My Pen Pal Zhu Yuanzhang

Chapter 112 Assembly Line and Assembly Seat

“In fact, since ancient times, wars have not only involved bloodshed, but also propaganda wars and public opinion wars that target the heart and soul.

Just like what Sun Tzu said in the Art of War: "Attack the enemy with your troops' strength" or when the King of Western Chu was trapped at Gaixia, they were all typical propaganda wars to win over the enemy's heart."

After Li Han's explanation, Zhu Yuanzhang understood a little bit. Propaganda and mobilization work is a war of psychological warfare.

Furthermore, now that the Northern Expedition was imminent, he could secretly order Mao Xiang to organize the Jinyiwei to spread rumors about Nahachu in the Yuan court in a planned manner.

For example, Nahachu intended to surrender to the Ming Dynasty, or he colluded with other Mongolian tribes in an attempt to seize power and usurp the throne to become the new Khan of the Yuan court, etc., in order to create conflicts between Nahachu and the Yuan court and make both sides feel distrustful.

But this all falls into the category of sowing discord. Why did Lao Li use such obscure words?

"However, the above examples are only part of the propaganda war, that is, the external part. You can roughly understand it as a psychological warfare, a strategy of alienation, etc.

For example, don’t the Mongols believe in Eternal Heaven? Then the Ming Dynasty could create public opinion in the desert, such as saying that on a certain day of a certain month, Toghon Temur did something that blasphemed Eternal Heaven.

Among the Mongolian tribes today, Yesuder controls the Oirat tribe. His ancestor Ariq Boke failed in the fight for the Han throne with Kublai Khan, and Yesuder has always wanted to replace the Khan throne.

Then the Ming army could organize and spread rumors on a large scale, saying that Yesüder had evil intentions and was plotting to murder Toghon Temur in order to seize power and usurp the throne.

They can also bribe the Mongolian traitors to stir up conflicts between the Oirat and the Yuan court at the right time, such as when fighting for water sources and pastures, and let the two sides fight to the death. "

Seeing this, Zhu Yuanzhang broke out in a cold sweat. In terms of scheming, you, Old Li, are more ruthless!

Although in previous correspondence, when discussing how to control the Japanese pirates, or at academic conferences, he had seen Li Han's control over people's hearts.

But this time, it still opened his eyes.

Anyone who has lived in the previous dynasty knows that Eternal Blue has the supreme status in the minds of the Mongols!
Students in the Ming Dynasty all respected saints and wise men, and the common people also believed in various gods and bodhisattvas. But sometimes, when they were pushed to the limit, they would curse the saints and demolish the temples of the gods.

Haven’t you seen the Dragon King Temples worshipped in many places in the Ming Dynasty? The old Dragon King there is in a miserable state. Whenever there is a severe drought, he has to be brought out and whipped every few days.

But it is different with Changshengtian. Anyone who dares to disrespect Changshengtian will be skinned alive!
The Ming Dynasty only respected saints and wise men, but in Mongolia, that was called piety!
Fabricating the rumor that Toghon Temur blasphemed the Eternal Heaven?

My God, this might be worse than just killing him!
Moreover, I am afraid that there is no saying among the Mongolian tribes that rumors should be stopped by wise men.

Old Li, your bottom line is indeed unfathomable. I, Old Zhu, still underestimated you!

"The political propaganda and mobilization work I am talking about here is mainly for internal use, that is, to stabilize the people's hearts and minds, and to make the people and the court form a spirit of common hatred and common enemy.

Here we need to use a very important thing, that is newspaper! "

Zhu Yuanzhang slapped his thigh and exclaimed in his heart, Wow, this guy Old Li has planned too much, one thing after another, I'm afraid he has started planning from the very beginning.

What does it mean to be visionary?
That’s called foresight!

"Before the Northern Expedition began, the main content of the newspapers was all about the Northern Expedition.

There are several main points to note. First, it is necessary to explain clearly why the imperial court wanted to march north. It was not only because of the threat posed by the Yuan court in the desert to the Ming Dynasty, but more importantly, it aroused the people's hatred towards the Yuan court.

Now in the fifteenth year of Hongwu, many old or middle-aged people came from the Yuan Dynasty. They probably know best what it feels like to be a "Southerner."

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded vigorously, agreeing very much with what Li Han said. Isn't he, Zhu Baba, the typical representative of southerners?

They, the southerners, don't even deserve to have names and can only be represented by numbers. This is a shame that I'm afraid their generation will never forget.

"Secondly, by creating public opinion through newspapers, we can also stabilize people's hearts. In the foreign wars of all dynasties, what the people like to hear the most and what they are most afraid of hearing, you should know better than me, Old Zhu."

