The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 223: The Country is in Chaos and Needs a Good Prime Minister

Liu Zhaosun promised Bumbutai that after the war was over this year, he would dispatch elite cavalry to escort her back to the Khorchin grassland and help this descendant of the Golden Family regain the Khorchin Khanate.

With the combat effectiveness of the Kaiyuan cavalry, dispatching two thousand fully-equipped cavalrymen was enough to force back Ligdan Khan's troops.

Liu Zhaosun supported Khorchin mainly for the following three reasons:

First, the upper echelons of Khorchin were completely decimated by Ligdan Khan, making it easier for Liu Zhaosun to plant forces close to him. Dayu'er has a close relationship with Ping Liaohou, and they could form an alliance later on. As the saying goes, alliances must start from the very beginning;
Second, Khorchin and Kaiyuan were far apart and did not share a border. They were also separated by tribes such as Duoyan and Chaohua, which was consistent with Kaiyuan's foreign policy of making friends with distant tribes and attacking nearby ones.

Third, Khorchin and Jianzhou have been married for many years, and Khorchin people have participated in every military campaign of Nurhaci. Now that the Later Jin Dynasty has been destroyed, Ping Liaohou did not pursue the matter, but instead assisted Khorchin in its recovery. The attitudes of various ethnic groups towards Kaiyuan will change greatly.

Liu Zhaosun believed that relying solely on military means to launch a northern expedition to fight against Mongolia, as Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Di did in the early Ming Dynasty, was doomed to be unsustainable and would not have good results.

Because he was not bound by concepts such as "Central Plains orthodoxy", Liu Zhaosun would personally take action, unite with Khorchin to attack other Mongolian tribes, seize the position of Heavenly Khan, accept the canonization of Changshengtian, grant himself divine power, and finally establish some kind of unified ruling order of Orthodoxy and Christianity on the grassland.

This is obviously much more sophisticated than the Zhu emperor's simple military attack and economic blockade.

On the fifteenth day of the twelfth lunar month, Liu Zhaosun summoned Kang Yingqian alone.

Years ago, General Kang had to go to Kuandian to take up his post and was demoted to Yuan Chonghuan's deputy.

After this separation, I don’t know when we will meet again.

Liu Zhaosun had deep feelings for Kang Yingqian and always regarded him as a friend.

If the Hetuala incident had not happened, Kang Yingqian would have gone to Chengdu or Chongqing next year. After defeating She Chongming, he would have started his wealthy life as the King of the Southwest.

"A country in turmoil needs a good minister, and Kaiyuan is losing its talent. With the departure of General Kang, everything will be even more difficult in the future."

Liu Zhaosun leaned back in his chair, looking worried.

After the failed attempt to force the emperor to abdicate, Kang Yinggan was beaten with twenty military sticks. Although Zhang Chao showed mercy, Kang Yinggan still felt the pain for three days.

During these three days, Kang Yingqian closed the door and refused visitors, reflecting on his actions in the past two years and recalling every detail of his peace with Liaohou.

Although he did not understand Marquis Ping Liao, he had secretly decided to follow Marquis Ping Liao's lead, no longer fight for power and profit, and be content with being a rich man.

Hearing what Ping Liaohou said, I knew he was testing me.

Kang Yingqian said with guilt:

"I am obsessed with power and have delayed General Liu's important mission, causing Kaiyuan to be hated by foreign tribes. Ping Liaohou is kind and has spared me. Now that I have arrived in Kuandian, I will definitely assist Lord Yuan and protect Kuandian."

Liu Zhaosun smiled with satisfaction and said:
"I'm relieved now that Supervisor Kang has said that. I've always considered Supervisor Kang a mentor and friend. I have no choice but to resort to such ruthless means and torture you this time!"

After saying that, he asked about Kang Yingqian's injury.

Kang Yingqian laughed in his heart. In his opinion, Ping Liaohou was becoming more and more cunning and shameless.

"General Kang, I'm sending you to Kuandian this time, nominally for punishment, but in reality for checks and balances. After this incident is over, I'll summon you back to Kaiyuan. I'll have more matters for you to take charge of."

Kang Yingqian's heart was pounding. He didn't expect that Ping Liaohou would have such thoughts.

After a moment's thought, he understood.

After the Hetuala incident, Ping Liaohou began to be wary of his subordinates.

Although Kang Yingqian was loyal to Ping Liaohou, whether he was fighting for power or forming a clique for personal gain, he just wanted Liu Zhaosun to become emperor as soon as possible so that he could make a name for himself as a loyal follower of the emperor.

As for what other people think, Lao Kang doesn't know.

"Don't worry, Marquis Ping Liao. I know what to do."

Liu Zhaosun looked at Kang Yingqian seriously and decided to give this old subordinate a hint to let him know the reforms he would carry out next.

Liu Zhaosun looked around and whispered:
"Military Supervisor Kang, I have decided to establish a system of representatives for soldiers, merchants, and settlements. Simply put, we will select outstanding soldiers from each army—assessed based on their combat records, character, and family background—and from each guard, we will select five hundred soldiers. From these five hundred, we will select five to represent all soldiers in the army, forming a five-man representative group. They will remain at their respective posts during peacetime, but in wartime, they will be on par with the army commander and participate in military decision-making. The five-man representative group will be solely accountable to me, and will have the right to advise and supervise decisions, but not the final say. The merchant and settlement representatives will operate in a similar manner, and the specific details still need to be finalized..."

