Looking at the young emperor's face, which showed some depression and melancholy, Sun Chengzong sighed inwardly.

The emperor inherited a mess at a young age. The Jiannu in Liaodong was rampant. After the battles of Sarhu and Liaoshen, they had occupied most of Liaodong.

Xiong Tingbi of Liaoxi has experienced many ups and downs and is still sidelined by Wang Huazhen. The general and the governor are at odds, and the Guangning front is full of hidden dangers.

Factional strife raged within the court, with officials attacking one another, completely disregarding national concerns and prioritizing their own factions over those who opposed them. Some, ostensibly righteous, spoke of morality but engaged in shameless greed, even embezzling military supplies under the guise of flooding.

The Donglin faction took control of the court by virtue of their support for the enthronement. Almost all the six ministries and nine officials were from the Donglin faction. They used court discussions to hinder the imperial power and interfered in the appointment of officials everywhere. The Liaodong governor Zhihe was particularly corrupt.

These did not arouse Sun Chengzong's vigilance at the time, and he deeply agreed with the generosity and justice of the Donglin Party.

Of course, this is understandable. Sun Chengzong was not in an important position at the time. Although he was the emperor's teacher, he was only a left scholar and did not have a thorough understanding of the specific situation of the Ming Dynasty.

When the Guangning War broke out, the emperor calmly issued a series of imperial decrees, secretly mobilizing troops from all over the place, and even used the imperial guards to capture Wang Huazhen and give Xiong Tingbi the power to make decisions.

Sun Chengzong also disapproved of the emperor's violation of court conventions. However, the emperor's urgent decision saved Guangning, defeated the Jiannu for the first time, and dampened the Jiannu's momentum of repeated victories.

Tens of thousands of soldiers and hundreds of thousands of Liao civilians were saved because of the emperor's arbitrary decision. Hundreds of thousands of dan of grain and beans, countless supplies, were not captured by the Jiannu, but became capital for their continued growth.

In his subsequent battle report, Sun Chengzong had to admit that the emperor had saved Liaodong from danger and prevented the war from getting out of control.

Next, the emperor was emboldened by the great victory in Guangning, and seemed to have seen through the nature of the Donglin officials in the court - they were usually passionate but had no strategy at the last minute.

By holding Wang Huazhen accountable, a group of civil servants who criticized Xiong Tingbi were expelled; by taking advantage of Li Sancai's corruption case, another large number of Donglin officials were purged.

The young emperor relied heavily on the imperial guards, breaking the convention. He was not afraid of rumors or public opinion. He was actually fighting against the civil service group in person.

The power of imperial authority is indeed irresistible. As long as the emperor is determined and not afraid of the stigma, the civil service group will be powerless to fight back under the heavy pressure.

After being shocked, Sun Chengzong also re-examined his student. It must be said that the young emperor's actions were quite similar to the legacy of Taizu and Chengzu.

When Sun Chengzong was promoted to the Minister of War and entered the cabinet to participate in government affairs, he discovered how shocking the military and political problems of the Ming Dynasty were and how stretched the Ming Dynasty's finances were.

If even the wages and food can't be guaranteed, how can we expect the officers and soldiers on the front line to fight hard and win?

The first few months after taking over as Minister of War were Sun Chengzong's busiest and most anxious time. The Liaodong War and the She'an Rebellion required constant requests for money, food, supplies, and weapons and equipment, all of which he needed to arrange.

But the Ministry of Revenue had no money, no money. Sun Chengzong knew that the finances were somewhat insufficient, but he did not expect it to be so embarrassing.

Is this the Ming Dynasty? A celestial empire with millions of people, vast territories, nobles, officials, students, gentry, and merchants all living in comfort, a celestial empire revered and worshipped by vassal states?

The treasury! The young emperor took out his private money without hesitation, including the rewards for victory, sufficient military pay, sufficient food and supplies, and the weapons and gunpowder bureau that was almost completely rebuilt, to provide for all of it...

Sun Chengzong looked at the young emperor's slightly furrowed brow, forced himself to put away his complicated thoughts, and said with a folded hand, "Your Majesty, don't worry. In my humble opinion, the Chahar tribe's eastward migration may not have a significant impact."

Zhu Youxiao smiled bitterly, said nothing, and waited quietly for Teacher Sun to analyze and answer his questions.

"While the Eastern Tartars must be destroyed, the Western Tartars' fratricide would also be extremely beneficial to the Ming Dynasty. Given the current situation in Liaodong, if the Chahars pressure other tribes, such as the Khalkha, into surrendering, will they choose the Ming Dynasty or the Eastern Tartars?"

It seems that Sun Chengzong had done some research and was thinking in accordance with the people of the Ming Dynasty. He believed that the Jiannu rebelled against the Ming Dynasty and should be destroyed, and the Mongolian tribes were not true friends of the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Youxiao blinked and listened patiently. Sun Chengzong's views reflected those of most Ming people at the time. It was just like how Chongzhen, taking advantage of natural disasters on the grasslands, cut off market rewards and horse trade, and attempted to starve the Mongolian tribes to death.

It stands to reason that there are no eternal friends, only eternal interests. The constant wars and peace between the Ming Dynasty and the Mongolian tribes are also an unchangeable fact.

But Zhu Youxiao disagreed. If starvation could make the Mongolian tribes surrender, the northern nomadic peoples would not have been the enemy of the Central Plains dynasty for thousands of years.

If the Chahar tribe defeated the pro-Ming Khalkha, the Ming army in Liaodong would lose an ally. However, Hu Duntu did not dare to fight the Later Jin and could not lend a hand to the Ming army.

More importantly, Zhu Youxiao wanted to concentrate his forces on suppressing the Jiannu and did not want to interfere with Hu Duntu's actions by force. If the Chahar tribe moved eastward and clashed with the Khalkha tribe, the Ming army would be in a dilemma.

"...Liaozhen advanced eastward, but the Eastern Tartars dared not attack. This shows that they were severely weakened by the two defeats and were short of supplies. Furthermore, pressure from southern Liaoning and Dongjiang headquarters prevented them from deploying sufficient troops to resist. They may also believe that our army would not dare to recapture Guangning rashly, perhaps waiting for our supply lines to be extended before launching a surprise attack..."

It seemed that the Jiannu had other concerns. Zhu Youxiao lowered his eyes and vaguely felt that it was not as simple as Teacher Sun said.

Given the current strength of the Liaozhen, it was not very certain to advance to Guangning all at once. Xiong Tingbi suggested a more cautious approach, first occupying Youtunwei, and then waiting for an opportunity to recover Guangning after consolidating it. Zhu Youxiao also agreed.

This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading!