Chongzhen revived the Ming Dynasty

The reason that prompted Zhu Youjian to make this choice was naturally the outcome of the Liaodong War.

Only Beizhili and the Suzhou-Songjiang New Area were fully mobilized in this battle. While it was a blow to Zhu Youjian, it also made him realize that he could defeat the enemy without having complete control of the whole country.

Currently, there are not many forces in the world that can surpass the Jurchens, and they are unlikely to have the ability to threaten the capital of the Ming Dynasty.

After defeating the Jurchens in Zhili (northern Hebei) and Suzhou-Songjiang, Zhu Youjian believed that as long as these two regions were well developed, they would have the strength to deal with any enemy.

With this understanding, his choice became simple.

The focus is on developing industry in northern Zhili, and attracting human resources and capital from the south through the Suzhou-Songjiang New Area.

As long as these two places are secure, Zhu Youjian is confident that he can conquer the world.

This was the reason he appointed Shang Zhouzuo, the Minister of Works, as the Governor-General of Northern Zhili.

As he explained his arrangements to Shang Zhouzuo, Zhu Youjian instructed him:
“If you want to be rich, build roads first.”

"Only when roads are open can resources be gathered and trade developed."

"If Beizhili wants to develop, it needs to build roads first."

"The Beijing-Tianjin-Pinggu Triangle Highway has been completed, and the northern Zhili section of the Yancang Highway in the south has also been fully connected."

"Your task is to connect these highways to form the highway network of Beizhili."

"I want to see all the prefectures in Beizhili connected by highways within five years."

"Where there is a river, there must be navigable boats."

Pointing to the map, Zhu Youjian made specific plans for Beizhili.

The first step is to complete the multimodal transport system, build roads and ports, and complete infrastructure construction.

In the past, when the focus was on the whole country, he would never have done this; he would not have invested all the resources into Beizhili.

But now that he's figured things out, he's stopped worrying about other places. His priority is to industrialize Beizhili and create a model.

Only when other regions see the development of Beizhili will they be inspired to learn from it and also embark on industrialization.

Instead of forcing them to reform in the direction of industrialization, they faced incomprehension, disregard, or even obstruction and sabotage from officials, gentry, and common people.

Zhu Youjian has no time to deal with those places right now; he wants Han Kuang to reform the bureaucracy first.
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As the Minister of Works, Shang Zhouzuo naturally understood the emperor's intention in making this arrangement:
This means that the Ministry of Works should concentrate its resources in Beizhili (northern Zhili) for the next few years to solve the problems in that region.

As a native of Shaoxing, Zhejiang, he naturally had no intention of favoring Beizhili, and hesitantly said to the emperor:

"Your Majesty, while Beizhili is directly under the jurisdiction of the court, other places also belong to the court."

"Your Majesty should not focus on just one corner and neglect other regions."

This clearly indicates a differing opinion. Zhu Youjian raised an eyebrow and said:

"Beizhili contributed to the Liaodong War and naturally deserves to be rewarded."

"Moreover, the establishment of the National Assembly was piloted in Beizhili, so of course we should focus on developing this area."

"If other places have opinions, ask them about their contributions."

“If any place contributes as much as Beizhili, that will be the next place to focus on development.”

Upon hearing this, Shang Zhouzuo remained silent, knowing that the emperor's words made sense.

If Beizhili makes so much effort but is not rewarded, which places will be willing to participate in the next mobilization by the imperial court?

He couldn't very well defy the emperor for the sake of those areas where he wasn't contributing, or even give up his position as one of the Nine Ministers. In the end, he said a few good words for his hometown and agreed to carry out the emperor's decree.

Seeing that he was willing to accept the imperial decree, Zhu Youjian was also able to accept Shang Zhouzuo's suggestion, because the south did indeed need an industrial base.

Considering that Wu Shangmo had indeed done a good job in Zhejiang, replenishing the troops vacated by the transfer of Liaodong cavalry and the vacancy in the Left Army Camp, he said to Shang Zhouzuo:

"The Suzhou-Songjiang region in the south will be developed as a key area as Beijing and Tianjin, and highways and waterways connecting Jiaxing, Hangzhou, Shaoxing and other places will be built to create the Suzhou-Songjiang-Xingxing Industrial Zone."

"The Beijing-Tianjin-Pinggu and Suzhou-Songjiang-Xingtai areas will be the focus of industrialization, and we will focus on building these two industrial bases."

"These two areas will be given priority in developing industry and commerce, and special policies will be formulated for them."

Shang Zhouzuo was overjoyed to learn that his hometown had also been included in the support program. He said with great delight:
"I will certainly make good industrial plans for both regions and promote the development of industry and commerce."

Zhu Youjian specifically requested:
“Then let’s set a target, such as increasing industrial and commercial output by at least 5% each year, and growing by 30% after five years.”

This was a very low goal in his view, but Shang Zhouzuo found it difficult:
"I do not even understand what industrial and commercial output value is, so I cannot set such a target."

Zhu Youjian was speechless, but he didn't know how to calculate industrial and commercial output, so he could only ask Shang Zhouzuo:
"Go and cooperate with the Hanlin Academy and the Academy of Sciences, and ask them to find a way to calculate the total output value of the three major industries of agriculture, industry and commerce, and strive to compile the statistics every year, and measure the officials' performance in economic matters by the growth rate."

"Now, we can count the output of major industrial products, such as coal, steel, cement, cloth, ships, as well as the mileage of highways and navigable rivers, etc."

This is much clearer than the previous requirements, Shang Zhouzuo said:
"I will compile the statistics as soon as possible and formulate a plan for the next year."

"I just hope Your Majesty will not be impatient, as the Ministry of Works is not currently capable of formulating long-term plans."

Zhu Youjian nodded reluctantly, telling Shang Zhouzuo to do his best.

He's willing to give opportunities to anyone who's willing to work.

Finally, Shang Zhouzuo said:
"Where will the money and supplies come from for such a large investment in highways and waterways in Beizhili?"

"The Ministry of Works' funds and provisions also need to be used for the maintenance of the Yellow River and other waterways, so it is impossible to invest all resources in Beizhili."

Zhu Youjian said, somewhat speechless:

"If you don't have money, go to the Ministry of Revenue."

"Didn't we tell you to implement a budget and final accounts system?"

"First, make a budget. The Ministry of Revenue can contribute whatever it can, and we'll discuss the shortfall later."

"besides……"

Pointing to the north side of Shuntian Prefecture, Zhu Youjian said:
"Liaoxi Province is going to make a fortune. All highways and waterways leading to Liaoxi can be built entirely by Liaoxi Province at its own expense."

"Most of the areas in western Liaoning Province used to belong to the Northern Pacification Commandery, and now it is also a barrier for Northern Zhili. We need to integrate the road network of western Liaoning into the transportation system of Northern Zhili."

"This is a matter of whether the Beijing-Tianjin-Pinggu area is safe or not, so we must have a holistic view."

He appointed Shang Zhouzuo as Minister of Works to plan the road network between the two regions.

This also shows the advantage he had as Minister of Works concurrently serving as Governor-General of Northern Zhili. He could not only dispatch various ministries and directly administered areas in the capital, but also coordinate with other places to ensure the development of Northern Zhili.

The Liaoxi Province to the north will serve as a shield for Beizhili.

Shanxi Province in the west will become a coal base for Beizhili in the future.

Liaodong Province provided grain, while Shandong Province provided markets and manpower.

We will concentrate the resources of this area and focus on developing Northern Zhili. (End of Chapter)