Zhutian: Starting from the Space-Time Merchant

Chapter 160 Lin Dao Arrives
The capital city, the Forbidden City.

Inside the Imperial Study, the nominal master of the Ming Dynasty was venting his dissatisfaction with angry roars.

"inability!"

"waste!"

"A warrior never fights to the death!"

"The civil officials are fast!"

"In this capital region, the Jurchens can come and go as they please."

"What do you think this place is!?"

The emotionally volatile Emperor Chongzhen raised his hand, clenched his fist, and slammed it onto the desk.

Unexpectedly, her wrist was too close and bumped into the paperweight.

With a sharp crack, the watch on my wrist was immediately damaged.

The Chongzhen Emperor, whose hands ached and whose heart ached, turned even darker.

This celestial dial watch is absolutely gorgeous; it's one of his most prized possessions.
The eunuchs serving in the imperial study all kept their heads down and used their invisibility skills, fearing that the emperor would drag them out as an example to relieve his pent-up desires.

Looking at the broken wristwatch, a storm was brewing on Emperor Chongzhen's slightly gaunt face.

At this critical moment, the urgent military intelligence that was rushed in eased the heavy atmosphere in the imperial study.

"The Jurchen army passed through Tongzhou but did not enter; instead, they went straight south."

Everyone could sense that Emperor Chongzhen had clearly breathed a sigh of relief.

As the dark clouds gradually dispersed, the Imperial Study seemed to regain its vitality.

Heading directly south means they're not coming to attack the capital, so everyone is safe now.

"Your Majesty~~~"

Seeing the emperor's complexion turn from gloomy to cloudy, Wang Chengen, the Grand Eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial, stepped forward and flattered him in a gentle voice, "The Jurchens must be afraid of the heavy troops in the capital and dare not face Your Majesty's might."

After the usual flattery, came the usual inquiries about His Majesty's well-being: "Your Majesty works tirelessly day and night."

"How about we prepare some food first?"

"I have no appetite." Emperor Chongzhen casually took off his damaged wristwatch and stepped onto the dragon throne to sit down.

"Sigh...how about a jar of honey water?"

Lin Dao's Jubaolou business has never stopped.

Many caravans from the north and south still wholesaled their goods from Jubaolou and shipped them to the north and south by the ship.

The people of the North were indeed living in misery.

However, the living standards of high-ranking officials did not decline much.

The capital city, with its immense wealth, the mansions of Shanxi merchants amassed with their hard-earned money, the residences of Liaodong generals, and even the powerful and wealthy in Shenyang were all buying them.

In short, good products will inevitably be sought after.

Even if the trade routes between the north and south were blocked due to war, merchants would still have plenty of ways to transport goods there.

As long as there's a profit, that's fine.

The capital city, which contains at least tens of millions of taels of wealth, is not lacking in various industrial products from the modern world.

For example, the honey-water canned food that Emperor Chongzhen loved to eat was plentiful in the city and was also very popular among powerful and influential families.

A eunuch presented the emperor with his favorite citrus honey water.

Use your chopsticks to pick up a citrus fruit from the crystal-clear glass jar and put it in your mouth to chew.

The soft, fragrant fruit, combined with the sweetness of the syrup, gradually relaxed Emperor Chongzhen's expression.

Sweetness can make people feel happy.

Emperor Chongzhen, who was worried all day long, could only feel the taste of happiness at this time.

Observing the situation, Wang Chengen immediately stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty."

"Although the Jurchens have not yet arrived in the capital, we must still strengthen the city's defenses to prevent them from launching a surprise attack."

"Hmm." Emperor Chongzhen, leaning back in his chair, casually asked, "What did Scholar Zhou say?"

Scholar Zhou is Zhou Yanru.

He should have broken through the barrier during the time when Abatai broke through, but due to external pressure, he had no choice but to take the blame for the emperor.

But Lin Dao's sudden northward march to eliminate the Tartars saved his life.

Even now, he remains the Chief Cabinet Secretary.

"What the Grand Secretary means."

