A Journey Through the Worlds of Film and Television.

Chapter 131 Haizhou Guard

12

In his spare time, Lu Cheng did not forget to write letters to Ding Baiying to exchange feelings:

"Miss Ding: I feel so happy to see you in person.

In the blink of an eye, it has been several months since we last met. Looking back on the past, we exchanged martial arts and talked about everything. Although the time we spent together was short, I always think of you and miss you.

Now, Liaodong is freezing cold and snowing heavily. I wonder if the snow has fallen in the capital city or in Miss Ding's courtyard.

When he had nothing to do, he practiced swordplay in the snow. Snowflakes flew up and down, landed on the blade, and disappeared, just like white cherry blossoms falling into Lu's heart.

When I draw my sword and look around, I always remember the girl's face. My swordsmanship has improved, but there is no one to learn from. It's a pity. One day when I return to Kyoto, I will drink with the girl again..."

After writing letters for such a long time, Lu Cheng and Ding Baiying have become pen pals who are familiar with each other. Now this letter can be regarded as a way of expressing his feelings to some extent. As for whether he can receive a response from Ding Baiying, Lu Cheng is not in a hurry.

There is a saying that goes, whether there is a date or not, just give it a try first.

After the letter was sent, Lu Cheng didn't pay any more attention to it. Instead, he took ten special forces members, plus Ding Xiu and Ding Xian, and went out for training on a sled.

As for the soldiers in the barracks, in addition to daily literacy learning, they were also led by officers at all levels to clear the snow inside and outside the barracks.

Winter is not the time to gain weight, and necessary training should never be stopped.

This time, Lu Cheng dared to go directly into Hetuala City to carry out the assassination. By the beginning of next spring, Nurhaci would most likely bring people to take revenge.

If your soldiers are not well trained, you will be the one who suffers.

On a flat ground somewhere outside the military camp, after a period of stumbling, a dozen special forces personnel were finally able to control the sled and slide forward.

Lu Cheng explained the key points and precautions of the movements while demonstrating them personally.

Seeing Lu Cheng skilfully gliding on the snow, the special forces members were extremely envious and started to learn from him attentively.

In fact, no matter how much Lu Cheng said, they still needed to fall a few more times and explore more on their own before they could slowly master the relevant skills.

Since there are no combat missions at the moment, skiing has become the main training subject.

Of course, Lu Cheng would not take the team members to stay in the snow for a long time to avoid snow blindness.

At this time, the time had entered the Little Ice Age in history. Although it had not yet reached the coldest time, the weather in Liaodong was not something that ordinary people could withstand.

If the special forces members were not all strong and wearing thick cotton-padded coats and furs, they would probably have found it difficult to withstand the severe cold outside.

When Lu Cheng is training, he also pays special attention to adjusting the training intensity according to the outside temperature.

During the training period, Lu Cheng did not forget to develop himself.

The castle where Lu Cheng was stationed was just a small fortress in the south of Liaoyang City, similar to a small town, and its defensive strength was far inferior to that of a big city like Liaoyang City.

In order to strengthen the defense capability, Lu Cheng kept asking Xiong Tingbi to apply for more black gunpowder from the court for use in defending the city and fighting.

The imperial court was not ambiguous about this. As long as the enemy did not ask for money and food every day, it would not be a big deal if they asked for more gunpowder. The imperial court could still afford it.

As for the fire guns and cannons, Lu Cheng did not want them. The barrels of fire guns these days were made of two layers of iron sheets, the quality could not be guaranteed, and the shooting speed was very slow.

Although Lu Cheng knew how to make flintlocks and breech-loading rifles, it was difficult to make them without skilled craftsmen. The limitation of the industrial base was also a big problem.

As for starting the industrial revolution from now on, Lu Cheng's family background is not enough.

Even Lu Cheng had not started to make money from perfume, soap, glass and other profitable businesses. The main reason was that his official position was too low, his troops were too few, and he did not have a fixed territory. It was not conducive to starting to develop.

Even if it really develops, the speed of making money may not be as fast as the speed of snatching.

Perhaps, after this reward from the court comes down, if Lu Cheng can be promoted and manage more soldiers, he can start some profitable business.

Development must be done step by step. If you take too big a step, it will easily lead to…

Moreover, if some things are developed too early, you won’t make a lot of money and they will easily be targeted by others, and you may end up becoming someone else’s puppet.

Although Lu Cheng has the ability to eliminate all the jackals who covet him, he doesn't want to have too much trouble.

On this day, the weather was much better and the road into the customs was barely passable. Lu Cheng immediately called Lao Ma, who was in charge of logistics, and said, "Lao Ma, do you know sweet potatoes and sweet wheat?"

