"pass!"
"Xiong Wencan, Governor of Fujian, comes to see Your Majesty!"
Xiong Wencan, with a tired look on his face, entered Dongnuan Pavilion and saluted. He looked at his nose and heart, but his heart was full of doubts. He couldn't figure out why the emperor summoned him from Fujian to Nanjing.
Along the way, after entering the territory of South Zhili, there were rumors everywhere that the emperor killed people in South Zhili, and more than 80% of the officials were beheaded.
The wealthy businessmen and gentry were being punished to death. Why did they call me here at this time?
"Thank you for your hard work, Xiong Aiqing. Come and offer me a seat and tea!"
"I thank you for your majesty's holy grace!"
After another salute, Xiong Wencan carefully sat on the round stool and waited for the emperor's instructions.
"How are Zheng Zhilong and Yu Zigao doing in Fujian?"
"Replying to Your Majesty, when Your Majesty conveyed the order to me, I happened to be discussing matters on Kinmen Island where the two men were stationed. Yu Zigao's navy and marine army had been reorganized and initially had combat capabilities.
It is temporarily inferior to the elite, but it can definitely be easily crushed against the equivalent guard army. Currently, some of them are led by the three brothers of the Qi family and have entered Huguang and Jiangxi to take charge of the affairs of the feudal princes' palaces in the two provinces.
The Marine Corps currently has nearly a hundred warships of various types and nearly 10,000 firearms of various types.
Zheng Zhilong's Nanhai Navy Fleet has more than 800 warships of various types, but they are all small and medium-sized warships.
The construction speed of large centipede ships, three-masted gunboats, and sailing ships is slower due to the difficulty of construction and the insufficient equipment such as Hongyi cannons and Folang machines. Currently, there are only more than 20 ships.
There are currently 15,000 naval sergeants, who take turns boarding the ship to practice naval warfare tactics, and the rest practice martial arts with the Marine Corps. All of them are good players!
I believe that given the current situation of the Nanhai Navy, as long as the Dutch army comes out in full force, we will definitely achieve a complete victory.
Your Majesty, Zheng Zhilong’s envoy brought a memorial to Your Majesty! "
Chongzhen took the memorial and slowly read through it. The situation of the Nanhai Navy Fleet was in the front, and the plan for next year was in the back.
The general meaning is that Zheng Zhilong intends to take action against the "Eighteen Zhi" pirates who have not surrendered after the New Year, and strives to eliminate the pirates along the coasts of Fujian and Guangdong in half a year.
In the second half of the year, they took action against Taiwan, driving away all the Dutch troops stationed in Taiwan, blocking the Taiwan Strait, and completely controlling Taiwan in the hands of the Ming Dynasty.
The key to whether this plan can be implemented lies in the construction of three-masted gunboats and flying boats and the rationing of firearms!
Listening to Xiong Wencan's report and Zheng Zhilong's memorial, Chongzhen was very satisfied, but he also had a headache.
The three-masted gunboat was a giant warship that Zheng Zhilong obtained from the Dutch navy. One gunboat required eight Hongyi cannons and forty Fran cannons.
But now the Firearms Research Institute, even if its technology is mature and improved compared to before, can only produce ten to twelve Hongyi cannons a month.
Not only must we fully equip Ningyuan, but we must also equip Datong, Xuanfu, Guihua and other border towns. Now we still have to satisfy the Nanhai Navy.
Chongzhen put the memorials together and thought slowly.
According to the cabinet's speculation, Jiannu and Mongolia will attack Ningyuan as early as October this year and March or April next year at the latest, and even Fusang will join the war.
If the Ming Dynasty does not fight back, it will be fine. Once it absolutely fights back, it will be a thunderous battle. Jiannu must be destroyed, Fuso's army in North Korea must be destroyed, and Fuso's local power will be weakened.
The premise of all this is to block the Korean Strait, not only to block Fuso's troops in North Korea, but also to prevent Fuso from reinforcing the Korean battlefield.
At present, only the Nanhai Navy Fleet can accomplish all this.
"Hey, I hope that the Wu family has returned to Beijing and the Firearms Research Institute can gain something and get the iron molded cannons out. Otherwise, they can only be given priority to the Nanhai Navy Fleet."
