Red Mansion: I am Jia Lian

Chapter 647 Large-scale, long-distance, rapid troop deployment exercise

Everyone says that Jia Yi was the most loyal executor of the late emperor's policies; now we know the truth.

The passage came to Li Yuan's mind, and he subconsciously associated it with some of Emperor Chenghui's actions.

“Then so be it, sir!” Li Yuan agreed, no longer showing any intention to escalate the matter.

Jia Lian also breathed a sigh of relief, after all, things were different now. The prestige of the late emperor was far less than that of the current emperor.

During the reign of Emperor Chenghui, Jia Lian felt he wasn't ruthless enough; during the reign of Emperor Li Yuan, Jia Lian felt he was a bit too ruthless.

"The purpose of this external action is still to rectify commercial taxes!" Jia Lian made another request, and Li Yuan nodded, "Granted!"

"On this trip south, I will send troops to accompany the army to test the efficiency of railway transport. The troops will not cross the river and can be stationed at Pukou."

When Jia Lian made another request, before Li Yuan could speak, Li Qing said, "No, absolutely not."

"Does Prime Minister Li intend to act on His Majesty's behalf?" Jia Lian asked with a half-smile. Li Qing, unfazed by being framed, stood tall and proud: "What are your intentions in constantly mobilizing troops along the way?"

"Oh, Prime Minister Li suspects that I, Jia, am plotting a rebellion," Jia Lian said, feigning realization.

Fang Song added timely criticism: "Prime Minister Li sees everyone as a traitor, except himself."

Seeing that things were not going well, Lin Ruhai immediately said, "Alright, don't lose face as a cabinet minister in front of His Majesty."

Li Yuan calmly watched all of this, and Lin Ruhai's intervention to correct discipline and demeanor was perfectly timed.

"I grant Jia Qing's request! This time, Jia Qing will travel south on behalf of the Emperor to inspect the two rivers. I hereby bestow upon him a golden token and command arrow, allowing him to act expediently and report later."

Li Yuan had no intention of continuing to cause trouble for the cabinet. He made a decisive decision, then adjourned the meeting, leaving Jia Lian behind.

When the emperor and his minister were alone together, Li Yuan gestured for Jia Lian to take a casual stroll with him.

"I have been on the throne for over a year, and whenever I encounter a problem, I always think of how my father solved it." Li Yuan seemed to be talking to himself, while Jia Lian silently listened.

"In terms of age, I am two years older than you, sir." Li Yuan suddenly thought of this, and although he felt a little uncomfortable, he still stopped, shook his head with a helpless smile, and didn't mind that Jia Lian was right next to him.

After overcoming his mental hurdle, Li Yuan calmed down and smiled at Jia Lian, saying, "If you hadn't stopped me today, I'm afraid I would have made a mistake."

Jia Lian laughed and said, "It's not that serious, it just takes a little more effort! Officials or gentry, they won't amount to anything. Throughout history, what truly threatens imperial power is the common people. And the common people, as long as they see hope for survival, will not risk rebellion. Officials and gentry colluding to rebel now would have no legitimate cause and would only be courting their own destruction. What I'm worried about is that, whether there's a major or minor upheaval in the localities, it's the common people who will suffer."

When you're at the bottom, your thoughts are one thing; but when you're at the top, stability truly trumps everything. Only with stability can things be handled in an orderly manner; chaos requires more effort and increases costs.

Everything should be viewed dialectically. Sometimes, if the interests of ordinary people are harmed, no one will care if they live or die if they don't make a fuss.

However, individual efforts are too limited; it is necessary to unite and make a scene to force the government to take the matter seriously and resolve it properly.

Unfortunately, this country has a gene that says, "Are kings and nobles born with a special destiny?" If things go wrong, it could really lead to the decay of an entire province.

Jia Lian was probably the most unique minister in this dynasty. What made him unique was that he was a civil official in his daily life, but he could lead troops into battle at any time when needed.

After the imperial edict was issued, the Ministry of War had no choice but to fully cooperate, treating this southward march of the army as a long-distance, large-scale troop mobilization exercise.

Jia Lian didn't rush to set off immediately. Instead, he went to the Ministry of War and met with the Minister of War, requesting the Ministry to make a detailed plan for mobilizing troops from a town, including the amount of grain and supplies needed, and the number of trains.

This was a new problem, and the Ministry of War was encountering it for the first time. Jia Lian did not isolate the Ministry of War, but instead took the initiative to request cooperation, which made the Ministry of War feel much more comfortable.

Jia Lian bid farewell and went home to pack his luggage in preparation for departure. When he arrived at the Ministry of War the next day to review the action plan, he discovered that the Ministry of War was unfamiliar with the situation and had not yet finished the plan after a whole day of work.

This exposes a problem: the vast majority of officers in the Ministry of War have no military experience, and all they can do is wait for the military's requirements and then make plans accordingly.

