Invincible Zhengde

Chapter 163 I'm Going to the Northwest

After Liu Jin sorted out all the maps and old files, Zhu Houzhao sat helplessly on the chair and tapped the table expressionlessly.

Obviously, for Northern Xinjiang and Mongolian Yuan, what is needed is a grand strategy, instead of fighting here or there like now, it doesn't make much sense at all.Once this grand strategy is formulated and implemented, it will not be a short-term matter. It may last for more than ten years or even twenty years, during which a lot of manpower and material resources will be required.

To be honest, Zhu Houzhao really didn't want to spend too much effort and spend so much manpower and material resources on Northern Xinjiang.

The Little Ice Age is about to enter, and life in northern Xinjiang will actually become more difficult. In addition, the production in the north is too small. With this energy, manpower and material resources, is it not good to go south?Whether it is Annan or Jiaozhi, they can provide themselves with a lot of resources, especially food.Isn't it good to build a navy to go to sea?In this colonial era, there was nothing in the sea.

But the problem is that Northern Xinjiang threatens and involves you. It makes trouble every year, beats you every year, robs you here today, and robs your place tomorrow.

Anyway, in a word, there is no one day without rest. Once you are a little weaker, they will pounce on you and bite you, which is endlessly annoying.

With a sigh of relief, Zhu Houzhao stood up and walked to the door, looked up at the slightly gloomy sky, Zhu Houzhao knew it was time to make a decision.What should I do, whether to go from north to south, or from south to north, this decision is actually not easy to make, because few omissions are a big problem.

First go north and then go south. Needless to say, build cavalry, equip the frontier army, change the border town army from a military household system to a recruiting system, weed out the old and weak, train new troops while opening military schools, and train low-level officers.

It will take a long time to establish the Central Martial Arts School, train senior generals, and build the army of the Beijing camp and border towns from top to bottom. At the same time, it will require a lot of money and energy. Once this step is completed, Zhu Houzhao will be able to lead people to sweep across the desert. , bringing the entire Monan Mongolia into the territory of Ming Dynasty, making it a horse grazing land of Ming Dynasty.

Once this goal is achieved, his prestige will be at the peak of the sky, and he will go south with the general trend, sweep the southeast, reform the tax system, and then build ships and go to sea to attack the southern border.

According to this grand strategy, Zhu Houzhao doesn't know if he can finish it, even if he dies, he may not finish it.

If you start from the south to the north, you need to build a navy, organize and train the navy, then clean up the big smugglers along the southeast coast, open up the sea, then lead overseas colonization, improve the national power, then reform the tax system, complete the internal adjustment, and then train the new army and straighten it out. Frontier defense, finally sending troops to fight north, and Mobei will be settled in the first battle.

"It would be great if it can bloom twice!" After a while, Zhu Houzhao sighed softly and said with a wry smile.

Of course, Zhu Houzhao also knows that this kind of thinking can only be thought about, and it must not be done. Both are big things, and there are no small things.Once the two bloom, the most likely thing is that neither side will be able to bloom, leading to the collapse of the country and the death of the people. At that time, it will be the worst. Starting from one side and stabilizing the other side is the best policy.

"We still have to start from the north!" Zhu Houzhao's eyes gradually became firm, and he had made up his mind.

Of course, this is not because Zhu Houzhao is so attached to the north, but because the reality forces you to make such a choice.

Dayan Khan, who has risen in northern Xinjiang, is a remarkable figure. If he is not dealt with, there will be no peace in northern Xinjiang, even if he wants to maintain the status quo.The current northern Xinjiang is like a paper tiger, which can be broken as soon as it is poked. Under such circumstances, once Dayan Khan raises his troops to attack, northern Xinjiang will soon be corrupted, and it will even affect the capital.

At that time, the reform in the south will be halfway through, what should we do?There is trouble at home and abroad, can't you make it through?
Don't be in a hurry to reform. Once you start to worry about it, you may cause some troubles, but Dayan Khan in northern Xinjiang will not give you so much time.

This is already the case in the south, as long as you don't move, it is possible to maintain the status quo, at worst, you can find ways to make money from other places, anyway, Qiqizhai has already been established.Violent industries such as glass can be engaged in a little more, and the money earned will be used to raise and train soldiers. After cleaning up the north, they will come back to reform and clean up the southern Xinjiang.

"It's really difficult!" Zhu Houzhao took a breath, and said helplessly, this matter must be done as soon as possible, because if he concentrates on the north, the Japanese pirates from the south will come soon, and the southeast will have to make trouble by then. I don't know if Qi Jiguang was born or not. This person has to use himself well. Was Zhang Juzheng born?

Withdrawing his thoughts, Zhu Houzhao began to think about what he should do. Now that he has decided to go north first and then go south, it is time to start formulating specific action strategies.

