How can one be Emperor Chongzhen without money?

Chapter 24 Land Distribution and Paycheck Issuance! (Please add to your favorites and continue reading!)

Early winter in Shengjing was even more bleak than in Beijing. Fan Yongdou, wrapped tightly in his fox fur, pushed open the black lacquered wooden door of "Fan Family Old Shop" through the ankle-deep snow. The tinkling of the copper bell startled the dozing shop assistant. The assistant looked up and hurriedly knelt on the ground: "Master! What are you doing...?"

"Prepare hot water and boil ginseng soup!" Fan Yongdou shook the snow off his shoulders and pulled in a staggering figure—Hou Xingguo's blue satin cotton robe was covered in mud, his cheeks were cut by the cold wind with several bloody cuts, and his once shiny hair was disheveled and covered with icicles.

“Master Fan…Master Fan…” Hou Xingguo’s teeth chattered. “Those Liao soldiers really dared to massacre the city? Even women and children…” He saw the towering flames of Daning City and the scene of the maids of the Prince’s Mansion being dragged to the wilderness and stripped naked.
"Silence!" Fan Yongdou abruptly covered his mouth, his eyes sweeping across the empty shop. A few faded bolts of Lu silk sat sparsely on the shelves, and in the corner, a pot of roe deer meat, still covered in fur, simmered, its pungent, musty odor swirling in the air. This was hardly the business of a Shanxi merchant empire that had dominated the north; it was clearly a bandit's den!

He led Hou Xingguo into a storeroom. In the dim candlelight, boxes of Liaodong ginseng were stacked like a wall, deer antlers were piled next to rusty muskets, and most striking were several yellowed sheepskin maps, densely marked with the garrisons, granaries, and armories of the various forts along the Jizhou border.

"Do you recognize it?" Fan Yongdou grabbed a map and unfolded it with a clatter. "Chaohe Fortress, Qiangziling, Gubeikou... the Ming army's defenses, grain reserves, and firearms deployments are all here!" He grinned maliciously and slammed the map on the table. "Weren't you once a deputy commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard? Take a look, are there any errors or omissions marked on this map?"

Hou Xingguo instantly understood Fan Yongdou's meaning, and trembled like a leaf. Fan Yongdou grabbed him by the collar: "Master Hou, the ten thousand taels of gold you gave Shu Bu bought you with the disaster of exterminating your clan! There are no secrets that don't leak. Now, the only ones who can save your life are the nobles in the Shengjing Palace!"

Hou Xingguo was shocked: "To surrender, to surrender, to surrender Jianzhou?"

Fan Yongdou grabbed Hou Xingguo by the collar, his voice low: "Master Hou, do you think you're safe once you escape to Daning City? There are no secrets that stay hidden forever. Once the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty finds out that you hired Shu Bude's Mongol cavalry to harm him, will you still have a chance to live?"

Hou Xingguo was trembling all over, his lips quivering but he couldn't utter a word.

Fan Yongdou leaned down and whispered in his ear, "The Great Khan Huang Taiji loves talent the most. You are familiar with the inner workings of the Ming court and know the workings of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. If you are willing to serve him, why worry about not being able to save your life?" He smiled sinisterly, "Besides, the gold and silver your mother, Madam Ke, has amassed over the years is enough for you to live a carefree life in Shengjing for several lifetimes."

A ruthless glint flashed in Hou Xingguo's eyes. He suddenly grabbed Fan Yongdou's hand: "Master Fan, you're right! Rather than sitting and waiting to die, we might as well..." He gritted his teeth, "I'll go see Huang Taiji right now!"

Fan Yongdou nodded in satisfaction: "Well done, I'll arrange it for you. Remember, when you see the Khan, you have to spill everything you know!"

October 23rd of the first year of Tiancong.

The north wind whipped up snowflakes, which clattered against the yellow glazed tiles of Chongzheng Hall. Inside, the steam rising from the kang (heated brick bed) carried the scent of pine, but could not dispel the somber atmosphere pervading the golden dragon-carved pillars.

Huang Taiji sat on the dragon throne in the center of the hall, wearing an indigo cotton robe. His long, sharp eyes, like a gyrfalcon circling over a snowy plain, scrutinized Hou Xingguo, a Han Chinese man who was prostrate on the ground before him.

Jin Wenguan Zhangjing Fan Wencheng stood respectfully to one side, with a rough rammed earth wall behind him.

