Shenshi, Shanhaiguan, Dongluocheng.
This is the end of the Liaoxi Corridor. Once the Mid-Autumn Festival is over, the chill in the daytime is getting stronger day by day.
Ma Xianglin stood at the head of Dongluo City, looking at the Bohai Bay in the direction of Laolongtou, where the water and sky were the same color.
Next to him stood Jun Song, the commander-in-chief of Shanhaiguan Pass.
If the original historical process was followed, the famous general Du Song, who was known as "Master Du" in the frontier army, had been killed in the battle of Sarhu between the Ming army and Hou Jin Dynasty.
However, the outcome of the Fushun Defense War was rewritten by Zheng Haizhu. Nurhaci, who suffered heavy losses in Fushun, had to rest and recuperate for a while after returning to Hetuala to accumulate horses and troops, and then turned around to attack Ye He's tribe. In the past two years, he harassed the fortress of the Ming Army in Liaodong. The strength has indeed become somewhat restrained.
Juniper, of course, is still alive and well, and Tai is peacefully serving as his commander-in-chief of Shanhaiguan.
"General Ma, this time, I would like to thank you for these two thousand soldiers. Don't worry, I will ask the military office staff to write a report tomorrow for the two thousand taels of silver per person per month. I will ask the Ministry of War for it."
While Jun Song was looking at the cavalry and baggage team that was moving in an orderly manner outside Dongluo City and heading towards Liaodong, he patted Ma Xianglin on the shoulder and praised the young commander of the visiting army.
Of course, as an old fox who has been fighting all his life and has the word "sharp" engraved in his bones, Juniper looked cheerful and happy, but he was a little confused in his heart.
This Ma Xianglin, who is less than thirty, has military exploits and the support of his in-laws. I thought he was an ancestor with nostrils pointing to the sky, so it was difficult to negotiate. But why, when I asked him to ask for two thousand elites, he agreed. ?
Now that his team was breaking out of camp and leaving the city, he didn't show much concern. Since arriving from Shangde City, he would either look at Yanshan Mountain on the left or Bohai Sea on the right.
Are you going to learn how to recite poetry from Qi Jiguang?
While Du Song was mumbling, Ma Xianglin finally spoke: "Mr. Du, you don't have to be polite. We Shili natives are valued by the court. We can guard Xiongguan together with the lord, so we should obey his orders. In terms of military pay, we The Ma family has come out on its own. The internal funds in the imperial edict of Lord Long Live are distributed to the soldiers of the Liaodong Army. My father-in-law is in charge of the Ministry of War, and the general manager pays for our Baigan Army. I'm afraid it's a bit taboo."
Hearing this, Jun Song said with an exaggerated warm expression: "Dayi, you mother and son are really as righteous as a mountain. Oh, I am a military man, and civil servants only respect Minister Zhang. Look, he not only knows military affairs, he also knows how to choose relatives and choose relatives." I didn’t say anything about my son-in-law’s vision.”
When Jun Song said this, his throat suddenly became itchy and he spit out thick phlegm.
Then, as if to match the sound of "spit", Jun Song said with a little annoyance: "Old chief Nurhachi destroyed the Ye He tribe, and the affairs in Liaodong are likely to be tight again. It should have mobilized troops to strengthen the defense line. But if it weren't for that Mao Wenlong What are you doing, how can Liaoyang be short of people when planning Dongjiang Town? How can the imperial court transfer people from Shanhaiguan, right General Ma?"
Ma Xianglin smiled faintly: "The Dongjiang River is close to North Korea, and our Ming army should indeed occupy it. It is just behind Hetuala, and the war horses can march directly to it within two days. If the Dongjiang River is managed well, Jiannu will rob it every time in the future. In the west, everyone is worried about whether their nest will be destroyed."
After the great victory in Fushun, Ma Xianglin heard Zheng Haizhu discuss these ideas with Mao Wenlong in detail, and even suggested that he could use the convenience of the Songjiang switch to trade with Pi Island and Shenmi Island in Liaodong to raise troops through commerce, so even if the imperial court delayed The pay, at least, won't be cut off all at once.
