Chapter 237: Sentimental Man Gui

Wang An swallowed his saliva and continued, "Under such circumstances, the imperial court would definitely not want to have another dispute with Ligdan Khan and have another powerful enemy in the north of the empire."

"So if you act impulsively, I'm afraid you will only be criticized by His Majesty."

After hearing Wang An's words, Man Gui sat down dejectedly and sighed, "Thinking back to two hundred years ago, what kind of hero was our Taizu?"

"The remaining Tatars were beaten to a pulp, and after Chengzu ascended the throne, all nations came to pay tribute!"

"Even during the reign of Emperor Shenzong, the Japanese pirates were defeated and surrendered. At that time, Nurhaci was still selling chrysanthemums under Li Rusong! But now..."

"Ugh……"

Wang An patted Man Gui on the shoulder, and couldn't help but think of the suspicion in his heart, and said: "Our Emperor Chongzhen is not bad either. He is in the prime of his life and has lofty ambitions. He is determined to revitalize the Ming Dynasty!"

"We must believe in His Majesty and the court. We believe that if we give the court some more time, we will be able to restore the glory days of the Han people!"

Man Gui looked at Wang An, opened his mouth as if to say something but then closed it again.

Wang An also knew what Man Gui was thinking. Anyone who had read a few history books would be able to see that the Ming Dynasty was already in a precarious situation at this time. To put it bluntly, it could even be said that its fate was almost over.

But as a loyal minister and general of the Ming Dynasty, Man Gui could not say such words. Even if it was Wang An, a businessman, he would only bring disaster if he said it easily.

So both of them were very wise and did not continue to talk about this topic, but changed the topic to other directions.

For example, Wang An talked about the chemical factory he opened in Beijing, the trend of soap box moisturizing glycerin in the upper circles of Beijing, and the life of veterans in Beijing today.

Upon learning that his brothers and former veterans were doing well, Man Gui nodded with great satisfaction and said, "Brother, I was right about you. You have indeed created a career now!"

"As long as those veterans can have enough food and warm clothes, and a roof over their heads, I will have no regrets even if I die on the battlefield!"

Wang An hurriedly tried to comfort him, "Brother, you are young and strong, you should make contributions to the country, why do you say such discouraging words?"

Man Gui smiled bitterly and shook his head, saying, "My dear brother, your ancestors lived in the capital, so you shouldn't come to this border area. You naturally don't know a lot of things."

"Let's not talk about the Jiannu in Liaodong, the Japanese pirates in the southeast coast, and the bandits in the hinterland, but do you think the Tartars in the north are obedient?"

"Not to mention that Lin Danhan is a man of wicked ambitions, he also caused the Xuanda Campaign not long ago. Fortunately, the court was prepared for this and handled it properly, otherwise it would have been another catastrophe."

"Besides Ligdan Khan, the other Mongolian tribes are also ready to make a move. They often rob the people who live in the farming areas, and sometimes they even rush to the city of Datong to extort money. Do you think they are brave enough?"

"Are you sure it's the Mongolian tribes and not Ligdan Khan?" Wang An was surprised.

Although he came from later times, he also knew a lot of historical events.

But of course it is impossible for the book to include every detail, so some insignificant things are recorded in a few places.

I only remember that during this period, except for Ligdan Khan, the other tribes of the Mongol Tartars were relatively honest. The Tumed tribe was even the Shunyi King canonized by the Ming Dynasty.

The Yongshaote and Ordos tribes were even able to obey the command of the Ming court and join forces with the Tumed to fight against Ligdan Khan.

Before the Jiannu became powerful and annexed the Khorchin tribe, the Khorchin often asked the Ming court for help in resisting the annexation of the Jiannu in the name of being a vassal.

Moreover, during the Wanli and Tianqi years, the Ming Dynasty provided military support in its campaigns against the Jiannu.

The stage at the end of the Ming Dynasty at that time was a variant version of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, with the Ming Dynasty, the Jiannu and the Mongolian tribes forming a three-kingdoms situation.

However, as the situation developed, the loose Mongolian tribes were gradually divided and defeated, and they either defected to the Ming Dynasty or to the Jiannu.

Of course, most of them still joined the Jiannu, who posed a more direct threat to their survival and had a similar culture.

Most of the Mongolian tribes that surrendered to the Ming Dynasty were just small tribes, or simply the remnants of defeated troops.

And these people were gradually exhausted in the Ming-Slave War.

However, Wang An also knew that the Mongolian tribes, who were still friendly to the Ming Dynasty on the surface, were actually just wavering because they were too weak and could not tell who would be the winner between the Ming Dynasty and the Jiannu.

But if you say that the Mongols, the weakest of the three forces except Ligdan Khan, dared to launch harassment against the Ming Dynasty and even directly attacked Datong Prefecture, Wang An would be somewhat skeptical.

However, this is the fact. The Mongols, who were also affected by the Little Ice Age and the impact of Chongzhen's suspension of market rewards, were not much better than the Ming Dynasty.

In order to fill their stomachs and get enough supplies for life, these small tribes often disguised themselves as Jiannu or Ligdan Khan, or simply did not raise any banners, anonymously robbing the people of the Ming Dynasty and looting some small towns.

Although the impact on the Ming Dynasty was minimal, for Man Gui, the general who was responsible for the safety of an area, it was like a cockroach biting an elephant. It might not kill people, but it would make people sick!

The local government reported that Tartars were harassing the people. Should he be promoted to general and take charge or not?
If we want to intervene, we have to analyze whether it is just a small group of Tartars who are desperate to survive and come to take advantage of the situation, or whether it is really an urgent military situation and a large group of Tartars are invading?
If too many troops were sent out, the consumption of food and fodder would be terrifying.

But if we send out too few people, what if we encounter powerful Tartars and they simply treat you as a good person who delivers military supplies?
If we say we don't care, with so many people and military farms outside the border town, are we just going to leave them to fend for themselves?
Moreover, if this continues for a long time, will the surrounding Mongolian tribes still be able to submit to the Ming Dynasty?
If it was another general, it would be fine. He could just not accept it. Anyway, he would retire when he had made enough money.

But Man Gui is only in his forties. Although he is not young, he is still strong and healthy, and his career prospects are promising. Does he still want to keep this reputation?

Can you live with your conscience?

This also proves from the side that the fact that the Ming Dynasty was beginning to decline had become known to everyone, and even the weakest Tartars dared to pounce on it and take a bite.

How could Man Gui, who cared about his country and family, not be worried?

After discussing the situation for a while, Wang An didn't know what to say. He could only sigh and said, "Don't worry, brother. Do your best and let God know your fate. Just do what you have in mind and be clear in your conscience."

"Besides, I believe that everything will be fine."

(End of this chapter)