"Great Khan," Hou Xingguo said, his forehead pressed against the cold blanket, his voice filled with the panic of his escape, "This sinful subject, Hou Xingguo, kowtows to thank the Great Khan for saving my life! The Ming Dynasty's ruler is tyrannical and cruel, slaughtering loyal officials and forcing this sinful subject to lose his family and home. I have no choice but to seek refuge with the Great Khan and beg for protection, willing to serve him like a dog or a horse!"

Fan Wencheng translated fluently in Manchu, his tone steady and even.

Huang Taiji nodded slightly, a perfectly measured gentleness appearing on his face. He raised his hand to help Hou up, saying, "Please rise, Mr. Hou. The Ming Dynasty has lost its way, causing the virtuous to suffer. This is not your fault. Now that you have come to join my Great Jin, you are family. Please have a seat and some tea." His voice was not loud, but it possessed a convincing and composed demeanor.

Hou Xingguo thanked the emperor and rose, half his buttocks resting on the brocade stool. He accepted the hot milk tea offered by the maid with both hands, his fingertips still trembling slightly. He stole a glance at the ruler of Jianzhou. The other man did not have the expected arrogance and ferocity, but rather a deep and shrewdness, which made him feel slightly at ease, yet also inexplicably sent a chill down his spine.

"This humble subject dares to speak," Hou Xingguo composed himself and began to list Chongzhen's "crimes," from the forced sale of silver to redeem his mother, to the humiliation of Wei Zhongxian and others being forced to offer silver outside Donghua Gate, and especially emphasized Chongzhen's various actions in the Santunying camp in Jizhou, "...that Zhu Youjian, though only seventeen years old, acted ruthlessly and decisively, far beyond his years!"

"He personally led the troops into battle, braving the rain to deliver supplies and win over the hearts of the border soldiers; he also used ruthless methods to massacre the city of Daning in the Doyan Guard, abducting the old, weak, women and children, and beheading any man taller than a cartwheel! His cruelty was truly that of a tyrant reborn!"

When Fan Wencheng clearly translated the words "bloodbath in Daning City, men were killed by wheelchairs," a slight hint of surprise finally crossed Huang Taiji's usually calm face.

His fingers, holding the milk tea bowl, paused almost imperceptibly. His gaze suddenly deepened, as if he were looking at the blood-soaked land north of the Yanshan Mountains. He whispered to Fan Wencheng in Manchu, "Fan Zhangjing, this young emperor... his methods are ruthless, and his heart is hard!"

Fan Wencheng bowed and cautiously replied in Manchu: "Your Majesty is wise. Such cruelty is truly heartless. Given time, resentment will surely arise throughout the Ming Dynasty, and the people will be scattered."

“No,” Huang Taiji slowly shook his head, a glint of light flashing in his eyes, his initial surprise replaced by a deeper sense of dread. “He’s not just brutal. Fan Zhangjing, think about it, the Doyan Guard is entrenched in Daming, positioned between the Yanshan Mountains and Liaoxi. Why did he choose this particular time to slaughter the Doyan with such cruel methods?”

"This is a purge of his own ranks with the executioner's blade, a severing of a passage that could bypass Liaoxi, strike directly at Jizhou, and even threaten Beijing's rear! He's afraid, afraid that the iron cavalry of the Great Jin will pierce through there like a sharp knife!" Fan Wencheng paused slightly, then a thoughtful expression appeared on his face: "The Khan's intention... is he preparing for a rainy day? But the Doyan Guard has always been wavering; they may not truly dare to be the vanguard for the Great Jin..."

"We must be prudent in our assessment of the enemy!" Huang Taiji's voice suddenly turned somber, his fingers unconsciously twirling the prayer beads on his wrist, his face grave. "It's better to be prepared than not! This Zhu Youjian, though young, has a sharp eye and is even more ruthless! He's trying to clear a foothold for the Ming army north of the Great Wall, in the valleys of the Luan and Kuan rivers! So that the likes of Sun Zushou and Zu Dashou can firmly establish themselves!"

He suddenly raised his eyes, his gaze shooting like lightning towards the snowy north outside the hall, and said decisively, "We must not allow the Ming army to gain a foothold in the Kuanhe and Luanhe valleys! That place must be the territory of our Great Jin warriors!"

At the Jishuitan military training ground, the north wind was biting.

On a temporary platform erected in the center of the drill ground, Emperor Chongzhen, dressed in military attire, stood with his black cloak fluttering in the cold wind. On the long table before him lay several thick stacks of brand-new land deeds, the ink still fresh.

