Fu Shanhe

Chapter 473 Shocking Data

"Prime Minister, there's no need to be so pessimistic."

The so-called calamity of regional military governors is all baseless.

Those guys in Liaodong are just a bit arrogant and domineering; they don't have the ability to rebel.

The most urgent task for the imperial court is to quell the rebellion as soon as possible and not give them any chance to grow stronger.

"Once the world is at peace, we'll find an opportunity to deal with those guys in Liaodong Town."

The Marquis of Zhendong responded expressionlessly.

The threat posed by the Marquis of Hanshui is obvious to everyone.

Being able to identify a problem does not mean you can solve it.

Even the current Grand Secretary was extremely wary and dared not directly reveal the truth, so others would be even less likely to touch this earth-shattering bombshell.

We can't afford to provoke Li Mu, but we can still deal with the rebels and Liaodong Town.

As one of the leaders of the strongest military group in the Great Yu Dynasty, his status naturally dictates that he must be assertive in external affairs.

They were wary of Li Mu because they were all members of the nobility faction.

Once they turn against each other, the small group will split first, making it impossible for them to work together to fight the enemy.

If war breaks out, even if the noble generals don't directly defect, don't expect them to put in any effort.

The strongest fortresses are always breached from within.

The Jing family suffered heavy losses in the military, but the Li family's influence in the military was not significantly affected.

Even after the death of the head of the family, they remain the most prestigious and powerful family in the Great Yu Dynasty.

Together with Li Mu's old troops in the army, this was a force capable of overthrowing the Great Yu dynasty.

When the rebels and the Liaodong garrison were replaced, the situation changed.

The nobility faction and the Liaodong faction were already at odds with each other, so there was no need to worry about their generals colluding together.

Liaodong Garrison was powerful, but it had inherent weaknesses and was subject to the control of the imperial court in terms of money and supplies.

If the imperial court wanted to, it could manipulate the money and grain to make things difficult for Liaodong.

From the perspective of the Marquis of Zhendong, he was not afraid of offending Liaodong Town.

Even if the Liaodong Garrison colluded with other factions in the court, the Beijing Garrison was able to keep them out of the city.

"Your Excellency is right. This matter should be considered carefully."

Jiang Shuhan abruptly changed the subject, directly brushing aside the sensitive topic from before.

By subtly pointing out the problem, they were reminding the nobles and high-ranking officials to be wary of the threat posed by the Marquis of Hanshui.

This problem is far beyond what their political alliance can solve.

If this topic continues, the plan that was originally intended to target Li Mu will most likely end up being a scheme to deal with Liaodong Town.

For the nobility group, the existence of Liaodong Town was a thorn in their side.

Most of the forces in the Great Yu army have been exhausted on the battlefield, and now the noble faction is the only one in power.

The Liaodong garrison, however, was the only one that refused to obey orders and managed to preserve its strength during the previous series of wars.

If this armed gang is dealt with, the political influence of the nobility in the Great Yu Dynasty will be greatly enhanced.

In fact, the previous purge plan targeting the Shanxi merchants was also intended to target the Liaodong garrison.

It would have been impossible for Shanxi merchants to conduct smuggling trade on the border without the cooperation of the garrison commanders.

According to the previous plan of the Xun Gui Group, while dealing with the Shanxi Merchants Group, they also wanted to drag Liaodong Town into the mess.

At that point, the military families of Liaodong had no choice but to submit.

Without the income from smuggling, the Liaodong Army had to rely entirely on government funding for all its expenses.

The imperial court didn't even need to deliberately target them; it could still allocate funds and provisions according to the previous standards. Even the military families of Liaodong couldn't support such a large army now.

After the retired emperor's northern expedition failed, the court terminated its plan to purge Shanxi merchants, largely because it feared the military families of Liaodong.

With the court's strength greatly diminished, if people are pushed to the brink, and the Shanxi merchants and Liaodong generals join forces to cause trouble, leading to the invasion of the northern barbarians, no one can bear the political consequences.

Being unable to force a solution does not mean being unable to plan.

The imperial court, possessing the advantage of righteousness, was in a natural position of strength.

The Liaodong Town itself was not a monolithic entity.

Among the many military families in Liaodong, not all of them were willing to submit to the Shi family.

By using all sorts of methods—bribery, coercion, and inducement—there will always be someone willing to cooperate with the imperial court.

The plan failed to proceed, mainly due to the lack of cooperation from the civil service.

A single dominant entity is not what the emperor and the civil service want to see.

No matter how much they disliked Liaodong Town, they still checked the power of the nobility to some extent.

The emperor is young and cannot play a role for the time being.

Without checks and balances, if the nobility completely control the army, the civil service will lose control of the court.

The five of them are both political allies and competitors. Each has their own bottom line and will not allow the other to cross it.

