Chongzhen revived the Ming Dynasty

To attack Annan, you first need to send an envoy.

Deep down, Zhu Youjian still hoped that the forces in Annan would understand what was happening.

At this time, Annan was in chaos, and there was no power to unify the country.

The Mo family in the north was affiliated with the Ming Dynasty and was appointed as the Governor-General of Annan by the Ming court.

The Le Dynasty in the south was ruled by the Zheng family, which defeated the Mo family. The current ruler of the Le Dynasty was supported by the Zheng family, who even forced the previous ruler to hang himself.

However, Zheng was not without rivals in Annan. The Nguyen family in Hue actively operated and gradually occupied the south.

In the seventh year of the Tianqi reign, war broke out between the Zheng and Nguyen families.

The war has started again this year and it is not over yet.

This is also the reason why Zhu Youjian agreed to send troops to conquer Annan in these two years.

In addition, places such as Champa, which later belonged to Vietnam, have not yet been annexed.

This is also the reason why Prince Jingjiang was able to gain a foothold in the Lancang River Delta when he went to establish a vassal state.

Both Champa and Cambodia suffered from Annan's invasion and could be said to be Annan's vassal states.

Cambodia was also invaded by Siam and was a dual vassal state of both Annam and Siam.

The reason why it has not been annexed yet is simply because Zheng and Nguyen were divided and fighting against each other within Annan.

After Champa took advantage of the civil unrest in Annan to rise up and establish its own regime, it actively contacted the Southeast Asian countries to break free from Annan's control.

Since the Ming Dynasty's forces took the initiative to go there, they would of course welcome them with open arms.

After the King of Jingjiang established himself in the local area, he soon discovered that the local people were weak. After recruiting overseas Chinese, he quickly opened up a large area of ​​arable land. This was also the reason why his ambitions grew.

The report Zhu Youjian received included information about the situations in the Southeast Asian countries. He planned to send envoys to determine the strategy towards these countries.

Convening a meeting of the Lifanyuan and Privy Council ministers in the Wuying Hall, Zhu Youjian said:
"Have Lancangjiang Inspector General Shen Yongmao and Pingjiang Governor Jiang Qilong both taken up their posts?"

These people were appointed in September, Yuan Keli said:

"Shen Shumi has already gone south to take up his post. Governor Jiang also sent a memorial a few days ago, saying that he has led troops south from Guizhou."

"I think it should have arrived by now."

Unlike the northern coast where the ice freezes and ships cannot navigate, this is a good season for sailing in the South China Sea.

Many merchant ships travel at this time to avoid the typhoons that often occur in summer.

It was at this time that Shen Yongmao and Jiang Qilong went south to take up their posts in the Lancang River area.

Zhu Youjian knew about this and nodded:

"The development of Lancangjiang New Jiangnan is the top priority for next year."

"After the court established the Military and Civil Affairs Office and the Inspection Office, it will inevitably arouse suspicion from surrounding countries."

"I have decided to order all the countries in Indochina to come and pay homage to me, to see who is willing to submit?"

This measure was unexpected by the ministers. Some of them thought of the Celestial Empire mentioned by the emperor a few days ago, and thought that the emperor wanted to create an image of all nations coming to pay tribute to him and show off his own achievements.

Yuan Keli didn't think so. He pondered the emperor's words and asked carefully:
"Your Majesty, do you want the various countries to send envoys to pay homage, or do you want their rulers to come in person?"

"If the rulers of various countries are forced to come to the throne, I am afraid disputes will arise."

Summoning the monarch of a vassal state was never an easy task. Even the king of Korea, the most submissive vassal state of the Ming Dynasty, had not yet come to pay homage.

The Crown Prince of Korea was sent here only after the Ming Dynasty urged him several times.

If the Ming Dynasty forced the monarchs of the Southeast Asian countries to come for an audience, it is estimated that few of them would come.

What would the Ming Dynasty do then? Would it turn a blind eye to this, or would it send troops to conquer the rebels?

Zhu Youjian wanted to find a reason to send troops, and use this method to identify the enemy and us, and said without hesitation:

"Of course, let their king, or the prince, come to see him."

"As long as they are willing to come, they will be regarded as submitting to the Ming Dynasty. The imperial court will confer titles on them according to the places they occupy and sign rules and treaties for them."

"Those who are unwilling to pay homage will be considered to have ulterior motives. The Duke of Ying and other nobles will be allowed to freely attack and establish fiefdoms."

When the ministers heard this, they exclaimed in surprise and understood why the emperor held a meeting at the end of the year to discuss this issue.

It turned out that Duke Yingguo Zhang Weixian wanted to establish a vassal state and occupy the land of Jiaozhi.

Thinking of the audience with Duke of England Zhang Weixian a few days ago, the exchanges between the palace and the Duke of England's mansion, and the previous treatment of the Duke of England as a fiefdom noble.

They immediately understood that the emperor had promised Jiaozhi to the Duke of Yingzhou a long time ago and now intended to fulfill his promise.

The dishonest vassal emperor of Annan was not going to stay any longer, but was going to be handed over to the Duke of Yingguo Shizhen.

