Di Ming

Chapter 433 She Chongming Rebels!

When the officials heard Hao Yunlai's words, many nodded in approval, but many others shook their heads.

Some believed that continuing to transport grain north was indeed a matter of great righteousness and overall interests, while others thought it was to prolong the life of the Northern Dynasty, and still others harbored ulterior motives.

Hao Yunlai continued, "Although this is a matter of the Grand Tutor's overall interests and sense of righteousness, it is not just about this consideration. I believe that the Grand Tutor must have a deeper consideration."

"Gentlemen, do you think that the grain transported by the Southern Dynasty was given to the North for free? The Grand Tutor does not mean that. In the past, the grain transported by the Grand Canal was the grain tax, and the Beijing court did not spend extra money to buy it. Now that the North and South are separated, there is no reason for the South to pay grain tax to Beijing, so naturally we have to collect money! Why not make money from this?"

"Last year and this year, the weather has been favorable, and the Jiangnan and Huguang regions have had bumper harvests. Once the summer grain harvest is complete, the price of grain will inevitably drop, and low grain prices will hurt farmers! The imperial taxes are also converted into silver, which will only make matters worse and hurt farmers even more!"

“In previous years, when the South had a bumper harvest, it would sell extra grain to Henan, Shandong, and Huaibei to balance grain prices. This is the reason. Therefore, the grain transported to the North was not only the official grain for Beijing, but also the grain sold by Huizhou merchants to the people in the North.”

"If the official grain transport is stopped, what about the civilian grain transport? Will it also be stopped? Every year, about 12 million shi of grain are transported to the north, of which only 4 million shi are official grain, and the remaining 8 million shi are civilian grain sold to the north!"

"With the canal transport suspended, the south suddenly has an extra 12 million shi of grain, and the price of grain will have to drop by at least one qian per shi! But the tax revenue cannot be reduced along with the grain price, so no matter how you calculate it, the farmers will suffer losses! Unless the court spends money to balance the grain price or reduces taxes, but that would be a loss for the court! Now that money is being spent everywhere, we can't keep having the Grand Tutor lend money to the national treasury, can we?"

Hao Yunlai's words were powerful and resonant, each sentence striking a chord deep within.

"That's not all! As you all know, each ship can carry an extra forty shi of local specialties. Every year, more than 500,000 shi of southern local specialties are transported by grain ships! These local specialties are worth hundreds of thousands of taels of silver. If the transport stops, how many people in the south will have their livelihoods affected?"

"The grain ships returning south were not empty; they were loaded with large quantities of northern goods such as salt, horses, and mules."

"If we block the Northern Dynasty's grain supply, why can't the Northern Dynasty block our salt supply? Do you only know about selling southern grain in the north, but not about selling northern salt in the south? Many people only know that more than a thousand shi of southern grain were transported to the north, but they don't know that more than a million shi of northern salt were transported to the south!"

"Seventy percent of the salt consumed by people in the south comes from north of the Yangtze River! If the supply of salt from the north is cut off, the price of salt in the south will at least double, probably rising to more than four qian per jin! That would be terrible! People in the south would probably revolt if they had to eat such expensive salt!"

"And what about the 100,000 canal boatmen and porters in the Jiangnan region? What will happen to their livelihoods? These canal boatmen and porters aren't just from the north; people from Jiangnan make up 30% of them. 100,000 people are related to the food and clothing of 100,000 households! Does the imperial court care?"

Upon hearing this, many out-of-touch, aristocratic officials who had passed the imperial examinations finally understood why the grain transport could not be cut off.

Transporting salt from the north to the south! This one method alone is enough!

Zhu Yin gave Hao Yunlai a deep look, his gaze filled with admiration. Hao Yunlai's words had finally touched upon his deeper considerations.

Salt and grain have always been the main expenses for ordinary people.

It is said that it is not easy to obtain grain in the North, and it is not easy to obtain salt in the South. The South has high yields per mu, few famine years, and two harvests a year, and its grain is often sold outside the region. However, salt production cannot meet domestic demand. Eighty percent of the country's famous salt fields are located north of the Yangtze River, and the South needs to purchase most of its salt from outside the region.

People in the north often suffer from food shortages. People in the south often suffer from high salt prices!