Liu Zhaosun's brief remark was enough for Kang Yingqian to grasp the purpose of establishing a representative system. It would further limit and fragment the power held by the various commanders, helping Ping Liaohou maintain a firm grip on the army. If implemented effectively, there would be no more instances of a commander fainting and the army falling apart.

Kang Yingqian was well aware that as Kaiyuan continued to expand its military and its territory expanded rapidly, the power in the hands of generals and chief officers expanded rapidly, and the previously established adjutant military supervision system could no longer adapt to the current new situation.

Taking Tieling as an example, the chief officer could easily control the city's commerce, military settlements, education, and other interests. At critical moments, he could even mobilize fewer than a thousand soldiers to quell rebellions without the approval of the Marquis of Ping Liao. Compared to the all-powerful chief officer, the influence of several unaffiliated lieutenants was clearly limited, and they might even collude with the chief officer to deceive their superiors.

This problem exists to a greater or lesser extent in every army and every city.

The three adjutants around Deng Changxiong often ate and drank with their commander in private, and treated each other as brothers.

It is obviously a fantasy to expect these three people to check and balance Deng.

This time, Deng Changxiong led his troops to drive the people of Hetuala to fill the trenches. At the critical moment, the adjutants remained silent. Afterwards, they formed an offensive and defensive alliance and pushed all the responsibility onto Sun Chuanting who gave the order.

"The Marquis of Ping Liao's move was truly a decisive move, directly severing the root causes of factionalism, the accumulation of troops, and corruption. It was truly extraordinary, beyond the reach of ordinary people..."

Seeing Kang Yingqian starting to pimp again, Liu Zhaosun quickly interrupted him and laughed:

"This is just a preliminary idea. The reform plan is written here. The specific details still need to be polished. It is expected to be implemented in the middle of next year. Supervisor Kang can also help me think about it in Kuandian."

As Liu Zhaosun spoke, he took out a thick stack of rice paper from under his pillow, which was covered with densely written words.

Kang Yingqian turned to the title page and read carefully:
"A single spark can start a prairie fire: The Laba Conference adapted from Kaiyuan (Taichang Year 2 Edition)"

Not long after Kang Yingqian left, Deng Changxiong arrived at the general's residence.

Liu Zhaosun appealed to Deng Changxiong's emotions and reasoned with him, and they talked from noon to 3 p.m., a full two hours.

Until the third time Lady Gaoming knocked on the door, angrily urging her husband to eat quickly.

Deng Changxiong bowed and said goodbye to Ping Liaohou.

"General Liu, I will strictly discipline the army. From now on, I will only focus on fighting and will never get involved in their fights again!"

Liu Zhaosun struggled to stand up from the armchair and pretended to see Deng Changxiong out. Deng Changxiong hurriedly supported him.

Liu Zhaosun waved his hands, stood up, and said breathlessly:
"Old Deng, the eight hundred servants under my adoptive father's command were all abused by me in Sarhu. Some died, some fled. In the end, only you, Pei Dahu, and Wang Erhu followed me. Wang Erhu was too cautious in fighting and could not stand alone. Pei Dahu's life and death are unknown now. He is likely to have died in the capital with his two men. I will avenge them and send people to wipe out the East Factory sooner or later. Let's not talk about them. You have the longest experience, are the best fighter, are brave, and are responsible. You are not comparable to Wang Erhu, Qi Jin, Qin Jianxun, etc. I will hand over the 2,000th headquarters to you. Every time I change equipment, I will give you the best and the latest. I hope you can understand my expectations..."

"You've taken the blame for Kaiyuan this time, and I'll keep it in mind. After some time, when this matter has settled, I'll find a reason to transfer you back to the Second Guards Army, and you'll continue to be their commander. Next year, the Second Guards Army will still be responsible for the main attack on Liaozhen. I'll personally lead the First Guards Army to assist you! Remember, you're Kaiyuan's sharpest sword, and many are watching you, waiting for you to make a mistake so they can replace you. The more this happens, the more you must restrain your edge! Don't let them get a hold of you!"

"Before my adoptive father died, he asked me to take good care of you. I don't want to disappoint him."

With tears in his eyes, Deng Changxiong fell to his knees and kowtowed heavily to Ping Liaohou.

Liu Zhaosun stumbled forward and helped up the servant who had followed him for many years, saying with a smile:

"Okay, go back quickly. You should rest well these days. Open the door quickly, or the Imperial Madam will knock on the door."

When the country is in chaos, it needs a good prime minister.

With the explosive growth of the Kaiyuan system, the territory and population became larger and larger, and various interests became entangled and contradictions became prominent.

Liu Zhaosun urgently felt the need for several officials who were proficient in government affairs, capable of taking charge of a region, and who shared similar values to his own.

Looking around, the only people who meet the requirements are Qiao Yiqi, Yuan Chonghuan and Sun Chuanting.

Others either lack the ability and can only be at the bottom, or have begun to drift away from this system.

Ping Liaohou had high hopes for Yuan Chonghuan and Sun Chuanting, and for a long time, he had been training them as his right-hand men.

This time in Hetuala, Sun Chuanting has exposed his nature of disregarding human life.

Ping Liaohou asked Sun Chuanting to start as a minor civil official in order to let Sun Chuanting re-understand the Kaiyuan system and eliminate the influence of Ming Dynasty official habits on him.

(End of this chapter)