Jingtai: Making the Ming Dynasty Great Again

The next day at the court assembly, Zhu Qiyu noticed that Yu Qian was absent and asked, "Why is Minister Yu not here today?"

The ministers looked at each other, and for a moment no one responded.

Wang Zhi, the Minister of Personnel, stepped forward and reported to Your Highness: "Minister Yu left the city before dawn to oversee the transport of grain in Tongzhou."

Zhu Qiyu was taken aback: "The matter of transporting grain is handled by the Ministry of Revenue and local officials. Why does the Minister of War need to go personally?"

Wang Zhi explained, "Your Highness is unaware of the situation. Yesterday evening, we received an urgent report from Tongzhou stating that the Tonghui River was blocked, and water transport was interrupted."

Upon hearing the news, Minister Yu immediately decided to personally go to Tongzhou to investigate that day.

A hint of doubt flashed in Zhu Qiyu's eyes: "Is the Tonghui River blocked?"

He remembered this river.

The Tonghui River is a canal that was excavated under the supervision of Guo Shoujing during the Yuan Dynasty.

It connects Tongzhou and Beijing and is a vital waterway for grain transport.

Grain was transported north from the south to Tongzhou via the Grand Canal, and then mostly transferred to the capital city via this canal.

If the river is clear, more than eight million shi of grain can be transported to the capital quickly by water.

Zhao Rong, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works, continued, "The Tonghui River has been neglected for many years, and siltation is a natural consequence. In addition, the recent continuous autumn rains may have caused upstream flash floods to wash down debris, which is also a common occurrence that could block the river channel."

Zhu Qiyu sneered: "Commonplace? Why does it have to be blocked at this crucial juncture?"

His question immediately silenced the hall.

The minister standing at the back seemed to want to say something, but then swallowed his words.

Zhu Qiyu saw this and understood about 70-80% of it.

The excuses like "it's been in disrepair for years" or "it's been raining continuously in autumn" are mostly just pretexts.

As the lifeline of the canal transport, the Tonghui River is dredged and maintained every year, so how could it be easily blocked?

Even if there is a real blockage, local officials should immediately organize to clear it. Why bother the Minister of War in the capital?

Unless there are human factors behind this congestion.

Zhu Qiyu pressed further, "Besides the river being blocked, are there any other reasons?"

Shen Yi hesitated for a moment and said in a low voice, "Your Highness, Tongzhou now has gathered nearly 20,000 reserve troops and anti-Japanese troops transferred from Henan, Shandong and other places."

With so many soldiers suddenly pouring in, without a high-ranking official in charge, there's a risk of chaos.

Zhu Qiyu nodded, instantly understanding.

Although the reserve troops and the anti-Japanese troops were of much higher quality than the loyalist soldiers.

But in the end, they still couldn't compare to the disciplined army of Qi Jiguang's army in later generations.

Moreover, under the guise of entering the capital to protect the emperor, they are highly likely to loot grain and harass the people.

Zhu Qiyu then asked, "How many men did Minister Yu bring?"

He only brought a dozen or so personal guards.

Zhu Qiyu secretly admired Yu Qian's boldness and his sense of responsibility.

At such a time, daring to single-handedly handle the resettlement of 20,000 troops is truly something no ordinary person could do.

"Issue the order," Zhu Qiyu suddenly said, "order Lu Zhong, the deputy commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, to immediately select two hundred elite captains to rush to Tongzhou to assist Minister Yu in dredging the river and pacifying the army."

Xing'an recorded the imperial edict: "Your subject obeys."

Zhu Qiyu added, "Tell Lu Zhong that on this journey to Tongzhou, anyone who dares to obstruct the transport of grain or loot it, whether official or civilian, will be executed without prior notification!"

"hiss!"

A collective gasp filled the hall.

To act first and report later—what immense power that is!

After the Yongle reign, apart from generals on expeditions, few officials received this privilege.

Yang Shan couldn't help but step forward: "Your Highness, isn't this too harsh? Even if the officials of Tongzhou have neglected their duties, they should be dealt with according to the law. How can they be subjected to arbitrary killings?"

Zhu Qiyu gave him a cold look: "Yang, the Imperial Censor, what time is it now?"

The Oirat army will arrive soon, and Beijing is waiting for food to save it!

Anyone who dares to cause trouble at this time is helping the Oirat Mongols break through the city and is risking the lives of a million soldiers and civilians in the capital!

Tell me, should he be killed or not?

Furthermore, you said officials should be dealt with according to the law, does that mean ordinary people can indiscriminately commit murder?

Yang Shan was so embarrassed that his face turned red, and he could only retreat awkwardly.

This was the second consecutive day that he had been rendered speechless by Zhu Qiyu's appeal to righteousness.

Zhu Qiyu ignored him and continued to instruct, "Also, have Lu Zhong secretly investigate how the Tonghui River was blocked. If it was a natural disaster, that's one thing, but if it was man-made..."

He paused, a cold glint in his eyes: "Tell him to find the person behind this, and whoever it is, punish them severely!"

"yes!"

Xing'an responded and hurriedly left the palace to deliver the order.

The morning meeting continued, with each department reporting on defense progress and the allocation of supplies.

Zhu Qiyu listened attentively, sometimes asking about details, sometimes issuing instructions.

Although he had just taken power, he handled government affairs with remarkable ease, which amazed many of his former ministers who had doubts about his abilities.

Only Zhu Qiyu himself knew that these twenty-one years of "low-key life" were not wasted.

Although he did not participate in court politics, he was always observing and learning.

He had a clear understanding of how the Ming Dynasty's bureaucratic system operated, how different departments checked and balanced each other, and the relationship between local and central governments.

