At the same time, the Living Buddha and his party had just left the border of South Zhili.
Prepare to take the Yangtze River Channel, go upstream, and prepare to return to the plateau as soon as possible so that the tribes on the plateau can prepare to deal with the Ming army.
However, what the Living Buddha did not expect was that because of the telegram, Zhu Hongyu's imperial edict had already reached Sichuan and Sichuan before they left South Zhili.
The Ming army in Sichuan and Sichuan also mobilized troops to advance towards the plateau as soon as they received the military order.
The speed of the Ming army's military intelligence transmission was really too fast!
A large number of Ming army elites galloped on the plateau, bringing freedom and happiness to the plateau people living in dire straits.
Of course, this sentence is not the Ming army boasting, but the voice of the people on the plateau!
For those deeply oppressed serfs who were rescued by the Ming army, didn't the Ming army's cavalry bring them freedom and happiness?
While the Ming army was fighting on the plateau, Ming officials in Sichuan, Sichuan, Yunnan and Guizhou were also busy.
It began to resettle those serfs who left the plateau and came to the Han Dynasty after being rescued by the Ming army.
For these serfs, Ming Dynasty also adopted a policy of dispersed resettlement!
A county can resettle at most two to three hundred people. If Yunnan, Guizhou, Sichuan and other places cannot accommodate them, they will be resettled in Guanzhong, Huguang, Jiangnan, or Guangdong and Guangxi.
Anyway, there is no shortage of cultivated land in the Ming Dynasty. People are needed everywhere to open up wasteland and cultivate land to ensure the food supply of the Ming Dynasty.
Coupled with the development of industry and commerce, the entire Ming Dynasty was short of labor, and there was no fear that Tibetans would not be able to be accommodated.
If it doesn't work, move people to Liaodong to develop the black land!
Although the climate in Liaodong can be considered bitterly cold now, who can I compare it to? Compared with the climate on the plateau, Liaodong is simply a paradise on earth, right?
At the very least, the land in Liaodong is fertile enough, unlike the plateau, where only highland barley can be grown.
Anyway, Zhu Hongyu will not allow the proportion of minority residents who have places to cross the line!
If you want to Chineseize those minority people, education is one aspect, but it is also another aspect to not let too many minority people live in one place.
…
Early March, three years after the Ming Dynasty was restored!
Western Region, Yarkand City!
The former capital of the Yarkand Khanate!
After the battle of Hami City, Wu Zhou advanced along the Tarim River to Yarkand City.
It’s not far from Central Asia!
The flag belonging to Wu Zhou was flying above Yarkand City, and countless soldiers and horses were stationed inside and outside the city.
Outside Yarkant City, countless war horses and rhinos were galloping.
That was Guan Ning's cavalry, whom Wu Sangui relied on, performing martial arts!
After the Battle of Hetao, Wu Zhou captured a large number of war horses for use in the Western Expedition.
In the subsequent westward expedition, first to Qinghai Lake and then to Hami, the enemies basically had no shortage of horses.
After each battle, while defeating the enemy, Wu Zhou's army would capture a large number of war horses!
As a result, the current Wu Zhou army is basically an extremely luxurious one man and two horses. Well, including the old, weak, women and children who accompany the army, everyone is one man and two horses.
There is still a surplus!
The current inventory of war horses of Wu Zhoujun is much larger than that of Ming Dynasty.
Spring has begun now, and the so-called cold spring weather has passed.
But Wu Sangui was wrapped in a thick cloak and had several braziers beside him.
Standing at the top of Yarkant City, Wu Sangui looked at the military performance of the army outside the city, his eyes full of sharpness.
However, Wu Sangui's complexion was not very good at this time. His face was blue, his lips were white and lacked blood, and his breath was weak. He looked like he was about to die soon.
Wu Sangui's health was not good. After one winter, Wu Sangui's body completely collapsed due to the long-distance migration and the heavy wind and snow in the Western Regions.
Although he would not die on the spot, it would be impossible for him to ride on the battlefield like before.
Wu Sangui even had a hunch that this Yarkand City might be his burial place.
Looking at the mighty cavalry group outside the city, Wu Sangui's blood surged in his chest.
Now, he, Wu Sangui, is conquering the Western Regions, leading the Han army to spread the majesty of the Han family outside the region, and expand the territory thousands of miles away.
Since the separatist rule of vassal towns in the late Tang Dynasty, the Western Regions have been abandoned by the Han family and returned to the rule of the Han family.
