With the establishment of the Third Division of Liaodong, there were many official vacancies in various yamen.
In the fifth year of the Apocalypse, the scholars selected from the county and township examinations in Liaodong almost directly obtained official positions, which was much faster than those who took the joint examinations and palace examinations and passed the imperial examinations to supplement their official positions.
To be honest, the imperial examination field is basically dominated by southerners. These people know how much ink they have in their stomachs.
If they had not taken the shortcut of the Liaodong imperial examination, it would still be very difficult for them to become officials.
In particular, although most of the scholars were minor officials of the eighth or ninth grade, the salary of officials in Liaodong was much higher than that of officials in Ming Dynasty, so they were still very attractive.
Especially the bonus system, the bonus for good work is higher than the annual salary.
Although they had some thoughts about the gentry's payment of grain, now that even the Duke of Liao's own farm had paid land tax, there was nothing to complain about in terms of the thin farmland at home.
In fact, there are not many big landowners in Liaodong. The largest landowner is Li Xianzhong himself, and then the official land under the Wei Suo. Now the official land is also subject to taxes.
Most of the rest are bureaucrats from various places and their relatives. These people are now vested interests in the Liaodong system and will not fall out with Li Xianzhong just because of this land tax.
Those who want to fall out or attempt to fall out must report directly to the Lord of Hell.
It is precisely because of this particularity that Liaodong easily completed the taxation of all land.
This is unique in Ming Dynasty!
Thanks to Li Xianzhong's continuous development of business, officials in Liaodong are actually very clear that business is now the main direction of local development.
As the population in Liaodong continues to increase, farming will certainly not be able to provide employment for everyone.
Although vigorous efforts have been made to develop new land, Liaodong currently has less than 6 million acres of farmland, but has a population of 3.58 million and 120,000 North Korean workers.
If it were not for high-yield crops such as sweet potatoes and potatoes, and the continuous flow of food from Taiwan and Jiangnan to Liaodong, there would be no way to feed these people.
The industry in Liaodong is basically dominated by the government.
Most of the people in Pinglubao have now become the earliest workers in Liaodong.
The original workshops were integrated by Li Xianzhong into a factory under the Liaodong Chief Envoy Department.
It is certainly impossible for private capital to enter the military industry.
The Liaodong Arsenal located in Pinglubao is currently the largest factory in Liaodong.
It consists of a gun factory, an artillery factory, an armor factory, a cotton clothing factory, a steel factory, an ammunition factory, and a research institute.
In addition, there are exclusive iron mines and coal mines. There are more than 50,000 craftsmen, miners and R&D personnel under the Liaodong Arsenal.
Liaodong Arsenal, like Yingkou Shipyard and Lushun Shipyard, is under the Military Industry Department under the Liaodong Chief Envoy Department.
Of course, there are also some civilian factories, such as cement factories, brick factories, ceramic factories, glass factories, copper products factories, wool products factories, briquette factories, livestock farms, etc., which are also subordinate to the Industrial Department under the Liaodong Chief Envoy Department.
These factories also recruit many people.
In addition, businessman Liang San is in charge of the Liaodong Trade Department and is responsible for selling products under the Industrial Department and the Military Industry Department to other regions.
Of course, overseas trade is still handed over to Dongliuqiu Company. The Trading Department is only responsible for selling Liaodong products to the Daming Pass, the Mongolian grasslands and North Korea.
The influx of a large number of merchants has opened up many inns, brothels, restaurants, shops, and goods stores in big cities such as Kaiyuan and Liaoyang. Therefore, these industries also need to recruit a large number of workers to work in the service industry.
The movement of large quantities of goods also requires the employment of many manpower for transportation services.
In addition to the primary industry of agriculture in Liaodong today, the secondary industry is also gradually taking shape, and the service industry of the tertiary industry is booming.
After Liaodong became a vassal town, the financial pressure suddenly became much greater.
Therefore, Li Xianzhong signed trade agreements with Portugal, the Netherlands, and Spain, allowing them to trade in Liaodong.
Li Xianzhong gave them a tax of two out of ten.
The porcelain, wool carpets, glass and copper products produced in Liaodong were favored by them.
In particular, Liaodong's glass far exceeded the Italian glass products of the same period in both transparency and size, allowing them to see huge business opportunities.
