Chapter 420: The Road of the Enlightened Sovereign

After tearing open the letter, Xiong Tingbi read it quickly, the expression on his face gradually shifting from the initial ease to something increasingly grave.

A letter from the Emperor was an imperial decree. Even though it was a private confidential letter, its importance was no different.

In this letter, Zhu Youxiao first affirmed Xiong Tingbi's military achievements; secondly, he offered praise for Xiong Tingbi not betraying the trust placed in him. But it was only at the very end of the letter that he addressed the crux of the matter.

Xiong Tingbi was well aware of this point — His Majesty had made it very clear that he should be cautious. At this moment, he must remember that an army puffed up with pride was bound to lose. His task was simply to hold Liaodong. As long as Shenyang and Liaoyang did not fall, nothing else mattered. He must not entertain thoughts of dispatching troops, nor think of going on the offensive. The Great Ming could not withstand another collapse; stability was the most critical thing now.

Xiong Tingbi knew that His Majesty was afraid he would repeat the mistake of the Battle of Sarhu. If there were another rout like Sarhu, the Great Ming's strength in Liaodong would be utterly spent. At that point, they would truly be reduced to passively taking blows. Once Shenyang and Liaoyang fell, the Jianzhou barbarians would have completely cleared the road west and could attack the Mongols at any time. And the Great Ming could only watch, powerless to stop them.

In the original course of history, the only one capable of serving as a check was Mao Wenlong on Pidao.

Because Mao Wenlong existed, and Yuan Keli supported him from Denglai, they were able to pin down Hong Taiji, preventing him from marching west to attack the Mongols — at least preventing him from doing so with his full strength.

After Yuan Chonghuan killed Mao Wenlong, Mao Wenlong's subordinates surrendered wholesale to Hong Taiji. This allowed Hong Taiji to operate with completely free hands — whether attacking Joseon to the east or the Mongols to the west, there was no longer any check on him.

Under such circumstances, the war situation grew increasingly unfavorable.

What Zhu Youxiao wanted now was not some recovery of Liaodong. With the strength Xiong Tingbi had in hand, recovering Liaodong was simply impossible. Even if he could win a few battles, it would hold little strategic significance, so Zhu Youxiao would not permit him to act rashly.

If he let this victory go to his head, it would be all too easy to commit an even greater error.

The current high morale of the Liaodong army was nothing more than the result of winning a defensive battle. This was different from field combat — the Liaodong army lacked the toughness for it. If they truly faced a bitter struggle, they would not hold up. In other words, fighting with the wind at their backs was fine, but once the wind turned against them, problems would easily arise.

Reading this letter, Xiong Tingbi did not know what expression to put on his face.

In truth, over this period, Xiong Tingbi had been quite pleased in his heart. Though he had not yet grown arrogant, he had already begun to look down on the Jianzhou barbarians.

In Xiong Tingbi's view, Nurhaci was already dead, and the Jianzhou barbarians were merely clinging to life — hardly a threat. Once he had properly tidied things up, he would surely be able to retake Tieling, Kaiyuan, and Qinghe. At that point, the Jianzhou barbarians would be completely sealed off by him.

The recent outward expansion of his forces was in fact already a sign of this. Xiong Tingbi wanted to test the waters with a probing strike.

Setting down the letter in his hand and raising his head to look at Liao Zhong, Xiong Tingbi said: "Is the Embroidered Uniform Guard watching me?"

After all, within the Liaodong army, there were no shortage of army supervisors. Apart from the supervising eunuch Wei Chao, there was this Embroidered Uniform Guard officer before him. The sudden replacement of the Guard officer before the campaign surely had this reason behind it.

In truth, Xiong Tingbi should not have asked this question, but he could not hold it back. He was a man of straightforward character who disliked keeping things bottled up inside.

Glancing at Xiong Tingbi, Liao Zhong was silent for a moment, then said: "The capital has given us no orders — only to report back in a timely manner. This is also our duty. His Majesty still holds great trust in the Marshal."

Hearing these words, Xiong Tingbi felt considerably relieved. What he feared most right now was His Majesty's suspicion.

If His Majesty did not trust him, then his path in Liaodong would become extremely difficult from here on. The reason he had been able to create such a situation in Liaodong was largely because of His Majesty's trust in him — money and grain had never been lacking, and all sorts of new equipment had been continuously sent to Liaodong.

The main reason this battle had achieved such great results was the great number of cannons that had been added to Liaodong.

As long as he had not lost His Majesty's trust, then everything could still be salvaged.

Liao Zhong looked at Xiong Tingbi and said directly: "Marshal, you know the situation in the army right now — many people think the Jianzhou barbarians are no longer a threat. But back in the Battle of Sarhu, the Jianzhou barbarians were even weaker than they are now, and what was the result?"

"It's not that His Majesty doesn't want to fight — it's simply that the timing is not right. Just before the new year, there was the rebellion in Shandong, and over the past year there have been many famines in various regions; earthquakes alone have occurred several times. The court's money and grain are under severe strain and simply cannot support a major war. As a minister trusted by His Majesty, the Marshal should understand His Majesty's pains."

In truth, Liao Zhong should not have said any of this. It was only because he had long watched Xiong Tingbi devote himself wholeheartedly in Liaodong that Liao Zhong could not hold back.

These matters were not much of a secret within the Embroidered Uniform Guard. The Guard's former Commander, Xu Xianchun, had already been stripped of his position. They understood the situation at court even better.

If the court had not managed to raise a sum of money in Shandong this year, it would likely have been another difficult year.

So the words Liao Zhong used to advise Xiong Tingbi could truly be counted as words from the heart.

