Late Ming Dynasty: So what if Emperor Chongzhen was inactive?!

Chapter 189 Turning Back the Clock of History: Private Land Ownership Transitions to State Ownership
Mao Wenlong feared a reversal of events, and the Jurchens were also afraid of a sudden Ming army surge, having already felt the terror of the Ming forces emerging continuously within the Great Wall. Without delay, the Jurchens agreed to Mao Wenlong's terms, exchanged supplies, and the Jurchens headed north while the Ming army returned east.

The rescued people felt as if they had returned from another world, while those who were not released cried out in deafening, heart-wrenching sobs. Even worse, fathers and sons, brothers and sisters, were separated; one step to heaven, one step to hell. The sun gradually set, its afterglow stretching long shadows. The sun has gone down, and people are afraid because they have no home.

In the aftermath of the war, the capital region was in ruins, and countless people were displaced. Meanwhile, Zhu Youjian, a member of the ruling class, slept soundly. This was one of the things that many upright officials found most objectionable about the emperor.

This is not a peaceful and prosperous era. We have powerful enemies outside, eunuchs inside, and corrupt officials, local tyrants and bullies who oppress the people. How can you, as the emperor, sleep soundly?

This put the ministers who wanted to praise the emperor as a sage ruler in a very difficult position. They searched through historical records, even comparing him to Emperors Wen and Jing, but they couldn't bring themselves to say that the emperor was right, but rather morally flawed, lazy, and licentious. However, on the bright side, while the emperor was indeed lazy, at least he wasn't a tyrant like Jie or Zhou.

Zhu Youjian naturally knew that he could not please everyone. Many officials disliked him, and many people resented and criticized him. However, he would not let this cause internal strife, because a key point was that the suffering of these people was not caused by him!

Did he cause the natural disasters?! Did he bring about the Jurchen invasions?! These disasters were bound to happen; they didn't disappear because of him, nor were they exacerbated by him. Many people always feel they haven't done well enough and could definitely have done better; it's this kind of thinking that exhausts them.

What has been done cannot be undone. If mistakes are made, they should be corrected and remedied if possible. Do not let the past cause internal conflict. This is what Confucius meant when he said, "What is past cannot be changed, but what is to come can still be pursued."

Some people say that if someone holds a position but doesn't fulfill their responsibilities and is just a figurehead, shouldn't they die? With great power comes great responsibility! Zhu Youjian didn't think he had much ability. Compared to his brain, his physical body was more valuable. As long as he lived, lived longer, ate well, slept well, and kept himself healthy and plump, that was already the greatest contribution he could make to the country.

He wasn't important, but his absence was crucial. If he were to suddenly pass away, the Ming Dynasty would fall apart, and the country and the nation would be on the verge of destruction. He wasn't a perfect emperor, but his successor might not be any better.

The post-war period was complicated. Because the court had limited resources, there was a priority to things. Whether to prioritize consolidating the front lines and preventing enemy counterattacks, or to settle people's livelihoods and rebuild after the disaster, or to approve war merits and provide post-war compensation, there were many things to consider. In the end, it all came down to money.

In Liaodong, Yuan Keli repeatedly petitioned the court for funds to build a city, because the Jurchens, having suffered a setback in the interior, would inevitably seek revenge in Liaonan. Liaonan was far from the court but close to the Jurchens, who could not only launch cavalry raids but also conscript a large number of civilians to assist in the siege, possessing considerable territorial capabilities. Maintaining the situation in Liaonan would be extremely difficult.

It was precisely because of this that Huang Taiji did not hesitate to invade the south. He could take back Liaonan at any time if he wanted to. Of course, his army could not stay in Liaonan forever. As long as they left, the Ming army could launch a counterattack at any time.

When this place becomes the site of a strategic stalemate between the two sides, it will be turned into a wasteland, let alone farming. Large tracts of fertile land in southern Liaoning will be abandoned. At that time, the Dongjiang Army will have nowhere to retreat, and there will be no way to resettle the hundreds of thousands of soldiers and civilians, because the areas around the capital and Shandong already have sharp conflicts between people and land, and simply cannot accommodate a large number of outsiders.

It is well known that the emperor was extremely averse to the construction of the city walls, and with the change in the situation, the ministers' tendency to vie for credit resurfaced. When Liaodong was a mess, most people were unwilling to take it on; now that Liaodong was about to be revitalized, some people wanted to make money off it.

Yuan Keli's memorial drew a lot of ridicule and sarcasm, and many people even began to question the necessity of building Ningyuan City. They argued that cities are not mobile and cannot keep up with the Jurchen warhorses, so it would be better to use the money to build more cavalry and train more wagon battalions.

