I'm really not doing business

Chapter 1030 One general's success is built on the bones of ten thousand, preferably the bones of the enemy.

The Yao Guangqi Index is an index that reflects inflation.

This index comes from Yao Guangqi's observation of a scholar named Sun Shangli in the "Soul-Calling Case." He discovered that Sun refused to remove his long robe and bought expensive goods instead of affordable ones, ultimately starving himself to death. Yao Guangqi summarized the lessons learned from this experience.

There are two indices: affordable and expensive.

Among similar products, the affordable ones are consumed by local gentry and below, while the expensive ones are consumed by those above the local gentry. This reflects the rate of price increase and helps policymakers make correct decisions.

It is important to note that these two should not be confused.

Yao Guangqi once tried to assign weight coefficients to each component to obtain an index that reflects the rate of price growth, but he failed because no matter how weights were assigned, the index would be distorted.

Because the prices of expensive goods fluctuate greatly, extreme data can easily lead to data distortion, somewhat similar to an average. If the wealthy and the poor are averaged together, it will seem like the world is at peace.

The Yao Guangqi Index was an important tool in the hands of officials of the Ming Dynasty. It was not difficult to collect; one could obtain it by visiting places like Caishikou and Meishikou every month. If all else failed, one could simply ask around. It was really not as difficult as one might imagine.

Once a price fluctuates significantly, it indicates that something is happening, and conflicts are quietly escalating behind the scenes. If these issues are not nipped in the bud, they could very well escalate into a situation like the peasant uprisings in Ninghua, Ruijin, and Ningdu counties.

When a civil unrest occurs, local government officials, from the governor to the county clerk, will all be subjected to the iron fist of feudalism. His Majesty doesn't care about this or that; when a civil unrest occurs, everyone will be held responsible.

The sword of impending doom hung over the heads of the Ming court and local authorities; no one could afford to be complacent about the civil unrest.

The Yao Guangqi Index is the result of extensive research, and Wang Guoguang's inclusion on the list of meritorious figures of the Reform Movement is well-deserved.

"The delusion that there is no way to serve the people." Zhu Yijun had only read a little bit of the contents of "Deep Explanation" when he felt the weight of this sentence. In just a few words, he punctured the so-called way of being an official.

The way of being an official is not entirely about conforming to the world, enduring hardship for the sake of the country, and having no way to help the people. Such narratives are merely excuses for shirking responsibility.

Zhu Yijun plans to read this book little by little, just like his previous book "Turning Over," until he fully understands it.

Hou Yuzhao looked down at his feet. His Majesty was in Songjiang Prefecture, not Shuntian Prefecture.

His Majesty personally came to oversee the various issues that arose in Songjiang Prefecture during the reform process.

It seems that the behemoth of monopoly capital is unsolvable, but the governor and prefect of Songjiang are doing their best to solve it.

The Ming Dynasty never lacked loyal and capable officials; what it lacked was a stage for them to showcase their talents.

Hou Yu Zhao stopped there, not going into more detail, because continuing would inevitably touch upon a taboo subject: the widespread neglect of governance by the Ming emperors.

Hou Yuzhao has served in local government for so many years. Most officials are sitting on their laurels, and it's more accurate to say they are the seals of authority rather than people.

He doesn't want to take any responsibility, and he shifts all the blame to his subordinates. When his subordinates report anything, his first consideration is his own promotion, his second is his own money, and his third is whether he needs to take responsibility.

If these three considerations are not met, the subordinate's report will not be printed; if these three considerations are met, whatever the subordinate says is accepted, and the subordinate never wants to go and see for themselves.

Is it reasonable? Of course it is. Everyone looks out for themselves. But in Zhao’s view, Hou has been completely alienated by power. He is no longer a person, but an official seal.

But if you look up, you'll find that the Ming emperors, apart from the Taizu Emperor and the Chengzu Emperor, are just like these officials—a seal, not a living person.

Dao Ye can be considered half a Daoist, after all, in the first twenty years of his life, he was quite enterprising, and the Jiajing New Deal was in full swing. But in the end, he did not hold the knife of military power firmly enough, and he was in danger several times. Later, he also began to practice asceticism.

