prosperous age

Wei Guangde's words, "It would be a pity if unclaimed land were occupied by others," deeply stung the Wanli Emperor's heart.

The young emperor, of course, wanted to be an accomplished ruler who could leave his mark on history.

As an emperor who inherited the throne, how could he leave his mark? Naturally, it would be by expanding the territory and establishing an everlasting legacy.

Besides, the area to the north is said to be truly vast.

Thousands of miles north of Mongolia lie what is known as a barren land, with an exceptionally cold climate that even the Mongols could not survive in.

Even if such a place were incorporated into the Ming Dynasty's territory, no one would dare to seize it.

Since that's the case, we should first incorporate it into the territory of the Ming Dynasty; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that we've expanded our territory by thousands of miles.

The key point is that this matter won't lead to war.

Contrary to what Master Wei said, the army's journey to the Eastern Continent might lead to a war with the Western Barbarians there.

“Master Wei, I have read ancient books, and they do indeed record that there are vast forests to the north of the Mongolian grasslands.”

But there also seemed to be some tribes there, though they were small and backward.

How can it be called unclaimed land?

Emperor Wanli frowned slightly as he spoke.

“If we make them Ming people, then it will naturally be the territory of my Great Ming.”

They should be organized into garrisons, and the imperial court can send them supplies periodically.

Wei Guangde said dismissively.

Of course, he still maintained a respectful demeanor.

Organizing them into garrisons was essentially a matter of appointing officials to local indigenous tribes and giving them some benefits.

This involves the Ming Dynasty's policy of bestowing titles upon border tribes, which many people in later generations felt was meaningless.

But in reality, it has no meaning whatsoever, yet it is still acknowledged.

The core of the Ming Dynasty's policy of bestowing titles upon leaders of ethnic minorities was "governing according to local customs" and "using barbarians to govern barbarians." This involved achieving indirect rule through methods such as bestowing hereditary local officials, establishing tributary garrisons, and promoting a tributary system.

In the southwest region, the Tusi (chieftain) system was implemented, establishing local official institutions such as the Xuanwei Si (Pacification Commissioner's Office), Xuanfu Si (Pacification Commissioner's Office), Anfu Si (Pacification Commissioner's Office), and Changguan Si (Chief Official's Office). These positions were held hereditarily by local ethnic minority leaders and were called "Tusi".

The Tusi (chieftain) enjoyed the power of "hereditary official position, hereditary land, and hereditary people," meaning that they inherited the right to govern their land, people, and administrative and military affairs, but they were required to fulfill obligations to the central government, such as paying tribute, conscripting troops, and guarding their territory.

At the same time, it improved the systems of inheritance, assessment, and taxation, forming a local political structure of "using barbarians to govern barbarians".

In the north, the system of tributary garrisons and the divide-and-rule policy were the means by which the Ming Dynasty effectively managed the local tribes.

In the Mongol and Jurchen regions, military commands and garrisons were established, and tribal leaders were appointed as governors and commanders, and imperial edicts were issued as proof of tribute.

At the same time, it supports weak tribes and suppresses powerful forces, implementing a strategy of "using barbarians to control barbarians".

As for the indigenous tribes in Siberia, Wei Guangde planned to follow the Ming Dynasty's approach to the Jurchens by setting up military garrisons to keep those tribes in check and balance each other.

Anyway, once the imperial edict is issued, they are instructed to send people to the capital to pay tribute regularly, and the court will provide them with material support accordingly.

Once the garrisons are established and communication is made, when the Russians launch their eastward expedition, we will fight them there and drive them back west of the Ural Mountains.

Wei Guangde was unaware that the Russians had crossed the Ural Mountains several years earlier and gone to war with the Khanate of Siberia.

In 1581, under the authorization of Tsar Ivan IV, the Stroganov family funded the Cossack leader Yermak to lead an army of about 840 men across the Ural Mountains for the first time and into the territory of the Khanate of Siberia.

In 1582, Yermak's army captured Kashlyk, the capital of the Khanate of Siberia, marking the formal entry of Tsarist Russian influence into Siberia.

This was in 1583 AD, when Tsarist Russia was gradually occupying the territory of the Siberian Khanate.

However, it must be noted that although it was called the Siberian Khanate, the area it actually ruled was less than one-third of the territory in Siberia.

There was also the vast Siberian region, which at this time consisted only of a few backward small tribes.

Wei Guangde's plan was to incorporate these small tribes into the Ming Dynasty through the establishment of military garrisons, thereby gaining ownership of the land.

The consciousness of Europeans at the same time was completely different.

What is unclaimed wasteland in the eyes of Westerners?

They believed that places not occupied by Westerners were "ownerless" wastelands, and as for the indigenous people who had lived there for generations, they did not even consider them human beings.

This is why the saying "Columbus discovered the New World" came about.

There are indigenous people in the New World.

According to the tradition of the Ming Dynasty, these natives would be incorporated into the Ming Dynasty through investiture, thus legally occupying this land.

The geographical conditions of Siberia also destined it to be a difficult journey for Russians.

