Chapter 156: Go and Eliminate the Tang Seng and His Disciples

I Truly Do Not Attend to Proper Duties: Chapter 166, Go and Eliminate the Tang Seng and His Disciples. The Great Ming lacks reference books on the four classes of people—scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants. The agricultural book compiled by Xu Xu Zhenming, who studied under Ma Ma Yilong, focuses primarily on the cultivation of various crops such as rice, wheat, hemp, beans, mulberry, cotton, kudzu, fodder, oil-bearing plants, sugarcane, bamboo, paulownia, sweet potatoes, and potatoes, as well as land reclamation.

In the section on land reclamation, Xu Xu Zhenming categorizes it into two types: "raw wasteland," which is land that has never been cultivated, and "fallow wasteland," which refers to fields that have been abandoned for over three years for various reasons.

For the reclamation of raw wasteland, Xu Xu Zhenming synthesized his own experience with that of Ma Ma Yilong to provide a comprehensive and practical set of solutions.

Regarding the recruitment of commoners, he advocated for the firm rejection and purging of idlers and local ruffians. The methods for identifying such individuals are multifaceted: first, through the work records kept by local officials; second, by going deep among the people to verify through investigation; and third, through spontaneous reporting by the commoners themselves. Once purged, if these idlers and ruffians truly cannot be persuaded and repeatedly refuse to mend their ways, they are to be sent to Jilong Island to fell trees.

The Great Ming is highly experienced in the relocation of people. During the Emperor Hongwu and Yongle eras, large-scale relocations were carried out. If someone has sunk to the level of an idler or ruffian and still refuses to work diligently, sending them to Jilong Island to fend for themselves is the solution.

For the first year of reclamation, half of the harvest from the fields goes to the public granary; thereafter, all fields belong to the commoners. The half-harvest from the public granary in the first year is used to continue recruiting vagrants as labor for further reclamation, thus ensuring a continuous cycle.

There are also clear standards for wasteland reclamation: first, the frost-free period must be over one hundred days; the soil quality must be suitable for cultivation; the topsoil thickness must be at least ten inches; and there must be a certain level of irrigation from rivers and canals, with a slope of less than 25 degrees.

Regarding composting and the collection of human and animal waste, he describes the pit-composting method: alternating layers of straw and manure, continuously stacked. Iron tongs are used to poke holes, and water is sprinkled frequently to ensure aeration. Manure stacked in this way can reach temperatures of over 70 degrees, allowing it to form humus within ten to fifteen days.

These experiences and techniques are, without a doubt, excellent prescriptions for the people; if they can be thoroughly implemented and executed, why worry that the Great Ming will not flourish?

Land is the Great Ming's most important means of production. The large-scale reclamation, effective utilization, and restoration of production on land can lay a solid material foundation for the recovery and development of the Great Ming's agricultural economy. At the same time, with the increase in cultivated area, the level of agricultural production will steadily improve, manifesting in mutual progress in breeding, sowing, seed selection, fertilization, soil fertility maintenance, improvement of crop industrial structure, and agricultural machinery.

Zhu Zhu Yijun very much hopes that this agricultural book compiled by Xu Xu Zhenming can be widely promoted and published throughout the world, so that the commoners can truly gain some tangible benefits. A most basic truth is that only when the commoners are well-fed will they not come to the capital to smash Zhu Zhu Yijun's head.

"What is the use of having books? I have published this book for them, but they still cling to the old ways of the Three Dynasties. How would they be willing to guide the commoners in farming with practical actions? Let alone guiding the commoners, the 'pointed rice' demonstrated by the Minister of Revenue last time kept me tossing and turning, sighing in helplessness," Zhu Zhu Yijun said helplessly to Zhang Zhang Juzheng while looking at the agricultural book written by Xu Xu Zhenming.

From top to bottom, there is a "Wall of Sighs" that prevents the Emperor's grace and the power of this knowledge from passing through to benefit the masses; from bottom to top, this Wall of Sighs also blocks the most genuine and faint voices of the commoners, preventing the Emperor from hearing them.