It is now the twenty-first year of the Wanli reign. For the past twenty-one years, Your Majesty has been a living, breathing human being. Hou Yu Zhao hopes that Your Majesty will always remain a human being, rather than indulging in the delusion that there is no way for the people to live.

If there's no road, then forge one.

Hou Yu Zhao was secretly criticizing His Majesty, while Zhu Yijun was also sizing up his ministers.

From the very beginning, Hou Yuzhao went against the grain, going to Daningwei to farm, refusing to associate with the corrupt Confucian scholars of the time. He served in Daning, Liaodong, and Zhejiang, and Hou Yuzhao's style of doing things was still to go against the grain.

There weren't many upright and capable officials in the Ming Dynasty, nor were there many honest and upright ministers. Old Zhao was one of them. He wasn't as honest as Xu Chengchu, but he was much tougher than most lowly people.

"Ye Xianggao wrote a letter mentioning the issue of Jilin Prefecture. Jilin is a vast area, at least the population and territory of a province. Jilin County is off the main path of development, while Changchun County is better," Hou Yuzhao said, referring to the issue Ye Xianggao had raised earlier.

The Ming Dynasty's expansion into Liaodong followed a clear pattern: the imperial highways.

The main road from Shanhaiguan to Liaoyang, then from Liaoyang to Changchun, and then north from Changchun is called the Chidao, also known as the Black Soil Road. Development always proceeded northward along fertile land, and Jilin County was a bit out of the way.

"Ye Xianggao has already taken care of this matter." Zhu Yijun and Hou Yuzhao discussed the issue of land reclamation in Liaodong in detail.

The main contradiction now is that the land has reached its limit for labor, but people are still flocking to Liaodong to migrate, requiring land reclamation and increased land for distribution.

Incremental allocation is simple, but existing stock allocation is extremely difficult. Even though the land system in Liaodong is completely different from that in the hinterland, and it is a collective ownership system of the State Farms Bureau, the redistribution of existing stock still causes a lot of trouble.

On one hand, there's no land to cultivate, and on the other hand, there's not enough land to cultivate—it's truly a bizarre situation.

Hou Yuzhao shook his head and said, "The court has overcomplicated this matter. Although the Grand Minister of Works came from Liaodong, Liaodong was not yet cultivated at that time. Your Majesty, Liaodong is very, very large, with only four or five million people. Even if twenty million people were thrown in, they could still be fed."

"The main problem in the reclamation of Liaodong was still the lack of productivity."

Hou Yuzhao and Ye Xianggao wrote several letters to learn about the current situation in Liaodong.

Zhang Xueyan considered the issue from the perspective of the imperial court, while Hou Yuzhao was different. He believed that the main problem in Liaodong was the lack of people, the lack of labor, and the lack of productivity.

"Oh?" Upon hearing this, Zhu Yijun had a detailed conversation with Hou Yuzhao.

Zhang Xueyan's understanding of the situation in Liaodong dates back nineteen years, so his knowledge was indeed limited, and his understanding of the main contradictions in the area was also limited. Hou Yuzhao, on the other hand, was completely different. Even though he had left Liaodong, his students and former officials were still reclaiming wasteland there.

Hou Yuzhao knew Liaodong very well, and he spoke eloquently, explaining his understanding.

Zhang Xueyan insisted on inviting Hou Yuzhao back, and this was the reason why: what Hou Yuzhao said impressed Zhu Yijun.

Hou Yuzhao was well aware that redistributing the existing resources in Liaodong was much simpler than in the hinterland.

Because Liaodong was based on collective production in various military camps, which was fundamentally different from the hinterland, collective production in military camps represented the redistribution of land reserves, and to a large extent depended on the decrees of the imperial court rather than the resistance of landlords.

There are no large-scale local gentry or gentry in Liaodong.

Landlords, local gentry, and other prominent figures were common in the heart of the Ming Dynasty, but were extremely rare in Liaodong because the external environment was simply too harsh.

The harsh weather, wild animals roaming everywhere, barbarian tribes that frequently raided, and countless puddles, hills, swamps, and poor roads—these adverse external conditions forced everyone in the camp to band together for warmth and to fight against these natural and man-made disasters.

This environment also encouraged the camps to accept newcomers. The camps cared more about survival than land ownership. Any able-bodied laborer who arrived in Liaodong would be a target of competition, rather than being regarded as an outsider and severely humiliated.

