Chapter 162 Strategies to stabilize the Southwest

Zhang Fu could naturally sense Zhu Qizhen's uneasiness and said, "Your Majesty, please rest assured that there is nothing to worry about in Guangxi and Songpan."

"When Shan Yun was in Guangxi, he used the strategy of using barbarians to rule barbarians and using chieftains to attack chieftains. The court only needed to give a small reward and send a brave general to lead the troops, which would be enough to defeat the enemy."

"Although Shanyun is gone, the old troops are still there, so it is not difficult to defeat them."

"It's just that Guangxi has been in constant uncertainty, but it's because there are many barbarians and few Han people, and the barbarians are ungrateful, so they have repeatedly rebelled. Therefore, if you want to eliminate this matter, it is not through military force, but through literature."

"Please send a wise minister to guard Guangxi. Then there will be no more chaos in Guangxi."

Zhu Qizhen immediately said: "But I don't know if there is a candidate for the Duke of the country?"

Zhang Fu said: "Your Majesty asked the wrong person. You should ask Yang Shoufu about this matter."

Zhu Qizhen slapped his forehead with his palm and said, "I made a mistake."

This is the most trustworthy thing about Zhang Fu.

Zhang Fu is very precise when doing things for others. He has a clear positioning of himself and his reputation is widely spread among the local ministers. Has Zhang Fu really not heard about it at all?

But as a military minister, this recommendation should not be made by him.

Except for the one time when Zhang Fu was fighting for his son, most of the time he kept to his duties and did well within his own duties without interfering in external matters at all.

He devoted himself wholeheartedly to seeking a child at home.

Zhu Qizhen said: "Then what does the Duke think of the Songpan incident?"

Zhang Fu glanced at Zhu Qizhen secretly and said, "In my opinion, it would be best for Songpan to give up."

Zhu Qizhen frowned and said, "Give up Songpan?"

Zhang Fu said: "The land of Songpan has steep mountains. Your Majesty will conquer it with a large army. Naturally, it will be unfavorable. However, there have been three rebellions in Songpan. Even if your Majesty pacifies Songpan, there will inevitably be four, five, and six times?"

"Working in vain will harm the soldiers."

"I thought I would send a minister to inform the chieftains and give up the Songpan Guard."

Zhu Qizhen immediately frowned. Although he didn't speak, it already represented his attitude.

Zhu Qizhen has been trained in the city over the past few years, and it has become instinctive to show his emotions and anger, so the frown he showed was not that he was really angry, but a hint to Zhang Fu that I am not satisfied with your plan.

Zhang Fu naturally saw clearly. But Zhang Fu was not Wang Zhen. Wang Zhen probably saw the change in Zhu Qizhen's face and was frightened out of his wits, because Wang Zhen was an eunuch, and his wealth and life were in Zhu Qizhen's hands.

But Zhang Fu is the Duke of the country and the pillar of the country.

Although he was worried about Zhu Qizhen's reaction, he still said what he thought was right.

Zhang Fu said: "Your Majesty, during the Hongwu period, Emperor Taizu thought that Songpan was located in a valley and was not conducive to garrisoning, so he dismissed Songpan Guard. However, later, because Songpan was located on an important road, Songpan Guard was reestablished."

"You can connect to Shaanxi and Qinghai from Songpanwei."

"But now the imperial court has no intention of using troops in the northwest, and the Songpan Passage is not necessary."

"In order to preserve this passage, we have used troops for years, but the gains outweigh the losses."

"I think that the right way is to stop the army, move back to Songpan Guards, and make peace with the Songpan Chieftain."

After Zhu Qizhen heard this, he had to admit it in his heart.

What Zhang Fu said makes sense.

If the Songpan Guards had not been in such a miserable place and all the troops there had fled, they would not have been killed by the chieftain. Now the use of troops in Songpan has placed a heavy burden on the court.

Because the expedition to Luchuan is imminent.

The imperial court's support for Yunnan was generally supported by two provinces due to geographical reasons.

One is Huguang and the other is Sichuan.

Because these two places are close to each other on the road.

If Songpan used troops, it would be impossible to transport Sichuan's grain to Yunnan, which would only increase the food burden in Huguang.

You must know that transporting food in ancient times was never a simple matter, let alone that it had to pass through the mountains of Guizhou. It is difficult to think about it, and the supplies from Sichuan are lost.

Food prices in Huguang are bound to rise.

In addition to what Zhang Fu said before, the land of Songpan has experienced repeated peace and chaos, and the gains outweigh the losses. This is also the wrong time.

