Chapter 181: Laying the Foundation for the Abolition of the Feudal Domains and the Establishment of Provinces
Liao Yongzhong and Zhu Yi understood the principles Zhu Biao said, but they unconsciously ignored them when facing Goryeo.
Take Liao Yongzhong as an example. As a battle-hardened naval marshal, didn’t he know that one should not fight an unprepared battle?
Even if Zhu Yuanzhang gave him an urgent task and asked him to break camp and set off immediately, he would try to learn as much information as possible while traveling on the boat.
But when Zhu Yuanzhang told Liao Yongzhong to attack Goryeo, he went straight into battle without any thought.
It’s not right to say that this is stupid, it can only be said that this is deep-rooted contempt.
Even though Goryeo had repelled the Yuan army during the Yuan Dynasty's internal strife, and had repelled the Red Turban Army during internal strife and when it was attacked from both sides by the Yuan Dynasty, Goryeo did have some victories. Liao Yongzhong still looked down on Goryeo.
However, Liao Yongzhong's contempt was not enough to be sustained by the powerful Ming army and firepower.
In fact, the armies of the slightly stronger separatist forces of the Central Plains dynasties could fight in Goryeo several times - Goguryeo is not Goryeo. Then they would leave behind a pile of ruins for the Goryeo royal family to rebuild the capital.
Therefore, Zhu Biao did not think that Liao Yongzhong was stupid, but he was not as smart as the real Grand Marshals like Xu Da. Although Liao Yongzhong had the title of "Grand Marshal of the Navy", he was actually just a powerful general.
The highest level of warfare is to "subdue the enemy without fighting."
Fighting fiercely on the battlefield may seem heroic, but even if the casualty ratio is only a dozen people compared to thousands or tens of thousands, the lives of these dozen people are still lives. They are the people and soldiers of the Ming Dynasty.
What's more, war consumes a large amount of weapons and food.
Modern wars basically start with intelligence warfare, and it is best to win with one blow at the negotiating table; secondly, it is also necessary to obtain the opponent's vital points in the intelligence war and then paralyze them as much as possible.
This was Zhu Biao's pursuit in most of the Ming Dynasty's future wars.
After the dynasty stabilizes, the navy will generally decline or even be directly laid off.
But the Ming Dynasty's navy will become the navy, and Liao Yongzhong, as the navy's commander-in-chief, will become one of the first naval admirals.
The enemies Liao Yongzhong would face in the future were the people from the barbaric lands he had previously looked down upon. These people would rob Ming merchant ships, harass Ming naval territory, and block Ming shipping routes. If Liao Yongzhong did not change his mind, the Ming navy would suffer greatly in the future.
Seeing the genuine shame on Liao Yongzhong's face, Zhu Biao breathed a sigh of relief. As an excellent general, Liao Yongzhong easily listened to his advice, which was very good.
Zhu Biao only pointed out the mistakes made by Liao Yongzhong and Zhu Yi in this operation, did not continue nagging, and then went to rest.
Liao Yongzhong continued to mumble to Zhu Yi, asking Zhu Yi if he could do it.
Zhu Yi responded good-temperedly and said modestly that he would do his best.
Before leaving, Zhu Biao was worried that Zhu Yi would doubt himself, so he specifically told Zhu Yi that he had observed Zhu Yi doing business, and with Zhu Yi's ability, as long as he performed at his usual level and did business with integrity, there would be no problem.
Although Zhu Yi only does business that comes to him, he is indeed good at business and is a conscientious businessman. Everyone who does business with him, regardless of whether they make money or lose money, will never say a bad word about Zhu Yi.
Zhu Yi fully applied the Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism taught by his father, the great Confucian scholar Zhu Sheng, to business.
What? What does Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism have to do with business? Of course it does! Haven't you heard of Confucian businessmen? How can the sacred teachings be so inconvenient? — So said Zhu Yi.
Zhu Sheng was so angry that he picked up his crutch and chased him for two blocks, and then gave him to Ye Zheng as an apprentice.
