usatvline Chapter 70 Su Mei's Ambition
Chapter 70 Su Mei's Ambition
Chapter 71 Su Mei's Ambition
Chapter 70 Chen Ying was not arrogant. He dared to go to Shuangchengwei with only 500 soldiers. He only led his own 500-man force. The problem was that the force he actually led was the Dengzhou Army's front naval camp, right naval camp, and part of Pinghai Camp, totaling more than 4,500 men.
A massive fleet of 93 ships, consisting of 65 warships and 28 transport ships, with sails like a forest, departed from Dalu Island under the gloomy sky and headed south.
Standing on the dock, Su Mei, Chen Daniu, Chen Jide, and countless other craftsmen and refugees watched the fleet gradually disappear from sight, their hearts filled with mixed emotions. Their commander was not the kind of civil official who only knew how to smooth things over when things went wrong, but a ruthless character who dared to personally take up arms and confront the enemy.
Although Chen Ying did not have a navy, and even his fleet was rented, he was rich, rich enough to do whatever he wanted in the Ming Dynasty.
Shen Yourong, the current commander of the Dengzhou Navy, is a veteran general who is nearly seventy years old. He has made numerous military achievements and was promoted from a flag officer to commander. He is also a legendary general who has been overlooked by history.
However, Shen Yourong was seriously ill at this time. He was angry. In the second year of Tianqi, due to the discord between the Liaodong government and the pacification commissioner, Guangning fell. The people of Liaodong fled to the coastal islands, hoping day and night for the rescue of the Ming Dynasty navy.
However, Tao Langxian, the governor of Dengzhou and Laizhou at the time, for reasons unknown, ordered: "Anyone who dares to cross the river will be executed." Shen Yourong immediately wrote a letter to protest this and sent dozens of ships to rescue the people. A total of more than 34,000 people from Liaodong were saved.
As a result, Shen Yourong offended not only Tao Langxian, the governor of Dengzhou and Laizhou, but also all the people and merchants in Dengzhou, because these 34,000-plus Liaodong people were like refugees, with nothing but their lives.
These Liaodong people, naturally, were willing to work any kind of hard or tiring job in order to make a living, taking away the jobs that originally belonged to the poor people of Dengzhou, and conflicts often broke out between the two sides.
However, the problem is that these Liaodong people are naturally fierce and brave, and they are practically reckless when they fight. Despite the large number of people in Dengzhou, they often suffer losses. Moreover, because of these people, the security situation in Dengzhou has deteriorated rapidly.
Shen Yourong and the Dengzhou Navy became criminals. More importantly, Shen Yourong had no one above him. As the naval commander-in-chief, he couldn't get the military pay at all. The Dengzhou Navy's five battalions, namely the Left, Right, Front, Outer, and Pinghai, totaling more than 10,000 men, were so poor they were practically urinating blood.
In order to make a living, almost all of the five battalions of the Dengzhou Navy served as cargo fleets for merchants. For the first three voyages, Chen Ying hired the vanguard of the Dengzhou Navy. This time, when he went to Shuangchengwei, he originally wanted to hire the Dengzhou Navy as a transport fleet. Unexpectedly, when they heard that Chen Ying wanted to fight, they volunteered to join the war.
However, to Chen Ying's surprise, the money paid to hire them was pitifully small. Four thousand five hundred naval soldiers only needed nine thousand taels of silver, which meant that each soldier only needed two taels of silver on average.
This price is only equivalent to paying them one month's military pay. Of course, this is only theoretical. In fact, the Dengzhou Navy has not received its pay for thirteen months.
Don't assume that the navy only knows how to operate ships. The Ming Dynasty navy was an all-rounder. They could fight at sea and on land. In particular, the navy's artillerymen were more professional in handling cannons.
Chen Ying had seen poor military households, but he had never seen a navy before. Looking at the sailors, almost all of them shirtless, Chen Ying took a few deep breaths. The officials of the Ming Dynasty were really capable of supporting the navy to the point of being worse off than beggars.