Of course, Li Xianzhong's asking price is not low. It is estimated that the glass alone can increase Liaodong's income by millions of taels of silver every year.
Li Xianzhong also successfully sold glass back to Europe!
In fact, they were also interested in cement and steel, but these were military controlled products and Li Xianzhong refused to sell them to them.
Once these things are given to them, it will inevitably strengthen their colonial rule and increase the difficulty of seizing the colonies from them in the future.
Li Xianzhong built a commercial port near Lushun Military Port as a trading port for these foreigners.
Jinzhou Wei, where Lushun Port is located, originally had the largest population and the most developed economy among all the counties in southern Liaoning.
It was just the rise of Yingkou Port that caused the Gaizhou Guard and Yaozhou Guard around Yingkou to develop greatly.
Jinzhou is also known as Dalian in later generations. In fact, the port conditions are much better than Yingkou. I believe that over time, the development potential of Jinzhou, a port city, will be stimulated.
After seeing the powerful warships of the Liaodong Navy, these European bandits finally understood who was behind the sudden appearance of the "Eastern Ryukyu Company".
Since the Portuguese occupied Macau and could conduct stable trade with the Ming Dynasty for a long time, they naturally gave up the idea of using force.
The Spaniards have been honest since they were beaten by the East Ryukyu Company in Taiwan.
The Dutch were different from them, although the strength of the East Ryukyu Company and the Liaodong Navy made them give up the use of force.
However, these cunning Dutch people were keenly aware of the subtle relationship between Liaodong and the Ming Dynasty.
Recalling that the Ming court had previously requested drawings of flintlock guns and medium-sized Galen ships, Song Ke quickly guessed that the court was trying to deal with Liaodong.
So in order to reverse the trade deficit, the Dutch began to sell artillery and a large number of firecrackers to the Ming Dynasty at high prices.
When thousands of flintlock muskets and 20 18-pound red cannons were sent to Yanzhou, the firepower of the Yulin Battalion was unprecedentedly strengthened.
After Sun Chengzong received Zhu Youxiao's instructions, he mobilized 30,000 Ming troops from Shandong, Henan, Nanzhili and other places to Yanzhou and handed them over to Zuo Liangyu for command!
In this way, the Ming army under Zuo Liangyu reached 50,000.
After receiving additional troops, Zuo Liangyu resumed the encirclement and suppression of the White Lotus Sect.
However, the rebels of the White Lotus Sect still took advantage of the range advantage of the Rumi gun in their hands and the terrain of Shuibo Liang Mountain to effectively block the attack of the official army.
But the appearance of these heavy artillery broke the balance.
With the help of the 18-pound Hongyi cannon, the dangerous mountain strongholds occupied by the rebels were quickly blasted away by artillery.
Then the official army relied on their absolute superiority in strength to attack. Only a few of these White Lotus followers were Liaodong frontier troops, and most of them were just farmers who had been trained for a while.
It's okay for them to defend according to the danger, but once they enter this kind of cruel hand-to-hand combat, they will not be able to withstand it when they fight more with less.
At this moment, Cao Wenzhao was seen taking the lead with a spear in his hand and charging into the stronghold. His eyes were sharp and full of murderous intent.
The spear in his hand shone in the sun, dancing like a silver snake. Every thrust was accompanied by a scream.
In a short time, dozens of White Lotus believers died tragically under his gun.
Soon the officers and soldiers completely occupied the wall.
"Bang, bang, bang"
As a burst of white smoke rose, more than 20 officers and soldiers fell into a pool of blood!
Even Cao Wenzhao's right arm was penetrated by the fire gun!
Cao Wenzhao endured the pain and shouted: "The Immortal Cave is where the bandit leader is. Brothers, go into the cave and capture the bandit leader and you will be rewarded!"
Soon the officers and soldiers shouted slogans and rushed towards the Immortal Cave not far away.
At this time, several soldiers stopped Cao Wenzhao, who was about to continue charging, and said: "General Cao, there are not many bandits left, you should treat your injuries first!"
In front of the Immortal Cave, Wang Shouyu of the Nine-Rank Lotus Platform of the White Lotus Sect shouted loudly: "Smash the Rumi gun, everyone will follow me and fight with the army!"
Soon after, more than 20 members of the White Lotus cult wearing white lotus robes rushed towards the officers and soldiers with swords and guns in hand.
