My Portable Ming Dynasty

Chapter 421 "Old Practice"

Zhang Jingxiu bid farewell to his father and boarded a carriage bound for Laizhou.

Zhang Jingxiu originally planned to take a boat directly from Zhigu to Laizhou, as this route was faster and, as a member of the Ming Dynasty navy, he was more accustomed to traveling by boat.

However, the railway from Zhigu to the capital was under construction these days, and the roads were very congested due to the construction site. In the end, Zhang Jingxiu abandoned this route and went directly to Laizhou by land.

These long-distance carriages were not very comfortable.

The roads in the Gyeonggi region are in good condition, as the region has been financially well-off lately and has been continuously repairing roads.

However, once they entered Shandong province, the roads became bumpy and potholed.

Sometimes Zhang Jingxiu would get off the bus with other passengers to help push the car.

Because he was visiting relatives, Zhang Jingxiu couldn't stay at the official post station.

After leaving the capital, the coachman stopped at a local post station.

Looking at the sky, the driver suggested that they spend the night at the post station. The other three passengers in the carriage had no objections, so the driver called over the post station cook and asked them to bring hot water.

Hot water is the most important thing during long journeys.

This inn was originally just a piece of wasteland next to a nearby village. Because it was close to the official road, people gradually started to set up camp and spend the night there. Over time, the surrounding villagers discovered a business opportunity, and an inn appeared.

Two buckets of hot water were brought to the carriage, and the driver addressed the group again:
"I've stopped at this post station many times, so don't worry."

"This hot water is boiled from the village well. If you don't like hot water, you can let it cool down before drinking it."

Zhang Jingxiu nodded slightly. Drinking untreated water was an ironclad rule of the navy.

Moreover, after Li Shizhen verified Su Ze's "micro-insect theory," the idea that "micro-insects" in water could transmit various diseases and that boiling could kill them gradually spread.

Soon, people discovered that after advocating drinking hot water, the incidence of various diseases decreased significantly.

The driver had been traveling this route for many years. He asked the group if they wanted to eat some freshly cooked food. Among the travelers, a middle-aged couple couldn't bear to spend any more money and took out their own dry rations to refuse the driver's offer.

Zhang Jingxiu and another young scholar paid for the meal.

A short while later, a rural woman carrying a food box came to the carriage and handed Zhang Jingxiu a fresh, still-warm meal.

How convenient!

Aside from the lack of accommodation, this inn was almost identical to the official inn. As long as you paid, you could get services. In fact, Zhang Jingxiu thought the food at this inn was more delicious than that at many official inns.

The driver, who probably traveled back and forth frequently, was also given a simple meal by the woman who delivered the food, which he accepted with a smile.

After everyone finished eating, it got dark, and the driver lit the carbide lamp on the front of the carriage, the flame illuminating the space around the carriage.

The driver said:
"This post station is patrolled by the village's joint defense team, so there shouldn't be any major dangers. However, one should always be wary of strangers, and everyone should still be vigilant at night."

Zhang Jingxiu nodded, touching the short gun at his waist.

This newly issued short gun for the navy was specifically issued to officers.

Zhang Jingxiu really liked this short gun, thanks to its more accurate trajectory and easier-to-maintain firing mechanism.

The current state of public security is like this. Places like Shandong and Shanxi, which have levied commercial taxes, are better off because the local governments have sufficient funds and generally follow the example of the capital to establish patrol battalions to maintain security in cities and along main roads.

It is said that the places where no commercial tax was levied suffered much more. Although there were fewer large-scale bandits, there were more cases of petty theft.

Small-scale bandit robberies also occurred frequently.

Zhang Jingxiu also consulted his father, Zhang Juzheng, who said that public security was also part of the "services" provided by the government, and that places that paid commercial taxes could provide better services.

Merchants pay taxes, and the government provides security services; this is a case of taking from the people and using it for the people.

If merchants are unwilling to pay taxes, then they will have to spend more money hiring bodyguards.

Zhang Jingxiu also thought it made a lot of sense. The situation in Shandong was getting better day by day, and he had personally witnessed the prosperity of Laizhou.

Take this village near the post station, for example. The whole village prospered because of this post station. In the past, there were no lonely old people. They could eat their fill by boiling water for passing merchants.

So the able-bodied men in the village voluntarily organized themselves to maintain the safety of the post station.

The young scholar traveling with him was also very curious about this. He chatted with the driver, asking about the changes that had occurred after the commercial tax was levied in Shandong.

Zhang Jingxiu remembered that when he first got on the bus, the scholar introduced himself. His name was Gu Xiancheng, and he seemed to be a Xiucai (a successful candidate in the imperial examinations at the county level). Zhang Jingxiu felt that he had heard his name before.

Along the way, Gu Xiancheng, upon learning that he lived in Laizhou, would often gather around him to inquire about the development of Laizhou.

After finishing his conversation with the rickshaw driver, Gu Xiancheng then pulled Zhang Jingxiu aside for another chat.

