Sweep Yuan

Chapter 273 Reorganization of the Military and Political System

In this dimension, although Zhang Shicheng's uprising was brought forward by a few months due to the interference of Shishan, his brilliance was completely overshadowed by the sudden emergence of Shishan and his Red Flag Battalion.

Even more fatally, the strategic development space of the Zhang-Zhou regime was also firmly locked down: to its east was the vast sea, and to its north, the Huai'an Road seat of Shanyang County was like an iron nail, which could not be captured after a long siege; to its west and south, the Red Flag Camp's control area was increasingly consolidated.

During this period, both sides have been engaged in a tense standoff due to the dispute over the ownership of the wealthy city of Yangzhou, with large armies gathering.

Although Zhang Shicheng had established a kingdom and proclaimed himself king, he only controlled five cities. His "capital" Gaoyou was very close to Yangzhou, which was already controlled by the Red Flag Army, putting him in a very difficult and even precarious situation.

Therefore, when Shishan sent Hu Weiyong to Gaoyou to show his sincerity in setting aside the dispute and joining hands to resist the Yuan, Zhang Shicheng, who had no other choice, had no choice but to go along with it and quickly sent a high-level delegation headed by Situ Li Bosheng to travel by boat up the river to Jiangning.

Ishiyama showed Zhang Shicheng considerable diplomatic courtesy by personally receiving the delegation from this potential ally (and also potential adversary).

However, during this meeting, he only looked to the future. As for the specific agreements that needed to be reached between the Red Flag Battalion and the Zhang-Zhou regime in their joint resistance against the Yuan Dynasty, Shishan ordered the newly appointed Director of the Ministry of Rites, Xia Yu, to be in charge. Xia Yu, together with the relevant officials of the Ministry of Rites, would discuss the details with the Zhang-Zhou delegation.

Both sides faced immense pressure from the Yuan court's counterattack, as well as various complex internal problems that urgently needed to be resolved; neither side could afford to delay.

It is a pressing need for both sides to ease tensions and establish a relatively stable alliance, even if only for a short period, so that they can focus their efforts on expanding their territory in other directions.

This is the solid foundation upon which the negotiations were able to proceed rapidly.

Although Xia Yu's service in the Red Flag Battalion was short, he was known for his quick wit and eloquence, and was deeply trusted by Shi Shan. Li Bosheng, on the other hand, was a senior and capable minister under Zhang Shicheng, and had been fully authorized by Zhang Shicheng for this mission.

Inside the Jiangning post station, the two officials presiding over the negotiations engaged in a heated discussion surrounding a large map. Outside the window, the shadows of trees swayed and cicadas chirped incessantly; inside, the atmosphere alternated between debate and silence, both sides racking their brains for every ounce of benefit to their respective interests.

Since neither side could afford further delay, and the disparity in strength was too great, the heated debate was resolved in just over a day in a relatively harmonious (at least superficially) atmosphere, with the following alliance agreement reached:

First, the Red Flag Battalion and the Zhang-Zhou regime mutually acknowledged the areas that the other had actually controlled.

This clause meant that the Zhang-Zhou regime officially relinquished its claim to Yangzhou, which stood at the gates of its capital, and the Red Flag Battalion tacitly accepted the fait accompli that Zhang Shicheng had taken away Taizhou and Rugao from Yangzhou.

Li Bosheng knew that he had no way out, especially since Taizhou, which could contain Yangzhou's flank, would be completely exposed to the Red Flag Battalion's military might if it were "ceded" to them. This would be tantamount to taking Zhang Shicheng's life, and the "Prince Cheng" would never accept it.

Xia Yu also understood that Marshal Shi's current strategic focus was on northern Zhejiang in the south of the Yangtze River. He was unwilling to get too entangled with Zhang Shicheng in the Huaihe River region. Maintaining the status quo was more advantageous for the Red Flag Battalion, which was concentrating its efforts on major tasks.

Secondly, either party must notify the other party in advance of any military action taken in the border area. Failure to do so will be considered a breach of the alliance.

This clause, seemingly equal, is in fact a covert protection for the relatively weak Zhang-Zhou regime.

After all, given the Red Flag Battalion's current military might, even a single full-strength guard could be enough to restrain Zhang Shicheng's "national" forces, preventing him from making any rash moves. Since the Zhang-Zhou regime had received this "security guarantee" from the Red Flag Battalion, it naturally needed to reciprocate with corresponding sincerity.