So Zhu Biao was very confident in Zhu Yi.
Zhu Biao came to do business with Goryeo not to cheat Goryeo. He really wanted to use trade to solve the current difficult living conditions of Goryeo people on the basis of win-win situation.
As we all know, there is a serious double standard between foreign countries and China in the conclusions of historical research.
For example, the map of the vast empire recognized in history is filled with vassal states of all sizes.
Taking the Ming Dynasty as an example, a country is considered legitimate only if it uses the Ming Dynasty's reign title, pays tribute to the Ming Dynasty, the Ming Dynasty can decide the replacement of its king, and the king's ascension to the throne requires the invitation of Ming Dynasty angels to attend the ceremony. According to their standards, it is the territory of the Ming Dynasty.
However, in China, when calculating the territories of past dynasties, if the territory is smaller, it can be based on the same foreign standards; if the territory is large, the historical research community will not recognize it and it can only be considered directly under the central government.
Another example is the Yuan Dynasty's establishment of the Zhengdong Province, with the Goryeo king serving as its prime minister. In theory, Goryeo was directly under the Yuan Dynasty, with its internal and foreign affairs decided by the Yuan Dynasty. The Goryeo king could only marry a woman from the Yuan royal family. Consequently, Goryeo is absent from later Yuan Dynasty maps, and some Chinese scholars and history enthusiasts have racked their brains to find reasons why Goryeo was not part of the Yuan Dynasty.
If you ask them, "Aren't you being hypocritical?", they will reply that our historical research needs to be rigorous, which is different from the West.
But that is for later generations.
Now, everyone knows that Zhengdong Province, like Lingbei Province, is the territory of the Yuan Dynasty.
Emperor Hongwu was ambitious. Most of his systems were inherited from the Yuan Dynasty, mixed with some of the powerful Tang and Han dynasties, in order to create a "hodgepodge of the most powerful dynasties."
All military actions in the early Ming Dynasty were aimed at inheriting the territory of the Yuan Dynasty.
Whether it was the Zhengdong Province or the Lingbei Province, or the Xuanzhengyuan territory called Tubo, in the heart of the Hongwu Emperor, they were all an inseparable part of the Ming territory. This can be seen in the early military actions of the Hongwu Emperor.
However, in order to allow the people to survive, Emperor Hongwu had to cease fire, switch from offense to defense, and set up a "country that cannot be conquered" (but Emperor Hongwu acquiesced to the former Yuan general Lee Seong-gye, who represented forces closer to the Ming Dynasty, to seize power).
The Yongle Emperor inherited this philosophy from the Hongwu Emperor and aspired to further expand territorial power, surpassing the Yuan Dynasty. He was deeply interested in the ocean and had a foresight in recognizing the importance of Southeast Asia and the Strait of Malacca. He established the Three Xuans and Six Weis and the Jiugang Xuanwei Office. During Zheng He's voyages, Ming troops were stationed in Southeast Asia and South Vietnam.
But soon, Yongle's son died after only a year on the throne. Yongle's grandson, a child raised in the inner palace, lacked the foresight of the Hongwu and Yongle emperors. He quickly abandoned Nanyue and withdrew his troops. To prevent the use of "strange and frivolous techniques" and "aggrandizement," prominent officials at court burned nearly all of Zheng He's technical documentation related to his voyages.
After that, the Three Xuans and Six Weis and the Jiugang Xuanwei Division were essentially non-existent. The Ming emperor, who paid tribute only once every few decades, asked the same (or even sillier) question as the Qing Emperor Daoguang: Where are the Three Xuans and Six Weis and the Jiugang Xuanwei Division?
The history of Zhu Biao's time and space has not yet progressed to this point. The Hongwu Emperor and all the civil and military officials in the court believed that inheriting the vast land of the Yuan Dynasty was a matter of course - the military officials also believed that it would be better if they could be stronger than the Yuan Dynasty.
Therefore, in the minds of the civil and military officials in the court, Goryeo is considered an "internal affairs issue."