The Khanate of Siberia occupied the West Siberian Plain, an area that was still barely habitable for humans.

Heading east, you will enter the Siberian Plateau region.

The climate here is harsh, making it difficult for humans to survive, and it is located to the north of Mongolia.

Therefore, the Mongols did not move north, because there was simply no way to survive there; only a very small number of primitive tribes existed there.

Continuing eastward, you reach Eastern Siberia, a mountainous region.

A small number of wild Jurchen tribes existed due to the mountainous terrain.

In fact, the Ming Dynasty also regarded the Inuit as a branch of the Wild Jurchen tribe.

"According to my plan, after Qi Jiguang restores the Nurgan Regional Military Commission, he will incorporate the people of the Dog Kingdom into his forces, turn them into garrisons, provide them with weapons and necessary supplies, and allow them to expand westward, subdue the local tribes, and bring them into the territory of our Great Ming."

Wei Guangde and the Wanli Emperor began discussing the expansion of the northern regions in the Qianqing Palace, leaving Shen Shixing, Zhang Hong, and others bewildered.

The Ministry of War had just announced plans to expand the Ming Dynasty's territory by 3,000 li in the eastern continent, thousands of li away, and now they were demanding nearly 10,000 li of land from the north.

Although it is a barren land, it is still a piece of land that is easy to conquer.

They actually knew that the area would not be smaller than the current territory of the Ming Dynasty.

"Guard Post"

Shen Shixing seriously considered Wei Guangde's proposal, which was actually the least costly way to achieve territorial expansion.

All it takes is some imperial edicts, official robes and seals to acquire ownership of that land.

Although Shen Shixing didn't know what the significance of such a remote and impoverished place was.

If the Ming Dynasty truly desired the timber resources there, it could simply send people to retrieve them; there was no need to insist on incorporating them into its territory.

However, seeing the gleam in Emperor Wanli's eyes, Shen Shixing wisely refrained from saying anything more.

As Wei Guangde said, regardless of whether that piece of land is useful now, there might be some treasure buried underneath.

It's better not to mine it now, but to leave it for future generations.

History will surely record that Emperor Wanli expanded the territory by thousands of miles, bringing the northern frontier completely into the land of China, allowing the ignorant people there to be blessed by the emperor and to learn the ways of the sages.

Zhang Ke only knew that Wei Guangde planned to restore the Nurgan Regional Military Commission, but he did not know that after conquering the Dog Kingdom to the north, he would also expand his territory to the west.

However, he also noticed the Wanli Emperor's gaze. Thinking about it, since it was all done by using the people of the dog country, it would only cost the Ming Dynasty some money and grain. There shouldn't be anyone rebelling against the rule of the Ming Dynasty, so he simply chose to acquiesce.

Just as Emperor Wanli and Wei Guangde were having a lively conversation in the Qianqing Palace, a young eunuch hurried into the hall and announced, "Your Majesty, Commander Liu of the Embroidered Uniform Guard is requesting an audience outside the hall."

"Hmm, what's he here for?"
"Let him in."

The Wanli Emperor casually waved his hand and said something.

However, perhaps only he in the main hall would treat this matter so casually.

It was visibly that Wei Guangde, Shen Shixing, Zhang Ke, and a group of eunuchs in the inner court all had their brows furrowed involuntarily.

When they parted ways earlier, Liu Shouyou hadn't mentioned having anything to report to the palace. Clearly, something urgent had happened during this trip back.

A moment later, Liu Shouyou, dressed in a flying fish robe, strode into the hall and knelt down to pay his respects to the Wanli Emperor.

"Minister Liu, rise. What business do you have with me?"

Emperor Wanli still didn't realize the problem and spoke calmly.

"Your Majesty, the Embroidered Uniform Guard has just received news from Luzon that the Western Barbarians in Manila have suddenly taken action, confining our Chinese citizens living there to their homes, which seems to indicate treacherous intentions."

Liu Shouyou didn't dare to delay and gave the answer directly.

"what?"

The Wanli Emperor abruptly stood up and said.

When Wei Guangde heard this, it was as if his brain had exploded.

It was still a memory from a previous life, and it seemed to mention the Manila massacre of Chinese people, but I didn't pay attention to what era it was back then.

However, judging from the timeline, it should be from the Ming and Qing dynasties.

Could it be that the Ming Dynasty's exploration of the Eastern Continent led to this massacre of Chinese people?

That's impossible; there's no such record in the History of Ming.

Liu Shouyou's documents were taken by Chen Ju, who reacted first, and delivered to the Wanli Emperor.

Although Wei Guangde and the others were anxious, they still had to wait in line until the emperor finished reading the document and passed it down before they could see its contents.

"Shan Dai, if the Western barbarians are targeting them, it may be too late to ease tensions."

Zhang Ke stood behind Wei Guangde and whispered.

Wei Guangde and Shen Shixing both nodded slightly in unison, indicating that there were indeed Ming Dynasty merchants in Manila.

