Chapter 178
The premise logic of high power and shock is that the most important thing is the "master", not the shock. In Cheng Shijie's eyes, Emperor Chongzhen was not his master, but his boss.
Whatever the master asks his servants to do, they have to obey. But what excessive things the boss asks his employees to do depends on how much money the boss pays. If you are paid 3,000 yuan a month and asked to work overtime, and no overtime pay is given, the employees will tell the boss to get out.
However, if you are given 30,000 yuan a month, even if your boss asks you to work overtime, even if you ask him to work all night, you have to grit your teeth and persist.
But the question is what did Emperor Chongzhen, the boss, give Cheng Shijie?
money?
Emperor Chongzhen was actually not as rich as Cheng Shijie.
that power?
Regardless of whether Emperor Chongzhen agreed or not, Cheng Shijie had the final say in Liaonan.
This is a fact.
Of course, as a grassroots cadre of Hansteel Group, Cheng Shijie is very good at talking things over.
"Eunuch Gao, if Cheng is afraid that his superior power will overwhelm his master, then there is no need to fight this battle!"
He said calmly: "Do you know why Jiannu became stronger and stronger from a small tribe with only a few hundred thousand people, while the Ming Dynasty became weaker and weaker?"
Gao Qi said subconsciously: "What is it?"
"It's just because I'm worried that there are too many people with great achievements who can shock their masters. They clearly have the opportunity to strangle the slaves, but intentionally or unintentionally let them live, and even sit back and watch them develop and grow!"
Cheng Shijie smiled bitterly and said: "If Li Chengliang wanted to kill Jiannu back then, it would be like squeezing an ant to death. Unfortunately, the court was worried that Li Chengliang would not lose his tail and was suspicious of him in every possible way, so he had to raise the bandits to respect himself. Jiannu is such a vicious wolf, and he is a wolf. The cub is slowly getting stronger and turning into a fierce tiger. How many Ming people are conniving behind it?"
Facing Cheng Shijie's words, Gao Qiqian was truly speechless.
Cheng Shijie is right. A large part of the reason why Jiannu was able to grow from a small tribe with only a few hundred thousand people to compete with the Ming Dynasty was because the Ming army was supporting the enemy and playing tricks on the enemy to support the bandits. !
The generals of the Ming army wanted to keep the war in their jurisdiction, and fight big and small battles non-stop. In this way, the court not only did not dare to touch them, but also had to send a large amount of food and military pay one by one and put it into his pocket!
This is also the suppression of military generals by civil servants. Without fighting, the officers and soldiers of the Ming army would not be able to eat enough, let alone food, because civil servants were as ferocious as dogs.
There are really very few generals like Cheng Shijie in the Ming Dynasty who don't care and only want to destroy the slaves, too few!
Gao Qiqian was silent for a moment and said, "Aren't you afraid that someone will impeach you in the future?"
“If you want to impeach, then impeach!”
Cheng Shijie said angrily: "What else can they do besides impeachment? When Jiannu is wiped out, Cheng will avenge the destruction of his family and genocide. Without revenge, he will be taken lightly. For Cheng, his official title is nothing more than a passing cloud. Even if it is just By doing business, Cheng can also become the world's richest man. Now, Cheng has decided on this battle. If anyone dares to stop him, I will chop him into pieces with one knife!"
Gao Qiqian looked at Cheng Shijie's determined expression, and was very shocked in his heart.
He thought to himself that Cheng Shijie was indeed a loyal minister.
It was also the hope of the Ming Dynasty. In fact, although Gao Qiqian was greedy, he never thought about the collapse of the Ming Dynasty. If the Ming Dynasty disappeared, he would still make a lot of money.
Gao Qiqian suddenly thought of those people thrown out by Cheng Shijie's order. These people were Wen Tiren's gang members. If Cheng Shijie didn't give Wen Shoufu face, Wen Tiren would definitely deal with Cheng Shijie when he returned to the capital.
When Zhang Fengyi impeached Cheng Shijie, he could have plotted against Zhang Fengyi, but to deal with the current chief minister, Gao Qiqian's ability was not enough. At least he had no say in the selection of the chief minister.
"All right!"
Gao Qipian looked at Cheng Shijie and said, "Since General Cheng is determined to destroy the Jian slaves, we don't have anything to say. However, there is one thing that General Cheng needs to pay attention to!"
Cheng Shijie smiled and said, "Tell me about it!"
"It is better to offend a gentleman than a villain!"
