Good morning Daming

Chapter 1073: What We Want Is Banditry
"You can't go out to sea!"

In a merchant's home in Tongcheng, Anhui, the merchant was preparing to bid farewell to his old father and go north to purchase goods in preparation for overseas trade.

"Dad." The merchant knelt down. "Ming has banned maritime trade for many years, and overseas countries have long been eager for Ming goods. This is the best opportunity. If we seize it, our family will soar to the sky."

The old father stood up tremblingly, "That's overseas, there are Japanese pirates overseas..."

"The Japanese pirates have been destroyed."

"What? Destroyed?" The old father couldn't believe it at first, then he became furious and raised his crutch to chop it off.

The merchant didn't dare to hide, and prepared to be hit with a stick, but in the end the cane landed gently on his shoulder. The old man cursed: "Those are the Japanese pirates! They have been causing trouble for the Central Plains for more than a hundred years. Since the Mongol Yuan Dynasty, there has been nothing we can do about them. Who can destroy them?"

"It's Long Wilbur."

"Long Wilbur?"

"Yes. The news has spread. Chang Wei Bo has already wiped out the Japanese pirates. Now the coastal areas are peaceful and tranquil. Chang Wei Bo is preparing to return to Beijing. He has said that when he goes south again, the merchant ships will set sail. Dad, many merchants in Zhejiang have said they want to boycott."

"Then...if you go, won't you offend those people?" the old man said worriedly.

"Dad." The businessman smiled and said, "What do businessmen do? Making money is king. Those businessmen said they wanted to boycott, but they just wanted to wait and see, and they also wanted to give an explanation to those scholars."

"Why should I explain this to the scholars? Oh! Now I remember what kind of great man that uncle was. He is said to be the mortal enemy of the scholars."

"That's just a lie!" The businessman laughed, "Dad, what Mohist masters, they're just fooling people. Originally, the scholars in Tongcheng who had achieved academic success and the wealthy families didn't pay taxes. Dad, you envied them and said that your son was useless. If your son could study well, now we can call servants and own countless fertile fields."

"That's right." The old man sighed and tapped his cane. "Back then, your father spent a lot of money to hire a teacher for you, but who would have thought that you were not cut out for it. Alas! This is fate! There is no way a scholar will be born in our family."

"Dad, those people are panicking now."

"Why are they panicking? Even a famine wouldn't panic them." The old man said enviously, "Those families have so much money and food piled up that they can't even finish eating them in ten lifetimes!"

"Dad, all the scholars and powerful people in Zhejiang will have to pay taxes from now on."

"What?"

"Everyone has to pay taxes." The businessman had a gloating look in his eyes. "We have also started here. Yesterday I went to the county government office and found a familiar clerk. He said that officials from the Ministry of Revenue are in Tongcheng. Before the autumn harvest, all the land and population of those families in Tongcheng must be reported."

"This... this is a good thing!" The old man stroked his beard.

"That's right. In the past, we were extorted by officials. Those officials said that the taxes were not enough to support them. If they didn't extort money from us, would they go after those scholars?"

"The world is changing!" the old man sighed. "No, even if the Japanese pirates are gone, there are still pirates. There was a fugitive from the next village who went out to sea. He said he became a pirate and specialized in robbing passing merchant ships."

"Dad, that happened a long time ago." The merchant said, "Those pirates have all landed now."

"What?" The old man was confused by the news, "Why go ashore?"

"After Chang Wei Bo destroyed the Japanese pirates, he sent people out to sea to recruit the pirates. Just think about it, those pirates were so ferocious, but they were still killed by Chang Wei Bo with a slap. How could those pirates not be afraid? Look, they have all come ashore."

"Oh! This world is becoming more and more dizzying. Boss, give me some wine. I feel dizzy, very dizzy." The old man held his forehead with his hand.

The businessman looked stern and reluctantly went to get a glass of wine. The old man took it, sniffed it, and drank it all in one gulp. "Hey! That's the taste. Another glass."

The merchant took the wine glass and said with a fierce look, "The doctor said that you shouldn't drink. One glass is an exception."

"Hey! Isn't this joyful?" The old man stroked his beard, smacked his lips, and savored the taste of the wine. "If those pirates surrender, they will probably be punished to do hard labor, right?"

"You guessed wrong," said the businessman.

"Exile? Too harsh. No one will be willing to surrender after this." The old man said, "The storytellers in the teahouse all said that the bandits who accepted the amnesty in the former Song Dynasty were all given land and allowed to serve in the army...the garrison."

"Those pirates have become marines."

"What?" The old man felt that his heart was a little disobedient today, and he covered his chest. "Navy?"

"The navy was useless at first, and they were said to have smuggled and sold weapons. In a rage, Chief Wilbur purged the navy. It just so happened that the pirates surrendered, so he selected a lot of them to join the navy. By the way, Dad, there are still many pirates who were not selected. I plan to try my luck in Hangzhou after returning from the north. If I can recruit one or two, I will have a guide for the sea trade."

"That's a lot of money! If you're not careful..."

"Dad, if you want to do something, you should be the first one. It's better to be the head of a chicken than the tail of a phoenix. I've thought about what long Wilbur has done in recent years. Once he wants to do something, the beginning is the most important. He will never treat those who follow him from the beginning unfairly."

The old man was silent for a long time, "Father is worried about the strong waves at sea."

