Chapter 61 Fur Trade
He Xi buried his head in deep thought.
We can only completely abandon those long-term plans and think about the immediate problems.
What's the problem at hand? That is to expand the scale of shipping. It can be said that the more food is hoarded in Liaodong, the faster the attack on Nahachu will be launched. But the official strength is limited. Maintain the current scale of shipping. It has been quite difficult.
Let the imperial court order more shipping ships. This is one way.
But anyone can do this method. But He Xi couldn't.
This will affect He Xi's impression in Zhu Yuanzhang's mind. Because Ming officials would do the same thing when they encountered this problem. If He Xi is really like this, how can he show that He Xi has advanced education after six hundred years of education?
Perhaps Zhu Yuanzhang would not think so.
But He Xi had to make his own decisions.
He Xi knew very well why he was valued by Zhu Yuanzhang instead of others. It's probably because he has learned from six hundred years later and has seen things from different angles and solved problems in different ways. This is his label and persona in Zhu Yuanzhang's heart.
He Xi had better maintain this persona. Rather than the other way around.
He Xi put the information aside and thought to herself: "Maybe we can only have a good talk with Ye Wang."
After all, Ye Wang has been in Liaodong for more than ten years, and his understanding of Liaodong must be deeper than his casual investigation.
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"Liaodong native product?" Ye Wang heard He Xi ask this. A dozen thoughts were running through his mind, and he subconsciously felt that He Xi was asking for a bribe. Although he had some contempt in his heart, he did not dare to show it on the surface. He was silent for a while and said: "Liaodong is a remote and bitter cold land. There are no local products, but fur, Dongzhu, Haidongqing, and Some precious medicinal materials. However, the bitter cold in Liaodong makes it difficult for military households to farm, and they rarely go into the mountains. Only local indigenous people have these things. Especially the Jurchen and other tribes have a lot of output, but the Han people don’t have much."
The reason for this is determined by the degree of civilization.
Han people, regardless of whether they are Han people who migrated from the pass. Or were they once Jurchens from the Bohai Sea, etc., but now among the military households of the Ming Dynasty, they can also be regarded as Han people. After all, his production and lifestyle have undergone tremendous changes.
Since Zhu Yuanzhang went to Jinling, Kang Maocai took charge of farming. The Ming Dynasty Guard System already contained a complete farming system. No matter who you are, under this system, you can work honestly.
That is, no matter whether these people were herding cattle or doing something else. In the health system, one must work hard for farming honestly.
Since you are working hard in the land. What kind of fur, what kind of Dongzhu, what kind of sea east green, what kind of precious medicinal materials, can these things grow from the ground? Can it be found in densely populated areas of the plains? No, only food grows from the soil.
These days, medicinal materials are not cultivated artificially.
Even if there is a sprout of medicinal herbs, it is in the south, not here.
As for the Jurchens, they have been scattered in various tribes inside and outside Changbai Mountain. Their level of civilization is more similar to the problem of collection. There is farming. But it’s no better than slash-and-burn farming. They rely more on hunting and other means to maintain production.
Therefore, sea green is a good helper for them in hunting and a by-product of hunting. Dongzhu must be picked from the sea and rivers. Fur is a by-product of hunting.
Of course, if there is no military household at the guard station below. But it was a fake fight.
After all, I just said it. In a place as big as Liaodong, there are only more than 300,000 people. Then there is Dalian City, which has more than so many people. It can be seen how sparsely populated the land is. Yes, there are still some people hiding in the deep mountains and old forests who dare not come forward. There are also many other tribes and so on. There are no statistics either.
But even if there are hundreds of thousands more, so what? It's still a vast area but sparsely populated.
This is a good place for jackals, tigers and leopards. In this era of Liaodong, children were snatched away by tigers and eagles without paying attention. Being stolen by a wolf is really not an urban legend, but a solid fact.
