Chongzhen's domineering

Chapter 334 Sufficient Ships, Limited Troops
Time flies, and it's already the end of October.

The capital city was already bitterly cold, and the season of ice and snow was fast approaching.

However, with the widespread use of boilers and heating, the coldest winter months were no longer a problem for the people of the capital; even the coldest weather did not affect their work.

Inside the densely packed factories in the capital, work was still in full swing, and the second batch of Zhenyuan warships at the Haihe Shipyard were being built one after another.

Early that morning, around dawn, Zhu Jue led Wang Chengen, Fang Zhenghua, Liu Ruoyu, and others straight to the Haihe Shipyard.

At this moment, Wang Zheng had disappeared, and Lu Xiang-sheng was standing alone on the scaffolding in the dock, staring blankly at the completed giant ship.

Zhu Jue walked into the dock and couldn't help but ask curiously, "Jian Dou, what's wrong? Is there a problem with the Zhenyuan warship?"

Lu Xiang-sheng quickly turned around, cupped his hands, and bowed in greeting before sighing slightly, "Your Majesty, there is no problem with the Zhenyuan warship, the problem is that there are not enough soldiers in the capital garrison."

Currently, the Beijing garrison has only one million men. After deducting 400,000 chariot soldiers, there are only 600,000 left. Each small Zhenyuan warship needs to be equipped with at least 150 men, and each medium-sized Zhenyuan warship needs to be equipped with at least 200 men.

With the completion of this batch of Zhenyuan warships, we now have over 1,300 small Zhenyuan warships and over 1,200 medium-sized Zhenyuan warships, totaling over 2,500.

If we calculate based on 150 men per small Zhenyuan warship and 200 men per medium Zhenyuan warship, operating just these Zhenyuan warships would require over 600,000 men. Moreover, we also have over 1,000 small Zhiyuan warships and over 1,000 medium Zhiyuan warships, which would require at least 100,000 soldiers to operate.

Are we running out of manpower again?

Zhu Jue was speechless upon hearing this.

Originally, the Ming Dynasty had a large population but few ships. Not to mention ocean-going warships, it had very few coastal warships. When fighting against European colonial powers, it basically relied on small boats swarming in and using human lives to fill the gaps.

Therefore, he built two large shipyards and frantically built ships.

They have no shortage of ships now. It can be said that once all of these more than a thousand Zhenyuan warships are built, they will be virtually invincible at sea, whether in coastal waters or the open ocean.

If the Netherlands and Britain and France hadn't gone on a massive warship production spree, they would have been the maritime hegemons sooner or later. Even if the Netherlands and Britain and France went on a massive warship production spree, it wouldn't matter much, as they could still go on a massive warship production spree.

Nowadays, their warship construction speed has surpassed that of the maritime superpower, the Netherlands, and they are not afraid of each other in terms of the number of warships.

The problem is that these warships need to be operated by people, and their warships have too many secrets. The steam engine is their core secret, and they can't let others learn the breech-loading muskets and cannons.

In this situation, their ability to recruit men to operate warships would be greatly limited.

It seems that they cannot conscript troops from the nine border regions of the Ming Dynasty, because there are too many traitors within the border garrisons and garrisons.

As for the able-bodied men of the coastal and even inland garrisons, they have basically recruited them all. Where can they recruit completely reliable men now?
He seems to be a bit too much of a perfectionist in this respect.

Can the secrets of the steam engine be kept forever?

Could no one else have ever thought of breech-loading muskets and cannons?

This is naturally impossible.

This is because the steam engine, breech-loading muskets, and cannons in history were invented by those colonial plunderers in Europe, who were extremely enthusiastic about developing military power.

In other words, even if they carefully guarded the secrets of the steam engine and firearms, the European colonial raiders would eventually figure it out.

In this situation, is it still necessary for them to prevent the recruitment of troops in order to keep these secrets?

In many cases, we can't pursue perfection. Since others will figure out the secret sooner or later, why sacrifice so much to keep it a secret?

These days, military strength is the most important thing; you can't do without manpower.

Men must be recruited; all secrets must be put on hold.

At this moment, the Ming Dynasty had many advantages. Steam engines and even breech-loading muskets and cannons were just one aspect. The Ming Dynasty also had a significant lead in human resources and processing capabilities.

