Chapter 176 Going Abroad to Buy Food to Fill the Hole
Because Zhu Wenzheng was not reliable except in battle, he kept jumping around for a long time while submitting the memorial, and the Nanjing emperor and his ministers, including Zhu Yuanzhang, did not take him seriously.
In order to avoid being bothered by Zhu Wenzhen's childish behavior, Zhu Yuanzhang suppressed all the memorials related to Zhu Wenzhen and did not tell Zhu Biao.
Zhu Yuanzhang didn't expect that Zhu Wenzhen not only dared to say it, but also dared to do it.
He pressed his forehead and said helplessly, "How do I know he will really go... Oh, at least tell me."
Liu Ji said, "My lord, the King of Yan has spoken to you."
Zhu Yuanzhang cursed: "That's called talking?!"
Li Shanchang couldn't help but speak well of Zhu Wenzheng: "Since you, my lord, allowed the Prince of Yan to march whenever he saw an opportunity, he immediately set out upon discovering the location of the remaining Yuan court and had Duke Cao report it. Regardless of victory or defeat, the Prince of Yan has acted without fault so far."
Duke Cao is Li Wenzhong. Li Wenzhong was among the top ten founding heroes of the Ming Dynasty in the second year of Hongwu. Now he has been granted the title of Duke Cao and has also become a relative.
If Li Wenzhong had not been newly married, it would not have been so easy for Zhu Wenzhen to cause trouble under Li Wenzhong's nose.
Having said that, Zhu Wenzhen took advantage of Li Wenzhong's newlywed state of mind to cause trouble. Although he and Li Wenzhong were cousins, they were better than brothers.
Li Wenzhong became angrier the more he thought about it. He selected 10,000 elite soldiers, took 20 days of dry food, and hurried with him to Buyuer Lake; the remaining 10,000 people escorted the logistics baggage team and continued to move forward.
After defeating the remnant Yuan Dynasty, if he doesn't beat Zhu Wenzhen so hard that he can't get out of bed, he won't be named Li or Zhu!
Beijing City.
When Zhu Biao received Zhu Yuanzhang's order, he was stunned for a long time.
After a while, he suppressed the strange feeling in his heart and thought about how to maximize the benefits of this matter.
"Please invite Uncle Liao over." Zhu Biao ordered.
After the guards received the order, Zhu Biao ordered people to call Chen Lin, Song Yan, Liu Lian, and the students who were scattered in various places for internship, and told them the changed truth.
This change naturally reversed the time when the events occurred, turning Zhu Wenzhen's actions into a secret emergency action tacitly approved by Emperor Hongwu.
No matter how dissatisfied Chen Lin and others were with the emperor's decision, they could only keep it to themselves.
Chen Lin sighed, "I thought we were really going to attack Northeast China... If we did, we could earn back the grain we used up in the granary."
Song Yan and Liu Lian also had a headache when they thought about the wasted food.
The north only had one harvest per year. The people had only just received their land, and their household grain reserves would last them only half a year at best. Soon, the people of northern Zhili would face a difficult time, a period of famine.
At this time of year in previous years, Beijing and other towns would recruit workers, using a work-for-relief approach to improve the infrastructure of the devastated cities in the north while providing the people with more ways to make a living.
If the granaries in northern Zhili remain empty and are not replenished until July or August, it will be difficult to implement work-for-relief this year.
Liu Lian asked, "Can the court provide more support?"
Song Yan also said, "Since the court has ordered the Prince of Yan to go to war, they should provide military supplies, right?"
Zhu Biao shook his head. "Gansu, Shanxi, Yunnan, and other areas are in urgent need of food. Even the soldiers stationed in Gansu and Shanxi are worried about rations. Northern Zhili simply can't provide a better life for the people during the lean season. How can they use this as an excuse to demand food and rob the people in other places of their life-saving food?"
After Zhu Biao said this, most of the people in front of him looked ashamed.
People are accustomed to only seeing and caring about the people and things in front of them. Local officials are considered good enough if they can take care of the people in their own area, and it is difficult for them to consider the interests of other places.
But being difficult doesn't mean not thinking. Everyone present will undoubtedly become a high-ranking official in the imperial court. Even if they serve elsewhere, they'll be high-ranking officials in charge of a province or prefecture. Without a comprehensive perspective, they might well end up doing something bad with good intentions, harming more people than they save.
