The Revolt of the Three Feudatories: All-in at the start in Beijing

Although the city wall is not thick, the officials of the Ministry of Works had already taken it into full consideration from the very beginning of the city's construction.

The defensive role of Manila was to defend against small-scale enemy raids and prevent indigenous disturbances, not to confront large-scale sieges.

If the enemy can transport heavy cannons to the city walls to attack, it means that the Han dynasty's power in Southeast Asia is waning, and there is no need to defend the city to the death, no matter how much it is fortified.

This construction method saves manpower and resources while meeting current defense needs, making it a perfect fit and an adaptation to local conditions.

As Jin Zhenen and his group approached, they saw a large number of low and simple wooden houses on the open ground outside the city. This was the settlement of the native slaves.

These wooden houses were not deliberately guarded, because the Han Dynasty was enforcing extremely strict control laws here.

If a slave is found to have escaped, all ten slaves in the same group will be executed and punished as a result.

If a slave reports a fellow slave's attempt to escape, not only will they be exempt from punishment, but they will also receive rewards of grain and cloth. Those who perform exceptionally well may even be freed from slavery and join the Han Dynasty's puppet army to seek a way to survive.

This harsh law will surely feel very familiar to those who are familiar with the laws of the Central Plains. It is the same law for fugitives that the Manchus implemented after entering the Central Plains in order to control Han slaves and prevent people from fleeing.

After the Manchus entered the Central Plains, Emperor Shunzhi used this law to strictly control the people in the north who had been enclosed by the state, and to firmly bind the lower classes. His methods were extremely cruel.

When the court was discussing the implementation of this law in Southeast Asia to control native slaves, Liu Mu had a fierce argument with several ministers.

Many court officials from orthodox Confucian backgrounds felt that this law was too harsh and violated the concept of benevolent governance.

However, Liu Mu overruled the objections and, in his capacity as emperor, vetoed them all, forcibly pushing through the bill.

In Liu Mu’s mind, he always believed that the Han people had been too tolerant and lenient towards other ethnic groups in previous dynasties.

Simply trying to persuade and tolerate others will never lead to their submission, but rather to their further rebellion, or even sharp swords.

Therefore, Liu Mu believed that to govern these uncivilized natives of Southeast Asia, the iron-fisted Confucian style of the Han Dynasty should be revived, using both kindness and severity, but with severity as the main approach.

Even if the sons and daughters of the Han people fight bloody battles and suffer heavy casualties, they will never allow any foreign race to ride on the heads of the Han people and act arrogantly.

Only through iron-fisted control could these unruly tribes be completely tamed and the Han dynasty's rule in Southeast Asia be consolidated.

Outside the city walls were simple wooden huts where slaves lived, while inside the city walls, the scene was completely different.

The city was inhabited by the families of Han soldiers, numbering over 30,000. The remaining residents were the families of the strong and capable native soldiers who had distinguished themselves in battle and successfully joined the Han army, also numbering nearly 30,000.

In short, modern Manila is essentially a fortified city primarily for military defense.

Centered around a Han Chinese garrison of over 5,600 regular soldiers, supplemented by 5,000 to 6,000 recruited and trained local strongmen, along with their families, the core population of this important Nanyang town was formed.

The entire northern Luzon region now has one garrison of regular troops, five or six thousand imperial collaborators, and a total of five or six thousand security troops from several surrounding small towns.

With all its troops equipped with firearms and sophisticated weaponry, and under the powerful deterrent of cannons and muskets, the northern region of Luzon Island had long since completely submitted to the rule of the Han Dynasty.

At present, the Han army is organizing a large number of people to build official roads on a large scale in Luzon Island, starting from Manila City and laying them layer by layer towards the islands of Southeast Asia.

The workers who built the official road came from a continuous stream of indigenous wild men captured from the deep mountains.

These native savages were the cheapest labor force. After some were consumed in the construction of official roads and the reclamation of land, the Han army would go into the mountains again to capture them and continuously replenish the labor force until the entire island of Luzon was reclaimed.

According to the imperial court's plan, once Luzon Island is completely pacified and the entire territory is reclaimed, the household registration will be unified there. These natives will naturally be completely assimilated and become subjects under the rule of the Han Dynasty.

This was not an innovation of the Han Dynasty, but a tradition that continued from the Qin Dynasty's unification of the world to the Eastern and Western Han Dynasties.

First, conquer with a large army, then educate and control with strict laws, and finally achieve the transformation of the Hu people into Han people and the return of foreign ethnic groups to China, thus completely incorporating the newly expanded territory into the map of the Han Dynasty.

Otherwise, would you really think that Mongolians live on the grasslands because they like herding, and Tibetans raise yaks in Tibet because they like snow-capped mountains?

Aside from residential houses, the remaining areas of Manila are filled with various sizable workshops.

The workshops within the city had a clear division of labor, mainly focusing on crafting cold weapons, kneading gunpowder, producing military equipment, making agricultural tools, weaving fishing nets, spinning yarn and weaving cloth.

It can meet the military needs of the army in the city, and also ensure the agricultural and living needs of the residents, so as to achieve self-sufficiency and establish a stable foothold even far from the Central Plains.

As Jin Zhenen and the others followed the soldiers who were leading the way into Manila, the scene before their eyes changed drastically.

Outside the city, at the port and along the city walls, slaves wearing iron chains could be seen working everywhere, but inside the city, there was a warm and secular scene, completely lacking the oppressive feeling outside the city.

The streets of the city were neat and clean, and groups of middle-aged women from the Central Plains gathered under the eaves on both sides of the street, busy with their work.

Seeing Jin Zhen'en and his group of well-dressed, distinguished-looking strangers whispering among themselves, their eyes filled with curiosity.

Even while they were talking, their work didn't slow down at all. They were sewing shoe soles and twisting hemp rope with practiced and efficient movements.

These handicrafts are their additional source of income besides making a living at home.

The hardworking people of the Han Dynasty have always been enthusiastic about things that can generate income and never waste a moment of their leisure time.

This stands in stark contrast to the idle and lazy indigenous families who prefer to bask in the sun and nap all day rather than work.

Jin Zhen'en and his group entered through the south gate and soon arrived at the city center. Looking at the people diligently performing their duties, Jin Zhen'en was filled with many thoughts. He stopped and softly remarked to his fellow clansmen beside him:

"I never expected that this place, which is even better than North Korea, would be occupied by a group of natives. I really need to go out more often. I think that even though we come from noble families, what difference is there between us and those frogs at the bottom of a well?"

"However, we've caught a lucky break. Now that Korea is under the Han Dynasty's control, if we follow them to expand into Bengal, our family will surely prosper even more!"