After muttering to himself, Chongzhen looked at Xiong Wencan: "I will arrange this. You can send a message to Zheng Zhilong later, telling him not to worry, just hold on steady!"
"I understand!"
After Xiong Wencan responded, Chongzhen put the memorial aside, picked up the tea cup, took a sip, and said softly: "I summoned you to Nanjing because I have other arrangements!"
Before Xiong Wencan asked for instructions, Chongzhen continued: "You must have heard some news on the way here. I am rectifying Jiangnan and have killed many people.
A few days ago, almost all the officials in Nanjing were beheaded. I called you here to serve as the governor of South Zhili and to promote the important military and political affairs of South Zhili! "
"Governor of Southern Zhili?"
Xiong Wencan was a little dazed. Since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, there has never been a governor-general of Zhili, let alone a governor-general of Southern Zhili. Because this is a permanent capital, equipped with five ministries and six offices, what is the need for a governor?
The Ming Dynasty did set up the governor of Zhejiang Province. In the 33rd year of Jiajing, Japanese pirates were rampant. Jiajing appointed Zhang Jing as the governor of Zhejiang Province. It was revoked in the first year of Longqing. It only existed for fourteen years. It has not been established again for more than 60 years. Why bring this up again now?
Seeing the confusion on Xiong Wencan's face, Chongzhen did not explain. Although he had decided to revoke his capital stay, it was definitely not the time to announce it now.
"I will leave all the remaining 10,000 Yanshan Guards in Nanjing. Your main task next is to stabilize the southern Zhili area.
At the same time, we secretly investigated the health centers under the jurisdiction of Nanzhili to prepare for next year's rectification.
Also, Nanjing’s five ministries and six offices are short of manpower, and it is difficult and inconvenient to replenish them in a short period of time.
You only need to manage the Nanjing Household Department well. If you are short of manpower, recruit it directly from the Imperial College or the private sector, but you are not allowed to use people from the society.
Don’t worry about other ministries. I will issue a document to the Eighteen Prefectures. Except for the affairs of the Household Department, all other ministries’ affairs will be submitted to the Beijing Ministry.
You are not required to achieve great political achievements, but you must at least ensure stability, whether it is among the people, the officialdom, or business. "
"I obey the decree!"
Xiong Wencan's heart sank suddenly. From the emperor's arrangement, he heard a different idea.
Although the area under the jurisdiction of Nanzhili was not the largest in the Ming Dynasty, it was the top priority of the Ming Dynasty. 60% of the taxes in the Ming Dynasty came from Nanzhili.
After Chengzu moved the capital to Beijing, the reason why Nanjing was not abolished was not only political considerations, but also economic and tax considerations.
Among the six ministries in Nanjing, in terms of power, the Ministry of War definitely belongs to the Ministry of War. The Ministry of War is responsible for the military garrison in the southern Zhili area, and is responsible for the assessment, appointment, dismissal and military examination of generals in the army.
There are also logistics such as inns, official ships, official horses, etc. to guard the tranquility of the southern Zhili area.
But in terms of the busyness and importance of affairs, the Nanjing Household Department is definitely the busiest.
He was responsible for the taxes and grain of southern Zhili and the surrounding provinces of Zhejiang, Huguang, Jiangxi, etc., as well as the grain collection of various health posts, officials' salaries, etc. This was the lifeblood of the Ming Dynasty's wealth.
He is also responsible for managing the Ming Dynasty's tax and servitude yellow book, which records the household registration, Lijia, tax and servitude information of the Ming Dynasty's population.
In addition, the most important thing is to manage the salt collection and exploration of the Ming Dynasty. The salt is issued by the Chief Secretary of the Ming Dynasty, the Salt Transport Envoy Department of various places, and the Salt Class Promotion Department in Nanjing.
The Nanzhili Guards Station has been corrupted, and its combat strength is reduced to a tenth. There are more than 10,000 elite Yanshan Guards, which is enough to suppress them. As long as the household department is not in chaos, Nanzhili will not be in chaos.
This arrangement is correct, but this arrangement is strange.