Zhu Biao glanced at his students and said, "Even a sage cannot save everyone. There's nothing wrong with prioritizing the common people within his sight. However, everything must be done in moderation. You can reduce the surplus to provide for the deficit, but you can't reduce the deficit to provide for the surplus. However, this only applies to the common people of the Ming Dynasty. You can show pity to those who are not of our race, but as an official, it's best not to turn that pity into action unless it's profitable."
Song Yan frowned: "Why?"
Zhu Biao did not explain, but simply said: "This is my teaching. You can listen or not. Ultimately, you still have to rely on your own observation, practice, and then think and draw your own conclusions. Always remember one thing: do not harm the interests of the Ming Dynasty."
Song Yan said, "That's natural."
After Zhu Biao finished laying the groundwork, he began to talk about his next plan.
Only then did Song Yan and others understand why Zhu Biao said those words before.
For the people of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Biao prohibited taking from the poor and giving to the rich; but for those outside the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Biao had no psychological burden of taking from the poor.
It doesn’t matter that the Ming Dynasty is short of food, Korea and Southeast Asia have it.
After the new firearms of the Ming Dynasty began to be popularized in the army, a large number of old-style muskets and cannons, as well as obsolete weapons seized from the Yuan Dynasty and local warlords, had to be discarded.
Because Zhu Biao used a traditional blast furnace to refine steel, the scrap steel, which is useless in modern times, was far superior to the iron weapons in the hands of ordinary soldiers, even if it was not as good as the hundred-fold steel in the hands of generals in this era. The cost of melting and re-refining these iron weapons was much higher than directly casting them with steel.
So even if they were obsolete cold weapons, the Ming Dynasty had a headache about how to deal with them.
Goryeo, relying on the aristocratic families of the Yuan Dynasty, was now engaged in a fierce war with the small landowners who wanted to submit to the Ming Dynasty. Champa, taking advantage of Dai Viet's decline, rebelled against it. After Siam gained independence from Chenla, it engaged in a continuous war with Chenla...
Zhu Biao had always wanted to sell used weapons, but he gave up because almost everyone in the court had a narrower vision than him and was worried that they would accuse him of aiding the enemy by selling used weapons, which would lead to his family being unjustly killed by the emperor.
But now…
Zhu Biao thought about the imperial edict that Emperor Hongwu had urgently sent to him, "Don't be afraid, I'll take the blame," and he clenched his fists, then slowly loosened them.
"The storage and recasting costs of obsolete weapons are far higher than the direct cost of casting new ones. If they were to fall into the hands of civilians, it would cause chaos," Zhu Biao said. "You must be asking, wouldn't it be the same if we sold them to other countries?"
Everyone nodded. If the person who brought up this matter wasn't Zhu Biao, they would all suspect him of treason.
"Of course not." Zhu Biao smiled sarcastically. "In the short term, it seems we've helped them improve their weapons. But scrapped weapons are outdated. As long as they buy our weapons, they'll always lag behind us."
"When we sell them weapons cheaper than what they currently have, and the cost of purchasing them is far lower than developing them, they won't invest a lot of manpower and resources in researching new weapons. Instead, they will just wait for us to continue to phase out our weapons and buy our obsolete ones."
Zhu Biao's cold gaze swept across the faces of everyone present and said, "Do you understand?"
For the first time, everyone felt a chill towards Zhu Biao.
Even though Zhu Biao had miraculous military exploits on the battlefield and had shown tenacity in head-on confrontations, even in the hearts of his students, Zhu Biao was a kind and gentle person who cared about the people. Although he said "I am selfish", his sense of morality was higher than anyone else.
The greatest pressure Zhu Biao put on them occurred during exams.
Even though they had been scolded many times by Zhu Biao, in their hearts, the image of Zhu Biao, who never scolded others, always slipped towards that of "the most beloved younger brother", even though some of the people present were one or two years younger than Zhu Biao.
Zhu Biao has always used upright means to govern the army and the people. This is the first time that everyone has seen Zhu Biao using conspiracy.
A conspiracy is not necessarily worse than an open conspiracy, it just happens to be used in different places.
"You should read more history books about the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period," Zhu Biao said, lowering his eyes. "With the advent of the maritime age, the Ming Dynasty will face threats from neighboring countries, and even from nations across the ocean. This is a territorially expanded version of the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. The unification of the Ming Dynasty is only the beginning, the opening ceremony for its entry onto the world stage."
"This is another era of great strife. The strong will remain strong, and the weak will perish." Zhu Biao's cold expression melted away, and he smiled. "Right, Dad?"