The story of Wu Sangui opening Shanhaiguan Pass and attracting Qing troops to enter the Pass should be able to turn over the story!
I don’t believe it, Wu Sangui is so awesome, and in future history books, there will still be people who can say that Wu Sangui is a sinner of history.
Wu Sangui would even lead an army to conquer Tianzhu in the future and turn Tianzhu into a piece of Han territory.
By then, Wu Sangui's achievements will be even greater.
"Ying Xiong, Ying Qi!"
Wu Sangui put back his messy thoughts and called his two sons in a weak voice.
Wu Yingxiong and Wu Yingqi heard Wu Sangui's call, and they took a step forward and came to Wu Sangui's side.
"Father!"
Wu Sangui squinted his eyes and opened his mouth to give instructions.
"Next, the most important thing for me, apart from regular martial arts exercises and maintaining the combat effectiveness of the army, is the most important thing for me."
"The purpose is to send a caravan to Tianzhu in advance to find out the specific situation in Tianzhu, and then formulate a battle plan."
"The other thing is to use the extra horses in our army to buy another batch of arms, especially artillery, from the Ming Dynasty."
"Hey, after all, after our army enters Tianzhu, it will not be that easy to buy arms from the Ming Dynasty."
That’s not to say that Daming won’t sell it by then, the main reason is that the distance is too far.
The cost of transportation on the road is a big problem!
Wu Zhou wants to buy arms from Daming, and while they are still in the Western Regions, it may be the last time.
"During the period of purchasing arms with the Ming Dynasty and sending out caravans to explore the road, I, the Qing Dynasty, will be able to repair it in Yarkand City for a while."
"Absorb a group of Mongolians and Uighurs into the army and become members of our Wu and Zhou army!"
Although the main force of Guan Ning's army is Han Chinese, the main ethnic groups in this Western Region are Mongolians and Uighurs.
After such a long battle, the attrition problem of Guan Ning's army is very serious!
And if Guan Ning's army wants to invade Tianzhu, the existing army size may not be enough.
Although many people know that Wang Xuance destroyed an entire country by himself, no one knows whether the current Tianzhu and the Tianzhu of the Tang Dynasty are the same thing.
To be on the safe side, Guan Ning's army needed a large number of servants to serve as cannon fodder to ensure a complete victory in their subsequent attack on Tianzhu.
Where do cannon fodder come from?
They can only be recruited from the Western Regions.
Let's see if we can trick some Mongolians or Uighurs into joining the army and serve as cannon fodder for Guan Ning's army.
"Father, I'm afraid this won't be easy to do!"
Wu Yingxiong heard this and spoke from the side.
His face was full of solemnity.
The Guan Ning Army was originally an invader to the Western Regions.
They have no public opinion foundation at all in the Western Regions. The reason why they can gain a foothold in the Western Regions is the deterrence of the military.
Under such circumstances, it is really difficult to ask locals from the Western Regions to join the army and serve as cannon fodder for them.
Wu Sangui frowned and said after hearing this.
"If you can't do it, why don't you do it?"
Instead, Wu Yingqi spoke from the side.
"If recruiting troops doesn't work, just use coercion!"
"Let Guan Ning's army fight a few battles under the pressure of the trapped soldiers and horses, and plunder and massacre the city a few times, and that will be enough."
Wu Yingxiong's thinking is a typical literati thinking, or rather rigid.
But Wu Yingqi is different, but his thinking is pure warrior thinking!
In his eyes, there is no problem that cannot be solved by force. If it cannot be solved, it must be that force is not strong enough.
He had never thought of recruiting troops in the Western Regions because he knew he couldn't do it.
It is no lie to say that people who are not from my race must have different hearts!
Therefore, Wu Yingqi made up his mind to blackmail him early in the morning!
Let Guan Ning's army fight a few battles with the bundled troops and horses, massacre a few cities, let them see blood and taste the benefits of plunder.
These reluctant soldiers and horses who had been held hostage naturally returned home.
Li Zicheng, Zhang Xianzhong and others did this back then!
Facts have proved that although more people died when using the trick of coercing troops and horses, it is still effective.
The Chuang Army and the Western Army after Chongzhen's fifteenth year, especially their old soldiers, had quite good combat effectiveness.
Now Guan Ningjun is also preparing to do the same!
After Wu Sangui heard what Wu Yingqi said, he nodded with satisfaction.
Recently, as Wu Sangui's health deteriorated, he has been thinking about his successor, but has been unable to make up his mind.
His two sons, Wu Yingxiong, were not decisive enough in character and did not have enough influence on the army. They were not qualified successors.