Doing things is inherently difficult, and when some public opinion is stirred up to muddy the waters, it becomes even harder. Common tactics of this public opinion include: false attribution, appealing to high-level ethics, disregarding facts, total negation, willful distortion, malicious exaggeration, personal slander, emphasizing the one-sided, forced associations, binary opposition, ignorant archaism, and generalizing from the particular.

This can partially answer some of the doubts of Luo Luo Bingliang, the Commander of Tax Inspection: why is land measurement beneficial to the country and the people, yet widely opposed, with even some commoners participating and acting as accomplices?

Originally, the Great Ming's imperial examination system for selecting officials was meant to break this Wall of Sighs. Alas, the scholars selected through the imperial examinations, either by nature or in the long process of serving as officials, have become the mouthpieces of the powerful and wealthy, shouting and calling for them, becoming the bricks and stones of this Wall of Sighs.

"Your Majesty is too pessimistic. The Great Ming still has people who do things; it is just a matter of selecting them and changing things bit by bit." Zhang Zhang Juzheng looked at those agricultural books and was full of confidence in the future of the Great Ming.

There is no Kingdom of God on earth in this world, only endless troubles and contradictions. Solving one contradiction will only lead to more troubles following one after another.

Therefore, a scholar cannot be without broad-mindedness and endurance; the burden is heavy and the road is long; the path is obstructed and the journey is far.

Zhang Zhang Juzheng does not believe that the state has decayed to the point of being beyond salvation. If the Great Ming's New Laws can move forward steadily, even if just one or two things—such as the Single Whip Law, land measurement, strengthening the military, tax inspection, or opening maritime trade—can be preserved, the Great Ming will radiate vitality.

The Han dynasty's mountains and rivers have always had loyal and good officials in every generation. Every dynasty has never lacked people willing to rush about for the sake of the state, regardless of their lives. Loyalty—loyalty to one's original heart, loyalty to His Majesty, loyalty to the imperial court, loyalty to the state.

What exactly is the Great Ming, the state? To the people of the Great Ming, the Great Ming is the greatest public interest, the largest collective.

Zhu Zhu Yijun highly agrees with Zhang Zhang Juzheng's statement; otherwise, Zhang Zhang Juzheng and Qi Qi Jiguang would not be standing in the imperial court.

Zhu Zhu Yijun asks himself if he has any great talent. If he can't play the game, at worst, he'll flip the table!

"Sir, you mentioned last time that the Ministry of Revenue requested to implement the currency law. Did the Ministry pass it?" Zhu Zhu Yijun remembered that the Minister of Revenue said last time he wanted to mint coins. The Minister of Revenue wasn't just minting copper coins, but also silver coins. The eight-real silver coins from the West were not exquisitely made, and their anti-counterfeiting was relatively poor. Minting Great Ming silver coins to promote trade had already been put on the agenda.

"It didn't go very smoothly." Zhang Zhang Juzheng was rarely silent for a moment before saying, "It failed to pass the Ministry's deliberation."

"What was the main opposition?" Zhu Zhu Yijun frowned, discovering that the problem was not simple.

Zhang Zhang Juzheng thought carefully and said, "The Treasure Note Bureau prints treasure notes, and the Treasure Source Bureau mints coins. The Treasure Note Bureau is under the Ministry of Revenue, while the Treasure Source Bureau is under the Ministry of Works. Although Great Ming treasure notes are already waste paper, the officials of the Ministry of Revenue still think they should print notes rather than mint coins."

"This is the first reason."

Zhu Zhu Yijun could understand very well. Of course, the Ministry of Revenue would not be willing to give the authority over money to the Ministry of Works for no reason. Because Zhang Han had part of the Ministry of Personnel's authority stripped away, he acted like he had lost his mind, crazily opposing Zhang Zhang Juzheng.

Even though the power to select officials was actually still in the Ministry of Personnel, it was just forbidden to be indulgent. However, this method of covering names and filling in lists made the Ministry of Personnel suddenly fall from being the number one ministry in the world.

"But the paper currency law has already been proven to be unsuitable for the Great Ming. This has been repeatedly proven by history." Zhu Zhu Yijun said very clearly. Great Ming treasure notes were too hard even for wiping one's butt; no one was willing to accept them.

Paper currency, under the current productivity and production environment, has no circulation environment.

