The emperor compared himself to Huo Qubing, the fat cavalry general of the Han Dynasty, but he praised him so much. How could Shi Dayong dare to do so? He knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, your words are serious. Be loyal to the emperor and serve the country. Kill the enemy and make meritorious deeds. This is the duty of a minister. What's more, How dare you stand shoulder to shoulder with General Fat Cavalry? I feel ashamed, I only wish to serve as a vanguard for the Ming Dynasty, to serve as the emperor, and to devote myself to the Ming Dynasty until my death!"
After hearing this, Chongzhen couldn't help but feel moved, and the emperor was very relieved. Looking at Shi Dayong with a sincere face, he was really overjoyed.
"Ai Qing Jinzhou severely damaged the Eastern captives and achieved a great victory, beheading more than 6,000 people. This battle is the greatest victory our Ming Dynasty has achieved since the Liao Dynasty, and its contribution is huge. When I heard the news of the victory, I was really excited and couldn't help myself for a long time. For more than ten years, the Liao Dynasty suffered repeated defeats, and everyone in the court was frightened. The battle at Jinzhou was inspiring. From then on, the Donglu people knew that I, the Ming Dynasty, was not a fish, and he, the Donglu, was not a swordsman! With you assisting me, give me In three years, I will personally lead the army out of the border to attack the Donglu!"
The more Chongzhen talked, the more excited he became. He raised his head to the northeast and became so heroic.
Indeed, the great victory in Jinzhou gave the young emperor too much confidence and too much pride.[
Wang Chengen lost no time and said: "While the Holy Emperor is on the throne, Donglu will be a clown, and one day he will be wiped out by our heavenly army, and will be wiped out and no longer exist in the world!"
Shi Dayong was moved in his heart and wanted to speak in agreement, but when his words came to his lips, he turned into: "I think that although the Donglu were defeated in Jinzhou, their vitality is still there. I, the Ming Dynasty, will still be able to tolerate him in the short term."
"Oh?" Hearing this, Chongzhen turned his head, but he was not dissatisfied, but asked with interest: "Why did Aiqing say this?"
"Your Majesty, it has been more than ten years since Lao Nu raised the Donglu army. During this period, we, the Ming Dynasty, fought with them. We were at a disadvantage in many places. We lost troops and lost ground. We retreated again and again. Although in the battle of Jinzhou, we beheaded the Donglu soldiers and horses. There are nearly 10,000 soldiers, but according to my opinion, the main force of the Eastern captives still exists, and the Mongolian tribes are attached to the enemy. The force is so strong that it is still difficult for anyone to defeat them.
On the other hand, in the Ming Dynasty, during the battle between Xiaolinghe and Xiaolinghe, the Guanmen army was completely depleted. When Jiannu attacked Jinzhou, I tried my best and only gathered thousands of remnant soldiers. To be honest with the emperor, if it weren’t for the tall walls and sharp defenses of Jinzhou, I would have had another chance. Even great skills are extremely difficult to maintain.
Therefore, in terms of military strength alone, our Ming Dynasty still does not have the strength to defeat the Donglu at this time, and everything needs to be considered in the long term."
Shi Dayong told the truth, without any exaggeration or boasting. In his opinion, it is simply impossible to completely defeat Manchuria with the current military strength of the Ming Dynasty.
To put it bluntly, if Mrs. Hong sends troops to attack Jinzhou now, he, Shi Dayong, can only take his men and flee to Ningyuan in despair, and even flee all the way to Shanhaiguan. The other reason is that he has no way to fight with the main force of the Eight Banners. The strength in a head-on battle no longer has the conditions to defend Jinzhou.
In the battle of Jinzhou, Donglu suffered heavy losses, but Shi Dayong was not much better. Nearly one-third of his Songshan soldiers were killed in the battle. Adding up all the active soldiers, Shi Dayong now only has usable soldiers. About two thousand. Even if Zuo Liangyu's soldiers and those from Jinzhou's regiments and guards were added together, there were less than four thousand. And almost all the equipment to defend the city was used up, which meant that if the Donglu army Next, Shi Dayong could only rely on these 4,000 men to fight in hand-to-hand combat at the top of the city. Compared with the tens of thousands of Donglu's troops, the mere 4,000 soldiers were really pitiful. If they could last for a day, it would be considered lucky.