The atmosphere in Liaodong is completely different from that in the heartland of the Ming Dynasty; Liaodong's atmosphere is more like that of Luzon.

"Your Majesty, there is another problem to worry about in Liaodong. Families with accumulated wealth and prosperity will likely return to the interior to establish businesses rather than stay in Liaodong for long. It seems that the population is flowing in now, but in the long run, the population will flow out. Those who venture to the Northeast will return to the interior." Hou Yu Zhao said with concern.

Zhu Yijun carefully considered the situation and understood what Hou Yuzhao was worried about: the capital of the three northeastern provinces was Sanya.

It's too cold. Even Changchun is very cold. In Hou Yuzhao's view, it would be a good thing if local gentry and worthies could emerge in Liaodong, but it is unlikely that Liaodong will produce such gentry and worthies.

Anyone with a little savings ran away.

It was difficult for Liaodong to produce a large number of local gentry and elites. Liaodong needed a backbone force and a middle class to maintain local stability. After twenty years of thinking, Hou Yuzhao could only think of two words: craftsmen.

After talking with Hou Yuzhao, Zhu Yijun felt a sense of sudden enlightenment.

Hou Yuzhao was probably the person in the entire Ming Dynasty who understood the land system best. He reclaimed land outside the Great Wall and returned land to the people in Zhejiang, ensuring that the land return policy was not violated. He not only achieved orderly development but also redistributed existing land, making him the only candidate for Minister of Revenue.

No wonder Zhang Xueyan was so eager for him to return to Beijing.

Finding a capable person is really not easy.

"Your Majesty, news of victory has arrived from the southwest! Hailongtun has been captured! Yang Yinglong and his entire family have been captured alive and are being escorted to the capital!" A guard rushed in and presented a letter to the emperor.

Zhu Yijun checked the sealing wax, opened the mailbox, read the reports and several memorials inside, and revealed a bright, sunny smile.

He won again this time.

Some people in the court opposed sending troops, believing that it would be better to deal with the people from the remote areas, mainly because it would save money, effort and worry. Hailongtun is more than 100 zhang high, easy to defend and difficult to attack, and it is a fortress mountain city. Attacking this place would result in too many casualties. If the Han army in Sichuan had a change of heart, it would be like nurturing a bandit to enhance their own power, and there is a high possibility that it would turn into a messy war.

Especially since the war, which was planned to end in six months, dragged on for eight months, such sentiments rose again in the court.

However, the pro-war faction, led by the emperor, won again. Hailongtun was captured, and the battle did not turn into a mess.

Zeng Shengwu repeatedly told the emperor: The Han soldiers in Sichuan are trustworthy.

No matter how much he said, he couldn't stop the suspicions of the court officials. It would be better to fight a battle to see if that would confirm that the Sichuan Han soldiers were indeed trustworthy.

Zhu Yijun also fully understood why there had been a delay; it was all clearly stated in the report.

Liu Ting and Liang Menglong, having surrounded Yang Yinglong and his accomplices with only one man remaining, drove them to Hailongtun and annihilated them in one fell swoop.

The 28-route army marched and suppressed the Miao people. In eight months, they captured more than 11,000 Miao villages and recovered most of the bronze drums that Zhuge Liang had placed there. More than 3,000 bronze drums were piled up like mountains.

Liang Menglong made a new arrangement for these bronze drums. Instead of sending them directly to the imperial court, he placed them in the three prefectures of Guizhou, Dali, and Chongqing.

The reason for doing this is simple: if all the bronze drums were taken back, these chieftains would probably come up with new tokens. It would be better to leave the bronze drums in the southwest, where they would still be tokens, but under the direct control of the imperial court.

By granting official titles but not drums, the imperial court firmly controlled these symbols of power, thus eliminating any concern that these local chieftains, though scattered, might regroup and re-establish themselves.

In the future, the chieftains and leaders of these 11,000+ Miao villages will need to come to the Three Prefectures to seek appointments. Doing so will greatly accelerate the process of replacing local chieftains with centrally appointed officials.