In the Jiangnan region, salt cost as much as two qian per jin. This meant that a family of five in Jiangnan would spend an average of six or seven taels of silver per year just on salt! That was one-third of their annual income!

Salt consumption has always been a major burden for people in the south. Many poor people can only try to eat as little salt as possible, resulting in various diseases caused by low sodium levels.

A bland diet over a long period can cause many diseases, reduce height, and cause premature closure of the epiphyseal plates. This is one of the reasons why people in the south were not as tall or strong as those in the north in ancient times.

The long history of salt shortages in ancient Jiangnan fostered a light diet among its people. It wasn't that they inherently preferred a bland diet, but rather that they were forced to consume less salt to reduce their living costs, which over time evolved into a culture of light eating.

If the sale of salt from the north to the south were to cease, and the price of salt in the Jiangnan region were to skyrocket and become even more expensive, what would be the result?
The grain transport was far more than just a supply of grain to Beijing's officials. Many officials who were detached from reality and had passed the imperial examinations were blinded by their own limited perspectives and could not see the bigger picture.

The Grand Canal was the main artery of north-south commerce in ancient times, a hub for economic complementarity, and a lifeline for commercial prosperity.

While grain from the south was transported to the north, the south lacked essential commodities such as salt, furs, horses and mules, coal, sulfur, herbs, and dyes.

Salt aside, the bulk commodities such as horses, mules, coal, herbs, and dyes had a significant impact on the lives of ordinary people in the Jiangnan region. As for sulfur, it was a military necessity.

The Grand Canal commercial belt is China's largest and most developed commercial area, supporting far more than just hundreds of thousands of canal workers and boatmen.
The commercial towns along the canal, with tens of millions of people, all depend on the canal's shipping economy.

Leaving aside the north, the towns along the southern section of the Grand Canal, such as Hangzhou, Suzhou, Changzhou, Zhenjiang, and Jiaxing, owe their prosperity largely to the Grand Canal economy.

If the grain transport stops, even these famous cities and counties in the Jiangnan region will be greatly affected!
Cutting off the Grand Canal, seemingly strangling the north, was actually a double-edged sword with no winners. Millions would starve to death in the north without food from the south, but would the south fare any better?

Even from a purely economic perspective, the canal transport system cannot be interrupted!

When Hao Yunlai arrived at this point, he saw many officials nodding in agreement, especially Zhu Yin, whose expression was full of praise, and he couldn't help but feel a little excited.

Today was truly a day to shine!

But he also knew that many court officials were already aware of the principles he was talking about. He was simply good at seizing the opportunity and speaking out first.

Hao Yunlai paused for a moment, then said again, "It's not just salt that's deadly, the other goods are deadly too."

"The South needs two million shi (a unit of dry measure) of coal from the North every year! If the canal transport is stopped, the price of firewood and charcoal will inevitably skyrocket. This winter, even heating in Nanjing will be a problem! More people will freeze to death!"

"And then there are the horses and mules. More than 10,000 horses are transported from the north to the south every year. 20,000 cattle are transported to the south every year, and more than 50,000 mules and donkeys are transported to the south every year. Once the canal transport stops, they will all be gone. It is difficult to replenish cavalry horses, carriage horses, draft oxen, and mules and donkeys used for carrying goods and pulling millstones. Is this an insignificant impact?"

"Most of the dyes used in Jiangnan's textile workshops come from the north. The essential bark for silk production is also 90% dependent on goods transported from the north to the south. If the canal transport stops, will our silk no longer be dyed? Will we only sell plain satin?"

"And then there's sulfur. Yangqu, Jinxian, Gongchang, and Huailai—which of these four major sulfur-producing areas is in the south?"

"Furthermore, the major goods transported by the Grand Canal include porcelain, tea, cotton cloth, silk, wax, lamps, and sugar, which are sold to the north annually for 18 million taels of silver. If the Grand Canal is disrupted, the backlog of goods will affect the livelihoods of tea farmers, silkworm farmers, weavers, and kiln workers. The court will lose at least 600,000 taels of commercial tax every year! Has the Grand Minister really not considered this?"