Xia Yu bluntly stated that the Red Flag Battalion was about to launch a military campaign against the remaining four cities of Yangzhou Road—Taixing, Tongzhou, Haimen, and Chongmingzhou—and demanded that Zhang Zhou's side not interfere and withdraw its troops from the junction area to prevent conflict from breaking out during the major battle.

The conquest of these four cities will still focus on Zhenshuowei, and must be carried out in sync with the progress of the main force of the Red Flag Battalion in northern Zhejiang.

Theoretically speaking, the Zhang-Zhou regime still had a chance, at least to try to attack Tongzhou and other places before Fu Youde captured Taixing.

But as Li Bosheng listened to Xia Yu's calm yet undeniable statement, all he could feel was a bitter smile.

He knew that "Prince Cheng" would never dare to confront Shishan, whose military force was at its peak, at this time. In addition, the Red Flag Battalion's navy had firmly controlled the defenses of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, and the Zhang-Zhou regime was essentially powerless to contest the four cities at the mouth of the river.

Despite his reluctance, Li Bosheng had no choice but to agree to the conditions attached to what was essentially an ultimatum, on behalf of Zhang Shicheng.

Third, the Red Flag Battalion established a border market in Shiwei Village, at the border of Yangzhou and Gaoyou. Large-scale commodity transactions would be settled in precious metals such as gold and silver, or through barter agreed upon by both parties. Details of the initial batch of traded goods would be negotiated separately by both sides.

Zhang Shicheng was eager to expand his army and prepare for war, and what he needed most was iron and finished weapons and armor. He was particularly envious of the "large bowl-shaped cannon" that the Red Flag Battalion had used to great effect in the Battle of Yangzhou.

But Xia Yu's attitude was very clear, directly blocking this path:
The Red Flag Battalion would never sell its military weapons such as artillery; even its standard-issue swords, guns, and armor were in short supply due to the Red Flag Battalion's recent large-scale expansion, which required it to use its own inventory to meet its own needs, let alone sell them to others.

In reality, the insufficient production capacity of ordnance was only a temporary problem for the Red Flag Battalion.

With Shishan's strong support, the Crafts Institute has continuously researched and promoted new technologies and improved management methods. As a result, the copper and iron smelting capacity in Chuzhou, Huaiyuan, Hefei, Jiangning, Jurong and other places has increased significantly, far exceeding the level under the control of the Yuan Dynasty.

The real bottleneck at present lies in the production capacity of ordnance manufacturing. With the large-scale application of simple machinery such as hydraulic forging hammers and the gradual graduation of apprentice craftsmen through tiered training, this problem will be solved sooner or later.

Moreover, during the Red Flag Battalion's pacification of northern Zhejiang, they seized a massive amount of non-standard weapons from local powerful armed forces.

These weapons were strange and varied in quality, and most of them did not meet the tactical requirements of the Red Flag Battalion. Reworking them would be time-consuming and laborious. It would be good to select a portion of them and use them to trade with Zhang Shicheng in exchange for the supplies or gold, silver and copper coins that the Red Flag Battalion urgently needed.

Although the Red Flag Battalion has been expanding since its founding, now numbering over 100,000, Shishan has strictly controlled the size of the army at each stage, emphasizing the coordinated development of military and civilian affairs to prevent the exploitation of resources.

Zhang Shicheng's frantic expansion of his army, which was almost like drinking poison to quench thirst, was destined to be unsustainable.

A large number of young and middle-aged men were forced to leave agricultural production and join Zhang Zhou's army. The Huaidong region, which already had limited grain production, would soon face a food shortage.

By then, Shishan would have already taken over the entire prosperous grain-producing area of ​​northern Zhejiang, and the main commodities exported by the Red Flag Battalion would naturally shift from weapons to grain.

Both food and ironware are crucial strategic resources in times of chaos, and even allies would never open up their supplies.

In reality, even if Shishan were willing to do so, Zhang Shicheng might not have had the purchasing power.

However, in Shi Shan's plan, the initiative to sell grain to Zhang Shicheng was not only for the purpose of making a profit or uniting Zhang Shicheng as a temporary ally, but also for the long-term stability of the economy in northern Zhejiang.

Northern Zhejiang was the most important granary of the Mongol Yuan Dynasty.

Despite supporting a large number of people and an army, the canal was still able to transport more than one million shi of grain to the north every year before the war. In the second year of the Tianli era (1329 AD), it even reached a terrifying 3.52 million shi.

