Great Ming Dynasty Wen Chao Gong

Chapter 120 Shuerhaqi’s request

In the capital city of Joseon, Li Rusong paced around anxiously in the temporarily built Admiral's Mansion.

"Brother, isn't it a good thing that the imperial court has sent reinforcements?" Li Rubai couldn't help but ask.

"I'm afraid it's not that simple. It's not easy for the imperial court to support tens of thousands of us in overseas expeditions. Now we are delayed here by the Japanese. We can't advance and we can't retreat. It's really troublesome."

"Brother, you captured Pyongyang City so quickly and used the strategy of cutting off food and grass to force the Japanese to withdraw from Wangjing. Now the Japanese are just struggling to death. As long as the imperial reinforcements arrive, our army can continue to attack. What’s the problem with that?”

"It's not that simple. I was still a little impulsive before and quarreled with the King of North Korea and Liu Chenglong. Now the kings and ministers of North Korea must have complained to His Majesty. It would be okay if the war went smoothly, but since the recapture of Wangjing, I The army's siege of several seaside town fortresses did not go well, and the troops suffered a lot of casualties. Now they can only stand in confrontation. Doesn't this substantiate the accusation that the troops have self-respect?" Li Rusong looked a little annoyed.

"That's not the case. After all, we have won all the way. How can the court blame us?"

"It's hard to say. If the imperial court was really satisfied, it would not send an envoy to North Korea. They say they are envoys, but they are actually imperial envoys. They are just to see who is right and who is wrong in the dispute between me and the North Korean monarchs. But no matter what the outcome of the investigation is, it can Letting the imperial court come to verify this is a big deal in itself. Moreover, the commander of the reinforcements this time is Commander Ma. Commander Ma has been on the battlefield for many years. He is a famous general as famous as his father, and he has been rewarded many times for his contribution to peace. If The imperial court wants to make General Ma the commander-in-chief, and that will go smoothly."

"The imperial court should not change generals on the spot. Moreover, the envoy coming to North Korea this time is Zhang Shidu. Brother, why don't you listen..." Li Rubai was about to continue, but was interrupted by Li Rusong's gesture.

"Don't mention this matter again. Zhang Shidu just told us not to rush into the wave battle, and didn't say anything else."

"Brother, Rubai made a mistake. What should we do now? Do you want me to invite Prime Minister Liu to come out and make peace?" Li Rubai was also a little anxious.

"No, if you bow to the North Koreans now, isn't that saying that I, the Ming Dynasty, are wrong? No matter, these days, all ministries are strictly ordered to do a good job in training and maintain military discipline. Anyone who dares to violate military discipline will be severely punished."

The reinforcements of the Ming Dynasty entered North Korea. The further south they went, the more traces of war could be seen. The burned cottages, the new cemeteries on the roadside, and the common people shivering when they saw the army passing by, all show how tragic the trauma of war has been in this land that was not considered fertile.

The army marched in an orderly manner, and Zhang Xiao's riding skills were much better than when he traveled to and from Ningxia, so this time Zhang Xiao chatted with the people around him while riding on horseback.

"Changwen, are you familiar with the geography of North Korea?" Zhang Xiao asked Xiang Chen Shu.

"The villain has also done business between Liaodong and North Korea several times, and is quite familiar with the situation in North Korea." Chen Shu replied.

"Just observe, are the water, soil and weather in North Korea suitable for growing the sweet potatoes you brought back, as well as potatoes, corn, peppers and other crops?"

"According to a villain, the weather in North Korea is similar to that in the Central Plains. Since these things can be grown, there is no reason why they can't be grown in North Korea." Chen Shu analyzed.

"Then I'll trouble you to plant these crops in North Korea. As we marched all the way past Pyongyang City to the south, there were too many abandoned fields along the way. I'm afraid it's too late to plant rice and wheat now, so why not use this land? Try to plant some new crop seeds. Otherwise, if famine breaks out behind North Korea, our army will really be in danger. Changwen, your responsibility is quite important."

"The little man will definitely handle the errands of the adults."

"You prepare first. When the time comes, you have to inform the North Korean monarchs and ministers about this matter. After all, this is someone else's land. You can't plant other things on someone else's fields without the owner's permission." After the day's march of the army, When they started setting up camp, Zhang Xiao was sitting in the tent packing his things when Lu Zhang walked in from outside the tent.

"My boss, Shuerhaqi from the Ministry of State Development wants to discuss matters with you."

"Oh, since it's General Shu, please hurry up and invite me."

After a while, Shuerhaqi came into the tent with a half-grown boy.

"General Shu, who is this young master?" Zhang Xiao asked.

"This is my eldest brother's eldest son Chu Ying. Chu Ying has not met Zhang Shidu yet."

"Oh, it's true that a tiger father has no dog son." Zhang Xiao praised him when he saw that this half-grown boy was tall and strong.

"Chu Ying pays homage to Zhang Shidu." Chu Ying saluted Zhang Xiao.

"Chu Ying, Zhang Shidu and I have something serious to talk about. You go and wait outside the tent first." Shuerhaqi ordered.

Chu Ying said goodbye and left.

"General Shu, are you in my tent for something urgent?"

"I just want to ask, if our army goes to aid North Korea this time and captures the heads of Japanese people, can they go to the imperial court to receive the reward? If they capture the weapons and baggage of Japanese people, can they take them back to the Jianzhou Ministry?"

"How to calculate the number of heads lost depends on the standard of military exploits on Admiral Li's side. All armies entering the court are under the control of Admiral Li, and the reinforcements led by Mr. Ma are no exception. As for the capture, generally speaking, it is What each army gets is the spoils of war for each army, but it also depends on what it is. If the jade seal of the Joseon Kingdom is captured, it still has to be returned to the Joseon court, and the court will also give other awards. You guys What kind of trophies are you trying to bring back to Jianzhou?"

"Don't dare, don't dare. If our troops capture the jade seal of Korea, we will naturally hand it over to the imperial soldiers for disposal. But I heard that the Japanese are good at using fire guns. If our army captures the fire guns, we can Can’t you bring back the Jianzhou tribe?”

"Whether this firecracker can be taken back to Jianzhou, I'd better ask General Ma, or wait until the team arrives at Wangjing and then ask Admiral Li. General Shu, you and Admiral Nu and Admiral Li are also acquainted. Right. If you don’t know someone well, Zhang can help introduce him."

"Of course Shuerhaqi knew Admiral Li. I remember back then... Forget it, I won't mention the past. Zhang Shidu, can you ask me one more thing? My eldest nephew Chu Ying is just from a mountainous background, not I know the words of the sage, but I have little knowledge. Zhang Shidu is very knowledgeable. Can he take Chu Ying with him as a follower? Otherwise, this kid Chu Ying really follows me into the battle. If something goes wrong, I will not be able to fight with me. My eldest brother told me."

"Oh, it's nothing. I saw Chu Ying just now. He is quite smart and capable. If he doesn't mind doing odd jobs here, I won't have any problem." Zhang Xiao agreed.

"Thank you Zhang Shidu."

(End of this chapter)