Chapter 43 Re-encountering Xiang Xing

  "Does the Lord still remember a certain person?"

  "Is it General? It's really you! How could I, Haotian, dare to forget the general?" Haotian looked up and saw that it was Xiang Xing, the former deputy commander of the Eastern Army Corps of the Empire, with whom he had a brief friendship during the recapture of Dingzhou. However, since parting ways at Tianji Valley, they hadn't seen each other again. This time, Haotian came to Tiandu Shengjing and was too busy with affairs to ask about Xiang Xing's whereabouts, not expecting to run into him here today.

  Xiang Hehe smiled and said: "Now that Master Hou has become a master of his own domain, I'm afraid he'll forget about me as a friend."

  "General, what are you talking about? In your presence, I am still the same ignorant young man who commanded a thousand cavalrymen. Don't call me Marquis anymore, just call me Haotian like before."

  He was originally a very generous person and didn't care about these trivial matters either. So he stopped making excuses: "General Hao, I heard you came to Tian Du Sheng Jing and wanted to find you. But recently I've been extremely busy and couldn't leave without permission. I didn't expect the commander to be assassinated, and we met because of this."

  Li Xiao Mo saw the two chatting lively, so he didn't interrupt. He knew that Xiang Hang had never had a good impression of the three major families, so he didn't go up to greet them either. Instead, he just bowed to the two and left directly. His purpose today has been basically achieved, naturally there's no need to waste more time here.

  Watching Li Xiao's calm departure, Xiang's eyes narrowed into a slit: "Are you very familiar with the general?"

  Hao Tian shook his head: "There's no particular relationship. I just heard that the Shangshu lord was stabbed, and someone was about to visit the mansion to pay respects. Unexpectedly, Li Shizi came to visit and invited me to visit Shangshu lord together."

  He nodded: "I see. The general must be extra vigilant against this person. The three major families have experienced 300 years of wind and rain, and their power has reached its peak in recent years. However, the next generation of heirs is far inferior to the current three vassals. Only Li Xiaomo not only inherited Li Tie's old wisdom but also surpassed him. If the three major families still exist twenty years later, it will be Li Xiaomo's world."

  "Huh?" Haotian was slightly startled, he knew that Li Xiao Mo was not an ordinary person, but he didn't expect that Xiang Hou's evaluation of him would be so high. However, these things had nothing to do with him now, so he just smiled slightly and said: "Since Haotian arrived in the capital, he hasn't received any news from General, I wonder what General has been busy with recently."

  He let out a sigh and said, "It's not easy to reorganize the Eastern Field Army. When the Northern Expeditionary Force was defeated, all three of the Empire's major field armies were annihilated, with nearly 100,000 killed in action and more than 200,000 captured. Fortunately, many of those captured brothers have gathered under your command, General. Due to the severe shortage of troops, His Majesty has ordered me to reorganize the Eastern Field Army and Zhu Bingyong to reorganize the Northern Field Army. However, with the national treasury empty and a severe shortage of soldiers, there are hardly any veteran soldiers, making it extremely difficult to rebuild the Eastern Field Army. Although several months have passed, I've only managed to set up a framework, but the combat effectiveness is completely unreliable."

  "General, you say the treasury is empty, I can understand that. But why do you say there are not enough soldiers? With our vast territory and population of over a hundred million, even if we lost the northwest two routes and the sixteen states of Youyun with over 40 million people, there are still nearly ten million people south of the Yangtze River. Why do you say there are not enough soldiers?"

  The general's face contorted in a mixture of sadness and frustration: "Although the General has also lived in the Imperial Army for a long time, he seems to be not very familiar with the military system of the Empire. It is not surprising that he would ask such a question. The Empire originally had four major border defense legions in the east, south, west, and north, four major field legions of Qinglong, Baihu, Xuanwu, and Zhuque, two major legions of Longji and Jingwei guarding the Imperial Capital, and a naval legion of water dragons, totaling 1.2 million troops, as well as about 800,000 local garrison troops stationed in various important regions. Since the regular legions of the Empire all have different garrison areas, their personnel are generally relatively stable. The northern folk are fierce and skilled in archery and horseback riding, so the sixteen states of Youyun have always been the fixed personnel area for the Northern Legion and the Xuanwu Legion. Anxi Road and Hexi Road were the personnel areas for the Western Legion, while Yu State Road and neighboring Yangzhou Road were the personnel areas for the Eastern Legion and Qinglong Legion. The southern regions south of the Yangtze River are hilly and have dense river networks, so Jiangnan Road and Dahu Road are mainly the personnel areas for the Southern Legion and Zhuque Legion. The soldiers of the Dragon Rider Legion are mainly from the Blood-colored Highlands and the noble families in the Imperial Capital. The soldiers of the Guard Legion come mainly from the Imperial Capital and neighboring Yu State Road. Now that the sixteen states of Youyun have fallen, and the northern part of Yangzhou Road has been occupied by the extreme pleasure rebels, our Northern Legion is also rebuilding in Yu State Road, so our personnel are almost depleted."

  Haotian furrowed his brow, completely unprepared for the trouble that recruiting soldiers would bring. During his time in the six states of the Yellow River Basin, due to the constant harassment by foreign tribes beyond the borders, the people were eager to join the military, and with the addition of soldiers from the Northern Expedition who chose to stay behind, although there were only 60 million people in the Yellow River Basin, Haotian had never worried about the personnel for his army of over 2 million. After a pause, he asked suspiciously: "Why didn't General choose to recruit soldiers from other states? I remember that places like Jiangnan Road have a population of over 10 million, why didn't General choose to recruit from those areas?"

