A small soldier of the frontier army in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 797 Time
When news of Li Zicheng's northward journey reached Monan, Wang Dou was wielding a hoe in a field by the Dahei River.

After the new year, Monan has entered a wave of large-scale construction. As early as last year, the Ministry of Civil Affairs conducted a detailed investigation of various places, where it can be cultivated and where it can be used.

Finally, the location of the large-scale military and civilian settlements was determined to be the Tumote Plain and the Hetao Plain.

There are many rivers in these places, and irrigation is convenient. The Central Plains have been operated in the past dynasties, and some abandoned canals can be seen everywhere. If the original parts are dredged, a lot of energy and money can be saved.

Of course, there were many disasters in the Central Plains, and the drought was severe on the grasslands. Due to the cold climate, we could only grow spring wheat, naked oats, and some millet, sorghum and other miscellaneous grains. group.

In fact, when it comes to disasters, from the middle of the Ming Dynasty, especially from the Wanli period, natural disasters continued. There were several catastrophes that were not inferior to the disasters at the end of the Ming Dynasty, but they finally withstood it.

The most important reason is that at that time, the local government still had the organizational ability to lead the people through the disaster. During the reign of Chongzhen, the organizational ability of the grassroots has disappeared. A little bit of natural and man-made disasters is enough to cause great harm, and then a vicious circle cannot be recovered.

The two plains are about tens of thousands of square kilometers, and the arable land area exceeds [-] million mu. The most wonderful thing is that these two places are rich in groundwater.The more plain the land, the more shallow the water is. Generally, wells are drilled down, and water can emerge from two to three meters.

Compared with the deep wells in Shanxi and Shaanxi that are tens of feet long, and the water quality is salty and bitter, it is not good for civilian use, so it can be called a paradise.

For ordinary immigrants, this kind of simple filling of wells costs two or three taels of silver, and most families can afford it.For military settlements, the cost is lower, so even if some rivers are shallow or even dry, it doesn't matter at all, there is plenty of groundwater.

Under the propaganda of the Xuanfu Times, countless people were tempted to dig a well for no more than one foot to produce water. Where can I find such fertile land?Under Wang Dou's rule, it was famously stable, so soon after the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, a huge wave of immigrants poured into the two places from Shanxi, Shaanxi, Ningxia and other places.

Most of them still have little money, and those who can afford the land can obtain the ownership of no more than 150 mu of land forever as long as they live and cultivate it for five years, and pass it down from generation to generation.

There are also business travel inspection groups, which also come in waves one after another. After the inspection, most of them make a decision to seize the opportunity and set up various business villages in Monan.

For these people, Wang Dou sincerely welcomes them, because not only does he spend nothing, but he can also make a lot of money from them.The cost of buying land is one, even if the land price is low, but the accumulation of small amounts becomes a huge amount.

The tax holiday is only one year, and all taxes must be paid in the second year, and taxes can be collected from these people.

Most of these people are members of the middle class, high-quality, and naturally like stability. Once they have a sense of belonging, they will voluntarily maintain order and govern them without spending much effort.

Then there are the refugees and the starving people. At present, the largest expenditure of the Duhufu is for these people.First of all, the rations per person is a considerable amount, but Wang Dou's foundation is Tunpu, and the role of these people should not be underestimated. After all, most of the soldiers of the Jingbian Army were from Tunpu.

And because Tunpu temporarily adopts the camp field system, it can use a large-scale farm-like farming method.It is generally possible to use horse plows, coupled plows, columbine carts, and large water wheels, etc., and the farming efficiency can be greatly improved.These people are good candidates for all the people to serve as soldiers, so some expenditures are necessary.

Waves of refugees came here, set up forts one by one, and spent money and food like water. Facing the distressed and complained by the Ministry of Civil Affairs, Wang Dou said: "Don't care about the money. The money earned is used to spend it. If it doesn't cause big problems On the basis of inflation, just spend the money that should be spent."

Compared with Tunbao, military Tunnels certainly have advantages. After all, they are regular soldiers who are used to obeying discipline, and it is easier to command and obey orders than refugees who have no collective concept for the time being.

However, military settlements are only an expedient measure for the time being. In order to obtain food faster, after reaching a certain goal, all military settlements will gradually give way to the civilian settlements established. Professional soldiers should fight with peace of mind.