Therefore, Shi Dayong, who knew the real situation of his family, was not as confident as Emperor Chongzhen, and it was too unrealistic for him to go out to attack the slaves in three years.
The emperor said that it would take three years to leave the country to attack the Eastern captives, but the ministers said that it would not be possible in the short term. How could the emperor have any dignity?
However, Chongzhen was still not unhappy, but looked at Shi Dayong intently and said slowly: "Then in your opinion, how long will it take for me to defeat the Donglu in one fell swoop?"
Shi Dayong said categorically: "In my opinion, if the imperial court wants to defeat the Donglu in one fell swoop, I'm afraid it will take another ten years."
"Ten years?" Chongzhen frowned. Ten years was too long for him.
Unexpectedly, Shi Dayong added: "Ten years is my optimistic estimate. I'm afraid it will be far more than ten years."
Hearing this, Chongzhen's face darkened, he pondered for a moment, and said with some reluctance: "The Donglu tribe has only a hundred thousand soldiers and hundreds of thousands of people. Why is it so difficult to quell it?"
Shi Dayong thought for a while and said: "It's just because my Ming Dynasty lost the right time, place, and people."
"The right time, the right place, and the right people?" Chongzhen was startled, "What is the right time?"
"The weather is favorable, and the weather and rain are favorable. Your Majesty, now not only inside the pass, but also outside the pass, there are constant major and minor disasters. The wind is not controlling, the rain is not going well, and the products are not abundant. The land in western Liaoning is difficult to support a large army. Military pay and food must be transferred away from the pass.
It costs a lot, and every time the taxes are levied, it will inevitably increase the burden on the people and provoke civil unrest. Once the civil unrest occurs, the court will need to send troops to suppress it, which will increase the burden on the court and the people. I wonder, under such internal unrest, what happens outside the customs?
How can we organize our troops and use them to fight the Donglu?" [
"Yes, it is true." Chongzhen agreed with Shi Dayong's words in his heart. Since he came to the throne, the Ming Dynasty has not been easy. The Ministry of Household Affairs alone reports hundreds of disasters every year. Compared with before, there are many more
No more.
"If the weather is like this, what is the right place?"
"The Ming Dynasty does not have the advantage of geographical advantage. The Donglu cover an area of thousands of miles, and most of their troops are cavalry. They can attack the Ming Dynasty from the north and the south. Our army can only defend everywhere, and the troops are scattered and cannot be used intensively. This is an offense to the military strategists.
Big taboo. If you build a slave, you only need to gather troops to attack me at one point, and all our defense lines will be abandoned. If you are not careful, the capital will be in danger. Moreover, if you build a slave, you can come and go freely. Our army cannot fight against the enemy in the field, let alone intercept it. Therefore, there is no geographical advantage.
It can be said.”
"What does it mean to be harmonious?"
"Harmony means that superiors and inferiors cannot be enemies."
"Tell me more details."
"I mean that the generals are not united. At the critical moment of the battle, they abandon their friendly troops and set the army up for a disastrous defeat. I believe that only unity has strength. Only when the top and bottom work together can we overcome difficulties and achieve success. However, looking at the Liao affairs, every time there is a big battle, there is always
I am defeated by my own general, and every time I think about it, I feel heartbroken."
"well."
Chongzhen was also well aware of what Shi Dayong said, especially the Liao generals who were really holding him back in every battle when Zu Dashou was there. However, he, the emperor, could not do anything to them and had to put in good words afterwards.
He comforted them and did not dare to punish them. It can be said that Shi Dayong's words pointed directly at the pain in Chongzhen's heart, making him sigh.
Chongzhen sighed, and Shi Dayong also sighed in his heart. Although the soldiers of the Later Jin Dynasty were only one hundred thousand, they were all brave and skilled soldiers. Based on the current national strength of the Ming Dynasty, it would be a foolish dream to defeat the Donglu in one fell swoop in a short period of time.