……

Yong'an Prefecture, Annam Protectorate Office.

"Judging by the time, the disaster in the north should have ended long ago."

Why is the number of refugees we're taking in still increasing?

Looking at the mountain of household registration lists in front of him, Li Mu couldn't help but ask.

Natural disasters do indeed create many refugees, but usually it's the wave of disaster that breaks out.

If you have some resources and can weather the initial phase, the situation will improve later.

The land needs to be cultivated, and the landlord wouldn't let all the hired laborers run away.

Once the floodwaters recede and the situation stabilizes, they will organize production to help themselves.

To appease the people, the gentry who had completed a round of land consolidation would symbolically offer some grain as disaster relief.

Then, under the guise of overcoming difficulties together, they lend money to the people at exorbitant interest rates, thus securing the next year's grain harvest in advance.

"My lord, in recent years, the northern lands have been plagued by natural disasters and man-made calamities, and the economies of many places are on the verge of collapse."

After the flood, not only the self-cultivating farmers went bankrupt, but even some small landowners couldn't withstand it.

Unlike in the past, this time among the refugees received were even scholars who had achieved the rank of Xiucai (a degree in the imperial examination system).

Upon hearing Wang Jingchuan's explanation, Li Mu frowned slightly.

The fact that the economies of the northern provinces are on the verge of bankruptcy is not good news.

It is true that the Annam Protectorate lacked labor, but the administrative system's capacity for resettlement was limited.

The number of refugees entering the country last month alone exceeded 350,000, and it is still increasing this month.

The influx of a large population, even with dispersed resettlement, has put immense pressure on local government offices.

Local officials are working themselves to the bone, and working overtime has become the norm.

Many of the detailed tasks simply cannot be done properly.

"The population of the ten prefectures in Jiaozhi Province is already nearing saturation, so we should stop sending immigrants there."

The Immigration Department revised its plan, including the newly occupied areas of Sumatra, Borneo, and the Malay Peninsula in the resettlement areas.

Before the local administrative agencies were even established, the local garrison temporarily took over the work of the local government.

The management model remains the same as the previous garrison system.

After thinking for a moment, Li Mu gave the order.

Since the implementation of the immigration strategy, the Annam Protectorate has absorbed more than nine million immigrants from the Dayu Dynasty.

Of these, more than 1.5 million were military households and their relatives who had moved in.

The total number of prisoners of war and criminals exiled by the imperial court was nearly two million.

The number of people who spontaneously migrated from Yunnan, Guizhou, and Guangdong also increased by 300,000 to 400,000.

The remaining five million people were immigrants from the northern provinces.

These statistics represent the number of immigrants who survived when they arrived at the Annam Protectorate.

The Protectorate General's office did not keep count of how many people died on the road, and Li Mu could only pretend not to see it.

In fact, even after immigrants arrived in their new locations, the mortality rate remained high.

On average, the annual mortality rate is as high as 4.1%, with the highest mortality rate among prisoners, reaching an alarming 10%.

The high mortality rate is mainly due to the harsh climate.

The training of TCM practitioners is too slow, and the medical system of Annam Protectorate still exists only on paper.

Worse still, due to the influence of natural conditions, the medicinal properties of herbs also differ somewhat from those found domestically. Many ancient prescriptions need to be revised.

With current technology, it is simply impossible to establish unified standards for medicinal materials.

No wonder the previous Central Plains dynasties stopped their advance after conquering Jiaozhi.

It's not that people don't see the value of the Indochina Peninsula and Southeast Asia; it's just that development is too difficult.

The Protectorate was able to establish itself in the Indochina Peninsula and Southeast Asia not only because of the progress in productivity, but also because it was fortunate to be born at the right time.

During the Little Ice Age, the entire world was getting colder.

Temperatures in tropical regions have also decreased.

I don't know exactly how much it has decreased, but in the Guangdong, Guangxi and Jiaozhi regions, we have seen snow in recent years.

"My lord, the situation in the Southeast Asia is unstable."

Sending a large number of immigrants there would likely increase the burden on the stationed troops.

Wei Xinzhi, who was standing to the side, offered a reminder.

Harsh climate and unfamiliar environment can be overcome.

If you can't overcome the natural environment, then you will be eliminated by it.

The law of the jungle, where only the fittest survive, may be cruel, but it is also the best option for immigrants.

If the economies of the northern provinces collapse, tens of millions of homeless and bankrupt people will be left.

They either went out to find new living space or died of hunger and civil war.

Hoping for relief from the imperial court is pure fantasy.

The economic problems in the north are partly due to natural disasters, but more so due to human error.

The northern barbarians would raid southwards every few days, plundering vast amounts of wealth and causing devastating damage to the local economy.

