national surname chiming

Chapter 169 The Battle of This Half Life Has Been Wasted
After unloading food and buying horses at Shanhaiguan, supplying supplies, and inquiring about the military situation by the way for a few days, Zheng Chenggong and Zhang Mingzhen, who already had a plan in mind, embarked on the journey to continue northward again.

Of course, for the sake of confidentiality, the fleet chose a farther offshore route during this voyage.

Anyway, with the help of a compass and other navigation and positioning tools from the West, even if it is more than [-] miles offshore and cannot see land navigation, there will be no problem.

The Liaoxi Corridor has a total of [-] miles of land, all of which are narrow and muddy.

Counting from Shanhaiguan, it is 260 miles to Tashan.There are still sixty miles between Tashan and Xingshan, and forty miles between Xingshan and Jinzhou.

As for Songshan, it is a little farther away from the sea, and it is not on the same line as the above-mentioned strongholds. It is necessary to go northward from Xingshan and go further inland for another [-] miles.

Along the way, both Zheng Chenggong and Zhang Mingzhen had carefully read the sea charts, knowing that Tashan and Xingshan might still be rescued, Songshan basically forgot about it, it was too far away from the coast.

As for how to save Tashan and Xingshan, we have to make a long-term plan.

Therefore, Zheng Chenggong had to have an in-depth chat with the liaison officer Wu Sangui sent to them, and even the leader of the Yi Ding Tu cavalry team.

……

This day, the fleet had just sailed for the first day, after Zheng Chenggong chatted with the people sent to him by Wu Sangui for a while, before discussing the real business, he committed the problem of bragging and imitating role models.

Zheng Chenggong: "Oh? Zhang Dusi, you said that you also met Brother Shen two years ago? Then tell me again, do I have the demeanor of Brother Shen a few years ago?"

It turned out that the coastal defense chief opposite Zheng Chenggong was Zhang Guozhu under Wu Sangui's command, who was in charge of handing over the military rations to Shen Shuren two years ago.

Zhang Guozhu had already heard that his immediate boss, Wu Sangui, had stepped over Zheng Chenggong's "similar Shen Futai", and it was difficult for him to say anything contrary to the leader.

But when it comes to his true inner thoughts, he obviously feels that "why should you compare yourself to Shen Futai".

So he held back for a long time, in order not to violate his conscience, Zhang Guozhu had no choice but to pick a point and answer:

"Zheng Tiju's family background is rich and rich, and he donates money through righteousness, which is comparable to Shen Futai. You are four years younger than Shen Futai, right? Shen Futai four years ago must not be as heroic as you are today."

This remark is no different from "Huan Wen is like Liu Kun". He only said that Zheng Chenggong is similar to Shen Shuren in terms of being rich and generous.

But Zheng Chenggong was young and had little ambition, so he would not be "unhappy for several days" like Huan Wen.Hearing that he was similar to Big Brother Shen in terms of urgency and righteousness, he was also very proud, and it further strengthened his addiction to being taken advantage of by Ji Yu.

Zheng Chenggong was overjoyed and said: "Really? I guess so, it's enough to be like Brother Shen in this point! Learn the rest slowly! Come on, you were sent by Wu Junmen to carry out dangerous missions with us this time. It should be rewarded.

Before our army set sail this time, Big Brother Shen rewarded the army for three days. The sailors were able to reward each of them ten taels, and the soldiers added five taels.You are all elites under Wu Junmen's command, and you have to carry out dangerous landing sentries. Ordinary soldiers will get 50 taels each first! "

Zheng Chenggong's visit this time can be regarded as imitating Shen Shuren's behavior and style in every way, lest he will fall into the prestige of Shen Shuren, so of course he will not take less gold and silver.

The flagship he personally sits on is the largest of the group of seagoing ships, with a full [-] materials, which is three times larger than the [-] materials warship.Ordinary [-]-material warships could already serve as the flagship of a small fleet in the mid-Ming Dynasty naval fleet.

Therefore, Zheng Chenggong's boat can usually take three to five hundred people without any problem.Wu Sangui sent him a total of 500 barbarian cavalry, coordinated by Zhang Guozhu, and two teams led the specific command. With such a small number of people, all Zheng Chenggong's flagships can be seated, and more Zheng Jiajia Ding can also be installed. and sailors.

