In the middle of September in the third year of Chongzhen, in the Wuying Hall.
Su He looked at a huge sand table with various flags on it.
All senior generals from the First Division, Second Division and other armies came to Wuying Palace to participate in the pre-war mobilization meeting.
Li Fengming held a stick and told many generals about the surrounding situation.
He pointed in the direction of northern Shaanxi.
"The rebel army in northern Shaanxi has grown stronger.
They have captured Suidezhou.
The newly appointed Trilateral Governor-General Hong Chengchou has been taken into hiding in Xi'an to train the army and at the same time request the imperial court for support.
We wiped out the elite Ming army in Shaanxi in one fell swoop.
The combat effectiveness of the official army and the rebel army has been reversed.
The rebel army in northern Shaanxi stopped their movement and began to attack Jiancheng.
Especially as the drought in Shaanxi worsens, food prices soar.
Many people could not even afford the food they needed to survive. The local gentry arbitrarily raised food prices and rarely did anything to help the people.
Major cities in northern Shaanxi have closed their gates to prevent refugees from entering.
The people did not want to starve to death, so they had no choice but to join the rebel army.
The rebel army did not have much food, so they consumed their young strength by attacking the city.
Through continuous siege, they have now captured Suidezhou, and their situation is excellent.
But they will definitely fail later because these people are not in harmony with each other.
Wang Jiayin and Wang Ziyong fought for power, and after capturing Suidezhou, divisions began to appear within the rebel army.
As long as a small conflict breaks out, the two people will separate.
Furthermore, within the rebel army, there were many generals who were no less inferior to these two men.
For example, the famous Gao Yingxiang, who calls himself King Chuang, has a weaker overall military strength than the two kings.
But among his men, the frontier troops had the largest number and stronger overall combat power.
In particular, his nephew Li Zicheng fought extremely bravely, and Suide City was captured by this man.
Internal fighting was the internal cause of the defeat of the rebel army, and there was also an important external cause, which was that the Ming court had taken them seriously.
The Ming Dynasty court has sent Cao Wenzhao, the new commander-in-chief of Yansui, to lead the Guanning Army to attack the rebel army.
This person also needs to pay close attention to whether Guan Ning's army coming to Shaanxi to fight the rebels was just a pretense.
Guan Ningjun's real target is us.
After we send out troops, we must leave enough defensive strength to guard against sneak attacks by the Ming army.
There is also new news that you should pay special attention to.
The defenders of Fengxiang Prefecture originally blocked the people of Shaanxi to prevent them from entering Baoji County.
These people would rather let the refugees starve to death than be afraid of entering our place and increasing our strength.
But the rebel army's non-stick troops defeated the official army of Fengxiang Mansion.
They also wanted to enter Baoji County, but were frightened away by Suhu, the Marquis of Yimen, who opened fire.
There are no Ming Dynasty officers and soldiers in Fengxiang Mansion, so we must be prepared for a large number of refugees to go south."
After Li Fengming introduced the situation in the north, he wanted to introduce the situation in the east.
"Brigadier Li Qingmu led the naval brigade and continuously encroached on the Ming Dynasty officers and soldiers in Xing'an Prefecture.
We now have control of all the territory in Xing'an Prefecture.
It is mainly connected to Xunyang Mansion in Huguang through the Han River waterway.
The other places are all mountainous, making it difficult for the army to pass.
Zhu Xieyuan now has heavy troops stationed in Hanyang Mansion and Wuchang Mansion.
The Huguang Navy of the Ming Dynasty also blocked the Han River and the Yangtze River.
Especially the forts in Hanyang Prefecture and Wuchang Prefecture have many red cannons.
As long as the officers and soldiers of the Ming Dynasty blocked the Yangtze River and completely blocked the waterway, our ships would be targets.
The Ming Dynasty in Xunyang Prefecture also sent heavy troops to defend it.