I originally thought that these remnants of the White Lotus Sect were just fighting against trapped beasts and would be wiped out soon.
Unexpectedly, as soon as the two sides fought, the officers and soldiers were killed by the bandits in an instant, and the officers and soldiers of several hundred people were actually defeated by more than 20 bandits.
To be honest, Cao Wenzhao has been following Zuo Liangyu to suppress bandits for more than half a year. After dozens of battles, he has never encountered such a fierce bandit.
Just as he was about to fight again with a gun, he was stopped by Zuo Liangyu on the side!
Zuo Liangyu said: "The fire gunman is ready!"
Soon the hundreds of Ming army gunners on the wall raised their flintlock guns.
"Bang, bang, bang"
The thieves and bandits who looked like murderous gods just now were shot and fell to the ground.
Although several officers and soldiers who were entangled with the bandits were killed by their own firecrackers, these casualties were nothing at all!
A captured White Lotus cultist pointed to the corpse on the ground and said: "This is the ninth-grade Lotus Platform King Shouyu. He is the great protector personally appointed by King Xifan of Hejian!"
Zuo Liangyu said with disdain: "I thought they were really invulnerable, but it turns out they were just wearing heavy cotton armor!"
This Wang Shouyu had been entangled with him for more than two months by taking advantage of the terrain, and now he finally killed him. Finally, the bad breath in Zuo Liangyu's heart was relieved!
However, the casualties of the Ming army were not small. Although nearly 20,000 White Lotus Sect remnants were annihilated and defeated, the official army itself also suffered more than 8,000 casualties.
Cao Wenzhao said: "The terrain of this Immortal Cave is so narrow that our army cannot deploy. However, this is the last outer lair of the bandits. Next, we can attack Wang Xifan's lair, Guijianchou."
"Ghosts See Sorrow" is actually a fortress built by Wang Xifan on an island in Anshan Lake.
It is built on the mountain, which is very dangerous. In addition, it is surrounded by water on all sides, so the artillery of the army cannot hit there at all from the shore.
In desperation, Zuo Liangyu had no choice but to order his sergeants to board a boat to land on the island to fight!
Due to Cao Wenzhao's previous injury, the task of landing and seizing the island was handed over to Henan Commander-in-Chief Zhang Chao.
Soon Zhang Chao commanded five thousand officers and soldiers in more than two hundred small boats to launch an attack on the bastion where Wang Xifan was located.
However, they soon discovered that there were not many places suitable for landing around the island, and the bandits had artificially installed many stone pillars underwater.
They didn't know that most boats in the waterway couldn't normally get close to the shore.
Moreover, these bandits not only have long-range firecrackers, they are even equipped with artillery.
As soon as they approached the bandit's lair, they were attacked by the bandit's firecrackers.
The officers and soldiers were unable to fight back at all and could only be passively beaten.
On the first day of the attack, more than 500 officers and soldiers were killed, but none of them even managed to reach the island!
The next day, Zuo Liangyu ordered the Yulin camp to bring the Dutch's guns and attack with Lumi's guns.
However, the range of the thieves' firecrackers still exceeded theirs.
Even Zuo Liangyu was puzzled. They knew that these White Lotus cultists used Rumi guns, but even if they used the captured Rumi guns, they still couldn't shoot as far as the thieves' fire guns.
Fortunately, after several days of exploration, they finally figured out the waterway to the island.
But who knows that this is the beginning of the nightmare. The big landing site is full of traps dug by thieves.
They hardly took a step before they fell into the trap dug by the bandits in advance, and were impaled to death by the sharpened wooden stakes inside.
There is no way to attack the city.
After trying more than ten times, more than 3,000 officers and soldiers were killed, but they still could not touch the city wall of the bandits.
In the end Zuo Liangyu had to give up.
This group of White Lotus sect is really difficult to deal with. He has been confronting them in Yanzhou for half a year, and now he has been attacking them for several months but still cannot win.
His Majesty was unwilling to listen to his good advice in recruiting this gang of bandits, but now he has lost his troops and generals, spent countless money and food, and also delayed his own future.
In desperation, Zuo Liangyu had to write to the court, requesting the court to build a shipyard directly by the lake to build giant ships.
