Chapter 576: The Night Guards Meditate on Liaodong (I)

The night is quiet, Zhang Zhun's cabin,.

Li Jicheng's fleet sped quickly on the Bohai Bay, returning from Donghai Fort to Liujiapu Port. Zhang Zhun's mind is also running rapidly. Now, he didn't feel sleepy at all, and carefully read a lot of information about the battle of Quang Ninh City.

The battle of Donghai Fort stirred up a lot of Zhang Zhun's thoughts, a lot of ideas about Liaodong. As a later generation, Zhang Zhun's understanding of Liaodong is more profound than that of the Ming Dynasty. In the eyes of the people of the Ming Dynasty, Liaodong was only part of today's Liaoning Province. Liaodong in Zhang Zhun's eyes includes today's three northeastern provinces, and even more distant black soil.

Some people say that it was the fission of Salhu that led to the fall of Liaodong. Some people say that it was the fall of Shenyang and Liaoyang that led to the loss of Liaodong. Some people also say that it was the loss of Guangning City that led to the complete loss of Liaodong. There is truth to every statement. Zhang Zhun prefers the latter.

If Guangning City is still in the hands of the Ming Kingdom, the situation in Liaodong will not be able to erode to this point. If the city of Quang Ninh was still in the hands of the Ming Kingdom, it would be impossible for the Tartars to cross the Great Wall to the south twice, and they would also cross the Great Wall to the south for the third time. If Guangning City was still in the hands of the Ming Kingdom, the battle of Donghai Fort just now of the Tiger Ben Army would not have happened. Because, as long as Guangning City is not lost, Donghai Fort will definitely be in the hands of the Ming army.

So, how was Quang Ninh City lost? Why did the situation in Liaodong become so bad? All of this has to start with the dusty history.

In the early years of the Apocalypse, Nurhachi captured Liaoyang with lightning speed, moved the capital here, and began to rule Liaodong. After the conquest by force, the most important thing is to develop the economy, and the prerequisite for economic development must be a relatively stable political environment, that is, a strong rule over the conquered areas.

However, it is extremely difficult for a culturally backward nation to exercise domination over a culturally advanced nation, and this is a kind of integration: the backward nation in the status of the conqueror has to absorb the advanced national culture in the position of the conquered to a certain extent, and the conquered nation has to accept some foreign cultures under high pressure. In other words, Jianlu had to accept the culture of the Han people.

Soon after Nurhachi entered Liaoyang, he put forward the idea of "participating in the Han Dynasty and making money from the Han Dynasty" in building political power, and almost copied some of the advanced systems of the Central Plains regime as they were, rapidly achieving leapfrog development, and quickly becoming one of the advanced nations from a backward nation. And the Han people also had to carry out the shaving order under the threat of butcher knives.

In the course of human history, this process of integration has been full of blood. Needless to say, the period of Wuhu Chaohua was like this, and it was the same in the Liao, Jin, and Yuan periods. The replacement of the old regime by a new regime is often done through violence. In the early days of the regime, the new regime always had to carry out the final encirclement and suppression of the remnants of the old forces, the so-called cutting down of the grass and roots, which was necessary to consolidate the regime.

The old forces will not easily withdraw from the stage of history, and they will certainly resist to the death. There are also some resurgences of the old regime, but in the end, the green mountains can't cover it, after all, the old forces can only return to the light before death. For example, in modern history, Zhang Xun was restored, and Kang Liang changed from a reformist to a royalist, etc.

After all, the Ming Dynasty had been operating in Liaoyang for more than 200 years, and orthodoxy was deeply rooted here, and it was even more difficult to get the Han people to accept foreign rule. Ordinary people may not care much about who rules them, as long as they keep us alive. This is not the case with scholars, who believe that the king of Yidi is not as good as the death of Zhuxia. They despised the Jurchens with big braids in their bones.

In Liaoyang, Nurhachi encountered strong resistance from the Han Chinese. And these revolts were mainly provoked by these scholars. Nurha resolutely suppressed this, and really killed many scholars. Some historians are now critical of this, arguing that he lost power in his later years. So what's history all about?

In fact, objectively speaking, Nurhachi treated the Han people very favorably at the beginning. Even, it cannot be ruled out that Nurhachi has a little inferiority complex in front of Han scholars. It's like a child who is not good at reading nowadays, and in front of Tsinghua University and Peking University, he may feel inferior. If you want to say that Nurhachi at that time thought that he might win the world, that is complete nonsense. Such an exaggerated idea, even Huang Taiji did not dare to have it.

