Chapter 167: Keep Digging Pits to Trap People

Shi Fenglai took one look and thought, well, damn — you lot have gone and hogged all the showing off, so how's a man supposed to display his own talents? He frowned, and a scheme came to mind.

Shi Fenglai bowed to Chongzhen and said, "Your Majesty, your servant also has some humble views."

Chongzhen thought, well, damn — at the start not one of them had any ideas, and now all of a sudden they all do?

Whatever the case, when the men below are eager to take on tasks, whether they do well or badly, that sort of thing should be encouraged, not knocked down — otherwise who's going to get things done for you in the future?

The Chongzhen Emperor, feeling he had already mastered the art of managing people — enough that even back in the modern age he could have been some sort of CEO — opened his mouth and said, "Minister Shi, if you have some notion, by all means let Us hear it."

Shi Fenglai bowed and said, "Your Majesty, if we wish to force the Jianzhou barbarians to retreat, merely putting on the appearance of a decisive battle at Dongjiang will likely not be enough to frighten off that whelp Hong Taiji.

Moreover, if that whelp Hong Taiji truly hardens his heart to strike Dongjiang, it will likely truly turn into a war of attrition — and the truth is, our Great Ming cannot afford to be ground down at this time."

Chongzhen thought, do I fucking need you to tell me that? You think I don't know? Yet he was curious what other tricks Shi Fenglai had up his sleeve, so he asked with interest, "Then what does Minister Shi propose?"

Shi Fenglai said, "Rather than put on the appearance of a decisive battle at Dongjiang, it would be better to make preparations on multiple fronts at once, and bring pressure to bear on the Jianzhou barbarians together."

Cui Chengxiu, though, was inwardly cursing — damn it all, this was something he should have been the first to think of. Liaodong! Wanyan Hong's side — wasn't he the very one who had proposed the marriage to the Emperor on his behalf, and gotten the Emperor a tender little beauty in return?

The Chongzhen Emperor also recalled his bargain father-in-law in Liaodong. In the modern age he had heard some Xibe fellow say that Xibe cavalry could beat the Jianzhou barbarians black and blue. So Chongzhen said to Shi Fenglai, "What Shi Fenglai speaks of — is it the Xibe of Liaodong?"

Shi Fenglai bowed and said, "Your Majesty, not only the Xibe, but also the Duoyan Thirty-Six Households and the various gate-guarding tribes of the Three Coordinated Garrisons of Jizhen, and in addition Ligdan Khan — all of them can be put to use this time."

Motherfucker! Cui Chengxiu felt his post as Minister of War had been a complete waste — he actually knew less about these barbarians than a fellow like Shi Fenglai. But then he reconsidered: the man was on his side anyway, so letting him steal the limelight before the Emperor was no great matter.

With that thought, Cui Chengxiu also bowed and said, "Your Majesty, the ancestor of the Khorchin was one Habutu Hasar. In the Hongxi era, the Khorchin were broken by the Oirat and took refuge along the Nen River.

In the fourth year of Tianqi they swore an oath with the Jianzhou barbarians by sacrificing a white horse. If one speaks of it, the Khorchin are traitors in Ligdan Khan's eyes — likely Ligdan Khan is even more eager than our Great Ming to eliminate the Khorchin."

Chongzhen grunted in acknowledgment, thinking to himself that he had no damn idea what the Khorchin had to do with that old fellow Ligdan.

All he knew was that the Khorchin had produced a little wench named Bumbutai, who first gave herself to Hong Chengchou to sleep with and thereby lured him into surrendering, and then, for the sake of her son's throne, let Dorgon sleep with her.

As for that later TV drama The Legend of Xiaozhuang claiming Bumbutai and Dorgon were originally lovers — Chongzhen treated that whole business as so much fart.

Since he still hadn't sorted it out, he simply asked, "And what does the Duke of Ying think?"

Zhang Weixian bowed and said, "Your Majesty, if we follow what Minister Shi has said, then even if the Jianzhou barbarians do not wish to retreat, they will have to retreat."

Now Chongzhen was interested, and asked eagerly, "Oh? Why is that?"

Zhang Weixian said, "Your Majesty, just now Minister Cui also said that in the fourth year of Tianqi, the Khorchin swore an oath with the Jianzhou barbarians by sacrificing a white horse.

The Khorchin's present territory borders the Xibe of Duke Hu on the north, and on the south it borders Shenyang, which the Jianzhou barbarians occupy — so they amount to the Jianzhou barbarians' watchdog.

The reason the Jianzhou barbarians dare to boldly march south and strike Dongjiang this time is precisely because the Khorchin cavalry are watching the gate.

