The Ming Dynasty's Five Hundred Years

Chapter 194 Those Who Abandon the City Die
A dry, fierce wind swept through the house, leaving everyone inside parched and bewildered, filled with endless resentment.

They complained about those troublemakers, wondering why they couldn't just die peacefully.

Why hold a grudge against Li Xianmu when all that was done was the death of a few troublemakers?
Making them pay with their lives? That's a joke! How can dirty mud on the ground be compared to clouds floating in the sky?

But they dare not say that those who flatter superiors will inevitably bully subordinates, and vice versa. Those who do not treat their subordinates as human beings will not treat themselves as human beings in front of higher-ranking officials.

The prefect of Jinan was sweating profusely and speechless, a sense of despair rising in his heart. He knew that his words had backfired and that he had already lost out to the others in the competition.

He forced himself to suppress his fear and said with a fawning smile, "The governor is right. The people's rebellion is indeed related to the poor governance of us Shandong officials. I am willing to make amends and preserve my reputation."

The others immediately changed color and glared angrily at the Jinan prefect.

They all cursed the Jinan prefect in their hearts. He had been criticized and was now at a disadvantage in the competition, yet he had chosen to drag them all down with him.

With these words from the Jinan prefect, the atmosphere in the room changed again, transforming from the previous stagnation into mutual suspicion.

Li Xianmu remained noncommittal about this dog-eat-dog behavior, only nodding slightly before signaling the prefect of Qingzhou to continue. The six prefects and the prefects of the two directly governed prefectures then recounted the situation they knew within their jurisdictions.

"Your Excellency, the bandits are now powerful and have gathered in Shandong, causing widespread suffering and death. The situation is deteriorating every moment. Only by suppressing the bandits as soon as possible can we restore peace to Shandong and allow you to report back to His Majesty soon."

"I have a plan in mind for pacifying the bandits in Shandong. What you need to do is to contact the powerful clans in those counties as soon as possible. At this difficult time, those gentry and powerful clans should do their part to protect their homeland."

Li Xianmu placed his teacup on the table and saw that everyone looked troubled. Since ancient times, it has been the most difficult to govern powerful clans, as there are countless collusions of interest involved. In contrast, it is much easier to exploit the common people.

"I don't care what you do or what you do, but I only care about the food and people. After everything is settled, I will check how the common people live. I don't care about anything else. You... just take care of yourselves."

Go down and gather supplies, for your own lives and the lives of your entire family.

The fact that he so casually uttered the words about killing the whole family sent chills down everyone's spines, and they all left the governor's office with grim faces.

After everyone had left, they whispered among themselves, "What the governor just said..."

"We need money, we need grain, and we need stability for the people."

"This forces us to seek supplies from powerful clans."

Li Xianmu's last sentence made it clear: if you are willing to exchange your own lives and the lives of your entire family for the lives of the powerful clans under your rule, then so be it.

The prefect of Jinan smiled bitterly and said, "Do you think we have any other options? If we did, why was I so humble in front of Li Xianmu just now?"
What's there to be afraid of offending powerful clans?
Previously, I worried about offending powerful families because I didn't want to get involved in such matters, lest it affect my reputation and, consequently, my promotion and official position.

Now that things have escalated so much in Shandong, even if only the top half of the population survives, do you really think we have any future?

They're just barely clinging to life.

His words shattered everyone's illusions; there were far more options than just no other choice.
Even if I manage to save my life, my future will be ruined. So what is there to worry about?

Isn't it perfectly normal to sacrifice the lives of those powerful clans to seek a way out?
Inside the governor's office.

All the members of the imperial envoy delegation listened to Li Xianmu's instructions, and even the Marquis of Shouchun, who was in charge of this Shandong war, was present.

Li Xianmu first bowed to the Marquis of Shouchun and said, "My lord, I am not very knowledgeable about military affairs, so I will leave the specific troop deployment to you."

But Xianmu had some thoughts about this war.

The group walked to the map of Shandong Province. Li Xianmu pointed to the map and said, "Before coming to Shandong, His Majesty had already ordered the neighboring provinces of Shandong to make preparations for defense."

Shandong is already in ruins, but we must not allow it to spread to other provinces. Therefore, our army must first seek an opportunity to fight the main force of the enemy. Once we defeat their main force, the overall situation will be in our hands.

The composition of the various bandit groups in Shandong today is quite complex. Some are people who have been exploited by the government and have no choice but to rebel, while others are originally outlaws who took advantage of the situation to stir up chaos. The former can be spared by only executing the ringleaders, while the latter are already wicked thieves who have lost their conscience and should all be executed.

but."

Li Xianmu's voice grew heavy, "Neither of these two issues are major problems; they are merely temporary disturbances for the court. The real problem lies with the White Lotus Sect!"

These three words made everyone in the room gasp for breath, their faces filled with solemnity. "These demons who are united by sects are adept at bewitching people, and their followers are difficult to teach. They also have extremely strong will and a tight organization, making them a great enemy of the nation. If we are not careful, it will cause a great disaster."

