prosperous age

"Master Wei, have all the Mongolian households been registered? How come they only have such a small population? Could it be that Huang Taiji is hiding something?"

After receiving the report, Wei Guangde immediately summoned the cabinet ministers to discuss the matter, and then personally led the report into the Qianqing Palace.

Emperor Wanli was naturally quite surprised after reading the report.

Emperor Wanli certainly knew how much wealth the Ming Dynasty possessed.

Every year at the end of the year, the Ministry of Revenue would submit a special report stating the number of households, land area, output of grain, cotton, silk, hemp, tea, iron and other materials, as well as the tax revenue of the imperial court. From this, one could get a general understanding of the true situation of the Ming Empire.

While the data may not be entirely accurate, it is only what is concealed, and never exaggerated.

After all, if the figures are exaggerated, the tax revenue must be used to make up for it.

If a local official reports a large figure but fails to collect taxes, his performance evaluation will be ruined according to the performance appraisal law. This is essentially digging a hole for himself.

Therefore, the figures reported by the Ministry of Revenue each year were actually reduced, not exaggerated.

Moreover, because of some unpleasant rumors that had occurred during the land survey led by Zhang Juzheng, although the large-scale land survey across the country had ended, Wei Guangde petitioned the emperor to give the Censorate a separate task: to select one province each year for review.

The Ming Dynasty's two capitals and thirteen provinces were expected to require a separate review of the land area figures for each province by the Censorate over a period of more than ten years.

Therefore, the land area of ​​the Ming Dynasty after the land survey was not actually an accurate number, but was allowed to be adjusted within a certain range.

There were rumors that local officials deliberately exaggerated the number of acres of land in order to curry favor and demonstrate their abilities by collecting more taxes.

Such practices, like using large and small bows and large and small acres, continue to exploit the people. However, the profits from this exploitation do not go into the officials' own pockets, but are used as a means for their promotion.

The purpose of having the Censorate review each province one by one, and intending to make it a long-term task for the Censorate, was naturally to prevent some places from reverting to their old ways over time and quietly reducing the number of acreages to help nobles and gentry conceal their land holdings.

Although the Ministry of Revenue has not submitted its report this year, according to the report from the Ministry of Revenue last year, the population of the Ming Dynasty has exceeded 10 million. How many people does the Mongol Empire, which the Ming Dynasty regards as a major threat, have?

Previously, the imperial court did not know and could only speculate, with the highest estimate being over five million and the lowest being three million.

After all, the Mongols could easily assemble an army of over 100,000, and at their peak, they could mobilize 300,000 to 400,000.

Based on this military strength, the population of Mongolia can be predicted, and thus the population of the court can be obtained.

However, this time, taking advantage of the ice storm on the grasslands, the Ming Dynasty conducted its first assessment of the strength of the Mongolian grasslands, and the conclusions reached greatly shocked the cabinet and the emperor.

131 million people.

Mongolia has nearly a hundred tribes of varying sizes. The largest tribes have populations exceeding 200,000, while the smallest tribes have populations as few as a few hundred.

At this time, Mongolia was mainly divided into three major parts: Southern Mongolia, Northern Mongolia, and Western Mongolia, each of which was composed of several smaller parts.

The Chahar tribe and a branch of Altan Khan were the most powerful in southern Mongolia.

The Khalkha Mongols of Outer Mongolia were mainly divided into the Chechen Khanate, the Tushetu Khanate, the Zasagtu Khanate, and the Khotok Khanate, which was nominally subordinate to the Zasagtu Khanate but actually operated independently.

The Western Oirat Mongols (Oirat Mongols) were composed of the Dzungar, Dörbet, Torghut, Khoshut, and Khoshut tribes.

This registration shows that the population of Southern Mongolia exceeds 500,000, while the population of Northern and Western Mongolia is only over 700,000.

It's hard to imagine that Mongolia, with a population of just over a million, could mobilize three to four hundred thousand cavalry.

"Your Majesty, it can only be said that the court may have been deceived by the Mongols' bluff earlier."

Wei Guangde bowed his head and stated, "We only saw the two or three hundred thousand able-bodied men they mobilized, assuming that this was only a portion of their population, but we didn't know that this might be their entire population."

Normally, they would gather the able-bodied men together and organize them into households to swagger around on the grasslands, while shepherding was done by women, the elderly, and children.

As for Your Majesty's concern that Huang Taiji might be hiding something, I initially had some doubts as well, but upon closer reflection, I think it's unlikely.

In recent years, Mongolia has suffered from repeated snow disasters. If they want to continue to survive, they must receive assistance from the imperial court. Concealing the population is not advisable; it would be tantamount to courting their own destruction.

It should be noted that we only registered the tribes that migrated south to the Great Wall area. Some tribes may not have moved south and are still struggling in their traditional pastures.

Therefore, this population of over one million may not represent the entirety of Mongolia, nor was it intentionally concealed by Huang Taiji, but the difference shouldn't be too significant.

