The sun never sets in America

Chapter 192 Daoguang’s Dream

The capital of the Qing Empire...

The weather in Beijing in February has not completely warmed up yet, and it still carries the cold wind left over from winter.

The cold wind whistled, making people feel chilly. Pedestrians on the street couldn't help but pull up their tight clothes to prevent the cold wind from pouring in, especially those from poor families. After all, if they were infected with the wind cold, it would not be a good thing for them. For wealthy families, this is definitely not a good thing.

Of course, it’s not like no one is walking down the street without a care.

For example, those Eight Banners disciples wearing mink cotton clothes and jade hats were still walking struttingly on the street, all of them holding their heads high and eager to tell everyone.

Who are they? They are the nobles of the Eight Banners. They are the uncles who have been enjoying the benefits of the entire Qing Empire since they entered the customs.

Not to mention the monthly money, let's just say that every year during the New Year and festivals, they can get rewards, including beef, mutton, and rice. Even when these are not available, they will be converted into silver and distributed to them.

Throughout the past dynasties, I am afraid that only the princes of the Ming Dynasty can compare with them.

"Have you heard that the emperor is going to ban the sea again..."

"If you ask me, it should have been completely banned long ago. Those American Han bandits are tempting my Qing people to go to sea and become bandits. If we can't protect America, there will be another Zheng Chenggong!!" (The Qing Dynasty called the Han Dynasty Han bandits. As for what? It is America. Except for those high-ranking ministers and Emperor Daoguang, few people know about it. The people even regard America as the same island as Zhuyazhou)

"Who says it's not the case? If you and I were in power, our Qing Dynasty would definitely not end up like we did today!!"

"Extremely, extremely!!"

"Then Fifth Master, how are your crickets? I heard that they are the best crickets in the entire Forty-Nine City. Only Fifth Master can raise such crickets..."

"Thank you, Fourth Master Chang. I only have this little ability. If I am not allowed to go to the battlefield to fight, but if we men are asked to make suggestions and make decisions for the emperor, then we men will all be little Zhuge!!" The fifth master said The few people in the teahouse compare themselves to Zhuge Zhuge, which shows his arrogance.

"Ha ha……"

In a teahouse in the alley of the capital, several bannermen dressed in silk and satin, carrying cages and fighting birds, were talking about the hottest events in the capital in the past two days, complimenting each other, and talking about state affairs that would make them look good. .

That was Emperor Daoguang's renewed maritime ban. In fact, after the rise of the Han Dynasty, the Qing Dynasty had always taken strict precautions.

In the fourth year of Longwu's reign, the so-called sea ban was promulgated, prohibiting the people of China from going to the sea to go to Han.

However, China's maritime territory is vast, thousands of miles long, and full of loopholes. The so-called maritime ban is nothing but a joke.

It even makes people feel ridiculous! !
  Some officials from the Han Immigration Department ridiculed the Qing Dynasty’s so-called immigration ban, which was nothing more than baskets of sand, used as fashion, but leaked at the time...

And don’t the officials of the Qing Dynasty really know this? They are all veteran officials.

He is well aware of what is currently happening in the Qing Dynasty and his own shortcomings.

But as the old saying goes, what can you do if you know it? It’s not business as usual.

And those officials who guard the coastal areas turn a blind eye to so-called immigrants.

After all, many immigration ships now fly foreign flags.

This foreigner is not easy to mess with! !
  Although seven years have passed since the First Opium War, it was no less than a heavy blow to the Qing Dynasty, a former great country.

From what Daoguang said, there was a dry road between England and the Qing Dynasty, and then to the British ships marching into Jiangnan.

Everything is like a waking nightmare.

Countless people with lofty ideals shouted:

"Why did the Qing Dynasty become like this!!"

Why can't even the Western barbarians defeat them? During the reign of Emperor Qianlong, didn't the British country come to pay tribute? ?

How come we, the Qing Dynasty, ended up like this in less than a month?

Lose territory and pay compensation, lose your division and lose your land! !

Although it is only a small island and the compensation is not too much, is this a matter of compensation and the small island? ?

This is a slap in the face of the monarchs and ministers of our Qing Dynasty. Since Lord Shunzhi entered the country, our Qing Dynasty has never experienced such a shame and humiliation! !

And if the Yingyi only want the money of the Qing Dynasty, then the newly emerged Han invaders want the life of the Qing Dynasty! !

Although this group of Han invaders are thousands of miles away in America, these people immigrated from China, and they are all young and strong. Over time, the population of this group of Han invaders has become more and more abundant. Who knows that they have no intention of competing in the Central Plains? ?

You must know that those people are Han people, and it is better to defend against Han than against foreigners.

