Free Web NovelChapter 2140: Chapter 1556: So, What Is the Ming Dynasty? (2)
"Oh!..."
At this point, Ali sighed deeply, not knowing what he was sighing about. The bones beside him grinned, laughing endlessly without a place to hide, their dried bones laughing out a bloody red.
"Chief Divine bless! Is Liaodong Town poor? Of course, it’s poor! The land is barren, the climate cold, and there’s Dazi raiding... The common folk of each garrison, the stationed army at the border fortress, they’re all so poor they’re out of shape, hardly get a few full meals a year! But is Liaodong Town affluent? Of course, it’s affluent too!..."
"The court allocates so much silver every year, transporting so much food over thousands of miles. So many craftsmen drafted work day and night, the conscripted laborers work throughout the year without even half a wage! The armory at Liaodong Town’s treasury is piled high with weapons and armor, food stored for several years, it’s a prosperity you cannot imagine, a little bit leaked could fill our bellies!..."
"Ali, since the Great Tlatoani of the Ming Dynasty transports so much military supplies and food to the Liaodong Kingdom. Since there are so many good things in the Liaodong Kingdom’s treasury... Then why doesn’t he distribute them, give them to the legion and garrison? Shouldn’t the Ming Dynasty’s Legion Warriors eat well, drink well, train with all their might, then equip themselves with the best armor and weapons, focus on fighting the enemy to slaughter and promote through seizing heads?..."
"..."
Zuwaro’s naive question was ridiculous on so many levels that Ali couldn’t help but laugh, not knowing how to answer. But seeing the other’s earnest and justified appearance, Ali couldn’t resist wondering who was truly more absurd. His smile disappeared, and after a long silence, he answered with some difficulty.
"Ancestor High Priest, the Ming Dynasty is too vast, too complicated, it’s not so simple... The Ming Dynasty’s border army, whether the salaried Camp Soldiers or the garrison soldiers farming the land, are entirely different from the ’Samurai’ you mentioned who can get promoted. The military merit ennoblement of your ’Samurai’ sounds like the military system of the Qin Han we’ve heard about? It’s about ’Esteem force and belittle literature, the country will not be a country,’ the scholar-officials’ beginning of ’tyranny,’ even mentioning it is taboo!..."
"I don’t know what it was like before. But now the court only drives military troops under one principle, which is severe daily treatment with rewards given only before battle as motivation. This is the so-called ’Soldiers are harsh tools and should not be satiated; when satiated, they become lazy.’, ’To handle soldiers like handling falcons and hounds, useful when hungry, difficult to control when full.’, ’The way to handle soldiers is to keep them ever hungry and cold, so they can exert their force.’... In short, in the eyes of the officials, soldiers are just ’hunting dogs’ for consumption and dispatch. Why would anyone generously treat ’hunting dogs,’ let alone allow them to promote and climb over people’s heads?..."
"Of course, Liaodong Military Town constantly battles with Mongolian Tribes, and any officer with real power to lead troops, from the highest General and Assistant General to the lowest Thousand Commander and Captain, will raise some able house servants and personal soldiers. These house servants and personal soldiers’ treatment are indeed like you said, eating well, drinking well, training with full effort, equipped with the best weapons and armor, focusing solely on slaughter!... But these are actually the generals’ private soldiers, which are often few in number. Each general generally cannot afford to raise too many, dare not raise too many. If a Thousand Commander keeps dozens of personal soldiers, it’s considered many..."
Saying this, the topic shifted to military system. Zuwaro was interested in everything about the Ming Dynasty, like gazing upon the seedling of a grand Divine Tree, eagerly observing and learning. Whereas Aguda was much more focused, only paying attention to the parts related to himself, like how he only locks his gaze onto prey while hunting. Thus, he frowned and spoke again.
"Ali Brother! You just said the southern Liaodong Great Tribe can keep obtaining good stuff from the Great Ming Tribe Alliance. But the nobles within the tribe are very stringent, not easily giving out good stuff... Then why should we head south for tribute, how can we get these good things from the hands of these nobles?"
"Cough! Aguda Brother, you just need to play the role of Wu Xiong, as a loyal Jurchen Chief guarding the frontier for the court, inheriting the Du’erbi River Guard position, confirming the status... As for the rest, the manipulation for getting good stuff relies on the ’connections’ I can climb up to, and the ’yellow objects’ in Ancestor High Priest’s possession..."
