national surname chiming

November of the first year of Longwu.

It has been a month and a half since the military planning meeting in Jiangning Town, Yingtian Prefecture.

The series of plans and timetables formulated at the meeting were also faithfully implemented, and no one obstructed them—according to the plan, this winter will take advantage of the coolness to start calming down Yungui, and next year will take action against the big official Hongyi.

As early as the end of September, Li Dingguo and other generals rushed to the southwest on Qingqi.

At the beginning of October, part of the Ming army stationed in Huguang also received a military order and set off after a short preparation.

Finally, they assembled in Chenzhou Mansion, which is located in the hub of Qianzhong Road, and entered Yungui after a short rest.

Of course, according to the plan, the Ming army did not rush to fight from the beginning.

In name, they are just escorting the new officials appointed by the court this time. As long as the local chieftain does not resist, they can resolve it peacefully.

The Yunnan-Guizhou area has always been the territory of the Ming Dynasty in name since ancient times.At the end of the Ming Dynasty, there were only frequent rebellions, or armed resistance, and self-government, but no one dared to establish a country on its own.

The Ming army that came this time has a total number of more than 2 soldiers, and there are many logistics auxiliary soldiers.Li Dingguo and Sun Kewang each took half, responsible for Yunnan and Guizhou respectively.

Most of the backbone soldiers of these troops were the former Western Army soldiers who had been transformed by the Ming Dynasty. They had also made great achievements in killing Tartars in defensive battles such as the Nanyang Battle and withstood the test.

There is also a part of the source of troops, the old Ming army and local armed forces in the Sichuan area. The loyalty of these people is also reliable, but the original combat effectiveness is not good, or they are used to eating empty pay as veterans. focus on rectification
Loyalty does not equal the will to fight. Many people in the old Ming army were just weak deserters, but they did not have the courage to rebel and turn to bandits.On the contrary, other troops are very daring and tough to fight, but they are also more courageous when rebelling or surrendering to the enemy.

Because these troops hadn't passed all the tests before, even if they were commanded by Zhu Shuren and participated in some battles, they would not be equipped with the latest weapons.

Including Zhang Huangyan guarding Nanyang before, Li Dingguo's soldiers were only fit to fight on the line with melee weapons, and proved themselves in the battle to kill the Tartars.They didn't have any "Made in Wuchang" first-class muskets, or double-barreled breech-loading cavalry guns at that time.

Since the second half of this year, the production capacity of Daye Armory has also been further increased, and the inventory of new weapons has also increased. Zhang Huangyan followed Zhu Shuren's instructions and selected about [-] "Made in Wuchang" equipped with the latest high-quality forged steel bayonets, plus two Hundreds of double-barreled breech-loading cavalry guns and several revolvers were distributed to Li Dingguo's department.

When they were allotted, they gave priority to those soldiers who performed best in the Nanyang Campaign and were rewarded for their meritorious service. This was also an incentive to give them hope.After allotment, after two or three short months of training on the use of new weapons, they were dispatched to this new mission.

Before the troops set off, they were told that the security mission in Yunnan and Guizhou was a rare opportunity to perform meritorious deeds in peacetime. If they performed well here, they would be given priority in the distribution of new rifles and sophisticated armor if they fought against the Tartars again in the future.

Therefore, the morale of the army is very high. Those who missed the opportunity to make meritorious service during the Nanyang battle are now holding back their energy.

……

After the troops were mobilized and set off, after more than a month of trekking, they finally arrived in Yunnan and Guizhou in two ways.

Needless to say, perhaps because the local army fought against the peasant army who fled here two years ago and was still a bandit in the West, coupled with the lack of local news, I had a bad impression of the Ming army. A coward without a fight.

So when Li Dingguo and Sun Kewang first arrived, some local chieftains were still tough, and several special heads jumped out to resist.

Fortunately, the first batch of reformed officials sent to Yunnan and Guizhou by the imperial court were mostly cannon fodder, not loyal and virtuous talents, so even if they encountered resistance and suffered losses, they did not feel bad——

During the defense of Nanjing at the end of last year, a large number of officials who committed less serious crimes but were also implicated by Wang Duo and Qian Qianyi were either demoted and devalued, or registered and waited to be released to remote areas in the future.

