I was compiling the daily records during the Wanli reign

The next day in the afternoon.

Shen Nian, along with Qi Hu and more than ten others, disguised themselves as merchants heading to Liaodong to buy furs and were the first to enter Ningyuan City.

The main force informed Yuan Cheng, the commander of Ningyuan City Guard, through a courier that Shen Nian and his party would enter the city the next morning.

As for the more than two hundred Ningyuan Guard soldiers captured by Shen Nian and others, they went out of the city to carry out an assassination mission. If they did not return to the city for another two days, Yuan Cheng would not be surprised, since he did not know where these people would catch up with the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

As soon as Shen Nian entered the city, he saw many soldiers sweeping the streets, obviously to welcome him.

Ningyuan City covers an area of ​​over 1,000 mu. Within the city are government offices, granaries, a sanctuary school, a Confucian temple, and a city god temple. It is surrounded by two city walls, forming an outer city and an inner city. Commerce and residences are all located in the inner city.

Shen Nian and his group had not gone far into the city when a group of soldiers approached from the opposite side.

The junior officer in charge looked at Shen Nian and the others, gripped the knife at his waist, and said sternly, "Dismount and submit to inspection!"

Immediately, Shen Nian and the others dismounted.

"What do you do?"

Shen Nian said in a Jiangnan accent, "Sir, we are a merchant caravan from Jiangnan, responding to the imperial court's call to go to Liaoyang City to purchase furs. These are all our errand runners!"

Shen Nian quickly took out the travel permit she had prepared beforehand.

The junior officer glanced at Shen Nian and saw that he was fair-skinned and had a Jiangnan accent, so he must be a Jiangnan merchant. The dozen or so men behind him were strong and muscular, so they must be both shop assistants and guards.

He wasn't surprised to see that everyone was riding horses and carrying no goods.

Currently, many caravans come to Liaodong to buy goods rather than sell them, because buying goods is more profitable, while selling goods would prolong the journey.

Merchants did not carry the money for purchasing goods with them; they almost always deposited it in large trading companies. For example, the Yaodong Trading Company today allows customers to deposit money or exchange private drafts to prevent being robbed by thieves.

After the junior officer checked Shen Nian's travel permit and confirmed that there was no problem, he reached out his hand to Shen Nian.

Shen Nian immediately understood and handed him two pieces of silver, each weighing about one tael.

This is a toll fee.

If Shen Nian didn't know why the other party reached out, the other party would start to suspect Shen Nian's identity as a businesswoman.

"Trying to send a beggar away! At least five taels of silver, or leave a horse!" the junior officer said, glaring.

Shen Nian didn't argue with him, and immediately took out about four taels of silver from her bosom and handed it to him.

"Let's go!"

After receiving the silver, the junior officer quickly left with his men.

These people treat people differently based on their status.

They usually only ask for one or two taels of silver when they encounter caravans. The reason they asked Shen Nian for so much was partly because the horses ridden by Shen Nian and his companions were of very good quality, indicating that they were a powerful caravan, and partly because Shen Nian and his companions were in the business of selling furs.

Liaodong is famous throughout the country for its sable, fox, and sea otter furs, and those who can do this kind of business are all powerful merchants.

……

Immediately, Shen Nian and the others continued walking towards the inner city, where there were shops, inns, and taverns. They planned to rest there for the night.

About fifteen minutes later, another group of soldiers walked towards Shen Nian.

Shen Nian took a closer look and observed their clothing, and realized that the soldiers coming this time were not garrison soldiers, but battalion soldiers.

The one in the lead should be a team leader.

The captain of a battalion was equivalent to the flag bearer of a garrison, but the former was much more arrogant than the latter.

The difference between camp soldiers and garrison soldiers is equivalent to the difference between the Imperial Guards and the soldiers of the Five City Garrison in the capital.

"Dismount and submit to inspection!" the battalion commander glared at him. Shen Nian had no choice but to dismount, hand over his travel permit, and explain his purpose for being there.

After the battalion commander finished reading the travel permit, he tossed it to Shen Nian and said arrogantly, "Leave ten taels of silver and a horse, and you can leave!"

"Sir, this...this...we rely entirely on horses to travel, and besides, we don't have ten taels of silver!"

"Can't produce it? Then let's talk somewhere else!"

Shen Nian thought for a moment, then turned to Qi Hu and said, "Come on, let's pool our resources and then leave one of the horses for them!"

A moment later, Shen Nian and the others had collected seven taels of silver.

Shen Nian actually had ten taels of silver on her, but if she gave the other party ten taels of silver, the other party would definitely ask for more.

After Shen Nian handed over seven taels of silver and a horse, the group of soldiers swaggered away.

They dared not plunder all of Shen Nian and his companions' horses and valuables.

Because looting is a crime, but demanding customary items is not, as long as they leave room for maneuver, the merchants will not dare to file complaints.

Qi Hu was somewhat frustrated; he had never suffered such humiliation before.

He muttered to Shen Nian beside him, "Minister, aren't these bandits? We've never seen anything like this in Jizhou!"

Shen Nian smiled slightly and said, "Prepare some change. If we encounter anyone trying to extort us later, we'll give them whatever they ask for. I want to see just how big Ningyuan City's problems are!"

The reason why there were no such extortionate soldiers in Jizhou but there were in Liaodong is actually due to Qi Jiguang and Li Chengliang.

Qi Jiguang's military philosophy was to cultivate a standardized, regular army.

He emphasized rules, discipline, and strict law enforcement in the army, and preferred to recruit honest farmers and fishermen, rejecting those with poor character.

However, Li Chengliang cultivated a personal army that was dependent on him.

He valued martial skills over moral character, and used rewards, honors, and generous incentives to discipline his soldiers, without any written rules.

In short.

The Qi Family Army that Qi Jiguang was training was actually the army of the imperial court, while the army that Li Chengliang was training was actually the private army of the Li family.

Therefore, most of the soldiers in Liaodong were arrogant and barbaric.

A quarter of an hour later, Shen Nian encountered two more groups of ruffians and was extorted for another fifteen taels of silver.

However, once inside the city, the patrolling soldiers did not approach them.

This may be the rule of Ningyuan City: the outer city is the extortion zone, while the inner city serves as the living area, ensuring everyone's safety.

Shen Nian and the others first found an inn and stored their horses in the stables in the backyard. Then they strolled around the only street in the inner city that included eating, drinking, entertainment, and business.

In the inner city, there were not only the most basic inns, restaurants, teahouses, and eateries, but also two other businesses that could be found almost every three hundred steps: brothels and gambling dens.

Shen Nian frowned slightly. He had seen these two kinds of businesses in the areas under the jurisdiction of Jizhou, but they were rare and mostly found in the corners of the streets.

Within Ningyuan City, brothels and gambling dens were located in the most bustling areas of the city.

Shen Nian concluded that these brothels and gambling dens must have been opened by some high-ranking generals in the city.

They paid the soldiers high salaries, then encouraged them to use those salaries for prostitution and gambling, so that the money would return to them and satisfy the soldiers' physical and mental needs.

As for the lower-level garrison soldiers and military households, they had neither the money nor the time to enjoy these things.

They served as border repairmen (building the Great Wall and border defenses), granary repairmen, laborers in government-run workshops, or did business for high-ranking military officers, living like cattle and slaves, which is why they chose to flee.

"It's time to rectify the distorted military, political, and social conditions in Liaodong!" Shen Nian murmured. (End of Chapter)