Sweep Yuan

Chapter 250 Reforming Long-Standing Problems Requires New Theories

The joint efforts of the military and civilians to combat natural disasters are not an isolated case in the long history of China.

During the Warring States period, Sun Bin led his army to work with the people of Gaotang to cope with a severe drought, digging wells and canals to overcome the difficulties together.

Floods are far more devastating than droughts; they come on fiercely, change rapidly, and are extremely destructive. It is truly difficult to effectively cope with them relying solely on scattered and spontaneous civilian forces. If possible, the government will also mobilize military forces for disaster relief.

For example, in the tenth year of the Xining era of the Northern Song Dynasty (1077 AD), Su Shi was in charge of Xuzhou. He encountered the Yellow River breaching its banks, and the floodwaters surged, reaching the city walls of Xuzhou. The water level was as high as 28 feet, and the people in the city were in a panic and prepared to abandon the city and flee.

Su Shi stepped forward to appease the people, organized the army and civilians to reinforce the city walls, and built a long dike in the southeast, which ultimately successfully resisted the flood and saved the lives of the city.

However, as the prefect of Xuzhou, Su Shi was responsible for protecting the land and ensuring the safety of the people. Moreover, the floodwaters were already approaching the city walls. If the flood was left unchecked, the city would collapse and the soldiers, civilians, and officials in the city would all perish. Therefore, it was necessary to take precautions.

Moreover, he could only save the soldiers and civilians in the city, but he was powerless to help the many villagers outside Xuzhou who had already suffered from the disaster.

Rescuing people displaced by natural disasters was the responsibility of the Jiangning government and had nothing to do with the rebel army that was attacking the city.

If it were any other army (including government troops), and they encountered continuous heavy rain during the siege, they would not only fail to provide disaster relief, but would also very likely take advantage of this "opportunity" to deliberately breach the dikes and divert the floodwaters to attack the enemy's city walls, attempting to drown the enemy army.

As for whether this move would drown tens of thousands of innocent civilians inside and outside the city, in their eyes, as long as they could win the war, it would be a "classic battle" worth writing about.

But Shishan's ambition lay in overthrowing the tyrannical Yuan dynasty that treated its people like dirt, and his primary goal was to win the hearts and minds of the people. The significance of sealing the breach in the Nanhe River and aiding the disaster-stricken population far outweighed that of conquering a city. This was a far more profound battle for the hearts and minds of the people, the long-term value of which was immeasurable.

Ordinary people have limited knowledge and are even more fascinated by the legendary experience of Marshal Shi, who commanded seven routes and three provinces, rolling up his trousers and helping them carry bamboo cages to fill the gap. This was enough to become a topic of conversation for them for decades to come, and through word of mouth, their support for the Red Flag Battalion would continue to deepen.

Some of the gentry who came to assist in the disaster relief at Xia Yu's request were afraid of Shi Shan's ability to get down to earth and manipulate public sentiment. This terrifying power, with the army closely connected to the common people, made them instinctively uneasy.

Foresightful and truly intelligent people like Sun Yan were awestruck by how Marshal Shi could instantly transform his proud and fierce soldiers into disaster relief warriors who shared the suffering of the people with a single order.

This terrifying organizational power and rallying force, so precise and disciplined, could probably only be compared to the legendary Yue Family Army, known for their unwavering resolve to "freeze to death rather than dismantle houses, starve to death rather than plunder." Only then did they truly understand why the Red Flag Battalion could repeatedly defeat the Yuan army and grow stronger with each battle.

An army, once deeply rooted in the people and widely gaining the support of the people, can truly be invincible.

In contrast, the seemingly vast Mongol Empire's foundation of rule was already rotten to the core, like rotten wood before the Red Banner Battalion, collapsing at the slightest push. Even if it transferred more troops from the north, it could not stop Shi Shan from unifying the world with the support of the people.

The Nanhe River is ultimately just a small tributary of the Qinhuai River, with a small flow and a limited length of breach.

