Xiuyan is located in the northern part of Liaodong Peninsula, bordering Fengcheng and Donggang to the east and southeast, Dashiqiao City and Gaizhou to the west, Zhuanghe to the south, and Liaoyang County and Haicheng City to the north and northwest.
From a geographical point of view, it is located between the Ming army in southern Liaoning and Liaodong.
The newly appointed Liaodong governor Yuan Keli chose to hold a military meeting here, which also meant to be impartial and give equal importance to the two armies.
As for the current situation, the Ming army in southern Liaoning is confronting the Jiannu and Han army in Haizhouwei, while the Ming army in eastern Liaodong is eyeing Jianzhou across the Taizi River, forming a two-headed trap.
If the Ming army in western Liaoning and the Ming-Mongol coalition forces were added, the counterattack would be an attack from all sides, establishing victory in Liaodong in one fell swoop with a thunderous force.
In fact, if we were to say that victory was already secured when the Jiannu were retreating to Liaoning, but to truly defeat and annihilate the Jiannu, a decisive victory was still needed.
Xiuyan Fort wasn't large, but it was heavily guarded. Not only was the Panshi Corps stationed there, but there were also three thousand flying cavalrymen under the command of Liu Xingzuo, who jointly guarded the junction of the two Ming armies and protected General Yuan, the Liaodong governor.
Although the forts such as Dapianlingguan and Dapianlingdun to the north of Xiuyan Fort were all garrisoned by Ming troops, the safety of the Liaodong governor must still be absolutely guaranteed.
Yuan Keli stood on the fortress wall, looking at the already well-prepared fortifications and nodded slightly. Although not the first line of defense against the enemy, the Rock Association had not been lazy and had built a strong fortification.
Xiong Tingbi stood beside Lord Yuan, seeming a little distracted, looking to the east from time to time.
"Feibai, there's no need to do this." Yuan Keli saw through Xiong Tingbi's thoughts and said with a smile, "Your Majesty has made all the arrangements. Mao Wenlong, if he has any dissatisfaction, is already on the ship heading to the capital and will not come to see you."
Xiong Tingbi laughed dryly, but he was quite pleased. Between him and Mao Wenlong, the emperor still favored him. If he and Mao Wenlong really didn't get along, then he would be the only one who could stay in Liaodong.
Yuan Keli didn't say much. He patted the city wall with his hand and said in a deep voice, "Although our military operations have been kept secret, the Jiannu seem to have sensed something amiss. According to intelligence, they are mobilizing, and all 15 to 50 bannermen are being organized into formations for training."
Xiong Tingbi pondered for a moment and said, "Even so, our army still has a huge advantage in terms of strength. Especially in firearms, it is overwhelming."
"If the Jiannu lose Liaochen, they will certainly not be able to hold the tiny Jianzhou," Yuan Keli said. "They will most likely flee north. Completely annihilating them will take time."
Xiong Tingbi nodded and said, "Master Yuan's concerns are quite true. I just wonder if His Majesty's goal is to pacify Liaodong or to restore the entire Nurgan Regional Military Commission's jurisdiction."
Heilongjiang River is the largest river in the Northeast region. The Yuan Dynasty officially incorporated it into its territory and placed it under the jurisdiction of the two provinces of Lingbei and Liaoyang.
The Ming Dynasty established the Nurgan Regional Administration here, which governed the areas on both sides of the Heilongjiang River, inside and outside the Greater Khingan Range, and east of the Ussuri River to the sea.
At that time, 70 guards and 20 posts were established in Nurgan City. The Ming court used local people to govern the areas, allowed hereditary succession, and granted official seals.
Although Nurgandusi belonged to the Ming Dynasty, its status was not as high as that of a prefecture or county. The Ming court also regarded it as a barbarian land and a controlled prefecture.
Therefore, in the definition of the Ming court, Liaodong was only a part of Liaoning and Jilin Provinces in later generations, and the northernmost actual military garrison was Kuandian Liubao.
In this way, the goal of pacifying Liaodong can be scaled up or down.
In a more specific sense, the recovery of the Liaodong region, where the Ming court had directly stationed officials and troops, could be considered a success. In a more specific sense, the restoration of the Nurgan Regional Military Commission and the re-establishment of 70 garrisons were considered a major accomplishment.
Yuan Keli frowned slightly at Xiong Tingbi's question, not quite understanding it.
"Perhaps, it depends on whether the court has the financial and material resources to support it." Yuan Keli answered vaguely.
The main reason why the Ming court gradually lost control of the Nurgan Regional Command was the lack of financial and material resources.
During the Xuande period, Yishiha inspected the Nurgan region for the ninth time and gave generous rewards to the leaders of the various tribes in Nurgan, including cloth, silk, utensils, wine and grain.
Moreover, because transportation was difficult in ancient times, the most convenient way of transportation was by water. Naturally, the Ming Dynasty could only establish strongholds along rivers, and places where waterways were inaccessible were basically deserted.
For example, during Yishiha's inspection in the ninth year of Yongle, he first built 25 giant ships in a place called Ashhada on the banks of the Songhua River in the southern suburbs of Jilin City today. It took him a year.
Then he led more than a thousand Ming soldiers and officers, boarded huge ships loaded with cloth, silk, food, utensils and other supplies, and set sail on the spring monsoon, sailing down the river from the Songhua River into the Heilong River, and sailed day and night to Nurgan.
It can be seen that maintaining control over the Nurgan Regional Military Commission was a very costly undertaking. Yishiha, a renowned eunuch of the Ming dynasty, was as famous as Zheng He due to his numerous voyages.
However, during the reigns of Emperors Renzong and Xuanzong, the simplest way to deal with the financial burden caused by the extreme expansion during the Chengzu period was to contract.
The Jiaozhi Chengxuanzhengshisi was abandoned; the Nurgandusi was moved inland to Sanwanwei (now Kaiyuan, Liaoning), and the expansion in the northeast direction stagnated; the voyages to the West were abolished, and a major historical setback occurred during the Age of Exploration.
Countless amounts of money and supplies had been spent on pacifying Liaodong, and Yuan Keli knew this very well.
In his opinion, the emperor would most likely take a break to recuperate after pacifying the Liao Dynasty. Restoring the Nurgan Regional Military Commission could not be implemented immediately.
Moreover, the emperor has issued decrees many times, requiring governors and governors-general in various places to formulate plans to deal with the huge disasters.
Under such circumstances, it would be unlikely to expand in the Northeast.
Despite this, it is still foreseeable that the Ming army would pursue the fleeing Jiannu relentlessly and use cavalry to carry out a radical attack to wipe out the enemy.
Xiong Tingbi also knew that the court's huge investment in Liaodong over the past few years would be extremely difficult to maintain in the long term. Just as he was about to speak, he saw smoke and dust rising from the road to the east, and he couldn't help but purse his lips.
Yuan Keli also looked over and said with a smile, "I think Marshal Mao has arrived. How about we go down to the city and greet him?"
"Master Yuan, there's no need to condescend." Xiong Tingbi said tactfully, "It would be reasonable for me to go down and take over."
"Then I will wait for you two on the city wall." Yuan Keli nodded with a smile, turned around and walked towards the city gate tower accompanied by the guards.
Xiong Tingbi straightened his robe, stepped down from the city wall, and rode out of the city under the escort of a dozen personal soldiers.
If he could unite sincerely with Mao Wenlong, Xiong Tingbi still valued Mao Wenlong, an old general who was familiar with the situation in Liaodong.
Of course, if Mao Wenlong was arrogant and had a bad temper, he would not be the kind of person who would give in.
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