How can one be Emperor Chongzhen without money?

Chapter 90 Old Xu, Actually, Foreigners Can Also Perform Loyalty! (Tenth Update)
Inside Yihaitang.

Xu Guangqi stood with his hands at his sides, his white beard trembling slightly in the light streaming through the windowpane. This old minister was in his early sixties, but his back was ramrod straight, and his crimson official robe had faded from washing.

Emperor Chongzhen stared at him, but his thoughts drifted to two hundred years later—in the misty rain of Jiangnan, a man with a red turban shouted "Heavenly Father and Heavenly Brother" and beat the Eight Banners soldiers to a pulp.

That was the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.

The Qing dynasty's Manchu bannermen collapsed, but thanks to the traitorous local militia led by Zeng Guofan and Li Hongzhang, armed with foreign guns and cannons, they managed to survive by a hair's breadth.

Foreign guns and cannons? The Ming Dynasty already had that!
It was this old man Xu in front of us, along with his apprentice Sun Yuanhua who couldn't fight, who caused all this. As a result, the Wuqiao Mutiny broke out, Dengzhou was lost, and the "Ming Dynasty Foreign Rifle Corps" fell apart.

"The path that the Qing devils could take, why can't I?" Chongzhen snapped out of his thoughts and tapped his knuckles on the table. "Mr. Xu, during the Tianqi era, you imported cannons from Macau and even hired Western artillerymen?"

Xu Guangqi hurriedly bowed and said, "Your Majesty, this is indeed true. In the second and third years of the Tianqi reign, I sent Zhang Tao and Sun Xueshi to Macau to purchase more than thirty cannons and hired thirty-two Portuguese artillerymen, including Gongsa de Cilao and Lu Weilue, to come to the capital to train them."

"Good!" Chongzhen nodded. "Continue with this matter." He took a scroll from the table, and Wang Chengen quickly handed it to Xu Guangqi.

Xu Guangqi unfolded it and saw that the design drawn with a brush had stiff lines—two large wooden wheels supported a secondary cannon carriage, and the cannon barrel was slender and smaller than the ordinary Hongyi cannon.

“This is called a field gun,” Chongzhen said. “It fires three to six pounds of projectiles and is made of bronze. Not counting the carriage, it weighs one thousand to one thousand five hundred pounds.”

Xu Guangqi paused, stroking his beard. "Your Majesty," he said, "bronze is too expensive! One copper cannon is worth ten iron ones! The cost of casting one bronze cannon is enough to make ten iron cannons." He paused again, then added, "1,500 catties is too light. I believe we should cast 3,000 catties of iron cannons, firing 10-catty projectiles, which would cost less than bronze cannons. If we could make over a thousand, we could deploy them in the border towns."

Emperor Chongzhen laughed: "I don't want iron lumps that sit on the city walls, I want cannons that can move with the army. Two hundred will be enough!"

He was confident in his assessment—during the First Opium War, the British army, with only about thirty cannons, still managed to force the Qing to cede territory and pay reparations. Napoleon, the French emperor, fought the Battle of Waterloo with just over two hundred cannons, while the Duke of Wellington had only a little over one hundred, yet they still fought a formidable battle. If the intensity of the Battle of Waterloo were applied to the Jurchens, they would be utterly defeated!
Therefore, for a cannon to be effective, the key is its mobility! Currently, field artillery in Europe is a decisive weapon on the battlefield.

Cannons that cannot be moved are only good for defending cities and passes; on the front lines, they are useless and easily bypassed by the enemy. But if you replace them with cannons that can be moved quickly, it's a different story. If you can concentrate dozens of cannons and bombard one point of the Jurchen battle formation, even if the Jurchens were made of iron, they would collapse. Once they can't hold on, you can unleash a cavalry charge. As long as the cannons, cavalry, muskets, and spears are coordinated well, the Jurchens are nothing to worry about.

"I plan to set up an artillery factory in the capital," Chongzhen continued, "and invite Western gunsmiths to be the instructors to cast these two hundred cannons for my new capital garrison. I will also set up an artillery school and invite foreign gunners to teach."

He looked at Xu Guangqi: "This matter needs to be handled by someone who knows the ropes. Do you have someone in mind, sir?"

"I recommend Sun Yuanhua!" Xu Guangqi blurted out. "He is well-versed in Western learning, knowledgeable in military affairs, and skilled in firearms."

"Sun Yuanhua has arrived in Beijing?"

"arrive."

"Good!" Chongzhen laughed. "You can give him a heads-up and have him draft a proposal for building the factory. I'll summon him later."

