Chapter 591: This Defeat

As the night passed, word gradually spread through the capital. Wang Youshan, like everyone else, learned of the disaster in the Liao Garrison. The Supreme Commander of Ji-Liao, Wang Keshao, and the Liaodong Grand Coordinator, Li Weihan, had submitted memorials to the court — the Liao Garrison was in dire peril!

The Jianzhou Jurchens, calling themselves the Great Jin, had conquered and annexed the Jurchen tribes of Haixi and Beishan. Their chieftain, Nurhaci, declared himself Khan. On the thirteenth day of the fourth month, he crossed the border wall, and on the sixteenth, he laid siege to Fushun City.

Fushun City's Garrison Commander, Wang Mingyin, fought to the death. Mobile Corps Commander Li Yongfang died in battle. The entire city fell. Over ten smaller towns and more than a hundred villages around Fushun were all taken. Over three hundred thousand soldiers and civilians combined were captured and taken back to Jianzhou.

Twenty li from the border, Liaodong Regional Commander Zhang Chengyin, Deputy Commander Po Tingxiang, Assistant Regional Commander Pu Shifang, and Mobile Corps Commander Liang Rugui led over ten thousand troops in pursuit and arrived.

The Jurchen Jin army and the Ming army clashed in a great battle. Regional Commander Zhang Chengyin and Deputy Commander Po Tingxiang died in battle. Assistant Regional Commander Pu Shifang and Mobile Corps Commander Liang Rugui died in battle. The entire army was annihilated; only a little over a thousand were taken captive.

In total, the Great Ming's Liao Garrison lost nearly twenty thousand troops, nearly four hundred thousand in population, and scores of officers. In eighty years, the Great Ming had never suffered such a crushing defeat, never lost so many officers. The capital was shaken; the realm was horrified.

Wang Youshan and Zhang Qinghai no longer had the chance to meet. The entire Ministry of War grew tense and frantic. However, all sorts of news from the Liao Garrison also began to trickle in. The various offices of the Chief Surveillance Bureau exchanged information with one another, all for the sake of having something to say — knowing what to say in the face of such a monumental event.

Censor Zhang Quan submitted a memorial impeaching the fallen Regional Commander Zhang Chengyin: "Chengyin, failing to recognize the enemy's bait, advanced rashly to his defeat — this is called having no strategy. Encountering the enemy suddenly, his ranks fell into chaos — this is called having no discipline. Leading over ten thousand men, yet unable to fight to the death — this is called having no courage." So-called no courage, no strategy, no discipline — defeat was certain.

This memorial was the most widely circulated, largely because of its three parallel phrases; it read with great rhetorical force. Yet the Liao Garrison's military reports contained no clear description of the battle's circumstances. How did this censor know the Jurchens had lured the enemy? Nearly ten thousand government troops died in battle — how did this censor know they were unable to fight to the death...

There were even rumors that Nurhaci had once sent his son as a hostage to Regional Commander Zhang Chengyin's side. While drinking, the son supposedly said, "My father has intentions to move south; I wonder how you, General, would respond?" Regional Commander Zhang Chengyin then dismissed it, saying the court's grace extended in all directions, how could anyone harbor rebellious intent, and so on. In any case, everything was about kicking a dead tiger — no one would defend the fallen officers.

Censors from the Chief Surveillance Bureau, secretaries from the Six Ministries, and the nobles of the Hanlin Academy all submitted memorials of remonstrance, putting forward their own views on the war. Right or wrong didn't matter; they absolutely had to prove they possessed superior insight.

The Liao Garrison's connections to the capital were multifaceted. As the urgent reports entered the capital, news from various sources also gradually arrived.

Mobile Corps Commander Li Yongfang, originally thought to have died with the city, reportedly did not die in battle but surrendered directly. It was said he was even given considerable authority. Assistant Regional Commander Pu Shifang and Mobile Corps Commander Liang Rugui, who were said to have died heroically, reportedly fled at the first sight of the enemy. Only after seeing their commanders, Regional Commander Zhang Chengyin and Deputy Commander Po Tingxiang, die in battle did they realize they could not escape responsibility. They turned back to fight fiercely and were then killed by the enemy.

Once this news of surrender came back, many censors could not help but curse loudly. The memorials praising and mourning the martyrs could not be sent up — they had been written for nothing.