Then install all these heavy artillery on the battleships, and use the battleships to suppress the firepower of the bandits, and then it is possible to break the city!
The battle in Yanzhou also affected the hearts of Liaodong generals.
Li Sanshun and others formulated several plans, including sending troops to pretend to be bandits to initiate rebellions in other places in Shandong, and even pretending to be Japanese pirates to directly occupy Dengzhou.
However, Zuo Liangyu won't be able to take down the bastion for a while, so let's consider these as backup plans for now.
At this time, Beilebuhe from the Horqin Left Wing Alliance came to Kaiyuan City.
The elders of Horqin, Beilemanggus, Ming'an and others have all passed away one after another. Now Bu Hezhang is Li Xianzhong's father-in-law. After several years of fighting, he has gradually taken control of the three left-wing alliances of Horqin.
Of course, Li Xianzhong did not want Horqin to unify Mongolia, so he did not give his father-in-law any substantial help.
He was just given the title of "Hurhan" and allowed him to nominally command the Horqin tribes and alliances.
But now he has taken Hai Lanzhu as his concubine, and Hai Lanzhu has also given birth to a son for himself. Although he is not a legitimate son, he is still more valuable than the son.
Moreover, his youngest daughter Bumu Butai is now 13. This little girl has been with him for five or six years and it is impossible for her to marry anyone else.
Even if Li Xianzhong was willing to let her go, no one would dare to marry her!
Li Xianzhong needed to rely on the power of the Horqin tribe to control the situation on the grassland, so Li Xianzhong still gave him a grand welcome ceremony.
Bu He said: "This time I have brought 500 horses and 1,000 fat sheep, and I hope the Duke of Liao will accept them."
Li Xianzhong doesn't lack these things now, but after all, they are his father-in-law's wishes and he can't refuse them.
And he has to reciprocate the gift.
The old guy with feelings is here to take advantage of himself.
Buhe said: "I came here this time to visit my nephew Li Yaozu, and secondly, my daughter Bumu Butai is now 13. In the words of you Han people, this is the 'cardamom years', and I hope that she will It can also give me another grandson!”
It seems that the little girl Bumbutai is a little impatient. In the Ming Dynasty, she was indeed able to have a bridal chamber at her age.
But Li Xianzhong still feels a bit young, he is not a lolita control.
Pregnancy at a young age can easily lead to dystocia, which is actually not good for both mother and child.
He said: "Bumbutai has been with me for so long. It will be a matter of time. Kurhan will be able to have a grandson within three years."
Hearing Li Xianzhong's statement that he would marry his youngest daughter, Bu He's wrinkled old face smiled like a flower.
Said: "This is very good!"
"I came here this time because I heard some news. I wonder if my virtuous son-in-law has ever heard of the Jade Seal of the State?"
Li Xianzhong was very familiar with the Jade Seal of the Kingdom. After the First Emperor unified the six countries, he ordered Li Si to make the Heshi Bi into the Jade Seal of the Kingdom. On it, there were eight characters engraved on it: "Ordered by Heaven, you will live forever". The first of the "Seven Seals of the Emperor".
Although there are actually seven jade seals in total, the jade seals referred to in the past dynasties are mostly "chuanguo seals" made of He's jade.
The value of this jade seal far exceeds the other six, and it is a symbol of orthodoxy in the world.
But it is a pity that after 936 AD, Emperor Li Congke of the late Tang Dynasty saw his army invade the imperial city and was unable to recover. He took the jade seal with him and burned himself in the fire together with the Queen Zhou clan. The whereabouts of the Chuanguo jade seal were ultimately unknown and would never see the light of day.
From then on, there was no trace of this Heshi Bi.
Of course, after that, there were people in the Song, Yuan and Ming dynasties who claimed to have found He's Bi, but they were all probably imitations.
Li Xianzhong said: "Did Kurhan talk about 'He's Bi'?"
Bu He said: "It is this treasure. There is news that this jade seal was brought to Mobei by Emperor Yuan Shun. Due to his hasty escape, this jade seal was eventually lost in the desert."
"A few years ago, a herder accidentally picked up this jade seal in the desert. This jade seal was circulated several times and finally fell into the hands of Lin Dan Khan."
Li Xianzhong remembered that this jade seal finally fell into the hands of Huang Taiji, who changed the country's name to "Qing".
