Chapter 1353 Internal Communication
Although the details of the sneak attack on Majiazhuang were planned by Zheng Ai, it did come from Liao Jie's instruction. Especially in mobilizing the personnel and equipment needed by Zheng Ai, he provided great convenience and allowed the sergeant to retire from the public eye to avoid attracting unnecessary attention. But Liao Jie really didn't expect that such an arrangement would be noticed by someone who was interested, and he took the information of these retired sergeants to the Haihan people and exchanged it for white coins. However, the Haihan people actually followed the clues and investigated the entire sneak attack plan in advance. They also set up a trap in Majiazhuang and waited for Zheng Ai's team to fall into the trap.
However, Liao Jie is not so ambitious that he thinks that Zheng Ai's operation will be 100% successful. This kind of sneak attack and assassination operation in enemy-occupied areas has too many uncertain factors. No matter how thorough the plan is in advance, it will not be possible. Success may not be guaranteed. It's just that the current situation in Dengzhou is increasingly favorable to Haihan, and he can no longer wait patiently for a perfect opportunity. According to his personal conservative estimate, Zheng Ai's action has a 30% to 40% chance of success, which is incredible. So before setting off for Zheng Ai, Liao Jie also considered the consequences of failure and made some preparations within his capabilities.
Of course, the first thing Liao Jie had to guard against was Haihan's revenge after the incident was exposed. However, he also believed that even if Haihan would launch a military attack on Dengzhou, he would not directly attack Dengzhou City. This is because the Dengzhou military is not completely ignorant of the strength of the Haihan garrison in the local area. Although it cannot defeat the Haihan army, it has a basic grasp of the strength of the Haihan garrison and knows that the Haihan people do not have enough troops. Troops expand the area of control to a larger area.
From this relatively obvious shortcoming, Liao Jie also realized that Haihan's attitude towards war was not as radical as imagined. Because the troops were limited and far away from the homeland, the Haihan people's ability to withstand war losses was actually far less than that of the Ming Dynasty. Therefore, after Haihan landed on the coast of Fushan County, he never implemented any offensive methods such as attacking the city. Instead, he gradually moved the control area around Zhifu Island, Jiahe Bank, Majiazhuang, Fushan Copper Mine and other strongholds. Expanded and connected together, there was no direct attack on targets such as Fushan County, Qishan Suo City or the larger Dengzhou City.
Later, the Haihan people paid more attention to the Yellow Sea. Liao Jie knew that they were secretly colluding with Pi Island and even semi-openly provided food supplies to the locals. However, this is a good thing for the security of Dengzhou. If Haihan transfers more energy to other places, his willingness to take action locally will be correspondingly reduced.
Liao Jie was convinced that even if Zheng Ai's operation failed, the Haihan people would not directly attack Dengzhou City, but if they wanted to retaliate against places like Fushan County and Qishan Suo City nearby, it would be difficult for Dengzhou to do so. Rescue was carried out in time.
However, Liao Jie did not plan to notify people like Zhang Pucheng, the magistrate of Fushan County, and Feng Fei of Qianshan Household in Qishan County in advance. The reason is very simple. These places are close to the Haihan controlled area but have never been attacked. Apart from the explanation that Haihan people are soft-hearted, Another possibility left is that they have reached some secret agreement with the Haihan people in exchange for the security of the jurisdiction. Liao Jie also wanted to see to what extent the relationship between Haihan and them was, and whether he would vent his anger on them because of this incident.
But Liao Jie never expected that Zheng Ai, who he thought was determined to die, could not bear the pressure and gave him up anyway. In this way, Haihan will naturally not spread his nameless reputation on the local officials with whom he has established friendship, nor will he make any tough stance towards Fushan County and Qishan. Liao Jie wanted to take advantage of the chaos to watch the excitement in these two places and rectify the local civil and military officials. This idea was probably going to come to nothing.
However, for safety reasons, Liao Jie still wanted to inform Chen Zhongsheng, the prefect of Dengzhou, about the matter. Even if there were no practical countermeasures, it was good to be mentally prepared. Of course, it is inevitable that Chen Zhongsheng will share the credit when the thing is done, but if Zheng Ai makes a mistake and causes trouble, at least he will have one more partner to take the blame.
Chen Zhongsheng was handling official business in the government office. When he heard that Liao Jie had suddenly visited, he guessed that he might have urgent military information to communicate with him. He immediately suspended what he was doing and welcomed him into the study for an interview.
