Chapter 660: Officials Serve My Purpose

Just as they were about to enter Xu Prefecture, they met the messenger delivering letters—new correspondence had arrived from the capital.

On the fifteenth of the fifth month, Yuan Dayou, Mobile Corps Commander of Yansui Garrison, led twelve hundred border troops to reinforce Liaodong. By the time they reached Changping in the capital region, nearly eight hundred had already deserted. There was no point in the remaining four hundred continuing on to Liaodong—they would serve no purpose there and would still need provisions along the way. The Ministry of War had no choice but to order Yuan Dayou to turn his troops back.

On the twentieth of the fifth month, Jiao Yuan, Mobile Corps Commander of Datong, led eight hundred Datong border troops to reinforce Liaodong. During the march, the camp erupted in mutiny; the soldiers scattered and fled until almost none remained. Even Jiao Yuan, the Datong Mobile Corps Commander, deserted on his own and his whereabouts remain unknown to this day.

"Everyone says the border armies are rotten, yet people still cling to a shred of hope, believing that the troops of the Nine Frontiers, locked in constant battle with the Tartar slaves, would naturally be honed into an elite force. But no one stops to consider how many victories the Great Ming has won since the border garrisons were established. These two border units were few in number and won't affect the larger picture, but this is what will truly cause people's hearts to panic..." Wang Zhaojing explained, and Zhao Jin thought the same.

The great defeat in the Liao Garrison involved only Liaodong's own troops, new and veteran, with perhaps a few units from the Ji Garrison added. The court and the realm still harbored some wishful thinking—the Liao Garrison might be rotten beyond repair, but there were still eight other border armies to rely on. Since the various Mongol tribes on the steppe currently had little ambition to advance, troops could surely be drawn off to relieve Liaodong. Yet no one considered that while the Mongol tribes were indeed in decline, the Great Ming's border armies hadn't reclaimed a single acre of territory either—they still cowered behind the border walls. And with no real fighting for so long, they were probably even worse than the Liao Garrison's border troops. These two desertions dispelled a great deal of that wishful thinking.

Ever since the Jurchen Jin army of Jianzhou began its invasion of the Great Ming, the dynasty had lost armies and territory. At court, some shifted blame, some seized the chance to attack political enemies, and some sought to profit from the chaos. But there were also those who exhausted every effort, striving to fulfill their duty with utmost loyalty. Under the blow of repeated catastrophic defeats, Minister of War Xue Sancai collapsed from utter exhaustion and died at his post. Yet the officials in the Ministry of War all said the old minister was fortunate—he had been spared witnessing the utter destruction of Yang Gao's hundred-thousand-strong army. Had he lived to see that, he would not have been able to rest in peace even in the netherworld.

The problems facing the new Minister of War, Huang Jiashan, were the same as his predecessor's: first, no one knew where to assemble troops; second, no one knew where to raise military funds. Although the Liaodong campaign levy had already begun, the autumn tax collection was still months away—distant water could not quench present thirst. The great army of the Jianzhou Jurchen would not wait until the Great Ming's war chest was fully prepared before striking.

"... It is requested that all provinces and directly-administered regions remit the following to the Ministry of War for its use: the proceeds from the sale of properties belonging to extinct military households, the silver from vacant-official firewood and horse allowances, and the arrears on horse-price silver owed to the Court of Imperial Sacrifices. Further, from each province and directly-administered region: half of the deed-tax silver, the silver paid by clerks of the Provincial Administration Commission for class-substitution, the river-works savings silver from Henan Province, the savings silver from military grain purchases, as well as the voluntary contribution silver from all princely estates, imperial clansmen, meritorious nobles, and native chieftains, and the salary-donation silver from all civil and military officials—all of this shall be remitted to the Ministry of War to cover pensions, compensation, and horse purchases..."

"... The Ministry of War is now to temporarily borrow one hundred thousand taels each from the Court of the Imperial Stud, the Nanjing Ministry of War, the Nanjing Ministry of Revenue, and the Nanjing Ministry of Works, to purchase horses as soon as possible to meet urgent frontier needs. As for the armor and weapons that must be manufactured, the Ministry of Works shall, at its discretion, disburse funds from various accounts and proceed with all speed. It must be ensured that equipment is issued the moment troops arrive, so that training may commence..."