What's even more remarkable is that Dengzhou Town was abolished in the second year of the Chongzhen Emperor's reign, and it was not until the seventh year of Chongzhen's reign that it was reinstated out of necessity. Of course, if there had been no Dengzhou Rebellion in history, Dengzhou Town probably would not have been reinstated at all.
Chen Ying was sitting on a 400-ton warship, which was mostly used as the commander's ship and was equivalent to the flagship of a fleet in later times. The ship was equipped with two guns and had a total length of 89 feet and 5 inches.
Historically, Yuan Chonghuan traveled to Shuangdao Island in a 400-ton warship with over 300 men. On Shuangdao Island, he took the opportunity of inspecting the generals of the Dongjiang Army to kill Mao Wenlong.
At this moment, in the main cabin of Chen Ying's ship, a grand banquet was being held for General Jin, a naval officer of Dengzhou, along with seven captains and five centurions from Shahe Guard.
"You've gone to so much trouble, Lord Chen!"
Zhang Guoxun, the commander of the Dengzhou naval vanguard, was a little embarrassed. They had volunteered for the battle just to earn a living. The commander of Shahewei not only distributed ten catties of grain to each of them, but also some canned mutton.
Honestly, let alone ordinary soldiers, even Zhang Guoxun, a naval adjutant, hasn't eaten any meat other than fish for more than half a year. The problem is, eating too much fish is greasy and fishy.
"No expense is required. You fight for me, so at the very least, I will ensure that all my soldiers are well-fed!"
Upon learning of the situation of the Dengzhou navy, Chen Ying felt great sympathy for the sailors and soldiers, saying, "Besides, it won't cost much money!"
"Although it doesn't cost much per person, for our 4,500 people, that's 45,000 catties of grain, plus mutton—"
"Don't try to save me money!"
Chen Ying's generosity allowed the soldiers of the Dengzhou Navy to enjoy a feast that they might not even be able to afford during the New Year. Their first meal was mutton porridge cooked in canned mutton.
Of course, the rice wasn't new rice, but old rice. Chen Ying used Gan Yanshou's connections to get a lot of cheap military rations from Tianjin. However, the military rations had now formed an alliance of interests.
Chen used the Tianqi-type and Huimin-type seed drills produced by Shahewei to exchange for grain with Gan Yanshou. Each shi of grain cost only six or seven qian of silver, which was far lower than the market price. Otherwise, he would not have been able to support so many people.
The naval soldiers couldn't remember the last time they had eaten such plain white rice porridge. They were all so full that their bellies were round and they were burping.
The Dengzhou naval commanders received a warm welcome and enjoyed a sumptuous meal. Chen Ying also gifted each of them a razor-sharp sword and a set of finely crafted steel armor, making the Dengzhou naval commanders extremely happy.
The Dengzhou navy was too poor. They were often at sea, where the high humidity caused their armor and weapons to rust easily. A piece of armor could last for many years for infantrymen, and it would not be damaged unless it went through a fierce battle.
But the navy is different. Their armor can only last for three to five years at most, provided there is no war. If there is war, it may become tattered after a battle, and may even be beyond repair.
The naval commanders of Dengzhou were well aware of how expensive a set of fine steel armor was. As any general, they knew perfectly well that a set of armor for an ordinary soldier cost twelve taels of silver, but a set of armor for a general could cost over a thousand taels of silver, and even then, it wasn't guaranteed that they could buy it. Now that Chen Yingbai was giving them such excellent armor, how could they not be happy?
"Rest assured, Lord Chen, just watch this battle! Every single one of our brothers in the Left Wing of the Navy is a true hero!"
General Liu Shiqi, the guerrilla commander of the Left Battalion of the Navy, pounded his chest with a thunderous roar: "They dare to offend Lord Chen? They're asking for trouble!"
In a very short time, Chen Ying became close with the naval commanders of Dengzhou, after all, no one wants to mess with a money god.
Seven days later, the fleet rounded the Korean Peninsula and landed on a remote coast in the southeast of Shuangchengwei. According to the intelligence of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, since the Ming Dynasty abolished Shuangchengwei, it had been occupied by Taiji Engtu of the Haidong Jurchen.
