Zhutian: Starting from the Space-Time Merchant

Chapter 428 The mobilization of the entire population begins with education

"It intimidated the grasslands and left behind more than 10,000 cavalrymen."

"The former territory of the Bohai Kingdom, with nearly 20,000 troops stationed in the Changbai Mountains and Heilongjiang River region."

"The guard force for building city walls, official roads, and water conservancy facilities also needs to be in the tens of thousands."

"The Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun have just been recovered, and at least 10,000 troops are needed to garrison them, clean up local powerful families, and supervise the relocation of the people."

"After returning, we will launch a southern campaign against Dali, pacify the Dangxiang in the west, and fight all the way to the Western Regions."

“The remnants of local powerful clans are causing trouble and rebellion, and the bandits and outlaws have not yet been wiped out.”

"The troops that have been fighting for a long time urgently need rest and recuperation."

"We need troops everywhere." Looking away from the map spread on the table, Lin Dao picked up a sports drink. "Yang Ye, I can only give you 10,000 troops. Don't disappoint me!"

After the collapse of the Fubing system, the conscription model for the army in the Central Plains shifted to a mercenary system.

What followed was the rise of hundreds of thousands of professional military men from the regional military governors during the late Tang Dynasty.

During the Song Dynasty, due to the poor performance of professional warriors, they were repeatedly beaten by the Khitan, Jurchen, and Mongol peoples.

Therefore, after Zhu Yuanzhang drove out the Tartars, he established a military household system.

As for the result, it was equally utterly defeated.

Ultimately, the root cause was that the literati had plundered and encroached upon too much of the interests of the warriors, causing the warriors to be unwilling to serve the literati, even at the cost of national subjugation and extinction.

By the time they reached Lindao, most of the hundreds of thousands of professional warriors from the late Tang Dynasty had been abandoned because of their extreme brutality.

Only a small number of those who have not committed any evil deeds can beg for food under his command.

The number of soldiers that can be recruited is limited.

With the forest roads being laid out so extensively, it's natural that there's not enough space and there's simply not enough.

After all, robots need lubrication, and warriors need time to rest after a battle.

"I don't lack supplies."

"There might not be enough manpower for the war."

The Imperial Guards and the Palace Guards were all selected veterans who led strong new recruits with martial arts skills, and they earned their reputations through repeated wars of national annihilation.

To train more is easier said than done.

The vast land needs troops to suppress the rebellion everywhere, but dividing it up everywhere is never enough.

"We don't have enough soldiers." Lin Dao took a sip of his drink and caught his breath. "During the Qin and Han dynasties, the whole nation could be soldiers, so why can't we do it now?"

"It's basically just scholars vying for benefits."

"Then let's get rid of them and switch back to universal conscription!"

They returned to the loyal city of Bianjing, but this time there was no Prime Minister leading all the officials to greet them thirty miles outside the city.

Lin Dao sent someone back in advance to inform them that there was no need to do these things.

It was merely the destruction of the Liao Kingdom; there was no need for such a grand display.

Bianjing City has become increasingly prosperous.

Besides the gradual stabilization of the world and the beginning of economic recovery.

Most importantly, it is the tradition and custom that have existed since the An Lushan Rebellion.

Warriors amassed the vast majority of benefits, and the various rewards and stipends made them truly middle-class families.

Their family has strong purchasing power.

With purchasing power comes the economic climate.

Bianjing (Kaifeng) was the place where the Imperial Guards and Palace Guards were most concentrated.

Naturally, this place became the most economically prosperous place in the world.

Lin Dao didn't care much about this.

The benefits that warriors fight for with their lives on the battlefield are rightfully theirs to enjoy.

No matter how envious people are, Lin Dao will not care about their opinions.

They fought to the death on the battlefield, marching thousands of miles through ice and snow and scorching heat. This is the reward they deserve!
He wouldn't treat military men like slaves, unlike the civil officials of the Song and Ming dynasties.

The army disbanded, and Lin Dao returned to the cramped palace.

The imperial palace in Bianjing was very small, originating from the office of the Xuanwu military governor in Bianzhou City at the end of the Tang Dynasty.

After several expansions, it finally became the environment it is today.

Let alone comparing it to the Forbidden City or the imperial palace of Chang'an during the Han and Tang dynasties.

Even the palace of the Southern Tang Dynasty was much larger and more luxurious than this.

Fortunately, Lin Dao had great ambitions and didn't care about these material pleasures.

He will not waste resources and manpower to build palaces, but will use these resources for good.

Of course, he didn't have many women in his palace, so he didn't need that many.

Lin Dao gave himself three days off.

The first day consisted of showering, sleeping, and eating; I didn't see anyone.

On the second and third days, they took turns comforting Fu Erniang, Madam Huarui, Li Yanniang, and others.

Returning from a major battle, this is the most relaxing and stress-relieving way.

The only slight flaw was that they encountered Madam Fu, who had come to visit her sister, at Madam Fu Erniang's place.

That is, the former empress.

Of course, there's also Fu San Niang.

Lin Dao had long since passed the awkward stage and was now able to eat and chat with them openly and naturally.

When it was time to rest, they did not shy away from exploring secluded spots and scenic spots.

Fu Erniang, on the other hand, was extremely embarrassed and kept clenching her teeth the whole way.