After the military colony is over, the soldiers who participated in the reclamation will also receive certain meritorious service, rewarding land and manors.

Generally speaking, many of Wang Dou's current business is no-cost business, which is a bit like living without money. However, the establishment of credit and labor over the years has made the soldiers and civilians believe that the general who conquered the captives, and Wang Dou, the Marquis of Yongning, will surely fulfill his promise. This is Wang Dou. where the biggest advantage lies.

Now the wave of immigration is just beginning, and the role of the army station is great. In order to encourage the enthusiasm of the soldiers to cultivate, Wang Dou, who has not been in the field for many years, personally went to the field and waved a hoe, which really aroused the great enthusiasm of the soldiers and started to work. It's like desperately.

The drums are fluttering, the gongs and drums are loud, and in the vast wilderness, crowds of people like ants are busy, burning wasteland and reclaiming land, racing against time, full of enthusiasm. At this time, the scenery of the grassland is quite beautiful, but there is still a chill, but the soldiers are in full swing. cold.

Everywhere on the plains, their flags are planted, and every flag has its own number written on it. They divide the parcels and shout their names, looking like they are fiercely competing.

Loud propagandists shouted encouragement and beat gongs and drums to help.

The personnel of the logistics department were busy carrying water and delivering meals, ensuring that the soldiers could have hot water and hot meals when they rested.

There are also war horses galloping on the grassland to drive away wolves, and sometimes set a fire to burn the wild grass into black soil.

In addition to manpower reclamation, there are quite a few horses dragging the plow and galloping past, reflecting the advantages of "mechanization".Some land has already been sown, and the columbine carts pulled by horses also sowed seeds on the grasslands.

Large-scale "mechanization" is Wang Dou's requirement. Manpower can only reclaim half an acre a day, and cattle can reclaim one to two acres a day. However, horse plowing can open up wasteland faster every day. On the endless plains, horse plowing is even faster. Advantage.

Of course, horse plowing is expensive, and it is only suitable for dry land, and the yield per mu cannot be as high as that of cattle plowing, but Wang Dou doesn't mind.What he wants is quantity, and if the quantity increases, the accumulation of food can also be achieved.

After many years of operation, he managed a lot of cattle and horses. After the war outside the Great Wall, he captured more than [-] cattle and sheep, and nearly [-] mules, donkeys, camels, and horses. The resources of animal power are very rich. Those who can use animal power, Never use human power.

Of course, the premise is that they know how to plow horses and cattle.

Wang Dou's request was that part of the fields would be reclaimed, sowed and harvested in the same year.

In addition to the warriors who opened up wasteland, there were also many warriors who were building water conservancy projects. Their bodies were splashed with mud, their hands and feet were cut and bleeding, and they didn't know it.One after another canals were dredged, and waterwheels were erected, especially the majestic Lanzhou waterwheels, now known as Jingbianbao waterwheels, which spread from the Dahei River to the Yellow River, attracting a spectacle.

This waterwheel costs more than one hundred taels, and only Wang Dou is willing to use it on a large scale.

The soldiers struggled endlessly and were full of passion, especially those not far from the general, who were more motivated.

Wang Dou took the lead in digging the ground, fighting for the first time, but secretly complained in his heart. He hadn't been in the field for many years, and he had only worked for a few days, and his back was sore.But on the surface, he still has to put on a commanding and calm look.

Beside Wang Dou, there are also members of the Ministry of Civil Affairs and the shogunate participating in the labor. Some of them wield hoes, others hold plows, and they are all very busy.

The generals have all gone to the fields in person, how can they be left behind?But after all, they are high-ranking officials, and they have their own big problems, especially in the construction of Monan, which has more affairs, so they can only express their hearts, and it is impossible to work all day long like ordinary soldiers in the village.

In the crowd, there were Zuodu Censor of Metropolitan Procuratorate, Deputy Governor, Professor of Confucianism College, and Director of Environmental Protection Bureau Li Banghua silently waving a hoe.

His official office also moved to Guihua City at this time, but he often went to Xuanfu Town and traveled between the two places.He believes that the construction of Monan is the root of solving the problem of Ming Dynasty, so after Wang Dou went to the field, he also took time to go to the field today, expressing that he attaches importance to farming and mulberry.

