The rise of the poor

"Report! A great victory at Wangjiangjing! Two thousand three thousand were beheaded, and countless others drowned. Only the Japanese chieftain led a remnant force of less than a thousand men back to his lair in Tuolin in a sorry state."

"Issuing the order to Zhu Ping'an, the Governor of Zhejiang, to immediately lead 6,000 Zhejiang troops to Jiaxing to encircle the Japanese pirates in Tuolin! With five armies joining forces, we will annihilate the Japanese pirates in Tuolin in one fell swoop!"

A team of messengers, carrying a report of victory and a transfer order, rushed to Zhu Ping'an's hands.

Zhu Pingan accepted the report of victory and the military order, and immediately summoned all officers of the Zhejiang Army above the mid-level to his tent and read out the transfer order.

Zhu Pingan ordered Chen Dacheng to lead 3,000 Zhejiang soldiers to stay and garrison the fishing village stronghold, to reinforce the stronghold, and to work with Mao Haifeng to continue to annihilate the Japanese pirates in southern Zhejiang. Zhu Pingan himself led the main army to set off immediately for Jiaxing.

Don't worry about having less than 6,000 troops. Once we get to Shaoxing, we can replenish the Zhejiang army to 6,000 before heading to Jiaxing.

Before leaving, Zhu Pingan pulled Chen Dacheng to his side, gave him instructions, and Chen Dacheng nodded repeatedly, obeying his orders.

"Lord Zhu, are you leaving already? There are still a few Japanese pirate strongholds in southern Zhejiang that we haven't eradicated yet."

Upon receiving the news, Mao Haifeng rushed to see him off, reluctant to part.

During this period, the allied forces became more and more adept at cooperating, successively eliminating large and small Japanese pirate strongholds. Mao Haifeng made a fortune. If the Zhejiang army left, his troops would be stretched thin, and this business would not be so easy to run.

“Military orders are absolute. However, I will leave Chen Dacheng and three thousand Zhejiang soldiers to guard the fishing village. General Mao, you will assist General Chen in continuing to wipe out the Japanese pirates in southern Zhejiang.” Zhu Pingan said to Mao Haifeng, instructing him to assist Chen Dacheng in eliminating the remaining Japanese pirate strongholds.

"Rest assured, sir, I will certainly assist General Chen well. I know that you like firearms, so these fifty muskets are something I specially obtained from the barbarians and I am giving them to you as a gift."

When Mao Haifeng heard that Zhu Pingan had left behind Chen Dacheng and three thousand Zhejiang soldiers, he grinned and patted his chest to guarantee his absolute cooperation. He then ordered two wooden boxes to be brought out and opened in front of everyone, revealing a row of well-made Western muskets inside.

"Thank you, General Mao. I do indeed like firearms, so I will accept your thanks without hesitation." Zhu Ping'an bowed and expressed his gratitude.

Zhu Ping'an reciprocated by gifting Mao Haifeng two large cartloads of captured silk and satin. Mao Haifeng and his Japanese pirates grinned from ear to ear. Fifty muskets in exchange for two cartloads of silk and satin—what a bargain!

Before leaving, Zhu Pingan solemnly warned Mao Haifeng that he must never do anything like the Japanese pirates again, otherwise today's allies would become enemies on the battlefield in the future. Mao Haifeng repeatedly assured him that he would never do anything like the Japanese pirates again!

"See you later."

"See you later."

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Zhu Pingan mounted his horse, waved goodbye, and led the reorganized Zhejiang army on its journey north.

The reason why Zhu Ping'an immediately organized his troops to return north upon receiving the news of the victory and the transfer order was twofold. Firstly, military orders are paramount. The reason he sent troops to southern Zhejiang was to reassure Xu Hai about attacking Jiaxing. The victory at Wangjiangjing meant that his mission was complete and he could return. Now, Zhang Jing had ordered him to lead troops to Jiaxing to participate in the encirclement and annihilation of the Tuolin Japanese pirates' stronghold. Military orders are paramount, so of course he had to obey. Secondly, the victory at Wangjiangjing had triggered a political storm that shook the Jiangnan region.

