On the 10th day of the first month of June, Li Yu braved the rain to rush back to Hua, and immediately convened the officials to discuss the matter - the current situation was urgent, the main force of the Jin army was assembling at the Xilamulun River, and was marching westward, and the Great Commander's Office had issued a ****** to the eastern Xingtai, and at the same time ordered the other guards to start preparing for battle.

"Enemy situation, my feelings, tell me immediately!" As soon as Li Yu sat down, he asked a question - Liu Zhilun, the officials of the Great Commander's Office, and the military affairs of the Zanhua were waiting in the lobby, and Zhang Shi'an and Fan Erxi were also called to report the military situation.

Zhang Shi'an, the governor of the Titang Division, waved his hand at Fan Erxi, this guy ran back at the end of May, and was promoted to the head of the Titang Division with the merit of forming the two Titang Institutes of Shengjing and Ulan Hada.

"Great commander, this time it is still Jin Khan who leads the troops, known as 100,000 troops, in fact, it is bragging, they can't make up so many people, and more than 40,000 people are killed by the Zhushen Eight Banners, although there are many Mongolians and Han people in the Eight Banners in the past two years, but they are far worse than the old Zhushen, Jin Khan also made up two banners of the Han Army, the Wuzhen Chao Ha Army of the Green Banner, and the Liaodong Han Army of the Green Banner of the soap, but only 10,000 people, plus the people of the Mongolian foreign domain, the Jin State has at most 100,000 soldiers, and it would be good to throw away the 70,000 or 80,000 left behind, oh, Tong Yang died the year before last, The Wuzhen Chao Hazakh army can't go far with the cumbersome Hongyi cannon, and it must have to stay at home. ”

Fan Erxi said with foaming stars, Zhang Shi'an was impatient, pushed him away, and said seriously: "Great commander, Lao Fan's years of eating and cooking are too short, or his subordinates, a few days ago, Titang Division arrested more than a dozen Jin State spies in the old capital and Datong, and his subordinates have been interrogated, and the situation of Jin State they confessed is consistent with what Lao Fan said, and Ulan Hada Titang reported the Jin army assembly, the Jin army invaded west with about 80,000 people, but it is strange that half of the people have no war horses, but they are equipped with vehicles, Among them are Kong Youde, Geng Zhongming, and Shang Kexi's Liaodong Han army, which is not like they are here to fight us, but they want to go to the Ming Kingdom to rob, please ask the commander to investigate it. ”

Li Huai nodded and said: "Jin Guohan is more strange this time, the two countries started a war but first drove Fan Erxi back to report the news, and also claimed to protect our merchants, and the troops are also seriously insufficient, which people can't bite us at all." ”

"Recruit 20,000 cavalry, and I'll go and collect them." Zhao Ji was a little eager to try.

"Hanmin, Fengzhou plus Chahar has a population of 400,000, men, women and children can fight, quickly order the recruitment of men and horses, we will transfer 100,000 men, the Jin army is coming from afar, people are sleepy and horses are scarce and food and grass are scarce, and they will definitely win the battle." Liu Zhilun also said urgently.

Ortai and Li Fugui glanced at Liu Zhilun, the tricks played by Jin Guohan couldn't hide them, the 80,000 Jin army couldn't replenish grain, grass and ordnance from thousands of miles away, and it was estimated that Liaodong was too poor to take it out, so it would be strange if he didn't go to grab a handful of Ming Guo first, I am afraid that he would be powerless to fight Fengzhou, Liu Zhilun obviously realized this, so he instigated Li Yu to take out his old book and fight with Jin Jun.

"The autumn harvest is imminent, and Fengzhou is powerless to fight." Yun Rong said lightly, and Cai Ruxun, the secretary in charge, immediately nodded yes.

Liu Zhilun sneered and said: "The ambition of the wolf son of Dongyu, when they enter the customs and rob enough, I am afraid that they will fight Fengzhou when they turn around, and they can't hide from it, so it is better to take advantage of their weakness to defeat them in one fell swoop." ”

"Master, we all understand the truth, but the year is not good, it only rained in June this year, and the reduction of crop production is a foregone conclusion, and we have spread the big burden of Chahar again, the court does not give money and food, and it is a problem to eat in the future, how can we have the spare strength to fight a big war!" Na Mu'er shook his head and said to Liu Zhilun.