Li Banghua is not young anymore, farm work is not a small challenge for him, but he insists on doing his best not to fall behind everyone.

Everyone secretly admired it, this old man has a stubbornness, especially he was a cabinet member, and he was born as a Zuodu censor, which is even more rare, Mr. Banghua has changed a lot.

The fiery scenes filled the grasslands, and there were bursts of passionate gongs and drums, and there was an upsurge of land reclamation competition everywhere.It wasn't until noon that the soldiers stopped their hands when the sound of Jin Jin's retreat sounded. Amidst the noise and laughter, they converged like a tide towards their respective eating places.

As they walked, they compared what they had earned, and the atmosphere was very lively.

Wang Dou stopped his hands, and the people around him also let out a long breath. Everyone felt relaxed. It seems that it is easy to go from being frugal to extravagant, but it is difficult to go from extravagant to frugal. no more.

Wang Dou put down his hoe, looked at the extremely lively scene around him, and said with a smile: "I now understand what Liu Bei said, 'I always stay on the saddle, and all the flesh on my thighs will disappear; if I don't ride anymore, the flesh on my thighs will grow.'" What means."

Everyone laughed, and they all agreed. The speaker really needs to move more. He hasn't been working in the field for a few years. After working for a while, his back hurts.

A group of them followed Wang Dou and walked towards the river, where there were a few big rocks, just to rest, and Wang Dou and others ate the same as the soldiers, broth and pancakes.

Wherever they passed, groups of soldiers holding their jobs saw them cheering and their emotions were very hot. If the soldiers from the guard battalion didn't stop them, there would be more soldiers wanting to squeeze in here. Zhang Gui smiled and said: " The general personally went to the field and worked with the soldiers, and the morale of the brothers was very high."

Wang Dou waved to his subordinates, causing waves of waves. Hearing this, he smiled and sighed: "Yes, it's a pity that such opportunities are rare."

Although various systems are planned, people are emotional animals, and the Shangguan personally encourages participation. The atmosphere is of course different. Unfortunately, the higher the position and weight, the less chance to get to the bottom.

Not to mention other things, Wang Dou knew that in the past few days when he was in the field, he must have accumulated a lot of various documents on the case. It seemed that after working for this day, he would not be able to go to the field again.

While walking, Wang Dou saw that Li Banghua beside him was silent, just tapped his waist bones from time to time, apparently exhausted, he smiled and said, "Is Mr. Li okay?"

Li Banghua reluctantly said: "Your Majesty is worried about you, so it's okay to be dismissed."

Zhang Gui next to him smiled and said, "I was born as an old warrior, and I am used to doing farm work. Professor Li is a scholar, so don't get tired."

The crowd burst into laughter, and Li Banghua said seriously: "There is an ancient saying that if you are assigned a great mission from heaven, you must first work hard on your mind, your muscles and bones, and starve your body..."

Just as he was talking, he staggered, and Zhong Rong beside him hurriedly supported him and shouted, "Be careful."

Wang Dou also said: "It seems that Li Gong is very tired, so he supported Li Gong."

A large group of people supported Li Banghua and walked. Li Banghua was a little embarrassed, but at the same time his heart was warm. It is undeniable that although the positions are different, the group of Wang Dou is indeed very exciting.

When approaching the river, Zhong Susu and Zhong Tiaoyang greeted him.

Wang Dou and a group of senior officials worked here, and as the commander of the guard battalion, Zhong Tiaoyang naturally led the guard battalion soldiers to be vigilant.Zhong Susu didn't go to the field with everyone, but he ran up and down, serving tea and water for everyone, especially for Wang Dou, and he was just as busy.

As early as when the "Second General's Shooting Problem", also known as "Wang's Calculation Problem", was passed on, Zhong Susu was very happy when she learned that she would be famous all over the world if she was included in the calculation problem.When Wang Dou arrived in Monan, Zhong Susu had been running up and down with him, patrolling everywhere.

Sometimes, when Wang Dou wasn't paying attention, he stared at him for a long time, his face flushed, and he didn't know what he was thinking.

She is also busy with affairs, she has to arrange for the army to farm, to arrange the defense of the area under her jurisdiction, to rebuild Dongsheng Guard, Zhenlu Guard, Yulin Guard, etc. There are many things.

