For today's Ming Dynasty, the two most difficult places to attack are not the grasslands and the Western Regions.
But Annan, the Japanese country.
Although these two countries are very different from the Ming Dynasty, these two small countries caused heavy losses to the former Mongol and Yuan armies.
The two failures to defeat the Japanese did not discourage Kublai Khan, nor did he fear typhoons and the Japanese.
Kublai Khan was not one to give up halfway. Having already taken control of the Central Plains, he was not willing to admit defeat easily.
So he reorganized the army to defeat the Japanese, built sea ships again in various places in the south of the Yangtze River, conducted naval training on a large scale, collected food and fodder, and carried out the third war against the Japanese.
With the experience of two failures, Kublai Khan believed that his Mongolian cavalry would be able to flatten the entire Japanese kingdom.
However, something unexpected happened over at Annan.
Three hundred thousand troops conquered Annan and failed miserably!
There are pirates on the Japanese side, which is not conducive to the Mongolian and Yuan cavalry, but Annan is a land country, how can it defeat the Mongolian Yuan army of 300,000 people.
What a shame!
!
The next year, he once again organized an army of 300,000 elite troops to expedition to Annan.
Defeat again!
Come again!
If Kublai Khan was willing to do so, he would conquer Annan three times.
Unfortunately, at this time, Kublai Khan was seriously ill, and all kinds of ailments struck him, and he collapsed all at once.
The most important thing is the self. As for opening up new territory and expanding the territory, let’s put it aside first.
Once you let it go, it's over.
Those who succeeded him later did not dare to fight.
Meng Yuan, who had lost four consecutive games, was severely damaged, and more than half of its core elite died tragically in a foreign country.
Until now, Annan has stationed troops to conquer the Japanese country.
The Mongolian and Yuan Dynasties failed to capture Annan twice with an army of 300,000 troops. Now, 50,000 elite troops from the Ming Dynasty have taken over the capital of Annan.
Sometimes things like fighting depend not only on strength, but also on timing.
For example, the current Japanese state is actually a good opportunity for the Ming Dynasty.
The war between the Northern and Southern Dynasties did end last year.
However, the special virtual monarch system and the unique emperor system do not mean that the current Japanese country is peaceful.
On the contrary, the accumulated legacy problems are getting worse. Both the victorious Emperor Gokomatsu and the shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu are also facing the situation of insufficient rewards.
This is also why there were invasions by Japanese pirates along the coast. To a large extent, the Japanese pirates’ behavior towards the Ming Dynasty was tacitly tolerated.
It is even believed in many places that those who can steal money from the powerful Ming Dynasty are the real heroes and real warriors.
An army of 500,000 people is equivalent to a quarter of the military strength of the entire Ming Dynasty.
The amount of food and grass consumed every day is an astronomical figure.
Zhu Ying personally inspected the Ministry of Household Affairs and the Ministry of War, and repeatedly issued strict orders to maintain the stability of the army's logistics.
At the same time, it is necessary to speed up the establishment of a maritime channel from Haikou to Jeju Island.
Because one Jeju Island cannot supply rations for an army of 500,000 people.
When the army moves, thousands of loads of food and fodder are brought; when the cannon is fired, thousands of taels of gold are brought.
At this time, food prices in various parts of the Ming Dynasty showed a rapid upward trend.
Hubu lobby.
Zhu Ying said solemnly: "No matter what method is used, even if it is strong pressure, I have to keep the price of food down."
"There must not be any mistakes in the supply of the 500,000-strong army, but at the same time, the price of food in each prefecture must not rise beyond the market price."
Zhao Mian, the Minister of Household Affairs, the ministers on the left and right, and other principals all looked at each other in confusion.
"Your Highness, thanks to the maintenance of the Qunying Chamber of Commerce in the southern Zhili area, food prices are stable with slight fluctuations."
"But the provincial officials were unable to control the market. Landlords and gentry were hoarding grain. Most grain dealers closed their doors and refused to sell. This led to a sharp rise in grain prices."
Zhao Mian said with a bitter smile.
Although the Ministry of Household Affairs controls food and money, its control over money and food is seriously insufficient.
In fact, Zhu Ying was very clear in his heart that there was nothing that could be done about the current situation, whether it was the household department in the capital or the provincial officials.
Market behavior cannot be regulated if desired.
If grain dealers don't sell and landlords don't sell grain, then the Ministry of Household Affairs can only sell grain to stabilize grain prices and fill the grain vacancy.
