Although the news from the imperial court was also six hundred miles away, it was still more than two days slower than Gao Jingshi's information. Since Gao Jingshi got the news at night, the imperial court actually didn't learn about the fall of Xining until the third day.
Although Xining was important, perhaps due to its remote location, the reaction from the top and bottom of the imperial court was not as big as the three Gao Pragmatics imagined. In addition to the fierce reaction from the Ministry of War, only the Ministry of Household Affairs was relatively nervous.
Shen Li, the Minister of Household Affairs, was not a "professional counterpart" to begin with. When he heard that Xining was lost, his first reaction was to go to the Ministry of War to visit Liang Menglong and Gao Pragmatic. Since both parties were ministers of the Practical School, Shen Li did not go around too much and asked them directly if they planned to "move in troops." Without waiting for their answer, Shen Li said to himself that the Ministry of Revenue would not be able to come up with the money. .
What Shen Li means is that if you want to fight, the Ministry of War's budget for this year will be allocated in about half a month. You can just use this budget to do what you want. Anyway, don't ask me for money in the future.
Liang Menglong had a sullen face and didn't reply. Of course he couldn't agree like this - the Ministry of War's budget for this year didn't have funds for mobilizing troops.
This is because, just after the government reopened at the beginning of the year (starting work after the Spring Festival), Zhu Yijun conveyed the decree that this year's imperial government's fiscal budget was fully tilted towards "opening the vassal ban". Not to mention that the Ministry of War has no war budget, even equipment replacement and various maintenance have been kept to a minimum. Only the four towns under the jurisdiction of Governor Jiliao (Jizhen, Liaodong, Changping, and Baoding) have maintained peacetime military expenditures. Lian Xuan Dasan The military expenditures of the towns (Xuanfu, Datong, and Taiyuan) were reduced by more than 20% and nearly 30%.
Not to mention the three sides of Shaanxi, they were directly cut by 35%. It stands to reason that they should be fully transferred to defense.
At this time, if the Ministry of War is allowed to use its own budget to mobilize soldiers to retake Xining, wouldn't it be a fun fight at the beginning of the year and a crematorium at the end of the year? Oh, it may not last until the end of the year, and the crematorium will be in the middle of the year...
It is usually not a big deal to default on the salary of an official. Although the court seems to be quarreling fiercely, in fact, everyone does not rely on this salary to make a living. The quarrel is just to show that they are honest and dedicated to the public affairs.
Being in arrears with military pay is very serious, especially in some remote places. Military pay is not enough to begin with, and the superiors are always trying all kinds of ways to deduct it, falsely claim it, etc. Once the arrears are continued, riots and even mutinies often occur. This is Everyone knows the common affairs of the Ming Dynasty.
Under such circumstances this year, if the Ministry of War can stabilize the situation in various places, it will have to make great efforts to send personnel to inspect. This is a method implemented by Guo Pu when he was in office. Generally speaking, the Ministry of War sends personnel to investigate the distribution of military pay in various places. Specifically, the Ministry of War arsenal The Qing Li Department sent personnel to investigate, and the Qing Li Department of the Arsenal was in charge of the investigation.
Historically, the Arsenal Cleaning Department was merged and reformed in the ninth year of Wanli. However, due to the reform of the Real School, this department has been strengthened, mainly to strengthen the supervision power of military pay, ordnance, military supplies and other material dispatches. In addition, the Arsenal Cleaning Department He is also responsible for supervising the private sector of the military industry, which is even more impossible to abolish.
When this year's budget came out, the Ministry of War had already discussed the need to more strictly supervise local military pay deductions and other issues. It was worried that the local military would mutiny. How could it dare to use the budget here to fight wars now?
However, Liang Menglong did not blame Shen Li. He knew that Shen Li was also under a lot of pressure. As soon as he took office as the chief minister, he was faced with major events such as the establishment of a vassal and banning which required large sums of money to support. Moreover, Shen Li had no experience working in the household department. Now he was busy all day without touching the floor. He had lost more than ten kilograms. His originally square face now had obvious cheekbones.
So when Shen Li said he couldn't get the money, it should be because the Ministry of Revenue really had nothing to do. Last time, he even came up with a "bad idea". He wanted the Ministry of Revenue to take the lead in opening two or three new seaports, and then sell them to Jinghua.
It’s a pity that this idea also died due to two reasons: First, the Ministry of Revenue has no money left, and it can’t even lay the foundation for opening a seaport. How can it be sold?
Second, Gao Pragmatic said that Jinghua is also very nervous this year and probably has no money to buy a port. He is not kidding. The investment in southern Xinjiang is too great, and the main investment is Jinghua’s own money. It relies on the support of other countries in southern Xinjiang. That little income is completely beyond our means.
In fact, except for Annan, the finances of the countries in southern Xinjiang are now "profitable", while the other countries, including Siam, Bago and Nanjang, are in complete "losses", let alone Cambodia. At the same time, Jinghua was building Dingna City and repairing some cities damaged in the war, which all cost money.
