[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-a-little-soldier-of-the-late-ming-border-army":3,"chapter-a-little-soldier-of-the-late-ming-border-army-a-little-soldier-of-the-late-ming-border-army-chapter-861":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","A Little Soldier of the Late Ming Border Army",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1206150,1561,"Chapter 861: All Under Heaven","a-little-soldier-of-the-late-ming-border-army-chapter-861",861,"\u003Cp>Before long, You Shiwei and the others led their troops to the encampment area — a stretch of land not far from the great parade ground of Xuanfu garrison city. Tomorrow, they too would take part in the military review, after which the grand army would march out to suppress the rebels.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gazing at the countless military camps spreading out around them, each man’s heart surged with emotion. And just then they received word: the Crown Prince had declared a regency and invested Yongning Marquis Wang Dou as Duke Who Pacifies the Realm, Regional Commander of All Armed Forces. He had become Grand Commander; from now on, they and their men would also have to address him as Marshal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Upon receiving this news, You Shiwei and the others were deeply shaken. On their way into Xuanfu garrison city, they also encountered Shaanxi Regional Commander Gao Jie, Guyuan Regional Commander Zheng Jiadong, and Lintao Regional Commander Niu Chenghu, all hurrying to the Grand General’s residence to pay their respects to the General Who Subdues the Caitiffs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There were also Henan Regional Commander Chen Yongfu, Gansu Regional Commander Ma Kuang, Ningxia Regional Commander Fu Min, Yulin Regional Commander Wang Ding, Guxian Regional Commander Gao Ruli, and others.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every one of them wore a complicated expression; clearly they too had received the news, and no one knew quite what to feel inside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In truth, the way the Great Ming’s military officer system had developed up to now, on the surface civil officials were esteemed and military officers despised, yet in reality the wealth and power of military officers were beyond what those civil officials could match. After all, theirs was a hereditary system — the same guard battalion officers from the early Ming were still there at the end of the Ming. Even though from the mid-Ming onward camp troops were employed, camp commanders were still mostly chosen from among guard battalion officers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For example, if you were a Guard Commander, you would generally fill the post of Garrison Commander or Defense Commander. If you were an Assistant Guard Commander or a guard battalion Battalion Commander, you would fill the post of Company Commander or Squad Commander — by and large, your authority remained unchanged.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Civil officials had to toil and struggle, starting from the imperial examinations, and under the rotating appointment system, after a few years in office they had to leave. These men only needed to be born into the right womb. Whatever rank their fathers and grandfathers held, that was the rank they held, passed down from generation to generation. Over several centuries, their local power had become deep-rooted and unshakable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus they became the de facto local magnates, controlling a very large share of local wealth and power. Under the hereditary system, most also took money-grubbing as their personal duty. The encroachment on military farmlands and the smuggling at frontier passes originally began with these local guard battalion military officers; later the eunuchs and civil officials grew envious and joined in as well.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even though after the mid-Ming their status fell below that of civil officials, in truth, as long as they showed a little deference before those civil officials, they could still keep their power and influence intact. Play the grandson for a bit and gain something real — why not gladly do it?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their situation somewhat resembled that of government office runners: on the surface they were base people, but which county commoner would ever dare look down on these base people?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moreover, from the Chongzhen reign onward, military men increasingly showed a trend of climbing above the literati. In the seventeen years the Chongzhen Emperor sat on the throne, how many civil officials did he execute, and how many military officers did he execute in comparison? Their most comfortable days came during the Southern Ming, when military men directly enthroned the emperor, and civil officials became, in effect, mere errand-runners.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This system had been passed down for several hundred years; they were thoroughly accustomed to it. Now, with the sudden reappearance of a Grand Commander, a tough superior had appeared directly above their heads. Whether this was a good thing or a bad thing for them was truly hard to say — after all, not everyone possessed the resolve and strength to change.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some officers and commanders, however, were indifferent. They had long had their fill of the foul air from those civil officials; now that a military superior who understood warfare had appeared, to them this was good news.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But whatever each man thought in his heart, on the surface they all respectfully hurried to the Grand General’s residence to pay their respects to the newly appointed Grand Commander, Marshal, Grand General Wang Dou.