amaotonovel Chapter 888 This official cannot suffer this loss for nothing.
Chapter 888 This official cannot suffer this loss for nothing.
Yang Shaofeng glanced at Li Shanchang.
What the hell is this?
That old scoundrel stole all my words!
Pay attention.
The territorial concept of Zhongyuan Hall is "Under the whole heaven, all land belongs to the king; on the shores of the whole land, all people are subjects of the king."
To put it simply, the entire universe belongs to the Central Plains Hall.
In order to govern the vast territory, the Central Plains Sect creatively implemented a system that combined the appointment of officials with the control of the central government.
Officials appointed by the imperial court were directly under the jurisdiction of the imperial court. Because these officials were constantly being transferred, like water flowing continuously, they were called officials appointed by the imperial court.
The term "羁縻" (jimi) refers to local autonomy, where the emperor and the court would appoint a person as a Tusi (chieftain) and would no longer directly send officials to govern the region.
Note that the court's failure to send officials does not mean that the emperor and the court would relinquish their rights over a particular region.
For example, if the imperial court was short of money or resources and needed to wage war, the chieftains or vassal kings would have to take on the responsibility of collecting taxes, procuring resources, and sending troops to fight on behalf of the imperial court.
Qin Liangyu and her White-Spear Soldiers belong to this category.
The tributary system was an extension of the tributary system, in which the vassal kings had more power than the chieftains, but bore fewer responsibilities and obligations.
For example, this is the case with vassal states like South Korea and the West.
Correspondingly, the imperial court's obligations to the vassal kings will also decrease.
Those who were more agreeable and friendly to the foreign vassals were treated more favorably, while those who were less agreeable and distant were treated less favorably.
For example, when the short and ugly attacked Korea, the Ming Dynasty chose to stand on Korea's side, even going so far as to send troops directly to help Korea.
While the vassal states of Siam, the Monkey Kingdom, Burma, and Khmer fought amongst themselves, the Ming Dynasty rarely intervened. At most, it would summon the envoys of these vassal states and reprimand them a few times.
If it truly affects the interests of the Ming Dynasty itself, the Ming Dynasty might even directly send troops to "suppress the rebellion".
Just like when the Hu Dynasty replaced the Chen Dynasty in Annam, Zhu Yuanzhang directly sent troops to fight the Hu Dynasty in Annam and then implemented the policy of replacing local chieftains with centrally appointed officials.
So, to put it simply, places that have been fully naturalized are directly governed by appointed officials; places that are partially naturalized and nearby are governed by a system of indirect rule; places that are relatively far away and not very naturalized are governed by a system of tributary relations; and places that are too far away and cannot be dealt with in the short term are temporarily ignored.
These four management systems, based on proximity and cultural affinity, also determine the order of priority for closeness and distance.
The people directly assigned to officials were considered their own, and the prevailing logic was that murderers should pay with their lives, debtors should repay their debts, and those who injured or stole should be punished.
The autonomous regions governed by the Tusi (chieftains) belonged to a relatively close social class. These areas were often inhabited by both Han and non-Han peoples. The laws of the Central Plains and the rules of the Tusi often coexisted, with the priority depending on the degree of assimilation. In some places, the laws of the Central Plains took precedence, while in others, the rules of the Tusi came first.
Foreign vassal states were relatively distant, and under normal circumstances, the imperial court, apart from obtaining benefits through the tributary system, was not particularly interested in their well-being.
Beyond the outer vassal states lies the furthest layer. The court's attitude towards them is often "as long as it can spare the resources, it must punish the guilty and bring them under its control," and it may even support the outer vassal states in waging war against them.
The Dali, Xiangxi Dongman, and Luchuan mentioned by Hu Weiyong are typical examples of vassal states and chieftains.
Among them, Dali is a typical example of an outer vassal state, the Dongman of western Hunan is a Tusi (chieftain) with a relatively high degree of assimilation, while Luchuan is a Tusi with a relatively low degree of assimilation.