The merchant said, "Don't worry, Dad. The Japanese pirates have been wiped out now. They said that they are building a treasure ship in Nanjing. In the past, the eunuch Sanbao sailed to the West many times. He was never afraid of the wind and waves."

"Rebuilding the treasure ship?"

"Yes, what do you want...travel across the seven seas."

The father and son discussed it for a while. The next day, the old man sent his son away with his cane. He stood outside the house, looking at the sky, sighed for a long time, and said:
"This Ming Dynasty! Things are going to change."

……

The whole Zhejiang province was shaken by Jiang Qingzhi's extraordinary actions. The navy was the top priority and foundation of the lifting of the maritime ban. The outside world had always believed that Jiang Qingzhi did not dare and could not make a big move against the navy. Therefore, after the lifting of the maritime ban, the navy would become the only variable.

Over the years, those officers and soldiers have made a fortune through smuggling and selling arms, but now they have to train hard and go out to sea in the wind and waves to escort merchant ships. Will they be willing to do so?
When the time comes, I'll instigate some action... You, Jiang Qingzhi, can't have the final say on the sea.

But what was unexpected was that Jiang Qingzhi actually took action.

Most of the navy was purged, and just when the outside world thought he was crazy, a piece of news came.

——Jiang Qingzhi recruited a group of pirates who surrendered to join the navy.

"Some people say that pirates are full of banditry, so how can the navy want such people? Captain Wilbur said that it is that banditry that is needed."

Nanjing, meeting hall.

Xu Chengzong and the five ministers were discussing matters.

The garrison eunuch Wang Yan was also there. He smiled and asked, "Are those people scared?"

Xu Chengzong said: "Overseas trade is the biggest part, and now many businessmen in Zhejiang have said they want to boycott it."

"Ha ha ha!" Wang Yan laughed. "Those people can even buy their parents to make money. How can they take advantage of the situation to help those scholars? I dare say that if they really want to boycott, I will buy a piece of tofu and hit my head against it!"

We are also scholars and officials. Aren't you sweeping everyone down with one blow?
The five ministers all felt a little uncomfortable.

Wang Yan glanced at Nengliang and the others, "It's autumn now, and Chang Wei Bo is going back to Beijing. What will happen in the south depends on you ministers. If someone starts causing trouble right after Chang Wei Bo leaves, who will be responsible?"

Why is this damn eunuch so aggressive today?

Everyone was secretly complaining, but they didn't dare not express their opinions.

“Nanjing has an unshirkable responsibility in this matter.”

"Send someone down to warn everyone that if anyone causes trouble, they should be arrested first."

"Especially Zhejiang and Fujian. Once the sea is opened, these two places will be the top priority. Oh, and there is also the Maritime Customs Office in the middle. There are many things to deal with..."

The topic quickly went off track.

The Maritime Customs was a lucrative government office. Not to mention the corruption, just by going to the docks every day and collecting gifts from sea merchants, one could make more money in a year than a prefect would.

The five ministers were discussing the candidates. Wang Yan gave Xu Chengzong a look, and the two of them left the conference room.

The sun is still scorching, but it is a bit drier than in summer.

"We have heard that the people in the court are gearing up to stop Chang Wei Bo from invading Japan." Wang Yan took a look inside and said with disdain, "This is a big deal. These idiots are short-sighted and only care about the benefits. They don't even think about how important the Maritime Customs Office is. How could His Majesty let them get involved?"

"The Ming Dynasty has been established for many years and has never taken the initiative to attack another country. I'm afraid that this proposal of Lord Changwei will not be passed in the court," Xu Chengzong said in a deep voice, "The public opinion in the capital has continued to this day. Now there is a voice saying that the Mohist school believes in attacking and conquering. Lord Changwei will definitely follow the old path of the Mohist school of war and drag the Ming Dynasty into the abyss if he is in charge of the new policy."

"That's true. However, Japan is doing fine, so why would Chang Wei Bo want to attack it?" Wang Yan was puzzled.

"I don't know either. Let's wait for Chief Wilbur to come and try it out."

On the second day, hundreds of riders arrived outside Nanjing.

"Hello, uncle!"

The soldiers guarding the gate saluted.

Jiang Qingzhi nodded, looked at the city gate, and said, "This is a place where tigers and dragons lie. After the capital moved to the north, the decadent music on the Qinhuai River weakened the bones of many people. It no longer has the heroic spirit of the past. What a pity."

As soon as Jiang Qingzhi entered Nanjing City, he summoned everyone to discuss matters.

"Longjiang is the most important place, I want to say this." Jiang Qingzhi said with a sharp look in his eyes: "If anything happens in Longjiang, I will not look for anyone else but you."

Everyone was shocked.

"Captain Wilbur, the most important thing is to guard against recurrences everywhere, right?" Wang Yan said.

"I just hope it will happen again!" Jiang Qingzhi smiled, looking particularly ferocious in everyone's eyes.

Thinking of his past methods, everyone couldn't help but mourn for those guys who were ready to make a move.

Xu Chengzong asked: "What if the local authorities are rebellious?"

If we wait for instructions from the capital before taking action, it will be too late.

Therefore, Jiang Qingzhi had to express his stance and set a tone for these people to deal with accordingly.

Jiang Qingzhi raised his hand and suddenly turned his palm back.

"Suppression!"

(End of this chapter)