Once the Red Flag Battalion takes over northern Zhejiang, Shishan will never again supply the Yuan court with a single grain of grain.

However, once such a huge grain production capacity is fully released, it will inevitably generate a large surplus after meeting its own needs for military expansion and preparation for war.

If these "surplus" grains cannot be put into circulation in a timely manner and converted into funds or other important materials, they will only be left to rot and deteriorate in warehouses. This will undoubtedly severely dampen the enthusiasm of local agricultural producers and be detrimental to the long-term stable rule of the Red Flag Camp.

Fourth, both sides regularly exchange envoys in order to enhance mutual trust and resolve any potential conflicts in a timely manner.

Shi Shan was well aware that his alliance with Zhang Shicheng was purely a temporary measure, and its strength did not depend on whether they exchanged envoys, but entirely on the dynamic comparison of their strengths.

Once Zhang Shicheng felt that he had become powerful enough to "wrestle" with the Red Flag Battalion, he would have no psychological burden about breaking the alliance.

This move was mainly to temporarily stabilize this restless neighbor, allowing Zhang Shicheng to confidently expand into the Yuan Dynasty's controlled territory to the north. However, it was also necessary to control the speed of its development through various means to prevent the Zhang-Zhou regime from growing too fast and posing a threat to the Red Flag Battalion.

Li Bosheng was efficient and decisive. After reaching an agreement with the Red Flag Battalion, he immediately took the text of the agreement and returned to Gaoyou by fast boat to report to Zhang Shicheng for stamping, so that the agreement could officially take effect.

However, for the weak Zhang-Zhou regime, this alliance was more beneficial than harmful. Given Zhang Shicheng's insight and courage, he should not have hesitated much and it was basically just a formality.

The reason why Shi Shan did not have a detailed discussion with Li Bosheng was twofold: firstly, to show that they were of equal status, and secondly, because he had been focusing his main energy on the new round of military and political adjustments in the Red Flag Battalion.

Militarily, Shishan, based on the reality that the rapid expansion of the Red Flag Battalion's sphere of influence had led to a sharp increase in the demand for defensive forces, introduced a major adjustment: in addition to the various guards focused on mobile warfare, a new "garrison" sequence was established.

The garrison troops did not have a fixed number of personnel. Instead, the number of cities and troops required to be stationed was flexibly adjusted according to changes in the Red Flag Battalion's sphere of influence and the needs of the war.

The most critical strategic nodes on the front lines remain garrisoned by highly capable elite guards, while the garrison troops are responsible for defending secondary cities, patrolling key roads, and assisting in maintaining local order. They are not required to undertake overly demanding field combat or assault missions. As a result, the training standards for garrison troops can be appropriately lowered, their equipment is relatively simple, they are easier to train quickly, and their maintenance costs (food and pay) are far lower than those of elite combat troops.

The core purpose of this move is to use limited funds and supplies where they are most needed, allowing the most capable guards to be freed from tedious defensive duties and concentrate their strength on key areas and battles that determine the outcome of the war.

It needs to be clarified that garrison soldiers are not auxiliary soldiers, and the recruitment requirements will not be lowered as a result. During their garrison duty, they still need to undergo rigorous military training and are essentially special supplementary soldiers.

Shishan clearly stipulated that if the Red Flag Battalion were to expand into a field army in the future, soldiers would be selected first from the outstanding garrison soldiers.

At the same time, an elimination mechanism will be established, and those who fail the selection assessment for two consecutive rounds will be forced to leave the team, thereby promoting the rational flow of the garrison system and ensuring its overall vitality and ambition.

In terms of governance, Shishan also adapted to the changing situation and made sweeping adjustments to local administrative institutions.

Yangzhou was originally a circuit, which governed one prefecture, two counties, and five states. Each state was further divided into nine counties, making a total of twelve cities (including some counties that shared the same city as the circuit or state capitals), resulting in a complex administrative structure.

Now that Zhang Shicheng has forcibly "eaten away" the cities of Taizhou and Rugao, the area is geographically fragmented and can no longer maintain its original "road" system.

Shi Shan made a decisive decision to downgrade Zhenzhou to Yangzi County, and merge it with Jiangdu County, the original seat of Yangzhou Road, to form a new Yangzhou Prefecture. He appointed Hu Weiyong, who had just been sent as an envoy to the Zhang Zhou regime and had made meritorious contributions, as the first prefect.

This move is both a reward for merit and a way to send this capable person to the local area to gain experience and test his ability to take charge independently.