Moreover, he possesses a soul that transcends five hundred years of his time.

"...The defenses of the nine gates of the capital have been reinforced, with thirty new cannons and countless rolling logs and stones added," reported Sun Tang, the newly appointed Vice Commander of the Five Military Commissions.

The only good thing Zhu Qizhen did during his personal campaign was that he did not summon the artillery squads of the Shenji Battalion.

He left behind dozens of cannons for Beijing, and Yu Qian has ordered that all existing cannons be converted for city defense.

"What is the gunpowder reserve like?"

Sun Tang looked troubled: "Even with the Ordnance Bureau working day and night, we have only produced 1,000 catties of gunpowder. Raw materials such as saltpeter and sulfur are in very short supply."

Zhu Qiyu frowned. Gunpowder was a powerful weapon for defending the city; without it, cannons would be useless.

He asked the courtiers, "Where can we obtain saltpeter and sulfur?"

Zhao Rong from the Ministry of Works replied: "Saltpeter is mostly produced in Shanxi and Sichuan, while sulfur is best from Hubei and Fujian."

Currently, the roads are blocked, making it difficult to transport raw materials from other places.

The capital's reserves were already low, and then... a large portion was taken away during the last military campaign.

It's Zhu Qizhen again!

Zhu Qiyu cursed inwardly, thinking that his elder brother had really emptied the family coffers.

"Isn't there a substitute?"

The ministers shook their heads, saying that saltpeter and sulfur were the key to making gunpowder and were irreplaceable.

Zhu Qiyu pondered for a moment, then suddenly remembered something: "Does the Imperial Pharmacy have any in stock?"

The ministers were taken aback. The Imperial Pharmacy did indeed keep saltpeter and sulfur on hand for medicinal use, but the quantity was probably not large.

Zhu Qiyu, however, said: "Order the Imperial Medical Academy to transfer all saltpeter and sulfur in the palace to the Ordnance Bureau. Also, procure them from private pharmacies and pay them double the market price."

"Your Highness, the Imperial Pharmacy's stock of medicines is crucial to the safety of the royal family..."

Some ministers tried to dissuade him, but Zhu Qiyu waved them off, saying, "If Beijing cannot be defended, what safety will the imperial family have? Go and do it!"

Seeing his resolute attitude, no one dared to persuade him any further.

Another reason Zhu Qiyu did this was that he wanted to take this opportunity to use up all the things in the palace.

He later instructed the Imperial Medical Academy not to purchase sulfur or similar substances for medicinal use.

These "high-tech" technologies were probably only digested by Emperor Jiajing, who possessed an iron stomach.

At this moment, Hu Ying, the Minister of Rites, stepped forward and said: "Your Highness, the Imperial Astronomical Bureau has already calculated an auspicious day."

The sixth day of the ninth lunar month is an auspicious day, blessed by both Heavenly Virtue and Lunar Virtue, making it suitable for sacrifices, enthronements, and investitures.

Zhu Qiyu nodded: "The date will be set then. The ceremony should be simple and not extravagant."

"Your subject obeys the decree." Hu Ying hesitated for a moment, then added, "Your Highness, the reign title after your ascension to the throne..."

Zhu Qiyu said, "The matter of the reign title can be discussed later. The most urgent task is to defend the city and prepare for war."

Historically, Zhu Qiyu's reign title was "Jingtai," which means "auspicious stars and clouds, national prosperity and peace."

This reign title is good; he doesn't plan to change it.

However, changing the era name will have to wait until next year; let's defeat the defenders of Beijing first.

The court assembly lasted for more than two hours. When Zhu Qiyu walked out of the Wenhua Hall, the sun was already high in the sky.

Zhu Qiyu did not return to the palace immediately, but instead climbed the Wumen city tower and looked towards Tongzhou.

After the Yongle reign, collusion between officials and merchants and the embezzlement of state assets became commonplace in the Ming Dynasty.

As the terminus of the Grand Canal, Tongzhou was a thriving center of grain trade, which had long formed a vast network of interests.

It was inevitable that local wealthy merchants colluded with officials to control the flow of grain, buying low and selling high to profit from it.

Now that the imperial court is going to transport a large amount of grain stored in Tongzhou, it will inevitably impact their interests.

The river "coincidentally" became blocked at this time, delaying the transport of grain and inevitably causing grain prices in the city to rise.

If they wait until the people are in a state of panic and then sell grain at high prices, wouldn't they be making a fortune off the national crisis?

"What a blatant case of collusion between officials and businessmen, what a blatant profiteering during a national crisis," Zhu Qiyu muttered to himself, a cold glint in his eyes.

He hated this kind of person the most in his past life; the typical example was that group of squid.

When the country is in peril, instead of thinking of serving the country, one takes the opportunity to amass wealth. How is this any different from treason?

Zhu Qiyu had already made up his mind that once he started his reforms, he would have all these people made into soap.

"Your Highness," came Xing'an's voice from behind, "Lu Zhong has mustered his troops and is heading to Tongzhou."

Zhu Qiyu turned around: "Tell him to go ahead and do it. If the sky falls, I'll hold it up."

"Yes," Xing'an replied, then hesitated for a moment before asking, "Your Highness, if it is indeed found that it involves high-ranking officials in the court..."

"That's perfect, let's make an example of one to warn a hundred."

Xing'an felt a chill run down his spine, realizing that the new emperor was serious.

Zhu Qiyu looked into the distance. Compared to the internal problems, the issue of the Oirat Mongols was the easiest to solve.

Eunuch rule, factional strife among civil officials, corruption among military generals, land annexation, financial crisis...

Zhu Qiyu felt a headache coming on just thinking about these problems.

Fortunately, he knew a wise saying: political power grows out of the barrel of a gun.