The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 532 Close the door and beat the dog
At the beginning of the twelfth lunar month, King Yi Jong of Joseon sent his only son, Crown Prince Yi Ho, to Pyongyang.

According to the treaty, the prince will serve as a hostage of Korea and spend the rest of his miserable life in Tianxin City, the capital of Qi.

Liu Zhaosun had no impression of Li Hao, nor did he know what this man had done in history. He did not even meet the prince, so he asked the Suoyi Guard to send someone to escort him back to Junzhou.

The cold wind in Liaodong in December was biting, and the journey of the Korean prince to Qi would be very difficult. The Suoyi Guard would not give him too much courtesy, only two horses, and not even the most tattered carriage.

As the saying goes, the son of a king who has lost his country should carry the heavy burden forward.

Besides, Emperor Wuding was busy with all kinds of affairs and had no time to care about the prince's psychological feelings.

However, the hostage incident had a certain impact on the 10th Corps.

Although the Corps Commander Jin Yinghe did not express his opinion, a group of Korean soldiers from the 10th Corps believed that Da Qi lacked the minimum respect for the Crown Prince.

The Tenth Corps is composed of mercenaries and prisoners from various countries, and its personnel is complex.

Emperor Wuding did not want to expand the purge to the army for the time being, and he attached great importance to the opinions of Jin Yinghe and others, and Jin Yuji came to plead for mercy.

Under pressure from public opinion, Liu Zhaosun had to pretend to punish the minor official responsible for the matter. The Suoyi Guard arranged a shock-absorbing carriage for Li Zong's son to ride.

The matter came to an end.

Except for the annual tribute of one million taels of silver, which was difficult to raise at the moment, North Korea had fulfilled all other terms of the Ganghwa Peace Treaty.

The various corps withdrew from the front line one after another and returned to Pyeongan Province.

Emperor Wu Ding was quite satisfied with the Treaty of Ganghwa.

From then on, Hamgyong Province and Pyeongan Province were annexed by the Qi Dynasty and renamed Zhengdong Province and Lelang Province. The southern port of Busan was forcibly occupied by the Qi army under the name of lease, with a rent of one tael of silver per year for a period of 999 years.

Between Hwanghae Province and Pyongan Province, at the border between the two countries, North Korean troops were forced to withdraw, serving as a military buffer zone between the two countries.

As for other unequal clauses in trade, justice, tariffs, etc., they are so numerous that there is no need to describe them in detail.

On the tenth day of the twelfth lunar month, Sun Chuanting and Hou Xun returned safely from Busan. As expected, just as Emperor Wuding had done in Liaodong, both of them were unharmed.

The next step was to reward the various corps that participated in the war, with those who deserved promotions being given promotions and those who deserved awards being given awards.

On the fifteenth day of the twelfth lunar month, the war to pacify Korea was basically over, and Emperor Wu Ding's personal expedition finally came to an end.

The empire's territory expanded northward and eastward, reaching Sakhalin Island in the north and Pyeongan Province and Hamgyong Province in the east.