The benefits of the policy of converting natives into commoners have already begun to manifest in places like Yunnan, Guizhou, and Guangxi—regions with two or even three crops per year have already produced their first grain harvests. According to statistics reported by local officials, by the end of next year at the latest, these areas will no longer require grain aid from the imperial court, and may even be able to provide it.
The Goryeo king was capricious, and the court did not trust him and handed Goryeo over to him. The mainstream opinion in the court was to either not fight or replace the Goryeo king. The ultimate plan was to complete the Yuan Dynasty's unfinished plan of abolishing the feudal system and establishing provinces in Goryeo.
When steamships appeared, it only took one day to see the coastline of the Korean Peninsula from the port of Haejin Town, and less than three days to reach the sea near Kaesong.
This was Liao Yongzhong's first time leading a steam warship, and he was cautious and prudent. With more practice, the Ming navy could sail the ship to the estuary within sight of Kaifeng within two days.
Once this news was brought back, Zhu Biao believed that the opinions in the court would immediately become unified - Goryeo must abolish the feudal system and establish a province!
Less than three days' journey from the capital was an autonomous vassal state? The Ming emperor and his ministers, while defending Beijing against the nomadic tribes from the north, also had to be on guard against Goryeo? The Ming emperor and his ministers were out of their minds.
If it were only three days away by land, it would probably have been included in Zhili Province.
Since the Ming Dynasty would send officials to Goryeo to cultivate land, educate the people, provide relief to the people and maintain order in the foreseeable future, Zhu Biao had to plant a seed first to prevent Goryeo from becoming too corrupt, lest the grassroots officials sent by the Ming Dynasty die of exhaustion.
After the waters of Goryeo and Ming Dynasty are opened, maritime merchants can provide a large number of jobs for the people. The people can also come to Ming Dynasty, which is currently in urgent need of population, to work or join the ranks of military farming and migration.
Don't worry about language issues. Not all the people in the Ming Dynasty can understand Mandarin. Control at the grassroots level now uses written language first, and then local people who can understand it convey orders.
This was also true in Goryeo, as the official language of Goryeo was Chinese characters.
Before going to bed, Zhu Biao couldn't help but sigh.
Being a vassal state means "let it rot", but after becoming a province, a series of issues such as people's livelihood, economy, and education have to be considered. No wonder all dynasties have been so cautious in their actions.
What a sweet and heavy burden.
Zhu Biao completed most of his goals on the first day of arriving in Goryeo, and spent the remaining days traveling between banquets and sightseeing.
No matter how much information he collected, seeing is believing, hearing is false. Zhu Biao had to see and hear with his own eyes what was happening in Goryeo before he could make a decision on the next economic policy. Goryeo was only a day's steamboat ride away from Northern Zhili. Zhu Biao expected that the "Goryeo Province Revitalization Plan" would most likely be led by him.
At the banquet, Zhu Biao, with his strict scholar-official ethics, refused drinking and beautiful women. He was only willing to talk about marching and fighting with military generals, and the Four Books and Five Classics with civil officials.
After Sin Don came to power, the Goryeo Dynasty quickly cultivated a group of Confucian scholars who passed the imperial examinations.
The big landlords and powerful people in the Goryeo Dynasty all made their fortunes with the help of the Yuan Dynasty. The spokespersons for the small and medium-sized landlords and gentry who wanted to make further progress in the change of dynasties were this group of Confucian scholars.
This is basically consistent with the Huaxia Dynasty.
In order to overthrow the "great families" in Goryeo, these Confucian scholars and newly promoted generals generally leaned towards the Ming Dynasty. They flattered Zhu Biao and hoped to become the spokesperson for the new Chinese dynasty in Goryeo.
Of course, there were also some knowledgeable people who truly hoped that the people of Goryeo could live as prosperously as the people of China, even though Zhu Biao did not think that the people of China had anything to do with prosperity.
The ideas of those with insight were even more radical. The Yuan Dynasty pushed for the abolition of the feudal system and the establishment of a province in Goryeo, which was influenced by the ancestors of this group.
