The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 659: Fujian Strategy
"Restore the Baojia system? There's absolutely no need. How can the harsh policies of the previous dynasty be used to harm the people of Great Qi again? To restrain the people, either completely control them like in Shandong and Liaodong, or give them full freedom like in Jiangnan."

"But, Your Majesty, Fujian is different from other provinces. In Xiamen and Zhangzhou, the remnants of the Zheng clan have not yet been eradicated. Fujian merchants are often colluding with Japan, smuggling contraband. I heard they even sell artillery. If we just sit back and do nothing... it will be difficult to control the spread of the virus, and even more difficult to eradicate the weeds. I fear that in a few years, Fujian will completely rebel and no longer be part of the Great Qi!"

"Could it be that Fujian is now part of the Great Qi? If you can't hold the sand, just let it go with the wind! Governing a large country is like cooking a small fish; you can't act rashly. Biting off more than you can chew. Baojia and other such systems that fool the people and harm them will only arouse public anger and should not be implemented. I have my own ideas."

On June 18, the third year of Guangde, Fengtian Hall in the Forbidden City, Nanjing.

The emperor discussed with his ministers how to deal with the rebellion in Fuzhou.

The recent rebellion in Fuzhou, though small in scale, was a sign and an open challenge to the land measurement system.

Lu Xiangsheng and others suggested implementing the baojia system in Fujian, building a grassroots management system of "du (fang) - pu - jia" and a household registration management system of "two plates (each family plate, ten families plate) and three books (agreement book, shop book, and bao book)".

Specifically, it means obeying instructions, strict supervision, careful patrols, joint watch, regular training, equal labor costs, prohibiting aggression and violence, dealing with treacherous and slanderous people, strengthening supervision, and cracking down on lawlessness.

The baojia system and the xiangyueyubao system are integrated, giving equal importance to supervision, deterrence and moral influence, managing household registration, investigating and reporting illegal activities, resisting bandits, and preventing and providing disaster relief.

Liu Zhaosun has not made any statement.

He completely denied everything at today's court meeting.

"The implementation of government affairs was originally under the supervision of Emperor Guangde, but he was in Yangzhou, overseeing the abolition of the grain transport system. The rebellion in Fujian was raging, and there was no time to delay, so I personally stepped forward. Everyone, if you have any further suggestions, please speak up."

Liu Zhaosun glanced at the clock hanging in the hall.

There are only three minutes left until twelve o'clock, which is the time when the emperor practices Taoism and meditates.

But Lu Xiangsheng kept talking about the Baojia system.

The emperor had no choice but to remain calm and listen to his ministers continue speaking.

He was determined that he would never implement the former Ming Dynasty's baojia system in Fujian, nor would he impose a maritime ban like the Qing Dynasty and relocate coastal people to the inland.

Da Qi was destined to be different from the Ming and Qing dynasties.

When Zhang Yunxiu returned to Nanjing to report on his work, he had instructed that when he implemented the new policy in Fujian, he should stop at measuring the land and recovering the official land that had been encroached upon by the gentry and princes, and not take any radical actions such as abolishing private property and business.

The reason for this is not that the empire is unable to reach Fujian, nor is it because the emperor is kind-hearted and unwilling to kill again.

"My dear ministers, Fujian must maintain its prosperity. If the laws are harsh, Fujian merchants will turn to the Japanese pirates, which will be more trouble than good. They all have ships, but the East China Sea is not covered."

There is no cover on either the East China Sea or the Pacific Ocean.

As an important maritime trade province in the south, Fujian is certainly different from other inland provinces.

In a nutshell, Fujian businessmen must be given more power and more freedom.

The retired emperor wanted to persuade his ministers, but as soon as he said this, he was immediately refuted.

"Your Majesty, the people of Fujian are treacherous and cannot be trusted!"

"Your Majesty, Zhang Jinglie implemented new policies in Fujian and provided great benefits to the people. Instead of repaying his kindness, they colluded with Zheng Sen. Their actions deserve death!"

Finally, Lu Xiangsheng, on behalf of all the ministers, made the final statement:
"The people of Fujian are just like the people of Liao back then. Most of them have joined the bandits. The Liao people joined the Jiannu, while the people of Fujian joined the pirates..."

"enough!"

The retired emperor slammed the table and stood up, furious.

He was already dissatisfied with the statement that "all Liao people are thieves", and when he heard that the people of Fujian were called thieves, he was naturally angry.

Officials like Lu Xiangsheng, who came from inland provinces, were inherently hostile towards the coastal areas.

In fact, it was not just Fujian. When Zhejiang implemented the new policy, Lu Xiangsheng also advocated strong suppression.

Was the eighteenth century an era of land power or an era of sea power?

Where will the empire's next expansion focus be?

This is a problem that has troubled Liu Zhaosun for a long time.

Speaking of land power, the European robbers are almost coming to our door.

When it comes to sea power, even if all the European bandits unite, they may not be a match for the Great Qi.

Out of his Celestial Empire mentality, Liu Zhaosun was inherently contemptuous of Europeans - otherwise he would not have supported Lu Demin in conducting white slave trade in the south, nor would he have been subjected to harsh abuse from the Pope of Rome.

Differences emerged in the imperial strategy during the third year of Guangde.

Continuing to expand northwestwards with the army as the center, they ran head-on into Ge Erdan's father, Ge Dadan;

Or occupy Bashu, expand to the southwest, and then recover the old territory of Annan and Jiaozhi;
Or expand the navy, march eastward to Japan in advance, immediately make Fuso, and make Tokugawa Iemitsu's head into a wine glass to avenge Yuan Chonghuan...
Liu Zhaosun was like standing at a crossroads, hesitating about where to go next.