Under Shi Shan's personal command, local gentry along the river, under both pressure and inspiration, "enthusiastically" donated money and supplies. Nearly ten thousand soldiers and civilians worked together, sweating profusely, and successfully closed the breach in just one day, basically bringing the danger under control.

However, Shishan did not immediately return to the military camp. Instead, he led the gentry who participated in the disaster relief efforts to visit the most severely affected villages, going door to door.

Shi Shan patiently inquired about the losses from the disaster victims and personally distributed relief supplies. The medical team that followed distributed alum and medicinal herbs and explained post-disaster environmental sanitation and epidemic prevention knowledge.

Marshal Shi, busy with countless affairs, temporarily set aside the nearby city and instead went deep into the muddy countryside to visit people. His intention was self-evident—he wanted to further win over the hearts and minds of the people and maximize the political effect of this disaster relief effort.

The gentry present were all shrewd men; how could they not see through this? But seeing that the Red Flag Battalion's capture of Jiangning was irreversible and that they would inevitably have to rely on Shishan in the future, if they did not show their loyalty now, when would they?
Therefore, the gentry generously pledged to undertake the social obligation of providing subsequent relief to the disaster victims and organizing villagers to rebuild their homes, "to do their part in the small way."

Some talented gentry even composed poems on the spot, praising Marshal Shi for his love for the people and his virtue that moved Heaven, or praising the heroic deeds of the army and the people in fighting against natural disasters together, in an attempt to win Shi Shan's favor.

Regardless of their artistic merit, Shi Shan instructed the newly appointed Xuan Cao Yuan, Xia Yu, to meticulously record all these impromptu poems.

Subsequently, it was published as a booklet and, in conjunction with the increasingly mature propaganda system of the Red Flag Battalion, it was widely circulated in various places in Jiangnan and Jiangbei, further concretizing Marshal Shi's reputation for "benevolence and righteousness".

Among these works created to commemorate the occasion, some were indeed sincere in their emotions and of high artistic merit, and have been passed down to posterity.

Among them, the most celebrated is Ma Wan, a talented scholar from Jiangning who is known for his mastery of poetry, calligraphy, and painting. Witnessing the grand scene of the army and the people working together to fight the disaster, he was deeply moved. After returning home, he secluded himself and spent three whole days creating a long scroll combining poetry and painting to record this extraordinary scene.

In the painting, Marshal Ishiyama is naturally the central figure, but his image is not overly deified; instead, the focus is on the moment of command.

Gentry figures such as Xia Yu and Sun Yan were also among them, their long gowns covered in mud. They followed behind Shi Shan, coordinating supplies or participating in the transport. They blended in with the soldiers and civilians in short clothes and shirtless who made up the majority of the picture, creating an unexpectedly harmonious scene.

In the corner of the picture, Ma Wan also carefully arranged two figures wearing purple official robes of the Yuan Dynasty—Zuo Danashili, the Left Vice Minister of the Jiangzhe Province of the Yuan Dynasty who was captured after his defeat, and Zhao Lian, the Vice Minister of the Huainan Province who was detained by Shishan for negotiating peace.

The two men, still dressed in their finest clothes, stood dejectedly to one side, their faces ashen, their eyes vacant, their spirits broken, a stark contrast to the bustling disaster relief scene around them, a scene brimming with symbolism.

In the distance between these two high-ranking Yuan officials, the gray-blue walls of Jiangning appeared and disappeared in the misty rain. Upon closer inspection, it seemed that another blurry figure in purple robes was gazing at this place from between the crenellations of the walls.

This was not an arbitrary addition by Ma Wan based on artistic imagination.

On that day, Yuan Tingjiqing Road Darughachi Danidas did indeed stand on the city wall of Jiangning and witnessed firsthand the awe-inspiring scene of Shishan leading his troops and civilians in disaster relief outside the city. He could naturally understand the vibrant spirit of a newly emerging regime behind the Red Flag Battalion's disaster relief efforts.

