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Chapter 843 Hidden dangers

Chapter 843 Hidden dangers
Sichuan is the main production area of ​​salt and tea, and in addition to the Han people, there are also many ethnic minorities whose interests are involved. If a one-size-fits-all approach is taken rashly, these people will be easily deceived by people with ulterior motives. Once a riot occurs, the spread will be very fast, and it will take a lot of effort for the court to quell it.

This is not Yuan Yingtai's speculation, but a bloody historical lesson. Since the establishment of the Ming Dynasty, ethnic unrest in various parts of Sichuan has never stopped. It was only after the beginning of the Jingyang Dynasty that the situation was alleviated because a large number of vassal kings were exempted from tribute, which reduced the pressure on local people.

"According to your two opinions, should we pacify or suppress?" Hong Tao understood what Yuan Yingtai meant, and it did make sense, but he was not satisfied.

If you can become a second-rank official just by raising key issues, then officials in the Ming Dynasty are worthless. You can't just wait for the emperor to make a decision like the silly boy. You must propose a solution, even if it's wrong.

"…Your Majesty, the General Staff does not have a detailed understanding of the situation in Sichuan. It would be better to call the Sichuan governor and the governor to ask them." The two Yuans looked at each other, neither of them dared to make a decision, but they had to answer. Yuan Keli was smooth and handed the problem to the Sichuan officials.

"Does it mean that if I want to know the situation in my jurisdiction, I have to summon the local officials from thousands of miles away to the palace?"

Hong Tao got angry when he heard this. What kind of nonsense is this? If everyone does this, then what use is there for the central government? Wouldn't it be more convenient to convert them all into inns and be ready to pick up people from all over the place at any time?

"Your Majesty, please calm down. Sichuan Governor Zhu Xieyuan and Governor Dong Qichang are here in Beijing on an external inspection tour. They are currently staying at the inn and can come to the palace to meet you at any time." Seeing that the emperor was getting impatient, Yuan Yingtai was not afraid and added with a smile.

"Hey, you dare to play tricks on me, right? Since you are already prepared, then call me in to have a chat. But let me be frank with you. If you can't come up with a proper solution, no one can leave the palace and go home. I will provide the food, and Wang Chengen will provide the accommodation!"

Being schemed against by his subordinates was naturally unpleasant, but he couldn't get angry because of his face. If it were another emperor, he might have tolerated it, or just made a note in his notebook and waited for the consequences. But Hong Tao really couldn't stand it. He was too lazy to write down such a small matter in his notebook. He would take revenge immediately, and he would not wait overnight. He would pay back in this life!

"Hehehe, we will definitely take good care of you and clean up the place for you. How about two people sharing a room?" When Wang Chengen heard that he had his own lines, he quickly took a half step forward and supported the emperor with a sinister smile.

As for whether he would offend important officials in the court, that was not a big deal. He never expected to work in the Imperial Household Department. What was the point of being close to the emperor every day and making friends with the officials?

"Stop making a fuss and go and pass on the order!" Yuan Keli really had no way to deal with Wang Chengen. Even when he was ridiculed in person and told to live in the eunuch's cell, he could only pretend not to hear it.

Zhu Xieyuan and Dong Qichang should be considered fellow villagers. One is from Shaoxing and the other is from Songjiang, but their appearances and figures are very different. Zhu Xieyuan has a square head and face, thick eyebrows and big eyes, long arms and legs, and speaks in a loud voice, much like a Shandong man. Dong Qichang is short and dark, and has a bit of a shifty look.

But in terms of fame, Zhu Xieyuan could not compare with Dong Qichang either in his own dynasty or in later generations. Even an artistic poor man like Hong Tao knew that the dark and thin old man in front of him was a master of calligraphy and painting, especially landscape painting.

However, Hong Tao did not chase after stars, let alone ask for paintings. Although Dong Qichang was a close friend of Yuan Keli, he was not a royalist, and even disliked the emperor's behavior in some aspects, such as his attitude towards Buddhism.

He was not only a devout Buddhist, but also very knowledgeable about Buddhism. Meeting an emperor like Hong Tao who supported Taoism and suppressed Buddhism, he naturally didn't like it. If it weren't for Yuan Keli's repeated invitations, he probably wouldn't even want to be an official in the Jingyang Dynasty. "The Provincial Administration Commission has 14 prefectures, 6 direct-controlled prefectures, and 111 counties under its jurisdiction. Most of them have Yi people in their territories. I wonder which one your majesty wants to ask about?" Even when he came to the Yangxin Palace, Dong Qichang refused to sit down and stood stubbornly to answer questions.

"I know very little about Sichuan in detail, so I'll tell you in detail today." Hong Tao never indulges those who don't listen to advice. You want to stand, right? Well, let's start from the beginning and drag out the time to see who is uncomfortable.

Dong Qichang was not vague either. He immediately talked about the ethnic composition of Sichuan in great detail, from residential areas to customs and habits, and he talked about them one by one for more than half an hour. Hong Tao was embarrassed, so he interrupted the questioning on the pretext of having a meal for Yuan Keli's sake and continued in the afternoon.

Sichuan Provincial Administration Commission, with its seat in Chengdu, was a first-level administrative region belonging to the two capitals and thirteen provinces. However, in terms of military affairs, Sichuan also had two government offices, the Dusi and Xingdusi, which were dedicated to managing the garrisons.

I won't say much about the Duzhihuishisi, which was a military organization that governed the local guards. But what kind of organization was the Xingdusi? Translated into later words, it should be closer to a military control area, which was in charge of both administration and military affairs, and there was no administrative unit at the level of prefecture, county, etc.

In the Ming Dynasty, the Wei Suo system was divided into two types: real and virtual. Virtual Wei Suo was more common, and most of the two capitals and thirteen provinces were of this type. It was established in a prefecture, county, and had no full jurisdiction, so it was called a virtual Wei Suo.

On the contrary, in areas where there were no prefectures, counties, and cities, only garrisons were set up, which were responsible for both military tasks and civil affairs management, and were called Shitu garrisons.

Why is it designed this way? It's very simple. In many places in the border areas, wars often occur and there are not many civilians living there, so there is no need to set up civil affairs units. It is more convenient to directly let the guards manage them. The most typical ones are Liaodong Xingdusi and Shaanxi Xingdusi.

There is another situation, that is, in the Sichuan Xingdusi, which is located in a vassal area where Han and Yi peoples mixed, the central court had very weak control and had to adopt the method of using Yi people to control Yi people, handing over local security to the surrendered Yi people, called native officials or chieftains.

In fact, this was a temporary measure taken by the Ming Dynasty in the early days of its founding, as its territory expanded too quickly and there was no time and energy to govern it. It was a last resort and imitated the Yuan system.

The bad thing is that Zhu Yuanzhang left a legacy that did not allow his descendants to make changes without authorization, which resulted in temporary measures becoming the norm. The consequences are predictable: the longer the delay, the more trouble there is, and the harder it is to make changes.

What were the problems? The most serious one was that the chieftains were independent and some even united to seek independence.

The Tusi system was specifically formed during the Tang Dynasty. At that time, the territory was large, but the central court was unable to directly manage many places, especially those with different beliefs, customs, and languages. There were too few Han people, and sending a few officials there was of no use.

But they were reluctant to give up their surrender, so they simply let the locals manage the locals, which was called the縻系统, and the specific manifestation of which was the appointment of local tribal leaders as chieftains.

(End of this chapter)

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