“Brother Zhang, I am returning to my hometown of Wuxi by boat this time to persuade the local gentry to levy commercial taxes.”

Zhang Jingxiu was startled. He then remembered Gu Xiancheng; it seemed that his father had mentioned his articles during casual conversations.

He published an article in the Jiangzuo Yabao, calling on Changzhou Prefecture to follow Yangzhou Prefecture in launching a levy.

The father seemed to approve of Gu Xiancheng as well; to catch the father's eye, this scholar was indeed no ordinary man.

After Gu Xiancheng published his article, it did indeed generate a strong reaction among his fellow townsmen from Changzhou in the capital.

These people also wrote back to explain the benefits of levying commercial taxes.

Gu Xiancheng understood that in order to finally be able to levy commercial taxes, he still needed to persuade most of the local gentry in Changzhou Prefecture.

Gu Xiancheng simply resigned from his high-paying job at Zhigu Railway and rushed back to his hometown to persuade everyone.

Seeing Shandong's development along the way, Gu Xiancheng became even more determined in his ideas.

Commercial taxes are beneficial to the local area, and paying commercial taxes is also a matter of morality among the four classes of people!

Gu Xiancheng increasingly agreed with Su Ze's proposal.

Merchants have business ethics, but scholars should have a longer-term vision and take action to benefit everyone.

Gu Xiancheng met Zhang Jingxiu on the way, and he also saw that Zhang Jingxiu was extraordinary.

Based on Zhang Jingxiu's behavior, Gu Xiancheng could roughly guess that he was a naval officer.

Gu Xiancheng had also met officers of the new army in the capital. Unlike the rough and unrefined soldiers of the past, these officers, trained by the Military Supervisor or the Naval Academy, possessed a unique temperament.

"Brother Zhang, what are your thoughts on overseas colonization?"

Zhang Jingxiu paused for a moment, then thought for a moment and said:

"Colonial expansion is certainly a good thing, but the costs should still be calculated. If the expenses exceed the gains, then it should not be a waste of resources and manpower."

Influenced by his father, Zhang Jingxiu had a deep understanding of cost-benefit calculations. Unlike other naval officers, he was not a fanatical supporter of overseas colonization.

Gu Xiancheng looked at Zhang Jingxiu with some surprise. He often talked about this kind of topic with people in the capital. Generally speaking, soldiers support colonization.

After all, only by establishing colonies can one achieve merit, and only by establishing colonies overseas can the court increase its investment in the navy. Logically speaking, naval officers should not be so conservative.

"Brother Gu, what are your thoughts on overseas colonization?"

Gu Xiancheng also gave an answer that differed somewhat from that of mainstream intellectuals.

“I support overseas colonization.” Zhang Jingxiu was also somewhat puzzled. Generally speaking, scholars held a cautious attitude towards overseas colonization.

After all, colonization has its costs, and compared to the increasingly fervent popular sentiment of restoring the glory of the Tang Dynasty, the official attitude of the Ming Dynasty remained quite conservative.

Gu Xiancheng said:
"As the saying goes, a blank sheet of paper is easy to draw on. Overseas colonies can be used to implement various new policies and carry out many reforms that the Ming Dynasty could not carry out on its own territory."

"I've heard that the Kingdom of Luzon in Southeast Asia has implemented many policies that are different from those of the Ming Dynasty. I'm very interested in what effects these policies will have."

"In this vast world, every country has its own system. If our Great Ming Dynasty wants to prosper forever, we must learn from the strengths of other countries' systems, experiment with them in our overseas colonies, and then bring them back to our homeland for trial."

Even Zhang Jingxiu was surprised.

How can this scholar's ideas be even more radical than those of the most radical officers in the navy!

For some reason, Zhang Jingxiu felt a chill run from his forehead to his heels.

He finally understood why he wasn't suited for politics.
-
end of August.

The soldiers of the Zhenbei Army, escorting officials from the Andong Protectorate, finally arrived in Liaoyang.

General Li Chengliang of Liaoyang and Duan Hui, the military commissioner of Liaoyang, had already received the imperial decree and made preparations for the Protectorate General's northward advance.

Li Chengliang, who had shot himself in the foot, was most bitter about this outcome.

He met his fellow villager, Tang Jinxing.

The two looked at each other speechlessly.

Li Chengliang originally intended to send Duan Hui to the north to be in charge of timber harvesting.

Unexpectedly, an imperial edict sent him and Duan Hui to the far northern frontier.

Where was the seat of the Andong Protectorate?
Changchun was originally the location of the Nurgan Regional Military Commission, the northernmost military post of the Ming Dynasty. It was because of the harsh cold that the court moved the Nurgan Regional Military Commission back to Changchun.

Li Chengliang regretted it, regretting that he had shot himself in the foot, while Duan Hui was completely dumbfounded.

He was serving as the military commissioner of Liaoyang, so how did he suddenly become the military commander of the Andong Protectorate?