Therefore, it is natural for villagers to fight against wild animals. Of course, there are no Jurchen tribes who hunt every day, but if a tiger comes around the village, strong men from this village or several nearby villages must be recruited to form a tiger hunting team. The tiger does not have to be killed, but it must be beaten painfully. . Let it know it is afraid. Stay away from here from now on.
There are also some furs and other things among the military households and civilians below. But I use most of them myself. After all, the Northeast is a bitter and cold place, and this is not for nothing. In the absence of any means of warmth, you realize just how warm a carnivore fur can be. If you don’t believe me, tuck your cat into your clothes. Just go for a walk outside in the winter and you’ll find out.
Ye Wang still loves the soldiers below him very much.
Because Ye Wang really came through the troubled times step by step. He doesn't say how much water he has in his own evaluation of himself. But at least he is good at leading troops and can fight. And all generals who can fight are more protective of their soldiers. I dare not say that I love my soldiers as my sons. But he will not take away soldiers' belongings indiscriminately. After all, if he really did that, how many soldiers would die for him on the battlefield?
Ye Wang's flattery has led to the situation step by step until today. He wants to climb up and there is no other way. However, it is this veteran's instinct to care for his soldiers.
He deliberately concealed these things. Just pretend you don’t know.
It's just that Ye Wang uses the heart of a villain to judge the heart of a gentleman. He Xi has never thought about taking advantage of others. Not even thinking about it from this perspective.
He Xi pondered for a moment and said, "So, what you mentioned are all produced in the north and can be traveled by business?"
Ye Wang said: "Your Majesty, your Majesty has long ordered that no trade with Mongolia is allowed. However, some merchants from the Jurchen tribe are haunting Shenyang, and I just turn a blind eye. Firstly, it is to drive a wedge between Mongolia and Jurchen; secondly, these merchants , but it also has a backstage.”
He Xi understands. Even driving a wedge between the Jurchens and the Mongols is mostly an excuse. It’s true that there is a backstage.
Nowadays, Liaodong is almost a military-controlled area. Ordinary people doing business in Liaodong encounter too many things. First of all, we have to deal with the Tatars who are likely to appear suddenly, and secondly, we have to deal with the officers and soldiers from various places. Finally, we need to take care of our relationship with the Jurchens.
It would be strange to be able to do all this without a backstage.
The return of armies is something that remains unchanged through the ages.
Zhu Yuanzhang's dislike of certain people is definitely not groundless.
Ye Wang whispered: "Is the Prince Consort interested?"
Only then did He Xi understand what Ye Wang meant, and he said: "Master Ye, you know who His Majesty is today. There is no room for sand in your eyes. I know that it is difficult for you to do some things. But it is difficult. It’s hard to do right now, but you have to think clearly about who will take the blame if something comes to light in the future.”
Ye Wang said: "The last general understands. It's just that it's difficult for the last general."
Of course it was difficult for Ye Wang. He has no backstage, and there is no one to help him when things happen. For example, in this matter, if Ye Wang had a backstage, maybe he would only need to work for the backstage, and maybe the backstage would be considerate of him and not make things difficult for him. But he has no backstage, which means that no one of the big guys on the stage dares to offend.
No matter who asks him to do something, he dare not not do it, otherwise they will kill you. And if things are done, there may be some benefits. Once something happens, he will take the blame. After all, they are not one of their own. Isn’t it normal to just throw it away after use?
There are people in the court who are easy to be officials. This sentence can also be understood in reverse. What will happen if there is no one in the court? Difficult, difficult, difficult.
He Xi said: "You report to the court that such confidential matters should be handled by the Jinyiwei. By the way, the Jinyiwei should arrange more manpower to the north. Such things are not allowed to be heard in the local area."
Ye Wang was stunned and said: "The prince-in-law is like this------"
He Xi said: "I know what you mean, but who is the greatest in the world? Your Majesty, we are all His Majesty's ministers. This point must be firmly established."
In fact, what He Xi said was correct nonsense.
Yes, everyone in the world is your Majesty's ministers, but His Majesty is high in the ninth heaven. For example, you can understand the people below through the ministers around you. Without these ministers, who can gain His Majesty?