Li Shanchang's thinking was also very simple.
Within the territory that the Ming Dynasty could extend its influence, it did not allow the existence of states within states, such as Tusi (chieftains).
Whether it's Dali, the Dongman people of western Hunan, or Luchuan, they all eventually have to go through the process of replacing local chieftains with centrally appointed officials.
If conditions permit, Burma, Annam, and even South Korea, these vassal states, will eventually be subject to the policy of replacing local chieftains with centrally appointed officials.
This was an unspoken rule in the Ming Dynasty court.
It can also be said that the lessons learned were from the Song Dynasty.
However, the reform of replacing local chieftains with centrally appointed officials inevitably involves the question of "the number of people".
With the majority of the population in the Ming Dynasty, the policy of replacing native chieftains with appointed officials was a practically significant reform.
The number of people in the Ming Dynasty was not dominant, so the "reform of native chieftains and replacement of native officials" was merely a formality.
It used to be okay.
Because there was no place to settle hundreds of thousands, millions, or even tens of millions of people from vassal states and chieftains, the simplest and most practical solution was to first destroy their states, then burn their temples, destroy their books and writing, change their language and clothing, force the natives to rebel, and then carry out mass killings to reduce the number of natives to a certain level, leaving only the honest and obedient ones. Then, a large number of people from the Central Plains were forcibly relocated there.
But it's different now.
Both Shandong and Liaodong now require a large number of people.
This simple and practical process becomes somewhat unsuitable.
Instead of constantly provoking the natives to rebel and then committing massacres, it would be better to trick them into migrating to Shandong and Liaodong from the very beginning.
By breaking up their original kinship and neighborhood relationships and relocating them in a dispersed manner, ensuring that their number remains low, we can gradually assimilate them while completing the land reform and returning them to their original posts.
but!
You old scoundrel, how dare you steal my words!
Yang Shaofeng snorted coldly and said, "Prime Minister Li is right, but I wonder what Prime Minister Li plans to use to relocate these millions of people?"
"An oxcart?"
"carriage?"
"Are you still planning to rely on the people's two legs?"
The smile on Li Shanchang's face slowly faded.
Millions of people were relocated by oxcarts, horse-drawn carts, or even by the people's own two legs, and from the southwest to Liaodong.
This is no joke!
Let alone whether the national treasury can afford the relocation costs.
Even if we can afford it, how many people will die from exhaustion, illness, or starvation along the way?
Li Shanchang said with a dark face, "I never said we had to move now. Aren't we just waiting for the Prince Consort to build a steam locomotive?"
Yang Shaofeng snorted again, just about to give Li Shanchang another piece of trouble, when Lame Wu hurriedly walked over with Xia Yu.
"Your Highness, Prime Minister Li, and the Imperial Son-in-Law."
Xia Yu greeted Zhu Biao, Li Shanchang, and Yang Shaofeng one by one, then took out a thick envelope from his person and handed it to Zhu Biao: "Your Highness, the child case and the ironware theft case have been completely closed."
Zhu Biao's eyes lit up. He reached out, took the envelope, and began to read the letter.
Yang Shaofeng and Hu Weiyong exchanged a glance.
coming.
Large numbers of laborers arrived with their relatives.
Just by looking at the thickness of the envelope, you can tell that this case involving children and stolen ironware involves a large number of people.
There must be tens of thousands of people?
Hu Weiyong pulled Yang Shaofeng aside and whispered, "These laborers will stay with me for now. I'll find a way to get twice as many laborers from Liaodong for you. How about that?"
Yang Shaofeng smacked his lips and said, "In my opinion, why don't we divide these laborers in half? You take the men and leave, and I'll leave the women behind. Let's give them a taste of what it means to be separated by the sea and unable to reunite."
"Of course, all the male offspring are yours. I cannot accept this loss for nothing."
"The double compensation that should be paid to workers must still be paid."