In addition, there are some representatives of the interests of the big landlord class in the south who oppose the imperial court's inventory of land and population this year, and Zhu Shuren has also registered those family members with a large number of hidden populations.

Now, if the imperial court wants to change their lands and return them to the exiles, of course let these two types of people take the lead and become the first batch of exiles!Go to test whether the blade of Jieao Chieftain is sharp!If he did well, he was still alive after several terms of office, and successfully naturalized the natives, he would naturally be able to atone for his previous crimes and be reused by the court again.

There are more than a dozen chieftains of different sizes in Yunnan and Guizhou. In just half a month, they clashed with some of them and wanted to give the court a blow. More than a dozen cannon fodder officials were killed and killed. Expulsion, it's a lot of chicken and dog jumping.

Of course, Li Dingguo and Sun Kewang would not be soft-hearted. Wherever there were evil cases of crowding the government and killing officials in chaos, they would immediately attack and kill them with thunderous means.

A few rebel chieftains in Yunnan were not too scared when they first heard that Li Dingguo had sent troops.The main reason is that the terrain is dangerous and remote. Originally, the Ming army had nothing to do with them. They have been restrained for the past 200 years. Why should they be subdued now?

On the ninth day of November, Mengshi, chieftain of Lima Xuanweisi, killed a senior official sent by the imperial court, who was a disciple of Wang Duo. The news was sent back to Dali Mansion where Li Dingguo was stationed in person.

On November 14th and [-]th, it was reported that Ganya Xuanweisi chieftain Meng Shi and Nandian Xuanweisi Anshi also killed officials and rebelled. The two murdered officials were respectively a literary friend of Qian Qianyi. One was an unnamed civil servant who was punished at the beginning of the year for resisting the imperial court's thorough investigation of population and land, and deceiving his superiors and subordinates.

Li Dingguo received bad news one after another in Dali Mansion, knowing that he could not be soft, he decided to send troops.

Liu Wenxiu, who came with him, objected on the grounds that those places were too remote, and the logistical difficulties prevented many soldiers from going there.

Liu Wenxiu analyzed: "Second brother, don't be reckless in this matter. The imperial court strictly controls our military expenditures. It has said that it has been a truce for the past few years, to quell civil strife and use troops against high-level officials. The total annual expenditure should not exceed three to five million taels.

If the basics are discarded, and the war against the Tartars will be resumed in the future, the military equipment and veterans will suffer a lot, which will affect the combat power instead. "

Li Dingguo's attitude was very resolute: "Since the imperial court has made a move, it must be thunderous. The purpose of destroying a few chieftains now is to let other chieftains see an example, so that we can save troops in the future."

Liu Wenxiu shook his head, pointed at the map and sighed: "I didn't stop the use of troops. When I arrived just a few days ago, didn't I extinguish the resistance of the Chashan Division on the border of Dali Prefecture? The chieftain and his family were killed. It's overpowering.

In the future, we will choose this kind of soft persimmon that is relatively close to the traffic arteries, but still not long-sighted, to kill chickens and monkeys. Isn't it more beneficial than going over Gaoligong Mountain to deal with Limasi and Ganyasi? "

Liu Wenxiu's words also had some truth.The main reason is that the Yunnan area in the Ming Dynasty was actually very vast, larger than that of later generations.

Theoretically, the border between the Ming Dynasty and Myanmar had to reach the Mailikai River, and there were three or four Xuanwei Divisions in the land between Gaoligong Mountain and the Mailikai River.

After the Qing Dynasty, Yongzheng and Qianlong betrayed the country several times and ceded and allocated some land to Myanmar. Later, the border between China and Myanmar in the middle section of Yunnan retreated from the Mailikai River to the watershed between the Mailikai River and the Nu River. That is Gaoligong Mountain.