"Ali, these ’dignitaries’ you mentioned, do they really dare to use the court’s military resources and give them to us? Aren’t they afraid the Emperor the Great Tlatoani will discover this and chop their heads off?"
"... Ancestor High Priest, you know nothing of the dignitaries’ methods. The dignitaries never make mistakes, only their subordinates conducting tasks make mistakes. When the court investigates, at most a few clerks will lose their heads. With so many vines, bugs, and rats feeding on nourishment, what we can eat is negligible, amounts to nothing... Moreover, if we don’t think of ways to offer a usable reputation, the dignitaries wouldn’t even give us a chance to knock on the door and open a way anyway..."
Speaking of this, Ali sighed again, shaking his head at Zuwaro. If it weren’t for him, this foolish "East Sea Priest," heading south with glaring Gold, probably would have been eaten clean by the dignitaries, with not a single bone left. The other saved him from the Wild Man, and he indirectly saved the other; this must be the fate granted by the Chief Divine!
"Chief Divine witness! The branches of Liaodong Border Town, at the top are the dignitaries, in the middle are officials and army officers at various levels, and at the bottom are the lowly soldiers Qiu Ba. To make an unapt analogy, dignitaries are the most flamboyant flowers, luxurious and noble, hoarding the nourishment on the branches, also guarding the fruit that bears! Officials and army officers in the middle are the tree bark of the branches, connected to the leaves on one side and flowers on the other, sharing some nourishment. And at the very bottom, the Qiu Ba are the leaves on the tree trunk. These leaves aren’t worth mentioning, withering and falling as they may, replenishing them isn’t a problem..."
"Therefore, once the court’s things are transported to the border town, they aren’t the court’s anymore, and have nothing to do with the poor border army! When they are distributed, ostensibly accounted for on the record but practically turned into dignitaries’ possessions. Understand? Since they are dignitaries’ things, not the court’s, money must be offered to the dignitaries for good things to be distributed! If you don’t understand the dignitaries’ rules, even if you hold the court’s order, all you’ll receive would be a pile of shabby, broken copper and iron..."
"Just like you asked before, what are the Ming Dynasty’s rules? The rules set by the dignitaries are the Ming Dynasty’s rules. And what are the dignitaries’ rules? It’s money!..."
"What is money? Gold, silver, that’s money! Aguda Brother, I know you have no money, but don’t worry, don’t rush... Trust me! With the grand Ancestor High Priest around, money is not a problem! Ancestor High Priest has real Gold Mountain in hand... What we need to worry about is how to convince the dignitaries, allowing them to safely take the money! Rebuilding the Harbi River Guard Station is, in fact, a name I painstakingly found which can give dignitaries a safe way to take money!... Oh! I’m really not having it easy!..."
Ali sighed longly. The gloomy wind blew over the treetops, the bones on the entire tree rustled, resembling laughter echoing from hell, or as if emerging from countless soils clutched by roots. Amidst the laughter of bones descending into the yellow spring, he raised his head to gaze deeply at the tree full of Jurchen remains, and the tall Soron Pillar.
At this moment, he seemed to see the ancestor buried in the tribal ancestral land, revered by the entire Harman Tribe, passing down books to guide tribal descendants, yet never seen with his own eyes. After a while, he spoke in a low voice, using court official dialect comprehendible to none, reciting the poignant words left by that returning ancestor who served Emperor Xuanzong.
"So, what is the Ming Dynasty? The sun is like Gold, the moon like Silver. The sun and moon unite together, that’s what makes the Ming Dynasty! You young ones, don’t have a shallow view, unwilling to part with the three melons and two dates in your hands. You must know... First offer Gold and Silver, only then can the sunlight of the sun and moon shine upon you! With sunlight shone down, you’ll have your good days!"
"And this channel, offering Gold and Silver with light leaked through, isn’t given by Heaven for free, huh! Where is there such a cheap gift! This channel depends on your own brainpower, fiercely drilling upwards, only by drilling it out does it succeed!... Understand? Remember it well! After I’ve passed, it’ll depend on yourselves~~"
