Why did the emperor rebel?

Chapter 463 If ​​you die for the country
Hearing Yu Qian's words, Zhu Qiyu couldn't help laughing.

Yu Tingyi, who is upright and upright, is very pleasing to the ear when it comes to compliments.

but……

Shaking his head, restraining his smile, Zhu Qiyu hit the nail on the head.

"Sir, it's nothing more than fear. Now that the border is a little more secure, I will think of war again, and I want to take back the old place of Hetao."

You must know that in Emperor Taizu's frontier policy, the fertile pastures in Hetao were also an important part of the frontier army's self-sufficiency.

During the Hongwu period, the Ming Dynasty occupied Hetao, and the front of the army went straight to Checheer Mountain in the north of Daning.

Naturally, it is impossible for such a huge pasture to be abandoned.

Therefore, apart from the military settlements, His Majesty Taizu, who pursued pragmatism, did not despise the so-called barbarians at all.

On the contrary, his old man strongly encouraged the nomadicization of the Northern Guards.

On the vast grasslands of Hetao, except for a few grain-producing areas, "let them graze and collect firewood", emphasizing that military households must also have herds and grasslands, and organize grazing while undertaking patrol tasks.

But unfortunately, with Taizong's reform of the border policy, it was mainly because of the fear of King Sai, and in order to further strengthen the control of the border army, the defense line of the Ming Dynasty retreated one after another during the Yongle Renxuan period.

It has to be said that it is a pity to give up the huge pastures in the Hetao area while occupying a strategic advantage.

After watching the changes for a hundred years, Zhu Qiyu naturally knew that, especially after the Ming Dynasty established the capital, the loss of Hetao actually directly threatened the safety of the capital.

This point, even the nine-sided strategy formulated by Yu Qian, is difficult to make up for.

Watching and helping each other on the nine sides can greatly enhance the defense of the border. Generally speaking, it is unlikely to be beaten to the Bauhinia Pass like last time.

But you must know that no matter how strong the defense line is, no matter how complete the system is, various problems will appear as time goes by.

Zhu Qiyu must say that Yu Qian's vision is very accurate.

After the nine sides were built one after another in the previous life, Daming indeed gained nearly a hundred years of peace. It wasn't until the rise of Alta that it threatened the safety of the capital again.

But this also just proves the disadvantages of the nine sides.

No matter how strong the defense line is designed, there will always be unexpected situations that will cause it to be breached one day.

The capital is too close to the border, and the defense of only nine sides is not enough.

Only by taking back the Hetao, extending the line of defense to the north, and turning the Nine Sides into a second line of defense, can the capital gain greater security.

However, now is clearly not the time...

This is indeed what Yu Qian was worried about.

"Your Majesty, forgive me for offending you. The matter of Hetao's old place is very complicated. During the decades from Yongle to Zhengtong, with the retreat of our frontier defense line, grassland tribes have settled in the Hetao area one after another. If you want to get back Hetao, you have to go through a big battle. .”

"However, for Daming, after the Civil War and the Battle of Bauhinia Pass, the people's strength is exhausted. At least for a few years, it will be difficult to start a big war."

"Besides, my minister bluntly said that Taizu occupied Hetao for grazing and patrolling, so he can be self-sufficient. This is a supplement to the military settlement."

"Furthermore, the frontier army rotation system also hinders this, so even if the Hetao is taken back, without the support of the military colony, the disadvantages of the rotation cannot be solved, and the Hetao will only increase waste for Daming."

Speaking of Hetao, perhaps because he was afraid that the emperor would do something impulsively, Yu Qian couldn't help but lose a little bit of taboo when he spoke.

Of course, even so, there was still a word he didn't say.

That is, the military colony is better, even if it is replaced by people, the land will always be there and cannot escape.

But grazing is different. The cattle and sheep are all owned by the military households. According to the current system of rotation of the Beijing army and frontier troops every few years, is it possible for the military households to bring the cattle and sheep back to their hometowns during the rotation?

If it is said that the rotation is abandoned, then in the long run, it is bound to weaken the imperial court's control over the frontier army.

Although the current system of the Ming Dynasty is relatively complete, the chief military officer, the admiral, the inspector and the censor check and balance each other, and it is unlikely that there will be a separatist military and political envoy like the late Tang Dynasty.

However, it is also a big problem that the officers and soldiers who have been entrenched in one place for a long time are prone to breed arrogant soldiers.

So, this is actually a dilemma.

If this problem cannot be solved institutionally, then even if Ming Dynasty has the power to mobilize troops, it may not be able to pass the imperial court.

Even if it is passed, it will be taken back. After a few years, it will be forced to give up again because it takes too much energy to patrol the huge Hetao area.

So Yu Qian really didn't want the emperor to lose his head at this time and do something about raising troops to collect Hetao.

Fortunately, the emperor is obviously wise.

Seeing Yu Qian's worried look, Zhu Qiyu raised his hand to comfort him and said.

"Sir, there is no need to worry. As you said, now Daming needs to take advantage of the tranquility of the border to build the prototype of the frontier defense first."

"What's more, although the grassland tribe's vitality has been greatly injured, the grassland is the opponent's home field after all. The matter of taking back the old place of Hetao is not suitable to mention now, and it is not suitable to mention it in a few years."

"So, sir, don't worry about this matter."

Zhu Qiyu didn't say the rest.

If I remember correctly, within a few years, there will be civil strife in the grassland, the alliance between Oala and Tatar will be completely broken, and many powerful tribes will gradually decline.

At that time, it is a good time to take advantage of the void.

But these, Yu Qian obviously didn't know.

Although the emperor's attitude towards Hetao was ambiguous, he still promised not to raise troops within a few years, which made Yu Qian's heart rest in his stomach.

So, Yu Qian hurriedly changed the subject and said.

"Your Majesty is right. With the addition of Kaizhong, the army station is enough to greatly reduce the frontier army's extravagant expenses. In this way, the silver taels allocated by the imperial court can be used to build the Nine Frontiers."

After a short pause, seeing that the emperor didn't intend to interrupt him, Yu Qian continued.

"However, the matter of the military colony is very complicated. I have understood it before. With the corruption of military discipline in various places, basically the generals in various places have more or less privately cultivated land and embezzled military land."

"Besides, the military officers tortured the soldiers, officers and soldiers fled, and lack of pay, and many other problems, are also the reasons for the increase in military expenditures."

"So, if you want to rectify the army, it can be said that it affects the whole body."

In the decades since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, it is inevitable that there are many problems in the army of border towns.

As the Minister of the Ministry of War, Yu Qian generally knows these things well, but it is very troublesome to solve them.

All the problems are basically connected together, and checking one will involve another.

And more importantly, as military officials, most of the generals of the frontier army are inextricably linked with the nobles in the court.

Although Yu Qian is the minister of the Ministry of War, he is not yet strong enough to be able to face head-to-head with the huge system ranging from nobles to local generals.

Therefore, even he can only focus on the big and let go of the small, focus on the overall situation, first stabilize the situation on the entire border, and then talk about the specific issues of the border army.

Looking at Yu Qian's worried look, Zhu Qiyu was calm. Looking into Yu Qian's eyes, Zhu Qiyu asked.

"So, because there are so many ills and they are connected layer by layer, are you afraid, sir?"

Yu Qian was taken aback for a moment, then shook his head firmly and said.

"Your Majesty clearly learned that if it is beneficial to the country, even if it is death, the minister will go there happily, without hesitation!"

(End of this chapter)