I am Emperor Wanli

Chapter 633 I know geography well!
Zhu Yijun's voice echoed in the front hall, and the hall was silent.

"Mr. Cao, the Governor-General of Shaanxi and Gansu, Mr. Xu Weiwenchang, the Governor of Gansu, Mr. Xu Zhenming, the Provincial Governor, and other officials serving in the Northwest have submitted memorials to me, and the most mentioned topic is the suffering of the Northwest.

Especially in the areas north and west of Shaanxi, south of Ningxia, and throughout Gansu, drought and poverty have been the main problems, and the people are struggling in hunger and cold. "

Zhu Yijun's voice was loud and clear.

"I asked them why the Northwest was so miserable. They summarized many reasons.

There was drought and little rain, few plants, soil erosion, ditches in disrepair, and the area was almost deserted. There were reasons from heaven and people. I told them that we had to fight against heaven and people to create a prosperous life for the people in the northwest.

So Lord Cao, Mr. Wenchang, Mr. Xu, and hundreds of thousands of officials dug ditches and canals, built ponds, planted trees, dredged rivers, developed water conservancy projects, and cultivated land in the northwest.

Everything depends on human efforts. With their hard work and pioneering work, the barren northwest will eventually get better."

"Even though I am far away in the capital, I will also offer advice to the Northwest. I will provide policies, talents, and money and food. I and Prime Minister Zhang of the cabinet will do our utmost to provide all possible help to the Northwest.

I and the Central Government cannot stop here. We should also have a bird's-eye view so that we can plan for the future. These days, I have been wondering why the Northwest is so miserable?

You should know that the 800-li Qinchuan Plain during the Han and Tang Dynasties was the imperial foundation.

Hexi was recovered by Huo Qiaoyao during the reign of Emperor Wu of Han, and became an important town for the conquest of the Xiongnu and the expedition to the Western Regions; to the north of Ningxia and Shaanxi is Shuofang Town, which was an important pillar for the Former Tang Dynasty to quell the An-Shi Rebellion.

Even in the Former Song Dynasty, it was first an important battlefield in the fight against the Jin Dynasty, and later became an important battlefield for the Jin Dynasty to fight against the Mongols.

How did the country become so dilapidated? I am completely puzzled."

Everyone was drawn into Zhu Yijun's words and couldn't help but fall into deep thought.

Yeah, why did it become like this?
He punched the Huns in the north, kicked the Yuezhi in the west, fought the Turks and destroyed the rebels. What a fierce northwestern man he was during the Han and Tang dynasties.

The northwest of the former Song Dynasty was weak, but the western army fought back and forth with the Western Xia, and later with the Jin Dynasty and the Mongols. They had wins and losses, but never feared anyone.

How come he suddenly became so weak when he came to the National Dynasty?

It falls over as soon as the wind blows, and it's as bitter as if it was soaked in a brine pond. What's going on?

Everyone listened and thought, their minds full of various ideas, but every idea ended up in a dead end in the end.

No! That's not the reason!
After thinking about it for a long time, no one could figure out the root cause. Everyone involuntarily turned their eyes to Zhu Yijun, hoping to get the answer from him.

"I pondered for a while and found that one of the main reasons why the northwest became so fragile and poor during the reign of the emperor was the weather. The weather was getting worse and worse. Looking through the history books, the weather during the reign of the emperor was completely different from that during the Han and Tang dynasties.

The Han Shu and Tang History record that in the northwest there were as many as 15 rains in summer, and as few as five or six. In the Qing Dynasty, it was considered good to have three rains in the whole summer.

How could this be possible? In the early Tang Dynasty, if Guanzhong had less than three rains in the summer, drought and famine would occur, and the emperor and his officials would go to the Eastern Capital, Luoyang in Henan, to seek food.

Now the northwest has only had one or two rains throughout the summer, and it is extremely dry. Such bad weather has really exhausted the northwest."