Yangzhou Prefecture currently only governs two cities. Its ultimate size depends on how many prefectures and counties Hu Weiyong can assist Fu Youde in conquering and stabilizing.

Liuhe County, which originally belonged to Zhenzhou, and Wujiang County, which was separated from Hezhou, were located across the river from Jiangning City, the seat of Yingtian Prefecture.

With the Red Flag Battalion based in Yingtianfu, the strategic importance of these two key river defense locations suddenly increased, so they were both placed under the direct jurisdiction of Yingtianfu to strengthen the defense of the core area.

As a result, the defense zone of Fu Youde's Zhenshuo Guard would span three administrative units: Chuzhou, Yingtianfu, and Yangzhou, with a huge east-west span, making management and logistical support extremely inconvenient.

In order to reassure his men and allow them to expand into places like Taixing and Tongzhou, Shishan clearly adjusted the defense zone of Zhenshuowei to be within the territory of Yangzhou; at the same time, he appointed Hua Yun and Han Cheng as the commanders-in-chief, each of whom was temporarily assigned to command 4,000 troops and stationed in Chuzhou and Liuhe County respectively.

It is clear that the defense zones and troop deployments of Hua Yun and Han Cheng are somewhat "awkward." They are more than sufficient to defend their respective areas, but lack strategic space around them for their expansion.

Shishan's arrangement was actually to deploy these two troops as strategic mobile forces around Yingtian Prefecture in advance, in case the Yuan court launched a large-scale siege of the Red Flag Battalion after conquering the Xu Song regime.

With Zhao Lian, the former Vice Minister of the Huainan Province, assisting Fu Youde in completing the task of screening former officials in Yangzhou, returning to Jiangning, any appointment of this former high-ranking Yuan official would inevitably trigger further changes in the central administrative structure of the Red Flag Battalion.

Zhao Lian served as an official for thirty-two years, rising to the rank of second grade. He once served as the Minister of Rites in the Mongol Yuan Dynasty. Whether in the central court or in local government, he had extremely rich experience and connections.

Sending such a person to the countryside for "experience" would be a huge waste and would also show that Shishan is not a place for people.

However, if Zhao Lian were directly appointed as a core high-ranking official of the Red Flag Battalion, not to mention whether he himself would feel awkward as a surrendered official, his old brothers who had followed him from the beginning would inevitably have their own thoughts.

After careful consideration and consulting with Zhao Lian himself, Shishan made a relatively balanced personnel arrangement:

Zhao Lian was appointed as a "Doctor," a prestigious and respectful title. He was also authorized to "assist in military affairs," primarily to assist Shi Shan in handling matters related to the Household, Personnel, and Public Works departments.

This position is equivalent to half of the Chief Secretary of the Bureau of Records, without directly in charge of the Bureau of Records. It is a prestigious position with the right to participate in and discuss politics, but without direct administrative power, which is quite in line with his status as a demoted official.

However, the actual power of the three departments of Revenue, Personnel, and Works has long been held by Shishan.

Chief Secretary Liu Xingge knew that Shishan would never allow any civil or military officials to hold too much power under his command. In addition, he had been overworked for the past two years and his health was not as good as before. He understood Zhao Lian's appointment and dared not have any objection.

During this period, Zhao Lian also recommended several old acquaintances whom he considered to be talented individuals to Shi Shan. One of them was named Zhang Jing, a native of Sanyuan, Shaanxi.

This person entered officialdom through the annual tribute system, starting from the lowest level as a clerk in the Jiangbei Huaidong Circuit's Censorate. He had extensive experience working in the Censorate system, the Censorate system, and the provincial government, eventually rising to the rank of fourth-grade official in the Huainan Provincial Bureau of Justice.

The core duties of a judicial officer are to handle judicial affairs, including adjudicating criminal cases, reviewing litigation documents, and handling civil disputes. They can be considered professional judicial officials.

As the Red Flag Battalion has grown to its current size, its central organization has taken the form of "three departments and six offices," seemingly only one step away from establishing a national system. However, its governance system is still quite rudimentary.

For example, in local governance, the long-standing practice of using simplistic and brutal military law instead of detailed civil law has meant that ordinary civil disputes and cases often have to be handled using primitive laws or customary law.

This was necessary and very effective during the early stages of an undertaking, when there was a severe shortage of political talent and a need to quickly stabilize the local area and suppress the backlash from conservative forces through strict military law.

However, as the Red Flag Battalion's cause gradually got on track, the controlled area continued to expand, and the population increased day by day, internal governance increasingly required "hierarchy" and "rules".