From the defense deployment in Ming Dynasty, I can see that Zhu Xieyuan focused on defending Huguang.
They believe that if our next step is to attack east and south, it is most likely to invade Huguang."
Li Fengming hit the wooden stick in his hand directly on a large city in the southwest.
“This is our next goal, Chengdu, the largest city in the Sichuan and Chongqing regions.
When we attack Chengdu, we can only choose to take the Golden Bull Road.
This is the only avenue into Sichuan where grain trucks can pass.
We must rely on upright tactics to defeat the Ming army.
This road is also the road through which most armies have successfully entered Shu since ancient times.
Only Deng Ai, the general of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period, took a small path to destroy the Shu Han.
This move is extremely dangerous, as grain trucks cannot move along the trail.
When Deng Ai walked through the Yinping Road, he had already run out of food.
At that time, if a general can appear in Shu Han and block him for a few days, the history of the Three Kingdoms will be rewritten."
Li Fengming was verbose so much just to strengthen the general's determination.
The path of the Taurus is the easiest road to walk, but it is also the most difficult road to walk.
Any general knows that Jinniu Road is the best choice to enter Shu, and the enemy will inevitably send heavy troops to defend it.
The battle into Shu will be a victory won with the blood and blood of soldiers.
Li Fengming pointed to a small county town nearest to them with a wooden stick and briefly introduced to the generals how to fight in Shu.
"This is Guangyuan City, the first city we encountered when we entered Shu.
The officers and soldiers of the Ming Dynasty were stationed here, with 10,000 officers and soldiers stationed here.
Zhu Xieyuan also dispatched many Hongyi cannons, and the geographical location of Guangyuan City is also dangerous, making it easy to defend but difficult to attack."
Li Fengming moved the wooden stick in his hand downwards to the blood-red pass marked on the sand table.
"This is Jianmen Pass, also known as Jiange.
It is the most powerful pass in the world. As long as we break through Jianmen Pass, there will be no difficult passes in the future. It will be a smooth road.
Just look at the terrain of the sand table and you will know that Jianmen Pass is easy to attack but difficult to attack.
The most difficult thing for us is that the mountain road here is very steep and heavy artillery cannot be transported up.
But the defenders of the Ming Dynasty were able to forge cannons within the pass.
We have no heavy artillery fire support. If we attack with the Ming army's Hongyi artillery, the casualties will be very heavy.
We don't have time to cast cannon locally.
We must capture Jianmen Pass as soon as possible and seize Rongcheng as quickly as possible.
Zhu Xieyuan was not given the opportunity to deploy his troops and generals.
I have studied the tactics for attacking Jianmen Pass thousands of times in the past few months.
We will try to reduce the casualties of soldiers as much as possible, but with our strength, we will definitely be able to conquer Jianmen Pass.
If Jianmen Pass is captured, there will be no danger for Rongcheng to be defended.
The entire Sichuan Basin is the result of our victory."
Li Fengming stared at the sand table. Jianmen Pass was the biggest difficulty in entering Shu.
As long as Jianmen Pass is conquered, Zhu Xieyuan will definitely protect the southwest.
Zhu Xieyuan will mobilize most of his troops to fight for various cities in Sichuan.
They are like fierce tigers coming out of the gate. With the sharpness of their firearms, the Ming army cannot stop them.
The entire southwest of the Ming Dynasty was their spoils of war.
Unable to capture Jianmen Pass for a long time, Zhu Xieyuan seized the opportunity to mobilize his troops.
Several Ming armies attacked Hanzhong. At that time, they lost troops and generals, and were in a dilemma.
We can only defend Hanzhong.
At that time, even if Hanzhong is defended, it will be continuously attacked by the Ming army, and it will become very difficult to expand the territory.
After Li Fengming finished speaking, he walked off the stage.
The generals were thinking about what Li Fengming said.
Su He has not publicly revealed where to attack in the next stage.