Below the stage, more than two thousand veterans who had returned from Jizhou stood tall and proud, lined up by their battalions, every pair of eyes fixed intently on the land deeds, their gazes burning as if they could melt ice and snow. Behind them were thousands of newly incorporated soldiers from the Tengxiang Four Guards and the Loyal and Brave Battalion, all craning their necks and swallowing hard.

"Wang Dalong!" Chongzhen's voice pierced through the cold wind.

"Your subordinate is here!" A robust man in his thirties or forties from the Yan and Zhao regions strode forward, his armor clanging loudly.

Emperor Chongzhen picked up the top land deed and proclaimed loudly, "At the front lines of the Jizhou Garrison, the first to behead three Tartars is hereby granted three hundred mu of superior paddy fields in Daxing County, Shuntian Prefecture!" He handed over the land deed, his eyes blazing, "This land was loyally offered by Duke Zhang Weixian of Yingguo! I hope you will live up to my expectations, continue to make meritorious contributions, and protect the country!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace! Your Majesty's kindness is as high as a mountain; I will repay the country with my life!" The man named Wang Dalong took the paper, which was both light and heavy, with trembling hands. His voice was hoarse and his eyes instantly reddened.

Three hundred mu! And it's top-quality paddy field in Daxing County, Shuntian Prefecture! That's an industry that his ancestors never dared to dream of!

"Zhao Erhu!"

“I am here!” A younger man strode forward.

"In the night battle at Luanhe, two heads were severed! Two hundred mu of land in Lulong County, Yongping Prefecture, are hereby granted!" Chongzhen picked up another decree. "This land was donated by Duke Dingguo Xu Xigao as atonement for his sins! Take it, cultivate it well, and do not waste this land!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty! Thank you, Your Majesty!" Zhao Erhu clutched the land deed, tears streaming down his face, as if it were not a land deed, but his very lifeblood. Lulong County! Not far from his hometown! This land would be enough for his entire family to eat and drink for an eternity!
"Li Sanbao!"

"A first-degree beheading! One hundred mu of land in Jiahe County, Hejian Prefecture, shall be granted! This land was given by Duke Zhu Chunchen as a token of his loyalty!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty! I kowtow to Your Majesty!" A young soldier trembled with excitement as he accepted the land deed, kowtowing repeatedly, oblivious to the dirt smearing his forehead. One hundred mu! Even if it's the worst, it's still his land! Now he can finally find a good wife!

On the high platform, Chongzhen's voice was steady and powerful. Every time he read out a name or handed over a land deed, it was accompanied by thunderous shouts of "Thank you for your great grace!" and excited cries that changed tone.

Shuntian Prefecture, Yongping Prefecture, Hejian Prefecture... these fertile lands that were once firmly held in the hands of nobles and powerful families are now being distributed, one by one, through the emperor's hands to these ordinary soldiers who were once poorly clothed and starving!
Duke of Yingguo, Duke of Dingguo, Duke of Chengguo... These once unattainable names have now become footnotes on the land deeds for "offering tribute," "atonement," and "showing sincerity"!

Below the stage, the Imperial Guard soldiers who hadn't yet received their land deeds stared wide-eyed, their breathing heavy as cattle. Looking at the slips of paper representing a hundred acres of fertile land in their comrades' hands, at their faces contorted with excitement, an indescribable longing and burning desire surged from the depths of their hearts! It was a longing for land, a longing to be masters of their own destiny!
Nobility and hereditary titles were no longer unattainable! In their hearts, only one thought was screaming wildly: Kill the Tartars! Take their heads! Exchange them for land!

After the last land deed was distributed, Chongzhen looked at the more than two thousand faces below the stage, flushed with excitement, and at the burning flame in their eyes. He took a deep breath and his voice resounded throughout the hall:
"The fields have been divided up!"

The drill ground fell silent instantly, with only the whistling of the wind.

Emperor Chongzhen waved his hand, pointing to the side and rear of the high platform. There, dozens of heavy iron-clad wooden crates were violently flung open by his personal guards! Blazing white! gleaming silver!

Under the bleak early winter sun, the mountains of silver ingots and silver coins reflected a dazzling light! That light instantly burned everyone's eyes!
"Now." Chongzhen's voice suddenly rose, booming like thunder:
"Pay wages!"

"I'm here watching you all collect your pay. If anyone has received the wrong amount, you can tell me immediately!"

(End of this chapter)