Goryeo had been a vassal state of China for a long time. Everything related to civilization in Goryeo, including its official system, clothing, writing, customs, etc., was consistent with that of China.
Now that Goryeo is so close to the capital of the Chinese kingdom, then becoming a "Zhili Province" is not out of reach, right?
They will be able to become nobles close to the capital of China!
Zhu Biao dealt with these people with a smile, constantly saying moral words such as "Since the King of Goryeo has surrendered, the Ming Dynasty must guarantee his throne."
However, Zhu Biao also promised that the relationship between Goryeo and Ming would be close in the future. They no longer had to worry about the people of Goryeo starving to death due to the land grabbing by the powerful families, because Ming had a large amount of land in urgent need of reclamation.
"Yunnan, Guizhou, Guangdong and Guangxi can harvest grain two to three times a year. They migrated south. As long as they worked hard, they would definitely have a surplus every year." Zhu Biao smiled. "It's not just about farming. After Prince Yan and Duke Cao conquered Lingbei Province, we'll also need people to graze and raise horses on the grasslands there. If they stayed in Goryeo, as citizens of the Ming Dynasty, they would naturally receive relief from the Ming court in times of disaster."
"Don't worry, the people of Goryeo will live better and better in the future," Zhu Biao consoled him. "During this journey, I've found the capital of Kaesong so desolate, and it's truly unbearable. So I don't blame you for your presumptuous words; you're all thinking about the people."
Confucian scholars such as Zheng Daochuan, Zhao Jun, and Yin Shaozong, who secretly came to ask for an audience with Zhu Biao and confessed their true feelings to Zhu Biao, all burst into tears.
While Zhu Biao rejected the requests of these emerging scholar-official classes, he praised them; on the other hand, he also accepted the invitations of the great families who had originally stood on the side of the Yuan Dynasty, praising them for their loyalty to the Yuan Dynasty, saying that they had done nothing wrong and that they had simply encountered a change of dynasty. This calmed the uneasy hearts of the representatives of the great families of Goryeo.
During this period, in addition to bringing Liao Yongzhong and Zhu Yi, Zhu Biao also took turns bringing young generals and young literati in the army, teaching them by example how to deal with the Koreans, and randomly checking their results of the day's observations after returning to their residence.
A few days later, the young generals and scholars in the army stopped addressing Zhu Biao by his official title in private and started calling him "Mr." Although Zhu Biao did not accept them as his disciples, they accepted his teachings in their hearts and recognized him as their teacher.
However, when the young generals in the army received their enlightenment education, they all used the textbooks and teaching outlines written by Zhu Biao. They could indeed shamelessly call themselves Zhu Biao's disciples.
Liao Yongzhong was a little worried: "Biao'er, General Zhu asked you to go out and rest, why are you still so tired?"
Zhu Biao was puzzled: "Are you tired? Not tired?"
Liao Yongzhong was even more puzzled: "You have to deal with the Koreans and teach those little bastards in the army. Isn't that tiring?"
Zhu Biao was even more confused than Liao Yongzhong: "How am I tired? It's quite fun. I'm just taking a rest."
Liao Yongzhong: “…” I have never seen such a rest.
At this moment, he thought of the terrifying energy of Emperor Hongwu. He could only say, worthy of being the emperor's prince?
Zhu Biao didn't lie, he was really relaxed and comfortable.
Zhu Biao only felt tired when he was responsible for the lives of the people and soldiers within his sight. Wasn't it relaxing to be on a diplomatic mission to Goryeo and give some advice to the "younger generation"?
Who doesn't like to stand on a high pedestal and be praised and talked about? Things that don't require much effort are certainly not tiring.
Moreover, although Goryeo was suffering, it was the common people and the powerless royal family who suffered . Whether it was a large family or a small and medium-sized gentry, their homes were fully equipped with delicacies from land and sea.
These big families and small and medium-sized gentry had already covered the daily expenses of the Ming army, and Zhu Biao lived an even more luxurious life than in Beijing.
It’s a rare enjoyment.