Looking at the city's inescapable panic, this Mongol nobleman clearly realized that the situation was hopeless, and the fall of Jiangning was only a matter of time. He suffered a sudden "heart attack" on the spot and was frantically carried off the city wall by his entourage, causing quite a commotion on the city wall.

Shishan quickly learned of the chaos on the city walls through scouts, but he did not take the opportunity to order an attack.

On the one hand, the rain had not stopped at the time, making the ladders slippery and the ground under the city walls muddy, which was not conducive to the deployment of large siege weapons and the climbing of soldiers. The cost of a forced attack on the city was too high.

On the other hand, he knew that the psychological impact of this disaster relief operation on the Yuan army defending the city would take time to ferment and spread, allowing them to disintegrate their fighting spirit on their own, which would be far more effective than a direct assault.

Two days later, at the Yuhuatai camp.

With the flood relief efforts in Nanhe now concluded, Shishan changed into a dry blue cotton robe and finally had some free time to meet with Sun Yan, a scholar from Jurong who had recently come to serve him, in his command tent.

The tent was brightly lit by candlelight, illuminating the calm and focused faces of the two people.

After two days of close contact and observation on the front lines of disaster relief, Sun Yan gained a more comprehensive understanding of Shishan's governing philosophy and style of operation. Knowing this was a rare opportunity, he immediately went straight to the heart of the matter, addressing the fundamental policy issues that Shishan cared about most:

"Marshal, in my opinion, the failure of the Yuan government lies not primarily in its harshness and tyranny, but in its excessive leniency and the resulting collapse of discipline!"

While it's true that the Mongol Yuan dynasty was a foreign regime, in all fairness, its policies weren't necessarily more harsh than some other dynasties. At least in terms of economic policies, it was much more lenient than the Song dynasty, making life as a gentry under the Yuan court quite comfortable.

Upon hearing this, Shi Shan's gaze sharpened slightly, his body leaned forward slightly, and he solemnly raised his hand, saying:
"Borong, please tell me in detail."

Sun Yan took a deep breath, gathered his thoughts, and continued:
"In ancient times, Yu the Great united the tribes to tame the Yellow River and guide it to the sea, thus establishing a nation. In subsequent dynasties, the governance of the country always emphasized equal taxation and corvée labor to ensure the well-being of the people, building cities and garrisons to defend against foreign aggression, and promoting agriculture and sericulture and developing water conservancy to mitigate natural disasters. The combination of rites and laws, and the complementary use of virtue and punishment, were the foundation for the stability of the state."

Sun Yan's words, while naturally limited by the times, contained a core idea—that the nation needs to effectively organize and pool its internal strength to cope with internal and external challenges and natural disasters—which, in Shi Shan's view, was spot on.

To ensure the well-being of the people, defend against powerful enemies, and combat natural disasters, a state apparatus capable of effectively integrating social forces is needed.

Otherwise, no matter how vast the territory, if the interior is fragmented and constantly embroiled in internal strife, nothing significant can be accomplished.

Ishiyama's determination to challenge the privileges of the gentry and embark on a more difficult path to unification was not out of prejudice against the gentry, but out of the strategic need to unite the nation's strength to meet greater challenges in the future.

He immediately nodded in agreement and elaborated:

"Only by uniting the strength of the masses can a strong nation be formed. I recently read about the reforms of various states in the 'Strategies of the Warring States,' and their main purpose was to eliminate the fragmentation of national power caused by the feudal system, strengthen central authority, and enrich the country and strengthen its military."

Among them, Shang Yang's reforms in the Qin state were the most thorough, which effectively united the forces of remote border regions, allowing Qin to sweep across the land and unify the world.

Although Sun Yan was relatively open-minded and advocated "the application of rites and laws, and the complement of virtue and punishment," and was not completely bound by the single approach of Confucian rule by virtue, he was ultimately deeply influenced by tradition and emphasized the importance of rites, laws, order, and people-oriented thinking.