Zhu Yuanzhang knew this clearly without Li Han's reminder. What he loved to hear most was, of course, a great victory on the front line, and what he feared most was, of course, news of failure. "However, the role of newspapers is not only to deliver news to the people in a timely manner, but more importantly, to prevent the people from being suspicious and thus causing instability in their hearts.

For example, when fighting on the front line, due to strategic needs, the army retreats to lure the enemy deeper. This is a very common tactic in military strategy.

But the people don’t understand. Once someone with ulterior motives randomly fabricates news that the army is defeated on the front line, it will easily cause panic among the people and even lead to civil unrest.

At this time, newspapers are needed to stabilize people's hearts!"

After seeing this, Zhu Yuanzhang finally understood that the so-called propaganda and mobilization work, externally, is to win the hearts of the people, and internally, it is to stabilize the people's hearts.

Public opinion is about creating momentum. As Sun Tzu's Art of War says, one is the Way, two is the Heaven, three is the Earth, four is the General, and five is the Law. To sum it up, it is the right time, the right place, and the right people.

Harmony among people means taking advantage of the situation and exercising power based on benefits. What Lao Li taught him was how to use public opinion to build momentum and how to artificially create "harmony among people"!
This is great wisdom!

I, Zhu, have fought wars for half my life, and I used to understand these principles a little bit, and I also knew how to do them. Not to mention that Emperor Gaozu of Han killed the white snake when he started the uprising, let’s just talk about the end of the Yuan Dynasty. When Han Shantong and Liu Futong rebelled, didn’t they also shout the slogan "The stone man with one eye, stirring up the Yellow River and causing the whole world to rebel"?
This is typical hype.

This is the first time that I, Old Zhu, have seen something as clear as what Old Li said. I have really learned a lot this time!
“As for the problem of the slow production of guns and ammunition, I have a good solution. This method can not only be used for gun manufacturing, but also for anything related to industrial production!

This method is called assembly line production. "

When Zhu Yuanzhang saw that Li Han had a good idea, he was overjoyed. We knew that Old Li had never let him down!

The term "assembly line" seems to sound familiar, but I can't remember where I heard it.

"What is assembly line production? Let me give you a simple example and you will understand."

Here comes Lao Li’s example teaching. We Lao Zhu love to watch this the most!
"Old Zhu, you come from the countryside, so you should know about the buffets that are served at weddings and funerals in the countryside.

A buffet usually involves a group of chefs working in the kitchen. Some are responsible for picking vegetables, some are responsible for cutting vegetables, and some are responsible for frying, steaming and stir-frying. Once the dishes are prepared, they are served.

The people at the banquet ate whatever dishes were served. The dishes were served one by one, and the guests ate them one by one. One guest finished eating and left, and another guest came and sat down. In any case, there was no shortage of dishes at the table, and no shortage of guests to eat them.

Its most distinctive feature is that dishes are served one after another, like flowing water, so it is called a "flowing water banquet."

Seeing this, Zhu Yuanzhang could not help but slap his forehead and burst into laughter. Why do the three words "assembly line" look so familiar? He remembered it when he mentioned the buffet.

He was very familiar with the flowing banquet. It was said that the flowing banquet was handed down from the Sui and Tang Dynasties. It was originally a vegetarian meal carefully developed by monks and nuns in temples to entertain prominent donors.

As there were too many people coming to burn incense, the monks adopted the "flowing water" method to serve vegetarian meals for the sake of convenience and hygiene.

They first put the vegetarian food on a wooden plate, then float it on the canal. The plate slowly drifts along with the water and is finally delivered to the pilgrims waiting in a large area.

Because of this unique way of serving food, people call it a "flowing banquet".

When weddings and funerals are held in rural areas, relatives live in scattered and remote areas, and it often takes a long time to walk to the banquet venue.

As the guests set out at different times and travelled different distances, they could not arrive at the same time, so they followed the example of the temple and set up a buffet, where guests could eat and leave immediately. This not only provided convenience for the guests, but also reduced the trouble of the host to prepare banquets several times.

He had also eaten at buffets a few times when he was a child. Those were the few days when he could eat his fill, so the impression was extremely deep.

Suddenly, Zhu Yuanzhang understood why he liked communicating with Li Han so much. It was not only because Li Han was knowledgeable and knew everything, but also because what Lao Li said was so down-to-earth!
It looks refreshing and makes people want to laugh out loud. I'm afraid that in this world, only Old Li can reach this level.

But what does this assembly line have to do with buffets?

I don’t know what to write about my gratitude for putting the book on the shelves, so I might as well not write it. I still hope that all book friends will support Garlic, so that I will have more motivation to keep working hard.

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(End of this chapter)