Chapter 76 Overseas nibbling, civil and military control
The huge army and the successive years of battles were a huge drain on manpower and material resources for the Annan Zheng clan and the Guangnan Nguyen clan. The lack of labor in North Vietnam caused the river embankments to be in disrepair, the farmland to be barren, and there were a variety of exorbitant taxes and miscellaneous taxes.
Life is difficult. In South Vietnam, large-scale land annexation has occurred, the Nguyen nobles are extravagant and licentious, and corruption is particularly serious. The people are in a similar situation.
In terms of military strength, the Zheng family in Annan has an advantage, while the Ruan family in Guangnan has a standing army of only 20,000. However, the Ruan family in Guangnan also has something to rely on, that is, it has more contact with Europeans, especially the Portuguese, and is able to purchase more advanced
They employed European military experts in city defense. Moreover, the geographical situation was favorable to them. The Changyu Barrier and Rilili Barrier built from the sea to Congshan resisted Zheng's several offensives and persisted until 1672.
Although the conflict between the Zheng family in Annan and the Ruan family in Guangnan is irreconcilable and is a life-or-death situation, Zhu Yongxing still adopts a reasonable, well-founded and disciplined cannibalization strategy, forcing both sides, but never forcing the other party to the point of desperate struggle.
, but let them lose their own strength and become weak and exhausted in the battle with each other.
If compared in terms of strategies and tactics, the Ruan family in Guangnan is more clever, and the methods they adopt are somewhat similar to Zhu Yongxing. While competing with the Zheng family, they use the advantages of weapons and equipment and geographical terrain to resist Zheng's attacks, while constantly encroaching
The Champa State's intervention in Chenla's internal affairs was also a way of supplementing the internal affairs with external forces.
Comparing the two, Zhu Yongxing still pays more attention to the Ruan family in Guangnan. Zheng Gen of the Zheng family in Annan is also a figure. Unfortunately, there are still more than ten years before he takes power. Zhu Yongxing can wait and see what happens. Now, Zhu Yongxing is here
A series of raids in the Mekong Delta and an alliance with the Champa Kingdom curbed the Nguyen clan's attempts to supplement the domestic supply from outside the country. They were able to benefit from both sides in the war between the Zheng and Nguyen clans.
To put it bluntly, it is the principle of leverage. The Ming army becomes a small weight that can balance the left and right. With just a little effort on one side, it can tilt the balance of war in its favor. But the Zheng and Ruan families did not dare to
At the risk of being taken advantage of by the other side, he fought with the Ming army and fought.
The Zheng family of Annan, the Ruan family of Guangnan, Champa, Chenla, and Nanming, the situation of mutual checks and balances between the five countries was finally realized by Zhu Yongxing. This should be the best result, without investing too much troops and material resources.
You can profit from it and gain room for development.
"We should not be too impetuous and radical, but we should steadily encroach." Zhu Yongxing gave face-to-face instructions to the incoming military chiefs and deputy chiefs of Mekong Province. They are Lu Guogong Qi Sansheng and Yichuan Bo Gao Qilong. "In addition, we will set out with you."
With 2,000 troops, there will be 7,000 troops stationed in Mekong Province. If they are mobilized among the immigrants, another 2,000 to 3,000 troops can assist in the battle. As long as the troops are used prudently and not impatiently, whether it is the Nguyen clan in Guangnan or Chen La, they will be able to
It will be difficult to defeat our army."
Duke Qi Sansheng of the State of Lu and Bo Gao Qilong of Yichuan listened respectfully. Their eyes followed Zhu Yongxing's fingers as they moved on the map, becoming independent generals. They were both excited and uneasy in their hearts.
"Champa is the weakest. But we still need them as a buffer for the time being. It is not appropriate to have direct contact with the Guangnan Ruan clan immediately." Zhu Yongxing pointed to the position of the Champa Kingdom and said: "We can send troops to help them resist the Guangnan Ruan clan depending on the situation.
The attack is not unconditional, they have to pay for food, grass and military pay."
Duke Qi Sansheng of the State of Lu and Bo Gao Qilong of Yichuan looked at each other and smiled, knowing in their hearts that His Highness Min still had the character of not wanting to suffer any loss. He would not do things for free.
"The direction of Mekong Province's expansion is in the south. It needs to occupy land according to the number of immigrants and slowly take it all into its pocket." Zhu Yongxing patted the Ca Mau Peninsula gently, which borders the South China Sea to the east and Siam to the west.
Luowan’s geographical location is also very important.
"Your Highness, the network of rivers here seems unsuitable for large forces to fight." Qi Sansheng, Duke of Lu, said cautiously: "And it is close to the sea. If there is a naval force to help, we will get twice the result with half the effort."
"The navy can only slowly establish and develop in Mekong Province." Zhu Yongxing said with a little helplessness: "The current task of the South China Sea Fleet is to harass the coasts of Guangdong and Guangxi, and it can't get out. Fortunately, there is no need to rush, it will take two or three years.
