I have a cornucopia

Chapter 243 They Want to Improve Too Much

The summer of the eighteenth year of Chongzhen passed as various forces rested and recuperated.

Of course, it could also be a struggle.

At least for Li Zicheng, Dorgon, and even Wu Sangui, it was indeed a struggle. They tried their best to maintain their rule and prevent it from collapsing...

The same goes for Li Zicheng.

The failure of the Southern Expedition also caused a great shock to him internally.

His rule was essentially an alliance. Apart from his core subordinates, the rest were bandits who joined in, surrendered government army generals, and local tyrants who were happy to welcome the royal army.

These people followed him, not only because he could hold the emperor hostage to control the princes, but also because they saw his future prospects. Otherwise, how could a famous official like Hui Shiyang take the initiative to go to him and shout "I am a natural old minister to leave to Your Majesty". In the end, everyone believed that following him would still be a good opportunity to become a noble family in the future, just like the Shandong gentry silently accepted some of Yang Feng's evil deeds. In the end, everyone saw his future prospects and believed that following him could help their family move forward...

They want to progress too much.

But his failure in the southern expedition meant that his future was bleak.

Even though he still controls a large area of ​​land with Shaanxi as its core, this area is the poorest...

There is not much to share in the benefits, so poor areas have to go out and rob to get new benefits, but you can't lead everyone out to rob, so why should everyone obey you?
Is it because you have been the emperor for 300 years, or is it because you have invincible military force?

You have nothing. You are just a nouveau riche by chance. Now you can't even lead everyone to rob. Why should we obey you?

Can you fight?

Can you beat Sun Shoufa in a one-on-one fight?

Under such circumstances, Li Zicheng had to compromise with the forces under his command and give more power to the generals who were already equivalent to Jiedushi. At the same time, he did his best to obtain food, carry out construction, and promote new crops to appease the people. Fortunately, he had a lot of silver and was still able to maintain the state of not paying taxes. Although it was not a long-term solution, it could still be enough to hold out for a year or two.

In addition, other groups have no better options than him, so he can still maintain his rule firmly under this circumstance.

After all, he had a poor foundation and his rise was an accident.

He simply does not have the strength to rule the world. Even if the Battle of Shanhaiguan had not occurred in history, he would most likely not have succeeded.

Establishing his own territory was the limit of what he could achieve.

As for Dorgon, it is similar now. The Qing Dynasty is now more chaotic than Li Zicheng's. The rapid expansion in the past year and the failure of external plunder have caused heavy losses to the basic base. The Qing Dynasty has neither the time nor the ability to complete internal integration. On the contrary, due to the rapid expansion, the entire regime is becoming more and more like a makeshift team. As the actual supreme ruler, Dorgon has also lost his deterrent power due to successive failures. He can only rely on the binding of interests to maintain his support and constantly weaken his power to gain support.

Eventually, the internal team becomes a makeshift one.

He himself is aware of this, so now he doesn't even return to the capital.

As long as he controls the food source, no one in the capital can turn things around, so it doesn't matter whether he returns or not, or whether there is a court in the capital or not.

Besides, we have to face a series of embarrassments when we go back. What about Sister Dayuer? She is back to Chenghai Tower to receive guests, and her old friends are coming one after another, but she is still the Holy Mother Empress Dowager of the Qing Dynasty. What about Fulin? He is still fishing in Laolongtou. It is said that he has made many good friends in that area, and they have begun to run around naked on the beach like the latter. Jiang Ge, the bastard, even instructed his subordinates, the Imperial Censor, to report that he is willing to send troops to cooperate with the court to open Ninghai City to rescue His Majesty...

This won't work!
It is said that His Majesty was bitten by a dog a few days ago because he climbed over the wall to steal peaches.

How unbecoming is this!

We must capture Ninghai City and execute the entire clan of the traitor who let the dog bite Your Majesty.

Wu Sangui also submitted a memorial in support of the proposal. These two bastards were afraid that not enough Manchus from the Eight Banners would die.

Still attacking?
There are still more than 30,000 Eight Banner Manchus left. How many more are going to be killed by artillery shells?

All the Eight Banner Manchus are dead, so they are happily seizing power, right? The Qing Dynasty entered the country just to conquer the world for these bastards, right? My Eight Banner warriors are fighting hard, and you are waiting behind to reap the fruits, right?

In short, these are all very shameful. In this case, let Jirgalang face it in the capital!
In fact, even his generals and soldiers were unwilling to go back...

Huaixi is great!
At least it’s better than the capital!
Especially those Mongolian soldiers, they loved the vast plains of Henan in summer.