Most generals guessed that Huguang was the best way to attack.
Now that the target of the attack is mentioned, the question that everyone is concerned about is who will stay in Hanzhong and who will go to Shu to fight.
They are soldiers, and only military merit can prove their ability.
Everyone wants to be granted the title of Marquis, and those who have already been granted the title of Marquis want to go further.
Su He walked onto the stage and attracted everyone's attention.
"Everyone has worked hard during this period of military training. Some people have asked me many times why I am hiding in Hanzhong.
If you can't enjoy yourself, it will wear down your will, so you have to take the initiative.
Our army has defeated the elite officers and soldiers of Shaanxi Province in the Ming Dynasty, and its combat effectiveness has been verified.
But I can't just consider the combat effectiveness of the army.
Do we have enough weapons and do we have enough food and grass?
After a long war, the army needs to rest and recuperate.
War always kills people, and if you are not prepared, more people will die.
This means that one general is incompetent and a thousand troops are exhausted.
I am your commander, and I must find a way to lead you to victory.
We must not send troops blindly without certainty of victory.
At that time, we had just wiped out the Ming army and sent out troops blindly.
There was insufficient food and grass, and there were only a few military doctors.
The army's command system is also very rough, and most junior officers only know how to charge desperately.
If we go to war in this state, we may win several battles in the early stage because we have sufficient morale.
When all the veterans are exhausted, what will we use to fight the war?
There is no stable base and no constant supply of new soldiers.
All it takes is one small failure and we may be devastated.
Think about it, everyone, would it be very easy to attack the soldiers of that time with the soldiers you have now?"
Li Dazhuang was listening on the side, his face was a little red, and he felt that Commander Su was talking about him.
He wanted to make great achievements and asked Commander Su many times when he would send troops to fight. The soldiers were anxiously waiting.
Su He looked at the generals in the audience and his tone became more severe.
"I understand these generals who come to me to ask me when to send troops.
It is normal for soldiers to want to make achievements.
But some people drift away after becoming comfortable, and they have wives and children who are hot on the bed.
I feel that I am living a comfortable life now, and I am not willing to fight with my life, so I just want to live a comfortable life of my own.
Ordinary soldiers can be forgiven for thinking this way.
Some senior generals think this way, which is a fear of war."
When Su He said this, he slammed his hand on the table with a bang.
When many generals in the audience heard this voice, their hearts trembled.
Su He continued:
"If you feel you deserve to be blessed, tell me in advance and I will let you retire with dignity.
Once a war breaks out, whoever has the idea of retreating will be dealt with according to military law and I will not be lenient.
The things we get now are all obtained in exchange for our lives.
Once you have the idea of retreating, be prepared to surrender.
Then we can't keep anything we have.
Let you read "Water Margin" and read about the fate of the capitulationists.
Some people have just gotten married and are a little reluctant to see their wife pregnant and want to see the child born. I can understand this emotion.
My wife is also pregnant now, and like you, I also want to see the baby born.
Open your eyes and look at the situation in northern Shaanxi. Without military protection, your wife and children can't even eat.
This time I will let military commanders join the army to mobilize the thoughts of soldiers and grassroots officers.
If soldiers are found to be war-weary, they will be asked to retire directly if they cannot be persuaded to return."
Su He was very angry, and a small number of junior officers showed a certain degree of war weariness.
He was afraid that some high-level generals were war-weary, so he spoke out in advance this time to prevent high-level generals from being war-weary and affecting the war situation when the war started.
They have a successful blind date and have a happy family.
Soldiers also have holidays during training, and most of their wives are pregnant.
Some people feel that their lives are complete and want to spend time with their wives and children and live a happy life together.
Su He understood this mentality, but soldiers who were war-weary could never be allowed to go to the battlefield.
When the battle situation is tense, if one unit collapses and flees, the entire army may be defeated.
The soldiers must know that only by defeating the Ming army can they continue to live a good life.
