It is not entirely accurate to say that it was the first time. The Ming army used similar blasting tactics when attacking the city of Lergen in the Khorchin tribe.
But that time it was just a small city equivalent to a fortress. To blow up fortified cities of the size of Haicheng, Liaoyang, and Shenyang, it was obviously not enough to use only external blasting.
If the external blasting is not powerful enough, then try the internal one. Tunnel blasting is no stranger to the emperor.
During the Taiping Rebellion, he "lifted the city walls like a piece of paper" and during the Anti-Japanese War, he made the devils ride in "homemade airplanes". He just made tunnel blasting shine hundreds of years in advance.
After continuous exercises and training, the first demolition unit in the Ming army, or in the world, was born.
The first one, the first time, the emperor could no longer count how many firsts he had created.
After Xiong Tingbi finished writing the secret memorial, he blew the ink dry, carefully folded it, put it into the secret memorial box, locked it, and ordered someone to deliver it to the capital.
Xiong Tingbi let out a long sigh, picked up the teacup and drank it, then suddenly remembered something and hurriedly ordered someone to summon Wang Hui.
Sun Yuanhua volunteered to go to Liaodong, but the emperor did not allow it and asked him to choose another trustworthy person to bring rockets to Liaodong to help in the war.
Wang Hui emerged at the right time and became the first commander of the Ming Dynasty's rocket force.
Wang Hui was no ordinary person. He was a good friend of Sun Yuanhua and also converted to Christianity. He was well versed in Western learning and wrote "Illustrated Description of Strange Instruments from the Far West".
Wang Hui participated in the development and exercises of the rocket throughout the process, and his knowledge of how to operate it was no worse than Sun Yuanhua.
Not long after, Wang Hui arrived as ordered and went inside to pay a visit to Xiong Tingbi.
"Lord Wang, there is no need to be so polite." Xiong Tingbi extended his hand to support him and ordered his personal guards to serve tea.
After Wang Hui thanked him for the meal, he took a sip politely and waited for Xiong Tingbi to ask him questions.
"When Lord Wang first arrived, he discussed this with me, this rocket issue." Xiong Tingbi stroked his beard and asked uncertainly, "You said at the time that the rocket's range could reach up to five miles?"
Wang Hui cupped his hands and said confidently, "The maximum range should be five miles. If it is set at four to five miles, it will be more accurate."
Xiong Tingbi's eyes flashed, and he nodded vigorously, saying, "Lord Wang, please elaborate on the power of this rocket. This time, in the battle with the Jianlu, we may need to use the power of the rocket."
Wang Hui was also inspired. The reason he came to Liaodong was to use rockets in actual combat and strive to make great contributions. Therefore, he was afraid that Xiong Tingbi would not attach importance to this newly established rocket force.
But seeing that Xiong Tingbi's eyes brightened the more he listened, Wang Hui felt relieved and spoke more enthusiastically.
"Excellent, excellent." Xiong Tingbi couldn't help but clap his hands. He stood up and paced around the room for a few steps. He stared at Wang Hui and said, "Master Wang, please be prepared. The rocket force will be used in this battle. We will defeat the Jianlu, so we must rely on them."
Wang Hui quickly stood up and bowed in response, without saying much, and left.
Humph, humph, old slave, old slave. In Ningyuan, my camp was bombarded by a red-haired cannon. This time, I never dreamed that I would be bombarded again!
Five hundred rockets are more than enough. Even though the accuracy is poor, they won't miss the huge Jianlu camp, right?
Xiong Tingbi stroked his beard and gazed out the window. The autumn wind was bleak and chilly. Early winter was approaching, and this winter, the Jianlu people were likely to be desperately fleeing in the ice and snow.
……………….
The autumn wind is bleak and the chill is already evident.
Tens of thousands of horses set out from Shenyang, with flags flying and hooves clattering. Nurhaci, protected by his generals, followed the central army southward.
Needless to say, Nurhaci himself felt the oppressive atmosphere during this campaign. The mentality and spirit were completely different from previous military deployments.
