During the Jiajing period alone, Liaodong suffered as many as 37 disasters of various kinds, almost once a year.

The three mountains of war, natural disasters and conscription had already made the Liao people breathless, but Emperor Wanli sent the tax supervisor Gao Huai, which opened the curtain of "Gao Huai's Rebellion in Liao".

After Gao Huai arrived in Liaodong, he quickly demonstrated his superb ability to plunder people's wealth, seize property by trickery, and extort money.

The folk song at that time said: "The Liao people have no brains, all of which are gouged out by Huai; the Liao people have no marrow, all of which are sucked out by Huai." This reflected the extreme hatred people had for Gao Huai at that time.

Gao Huai not only amassed wealth crazily, but also dared to withhold and embezzle the Liao army's military pay and humiliate officers and soldiers, causing two eye-catching military mutinies.

Moreover, Gao Huai also intervened in the horse market trade and forced the purchase of good horses brought by the Uriankhai (eastern Mongolia in the northern desert) and the Jurchens at low prices.

This behavior made the Mongolian Uriankhai and Jurchen tribes extremely dissatisfied, and the Liaodong border troops were also very annoyed because they could not get good horses.

In short, Gao Huai wreaked havoc in Liaodong for more than ten years, which not only destroyed Liaodong's economy, society, people's livelihood, and military, causing countless Liao people to lose their homes and become displaced, but also intensified ethnic conflicts, making the already crisis-ridden situation in Liaodong even more precarious.

In the 46th year of the Wanli reign, the Later Jin rebelled against the Ming Dynasty. The Liao people's resentment and disappointment with the imperial court also became one of the reasons for Nurhaci's repeated victories.

From the time the Later Jin army first attacked Liaodong to the time they occupied Liao and Shen, most of the Liao people fled, either moving to Liaoxi or going to Korea. This shows their negative attitude towards resisting the Jin army.

However, Nurhaci's narrow ethnic policy, which was to enslave the Liao people and massacre them at will, gradually changed the Liao people's attitude.

Large numbers of Liao people fled from the areas occupied by the Later Jin. Various forms of resistance struggles broke out one after another, undoubtedly demonstrating the great change in the mentality of the Liao people under cruel oppression.

Zhu Youxiao can be said to have acted at the right time. By establishing Dongjiang Town and providing strong support, and relocating the Liao people to implement the strategic retreat in western Liaoning, he gave the Liao people, who were in the most difficult situation of survival, hope and gradually made them the main force in the anti-Jin resistance.

Similar to the Guanning Army and the "Island Soldiers" in history, the current Liaozhen and Dongjiang Towns are mainly composed of Liao people. However, in terms of actual combat power and situation, they are much better than in the past.

Therefore, Zhu Youxiao continued to invest resources in the hope of achieving the goal of pacifying Liao in five years. He also wanted to firmly grasp Nurhaci's wrong policies, use Liao people to defend Liao territory, and use Liao people to restore Liao.

The Liao people lived in the northeastern border area. Because of the desolation of the border, the cold climate, the backward culture and the tough folk customs, they developed the characteristics of being bold, rough, and "fierce and good at riding and shooting", making them the best source of soldiers.

As for the importance attached to Huang Taiji, one could even say that they were somewhat wary of him. The main reason for this was Huang Taiji's active efforts to win over the Liao army in history.

Zhu Youxiao was not worried about the Jurchens alone, but if the Later Jin could win over the Liao people, the war against the Liao would become much more difficult.

Therefore, the best time to pacify the Liao people is while Nurhaci is still alive and continues to use massacres and oppression to force the Liao people to flee and rebel.

The achievements of the Liaozhen and Dongjiang armies also proved the correctness of Zhu Youxiao's investment and policies. This bloody battle with a small number of enemies also kicked off the war of "recovering Liao territory with Liao people".

Well, that's not quite accurate. But Zhu Youxiao's idea of ​​pacifying the Liao with only the Liao people is indeed becoming more and more likely to be realized.

The vast majority of Liao people who have experienced the cruel reality are gradually realizing that only by recovering their homeland and restoring their homes can they escape their tragic fate and live a normal life again.

Of course, there's no one in this world who isn't afraid of death. Who wants to die when they can still live? Except for those who are tired of living and can't let go.

However, facing a desperate situation often inspires the courage to face death head-on. This is the case with the Ming army now. Escape is impossible and may even lead to death faster.

In this case, I might as well risk my life to provide my loved ones with a worry-free future.

Moreover, since they are elite soldiers who have experienced many battles, it is not surprising that they burst out with amazing bravery and fighting power.

The Jiannu are about to attack again! Feng Datie tightened the bandage on his shoulder, the pain from the wound making him frown imperceptibly.

The troops were reduced again, and now only about 200 people were able to continue fighting, many of them were injured. The defensive position had to be shrunk again, only an area of ​​several dozen meters was left.

The rumble of gunfire and artillery sounded much closer. Feng Datie knew that the main force was breaking through the Jiannu's blockade and rushing to reinforce.

I wonder if it's still too late? Feng Datie's gaze paused for a moment on the dozens of iron lumps placed on the ground, then he raised his head and looked towards the friendly army's position.

The battle continued, and the friendly forces were in even worse shape than their own. Figures swayed, shouts and cries filled the air, and they were already caught in a brutal and bloody close combat.

But the tall military flag, despite being riddled with arrows, was still flying prominently and proudly in the wind.

Feng Datie turned his gaze again, scanning the piles of bodies piled up beneath the mound, along the defensive line. There were Jiannu soldiers, and some of his own comrades. But most of them were still Jiannu soldiers.

"It's worth it!" Feng Datie exhaled and said two words briefly and powerfully.

"It's worth it, it's so damn... worth it." A voice from the side echoed, causing Feng Datie to turn around and look.

A bearded soldier opened a crack in his iron mask and was carefully lighting the cigarette in his mouth. It was unknown where he got it or how long he had kept it. The cigarette was a little wrinkled and crooked.

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