Zhang Zhang Juzheng said even more helplessly, "In the thirteenth year of Emperor Hongwu, the Treasure Source Bureau was transferred from the Ministry of Revenue to the Ministry of War. In the twenty-sixth year of Emperor Hongwu, the Emperor issued an edict to abolish the Treasure Source Bureaus in all provinces. Since then, the only agency left for minting coins is the Treasure Source Bureau in the Southern Capital."

"After moving the capital to the Northern Capital, there were Treasure Source Bureaus in both the North and South. But these two bureaus could only mint over 20 million copper coins a year. It sounds like a lot at first, but it's actually only 20,000 strings of cash."

"When the Emperor issued the edict to abolish the Treasure Source Bureau and promote treasure notes, it was because there wasn't enough copper. Your Majesty, although the Great Ming has everything, it is really quite short of copper."

In the thirteenth year of Emperor Hongwu, as the Great Ming state gradually stabilized and production recovered, the amount of money used became larger and larger. As a result, copper shortages occurred frequently in various places, and the paper currency law became popular. However, after the paper currency law collapsed, there was still no solution to the copper shortage.

The Great Ming started the "let it rot" method. As for the currency law, if there isn't any, then there isn't any.

This "let it rot" attitude continued until the Emperor Jiajing era. The old Daoist priest implemented new policies and laws, and reopened the Dian copper mines in Yunnan to mint coins. But it was soon discovered that it was merely a drop in the bucket; a shortage of copper was a shortage of copper.

Dian copper in Yunnan had already been discovered during the Song dynasty, but transporting it from Yunnan to the hinterland was too expensive.

During the Tianli era of Emperor Wen Sect of Yuan, the Emperor issued an edict to open mines. Dian copper production was no more than 2,000 catties a year. At the beginning of the Ming dynasty, official factories were established in Yunnan to open mines and dig for copper, with an annual production of no more than 10,000 catties. During the Emperor Xuande era, the official mines in Yunnan were abolished.

During the Emperor Jiajing era, the new currency law minted coins, and Dian copper production in Yunnan increased to 150,000 catties a year, which is 2.4 million taels, or 24 million coins. Each Emperor Jiajing Zhiyuan Tongbao coin weighs 1.25 mace, so a total of 19.2 million coins could be minted, which is about 20,000 strings of cash.

Dian copper production soared during the Yongzheng era of the Qing dynasty. Starting from the fourth year of Yongzheng, Dian copper production soared all the way to 6.5 million catties, and then reached a historical peak of 10 million catties in the third year of Emperor Qianlong.

"Can the copper shortage be solved through maritime trade?" Zhu Zhu Yijun opens the sea whenever he encounters an unresolved problem.

"It has no effect in the short term." Zhang Zhang Juzheng shook his head. 2.4 million taels of copper is equal to 20,000 taels of silver. There are really too few ships on the sea, and the profits and risks of copper material trade are still not proportional.

The Great Ming's predicament: the paper currency law has lost its broad popular foundation, while the currency law cannot be produced on a large scale due to the production and cost of copper mines. In addition to the shortage of copper, the Great Ming is also short of silver. The Great Ming's annual silver mine production is no more than 100,000 taels, or 6,250 catties.

Zhou Zhou Liangyin, a Supervising Secretary of the Ministry of Revenue, strongly opposed it, saying it was a money-losing business. The imperial court gives one tael of silver but can't get one string of copper coins in return; why mine copper? But if the imperial court doesn't mint coins, what will the common people use?

"Then, Sir, do you think we should implement the paper currency law or the currency law? I see the Ministry of Revenue is also arguing about this issue." Zhu Zhu Yijun asked about the direction of the changes in the state's decrees.

Anyway, when the Ministry of Revenue submits a memorial, Zhang Zhang Juzheng also has to attach a floating slip, so it's better to communicate face-to-face.

"Your Majesty, the paper currency law and the currency law are not completely opposed, but a process of mutual promotion. There must be a currency law, and there must also be a paper currency law. If they are seen as completely opposed, it is one-sided. Only with a currency law can there be a paper currency law. This mutually reinforcing process is also the law of the development of things." Zhang Zhang Juzheng expounded his own point of view.