After the ancestral temple was established, Suhe sent trained Zhu Shi into the army to do ideological work for the soldiers.
Master Zhu is usually responsible for teaching soldiers how to read and telling them stories about ancient soldiers' achievements in military affairs.
Zhu Shi does not participate in military command, he is only responsible for education and logistics work.
Master Zhu also has a hidden job, once he discovers that an officer has surrendered.
Zhu Shihui mobilized the backbone of the Yanhuang faith in the army to directly control the officers.
The staff officer assigned many tasks that had nothing to do with military matters to Master Zhu.
The staff officer is mainly responsible for military intelligence, making operational suggestions, conveying orders from the chief officer, and inspecting the execution of subordinate officers.
Su He saw that many generals were silent.
Some people even asked each other who was so stupid and didn't want to make contributions.
Su He spoke calmly and continued:
“If there are problems, solve them and everyone should look forward.
The autumn harvest is coming soon, and we will send out troops after the autumn harvest.
Now everyone has two tasks that must be done well.
The first task is to mobilize soldiers and prepare them mentally for combat.
The second task is for the army to help the people harvest in autumn.
Changling Marquis Li Fengming and Chief of Staff Li will tell you that each army is responsible for the area of autumn harvest.
You tell the soldiers that they don’t need to worry about the autumn harvest at home, and we will give priority to helping military families with the autumn harvest at home.”
After Su He completed his ideological mobilization, he also met with senior generals alone and discussed with them.
Ask these people what they think of the next military action.
Most generals are very supportive.
Su He met with Wang Monk, commander of the Second Brigade of the Second Division.
I found that Monk Wang was very nervous, and he was sweating profusely when he saw him.
"Commander Su, I didn't expect anyone to be like me.
During this period, I thought about the time when I led troops to kill people, and when my subordinates died.
My heart was greatly condemned and I had nightmares every day.
This conflicts with the Buddhist teachings I have been learning."
Su He drank tea and concealed the shock in his heart. He didn't expect that a senior general was really afraid of fighting. Fortunately, he discovered it in advance.
He said in a tone of hatred that iron cannot be transformed into steel:
"I don't even want to tell you that if you are afraid of fighting, you are afraid of fighting. Why don't you find any excuse?
If there is a conflict with Buddhism, if you marry a wife and have children, it will no longer conflict with Buddhism.
If you tell me this before the war begins, I will not punish you.
If after the war begins, he refuses to move forward, I will definitely seek military action.
You go to the Servicemen's Security Bureau and are responsible for ensuring the lives of military families and solving veterans' affairs.
Retiring directly will not have a good impact."
Monk Wang immediately knelt down and kowtowed.
"Thank you Commander Su for your generosity. I have embarrassed Commander Su."
"Get up! Work hard from now on. If you have anything to say in advance, I'm not an unreasonable person."
Su He knew that he couldn't force things, as everyone has his or her own ambitions.
Some people are not born suitable for the battlefield.
Su He left Wuying Hall, and Li Fengming was responsible for the army mobilization.
Logistical material arrangements, especially weapons production in arsenals, are left to the Secretariat for coordination.
Su He returned to the back hall and saw Wang Wenjun cutting sweet potato leaves.
"Husband, I heard that sweet potato leaves can also be eaten. I want to give it a try.
Sweet potatoes grow very well in Baoji County, and many people eat sweet potato leaves as vegetables.
There should be a good harvest of sweet potatoes this year."
Su He stepped forward and took the sweet potato leaves from her hand.
"Wenjun, don't eat something you've never eaten before, or you're allergic to it.
Your main task now is to have a good rest.
The Ministry of Health is on track and has left the matter to the Minister.
If you need anything, you can also give orders through Qu Qingyi."
Su He looked at Wang Wenjun's gradually bulging belly.
She is already pregnant.
Su He will be a father in a few months.