Zhu Yijun's tone was still calm. "We can't force God to rain more, so we can only work harder on water conservancy facilities and make the best use of every drop of water.
These are exactly what Mr. Wenchang and Mr. Xu did in the Northwest.

In addition to this reason, I found another reason. "

When Hu Zongxian, Zhang Juzheng, Zhao Zhenji and others showed surprise, I knew there must be other reasons.

The others were also cheered up.

Everyone has more or less listened to Zhu Yijun's lectures, including "Political Economy", "Organizational Behavior", "Dialectics and Materialism", and even "Mathematics Lectures" and "Learn Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry Well and You Will Not Be Afraid to Travel Around the World".

The emperor knows everything, including astronomy, geography, mathematics, economics and philosophy.

"What's the reason?" Zhu Yijun glanced at everyone and asked a question: "Before that, I would like to ask you a question. Why is Shanghai so prosperous?"

Zhang Juzheng immediately replied: "Because of its geographical location, it connects to the river and the sea."

"Yes, it connects rivers and seas. The key lies in the word 'connect'. Running water never stales. You have all heard me teach you that wealth will multiply in various forms during the circulation process.

The key to revitalizing the economy lies in the word "active".

The Northwest was prosperous during the Han and Tang dynasties because it connected the Western Regions in the west, the desert in the north, the Central Plains in the east, and Sichuan in the south. Porcelain from the Central Plains, cattle and horses from the desert, tea from Sichuan, and spices from the Western Regions were transported through the Northwest and sold everywhere.

The Hexi Corridor has become a blood vessel that continuously supplies blood to the Northwest.

But the northwest of the country?"

Zhu Yijun stood up, found the location of the Hexi Corridor on the map, and someone was pointing at it.

"The loss of Hami Guard in the west completely cut off the Hexi Corridor from the Western Regions. First the Oirat, then the Tatar, and finally the Tumed tribe in the north, and the scattered U-Tsang in the south.

West, north, south, there is no way to go anywhere, only the east is the only way. The northwest became a dead end in the Qing Dynasty. After two hundred years, it has become a stagnant pool. The economy can be said to have plummeted. People can only rely on the weather for food and barely fill their stomachs.

In the past two hundred years, the weather in the northwest has changed, becoming drier year by year. To combat drought, we need to build ditches and ponds, develop water conservancy and protect farmland. We need to plant trees and promote greening to protect water and soil.

But these two things require a lot of money.

The Northwest has become a stagnant body, gradually losing its blood-generating function. Without a sufficiently vibrant economy to replenish its blood, how can the people of the Northwest, who can only barely make a living, have the spare energy to develop water conservancy and plant forests?

The neglect of water conservancy and sparse vegetation made farming more difficult, and life became increasingly difficult, trapping the country in an unsolvable deadlock. Therefore, in order to revitalize the northwest, it must be connected.

How to open it? Of course, open up the passage to the west. "

Zhu Yijun took a few steps, pointed to the Guihua City area and said, "Why did Altan Khan want to open a border trade with the Ming Dynasty? Because it would be very beneficial to him!
He led an expedition to Jinshan, defeated the Oirat tribe, and opened up the passage from Daqingshan to Jinshan. He could resell the goods of our Ming Dynasty to the Western Regions, and make tens or even dozens of times the profit from one resale. Of course, Altan Khan was willing to do so.

Altan Khan made so much money from reselling, can we in the Ming Dynasty make money by doing this business directly?"

Zhu Yijun slashed his right hand downward fiercely: "It must be a huge profit!
The trade route to the Western Regions was opened, and we set up factories in the northwest, including textile and cotton factories, porcelain factories, woolen cloth factories, soap and perfume factories, and sugar factories. We used steam engines for industrialized production, which had extremely low costs, and we made huge profits by selling our products to the Western Regions.

After opening up the Western Regions, there are still Transoxiana, Afghanistan, and Persia and the Ottoman Empire behind us. The West is a huge market, which is our treasure pot and money tree.

