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

Chapter 214 Mystical Musings: I Feel This Year Will Be Blessed with Good Weather and Abundant Harvests
When the Longqing Emperor opened the ports, the Ming Dynasty only opened a small portion of them. Decades have passed, and although the officially open ports have not changed much, local officials, driven by profit, have tacitly approved the opening of numerous grey ports.

Since it was a gray area, it naturally generated gray income, which went into the pockets of local officials, and the imperial court couldn't collect taxes from it. The entire Ming Dynasty's overseas trade amounted to tens or even hundreds of millions of taels of silver, but the "maritime trade tax" received by the Ming Dynasty was less than one hundred thousand taels!
It would be better to fully open up the coastal prefectures and find ways to collect more tariffs. You see, tariffs were a terrifying system that kept the Qing Dynasty alive for decades when it was on the verge of collapse; their potential was far greater than farming. To collect taxes, you need the strength to combat smuggling. If given a choice, no one would want to pay taxes.

The imperial court's organization of official trade was essentially squeezing out the living space of Zheng Zhilong and his ilk. Eastern pirates were very different from Western pirates; Zheng Zhilong and his men were more accurately described as armed merchants than pirates. If the court didn't want war, it couldn't keep pressuring Zheng Zhilong; it had to offer a reward after the initial blow.

He could participate in the imperial court's trade, since he was nominally the General-in-Chief of the Ming Dynasty, and his fleet belonged to the Ming Dynasty. Although the Ming Dynasty was well aware of the situation, foreigners were not, and Zheng Zhilong's fleet was a ready-made customs and coast guard force.

Of course, the collection of taxes cannot be left to them to do as they please; the imperial court must still send tax officials to collect them.

Time passed day by day, and before they knew it, the year of Ji Si had come to an end. No further surprises occurred in the second half of the year. The Jurchens wanted to seize the four prefectures of Hai Gai, but seeing a new city rising from the ground in Hai Prefecture, with the Ming army heavily guarded and well-equipped, they chose to give up.

But the Jurchens were not dead. Zhu Youjian did not receive the news until after the New Year. It turned out that the Khorchin tribe, which had come to pay tribute, had already been "possessed" by the Jurchens. With the help of an inside agent, the Jurchens mobilized half of their forces to conquer the Khorchin tribe, completely dismantling and incorporating this ancient tribe that had existed for hundreds of years.

Originally, they were only related by marriage and cooperation, but now they have completely become master and servant. In Liaodong today, the Jianzhou Jurchens are the first class, the Western Sea Jurchens and Wild Jurchens are next, the Mongols can only be considered the third class, and the Han people are not considered human.

Now, there are no capable soldiers left in Southern Mongolia; they have either left or all become like the Jurchens. After annexing the Mongols, the Jurchen cavalry recovered quickly, but according to frontline reports, their fighting strength has declined drastically, to the point where they are being chased around by the Guan Ning cavalry.

It was only because Yuan Keli was so honest that he wrote the battle report. If it had been any other military commander, even Yuan Chonghuan, they would not have written it like that. They would have said that their troops had achieved a great victory under their brilliant command due to their hard training and soaring combat effectiveness. They might even have exaggerated the enemy's threat in order to ask the court for money and supplies.

The era of the Mongols had passed, and their cavalry and armored troops were declining. The Ming Dynasty's "layered armor" system was entirely designed to counter the threat of the Jurchens, a targeted counter-equipment system, but it was already considered outdated on a global scale.

Lightweighting and weaponization are the future, which will weaken the individual. Heroic tales of one man taking on a hundred or ten thousand will become a thing of the past. It's unfortunate, but that's how progress is; the wheels of time relentlessly crush everyone who stands in its way.

In early 1644, a heavy snowfall blanketed the entire city of Beijing. In the past, people might have cheered and congratulated each other with the saying "A timely snow promises a bumper harvest." However, in recent years, the weather has been so unpredictable that people have been proven wrong too many times and dare not say such things lightly anymore.

But Zhu Youjian knew that this heavy snow truly heralded a bountiful harvest! Therefore, at the beginning of the year, Zhu Youjian set the tone for this year's work:
This year, the imperial court prioritizes farming, approving the Ministry of Works to carry out farmland irrigation and repair projects, and the Ministry of Revenue to implement the Green Seedling Law, allocating a budget of one million taels to rent improved seeds and oxen from the people. The loans will be in kind, not money, only the principal will be charged, with no interest. However, the imperial court will lose money, incurring at least two hundred thousand taels in administrative costs.

To reassure people about farming, Zhu Youjian, who never believed in ghosts or gods, still made up a story.

"Last night I saw Emperor Taizu in my dream. What does this mean?!" Zhu Youjian asked in the court.