Viewing the paper currency law and the currency law as opposed does not conform to the theory of contradictions.

"Sir's words are like a sudden enlightenment." Zhu Zhu Yijun said quite affirmatively, "The currency law and the paper currency law are opposed yet unified. It really conforms to Sir's theory. The arguments in the Ministry of Revenue seem to be a waste of time, caused by an insufficient grasp of the theory of contradictions and thinking about problems too one-sidedly."

"Some time ago, I said that Sir's annotations on the Four Books and Five Classics should be the official style for the world, and that all officials in the world should be familiar with the theory of contradictions, but Sir was unwilling."

"It seems it is very necessary."

The currency law is the foundation of the paper currency law. Without a large amount of silver and copper coins, implementing the paper currency law is exhausting the people's fat and blood. Even if the Emperor Hongwu era stipulated that one string of notes could be exchanged for one tael of silver, the imperial court simply did not have that much silver to redeem them. This is the root cause of the corruption of the paper currency law. Large-scale indiscriminate issuance, coupled with private minting by the powerful and wealthy, eventually led to the complete corruption of the paper currency law.

And the paper currency law is a supplement to the currency law. In large-scale trade, trade involving tens of thousands of taels of silver, using silver coins and silver for transactions, carries high risks, long cycles, and is extremely inconvenient. This is also an important obstacle to the transformation of the Great Ming's small-scale peasant economy.

Therefore, the currency law and the paper currency law are not always opposed, but have a dialectical relationship of being opposed and unified. How to implement decrees tests the ability of the administrator.

It's not that if you issue an edict to mint silver coins, you will have silver coins. Where will the silver come from? Where will the silversmiths come from? Should silver coins be minted by rolling or casting? These are all problems that need to be solved.

"Your Majesty is too kind." Zhang Zhang Juzheng clearly knew that His Majesty's attainment in the theory of contradictions was not bad, and His Majesty's attitude toward the currency law and the paper currency law was consistent with his own.

Zhang Zhang Juzheng deliberated for a while and said, "Actually, during the Yongle era, Dian copper was transported through the Red River into Jiaozhi, and then by sea into the Southern Capital. But the Red River is not suitable for river transport. Later, the local officials in Yunnan used the Yangtze River for transport. If we want to expand Dian copper production, it is feasible. Just order the Yunnan Provincial Administration Commission to open more copper mines."

"A single sheet of paper with a decree is enough?" Zhu Zhu Yijun said somewhat uncertainly.

Isn't this as unrealistic as the son-in-law of the Old Dragon King of Bibo Lake saying to Benbuba, "Go and eliminate the Tang Seng and his disciples"?

Zhang Zhang Juzheng bowed and said, "Yes, a single sheet of paper with a decree is enough. In the seventh year of Emperor Jiajing, it was also a single sheet of paper with a decree. With the support of the Qian Wei Wei Guo Gong's mansion, Yunnan began to open copper mines. In just two years, it grew from 10,000 catties to 150,000 catties. To this day, 150,000 catties of Dian copper enter the Southern Capital via the Grand Canal every year to be transported to the capital."

"But later, under the public opinion of opposing profit-seeking in the imperial court, it stopped there."

"According to the idea of the Grand Secretary Gui E at the time, the imperial court needed at least 4 million catties of copper material a year, and the world needed at least 10 million catties of copper material, which is more than 3 billion copper coins, to supply the needs of the masses."

"Gui E was impeached and dismissed for speaking of profit, and later re-employed, and then the following year, he retired to his hometown."

Zhang Zhang Juzheng introduced the new currency policy of the seventh to ninth years of Emperor Jiajing. Gui E believed that Dian copper production needed to be over 10 million catties a year to meet the needs of the Great Ming. Money is the canal of all goods. Without money, the Great Ming's fiscal revenue is just a mess of bad accounts.

Gui E was soon impeached and dismissed for speaking of profit.

Regarding whether the imperial court should speak of profit, during the Emperor Jiajing era, "should not speak of profit" still firmly occupied the upper hand. After all, the fiscal situation of the Great Ming state was still good at that time, the Altan Tian Kehan in the northwest had not yet invaded the capital, and there were no Japanese pirate troubles in the southeast. Therefore, the minting of coins stopped at 20,000 strings of cash.