It should be understood that although the White Lotus sect is widely known in Shandong, it doesn't mean it doesn't exist elsewhere. If Shandong remains unconquered, it will inevitably provoke responses from other regions. Therefore, our primary target should be these groups claiming to be White Lotus sect members. We must ruthlessly exterminate them, destroy their meeting places, wipe out their followers, and then burn all their scriptures and other documents. Only by doing this can we prevent the situation in Shandong from escalating further!
My plan is to crush the two White Lotus sect bandit groups from here, then pursue them all the way here along the Ji River until they have nowhere to run or escape, at which point we can annihilate them in one fell swoop. What do you think, my lord?

The Marquis of Shouchun gazed at the terrain and landscape on the geomantic map, nodded first, and then asked in a low voice, "Governor, from a military perspective, there's no problem, but..."

"What concerns does Your Excellency have? Please speak frankly."

Marquis Shouchun no longer hesitated and sighed, "Qufu is on this road. If we drive away the bandits in this way, it will surely bring danger to Qufu. I dare not make such a decision on such a serious matter."

A while ago, the Duke of Yansheng sent a letter requesting the imperial army to protect the Confucius Mansion and the Confucius Temple from bandits. But now the imperial army hasn't arrived, yet the bandits have gone there. If this is blamed on them…”

Even the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the head of the Eastern Depot were shocked. Although they had always been at odds with the literati, this was the Duke Yansheng!
Military affairs are a continuation of politics, so political factors must be considered in many situations.

Sometimes in war, it is clear that recapturing the capital is not the most advantageous decision, but in order to demonstrate the overall strength of the war effort, it is necessary to recapture the capital to show the world that the court still has sufficient power. This was the case with the Tang Dynasty.

For example, the capital city walls are extremely high and thick, making it a good city to use as bait. But if anyone dares to use the capital city as bait, they deserve to die.

The same principle applies to Qufu. From a political perspective, it would be extremely disadvantageous to put Qufu in danger.

It's understandable that the Marquis of Shouchun would have such concerns.

Li Xianmu, however, said loudly and without any concern: "The Duke Yansheng has received great favors from the imperial family. All three generations of Duke Yansheng have received great favors from the Ming Dynasty. How could he not know what is a major matter and what is a trivial matter?"
So what if we encounter some war disasters?
"This matter will be decided by me. If His Majesty blames me, I will bear full responsibility. Your Excellency need not worry; simply do as I say."

With the imperial edict issued to Shandong, Li Xianmu had the power to control everyone, including the Marquis of Shouchun.

Now that Li Xianmu is willing to take responsibility, the Marquis of Shouchun has nothing more to say and immediately obeys orders.

Li Xianmu pondered for a moment, then remembered something his father had told him. He immediately issued a governor's order to the officials of various prefectures and counties, with rather stern words.

"Since ancient times, those who eat the emperor's food have been loyal to the emperor."

The imperial court appointed him as the garrison commander of a region, responsible for guarding an area of ​​hundreds or thousands of miles. This is a heavy responsibility. He must know that he has a duty to defend the land, and the royal land cannot be ceded. Any magistrate who abandons his city and flees shall be executed, and his family shall be exiled!

Those who died in battle will be given pensions, and one of their sons will be chosen to provide for their families.

This order instantly caused a huge uproar in Shandong. Abandoning the city and fleeing meant certain death, whether you liked it or not, you had no choice but to die for your country.

This rule was previously only applied to generals who were defending cities.

Now Li Xianmu is using him as a civil official, which is an unprecedented rule, and many people are immediately dissatisfied.

Using "many people" might not be accurate; it would be more accurate to say that 90% of civil officials were dissatisfied, and even many scholars who had not yet become officials were dissatisfied.

However, Li Xianmu's accusation was too extreme: "As a subject, one should uphold loyalty and integrity. If the city is lost but one survives, rumors will circulate that one is merely trying to live a life of dishonor."

The Duke of Zhou feared rumors, and Wang Mang was humble before his usurpation.

"I am deeply concerned for you all. To die for one's country when the city falls is surely an act of loyalty and righteousness! I believe all of you officials and students would gladly follow suit!"

I'm sure you're all willing to die for the Ming Dynasty. With Li Xianmu saying this, who could possibly say they wouldn't?
He could only curse Li Xianmu in secret.

Your loyalty, Li Xianmu, is enough to show your devotion to the court. Do you really think the Ming Dynasty is your own family?

This is the Zhu family's territory, what does it have to do with you?

One by one, the events that occurred in Shandong and the orders issued by Li Xianmu were all relayed back to the capital by those with ulterior motives, who prepared to attack Li Xianmu.

However, when Zhu Di learned of the orders issued by Li Xianmu in Shandong, he burst into laughter and praised them repeatedly, especially the order that allowed the civil officials of the prefectures and counties to live and die together with the cities.

He immediately ordered the cabinet to prepare an imperial edict, which was sent to the two capitals and thirteen provinces of the Ming Dynasty, thus establishing this matter as a future precedent.

Then an imperial edict was issued to Shandong praising Li Xianmu.

In Shandong, the atmosphere is tense and tense, with the impending war looming ahead. The imperial army, armed with grain obtained by powerful clans through blood donations, is in high spirits.

(End of this chapter)