Chapter Fifty-Seven: Distant Expectations

  I just don't want to waste medicine and food on these wounded soldiers, as for the other captives, although they are not killed for the time being, it is not unconditional release, and now is not the time to let them go.

  Zhu Yongxing looked at the several generals who had just left, seemingly suddenly enlightened, with a look of admiration and understanding in their eyes, knowing that they had overcomplicated the issue, and his reason was obviously not fully recognized by them.

  Who says the thoughts of the ancients are simple? In fact, they often think very deeply and profoundly. Just like those concise classical Chinese sentences, the expression of meaning can be multi-faceted, neglecting a single word may lead to biased understanding, let alone those numerous allusions that cannot be fully comprehended without ten years of diligent study.

  Forget it, no need to explain any more. They think too much and show off their own profundity. Zhu Yongxing shook his head slightly and took out paper and pen to start writing.

  Every time when writing, Zhu Yongxing had to do it in secret from others. Except when Mengzhu was by his side, he could be exempted from this hardship. It wasn't that he didn't trust others, but these scribbled characters were really not suitable for others to see. In order to maintain secrecy, Zhu Yongxing intentionally wrote very concisely, with key words still using pinyin or abbreviations. The written things were only equivalent to a reminder outline for him, which he could use as a basis for further elaboration and let Mengzhu record in full later on.

  Na Song, Long Tuo, Yu Qi, Zhou Yu, Yang Yandi... A string of names and places were scribbled on the paper. These were people that Zhu Yongxing might utilize and recruit, behind them were anti-Qing deeds recorded in history books.

  A single spark can start a prairie fire. However, these sparks in history were either isolated or poorly planned and thus extinguished by the Qing government one after another. Zhu Yongxing wanted to bring these events under his control as much as possible, making them erupt according to his plan at the right time, and then ignite a raging fire.

  Is it still possible? Zhu Yongxing recalled, pondered, and finally drew a heavy stroke under the simplified name of Na Zong. The nearest, easiest, or most likely opportunity to recreate Wu Sangui would fall on this powerful Tusi in Yunnan.

  In Yunnan, the Ming dynasty had more than 300 Tusi, among which the strongest were the Mu family of Lijiang, the Na family of Yuanjiang and the Zuo family of Menghua. They were known as the three major Tusi in Yunnan. The Na family of Yuanjiang was not only powerful but also relatively loyal to the Ming dynasty. The anti-Qing uprising in history made Zhu Youjian have a high opinion of the Na family, with great expectations.

  In the military, the Ming dynasty stipulated that the "native soldiers" controlled by the native officials must obey the training of the local Wei and So in peacetime, and obey the national conscription in wartime, and are not allowed to lead troops across borders. However, this is only for ordinary native officials, and there is no such restriction on the native officials of the "Military-Civilian Prefecture". That is, the native officials of the "Military-Civilian Prefecture" can hold military power, combining politics, economy, military affairs, and justice, controlling the political, economic, and military lifeline of a region.

  The administrative region of "Yuanjiang Military and Civilian Government": east to Shiping, Lin'an (Jianshui), south to Annan (Tonkin), west to northern Laos, southwest to Zheri, Fuhai, north to Zhenyuan, northeast to Chuxiong. However, its military jurisdictional control range is much larger than the administrative region. In case of war, it can exercise control over neighboring prefectures and counties such as Zheri, Dahou (Yunxian), Mubang, and Zhenxiong according to the military order of the Governor of Yunnan.

  "The Yuanjiang Military and Civilian Government" also had the power to use troops outside the border. In the 19th year of Hongzhi in the Ming Dynasty, the second year of Longqing, the third year of Longqing, and the seventh year of Tianqi, the Yuanjiang Military and Civilian Government all conducted military operations outside the border, assisting the Ming army in defending its territory and protecting its country.

  During the military operation of "Three Expeditions to Yunnan", Yuanjiang Military and Civilian Government also commanded the Eastern Route Army, with more than 50,000 local soldiers from Heimao, Mengtong, Cheli and Dahou, opening up the passage from Heimao to Luquan, gathering with various route armies in Luquan, and coordinating with the Ming army.

  The Yuanjiang military and civilian government, after many years of war, has formed a powerful local armed force with actual combat capabilities and technical warfare experience. According to the "Yuanjiang Prefecture", the Nong people (now Dai ethnic group), their kind in Yuanjiang and Guangnan have the same customs... Long technique in firearms, it is said that they obtained from Jiaozhi, knives, shields, guns, and armor, never leaving their beds, daily fighting, Fang, Yang, Pu, Li four surnames of the Luo people, known for being good at war, are the strongest among all Yi.

  Perhaps there is some exaggeration, but Zhu Yongxing knew that he could let Wu Sangui lead the expedition and hold out for several months under the Qing army's massive attack. Yuan Jiang Naxiang's strength was indeed impressive. If it weren't for the treacherous local officials leading the Qing army through a shortcut, avoiding Yuan Jiang Naxiang's ambush; if it weren't for Ming general Zhu Yang'en being intimidated by the Qing army's momentum and not daring to launch a pincer attack in response to Yuan Jiang; if it weren't for Naxiang stubbornly sticking to his own views and failing to coordinate with Li Dingguo beforehand, leaving him isolated and unsupported...

  The occurrence of history has its inevitability, and it is also determined by countless contingencies. If I were to do it all over again, Zhu Yongxing would have the confidence to fight the battle of Yuanjiang even better, and even if he couldn't reverse the situation in Yunnan, he would still want to knock out a few teeth from that old traitor Wu Sangui.

  ……

  When one hair is pulled, the whole body moves. Zhu Yongxing led several branches of the remaining army and the Qing army to launch a major battle in the Gaoligong Mountains. The Qing army in Yongchang, Dali, Yao'an and other places all took action, either withdrawing troops to reinforce or providing grain and material supplies, and the news inevitably spread throughout western Yunnan.

  This was exactly what Zhu Yongxing had hoped for. Under the circumstances of thousands of horses being silenced and all eyes losing hope, he appeared as a member of the imperial clan who stayed behind to take charge of state affairs and launched a challenge against the seemingly powerful Qing army, which was no less than a flash of lightning cutting through the gloomy sky.

  Some people saw hope and had the courage to persevere; some were not very sure, taking cautious action to gain greater benefits; others regarded it as a dying struggle, thinking that it was just a futile resistance that would soon be defeated by the Qing army.

  Even if Zhu Yongxing conveys the imperial edict through Zheng's family, he cannot afford to expect everyone to change their minds. He hopes that his actions can at least delay some Ming generals' surrender or win over some Ming generals who still have doubts.

  The Ming army in Sichuan is beyond salvation, and Zhu Yongxing's whip is too long to reach, and time is not enough. The scattered Ming army in western Yunnan still has hope, among whom there are also many experienced generals who have been through battles, as long as they can see hope, they will not necessarily abandon the official titles that have already been obtained and become a defeated general who has gone to surrender. Moreover, shaving one's head and changing one's clothes is a huge psychological pressure for many people.

  According to Zhu Yongxing's conjecture, many generals will have the mentality of being able to drag on for a while, with troops in hand, why not go all out?