Chapter 550 549 Liaodong Issue

"Shandai, take a look, what is coming has finally come."

On this day, Wei Guangde just entered Prince Yu's Mansion and met Yin Shizhan, who handed him a copy of the memorial in his hand.

Wei Guangde reached out to take it and took a look. It was a memorial from Zhang Jian, the governor of Shandong.

It came from Shandong, and he knew what it was about.

The officials banned Liao ships from shipping this time. The river government and Shandong were very patient. They planned for almost a year before taking action.

In fact, it's no wonder that they are cautious. After all, the proposal came from Prince Yu's Mansion, and no one wanted to offend the future emperor for nothing.

The operation took so long, first, to contact more officials in the court, so that they can get as much support as possible when they take action.

Second, of course, they also want to see the reaction of Prince Yu's Mansion. If Prince Yu's Mansion reacts strongly, they will certainly use some means, or lobby, or buy. In short, they will always find a way to make Prince Yu's Mansion approve of this matter.

However, what they didn't expect was that after knowing about this, Prince Yu's Mansion did not obstruct it, and certainly did not mean to let it go.

At least, Wei Guangde, Zhang Juzheng, and even Gao Gong had expressed their opposition to the ban on Liao ships shipping in private.

After dragging it on until now, they finally couldn't help but take action. Perhaps they felt that the power they now had in the court was enough to influence the one in the palace.

Wei Guangde carefully read Zhang Jian's memorial, and it was probably for the sake of coastal defense, so he asked the emperor to ban Liao ships shipping again.

Of course, the memorial also said at the end that if famine and other major public sentiments occurred again in Liaodong, it would be feasible to resume shipping to Liaodong. After all, shipping to Liaodong could indeed solve the problem of shortage of materials in Liaodong.

In short, the memorial was written in a balanced manner, and people could not see any mistakes.

"Even the Liaodong governor stood on their side, what else can we do?"

In response, Wei Guangde just smiled bitterly.

In order to deal with this matter, even if it was just symbolic opposition, Wei Guangde had contacted Wang Zhigao, the governor of Liaodong, through Xu Jie's relationship, hoping that Liaodong would put forward the difficulties it faced to block it.

Speaking of which, the situation in Liaodong was really chaotic.

Regarding the sea transportation of Liao ships, the Liaodong generals and other soldiers were all offered by the merchants, so they all supported it, but the attitude of the governor was completely opposite.

Wang Zhigao encountered a major disaster when he entered Liaodong, so naturally the first thing he did was to vigorously cultivate land, hoping to survive the difficulties on his own, and sea transportation to Liaodong could only be a temporary measure to save the people, and it would not last long.

Even in the letter from Wang Zhigao to Wei Guangde, he said that if sea transportation to Liaodong continued for a long time, it would inevitably make the Liao people lazy and unwilling to work hard, and Liaodong would be completely ruined in the long run.

Wei Guangde didn't know how to refute this.

"Then, let Li Fang contact those people to refute this matter according to what was discussed before?"

At the beginning, when they discussed, Wei Guangde did not suggest fierce opposition, but to express his own opinions appropriately.

You know, the other party is too powerful, and before you have the real right to speak, the consequences of strong opposition are unpredictable.

Although King Jing has been enfeoffed in Anlu, he is the son of Emperor Jiajing after all.

In other words, the dispute over the royal heir has not really ended.

However, for now, Emperor Jiajing has tacitly agreed to Prince Yu.

At this time, if Prince Yu's Mansion has too much powerful influence in the court, it is inevitable that Emperor Jiajing will be suspicious and dissatisfied with Prince Yu.

That position has always been the one that people in their palace are nervous about.

As for the relationship between Prince Yu's Mansion and the generals of the outer towns, it is actually not as important as most people think.

Whether it is Ma Fang, the general of Xuanfu, Yu Dayou, the new general of Guangdong, or Dong Yikui, the general of Shanxi Town, they are all generals of the outer towns after all, and they are still far away from the capital.

Wei Guangde did not strongly support Ma Fang's going to Jizhen, in fact, it was also to prevent Emperor Jiajing from getting suspicious.

For the Jingying and Jizhen, which could really influence the situation in the capital, Prince Yu's Mansion never dared to extend his hand.

Prince Yu wanted Ma Fang to go to Jizhen to relieve his worries, but he had to give up after Wei Guangde said that this might be the bottom line that Emperor Jiajing could tolerate.

Of course, it is not possible to do nothing, so let some low-level officials come forward to report.

It can express the opposition of Prince Yu's Mansion, and the influence on the court is enough to reassure Emperor Jiajing.

In fact, the more detailed the understanding of Liaodong shipping, the more you will feel that there are many mysteries in it. The most fundamental thing is the omissions in the division of the Provincial Administration Commissioner of the Ming Dynasty, or it is time to reform.

Liaodong is an important area in the northern defense system of the Ming Dynasty, and its governance and chaos are directly related to the rise and fall of the Ming Dynasty.