We must now open up the sea route and the land route. We must sell Ming’s goods to the whole world, and then collect resources from all over the world to enrich our Ming!”

"Good!" Everyone applauded enthusiastically.

When the applause gradually died down, Hu Zongxian said appropriately: "Your Majesty's words have clarified the great significance of the Western Expedition. The Western Expedition is not about militarism, but about opening up the trade route in the west to benefit millions of people in the northwest."

Zhang Juzheng echoed, "Your Majesty's far-sighted words have opened my eyes. Many people do not understand the key to the Western Expedition, thinking it is a waste of military power and a way to have nothing to do after having enough food."

Today, the emperor's analysis of the details revealed the significance of the Western Expedition. That is to open up the western trade route, revitalize the economy of the western part of the Ming Dynasty, restore the blood-making capacity of the northwest regions, and then, as Hu Rongzheng said, benefit millions of people in the northwest. This is a great thing that will benefit future generations, and the cabinet fully supports it! "

The bigwigs from both the military and political fields made statements on behalf of the Rong government and the cabinet, which meant that the Western Expedition was a foregone conclusion.

After Zhang Juzheng finished speaking, Zhu Yijun pointed at Qi Jiguang and said, "General Qi, please tell us about the strategic deployment of the Western Expedition."

"According to the order!"

Qi Jiguang stood up, walked to the map, and took a long wooden pole from a eunuch.

Zhu Yijun took a few steps back and stood aside.

"Your Majesty, everyone, the draft military strategy prepared by the General Staff is as follows: mobilize seven infantry regiments and two artillery regiments of the garrison, totaling 28,000 people, all firearms units.

At present, all the seven infantry regiments and two artillery regiments have been transformed into chariot-mounted infantry, that is, half of the officers and soldiers march on horses and have their own pack horses. We call them assault infantry regiments.

Another half of the officers and soldiers rode in horse-drawn vans that could move quickly. We called it the Mobile Infantry Regiment.

The twelve cavalry regiments of the Wing Guard were mobilized, totaling 35,000 cavalrymen. According to the standard for long-distance cavalry, one man had three horses. In addition, the Solon Battalion mobilized one assault infantry regiment, and the Sushen Battalion mobilized two assault infantry regiments, totaling 9,000 people.

The total force is 72,000, plus the various deployed troops, a total of 85,000, organized into three cavalry infantry divisions, one assault infantry division, four cavalry divisions, and one baggage division. "

Qi Jiguang pointed at the map with the long wooden pole in his hand.

"Three chariot and cavalry infantry divisions and one baggage division will gather in Guihua City, four cavalry divisions and one assault infantry division will gather in Dening City, and then march northwest, cross the Hanhai, and reach the Wangji River east of the Hangai Mountains.

There is abundant water and beautiful grass there, which is suitable for large-scale marches of our chariot and cavalry divisions.

We will follow the southern side of the Hangai Mountains, cross the Tachu River and the Dui River, and go out to the Zabuhan River Basin, where we will cross the Jin Mountain, cross the Yerdeshi River, and go south along the Yemier River. The capital of the Western Regions, Yilibali, will be right under our front line. "

Qi Jiguang put down the long pole in his hand, turned to Zhu Yijun, and said respectfully: "Your Majesty, this is the draft of the military strategy prepared by the General Staff Bureau. Please make your decision."

Zhu Yijun frowned slightly, "The plan drawn up by the General Staff Bureau is for this group of troops?"

Qi Jiguang looked at the expression on his face and felt a little nervous, but still answered calmly.

“Your Majesty, the Hexi Corridor is too barren now, and the area from Pingliang to Lanzhou is not rich either, and it is difficult to support the supply of nearly 100,000 troops.