But by the Emperor Wanli era, the imperial court speaking of profit became politically correct. From the seventh to the twentieth year of Emperor Jiajing, the imperial court could still afford to support the imperial clan. By the Emperor Wanli era, it could only let the imperial clan below the rank of Commandery Prince find their own way to survive.

If you ask why, it's because there's no money; poverty is the cause.

With the implementation of land measurement, expansion of the tax base, the split of the Yuegang and Songjiang Shipping Commissions, tax inspection and debt collection, and the "Six Books and One Account" system, the Great Ming's national tax revenue has visibly improved. After all, even the inner treasury is now full of silver. The Emperor generously gave three taels of silver per person as an extra reward to the soldiers who participated in this Battle of Daning Guard.

At the end of the second year of Emperor Wanli, the Ministry of Rites put in a lot of effort for the Ao Mountain Lantern Festival, just to make it lively, and racked their brains.

After the national tax situation improved, the public opinion of "should not speak of profit" showed signs of rising again.

Yunnan has a Mu Prince's mansion, which is the Qian Wei Wei Guo Gong's mansion of Mu Ying, the adopted son of the Emperor Zhu Zhu Yuanzhang. The common people generally call the Qian Wei Wei Guo Gong's mansion the Mu Prince's mansion. For more than two hundred years, the Qian Wei Wei Guo Gong's mansion in Yunnan has had the typical characteristics of a vassal state. However, from beginning to end, the Qian Wei Wei Guo Gong's mansion has never disobeyed the imperial court's decrees.

The Qian Wei Wei Guo Gong's mansion likes to annex land. A Wei Wei Guo Gong's mansion has more than 20,000 qing of land. Xu Xu Jie spent his whole life getting 240,000 mu of land, 2,400 qing. The Qian Wei Wei Guo Gong's mansion is ten times that of Xu Xu Jie, but the imperial court turns a deaf ear to it.

As long as the Qian Wei Wei Guo Gong's mansion still follows the Great Ming's orders, it is the cornerstone of stability in the southwest of the Great Ming and the pillar of the southwest direction of the Great Ming. This is the tacit understanding between the imperial court and the Qian Wei Wei Guo Gong's mansion.

This is where the gap lies. The Qian Wei Wei Guo Gong's mansion has been in the southwest for nearly two hundred years without causing any trouble. The Northwest Jin Party, in just over a dozen years, gave the Great Ming a real eye-opener, giving the Emperor a solid lesson. What terrible consequences arise when rites, music, expeditions, rewards, and punishments come from the vassals!

Therefore, on the matter of Dian copper, a single sheet of paper with a decree is really enough. Yunnan is not the Northwest, and the Qian Wei Wei Guo Gong's mansion is not the Jin Party.

Because Yunnan is really too poor, and the local area also needs an expenditure industry to maintain its livelihood. The annexation and land contradictions in the Great Ming hinterland also exist in Yunnan, and the problems are also very serious. How to settle these displaced tenant farmers is also a test for the Yunnan Provincial Administration Commission and the Qian Wei Wei Guo Gong's mansion. However, hindered by the political correctness in the court that one cannot speak of profit and that a gentleman is ashamed to speak of profit, the local area in Yunnan is also unable to speak up.

This single sheet of paper with a decree is indeed a piece of paper, but it represents the common needs from top to bottom and from bottom to top.

"In addition to copper coins, we need to mint silver coins. The common people use more copper coins, while the powerful and wealthy use more silver coins. Both need to be minted. But as for the specific minting method, I am still discussing it with the Minister of Revenue." Zhang Zhang Juzheng made a summary.

Zhu Zhu Yijun asked with a smile, "When can the specific regulations be discussed and settled?"

"Before the end of the year." Zhang Zhang Juzheng gave a clear time. Before the arrival of the fourth year of Emperor Wanli, the formulation of the five-rank merit reward plaques will complete research, and decrees such as Dian copper mining and imperial silver coins will complete institutional design.

This is Zhang Zhang Juzheng. His "Evaluation Law" examines all officials in the world, and it also includes himself.