If the Spanish were to actually strike these Ming merchants, the imperial court would absolutely not give up easily in order to maintain the current situation of open sea trade.

Emperor Wanli read the document several times before it was passed on to Wei Guangde.

As the Grand Secretary, he naturally made the decisions on major matters of the court.

Wei Guangde hurriedly opened the report and quickly browsed through it, feeling extremely nervous.

Fortunately, the report only stated that the Western barbarians had confined Ming merchants to inns and ports, and later expelled them.

However, the Chinese residents in Manila were all confined to their homes and not allowed to go out.

There were also soldiers guarding the area.

The local imperial guards, relying on disguise, managed to get out of the city with great difficulty.

"Chinese, ah, I remember now, they mostly call themselves descendants of the Song Dynasty, who migrated to Southeast Asia during the Song and Yuan Dynasties."

Wei Guangde was initially surprised by the wording in the document, but he quickly realized what it meant.

Not to mention now, even when Zheng He's fleet arrived there, the local Chinese, although they warmly welcomed the fleet, still referred to themselves as Song people, rather than saying that they were already Ming people.

The Yongle Emperor simply laughed it off at the time.

These descendants of Song dynasty people have actually integrated into the Southeast Asian countries.

The Southeast Asian countries already regarded the Ming Dynasty as the legitimate successor of China and voluntarily became its vassals, so naturally they would not punish it.

Ultimately, in the eyes of the Yongle Emperor, these Song people were already vassal states, and there was no need to capture them and force them to admit that they were Ming people.

However, not all of those they encountered were remnants of the Song dynasty; many of them were actually people who had fled to Southeast Asia in the early Ming dynasty due to the maritime ban.

The Yongle Emperor also treated this group of people with a policy of appeasement.

If a vassal state were to capture and send these people back to the Ming Dynasty, they would generally be punished with exile or other forms of punishment.

Those who committed crimes were executed.

If not, they are still considered as people of a vassal state and are not treated harshly.

"Master Wei, what did you say?"

Upon hearing Wei Guangde's words, Emperor Wanli immediately asked a question.

"Your Majesty, the Chinese mentioned in the document in Manila should be descendants of the Song and Yuan dynasties."

When the Song Dynasty was destroyed, some Chinese, not wanting to be enslaved by foreign tribes, chose to go to Southeast Asia.

After that, they settled here until our Great Ming Dynasty restored the Han Chinese orthodoxy.

During the Yongle era, Zheng He's fleet encountered these people when they sailed to Southeast Asia.

However, they have integrated into the local community and are unwilling to return to the Ming Dynasty, so they refer to themselves as remnants of the Song Dynasty.

Emperor Chengzu did not blame him for this, but regarded him as a person from a vassal state.

These Chinese people in Manila should be the same group of Luzon people.

Aside from being descendants of Han Chinese, they are no longer considered citizens of our Great Ming Dynasty.

Wei Guangde explained.

As Wei Guangde spoke, he handed the documents in his hand to Shen Shixing, the second-in-command.

However, although Shen Shixing received the document, he did not read it, but seemed to be deep in thought.

The Wanli Emperor, who had been somewhat angry on his throne, gradually calmed down after listening to Wei Guangde's words.

“If they are not enlightened people, then they are not my subjects.”

So if they stay in Manila now, isn't that even...

Emperor Wanli stopped abruptly after saying just that.

Spain did not submit a letter of submission or a congratulatory message to the Ming Dynasty, nor did it request any investiture from the Ming. It simply submitted a letter of submission according to the etiquette between Western countries, and therefore was not considered a vassal state of the Ming Dynasty.

If they were not vassals of the Ming Dynasty, then these Chinese people seemed to have no connection with the Ming Dynasty whatsoever.

"Master Wei, so what should our Great Ming do?"

After a moment's hesitation, the Wanli Emperor finally asked the question.

Wei Guangde was also very hesitant. Judging from the situation, the Spanish seemed to be planning to harm these people.

But these people seem to have no connection with the Ming Dynasty.

"Given the current relationship between the imperial court and the Western barbarians, these Chinese who remain in Manila without the travel permits or official documents of the Ming Dynasty are not considered citizens of our country."

Their lives and deaths seem to be entirely in the hands of the Western barbarians, and indeed have nothing to do with our Great Ming Dynasty.

Wei Guangde lowered his head, but finally had to say, "If something truly unbearable happens, as long as no one from our Great Ming Dynasty is harmed, it has nothing to do with our Great Ming Dynasty."

"Your Excellency, they are, after all, sons of the Han people, and our Great Ming Dynasty inherits the Han orthodoxy. How can you say that their lives and deaths are unrelated to our dynasty?"

Shen Shixing suddenly interrupted.

"But they are not my people after all, but, well, Filipinos."

Wei Guangde said helplessly.

"However, although it has nothing to do with the current dynasty, if they are willing to return, the court will accept them according to precedent."

Suddenly, Wei Guangde's tone hardened, and he said, "Ministry of War, order Deng Zilong to return immediately to mobilize troops." (End of Chapter)