The Ming Dynasty's Five Hundred Years

Chapter 124 Advice
Real war is not the grand and romantic affair described by poets.

The monotonous march, the steady camping, the scattered scouts, the long wait, from nightfall to dawn.

Beijing is located on the frontier, not far from the border. Once outside the Central Plains, the surrounding scenery is quite different.

For many of the southerners who accompanied the army, such as Yang Rong, this was the first time they had ever seen such a vast desert landscape.

Since leaving the border, Li Xianmu had been observing the environment and looking at the geomantic map from time to time. He did it more frequently than the generals.

This scene naturally caught Zhu Di's attention.

After pondering for a moment, Li Xianmu said loudly, "I am thinking about why the Central Plains dynasties throughout history have never been able to control the grasslands. Even after the Xianbei, who originated from the grasslands, moved south, new nomadic groups emerged in the north."

This remark drew laughter from everyone in the tent, and Zhu Di laughed loudly, "What's so difficult about that? This barren land is not even as wealthy as a prefecture in the Central Plains. I do not cherish it. This has been the case since ancient times. If it weren't for the jackals and wolves that infest it, I wouldn't even give it a second glance."

But if there are jackals, we will wipe them out with all our might.

Why would they care about anything else?

"exactly!"

The generals laughed and said, "Does Scholar Li really intend to take this barren land for himself?"

Li Xianmu suddenly asked, "What about a hundred years from now?"

Zhu Di was still smiling and didn't hear Li Xianmu's words. "Xianmu, what did you say?"

"What about a hundred years from now? What if our dynasty's military falls into disarray? The capital is right on the front line. What will we do when we can no longer leave the city and fight in the field?"

These nomadic groups are not considered strong for the current prosperous Ming Dynasty, but since ancient times, nomadic groups have always been stronger than the Central Plains dynasties during their periods of decline.

Did His Majesty move the capital to Beijing merely to secure fifty years of peace?
Your Majesty, I had assumed that Your Majesty's decision to move the capital to Beijing was part of a plan to permanently pacify Liaodong and Mongolia!

Gaa! Gaa gaa!

The laughter abruptly stopped, and the generals in the tent fell silent for a moment. Then, Duke Qiu Fu of Qi said smugly, "Isn't fifty years of peace enough?"

"Of course not enough!"

It was Zhu Di who spoke these words, his voice carrying a chill. Qiu Fu immediately shrank his neck, feeling a cold shiver run down his spine, and fell silent.

Zhu Di glanced at Li Xianmu a few times, but seeing that Li Xianmu was not speaking, he became a little anxious, "Li Xianmu!"

Tell me, what strategy do you have to permanently suppress the Mongols?

Li Xianmu sighed, "Kublai Khan was Genghis Khan's grandson. Even he had to lead the Han Chinese hereditary lords back to Karakorum to obtain the position of Mongol Khan. How much more so for us Han Chinese?"
"Barbarians fear power but do not cherish virtue; a war is always necessary first. If they are not completely subdued, there are no further plans."

"Leave the war to me. The Mongols are nothing but a piece of cake. Now tell me, what should we do after the war?"

Li Xianmu hesitated for a moment, then slowly said, "There are really only a few paths to rule the grasslands, which have already been explored to a great extent in ancient times."

Firstly, it is necessary to win over the upper echelons and isolate the Mongol Golden Family. His Majesty's conferment of the title of Shunyi King on the Oirat Mongols is one such measure, but conferring only one Shunyi King is too few and will not incite internal strife.

Secondly, the government should offer concessions to the lower classes, open trade markets, calculate the prices of goods available on the grasslands, such as sheepskin, and then calculate the prices of goods needed on the grasslands, such as salt and tea. Trade these goods several times a year so that the people will not starve to death, nor will they have to risk their lives to go south. At least whether the goods on the grasslands are useful or not will not matter.

Thirdly, military deterrence, regarding this point...

