The Ming Dynasty started with saving the eldest grandson

Chapter 272 Zhu Xiongying’s clever plan
Zhu Biao's supervision of the country is not a rare thing for Ming Dynasty, but this time it is different.

In the past, he was responsible for supervising the country and was only responsible for keeping the court running normally. To put it bluntly, he was responsible for handling some routine matters.

In fact, it was Zhu Yuanzhang who made the decision on major matters.

This time he was clearly asked to take charge of state affairs.

What do you mean?
That is to say, the emperor no longer cares about anything, and everything is at the discretion of the prince.

This meaning is completely different.

The first reaction of the ministers was, could it be that Zhu Biao launched a coup and controlled Zhu Yuanzhang?

But he immediately pushed this idea away.

If it were another dynasty, there would be no need to consider it at all. This is definitely the case.

But the Ming Dynasty was different. It was really possible for the emperor to give up his choice.

After all, this is not the first time that Lao Zhu has expressed his desire to abdicate early.

Almost all the important ministers around him knew about this.

Therefore, after reacting, the ministers immediately knew that the emperor really wanted to abdicate this time.

The honorable nobles were naturally very reluctant to part with him. Their status and wealth all came from Lao Zhu.

The bureaucracy is overjoyed. This old killer has finally retreated. Now that the kind-hearted prince is in power, our lives will be much easier.

But no matter what you think in your heart, things still have to be done according to procedures.

All the officials expressed sincerely: The Ming Dynasty cannot live without you, Your Majesty. Your Majesty, you cannot abandon the world and ignore all the people.

Zhu Yuanzhang sighed: "It has been thirty-six years since we started the army in 4084, which is the eleventh year of Zhizheng."

"For the past thirty-six years, we have been walking on thin ice with little food and clothing..."

"Thanks to the concerted efforts of all the ministers, our Ming Dynasty is able to achieve today's grand event..."

"But we are also tired and want to take a rest."

"In the past, we were afraid that the prince was too young to take on the important responsibilities, so we didn't dare to slack off..."

"Now that he is in his prime, he has made no mistakes in assisting me in handling government affairs over the years."

"Be able to honor your parents when you are above, be friendly to your brothers when you are below, and win the hearts of all officials from outside..."

"We are very relieved that we can finally rest with peace of mind."

These words can be said to be sincere, and many officials were deeply moved.

So the matter was settled, and Zhu Biao officially began to supervise the country.

But no one is sure how far Zhu Yuanzhang has retreated.

So the next day, many memorials were sent to him.

Zhu Yuanzhang sent them all to the East Palace without even looking at them, and strictly ordered not to send any more memorials in the future.

He also refused all requests to see him, and only Xu Da, Tang He and other veterans could see him.

This is actually a very normal temptation.

Everyone must first know Zhu Yuanzhang's true intentions before we can determine how to deal with him in the future.

If he left these memorials, it would mean that he had not truly delegated power and that important matters would have to be reported to him.

Now he took it away without even looking at it, and strictly ordered not to give it away in the future, and refused all visits.

It means that he has really completely quit. Unless something big happens, there is usually no need to come to him again.

When the ministers have a plan in mind, they will naturally act in a measured manner.

Then everyone looked at Zhu Biao, waiting for what the Crown Prince would do.

Under normal circumstances, Zhu Biao should focus on stability at the moment.

Don’t seek merit, but seek no faults.

Doing this is out of Emperor An's heart. You see, I won't do anything wrong.

Secondly, it's An Qunchen's heart. Everyone can work with confidence, I won't touch you.

Thirdly, it also takes time to familiarize yourself with government affairs, so as not to spoil the matter by taking action hastily.

After a few months, after it has completely stabilized, you can adjust the national affairs bit by bit according to your own wishes.

But Zhu Biao is Zhu Biao, unlike any other prince.

As soon as he came up, he issued several political orders directly, and they were all related to the military.

To put it bluntly, he used military power as soon as he got started.

He first ordered that the northern frontier army shrink its forces and strictly guard against the Northern Yuan's southward plundering, and that no border provocations were allowed without orders.

This can be said to be completely contrary to Zhu Yuanzhang's proactive strategy.

The civil servant group was naturally very happy. It was time for Ming Dynasty to recuperate.

However, there were quite a few complaints from the generals and the noble group.

It's not that they were dissatisfied with Zhu Biao. Even if Zhu Yuanzhang suddenly did this, the military would have objections.