(Note: According to Qingfen, it is because Yongzheng felt that "Since Myanmar has been conquered and declared that it recognizes the Qing Dynasty as the suzerain state, vassals pay tribute, and no longer support the remnants of the former Ming Dynasty who fled to Myanmar, we should show the kingdom of heaven His tolerance was great, and some lands that had not been reformed were given to the king of Burma to govern."

At that time, the Chinese civilization did not have the concept of modern diplomacy, and it did not take the arbitrary granting of land jurisdiction seriously. )
And since the nominal area of ​​Yunnan in the Ming Dynasty was so large, how could it be easy to reach the four Xuanweisi west of Gaoligong Mountain?
If you don’t understand the harshness of the local geographical environment, you can refer to an example-the land west of Gaoligong Mountain, later generations belonged to a part of the “Savage Mountain” in northern Myanmar. It is miserable and a heavy loss.

To deploy troops to those places, even if there are no enemy troops blocking the roads and creating logistical obstacles, at least five or six logistical auxiliary troops will be needed to maintain a soldier, which is too much loss.

After Li Dingguo arrived in Dali Mansion, he also observed the surrounding terrain. He didn't rest for ten consecutive days, and he kept running around to understand the actual geography.

So he is not talking big and fighting unprepared, but he really understands this logistical difficulty.

He sorted out the strategy and discussed with Liu Wenxiu: "Don't I know that the road is dangerous and far away, so I should bring less soldiers and rush to attack the enemy because of food. Then I will coerce some other chieftains near the Ming Dynasty, and use all the propaganda to comfort the army." The original contradictions of the ministries are driven by tigers and wolfs.

Fortunately, the lord has given our army more miasma-repelling pills and medicinal oils. Even if we eat Nanzhong melons, fruits, mushrooms and wild game to supplement the army rations, it should not make too many soldiers uncomfortable.

In addition, the soldiers who will go on an expedition are best selected from those soldiers who followed the eldest brother to Yunnan and Guizhou two years ago.I heard that anyone who has lived in Nanzhong for a year or two and survived the miasma of vomiting, diarrhea, fever, and other miasmas will develop resistance in the body. This is also summed up by several great scholars in the Jiangning Research Institute, and experiments have been done. "

Liu Wenxiu didn't know much about the reliability of these claims, and had some doubts, so Li Dingguo divided troops and assigned tasks with him:

This winter, one of them was stationed in Dali Mansion and the other was stationed in Kunming Mansion. They divided the east and west to pacify many rebellious chieftains who might rise up, and strived to use small groups of troops to attack, split and disintegrate each time, and wipe out the bandit chieftains.

The plan has been decided, Li Dingguo started.

In order to prevent logistical difficulties, he even sent only [-] soldiers to ensure the logistical mules and horses, and crossed Gaoligong Mountain to attack the three chieftains who caused troubles.

Among these soldiers, there are three hundred "made in Wuchang" riflemen, sufficient ammunition supplies, and other soldiers carry more traditional bows and crossbows. Finally, there are dozens of double-barreled cavalry guns, two lightweight and the smallest The cavalry cannon is convenient for towing and marching in the mountains. At the same time, if you want to attack the village after encountering a rush, you can also go into battle immediately to catch the enemy off guard——

Because if you don’t bring cannons, you have to temporarily build siege weapons when you reach a strong camp, etc. Even if these civil camps are not strong, you can break the wall by building a ladder and hitting a log for a day or two, but it will still give the enemy time to react. .

With the cavalry cannon, sneak attacks can be carried out, and even small troops rush to the outside of the camp in the middle of the night, and then have no other firepower preparations. .

Once the sneak attack smashes the gate of the village immediately, and then hides and kills the influx, the effect of the surprise attack can be maximized.

……

With a lot of preparations, coupled with mental calculation and carelessness, Li Dingguo's seemingly adventurous and aggressive gambling on his life has indeed received miraculous results.