The horse thieves in the grasslands have always been numerous, and their composition is also complex. There are Han people, Hu people, and Semu Huihui and others.

Although the large group of Tartars has been wiped out, the small group of horse thieves still remains. The grasslands are vast and sparsely populated, but there are many hiding places. If they are not eliminated, they will pose a threat to the management of Monan.

However, Wang Dou has recently made arrangements to use the Chinese Army Cavalry Battalion, Sharp Sentry Battalion, Zhongyi Battalion, and the New Affiliated Battalion, as well as a large number of Chasseurs and Hussars, to specifically eliminate banditry in the grassland. North raid.

No matter how wide the grassland is, no matter how many horse thieves there are, they can't stand their iron hoofs. Now the grassland horse thieves have a tendency to become extinct. Except for trapping Inner Mongolians and horse thieves, they may step into Yemen when the Yellow River freezes in winter, and now it is basically peaceful.

But at that time, Wang Dou's iron cavalry will also step across the Yellow River, and unite with Ningxia and Yansui towns to attack the Ordos Plateau and completely wipe out the Hu people and horse bandits in Monan.

Therefore, Zhong Susu is also more relaxed, and can accompany Wang Dou more, everywhere in the Yellow River, Daheihe River, and Xiaoheihe River, soldiers and civilians can see the figure of the Great General and General Zhong walking side by side, and sometimes they can hear the voice of the two. bursts of laughter.

At this time, she brought a plate of hot water with a hot towel on it, walked to Wang Dou with a smile, and said courteously: "The general has worked hard, wash your hands and wipe your face."

Wang Dou washed his hands, took the hot towel again, and said with a smile, "Thank you, General Zhong."

Zhong Susu smiled happily, her eyes became crescent-shaped, revealing her white teeth, but seeing the eyes of the people in front of her were different, she then turned into a nonchalant look, and said lightly: "What are you doing standing there, you don't wash your hands?" Have a meal?"

Immediately, everyone looked around, washed their hands and faces, and prepared to eat without showing. Facts have proved that it is unwise to care about General Zhong.

Li Banghua also washed his hands and wiped his face, sat down on a rock by the river, took off his shoes and socks regardless of his image, stretched his feet into the cool river water, breathed out contentedly, and chanted: The water of the waves is clear and can wash my tassels; the water of the waves is turbid and can wash my feet..."

Zhang Gui said with a smile: "Professor Li is worthy of being a scholar, he has to recite poems every time he washes his feet."

Everyone laughed and sat around Wang Dou, tired after work, eating and drinking contentedly.And sitting side by side with the general in this way, without distinction of rank, also made everyone feel relaxed and happy, and the relationship between each other was closer.

In fact, most of the officers and generals of the Jingbian Army were originally rough people. Even if they were high-ranking and powerful, their etiquette and behavior did not improve much.They were holding big pancakes, each of them ate the broth, and they ate like a rattle, chatting with each other, excitedly talking about today's farming, various topics and so on.

Zhong Susu sat on the left of Wang Dou, and Zhang Gui on the right, both were extremely optimistic about the prospects of Monan.Zhang Gui gnawed at the bread, and said more vaguely: "General, I can be sure that by next year, the golden autumn wheat waves requested by the general will be realized..."

He said: "At the beginning of this year, most of the military settlements were set up, but by the middle of the year, more civilian settlements and commercial settlements will be established. There is no time to plant wheat, but mung beans, alfalfa, sugar beet, and rapeseed can be planted. Enhancing the fertility of the land... next year when spring begins, these bean-growing lands can all be planted with wheat and become good fields..."

Zhong Susu also said happily: "When the weather gets warmer, it will be easier for our soldiers and civilians to reclaim wasteland. With the efforts of countless soldiers and civilians, how much wasteland can be reclaimed by next year?"

Wang Dou said: "Yes, just give us time, the land of Monan has become a river of rice grain outside the Great Wall, it's not just a dream."

He couldn't hold back the excitement in his heart, and while gnawing on the pancake, he looked around the wilderness. This plain from Tumot to Hetao covers an area of ​​tens of thousands of square kilometers. The soil has always been fertile and the irrigation system is well-developed. fat land.

