The Jurchen cavalry entering the court was Xiao Ruxun's handiwork, and he was the one who made it happen.
After going to the Ministry of War for questioning that day, Shi Xing summoned Xiao Ruxun twice and had an in-depth discussion with Xiao Ruxun about the situation in Korea, and then they discussed Daming's strategy for dispatching troops. After discussion, Xiao Ruxun proposed to replace the Liaodong cavalry with the Jianzhou Jurchen cavalry in Korea. He believed that the Jianzhou Jurchen cavalry were not Han Chinese, and they were not of the same race. No matter what they said, they could not be trusted. No matter what their plans were, consuming the Jurchen's troops would be beneficial to Daming.
Shi Xing was deeply convinced, and then he asked what if the Jurchen had a trick up their sleeves?
Xiao Ruxun said that Li Rusong could be the Jurchen cavalry's main general. With the relationship between Li Rusong and Nurhaci, even if Nurhaci had any evil ideas, he would be suppressed by Li Rusong and obediently sacrifice himself for Daming. They could use the Japanese military power to severely weaken their strength. The Jurchen had been rising recently, and the court had to guard against it.
This sentence made Shi Xing make up his mind. When the news came that Korea did not allow the Jurchen to enter the country to fight, Shi Xing sternly refused and wrote to the emperor to explain the pros and cons. Zhu Yijun then issued an imperial edict to reprimand the king of Korea.
Sending troops to Korea was a foregone conclusion. No matter how many of the court officials thought that this war would continue the struggle for the foundation of the country, they could not stop Daming's footsteps. This huge war machine rumbled and turned. For a moment, messengers were sent everywhere, and the recruiting ground was bustling. A large number of soldiers with different moods headed for the battlefield.
Zhu Yijun ordered Xiao Ruxun to go to Korea as soon as possible to meet with Secretary Song Yingchang and the king of Korea to discuss the war.
The commander of the Eastern Punitive Expedition, Xiao Ruxun, had become the hottest topic of discussion. This time, the Emperor had added the two words "Tidu" to his title. His official title was "Tidu Commander of Jiliao, Baoding, Shandong, and the Sea Defense Against the Pirates". Ever since the Yongle Reign of the Hongwu Dynasty, the Great Ming Dynasty had never given military officials the title of Tidu.
He was the first person to enjoy this kind of honor after the decline of the military generals. He was the minister who made the greatest contribution in pacifying the rebellion in Ningxia, and now he was going to Korea to fight against the arrogant and insufferably arrogant neighbor Japan. People were full of curiosity toward this young commander.
But no matter how curious they were, there was no time to observe their idol. After receiving the emperor's order, Xiao Ruxun hurriedly prepared for a day and then set off.
What prompted him to leave the capital so decisively was the excitement of being a general for the first time, but it was also because he was about to have a child and hoped to return from the war before the child was born. Yes, after three months of hard work, Yang Caiyun was found to be a month pregnant at the beginning of August.
Xiao Ruxun's plan to have a child was a great success. At the time, Xiao Ruxun was so happy that he couldn't even speak. His father ran to his deceased mother's grave and cried for a long time. Then he wrote letters to his three elder brothers, severely reprimanding them for having a child later than their younger brother and for being unfilial.
It was also for this reason that Xiao Ruxun packed up and left without a second word after receiving the summons. Before she left, she promised that she would return before the child was born. According to conventional calculations, the child was conceived at the beginning of July, which meant that the latest the child would be born would be April of the 21st year of the Wanli calendar. Although this battle was not difficult to fight, the things that Xiao Ruxun wanted to do were not ordinary.
He had already received the news that Li Rusong had almost immediately rushed to Liaodong after obtaining the right to fight. According to his analysis, he should go to his childhood friend Nurhachi to mobilize troops. Xiao Ruxun also decided to rush to Liaoyang, Liaodong as soon as possible to meet with Secretary Song Yingchang.
Song Yingchang was nominally the commander-in-chief of this war, but because he was a general with a title of nobility, as long as he was a bit tough, he would have a considerable degree of command and autonomy in the war, just like the original Li Rusong.
As far as he knew, Song Yingchang wasn't a soft-spoken peacemaker, but an equally unyielding warmonger. Xiao Ruxun didn't mind being a little more courteous to him, as long as he didn't hold the traditional view of military generals. If that was the case, Xiao Ruxun wouldn't be afraid of going against him. Xiao Ruxun, who had a noble title, wasn't afraid of fighting with civil officials.
His strategic intention was to completely keep this group of about 200,000 Japanese soldiers and young adults in Korea. Judging from the current situation, it was unrealistic for him to propose crossing the sea to completely destroy Japan. He could only do his best to destroy the effective forces of Japan and make it chaotic. At the very least, he had to make it breathless within 20 years. In this way, he would have enough time to expand the territory on the Ming-Burma battlefield.
On the way to Liaodong, Xiao Ruxun constantly dealt with the courier station staff along the way, asking about the local climate. These locals who had lived there for a long time said that in recent years, it had been getting colder and colder. In the past, spring had started very early, and winter had also come quite late. However, they did not know when it started, but winter came early and spring came late, and it was especially cold. Just like this September, it was still a little hot in the past, but this year it was already a little cold.
However, they all said that it was not a big deal. Liaodong had always been bitter cold, and the population was small. The crops were harvested once a year. As long as it was not winter for six or seven months, Liaodong could survive.
Liaodong was not afraid. The fertile black soil could naturally support this small population. However, the Central Plains was densely populated. Most of the crops could only be harvested once a year, and very few crops could be harvested twice a year. They were supported by the food production that maintained the line of life and death. The Little Ice Age was rapidly approaching. If left unchecked, in at most twenty years, a terrible cold would descend on this land. The food production in the Central Plains would plummet, and there might even be no harvest. The Great Ming Dynasty would still not be able to escape that predestined doom.
At that time, the Daming Disaster would be difficult to escape.
He did not know if there were potatoes in the land of China now.
Xiao Ruxun sped up to Liaoyang.
On the tenth day of September, Xiao Ruxun rushed to Liaoyang day and night. On the way, he met several messengers who came to ask about Xiao Ruxun's schedule. They were under Song Yingchang's banner. Song Yingchang urged Xiao Ruxun to speed up the journey for some unknown reason.
As soon as he entered Liaoyang, Xiao Ruxun rushed to the Governor's Office to pay a visit to Song Yingchang. Before arriving, Xiao Ruxun was ready. If Song Yingchang wanted him to pay a visit according to the so-called rules, he would definitely barge in and not give him a good look, just like Li Rusong. According to the rules, if Xiao Ruxun wanted to pay a visit to Song Yingchang, he should first put on his armor, kowtow at the door, and then go out to change his clothes before talking.
Wasn't this a disgrace? He was already a nobility, yet he still tormented people like this. It was simply humiliating, so Xiao Ruxun would never accept it. But what he did not expect was that there was actually an old servant waiting for him at the door of the Governor's Office. When he saw a general rushing over, he hurriedly went forward to pay his respects. "General, are you Xiao Pinglu?"
Xiao Ruxun dismounted, threw the horsewhip to the guard, and replied, "Yes."
"That's great!" The old servant bowed again and said, "My Lord Governor has been waiting for you for a long time."
Xiao Ruxun asked curiously, "Lord Governor has been waiting for me for a long time? What do you mean? "
"Please." The old servant led Xiao Ruxun into the mansion. "My master is sick."
"Sick?"
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