"General Zu, is it true that I heard that the Governor is coming?" When Marco saw Zu Dashou, he didn't have to be polite and went straight to what he cared about most.
Zu Dashou looked at the dusty Ma Ke. He had only been here for half a month and he was already very rough. There were many knife marks scattered across the armor. It seemed that he had spent a lot of time at Tashan Fort during this period.
"I must have left Shanhaiguan by now." Zu Dashou nodded slightly: "General Ma's information is quite good."
Ma Ke smiled bitterly: "If the general said that he learned this news from the Tatars, the general can be trusted. The general kept it secret." In fact, according to their military positions, they are both general soldiers and have the same rank, but Zu Dashou
Before the city of Jinzhou was broken and surrendered, the imperial court had promoted him to the rank of Governor of the Left, and his official position was higher than that of Ma Ke. Moreover, Zu Dashou was the leader of military affairs outside the Pass at this time. Ma Ke was a guest and had to listen to Zu Dashou's orders, so he spoke
Most of them called themselves "Last General". Zu Dashou also declined but Marco insisted.
Hearing Ma Ke's complaint, Zu Dashou quickly explained that he had just received the news, but the eunuch's itinerary was confidential and Ma Ke was on the front line, so he did not deliberately notify him. He then asked Ma Ke how he learned about it from the Tatars.
.
It turned out that Ma Ke accidentally intercepted a group of Qing army spies on the front line. After being tortured and forced to confess, he learned from the prisoners that they had actually returned from the pass...
"The Tatar spies are really pervasive!" Zu Dashou sighed.
Ma Ke was concerned about the purpose of Chang Yu's trip. This man would go to the Three Treasures Palace for nothing. Ning Jin was already in constant conflict, and his coming here would definitely add fuel to the fire to stir up trouble. This made
Marco was excited and nervous. Is the war going to start so soon?
"Fight or not, we will obey orders, but the arrival of the Governor will definitely intensify the situation. The storm is about to come, and the front line will be even more uneasy. General Ma has worked hard for half a month, but he can rest and change in the city."
Let me go."
"But the Governor is coming..."
"I'd like to trouble General Ma to receive him," Zu Dashou said casually, and Ma Ke agreed, not forgetting to remind Zu Dashou that "the Tatars have been harassing more recently, especially at night."
Zu Dashou sighed: "Didn't I just say that the storm is about to come, and they will only get worse."
"Then should we add more manpower? There are more than 300 people in Tashan Fort now, which is more than enough for defense but not enough for offense." Ma Ke suggested, and Zu Dashou thought about it, "Once more troops are added, the situation will be intensified. At this time, there is no supervision."
Let’s make a decision on your Lordship’s intention after the Governor comes.”
Marco was convinced.
Immediately, Zu Dashou led more than a hundred soldiers out of Ningyuan to the front line of Tashan Fort, which was dozens of miles away. Ma Ke, who was left behind in Ningyuan, rested his troops to wait for Chang Yu. Of course, he would not think that Zu Dashou went to the front line before Chang Yu arrived.
It was just a show for the eunuch, and Zu Dashou had no need or disdain for it.
However, some of Ma Ke's men thought that Zu Dashou had such thoughts. Ma Ke asked his men, "Zu Dashou is the commander-in-chief of Liaodong. Do you know where Liaodong is?"
The subordinate replied: "The area east of the Liao River".
Ma Ke asked again: "Whose hands are on the area east of the Liao River at this time?"
His subordinates remained silent.
The east of the Liaohe River was now in the hands of the Tatars, and even the western part of Liaoning was only left with the ancient city of Ningyuan. Jinzhou also belonged to western Liaoning, but the imperial court assigned Zu Dashou the military position of Liaodong Commander-in-Chief.
A few thoughts.
After Zu Dashou was exchanged, under Chang Yu's repeated insistence, he was reinstated as the commander-in-chief of Liaodong. This was also a spur to him. Of course, Jinzhou must be recovered, Liaodong must also be taken back, and even...
Zu Dashou understands the thoughts of the court and the encouragement of the eunuch. He is a practical person and a person who does practical things, so there is no need to show off.
Chang Yu had already arrived at Zhonghousuo, which was later known as Suizhong County. After the great battle in Ningyuan twenty years ago, the imperial court built the Guanningjin Defense Line under the auspices of Yuan Chonghuan, that is, the Shanhaiguan to Jinzhou Defense Line, in order to defend against the Qing army's offensive.
.
This defense line is divided into two sections, the northern and southern sections. The southern section is from Shanhaiguan to Ningyuan, and the northern section is from Ningyuan to Daling River in the north of Jinzhou. The two sections of the defense line are a total of 400 miles long. There are several fortresses between the three cities, and there are several fortresses between Guan and Ning.
There are Qiantunweicheng, Zhongqiansuo, Zhonghousuo, Lianshan, Tashan, Xingshan and Songshan fortresses between Ningjin and Dalinghe and Xiaolinghe fortresses in the north of Jinzhou.
The Qing army leveled the Da Ling River before attacking Jinzhou City. After the Songjin Battle, the Songshan, Xingshan, Tashan and other fortresses between Ningyuan and Jinzhou were all lost and turned into ruins. Then the Qing army was unable to attack Ningyuan and directly
After going around, all the defense posts between Guan and Ning were leveled. At this point, the Guan-Ning Jin defense line collapsed, leaving only Ningyuan, and the isolated city outside the Guan was born.
