Thinking of this, Xu He asked Zhou Ju: "My friend Zhou has read military books before?"
When Zhou Ju heard this, he bowed and replied.
Xu He stopped him and said: "There is no need to be formal, sit down and talk, and there is no need to call me Mr. Jie Yuangong. You are older than me, just call me loudly!"
Zhou Ju was very surprised when he heard this.
These days, Juren simply walks sideways in the countryside. Even when he goes to the county government, the elder has to be polite.
There are even some parents who call themselves princes in the countryside, and they don't even look up at people like them.
But this Mr. Xu, I heard from the adults, was the first Xiao Sanyuan since the founding of the Southern Zhili Kingdom, and he was also the Duke Jie Yuang who had just been appointed by the emperor. I didn't expect him to be so approachable.
He was in a daze for a while and then said: "I don't dare to pronounce you Yuan Gong, so I will call you Mr. Xu!"
Seeing his formality, Xu He couldn't persuade him anymore, so he waited for him to sit down and said, "I just asked Brother Shang Bin, have you read the book on war?"
Zhou Ju nodded: "I have read some, and a copy of "Li Weigong's Questions" has been passed down at home!"
Xu He said in surprise: "It turns out that it's still a matter of family education!"
Zhou Ju smiled bitterly: "My ancestors followed Taizu to the north to conquer the Yuan Dynasty, and served as Sima in the army of thousands of households. Later, he was injured and disabled, so he returned to his hometown to farm and study. The military books were also left by our ancestors. It is a pity that no one in our generation will join the army. These Books are also left at home!"
Xu He was very surprised. It turned out that this person had been rich for his ancestors, but it was a pity that he did not persist until the founding of the country. Otherwise, if the family had a hereditary military position, he might still be able to honor his ancestors.
But it's not absolute.
Take Zhou Ju's position as the head of the third class of Yamen as an example. It's all nonsense to say that he has no choice but to abandon the article.
A government official's arrest can lead a much more elegant life than a scholar. If he meets a smarter one, his income will even be higher than that of a scholar.
Therefore, it is the right way to get ahead by relying on the imperial examinations, but there are also many people who can live a comfortable and unrestrained life without the imperial examinations.
Xu He smiled and said: "I think Brother Shang Bin is a cautious man. When thieves come, he summons everyone on the ship to prepare for the attack. This is the style of a famous general."
Zhou Ju waved his hands repeatedly and said, "Mr. Xu, please don't laugh at me. It was because I read too many of these miscellaneous books that I failed the provincial examinations many times. My family all complained about me!"
Only then did Xu He realize that this person was not hurting Zhongyong, but because he liked [extracurricular readings].
He smiled and said, "Since Brother Shang Bin is familiar with military literature, do you have any insights into the Japanese rebellion in Zhejiang?"
Seeing him waving his hand, Xu He smiled and said, "I'm bored on the boat, just passing the time. Brother Shang Bin, there's no need to be polite."
Zhou Ju heard this and said, "Since Mr. Xu doesn't think my knowledge is shallow, how about I try to explain it?"
Xu He signaled him to invite.
"Li Weigong once said: [Thousands of chapters and thousands of sentences are all intended to benefit others but not themselves]!"
When Xu He heard this, his eyes lit up and he asked curiously: "How do you say it?"
The so-called "treat others without harming others" actually sounds very simple. It means to seize the initiative on the battlefield and let the enemy be controlled by one's own side instead of letting one's side be controlled by the enemy.
Xu He has also read "Li Weigong's Questions and Answers". The strange and correct, false and true, offensive and defensive... proposed in the book are actually all to realize what Zhou Ju said... to cause people without harming others.
This person, with a clear outline and a clear outline, said this at once, and it seemed that he had indeed read the book.
"In terms of destroying the enemy alone, the imperial troops are now gathered in eastern Zhejiang. This is actually wrong."
Xu He said: "Why?"
"The terrain of Zhejiang is sloping from southwest to northeast. The southwest is mainly mountainous, the central part is mainly hills, and the northeast is plain. There are no islands. Since ancient times, there has been a saying that seven mountains, one water and two fields are divided into two parts! We are here Defending the enemy on a plain with no danger to defend, based on the current military strength alone, there is no chance of victory!"
"There are thousands of miles of sea territory, dotted with small islands on the sea. Wherever the Japanese pirates land, the imperial soldiers and horses will gather to go there. Before they can reach the place, the Japanese pirates will plunder and flee across the sea."