"Then seeing that the East Captives are on the side, SX is broken, and you don't have a good life!" Liu Zhilun got angry, turned around and yelled at Li Yu again, "Li Hanmin, Hudun Tuhan has repeatedly violated my side wall, and the defeated soldiers deserve it, why do you contain his people?" I heard that he also crowned you as the great Jinong of the Han Dynasty, and gave you the name Chechen Baturu, what kind of mess is this, if you dare to accept it, it is a betrayal of the court, Hudun Tuhan's wife and only son are in your hands, immediately hand them over to the court, and they must not be harbored and shielded. ”

Li Yu was still whispering to Du Wenhuan on the map as if he hadn't heard it, and Ortai snorted and said: "We are not uncommon with Chahar Khan's official position and honorific title, it doesn't matter if we accept it or not, but none of his wife, children and family will be handed over to the imperial court, you don't know the grassland, that is tantamount to declaring that you are the public enemy of all Mongolia, but if the imperial court is willing to accept and settle the Chahar people, we can't ask for it." ”

"If the court decrees, you dare to resist?" Liu Zhilun was furious.

"The court is a fart, if you have the ability, you will send troops to rob it." Zhang Mengcun, who participated in the politics of the Great Commander's Office, was also on fire, and the governor of the imperial court was too rampant, and he didn't look at whose territory it was.

"Don't get muddy, you don't change your thief nature, do you still want to rebel?" Liu Zhilun pointed at Zhang Mengcun and shouted angrily.

This poked Zhang Mengcun's sore spot, and he sneered at each other without showing weakness, the two quarreled, and their own kind also jumped out to support, and then Bi Lige and a group of Mongolian officials also got involved, and the lobby became more and more chaotic, Li Yu was impatient, raised his head and patted the table, and everyone stopped arguing.

"Chahar Khan is dead, the merits and demerits are a thing of the past, there is no need to entangle them anymore, I think the emperor will not be difficult for orphans and widows, this matter is so decided, the mother and son are raised by me, I see who dares to touch them!" The enemy currently has something to do, so let's listen to the old commander explain the battle strategy first. Li Yu said to everyone with a cold gaze.

Du Wenhuan stood up and preached at the map hanging on the wall: The purpose of the Jin army's westward invasion is not clear, but they will definitely enter the customs and loot, otherwise they will have no chance of winning a battle with our army if they cannot solve the problem of provisions. The possible strategy of the Jin army is to contain our army with a part of the force, and use the main force to break the Ming army, and obtain sufficient supplies, and then turn around and attack us, but this also gives us various opportunities to break through. Therefore, our army's strategy is to first hold the line from the Butong River to Weining Haizi, and resolutely resist the enemy outside the borders, as long as the main force of the Jin army does not cross this line, at least until the autumn harvest is completed, our army will not seek a decisive battle with it, but if the Jin army divides its troops, the main force of our army must go all out to first defeat the enemy in front of it, and then quickly seize the border wall to the south to block the Jin army's northward advance, and the Jin army has no choice but to retreat westward in a hurry.

Du Wenhuan finally said: "The strength of the Jin army is strong, and the Ming army is vulnerable, the Jin army will be like a bamboo when it enters the pass, but our army's food and salary are not enough, and it is a great achievement to defend Fengzhou alone, and we must not attack rashly." ”

After listening to this, Liu Zhilun was so angry that he stomped his feet away, of course he knew what virtue the Ming Army in the Guannai was, but he couldn't see death without saving it, aren't you called poor, go back and write a chapter to ask for food and salary, you have to be forced to send troops.

The meeting continued, and after discussing some details, Li Yu decided that he and Terig would lead the main force into Xinghewei, Zhao Ji and Ma Guangyuan would stay behind and naturalize, and the old marshals Du Wenhuan and Bai Xianzhi would sit in the camp of the Barbarian Mountain, and at the same time ordered the requisition of the reserve soldiers of each prefecture guard into the camp, and the whole army was expanded according to the full strength of the system, and each battalion was organized into two battalions of the main army and the deputy army, with 1,000 people in each battalion.

"What about the Chahar tribes of the Golden Lotus River? It is impossible for them to stop the Jin army. According to the deployment of the Great Commander's Office, they should immediately retreat westward when they encounter danger, but they are still undecided - Li Yu was forced to consolidate the restructuring with a knife, and as soon as he left, the nobles made a comeback on the back foot, and fought with the elected officials in a miasma, and Tuba couldn't hold down the field, so he asked Liu Xingzuo to mediate a few times, and the results were not great, and now there are 10,000 people in the past, and I don't know what to do.

"Great Commander, there are people in Chahar who collaborate with the enemy, and when Titangsi goes to arrest the spies of the Jin Kingdom, there are always people who make things difficult for us, and they openly shield the spies." Zhang Shi'an leaned over and whispered.