Liao Jie's description was concise and concise, and it didn't take too long to tell Chen Zhongsheng what happened. At this time, the handyman had just brought in the hot tea.
Chen Zhongsheng was silent for a while, silently digesting the information Liao Jie said in his mind. After a long time, he asked: "How confident do you think Mr. Liao is?"
Liao Jie understood what he was asking and immediately responded: "There should be 40 to 50 percent."
In fact, his estimate of the outcome of the action was not so optimistic, but facing the civil servant Chen Zhongsheng, he still had to be more confident to prevent the other party from starting to find fault from now on.
But Chen Zhongsheng was not so easily tricked by him. After hearing this answer, he said noncommittally: "Can it be as high as 40 to 50%? If you are so sure, Master Liao wouldn't have waited for almost a year before taking action, right?"< br>
Chen Zhongsheng was doubtful about the probability of success of Liao Jie's plan. Putting aside Zheng Ai's personal ability, this team was going deep into enemy-occupied areas to kidnap or assassinate senior officials of Haihan. This idea of action alone made him very uncomfortable. Be optimistic. The two countries have not officially declared war at this stage. Even though there were several large-scale armed conflicts last year and there were some casualties, the two sides still have a tacit understanding not to tear off the last fig leaf and continue to maintain a semblance of peace.
Different from Liao Jie's view, Chen Zhongsheng believed that the Haihan people were unwilling to start a war not because their troops were limited and could not occupy a large area, but because they wanted to maintain a stable external environment for the operation of the Fushan Copper Mine.
Ever since Haihan started mining in Fushan County, Chen Zhongsheng has always suspected that the purpose of the Haihan people coming here to seize the land was not simply to occupy Dengzhou's land, but to plunder Dengzhou's local resources. Of course, there was not much private wealth left in Dengzhou after the Denglai War for the Haihan people to take advantage of, so the resources they collected in Dengzhou were also relatively different - population and minerals.
Of course, the Dengzhou government did not want to watch the resources belonging to the Ming Dynasty being plundered by Haihan. Chen Zhongsheng also wanted to expel the Tartars and regain the lost territory for the country. But the problem is that the Dengzhou Ming Army has proved that force is not feasible in actual combat, and Haihan seems to have no intention to further expand its territory. Therefore, in Chen Zhongsheng’s view, if there is no strength to expel the Haihan people from Dengzhou at this stage, then It is better to maintain the existing peace and not take the initiative to provoke those evil stars.
Chen Zhongsheng did not want to rekindle the fighting in the areas under his rule, and the opponents this time were obviously much more difficult to deal with than the Kong Youde rebels during the Denglai Rebellion. The Chief Envoy of Shandong Province has long issued a decree requiring all state governments to maintain local stability on their own. Since most of the province's elite troops have been deployed to the Central Plains to encircle and suppress the peasant army, there is no way to ask for help from above regarding Haihan. Failure to do so will lead to punishment.
Currently unable to gain an overwhelming advantage over Haihan, Chen Zhongsheng would rather let Haihan continue to absorb the local population and mine copper mines than actively destroy the current peaceful situation. Although Chen Zhongsheng's tone was calm, his attitude of questioning Liao Jie's approach was clearly revealed.
Liao Jie's face also darkened: "The Haihan people are entrenched in Fushan County. As a commanding officer, I have the responsibility of guarding the territory. I can't just sit back and watch the Haihan people get bigger in the local area. Even if I am only 10% sure, You have to wait until you try it before you know whether it works or not! Mr. Chen, are you really planning to surrender without a fight?”
Chen Zhongsheng responded: "The Ming Dynasty and Haihan have not started a war, so how can they surrender without fighting? Mr. Liao, please don't lie. You just said this matter without discussing it with me beforehand. If things don't go as planned, something will happen." It’s a mistake, Mr. Liao, don’t try to shirk responsibility from me!”
Seeing that the other party had seen through his intentions, Liao Jie chuckled and said, "Mr. Chen, don't you think about it. If this thing is done, we can drive the Haihan people away from Dengzhou. What a great achievement it is?" "Are you afraid?" They think the Haihan people are too simple!" Chen Zhongsheng shook his head and said: "They invested at least hundreds of thousands of taels of silver in mining in Fushan County. What they want is long-term profits. How can they give up because of trivial matters? Do you think they came all the way from the south to Dengzhou just to attack the city? ”
"If Zheng Ai can control their senior officials, it will be no small matter. Only with bargaining chips can they make them give up local industries." Liao Jie still insisted on his opinion: "If you want to win without a fight, this is The only way.”
