Chapter 385: Preparations

While the whole Ming realm was immersed in the festive atmosphere of the New Year, Jianzhou in the northeast was a scene of bustling military preparation.

On roads not yet free of ice, bands of Eight Banner soldiers in varying numbers rode past bearing arms and armor, while ragged groups of Han booi bondservants, some pushing carts and others carrying loads on shoulder poles, braved the lingering bitter cold under the guard of the Eight Banner troops, hauling large quantities of grain and supplies in the direction of Yizhou.

Compared with the still-freezing temperature outside, the Chongzheng Hall in Shengjing was warm as spring, where Hong Taiji had summoned the Princes and Beiles to discuss the matter of dispatching troops southward.

Fire dragons burning ceaselessly through all twelve double-hours kept most of the halls in the imperial palace at a comfortable temperature, so that the nobles residing in the various halls felt not the slightest trace of the frozen wilderness even through the long, cold winter.

"Prince Zheng, to what extent have the troops of the various banners assembled? Are the grain and supplies fully prepared?"

Hong Taiji on the throne had a ruddy, glowing complexion.

After a winter of recuperation, his body had recovered to its former state, and he had not suffered an attack in several months.

"In answer to Your Majesty, at present most of the troops of the various banners have assembled in place. Of the Han Army banners, apart from the men guarding Yizhou, all those remaining in Shengjing have already hurried to Yizhou. As for the Chahar tribe, because they must drive their cattle and sheep to Shengjing, several thousand men have yet to arrive. However, according to the scouts' reports, they can arrive within at most another five days. The greater part of the grain and supplies has already been transported to Yizhou in advance; as for the remainder, it only needs to follow the army when the great force sets out!"

Prince Zheng, Jirgalang, seated in the first position on the left below the dais, replied with a respectful bow.

Ever since his elder brother Amin had been confined for defying Hong Taiji, Jirgalang had grown increasingly respectful toward Hong Taiji, conducting himself in speech and deed entirely as a subject; whenever he obtained something fine, he would send it into the palace at the first opportunity, to win the favor of Hong Taiji and the other nobles.

Jirgalang's efforts were not in vain—including Hong Taiji himself, all the nobles in the palace sang his praises without cease, and Hong Taiji, returning kindness for kindness, directly raised his position to the head of the Princes, surpassing Prince Li, Daišan, and making him the foremost of all the ministers.

"Good! Prince Zheng has done well! As long as the grain and supplies are fully prepared, this southern campaign will have no worries from behind! Prince Rui, what is the situation with the Joseon musketeers of the Two White Banners? I hear that some days ago there were those who plotted to defect? Could it be that the Two White Banners shorted them their military pay and provisions? With a great battle imminent, how could morale be disrupted before fighting even begins? If the Two White Banners cannot command them, then hand these musketeers over to the Two Red Banners, lest they ruin a great matter when they take the field!"

Hong Taiji fixed his gaze on Dorgon, who sat below Jirgalang, and questioned him in an unfriendly tone.

Under the personal leadership of Dorgon and Ajige, the Two White Banners had gathered heavy forces the previous year to march on Joseon to seize grain; after soundly defeating the Joseon army, they forced the Joseon king to hand over one hundred thousand shi of grain, and finally returned to Shengjing with five thousand Joseon musketeers.

This enormous quantity of grain greatly alleviated Jianzhou's food shortage crisis, and also made Hong Taiji all the more determined in his resolve to raid southward.

He had to go plunder again while there was still grain; otherwise, once this grain was consumed and before the summer harvest arrived, all of Jianzhou would be in danger of falling into famine.

The Little Ice Age that had already begun was also having no small impact on the northeast.

From the first half of last year, rainfall and snowfall under Jianzhou's jurisdiction had sharply decreased, and the crops in large numbers of fields grew poorly for lack of irrigation.

But Hong Taiji and his kind, who came from barren mountains and wild ridges with extremely barbaric and backward thoughts and conduct, were utterly helpless before this, able to produce no measures whatsoever to cope with such a situation.

Fortunately, Han Chinese like Fan Wencheng and Ning Wanwo still knew some common sense; after submitting memorials to Hong Taiji and receiving permission, they led the craftsmen among the bondservants to dig wells and repair canals all around, which slightly alleviated the drought in some places.

But because of the Ming's continuous trade embargo over the past two years, the iron materials and implements needed for digging wells and repairing canals became the main factor constraining Jianzhou's drought relief; after a certain quantity of iron was consumed, the well-digging operations were forced to stop.

