ATPnovel Chapter 093 Concession
Chapter 093 Concession
Yang He's life was very difficult.
He was forced into the position of Governor-General of the Three Border Regions by people in the court.
If the Ming Dynasty were the same as it was a decade or two ago, Yang He becoming the Governor-General of the Three Borders would be acceptable. But the Ming Dynasty of today is no longer the same as it was back then.
After the disastrous defeat at the Battle of Sarhu, the Ming Dynasty's elite forces in Liaodong were almost completely wiped out.
After the bloody battle of Hunhe, the last two strong armies of the Ming Dynasty capable of field battles—the Zhejiang Army and the White-Spear Army—were completely annihilated. The situation in Liaodong became extremely precarious, and the entire territory north of Shanhaiguan was basically lost.
During the Tianqi era, the late emperor appointed the imperial tutor, the elder Sun Chengzong, to oversee the military campaign in Ji and Liao, and to resolve the Liaodong war.
In light of the situation at the time, Lord Sun devised a strategy of advancing step by step, building fortifications, and pressing forward in Liaodong. Although this strategy was extremely costly and required substantial financial support, its emphasis on steady progress yielded significant results.
Sun Chengzong spent several years building cities and rebuilding his military in Liaodong, gradually recovering the lost territory. But just when everything was going smoothly, Wei Zhongxian, jealous of Sun Chengzong's abilities, slandered him to the emperor, resulting in Sun Chengzong being transferred back to the capital, and Liaodong being taken over by Gao Di, the then Minister of War.
After Gao Di took charge of Liaodong, although there was a so-called "Great Victory at Ningyuan" on the surface, his actions in Liaodong were completely opposite to those of Sun Chengzong.
Gao Di directly overturned the strategies and tactics set by Sun Chengzong, causing the situation in Liaodong to deteriorate rapidly. By the time Emperor Tianqi passed away, the situation in Liaodong had shifted from the proactive stance under Sun Chengzong to a passive one, and the situation was becoming increasingly dire.
After Emperor Chongzhen ascended the throne, given that the Liaodong problem remained unresolved, he boldly appointed Yuan Chonghuan, who had returned to his hometown, and entrusted him with the important task of supervising the troops in Liaodong.
Emperor Chongzhen trusted Yuan Chonghuan implicitly and firmly believed in Yuan's "five-year plan to pacify Liaodong." To completely resolve the Liaodong conflict, Emperor Chongzhen provided both silver and grain as needed, sparing no expense. Even when the court's finances were strained, he tightened his belt to fully support Yuan Chonghuan in leading the Liaodong campaign.
For these reasons, the additional taxes and levies imposed in Shaanxi came about.
Yang He was in the court at the time and strongly opposed this matter. He knew very well that the situation in the Ming Dynasty had been very bad in recent years, especially the severe drought in the northwest, which had brought the people to the brink of despair. Under these circumstances, instead of providing disaster relief, the court was increasing taxes and levies—wasn't this forcing people to their deaths?
Unfortunately, Yang He was of low social standing and his voice carried little weight. Furthermore, he was not a member of the Donglin Party, and he repeatedly wrote letters criticizing the political views put forward by the Donglin Party and attacking various unrealistic policies of the Donglin Party. He was outspoken and stubborn, which offended many members of the Donglin Party.
For this reason, when rebellions broke out in various parts of Shaanxi and the rebel army grew stronger, everyone avoided the idea of going to Shaanxi to serve as the governor of the three border regions. Instead, they recommended Yang He, who had never led troops or fought in battles, to take over the position. Their intentions are obvious.
Although Yang He had never fought in a war, he still took on the position of Governor-General of the Three Border Regions. His actions were for the public good and for the sake of the Ming Dynasty.
The problem is that his title of Governor-General of the Three Border Regions sounds very powerful, implying that not only was the entire Shaanxi province under his control, but the border troops of Gansu and Ningxia were also under his command. However, the reality is quite different. Shaanxi today is, to say the least, nearly half of it rotten.
Rebellions were erupting everywhere, with uprisings breaking out in the northeast and central regions. Yang He, as the Governor-General of the Three Border Regions, had neither elite troops nor funds. How could a mere civil official like him possibly quell the rebellion in Shaanxi?
Yang He was neither foolish nor a bookworm. His decision to adopt a policy of appeasement was driven by the actual situation in Shaanxi at the time.
If you don't have a fighting army, nor sufficient funds and supplies, who has the ability to wipe out the various bandit groups in Shaanxi?
Let alone Yang He, even if you invited the retired Elder Sun Chengzong, it probably wouldn't work. A skilled cook can't cook without rice. Under the current circumstances, Yang He's most important task is to stabilize the situation and proceed cautiously. Based on this objective, Yang He adopted a strategy combining appeasement and encirclement.
In his view, these so-called rebel armies were nothing more than a bunch of peasants who couldn't survive. As the Governor-General of the Three Border Regions, he had the Ming Dynasty court and the current emperor standing behind him.