The battle in Luchuan is imminent, so naturally we must focus on Luchuan and not be distracted.

But Zhu Qizhen did not approve of this plan.

The reason is very simple, it is the continuation of the route dispute.

Zhu Qizhen decided on the Battle of Luchuan and enfeoffed King Xiang in Luchuan. He wanted to reverse the fact that since Renzong, the imperial court had given up on foreign interference and repeatedly retreated.

He spent a lot of effort and finally passed.

If Songpan is given up now, this will undoubtedly send an obvious message to all parties, that is, the emperor's decision has been shaken.

So look at it from this aspect.

Zhu Qizhen was determined not to give up Songpan. Then Songpan would become a river of blood, then kill all the chieftains of Songpan, and then kill Songpan into a no man's land.

Zhu Qizhen was also determined not to take a step back.

Zhu Qizhen abandoned Songpan and fell into a great passivity in promoting foreign wars in the future.

What Zhang Fu said is not wrong.

Based on the logic of war, Zhang Fu is absolutely right. Troops must be sent only when there are benefits, and Songpan is almost a place where birds can't poop in this era.

No matter how much troops are invested, there will be no gains.

But once politics is mixed with war, any weird thing becomes understandable.

Zhu Qizhen said sternly to Zhang Fu: "The world is what our ancestors left behind, and I dare not lose even an inch. Now that Luchuan is in chaos, the southwestern chieftains are underestimating our dynasty, so Songpan must not be unjust."

After hearing this, Zhang Fu, who was considered a veteran, naturally understood the logic behind these words, and immediately said: "I know my mistake. If your Majesty intends to conquer Songpan, you can just ask the Sichuan Dusi to send troops to wipe it out."

"In my opinion, the Songpan Rebellion has become weaker every time. In the third year of Xuande's reign, there were hundreds of thousands of rebels. Although the following is an exaggeration, in my opinion, almost all the strong men in Songpan participated.

"

"He was immediately defeated by Chen Huai."

"Chen Huai killed a lot of people, causing the Thirteen Songpan clans to form a blood feud with the imperial court. This led to repeated rebellions. It was just that the imperial court consumed a lot of money in Songpan, but the Thirteen clans of Songpan also consumed a lot."

"So this time the rebellion is actually much worse than the first time. Probably a few thousand soldiers will be enough to put it down."

"What I'm worried about is how to deal with the funeral. This grudge is incomprehensible. Songpan will be in chaos again, just around the corner."

"If your Majesty really wants to conquer Songpan, please use Chen Huai."

Zhu Qizhen was surprised and said: "Recruit Chen Huai? Although Chen Huai can fight, his character is not enough to guard one side. Let him go? Wouldn't it cause more trouble?"

Zhang Fu naturally knew Chen Huai's temperament. Although he was brave on the battlefield, he also had a cruel temper.

Even so, the Songpan Rebellion continues to this day, and Chen Huai played a big role.

After all, the cause of the Songpan Rebellion, as mentioned above, was that Qian Hong from Qianhu did not want to go to Vietnam to fight, so he killed the local chieftain and pretended that the chieftain was causing rebellion. The fault lies with the court.

After the court is calmed down, if it is properly appeased, maybe this matter can be calmed down.

However, Chen Huai was guarding the local area and committed many unjust acts. He obtained property from the chieftains and was extremely greedy. This caused a deep hatred between the two parties. Naturally, the Songpan locals placed their hatred on Chen Huai on the imperial court.

When you have strength, you rebel. When you have the opportunity, you rebel.

Zhang Fu said: "Since grudges are difficult to resolve, they must be resolved with a knife. Now Songpanwei only has tens of thousands of households, and there are rebels in almost every household. Chen Huai was ordered to defeat them, and ordered them to be placed in Sichuan prefectures and counties.

, there are no people in Songpan, so it is naturally impossible to cause chaos."

After Zhu Qizhen heard this, he naturally understood how much blood there was in it. He thought to himself: "It's so cruel."

The reason why Chen Huai was chosen was because of his violent temper.

In fact, Chen Huai may not have good intentions towards the people of Songpan. After all, because of the Songpan incident, Chen Huai was originally a rising star in the Ming Dynasty, but he was idle in the capital for many years.

How could Chen Huai not be angry?

People like Chen Huai will never reflect on what he did wrong in Songpan. Instead, he will feel angry with the people of Songpan.

In fact, Chen Huai was not idle all the time during the Zhengtong years. He once briefly succeeded Fang Zheng and served as the general of Datong, but he was quickly dismissed because of his lax governance.

It can be seen that Chen Huai has no intention of going back on his words.
Chapter completed!