The analysis was correct. Ma Xianglin was impressed by Zheng Haizhu's thinking at that time. He naturally took it out at this time and blocked Jun Song's words.
Ma Xianglin didn't have a good impression of General Du. Shanhaiguan clearly had border troops, but Du Song shamelessly asked Ma Xianglin to send troops.
Ma Xianglin agreed to Jun Song's deployment this time, just because he had his own plans.
If the attempt fails, at least some of the elite members of the Baigan Army will stay away from the capital and stay in Liaodong.
Du Song heard that Ma Xianglin actually wanted to protect Mao Wenlong, so he didn't feel embarrassed at all. He chuckled and said, "Well, Xianglin has fought in Liaodong, so he is more familiar with it than I am. It sounds like Xianglin is more familiar with Mao Wenlong." Mao Wenlong is quite friendly to each other, and Nagan is very friendly, so the Sichuan army and the Liao army are fighting side by side to defend against the Tartars."
two
After chatting for a while about the repairs of the city defenses at Shanhaiguan, they went down to the city to say goodbye and go back to their respective homes.
While holding the lantern, Ma Xianglin waited for his cronies who came from the capital.
"How is Feng Yi?" Of course Ma Xianglin's first question was to ask about his wife's current situation.
"Young Master, don't worry. My wife is in good health. The brothers from Shiliang have been renting houses in the surrounding alleys one after another. They usually wander outside the house, pull carts and sedans, and do hard work without attracting attention."
Ma Xianglin nodded: "Okay, if something happens, send the young mistress to Mrs. Zheng immediately."
The confidant Que showed a somewhat strange expression.
"Young Master, I went to His Highness Nanzhu that day to listen to their discussion. Talking about the news from Songjiang, Song Yingxing returned to Jiangnan from Prince Lu's Mansion in Yanzhou. He did not go to Chongming immediately to see the water conservancy equipment, but stayed at Sun Yuanhua's office at the artillery factory. The two of them were thinking about the new mechanism of combining the gun. His Highness Zhu asked how they figured it out. The people from Songjiang said that Miss Yuesheng didn't find it, so His Highness Zhu...just..."
"Just what?" Ma Xianglin asked.
"Let's just say that Miss Yuesheng is not responsible. He should quickly make a perfect match with Mrs. Zheng."
Ma Xianglin's face sank: "He deserves it too."
The confidants dare not say anything.
Ma Xianglin asked again: "How is Mrs. Zheng doing in Beijing these days?"
"I heard from Eunuch Liu that my wife worked as a lecturer for the prince, and people from the Zhejiang Party, as well as a wet nurse from the inner court, all tried to get in her way, but in the end they all hurt their own feet. By the way, young master, Concubine Zheng's subordinates The amber, in Wan... I spoke to Mrs. Zheng in front of the man on the dragon chair. Madam, I visited the Taoist temple. It was Qi Hu who came to tell me." Kanshu La
Ma Xianglin said "hmm".
When I look at women myself, I never miss her. Amber is a good girl who knows how to repay her kindness.
It's a pity that he came from a miserable background and was imprisoned by Concubine Zheng.
Ma Xianglin thought of Hu Bo's eyes that were very similar to those of his late eldest sister, frowned for a moment, and told his confidants: "Zheng Guifei and Cui Wensheng still think that I will join forces with their group. Go back and tell Qi Hu, in case of Hu Bo's baby Cui Wensheng and the others found out that my son is not dead. Qi Hu must say that he is under the protection of me, Ma Xianglin. If they want to kill my son, they won’t even be able to use a single soldier from my team!”
"Yes." The confidant responded.
The young master has never had a vicious and violent temper, but since this year, the few soldiers closest to him have felt that the young master's temper has suddenly become violent, and he often speaks in vicious tones.
They, who were more like brothers than subordinates, knew in their hearts that the closer the day of revenge for Wanli's family came, the more unpeaceful the young master's mind would be.
If we win, how will General Qin and Shilang Zhang deal with it?
If they lose, it will implicate General Qin and Shi Ling's army. What will happen to Miss Fengyi and Wa'er?
The confidant held it in for a while, and finally said the third thing cautiously.