This kind of behavior will inevitably lead to problems sooner or later, especially when facing unexpected events.

However, Jia Lian had no intention of correcting it, or at least not now. Under the current system, it might not necessarily be a bad thing that officials in the Ministry of War lack military experience.

At least in many ways, people feel safer because of this seemingly inefficient system.

Under no circumstances should the military interfere in politics; there is nothing wrong with that. Even if there is to be military reform in the future, it will be in the direction of prohibiting the military from interfering in politics and engaging in business.

Another issue is that, apart from the new army, other armies do not have the concept of discharge.

Even in Shenji Town, the most recent military unit, ordinary soldiers need to serve for five years before retirement. Some veteran soldiers at the grassroots level (similar to sergeants) serve for life.

"It's alright if it's a little slower," Jia Lian said, not in a hurry. He was even willing to cooperate with the Ministry of War and deploy troops according to the rules.

This was the first large-scale, long-distance troop mobilization exercise, and many problems arose during it. The coordination and communication between the railway bureau and the Ministry of War, and between the railway bureau and the army, were all new to everyone.

Jia Lian waited patiently, and as time went by and the various parties gained some experience in coordinating their efforts, the pace quickened.

Three days later, a unit from Shenji Town began boarding the train. One military train carried a fully equipped battalion and departed, followed by another battalion waiting in an orderly fashion.

Once the speed increased, more than a dozen trains departed in a single day, accomplishing a remarkable feat within two days: over 15,000 people and their livestock were loaded onto the trains, traversing half the country and covering a distance of 3,000 li (approximately 1,500 kilometers). Along the way, the trains only stopped to refuel with water and coal; otherwise, they did not stop.

The soldiers of Shenji Town, who were traveling by train for the first time, were extremely uncomfortable in the stuffy freight cars, grumbling and complaining.

But it was really fast! In just two days, the first military train arrived at Pukou Station. After the officers and soldiers were herded off the train like livestock, they all came back to life.

But the officers, like death knells, kept urging everyone to hurry up and make way for the next train.

This large-scale military transport exercise is also a severe test for the railway bureau.

There were quite a few mishaps along the way, but thankfully there was no car accident, otherwise that would have been a real mess.

The military's frustration stems from the fact that often two battalions from a regiment arrive, while the third battalion arrives two days later. Or, the entire regiment arrives, but the artillery unit is absent.

Despite the chaos, the railway bureau, for the first time ever, managed to transport a fully equipped town (division) from Beijing to Pukou in just seven days, from preparation to the arrival of all the transported personnel.

This was unimaginable in the past. Without trains, it would take at least a month for a town (division) to travel safely from the capital to Pukou. Upon arriving in Pukou, the Shenji Town immediately took over local defenses, completed its deployment, and notified the local authorities to conduct exercises there for a month. They also stated that the local authorities should not interfere during the exercises.

The sudden arrival of a large army in Pukou terrified the local officials, who had never heard of any rebellion and were now making such a large-scale mobilization.

Officials and gentry in Jiangnan who had received prior warning were the most terrified.

Some news cannot be kept secret, especially the matter of Jia Zheng's memorial impeaching the merchants of Jiangnan for taxation; it simply could not be concealed.

The results of the cabinet meeting have already reached Jiangnan. Who can guarantee that Shenji Town isn't targeting Jiangnan?

Jia Lian's special train was the last to arrive at Pukou, accompanied by Zhang Biao, the commander of Shenji Town, and Cui Han, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of War.

Zhang Biao was not an acquaintance of Jia Lian. He came from the border army, studied at a military academy for a year, and was selected by Li Yuan last year to serve as the commander of Shenji Town.

This man also had another identity: his younger sister was a newly acquired concubine of Li Yuan. Therefore, Zhang Biao could be considered a newly powerful figure.

This person reveals Li Yuan's standards for appointing people to key positions; he did not like to use members of the imperial clan and preferred to use relatives of the empress.

For example, the commander of the Nine Gates Garrison is Wang Ziwen, the current Empress's younger brother. He has absolutely no military experience.

Fortunately, Li Yuan didn't go too far and didn't interfere with the other three new military garrisons in the capital; otherwise, Yue Qi and the Ministry of War would definitely have lost control of their blood pressure.

In reality, Zhang Biao, as the commander, had no room to maneuver during the entire troop transport process. He simply sat there, waiting for his adjutant to keep reporting on what each unit was doing.

The staff office handles all the affairs; they just report back in a timely manner.

This situation has been ongoing for some time. Zhang Biao noticed this phenomenon as soon as he took office in Shenji Town. The real person in charge of Shenji Town is the chief of staff.

The chief of staff, on the other hand, was a graduate of a proper royal military academy, and rose through the ranks from a squad officer in Shenji Town to become chief of staff ten years later.

