My Portable Ming Dynasty

Chapter 463: Fooling, then lying
Zhao Pengzheng, a newly appointed Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examination) who was observing government affairs at the Ministry of Personnel before the Lunar New Year, was standing on the banks of the Songhua River, looking at the ice floes on the river.

The cold wind whipped up ice floes from the Songhua River, stinging his cheeks.

Before the New Year, Zhang Siwei, a scholar in the Imperial Academy, told himself that after arriving in Liaodong, he should serve under Duan Hui, the military commander of the Andong Protectorate, and that as long as he made meritorious contributions, he could be transferred back to the capital soon.

Although he knew it was just empty promises, Zhao Pengzheng had no choice but to accept them.

Zhao Peng was originally thinking, "Let's go to Liaoyang then."

Liaoyang was the seat of the Andong Protectorate and is now a major city in Liaodong.

But to his surprise, his misfortune was not over after he arrived in Liaoyang.

Zhao Peng was paying his respects to Duan Hui. He thought that since they both came from the Ministry of Personnel and were fellow sufferers, Duan Hui would take care of him.

That was indeed the case at the beginning.

Duan Hui and Zhao Pengzheng were old acquaintances. Duan Hui took good care of Zhao Pengzheng upon his arrival and arranged for him to be in charge of the commercial settlement.

After adjusting its strategy for the Northeast, the Ming Dynasty changed its previous strategy of contraction and began to organize expansion.

The development mainly involves three paths.

Military settlements, commercial settlements, and immigrant settlements.

Military settlements go without saying. Based on the Liaodong garrisons, military settlements were encouraged to expand. Li Chengliang secretly encouraged these garrisons to capture Jurchen slaves to farm, which greatly stimulated the enthusiasm of the Liaodong garrisons for military settlements.

The immigration was organized by the imperial court, which called on poor people from Shandong, Shanxi and the capital region to go north to strengthen the border. The court provided boat tickets, seeds and farming tools, and allocated land in the Northeast, which also attracted some poor farmers to go north.

Finally, there's Shangtun.

However, the development of commercial settlements in Northeast China has not been very successful.

Merchant settlements actually existed long ago; during the early and mid-Ming Dynasty, they accounted for a significant portion of the grain supply to the border regions.

However, the prosperity of commercial settlements in the early and mid-Ming Dynasty was due to the salt laws.

When the salt administration was implemented, merchants transported grain to border garrisons in exchange for salt coupons, which could then be exchanged for salt permits.

Transporting grain directly to the frontier was costly and resulted in significant losses, so some merchants simply cultivated and settled land on the frontier, exchanging the produced grain directly for salt coupons at the military garrisons.

However, the salt administration system was corrupted and the salt administration system was destroyed.

The imperial court issued salt permits indiscriminately, and ordinary merchants could not redeem their salt tickets.

As commercial settlements became unprofitable, those on the frontier gradually withdrew.

The salt-making process has been corrupted for a long time, and it is impossible to restore it.

Those who came to Liaodong Shangtun were doing so out of respect for Su Ze, responding to the imperial court's call to cultivate some land in Liaodong as a token gesture.

More often than not, they were just using the name of the Northeast as a pretext to sell local products, but in reality, they were just doing business buying and selling goods from the Northeast.

Duan Hui was also very troubled by this.

Zhao Peng was a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations), and Duan Hui valued his abilities, so he arranged for him to be in charge of commercial settlement affairs, hoping that he could achieve something.

The development of the commercial settlement itself was not going smoothly, and the entire Andong Protectorate did not attach much importance to it, so even if it was ruined, it would not cause major problems.

Therefore, Duan Hui genuinely cared for this junior official in the Ministry of Personnel.

If things stay this way, Zhao Pengzheng's days won't be too difficult.

But Zhao Pengzheng's misfortune lay in his own mouth.

After getting this job, Zhao Pengzheng frequently had to contact merchants who came to Liaodong.

After several banquets, Zhao Pengzheng started bragging again.

While boasting about his relationship with Duan Hui, he also pretended to be close to Yang Sizhong, the Minister of Personnel, and Zhang Siwei, the Assistant Minister of Personnel, boasting about his "connections" in the capital at the banquet.

These words naturally made the businessmen even more eager to curry favor with him.

However, when this news reached Duan Hui's ears, he was in a bad mood.

Duan Hui has naturally figured out why he was transferred to Liaodong these days.

The person he had talked to back then was Zhang Siwei, a scholar in charge of imperial examinations, and Duan Hui naturally held a grudge against him.

Zhao Peng was outside boasting about his relationship with Yang Sizhong and Zhang Siwei, which made Duan Hui wary again.

Isn't this fellow a wanderer from the ends of the earth, or Yang Sizhong's spy sent to Liaodong to keep an eye on him?

Duan Hui thought about the Minister of Personnel's methods, and realized that once he arrived in Liaodong, Yang Sizhong would no longer send anyone to keep an eye on him.
Duan Hui is long past the age of naivety!

Once suspicion arises, every move Zhao Pengzheng makes becomes suspicious.