"Furthermore, although the North and South are divided, the Emperor Emeritus and His Majesty are still father and son. The North and South are still connected by blood. Cutting off the canal transport would only tarnish the reputation of the Southern Dynasty. The Northern Dynasty has already lost the support of the people. If the Southern Dynasty cuts off the canal transport, the Northern Dynasty might gain sympathy, while the Southern Dynasty would lose the support of the people. Which is more important?"

"That's why I said that continuing to halt the canal transport was the Grand Tutor's wise and decisive decision!"

Hao Yunlai's words left Li Tingji and others who advocated cutting off the canal transport speechless.

Did Li Tingji and the others not understand? Of course not.

He was the Minister of Revenue and had served as the Vice Minister of Revenue in Beijing. How could he not know the facts that Hao Yunlai was talking about?

The problem is, cutting off the canal transport would be to their advantage!
If the canal transport is disrupted, grain prices will inevitably fall and salt prices will inevitably rise. This will allow them to both lower grain prices and raise the prices of Zhejiang and Fujian salt!

Indeed, Zhejiang and Fujian were the main salt-producing areas in the south, and most of the salt fields were in the hands of Zhejiang and Fujian merchants, who competed fiercely with Anhui merchants who sold salt from the north.

Behind Li Tingji and others were mainly Fujian and Zhejiang merchants.

Furthermore, with the canal transport disrupted, smuggling northwards via sea became even more profitable. The ocean is not as easy to regulate as the canals; once cargo ships are at sea, customs cannot collect taxes.

Moreover, sulfur is a military supply. If the supply of sulfur to the north is cut off, the price of the Japanese sulfur they sell can be raised arbitrarily, resulting in a huge increase in profits.

Behind them are also smuggling merchants. Many of them are themselves from merchant families.

Do you really think that cutting off the canal transport means we can't transport goods from the south to the north? How naive.

It will only make maritime merchants earn more!
Moreover, once the 100,000 canal boatmen and porters in Jiangnan lose their jobs, they will only have the option of becoming tenant farmers or hired laborers, which will allow wages to decrease and land rents to increase.

Cutting off the canal transport would ultimately harm only the people living along the canal and the laborers who depend on it for their livelihood.

Of course, these deep-seated thoughts must never be uttered aloud.

Hao Yunlai was shrewd and knew these things, but he dared not mention them!

If he were to reveal these dark thoughts, he would offend many officials in the court, unwittingly drawing hatred towards himself.

Therefore, he could only stop there and could not say any more.

Zhu Yin was fully aware of the situation, but he couldn't expose it, so he pretended not to know their schemes. At least for now, he desperately needed the stability of the Nanjing court.

However, he thought more deeply than Hao Yunlai.

After Hao Yunlai finished speaking, the members of Zhu's party stood up again to second his opinion, their voices ringing out loudly.

Only after no one dared to object did Zhu Yin speak:

"What you all say makes sense, especially Governor-General Hao Yunlai of Yunnan and Guizhou, whose insights are truly remarkable. However, there is another point that you have all overlooked."

He stood up and paced around the court. “There are as many as 300,000 canal boatmen and barge haulers in the north. They are all young and strong, well-organized, accustomed to division of labor and cooperation, and hardworking. They are excellent sources of soldiers.”

“If the canal transport stops, goods between the north and south will not be able to pass through. Coal from the north cannot be transported to the south, goods will be unsold, and tens of thousands of miners will lose their jobs. Miners are also an excellent source of soldiers.”

"And coincidentally, the Northern Dynasty is currently recruiting soldiers. What will happen to so many canal workers, boatmen, and miners who are unemployed? The best way out is, of course, to enlist in the army. Have any of you thought about this issue?"

Upon hearing this, everyone realized it was indeed true!

Historically, few people have volunteered when the imperial court recruits soldiers. Soldiers are of low social status and are often owed wages, so most able-bodied men are unwilling to join the army.

However, if the canal transport were cut off, it would be easy for the Northern Dynasty to recruit young men into the army.

Moreover, the canal workers, boatmen, and miners, having lost their jobs, would only resent the Southern Dynasty for cutting off the canal transport. If they joined the Northern army, their morale would certainly be high when fighting the Southern army. Zhu Yin bluntly rebuked them: "Once the canal transport is cut off, everything will fall into chaos. The people's hearts, interests, and morality will all be lost. It's harmful to others and not beneficial to oneself. Why do such a foolish thing?"