After hearing his greeting, Yi Ding Tuqi and the two team leaders immediately followed Zhang Guozhu to receive the reward.

Zheng Chenggong was extravagant and asked his servants to give each person a gold ingot of five taels, the captain of the cavalry team took ten taels, and the team led 20 taels. Zhang Guozhu, the captain, directly took the largest gold ingot of 50 taels.

Rao Yi Ding Tuqi is the most confidant elite under Wu Sangui's command. Usually he is full of wine and meat, and rewards are in place. Now he can't help but be surprised to see the rich man from the south making such a move.

There is still a difference between Yiding Tuqi and Guanning Iron Cavalry, and it can be said that there is a certain inclusion relationship.The cavalry of the Guanning Army was said to have [-] at its peak, but after so many years of defeat and loss, it would be good to have more than [-] left. It is still under the joint control of the various departments of the Liaoxi General. Wu Sangui does not have all the command of the Guanning Army now. .

Yi Ding Tuqi was only a small part of them, only a thousand or so, usually divided into more than 50 teams, each team set up a team rate of [-] people, directly under Wu Sangui's command.Zhang Guozhu does not belong to Yi Ding Tuqi, he is only responsible for contacting and leading the way this time.

The two team leaders who came with us today, one named Zang Shiwei and the other named Tong Guozhang, knew that they had Manchu and Mongolian ancestry just by hearing their surnames—but don’t get me wrong, they were not Manchurians, they were all anti-Ming Tartars.

The Yiding Tuqi under Wu Sangui was originally dominated by people of foreign blood, otherwise they wouldn't be called "Yiding".

In any era, there are foreigners who are loyal to the Han Dynasty. In theory, Nuerhachi himself was a member of the Ming Dynasty's Jianzhou Guard. Even if Huang Taiji established the Qing Dynasty, there are still a few brave Manchu and Mongolian people who are willing to fight for the Ming Dynasty.

In the second year of Chongzhen, when Huang Taiji bypassed Yuan Chonghuan's sneak attack to defend the capital, Man Gui, a general with grassland blood, died fighting for Daming.

Therefore, as long as you continue to be loyal to Ming Dynasty, no matter what nationality you are, you can use it.

Zang Shiwei and Tong Guozhang held 20 taels of gold ingots. Although they would not be bribed, they still couldn't help but sigh with emotion after weighing the weight.They are all rough people, and they don't know how to hide it. Zang Shiwei asked bluntly on behalf of everyone:
"Master Zheng, this is in the south. When the generals go out to fight, do they reward the soldiers so generously? Then, do all of your soldiers in the south serve the commander to death?

Our Wu army sect has already treated us first-class and first-class for Yi Ding Tuqi. The ordinary soldiers only pay [-]% of the military pay, and the Guan Ning cavalry can only pay the full amount. Five or six taels of silver per month.

Our Yi Ding Tuqi took the most, more than ten taels a month, and it was because Wu Junmen sent our guards to charge the battle at any time, and they would go up like a mountain of swords and a sea of ​​fire, without frowning.If you hesitate a little, you will be punished by military law and demoted to ordinary cavalry.The rewards you ordinary sailors get for going to sea can be equal to the moon army of our barbarian Ding Tuqi. "

The military pay of the army in the late Ming Dynasty was also very polarized.It is a normal operation for those who have no combat effectiveness in the Weisuo army to deduct [-] to [-]% and earn their own living.But the money paid by servants and elite soldiers will be higher than the court quota.

The generals also knew that when it came time to fight, it was all these small numbers of elite soldiers and servants who worked hard, and the fixed salary of the imperial court could not buy the loyalty of the dead.

But it was also because of this that it took several times the salary of a regular soldier to support a dead soldier, and there was only so much money in total, and the other abandoned farming soldiers were exploited even more.

Zheng Chenggong listened to these questions, and was also happy to show off the good conditions of the Shen family and their family, and very proudly preached to these Liaodong bitters:

"This time it's a dangerous mission, so so many rewards are given. But even in normal times, the soldiers under Shen Futai's command are different from those in other provinces of Ming Dynasty.