But one thing is certain.

As the empire's territory continues to expand, the conflict between maritime strategy and continental strategy will only intensify and become increasingly irreconcilable.

I heard that there are conflicts and frictions between the Daqi Navy and the Army Corps...
The retired emperor did not want the conflicts between the Japanese navy and army during the Showa era to happen in Da Qi in advance.

"Everyone, Fujian is of vital importance. Quanzhou Port will restore its glory to the Song and Yuan dynasties, becoming a major world port once again and one of the most important trading ports of the Great Qi."

Liu Zhaosun looked around the hall, glanced at the ministers, and ordered in an unquestionable tone:

"Maintain the status quo in Fujian. Only the main culprits must be executed. The rest must not be moved without authorization, at least not now. Of course, the Zheng family must be annihilated. I reiterate again, forget about the baojia system. Don't do stupid things that suck the marrow out of people. You want the horse to run without letting it eat grass. I will not make the same mistakes as Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Di did."

"General Wu and his fleet landed in Xiamen and Zhangzhou yesterday and are suppressing the rebellion."

Hearing the emperor say this, Lu Xiangsheng shook his head helplessly. "Your Majesty, are you going to sit back and watch Fujian merchants collude with Japanese pirates, sell firearms, and exchange intelligence?"

"of course not!"

The retired emperor interrupted his prime minister again.

Zhang Dong stood up from behind the emperor, bowed to Lu Xiangsheng, and said with a firm look:

"Don't worry, Lord Lu! The Suoyi Guards have already arrived in Fuzhou. They're just waiting for the Sixth Fleet to take control of the city before they start their killing spree. The Emperor said only the ringleaders would be executed. He never said anything about sparing these traitorous merchants!"

The retired emperor winked at Zhang Mazi, and Zhang Dong informed the ministers of the Suoyiwei's action plan in Fujian.

After listening to this, Lu Xiangsheng nodded approvingly. The old minister stared at the pockmarks on Zhang Dong's face and said excitedly:

"These pirates have betrayed the emperor's grace and refused to be peaceful citizens. They are like mantises fighting with their arms raised. With the Sixth Fleet and the Minotaur Guards, Fujian can be pacified."

Liu Zhaosun murmured to himself:
"Yes, many more people are going to die."

After the Emperor finished speaking, he continued to talk to himself:

"I actually still want to resolve the dispute peacefully and give those merchants a way out. They value profit, and as long as they can make more money in Da Qi than in Japan, I believe no one will be willing to collude with Zheng Sen."

Lu Xiangsheng smiled and thought that this was the emperor's wishful thinking.

"You all should go and do your best."

The retired emperor waved his hand, looking tired. The high priest was about to announce the adjournment of the court when he suddenly saw Liu Xingzuo running hurriedly from outside the hall.

Liu Zhaosun's heart trembled, knowing that this intelligence chief had just returned from Yangzhou.

Liu Xingzuo had no time to kneel down, so he hurriedly came to the emperor and whispered a few words in his ear.

Just as Lu Xiangsheng was about to ask what was going on, he saw the emperor slowly stand up, stumble forward a few steps, and suddenly fall to the ground.

Francisco and Zhang Dong rushed forward to support him, but were pushed away by the emperor.

"Don't help me, get out of the way!"

Liu Zhaosun stood up, leaning on the imperial desk, and walked past the officials as if no one was around, without caring that the ministers were still in the hall.

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty!"

Lu Xiangsheng and several cabinet ministers chased after him all the way to the gate of Fengtian Palace.

The retired emperor left behind a tall and lonely figure as he rode the wind towards the Qing Palace.

Leaving behind a room full of civil and military officials of the Great Qi looking at each other and talking in confusion.

"It is Emperor Guangde in Yangzhou..."

"Was Guazhou massacred?"

·····
"You can't wait to talk nonsense! Now that the court has been dismissed and everyone has gone their separate ways, what are you still doing here?"

Lu Xiangsheng roared loudly, and then the officials walked out sparsely, whispering to each other as they walked.

Lu Xiangsheng came to Liu Xingzuo with a cane, like a candle in the wind, and said tremblingly:

"General Liu, what big thing happened in Yangzhou?"

In a moment, only Liu Xingzuo, Zhang Dong, the high priest, and Lu Xiangsheng were left in the hall.

Liu Xingzuo said in a hoarse voice, "Your Majesty's guards are dead. They were ambushed by Luo Jiao in Guazhou, and Luo Wenjian escaped."

The three of them sighed and groaned, and Lu Xiangsheng shed tears silently.

The high priest asked, "Which guard was killed in battle? This is the first time I've seen Your Majesty so grief-stricken."

Liu Xingzuo's eyes were red, and after a long while, he said, "All of them, including Lin Yu."

"Except Wu Xiao, Jiang Liuer, and Li Zicheng."

The Portuguese were stunned.

The imperial guards sent to Yangzhou by the retired emperor, several waves of thirty or forty people, all died for their country.

"Lin Yu is a lucky general of the Great Qi. From Kaiyuan to now, he has survived many fierce battles. How could he be in trouble?"

After a few words, everyone came to a cruel conclusion: no one in this world is immortal.

Then everyone stopped talking and walked out of the hall in silence.

"Where has your Majesty gone?"

"The Qing Palace."

"What is your Majesty doing in the Qing Palace?"

Francesco explained to the three men:

"His Majesty the Emperor Emeritus cultivates together with Master Zhang of the Great Qing Palace. Master Zhang knows how to bring the dead back to life, just like the witches who excelled in magic in medieval Europe."

(End of this chapter)