"Your Excellency, I have indeed heard of it and have seen it before."

Sweet potatoes are naturally sweet potatoes, and sweet wheat is actually corn. These two crops were introduced to the Ming Dynasty from overseas in the last century and began to be planted in the southeast coastal areas.

Lu Cheng’s “logistics minister” was named Ma Youcai, also a scholar from Liaodong. He came from a good family when he was young, and he had traveled abroad to study and visited many places, so he was considered to be quite knowledgeable.

After being recruited by Lu Cheng, Lu Cheng heard that he had traveled to the southeast coast, which was considered to be half of China. In addition, he had experience in managing shops and accounts, so he kept him by his side and made him a minor clerk in charge of logistics. His monthly salary was higher than that of a special forces member.

"Sir, sweet potatoes and sweet wheat first appeared in the southeast, and then flowed into the Central Plains with merchants. When I passed through the Central Plains a few years ago, I saw some farmers planting these. Are you planning to plant them in Liaodong?"

"Yes, I do have this idea. Let's do this. You go and arrange a caravan, take some silver, and go to the Central Plains to buy some sweet potatoes and wheat. If you can't find them in the Central Plains, go to the southeast coast and make sure to buy these two crops back."

"Sir, the land of Liaozhong is too cold and harsh. I don't know if these two crops can grow."

"Whether it can grow or not can only be determined after planting it. Buy as much of each as possible, and make sure it can be used as seeds."

"I understand. I will go and make the arrangements right away."

Ma Youcai was quite efficient. He sent some people south to buy these two crops that afternoon.

At the beginning, Lu Cheng robbed a group of caravans and obtained many mules, horses and horse-drawn carriages. He then organized his own caravan and went to the interior to purchase food and supplies.

As soon as Lu Cheng finished this matter, he received a summons from Xiong Tingbi and hurried to Liaoyang City.

As soon as he arrived in Liaoyang City and met Xiong Tingbi, he saw a eunuch standing in the house delivering imperial edicts.

Seeing Lu Cheng, Xiong Tingbi was also full of smiles: "Captain Lu, the emperor has personally issued an order to reward you this time, why don't you accept it quickly?"

The eunuch delivering the imperial edict looked Lu Cheng up and down and smiled: "Captain Lu is indeed a young talent with an extraordinary appearance. Accept the imperial edict."

"Yes, I accept your order!"

"The Emperor, in compliance with the Will of Heaven, proclaims: Lu Cheng, the commander of the Liaoyang Thousand Household Division, penetrated deep behind enemy lines and killed the rebels Fan Wencheng and Li Yongfang, inspiring the people and making outstanding contributions... He is hereby promoted to the rank of Commander of Haizhou Guard and given the title of Guerrilla General. I decree this!"

"I... thank your majesty for your grace!"

Lu Cheng was wearing armor and kneeling on one knee. After listening to the eunuch reading the imperial edict, he stood up and respectfully took the edict with both hands.

"Lu Youji, congratulations. The emperor was very happy that you were able to kill two traitors this time. He praised you in public in the court. He also hopes that you can continue to work hard and make more contributions."

"I will definitely live up to your majesty's kindness."

Xiong Tingbi was also quite satisfied with Lu Cheng: "Lu Youji, there are only two thousand households left in Haizhouwei. Take your troops and go to Haizhouwei to garrison as soon as possible in the next few days."

"Yes, my lord."

Haizhou Guard is one of the four guards in southern Liaoning. It is located in the south of Liaoyang. It was an earthen city in its early years. It was built during the Hongwu period. The city wall is more than 6 miles in circumference and the city wall is feet high. It is definitely a strong city.

Moreover, Haizhou City is located in the north of Haicheng River, at the foot of Yuhuang Mountain. It has a dangerous terrain and is easy to defend but difficult to attack. It prospered during the Wanli period and reached its peak.

In the entire Liaodong, Haizhouwei is almost the second most important town after Liaoyang, and its importance is self-evident.

Lu Cheng also thought that he might get a piece of land this time, but he never thought that he would be directly assigned to the city of Haizhouwei.

From this we can also see that the emperor hated the two traitors Fan Wencheng and Li Yongfang.

But it makes sense if you think about it. Li Yongfang was the first Ming army general to surrender to the Later Jin, and Fan Wencheng was a Ming Dynasty scholar who took the initiative to work for the Later Jin. These two people set a very bad precedent for the civil and military officials of the Ming Dynasty.

Lu Cheng's ability to kill these two men definitely relieved the emperor's hatred.

In addition, Liaodong is currently short of generals, so Lu Cheng just happened to come at a good time.