If we truly join with Duke Hu and Ligdan Khan to attack the Khorchin, the Jianzhou barbarians will certainly have to turn their army back to rescue them. Otherwise, losing Shenyang would be a small matter — but losing the Khorchin would mean losing their source of warhorses."

Chongzhen pondered for a while, tapping his fingers on the desk for a long moment, then suddenly spoke: "Barbarians prize profit. Apart from Duke Hu's forces, neither Ligdan Khan nor the Duoyan Three Guards can be fully trusted — we will likely have to promise them rich rewards."

"To let them gain advantage for nothing would leave Us unwilling. Yet if We do not join with these parties, We cannot break the siege of Dongjiang. Hateful! Hateful!"

Shi Fenglai, however, bowed and said, "Your Majesty, since the barbarians prize profit, then promise them profit. Even if we grant them some rewards up front, once the Jianzhou barbarians are put down, our Great Ming can take it all back sooner or later."

Chongzhen grunted, then suddenly recalled a matter and ordered Wang Cheng'en, "Send someone to summon Cao Huachun. Also, apart from Fang Zhenghua, you, and Cao Huachun, let all the other attendants in the hall withdraw. Within a hundred paces of the hall, no one is permitted."

After Wang Cheng'en received the order and departed, and there was no one else left in the hall, Chongzhen spoke: "Since the Jianzhou barbarians prize profit, We shall promise them profit.

Whether it is the Duoyan Three Guards or Ligdan Khan, We shall permit them more border markets — ironware, grain — so long as they can produce silver, We will sell to them; if they cannot produce silver, they may trade wool for it."

The moment Chongzhen said this, Zhang Weixian was the first to object: "Your Majesty, you must not!"

Seeing Chongzhen frowning at him, Zhang Weixian bowed and said, "Your Majesty, in the short term this may be called enticing Ligdan Khan and the Duoyan Three Guards with profit.

But if ironware and grain are not restricted, once they obtain them they will surely smelt the ironware into weapons, and with ample grain their population will grow. Given time, they will surely become a scourge again."

Wen Tiren and Shi Fenglai, who had always been willing to serve as running dogs, and even Cui Chengxiu, all objected together, firmly refusing to sell ironware and grain to Ligdan Khan and the Duoyan Three Guards.

Cui Chengxiu even egged Chongzhen on, saying it was fine to promise the border markets first, and later they could simply find some pretext never to open them.

Chongzhen had assumed it was some other reason; hearing this, he laughed and said, "That is no obstacle. We had originally been thinking of some pretext to open border markets anyway. The few border markets previously promised to Ligdan Khan are far from enough."

Wen Tiren bowed and said, "Your Majesty, the earlier promise to Ligdan Khan was made because the Jianzhou barbarians were besieging the capital, and it could not be helped. If we open border markets now, they will surely become a scourge in the future.

Your servant begs to be excused — even on pain of death, he cannot obey this edict!"

Damn, now you're putting on airs! Since when did you have this kind of backbone? Chongzhen, inwardly mocking, said with a smile, "Do not be in a hurry to object. Wait until Cao Huachun arrives, and then you will understand why We wish to open more border markets."

A mere dead eunuch — what use could he possibly be? Wen Tiren and the other two were all inwardly scoffing, and just then Cao Huachun arrived.

After Cao Huachun had knelt and performed the rites, Chongzhen said to him, "Regarding the earlier matter of the poisoned salt, explain it to Minister Wen and the others. There is no need to hide anything."

Once Cao Huachun had finished explaining the poisoned salt affair, the several men inwardly cursed the dead eunuch for his cunning, but Wen Tiren still objected: "Even if lead is mixed into the salt, that may be tolerable — but what is to be mixed into the grain?

And as for the ironware, what is to be mixed into that?"

Chongzhen laughed and said, "What great harm is there in grain? Can nothing be mixed into it?

Have them trade warhorses, cattle, and sheep for it — wool especially should be purchased in the greatest quantities. As for the ironware, give them the poor-quality goods.

Even if they smelt it down, what of it? Can they forge swords and blades finer than our Great Ming's?

What's more, from now on our Great Ming will rely chiefly on firearms — let them play with iron toys like swords and blades!"

As previously promised to another author, a story recommendation: The Eccentric God of War of the Great Song — a man named Qin Feng transmigrates to the late Northern Song, turns from scholar to warrior, is surrounded by peerless beauties and takes many wives and concubines, becomes a god of war, and in ten years destroys the Jin Kingdom, while Western Xia and the Mongols bow their heads as subjects.

Later the Qin state emerges and dominates the world — the whole world becomes the territory of Great Qin.

(End of Chapter)