According to historical records, after the great victory at Wangjiangjing, Emperor Jiajing was misled by Zhao Wenhua and Yan Song, and was furious. Zhang Jing was truly despicable for holding onto his troops and acting arrogantly, watching the Japanese pirates run rampant, passively avoiding battle, wasting funds and missing opportunities. He was impeached by Zhao Wenhua and others, and only then did the emperor send troops to suppress the Japanese pirates!
See? We won on the first try, and it was a resounding victory!
What does this show?! It shows that if Zhang Jing had suppressed the Japanese pirates earlier, he would have won long ago! It was only after being impeached by Zhao Wenhua and others that he was forced to send troops to suppress the Japanese pirates!
Doesn't this confirm that Zhang Jing was using his military power to his advantage, supporting the Japanese pirates, passively observing their chaos, avoiding battle, wasting resources, and missing opportunities?!

Zhang Jing is truly despicable! Deceitful and disloyal! You hold military power and support Japanese pirates; what are you trying to do?! Do you intend to rebel?!

Therefore, after news of Wang Jiangjing's great victory reached the capital, the imperial guards ordered to arrest Zhang Jing quickly set off from the capital.
Ugh!
Governor Zhang Jing
I don’t know if he has reported to the Emperor as I suggested. Although Zhu Ping’an really hoped that Zhang Jing would listen to his advice, so that the danger could be turned into safety, the plan of the five armies to besiege the Japanese pirates in Tuolin could be implemented smoothly, and the army would surely wipe out the Japanese pirates in one fell swoop by besieging Tuolin with victories.

With the Xu Hai pirates wiped out, only the Wang Zhi gang remained as a major force of pirates. Since Wang Zhi was able to be recruited into the government, the remaining small and medium-sized pirate groups were no longer a threat. Thus, the pacification of the pirate problem in Jiangnan was just around the corner.

but!

However, based on Zhu Ping'an's understanding of Zhang Jing, it would be difficult. Zhang Jing is a confident and stubborn person, and once he has made up his mind, it is hard to change it. It is likely that Zhang Jing did not listen to his advice, and history will probably continue to move forward along its original trajectory.

Therefore, I must return immediately and rush to the center of this political storm to see if there is any opportunity to make a difference.

Even if we can't change history or Zhang Jing's wrongful death in the end, we must still try to wipe out the Japanese pirates, Tuolin Xu Haihuo, in one fell swoop!
Now or never!

This great victory at Wangjiangjing has boosted the morale of our officers and soldiers, while the Japanese pirates from Tuolin and Xuhaihuo have been severely weakened. This is a rare opportunity to annihilate the Japanese pirates from Tuolin and Xuhaihuo in one fell swoop, and we cannot afford to miss it! Once we miss this opportunity, it will be much more difficult to wipe out the Japanese pirates from Tuolin and Xuhaihuo again.

Once Xu Hai is wiped out and Wang Zhi is recruited, the Japanese pirate threat in Jiangnan will be eliminated, and the people will be able to live a peaceful life.

If given the chance, Zhu Ping'an really wanted to compete for the position of governor-general, even though the possibility was slim. He had only recently been promoted to governor of Zhejiang, and his qualifications and prestige were not yet sufficient to hold the position of governor-general. However, Zhu Ping'an still wanted to make some plans. Only by taking this position could he better suppress the Japanese pirates!

If Hu Zongxian can sit in this position, why can't I?!

Of course, Hu Zongxian has Zhao Wenhua's full support and the Yan Party as his backing. In addition, he is much more senior than me, so he has a greater chance. However, I am not without a chance. Compared with Hu Zongxian, I also have advantages in some aspects.

Hu Zongxian had the support of Zhao Wenhua and Yan's faction, and he also had connections in Beijing, including my mentor Xu Jie.

In addition, he had a good impression in the eyes of the Jiajing Emperor.
Furthermore, in terms of suppressing Japanese pirates, he himself was demoted to a small county in Jingnan, Jiangnan, and it was through suppressing Japanese pirates that he rose to power and made a comeback. During this period, he made a series of contributions in suppressing Japanese pirates. In terms of actual combat achievements in suppressing Japanese pirates, he was better than Hu Zongxian.

You still need to have dreams, otherwise what's the difference between you and a salted fish? (End of Chapter)