Zhao Pengzheng was unaware that Duan Hui had become suspicious of him, and instead became even more unscrupulous. At every banquet, he would boast about his relationship with Yang Sizhong and that he would soon be transferred back to the capital!
Now Duan Hui no longer hesitated and concluded that Zhao Peng was sent by Yang Sizhong to monitor him!
Given that Zhao Pengzheng and Yang Sizhong have such a close relationship, why was Zhao Pengzheng assigned to a post in Liaodong by Yang Sizhong?
Zhao Pengzheng said that he would soon be transferred back to the capital. Does this mean that Zhao Pengzheng was sent by Yang Sizhong to Liaodong to monitor him, and that he was confident that he had collected evidence and would soon be able to return to the capital after making a contribution?
Zhao Peng was asking a merchant to deliver a message to his fellow student, and Duan Hui thought he was reporting Zhao Peng to Yang Sizhong.

Zhao Peng was having a banquet with his colleagues, and Duan Hui suspected that Zhao Peng was gathering dirt on him.

Once the seed of distrust was planted, Duan Hui found Zhao Pengzheng suspicious no matter what, and the more he looked at Zhao Pengzheng, the more wary he became, and he was unwilling to leave him in Liaoyang City.

Just then, Li Rusong submitted a memorial entitled "Request to Build Five Cities to Secure the Northern Border." After the news reached the Northeast, Li Chengliang became smug and urged Duan Hui, the military commander of the Andong Protectorate, to immediately begin the city-building plan.

Screw you!
Duan Hui almost cursed out loud!
Building a city in the dead of winter in Northeast China?

Isn't Li Chengliang just showing off his son? These four planned cities are all in the Changbai Mountains, how are they supposed to be built?
But Li Chengliang didn't care. He kept sending messengers to urge him on. The messengers kept mentioning "A Memorial Requesting the Construction of Five Cities to Secure the Northern Border" and repeatedly addressed him as "Young General." Duan Hui naturally understood that Li Chengliang was just sending people to show off!
But Duan Hui really couldn't do anything about Li Chengliang in this matter!
Just after the New Year, when Li Chengliang sent people to urge the construction of the city for the fifth time, Duan Hui finally made up his mind.

So, right after the New Year, Duan Hui summoned Zhao Pengzheng to the Andong Protectorate and announced his new appointment to him.

"Building a city in the Five Kingdoms?"

Zhao Peng looked at Duan Hui in disbelief.

Wuguo City was practically the northernmost point controlled by the Andong Protectorate. Just thinking about it, one could imagine what kind of place it was. Why would Commander Duan send him there? Duan Hui remained expressionless, simply saying:

"The Deputy Protector-General has sent people to urge us several times. The Five Cities Strategy is also the national policy and military strategy of the imperial court. Spring is coming soon and the climate will warm up. The Protector-General's Office has decided to build the Five Cities first, which can be regarded as giving the imperial court an explanation."

"But I!"

Seeing that Zhao Peng was reluctant to go, Duan Hui became even more suspicious that he was sent by Yang Sizhong to spy on him.

Duan Hui's face darkened as he said:
"Zhao Lang, according to the official documents from the Ministry of Personnel, you are still observing the administration, aren't you?"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Peng immediately lowered his head.

After the newly appointed Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations) had their observation period extended, the department head would write a report based on their performance during the observation period.

This report will be recorded in the Ministry of Personnel's archives. This first evaluation upon entering officialdom can almost determine the future of most officials.

If you get bad comments as soon as you enter officialdom, those comments will seriously hinder your chances of promotion in the future.

Duan Hui was the third-in-command of the Andong Protectorate, and in reality, the second-in-command, the military commander in charge of civil administration. Zhao Peng was completely unable to disobey his orders.

So Zhao Peng set off from Liaoyang and, escorted by the army, arrived at the site of the old Wuguo City on the banks of the Songhua River. There, he set up a temporary camp, and after spring arrived and the land was thawed, he built a city on the spot.

"Sir, merchants from Liaodong have sent grain."

Zhao Peng composed himself and turned to walk towards his temporary barracks.

These merchants were all lured here by him from Liaoyang.
-
This story begins before Zhao Pengzheng set off from Liaoyang.

After the New Year, Zhao Peng was about to set off.

After receiving the task of building the city of the Five Kingdoms, he immediately found the group of merchants who had been eating and drinking with him.

Zhao Peng had just changed into his most presentable official robe and was displaying the official air he had learned from Duan Hui.

They invited several of the most powerful business leaders in Liaoyang and told them some "good news".

The news of the construction of the Five Kingdoms City was no secret; those well-informed merchant leaders had known about it for a long time.

They had a good relationship with Zhao Pengzheng and, upon hearing that he was going to build a city at the mouth of the Songhua River in the far north, the merchants accepted the invitation and went to see him off.

But as Zhao Peng was inviting these merchants into his home, he said mysteriously:
"Esteemed patrons, today is not a farewell to me, Zhao, but rather Zhao is bestowing upon you an immense fortune!"

The merchants looked at each other, their eyes filled with doubt.

