How can one be Emperor Chongzhen without money?

Chapter 314 Conspiracy, Raid, Snowballing, Big Move

The city of Nanjing was chilly and gloomy in winter.

Inside the Marquis of Xincheng's residence, in a quiet room.

Marquis Zhao Zhilong of Xincheng sat in the main seat, with Marquis Zhu Guobi of Funing and Marquis Liu Kongzhao of Chengyi on either side. Xu Yinjue, the heir of the Duke of Wei, Zhang Pu, the leader of the Fushe Society, and Wu Tianxing, the head of the Huizhou merchants, were also present. They were all dressed in casual clothes and had entered through the back door.

Zhang Pu, leader of the Fushe Society, cleared his throat and began to speak, his tone heavy with the anxieties of a scholar: "My esteemed elders, today's situation is not for the private gain of any one family or clan, but concerns the very survival of the Ming Dynasty's vitality in the southeast! The Emperor has dispatched salt ships at Guazhou Ferry; is his intention merely to obtain a few smuggled salts? His aim is the very foundation of the salt revenue of the Huai River region! If this extraordinary method can increase the annual revenue by several million taels, it may quench the thirst for the moment. However, to use such a huge sum to support the unprecedented 'Diversion of the Yellow and Huai Rivers' project, I fear... I fear it will be a waste of national resources, and before the project is completed, the southeast's finances will be exhausted!"

The successors of the Donglin Party and the leaders of the Fushe Society saw things clearly! Chongzhen's strategy was a "snowball effect." First, under the guise of the "Yellow River-Huai River diversion" project, he seized control of the river works and canal transport departments, establishing the River Transport Management Office. Simultaneously, he maximized the consensus in Jiangbei—if the Huai River flooded, Jiangbei would suffer terribly! Their consensus was easy to reach. With this consensus, it became possible to open canal tax training schools, recruit new people, and establish canal tax checkpoints along the canals in Jiangbei.

However, the grain tax in Jiangbei was barely enough. But with the manpower controlling the Grand Canal, Chongzhen could strictly control smuggled salt – that was the real advantage!

In the early Ming Dynasty, with a population of 60 million, the salt tax could collect 2.5 million taels of silver—that was silver in the early Ming Dynasty! Now, the Ming Dynasty may have 200 million people, and silver has depreciated so much, so collecting 10 million taels of silver wouldn't be unreasonable, would it?

Even with another discount, four or five million would add two or three million to the fiscal budget. This might not be enough to complete the diversion of funds between the Yellow and Huai Rivers, but it would be more than enough to support tens of thousands more low-ranking officials.

As the number of officials in the "Military Academy and Training Institute" system increased, so did the number of officials that Chongzhen could command at will! If there were 30,000 to 50,000 such officials, Chongzhen could have controlled the extremely wealthy provinces of Southern Zhili, Jiangxi, Zhejiang, Huguang, Fujian, and Guangdong!

Marquis Zhu Guobi of Funing sighed and replied, “Mr. Zhang is absolutely right. His Majesty is determined to make progress and is concerned about the river's problems; how can we not admire him? However, river management should proceed step by step, with gradual and slow progress. The current approach is akin to draining the pond to catch all the fish! Forcibly pushing for the ‘diversion of the Yellow River and the Huai River’ project, if successful, would naturally be a monumental achievement. But how many have succeeded in managing the Yellow River throughout history? If it fails, not only will the enormous sums spent be wasted, but the current forced collection of likin and salt taxes has already damaged the commerce and livelihoods of the southeast. The southeast is the nation's purse strings; if its vitality is damaged, how will the relief efforts for the northern border regions and the Central Plains continue?”

Zhao Zhilong raised his hand to stop the crowd, his expression solemn, displaying the air of a seasoned statesman: "His Majesty is concerned about the affairs of the state and desires to achieve extraordinary feats, which we, as his subjects, should understand. However, as subjects, we should also consider the long-term interests of the nation. The prosperity of the Southeast is not the result of a single day's work, but rather the culmination of a century or more of recuperation and development. To shake the very foundation of this nation for a project whose success or failure is uncertain is not the way of a wise and prudent ruler. We are not disobeying His Majesty's decree, but we cannot bear to see His Majesty ruin the last prosperous land of our Great Ming Dynasty because of his eagerness for quick results."

