Volume 3: Confrontation! The Run of Civilization Chapter 567: Ming Dynasty Enters Tibet from Xinjiang
Just as Du Youning, Zhang Hong and others set out from America and embarked on their journey back home, tens of thousands of miles away, at the foot of the Tianshan Mountains, there was also a large army about to begin their new journey.
It has been exactly five years since Xinjiang was established as a province in the fourth year of the Tianqi reign (1622) and Man Gui was sent here to take charge.
In five years, Man Gui and Xinjiang Governor Ding Qijun supported each other and did a lot of things. There are two biggest achievements. One is to continue to expand the territory: relying on advanced equipment and soldiers, the Ming army planted the Ming Dynasty's Sun and Moon Flag to the west of the Pamir Mountains and Lake Balkhash. If it weren't for the fact that modern armies consume a lot of ammunition and rely heavily on logistics. The construction plan of the Pamir Highway was rejected by the Ministry of Households and the Ministry of Industry because it was too expensive and time-consuming. It is possible that Man Gui could push the border line further west. Of course, the east of the Pamir Mountains and Lake Balkhash is the actual control area of the Ming Dynasty, and the west is not actually controlled due to logistics. But this is the Ming Dynasty. Those tribes in Central Asia are now learning from their ancestors more than a thousand years ago during the Tang Dynasty of the Chinese Empire, and they are vying to pay tribute .
The second is naturally to establish order on this land of more than two million square kilometers. Generally speaking, Ding Qijun himself is a member of the Xingyue Sect, so there is no problem in communication. The knife in Man Gui's hand is also sharp enough. After taking a two-pronged approach, Xinjiang's governance is actually quite good. Starting from the seventh year of Tianqi, Xinjiang can also pay taxes to the central government like those inland provinces.
Then Man Gui proposed to the court: Xinjiang has stabilized . The emperor promised me that the snowy area was taken by me, Man Gui. Your Majesty, you should keep your promise now, right?
At this time, Zhu Youdong had already started to tour the country. Zhu Youxiao, who received Man Gui's memorial in Beijing, did not dare to act on his own and directly delivered the memorial to Zhu Youdong.
Zhu Youdong hesitated for a while after receiving this memorial, but finally made up his mind: Enter Tibet! Didn’t I say that as the emperor, I must not lose a single piece of the traditional homeland of the Chinese Empire?
In this era, there is no such a wealthy country in the future that makes a lot of money by selling oil, doesn't know how to spend the money, and then builds mosques all over the world to spread the WA HA BI doctrine. Therefore, the Star and Crescent believers of this era are actually more civilized and quiet. Their overall comprehensive quality is even better than that of the Christians of this era.
Therefore, since Xinjiang’s stability is far better than expected, it is time to enter Tibet.
On June 1, 1627, Man Gui, who received the imperial edict, swore an oath to his troops in Turpan, and with his generals Sun Zushou and Hei Yunlong as the vanguard, he led 15,000 regular troops and more than 10,000 civilians and began his journey to Tibet.
During the five years of garrisoning in Xinjiang, Man Gui had actually always been thinking about the emperor's promise: more than one-third of the Ming territory would be conquered by you, Man Gui.
Therefore, over the years, in addition to managing military affairs in Xinjiang, he also sent out many small troops to find a way into Tibet.
After making many sacrifices, especially after being stationed in Xinjiang for a long time and getting help from the locals, Man Gui and Ding Qijun made one thing clear: entering Tibet from southern Xinjiang is basically a dead end. It is better to be honest and start from Xinjiang, go to Qinghai via Gansu, and then enter Tibet from Qinghai.
Doing this means taking a long detour, but at least it is relatively safe. Moreover, once you reach the plateau, the road conditions along this route can barely support the logistics of a large military group.
After the route was selected, the next step was naturally to make sufficient efforts in logistics: Zhu Youdong received Man Gui's petition to enter Tibet in the eighth year of the Tianqi reign, but he was not allowed to go until the ninth year of the Tianqi reign. His biggest concern was altitude sickness.
To this end, he combined his own experience of walking in the snowy area before the crossing and wrote a very detailed strategy for Man Gui, requiring Man Gui to set out only after the troops' supplies and medical equipment reached a certain level.
This led to Man Gui's entry into Tibet in the ninth year of the Tianqi reign.
In the front of this huge team of more than 20,000 people was Man Gui's trusted and beloved general, Sun Zushou, who was praised by Sun Chengzong in the historical perspective as "a man who never takes a penny, who is extremely honest and brave, and an outstanding general."
