Chapter 443: The Qingzhou Layout

After returning that day, Yang Yun and Zhou Laifu were in high spirits. Silly Monk went over to listen, then came back and reported to Liu Minyou that the two were extremely satisfied with the Taishan nuns, whose beauty was famed far and wide in the late Ming.

Since everyone still had matters to attend to, they hastily concluded the trip to Mount Tai, left the five-star inn, and hurried back to Jinan to continue the journey. Wang Daixi remained inside the carriage the whole time, rarely coming out to speak with the others; only Wang Erya kept casting white-eyed glares at Liu Minyou.

On the return journey, they reached the twenty-third day of the twelfth month and made a brief stop at Qingzhou Prefecture. Outside the prefectural city, a military encampment had been built beside the main road. Above the central command tent flew a six-zhang red banner of a Regional Commander, bearing a huge character "Geng." Liu Minyou was rather astonished by Geng Zhongming's efficiency — the man had even gone to the capital for an imperial audience, and at most a month had passed since his return, yet he had already finished building the encampment.

The cavalry clearing the way ahead of Liu Minyou carried Dengzhou banners. On the road, a tax post blocked the way with several fierce-faced soldiers; behind it, a thatched shed had been set up, inside which sat personnel from the Trade and Industry Office.

The moment those soldiers saw it was a Dengzhou banner, they came over nodding and bowing. One of them recognized Liu Minyou and immediately ran back to report to Geng Zhongming.

Liu Minyou took the opportunity to inspect the tax post's work. Very little tax could be collected in winter, and the accounts showed no issues. The one thing that gratified him was that thirty percent of the payments used Dengzhou Garrison pay-tickets, mainly in one-mace and one-tael denominations, indicating that the pay-tickets were beginning to function as currency and were gaining acceptance among merchants as a medium of exchange.

The other silver and copper coins in the money chest varied in fineness — over a hundred taels of silver came in seven or eight different grades. This posed a certain difficulty for tax collection: the tax clerks had to be able to identify them, and if they encountered poor fineness, they had to be ready at all times to argue with merchants. The daily work was rather tedious, though of course the final outcome of those arguments was usually the merchants backing down. For that, they relied on Geng Zhongming's crew.

The men blocking the road were all Geng Zhongming's retainers, every one of them fierce-faced. A change of clothes and they would have looked exactly like bandits. But now, in front of Liu Minyou, they were as docile as cats.

After finishing his inspection, Liu Minyou had no desire to linger. All along the route, every branch of the trading company had to host them, and at the banquets he could not refuse; he had drunk himself weak, and dealing with so many people had left him weary.

This Geng Zhongming was now the untouchable bully of Dengzhou — even the local civil officials dared not provoke his crew of Liaodong soldiers. Chen Xin was also quite indulgent; as long as nothing harmed Dengzhou Garrison interests, he paid no attention. So Geng Zhongming basically swaggered through Dengzhou unchecked, and now that he was in Qingzhou Prefecture, far from the Emperor and beyond the reach of any Provincial Governor or Army Supervisor, he would only be more brazen.

The retainers pleaded insistently, determined to make Liu Minyou stay and visit the encampment. Liu Minyou declined as he moved to mount his horse. Just as he got into the saddle, he heard a drum roll from the distant encampment. A group of vigorous riders burst out of the camp gate, their horses' hooves pounding and kicking up great sprays of snow.

Liu Minyou watched in amazement as the majestic and domineering Geng Zhongming arrived before him, looking around with the bearing of a god descending from heaven.

Geng Zhongming's eyes flashed like lightning as he reined in his horse and stood proudly in the middle of the road. He called out loudly to his retainers, "I hear that Regional Commander Liu is passing through Qingzhou Prefecture?"

The retainers quickly pointed. Geng Zhongming turned and saw Liu Minyou on horseback; instantly, a fawning smile spread across his face. He slid off his horse with a whoosh and came up to Liu Minyou's horse's head, taking hold of the bridle. "My lord Liu, since you are passing through Qingzhou Prefecture, you must allow this humble one to fulfill the duties of a host." His eyes swept over and spotted Zhou Laifu and the others, and he quickly nodded. "You lords as well — please do not look down on this lowly official's humble abode."

Liu Minyou sighed, dismounted, and shook his head at Geng Zhongming's fawning smile.

They were delayed another day in Qingzhou Prefecture. Liu Minyou first inspected the Qingzhou Regular Battalion, which contained over two thousand Dengzhou reserve troops, plus two to three hundred junior officers, training officers, and non-commissioned officers. The officers were all graduates of the accelerated military academy course, and the training officers had been trained by the Training Corps. With these men, this force was effectively under Dengzhou Garrison control. Only Liu Minyou and Geng Zhongming knew that this unit's designation was the Provisional Sixth Battalion.