He glanced at the crowd and said in a deep voice, "Therefore, what we are doing now is not for personal gain, but to preserve the vitality of the southeast and leave room for the court to recover in the future. This is a last resort to 'preservation' strategy."

Upon hearing this, Wu Tianxing, the head of the Huizhou merchants, immediately followed up with a concerned expression: "Lord, gentlemen, what you say is absolutely right. We merchants, though of lowly status, know the principle that without the skin, where will the hair attach? The prosperity of the Southeast market is related to the livelihoods of countless people. If we forcibly impose additional taxes, or even force large-scale construction projects, leading to soaring prices and the disruption of trade routes, then the market will be depressed, people will lose their jobs, and there will be widespread displacement and chaos. That would truly shake the foundation of the nation! Our actions, though reluctant, are to stabilize the situation in the Southeast and safeguard the purse strings for the court."

His words were cryptic, but everyone who understood them knew what he meant: he wanted to speculate on commodities and drive up inflation!
Zhao Zhilong nodded and looked at Wu Tianxing: "Mr. Wu, you are well-versed in economics. In your opinion, what is the 'prudent' way to proceed at present, so that the Emperor is aware of the difficulties in the Southeast, without immediately triggering chaos?"

They wouldn't dare cause any chaos, as they were all "wearing shoes" (meaning they were well-off and privileged). Not only did they "wear shoes," they also lived in large gardens, ate delicacies from land and sea, and had a large number of servants below them!

Wu Tianxing lowered his voice: "Lord, the market has its own rules. If the court undertakes large-scale construction projects, demand will increase dramatically, and prices will naturally rise gradually, which is normal. We... may take advantage of the situation and stock up on goods appropriately, firstly to meet the needs of the construction projects, and secondly to let the court see that such a huge project is really costly, which may prompt them to reconsider, slow down the pace, and choose a more prudent strategy."

His idea was for everyone to "stock up" together, under the guise of "meeting the needs of the workers," so that the emperor wouldn't be able to find any fault with them.

Liu Kongzhao added, “That’s exactly right. And the students of that ‘training institute’ are mostly talented young people. We should also prioritize our hometown ties and show them more concern. If His Majesty’s policy truly benefits the country and its people, their future will naturally be bright. If… if things don’t go well, at least these young people will know that the Southeast is still a place for them to retire and cultivate their talents, so they don’t go down a dead end and waste their talents.” These words were spoken with high-sounding rhetoric, as if they were entirely for the students’ benefit.

This person put it tactfully, but to put it bluntly, it meant trying to win over and corrupt low-ranking officials from the Likin Training Institute. If these people started to outwardly comply but inwardly defy him, Emperor Chongzhen would hardly collect any Likin or salt taxes.

Zhang Pu immediately replied, "I am currently preparing to publish 'Jiangnan Shiwen' (Jiangnan Current Affairs), which aims to gather opinions from the southeast and frankly present the various advantages and disadvantages of river management, as well as the merits and demerits of the court's policies, in a balanced manner. I am determined to ensure that His Majesty will listen to all sides and understand the situation, so that the earnest expectations and reasonable concerns of the people of the southeast can reach His Majesty's ears!"

In fact, the literati in the southeast had long been running tabloids, but these tabloids lacked the influence of the *Huangming Tongbao* and didn't have a figure like Zhu Siwen. Therefore, in the battle of public opinion, the southeastern intellectuals were temporarily at a disadvantage. Thus, the gentlemen of the Fushe and Donglin societies decided to unite and start a major newspaper to compete with Emperor Chongzhen for control of the public opinion arena.