"Young Master, Yongning announced that Si Hejiang's general had rebelled. General Qin quickly dealt with it, and the local soldiers in Zunyi, Luzhou, retreated again. Shu came to report that General Qin had already set off to Beijing to receive the reward. By the way, I'm waiting for you. The young master was born..."
When Ma Xianglin heard this, he stood up and said, "How come I didn't know about this news from the Ministry of War when I left the capital? Did my father-in-law hide it from me?"
The cronies were so frightened that they hurriedly put out the fire: "This news was told to me by the young master when I left the capital. He must not have hidden it from the young master on purpose. It should be General Qin. Qin Xuan caressed her. He was so good at beating her. It has to be so neat and tidy, even the imperial court may not have thought of it."
Ma Xianglin was dumbfounded, stunned for a moment, and sat back in his chair slumped.
Mother!
If my mother had led the natives to rebel when my father died unjustly, Yunnan, Guizhou, and Sichuan would now all have the surname Qin.
At noon, Zheng Haizhu discussed with Lu Xiangsheng and Zhang Mingshi in the neighboring courtyard the firearms operation and field cases for the next Wenhua Hall lecture. He returned to the warehouse and prepared to listen to Qin Fang and Shi Yuelan's business report.
Zheng Haizhu had already inquired with Wang Wenyan that Su Song and Yangzhou merchants were not as united as Hui merchants and Shanxi merchants. There were no guild halls in Beijing, and merchants from Fujian and Guangdong had no atmosphere in Beijing.
Fortunately, when he set out from Prince Lu's Mansion in Yanzhou, Zheng Haizhu adhered to the principle of "putting every connection to the best use" and carried an autographed letter from Zhang Dai's father, Zhang Yaofang. After arriving in Beijing, he paid a visit to Zhang Dai's uncle, Zhang Lianfang.
Zhang Lianfang was a well-known collector in the capital. He was also a guest in the mansions of dignitaries and had a wide network of contacts.
Zhang Lianfang introduced Zheng Haizhu to several shopkeepers who made high-quality silk cloth products. The shopkeepers looked at Gu Xiuhang brocade Songjiang cloth and Zhang velvet blended handkerchiefs, and heard that they were supplied to Yuegang, a merchant of the imperial court. When it comes to goods, the initial indifference of just ordering a favor order immediately turned into the eagerness of discussing business and willing to order good products.
Zheng Haizhu turned around and taught Qin Fang, "Did you see that the goods are good and it is the best name card? Just brushing your face can't get a solid and long-term order."
The wholesale channel is still going well here, and the personal agent channel is also starting to open over there.
Shi Yuelan only fell in love with five or six saleswomen in the first batch.
But the principle of erring on the side of shortage is correct.
These saleswomen all had access to wealthy households, and they themselves were proficient in writing and writing. They were also very self-conscious about internal scrolls. After taking samples of Gu embroidered handkerchiefs, they knew how to go to a small private school to ask teachers for advice, and memorized several articles about Xuanhe Painting Academy, Historical allusions such as the Wumen School of Painting, and the temperament of "I only sell high-end goods that are understood by educated people" are perfectly grasped. As expected, there is no need to tell the background of Zheng Dong's family, silk goods, shoes and socks will be in the court. The favored eyes of ladies and grandmothers from official families.
"Old Qin, Yue Lan, sell the expensive items first. Once your reputation is established, ask Songjiang and Chongming to transport a few more ships of cheap cloth and silk goods. You can go and visit a few small shops in the south of the city, and then choose one. Recruit a group of saleswomen who run a small business for women's families. Both high-luxury lines and basic-style lines should be made. High-luxury customers understand the meaning of expensive, but basic-style customers can't afford it. The prices are high for high-quality products, but when I look at the cheap ones, I think that the products used by dignitaries come from the same source, so I will buy them.”
Qin Fang nodded like a bell and remembered. Although it was the first time for him to hear new words such as "high luxury" and "basic style", after thinking about it, he realized that what Madam said about business was right.
While the three of them were talking, the young boy came in with a baggage and said that Mr. Xu sent someone to give a gift to Dong Zheng's family and an invitation. Mingyue Tower had prepared some wine and snacks and invited Dong Zheng's family to talk about business.