At the beginning, he was still soft-handed, and he didn't drive away all the nobles of Chahar, leaving the remnants of the scum, this is a lesson, it is right to kill the killers in Ordos, and only by scaring the nobles away can the common people be included in Fengzhou-Li Yu shook his head with a wry smile, sighed and said: "Forget it, notify the eastern Xingtai to send someone to pick it up, those who are willing to go with us are welcome, if you don't want to, just do it, the thirty or forty thousand people in Garma are still on the way, and they are walking east along Daqingshan, and inform them to temporarily go to Wuchuan to guard the thousand households to receive supplies, After the battle, I will go to Jinlian River. ”

The major military affairs have been decided, and everyone has discussed the autumn harvest for a while, which is the most important thing, and there is no food in their hands to always be worried, even if they want to make a big fight, they have to wait for the grain to be harvested, and the meeting will not end until dark.

When the meeting ended, Li Yu stopped Du Wenhuan and invited him into his study alone, the two haven't seen each other for a long time, Li Yu has always felt a little guilty about removing the old marshal's Grand Commander's Mansion from participating in politics, Zhao Ji is easy to do, this guy has never liked to get involved in government affairs, that title of a servant is a trouble for him, he will complain a few words, and he may not be able to ask for it in his heart, but the old man is a person with face, Li Yu feels that he still has to make amends in person.

Li Yu helped the old man sit down, bowed down and was about to speak, Du Wenhuan stopped him, and said with a kind face: "Yuzi, I know what you want to say, but you don't have to say it, I am a person who has risen and fallen several times in the Ming officialdom, do you still care about this matter?" I still have this mind, and besides, you also promoted me to the official rank, in addition to you, the governor, there are four people in Fengzhou who are the same governors, and they have enough face. ”

Du Wenhuan couldn't help laughing, pulled Li Yu to sit down and said: "It doesn't matter if I don't have a political officer, but my thoughts will not change, Fengzhou can only develop in the future to Guannai, and fight south to Huguang, otherwise a food problem alone can crush Fengzhou, don't think that you can make money doing business, the drought in the north year after year, where will there be no famine in Zhili, Shanxi, and SDHN, I dare to say that it won't take long, you can't buy food if you have money, what should you do then?" I watched the people around me starve to death one by one! ”

"It won't be like this, I can buy food, I will definitely be able to do it, the Ming Kingdom is too strong, we can't fight against the imperial court at all, if I don't rebel, it will shed a lot, a lot of blood." Li Yu shook his head with a pale face and said.

"The Ming Kingdom is not as powerful as you say, a court supported by the traitorous party and corrupt officials, no matter how magnificent it looks on the surface, its interior has long been rotten, as long as you kick it a few times, it will collapse, and this is how the thieves and thieves do it, so you don't have to rebel at all, they will naturally send the opportunity to you."

Du Wenhuan lowered his voice and continued: "Yuzi, you believe what I say, the number of Daming Qi is really exhausted, and it is the moment for the heroes to compete for the deer, but they are all sinister people, only you are the one who can save the world, we have the strongest Mongolian iron cavalry in the world, Yulin soldiers, patient development for a few years, first find an opportunity to take SX and then enter the HN and go straight to Huguang, with food in hand, and then wave the army to the northwest, half of the country is in my hands, and the destruction of Daming is also between raising his hand." ”

Li Yu looked at Du Wenhuan in surprise for a long time, then lowered his head and whispered: "I can't save the people of the world, I can be content if I can let the people of Fengzhou live, and the fight for the world is still done by others." ”

Du Wenhuan was a little angry, and slapped Li Yu is face: "You, you are simply unambitious, the vertical is not enough to plan, forget it, it doesn't matter if you don't want to do it, when the time comes, the people of Fengzhou will force you to do it, this is the destiny of heaven to let you go!" ”

The old handsome man left angrily, Li Yu touched his head and shouted, am I obviously a hunting and farming, I haven't read a few books well, where have I done a lot of things, why are there always people encouraging me to destroy the Ming Dynasty, and I am not stupid, so I won't pick this head!

As soon as the meeting of the Grand Commander's Mansion ended, Fan Yongdou rushed into the Fengzhou Council, Li Jianji, Sun Tingyao, Shen Shoulian and more than a dozen business leaders were waiting anxiously in the living room on the third floor

"Tell me, what news did you hear?"