The Assistant Regional Commander of the Raiding Battalion was Liu Zeqing. As a trusted man of Wang Tingshi, he had shared in some of the military merits from Lushun and was eventually allotted nearly two thousand troops, stationed in Anqiu County. The Dengzhou Garrison's fortified villages had already spread to Anqiu County; by absorbing the bottom-level tenant farmers, they made it impossible for the local gentry to hire any labor. Many landlords had no choice but to sell their land-use rights cheaply to the Dengzhou Garrison and then content themselves with collecting a little ground rent, watching as fortified villages sprouted up one after another on those lands.

Bordering Anqiu County was Gaomi in Laizhou Prefecture, where a company-commander unit of the Third Battalion was stationed, implicitly targeting Liu Zeqing's small force of two thousand men.

Another mobile corps battalion had already been assigned its troop quota, with Fan Shouye as its Mobile Corps Commander, stationed in Linzi. At the moment, both Fan Shouye and Liu Zeqing had gone to the capital to complete procedures with the Ministry of War and have an imperial audience, and would not return until the first month of the new year. The mobile corps battalion was originally the First Brigade of the First Battalion; its station had been moved to Linzi, though it now drew pay and provisions for over a thousand more men. Their original defense duties in places like Zhaoyuan would be handed over to a newly established unit.

The other two company-commander units of the First Battalion were redeployed to the Changyi border, ready to enter Qingzhou Prefecture from Laizhou Prefecture at any time to provide support.

The barracks for the mobile corps battalion were scheduled to be built after the start of spring, but the site was on the Linzi side, near the border with Xincheng County under Jinan Prefecture. The nominal purpose was to maintain overland traffic from Qingzhou to Jinan Prefecture and specifically deal with bandits in the Qingzhou mountains. Liu Minyou knew it was actually meant to serve as a vanguard threatening the Grand Canal when necessary.

Liu Minyou also took the opportunity to see the land Geng Zhongming had seized with his troops. Although this was Qingzhou's prefectural seat, Geng Zhongming's fierce reputation was well known. When the locals heard it was the Liaodong army — the same one that had once mutinied in Dengzhou — no one dared oppose Geng Zhongming. The Land Reclamation Office also avoided intensifying conflicts locally, using only annual rent as the price for land-use rights. The original landlords received some income and would not fight the Dengzhou Garrison to the death, while the Dengzhou Garrison gained land to support its population and organized them through fortified villages.

The Civil Affairs Department also had a civil affairs officer in Qingzhou Prefecture, transferred from the former Land Reclamation Office, stationed in Zhucheng. The Zhucheng area bordered Yanzhou Prefecture and already had extensive cotton cultivation. Secondly, it was close to Lingshan Guard, which lay on the border of Laizhou Prefecture and also enjoyed the convenience of Jiangnan maritime shipping. Even if textile factories were built along the canal, this region remained the most convenient place for Dengzhou and Laizhou to dump goods into Jiangnan, because maritime shipping did not have to pay customs duties.

Precisely because of the importance of the Lingshan Guard periphery, the Dengzhou Garrison needed to establish a forward position there to effectively screen the Lingshan Guard area. Therefore, the economic focus of the Civil Affairs Department was in the southern part of Qingzhou. The southern part of Qingzhou Prefecture already bordered Huai'an Prefecture in the Southern Metropolitan Region. This was a very safe area, as Huai'an Prefecture's military strength was weak. The fortified villages themselves could provide effective defense. The northern line from the prefectural seat at Yidu County to Linzi and Guangrao might face military threats from the north and would be considered for more military use.

Liu Minyou was clear on the overall layout for Qingzhou Prefecture. The priority was definitely the area between Le'an and Changle. This region would form a fortified village cluster like those in Dengzhou and Laizhou, providing strong support for large-scale interior-line mobile operations. As long as this area was secure, Dengzhou and Laizhou would be as stable as Mount Tai.

Liu Minyou only inspected the vicinity of Qingzhou's prefectural seat, and together with Zhou Laifu, he once again endured Geng Zhongming's hospitality. This had nothing to do with the Finance Office, and Wang Daixi never came out.

Before departing, Liu Minyou asked Geng Zhongming about the bandits in Qingzhou. Geng Zhongming burst out laughing. "My lord Liu, rest assured. The moment that Tang Dihu heard our Dengzhou Garrison was coming, he was scared out of his wits and already fled south in a puff of smoke."