One fish, three ways: eliminating the disloyal Yang clan of Bozhou, purging Yang clan's associates, and accelerating the conversion of native chieftains to centrally appointed officials—this was Liang Menglong's answer.

To win, we must not only win militarily, but also politically.

"Good, good! Old Zhao, take a look at this."

“Liang Menglong’s idea is excellent, let’s do as he says! Send a memorial to the Ministry of War to reward the soldiers according to the established system!” Zhu Yijun thought for a moment and said, “Give 120 million taels of silver from the palace to reward the soldiers who fought this battle.”

After this battle, the many chieftains in the southwest will be able to live in peace for at least twenty years. The Ming Dynasty's expansion into the southwest and development of Toungoo will be able to continue for another twenty years, and providing Yunnan with a sea outlet will no longer be an unrealistic fantasy.

Hou Yu Zhao wanted to correct His Majesty's form of address, but in the end he gave up. His Majesty had previously called him "Hou Ai Qing" (Hou, my dear minister). In his haste, he still called him "Old Zhao."

It's okay, he's used to it.

As for the military aspect, it was rather unremarkable.

Liu Ting said that the battle was fought very easily. The entire course of the war was that the artillery bombarded the infantry, and the infantry charged, and then the artillery bombarded them. The large-scale deployment of firearms completely changed the battlefield situation. The overwhelming victory of the Ming Dynasty's firearms was the key to this military victory.

Liang Menglong was responsible for political victory, while Liu Ting was responsible for military victory.

Liu Ting felt that the victory was really easy. Take the final battle to annihilate Hailongtun as an example. The artillery bombarded for seven days, and nearly 700,000 catties of gunpowder were used. The ground had to be turned upside down three times. After the artillery bombardment was over, Liu Ting used a full 10,000 Divine Fire Flying Crows to set the entire Hailongtun ablaze.

Gunpowder, once taken out, must be used, otherwise it will spoil. Delamination, moisture, gunpowder warehousing and storage, logistics, etc., are all quite troublesome, and the cost of bringing it back would be even higher.

The army brought 800,000 catties of gunpowder, but when they reached Hailongtun, they still had more than 700,000 left, so they simply used them all.

Now, Yang Yinglong is in deep trouble.

Before the vanguard could even don their heavy armor and enter, Yang Yinglong led his men to surrender. The Divine Fire Crows had set fire to the granary, leaving them with no choice but to surrender.

Yang Yinglong's soldiers were all armed with rattan armor. Rattan armor is impervious to most things, except fire. The moment the "Divine Fire Flying Crow" appeared, their morale collapsed. If he didn't surrender, his men would chop him down, using his head as a pledge of allegiance. Liu Ting found the battle rather dull; it was all just cannon fire…

Liu Ting was genuinely delighted, as it meant that the Ming army wouldn't have to sacrifice too many lives or suffer excessive casualties in attacking these mountain cities. This was incredibly good news for him, who had been fighting in the southwest for a long time and needed to conquer mountain cities.

The saying "a kind heart cannot command an army" does not mean that Liu Ting did not value the lives of his soldiers.

Soldiers are all children of parents, and also parents of children. The villagers entrusted their children to him, but due to the heavy casualties, he had no words to face these elders and fellow villagers.

It's fantastic that we can win with fewer deaths!
After reading through all the reports and memorials, Hou Yuzhao smiled. He was not a completely pure civil official; he had followed Li Chengliang all over the vast Liaodong region in his younger days.

At that time, the Ming Dynasty did not have so many powerful firearms, and every time it conquered a barbarian tribe, it suffered huge casualties.

Hou Yuzhao remembered that after each triumphant return, Li Chengliang would spend a long time in brothels, indulging in debauchery, just to cover up his sadness. Sadness is a weakness and should not appear in a commander-in-chief.

Therefore, Hou Yuzhao was different from other Liaodong governors; he never opposed Li Chengliang building the flower tower.

Hou Yuzhao had experienced this more than once. Yesterday, his still somewhat immature face was calling him "Great Marshal" repeatedly, and Li Chengliang even smacked him on the head and scolded him for being irresponsible. Today, the young soldier has become a bloody, mangled skeleton.

The death of comrades fighting side-by-side is equally tormenting for the survivors.

One general's success is built on the bones of ten thousand soldiers; these bones should ideally belong to the enemy.