If these rebels are given a way out, a chance to abandon their evil ways and join the cause, then the probability of them being recruited is very high. Once some rebels accept the offer of pacification, Yang He can use this method to solve some of the more pressing problems.
Stabilize the enemy, even utilize them, and then calmly mobilize troops to specifically eliminate those stubborn rebels. In short, it's a strategy of dividing and conquering, using a strategy of splitting the enemy into two factions.
Yang He never expected that, just when he thought things would go smoothly, especially after he took the initiative to pardon Gao Yingxiang and others and offer them generous official positions, the other party would actually make exorbitant demands and turn around and propose those three conditions to him.
These three outrageous conditions enraged Yang He, who launched into a tirade of curses. For a moment, he considered directly refusing the offer or even deploying troops to deal with Gao Yingxiang. But after calming down, he forcefully suppressed his anger.
Those who are in the same boat know their own situation best. Yang He was well aware of the current situation in Shaanxi and whether he, as the Governor-General of the Three Border Regions, truly had the ability to directly eliminate these rebel armies. If he had enough leverage and the court's support was strong enough, why would he resort to appeasement to solve the problem? Wasn't the reason for appeasement simply a desperate measure due to insufficient troops and lack of funds and supplies?
Yang He glanced down at the letter in his hand again, pondered for a long time, and finally gritted his teeth and made a decision.
"Fine! Fine, Gao Yingxiang! I'll agree to your terms for now, what's wrong with that? Once I'm free to deal with Wang Jiayin, I'll make sure I get my revenge!"
With this thought in mind, Yang He immediately got up, went to the side, ground ink, picked up a brush, and wrote a reply to Qiao Daonan.
In the letter, Yang He informed Qiao Daonan that he could accept Gao Yingxiang's request.
As for rewards, there was no problem with Gao Yingxiang being appointed as a deputy general, and he could also grant the commanders of his subordinates the title of commander, the hereditary centurion title, and even the additional title of vice governor.
As for money and provisions, he agreed to provide 72,000 dan of grain and 240,000 taels of silver.
However, the Ming Dynasty never allocated six months' worth of supplies at once. Since they had accepted the pacification offer, they had to follow the court's rules, and the provisions and salaries could only be paid monthly. In addition, there were historical issues with misappropriation and redemption in military payments, and Gao Yingxiang's proposal of provisions and salaries for 20,000 men was also unrealistic.
In his letter, Yang He stated that, according to the additional titles of Assistant General and Vice Commander-in-Chief, they should only be able to command around three thousand troops. However, given Gao Yingxiang's actual circumstances, he could be granted an exception and the number of troops allowed under the early Ming dynasty.
Gao Yingxiang was allowed to command 10,000 troops, and he would not acknowledge any more than that. In this way, the monthly rations would be 6,000 dan and 20,000 taels of silver. After deducting about 40% for bleaching, damage, and discoloration, the actual amount paid would be 60%, which would amount to 3,600 dan and 12,000 taels of silver.
As for the final point about "obeying orders but not proclamations," Yang He could basically agree. However, Gao Yingxiang needed to guarantee that he would guard the northern border and not allow Wang Jiayin's troops to move north or operate within his controlled area. If any other bandit troops wandered into Gao Yingxiang's territory, Gao Yingxiang had to use his status as an official of the imperial court to suppress and arrest them to ensure local safety.
Finally, Yang He explained that as long as Gao Yingxiang was willing to accept these demands, the imperial court could initially allocate 1,500 dan of grain and 3,000 taels of military pay to Gao Yingxiang as a sign of sincerity. After the formal pacification was completed, the subsequent allocation of grain and pay would be in accordance with regulations; this was the maximum he could accept.
After finishing the letter, Yang Hezai carefully read it over again, then picked up his pen and slightly revised a few sentences before putting it down and letting out a long breath.
As stated in the letter, this was the maximum Yang He could offer. If Gao Yingxiang still refused, there was nothing more he could do.
Moreover, 1,500 dan of grain was manageable; Yang He could scrape together enough. But as for 3,000 taels of military pay, to be honest, Yang He would have to find another way.
You should know that when he came to Shaanxi, Emperor Chongzhen only gave him a small amount of silver. Now, the Shaanxi provincial treasury is empty, and even the rats are starving. There is simply not much silver left for him to use.
Even so, the matter of pacification must be done.
Yang He planned to use this method to appease Gao Yingxiang first. As long as Gao Yingxiang agreed and was willing to be pacified, Yang He would have his own way to handle the rest.
As for the more important aspect, that is Hong Chengchou of Hancheng.
Yang He hoped that Hong Chengchou could stop Wang Jiayin's southward advance in Hancheng. As long as Hancheng was held and the northern gateway to Tongguan was not lost, Yang He could then focus on dealing with Wang Jiayin's forces first.
Once Wang Jiayin is defeated, without this most powerful rebel army, Gao Yingxiang will be powerless even if he remains entrenched in Fugu. At that point, the situation will change drastically, and it will be easy to deal with Gao Yingxiang later.