Having already spoken with Zhou Yanru beforehand, Wang Chengen finally got to the point.

"As the Grand Secretary, he has an inescapable responsibility for the defense of the capital."

"However, the movements of the Jurchens also need to be monitored at all times."

"The coordination of troops from various regions to support the emperor and the raising of military funds also require capable ministers to handle."

Although he wasn't very capable, he did, after all, serve as emperor for over ten years.

Upon hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen gradually came to understand.

He opened his eyes and looked at Wang Chengen. "Who is he going to protect?"

"Your Majesty is wiser than anyone else."

Wang Chengen lowered his head even further.

"Grand Secretary Zhou means that His Majesty should show mercy and allow Shi Kefa to redeem himself through meritorious service."

This was the common practice among civil officials and eunuchs in dealing with the emperor during the late Ming Dynasty.

It's not fair to call it fooling; it's just that this method is the most effective.

Emperor Chongzhen, who was known for being swayed by gentle persuasion but not by force, actually fell for this.

He frowned in thought, appearing thoughtful.

But Wang Chengen, who knew him well, knew that the matter had been settled.

Given the Emperor's temper, if he was unwilling, he would immediately erupt in a tirade of abuse.

Sure enough, after a moment of contemplation, Emperor Chongzhen nodded.

"can."

Wang Chengen glanced discreetly at the clock in the corner; it was about to ring.

That's pretty much it for today.

After the Emperor finished his honey water, the next step was to deal with some official documents and memorials that were not of great significance, and then he would have his meal and go to sleep.

But then, an unexpected incident occurred.

Another urgent military report arrived.

The Grand Canal Transport Commissioner of Huai'an Prefecture sent an urgent military report.

"The bandits from Jiangnan are marching north in force!"

Huai'an Prefecture, the Grand Canal Transport Office. "This office is so dilapidated."

Lin Dao chuckled and said, "Officials who don't maintain their offices and just put on a show are all talk and no action, but what good are they?"

Such is the prevailing social trend.

If the government undertakes large-scale construction projects to build grand buildings and pavilions, it will give people the impression of extravagance and may arouse public dissatisfaction.
That is, people will impeach them for being extravagant and wasteful.

For the sake of appearances, government offices were generally kept simple and minimally maintained.

But actually.

Those inside never miss out on any of the enjoyment they deserve, and they never hesitate to take any benefits they're entitled to.

Last time I came here, I was in a hurry to fight the Tartars.

The prefectures and counties along the way did not commit any offenses.

This time it was different; Lin Dao collected everything along the way, taking them all down.

When attacking Huai'an Prefecture, it cannot be called an attack; it can only be described as the other side opening the city gates and surrendering.

The Grand Canal Transport Commissioner and the Prefect, among others, saw that the Grand Canal outside was filled with sails like clouds and boats stretching for thousands of miles.

The shore was teeming with people, a sea of ​​people.

They were so terrified that they abandoned the city's defenses and simply ran away.

The Ming soldiers defending the city, or rather, the able-bodied men they had forcibly conscripted, quickly opened the city gates and surrendered.

It wasn't that they were unwilling to serve the emperor; they simply couldn't fight.

Huai'an Prefecture didn't have many strong troops to begin with; those troops had all been taken to Luzhou by Shi Kefa.

After Shi Kefa was escorted to the capital, he was taken to Wuchang Prefecture by Huang Degong and others.

As a result, the entire army was wiped out.

The newly appointed Grand Canal Transport Commissioner managed to gather several thousand men, all of whom were able-bodied men lacking both food and pay.

In such a situation, facing an endless band of enemy troops outside, how can one possibly defend the city?
Although they claimed they were loyal to the emperor.

It's probably better to be alive than dead.

It's not that we are not loyal, but there are too many people on the other side!
"Holding the 'Records of Officials'."

Lin Dao waved the book in his hand. "According to the records in this book, we will go from house to house to search and arrest people."

"Don't worry about whether they have a good reputation or whether they are good or bad people."