"Go and deliver the good news to the Master and Commander Qi!" Zhu Yijun shared one share of joy with Wen Zhang, Wu Qi, Hou Yu, and Zhao, making it four shares of joy. After he published it in the official gazette, it would be millions of shares of joy.

Once the war in the southwest enters a protracted and messy phase, it will no longer be just a problem for the southwest, but for the entire Ming Dynasty. The supply of provisions and supplies will be transported across half the country, which is not just an empty phrase. Therefore, mobilizing a large amount of manpower and resources to Sichuan will be relevant to everyone in the heartland.

Zhu Yijun had already discussed this issue clearly with Zhang Juzheng, and it was written into the discussion on public and private matters.

That's how Consort Ran came to be. Zhu Yijun mentioned it briefly, and Zhang Juzheng found him a Consort Ran.

The good news reached the General and the Prime Minister, who were fishing. There was a fishpond next to the palace, a place the General and the Prime Minister would always go to in their spare time.

"Of course." After reading the report, Qi Jiguang even felt that Liu Ting had done a very good job, as he himself had been beaten to a similar degree in the past.

“It makes perfect sense.” After reading the report, Zhang Juzheng put it down and picked up a novel to read. He no longer hid his reading from people; he just read it, and apart from His Majesty who might say a few words, no one dared to say anything.

And His Majesty also reads it!

The good news reached the capital and was then disseminated throughout the country via the official gazette.

Amidst the joyous atmosphere, Zhu Yijun and the local officials of Songjiang Prefecture had a disagreement regarding the Emperor's birthday celebration in August.

The last time Zhu Yijun celebrated the Emperor's birthday in Songjiang Prefecture, the prefecture spent a whole month preparing for it. After he returned to the capital, he issued an edict forbidding extravagant celebrations and advocating for simplification and restraint in response to the celestial changes.

However, the people of Songjiang Prefecture did not listen to the emperor at all. They started preparing in May and insisted on holding a grand event. A month was indeed a bit long, and half a month would have been just right.

Zhu Yijun called Li Le and Wang Qian over and gave them a good scolding. Li Le and Wang Qian appeared obsequious on the surface, but secretly they were still making tense preparations.

Wang Qian was to take up his post in Luzon on the third day of the fourth lunar month, and he insisted on getting this matter settled before leaving.

After careful questioning, Zhu Yijun finally understood why Li Le and Wang Qian were willing to defy the emperor's wishes to hold the Emperor's birthday celebration.

Because it makes money.

Songjiang Prefecture is different from Shuntian Prefecture. The biggest difference is that Songjiang Prefecture is extremely wealthy. Songjiang Prefecture has a highly developed commodity economy, but there are really not many opportunities to find a reason to hold a grand celebration and promote consumption. The Emperor's birthday festival is obviously an excellent reason.

Both the capital and Songjiang Prefecture were commodity economies, but the capital had a supply shortage, which led to high prices. One shi (a unit of dry measure) of rice cost five qian (a unit of weight) of silver in the capital, while it only cost three qian of silver in Songjiang Prefecture. If imported grain was consumed, the price could be even lower.

Of course, if you really want to buy expensive items, there are rice options that cost half a tael of silver, even if it's just a pound.

The supply in Songjiang Prefecture generally exceeds the demand, so finding a pretext to hold a grand celebration to boost consumption has become a necessity for Songjiang Prefecture.

Moreover, this also involves the issue of loyalty. Your Majesty's life in Songjiang Prefecture cannot be worse than it was in Shuntian Prefecture or Yingtian Prefecture. What the capital has, Songjiang Prefecture should also have. What the capital cannot do, Songjiang Prefecture should do well. In this way, it is perfectly reasonable for Your Majesty to stay in Songjiang Prefecture.

Now that there is a highway, why should Shuntian Prefecture be considered the capital?

In the end, the emperor could not persuade his ministers otherwise and agreed that it could be done, even if it took half a month, but it could not be done this year because of the leap month of August.

According to Li Le, they actually want to celebrate the Emperor's birthday again during the leap month of August. This is simply outrageous!

"Zongxin, once you return to Luzon, remember to prioritize safety. If anything changes, return by boat, and leave the rest to me," Zhu Yijun instructed his son-in-law and the princess.