By the way, although they were all new troops, the other three garrisons of the Beijing Garrison were not like this. Only Shenji Garrison was the most special.

Everyone says that Shenji Town was an army built by Jia Lian. Zhang Biao didn't believe it before, but he did after he took office.

Despite being a newly formed army, Shenji Town possesses a unique character, a distinctive aura from top to bottom.

Zhang Biao, a traditional military officer, was not suited to any of these situations, but he was quite clever and kept a low profile, quietly observing and learning.

After arriving in Pukou, Jia Lian stayed at the same manor as before and did not rush to cross the river, but rested for three days.

On the morning of the fourth day after arriving in Pukou, Jia Lian got up and Fan Ping, the chief of staff of Shenji Town, came to report: "Six warships of the East China Sea Fleet have been ordered to arrive on the river."

Jia Lian then joined Zhang Biao and Cui Han, the Vice Minister of War.

"Gentlemen, I am crossing the river today. You two will stay here and oversee the operation. The railway bureau will review the gains and losses of this long-distance troop transport later. If you have nothing else to do, you can go and visit the troops."

Zhang Biao and Cui Han then learned that Jia Lian had not only mobilized Shenji Town to move south, but also mobilized the East China Sea Fleet of the Navy stationed in Songjiang.

At the Xiaguan Wharf across the river, Xiong Fang was in a terrible mood, especially when he saw the officials, including the Governor of Jiangnan, behind him, looking ashen-faced with fear, which only worsened his already bad mood.

What are these bastards thinking? The economy of the Jiangnan region is highly developed, and it has developed rapidly in recent years, but the commercial tax has hardly changed.

Let alone five years ago, this was the same level even eight years ago. Jia Zheng was being polite and didn't go back any further.

If nothing had changed, that would be one thing, but over the years, many new businesses have sprung up in the Jiangnan region, and some older businesses have grown significantly.

Leaving aside the distant ones, just consider the various private ironworks near Nanjing. You can see their blast furnaces and chimneys from the riverbank. Do they really think everyone else is blind?
Among the three major steel-producing areas in China, from north to south, are Shuntian Prefecture, Jinling Prefecture, and Guangzhou Prefecture. If we really talk about the output flowing to the people, Suzhou Steel ranks first.

There's also cotton cloth. Songjiang cotton cloth was once considered the best in the country. Now, with the widespread use of steam engines, the products travel up the Yangtze River, penetrating deep into the southwest. Meanwhile, sales in Southeast Asia have seen a dramatic increase. In fact, the total production and sales of Songjiang cotton cloth are much higher than before. As for the impact on inland folk textile industries, that's not a concern for Jiangnan capital.

Why did Southeast Asia become a new market for Songjiang cotton fabric? The reason is simple: Songjiang cotton fabric is of high quality due to its hand-weaving, and immigrants from various parts of Southeast Asia recognize the brand. Most importantly, Southeast Asian immigrants are wealthy and willing to spend. This boosted the sales of Songjiang handmade cotton fabric, significantly reducing the losses in the north and east markets.

Therefore, the cotton cloth industry in Jiangnan was not greatly affected by the impact of industrialized cotton cloth in the north. The resourceful Jiangnan merchants used high-quality hand-woven cotton cloth to open up the Southeast Asian market, and at the same time used steam-powered cloth to enter the southwest.

To put it simply, the benefits brought by the new Southeast Asian market to all walks of life in Jiangnan are enormous.

The problem is, once you've made money, you should pay your taxes.

The reality is quite the opposite. Merchants in Jiangnan have always tried to evade taxes whenever possible, and if they can't avoid them, they'll find ways to pay less.

It's not fair to say that only merchants from Jiangnan are like this; all merchants in the world are the same. It's just that local officials in Jiangnan aren't very proactive in collecting taxes.

If the imperial court doesn't take this matter seriously, then it's fine.

The problem is that someone leaked the information, which caught the attention of the new emperor, and the nature of the matter changed.

It's too late now. As the Governor-General of Liangjiang, Xiong Fang will definitely be implicated and punished. Whether he can continue to hold this position remains to be seen. He will have to find a way to make a big effort in the capital.

Looking at the other officials around him, Xiong Fang felt nauseous, wanting to vomit but unable to, and could only silently endure it.

"Lord Mi, what's wrong with you?"

Suddenly someone shouted, and Xiong Fang, who was watching the warships on the river turn around and open their cannons, was startled and turned around to look.

It turned out that an official had fainted. Looking at the puddle beneath him, it was clear he had lost control of his bladder from fright.

The officials at the scene were in complete disarray, and even the governor of Jiangnan needed help to stand.

Xiong Fang silently turned back and continued to look at the river. A large ship, escorted by six warships, slowly approached the shore.

Then look at the flag on the ship; it bears the character "贾" (Jia).

(End of this chapter)