Di Ming

Chapter 466 "Arrogance!"

Zhu Yin agreed to begin currency reform, but disagreed with Ning Caiwei's naming of the "Central Bank" and all related names that did not conform to cultural traditions.

“It’s inappropriate to call it a central bank, or even a bank,” Zhu Yin said. “Gold coins, silver coins, and copper coins are all legal tender, and many years later there will be paper money. They are all essentially money. Silver is just one type of currency. Why insist on calling it a bank?”

“In traditional Chinese culture, money has always been referred to as gold, for example, in phrases like ‘returning lost property,’ ‘spending money like water,’ ‘worth a thousand pieces of gold,’ ‘spending money like dirt,’ and ‘spending all one’s gold and fur coat in poverty.’ The cultural connotations of gold are more in line with its monetary function than silver. Therefore, gold is more appropriate.”

"Then this central bank could be named 'Great Ming'..."

"Da Ming Gold Shop?" Ning Caiwei asked with a smile.

To everyone's surprise, Zhu Yin shook his head and said, "It's not a gold shop. The Central Bank is the highest financial management institution of the Ming Dynasty, with the power to mint coins and issue monetary policies. It's not an ordinary bank; it has the attributes of an official government agency. Using the name of a commercial bank is somewhat demeaning and inappropriate. I think it should be called... the Great Ming Gold Platform!"

"Tai" is a commonly used name for central government offices in ancient times. For example, Yushitai, Shangshutai, Sitiantai, Silitai, Xingtai, Luantai, Lantai, Bingtai, etc. The ancient government was also called Shengtai.

"Compared to Taiwan, there were no government offices in ancient times that used the character '行' (xing). '行' has always been a commercial and industry organization, such as rice shops, cloth shops, brokerage shops, and medicine shops... It is hard to match the status of a central bank. When we use the character '金行' (jinxing), the common people feel that it is a money shop."

"Jintai is different. Who would dare to call themselves 'Tai'?"

Ning Caiwei also thought the name Jintai was very good, and nodded, saying, "Da Ming Jintai is grand and imposing, which is very much in line with the identity of the central bank of the Ming Dynasty. I completely agree."

Ning Qingchen also agreed, saying, "I also think the Jintai Terrace of the Ming Dynasty is very good, as it conforms to the aesthetic traditions of the Chinese language."

Ning Caiwei raised a crucial question: "The Jintai Bank of the Ming Dynasty is the central bank, so what is its nature? In later generations, central banks have three models: privately held, public-private partnership, and state-run."

Zhu Yin thought for a moment, "You are more qualified to answer this question. From a comprehensive and long-term perspective, which form of capital do you think is more suitable for the Ming Dynasty?"

Ning Caiwei had clearly thought about this question beforehand, and answered without hesitation:
"Without a doubt, I believe the second option is public-private partnership! This is the most suitable for the national conditions of the Ming Dynasty. This model is also the mainstream model for central banks in later countries."

"If it were privately owned like the Federal Reserve Bank of the United States in later generations, although it could fully meet market demands and be highly flexible, this relative independence would make it difficult to maintain a high degree of consistency with the policies of the imperial court, and there might be conflicts of interest with the court and the people. The advantages and disadvantages are obvious; it's a double-edged sword. This is clearly not suitable for the Ming Dynasty."

"The third type is completely state-run, which we are very familiar with. I won't go into the advantages. I'll just talk about the disadvantages. It is easy to get detached from the market and it is difficult to avoid all the ills of state-run enterprises in the late Qing Dynasty, such as bureaucratic habits, rigid systems, corruption, and inefficiency. In a feudal agricultural society, there was no technology to solve these problems."

"That leaves only the second option: a joint venture! The imperial court and Ningyin Trading Company will jointly control Daming Jintai, with each holding half of the shares. The imperial court's purpose in participating is singular: to ensure Daming Jintai's official status and to guarantee that Daming Jintai's mission is to serve the imperial court's financial policies, prioritizing the national interests of the Ming Dynasty."

"The purpose of Ningyin Trading Company's participation is to introduce a privatized and market-oriented management model to ensure that the management of Daming Jintai avoids the influence of bureaucratic and corrupt mechanisms... The imperial court and Ningyin Trading Company supervise and cooperate with each other."