The Ming Dynasty is now affected by the Little Glacier natural disaster, and its national power has plummeted, making it difficult to afford large-scale wars. In addition, the slave chief Hong Taishi is an unparalleled hero. It will be difficult to destroy him.
The most urgent thing is the soldiers. Ning Jin is extremely empty, and the only available soldiers are Shi Dayong's two thousand soldiers. It can be imagined how anxious the Ming Dynasty has become outside the pass.
"According to what Aiqing said, wouldn't it be that I have to wait for more than ten years before I can personally lead the army to go out to conquer the Eastern captives?" The young emperor was secretly worried.
Shi Dayong did not answer Chongzhen directly, but said: "I believe that in order to fight against foreigners, we must first settle the internal affairs. If the internal situation is uneven, it will be difficult to fight against foreigners. The Eastern captives are cunning and are afraid that the internal unrest of our Ming Dynasty will play into their hands. Just put some pressure on the outside.
It will mess up our policy. At that time, it will be difficult to pay equal attention to both internal and external considerations. If we pay attention to one end and miss the other, both aspects will be confused."
Before he finished speaking, Chongzhen suddenly raised his hand to interrupt him, nodded and said: "I have already considered what Aiqing said, I am thinking about it." As he was speaking, he suddenly stopped, his expression a little complicated.
Shi Dayong didn't know why Chongzhen suddenly stopped talking, but Wang Chengen knew it. He raised his eyes and glanced at Chongzhen, then quickly lowered his head.
After covering up his speechlessness with a light cough, Chongzhen said admonishingly: "I have made great achievements, but do you have any requests to make to the court? As long as I can satisfy them, I will definitely satisfy you."
Shi Dayong shook his head and said: "Your Majesty, I have nothing to ask for, and I have nothing to ask for. I am only willing to guard Liaodong for the Emperor forever, and prevent the Eastern captives from poisoning our people of the Ming Dynasty again."
Shi Dayong finally made his request to Chongzhen, which was to allow him to guard Liaodong like Zu Dashou, preferably permanently in Jinzhou. In this way, he would have his own territory, and he could legitimately take over what Zu Dashou left.
Of course, the most important thing is that if Chongzhen approves his request, he can take advantage of the opportunity to keep Qiu Hejia and prevent the court from transferring him away.
With the full support of the governor of Liaodong, Shi Dayong believed that he would be able to make a difference in Jinzhou. No matter what happened, he could still block the Manchu cavalry for the Ming Dynasty.
After hearing Shi Dayong's request, Chongzhen was not surprised, but he did not agree to him on the spot. Instead, he said: "I am not proud of taking credit, but I am willing to guard Liaodong for me. It is really rare!" After a pause, he sighed: "Since
Since the emergency in Liaodong, I have never met such a loyal and brave minister as Aiqing. I am very happy to see Aiqing today. Aiqing can retreat first, and I will reply to Aiqing after I have discussed with the court officials."
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Shi Dayong was slightly disappointed when he did not wait for Chongzhen's immediate reply, but he could not violate the sacred order. At that moment, he and Jiang Cao knelt down to salute, and then retreated out of the palace respectfully.[
After the three people retreated, Chongzhen's face suddenly tightened and he ordered Wang Chengen: "Ask Cao Huachun to send someone to Jinzhou for a detailed investigation. I want to know whether what Shi Dayong said is true."
Why, the emperor still doesn’t believe it?
Wang Chengen's heart trembled, and he responded in a low voice: "Yes, Your Majesty."
Chongzhen had no intention of leaving. He put his hands behind his back and glanced around the platform. Wang Chengen could not figure out the emperor's thoughts, so he boldly stepped forward and asked softly: "I'm sorry for talking, I don't know what the emperor is planning to do."
Arrange this for Shi Dayong?"
"Huh?" Chongzhen turned his head and glanced at Wang Chengen unhappily. The latter's neck felt cold, knowing that he had violated the rules.
Seeing that the old slave who had been following him for many years was afraid, Chongzhen did not give him any more trouble, but said calmly: "This person cannot be used, but he cannot be reused."
After saying that, he turned around and left, leaving a confused Wang Chengen behind. Why should he not use it or reuse it?