The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 137 Going Home
Yuan Chonghuan, dressed in the uniform of a fourth-rank civil servant, walked three miles out of the city to welcome the Marquis of Ping Liao.

After listening to Kang Yingqian's story, Yuan Chonghuan was surprised:
"That day in the Forbidden City, I told the late Emperor that we would conquer Liaodong within five years. Unexpectedly, General Liu was so wise and brave that he killed the chieftain and pacified Liaodong in just six months!"

Yuan Chonghuan in front of him was still dark, thin and unattractive.

Your greasy middle-aged self hasn't changed at all.

The Kaiyuan army suffered heavy casualties in the bloody battle of Hunhe River, and many people had already left. Now when they saw Yuan Chonghuan, they felt an inexplicable sense of intimacy.

Now Yuan Chonghuan has been promoted to Liaodong Censor, and all criminal justice in Liaodong is under his control, with power second only to that of Liaodong Governor.

In less than a year, Yuan Dudu was promoted from a poor third-class Jinshi to deputy provincial governor, a promotion as fast as Li Rusong.

"Inspector Yuan praised me for my bravery. It's all thanks to the soldiers who risked their lives and worked together!"

Yuan Chonghuan, with a stern expression, approached Liu Zhaosun and whispered, "General Liu, the Later Jin has not been destroyed yet, Huang Taiji has retreated to Hetuala, and the Jiannu are still strong. We must not slack off."

This is the first time I have heard such words along the way, and they came from Yuan Chonghuan.

Ping Liaohou couldn't help but look at Yuan Dudu with admiration.

Seeing that Yuan Chonghuan was thin, he couldn't help but greet him again.

"Inspector Yuan has been in Lingnan for a long time. Can you appreciate the scenery of Liaodong?"

Yuan Chonghuan glanced at Kang Yingqian in the crowd and grinned, "I'm busy with official duties and have no time for social events, so I didn't pay attention to these things."

Everyone laughed.

While leading everyone into the city, Yuan Chonghuan reported the progress of various work to Ping Liaohou.

On that day, Huang Taiji led the Plain White Banner to besiege Kaiyuan. 1,200 soldiers in the city were killed or wounded, and more than 2,000 civilians were killed or wounded. The area south of the city was almost razed to the ground.

As they passed through Ying'en Gate, Liu Zhaosun looked at the dark walls, imagining the tragic battle in Kaiyuan, and said to Yuan Chonghuan:

"How is business in the city? Did any merchants defect to the Jiannu during the Later Jin siege?"

Yuan Chonghuan pointed to the shops lining the street and quickly replied:

"Don't worry, General Liu. Kaiyuan treats foreign invaders well. When Huang Taiji attacked the city, merchants contributed money and manpower to defend the city. Korean merchants spontaneously climbed the city walls and threw stones. I and Supervisor Qiao organized merchants to patrol the city and captured more than a dozen spies! The Later Jin spies were wiped out. Huang Taiji had no internal support and could only attack from the front. That's why Supervisor Qiao seized the opportunity and hit him with a cannon."

Yuan Chonghuan then told everyone in detail how Qiao Yiqi bombarded Huang Taiji that day.

Liu Zhaosun laughed and nodded to Yuan Chonghuan with satisfaction. This was what he wanted.

In the face of interests, all the foreign and domestic officials, Huang Taiji and Nurhaci, have to stand aside.

Merchants are not fools. The tax rate in Kaiyuan is much lower than that in Houjin, and there are various preferential policies. For example, some commercial taxes can be reduced or exempted if the business has been operating for more than half a year.

In business, the most important thing is order and stability.

During the most difficult times, Liu Zhaosun did not choose to rob the rich to help the poor or rob merchants, but worked hard to maintain business order and ensure the legal operation of merchants of all ethnic groups.

For this reason alone, Kaiyuan under his rule was much more reliable than the Later Jin and Liaozhen.

Since General Liu can protect his own interests, there is no need to open the gates to welcome the Later Jin masters into the city.

Without the support and protection of merchants of all ethnic groups, Lao Nu's intelligence network in Kaiyuan was immediately paralyzed, so he became blind.

The strategy of attacking cities by cooperating internally and externally, which the Later Jin Dynasty had always relied on, was completely ineffective in front of Liu Zhaosun.

This was also one of the reasons why Huang Taiji, after being injured by the Red Cannon, gave up the tough nut to crack in Kaiyuan and led his troops south to reinforce Shenyang.

"Good! Inspector Yuan is an expert in civil affairs, a man of Xiao He's caliber! If Huang Taiji retreats to Hetuala, Liaodong merchants will no longer associate with the Jiannu. This will sever the Jiannu's lifeline. Hetuala will undoubtedly be in dire need of supplies, and Huang Taiji will only face even greater defeat!"

Liu Zhaosun thought of the trade matters he had agreed upon with Jin Dajiu and Man Gui, and continued:

"I plan to consolidate the merchants and establish a larger trading company. This will also provide officers with an additional source of income and prevent corruption. Of course, the price of shares sold to officers will be much lower than outside. Anyone can become a shareholder: Yehe people, Mongolians, Koreans, and even Japanese merchants."

Yuan Chonghuan looked confused and obviously didn't understand what a company was.

Liu Zhaosun added:
"We sell southern goods, salt, cloth, grain, and other necessities. We have unified pricing and unified procurement. Our prices are lower than the market price, and the goods are genuine and reasonably priced. From now on, trade with Korea and Mongolia will be handled by this large shop."

Yuan Chonghuan nodded repeatedly, pondered for a moment, and then expressed his concerns to Ping Liaohou.

