Next came supplies and provisions. This was even more rushed. Like the troop deployment, the only overt and covert task was for Lu Xuan to gather the remaining supplies from the battlefield and make do. This year's Liaodong military pay hadn't been collected yet. Lu Xuan would be compensated later. Of course, later on, Lu Xuan might be allowed to independently collect supplies and provisions.
Lu Xuan had no objection to this. The garrison system itself was meant to be responsible for its own provisions and pay. It was just that it was so rotten that all its functions had been rendered useless by the local bureaucratic system.
With the imperial edict in hand, Lu Xuan naturally felt more confident. It wasn't yet the end of the Chongzhen Emperor's reign. Although the Ming Dynasty was on the verge of collapse, the recent 'great victory' had restored much of the emperor's prestige.
“Lord Li, His Majesty has decreed that I may act as I see fit. Would you like to verify this?” Lu Xuan said to Li Rubai, holding the imperial edict.
Li Rubai's expression was grim; he had realized things were going badly. However, the other party possessed an imperial edict. He was somewhat helpless.
Despite being the Liaodong Military Commissioner, with the entire Liaodong defense line under his control, he always felt a lack of confidence when facing Lu Xuan.
"General Lu, please don't hesitate to ask if you need anything."
"Great, then I won't hold back."
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Chapter 120 Follow me, and you'll get to eat meat
"I want all the supplies that you collected from Fushun City."
"good."
"I want Lord Liu Ting's remaining troops."
"...General Liu Ting's troops are soldiers recruited from various garrisons. It seems they still need..."
"His Majesty has granted me permission to act as I see fit." Before Li Rubai could finish speaking, Lu Xuan cut him off with a single sentence.
"...Alright, I agree to this as well."
"My garrisons suffered heavy losses in the previous battle. Countless supplies and weapons were lost, and as a new officer, I am even more lacking in provisions and pay. I still need your assistance."
None of what he had before belonged to Li Rubai. He wouldn't mind giving it away. But Lu Xuan's words were like bleeding Li Rubai dry.
"General Lu, the entire Liaodong region is facing a shortage of provisions and pay. I don't have any surplus grain here either."
Is Liaodong short of pay? Of course it is. Is it because the imperial court hasn't provided the funds?
No, it's just that the money didn't end up in the soldiers' pockets. The bureaucratic clique in Liaodong was raking in money from the Liaodong military pay, while the lower-ranking soldiers could barely make ends meet. Some even went hungry. It's no wonder the soldiers were weak and didn't want to fight.
It wasn't yet the Chongzhen era. The Liaodong military pay hadn't reached the later staggering ten million taels. But the pay for the Liaodong defense line was at least eight million taels annually.
What did eight million taels mean in that era? If it were used to buy the heads of the Jurchens, it could almost wipe them out. However, of that eight million taels, probably less than a tenth actually reached the soldiers. The majority was either used for ghost pay or directly embezzled and divided among the soldiers.
"Since there's no surplus grain, I won't make things difficult for you, sir. I imagine there should still be some left in the granary. I'll reluctantly scrape together a little bit."
Lu Xuan knew that Shenyang had ample supplies. This was because Yang Gao, while stationed in Shenyang, always maintained a mobile force of approximately 15,000 men, all elite troops. Unfortunately, Yang Gao never deployed this reserve force even after the war ended. He simply didn't know where to send it.
As his base of operations, Yang Gao, a civil official, naturally ensured that provisions and pay were plentiful. Putting aside everything else, his primary concern was his own safety, wasn't it?
Li Rubai was naturally aware of this as well. Seeing that Lu Xuan was about to take the imperial edict to the granary and treasury, he suddenly panicked.
"Okay, I promise you. You can have 20% of Shenyang's reserves."
"half."
"Thirty percent."
"Half." Lu Xuan said expressionlessly, like a haggling machine.
Li Rubai felt a chill run down his spine under the man's icy gaze. He knew this man well; this was a ruthless villain who dared to single-handedly assassinate Nurhaci and, in a fit of anger, had Yang Gao 'commit suicide.' After a few seconds of eye contact, Li Rubai cowered.
"Okay, I'll do as you say. I'll give you half."
"besides......"
"There's more? Lu Xuan, don't go too far." Li Rubai was so excited he almost jumped up.
However, Lu Xuan seemed oblivious to his anger and continued talking to himself.
"Furthermore, Your Excellency is stationed in Shenyang, far from the front lines. Our Liaoyang Guard, on the other hand, borders the Jurchens to the north, a major threat to our Great Ming. To the east lies Korea, which is poised to make a move, and there are also Japanese pirates harassing the coast. The war is complex and intense, and we are short-handed. We need a large number of firearms to assist us. The firearms in Shenyang Guard are not needed for the time being, so why don't you lend them to us for the time being?"
Li Rubai: "...Alright, alright, I'll give you another five thousand muskets. Half the ammunition too."
"Thank you, sir."
Li Rubai left with a pained expression. Shen Lian and Lu Wenzhao then walked in.
"How is it, sir?"
"It's alright. Shenyang's reserves are about half full. We're short-handed right now. You two will be temporarily acting commanders. We'll discuss the specific garrisons you'll be responsible for later. The most urgent task is to get our supplies in place."
"Shen Lian, go and select men. The remnants of Lord Liu Ting's troops, and the remnants of soldiers Li Rubai gathered from the battlefield. These are all veterans. Pick the strong, young ones. Be careful to eliminate as many of the remaining mid- to high-ranking officers as possible. Just say they've joined Li Rubai's forces."
"No more, just pick out seven to eight thousand people from this group."
"Yes, sir." Although both Shen Lian and Lu Wenzhao were appointed as acting commanders, their superior was Lu Xuan. Once the situation stabilized, it would be natural to promote them to the position of official commander.
Shen Lian was an upright man, so he was put in charge of selecting soldiers. Lu Wenzhao, on the other hand, was much more tactful. Therefore, the task of requesting supplies fell to him.
“You remember, we have the Emperor’s decree, which allows us to act expediently. So, if anyone dares to cause trouble, you know what to do.”
"clear."
Li Rubai was very dissatisfied with Lu Xuan for transferring away all the able-bodied men, leaving behind a group of old, weak, and disabled officers, plus a handful of bare-armed officers. However, he couldn't ask Lu Xuan about it. He knew how Lu Xuan would answer. Asking would be the best course of action.