Chapter 379: Setting the Strategy

The speaker was Chen Qiyu.

On the matter of how a lack of food could strip an army of its fighting strength, no one in the hall had more authority to speak than he did.

The Battle of the Wagon Gorge years ago was clear proof of that.

After the tens of thousands of roving bandits trapped in the gorge surrendered, Chen Qiyu, guarded by elite soldiers, went inside to survey the scene.

Those bandits, normally as fierce as wolves and tigers, had gone five or six days without food; each one was gaunt and haggard, like starving ghosts from hell. In that state, there was no need for the official army to finish them off—a mere thousand laborers could have slaughtered them all.

From that day on, Chen Qiyu gained a profound understanding of the severe consequences of cutting off food supplies, and the scene from that year remained forever etched in his mind.

"What the Grand Secretary says is precisely the chief concern of the Ministry of War! We petition Your Majesty—it is precisely because the entire Ministry of War has been weighing this very concern that we have made major revisions to the overall strategy and drawn up corresponding deployments. Perhaps this plan will prove to be the key that decides the course of the war!"

Yang Sichang clasped his hands and bowed to Zhu Youjian before emphasizing this point.

"Oh? What does Minister Yang mean by this? Mind you, what Minister Chen just raised is of grave importance. I was just about to consult the Ministry of Revenue to ensure that our soldiers at the front never face a shortage of food. How does the Ministry of War's strategy relate to this? Minister Yang, pray explain!"

If they were to meet the Jianzhou barbarians according to the strategic plan drawn up by the Ministry of War, the supply of grain and fodder would become the top priority.

Zhu Youjian knew that the Ministry of Revenue had made ample preparations over the past half year or more, but the grain and supplies stockpiled had been calculated on a five-month basis—beyond that, he could not say.

"We petition Your Majesty: since the ninth year of Chongzhen, all routes for transporting grain and supplies to them from within the borders of the Great Ming have been completely cut off. In desperation, the barbarian chieftain dispatched troops to ravage the Tatar tribes and Joseon, seeking to obtain supplies from those two places. But aside from cattle, sheep, and livestock, the Tatars are even more destitute than the eastern barbarians, and Joseon is truly a land of bitter cold and barren poverty. Though the eastern barbarians have sent armies to seize grain, what they gain is likely meager indeed. If this continues, Jianzhou will find it impossible to sustain itself. The only course left to the barbarian chieftain is to gather all supplies, concentrate his main forces, and march south, seeking to plunder from our Great Ming's lands to fill their bellies. Your Majesty, even if they gather everything and come south, how many days can it feed their great army? From this it can be seen: if the enemy comes south, they will seek only a swift, decisive battle—their determination to win at all costs is plain! If our army blocks them with heavy forces, judging by their nature, they will surely try by every means to probe and strike at our supply lines. That is precisely our opportunity for victory!"

When Yang Sichang finished his lengthy discourse, the hall fell into silence.

He calmly tucked the routine memorial into his robes, smoothed his garments, and stood quietly in place. His expression remained composed, but his eyes brimmed with self-satisfaction.

"Minister Yang, pray be seated. Let me and the assembled ministers deliberate!"

Zhu Youjian spoke with a smile.

Yang Sichang bowed, then turned and returned to his seat. A young eunuch carrying a tray stepped lightly to his place, set a cup of hot tea gently on the low table beside him, picked up the now-cooled teacup onto the wooden tray, and then turned and slipped silently back to the corner of the hall.

Yang Sichang raised the hot tea and took a light sip, his eyes sweeping over the assembled ministers as a faint smile of smug satisfaction spread across his face.

He was confident this strategic plan would certainly be adopted by the Emperor. Once the official army won the battle beyond the passes, the credit for establishing this strategy could not escape him.

That would be the foremost merit.

The heaviest military honor was the foremost merit, and with such an achievement, entering the Grand Secretariat would pose no problem whatsoever.

"Minister Hou, does the Taicang treasury still have surplus funds and grain? If war breaks out and drags on, can the Ministry of Revenue manage to raise more money and grain to supply the great army?"

"We report to Your Majesty: the Taicang treasury currently has a surplus of 2.3 million taels of silver, and the Imperial Supply Depot has in storage a total of 200,000 shi of grain and rice—these are for emergency needs and cannot be lightly touched. At present, the Ministry of Revenue has already dispatched to beyond the passes roughly 200,000 shi of grain, rice, beans, and fodder, enough to feed 200,000 men for four months. Now that winter has passed and the northern section of the Grand Canal has begun to thaw, grain transport by water can resume within half a month. In my judgment, even if the war is prolonged, there will be no difficulty!"

