***
After the banquet at Zhaixing Tower, the affairs in Xijing were settled, and Qin Mu began his journey back to Nanjing. He was accompanied by tens of thousands of soldiers, and the journey was in a mighty procession.
Lobsang Chokyi Gyaltsen and Ngawang Lobsang Gyatso, who were accompanying him, couldn't help but ask themselves every day, "Why hasn't the emperor invited us to preach the Dharma?"
What a joke. Instead of listening to you two talk about Buddhism, I might as well play chess with a beauty.
When it comes to the art of Go, Dong Xiaowan is definitely the most skilled among the girls. But on this day in the imperial carriage, Dong Xiaowan lost two games in a row to Qin Mu. After the victory, Qin Mu laughed with joy.
Li Xiangjun couldn't help but say, "Your Majesty, don't be so proud. In fact, it was Sister Dong who gave in to Your Majesty."
"Yeah?"
Dong Xiaowan quickly clarified: "Your Majesty, please don't believe Xiangjun's nonsense. I have tried my best, but your Majesty is much better at chess than me. I am convinced of my defeat."
Qin Mu hugged Li Xiangjun, tapped her nose and said with a smile: "Look, Xiaowan is still the one who knows how to protect my face. You should learn from her in the future and stop ruining my reputation."
Li Xiangjun smiled charmingly and said, "Your Majesty, I don't have the ability to ruin your plan. Your Majesty is a man who treats the world as a chessboard. From ancient times to the present, no one has ever played the game better than Your Majesty. With such achievements, even if you lose a few points on this small chessboard, it won't hurt Your Majesty's prestige."
"Tsk tsk, Xiangjun, your little mouth, when did it become so sweet?"
"It's sweet, Your Majesty, please try it." Li Xiangjun teased him with a smile, but her petite body hid behind Li Zhiyin, making all the beauties in the car laugh.
At this time, Huang Lianshan's voice came from outside the imperial carriage, asking for a meeting. Qin Mu got out of the carriage, sat on the shaft and asked, "Lianshan, what's the matter?"
Huang Lianshan reported: "Your Majesty, I just received two pieces of news. One is from Mobei. General Yan Yingyuan has brought tens of thousands of Junggar women and children and 70,000 war horses. He arrived in Mobei smoothly and joined Aobai and his men."
"Well done, Yan Yingyuan. Well done."
"Your Majesty, Aobai has sent back another message that the Russians often cross the North Sea and invade the northern desert. According to other news, they are actively trying to win over Shuolei of the Chechen tribe."
The North Sea mentioned by Huanglianshan is Lake Baikal. The name of the North Sea has become known to the world with the story of Su Wu herding. The Mongolians called it "**Nor", which means a lake like the sea.
In the early Tang Dynasty, Beihai was incorporated into the territory of the Central Plains dynasty for the first time and was under the jurisdiction of Guli Gan of Guannei Dao.
It was not until the Yongzheng period of the Qing Dynasty, after the signing of the Treaty of Burlinsk and the Treaty of Kyakhta with Tsarist Russia, that China and the North Sea were finally and completely severed.
Every Chinese person would feel that this is a huge regret, and Qin Mu is no exception. Now that Tsarist Russia has begun to cross the North Sea frequently, this is within Qin Mu's expectations.
Of the three major Khalkha Mongolian tribes in the northern desert, the Tushetu and Zasaktu tribes had collapsed, leaving only the Chechen tribe, which migrated far to the middle reaches of the Heilongjiang River.
The entire Mobei grassland is now vast and sparsely populated. The total number of troops under Aobai is only a few thousand, and the area they can defend is very limited.
Under such circumstances, Tsarist Russia, which had an infinite desire for land, would certainly not miss such a good opportunity.
Let the butcher's knife and bullets crush the Tsarist Russia's ambitions!
Eastern Siberia should be left to future generations of Chinese people as a back garden. It is also a storage place for resources and must not be violated.
The Central Plains Dynasty was tormented by the forces from the north for two thousand years. In the 1960s, after falling out with the polar bears, it had to spend countless manpower and financial resources to build countless fortifications and deploy millions of troops along the thousands of miles of border from the Altai Mountains to the Heilongjiang River.
This time, Qin Mu used the conscription method to draw 50,000 young and strong men from the south of the desert as the expeditionary army. His intention was not just to seize East and Siberia, but also to completely trample Tsarist Russia under his feet, crush it again and again, and preferably crush it to pieces.
Anyway, for the Qin Dynasty, this was a low-cost war, and it could also weaken Mongolia's strength.
If we win the war, we will win back a huge back garden for the big country.
Even if we lose the war, we can just continue to recruit men from Mongolia and Tubo. It won't have much impact on the Qin Dynasty.