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, Wang Dou was in his study, enjoying a reunion with his children, gathered around a wooden globe-like object on the table, talking.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Earlier, his wife Xie Xiuniang and the others had rushed to Guihua City. After Wang Dou arrived at Xuanfu garrison, they soon followed as well — clearly afraid that someone like Zhong Susu might take advantage of his absence to slip in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because he was about to set out on campaign, Wang Dou also seized the time to reunite with his wife and children. Right now, his many sons and daughters were bouncing and skipping around him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Having crossed over in the seventh year of Chongzhen, by now, the seventeenth year of Chongzhen, Wang Dou was already thirty-two years old. He currently had ten children — six sons and four daughters.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Among them, Xie Xiuniang had borne the eldest son Wang Zheng and also a daughter, Wang Wan. Liu Qing and Liu Ji had borne four children: Liu Qing had borne a son, Wang Ying, and also a daughter, Wang Yao; Liu Ji had borne two sons, both of them — Wang Xiong and Wang Hao.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hudie and Qingting had borne two children: Hudie had borne a son, Wang Jie; Qingting had borne a daughter, Wang Yan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ji Junjiao had borne a daughter, Wang Xiu; and Xu Yue’e had borne a son, Wang Yi.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now Li Yunluo was also with child, and Chu Wanyun was with child as well. By a conservative estimate, he would have twelve children.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ten years had passed. His eldest son Wang Zheng was already ten; Wang Ying, Wang Xiong, Wang Hao, and Wang Yao were eight or nine; Wang Jie, Wang Yan, Wang Xiu, and Wang Wan were five or six; and Wang Yi was nearly three.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because he was often away on campaign, Wang Dou’s children were in fact mostly taught by their mothers, who were rather strict with them. Wang Dou, by contrast, was stern on the outside but indulgent within. So his children all feared their mothers more, while with Wang Dou in private they were quite affectionate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this moment, the boys were still well-behaved, but the girls were either clinging to Wang Dou’s legs and acting coy, or mischievously clambering up and down his body. Their good-little-girl image was gone, all revealing lively, outgoing natures.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“How strange — how can the earth be round? Wasn’t it said that heaven is round and earth is square?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Ying mused, voicing his doubt: “If the earth is round, why don’t we fall off into the starry sky?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This son born of Liu Qing was nine years old this year and ranked second. He loved to ponder; at such a young age, his eyes already sparkled with the light of intelligence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this moment, they were gathered around Wang Dou, all discussing this globe. Wang Ying was the first to spot the problem.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou looked at his son and smiled slightly. “This is a kind of force. Your father calls it gravity. It can pull people and objects onto the land, so they do not float away.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He added, “In the future, a physics course will be established to explain such questions in detail.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Ying pondered. “Gravity? Father means that beneath the ground we stand on, there is a great lodestone?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou laughed. “Somewhat similar.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Zheng stroked his chin, looking the globe over from every angle, his eyes darting about. Suddenly he pointed at the Great Ming’s territory and said, “Why is the Great Ming so small?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He gave the globe a spin, pointed at a territory on the other side, and said, “This place across the great ocean is called the Great Eastern Kingdom? Tsk tsk — it’s actually several times larger than the Great Ming, and more.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The area depicted on the globe encompassed the former territory of Canada, the former territory of the United States, and extended all the way south, finally including Panama — a total area of over twenty million square kilometers. Wang Dou had named it the Great Eastern Kingdom. By comparison, the Great Ming at this moment did indeed look small.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou laughed. “The vastness of all under heaven is hard to imagine. Though the Great Ming is large, it is still but a corner of the world.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Zheng then pointed at another territory and said, “This place is called the Great Southern Kingdom? Tsk tsk — this island is big enough; it could be called a continent… Father is truly amazing. Without leaving his study, he knows all the affairs of the world.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Zheng spoke with admiration. The place he pointed to was where the original Australia lay; Wang Dou had named it the Great Southern Kingdom. Wang Zheng studied the “Great Southern Kingdom” for a moment, then his hand involuntarily drifted back toward the “Great Eastern Kingdom.” He said, “Father, what is the land there like? Is the national power strong?