If we continue to use outdated and unreasonable "rules" and "experiences" (such as privileges for minority groups) to handle increasingly complex judicial affairs, it will be extremely inappropriate and may even breed new social conflicts.

Previously, Shishan separated some duties from the Ministry of Rites to form the Ministry of Propaganda, which focused on propaganda, education, and ideological guidance, telling the soldiers and civilians under its jurisdiction "what should be done." However, the construction of a judicial punishment system that explained "what consequences should be borne for not doing so" lagged behind.

The saying goes, "Virtue and punishment complement each other, and Confucianism and Legalism are used together." The way to govern a country is to organically combine moral education with legal constraints, and neither can be lacking.

Zhang Jing was not only proficient in his duties and familiar with Yuan law, but more importantly, he was adept at handling current affairs and was especially known for "serving people with integrity," which earned him high praise from Zhao Lian. Shi Shan naturally had to give Zhao Lian face and personally summoned Zhang Jing for a detailed discussion.

He discovered that this person not only had in-depth knowledge of the Yuan, Tang, and Song legal codes, but also did not adhere rigidly to the established laws of the past.

He can understand and accept the spirit of some advanced judicial concepts and principles mentioned by Shi Shan, such as checks and balances and procedural justice. This is exactly the kind of judicial reform talent he urgently needs.

Immediately afterwards, Shishan announced the establishment of the Criminal Affairs Department and appointed Zhang Jing as the head of the Criminal Affairs Department, in charge of the judicial and criminal affairs of the Red Flag Camp.

Zhang Jing was fifty-six years old at the time. Having been demoted from the former Yuan dynasty to serve the new regime, he had already obtained such a high position. He knew that this position as the Director of the Ministry of Justice was likely the end of his career and would also be an important basis for judging his merits and demerits in his lifetime.

He was filled with a burning desire to continue his work, and he longed to combine his lifelong learning with his research on the laws of past dynasties to create a rigorous, fair, and suitable judicial system for this emerging regime during a period of chaos and power struggles.

In the few days since taking office, Zhang Jing has frequently sought to meet with Shi Shan to discuss legal principles and institutional arrangements, trying to understand as clearly as possible the young marshal's governing philosophy and bottom line.

Shishan was naturally pleased with this outcome—it was precisely his main purpose in recruiting Zhang Jing.

He indeed had many forward-thinking ideas, such as the need for judicial independence and the need to establish a supervisory system (similar to the Censorate) from the central government to local levels, as well as a specialized trial review system (similar to the Court of Judicial Review) in addition to the Ministry of Justice.
For example, the Mongol Yuan Dynasty's Bureau of Investigation and Judgment was responsible for both adjudicating cases and reviewing litigation. This excessive concentration of power was prone to problems, and it was necessary to separate and check the powers of investigation, prosecution, and trial.

Of course, he also knows that building a sound judicial system is not something that can be accomplished overnight.

The core task of the Red Flag Battalion at present is still to overthrow the Mongol Yuan Dynasty. All civil affairs and judicial construction must be carried out closely around this core task. We must not put the cart before the horse or even hinder the efficiency of military operations.

Therefore, the initial legislative and law enforcement practices of the Ministry of Justice had to follow the ironclad rule of "using severe punishments in chaotic times".

Not only should we severely punish criminals and maintain social stability, but we should also be adept at using judicial means to mercilessly strike at those stubborn and incorrigible reactionary forces, clearing obstacles for the military expansion and internal integration of the Red Flag Battalion.

Just as Shishan had predicted, he could not possibly devote all his energy to domestic affairs at the moment. The more dangerous and intense battles would require him to strategize and even personally take charge at the front lines.

On the fourth day after the establishment of the Ministry of Justice, two urgent reports delivered almost simultaneously shattered the apparent tranquility of Jiangning City.

A copy of the officially sealed treaty was sent back from Gaoyou by a fast ship from the Zhang-Zhou regime, and Zhang Shicheng agreed to all the terms.

This man was also decisive. On the day the contract was signed, he led his troops north and once again besieged Shanyang County, the seat of Huai'an Road, demonstrating his strategic shift through concrete actions.

Another urgent report came from a fast ship of the Yangtze River Navy, bringing news that Xu Da had already captured Kunshan Prefecture.

The battle situation on Pingjiang Road has changed, and Shishan, who has only been at peace for a month or two, is about to personally lead a large army into battle again!
(End of this chapter)