After the great victory of Ningyuan last year, the Ming Dynasty could finally take a breather, but it was unable to repair the destroyed guards. At this moment, the Zhongqian Station closest to Shanhaiguan is still a ruin overgrown with grass, and the Zhonghou Station in the middle of Guanning
But it began to rejuvenate.
In fact, before the Songjin War, Zu Dashou once stationed his troops in the rear camp and attacked Duduo who entered the pass, causing Duduo to suffer a big loss. During the Ningyuan War last year, Li Yan came from thousands of miles away to come to the rescue and stationed in this ruins. During his stay there
The ruins were cleaned and repaired. After the war, the surrounding refugees settled in the city. Then Guan Ning joined forces to suppress the bandits. The heroes from the nearby mountains came down to do good deeds. After entering the city, they became the people. While rebuilding the city wall, they opened up wasteland and farmed fields to live and work in peace and contentment. Over time,
The place became lively again, and now there were hundreds of households and three hundred soldiers in the city.
In other words, today's Zhonghou Institute is no longer a simple guardhouse, but a small town where military and civilians are mixed. It is not only a military logistics base but also a place for business travelers to stay. Naturally, there are also various shops in the city. Such vitality attracts
More refugees came here to settle and make a living, and the city became more prosperous.
To recover like this in just over a year is quite exciting and adds to Guan Ning's political achievements.
However, the evaluation of Zhonghou Institute by business travelers is somewhat intriguing and its folk customs are sturdy!
The folk customs outside the customs are already tough, but those who can be said to be tough by outsiders are really not ordinary tough. As for why they are tough, everyone knows it, because they are not from a good background.
Chang Yu and his entourage arrived at the Zhonghou Station in the evening. Due to the cold weather, they decided to stay overnight. The soldiers went to the barracks to repair. He took a few followers to wander around the small town, observing the local customs, inspecting the city's defenses and fortifications, and exchanging feelings with Li Muxian.
extremely.
"My wish is to rebuild the Guanningjin Defense Line within three years!" Chang Yu stood on the city wall and looked at the dark Western Mountains. He looked back at the lights in the city with a determined look on his face. Li Muchian nodded slightly: "As long as
If we take it back to Jinzhou, we can fulfill the governor's wish."
"From what the Taoist priest sees, how long will it take to recover Jinzhou?" Chang Yu asked.
Li Muxian thought for a while and looked up at the sky: "The Manchus were targeting Jinzhou from the Battle of Daling River in the fourth year of Chongzhen, to the beginning of the Songjin War in the thirteenth year, to the destruction of Jinzhou city in the fifteenth year, ten years before and after!"
Chang Yu took a deep breath and smiled lightly: "Ten years is too long, I am seizing the day!"
Li Muchian was about to speak but stopped. Chang Yu glanced at him and said, "Taoist Master, you can speak frankly."
"Pindao feels that it's okay to seize the day, but this is not the best time."
"What does the Taoist priest mean by first settling down inside and fighting outside?" Chang Yu looked at Li Muxian, and the fairy-like guy in front of him shook his head gently: "Secondly settling down inside will give the Tatars a chance to breathe, and sacrifice the thieves."
It will never be calmed down in a short while. If you are not careful, you will fall into the quagmire and be unable to struggle out. This will play into the hands of the Tatars. They will even take advantage of it again..." He glanced at Chang Yu:" Pindao disagreed.
It is even suggested to first pacify the outside world and then pacify the outside world. However, it is not a good time to start a war now. Didn’t the Governor make a decision before leaving the capital? The main purpose of this trip is to harass and contain. Could it be a temporary move? "
Chang Yu sighed: "The governor is just thinking, An Nei gives the foreign enemies a chance to breathe, and fighting against the foreigners gives the domestic thieves a chance to breathe. But if we fight on two fronts at the same time, the imperial court does not have the ability and strength, at least within three or five years."
".
"The Governor" Li Muchian swallowed and spat: "If there are no other changes, the Xian thieves will only shrink back to Sichuan and will not take the initiative to attack, but the foreign enemies will not..."
"The governor knows," Chang Yu interrupted him, smiled bitterly and sighed: "Even if the thief doesn't take the initiative to attack, if he doesn't move him early and allows him to sit firmly in Sichuan, it will be even harder to move him in the future, and Li
As long as they are not dead, that group of people are hiding in Xi'an, that is the biggest uncertainty and the biggest change." He looked up at the dark night sky: "This variable will produce a butterfly effect, which is what the governor is worried about.
The key point”.
"But the governor is worried, haven't we already made arrangements?" Li Muchian smiled lightly: "Use Wuchang to contain Xian thief and Jing Xiang, instigate internal strife in Li Chuang's department, and make them work hard to make them have no time to communicate with Xian thief.
In this way, the governor can free his hands to deal with foreign enemies."
Chang Yu sighed: "Those are all plans, and they have not been implemented one by one. How could the Taoist priest not know that people are not as good as God, and everything depends on God's will. There is still a gap in a hundred secrets, but usually this gap can be enough
All previous efforts will be wasted."
Li Muxian looked up at the sky after hearing this: "The situation is unpredictable, just like the weather. Everything depends on God's will."
Just when they were about to persuade Chang Yu to do their best and obey fate, they suddenly heard noises from the city, and there were shouts and curses. The two of them couldn't help but looked down curiously, and saw a mess in an inn not far from the city. Someone was there.