Although Jinghua has money, of course it will be tight-lipped if it throws money into several kingdoms at once. Where else can it buy a seaport? Of course we can do this in the future, let’s forget about it now.
So until Shen Li left, Liang Menglong didn't express his position. After Shen Li left, he said to Gao Pingshi with a sad face: "To be honest, I'm afraid there will be trouble this time... Do you think Gao Wenchuan can rely on the three sides alone?" Use your own strength to resolve this crisis and regain Xining?"
Gao Pragmatic couldn't answer this question, so he could only say: "Now the three sides of Shaanxi have only reported the fall of Xining to Shu, and Gao Wenchuan's Shu only said that he was coordinating and dispatching. We don't know the specific situation yet... Let’s see how he handles it first, maybe there will be some surprises?”
Liang Menglong sighed, feeling that this was really unreliable, but as Wu Dui said before, a good woman cannot make a meal without rice, and without military pay, everything is useless.
No conclusion was reached from the discussion here, and the court did not pay enough attention to this matter. Gao Pragmatic originally planned to simply deal with it coldly, waiting for Gao Guangxian to clarify his arrangements first.
Unexpectedly, the court was not in a hurry but others were in a hurry. In the afternoon, an eunuch came to the Ministry of War to convey an order to Gao Pragmatic, saying that the emperor had summoned Gao Gongbao and asked Gao Gongbao to come to the palace immediately.
Gao pragmatic was not too surprised and simply followed the supervisor of rituals into the palace to meet the saint.
When they arrived at the palace, Zhu Yijun chose to meet him in the Wenhua Palace. There was no need to say much about daily greetings. After Gao Pragmatic sat down after being given the gift, Zhu Yijun asked directly: "The Ministry of War should have discussed the matter in Xining, right? What is the conclusion now?"
Gao Pragmatic smiled bitterly and said: "The Ministry of War can do nothing and can only wait for Gao Wenchuan to make arrangements to recover Xining on his own."
"It seems that there is no money to cause trouble again?" Zhu Yijun pinched his eyebrows with a headache and frowned: "Then do you think Shaanxi can take back Xining on its own?" The "Shaanxi" he refers to also refers to the three sides.
Gao Pragmatic pondered: "In terms of military strength alone, the three sides actually still have this strength, but the trouble is the same as the Ministry of War. The key to how much power the three sides can exert now depends on whether they have money."
This is not pragmatic nonsense. The problem on the three sides really does not lie in "troops." The so-called three sides, as mentioned earlier, there are four towns in total, namely Yansui, Guyuan, Ningxia, and Gansu.
Yansui Town starts from Huangfuchuan Fort in the east and ends at Huamachi in the west, with a total length of more than 1,700 miles. In terms of original history, the garrison strength was 25,000 during the Yongle period and about 45,000 during the Chongzhen period. In this dimension, the current military strength is also between these two periods. Last year, it was about 37,000, no more, no less.
Guyuan Town starts from the west boundary of Raoyang Water Fort in Yansui Town in the east and reaches Lanzhou and Lintao in the west, with a total length of about one thousand miles.
To talk about this town alone, in the early Ming Dynasty, there were only three towns in the northwest region, Yansui, Ningxia, and Gansu. However, because the battle lines were too long and the distance was far away, once a war happened, the three towns could not communicate with each other. Therefore, in During the Hongzhi period, Guyuan Town was added. e-book shop
The town's military strength was nearly 60,000 during the Chongzhen period in original history, and it is almost the same number now. Another point that needs to be explained is that the governors of the three sides are resident in Guyuan, because it is geographically convenient for central dispatch.
Ningxia Town starts from Huamachi in the east and ends at the north bank of the Yellow River in Xiquegou, Zhongwei, Ningxia in the west, with a total length of about two thousand miles. Historically, the garrison strength during the Yongle period was about 70,000, and the garrison strength during the Chongzhen period was about 25,000. The current garrison strength is about 30,000. This is because the Ordos tribe was relatively honest after Tumut surrendered, so There are not many troops stationed in the town.
The southeastern part of Gansu Town starts from the north bank of the Yellow River in Lanzhou in later generations, and reaches the northwest to Jiayuguan Tuolai River area, with a total length of about 1,600 miles. In the original history, the garrison strength was about 96,000 during the Yongle period and about 40,000 during the Chongzhen period. The current garrison strength is about 60,000 and less than 70,000.
From this garrison, we can also see the current shift in the focus of Ming Dynasty's border defense pressure. Facing the Tumut headquarters and even the Ordos headquarters, the garrison strength is relatively small. As for the part facing Qinghai Tumote, there are more troops stationed.
The combined military strength of Gansu Town and Guyuan Town is nearly 130,000, which shows that the military pressure they face must be great.
This cannot be compared with the four towns of Xuanfu, Datong, Jizhen, and Liaodong, because the first three of these four towns are the portals of the capital, and the "work pressure" of the last Liaodong town is particularly high, as it has to directly face the disabled. The Chahar headquarters of the Yuan Dynasty also had to suppress the entire Jurchen tribe, and even actually had the responsibility to prevent North Korea - of course this aspect seems to have been ignored now.