Yin Zongxin's return to Luzon this time was somewhat dangerous, because he needed to reorganize and rotate the ten battalions. The adjutants and junior officers of the ten battalions in Luzon were to return to the Ming Dynasty to study and then be assigned to other places, such as Edo Castle, Nagasaki, Osaka Bay, etc.

If the commanders of these ten battalions refuse to relinquish power, Yin Zongxin will be considered a traitor, and that would be a huge problem.

"Your Majesty, I don't think anything will happen. We are all people of the Ming Dynasty." Yin Zongxin felt something was strange; the court was being a bit too cautious.

General Xu Zhen, who subdued the waves, and General Wang Hu, who pacified the seas, were both from Guangzhou, not Luzon.

They didn't identify much with Luzon, and being transferred back to the heart of the Ming Dynasty from the Governor-General's Office was a great honor, so why would they resist?

Back then, the Ming Dynasty was indeed unable to properly settle the foreign soldiers and could only send them to Luzon to risk their lives. But this was not out of hatred, but out of gratitude.

The expedition was supported by the Ming Dynasty court. Although the court's resources were limited at the time and it provided little support, such as a few Pingyi guns, the Qilin was not fake!
Yin Zongxin believed that Xu Zhen and Wang Hu should think that they were sent to Luzon by His Majesty from Guangzhou, and that Luzon was a governor-general's office rather than a province, only because the emperor's influence was insufficient.

The Luzon Navy was always part of the Nanyang Navy, rather than an independent military organization separate from the Ming Dynasty.

It is the imperial court's responsibility to actively adjust policies, ease conflicts, and accelerate integration.

Moreover, most Han Chinese in Luzon believe that the Emperor Guoxing was indeed a member of the Zhu family, a widely circulated legend that even Yin Zongxin believed.

The story may be fictional, but the centripetal force is real.

However, Yin Zongxin was well aware of the principle that people's feelings fade with time. He could still tell stories now, but as time went on, the stories would become unsustainable, and the centrifugal force would grow stronger.

Yin Zongxin believes that this overall adjustment of the policy towards Luzon is perfectly fine and is an inevitable process of the king's rule.

"Zongxin, please keep an eye on Wang Qian for me. I have a very good personal relationship with him." Zhu Yijun glanced at Wang Qian and instructed Yin Zongxin that even if Wang Qian really had the idea of ​​ceding territory for autonomy, the governor must not be killed, otherwise it would be a complete breakdown in relations and the only option would be to fight each other.

He was talking about personal matters, but it was also a matter of state; a true ruler is selfless.

"Your subject understands," Yin Zongxin replied.

Yin Zongxin, Zhu Xuanchang, Wang Qian, and other officials bid farewell to His Majesty at Guanchao Pavilion, then went up the pier and boarded the Qilin.

Zhu Yijun stood at the Guanchao Pavilion for a long, long time, until the figure of the Qilin disappeared into the vast sea.

The fleet departed from Songjiang Prefecture on the third day of the fourth lunar month and arrived at Manila Port on the eighteenth day of the fourth lunar month. General Xu Zhen, who had subdued the waves, and General Wang Hu, who was in charge of suppressing the sea, welcomed Yin Zongxin back at the port of Manila. From this day forward, Yin Zongxin was known as Guoxing Zongxin, and was also the Marquis of Sishui and the Governor-General of Luzon.

Upon hearing of Wang Qian's arrival as the governor of Luzon, Xu Zhen and Wang Hu exchanged a worried glance.

To welcome Yin Zongxin back, Xu Zhen, Wang Hu, and the other ten tigers of Luzon organized a welcoming banquet to celebrate his return.

At the banquet, Wang Qian toasted and drank, showing no trace of the manners of a scholar-official.

Wang Qian put down his wine glass, looked around at the Ten Tigers, and saw that Yin Zongxin was optimistic; the situation was extremely troublesome.

At least the Ten Tigers were unwilling to leave Luzon, and this likely represented the attitude of the Ten Camps. Of course, this did not mean that the Ten Tigers were determined to fight the Ming Dynasty.

The possibility of violence spiraling out of control exists, and there is at least a 30% chance, which can be seen from the attitude of the Ten Tigers towards the governor.