No wonder our ancestors wanted to raze all the cities in the Central Plains and use them as pastures. Forget about places like Monan, Liaoxi and even Buyuerhai. Henan, which has been completely transformed into a grassland, is the real nomadic place that they dream of.

The newly joined troops were even less willing to go north. After all, they knew their own limitations. It was wishful thinking to expect to have enough food like the Eight Banners if they went north. However, if they stayed in Huaixi, Dorgon would have to guarantee them food, otherwise they would surrender to Nanjing and then serve as the vanguard of the Ming army. They had some value in Huaixi. The two sides had a crisscrossing territory, and they needed these small fish to fill the defense. It was also easy for them to defect. Once they went north, they would abandon this value. After all, it was not easy for them to find a new army to welcome in the north.

Anyway, I’m happy here!

The imperial army of the Qing Dynasty is so happy in Huaixi that they don't even miss Yan anymore.

And the Nanjing Regent...

The Nanjing Regent remains the same.

What else can be done since she already has local autonomy in fact?

On the contrary, more and more great scholars and officials from all over the country are praising the regent, and they are pushing her to be a wise ruler. It is obvious that they have finally experienced the happiness of this kind of rule. At present, the only two people in the Ming Dynasty who can surpass her in terms of wisdom and wisdom are Xuande and Hongzhi. As for Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Di...

To the great scholars, which of them can be related to sageliness?
However, the economy is indeed booming, and all regions are rushing into the era of free capitalism like a carnival.

Mining was completely lifted, restrictions on tea and salt industries were in name only, foreign trade was completely lifted, and no one cared about the coast. Anyone who wanted to go out to sea for trade could set sail from any port, and overseas merchant ships could also dock at any port as long as the local authorities allowed it. Conflicts at sea had even begun to occur. Merchant ships from Zhejiang were sunk by Zheng Zhilong as pirate ships because they refused to obey the orders of the Zheng family, which led to the impeachment of the Zhejiang censor. The unfortunate Ma Shiying had to drag the Zhejiang Elders Association, which wanted to send troops to Fujian to fight for the provincial status, to negotiate with Zheng Cai sent by Zheng Zhilong in Nanjing. In the end, because the Zhejiang gentry did not have the ability to challenge the Zheng family at sea, they had to accept the reality. In the future, all merchant ships from Zhejiang that went out to sea for trade would also carry the flag of the Zheng family.

Of course, it’s paid for.

Zheng Zhilong gave face to the Zhejiang Elders Association and compensated for the loss of the sunken ship. In addition, he asked his son Zheng Chenggong to worship Liu Zongzhou as his teacher in Nanjing with a grand ceremony. His original teacher was Shui Tailiang, but Shui Tailiang was involved in too many things and was recently in seclusion. Besides, it was not said that he could only have one teacher, and Shui Tailiang's level was still significantly lower than Liu Zongzhou's.

He worshipped Liu Zongzhou as his teacher, and the water was too cold to be happy for him.

However, this incident made Zheng Zhilong realize that he really had to deal with the Dutch.

Because Zhejiang maritime merchants traded with the Dutch.

This is a conspiracy to poach his employees.

Zheng Zhilong would never allow anyone to touch the foundation he had established at sea.

The Left Commander of the Five Military Commands of the Ming Dynasty, the General of Fujian Garrison, Nan'an Marquis Zheng Zhilong, and the Fujian Governor Zhang Kentang jointly submitted a petition, requesting the establishment of the Taiwan Prefecture in the Fujian Provincial Administration Commission, and the expulsion of the red-haired people who occupied Taiwan, and the organization of immigrants from Fujian to open up Taiwan. This was of course approved by the Regent, and the court did not need to pay. Governor Zhang said that the required money and grain would be raised by Fujian to show the Fujian people's patriotism. Since he, a Songjiang native, dared to say this, it means that the Fujian Elders Association has already agreed. Besides, it is not easy to find other local elders to pay for the Taiwan Prefecture to enter Fujian, and the tax revenue of the Regent Court was not much left after paying the annual tribute to Li Zicheng...

Even the salaries of ministers in the Regent's court are now paid by the Regent using the income from the royal property.

The Regent has a huge royal industry. The commercial taxes in Nanjing city, weaving, and imperial farms in various places are all controlled by the Regent. Now the commercial taxes in Nanjing city alone are a huge sum of money.

In the past, this was under the control of the garrison commander Han Zanzhou.

In addition, there are rents, which are the confiscated properties of nobles and the royal family. All the properties that are not needed are rented out.

In this way, the regent actually became the largest real estate developer in Nanjing. With the prosperity of industry and commerce and the influx of a large number of exiles from the north, the housing rental market in Nanjing flourished, and most of the rent went into the regent's pocket.