Thanks to huge military and economic investments, the empire will achieve unprecedented and thorough control over these reconquered territories.

~~~~
"How is Zheng Zhilong now?"

"Your Majesty, the pirates are full of energy and talk about wanting to serve the country every day. They want to go to the sea with General Wu to kill the Japanese pirates and the red-haired barbarians."

"He should kill himself first, if he still has any conscience."

In Anhe Palace, Liu Zhaosun looked at Wu Xiao who came from Shenyang and asked him about the latest situation in Liaodong.

I didn't expect that Zheng Zhilong still had this desire to serve his country even after being imprisoned for so long.

However, the retired emperor no longer has any trust in Zheng Zhilong. The Korean War has come to an end, and dealing with Japan will be a matter of a few years. In this case, there is no point in keeping this big pirate.

"Although I want to kill him, he is the God of Wealth of the Great Qi. Keep him to ask Zheng Chenggong for money."

"I'll go back and see him."

In a blink of an eye, I have been in North Korea for more than half a year, and it is time to return to Shenyang.

Before leaving, Emperor Wuding summoned Xie Yang and Liu Xingzuo.

He repeatedly told the two to do their best to "share the wealth with the people."

Times are tough. Whether it's Korea or Da Qi, or whether it's merchants from Shanxi or Anhui, everyone must contribute to the world.

Liu Xingzuo glanced at Xie Yang who was standing next to him. Xie Guangkun had a smug smile on his face. He then looked at the emperor, who also looked confident. The spy chief suddenly felt an unprecedented fear.

Tens of thousands of middle-class families in North Korea would soon be wiped out by Emperor Wu Ding's words of contributing to the world.

"Your Majesty, we will do our best to share your worries." On the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month, Emperor Wu Ding left Pyongyang, crossed the Yalu River via Yizhou, and returned to Liaodong. There was no conversation along the way. On the 15th day of the twelfth lunar month, he returned to Shenyang.

Not to mention the reunion of Liu Zhaosun and his family members including Yang Qing'er and Chen Yuanyuan, Xie Yang and Liu Xingzuo were busy in Pyongyang working on the strategy of "sharing wealth with the people". They first found a group of Shanxi and Huizhou merchants doing business in North Korea.

Move it with emotion, understand it with reason.

"The Civil Affairs Bureau has checked and found that the total amount of deposits they can accept is 8,284,000 taels. For every 1,000 taels, they'll give out 10 taels. Whoever does this will get rich!"

Xie Yang patted his chest, as if he had seen it with his own eyes.

The temptation is quite great. It depends on whether these businessmen agree or not. Obviously, they are not fools and know that there may be pitfalls.

"We just have to pay a deposit. The government wants each of us to pay 200,000 taels. If we put the money in, what will we do if the business doesn't work out?"

"We are all small businesses with little capital and little profit. It's difficult to raise so much money when we are young. However, we still have some shops in Seoul. If the government doesn't mind..."

These Huizhou and Shanxi merchants were not only bold and unscrupulous, but also wicked. They deliberately tricked Xie Yang and Liu Xingzuo, wanting to use their workshops and brothels in Seoul as collateral.

Seoul is still in the hands of the Koreans. If the Huizhou and Shanxi merchants run away with the money, Xie Yang will have nowhere to look for them.

"No way,"

"To be honest, the Emperor is very short of cash lately. If it weren't for the lack of manpower in the Civil Affairs Department, we would have done it ourselves long ago. Absorbing silver is a very profitable business! According to the calculations just now, you will make a fortune this year, 500,000 taels, and next year, you will make even more!"

"Next year?" A Huizhou merchant's eyes sparkled.

"You've done well this year. Next year, when our army invades Japan, we'll look for you!"

Neither side was clear about how the other side calculated the accounts. Several representatives of wealthy merchants thought that Qi's investment promotion was a scam and they just wanted to make more money.

"I heard that Da Qi confiscated private property. Thank you, sir. This business is indeed profitable. Many people are rushing to do it. I'm afraid that in the end, they will make wedding clothes for Da Qi."

Xie Yang hugged the short and fat Jinyang businessman and squinted his eyes:
"We've been doing business together for so many years, when have I ever cheated you? To be honest, money storage is a thorny issue. Who cares about the Great Qi or the Great Ming, whoever the emperor is? Brother, the money is real only when it's in your own hands! You're a jerk if you don't make money! After the deal is done, we'll split it 70% and 30%."

Jin merchant Mantianxing opened his mouth wide in surprise, "What? 70% split? Thank you for all the hard work, and only 30% is enough! That's not right!"

Xie Yang had a gloomy face.

"It has to be 50% at least. I'll give you 50%!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Xingzuo jumped up and made a gesture to draw his sword.

Xie Yang tried to smooth things over:

"Okay, let's listen to Shopkeeper Mantianxing! Fifty percent!"

The other merchants hesitated, and Xie Yang struck while the iron was hot:
"Don't worry about what the old emperor says. Everyone needs to eat, right? If we can't eat, we brothers are counting on you Shanxi merchants to make a living! Shopkeeper, let me tell you a secret. After defeating Korea, the court will also attack Japan. If we make this deal, you can help us in the fight against Japan later. If you miss this opportunity, you will never get it again."

Unfortunately, Xie Yang still underestimated the intelligence of the wealthy merchants in the interior of the country. They used a trick of playing hard to get:
"Please forgive us, my Lords, for not accepting this offer of money from the Koreans."

Xie Yang became anxious and rubbed the wig on his head hard.

"What if I give you a commission of ten taels for every thousand taels? You can make eight hundred thousand taels!"

With just one sentence from Xie Yang, the wealthy merchants' profits doubled. Liu Xingzuo fiddled with his abacus over and over again, and became more and more confused.

Seeing such a big concession, the short and fat Shanxi merchant was frightened and asked tentatively:
"Thank you, sir. You gave us a profit of two hundred thousand taels with just one sentence. Does the Emperor recognize this?"

Just as Xie Yang was about to speak, the accountant Liu Xingzuo stepped hard on Xie Yang's boots and said, "You can't give in!"

Several wealthy businessmen heard it clearly.

"I am the head of Qi's civil affairs department and also the Minister of Revenue. My words are the will of the Emperor! The Emperor is only responsible for fighting wars. All other matters are handled by our cabinet!"

The short and fat businessman is ready to make a move.

"Slow down a little bit, slow down a little bit."

A slightly more sober businessman hesitated.

(End of this chapter)