"The Marshal may not know this, but His Majesty eats only four dishes and one soup per meal in the palace and has not added a single new article of clothing in half a year." Liao Zhong looked at Xiong Tingbi and continued: "His Majesty has been frugal all along — even construction in the palace has been halted, all for the sake of saving money, all to pay the military expenses."

"Over this past year and more, Liaodong's military funds have never been shorted — in fact, they've been overpaid; pay and provisions have always arrived on time, and all sorts of weapons and equipment have been delivered to Liaodong promptly. All of this costs money."

"At the start of this year, the Mongols invaded from the northwest, and on top of that, earthquakes collapsed quite a few passes and fortifications — all of this requires money. The court truly has no money left. If a major war were really to be fought, the court could not sustain it."

Hearing these words, the expression on Xiong Tingbi's face softened.

He looked at Liao Zhong, a smile appearing on his face, and then asked: "You're not an ordinary Embroidered Uniform Guard officer, are you? An ordinary one wouldn't understand these matters, nor would he speak to me of such things. What is your identity?"

"My identity is simply that of a Chiliarch in the Embroidered Uniform Guard." Liao Zhong said with a smile.

In truth, Liao Zhong was of course not an ordinary Chiliarch of the Embroidered Uniform Guard — he was Chen Hong's man.

Within the Embroidered Uniform Guard, Chen Hong had always been quietly cultivating his own people. This was also permitted by His Majesty, and the entire Guard knew of it. Even the Guard Commander dared not interfere and could only let it be.

These men were the best of the best, and they had undergone training — it could be said their insight and ability were both extraordinary.

The fact that Liao Zhong had been selected to come to Liaodong this time was precisely because his abilities were outstanding.

Xiong Tingbi clearly did not believe Liao Zhong's words. How could an ordinary Embroidered Uniform Guard officer possess such insight?

Moreover, matters like His Majesty eating four dishes and one soup in the palace were not something just anyone could ferret out. Even if the high ministers all knew of it, a Chiliarch of the Embroidered Uniform Guard could not possibly know it in such detail.

But since the other party was unwilling to say, Xiong Tingbi could not press the matter. He nodded and said: "I will write a routine memorial to His Majesty."

"That would be for the best." Liao Zhong nodded and said: "Marshal, of late there are people at court saying that His Majesty's rewards and favors toward Liaodong have been too generous. The Marshal should surely be able to understand this matter."

"The Marshal should be a bit more careful lately. Though the Marshal has a clear conscience, it's still best to give others as little handle as possible — that would only cause trouble for His Majesty."

"His Majesty's days right now are not as comfortable as the Marshal might imagine. You are a close minister of the Son of Heaven, His Majesty's most trusted subject — you should know how to report military merits. There's no need for this humble one to say more. If there is nothing else, this humble one will take his leave."

Xiong Tingbi nodded and said: "You may go."

After Liao Zhong had left, Xiong Tingbi gazed thoughtfully at his retreating figure, then shook his head and walked straight over to the desk at the side to begin writing a letter.

Leaving Xiong Tingbi's tent, a smile appeared on Liao Zhong's face. He knew his words had had their effect on Xiong Tingbi.

After all, during the training in the capital, learning how to speak well of His Majesty had been the top priority of the curriculum.

This subject was called "Proclaiming the Majesty of Heaven." As His Majesty's most loyal subjects, one must always think for His Majesty, learn to speak for His Majesty, and uphold His Majesty's heavenly dignity.

Liao Zhong was very satisfied with his performance just now. Clearly he had studied well, and this point had been executed to perfection. When he reported this matter back in a secret memorial, it would be his merit and would surely earn him a reward.

While Liao Zhong was fantasizing about the reward he would receive, the capital was busy preparing for the Mid-Autumn Festival.

Though Zhu Youxiao's heart ached at the rewards given to his ministers, he still issued them in full measure. Ministers who had worked especially hard over the past year even received additional rewards.

At the same time, the court also released an announcement: His Majesty would build a batch of houses in the capital for ministers to reside in.

The moment this news came out, the entire capital was thrown into an uproar.

This was a good thing that had never happened before. Living in the capital was no easy matter — this was not just empty talk.

Officials with power and influence had people paying them tribute, so naturally they could buy houses in the capital; ministers from families of sufficient wealth could naturally live quite well too.

But many people were not so fortunate. There were no shortage of "clear-water" offices — sinecure posts — in the capital, and quite a few Censors had sunk to the point of selling routine memorials. You pay the money, and I'll write a memorial of impeachment for you; you name who to impeach, and I'll impeach whoever you say. Such things were actually very common.

Aside from that, many people lived in straitened circumstances, and a large part of the reason was housing.

A large pile of routine memorials expressing gratitude for imperial favor had come in, and Zhu Youxiao listened with satisfaction to Chen Hong's report, nodding from time to time.

The purpose behind Zhu Youxiao's actions was, in fact, simply to pacify. He was going to relocate the Academy and reclaim some of the land—these were matters that touched people's interests, and if not handled well, they could stir up trouble.

By releasing the news of subsidized housing ahead of time, he could give the officials something to be pleased about. Then he could tell them that all the land they wanted for building houses fell within the demolition zone—no demolition, no land for their houses.

After receiving such news, one could well imagine how those officials would react. Having benefits and not having benefits naturally made all the difference. Zhu Youxiao believed it would certainly have an effect—at the very least, it would serve to divide them.

Waving his hand, Zhu Youxiao signaled Chen Hong to stop reading.

He stood up, stretched his limbs, and murmured to himself: "I really am becoming more and more considerate of my ministers."

"It seems I am not far from being a wise ruler."