This piece of land can be used to grow crops such as wheat, naked oats, rice, flax, rapeseed, millet rice, melons, sugar beets, soybeans, and mung beans.In the future, when the seeds are adapted, corn and potatoes can also be grown.

There is abundant sunshine here, and it is also suitable for planting melons and fruits such as apricots, plums, grapes, and apples.Wang Dou saw the colorful fields in the coming year in a daze: flax with blue flowers, rape with yellow flowers, oats with white flowers...

This place is still rich in minerals. In Baotou of later generations, at this time, Jiuyuan City, the town of Monanxi Town in the Dufu Prefecture, has the world's largest rare earth deposit. At this time, rare earths are not available, but this place is still the largest in the world. The location of iron mines, as well as huge coal mines and other minerals.

In addition, oil shale, manganese, gold, copper and other minerals are even more concentrated, which can be called the treasure land of Monan.Here, Wang Dou decided to open a cannon foundry and a firecracker forging factory again. A large amount of coal and iron ore were mined and could be used nearby.

It is also close to the Yellow River, and it is more advantageous to set up a hydraulic drilling machine. There is more coal and iron, and the people can also use cheap iron and iron, so that iron products have become the fist industry of the Duhufu.Even one day in the future, it will sell well all over the country and overseas.

How big is this market?In the later Qing Dynasty, the import value of foreign iron and foreign needles for a year was between 280 million taels and 300 million taels. In an ordinary state and county, the foreign iron used was hundreds of thousands of catties, and even the cities of Guangdong Province, Foshan, etc. Land, the foreign iron needed a year is more than tens of millions of catties.

Daming also required a huge amount of iron, so a large amount of iron was forged, and there was no need to worry about selling it.

Although Wang Dou now has the Yongning Artillery Factory and the Xuanfu Zhencheng Artillery Factory, he needs more artillery, and firecrackers, and more.

In addition, there are many grasslands in Monan, and a large number of captured Mongols can raise war horses for themselves. King Omubu of Shunyi has become a special horse officer.Wang Dou hopes that by next year, all the soldiers under his command will be the second-class army, and everyone will have horses, and most of them will be war horses.

The Mongols are still good at raising horses, although their way of raising horses requires a very large pasture, and in terms of fat, it is not as good as the horse farms in the Central Plains.But it doesn't matter, in the first stage before it needs to be used, it will be enough to raise it with grain and beans for a while, and it can save more grain on weekdays.

They are not good at farming, so they can develop textile, leather, dairy and other industries. At this time, although the sheep wool in the grassland cannot be woven with wool, making felt and blankets is their sideline for thousands of years. Leather blankets have a bright future.

Wang Dou also plans to overhaul roads, set up post stations, and connect the three towns of Monan with several major official roads, not to mention the road from Guihua City to Xuanfu Town, the road to Datong Town, and the road to Ningwuguan in Shanxi Town. The roads to the towns and cities of Ningxia must be connected to deepen the connection with the inland, rather than to isolate Monan.

Moreover, I am still planning to build water conservancy, set up normal middle schools and universities, and recruit talents, especially in the field of civil affairs, and invest more in the training of doctors and doctors, so as to make full preparations for the possible plague.

Looking at the vast wilderness and the fiery crowds, Wang Dou was overwhelmed with emotion. He thought silently: "Just give me time, and by next year, I will have the capital to solve all problems!"

……

Li Banghua chewed slowly, he didn't speak, but just listened quietly to what everyone said.

If you haven't been outside the Great Wall, you don't know the benefits beyond the Great Wall. If you haven't gotten close to Wang Dou, you don't know the strength of Wang Dou. This is not just a simple military, but all aspects, just like the comprehensive national strength that Wang Dou said, especially when it will be developed in Monan in the future...

At this time, he heard Wang Dou and Zhang Gui talking: "There should be no problem with the immigrant population of 100 million in Monan."

"No problem. Although it is stated in the document that there are hundreds of thousands of households in Shanxi and millions of people, there are actually tens of millions of people. The same is true in Shaanxi. Of course, it will take time to reach this number of households. ..."

When Li Banghua wanted to listen more carefully, Zhong Susu turned around and said to Li Banghua, "Mr. Li, I learned a lot from your lecture that day, but I have a question..."

She said: "You said that the way of sages and kings has always been to govern the country. Is it better to be a sage inside and a king outside, or is it better to be a sage inside and outside?"

