Chapter 1686: Discerning the Loyal from the Treacherous, Divining and Calculating

"This subject is willing! This subject is a loyal minister. To His Majesty, to the Great Ming dynasty, my loyalty is wholehearted — the sun and moon can bear witness, and I would not shrink even from having my body ground to dust!"

Hei Yunlong was spouting flattering words of loyalty that he himself scarcely believed. Yet Zhu Youjian knew — every word he said was true!

He was a loyal minister who had passed the double test of the eastern barbarians and the roving bandits, and had staked his very life for the Great Ming!

The present Zhu Youjian had truly grown capable — with a pair of discerning eyes that could tell the loyal from the treacherous!

Whether those below him were loyal or treacherous, to what degree they were loyal, and to what depths their treachery ran — he could tell at a single glance!

This Hei Yunlong, for instance, was a man whose whole family was loyal and devoted! A great and true loyalist!

The present defender of Ji Garrison, Zhao Shuaijiao, the defender of Xuanfu, Hou Shilu, and the defender of Datong, Man Gui, were likewise good subjects of loyal heart and righteous courage. Therefore Zhu Youjian trusted them one hundred percent, and had not even sent garrison eunuchs to them — in the whole of the Great Ming there was no one more loyal than they, so what need was there for eunuchs to watch over them? The eunuchs were not as loyal as they were!

But matters were different over on Yuan Chonghuan's side in western Liaoning. Zhu Youjian had to keep an extra eye open there, because he knew Yuan Chonghuan was a bit short on sense, and before too long would want to sell grain to curry favor with those good-for-nothings of the Kharchin and Inner Khalkha.

Therefore Zhu Youjian had specifically designated He Kegang to serve as Vice Regional Commander of Shanhai Pass, defending the foremost mighty pass under heaven together with Zhu Mei. He had also appointed Ma Dengyun, of the Datong Ma family generals, as Regional Commander of Liaodong, leading the household retainers of the old Ma family into Ningyuan to assist Yuan Chonghuan in holding the city. He further appointed the thoroughly unreliable Zu Dashou as Regional Commander of Ningyuan, but did not let him garrison Ningyuan city itself; instead he was sent to Juehua Island to build fortifications and hold it. At the same time, he had all four of Zu Dashou's sons transferred to Beijing and enrolled in the Army Before the Imperial Tent.

After that, Zhu Youjian also dispatched his trusted confidants Cao Huachun and Ji Yong to serve as garrison eunuchs of Shanhai Pass and Ningyuan.

He had the two of them keep a firm watch on the granaries of Shanhai Pass and Ningyuan — not a single grain was to go to the barbarians. No matter what fine words the Tartar barbarians spoke, they were simply not to give it.

If they had the ability, let them come and take it by force!

As for the two garrisons of southern Liaoning and Dongjiang, they had now been merged into the Pingliao Garrison, and full authority had likewise been entrusted to Mao Wenlong. Zhu Youjian had sent neither a garrison eunuch nor a Governor of southern Liaoning.

With Yuan Keli keeping watch at Denglai, Mao Wenlong would harbor no disloyal thoughts. Besides, even if those adopted grandsons of Mao Wenlong were to develop some designs in the future, Zhu Youjian was not afraid. For Yuan Keli still had at hand a fighting force — the Denglai naval squadron that had been drilled by the famed naval commander Shen Yourong. This squadron could not be counted as particularly strong; it certainly could not defeat Zheng Zhilong, and it would have its hands full against Shen Tingyang's Sea Sand Gang. But it was more than sufficient to bully the eastern barbarians, who had no navy at all, the Joseon, who had only to see the Great Ming to cry "Father," and the Mao family army, which had only a small number of naval troops.

Moreover, the city of Dengzhou was a strong fortress, and with a figure like Yuan Keli holding it, no mishap could occur.

Even if some small mishap did occur, Zhu Youjian was not afraid. He now had ten thousand Imperial Household Cavalry! All of them cavalry to a man. Although the Mao family army had nearly thirty thousand troops, the great majority were infantry on two legs, with no more than a thousand-odd cavalry. They could only operate in the mountainous regions of Liaodong, southern Liaoning, and northwestern Joseon. If they truly tried to cross the sea, they could not withstand a single fierce charge of the Son of Heaven's household cavalry.

Besides being able to clearly discern the loyal from the treacherous, Zhu Youjian now had another skill — he could divine and calculate!

He might not be able to calculate the too-distant future with certainty, but the events that would occur in the first and second years of Chongzhen he could still calculate accurately.

For example, the war between the Great Ming and the Chakhar tribe that was about to begin was entirely within Zhu Youjian's miraculous calculations.

"Hei, my minister, rise and speak!" Zhu Youjian bade Hei Yunlong stand, then fixed his burning gaze upon the great general. "The Army Before the Imperial Tent now has ten thousand cavalry, divided into eight regiments, with Sun Yingyuan, Zhou Yuji, Huang Degong, Wu Xiang, Cao Wenzhao, Sun Chuanting, and Lu Xiangsheng each commanding one regiment. There is one more regiment, originally commanded by Liu Yingkun, which We now hand over to you to lead personally. We give you two months — by the fifteenth day of the fifth month, the Army Before the Imperial Tent must be ready to march to the field at any time!"