"During the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, despite the constant warfare among the states, trade and commerce did not cease. Even when the Jin and Song dynasties were sworn enemies, they still maintained border markets and trade between the north and south. Now that both the north and south are under the Ming Dynasty, and Your Majesty and the Emperor Emeritus are father and son, are you really going to cut off trade?"

"Everyone must remember that although the North and South are separated, they both belong to the Great Ming. We may compete and fight, but we must have a bottom line. This is a matter of our Han people's family affairs, and we must have our own Han people's methods. The North and South are only fighting for legitimacy, like fighting for family property, not an enmity between Han and barbarians. How can we resort to any means necessary?"

"Even if you seize power by cutting off the canal transport, what kind of face will that show? Does Your Majesty not care about your reputation?"

Li Tingji, looking ashamed, could only step forward and say, "It was my oversight. Grand Tutor, your judgment is wise; the Ministry of Revenue will immediately resume the grain transport. But how should the price of this grain be determined?"

Zhu Yin said, "The people's grain is freely traded, and the imperial court does not interfere at all."

"As for official grain... let's set it at the market price in Jiangnan, six coins per shi. In addition to paying silver for official grain, the Northern Dynasty can also pay with salt and horses. It doesn't have to be paid with silver, but the exchange rate for salt and horses must be reasonable. Northern salt and northern horses sold to the south can be converted into salt tickets and horse tickets, which can then be used to exchange for grain..."

Zhu Yin's method involved marketizing government trade, resulting in transactions between four parties. Its biggest advantage was preventing corruption and increasing efficiency.

"Excellent!" Zhang Meng, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, clapped his hands with his scepter. "Grand Tutor, this is truly a brilliant plan! In this way, our dynasty will no longer be short of salt and horses. Everything will continue as usual! The people will be able to continue to live and work in peace and contentment."

Zhu Yin further stated, "The Southern Dynasty should not stop supplying the Northern Dynasty with grain, and the Northern Dynasty should not stop supplying the Southern Dynasty with salt and horses. If trade continues as usual, it will be a beneficial measure for the country and its people."

"This matter is settled; there is no need for further discussion."

Li Tingji and others were very disappointed. They had originally thought that Zhu Yin, being young and impetuous, would surely cut off the grain transport. Li Tingji, as the Minister of Revenue, had already ordered a halt to the allocation of grain.

In fact, there was another unspoken reason why these bigwigs in the south so readily supported Nanjing: they hoped to profit from cutting off the canal transport!
Who would have thought that Zhu Yin would be so experienced and composed, advocating for the restoration of the Grand Canal, turning their joy into nothing.

Fortunately, he hadn't accepted any money from the maritime and salt merchants, otherwise he would have had to return it.

Zhu Yin gave Li Tingji and the others a meaningful look, remaining expressionless.

"The fourth matter," Zhu Yin said, sitting down, "is that since His Majesty has ascended the throne and the Southern Dynasty has been newly established, a special imperial examination should be held. Both the provincial and metropolitan examinations should be additional!"

These words immediately sparked a flurry of discussion among the officials.

Sure enough, they're about to start the new course!
Zhu Yin's decision to hold the provincial and metropolitan examinations was not only to win over the hearts of the people in the south, but also to select talents of his own definition by personally setting the questions.

To quickly replenish the talent pool of the new dynasty and prepare for the large-scale elimination of officials in the future.

This can be described as far-sighted and well-thought-out.

No one objected to this, nor dared to. Otherwise, they would be provoking the scholars of the South.

Zhu Yin continued, "The provincial examination is this year, postponed to mid-to-late October. The metropolitan examination will be held next March. As for the Nanjing metropolitan examination..."

Zhu Yin smiled as he said this, "Those who passed the imperial examinations in the Northern Dynasties can also take the exams! As long as they pass, they will be granted official positions! As long as they are willing to come and dare to come!"

Upon hearing this, all the officials nodded in agreement. The Grand Tutor's plan was an open and aboveboard scheme.