Everyone was highly politically astute; no one believed such nonsense as a dream prophecy. The key was what the emperor wanted to say. So the Director of the Imperial Observatory decided to play the role of the Duke of Zhou (a figure in Chinese mythology associated with dreams) and interpret the emperor's dream. He solemnly replied, "May I ask what the founding emperor said or did? Your Majesty, please describe it in detail so that I can interpret the dream for Your Majesty based on celestial phenomena."

Zhu Youjian said, "I saw Emperor Taizu in my dream. At first, Emperor Taizu had his back to me. I don't know why I was overcome with grief and tears welled up in my eyes."

Upon hearing the voice, Emperor Taizu turned around in surprise and asked who he was. He replied, "Zhu Youjian, the sixteenth emperor of the Ming Dynasty."

Emperor Taizu was pleased and said, "The Qin Dynasty only lasted two generations, while our Great Ming Dynasty has lived for sixteen generations. It must have been eight hundred years by now, right?"

I was filled with shame and said, "The Ming Dynasty has only existed for over two hundred and sixty years, yet it already shows signs of collapse." The Taizu Emperor was furious and said, "Have you been indulging in extravagance and debauchery, levying exorbitant taxes and robbing the people of their money and grain?"

The reply was, "No, since I ascended the throne, I have personally practiced frugality, been frugal in spending and caring for the people, rejected extravagance and promoted thrift, and avoided repeating dishes or wearing fine clothes."

Did you neglect military preparedness, leading to the nation's downfall at the hands of foreign enemies?

He replied, "No, since my ascension to the throne, I have won victory after victory, and the barbarians on all sides have submitted to my authority."

Emperor Taizu's doubts deepened, and he asked, "Is it because human relations have been obstructed, and you have no offspring?"

The reply was, "I have both a son and a daughter, and they are exceptionally strong and healthy."

Emperor Taizu angrily retorted: "With neither internal troubles nor external threats, how could the country possibly perish?"

Tears streamed down my face as I lamented, "Years of severe drought have affected several provinces, leaving the land parched and barren, with people resorting to cannibalism. This is Heaven's will to destroy me!"

The Emperor was furious: "We conquered this empire by relying on our soldiers and the people under our command, not by the whims of Heaven! If you don't work hard in the fields, dig wells, and carry water, who can we blame when the crops die of thirst?"

I was speechless. Seeing this, the Emperor Taizu took pity on him and said, "If foreign enemies invade, we can teach you strategies for victory; if you have questions about governing the country, we can offer some guidance. However, Heaven's will is unpredictable. With our divine power, we can only pray for two years of favorable weather for you. After that, you will have to rely on yourself."

After Emperor Taizu finished speaking, he transformed into a five-clawed golden dragon, soaring high in the heavens, bringing clouds and rain, and then disappeared without a trace.

After Zhu Youjian finished telling his story, the officials below the stage fell silent. The Duke of Zhou's interpretation of dreams usually only provides explanations for vague dreams, but the emperor's story was so detailed and detailed that it was clearly meant to encourage agriculture and foreshadow two years of good harvests.

Logically, they shouldn't have believed the emperor's nonsense, but when it came to predicting these mystical matters, the emperor was frighteningly accurate, even more so than the apocryphal texts of the Han Dynasty! With so many examples, people had no choice but to believe!

Although no one understood how the emperor made his predictions, since the emperor had said so, everyone should just listen to him; going against him would only lead to bad consequences.

Ye Zhenchun, the Imperial Astronomical Observatory Director, was also in despair. Last year, his inaccurate weather forecasts caused the wagon camp to be soaked by rain, and he was almost beaten to death by the court. Fortunately, the battle was turned around and everyone forgot to hold him accountable after the great victory. But he was panicking, afraid that he would be remembered and held accountable at some point. So he was eager to make a name for himself.

But the emperor didn't come to him to interpret his dream at all; he came to him to take the blame. Ironically, the emperor jumped out himself. He spoke so confidently, but if this year and next year's harvests are bad, whose fault is it? The founding emperor?! You say the founding emperor was wrong? Go see the founding emperor then!

The emperor?! The emperor only said he had a dream and wasn't sure what it was about, which is why he asked about it in court. Dreams can be the opposite of reality! So if something goes wrong in the end, it's the dream interpreter's fault!

But now there was no turning back. Seeing the emperor and other ministers looking at him, Ye Zhenchun could only tearfully follow the emperor's wishes and interpret the dream, using his position as the director of the Imperial Observatory to endorse the emperor's nonsense!
Zhu Youjian smiled at Ye Zhenchun's resentful eyes. He didn't need a capable supervisor; he needed an obedient one, someone who wouldn't constantly report things like "Mars guarding the heart" or "Venus crossing the sky." Zhu Youjian was pleased and decided to reward him, enlisting the help of Johann Adam Schall von Bell and others to revise the calendar, referencing Western astronomy.

(End of this chapter)