“Alright.” Zhu Yin agreed. “Then it’s decided. After the New Year, I will issue an edict to establish the Daming Jintai, with the Ministry of Revenue and Ningyin Trading Company each contributing ten million taels of silver, a joint venture between the government and private sector.”

"The Jintai of the Great Ming Dynasty is a third-rank official post. It shall be headed by one Jintai Magistrate and two Jintai Assistant Magistrates. You may set up the rest of the positions."

Ning Caiwei said, "The central bank will be called Daming Jintai, and the commercial private banks in various places will be called Jinxing. I will also establish several Jinxing private banks and set up branches in major cities."

After a few words of discussion, the Jintai Palace of the Ming Dynasty was on the verge of being built. This is the power of authority.

Ning Caiwei smiled expectantly and said, "With the Great Ming Golden Platform, we can establish the Ministry of Commerce a year later. I don't care about anything else, but the Ministry of Commerce is a must."

Zhu Yin nodded and said, "It's not just the Ministry of Commerce. In the future, the six ministries will become nine. In addition to adding the Ministry of Commerce, two more ministries will be added."

Ning Qingchen suddenly said, "Little Tiger, where's my Ministry of Health? Just having Qingchen Medical College isn't enough. You promised me that."

Over the past five years, her Qingchen Medical College has trained more than a thousand medical students, and the first batch is about to graduate.

“I haven’t forgotten,” Zhu Yin said with a smile. “It’s just that the name isn’t the Ministry of Health anymore. The three new ministries are the Ministry of Commerce, the Ministry of Medicine, and the Ministry of Law.”

Ning Qingchen immediately beamed, "Little tiger! I want to be the Minister of Medicine!"

Zhu Yin patted her head. "Although you are young, you have a great reputation. You are the Holy Mother Qingchen, who has saved countless lives. There are more and more shrines dedicated to you. You are fully qualified to be the Minister of Medicine. But I must remind you that once you become the Minister of Medicine, you will be a court official. You will have to follow the court's system and the rules of officialdom. Qingchen, I know your personality very well. Are you sure you want to be the Minister? Don't regret it later."

"I don't want to be an official, it's too vulgar." Ning Qingchen thought for a moment, "Forget it, just thinking about how disgusting officialdom is, I don't want to do it. But the Ministry of Medicine must be established, and I must decide on the Minister."

Zhu Yin laughed and said, "Not only the Minister, but also the Vice Minister and the Director will all be selected by you. You will be responsible for deciding the system, authority, and official positions of the Ministry of Medicine. Even if you don't become the Minister, you can lead the Ministry of Medicine with greater detachment."

Ning Qingchen was delighted. "Little Tiger, I want to elevate Qingchen Medical College to the status of a top-tier college in the Ming Dynasty and make it an official institution."

"Excellent!" Zhu Yin clapped his hands. "Medicine is related to the lives and health of the people, and we can't pay more attention to it than this. Qingchen Medical College is the most advanced medical institution in the world today, and its status should be extremely high. Let's rename it Qingchen Medical Academy, designate it as an official school of the Ming Dynasty, and make it equivalent to the Imperial Academy. The Imperial Academy is the highest institution of learning in the Ming Dynasty, what do you think?"

"Hmph!" Ning Qingchen wrinkled his nose. "Not good at all! The Imperial Academy is just a fourth-rank school. What kind of contribution can the students of the Imperial Academy make, studying the Four Books and Five Classics? Can they compare to my students who can save lives?"

Zhu Yin was speechless upon hearing this. Ning Qingchen was right; the Imperial Academy was said to be a top-tier institution of learning, but the imperial examinations were not related to it. As a result, the Imperial Academy had the title of the highest institution of learning, but it was only a fourth-rank government office.

Zhu Yin thought for a moment, "The status of the Medical Academy cannot be higher than that of the Imperial Academy. How about this, in the future I will raise the Imperial Academy to the third rank, and the Medical Academy will also be the third rank."

Ning Caiwei said, "The name 'Guozijian' is problematic and does not reflect the status of the highest institution of learning in the Ming Dynasty. When the imperial examination system is reformed in the future, Guozijian will definitely need to be changed. Why not start by changing its name?"

Zhu Yin nodded and said, "You and I have the same idea. To turn the Imperial Academy into a truly comprehensive top-tier university, we must start by changing its name. Let's change it to the Imperial Academy. It should not only include the Four Books and Five Classics, but also science, law, engineering and other disciplines."