Zhu Yin sat down and said, “The fifth matter is to re-determine Hai Rui’s posthumous title! Several years ago, when Hai Rui passed away in Beijing, the Emperor Emeritus wanted to give him a derogatory posthumous title, but the cabinet dissuaded him. In the end, he was only given the title of Zhongjie, which is not worthy of Hai Rui’s eternal reputation.”

"Lord Hai was a man of high moral character and prestige, a model for all officials, whose legacy has benefited the nation and whose noble spirit will endure forever. Even after thousands of years, he will surely be remembered in history. The words 'loyalty' and 'integrity' are simply insufficient to describe his talent, virtue, and integrity."

"Therefore, I intend to change the posthumous title of Duke Hai to 'Wenzheng'. What does the Ministry of Rites think?"

Wenzheng? Upon hearing this posthumous title, the officials all looked at each other in bewilderment.

Zhongjie is indeed unworthy of Hai Rui, but isn't posthumously honoring Hai Rui with the title Wenzheng too much? Wenzheng is the best posthumous title for a civil official.

Minister of Rites Fan Lun, forcing a smile, said, "Replying to the Grand Tutor, I believe that the posthumous title of Wenzheng for Hai Gangfeng is an overstatement. After all, Hai Gangfeng was only a Juren (a successful candidate in the provincial examinations), not even a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations). To bestow the posthumous title of Wenzheng would be unfair. I think Wenxian or Wensu would be more appropriate..."

Zhu Yin's gaze turned slightly cold, but he did not directly refute her.

"Absolutely not!" Zong Qin interrupted Fan Lun without any politeness. "The Grand Minister of Rites said that Hai Rui could not be posthumously honored with the title Wenzheng because he was not a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations). What kind of posthumous title is this? Hai Rui is as lofty as a mountain, and his conduct is exemplary. He is worthy of being a model for the world. It is not enough for him to be honored by the title Wenzheng."

"Throughout history, there have been many people who have been given the posthumous title of Wenzheng, but Hai Gangfeng is the only one."

"The Grand Minister of Rites says that posthumously bestowing the title 'Wenzheng' upon Hai Rui is contrary to public opinion. May I ask whose public opinion? Isn't it the public opinion of the people? Has the Grand Minister of Rites consulted the public opinion of the people?"

Fan Lun stared at Zong Qin, speechless.

I was speaking of the public opinion of all officials, and you're bringing up the public opinion of the common people? Do the common people have any say in matters of posthumous titles? Absurd!
“This matter need not be discussed further,” said Zhao Yi, Minister of the Court of State Ceremonies. “The Grand Tutor posthumously honored Hai Gong with the title Wenzheng because Wenzheng is the best posthumous title for a civil official. In fact, I believe that Wenzheng is not worthy of Hai Gong! A new posthumous title should be created, which is higher than Wenzheng, such as ‘Deming’.”

"Outrageous! Absolutely outrageous!" Fan Lun's beard trembled with anger. "How dare you create your own posthumous title! 'Virtuous and Bright'? What subject would dare to bestow the title 'Virtuous and Bright'?"

Zhao Yi said, "Since we cannot create a posthumous title higher than Wenzheng, we can only ask that Hai Gong be given the posthumous title of Wenzheng. If the Grand Minister of Rites still objects, then let's give him the posthumous title of Deming."

"You...you're simply unreasonable!" Fan Lun was furious. "You can't talk about ice with a summer insect! I'm not going to argue with you."

Suddenly, Ye Xianggao, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, stepped forward and said, "Grand Tutor, I believe that Hai Gong should be posthumously honored with the title Wenzheng."

Fan Lun turned to look at his deputy, his eyes filled with dissatisfaction.

Ye Xianggao acted as if the official in charge did not exist and continued to say in a clear voice: "Although Lord Hai was not a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations), his virtue is as virtuous as the wind, and he is worthy of the posthumous title of Wenzheng (a high-ranking official).

At this moment, he actually ignored the Minister of Rites and stepped forward to represent the Ministry of Rites himself.

Zhu Yin nodded and said, "In that case, the Ministry of Rites should submit a memorial to the emperor and request permission. Once the procedures are followed, Hai Rui's posthumous title will be changed to: Wenzheng!"