Xu Guangqi bowed and accepted the order, but then the emperor's tone suddenly changed: "Who's in charge of those Portuguese in Macau now? I've heard there's a 'military leader'?"

"Your Majesty, the Portuguese in Macau are self-governing, and their leader is called a 'military chief' or 'governor,' currently Schweiner. Nominally, they still submit to the Ming Dynasty as their master, and pay an annual land rent of five hundred taels."

"Summon him to the capital to see me."

Xu Guangqi was startled: "Your Majesty, this move may invite criticism! Back then, Lu Zhaolong, a supervising secretary of the Ministry of Rites, strongly opposed it, saying, 'There is a distinction between Chinese and barbarians, and the laws of the land must remain.'"

"Nonsense!" Emperor Chongzhen waved his hand. "The Portuguese rent Macau and recognize me as their suzerain. They are like foreign chieftains of the Ming Dynasty! When I meet a chieftain, do I need to distinguish between Chinese and barbarians?" He got up and walked to the window. "After the imperial examination, I will have Grand Secretary Huang hold a court meeting to discuss the matter of summoning the Macau military commander Schweiner and his firearms craftsmen to the capital."

He turned abruptly: "I want to ask him face to face—how will this foreign chieftain of Macau help the Ming Dynasty cast cannons and train troops? How will he assist in defending the sea frontier? As for the price..." A cold smile appeared on his lips, "The Ming Dynasty is not short of silver!" He paused, then added: "Minister Xu was originally the Vice Minister of Rites, and now the position of Left Vice Minister of Rites is vacant. You can be reinstated to your original post and speak on my behalf in court discussions!"

According to the personnel appointment and dismissal practices of the Ming Dynasty, the reinstatement of high-ranking officials did not require the imperial recommendation process; an imperial decree was sufficient. Of course, this was on the premise that the position to be reinstated was vacant.

"Your subject obeys the decree!" Xu Guangqi bowed deeply, his white beard trembling.

Chongzhen suddenly added, "By the way, the first six books of Euclid's Elements have been translated well. We should hurry up and finish translating the remaining seven books."

Xu Guangqi was taken aback: "Your subject obeys the decree."

As he left Yihaitang, a cold wind blew and he suddenly realized—how did the Emperor know that there were still seven untranslated volumes of Euclid's Elements?
Just then, he saw the one-eyed general Wang Tong hurriedly enter the palace with Xu Yingyuan. The two nodded slightly as they passed each other, and Xu Guangqi left the palace on his own, his mind filled with thoughts of the Portuguese in Macau, field cannons, and Euclid's Elements.

Wang Tong stepped into Yihai Hall and bowed deeply: "Your subject, Wang Tong, the military commander of Xuanfu, pays his respects to Your Majesty! I have important matters to report on regarding border defense, and I also have the ancestral 'Xuanzhen Border Defense Map Study' to present to you!" After speaking, he took out a yellowed book from his bosom and raised it high above his head with both hands.

Emperor Chongzhen gestured for Wang Chengen to take the album. After a brief look, he found that it was not only richly illustrated with pictures and text, but also detailed annotations on various water sources, grasslands, ambush sites, and even assessments of the habits and combat capabilities of different Mongol tribes. Although the handwriting was rough, it was clearly a work of painstaking effort.

"Good!" Emperor Chongzhen closed the album, his eyes showing approval. "This is more valuable to me than ten thousand soldiers. Wang Tong, I am very pleased with your loyalty."

Wang Tong kowtowed and said, "Your Majesty has committed grave crimes, yet Your Majesty has spared my life and even given me an important position. Even if I were to die a thousand deaths, I could not repay even a fraction of Your Majesty's kindness!"

Emperor Chongzhen raised his hand in a gesture of support: "Rise and speak. Please take a seat."

Wang Chengen hurriedly brought over an embroidered stool. Wang Tong thanked him, sat down with half his buttocks on it, and straightened his back.

Emperor Chongzhen sized up the one-eyed general before him, a sense of感慨 (gan3kai3, a complex emotion encompassing both admiration and reflection). Wang Tong, who in his previous life had surrendered Xuanfu Town to the rebel Li Zicheng, was now a loyal subject of the Ming Dynasty. Even Wei Zhongxian had become a capable general resisting the invaders. It seemed that in this life, Emperor Chongzhen had finally achieved some success in leadership.

"What's the situation outside the Great Wall?" Chongzhen pulled himself out of his thoughts. "Have you made contact with Huduntu?"