When Shi Shan mentioned the notoriously harsh reforms of the Qin state, he couldn't help but feel a pang of anxiety. He worried that Marshal Shi was placing too much emphasis on efficiency and centralization of power, and might stray down the wrong path of harsh laws and cruelty. He quickly reminded him:
"The Book of Documents says, 'The people are the foundation of the state; when the foundation is firm, the state is at peace.' Although Qin unified the world through reforms, its policies were harsh and lacked compassion, treating the people as mere tools. Ultimately, its foundation was unstable, and it perished after only two generations. This is a lesson from the past that we must heed!" Shi Shan was well aware of the profound lessons of Qin's rapid demise. Although he emphasized centralization and efficiency, he scoffed at the extreme "five arts of controlling the people" ("weakening the people, impoverishing the people, exhausting the people, humiliating the people, and keeping the people ignorant") of Shang Yang and Han Feizi.

There's no need to explain this in detail; Sun Yan will naturally see the difference between the two in the actual administration of the Red Flag Battalion in the future.

"Bo Rong's concerns are very valid!"

Shishan adopted a humble and receptive attitude, and said:
"My Red Flag Battalion values ​​consolidating its foundation above all else, and will never emulate the tyranny of Qin. You can rest assured about that."

Sun Yan also realized that he had overreacted just now. Since the beginning of his army, Marshal Shi has always been concerned about the people's suffering and maintained strict military discipline. He has never committed any offenses in the area he has passed through. How could he possibly repeat the mistakes of the Qin Dynasty?

He realized that his eagerness to impress, coupled with his fear of being branded as "leading his lord astray," had caused him to lose his composure. He quickly regained his composure and offered a flattering remark:
"The Marshal's concern for the common people is truly a blessing for all the people under heaven."

After easing the tension, Sun Yan steered the conversation back on track and continued to elaborate on his views, saying:
"During the reign of Emperor Ming of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Wang Jing presided over the management of the Yellow River and the Bian Canal, and built a thousand-mile-long river embankment, which miraculously prevented the Yellow River from changing its course for nearly a thousand years. In contrast, the Mongol Yuan Dynasty today has a territory and population that far surpasses that of the Eastern Han Dynasty, and its national strength should have far exceeded that of the Han Dynasty."

However, his efforts to manage the Yellow River not only failed to benefit the people, but instead caused widespread unrest.

At this point, Sun Yan paused briefly to observe Shi Shan's reaction before revealing his core conclusion:
"The Mongol Yuan dynasty, being a foreign ethnic group, entered the Central Plains and discriminated against the Han Chinese. While this was an important cause of the chaos in the country, it was not the most fundamental problem. The Mongol Yuan dynasty had been established for more than sixty years. Before it controlled the Yellow River, although there were often small-scale rebellions within its territory, their number and intensity did not exceed those of previous dynasties during the same period."

Despite possessing vast territories and hundreds of millions of people, its imperial authority was weak, its commands were not heeded by local authorities, powerful clans grew strong, and its national strength declined. It was unable to effectively coordinate the nation's resources to accomplish major tasks. This 'waste of national power' and 'organizational incompetence' were the root causes that shook the very foundations of its state!

After making these "politically incorrect" remarks, Sun Yan looked at Shi Shan nervously, his palms slightly sweaty.

He was taking a risky move. After all, the Red Flag Battalion held high the banner of "Expelling the barbarians and restoring China," and ethnic conflict was the most obvious and direct appeal.

Sun Yan, however, attempted to argue that the fundamental cause of the Mongol Yuan Dynasty's chaos was not simply "rule by a foreign race," but rather a systemic failure of its national governance. This, to some extent, weakened the national righteousness of the anti-Yuan uprising and carried considerable risk.

However, he dared to say this because he had conducted in-depth research on Shishan's past policies.

He keenly perceived that Marshal Shi's focus seemed to be more on the struggle between social classes (such as suppressing powerful clans and equalizing taxes and corvée labor), as well as the reshaping of the country's overall organizational capacity and resource allocation capabilities. His thinking seemed to go beyond the simple scope of the struggle between the Mongols and the Han.