Chen Zhongsheng sighed and said: "What if your people fail? Have you ever thought about how to deal with the revenge of the Haihan people?"
Liao Jie nodded and said: "Of course I have considered this. The Haihan people have limited troops and will not attack Dengzhou City. Even if they attack Dengzhou, it will not be of any practical benefit to them. Instead, it may trigger a counterattack by our Ming Dynasty. I believe this is not the result they want to see.”
"That's it?"
"That's it." Seeing the displeasure on Chen Zhongsheng's face, Liao Jie added: "Other than that, what else can the Haihan people do? Attack Fushan County or Qishansuo? These measures cannot threaten Dengzhou City. Even if they do it, it will not be retaliatory.”
Chen Zhongsheng stared at Liao Jie and said, "So you want to deal with Zhang Zhixian and Feng Qianhu at the same time. This is a good plan!"
Liao Jie sternly denied Chen Zhongsheng's statement: "I have no grudge against Zhang Zhixian and Feng Qianhu, so how can I clean it up? Don't talk nonsense, Mr. Chen."
Chen Zhongsheng sneered and said: "Master Liao, although Zhang Zhixian and Feng Qianhu did not make fierce resistance to Haihan, they have maintained the peace today. Are you doing this deliberately to trigger a war? What does this do to you? Benefits? ”
Liao Jie said: "I just want to expel the Haihan people from Dengzhou as soon as possible. As for other things, I don't think as much as Mr. Chen."
Chen Zhongsheng was silent for a while and then said: "You and I have different ways and we don't want to work together. When will we hear back from the people you sent to Fushan County?"
Liao Jie responded: "As long as they can return to Guxian Town, there will be arrangements for them to escape. If everything goes well, there will be a quick return tomorrow morning at the latest."
"I will report this matter to the Chief Envoy. Mr. Liao, please wish yourself well!" After hearing this answer, Chen Zhongsheng was obviously not very satisfied, and finally chose not to cooperate with Liao Jie.
Liao Jie's face became even uglier. He originally wanted to come and explain a few words and get it over with, but he didn't expect that Chen Zhongsheng had a completely different view on this matter. He also saw through his intention of finding someone to take the blame together and left the relationship very clean. Chen Zhongsheng reported the matter to the Chief Envoy's Department. If the subsequent news was not good, then he could put the responsibility entirely on Liao Jie, who planned and directed the operation.
Liao Jie secretly cursed a few words in his heart, but he also knew that it would be difficult to persuade Chen Zhongsheng to change his mind. He could only stand up and say goodbye: "In that case, I won't talk nonsense. Mr. Chen, please do it yourself."< br>
"No." Chen Zhongsheng quietly cupped his hands as a farewell.
Liao Jie snorted, turned around and walked out of the study. After leaving the government office, he went directly to the army. There are currently nearly 5,000 Ming troops stationed in Dengzhou. Although Liao Jie believes that Haihan will not attack Dengzhou City, he is not 100% sure about it, so he still has to go to the army to make arrangements. The scouts who are going out will have to set off from Dengzhou City today.
The next morning, Dengzhou City did not wait for the fast horse to return from Guxian Town. At noon, there was still no news. Liao Jie kept staring at the distance of the official road from the east city gate until his eyes hurt, but he still didn't see the fast horse galloping. Liao Jie already had some bad premonitions in his heart, but he still refused to give up hope. It was not until sunset that a fast horse finally arrived on the official road. Liao Jie, who had been waiting for a day, finally cheered up and hurried down the gatehouse to hear the news from the front as soon as possible.
But the news brought back by the messenger did not change Liao Jie's uneasy mood. Zheng Ai and others did not return to Guxian Town within the agreed time. To be precise, there was no news about them at all. After the convoy entered Haihan's control the day before, there was no news about this team at all, as if they had disappeared into thin air.
The only sign that may be related to their disappearance is that the Haihan people have intensified their checks on people entering and leaving the occupied areas. The official road leading from Fuxian Town to Fushan County has once again been placed under military control. Unless there are special circumstances in which they voluntarily sign up to immigrate, anyone who has not obtained an official travel order from Haihan will be refused entry.
Haihan suddenly strengthened traffic control in the occupied areas. This is obviously not a coincidence. The reason that Liao Jie could think of was probably that Zheng Ai and others had launched an attack in Majiazhuang, but he didn't know what the result would be.
(End of chapter)