Although the Emperor has repeatedly said that Zhang Zhang Juzheng is a gentleman, Zhang Zhang Juzheng has always advocated that he is a competent official, strict with himself and strict with others. A gentleman is lenient with others.

"Your Majesty, the Altan Tian Kehan will basically not accept the imperial court's enfeoffment." Zhang Zhang Juzheng is not optimistic about the Altan tribute matter, because it is difficult to achieve.

Zhu Zhu Yijun was stunned and asked somewhat puzzled, "In the first year of Emperor Longqing, he sought enfeoffment but failed, and only then invaded Yongping. Sir, why do you say that?"

"The Altan Tian Kehan has always sought a tribute market, not to be enfeoffed as a king." Zhang Zhang Juzheng explained the specific requirements of the Altan Tian Kehan and also made the reasons clear.

After Manduul, the Little Prince Dayan Tian Kehan married Manduul's widow and eventually became the suzerain Great Tian Kehan of the Mongols. The Little Prince styled himself Dayan Tian Kehan. This title is actually the Great Yuan Tian Kehan. The Little Prince regarded himself as the legitimate successor of the Yuan dynasty.

Altan Tian Kehan and Altan Tian Kehan are both grandsons of Dayan Tian Kehan, but there is a distinction between legitimate and illegitimate. Altan Tian Kehan is the right-wing Jinong, that is, the deputy Tian Kehan, or a prince. Altan is legitimate. So both are bloodlines of the Golden Family, but Altan Tian Kehan has no psychological burden to be enfeoffed by the Great Ming.

But Altan Tian Kehan is different. Altan Tian Kehan is the legitimate successor of the suzerain Great Tian Kehan. To be enfeoffed by the Great Ming, then Altan Tian Kehan doesn't need to be a Tian Kehan anymore.

There is also political correctness on the grassland. The Great Ming drove out the Hu Yuan. This contradiction has been deeply rooted for more than two hundred years. If the suzerain Great Tian Kehan bows down and calls himself a subject, then Altan Tian Kehan is very likely to be physically overthrown directly.

Zhu Zhu Yijun shook his head and said, "Tribute market, tribute market, it is a market for tribute. This understanding is correct, right? Since he is unwilling to bow his head and is unwilling to be a vassal of the Great Ming, why should he have tribute trade?"

"Let's talk about it first. One, two, but no three. The conditions are best the first time. It is best if he can agree. The conditions are not bad the second time. If he still refuses the second time, then there will be no third time."

"I obey the edict." Zhang Zhang Juzheng bowed and accepted the order. It is best if we can hit it. As for the contradiction between the Great Ming and the Northern Barbarians, they have been fighting for more than two hundred years, and there is still fighting to be done, until the Altan completely surrenders.

Zhang Zhang Juzheng is actually a little worried that the Little Emperor will not fight anymore. The contradiction between the Great Ming and the Northern Barbarians is definitely not a state that can be reconciled by a single victory, so he came to communicate with His Majesty, only to discover the evil face of the Little Emperor who likes to stir up trouble.

Tan Lun wanted to ride a horse to Daning Guard, but was sternly reprimanded by the Emperor. The imperial edict said: Heavy snow has fallen in the north, the Tan Sima must not ride a horse to Daning Guard, he must take a carriage.

A total of twelve censors led by Zhou Zhou Liangyin, six people per carriage, and Tan Lun in his own carriage, a total of six carriages, headed toward the frontier. As soon as they left Xifengkou, the road immediately began to bump. This post road had not been repaired for nearly two hundred years.

Although it was bumpy, Tan Lun was full of excitement. He had long been tired of the muddy imperial court. It was not easy to get out to get some fresh air, and the Emperor even arranged for a great physician from the Jieku Academy to accompany him! It was simply abominable, treating the Emperor's imperial edict as a command arrow.

This attendant would not let Tan Lun take risks. Roughly speaking, it meant he couldn't do this, and he couldn't do that.

It is four hundred li from Xifengkou to Daning Guard. The speed of the carriage is not very fast. The post stations along the way also have post soldiers, who are currently served by soldiers from Jizhou, to ensure the smoothness of the route and supplies, as well as to transmit orders and battle reports.

