Chapter 240 Navy

Ying Yi successfully captured the Denglai Navy at Dongliang Haikou. The embarrassment of the navy, which numbered less than 3,000, had no fighting spirit, and even lacked armament supplies and even no shells in the warehouse. Facing Ying Yi's 6,000 elite soldiers, they surrendered without even the slightest resistance. .

This crippled navy had no combat effectiveness, but what Ying Yi needed was not their combat effectiveness. No matter how strong the Ming army's combat effectiveness was, it could not compare to Ying Yi's own army. What Ying Yi wanted was their ability and experience in controlling sea ships.

Therefore, it doesn't matter whether you are old or weak, as long as you can sail a boat.

It is said that there is almost no resistance, but in fact there is still a little spark. The navy commander and his hundreds of soldiers were beheaded by Ying Yi with their fearless spirit of sacrifice.

The death of the general did not make the navy officers feel the slightest anger. They wanted to cheer loudly. As a close confidant of Denglai Governor Zeng Ying, this general led the navy. He deducted almost all the navy's food and supplies, and drank the blood of the soldiers to his full belly.

This was the norm in the army at the end of the Ming Dynasty. It is not the army that generals rely on, but their servant Ding Biaoying. By drinking the blood of soldiers and squeezing out the oil and water of ordinary soldiers, part of the money and food squeezed out was put into their own pockets, and part was used to support the Ding Biao camp.

The so-called Jia Dingbiao camp is no longer the Ming court's army, but the private armed forces belonging to the generals.

This is a large part of the reason why the Ming court was unable to control the army and suffered repeated defeats. During a war, generals naturally cherish their private armed forces very much. When faced with tough battles, they are unwilling to use their private armed forces to fight. However, ordinary soldiers who have been drained of all their oil and water have no fighting power. It would be strange for such a deformed army not to lose.

It is Ying Yi's consistent practice to select the captured Ming troops first. The selection method is very simple, let ordinary soldiers identify them, and no one will be spared. Those whose bad deeds can be forgiven will generally be used as slave labor, while those who have no bad deeds and meet the physical and age conditions will have the opportunity to be selected. In Ying Yi's army.

Of course, this is not the case for the navy here. Those who deserve to be killed must still be killed, and those whose bad deeds are not worthy of death shall not be moved for the time being, because they will be used immediately.

The selection of the navy took less than an hour. Because the generals were extremely ruthless, the lower and middle-level officers had no chance of corruption, so very few of them were killed for their bad deeds.

"The Denglai Navy has 2,700 people, of which 1,400 are over 45 years old."

Wang Yisheng bowed and said: "Excluding the three hundred weak ones, there will be one thousand people available."

Ying Yi nodded: "Where are the ships?"

"There are one hundred and three warships in the port. Thirteen of them are large ships, each of which can ferry four hundred people. The majority of medium-sized warships are more than eighty, each of which can ferry eighty to one hundred people. The rest They are all small boats. But among the one hundred and three warships, only fifty are usable."

Wang Yisheng said this.

The Denglai Navy has long been abandoned. The warships have been docked at Dongliang Seaport for a long time and maintenance is almost non-existent. Therefore, most of the warships have been damaged.

Ying Yi knew what he was saying and pondered for a moment after hearing the words: "Can you ferry 6,000 people to Shanhaiguan at once?"

"Barely enough." Wang Yisheng said, "The general has asked someone in the navy about this."

"Okay, it's enough to be able to cross." Ying Yi waved his hand: "Let the soldiers and navy get ready. You go and call them over. I have some questions to ask."

Wang Yisheng beat his chest and clasped his fists, bowed and retreated.

Not long after, Wang Yisheng came with a man with a thick frame and a rough face. A middle-aged general who was tall but not tall walked in.

This person is the person with the highest official rank in the Denglai Navy, excluding the generals and those who were selected and killed.

"Young man Liu Deyi, please meet my lord!"

Liu Deyi fell to his knees with a pop and kowtowed.

Ying Yi waved his hand: "Get up and talk."

"Thank you, sir!"

Liu Deyi hurriedly got up, looking timid.

The backbone of the Ming army had been broken long ago. Ying Yi often saw this kind of cowering in the battle with the Ming army, but he didn't feel dissatisfied.

"How long does it take to go from Dongliang Haikou to Shanhaiguan?"

Ying Yi asked immediately.

When Liu Deyi heard this, he said: "My lord, if there is no obstruction by the favorable wind, it will only take about nine hours. If there is no obstruction by the headwind, it will not be easy to worry about."

He added: "It's almost April now, and it's already a south windy day. If there's no rain, it should be a favorable wind."

"Fair wind...good." Ying Yi nodded: "I requested that we arrive at Shanhaiguan at midnight. How much time will it take for you to be ready to go to sea? When exactly will you go to sea?"

Liu Deyi thought for a moment and said cautiously: "Due to the depletion of armaments, the Navy has rarely practiced. For safety reasons, it may take some time to conduct restorative training..."

Ying Yi nodded when he heard the words and thought: "Yes. It's just right for my army to get used to it."

Then he said: "How many days do you think it will take?"

Liu Deyi gritted his teeth and said: "As little as... five days, as long as seven days."

"Five to seven days?" Ying Yi thought for a while: "Okay."

Then he said: "I will leave the navy to your command for the time being. If you perform meritorious service, I will never begrudge you a reward. Go down and prepare carefully."

When Liu Deyi heard this, he immediately became energetic and said: "Sir... don't worry, my lord, I will not disappoint my lord!"

Ying Yi laughed: "Okay, let's go."

After Liu Deyi carefully exited, Ying Yi said to Wang Yisheng: "This Liu Deyi seems to be quite capable."

Wang Yisheng bowed and said: "It is rare that this person has never been corrupt. Many soldiers recognize him."

Ying Yi nodded: "That's good. Keep an eye on me these days. After all, I know people, faces but not hearts."

Wang Yisheng understood.

For this navy, Ying Yi must be included in his hands. But for the time being, Ying Yi does not plan to send them to the Humanity List immediately.

This period of restorative training is probably a time for inspection. If nothing happens, it will be initially included on the humanitarian list.

"The main purpose this time is to capture Shanhaiguan."

Ying Yi said: "Only with Shanhaiguan in hand can we eliminate many hidden dangers. Killing the Tatars is not important, the important thing is to keep the Tatars out of the pass."

He added: "The Shanhaiguan guard is Wu Sangui. This person is now the core figure of the Guan-Ning front line. Only by taking him down will the Guan-Ning front line be safe."

The military strength of the Ming court in the northeast has gradually changed with the invasion of the Tatars since Wanli. During the Wanli period, in the northeast of Li Chengliang Town, the wild boar Pinurhaci was still Li Chengliang's slave. However, as Li Chengliang stayed in the Northeast for a long time, he gradually evolved into a warlord. So after his death, the Ming court imposed large-scale layoffs and restrictions on Li Chengliang's troops.

As Zu Dashou and other Liaodong generals rose up and replaced them, raising thieves for their own benefit, the Ming court became increasingly difficult to control due to internal problems, and finally reached a point where it was out of control.

The Liaodong generals who respected themselves as thieves suffered the consequences. Those who died in battle died in battle, and those who surrendered became traitors. After several wars, there were only less than 100,000 troops stationed on the Guanning front line.

Facing the Tatar invasion, they could only rely on geographical advantages and powerful passes to resist.