The measures proposed by the new Minister of War, Huang Jiashan, could be described as scouring the mountains and dredging the seas—gathering every last tael of silver that might remain anywhere in the Great Ming and concentrating it for military expenses. Equipment, pensions and compensation, army horses, army provisions—everything required silver. After this memorial was submitted, the Wanli Emperor, who ignored most such documents, uncharacteristically granted his approval and ordered its implementation.

"How could any government office possibly have surplus silver? Every last copper cash gets spent clean—deficits are the norm. Huang Jiashan's memorial is either a perfunctory gesture to satisfy the imperial will, or pure armchair strategy. It is utterly useless." Wang Youshan had added a few brief comments in his letter, and Wang Zhaojing understood perfectly.

Hearing this, Zhao Jin merely smiled and said, "It's definitely just a perfunctory gesture. To reach the position of Minister, even if you've never done the work yourself, you've certainly seen it done."

The letters this time were again quite numerous. Wang Youshan had specifically mentioned Xiong Tingbi, who was about to take charge of Liaodong's defense. A man of the pure-critique faction, Wang Youshan was habitually proud and self-regarding, holding few people in esteem. Yet he had considerable praise for Xiong Tingbi. What set Wang Youshan apart from other pure critics was that what he saw and heard was closer to the truth. For instance, the reason he rated Xiong Tingbi so highly this time was that Zhang Qinghai of the Ministry of War and several other veteran military affairs experts all said the same—they all said Xiong Tingbi was a rare talent in military affairs today, well-versed in geography and familiar with frontier matters. With him there, the situation in Liaodong could be stabilized considerably.

The letter also specifically mentioned several of Xiong Tingbi's strategies. Since he was to take charge of the Liao Garrison's military affairs, he was obliged to clarify his approach to the Son of Heaven and the court: "... Liaodong is the shoulder and back of the capital; Hedong is the heart of Liaoyang; Kaiyuan is the root of Hedong. If Liaodong is to be preserved, Kaiyuan absolutely must be recovered. I request orders to swiftly transfer troops and commanders, prepare provisions and fodder, manufacture equipment, ensure timely supply, and grant discretionary authority to act as circumstances demand..." There were no grandiose, sprawling boasts—just very practical, measured policy arguments.

After reading the letter concerning Xiong Tingbi, Wang Zhaojing felt somewhat relieved. He simply said to Zhao Jin, "I wonder what kind of job this Excellency Xiong can make of Liaodong."

"The greater situation in Liaodong is already lost. It will be difficult." Zhao Jin's reply was very brief.

Hearing this, Wang Zhaojing found himself with nothing to say.

By the time they reached Xu Prefecture, it was already the twelfth of the sixth month. This time, Zhao Zhentang was not staying in Xu Prefecture city; he had taken He Cuihua and the rest of the family to Xiao County. After all, the Xiao County Defense Commander could not be absent from camp indefinitely. Zhao Jin made a special trip to Xiao County. Zhao Zhentang was living quite comfortably there. Xu Prefecture city and Xiao County seat were very close, and from his days as a constable, Zhao Zhentang had dealt with Xiao County often and knew many people there. Naturally, he had visitors and acquaintances now that he was here, and he didn't have to worry too much about military affairs—of course life was pleasant.

Zhao Jin arrived, and the family had a brief reunion. To spare his parents worry, he did not mention the assassination attempt at Qingjiangpu. Time was tight; the reunion was just an hour's chat and a single meal. Before leaving, Zhao Zhentang called Zhao Jin back and instructed him, "On this trip back, have Niu Jinbao go see his mother. Let Niu Jinbao go by himself, and let him come back by himself."

"You're always telling me not to nag, yet you fret quite a bit yourself," his mother He Cuihua couldn't help grumbling at Zhao Zhentang's instruction.

Zhao Jin agreed with a smile. After taking his leave, he directly told Niu Jinbao to go ahead to Xu Prefecture to visit his family—to go by himself and return by himself. Niu Jinbao did not decline; he gave his thanks, mounted his horse, and rode off.