And Wu Yingqi’s words are not without problems!
Wu Yingqi's biggest problem is that he is not the eldest son, but the second son.
And Wu Yingqi is not familiar with government affairs!
And a qualified ruler does not just control the army.
Wu Sangui didn’t know who to choose as his successor!
As his body deteriorates day by day, this problem becomes more and more urgent!
…
Huai'an!
Today's Huai'an is one of the important cities in Jiangbei during the Ming Dynasty.
It can be regarded as the economic center of the Ming Dynasty along the Huaihe River and the canal.
To a certain extent, Huai'an is not much worse than Yangzhou.
Even within the entire Ming Dynasty, Huai'an is one of the most important cities.
"We're hiring, we're hiring!"
"The cement factory is recruiting workers! The wages are generous and the remuneration is favorable."
"The spinning factory is recruiting workers. Those with experience will be given priority. Two silver dollars per month will be provided. Food and accommodation will be provided."
"..."
As an important economic town in the Ming Dynasty, Huai'an had extremely developed industry and commerce.
Merchants of the Ming Dynasty built a large number of workshops around Huai'an, absorbing a large amount of labor force.
Today's Huai'an City actually has a bit of urbanization flavor.
A large number of farmers and workers gather in cities, wanting to get paid and support themselves through work.
Ding Awei followed his third uncle into the city.
The two of them were wearing simple linen clothes, their faces were tanned by the sun, and the calluses on their hands and wrinkles on their faces all showed that they were old farmers.
"Third uncle, where are we going to work?"
Ding Awei shrank his neck and looked at the prosperity of Huai'an City, his eyes shining with yearning.
When Ding Changshou heard this, he shook his head and said.
"Um, I don't know!"
"Let's go find a restaurant to have a meal first, and then go to the labor market in the city. There are often people recruiting workers there."
When Ding Awei heard this, he shrank his neck and said.
"Third uncle, there is some dry food prepared by our mother for us in the bag."
When Ding Changshou heard this, he tilted his head like his nephew and said.
"Eat shitty dry food! It's dry and tasteless."
"You are out with your third uncle. How can your third uncle still let you spend money?"
"It's so easy for us to come to Huai'an City, why don't we have a good meal?"
"There is a wine shop not far from the labor market in the south of the city. The sauce pork and Yangchun noodles there are really good..."
As he spoke, Ding Changshou dragged his nephew along the sidewalk toward the south of the city.
With the development of industry and commerce, too many migrant workers have poured into Huai'an City.
With the dense flow of people, traffic in Huai'an is often congested.
However, after the imperial court spent its efforts on governance, divided the lanes and sidewalks, drove left and right in opposite directions, and developed the concept of traffic lights, the traffic situation in Huai'an City improved a lot.
At the very least, you won’t be stuck in traffic jams so easily!
Ding Changshou took his nephew through several traffic lights and walked out of a wine shop.
The uncle and nephew ordered a plate of sauce pork elbow, and then each had a bowl of Yangchun noodles.
Ding Awei also took out the dry food from his backpack, preparing to eat some of the soy pork elbow.
A simple farmer is never willing to waste food.
Not long after, the uncle and nephew finished their meal and headed towards the labor market in the city.
The two of them stood in the market, listening to the sounds of recruitment coming and going all around, and both of them were a little undecided.
"Little brother, Liu's Cement Factory is looking for workers. They are looking for a young and strong young man like you. Three silver dollars a month, food and lodging, and guaranteed to see meat and fish once every three days."
A man wearing a melon hat took the initiative to run up to Ding Awei and said.
"Little brother, don't miss this opportunity again!"
"The cement factory will only recruit thirty people. If they are full, they will not be hired anymore!"
When Ding Awei heard this, his eyes went straight as he listened to the three silver dollars a month and the cruel treatment once every three days.
Three silver dollars a month, doesn’t that mean thirty-six dollars a year?
These thirty-six silver dollars are enough for him to find a wife!
However, just as Ding Awei was about to say something, he was dragged behind him by Ding Changshou.
Ding Changshou looked at the person opposite, or the introducer, and argued unceremoniously.
"If it's another job, three silver dollars a month and seeing meat once every three days is really good, but in a cement factory this is definitely not possible!"
"The work in the cement factory is too hard, we need to pay more!"
In fact, the work in the cement factory is not only tiring, but tiring is actually nothing. What these simple migrant workers are not afraid of most is hardship!
But more importantly, working in a cement factory is actually harmful to the body.