Zhu Yuanzhang, who was standing outside the window eavesdropping, said: "..."
"Well, of course. Biao'er, please continue." Zhu Guorui, a wealthy businessman, shaved and powdered, wearing a jeweled hat and several large gold rings on his fingers, swaggered in. "Tell me more about that business of selling used weapons to the surrounding areas in exchange for money and food."
Zhu Biao stood up and had a chair brought to his side. After Zhu Yuanzhang sat down, he said, "That's all I have to say. If you want to hear more about international trade, I'll sort it out and tell you. Now don't interrupt. You scared me by peeking out from behind the window."
Zhu Yuanzhang did not frighten Zhu Biao at all, but laughed triumphantly: "It's not bad to scare you."
Zhu Biao and Zhu Yuanzhang chatted casually for a few words, and then said to the people sitting below: "I will explain this matter to Your Majesty."
After serving Zhu Biao for several years, Liu Lian was no longer the inexperienced, armchair strategist he once was. He had been persuaded by Zhu Biao, but he remained concerned: "There are so many mediocre officials at court; they won't understand your hard work and dedication. If they accuse you of aiding foreign countries, what will the emperor, far away in his high position, do if he believes them?"
Zhu Yuanzhang immediately frowned and said, "Bullshit! There are indeed many mediocre people in the court, but the emperor will not listen to them!"
Liu Ji, who was still hiding outside the door, couldn't help but push open the half-closed door and strode into the room: "You bastard! Who do you say is mediocre in the court?!"
Although Liu Lian was a little startled, he was not afraid at all: "I said that there are many mediocre people in the court, but I didn't say that they are all mediocre. Why are you embarrassed, father?"
The expression of this iron-headed Liu Lian clearly said, "He is trying to cover up his mistake" and "A dog barks when a stone is hit". Father, are you so angry that you are confessing the crime?
Liu Ji immediately wanted to punch his eldest son twice to let him know that the greatest virtue of Confucianism is filial piety.
"Alright, alright, close the door and beat your son later. Don't interrupt." Zhu Yuanzhang pressed Liu Ji down. "Biao'er, go on."
Liu Ji glared at his unfilial son, then sat down slightly below Zhu Yuanzhang and said, "General Zhu and I suspected that Northern Zhili might be short of food, so we came to ask for your opinion on the minimum amount of food you would need."
"Should I collect the grain first?" Zhu Biao joked, then said, "Forget it, let's save it for others. Especially Brother Ying, he probably still has a war to fight."
Zhu Yuanzhang was puzzled: "Didn't he say that the chieftains in Yunnan were very cooperative?"
"With their heads hanging on a pole, they're indeed very cooperative," Zhu Biao said with a smile. "The people under the Yunnan chieftains' rule want a better life, so they secretly lead the Ming army. Without the convenience of familiarity with the terrain, the chieftains are like turtles in a jar. But Yunnan's biggest problem isn't the chieftains of Yunnan and Guizhou, but Dai Viet and Luchuan."
Seeing that almost everyone present had confused expressions, Zhu Biao sighed inwardly and told everyone the information he had collected.
Dai Viet's territory bordered Vietnam. Its current king, surnamed Tran, called the Tran Dynasty, had been ambitiously expanding since its founding. The Tran ruler first took some of Champa's territory by marrying his sister off, then killed the Champa king and annexed the kingdom.
Champa was a vassal state of the Yuan Dynasty. The Yuan army launched an offensive against Dai Viet, even reaching the territory itself. However, due to their unfamiliarity with the terrain and poor physique for tropical warfare, they were repelled by Dai Viet. Later, Champa successfully rebelled against Dai Viet on its own.
The Luchuan Pingmian Xuanweisi (Pingmian Xuanweishisi) covers the area from northern Myanmar to Ruili, Yunnan. Although the Yuan Dynasty established an administrative office here, due to the Tusi self-government system and the expansionist nature of the Luchuan King, the area almost escaped Yuan control.
Because the Yuan Dynasty was beating the Central Plains Dynasty, and Dai Viet and Luchuan both had a record of defeating the Yuan army, they had no fear of the Central Plains Dynasty and tried to expand towards China many times.
Although Luchuan had surrendered due to Chen Ying's firearms offensive, they were far away from the hinterland of Yunnan. After surrendering, they had maintained their own chieftain autonomy and had not been integrated into Yunnan's military farming and reform.
Zhu Biao deduced that Luchuan would rebel sooner or later.