On the one hand, before dispatching troops, Li Dingguo tried to be gentle, and sent some gold, jewelry and other belongings to the two rebellious chieftains in Lima Xuanweisi, pretending to compromise, and asked them to "not actually accept the control of officials." , but don’t raise the flag openly”,
Li Dingguo's letter also stated that as long as they agree to accept "actually being the emperor of the land and not resisting the system of exile officials in name", then the court will not send any more exile officials over for a few years, and they will still be able to accept the three exile officials who have been killed. Putting shit on their heads, saying that they violated the regulations and searched after they took office, which led to the resistance of the righteous people.

He also said that the dead people were all old friends of Wang Duo and Qian Qianyi anyway, and that they had never dealt with Guo Xing Ye, Guo Xing Ye was hoping to borrow a knife to kill someone, so he would not embarrass them.

The letter was full of falsehoods and nonsense, but it also made the southwestern chieftain who had no strategic knowledge relax his vigilance, and continued to mistakenly think that Daming was just that cowardly.

While the negotiations were stable, Li Dingguo had already personally led a small army, quietly set out on the road, over the Gaoligong Mountains, eating and sleeping all the way, spending a lot of money to buy food and fruits and vegetables from other Shunmin chieftain tribes oppressed by the rebel chieftains in the local area. , Pack lightly and rush forward.

In less than half a month, they reached the main Dongfu village of the Lima Xuanweisi Meng tribe, and got a guide from the local tribe who refused to accept the Meng clan's rule in advance to lead the way. They calculated the time to kill in front of the village in the dark at a certain dawn.

When the barbarian soldiers were still asleep, the Ming army set up their cannons and blasted open the gate of the Dongfu village with a single shot, sneaking in under cover.The battle was resolved in one morning, and the whole family of the rebel chieftain was killed.

Such an adventurous and bloody battle, in just one month, many nails in Limasi and Ganyasi were pulled out.

Li Dingguo hastened to give both kindness and power, and distributed tobacco seedlings to those tribes who helped the imperial army lead the way and provided assistance. He also taught the local chieftain how to smoke this kind of tobacco leaves, or took out samples of snuff bottles for people to rub under their noses to try to refresh themselves. Effect.

And publicize that this kind of leaf will be purchased by the imperial court in the future, and the purchase price will be guaranteed.

After some operations, those chieftains who were lucky enough not to follow the rebellion decided to try to grow for two years first, and if they really could get rich, there was no need to rebel.

During the progress of the actual work, Li Dingguo and others later discovered a new situation: In addition to tobacco, there are other crops brought by the Ming army, which seem to be more sought after by the locals.

In Li Dingguo's military rations, he originally brought some spice crops that were popularized and planted in Huguang a few years ago, that is, red peppers. When you are not used to tropical crop food, you can use chili oil to cover the smell.

As for Yunnan and Guizhou, especially Guizhou where Sun Kewang is in charge, because of inconvenient transportation, even salt is very expensive, and the shipping cost of Sichuan salt is very high. Heavy mouth.

After discovering that chili is a condiment that can be grown directly in the local area without relying on foreign transportation, those chieftains who have surrendered to Ming Dynasty have asked Li Dingguo Sun Kewang for chili seeds, asking not only for tobacco seedlings, but also for chili seeds next year.

After Li Dingguo and others discovered this unexpected demand, they naturally reported it immediately, and it was only sent to Nanjing at the beginning of the next year.Of course, Zhu Shuren gave an immediate reply after reading it, and dispatched the chili seeds there.

It's just that chili is not like tobacco, which can be monopolized by the state. After providing seeds, it will spread easily and naturally in a few years, and everyone can grow them if they want.

Originally, there was a lack of cultivation in Yunnan and Guizhou, and it was just that the transportation was inconvenient. No one trafficked the initial seeds on a large scale.

But no matter what, even if there is a time difference, for example, those Shunmin tribes who joined Ming Dynasty could popularize chili peppers two or three years earlier, while those tribes who resisted Ming Dynasty would get chili peppers two or three years later.

The time difference here is enough for the Shunming tribe to earn a fortune from the Shunming tribe by selling seeds. Over time, the strength of the Shunming tribe will become more abundant, forming a crush, and speeding up the reformation of the land.