From the end of the Jiajing period to the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty, the army of the Toungoo Dynasty of Myanmar invaded my country's Yunnan border, triggering a war that lasted for decades.

After the 34th year of the Wanli reign, the Sino-Burmese War basically ceased because the Ming Dynasty's rule in China was in crisis and it was no longer able to recover the vast areas occupied by Myanmar.

As a result, the Ming Dynasty lost its control over the military and civilian envoys' offices in Mengyang, Mubang and other places.

Decades later, the Toungoo Dynasty was in decline, but the Ming Empire eliminated internal troubles, restored its power, and reversed the offensive and defensive situation.

Frost Descent signaled the start of war. The long-awaited Ming army of over 40,000 troops split into two groups and marched into Burma. They were followed by a coalition of chieftains, numbering 50,000 to 60,000 men.

The mobilization and deployment of a 100,000-strong army could not be kept absolutely secret. Myanmar had received intelligence before and made corresponding deployments.

But once the war started, the Burmese discovered that the Ming army was no longer the same as before. Whether in terms of weapons and equipment or the quality of generals and soldiers, they were far superior to their own army.

The quick surrender of the Mubang chieftain enabled the Ming army on the right to advance further and break the Burmese's first line of defense.

The Ming army's artillery and rockets bombarded key positions such as Lashio and Bhamo, and the defenders were almost completely wiped out. The Ming army on the left quickly moved south and reached Mengmi.

The front was unstoppable, and the chieftain coalition forces plundered and looted, and transported ammunition and supplies to the Ming army. Gold, silver, and a large number of Burmese people became spoils of war.

Many officials had already been placed in the chieftain coalition army, and all the spoils were registered and recorded, and the spoils would be calculated and divided only after the war was over.

A group of Burmese people were driven towards the gathering place. There were men and women, old people and children, all with panicked and frightened expressions.

"Father, these should all belong to us." Sha Dingzhou was very heartbroken. He pointed at the crowd and then at the cart loaded with the seized goods.

Chieftain Sha Yuan of Wangnong was a relative of Chieftain Pu Mingsheng of Ami. They jointly participated in the Ming army's suppression of the Shuixi Rebellion and were commended by the court. They became well-known in Yunnan.

In response to his son's complaint, Sha Yuan simply laughed and said, "You are still too young and your horizons are too narrow."

Sha Dingzhou looked at his father. Although he did not refute, his expression and eyes revealed confusion and unwillingness to accept.

Sha Yuan patted his son's arm and said earnestly, "Now that you've seen the strength of the Ming army, what do you think?"

Sha Dingzhou blinked and said, "Very strong. Their weapons are sharp and their battle formations are strict. The Burmese can't resist them."

Sha Yuan nodded and said, "I saw it in Shuixi. They are even more powerful now than they were then. Even without the help of local soldiers, they can still sweep across Myanmar."

After a pause, Sha Yuan continued, "The situation in Yunnan Province has changed. The imperial court has strengthened the local garrison and increased the power of the governor. Soon, Duke Mu's mansion will no longer be able to defend Yunnan Province."

The conflict between Mu Gongfu and the Yunnan Governor and the three officials has a long history. Historically, the Sha Dingzhou Rebellion was also caused by this reason.

But Mu Tianbo is just a child now, and the Mu family can not directly command many troops. The tendency shown by the court's successive actions is indeed not difficult to see.

The purpose of suppressing the Shuixi rebels, strengthening the garrison in the southwest, and launching the war against Myanmar was to intimidate the chieftains.

Because although the power of the Mugong Mansion has declined, its prestige still exists after guarding Yunnan Province for hundreds of years. For the sake of stability, the court did not act too hastily.

"The entire land west of the Shui River belongs to the imperial court, and the An family's surrender is unacceptable." Sha Yuan shook his head lightly, feeling quite emotional. "Son, don't you see the imperial court's determination and long-term plans?"

Sha Dingzhou seemed to be thinking about something, and speculated, "Ami Pu has no descendants. I'm afraid that after his death, his position as a native official will be taken back by the court."

Because of his relationship with the Pu clan, Sha Yuan had a plan: if Pu Mingsheng died and his wife, Wan, remarried, if she could marry into the Sha clan, she could petition the court to merge the two chieftains' territories.

Historically, Wan did remarry Sha Dingzhou, and the two chieftains merged into one, greatly increasing the power of the Sha family.

Seeing his father's admiration, Sha Dingzhou's spirits lifted, and he continued, "The imperial court is suppressing the power of the native officials to prevent the Shuixi incident from happening again."

Sha Yuan nodded and said, "Within the original Ming territory, the imperial court does not want to see the local officials gain power. But in other places, such as Mekong Province and the newly occupied Burmese territories, the imperial court's policy is different."

Pointing to the distance, where the local army camp was, Sha Yuan said with a smile, "Why is it that the imperial court only needs to issue a call, and so many local officials will provide manpower, food, and money?"

"They want the land here and the local officials' positions." Sha Dingzhou suddenly realized and said, "This is also what the court wants. They want to move the local chieftains' power outside the territory, or to the newly occupied territory."

"That's right." Sha Yuan let out a long breath. His son understood, and he also felt relieved.

Sha Dingzhou looked back at the Burmese and the carts, his eyes different now. With so many chieftains dispatching troops, the Ming army also wanted a share of the spoils. Without a unified distribution, chaos would surely ensue.

Besides, being able to obtain a piece of land and a local official position is a valuable asset that can be passed down to descendants. Compared with a few small amounts of money, the difference in importance is obvious.

Sha Yuan could see this, and the other chieftains were no fools either. The imperial court had opened a loophole, so how could they not seize this opportunity?

The emperor's intention was clear. He would first beat Myanmar half to death, and then use a small number of Ming troops and a large number of local soldiers to engage in a protracted war with Myanmar until Myanmar was dragged down and destroyed.

By utilizing the power of the chieftains, we invested in the grand cause of expanding territory, moved the chieftains' power abroad, and ensured domestic stability to the greatest extent possible.

The unfavorable situation forced the Burmese king to withdraw his troops to Ava to avoid being defeated one by one. At the same time, the Burmese also wanted to stretch the Ming army's supply lines and make its logistics difficult.

The situation worsened not only due to successive defeats on the front line, but also due to the attack from the arch-rival Siam.

From the mid-sixteenth century to the early nineteenth century, Siam and Burma waged a long war to annex land, plunder labor, and gain political and economic advantages in Indochina.

Overall, Siam was at a disadvantage, its capital had been captured, and its independence had been lost.

It is obvious that Siam and the Ming Dynasty had secretly joined forces to jointly attack Myanmar. Otherwise, the timing would not be so coincidental.

What shocked the Burmese even more was that in southern Myanmar and northern Siam, the armies of the two countries, which had been attacking and defending each other, suddenly underwent a change in strength.

The Siamese army not only had similarly powerful firearms as the Ming army, but also seemed to have learned the Ming army's tactics. They defeated the Burmese army near Bagan and entered Burma in one fell swoop.

At this time, a banquet was being held in Bagan, which was occupied by the Siamese army, and several Ming army officers were sitting in the seats of honor.

Several Siamese beauties were moving their bare feet lightly in the middle of the stage, swinging their soft arms, dancing gracefully, with affectionate eyes.

………….