Due to its location in the northeast corner, the communication between Liaodong and the inland areas in the Ming Dynasty can only be carried out through two roads.

One is the land route through Shanhaiguan and Liaoxi Corridor, and the other is the sea route through the Bohai Strait from Dengzhou and Laizhou in the north of Shandong Peninsula to Liaodong Peninsula.

In the early Hong period, the Ming army crossed the sea from Denglai area to the north, defeated the remnant Yuan forces, and incorporated Liaodong into the Ming Dynasty. At that time, the food, cloth and other logistical materials needed by the Liaodong garrison were also obtained through the sea route between Dengliao.

Based on this close connection, the civil affairs and judicial affairs of Liaodong in the Ming Dynasty were respectively assigned to the Liaohai Dongning Division under the Shandong Provincial Administration and the Liaohai Dongning Division under the Shandong Provincial Administration, thus forming the special administrative geographical phenomenon of "Liaodong is under Shandong".

This kind of administrative geographical division is the only one in Chinese history.

All civil affairs in Liaodong were brought under the jurisdiction of Shandong. When shipping was available, merchants gathered in parallel, and trade and goods flowed between Jin and Fu. Liaodong was called the paradise.

However, after this, Liaodong shipping was abandoned soon. Although it is mostly considered to be the same as when Liu Jin used it during the Zhengde period, the ships were damaged and not repaired, and the price of materials disappeared. Waste related.

But in fact, the fundamental reason is still the conflict of interests between the two places.

In the early days, the materials exported from Shandong to Liaodong were mainly grain, cloth, cotton, etc. However, after the fertile soil of Liaodong was reclaimed, grain could barely be self-sufficient. Liaodong had many mountains and the disadvantages of kunai cloth became apparent, requiring external support.

The Denglai area of ​​Shandong Province is suitable for cotton and lacks grains. Since then, the trade between Shandong and Liaodong has gradually changed to cloth and cotton.

At this time, the Dengliao shipping was no longer a state-mandated action in a state of war, but a step-by-step fixed procedure in peacetime.

As time went by, many detailed conflicts arose in shipping affairs, and the conflicts of regional interests between Liaodong and Shandong gradually emerged.

Although the civil affairs and judicial affairs of Liaodong were nominally under the jurisdiction of Shandong, the Liaodong Dusi in charge of Liaodong affairs was independent of Shandong's jurisdiction. This made the status of the two places relatively equal, and therefore they were more unwilling to give in to each other when conflicts of interest occurred.

For example, in the freight handover process, according to the original regulations, Shandong shipping ships should first transport cotton cloth to Liaodong, and Liaodong officials will check the quantity and quality, and then return after confirming receipt.

Just like what happened to the Cao Army during the canal's shortcomings, Liaodong officials often ordered those who transshipped the goods to pay compensation on the charge of being careless and short-handed, thereby ruining their families.

Because Liaodong officers blackmailed Shandong transshipment ships, at the suggestion of Shandong officials, the cotton handover procedure was changed to Shandong.

Liaodong sent personnel to Shandong to inspect the quantity and quality of cotton cloth. Once it passed the standard, it would be shipped and shipped. The Liaodong officer who "took cloth, banknotes and other items from Dengzhou Prefecture" was also demoted.

The problem seems to be solved, but new situations arise.

After the handover of goods was moved to Shandong, officials in Shandong, which had a favorable geographical location, began to embezzle goods for personal gain and pass off inferior goods as good goods.

However, since the officials sent by Liaodong to Shandong to hand over the goods were officials from Liaohai Dongning Branch Guarding Road and Branch Patrol Road, and they were under the jurisdiction of the Shandong Chief Secretary and the Inspectorate, it was difficult to raise objections to the quality and quantity of the goods.

In the end, the extortion party changed from Liaodong officials to Shandong officials, but the problem was still not resolved.

In order to protect the rights and interests of Liaodong sergeants, the Liaodong general military officer requested that the delivery location be changed back to Liaodong. These conflicts of interest and contradictions directly affected Shandong's enthusiasm for transporting cloth flowers, which caused slack and even resistance to shipping matters.

After all, there was no profit, and we had to bear the risk of shipping. In the end, under the coordination of the cabinet, it was adjusted to transport Shandong cloth flowers to Liaodong from Shanhaiguan overland instead of Dengliao Sea Road. Of course, the final amount is unknown. We must know the financial center of the Ming Dynasty at this time. Many of them have been changed from physical objects to discounts, that is, using money instead of physical objects.

Since then, Liao ship shipping has been completely abandoned, and all the ships have been in disrepair for many years. It has become a common practice not to open sea lanes unless necessary.

"Has His Highness discussed this matter with you in private?"

Wei Guangde looked at Yin Shizhen and nodded, then suddenly leaned over and asked softly.

"What's the matter?"