Zhang Zhun believes that Nurhachi is actually envious of scholars. He has lived in the mountains and old forests all his life, he can't even count a few horses, and he can't even tell how many women he has, of course, he envies the Han talents who can recite poetry. It's a pity that he is not a girl, otherwise, it is not impossible to marry a Han talent.

Why do the descendants of wild boar skins have to study Han culture desperately? That's the inferiority complex that has been handed down since the time of our ancestors!

Although the status of the Han people in the Dajin Kingdom was low, and they still dragged an ugly pig's tail to death, they were definitely better economically than in the Ming Dynasty. It is precisely because of Nurhachi's preferential treatment that the Han people who returned to Shun were able to produce with relative peace of mind, and the economy of Houjin was able to grow rapidly, thus providing strong economic support for the march into Liaoshen.

Even the strongest nationalists have to admit that Nurhachi was not only a military strategist, but also a statesman. After more than 30 years of struggle, he raised troops from Hetuala, a land less than five miles away, and achieved the brilliant cause of Jin coming out of the mountains after the establishment of the unified Jurchens, relying not only on military strength, but more importantly on his political strategy.

Shi Zai Nurhachi is proficient in "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", and he will not fail to understand the truth that if you want to collect its land, you must first collect its heart. Moreover, he had already tasted the sweetness of the preferential treatment of the Han Chinese, so after entering southern Liaoning, he continued to firmly pursue this established policy. After the most important Jin, Fu, Hai, Gai and other guards in southern Liaoning were returned to Shun, he used all the surrendered Ming Dynasty officials on the spot, and the officials were reinstated, and Han officials were used to manage the Han people. For example, Yang Yuwei was appointed to guard Gaizhou, and he was loyal to Fuzhou and Liu Aita was to guard Jinzhou.

However, in response to the old saying of "this time and that time", in southern Liaoning, his preferential treatment policy not only did not work, but on the contrary, it was strongly resisted by the Han people. At their instigation, the people who were abused or bullied by the Manchurians either attacked or poisoned, or gathered in the mountains and forests, or fled en masse, and the fire of resistance for a while burned everywhere.

When the pacifying policy failed, Nurhachi turned to killing. He aimed the spearhead mainly at the scholars, and those who refused to submit were found to kill one by one, and showed no mercy. According to historical records, more than half of the scholars in southern Liaoning were killed by Nurhachi, and the rest were incognito and hidden. Throughout history, this may have been an insurmountable stage in the process of a regime's inception to its development. It's just that Nurhachi's repression has a strong national color.

Well, if you are the boss of a company and have a large group of Tsinghua University and Peking University students under your command, but you yourself are from a reckless background, and even the computer is directly unplugged. As a result, a group of students below wanted to oppose you and encourage employees to rebel. What would you do with it, you say? Of course, it's a killing spree...... These words are suspected of washing the ground of wild boar skin. However, this was indeed the case at the time. As a result, when you clean up all these students, the company is quiet again and moves forward again.

It was against this background that Nurhachi launched an offensive against Liaoxi.

Why did Nurhachi attack Liaoxi? The reason is actually quite simple.

First of all, the need to consolidate the regime.

Although the brutal repression can have some deterrent effect for a certain period of time, the consolidation of power should never rely on the butcher's knife alone, and if Nurhachi wants to gain a foothold in Liaodong, he must let the Han people in southern Liaoning put an end to the illusion of restoration. However, the west of the Liao River was still the world of the Ming Dynasty, and the Ming regime in Hexi was an inexhaustible longing for the Han people in Hedong, and many Han people fled to Hexi in dozens, hundreds, or even thousands of people, fleeing to the embrace of the orthodox regime in their hearts.

If Nurhachi wants to achieve permanent rule in Liaodong, he must cut off the Han people in southern Liaoning's attachment to the Ming regime in Liaoxi, which is one of the important reasons why Nurhachi wants to use troops in Guangning. In today's terms, it is to take a salary from the bottom of the kettle, raid your home first, and leave you homeless.

Secondly, to fight for the needs of the Mongol tribes.

There was another important reason why Nurhachi had to march into western Liaoxi, that is, to cut off the connection between the Ming State and Mongolia and force the Mongols to submit in order to strengthen the strength of the Eight Banners of Manchuria. The relationship between the Ming Kingdom and Mongolia was too close, which was very unfavorable to the wild boar skin. If Mongolia can be pulled to the side of the Manchurian Eight Banners, the strength of the Manchurian Eight Banners will be greatly enhanced.