They even brought up the story of Huang Taiji secretly crossing Ningyuan and Jinzhou and stationing his horse under the walls of Shanhaiguan to refute the legitimacy of building the city.

Zhu Youjian watched the officials discussing amongst themselves and felt something was off. Weren't these officials the most enthusiastic about repairing the city? The city, which was quoted at one million taels, could have its costs reduced to less than two hundred thousand taels. It involved many departments, including the Ministry of Works, the Ministry of War, the Ministry of Revenue, and the Ministry of Personnel, all of whom could make money.

"Are they trying to curry favor with me? Do they think I have that much influence?!" Zhu Youjian couldn't help but feel a little smug. "Or is it that they're not actually against building the city walls, but rather against the stubborn and cunning Yuan Keli?!"

Human behavior is always driven by motivation. Actions might be motivated by the pursuit of wealth, power, or fame. While it's possible that selfless saints truly exist, such beings are rare. Confucius, Confucius, everyone calls him that, but was Confucius truly a saint?!

Of course, the world is not black and white, and people's motivations are not singular. Good people have their own desires and hope that others will be well, while bad people harm others for their own benefit, nothing more.

Zhu Youjian was not a saint; he was an ordinary man. He did not aspire to be a holy emperor, nor did he want officials to flatter him to death and mold him into a divine statue on a gilded dragon throne. He also did not naively expect his officials to be loyal to the emperor, love the people, be capable, and not ask for money. He just hoped that everyone would make do, not go too far, and not be too useless.

Of course, this is far from the ideal world of idealists, but he can't very well overthrow himself, can he? Even if he were obsessed to the point of self-castration, would he get the result he wanted? No.

From a class perspective, the emperor is the biggest landlord, the biggest feudal lord, and the biggest exploiter. However, in the actual operation of the game of empire, the emperor is sometimes in opposition to aristocratic families, bureaucrats and gentry, and sometimes sides with the common people.

Of course, to say that the emperor was the spokesperson for the people and acted on their behalf would inevitably be an embellishment of the emperor's role, and we need to analyze each specific person in detail.

What kind of emperor he was can only be judged by posterity. Zhu Youjian might feel he would be considered an outstanding feudalist fighter, but so what? "Your bodies and names will perish; after my death, who cares about the deluge?" As long as this world is composed of people, there will be a dark side. Of course, opinions vary, and the observer's thoughts often determine the observed results. The world isn't all that good, but it's not all that bad either.

Currently, there are less than two million taels of silver left in Taicang, and less than one million taels in Zhu Youjian's private treasury. Considering the current high grain prices in Beijing, with a dou of rice costing three hundred coins, by combining the two, there are still more than ten million taels worth of grain.

Of course, if military pay and rations were distributed, the army would rebel. There were many intricacies involved. For example, if the grain was exchanged for currency, it would be subject to secondary exploitation. If it was not exchanged for silver, it would be impossible to pay taxes and purchase living supplies. The principle was the same as that of the common people who were exploited under the Single Whip Law. There were also various problems such as deductions, adulteration, and difficulty in preservation.

For example, the current rise in grain prices is due to war, and prices will probably gradually fall after the war. If grain is distributed at a price of three liang per shi, the price will drop to eight qian per shi as soon as the grain arrives. This will make the soldiers feel cheated, and they will become angry, cause trouble, or give up.

However, no money is no money, and Zhu Youjian couldn't conjure money out of thin air. Even knowing that distributing grain would cause problems, he had no choice but to mix some grain into the distribution, otherwise he wouldn't be able to fill the hole.

The efficiency of the Ming Dynasty was pitifully low. This wasn't so noticeable within the small circle of Beijing, where things could still be pushed forward if pushed too hard. However, on a larger scale, the situation was different. With the emperor far away and county magistrates holding high positions, it was truly difficult to implement the court's orders.

However, the Ming Dynasty still has one highly efficient group to utilize: the newly rich military elites spawned by years of war. Clearly, a militaristic system was one of the most efficient national systems in ancient empires. However, this approach is very dangerous. If played well, it could surpass the Han and Tang dynasties, intimidating all surrounding nations. If played poorly, it could lead to chaos and a human tragedy of utter debauchery, with everyone vying for power.

Due to the inefficiency of the bureaucratic system itself, and the fact that many officials in the capital region had been killed by the Jurchens, although the war had ended for almost half a month, the court only had an estimated figure for the losses in various places, and even for the number of beheadings and casualties.

Based on estimates, the number of effective first merits inside and outside the pass is roughly 30,000. At 60 taels per head, the reward would be 1.8 million taels.