The principles of Gansu and Guyuan are different. Gansu Town currently only has one Qinghai Tumote to protect against. Although Guyuan Town has many tasks in terms of setting, its main task now is also to support Gansu Town. Therefore, the actual situation of these two towns is The above is all because of Qinghai Tumote, so its strength is particularly strong.
But looking at Qinghai Tumote, despite its large area, the population in this period was actually very small. Even after the Mongols occupied Qinghai, the population of the Mongolian tribes in Qinghai was still very limited. For example, the two brothers Huo Luochi and Zhulitu who succeeded in the sneak attack on Xining this time have a population of less than 100,000, and the number of tribal string controllers is usually more than 20,000, certainly less than 30,000.
According to what Gao Pangshi learned from Jinghua Trading Company, the two brothers can normally mobilize about 50,000 "cavalry" - this is when the whole clan is at war, and it should be less in normal times. .
The Ming Dynasty held fast to the city and border walls. In order to deal with the maximum of 50,000 Mongolian cavalry, it had to prepare an army of 130,000. This is the current situation of this era.
The city cannot run away, and if you want to defend it, you have to garrison it everywhere; the cavalry comes and goes, and he can concentrate his troops to attack anyone he wants to attack for thousands of miles. The so-called strategic disadvantage is one of the typical examples.
The disadvantage of garrisoning everywhere is obvious: the troops are scattered. Along the Silk Road, the cities on the road are like pearls. Without any one of them, a complete chain of pearls cannot be formed, so every one of them must be defended.
When Xining was originally in hand, Huo Luochi and Zhulitu, whose main pasture lands were near the Big and Small Song Mountains, did not dare to stay away from their home base for long periods of time in order to avoid being "burned" by the Ming army, so the Silk Road line north of the Qilian Mountains was safer.
Now that Xining has been lost, the Ming Dynasty still has Guidzhou and Jishi Prefectures south of the Qilian Mountains, but their locations are too far south and cannot effectively threaten brothers Huo Luochi and Jilitu. The two brothers have already Being able to "take time" to go north from Qilian poses a serious threat to the Silk Road. Even if there is another gunpowder bombing of the city, it is not impossible to capture a certain "pearl".
Zhu Yijun listened with a stern face to Gao Pingzhen's analysis of the situation in front of the map. After listening, he became a little anxious and asked: "There is nothing we can do if we don't mobilize troops. This year's budget has already been arranged. And the vassal ban has been opened." It was you who brought up the matter, and you also know the importance of this matter. It is related to the final battle of the Western Huaidong regime, and we cannot disrupt our position now because of this."
Gao pragmatically nodded and said nothing more. Of course he knew, so he had always planned to wait for Gao Guang to deal with it himself first, and then see the situation.
But Zhu Yijun had other opinions. He changed the subject and said: "We can't move, but can Tumut move? It was because Qie Jin was sick before. How is Qie Jin now? Is there anything wrong? What follows?”
Gao pragmatic sighed, shook his head and said: "Judging from the latest news, I'm afraid Qie Jin won't live long."
Zhu Yijun frowned, thought for a moment and said, "If he dies, what will Hanna Ji do?"
Gao pragmatically said: "It depends on who within the Ordos Department will inherit his legacy."
Zhu Yijun pondered for a moment and asked, "I heard that Zhu Litu and Huo Luochi are both Qie Ji's younger brothers?"
Gao pragmatically replied: "Yes."
Zhu Yijun slapped the desk and said, "I understand. I'm afraid Burihatuna just promised Huo Luochi and Zhulitu that all their inheritance after death will belong to them!"
It has to be said that this guess is not far from the correct answer. Gao Pragmatic basically agreed, but added: "But there is still a problem."
Zhu Yijun immediately asked: "What's the problem?"
"Zhulitu and Huo Luochi are two people, and they have been to Qinghai for so long. If they want to divide the Qiejin legacy, should they go back to Hetao, or take the Qiejin legacy from Hetao to Qinghai? Or, the two People will be redistributed, one will stay in Hetao and the other will return to Qinghai?"
Zhu Yijun hesitated for a moment, shook his head and said: "This is indeed a problem, but it is not the key. The key is... I remember that Qie Jin has a son. Tumen said that he can reward his inheritance by giving it to his two younger brothers? His son? Can you agree?"
Gao Pingshi smiled and said: "This is the key to one and two, two and one: no matter how they want to be divided, King Shunyi cannot sit idly by and ignore it. He will definitely help Qie Jin's son to ensure that the Ordos tribe remains loyal to the soil. Mert. And since Huo Luochi and Zhuli Tu want to 'divide' it, no matter how they divide it, interests are involved - interests are involved, which is the basis on which I, Ming, can take action."
Zhu Yijun's heart moved: "You mean..."
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PS: After finishing this chapter today, you must have guessed in which direction the first of the "New Three Major Marches" will take place, right? But hey, you can think bigger...