In this era, the infant mortality rate is very high. Only by having more children can we ensure that the children will grow up.
After he has descendants, people's hearts will be settled.
Wang Wenjun blushed and said:
"Husband, don't worry, I'm a doctor.
As a doctor who specializes in gynecology and pediatrics, I know more about miscarriage than you do.
I have passed the first trimester of pregnancy and now I have no problem doing some activities."
Su He looked at Wang Wenjun's confident look and felt that he was overly concerned.
My wife is not an ordinary person. She is a doctor with superb medical skills and got a lot of modern medical knowledge from him.
As long as nothing happens to her, there should be no problem.
"Husband, this is the right time to nurse the fetus, so I will take out the forceps you mentioned.
Train a new group of obstetricians.
The mortality rate of maternal dystocia is too high now, and if dystocia occurs, it will kill two people."
Su He is very supportive. Researching obstetrics skills can save many lives.
"You can do some research and see if it can really reduce the rate of dystocia, which will benefit many people.
If you still want to be in charge of the Ministry of Health, then train more rural doctors.
We will soon need a large number of rural doctors, the more the better."
Su He came here specially to take a look at Wang Wenjun's condition.
Seeing that he had no problem, Su He came to Wenhua Hall again.
He set up three methods to detect most corrupt officials.
Now in Wenhua Hall, there are also a few people missing.
Especially for journalists, this new anti-corruption method has left corrupt officials unable to find a way to deal with it, and many corrupt officials have been arrested.
Wang Zhongce and Li Zhisheng were discussing the autumn harvest.
The most important task of the governor's office now is the upcoming autumn harvest.
Li Zhisheng sighed and said, "I wonder if putting those machines into the countryside will speed up the autumn harvest.
After farmers divided their fields, they were very motivated to farm.
Nowadays, many young adults in the village have joined the army, and there are not enough young adults in the countryside.
If there is heavy rain during the harvest days, it will affect this year's harvest."
When Su He heard Li Zhisheng's worries, he said directly:
"Don't be afraid of lack of labor. I have arranged the army to help the people harvest in the autumn.
You need to contact local officials and cooperate with the military.
The agricultural machinery manufactured by the machinery factory has been verified in advance.
These machines can make perfect use of animal power, at least faster than manual harvesting."
When Li Zhisheng heard that the army was helping the autumn harvest, he felt reassured.
Su He also informed Li Zhisheng that a large number of refugees would appear in Baoji County, and asked the Ministry of Household Affairs to send officials to provide disaster relief and settle these refugees.
He then told them that he would conduct military operations.
"I'm telling you in advance, don't spread the word.
The army is about to send troops and occupy a large area in the future.
The Ministry of Personnel must be prepared for the transfer of officials.
There are many magistrates and prefects needed this time.
The scholars who join the official recruitment office have been working for several months, and the subordinate staff have been working for even more hours.
The Ministry of Civil Affairs must pass the assessment and select a group of outstanding people for promotion.
Specially select officials who can deal with the gentry cleanly and can mobilize the enthusiasm of the farmers."
When Wang Zhongce heard Su He's request, he directly assured: "Our Ministry of Personnel evaluates officials every month.
Each official has his own file.
Our Ministry of Civil Affairs will prepare officials in advance according to Commander Su’s requirements, and they will be appointed by Commander Su himself.”
Su He informed Wang Zhongce that after the territory was secured, military control would be implemented in the early stage. Once the opposition forces were eliminated, officials would need to take over immediately.
He turned to look at Li Zhisheng again.
"Our textile industry has officially started.
Textile factories pay a large amount of taxes and profits every month.
Many new companies have been established to form an industrial chain related to the textile industry.
You can see it from last month.
Commercial tax pays a large amount of tax every month, but there is still a certain gap compared with agricultural tax.
However, commercial taxes have grown rapidly and can already provide the government with an income of tens of thousands of taels of silver coins every month.