In terms of compensation, the Ming army suffered fewer losses than the Jurchens in terms of elite forces, which is why the war was characterized as a great victory. However, if the garrison troops sent down to the county level, the local militia recruited by local officials to defend the cities, and the able-bodied soldiers are also included, the number is as high as 50,000.

The Ming Dynasty was not so generous with its compensation for the dead. A human life was only worth ten taels of silver, and that was only after Zhu Youjian had fought for it. The Ming Dynasty never had a fixed amount for compensation for the dead, and it would even delay payment or not pay at all if possible.

Of course, in addition to the ten taels of silver, there was also a tax-free policy worth more than ten taels of silver per year. Unfortunately, the most frustrating thing was that the 500,000 taels of compensation would most likely not be distributed, because many of the fallen soldiers' parents, wives and children had already passed away. As for the collateral relatives, the court was not generous enough to give the compensation to these people.

This is another fatal flaw. Officials responsible for distributing pensions could lie and say that the martyrs' families were still alive to cheat the court out of money, or they could take the money directly, giving less or no money to the martyrs' widows. People die for money, just as birds die for food. Even if the court says that those who reach out will be killed, there will still be people who are not afraid of death.

The compensation and bounty for heads alone cost more than two million taels of silver. Even if the national treasury were emptied, it would not be able to come up with this amount of money. Moreover, in addition to ordinary heads, there are also valuable heads. Besides the merit of beheading, there are various types of military merits such as capturing flags, breaking formations, winning field battles, defending cities, protecting borders, cooperating, and winning the entire army. The total expenditure is no less than that of beheading merits.

Making money is difficult, and confiscating property might be a good option, but after a major war, what the country needs more is stability. External chaos forces internal conflicts to ease, but the outbreak of internal conflicts will give foreign enemies an opportunity to take advantage of the situation, leading to increased external pressure.

The bureaucrats and gentry did not seize the central core power by force, but rather gradually eroded it step by step over hundreds of years. They seized every opportunity, such as when the central imperial power was weak, such as when the emperor changed, when there were natural disasters or man-made calamities, or when foreign enemies invaded, to carry out their schemes. Zhu Youjian decided to use their own methods against them.

He didn't want to use violent means to fight for power and profit against the empire's huge noble class, because he was cowardly. He decided to slowly boil the frog in the water, gradually eroding their power and testing the bottom line of officials, nobles, and gentry. Since these people could grovel at the feet of the Jurchens and fawn over them, their bottom line probably wasn't much higher than the hem of their underwear.

Zhu Youjian and Bi Ziyan hit it off immediately and decided to use the excuse that the capital region had been invaded by the Jurchens and was in ruins, with many places having lost more than one in ten people, and ownerless lands scattered all over the country, and large areas of land abandoned, to redefine the land situation in the 116 counties of the eight prefectures of Beizhili. All land that could not be produced with land deeds, or whose deeds belonged to people other than themselves, would be confiscated by the court.

This matter was to be handled by Lu Xiang-sheng, the Imperial Inspector of the Six Prefectures. If local officials and gentry had objections, were unwilling to cooperate, or pretended to comply while secretly obstructing the process, his thousands of loyalist soldiers would persuade and criticize them.

Zhu Youjian deliberately spread the news that he would take over these fields as imperial estates, which was met with strong opposition from most officials, including Sun Chuanting, Zhu Xieyuan, Bi Ziyan, and even Lu Xiangshan. The number of remonstrances was enough to make breakfast in the palace.

The next day, Zhu Youjian proposed in court to use these fields to reward the soldiers and restore the system of awarding land to those who had rendered meritorious service. This time, some people opposed it and some people agreed, and a heated argument ensued.

Military leader Zhu Xieyuan and Finance Minister Bi Ziyan both disagreed with this approach. Zhu Xieyuan felt that the farming-war system was outdated and was just another form of the garrison system. The soldiers trained there were too weak in combat. Elite soldiers should be dedicated to fighting, not farming. If farming was to be done, it should be done by the garrisons. However, the garrisons could not earn military merits, so this was a dead end.

Bi Ziyan's reasoning was that Beizhili was an important tax-collecting region for the imperial court. He argued that if land was awarded for military merit, it should be tax-free. Land awarded for military merit without tax exemption or with reduced taxation was not attractive; if it was tax-free, Beijing might even face food shortages. Even disregarding these issues, the army was constantly at war, and war would leave the land abandoned, jeopardizing food security.

After both proposals were rejected, Zhu Youjian finally came up with the plan he truly wanted to implement: the land belonged to the Ming Dynasty, not to the emperor or any particular group, and these fields were to be leased to displaced farmers for cultivation, with no form of misappropriation or sale permitted!
(End of this chapter)