Minister of War Xue Sancai personally memorialized the Son of Heaven, stating that from last autumn to the present, the Liao Garrison's military pay had been in arrears for three seasons, totaling over five hundred fifty thousand taels. But with the national treasury now empty, he requested the allocation of inner funds — that is, silver from the inner vault, the emperor's and inner court's own treasury.

At some unknown point, the Wanli Emperor had resolved never to spend a single sliver of inner vault silver to supplement state expenses. His reply was the same as always: the inner vault was empty; the Ministry of Revenue was ordered to raise the pay and allocate it.

Having received the imperial decree, the Ministry of War immediately pressed the Ministry of Revenue. But the Ministry of Revenue was furious. The last time military pay was allocated, your Ministry of War swallowed over fifty percent, yet the share you promised to pass on has not seen a single coin to this day. You can forget about getting more silver. Everyone knows that when pay is disbursed, your Ministry of War first takes its own full cut, and then colludes with those below to squeeze the rest.

Military pay was one matter. The Liaodong Regional Commander had died in battle, and a new one had to be appointed. This was also an urgent priority; even the Wanli Emperor incessantly issued decrees demanding action.

By regulation, Minister of War Xue Sancai presided over the recommendation, but in reality, there was no one to choose. Even before the war broke out, Liaodong was no desirable post. If you weren't from the Li family line, leading troops there would leave you stranded, unable to touch the sky or stand on the ground. Now, with a great enemy at the gates, going meant you might die in battle; otherwise, you'd be saddled with blame. Who would still want to wade into these muddy waters?

But this "no one to choose" was highly debatable. Because of wariness toward Li Chengliang's faction, the Liao Garrison Regional Commander post had, as much as possible, avoided using anyone from the Li family. But in the current situation, such concerns could no longer be heeded. Li Chengliang's second son, Li Rubai, living idle at home, was recommended as the Liaodong Regional Commander.

A military officer had to be battle-hardened to be of any use. Yet this Li Rubai had been idle at home for over twenty years. Even a sharp blade would have long since rusted and dulled, let alone Li Rubai, who was merely a rich young master — and the spoiled, rotten kind at that.

Li Rubai's very first official career prospect was a Thousand-Household Commander in the Brocade Guard — the standard sinecure due to a scion of a meritorious noble house. He was then dismissed for drinking and dereliction of duty. After that, similar incidents repeated endlessly. Relying on his father and elder brothers, he rose step by step, from Mobile Corps Commander to Regional Commander, holding every post. From suppressing Bobai in Ningxia to resisting the Japanese in Korea, he fought in every major campaign. Whenever the Li family mobilized in force, Li Rubai had illustrious battle achievements. Whenever he held office on his own, he was dismissed for one reason or another — impeached, or falling ill himself. In short, he never lasted long.

On the surface, his battle record was glorious, but those in the know saw clearly: Li Rubai had no ability of his own and relied entirely on his father and brothers to prop him up. Once Li Chengliang grew decrepit and Li Rusong died in battle on the steppe, Li Rubai immediately became mediocre and useless, not even daring to lead troops or hold a garrison, only able to stay home in idleness.

Some said Li Chengliang was a tiger, Li Rusong a young tiger, and this Li Rubai was just a dog — and "dog" in the derogatory sense of the word.

However, the court had no objections to activating Li Rubai. A censor had already submitted a memorial saying, "Do not use those you doubt; do not doubt those you use." The principle was high-sounding, but the meaning was that the court should not be suspicious of the Li family. Echoing this memorial were rumors in the capital about the Liao Garrison, saying the Liao Garrison's border troops could have easily defeated the Jurchen army from Jianzhou, but because the court had always been suspicious of the Li family, no one, high or low, was willing to put in their full effort.

Under such circumstances, using a direct-line scion of the Li family military house as Liaodong Regional Commander was only natural. But there were also rumors that when the decree appointing Li Rubai as Regional Commander reached the Li household, Li Rubai refused to accept it, merely weeping and kowtowing...

The Liao Garrison bordered Northern Zhili. With the Liao Garrison in turmoil, the vital capital region of Zhili was also unsettled. For the sake of security, the court established a new garrison at Shanhai Pass, creating the post of Shanhai Pass Regional Commander to defend it. Appointed as Shanhai Pass Regional Commander was Du Song, likewise idle at home.

