Chapter 498: Capitalism Is Such a Hassle!

Liu Kongzhao wore the arrow robe commonly worn by naval officers, looking travel-worn and dusty, though a smile still hung on his face — he did not look like a man who had just lost a battle.

The moment Zhu Cilang saw his expression, he sensed trouble and quickly asked, "So you have taken Wuchang and Hankou?"

"In reply to Thousand Years," Liu Kongzhao answered with a smile, "this subject has taken the prefectural seat of Wuchang, but there was no time to take Hankou. By the time this subject's warships arrived, the roving bandits had already gotten there first. Hankou has no castle to defend, so it fell the moment the bandits arrived. The gentry and merchants inside Hankou town scrambled over one another to flee for their lives, all jammed at the Yangtze docks, weeping and wailing. Seeing how pitiful they were, this subject sent the warships to rush them aboard, and in the end managed to get most of the people out."

"Is that so? You went to rescue people..." Zhu Cilang nodded, thinking to himself: How can you, Earl of Sincerity, be so stupid? Why save those landlords and profiteering merchants? They are no good people — they occupy so much fine farmland, yet give the court only a little over two million piculs of rice a year... When Huguang has enough, the whole realm has surplus! How black-hearted are these people? Would it not be better to let Li Zicheng's soldiers kill a few more of them?

Wuchang Prefecture does not have much official land or military colony land to distribute! If we do not kill off a few more, how will there be enough to go around?

Though he thought this in his heart, the Crown Prince's face showed an approving expression: "Good, good, Earl of Sincerity, well done... You truly are a descendant of Liu Wencheng!

So how is the prefectural seat of Wuchang now? Can Our great army move in?"

Liu Kongzhao replied: "The prefectural seat of Wuchang is now controlled by the Cao River Fleet, and Thousand Years' Sixth Division can march over. However, the river surface near the Wuchang prefectural seat is narrow. As long as the roving bandits can haul Hongyi cannon up Turtle Mountain in Hanyang, they can seal off the river and also bombard the Wuchang prefectural seat. Therefore Thousand Years' fleet cannot enter Wuchang. This subject's warships have now also withdrawn to the river surface between the Huangzhou prefectural seat and Little Wuchang.

This subject suggests that Thousand Years temporarily set up his field headquarters in Little Wuchang. As long as a battery is built at Fankou to seal off the river, all will be perfectly secure."

Little Wuchang was originally called Ezhou; in the Ming dynasty it was called Wuchang County, while the Wuchang prefectural seat was Jiangxia County.

Wuchang County and Huanggang County of Huangzhou Prefecture face each other across the Yangtze, and both are strategic points controlling the river. Not far west of the Wuchang county seat there is also a famous strategic pass called Fankou.

Fankou is very close to the Yangtze, situated on a tributary of the river, surrounded by water on all sides — easy to defend and hard to attack. If a bastion fort is built at Fankou, and large-caliber cannon are emplaced on the fort's gun platform facing the Yangtze, the river surface can be sealed off.

In addition, the Wuchang county seat and the Huanggang county seat face each other across the river. Outside the walls of both cities near the Yangtze there are docks where fleets can anchor. As long as the Fankou pass and the two cities of Wuchang County and Huanggang County are controlled, and then a pontoon bridge for blocking is built between the two cities, a fleet coming from downstream can anchor safely on the Yangtze.

And according to the suggestions of Wu Sanfu and Liu Chongru, Commander of the Yangtze Fleet, Zhu Cilang's central army headquarters should be placed at the Wuchang county seat.

But now that Jiangxia, the Wuchang prefectural seat, has not been lost, the Crown Prince can hardly stay idle in Wuchang County — that would make him look far too timid.

After hearing Liu Kongzhao's report, Zhu Cilang asked again: "Then did you see Li Zicheng's naval force? How does it compare with your Cao River Fleet?"

"This subject did not see Li Zicheng's fleet." Liu Kongzhao replied, "But according to the gentry who fled from Hankou, the rebel Li advanced by both water and land. His fleet came along the Han River, with over a hundred and several tens of warships, the largest of which were several tower ships, shaped like city walls."

"Understood," Zhu Cilang thought for a moment, then smiled. "Earl of Sincerity, We wish to travel by water to Wuchang County, first occupy Huanggang and Little Wuchang as the fleet's base, and at the same time build fortifications at Fankou and emplace twelve-pound Hongyi cannon.

The Sixth Division will disembark at Wuchang County. Except for two regiments assigned to defend Wuchang County and Huanggang County separately, all will enter the Wuchang prefectural seat. What do you think?"

Liu Kongzhao had managed the Cao River Fleet for many years and was extremely familiar with conditions along the Yangtze. Moreover, he had been stationed at Jiujiang for quite some time, so he was also very familiar with the state of the Yangtze banks in the Wuchang and Huangzhou prefectures.

Therefore, when fighting along the Yangtze in the Wuchang and Huangzhou prefectures, one still had to hear his opinion.