Anyone who wants to stop it will be in trouble with the Duke of England.

Thinking about the power accumulated by the Duke of Ying over hundreds of years, most of the officials had concerns in their hearts.

The family of the Marquis of Chengyi could have been at odds with the Donglin Party for decades. If he offended the Duke of Yingzhou over this matter, it was estimated that the Duke of Yingzhou's Mansion would always be against him.

This would bring disaster to future generations. No one would want to offend the Duke of England unless it is necessary.

In particular, Zhu Youjian said to his ministers in order to add weight to the matter:
"In addition to the Duke of Ying, the Duke of Wei, the Duke of Ding, the Marquis of Huaiyuan, the Marquis of Linhuai, the Marquis of Dingyuan, and the Marquis of Lingbi will also be enfeoffed in the Jiaozhi area."

"They are the greatest contributors to Emperor Taizu and Emperor Chengzu, and the court must treat them with favor."

"Giao Chi historically belonged to China and is a precious land."

"It is only right to reward meritorious officials with this."

These words quickly determined the minds of the ministers.

The Duke of England alone made many officials feel uneasy. With the addition of these dukes and marquis families, almost no one in the court dared to oppose it.

Otherwise, they would offend all the meritorious officials of Taizu and Chengzu, and the nobles would unanimously support them.

They believed that it was certainly not worth it to cause disputes between nobles and civil officials because of a foreign vassal.

In particular, the Lifanyuan was extremely delighted at the thought that Annan, a foreign vassal that was not submissive enough, would become one of several internal vassal states of the Ming Dynasty.

They were very much looking forward to the Duke of Ying and others establishing a fiefdom in Jiaozhi and turning Jiaozhi into an area under the jurisdiction of the Lifanyuan.

The officials of the Privy Council were worried about a repeat of what happened in the past. Yuan Keli said with some concern:

"It is not difficult to defeat Annan, but it is difficult to maintain long-term stability."

"If the Duke of Ying and others find it difficult to gain a foothold in Jiaozhi, what should the court do?"

Zhu Youjian said with a smile:

"So I plan to divide Jiaozhi into several parts, and give some of them to the Duke of Ying and other nobles of the imperial court."

"Some were given to local forces such as the Mo family who were willing to submit."

"I heard that Annan also has hereditary forces such as the Wu family, the owner of Xuanguang Town. We can send envoys to recruit them to the Ming Dynasty."

"This time, we must completely divide and disintegrate Annan, so that it will not become an obstacle to the Ming Dynasty's conquest of Southeast Asia."

The ministers listened to the emperor's plan and discussed it among themselves.

Because the lessons of the Cheng and Xuan periods were so profound, they generally had little interest in re-establishing the Jiaozhi Chengxuan Administration.

However, if Jiaozhi is lost, Ming's activities in Southeast Asia will be restricted. The vassal states in Southeast Asia and the West were lost one after another after Zheng He's voyages to the West and the loss of Jiaozhi.

The Ming fleet, which was good at sailing along the coastline, had no stable route after the loss of Jiaozhi.

Now that the imperial court has established the Governor-General's Office in Nanyang, it will first build a base in Champa.

If the Ming Dynasty took Southeast Asia as its strategic direction, it would definitely not be able to keep Annan.
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Navy Minister Yu Anxing said:

"Your Majesty, is the future strategy of the Ming Dynasty to conquer Southeast Asia?"

"If so, I agree to conquer Annan and deter the Nanyang forces."

Obviously, the Admiralty, which had gained many benefits from Southeast Asia, agreed to develop it.

Compared with the fleets coming from the South Seas and the West Seas, the northern fleets are really not worth mentioning.

What's more, the north has a freezing period of several months every year, and the navy is more important only in the south where it does not freeze all year round.

In the matter of developing Southeast Asia, it is obvious that the navy must be the main force.

The Border Defense Department was somewhat unhappy because the Navy and overseas were under the Navy Department, and they were responsible for the border troops and the frontier areas. Border Defense Minister Liu Zunxian said:
"Now that the Jianlu have not been settled, the grasslands south of the desert are in chaos again."

"I think we should stabilize the border first before deploying troops overseas."

Disputes began to arise over frontier defense and coastal defense, and over the development of areas beyond the frontier and overseas.

If the Border Defense Department had been named the Ministry of the Army at the beginning, there would have been a contradiction between the Army and the Navy.

For a maritime and land empire like the Ming Dynasty, it is impossible to give up either the navy or the army.

If I have to choose one, the Army is more important——

Although overseas countries do not pose much of a threat to the Ming Dynasty now, the barbarians on land once invaded and ruled the Central Plains.

Therefore, after Chengxuan, when the Ming Dynasty's strategy turned to contraction, it gave up overseas.

This led to the West catching up and being the first to enter the colonial era through the great voyages of discovery.

Now, Zhu Youjian plans to change this strategy.

Because he knew that the next few hundred years would be the ocean age.

It is far better to develop maritime trade and make money than to fight with the barbarians on land.

If it weren't for the possibility that the Jianlu could rule the Central Plains, he would not even bother to care about the areas outside the Great Wall.