"Next year, we will establish another top-tier military academy, called the Great Ming Military Academy. It will train officers for the army and navy. Future military generals will mainly come from the Military Academy. Court officials will mainly come from students who passed the imperial examinations at the Imperial Academy. Medical officers and physicians will come from the Medical Academy."

"Ministry of Law?" Ning Caiwei suddenly remembered Zhu Yin's earlier words. "You mentioned that the six ministries would become nine, with the addition of the Ministry of Law. Doesn't this Ministry of Law encroach on the authority of the Ministry of Justice? Is it necessary?"

Zhu Yin nodded and said, "Of course it's necessary. The Ministry of Justice remains the Ministry of Justice, and its core responsibilities remain unchanged. The core responsibilities of the Ministry of Law are public security, criminal investigation, anti-smuggling, inspection, and security, with police work being its core responsibility."

Ning Caiwei asked, puzzled, "Isn't that a police station? Why isn't it called a police inspector?"

Zhu Yin said, "Because the Ministry of Justice also has many important responsibilities unrelated to police work: trial supervision, property enforcement, civil mediation, etc..."

Zhu Yin and Ning Caiwei discussed these important matters, each one a groundbreaking innovation, yet they spoke of them as if they were nothing out of the ordinary.

However, they couldn't take too big a step. The two of them had always believed that after the New Year, they should first establish the Daming Jintai, and then put other matters aside and handle them slowly.

.........

The tenth day of the twelfth lunar month is the Great Cold.

This winter, the Jiangnan region has experienced heavy snowfall, with one heavy snowfall after another, and the weather is colder than usual. It seems that Heaven has taken notice because of the many significant events that have occurred this year.

On this day, in order to relieve the poor people suffering from cold and hunger, Zhu Yin, the regent who had just been enfeoffed as the Prince of Wu, ordered the allocation of one million taels of silver and one million shi of grain to provide relief to the people who lacked clothing and food.

That's a very generous gesture.

With the regent's order, very few people froze or starved to death this winter. In previous years, no relief would have been provided in such a situation. As the news spread, Zhu Yin's prestige soared even higher.

To prevent officials from embezzling funds and grain, Zhu Yin ordered the Tiger Fang secret agents to secretly supervise the relief efforts, and at the same time, he arranged for the Ningyin Trading Company to cooperate with the imperial court in carrying out the relief work.

If officials were to continue their old ways of skimming off every penny and embezzling funds and grain at every level, they would not only have to deceive Huya, but also Ningyin Trading Company, which has the most professional accounting system. This would be extremely difficult.

For example, the coal, cotton, and other relief supplies procured by the Ministry of Revenue were all government projects undertaken by Ningyin Trading Company.

This wasn't done for profit, of course; rather, it stemmed from Zhu Yin's distrust of other merchants. By entrusting procurement projects to other businessmen, collusion between officials and merchants to line their own pockets was almost certain.

Ningyin Trading Company is almost a semi-state-owned enterprise, yet completely controlled by Caiwei. It possesses the world's most advanced accounting, auditing, and project management systems, serving as a tool for Zhu Yin to implement economic policies and promote business innovation. According to Zhu Yin and Ning Caiwei's plan, Ningyin Trading Company will be restructured into the Huaxia Royal Trading Company, becoming a policy-driven company that is half-state and half-royal.

This is arguably the ideal situation. It ensures that trading companies faithfully serve the country while avoiding the rigidity of a state-run system.

On the same day, Zhu Yin appointed Qi Jiguang, the Duke of Qi and his adoptive father, as the Right Commander-in-Chief of the Grand Military Commission. He himself became the Left Commander-in-Chief.

The Grand General's Office became the highest military authority jointly controlled by him and Qi Jiguang.

According to the regulations set by Zhu Yin, the Grand General's Office was equivalent to the Privy Council during the Song and Yuan dynasties, and was on the same level as the Grand Secretariat and the Directorate of Ceremonial.

Although the name of the Grand General's Office is the same as that of the Taizu era, seemingly a restoration of the old system, its functions and status are quite different.

During the reign of Emperor Taizu, the Grand Military Commission had been stripped of its prime ministerial status, retaining only the power to command troops and give orders, but not the power to mobilize troops, appoint personnel, or manage finances. The Grand Military Commissioner was merely a commander-in-chief, without any real power.