Unlike the mediocre and incompetent Li Rubai, Du Song could be considered a fierce general. He had once held the post of Liao Garrison Regional Commander, but because the Liao Garrison officers below him paid only lip service, he was dismissed and sent home before long.

The reason for Du Song's dismissal was something the entire court knew in their hearts. But to accommodate and appease the Liao Garrison's military houses, they could only wrong Du Song, who hailed from the Three Frontiers region of Shaanxi. Now, of course, they could no longer afford such concerns — after all, officers familiar with the Liaodong situation were not that numerous.

The more thoughtful could see an even deeper layer. Since Liaodong was once again under the overall command of a scion of the Li family military house, more barriers had to be set up between the Liao Garrison and the capital. In addition to the Ji Garrison, the military preparedness at Shanhai Pass also had to be strengthened.

Military supplies were mobilized, veteran soldiers were conscripted, the Liao Garrison was reinforced, and Shanhai Pass was fortified. Everyone, high and low, was in a frantic rush. Fortunately, the latest news had already come from the Liao Garrison, saying the Jurchen army had withdrawn back to Jianzhou to rest and regroup, with no intention of moving out again for the time being. Along with this news came Nurhaci's document of the Seven Grievances against the Ming.

The Great Ming, without cause, killed Nurhaci's father and grandfather; the Great Ming favored the Jurchen Yehe and Hada tribes, oppressing the Jianzhou Jurchens; the Great Ming, disregarding the borders agreed upon by both sides, forcibly compelled Nurhaci to pay compensation for the lives of those killed crossing the border; the Great Ming dispatched troops to support the Yehe tribe against Jianzhou; the Jurchen Yehe tribe, due to the Great Ming's support, broke their oath of alliance and married off their "old maiden" to the Mongols; the Great Ming forced the Jianzhou Jurchens to withdraw from the already cultivated lands of Chaihe, Sancha, and Fu'an, forbidding the harvest of crops; the Great Ming's Liao Garrison dispatched Garrison Commander Shang Bozhi to Jianzhou, where he lorded it over them with tyrannical abuse of power.

These seven matters were the so-called Seven Grievances. It was nothing more than the Great Ming never favoring the Jianzhou Jurchens, and the Great Ming lording it over the Jianzhou Jurchens...

The Great Ming never took the Jurchens seriously, acting with lofty condescension, and naturally never considered the feelings of a small tribe in a remote frontier region. Moreover, the Great Ming had to maintain balance on the borderlands — it could not allow one tribe to grow dominant unchecked, nor could it sit idly by and watch them annex each other. Naturally, it had to send troops to support and intervene. In the Great Ming's eyes, these were all trivial matters, not even requiring a decision from the central government, merely a report after the fact.

But these trivial matters had become the Jianzhou Jurchens' great grievances. When the Jianzhou Jurchens were building strength and biding their time, these were not grievances at all. They could still smile as they went to the capital to offer tribute of ginseng and sable pelts. But when they felt themselves sufficiently powerful, these became the Seven Grievances.

What worried men of insight was that this approach of the Jianzhou Jurchens was quite different from the barbarians and Tatar slaves of the past. From the Oirats to Altan Khan, these powerful steppe forces never bothered with reasons. They would just charge in to plunder, burn, and kill. But these Jianzhou Jurchens understood the need for a just cause to mobilize, and they even knew to establish a dynastic title for themselves. It was said this so-called Great Jin also had a set of institutions. Such a power was different from those Mongol tribes on the steppe, who were little more than bandits.

News of Fushun's fall and the Ming army's great defeat had spread throughout the capital by the fifth month. But it was not until the beginning of the sixth month that Wang Youshan sent a letter home. He knew that Wang Zhaojing would show the vast majority of his letters to his companions, because they contained little about family matters. Most of it was about court policy decisions and the general trends of the realm. Zhao Jin very much needed to know this.

And Zhao Jin had a particular interest in the Jurchens. This incident would certainly cause a stir among them. With the Zhao Character Camp now such a large enterprise, how to provide detailed and accurate information required careful deliberation, lest it cause the young men to act blindly or rashly. Therefore, he had to seek truth in every aspect, investigating meticulously.

Thank you, everyone. My headache is about to split open.