Top Scholar

Chapter 582 Rebuilding the Three Camps

Both "为臣" and "微臣" are correct usages, but the latter is more humble.

Inside the Donggui Hall, Zhu Houzhao was deeply moved, his blood boiling. He tightly grasped Su Lu's hand and shook it vigorously, exclaiming with great excitement, "Hongzhi, Hongzhi! You are truly a lucky star sent to me by my father!"

After saying that, he turned to Zhang Yong, the director of the Imperial Workshop, and ordered him: "Immediately strengthen the security of Hongzhi's entire family. You must protect him as if he were me! If there is even the slightest mishap, all of you and your entire families will be executed!"

"Yes, Your Majesty, rest assured, this old servant will risk his life to protect Scholar Su and ensure that Your Majesty's beloved is not harmed in the slightest!" Zhang Yong hurriedly declared.

Su Lu naturally couldn't refuse such an arrangement. Besides, he was genuinely worried that what he was doing might implicate his family…

After calming down, the emperor couldn't wait to ask Su Lu how exactly the imperial estate should be managed.
"Your Majesty," Su Lu said solemnly, "I suggest that we first re-measure and register the 160,000 hectares of land, making three copies: one for the relevant government office to carry out the allocation, one for the Imperial Household Department to keep on file, and one for the Imperial Palace to maintain a permanent record."
"Your Majesty, the greatest advantage of imperial estates is that once the size of the land is determined, it remains unchanged forever, unlike private farmland where ownership changes frequently. Therefore, the powerful and wealthy have no loophole to exploit by taking advantage of the re-registration process to manipulate and seize land."

"Yes, indeed. My husband also said that the 45% of arable land will gradually disappear by rewriting the imperial register every ten years." Zhu Houzhao nodded, then said resolutely, "I will establish an ancestral rule that military garrisons and imperial estates can only be increased, not decreased! Future generations must not violate this rule!"

He chuckled awkwardly and said, "Alright, there are no ancestral rules that cannot be changed, not even those of the founding emperor, let alone mine."

“Your Majesty, nothing in this world is eternal, nor is there any law that remains unchanged for all ages,” Su Lu said earnestly. “A system may be good at the beginning, but it may become a bad law for various reasons after a few decades. So it is already excellent if it can govern two or three generations. The key is to pass on the correct ideas.”

"Yes." Zhu Houzhao nodded with heartfelt agreement. "We've done what we should do. As for the rest, our children and grandchildren will have their own lives to live..."

"Your Majesty is so wise..." Su Lu was about to say the usual platitudes when he suddenly remembered that the emperor forbade him to say such things, so he naturally changed his words to "Your Majesty's heart is precious."

"Hahaha, cunning." Zhu Houzhao laughed loudly, "I am indeed not wise enough, and I still have a lot to learn from you in order to become more wise."

"Your Majesty is too modest. You are already quite wise," Su Lu said softly.

"Not enough, not enough at all." Zhu Houzhao shook his head and said, "I have learned more from you in less than a year than in the previous ten years. Sometimes I even feel like you are a manifestation of my father."

"Your Majesty, you can't just say things like that!" Su Lu was so frightened he almost knelt down. Although he loved being a father, he had absolutely no intention of becoming the retired emperor.

"Get up, get up. I was just saying it, just take it as a joke." Zhu Houzhao was quick-witted and pulled him up.

"I can't take such a joke," Su Lu said, touching his face. "I still want to offer more advice for the Ming Dynasty."

"Haha, don't worry, as long as I'm here, you don't need to worry about your safety!" Zhu Houzhao put his arm around his shoulder and said sincerely, "We were born on the same day, month, and year, brother, I'll protect you for life!"

"Your Majesty, I thank you for your great favor," Su Lu said politely, his face full of gratitude, but in truth, he never believed anyone's promises...

~~
Zhu Houzhao was far more concerned about the imperial estates and land reclamation than about anything else. He pondered carefully for a moment, then suddenly remembered something and asked, "What should be done with the farmers who originally cultivated these lands?"

Su Lu replied, “Your Majesty, rest assured, for a long time to come, there will inevitably be more land than soldiers, and most of the land will still have to be cultivated by tenants. So it’s just a matter of changing the landowners. Let them continue to rent the land. As for the specific lease agreements, let the officials of the imperial estates negotiate with the tenants themselves.”

Zhu Houzhao nodded and immediately began to do the math: "160,000 hectares is...16 million mu. If each regular soldier gets 50 mu, wouldn't that be enough for...320,000 soldiers? Wait, not the 200,000 you mentioned?"

"Your Majesty is truly a master of mental calculation!" Su Lu exclaimed. "However, the accounts cannot be calculated this way. Firstly, soldiers inevitably die on the battlefield. If a soldier dies in battle and his family cannot immediately provide another soldier, are we to confiscate his land?"

"How can that be? The morale of the army would collapse instantly!" Zhu Houzhao shook his head decisively. His affinity with the army was arguably the best among emperors, second only to the Taizu and Taizong. Therefore, he understood many principles that other emperors in the inner palace did not.

"Therefore, a considerable amount of land needs to be reserved for future reinforcements. Furthermore, the grain produced from each mu of farmland is only enough to feed 120,000 soldiers. So, based on a force of 200,000, 40% of our provisions will still rely on external supplies..." Su Lu explained in a deep voice.

"Once the canal transport is cut off, the Imperial Guards will face the risk of running out of food. Therefore, some imperial estates should be reserved as military food fields to ensure that food supplies can be self-sufficient in extreme circumstances, so as to maintain the fighting capacity of the Imperial Guards!"