The remaining iron had to be reserved for military use—if it were all put to agriculture, what would happen should war break out?

If the harvest was reduced, so be it—when the time came, let those nikan eat a bit less; if they starved to death, they had it coming, and then they could just go raid the Ming for more people.

But keeping on like this over the long term would never do. After considering the matter again and again, Hong Taiji decided that he must send troops south as soon as possible, seeking to obtain sufficient supplies from the Ming side.

Hong Taiji had made up his mind: this time it would not be small-scale raiding, but rather a heavy force pressing forward in full strength, striving to take all the cities of Songshan and Jinzhou and completely push the Ming army back within Shanhai Pass.

"Eighth Brother, the matter of the musketeers has already been settled—it was hardly a great affair. After beheading a few ringleaders who stirred up trouble, all was well; morale shows no sign of instability. Set your mind at ease, Eighth Brother! These five thousand men were all brought back from Joseon by the Two White Banners, so naturally they remain under the command of our Two White Banners. With the discipline of our Eight Banners holding them in check, who would dare disobey orders once they take the field?"

Dorgon perfunctorily clasped his hands toward Hong Taiji, replied with a few casual words, and did not take Hong Taiji's threat to heart.

A dozen or so days earlier, because a niru janggin of the Two White Banners, drunk, had whipped a Joseon musketeer, it had aroused the collective anger of the musketeers; that niru janggin and several Eight Banner soldiers were then surrounded and beaten by the musketeers, who relied on their greater numbers. In the end, the Eight Banner soldiers under the injured niru janggin's command wanted to fight it out with the musketeers at gunpoint, but Ajige, arriving on the news, put a stop to it.

The final result was that more than twenty musketeers who had taken part in the beating were beheaded, while the niru janggin and several of his men were merely fined some silver and the matter was closed.

This method of handling by Ajige seemed perfectly normal in the eyes of the other clansmen, but it stirred deep resentment in the hearts of the Joseon musketeers; it was only out of fear of the Eight Banners that these Joseon soldiers dared not make a fuss.

"Hmph! How crude and careless was the Two White Banners' handling of this matter—are you not afraid of chilling men's hearts?! The Ming army's firearms are no longer something the Han Army banners can match; these Joseon musketeers will be the sharp weapon of our Eight Banners against the Ming army! They must be treated well—only then will they fight to the death for us! Prince Zheng, in a moment take thirty thousand taels of silver to the Joseon army camp; apart from compensating the families of the dead, distribute the rest according to rank, and say it is my reward!"

Hong Taiji was not to be compared with a brute like Ajige; he naturally understood how military morale was forged.

This time it was plainly Ajige who had handled the matter unjustly. If the resentment in the Joseon army's hearts was not dissolved in time, then once they truly took the field, it was hard to guarantee they would not collapse at the first contact.

"Your servant obeys the decree!"

Before Dorgon could speak to object, Jirgalang had already risen to receive the decree.

Dorgon gave a cold snort and said no more.

After all, with a great battle looming, although he was somewhat annoyed at Hong Taiji's move to buy men's loyalty, he still swallowed his anger.

In any case, this mob of musketeers remained under the control of the Two White Banners; after the fighting was done, he had no intention of letting these men go back anyway—when the time came they would be directly absorbed into the Two White Banners' rolls. Then you, Eighth Brother, would have to think carefully before trying to move against us.

"This campaign against the Ming state concerns the fortune of our Great Qing—it is the most crucial battle since the founding of our Great Qing. Once the military orders are given, the entire army must exert itself to the utmost, with not the slightest disobedience! Any who disobey orders shall be beheaded! After this battle succeeds, not only will our Great Qing's strength increase dramatically, but we may at any time press toward the Ming capital region, forcing the Ming emperor to concentrate his heavy forces along the Shanhai Pass line. By then the Ming's northwestern defense line will be like a sieve, full of holes everywhere. And our Great Qing's troops may take advantage of the gaps to strike straight through the border walls, attacking the Ming's border garrisons such as Xuanfu and Datong, Yansui, and others—taking their cities, seizing their people, money, and grain. Perhaps within no more than ten years, our Great Qing may borrow a road through the northwest and drive straight to the Ming capital—the Ming's glorious rivers and mountains may well become our Great Qing's!"

At this moment, Hong Taiji on the throne was radiant with excitement, as if he were already sitting on that true dragon bed in the Forbidden City.