Even so, Emperor Taizu was still not satisfied, believing that the Grand Military Commission held too much military power, so he divided it into five Grand Military Commissions. As a result, the military power of the Grand Military Commissions further declined, and their authority was soon usurped by the Ministry of War, which was controlled by civil officials.

With this shift in power, military authority fell into the hands of civil officials. The Ministry of War's power thus expanded malignly, almost completely stripping the emperor of his military power. Meanwhile, the Five Military Commissions were reduced to a mere institution for settling nobles.

After Zhu Yin established a separate court in Nanjing, he immediately reinstated the Grand Military Commission, while significantly weakening the Ministry of War's authority. He then elevated the Grand Military Commission to the same level as the Privy Council of the Song and Yuan dynasties. The Ministry of War's authority was reduced to only military finance, logistics management, and military administration.

In this way, the Grand General's Office possessed the power to mobilize troops, command troops, and appoint personnel, making it comparable to the Privy Council during the Song Dynasty.

Zhu Yin established the Left and Right Grand Commanders as the chief officials of the Grand Commander's Office. Under the Left and Right Grand Commanders, there were four Grand Commandants of the Military Council and eight Grand Commandants of the Military Council. Below them were several Military Advisors and Registrars.

The Left and Right Grand Commanders were essentially prime ministers, equivalent to the Privy Councilors, holding a position similar to the Chancellor in the Song Dynasty. In this dynasty, they were on par with cabinet ministers. The Grand Commandant of the Military Council was equivalent to a Minister, and the Grand Commandant of the Military Council was on par with a Vice Minister.

As a result, the status of military officials was elevated to an unprecedented level.

Zhu Yin then formally issued an order to restore the equal status of civil and military officials from the early years of the dynasty. The order stipulated that from this day forward, the distinction between civil and military officials would be based solely on their respective ranks. Regardless of whether they were civil or military, those of higher rank were considered superior, and those of lower rank were considered inferior. Officials of the same rank held equal status, without distinction of rank.

He forcefully reversed the more than 100-year-old tradition of respecting civil officials over military officials and valuing civil officials over military officials with a single imperial edict!

Although most civil officials opposed the reforms, the military generals were staunch supporters, rendering their opposition ineffective and meaningless.

Then, Zhu Yin, in his capacity as Left Grand Commander, convened a military meeting with Qi Jiguang at the Grand Commander's Mansion to discuss upcoming major military affairs.

Besides Zhu Yin and Qi Jiguang, the generals who participated in the military council of the Grand General's Office included Grand Commandant Xu Xiaobai, Ding Huogen, Grand Commandant Yang Yinglong, Song Wanhua, Zhang Cha, Ma Gui, Dong Yiyuan, Qin Liangyu, Li Rubai, Sun Chengzong, and others.

In addition, there was also Feng Menglong, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of War, who represented the Ministry of War.

Inside the Shenhu Hall of the Grand Commander's Mansion, there was a specially made long table. Zhu Yin and Qi Jiguang sat side by side at the head of the table, one on the left and one on the right.

Qi Jiguang had already been enfeoffed as the Duke of Qi and was also the newly appointed Right Grand Commander of the Grand Military Commission, second only to the Regent Zhu Yin in status, making him a man of great power and influence.

At this moment, Qi Jiguang felt very at ease and gratified. Not because he had been granted the title of Duke, but because he felt a glory that military officials had never experienced before.

Although no one was wearing armor, the atmosphere was still somewhat tense. The latest military intelligence was not good news.

In front of Zhu Yin and Qi Jiguang were several reports and memorials that had just been sent to the capital.

Zhu Yin picked up the top dish and said in a cool tone:
"This report may surprise you all. It comes from Annam and speaks of the Trinh ruler."

"In the twenty-first year of the Wanli reign, the Ming army was still fighting against Japanese pirates in Goryeo. Taking advantage of the situation, Zheng Song led his troops to invade Ningyuan Prefecture and has not withdrawn his troops to this day. The retired emperor once gave him an imperial edict, but he turned a deaf ear to it. This is a serious crime of defying the Celestial Dynasty and disobeying imperial orders."

The thought of the Trinh rulers of Annam filled Zhu Yin with murderous intent. The Trinh family had invaded the Ming Dynasty three times in history, and each time they had taken advantage of the chaos to plunder.