Hou Xun assured Zhu Youjian with full confidence.

Since being promoted to Grand Secretary and participating in state affairs, he had come to know far more inside information than before—especially regarding the campaign against Jianzhou set to begin this year; Hou Xun was thoroughly familiar with all its details.

Now, military farmland reclamation around the capital region and in Shaanxi had met with successive success. Disaster victims from Shandong, Henan, and Shanxi were also being guided southward in an orderly manner under official direction. Moreover, the Emperor had decisively ordered the Grain Transport Governor-General to establish large granaries along the canal, intercepting tribute grain to feed the refugees. Under these various measures, the pressure on the Ministry of Revenue had been greatly relieved.

The 200,000 shi of grain stored in the Imperial Supply Depot was the surplus remaining after the military grain had been dispatched—life-saving reserves prepared against sudden natural disasters. But once canal transport was running, grain from the south would flow in without end, and the storehouses of the Imperial Supply Depot would gradually fill up. That was the source of Hou Xun's confidence.

And Yang Sichang's analysis just now made Hou Xun even more certain.

Jianzhou was a land of bitter cold and poverty, with a total population of barely over two million—less than even the capital region. How much could their fields possibly produce?

Though Hou Xun understood nothing of military strategy, that did not stop him from analyzing from a professional angle and reaching a conclusion: if Jianzhou mobilized more than a hundred thousand men, their grain supply absolutely could not hold out for half a year.

"What do the assembled ministers think of the Ministry of War's plan? Minister Sun?"

Zhu Youjian asked with a smile, then called on him directly to see whether Sun Chuanting had any other opinions or ideas.

"We report to Your Majesty: I believe the Ministry of War's plan is broadly workable, and I have no objections! What remains is merely to formulate the specific tactics according to this strategy. On the battlefield, circumstances change in a thousand ways. I believe every critical position must be commanded by loyal and trustworthy senior generals, lest one point of defeat bring harm to the entire army!"

Sun Chuanting rose, bowed, and spoke frankly.

"I too endorse the Ministry of War's plan! And Grand Secretary Sun's proposal is also of paramount importance! The original troop dispositions must be re-examined—do not let cowardly, faint-hearted generals hold key positions! Especially the supply routes and baggage areas—these must be overseen by a minister of weighty rank!"

Chen Qiyu rose, bowed, and reported.

The meaning of his words was already perfectly clear—he was all but volunteering himself to personally oversee the supply routes.

Though the Emperor had already promoted him to Grand Secretary and he concurrently held the high office of Shuntian Prefect—which had already paved the way for entering the cabinet—Chen Qiyu stubbornly wished to use military merit to wash away the shame of the past and strive to become a cabinet minister with an unsullied reputation.

The suspicion of having let the enemy escape at Wagon Gorge had always been a deep source of shame to him.

That moment of careless elation had subjected him to endless criticism and attacks from public opinion, and he had to use a great achievement to silence the world's mouths.

Sun Chuanting would certainly personally lead the Shaanxi army to the front lines. With his wisdom and the Shaanxi army's formidable fighting power, military merit was certainly within his grasp.

Yang Sichang's credit for strategic planning was also as good as sealed. Hou Xun and the others would not go to the front, and the grain and baggage that concerned the entire situation absolutely required a decisive figure of high rank to take charge. He had to seize this heavy responsibility from the hands of the Vice Minister of War.

Even if what he was given was not elite troops like the Yongwei Camp or the Shaanxi army, he was confident he could still use the opportunity to distinguish himself.

Since the two ministers universally acknowledged in court as experts in military affairs had both endorsed the Ministry of War's strategy, the remaining ministers, Wen Tiren and the others, naturally would not interject further. The plan for the upcoming decisive battle was finally settled.

"Since all the ministers are in unanimous agreement, I approve the Ministry of War's plan! In a moment, the several ministers must move quickly to formulate the relevant measures—do not let minor details ruin the whole! What Minister Chen said about the supply routes is especially important, and I will give it due thought! This war is of grave importance and cannot afford failure! The Ministry of War may issue orders to the entire army: from the day the war begins, any who disobey military commands, regardless of rank, may be executed!"

"We ministers humbly obey Your Majesty's decree!"

Wen Tiren and the others all rose together and bowed in acceptance.

"Let us conclude this discussion here! Next, let us discuss the great victory in Taiwan!"