The Engetu tribe was small, numbering less than two thousand. In recent years, they had frequently robbed traveling merchants and even launched small-scale attacks on fortified villages outside the border wall. Because of their cunning and ruthlessness, and their swiftness, Nurhaci sent people to besiege the Engetu tribe in the second year of the Tianqi reign, but they were never completely wiped out.
Engtu tribe was not simply the Haidong Jurchens in the traditional sense. The tribe had a diverse population, including Mongols, defeated Ming soldiers, and escaped slaves.
Chen Ying did not directly attack Shuangchengwei City, but continued to travel there as a caravan. He led more than 260 large carts loaded with various goods, and used his 500 retainers as guards, preparing to lure them into attacking.
To facilitate the navy's counter-encirclement, on the first day, he stopped advancing after only about thirty miles from the coast and set up camp on a flat area, serving as a temporary trading post.
On the first day, they stopped for a short time and encountered a small group of knights, but the two sides did not communicate. There were no abnormalities for the first three days. On the morning of the fourth day, they saw dust billowing in the distance. A group of herders, whose tribe was not clearly identified, were driving hundreds of bright-coated and well-muscled horses, as well as a large number of cattle and sheep, toward them.
At this moment, Chen Ying, with over five hundred soldiers, stood ready for battle. When the enemy approached the trading post, about a hundred paces away, they stopped. The leader, a translator fluent in Chinese, said, "Ming people, you need not be afraid. We are from the Xibe tribe, here to trade, not to rob!"
Come here!
Chen Yingcai wasn't afraid of them robbing him. With just over a hundred people, who would rob whom?
"My lord, Engel's forces are already assembling!"
"I'm really afraid they won't dare to come!"
Chen Ying had no doubt that he could achieve a complete victory in this battle; he was just a little worried about Dalu Island.
Dalu Island, Chenjiabao office.
Since Chen Ying left, Su Mei has only slept for two hours for three consecutive nights. Her desk is piled high with account books—
She used to handle the workshop progress reports and material allocation lists with ease, but now she couldn't concentrate on a single word.
Three days ago, the atmosphere on Dalu Island was a bit off. As a former secret agent of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, Su Mei's keen senses and Chen Ying's judgment were very accurate: they were indeed after Dalu Island.
A figure hidden in the shadows reported to Su Mei: "Chief Steward Su, we've investigated everything. The earliest group that colluded was composed of several disillusioned scholars among the refugees of Ningyuan, and also—a few old centurions who were stripped of their power after the merger of Xingzhou Zhongtunwei. They've already held secret meetings at least five times in the Jia-class refugee camp and the Bing-class artisan camp during the evening distribution of rations."
The man in black pulled a crumpled piece of paper from his sleeve, on which were a few lines of crooked writing: "This was found this morning at the foot of the wall of the outhouse in Bingzi Camp. The brothers on night patrol picked it up. We've already asked, and it's a notice copied by a down-on-his-luck scholar surnamed Liao, which he plans to distribute tonight."
Su Mei took the paper and examined it closely by candlelight. The words on it were crude and vulgar, yet each one pierced the heart: "Chen Boying, nominally a commander, is in reality a tyrant! He drives us like cattle and horses, and enslaves the people like servants. We are fed two meals of thin porridge a day, and sleep in drafty thatched huts at night. If we slack off even slightly, we are immediately whipped. In Ningyuan City, the government provides porridge, which we receive without working; on Dalu Island, we toil to the death, yet we still cannot get enough to eat. Alas! The benevolent rule of the court has been ruined to this extent by this scoundrel! What have we, the refugees, done to suffer such torment—"
The note was crumpled into a ball in Su Mei's hand, her expression terrifyingly calm: "Have you investigated Liao Tongsheng from the Bingzi Battalion?"
"It's been investigated. They say he was from Guangping Prefecture in Beizhili. In the first year of the Tianqi reign (1621), he had an affair with his cousin-in-law in Guangping Prefecture and fled to Liaodong. He spent two years in a refugee camp outside Ningyuan City. According to his fellow camp members, he loved writing proclamations while in Ningyuan..."