Now the imperial court has implemented the lijin method in the south. Last year, I set up a card to collect lijin at the junction of Huguang and Jiangxi.These lijin were chartered by His Majesty, and they were raised locally in various provinces.The commercial tax is sufficient in the prosperous southern region, so all the soldiers in Shenfutai can get paid in full, and never default on it!
Ordinary soldiers need two taels a month, sailors have to endure wind and waves, and must be able to swim and maneuver the boat, at least five taels of silver——

In fact, not only Shenfutai is like this, who in the south can't spend so much?The merchant sailors of our Zheng family are also five taels a month. At the end of the year, the ship runs well, the goods are profitable, and there are dividends. The sailors who do a good job can’t earn 100 taels a year! "

Zang Shiwei and Tong Guozhang were also excited when they heard this.Including those Yi Ding Tuqi beside them, if they hadn't been greatly favored by Wu Sangui, they would have considered quitting just because of the treatment.

But they can fully believe that, except for Yiding Tuqi, if the other officers and soldiers of the Guanning Army can escape with their lives, they will definitely not be able to withstand such generous treatment.

The Liaoxi generals have been operating in Shanhaiguan and Ningjin for so many years, and they have raised many dead soldiers because of their complicated roots.But it can't stand the poverty of western Liaoning itself. It was so cold in the late Ming Dynasty and suffered from successive disasters. No matter how you do it, it is impossible to be self-sufficient.

Wu Sangui was able to pull up the dead because he was supported by the Liao salary given to him by Chongzhen.

Now the Shen family's annual business income can be close to the total amount of the imperial court's "Liao Pay".The Zheng family's income was three times that of the "Liao's salary", which definitely crushed Wu Sangui.

In this way, the fleet sailed for a day in the life of the officers and soldiers of Yiding Tucai.

In the evening, Zheng Chenggong planned to find a place to see if he could send a boat in the dark and dock to the shore for scouts to investigate the situation on land.

Knowing the local terrain, Zhang Guozhu and others suggested that he go ashore near Shahou Island, an unknown small island south of Juehua Island.

Zhang Guozhu also helped to explain: "Actually, in the middle of winter, our Wu Junmen have been paying attention to the enemy's situation outside the customs. At that time, the Bohai Sea was frozen, and we had no sea ships to use. Our army relied on a small group of barbarians to ride suddenly and go out on land by riding horses. Explore.

In Shahou Island, Juehua Island and other places, there are actually small stocks of food supplies secretly left by our army.Although these places have already been occupied by the Tartars, the Tartars feel that there is no one inhabited, and they will not go to these deserted islands to dig three feet.

Our army asked sentinels to bring a few bundles of straw with them, and when they galloped on the land, once they saw the Tartar cavalry brigade from a distance, they took the opportunity to hide in the sparse forest on the shore, or tied straw to the horseshoes, and went to the island to avoid supplies .

Shahou Island is only three to five miles away from the shore, and Juehua Island is only a dozen miles away from the shore. In winter, you can go directly to the island on horseback or on ice.In the last few days, the freeze has only completely melted away. "

"It turns out that Wu Junmen hasn't completely given up understanding the situation of the besieged allies in the past few months. Thank you for your kindness. Do you think the scouts and patrols that the Tartars besieged Tashan recently are still frequent?"

Zhang Guozhu thought for a while: "According to the observations during the last sentry, it should not be too frequent. Thousands of cavalry cavalry only appear once or twice a day, at least several hours apart. As for the small group of hundreds of cavalry Tartar scouts appear every now and then, passing by a team every quarter of an hour, and at least once in half an hour when the weather is bad.

The Tartars were not in a hurry, because they knew that even if they allowed the defenders of Tashan to sneak away for an hour and were discovered again, they would never escape back to Shanhaiguan. Tashan is 260 miles away from Shanhaiguan!The defenders in Tashan City must have no horses left. "

Zheng Chenggong touched his bearded chin, and discussed with Zhang Mingzhen: "Since the Tartar cavalry only pass by half an hour, we can let Yi Ding Tuqi rush to the city to call for contact tomorrow night.

However, there should not be too many people passing by, otherwise it may cause delays, and the defenders in the city may suspect that it is the Tartars ambush to defraud the door. This time, we just need to report the situation first and make an appointment for a response time. "

(End of this chapter)