Gao Qiqian said: "In the eyes of His Majesty, Chief Wen is a wise minister who does not seek fame and fortune; in the eyes of the ministers, he is gentle and gentle, never quarrelsome with others, and is a worthy candidate. No matter how bad he is, he is not a political enemy. In fact, he is a poisonous snake!"
In fact, speaking of it, Gao Qiqian's vision is really accurate.
Cheng Shijie mostly bases his judgment on people based on various historical records, while Gao Qiqian relies on his own vision.
During the more than seventeen years of Emperor Chongzhen's reign, he actually changed dozens of cabinet chiefs and assistants, and the Ministry of War ministers were like a revolving door. They had to be replaced every other year, and most of them lost their heads.
It can be said that as an official during the reign of Emperor Chongzhen, you had to be on guard every day. However, in such an environment, there was one person who gained the lasting trust of Emperor Chongzhen and controlled the cabinet for eight years. He was called the tumbler in the officialdom of the Ming Dynasty. .
And this person is Wen Tiren.
When Wen Renti and Qian Qianyi first joined the cabinet, in the winter of the second year of Chongzhen's reign, the Ministry of Civil Affairs selected a list of additional cabinet members. Donglin Party leader Qian Qianyi became the popular candidate, but Wen Tiren was not on the list. At this time, Wen Tiren, who was "not interested in fame and fortune," couldn't sit still. He immediately joined forces with Zhou Yanru, who also hoped to join the cabinet, to criticize Qian Qianyi and impeach Qian Qianyi for forming a party for personal gain.
Emperor Chongzhen hated cliques among officials the most, so he believed that the widely praised Qian Qianyi was suspected of cliques, so he expelled Qian Qianyi from the capital and let Wen Tiren join the cabinet.
Wen Tiren first united with Zhou Yanru to attack political opponents, including Yuan Chonghuan. After the Jisi Incident, Wen Tiren immediately impeached Yuan Chonghuan for collaborating with the enemy, which became an important driving force for Yuan Chonghuan's imprisonment. All officials who supported Yuan Chonghuan were also impeached by Wen Tiren.
After Wen Tiren became the second assistant of the cabinet, he ordered his party members to impeach Zhou Yanru, successfully removed Zhou Yanru from power, and became the first assistant of the cabinet, which he did for eight full years.
Wen Renti was able to serve as the head of the cabinet for eight years under the nose of Emperor Chongzhen. In fact, he adhered to an iron rule: "If you don't do it well, if you do it too much, you will be wrong!"
When Wen Tiren served as the chief minister of the cabinet, he rarely spoke. He was like a sleeping old man, standing there with his eyes closed and concentrating without saying a word. Emperor Chongzhen wanted to raise taxes, but Wen Tiren neither stopped nor supported it. He only said that he was a writer and that taxation was not his major and he had no say. When Emperor Chongzhen wanted to change the military system, he claimed that he was a poet and a writer. Military was not something he was good at.
It can also be said that Wen Tiren, the first assistant to the cabinet for eight years, did nothing serious except attacking political opponents.
Gao Qiqian looked at the officials from the Ministry of War who were beaten with bruises and bruises by Cheng Shijie's personal guards, and said with a faint smile: "If they return to the capital, what does General Cheng think will happen to them?"
"Needless to say, the bad guys will definitely complain first!"
"Only dead people cannot speak!"
Gao Qiqian said calmly: "General Cheng doesn't bother to dirty his hands. We have done all the dirty work for you!"
Having said this, Gao Qiqian winked at a Jinyi guard.
This Jin Yiwei was a ruthless man. Without saying a word, he pulled out his Xiuchundao and walked towards a dozen officials from the Ministry of War.
"What are you going to do..."
Seeing the Jin Yiwei approaching with great momentum, these Ministry of War officials were not fools. They realized something was wrong.
However, the problem is that these Jin Yiwei didn't talk nonsense to them, and they slashed with their swords. After a while, there were more than a dozen corpses on the ground.
Gao Qipian looked at Cheng Shijie and asked: "Nowadays, Jiannu is a trapped beast. If they break out, from which direction will they break out?"
"Needless to say, it must be the joint branch of Dongjiang Army and Guan Ning Army!"
Gao Qiqian said with a smile: "Did you hear that? Invite these dozen adults to the joint headquarters of Dongjiang Army and Guan Ning Army, and we will ask the court for credit on their behalf!"
A dozen officials from the Ministry of War who came with Fu Zonglong were killed by Gao Qiqian. After their death, they would be chased by the court, and at least they would end up with a good end.