Xu He frowned and said: "Eastern Zhejiang and northern Zhejiang are important areas for grain taxation and silk production by the imperial court. They cannot be given up easily."
Zhou Ju nodded and said: "I am not asking the imperial court to hand over the great country to others, but to attract the Japanese pirates to go deeper and use the terrain advantage to destroy them!"
When Xu He heard this, he couldn't help but think of the story of Lu Ti taking the Japanese pirates in circles in the mountains, and he couldn't help but nod in his heart.
Zhou Ju continued: "Also, with such a long coast, we cannot just rely on a few scattered guard posts to keep an eye on the Japanese pirates. When Japanese pirates land in Zhejiang, most of them avoid the guard posts. Sometimes they even avoid big cities and focus on small towns. If the county takes action, it’s impossible to prevent it!”
Xu He suddenly said: "Brother Shang Bin means to set up defenses along the coast so that every village relies on each other. If the bandits come, all the counties will hear about it, and if the thieves leave, everyone will know."
Zhou Ju clapped his thigh and said excitedly: "Yes, this way the officers and soldiers will not become blind and deaf, allowing the Japanese pirates to penetrate deep into the hinterland, as if they were in an uninhabited land!"
Speaking of this, he frowned and said: "Unfortunately, this method is not feasible!"
Xu He asked curiously: "Why?"
"The Imperial Guard has its own system and cannot be mobilized at will. If you want to use the guards, by the time the tiger talisman arrives, the Japanese pirates will have already left! Unless the prefecture and county are in an emergency and there is an order from above to act expediently. But we will not go to the peak easily. If the person who issued such an order makes any mistake in the guard house, the commotion will be huge!"
"As for the prefectures and counties, they are even more afraid to act rashly. If the Japanese invaders massacre villages and annihilate gatherings, it is only a minor danger. If they break the city, even if the chief officer is lucky enough to escape, he will be derelict in defending the territory afterwards and will be beheaded!"
Xu He thought silently in his heart: "The system is rigid, and the system binds people within the rules. Local soldiers and civilians are afraid to stretch their legs. Small mistakes are fine, but big mistakes will lead to beheading. So why do you care about the life and death of ordinary people?"
Xu He remembered him in his mind, thinking that he must write to his uncle about everything that happened here.
He then asked Zhou Ju: "Can we build beacons along the coast?"
Fenghou is a small smokehouse where thieves come to raise smoke. It is a must-have configuration for local governments in some southern states and counties, especially in Guangxi and Guizhou. The military offices of various yamen in Guiyang send people to take charge of it.
Zhou Ju nodded and said: "It's feasible, but it's not feasible either!"
"What do you say?" Xu He asked.
"Mr. Xu's method can be said to be to defend the enemy from the sea. When the smoke rises, the people will go to the city to escape. Although the Japanese pirates fight fiercely, there are only a few large groups of thieves. If they want to besiege the city, they will be unable to catch them!"
"Then why is it not feasible?" Xu He asked.
"First, it is very expensive and cannot be afforded. Second, there are always loopholes. Many Japanese pirates are common people along the coast. They know where to land and hide!"
Xu He doesn't think it's a problem that it's expensive. This kind of beacon doesn't need a good building. When you see someone, light a cigarette, and when the smoke starts, it doesn't matter if you run away. There is no need to build any permanent fortifications.
The only people who can use it are two or three people in a beacon.
This is much more cost-effective than being robbed of a large amount of property by Japanese pirates.
Of course, the initial investment is larger, but with the joint health centers distributed in a bead-like curtain across the sea and coastal villages, the cost is not as terrible as imagined.
Therefore, the problem has returned again. There is a traitor. This cannot only be solved at the political and military level.
To put it bluntly, why do people pretend to be Japanese pirates?
One is to get rich by robbery without working hard, and the other is to take smuggling adventures and break the smuggling monopoly of aristocratic families.
Then, solving the smuggling monopoly of aristocratic families and improving the living standards of coastal people are both temporary and fundamental solutions.
But it's easy to say but difficult to do. After hearing Zhou Ju's words, Xu He felt a cold sweat in his heart for his uncle.
Even if the uncle has no plans, it can only solve tactical problems, but the difficulty now is that there is a problem with the country's major policies.
Thinking of this, Xu He's eyes suddenly lit up. In fact, as long as one of these two problems is solved, the other problems will be solved easily.