To illustrate this issue, it is necessary to clarify the importance of Quang Ninh as a military town. At the end of the Ming Dynasty, Liaoyang was the political, economic, cultural, and commercial center of eastern Liaodong, but it was not said that it was a military center. It stands to reason that the capital of a region is the military center of a region, but in Liaodong it is an exception. The military center of Liaodong was not in Liaoyang, but in Quang Ninh. The Liaodong General Military Office is located in Guangning, while Liaoyang is only the Deputy General Military Office.

Why is this so?

Quang Ninh has now been changed to Bac Ninh, which is located at the foot of Yiwulu Mountain in Liaoning Province, and its history is longer than that of Liaoyang. According to historical records, Tang Yao belonged to Jizhou, Yu Shun belonged to Youzhou, Xia Shang belonged to Jizhou, the Western Zhou Dynasty was the fief of Yan State, and the Eastern Zhou Dynasty belonged to Liaodong County of Yan State, and the Qin Dynasty still belonged to Liaodong County.

In the Western Han Dynasty, Wuxian County was set up here, and the western governor's mansion of Liaodong County was placed in the territory, which belonged to the Youzhou Thorn History Department. In the Eastern Han Dynasty, Wuxian County originally belonged to Liaodong County, and Emperor An of the Han Dynasty belonged to Liaodong vassal states. During the Three Kingdoms, it belonged to Changli County of Wei Youzhou, and Changli County of Pingzhou in the Western Jin Dynasty. In the Sui Dynasty, it belonged to Yan Shao at the beginning, and Yan County was changed to Liaoxi County in the eighth year of Daye. The Tang Dynasty belonged to the Yingzhou of Hebei Province, and Wu Yan guarded the city in the territory, and the local garrison was stationed in the city.

Bac Ninh occupies a very important position in the history of the Liao Dynasty, three of the nine emperors of the Liao Dynasty are buried in Ganlu Mountain, in order to protect the mausoleum, Xianzhou is placed, and three states and three counties are set up under the state. After Jin destroyed Liao, the political power was set up at the four levels of road, government, prefecture, and county. In the first year of Jintianhui (1123 AD), Liao Xianzhou was promoted to Guangning Prefecture, and the site of the mansion was in today's Guangning Town, which consisted of 4 counties of Luyang, Wangping, Guangning and Zhongxiu.

In the Ming Dynasty, Guangning was the highest military station of the Ming Dynasty in Northeast China, and it was an important military town to control the Mongol bomb Jurchen. The army stationed around the city of Quang Ninh in the Ming Dynasty was never less than 50,000 men, and the number of cavalry was quite large. Guanning, Guanning, the pass in this is Shanhaiguan, and the Ning in this is Guangning.

Quang Ninh Horse Market should be the largest trade market in western Liaoning. The Mongolian tribes living in the vicinity of Liaodong and Liaoxi mainly get their daily necessities from the Quang Ninh horse market. Quang Ninh was an important hub connecting Mongolia and the Ming Dynasty. If you control Quang Ninh, you will control Mongolia, which is adjacent to Liaoxi. At that time, the Mongolian tribes had lost their strength to fight against the Ming State, and could only become subordinate to the Ming State.

However, the Mongolian and Jurchen peoples wear the same clothes, believe in the same religion, and have the same language, and they are very closely related in terms of lifestyle and culture. Nurhachi regarded the Mongol tribes as his own race, and the Jurchens had a large number of Mongols, some of whom had ancestors who were Mongols themselves, such as the Yehebu. Nurhachi once said unabashedly: I am a Mongolian relic.

The conquest of Mongolia was Nurhachi's established policy. The Mongols, like the Jurchens, were both a nation that was proficient in cavalry and archery, and it was extremely important for Nurhachi to win over the Mongols. No matter from which point of view, the population of the Eight Banners of Manchuria is too small. If the population is too small, it will naturally not be possible to form more armies.

Again, the need to seize food and grass and get out of the crisis.

Due to its special military status, the castles around Quang Ninh City have accumulated a large amount of grain and grass. Before the fall of Guangning, 120 miles away from Guangning City, Guangning Youwei (now Youwei Township, Jinxi County) had 500,000 stones of grain and grass. What is the concept of 500,000 stones? One stone in the Ming Dynasty is equal to 188.8 catties now. 500,000 stone is close to 10000000 catties.