He spread rumors and was once arrested and imprisoned for half a month by Mao Zanhua for inciting refugees to surround the governor's residence. After his release, he behaved himself for a while, but judging from the style of his posters—a leopard can't change its spots.
Su Mei did not speak immediately.
More than 50,000 people migrated from Ningyuan.
Chen Ying accepted them because Dalu Island needed people, and also because those refugees who were used as pawns should not have starved to death in Ningyuan City.
However, accepting these people would inevitably offend those who used them as pawns. These 50,000 mouths were originally sandbags tied to Sun Chengzong's legs by certain people, tools to drag down the defense of Ningyuan and consume the grain and salary of Liaodong.
Now, Chen Ying has cut the rope with one stroke, blocking others' path, and others will try to take his life.
Su Mei had seen too many of these kinds of schemes in the Embroidered Uniform Guard. On the surface, it was a disturbance by displaced people and a mutiny by soldiers, but in reality, certain people would subtly move their fingers to kill someone with a borrowed knife.
This denunciation tonight is not something a few poor, pedantic scholars could have written behind closed doors.
The subtle nuances in the words struck at the most sensitive spot: by contrasting Ningyuan's unearned wealth with Dalu Island's hard work, the words stirred up the existing laziness and resentment among the refugees. They didn't mention the imperial court, only criticizing Chen Ying, making it difficult for anyone who wanted to intervene. The words were inflammatory but didn't reveal any sign of rebellion. Even if he were arrested, he would only be seen as a reckless madman who dared to criticize his superiors, and would only receive a few lashes.
There's someone behind them.
And it wasn't just one group of people.
Su Mei said slowly, "Nightingale!"
"Your humble servant is here!"
"I need you to do three things!"
Nightingale, whose real name is unknown, was once a spy for the Embroidered Uniform Guard, just like Su Mei. However, her life was not as good as Su Mei's, because Su Mei was beautiful. Even in Suzhou and Hangzhou, where beauties were everywhere, she was a stunning beauty.
Even in chaotic times, beautiful women have privileges and are not to be trifled with. After the Su family fell into misfortune, Su Mei was immediately targeted by the Embroidered Uniform Guard and developed into a spy. Moreover, she was a spy with a very clear target, planted next to Mao Wenlong in Dongjiang Town.
But Nightingale was different. She was of average appearance, barely a girl from a modest family. She was defiled on the day her family was raided. When the Embroidered Uniform Guard recruited her as a spy, she was more experienced than the madam of a brothel.
"Thoroughly investigate Liao Tongsheng's associates. Find out who he has been in contact with these past few days, who he has received money or gifts from, and what unfamiliar faces he has seen. Don't alert him; just keep an eye on him."
"yes!"
"Battalion C and Battalion A, each select a few honest and hardworking leaders who are obedient to us, give them a private reward, and tell them that someone is going to cause trouble on Dalu Island. They need to keep their men in check. They don't need to identify anyone; they just need to make sure their men don't make any trouble when things get out of hand."
"clear!"
Su Mei paused, her voice turning cold: "Since this denunciation notice hasn't been distributed yet, let's pretend it never existed. But I want to see Liao Tongsheng himself. Now."
"Your subordinate—do it immediately."
Although Su Mei was originally a spy for the Embroidered Uniform Guard, she was very familiar with the Embroidered Uniform Guard's style of operation. After Chen Ying recognized her and appointed her as the chief administrator of Dalu Island, she learned the Embroidered Uniform Guard's methods to an unparalleled degree.
She practically replicated the Imperial Guard on Dalu Island, though it should be called the Black Guard. On the surface, the leaders and officers all wore black short-sleeved shirts. More importantly, she had great ambitions.
This is a huge crisis for Dalu Island. It is dangerous, but there is also opportunity within the danger. That is what makes it a crisis.
Chen Ying understood what she meant.
However, Chen Ying still doesn't understand what she means to him. Su Mei is holding a grudge. Today you ignore me, but tomorrow you'll be begging for my attention!
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