So he clearly sided with them:
"The future development direction of the Ming Dynasty must be overseas first."

“Only by mastering the sea can we control the world.”

"If the Ming Dynasty wants to restore its status as the Celestial Empire, it must expand overseas."

It was made clear that sea power takes precedence over land power and will be the focus of the Ming Dynasty in the future.

Liu Zunxian opened his mouth when he heard this, obviously a little dissatisfied.

Thinking of the millions of soldiers on the nine frontiers, he said:
"Your Majesty, there are endless waves of barbarians on the grassland."

"If the Ming Dynasty does not take the initiative to go beyond the border, Dayan Khan and Altan Khan will be born on the grassland sooner or later."

"The Northern Tartars will eventually become a serious threat!"

This statement was fine in the past, but after the Battle of Daning, Zhu Youjian didn't care much about it. He said to his ministers:
"The results of the Battle of Daning have shown that the cavalry, which has the greatest advantage on the grassland, is vulnerable to the new-style firearms."

"As long as the Ming Dynasty can maintain this advantage, the barbarians on the grassland will no longer pose any threat to the Ming Dynasty."

"What's more, after the establishment of the three major protectorates in southern Mo, the border will be stable."

"From now on, the border will not need so many troops to maintain a stable defense."

This result made Liu Zunxian feel uncomfortable. He did not expect that the improvement of the Ming border army's combat effectiveness would actually lead to a decline in the status of the border defense department.

This made him feel a little unwilling:

"Your Majesty said that we must restore the old lands of the Han and Tang dynasties and the old lands of the Yuan Dynasty. Even if the frontier defense is not important, we cannot cut the border defense troops."

Zhu Youjian looked at his expression and thought that the Western Regions and other places had not yet recovered. If the current border troops were evenly distributed, they might not be enough. So he nodded and said:
"The border guards cannot be cut down. They will be needed in the grasslands and the Western Regions in the future."

"But sending troops to these places is a big logistical challenge."

"Min Qing, tell me, how many troops can be supported for the expedition to the Western Regions?"

"If the Ming Dynasty expands into the Western Regions, how many residents can be relocated there?"

When Min Mengde heard this question, his expression twisted. He never expected that the dispute between the navy and the border troops would involve him.

Fortunately, he knew that the current emperor was pragmatic, and as long as his attitude was correct, it would not be a big problem if he could not answer the question.

So he estimated and said:

"The Western Regions are thousands of miles away, and now Shaanxi, Shanxi, and Henan have been hit by disasters year after year."

"The imperial court has no ability to launch an expedition to the Western Regions. At most, Gansu Town can send 10,000 troops."

"I am completely clueless about the situation in the Western Regions, and I don't know how many residents can be relocated."

This was consistent with Zhu Youjian's prediction, and was also the reason why he relocated disaster victims from the northwest eastwards and overseas.

Not only because the distance from the northwest to the Western Regions is not short, but also because the current Ming Dynasty does not have the strength to open up the Western Regions.

If the border troops in the northwest were sent away and suffered a defeat in the Western Regions, it is estimated that the ambitious people in the northwest would jump out soon.

So he said to Liu Zunxian:
"Liu Qing, you heard that the Ming Dynasty is currently unable to expand into the Western Regions and relocate residents."

"For the Ming Dynasty, the most important thing now is to relocate the disaster victims from the northwest and prevent them from causing chaos."

"Anyone who violates this policy is ignoring the people's survival needs and the safety of Ming Dynasty."

"If you can solve it, I can also give priority to the border defense forces."

Liu Zunxian opened his mouth when he heard this, wanting to say that he could solve it. But thinking about the current situation on the grassland, he felt that not many people could be relocated there.

When Mongolia was at its peak, its population was only about one million. Now the grasslands, like the northwest, are often hit by droughts, and it is even more difficult to support more people.

Seeing that the emperor was getting impatient and wanted to continue discussing the strategy for Southeast Asia, Liu Zunxian gritted his teeth and said firmly:
"Please give me five years, Your Majesty, and I will pacify the Jianlu."

"According to what Your Majesty said, Liaodong can support at least 10 million people."

"People can survive longer if they move to Liaodong!"

These words startled Zhu Youjian and reminded him of what Yuan Chonghuan had said about pacifying Liaoning in five years.

Although the current situation of the Ming Dynasty is completely different from that in history, he still has doubts about the possibility of pacifying Liaodong in five years.

He didn't want to make mistakes in a hurry and put too much pressure on the front line, which was also the reason why he decided to focus on the development direction in Southeast Asia.

Compared to Liaodong, the current Nanyang countries are too easy to fight. As long as the Ming Dynasty invests its troops, it can ensure victory.

The most troublesome issues are climate and long-term stability.

However, even if it fails, it is not a big problem. At least the countries in Southeast Asia do not have the strength to threaten the capital of Ming Dynasty.

On the contrary, the Jianlu may break through the pass and plunder the interior if we are not careful, so we must proceed steadily and carefully.

Now, hearing that Liu Zunxian wanted to pacify Liao within five years, Zhu Youjian immediately stared at him to see if he was just talking big or if he really had any strategy. (End of this chapter)