It all depends on Wang Qian's ability to handle things; the imperial court has given him everything it can.

Wang Qian remained calm and continued to toast and drink. At this welcoming banquet, Wang Qian didn't drink much, but he did manage to get a good feel for the attitudes of the Ten Tigers.

The worst thing you can do is to be prejudiced and simply categorize people into a certain camp, saying that one side is loyal and the other is disloyal. People are extremely fickle, and they can't even empathize with their past selves.

That's labeling, not dividing people into factions.

Finding out who the enemy and who the friend is is the first principle of the class struggle volume.

Wang Qian's probing was mainly to test their views on the court, their demands, what they wanted, and what they didn't want.

He put down his glass, smiled, and realized that the key was to find the key issue, and he had found that key point.

The key is Yin Zongxin.

While the ten tigers each had their own ideas, they lacked a leader.

If Yin Zongxin is persuaded, the Ten Tigers will truly become man-eating tigers. If Yin Zongxin is not persuaded, the Ten Tigers will be leaderless and disorganized. There are simply too many methods to use. Wang Qian rolled his eyes and came up with nine methods.

Wang Qian is adept at sowing discord, stirring up trouble, flattering, sabotaging, slinging mud, exploiting weaknesses, labeling, and undermining others.

In a battle of wits, ten tigers could not defeat one Wang Qian, but in a battle of brute force, ten tigers could kill a thousand Wang Qians.

The most crucial factor in preventing the conflict from escalating to the point of full-blown confrontation is ensuring that Yin Zongxin's attitude remains unchanged under all circumstances.

Having found the crux of the problem, they had found the key entry point. After the welcoming banquet, Wang Qian asked Yin Zongxin to stay behind for a private talk.

"The governor must have noticed that these gentlemen don't really want to move." Wang Qian poured Yin Zongxin a cup of tea. The son-in-law and the Marquis of Sishui were both military officers of the highest rank, and their official ranks were above Wang Qian's.

"Yes, I didn't expect it to be like this at all." Yin Zongxin's brows furrowed.

When did the change begin?

He actually thought the ten tigers would be grateful, but to his surprise, they were quite wary of the governor.

Wang Qian's words were a test, a probe to gauge Yin Zongxin's attitude.

Luzon cannot exist independently of the Ming Dynasty in the short term. Yin Zongxin must return to the capital to meet the emperor and receive the position of Governor-General of Luzon in order to maintain the continuity of the Luzon Governor-General's Office.

Wang Qian probed whether Yin Zongxin was biding his time, deliberately acting subserviently, and only making plans after receiving the seal of office as Governor-General of Luzon.

But Wang Qian discovered that Yin Zongxin wasn't faking it; he seemed not to be very familiar with Shi Hu. This "not very familiar" meant that Yin Zongxin and Shi Hu weren't entirely on the same page.

But why is this so?
In a flash, Wang Qian remembered the arrangement made by Lord Guoxing.

Yin Zongxin was stationed at Chijunshan Port in the Yuanxu Islands for a long time, ostensibly to allow him to make some military achievements there, but that was not entirely the case.

Because Yin Zongxin was stationed abroad for a long time and lived with the princess, his thoughts and concerns were closer to the imperial court than to the Luzon Governor's Office. Moreover, due to Yin Zhengmao's deliberate arrangement, Yin Zongxin and the Ten Tigers did not establish a blood bond.

From the time Yin Zongxin arrived at the Red Army Mountain Port garrison, Yin Zhengmao had already been making arrangements for his own funeral, or even earlier.

“It’s alright if they refuse. Let’s take it slow. People will inevitably become attached to a place after staying there for a long time. Don’t rush them or threaten them. Talk to them one by one and ask for their specific thoughts.” Wang Qian instructed Yin Zongxin not to rush. His Majesty had given them a full year.

Wang Qian felt somewhat guilty. He was disciplining Yin Zongxin by instilling three psychological suggestions in him: "We are one of our own," "Our goal is to complete His Majesty's mission," and "This is the right thing to do." He then carried out his activities around these suggestions.

People can indeed be disciplined, but Wang Qian didn't think Luzon would have a good ending after breaking away from the Ming Dynasty.

(End of this chapter)