Even though I've been promoted, it feels like I'm even further away from the capital!
The only thing that gave Duan Hui some comfort was that he saw a familiar figure among the group of officials from the Andong Protectorate.

Duan Hui met Tang Jinxing, and seeing that Tang Jinxing was also a Ministry of Personnel official who had been "exiled" by the Minister of Personnel, Duan Hui felt a little better.

Immediately afterwards, the Andong Protectorate held its first military council in Liaoyang.

Li Chengliang, the deputy protector of the Andong Protectorate, was having a terrible headache dealing with this group of young and ambitious officers.

In the eyes of these officers of the Zhenbei New Army, fighting seemed to be an easy thing. As long as they left the camp, they could fight the Jurchens. The Jurchens were like leeks growing in the mountains, delivering military merits, wave after wave, to be harvested by everyone.

In fact, since Li Chengliang defeated the Jurchen leader Wang Gao, there have been no large-scale Jurchen rebellions in the north.

These Jurchen rebels hid in the mountains or in some tribes that were friendly with the Ming Dynasty.

These new recruits were unaware of the vastness of the northern snowfields. The Zhenbei Army was indeed elite, and their military skills were beyond question, but their numbers were far too small.

This small force, scattered across the snowfield, couldn't cause much of a stir.

Moreover, compared to the Jurchens, the bitterly cold weather was the biggest threat.

This number of men is insufficient, not even enough to establish mutually supportive outposts.

This was also Li Chengliang's biggest headache. Although the court had given the title of the Andong Protectorate and provided support to the Zhenbei Army, the Northeast was vast and sparsely populated. If the Ming Dynasty wanted to establish effective rule, it needed a large number of cannon fodder.

Forget about the Han Chinese who are developing Liaodong; these are all treasures of Duan Hui, the military commissioner.

Moreover, these are all respectable sons of the Ming Dynasty. Their children will eagerly join the army after they come of age, and they will all be elite troops in the future. They cannot be wasted as cannon fodder.

The Jurchens are untrustworthy, and their northward advance from Liaoyang is aimed at shrinking the Jurchens' territory, inevitably leading to conflict with them.

Under such circumstances, one should not expect the Jurchens to cooperate obediently.

Li Chengliang held a meeting with officers of the Zhenbei Army and officials of the Andong Protectorate.

Li Chengliang first explained the situation, then raised the difficulties, and finally looked at everyone and asked for their thoughts.

When it came to using his brain, Xia Zhongxiao would sit with his eyes closed and his mind focused, like a great Buddha sitting in his seat.

He came to the Northeast to fight! If he wanted to use his brain, why didn't he stay in the capital?

Like Xia Zhongxiao, many officers of the Zhenbei Army were disheartened after hearing Li Chengliang's description.

This kind of long-term, small-scale, low-intensity war is actually the most brutal.

Li Chengliang looked around and finally looked at Duan Hui beside him.

"Commander Duan, please say a few words."

I said?

Duan Hui was not proficient in military affairs; he did civil affairs work after arriving in Liaoyang. What could he say?
Duan Hui talked about some logistical matters to ensure that the Zhenbei Army would have sufficient supplies after marching north. Then he looked around and his gaze fell on Tang Jinxing, the military commander of the agricultural settlement.

"Commander Tang, I remember you are from Liaodong. Since Minister Yang appointed you to come to Liaodong, you must have had a plan in mind, right?"

Tang Jinxing was singled out by Duan Hui and then met Li Chengliang's gaze.

Now that things have come to this, Tang Jinxing could only say:

"On the way here, I did come up with a plan."

Li Chengliang said happily:

"Speak quickly, Tang Sima!"

Tang Jinxing said:
"Was our Andong Protectorate modeled after the Andong Protectorate of the Tang Dynasty?"

Everyone nodded; this was something that was clearly stated in the imperial edict.

Tang Jinxing said:
"Since it was established in imitation of the Tang Dynasty's Andong Protectorate, the Tang Dynasty's Andong Protectorate was able to mobilize Korean troops."

Everyone was stunned for a moment.

Duan Hui said:

"That's not right. The Tang Dynasty's Andong Protectorate had the power to govern the Korean island, but at that time, the island was mainly inhabited by the Goguryeo, Silla, and Baekje peoples, not the Koreans of today."

Tang Jinxing, however, said:

"Korea worships our Great Ming as its master, and they have also suffered greatly from the invasion of the Jurchens. If we want to stabilize the Northeast, isn't it normal for the Koreans to send troops and people?"
After he finished speaking, everyone present, both civil and military, echoed his sentiments.

Li Chengliang also felt that it made a lot of sense after listening to it.

But he added:

"But the court hasn't clearly defined our authority over Korea. If we do this, won't we be impeached by the censors?"

Tang Jinxing said:
"What if North Korea takes the initiative to send troops? If North Korea is willing to send troops to help us clear out the Northeast, then the imperial court has no reason to object, right?"

(End of this chapter)