A glint flashed in Wang Tong's single eye: "Your Majesty, I sent my retainer Wang Yong with five elite cavalrymen deep into the southern desert for half a month, and finally found the Tiger Mound Rabbit Camp on the banks of the Ba River."

He paused slightly, and seeing that the Emperor was listening attentively, he continued, "The Chahan tribe is in dire straits now. They came in haste and suffered a defeat at Xuanfu Town, fleeing to the wilderness. Many of their cattle and sheep have starved to death. Their people are disaffected, and every day herdsmen are fleeing south to join the Ming. My servants met with Huduntu's uncle, Henghua Taiji, and learned that his tribe's food reserves are only enough to last for two months."

Emperor Chongzhen lightly tapped the table with his fingertips: "How is Hudun Tu himself?"

"He still considers himself the Great Khan of the Mongols and spends his days drinking to drown his sorrows." Wang Tong smirked slightly. "However, his three thousand elite cavalry from the Chahan tribe are still around, and they are still skilled in archery and horsemanship."

Emperor Chongzhen understood. This "green-hatted tyrant" wouldn't fall anytime soon. Calculating the time, the Jisi Incident was not far off, the fighting was almost over, and it was time to "recruit the dogs."

"Wang Tong," Chongzhen said to Wang Tong, "I intend to return the captured Su Tai's wife and her followers to Huduntu. What do you think?"

Wang Tong's one eye widened: "Your Majesty, this..."

Chongzhen waved his hand to interrupt: "Of course it wasn't returned for nothing. You just said that the 'flower-adorned' Taiji was quite reasonable?"

Wang Tong hurriedly said, "Geng Hua Taiji secretly indicated that if the Ming Dynasty were willing to provide grain supplies, he would be willing to persuade Hu Dun Tu to submit and pay tribute."

"There's no need for him to submit; I know Huduntu Khan won't agree," Chongzhen chuckled. "I want Huduntu to exchange warhorses for three thousand of the finest horses, in exchange for his wife and two thousand troops."

Wang Tong gasped, "Three thousand horses? I'm afraid Tiger Mound Rabbit won't agree."

“He will agree.” Chongzhen’s gaze was far-reaching. “Have the Manchu Taiji deliver a message: I can give him grain and lend him troops. The Chahan tribe is not the only Mongol tribe that can do business with the Ming Dynasty.”

Wang Tong suddenly realized: This is a scheme of two dogs fighting over food!
At this point, Chongzhen changed the subject: "Eunuch Wei said that you and Wang Shiqin deserve the greatest credit for the victory in the recapture of Dushikou!"

Wang Tong's one eye was slightly red: "Your Majesty, I am ashamed. I am only trying to atone for my crimes through meritorious service."

"I know you were deceived by Zhu Chunchen, and you are not his close ally. As for exchanging goods with the Northern Barbarians, which of the nine border generals is not like that?" Chongzhen patted his shoulder. "Do a good job on this mission. If you can really get three thousand warhorses back, I will allow you to reorganize two hundred household cavalry. All the food and pay will be supplied by the Xuanfu military farm that your family occupies. I will not take it back. Let your family support the army."

Wang Tong was startled. The personal guards and cavalrymen of a military family were their very foundation for survival. After he was convicted, his old troops either scattered or died alongside him and Wang Shiqin at Dushikou. Only a dozen or so remained, all of whom had distinguished themselves in the vanguard battle. They had all been recruited into Wei Zhongxian's personal guard and became the emperor's personal retainers.

A border general without retainers will find it difficult to maintain his position.
Now the Emperor has actually allowed him to rebuild his household guards, and even used the military farms he occupied to pay for them!

"Your Majesty," Wang Tong choked up, unable to utter a word.

Emperor Chongzhen laughed and said, "Don't act like a child. I will grant you another three thousand taels of silver to settle your household, and also a belt inlaid with gold and jade. Go and do your business. I await your good news."

Wang Tong kowtowed heavily, and when he stood up, his single eye was filled with determination. He strode out, his back straight as a spear, looking full of energy.

As Chongzhen watched him depart, he thought to himself: In my past life, this Wang Tong surrendered Xuanfu; in this life, I want to see him guard Xuanfu for me.

As Wang Tong strode out of the hall, Chongzhen watched his retreating figure and thought to himself: "In his previous life, he was a traitorous general who offered his services to Xuanfu, but in this life, he has been forced to become a loyal minister. It seems that 'loyalty' can be forced out of one's wits!"

(End of this chapter)