The first instance was during the Imjin War, when Vietnamese troops invaded Ningyuan. The second was during the fierce battle between the Ming army and the Later Jin, when they invaded Siming Prefecture and committed arson, murder, and looting in Luzhou. The third was taking advantage of the Qing army's attack on the southwest to forcibly occupy Cao Bang Prefecture.

Now history has changed. Zheng Song believed that the division of the Ming Dynasty into North and South presented an opportunity, and with the Burmese army invading Yunnan, he was even bolder and more ambitious.

Zhu Yin showed the report to others and continued:

“Several months ago, I sent someone to Annam to meet with the Trinh ruler, hoping to form an alliance by marriage, that his daughter be married to the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty as a concubine.”

"My true intention was not to arrange a marriage alliance, but simply to appease the Zheng family and prevent them from joining forces with Burma to invade the Ming Dynasty."

"Who would have thought the Zheng family would be so arrogant! They're supposed to be Chinese!"

All the military officials who saw the report looked rather gloomy.

The Zheng family is truly arrogant!
When the report reached Qin Liangyu, she was so angry she almost laughed. Pointing at the report, she sneered:

"How dare you! Zheng Song claims his daughter is of incomparably precious and will not marry the ruler of the Southern Ming! That's right, he refers to us as the Southern Ming! He also says that the Burmese army is launching a northern expedition, the southwest could fall in an instant, and the Southern Ming itself is in dire need of protection. He's asking for his daughter's hand in marriage in order to beg for reinforcements from their Great Southern Kingdom!"

"Arrogant!" Several military officials couldn't help but exclaim.

Qin Liangyu continued, "That's not all. She also insulted the Regent, saying that a deposed and exiled monarch has no right for his descendants to covet the throne. She even claimed that Guangdong and Guangxi were originally their southern lands, and that she would raise an army of 100,000 to reclaim the lost territory of Daiyue..."

"Zheng Song has already allied with the King of Burma, agreeing to jointly attack the Ming Dynasty. His daughter has already married the King of Burma. Currently, Zheng Song is mobilizing troops, planning to personally lead an army of 100,000 north to Guangdong and Guangxi..."

Upon hearing this, everyone's faces turned angry.

The atmosphere inside the Divine Tiger Hall was even more somber.

Zhu Yin continued, “As you all know, the situation in Yunnan is quite serious. Governor-General Hao Yunlai of Yunnan and Guizhou reported that the Burmese army is powerful and he cannot hold out for long. If reinforcements do not arrive within three months, he will not be able to hold Kunming and Dali, and he, as Governor-General of Yunnan and Guizhou, will have no choice but to die for his country. The Duke of Qian’s report is similar; it’s just a matter of a few months anyway.”

"Among the Burmese army, there are skilled musketeers, and the commander is a foreign general named Gutt. This shows that Burma has a deep-rooted collusion with foreigners."

After Zhu Yin finished speaking, he picked up the third report. "This is a report sent back from Songpan by Xiong Tingbi, the Sichuan governor. It says that the Tibetan army has reached Dajianlu. He has few troops and can only guard the Dadu River. Fortunately, because it is the snow season, the mountain roads are blocked by avalanches, and the Tibetan army cannot cross the river for the time being."

"My intelligence says that Tibet has deployed 100,000 troops this time, almost all of them cavalry. The majority are Tibetan soldiers, and the smaller portion are Mongol, Tuman, and Qiang soldiers. They are determined to take Sichuan."

Then, Zhu Yin picked up the fourth report, "This is a report from Jingzhou Province in the South Seas. The three foreign allied forces are preparing to seize Jingzhou, and then use Jingzhou as a springboard to attack Guangdong and Fujian. Although they are not ready, they will be at the gates of Jingzhou in no more than six months!"

"In other words, within just six months, we will have to deal with five powerful enemies: the Northern Dynasty, Burma, the Zheng family of Annam, the allied forces of foreign barbarians, and the Tibetan army!"

"This is... a five-pronged attack on the Ming Dynasty!"

"But we don't have many soldiers available."

"What good ideas do you all have? Please speak freely today."

……

P.S.: This monthly ticket ranking is making me increasingly disheartened. I haven't been feeling well these past few days either, I'm totally devastated... That's all for now, goodnight.

(End of this chapter)