As for Dai Viet… Zhu Biao vaguely remembered that Dai Viet was later destroyed by Emperor Yongle, who established the Xuanwei Envoy. However, later generations were not up to the task, not understanding the importance of this territory, not knowing how to govern it, and unable to defeat it, so they lost it.
One of the most criticized ancestral precepts of Emperor Taizu of the Ming Dynasty was "not to levy troops," as if raising one's hands to receive a blow. In fact, Emperor Taizu's "not to levy troops" actually meant "not to fire the first shot." If others don't attack me, I won't attack them either.
As a usurper, Zhu Di attached great importance to his ancestors' teachings. Since he dared to destroy Dai Viet, it was obvious that Dai Viet had attacked the Ming Dynasty first.
During the reign of Emperor Yongle, Dai Viet would have attacked the Ming Dynasty, which was not long in the future. Zhu Biao would have lived to see this happen. So why didn't he have his own brother Ying take precautions first?
After hearing Zhu Biao's explanation, everyone didn't take it seriously at first.
In their view, no matter how much the surrounding small countries jumped around, it would be like scratching an itch with a shoe and would not cause any harm to the Ming Dynasty.
Only when they knew Zhu Biao said that the Yuan Dynasty had suffered setbacks in Dai Viet and Luchuan, that the Yuan army was driven out of Dai Viet, and that Luchuan almost threatened the hinterland of Yunnan, did they realize the seriousness of the situation.
Although they defeated the Yuan Dynasty, it would never be said that the Yuan army was weak; when Dai Viet and Luchuan fought against the Yuan army, it was the period of the Yuan army's heyday. Even with the advantage of home court, it can be seen that they are definitely tough guys.
What's more, they expanded against China when facing the Yuan Dynasty. Wouldn't they come if it was the Ming Dynasty?
"They will definitely come!" Zhu Yuanzhang gritted his teeth, "Wenying has a heavy burden!"
Liu Ji was puzzled. "Why sell them weapons? Even if they have to rely on us for weapons in the future, they are real enemies now, right?"
Zhu Biao shook his head: "First, this is all for the future. They are not enemies now. Secondly, even if we sell them weapons, they won't know how to use them. We will definitely have to send soldiers to guide them..."
He stopped talking halfway and said, "Don't ask me to tell you everything. Think for yourselves. There are only advantages and no disadvantages to selling weapons to me. Let's see how many advantages you can think of."
Liu Ji was at a loss for words: "Biao'er, are you even teaching your Uncle Liu?"
Zhu Yuanzhang immediately said, "What's wrong with teaching you? Hasn't my Biao'er taught enough civil and military officials? I think you, the well-read scholars, are only average at governing the country. Biao'er should hold a few more training sessions to teach those civil officials as well."
Zhu Biao shook his head. "The more books you read, the more confident you become, and the harder it is to change your mind. People like Uncle Liu who are open to new ideas are rare, so it's better to continue teaching the generals. It's easier to teach from a blank sheet of paper than to scribble on a sheet already covered in words."
Although he felt uncomfortable, Liu Ji sighed and had to admit that Zhu Biao was right.
Zhu Biao had something else to say that made Liu Ji even more uncomfortable.
Scholars are good at criticizing people and things that go against their own interests and ideas from a moral perspective. Since Zhu Biao's method was a conspiracy, it was naturally not moral; even if the generals attacked each other, they would not start from a moral perspective, because they all killed people in order to defend their country and expand the territory. In traditional moral concepts, this is "against the harmony of nature" and will be punished with "sudden death".
There are no comments on famous generals who died young in history books, and many historians sigh that "the country was killed too many times"?
Zhu Biao didn't want to waste time arguing with these people. Foreign affairs were closely related to the army. The nobles were still very powerful, and the Hongwu Emperor could suppress them. He could directly gain their support to act accordingly.
"I just want to see them convinced by the benchmark." Zhu Yuanzhang sighed.
Zhu Biao laughed. "Dad, there's a vulgar saying, 'The butt determines the head,' meaning that one's stance determines one's words. Not everyone who has a point can convince the other. When the other party has already made up their mind, no amount of debate will be of any use unless you can argue them to death. For example, Dad, you love watching fairy plays. In a fairy play, some people enjoy watching the graceful figures of the beautiful fairies, some enjoy watching the fairies fight each other with swords, spears, and clubs, and some enjoy appreciating the humming lyrics. So in every play, there will always be people who applaud and there will always be people who boo."
Zhu Biao gave this example and Zhu Yuanzhang immediately understood.