Everyone's eyes were focused, even Wang Dou looked over, Li Banghua looked at Zhong Susu, he had a good impression of her.

And based on his experience, he saw Zhong Susu's real body very quickly. He didn't point it out. At this time, he slowly gnawed on his big cake and said with a smile: "The saint talks about the inner saint and the outer king, which means that there are saints inside." The virtue of virtue, the government of the king on the outside, the sage on the inside is the foundation, and the king on the outside is the goal.”

Zhong Susu pondered and said: "It seems that the fact is not the case in previous dynasties. Tang Taizong said: "Far barbarians come to obey, and it should be added by virtue and righteousness. Why is it better to go forward?" The emperor of the Song Dynasty also said: To practice virtue and righteousness, far Only the barbarians will come to obey. It seems that they are talking about the outer sage, not the outer king."

Li Banghua shook his head: "It's all right now and then. When the country is strong, it's called a foreign king. In the past dynasties, when the country was really strong, when the country was strong and prosperous, which one didn't fight all the year round and fight everywhere? Where is the foreign sage? It was the weak Song Dynasty, I also want to return to Yanyun in the north. When the strength is insufficient, the barbarians are strong and the Central Plains are declining, so I will talk to the outsiders and make them stop the army and rest, so that I will have the opportunity to recuperate. Liao and Jin are so fierce. After practicing virtue and righteousness, they do not want to act rashly The Central Plains has also avoided many wars and saved the people from being burned. When the Central Plains recovers, they can go to the Northern Expedition again to restore the country.”

Zhong Susu suddenly realized: "Oh, when we are strong, we talk about the king outside, and if we can't beat others, we talk about the saint outside. When our side becomes stronger, we will return to the king again? The learning of saints is really flexible and changeable."

Everyone laughed, Li Banghua coughed a few times, Zhong Susu's words were too explicit.

However, he felt that General Zhong is still diligent and studious. It is very good to ask if he does not understand. He said: "Celebrate the people's peace and happiness, and the world is safe. Naturally, the national power is at its peak, the people are rich and the army is strong. Wouldn't the barbarians be afraid of seeing it?" Submit, not afraid of my Chinese attack? Naturally, they will fight for tribute."

He said: "If thieves run rampant, the old, the weak, the orphans and widows have nothing to support, the country is poor, and the army is weak, it will naturally attract the prying eyes of barbarians. Therefore, the inner sage is the foundation..."

He looked at Wang Dou with a smile: "If at this time, the Marquis manages the internal affairs well, so the soldiers are strong and the horses are strong, the external sages or the external kings are free to do as they please... If the current center of the imperial court is full of internal affairs, how can the external king have the confidence? "

Everyone unanimously said, Li Gong taught the class, and it was still clear, and his metaphor... Wang Dou nodded. During this time, Li Banghua also taught everyone Confucianism, so that everyone felt that their self-cultivation had improved , Confucianism is strong in self-cultivation.

In terms of governing the country, there are also quite a few bright spots, such as being a sage inside and a king outside, which contains a flexible and changeable diplomatic strategy. When it should be tough, it will be tough, and when it should be weak, it will show weakness, which well preserves the fire of civilization.

What I have to do is to extract the essence and discard the dross to form a flexible system.

Wang Dou finished drinking the broth in the bowl and was about to stand up when a few riders rushed towards Guihua City, everyone looked at him, Wang Dou frowned and thought: "What's the matter?"

……

A few days later, General Ying Yang, the Chief of Staff of Monanxi Township of the Dufu Mansion, and Wen Fangliang, Chief of Staff Wen Fangliang rushed into Guihua City with some guards.From last year to the past few months, he has been busy in Jiuyuan City, Hetao and other places. After a few months, his handsome face has become thicker and darker.

After receiving the call from the general, he got up in a hurry. Fortunately, Jiuyuan City was not far from Guihua City, but only three hundred miles away, it was still a flat plain of wilderness, and the road was easy to walk, so he arrived in Guihua soon. city.

……

Lao Bai Niu: There is still a chapter after twelve o'clock, and there are seven or eight thousand words, but book friends should watch it tomorrow, because I feel that some plots are not finished, and I may continue to write.

(End of this chapter)