From Cixi's desire to be with friendly countries and not with domestic slaves, we can see what kind of piss we have in the Qing Dynasty.

And this is also the first major event after the beginning of the twenty-eighth year of Daoguang, and this matter is how to prevent Han immigrants in America.

It's just empty slogans without reality. The court has been writing ink for more than a month, but nothing practical has been produced.

After all, if there is a complete sea ban, let alone the economic benefits lost, let’s talk about the ten-thousand-mile sea ban in China. How many officials, how many soldiers, and how much food and grass will be needed.

The Qing Dynasty only had so much tax money every year, and it still had to support hundreds of thousands of hard-core crops every year.

There are expenses in the palace. Although Emperor Daoguang was considered frugal among the emperors of the Qing Dynasty, it was just like the egg joke of ten taels of silver.

The so-called frugality is only compared to the old man Shiquan. The annual expenses in this palace are actually not much less.

After all, there are thousands of people in the palace, these people eat and drink, and those father-in-laws need to be greedy. Your emperor says to be frugal, and the people below you must also work hard, otherwise you, the emperor, say that you want to cut this, abolish this, What else do we earn?

You really think I cut off my life just to serve you, a bastard, and not just for money! !

Because of this, Liu Peng reduced the number of people in the palace from the beginning, eliminated the eunuch system, used female officials, and would be released from the palace when they reached old age, not giving the opportunity to form cliques for personal gain.

In addition, it is necessary to set up a budget system and calculate clearly how much money is spent in a year. No matter how many rags or brooms are required every year, Liu Peng must see the accounts, otherwise he must conduct a thorough investigation.

Because of this, the people in the palace did not dare to deceive the king.

Liu Peng was the largest accountant in the Han Dynasty. Among Liu Peng's many titles in later generations, the account-settling emperor was definitely the most eye-catching title.

But this is not the case in my country, the Qing Dynasty. If you look it up, you might find someone stabbing you eight times in the back or committing suicide out of fear of guilt.

In a word, in our Qing Dynasty, auditing accounts was absolutely impossible! !

…………

Forbidden City, Xinuang Pavilion...

"Humph, I'm short of money again. I am a wealthy Qing Dynasty with thousands of miles of land, and Emperor Qianlong even visited the south of the Yangtze River seven times. How come I am short of money everywhere??"

Emperor Daoguang looked at the folded book on the household page in his hand. It was filled with a lot of words, but in total, there was only one sentence: lack of money! !

"Your Majesty, our Qing Dynasty has a heavy number of redundant personnel... it will not happen in a day." Mu Zhang'a said to Emperor Daoguang, clasping his fists and leaning over.

"The focus of finance and taxation is to reduce expenditure and increase revenue..." Mu Zhang'a talked about the so-called financial method and talked eloquently to Emperor Daoguang.

"The finance and taxation of our Qing Dynasty was reformed once during the Yongzheng period. Even though we divided the households into acres, it is already unsustainable to this day!!" Mu Zhang'a told Daoguang about the reforms during the Yongzheng period and the current situation. "In today's Qing Dynasty, most of the finances and taxes come from the southeast, and most of the wealth in the southeast comes from the sea, so..." Mu Zhang'a couldn't go on at the end. When Emperor Daoguang heard this, his eyes suddenly trembled, and then a gloomy look appeared on his face.

Doesn't he know what Mu Zhang'a just said means, it's about Yongzheng, it's about finance and taxation, it's about the southeast, and finally it's about the sea.

It's better to persuade him not to ban the sea, otherwise the Qing Dynasty's finances will really not be able to support it.

"Do you know about the Han invaders??" Emperor Daoguang sat on a chair and asked Mu Zhang'a with a complex expression.

"The Han invaders are in the country of America. How can a slave not know about them?" Mu Zhang'a claimed to be a slave, which shows his identity.

Mu Zhang'a was a rare talent among the Eight Banners nobles at this time. The first Opium War was resolved with his signature. This was the basis for Emperor Daoguang's trust in him.

"You know the Han invaders, but do you know that the Han invaders are a threat to our dynasty?" Emperor Daoguang looked at Mu Zhang'a and continued to question.

"I know this, but the Han invaders are thousands of miles away from our country, facing each other across the ocean. They seem to be a threat to our country, but in fact they are a limited threat..."

Although Mu Zhang'a knew that the Han Dynasty might pose a threat to the Qing Dynasty, he could only say something nice to Emperor Daoguang at this moment to prevent Emperor Daoguang from taking advantage of the situation and really imposing a sea ban, which would cause chaos in the southeast. Then it will be a really big deal! !
  "Aren't the British barbarians thousands of miles away from our dynasty? Seven years ago, there were still warships entering the Yangtze River, pointing directly at Jinling, and treating our Qing Dynasty as nothing..." When he said this, Emperor Daoguang even squeezed out a few tears. .

