Chapter 920 A Fire
The new policy was like a fire, burning the sky of the capital red. The scholars and officials were ready to stop Jiang Qingzhi from lifting the ban on sea trade.
Jiang Qingzhi sat comfortably in his palace and became the focus of the capital and even the whole world.
"Send the message by express horse, no more waiting!"
"Yes."
"Those powerful people are still furious?"
"Yes. Many people were drunk and said they wanted to kill the uncle!"
"If they dare to take action, I will congratulate the Ming Dynasty."
In Zhilu, Jiang Qingzhi stood outside the duty room with his hands behind his back. In front of him were more than a dozen officials, and on both sides stood Xu Wei and Zhang Juzheng.
The dozen or so officials were all picked by him to work with him. Not to mention their loyalty, to be honest, loyalty is worthless these days.
But as long as the new policy can see the light of day, these officials will be loyal to it... Just like Conglong, once they have chosen a side, they must stand firm to the end.
No one would take a traitor in wherever he went. Su Shi became a traitor unintentionally and was almost slaughtered by the two parties like a chicken.
"Ben Bo said that there is a good deal here, so I want to come early."
"Yes."
More than ten officials dispersed, and Zhang Juzheng said, "My Lord, those people will not release their eagles until they see the rabbit."
"They may seem aggressive, but they are mostly weak. They have a large family, a large business, and a wide network of relationships, which is an advantage, but also a burden." Jiang Qingzhi took out the medicinal cigarette and smiled, "The ship is too big to turn around. The whole family is in the capital. Once they make a mistake, the thunder will come and destroy everything."
Jiang Qingzhi lit up the medicine cigarette, "The powerful and wealthy are dragging a family and wealth, and lack perseverance. This is why I started with them first. Wait and see, they will definitely come."
Xu Wei smiled and said, "If we can get these people over here, the situation will be reversed."
"The officials..." Zhang Juzheng felt that Xu Wei was too optimistic. "Those people are joining forces. Once they form a joint force... After all, the court will discuss matters with the officials in the main. The powerful are just playing a supporting role."
"Then what do you think we should do?" Xu Wei asked.
"Take a group of people as the first move." Zhang Juzheng said: "The rich and powerful have children and countless properties at home, and they are reluctant to give up all of this. Therefore, as long as they are not forced into a desperate situation, they dare not turn against us. In this case, take some of the rich and powerful as the first move, and do it ruthlessly. To deter the rich and powerful."
"Eliminate worries?" Xu Wei smiled a little.
"Yes." Zhang Juzheng nodded. "After eliminating the worries, we will immediately use the land clearance to target Confucianism. Announce the number of fields owned by scholars throughout the country. Once the huge amount of land that does not pay taxes is exposed... Confucianism, Confucianism, and gentlemen will all bow down before that huge number."
"Are you trying to completely destroy the reputation of Confucianism?"
"That's right. If you're going to do it, do it thoroughly."
"But you forgot one thing."
"Oh! I'm all ears."
"The world!" said Xu Wei.
Zhang Juzheng was stunned, and Xu Wei sighed, "If we force them too much, they will be desperate."
"First, you underestimated the powerful. Second, the new policy is not about destruction and reconstruction." Jiang Qingzhi squinted his eyes and took a puff of herbal cigarette. "Those people are greedy... I threw out the bait, let's catch these fish first."
Once it succeeds, the opponent will be divided internally.
Divide and rule, this is the highest level of struggle.
Shouting for war and killing is refreshing and in line with Jiang Qingzhi's personality. But the consequences of shouting for war and killing are very serious.
Unless you can control the entire world, you cannot force the scholars into a desperate alley.
"Forcing a dog into a corner will turn the world upside down, and a wise man won't do that." Jiang Qingzhi looked at Zhang Juzheng and felt that this guy was quite different from the regent in history.
"Uncle, remember, means are just means, not the end." Jiang Qingzhi warned: "The end has not changed."
Zhang Juzheng was startled. Jiang Qingzhi entered the duty room. Xu Wei came over and said, "Your suggestions these days are similar to those of Lao Hu. Both are too cruel. But you forgot one thing. The world is controlled by Confucianists. The capital is just a corner.
Especially in the south, Confucianism is deeply rooted. Once you force yourself into a corner, you will encounter unspeakable things. "
"Divide the country by the river?" Zhang Juzheng smiled.
"I don't think those people dare to rebel," Xu Wei said, "but they can corrupt the entire South."
The south is an important source of money and grain for the Ming Dynasty. Once the south is corrupted, the Ming Dynasty will almost die.
"They..." At this moment, Zhang Juzheng had not yet experienced the sedimentation and tempering of lying dormant at home, had not gone through that low-key period, and had not carefully observed the political ecology below.
"They dare." Xu Wei said, "If the Confucians are pushed too far, they may even collude with foreigners... They would rather destroy the Ming Dynasty than suffer losses in their own interests."
"This……"
"Uncle." Xu Wei sighed, "What Uncle meant before is that you are extremely smart, but lack experience. Especially the experience of the lower class. You must know that the lower class is the true appearance of the Ming Dynasty."
"The bottom floor?"
"The grassroots are the world of Confucianism. If you don't understand how the grassroots work, any reforms or new policies will inevitably fail. If important officials don't know the grassroots, their decisions will be castles in the air, flashy but not practical."