In the past, when the war against the Ming Dynasty was launched, the Jurchens were certainly overjoyed, and their servants also followed with large and small vehicles, all hoping to make a fortune and return victorious.
Of course, such jubilation did not always bring a fruitful return. For example, in the Battle of Ningyuan, not only did they fail to seize the territory, but they also suffered heavy losses and returned in disgrace.
But this time it was completely different. Instead of everyone's enthusiasm for war, it was shrouded in a heaviness and even a sense of tragedy that would never return.
Although the old slave stayed in Shenyang in order to stabilize people's hearts, he neither relocated the people nor blocked a lot of information.
But the reality of poverty could not be concealed. "A dou of rice cost five taels of silver. Although there was a lot of silver, there was no foreign trade, so silver was cheap and other goods were expensive."
Even with money, it was difficult to buy food on the market. "A good horse costs 150 taels of silver. One ox costs 100 taels of silver. One piece of brocade costs 100 taels of silver. One piece of cloth costs 7 taels of silver."
Although the Later Jin Dynasty was very powerful in fighting, its productivity was only equivalent to the early stage of feudal society, or even the primitive society.
The production methods were backward and the productivity level was low, so the Later Jin Dynasty was able to grow stronger only by relying on the method of "fighting to support war".
Over the years, the Later Jin Dynasty really didn't gain anything, but instead suffered considerable losses.
However, the Ming Dynasty's economic blockade became increasingly tight, and the Khorchin tribe, an ally of the Later Jin Dynasty, was defeated. It was not surprising that the Later Jin Dynasty's fragile economy collapsed.
Of course, Nurhaci and others did not know what an "economic crisis" was, but they knew that if they did not launch an attack and win a victory at this time, the situation would deteriorate to an uncontrollable level.
Fushun Prince Consort Li Yongfang rode his horse slowly with an expressionless face. He was no longer Nurhaci's close confidant, and he was also far away from Nurhaci's side.
Fan Wencheng stood behind Li Yongfang, his face heavy and his mind distracted.
At some point, Li Yongfang slowed down his horse, closing the distance between him and Fan Wencheng, and suddenly said slowly, "Xian Dou, the Fourth Prince—"
Fan Wencheng glanced around with the corner of his eye, then lowered his voice and said, "Don't worry, Prince Consort. I've sent someone to notify them."
Li Yongfang nodded and said nothing more. After a long while, he sighed and whispered, "The Ming Empire is truly a behemoth. Even if we win this battle, it will only ease the situation slightly. It will be extremely difficult to reverse the situation."
Fan Wencheng sighed in sympathy and said, "Perhaps his fate has not yet run out. For a wise ruler to emerge in hundreds of years, it is precisely at this moment."
Li Yongfang gave a wry smile and said helplessly, "He can indeed be called a wise ruler. It's God's will, God's will..."
The old slaves rebelled against the Ming, and the Jianlu were rampant for a time; the Ming army was defeated repeatedly, and almost all of Liaodong fell.
The Jianlu's bravery was only one factor in the emergence of this situation. The most important factors were the corruption of the Ming Dynasty, the factional struggles in the court, the corruption of the bureaucrats, and the emperor's stupidity.
In feudal society, the emperor's importance to a country is self-evident. A wise ruler can make a country prosperous, while a foolish one can ruin it, or even destroy it.
From the Wanli Emperor to the short-lived Taichang Emperor, and then to the first one or two years after the Carpenter Emperor ascended the throne, although there were times when Xiong Tingbi was reused to suppress the rise of the Jianlu, there were more frequent factional struggles and the rulers of Liaodong kept changing.
Chaos, chaos! Incompetent personnel, inappropriate personnel, insufficient food and wages, and soldiers without fighting spirit...
These internal problems were always difficult to resolve. Although the Ming Dynasty was large, it was weak and scattered. The larger it became, the more difficult it was to unite and face external threats with one voice.
It can be said that the Jianlu's continuous victories and gradual strength were achieved on the basis of the Ming Dynasty's own mistakes.
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