However, this jade seal was later identified as a fake by Qianlong.
Qianlong was not very discerning and would often identify fakes as genuine. Even he said they were fake, so it was probably "fake at first glance".
But in fact, it doesn't matter whether the jade seal is true or false. Ordinary people can't tell the true from the false. What they lack now is just an excuse to rebel against the truth.
If you get Qian Yuan's jade seal, wouldn't it mean that you are destined by destiny!
When the fake is real, the real is also fake. As long as he breaks into the Forbidden City and sits in the Golden Palace, who dares to say that this jade seal is fake?
Lin Dan Khan and Zai Sai have been fighting each other for supremacy for several years, and they must be exhausted by now!
If he takes over the land he occupies in the Monan Yin Mountain Loop, he can directly border the nine sides of the Ming Dynasty. At this time, it will be much easier to take advantage of Shaanxi.
Li Xianzhong said: "He's Bi is destined to belong to destiny. Since I have let you know the news, I can't miss this God-given opportunity."
"Hurhan, I still need Horqin's cavalry to send troops to help me!"
Bu He said excitedly: "Horqin's three left-wing alliances are willing to serve the Duke of Liao."
The Liaodong general was also extremely excited when he heard the news.
Li Sanshun even said: "The Duke of Liao is indeed the chosen one. With this jade seal passed down from generation to generation, we are justified!"
Scholars such as Yan Mingtai and Fan Wencheng certainly knew that this jade seal passed down from the country was probably unreliable.
However, they had the same idea as Li Xianzhong. With this excuse, they could not only have one more orthodox proof, but also win the first line of Yinshan.
Why not?
So everyone expressed their congratulations and asked the Duke of Liao to send troops to recapture the jade seal as soon as possible.
Mao Yuanyi said: "Originally, Tai'er Khan Zaisai had the upper hand and once besieged Lin Dan Khan's Chahanhot City. I don't know what means Lin Dan Khan used, but now Monan's Tumote tribe and Urad actually came together with Chahan The troops formed a coalition, and now they have begun to counterattack Zasai."
"Tens of thousands of cavalry from both sides are currently facing off in the Xilin Gol Prairie."
This is really a pillow for sleepiness!
Their snipe and clam fight gave me, the fisherman, an advantage.
Li Xianzhong said: "This battle is about a quick victory. It is surprisingly difficult. We not only want to defeat Chahar, but also completely defeat Monan Mongolia."
"I not only want Yinshan, but also the Hetao area occupied by the Tumut tribe. Therefore, all cavalry will be used in this battle. In this battle, we will eliminate as many Mongolian cavalry as possible and make them lose their combat effectiveness in a short period of time. This way we can better Control Yinshan and Hetao!"
On the eighth day of October in the fifth year of Tianqi, Duke Li Xianzhong of Liao personally led 20,000 cavalry in Guangning, an important town in western Liaoning, together with 15,000 Horqin Mongolian cavalry, 10,000 Ye He left and right guard cavalry, and the "Imperial Association Army" led by Azig. "15,000 cavalry, a total of 60,000 cavalry, attacked Chahar on the grounds of supporting the Mongol leader "Tel Khan" Zasai of Inner Kalkha.
Lin Danhan and Zaisai have been fighting for more than three years. Li Xianzhong has never sent troops to intervene, so he gradually lost his vigilance.
In autumn on the grassland, thousands of trees are desolate, and the sky and earth are golden.
The phalanx composed of 60,000 cavalry can be described as ruthless and endless. To be honest, Li Xianzhong himself has never commanded or even seen so many cavalry.
The dust raised by countless galloping horses is boundless. From a distance, it looks like an endless hurricane passing through the grassland, directly making the Chahar cavalry responsible for the reconnaissance look stupid!
Soon they realized that this was a sneak attack by the Ming army.
Lin Danhan's main force is far away in Xilin Gol, and he was shocked when he received the news.
Now that his Chahanhot City is empty of troops, with only three thousand old and weak soldiers, how can he resist Li Xianzhong?
But at this time, he could not return for reinforcements. His current Monan Mongolian coalition only had 25,000 troops. If he returned to Chahanhot City at this time, he would inevitably be attacked by the Ming army and Zaisai from two directions. Die faster.
After much hesitation, he made the difficult decision to retreat westward.
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(End of chapter)