In other words, even if the secrets of steam engines and muskets were exposed, the European powers still couldn't outproduce them as well as the Ming Dynasty. Even if the European powers could catch up in terms of the speed at which they produced steam engines and even muskets, their human resources would still be no match for the Ming Dynasty.

So, he didn't need to hold back at all to keep secrets. Since he had to recruit men anyway, he could just recruit like crazy and expand his army like crazy!

As he was pondering this, the Zheng brothers approached in unison, cupped their hands, and bowed, saying, "Your humble servants pay their respects to Your Majesty, Your humble generals pay their respects to Your Majesty."

You're finally back.

The reason he rushed over so early was because the Zheng brothers would be arriving this morning.

Zhu Jue nodded slightly, then asked, "How is the situation in Southeast Asia, Zhilong? How many armed merchant ships and warships have you captured? Do the Dutch intend to launch a counterattack?"

The situation in Southeast Asia is very favorable.

Zheng Zhilong said with some excitement: "Your Majesty, we have captured most of the ships of the Dutch East India Company. We have captured over a hundred armed merchant ships and more than twenty warships."

If we include the dozen or so armed merchant ships and six warships we sank in the Battle of Batavia, the Dutch East India Company probably doesn't have many ships left. They wouldn't dare to launch a counterattack; they're afraid we'll plunder all their ships.

You're really something, especially when it comes to robbing armed merchant ships and warships. I doubt anyone in the world can compare to you.

Perhaps we could consider sending you to stir things up in the European seas.

The problem is, they're going to start building Zhiyuan merchant ships like crazy again, and then they definitely won't have enough manpower to operate them.

Zhu Jue nodded slowly, then asked, "How many civilians have been relocated to Southeast Asia in total? Are they adapting well?"

I just happened to talk to Yang Sichang about this issue.

Zheng Zhilong recalled, "By now, three waves of civilians have migrated to Southeast Asia. The population of Luzon, Brunei, and Java is about five million."

Luzon is considered the most developed area, mainly because Lord Yang had already started building houses there, waiting for the common people to migrate there. Now, the common people who have migrated there have begun to clear land and cultivate the land.

Lord Yang said that it would not be a problem for each household to cultivate 50 mu of land this year. In this way, the cultivated land in Luzon can reach about 50 million mu this year. If the yield is 3 shi per mu per season, the area can produce more than 300 million shi of grain next year.

The situation in Brunei is much worse. The farmers who have migrated there are still building houses for themselves and haven't started clearing land for planting yet. It's estimated that each household will have to clear fifty acres of land to grow grain before the first half of next year.

It's similar in Java; the farmers who migrated there are building houses but haven't started clearing land for farming yet.

It seems there's no need to rush the development issue; they don't lack resources right now.

Currently, their biggest consumption items are timber, steel, and coal. Although timber has to be brought in from Southeast Asia and the Americas, it is enough for shipbuilding. As for steel and coal, the Ming Dynasty has them domestically.

As for copper, rubber, and saltpeter, they don't need much at the moment; the amount brought over by the American fleet is enough for them.

In other words, there's no need to rush to develop the coal mines, iron mines, or any other minerals in Southeast Asia.

Zhu Jue thought about it carefully and then asked, "Zhilong, what do you think about recruiting young men from Southeast Asia to operate the Zhiyuan merchant ship? They've already been on the Zhiyuan merchant ship, so whether or not they leak secrets doesn't seem to matter anymore, as long as they don't come into contact with the steam engine."

How do you say this?

If you think it's okay, how can I think it's not?
Zheng Zhilong readily agreed, saying, "Your Majesty is wise. The Zhiyuan merchant ship only needs a few skilled naval officers and soldiers to operate it. The rest are mostly for loading and unloading cargo, which can be done by ordinary able-bodied men."

still have a question.

Zhu Jue pondered, "The soldiers' pay seems too low right now. Even ordinary people can easily earn two or three taels a month by finding any kind of work. Those with some skills can easily earn four or five taels a month."

"War is a life-or-death struggle, far more dangerous than any other job. If the soldiers' pay remains at one tael of silver and one shi of grain per month, it will be very difficult to recruit enough able-bodied men to operate the ships."

