Chapter 311: Section 60: Opening the Pass (Part 1) (II)

Sing the praises of the people of the motherland — they are the creators of history and wealth. Trust these ordinary commoners — they are the steadfast backbone of the army and the nation. Go seek help from the elders around you — if you can win their support, then you shall be invincible in battle!

"Yes, this is the education I received from childhood, and I firmly believe in it. To defend them is also my bounden duty."

On the fifteenth day of the tenth month of the second year of the Chongzhen reign, Huang Shi ordered the entire Funingzhen naval fleet to set out, embarking the Firefighting Battalion, the Panshi Battalion, and the Xuanfeng Battalion. Zhao Manxiong remained behind to hold the rear, just as he had during the previous expedition to the southwest. He Dingyuan remained the commander of the Panshi Battalion, and Jia Minghe still led the Xuanfeng Battalion. In addition, Huang Shi appointed Yang Zhiyuan as commander of the Firefighting Battalion, as he now intended to begin cultivating his subordinates' ability to take charge independently. The entire army then advanced toward the Zhoushan Archipelago.

……

After a brief stop at Zhoushan, Huang Shi used the pretext of avoiding a typhoon on the open sea to turn the army north toward Shandong. Once underway, Huang Shi summoned the senior officers and the staff department for an emergency military conference. Upon entering the flagship's main hall, what met their eyes was a massive map of Jizhen. After all the officers were seated, Huang Shi nodded to Jin Qiude beside him, and the latter rose, walked to the map, and began the strategic briefing.

"Yuan Chonghuan is nominally still the Grand Coordinator of Ji-Liao for our Great Ming, but his actions this year have been nearly incomprehensible. Based on our intelligence analysis over these past months, his military maneuvers cannot be explained by the rationale of pacifying Liao." Inside the warship's cabin hall, Jin Qiude brandished a pointer as he explained his views to the assembled officers.

"Clearly, if the objective were offensive, then the Liaozhen forces should have been redeployed to the Jinzhou-Ningyuan line, and of course, Marshal Mao certainly should not have been harmed. Although I do not believe the Guan-Ning Army is capable of mounting an offensive campaign, if Yuan Chonghuan truly wished to attempt the five-year pacification of Liao, he should at least have tried to attack once — even just once — rather than remaining completely immobile for a year and a half."

Everyone in the room silently nodded in agreement. Jin Qiude drew a breath and declared with full confidence: "Commander, gentlemen, I also do not believe Yuan Chonghuan's military deployments can be explained as an attempt at defense. First, the strength or weakness of Dongjiangzhen has a decisive effect on the military pressure borne by Liaoxi. Messages take nearly a month to travel back and forth between Ningyuan and Dongjiang. From a military standpoint, the possibility of unified command simply does not exist. Moreover, even if Yuan Chonghuan truly meant what he said — that he killed Marshal Mao to unify authority — then he should not have used the method of cutting off supplies to weaken Dongjiangzhen's combat effectiveness. This is fundamentally inexplicable from a military perspective."

"Second, Marshal Man was originally the Regional Commander of Ningyuan. His position could powerfully support Dongjiang while also overawing the Kharchin Mongols and the Khalkha Mongols. If Yuan Chonghuan intended to pin down the Later Jin forces, then he should not have driven Marshal Man off to Datong. This allows the Later Jin to act freely without any concerns."

"Finally!" Jin Qiude's voice rang out, his tone impassioned: "In front of Shanhai Pass is Qiantun, in front of Qiantun is Ningyuan, and in front of Ningyuan is Jinzhou. Along the four-hundred-li Liaoxi Corridor beyond the Pass, our Great Ming has fortresses bristling everywhere, with one hundred fifteen thousand horse and foot soldiers. Shanhai Pass can be described as secure as Mount Tai. Yet fifty li beyond Xifengkou in Jizhen lies the Kharchin Mongols. The Viceroy of the Three Frontiers reported as early as the fourth month of this year that the Kharchin Mongols had already joined the Jianzhou slaves as a banner, and that the Jianzhou slave army's vanguard had already pressed close to the Great Ming's throat. At such a time, how could Marshal Zhao and his four thousand personal troops be transferred to Shanhai Pass? How could this be allowed?"

Silence filled the hall. Huang Shi nodded and said calmly, "Vice General Jin makes very valid points. Continue."

"As ordered." Jin Qiude bowed slightly to Huang Shi, then straightened his chest and raised his head: "There is one more possible explanation for the above. That is, Yuan Chonghuan simply does not know how to fight a war — he is utterly incompetent, and therefore all his commands are blind flailing. But if that were truly the case, then Yuan Chonghuan's military deployments should be partly advantageous to the Jianzhou slaves and partly advantageous to the Great Ming, not uniformly and exclusively advantageous to the Jianzhou slaves."