"Excellent! There's no one in the world more meticulous than you!" Zhu Houzhao praised repeatedly. "Then let's do as you say, leave plenty of room for error..."

He then chuckled self-deprecatingly, "Actually, even with an army of 200,000, who knows when we'll be able to muster them? I've been reorganizing the 12 battalions for over half a year, and at most, I've only managed to gather less than 50,000 usable soldiers."

"His Majesty once said that the quality of soldiers is more important than their quantity, and I wholeheartedly agree," Su Lu said in a deep voice. "What we need are brave warriors who can pay the blood tax for His Majesty, not just any mediocre, weak, or sick soldier. Why not take this opportunity to hold a grand review like that of Emperor Taizu, and select soldiers for the regiments? Only those who pass the assessment can be allocated land."

"That's right!" Zhu Houzhao suddenly lit up his eyes and slapped his thigh, saying, "I have a solution! Do you know what the Tuanying was originally?" "What was it?" Su Lu asked knowingly, giving the emperor a chance to show off.

"The three famous military camps!" When it comes to military affairs, Zhu Houzhao knows them like the back of his hand... Well, they really are his treasures.

"That was the number one army in the world back then. Emperor Taizong relied on it to sweep across the northern deserts and become a force to be reckoned with! The barbarians from all directions were terrified at the mere mention of the name of the three great camps!"

"Which three camps are those?" Su Lu asked, trying to sound interesting.

"Come, let me have a good chat with you." Zhu Houzhao had finally gotten a chance to be Su Lu's teacher, and he cherished it immensely.

"The first five battalions have the largest number of troops, combining infantry and cavalry, with 100,000 men. They are the main force of the three battalions!"

"The second Three Thousand Battalion doesn't just have three thousand men. It was formed by Emperor Taizong by incorporating elite Tartar cavalry, and it's the strongest cavalry in the world!" Zhu Houzhao said, even mimicking a bow-drawing gesture.

“The third one is even more formidable—the Divine Machine Battalion!” He then assumed a firing stance. “Our Ming Dynasty’s unique firearms unit, specializing in muskets and cannons. In the campaigns against Annam and the northern deserts, their combined firepower was unmatched!”

As he spoke, he smiled at Su Lu and said, "You've never fired a gun or cannon before, have you? Those things are much more exciting than fireworks and firecrackers. I'll take you to fire one sometime to have some fun."

"Okay." Su Lu readily agreed, as he had long wanted to see the level of firearms and cannons of the Ming Dynasty with his own eyes.

Zhu Houzhao's smile gradually faded, and he sighed with deep regret, "But even the strongest army cannot withstand the erosion of time. The three major battalions gradually fell into disrepair and were eventually all destroyed at Tumu Fortress..."

"Later, Yu Shaobao reorganized the Imperial Guards, selecting elite troops to form the 'Ten Battalions,' completely replacing the three major battalions. The Divine Machine Army, the Five Armies, and the Three Thousand Battalions then disappeared into history..." As he spoke, he looked at Su Lu and said:

"Just like you said, even the best system will fall apart after a few generations. Now, the regiment and battalion that Yu Shaobao has established are completely ineffective, so it's time for a change again!"

There's one point Zhu Houzhao didn't fully explain. That is, Yu Shaobao's abolition of the "Three Great Camps" and the establishment of the "Ten Battalions" had another crucial consequence—the power to command the Imperial Guards was transferred from the Five Military Commissions to the Ministry of War, thus realizing the shift from military leadership by nobles to civil officials.

After the coup at the gate, Yu Shaobao was killed. The nobles who were unwilling to give up their military power also launched a counterattack, and there was even a grand scene of twelve marquises leading the regiment. However, the regiment never escaped the grasp of the Ministry of War, and in the end, the Minister of War firmly held the military power.

This is a major reason why noble families have been reduced to nothing more than roadside stalls...

Zhu Shou acted on a whim, appointing himself as the commander of the Imperial Guards. Since Liu Yu, the Minister of War, was a member of the eunuch faction, he naturally did not dissuade him. As a result, the emperor smoothly regained control of the Imperial Guards.

Over the past six months, the emperor has spent most of his time in the military camps in the western suburbs, and has completely taken control of the imperial guards, finally possessing the conditions for sweeping reforms...

The emperor raised an eyebrow and said proudly, "I wish to conduct a grand review of the armies in the capital, select the elite to rebuild the Three Great Camps, and restore the glory of our ancestors! What do you think, my dear minister?"

"I fully support this!" Su Lu hurriedly agreed, "In this way, the soldiers will surely be eager to be the first and fight bravely!"

"Hahaha, I've finally proven myself wise this time, haven't I?" Zhu Houzhao looked at Su Lu expectantly.

"Yes, absolutely wise!" Su Lu was still very generous with the emotional value aspect.

"Then it's settled. Second Master, send word to the regiments that there will be a grand review in two months!" Zhu Houzhao announced loudly. "Only those who pass the selection process can join the three major camps and will be granted fifty mu of imperial estate and farmland in the capital!"

"Yes," Zhang Yong hurriedly replied respectfully. He was still the supervising eunuch of the regiment, and this was his duty.

~~
At the end of the meeting, Zhu Houzhao and Su Lu finalized the selection of the members of the 'Royal Assets Management Committee'—the emperor himself would serve as the chairman, Liu Jin and Zhang Yong as vice chairmen, and Su Lu as the executive secretary.

In reality, this "Imperial Assets Committee" was the ancient inner court. The reason it was called that was naturally to bypass the cumbersome procedures of setting up a formal institution and get everything done first...

P.S. Today was another busy day. The next chapter still has a thousand words to go…

(End of this chapter)