The Army Before the Imperial Tent had not been built from nothing. Its backbone of some four thousand men had been transferred from the Directorate of the Imperial Horses, while the remaining six thousand were brave warriors recruited from the northwest — nearly every man a frontier-army courier.

With Sun Yingyuan, Zhou Yuji, Huang Degong, Wu Xiang, Cao Wenzhao, Sun Chuanting, Lu Xiangsheng, Liu Yingkun, and the rest serving as regimental commanders, and with Yang Gao, Hong Chengchou, Chen Qiyu, Sun Zushou, and others assisting Zhu Youjian in overall command, it would be no exaggeration to call it the strongest lineup in the Great Ming.

Now Zhu Youjian was giving Hei Yunlong two months to make ready for deployment — this demand was not at all excessive!

Yet Hei Yunlong was somewhat startled. "Your Majesty, do you mean that the Army Before the Imperial Tent is to march to the front lines?"

Zhu Youjian nodded, and said with a cold smile: "We have put out so much land and gold and silver to maintain ten thousand cavalry before Our tent — is it not precisely so that We may lead them to the front lines?"

"What?" Hei Yunlong was startled again. "Your Majesty, you intend to lead the Army Before the Imperial Tent to the front lines yourself?"

"Precisely!" Zhu Youjian's answer was utterly firm.

"Absolutely not!" Hei Yunlong was already somewhat dazed. Had this young Son of Heaven gone mad? Going to the front lines was so dangerous! If the fighting went badly, he would end up like the old lord of Yingmiao, seized by the Tartars. If it went well, at best he would be the old lord of Wumiao, and still be smeared and denounced by the civil officials. And when that time came, he himself would inevitably share in the misfortune!

Zhu Youjian merely snorted. Going to the front lines was not a matter of choice! In his previous life he had not wanted to either, and what had come of it? At Tianjin he had still gone up twice, and had nearly died.

Since it could not be escaped, it was better to take the initiative and go to the front lines. After going up a few more times, perhaps he would be tempered by experience. That unfilial son's military academy had compiled so many works on the art of war, and he had read them all thoroughly. Was he still afraid he could not defeat a Hutudun?

Seeing Zhu Youjian's expression darken, Hei Yunlong grew afraid again. He knew about the Embroidered Uniform Guard's return to duty! And he himself was still under suspicion of belonging to the traitor faction. Now the Son of Heaven was entrusting him with a great responsibility — this was giving him a chance to prove himself. If he did not seize this chance, heh heh, the horsemen in embroidered uniforms would be coming to arrest him by imperial order!

"Your Majesty," Hei Yunlong's voice was trembling slightly, "you cannot be thinking of personally leading a campaign into Liaodong, can you?"

Personally campaigning in Liaodong? Zhu Youjian smiled and shook his head. "Does General Hei think We are muddled? The eastern barbarians' troops are strong and their commanders fierce, far beyond what the present Army Before the Imperial Tent can handle. The one We mean to use to establish Our authority is the Hutudun Khan of the Chakhar tribe!"

"The Chakhar tribe is not easy to deal with either!" Hei Yunlong frowned. "Although the Mongol Tartars are not as fierce as the eastern barbarians, they are skilled at flight, their movements are erratic, and they are hard to catch. Moreover, the Chakhar tribe is even more formidable than the ordinary Tartars — their tribesmen number in the hundreds of thousands, and they can field tens of thousands of cavalry at a time. They must not be taken lightly!"

Zhu Youjian laughed. "It is precisely because they must not be taken lightly that We shall personally lead the campaign. If We do not give the Hutudun Khan a real beating, then even if We gave him three hundred thousand in market rewards, he would still raid the border every year."

The Mongol tribes beyond the Great Wall would not stop raiding just because they received market rewards! Only by beating them until they were afraid could the northwestern border enjoy true peace, and only then could a truly useful alliance be forged.

"But the Chakhar tribe roams beyond the passes, and the grasslands beyond the passes are extremely vast. It is very difficult to catch the Chakhar forces." Hei Yunlong still frowned. "Moreover, a great army marching beyond the frontier is extremely dangerous. Strong troops and fine horses do not guarantee victory. Otherwise, in the old lord of Yingmiao's day, there would never have been the disaster of Tumu Fortress."

"There is no need to march beyond the frontier!" Zhu Youjian laughed. "We have already calculated that in the fifth month the Chakhar barbarians will certainly invade Datong Prefecture in great force. At that time, We shall personally lead the Army Before the Imperial Tent westward to Datong, and do battle with the Hutudun Khan!"

What? The Chakhar tribe was going to invade in the fifth month? Hei Yunlong was stunned again and again. "Your Majesty, how... how do you know this?"

Indeed, it was only the third month now! How could he know what would happen in the fifth month?

Zhu Youjian wore a mysterious expression and said with a smile: "Hei, my minister, We can divine and calculate, and so We have calculated that the Chakhar tribe's Hutudun is going to invade Datong Prefecture. You had best hurry back and prepare. If the great army cannot march when the time comes, We shall not spare you!"

Furthermore, what was said in today's audience is to be kept secret from the outer court. The matter of Our preparing to personally lead the campaign is the most secret of secrets, and absolutely must not be known to the outer court! Do not even speak of it within the Army Before the Imperial Tent. We have Our own ears and eyes watching. If We learn that your mouth is loose, heh heh... We have here no small number of memorials impeaching you, all saying that you are Wei Zhongxian's godson!"

(End of Chapter)