If we don't fight, how can we achieve military success? How can we rely on being a wife and a shadow?
How long will it take for us to get rich with the salary provided by the state?

Of course, what they are more worried about is whether the country will store weapons and horses from now on.

If this were to happen, life would be difficult for their military.

This is a matter involving fundamental interests, not against Zhu Biao.

At this moment, commanders such as Xu Da, Lan Yu, Feng Sheng, Fu Youde, etc. all stood up to express their support for the prince.

When these big bosses came forward, the military and nobles immediately became honest, and the policy was implemented smoothly.

After witnessing this incident with his own eyes, Chen Jingke sighed.

Any other prince would not attack the military first when he first takes power.

But he was Zhu Biao, so he did it, and it was done very smoothly.

"You see, what is prestige? This is, you still have a lot to learn from His Highness."

He said this to Zhu Xiongying.

Zhu Xiongying said angrily: "That's my father. Don't I know better than you?"

Then he came over and said: "I have thought about it, and the education of the people cannot be done through academic administration."

What he said about educating the people was to compare with the previous dynasty and let the people know how good the Ming Dynasty was, so as to increase their sense of belonging and identity.

Chen Jingke said in confusion: "Oh, why? If you don't pass the academic administration, what are you going to do?"

Zhu Xiongying said: "Think about it, how many ordinary people can read?"

"We start from the perspective of academic affairs. The only people who can see this kind of contrast are scholars."

"The people still can't see it, so what's the use?"

"You can't let students go to the countryside to teach the people, right?"

Tsk, the ancient version of scholars going to the countryside?

Forget it, let’s not do it.

Chen Jingke also thought it made sense and asked, "That's true. So what do you think we should do?"

Zhu Xiongying said: "Start with the military."

Chen Jingke laughed and said, "You're not going to let the soldiers educate the people, are you?"

Zhu Xiongying said seriously: "Listen to me slowly... Ming Dynasty does not have a reserve system, you know this."

Chen Jingke nodded. Reserve service was a very common system before the Eastern Han Dynasty.

The common people receive military training during the off-season and are the main force in maintaining local security. If necessary, they can be directly recruited into the army and go to the battlefield.

Later, Emperor Guangwu Liu Xiu abolished the military service system and replaced it with a recruitment system.

Recruiting soldiers means getting money to serve as soldiers, so professional soldiers who make a living as soldiers appeared.

With professional soldiers, the reserve force became unnecessary and was abolished. In later dynasties, some continued to adopt the reserve system, and some did not set up a reserve system.

The Ming Dynasty also had no reserves, why?

At the beginning, Zhu Yuanzhang adopted the military household system. All soldiers came from military households, so there was no need to recruit reserves from ordinary people.

After all, reserve training every year, even for just one month, will delay production and increase the burden on the people.

This was also the original intention of Emperor Guangwu to abolish the reserve force.

He understood the sufferings of the people very well and took many measures to reduce the burden on the people.

Later, because of Chen Jingke's suggestion, the Ming Dynasty abolished the military household system and replaced it with a recruitment system and a military merit system. There was also no reserve service.

At first, no one noticed this flaw. When it was time to recruit new recruits, the military found that the quality of the recruits was very poor.

It takes longer to train to become a qualified soldier.

Usually this problem is not a big problem, but in an emergency, it can be very fatal.

The solution to this problem is simple, reserve.

The new reserve system has been formulated, but it has not yet been implemented.

Zhu Xiongying continued: "Reservist soldiers need to train for one month every year, and we use this month to educate them."

"Then after they finish training, they go home and tell their families these things."

"Everyone has a good side and is good at being a teacher, and so do ordinary people."

“They learn something new and they’re bound to show it off when they get home.”

"In this way, it won't be long before the people know how good Ming Dynasty is."

“And by doing so, you can avoid the academic and administrative system and reduce resistance.”

Again, the academic and political system is a major matter of the country, and countless people are focused on it.

Starting from here rashly will cause a strong backlash, which Zhu Xiongying does not want to see.

After hearing his plan, Chen Jingke couldn't help but high-five and praised:

"Wonderful, this move is really wonderful."

"It can not only avoid the sensitive academic and political system, but also directly deliver information to the most grassroots people."

“It’s also an opportunity for reservists to broaden their horizons.”

"For the imperial court, it is a rare opportunity to do ideological work for them, so that they can understand why they are fighting."