"Marquis Ping Liao, as far as I know, Korean trade is concentrated along the Yalu River, which is too far from us and has nothing to do with Kaiyuan. The remaining trade goes through the southern Liaoning route and is divided up by the military leaders in western Liaoning. We can't even get 10% of the trade. I don't know how we can trade with the Koreans."

Before Ping Liaohou could speak, Kang Yingqian, who was standing nearby, shook his head and laughed, "Your Excellency Yuan, you don't know that Jin Yuji's brother is the angel of the Joseon Dynasty. The power behind him is none other than that prince, and they are planning to depose the Joseon king. These people need Ping Liaohou's support to accomplish this!"

Hearing about participating in the Korean palace fight, Yuan Chonghuan frowned, as if thinking about something. Kang Yingqian was unaware and continued to explain:
"We can't deal with Liaoxi right now. However, we can take over the Yalu River. Controlling Sinuiju will allow us to easily control both trade with and deter North Korea."

Hearing this, Yuan Chonghuan couldn't help but interrupt and asked, "Is it too hasty to get involved in Korea?"

Hearing about Korea, the expressions of everyone around Ping Liaohou changed slightly, and Kang Yingqian said indignantly:
"This is what Inspector Yuan doesn't know! Back at Sarhu, Gwanghaegun instructed the Korean commander, Jiang Hongli, to negotiate peace with Daeshan and sell out the Eastern Route Army. I nearly lost my life in the Hunjiang River! Once Gwanghaegun is ousted, I will settle all my grudges, both old and new, and I will personally chop these unruly bastards into pieces!"

Yuan Chonghuan nodded slightly.

Hearing that General Liu had influence in Korea and Mongolia, and that Lieutenant General Man Gui was a sworn brother of Marquis Ping Liao, he was shocked. He had a new understanding of Marquis Ping Liao's strength.

Liu Zhaosun took over the conversation and added, "Next spring, after I get married, the Kaiyuan army will cross the Yalu River and enter Korea, driving the remaining Jiannu forces further northeast. At that time, the merchants can monopolize Korean trade and gradually weaken Zu Dashou."

~~~~~~~~
Everyone was walking and chatting, and when they passed the North-South Street, the General's Mansion was right in front of them. Liu Zhaosun said goodbye to everyone in a hurry, and before leaving, he asked Yuan Chonghuan to make preparations in advance and go with him to inspect the garrison the next day.

After saying that, he took Jin Yuji and walked straight to his mansion under the protection of a group of guards.

He felt a little nervous. He hadn't seen Yang Qing'er for two and a half months and didn't know how she was doing.

I heard from Yuan Chonghuan that the Concubine cried every day, but I don’t know whether it is true or not.

Liu Zhaosun didn't really like this fifteen-year-old girl.

The original agreement he made to Yang Hao and to marry his daughter was purely out of political speculation.

After leaving Shenyang with Yang Qing'er, the bloody battle of Kaiyuan broke out. After the battle was finally over, they were busy training the troops again.

When everything was done and preparations were being made for the wedding, Nurhaci came to Shenyang.

It dragged on like this for more than half a year, and the marriage agreed to by Yang Jinglie still had no progress.

Looking back on the past six months, in order to accumulate strength to fight the Jiannu, Liu Zhaosun had used all means possible, even using marriage as a bargaining chip, which was simply deceiving the pure feelings of a young girl. Suddenly, he felt like a real bastard.

Jin Yuji's health had almost recovered and she could walk alone without any problem. She followed Liu Zhaosun and walked towards the general's mansion with a happy face.

There were still dozens of steps away from the gate. From a distance, Yang Qing'er and the fat girl were seen standing at the door, looking over here like a pair of waiting stones for their husbands to marry.

Yang Qing'er had received the news early and knew that the official would return to Kaiyuan today.

"Madam!"

Liu Zhaosun hid behind her and shouted. Yang Qing'er was frightened. When she turned around and saw her husband, tears started to flow.

She trotted over, ignoring Jin Yuji beside her, and threw herself into his arms, sobbing softly like a wounded deer.

"Don't cry, don't cry."

Ping Liaohou raised his dirty hands to wipe Yang Qing'er's tears, but hesitated for a moment before doing so.

Yang Qing'er took out a scented handkerchief from her sleeve, handed it to her husband without looking up, and continued crying.

Liu Zhaosun took the handkerchief and wiped his wife's tears. He glanced back secretly, but Jin Yuji turned her head away.

"Don't cry, don't cry. You are now a second-rank imperial consort, conferred by the new emperor. The governor will dismount when he sees you. If the guards see you like this... it won't be good."

After hearing this, Yang Qing'er took two steps back. The two held hands. Yang Qing'er looked Liu Zhaosun up and down, and Liu Zhaosun also looked at her with a smile.

Yang Qing'er has a tall and straight figure, and compared to the first time they met half a year ago, she looks more calm and charming.

"I haven't seen you for two months. You seem to be stronger now. Did you get hurt in Shenyang this time? I came to check on you."

Her face was full of smiles, and she nestled in Liu Zhaosun's arms like a little bird, and while she spoke, she stretched out her hands to fiddle around Liu Zhaosun's neck and shoulders.

Jin Yuji, who was standing nearby, could no longer bear it. She coughed lightly, left everyone behind, and pushed the door open to enter the courtyard.

Liu Zhaosun smiled at Yang Qing'er and put her down:

"Madam, you have suffered in Kaiyuan these days..."

"Let's not talk about sad things. I'm going to patrol the camp and come back tonight for a drink. Let's have fun together and don't be too rigid. If you want anything to eat, tell Pei Dahu and he'll prepare it. I have... ten taels of silver here. Call Bumbutai as well!"

(End of this chapter)