At that time, the Eight Banners of Manchuria may have been about 100,000 people, and each person could get nearly 1,000 catties of grain and grass. That's definitely a very big number. If you add the castles in Quang Ninh and the surrounding areas, the number will be even more impressive. This is undoubtedly a life-saving grain and grass for Dajin Country, which has just entered southern Liaoning and has been attacked everywhere, with political turmoil, soaring prices, and a severe shortage of grain.

Tartars are also human beings, and they also need to consume a lot of food. Even, compared to the Han Chinese, the Tatars need to consume more food. Because the war horses of the Tartars need a lot of beans to feed. Beans must be added to the forage of the war horse in order to maintain the sufficient physical strength of the war horse. And beans, at that time, could only be grabbed from the Han people.

Nurhachi is determined to attack Liaoxi.

So, what is the situation of the Ming army in Liaoxi?

The commander is the core of an army and the soul of an army. An army without a commander cannot be called an army, it can only be a plate of scattered sand. The Ming army in Liaodong, of course, had a commander. Let's first take a look at the commanders of the Ming Dynasty in Liaodong. Attention, it's everybody. In other words, there is more than one.

The first commander, of course, is the famous Xiong Tingbi.

The fall of Shenyang and Liaoyang led to the collapse of Ming rule east of the Liao River, and the rulers of the Ming Dynasty were terrified. After learning from the pain, after reflection, it was decided to re-appoint Xiong Tingbi as the right attendant of the Liaodong Economic Strategy and the Military Department, and gave Shang Fang Sword, and the deputy chief soldier can be cut first and then played.

Perhaps to express a trace of apology for the dismissal of Xiong Tingbi, or to show absolute trust in Xiong Tingbi, on the day Xiong Tingbi left Beijing to take office, the Emperor of the Apocalypse set up a banquet outside the city to see him off.

The second commander is the controversial Wang Huazhen.

Wang Huazhen, a native of Zhucheng, Shandong, was a Jinshi in the forty-first year of Wanli, and served as the head of the household department. Later, he was the right senator and guarded Quang Ninh. When he was divided into Quang Ninh with the right senator, his greatest achievement was to pacify the Mongols. Of course, his so-called fu was mainly achieved with the money of the imperial court. At that time, the Mongols, as long as they had money, could say anything. Even if you want to build a captive head, it's not difficult, as long as you take money in exchange.

After the Great War of Salhu, the weakness of the Ming Dynasty was exposed to the people of the world. At this time, the Mongolian Lin Dan Khan rekindled Genghis Khan's dream. He also understands the importance of Guangning City, he can't tolerate Nurhachi's dominance of Liaodong, and he also wants to get a piece of the pie in Liaodong. Therefore, after the Battle of Salhu, Lin Dan Khan Chen soldiers on the border and eyed the enemy.

If Mongolia and Nurhachi make another fuss, the situation of the Ming Dynasty will be even more unbearable. Wang Huazhen actively carried out diplomacy, stabilized Mongolia, relieved the pressure from the Mongolian side, and played an important role in stabilizing the border. Now, historians have too much responsibility for Wang Huazhen, and he should indeed bear the most important responsibility for the loss of Guangning, but his performance after the fall of Liaoyang is still very commendable.

When a large number of refugees poured into Guangning, the people of Hexi panicked, and many large families began to flee to Guannai, and the city of Guangning felt precarious. Wang Huazhen performed very well at this critical juncture, resettled the displaced people, collected food, collected the remnants of the army, and arranged the city defenses.

As a minister of the imperial court, the courage and courage he showed in the face of the crisis was a great encouragement to the people, and the mood of the military and people in Quang Ninh gradually calmed down under his influence. Because of this, the imperial court promoted an official of the sixth rank to the right of the fourth rank of the imperial history, and the governor of Guangning.

It is said that there are no two masters of the people, and there are no two commanders in the army, and the Ming court set up two commanders in Liaodong, which planted the root cause of the defeat of Guangning. This bane has to start with two official positions. One is the governor, and the other is the strategy.

Governor, as the name suggests, is to patrol and pacify. That is, to patrol the world and pacify the army and the people. In the twenty-fourth year of Hongwu in the Ming Dynasty (1391), a governor was established, but it was not a fixed official position. In the nineteenth year of Yongle (1421), 26 people including Jian Yi patrolled the province and produced a governor system. At the end of the inspection, he returned to the DPRK and handed over his post, which was regarded as the completion of the task. In the fifth year of Xuande (1430), Yu Qian, Zhou Chen and other six people divided Nannanning City (formerly Guangning Beizhen Temple), Beizhili and other places, and since then the provinces have permanent governors, and gradually become a system.