The normally functioning economic cycle was disrupted by the Northern barbarians, and the market simply couldn't regulate it.

Fortunately, the Great Yu Dynasty was in a self-sufficient small-scale peasant economy era and did not rely heavily on the market economy; otherwise, the northern provinces would not have survived to this day.

"Difficulties certainly exist, but I believe they can overcome them."

If the situation is unstable, then stabilize it.

I don't care about the specifics of how to do it; I only care about the results!

Li Mu answered calmly.

European colonists could colonize a large island with just a few thousand people, but he sent out tens of thousands of troops.

If you can't solve the problem, then solve the people who created it.

The colonial era was inherently filled with bloodshed.

Trying to be a saint in chaotic times can only harm both oneself and others.

……

With Li Mu's order, the situation in Southeast Asia changed once again.

Ship after ship of migrants were transported from the northern lands.

Immigrant villages sprang up and began to take root in the Southeast Asian region.

Batavia (Jakarta), Governor's Palace.

"Your Excellency, the people of Yu Dynasty are too crazy."

In just one month, 20,000 people have migrated to Sumatra, and there is no sign of it stopping.

God, we've been operating on the island for so long and we still don't have 20,000 immigrants!

......"

Political officer Alex couldn't help but complain.

For the Kingdom of the Netherlands, with a population of only 1.5 million, 20,000 immigrants already account for 1.33 percent of the native population...

Even if the colonies had high strategic value, they could not possibly invest this much.

Due to insufficient local population, the Kingdom of the Netherlands usually introduced immigrants from other parts of continental Europe when developing its colonies.

Back in Europe, everyone was fighting to the death.

Once they arrived overseas, white immigrants became a minority.

In order to survive, people had to stick together and support each other, which to some extent maintained the stability of the colony.

Even with the expansion of immigration sources, the Kingdom of the Netherlands has shown great restraint.

On the one hand, there were limited people in the European world willing to go to colonies; on the other hand, there was a fear of being usurped by powerful nations.

"Sea Coachman" is both a compliment and a form of mockery.

In the eyes of many European nobles, they were simply wealth transporters.

“Mr. Alex, please remain calm.”

"Something's wrong with you right now!"

Governor Rodriguez interrupted.

He was naturally aware that the Yu Dynasty people had migrated to Sumatra.

With such a commotion, it was impossible to keep it a secret.

"I apologize, Your Excellency. I lost my composure just now!"

"However, the migration of the Yu Dynasty people did pose a serious threat to us."

If their actions are not stopped, it won't be long before the island is full of their people.

The people of the Yu Dynasty were different from the natives; they had an advanced civilization and could produce their own cannons and warships.

"As long as the number of immigrants on the island exceeds 200,000, we won't be able to compete with them."

Alex said with a solemn expression.

Following the practices of various European countries, overseas immigration has always been military in nature.

During wartime, every immigrant can take up arms to defend the security of the colony.

The immigrants are mostly young and middle-aged men. With more than 200,000 immigrants on the island, they could easily raise an army of 50,000.

The Kingdom of the Netherlands did not even have a standing army of 50,000.

Even if the entire nation were to mobilize its resources, there would be considerable risk in trying to defeat this enemy force.

"Mr. Alex, your message is outdated."

As far as I know, the total number of immigrants sent to the island by the Yu Dynasty has exceeded 50,000.

The data you compiled only represents one of the immigration settlements of the Yu Dynasty people.

There are many similar outposts on the island.

If nothing unexpected happens, they will continue their immigration efforts.

Backed by the Great Yu Empire, they possessed virtually unlimited manpower, which they could squander at will.

Garrison Commander Nathanil answered first.

In order to counter the sudden emergence of competitors, he has been working hard to gather intelligence on the enemy.

The more intelligence he gathered, the more confused he became about the kingdom's rule on the island.

The disparity in strength between the two sides was too great; the Great Yu Empire had only revealed the tip of the iceberg, yet it had already brought him immense pressure.

"This is impossible!"

"In just over a month, they've sent 50,000 immigrants over. Aren't the Yu Dynasty people planning to stay?"

Alex asked incredulously.

As a senior political official, he personally organized immigration within the country.

In an effort to recruit more people, he advertised everywhere, but he only managed to fool a few hundred people.

Such achievements have also earned them an award from the Dutch government.

The Yu Dynasty people magnified this data a hundredfold, completely exceeding their comprehension.

"Mr. Alex, it may be hard to accept, but it's the truth."

The migration fleets of the Yu Dynasty people were constantly shuttling back and forth.

Besides Sumatra, their other colonies also received a large number of immigrants.

Preliminary estimates suggest that the first wave of immigrants from the Yu Dynasty to Southeast Asia numbered no fewer than 150,000.

Governor Rodriguez shrugged.

(End of this chapter)