The holiday ended quickly, and the forest road resumed its work.

He summoned his ministers for a meeting, and the first thing he did was to discuss a major issue.

"My goal is to popularize education so that all children in the world can have access to schools."

When these words were spoken, everyone was shocked.

Reading is not an easy task; it requires a great deal of resources.

Supporting a scholar can basically drain a family's resources!
Moreover, is Your Majesty preparing to govern the country with scholars?
Warriors conquer the world, while scholars govern it.

Does the emperor's desire to promote education mean that wars will cease in the future?

His gaze swept across the crowd, taking in their expressions and reactions. Lin Dao nodded before continuing, "I do not seek a good reputation in history books, nor am I interested in imperial palaces, fine wines, or gourmet food."

"I will give everything for the country I love and for the people of that country to live a good life."

"If we want the people to live a good life, then popularizing education for the public is an inevitable path."

"A country where the vast majority of people are illiterate has no future."

The ministers listened quietly, intending to change their course based on Lin Dao's suggestion.

This is the advantage of being a powerful emperor who controls everything.

Once someone decides to do something, virtually no one can stop them.

If this were the Song Dynasty emperors who were constantly being pulled by the sleeves by their ministers to do things, or the Ming Dynasty emperors who were easily swayed by others, it would be a joke.

The emperor's power lies in control.

If you can't control it, then it's just a puppet.

"Universal access to education."

"All children of school age should go to school."

"What we are learning is knowledge, not the words of sages!"

Lin Dao has already been promoting this matter in all the timelines he has complete control over.

There will certainly be resistance, but with strong control, we can still proceed in an orderly manner.

"I have prepared the supplies and study materials."

"Just proceed according to the schedule."

"The first thing is to train the instructors." Lin Dao's gaze swept over the group of generals, "mainly the wounded and disabled soldiers in the army, as well as soldiers who want to retire."

"Their positions in the military can be filled by their children or grandchildren."

Even more than a thousand years later, it is still common for sons to inherit their fathers' businesses.

There are countless stories of three generations passing on the torch.

It felt perfectly natural for Lin Dao to offer his professional army the opportunity for sons to follow in their fathers' footsteps.

This is a job where you have to fight a desperate war, not like... cough cough...
“Gather these soldiers together and conduct unified teacher training.”

"At the same time, I will allocate special funds to build schools in various prefectures and counties."

In the early stages, due to a lack of teachers, construction could only be carried out at the prefecture and county levels.

Educational resources can only be extended to rural areas when they become more abundant.

"As for the training content, I have detailed information here, you can take a look."

The imperial guards themselves would hand over the educational outlines to the officials.

Turning to the first page, the first thing you see is sixteen large characters.

"The entire population is a soldier, the military is given priority, decision-making is based on science, and technological innovation is key."

If these sixteen characters appeared on the internet in the modern world, netizens with rich knowledge would instantly think of a word.

Prussia prioritizes military education!
To put it simply, it was Prussian militarism—that kind of education.

This outline is essentially an optimization of that one.

Lin Dao paid professionals to write it in the modern world, and then gave it to Wang Meng to delete, add to, and modify.

This system exists in all the different times and spaces he has complete control over.

Everyone looked through the outline and examined it carefully.

The curriculum mainly focuses on Chinese language and mathematics, physical geography, chemistry, and physical education.

There are no foreign languages ​​that people find particularly hateful.

From now on, there will be no foreign languages, and everyone will speak the Chinese language.

In terms of Chinese language, he is not the old-fashioned scholar one might imagine, swaying his head and teaching classical Chinese texts.

Instead, it mainly uses simplified Chinese characters, pinyin, and new writing methods.

The main purpose is to help students master the written language as quickly as possible.

Mathematics was no longer a matter of chickens and rabbits in the same cage; instead, it shifted entirely to Arabic numerals.

Starting with the most basic addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, students will learn arithmetic.

Nature is essentially physics, and of course, the initial stages involve the simplest knowledge.

Geography needs no further explanation; it includes mountains, rivers, and even the sun, moon, and stars.

No one understands the importance of chemistry better than Lin Dao; it is the true cornerstone of technological progress.

As for sports, they are actually military education.

Besides physical fitness, there is also the most basic military training.

Lin Dao said he wanted to shift to a policy of universal conscription, and he wasn't just talking about it; he was actually going to do it.

Once students graduate after years of study, they become the best source of recruits.

Of course, the initial focus is on basic knowledge.

After learning the basics of Chinese and mathematics, they gradually began to receive education in subjects such as natural sciences, geography, and chemistry.

As for physical education, it is an important course from the beginning of enrollment until graduation.

Here in Lindao, you won't find physical education teachers getting sick every day.

According to the outline, even the most basic learning period is as long as nine years.

Nine years later, those with outstanding grades continued their studies in greater depth.

Ultimately, the end is the university.

Of course, all of that is still a long way off. Lin Dao hasn't even trained the most basic teachers yet, and it will probably take at least ten years to build a university.

Without a doubt, this is a very difficult thing.

Throughout history, dynasties have often collapsed first and foremost due to their enormous expenditures of public funds and resources.

Lin Dao can skip this step and go directly to the most specific execution stage.

"Once it is finally popularized and established."

He looked around, his words filled with excitement.

"This world will belong to the Central Plains for generations to come!"

(End of this chapter)