Jiang Qingzhi's voice came from the duty room, "Take your time. If you have nothing to do, just walk around and take a look. Take a look at the real Ming Dynasty. As for the capital, it's just a quagmire, with a bunch of turtles and tortoises stirring up trouble."
"Yes." Zhang Juzheng narrowed his eyes, "The bottom floor? Then I'll go take a look."
Jiang Qingzhi knew that what Zhang Juzheng needed most at the moment was training and experience, but he lacked people around him, so he had to force his way forward.
There was a document on the table, sent by the Jinyiwei, which recorded a series of changes in the grassland since the defeat.
The new policy must have a stable external environment. Jiang Qingzhi has instructed that if any changes occur on the grassland, they should be reported immediately.
Lu Bing is a smart man and is good at sitting on the fence.
After the defeat, when Altan returned to the grassland, the first thing he did was not to appease the people, but to arrest dozens of tribal leaders on charges of failing to fight effectively or retreating in battle.
This move is cruel enough, but in Jiang Qingzhi's view it is a typical tactic of a tyrant.
Some of the tribes surrendered, while others rose up in rebellion. Altan was well prepared and temporarily suppressed the situation with a bloody crackdown.
——All males who are taller than the wheel will be killed.
Jiang Qingzhi seemed to see a scene in which the captured men of the tribe, from the elderly to children, lined up and walked numbly under the butcher's knife.
A carriage was in front of us, with wheels that were shorter than ordinary wheels.
Every time someone approached the carriage, someone would hold a branch or something else to press down on his head and compare the other end to the wheel.
"high!"
"kill!"
Jiang Qingzhi closed his eyes, "An Da, don't think about revenge. If that's the case, I would rather put the new policy on hold than uproot you."
……
The so-called royal court is actually a mobile camping site.
Wherever the Khan's tent is, there the royal court is.
With Altan's tent as the center, the dignitaries and generals were distributed in order of status... and the herdsmen were at the outermost edge.
God has been kind to us this year, with only a few light snowfalls so far.
Zhao Quan was drinking tea in the tent, along with several leaders of the White Lotus Sect.
"They were killing people like crazy over there, not even letting anyone below the wheels go. I happened to pass by afterwards, and wow! The blood flowed like a river!"
A leader drank milk tea and smacked his lips. When he first arrived at the grassland, he thought milk tea was unpalatable. Now he feels uncomfortable if he doesn't have a few cups every day.
Zhao Quan held the teacup, the air was filled with the smell of burning cow dung and milk tea, "Now the situation has stabilized for the time being, but the hatred is getting deeper and deeper. If we can't find a way to vent, something bad will happen sooner or later."
What they didn’t know was that the Ming Dynasty was in the same situation at the moment.
Zhou Yuan drank a sip of milk tea and said, "Someone spread the word that if the Khan doesn't release their leader, they will fight to the death."
Altan captured dozens of tribal leaders and generals and used them as threats to force those tribes to surrender.
Half of the dozens of tribes surrendered, thirty percent rebelled, and twenty percent were in civil strife.
Now, after the suppression, hatred is everywhere on the grassland.
"Those leaders are baits and the source of trouble." Zhao Quan said: "As long as they are here, those tribes will remember the hatred. But if we let them go..."
Zhou Yuan sneered, "After this incident, these people will definitely give up on the Khan. When they return to their tribes, they will collude with each other, and once they find an opportunity..."
"That would be a world-shaking event!" Zhao Quan squinted his eyes, "This is actually our chance."
"did you mean……"
"If Altan lets those people go, we will continue to send news about the grassland to the Ming Dynasty. Don't forget..." Zhao Quan lowered his voice. "Those generals in the Nine Frontiers have ulterior motives, and some want to provoke border conflicts. In this case, we will give them a good opportunity. Once the Nine Frontiers send troops, those people will be the insiders..."
"Kill Altan?"
"Why not?"
"But once Altan is destroyed, we will become rootless duckweed."
"We now have a population of over ten thousand. Once Altan is destroyed, the grassland will be in chaos. We can take the opportunity to expand. Just talking about Altan, there are tens of thousands of Ming people who have been robbed over the years. Rescue them..."
"It's still troublesome even after rescuing them."
"Idiot!" Zhao Quan sighed, "Those people are helpless and alone, and are essentially slaves. They are not fools. Once chaos breaks out on the grassland, there will be endless slaughter. Only by banding together can we avoid disaster. Pick out the strongest men from these tens of thousands of people, and we can form an army of 10,000. Then we can attack the surrounding areas..."
"Does the leader want to accomplish something on the grassland?" Zhou Yuan's eyes lit up.
"Why not?" Zhao Quan smiled and said, "I know all about Altan's methods. To be honest, they are crude. If I can unify the grasslands, I can go south again in three years and destroy the Ming Dynasty!"
"This……"
"Master, are you sure?"
"Who can say that everything in this world is certain? Man proposes, God disposes. However, the current chaos is a good opportunity to win in the chaos. If we don't take action now, you and I will never be able to make a breakthrough."
Zhao Quan looked at everyone and said, "Don't forget, Altan has always been wary of us."
"Then...listen to the leader!"
"Yes!"
There seemed to be wildfire burning in Zhao Quan's eyes. "If the Ming Dynasty is not an option, then my Holy Church will light a fire on the grassland... and burn everything in this world!"
(End of this chapter)