Now that Li Ding has led the Mongolian army northward, he is not very worried about Qin Mu in Mobei. He then asked, "Lianshan, didn't you say there were two pieces of news? What else?"
"Your Majesty, there is news from the South Seas that the natives of Jinghai Province are in turmoil, and Admiral Hai is suppressing the rebellion. However, the ocean-going fleet has not yet sent back an official report. The merchant ships heading to Luzon brought back this news, but they only heard it from hearsay and were vague. The specific situation will have to wait for Admiral Hai's report to be sent back to know."
"Aboriginal rebellion?" Qin Mu muttered to himself, his eyes suddenly turning cold.
Jinghai Province was a province established by the Qin Dynasty after it defeated the Dutch and merged Java and Sumatra. However, no civil officials were sent to govern the province, and military control was adopted instead.
In the European-style city hall of Baiqi City (formerly Batavia City), Hai Rufeng read the battle report sent back by the Marine Corps Commander Hu Dahai and couldn't help but sneer: "You really don't know how to live or die."
Deputy General Ke Chenshu said with a smile: "Admiral Hai, this native woman is almost transported back to Daqin. She can only rub against the trees every day. It would be strange if she didn't go crazy."
Hai Rufeng couldn't help but smile after hearing this.
Because all industries in Daqin were booming and needed a large amount of labor, merchants flocked to the country and transported the indigenous women from Luzon and Jinghai Province back to the country, which was a very profitable business.
There are fewer and fewer indigenous women in the two provinces now, so Ke Chenshu made this statement.
"General Ke, it seems that we underestimated Basha. In such a short period of time, he gathered 30,000 people and even seized Sishui. How do you think we should respond, General Ke?"
Ke Chenshu was holding a folding fan and fanning it gently. It was very hot in Baiqi City in April. The wind from the sea blew against the tall coconut trees outside the City Hall and blew in through the half-open glass windows, but the wind that came in was also hot.
"Basha is indeed a capable man, but even a skilled cook cannot cook rice. No matter how much he tries, can he stop our cannons and bullets with just sticks and hoes? I think it might be a good idea to let Basha make some trouble."
Ke Chenshu looked relaxed. Although Basha had gathered 20,000 to 30,000 natives, he did not regard this as a major threat. On the contrary, it was a good opportunity.
Hai Rufeng carefully considered Ke Chenqu's words. Due to the large-scale trafficking of indigenous women by Daqin merchants, the resistance sentiment of the indigenous people in the entire Jinghai Province was high. Many people hid in the deep mountains and forests, and could not be wiped out for the time being.
Let Basha make some trouble first, so that the natives on the island will think that the Qin army can do nothing to him. Then the natives hiding in the mountains and forests will surely go to Basha in large numbers.
For the Qin army, they were not afraid of the natives gathering a million-strong army, but they were afraid of them scattering in the deep mountains and old forests, which would be more difficult to deal with than a million-strong army.
The water on the stove boiled. Hai Rufeng took it and poured the hot water into the cloisonné teapot. Soon the room was filled with the fragrance of tea, which was refreshing.
Hai Rufeng made a cup for Ke Chenshu. Ke Chenshu felt a little embarrassed and thanked him quickly: "Thank you, Admiral Hai. I am sorry for the trouble."
Hai Rufeng smiled and said, "Don't be so pretentious between you and me. I've thought about what you said and it's a good idea. Then let Hu Dahai and his men increase their efforts to eliminate the natives around Baiqi City and force them all to Sishui."
The reason why the Emperor of Qin did not immediately send civil officials to govern Luzon and Jinghai was because there were too many indigenous people here. The emperor's meaning was very clear that Qin did not need so many indigenous people, so it had always adopted military control over the two provinces of Luzon and Jinghai.
But direct massacre is too bloody. The Qin Dynasty is a country of etiquette, and doing so will have a huge impact. Of course, if there is a rebellion, there will be no such things in the war. There will always be deaths in war.
"I agree. Admiral Hai, should this matter be reported to the court?"
Hai Rufeng thought for a moment and said, "I won't report it for now. I'll wait until His Majesty returns from the expedition."
Ke Chenshu smiled and did not object.
The emperor is the most supportive of the navy. Now that the emperor is not in Nanjing, if the matter is reported, no one knows what those idle censors in Nanjing will do. His opinion is that it is better not to report it for the time being.
Hai Rufeng continued, "How about this, our military strength is limited after all, so General Ke will organize another 10,000 vassal troops, and when the opportunity comes, we will immediately attack Sishui."
"I obey your command."
At this moment, Liao Shangzhi, deputy commander of the Marine Corps, came running back from outside the door. Hai Rufeng saw that he looked strange, and it seemed that something big must have happened.
*****************************
ps: Please vote for recommendation and subscribe!
.(To be continued..)
...