At this time, the Ming Dynasty court had already shown its "infrastructure maniac" attribute due to the emperor's high pressure. Since the sixth year of Tianqi, the court decided to build the Lanzhou-Xinjiang Railway. By the ninth year of Tianqi, when Sun Zushou led his army to set out, the single-track railway from Lanzhou to Dunhuang had been completed. Therefore, Sun Zushou's vanguard group, together with logistics civilians, doctors, translators, etc., a total of more than 5,000 people, set out from Turpan on June 1st, but in late June, they arrived in Xining, the provincial capital of Qinghai.
Due to the limitation of transportation, the area of Qinghai Province in Ming Dynasty was much smaller than that of Qinghai Province in later generations. After setting out from Xining, it took more than half a month to reach the northern foot of Kunlun Mountains. The actual control area of Ming Dynasty ended here. At this time, Sun Zushou and others had crossed Amdo, one of the three major snow areas, and entered the Kangba snow area.
"Where did the army come from? Where is it going?"
Soon after entering the snowy area, the guide told them that there was a Princess Wencheng Temple in Yushu in the southeast. After discussing with his soldiers, Sun Zushou decided to go there to pay homage first, then cross the Tanggula Mountains and enter U-Tsang.
As a result, not long after we entered the Kham snow area, local lamas and chiefs came up to us.
"I am Sun Zushou, the commander of the 13th Division of the Ming Army, with the rank of major general. I am following the order of our emperor and the commander of the Xinjiang Corps, General Man Gui, to lead the army into Tibet."
"What is the purpose of the army entering Tibet?"
"The Snow Region is the inalienable and inherent territory of our Great Ming . Following the order of our Emperor, our army will be stationed here permanently after entering Tibet, and officials will be stationed there to govern the Snow Region."
After these words were spoken, the lamas and leaders on the opposite side were a little surprised.
"Since last year, I heard that Daming was preparing to enter our snow area, right?"
"That's true. Our superiors, the Diba and the monks, have all received similar news. It is said that the Ming court has even issued an imperial decree, requiring us to do a good job of reception and guidance along the way."
"I thought they were just joking, but they're really serious!"
"Yes, although some people came here several hundred years ago when the Ming Dynasty replaced the Yuan Dynasty, it's time now. They have ignored us for hundreds of years. Why did they send troops here at this time?"
It is no wonder that these lamas and leaders were surprised. The truth is that the Ming Empire ’s rule over Tibet has never been very solid since its founding.
The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau was not officially under the direct jurisdiction of the central government until the Yuan Dynasty. The Yuan Dynasty established the Xuanzhengyuan to manage the national Buddhist affairs and the military and political affairs of the snowy region. For the first time, the central government conducted household registration, established post stations, appointed officials, and collected taxes...
After Zhu Yuanzhang expelled the Mongols, his rule over the Snow Region was not as strong as that of the Yuan Dynasty: the Ming Dynasty inherited the Yuan Dynasty's direct jurisdiction over the Snow Region. However, it did not directly appoint officials here, nor did it collect taxes. Instead , it was replaced by the monk official system: the Ming central government appointed prestigious monks and lay people in various parts of the Snow Region as officials to rule locally. The terms of office of these monk officials are almost lifelong, and they can be inherited. Although hereditary matters must be approved by the Ming central government, such matters are generally just a procedure, and almost no one will not approve it.
In short, the Ming Dynasty was founded more than 200 years ago. In the vast snowy area of more than 2 million square kilometers, there are almost no officials sent by the Ming central government. The Ming Dynasty does not station troops here, nor does it collect taxes. The upper class of the snowy area, in addition to nominally respecting the Ming emperor, recognizes that the snowy area is part of the Ming emperor's rule, and remembers to send gifts to the emperor during festivals, but behind closed doors, they are the real local emperors - the Ming Dynasty itself. The upper class always says: I have two capitals and thirteen provinces in the Ming Dynasty - this is not even counting the snowy area.
Therefore, it is no wonder that these upper-class people in the snowy area did not take the imperial edict sent by Man Gui a few days ago seriously.
"Please go back and report to the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty. We, Sanzang, have been loyal subjects of the Ming Dynasty for hundreds of years. We can manage Sanzang well, so there is no need to trouble the Emperor to worry about it. The army can just go here. We will arrange for people to entertain the army tonight. After that, please lead your troops and go back to where you came from."
"How dare you say such outrageous words! Don't think that I know nothing. In the past, officials and soldiers of the Mongol Yuan Dynasty were able to enter Tibet. Why can't the officials and soldiers of the Ming Dynasty enter Tibet today?"
"What you said about the army doesn't make sense. More than 200 years ago, when the Ming Dynasty was founded, no soldiers were sent to Tibet. How can it make sense to send soldiers to Tibet today?"
"I won't reason with you. I'll stick to my guns. This snowy area is the land of the Ming Dynasty, right?"
"……yes."
"That's it. Since this is the land of our Great Ming, how can our officers and soldiers not enter? Today, whether you agree or not, I will lead my army to continue advancing!"