Sun Yan was betting that Shishan needed a deeper theoretical framework to guide future political development, rather than simply expelling the barbarians.

There was no other way. He had neither official rank nor a disability, while Marshal Shi had a solid foundation and a mature governing team. If he didn't take an unconventional approach and relied on old-fashioned rhetoric like "winning over the gentry is the key to winning the country," how could he gain the Marshal's trust?
In fact, from the moment Sun Yan said, "The first mistake of the Yuan dynasty was its leniency," Shishan had roughly grasped the direction he wanted to express.

And this is indeed the theory that Shishan wanted. To eliminate the accumulated problems of the Yuan Dynasty and build a new regime, it is not enough to rely solely on inciting ethnic antagonism and anti-restoration purges; there must be a clearer and more profound guiding ideology to support systematic social reforms.

Although the Red Flag Battalion has not yet established a state, it is not appropriate to openly propose "outrageous arguments" such as "the Yuan government was too lenient" at this time, which may scare away many centrists and even some people within its own camp.

However, Sun Yan's keen awareness of this point, and his willingness to risk being condemned by the gentry and scholars of the land to offer his advice, is a rare and valuable insight and courage in Shi Shan's eyes.

"Well said! That's insightful!"

Shi Shan's eyes showed appreciation, and he nodded in praise:
"Bo Rong's words resonate deeply with me. The nation's finances are taken from the people and used for public affairs that concern the national economy and people's livelihood. National defense, border defense, the operation of the court, disaster relief, water conservancy projects, the establishment of schools, the construction of roads, and the popularization of medical care all require strong financial and material support."

To accomplish these important tasks, it is essential to eradicate the ills of the Mongol Yuan dynasty, such as ineffective command, lax discipline, and the fragmentation of national power by powerful clans!

Now that Bo Rong has seen this, do you have any more concrete strategies for future governance?

Although the term "public affairs" is somewhat novel, its meaning is not difficult to understand. In Sun Yan's traditional view, the primary task of a regime is naturally to maintain its own existence, and public affairs are more of a side effect on the basis of maintaining stability, or rather, a manifestation of "benevolent governance".

Just as the gentry theoretically have a responsibility to care about their hometown and participate in local public affairs, but this is contingent on maintaining their own detached status and the stability of the social structure. However, such a blunt truth cannot be spoken aloud at this moment.

He thought for a moment and replied:
"In my opinion, Marshal, you are currently at a critical juncture in your conquest of the world, and all strategies should prioritize winning the hearts and minds of the people. In recent years, the Mongol Yuan dynasty has imposed exorbitant taxes and levies, which have caused widespread resentment and unbearable suffering among the people."

Wherever the Red Flag Battalion went, they implemented the policy of "exemption from regular taxes," which significantly reduced the burden on gentry and common people, winning them widespread support. If they could maintain this policy consistently, winning the hearts and minds of the people would not be difficult in time.

In times of great chaos, survival and safety are the primary needs of the people. The Red Flag Battalion not only provides the most precious order and security in such turbulent times, but also appropriately reduces the tax burden, naturally winning widespread support.

Shi Shan was even more pleased to see that although Sun Yan's proposals were rather radical, his specific policy suggestions were steady and pragmatic. He affirmed:

"Of course! 'Tax exemption' is a policy of the Red Flag Battalion to appease the people, and it will never waver and must be upheld!"

Sun Yan, lacking political experience, could only offer relatively vague advice on how to govern the country.

However, he knew that the reason why the gentry class was difficult to govern was that they controlled three major advantages: land wealth, manpower (a large number of commoners who depended on their clans), and discourse power (cultural authority).

