of Sarhu, Yang He commented on the generals and recommended Yuan Yingtai as the Liaodong manager.
Although what he said is reasonable, at this time you are also an amateur military enthusiast, and it is really inappropriate to deny Sun Chengzong, the chief minister of the dynasty who knows military skills.
Just when all the civil and military officials in the dynasty felt that Yang He was really humiliating himself.
Chongzhen didn't think so.
He felt that what Yang He said was very reasonable.
The main force of Jiubian, which is close at hand, is not used, but troops are mobilized from the capital all the way.
Doesn't this give the thieves an opportunity to become bigger?
In the past, bandits were able to flourish only because the border troops could not go south at will.
Now as long as he sends a suitable minister as the governor of the three sides to coordinate the various armies, he should be able to suppress the uprising in Shaanxi very quickly.
Moreover, the Yulin Camp may not be effective. When Zuo Liangyu was annihilating the White Lotus Sect in Yanzhou, Zuo Liangyu had been at odds with the bandits for more than a year, and they still haven't won it yet.
Mr. Sun Ge did this because he wanted to promote his generals!
He said: "I wonder if Yang Qing has any strategy for dealing with rogue bandits?"
Yang He didn't have high hopes at first. After all, his opponent was Sun Chengzong, the chief minister of the dynasty, but it seemed that His Majesty approved it.
Soon he said: "Your Majesty can send a trustworthy minister to coordinate the Shanxi Governor Geng Ruqi, the Yansui Commander-in-Chief Wu Zimian, and the Gansu Governor Mei Zhihuanqin to carry out a separate attack on the bandits."
I believe that the main force of the rebels will be annihilated within three months, and the Shaanxi rebellion will be completely suppressed within half a year at most!
As soon as Yang He said this, there was a lot of discussion in the court.
Yang He really dares to boast on paper!
However, Chongzhen was deceived by him. He said excitedly: "If I appoint Ai Qing as the governor of the three sides, you may annihilate the main force of bandits in March and retreat to pacify Shaanxi within half a year as you said before?"
Yang He was very excited when he heard that he was going to be the governor of the three sides, and immediately said: "Since this plan was proposed by Weichen, we are sure to achieve it."
Chongzhen was overjoyed after hearing this and said: "Order Yang He to serve as the governor of the three provinces of Shaanxi as the right minister of the Ministry of War, and command the troops in Shaanxi, Shanxi, and Gansu to completely wipe out the rebellion."
Everyone was also puzzled. Yang He, a left deputy censor, was actually appointed governor of Shaanxi Province after bragging in front of His Majesty. He also controlled the three provinces of Shanxi, Shaanxi and Gansu?
It seems that His Majesty Chongzhen is going to recruit a large number of new people.
Although Yang He boasted loudly, he had never led an army before.
But who would have thought that His Majesty could hand over a large number of elites from nine sides and the power to control the three provinces into his own hands.
But Yang He's novice aura is really too powerful.
The leader of the rebel army, Wang Er, was actually captured in a battle with the official army.
At that time, Liu Yingyu of Shangluo Road in Shaanxi Province did not know that the person he captured was Wang Er, the leader of the rebel army, so he killed him directly.
Although Yang He did not annihilate many of the main rebel forces, he captured and killed Wang Er.
When Wang Er's head was sent to the capital, all those who questioned him were silenced.
They all praised His Majesty for his reputation for discerning people and his discerning eye, and that the chaos in Shaanxi would soon subside.
Chongzhen once again believed that he was the Holy Lord and the Mingjun, much stronger than those ministers.
After Wang Er's death, Wang Jiayin took over the banner of rebel leader and continued to lead the rebel army against the official army.
After that, Wang Zuogua and others attacked Yichuan, but were repulsed by the magistrate Chengcai. They turned to attack Hancheng. There were no generals in Hancheng's army. Yang He appointed political minister Hong Chengchou to lead the army to resist, and captured and killed more than 300 people. The siege of Hancheng After being cleared, the rebel soldiers went to Qingjian.
This was Hong Chengchou's first time in command of an army, but he showed amazing talent.
Yang He just needed a big victory at this time, so Hong Chengchou became the lucky one.
Yang He, the governor of the three sides, personally asked Emperor Chongzhen for a reward.
Another good news came to Beijing, which made Emperor Chongzhen in a good mood and remembered the name Hong Chengchou.
In February of the second year of Chongzhen, Zhang Nian, the prefect of Yan'an, and Aimu, the governor of Yan'an, advanced on the rebels in Yanchuan and captured the rebel leaders Wang Zishun, Zhang Shusheng and Ji San'er.
In addition, the bandit leader Wang Jiayin sacked Yan'an and Qingyang, but Yang He concealed the matter and did not report it.
At this time, the thieves were getting more and more violent, and Yang He knew that it would be difficult to get back his boast.
So in order to quickly get rid of the rogue bandits, he changed the name of "suppression" to "fussing"!
Yang He also issued death-free documents to the bandits Wang Hu, Xiao Honglang, Yi Zhangqing, Luo Dihu, Hun Jianglong and others, and placed them in the Yansui and Hequ areas, causing these bandits to still commit adultery and plunder.
These people had documents exempting them from death, but the local government did not dare to intervene, and the chaos was caused.
The chaos caused by the bandits became more and more serious. Later, after Wang Jiayin captured Huangfu, Qingshui, and Papaya, he captured Fugu; the bandit leader Yiyuan captured Xin'an, Ningsai, Liushujian and other castles, and killed most of the tribesmen guarding Du Wenhuan. , and Shen Yikui, the younger brother of Shen Yiyuan, besieged Qingyang again and captured Heshui. After Yang He learned about it, he immediately moved to Ningzhou. Shen Yikui accepted the recruitment, and Yang He sent him back to the county magistrate Jiang Yingchang.
After seeing the other thieves, they also surrendered one after another. Yang He placed a seat for the emperor on the tower and asked the thieves to kneel down and shout long live. Then he read out the emperor's instructions and ordered them to swear an oath to either join the army or return home. Farmers, never be thieves.
These thieves pretended to agree, and Yang He immediately pardoned their crimes. So all the thieves regarded Yang He as a child's play.
And because Shen Yikui was the most powerful, Yang He invited his son-in-law to the military tent to eat and live with him. As expected, Shen Yikui came to surrender. Yang He listed his ten major crimes, and Shen Yikui kowtowed to apologize. , Yang He read an edict and pardoned him, gave him an official position, arranged more than 4,000 of his troops in Ningsai, and sent guard Wu Hongqi to protect them.
At that time, the guard Du Wenhuan was very angry about this and left with his tribe.
On the surface, Yang He's appeasement policy stabilized the bandits in Shaanxi in the short term, but in fact it hid major hidden dangers.
Especially Wang Jiayin, he not only inherited most of Wang Er's men, but also had a lot of talents under his command. Gao Yingxiang, Zhang Xianzhong, Li Zicheng and others all followed Wang Jiayin's orders.
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(End of chapter)