"Hai Wenzheng was posthumously awarded the title of Grand Tutor, and posthumously granted the titles of Grand Master of the Palace and Pillar of the State. He was given a first-rank funeral and his tomb was rebuilt."

Fan Lun and the others looked grim, but dared not argue further, lest they anger Zhu Yin. However, Zhu Yin's domineering and tyrannical behavior only increased their dissatisfaction with him.

Zhu Yin then calmly said, "I have finished stating my five points. You may now present your memorials."

In fact, he wanted to say more than just five things, but many things didn't need to be brought up by him; others would bring them up themselves.

As expected, Li Zhen, the Vice Minister of War, stepped forward and said, "The Northern Dynasty has appointed Qi Jiguang as the General Who Subdues the Rebels and will lead a large army on a southern expedition. By mid-September, he will surely be able to drink from the Yangtze River. Qi Jiguang is a famous general who has fought in many battles and is renowned throughout China. The Northern army is skilled in battle. However, the court has few soldiers. Although an edict has been issued to recruit 200,000 new soldiers, the Grand Tutor is very strict in selecting soldiers. Even with generous military pay, only 40,000 soldiers have been recruited so far, and they have not been trained. This is not enough to meet the urgent needs."

"I request that 50,000 troops from the chieftains of Huguang, Guangxi, and Chongqing be mobilized to resist Qi Jiguang."

"Absolutely not!" Zhou Sijing, the Vice Minister of Revenue, immediately objected. "The chieftains in the southwest are restless and rumored to be planning a rebellion. If we summon them to Nanjing, what if they seize the opportunity to rebel? At that time, with Qi Jiguang's army in the north and chieftain rebellions in the south, how will the court cope?"

Zhu Yin said, "This matter has been submitted to the cabinet for review and will not be discussed for the time being."

Military matters are things that cannot be discussed and resolved quickly, so there is no need to discuss them at court meetings.

Li Zhen then said, "There is another matter. The King of Toungoo has taken advantage of the chaos and launched a northern invasion, calling up an army of 300,000. Although he certainly doesn't have that many, he definitely has over 100,000 soldiers. I would like to ask how we should respond?"

Many people were unaware of this news, and were surprised to hear that Myanmar was taking advantage of the chaos to launch a large-scale invasion.

What to do? Qi Jiguang's army will be crossing the Yangtze River next month, the southwestern chieftains might rebel, and now Burma is taking advantage of the situation...

Is the Southern Dynasty doomed?

For a time, many people were tempted to leave, feeling that the Southern Dynasty was in danger.

Zhu Yin said, "I have already appointed Hao Yunlai as the Governor-General of Yunnan and Guizhou to oversee Yunnan's military affairs against Burma. Once the Toungoo King sends troops, Yunnan will surely submit and seek help. However, this is not enough to resist the Burmese army. Right now, what the court needs is a plan for reinforcements."

“I intend to send an imperial envoy to Toungoo to persuade the King of Toungoo to cease hostilities.”

Just as Zhu Yin was speaking, a voice suddenly came from outside the palace: "Urgent dispatch from Chongqing! Urgent dispatch from Chongqing! She Chongming has rebelled!"

Upon hearing this, all the officials turned pale.

Even Zhu Yin's expression darkened.

What I feared most has come to pass; She Chongming has truly rebelled!
This is a military postal report delivered by express courier at a speed of 600 li, which is faster than the Tiger Fang's message delivery, so it arrived in Nanjing earlier than the Tiger Fang's intelligence!

Soon, the urgent dispatch from Liubailitang arrived in the hands of the Regent Grand Tutor, still carrying the warmth and sweat of the courier.

Zhu Yin opened the document and was shocked to find: "...On the first day of the eighth month, She Chongming, the Pacification Commissioner of Yongning, learned of the Nanjing Incident and launched a rebellion, claiming to have 100,000 troops. She Chongming personally led 40,000 elite troops, preparing to capture Chengdu!"

...

P.S.: Historically, She Chongming was already sixty years old when he rebelled. Now, he's rebelling more than twenty years earlier, in his thirties and in his prime. How will his rebellion unfold? Thanks for your support, goodnight! Requesting monthly votes!

(End of this chapter)