What can I say about this?

Nowadays, the number of soldiers in the Ming Dynasty is extraordinary.

The combined number of soldiers in the Beijing garrison, the navy, and Liaodong exceeds two million. If you increase the rations of each soldier by one tael of silver, that's at least two million taels a month, and over twenty million taels a year!

Zheng Zhilong thought for a moment, then clapped his hands and said, "Your Majesty is wise. The soldiers' rations and pay should be increased."

The question is, how much should it increase?

Doubling that doesn't seem enough.

Even if the price doubles, it's only two taels of silver and two shi of grain, which is equivalent to about three taels. That's not even as much as the wages of an ordinary craftsman. Craftsmen don't have to risk their lives, but soldiers do.

In other words, he would have to raise the rations to at least three taels of silver and three shi of grain per month so that the soldiers' income could catch up with that of the artisans. Only such rations could attract young men to join the army.

However, such a surge in rations and pay is already a huge expense. Right now, the combined number of soldiers in the Beijing garrison, the navy, and Liaodong alone is over two million. If we include the border troops in other border towns and the Sichuan White Spear Army, the total is close to two and a half million.

Furthermore, if the rations and pay of ordinary soldiers increase, the rations and pay of officers and soldiers will certainly increase accordingly. If we calculate it this way, the monthly rations and pay will definitely be more than 7.5 million taels of silver, or more than 7.5 million shi of grain.

In other words, the current soldiers' rations alone amount to more than 90 million taels of silver and more than 90 million shi of grain per year.

Moreover, he raised the pay and rations in order to build up his army. If he wanted enough troops, he would need to recruit at least another million men.

So, the annual cost of grain and salary would be more than 120 million taels and more than 120 million shi of grain. If it were all converted into silver, it would be more than 180 million taels!

Can the current revenue of the inner court support such terrifying expenses?
Currently, the main sources of revenue for the inner court are the Americas, Southeast Asia, and the mainland of the Ming Dynasty.

The main source of revenue from the Americas was trade with the Spanish. Although the Spanish were now frantically mining gold and silver to buy goods from the Ming Dynasty, they could only manage to earn around 120 million taels a year at most.

Although the profits from Southeast Asia included business and gold mining, the business there hadn't really taken off yet, and the annual revenue was only a little over ten million taels. Even if gold mining in Brunei could raise the price to 200,000 taels a month, the annual revenue would only be 2.4 million taels, which, if split in half, would amount to 1.2 million taels.

Based on this calculation, the revenue from Southeast Asia would be around 30 million taels a year.

There's also the business in the Ming Dynasty itself. Although Tianbaotang's business is growing bigger and bigger, it can only earn about ten million taels a year at most.

In other words, the total revenue of the inner court is only 160 million taels a year. If we want to raise an army of one million, we are still short 20 million taels a year.

Should the salary increase or not?

After much deliberation, Zhu Jue decided to raise the price!
The difference of 20 million taels per year is not a big deal; he can find ways to increase the inner court's revenue.

For example, in Southeast Asia, once it's developed, increasing revenue by about ten million taels a year will definitely not be a problem.

Furthermore, in the Americas or Europe, they also take on a business of robbing armed merchant ships and warships. Even if they can rob a thousand armed merchant ships a year, that's still 20 million taels of silver in revenue. If they also rob a couple hundred warships, that's another 10 million taels of silver in revenue.

Although this is a one-off deal, as long as they suppress the anti-Habsburg alliance, they can seize overseas territories to increase their revenue. At that time, it will definitely not be a problem to increase their annual revenue by 20 to 30 million taels.

Moreover, the treasury already has a considerable surplus.

In the past two years, their income has exceeded 100 million taels a year, while the main expenditures are the soldiers' rations and the artisans' wages. When the soldiers' rations had not increased, they were around 30 million taels a year, and the artisans' wages were a little more, but they would not exceed 40 million taels a year.

In other words, the current surplus of the Imperial Treasury is at least 60 million taels, which can sustain the economy for three years even if the revenue from Southeast Asia and the Americas does not increase.