"They only have a million people, yet they are tying down a million border troops of the imperial court. Master Wei, do you have a way to solve this problem?"

Emperor Wanli no longer wanted to dwell on the number of Mongolians, but rather focused on the disproportionate annual investment the Ming Dynasty made in those numbers.

The imperial court spends so much on military expenditures every year, yet it's only to defend against a small country with a population of one million. It's shameful if word gets out.

"Unless war breaks out, and the war depletes the young and strong of the Mongols, making it take them ten years or even longer to recover their strength."

However, the imperial court's investment was too large, and the cost was unbearable.

Moreover, it is ultimately difficult to completely eliminate the hidden dangers.

After all, when the dynasty was established, the Taizu and Chengzu emperors had launched several northern expeditions, which had already greatly weakened the strength of the Mongols.

However, after decades of development, they were still able to rise again after Tumu Fortress and threaten the North.

If the goal is to eradicate the problem, appeasement may be the best approach. Continue to follow the previous cabinet resolutions, control trade and religious dissemination, and limit Mongolia's development by controlling the size and number of its population.

The best approach would be for the court to have more contact with the various tribes, allowing more tribes to shift their allegiance from the Khan to Your Majesty.

Wei Guangde's decision not to launch another northern expedition against the Mongols was truly a losing proposition.

The Mongols had long known that if the strength of the armies sent by the Central Plains dynasties into the grasslands was vastly different from that of the armies sent by the Central Plains dynasties, they would take the initiative to avoid battle and migrate north to avoid the brunt of the attack.

Due to supply limitations, the armies of the Central Plains dynasties were also unable to advance deeper into the region with them.

Moreover, blindly delving into the subject may not lead to victory, but rather to mistakes.

Lan Yu's great victory at Buyur Lake is something that the Ming Dynasty can hardly replicate now.

"In that case, let's follow the cabinet's previous agreement and provide them with the minimum necessary supplies so they can get through the winter."

Emperor Wanli finally made up his mind to continue to gradually weaken and erode the strength of the various Mongol tribes, ignoring the initial surge of excitement he felt when he first saw the numbers.

Yes, upon seeing the millions of Mongols swarming along the Great Wall, Emperor Wanli's immediate thought was to send troops to achieve a decisive victory and completely eliminate the Mongol threat to the Ming Dynasty.

However, while he dared to think that way, Wei Guangde would not dare to do it.

Even if we disregard the fact that the elite troops of the border army are all in Japan, or even if they are still in the border towns, it is not certain that the army can achieve complete success if it rushes out at this time of year.

In retrospect, the Mongols might abandon a large number of the elderly, women, and children, then bide their time for ten or twenty years before inevitably launching a comeback to exact a more devastating revenge on the northern border.

If a war were to break out, Zhang Juzheng and Zhu Di would likely have been working together to prepare for an attack on the Mongols, and would never have considered preparing supplies, helping the Mongols build temples, or recruiting monks. We all know the final outcome of Zhu Di's (Emperor Yongle's) several northern expeditions, which were quite large-scale.

If you can't kill them all, don't continue to deepen the feud.

"By the way, Master Wei, I heard that a foreign monk has recently arrived in Beijing?"

After finishing this important memorial, Emperor Wanli suddenly brought up Matteo Ricci.

Wei Guangde was not surprised. He figured the Embroidered Uniform Guard should have reported Matteo Ricci's situation to the palace yesterday, especially since Zhang Jing had already gone to see him.

"Yes, this person stayed in Haojing and Songjiang Prefecture for several years and kept applying to the government to spread Western religion in our Great Ming Dynasty."

The imperial court strictly prohibited cults such as the White Lotus Sect and Maitreya Buddhism, but did not restrict the spread of ordinary religions.

At this point, Wei Guangde glanced at the Wanli Emperor, who merely nodded slightly, and continued, "Western religions have spread in Indochina and Southeast Asia. According to intelligence reports, they are not cults, but they differ greatly from Confucianism."

I have met with him before and have repeatedly instructed him that he may preach, but he must abide by the laws of our Great Ming.

As for what happens next, have the Shuntian Prefecture and the Embroidered Uniform Guard keep a close eye on him. If it's just normal missionary work, let him do it, as long as he doesn't commit any crimes.

After Wei Guangde finished speaking, Emperor Wanli nodded, "The court does not oppose the spread of religion. If it can help the court appease the people, it should be encouraged."

Buddhism was accepted after the Tang and Song dynasties because the ideas it spread were very much in line with the rulers' requirements. It not only did not cause them trouble, but it could also help them solve some hidden dangers in society.

This must be attributed to the painful decision made by those eminent monks before, who revised Buddhist doctrines to adapt them to the broader environment of China.

Matteo Ricci's spread of Christianity will certainly face many difficulties at the beginning; it all depends on his ability to adapt.

If we could see this point sooner and revise the doctrines of Western religion, we might be able to quickly infiltrate the Ming Dynasty.

However, if the discovery comes too late and the integration into Eastern thought is delayed, progress will certainly be difficult.