Seeing his approval, Zhu Xiongying was completely relieved, and then said proudly:
"Do you think it's feasible? Haha... I'm so smart."

Chen Jingke smiled inwardly: "You are really smart for being able to identify problems and find solutions."

"And if this trick is used well, it will also help break the gentry's monopoly on the right to speak."

If the imperial court wanted to convey its voice to the grassroots, it could only rely on the bureaucrats and gentry.

As for whether they will convey it, and how they will change it during the conveying process, the court has no control at all.

Even though Zhu Yuanzhang severely attacked the gentry clan power through various means, he still could not fundamentally change the situation.

If Zhu Xiongying used this trick well, the court would have another way to convey information to the people.

In the ancient reserve force, basically one strong man from each household participated.

As long as the imperial court tells him the information it wants to convey during training, it is equivalent to telling his family.

Moreover, with the separation of civil and military affairs, there is no need to worry about this channel being blocked by civilian officials.

Zhu Xiongying immediately understood the meaning and said excitedly:

"Yes, the court can also use this month to fully understand grassroots information through the mouths of the reservists."

“In this way, we can, to a certain extent, avoid being deceived by the civil servant group.”

"Okay, okay, I will sort out this strategy right away and go to Grandpa Huang to discuss it."

Chen Jingke stopped him and said, "Don't worry, things are not that simple."

Zhu Xiongying knew immediately that he had a new idea, and immediately asked:
"What did you think of?"

Chen Jingke organized his language and said, "Don't you think there is a big problem with the current military service system?"

Zhu Xiongying asked doubtfully: "What's the problem?"

Chen Jingke said: "The retirement and rotation system is mainly about rotation."

Zhu Xiongying said puzzledly: "Rotate rest?"

Chen Jingke explained: "The current military service system tacitly implies that once you join the army, you must serve for life."

"Unless they are disabled or the court downsizes the army, some people will be retired."

"Of course, that's not the critical issue."

"The problem is that the imperial court has not established a rotation system."

"This means that once you serve, you will always live in the military until the day you die or retire."

"But soldiers are people, not machines. They are living people. They also have families and need to live a normal life."

"Many of the Ming soldiers currently serving have been in the army for 20 or 30 years."

In the past, the Ming Dynasty adopted the military household system. When not fighting, soldiers could go home and live.

And they must go home to live, because they are also responsible for farming.

"But after the military household system was abolished, the court did not formulate a corresponding rotation policy."

"This also means that since the reform of the military system, the soldiers have not had a day off."

"It's okay if the time is short now, but if the time is long, the consequences will be unimaginable."

This is a flaw he discovered after he re-examined his past policies after he made a mistake last time in speculating on changes in the situation in Beiyuan.

A question that seemed insignificant to ancient people.

Because from the day the military recruitment system was born, it basically meant life-long tenure.

But as a modern person, Chen Jingke is all too aware of the cruelty of this system.

So change becomes inevitable.

It's just that the situation at the time was not suitable for proposing a rotation system - to put it bluntly, the rotation system can only be used during non-war times.

Daming had been taking the initiative before, so it was very inappropriate for him to suddenly implement a rotation system.

His original plan was that the court would focus on recuperation in the next five years, so he took the opportunity to propose a rotation system, which was most appropriate.

Now Zhu Xiongying had a sudden idea to add an ideological education class to the reserve system.

He temporarily decided that since he wanted to change it, he would change it together.

Don't change a little today and a little tomorrow. Simple things will become complicated.

Chen Jingke analyzed the importance of the rotation system in detail to Zhu Xiongying:
"Human mental capacity is limited, and it is easy to collapse once the limit is exceeded."

"So we must give the soldiers time to rest and let them live a normal life."

"Because they have experienced the beauty of normal life, they will be more motivated to fight."

Zhu Xiongying pondered for a long time, nodded and said: "It makes sense, let alone the soldiers, if I are allowed to stay in one place every day."

"I won't be able to see Miao Jin... well, I'll be bored if I can't see my family."

Chen Jingke pretended not to hear his slip of the tongue and continued:

"And we can first do ideological work for the soldiers in the army and teach them to be loyal to the emperor and patriotic."

"When the soldiers return home from their rotation, they will also tell their families what they have learned in the military."

"Going hand in hand with the indoctrination work you are carrying out in the reserves, I believe the effect will be better."

Zhu Xiongying nodded repeatedly and said: "It's very true...but how can we take turns to take breaks without affecting the national security?"

(End of this chapter)