After thinking it over carefully, he decisively said, "Then let's raise the soldiers' pay to three taels of silver plus three shi of grain per month, and the pay of the officers and soldiers in command should also be raised accordingly."

Ah!
Upon hearing this, the Zheng brothers were dumbfounded.

Upon hearing this, Lu Xiang-sheng's eyes widened in surprise.

With such a high increase, how much will it cost in wages and salaries each year?
However, they remained silent.

Because they all understood that once the emperor made a decision, it could not be questioned.

Moreover, increasing the soldiers' pay and rations is a good thing, and since they are all military commanders, they naturally cannot obstruct such a good thing.

Seeing this, Zhu Jue sighed slightly and said, "However, the current revenue of the inner court is only enough to pay the current soldiers' wages. If we recruit hundreds of thousands or millions more soldiers, the current revenue will definitely not be enough."

Uh, why did you raise it so much at once?
Upon hearing this, Zheng Zhilong and his brother, as well as Lu Xiangsheng, were all completely dumbfounded.

Don't you guys think about how to increase your income?
Seeing this, Zhu Jue bluntly said, "Zhilong, if the rations aren't enough, you'll have to go and rob some for me, understand?"

Ah!
You want me to rob someone?

Where am I supposed to rob it?

Besides, I'm not a pirate anymore, I'm the Duke of the Ming Dynasty, okay?

You're telling me to rob someone!
Upon hearing this, Zheng Zhilong looked completely bewildered and said, "Your Majesty, please forgive my ignorance, I am so stupid, how can I rob this money?"

How dare you, a pirate captain, ask such a question?
Zhu Jue shook his head, somewhat amused and exasperated, and then explained in detail: "Didn't the Spanish want to arm merchant ships and warships?"
You've already robbed hundreds of ships in Southeast Asia. These all cost money; an armed merchant ship costs 200,000 taels, and a warship costs 500,000 taels.

There aren't many armed merchant ships and warships to plunder in Southeast Asia right now, but there are in the waters between the western Americas and Europe. You can definitely take your men there and plunder."

Oh, so they were robbing armed merchant ships and warships to sell for money.

Upon hearing this, Zheng Zhilong slowly nodded and said, "Your Majesty, I understand. When shall we go and begin our raid?"

Don't rush, we haven't expanded our forces yet.

Zhu Jue pondered, "We'll have to wait until the second batch of Zhenyuan warships is fully built and the crew is recruited before we can discuss this further."

"At that time, I will provide you with five hundred medium-sized Zhenyuan warships and five hundred medium-sized Weiyuan warships. You will take Zhihu and Zhibao to the Americas to find Valdes, and he will naturally lead you to plunder the armed merchant ships and warships of the Netherlands, Britain, and France."

Oh, someone's even leading the way.

That would be great.

Zheng Zhilong nodded repeatedly and said, "Your Majesty, I understand."

You don't seem to understand.

Zhu Jue patiently instructed, "Zhilong, right now the Dutch and British and French are frantically plundering Spanish merchant ships and treasure ships."

Don't be polite. You can also rob their merchant ships. You can sell the ships to Spain for 100,000 taels of silver, and sell the goods on board to Spain at a discount. You can also get the Dutch, British, and French to ransom the prisoners. If those guys don't pay, then take them to mine.

Uh, is it really that ruthless?
Why do I feel like you're more of a pirate than I am?

Upon hearing this, Zheng Zhilong was taken aback for a moment before nodding repeatedly and saying, "Your Majesty is wise, I understand."

Zhu Jue thought about it carefully and then said solemnly, "Jian Dou, you should be in charge of recruiting troops. You can send experienced soldiers with naval ships to recruit them, which will save them time on the road."

"I'm giving you one month. In this month, you must recruit at least one million soldiers. Any questions?"

Well, with such high pay and provisions, recruiting troops is naturally not a problem.

The problem is, what if the number of newly recruited troops exceeds one million?

Lu Xiang-sheng thought for a moment before cautiously asking, "Your Majesty, what if the number of troops exceeds one million? Should we continue to recruit?"

The answer is naturally to continue conscription.

These days, as long as you have enough force, are you afraid of not being able to rob money?

Upon hearing this, Zhu Jue decisively replied, "Confess! We'll confess as many as there are!"

(End of this chapter)