There will always be a way."
"Zhenla is weak. Even without a navy, it is no match for our army." Although Yichuan Bo Gao Qilong didn't know much about the financial situation, he knew that Zhu Yongxing had worked hard and moved here and there to maintain the current situation. It was already quite difficult, so
I don’t want to ask for too much.
"We are weak, but why hasn't the country been destroyed?" Zhu Yongxing gave his own answer without waiting for Qi Sansheng and Gao Qilong to answer, "Nan Ruan dug nails into the firewood sticks, slowly expanded, and continued to invade the south and occupy the city, and
Interfering with the succession of the throne of Chenla and forcing Chenla to offer land as reward is all for the purpose of cannibalization. It is easy to devour whales, but the population of the Yue people cannot keep up, and the military strength must be thin, so it will be difficult to deal with Beizheng's attack. We also have to
In this way, we must expand slowly without defeating the enemy, and the foundation must be solid, and we must not indulge in immediate pleasure and sow long-term hidden dangers.”
In nearly half a century of fierce fighting between the North and the South, Bei Zheng mobilized up to 100,000 troops, while Nan Ruan, which has a vast territory and a sparse population, only had about 20,000 standing troops. With limited manpower and material resources, Nan Ruan fought hard in the seven Zheng-Nuan wars.
China was able to protect itself even enough to take the initiative in the Northern Expedition. This is inseparable from the fact that successive Nguyen rulers spared no effort to carry out in-depth development and construction of southern Vietnam.
But now, Zhu Yongxing formed an alliance to occupy the city, which curbed the Ruan family's southward expansion. If they did not want a large-scale war with the Ming army, the Ruan family could only invade Chenla to the west, or attack Nanzhang to the northwest. According to the current Zheng-Nguyen war
In a stalemate, Zhu Yongxing believed that the Ruan family would probably not be stupid enough to choose the former.
"War serves politics." Zhu Yongxing said the final point, his eyes swept across the faces of Qi Sansheng and Gao Qilong, "Mekong Province is far away overseas, and communication and communication take a lot of time. It is inconvenient for me to directly command and give orders, so Mekong Province is needed
Civil and military forces complement each other, unite sincerely, and make decisions when the opportunity arises."
The Ming Dynasty established the country by force and accepted the lessons of the Song Dynasty. At first, it did not adopt the policy of suppressing military force with civility. On the contrary, it greatly raised the level of military attachés. Zhu Yuanzhang, the emperor of the Ming Dynasty, also clearly stipulated that civil servants could not be granted the title of prince, but could only be granted the title of earl at the highest level, and he also set up the highest military organization
There are five governors' offices for the central army, left army, right army, front army and rear army. The left and right governors of each office are all of the first rank; the deputy governors are all of the same rank, from the first rank, and the governors of Qianshi are the second rank.
Moreover, the commanders of the imperial guards are all of the third rank, and the military commanders of each province are of the second rank. They are higher than the chief executive of the province (the second rank). The commanders of the local guards are also the third rank.
A thousand households in a household office are in the fifth grade, and a hundred households in a hundred household office are in the sixth grade, both of which are much higher than the county magistrate (the seventh grade).
However, this series of military attachés became inoperable after the mid-Ming Dynasty. The imperial court successively set up "general soldiers" in various places as the commander-in-chief of a certain unit, and appointed other mid-level officers such as generals, guerrillas, and garrison officers as commanders of grassroots units.
Above these military attaches, those with theater command authority were often civilian officials sent by the imperial court to serve as "admirals," "governors," and "managers."
Zhu Yongxing knew very well the disadvantages of using culture to suppress force or using culture to control force. But he also knew the harm of generals disobeying orders, threatening their own troops, or killing indiscriminately.
Therefore, the politicization of the army is a restrictive measure. This will not only enhance the cohesion and combat effectiveness of the army, but also the idea of loyalty and patriotism will slowly penetrate into the hearts of every soldier. Although political work has not developed for a long time, political officials
His experience is still insufficient. But as time goes by, Zhu Yongxing is still confident about it.
Before the politicization of the military reaches a satisfactory level, Zhu Yongxing needs to suppress the signs of using civil society to control military force and use flexible methods to straighten the relationship between the military and the government.
"Disharmony between civil and military forces will bring great harm to the country. Please rest assured, Your Highness, I will definitely obey the orders of the Zong Governor. I will never dare to make my own decisions." Qi Sansheng and Gao Qilong exchanged glances, and Qi Sansheng made a guarantee to Zhu Yongxing. In the text
Both of them had heard about the plan to use force, and now it seemed that it was about to be implemented.
"Separation of military and political affairs is a policy that must be implemented in the future. You don't have to worry." Zhu Yongxing seemed to have seen through the two people's thoughts and said with a smile: "But according to the current situation, there is no way to mix the military and political affairs. Zong Shou
Yi can order the battle, but how to fight is decided by you and the staff after discussion, and he has no right to interfere."