He sighed and said, "I just love to see intense fighting. I wish the whole scene was just fighting. When it comes to other scenes, I get sleepy."
Zhu Biao laughed: "That's right. That's why I didn't waste all that extra energy. Dad, since you're here, please help me pass the memorial to the emperor. The emperor is more likely to adopt my suggestions."
Zhu Yuanzhang agreed immediately: "Okay!"
Liu Ji secretly thought that Zhu Guorui's memorial was equivalent to Zhu Yuanzhang's imperial edict, and that the "possibility of taking action" was indeed the greatest.
Zhu Biao had called his students and subordinates here not just to persuade them but also to teach them. This was his first time selling used weapons, and the work was incredibly tedious. Zhu Biao wanted to utilize everyone he could.
In addition, Zhu Wenzheng and Li Wenzhong had already dispatched troops, leaving northern Zhili vulnerable to attack, especially against the Northeast and Goryeo. Most of the students were capable of leading troops, and now was the time to test their training.
When Zhu Biao assigned tasks, he asked Chang Wei, a top-tier warrior, to lead a patrol near the border, persuading caravans and pedestrians to return, with those who disobeyed to be executed on the spot. He had only half-spoken the order when he saw that Chang Wei, while obeying immediately, showed some resistance in his eyes, and he couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
It's not just Chang Wei. These students have all exposed their personality problems during the time they have been living alone away from their families. Zhu Biao believes it is necessary to provide them with psychological guidance.
Regardless of whether Zheng Ge wins or loses this military operation, a conclusion will be reached before winter. After that, I should have some free time. Many of the students' parents will also be coming to Beijing to endure the cold while the emperor heads north for the winter. Then, we can hold a parents' meeting.
Zhu Biao made the decision harshly, without caring at all about the psychological trauma that "holding a parent-teacher meeting" would cause to the students.
From ancient times to the present, no student is not afraid of parent-teacher meetings, especially those where the teacher will have individual conversations with each student afterwards.
In fact, parents too.
I wish Zhu Biao’s students and parents good luck in advance.
The ignorant students rushed to their posts whether they were willing or not.
Zhu Yuanzhang and Liu Ji continued to stay in Beijing to prevent anyone from taking advantage of the situation and harming Zhu Biao.
They also wanted to see how Zhu Biao's "buying used weapons" sales strategy worked. Meanwhile, they both had to rack their brains to figure out how selling used weapons could benefit future enemy nations.
After receiving Zhu Biao's summons, Liao Yongzhong quickly came to report.
As soon as he arrived, he saw Zhu Biao with the emperor on his left and the chief censor on his right, and he immediately felt panicked.
Although Liao Yongzhong knew that Zhu Biao was easy to talk to, whether the emperor or anyone else, Zhu Yuanzhang and Liu Ji were the two most feared "bears" in the court. Liu Ji would scold someone first, and then Zhu Yuanzhang would behead him. Anyone who fell into the hands of this duo would die in unease.
This panic was a conditioned reflex for Liao Yongzhong.
What's more, he was secretly collecting Zhu Guorui's private hobbies and liked to imitate them secretly, which made him feel a little guilty.
"Are you here? What are you standing there for?" Zhu Yuanzhang urged, "You're too slow!"
Zhu Biao tried to smooth things over: "It would take about the same amount of time to go back and forth by horse. Uncle Liao can't just come to Beijing and then drive a navy steamer out. He'll be impeached if he abuses his power for personal gain."
Zhu Yuanzhang was proud: "I can't!"
Liu Ji couldn't help but curse: "Have you admitted that you abused your power for personal gain?"
Zhu Yuanzhang laughed out loud like a smug fool.
Zhu Biao couldn't bear to look at his father's stupidity.
"Uncle Liao, ignore my father. Let's discuss firing a cannon at the Goryeo coast." Zhu Biao pulled Liao Yongzhong to the table and pointed at a map. "The Goryeo capital, Kaesong, is located in the delta where the west coast meets the sea, and it's directly accessible from the sea. Uncle Liao, you sail in from here. If you don't go ashore, fire your cannons at the shore from a distance, and they'll send envoys to negotiate with you."
Liao Yongzhong was confused at first. The enemy had no powerful navy, and our army was not going ashore. How could we fight this battle?
After Zhu Biao explained it clearly, Liao Yongzhong's eyes became brighter and brighter, and he was extremely excited.
Is this the way to fight a war?! Can I just sail to Japan now? I've been pissing off Japan for a long time!