Yin Shizhen was confused and didn't know what Wei Guangde was talking about.

"That is to change the Liaodong Branch Guard Road and the Branch Patrol Road into the Chief Envoy Department and the Inspector Envoy Department, and raise the administrative level of Liaodong to a province."

Wei Guangde said directly.

Only by completely separating Liaodong from Shandong can it be possible to re-establish healthy trade exchanges between the two places.

Just kidding, it is ridiculous that two places in one world have almost completely severed ties because of their own interests.

For Shandong officials, it is disgusting that they cannot take advantage of their subordinates, so they naturally want to retaliate.

But in fact, who among the two capitals and thirteen provinces in China would block traffic because of this?

In Wei Guangde's view, as long as the administrative level of the Liaodong region can be raised and turned into the fourteenth province of the Ming Dynasty, Shandong officials will face the matter squarely, get rid of the revengeful mood of wanting to take advantage, and support the restoration of the Ming Dynasty. Trade between the two places.

At that time, who would think that this was a matter of maritime transport? It was all transportation between provinces within the empire.

In fact, as long as there is no rift between Shandong and Liaodong, there will be no chance for Hedao Yamen to cause trouble.

When Yin Shizhen heard what Wei Guangde said, he was slightly stunned, and then he realized that it was Wei Guangde who brought up the matter.

"No wonder."

Yin Shizhen stretched out his hand and tapped Wei Guangde and said, "I'm still wondering why His Highness suddenly had such an idea. It turns out it's because of you."

"Haha, it was just a sudden idea at the beginning. You must know that the administration of Liaodong was transferred to Shandong in the early years. Now Liaodong is no longer the sparsely populated situation in the past, and it has long been able to become independent."

Wei Guangde explained with a smile.

"I'm afraid this matter won't work. I opposed this change to the old rules at the time. No matter who proposed it, I'm afraid there will be great resistance."

Yin Shizhen shook his head and said.

Seeing Wei Guangde's dissatisfied look, Yin Shizhen had no choice but to explain: "Do you know the situation in Liaodong?

Although I have never been to Liaodong, I know that the place is vast and sparsely populated. Except for the Han people in the area near the Liaohai Sea in the south, there are very few Han people in the north. Most of them are local natives. They "use barbarians to control barbarians". It's all left to them to manage.

According to your idea, directly establishing a provincial government will inevitably affect the succession of those chieftains and clan leaders. By then, I am afraid that the northeastern part of Liaodong will be like the southwest, with local rebellions from time to time. "

"'Use the barbarians to control the barbarians', you are talking about the Nurgan Dusi, a Dusi Yamen that has already existed in name only."

Wei Guangde still shook his head gently and said: "To be honest, I did have the idea of ​​changing the chieftains to the officials, including restoring control over the Nurgan Dusi, but I will no longer establish a separate office, but the Liaodong Dusi will be directly responsible for it. "

"In that case, it is inevitable that there will be wars with the local Mongols, Jurchens, etc. Why do you want to do this? "

When Yin Shizhan heard Wei Guangde say this, his heart skipped a beat.

The civil officials of the Ming Dynasty actually hated wars naturally, not only because the Ming Dynasty treasury could not support such military expenditures, but also because they did not see anything worth their investment.

It was not that they had no ambition to expand their territory and did not want to leave their names in history, but because they had absolute trust in the strength of the Ming Dynasty.

Around the Ming Dynasty, except for the scabby Mongolia, no country could attract their attention.

Although Wei Guangde knew that there was a former Xuanwei Division in the southeast that would become a trouble for the Ming Dynasty in the future, he did not see too many records about this place in the documents of various ministries or the Hanlin Academy.

This is the Burmese Xuanwei Division.

The most that can be found are actually some records from the early Ming Dynasty, but they are very complicated and annoying.

Although the records are limited, the Ming Dynasty has received many requests from small countries and chieftains in the southwest in the past twenty years. The letter of assistance stated that the Toungoo Dynasty was attacking them and requested Ming to send troops to rescue them.

Whether it was the Yunnan Provincial Administration Commissioner or the Beijing court that received the letter of assistance, they thought it was just an attack between small Burmese states, so they ignored it.

Wei Guangde's historical knowledge was also limited. Naturally, he didn't know that the Burmese Toungoo Dynasty mentioned in these documents was the Burmese dynasty that had caused trouble for China in his impression, so he didn't take it seriously.

Because the civil officials were overconfident in their country's strength, they thought that the surrounding land could be easily taken by mobilizing a large army as long as the country needed it, so there was naturally no need for actual control and cultivation and development.

In order to save military expenses and appease their dissatisfaction, the Ming army of Nurgan Dusi easily let them retreat south, thus completely giving up control of that piece of land and instead supporting local tribes to control it.

People in later generations looked at the problem from a future perspective and thought that these actions of the Ming Dynasty were serious mistakes. Little did they know that at present, they might not be a good policy, a good policy to save national strength.