This is a modification. Whether to fight or not is in the hands of civilian officials, but it is still up to the military commanders to decide how to fight. The advantage of this is that there are mutual constraints, and it avoids the shortcomings of laymen commanding experts.
"Your Highness is wise." Qi Sansheng and Gao Qilong were worried about being blindly commanded by civilian officials who did not understand military matters. Now that they have a lot of autonomy, they are somewhat satisfied.
Zhu Yongxing discussed the situation in Indochina with the two of them, and after feeling that there were no omissions, he held a casual banquet for the two of them. After the banquet, Zhu Yongxing personally sent the two of them to the door of the house, and then returned to the office to continue working.
Haiphong already had commercial tax revenue, coined money began to circulate in Dian Province, tea, realgar and other products were also exported to earn foreign exchange. In addition to the profits from mirrors, Zhu Yongxing used the money to purchase armaments and expanded his army by 15,000.
.Among them, two thousand soldiers will go to Mekong Province, and the remaining places will be allocated to the three theaters in Yunnan Province.
The expansion of the army caused a big gap in money and food, so Zhu Yongxing adopted the method of borrowing food from the people. The people lent the government one hundred catties of grain, and the government would return one hundred fifty catties after one year, or pay the tax amount.
This method can work, firstly, the interest rate of nearly 50% is very tempting, and secondly, after the recovery of the place, a season of sweet potatoes will be replanted, so that the people will not starve after lending the government food.
The army cannot use sweet potatoes for supply, but it is different for the common people. "Half-year food of melons and vegetables" can fill their bellies and avoid war, which is happiness. When these ordinary people realize that the victory or defeat of the war is closely related to their lives
time, they will not be numb and stingy.
Although Zhu Yongxing is actually "eating and eating grains", he does not have too much worry. Crops such as sweet potatoes, potatoes, and corn are being promoted. The climate in Yunnan Province is warm and humid, and there is no problem with rice being harvested two to three times a year. As long as
If the current standoff can be maintained, the food shortage will be alleviated in half a year. And the Mekong Delta, a fertile land with three to four crops a year, can be self-sufficient in one season, and can be self-sufficient in two to three seasons, even including the time for cultivation and cultivation.
There will be plenty of food.
"Next year will be better!"
The sun was bright, the sky was blue, and the air was fresh. When Zhu Yongxing finished handling his official duties, stretched his arms, and walked out of the house, he let out a heartfelt sigh.
……………
"Will it be better next year?"
Jin King Li Dingguo slowed down his horse and looked at the neat rice fields on the roadside. The busy farmers let out a long breath.
The morale of the military and the people is more united, which can be seen from the mental outlook of the people. There are smiles on the faces and cheers in the mouths. The new land tax policy has given the people the motivation to work. The speed of recovery after the war is amazing.
Jin King Li Dingguo greatly admired Zhu Yongxing's wisdom and ability and asked himself that it was absolutely impossible for him to implement a relatively benevolent policy, expand territory, and fight against the Qing army.
Everyone rushed through the village and saw more than a hundred people in the open space outside the village, wielding guns and knives, practicing advancing and retreating. Although their clothes were different and their movements were irregular, they still had some momentum when shouting.
Li Dingguo smiled slightly, is this mobilizing the people? These ordinary people train every seven days. No matter how well they can be trained, they are no longer just people who just cry and beg for mercy and lead their necks to be killed. The Qing army wants to be like before.
I'm afraid it will be difficult to sweep across and wreak havoc.
A group of people traveled another twenty miles and arrived at Xiazhuang Town, the place where the military meeting was held. What was a little unexpected was that not only Zhao Wang Bai Wenxuan, but also the governor-general's department were waiting here to greet him.
Title: Nasong, the governor of Yunnan.
After a brief chat, everyone went into the house to talk. Only then did Li Dingguo learn that Na Song's proposal to move his residence to Dali had been approved by Zhu Yongxing. This time he came to meet the frontline generals and catch up with old acquaintances such as Li Dingguo.
"His Royal Highness Min has moved to Mengzi. How can it be justified for me to stay in Yongchang?" Na Song laughed and explained his thoughts to Li Dingguo and Bai Wenxuan, "Although you can't go into battle to fight, you must do your duty and let the two of you do your best.
Your Majesty, you can concentrate on fighting and have nothing to worry about."
"It is indeed a happy event for the Governor to sit in Dali." Bai Wenxuan said with a smile: "We meet old friends again. Let's get drunk tonight."
Li Dingguo smiled and nodded repeatedly, and said: "That's right. Counting the time, I'm afraid we haven't seen each other for almost two years. The war is going on, and we will be very close in the future, so we probably won't be able to get together often. It's really nice to have a drink and chat today.
One piece.”
"Not just one happy thing?" Na Song chuckled, looked at each other and Bai Wenxuan, and said, "His Royal Highness Jin arrived late and has not yet learned the content of His Highness Min's letter. We will know the truth after reading it."