What Li Xianmu said is indeed a well-worn topic, among which the trade system is the most useful. The Han Dynasty recovered the Southern Xiongnu by using the trade system plus rewards to get the Southern Xiongnu to guard the border, which was very effective.

However, Zhu Di was most interested in the third point, because Li Xianmu was hesitant. What could make him hesitate was quite interesting: "What about military deterrence?"

"I am guilty, I dare not speak."

"I hereby pardon you. Speak freely!"

Now everyone in the tent was curious. What was he thinking that even Li Xianmu was afraid to say?

"Then I dare to ask."

"When Emperor Taizu Gao was alive, he was quite wary of the Mongols, so much so that he set up nine Great Fortress Kings."

The moment he opened his mouth, everyone in the tent paled. Good heavens, no wonder they dared not speak; you've really gone too far with your ideas.

Zhu Di slowly suppressed his smile, and a cold expression gradually appeared on his face.

Li Xianmu, steeling himself, asked, "Your Majesty, shall I say something more?"

"Say!"

Zhu Di coldly replied, "I will not punish people for their words."

"Bullshit," many in the tent thought to themselves. "Not punishing people for their words has always been a lie. Anyone who believes it is an idiot."

Li Xianmu believed it.

They probably really believed it.

He continued, “Nanjing is two thousand miles from Beijing and three thousand miles from Mongolia. There are the border kings along the Great Wall, then the natural barrier of the Yellow River, the Qin kings upstream, and further downstream the Zhou kings, the Lu kings, and the Qi kings.”

"If we break through these two lines, and with the natural barrier of the Yangtze River, Nanjing can rest easy." The more the crowd listened, the more something seemed amiss. Nanjing was such a perfect place to be the capital, so why move it? Your father, Li Qi, and you, Li Xianmu, were both staunch supporters of moving the capital.

"So it seems that making Nanjing the capital was the most perfect option, then why move the capital at all?"

"Because the vassal kings at key positions have all been deposed by Jian Shuren, this defense line has collapsed."

Now, everyone in the tent felt that Li Xianmu was really brave to say such a thing. It was true that the Prince of Zhou, the Prince of Qi, the Prince of Lu, and the Prince of Xiang were deposed by Emperor Jianwen, but the Prince of Sai, the Prince of Liao, the Prince of Gu, and the Prince of Ning by the Great Wall were all moved inland by the current emperor because he was worried that his younger brothers would follow his example and cause another Jingnan Rebellion.

"If the defenses collapse, can't I just rebuild them?"

Everyone lowered their heads, pretending they hadn't heard anything.

"Since ancient times, where has there ever been a vassal king who was willing to guard the border for the emperor generation after generation? Of the nine great border kings of that time, only Your Majesty did not shirk the hardship."

Zhu Di's expression softened slightly. Among the nine border kings, he was indeed unique, which is why Zhu Yuanzhang later put him under the control of the nine border kings.

"With the capital in Nanjing, it is merely a temporary peace in a corner. The only right thing to do is to take the initiative and eliminate the threat in its infancy. This is the necessity of moving the capital."

Even the quick-witted Yang Rong couldn't help but applaud Li Xianmu for managing to perfectly smooth things over.

Zhu Di's lips twitched slightly, and the atmosphere in the tent relaxed.

"My humble opinion is that at least two lines of defense should be set up north of the capital. While it may be magnificent for the emperor to guard the country's gates, it is inevitably not conducive to military operations."

During the Yuan Dynasty, the emperors would tour between Dadu and Shangdu. Although this system was quite absurd and often led to military coups, the underlying idea was sound: Beijing should not truly become a border city.

The war with the Mongols in the future will have to take place at least 500 li north of Beijing.

Da Ningwei!
As soon as Li Xianmu finished speaking, those three words appeared in the minds of almost everyone in the tent.

In the Jingnan Campaign, Zhu Di was able to seize the throne. The first meritorious contributor was Emperor Jianwen and the Three Fools, the second meritorious contributor was Li Jinglong, and the third meritorious contributor was the unlucky Prince Ning. His Doyan Three Guards were incredibly fierce and could be said to be the strongest cavalry at the time.