Liu Kongzhao also considered himself as full of wisdom and stratagem as his ancestor Liu Bowen, so he began calculating for Zhu Cilang: "Advancing to occupy Jiangxia means taking the offensive; withdrawing to defend Fankou means holding the defensive. Between advancing and withdrawing, it all depends on whether Thousand Years wishes to attack or to hold."

Zhu Cilang nodded: "Mm, We naturally wish to attack! Earl of Sincerity, are you bold enough to advance west with Us?"

"How would I not dare?" Liu Kongzhao slapped his chest. "The twelve thousand officers and men of the Cao River Fleet, every man is rubbing his fists and wiping his palms, all wanting to follow His Highness the Crown Prince to chastise the bandits!"

"The fleet halts at Fankou," Zhu Cilang said. "Go and select three thousand men from the Cao River Fleet capable of land combat to enter Wuchang with Us. After reaching the Wuchang prefectural seat, you shall serve as... serve as the Jiangdu Garrison Commissioner!"

"Jiangdu Garrison Commissioner?" Liu Kongzhao was startled. "Which Jiangdu?"

There was a Jiangdu County under Yangzhou Prefecture. Liu Kongzhao thought to himself: The Crown Prince is not going to make me the county magistrate of Jiangdu County, is he? The pickings would be rich enough, but the post is far too small.

Zhu Cilang said: "We plan to merge Wuchang and Hanyang prefectures to establish Wuhan Prefecture, as the Jiangdu of the Great Ming, standing with Yingtian Prefecture as the eastern and western capitals, jointly controlling the Yangtze waterway."

No sooner had he finished speaking — before Liu Kongzhao could say anything — Yuan Jixian had already spoken up: "His Highness the Crown Prince wishes to make Jinling and Wuchang the two capitals. Then what of Fengyang? What of Beijing? Will it not make people feel the court has no intention of a northern expedition, and instead means to settle for a corner of Jiangnan?"

Zhu Cilang glanced at Yuan Jixian and said with a smile: "We have observed the histories of the Southern and Northern Dynasties. Jingzhou has always been the internal trouble of the southern dynasties. If Jingzhou cannot be controlled, the south cannot be stabilized; if the south cannot be stabilized, the northern expedition will not succeed either.

Now that the court has established its capital at Jinling, controlling Jiangnan and Huaiyang is no problem, but Jingchu and Huguang are ultimately beyond our reach. That is why We wish to establish Jiangdu. In the future the court can move along the river — several months at Jiangdu, several months at the Southern Capital — and firmly grasp both ends.

Moreover, the Northern Capital, Yanjing, was already changed to Beiping Prefecture during the last northern expedition, and in the future it will be the fief of the Prince of Beiping. Even if the northern expedition succeeds, the court will not return its capital there.

As for the Central Capital, Fengyang, it has never lived up to its name, and Fengyang is only a little over three hundred li from Nanjing — not difficult to control at all. So We have long since decided that when the time is ripe, We will abolish the Central Capital Garrison Commission."

He looked at the three elders in the cabin and said with a smile: "Uncle Qiu and Uncle Fang are both natives of Huguang, familiar with the situation and well regarded. It would not be amiss for one of you to inspect Hubei and the other to govern Wuhan. As for Yuan Xiangzan, you are accomplished in both civil and military affairs, fully capable of serving as Governor-General of Huguang, Shaanxi, and Henan military affairs. Would the three venerable gentlemen be willing to shoulder some hardship for the country?"

Only then did the two elders Qiu Yu and Fang Gongyue understand — so Zhu Cilang had long since arranged everything: he wanted the two of them to use Wuchang and Hanyang as their base, and keep watch over Huguang, that great treasure of a region, for the court.

As for Yuan Jixian's assignment, it was a title that drew hatred, much like Shi Kefa's Governor-General of Seven Provinces — only no one knew where he would be sent to serve as a target.

"Your Majesty, we have reached it — another three or four million taels! A pity we could not seize Wuchang, otherwise it would have been double again!"

Standing on Turtle Mountain and gazing at Wuchang city in the distance, the Roving King Li listened to Tian Jianxiu's report and merely smiled: "I never expected the rich men of Huguang to be so good at hiding money. Even at this point, they can still be squeezed for three or four million taels!"

Huguang had been ravaged in turn by Li Zicheng, Zhang Xianzhong, and Zuo Liangyu over these years — thoroughly and utterly drained of its vitality!

Yet as long as Huguang rice could still flow ceaselessly to Jiangnan, some of that lost vitality could always be restored. But the land distribution by headcount that Li Zicheng adopted was, for the Huguang gentry, the true catastrophe that would drown them all.

"Quite a few gentry captured, I take it?" Li Zicheng asked Liu Zongmin with a smile.

Liu Zongmin said: "Over a thousand men in square caps and Daoist robes have been taken, plus some ten thousand profiteering merchants, all detained on Hanzheng Street."

"Good!" Li Zicheng said. "Send them all to the Wuchang prefectural seat!"

"Send them to Wuchang?" Liu Zongmin was startled. "These people are at odds with us! Better to..."

He swept a hand across in a throat-cutting gesture.

Li Zicheng smiled and waved his hand: "Why kill them? Send them across the river, and let them all go eat Zhu Cilang's idle rice!"