Even if we divide a part of our troops and go out of the Hexi Corridor to attack Hami from the side, it will not make much sense. Hami has declared itself a king. If we attack Hami, Yilibali will not divide its troops, and it will be meaningless for us to go south from the Yemier River.

The General Staff thought about it and decided to focus all their efforts on the northern route."

Zhu Yijun frowned even more. "We still have a new force. Why didn't you think of it?"

Another new force?

Which one?
Where did the emperor hide his secret army?
Qi Jiguang was puzzled.

He glanced around and accidentally saw Huo Jingbing in the back seat, and his mind buzzed.

I understand!
"Your Majesty, are you talking about the Xihai Camp in Qinghai?"

"Yes!" Zhu Yijun took a few steps forward to the map, and Qi Jiguang quickly handed him the long wooden pole with both hands.

Zhu Yijun took the long wooden pole and pointed at the map. "You have all read history books. During the middle Tang Dynasty, when Tubo was at its peak, its territory included Khotan, Yargan (Shache), Hasihar (Kashgar), Kushan (Kuqa), and Wuchi (Wushi).

How did they conquer it? There are records in history books that they crossed the Kunlun Mountains and deployed troops north and south of the Tianshan Mountains. There is also the record that Gao Xianzhi conquered Dabolü and destroyed Xiaobolü over a thousand miles, becoming famous in one battle.

Where are the big and small Boluo?"

No one answered Zhu Yijun's question.

How do we know where it is?

I can talk a few words about "Classic of Mountains and Seas", but I really don't know where the Big and Small Bolü are.

Zhu Yijun's eyes swept across everyone's faces, expressing neither joy nor sadness.

We are used to it. Nowadays, the people of the Ming Dynasty, from the Prime Minister to the peddlers, have no concept of geography. They even have a random idea of ​​the direction of Shaanxi and Jiangxi, let alone world geography.

On the contrary, everyone can talk about geography and feng shui.

Zhu Yijun's long wooden pole is at a spot on the map.

"Here, just south of the Pamir Mountains and west of U-Tsang, it is now called Oris, and there is a big city called Leh.

Now Huo Jing led the West Sea Camp to seize the Heyuan grassland east of U-Tsang and the old land of Dogandusi. U-Tsang was as weak as a child and could not stop the West Sea Camp at all.

Just go north to the Yalingkho Pass, cross the Kunlun Mountains, appear in Khotan, and go west to capture Khotan, Yargan (Shache), and Hasihar (Kashgar). "

The information on these maps was carefully drawn by hundreds of intelligence personnel and surveying personnel who followed the Xihai Camp, the Tumed caravan and the U-Tsang caravan, traveling all over U-Tsang and the Western Regions over a period of seven or eight years.

Zhu Yijun knocked the map hard several times with his wooden pole.

"Qi Jiguang, your northern army will take the northern route and go around to the northeast of the Western Regions.

Huo Jing and Huo's southern army will take the southern route and go around to the southwest of the Western Region. One east and one west, one positive and one strange, will attack together. Our army will have a 50% chance of annihilating Yilibali."

Qi Jiguang fully understood Zhu Yijun's strategic deployment, and his eyes moved up and down and left and right with the long wooden pole, shining brightly.

"Your Majesty is wise! With your careful planning, the Western Expedition will surely be successful."

Everyone also stood up quickly and said respectfully: "Your Majesty is wise, wise and strategic, and he is a god at using troops!"

Zhu Yijun chuckled, "It's not that I am a master of military strategy, but that the whole world is in my mind. You don't know where U-Tsang and Qinghai are, and whether they are connected to the Western Regions, but I do.

I memorized all the maps I had seen in my mind and pieced them together into a large map.

I don't know how to march and deploy troops, but I know where to reach the soft spot of the Western Regions!

Okay, the general plan for the Western Expedition is set, divided into two routes, north and south. The specific plan will be re-drafted by the General Staff! If you need the cabinet to cooperate, bring it up now and let's discuss it together."

"According to the order!"

(End of this chapter)