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou said, “As for the fertility of the land, it is indeed far better than the Great Ming. There are no kingdoms there, only some savage tribes.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Zheng’s eyes blazed. “A fine place! Oceans on both sides, ice plains to the north, and only savages locally — a uniquely blessed land. Not to take it would truly be a waste of heaven’s gifts. If Father fancies this place, your son will go and seize it for you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou’s third son, Wang Xiong, said, “Your son will go and seize the Great Southern Kingdom.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The fourth son, Wang Hao, declared proudly, “I will go and seize the Great Western Kingdom.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He added, “I won’t take a ship — I want to ride a horse!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The fifth son, Wang Jie, glanced this way, then went back to playing merrily with his younger sister Wang Yan and the others.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou laughed heartily. “My sons all have grand ambitions — this is very good.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Ying pondered. “But with land so vast, can the Great Ming hold it? When the Great Tang was strong, how vast its territory was — yet when it grew weak…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou shook his head. “Difficult — unless there is high-speed rail, and at five hundred kilometers per hour at that.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The children did not understand Wang Dou’s meaning, but they knew it would be very hard in the future. Wang Zheng said dismissively, “As Father says, as long as it is Han land, it is good. In days to come, should the Great Ming suffer famine again, the common people would have a place to migrate and reclaim, more paths to survival, and it would not come to refugees rebelling again.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His gaze shifted back to the Great Eastern Kingdom. “Only with people can there be land. Father, by your estimate, to firmly hold the Great Eastern Kingdom, how large a population would be needed?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou looked at his eldest son with gratification. “To put down roots, within twenty years, through migration and births, it would be best to have a population of ten million.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Zheng murmured, “Ten million.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Ying looked at his father with adoration. “With one breath from Father’s lips, a magnificent landscape of rivers and mountains appears. With a flick of his sleeve, all things under heaven take shape. Your son is curious — you pour your heart and strength into serving our Great Ming, serving our Han people. What is your wish?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou pondered. “Wish?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He smiled. “To hold the power of the world while awake, and to rest drunk upon a beauty’s knee — that is the dream of many a man… You are still young; you will understand in time. And then, to spend twenty years nurturing an unshakable orthodox tradition of my own, and then I shall retire… I want to build a great, luxurious cruise ship. This year in Hawaii, next year in Miami, the year after at the Cape of Good Hope… white sandy beaches, dense palm groves, seaside coconuts, bright sunshine, leisurely wine-tasting…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He sighed with a faint smile. “In truth, I am very tired. I want to retire early. But I have my responsibilities. The common people of the Great Ming — I must settle them well. Those who follow me — I must also settle them well. I cannot lay this down yet!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All his children gathered around, comfortingly holding their father’s hands and tugging at the hem of his robe. His daughter Wang Yao wrapped her arms around Wang Dou’s neck and said sweetly, “Just now, Daughter heard everything Father said. Truly, as Second Brother put it, within the sweep of your sleeve lie ten thousand li of rivers and mountains. Outside, everyone is saying that Father is a sage sent down from heaven.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou smiled and shook his head. “In truth, I am no sage. I too have selfish desires.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He looked at the globe, his gaze lingering for a long time on that twenty-million-square-kilometer expanse of the Great Eastern Nation, then said, \"Enough. Daughters, disperse. The four boys, go down and rest. Tomorrow you will follow your father on campaign, and let you see for yourselves what military life truly is.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At once Wang Dou's children scattered like birds and beasts. His second son, Wang Ying, reached the doorway, then suddenly turned back and said, \"Father, just now you mentioned Hawaii and the Cape of Good Hope — what places are those?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou smiled and said, \"Those places exist only in my heart. In the future they will all be renamed, and in this world they will be no more.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Ying walked away, his face full of incomprehension. At that moment Zhong Diaoyang entered and said to Wang Dou in a low voice, \"Grand General, they are already waiting in the great hall.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Dou nodded and followed Zhong Diaoyang out.\u003C\u002Fp>",2438,"2026-06-03T14:06:27.906Z",1,"Novelzhen Translator","9a2d7446e700c47701bf7c3e39f3a26f60bb9c1529721bbabe61230edea9f76b","a-little-soldier-of-the-late-ming-border-army-chapter-862","a-little-soldier-of-the-late-ming-border-army-chapter-860",896,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fa-little-soldier-of-the-late-ming-border-army-cover.jpg"]