"That easily?" Liu Minyou asked, puzzled.

"Of course. My lord Liu, you may not know this, but that Tang Dihu was driven out of Daze Mountain in Pingdu Department by our Dengzhou Garrison. The moment he heard we were coming, how would he dare stay?"

Liu Minyou was not very clear on this Tang Dihu's background. With a few question marks in mind, he continued the journey and finally rushed back to Dengzhou on the twenty-eighth day of the twelfth month, concluding the year-end inspection tour.

"You didn't agree?"

"Before I could even speak, she blushed and walked away. She hasn't spoken to me since on the road."

Chen Xin stood up and roared with laughter, pointing his finger at Liu Minyou. He pointed for a long while but in the end could not think of what to say. Then he paced in circles around the room, laughing as he walked.

Liu Minyou said, displeased, "How about you give me some advice? Just laughing is useless."

Chen Xin chuckled. "Then you have to let me think. Isn't this what they call a lifelong matter? You can't just say anything offhand."

Liu Minyou lit a cigarette from the charcoal brazier himself and smoked in silence.

"This matter..." Chen Xin spoke after pacing a few circles. "People say you'd rather tear down ten temples than ruin one marriage. And Daixi is someone we've watched grow up — we know her through and through."

Liu Minyou snorted. Chen Xin quickly waved his hand. "That's not sarcasm. As a friend, I'm in favor of this. And don't cling to that outdated notion of monogamy. We've been in the Great Ming for so long now — we should follow local customs."

Liu Minyou looked up but said nothing.

Chen Xin continued with keen interest. "However, from the Dengzhou Garrison's standpoint, it's not suitable for you to marry Daixi right now — not even cohabitation." Chen Xin rapped the table. "We still haven't given Wang Tingshi a reply. If you take a new wife here, Wang Tingshi's face won't look good. Secondly, Daixi is the head of the Finance Office. If you, as her superior, get mixed up with her now, people will say unpleasant things behind your back."

"What do you mean 'mixed up'? Watch your wording, will you?"

Chen Xin suddenly leaned over the table and thrust his head forward. "How about this — what if you two become lovers?"

Liu Minyou grabbed several books from Chen Xin's desk and hurled them at him. "I asked you for advice — would Wang Daixi agree to being lovers?"

Chen Xin blocked the books and said hastily, "Then tell me, who else could Wang Daixi marry? She's the head of the Dengzhou Garrison's Finance Office. Would officials and gentry take her as a daughter-in-law? Whose family would allow her to go out and show her face in public? Besides, I couldn't agree to it either — the Finance Office is too critical a department. Then what about within the Dengzhou Garrison? She's so fierce normally — who would dare marry her? Are those office heads and battalion commanders so stuffed with food that they'd marry a tigress? They'd rather buy a Yangzhou courtesan as a concubine — so much more comfortable at home. Given Wang Daixi's status, she can't marry some village chief or squad commander either. When all's said and done, she can only marry you, the Regional Commander."

"Then what about you? You're also a Regional Commander."

Chen Xin spread his hands. "She doesn't fancy me. A forced melon isn't sweet, you know. Besides, I told you years ago that Wang Daixi had feelings for you, but you refused to believe it. If you'd put in a little effort to marry her off early, this wouldn't have happened."

Liu Minyou threw down his cigarette and covered his face. "I just always still thought of her as a little girl. The day she said it, I finally realized she's really grown up. Age and all that doesn't matter — it's those points you just raised. I can't marry a subordinate as my wife. And then there's that old bastard Wang Tingshi and his act. Last time I made up an elder in Tianjin and said I'd reply after consulting him. Now if I turn around and marry Wang Daixi..."

Chen Xin slapped the table. "So that means you do like Wang Daixi. Then it's settled. I'll go talk to her. You two be lovers first, and when conditions are right later, she can formally marry into your household. That'll set her mind at ease first. Otherwise, if she doesn't do your Civil Affairs Department budget next year, let's see what you'll eat."

Note: Yesterday's update was rushed and I forgot the annotation. The description of the Tai'an Department inn references "Tao'an Dream Memories — Tai'an Department Inn"; it is not something the author imagined. This inn was real and truly a five-star establishment of ancient times. In Zhang Dai's words, "one no longer dared to regard it as an inn." The inn was vast in scale, with one to two hundred staff, not counting actors and courtesans. According to Zhang Dai's records, guests rotated daily, and there was never any mistake in lodging or meals, showing that its management had reached a very high level. Moreover, there were five or six inns of similar scale in Tai'an Department, giving a glimpse of Tai'an's prosperity in the Ming dynasty. (To be continued...)

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