"I'll arrange someone to do it right away." Chen Hong quickly agreed and said respectfully.

Zhu Youxiao had thought of many ways, such as how to improve the treatment and status of craftsmen, but most of the methods were slow to take effect and encountered great resistance. Even if they were achieved, they would be time-consuming and laborious.

When Zhu Youxiao did not limit his thinking to the orthodox path, his mind was like a wild horse that had broken free from its reins, and he came up with a solution in an instant.

For example, the Hundred Craftsmen Academy this time, just like the Jiajing Emperor's belief in Taoism, what was the status of Taoists at that time? As long as one showed this hobby, craftsmen would naturally be treated as guests of honor, especially those with superb skills.

Officials who presented these skilled craftsmen would be rewarded, as this was a shortcut to promotion and wealth. Everyone wanted to take shortcuts.

There was a lot of trouble in the capital, but not so much in Liaodong because there was going to be a war in Liaodong.

"General, the Jurchen troops are fifteen miles away from the city."

The scout knelt in front of Xiong Tingbi and spoke loudly.

Xiong Tingbi nodded, then said, "Okay! I'll report back after further investigation."

After the scouts left, Xiong Tingbi turned to his general, Li Guangrong, and said, "Tell the soldiers guarding the Mongols to enter the city. From now on, we will not leave the city and wait for the Jurchens to attack."

At this time, in the Jurchen brigade, Nurhaci was also listening to the report from his scouts.

However, his expression became increasingly ugly.

Since the Battle of Sarhu, Nurhaci's ambitions have been aroused. As long as he can capture Shenyang and Liaoyang, he can capture the entire Liaodong and drive the Ming army into Shanhaiguan.

In this way, the territory he ruled would be large enough and the population would be large enough to attack Mongolia to the west and Korea to the east. By that time, he would be able to establish a huge Jurchen empire and even turn the Aisin-Gioro family into a golden family.

The original plan was going very smoothly. He even sent out spies to lure the Ming army out of the city to fight. When that time came, the spies hidden among the Mongolian refugees would stir up trouble, and Shenyang would surely be in chaos, and he would surely be able to take it in one fell swoop.

However, things changed with the dismissal of Yuan Yingtai and Xiong Tingbi's return to Liaodong.

First, Xiong Tingbi dug trenches and reinforced the city walls, looking as if he was determined to defend the city to the death.

As for fortifying the city and clearing the countryside, there was absolutely no need for that at this time of year! All his spies and the Mongolian refugees had been driven out of the city, making it impossible for them to stir up trouble.

Now Xiong Tingbi is showing a posture of defending to the death. Nurhaci's plans have all failed. It would be strange if he was happy.

No one around dared to speak, and the atmosphere was a bit depressing because everyone knew that the situation was awkward.

If the Ming army refused to leave the city, they could only attack by force, but how much damage would such an attack cause? But could they simply retreat without fighting?

"Daishan." Nurhaci turned to look at his second son and said loudly, "Go and bring those Mongols back. I want to question them."

"Yes, Father Khan." Daishan agreed, then pulled the reins of his horse and left the team and headed towards Shenyang with his men.

Nurhaci really didn't understand why Xiong Tingbi dared to do this?

Nurhaci actually knew the Ming Dynasty very well. They would not be afraid of fighting. They would come out to fight him. Because if they were afraid of fighting, it would mean that the Ming Dynasty was afraid of him. How could that be tolerated?

Some people in the Ming Dynasty couldn't stand it first, and they started to attack their own people.

But this time Xiong Tingbi actually succeeded. As expected, this Xiong Tingbi is a difficult character.

In fact, the original history was just as Xiong Tingbi expected.

When Nurhaci led his troops to attack, Yuan Yingtai ordered the generals He Shixian and You Shigong to fight outside the city. He probably still felt that he was the reincarnation of Zhuge Liang and that he would definitely win the battle.

As a result, they returned in defeat.

The next day, the Mongolian surrendered people really acted as an accomplice and caused the two generals to be killed in battle.

Generals Chen Ce and Tong Zhongkui went to the rescue but were also killed in battle.

Yuan Yingtai ordered the Fengji and Xianning armies to retreat and defend Liaoyang with all their strength. He also diverted water into the city canal, arranged cannons along the river, and had soldiers guard the city around it.

On the 19th, the Qing army arrived at the city gates. Yuan Yingtai personally led the generals Hou Shilu, Li Bingcheng, Liang Zhongshan, Jiang Bi, and Zhu Wanliang to fight five miles out of the city. They were defeated and suffered heavy casualties.

That night Yuan Yingtai did not enter the city but stayed in the military camp.

The next day, the Later Jin army dug open the sluice gate on the west side of the city to drain the water from the moat, and sent soldiers to guard the water outlet on the east side of the city. They crossed the city river and shouted to the foot of the city. The two sides fought for a long time.

Many Qing cavalrymen rushed to the edge of the city, and the defeated Ming soldiers fled outside the city. Some were drowned, and some were killed by the Qing army, with heavy casualties.

Early in the morning, Yuan Yingtai entered the city and, together with the inspector Zhang Quan and others, divided the city walls (small concave and convex walls on the city wall) to defend the city.

Supervisor Gao Chu, Hu Yingdong and others escaped by climbing over the city wall, causing the people to become disunited.

On the 11th, the Later Jin army attacked the city again. Commander Yuan Yingtai led his soldiers to fight with shields, but was defeated again.

By evening, the watchtower caught fire and the Later Jin army entered the city through the Small West Gate, causing chaos in the city.

Yuan Yingtai, observing this from the tower, felt the situation was irreversible and said to Zhang Quan, "You have no responsibility to defend the city. Leave now! I will die here!"

After saying this, Yuan Yingtai put on his sword and seal and hanged himself.

His brother-in-law Yao Juxiu also committed suicide.

The servant Tang Shiming cried while caressing Yuan Yingtai's body, then set fire to the building and died.

After this matter reached the court, Emperor Tianqi posthumously awarded Yuan Yingtai the title of Minister of War, held a grand funeral for him, and appointed his son as an official.

But now it is different. Xiong Tingbi does not have as many things to do as Yuan Yingtai. From the beginning to the end, Xiong Tingbi felt that the Liao people and the Mongols were not trustworthy. What was the point of going out of the city to fight?

Lao Xiong thought that he had to defend the city first, consume the Jurchens, wait until they were unable to attack for a long time and their morale was low, and then go out of the city to counterattack.

The Liaodong army was no longer capable of fighting tough battles, but it could still fight favorable battles. Xiong Tingbi was very clear about this.

Soon the spy was brought back by Daishan. Nurhaci questioned the Mongolian spy in detail and found that things were worse than he thought.

Xiong Tingbi had these people digging trenches, building walls, and carrying stones to the top of the city walls all day long, anyway, they were making all kinds of preparations to defend the city. I just won't go out, if you have the ability, you can break in.

"Give weapons to those Mongols, let them serve as vanguards, and prepare to attack the city." A fierce look flashed across Nurhaci's face, and he gave the order directly.

Anyway, at this point, a war was bound to happen, but Nurhaci was reluctant to let his own sons fight, so he simply let these Mongols fight.

Don't they have a lot of resentment towards Xiong Tingbi? Since they can boost their morale, let them fight.

If there is an opportunity, then I will take the opportunity to capture Shenyang City; if not, then I can retreat. After all, retreating is not a big deal if I can't take it down.