"Go to Northern Xinjiang to take a look first!" Zhu Houzhao murmured, this time the Northwest himself is really going, and he will go to the fire screening for a while.

In the next few days, Zhu Houzhao devoted most of his energy to this matter, but Zhu Houzhao remained calm on the surface. He couldn't let people know that he was going to the northwest to fight a battle, especially with Huozhai. battle.If people knew about it, then I probably wouldn't be able to go to the fire screening this time, and neither my father nor mother would let me go.

After all, northern Xinjiang is no better than Yangzhou. Yangzhou is very peaceful and the conditions are good. Going there by yourself is considered a vacation.

But the northwest can be the same, the northwest is a bitterly cold place, and there is still war, whether it is contracted cold and sick, or accidentally injured in the war, it is possible, the danger is too great.If you are exposing some radical ideas, you will probably be strangled to death in your heart, and it is impossible to let you go.

So although Zhu Houzhao showed a strong interest, it was all for the purpose of theory and learning. Of course, it was like this on the surface.

The imperial court had quarreled for a long time over this matter, and in the end there were probably two factions, one was the one proposed by Wang Jia, the fire sieve was not to be feared, the little prince was not to be feared, and Daming had practiced his internal skills, so he could hang them at any time.The fire screen occupies the Hetao, let him occupy it, and wipe him out in a few years.

The second thought is to organize the army to prepare for war, search for traps, not only to beat the fire back, but also to destroy him.

The two sides are arguing endlessly. In Zhu Houzhao's view, this kind of debate is meaningless and all of them are not operable.

Needless to say, the first one is easy to say. If there is no money and no one, what should we do to clean it up?The defense may be able to defend, but it is basically unrealistic to want to play.The second type is even more nonsense, no money, no soldiers, and going out is to deliver food to the fire sieve, and there will be no other functions at all.

However, the fire sieve must be beaten, and it must be beaten hard, but it has to be done on its own, and those people at the border gate can't do it.

The two sides quarreled for a long time, but reached an agreement on one thing, that is, to send someone to the northwest, and this person must understand the army, and must be an important minister. To put it bluntly, he must have prestige and ability.After reaching an agreement on this matter, the ministers began to quarrel over the issue of candidates.

Zhu Houzhao didn't know what to say. Anyway, he was really dissatisfied with this efficiency. If it was a political matter, it would be fine, but this is military affairs. Such a waste of time is a waste of opportunity.

But Zhu Houzhao also knew that this was not something he should manage, and he couldn't participate in it, so he turned his attention back to the salt administration.

"Your Highness, this is the list of salt merchants selected by the Department of Salt and Iron!" Shouning Hou Zhang Heling handed a list to Zhu Houzhao, and said with a bright smile on his face, he has made a fortune these days, and it's all money what!Zhang Heling couldn't suppress the excitement in his heart when he thought about how much it would cost once the new salt administration started to operate in the future.

Zhu Houzhao glanced at Zhang Heling, then picked up the list and flipped through it, and finally said: "Those who are not selected, remember to send the money back!"

Zhang Heling was stunned when he heard this, and then the smile on his face froze, and he said with some embarrassment: "Go back?"

Nodding, Zhu Houzhao didn't look up, and said directly: "Return it, if you can't get things done, you won't be charged. You have to give people such an impression. If you still get money if you can't get things done, you will be scolded by people poking your spine. In the future, if someone is giving you a gift, then you have to think about it carefully, and if you return the money, then there are rules and principles."

"In the future, there will be more people looking for you, your reputation will be better, and they will send you more money. Anyway, if things don't work out, you can get the money back."

Zhang Heling still felt a little distressed in his heart, but he didn't dare not listen to what the prince's nephew said. Although he didn't quite understand the meaning of what the prince's highness said, it didn't prevent him from following through.

Since I worked with the prince's nephew, the money came like water, too fast and easy.Zhang Heling even felt like he was in a dream. Is this still money?Why was it so difficult to make some money by myself before.In addition to money, my status is really rising. Although people respected you before, they kept them at a respectful distance, and they wished to stay away from you.

Those honorable and veteran relatives look down on me even more, but now?Wherever he went, people would come up to say hello, shouting one by one, smiling, with a respectful attitude.

Needless to say, these benefits, since following his prince and nephew, he has never missed it, and all the things he asked himself to do have been realized.Under such circumstances, it is naturally impossible for Zhang Heling to refute Zhu Houzhao, even if he is distressed about money, he will not refuse.

"Okay, let's do this after we go back!" Zhang Heling nodded and said, "Is there anything else I should do?"

Glancing at Zhang Heling, Zhu Houzhao thought for a while and said, "Is this list made by Qi You of Yantie Division?"

(End of this chapter)