Now that we have money, we don't need to be too stingy.
The Ministry of Household Affairs must be prepared to follow up immediately after military control and establish relevant departments.
Give full play to the role of the welfare home.
Provide timely assistance to the old, weak, sick and disabled, especially orphans who have lost their parents."
Sichuan was not hit by a major disaster, and the current conflicts between tenant farmers and gentry are not as intense as in northern Shaanxi.
The work of sharecroppers is very difficult, but at least they have something to eat.
We must use various means to win over the hearts and minds of the people there.
Wang Zhongce listened to Su He's explanation.
Su He specifically explained that township officials are also very important, and two or three deputy township chiefs should be established in the township office.
Promote some scholars and village chiefs with outstanding work to become deputy township chiefs.
Priority is given to promoting literate people. If you are excellent at work and are not literate, you can be promoted.
Wang Zhongce knew that this military operation was very large, so more grassroots officials needed to be trained.
"Commander Su, have you heard? Emperor Chongzhen gave Yuan Chonghuan to Ling Chi?"
Military generals would not ask about such a sensitive topic.
Only a civil servant like Wang Zhongce was suitable to ask Commander Su's thoughts.
"I also heard Su Changsheng's report, which is a good thing for us.
With a man like Chongzhen as emperor, our chances of winning will be higher.
He can no longer tell who his real teammates are.
He often does things like killing his own people.
Yuan Chonghuan must have made a serious mistake. He killed Mao Wenlong without permission, which caused the civil and military forces to become alienated and the slaves lost control.
This is a deep-seated contradiction caused by the problems in the Ming Dynasty system and the inferiority of the civilized and military.
But Yuan Chonghuan can be said to be loyal to Chongzhen.
When Jiannu invaded the capital, Yuan Chonghuan was the first to lead troops to rescue him.
If he hadn't arrived in time, the capital might not have been saved.
This kind of die-hard confidant fell out of favor just because he said a few big words, which were the big words that Chongzhen liked to hear, and failed to achieve the five-year goal of Ping Liao.
Regardless of Yuan Chonghuan's character, his ability is still very strong.
With Yuan Chonghuan present, the Guan Ning Army could at least stop Jiannu at the Ningjin Defense Line. With his death, the Ningjin Defense Line could not hold on.
Yuan Chonghuan was accused of colluding with the slave establishment, which is a bit ridiculous.
Guan Ning's army acted to support the bandits and embezzle military pay, but it was impossible to collude with Jiannu.
The Jiannu people are too poor now and their power is not great. They cannot give as much as the Ming Dynasty.
I will not bribe the generals of the Ming Dynasty, because I know that with my current strength, I cannot bribe these people at all.
I see that Chongzhen’s methods are childish and he only cares about whether or not he wants to do what he wants. He is not a qualified emperor.”
Chongzhen was so stubborn that he failed to make good use of the many capable civil servants and generals in the late Ming Dynasty.
Wang Zhongce heard Su He finish and said loudly:
“If the king regards his ministers as his hands and feet, then his ministers will regard him as his heart; if his ministers regard his ministers as dogs and horses, then his ministers will regard him as a fellow countryman; if his ministers regard his ministers as earth and mustard, then his ministers will regard him as a bandit.
The sage Meng Ke has long explained the relationship between the king and his ministers.
Zhu Chengxue's principles of monarch and ministers should be abandoned."
Wang Zhongce said the lines he had discussed with Su He last night.
This is acting for other people to see.
Many people got the news that Yuan Chonghuan was detained by Chongzhen.
I had scruples in my heart, thinking of the actions of the other founding monarchs.
He was afraid that after Su He achieved great success, he would imitate Liu Bang and Zhu Yuanzhang and kill the heroes.
Su He and Wang Zhongce planned to perform a play to stabilize people's hearts.
Wang Zhongce also established the Hanzhong School's way of being a minister based on this idea.