In the original history of time and space, when the First Opium War broke out, Emperor Daoguang even went to the ancestral memorial tablet to kneel down and cry, saying something that was insulting to his ancestors and that he had no words to meet the late emperor.

It can be seen that Daoguang was deeply ashamed of the Opium War, but at this time the Qing Dynasty was like a patient who had been seriously ill for a long time and had to take strong medicine. However, strong medicine is easy to take, but the consequences are difficult to control.

Especially for those with vested interests, unchanged is the best thing! !
  If things have changed, then everyone has to show that the ancestral laws remain unchanged so that Emperor Daoguang can see what their power is! !

"Today, Han bandits are rampant and are tying up our Qing people. This has become a climate in the wild America. If we don't control it, in the future, Han bandits will imitate the British and barbarians and send naval troops to invade our Qing sea territory. Who can stop them?"

"Who can control it??"

Emperor Daoguang asked two questions in a row, leaving Mu Zhang'a speechless.

To be honest, Mu Zhang'a knew that what Emperor Daoguang said was entirely true, but it was precisely this truth that was the most difficult to achieve.

After all, the finance of the Qing Dynasty at this moment, as he just said, seeks more from the southeast, and the southeast seeks more from the sea.

If the maritime ban is really implemented, all the financial and taxation will be on the heads of the Jiangnan gentry. By then, I am afraid there will be no Han bandits. It would be strange if Jiangnan did not produce Li Zicheng.

It is precisely because of this that Mu Zhang'a and other officials who knew the truth hoped to persuade Emperor Daoguang not to impose a sea ban.

In a word, it's OK to engage Han invaders, but it's not OK to cut off the big guy's way of making money! !
  "Don't I know the harm that the maritime ban has done to our Qing Dynasty's finances??" Emperor Daoguang said helplessly, Mu Zhang'a, "But our Qing Dynasty is at the moment of crisis. Do you know Japan??" Emperor Daoguang asked Mu Zhang'a. continued to ask.

"This is a small country in the East China Sea, and I know a little about it..." Mu Zhang'a lowered his attitude and replied to Emperor Daoguang.

"Although Japan is a small country in the East China Sea, it is not far from the Qing Dynasty. During the Wanli period of the former Ming Dynasty, it was possible to send hundreds of thousands of troops into Korea. Although it was blocked by the generals of the Ming Dynasty, we can also know how far Japan is from China... "Emperor Daoguang talked about the geographical relationship between Japan and the Qing Dynasty.

After hearing this, Mu Zhang'a's eyes turned slightly, as if he understood what Emperor Daoguang was going to say next.

"A few days ago, I learned from Western missionaries that Japan and Han have a close relationship. They are not masters and servants, but more like vassals. They are also closely related to Korea. If Han passed through Japan, passed through Korea, and reached Liaodong... Then our Qing Dynasty is in danger of losing the foundation of our ancestors. If we lose it, we may be in danger of losing our eggs..." Emperor Daoguang told Mu Zhang'a everything he had learned from Western missionaries about the relationship between Han and the Far Eastern countries.

The implication is that the Han invaders cannot be dealt with. If they are not dealt with, if the Han invaders have the ambition to take over the Central Plains, the Qing Dynasty will probably be over! !

At that time, everyone will not have a good life, their Aixinjueluo empire is gone, and the prosperity and wealth of Mu Zhang'a and other ministers may not be preserved for future generations.

And Mu Zhang'a also understood what Emperor Daoguang meant, but as he just said, Han bandits can be dealt with, but the sea ban is really not possible.

"Your Majesty, our Qing Dynasty has signed a trade treaty with the British and foreigners. For this reason alone, our Qing Dynasty's sea ban cannot be successful." The treaty signed by Mu Zhangana and the British reminded Daoguang that a complete sea ban is simply not in line with reality.

"But although our Qing Dynasty cannot ban the sea, we can govern the people..." Mu Zhang'a glanced at the ugly-looking Emperor Daoguang and continued quickly.

"How to govern the people?" Emperor Daoguang asked anxiously after hearing this.

"The country people going to sea is nothing more than a profit. The Han invaders lured them with the benefits of the land, so the old people went there..." Mu Zhang'a answered to Emperor Daoguang about the truth about the people going to sea.

"If the Qing Dynasty also gives land to the people, the people will not go to the sea, and the danger of the Han invaders will be solved..."

Mu Zhang'a looked at Emperor Daoguang's confused eyes and said.