But now, due to the logistics of the 500,000-strong army, a large amount of food is strictly restricted. Even if some are freed up, it will be a drop in the bucket for the current overall market.
Some large grain merchants, landlords, gentry, and wealthy households even joined forces to continue to receive cheap grain from the government.
This kind of behavior is difficult to combat.
It does not mean that it can be achieved according to the population limit. Grain is purchased secretly at high prices. After some people get the grain, they resell it and get the price difference.
What do you mean by stupid people? In the eyes of stupid people, the government has to take care of things anyway. If you have money and no food, you can only make trouble. The law does not punish the public, and there is nothing to be afraid of.
Some even take a chance and think that if others don't sell it, I will sell it. If I sell it two or three times, I can make a lot of money.
When food prices come down, it will be a huge profit.
How can ordinary people think of these things? It's just someone behind the scenes who is watching, spreading and instigating them.
Zhu Ying had already guessed that the driving force behind this was mainly Shanxi merchants.
Shanxi merchants are simple to say, but extremely complicated to practice.
That represents the people of a province.
The most important thing is the complicated situation in Shanxi.
In the early Ming Dynasty, the mountains and rivers were broken, the population of the Central Plains was withering, and hundreds of wastes were waiting to be revitalized.
However, Shanxi, which is known for its natural dangers and mountains and rivers inside and outside, has not suffered much interference.
The people are relatively stable and the population is large.
In the twenty-five years before Hongwu, he had immigrated several times.
This is the reason why Zhu Ying, who had almost explicitly ordered the Shanxi merchants to be interrogated in the capital, seemed to have only scratched the surface and not been hurt at all.
Shanxi immigration was not only the largest in the early Ming Dynasty, but also the largest, longest-lasting, and most widely distributed in history.
In the early years of the Ming Dynasty, large-scale immigration and reclamation were carried out in order to bring the farming system into full play.
And on top of culture, it also plays a considerable role.
The rule of the Mongolian Yuan Dynasty had a huge impact on the entire Central Plains, especially traditional Han culture.
Zhu Yuanzhang wrote in his message to the Northern Expedition of the Yuan Dynasty from Fengtian: Since ancient times, when emperors came to rule the world, they always lived in Shenzhou to control the barbarians.
Drive out the barbarians, restore China, establish laws and regulations, and rescue the people.
In this century, I haven't heard of anyone who has managed the world and brought peace to the people. I have made you fight with fear. You are in the land of Qin Dynasty and Chu Dynasty. You can be sincere and careful.
After the fall of the Song Dynasty, there is a saying that "there will be no more Central Plains after Yashan".
Influenced by a large number of ethnic minorities, coupled with the deliberate attack by the Mongolian and Yuan rule, at the beginning of the founding of Zhu Yuanzhang, it can be said that the Han family was in decline. The traditional principles, etiquette and morality were no longer the mainstream culture.
But Shanxi is different.
It has a long and rich traditional Han culture, especially southern Shanxi, the hometown of Yao and Shun, which can be said to be the birthplace of Han national culture.
Confucian culture has thoroughly penetrated into the hearts of every Shanxi people.
The immigrants from Shanxi will definitely bring with them the traditional Confucian culture and spread it throughout the Ming Dynasty along with their footsteps.
Due to the impact of the war, large-scale immigrants moved in, which turned the local people into a minority and the immigrants into the majority.
Coupled with the influence of strict laws, relatively backward ethics and morals can be quickly regulated.
Among them, Shanxi immigrants mainly come from the Central Plains and Lianghuai areas, with a few immigrants from other places.
The reason why Shanxi merchants have such a huge advantage in the world chamber of commerce is because of this.
With the ties of clan and blood, merchants traveling out of Shanxi can rely on intra-clan relationships to receive a great degree of protection during their business journey.
This kind of mutual exchange can quickly reach a consensus of interests.
Even with this intricate relationship, even the occurrence of rumors can only clean up the capital and cannot be extended further.
Once the impact is too wide and the impact is too great, it will destabilize the foundation of the Ming Dynasty.
The officials of the Ministry of Revenue were naturally aware of this situation, so even the grandson himself was helpless.
After Zhu Ying thought for a moment, he said in a deep voice: "Since the grain merchants will not sell it and the landowners are hiding it, then order the local officials to measure the land. Anyone who conceals something and fails to report it will be fined and confiscated."
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Book recommendation: Brother, I will never take medicine
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