"With the meager salaries provided by the Ming Dynasty court, they couldn't afford to be philanthropists."

"As for the accumulation of wealth by our ancestors, that's even more laughable. Where did they accumulate it from?"

"Unless his family is as poor as Hai Rui, everything should be confiscated."

Upon arriving in a new place, the first thing they invariably do is to raid the homes of the residents.

We'll take down all the local gentry and big landowners.

As for the trial, that will be left to the people to handle.

Huai'an Prefecture was somewhat special. The second thing Lin Dao arranged was to send troops to take over the salt fields in various coastal areas.

In the north there is Changlu, and in the south there is Lianghuai.

These two salt fields accounted for the majority of the salt production in the Ming Dynasty.

He also arranged for craftsmen to accompany him to renovate the salt fields, switching to the sun-drying method to increase production and improve quality.

Then came the announcement of the abolition of all slavery.

All the social classes of low social status established by Zhu Yuanzhang were abolished.

The Yuan Dynasty divided people into four classes, but under Zhu Yuanzhang, they were divided into ten classes.

Officials, clerks, monks, Taoists, doctors, farmers, artisans, commoners, scholars, and beggars.

These discriminatory treatments have now all been abolished.

"They dispersed to various counties to recruit able-bodied men and formed the Huai'an Battalion."

"The specific number of places will be allocated proportionally based on the local population."

Local military garrisons are an important force in maintaining local stability.

For example, Huai'an Prefecture established the Huai'an Battalion, with a fixed number of three thousand regular soldiers.

Recruitment should be conducted in a decentralized manner from various counties and villages, and it is prohibited to concentrate recruitment in a particular village or county.

Soldiers trained in the military night school served as officers of various ranks, stationed in different places to maintain order, crack down on gangs and bandits, and eliminate mountain bandits.

These recruited soldiers were given their own land in the local area and were exempt from taxes.

To protect their property, these garrison troops are bound to be highly motivated in their fight.

The government distributed land and provided grain and farming tools, reorganized local government offices, and cracked down on corrupt officials and beggars.

There are many and complicated matters.

After finishing these tasks, Lin Dao continued northward along the Grand Canal.

We arrived at the suspended river on the ground.

Looking at the gradually drying riverbed, Lin Dao took a breath. "The imperial court and the bandits are both bad things."

Last year, Li Zicheng attacked Kaifeng, but besieged the city for half a year without success.

The governor of Henan, Gao Mingheng, and others breached the Yellow River dike at Zhujiasai, diverting the Yellow River water to flood the troops besieging the city.

After the Yellow River breached its banks, heavy rains continued for ten days, and the floodwaters submerged the entire city of Kaifeng. All the residents of the city were submerged, but Gao Mingheng and Prince Zhu Gongxiao of Zhou escaped in small boats.

Upon learning the news, Li Zicheng moved his troops to higher ground and simultaneously ordered tens of thousands of refugees to dig up the dike.

The refugees dug a section of the Yellow River dike and diverted the river water to flood Kaifeng.

As a result, not only was Kaifeng flooded, but tens of thousands of displaced people who were digging the dikes also drowned.

The entire city of Kaifeng is said to have a population of one million.

During the siege, twelve or thirteen out of ten people died of hunger and plague, and the rest drowned.

And this is just the beginning.

The Yellow River breached its banks, turning the entire downstream area into a vast expanse of water, resulting in countless deaths.

The "suspended river" here is also due to the Yellow River breaching its banks, resulting in a significant reduction in flow.

This is undoubtedly a man-made disaster, a truly heinous crime.

Standing on the bank of the suspended river, Lin Dao put his hands on his hips and lifted the clods of earth at his feet. "Don't let me run into them. If I do, I won't let a single one of them get away!"

"General~~~"

A personal guard delivered an urgent message.

'The slave chieftain Huang Taiji personally led his troops south to seize Jinan Prefecture, then divided his forces to garrison various locations and plunder the summer grain.'

Lin Dao's heart stirred slightly.

"They're coming for me!"

(End of this chapter)