"I propose a hypothesis. Merely a hypothesis!" Jin Qiude slowly wagged his right index finger before the assembly, then jabbed swiftly toward the Ningyuan area on the map: "I hypothesize that Yuan Chonghuan intends to let the Jianzhou slaves enter the Pass and press straight toward the capital, in order to force the imperial court to agree to peace negotiations!"

Apart from Huang Shi, Zhao Manxiong, and a few others, the faces of the assembled men shifted slightly, but in the end, no one spoke.

"Then all problems can be readily resolved, and all of Yuan Chonghuan's actions can be fully explained. First, he did his utmost to weaken Dongjiangzhen's military strength, rendering Dongjiangzhen incapable of fulfilling its pinning role. Then he murdered Marshal Mao and instigated internal strife within Dongjiangzhen, thereby removing the Later Jin's worries about their rear."

"Second, he needed to coax Marshal Man and his personal troops and retainers away to Datong, so that when the Jianzhou slaves attacked Jizhen, they would not have to worry about the Ningyuan garrison sallying forth from Jinchuanying and Xinlitai to cut off the Jianzhou slaves' supply lines and retreat path, nor would they have to worry that the captives and plunder they seized could not be safely transported back to Liaoyang right under the noses of the Liaoxi army. Thus, after removing worries about their rear, Jianzhou also eliminated the threat to their flank."

"The third issue is the problem of Jizhen itself. Yuan Chonghuan transferred Marshal Zhao from Zunhua to Shanhai Pass and siphoned off Jizhen's military funds to Liaozhen, resulting in Jizhen's pay being halted. This year the entire court was filled with alarm calls about Jizhen. In the face of His Majesty's repeated inquiries, Yuan Chonghuan only once said, in a flat tone, that he too felt Jizhen had some problems worth worrying about, and then casually recommended a man named Lin Jue as Regional Commander of Jizhen, saying that if His Majesty appointed this man as Regional Commander of Jizhen, he could rest easy."

Jin Qiude sneered: "At the time, when His Majesty asked who this Lin Jue was, no one in the Cabinet could answer. A nameless nobody without even a single military merit — how could he be directly promoted to the post of Regional Commander? Even more so, how could he be competent to shoulder the heavy responsibility of defending Jizhen? His Majesty naturally did not approve his request, and from then on, Yuan Chonghuan never mentioned the matter again. After transferring Marshal Zhao away, Jizhen has only fifty thousand garrison troops left. Yuan Chonghuan further intends to disband the ten thousand troops stationed near the border walls in places like Zunhua. Now, areas like Xifengkou are already in a state of no defense."

"The final issue: if the Jianzhou slaves are certain to enter the Pass through Jizhen, they will also need a large quantity of provisions and fodder. The year before last and last year, Liaodong suffered severe droughts for two years — in Liaoyang, one dan of rice cost eighty taels of silver. This year, Monan suffered a severe drought, and the Mongols are cannibalizing each other. Where will the provisions for the invading army come from? Therefore, Yuan Chonghuan wants to open markets and sell grain. Once there is a large supply of grain, the Mongols in Monan, suffering from famine, will surely flock to the Kharchin Mongols to beg for food. The Jianzhou slaves can then seize the opportunity to recruit large numbers of men to join them in the invasion of the interior."

Jin Qiude concluded his lengthy exposition and swept his gaze over the officers in the hall: "Commander, colleagues, if we view the matter through this lens, then every single thing Yuan Chonghuan has done is highly meaningful — not one thing too many, not one thing too few. Each of these conditions is indispensable."

After a stretch of silence, Yang Zhiyuan raised his hand and then calmly asked Jin Qiude: "But you do not know what Yuan Chonghuan is actually thinking, do you?"

Jin Qiude frankly admitted: "Indeed. You can know a man's face but not his heart. This is merely my deduction."

At this point, Huang Shi also spoke up: "Brother Jin, although everyone here is one of our own, your accusation is still extremely severe. You are accusing a court minister who commands three garrisons and one guard, an Imperial Commissioner, the Grand Coordinator of Ji-Liao, Laideng, and Tianjin — a high official of the realm — of treason."

"Commander, your subordinate believes that when all other explanations are unreasonable, then the only reasonable explanation, no matter how absurd it may seem, is the one we must believe."

Yang Zhiyuan argued again: "But we lack conclusive evidence."

"Indeed, we do not. We cannot possibly know what exactly goes on in Yuan Chonghuan's mind." Jin Qiude paused after speaking, then looked again toward Huang Shi: "Commander, I request your permission for the staff department to conduct tactical projections based on the hypothetical condition that Yuan Chonghuan has committed treason. I hope thereby to derive the various possible military scenarios, in case of extraordinary need."