Along the way, Tan Lun, who was in poor health, was fine, but these censors like Zhou Zhou Liangyin were almost shaken to death. There were also several censors whose feet and hands immediately developed frostbite. The frostbite was extremely itchy, and the accompanying imperial physician urged them not to scratch it.

The reason Tan Lun didn't get frostbite was that he was wearing a fur-lined coat, a fur hat with earflaps, and an imperial-bestowed heavy cloak. These censors had not expected the frontier to be so bitterly cold. It was one thing to be unprepared, but they still had to wear silk and satin, thinking they were in the warm pavilion of the capital?

"A scholar is useless!" Tan Lun looked at these censors and was furious. They hadn't done any work yet, let alone resisting the enemy; just running this trip was full of problems.

"The Tan Sima is also a scholar." Qi Qi Jiguang reminded Tan Lun of his identity. Tan Lun was a Ming Jinshi, a proper scholar.

Tan Lun held his waist sword and said, "My hands are itchy. Shall we have a contest?"

"His Majesty has sent a letter urging the Tan Sima not to fight with others." Qi Qi Jiguang did not intend to accept the challenge. He had indeed learned swordsmanship from Tan Lun, but Tan Lun's physical condition was much better then than it is now.

When Tan Lun heard this, his eyes widened! The Emperor was too much, even guarding against this.

He could only say dejectedly, "Alas! Have I become a piece of porcelain that shatters at a touch? Look at that group of weak censors; which one is stronger than me!"

"This is His Majesty's benevolence." Qi Qi Jiguang said as a matter of course. He believed that the Emperor was a benevolent monarch.

That's right, in Qi Qi Jiguang's eyes, his apprentice, the number one master of the youth group, was very benevolent, not at all the tyrant described by the censors. Look at Tan Lun going to the frontier for a trip; His Majesty arranged everything perfectly. If this isn't benevolence, what is?

If one says that His Majesty is harsh to his officials, it is even more nonsense. Look at Hou Hou Yuzhao! Wearing a Qilin cloak in the Huangji Hall, is this mistreatment?!

Qi Qi Jiguang stood on the city wall of Daning Guard and pointed north, saying, "In one year, outside this earthen wall, a city with a circumference of twenty li will be built. To the left is Qilaotu Mountain, to the right is Nuruhu Mountain, and the Laoha River flows through the territory to the north. Using the Laoha River as a water source, the city will be built against the mountains and by the water. Only the south is weak, but it faces Xifengkou, so the enemy can only come from the north."

"Once this city is built, even if the Altan Tian Kehan has great abilities, he will definitely not be able to capture it."

"Heading north, seven camps with a circumference of five li will be built, distributed on both sides of the Laoha River. Taotu Mountain is the lock and key, mutually supporting each other, looking at each other in attack and defense."

Qi Qi Jiguang discussed the defense of Daning Guard with Tan Lun. One big city and seven small cities were more than enough.

"The old city walls are desolate, and the desolate watchtowers are empty. It lies in virtue, not in danger; only then do we know that the Kingly Way is at rest." Tan Lun was full of emotion. Daning Guard was once the Ning Prince's mansion of the Great Ming, but now it is dilapidated and desolate.

In Tan Lun's view, this "virtue" is not benevolence, but martial virtue and the virtue of a monarch. The virtue of a monarch refers to active progress in politics and military affairs, not blind indulgence.

Tan Lun looked at this snowy field with a deep gaze and said, "Emperor Taizu of Song wanted to move the capital, thinking that to last long, he should move to Chang'an, rely on the dangers of mountains and rivers to remove redundant soldiers, and follow the stories of Zhou and Han to pacify the world."

"Emperor Taizong of Song thought it was not possible, saying that it lies in virtue, not in danger. He thought that virtue was benevolence, but in the end, he was defeated at Gaoliang River, stole a donkey cart, and fled in a hurry."

Benevolence doesn't work, but martial virtue does.

Little Emperor: Go and eliminate the Tang Seng and his disciples. Zhang Zhang Juzheng: How well-done do you want them? Please vote, Awoo!!!!!!!! ===== CHAPTER 157 =====