"Our Qing Dynasty has a large population, and most of the land is owned by gentry and officials. How can there be land distributed to the common people??" Emperor Daoguang asked Mu Zhang'a with some doubts. Emperor Daoguang was very aware of the land situation among the people in the Qing Dynasty during this period. , so he considered the strategy of dividing the land from the beginning, but quickly discarded it.

"Did the Emperor forget that outside the customs..."

Mu Zhang'a mustered up the courage to reply to Emperor Daoguang. After finishing speaking, he immediately shut up. He knew what the consequences would be if he said this.

Sure enough, when he heard that the people inside the pass were going to be let out, Emperor Daoguang's expression immediately changed, as if someone owed him millions of taels of silver.

"Do you know where the land outside the pass is? It is the ancestral land of Longxing of the Qing Dynasty. How can we allow people from within the pass to enter..." Emperor Daoguang said to Mu Zhang'a in a heavy tone, "If we allow people from within the pass to enter outside the pass, In less than ten years, we will no longer have the Qing Dynasty outside the Pass..." What Emperor Daoguang said was very clear. There were so few bannermen outside the Pass, and they were no match for the Han people inside the Pass.

Once it is let out, it will be difficult to close the door.

"I know this, but outside the customs, we are now facing a critical moment of life and death..."

Mu Zhanga raised his head, looked at Emperor Daoguang and said.

"Today's Rakshasa country in the north is called Tsarist Russia by Westerners. It established its foothold in the north during the Kangxi period. In recent years, it has frequently invaded and occupied the land outside our Great Clearance. What does it rely on? It's not that we have no one in the Great Clearance. If our Great Clearance There are people outside, how can the Russians dare to be so presumptuous... treating our Qing Dynasty as if it were nothing!!" Mu Zhanga sighed about the affairs of Tsarist Russia in the north, and reminded Emperor Daoguang that it was no longer safe outside the customs at this moment.

"Today, our Qing Dynasty is humiliated by the British barbarians in the south, people in the country are fleeing to the Han Dynasty in America, and Tsarist Russian barbarians are invading the territory in the north. We sincerely fear three dangers..." Mu Zhang'a told Emperor Daoguang about the current affairs of the Qing Dynasty. Threats faced.

"Three dangers, although the threat from Han invaders is not great, it is the most widespread threat, followed by Tsarist Russia in the north, and the last is the British barbarians in the south..." Mu Zhang'a ranked these three threats, and Han Dynasty was at the first place. .

These few words all spoke to Emperor Daoguang's heart.

"If the three dangers come together, our Qing Dynasty will be in danger. However, except for Tsarist Russia's neighbor to the north, the other three dangers, Britain and Han, are thousands of miles away..."

Mu Zhang'a secretly glanced at Emperor Daoguang's face and saw an expression of approval, and then continued to suggest.

"Today, my servant is talking about leaving the country and sending the people inside the country out. This is not for personal gain, but a matter of state!!"

Before Mu Zhang'a said the next sentence, he very smartly removed himself from this matter. After all, this matter was of great importance. If he didn't get it right, he would be in bad luck, so he told Emperor Daoguang in advance. Got a vaccination.

"The switch has two benefits. One can control the American Han invaders, and the other can resist Tsarist Russia. If the first two dangers are resolved, then our Qing Dynasty can concentrate on domestically repairing national affairs, cleaning up finances and taxes, and training troops to defend foreign countries..." Mu Zhang'a said directly Kneel down on the spot and say to Emperor Daoguang.

"Recuperate and rest like this for more than ten years, conquer Tsarist Russia in the north, drive away the British and barbarians in the south, and lock down the Han invaders, then the sage will be able to achieve eternal hegemony, not inferior to Taizu, the sage... After Mu Zhang'a finished speaking, he kowtowed to Emperor Daoguang After ringing his head three times, when he looked up, his forehead was a little red, which showed that he had acted too hard.

"Qingzhen is my son's wife..." After hearing this, Emperor Daoguang's face lit up and he helped Mu Zhang'a up with his own hands. He even called him Zhang Zifang. Zhang Liang was still alive.

"This slave is planning for me and the emperor..." At this time, Mu Zhang'a even shed tears of emotion and expressed his gratitude to Daoguang.

"I agree with what you just said, but this matter is too important and needs to be discussed."

Although Emperor Daoguang was enraged by Mu Zhang'a's few words, he also knew that the matter of re-opening the country was of great concern and could not be solved with just a few words.

"Your Majesty, you are a holy king, so you can understand it..." Mu Zhang'a praised Emperor Daoguang.

After Emperor Daoguang left Mu Zhang'a, he dreamed of conquering Tsarist Russia that night, expelling the British and barbarians, and surrendering the Han invaders.

I have to say, it's a complete joke.

　Ask for a reward, ask for a monthly ticket
  　　
  　
  (End of this chapter)