"I didn't go to the meeting, so I know everything," Fan Yongdou broke free from Li Jianji and said mysteriously, "I asked my Erxi nephew to inquire, and this kid is quite strict-mouthed, and only revealed one thing - the Fengzhou Army does not plan to enter the customs." ”

"How can this be, it's just raising them for nothing, taking advantage of those fools to build slaves to enter the customs and loot, they should grab more territory!" Sun Tingyao was very dissatisfied-the merchants' ideas were different, the common people only wanted to keep their own land and pastures, while the merchants wanted to make the business bigger and stronger, and the larger the sphere of influence controlled by Fengzhou, the better it would be for them.

"That's it, we pay the money and pay taxes, but we don't even have a chance to speak, we die! This time, we must do a few things to show our faces, so that the Grand Commander's Mansion will not dare to underestimate us. Xu Hengchen, a large grain merchant in Jinan, said.

"Lao Xu is right, the Council should also participate in the military and political affairs of Fengzhou, we can't give them money in vain," Sun Tingyao nodded, turned his face and pointed at the businessmen angrily and said, "It's all your fault for the endless quarrels, are those local snakes easy to provoke?" If we give them some benefits and set up the Council as soon as possible, we can force the Great Commander's Mansion to send troops, and we are afraid that we will not be able to make money with the territory in hand, Ji Ming, don't you say? ”

Shen Tingyang glanced at Sun Tingyao and didn't speak, he spent a lot of time and Zhao Ji, Sun Fuhu and a few big horse thieves to discuss seriously, and compiled the rules of procedure of the council with the rules of authentic horse thieves and pirates, and the public assembly after the beginning of the spring also approved the establishment of the council, and many enthusiastic representatives of the public also enthusiastically joined, but the businessmen planned to monopolize the power and do everything possible to restrict others, Zhang Mengcun, Wang Fang, and Bi Lige were provoked, although the agricultural and pastoral association did not have much money, but the land was familiar with the connections, With the rules of procedure compiled by Shen Tingyang, they preemptively set up local councils in each prefecture - the businessmen immediately panicked, according to the rules, the councillors of the council should be appointed by the guards of each prefecture, and the people first controlled the place, and they might elect the councillors one day, and they were afraid that they would be driven out of the council at that time, and some businessmen had secretly defected to the peasant and pastoral associations in order to get a councillor. Sun Tingyao is now complaining about others, but at the beginning, he tried his best to encourage everyone to reject the poor ghosts of the peasant and pastoral associations, and desperately installed his own people in the council, in the final analysis, he still wanted to use the council as a step to realize his dream of becoming a general of the army.

"There is no need to mention the past, Ji Ming will go to the Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Association to talk, just give them a few more councilors, we don't pay for it, and the local council can't be opened, they will definitely accept it when they see it." Li Jianji waved his hand and said, he is different from Sun Tingyao, who is anxious to find an errand, Li Fugui values him very much, and has promised to promote him to be the minister of the Great Commander's Mansion in the future, with the future of entering the cabinet to worship the prime minister, Li Jianji wants to make contributions even more, and pulled the topic back, "Everyone, I am in charge of the affairs of the branch bureau, I know the family background of Fengzhou best, it is not difficult to defeat Jiannu to keep our industry, but the matter of sending troops to grab land in the customs is not in a hurry, everyone is on the boat of Fengzhou, and the important thing in front of me is to do a few things with dignity, Let everyone know that we are also working for Toyosu, which is very good for everyone's future! ”

The merchants nodded again and again, racking their brains to think of a way, some offered to help pay money, some offered to donate grain, grass, and ordnance, and some offered to send the merchant army out to help in the war. Li Jianji felt that these were not enough, and did not fully show the strength of the businessman, he glanced at Shen Shoulian who was sitting on the side drinking tea - this guy is the smartest, the three giant businessmen are the weakest with his strength, but the business is the best, especially the partnership with Wu Langha and the opening of the silver banknote shop, the two tricks of comparing everyone else, the former let his business pass unimpeded, and the sphere of influence of the former Qin and Jin merchants was scattered, and the latter is even more amazing, the silver banknote bank not only lends money like a money bank and an account bureau, He also used small favors to fool the common people into saving money, and his strength increased exponentially, and now other merchants have also learned from him to open a silver banknote shop.

"Brother Yongnian, you have the most ideas, can you give me advice?" Li Jianji asked.

Shen Tingyang lazily took a sip of tea and said: "I'm not as rich as you, I can only do some small things, Fengzhou silver banknote store has just opened a new business, as long as it is a registered military household in Fengzhou, we provide a loan to buy the military battle built by Xuande Iron Works, the loan can be repaid in installments, if you don't want to buy it, you can also lease it, just return it after the war, we only charge some rent, no way, the business is not easy to do." ”