Zhao Zhilong surveyed the group one last time, his tone earnest yet resolute: "Gentlemen, our discussion today is not about forming cliques for personal gain, but rather a painstakingly crafted strategy to 'preserve' the Ming Dynasty and its people in the southeast. All actions must appear to be in accordance with the natural course of events and the concerns of the literati. We must make the Emperor understand that the people can support a boat, but they can also capsize it. The waters of the southeast should be gently soothed, not forcefully suppressed. I urge you all to act prudently, prioritizing the 'greater good'!" With the plan finalized, the group exchanged knowing glances, all bearing expressions of "bearing a heavy burden" and "advising the country." The secret meeting ended, and the group quietly departed through a side door, their figures disappearing into the cold, heavy night of Nanjing, as if shouldering the immense responsibility of saving the Ming Dynasty's southeast.

……

The underhanded schemes and plots within Nanjing were kept at bay by the formidable mountains and passes.

Winter in Liaodong is truly cold. The wind is like a whip wrapped in ice shards, lashing your face with a stinging pain. The world is shrouded in a gray haze, with snowflakes swirling and flying horizontally in the wind.

About a hundred miles outside Gubeikou, a large army was silently marching through the snow.

There were no flags, no clamor. The horses' hooves, wrapped in thick cloth, pounded the snow with a dull thud. The wheels creaked and groaned on the frozen dirt road, the sound dissipating quickly.

Sun Zushou, the general of Jizhou, sat on his horse, wearing an old sable fur coat, his eyebrows and beard covered in white frost. He squinted at the endless column of soldiers ahead, his face calm.

Lieutenant Man Gui rode back from the front, bringing with him a chill. His face was red from the cold, and his breath left long white puffs of steam. "General, that lad Cao Bianjiao went ahead to scout and just sent back news that everything is fine."

Sun Zushou nodded: "Tell the brothers to keep up the good work. We must reach our designated resting place before dawn."

"Don't worry!" Man Gui grinned, revealing his teeth white from the cold. "In this awful weather, even the Tartars are hiding in their dens! It's the perfect time for us to get going! Besides, even that old fox Huang Taiji would never have imagined that our Emperor would still be providing us with full pay and provisions while disasters are raging all over the north!"

Honestly, even now, it's hard to believe that the Jizhou garrison can still receive their rations and pay on time and in full. Not only would Huang Taiji not believe it, but even Sun Zushou himself wouldn't believe it!

But it actually happened!
Even though the five northern provinces suffered a major disaster, and the Ming Dynasty's finances should have collapsed, Emperor Chongzhen still managed to manage disaster relief while simultaneously paying the army its full salaries.

At least, the grain and salary of Ji, Liao, Xuan, Da, and Chang have not been reduced by a single bit!
Sun Zushou kept calculating on his abacus, but he still couldn't figure out where the emperor's money came from.

If he couldn't figure it out, he simply stopped thinking about it! He turned his horse around and charged forward again.

Man Gui was as fierce as a leopard. With him leading the cavalry in front, Sun Zushou felt much more at ease.

This army was the culmination of Sun Zushou's years of hard-earned savings, and it was also the result of Emperor Chongzhen's seemingly random act of providing funds for him to lavishly spend.

There were a total of 5,000 cavalry, 14,000 infantry, an artillery battalion, and tens of thousands of transport auxiliary soldiers pulling sleds and supplies. Everyone wore thick cotton armor and carried enough fried noodles and dried meat to last for twenty days. Among the infantry, four out of ten carried muskets, and the rest carried either long spears or swords and shields. Each infantry battalion was also equipped with two lightweight 300-pound general cannons, pulled by modern wheeled carriages, so they moved at a decent speed.

This time, they're going to pull off something big. They won't go to rescue Jinzhou, nor will they engage the main Tartar force. They'll charge straight out of Kuanhebao, the fortress at the forefront of the Jizhou garrison, and head straight for Daning!

The commander-in-chief of Jiliao gave him only eight words of instruction: "Surprise attack and strike directly at Daming!"

This was also the "big move" that Chongzhen told Zu Dashou in his letter!
(End of this chapter)