Zhu Di relocated the princes to the interior, primarily to guard against the Prince of Liao and the Prince of Ning, who had previously posed a significant threat to him from the rear.

After Zhu Di ascended the throne, he moved the Daning Guard to Baoding Prefecture.

The other kings were one thing, but this move was a truly foolish one.

Daningwei is bordered by Qilaotu Mountain to its left and Nuluerhu Mountain to its right, with the Laoha River flowing through it to the north. The land is fertile and the grass is abundant, making it an excellent pasture since ancient times.

It connects to the Horqin Grassland in the north, Chaoyang in the east, Sanwanwei in the southeast, Xifengkou in the south, and Gubeikou in the southwest.

These are all strategic passes leading directly to Beijing!

If this place is lost, the nomadic cavalry will truly be riding on our backs, and they could march south to the capital and plunder it at any time.

"Are you referring to my relocation of the Damingwei garrison?"

After a moment of silence, Li Xianmu knelt down and said in a deep voice, "Your humble servant is the son of a princess and the nephew of Your Majesty. I was raised by the Taizu Emperor and have a deep blood relationship with the Ming Dynasty."

Zhu Di paused.

"Your Majesty is a man of extraordinary talent, a renowned general of the world, like a divine sword, who slayed the Mongols, drove back Liaodong, and expelled Annam, and none in the world can rival him."

Your Majesty's might extends throughout the four seas, and nothing can withstand it.

Your Majesty, I humbly request that Your Majesty forge another strong shield for the Ming Dynasty, to protect the capital, to safeguard the Ming Emperor, and to secure the nation.

Daming was of paramount importance, ranking first among the nine border regions. If it were abandoned, Tianshou Mountain would be adjacent to foreign lands, and Xuanfu would lose its right arm, while Liaodong would lose its left arm.

The Liaodong and Mongol tribes have already joined the ranks of our Great Ming.

Now that the three guards of the Doyan tribe are in China, they do not feel any difference.

If one day, Doyan is unable to subdue the enemy and Daming falls into enemy hands, it will surely become a fatal threat to China. The recapture of Daming Garrison is therefore imperative.

Zhu Di fell into a deep silence, and after a long while, he slowly asked, "Your words seem to indicate that you don't care about this northern expedition, and your advice is all about things unrelated to the expedition."

Li Xianmu looked up and said sincerely, "Your Majesty is an unparalleled general. Arughtai and Benyashiri are nothing but clowns, merely bearing the name of the Golden Family. They are incomparable to the numerous famous generals of Genghis Khan's time."

If I were to worry about the northern expedition, wouldn't that be like the man of Qi worrying about the sky falling?

If Your Majesty could rule the Ming Dynasty for thousands of years, I would not have offered this advice today. It is truly rare to find a ruler like Your Majesty, who is both a capable military and a civil official, equally adept at warfare and governance.

During the reign of Emperor Taizong of Tang, the Tang Dynasty enjoyed great prestige. Chieftains from all over the world came to Chang'an to offer their congratulations. Could Li Shimin have imagined that just over a decade later, the Tang Dynasty would suffer the defeat at Dafeichuan, followed by the resurgence of the Western Regions, the restoration of the Turkic Khaganate, and even the chaos caused by the Khitans?
"What I have said is not for Your Majesty's benefit. Your Majesty does not need my advice. If there are wolves, one strike is all it takes. What I have truly done is to advise future rulers."

The words fell silent.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

The emperor's northern expedition was very successful, and everyone was delighted, except for Xianmu, who was worried. The emperor then asked, "What is there to worry about?"

Xian Mu, upon hearing of the unfavorable situation of Chen Daning's southward relocation, sighed and said, "Your Majesty's advantage lies in Your Majesty's sharpness being the best in the world. The system is actually harmful, and I worry that it will be detrimental to future rulers!"

The Emperor praised him, saying, "What you have said is a strategy for the long term; I will follow it!" — Biography of Li Xianmu, History of Ming

(End of this chapter)