  "General, you don't know that the physique of southerners is relatively weaker compared to northerners. Moreover, Jiangnan is a rich and prosperous place, it's hard to recruit soldiers from here. As for other places like Qin River Three Roads, they are the old nests of three big aristocratic families that have been entrenched for hundreds of years. To put it bluntly, the people here may not even know there is an imperial court, only knowing about the aristocratic families. Who can guarantee that soldiers recruited from here won't harbor ulterior motives? The imperial court has already had one precedent of a defeated northern expedition, absolutely don't want to see a second one."

  Haotian was just a bitter smile, the clear wind had the aristocratic family's division and the strong enemy waiting outside, indeed it was already on the edge of turmoil. Although there were good ministers such as Guo Shi, Taishi Sima, and others in the court, and great generals like Tie Zhen, Xiang Xing, and Ouyang Jingzhong, but the empire had been weak for a hundred years, how could it be restored in a short period of time?

  Xiang paused for a moment, then continued: "Although these are difficulties, as long as we can persevere, the empire is not without hope. However, at this critical juncture of national crisis, there are still petty people in the court who are causing trouble. An Yongchang, that old scoundrel, actually made things difficult for us during the reconstruction of the Eastern Army, while he gave every convenience to his own Northern Army. Not only did he withhold military pay and supplies from my Eastern Army, but he also slandered me to the Emperor, saying that all the high-ranking generals of the Northern Expeditionary Force had died in battle, and only I returned safely, implying that there must be some secret plot behind it. His accusations not only targeted certain individuals but also attempted to frame Guo Shi. Fortunately, my Emperor is wise and was not deceived by his slander."

  "An Yongchang? Is it An Yongchang, the Minister of Revenue?" Haotian asked curiously.

  "Not bad, it's this old scoundrel." Xing Hang nodded heavily and said indignantly: "You may not have seen this old scoundrel before. This old thief is extremely cunning and has ulterior motives, and is actually a major problem within the Qing government. During the previous emperor's reign, he repeatedly deceived the emperor into large-scale construction projects and touring the country, causing the national treasury to be depleted. Moreover, he also embezzled military salaries and misappropriated military supplies, which led to the soldiers on the northern Great Wall not receiving their normal military salary for over a year. He is extremely hostile to the Water Dragon Army, and under his manipulation, the Water Dragon Army has declined from 200,000 water soldiers twenty years ago to 100,000 now. If it weren't for this, how could the Japanese be allowed to roam freely on the East Sea? The national masters hate him to the bone, but the previous emperor trusted him especially, so they couldn't do anything about him."

  Hao Tian asked strangely: "But didn't my emperor ascend to the throne? Why hasn't he made a move yet?"

  He let out a sigh of frustration: "This old scoundrel may be despicable, but he indeed has some skills. He has been in charge of the Ministry of Revenue for over 20 years, and it has become his personal domain. Although Your Majesty has repeatedly placed people there, they are immediately marginalized once they arrive at the ministry. Moreover, he is particularly close to the Regent King and secretly sends favors to the three major families. General, you may not know that when the two kings were vying for power, An Yongchang firmly stood on the side of the Regent King. It was only because Your Majesty was the eldest son of the emperor and had the support of the three marshals that he was able to ascend to the throne smoothly. Now, during this time of internal and external troubles, even the Emperor must rely on his abilities. Unfortunately, the people of Yangzhou Road have suffered, with over 40 million people killed by the Japanese invaders, and at least four hundred million people have died under their brutal rule. The tragic situation can only be understood by those who have personally experienced it."

  Haotian was shocked: "The harm of the Japanese is so great? Who is that person, I have never heard of him before?"

  "Alas, this is because the imperial court has deliberately blocked the news. The Qing dynasty is now in a precarious situation, and if this news were to spread unchecked, it would certainly cause panic among the people, and the common folk would be even more terrified. These Japanese are not only cunning and treacherous but also greedy by nature; their cruelty knows no bounds, and their brutality is even worse than that of the three northeastern countries. However, the fighting strength of the Japanese is indeed extraordinary, and their naval power is exceptionally strong. Although Japan has a population of only six million, they have an army of 300,000 and a navy of 200,000. In the heyday of the Qing dynasty's naval power, we could still suppress them, but now our naval forces are concentrated on the Grand Canal defense line and the West River defense line, leaving the coastal areas of the East China Sea and the South China Sea almost undefended, making them even more arrogant. Their roving samurai groups, known as the Japanese pirates, frequently raid our coastlines. So far, the islands of Zhoushan, Ryukyu, and Qiongzhou in the East China Sea and the South China Sea have all fallen into Japanese hands."

  Hao Tian fell silent for a moment before saying: "Is it really impossible for our navy to find a way?"

  He shook his head bitterly: "Our naval forces are now at a disadvantage in terms of overall military strength. Although General He Huaren is the Empire's number one naval general, Eastern Japan's Kato Taka is also not to be underestimated. My Qingfeng's He Huaren, Eastern Japan's Kato Taka, and Goryeo's Fu Jianglou are the three great generals who ride together on the East Sea. If we can cooperate with Goryeo, there is still a chance to turn the situation around, but... alas, it's not worth mentioning."

  Haotian also sighed, he had not thought that the harm of the Japanese would be so serious, and the drawbacks of the Qing government were so deep. If it was true as Xiang said, then the harm of the Japanese to the empire far exceeded that of the three northeastern countries. Xiang also felt that the atmosphere was a bit depressing, so he changed the subject and said: "I don't know what plans the general has for the future?"

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