Wei Guangde would not help them spread Western religion, but he would not restrict them either; everything would be left to nature.

"By the way, Your Majesty, Matteo Ricci sent me a copy of their religious doctrines, which I intend to present to Your Majesty for your perusal."

However, after reviewing it, I felt the content was inappropriate. I have already sent it to the Hanlin Academy, requesting the scholars to carefully study the doctrines of Western Christianity, annotate them, and then send it to the palace.”

Wei Guangde naturally wouldn't dare to keep what Matteo Ricci gave to the Wanli Emperor, especially since it was just a book.

Therefore, I took this opportunity to report to the Wanli Emperor.

I didn't keep the things Matteo Ricci gave you for myself, but I felt it wasn't appropriate to give them to you directly, so I sent them to the Hanlin Academy first.

Even if this news spreads, the entire court will not be dissatisfied with it; on the contrary, they will say that Grand Secretary Wei did the right thing.

Having gone through the Hanlin Academy and having annotated Western books, the officials were naturally more at ease.

In the eyes of Confucian scholars, what did it matter if the emperor studied Western learning? As long as he mastered the way of the sages, that was enough. They didn't need a learned emperor; they only needed a benevolent one.

Yes, the kind of leniency shown to them after they make a mistake, winning them over with virtue.

"Is that so? Then I am very much looking forward to seeing the doctrines of the Western Religion."

"Master Wei, please pass on a message to the Hanlin Academy for me, and tell them to release an interpretation of the book as soon as possible. I'm waiting to see it."

Emperor Wanli was at an age of curiosity and was full of longing for everything.

He was very eager to read the books of the Western religion, as they would certainly be different from those he had read before.

"Your Majesty, the court has long had books on Western learning, which are kept in the Siyiguan (Foreigners' Hall)."

Yesterday, Wei Guangde had already asked someone to inquire with the Ministry of Rites and obtained a list of translated books from the Siyiguan (Foreigners' Bureau).

It can only be said that translating foreign books was indeed very slow in this era. It has been two years now, and only a handful of books have been completed, which is even less than the number translated by Matteo Ricci.

Of course, this mainly involves the people in the Siyiguan (a government office for foreign dignitaries), most of whom were not very learned, making the translation of those scientific works extremely difficult.

Matteo Ricci, on the other hand, already possessed this knowledge; he simply needed to express it in Chinese characters.

At that time, he had students like Xu Guangqi around him who were curious about Western learning, so it was easy for him to find suitable words to express his thoughts, and the translation speed was naturally much faster than that of the Siyiguan (Foreigners' Bureau).

"If Your Majesty wishes to see them, I will have them copy the books translated by the Siyiguan and send them to you later."

"I also have a few copies, a gift from Matteo Ricci. I've been reading them these past few days and am finding them quite insightful."

Wei Guangde smiled and said again.

He hadn't read the books at the Siyiguan (Foreigners' Bureau). Last night and today, he had opened Euclid's Elements to read. Although he actually understood the content, it was just that he, as a Grand Secretary of the Cabinet, was translating it again and would revise it if he found any incorrect expressions.

He planned to extract some applicable passages from this book and add them to the school books compiled by the Ministry of Rites, so as to spread some simple knowledge throughout the Ming Dynasty.

"I actually have another idea, which is to have Matteo Ricci join the Four Barbarian Institute in addition to his missionary work, and help translate the Western books piled up there."

Wei Guangde continued.

He allowed Matteo Ricci to enter the Four Barbarians' Hall, where his status was naturally that of a "clerk" rather than an "official." Even if Matteo Ricci was allowed to participate in the Ming Dynasty's imperial examinations, he would not be able to achieve anything.

However, Wei Guangde thought it was acceptable to give him an official position and have him help translate Western books.

This was actually his consideration when he allowed Matteo Ricci to enter the country to preach, so that more people in the Ming Dynasty could come into contact with the Western knowledge system. He also planned to have the bookstore under his control publish books such as Euclid's Elements and the Laws of Measurement.

Making money is not important; for Wei Guangde at his current level, money is just a number.

He was known in private by officials of the Ming Dynasty as "Wei the Richest Man," and to be honest, he felt that the titles "Grand Secretary" and "Richest Man" were quite fitting.

However, if the Wanli Emperor permitted it, he could be granted an official title and appointed to the Four Barbarian Institute.

In Wei Guangde's view, it was not a bad thing to let knowledgeable foreigners like Matteo Ricci enter the Ministry of Rites. At the very least, they understood the ways of communication between the East and the West and could avoid a lot of misunderstandings.

"Letting him enter the Four Barbarians Pavilion is a good idea."

Emperor Wanli clearly understood the meaning behind Wei Guangde's words: he wanted to give him an official position, rather than starting him as a clerk.

The emperors of the Ming Dynasty, or rather most of them, were actually quite broad-minded, after all, they possessed wealth and power.

Furthermore, in its early years, the Ming Dynasty also accepted scholars from vassal states to participate in the imperial examinations and serve in the Ming court. (End of Chapter)