Of course, in official circles, it is not scary to do something wrong. What is most scary is to be on the wrong team. That is the most fatal thing.
Fu Zonglong watched this scene with cold eyes, without making any comments.
As an official of the pragmatic faction, he was actually part of Sun Chengzong's party. Of course, Sun Chengzong himself was actually part of the Ming Shao faction, that is, a pragmatic official.
He was really afraid that Cheng Shijie would be pedantic, so he just threw these dozen officials outside. When these officials returned to Beijing, they would bite Cheng Shijie like mad dogs and spare no effort.
On the contrary, it is certainly not appropriate to do this with a high dive.
But the problem is, since this is done for Cheng Shijie, there is nothing inappropriate.
Fu Zonglong looked at Sun Chengzong and said, "Mr. Sun Ge, General Cheng, are you too close to the chamberlain?"
"Is it okay if we don't get closer?"
Sun Chengzong smiled bitterly and said: "If I had lowered my dignity and bowed my head to Wei Zhongxian, why would I have allowed Liaodong to be corrupted again and again?"
Speaking of this, Fu Zonglong stopped talking.
After the defeat of Liuhe, Sun Chengzong was impeached and dismissed from office. After the battle with Dalinghe, he was dismissed again. The blow to Sun Chengzong was really too heavy.
Sun Chengzong lacked Cheng Shijie's flexibility.
If you want to really get things done, you have to be flexible and have people on top and in the palace.
Just like Qi Jiguang and Qi Shaobao, when he wrote a letter to Zhang Juzheng, his title was "Minions under the sect..."
Of course, in the Ming Dynasty, the word "minions" was not a derogatory term, but represented loyalty, reliability, and trustworthiness.
Sun Chengzong did not live in Cheng Shijie's Chinese army tent, after all, the name was not justified, but in the independent horse-drawn RV given to him by Cheng Shijie. The specifications of this horse-drawn RV are the same as those of Xu Guangqi, Sun Yuanhua, and Gao Qiqian.
They are eight feet wide, one foot six feet long, and about one foot four feet high. The interior of the horse-drawn RV is divided into three parts: a living room, a small kitchen and a bathroom.
Especially in the living room, there are two sofa beds, one main and one sofa, where you can sit or lie down to sleep.
In Sun Chengzong's carriage, Sun Chengzong asked Fu Zonglong to take off his boots and asked someone to prepare hot water and soak his feet.
While Fu Zonglong was soaking his feet, violent killing cries came from outside.
Sun Chengzong asked: "What's going on?"
Sun Zhiman came back soon and said: "Jiannu is breaking out!"
Fu Zonglong hurriedly looked for boots.
Sun Chengzong smiled and said: "Zhonglun, don't panic, there will be a war in Beiping!"
Fu Zonglong asked: "Where did Jiannu break out of the encirclement?"
"No need to ask, it must be the joint branch of Dongjiang Army and Guan Ning Army!"
"Huang Taiji is really shrewd!"
Fu Zonglong had to admire Huang Taiji's strategic vision and tactical literacy. Among the tens of thousands of Ming troops, the Dongjiang Army was the weakest. Both in terms of discipline and fighting will, it was relatively weak and easier to defeat. Guan Ning Although the combat effectiveness of the Dongjiang Army is stronger than that of the Dongjiang Army, the cooperation with the Dongjiang Army cannot be said to be tacit understanding. Choosing to use the junction of the two armies as a breakthrough point, Jiannu's vision is really vicious!
When Shen Mingyu heard the news, he was very worried and said: "Commander, do you want to send someone to support the Dongjiang Army?"
"Need not!"
Cheng Shijie has actually sent Zhou Ning to take over the Dongjiang Army, and on behalf of Cheng Shijie, he promised the Dongjiang Army officers and soldiers that participating officers and soldiers of the Dongjiang Army will automatically become Ning Navy soldiers. Even the old, weak, sick and disabled who are not in good physical condition will be mobilized from the main force in the future. , became one hundred households in the field.
In Cheng Shijie's view, the Dongjiang Army's officers and soldiers are old, weak, sick and disabled, and their poor physical fitness does not mean that they are inexperienced. Those who can survive in such a cruel environment in Liaodong have two skills. .
Faced with Jiannu's breakout, Cheng Shijie was not surprised or panicked. In his opinion, Jiannu was just fighting a trapped beast.