All these added together are enough to pay the ministers' salaries, and anyway, no minister relies on salaries.

As for the salaries of local officials, they are of course paid from local taxes. Similarly, other local expenses are also paid from local taxes. In the past, local taxes had to be sent to the capital and paid to the vassal kings nearby. Now all of these are gone, including local official armies. There are not many recruited soldiers in the south. Most of them are actually guards. After the previous chaos, the remaining recruited soldiers in the hands of the generals are in the hands of Gao Jie, He Tengjiao, Du Yinxi and others. After Gao Jie gained control of the Huaiyang salt industry, the court no longer gave him extra money. The generals under He Tengjiao were supported by Huguang themselves, after all, the gentry in Huguang needed them.

Du Yinxi...

As an insider, if he doesn't look for his boss behind the scenes, does he still expect others to give him money?
He naturally had to find a way to support his several thousand troops on his own. Of course, his teacher Ma Shiqi was still providing him with sufficient funds.

His decisiveness last time had already made the gentry of Southern Zhili see his ability. With this special force of his in Huguang, many problems would be solved.

In addition to the conflict between Fujian and Zhejiang, various conflicts also began to emerge in other provinces. For example, the Jiangxi Elders' Association suddenly announced that due to insufficient summer harvest, it required all localities to restrict the export of grain, or simply to raise prices. This move caused dissatisfaction among the Elders' Associations of Suzhou, Songjiang and Changzhou, the largest buyers, but their dissatisfaction was useless. After all, their cotton cloth was not edible. The gentry in Huguang took advantage of the situation, and the Huguang Elders' Associations also demanded restrictions on the export of grain.

Now Li Zicheng became popular again.

After all, he was the largest buyer of grain in Huguang.

Therefore, Hao Yaoqi increased taxes at the Huangzhou Customs, causing widespread complaints.

Especially in this case, the downstream grain prices will continue to rise, after all, the grain from Huguang to the downstream is subject to tax.

This finally forced Ma Shiying to humbly pull all parties together to negotiate again in Nanjing in order to end this trade war which was clearly a revenge by the Jiangxi gentry.

It's revenge!
However, although the trade war was settled, it also made the gentry in Susongchang and other prefectures realize that their necks had been strangled by grain merchants.

But cutting back on the textile industry is impossible.

Then expand the fishery.

In fact, conflict is inevitable. This is why Yang Feng kept Dorgon. Now because of external threats, they can still sit down and talk, and they can all take the overall situation into consideration and compromise with each other. But without external threats, they probably won't sit down and talk. So even if Dorgon is killed, they must find new threats for them, such as Li Zicheng or even himself.

As for Zheng Zhilong's war in Taiwan, it was not launched until the early winter of the 18th year of Chongzhen.

By this time the typhoon season had passed, and the northwest wind moving south made it easy for his fleet to cross the sea.

In fact, when it comes to the ability at sea, he is much stronger than his son. Zheng Chenggong did not really control the sea, but he had the old people left by his father, and these old people also suffered a lot of losses due to the internal fighting of the Zheng family. But now Zheng Zhilong is in his prime. Not only did he bring up the basic base, but he can mobilize more power than his son. Taiwan is just a name for Zheng Chenggong, but for Zheng Zhilong, it is a place he has set foot on countless times in the past...

Taiwan was developed during the reign of Li Dan. Even after Li Dan's death, Bengang remained the base for his son Li Guozhu and Zheng Zhilong to compete for maritime power.

Zheng Zhilong was familiar with everything there.

It is estimated that there are many of his old friends there. Even before landing, he may have been negotiating with these old friends to resolve some issues that must be resolved.

In the end, his landing was not difficult at all, and it was also easy to defeat the Dutch in a land field battle. The Fujian elders, who had agreed on the distribution of interests, would transfer all the Fujian militia back to him for use in land combat.

But the remaining attack on the newly built Fort Zeelandia will still take time.

That was a real bastion, and a fortified bastion at that. At that time, even most of the bastions in the Netherlands were just rammed earth. Fort Zeelandia, a brick city glued together with syrup, was a very difficult fortress to deal with in Europe. Even if Zheng Zhilong brought a 24-pound cannon, it would be useless. The 24-pound cannon was only the minimum configuration for attacking a fortress of this level. To capture this kind of bastion, it would require a long siege and a large number of artillery shells to wear it down bit by bit.

Of course, that was something he needed to address.

Prince Yang was no longer interested in these things. According to the time he had announced before, Prince Yang was going to start his Northern Expedition.

(End of this chapter)