The latter two, because they involve clan foundations, are difficult to address in the short term. However, starting with land wealth and cleaning up the long-standing problems with land taxation not only conforms to the old system of "governing taxation according to law" but also yields quick results, demonstrating the authority of the new regime. He then suggested:
"The Mongol Yuan dynasty was plagued by corruption, with local officials and gentry colluding, and powerful families often concealing land for tax purposes, placing an unbearable burden on the common people. If a strong determination could be made to clear these concealed lands and equalize taxes and corvée labor, it would surely be possible to achieve 'sufficient national revenue without increasing taxes on the people.' However,"

He then changed the subject, emphasizing the difficulties involved, and said:
"The most important thing in handling this matter is talent. We need capable officials who are proficient in finance and criminal law, familiar with local conditions and abuses, and willing to offend people to implement it. Otherwise, good policies will be shelved or distorted, and may easily incite popular uprisings. Select one or two pilot projects, proceed cautiously, and after achieving results, we can gradually plan for the rest of the process."

The Red Flag Battalion in Jiangbei had already attempted to clear out the hidden fields.

For example, when Feng Guoyong served as the magistrate of Huaiyuan County, he announced that the old land registers and population registers had been destroyed by war, and that land deeds stamped with the official seal of the new dynasty would be replaced free of charge for the landowners. He took this opportunity to re-register the land and investigate hidden land properties.

However, practice has shown that the results are not ideal, with strong local resistance and increasingly covert methods.

Sun Yan's emphasis on the need for "capable officials" is indeed to the point. Without resolute, astute, and fully authorized implementers, any good land policy may be distorted or even counterproductive at the grassroots level.

This is one of the reasons why Shi Shan, despite having many ideas for land system reform, dared not implement them rashly.

“Bo Rong’s words are wise and insightful, and I will keep them in mind.”

After discussing the current strategy, Sun Yan turned his attention to the major policies and guidelines for the Red Flag Battalion after the founding of the nation.

He was, after all, born in the relatively developed commodity economy of the Jiangnan region, and his thinking wasn't limited to land; he considered broader sources of revenue. After a moment's hesitation, Sun Yan cautiously proposed another idea:

"Throughout history, in order to solve the problem of insufficient national revenue, in addition to directly manipulating land tax and poll tax, the government also implemented the policy of 'government monopolizing mountains and seas.' The specific content may have been added or subtracted in each dynasty, but the overall trend was that the types of goods monopolized by the government increased and the scale became larger and larger."

If the Marshal were to start from this point and tap into its potential, he might be able to open up new sources of revenue and reduce his over-reliance on land taxes.

"Guan Shan Hai," also known as "Guan Shan Hai," simply means advocating that the state control and manage natural resources such as mountains, forests, rivers, and lakes, especially important materials such as salt and iron, which are subject to state monopoly (government-run) or heavy taxes, as an important pillar of national fiscal revenue.

As successive dynasties reaped the benefits of the "state-run mountains and seas" policy, the scope of state-run industries continued to expand, gradually extending from salt and iron to many other profitable sectors such as wine, vinegar, tea, inkstones, and even overseas trade.

In the end, a trend basically emerged where "the imperial court would intervene in whichever industry was profitable."

Even before the traverse of the stone mountain, this idea of ​​state control over key economic lifelines still existed in various forms, demonstrating its historical rationality and vitality.

However, if a country's fiscal revenue relies excessively on monopolistic state-run economies such as government-owned mountains and seas, it becomes somewhat distorted, easily suppressing economic vitality and leading to numerous problems such as collusion between officials and businessmen and inefficiency. In the long run, this is not conducive to the healthy development of the social economy.

Undoubtedly, "official mountains and seas" were an important source of revenue and a crucial means for the state to lead economic development. They were still used in later generations, so there was no reason not to use stone mountains. In fact, with the rapid development of the commodity economy under the new regime, the scope of "official mountains and seas" would further expand.

But this inefficient, blind expansion and the business philosophy that relies solely on monopolies to make money must be changed. He pondered for a moment, then said:

"The policy of 'official control of mountains and seas' is indeed one of the national financial resources. However, its advantages and disadvantages are quite obvious. My Red Flag Battalion has not yet established a nation, so it is too early to talk about this policy. I will examine it more carefully."

(End of this chapter)