Jiannu's breakout was actually Huang Taiji's idea, and it was Huang Taiji's resolute execution against all opinions. Although at this time, the elite Eight Banners of Jiannu were depleted of men and horses, and their arrows were almost exhausted. Although the troops led by Baiyintu were The reinforcements brought some food and supplies.
But the problem is that the Dajin warriors need time to recover their physical strength, but the Ming army needs more time. Now the Ming army includes Ning Haijun, Dongjiang Army, and Guan Ning Army. Guan Ning Army is divided into Wu Jiajun and Zu Jiajun. There was a lack of tacit understanding among the troops, so they had to break out of the encirclement and escape to Liaoyang, only to have a glimmer of hope.
In Liaoyang, Nurhachi led the elite Jurchen Eight Banners in the first year of Tianqi (1621) and attacked for three days and three nights. Finally, the traitors opened the city gates and captured Liaoyang City.
Liaoyang City is the largest city in Liaodong. The city is made of masonry and made of glutinous rice juice. It is extremely strong. In order to conquer Liaoyang City, Daikin paid a price of more than 4,000 casualties, even with the use of Hongyi cannons. After bombardment, the city was as strong as a mountain.
As for whether the Ming army would pursue them relentlessly... Huang Taiji was willing to think about it. After all, they had the right to think about this only after they broke out of the Ming army's siege.
Speaking of which, the physical fitness of these Jurchens is really strong. After eating two full meals and sleeping, most of their energy has recovered.
They did not launch a direct attack, but wore white cloaks and used the cover of the snow to sneak over when the Ming army was most slack.
Before arriving at the joint formation of Guanning Army and Dongjiang Army in the southeastern part of the encirclement, they suddenly started to set a fire, and then sprinkled snow on the fire, causing a large plume of smoke to appear on the fire.
Under the cover of thick smoke, the Dongjiang Army soldiers and Guan Ning Army soldiers were smoked to tears. They could not see clearly the figure of Jiannu. The Dongjiang Army general roared: "Fire the arrows! Fire the arrows!"
The archers of the Dongjiang Army drew their crossbows and fired fiercely at Jiannu. Although the crossbows equipped by the Dongjiang Army are almost the same as the crossbows equipped by the Ning Haijun, the problem is that Jiannu learned very quickly through war.
If they stood up and formed a dense formation as usual, the Dongjiang Army's crossbows would easily shoot them into hedgehogs. But the problem is, they are now wearing white cloaks and crawling in the snow. Even if It was a standing soldier, also holding a large shield.
This large shield is two feet wide, five feet long, and about one inch thick. The two skins are wrapped with horsehide or cowhide, almost covering the entire person. Although the weight has increased a lot, the defensive capabilities have also been strengthened. The Ming army's crossbow arrows shot like locusts on the shield, but they could not penetrate it.
The archers who built the slaves hid behind the shield wall, raised their cavalry bows and fired in a burst. Thousands of sharp arrows shot out of the air. The Dongjiang army who was stationed on the earthen base and shot was suddenly enveloped. Amidst the rain of arrows, screams could be heard endlessly, and it was unknown how many people fell to the ground after being hit by arrows.
Relying on the protection of the shield wall, Jiannu's archers fired calmly, raining down bursts of arrows towards the Dongjiang army. The soldiers holding heavy swords raised their heavy swords and aimed at the enemies chopped off by big axes. Most of the wooden stakes were chopped down hard.
The wooden stakes were cut off like this, and gaps appeared in the barbed wire.
The crossbows couldn't do anything with those damn big shields, and the barbed wire fence was opened one after another. The Dongjiang Army was a little panicked and didn't know what to do.
If it were in the past, they might have been preparing to retreat, or turn around and run away. After all, the Dongjiang Army has always been a guerrilla force.
But the problem is, they all know now that this is the last time they will participate in the war in the name of Dongjiang Army. After the war, they will accept the reorganization of Ning Haijun, just like the brothers of Dongjiang Army in Haizhou, they will officially become Ning Haijun. Soldier.
You know, every Ning Navy soldier can not only eat three full meals a day, eat meat every other day, but also receive a military salary of eighteen taels of silver. Ning Haijun has military land and is willing to divide the land in Jinzhou. He can be divided into fifty acres, Gaizhou is 60 acres, Fuzhou is 70 acres, and Haizhou is 80 acres.
Not only are beheadings rewarded with military merit, but their family members who were killed in battle will also receive a hundred acres of land as compensation. However, once they escape, not only will their military land be taken back, but the entire family and three clans will be driven out of Liaonan.