Zhao Pengzheng said:
"Now you all know where I'm going to take up my post, right? Wuguo New City! This is the first of the 'Five Cities Strategy' personally devised by Young General Li Rusong, the son of Deputy Protector-General Li!"

"It guards a vital passage on the Songhua River, connecting the various tribes of the Wild Jurchen with the heart of Liaodong! Once completed, it will become a first-class commercial port and trading center in this region of Changbai Mountains and Heilongjiang River!"

He deliberately emphasized "Li Rusong" and "approved by the imperial court," giving the project an unquestionable aura.

The businessmen present were also well-informed, and they nodded in agreement with Zhao Pengzheng's statement.

Zhao Peng lowered his voice again, as if revealing some earth-shattering secret:
"Do you all know why the imperial court has so urgently ordered me to build a city here?"

The merchants present shook their heads, saying, "Isn't the purpose of building a city for military purposes?"
Zhao Pengzheng said:
"This is not merely a military endeavor, but a pioneering effort for opening up border trade! Furs, ginseng, pearls, and mountain products are piled up like mountains here!"

"The Jurchen people have long suffered from a lack of trading partners! They have plenty of good goods, but lack salt, iron, and cloth! Once this city is established, it will become a bridgehead for trade between our Great Ming and the Jurchen tribes! Do I need to calculate the profits involved?"

He depicted a bustling scene of merchants gathering and goods flowing in, implying that whoever could establish themselves there first would be able to monopolize the enormous profits of this emerging market.

Zhao Peng patted his chest and assured them, "If you all can assist in building the city, you will be the heroes of its founding! I hereby promise that on the day the new city is completed, I will give you priority in allocating good land to build warehouses and open businesses! I will also petition the Protectorate General to reduce or exempt commercial taxes for you in the first year! This is a meritorious deed for the country and a benefit for future generations!"
-
Zhao Pengzheng's "deception" could not possibly fool all businessmen.

However, some merchants, attracted by the prospect of "monopolized trade," were still somewhat skeptical but took a chance and began to gradually transport some grain and tools, and even hired some laborers.

Although it was a drop in the ocean, at least we gained some popularity and supplies.

But something to Zhao Peng's delight happened.

Perhaps it was the news of the city's construction that had spread, or perhaps it was the goods and activities brought by merchants that attracted them, but several small Jurchen tribes that hunted nearby and had strained relations with Jianzhou Haixi sent representatives, carrying animal skins and adopting a cautious attitude, to observe this suddenly bustling "construction site" from a distance.

Zhao Pengzheng keenly seized this opportunity! He immediately put on the friendly face of an "envoy from the Celestial Empire," took out the small amount of salt, ironware, and cloth sponsored by merchants, and went to "pacify" them personally.

He didn't understand the language of the wild Jurchens, so he brought along an interpreter who wasn't even sure if he could speak Jurchen. With gestures and gesturing, he launched into another "big deception" for the Jurchen men dressed in animal skins and with wary eyes:
"Look! The heavenly army is building a city here! Once this city is established, it will be the place where you can trade fairly with the Ming Dynasty! You will no longer have to suffer the exploitation of those tribes (referring to Jianzhou and Haixi)!"

Zhao Pengzheng had more supplies brought out, and pointing to them, he said:
Salt! Iron! Cloth! Grain! As much as you want, we'll have it!

These supplies were exactly what the Jurchen people, who lived in a primitive society and relied on hunting and gathering, needed.

Zhao Peng pointed to the goods brought by the merchants, and then to the planned location of the "border market," and began to make empty promises once again.

He promised that labor could be exchanged for urgently needed supplies during the construction of the city, and that after its completion, it would have priority in obtaining trade qualifications and "official certification".

For these marginalized and struggling Jurchen tribes, the allure of direct trade with the more powerful Ming people, securing a stable source of supplies, and having some kind of "patron" was immense.

Thus, under Zhao Pengzheng's persuasive words and the lure of substantial supplies, the first batch of Jurchen strongmen who were "recruited" joined the ranks of city builders with simple tools.

They were cold-resistant and strong, and their efficiency in digging through the frozen soil was even higher than that of the Han laborers. For a time, the desolate riverbank was filled with the clanging of chisels and the digging of earth, creating a scene reminiscent of the bustling construction of a city.

The merchants who came to transport goods, upon seeing this scene, were once again misled by Zhao Pengzheng.

He pointed to these Jurchen people and said that they were from the Wild Jurchen tribe, and that they had sent young men to help the Ming Dynasty build the city so that they could trade with the Ming Dynasty as soon as possible.

Zhao Peng was boasting about his relationship with the leaders of the Jurchen tribes, which fooled the group of merchants.

It's no wonder these businessmen were fooled. From the very first day he arrived in Northeast China, Zhao Pengzheng boasted that he had "connections at higher levels" and "connections that reached the heavens."

He was clearly kicked to the Five Kingdoms City by Duan Hui, but he made it sound like he was entrusted with a heavy responsibility.

These merchants couldn't possibly verify the information, and seeing so many Jurchen barbarians working for the Ming Dynasty for free, they naturally believed Zhao Pengzheng's words.

(End of this chapter)