Once the reason was made clear, Wang Zhaojing couldn't help but sigh, "The older the ginger, the hotter the spice." Niu Jinbao's mother was certainly living a decent life in Xu Prefecture. When Niu Jinbao went and saw that, he would naturally feel gratitude toward Zhao Jin. And the matter of returning on his own was also a test. Niu Jinbao had once roamed the rivers and lakes, accustomed to freedom. Staying by Zhao Jin's side was hard work and full of constraints—he might not be able to stick with it. Letting him come and go freely: if he could return on his own, it showed he had the perseverance to endure. If he couldn't come back, then a personal guard so lacking in constancy was better off gone anyway.

After returning home, his daughter, not yet a full year old, did not recognize her father at first. When Zhao Jin picked her up, she actually reached out and swatted at him, even tugging at his face. But after a few tugs, she recognized who he was and began clapping her little hands and laughing. Xu Zhenzhen, who had always been very supportive of Zhao Jin's busy schedule, complained a bit this time: "Always running around outside—the child doesn't even know her own father anymore." Hearing this, Zhao Jin felt a rare twinge of guilt and shame.

But guilt and shame were one thing; being busy was another. After resting at home for one night, he summoned all his brothers in Xu Prefecture the next day. He brought out the methods they had discussed on the road—mobilizing civilian manpower and the mutual-security collective-punishment system—and presented them for discussion. Back on the road, Wang Zhaojing had been extremely cautious about this matter, even raising several potential pitfalls. But the other companions didn't think much of it. Ji Xiang and Dong Bingfeng's opinions were simple: whatever Big Brother wants to do, we follow and do it. Chen Sheng, however, thought a bit further: "Xu Prefecture may not be large, but it's still a prefecture of one city and four counties. This method you're talking about is meticulous work. Our Zhao Camp has plenty of men who can wield blades and spears, but few who can write and keep accounts. We probably can't pull this off on our own."

"Second Brother, it's not just the men in our camp. We can also use the managers and accountants from Cloud Mountain Trading and the Sun Family Trading Company," Wang Zhaojing interjected. The address "Second Brother" was something Wang Zhaojing rarely used; it slipped out inadvertently.

Chen Sheng paid no mind to the form of address. He simply waved his hand impatiently and said, "Of course I know that. We could also use those monks at Cloud Mountain Temple who handle daily management and affairs. And there are plenty of people at the distillery we could use. But Xu Prefecture, one city and four counties, has a population of nearly three hundred thousand. These people still have their own duties to perform—how could they possibly manage this?"

Wang Zhaojing coughed twice, a trace of embarrassment on his face. This was an oversight on his part, and for a moment he didn't know what to say. But Zhao Jin spoke up: "Relying solely on our own people won't be enough. Besides, our people still have to be busy with our own affairs."

At these words, everyone was somewhat taken aback. If their own people weren't enough and couldn't even be fully deployed, then what was to be done?

"Let the government offices do it!" Zhao Jin gave the answer.

This answer left everyone stunned again. Zhao Jin continued to explain: "In the prefectural and county yamens, there aren't many who draw official salaries, but there are plenty who do the actual work. Under the clerks of the Six Offices, each has dozens, even over a hundred, auxiliary runners and swift-hands. These men are all local power-brokers—exactly the ones we can use."

According to the regulations of the Great Ming, for a major city like Xu Prefecture with a population of nearly a hundred thousand, the number of people drawing court salaries—from the Prefect and Vice Prefect down to the clerks and minor functionaries—would not exceed one hundred. One hundred managing one hundred thousand. And it wasn't just here: in the vast capital, with Shuntian Prefecture, Daxing and Wanping counties, plus the Five Wards Military Command, those drawing court salaries and receiving official grain and pay numbered barely over a thousand. Yet the population inside and outside the capital was well over a million. How could they possibly manage? But for two hundred years, from the dynasty's founding to the present, things had been maintained this way without any major disaster. The reason they could be maintained, aside from relying on the self-governance of the gentry and powerful families, was the recruitment of large numbers of personnel outside the official establishment—the so-called unregistered runners, auxiliary runners, swift-hands, and the like. It was by relying on these people that the Great Ming's local government offices, and even the central court, could function.

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