This result is very serious. Except in southern Liaoning, except under the rule of Cheng Shijie, where can they find a place to eat?
In this way, even in the face of an overwhelming attack and Jian Nu's crazy breakout, even though the Dongjiang Army soldiers were at a loss and some were frightened to tears. They shed tears, roared, and fought with Jian Nu.
Although they were killed layer by layer, no one retreated.
"Shuai Cheng, you have to keep your word and give me a hundred acres of land, otherwise I will never let you go!"
A scarred Dongjiang Army soldier, whose right arm was broken at the elbow, was crying as he fired four grenades on his body and rushed towards Jiannu.
"Boom..."
With a loud noise, this Dongjiang Army soldier died together with more than a dozen slave-building soldiers.
It's like opening Pandora's box. As the first Dongjiang Army soldier who died with Jiannu appeared, these wounded and overwhelmed Dongjiang Army soldiers fired grenades one after another.
"Second brother, give me your Ermao for adoption, don't let me lose my incense!"
"Brother, take good care of our dad!"
"Cui Niang, raise the tiger son for me!"
There were roars one after another in front of the Dongjiang Army. Jiannu's offensive was like a hot knife cutting butter, but it was delayed. Finally, they waited for reinforcements.
Shang Keyi led the reinforcements to arrive. Seeing that the crossbows could not hit the large shield covered with thick mud, he made a sudden decision and shouted: "Use grenades to smash them back!"
Each soldier of the Dongjiang Army, like the soldiers of the Ning Navy, is equipped with four grenades. Their throwing method is slightly different from that of later generations. These Dongjiang Army soldiers like to tie the grenades with ropes, like a meteor hammer, and swing them with the help of Under the action of inertia, the grenade is thrown.
In this way of throwing, Dongjiang Army's grenades can actually fly fifty or sixty steps away, and even can be thrown seventy or eighty steps away.
More than 1,500 men under Shang Keyi's command threw 6,000 grenades, and only clouds of fire were seen. Many slave-building soldiers threw away the large shields in their hands, wailed and fell to the ground, and blood flowed from each wound. Spurting out.
The raid ultimately failed. Du Du said in disbelief: "Did you make a mistake? This is not the Dongjiang Army?"
"They are still wearing the uniforms of the Dongjiang Army, it's unmistakable!"
"Aren't they Ning Haijun wearing the uniforms of the Dongjiang Army? Can they change their clothes?"
"It's impossible to admit my mistake. Ning Haijun's soldiers are all big and round. Look at these people, they all have talents!"
Du Du frowned: "Damn it, did these Dongjiang soldiers take the wrong medicine?"
Not only Du Du was surprised by the performance of the Dongjiang Army, but even Cheng Shijie could not believe it. In fact, in order to strengthen the defense strength of the joint area between the Dongjiang Army and the Guan Ning Army, Zhou Ning commanded thirty-two thunder guns and sixty-eight flying guns. The thunder cannon never had time to fire.
However, Cheng Shijie is absolutely unwilling to take human lives for those who can use equipment to deal with the enemy.
In the eyes of Cheng Shijie, the Dongjiang Army was already one of his own.
Cheng Shijie reluctantly ordered: "Abandon the first and second lines of defense on the front line, and the Dongjiang Army will shrink its defenses!"
As the Dongjiang Army received the order to retreat, Du Du immediately discovered that the Dongjiang Army soldiers were retreating.
"Hmph, the Dongjiang Army is indeed the Dongjiang Army we are familiar with!"
Du Du: "Come with me if you are not afraid of death!"
When Du Du led his troops to rush into the Dongjiang Army's third line of defense, gunfire sounded like exploding beans.
"Bang bang bang..."
The Thunder Cannon fired out tongues of fire, and the Thunder Cannon was like a sickle that was swung out at countless living beings. Every time a bullet hit, the slave soldiers who were trying to destroy the barbed wire fell over a large piece of it like cutting wheat.
At the cost of more than 500 casualties, Jiannu had to recognize the reality. Especially the heavy shields that they were so proud of were like paper in front of the bullets of Thunderbolt Guns.
One of the slaves, Niulu, was really going crazy. A few tongues of fire swept over him, and half of his 300 men and horses were wiped out.
How can we fight this battle?
PS: The power of teammates offering sacrifices to the sky is boundless. I recommend a book called "The Salt Seller Rushes, the Wild Rise, and the Emperor Panics!" 》
(End of chapter)