Huang Shi also drew a deep breath and asked in a calm voice: "Who is in favor? Who is opposed?"

Jia Minghe was the first to raise his hand: "I am in favor!"

He Dingyuan also raised his hand: "I am in favor!"

Yang Zhiyuan gave a wry smile and also raised his hand: "Commander, I am in favor of conducting staff exercises on this basis, but I do not approve of applying this charge so prematurely."

"Brother Yang speaks well. Our staff exercises are precisely for coping with all possible scenarios," Huang Shi affirmed Yang Zhiyuan's prudence, then said to Jin Qiude: "The frontline commanders have unanimously approved. The staff department may proceed with battlefield projections on the premise that 'Yuan Chonghuan has committed treason.'"

"As ordered."

In the sixth month of the second year of the Chongzhen reign, after Mao Wenlong's death, Hong Taiji immediately announced the mobilization of troops to attack the Ming. On the fifteenth day, Burgadu of the Kharchin Mongols went to Liaoyang to discuss the matter of guides with Hong Taiji. At the same time, the Kharchin Mongols, on Hong Taiji's orders, began large-scale construction of wooden boats in preparation for transporting supplies. In the face of such unusual activity, the Liaodong Regional Military Commission made no response whatsoever.

Subsequently, Hong Taiji also summoned the Subu Mongols. They continued discussions until the eighth day of the eighth month before finalizing all specific details. On the twenty-second day of the ninth month, Burgadu came to Liaoyang for the last time and reported to Hong Taiji that the provisions were ready. The invasion was imminent, yet the Liaodong Regional Military Commission issued no warning.

On the second day of the tenth month, Hong Taiji's grand army set out from Liaoyang. For this campaign, the Later Jin dispatched four thousand armored soldiers and over ten thousand unarmored soldiers, totaling fifteen thousand core troops.

On the fourth day, the Jarud Mongols joined forces with Hong Taiji's main army, and together they advanced toward Khara City.

On the fifth day, the Naiman Mongols and the Aohan Mongols arrived to rendezvous with Hong Taiji, and the entire army continued its advance.

On the sixth day, the Barin Mongols arrived to join them.

On the fifteenth day, the greater part of the Khorchin Mongols, comprising twenty-three beile in total, led their troops to rendezvous with Hong Taiji. Each beile brought one hundred cavalrymen, totaling over two thousand five hundred armored soldiers.

Although the Jalaid Mongols received Hong Taiji's invitation, they ultimately lost their nerve halfway and turned back. Their chieftain sent an envoy to apologize and led his tribe back home. Some other Mongol tribes that had been invited did not send any troops at all.

On the twentieth day of the tenth month, Hong Taiji entered Khara City. All the Kharchin Mongol tribes came to join the assembly, contributing a total of two thousand armored soldiers. That day, Hong Taiji presided over the alliance ceremony in Khara City. The chieftains of the various tribes who had come to pledge allegiance to Hong Taiji all made sacrifices to Heaven and swore oaths, declaring that henceforth they would be enemies, not friends, of the Great Ming.

By this point, Hong Taiji had completed a vast mobilization spanning thousands of li and involving dozens of Mongol tribes. The participants numbered over ten thousand, and those in the know numbered in the tens of thousands. Yet the Liaodong Regional Military Commission still maintained its silence.

On the twenty-fourth day, the Later Jin grand army began advancing toward Longjing Pass. The entire army consisted of four thousand core Later Jin armored soldiers and eight thousand Mongol armored soldiers, in addition to servants, bondservants, and unarmored soldiers totaling thirteen thousand men. The total strength of the entire army amounted to over twenty-five thousand men.

Even at this point, the Ming army's Liaodong Regional Military Commission seemed still utterly oblivious, and Jizhen likewise still received no warning. The Ming army's final opportunity was thus lost.

On the twenty-seventh day, the Later Jin army's vanguard began its assault on Longjing Pass…

From the end of the fourth month to the beginning of the tenth month of this year, Hong Taiji had conducted a massive military coordination for the attack on the Great Ming's Jizhen. After the second day of the tenth month, he led tens of thousands of troops, right under the noses of the Ming Liaozhen forces, advancing from central Liao all the way to Khara City — the march alone took nearly a month. Moreover, at this time, as Hong Taiji advanced along this route, the Later Jin had not yet fully established suzerainty over Monan.

Despite these numerous unfavorable factors, Hong Taiji still created a military miracle on the twenty-seventh day of the tenth month of the second year of the Chongzhen reign: the Later Jin had successfully achieved a surprise attack on Jizhen!